Senate moves to amend CCB Act to remove Office from the SGF

A Bill to amend the Act establishing the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) passed the first reading at the Senate on Tuesday as the National Assembly resumed plenary after the Easter recess.

The senate also passed for the first reading, seven other bills, including a bill seeking to amend the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) which was passed by the 7th National Assembly.

Speaking to newsmen after plenary, sponsor of the CCB Act amendment Bill, Senator Peter Nwaoboshi (Delta North, PDP) said that it had become necessary to amend the Act establishing the CCB and its Tribunal.

He said that the main aim of the amendment was to move the bureau and the tribunal away from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF).

“The Code of Conduct Tribunal and the Code of Conduct Bureau now are under the office of the Secretary to the Government (SGF).

The secretary to the government is a politician and can use it against political opponents or perceived political opponents. He oversees the CCB and the CCT; they report to his office.

Since the Supreme Court in their judgment has said that they are a court of some sort, they must be seen to be neutral in nature and not to report to a politician.

We want to make it completely neutral, either move it to the judiciary or move it to the National Assembly that has the power to remove the chairman and members of the tribunal.

Otherwise, one day like we are seeing now, if you are an enemy to the SGF, he will use the CCB to put you into trouble, charge you there like we are seeing now.

The intent is not because of what is happening; you cannot put a quasi judicial arm under the control of the SGF who is a politician, appointed by the President,” he said.

The senator added that the amendment to the Act would include stipulating a time line within which the bureau should investigate assets declared by a political office holder.

He said that it was out of place for the CCB to prescribe that a political office holder should declare assets at the beginning and end of his tenure “while the bureau decides when to investigate.”

“Within the time you came to office and the time you are leaving office they must have investigated your assets; what is left is to investigate the assets declared when leaving office.

You do not just leave it for so many years, and then all of a sudden, someone wakes up and says `56 years ago you did not declare your asset’; that should not be so.

You have been given a time frame to declare at the beginning and at the end, but within the four years, the CCB does not conduct its investigations immediately.

Who says that someone cannot stand up tomorrow when President Buhari leaves office and says that he did not declare his asset at a particular time?

The court has said that it made a mistake in Tinubu’s case which means another political party can come up tomorrow and pick up Tinubu.

There should be a time frame, not when you wake up any day you just slam anybody, and do you now see the patriotism in what I am doing?” he said.

On the perception that the Bill was informed because of the current trial of President of the Senate by the CCB, Nwaoboshi said that perception would not deter him.

He said that he would not shy away from doing something that was right and patriotic because of what Nigerians would say.

“My duty is to the Nigerian people; we should not leave a sensitive organ like that under the whims and caprices of a politician who is the SGF. It should be left in the hands of the judiciary or the legislature,” he said.

The other bills passed for first reading were In-Vitro Fertilisation Bill 2016, Criminal Injuries Compensation Bill and National Sports Commission Establishment Bill.

Others included Nigeria Football Federation Establishment Bill and Environmental Health Officers Registration Amendment Bill.

Nikki Laoye & Banky W are Bride & Groom in the Video for their Duet – ‘Onyewuoma’ | See BTS Photos & Teaser

Soul Singer Nikki Laoye has shot the video for her love song duet, ‘Onyeuwaoma’ featuring R&B Maestro, Banky W. The fun-filled romantic video was shot on location at the Lekki Conservation Centre in Lagos, Nigeria.

Nikki’s mum, Yetunde Laoye, makes a cameo appearance and she has been such a huge support to her only daughter and has featured in some of her other videos like “Taka Sufe”, “African Dance” and “123”.

The video was directed by award winning video director, Frizzle and Bizzle Films and is slated for release this Thursday 14th of April, 2016.

Meanwhile, here’s a sneak peek at the highly anticipated video from a short teaser and Behind-The-Scenes Photos

FG denies Involvement in Defamatory Reports on Switzerland Ambassador’s Alleged Gay Partner in Nigeria

Last Monday, it was alleged that the Head of Swiss Mission to Nigeria Ambassador Eric Mayooraz came to Nigeria with his gay partner. The report also said that the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Akinremi Bolaji disclosed that the Federal government has commenced investigation into the matter. Click here for the story.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama in a statement has come out to say that the Federal Government is not aware of the issue at hand and could not have authorised anyone to speak on its behalf.

The Government has learned with shock and dismay of a defamatory article in a Nigerian newspaper against the Ambassador of the Swiss Confederation to Nigeria,

I wish to state categorically that the Government has no knowledge whatsoever of any of the matters discussed in the article and could therefore not have authorized anyone to speak on its behalf in respect of them.

With regard to the defamatory article, the Government has ordered an investigation and appropriate measures will be taken for any wrongdoing.

It is to be emphasized that Nigeria and Switzerland enjoy very cordial relations.

Port Harcourt to Host the World at African Movie Academy Awards – AMAA 2016 in June

Juliet Ibrahim & OC Ukeje at AMAA 2015

The African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) would be would be returning to Nigeria for the 2016 edition! This time it’s taking place in the garden city of Port Harcourt in Rivers state! AMAA serves as a pan-African reward system for motion picture practitioners and held nine successfully consecutive editions in Bayelsa State, one in Abuja, Lagos and Port Elizabeth, South Africa respectively.(Click here for a recap of AMAA 2015).

In a statement jointly signed by the state Commissioner of Culture & Tourism, Tonye Briggs Oniyide, on behalf of the state Governor, and the founder of the awards organization, Peace Anyiam-Osigwe, this year’s awards ceremony will be the beginning of a partnership that will add immense value to the people of the state and the host city in particular as the government is determined to position Port Harcourt as a destination of choice in Nigeria and West Africa.

Tonye Briggs said,

“We are repositioning Rivers State as a state ready for business to Nigerians and the rest of the world and our partnership with AMAA will become a veritable platform to attract tourists, global and Nigeria icons in business and the entertainment industry.

We want to showcase Rivers State as a peaceful place where socio-economic activities thrive and also the hospitality of our people. There is a huge economy around entertainment and show business in Port Harcourt.

While our state is known for her hydrocarbon resources His Excellency, Governor Wike’s administration through the Ministry of Culture & Tourism through initiatives like AMAA wants the world to know and take advantage of the business opportunities that abound in Rivers State,”

The commissioner also added that the state will soon unveil a calendar of entertainment and tourist activities that will create job opportunities for the youths of the state.

The awards founder, Peace Anyiam-Osigwe also added that it indeed marks the beginning of a new phase in the journey of the continental awards that started 12 years ago, “We are very happy with this development and express our gratitude to Governor Wike and the good people of Rivers State. We value this partnership and we promise that it will be a rewarding one for the government and people of this great state.”

This year’s awards will now take place on Saturday 11th of June, 2016 and the nomination night where nominees into the 28 categories will be announced will hold on Wednesday 11th of May, 2016. Previous nomination nights took place in Accra, Nairobi, Johannesburg, Banjul, Lilongwe, Ouagadougou and Los Angeles.

As part of the pre-AMAA activities, Rivers state will host a sponsorship night in conjunction with the Africa Film Academy to mobilize corporate sponsors for the awards while the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) has been signed on as the major broadcast partner for the awards night with a Live Telecast to over 100 million people across the globe.  Other media partners include Africa Magic, OHTV UK, SABC South Africa and ONTV.

Emeka Talks: The Best Gift You Can Give Any Nigerian Right Now is a Keg of Fuel

If you live in Lagos or any part of Nigeria Nigeria, it is very likely that you have been a part of the unending search for petrol to power automobiles and generators which have become part of daily life. Metaphors of life in Nigeria in recent weeks zoomed across TV screens and on social media around the globe have been pretty pathetic. Stretched queues, scowling traffic and chaos have now become a norm in major cities of Nigeria.

I am pretty sure if any multinational organisation is recruiting based on patience level, Nigerians will top that list. The best gift you can possibly give to any Nigerian right now is a keg of petrol. They will forever be grateful to you.

At every turn in Lagos and other major cities in Nigeria, you are accosted long queue of cars, tricycles at petrol stations waiting endlessly to buy gasoline. These Motorcyclists and vehicle owners now keep vigil at filling stations that have now become battle fields, as they struggle to fill their tanks, generating sets, and other fuel consuming machines. Nigerians are furious and have expressed disappointment in Muhammadu Buhari for embarking on several trips, and most recently to the United States of America for the Nuclear Summit, while Nigerians are suffering back home in the midst of unprecedented fuel scarcity. Some are convinced that this looming hardship is the change we all expected.

Just after the recent move by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to assure the public of plans to end fuel scarcity in Nigeria and supposedly taken a series of steps to ensure that their promise is met, the situation appears to have worsened.

Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) even went ahead to announced that The federal government has retained the pump price of petrol at the prevailing N86.50 for oil marketers and N86 for retail outlets belonging to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), for the second quarter of 2016; yet retail outlets still sell at ridiculous prices.

One would think that with all these measures in place “on live TV”, Nigerians should be optimistic about the situation, but the opposite seems to be the case.

It is tough to imagine that for almost a month, Nigerians have been queuing at fuel service stations all over the country just to get petrol for their vehicles – the situation appears unbearable. Nigeria’s economy appears to be experiencing even more setbacks with this worsening fuel crisis.

Petrol is selling over 200 Naira per litre in the South-south, but it seems to be worse in the Northern region where fuel is said to be sold at over 300 Naira. In some cases, buyers have to pay more than double the usual amount to get fuel into their cars.

Now imagine what this means for small and medium scale businesses who  rely on petrol to run electricity generating plants. If not checked, businesses will begin to close down.  This crisis has made goods, commodities and services increase in terms of prices. This crises, if not curbed will continue to affect socio-economic activities. It sure looks like the nation’s economy is in shambles as the Naira is constantly experiencing a free fall.

Back to the promises. There have also been constant reassurances that all the three Refineries, Warri, Port Harcourt and Kaduna would resume refining crude oil for local consumption by the end of April to address the current scarcity. Again, should this promise be taken seriously? Time will tell.

Probing deeper, I’m left with no other choice but to wonder if Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, the minister of state for petroleum resources and Nigerian National Petroleum Commission (NNPC) was actually right when he admitted that the crushing fuel crisis could extend into May.

While the focus has primarily been on the fuel crisis, the case has been further worsened by the incessant power outages as power supply has further dropped to 2,600 MW, with the supervising agencies unable to give cogent reasons for the continued drop in power supply. The situation has left many parts of the country in perpetual darkness, as some electricity distribution companies, popularly known as Discos, get as low as 91MW for onward distribution to households.

President Buhari has embarked on more foreign trips than he has done within the country, despite the myriad of challenges facing the country: from the desperation to buy American dollars which has continued to affect its exchange rate at the parallel market, leading to further depreciation, to the lingering fuel situation.

Some Nigerians believe that President Buhari is engaging in wasteful international trips. Others believe that the president is restoring the confidence of the country in the international community.

Some others have gone as far as voicing their frustration on social media to say that Mr. President is fulfilling his dreams of travelling to his dream countries and is unbothered about the situation in Nigeria.

Many are of the opinion that the high note on which the beginning of the new administration of President Buhari was sung on the world stage seems to be fizzling out, and turning gloomy.

Does Mr. President’s numerous trips really translate to repairing the image and restoring the confidence of the country in the international community? And will the NNPC and Federal government truly to their words to end this fuel crisis for good?!

This is indeed a tough time for every Nigerian and ”hopefully”, this nightmare will disappear soon. Hopefully.

Nasarawa state lawmakers fight seriously over Governor Al-Makura's appointments

Nigeria recorded yet another
national embarrassment as the
members of Nasarawa state
House of Assembly exchanged
blows, tore clothes, broke
bottles, broke chairs and broke
noses.
The members engaged in a
free-for-all on Monday over the
appointment of sole
administrators for 11 local
government councils by
Governor Tanko Al-Makura.
The trouble occurred on the
floor of the legislature barely
two hours after the governor
inaugurated the 11 sole
administrators.
Some of the members sided
Governor Al-Makura while
others were against it because
of what the constitution says.
a member, House Committee on
Information, Mr. Makpa Malla,
said that seats and tables were
broken during the fight.
Describing the appointment by
the governor as illegal, Malla
said the Assembly could not
continue to watch the governor
perpetrate illegalities in the
state.
He said, “As you can see, this is
the executive room of the state
House of Assembly, where we
sit down every morning to
discuss matters which would
bring development to the state
and the country at large.
“Categorically, I want to state
here that the division which
caused this chaos was as result
of the appointment of the sole
administrators by the governor.
As a responsible legislature
with some of us as lawyers, we
insisted that the right thing
must be done.
“The Section 7 of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria – as
amended – guarantees a
democratic system of
governance at the local
government level. The provision
of the constitution is explicit on
how the local government
structure should be run.
“That is why we are kicking
against the appointment of the
sole administrators. Sole
administrators only existed
during the military era and as
respecters of the rule of law,
we must ensure that the
executive must also respect the
rule of law.”

Kelechi Udoagwu: How To Get A Job Without Connections in Nigeria

Things are hard in Nigeria, no doubt about that. Our industries and government work suboptimally, and we’re used to it. New and old graduates face the anxiety of trying to fend for themselves with limited options. An advantage of living in a country like ours, however, is that we learn to take care of things ourselves.

Before I started working on Skrife, I worked several jobs in different companies, and while I agree that I got referred to some by people in my network; I got the majority of these jobs without connections, affiliations, or someone who knows someone.

No one should sit back and get used to being unemployed. Retain a sense of urgency in your search and be ready to seize any opportunity that comes your way. Here’s some advice on how to get a job when you don’t know anyone:

Treat your job search as a full-time job
Treat your job search like a full-time job and show up to work everyday. Regardless of how lethargic you may feel, staying idle will make you feel more frustrated. Put some structure in your life by working on tasks that relate to your search for at least 5 hours everyday eg 9am to 2pm. Tasks can include researching companies and vacancies, speaking to and emailing people, attending conferences, stalking executives, reading industry articles, emailing agencies, following up on sent applications, etc. If you’re consistent with this, you have a chance of getting a job quicker than you imagine. Take your job – your lack of a job – seriously.

Remind yourself that it’s a numbers game
It’s fact that job searching and periods of unemployment can be the most ego-smashing and discouraging time in a person’s life, but you really shouldn’t get affected by every rejection or bad day. Even the most intelligent get rejected for reasons they can’t fathom. Learn to think of rejections in a positive way like, the more rejections you get, the more likely you are to get selected soon. Measure it even; if you have a 1:100 chance of getting a job, for every 100 no’s, you get one yes. So go on and keep applying till you get that one yes. Don’t get defeated by rejections. Keep your numbers up.

Beef up your CV
Before sending your CV to any company, research the company, management team, and the role you’re applying for. Researching helps you figure out ways you can stand out instead of depending on luck like other job-seekers. You can’t control the recruiter’s mood, the company’s intent, or what keywords they look for; but you can control the amount of work you put in and how good you appear. Learn about the company culture, and reflect it in your CV. If they’re a fun, young company, write like a fun, young person. If they’re not, be serious and professional. Always read the job brief at least twice before you apply.

Bump into someone from the company
Like I wrote above, look up the management team and employees of the company, and try to establish a relationship with someone. Check their Linkedin and other social accounts to see if you have any mutual connections who can introduce you to the Hiring Manager or give you useful information. You can tweet at them or try to schedule an in-person appointment. Approach anyone the right way and they will pay attention to you.

Be ready with your elevator pitch always
Define what’s most interesting and marketable about you, and practice talking about it. An elevator pitch is a clear, brief message that communicates who you are, what you’re looking for and how you can be of value to a company. Craft a 30 seconds conversational pitch that you can remember even at 2am at night. Here’s a sample template to craft yours: “Hi, my name is ______________. I just graduated from ______________ with a degree in ______________. While in the university, I worked at ______________ and discovered I have real passion for it. I’m good at ______________, ______________, ______________ and I’m looking for an entry-level job in that space. Do you have any leads or advice?”

Send personalized messages via Linkedin
Whether you’re connecting with a friend or someone you don’t know, always send a customized connection request on Linkedin rather than the generic “I’d like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn”. Using the generic template is the height of laziness, and professional nonchalance. You can use a concise message like this, “Hi, I’m an avid reader of your column in ______________ and just watched your interview on ______________. I want to thank you for all your efforts to ______________, and would love to ask you a few questions on ______________. I would appreciate if we can connect and schedule a call or chat at your convenience. Thank you!”

Upgrade your online presence
When people google your name, what “brand” will they see? The person you are online should be consistent on all social media platforms. Don’t be a writer on Linkedin and a club manager on Twitter. No crazy pictures, cuss words, late night selfies on Facebook, and religious verses on Twitter. If you can’t give up your crazy side for your professional side, create two accounts – one alter ego account with a made up name, and one professional account with your real name. Be clear and consistent with your brand and messaging so anyone who looks you up can see you how you’ll like to be seen.

Prove that you can work harder than anyone else
Add something unconventional, unique, or thoughtful to your applications; something that makes you pop amongst all the boring CVs with no personality. You can attach a mock financial forecast for the company if you’re an accountant, a marketing strategy for a new product if you’re a marketer, a beautiful logo for the company if you’re a designer. Instead of begging to be hired, which is what a lot of job seekers do in their cover letters, show that you are skilled and trained, and can hit the ground running if hired. It might not seem fair that you’re doing so much work for a job you might not get. But doing so gives you a higher chance of getting the job. Never let “fair” get in the way of achieving your goals.

Talk to God and everyone about your search
After doing all the above, talk to God and ask for guidance to pick the right companies and not waste your time. Also ask for patience and optimism through the tough times. Talk to people around you too. No one can help if they don’t know what you’re going through or what you’re looking for. Leverage on your existing connections – family, friends, alumni, neighbors, friends of friends, and friends of friends of friends.

A job search is a phase almost everyone passes through at some point in their lives. Don’t let it be a long phase in yours. Be smart about how you do things, and you can get the job you want without knowing anyone, even in a country like ours.