Worldwide rallies demand action on climate change

Tens of thousands marched across Australia Sunday on a third day of worldwide rallies as pressure mounts on global leaders to strike a pact on slashing greenhouse gases at crunch talks in still-shaken Paris.

Some 150 leaders including US President Barack Obama, China’s Xi Jinping, India’s Narendra Modi and Russia’s Vladimir Putin will attend the start of the UN conference Monday, tasked with reaching the first truly universal climate pact.

The goal is to limit average global warming to two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), perhaps less, over pre-Industrial Revolution levels by curbing fossil fuel emissions blamed for climate change.

Rallies demanding curbs to carbon pollution have been snowballing since Friday with marches across Australia Sunday kickstarting a final day of people-powered protest.

Similar events were planned for Seoul, Rio de Janeiro, New York and Mexico City, among others cities, with scientists warning of superstorms, drought, and rising sea levels that swamp vast areas of land if concrete action is not taken.

“There is no Planet B,” said one placard in Sydney where tens of thousands of people converged, while another read: “Solidarity on a global scale”.

A large event in Melbourne on Friday kick-started the global campaign, with rallies on Saturday from New Zealand, to the Philippines, Bangladesh and Japan.

Lack of funds delaying appointment of Commissioners in Plateau

Simon Lalong, the governor of Plateau State

Mr Emmanuel Nanle, Director of Press and Public Affairs to the Plateau Governor, said that lack of funds and other requirements was delaying the constitution of the Plateau Executive Council.

Nanle, however, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Jos on Sunday that the state cabinet will be constituted as soon as the issues were resolved.

He said that some issues needed to be resolved before the appointment of individuals to head the ministries and commissions in the state.

According to him, the ministries and commissions cannot function effectively without funds.

NAN reports that Gov. Simon Lalong is yet to appoint commissioners and special advisers six months after his inauguration.

“The APC-led government came to power and replaced another political party that had been in charge for the past 16 years.

“So there is the need for it to lay its foundation before making appointments.

“The governor is waiting for the transition committee report to get the true position of things in the state.

“APC took over from a government that has been in power for the past 16 years.

“The rivalry and animosity prevented access to vital information that would influence government’s decisions, as it were, and that took almost two months.

“The governor, thereafter, directed every local government to initiate a process through which people, who will represent them in government, will be selected.

“Through the process, three names were produced from each local government, and since democracy is process-driven, there is the need to give time for consultation from the community level up to the state level.’’

Nanle said that the government was also waiting for the Federal Government to streamline the number of ministries for the state government to have a first line charge.

He stated that on the basis of what has taken place at the federal level, Plateau will not have more than 15 ministries as it is now.

Nanle, however, said that persons nominated to serve in the state executive council had passed the stage of security screening.

“The list will be presented to the State House of Assembly by the first week of December and hopefully, in the second week, we should have commissioners and special advisers in Plateau,’’ the director said.

UK Envoy Defends Deportation Of 48 Nigerians

British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Paul Arkwright, has defended the deportation of no fewer than 48 Nigerians from the United Kingdom, few days ago, saying thosen who live in the country illegally can not expect to be allowed to continue to stay.

Arkwright, in a write up made available to The Guardian yesterday, said that Nigerians are always welcome legally to the UK, either for business, leisure or as students, but will not be allowed to continue to stay illegally.

He said 48, and not 500 Nigerians were deported, adding that UK currently hosts up to 250,000 Nigerians, who are living legally in the country.

He noted however, that the United Kingdom would not condone Nigerians, who are staying illegally, just as it will also not condone any other national staying illegally.

“Today up to 250,000 Nigerians are living legally in the UK, making a significant contribution and adding to the rich fabric of our society. Every year around 130,000 Nigerians visit the UK from Nigeria for both business and leisure. Nigerians, who come to the United Kingdom in accordance with our well publicised rules will always be welcome guests.

“So it has been disappointing to read, in a few isolated incidents, inaccurate media reporting of the UK’s policy concerning how we return Nigerians back to their home country when they have been present illegally in the UK.

“The UK cannot ignore those who choose not to play by the rules. Like Nigeria, the United Kingdom operates a robust but fair immigration system. The law in the UK is very clear: those who are in the UK illegally and have made the choice not to leave voluntarily will be required to leave. Decisions to remove people are not made lightly and we adhere to international obligations – particularly the European Convention on Human Rights – and our own clear domestic law. Decisions made can be appealed and challenged under the scrutiny of an impartial judiciary in court. Fairness and transparency are key. We apply the same rules for Nigerians as we do for any foreign visitor to the UK”.

‘Obasanjo Created Subsidy To Cheat Govt’

Obasanjo

DESPITE recent call by former Central Bank Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, for an increase in Value Added Tax (VAT), an expert has warned that “government will collapse in no time,” if the suggestion is followed.

“I am sure and I hope President Buhari would not do this,” said former KPMG Chairman and former Minister of Finance under the Sani Abacha government, Etubom Anthony Ani.

“We don’t need to increase VAT because all we need do is send people to the local governments to collect it. At the moment, consumers pay VAT. You have to consume. And individuals are the ones who consume, not goats or trees. These individuals stay in various local governments of Nigeria. Let the VAT collector go to the local governments. The VAT is waiting for him to be collected. I estimate that we will be having about N3tr annually, if the VAT man goes to the local government. We don’t need to increase VAT; let us collect what has not been collected,” said Ani, who is also a former President of the Chartered Institute of Accountants.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with The Guardian, recently, Ani faulted the petroleum subsidy scheme, describing it as a ruse and calling on government to instead “get the nation’s refineries right.”

According to the former Minister of Finance, “There is nothing like subsidy in Nigeria. Obasanjo did that to assist people to cheat this nation. We had a situation where one person was given the sole right to import diesel, yet we could have produced the diesel.”

He said: “What is happening is that the template Obasanjo brought in for petroleum products was importation-based. I, and Aminu Saleh and Buhari drafted the Petroleum Trust Fund (PFT) law and it was based on production. Let us go back to production. When you produce, you have by-products and those by-products are even more expensive than your barrel of oil. Therefore, if you do the production costing properly, you will find out that the cost of production of your litre of oil is much less than what we are importing.

“Therefore, let us go back to the issue of changing the template to that of production. What we are doing now is that the driver in this country is subsidising what is produced in petro-chemicals and fertilisers because all the by-products go there, and they are going there at zero cost. Whereas, if you do it properly, you will find out that what is going into petro-chemicals, the costing is even more expensive than a barrel of oil. So, let’s get our acts right.”

Kogi/INEC/APC/PDP: Incompetence, dishonesty, tribalism on steroids

What makes a President and Commander-in-Chief  of the Armed Forces believe that relating with the law the way he wishes is the best pathway to democratic governance?

Now, the consequence of President Muhammad Buhari’s seeming lack of appreciation of due electoral process, or his decided indifference to   the imperatives of engaging the full complements of the composition of a board for the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, or both, is the controversial  outcome of the Kogi State governorship election held penultimate Saturday.

In what is turning out to be a grand conspiracy fuelled by dishonesty and made worse by sheer incompetence, the decision of INEC to declare the election inconclusive is not only a rape on the electoral process but  also  dangerous  to Nigeria’s democracy.

From the pronouncement of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, to the belated but choreographed acquiescence of INEC and the consequential declaration by the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Chief John Oyegun, on the issue of substitution, and the curious and the unintelligent push by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, that Governor Idris Wada should be declared winner, it is, thus, appearing that critical provisions of the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act, as amended, can be trumped at will by a government that benefited immensely from the modest but important strides in the journey to enthroning democracy in the country.   

This report will show why President Buhari, Attorney-General Malami, INEC, APC and PDP are all engaged in a gratuitous comedy of errors.   It will also show why INEC should swallow its wounded pride and follow the provisions of the 1999 Constitution.

KOGI BY THE NUMBERS … DONT LIE

Total number of registered voters = 1,350,883Total number of votes cast –  479,157Audu Abubakar of AP’s score’s                –  240,867Idris Wada of PDP’s score –  199,514Margin of victory between Audu and Wada

–  41,000

Registered voters in canceled 91PUs – 49,000Total number of PVCs available in affected area

–  35, 785

Number of those who were accredited in the 91PUs –  19,178

WHAT IS KNOWN

The issues arising from the figures listed above can be further interrogated by  identifying whether 35,785 can ever be more than 41,000.   If, by sheer common sense and arithmetic deductions, 35,785 is less than 41,000, INEC would have to explain to Nigerians the logic behind its declaration of an election inconclusive.   This would be so because the All Progressives  Congress, APC, candidate, Abubakar Audu, had 41,000 votes more than his closest rival, Governor Idris Wada of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.   In addition, Audu scored the constitutionally required 25% in, at least, two thirds of the local government areas of Kogi State.   The state has 21 LGAs and Audu met the constitutional provision in 16 LGAs, thereby making him the undeclared winner – he satisfied the provisions of Section 179 of the Constitution and Section 69 of the Electoral Act, EA.   And the number of accredited voters in the 91 Polling Units where elections are to be held is even less than the number of PVCs available.

Section 179 – 1 and 2 – says  a person shall be deemed to have been elected if he scores the highest number of votes and has,

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