Fwd: crossriverwatch.com. Cameroon tribune. Bakassi – Cameroon and Nigeria, Celebrating Advances in Peaceful Coexistence

Bakassi – Cameroon and Nigeria, Celebrating Advances in Peaceful Coexistence


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From: "crossriverwatch.com" <justicenownownow@yahoo.com>
Date: Wed, 01 May 2013 04:27:01 +0000
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crossriverwatch.com

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The Commercialization of Politics in Cross River State by PDP by Obono Obla

Posted: 30 Apr 2013 10:57 AM PDT
http://crossriverwatch.com/2013/04/the-commercialization-of-politics-in-cross-river-state-by-pdp-by-obono-obla/

Barrister Obono Obla, Politician and Human Rights Activist

by crossriverwatch admin

Yesterday the Peoples Democratic Party, Cross River State Chapter published
its guidelines for aspirants seeking nomination as its Chairmanship and
Councillorship candidates respectively in the forthcoming Local Government
Council election scheduled for September, 2013 in the State.

After the publication of these guidelines ominous silence, outrage,
disbelief and shocked descended and permeated the ranks and file of the
Party on the astronomical increase in the price of expression of interest
and nominations forms for the Chairman and Councillorship positions.

In unprecedented move calculated and intended to send a strong signal that
the Party is meant for those who have enriched themselves at the expense of
the society and their cronies; the purchase price for expression of
interest and nomination forms for aspirants seeking nomination for the
Chairmanship position was fixed at N1, 000,000 million. Conversely the
purchase price for the expression of interest and nomination forms for
Councillorship position was fixed for N500, 000.

It is the height of deceit and chicanery, indeed criminal for the Party to
fix the purchase price of its expression of interest and nominations forms
at such a ridiculously high price that is clearly beyond the reach of Party
men and women who genuinely wants to use its platform to contest
Chairmanship and Councillorship positions in order to get into the local
government system to try and see if they can infuse some measure of change
to arouse it from its present, stagnant, comatose and atrophied position.

The implication of the fixing of such astronomical price for the purchase
of forms for aspirants by the PDP is that the race to get the nomination of
the Party by aspirants under its platform for the forthcoming Local
Government Council elections election is that the entire process has been
hijacked by only those with deep pockets or those who would be sponsored by
powerful and rich Party barons under the guise of god fatherism. The
institutionalization of commercial and money politics with all its
attendant negativisms has been elevated to the greatest but ridiculous
height by this latest policy thrust of the PDP.

It is a sad commentary that the PDP has refused to reform despite the huge
outcry by Nigerians over its dismal and woeful performance since it took
over the reins of governance in the country since 1999. The miserable and
scandalous under performance of the PDP is felt in all the three tiers of
governments in the Country. However it is most palpable in the Local
Government tier because that tier of government is the closest to the
people.

The manipulation of the Local Government tier of government by Governors in
the Country especially in PDP controlled States has led to the complete
collapse of that vital tier of government with the attendant grave
implication in the development of the country rural areas. The
merchantilist and buccaneer style of politicking introduced into Nigerian
political terrain by the PDP has led to the seizure of the political
landscape by those who do not mean well for the hapless people of this
country.

It is now clear to the people that the change we all desire, clamor and
want will never come from PDP. The Party is doomed. It is right time
Nigerians shun the Party and seek for alternative platform. The PDP is like
a leopard that will hardly change its spots. The PDP is bad luck. Nigerians
must certainly look elsewhere. It is even a slap on the face of the people
of Cross River State.

This huge cost of nomination form in the PDP is a challenge to the people
and I pray that they take the gauntlet by embracing alternative platforms
offered by other political parties in the State to call the bluff of the
PDP.

The PDP will only sit up when the people are ready to give it a challenge
by being alive to their responsibility of good citizenship by shunning the
enticements usually thrown at them by PDP during election time and vote
according to their conscience.

Okoi Obono-Obla

follow us on twitter @crossriverwatch


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Cross River Has Spent N5b on Education - Deputy Governor

Posted: 30 Apr 2013 03:57 AM PDT
http://crossriverwatch.com/2013/04/cross-river-has-spent-n5b-on-education-deputy-governor/


by crossriverwatch admin
Efiok Cobham, Deputy Governor Cross River State

The Cross River State Government says it has spent the sum of 3billion
Naira on secondary and 2.7billion Naira on primary education since the
inception of the Senator Liyel Imoke administration in 2007.

.

Mr. Efiok Cobham, the deputy governor of the state made the revelation in
Calabar on Monday while declaring open a workshop on ICT for secondary
schools in the state.

Cobham said the government has invested over N6b for the funding of
secondary schools operating in the State between 2007 to 2013.

He added that the workshop was organized as a training retreat by the State
Ministry of Education in conjunction with EDUComp Solutions Limited, India
to train teachers on the use of computers.

He said the state was emphasizing e-learning for pupils and students of the
state since the world has become a global village where a child in the
state is expected to be able to compete with a child in Malaysia.

Mr. Cobham added that the government was living up to its responsibility in
funding education at the primary level and has sunk the sum of N2.7billion
Naira as its counterpart funding for various educational programs in the
state and has rehabilitated over 500 class room blocks in primary schools.

He said government had also established five new secondary schools and
three primary schools to expand access to primary and secondary education
to ensure that school-age children are not denied access to qualitative
education.

According to him, this has translated to an increase of 25% to 30%
enrollment in public primary and secondary schools stressing that
investment in the education sector included manpower development through
scholarships, printing of textbook for primary and secondary schools at
subsidized rate, payment of WAEC and NAPTEB registration fees which
according to him have also impacted positively on generality of the people.

Also speaking Commissioner for Education Prof. Offiong Offiong said that
the training became necessary since government had distributed over 10,000
laptops/computers to teachers at primary and secondary schools.

Offiong who also spoke on the importance of the retreat pointed out that
the retreat came at a time when 60 secondary schools under comprehensive
renovation of schools phase 1 are being installed with state of the art
computers systems adding that the State educational system intend to
introduce digital literacy models before 2015 which would help train
student in both primary and post primary schools.

Offiong said that his Ministry also resolved to implement the Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) with EDUComp Solution Limited which he hopes would
revolutionize the education delivery in the State adding that in the last
six years, the Imoke led administration has committed so much into that
sector just to take education to a higher pedestal.

follow us on twitter @crossriverwatch


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Cross River LG Polls: PDP Aspirants to Pay N1m as Imoke Insist on Zoning

Posted: 30 Apr 2013 03:30 AM PDT
http://crossriverwatch.com/2013/04/cross-river-lg-polls-pdp-aspirants-to-pay-n1m-as-imoke-insist-on-zoning/

Ntufam John Okon
Chairman, PDP
Cross River State

by crossriverwatch admin

From all indications, current council chairmen and councilors in Cross
River State who are angling to return to their posts in December 2013 on
the Peoples Democratic Party ticket have been left in the cold as the Cross
River State Governor Senator Liyel Imoke has insisted that zoning of
positions must have to take place so that those who have not had a touch of
such offices could be given an opportunity.

Aspirants for the September 21 elections under PDP have also been asked to
cough out whooping sums of N500, 000 for intent form and N1m for nomination
form for the post of Chairman and N100, 000 for intent form and N300, 000
for nomination form for councilor.

Senator Imoke who is the leader of the PDP in the State told party caucuses
and stakeholders in a meeting held at about 3am on Sunday that zoning of
offices in the coming election is mandatory because it enhances peace and
equity so those seeking to return to their posts should give way for others.

The governor said he is aware that those who are angling to return are
harping on the fact that they have performed satisfactorily and should be
given another three years but that would not be fair to other party
faithfuls who have been waiting in the wings to occupy such positions.

The Governor was quoted to have said that even in his Local Government, Abi
where Frank Eta, the current chairman is angling to return, he has asked
him to stay aside and allow another person take his post.

"His Excellency knows that there is not much that a council chairman does
since most of the projects are executed by the state and sees the position
of chairman or councilor as empowerment for the boys and so if one person
has had his share, it is only fair that another be given the same
opportunity". A source who was at the meeting said.

Imoke who had before his trip to the US during the Easter period saddled
his three Personal Assistants on Political Matters (north, central, south)
to collate the list of wards and units that have not had the opportunity of
producing chairman or councilor to him told the political stakeholders to
"ensure that they keep to the tenets of equity and fairness and accordingly
zone the elective positions in their local government of wards". Our source
said.

On complaints that the sum of N500, 000 for intent form and N1m for
nomination form for the post of chairman and N100, 000 for intent form and
300,000 for nomination form for councilor was too high, the governor is
said to have told them that "The car for a Chairman is N15m so why should
the person wishing to be chairman not be ready to sacrifice a paltry N1.5m
to purchase the party form?".

Meanwhile political activities in the state are on the high within the PDP
as each stakeholder or aspirant is making desperate rounds to solicit for
support with the release of the party guidelines on Monday and the near
absence of activity by the opposition parties.

follow us on twitter @crossriverwatch


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Bakassi - Cameroon and Nigeria, Celebrating Advances in Peaceful Coexistence

Posted: 30 Apr 2013 01:59 AM PDT
http://crossriverwatch.com/2013/04/bakassi-cameroon-and-nigeria-celebrating-advances-in-peaceful-coexistence/

President Paul Biya of Cameroon and President Jonathan of Nigeria

by Cameroon Tribune

The 31st session of the United Nations Mixed Commission for the
Implementation of the ICJ Judgment of October 10, 2002 on the 25th of April
in Yaounde with many advances to show in the area of peace.

The relaxed and convivial atmosphere at the cock-tail in the Yaounde
Hilton, by experts and attendees at the opening ceremony of yet another
mixed commission session between plenipotentiaries from Nigeria and
Cameroon under the supervision of the UN, gives a clear picture of the
state of relations today between Nigeria and Cameroon.

All the three speakers who took the floor at the opening session of the
31st session of the UN-sponsored mixed commission had some praiseworthy
words for the state of relations between the two countries today.

Beginning with the leader of the Cameroonian delegation, Mr Amadou Ali,
Vice Prime Minister and Minister-Delegate at the Presidency of the Republic
in charge of relations with Parliament and the Economic and Social Council.

After welcoming the delegates from Nigeria and the United Nations, the
Cameroonian plenipotentiary observed that relations between Cameroon and
Nigeria have so improved that in 2011, they reached a point never attained
before, as Nigeria became Cameroons first trading partner.

Proof of this new friendly posture is also the signing of numerous
cooperation agreements, notably in the area of trans-border security,
electricity inter-connectivity, trans-border roads and the bridge over the
Mayo Tiel.

With regard to the Commissions work, virtually all ground work on boundary
demarcation has been completed as Mr Amadou Ali revealed that all the three
parties had already agreed on where to put pegs on a distance of some 1913
kilometers of the 2100-odd kilometers of the Cameroon-Nigeria border.

It was also satisfactory to note that some 467 beacons had effectively been
put up from the Lake Chad area down to around the North Region of Cameroon.
What is left is however quite daunting because it involves not only
building the 500 beacons left or working on the kilometer area which is
still in dispute, but also agreeing on the final boundary map.

The leader of the Nigerian delegation and that countrys Attorney General
and Minister of Justice Mohammed Bello Adoke seemed to have found some
quick solutions to Mr Alis worries by positing a very cooperative posture
of the Nigerian side.

The Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) said in his opening statement that
more than anything else, the most significant achievement of the Mixed
Commission is the prevalence of peace between Cameroon and Nigeria.

The Nigerian minister said it was thanks to peace that Cameroon and Nigeria
had, among other things: returned to the discussion table by restoring the
erstwhile Nigeria-Cameroon Joint Commission; the exchange of high-level
visits between Cameroon and Nigeria; the withdrawal and transfer of
authority in the Lake Chad in December 2003; the withdrawal and transfer of
authority on the land boundary between Cameroon and Nigeria in 2004 as well
as confidence-building measures along the common border.

It is the desire of the Nigerian side to see to the fast-tracking of the
implementation of the modalities for the Trans-border Security Agreement
earlier signed between the two countries, with emphasis on joint border
patrols and a unified command along the entire border.

In view of the huge success of the Mixed Commission, the Special
Representative of the UN Secretary-General for West Africa and Chairman of
the Cameroon-Nigeria Mixed Commission, Said Djinnit, said he had solicited
the support of the European Union, the World Bank, the African Development
Bank and the United Nations Development Program for funding to ensure that
many of the trans-border initiatives are sustained.

He said the effectiveness of cooperation between Cameroon and Nigeria was
best exemplified by the recent release of hostages taken in Cameroon and
kept in Nigeria. He was full of praises for the role played by President
Paul Biya in the release of the hostages.

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