Power generation has increased by 40% – Barth Nnaji

A major power grid

 

Lagos – The Minister of Power, Prof. Barth Nnaji, says the nation’s current power generation is 4, 400 megawatts, representing more than 40 per cent of the expectation in 2012.
Nnaji disclosed this on Monday at the opening ceremony of a gymnasium built for workers at Egbin Power Station in Lagos.
He said that the power generation had increased by more than 40 per cent since President Goodluck Jonathan was elected in May, 2011.
“So, this is a tremendous achievement for the president and the government to have improved power supply that way.
“That is why you see people all over the country saying there is availability of power and that they are receiving power now better than before,’’ he said.
Nnaji said that Nigerians should not bother about the amount of power generated, stressing that there were many things to show for it.
He said that discussions were going on between government and electricity workers union in respect of their severance packages and salary increase.
It will be recalled that the minister, had on Feb.17,  said that the nation could achieve 9,000 megawatts by December.
Nnaji had also said that the country was losing 1,500 megawatts of electricity due to gas shortage (NAN)

Rwanda change Eagles match venue

THE HEAT IS ON: Nigeria coach, Stephen Keshi dishes out instructions to his wards, ahead the Rwanda game

 

THE 2013 Nations Cup qualifier between Rwanda and Nigeria will not be played at the Amahoro Stadium, but a smaller facility also in the capital city of Kigali, officials have disclosed.
Secretary general of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Musa Amadu, informed that he has been officially communicated by his counterpart from Rwanda FA that the February 29 match will be played at the Stade Regional de Kigali.
“We have been informed that the match will be played at a different stadium because the Amahoro Stadium is under renovation,” Amadu disclosed.
Further  investigations have revealed that the new match venue is more compact and has a capacity for 22,000 fans and, like the Amahoro, has an artificial pitch.
It is also the home ground of the country’s biggest club APR.
The Amahoro Stadium, on the other hand, is Rwanda’s national stadium and has a bigger capacity of 30,000.
The Eagles should therefore now expect to play in a noisy, crammed arena with the home fans playing as the 12th man for the Amavubis.
In the meantime, the Eagles began getting set for the heat they are expected to encounter on match day in Rwanda by training in Abuja by 1.15pm local time Monday.
The tropical heat will also mean the artificial pitch is hot and so make the players’ boots also unbearably hot.
The training lasted for about two hours with the players expressing their readiness to fight for victory no matter the discomfort they may face.
”Guys, bear the heat because Rwanda would be hotter than this on the match day,” warned Keshi as his players struggled with the early afternoon heat.
“This is your business and you must be good and ready.
“Una no say the Rwandans wan show us say they fit survive their heat, we must show them too say as Nigerians we fit cope for any weather.”
Kano Pillars midfielder Gabriel Reuben said he was getting set for the encounter and was sure that his teammates will get used to the weather before the team jet out to Kigali.
Striker Sunday Mba and goalkeeper Chigozie Agbim spoke in similar vein, with a strong conviction that the only thing on their minds is victory in Rwanda.
All the 19 players in camp took part in the initial light work-out save for the Heartland pair of Bathlomew Ibenegbu and Kabir Umar, who were excused because they both featured in the Nigeria Premier League clash against Rangers Sunday.

2015 presidency: Jonathan warns politicians against meetings

President Goodluck Jonathan listens to a speech during the closing ceremony of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Summit in Abuja on February 17, 2012.. AFP PHOTO

 

By Henry Umoru
ABUJA — PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan, yesterday, warned politicians interested in 2015 presidency to stop holding political meetings to that effect forthwith.
Jonathan spoke at the 58th emergency meeting of the National Executive Committee, NEC of the ruling People’s Democratic Party, PDP, yesterday, saying he would sack any of his political appointees seen to be engaged in such meetings henceforth, stressing that such meetings were totally uncalled for. He said such moves were not only too early, but distract those in government from governance.
Jonathan spoke against the backdrop of reports that although the president and  governors were yet to spend one year in office, some people had started positioning themseves for their offices. He, however, said such meetings should be discouraged as Nigerians wanted to see the dividends of democracy rather than endless electioneering campaigns.
He also said as the party prepared for its ward, local government, zonal and state congresses that would culminate into a national convention, the PDP must move away from the culture of imposition of candidates by electing their officers democratically.
The President, who stressed the need for unity in the party if the president, governors, members of the National Assembly as well as members of the state Houses of Assembly must deliver dividends of democracy, said the people want to see roads, hospitals, infrastructure, water and not a situation where party members engage themselves in shadow boxing.
He then urged members irrespective of their positions, to respect the party or face being sacked using the African National Congress, ANC, of South Africa example .
“Let me also plead with us that those who are interested in the general elections in 2015, I have noticed that some people have started some meetings. It is too early to hold meetings. You people can see that from the electoral laws and the constitution, INEC normally declares (such contests) open. The idea is that people who were elected into offices as governors and President must be given time to work.
“A situation whereby a governor has not even stayed for a year, the President has not stayed for a year, you start harassing people for 2015 is another way of saying everything is election. There must be time to work.
“At the federal level, if you are holding a political office and I notice that you are involved in meetings for the  2015 election, I will ask you to leave and go and hold your meetings, because that meeting is too early and government must not be distracted. Nigerians are interested on what we put on ground for them, not how many elections we conduct and win.”
Party’s unity
On unity and discipline among members, Jonathan said: “Let me use this unique opportunity to charge all of us, at all levels, whether you are operating at the federal legislative council level as a president, vice president and ministers or at the National Assembly or at the states, at the governors or at the state Assemblies and indeed the party, that all of us belong to one party— one PDP family.
“We are supposed to have one manifesto, one pledge, irrespective of the positions we hold. Ours is to make sure that the PDP succeeds; the governors succeed, the President succeeds, that is the only way we can say that the PDP, as a party, has succeeded.
PDP NEC fixes congresses,  convention dates
Meanwhile, the PDP NEC, yesterday, approved dates for the congresses and the National Convention, with ward congresses taking place March 3, local government congress, March 5; state congresses March 12 while the zonal congress takes place March 21 with the National Convention on March 24 just as the present National Working Committee, NWC members who had their tenure in office slightly extended will hand over between March 26 and 31, even as the next NEC meeting was fixed for February 29.
On the forthcoming congresses and National Convention, the President said,‘’I will also use this opportunity to plead, being at the centre with the party chairman, we are privileged to hear more and we know that we are just going in for election now to elect our party officials and I plead that from the ward congress to the National Convention, let us insist that people are elected democratically.
’’Let us begin to move from the culture of imposition, because if we let our party elect officers of the party, then of course we are sure that primaries or general elections in 2015 will also be democratic and of course the general elections will also be free and fair.
’’As a party we have been able to develop that culture, the presidential election is the election that is number one election in the whole country- every party will want to produce a president first and foremost, because of the status that goes with the ruling party, because it is the party that produced the president.

’’We exposed ourselves to free and fair elections and because of that the world is happy with us; so we have to develop that culture even in our own local elections, at the ward, local government,states,zonal and of course, the national levels.”

While congratulating the governors who won recent governorship elections in their respective states, the President said, ‘’Let me join the acting Chairman to congratulate the governors of Kogi, Adamawa, Bayelsa states  and also the members of the party from these states and indeed the leadership of the party. Of course,the governor of Sokoto state will join us during our next meeting.
Among those who attended the meeting included President Goodluck Jonathan, Vice President Namadi Sambo, Senate President David Mark, Speaker, House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu.
They also included Deputy Speaker Emeka Ihedioha,  Chief Tony Anenih,Dr. Amadu Ali, Senator Barnabas Gemade, Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo, Senator Ken Nnamani, Dr. Bello Haliru Mohammed, Chief Ebenezer Babatope, Chris Uba and Hassan Adamu,
Governors of Delta, Kaduna, Akwa Ibom, Kogi, Bayelsa State, Rivers; Plateau; Gombe and Sokoto states  among others also attended.

Murdered banker: I saw husband’s hands soaked in blood, guard tells court

 

Arowolo...By Abdulwahab  Abdulah, Oamen Areguamen & Arji Donald
LAGOS—The trial of Mr. Akolade Arowolo, alleged to have killed his banker wife, Titilayo, last year continued, yesterday, with the security guard to their residence, telling the court that he saw Arowolo on the fateful day with his hands soaked in blood.
The security guard, Mr. Saidu Husseni, who was led in evidence by the state Director of Public Prosecution, Mrs. Olabisi Ogungbesan,  informed  the court that he saw Akolade washing blood off his hands while urging him to hurriedly open the gate and that he did not return to the house the same day.
He said: “I saw him cleaning his hands which was stained with blood and he told me to open the gate quickly so that he can drive out.”
Husseni told court that he later saw a blood soaked cloth and some irons stained with blood near  Arowolo’s apartment in the four storey building.
Meanwhile, the court admitted as exhibits, the kitchen knife, which was allegedly used to kill the deceased, four mobile phones and photographs taken by the police at the scene of the murder.
Arowolo, is standing trial before Justice Lateefat Okunnu on a one-count charge of murder. He was alleged to have stabbed his wife to death on June, 24, 2011, at their Akindeinde Street, Isolo, Lagos.
Husseni, the fourth prosecution witness in the case, said he was at home on the day of the incident when Akolade and a friend earlier drove into the compound at  mid-day and spent about an hour in his apartment before leaving hurriedly in his Honda Accord car and did not return to the house on that day.
The fifth witness, Mr. Titus Ogbonna, from Homicide Section, CID, Yaba , Lagos said he led the investigation after the matter was transferred to them from Aswani Police Station.
He said: “When we got to Aswani Police Station where the accused vehicle was kept as exhibit, we observed that there was blood stains on the wheel steering, the driver’s seat and on the floor of the driver’s side.
“We also discovered a N100 note stained with blood on the floor of the car, which was recovered and kept as exhibit.”
He said a police photographer; Gift Eneche, took photographs of the car and at the Arowolo’s residence, when the team later visited the place for further investigation that same day.
The matter was adjourned till March 20, for continuation of trial.