OSUN DEFENDER
South West News Najeem salam

OSUN ASSEMBLY FROWNS AT “SKILL G” CONTRACT »

The Chairman, State of Osun House of Assembly Committee on Public Accounts, Hon. Olalekan Afolabi, has re-emphasized the need for quick response to audit queries in order to ensure accountability…

May 20 2013 / 1 Comment / Read More »
najeem salami

Voters’ Card For SURE P Job: OSUN SPEAKER FAULTS SURE P JOB RACKETEERING »

Speaker, State House of Assembly of Osun, Rt. Hon. Najeem Salaam has decried how some opposition politicians were collecting voter’s cards from unsuspecting members of he public under the guise…

May 20 2013 / 1 Comment / Read More »
rauf

OSUN ASSEMBLY SPORTS COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN COMMENDS AREGBESOLA ON OSOGBO STADIUM. »

The Chairman, State of Osun House of Assembly Committee on Youths, Sports and Special Needs, Hon. AbdulMaruf Ajibola, has commended the Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola in his efforts to give…

May 20 2013 / No Comment / Read More »
Rauf and awolowo

AREGBESOLA AIMS AWOLOWO’S LEGACY – AKERE »

The State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Sunday Akere, has stressed that the copious references being made always to the legacies of Chief Obafemi Awolowo by the Governor Rauf…

May 20 2013 / No Comment / Read More »
FASHOLA

Hijab Not Banned in Lagos Public Schools – Lagos Government »

The Lagos State government has denied banning use of hijab in public schools, as the issue is still being looked into with a view to taking a broad-based stand on…

May 20 2013 / No Comment / Read More »
Rauf Aregbesola

RAUF AREGBESOLA’S ADMINISTRATION IN THE STATE OF OSUN Thirty Months In The Saddle (IV) »

The achievements of Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s administration in the State of Osun are numerous and ever-increasing. This has prompted NIYI OLASINDE to devote further editions of this series to the…

May 20 2013 / No Comment / Read More »
rauf

Let Peace Continue In Osun »

It is true that there can be no true development in any atmosphere of rancour and crisis, as was witnessed in the State of Osun throughout the insecure days of…

May 20 2013 / 4 Comments / Read More »
osun women

Osun Empowers 610 Rural Women In Skill Acquisition •Disburses N12.2m Interest-free Loan »

As part of its drive to banish poverty and unemployment in the State of Osun, the administration of Governor Rauf Aregbesola has again empowered another 610 women through a skill…

May 20 2013 / 1 Comment / Read More »
olumirin waterfall

O’ Tour Is Meant To Showcase Osun Culture – Daniyan »

Osun Tourism is essentially meant to showcase the natural endowment of the State of Osun to the whole world. The Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Tourism, who is…

May 20 2013 / No Comment / Read More »
Opon Imo Invention

‘Computer Tablet (Opon Imo) Not Yet Launched’ »

Special Adviser to Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola on Environment and Sanitation, Honourable Bola Ilori, has stated that the computer tablet, also known has ‘Opon Imo’ adopted for secondary school pupils in…

May 20 2013 / 1 Comment / Read More »




EDITORIAL

O’ Schools Intervention Initiatives »

NEW SCHOOL IN OSUN

In the devastation that characterized Oyinlola’s eight years of misrule of the state of Osun, no sector in the life…

May 17 2013 / 1 Comment / Read More »

Osun’s battle with malaria scourge »

State of Osun Crest

At the recent commemoration of the World Malaria Day, President of the Nigerian Medical Association, Dr Osahon Onabulele, highlighted the…

May 8 2013 / 1 Comment / Read More »

Yoruba may determine who wins 2015 presidency »

ekitivoting1

The voting pattern of the Yoruba people of South-West geopolitical zone in the 2015 presidential election may determine who wins…

May 7 2013 / 1 Comment / Read More »

APC, ACN: Beware of PDP in the South West »

cpc_acn

Caveat emptor: The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), soon to morph into the All Progressives Congress (APC), must beware of…

May 6 2013 / 3 Comments / Read More »

CLUMSY RACE TO 2015: The Jonathan/Amaechi face off »

jonathan amechi

Obviously shaken and scared, the presidency, with an incumbent who already seemed to have burnt his fingers too early in…

May 4 2013 / 1 Comment / Read More »

To The Rescue: All Progressive Alliance »

apc logo

The All Progressives Congress (APC) is here, in fine form and has raised the bar. Understandably so; hitherto, Nigerians have…

May 1 2013 / 3 Comments / Read More »
POLITICS

ACN UK Chapter spearheads moves to create the APC in diaspora »

apc

MEMBERS of the Action Congress of Nigeria’s (ACN) UK chapter have begun talks with other political groups about merging their party into the proposed united opposition group the All Progressives Congress (APC). In Nigeria, the ACN, the Congress for Progressive Change, the All Nigerian People’s…

May 21 2013 / No Comment / Read More »

2015: Nothing can stop Jonathan’s second term —Clark, Alamieyeseigha »

jonathan 2015

LEADER of Ijaws and former Minister of Information, Chief Edwin Clark, in Lagos, on Monday, said President Goodluck Jonathan will continue in office for a second term in 2015. Also, former governor of Bayelsa State, Chief Diepriye Alamieyeseigha, said there is no vacancy in Aso…

May 21 2013 / No Comment / Read More »

Amaechi, Akpabio camps intensify lobby for NGF seat »

AKPABIO, AMAECH AND TUKUR

AHEAD of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum’s next meeting, lobbying for the chairmanship of the body has heightened, The PUNCH gathered on Monday. The different camps interested in who heads the 36-member forum, our correspondent learnt, were not leaving anything to chance. A source in the…

May 21 2013 / No Comment / Read More »
FEATURE

ACN UK Chapter spearheads moves to create the APC in diaspora »

apc

MEMBERS of the Action Congress of Nigeria’s (ACN) UK chapter have begun talks with other political groups about merging their party into the proposed united…

May 21 2013 / No Comment / Read More »

Amaechi, Akpabio camps intensify lobby for NGF seat »

AKPABIO, AMAECH AND TUKUR

AHEAD of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum’s next meeting, lobbying for the chairmanship of the body has heightened, The PUNCH gathered on Monday. The different camps…

May 21 2013 / No Comment / Read More »

How Jonathan got his groove back »

jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan pleasantly surprised many Nigerians last week when he declared a state of emergency in three North-Eastern states, namely, Borno, Yobe and Adamawa.…

May 21 2013 / No Comment / Read More »
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Sports News rauf

OSUN ASSEMBLY SPORTS COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN COMMENDS AREGBESOLA ON OSOGBO STADIUM.

The Chairman, State of Osun House of Assembly Committee on Youths, Sports and Special Needs, Hon. AbdulMaruf Ajibola, has commended the Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola in his efforts to give the state a standard and befitting…

May 20 2013 / Read More »
X-RAYS ronaldo

Ronaldo denies cheating on girlfriend with Miss Bum Bum Brazil

Cristiano Ronaldo has denied cheating on his girlfriend with Brazilian model, Andressa Urach. Andressa had claimed Ronaldo called her after getting her number from a mutual friend and asked her to meet him at a hotel…

Apr 29 2013 / Read More »
Niger Delta Briggs

2015: It’s Jonathan or no peace – Annkio Briggs

*Says Nigerian presidency is not the birthright of Kaita’s family… Annkio Briggs is undoubtedly one of the leading female activists to have come out from the Niger Delta region. President of the Agape Birthright, spokesperson of…

May 20 2013 / Read More »
Letter To The Editor rauf

Let Peace Continue In Osun

It is true that there can be no true development in any atmosphere of rancour and crisis, as was witnessed in the State of Osun throughout the insecure days of Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, before the inauguration…

May 20 2013 / Read More »
ENTERTAINMENT dj

Star FM Radio DJ Arrested For Killing His Wife’s Boyfriend

Star FM DJ Munyaradzi Mlimo, popularly known as DJ Munya has been arrested on allegations of kidnapping and killing a man he suspected of engaging in an extra-marital affair with his wife. The DJ reportedly forced…

May 20 2013 / Read More »
INTERVIEW Going by media reports, it has been 21 days since the 2013 Appropriation Bill was forwarded by the National Assembly to President Goodluck Jonathan for his assent. Since then, there has been no word from the President to indicate his assent or his refusal to assent to the bill. A couple of days ago, the President and the leadership of the National Assembly met behind closed doors and thereafter refused to address the public on the reasons for the meeting and or the decisions arising from their meeting. It has all been silence on both sides. Yes, the Constitution in Section 58 (4) allows the President up to 30 days to signify his assent or the withholding of his assent. But do we have all the time in the world before commencing the implementation of the 2013 budget? The news of the relatively early presentation of the 2013 budget by the President to the National Assembly in October 2012 was a big relief to stakeholders in the budgeting process. The announcement of an early passage, shortly before the legislative break, was also a welcome development. Whatever gains that could have accrued from these relatively timely activities of the Executive and Legislature would now be wiped off by the unnecessary feud by the two arms of government. It does not take more than a few days to study and take a position on a bill and communicate same to the legislature. The public concern is that whatever is the source of the disagreement between the two arms of government in the 2013 budget is not about the security and welfare of the people who they swore to serve. It is about their personal and selfish interests, their ego and these have nothing to do with either legality or legitimacy. As it stands today, even though there has been no official word from the President, if he is in agreement with all the issues in the budget, he would have signed it. There are a number of reasons that provide sufficient grounds to conclude that we do not need this needless distractive feud. The first is that we are in the thick of the dry season which is the best period for the construction of roads, bridges, schools, hospitals, among other. One would have expected that the authorities recognise this fact and optimally utilise the period before the rains set in and make outdoor infrastructure construction impossible. Without agreement on the funds to be spent, releases of funds in this period will be based on a rule of the thumb and not on any empirical approach to project funding and management. Even though Section 82 of the Constitution authorises the President to withdraw funds from the Consolidated Revenue Fund to carry out the services of the Government of the Federation for a period not exceeding six months or until the coming into force of the Appropriation Act – whichever is the earlier, such services must be the services approved and authorised by law. Such funds cannot be used to fund new projects which may be the subject of disagreement between the executive and legislature and may not match what is needed or approved for specific projects in the new budget, which is the subject of the dispute. The second reason is that by this waste of time, we are laying a granite foundation for the failure of the 2013 capital budget. Sooner than later, executive stories will start changing and perfect excuses would have been made for the executive to claim that they started capital budget implementation late and therefore should not be expected to achieve anything meaningful within the year. The 2012 capital budget despite all the grandstanding by the Minister of Finance and the rest of the executive did not achieve up to 50 per cent capital utilisation. Any reasonable body of persons would have drawn the right lessons from 2012 and previous years’ budgets and insist on starting on time and being meticulous in the implementation process. But that cannot be because our all-knowing and transformative leadership can never learn; we cannot draw the right lessons from previous experience. Rather, we are masters of repeating our mistakes and indulging in manufacturing excuses on why we failed. Nigerians are tired of excuses but need to hear the reasons that informed success which can now be replicated in subsequent years. The third issue is that if there are projects and programmes in the budget leading to this apparent disagreement, we may likely have a repeat of previous experiences when the Executive was accused of ignoring the approved budget but simply spending on the activities in the initial bill sent to the Legislature before its approval and assent of the President. Although the Executive denied this allegation in previous years, the fund release and implementation pattern bears out the truth in this charge. Thus, the implication will be that Nigerians will be expecting projects found in the approved budget while the Executive has an unapproved budget which it will be implementing. The fourth reason informing the need to avoid this feud is that the Executive and Legislature will be defrauding the treasury by continued earning their salaries and perks of office while refusing to carry out their constitutional duties through a stage managed feud that has no bearing on our welfare, the advancement of democracy or the bridging of our underdevelopment and infrastructure challenge. The budget is the principal instrument that translates government’s policy and all the verbiage of transformation and a legislative agenda into a programme of action that touches people’s lives. If the Executive and Legislature are not ready to agree and get our budget working, then it has become imperative to place a moratorium on their salaries and perks of office until they decide to restore sanity into government business. We cannot continue running a government of the Executive and the Legislature for the Executive and Legislature without any thought for the common good of the over 168 million Nigerians who they are supposed to serve. On another note, recent information indicated that the President ordered the release of $1bn from the Excess Crude Account to be shared by the three tiers of government. One hopes that the funds that will accrue to the Federal Government and other tiers of government have been captured in their respective 2013 Appropriation Acts or Laws. If the funds have not been so captured, the legislature at all tiers should insist that the funds should not be spent without the imprimatur of their appropriation. This is the way to infuse sanity into the financial system and call the executive to order. Previous withdrawals from the ECA shared by the three tiers of government went down the drain and no one can rightly account for the funds. Finally, the 2013 federal budget must be brought on stream within the next couple of days if we are serious about its full implementation. Nigerians should rise up and demand patriotic and mature conduct from those entrusted with the responsibilities of leading them. We can no longer afford to be pampering people who do not care about us.

INSECURITY: This govt is confused – CAN chief

Since 2009, there have been bloodletting in the North on the grounds of Islamizing the country by Jama-’a Ahl al-sunnah li-da’wa wa al-jiha-d, also known as Boko Haram. In this interview, the Bishop, Diocese of Kubwa,…

May 19 2013 / Read More »
Odd World human part dealer

Human parts dealer runs mad

Doose Nomhwange left home one morning, unaware that danger lurked ahead. Her friend of many years lured her to a man who traded in human parts. But fate pulled a fast one on her captor who,…

Apr 14 2013 / Read More »
EDUCATION FASHOLA

Hijab Not Banned in Lagos Public Schools – Lagos Government

The Lagos State government has denied banning use of hijab in public schools, as the issue is still being looked into with a view to taking a broad-based stand on it. In a reaction to a…

May 20 2013 / Read More »
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Video

120 Boko Haram members arrested at burial of insurgents commander

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