Security issues, ranging from the Boko Haram attacks to the discovery of a large cache of arms and ammunition, and the debates for and against the removal of oil subsidy were the main stories in Nigeria this week. ‘Boko Haram Gives Conditions For Dialogue, Ceasefire’, was the headline in The Guardian which reported on Saturday that the Islamic sect, Boko Haram, had said that until its members arrested by the police and detained in various prisons were released unconditionally, dialogue with the Federal Government may not be feasible.
The paper said a spokesman of the sect, Abul Qaqa, gave the conditions in a phone in interview with newsmen on Thursday in Maiduguri, the group’s base, following the “dialogue and implementation” of the Ambassador Galtimari security report on the North-East sub-region of the country.
“We cannot cease our fire and bombings in the North while our arrested members are still in the various prisons,” Qaqa said, stressing that they must all be released before the sect can accept and fully take part in the dialogue with the Federal and Borno state governments.
While taking responsibility for the attacks and bombings of Joint Task Force (JTF) Headquarters in Maiduguri; and Damaturu and Potiskum in Borno and Yobe states respectively on 4 November, he said: “I am calling on President Goodluck Jonathan, Senate President, David Mark, Speaker of the House of Representatives Aminu Tambuwal and the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Bello Adoke, to expedite action on the immediate release of all members of the sect.
Still on security, The Sun headlined its story ‘Arms, ammunition seized at Lagos airport’, reporting that the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS), Murtala Muhammed International Airport Command, had seized a cache of ammunition believed to have been abandoned by criminals and suspected terrorists who engage in illegal arms deal.
According to Customs Area Comptroller at the airport, Michael Adewole, the inventory of the abandoned arms and ammunition included six double barrels, one single barrel, one pump action, one Uzzi, two magazines, one barretta pistol as well as one becheverria pistol.
Adewole listed the ammunition to include 20 pieces of 5.56 mm calibre, 19 cartridges, 12/12, 500 pieces of blank Armour and a sealed box of cartridges, adding that the servicing accessories included four pieces of pull trough, two brushes, oil rifle bag as well as a sling colt belt.
He said investigation had begun with sole aim of unraveling those behind the illicit arms deal.
And Thisday newspaper ran the same story under the headline ‘Customs Impounds Arms, Ammunition at MMIA’.
Continuing the oil subsidy removal debate, President Jonathan sounded the alarm that the Nigerian economy was on the verge of collapse if government continued to subsidize petroleum products.
‘Nigeria‘ll crash if subsidy stays – Jonathan’, said the Vanguard headline on Saturday which screamed that President Jonathan had predicted that Nigeria would crash if the Federal Government failed to act fast by removing subsidy on petroleum products.
But the paper also quoted some members of the National Assembly and the Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole, as saying that ‘Nigeria will not break up because of fuel subsidy.’
According to a member of the House of Representatives, Bimbo Daramola, who was among the legislators who met with Jonathan to discuss the issues of Boko Haram and removal of oil subsidy among others, Jonathan said that Nigeria would ‘’crash’’ if the subsidy on petroleum products was not removed.
Making the revelation, Daramola that those at the meeting with the president were not sufficiently convinced by what Jonathan told them as reasons for removal of fuel subsidy.
The Nation’s two stories on the subsidy debate were headlined ‘Subsidy: Lawmakers give Jonathan four conditions’ on Friday and ‘Subsidy: Jonathan launches fresh strategy to woo senators, reps’ on Saturday.
In the first story on Friday, the paper said that Senators and members of the House of Representatives had tabled four conditions for President Jonathan to meet before they will approve his request for fuel subsidy withdrawal.
The conditions are (i) the publication of the list of the beneficiaries of past fuel subsidy; (ii) presentation of facts and figures on the true picture of the “subsidy”; (iii) release of palliative measures Nigerians will enjoy, if the subsidy is removed and an Action Plan to make the measures work; and (iv) concrete work plan on how to make all refineries function at optimal level.
The second story said ‘Determined to press ahead with the removal of fuel subsidy, President Jonathan has decided to hold breakfast consultations with senators and members of the House of Representatives.’
The first in the series of the breakfast sessions may hold on Monday even as the paper reported that government’s desperation to remove the subsidy is meant to save the 2012 budget and ensure its workability.
Still on oil, the Tribune on Wednesday reported government’s decision to publish the names of the cartel that had sabotaged the oil sector.
Under the headline ‘We’re compiling oil cartel’s names for publication – Presidency’, the paper quoted the presidency as saying that the publication had to be comprehensive for the citizens to know the people who engaged in sharp practices in the sector and in acts, including allowing the oil to illegally cross the borders.
The paper quoted the Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Alhaji Ahmed Ali Gulak.
The newspapers also reported a rare advice from a former British Prime Minister, Mr. Gordon Brown.
Thisday headlined its story on the advice as ‘Brown: Nigeria Must Invest in Human Capital’, saying that the former British Prime Minister had called on Nigeria to invest heavily on its human capital through adequate education of its youths for the country to be ranked among the great nations of the world.
Brown, who spoke at the Rivers Investors Forum in Port Harcourt Thursday, said although Nigeria had the potential of becoming one of the great economies of the world, there was urgent need to take care of its youth population through programmes like skill acquisition and formal education of the people.
He said the reality of the contemporary world had shown that Nigeria and other nations were set to break the monopoly of certain European countries and the United States of America in the global economy.
Brown observed that for more than 200 years, European countries and the United States dominated the world economy as they had monopoly of markets, consumption and manufacturing, and said the trend was now changing as the tide was turning against the two global giants.
According to him, in the last two years the rest of the world had been overtaking the developed nations at a rate otherwise not imagined.
The Guardian on Friday headlined the same story ‘Why Nigeria lies prostrate, by British ex-PM, Brown’, saying that Mr. Brown had submitted that Nigeria’s stunted economic growth had a lot to do with the country’s infrastructural deficit, no thanks to systemic neglect by successive regimes.
Brown said Nigeria’s economy had the capacity to grow by more than seven per cent if it had critical infrastructure like stable power.
And the Nation captioned its story ‘How Nigeria’s economy can grow, by Brown’
Friday’s headline in the Punch ‘FG to file class action suit against BA, Virgin Atlantic’ mirrored the escalating conflict between Nigeria and two giant British carriers, British Airways (BA) and Virgin Atlantic (VAA).
The paper reported that the Nigerian Federal Government had concluded plans to file a class action suit against the two carriers for allegedly engaging in price-fixing on the Nigeria-UK route.
A class action suit is a form of lawsuit in which a large group of people collectively bring a claim to court or in which a class of defendants is being sued.
The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority had alleged that BA and VAA engaged in price-fixing on the Nigerian route between 2004 and 2006.
Following the report, the Federal Government had asked BA to pay US$ 135 million and VAA, US$ 100 million as compensation to the country and Nigerian travellers, who were allegedly cheated on fuel surcharges.
‘Pay compensation or face consequences, FG warns BA, Virgin Atlantic’ was the headline in the Vanguard which said that the Nigerian government Thursday dared BA and VAA to refuse to compensate Nigerians for their unfair method of competition, deceptive practices and violation of Nigerian law and be prepared to face the consequences.
Government’s latest tough stance on the issue arose out of the defiant response of BA which rejected the order amid declarations that it would vigorously defend its position on the matter.