Post-Gaddafi Libya gets timeline for full statehood

Libyan head of the ruling National Transitional Council (NTC) Mustafa Abdel Jalil (R) and interim prime minister, Mahmud Jibril (L), hold a joint press conference in Benghazi on October 3, 2011. (AFP Photo/Abdullah 

After two months of political uncertainty, the current de facto Libyan leaders have named a temporary ministerial Cabinet that is to govern the country until it is fully secured.

Another temporary government will be named within a month after that, with the main task of setting up elections for a national congress within eight months following the end of all fighting. The congress, in turn, will draft a new Libyan constitution, subject to approval by a referendum. After the constitution is approved, parliamentary and presidential elections will follow 12 months later.

The composition of the current temporary government contains few surprises, with the head of the National Transitional Council, Mustafa Abdul-Jalil, and the de facto prime minister, Mahmoud Jibril, staying at their posts. Jibril also takes on the role of foreign minister.

US-educated economist Ali al-Tarhouni is to stay on as acting oil minister, while Abdullah Shammiyah will be in charge of the economy. Hamza Abu Fas will become the new minister of religious affairs, and a new minister for Libyans killed and wounded, Abdel-Rahman al-Keissah, will be introduced to the Cabinet.

The precondition for full security (and the end of his government’s tenure), as stated by Abdul-Jalil, is the capture of Sirte, former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi’s hometown on the Mediterranean coast. According to Abdul-Jalil, capturing the loyalist holdout would ensure the security of Libya’s borders.

Both he and Jibril have pledged not to take part in any future government, regardless of its composition. Other ministers have not followed suit, and may take part in future governments.

The end of all fighting, which Abdul-Jalil called imperative for proper elections, may also imply capturing other pro-Gaddafi strongholds, including Bani Walid and pockets in the southern desert. However, at the moment they are not of primary concern, as they are landlocked and do not pose a threat to Libya's borders, Abdul-Jalil explained.

Apart from security, the Jalil-Jibril government is left with tough tasks like creating jobs and income for fellow Libyans, as well as investigating allegations of human-rights violations during the seven-month uprising against Gaddafi’s rule.

They might also be tasked with determining the fate of Muammar Gaddafi himself (still missing at the moment), should he be found during their tenure.

Meanwhile, stockpiles of weapons left up for grabs by the collapse of Gaddafi’s army still remain among the main problems on the new Cabinet’s agenda, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen stated on Monday.

Rasmussen called for the weapons, which include some 5,000 SAM-7 missiles, to be “properly controlled and monitored.”

A decision about the future of NATO’s operation in Libya will be taken at the alliance’s October 6 meeting in Brussels. At the moment, NATO considers its aims in the country largely fulfilled.

Ogun workers shun independence anniversary

Ogun State Workers under the banner of Nigeria Labour Congress {NLC} yesterday shunned the 51 year Anniversary of the nation held at the 35,000 capacity Moshood Abiola Stadium, just as the presence of residents was found low, in view of what was linked to fear of Boko Haram bomb threats.

Next further reports that, the labour resolved to boycott the ceremony was traced to the union grouse with the government over alleged 300 percent tax imposition introduced by the government, non-remittance of contributing pension and unpaid arrears of deductions.

Just at the weekend the Joint Negotiating Council{JNC} issued a 7-Day Ultimatum to the state government which expires Tuesday, October 11, 2011 to address the demands or face the wrath of the labour.

The statement signed by JNC Chairman, Sunday Adeegbe explained that workers parliament has now been re-scheduled for Wednesday, October 12, 2011 at the Nigeria Labour Congress {NLC} Secretariat to kick start the proposed strike.

In a related development, the ceremony witnessed low turnout, contrary to the usual large number of guests at the events, as information gathered that, many resolved to stay back home, to avoid any possible terrorists attack.

Our correspondent further reports that, even with heavy security beef up, residents were said not to be comfortable, hence, their decision to keep indoor. However, many government functionaries and traditional rulers were in attendance.

However, the State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun in his speech at the occasion said ‘Let me salute the courage of our forebears and the founding fathers of this nation. They had a vision of a strong and prosperous nation, where every man, woman or child has equal opportunity and access to the good things of life; a vision of a strong and united country that will be a major player in the international arena. They laid a solid foundation upon which we have been building. We owe it to them, in the words of our National Anthem that "their labour must not be in vain".

‘Therefore, we must intensify our efforts at confronting these challenges using creative and pragmatic approaches. We need to build and strengthen institutions of governance; deliver dividends of democracy; and reinforce people's confidence in government. As it is often said, we do not need strong men; we need strong institutions that will outlive strong men. We must build an independent judiciary to strengthen the administration of justice in the country. We must strengthen our law enforcement agencies and public institutions such that they serve the society and not individuals, no matter how highly placed'.

Amosun added that in Ogun State ‘ we have started a rebuilding mission and I am proud to say that it has begun to yield positive dividends. The five (5) cardinal programmes of affordable qualitative education, efficient healthcare delivery, agricultural production, industrialization, affordable housing and urban renewal, rural and infrastructural development and employment generation are generating the desired results for all to see. During our 100 days celebration, we presented a score-card that even the most cynic of our critics could not disprove.

Amosun admitted that, Nigeria as a nation had her own fair share of challenges of nation building, stressing that the tasks are enormous. ‘We have been confronted with the mantra of religious intolerance in several places in this country. Many still argue that Nigeria remains a geographical expression and not a nation'.

Javier Zanetti, Mario Balotelli & Cristiano Ronaldo - Introducing football's Three Musketeers

Omar Momani

To celebrate the release of The Three Musketeers in amazing 3D, Goal.com have dreamed up which modern players bear most resemblance to the film's heroes Athos, Porthos & Aramis. All for one and one for all! 

Javier Zanetti as Athos 

Fans of the Alexandre Dumas novel 'The Three Musketeers' will immediately see the similarities between Athos and the Inter stalwart. As the eldest of the musketeers Athos is well respected for his lengthy career and is a role model to his comrades. Truth be told, there isn't much this swashbuckler hasn't seen down the years.

No doubt Javier Zanetti would identify with Athos as he has just witnessed his 17th different manager arrive at San Siro. Since moving from Banfield in 1995 the Argentine has seen the Nerazzurri transformed from Calcio nearlymen to a European powerhouse.

Zanetti recently broke Giuseppe Bergomi's 756 game record for Inter appearances and at 38 remains a key figure for the Serie A club.

An Argentina international since 1994, he was suprisingly overlooked for World Cup 2010 after a stunning club season where he captained Inter to an historic treble.

Despite his advancing years Zanetti remains available for selection should his country call upon him. Athos and Zanetti - patriots and warriors to the end.


Mario Balotelli as Porthos

Porthos is the resident joker of the Three Musketeers. He's the man you go to for a dose of comedy and is regarded by his colleagues to have his talents but, whisper it, is also a bit naive. Deep down he is a character who has a good heart and is loyal to the cause.

For Porthos read Mario Balotelli. He has had his run-ins with Athos aka Zanetti, who berated him for throwing his Inter shirt away, after being jeered by his own fans when they were team-mates. Super Mario, Mad Mario & Bad Balotelli are all headlines that have been attached to the gifted Italian in recent times especially since his move to Manchester City last summer.

Balotelli is a one-man headline industry, if he isn't suggesting bringing a pet dog to a team celebration he'll be playing with an iPad on the bench. He racks up parking tickets for fun and tries to score crazy goals like a cheeky backheel in a pre-season friendly only for it to go disastrously wrong.

It isn't all mayhem with Balotelli as he helped a boy who was being bullied at school to confront his problems directly by acting as a mediator. He can also play a bit too and was awarded man of the match for his performance in the 2011 FA Cup final which Man City won.

There is more to Porthos and Balotelli than just a few laughs. Much more.

Cristiano Ronaldo as Aramis 

Brilliant, good looking and he knows it. Aramis is a daring playboy who doesn't lack for confidence. Arrogance is a word that is often associated with him but his gift comes with a price. Aramis is rarely satisfied and is always seeking something better. Sound familiar?

Inheriting David Beckham's No.7 shirt at Manchester United didn't faze a teenage Ronaldo one bit. He dominated the Premier League in his final three seasons at the club inspiring the Red Devils to domestic and European success along the way.

Ronaldo's world record £80m move to Real Madrid in 2009 was staggering but not to him. Being the best comes at a price and if you can't handle it then that is your problem. "I think I'm worth more," he told the press afterwards. 

Rivals and onlookers may mock and accuse him of being cocky beyond belief but he knows the real reason. "People whistle me because I am good-looking, rich and a great footballer. They are jealous of me," said Ronaldo recently.

Just like Aramis the Portuguese superstar is fiercely loyal to his friends and colleagues. When asked which Barcelona player he would like to sign for Los Blancos he replied "I wouldn't sign anyone."

Ronaldo and Aramis. You may not like them but you certainly can't ignore them. 

Gunmen kill three in violence-torn Nigerian city: police

KANO, Nigeria — Gunmen suspected of being members of the Boko Haram Islamist sect Monday shot dead three people at a market in Nigeria's violence-torn northern city of Maiduguri, state police chief said.

"I have received report of an attack this morning by suspected Boko Haram gunmen in Baga market where a tea seller, a drug store owner and a passer-by were shot dead by the attackers," Borno state police commissioner Simeon Midenda said.

"The fact that nothing was taken from the tea seller who was shot in the chest and the head and the drug store owner rules out robbery," Midenda said by telephone from Maiduguri, capital of the state.

The market is frequented by traders from neighbouring countries of Chad, Niger and Cameroon.

There have been no arrests in connection with the attack, he said.

The attack brings to eight the number of people killed in the city in the last two days by suspected Islamists after weeks of a lull in Boko Haram-instigated bomb and shooting attacks.

Five people were killed on Saturday, Nigeria's Independence Day, in two separate attacks blamed on the sect, a spokesman for a special military unit in Maiduguri told AFP.

In one of them, attackers used explosives and gunfire to target an army patrol near a wedding in the city, killing at least three civilians, the military said Sunday.

In the second incident, a butcher and his assistant were shot dead by gunmen in Maiduguri, Mohammed said.

Thousands have fled Maiduguri in recent months for fear of further violence. Dozens of similar bomb blasts have hit the city as well as assassinations blamed on Boko Haram.

While most of its attacks have occurred in Nigeria's northeast, Boko Haram also claimed responsibility for the August 26 bomb blast at UN headquarters in Abuja that killed at least 23 people.

Michael Jackson's Doctor Claims Singer Caused His Own Death

Photo: AP

Dr. Conrad Murray, singer Michael Jackson's personal physician, appears in Los Angeles Superior Court, (File).

The attorney for the doctor charged in connection with the June 2009 death of U.S. pop star Michael Jackson says the singer's own actions led to his death.

Doctor Conrad Murray is charged with involuntary manslaughter for giving Jackson the powerful anesthetic propofol and then failing to properly monitor the singer's health.  But Murray's attorney, Ed Chernoff, told jurors Tuesday that Murray had refused to give Jackson the medication.

Chernoff said Jackson took the propofol himself and overdosed, dying so quickly "he did not even have time to close his eyes."  At one point during the trial, Murray wiped away tears as Chernoff defended him.

In his opening statement, prosecutor David Walgren accused Murray of abandoning the so-called "King of Pop" in his time of need.  He said Murray was driven by greed and an arrangement to be paid $150,000 a month.

Prosecutors have said Murray gave Jackson the lethal dose and lacked the equipment that could have saved the singer's life.

Punishment if convicted 

Murray, a cardiologist, faces four years in prison and the loss of his medical license if convicted. 

The first witness to testify in the case was Kenny Ortega, Jackson's friend and the choreographer for a series of comeback concerts the singer was planning.  Ortega had been rehearsing with Jackson in the days before the entertainer's death.  Ortega told the court that Jackson was in bad shape, physically and mentally, in the days leading up to Jackson's death.  Ortega testified he voiced concerns about Jackson's health in an email to concert promoters.  Ortega said the email led to a confrontation with Murray, who told Ortega not to interfere.

Ortega also said that within a few days, Jackson appeared to have recovered his energy and was full of enthusiasm for the show.

Jackson's death 

AP

Michael Jackson (File)

The singer died suddenly at the age of 50 on June 25, 2009, at his rented mansion in Los Angeles.  Murray had been giving Jackson propofol to help him sleep, even though the drug was not approved for use as a sleeping aid.

Hundreds of people - many of them Jackson fans - have gathered outside the Los Angeles Superior Court.  Some of Jackson's family members, including his parents and his sisters, Janet and LaToya, were in the courtroom for the proceedings, which are also being broadcast live on television.

Officials have said they expect the trial to take about five weeks.  Apart from the criminal trial, Jackson's father has filed a wrongful death lawsuit, accusing Murray of lying to the doctors and paramedics trying to save the singer's life.

During Trial Testimony Paramedics Say Michael Was Jackson Lifeless, Doctor 'Frantic'

Photo: Reuters

Prosecution witness and paramedic Richard Senneff testifies in Dr. Conrad Murray's involuntary manslaughter trial in the death of pop star Michael Jackson in Los Angeles, September 30, 2011.

Paramedics, who rushed to Michael Jackson's rented mansion the day the singer died, say they arrived within five minutes of being called but that Jackson seemed to have been dead for some time.  They also say his doctor, who was at the home, was "frantic."

The testimony came Friday in Los Angeles during the involuntary manslaughter trial of Jackson's doctor, Conrad Murray.  One of the paramedics who tried to revive Jackson, Richard Senneff, said paramedics were optimistic Jackson might live because they arrived so quickly.  But Senneff said they soon saw that Jackson was unresponsive.  Paramedics spent about 42 minutes trying to revive the singer before taking him to a hospital, where he was declared dead.

According to the paramedic, Murray said he had given Jackson a sedative, lorazepam, to help him sleep.  The paramedic testified that Murray said Jackson was being treated for dehydration and exhaustion and he never disclosed administering the powerful anesthetic propofol to Jackson.  Murray had been giving Jackson propofol to help him sleep, although the drug is not approved for use as a sleep aid.  

Prosecutors have said Murray gave Jackson a lethal dose and lacked the equipment that could have saved the life of the 50-year-old singer, who was known as the "King of Pop."  Murray's defense team says the singer's own actions led to his death, arguing that Jackson took the propofol himself and overdosed, dying so quickly, "he did not even have time to close his eyes."

Murray, a cardiologist, faces four years in prison and the loss of his medical license if convicted.  

Michael Jackson died suddenly at his mansion June 25, 2009.

Kidnapped French Woman Reportedly Taken to al-Shabab Part of Somalia

Photo: AFP

Undated photo of Marie Dedieu

Sources in Somalia say a French woman kidnapped from Kenya on Saturday has been taken to a Somali region controlled by al-Shabab militants.

Elders in the Somali town of Kismayo said Monday that Marie Dedieu is being held in a coastal area of the Lower Jubba region, of which Kismayo is the capital.  

A group of gunmen kidnapped Dedieu from her beach house on Kenya's Manda island and took her by boat into Somalia after a gunbattle with Kenyan security forces.

The elders say talks to secure her release are underway between the kidnappers and individuals in Kenya.  The kidnappers are said to be demanding a ransom.

Kenya's tourism minister Najib Balala told VOA Sunday that Kenya has sent mediators to Somalia to win Dedieu's freedom, either through a rescue operation or through negotiations.

It remains unclear whether the kidnappers are part of al-Shabab, Somali pirate gangs or are gunmen acting on their own.

Dedieu is a French national in her mid-60s.  She uses a wheelchair, which the kidnappers did not take with them when they kidnapped her.  

The kidnapping took place across a lagoon from Lamu island, a popular Kenyan resort near the spot where gunmen kidnapped a British woman earlier this month and shot her husband to death.

Reports from the area Monday said the majority of tourists have departed.  Kenyan officials have promised to increase security in the area.  

Scientists Disarm AIDS Virus’ Attack on Immune System

Scientists say they have found a way to disarm the AIDS virus in research that could lead to a vaccine.  Researchers have discovered that if they eliminate a cholesterol membrane surrounding the virus, HIV cannot disrupt communication among disease-fighting cells and the immune system returns to normal.  

Scientists have discovered that HIV needs cholesterol, which it picks up from the first immune cells it infects, to keep the virus' outer membrane fluid.  That allows it to communicate with - and disrupt - the body's immune system.

The long-term effect of this disrupted communication is to destroy the body’s normal defense against the AIDS virus, which is responsible for 1.8 million deaths each year.

But researchers say they can prevent HIV from damaging the immune system, if they remove the cholesterol from the virus’ outer membrane.

David Graham is a molecular biologist at The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland.

“By stealing cholesterol from the envelope of the virus, we can neutralize the subversion," said Graham. "We’ve broken the code; we can shut down the type of interference that HIV is having on the immune system.”

The cholesterol used by HIV, Graham notes, is not the same cholesterol that circulates in blood and causes coronary artery disease.  He says the AIDS virus incorporates cholesterol into its membrane from plasmacytoid dendritic cells or pDCs - the first immune cells to recognize the virus.  The pDC cells normally signal the adaptive part of the immune system - T cells - to form a more specific, long-lasting response.

But through its newly-acquired cholesterol membrane, Graham says HIV reprograms the immune system - starting with the first responder cells - so they become hyperactive.

“These cells are just saying, 'No way.  We’re not shutting off," he said. "We are going to keep responding.'  And that causes the cells of the adaptive immune system to start shutting down.”

The T-cells do not respond properly, and the virus can spread. 

Graham says this might explain why scientists have so far been unsuccessful in developing an AIDS vaccine.  Many candidate vaccines attempt to bolster the T-cells, which have been weakened by what the virus does to the pDC cells.

Graham, along with his colleagues at several European universities, found a way to disable HIV’s cholesterol membrane so it cannot corrupt the first-responder cells, clearing the way for T-cells to fight the HIV infection, or pathogen, more effectively. 

“The immune system now treated it more like a regular pathogen that you would encounter, and we would have normal immune responses that would result in protection," said Graham. 

So far, research has been conducted only in the laboratory.  But Graham says he hopes studies in animals and humans will eventually lead to an AIDS vaccine.

The research, funded by Britain’s Wellcome Trust and the U.S. National Institutes of Health, is described in an article published in the journal Blood

US Tries Women Accused of Funding Somali Terror Group

Photo: AP

Hawo Mohamed Hassan (L) and Amina Farah Ali, both of Rochester, Minnesota, leave the U.S. District Court after appearing at a hearing in St. Paul, Minnesota, August 2010. (file photo)

The trial has begun for two American women charged with raising money and recruiting fighters for the Somali militant group al-Shabab.

Jury selection began Monday in the U.S. city of Minneapolis for the trial of 35-year-old Amina Farah Ali and 64-year-old Hawo Mohamed Hassan.

Prosecutors say the women, who are both of Somali descent, collected money from the Minnesota Somali community to send to the al-Qaida-linked group.

The U.S. government says it wiretapped Ali's home and cellular phones over a 10-month period, monitoring some 30,000 calls. Court documents say investigators also searched the trash outside Ali's apartment dozens of times.

The two women have claimed they were soliciting money from the Somali community for charitable causes. But prosecutors claim the money was used to help at least 20 men travel from Minnesota to Somalia to join al-Shabab.

Ali and Hassan are accused of conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. Ali faces an additional 12 counts for allegedly sending more than $8,600 to al-Shabab beginning in 2008.

The women are among 20 people accused of taking part in the scheme to support the group. Some of them have pleaded guilty, while others await trial or remain fugitives.

Al-Shabab is fighting to overthrow Somalia's fragile transitional government in a bid to impose a strict form of Sharia, or Islamic law. The group recently pulled its fighters from the Somali capital of Mogadishu but continues to hold large sections of southern and central Somalia.

Nigeria Pursuing Link Between Al-Qaida, Boko Haram

Photo: AP

Suspected members of Boko Haram sect enter the federal High court where they are accused of plotting bombings that killed 25 people, Abuja, September 23, 2011.

Nigeria's government says Islamic militants in northern states are linked to al-Qaida-affiliated terrorists in the Sahel and in Somalia.

Definitively proving that link has brought more international attention to Nigerian terrorism, but may be overshadowing its domestic causes.

Nigeria's State Security Service says terrorists from the Boko Haram sect are linked to Somalia's al-Shabab militia, and the group al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, which operates across the Sahel from Mauritania to Niger.

Boko Haram claims responsibility for the bombing of U.N. headquarters in the Nigerian capital, as well a series of assassinations and ambushes across northern states as part of what it says is a campaign for an independent, Sharia-led nation.

Linking Boko Haram to al-Qaida has made Nigerian terrorism a bigger international issue. Britain is boosting intelligence sharing and technological support. The United States is helping track Boko Haram funding through a program established after the 2001 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington.

Boko Haram's support

Shehu Sani heads Nigeria's Civil Rights Congress and has written extensively about Boko Haram. He is not convinced of the group's direct links with al-Qaida, but said it is clear there is significant outside support.

“What we still can not deny here in this country is the links between sects in Nigeria and their benefactors from other parts of the world,” said Sani.

Sani said there are many foreign-backed Islamic sects in northern Nigeria that are far larger than Boko Haram. But because they operate peacefully, they attract little outside attention. Sani said Nigeria must focus more on Boko Haram recruiting students who study abroad.

“There is no agency of government in Nigeria today that has data of young people from northern Nigeria that are in Afghanistan, that are in Yemen, that are in Pakistan, that are in countries in the Middle East. But every month, every quarter, you have hundreds of young people in northern Nigeria given scholarships to study in those countries. And there is no tracking methods. There is no follow-up. There is no vetting.  And there is virtually no interest,” said Sani.

Boko Haram's methods

Nigerian defense and counter-terrorism analyst Husaini Monguno doubts al-Qaida's direct support for Boko Haram because their methods have little in common. Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, for example, principally kidnaps foreigners for ransom, while Boko Haram works within local communities to bomb crowded places.

“If you look at the pattern of al-Qaida operation, it is quite different from Boko Haram. If you happen to be a Maiduguri man or a Borno State [man], all the Boko Haram members are known," said Monguno. "They are not hidden. And they try to push for their own agenda openly. They are not afraid of anybody. But al-Qaida things are secretive. Even the intelligence community in the whole world are having difficulties in trying to see who are behind those types of operations.”

University of Abuja sociology professor Abubakar Umar Kari said the government's linking of Boko Haram to al-Qaida risks ignoring the underlying causes of the violence, which he said include poverty and injustice. It may also overlook other domestic contributors to the violence, as Kari said opponents of President Goodluck Jonathan may be using the cover of Boko Haram to mask their own political attacks.

“The more you look at it, the less you understand. But what is very, very clear is that the Boko Haram phenomenon has become a metaphor. They have become a scapegoat for whatever attack,” said Kari.

Boko Haram's violence

Monguno said political involvement with Boko Haram is most evident in how the group changed after Nigeria's 2003 election.

“What I believe the intelligence agencies should do is to try to see who are Boko Haram prior to 2003 election and after 2003 election. Boko Haram was nothing before 1999. I do believe that there are politicians who are using this group to try to perpetrate danger within the country,” said Monguno.

Sani said Boko Haram accelerated its campaign of violence following the death of its leader Mohammed Yusuf in police custody in 2009. Police said Yusuf was killed while trying to escape. Five members of the police force currently are on trial in connection with his death.

A presidential committee on northern violence says the police trial “should be expedited and publicized to convey to the public the government's sincerity on the issue.”

The committee is recommending talks with Boko Haram, but only after it renounces all forms of violence and surrenders its arms. Boko Haram has refused previous offers because of what is says is a military build-up in northern states.

Peter Obi’s Many Targets & Direct Hits 10/03/11

The failure of the generality of political leadership in Nigeria has been arguably the single most debilitating factor against societal development and progress. And, since many of them were not on the people’s mandate, there was little accountability but a high level of clouded purposes, broken promises and venality in the conduct of public affairs.
Mercifully, a few have established that with a clear vision, mission and commitment, positive outcomes are assured in governance. The experience of Peter Obi’s administration in Anambra State has been significant.
Soon after his inauguration for a second term in early February, 2010, a challenge was thrown to the Governor on “The Consolidation Imperative”. Some 20 months later, there is a revealing picture of his administration’s many targets and direct hits. ( Continues below..... )

Photo Above: His Excellency Governor Peter Obi (Photo 1)
Coming from a career background of corporate excellence, Governor Obi had a bird’s eye view of the developmental imperatives for his State. The enormity of the challenges ahead probably informed the Philosophy of ANIDS [Anambra Integrated Development Strategy]. This aims at several targets within the framework of the internationally-acclaimed benchmark: the Millennium Development Goals [MDGs]. To put the administration’s programme of action in perspective, the MDGs are to: Reduce extreme poverty and hunger; Achieve universal primary education; Promote gender equality and empower women; Reduce child mortality; Improve maternal health; Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases; Ensure environmental sustainability; and Develop a global partnership for development. The relevance of these goals to the realities of the Nigerian [including Anambra] state of affairs can hardly be over-stressed. So, what is the status reckoning for the present dispensation in Anambra State?
In typical fashion, the administration generated a Poverty Profile of Anambra State as a basis to tackle the twin challenges of reduction of poverty and elimination of extreme hunger. The Poverty Map identified areas of dire need and others of various levels of deprivation. In deference to the basics of agricultural and rural development in the fight against poverty, the Government strengthened its participation in the FADAMA III Project – in partnership with the Federal Government and international Development Partners. By fulfilling its counterpart requirements, the State opened up access the project’s goals of: funds & equipment to several hundred rural dwellers engaged in agricultural activities; financial support for thousands of the physically-challenged, widows and women to start their own ventures as well as to orphanages and care givers; revolving loans to women co-operatives in agro-allied businesses, including poultry/fish/pig/snail farming and supply of an assortment of equipment to set up cottage industries. ( Continues below….. )

Photo Above: Governor Peter Obi (Photo 2)
Still under this massive programme to combat poverty, there is a N2 billion intervention fund for Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises [MSMEs]; extensive construction of rural roads to boost access to the various communities and optimize exploitation of their potential; construction of rural markets & lock-up shops, bore holes, abattoirs, cold rooms, VIP latrines; establishment of bakeries, rice threshers, palm kernel crackers, cellophane machines, mills for rice, cassava, feeds, palm oil, starch and maize; and procurement of tricycles.
The State Government’s investment in a Neem-based organic Fertilizer plant would expand the agricultural sector’s capacity to create employment and increase productivity. In a similar vein, thousands of jobs at various unskilled and skilled categories would be generated from other investments attracted by the Obi administration to the State. These include a South African Brewing plant at Onitsha and the Rice Mill at Omor – easily the largest of its kind in West Africa.
As observed by the Co-ordinator of the National Poverty Eradication Programme [NAPEP], Dr. Magnus Kpakol, “Governor Obi remains determined and dogged by initiating effective economic empowerment programmes”.
For Anambra-watchers since its creation some 20 years ago, the attainments of the Obi administration in the education sector will always bear repetition. To date hundreds of primary and secondary schools have been rehabilitated and renovated; many others built, furnished and equipped. Virtually all the Government secondary schools in the State now have laboratories, libraries, ICT facilities [desktop computers, laptop computers, and Internet connectivity], buses, bore holes, electricity – gestures extended to private institutions. At a record of 200 secondary schools, the State has the highest number of that tier in ICT facilities in the country even as it rates top in the establishment of Microsoft Academies.
In its second term, the Government is funding the construction of 1,000 [4-room] classroom blocks per year. The project is on course, verifiable from the town unions through which the funds are disbursed. ( Continues below..... )

Photo Above: Governor Peter Obi (Photo 3)
Tertiary education has continued to receive boosts in structures, facilities, faculty, welfare, accreditation and improved funding. Benefitting institutions include Anambra State University [and its various Campuses and Teaching Hospital]; Nwafor Orizu College of Education, Nsugbe; School of Agriculture, Mgbakwu [with laboratories, hostels, classrooms, administration & staff offices and demonstration farms]; School of Nursing & Midwifery, Nkpor; College of Health Technology, Obosi; and Professor Kenneth Dike Central Library, Awka [for references and sundry research].
Much more than most other State Governments, the Obi administration has a decent number of women on its payroll in decision-making capacities. Barely two years ago, for instance, there were more female than male Permanent Secretaries in service. Of course, the full-fledged Ministry of Women Affairs and Women Development Centre are in place to ensure the pursuit of women’s rights and protection of the girl-child.
The health foundation of Anambra State is comparable to the best elsewhere. Existing Primary Healthcare Centres are being strengthened and new ones established to cater to maternal, child and reproductive health. Today, there are at least 5 [five] PHCs in each of the State’s 21 Local Government Areas. Added to these are refurbished and newly-constructed General Hospitals – all decently equipped and provided with personnel, essential consumables, water, power-generators, duty vehicles and ambulances.
Medical and general health education is also on the priority list with construction works, furnishing, installation of facilities and active pursuit of accreditation for Anambra State University Teaching Hospital & College of Medicine, Amaku-Awka as well as other tertiary health institutions across the State. ( Continues below….. )

Photo Above: Map of Anambra State, Nigeria.
The environmental challenges in Anambra State are quite enormous. Variously on its own and in concert with the Federal Government and Development Partners, the State Government has been steadily tackling the menace of erosion at over 1,000 sites. Dredging of blocked canals and waterways is also on-going even as the administration operates full-fledged agencies for waste management and for emergencies.
As indicated elsewhere, the infrastructural base of Anambra State today is easily one of the most solid in the country. The concrete evidence is reflected in the over 500 kilometres of intra-city and inter-city roads [including bridges and box culverts], water schemes power generating sets in various communities and several other urban development projects.
Staff welfare is also of critical concern. It should be recalled that it was the Obi administration that first gave Permanent Secretaries official cars, built decent houses for Judges Quarters, and constructed twin Secretariats to accommodate majority of the Ministries and civil servants. In the same vein, it has consistently fulfilled the salaries and basic allowances of civil servants. Despite the fraudulent lapses in the system before his tenure, Peter Obi demonstrated empathy for Pensioners in the State by sourcing funds to settle arrears of their gratuities and pensions from 1996 to 2010.
Commendations for the Obi administration have come from unlikely sources and from people who should know. The Senior Special Assistant to the President on MDGs, Hajiya Amina Az-Zubair asserted that “Anambra State has made remarkable success in the implementation of the MDGs programme”. And such has been the prudent management of the public treasury under the present dispensation that Anambra State was declared “the least indebted State in Nigeria” by the Federal Government Debt Management Office [DMO].
The incumbent Anambra State Government has aimed at several targets and score many direct hits. With the fear of God and a clear vision, he has demonstrated that governance is all about the people and not some abstract statistics. Despite all the positive strides of the past five years, it is pathetic that erstwhile entrenched interests that had leeched on the State continue to sow the seeds of discord, calumny and hate among the citizenry. Would the people prefer the old style imprudence of allocating the State’s resources and funds to a few individuals at the expense of the common good? The Peter Obi they know would not do that! The good among us should not appear helpless, while the worst display their vile energy, so help us God.