Tinubu calls for revolution

Asiwaju Bola Tinubu

A former Governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, says there is a need for the country to undergo a “common sense” revolution.

Tinubu, who is a national leader of the All Progressives Congress said the many years of misrule by successive Peoples Democratic Party presidents had continued to sink the country further into crisis.

The former governor said this in a statement titled ‘A Return to Decency’, on Monday.

He described the 16 years of PDP rule at the federal level as a period of steady decline into disaster.

He said, “The longer they rule, the less benefit the people derive. Nigeria now needs a ‘common sense revolution,’ a revolution that calls forth a return to decency, probity, transparency of process and fairness in outcome.

“This is done not by subterfuge, divide and rule and turning Nigeria in a field of discord or a street of broken institutions. It is accomplished by honouring the principles of democratic good governance and economic justice. It is done by persuading the people they are better off as one instead of better off tearing at one another’s throats.

“Nigerians should be prepared for change. We must rescue Nigeria from those set to cause it irreparable harm. The change I talk about is the only route to our deliverance from 16 years of the PDP locusts. Nigeria is ours to keep and its democracy is ours to save.”

He advised that this year’s Independence Day should be a time of sober reflection because other countries that received independence at the same time as Nigeria had since surpassed the country.

He described the Nigeria of today as the nightmare of its founding fathers. Tinubu further berated the PDP-led Federal Government of using religion to divide Nigerians.

He said, “We commemorate this Independence Day because the nation has survived despite its many challenges. We dare not celebrate because the nation has not flourished as it should. Fifty four years our national trek began with hope and promise, peace and unity.

“Today, the nation staggers beneath the weight of trouble multiplied by hardship. Peace and unity seem to have yielded the moment to violence and discord. We exist as a political unit on a map but we do not prosper as brothers and sisters in one nation, under one flag and pursuant to one accord.”

“Never has an elected government in Nigeria employed religion as a tool to divide the people, setting Nigerian brother against brother in a manner that allows this administration to function at the basest level of governance while seeking to establish a political domination that seeks no greater purpose than its self-perpetuation.”

He described attempts to stigmatise and physically intimidate the APC and the militarisation of elections as features of a perverse democracy.

He described President Goodluck Jonathan’s transformation agenda as an avenue to siphon funds through a dubious blueprint.

“They do not have a national blueprint or vision. They do have a blueprint and vision for excessive self-enrichment. Their equation is simple: You work, they feast. You toil, they grow fat. You seek a decent wage; they pilfer the collective treasury to enjoy a king’s ransom,” he said.

He said rather than promote religious tolerance and harmonious living, Jonathan’s government believes its electoral chances are enhanced by promoting ethnicism, internal divisions and religious suspicion but “successful nations are not built this way, have we not learned the lesson that we paid the high price of civil war to learn.”

60 soldiers face trial for mutiny today

Another set of 60 soldiers are to be arraigned before a General Court Martial by military authorities in Abuja on Tuesday (today)   for mutiny.

The soldiers allegedly committed mutiny on August 4, 2014 by refusing to join troops in Maiduguri for “an operation.”

Fayose asks NJC to probe Ekiti judiciary crisis

Ekiti State Governor-elect, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, has asked the National Judicial Council to investigate the allegation that he was involved in the beating of a serving judge in the state.

Fayose said the investigation would open what he described as cans of worms in the state judiciary.

He said it would be wrong for Nigerians to rely on what they were being fed by members of the All Progressives Congress on the issue, saying he was begging the NJC to look at all the issues at stake dispassionately and be guided by the truth.

Fayose, who spoke with journalists in Abuja on Monday, said that all the news about his involvement in the Ekiti violence was a part of a plot by the APC to cause crisis in the state with a view to prevent his inauguration on October 16.

He said, “What I’m saying is that the National Judicial Council should conduct a thorough probe of the happenings in Ekiti State judiciary and through that, the rot in the system will be exposed.

“A lot of things are happening there and there are signs that some judicial officers are conniving with the outgoing governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, and the APC.

“The current crisis is an agenda of the APC and their sole aim is to try and get through the back door what the people of the state did not give them on June 21 when they voted overwhelmingly for me and the Peoples Democratic Party.”

He said there was no way he, as a former governor, could have raised his hand to beat a judge, adding that he was not even capable of beating a house help.

Fayose said he was being portrayed in bad light in order to create the impression that he is a bad person.

He said, “I did not and cannot slap a judge. I cannot slap a houseboy, let alone a High Court Judge, and I have utmost respect for judicial officers.

“The media propaganda that I beat up a judge is an APC agenda to portray me in bad light having failed to take my mandate through the back door.

“The Ekiti State Attorney General, Wale Fapounda, has disclosed that he has spoken with the judge in question, and he spoke on Sunrise programme on Saturday morning on Channels TV where he made it clear that the news that I slapped the Judge was all lies.

“I did not enter Justice John Adeyeye’s court because I had no business to transact there. The Tribunal venue, where I went to, is quite a distance from Adeyeye’s court. Then the pertinent question is, ‘at what point did I meet him?’

“Is it that the Judge left his courtroom with his robe to face so-called protesters? Investigation will reveal all this.

“Up till now, nobody has been able to provide photo or video evidence that I slapped the judge.”

The governor-elect noted that PDP leaders were aware of the various petitions written to the NJC by APC leaders in Ekiti, saying investigation would reveal the truth.

He also stated that the actions and utterances of Fayemi in recent times showed a collaboration between him and some judicial officers.

He said, “For the information of all, I am openly expressing my readiness to appear before the committee to be set up by the NJC even after I must have been sworn in, to testify on the issue, if need be.

“The whole issue was part of a grand plan by the APC to cause mayhem and through it, install the Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly as acting governor, which the people of Ekiti has seen through, and are ready to stop at all cost.”

New Afghan president sworn in after disputed vote

Afghanistan's new president, Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai (left), stands next to Afghanistan's Chief Justice Abdul Salam Azimi as he takes the oath during his inauguration as president in Kabul on September 29, 2014. Picture: Omar Sobhani

In his first speech, Ghani Ahmadzai called on the Taliban and other militants to join the country's political process and lay down their weapons. However, extremist violence Monday killed at least 12 civilians and police officers as foreign forces prepare to withdraw from the country at the end of the year.

"We are tired of war," Ghani Ahmadzai said in a televised address. "Our message is peace, (but) this doesn't mean we are weak."

Ghani Ahmadzai, a former World Bank official and Afghan finance minister, wore a dark black turban popular in the country's south as he swore in his two vice presidents and then Abdullah.

Abdullah, a former foreign minister, spoke first and thanked Karzai for his service and the people of the country for casting votes in the millions despite the threat of attack from Taliban militants who tried to thwart the election process.

"We are committed as one in the national unity government," Abdullah said. "Our commitment will be fulfilled together as unified team to create national unity."

Ghani Ahmadzai then congratulated Karzai for a peaceful and democratic transition of power, and he thanked Abdullah for making the national unity government possible. The new president also promised to confront the country's endemic corruption.

"We want to be held accountable. I am your leader but I am no better than you. If I make mistakes, you should hold me accountable," Ghani Ahmadzai said.

Karzai - the only president Afghanistan and the West have known since the invasion - wore a wide smile as he greeted his presidential guards upon entering the palace. Karzai has said he is glad to be stepping down after more than a decade of what the U.S. ambassador recently said was one of the most difficult jobs in the world.

The inauguration caps a nearly six-month election season that began when ballots were first cast in April. A runoff election in June between Ghani Ahmadzai and Abdullah stretched on for weeks as both sides leveled charges of fraud. The United Nations helped carry out what it said was the most thorough recount in its history, a count that reduced Ghani Ahmadzai's vote percentage from 56 percent to 55 percent, but still gave him the win.

But the real power struggle was taking place in marathon talks between the two sides, often brokered by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and other U.S. officials. The political deal the sides agreed to created the new position of chief executive that Abdullah will now fill.

The inauguration took place eight days after the political deal was signed between Ghani Ahmadzai and Abdullah. Though Kerry played a big role in the political deal, the short notice of the inauguration date and events elsewhere in the Middle East did not allow him to attend. Instead, the U.S. was represented by John Podesta, counselor to President Barack Obama. Other notable guests included Pakistan President Mamnoon Hussain and Indian Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari.

U.S. officials have said they expect Ghani Ahmadzai to sign a security agreement with the U.S. shortly after his inauguration to allow about 10,000 American troops to stay in the country after the international combat mission ends on Dec. 31.

Even as the inauguration unfolded in the heavily guarded presidential palace, two bomb attacks took place on the road connecting the country's main airport with the palace. One roadside bomb did not result in any deaths or injuries, but a second attack about a kilometer (half mile) from the airport by a suicide bomber killed six or seven people, police officer Abdul Latif said.

A bigger attack took place in the eastern province of Paktia. Police Capt. Mohammed Hekhlas said that a car bomb exploded near a government compound as gunmen attacked, sparking a gun battle that killed seven Taliban militants. Another police official, who gave his name as Azimullah, said four police officers and two civilians also were killed.

For Afghans watching the inauguration, that threat of violence and insecurity remained one of their top concerns.

"I hope Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai can bring peace and the rule the law in Afghanistan as former Afghan President Hamid Karzai could not bring peace," said Abdul Rahman, a 30-year-old police officer. "Our people have been suffering from the instability and poverty."

Mystery over N.Korean leader fuels health rumors

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- North Korea's authoritarian leader makes no public appearances for three weeks, skipping a high-profile event he usually attends. An official documentary shows him limping and overweight and mentions his "discomfort." What follows is a smorgasbord of media speculation about what's eating Kim Jong Un.

Maybe it's gout, unidentified sources tell South Korean reporters, or diabetes, or high blood pressure. A thinly sourced British report says the Swiss-educated dictator has been laid low by a massive cheese addiction. A headline in Seoul offers up the possibility of a common South Korean obsession: fried chicken and beer.

So what's going on? Maybe not much.

As is always the case, much more than what's seen publicly is happening behind the well-guarded scenes with North Korea's No. 1. But just the fact that Pyongyang acknowledges that Kim is ailing suggests that he may not be suffering from anything particularly serious. The hugely micromanaged state media, for instance, were tight-lipped when Kim's father, Kim Jong Il, suffered major health problems late in his rule.

The intense outside fascination with even scraps of information creates a scramble in South Korea and the West to play up any hint of change or turmoil in a country notorious for resisting outside prodding and for releasing information only as it sees fit.

North Korea is unique: a poor, largely cloistered, fiercely proud, nominally Stalinist country led from its founding in 1948 by a family that has passed down power through three generations. It's also in possession of a handful of crude nuclear bombs and working toward producing nuclear-armed missiles that could target the mainland United States.

Because of this, there's powerful curiosity about what would happen should Kim Jong Un be incapacitated. Kim is believed to have been groomed for the leadership by Kim Jong Il after the elder man suffered a stroke in 2008. Kim Jong Un, who is thought to be 31, reportedly has at least one young daughter but no adult heirs.

The recent health speculation started when Kim, always a large man, began showing up in pictures and video noticeably heavier, and with a distinct limp. For more than three weeks, he hasn't been seen performing his customary public duties in state media coverage, according to Seoul's Unification Ministry, which monitors the North.

And then, on Thursday, his usual seat was empty at a session of the country's rubber stamp parliament. Although Kim Jong Il occasionally missed the meetings, it was the first no-show for Kim Jong Un since he took over after his father's death in late 2011, Seoul officials said.

The same day as the parliamentary meeting, the North aired a documentary with footage from August that showed a limping Kim inspecting a tile factory. "Our marshal continues to light the path for the people like a flame despite his discomfort," a narrator said.

The documentary, which was shown again Monday, marked the first and only time state media have made a direct comment on Kim's health since he took power, the Unification Ministry said.

South Korean officials told reporters Monday they don't think anything serious is happening, but that hasn't stopped the rumors.

North Korea's propaganda specialists carefully construct their media images, especially those of Kim, with an eye on the domestic elite and, to a lesser extent, on foreign, mostly South Korean, audiences.

The recent images of Kim limping and the documentary are "an attempt to quell rumors within the North Korean public and show confidence that Kim's health problems are trivial," said Koh Yu-hwan, a North Korea expert at Dongguk University in Seoul.

Kim Jong Il was reportedly a very sick man in the last years of his life, but state media was silent about the reported 2008 stroke.

Kim Jong Un is usually a near-constant one-man show in state media, but he has kept a low profile before. In 2012, he wasn't seen publicly for about three weeks, South Korean officials say.

Senior North Korean officials do vanish on occasion - sometimes for good.

After surviving several earlier purges, Kim's uncle, Jang Song Thaek, was publicly shamed and then executed on treason charges in December 2013. In 2012, North Korea purged its army chief, which also caused wild speculation in Seoul, including a report from a South Korean newspaper, citing "unconfirmed intelligence reports," that Ri Yong Ho may have been wounded or killed in a blaze of gunfire when soldiers loyal to him resisted an armed attempt to detain him. Ri's fate is still unknown.

Whatever's going on, avid North Korea watchers will get another chance for a carefully staged look on Oct. 10, when the North stages a celebration of the founding anniversary for the ruling Workers' Party.

Paper publishes cover mocking Clinton baby

New York Post calls Chelsea's new baby girl 'another liberal crybaby'

The New York Post couldn't help but have a little fun at Chelsea Clinton's expense after she gave birth Friday evening to baby girl Charlotte Clinton Mezvinsky.

Chelsea and husband Marc's first child was welcomed into the world by the notorious tabloid under the headline: "Another liberal crybaby for Dem Clintons: PARTY POOPER."

Though meant to be tongue-in-cheek, many democratic-leaning publications and other took offense to the cover.


Huffington Post immediately jumped on the opportunity to call the Rupert Murdoch-owned rag the "world's classiest tabloid."

The Daily Intelligencer wrote: "the conservative tabloid welcomed Bill and Hillary's first grandchild in true Post fashion, complete with partisan rancor, irrational outrage, and multiple pieces of wordplay."

The controversial cover was met with a range of reactions ranging from anger to amusement on Twitter andFacebook.

Britain eases travel restrictions on Kenya

The British government on Monday relaxed its travel advisory against Kenya in the latest move that will encourage more visitors to the east African nation.

A brief statement from the British embassy in Nairobi said the government has removed its advice to its nationals travelling to low income areas in Nairobi except Eastleigh area which is inhabited by Kenyans of Somali origin and which has been a scene of grenade attacks in the past.

“Britain has removed advice against all but essential travel to low income areas of Nairobi, except the Eastleigh area,” the advisory reads.

In May 2014, the British government advised its citizens to avoid travelling to Kenya, especially the coastal island of Lamu, after a string of attacks and massacres there.

However, the British embassy in Nairobi said its Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) had decided to relax the advisor which takes effect on Monday.

The FCO does advise against travel to Kenya’s popular safari destinations in the national parks, reserves and wildlife conservancies, including the Aberdare National Park, Amboseli, Laikipia, Lake Nakuru, Masai Mara, Meru, Mount Kenya, Samburu, and Shimba Hills, Tsavo.

The embassy says most visits to game reserves and other tourist areas are trouble-free. “If you visit reserves, use reputable tour operators and arrive at your destination in daylight hours. Don’t buy safari tours from touts,” it said.

The changes in the advisory in June prompted the British FCO to close its consulate in Mombasa, saying it would provide normal consular assistance to its nationals through the Nairobi office.

Increased grenade and terror attacks in the coastal city of Mombasa and Nairobi prompted Britain to issue fresh travel advice on May 14 to its nationals visiting Nairobi and the tourism resort city especially in areas near the border with Somalia.

The British government said the move to close the consulate was informed by an assessment of threats faced by its nationals in the area.

Kenya’s coastal towns are the backbone of the country’s thriving tourism industry, which has been hit by the fear of terror attacks and the kidnapping of foreigners by Somali pirates from resorts near the border with Somalia.

The British government was the first to issue travel advisories in May, warning its citizens not to visit the coastal beaches, Nairobi and the north-eastern region. France, Australia and the U. S. followed with updated advisories.