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Monday,Jul 26,2010
Why the Government May Be Wrong on The New ‘Minimum’ Wage
The recent 63.7 percent increase in the national minimum wage, from N11,000 to N17,000 (or is it N18,000?) has gene....
By Jideofor Adibe
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Saturday,Jul 17,2010
Between Octopus Paul And Nigerian Juju Men And Pastors
One of the celebrities thrown up by the just concluded World Cup tournament in South Africa is the German Octopus P....
By Jideofor Adibe
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Sunday,Jul 11,2010
Igboland: When Did Things Really Begin To Fall Apart?
That the level of insecurity in Igboland has reached unacceptable level is no longer news. In virtually all parts o....
By Jideofor Adibe
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Wednesday,Jun 30,2010
Jonathan, Babangida and the Sword of Damocles
In the Sword of Damocles, the Roman politician and philosopher Cicero tells the story of Dionysius II, a king who r....
By Jideofor Adibe
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Wednesday,Jun 30,2010
Letter To “Father No Shaking” On The September 2010 Festival Of Oath-taking In Umuagwu-Aro, Osuh-Owerre, Isi-ala Mbano Local Government Area (LGA), Imo State
Dear Rev. Father, Greetings! I have to address by the above name since it is the name you are commonly kn....
By Odimegwu Onwumere
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Wednesday,Jun 23,2010
Attahiru Jega and the Search for a Nigerian Hero
Nigerians seem to be in constant search for public heroes - competent little messiahs who will not hesitate to put ....
By Jideofor Adibe
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Thursday,Jun 17,2010
The Return of Mallam Ribadu
Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, the one time strongman of the financial crime buster EFCC, who sneaked out of Nigeria into self....
By Jideofor Adibe
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Thursday,Jun 17,2010
Too Many Captains…
Two major attributes that have been quite easy to discern about President Goodluck Jonathan are: one, he seems to l....
By Ijeoma Nwogwugwu
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Thursday,Jun 10,2010
Should Suspects Be Paraded?
The above question is generating increasing furore among our intellectuals, and ‘beer parlour’ politica....
By Jideofor Adibe
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Thursday,Jun 10,2010
Nigeria: A Two Party System By Legislation?
Perhaps enamoured by the seeming ease with which two dominant political parties trod the political landscape of, at....
By Joel Nwokeoma
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That Unprecedented Political Act
By:
Kingsley Omose
kingsleyomose@gmail.com
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Unprecedented is how the BBC described the efforts of Nigeria's political elites to address the leadership vacuum that culminated in the passing of separate but almost identical resolutions by the Senate and House of Representatives declaring that Jonathan Goodluck is officially the acting President of Nigeria.
The resolutions, which were near unanimous declarations of the National Assembly state that Jonathan Goodluck "shall henceforth discharge the functions of the office of president, commander-in- chief of the armed forces of the federation, as acting president".
According to the National Assembly, Umaru Yar'Adua's interview with the BBC where he declared publicly to the world his incapacitation to act as president and that he did not know when he would be discharged from hospital, satisfied the requirements of Section 145 of the Constitution.
These efforts came after 78 continuous days of the absence of Umaru Yar'Adua and mounting agitations by Nigerians from all works of life for a handover of power to the Vice President to enable the power vacuum to be filled as Nigeria was beginning to drift towards a state of disorder.
Some have questioned the legality of the actions taken by the National Assembly, wondering whether the hospital declaration of incapacity by Umaru Yar'Adua satisfies the need for a written declaration to be transmitted to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
That the declaration was oral is besides the point especially as the Federal High Court had already ruled that Umaru Yar’Adua had a discretion whether or not to inform the leaders of the National Assembly that he was proceeding on vacation or had become incapacitated.
Having opted to exercise that discretion through a declaration made on an international radio station the National Assembly has also opted to accept such a declaration as satisfying the requirements of Section 145 of the Constitution.
When it comes to the exercise of his discretionary rights it is only Umaru Yar'Adua who can challenge the propriety or otherwise of what the National Assembly has done and until he does that there is a presumption of regularity regarding this unprecedented and near unanimous act.
As for Jonathan Goodluck, yes his political life has been characterized by a massive doze of good luck but Nigeria requires urgent action to address its numerous challenges such as debilitating poverty, dilapidated infrastructure, religious and sectarian crisis, and scarcity of petroleum products.
Other challenges include epileptic or near absence of public power supply, urgent development of the Niger Delta, overhauling of our electoral laws including INEC, and preparations for 2011 General Elections among others.
These challenges are enough to scare anyone especially when the person is in an acting capacity but then Jonathan Goodluck understands what has happened in the last 78 days and should approach these challenges with the mindset that each day he acts as president may be his last day in that office.
He should remember that a man who has not got long to live does not have the luxury of thinking long thoughts or being distracted by unimportant things but is focused on doing the needful and maximizing the time he has left on earth, this should be the modus operandi of Jonathan GoodluckCONTINUE ON PAGE
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