Figures released by the Central Bank last week showed that over 5 billion dollars was spent on the importation of refined petroleum products in 2007. The amount covered 5.8 million tonnes of PMS better known as petrol at the cost of 4.14 billion of dollars and 1.3 million tonnes of DPK or kerosene worth 956 million dollars. The total figure represents an increase of about 10% of the money value spent on fuel importation in 2006. The figure is aside from the 279 billion Naira said to have been spent on fuel subsidy for 2007. Part of the explanation for the increase in importation of petroleum products is the drop in domestic refining capacity. Two of Nigeria’s four refineries in Kaduna and Warri were not in operation almost throughout last year because the pipeline carrying crude oil to the refineries was vandalised so many times during the period.

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Recently, the inter-party committee on political reforms, earlier constituted by President Umaru Yar’adua, recommended the de-registration of some political parties. According to the proposal, parties that fail to get 13 seats in the National Assembly in an election should cease to exist for at least four years, until the next round of elections. The committee had argued that pruning down the number of parties will facilitate free and fair elections but it did not state how.

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Here we go again. Last Monday, we took another giant step in our national pastime of running around in circles in our quest for development. On behalf of President Umar Musa Yar’Adua, Vice-President Goodluck Jonathan inaugurated the National Council and National Steering Committee of the Yar’Adua administration’s Vision 2020.

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Last Friday, Nigeria joined the rest of the world in observing the first ever World Malaria Day. The United Nations has now designated the 25th of April of every year as the day for the entire world to focus attention on malaria, a disease that is reputed to kill about a million people all over the world every year. The theme of this year’s Malaria Day is "Malaria: a disease without borders".

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At a recent Federal Executive Council meeting, the Federal Government voided the sale/concession of the Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited (ASCL), National Iron Ore Mining Company (NIOMCO) and Delta State Company earlier ceded to Global Infrastructure Holding Limited (GIHL) in August 2004. The pronouncement was hailed across Nigeria as a timely intervention to the steel development dream of the country.

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The Zamfara State Commissioner for Religious Affairs, Sheikh Mohammed Tukur Sani Jangebe, recently disclosed on a radio programme in Gusau that his state government has so far disbursed the sum of 17.6 million naira to Islamic scholars to pray for peace, tranquility and the progress of Zamfara State. According to the Commissioner, the sum of N10, 000 was given to each Imam and the deputy imams got various sums of money (presumably according to their rank and the fervency and quality of their prayers) for their spiritual service. This story from Zamfara is one of those stories in our country that sound so bizarre and incredible but are true. There is no doubt that peace and tranquility are essential ingredients for the progress and development of any society. Without them, society cannot witness any meaningful progress. Given their importance, therefore, no one can be accused of wrong-doing if he champions prayers to the Almighty for them to reign.

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In recognition of the rising cases of kidney and kidney related diseases world-wide, the World Health Organisation (WHO) was compelled to designate a day as the World Kidney Day to draw world attention to this not-so new killer ailment. The day was March 8 this year. Diet, improper use of some drugs especially strong analgesics and other factors are said to be responsible for the ravages of this disease.

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Recent reports on the fresh outbreak of cerebro-spinal meningitis (CSM) in parts of the country are indeed
an embarrassing development. Statistics released by the Federal Government shows that since the outbreak in January, a record of over 400 people have lost their lives in 16 states of the federation. With statistics of 1,859 infections as at last week, the disease is continuing to spread like wildfire in most parts of Northern Nigeria where weather report is also alarming. Also, unofficial reports put the infections record at over 4,000 and death toll at over 500 nationwide.

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On the 6th and 7th of this month, this paper published an in-depth feature story on the state of facilities for teaching and learning at the only university located in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, the University of Abuja, better known as UniAbuja.

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It is nearly a month now since the Beechraft 1900D aircraft belonging to Wings Aviation Services on a flight from Lagos to Bebi Airstrip near the famous Obudu Cattle Ranch Resort in Cross River State disappeared from the Nigerian skies and has since not been found.

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The Nigerian judiciary has again earned for itself the confidence of the Nigerian people when the Ikeja High Court brought an end to the prolonged trial of the former Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General Ishaya Bamaiyi, who has been standing trial along with four others in the last 8 years over an alleged attempt to murder the publisher of The Guardian newspaper, Mister Alex Ibru and the former Delta State Commissioner for Sports Mister Isaac Porbeni in February 1996.

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Zimbabwe and the world are still awaiting the announcement of the March 29 presidential election result by the competent authority. The delay suggests that President Robert Mugabe’s ruling Patriotic Front of the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU-PF) is stalling. Having vowed that winning the presidency is a zero-sum game for ZANU-PF, and given the victory in the parliamentary vote of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) led by Morgan Tsvangerai, a former stalwart of Zimbabwe’s umbrella labour congress, speculation is rife that ZANU-PF is delaying the announcement of the result to buy time to "doctor" it. A crisis of democracy appears to be brewing in yet another African country as Zimbabwe simmers - one too many, in

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Loyalty is one virtue that is universally demanded and cherished. Bosses demand it of their subordinates; employers of their employees; spouses of their mates; nations of their citizens and groups of their members. The wheels that turn the world will rotate ever more smoothly if people in their various relationships fulfil their obligations to those to whom they owe such obligations. In the light of the importance of loyalty in human relationship, the declaration by the newly ‘elected’ chairman of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Vincent Ogbulafor, that he would exhibit 101% loyalty to President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, is significant.

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The Senate Committee on the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, this week began an investigative public hearing on the numerous complaints it had received from thousands of Nigerians on the affairs of the Territory’s administration between 1999 and 2007. These complaints range from demolition of houses, revocation of plots, multiple allocation of plots, sale of Federal Government houses to the concession of Federal Government property like the International Conference Centre, Eagle Square and Garki General Hospital. Other areas of complaints include dismissals and retirements of staff, non-compliance with court orders, allocation of corner shops, markets and parks.

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The recent scandal at the Federal Ministry of Health which led to the resignation of two ministers has brought to the fore many levels of corruption that pervade not only the public service but also the National Assembly, the nation’s law making body. The scandal has revealed to Nigerians the unholy relationship between federal ministries and the lawmakers following the admission by both the Senate and House of Representatives Committees on Health in the illegal sharing of the N300m the Federal Ministry of Health allegedly spent at the end of the 2007 financial year, against a presidential directive. The question however is this: was this an isolated case in the National Assembly?

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Not long after he was sworn-in after the controversial April 2007 elections, President Umar Musa Yar’adua had the basic sense of honesty to acknowledge that the set of elections that produced him and the present crop of leaders were flawed. This frank admission mollified a lot of Nigerians who were angry and ashamed at the same time about the charade that took place in the name of election and were vociferously calling for the voiding of the whole exercise.

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Recently, the election petition tribunal sitting in Benin City declared Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, the gubernatorial candidate of Action Congress (AC) as the governor of Edo State. The tribunal in a unanimous decision ordered INEC to issue him a certificate of return having scored 166,577 votes against Professor Oserheimen Osunbor, the PDP candidate who polled 129,056 votes. Earlier, Comrade Oshiomhole, the former NLC president, had petitioned Professor Osunbor’s victory as governor of Edo, praying that it should be nullified because it was not in accordance with the Electoral Act 2006. The petition went through the judicial mill for about 10 months, and on March 20,

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Two weeks ago, the Minister of Health, Professor Adenike Grange and Architect Gabriel Adukwu, Minister of State for Health, resigned their appointments in the cabinet of President Umar Musa Yar’adua. Their resignation is the consequence of their disobedience of a presidential directive that monies allocated to ministries and parastatals that were not spent before December 2007 must be returned to the national treasury.

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The death of Professor Chike Obi, pre-eminent African mathematician and philosopher, at a ripe old age of 87, at Onitsha, closed a major chapter in contemporary scholarship and activism. While he lived, Chike obi had become a legend. His mastery of the sciences of mathematics and philosophy was acknowledged universally, so much that in every part of Nigeria and even beyond, myths were woven of his extraordinary mental abilities.

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On March 20, Nigeria joined the rest of the world to mark ‘The World Tuberculosis Day’, that is set aside by the World Health Organisation ( WHO) to remind of progress recorded in the global effort at combating the disease. Records reveal that tuberculosis has infected one third of the world’s population. The disease which spreads through coughing and sneezing, according to WHO reports, kills around 1.6million people worldwide each year.

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