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On the Prof. Chinua Achebe project, log on to www.Achebebooks.com
CNN
International interview with Nigeria's
President Obasanjo and USAfricaonline.com Publisher Chido Nwangwu on
Democracy
and Security Issues
Obasanjo fingered by his VP Atiku in loss of $500m Oil Money
By Jide Ajani, Omoh Gabriel & Rotimi Ajayi in Lagos
Vice President Atiku Abubakar alleged on September 17, 2006 that
over $500 million of the money realised during the
2002/2003
oil licensing bids cannot be accounted for by the authorities.
Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC),
Mallam N
uhu
Ribadu, speaking on the VP said he (Atiku) was engaging in cheap
blackmail to win public sympathy while the President of the World
Bank, Mr Paul Wolfowitz, yesterday gave President Obasanjo a clean
bill of health in his crusade against corruption when he said "you
can go around the world, the President of Nigeria is making a strong
effort to deal with corruption and taking on corrupt officials at a
level that was unheard of in his country."
Meanwhile, President Obasanjo has ordered his camp to cease-fire in the face-off with the vice president.
Vice President Atiku in a statement yesterday by his chief spokesman, Mallam Garba Shehu had said: "The position of the law on PTDF is that all money collected in respect of licensing rounds (bidding proceeds) of oil blocks and their licensing is to be paid into the PTDF account for the purposes of training Nigerians in specified fields.
"The law also provides that any disbursed amount should be invested in accordance with the guidelines approved by the Accountant General of the Federation(AGF).
"The AGF approved about 14 banks to hold PTDF deposits after certifying them to be healthy and suitable. These include the Equatorial Trust Bank (ETB) and the Trans-International Bank (TIB).
"It is very important to state that the approval granted by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) was for programmes and projects to be embarked upon after the project conception, design and implementation after meeting due process requirements.
"The approval was not for the award of contracts to be implemented immediately, nor was it an approval for the investment of the funds as the kangaroo panel set up by the President tried to impute.
"This is clearly so, as the president had earlier in 2001 approved a similar programme of action, which guided the operations of the PTDF. The established operational procedure for the PTDF did not provide for FEC approval before funds are deposited with any bank.
"It was a routine exercise which was normally done by the management of PTDF under the direction of the Special Adviser on Petroleum Resources or the Vice President as the case maybe.
"Over $100m was deposited with First Bank and similar large sums with UBA at one time or the other without any such approval. Similarly, the other 12 banks or so had amounts deposited with them without the approval of FEC.
"In short, no government department or PTDF required any approval from the FEC to invest their funds. The procedure in the case of ETB and TIB were fully complied with as the banks were approved by the AG to hold PTDF funds.
"The Executive Secretary recommended them on the basis of sound business judgment which the Vice President approved and the signatories to the PTDF accounts comprising officers in the AGF's office and Ministry of Petroleum Resources released the funds to the banks as deposits on clearly defined tenor and interest rates to be paid." Vanguard (Lagos) September 18, 2006
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Nelson Mandela, Tribute to the world's political superstar and Lion of Africa Winnie Madikizela-Mandela's burden mounts with murder charges, trials Why Bush should focus on dangers facing Nigeria's return to democracy and Obasanjo's slipperyslide ![]() A KING FOR ALL TIMES: Why Martin Luther King's legacy and vision are relevant into 21st century.
Since 1958, Achebe's "Things Fall Apart" set a standard of artistic excellence, and more. By Douglas Killam DEBATE: How Black intellectuals let Africa down, and western stereoptypes complicate the rest. By Cedrick Ngalande at the USC, Los Angeles Why Chinua Achebe, the Eagle on the Iroko, is Africa's writer of the century. By Chido Nwangwu(First written on March 1, 2002, for USAfrica, updated for Prof. Achebe's 74th Birthday tribute on November 16, 2004, and published in CLASS magazine same month): Africa's most acclaimed and fluent writer of the English Language, the most translated writer of Black heritage in the world, broadcaster extraordinaire, social conscience of millions, cultural custodian and elevator, chronicler and essayist, goodwill ambassador and man of progressive rock-ribbed principles, the Eagle on the Iroko, Ugo n'abo Professor Chinua Achebe, has recently been selected by a distinguished jury of scholars and critics (from 13 countries of African life and literature) as the writer of the Best book (Things Fall Apart, 1958) written in the twentieth century regarding Africa. Reasonably, Achebe's message has been neither dimmed nor dulled by time and clime. He's our pathfinder, the intellectual godfather of millions of Africans and lovers of the fine
art of good writing. Achebe's cultural contexts are, at
once, pan-African, globalist and local; hence, his literary
contextualizations soar beyond the confines of Umuofia and
any Igbo or Nigerian setting of his creative imagination or
historical recall.
His globalist underpinnings and outlook are truly
reflective of the true essence of his Igbo world-view, his
Igbo upbringing and disposition. Igbos and Jews share (with
a few other other cultures) this pan-global disposition to
issues of art, life, commerce, juridical pursuits, and quest
to be republicanist in terms of the vitality of the
individual/self. In Achebe's works, the centrality of Chi
(God) attains an additional clarity in the Igbo cosmology...
it is a world which prefers a quasi-capitalistic business
attitude while taking due cognizance of the usefulness of
the whole, the community. I've studied, lived and tried to
better understand, essentially, the rigor and towering moral
certainties which Achebe have employed in most of his works
and his world. I know, among other reasons, because I share
the same ancestry with him. Permit me to attempt a brief
sentence, with that Achebean simplicty and clarity.
Here, folks, what the world has known since 1958: Achebe is
good! Eagle on the Iroko, may your Lineage endure! There has
never been one like you! |
22 million Africans HIV-infected, ill with AIDS while African leaders ignore disaster-in-waiting In a special report a few hours after the history-making nomination, USAfricaonline.com Founder and Publisher Chido Nwangwu places Powell within the trajectory of history and into his unfolding clout and relevance in an essay titled 'Why Colin Powell brings gravitas, credibility and star power to Bush presidency.' Powell named Secretary State by G.W. Bush; bipartisan commendations follow. Beyond U.S. electoral shenanigans, rewards and dynamics of a democratic republic hold lessons for African politics. Bush's position on Africa is "ill-advised." The position stated by Republican presidential aspirant and Governor of Texas, George Bush where he
said that "Africa will not be an area of priority" in his
presidency has been questioned by
USAfricaonline.com Publisher Chido
Nwangwu. He added that Bush's "pre-election position was
neither validated by the economic exchanges nor
geo-strategic interests of our two continents."
These views were
stated during an interview CNN's anchor Bernard Shaw and
senior analyst Jeff Greenfield had with Mr. Nwangwu on
Saturday November 18, 2000 during a special edition of
'Inside Politics 2000.' ![]() Apple announces Titanium, "killer apps" and other ground-breaking products for 2001. iTunes makes a record 500,000 downloads. Steve Jobs extends digital magic CLASS is the social events, heritage excellence and style magazine for Africans in north America, described by The New York Times as the magazine for affluent Africans in America. It is published by professional journalists and leading mulitmedia leaders and pioneers. |