Photos: President Jonathan's visit to Mali

  
FROM LEFT: PRESIDENT GOODLUCK JONATHAN, INTERIM PRESIDENT OF MALI, MR DIOCOUDE TRAORE AND THE

NIGERIAN AMBASSADOR TO NIGERIA, MR ILIYA HUHU AT THE BAMAKO SENOU INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT DURING THE

PRESIDENT'S OFFICIAL VISIT TO MALI ON FRIDAY IN BAMAKO

 

 

   

PRESIDENT GOODLUCK JONATHAN (L) WITH THE LEADER OF THE COUP OF 22ND MARCH 2012 IN MALI, CAPT. AHMADOU AYA SANOGO AFTER A MEETING IN BAMAKO ON FRIDAY (19/10/12)

Photos: President Jonathan's visit to Niger Republic

PRESIDENT ISSOUFOU MAHAMADOU OF NIGER REPUBLIC (L) WELCOMING PRESIDENT GOODLUCK JONATHAN AT THE DIORI HAMANI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT NIAMEY FOR THE  NIGERIA-NIGER JOINT COMMISSION FOR CORPORATION  MEETING ON THRSDAY (18/10/12).

PRESIDENT GOODLUCK JONATHAN (L) WITH PRESIDENT ISSOUFOU MAHAMADOU OF NIGER REPUBLIC ADDRESING  A JOINT NEWS CONFERENCE AFTER THE NIGERIA-NIGER JOINT COMMISSION FOR CORPORATION  MEETING IN NIAMEY ON THRSDAY (18/10/12)

Reuben Abati

Special Adviser (Media & Publicity) to President Goodluck Jonathan

Reuben Abati photo

Reuben Abati SA Media

Drugs, gun found on rapper Nelly's bus at Texas checkpoint

SAN ANTONIO (Reuters) - Authorities discovered marijuana, heroin and a loaded gun on Grammy-winning rapper Nelly's tour bus during a routine stop at a Border Patrol checkpoint in West Texas, law enforcement officials said on Thursday.

A member of the singer's entourage took responsibility for the items and was arrested after the search on Wednesday evening, while others on the bus including Nelly were released, officials said.

"It is my understanding a member of my staff made an unfortunate decision to bring unlawful materials onto our tour bus that resulted in his arrest," Nelly said in a statement on Thursday. "Neither I nor anyone else on the tour bus was aware of his decision to bring these on board."

The incident took place at the same checkpoint where singers Willie Nelson and Fiona Apple, rapper Snoop Dogg and actor Armand Hammer have been stopped for possession of controlled substances. The checkpoint, which is not on the border, is used by the Border Patrol to check the citizenship status of motorists on Interstate 10.

A spokesman for the Hudspeth County sheriff said the tour bus had pulled into the Border Patrol checkpoint in Sierra Blanca, Texas, about 90 miles east of El Paso, when a dog detected the presence of controlled substances.

"The agent requested all seven occupants out of the bus and conducted an inspection of the vehicle," spokesman Rusty Fleming told Reuters. "A search produced a small plastic container containing marijuana, 36 small bags containing heroin, and a loaded .45 pistol."

Fleming said all of the occupants of the bus were read their Miranda rights, and a passenger on the bus, Brian Keith Jones, admitted that the controlled substances and the weapon belonged to him.

Jones was arrested, Fleming said, adding that he did not know what charges he will face.

Nelly, 37, whose real name is Cornell Iral Haynes, was born in Austin, Texas. He has performed in several movies, and Billboard magazine named him one of the top artists of the decade in 2009.

Turkey condemns U.N. inertia as Syrian conflict deepens

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan rebuked the U.N. Security Council for inaction over Syria on Saturday as war intensified across the country, saying the world body of superpowers was repeating mistakes that led to massacres in Bosnia in the 1990s.

President Bashar al-Assad's forces used air strikes and artillery to bombard insurgents on several fronts in the 19-month-old conflict, which risks dragging in regional powers with no sign of a diplomatic breakthrough.

Turkey - increasingly entangled after having intercepted a Syrian airliner carrying what it said were Russian-made munitions for the Syrian army, infuriating Moscow and Damascus - has led calls for intervention, including no-fly zones enforced by foreign aircraft to stop deadly air raids by Assad's forces.

But there is little chance of U.N. support for robust action. China insists any solution to Syria's crisis must come from within while Russia has said many Syrians still support Assad. Western nations meanwhile are loath to commit to any military action that could touch off a regional sectarian war.

"The U.N. Security Council has not intervened in the human tragedy that has been going on in Syria for 20 months, despite all our efforts," Erdogan told a conference in Istanbul attended by dignitaries including Arab League Secretary General Nabil Elaraby. "There's an attitude that encourages, gives the green light to Assad to kill tens or hundreds of people every day."

The bloodshed has worsened markedly in the past two months although neither side has been able to gain a distinct advantage, with government force relying heavily on air power and artillery to batter the rebels.

Combat has been reported nationwide but the crucial strategic battles are being fought in an arc through western Syria, where most of the population lives.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu was expected to meet U.N. special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi on the sidelines of the Istanbul conference later. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said this week Brahimi would visit Syria soon to try to persuade Assad to call an immediate ceasefire.

The government dispatched warplanes to attack insurgent forces surrounding the Wadi-al-Dayf military barracks near Maarat al-Numan in Idlib province, wounding 22 rebels, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The rebels captured Maarat al-Numan this week, cutting the main north-south highway linking Damascus, Homs and Aleppo, and government forces will need to retake it in order to reinforce and resupply Aleppo - Syria's largest city and commercial hub.

MEMORIES OF SREBRENICA

The U.N. Security Council, divided between Western powers on one side and Russia and China on the other, has proved helpless in halting a conflict which has spiraled into civil war and killed more than 30,000 people.

Erdogan said a system which allowed one or two nations to block intervention in such a grave humanitarian crisis was inherently unjust, and that Syria would go down in history as a U.N. failure much like Bosnia in the 1990s.

"How sad is that the United Nations is as helpless today as it was 20 years ago when it watched the massacre of hundreds of thousands of people in the Balkans, Bosnia and Srebrenica," Erdogan told the Istanbul conference.

The July 1995 massacre in Srebrenica was the worst on European soil since World War Two, in which Dutch U.N. peacekeepers abandoned what had been designated a U.N. safe haven to advancing Bosnian Serb forces, who then killed 8,000 Muslim men and boys and bulldozed their corpses into pits.

Turkish officials had expressed hope they might be able to persuade Moscow, which sold Syria $1 billion of arms last year, to soften its strident opposition at the Security Council and that if it succeeded, China would follow suit.

But relations between Ankara and Moscow sank to a new low this week after Turkey forced down a passenger jet flying from Moscow and publicly accused Russia of ferrying military equipment to Assad's forces.

Russia has said there were no weapons on the plane and that it was carrying a legal shipment of radar equipment.

REBELS CONTROL BORDER TOWN, FOR NOW

Elsewhere on Syria's battlefronts on Saturday, government forces rained mortar fire down on the opposition-held Khalidiya neighborhood of the city of Homs, the Observatory said. Explosions were felt throughout the besieged district.

To the south of Damascus near Deraa - cradle of the uprising which began with peaceful street rallies - Assad's troops and rebels were fighting on the edge of the town of Maarba.

After four days of heavy fighting in the town of Azmarin on the Turkish border, the rebels appeared to have a fragile hold.

"Praise be the town is now in our hands ... We have raised two flags inside the town and the battles are over. Azmarin is completely under our control," one resident, who did not want to be named, told Reuters by telephone from inside the town.

But a few km (miles) along the border clashes continued in the Syrian town of Darkush, where the crack of gunfire and sporadic sound of shelling could be heard from Turkey.

In a preliminary death toll across the country for Friday alone, the Observatory listed about 160 dead. Among them were a 3-year-old child killed in a bombardment of old Aleppo, a district whose ancient buildings have been severely damaged.

Tensions between Ankara and Damascus have also worsened. Turkey scrambled two fighter jets on Friday after a Syrian helicopter bombed Azmarin and has warned of a more forceful response if Syrian shells continue to fly over the border.

Syria's state news agency SANA said Damascus was ready to accept a Russian proposal for a Syrian-Turkish joint security committee to try to contain the border violence. There was no confirmation of this from the Turkish side.

STATE HOUSE PRESS RELEASE PRESIDENT JONATHAN TO INAUGURATE FLOOD RELIEF COMMITTEE, BEGINS TOUR OF AFFECTED STATES TOMORROW

President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan will at 9 am tomorrow, Thursday, October 11, 2012, in the Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa, formally inaugurate the National Committee on Flood Relief and Rehabilitation which he has established as part of measures by the Federal Government to provide urgent succour and relief to victims of devastating floods across the country.
The Committee which has Alhaji Aliko Dangote and Mr. Olisa Agbakoba as its Co-Chairmen has been given the responsibility of raising additional funds to support ongoing efforts by the Federal Government to ensure the provision of adequate relief to flood victims
 and effective post-impact rehabilitation of affected persons and communities.
All Members of the Committee are expected to be seated in the Council Chambers by 8.30 am in readiness for their inauguration by the President.
Immediately after the inauguration, President Jonathan will embark on the first-phase of an inspection tour of states affected by the floods.
In the phase of the tour which begins tomorrow, President Jonathan will visit flooded parts of Kogi State, Anambra State, Delta State, Bayelsa State and Rivers State.
 
Reuben Abati
Special Adviser to the President
(Media & Publicity)
October 10, 2012

President Jonathan's 2013 Budget Speech

  Federal Republic of Nigeria

2013 Budget Speech

"Fiscal Consolidation with Inclusive Growth"

Delivered by:

His Excellency
Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR
President, Federal Republic of Nigeria

Before:

A Joint Session of the National Assembly, Abuja

Wednesday, 10th October 2012

PROTOCOL

1.It is my pleasure and honour to present the 2013 Federal Budget
Proposal before this esteemed Joint Session of the National Assembly.
I am particularly delighted to present this Proposal to you earlier in the year, and soon after the commemoration of our national
independence, to signal our commitment to evolving a new Nigeria. This
Proposal is the product of extensive consultations with key
stakeholders and would further translate the Government's development
plans into concrete actions.

Broadcast by His Excellency, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR on the Incidences of Flooding in Parts of the Country Abuja. October 2012 ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

Fellow Nigerians,

1.          Over the past few weeks, unprecedented floods have ravaged many parts of our country, rendering tens of thousands of fellow Nigerians homeless, and causing massive destruction of property, farmlands, and infrastructure across the country. 

2.          I wish to express our deep commiseration with all those who have lost loved ones; those who have lost their property; as well as all the affected communities and institutions. 

 

 

3.           It is sad that this global phenomenon of devastating floods has come to Nigeria at this time.   

4.          I want to reassure all Nigerians that the Federal Government is prepared to do everything possible to mitigate the impact of this natural disaster. 

5.          I had earlier set up a Presidential Technical Committee to visit all affected areas with a view to properly assessing the impact of the floods.  The Committee has since submitted an interim Report. 

 

6.          The Report, which contained a number of recommendations, was presented to key stakeholders including the leadership of the National Assembly and Governors of the affected States.  

7.          The Technical Committee will continue to go round the country while the Vice President and I will also visit some of the affected communities. When we receive the Committee’s final Report, the Federal Government will further initiate medium and long-term measures to check future flood disasters. 

8.          In the meantime, relevant government agencies have intervened to provide relief to the affected persons in collaboration with the State governments. 

9.          The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has so far spent N1.314 billion to provide immediate relief materials.  The Ministry of Works has spent N556 million on the repair of collapsed bridges and the construction of bye-passes; while the Ministry of Environment has spent N95 million on sundry relief measures.  

10.     In addition to this, the Federal Government has decided on a number of measures to further ameliorate the situation.  These include the immediate provision of a total of N17.6 billion in direct financial assistance to the affected States and some Federal Government Agencies responsible for disaster management.   The States will receive a total of N13.3 billion while the Federal Agencies will receive N4.3 billion. 

 

 

11.     Based on the present assessment, the States have been categorized into four groups: A to D. All Category A States will receive N500 million each; Category B States, N400 million each; Category C States, N300 million each; and Category D States, N250 million each. 

12.     Category A States: Oyo, Kogi, Benue, Plateau,                                  Adamawa, Delta, Bayelsa and Anambra. 

Category B: Jigawa, Kano, Bauchi, Kaduna, Niger,                    Nasarawa, Taraba, Cross-River, Edo,                          Lagos and Imo.

 

Category C: Kwara, Katsina, Gombe, Ogun, Ondo,                   Ebonyi, Abia and Rivers.                                                                       

 Category D: Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Yobe, Enugu,                       Ekiti, Osun, Akwa-Ibom, Borno and FCT.    

 

                                                                      13.     To further intensify their intervention activities, the following agencies of the Federal Government have also been allocated funds as follows: 

∙       Ministry of Works       –        N2.6 billion∙       National Emergency Management Agency   -        N1.1 billion∙       Ministry of Environment -    N350 million∙      
National Commission for Refugees – N150m∙
Technical Committee on Floods Impact Assessment        - N100 million  

14.     I have also set up a National Committee on Flood Relief and Rehabilitation to assist the Federal Government to raise funds to mitigate the pains and ensure the effective post-impact rehabilitation of victims.  This Committee will be co-chaired by Alhaji Aliko Dangote and Mr. Olisa Agbakoba, while Dr. Mike Adenuga, Jr. will serve as the Chief Funds Mobiliser.  

15.     The full membership of the Committee will be announced immediately after this broadcast.16.     Fellow Nigerians, let me use this opportunity to thank State Governments, members of the National Assembly, private individuals, agencies of government, private sector institutions, NGOs, faith-based organizations, and philanthropic groups who individually and collectively have risen to the aid of persons and communities affected by the floods. 

17.     This humanitarian and compassionate spirit that has been on display in the past few weeks reassures us that, at critical moments, Nigerians are able to come together in pursuit of a common purpose.lk 

18.     My Fellow Compatriots, let me once again reassure you that this Administration remains fully committed to the welfare and well being of all Nigerians at all times. 

19.     May God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria. 

20.     I thank you all.

Broadcast by His Excellency, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR on the Incidences of Flooding in Parts of the Country Abuja. October 2012 ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

Fellow Nigerians,

1.          Over the past few weeks, unprecedented floods have ravaged many parts of our country, rendering tens of thousands of fellow Nigerians homeless, and causing massive destruction of property, farmlands, and infrastructure across the country. 

2.          I wish to express our deep commiseration with all those who have lost loved ones; those who have lost their property; as well as all the affected communities and institutions. 

 

 

3.           It is sad that this global phenomenon of devastating floods has come to Nigeria at this time.   

4.          I want to reassure all Nigerians that the Federal Government is prepared to do everything possible to mitigate the impact of this natural disaster. 

5.          I had earlier set up a Presidential Technical Committee to visit all affected areas with a view to properly assessing the impact of the floods.  The Committee has since submitted an interim Report. 

 

6.          The Report, which contained a number of recommendations, was presented to key stakeholders including the leadership of the National Assembly and Governors of the affected States.  

7.          The Technical Committee will continue to go round the country while the Vice President and I will also visit some of the affected communities. When we receive the Committee’s final Report, the Federal Government will further initiate medium and long-term measures to check future flood disasters. 

8.          In the meantime, relevant government agencies have intervened to provide relief to the affected persons in collaboration with the State governments. 

9.          The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has so far spent N1.314 billion to provide immediate relief materials.  The Ministry of Works has spent N556 million on the repair of collapsed bridges and the construction of bye-passes; while the Ministry of Environment has spent N95 million on sundry relief measures.  

10.     In addition to this, the Federal Government has decided on a number of measures to further ameliorate the situation.  These include the immediate provision of a total of N17.6 billion in direct financial assistance to the affected States and some Federal Government Agencies responsible for disaster management.   The States will receive a total of N13.3 billion while the Federal Agencies will receive N4.3 billion. 

 

 

11.     Based on the present assessment, the States have been categorized into four groups: A to D. All Category A States will receive N500 million each; Category B States, N400 million each; Category C States, N300 million each; and Category D States, N250 million each. 

12.     Category A States: Oyo, Kogi, Benue, Plateau,                                  Adamawa, Delta, Bayelsa and Anambra. 

Category B: Jigawa, Kano, Bauchi, Kaduna, Niger,                    Nasarawa, Taraba, Cross-River, Edo,                          Lagos and Imo.

 

Category C: Kwara, Katsina, Gombe, Ogun, Ondo,                   Ebonyi, Abia and Rivers.                                                                       

 Category D: Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Yobe, Enugu,                       Ekiti, Osun, Akwa-Ibom, Borno and FCT.    

 

                                                                      13.     To further intensify their intervention activities, the following agencies of the Federal Government have also been allocated funds as follows: 

∙       Ministry of Works       –        N2.6 billion∙       National Emergency Management Agency   -        N1.1 billion∙       Ministry of Environment -    N350 million∙      
National Commission for Refugees – N150m∙
Technical Committee on Floods Impact Assessment        - N100 million  

14.     I have also set up a National Committee on Flood Relief and Rehabilitation to assist the Federal Government to raise funds to mitigate the pains and ensure the effective post-impact rehabilitation of victims.  This Committee will be co-chaired by Alhaji Aliko Dangote and Mr. Olisa Agbakoba, while Dr. Mike Adenuga, Jr. will serve as the Chief Funds Mobiliser.  

15.     The full membership of the Committee will be announced immediately after this broadcast.16.     Fellow Nigerians, let me use this opportunity to thank State Governments, members of the National Assembly, private individuals, agencies of government, private sector institutions, NGOs, faith-based organizations, and philanthropic groups who individually and collectively have risen to the aid of persons and communities affected by the floods. 

17.     This humanitarian and compassionate spirit that has been on display in the past few weeks reassures us that, at critical moments, Nigerians are able to come together in pursuit of a common purpose.lk 

18.     My Fellow Compatriots, let me once again reassure you that this Administration remains fully committed to the welfare and well being of all Nigerians at all times. 

19.     May God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria. 

20.     I thank you all.