FG, Transcorp Agree on NITEL Sale

The controversy trailing the revocation of the sale of Nigerian Telecommunication Limited (NITEL) and its mobile subsidiary, Mobile Telecommunication Limited (M-Tel) to Transnational Corporation of Nigeria Plc (Transcorp) was yesterday laid to rest with the federal government and the management of Transcorp agreeing to bring in a new core investor.
This was part of the four-point agreement contained in a communiqué signed by the Minister of Information and Communications, Mr. John Odey and the Group Managing Director of Transcorp, Mr. Tom Iseghohi after a meeting by both parties.
The two parties also agreed that the new core investor must be an industry top player with the requisite focus, technical expertise, managerial experience and financial capacity necessary for turning around NITEL.
A presidential source said yesterday's agreement tallied with what Transcorp had agreed with President Umaru Yar'Adua, prior to last weekend's bungling of the announcement by Odey on the intent of government for the telecommunications firm.
The communiqué reads: "The Federal Government and Transcorp representatives met this morning on NITEL/M-TEL and agreed to do everything possible - following due process and rule of law - to resuscitate NITEL/M-TEL into a viable and profitable world class telecommunications company providing quality service to the Nigerian public.[+]

Widow of Obasanjo's Ex ADC laments
When on Monday, February 18, Brigadier-General Solomon Giwa-Amu left his Abuja home in the morning for Jaji, in Kaduna to present a lecture, little did his wife of 15 years know that she would be seeing her husband for the very last time.

Mrs. Giwa-Amu, a staff and research fellow of the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD), Abuja may not have had any premonition that something bad was going to occur. However, something happened to her in the office. At about few minutes past eight, when she wanted to leave her office for the cleaner to work on, Mrs. Amu fell flat on the ground. The cleaner and others, who saw her fall, came to her rescue. They helped her to her feet.[+]

Fire Guts Ministry of Defence

Fire suspected to have been caused either by bush fire or by a passerby who dropped a stick of cigarette on the ground,  yesterday consumed the store house of the Ministry of Defence.
Director of the Ministry's  Intelligence Department confirmed to THISDAY that the fire which started  about 2p.m. affected just the store house of the ministry; he also said a committee would immediately be set up to investigate the remote cause of the fire.
Another source who will not want his name mentioned, said the cost of properties lost could not be confirmed as at press time but said the store had some computers, funiures and old documents considered to be highly valuable.
He said it started behind the fence of the Ministry of
Defence but ruled out any form of sabotage until investigations were concluded.
He said timely assistance came from the fire service of  the FCT, Julius Berger Plc, NEMA, Army and Air Force and members of the Civil Defence. He said the Chief of Defence Intelligence Major Gen Said and principal officers of the ministries witnessed  the inferno.
"The damage is serious. All the things in the store room are gone and the store house can be considered gone as well."

 

 

 

Nnamani, Masari in fresh offensive against OBJ
There appears no end in sight for former President Olusegun Obasanjo's political travails, as some prominent members of the PDP under the aegis of the G21 have moved to have him removed as chairman of the party's Board of Trustees [BOT].
Among the leaders of the new offensive are Senator Ken Nnamani and Aminu Bello Masari, both former Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives when Obasanjo was President.
Other members of the offensive, operating under the aegis of G21 and calling for the removal of Obasanjo as chairman of the Board of Trustees [BOT] of the Peoples Democratic Party include Chief Alani Bankole, Senator Bode Olajumoke, Architect Ibrahim Bunu, Abdullahi Gumel, Esther Audu, Bawa Bwari.
Others include former House of Representatives leader, Abdul Ningi, Fanta Baba Shehu, Senator Abubakar Girei, Senator John Branbaifa, Margaret Icheen, Alhaji Musa Elayo, Senator Musa Adede as well as Leader of the Integrity Group during the Etteh saga, Alhaji Faruk Lawal.
Already they are signatories to a letter addressed to the National Secretary of the PDP giving notice of Proposed Amendment of the PDP Constitution 2006 [As Amended], Pursuant to Articles 12.87[1] and 2 of the PDP Constitution.
The two-page document made available to Sunday Sun is proposing that all amendments adopted by the Peoples Democratic Party [PDP] outside the its 1998 constitution should be deleted.
In its place, all articles deleted from the 1998 constitution of the party, by the proposal should be added as well as adopting the 1998 defunct constitution as the party's constitution.
"All amendment introduced in the 2006 constitution were made to strengthen the internal democracy of the party, but self serving," the letter noted.
Although the document did not explicitly mention names but should the group's proposal sail through, then former President Obasanjo would have lost his seat as BOT chairman of the PDP.
The proposal is expected to form part of the agenda for discussion at the national convention of the party, but as at the time of this report no definite date had been fixed for the convention.
The party is, however, expected to announce a date for the national convention after its National Executive Committee [NEC] meeting tomorrow.
It will be recalled that the party's convention had been shifted twice due to the party's inability to meet the requirements of the Independent National Electoral Commission [INEC] as set by the Electoral Act.