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Information and
Communication Minister Professor Dora
Akunyili whose shocking memo to the
federal cabinet calling on president
Yaradua to transmit power was thrown out
yesterday is not giving up.She is firing
on all cylinders to ensure her memo is
deliberated upon, perhaps at the next
session of the executive Council of the
Federation. Newsdiaryonline has
learnt from a source in the presidency
that Professor Akunyili has actually
sent her memo to Yayale Ahmed ,secretary
to the government of the federation, SGF
for onward transmission to all members
of the FEC.
Some of her colleagues
shouted her down yesterday claiming she
did not give the required seven-day
notice for her memo.Her supporters in
the cabinet found this requirement
strange because when the Farouk Abdul
Mutallab affair was discussed a few
weeks ago , the memo was not issued
ahead of time.
In any case insiders said
many ministers actually felt happy with
Akunyili even though they lacked her
courage to say so during the council
meeting .
Now,``the memo has been
submitted officially today .Hopefully,
it will be scheduled for deliberation at
the next meeting.Yes, the memo has been
submitted to the SGF’’
Newsdiaryonline source said.
Akunyili’s move stands her out as not
just a woman of substance but a very
courageous,independent-minded public
servant that preaches justice and
fairness as the basis to save Nigeria
from collapse.
Her moves today coincided
with Senator Mohammed Abba Aji
appearance before Nigeria’s Senate .
Abba Aji who is the presidential adviser
on National Assembly matters met with
senators behind closed doors for two
hours. After the meeting he addressed
journalists where he equally revealed
that President Umaru Musa YarAdua would
soon transmit a letter to the senate
informing the lawmakers of his vacation.
Abba Aji said Yaradua is a believer in
the rule of law and he is convinced the
President would comply with the senate’s
resolution which urged him to do so.
If Yar’Adua transmits the
letter ,it may go a long way in solving
the crisis of succession and close the
leadership vacuum which has been created
by the lack of president or acting
president in Nigeria.A letter will make
it much easier for Vice President
Goodluck Jonathan to assume the position
of acting president until Yar’Adua
returns to power .
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AKUNYILI'S MEMO-Culled from
Saharareporters.com
The full text of the memo presented to
the Federal Executive Council by
minister of information and
communication, Dr. (Mrs.) Dora Akuyili
below:
STATE OF THE NATION
1. I want to start my humble submission
by stating that I am a 100 per cent
loyalist of President Yar’Adua. He
appointed all of us because he trusts us
and wants us to help him to run
government effectively and efficiently.
Mr. President has given all of us seated
in this chamber the opportunity to serve
our nation as members of this council.
I believe that in the choice of all of
us, as individuals and group, Mr.
President must have considered our
ability to guide him aright to serve our
people better, promote and protect the
constitution in line with the oath of
office taken before him in this chamber
by each and every one of us. President
Yar’Adua is very dear to me just as he
is to all of you.
2. We are all aware of what has been
happening in Nigeria, especially as it
concerns the issue of making the Vice
President an acting President. There
have been debates for and against.
3. Some have argued that there is no
vacuum and that it is okay for the Vice
President to function as Vice President,
not as Acting President pending the
return and recovery of Mr. President.
For the proponents of this theory, I
want to remind them that Permanent
Secretaries had been waiting to be sworn
in for over two months now.
Consequently, many ministries are
without Permanent Secretaries including
my ministry.
As it is today, the Vice President
cannot take any document to National
Assembly. In a very desperate situation
like the recent Jos crisis, the Vice
President deployed troops to Plateau,
but many have openly said that he does
not have the right because there cannot
be two Commanders-in-Chief at a time.
4. Just recently, Movement for the
Emancipation of Niger Delta, MEND, has
opted out of the amnesty and resumed
hostility. They argued that they have
been kept in limbo since the President
took ill and they appeared to have been
abandoned since nobody could talk to
them or keep the promise made to them.
Our economy is once more being
threatened.
5. The past Chief Justice of the
Federation swore in his successor for
the first time in the history of our
nation. The power vacuum at that level
has also compounded our ‘poor image’ at
the international level because of our
failure to rise to international
expectations, commitments and
engagements that require the presence of
our President.
Many of those opportunities have existed
in the past 70 days that I do not need
to recount. I do not need to repeat the
uncomplimentary statements made by
United States, United Kingdom and EU
concerning the current state of affairs
in Nigeria .
6. There has been persistent agitation
by the public for members of the Federal
Executive Council to do something.
Nigerians expect us to rise to this
challenge on behalf of our President as
the leader of this administration. Some
eminent citizens have spoken. They
include former Heads of State and others
who have served our nation in various
capacities.
The Senate has also taken a position of
which we are all aware. The looming
crisis in the system is over boiling.
Our hard earned democracy is being
threatened by the day.
7. What went wrong? We love our
President but we should remember that he
is not infallible. Before he left
Nigeria he had a moral and
constitutional obligation to officially
inform the Senate and hand over the
mantle of leadership to the Vice
President pending his return and
recovery. That did not happen. Yes, the
mistake has been made by our Boss and
our brother.
Mr. President is ill and did not choose
to be sick. But while we continue to
pray for his recovery, we should try to
right the wrong.
8. Some have argued that he left the
country in a hurry. This argument has
been punctured by the fact that he
signed the Appropriation Bill for
National Assembly. If he could sign the
Bill, why did he not sign a letter for
Vice President to act on his behalf
until he is well enough?
9. We have a local proverb that says
that “A goat does not get strangulated
by the rope used in tying it when an
adult is present.” We are all in a
better position to know that the polity
is overheated to a frightening level.
Posterity will judge us harshly if we do
not positively intervene to resolve this
logjam.
10. I wish to call on the Federal
Executive Council to act now in the best
interest of our dear President and our
dear Nation.
We also need to save ourselves from
shame because our stand is becoming very
embarrassing. He has been away for about
70 days now, even if he returns
tomorrow, is it not better for him to
rest and recover before taking over from
the Vice President?
11. We need to do what is morally right
and constitutional for the President to
officially hand over to the Vice
President to function as Acting
President. If he does not, we can evoke
whichever aspect of the constitution
that should make the Vice President an
Acting President.
On the other hand we can take advantage
of the 14 days ultimatum by the court
which will expire on Friday. When the
President resumes duty as soon as he
recovers, by the grace of God, he takes
over his position.
12. I am not saying that President
Yar’Adua should resign or condemn him
for being sick. He did not choose to be
sick. We will continue to pray for him,
but all I am saying is, let us encourage
him do the right thing so that our hard
earned democracy will not be truncated.
Anybody who feels otherwise is unfair to
our President (who has been preaching
the rule of law), and utterly unfair to
our country.
13. The name of our President and all
his achievements are being rubbished by
this unfortunate debacle. The President
and his family are also being put under
undue pressure which will not help his
recovery.
14. If we fail to act now, history will
not forgive us. I rest my case.
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