#7 Cabinet Nominees to Face Senate Confirmation Monday

An article on VA News states that Goodluck Johnathon's newly constructed cabinet will most likely appear before the Senate on Monday. University of Abuja Political Science Professor Kabiru Mato notes that the confirmation should be a smooth ride with little to no complications due to the fact that many returning members from former president Yar'Adua's Cabinet have once again been nominated.

This new cabinet could be a sign of Johnathon's previous promises to try and make Nigeria a leading contender among the masses and to try and bring Nigeria to it's top potential or rather shaping a Nigeria under himself rather than Yar'Adua. This may give the "Goodluck Administration" , put one way, to erase the previous image of rampant corruption and give the people some sense of legitimacy, which has been a lacking factor among the previous elections and Nigeria in general.

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Nigerian Budget Experiences Increase

According to an article by Reuters posted March 25, the Nigerian Parliament recently approved a dramatic increase in Nigeria's budget. The augmented budget is designed to stimulate the Nigerian economy, which has declined substantially in wake of the global recession. However, this plan can theoretically contribute to the national deficit rising to 5 percent of the GDP. The proposed budget passed both houses of the Parliament overwhelmingly, revealing the government's hopes of finally clamoring out of these troubled economic times. Whereas many countries are recovering from the economic downturn, Nigeria has had almost no progression due to a credit freeze following last year's $4 billion bank bailout. In a move that reveals a nation attempting to revitalize stagnant industries, nearly one third of the 4.079 trillion naira budget is designated for improving Nigeria's infrastructure and power sector, along with developing the oil-rich Niger Delta.

The proposed national debt increase from the 2010 budget lies at 1.52 trillion naira (150 naira = 1 dollar), but analysts fear the number might be higher if poorly managed. Though the budget is widely supported, the omnipresent threat of governmental corruption might destroy the goals of the country and smother it with even greater debt. Furthermore, the budget demonstrates Nigeria's reliance on oil. It assumes that the oil price will on average be $67 per barrel and oil production of 2.35 million barrels per day and if either numbers drop, the national deficit would undoubtedly grow significantly. Nigeria is wagering heavily on the success of this new budget, for if it fails, it would likely concern investors and result in a country who is still incapable of escaping the economic downturn.

Nigeria's planned budget and resulting spending on the countries infrastructure appears somewhat similar to FDR's "New Deal" plan. Both attempted to improve dismal economies by pumping money and supplies into stagnant industries. However, several aspects of Nigeria's political culture and economic practices can potentially derail the government's efforts. For one, corruption and government offices are frequently inseparable. The legitimacy of the government has been severely damaged by repeated cases of politicians pocketing funds which were meant to go to public services. Furthermore, the proposed budget exemplifies Nigeria's reliance on a sole commodity-- oil-- to help recover from the increased deficit. Having a significant portion of the success of the budget tied to oil is dangerous, as a decline in the price or production might result in further economic woes.

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#7- Disagreement Arises over Questioning Sharia Law

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A March 25th article on CNN reveals the decision by a Northern Nigerian Islamic court to ban a discussion of amputating criminals as punishments for crimes (usually in the realm of stealing) on the Internet by the Civil Rights Congress of Nigeria. The court decision comes after the Congress created a Facebook group dedicated to talking about Mallam Bello Jangebe, whose right hand was amputated after he was found guilty of stealing a cow in 2000 as well as the use of amputations as punishment in general. However, many people, including the pro-Sharia law group who challenged the Congress, found the Facebook page insulting. The group said "debate on social sites would mock the strict Islamic law as negative issues will be discussed." The pro-Sharia group's concerns are made valid at the end of the article as the lone comment on the Facebook page says "Islam is trying to shut down free speech worldwide." The president of the Congress, Shehu Sani, doesn't believe any harm was meant and plans to challenge the court's decision to ban the page. As this struggle continues, it will be interesting to see how much of a role religion will play in determining public policy and politics in Nigeria.

This article opens up more problems related to the influence of religion in Nigeria. As mentioned in the article, an Islamic court made the decision to ban the Facebook page. Because the case dealt with Sharia law, which is law governed by Islamic beliefs, having a religious court may have been the reason why the pro-Sharia group was favored. This also ties back to the most important aspect of a nation, legitimacy. If religion and state are not separated, at least in the Muslim-dominated north where this case occurred, the legitimacy of the country is compromised. This is especially true in Nigeria where two religions, Islam and Christianity, equally dominate. In addition, the fact that the courts did not want its citizens questioning its methods of punishing its criminals goes back to transparency. Obviously the Nigerian government does not want its people to think otherwise about their criminal system. The use of the Internet in this case draws parallels to two of the other countries in our studies- Iran and China. Nigerians are turning to the Internet to question their government like in Iran and the Internet is now being throughly searched as in China. Denying citizens the right to dissent is a basic human right that is more often than not an essential part to building a democracy. This, along with the dominance of religion in political life, highlights a few of the many changes Nigeria needs to tackle on the road to improving the country.

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Good Choices by Goodluck Jonathan

According to a BBC News post from Wednesday, March 24th, 2010, titled "Goodluck Jonathan's cabinet choices surprises Nigeria" Acting president Jonathan has offered several choices to the Senate for approval to ministerial positions, including a banker from the investment firm Goldman Sachs. This is one week after he fired all of President Yar'Adua's Cabinet, of which only 9 have made it back on to his list of nominees. This list also includes a nephew of Mr. Yar'Adua, which might be a conciliatory gesture to the President, or simply to groom him for higher office. This move has been seen by Analysts to be a message that Jonathan is in charge, and that he wants to run for president at some point in the future. However, The PDP continues on it's stance that it is only proper that the North have their full 8 years.

This sort of situation brings us to the concepts of Sovereignty. With Jonathan in power, he has the right to fire whoever he wants, but the messages that he sends with such dismissals may take him head to head with the PDP, and as such, he might split off from the Party.

Photo from onlinenigeria

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#6 24 Arrested for Illegal Refineries

According to an article on AFP , 24 people have been arrested today in response to the discovery of illegal oil refineries found in their position, some even located within their homes. These Refineries are abundant in the oil-rich River States. Just last year the JTF (Joint Task Force) shut down just above 1000 of these illegal refineries.

These 24 Nigerians have been handed over to the EFCC or Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for prosecution.

The danger of these crude oil refineries lies in their method of refining oil. Outdated and dangerous, these refineries produce oil that's been reported to cause engine malfunctions when used in conjunction with automobiles. \

The staggering fact that over a 1,000 of these refineries have been shut down in the last year speaks for itself when related to Nigeria's main source of income. Not only does this method exploit the local eco-system it hurt's Nigeria's economy as a whole. How does a country expect to prosper when even it's main economic resource is being abused and exploited by the people? With the dependency on petroleum and the numerous illegal refineries plaguing the River States constantly offering lower prices than the larger oil corporations, Oil may have a reduced affect on Nigeria's economy and if oil does indeed fall, where will Nigeria turn to for it's income? This again shows how a country must move past a single source of income if it wishes to democratize or improve the standing of living in general.

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Central Nigeria clashes lead to 'scores of deaths'

According to an article by the BBC News, Nigeria has witnessed another gruesome ethnic clash in the city of Jos. Similar to the attack in January, the religious conflict purportedly left "scores of people" dead in its wake, and countless more maimed. The religious clash began early on Sunday morning when gangs of men descended on the town, firing sporadically as they went. The shooting was merely an effort by the gangs to force residents into the streets, where they were viciously hacked by machetes. An anonymous government official estimated at least 100 had been killed-- the majority women and children. Additionally, witnesses of the brutal ethnic confrontation said corpses were piled in mounds in the village of Dogo-Nahawa, which is a few miles away from Jos. A doctor at a local clinic in Jos stated most of the people seeking treatment from the attack suffered from burns and machete cuts.

Acting President Goodluck Jonathan placed all of the security forces in the vicinity of Jos on full alert, revealing his fear that this attack might lead to a conflict with "cross-border dimensions". President Jonathan has also issued the deployment of troops to Jos in a concerted effort to regain a sense of order. Additionally, he "ordered those behind the violence to be found."

This most recent display of religious violence in Jos blatantly reveals the widespread cleavages in Nigeria. The north-south divide of Christianity and Islam has resulted in repeated outbreaks of bloodshed, causing the deaths of thousands. Nigerians are obviously more heavily tied to their religious affiliation than their state, causing unbridled violence against people who are identical to them in every way other than religion. The Jos clash also deals with the political institutions of the state. President Jonathan's legitimacy might increase if his attempt to confront the people responsible for the attack is successful, as it gives Nigerians a greater sense of trust in their leader. This article also touches on the fragmentation of Nigerian society, as each region seems to have certain ethnic or religious ties which damages the effectiveness and stability of the country.

Photo Credit: BBC News

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The Power in Nigeria Remains Shifting.

According to the BBC article "Nigeria ruling party wants northerner for 2011 poll" posted March 3rd, 2010, The People's Democratic Party has stated that the future candidate from the party for the year 2011 will come from the North, and that this period of time of power by acting president Goodluck Jonathan will not have an effect on the normal power sharing constructs put in place by the party. The PDP is the current ruling party, and has managed to stay there with a centrist position that balances the concerns of the Muslim north and the Christian south. according to the PDP's Chairman Vincent Ogbulafor, since the South had the power for 8 years, from 1999 to 2007, the north shall have the power for the same amount of time, no matter how well Goodluck Jonathan is doing. He clarified that this was only applying to the 2011 elections, and that Goodluck Jonathan is still the acting president, and President Umaru Yar'adua still has the presidency.

This sort of announcement is exactly the kind of thing that we look for in Comparative government, because it touches on so many different aspects of what we are learning, things like Sovereignty, Cleavages and Politics in general. From a sovereignty aspect, this brings up the question of who really has the power, the president, the acting president, or the party chairman. If goodluck jonathan is doing a good job, one that both the north and the south can agree upon, then why shouldn't he be allowed to run, at least within the party for the nomination. On Cleavage side, the political situation of Nigeria causes the need for some kind of power sharing deal that can appease both sides of the religious divide, and this switching of power is definitely one way to accomplish it. Finally, the politics of the situation come into play, with Chairman Ogbulafor playing it very cautiously about the way that the next candidate will be chosen, saying that he will only be from the North, not that he will be Muslim.
Picture Credit : Nigeria Planet
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Post #6- Police Under Fire for Murders, Robbery and Other Crimes

Photo courtesy of BBC News

A March 5th article on BBC News discusses new reports which reveal the shocking offenses committed by the Nigerian police force and have brought into question the effectiveness of the police. Although corruption and horrid offenses are nothing new with Nigeria's police, Nigerian citizens are appalled by their apparent lack of moral and reason. The police force itself is divided on the issue. While national police chief Ibrahim Lame is the one of the government officials responsible for bringing the police's transgressions to light and has committed himself to improve Nigeria's police force, Inspector General of Police Ogbonna Onovo defended them by talking about how many of the criminals the police hunt are often more equipped than the police are. He also said the police were "operating under unbearable conditions", most probably referring to all the violence from militants and ethnic riots the police has to deal with. However, this does not justify actions such as the shooting of innocent people or not even showing up at a crime scene last week where robbers forcefully ordered innocent civilians on a bus be killed. Despite all these appalling events, the fact that the government has finally acknowledged the problems with the police is a definite step in the right direction.

This BBC article shows us both a negative and positive aspect in the legitimacy of Nigeria's government. While the actions of the police are unquestionably completely unacceptable, the government's decision to actually take action demonstrates the government's desire to improve their citizens' view, especially due to the fact that police officials are the ones orchestrating this move. The fact that the Senate has moved to push an investigation of the bus incident last week is once again another positive move for Nigeria's legitimacy. The article also brings to light possible reasons as to why the police force behaves in a way so contrary to their job- poverty and nationwide tensions. These two topics have come up week after week in Nigerian news and are two of the main factors that hinder the country's development. In addition, the article talks about how the culture of violence in the hands of Nigeria's police force is a deep and powerful culture that will take time to reverse. As BBC reporter Caroline Duffield said, "Nigerians are accustomed to seeing bodies pile up [by police]." As the new government under the hands of Goodluck Jonathan attempts to fight back one of the biggest evils in Nigerian society, corruption, it is up to the Nigerian citizens to decide whether they wish to accept this change after years of seeing brutality as a norm by the police.

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