US Report: Massive, Pervasive Corruption at All Levels of Govt Says cases rarely concluded Accuses security agents of unlawful killings Tobi Soniyi Despite repeated avowals of his commitment to a fight against corruption, the United States Department of State has said there is a
climate of impunity in the President Muhammadu Buhari government that allows officials to engage in corrupt practices with a sense of exemption from punishment. The State Department’s Bureau
of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour, in its Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2018, said Nigeria had made little progress in efforts to limit corruption in its public service.
The US Congress mandates the executive to produce a report on the state of human rights worldwide every year. For Nigeria, the findings in the 2018 Human Rights Report, released Thursday,
were largely similar to those of the previous year’s report, indicating lack of real progress in the government’s anti-corruption war. A copy of the report obtained by THISDAY
said, “Although the law provides criminal penalties for conviction of official corruption, the government did not implement the law Continued on page 10
PDP Accuses INEC of Refusing Atiku Access to Inspect Election Materials… Page 84 Sunday 17 March, 2019 Vol 24. No 8742
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Baru: Africa Yet to Tap over 41bn Barrels of Crude, 319trn scf of Gas As Nigeria delays, Kenya’s PIB cedes 25% revenue to host communities Chineme Okafor in Abuja and Peter Uzoho with agency report Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National
Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Maikanti Baru, has revealed that more than 41 billion barrels of crude oil and 319 trillion standard cubic feet of gas were yet to
be discovered in Sub-Saharan Africa. Baru said from available information, the African crude oil and gas outlook remained positive and on the upward trajectory, insisting that the
West Africa Sub-Region held all the aces in offshore Deep Water exploration hotspots. Baru spoke last Wednesday during a special session on Africa focusing
on “Foundations for New Investment”, at the ongoing 19th CERAWeek Conference in Houston, United States. But while the Nigerian government has continued to
pussyfoot on the fate of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), the Kenyan government has already addressed crude oil Continued on page 8
Supplementary Polls: How the Parties Stand, INEC Reverses Self on Bauchi To complete process in Rivers as AAC protests APC berates electoral body over comment on military Olawale Olaleye in Lagos, Shola Oyeyipo and Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja The current state of play in five states of the North Central, North East and North West with respect to the governorship election, which was declared inconclusive by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has not only left much to be desired but would ultimately account for the balance of power when the full results finally come in. Although originally six states with Bauchi, which was later taken out of the equation in the top league, the decision by INEC to declare the elections in those states inconclusive has raised genuine concerns about plausible ulterior motives, which some of the election observers also alluded to in their reports, since they are states where the opposition
seemed to be in lead except for Plateau. Such insinuations are what have combined to exacerbate the riveting tension in the runup to the supplementary polls, already slated for Saturday, March 23, as both parties have aggressively charged up and determined to ensure the states do not slip off their grips. What this means is that whichever of the two leading parties – the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC) – that is able to clinch victory might be well positioned for whatever challenge that the 2023 elections eventually throw at them. There is no debating the fact that the opposition PDP appears a bit more comfortable in at least four of the five states due for supplementary Continued on page 8
Fresh Herdsmen Attack Kill 10 in Kaduna Community... Page 86
I SHARE YOUR PAIN... First Lady, Mrs. Aisha Buhari, during her hospital visit to victims of the collapsed building at Ita-Faaji, Lagos Island... yesterday