The United Nigeria Peoples Party (UNPP) chairman in Anambra State, Chief Joseph Ofia Diulu Okonkwo has said that his party will support wholeheartedly any coalition arrangement his party may enter into with other registered parties to dislodge the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP) from power.

The All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) presidential flag bearer and former head of state Muhammadu Buhari says allegations that the Saudi Arabian and some Islamic governments had donated $1 billion towards his election campaign were "absolute nonsense".

This paper approaches questions concerning human rights and discrimination against women from a perspective that differs from the dominant view within the human rights literature. The author argues that the existence and defense of national, regional, and international rights of Nigerian women against discrimination must necessarily be located within Nigeria's particular historical experience. The identification of instances of discrimination and the struggle to defend and extend women's rights has to be critically examined in light of the power relations that structure the regime of human rights worldwide.

It had never happened in the 42-year history of Nigeria as a nation. But when it did, it caught Nigerians numb. The audit report of federal ministries and parastatals was made public for the first time ever by Vincent Azie, the acting auditor-general of the Federation. The audit report, which should be a plus for President Olusegun Obasanjo's commitment to transparency and accountability, revealed that more than N23 billion was lost in 10 major ministries in just one year - 2001.

A blowout at an abandoned Shell Oil well in southeast Nigeria spewed crude oil, gas, and water hundreds of yards (meters) in the air, polluting farms and streams, activists and company officials said Thursday.

President Olusegun Obasanjo has confirmed that a number of governors were being investigated for corruption by the Independent Corrupt Practices (and-Allied Offences) Commission (ICPC).

Communal disturbances in Nigeria displaced 750,000 people in the last two years, Vice President Atiku Abubakar said on Monday. Atiku revealed these figures while declaring open a workshop on the "United Nations Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement" in the central city of Jos, organised by the National Commission for Refugees. He said Nigeria has had its own "unenviable share" of displaced people in recent years.

A controversial and long-delayed identity card scheme is finally been introduced in Nigeria. Some northern politicians oppose the scheme, fearing it will be used to cross-check other population records, including the voters roll.

African Trade Ministers participating in the on-going World Trade Organisation (WTO) negotiations have a duty to denounce any agreement which could threaten public health or undermine access to generic versions of essential drugs on the continent. Making the call in a statement released to the press, the Treatment Action Movement (TAM), a coalition of Nigerian civil society actors on access to treatment and care, said the discussions at the WTO meeting hold great significance for access to healthcare in many developing countries.

The position provides an outstanding opportunity for the right individual to participate in the growth of a dynamic programme, and to work with a variety of medical, public health, policy, and community development professionals.

The purpose of this position is to provide strategic leadership, overall vision and good management in order to fulfil the goal of the Resource Centre. Duties will include leading the review and analysis of sexuality and sexual and reproductive health (SRH)/rights trends and developments in the region and directing and overseeing data gathering activities and analysis to identify and glean experience, lessons learned, and best practice related to human sexuality and sexual and reproductive health programs for dissemination and exchange.

The main opposition candidate in Nigeria's April presidential elections works in an environment of arcadian plenty that belies his reputation for harsh asceticism. Muhammadu Buhari, a former military dictator famous for launching an authoritarian "war on indiscipline", uses a government-owned office whose lush gardens yield mangos, guavas and pawpaws. The view of the building from the road is dominated by a strikingly expansive tree from whose branches brown pods hang like socks on a washing line.

The poor state of Nigeria's educational sector has resulted in a frightening decay which has put the performance of the country's candidates in public examinations behind that of their counterparts in war ravaged countries in West Africa. This is revealed in a quarterly review of the sector by Shelter Rights Initiative.

Do we understand enough about the impact of demographic change on natural resources management (NRM), farm investment and household income strategies in semi-arid areas? Is eco-disaster around the corner, or does land scarcity encourage investment in productivity-enhancing and land-conserving technologies? How should policy initiatives combine poverty reduction with environmental improvement? These questions were raised by a study of Machakos District in Kenya from 1930 to1990. They have now been tested further in four countries – Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and Kenya – in research led by Drylands Research UK and carried out with in-country research teams.

Disturbed by the negative impact of the increasing wave of cyber crime on the image of the country, the Nigerian Government says it will put legislation in place to deter the culprits. Gabriel Ajayi, Director-General of the Nigeria Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) who disclosed this, said the government is drawing up a comprehensive plan that would make cyber crime on the internet unattractive to the perpetrators, reports http://www.balancingact-africa.com.

Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Justice Mustapha Akanbi, has said he has nothing to lose by giving up his chairmanship of the Commission. This follows a proposed ammendment to the ICPC Act by federal legislators.

Islamic sharia law is making inroads into the predominantly Christian south of Nigeria at a time when religion is expected to be a crucial issue in looming general elections.

A court in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, ruled last Thursday that the country's electoral commission acted illegally when it charged political parties fees to field candidates in upcoming general elections.

As Nigeria prepares for the 2003 general elections, concerns for the safety and security of the population have increased, says the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) in its position paper for the fifty-ninth session of the UN Commission on Human Rights. "Given the experience of Nigeria's electoral history, the elections in 2003 also pose a heightened threat of outbreaks of inter-communal and religious violence as different political groups jostle for electoral advantage," said OMCT. The position paper - which deals with themes of the right to reparation; impunity; human rights defenders; violence against women and children; and economic, social and cultural rights - also contains a statement on the human rights situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Nigeria's national assembly, long seen as one of the main centres of graft in a notoriously corrupt polity, is expected to begin within weeks public hearings on a document that will cause it great embarrassment. A 300-page annual report on government spending submitted last month by Vincent Azie, the country's auditor-general, reads like an extended charge sheet against parliament, the president's office, government ministries and the judiciary.