The Nation Newspaper

Author: The Nation

  • Before you say Nigeria is bad

    Before you say Nigeria is bad

    • By Ganiu Bamgbose

    Sir: One funny axiom in Nigeria is the claim that “bad news is good news for the media.” This assertion negatively affects professionalism, ethics, conscience and even patriotism. It has resulted in a media tradition that glorifies exposure over correction, effect over efficiency, and coverage over conduct.

    The disposition of many Nigerians towards everything anti-Nigeria is worrisome.

    First off, even without being an expert in economic discourse, I can tell affirmatively that a dollar is almost as useless to the American as a naira is to a Nigerian, except when we dwell on comparison. The only time the dollar comes like a heavenly currency is when we discuss the exchange rate with the naira. Does a dollar visit the barbershop anywhere in America? Do we still not get our haircut for less than a thousand naira in most parts of Nigeria?

    The question now is: why do we not have this dimension and similar ones foregrounded in the media?

    Moving on to other fields, anyone who has been to European countries, including the UK, will most likely know that those in London have an experience similar to that of Nigerian “molue” (congestion) with both their road and train transportation modes. You may not read this in their media and your countrymen there will not likely talk about it so you do not think less of your impression about being abroad.

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    It is equally not only in Nigeria that you are asked to return to the hospital after two weeks to see the doctor; it happens in many parts of the world, but their citizens think more of progress than condemnation. For whatever reason you want to give, there are thousands of homeless people in America and other developed countries of the world. Those who have been to the US should say if their states require the heavy downpours that we often contend with, leading to occasional struggles with floods. Are bus and train schedules not occasionally cancelled due to floods and other reasons, prompting questions about the government’s actions and inactions?

    Now, let’s discuss actions we take here that we would not consider elsewhere. Anyone who lives in Europe and America and those of us who visit can share whether it is possible to request landlords or the government to extend the rent after just a week or if there is even a law that allows you to be granted six months to find a new apartment. You are indeed dislodged in less than a month if you do not have to pay with an increase. With these experiences, an American will still wake up and say, “God bless America,” when some Nigerians will affirmatively say their own country can never be great again. One wonders why we underestimate the communal virtue that unites us as Nigerians, a trait nearly unmatched elsewhere. If the Nigerian government were to adopt a radical approach to tax collection similar to what is implemented in places we often commend, what would be the next song on our lips?

    I wish to state that every country has their struggles, and patriotism demands citizens to stay positive while seeking responsibility from the government. Critical appraisal of government goes beyond condemnation and fault-finding. While we appeal to the government to do better, we must plead with ourselves to be patriotic, appreciative, and optimistic.

    Most importantly, we need to do less needless comparison, which always makes us appear like the worst country in the world.

    •Ganiu Bamgbose,

    Lagos State University, Ojo

  • Defusing youth unemployment bomb

    Defusing youth unemployment bomb

    • By Sirajaddeen Mohammed Bello

    Sir: Among Nigeria’s many socio-economic challenges, one that stands out as the biggest threat, casting a gloomy shadow over both the present and the nation’s future is youth unemployment. It is a subject that elicits head shakes, furrowed brows, and a sense of impending doom.

    Youth unemployment isn’t just a problem; it’s an iceberg of colossal proportions. National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) stated that Nigeria’s unemployment rate rose to 33.3% in the first quarter of 2023; translating to about 23.2 million people— youths majorly. Now, let’s face it, numbers don’t always tell the whole story. Picture this; some hundreds of thousands, nay, millions of mostly educated, bright young minds stuck in a seemingly endless and almost fruitless game of job hunting— a game where there are fewer opportunities and a mammoth crowd of players. It’s a perplexing paradox, navigating through such a complicated realm that occasionally resembles a labyrinth of bureaucracy and nepotism.

    Now, one might be wondering, why care about this one particular problem, youth unemployment. And even go on to declare it a “time bomb”?  A sizeable chunk of our youths are left idle, grappling with feelings of inadequacy, financial crisis and frustration. Do you think all will end well? This idle energy, if not given the needed attention and channelled constructively, can surely fester and lead to various social ills in unimaginably ugly ways. So, you see? It’s not just a ticking time bomb: it’s an evil fuse that could ignite a powder keg of problems for this country.

    It’s still not too late for the authorities to right this wrong. We’ve analysed the problem to an extent. Let’s talk solutions, because dwelling on problems only, without drawing out remedies is almost like writing a story with no plot.

    Nigeria’s youth is its greatest asset, brimming with creativity and untapped potentials. A serious country can’t afford to let this resource go to waste. More than ever, now is the time to bridge the gap between the skills our youths (are assumed to) possess and the skills demanded by the labour market. Various vocational trainings (not the usual ‘crash’ workshops that hardly change a thing!) and education system tailored to market needs can play a very important role. The government and the stakeholders in the private sector need to collaborate and determine what knowledge and skills young people should be taught in order to have rewarding jobs, taking into consideration how businesses are suffering from the skills mismatch.

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    Government should play a more active role in promoting appropriate education and capacity-building for the youth.

    Another equally important area to work on is entrepreneurship. In a country where the labour market is fiercely competitive, why not encourage more young entrepreneurs? Our youths are teeming with brilliant ideas waiting to be hatched. Government support, access to funds and mentorship programmes can nurture these promising— budding business moguls.

    Then technology and innovation. Nigeria’s burgeoning tech ecosystem offers a great hope. The digital world is surely a place where opportunities abound; for a tech-savvy. Government should then invest in technology infrastructure and create an environment that supports innovation and start-ups, as well as training and mentorship for young people. These, and many other initiatives centred on progress and empowerment can go miles in addressing our plight.

    The evil of unemployment in Nigeria is undoubtedly a ticking time bomb, but it doesn’t have to detonate. By investing in skills development, nurturing entrepreneurship, promoting innovative empowerments and retaining our trademark diligence, among others, we can defuse this albatross and unleash the incredible potentials of our youths.

    •Sirajaddeen Mohammed Bello,

    Yola, Adamawa State

  • More words than action

    More words than action

    It’s clear that the President Bola Tinubu administration inherited a troubling security crisis from the Muhammadu Buhari administration, which demands urgent remedial action. But it’s unclear how the Federal Government under Tinubu will fight insecurity in the country, or even how it is fighting insecurity. 

    There are verbal indications that the new administration will pursue different approaches to win the fight against insecurity, but it requires more than words to achieve the desired objective.     

    For instance, when the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, last week appeared before the Senate Committee on Defence, he faulted the fight against insecurity under the previous administration. He said: “The issue of Boko Haram is not new in the North-East and our system, but because of what has transpired in the previous government, the issue was not tackled seriously.” A former governor of Zamfara State, he also noted that insecurity, particularly banditry, “is new to us in the North-West.”

    According to him, “Today, actions are being made and operations taken on such criminals. The issue of security needs collective cooperation from state, local governments and the federal government.” The “actions” and “operations” he referred to must be visible and effective. The suggested three-pronged approach, involving the local, state and federal governments must go beyond words.

    At President Tinubu’s inauguration in May, he declared that security would be “the top priority” of his administration, saying the Federal Government would “reform our security doctrine and its architecture,” and invest more in security personnel by providing “better training, equipment, pay and firepower.” He needs to translate his words into effective action.

    According to SBM Intelligence, about 629 Nigerians were killed by non-state actors, including Boko Haram insurgents, ethnic militias, bandits and armed robbers, within the first 45 days under President Tinubu.  

    The International Centre for Investigative Reporting, the Council on Foreign Relations’ Nigeria Security Tracker (NST) and media reports indicated that non-state actors killed 587 people within the same period.

    Unsurprisingly, Nigeria’s security crisis was further highlighted at the opening ceremony of the Countering Violent Extremism Course 3/2023 recently organised by the Martin Luther Agwai International Leadership and Peacekeeping Centre (MLAILPCK) at the Nigerian Army Resource Centre (NARC), Abuja. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Government of Japan supported the course, which had participants from Nigeria and other West African countries.

    The Deputy Resident Representative (Programme), UNDP, Mr. Lealem B. Dinku, drew attention to the scale of insecurity in the country, and the huge number of lives lost to the crisis. He observed that “violent extremism (VE) has continued to be ingrained in scope and impact since creeping into Nigeria geographical space in 2009 but has been more pronounced since 2013.”

    According to him, “It was estimated that between 2009 and 2023, Nigeria has suffered no less than 35,000 casualties while billions of dollars have been lost due to destruction of property, public infrastructures, disruption of socio-economic activities including livelihoods and displacement of mass population.”

    The authorities should be troubled by this picture of devastation within 14 years. Even more troubling is the reality that the crisis is ongoing. The UN official noted that the country “is still grappling with the menace of VE and its attendant socio-economic implications till the moment.”  

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    Japan Defence attaché to Nigeria, Lt.-Col. Morita Tatsuya, spoke in a similar vein at the event, saying, “Nigeria has been subjected to the adverse effects and attacks of Boko Haram and ISWAP in the North-East for quite a long time.” He also noted: “More recently, terrorists have expanded their sphere of influence to the North-West and other parts of the country.” Additionally, violent separatists in the South-East continue to add fuel to the fire. Banditry and kidnapping for ransom are part of the insecurity mix in many areas of the country.

     He identified solutions, including sharpening the capacity of security authorities regarding counterterrorism and the protection of civilians, and implementing measures to counter violent extremism, which is at the root of terrorism.

    Tackling insecurity in the country certainly demands more than words. It requires urgent action. The event gave an insight not only into the problem but also the solution. It was a grim reminder of the disturbing reality that the country is far from winning the fight against insecurity.

    It is noteworthy that when long-term Niger Delta activist Mujahid Asari-Dokubo visited President Tinubu in Abuja, in June, he was reported saying he had discussed security issues with him.  In an interview with journalists after the visit, Asari-Dokubo, described as the leader of the Niger Delta Peoples Salvation Force (NDPSF), took credit for bringing security and peace to parts of the country.  His words: “Today you are traveling to Kaduna on this road, it is not the army that made it possible for you to travel to Abuja or travel to Kaduna vice versa, it is my men employed by the government of Nigeria stationed in Niger. Today go to Baga, you go to Shiroro and go to Wase. We have lost so many men; we don’t even have one per cent of the armament deployed by the Nigerian military and we have had resounding success.”

    It was puzzling that he presented a narrative of collaboration with the country’s armed forces. It was equally puzzling that the Nigerian Army issued a statement denying knowledge of the activities of his so-called private military company in the places he mentioned.

    These conflicting narratives from both sides suggested that the country’s struggle with insecurity is unstructured. The country’s armed forces and security agencies are expected to be the actors in the fight, not non-state actors like Asari-Dokubo and his force.   

    The Federal Government has not clarified the status of Asari-Dokubo’s so-called private military company and its alleged role in the fight to bring security to the country, about five months after he made the claims.  Also, the authorities must decisively address the question of illegal arms in unlicensed hands. For instance, he has been seen in several viral videos playing the role of militia commander in the midst of gun-wielding robots. Are his martial activities lawful? Lawlessness must not be encouraged. It sends the wrong signals.  

    Notably, Matawalle told the Senate Committee on Defence that the country needed “key legislation on insecurity.” It remains to be seen how the legislative and executive arms of the Federal Government will collaborate towards tackling insecurity in the country. He also said, without proof, that the security crisis “is gradually going down,” adding, “we just received two attack helicopters to strengthen the battle against insecurity.”

    So far, words outstrip action in the fight against insecurity in the country. That is not the solution to the security crisis.  

  • Umahi’s thorny path to concrete road technology

    Umahi’s thorny path to concrete road technology

    • By Dahiru Hassan Kera

    Since Senator David Umahi, erstwhile governor of Ebonyi State was appointed Minister of Works, the man has shown that he’s not afraid of taking on at all manner of people and problems. His first combat was against workers in his ministry when he locked them out purportedly for exhibiting acts that could be described as truancy. He insisted that under his watch, lateness to work and all forms of indiscipline would not be tolerated.

    In pretty much the same fashion as the locking out of his ministry’s staff, Dave Umahi has shut the door to an existing road infrastructure policy when he announced a new road policy: reinforced concrete roads. The switch from asphaltic roads to concrete road technology is the new direction of the ministry under his watch.

    In fairness to the man, he clearly outlined government’s reasons for making the policy switch to include a great deal of sharp practices in the execution of asphalt roads, and the high cost of bitumen/asphalt which he said led importers of the substance to go for the lowest quality that ends up with additives. Reasons also adduced include a possibility of employment opportunities for Nigerians expected to either be engaged to increase the manufacture of cement, a major component of the concrete road technology or work on the concrete roads themselves. 

    In the unfolding narrative, Senator Umahi appears to have put the blame for the switch in road construction policy on road contractors and unscrupulous people in his ministry for conniving to sabotage quality in the road construction system. Umahi craftily deployed a well-oiled media machine and all the experience from his time as governor to roundly demonize Nigeria’s road contractors. 

    Faced with a practiced operative who understands the game of media jousting and technical knock outs, road contractors appear to have been slammed into silence. All Nigerians have been shown by Umahi are the rosy side of switching to concrete road technology. The minister even went as far as pointing everyone who doubts his assertions that concrete technology is better for Nigerian roads to the ports of Lagos and conveniently to Ebonyi, the state where he was governor and which adopted concrete technology for road infrastructure to great effect. 

    Interestingly, photos have emerged in social media showing many failed portions of his concrete roads’ technology in Ebonyi. Although, in fairness, no one said concrete roads are infallible, but the impression Dave Umahi creates is of roads that will never fail for at least 40 years. However, on the strength of the photos on social media, assuming they were truly from Umahi’s concrete roads in Ebonyi, then his assertions may have been greatly exaggerated. 

    Yet, that won’t be the biggest fact that Nigerians may have been misled on or shielded from. That’ll be the cost of importing machinery to drive to policy switch to concrete. In these days of forex scarcity and liquidity uncertainty, it amounts to a herculean, even unreasonable task to demand that contractors ditch their asphalt equipments to start importing whole new machines, especially since another minister may come one day and render them useless without scruples or remorse. 

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    The Naira is only now beginning to find its bearing. So, imagine if all Nigeria’s road contractors, and they are many, besiege the forex market in search of dollars with which to import machinery to execute Umahi’s concrete roads. The consequence, perhaps unintended, becomes glaring on the economy. Unless the federal government commits to finding ways of making forex available to these contractors, it will be unfair to tie them to the kind of deadlines and riot acts act that Umahi has been reading to them. And, nothing can be more insensitive than to leave contractors at the mercy of black market currency speculators. 

    Another possible consequence, perhaps also unintended is the expectation of a demand-pull price hike on cement. I may not be an economist, but my elementary understanding of the effect of demand and supply on prices tells me that, should all road contractors start purchasing very high volumes of cement from Nigeria’s almost duopolistic cement market to build concrete road pavements, I will expect a cement supply shortfall, and this will translate into higher prices for the commodity. Therefore, whereas Umahi’s job projection associated with increased demand for cement may hold true, the impact of exponentially increased demands on cement prices if true, may contribute to the deepening of another national problem – housing which interestingly used to be under the ministry he now oversees.

    Even though his predecessor in the combined works and housing ministry, Babatunde Raji Fashola disproved claims of a 17 million housing deficit, he acknowledged that there’s a very wide gap that needs to be plugged. Fashola also acknowledged that Nigerians have been at the forefront of providing housing for themselves with government simply augmenting the situation with homes for those with access. It is no wonder then, that Nigerians went agog with jubilation when BUA cement recently announced a price slash on the factory price of its cement. That news excited Nigerians for obvious reasons. It therefore becomes a disservice to Nigerians scraping to erect roofs over their heads if government policy in one sector leads to an increase in the price of cement. 

    There could even be a legal side to Umahi’s decision to switch to concrete roads. Although, I have not seen the contract entered into between the federal government and road contractors, I still want to think that it could amount to a breach of contract to whimsically change the terms of contracts in the manner proposed by Umahi, especially as some contracts may have been executed upwards of 80%. A better model would have been to set a new benchmark going forward. 

    So, instead of asking contractors who have executed asphalt road contracts upwards of 50% of their contracts to jettison the technology for cement, he could simply have implemented a new quality regime for the remaining part of running contracts. That way, any contractor coming to bid for new a job(s) will come safe in the knowledge that the minister prefers concrete to asphalt and they can either accept to build reinforced concrete road or let other interested contractors bid. Simple. 

    It must also be said, that Umahi’s attempt to indict contractors for the shady practices in the use of asphalt to construct low quality roads is unfortunate. Without quite knowing it, that attempt amounts instead to an indictment on the ministry of works whose responsibility it is to either directly undertake quality control checks, measurement and evaluation or appoint consultants to do same on its behalf. Makes one wonder what instruments have been put in place to shield the deployment of concrete technology from getting hijacked by the monumental corruption in the ministry of works which practically goads contractors into compromising standards in exchange for expedited processing of documents.

    While I have had cause to commend Umahi who I believe is one of the most active ministers of the Tinubu administration so far, and that his decision to switch to concrete roads technology may have been borne out of a genuine desire to transform Nigeria’s critical road infrastructure, I thought it is also very important to pay attention to his approach for delivering on that very important mandate which so far appears to be premised on the belief that asphalt can be compromised but not reinforced concrete. That’s very faulty indeed. 

    In light of this, Umahi must strive to eliminate even the tiniest chance that his new road policy will end up birthing unintended consequences that may create an even more vociferous existential crisis. I will bet that Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda was never designed to shift goalposts or to rob Peter to pay Paul. Every decision that may deliver some gains to one sector but has the potential to worsen the plight of Nigerians in another sector deserves to be re-examined, reviewed, and retooled in collaboration with stakeholders in that value chain. Nigerians deserve this much and more.

    •Kera is a publisher

  • The matter with security advisories!

    The matter with security advisories!

    But for the reaction from the federal government, recent security advisory by the United States of America US, urging its citizens to keep off major hotels in Nigeria may have passed largely unnoticed. The reason is not hard to fathom. Nigerians are used to such security alerts in the wake of the assortment of security challenges that enveloped the country in the last eight years or so. We have seen country qua country advice their citizens on precautionary measures against perceived security threats in this country. The latest one would have passed just like the ones before it.

    Even as the federal government was raising concerns with the US advisory, the Canadian government joined the fray. It warned its citizens to avoid non-essential travels to Nigeria including Abuja, “due to the unpredictable security situation throughout the country and the significant risk in terrorism, crime, inter communal clashes and attacks and kidnapping”.  

    There was therefore nothing unfamiliar when the US government said it was aware of credible information on elevated threat to major hotels in Nigeria’s major cities and warned it citizens to keep off them. Interestingly, the advisory also came with a proviso that the Nigerian security services were working diligently to counter the threat. That would have settled any perceived apprehension.

    But in an interaction with editors in Abuja, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Muhammed Idris picked holes with the advisory. He sees the alert as needless because it generates panic and undermines investments.

     “What we have seen is that such advisories do no achieve anything other than needless panic and they can have a severe adverse economic impact not to talk of what they do to undermine the government’s efforts to attract investments”, the minister argued.

    Idris cautioned the US authorities against using isolated security incidents to make generalizations across the entire hospitality industry even as he reeled out comprehensive measures by the government to address insecurity, secure lives and property.

    His position has undoubtedly, thrown up a number of issues that should not be brushed aside. The first is whether the minister was right to have claimed that such advisories are needless and unnecessary. Is it from the point of view of the Nigerian government or the US and its citizens that are being alerted of possible danger for them to take necessary precaution?

    Even if the Nigerian government is inclined to view such alerts as needless because it seeks to protect its national interest, they are eminently very useful not only to the US citizens but also our local population that have come to rely on such alerts for information. The fact remains that many of our citizens also rely on such advisories as a guide in the absence of credible security information from the government.

    Countries all over the world have the obligation to protect their citizens from potential threats and harm wherever they reside. That is part of the reciprocity attendant to citizenship. That is why the US is known to be in the forefront of securing its citizens in any part of the world they come into harm’s way. That also accounts for the uncommon love, loyalty and patriotism of their citizens for their country; ever prepared to sacrifice to the point of paying the supreme prize.

    Ironically, that concept of social exchange between the state and its citizens seems not to be working out on these shores. It is a mark of the low premium we place on the lives of our citizens that a public functionary would view such alerts as patently needless. They are not.

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    Little wonder the festering competition between the government and primordial cleavages for the loyalty of the citizens. There is absolutely nothing untoward in alerting and guiding citizens or foreigners out of perceived danger without sounding panicky.

     It is also not just enough to jump to the conclusion that mere circulation of such advisories is all it takes to create panic and discourage investments-local and foreign. It does not add up. Panic of unmitigated proportion is created and investment discouraged by the actual incidence of insecurity such that has reduced the value of life across the country. Sectarian insurgency, kidnapping for ransom, armed banditry, the insurgency of the herdsmen and agitations for self-determination are factors that incubate insecurity and heat up the system.

    Inclement investment climate induced by mounting insecurity has seen to the exit of foreign companies from Nigeria, discouraging new ones from coming in. Banditry, kidnapping and the insurgency of the herdsmen have combined to drive farmers out of the bushes contributing to the escalating prices of staple food items. No one will invest in an uncertain, insecure clime. These are the real issues.

    Security warnings are just precautionary measures to save the citizens from the mortal danger posed by assortment of security infractions. They are just symptoms of a malignant tumour. Shunting out such advisories holds no therapy to the ailment-insecurity. The solution lies in tackling headlong the sources of those security challenges.

    But who is to blame: the foreign countries alerting their citizens to possible threats or our inability to substantially tame the monster? We shall return to this. It bears stating that security advisories or alerts are not just the exclusive rights of foreign governments.

    Our domestic security agencies are also into them. Time without number has the Department of State Services DSS warned Nigerians of potential sources of threat. Before the last Eid celebrations, the agency alerted of plans to attack worship and recreational facilities before and after the festivities. It based its warning on the recovery of primed IEDs among the suspected terrorists and warned operators of public places to be watchful.

    Just last September, the same agency said it uncovered plans by unnamed people to stage violent protests over sundry socio-political challenges in the country. According to the DSS, the plotters included certain politicians who were desperately mobilizing unsuspecting student leaders, ethnic based associations, youths and disgruntled groups for the planned action.

    Though the agency claimed it had identified the ring leaders of the plot and sustained monitoring to prevent them from plunging the country into anarchy, it still deemed it needful to alert the public to the lurking danger. The DSS should have gone ahead to arrest the identified ring leaders. But it chose the way of public alert. Why are we not worried by their potentials for panic and disincentive to investments?

    It is difficult to fathom how we can in good conscience blame the foreign governments for creating panic and discouraging investments when our agencies are neck deep into such advisories. Yes, such reports could create disquiet and scare potential visitors and investors. But they are neither the source nor the cause of the problem.

    The thing to do is to address the substance. And the substance of the matter is the cascading insecurity across the country that has reduced life to the atavism of the state of nature. The threats of insecurity are ever present in the regular killings, kidnappings and sundry atrocious acts that suffuse the social and political space.

    The minister may be right in his assertion that the government has implemented comprehensive security measures to ensure the safety of foreigners and our citizens alike. In spite of these efforts, Nigerians are still held down by the unceasing insecurity across the country. There is the urgent need to redouble efforts to tackle the assortment of security threats that are stretching the capacities of our security agencies to elastic limits.

    Some of these challenges can be perfectly addressed through political reforms. The government should move fast to engage those security threats that easily lend themselves to political resolution while efforts are geared to reduce substantially those that need kinetic strategy. Then, the frequency of those security advisories would have substantially diminished. Panic will cease. And investments will flow unhindered.

  • Israeli-Gaza war: The road always trodden

    Israeli-Gaza war: The road always trodden

    • By Chijioke Uwasomba

    The Gaza Strip is boiling and burning again with an understandably huge collateral damage. The death tolls on both sides of the conflict especially of innocent women and children are increasing in their thousands, eliciting cries from humanitarian organisations in Gaza which have found it extremely difficult to cope with the crisis as the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) deal deadly blows on Hamas and its military machine which has become a thorn in the lives of the Israelis in the attempt by the latter to “reclaim” the Palestinian land “forcefully” taken over by the Israeli state. The condition of the Gazans and by implication some Israeli citizens has worsened since 2007 when Hamas took over power in Gaza 

    Since the current war between Israel and Hamas began, occasioned by the unprovoked killings and hostage -takings of the Israeli citizens and other nationals on October 7, the United Nations, some say, in its usual divisive and weak political positions and positioning has not been able to come up with a roadmap on how to resolve the crisis and agree on a permanent way forward for the Palestinians and their Israeli neighbours. Apart from the pounding of Hamas and its war infrastructure, many civilians especially children and women are dying as food, fuel, electricity and other human-enabling materials are either in short supply or completely run out.

    The latest war, according to informed sources, was triggered by the complete disagreement by Hamas and other Middle East forces opposed to any meaningful move to for a re-establishment of diplomatic relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia. By Hamas’s strategic calculations, its latest war gambit is aimed at stopping other willing Arab countries from having diplomatic relations with Israel. A completely free and normalised relations would not be in the interest of Hamas and its quest for a Palestinian homeland. By hitting Israel, Hamas knew that Israel would respond with a strong-arm tactics and these would provoke Saudi Arabia into halting the on-going move to re-establish relations with Israel thereby getting the support of the Arab league.

    It is mind-boggling that peace and good neighbourliness have been missing in the Middle East for many centuries in a region that produced the two leading and heavily subscribed religions in the world. It should be noted that the Middle East crisis began millions of years ago. Both the Jews and the Arabs have come a long way and as history has it, they were sired by one progenitor even though from different women.

    God, according to Biblical account had asked Abram (Abraham) who he so much loved to leave the land of Ur (today’s Iraq) to move to Canaan land, a land flowing with milk and honey. Both the Jews (Israelites) and their Palestinian cousins (from Ishmael) had lived in this disputed land area many centuries ago. Each had been in charge at one time or the other up to the Babylonian captivity and other series of occupations and enslavements. Both groups have a strong stake in what is today known as the Palestine. Truth be told: the whole hullabaloo between the two groups is Jerusalem, a land claimed by both groups as theirs because of the assumed holy provenance. From what can be seen between Israel and the Palestine, even if a two-state solution comes into being, there will not be any let up in the bickering between the two neighbours. The ultimate diadem is Jerusalem.

    Tehran, the bête noire of the West and active supporter and armer of Hamas may not relent in its support for Hamas, and other Palestinian Jihadist groups including Hezbollah to foment trouble in Gaza and Israel. Neither will Israel herself sit idly by and watch Iran become a hegemonic force in the Middle East. Palestine and its people are truly pawns on the chessboard in the proxy war between Iran, its ideological supporters on the one hand, and the United States, the West and their minions in the Middle East. It is obvious that many destabilising forces have almost made it impossible for the Oslo Accord(s) to work. Hamas and Hezbollah, two strong militant forces which have been declared as terrorist organisations by Britain and other western countries do not want to make peace with Israel and have been gung-ho in their hostile relationship with Israel.

    Israel is stunned by its security lapse on October 7, when Hamas and the Palestine Islamic Jihad in their “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” killed,1,400 Israelis, raped and humiliated many Israelis and other nationals after a ruthless six-hour operation. It is indubitable that Israelis’ rage in its response to Hamas, is aimed at bringing the group to a hors de combat and create a new political atmosphere in Gaza. But this is at a huge humanitarian cost as the conflict has become awful and tragic in Gaza land.

    The tactics and strategies of Hamas will not by any standard bring freedom for/to the Palestinian people. This is because Hamas a reactionary organisation with about forty-five percent of the Gazans supporting it. It pretends to be a resistance movement but in all its posturing and raison d’tre, it is not working and representing the interest of the poor Palestinians who live in poverty and under humiliating circumstances. Hamas’s rank and file members live under well protected tunnels while the decision-making echelon lives in faraway Qatar enjoying the best that life could offer. The Gazans and other Palestinians face the horrifying heat of the war each time a conflict arises between Hamas and Israel.

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    In the West Bank where Mahmoud Abbas leads the Palestine Organisation, it is curious to note that he enjoys not more than twenty-six per cent support of the people. The leadership of the organisation is seen as very corrupt and is not trusted by the people. In all of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the West Bank, it is the ordinary people that are subjected to cruelty, misery and acute poverty. Both the ordinary Palestinians and their Israeli counterparts suffer more in the unending spasmodic war between the belligerent Israeli forces and the Palestinian forces.

    The United Nations has been weak and thoroughly incompetent in resolving the Palestinian question since 1948 when the Israeli state was created. Each time fissiparous forces in the Middle East notice genuine efforts at reconciling the forces at play in the Middle East, they create more crises that put peace in almost jeopardy. The UN should not wait for a spat to occur before it shows permanent interest in the Middle East. 

    In the crisis that has defined the Middle East, no group is innocent and none can claim to be right. Both the Israelis and the Palestinians are ruled by ancient grudges which every generation of theirs has become part and parcel of. Third parties like the UN and the United States must work hard to ensure that the two-state solution works in the interest of the ordinary Palestinians and the Israelis. As a pragmatic way of bringing the current crisis to an end, Hamas must be made to release and return the over 240 Israelis and other nationals that were kidnapped under humiliating and terrible circumstances on October 7. This is capable of guaranteeing a cease fire beyond the recently announced four-hour daily pause that the Israeli government has given on humanitarian grounds to allow civilians to move southwards.

    A permanent solution to the crisis will require a no-holds-barred international conference on the Palestinian question with a view to negotiating a lasting peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians in the larger interest of the Middle East and the world. And from the look of things, this can only be possible with the dismantling of the war machine of Hamas.

    •Prof Uwasomba teaches at the Department of English, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife

  • HEFAMAA seeks global recognition to improve treatment outcomes, patients’ safety

    HEFAMAA seeks global recognition to improve treatment outcomes, patients’ safety

    Dr. Yemisi Solanke-Koya, Chairman of the Lagos State Health Facilities Monitoring and Accreditation Agency (HEFAMAA) board, has highlighted the vital need for the health accreditation agency to pursue global recognition through the International Society for Quality Healthcare (ISQUA). Doing so, she stated, would offer solutions to the challenges in both public and private health sector, ensure patients’ safety, and enhance healthcare delivery in Lagos State.

     The HEFAMAA board chairman made the disclosure during a stakeholders’ meeting, which focused on reviewing the standards for Acute Care Hospitals in Lagos State, where she emphasised the agency’s commitment to enhancing patients’ safety. Addressing attendees at the event with the  theme: Stakeholder Engagement: Accreditation Standard Review for Acute Care Hospitals, Solanke-Koya underscored HEFAMAA’s pivotal role in setting essential operational standards for both public and private health facilities. According to her, the meeting was premised on how to ensure patients get quality healthcare as the agency is intensifying its efforts in setting the required minimum standards for the operations of health facilities. “In view of the targeted ISQUA recognition, the agency identified the need to meet all relevant stakeholders in the health sector to brainstorm on how to get international accreditation in a way that health providers in the state will be able to embrace the provisions of the accreditation policy.”

     The Commissioner for Health in Lagos State, Prof Akin Abayomi, stressed the importance of developing a strategic plan to improve healthcare quality through setting standards and regulating facilities. The Commissioner, who was represented by the Director of Administration, Medical Training and Programmes in the Lagos Ministry of Health, Dr Funmilayo Sokunbi, said the effort of HEFAMAA in seeking global recognition will lead to better healthcare service delivery across the state.

     While also emphasising the need for accreditation, Dr. Abiola Idowu, the Executive Secretary of HEFAMAA, explained that the agency is meticulously revising the standards for Acute Care Hospitals to align seamlessly with the specific needs of Lagos and Nigeria as a whole, ensuring contextual relevance. She emphasised the significance of adhering to standards, as they facilitate compliance with established rules and regulations. Idowu highlighted the agency’s commitment to external evaluations, such as peer reviews, which contribute to enhancing the quality of care and overall health outcomes. The comprehensive evaluation of Acute Care Hospitals encompasses vital aspects like diagnostic and laboratory services, patient care and safety, hospital infrastructure, and operational procedures, among others.

     “The essence of having standards is to comply with set regulations that will be reviewed by external people, like external peer review that will ensure improvement in the quality of care and improve health outcomes. These standards are going to be targeted at Acute Care Hospitals including diagnostic and laboratory services, patient care, patient safety, hospital structures, and operational processes among others. By this time next year, we are looking at the possibility that we would have submitted this set of standards through the international body, which is the International Society for Quality Healthcare to accredit the standards. We are hoping that these standards would have been accredited. The whole exercise is for international recognition so that we can beat our chest boldly to say we are recognised internationally.

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     “The accreditation process started in 2020 when we realised that outside the responsibility of carrying out monitoring audits, we needed to ensure that the hospitals have the mark of excellence to further assure that citizens of Lagos State are getting quality healthcare from our healthcare facilities. This process is a sign of commitment on the side of the Lagos State Government to ensure that citizens are saved and getting adequate healthcare services. We had earlier engaged foreign companies. After we had done the quality audit and quality insurance landscape, it is now an assessment of the players in the health sector and what we need to do to ensure that there is quality care in Lagos.”

     Dr Idowu highlighted that during the ongoing process, HEFAMAA updated its standards in 2021, marking the first revision since 2006. Given this significant update, the agency sought contributions from distinguished professionals to provide valuable input and critique HEFAMAA’s work. This collaborative effort aimed to ensure a secure healthcare system accessible to all.

     In his overview of the accreditation standard development process, Dr. Olujimi Coker, the Chief Executive Officer of Habevit Healthcare and Chairman of the SQHN Committee, presented alarming statistics. He also outlined the benefits of accreditation, emphasising its role in enhancing overall professional development, knowledge, and competencies in systematic ways. Accreditation, he pointed out, fosters a culture of quality and safety within healthcare systems.

     Dr. Coker cited a study conducted across 26 low and middle-income countries, revealing that the rate of adverse events stands at approximately eight per cent. Disturbingly, 83per cent of these events could have been prevented, and tragically, 30 percent resulted in fatalities. He highlighted the staggering global figures: an estimated 421 million hospitalisations occur worldwide annually, during which 42.7 million adverse events affect patients. Shockingly, two-thirds of these events transpire in low and middle-income countries, leading to 2.6 million deaths each year due to unsafe care.

     Furthermore, Dr. Coker emphasised the economic impact of these incidents. The cost associated with harm, leading to loss of life or permanent disability, significantly affects the capacity and productivity of the patients and their families. This financial toll amounts to trillions of dollars every year. “An estimated 421 million hospitalisations take place in the world annually. Approximately 42.7 million adverse events occur in patients during those hospitalisations. Approximately two-thirds of all adverse events happen in low- and middle-income countries, contributing to 2.6 million deaths annually due to unsafe care. It is estimated that the cost of harm associated with the loss of life or permanent disability, which results in lost capacity and productivity of the affected patients and families, amounts to trillions of US dollars every year. Furthermore, the psychological cost to the patient and their family, associated with losing a loved one or coping with a permanent disability, is significant though more difficult to measure,” he said.

     The CEO of Habevit Healthcare further emphasised  the vital role of regulation, ensuring the attainment of minimum acceptable standards, enhancing performance, quality, and accountability at both individual and organisational levels. He outlined the numerous advantages of accreditation, such as identifying strengths and areas needing improvement in programmes and processes. Accreditation also encourages communication and empowers staff within organisations, leading to enhanced professional development, knowledge, and competencies in systematic ways, he added. Furthermore, it cultivates a culture of quality and safety, enhancing organisational learning, staff effectiveness, and patient outcomes. Additionally, accreditation mitigates risks and liability costs, reduces variation, improves efficiency, and lowers expenses. Importantly, it instills confidence in the community regarding the healthcare organisation’s services.

  • African medical students sign MoU with Lecturio on medical digital resources

    African medical students sign MoU with Lecturio on medical digital resources

    Medical students from various tertiary institutions across Africa, represented by the Federation of African Medical Students’ Association (FAMSA), have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Lecturio, a digital medical resource content provider based in Germany. The MoU, signed by Deborah Ogundijo, the administrator of FAMSA headquarters from the College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, and Banturaki Davis, the FAMSA President studying in Uganda, was also formalised by Dr. Lutz Mukke, Director of Institutional Partnerships Africa at Lecturio.

    The signing event, held at the board room of the College of Medicine, UCH, was attended by notable figures including the Provost of the College, Professor Olayinka Omigbodun, Deputy Provost Professor Ade Fatai Adeniyi, and the College Secretary, Deputy Registrar Mr. Emmanuel Odedele. Under the two-year agreement, Lecturio will grant FAMSA students free trial access to Lecturio Premium through a unique registration link. This access will provide students with digital resources such as lectures, research materials, and study resources. Dr. Lutz Mukke, in a brief presentation preceding the signing, highlighted Lecturio’s commitment to offering students the most effective learning tools, validated by the principles of learning science.

     He said: “Lecturio understand the challenges all students face as they endeavour to master the vast amount of foundational science needed to become outstanding healthcare providers. The team knows that true mastery of this material and the global shortage healthcare professionals require a paradigm shift in how medicine is taught. In order to take on this challenge, Lecturio created a high-quality digital medical education resources, which is affordable, adaptive and personalised. The platform is designed with the needs of learners and faculty in mind, combined with the latest state-of-the-art learning technology and comprehensive monitoring and assessment features. Lecturio is guided by a clear and powerful set of values which shape the product and the way we work internally and with our partners: reliability, focus, simplify, joy and think big.”

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     He emphasised that through this partnership, students would gain access to diverse topics, studies, and research materials presented via digital video content, ensuring that medical students in Africa remain well-informed about global developments in medicine and healthcare. Highlighting that this collaboration imposes no financial burden on the students, Lutz mentioned that the company has devised sophisticated teaching methods and learning experiences using video presentations and content, aiming to provide students with a lifelike educational encounter.

     In her brief statement, FAMSA headquarters administrator, Deborah Ogundijo, expressed her appreciation for the initiative, recognising its potential to provide students with valuable learning resources at no cost. She extended her gratitude to Lecturio, assuring that the students would make the most of this partnership opportunity. FAMSA stands as an independent, non-political federation of medical students’ associations in Africa, established in 1961 through the joint efforts of Nigeria, Ghana, and Uganda. Its primary objective is to foster camaraderie and collaboration among African medical students. Recognised by reputable organisations such as the World Health Organisation and the African Union, FAMSA serves as the official international platform for African medical students, focusing on various projects and initiatives.

  • ‘Tackling cervical cancer in Northeast requires collective approach’

    ‘Tackling cervical cancer in Northeast requires collective approach’

    Prof Bala Audu, the Vice Chancellor of Federal University of Health Sciences Azare, has emphasised the need for a collective effort from all stakeholders to address cervical cancer in the North-east region. He made this statement during a training for trainers’ event, organised for 36 participants representing the six states under the North-east collaboration for cervical cancer elimination (NE-C3E). The event was a joint initiative involving the North-East Development Commission, University of Miami, and Federal University of Health Sciences, Azare.

     As a professor of gynaecological oncology, Audu highlighted the importance of enhancing the skills and knowledge of medical personnel. He emphasised that strengthening the capacity of healthcare professionals is crucial in eradicating this disease from the region. Cervical cancer, a significant global health challenge, particularly affects sub-Saharan Africa, making it imperative for focused efforts and collaborative strategies to combat it effectively.

     He said the impact of the collaboration by stakeholders would build the capacity of medical personnel in terms of knowledge skills so as to deliver on all the triple approach by the World Health Organisation (WHO), from primary healthcare level which will help to mobilise the community to secondary and tertiary care level of managing the complicated cases. “We believe that from the support from NEDC and each of every state that the North-east of Nigeria will be the first part of the country to eliminate cervical cancer. There are 36 participants, drawn from all the six states of the North-East and across the senatorial zones and they are expected to do a cascade down training to each Local Government Areas with three PHCs making 112,” he said.

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     Also speaking, the Managing Director NEDC, Mohammed Alkali, said the initiative was hinged on improving the lives of residents in the region. Speaking through the General Manager, Relief and Remediation under Humanitarian Directorate, Sa’adatu Ahmed-Shehu, Alkali said “As a Commission, we want to touch the lives of the people of the North-east at the grassroots most especially and if we are able to achieve this, it will be a great plus towards achieving our set mandate.”

     In his own remark, Gombe State Commissioner for Health Habu Dahiru, said “the incidence of cervical cancer is quite high in Gombe State. With this collaboration, there will be improved access which will bring patients for screening, treatment and there will be demand creation through Primary Health Care Development Agency.”

  • Melaye kicks as INEC declares Ododo Kogi Gov-Elect

    Melaye kicks as INEC declares Ododo Kogi Gov-Elect

    The candidate of the People Democratic party(PDP) Senator Dino Melaye has rejected the result of the Saturday’s governorship election.

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared the All Progressives Congress(APC) candidate Ahmed Ododo the winner of the content.

    But Melaye described the election as a sham and charade, saying “the purported APC victory was a pure daylight robbery that can not withstand democratic test in all measure”.

    The INEC state returning officer for the election, Prof. Johnson Urama, declared Ododo winner after securing 446,237 votes while his main challenger, Murtala Ajaka of the Social Democratic  Party (SDP) scored 259,052 votes.

    Melaye polled 46,362 to came distant third.

    Speaking on the outcome of the election, Melaye said that the irregularities that marred Saturdays Election in all the three Senatorial Districts was unprecedented in the history of the State and should not be allowed to stand.

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    He described the exercise as ‘shameful and unhealthy” , regretting that INEC has not learnt any lesson to realise , ameliorate and palliate the problem they reportedly created to democratic process during  the general elections.

    According to him: “Yesterday in the Five local government of Central Senatorial districts in Kogi State , there was no election in the end surprisingly accreditation was done manually , the BVAS was not used Prepared sheets manifested even before accreditation and evidence is all over media.

    “INEC as matter of urgency must cancel the election , many areas where I won , my agents were told there were no available result sheet to enter the result and we have evidence to back up this claims

    “As I speak to you it is shameful that this what our democracy has descended from to .INEC has manifested ever than before , that they can not be trusted , they are biased, they are compromised and they can not be neutral umpire”.

    He alleged INEC officials, youth corps members were caught with prepared result sheets even before the commencement of the process.

    ” They was deliberate suppression of my my votes in Lokoja and Kogi local governments. This was deliberately done by governor Yahaya Bello and APC to make sure that even their orchestrated arrangement I don’t come second .Because they do believe that there will be a a second ballot and they believe if there is a second ballot I have influence and tremendous support in the central and I can make an in road in the East.So they preferred any other person to become second,” he said.