The Nation Newspaper

Author: The Nation

  • Supreme Court’s naira order: Malami, Emefiele under fire

    Supreme Court’s naira order: Malami, Emefiele under fire

    Despite the unambiguous March 3, Supreme Court judgment ordering that the old N200, N500 and N1,000 notes should coexist with the new ones, President Muhammadu Buhari has failed to direct compliance. The President’s refusal not only threw Nigerians deeper into what many see as a politically-motivated hardship, it also affirmed the apex court’s view of Buhari as a violator of lawful orders and the rule of law. Lawyers tell ADEBISI ONANUGA what should be done.

    It is 12 days today since the Supreme Court delivered its judgment in the case on the naira redesign policy brought by 16 state governments against the Federal Government.

    The apex court ordered that the old N200, N500 and N1,000 notes should coexist with the new ones  as legal tender and extended the period of the validity of the old notes to December 31, 2023.

    A seven-member panel of the apex court, led by Justice John Okoro, said the procedure adopted by government in implementing its cashless/naira swap policy was wrong.

    Justice Emmanuel Agim, who read  the lead judgment, held that condition precedent was not met before President Muhammadu Buhari directed the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor to distribute the new notes and withdraw the old ones.

    Other members of the panel who were in agreement with the lead judgment are Justices Amina Augie, Mohammed Lawal Garba, Ibrahim Saulawa, Adamu Jauro, and Tijani Abubakar.

    They held that the directive by President Buhari to the CBN governor to distribute new notes and withdraw old one was invalid because no reasonable notice was given to Nigerians as required under Section 20(3) of the CBN Act.

    Justice Agim noted that rather than issuing a formal or public notice, what the CBN governor did was to simply issue a press statement, which he equated to the required three-month notice under Section 20(3) the CBN Act, adding that the press statement did not qualify as a reasonable notice envisaged under the CBN Act.

    The justice added that Federal Government’s  reliance on the said press release  as the notice of its plan to distribute new naira notes and withdrawal  of the old ones showed its disregard for the importance of giving reasonable notice as a valid foundation for the introduction of new naira notes and withdrawal of old ones.

    He held that since the requirement that reasonable notice should be given was not met by the Federal Government, the directive given by the President to the CBN governor for the distribution of the new notes and withdrawal of the old ones was invalid.

    Justice Agim expressed displeasure at government’s failure to obey the February 8th  interim injunction ordering that the old notes should remain legal tender until the conclusion of the case.

    He noted that rather than comply with the order, Buhari made a national broadcast on February 16 in which he varied the order made of the court and directed that only the old N200 notes should remain in circulation.

    The judge held that had the Federal Government complied with due process and consulted widely before introducing such a policy with huge impact on the nation, the current disorderliness and pains being experienced by the citizens would have been avoided.

    He said: “It is not in dispute that the President of Nigeria did not seek the advice of the National Council of State, the National Economic Council, the National Security Council, the Federal Executive Council and other stakeholders before directing the CBN governor to issue new naira notes and withdraw the existing ones.

    “Before introducing such policy with far reaching effects on the constituent states of the federation, the President ought to consult widely with all stakeholders.”

    He noted that even when the President realised belatedly the need to consult, he invited the CBN governor to brief the National Council of State on the policy, but still failed to heed the advice given by the council.

    Drawing examples from Europe and other developed societies, Justice Agim said in most cases where new notes are introduced, they co-exist with the old notes for a minimum of one year.

    He recalled that a hasty execution of the naira policy in India some years ago created major disruptions in the country’s socio-economic life as is being witnessed in Nigeria today.

    Justice Agim faulted the cash withdrawal limit also contained in the policy and held that it was a violation of the right of the owners of such funds to their property, and therefore unlawful.

    The court dismissed all the objections raised against the suit by the defendants – the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Attorney General of Bayelsa State and the Attorney General of Edo State.

    The court held that as against the defendants’ contention that the suit ought to be filed at the Federal High Court, it was properly filed before the apex court because it bordered on dispute between some states and the Federal Government  in regard to the President ‘s exercise of the Executive powers of the federation.

    He also held that the plaintiffs had the locus standi (the legal right) to approach the court on the issue because the Federal Government’s economic policy has adversely affected their activities in the states and disrupted the socio-economic life of the people.

    The judge also said that the CBN was not a necessary party in the case because it is an agency of the Federal Government, which was sued through the AGF.

    Justice Agim held that the rule of law, on which our democratic governance is founded, does not give the President or any other person the discretion to vary a court order.

    In addition, he said the disobedience of court order by the President in a democracy such as that of Nigeria was a sign of the failure the Constitution, a threat to democratic governance and a drift towards autocracy.

    The beginning

    Three states, Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara had initially sued the Federal Government over the implementation of the naira policy following the hardship which the policy  brought upon Nigerians.

    On February 8,  the applicant states obtained an interim order of the Supreme Court restraining the Federal Government from banning the use of the old N200, N500 and N1,000 currencies as legal tender pending the hearing and determination of their interlocutory application.

    Justice John Okoro who issued the interim order fixed February 15, for hearing of the interlocutory applications

    However, when the matter came up on February 15, nine other states had applied to be joined as interested parties. They include Lagos, Katsina, Cross River, Ogun, Ekiti, Ondo, Sokoto.  While Bayelsa and Edo states sought to be joined as co-defendants alongside the Federal Government.

    With more states seeking to be joinders in the suit, hearing was again adjourned till Wednesday February 22 and judgment in the matter subsequently fixed for Friday, March 3.

    President’s national broadcast

    In response to the interim order of the Supreme Court restraining the Federal Government from banning the use of the old N200, N500 and N1,000 as legal tender, President Buhari had on February 16 gave a nationwide broadcast in which he varied the orders of the apex court and directed that only the N200 should remain as legal tender till April 10.

    The Presidential broadcast however, fell short of the expectations of Nigerians who had expected that the President would comply with the orders of the Supreme Court.

    Judgment a relief to Nigerians?

    As much as the  March 3 judgment of the Supreme Court was a big  relief to the country, it did not change the chaotic situation on the ground as the orders of the court were not complied with.

    Many had expected the President to obey all the orders of the Supreme  Court. There were also those expecting a repeat national broadcast from the President in which he was expected to assure Nigerians of his readiness to comply with all the terms listed by the apex court. But these anticipations were not to be as the lives and living conditions of most of Nigerians continued to deteriorate due to the scarcity of old and new naira notes.

    Hardship everywhere

    The scarcity of the naira, which has persisted since January, has also affected the living conditions and economic life of the people with many businesses nose-diving, particularly small businesses that survive on daily income. Worst hit by the cash crunch are hawkers, roadside  and retail businesses.

    Many banks shut their doors against customers as they had no new currencies to dispense. Customers who withdrew old notes from ATM machines couldn’t use them for transactions as market men and women, especially transporters, declined to accept same.

    Kogi governor threatens residents with arrest, prosecution

    All attempts to make the old notes acceptable  in many states. The continued rejection of the old notes and its attendant chaos in the society forced Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State last week to threaten to arrest and prosecute those rejecting the old notes in the state. In a statement issued by his Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mr Kingsley Fanwo in Lokoja, the governor described as “unacceptable” and “demeaning” the continuous rejection of the old notes in spite of the orders of Supreme Court.

    “This administration will not stand and watch some persons and businesses continue to reject the use of the old naira notes, even after the court judgment validating their use. To us, rejecting the old naira notes is a clear disobedience of the Supreme Court orders, which shall be vehemently resisted. Anyone who rejects the old naira notes should be reported to the security and government authorities for immediate arrest and prosecution”, he said.

    Lagos, Anambra others urge residence to accept old notes

    Many states have warned residents and businesses against rejecting the old N500 and No 1,000 notes.

    Lagos and Anambra on Sunday said the old notes remained legal tender until December 31, urging banks and residents to continue accepting them.

    Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has ordered all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies, MDAs, as well as Courts in the state to commence acceptance of old N500 and N1,000 notes.

    Sanwo-Olu also urged business owners, especially retailers, to accept the old N500 and N1,000 notes, to ease hardship sparked by the Naira redesign policy introduced by the Federal Government. Raising concerns over the policy’s impact on business and commercial activities, the Governor on Sunday said there was no reason to reject the old notes, going by the Supreme Court’s judgement delivered on March 3, 2023.

    He, in a statement by the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso, assured Lagosians that all agencies in the state would not reject the currency whenever they aim to transact business with them.

    The statement reads; “There is no reason to reject the old notes, going by the Supreme Court judgement delivered on March 3, 2023. The apex court declared that “no reasonable notice was given as required by Section 20(3) of the CBN Act,” noting that the public only became aware of the policy through press remarks, which cannot qualify as a notice to the public.

    “The court maintained that the policy has impeded the functions of State governments, pointing out that the directive that stops the use of the old notes is illegal, unconstitutional, null and void.

    “Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has, therefore, called on business owners, especially retailers, to accept the old N500 and N1,000 notes – in line with the Supreme Court judgement that the currency remains legal tender until December 31, 2023. It is illegal to reject the notes.

    “All agencies of the Lagos State Government are advised not to reject payments made with the old currency by the public.

    President, CBN mum

    A day after the Supreme Court judgment, the President left for the 5th United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LCDs) in Doha, Qatar. The conference  held from March 5 to 9, March, 2023.

    Immediately after he returned home, the President left for Daura. Since then, nothing has been heard from him to give direction on what is to be done about the judgment.

    What is Buhari, CBN doing?

    Last Saturday, March 4, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) urged Buhari  to disclose details of the measures his government is taking to immediately and effectively obey the Supreme Court decision.

    In the letter dated March 4, 2023 and signed by SERAP deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation said there was an overriding public interest in disclosing the details of the measures the government and the CBN were taking to effectively and satisfactorily obey the apex court’s decision.

    It said the public should not be kept in the dark on the matter, saying widely publishing the implementation measures would also improve accountability of state officials and public confidence in the rule of law and Nigeria’s democracy.

    SERAP urged Buhari “to publicly instruct the CBN to immediately and effectively implement the Supreme Court decision ordering an end to the cash withdrawal limits imposed by banks because such restrictions violate citizens’ right to freely use their property.”

    History of disobedience to court orders

    President Buhari has a reputation for cherry-picking court orders to obey. SERAP, which keeps a record of his disobedience, said from 2015 till date, the President has disobeyed many court orders and judgments.

    Speaking while presenting the SERAP Law Report to the public at a media briefing held in collaboration with the MacArthur Foundation last year, human rights’ lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN) listed some of the judgments that the Buhari administration disobeyed.

    Among them is the judgment by the ECOWAS Court of Justice in Abuja, which awarded N30million as compensation for the ill-treatment of journalist Agba Jalingo, who faced trumped-up and politically motivated charges of treason.

    “The second judgment, by Justice Mohammed Idris, on 26 February, 2016 ordered the Federal Government to publish details on the spending of stolen funds recovered by successive governments since the return of democracy in 1999.

    “The third judgment, by Justice Oguntoyinbo on November 26, 2019, ordered the Federal Government to challenge the legality of states’ pension laws permitting former governors now serving as ministers and members of the National Assembly to collect such pensions, and to recover pensions already collected by them.

    “The fourth judgment, by Justice Mohammed Idris on  May 28, 2018, ordered the Federal Government to prosecute senior lawmakers suspected of padding and stealing N481 billion from the 2016 budget; and to widely publish the report of investigations into the alleged padding of the 2016 budget.

    “The fifth judgment, by Justice Obiozor, on  July 4, 2019 ordered the Federal Government to publish the names of companies and contractors who collected public funds since 1999 but failed to execute any electricity projects.

    “The sixth judgment, by the ECOWAS Court of Justice in Abuja, delivered on  November 19, 2009, ordered the Nigerian authorities to provide free and quality education to all Nigerian children without discrimination”, among others.

    Graveyard silence

    Stakeholders are worried over the continued silence of the President to make a pronouncement on the judgment. Also worrisome was the refusal of the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele to comply with the March 3, 2023 orders.

    Ten states set for contempt procedings against AGF, CBN Gov

    Meanwhile, 10 states are set for contempt proceedings against the Federal Government and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) over the issue.

    The governments of Kaduna, Kogi, Zamfara, Ondo, Ekiti, Katsina, Ogun, Cross River, Lagos and Sokoto states last Friday served the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN) the enrolled order of the Supreme Court on the extension of the validity of the old N200, N500 and N1,000 to Decemr 31st, 2023.

    By the service, the order became automatically applicable to all agencies of the Federal Government, including the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

    Malami and Emefiele risk being committed for contempt if they refuse to comply with the order of the apex court.

    The 10 states have activated the machinery to file contempt charges against Malami and Emefiele if they defy the order of the Supreme Court.

    Lawyers reactions

    Eminent constitutional and senior lawyers have not shifted in their position that Malami and Emefiele are to be held responsible for the quagmire in which the country found herself. They condemned the duo for their disrespect and disregard to the order of the apex court.

    They include Prof, Itse Sagay (SAN), activist lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), Chief Louis Alozie (SAN), Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN), Wahab Shittu (SAN) and Dr. Fassy Yusuf

    Emefiele in contempt for not directing banks – Sagay

    Prof Sagay, while speaking at a media parley in Lagos on the activities of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC) last week said Emefiele is in contempt if he has not issued a directive to banks to pay and accept old N1,000 and N500 notes as ordered by the court,

    Sagay emphasised that every Supreme Court order made on March 3, 2023 is binding on all, including the government, stressing that the old N200, N500 and N1,000 notes would remain legal tender until December 31 and co-exist with the new ones.

    “The only thing is that nothing can be done if the President decides to disregard it because of his immunity; but he is bound by law.”

    The Silk also argued that the CBN does not need anyone to give it instructions to obey a judgment because it is an agency of the Federal Government.

    He added: “So, if the CBN has not yet directed banks to obey the Supreme Court decision, it means that Governor Godwin Emefiele is committing contempt of court and there could be consequences for that.

    “We hear there is a level of obedience by some banks that are paying and accepting the old notes, so hopefully the level of compliance will increase.

    “But, everybody is bound by the judgment, including the Attorney-General of the Federation. He is bound by the judgment.”

    Malami, Emefiele encouraging disobediencef judgment, says Falana

    Falana recalled that Chief Kanu Agabi (SAN), who led the Federal Government legal team at the Supreme Court, stated very clearly that his client would comply with the judgment.

    “But when asked why the Federal Government had not obeyed the terms of the judgment, the AGF,  Abubakar Malami (SAN) said that he was not in a position to advise the president on monetary matters. In other words, he would not advise the authorities to comply with the judgment.”

    Falana, however, noted that some of the banks have been complying with the orders of the court, adding that “the CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele has said that he did not authorise the banks to disburse old N500 and N1,000 notes. The banks did not need any authorisation as the judgment took immediate effect.

    “The implication is that both Messrs Malami and Emefiele are brazenly encouraging utter disobedience of the judgment of the Supreme Court.

    He requested President Buhari to call Malani and Emefiele to order without any further delay.

    “Specifically, the President should direct all authorities and persons to comply with the judgment of apex court,” he added.

    New naira scarcity illegal – Alozie

    Alozie argued that by the provisions of the Money Laundering Act, the limit of cash an individual can withdraw across the counter is N5million. He said this statutory provision is binding on government, including the President and CBN.

    He said it cannot be overridden by any other regulation by the CBN or the President.

    “So the creation of artificial scarcity by the Federal Government and CBN is illegal,” Alozie said.

    Supreme Court judgment binding on CBN, others

    Alozie also contended that the judgment of courts including the Supreme Court is binding on the government and CBN and that they have no choice in the matter.

    He added: “It is unfortunate that the authorities are ignoring the judgment of the Supreme Court. That is highly contemptuous.

    “If we had a National Assembly alive to its duties, the President would have been impeached on account of this.

    “The CBN Governor who has no immunity under the constitution would have been cited for contempt of court too.”

    He regretted that the country “has been carrying on as if we are still under military rule.”

    Alozie contended that the only way to resolve the quagmire was to pressurise the Federal Government to obey court judgments stressing that “there is no other way out of it. Judgments of courts take immediate effect. The delays in making the new cash available to Nigerian is worrisome and unfair.”

    Why Buhari must obey Supreme Court

    Activist-lawyer Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa said Buhari must ‘immediately’ ensure compliance with the judgment, adding that there is no room for further appeal against the judgment.

    According to him, the judgment “delivered on the arbitrary and capricious redesigning of Naira notes is a courageous confirmation of the sanctity of the rule of law and due process, in a democracy.”

    Judgment a soothing relief

    “It is a soothing relief from the hardship that Nigerians have been subjected to over the past few weeks on account of this rather thoughtless policy.

    “The court should always be the platform for the resolution of all disputes by all aggrieved persons.

    “I salute the sagacity and courage of the justices of the Supreme Court for rising up to rescue Nigerians from the pangs of death, frustration and looming economic recession.

    “As there is no room for further appeal against the judgment of the Supreme Court, I urge the President to immediately direct the Central Bank of Nigeria to comply fully with the judgment of the Supreme Court, as stated under section 287(1) of the Constitution and allow ALL the N200, N500 and N1000 old Naira notes to be circulating along with the Naira new notes till December 23, 2023.

    “Across all our land today, there will be joy in many homes, businesses will bounce back and Nigerians will find cause to celebrate their freedom from all forms of dictatorship and arbitrariness.”

    Law bigger than any person

    Shittu, a prominent litigator and prosecutor regretted that so far, the body language of Mr President and the CBN Governor to the order of the Supreme Court is unfortunate and sad indeed.

    According to him, “this is a democracy founded on the rule of law. No matter how big a person is, the law is bigger. The entire Governance architecture is built on respect for the rule of law. Rule of law is the foundation of constitutional democracy. Remove the rule of law, what we have left is anarchy and lawlessness. “

    He also pointed out that where anarchy and lawlessness reign supreme, the law of the jungle takes over and in such circumstances, no one is safe including the Government and the Governed.

    ‘President, CBN Governor not above the law’

    Shittu pointed out that the President and the CBN Governor are not above the law stressing, “no state can afford to treat its laws particularly the pronouncements of the highest court with levity.”

    He said his expectation was that immediately the Supreme Court made the order, the President, the CBN and the Attorney general of the Federation would all direct immediate compliance. 

    “That is the path of sanity, that is the path of constitutionalism, that is the path of the rule of law. Failure to comply has grave implications. It is a clear demonstration of contempt for the rule of law.

    “It also impacts negatively on foreign direct investment. Local businesses are worse hit as poverty and hunger dominate society. It also signposts the failure of the government to meet the expectations of the people .This is because security and welfare of the people remain the primary purpose of the government.” 

    ‘Committal Proceedings must commence immediately’

    He said committal proceedings should commence without further delay as the only way out..

    “Against who? Of course the Attorney general of the federation and the CBN Government should face committal proceedings immediately. The president enjoys immunity by virtue of his office. But the first other two do not enjoy such immunity. No one is entitled to take the Nigerian people for granted”, he said.

    ‘Hold ‘cabal’ in the Presidency responsible’

    Another leading litigator, Dr. Yusuf was of the view that there is a cabal in the presidency with the alleged complicity of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice who are hell bent in causing chaos and anarchy in this country by preventing the apex court of the land to make a judgment in futility.

    Government, that is, the President and the cabals in Aso Rock and the AGF should be held responsible if the situation should degenerate.

    ‘Initiate contempt proceedings’

    Dr Yusuf advised: “What would happen is this. Those who brought the matter to the Supreme Court should ensure that the President and the Attorney General of the Federation, who were party in the suit, are properly served copies of the judgment. Thereafter, if they still fail to do the needful, contempt proceedings should be brought against them. The Judiciary, even though they are to be seen and not heard in the public, should be moved to protect the integrity of the judiciary by abstaining from listening to any government suit since they failed, refused and … therefore they have no business approaching the court for any remedy.

    ‘Task before NBA’

    The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) should take up the matter and condemned and in no small measure, the infraction of the federal government.

    The CBN is saying it has not been served, that it is not a party to the suit. But according to the judgment of the Supreme Court, the CBN is an agent of the Federal Government and as a result must obey. But since the AGF has refused to implement the decision of the apex court, what can you expect the CBN to do? Everybody is in a dilemma. They give you old notes of N1,000 or N500 in the bank but you cannot tender it.

    So, the AGF should be responsible and the Legal Disciplinary Committee should act on the matter.

  • PDP: anti-party vs anti-party

    PDP: anti-party vs anti-party

    Even after Atiku Abubakar’s tragic miscalculations had wrecked the PDP — returning it to a “northern” party from the results of the 2023 presidential and National Assembly elections — the post-poll era looks bleak for the party, judging from the latest sabre-rattling from Rivers’ Governor, Nyesom Wike.

    Wike, boisterous and frenetic, was the Atiku nemesis, crushing the former Vice President’s umpteenth presidential dreams, by rousing the protesting G-5 PDP governors to lethal action.

    Whereas the last G-5 vs Atiku battle was fought on power shift, the next, for the soul of PDP, would be fought on mutual anti-party allegations. 

    Call it anti-party vs anti-party and you won’t be wrong!

    Wike, the master of vicious repartee that leaves his opponents stunned and bruised, has just fired the first shot.  Looking back at the wreck he and his G-5 comrades made of PDP in the South, he said despite the intra-PDP squabbles, he still delivered Rivers — almost wholesale — in the National Assembly elections: three senatorial seats; eight out of nine House of Representatives seats, so far declared.

    As for the PDP presidential loss in Rivers, that was to teach Atiku and co bitter lessons for shunning their own party’s law on North-South power zoning.  Atiku, he inferred, must take responsibility.  His vaulting ambition, he insisted, was blind, deaf and dumb to anything else — even the corporate health of the PDP.

    Wike then sounded an early warning: “We” — meaning himself and his group — would drive the scavengers from the PDP and rebuild the party.  He said the same scavengers — read Atiku and the nPDP that broke ranks in 2015 and allowed an APC victory — wrecked the party again in 2023, by their crass insensitivity.

    It’s not clear how the hurting Atiku camp would react to this bombardment, since they control the national PDP executive.  Iyorchia Ayu, national chairman, belonged to the nPDP.  He was also part of the “northern” stand-off: he rebuffed any move to surrender his chairmanship, to dilute the “northern” image of the party, going into the presidential elections. 

    Ayu is doubly wounded because the Benue PDP experienced quite a meltdown — if not a wipe-out — with G-5 member, Governor Ortom and National Chair Ayu busy splitting  PDP votes between Labour and PDP, while APC votes remained a near-bloc.  What’s more?  The governor lost his senatorial run!  National chair lost the presidency!  Mutual annihilation!  Total disaster!

    Still, what if Atiku and co also come blazing, with anti-party charges against Wike and co?  Then, it would be war-without-end for the soul of PDP, on North-South lines.

    Indeed, it would appear morning yet on the long, long day of trouble for PDP!

  • An umpire besieged

    An umpire besieged

    Seeing how some public figures in Nigeria were hounded out of office, humiliated or discredited, I vowed in my late 40s that I would never hold certain positions.  I would never enter an application for consideration, no matter how lavish the compensation.  And if was appointed all the same, by radio, say, I would decline to serve.

    Top of the list was vice-chancellor of a university.    Second was chair or even member of a body charged with administering elections, whether local, state or federal. Third was chair of a commission of inquiry, even if its remit is to establish whether the material you are  reading was printed backwards.

    I have since included in that list, based on an unpleasant experience, presiding over the election         of  executive officers of a professional body or a local branch thereof.  Some 12 years ago, I was invited, with Patrick Thimangu, a Kenya-born reporter with the St Louis Post Dispatch, to conduct an election for executive officers of the North American Association of African Journalists.

    The election was prefaced with a workshop conducted by area journalists and faculty from  Howard University, venue of the Association’s annual conference.  Members sauntered in and out of workshop sessions without the slightest regard for the instructor and the class.  They busied themselves planning election strategies. 

    As the hour for the elections arrived, the place looked like a brewing combat zone.  The tension was palpable. Most of the participants were Nigerians, with a sprinkling of journalists from other African  countries.

    Thimangu and I sensed that no election could be held safely under the circumstances.  We went through the motions anyway, not sure whether we had a quorum or what actually constituted one.  In the end, we announced that election should be deemed not to have been held, and recommended that arrangements be made to stage another one, keeping in mind the factors that vitiated the latest attempt. 

    Just be sure we were not in harm’s way, Thimangu and I rushed out of the campus to take the city bus  back to our hotel.

    That experience reinforced my vow against serving as an officer at an  election.  And so, my attitude toward election umpires in Nigeria and indeed in  Africa, has always been one of deep commiseration for a start, and ultimately, prayerful hope that they would emerge from it with their bodies and reputations intact.

     Their equanimity is, of course, guaranteed never to be same again.

    Maurice Iwu –remember him? – came into the position without much of a reputation even in the academy, where he was a professor.   He was reported to have made the sensational claim at an international conference that he had found a core for the dreaded immuno-suppression disease HIV-AIDS, a claim he never substantiated.   By the time he was done presiding over the shambolic 2015 General Election, he was finished.

    Attahiru Jega was that rare umpire who delivered a credible election and was not enmeshed in the corruption scandals that tainted many of his predecessors.  Even the genial, strait-laced Professor Eme Awa was nearly sunk when he was named chair of the National Electoral Commission during the first phase of military president Ibrahim Babangida’s misbegotten transition; they sacked him when he proved unbending. 

    His successor Humphrey Nwosu was roped into a contrived debacle, despite conducting the best presidential election Nigerians had seen or would experience.  For six crucial weeks during the debacle, Nwosu went missing.  He emerged with his wife, about whom nothing had been heard previously, beside him.  The good lady disclosed that they had been having “a second honeymoon.”

    I know nothing about INEC chair, Mahmood Yakubu other than what I have read about him.  He took a First in history at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, and confirmed his pedigree with a Master’s from Cambridge, and a doctorate from Oxford.

    From the distance, he seems to me have about him a calm, imperturbable air.  It would take a great deal, it seems to me, to get him to work up a fuss, or to distract him from the task at hand.  I know nothing of his public service record, but if it is nearly as unedifying as they make it seem by innuendo, why did they appoint him INEC chair in the first instance?

    When Asiwaju Bola Tinubu was declared President elect at the end of the first phase of the General Election two weeks ago, former president Olusegun Obasanjo who has long given up  the pretence of neutrality or statesmanship on crucial national issues, tore into Yakubu.

    He said Yakubu could still save Nigeria from looming danger by postponing the concluding phase of the General Election and rectifying the irregularities Obasanjo and others were trumpeting “if his hands are clean.”

    The former president said the election, which has been marred by violence, disenfranchisement, voter intimidation and result manipulation among others, is being conducted by corrupt officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), “who allegedly took bribe to rig the election for politicians.”

    “Chairman INEC,” Obasanjo said, addressing Yakubu directly. “I have thought that you would use this opportunity to mend your reputation and character for posterity.”

    And so on and so forth.  Every sentence made you wince.

    Spokespersons for the PDP turned the screws, so much so that Yakubu’s spokespersons warned that if they did not stop besmirching him, he would seek protection under the law.

    Whatever the final outcome of the General Election, Yakubu’s tenure at INEC will soon come to an end.  A new chair will be appointed.  I am almost prepared to swear that someone who knows, perhaps only too well, how all but a few of former appointees have fared, will accept an offer enthusiastically.

    It’s a terrible job. But I guess someone has to do it.

    Back in the 1960s, in the time of the playboy-president, Dr Ahmed Sukarno, the Indonesia’s economy, or what was left of it, was so battered that it defied every solution in the pharmacopoeia of every economist who ever lived and of every institution ever devised to cater to its health.

    In desperation, Sukarno offered the relevant cabinet post to anyone who thought he could fix the economy, with just one caveat:  If the person could not deliver within a year, he or she would be executed by a firing squad.

    There were no takers.

    I have often wondered how things would play out if the country were Nigeria and the job was INEC chair.

    To offer a reprieve from these tempestuous times, I would like to shift gears and head to bucolic Bungoma County, in Western Kenya, close to the border with Uganda, and to the church of Mwalimu Yesu wa Tongaren.  Born in 1981, he was christened Eliud Simiyu.  His formal education ended with his first year in secondary school.  He became a preacher in 2009, after being discharged from a hospital where he had received treatment for an undisclosed ailment. 

    Somewhere along the line, he morphed into Mwalimu Yesu wa Tongaren, a Kenyan version          of Jesus Christ, and thereafter into Himself the Real Deal, with a retinue of 12 disciples who worship him the way the original 12 worshipped the Master.  He heals the sick, feeds the hungry and comforts the distressed.  He is married and has eight children.

    Lately, members of the community seem to have decided that there was no better season for him to fulfill his historic destiny than the coming Eastertide.  They have accordingly served him notice of their intention to nail him to a cross at the end of Lent.

    If he was indeed the Christ, they assured him, he would rise from the grave after three days and either ascend to heaven, or continue the life that had been.  Either way, the Holy Writ would be fulfilled.

    Mwalimu Yesu wa Thangole has reported the matter to the police.

    Comment: 08111813080

  • The media conspiracy

    The media conspiracy

    By Ayoola Faseyi

    The media the world over is driven primarily by the quest to push certain agendas which in the short or long run make an impact on the economic bottom line.

    In the West, for instance, the media is polarized along the two broad ideological lines of conservatives and liberals with their journalists having sturdy views on either side before they become journalists. This explains why the movement from one media house to the other has an unwritten rule of it being regulated by ideological biases. For example, CNN’s Richard Quest turned down an offer to join the conservative Al Jazeera because he didn’t think he would be a right fit.

    It is no crime for Nigerian media houses to have their biases ideological or otherwise but they should be balanced and objective when accommodating divergent and dissenting perspectives.

    I was at  Banex, Wuse, Abuja recently and a popular cable TV station interviewed me under the guise of sampling the opinions of Nigerians on the recently concluded presidential elections.

    The lady interviewer asked me a series of questions and prominent among them was my view on the election, the use of BVAS and the uploading of results on the IReV portal.

    She further surmised that Nigerians are not happy that there was no BVAS upload of results. It was at this point that I saw she was mixing up BVAS use and the IReV portal upload. (Even the man they interviewed before me was mixing it up, saying BVAS was not used).

    I proceeded to explain that BVAS was used generally that even some northern states had their votes figure having to shrink massively this time as compared to the last polls.

     I said the issues raised by Dino Melaye and other opposition voices at the collation was the simultaneous transmission of results into the IReV portal as the results are being read by the various state collating officers.

    The interviewer further inquired whether that’s against the Electoral Act, i.e. not uploading the results in real-time on the server.

    I had to quote relevant sections of the Electoral Act that gives INEC the prerogative to choose the method of results transmission, whether it’s electronic or manual. I went further to explain that the major process of result collation is from the polling units (PU) to the ward level to the Local Government, state level then to the national collation centre as signed by party agents.

    I was further probed in the interview if I believed that the election was rigged, a claim being advanced by the majority of Nigerians. The interviewer further added that the mood of social media was gloomy following the announcement of Bola Tinubu as the president-elect.

    I explained that I can’t categorically say the election was rigged as the results in my polling area were tallied with the collated figures. I said cases of malpractice would be proven in a court of law. I mentioned that Bola Tinubu is not popular on social media and the cosmopolitan places in Nigeria and as such the views on social media and urban areas may be one-sided. He indeed lost in Nigerian urban areas: Lost in Abuja, Lagos and many cosmopolitan areas. He did well in places like Zamfara which cannot be said to be exactly urban.

    I spoke on the shoddiness of INEC, how they promised electronic transmission at a point, their dilly-dallying et al and how much was expended on technology but still failed to deliver on real-time electronic transmission. But I added that it is not compulsory to transmit electronically.

    Well, I tried to be fair in my analysis, for and against.

    But to my consternation, when the report came on air on that TV station, they only aired where I criticized INEC on their shoddiness as regards electronic transmission but left out other analysis on the election, the BVAS use, and other things I said.

    They tagged the report Nigerians criticize the election bla bla and called it sampled opinions of citizens.

    I believe this is a media conspiracy; to promote only negative views to suit a certain narrative and thrash the positive reviews.

    Thank God for the liberalization of the media which has seen the emergence of many online and new media platforms become behemoths in a jiffy. However, because of human frailty and the need to protect this critical institution that holds the government to account, it is necessary for the government regulatory agencies to ensure that our media space is hate speech free by cracking down on the purveyors of half-truths and outright lies.

    Our journalists must exercise caution and restraint so that objectivity can be their platform’s trademark and trust by the public can be reposed in it.

     It was the third President of the United States, Thomas Jefferson that said he would prefer the presence of newspapers without a government; can Nigerian citizens in this 21st century agree with him?

    •Arakunrin Faseyi, a journalist, writes from Abuja.

  • Dilemma of Lagos voters

    Dilemma of Lagos voters

    As the gubernatorial and state House of Assembly elections rescheduled for Saturday, March 18, draw closer, there are palpable apprehension amongst candidates and even electorates in many states, over where the ballot will swing. Some states which hitherto were settled, as to the dominant political tendency in charge of affairs, are apprehensive of potential upset. Lagos State is amongst the states, where many aggrieved voters are pushing for an upset.

    Some analysts have attributed the challenge of the status quo in Lagos State to the innovations in the 2022 Electoral Act, which have awakened voters to the power of their ballot. Others ascribe the uncertainty to the influence of Labour Party leader, Peter Obi (Okwute), and the determination of his supporters to upset the status quo. Yet, some see the contention as a manifestation of the seething anger amongst the electorates, disenchanted with the economic hardship, occasioned by the miserable economic policies of President Muhammadu Buhari-led federal government.

    Among several states considered as battle grounds in the governorship elections, Lagos State is top on the ladder of public interest. And the reason is not farfetched. Lagos State is the redoubt of the president-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. It is from Lagos that the plot to rule Nigeria, which materialised few weeks ago, was hatched, nurtured and implemented. As the land flowing with milk and honey, some say that the resources for Asiwaju’s triumphant access to the presidential throne emanated from Lagos.

    So, Lagos is the prized goose that lays the golden eggs. Literally speaking, every president since 1999 has wished to prize Lagos out of the dominion of Asiwaju’s political family. As president, Olusegun Obasanjo, did everything humanly possible, by stealth and violence, to snatch Lagos from Asiwaju. Apart from denying Lagos, her local council allocations, the presidency raised and fortified the former minister of works, Adeseye Ogunlewe amongst others, to finish off the ruling party in Lagos. Obasanjo allowed Ogunlewe to employ alternate army to provide violence if need be.

    When Goodluck Jonathan conducted the 2015 election, he engineered a dollar bazaar for the traditional rulers in the Southwest, such that Obis, Emirs and chiefs from other parts of the country turned green from envy. It was reported that he lived at the Defence House in Lagos for days, in operation ‘win Lagos at all cost’. The OPC, with beneficial share of the oil pipeline contract, mobilized its resources to muscle and muzzle opponents in a braggadocios road show.

    To add sizzling spice to the anti-Tinubu sentiment of that era, Jonathan’s false Igbo connection, for which he was named Azikiwe, was used to raise the stakes. Some Igbos took the bait that the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) candidate Jimi Agbaje, supported by Jonathan would work for their interest if elected. In 2019, there was rumour that President Muhammadu Buhari was supporting the ousted state governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, to contest on another party’s platform. But as I argued then, the president may wish it, but he dare not show his hands, as he needed Tinubu to win his second term.

    With the presidential and National Assembly elections won and lost, albeit subject to the affirmation of the electoral tribunals, political energy and machinations are fixated on the governorship and state assembly elections next Saturday. Because All Progressive Congress (APC) lost Lagos State, in the presidential election to the Labour Party (LP), there is palpable apprehension in the state about the possibility that the ruling party may lose the election to the LP. Unfortunately, some analysts on both divides have ingeniously framed the political contest, as one between Igbos and Yorubas, with all the potentials for ethnic baiting and possible break out of violence.

    That is sad and unhelpful on both sides, and should stop. As I wrote last week, and I repeat, Governor Sanwo-Olu has done enough to deserve a second term in office, and I urge voters to vote for him on merit. He has engineered revolutionary infrastructural development in the state, including the blue rail line from Okokomaiko to Marina, which when completed would revolutionise transportation in Lagos. He has also done massive road infrastructure across the states, and has initiated the start-up of the fourth mainland bridge which again would open vast opportunities for Epe and Ikorodu.

    There is also the private sector-led Dangote Refinery, new deep seaport and the upcoming airport, all in the Lekki Free Trade Zone axis of Lagos, which is a testament to the vision of the progressive politics engineered by the political lineage of the president-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. At the Badagry end, another seaport is in the pipeline, and if the new Lagos-Badagry 10-lane expressway, which Sanwo-Olu is vigorously pursuing with the Blue Line is completed, a new economic vista will be added to Lagos which is touted as the sixth largest economy in Africa.

    For this column, the enormous achievements of Sanwo-Olu and his party in Lagos State, is enough selling points, instead of the ethnic sabre-rattling and hate speech that some misguided supporters are pushing to cow opponents of the governor. As I said last week also, the APC leadership must without haste, allow the benefits of the state’s dividends of democracy to percolate to every Lagosian, including non-Yorubas living in Lagos. Lagos cannot claim to be a modern city, and yet allow denizens of ethnicity, to impugn that image with their ethnic slur.

    As politics has exposed, the brain-box behind the success of APC in Lagos and indeed Nigeria, the president-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is not anti-Igbo, as erroneously projected by some Igbos. Otherwise, he would not allow his son, Seyi, to marry a beautiful damsel from Anambra State. That marriage relationship is a clear testimony that Asiwaju earnestly believe that Lagos belongs to everyone living in Lagos. Again, as I argued last week, Asiwaju will understand the changing dynamics more than his followers and would take steps to heal the political crisis in his redoubt.

    So, the tragic misrepresentation of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, as a religious or ethnic bigot is false, and voters should not because of that falsehood elect an untested hand to steer the ship of Lagos State. While Asiwaju can legitimately be accused of dominating Lagos State politically, since 1999, the electorate should interrogate what he has done with that domination. While he may have earned some political and material benefits, the stability he provided, has helped Lagos rise to pre-eminence in Nigeria and Africa.

    Next Saturday, voters should therefore not to be beclouded by anger and disillusionment, over the poor performance of President Buhari’s government. A dispassionate examination of Sanwo-Olu’s performance should earn him a second tenure. The lessons of the political season would galvanise him to outperform his first tenure result. Truly, a new Lagos is rising!

  • Senate presidency, turn of South-south not Southeast

    Senate presidency, turn of South-south not Southeast

    SIR: Now that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has retained its majority in the National Assembly based on the results declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the struggle is on for which geopolitical zone should produce the senate presidency. I believe that it is the turn of the South-south.

    While there are political insinuations that the position should be zoned to the Southeast to foster inclusiveness and national cohesion, I beg to differ. Since 2015 till date, the Southeast has shown hostility and hatred towards the APC. Members of the party have been attacked for supporting the party and if the videos on social media about voting in the just concluded elections are reliable, there was massive voter suppression in the region due to threats and intimidation of members of other parties, principally the APC. This is despite the fact that President Muhammadu Buhari has carried out a lot of infrastructural projects in the region.

    Some of these projects include the Second Niger Bridge, the Enugu –Port Harcourt road, the Onitsha – Enugu road etc. By its votes, it has shown that the APC can win the presidency many times over without securing a single vote in the region. Why should the APC zone a powerful and sensitive position like the senate presidency to a region that has consistently given it dross in return for gold? Why should they produce a senate president that will have almost zero followership in his region?

    Politics is a game of numbers not sentiments. The only reason why President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu went for a Muslim-Muslim ticket was because he reasoned that was the only way to emerge victorious at the polls. His political calculations turned out right. The South-south delivered close to a million votes to the APC compared to the measly a hundred thousand votes that the party secured in the Southeast in the presidential election. The South-south also delivered the required 25% across all the states in the region and produced seven senators compared to the Southeast which failed to deliver 25% in any state and produced six senators.

    The APC currently has more elected officials in the South-south than the Southeast. This shows that the APC has more acceptance in the region and the people are beginning to turn their backs against the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which hitherto, had a stronghold in the region. Zoning the senate presidency to the South-south will help the APC to increase its national spread as it will serve in no small measure in converting the zone to an APC stronghold.

    Since the advent of the Fourth Republic, the South-south has yet to produce the senate president. The highest position the region has gotten in the National Assembly is the deputy senate president; yet it has done wonders with that as the number of senators in the region recorded an increase in the recent polls. Imagine what would happen should the APC decide to zone the senate presidency to the region.

    The South-south is the goose that lays the golden eggs which feeds the Nigerian federation and it would be unfair for us to be cheated in the sharing of power after we have exhibited political maturity by not putting all our eggs in one basket unlike the Southeast. We deserve the senate presidency.

    •Peter Ovie Akus,

    New Jersey, USA.

  • CBN governor’s intransigence

    CBN governor’s intransigence

    SIR: The blame for non-compliance with the March the 3rd judgement of the Supreme Court cannot be laid entirely at the instance of President Muhammadu Buhari because the Apex Court had to rebuke him for usurping the function of the CBN by making a national broadcast on monetary policy contrary to the order of the court and unabashedly directing the CBN on its operational duties.

    The CBN governor has maintained a contumacious body language never before observed with any apex bank governor. His silence after the judgement is palpably insolent and contemptuous of the highest court of the land. A chaotic denouement being promoted by the president.

    The president by keeping undignified silence on the Supreme Court judgement is obviously in acquiescence with these breaches and has putatively assumed a vicarious blame for jettisoning his constitutional function as enshrined in Chapter 2 section 14 of the 1999 constitution which says:

    “(1) The Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be a State based on the principles of democracy and social justice.

    2) It is hereby, accordingly, declared that:

    (a) sovereignty belongs to the people of Nigeria from whom government through this Constitution derives all its powers and authority;

    (b) the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government”

    The Supreme Court by the same judgement only adverted the executive and by extension the presidency to the enormous duties they owe the federation which they have treated with utmost carelessness and observed in the breach thereby leaving Nigerians to exist at the mercy of nature.

    Many Nigerians including the president’s admirers are left to wander if the president hasn’t administered an esoteric oath to end his laidback governance with aggravated mass sufferings in the land.

    Authoritative sources have it that the Nigerian economy has lost over N20 trillion to this misguided, misbegotten and disarticulated policy.

    The merits imbued in the policy as laid out by the CBN and reiterated by financial cum economic experts have been eroded leading to a huge productive headwinds across all sectors.

    Again the buck stops at the president’s table to uphold the rule of law by simply compelling the Attorney General And The Minister Of Justice who is in the habit of cherry-picking judicial pronouncements to obey to do the needful, though it is incumbent on both the AGF and Godwin Emefiele as functio officio to obey without any presidential imprimatur.

    It would be a gratifying novelty and a welcome development for Supreme Court to grant contempt hearing against the two public officials (The AGF and the CBN governor) as being demanded by some state governors.

    This would not only serve as a deterrence for future abuse of public trusts but also restore the diplomatic respect that is eluding Nigeria in the comity of nations.

    •Bukola Ajisola,

     bukymany@yahoo.com

  • Light up the way

    Light up the way

    • Lagos-Ibadan Expressway could benefit immensely from Governor Makinde’s idea

    It took Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State to unfold a plan to light up the entire stretch of Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. The governor, who was on Splash FM  radio station last week disclosed that he was already discussing with the Chief Executives of Lagos and Ogun states to light up the 120-kilometre road in the interest of the people.

    If this is accomplished in good time, it would improve safety along the corridor, as many motorists end up by the road side, given poor visibility at night. The Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) had said many times that the road that has been under construction for about two decades is the busiest in the country.

    Security, too, would receive a boost when the road is lit up. Many passengers are kidnapped at night, while it also serves as a get-away route for those unlucky to be abducted from any of the three states. Although kidnappers are known to have sometimes struck in broad daylight, the incidence would be reduced when the road is lit up as the security agents are likely to step up their activities at night under the proposed scheme.

    One positive development when the programme takes off is that it would promote cooperation among the states. We hope all the states would be equally committed to the plan. As Governor Makinde pointed out, the burden is unlikely to be borne equally as Lagos territory terminates shortly after the Berger Bridge, with Ogun taking off from there up to Onigaari. Oyo then takes off from there. Besides, the Oyo State governor has only broached the plan with Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu. It’s not certain Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun would see it as a priority.

    We enjoin the states to bring the Federal Government on board since it is a Trunk A road. Where possible, the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing should be committed to making a refund of whatever would have been spent by the states.

    It is unfortunate that the original design and contract did not incorporate the new plan. We call on the collaborating governors to make full disclosure of the cost implication. From the start of execution of the project, the Nigeria Police Force should be fully involved as highway robbers and thieves are known to regularly strike, carting away cables and other electric materials. 

    This should be seen as building blocks for regional cooperation in the Southwest.  The Development Agenda for Western Nigeria  (DAWN) could benefit from such socio-economic programmes involving Ondo-Ekiti, Oyo-Osun, and Lagos-Ogun states.

    Other regions in the country could borrow such ideas that could catalyse development.  Nigeria has been promoting the need for a Trans-Sahara Highway across the African continent for some years, while failing to construct an ultra modern highway in the country. Lagos-Ibadan Expressway is where to start, with facilities such as clinics, inns, restaurants and electricity.  The governors should meet soon after the general elections, and call for bids with a view to speeding up the work. 

  • Anchor Borrowers Programme

    Anchor Borrowers Programme

    • CBN needs to review its modus operandi for greater efficiency

    Whether repayment rate of loans disbursed under the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP) is 24 per cent as claimed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), or 48 per cent as countered by the CBN, the point is that none is impressive. The IMF made the claim in its Selected Issues Paper on Nigeria completed on January12, 2023. “For the Anchor Borrowing Programme, repayment is also low at 24 per cent, especially since repayment can be made in kind, thereby limiting the tenor of the loans to one year.”

    The CBN, on its part, has claimed that total repayments expected under the programme stood at N503 billion, representing 52.39 percent of total monies disbursed  as of February 28, 2023.

    The truth of the matter is that, while it is always good to have statistics right for record purposes, neither 24 per cent nor 48 per cent repayment rate is good enough for loans of the magnitude under consideration. This dampens optimism on the prospects of the scheme. Indeed, indications from both claims are that a substantial percentage of the loans would end up as bad debt. Yet, more people can only benefit when those who have benefitted pay up as and when due.

    The ABP was launched in 2015 with the sole aim of providing farmers with the critical funds and inputs needed to increase local production. Under the programme, the apex bank initially set aside N40bn to support farmers by offering single-digit interest rate loans. However, over N1tn had been disbursed through mid-2022 for the programme.

    This is a laudable programme. But it should not have been handled directly by the apex bank which is not properly equipped for such function. The commercial banks would have handled both the disbursement and recovery of the loans better. They have the capacity to check collaterals as well as monitor developments on the farms to see if the loans are being appropriately utilised.

    There seems to be a problem of balancing both the welfare and investment objectives of the programme. While the CBN sees the programme from the investment angle, many of the beneficiaries probably see the loans as grants, or part of their own share of the national cake, hence, the low rate of recovery.

    This impression would appear to be corroborated by the IMF when it said in its report that “Part of the problem is that the incentive structure for repayment is weak, the recipient loans are not always well targeted and occasionally the funding is used for other purchases (e.g., new agricultural input trading companies to elicit trading rents).”

    While we must admit that COVID-19, flooding, banditry etc. contributed significantly to the low repayment rate, there are other problems as well.

    National Secretary of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Yunusa Yabwa, shed more light on these problems: “Our members have benefitted from the programme, but most people who benefitted from the ABP are not Nigerian farmers. I must confess that to you.

    “That is why you see today that the CBN, NIRSAL, commercial banks, who were the channels for the distribution of this fund, are complaining that these beneficiaries are not repaying the loans.” NIRSAL is the Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending created by the CBN to redefine, measure, re-price and share agribusiness-related credit risks in the country. Because most of the ABP loan beneficiaries do not belong to AFAN, the association could not trace them.

    Simon Irtwange, President, Yam Farmers and Marketers Association of Nigeria, also gave his members’ experience on the programme. Irtwange said his members were largely sidelined: “As an association we followed the due process to ensure our members benefit from the programme but were rather harassed by the NIRSAL boss.” He said the programme was designed to favour a few Nigerians from the onset.

    Claims such as these fuel the impression, rightly or wrongly, that ABP is more or less a campaign fund for the crashed presidential ambition of the CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele.

    Expectedly, the CBN has denied that the programme has been abused. But it cannot deny that it is also not comfortable with the percentage of those who are repaying the loans. Just last September, the apex bank mooted the idea of considering the Global Standing Instruction (GSI) to recover the loans, following the debtors’ failure or refusal to heed the apex bank’s appeals to pay up.

    GSI allows deduction of money in a debtor’s account in another bank to recover past due obligations, both principal and interest, minus penal charges, without recourse to the borrower. This is possible because the accounts are linked by bank verification number (BVN). But the apex bank said this, as usual, would be a last resort.

    As can be seen from both the yam sellers association and AFAN’s submissions, programmes like ABP can only succeed when critical stakeholders are carried along.

    Irrespective of the claims and counter-claims on repayment rate, the fact on ground is that agricultural credit in the country has not significantly boosted production despite the huge money allegedly disbursed under the scheme. Meaning that the purpose for which the ABP was set up is far from being achieved.

    For greater impact, the apex bank must  carry critical stakeholders along. The bank must also be ready to allow commercial banks that are better equipped to handle such projects do the job. As the scheme stands, it represents a most expansive definition of the role of the CBN. And it is counter-productive. 

  • Ex-Ondo PDP spokesman, others resign

    Ex-Ondo PDP spokesman, others resign

    A former spokesman for the Peoples Democratic Party in Ondo State, Mr. Banji Okunomo, has resigned from the party.

    Others who tendered their resignation letters were Mr. Jossy Ehinmore, ex-chairman of Okitipupa Council, Mr. Bitire Solomon and Mr. Malo Francis.

    They copied the national chairman of the party and all necessary offices of the party.

    But spokesman for the Ondo PDP, Kennedy Peretei, described those leaving the party as ‘political herdsmen’.

    He said the same characters had moved in and out of the PDP twice in the last 18 months, noting that this was a “confirmation of their nomadic essence as politicians.”

    Peretei said most of them had consistently lost their polling units to other parties during elections.

    “They have always been trailed by failure in their opportunistic and self-serving inordinate ambitions that drive their insatiable desire for crumbs from the master’s table.

    “To put the record straight, Okunomo, Bitire and their gang of court jesters declared that the PDP was dead in Ondo South, shortly after the PDP governorship primary election in 2020. They defected to the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), but shamelessly returned to the PDP after their tragic outing that was a measure of their political relevance.

    “In all honesty, why should the PDP lose sleep over the exit of such colourless, inconsequential and serial defectors?

    “It won’t be any surprise if they are treated as political prostitutes wherever they may go. Our party can only wish them the best of luck in their sojourn. In any case, any time they wish to come back, our doors are open. Now that they have established that, they are political herdsmen.”