The Nation Newspaper

Category: Arts & Life

Why Checkmate was a huge success – Manuel

Apart from his recent major role in Saro, a stage dance drama that projected the Nigerian drama scene in a bigger light, Bimbo Manuel, is a huge asset to the theatre industry in Nigeria. Known for his role as Nduka in the rested television soap named Checkmate, Manuel is a thorough-bred artiste whose love for live theatre cannot be compromised, not in the least. He spoke to Edozie Udeze on a variety of issues concerning theatre in Nigeria and lots more

Bimbo Manuel is one of the veterans of stage drama in Nigeria. Although he is best known as Nduka in the now rested television sit-com, Checkmate which made its debut in the early 1990s, Manuel has since moved on in the theatre profession where he now finds more fulfilment in live theatre. His involvement in the Saro, a stage dance performance that took place during the last yuletide showed him as one of the notable icons in the industry.

He said concerning the level of live theatre in Nigeria today that, “we are entering another phase in live theatre in Nigeria at the moment. You remember there was a lull for a long time, when everything came to a comatose. There were all kinds of explanations people offered for the lull. There were some who felt after the Soyinka generation, the Kola Omotoshos, the Femi Osofisans, … in fact that those generations did not groom or mentor anyone to take over from them. There were arguments for and against. I was fortunate to have sat down with Professor Osofisan here at the Freedom Park to discuss it”.

He went on further to throw more light on the current situation and what the likes of Osofisan offered as a solution to ensure that stage theatre is revatalised. According to him, it was purely because we didn’t have a purposeful theatre anymore. In addition, some of the theatre departments in higher institutions paid more attention on producing graduates for Nollywood. In addition to that, stage performances did not have enough people paying attention to it. No sponsors, and no enthusiasms from thespians. Even in cases where plays were done, the halls were practically empty. The audience, an appreciative audience was lacking”, he offered.

To him, there was also no incentive, no reward as such coming to theatre producers. “In that kind of situation,” he said, “you can hardly blame anyone who refused to go and do live theatre. However, in the midst of all that, the scenario suddenly began to change. We began to have the likes of Wole Oguntokun, Bolanle Austin-Peters of Terra Kulture, and so on. Even the presence of Terra Kulture itself began to encourage people to go out to watch live theatre and plays”.

It is from that moment that theatre lovers began to experience the re-enactment of the works of some masters. This was spearheaded b the likes of Austin-Peters who took it upon herself to bring life into musical and dance performances and more. “There were also new plays by young writers and so on,” Manuel consented. “And I think we can situate the stage of live theatre within the norm we have now. I think we can situate it,” he repeated, grinning. “It is people like the Terra Kulture really, who have been in the forefront since this revival. It is the hub of traditional live theatre in Nigeria today and you can see how buoyant and robust the stage is at the moment.”

In spite of the seemingly hopeful situation, more needs to be done to get the situation to a more appreciative level. “Even those who used to sit out at Abegi at the National Theatre, Lagos, those artistes who used to hobnob there have since moved on to other areas of life. We need to get that groove back in order to have a full live theatre. It was under those trees that ideas were fertilised in those days. Artistes used to meet there and discuss drama and theatre generally. We need to get those ideas to crystalise the theatre sector and put it back into action. The halls at the National Theatre were almost non-functional for a long time. In fact, the National Theatre itself was a disincentive on its own. At that stage not many people who would have patronized the Theatre were willing to go there. This was mainly for fear of violence or what have you.”

Looking critically at the security situation at the Theatre and the neglect of the place over time, Manuel said, “The Theatre didn’t present itself as conducive to people who might want to do theatre there. That fear was always there that the environment itself was not comfortable to have live theatre. If you took traditional theatre there, may be it would work, people would come from Agege, Mushin and so on to watch. But theatre, even in Western cultures, seems a bit elitist. So, you’ll be wasting your time if you carry a play like the one we are watching here today (Beatification of Area Boy by Soyinka) to places like Mushin and Agege. Nobody will come. But you can present it here at the Freedom Park or Ikoyi or VGC or Lekki and the people who know the value will come.”

Since insecurity and lack of concerted efforts to secure the society still pervades the theatre scene in Nigeria, Manuel reasons that that perhaps contributes essentially to slowing down the interest people still show in this area. However, it appears that the provision of more secured venues in parts of the country have been of immense help to boost live theatre as it is now. “We should also mention places like the Freedom Park where people feel at home to watch plays. Once you come here for the first time, you’d to come again and again,” he explained.

Describing what we have now as the true renaissance of live theatre in Nigeria, Manuel said, “this is where people fully show their commitment to performances. Also, we can repeat the feat we performed in Checkmate. Yes, we can. May be we have even done more than we did in Checkmate. That is not to also remove the fact that people like Amaka Igwe had the mastery of what they did. And she had the daring to produce the kind of thing she produced then. That generation did so well, although Amaka came much later. They were probably the last of the amazons in the television scene.”

As far as he is concerned, the tube has not done badly in terms of creativity and the presentation of interesting soaps on a variety of issues. “What made Checkmate special was that it was daring for its period. The story was incredible, the writing was amazing, proper production values were deployed. A lot of people, fresh from the university were involved. We were burning with energy and vitality. We were also committed to the art. It wasn’t really about money. The money wasn’t much; we needed to prove our mettle. It was about we being happy to do it. We were not even aware of the glamour at that time. No, we were not, we were not conscious of it. It was just that people were glad finding expressions for their art. But we are doing a lot more now, quite a lot. Our budget can genuinely cross border now. We are going everywhere now and people are appreciating it. Most of our new creative endeavours and productions are well-marketed and people are saying oh, you guys are doing well.”

The live theatre can then thrive better when the cinema houses, when theatre stages and venues are properly built and protected by those who are meant to do so. For this, enough resources have to be deployed and the vision to make it work well has to be properly envisioned. To him, it is not just enough to build theatre stages, but what matters most is to create what can last the test of time. “Yes, structures have to be built around that vision to ensure that they fit into the system. If you build a community theatre at Okokomaiko, what are the practical needs of the people. Who are the calibre of people who live there? You have to consider all that in order to make that stage proper for their needs. Little details like that have to be attended to. Is government going to fund it and how much can they make there? If government is not going to fund it, those who put up shows there, how would they make their money? What kind of money comes from the corporate organizations, because artistes have to be paid, producers and directors have to earn their pay. On the whole, there has to be a support structure in place to make this sort of theatre scene completely blissful and good for the people concerned.”

Concerning the scripts and the writings and how they reflect and project the Nigerian situation, Manuel explained thus: “You see, different scripts and different stories are written for various reasons. I will be interested, for instance to listen to someone like Soyinka to know why he writes. His writings for now have been dictated by the events of the moment and he says it all. He tackles mostly some sensitive socio-political issues that pertain to the people. But beyond reactions to various issues, people also want to tell their own stories, people want to relate what happens within their environment and so on. That is what we have these days that we can truly say that Nigerian stories are being told every day.”

As it is, the people have more stories to tell, more experiences to share, more ideas to convey. “These are stories of the cultures of their people to share. There are endless flow of such stories. They have ethnic stories too to share. So people have all kinds of reasons to write and these stories truly say who we are. It is the right thing to do and the head of the writer would help to produce the kind of story he gives out. Naturally, dramatists have always reacted to issues in their climes and those issues may often be put into writing. Acting it on stage further gives it the impetus it deserves and lets the people see who they are through the stories. This is what our writers have been doing to keep this sector aglow and vibrant,” Manuel said.

He referred to the just concluded Saro, a stage dance-drama in which he played a major role as the very best thing for Nigeria. “It was a big outing,” he simply said.

May 10, 2015
Onyeka Onwenu, others join women empowerment campaign

Veteran musician, Onyeka Onwenu, Nollywood thespians, OmotolaJaladeEkeinde, and GenevieveNnaji, are among the celebrities who have joined the ONE Campaign and Nigerian civil society organizations in a call for world leaders to take urgent action for women empowerment. This is coming ahead of the establishment of the Post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals

As part of the African Union Year of Women Empowerment, the ONE Campaign on Thursday April 16, in Abuja launched Poverty is Sexist, a campaign and online petition calling on world leaders to make the affairs of girls and women centre stage in 2015, a year when new development goals will be set.

High profile Nigerians, including Executive Director of the National Centre for Women Development, Lady OnyekaOnwenu, actresses OmotolaJalade-Ekeinde, and Genevieve Nnaji, musicians Omawumi and D’banj, have added their names to ONE’s call for action.

The campaign was launched at a policy forum that was attended by representatives of the National Association of Nigerian Traders (NANTS), Equity Advocates and Save the Children Nigeria among others.

A recently released report by ONE titled, Poverty is Sexist: Why Girls and Women Must Be at the Heart of The Fight to End Extreme Poverty shows how unlocking women’s economic potential could improve the lives of everyone in society.

During the event, Lady OnyekaOnwenu joined ArumaOteh to sign an online petition, which is online at www.one.org/sexist. Onwenu recognized that progress is being made in women empowerment, but there is a lot left to be done. She said:

Other Issues raised at the policy forum include the need for a comprehensive national policy on political inclusion for women, the need for monitoring mechanisms for funds targeting women development, and increased collaboration and synergy among women’s empowerment groups and champions.

A policy document will be compiled from the forum, which will contribute to a continental narrative being developed by the ONE campaign to lobby leaders for action, in the lead up to the AU Heads of State Summit in June and the UN Summit in September.

The report shows that poverty and gender inequality go hand in hand, whether you look at health, education or work. Not only are girls and women worse off than those in wealthier countries, but the gender gap in these areas between males and females is greatest in the poorest countries. This double disadvantage means that: a woman in Sierra Leone is 183 times more likely to die in childbirth than a woman in Switzerland, working women in the least developed countries are three times more likely to be in vulnerable employment than women elsewhere and in the poorest countries, literacy levels are a third lower for women than men.

New Sustainable Development Goals, due to be unveiled at the United Nations in September, will set out a plan to end extreme poverty by 2030. But that ambition will only be realised if efforts are directed where the need is greatest, in both the poorest countries and to boost the prospects of girls and women, who are disproportionately affected.

May 10, 2015
Jazz in the megacity of Lagos

Jazz music is obviously gaining grounds in Nigeria as Edozie Udeze shows in this report concerning the just-concluded Lagos International Jazz Festival

Beyond making April 30 an international Jazz day by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Jazz itself is a form of musical rendition that has permeated most societies of the world. For three days last week in Lagos, Jazz musicians and Jazz lovers and picnickers from far and near gathered at the Freedom Park to celebrate not only world Jazz day, but also what the organizers of the event tagged Lagos International Jazz Festival 2015. This is a celebration that began three years ago, meant to gather lovers of this genre of music with jazz musicians themselves from all over the world playing and generally having fun.

With this year’s theme as Jazz in The Mega-city, Ayoola Sadare the festival director explained that it was time to consolidate on past gains and experiences and to also showcase what he termed jazz in Naija and other climes. This was why he invited Rashid Lombard of South Africa as the special guest of honour for this year’s show.

Lombard is the founder of Cape Town International Jazz Festival, which has been incharge of all jazz jams in that country since 2000. He is not just an internationally – acclaimed entertainer, promoter and director, he is also a former political and war photojournalist. His primary responsibility includes his foremost strategy in conceptualizing and marketing jazz festivals all over the world. This was partly why in 2014 the South African government conferred on him the Presidential Order of Ikhamanga. It is the highest South African honour granted by the president of the country for outstanding achievements in arts, culture, literature, music, journalism, sports and photography.

Lombard’s presence indeed helped to encourage artistes to play to their hearts’ content. As these jams happened simultaneously in different locations inside the Freedom Park, guests strolled round from place to place to savour the different renditions. Musicians in other genres were equally invited to play. It was totally a jamboree of musical entertainment, created to douse tension in the hearts of many.

The atmosphere was conducive as musicians played the best they could to hold the people together. Sadare explained that this Lagos outing is modeled after the famous Cape Town International Jazz Festival in order to give it the desired effect and clout. He said, “this festival is designed to offer visitors and residents in Lagos world class entertainment. The theme of this year is Jazz in the Megacity and our intention is to celebrate Nigerian Jazz and Jazz-related musicians who play the genre of music in various fusions and with an indigenous flavor.”

For this purpose, artistes for this year’s outing were mainly the accomplished ones among them. A few of them were up-coming singers who equally showed that they were ever ready to prove their mettle. With the five different stages tagged after Nigeria’s foremost jazziests and high life impresarios like Osita Osadebe, Steve Rhodes, Fela Kuti, Fatai Rolling Dollar and Bala Milla, the stage was set to thrill and enthrall the audience.

One of Nigeria’s foremost jazz exponents Biodun Batik described the show as a big event to bring jazz musicians together and create a beautiful scenario to make people happy and be more appreciative of the jazz music.” Some of the performers included Biodun Batik, Ugo, Oyin, Seun Sticks, Dr. Blaze and Alex Osho. Their performances made people asking for more. The mix of acoustic and big saxophones and other familiar jazz instruments added huge vibes to the accompaniments.

The rendition by Skata Vibrations on the last day sent the crowd reeling with joy as they shuffled their legs and twisted their waists. Skata Vibration made use of loops. With heavy reliance on guitars and bass and trumpets to stir the crowd, it was more of a spiritual production, with heavy instruments that often sounded like those of the rock musicians. At a stage, it even seemed as if the defunct Police Band, known for its heavy percussion was on stage. But the leader of the band, Jad, an American could not hold back his joy when they were through and he enthused, “Oh, we just play music. We jam to the mood of the moment, right from our inner souls.”

With over 200 live performances within three days, it is yet to be seen any other jazz festival that can match what the organizers put together. Yet it is not time for celebration. Nigerians are yet to be fully in love with jazz. Even though it is a music for the elite, jazz sooths the soul; it is so edifying that the combination of lyre, cymbal and tambourine can match what King David did in the Bible to honour God. Jazz is soul-searching; it is conducive to douse worries and render hearts free from acrimony, headaches and pains.

May 10, 2015
Want in the land of plenty

Joining the instructive but by no means exhaustive literature on pollution and its impact on the way of life in the Niger Delta is Peter Ukwa’s River People, a short story that explores the volatile mix of oil spill, land degradation and angst in the oil-rich region.

Set in the rustic, riverine town of Obir, the 3,700-word story published in the January issue of The Mariner, the journal of the Association of Nigerian Authors, Bayelsa State Chapter, connects the dots between oil exploration and environmental disaster. With a simple, narrative style laced with proverbs and cultural interjection reminiscent of the late literary legend Chinua Achebe, the author succeeds in transplanting the dense mangrove of the South-south to the reader’s backyard.

Through the hero, Godstime, and his sidekick, Sangha, the writer exposes the fragile structure of a Niger Delta described by insensitive oil firms, careless government and an agitated people. Confronted by alarming odds in the climate of natural abundance, the people react with all the civility they can muster.

Inspired by the resistance of hot-blooded war hero and landowner, Tuesday (‘Old Soldier’) to maddening exploitation, and galvanised by American returnee Mark’s leadership of a mass protest, the people make sure that the efforts of the ill-fated Old Soldier are not in vain.

Godstime ends up a passionate witness to the tragic events of the 70s. Prodded by providence, the holidaying schoolboy goes from sampling the fruit of the land to brandishing a placard in protest against the fouling of abundant resources by foreign firms.

Scholarships are awarded in compensation, but survival in the despoiled region remains topical as an older Godstime contemplates his people’s fate on the approach of the 21st century.

May 10, 2015
Foga 95: Why we’re celebrating 20

Adebola Agunbiade, president and co-founder of Foga95, an association of old girls of Federal Government Girls College, Akure, 1995 Set speaks to Gboyega Alaka on the association’s forthcoming 20th Anniversary celebration and why it’s a must-attend for all alumni.

Twenty years is a long time, yet you girls have maintained contact and are now planning an anniversary; who are those behind it?

First, the association is called FOGA ’95, Feggicolla Old Girls Association, 1995 set. It all started sometime in 1997 with me and a couple of my sisters from the 1995 set of Federal Government Girls College, Akure. We realised that a couple of us were still in touch and decided to start something to further bring us closer. I lived in Port Harcourt then and we got about 3 other sisters (Folakemi Oguntuase nee Adetunji, Lanre Ogunjobi nee Fagbuyi and Tope Onadeko nee Fabunmi) in Lagos to reach out to others, with whom they still had contact. We were meeting once every quarter at each other’s houses, to discuss issues and assist each other in whatever capacity we could. Of course, we also support each other towards and during social events. I remember when we went to attend the wedding of the first person in our set that got married; it was really fun and nice. These days we look at the pictures in our old school iro and buba plus gele, have a hearty laugh and remember how far we have come. Gradually, we got more people on board and started putting structures in place. I was elected president last year. We thank God because He has kept us all alive. Overtime, we have also created a facebook page and started inviting others; we also have a BBM group that is almost five years old.

Tell us about this coming celebration.

We’ve tagged it The Reunion Event and it’s holding on June 20 this year at Lagoon Restaurant, Victoria Island, Lagos. Like the name suggests, it’s a reunion of the Class of ’95 set of Feggicolla and also to celebrate twenty years of graduating from our beloved secondary school. It’s basically a fun day for all. The alumni body will be officially introduced and new members will be registering. There will also be memoir time, quiz, dance competition and games and general partying.

Is this celebration all about the 1995 set or is it open to all old girls of Feggicolla?

There is the parent Alumni body which caters for every Alumni of Feggicolla of all sets. But this is only for those of us of the 1995 set. So, far we have about 50 people confirmed who would be attending.

What have been the benefits of the association to your old school?

Sometime back we got word that the main Alumni body was organising a visit to the school and we contributed money to buy bunk beds, which were delivered to the school. So, the Reunion Event is also a form of raising funds as we have identified a project, which we intend to carry out in the school. We also help each other in businesses and towards job placements. We contribute a merger sum as our monthly due and use this to cater for the needs as they come up. We have a pool of funds donated by one of us, which any of us can access at a tiny interest.

What message do you have for your members who have not been part of your regular meeting?

We have come a long way from 1995/1997. It has not been easy rallying everyone together, but we are impressed with the feedback we get so far. We even have sisters from outside the country who are making plans to attend this event, while those who are not able, have pledged their contribution towards its success. It is also an opportunity to network and rekindle old relationships and friendships. Part of the reason for this reunion is to officially introduce the Alumni Association of our set to everyone and get everyone to join up. We want to create a platform of unity, love and togetherness amongst all the FOGA girls. To join up is easy, just send an email to foga95set@gmail.com or follow our activities on our facebook page: Feggicola Alumni (95 set).

May 10, 2015
Why I’m immortalising my brother – Tolu Falode

It’s over one year since Toba Falode, son of ace sports broadcaster, Aisha Falode died in mysterious circumstance in far away Dubai, but the ripples have yet to go still, as his elder sister, Tolu prepares to lunch a book in his memory come May 19, his birthday. She spoke on the book and her relationship with her late brother with Gboyega Alaka.

You’ve written a book to honour your late brother, Toba; tell us about it.

The book was inspired by my brother, Toba Falode aka Tyler Hendricks. He has inspired my story from the moment he died. So the book was inspired by him. He was a very dutiful, ambitious, charming, determined, sociable young man, who unfortunately had no chance to live his life. So in a way, I hope I can give life to his story, even though he didn’t have a chance to tell it himself.

Where were you when he died?

I was in school in Dublin. My brother and I were extremely close, such that we didn’t need words to communicate. We understood each other that well. I could simply tell what he was going to say by looking at him and likewise him. We couldn’t go more than two weeks without speaking. After literally 14 days, I would call my brother and just talk about anything. And he’d say ‘Why don’t you just say that you missed me?’ And I would laugh and tell him to leave me alone. That was the nature of our relationship. He was always teasing me; very mischievous and I loved him very deeply. I called him literally two days before he died, because I missed him. But he wasn’t answering, so I kept calling and calling. And the thing is he only answered me at his convenience, which I found very annoying. But we loved each other nevertheless. So when he eventually answered, he assumed that something was wrong. He said, ‘Are you ok? Is everything cool?’ And I said ‘I missed you; why were you not picking my call? And then he said ‘Sorry.’ And whenever Toba apologised I just forgave him. I could never hold anything against him. So we spoke for a bit, and the next thing I heard…. he was dead.

How did you learn about his death?

One of my very close friends, Ore kept calling me. It was around 10 am, and I’m not a morning person, so I didn’t pick her calls. I was sleeping because I was out late in the night. And she knew more than anyone else that I’m not an early morning person. So eventually I answered her call and she told me she was at my apartment block, which I thought that was very strange. So I went to open the door and behold she was with her mother, which I thought was more curious and unusual. Immediately, I knew something was wrong, because a couple of years earlier, we had lost an uncle, Brother Shuaib, and Brother Shuaib was like a father figure to my brother and I. We were all extremely close to him. In fact my brother was closer to him, than I was. He actually inspired my decision to study Law, because he was a law student. So I knew something was wrong; that somebody had passed, because the circumstances were similar to that occasion when Brother Shuaib passed on, and I started panicking. I tried to get my friend to talk. My heart started palpitating and mind was racing. How would I tell Toba? How would I protect Toba? How was I going to get us through this? Because I immediately assumed it was my mother. I couldn’t imagine that death would come so confidently into my home, without it being my mother. So when they said, Toba, I literally felt a crack in my spirit. It was like a strike to my system that I wasn’t able to digest properly.

How did you cope with the reality, considering that you never imagined a future without him?

I didn’t. Mostly, I was fighting for my mental stability. I was very depressed, to the extent that I wasn’t able to digest it mentally. And during that time, I assumed that my mum was going through a worse situation emotionally, yet somebody had to go to Dubai to get my brother. My extended family and friends were already making plans to go and get him, but I knew my brother would expect that my mum or myself would come and get him. So I went to Dubai, along with some members of our extended family and friends to identify him; went through the process of hearing that he was murdered and claimed his corpse. So really, I couldn’t think past the immediate moment. The future was just too much to contemplate.

One year after, how does the future look?

Well, now, it has become more palatable, in the sense that before, I couldn’t start thinking about the future without feeling some emotional distress. At least now I’m able to think straight. He has inspired who I have become. So in a way, he lives through my own story. If this didn’t happen, I probably wouldn’t have discovered who I was as a person. He was so much a part of me that in his death, he has brought out even more of me. I suddenly found myself representing him and myself; being more courageous, more vocal; suddenly, I’ve just grown up.

Tell us more about this book.

The book is titled ‘Gift of Grace, A Sibling Bond.’ It is a book dedicated to my brother. The release date is May 19, which is his birthday. He would have been 21 this year, and I wanted to honour him as much as possible. He inspired the story because he never had the chance to tell his own. And he was so full of life that I didn’t think it was possible for him to be dead. He was so bubbly and lived every moment. He wanted to be a musician. He wasn’t one of those people who are like I want to do music, but let me first go to school, study and make some money before pursuing music. No, he just said ‘I want to do music; I’m going to do music.’ He was very courageous and had no fears about following his dreams. He just figured everything would work out. And I admired and respected him a lot for that. But he died prematurely before he even had the chance to start living. And my love for him just came to the fore, so I just started writing.

Did you have a calculated story or you just started pouring out your emotions?

I didn’t have any calculated story. It was in fact an accident because by this time last year, I wasn’t aware this would be my story this year. So it wasn’t a conscious effort. I was still very lost and I was just writing to deal with the tragedy that had befallen us as a family. I read some stories I’d written to my mum. I’m not sure if it helped her, but I’m sure it comforted her to a level. At a point, she just said, ‘You know what? You can put that in a book.’ And I discovered that I actually had well over a hundred pages. And I was like, ‘Okay, I really have enough material for a book.’ So I kept writing anyway, but now with the notion that I was writing a book.

Are you saying that readers shouldn’t expect a well-structured book?

It is well-structured, in the sense that it is divided into sections. It tells my story and by extension, my brother’s story and my family’s story and it probes into my faith and grace in Christ. And how I discovered my faith and became a strong Christian after his passing. To learn more about this book, people can visit Tolu Falode: Gift of Grace on facebook; @tolufalode on twitter, fantheflame on instagram and the-flame-of-faith.blogspot.com

May 10, 2015
Fanfare, as Remo indigenes commemorate independence

It was all pomp and celebrations, as sons and daughters of Remo-Land and cultural enthusiasts from all 33 towns that make up the ancient kingdom converged at the Conference Hall of Iperu Remo, Ikenne, Ogun State on April 9, 2015, for the first edition of the Remo Independence Day Celebration.

The event played host to an impressive crowd of gaily dressed indigenes and well-wishers, who came from far and near to grace what the organisers said would now be an annual event, and serve as a unifier of Nigerians of Remo extraction, home and abroad.

According to The Remo Group, TRG33, the main organisers of the festival, the socio-cultural event, will now be celebrated every first week of April.

The first edition was marked with brilliant presentations by contingents of the various Remo towns, as well as display of ancient cultural artefacts, traditional cuisines, cultural dresses and dances.

The celebration, according to the spokesperson of TRG33, Omooba Abiola Ogundeko, is meant to commemorate the creation of the old Remo division from the Ijebu Division in April 1937. According to Ogundeko, the creation of the division confirmed the claims of the people of the Kingdom that they are distinct and independent from the Ijebu Kingdom, to which they were lumped as second fiddles for many decades.

“The unrelenting struggle of our fore-fathers like Akarigbo, Alaiye Ode, Odemo of Isara etc, was rewarded on the first day of April 1937, when the Remo division was carved out of the old Ijebu Division. With that, our identity as a distinct Yoruba race that came as one people all the way from Ile-Ife, to our current location, was restored and respected. That is what we are celebrating now. We celebrate because there is great need to preserve that part of our history and in addition remind ourselves that we are one people.

“There are thirty-three original towns in Remoland and today, many of those towns are socio-economic and political entities on their own. So, there is great need to always remind ourselves that we are one Kingdom united by a common origin and history. ” Ogundeko said.

The week-long ceremony started with visits to palaces of prominent Remo traditional rulers including the Alaiye Ode of Ode Remo, Oba Amidu Osho, Alaperu of Iperu, Oba Idowu Basibo, Alara of Ilara, Oba Emila-Oye Awobajo, Onirolu of Irolu, Oba Sikiru Adeyija, amongst others. The royal fathers blessed the contingents and urged them to continue with the laudable innovations.

Oba Awobajo, who expressed great satisfaction with the formation and activities of the TRG33 group, said the quest to unite the various towns of Remo Kingdom dates back several decades. He congratulated the leadership of the group and urged them to take the organisation to all the nooks and crannies of Remo-Land in the interest of further growth and development of the area.

The train also stopped by at the Remo Club 1937 to pay homage to eminent leaders of the Kingdom who are members the prestigious club. The celebrants were received by Asoju Oba Michael Tayo Adesanya, who led them into the confines of the well-equipped club house and introduced them to patrons and members of the high profile social organisation.

The Asoju Oba commended TRG33 for its lofty ideas and said the people of the kingdom are now ready to speak with one voice. He called on members of the group to avail themselves the socio-economic opportunities of being members of the frontline social club by joining Remo Club 1937.

Speaking to the celebrants, Balogun Kola Oyefeso, a past president of the Club, urged them to keep up the good work and shun all forms of distraction. He enjoined them to always be proud of their Remo origin, saying there is no better place to call home.

He also called on the younger generations to prepare themselves for leadership roles, since they cannot remain youths forever. Oyefeso frowned at a situation where men and women in their thirties and forties go about claiming to be youths, adding that the continued dependence of the younger generations on handouts from the older ones will only impoverish the land sooner or later.

The widely travelled Remo High Chief therefore urged them to shun violence and encourage entrepreneurship.

Back at the Iperu Conference Hall venue of the grand finale, participants were treated to several performances from various contingents. Several games and competitions also took place.

While Sagamu came top in traditional dances and make-up competitions, Ode Remo emerged winner in Ayo Olopon and dialectics. Iperu Remo and Ipara Remo won the male and female debate competitions, respectively, while Irolu came top in the Masquerade display contest. Ilisan won in the Ewi contest, while Ilara Remo claimed the prize in the folklore contest, and Akaka-Remo emerged best in contemporary dance.

May 10, 2015
Ghana joins ‘no-power-always’ league

Just back from a brief visit to Ghana, Folu Olamiti extols the beauty and organisation of the small West African country, but lamented the ugly epileptic power situation fast creeping in on it.

When the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and Federal Ministry of Aviation (FMA) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on December 9, 2014, to cleanse our international airports of all forms of corrupt practices, little did I know that the MOU will, so soon, become a vital instrument in fighting the cancer of corruption.

Having travelled out of the country twice in the last three months after the signing of the MOU, first to the United States of America and, recently, to Ghana, I can boldly say the MOU is working. But it needs to be sustained and fine-tuned for 100% success. Like I wrote about my trip to the United States, a travelogue that was published in some national newspapers, sharing my Ghana experience may be helpful to my countrymen.

The flight from Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, to Kotoka International Airport (KIA), Accra, took exactly one hour, 45 minutes. Not altogether a smooth flight, the small but strong bird cruised into the clouds producing fits of jerks. Some passengers were so visibly frightened; and I heard a woman shout ‘Jesus’! It was thus a huge relief when I heard the screeching of the tyres at terrific ground speed, as the plane touched down.

As the aircraft taxied to a stop, a bus was already waiting. It drove us to the local terminal. Time in Accra was about 7.30 pm. There were few airport officials around at this hour. Those that I saw buried themselves in their jobs. Altogether, it took about ten minutes to clear at the Ebola Screening Gate to Immigration, to baggage claim. This is in contradistinction to what I experienced at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja, a few hours before, where hordes of immigration and customs officers were milling around, doing almost nothing.

I believe security clearance of passengers could be done with fewer hands. A situation where majority of more than 100 immigration and customs officers just loaf around, doing next to nothing, befuddled my imagination. I saw many of them idling away, chatting, while those attending to passengers wasted valuable time asking unintelligent questions. This is another reason I applaud the directive by the Minister of Aviation, few weeks ago, that all activities at the nation’s international airports should be automated within a month. To me, this will help stop the national embarrassment that unruly officers perpetrate every day. However, three things gladdened my heart at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. Firstly, touting has been drastically reduced. Secondly, order has been fully restored outside the airport with uniform officials attending to passengers; and thirdly, there is no open demand for bribe.

At the Kotoka International Airport, Accra, there was order. I was not accosted by touts, either within or outside the airport. There is a designated park for airport taxis, while those in private vehicles equally use this park to wait for their families and friends. I saw how two taxi drivers that strayed to the out-of-bound area, had their cabs impounded and towed away. Thanks to my brother, Shola Oshunkeye, the Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of The Sun Publishing Ghana Limited, who had been waiting and drove me promptly to his residence.

I had a better view of Accra the next day, courtesy Mr. Oshunkeye, who drove me round the Accra business district, and several posh districts of the capital city. It is amazing how Accra has transformed in two short decades into such an alluring city. This transformation, I understood, came with the Jerry John Rawlings dictatorship, and later, Presidency. Here is a country which, before Rawlings, was battered by poor leadership and only relied on gold for export. And that never gave enough revenue for Ghana to cater for the wellbeing of her people.

But the country had a major turn-around for good in the early 1990s, when she liberalised her economy and enticed multinational companies to flourish with generous land and tax reforms. The country’s economy got buoyant with foreign donors, as these nations became sympathetic to Ghana’s transformation agenda.

Today, Accra is a model city, where discipline and order are firmly entrenched in the citizenry. If you take a panoramic view of Accra, you will discover that the city’s planners never compromised the city planning edict, as the town is neatly compartmentalised into sections Residential and Commercial. Of interest is an area named SPINTEX, which sits megastores of different shapes electronic firms, automobile factories/showrooms and furniture and textile factories.

One place you would like to visit while in Ghana is TRASSACO VALLEY ESTATE, a haven for the rich. It is an equivalent of our own Victoria Garden City (VGC) in Lagos. The difference is, while VGC has compromised all known standards and laid down building rules, TRASSACO strictly sticks to building plans. All the structures have exquisite taste of elegance. The drive way into the estate is lined with Palm groove trees beautified with enamored buildings. TRASSACO is home to Ghana’s noveau riche and I understand that some Nigerian big boys are giving Ghanaians the run for their money in terms of home ownership in the exquisite estate.

On Sunday, March 15, 2015, Oshunkeye and I went to worship at the Royal House Chapel, one of the biggest Pentecostal churches in Accra. It is led by the enigmatic and charismatic Reverend Sam Korankye Ankrah. I met Nana Richmond Kojo Aggrey, one of the most influential persons not only in Ghana but also here in Nigeria. The billionaire philanthropist and entrepreneur, a friend of Shola Oshunkeye, is reputed to have pioneered mobile telephony in Ghana, and Nigeria. He has the singular honour of being the man who introduced Mobile Telephony System (MTS) to the then Nigerian Military President, General Ibrahim Babangida in 1980.

An entrepreneur of uncommon hue, Nana Richmond Aggrey’s businesses traverse the whole world. He is into oil and gas, telecommunications, hospitality, just to mention a few. Richmond-Aggrey has a palatial mansion at Trassaco Valley. He invited Oshunkeye and I to dinner at his four-star Granada Hotel, and spoke glowingly about his Nigerian friends including my dear brother and friend, Senator David Mark, President of the Nigerian Senate.

With the announcement by Ghana, a few years ago, that she has joined the oil-producing countries of the world, its economy transformed. Donor countries, I was told, started withdrawing their donations, thereby reducing the revenues that should, otherwise, accrue into the nation’s purse. Invariably, the donor countries had to shrink their funding of key social and political services.

The first blow started manifesting, months ago, when Ghanaians started experiencing power outages. What they thought was a rare occurrence has, sadly, become a reality. Generators that were alien to the people are now like second nature to homes and business concerns. This is a big blow to Ghana, a country that once celebrated 10 years of uninterrupted power supply.

Now, both Ghanaians and foreign entrepreneurs are not comfortable with this development. They are afraid that Ghana may be losing her gain of rapid development if she fails to fix this power problem urgently.

May 10, 2015
‘I’m humbled that everything I touch turns to gold’

Sola Fajobi comes across easily as a man with the Midas touch. He had always nursed one ambition; to emerge as a key media player. In 2005, he founded the Digital Interactive Media as a necessary step toward the realisation of this dream. Today, his name is synonymous with popular TV reality show, the Next Movie Star. The creative entrepreneur shares with Adetutu Audu his journey to the top and why he loves to challenge the norm.

YOU have your hands in so many things, especially being the first in all these things you do. Where do you draw your inspiration from?

I give God the glory for the ability to think, ability to put down and execute and, of course, the human factor and the human element. In terms of trying to do things at a time and trying to do them well, it is a way of life for me. Some people say Solar is restless; it does not necessarily mean Solar is restless. It is just that I create a lot of ideas beyond what he does. You streamlined and strategised and say I can achieve this within this time frame and these are the things required to achieve them and go for it.

What prepared you for all these things you are exhibiting now while growing up?

It is a function of the fact that my parents were separated when I was much younger. My dad was an average worker, he was not rich and neither was he poor. And at different points in time, I faced a lot of challenges and it got to a point that I decided that it was me against the world. This meant I was on my own. I made up my mind that I would be successful and I focused my energy towards the things I needed to do well. I became a bookworm because I realised that I must get a good education. I became independent-minded and challenged what the norm was. It started from there. When I started work, I said I was not the type that would keep doing the same thing every day. So I worked for six years. In some organisations, I will say I am going to be here for six months because I wanted to learn something. For instance, I had to take a pay cut when I was working in Cellulant as Country Manager for Nigeria and Ghana that is Cellulant Africa, and moved to Tevia Technologies. It was a drastic cut from what I was earning in the previous organisation because I wanted to learn new technology that they were using there and we didn’t have it in the previous company. I also worked in an agency because I needed to understand how media and advertising operate. I knew I was going to run a media business and I needed to understand media buying.

How does it feel to be championing Nigeria’s Next Movie Star for these years?

It feels great. But it is also part of the challenges that we have to face all the time. At the moment, it feels good that a baby you gave birth to is still out there doing well. But on the other hand, very challenging, making sure that we can survive all the challenges of business in this part of the world. There is power issue, finance issues; there are also the people issues; the people you have to work with and all that. Interestingly, there are years that we get rewarded for all our efforts and the years that we will make a whole lot of effort and we do not get a commercial reward for it. But because our focus is not commercial, we easily rise above these challenges. It has been tough putting together a production which involves more than 60 cast and crew. It has been tough putting all the equipment in the house. It has been tough broadcasting the show. Getting airtimes without sponsors is not easy.

Then you came up with Supermom. What message are you passing with this and how would you describe its acceptance?

At a point, it occurred to us that there were too many talent-based or lifestyle-based reality shows in this part of the world. We realised that if the trend continued, our content format would be tilted towards just one direction. We wanted to celebrate the best mom in Nigeria and my own motive and belief is that mothers are not celebrated enough and they are the prime factor for every home, except there is anybody that drops from the sky. So, I want to do something that as a community we will do together. For me, while growing up, I do not really enjoy what it means to have a mother because my parents were separated. I am grateful to God for depositing such beautiful ideas in me and the energy to drive them and the grace to achieve great results. I am eternally grateful to God. I feel fulfilled, humbled by the fact that everything that I touch turns to gold.

Owning a television station is not an easy feat, how has it been running both stations?

It is always the dream of any content producer to have his own platform where he will air his own productions. Thank God for digitalisation and Startimes. There were 74 bidders for just eight licences. We, instead of bidding for one, bided for two. Eventually, we were given the two licences. This is because we were able to convince them that we have the contents. That is one of the things that Next Movie Star has achieved for us. It has opened up the possibility of having a lot of contents. It is through Next Movie Star that we were able to commence Dormitory 8. You know, to own a station, you should at least consider having your own contents; your content should be 40 per cent of what you broadcast. So when we summed everything up, we found out that our own content alone could sustain 70 per cent of our station. I am bold to say that there are not more than one or two other outfits that produce as much content as we do at the moment in Nigeria.

What would you say is the secret of your success?

Determination, perseverance, creative imagination and focus. Our guiding motto is to make hay while the sun shines. We are basically a young outfit. But we know that a time will come when we may not be able to achieve all we want to achieve. So we work very hard here. We have the energy, the drive and creative edge to make it. Personally I don’t believe in tomorrow; I believing in achieving all I want today. Anything I can do tomorrow, I prefer to do it today so that I will enjoy myself tomorrow.

All your projects require huge sum of money, how have you been able to surmount the financial challenges?

Everybody in this world has financial challenges. The richest economies in the world are the USA and China. They are both in debt. Financial challenges are part of our everyday life, but our ability to navigate our way within the murky and rough waters of the economy to still achieve our aims and goals as men. The fulfilment we derive in most of these things is the ability to say I want to do this and I do it. It’s not just about I want to make this money because if it’s about money, I might not be doing this. But it’s the fulfilment I derive from doing it.

There had been two editions of The Next Movie Star that we never had sponsors, but we went ahead and did it. When there are challenges, we convert them into opportunities because when you do anything that is good, one way or the other you will get rewarded for it. For every measure of hard work, there is a measure of reward that comes with it.

Has there been any point you almost quit due to one constraint or the other?

There is no time I don’t think of that. It is all the time. Every single time I want to embark on a project, I use to think if I am in the right place, but the achievement that comes with every measurement of hard work you put into it encourages you to say look, I can do it. Anytime any of my programmes comes on air, I get a lot of fulfilment. I’ll rate their performances by saying something very simple; there is no other reality show from this part of the world that has diminished the quality of people we have in the last five years. It’s a fact. We had Tonto Dike and Annie Macaulay in 2005. If you can remember any reality show in 2005, I can name three of our housemates that are doing wonderfully well right now. In 2006, we discovered Portia Yamaha, Kelvin Pam that won Big Brother, Barbara Okojie, Segun Elegbe, Moyo Lawal and a host of them.

What will you call the high and low points of your business?

The high point is when we get sponsors, finish the audition across all the countries and we select the final housemates and when the show eventually starts and you see it on TV and people are excited. When the winner eventually emerges is also a high point. And the climax is when I present the winners’ prizes to them. The low point is when you are doing production in an environment where you can’t work with well. And you say look, this is my account, these are the things I have done and I need N60 million to pay for TV stations or to handle this production. It’s also a low point when you have to start running around, looking for money everywhere during the production to pay for TV stations because everything is pre-paid in Nigeria.

You started a mega distribution company, E-force, to tackle piracy. How much have you achieved in this cause?

Prior to 2014, it was generally believed that the absence of major distribution networks and models gave room to pirates to operate fully, hence, two major companies, namely G-Media led by Gab Okoye [Gabosky] and E-Force led by Sola Fajobi opened shop. However, after two months of launch, we discovered that the mega distribution companies cannot tackle piracy problems alone. But I strongly believe with the cooperation of key stakeholders the government and all security agencies, we can smile once again in the entertainment industry. The government should set up a sustainable institution dedicated and empowered to deal with piracy and intellectual property theft for Nigerian works and all other foreign or African content. An anti-piracy board or commission is urgently required by an act of law.

How do you juggle all your businesses?

I am young now and this is time to do all this work now. I still have over 70 television show ideas which I am yet to exploit. So, the work is still much for me to do and this is the time in my life to do it. There will be a time that it would be tougher for me to do all the work. When I was young, my dad would tell me that anything that I would enjoy in excess in the future, I should not peek into it now. Meaning that I have a lot of time in the future to relax and enjoy the fruit of my labour. But for now, it is work time.

In all these, would you say you are fulfilled?

I am fulfilled. When you look back and see how many people you have helped to achieve their dreams and the impact you have made in such lives, you will definitely want to do more. I have been an entrepreneur for so long, but doing a show that the whole of Nigeria was watching and somebody emerged as the winner, everybody was happy. So, these people can become true stars? I asked. Nigerians were excited, and it gave me fulfilment. That’s what I enjoy most. Anytime I do a show, the power to convert what’s on paper into reality gives me some form of heartfelt happiness.

May 10, 2015
BANKS: No longer job seekers’ dream

Fresh from an adventure into the world of bankers, Medinat Kanabe uncovers the big problem of casualisation, and related issues currently bedevilling the industry, and how it is fast eroding the past glory of the once glamorous profession.

This package called Contract Staff in Nigerian banks .Not too long ago, clinching a bank job was big deal in Nigeria. It was like a key to success or literally speaking, an escape route from poverty. And the joy of such lucky person or persons knew no bounds. Naturally, bankers were therefore respected in the society. They were happy doing their jobs, in anticipation of their sumptuous monthly salaries, up-front payment, 13th month salaries, profit-sharing and other bonuses and goodies.

Children across board also dreamt of becoming bankers, and the mere thought of it got them studying assiduously for the right grades. Because demand was high, qualification parameters also became high, as applicants were expected to return with nothing less than a second class upper in their degree certificate.

All that however seems to have changed, as recent developments and findings show that banks are no longer the toast of job-seekers. The tides have shifted so badly that a lot of people no longer want to tough bank jobs, even with a long spoon. Chief amongst the root causes of this is the issue of contract staffing, which most bank managements have embraced in recent years. A corollary to this is poor salary that comes with it and what several of the victims refer to as ‘bad treatment.’ It is therefore common to see bankers, no longer in their impeccable suits and immaculate shirts; and the gaiety with which bankers of the not too distant past greet customers seems to be fast disappearing.

On Wednesday July 9th 2014, the House of Representatives moved to stop the practice of recruiting workersý as “casual, contract or temporary staff in the country’s labour industry including banks. A bill to limit casual or temporary status of employees toý two years passed second reading at the Lower House. It is an amendment bill to the Labour Act, 2004.

By the provision of the bill, employers are required to convert any casual worker in their organisations to permanent status immediately they clock two years working as temporary staff.

Sponsor of the bill, Emmanuel ýJime who argued that the practice created discrimination in the work place by making some workers inferior to others, told the House that there are many Nigerians working as casual staff for years in organisations without any indications that they would be converted to permanent staff.

“This situation means we have two categories of workers. We have the permanent ones and the casual ones in the same work place. This division is unacceptable and unhealthy for economic growth.”

It also seems like Nigerian banks are amongst the most guilty, with a larger percentage of their staff list belonging to this category.

One ex-banker who was forced to leave where he worked not too long ago told this reporter what he went through while working in the bank. The man who is now in his late forties said “I worked for 14 years as a contract staff without any form of promotion, so I decided to leave. Now I can see that I made a good decision.”

He joined the bank in 2001 and was glad he got himself a job in a lucrative industry.

”My family too were happy. I got the job with my ND which was the requirement at that time and was employed on contract basis, but I didn’t mind because I thought I would soon be upgraded to a permanent staff level.

“I was also happy doing the job, but gradually became sad when I realised that I didn’t have time for any other thing but the job, while the salary remained incommensurate with my workload. As the years went by, the job also became more stressful. You only know when you resume, but not when you close.

”I was single when I got the job, so I was okay with the little salary, but when I got married, it dawned on me that I didn’t have a job, as the money was not enough to take care of my family. There was a 2 year regular increment but it was very minimal.

“The increment was nothing to write home about because as you grow, your responsibility also increases. You are doing a five-man job: paying, receiving, issuing draft, doing almost everything but with very little pay. Interestingly, people see you as a big boy, not knowing that you are just struggling to survive.”

He therefore said the issue of contract staffing in banks is a big problem and called on the federal government to urgently look into it.

“A large number of those you see working in banks are mostly contract staff and this doesn’t happen in other countries. Look at Gambia for example, my bank opened a branch there and they insisted that they don’t recognise the contract staff thing. So it is peculiar with Nigerian banking industry, especially the new generation banks. The core staff are usually not up to 5 percent. It is the contract staff who receive meagre salaries that are doing the job, while the so-called bosses are just making the money and living big.

He explained that even most of the BSc holders are on contract and are paid as low as N55, 000, all in a bid to maximize profit and declare outrageous profits.

Another problem our guest also identified with banks, is the promotion pattern and condition for the core staff. “They give them high budget that they are not able to meet and when they don’t meet it, they are not recommended for promotion. Instead, they are sacked or advised to resign. I think the Nigerian Labour Congress should take a look at this.”

Asked if he would allow his child work in a bank, going by the current malaise in the industry, his answer was a big NO. “I don’t think I can allow my child work in a bank in this day and age. Banks are no longer places where people go to build their career. To be promoted too is a problem. If you don’t have a god-father or a rich father who can help you meet the budget or if you are not in the management clique, you will be frustrated out.

“Apart from that, you are restricted and you don’t know anything outside the banking industry. It is like a cage, the bank is in control of your life and you don’t even have Saturdays. These days, you don’t have Sundays too.

Asked to proffer solutions, the gentleman said the number one solution is for the contract staff system to be removed. He added that “My father used to tell us that, the old generation banks have specified time of attending to customers, which is between 8-4 and left bankers with time of their own; but now bankers don’t have time anymore, and as a family person, your marriage is threatened.

“Another development that needs to be attended to is the issue of god-fatherism. If you don’t have a godfather, you’re not likely to be promoted. You must be in the good books of the management team too, if not you will go nowhere. And this of course promotes a lot of hypocrisy amongst staff.

“The management posture is also such that they’re telling you that if you can’t cope, you leave. Often staff get to work only to find that you have been sacked without committing an offence, just because they want to meet up with profit target. Imagine you getting to work and trying to log onto your system, only to see a message saying, you should report to the HR and when you get there, you are handed a sack letter, without committing any prior offence.

“Also, those pecks that once made bank jobs the toast of job-seekers are all but gone; talking about pay in arrears, up-front, 13th month, profit-sharing and bonuses. So now, you just work for your salary, which is nothing to write home about.

Can you imagine that when I was in the bank, we didn’t have a water dispenser because they said they were cutting costs?

Another ex-banker, John, shared his sad story. “As a contract staff, I was showed the exit door after giving my best for years. This was to enable them bring on new contract staff, give them target, use them without converting them to full time staff, and later show them the door.

According to him, there is always this initial promise of conversion when you join as a contract staff, but this is a promise hardly ever fulfilled. “It is an experience I don’t want to remember,” he said, literally turning away.

John, who is in his early 30s said there is high discrepancy between the core staff and the contract staff.

“Despite the fact that both groups have the same qualification; sometimes the contract staff even have more qualification than the full staff, yet the system persists. A contract staff is thus made to accept anything as salary. You are easily belittled or looked down upon by the full staff, who see themselves as demi-gods and see the contract staff as second-class citizens.

“The full time staff also see it as a thing of joy to send the contract staff on unnecessary errands. It is not uncommon to hear expressions like, ‘After all, they are contract staff.’ A lady, who is a full time staff once threatened to slap a contract staff guy in my office. Fair enough, the bank manager intervened early enough and asked her to apologise.

Like most other people who land bank jobs, John said he felt on top of the world when he joined the banking industry in 2011. His family also felt their son had arrived. As a BSc. holder, John was also contented with the N40,000 package, convinced within that it was a matter of time before he would be confirmed as a full-time staff.

But when did banks begin to wear this toga of unattractiveness?

John said “The banking industry is faced with so many problems, among which are unproductive loans, inability of the banks to make or declare interest, hiring of contract staffs and paying them meagre salaries, frequent sacking of staff, amongst others”

Aside the problems above, John swore that he would do all in his might to dissuade any of his daughters from accepting a bank job, because of the amorous advances they receive from male customers and some randy bosses.

Bisola (not real name), a contract staff with one of the new generation banks said the mere fact that she works in a bank is causing problems in her family.

She said: “I started working in the bank in 2008, with my OND, which was the requirement at the time. I was very happy even though my take home as a contract staff was N31, 000.

I did not know that the bank had problems of remuneration and competition, too much stress and overwork, and promotion; otherwise I would not have taken the job.”

She insisted that the only reason she is still on the job is the general unemployment situation across board, adding that she will leave once she gets another job.

Another banker who craved anonymity said “I actually joined the default Savannah Bank exactly 14 years ago. My family and I were very happy with the job offer, but looking back, we should have been sad.

He recalled that he was offered a gross annual pay of N300,000, which boils down to about N25,000 per month, but didn’t mind because being a banker also comes with a prestige and respect.

He joined the banking industry with a first degree in Economics and immediately began to pursue a second degree also in Economics at the University of Lagos, but the stress of the job eventually forced him to abandon the programme.

In his opinion, things began to go awry with the industry the moment some bankers began to live above their means. Coupled with this is poor investment on career development for staff.

He said “The major problem in banking is that the job is so stressful that if care is not taken, you may not have time for other things in life including your family.”

The managements, he said, also treat staff with levity: “They sack without notice and sometimes without any reason, and with little or no entitlement. Because bank jobs are stressful, they are constantly looking for young people; so once you are above 40, just get ready to be offloaded. And yet they say life begins at 40.”

He said the only reason he is still with the bank is that he is waiting to be 10 years on the job, so he can qualify for his pension. Otherwise, he said “My thinking is already outside banking industry.”

Would he allow any of his off-springs to work in a bank?

“I do not think so,” he said with more conviction than the words seemed to carry. “I have been in the industry for sometime and I can tell you that the situation is the same across banks. My general advice to young people is to take up professional courses. That way, you can pursue your vocation, if for any reason you have to leave a paid job. I will never encourage my child or brother to work in a bank, except such a person insists. As for me, I entered the banking industry purely out of ignorance.”

Another former bank worker, who said she worked for three years with Oceanic Bank and one year with EcoBank, when they merged said she felt her dream had come to reality when she joined the bank, but later discovered that she had made a big mistake. “When I got the job I was very glad because before I graduated I had always had the desire to work in a bank. Every time I walked past a bank, I always felt like going inside to join them. My perception however changed after I joined the fray four years ago.”

She said the moment she stepped into the banking industry, her life ceased to be her own.

“I woke up very early to get to the office before 7.30am, sometimes 7.00am, and I don’t leave until we are sure that the account is balanced, which can be as late as 10pm or 11pm.

”The marketers leave office by 5.00pm or 6pm, while the operation staff are the ones who stay in the office to attend to customers. As an operation staff, if anything goes wrong, you might be in the office until 11.00 pm. Every branch has to balance their account so that it can reflect at the head office; and if the account of the day is not balanced, it means you have to resume very early to continue from where you stopped the previous day.

”So you work long hours under stress and must not fall sick. If you do, it is only when you’re dead that they will allow you go home. If you have to stay home for health reasons, you must present a doctor’s report to validate your claim.”

Like other respondents, she says the biggest problem with bank job today is the use of contract staff. “They want to employ OND holders instead of graduates, to cut cost. They use them like graduates and pay them lesser. They are called intermediate in the bank I was working in. I am an example of this because when I submitted my certificate, they refuse to employ on my BSc level, opting instead to take me on with my OND certificate. I thought that I might in the long run be able to present by BSc and get an upgrade or work hard and be asked to bring it; but we later got to know that as a contract staff there is nothing like conversion and I must confess, those of us who are contract staff were far better than the others.

She also said the intermediate staff are not treated well, as they are not entitled to the benefits a full staff gets. They don’t even have access to loan, even as low as N500,000.

To restore the past glory of the banking job, she advised that they should go back to the old days, eschew the contract staff system, and if there would, they should ensure that they don’t do the jobs of a full staff and not get the same benefits.

Continuing, she said “We even found out later that the salary we were getting wasn’t anywhere near what they said they were paying. They claimed they were paying us N150, 000 but all I was receiving was N65,000, which was later increased to N70,000 and then N80,000. When I left the job four years ago, I was being paid N85, 000. We got to know this when banks ran into problems and had to merge.

Bankers’ association responds

The National President, Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions, ASSBIFI, Comrade Olusoji Salako told The Nation that the association is against contracting and outsourcing of staff but added that the contract staff don’t belong to their association, so they have no oversight function over their affairs. He said they fall into the junior staff category, once they’re employed as contract staff, even if they hold a Phd degree.

“They are not our members and bank managements also know this, so we really can’t do anything for them. Even if you go to court, nothing can be done. We have tried severally in the past to stop banks from contracting and outsourcing but they have continued.”

Explaining that ASSBIFI consists of bankers from entry level of a senior staff to management level, also known as middle level managers, he said those who make the decision to employ these contract staff are usually the top managements.

He confirmed the various allegations from our respondents, and said “It is a terrible situation; anything they tell you is true. Most of them don’t have a choice. There was a time when I was advising people not to queue for these jobs, but they said they cannot just stay at home because there are no jobs out there. So the root cause of the situation is the high rate of unemployment in the country, plus we have a government that is not helping.

“If you go and tell them to leave the job, they may even pelt you with stones. Some of them have graduated for upward of 5 years without a job and you’re saying they shouldn’t accept the most casual job offer, which permanent job do you have for them?

“Some have been on these jobs for as long as ten years without promotion, but they prefer to remain there. And if they are sacked, you find them weeping, rather than rejoicing. During recruitment, you even see them fighting. Some of them even bribe to be recruited.”

He therefore said until the country is blessed with a government that can create employment opportunities or dissuade our young graduates from craving for white collar jobs, they will continue to accept the contract jobs.

“I just got back from Singapore; there are many graduates there too, but engaging themselves in doing different things. Many work in shopping malls and they are very happy. You don’t have to knot a tie every morning.”

Still trying to confirm if it is true that these companies pay below what they say they pay these contract staff, he said: “There is a company that recruits these graduates for the banks. The salaries of these contract staff are being paid by that company, so the larger chunk of their salaries goes to the company. Most of these agencies are subsidiaries of the banks, so what are you saying. We know all these things.”

“Even members of the National Assembly are not sympathetic towards these people because they have large amount of shares in these banks,” he said.

May 10, 2015