The Nation Newspaper

Category: Friday

  • Trashing tradition

    Trashing tradition

    Segun Gbadegesin

     

    MUHAMMADU Sanusi II reigned as Emir of Kano from 2014 to 2020. Installed as Emir by the Kano State Government under former Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso in June 2014, Sanusi was deposed by the current Kano State Government under Governor Abdullahi Ganduje in March 2020. A governor installed him, another governor deposed him. Government chooses; government rejects. It is a testament to the reality of raw political power.

    This reality is not confined to Kano State or the North in general. It is the reality of constitutional democracy in this post-colonial state with republican pretensions. In its adoration of individual freedom and political liberty, republicanism is the polar opposite of monarchical rule. It could be suggested then that the conflict we are seeing between premiers, governors, and heads of states on the one hand and traditional rulers on the other hand is inevitable. One group is democratic; the other aristocratic.

    That suggestion is grossly misleading. First, that we operate a democratic system doesn’t make every elected official a democrat. We have democrats in name only (DINO). Hence, complaints about elections which are nothing more than selections or daylight robbery. Second, as democrats, political leaders value and canvass the support of traditional rulers to advance their political interests. This is especially the case where traditional rulers have sound footing in the tradition of their people, and are loved by them. When the going is good, political leaders don’t denigrate tradition or the holders of traditional offices.

    Third, however, unlike their great grandfathers, many contemporary traditional rulers, having the same benefits of modern education and training as political leaders, but with additional training in traditional governance, are likely to have a better understanding of the needs of their people than some governors.

    Yet there is no denying the reality of our republican constitution which effectively subordinates traditional institutions to the agency of the modern state, and a charge of insubordination is all it takes for an emir to be removed from office. If a governor appoints, a governor could very well depose.

    Is there an alternative reality in which a different development is possible? Could there be a workable combination of monarchy with liberal democracy and each institution respects the other with a smooth working relationship between them? This is not far-fetched. Our colonizers still manage such a system, don’t they? We haven’t heard, at least in recent history, of a Prime Minister of the United Kingdom sending a letter of deposition to a King or Queen of England.

    Couldn’t there be an alternative selection process that insulates the appointment of traditional rulers from governors? Isn’t it possible that tradition selects its rulers and its selection is rubber-stamped by the modern liberal state without the possibility of the latter wielding a power to depose? How?

    In “The Fulani Emirates of Northern Nigeria” (The Geographical Journal, 1904), J. A. Burdon, a former Colonial Officer of the Northern Protectorate, discussed the elaborate and complex process of selecting the Emir of Bida, a process that made the Emir not only well-trained and competent, but also accountable to his people: “…the fundamental principle is the intense veneration of age…..Promotion through the various offices of state up to the highest is a matter of selection based mainly on seniority.”

    Indeed, Burdon suggests a similarity between the Bida tradition and the British systems, comparing the Emir with the Queen, the Council of Princes with the House of Lords, and the Council of Commoners with the House of Commons. The Emir expresses an interest in making an appointment to the Council of Princes. The individual mentioned approaches the Emir with an interest. The Emir publishes this interest and waits for a month to see if the person is acceptable to the people. If that is the case, the appointment is confirmed. If not, the matter is dropped and someone else may be considered.

    This is the beginning of the “apprenticeship” to the emirate. In Burdon’s words: “Through these Council of Princes the future Emir enters the service of the state, climbing the ladder of promotion by force of character, wealth, and public service till he reaches at a ripe age the position of heir-apparent, from which he succeeds by right to the emirate.” At which point, he also appoints his potential heir from the Council of Princes, who will go through the same procedure. The British found this system admirable and they decided to work with it rather than demolish it.

    Nigeria adopted parliamentary democracy from Britain and immediately began to trash its traditional institutions. Listening to Governor Wike of Rivers State in a viral video ridiculing traditional rulers to their face is as pathetic as they get. You have to wonder what cultural values he himself espouses. Admittedly, some traditional rulers have not been particularly mindful of the dignity of their offices and have tarnished the image of the institution. A monarch that engages in a boxing match in public against another monarch has not proved himself worthy of the throne. What cannot be denied is that his appointment was made by the modern state.

    But the case of Sanusi versus Kano State government is especially disturbing for its implications for democratic norms, human rights, and the dignity of traditional institutions. According to the Governor’s office, Sanusi was removed for insubordination and “total disrespect for lawful instructions from the office of the state governor” and for failure to attend state functions. Of course, for every effect, there is a cause, and in this case, there could be more than one cause. But what kind of crime is insubordination?

    Sanusi is a gadfly. He decries procreation without responsibility for offspring. He rails against the Almajiri beggar culture. He condemns elite neglect. He denounces corruption. He is an outspoken critic of government. The Jonathan administration found him an irritant in 2013 and suspended him as Governor of Central Bank. He was harassed by security agents who seized his international passport. It was around that time that he got appointed as Emir. And the fearless critique of government policies didn’t abate.

    For a governor who understands that he is infallible and that criticism comes with the territory, perhaps this would not matter. Either he develops a thick skin or he accepts criticism in good faith and tries to incorporate suggestions of critics in policy reviews. But an intolerant elected official may suffer a bruised ego in the face of any criticism including constructive ones. This is what has just happened.

    Governor Ganduje created new emirates in Kano, ostensibly for effective and balanced development. But not many people buy this innocent rationale. For many, it was to whittle down Sanusi’s power and influence. Sanusi apparently got the message. The state’s charge that he wasn’t attending state functions may have stemmed from this issue. And, of course, it further poisoned the relationship, leading to the final act of the governor wielding the big axe and removing the Emir from office.

    But Sanusi was not only deposed; he was also exiled from Kano to Nassarawa State. And this raises a valid question about the constitutionality of the government’s action. Sure, there are precedents going back to the first republic. But is it right? Can citizens be prevented from exercising their freedom of movement? Can a state law supersede a constitutional provision? Can banishment and exile be administratively imposed?

    The constitution guarantees every citizen the right to move freely and associate freely. It grants them the right to live anywhere in the country as they wish. If the governor has a right to remove Sanusi from the throne, does he also have the right to send him to exile? It appears that this right has always been assumed, and many of the earlier victims have never challenged it. This may be an opportune time to do so.

    Sanusi’s intellect cannot be cowed. As a true Muslim, he has accepted Kano government’s decision as an act of God. He has an exciting life ahead of him. Governor El-Rufai’s courageous offer of an appointment to him shows that Ganduje’s vendetta is not an APC-endorsed action. Who knows what else is there coming to SLS?

     

  • The Irony of Death

    By Femi Abass

    Monologue

    That man proposes while Allah disposes is a permanent norm upon which human life is realistically based. That norm is a natural clockwise phenomenon that cannot be turned anticlockwise by any mortal being. And that is what most faithful Muslims acknowledge as an evidence of destiny.

    The originally proposed contents of this column today are not what you are about to read here. While yours sincerely was trying to weave the web of an article into another vestige of thought for readers, Allah’s disposing will suddenly came to intervene with divine authority. And, thus, the title as well as the contents of today’s article had to be changed as a matter of expediency. That expediency symbolized an authoritatively divine intervention that could neither be altered nor appealed against.

     

    Death, like life, is a   natural phenomenon divinely programmed by the immortal Creator for the mortal beings. Both (life and death) are like the day and the night exchanging baton at specific hours as divinely scheduled. By that schedule, the one never takes the place of the other. And, thus, the rotation of that divinely scheduled process continues ad infinitum.

     

    Throbs of Death

    Very early in the morning of last Saturday, February 29, 2020, the throbs of death suddenly tolled the bell of obituary announcing to the world that a proverbial eclipse had occurred at ‘noon’ prompting a human falcon to fly away while leaving a falconer behind. And by that announcement, most contemporary Muslim activists in Nigeria and abroad came to know that one of them had left the shores of existence without a prior hint.

    That falcon was Barrister Abdus_Salam Oyetunde Abbas who, 24 hours earlier, was heartily alive but not hale.

    He departed this ephemeral world at the solemn hour of about 4.00am. By Hijrah calendar, that morning fell on the fifth day of the month of Rajab, the first leg of the four sacred lunar months that often precede Ramadan annually. Semantically, the Arabic word ‘Rajab’ means respect which is symbolic in the demise of our brother.

    Besides Allah, who could have decreed that Abdus-Salam Abbas would not fast in the coming Ramadan? After all, he had done that conscientiously for about 54 years in the past haven started fasting at the age of about 12 years.

     

    Who was Barrister Tunde Abbas?

    Barrister Abdus-Salam Oyetunde Abbas was one of the grand children of Chief Abbas Abioye, the patriarch of Abbas family and Baale of Afaake in Ejigbo Local Government. Tunde, as I used to call him, was a younger brother to yours sincerely and an elder brother to Professor Wole Abbas (now the Head of the Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies, University of Ibadan), Barrister Kunle Abbas and a host of others (males and females) from Abbas genealogical tree.

     

    Background of his Islamic Activism

    Like yours sincerely, Tunde Abbas was enrolled in a Madrasah in Iwo, Osun State, where the cutting of his teeth in Arabic language began after his elementary school education at Tajudeen Primary School, Ilawo, Ejigbo, in the early 1960s. He then moved to the famous Institute of Arabic and Islamic Studies popularly known as MARKAZ in Agege, Lagos State, from where I had graduated before proceeding to the University of Ibadan for a Certificate Course in Arabic and Islamic Studies.

    Before Tunde graduated from MARKAZ, a strong agitation had tacitly been prompting me to equip my younger brothers and sisters with a rare ornament which our family’s religious tradition had not permitted me to be garlanded with. And that was Western education. During our kid age, our parents would not want to hear of Western education for their children because, to them, that was a euphemism for conversion to Christianity. In those days, it would only be a matter of accident and exceptional luck to see even one out of ten Muslim children enrolled in Western oriented Secondary Schools to remain a Muslim after graduating from those schools despite school fees and other charges paid by their parents from scarce resources. In other words, Muslim parents who desired Western education for their children, at that time, were paying heavily to get those children/wards converted to Christians under the guise of education.

     

    Exposure

    Yours sincerely became exposed to Western education when I got admitted into the University of Ibadan, at about the age of 18 in 1968, following a successful performance in a concessional examination. The background that prepared me for the courage to go for that course was the combination of Modern School Certificate (an equivalence of today’s JSS Certificate), which I already possessed, with that of MARKAZ. And, when the certificate I obtained from UI propelled me to become a proud tutor in a conventional secondary school where I started earning a handsome salary, my eyes became wide opened and I decided not to limit such a unique privilege to myself alone.

     

    Family Tradition

    At that time, the tradition imbibed by our parents was for all children in the family to attend madrasah where they could be thought about the fear of Allah with decent character and the act of worship in the way of Islam to enable them become big Islamic clerics in life. Thus, the so-called western education was to our parents a diversionary aberration from the path of Allah.

     

    Crucial Decision

    Unknown to our parents at home, as soon as Tunde completed his final year examination in MARKAZ, in 1971, I decided to smuggle him into a conventional Secondary School where he could be qualified to obtain the West African School Certificate, an opportunity I never had. I, therefore, approached one brother  Abdur-Rashid Ajani Raji who was then teaching at Nawairud-Deen Grammar School, Obantoko, Abeokuta, for assistance in getting him admitted. But brother Raji thought it was already too late for that year as admission process had closed. He advised that the boy should be represented for admission the following year. But, dissatisfied by that suggestion, I implored brother Raji to please, get my brother admitted into Form II as his starting point in the conventional secondary school. But when brother Raji who was later to become a Professor of Islamic Studies and Chief Imam of the University of Ilorin expressed doubt about  the boy’s  ability to cope, I promptly disclosed to him that Tunde was coming from the great Institution called MARKAZ and that he would surely meet up with any standard set for that level. Brother Raji then reluctantly assisted in getting him admitted into Form II in the belief that if he failed to cope, he could repeat the class. Surprisingly, however, after the first two terms of acclimatization,   Tunde held all his tutors nonplussed by topping the class in virtually all the subjects. Brother Raji was so much impressed that he quickly drew the boy very close to himself as a symbol of pride. From thence, Tunde became the bull’s eye of his class which was targeted by all potential and real rivals. And for the four (instead of five) years he spent in that school he was the enviable model of his set coming first in most subjects. Eventually, he passed his WAEC examination with a Grade I status.

     

    His Higher School Certificate (HSC)

    His Grade I WAEC status was the impetus I needed to get him admitted for HSC at Ahmadiyya College, Agege, where I was then teaching Arabic and Islamic Studies. And, despite the strictness in that school’s admission process, it hardly took me 10 minutes of waiting to get my brother admitted on merit in that first Muslim Secondary School in West Africa that was established in 1948. And luckily for me, the boy lived delightfully up to my expectation by displaying the real MARAKAZI in him. He finally graduated from that school with an academic wreath of honour by scoring A in two of his principal subjects and B in two others. But by the time he was preparing for his final HSC examination in 1976, I had succeeded in securing admission with scholarship for myself to study in a tertiary institution abroad. I had to hand Tunde over to some trusted Muslim brothers (the Akangbes from Oyo Alaafin), who were my bosom friends, when I had to vacate the one room apartment in which I was living with the boy. Thus, my supervision of his educational progress and that of others in the family became a matter of frequent instructions dished out through letters from abroad.

     

    Tertiary Education

    By the time I came home on holiday in 1977, Tunde had got the results of his HSC examination and sought and got admission OFFERS into four different Universities. Those were the days before the establishment of JAMB. The Universities to which he applied for admission were: University of Ibadan where he was offered admission to read Philosophy; the University of Lagos where he was offered admission to read Law; the University of Ife where he was offered admission to read Political Science and the University of Benin where he was offered admission to read English. Seeing those results and admission offers with unlimited gladness, I asked my brother to name his choice of course to study and he proudly mentioned Philosophy. When I asked him for his reason he said apart from the fact that UI was the Premier University in Nigeria, he preferred Philosophy as a course because of the bewildering pronunciation of its name: ‘PHILOSOPHY!’.

     

    Ordered to Read Law

    Following that conversation, I ordered my brother to go and accept the UNILAG admission offer for Law because we would need a lawyer in our family. But, for the first time ever, my brother disagreed with me on the argument that our parents at home must not hear of his pursuit of a Law degree in the University. However, I promptly debunked his argument by reminding him that our parents never knew that he (Tunde) attended a secondary school in the first place because all they knew was that all of us were still in madrasahs. What I did to see him through the conventional secondary school at that time was to use the Madrasah fees (coming from our parents) to settle the charges in the convention secondary school. But when I noticed reluctance in my brother on my choice of a course for him, I decided to follow him physically to UNILAG to ensure that he complied with my guiding order. I had to ensure that he completed the process of registration in the Law Faculty at UNILAG before I returned abroad. That was how Tunde became the first child from Abbas family not only to obtain WAEC and HSC but also to obtain a degree in Law. Alhamdu Lillah! Today, our family has about 10 lawyers among the grandchildren and great grandchildren of Abbas Abioye, an achievement that turned that family into a cynosure of awe and admiration in the entire Local Government. And there is hardly any other beneficial profession in which our own children are not well grounded.

     

    Human Life

    Human life is a pilgrimage from the unknown to the unknown. No one knows whence he emanated or whither he is bound. The process by which man evolves is a special tapestry which size and shape cannot be measured in whatever term. As humans, all we know about life is that we are on a journey which naturally conveys us through series of coffins before arriving in the puzzling transit which we globally call the world. This means that the loins of our fathers are a coffin. The wombs of our mothers are a coffin. And the larger transit called the world which some people take as their final destination is a coffin. When we are in a car, a bus, a train, a ship or an aircraft, we hardly remember that we are in a coffin. Each of these coffins is a transit leading to another.

     

    Process of Human Journey

    For a period, we were in our fathers’ natural loins where we struggled for space and for survival. And in the attempt to shoot out through the iron gate of life we suddenly found ourselves, albeit unconsciously, as molecules swimming in the midst of billions of others in the name of spermatozoa. At that stage, human beings can be compared to fingerlings, in their millions, struggling to become juveniles in an   aquatic pond before growing into various sizes of fish. Those in the fishery sector are in a better position to understand that analogy.

     

    The World of Man

    The world of man is like a cloud moving forwards and backwards from time to time and gathering momentum for a paradoxical rain that could fall at any time and in any place. After the dispersal of that cloud, one of two occurrences becomes experienced. Either the rain falls to give the earth a renewed life or there is no rain at all. In the latter case, the sky becomes clearer as fresh air renews the oxygen of the world. Who can fault that natural phenomenal process?

    Human beings in their multitudes are like a galaxy of stars which float incessantly in the orbit while jointly illuminating the spheres. Some of those stars are by far larger than the earth. But because of their distance from the human sights, they look small. Some are moderate in size while some are actually small. Consequently, each functions according to its pre-destined assignment. ALLAH AKBAR!

     

    Classified in Greatness

    As it is with the stars so it is with human beings. Some are great in life and in death. Some are great only while alive but as soon as they are demised, their greatness becomes like a dispersed cloud paving the way for a clearer atmosphere. Some function positively. Some function negatively. Some cannot be placed at all with regards to their functions. And after they might have all departed this world history takes the centre stage revealing both the hidden and the manifest aspects of their lives individually. And from such revelations, those left behind pick the relevant substances that can positively aid the continuation of their own lives.

     

    Philosophy of Life

    Perhaps no Nigerian intellectual of contemporary time has ever captured the above painted scenario so philosophically as did by Nigeria’s first President, Dr. Benjamin Nnamdi Azikiwe. In the introduction to his autobiography ‘MY ODYSSEY’, published in 1970, he observed as follows:

    “…Man comes into the world and while he lives, he embarks upon a series of activities absorbing experience which enables him to formulate a philosophy of life and to chart his courses of action. But then, he dies. Nevertheless, his biography remains a guide to those of the living who may need guidance either as a warning on the vanity of human wishes or as encouragement or both…”. In what way can this seemingly axiomatic observation be faulted?

     

    News of Death

    News of death can never be shocking to those who believe in Allah; His Angels; His Revealed Books; His Apostles, the Last Day and Destiny. We have been taught repeatedly in the Qur’an that “every soul shall taste of death”. But neither the Qur’an nor any other revealed book has told us when and how. Now that Abdus-Salam Oyetunde Abbas has moved a step ahead of us in the pilgrimage of life, we are duty bound to pay him a debt which we all owe him. And, that debt is DU‘AU. But whether we pay it or not, we shall all join him some day just as he has joined those who preceded him on that unavoidable journey.

    Now, having gone to the world beyond ours, tunde’s life has become a chapter in history. And from that chapter, those of us who are still alive can cultivate clauses of guidance or those of encouragement or even those of warning against the vanity of human wishes.

     

    Inevitable Alternative

    To many people in Nigeria and abroad who, out of sheer ignorance, see death as an intruder, Tunde Abbas’ death might have come as “a rude shock”. But to genuine Muslims who understand their religion very well and know that death is an inevitable alternative to life, it couldn’t have been a shocker. Such Muslims know that death will come to lay its icy hand on man when it is time divinely scheduled for it and that every Muslim should prepare for it. When man’s time to die comes, no one can save him from the scourge of death. And no one can die for another. Just as we came into the world one by one and no one eats or defecates or sleeps for another so will no one help another to bear the scourging effect of death. Every soul, according to the divine programme of Allah, the Immortal Creator and Sustainer of all lives, shall bear his burden and face the consequences of his earthly actions. Wealth, position and fame are no barrier to death. Children may die while their parents remain alive. The healthy may die while the sick remains in coma. The wealthy may die while the poor keeps begging for daily meal. Death, the leveller of mankind, will come when it will come.

     

    Who will not die?

    Adam, the primogenitor of man who came into the world without a father or a mother died. Hawau, the first created woman who came into the world without a mother died. Prophet Isa (Jesua) who came into the world without a father is no more. All men and women born of fathers and mothers who had sojourned at one time or another in this world before us had fallen prey to the icy hand of death. All the Apostles of Allah dispatched to the world to guide mankind died. Who then is that mortal being that will escape the dragnet of death?

     

    Attribute of Destiny

    Death is an attribute of destiny. An Arab poet once said about death in a famous stanza thus:

    “Whoever does not die by sword will surely die by another means; the causes of death are many but death itself is only one”.

    Today, like billions or even trillions of mortal beings who had passed through this world before him, Barriater Abdus-Salam Oyetunde Abbas, the husband of Hajiya Muibat Omobolanle (nee Sanni) Abbas is no more. One of the known characteristics of death is to change the name and status of its prey and those around him. That is why Hajiya Muibat is now a widow while her children have become orphans.

     

    Particles of Hiatory

    Now, after Tunde’s demise, all other things about him are particles of history. But from those particles of history is a lesson to learn by those who are succeeding him in private and public lives.

    We pray the Almighty Allah to grant his soul the divine mercy of forgiveness and blessings while He preserves that soul in eternal bliss. We also pray Him to imbue his wife, children and larger families on both sides with the needed fortitude to surge ahead in life without rancour. Amin!

     

    APPRECIATION

    In our peregrinations on earth as human beings, some of us live meaningfully in associations. Some others live meaninglessly in isolation. Each of these has an indelible mark on the rock of life. For those who live in associations, there are times to look back with appreciation of the individuals’ roles in forming and building the associations that bind us together. The same cannot be said of those who live in isolation.

    Despite the short notice that the announcement of the demise and internment of our son/brother, Barrister Abdus-Salam Oyetunde Abbas, took last Saturday, February 29, 2020, you all left your scheduled programmes and turned up in droves from all walks of life and from all parts of the country to play your roles as Muslim brothers and sisters in bidding one of you auravoire forever. You paid your last respect to him in awe on the platform of Farduk-Kifayah and that of Sunnah. Those of you abroad or far away from Lagos, where he was buried,   either called passionately by phones or sent messages online to commiserate with his family.

    That was a confirmation of the meaningfulness of living in associations. It was also an evidence of building a formidable foundation of Muslim Ummah today for propelling Islam to higher pedestal tomorrow.

    Mere expression of theoretical appreciation without practical gratitude by which to live in common as a community cannot serve as a measure of accorded esteem.

    It is on this premise that the entire family of ABBAS hereby says THANK YOU ALL for standing by us at that moment of agony.

    We pray the Almighty Allah not to make our reciprocation of this sorrowful gesture a repetition of agony or that of sadness.

    God bless, guide and stand by you all in all circumstances of life. Amin!

  • Remembering a consistent federalist

    Remembering a consistent federalist

    By Segun Gbadegesin

    On Wednesday morning, as I contemplated my choice of topic for today, my friend called. This time he was a serious thinker, the complete opposite of the joker image that he almost always presented. He wanted to congratulate me in advance of the birthday of my son, Ademola, which comes up today.

    Of course, Opalaba didn’t forget. He was there with my father on the eighth day naming ceremony in panic mode awaiting my arrival from Ife, while my wife, fully engaged by the baby, put her faith in God. I arrived late because I had a morning class that I couldn’t afford to skip. I thanked my friend for the memories. And I thank God for my son’s achievements over the years and for his successes.

    Then, announcing himself as “your aide-memoire this week”, as if I needed one, my friend, with excitement, also reminded me that my son and our idol share a birthday.  “Remember the avatar himself has his 111th posthumous birthday coming up on Friday? That’s a significant number”, my friend added. “Sure, I replied enthusiastically. Too bad Baba left us as orphans before we reached the age of maturity.” “Too bad”, Opalaba intoned, and I could feel the sadness gushing out from the receiver.

    “Oh, and there is another birthday this week”, my friend announced as he overcame his emotion. “Oh yeah? Whose?” I asked. “The other Baba of course! Don’t tell me you don’t know that General Obasanjo turns 83 on Thursday.” “Oh, how nice! I wish the other Baba many happy returns”, I replied.

    “That doesn’t sound enthusiastic”, Opalaba challenged me. “We should give the old man a break. After all, he is now all over the place preaching the gospel of true federalism which Chief Awolowo preached and acted upon his entire life, and for which he was vilified by Obasanjo and others. I see his new role as that of a repentant unitarist now in league with true federalists. What else do you want?”

    “I am glad that you accept that he was a uniformist before he is a federalist, and that he was against restructuring before he was for it. I like a consistent federalist better. I like better those who don’t shy away from what they know is right no matter what the consequence is. I like those with unshaken principles even when they understood it would cost them their life-time ambition. By gosh, I like better the one who paid the price of principled consistency when others conspired against him.”

    Opalaba was silent, a signal that he wanted me to continue.

    “Look at it this way,” I requested. The British colonizers of Nigeria were unitarists. They preferred to rule Nigeria as a unitary system. Awolowo confronted them with a thoughtful position that objectively analyzed the fact that Nigeria is a conglomeration of diverse nationalities; and as such, federalism is the best approach to its governance. He never abandoned this position even when he was its only advocate. So-called nationalists mocked him as a tribalist. Later, they all came back to embrace his position.

    “But who were the “basejes” and spoilers that destroyed the federal structure? It was the military government starting in January 1966. If we concede that due to its hierarchical system of authority, military governors had to take orders from their superiors at the center, what they did was understandable. But it shouldn’t excuse their imposing the same system on the civilian administration on the eve of their (military) return to the barracks in 1979. But that was what they did.

    “Again, however, the civilian administration that took over in 1979 had every responsibility to review the constitution that the military handed over to them. They didn’t. Instead they took it, and advanced it with the introduction of Presidential Liaison Officers which institutionalized federal presence in the states. And, of course, the military returned with a vengeance in 1984.

    “Fast forward to 1999, and another unitary constitution was imposed on the country. This time, the beneficiary was General Obasanjo who gladly ran with it with a heavy hand. Remember Odi. Remember the impeachments of Ladoja, Fayose, Dariye, and Alamieyeseigha. And the emergency declarations. Remember the shoot at sight order on OPC. And please recall the hounding of late Dr. Fasehun, the leader of the organization.

    “If you effectively wielded the weapon of unitarism for eight years and you didn’t see anything wrong with it, I have the right, and indeed, the duty, to be skeptical of your new gospel of federalism and restructuring.

    “Let us assume that the stress of office and the commitment to get things done for the country may have clouded the vision of the former president. But ten years after his presidency in February 2017, he mercilessly mocked Jonathan’s national conference as a distraction and proudly confessed that he did not read the report. Then, in January 2018, we began to see a shift in outlook. From seeing those who sought restructuring as greedy politicians, he now sees risks of division without renegotiation of the country’s unity and listening to the complaints of ethnic nationalities.

    “In his March 1 address at the first memorial lecture in honor of Dr. Frederick Fasehun, the former president recalled that true federalism was the agitation when he was in power but that it has now morphed to restructuring, and he advised President Buhari not to let the agitation advance to self-determination struggle. It was a good advice. What I didn’t see from media reports was a sense of regret, if not apology, to Nigerians for why he didn’t accede to the demand for a true federal system when he had the power of say so.

    “That takes me to the question of the difference, if any, between true federalism and restructuring. This is important to clarify because many have mischievously dismissed the demand for restructuring on the ground that it’s a vague concept, or that the agitators don’t really know what they want, or that there are varieties of views on the matter and, therefore, the demand lacks merit.

    “Simply put, one is a means to the other. The goal is true federalism. The demand is for the political system of the country to be restructured from its present unitary slant to a true federal structure. We wouldn’t need restructuring if we had not deviated from the original federal structure at independence.

    “As Professor Ladipo Adamolekun reminds us in an insightful article for Publius in 2005, the first phase of Nigerian post-independence system was “an apprenticeship to true federalism phase (1954-65)”. This was followed by a “federal dominance phase under military rule (1966-79 and 1984-1999)” and “a muddling through phase under civilian rule (1979-83 and 1999 to date).” Even though Adamolekun characterized the first phase as an apprenticeship phase, it was very clear that the country and its leaders were good apprentices who quickly learned the trick of the trade to the benefit of the nation.

    “The true federalism phase was “characterised by political devolution and intergovernmental competition, during which regional governments recorded tangible results.” This is the result that every advocate of restructuring of our present unitary or “muddling through” system has been urging: tangible results.

    “What is vague about this? It was a time when regional governments paid workers salaries without approaching the federal government cap in hand. It was a time when internal security was handled effectively. It was a time when development projects beautified the landscape of various regions and local communities. What we have now is “military federalism” which once catered for the need of the military, but which civilian administrations since 1999 have shamelessly adopted.

    “Some might think that it serves their personal or section interests to keep military federalism as the governing philosophy of the country. What is clear, however, is that it will not endure. Hopefully, the Constitution Review Committee of NASS sees the big picture as Awolowo and the Founding Fathers did. Whether it can act in the interest of the nation as Awolowo did is a different matter.

    Happy 111th posthumous birthday to Chief Awolowo, epitome of courage and vision.

  • The end times

    The end times

    Segun Gbadegesin

     

    EARLY morning mid-week, my phone rang. The caller ID showed “out of Area”. I had no idea who was on the other end.  I answered courteous” “Hello, Good morning.”

    “Hello there, Old Chum. Have you prepared yourself for the final end?” the caller replied. Of course, I couldn’t miss my friend’s voice. But it has been a while, and this was only his second call this year. I couldn’t also sincerely be surprised what my friend may be up to any time. But asking if I was prepared for the end was, even for him, a new level of craziness.

    “Excuse me?” I feigned ignorance of who was on the line. “Are you sure you have the right number?”

    “Of course, how can I not see this coming” he snapped. “Asking you if you are prepared for the final end suddenly ignited your loss of memory and you now can’t figure out who the hell is on the line. Truth is bitter. But if you are still behind in your work of faith, you had better gotten yourself together. These are not good times. These are end times.”

    “My Father and my God, I just prayed for peace and joy a moment ago. Is this how you answer a loving child’s prayer of faith?” I muttered incoherently to myself. But I couldn’t let Opalaba spoil my day.

    “Good morning my friend. But I am wondering what this is all about, and what side of the bed you got up from this morning. But if you must have an answer to your question, it is simply that you are in the least position to question the preparedness of anyone for the end. You have a big log in your eyes which you are well-advised to remove before worrying about me. I’ll be alright when the time comes. Thank you.”

    Thirty seconds passed before Opalaba found his voice. “Look, I am tired” he intoned. Are you following the news, both domestic and foreign? Have you ever experienced a time such as this? How else can I wrap my head around it than think of the end of time? As for me, I am now ready, and I am just trying to get my best friend in shape.”

    I cannot pretend ignorance about what troubles my friend’s mind. But I wanted to push him further.

    “So, let me get this right. You are tired of the news coming from domestic and foreign sources and in your tired mind, end time is the logical thought. I agree that you are tired. But what comes logically with tiredness is clumsy thinking. You are getting crazier and you need help. Your expertise in internal medicine will not help here.”

    My friend flew into a rage. “Really? You must be thankful for the ocean that is between us. Otherwise, my craziness would be effectively confirmed in an instant.”

    “Alright, my good friend. Tell me more about these news that signal the end times for you.” They can’t be that frightening, are they really?

    “Now, we’re talking”, Opalaba excitedly replied.

    “Look here, my friend, you and I were in Sunbeam Department. We were in Sunday School and CTU. We were taught about the end of times. Nations will rise against nations. There will be increase in natural disasters. False prophets will arise who “through covetousness shall with feigned words make merchandise of you…” (2 Peter 2: 3). There will be increase in materialism. In general, the last days will be perilous as Apostle Paul warned Timothy in 2 Timothy 3:1-4. You know all these are happening now, don’t you?

    “Yes, I know”, I confessed, to my friend’s delight.  “But I am yet to see what is new here. Everything that you just highlighted has occurred repeatedly in the last 2,000 years since the predictions were first pronounced. Yet, the world as we know it has not ended!” What is new?

    “You have a point there”, Opalaba responded. And I have just the news that you crave right here in motherland. If these things I am about to reveal don’t confirm the coming of the end to you, nothing will.”

    “I am all ears” my good friend.”

    “Look, the north is not monolithic after all! Opalaba roared into the handset. “That tells me that Nigeria is making progress and coalitions of like-minded citizens will continue to emerge with strength to create elite consensus for durable democracy.

    “First, security across the nation has been a divisive issue. But the times, they are a-changing!  As you know, Arewa Youth Consultative Forum commended the Southwest for the Amotekun initiative. It then announced its own outfit, Shege Ka Fasa. But the Sultan of Sokoto strongly objected to the initiative. And Alhaji Yerima, the President of the forum wasn’t in the least impressed. He accused Northern leaders of not coming up with effective solution to the security problem but would attack those who try.

    “What is more encouraging is the endorsement of Amotekun in the Southwest by Miyeti Allah (MACBAN) whose members showed up at the various public hearings on the initiative. Apparently, the Association has realized that the security outfit is in their interest, and they see how the initiative has strengthened the unity of Yoruba people across religious and partisan divides, leaving no cracks for any invading lizards to penetrate.

    “On the political boiling pot of 2023 presidency, Yerima’s Forum has also put its feet down. Left to them, the North must retain the Presidency and must not give an inch to the south. But a serious North Eastern Youth Mobilisation Congress has publicly and excitedly expressed its support for power rotation to the South in 2023. And did you not hear Governor Malam Nassir El-Rufai’s conscientious emphasis on fairness and justice in a recent interview? For him, the North will honor the general consensus in Nigeria that “the Presidency should rotate between the North and the South.” That is Mallam El-Rufai!

    “Do you need further evidence that the end times are knocking on our national entrance door?”

    “Indeed, I am now more convinced than before that you need a psychiatric evaluation”, I shot back.

    “Wait, there is more”, Opalaba responded without emotion.

    “I know you are an old man. Of course, I am older. But have you ever seen anything like our present election fiasco? The highest Court of the land is being petitioned to self-review and self-indict. Yes, I anticipate your response: ‘What is wrong about reviewing a wrong judgment? The 12 2/3 judgment of 1979 should have been reviewed.’ That is the difference, my friend. The Justices of 1979 were bold in their wrong decision. They refused to be cowed by better argument and they reveled in the injustice of their verdict. There was no self-review. They only denied making that judgment a precedent.

    “Now we have Imo and Bayelsa judgments queuing for review while the Presidential election verdict is eagerly waiting for its turn. By the time we are done, every election case that ever came before the Supreme Court would be up for review. I want a revisit of the 1979 case. And please don’t ever think that since the two contestants are resting in the Lord, there is no interested party. I am an interested party!

    “If these political and judicial news from the homeland don’t suggest to you the end times, I have more, this time from our blessed USA. Do you know that socialism is alive and well, and winning in the heartland of capitalist democracy? Senator Sanders of the “Bernie Bros” fame is leading in delegates count. He just solidified his popularity among millennials and minorities with his Nevada victory, baffling the Democratic establishment. You know what our good old uncle would say: Trump’s spell is working.

    “There are a few lesser signs, if you want to know. With pestilence such as coronavirus in China, locust invasion in East Africa, Saudi Arabia and Yemen, Lassa fever in dear country, and the disaster that was Dow this past Monday, Lord, make it end soon. I am ready. Are you?”

    “No, my friend! Too much thinking is running you crazy!”

     

     

  • The Strange Boko Haram Scandal

    The Strange Boko Haram Scandal

    FEMI ABBAS ON

     

    Besides truth which is generally hated for its bitter taste, two other major phenomena of life are taken for granted by virtually all human beings. One is privacy which is natural and of necessity.

    The other is secrecy which is artificial and devilish. Professional journalists often report the one with caution and the other with passionate disdain. Thus, while privacy enjoys the protection of the law, secrecy often   incurs the wrath of the law.

    That is why any attempt to pry into other people’s private lives is often described as an invasion of privacy. In a nutshell, every secret tends to be a CAN of dangerous worms that is ardently guarded against exposure by its custodians.

     

    The Boko Haram Carnage

    The above assertion is now vividly applicable to the evil carnage called Boko Haram in Nigeria which has become a frightening specter chasing most citizens towards unplanned different directions.

    The current restive situation in the country which makes the continuity of the entity called Nigeria seemingly uncertain is a confirmation of an Arab predictive maxim rendered into a remarkable poem many centuries ago. The poem went thus:

    “This is the period which we had been warned against in the admonitions of Ubayyi Bn Ka’b and Abdullah Bn Mas’ud; a period in which truth is to be rejected in its totality while falsehood and evil machinations are to be mischievously held aloft; should this period be allowed to linger ahead without check, it may reach a situation in which there will be no   mourning over the death of beloved persons and no rejoice over the birth of new babies”.

     

    Shocking Revelations

    In August 2014, an Australian expert in international negotiation, Dr. Stephen Davis, made a landmark revelation about Boko Haram and its sponsors on a popular television station in London.

    The then 63 year old expert who was allegedly contracted officially by Nigerian government under President Goodluck Jonathan, to negotiate with Boko Haram on the release of about 276 school girls abducted by Boko Haram vandals in Chibok, Bornu State, decided to blow the whistle when his mission in Nigeria was frustrated.

    It will be recalled that the innocent Chibock girls were abducted in their school premises on April 14, 2014. And on the following day, (April 15, 2014), some heartless evil agents believed to be of the same devilish group bombed the crowded Nyanyan motor park in Abuja killing 77 innocent citizens in ‘hot blood’.

     

    Whistle Blowing

    Dr. Stephen Davis, a former Cardinal of the Anglican Church, decided to blow the whistle on discovering that his contracted mission had become terminated when he met a brick wall.

    Advancing his reason for coming up with the revelation, Dr. Davis, a father of three children (all girls) said he could not imagine any of his children going through the agony to which the abducted Chibok girls were subjected by the Boko Haram insurgents.

    He said that parental feeling was one of the reasons for him to accept the negotiation contract in the first instance.

    (Let us accept that reason for the purpose of argument). Following the failure of his mission, Dr. Davis regretted the length of time which the innocent Chibock girl   spent unnecessarily in the devil’s gulag and blamed it on the initial lackadaisical attitude of the then government to that dangerous trend.

     

    His Narrative

    In his narrative, Dr. Davis who had by then spent about four months in Nigeria pursuing the sensitively dangerous assignment disclosed that his frustration began when his rescue assignment was truncated about 15 minutes before realization in April that year.

    He gave a vivid narration of what transpired between him and the insurgents saying he would have succeeded in rescuing the first batch of 60 among those girls in December that year if Boko Haram had been united in one camp as the situation later became.

    But, according to him, Boko Haram at that time was divided into three uncoordinated camps each struggling to display supremacy by assuming the leadership of the group based on the its strength of power gained through funding and supply of weapons.

     

    Completion of Negotiation

    By his narration, Dr. Davis had completed his negotiation with one of the Boko Haram camps and had reached a final agreement on releasing the first batch of 60 girls in the custody of that camp. But, according to him,   just about 15 minutes before the release, another camp fortuitously stormed the place where the girls were kept and wielded them away.

    His thought at that stage was that he would commence a new negotiation process with the invading camp that high- jacked the girls with the intention of benefitting from any involved ransom.

    But when the situation became quite foggy   Dr. Davis gave up the hope of any success in his mission and left the country with a hint to the government that no such mission could succeed unless the sponsors of the Boko Haram insurgency were arrested and tried with a view to cutting off the source of funding the group.

    It was shortly after he left Nigeria that those different camps united into a single camp under a single leadership. And that is what gave it the power to dare the Nigerian troops and acquire some territories designated as Caliphate.

     

    The Scandalous Conundrum

    In what may be termed a puzzling development, Dr. Davis alleged that the group’s funding suddenly and surprisingly began to pass largely through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) which technically made it a legitimate transaction since it could evade any suspicion.

    He asserted that some politicians and military men were solidly behind the extremely dangerous insurgency group called Boko Haram in the Northeast of Nigeria. He even mentioned some names including those of a former Governor and a former Chief of Army Staff as forces behind it.

    However, an interesting aspect of his disclosure was the exoneration of a then Presidential aspirant, General Muhammad Buhari and a former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai.  Before that revelation, the duo had been labeled the godfathers of Boko Haram by fellow politicians of the opposition camp.

    According to Dr. Davis, one of the biggest suppliers of arms and military uniforms to Boko Haram was a Nigerian big shot who lived in Egypt and received money sent by political sponsors from Nigeria. He emphasized that the legal transaction of the funds was carried out with the help of the CBN.

     

    The powerful cartel

    Dr. Davis who holds a PhD in political geography believed that “the political sponsors of Boko Haram were very powerful because they supplied finances and arms to the group.

    And, analyzing the situation of the kidnapped girls in Chibak, he said: “We are talking of about 200 Chibock schoolgirls, but there are over 300 other girls that have been kidnapped. There are many young men that they also kidnapped and turned against their families.

    They asked them to go and slaughter their family members and they are doing it. Nobody is talking about those ones. They are the new child soldiers.”

    The expert mentioned repeatedly that the first thing to do to enable the release of the abducted children was “to stop the ‘bagman’ who supplies weapons and military uniforms.

    “We know his name, location and associates. If the man is stopped, the slaughterers and the ritual arm of the group would be demobilized. The girls can be released afterwards. This man controls those ritualists.”

    If the above narrative is considered startling, then one can imagine the revelation that he (Dr. Davis) had hinted Nigerian government about concerning the involvement of a cabinet Minister, some years back, when a former President was in the saddle.

    He said he hinted that former President that a particular Minister from the South-South in his cabinet was involved in the funding of Boko Haram and he advised him to investigate the man, get him arrested and tried in a court of law”.

    But, according to Dr. Davis, the ex-President rejected the advice on the excuse that such a trial could bring down his government.

     

    Genesis of Boko Haram

    It would be recalled that ‘Boko Haram’ is not the actual name of the group that is now bedeviling Nigeria in the guise of religion. Its real name is ‘Jam’atu Ahlis-Sunnah Lid-Da’wah wal Jihad’ meaning: ‘Sunnah Congregation for Preaching and Strife’.

    The Group became known as Boko Haram because of its condemnation of Western education which it claimed to be the main cause of corruption in Nigeria.

    The name Boko Haram (meaning Western education is prohibited) was given to the group by members of the public who were amazed by its strange preaching.

    Founded as a splinter fundamentalist Sunni group in 2002, the first leader of the group was Muhammad Yusuf, a Yobe-born cleric who resided in Maiduguri, Bornu State, where the dreaded Islamic group was founded.

    For the first seven years of its existence, Boko Haram was peaceful and forthright in its clerical activities except that it did not enjoy the cooperation of some other Islamic organizations in the region due to its method of preaching which was considered abhorrent to genuine Islamic propagation.

    Its violence tendency began in July 2009 when it had an encounter with Nigeria Police. Due to frequent complaints about the preaching methodology of the group, the Nigerian security agents began to monitor it with an eye of suspicion.

    And on a particular occasion when the group was returning from a cemetery where it went to bury the remains of one of its members who just died, its other members who went for the funeral were accosted by Policemen who accused them of staging a public procession without official permit.

    Some members of the group, including their leader, (Muhammad Yusuf) were arrested and taken to police custody where that was shot dead by the Police in cold blood. The spontaneous reaction of the other members of the group led to the killing of about 700 of them by the Police.

    Ever since, there has not been any respite in the relationship of Boko Haram and the Nigerian Police. And with the death of Yusuf, his deputy, Abu Muhammad Abubakar Bn Muhammad Al Sheikawi who adopted a disguising name of Ibrahim Shekau, assumed the leadership of the group.

    And under his leadership, the group furiously intensified its violent ideology by heartlessly killing and maiming innocent lives and destroying all factors of progress in the North-eastern part of the country.

     

    Negotiation or Amnesty

    It was for the purpose of stopping that spate of destruction that some concerned Nigerians severally called for negotiation and possible amnesty for the insurgents. But some elements who have vested interest in a hidden agenda felt otherwise and the then President accepted their opinion. Today, we can all see the result.

    If President Jonathan’s regime had adopted the late President Yar’Adua’s method of amnesty, perhaps the situation would not have reached the current terrible stage and so many lives would not have been lost.

    The alternative to that option which the government also rejected is reintroduction of death penalty for hardened criminals.

    The rejection of both options by the government can only be tantamount to subjecting innocent Nigerian citizens to mass murder or mass expulsion from their homes. And these may have unpardonable consequences for the future generations of Nigerians.

     

    Security System

    If Dr. Davis’ revelations reported above are found shocking, those who are familiar with Nigerian security system will discover more shocking news in the fact that the last time that Nigeria really upgraded her military arsenal was 1982 when President Sheu Aliyu Uthman Shagari was in power according to privileged information.

    And if this is true what has been happening to Nigeria’s annual defence huge budgets for the past 37 years should raise a fundamental question.

     

    With a Hindsight

    Since 2011, Boko Haram has consistently maintained a steady spate of attacks striking a wide range of targets. Its trained agents have attacked not only politicians, religious leaders, security forces, traditional rulers but much more innocent civilian.

    The tactics of suicide bombings adopted in the two major attacks in the federal capital territory on the police and UN Headquarters was new to Nigerian security and alien to the familiar mercenary culture in the West African sub-region. In Africa as a whole, it was only in Somalia that such tactics had been used by As- Shabbab and that was to a far lesser extent.

    And since early 2013, Boko Haram has increasingly operated in Northern Cameroon as an extension of its skirmishes along that country’s borders with Chad and Niger. Such operations have been linked to a number of kidnappings, sometimes reported in association with a splinter group called Ansaru, thereby drawing wider international attention to them.

     

    Questions

    With the above revelations coming from a Federal Government’s contracted expert why has the government not swung into action? And with the current situation in which Boko Haram seems to be waxing stronger, what next is in the plan of the Nigerian government for taming that monstrous shrewd?

     

    Comment

    As for those who refuse to accept the fact that crime has no religion but continue to link insecurity in Nigeria to religion in a situation where it is difficult to distinguish between Muslim and Christian Boko Haram, it is just a matter of time for them to see what the backlash will be. But it must be remembered that any society which refuses to accept religion as a potent antidote for social and spiritual poison is surely heading for doom. God save Nigeria!

     

  • Aare Arisekola’s Twin Brother

    By Femi Abass

    A newspaper or magazine columnist of worth is an incubator of dilemma. This is because column writing is like pregnancy in the womb of an expectant mother. Just as such a pregnant woman feels uncomfortable until she is successfully delivered of the baby in her womb so does a columnist remain restless until his column has reached public domain. The more a columnist thinks of an issue to write about, the more other issues throw themselves torrentially at him for choice in a competitive manner. And in that melee, the tendency is for him to fall into a dilemma or even confusion.  That confirms that the problem of a worthy columnist is not a dearth of ideas but a deluge of them. Thus, if    today’s article did not appear in this column last Friday as expected by many readers, understanding should be their recourse.

    Preamble

    This article ought to have been published in this column last Friday with a different entitle. But the expediency at the time of its writing preferred a more befitting title as found here.

     

    Reminiscence

    Six years ago (2014), an iconic Southwest Muslim leader, Aare Abdul Azeez Arisekola Alao fortuitously embarked on a journey of no return. The global media waves throbbed with the breaking news of his demise on June 18, 2014. Ever since, his ephemeral sojourn on this earth for about 69 years has become a subject of positive or negative comments among friends and foes respectively. But one major fact that is often over- sighted about this icon is the role of his twin brother in his lifestyle.

     

    Who was his twin brother?

    Very few people knew that the late Aare Arisekola-Alao had a twin brother that was inseparable from him. And those who knew that fact either took it for granted or did not duly acknowledge it. Like most human beings who were born with placenta, this colossus was not born into the world all alone. But unlike others, he was intimately accompanied by an invisible child. That invisible child was an abstract entity called HUMILITY which Aare personified passionately throughout his life.

    When alive, Aare Arisekola was like the sun. Whenever it bulged out of the orbit with the magnificence of its rays, no star could dare attempt to rise. And when he eventually bowed to the will of destiny by bidding life bye, the entire world was forced to chorus the lamentations of a rare eclipse.

     

    Distinguishing factor

    In his lifetime, Aare Arisekola was not the only moneybag in the Southwest of Nigeria. What clearly distinguished him from most of his peers was his second twin (humility) which never parted with him even when he was mournfully lowered into his grave. Like a famous actor, Aare Arisekola left the stage when the ovation was loudest. But he did not forget to leave behind a legacy that could not be inherited by any fair weather charlatan. Today, anybody may aspire to be like Aare Arisekola-Alao as a matter of nomenclature or yeran to gain his God’s endowed fame, but no one has proved to be a possessor of the wherewithal with which to wear the obviously oversized shoes left behind by the colossus. By all standards, Aare Arisekola was as great in death as he was alive. At least, his humility ensured that. Perhaps that is why the world continues to chorus amen while prayers to the Almighty Allah to repose his soul in perfect, eternal bliss continue in certain quarters.

     

     A tripod of fortune

    Following the announcement of Aare  Arisekola’s demise six years ago, this columnist published a tribute on him that may for long remain indelible in the memories of his family members and those of his associates. That tribute was entitled ‘Sunset @ Noon’. And an excerpt from it went thus:

    “…..Before now, there were three great Muslim philanthropists in the Southwest of Nigeria who were jointly called ‘a tripod of fortune’. Each of them had a national tentacle that formed a formidable fortress against the poisonous arrows of poverty in the land. But with time, they started leaving the stage one by one. First to go was Bashorun Moshood Kasimawo Olawale (MKO) Abiola, the Baba Adini of Yoruba land. He was a man often described as ‘larger than life’. His exit was followed by that of the quiet, easy going but kind-hearted Chief (Dr.) Wahab Iyanda Folawiyo, CON, the Baba Adini ‘of Nigeria’. Both of them left behind a very big vacuum that kept most Muslims wondering if there could be any replacement for them.

    But surprisingly, Aare Arisekola-Alao, the third but anchor leg of the tripod, took up the challenge and courageously combined the vacuums left behind by the duo of Abiola and Folawiyo with that of his own. He extended his philanthropic tentacles to areas hitherto covered by his two former colleagues so much that most people hardly remembered that there was once a tripod.

     

    Philanthropy

    Like Abiola and Folawiyo, Aare Arisekola was a stupendous philanthropist with an ever open hand that knew no boundaries of tribe, age, gender or creed. His generosity was legendry and unlimited. And he was never tired of giving the same individuals or groups of people repeatedly. At least, his fervent belief in the Hadith of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) which says that “an upper hand is far better reward- able than the lower hand” guaranteed the philanthropy in him. Which area of his largess can one really recount with precision? The story of Arisekola-Alao’s generosity can never be fully told in volumes of books either by a combination of individuals, groups or institutions.

     

    Attestation

    A versatile American poet who came up with the following axiomatic poem could not have imagined that his thoughts might germinate in Africa and nurtured to fruition by an African. Here is how he put it:

    “Who shares his life’s pure pleasure and works the honest road; who trades with heaping measure and lifts his brother’s load; who turns the wrong down bluntly and lends the right a hand; he dwells in God’s own country and tills the Holy Land”.  The world was fortunate to witness these traits in Aare Arisekola when he was alive.

     

    Comment

    Perhaps no contemporary Nigerian is as fitting to the above quoted poem as Alhaji Abdul Azeez Arisekola-Alao, CON, the erstwhile Aare Musulumi of Yoruba land and Deputy President-General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), who lived like a sun and photosynthesized all the ‘living organisms’ around him giving all of them the fulfilled dreams of their lives.

    However, like a falcon that suddenly took a flight leaving the surrounding falconers to wonder, this man’s sun fortuitously set at noon when its rays was most needed by the needy. He lived like an era in the epoch of contemporary human history and died like an era at the climax of his humanitarian gestures.

    The similitude of Aare Arisekola-Alao among the sundry elite and masses of Yoruba people of the Southwest in particular and other people of tribal and religious diversities in general is like that of the Queen in a bee hive. Take it out of the hive and the rest of the bees in that hive will automatically become stranded.

     

    A case study

    Aare Arisekola-Alao’s life history is a case study for all well-meaning intellectuals and people of wherewithal. He was a unique colossus whose life and death should serve as a lesson from which to learn the conduct of life. For instance, this man was political without being a politician. He was religious without being a cleric. He was sociable without being a socialist. He was traditional without being a traditionalist. Yet, he fitted perfectly into each of these features of life like a scepter in the hand of a king. Aare was a man of peculiar lifestyle with a peculiar focus. He lived for service to humanity just as service craved his penchant for philanthropy. It may take Nigeria another century to produce the like of this impeccable personage.

     

    His zooming into limelight

    As a young man in his 30s in the mid  1970s, this man zoomed into limelight like a crescent of hope despite his limited educational background and he subsequently grew into a full blown moon brightening the lives of multitudes that would have remained in an indefinite rigmarole through the darkness of life. His Midas touch was like an antidote against any potential pecuniary poison.

     

    A reminder

    Arisekola-Alao’s demise reminds us of a potent observation which some companions of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) expressed before him out of fear of the unknown. They said: “Oh Prophet, the men of wealth seem to have gone with all the virtues; they worshipped as we are now worshipping; they fasted as we are now fasting and they competed actively among themselves in the realm of charity”. And in response, the Prophet pointed out to them that “Allah has equally endowed you with a variety of charity avenues” saying that “glorification of Allah is charity, so is gratification of Allah and exaltation of Allah as well as the likes….”. That conversation has since become a credible Hadith due to its entailed spiritual wisdom.

     

    Solace

    There is solace for Muslims in the above quoted Hadith which can see Muslims of today through the ‘Cape of Good Hope’. As a community, contemporary Muslims have perennially relied too much on certain endowed individuals in their midst without thinking of what could become of the community should anything happen to those individuals. Thus, with Aare Arisekola’s sudden departure, the reality began to dawn on them. Despite that, however, the die is not yet cast. Most of those who have prominently departed this world amongst us were men of monetary wherewithal. There are still thousands of others whose wealth is not necessarily monetary but who need to be studied and emulated in preparation for their own possible sudden exit. Some of such people are of wisdom and intellectualism while others are of truthfulness, contentment and integrity. Without adequate preparation for their exit, the shock awaiting the Ummah may be more devastating than that arising from the death of the wealthy few.

     

    Memory lane

    Nigeria’s first President, Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, did not take cognizance of the lifestyle of the likes of Arisekola-Alaos of this world when he alluded to it in the introduction to his autobiography published in 1970 thus:

    “Man comes into the world and while he lives, he embarks upon a series of activities absorbing experience which enables him to formulate a philosophy of life and to chart his causes of action. But then, he dies. Nevertheless his biography remains a guide to those of the living who may need guidance either as a warning on the vanity of human wishes or as encouragement or both”.

     

    Aftermath

    There was similarity in the aftermath situation of the death of the trio of Abiola, Folawiyo and Alao which no era before theirs had witnessed in Nigeria of the 20th/21st centuries. The funeral of each of these great men was either physically attended by everybody that mattered in Nigeria including President, governors, ministers, high caliber legislators, topmost personalities in the judiciary and chief executives of the business world as well as politicians and intellectual gurus.

    In the case of Arisekola-Alao which was the last leg, it is almost impossible to enumerate the caliber of people who were present to say ‘we are here to condole’. Of all the comments notably made in the condolence book earmarked for comments, no one was more precinct than that of Senator Abiola Ajimobi, the then Governor of Oyo State, who described Aare’s death as ‘the end of an era’. But His Eminence, Dr. Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, the Sultan of Sokoto and President General of Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) perfected that comment during his condolence visit to the residence of the deceased when he said that “if the title AARE is reversed, it would become ERA”. In other words, Aare (Arisekola) simply meant an era in his own time.

     

    Conclusion

    From all conceivable angles, Aare Arisekola-Alao seemed to have studied and imbibed the thoughtful philosophy of another American of notable fame, Williams Webster, who once coined a moving poem which he dedicated to humanity as follows:

    “If we work marble it will perish; if we work upon brass time will efface it. If we rear temples they will crumble into dust. But if we work upon immortal minds and instill in them just principles; we are then engraving that upon a tablets which no time can efface but will brighten into all eternity”.

    As the Deputy President-General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) and a frontline pillar of the Muslim Ummah of Southwest Nigeria (MUSWEN) as well as a patron of over 100 Muslim organisations, the entire Nigerian Muslim Community, home and abroad, bids you farewell while praying for the repose of your soul in eternal bliss. We also pray Allah to grant your immediate and remote family members as well as your close associates the fortitude with which to bear the agony of your irreplaceable departure. We shall keep retracing your footprint just as  Allah keeps blessing   your soul forever. Inna liLlah wa Inna ilayhi raji ‘un!

  • A paradigm of probity at 85

    By Segun Gbadegesin

    Nigeria had a great beginning with great institutions and patriotic leaders who excelled in placing the nation above self. This was true of the first indigenous leadership of the military and civilians. Respectively, they fought in the battlefield against foreign adversaries and in the legislative houses for freedom and justice. They won the respect of the world and achieved independence for the nation.

    Unfortunately, however, Nigerian millennials only know about the rot and corruption in the political system and the egomaniacal conduct of so-called leaders who are there only for the self and its debasement. The era of the military regime, beginning especially from 1975 to 1979, and from 1985 to 1999 was, to a large extent, responsible for this degradation, for which the country is currently paying an unbearable cost, from kidnapping and banditry to terrorism and everything in between.

    Today, this column pays an overdue homage to one of the unsung exemplars of probity and accountability in public life as he achieves the ripe and enviable age of 85.

    Brigadier General Oluwole Rotimi (rtd.) may not now be a household name. Indeed, we may forgive millennials for thinking that the military was/is a den of corrupt lions who devoured the country’s resources without accountability. I strongly believe, however, that if those angels that God dispatched to Sodom and Gomorrah were returned to our shores in the depth of its moral decadence, they would have found a sizeable number of men and women of honor in the military, and would have granted the prayer of an Abraham to save the institution. Undoubtedly, one of those men of honor would have been General Oluwole Rotimi.

    For this belief, we have an indubitable evidence in the public domain. In July 1975, General Murtala Mohammed led a coup that sacked the government of General Gowon. I remember vividly because my colleagues and I were just returning from a one-year National Youth Service deployment when the announcement of a coup was blared on air.

    Mohammed, a war commander, was evidently incensed by the deterioration of the system of accountability and was determined to sanitize the institution. He declared all Military Governors personal no grata. He ordered a probe of their activities and vowed to march them all to the Bar Beach. The atmosphere was tense. Rotimi was sure of himself. The probe was conducted by the military hierarchy. Only two of the governors, late Brigadier General Mobolaji Johnson and Brigadier General Oluwole Rotimi, were exonerated.

    Clearly, upbringing and background are important factors in human success. But so is a personal ethic and determination to be above board despite temptations. Traditionally, the Yoruba believe in the metaphysical significance of Ori or destiny. We are what we are pre-destined to be in our pre-natal existence. But interestingly, our people also hold firmly to the view that a person must remake himself or herself: “I have been made. But I will remake myself.” This remaking of the self is what makes our conduct deserving of praise or blame. For how could anyone be praised or blamed for what they are not responsible for, if they were only recipients of a destiny that they had no hand in choosing?

    General Rotimi’s story is one of a continuous making and remaking oneself. It is an inspiring story of sheer determination to follow one’s dream, of refusal to succumb to setbacks even when they are undeserved, and, therefore, a story of victory against all odds. At 85, he can raise his head high, even if he has only a modest material means because, to paraphrase moral philosopher Kant, he is an outstanding achiever in the Kingdom of Ends.

    General Rotimi chose the military career as a young secondary school student, thanks to his experience in the Cadet unit of King’s College, Lagos. But with a Grade 1 Secondary School Certificate, and later the HSC, the door to educational advancement was wide open to him. Yet his career counselor could only reach a deal with him to first complete university education, and if he was still interested in military service, the counselor would get him in. This was still the colonial era military. He wasn’t sure of his career trajectory. Certainly, there was no motive of corrupt enrichment. It was a motive of service in the tradition of military generals he had read about in history.

    That motive was to track General Rotimi’s professional life from his time as Quartermaster General during the civil war, his service as Governor of the old Western Region, and his time as Nigerian Ambassador to the United States of America. All the way, it was service with the guidance of God and conscience.

    It is noteworthy that General Rotimi served as Quartermaster General during the civil war. Yet, when he was retired in 1975 at age 40, and after serving for four years as governor of the old Western Region, he had virtually nothing! As Quartermaster General, he oversaw procurement and logistics for the army. That was a time with little or no vetting! This means that he could inflate contracts with impunity. But he didn’t. There is ample evidence that he also rejected the voluntary patronage of army contractors who could have compromised his integrity. In the end, he had no inexplicable material possession to show for his time in the army.

    If General Rotimi’s discharge of his duty as Quartermaster General without compromising his integrity is remarkable, his service as Military Governor of the Western Region was marked by a laser focus on development and zero tolerance for indiscipline and corruption in the civil service. Of course, it is to be expected that as military rule took hold in those early days, a lot of impunity invaded the system, and civil servants soon developed a tradition of godfatherism previously unknown to the institution. It was also a time fraught with civil unrest as a result of the peasant agitation against the system of taxation, which they protested as unjust and unbearable.

    What was especially inspiring in his administration of the Western Region was General Rotimi’s focus on the priority of education, agriculture, health, and rural development, a testimonial to the welfarist approach of the civilian government that the military had toppled. For instance, in the 1971/72 budget of the Western Region, a whopping 42% was the share of education, including higher education, because the then University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) was owned by the regional government. Agriculture was still the mainstay of the regional economy and taxation was taken seriously by government and people of the region. Self-help development projects were promoted with government pledge of a 2 to 1 matching grant to communities that succeeded in raising funds for self-help projects such as cottage industries. It was a successful scheme.

    If General Rotimi’s discharge of his duty as Quartermaster General without compromising his integrity is remarkable, his service as Military Governor of the Western Region was marked by a laser focus on development and zero tolerance for indiscipline and corruption

    As noted above, at the end of his service as governor, General Rotimi was cleared of any abuse of power or corrupt practices. He went into private life with the satisfaction of serving his country to the best of his ability. That was until 2008 when newly elected President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua tapped him as the Ambassador to the United States of America. A lifetime of devotion to God and country with a background of moral probity cannot but animate a person to greater service.

    John Stuart Mill famously argued that it is better to be a human being dissatisfied than a pig satisfied, better to be a Socrates dissatisfied than a fool satisfied. This is because Socrates knows better than a fool what makes life satisfactory. Rotimi knows better than some corruption minded fool that it is not the accumulation of illicit wealth that makes human life good.

    He approached his ambassadorial assignment with the same focus on probity. But he was dealing with human parasites who had zero interest in the niceties of moral life. He ran into conflict with those powers, and he was recalled from his position. With the outcome of the investigations, court proceedings and verdicts, it is General Rotimi that laughs last.

    Happy Birthday, General! Your great story should be an inspiration to future generations.

     

  • Constitution review-again!

    Segun Gbadegesin

     

    FOR the umpteen time since the birth of the present constitutional republic, its foundational document, elegantly known as the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is about to be reviewed. As keen observers of our political world would acknowledge, it appears that every new National Assembly (NASS) takes it as its responsibility to peer through the document to ferret out what it determines as inadequacies. It is remarkable that with all these quadrennial efforts, the document is as flawed as it was at birth. Are you wondering what it says about the efforts? You are not alone.

    As to be expected, this news has elicited mixed reactions from Nigerians. From wailers to hailers, from enablers to cynics, from genuine sceptics to professional mockers, from unwavering federalists to hard-core unitarists, there is no shortage of comments on this new initiative. Is the effort genuinely nationalistic or self-centered? Are there predetermined outcomes or will they allow the chips to fall where they may? Does it envisage a new progressive federation or same old behemoth?

    Let me however defend NASS on one important matter regarding its mandate. There have been a few objections to its taking on the responsibility of constitution review. Some commentators insist that since sovereignty belongs to the people, it should be the people’s duty to review the constitution, which would imply enacting a brand new constitution in place of the military-imposed document.

    While I do not disagree that the country may be well-served with a brand new citizen-produced constitution that discards the grossly inadequate 1999 constitution, it is also important to recognize that the document provides for its periodic review and evaluation by NASS. Section 9 (1) provides that “the National Assembly may, subject to the provisions of this section, alter any of the provisions of this Constitution.” Part of the provisions referenced is that the act of alteration must be supported by two-thirds of members of both Senate and House of Representatives and approved by a resolution of the Houses of Assembly of not less than two-thirds of all the States. The relevant questions are what recommends any effort at alteration? How effective will it be? And will a brand new constitution be better?

    Unfortunately, the brief statement attributed to Senate President Ahmed Lawan only leaves even sympathetic observers asking for more. According to Lawan:

    o             The committee represents the Senate and the entire National Assembly even though the House will also constitute its own Constitution Review Committee.

    o             Distinguished Senators who are not on the committee can still participate with submissions and advise to the committee.

    o             In addition to members of NASS, the committee will engage all Nigerians including statutory bodies like INEC, and Civil Society groups.

    • Nigerians are interested in the Constitution Review and there are several issues they feel strongly about.
    • The Constitution Review Committee is the platform where such issues are brought and interested citizens should make presentations.
    • NASS, particularly Senate, wants “a stable country”, “a country that gives every citizen the opportunity to actualize his or her dream”, “a security that is enhanced and an economy that works for everyone.”

    Following these observations, the Senate President offers an open invitation:

    • “Any organization or individual who has anything that should be taken on by the committee should make submissions to the Constitution Review Committee.”

    Obviously, these are off-the-cuff comments by the Senate President. But, in the absence of any formal statement that justifies the rationale for the committee at this time, as well as what its terms of reference are, we have only these comments to peep into the working of the mind of Senate leadership.

    The comments can be categorized into two parts. First is the procedural matter of the operation of the committee. The committee will reach out to all Nigerians and it will take submissions from individuals and organizations. Second is what may be considered as substantive issues of constitutional significance. And this is where many observers would be right to wonder what the whole exercise is about other than vague ideas regarding economic equality, enhanced security, and stability, which the Senate President identified in his floor remarks.

    Let us admit that “there are several issues that (Nigerians) feel strongly about.” But not all such issues are constitutional matters, otherwise we would have an unwieldy document that invades the privacy of citizens. Surely, many people feel strongly about monogamous versus polygamous marriages. Do we want our constitution to wade into that issue?

    On the other hand, economic wellbeing and citizen security are already provided for in the extant constitution that is the subject of the work of the committee. But what exactly is in play in these matters? And why have previous constitutional amendment efforts failed to take care of them?

    Take for instance, economic wellbeing of citizens. The constitution provides that “the State shall abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of power.” (Section 15 (5)) And Section 16 (1) (a) provides for the harnessing of the “resources of the nation and promote national prosperity and an efficient, dynamic, and self-reliant economy”, while Section 16 (1) (c) provides for the “control of the national economy in such a manner as to secure the maximum welfare, freedom and happiness of every citizen on the basis of social justice and equality of status and opportunity.”

    It would follow therefore, that the deprivation of economic wellbeing experienced by citizens is less a matter of constitutional oversight that need amendment but more of constitutional implementation that requires attention from the presidency to the states.

    How about security?  Under “Public order and public security, Section 11 (1) empowers the National Assembly to make laws “for the federation or any part thereof with respect to the maintenance and securing of public safety and public order and providing, maintaining, and securing of such supplies and services as may be designated by the National Assembly as essential supplies and services.”

    And subsection (2) gives the same right to States Houses of Assembly stating that: “Nothing in this section shall preclude a House of Assembly from making laws with respect to the matters referred to in this section…” However, this provision appears to be rendered ineffective by the Second Schedule which gives the exclusive legislative powers on Police and other government security services to the Federal Government. From which it follows that states must depend on the federal government for their security, a situation which has, to say the least, placed the states in precarious security conditions in recent times. Why have none of the previous constitution reviews since 1999 taken any firm position on this matter? Why are states and local communities becoming sacrificial lambs to bandits, kidnappers and terrorists? And will this new effort by NASS summon the necessary courage to deal with this constitutional lacuna?

    Finally, the matter of stability is on the mind of Senate President Lawan, and rightly so. National stability has never been more of a serious issue in our federal system of government. And the reason is not far-fetched. The country was founded on the principle that a diverse population thrives best under a federal system of government which respects diversity without abandoning unity. Indeed, the founding fathers saw diversity as the strength of the nation and they warned against an ambitious homogenization policy that tended to alienate cultural groups.

    While the country entered independence with a three-regional structure, which soon became four, it was latter realized that the lopsided structure which guaranteed a perpetual majority of one section in national government was an impediment to stability. More states were created by the military. But the military also did away with the federal system that had been the bulwark of protecting diversity in favor of a uniformity that has become a destabilizing force.

    Since 1979, this problem has been swept under the rug of national deliberations as if it will go away by itself. It will not. If NASS is serious about the stability of the country with a view to building a nation we can all be proud of, it will lead a serious effort to reinstate true federalism in the system. Everything else is shameless deceit.

     

  • The price of ignorance

    By Femi Abbas

     

    Peace is a unique virtue in the life of man. Its value cannot be measured in terms of gold or silver. Any life without peace is a life in vain.

    Peace, in any tempestuous circumstance, is often not by chance. It is rather a well-planned sphere of life with formidable pillars like endurance, tolerance and mutual understanding. The usual template of peace in any society is based on experience gained from history.

     

    Preamble

    This article is not new. It was first published in this column in 2012. But it is being repeated here today because of demands for its republication by many readers who passionately believe in its relevance to the current Nigerian situation in which religion has become the biggest commercial venture that vigorously constitutes a tug of war at the instance of some commercial charlatans who are claiming to be religious leaders.

    Such charlatans are mostly known by the hate speeches which they provocatively dish out in torrents from their pulpits as a form of enticing advertisement to certain ignorant people who can be lured into the dragnet of their commercial venture.

     

    The wings of history

    History is an invisible object with two invisible wings flying across generations in time and in space. One of the wings is positive, the other is negative.

    It is only with history that the present becomes the heritage of the past while the future awaits the baton of continuity or otherwise from the present.

    No living nation or tribe or even individuals can dream of a realizable future without a veritable present based on a memorable experience of the past. The web of life is like a magnet which no iron element can bypass on its way to ornamental glory.

     

    Fabric of uncertainty

    Against what ought to be a valuable heritage, Nigeria is, sadly passing through a fabric of uncertainty today as she rolls back the fibres of the future into those of the present and weaves both into the vestiges of the past.

    Such is a sign of a dead nation waiting to be interned. What war is not ravaging Nigeria today in spite of Allah’s abundant bounties? The forces of the present seem to have connived with those of the past to jointly engage in wrestling down the future with a determination to depriving the generations yet unborn of any hope of decent existence.

     

    Reminiscences

    For decades, Nigeria has been forced by the so-called leaders to fight political, economic and social wars without winning any. Now, a religious dimension is being desperately added for pecuniary purpose.

    Thus, like a billow vigorously storming around at the instance of an invisible tempest, a melee of religious hullabaloo engendered by a vicious political Pandora has virtually turned Nigeria into a land of curses. God! Where are we going from here?

    Read Also: Tola Adeniyi’s exhibition of ignorance

     

    Purpose of religion

    By its design and intent, religion is supposed to be not only a panacea for all human psychological ailments but also a soothing balm for any spiritual ache.

    Ironically, however, religion in Nigeria today has been turned into a poison   without any provision for an antidote. And through our usual   attitude tagged Nigerian factor, we seem to be bent on swallowing the pill of that poison without minding its dangerous repercussion.

     

    The factors of ignorance

    The factors that culminated in what we now variously call religious militancy, extremism, fanaticism and terrorism emanated only from the yoke of ignorance which bad governance has perennially incubated.

    And could anything have influenced bad governance as much as ignorance? Yet ignorance would not have had a role to play in our religious or political lives if we had demonstrated the will to genuinely follow the tenets of our religions and learned from the lessons of history without banking on biased assumptions and fallacious rumours.

     

    History as a teacher

    History as a teacher always has a lesson to teach those who are ready to learn. But unfortunately, most human beings, especially Nigerians, refuse to learn any lesson from history and the price is what we are paying today.

    In 1962, Nigeria’s Governor General, Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe (who later became Nigeria’s first President in 1963), paid a three day official courtesy visit to the Premier of Northern Region, Sir Ahmadu Bello in Kaduna. Dr Azikiwe was accompanied by his wife, Flora.

    The host Premier mobilized all the paraphernalia of office in honour of his guests whom he accorded an unprecedentedly flamboyant hospitality.

    The three days visit enabled their wives to become so familiar with each other that Flora also invited the Bellos to the East on a similar visit.

    By the time the visit ended, Dr. Azikiwe had become so much impressed that at the point of departure he held Ahmadu Bello’s hands and gently told him to “please let us forget our differences”.

     

    Response

    In response to that emotional but infatuating gesture, Sir Ahmadu Bello said in an equally gentle, baritone voice: “No sir! Rather than forgetting our differences, let us understand them.

    I am a Muslim from the North. You are a Christian from the South. It is only by identifying and understanding those differences that our friendliness can truly blossom and endure”.

    There and then, Dr. Azikiwe nodded in agreement with his host’s logic and accepted the fact that one could not forget what has not been identified and understood.

     

    The lesson to learn

    The lesson to learn from this experience is that of mutual understanding without pretentiously sweeping anything under the carpet.

    That is the principle upon which the marriage of political strange fellows who find themselves in a joint government is often based in Nigeria.

    It is also the principle upon which partnership of many Nigerian businessmen and women is based despite their cultural incompatibility.

    But that principle is not applied to Religion in Nigeria despite the existence of a body called Nigeria Interreligious Council (NIREC).

    And this is because of easy but dubious access to cheap wealth by certain fraudulent charlatans who are greedily masquerading in the cassock of religion and parading themselves as   religious leaders.

     

    Stages of ignorance

    For thousands of years, peoples of all races and tribes across the world thrived vaingloriously on cultural ignorance while attributing their calamities to mysterious forces and blaming such mysteries on what they called witchcraft.

    In the past, here in Africa, millions of children were forced to die in infancy by their own parents out of sheer ignorance while the same parents turned round to blame what they called ‘ABIKU’ or ‘OGBANJE’ for the mass infanticide which they ignorantly engendered.

    With time, however, education and knowledge of science brought about the invention of various vaccines with which children were immunized against different diseases thereby giving those infants the   opportunity to survive.

    And this has enabled us to know today that the mystery which we once called ‘ABIKU’ or ‘OGBANJE’ was a euphemism for ignorance in African mythology of those days.

     

    Progressive pedestal

    Now that the days of cultural ignorance seem to be over, Nigerians have devised another means of restiveness by shifting to religious ignorance which enables them to replace the infanticide of the yore with modern day genocide through terrorism and banditry.

    It is hoped that one day, real education and not mere literacy will also help us to overcome the spectre of religious ignorance and propel our country to the progressive pedestal on which she ought to have been dwelling for long.

     

    Qur’anic testimony

    If it had pleased the Almighty Allah to make all human beings one single race with one colour, one tongue and one religion, He would have done so without receiving any query from any quarters.

    But as the undisputable Omnipresent and Omnipotent entity, His decision to diversify His creatures cannot be faulted because it is from that diversity that all creatures have consistently derived unfettered benefits.

    In the world today, there are different races and tribes of human beings with different colours, languages and cultures each functioning as predestined and yet they all interact positively with one another to the benefit of all and sundry.

    This is in accordance with the words of Allah in Chapter 49 verse 13 of the Qur’an thus: “Oh mankind! We have created you from a male and a female and classified you into races and tribes that you may interact positively with one another (and thereby draw from the advantages therein).

    Verily, the most honourable among you before Allah are the most pious ones. Allah is All-knowing and most acquainted with all things”.

     

    Other creatures

    What is true of human beings in the above quoted Qur’anic verse is equally true of other creatures. For instance we can all see that on a single   plot of arable land, a variety of plants may grow to form an orchard but each plant with different foliages and fruits.

    Some of those fruits may be sweet, some may be bitter and some may be sour. Some may be fruitful and some may be fruitless. Some may be trees of gargantuan posture while others may be ordinary legumes.

    Yet they are all fed by the same soil, watered by the same rain and photosynthesized by the same sun. Their different foliages, sizes, heights and tastes notwithstanding, they all function effectively and advantageously according to the purpose for which they are created.

     

    Ecosystem

    In the ecosystem, no tree in an orchard will ever accuse another of bearing fruits different from its own and no animal will blame another for carrying a different feature or for wearing a different colour.

    No whale will ever denigrate even a fingerling in the ocean for sharing the same water with it. Ditto the world of birds, reptiles, and that of insects.

    Even as plants, animals, aquatics, reptiles, birds and insects, those creatures know that for everything Allah does He has a reason which may not be known to them as creatures. It is only among human beings that discrimination and segregation exist based on ignorance.

     

    Parable of religion

    We can also compare the above analogy to a situation inside a football stadium where there is a variety of sections such as State Box for the upper class, State Box Extension for the Middle Class and popular side for the lower class.

    At the entrance of the stadium, each person obtains a ticket according to his or her financial ability which determines his status. And that qualifies him for a seat in any of those sections according to the status of the ticket obtained.

    Without prejudice to the categories of the tickets they obtain, all the spectators in the stadium are authorised to watch the match for which they have paid.

    If at the end of the match however, a spectator who was privileged to sit in the State Box turns round to say that another spectator who sat at the popular side of the stadium did not watch the match others around them will sarcastically conclude that something might have gone wrong with the psyche of the accuser.

    The positions from which those spectators watched the match might be different but the fact remains that they all watched the same match. That is the parable of religion in the lives of individual human beings.

     

    The mission of religion

    In Islam, all revealed religions are like an embassy established by a nation in another nation to strengthen her diplomatic relation with the host country.

    The Ambassadors appointed to manage such embassy may be changed from time to time just like the foreign policy which guides those ambassadors but the embassy remains intact barring any unforeseen circumstances.

    So is the case with the Prophets of Allah. They might have come at different times and from different lands with different tongues.

    They might have brought different books revealed in different languages but their mission was one and the same because their Creator who appointed them as Ambassadors is only one and He cannot be pluralized.

     

    One message

    Muslims believe that all the Prophets and Messengers who have come into the world to guide mankind were from one and the same God who created the universe.

    Thus, Prophets Ibrahim (Abraham), Ismail (Ishmael) Ishaq (Isaac), Musa (Moses), Daud (David), Isa (Jesus) and Muhammad (SAW) as well as others who preceded them or came in-between them brought the same message of monotheism through which mankind was counselled to worship one God and be upright in conduct.

     

    Admonition

    In Qur’an Chapter 2 verse 285, Allah admonishes Muslims against discriminating among His Apostles thus: “The Apostle of Allah, Muhammad, (SAW) believes in what has been revealed to him by his Lord, and so do all the (Muslim) faithful.

    They all believe in Allah and His Angels, His Books as well as His Apostles.

    We do not discriminate against any of His Apostles. They say ‘We hear and obey. Grant us your forgiveness oh Lord! To you we shall all return”.

     

    Religious rivalry

    As a Muslim, you cannot believe in one of those Apostles and disbelieve in others. And you cannot believe in one of the revealed Books while disbelieving in others.

    That is why no true adherent of Islam will ever express foul language against the person of Jesus or blame the misdemeanour of a Christian on Christianity as some Nigerian Christians do against the person of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) and Islam as a religion when they accidentally have an unpleasant encounter with a misbehaving Muslim as if there are no misbehaving Christians in Nigeria.

    Were Nigerian Muslims also to bring such a disgruntled rivalry into religion especially in their propagations, the country called Nigeria would have probably been long forgotten.

     

    Unity of God

    Although the modalities for worshipping God may differ from faith to faith and from sanctuary to sanctuary this does not change the course of their faith in only one God.

    Thus, the rivalry between Muslims and Christians especially in Nigeria over who is spiritually right or wrong is a product of ignorance.

     

    Similarities

    As taught by Christianity and Islam through their  revealed Books respectively, the areas of life that need our cooperation are by far more comprehensive than those in which we differ.

    For instance, both the Bible and the Qur’an counsel humanity to worship one God. They preach good deeds to neighbours and other fellow human beings publicly and privately, irrespective of religious lineage.

    They advocate good care for our parents, our children, the aged ones amongst us and the handicapped. They urge kindness to our spouses, forgiveness for our offenders, leniency with our adversaries and magnanimity in victory to the vanquished.

    They admonish us against cheating and any form of corruption. They forbid theft, adultery, fornication, homosexuality, lesbianism and above all the killing of fellow human beings extra-judicially for whatever reason.

    They also warn us against provocation, aggression, oppression, exploitation and transgression even as they emphasize the ephemerality of this world and the eventuality of the hereafter. In all these, we have a common affinity to jointly guard.

     

    Dissimilarities

    The few areas in which we differ are abstract and quite personal. They are not areas on which human beings are given the power to pass judgement.

    Only the Almighty God can judge on them. Such are the areas which we believe will pave our ways into the Paradise.

    But since paradise is for individuals and not for religious blocks why are we fighting each other as religious bodies on the basis of belief or disbelief? After all, the journey to Paradise or Hell is a matter of choice for every individual.

    And no one can tell with precision who will go to Paradise or go to Hell. Such is the prerogative of God which He has not assigned to any human being and which no human being can and should arrogate to himself or herself except one who wants to play God.

     

    Perception of God

    As an adherent of a religion, you can only perceive your God according to your faith and that should not cause any rancour between you and adherents of any other religion.

    As Nigerians, we dwell in the same country, eat the same foods, drink the same water, wear similar dresses, trade in the same markets, share the same offices and spend the same money.

    Our children attend the same schools, write the same examinations and obtain the same certificates. We intermarry across tribes and ethnicities as well as religions.

    All these form a stronger bond that ought to unite us much more than the abstract ones which often threaten to tear us apart.

    In a situation where the factors of life that unite us grossly surpass those that divide us will it not be stupid to relinquish unity and cooperation for the adoption of satanic animosity and ruinous antagonism?

     

    Observation

    With the official formation of an interfaith group called NIREC, it had been thought that religion  would be the last bastion of hope that could pave way for a future of harmony not only in the sphere of religion but also in the social and political spheres as well.

    But unfortunately that noble thought is now rapidly being turned into an unwarranted despair as the agents of Satan are becoming more aggressively combative   against peaceful coexistence just to gain personal ephemeral life in which they would ride in executive jets regale in exclusive mansions to the detriments of the ignorant congregations which they exploit to the marrows all in the name of religion.

     

    Conclusion

    It was to guard against such satanic tendencies that a famous American intellectual and Statesman, Williams Webster, coined the following stanza to be added to the archive of modern civilization:

    “If we work marble it will perish; if we work upon brass, time will efface it; if we rear temples, they will crumble into dust; but if we work upon immortal minds and instil in them just principles; we are then engraving that upon tablets which no

    time can efface but will brighten to eternity”. God Bless Nigeria!

     

  • Divisiveness aggravates insecurity

    By Segun Gbadegesin

    Nigeria is under siege, no thanks to the reality and the perception of insecurity. Having withstood every weapon in the arsenal of security agencies, insurgency and banditry appear to be winning despite assurances to the contrary. Add with the menace of kidnapping and armed robbery, the feeling of helplessness is not a bit misplaced.

    Unfortunately, Nigeria is also a dangerously divided country. Yes, this is a country with a heterogeneous population. But after more than a century of being cobbled together by an external power, it appears that Nigerians are no more united now than they were on the eve of amalgamation. That says a lot not only about policies but also about politics and the deep-seated roots of division.

    The way this combination of insecurity and divisiveness has been playing out since 2013 is, to say the least, alarming. In a recent statement, President Buhari heartbreakingly observed that “Boko Haram is tearing us apart.” He was right. And that is where the perception of insecurity kicks in. For beside the fact that stares everyone in the face, there is also the negative perception of motives lurking in the consciousness of many citizens. There is an “us against them mentality” and a “they are out to get us” fear.

    This perception and this fear have contributed immensely to the country’s inability to speak with one voice against the various forms of insecurity that have overwhelmed the country. And for this reason, it appears that the agents of insecurity have been emboldened to peddle their ware and to continue to cause havoc. Unfortunately for them, elected officials and political leaders find themselves in the unenviable position of being perceived as helpless and clueless. This is not a recent development.

    In January 2014, during the peak of the first wave of the Boko Haram terrorist attacks, President Jonathan optimistically assured the country that “Boko Haram is temporary. Boko Haram will surely go.” He vowed that “we will collectively liberate this country from the hands of any evil person…” That was six years ago. This turned out to be an overdose of optimism. We have done nothing “collectively” to liberate the country. Indeed, we have enabled the victory lap of terrorists with our individualistic, sectarian, ethnic jingoistic, and partisan approach to what should be a united front against terror and crime.

    Surely, a collective approach to the fight against crime and terror does not preclude objective and constructive criticisms that focus attention on defeating these agents of evil waging war against the country. Thus, when appropriated resources that should go into the war are being diverted for partisan political gains, as was the case with the former National Security Adviser, the moral outrage was justified. But it was belated because the discovery came only after the 2015 elections.

    There is no doubt, however, that all sides in the political power play share in the blame of indulging in partisan bickering and not knowing when and where to stop for the greater good of national security and the safety of citizens. Now, virulent partisans have been joined by other cliques and factions, from religious fanatics and bigots to ethnic jingoists and warlords, with only a fraction of the population thinking about, or acting for, the common good of all. Yet it should be clear that we either face the common enemies with our collective force or we fall on our faces to their rampaging onslaught. Again, a united approach does not preclude constructive criticism of policies and programs of government. Indeed, it is required by citizen responsibility for their own safety and security. And when such criticisms are offered, government must treat them with respect and appreciation, knowing fully well that leaders are not omniscient beings.

    Upon his assumption of office in 2015, President Buhari approved the recruitment of 10,000 policemen and women. In April 2016, he justified this action with his observation that “no nation thrives without security, and neither can a nation lay claim to security without an efficient policing service.” And he promised to “continue to support initiatives that will guarantee the reform and modernization of the Nigeria Police.” That was four years ago.

    Part of what every section of the country, including politicians, religious leaders, ethnic leaders, labor, and students must do is to hold the president and his team to their words on this matter of policing. How fast are they moving in the light of the pressure on the police from criminals? How effective are the measures being taken in this direction? And if they move fast with effective measures, and results are less than satisfactory, how accountable are they holding the leadership of the police?

    In April last year (2019), the President approved the establishment of community policing in the country. This was during the height of the kidnapping crisis, and a response to the outcry of citizens for protection. But it has been almost a year and the matter came to the fore again only this week with the announcement of the prospects of recruitment. Even in that announcement, the spokesperson for the Inspector General of Police admitted that community policing was not a new thing and that it has always been in the books. Indeed, in this fourth republic, it has been bandied around since 2004 when agitation for state police began. Why then is it taking so long to implement?

    These are common grounds that every citizen can relate to.  Why is it that instead of a common front against terror and crime, the country is divided against itself?

    Frustrated by the apparently unending crisis of insecurity, citizens raised their voices to state governments as it should be. While the federal government is constitutionally responsible for the security of the citizens with its control of the police, citizens choose to confront the government that is closest to them and with the ability to deliver. While local governments are closest, they are appendages of state governments. Therefore, the latter are the target of citizens under siege.

    In the southwest, state governments, overwhelmed with the public demand, responded with a joint approach that takes advantage of economies of scale, taking into consideration the open borders between them. Operation Amotekun was birthed with a view to relieving the national police by providing intelligence. In short, Operation Amotekun promises to be the Southwest’s contribution to security through community policing.

    Read Also: Amotekun: An opportunity almost missed

    This is a welcome development which should be attractive to everyone, including the federal government, other state governments, peace-loving associations, traditional rulers, and ethnic nationalities. One would expect that, just as the introduction of universal free primary education, initiated in the Western Region of yore, became a model for other regions, this idea of regional security apparatus emanating from the southwest should be emulated by others.

    But we assume too much. Divisiveness has taken the best of the nation. Others, especially the North, see Amotekun as inimical to their interest! Miyetti Allah cried foul and threatened to withhold the 2023 presidency from the southwest. Haba! How do we get to this? Are herdsmen not going to benefit from community policing? Who cursed this nation?

    In April 2018, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) took to the streets in several major cities to protest the killings of Christians in the Middle Belt. The next day, Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) issued a statement calling the attention of CAN to the fact that Muslims too were victims of insecurity. MURIC would have preferred a joint protest of Christians and Muslims so there was no perception that CAN’s protest was against a Muslim president. The first part is understandable. A joint protest would be more effective. But what prevented MURIC from approaching CAN when the protest was announced to offer Its suggestion for a joint protest?

    National Assembly leadership as representatives of the people recently pondered the issue of insecurity seriously enough that they took the matter to Mr. President. But if I am right that divisiveness is aggravating insecurity because it is clouding our common vision, they need to do more. There is need for a security summit that tackles divisiveness in the fight against terrorism and crime.