The Nation Newspaper

Category: Friday

  • PMB’s resignation prerogative

    How we all are shy to say it therefore, nobody wants to hear it. But in the opinion of this column, and with utmost respect, the best option available to President Muhammadu Buhari today would be resignation. And there are three straight, albeit simple reasons for this. One, he would be doing Nigeria, his fatherland a huge favour; two, it is the path of honour and history. And the third point: it is in the interest of his health and wellbeing. But there is one caveat though: it is for now, up to the president to toe this path. Based on the facts available to us, there is nothing compelling him yet to step down; it is strictly in the realm of the president’s prerogative.

    For the sake of our fatherland: Having raised the caveat above concerning choice, we say that he would be doing Nigeria a favour if he chooses today to do the unexpected and resigns his high office. The truth which most Nigerians would rather not face is that the country is not working under PMB. This is the plain truth which can be backed with a myriad of facts.

    Right from his ascendance of office, the country has gone on the reverse gear. Apart from the initial stirrings of the first few months which happened on account of his famed no-nonsense methods and integrity (what was aptly dubbed body language), the polity has suffered and bled since then.

    Of course PMB neither saw that opportunity presented by his ‘body language’ nor did he capitalize on it. Nigerians, including civil servants, government officials and stakeholders in various sectors soon caught on to the reality that this Muhammadu is a far cry from 1984 specimen. We all simply returned to our old bad ways – all of us.

    The president was apparently hobbled by a recurring illness apart from the fact that the dynamics of governance had changed drastically (almost beyond his comprehension) since the last time he presided over the country. The result of this has been a crippling inertia in the last nearly two years. This column has written on aspects of this malaise over a dozen times here.

    But the bottom line is that Nigeria is now faced with a double jeopardy now that our worst suspicion has been confirmed about PMB’s illness, the harsh truth is that Nigeria will be better off without PMB. (The recent stint of the acting president is a pointer.)

    First, Nigeria’s economy is in the doldrums and the country needs now, more than at any other time, an able, healthy, sound and knowledgeable leader to take her out of the storms and lead her to a new tomorrow. Though PMB may mean well, he does not have the capacity and wholesomeness to deliver urgently needed results.

    People may argue that he has a capable vice president and a cabinet but which country in the world is run by a vice president or the federal cabinet? Why do we organize huge elections to vote one man to lead? Why don’t we simply choose a cabinet or even vote a cabinet to run a country?

    A country either has a president or it doesn’t and it is trite to note that the standing of any country is defined by the quality of president it has. To buttress our point here, there is no doubt that Nigeria enjoyed a new lease of life in the few weeks that Vice President Osinbajo acted.

    Consider the debacle that became of the confirmation of Mr. Ibrahim Magu as chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). This Magu miasma gives us a scary inkling about the functioning of the PMB presidency and by extension, the running of the country.

    In two years of PMB there have been no fundamental positive changes and I have chosen my words carefully here. The economy bleeds, having run into deep recession in the first year. A proactive administration ought to have seen the turbulent headwind with all the red flags it waved. That was not the case. And the critical measures to turn recession into growth and prosperity are not being taken.

    For instance, two years of PMB’s administration (and he is the Oil Minister) Nigeria still imports unduly heavy shipments of refined fuels and petroleum products. Our economy will continue to regress if we keep applying nearly half of our forex earnings on derivatives of our abundant crude. Up to this moment, this government has no clear direction on how to upgrade and add value to Nigeria’s abundant hydrocarbon deposits. What’s the word on other minerals? Zilch.

    The anti-graft war which is the touchstone of this administration is today an antithesis. Everyday what we hear is catcham, catcham, thief, thief, thief; yet hardly any thief is brought to book. Why doesn’t someone think of changing the template; cut our losses and reset the entire system so that officials cannot find loose cash to haul. Why for instance, can’t MDAs present comprehensive annual reports, etc?

    A matter of honour: apart from PMB’s standing down being a matter of utmost sacrifice to the land, it would be a great path of honour to tread. If the president has been seriously ill in the last few years and the ailment has now been aggravated by his onerous office, an honourable resignation would be most dignifying and noble. And it would enter the annals of our country that a president found it worthy to resign from office on honorable grounds.

    The case of David Cameron, Prime Minister of the United kingdom who resigned after his country voted to leave the European Union is fresh. About five other heads of state across the world resigned last year alone many on grounds of principle and honour – just in case small people around the president begin to tell us it is unheard of.

    Just as this column admonished former President Goodluck Jonathan to toe the path of honour in 2015, history would accord PMB a nobler place if he walks this road.

    For the overall wellbeing of the president: it is obvious that PMB is not in the best state of body and mind to go through the rigour and punishment of running a country. This column thinks he has made his point and done his best for Nigeria. He is no longer hungry for food or fame or glory; what he needs now is go find therapy, healing and a well-earned rest in this twilight of his age. Here indeed is an opportunity to annotate his own history and embellish his legacy.

    Anything short of this would be unwarranted self-immolation.

  • Al-mu’minaat calls for legislation on hijab

    Al-Mu’minaat (The Believing Women Organisation) has called on Federal Government to enact law that will guarantee the rights of Muslim women to dress according to her religius belief.

    A statement issued by its Remo Zone, Ogun State Amirah (President), Hajia Zainab AbdulKareem, said Muslim women in the country are faced with series of intimidation and harassment for wearing the hijab.

    Hajia AbdulKareem alleged that many government agencies are culprits in these acts, adding: “the list of culpable government organisations in this regard include Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) and the National Identity Management Commission NIMC), which always insist that Muslim women remove their hijab before they are captured”.

    The Amirah decried a recent event at the Psychiatric hospital in Aro, Abeokuta, Ogun State, where an hijabite was prevented from resuming her duty, because she puts on hijab

    “We were shocked about the incident. We therefore call on the state governor to check the excesses of officials that are perpetrating acts of oppression and injustice against Muslim women.

    “We say authoritatively that Islam is against terrorism and violence and those behind Boko Haram and other terrorist groups are misguided and do not represent Islam in any way,” she said.

  • Diagnosing the Nigerian malady 3

    Diagnosing the Nigerian malady 3

    While a proper political structure does not automatically amount to good leadership, it is clear that appropriate structure can facilitate the job of an average leader who believes in the rule of law.”—General Ipoola Alani Akinrinade (retd.)

    Last week, we examined the case for leadership as the culprit in the national malady. We concluded that Nigeria has not lacked individuals with great leadership skills, including those with a knowledge of the appropriate medication for the ailment that assails the nation. The challenge has been to find them and relate to them. As I put it at the end, we do not have a leadership crisis; we have an identity crisis. I want to explore this further today.

    Is there one Nigerian nation or are there many nations in Nigeria? This is the real question; and it has been resurfacing at every major juncture since the amalgamation of the Northern and Southern Protectorates. That it has not been fully resolved after more than a century of life together is one of the fundamental causes of the Nigerian malady. Just as a person with bipolar disorder finds progress in life challenging, so a country with an identity crisis finds visionary development an elusive goal.

    It is because we have not fully resolved that question that it would occur to one national leader to refer to another national leader in alien terms, as an effective leader of “his people”. There is individual alienation based on the absence of a sense of belonging to a system that fails to keep its promises to its teeming population. But even more than a sense of individual alienation, there is group alienation, with almost every group now wanting out of “a sinking ship.” Surely, it cannot be worse.

    Case in point: An anonymous message got dropped in my mailbox a few weeks ago, with the message: “I think every Nigerian that loves Nigeria ought to read this with patience.” It was a lamentation about the state of Nigeria compared with her peers, including especially India. After dismissing all possible differences, including size, languages, multiplicity of ethnic groups, or diversity of religions, the writer pinned down the major difference between Nigeria and India on pride in heritage: “India is proud of its heritage, Nigeria takes little pride in its heritage”, the writer concludes.

    To which the pertinent question is, “what is the Nigerian heritage?” Or put it differently “is there one or several heritages that pertain to the entity named Nigeria?” Take the case of language. Hindu is the official language of India. Could Nigeria have identified an indigenous language as its official language without a major rumpus?

    With a multiplicity of nations (aka ethnic groups) and each guarding what it considers its own interests while perceiving others as alien competitors, it is a stretch to talk of a common heritage deserving protection and promotion. This explains the strange phenomenon of the lionization, by poor sectional followers, of leaders convicted of corrupt enrichment even when such leadership recklessness is at the expense of their poor followers.

    The son of the soil mentality is a Nigerian national nightmare. It is unfortunately not a new trend as there were instances of the pattern even in the First Republic, with some communities defending their own indigenes against accusations of corruption. Diversity, which is supposed to confer strength, has been a veritable cause of national weakness.

    Yet, diversity does not condemn us to perpetual poverty or dysfunctional existence if we apply common sense to the task of nation-building. It was what the founders of the republic thought that they had settled in the drive up to independence. They crafted a constitution that gave due respect to diversity while also committing to a united country. That was the purpose of the federal constitution. Their mistake, which could be forgiven because they were eager for independence, was to defer the creation of states based on ethnic identity which would go to the root of cultural democracy. The omission led to a lopsided federation, an anomaly that soon tore the new country apart at the seam.

    I started this piece with a quotation from an outstanding lecture delivered by General Ipoola Alani Akinrinade (retd.) at a meeting of the Challenge Club, Ibadan on the subject “Which way Nigeria?”  Noting that over-centralization has been the greatest drawback in Nigeria’s march to nationhood and eventual greatness, General Akinrinade provided an answer to his title question, with his suggestion that ‘a regional structure with “fiscal federalism” is germane to the future existence of Nigeria as a nation.’

    To my mind, this answer, provided by General Akinrinade to his question “Which way Nigeria?” also provides a plausible diagnosis of the Nigerian malady? How? I have argued in several columns, especially since the inception of the APC government at the center, that the question of structure is vital, and how we deal with it can make or break any administration whose focus is on development for the wellbeing of citizens. There are two basic reasons for this and they are borne out of our current experience.

    First, as sad as it is, the truth is that Nigeria still does not excite many, including the young ones who are by nature the most idealistic. Millennials are among the most virulent supporters of irredentist causes across the country. Surely, there are economic reasons for this trend. Soaring unemployment and lost hope in personal advancement fuel rebellion. How are young men and women to react when they have done all that parents and the nation asked of them: study hard, get a good degree and you are on the path to greatness. Then, the nation failed to deliver her own part of the bargain. Do we expect the young ones to roll out the drums in praise of the nation that so betrayed their trust?

    But there is a further complication to this scenario. There is also the “us-them” perception, a sinister view of the “other” that prevent the “us” from reaching “our” potentials. We will never get rid of that perception if every major policy decision that bears on the future of citizens is centralized.

    Consider this simple example. In every major economically advanced nation that prioritizes education, states are the major agents of educational policy and development. On the understanding that resources could be scarce, states figure out other means of funding education. One such is the establishment of state lottery boards, the proceeds of which benefit primary and secondary education. The United States is a good illustration. The national government at the federal level has nothing to do with it. But in Nigeria, we now have a National Lottery Commission which registers lottery companies and receives at least 25% of lottery proceeds even from state-centered companies! What is the business of the federal government with regulating lottery business? That is how centralized Nigeria has become.

    Second, having realized the folly of our dependence on oil as the linchpin of economic development, we have now embraced the wisdom of diversification, with emphasis on agriculture and mineral exploration. But how do we effectively go about this objective? An approach that centralizes policy initiatives with the federal government identifying winners and losers is an option that must be resisted because it doesn’t work. The sight of abandoned federal projects across the country since 1979 is evidence.

    While states are closer to the people and acutely aware of their needs and aspirations, they have serious handicap, financially and size-wise, in the matter of leading the development agenda. A state that cannot pay workers’ salary will be hard-pressed to think of development agenda. The proliferation of states with huge bureaucracies has been both satisfying and frustrating.

    We can eliminate or at least alleviate the frustration with a program of regionalism that combines economies of scale with the satisfaction of having governance close to the people. While it is already happening voluntarily with Regional Development Centers across the nation, formalizing it with a national constitutional endorsement is the greatest contribution that a progressive administration can make to the building of the nation.

     

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  • MUSWEN prays for President Buhari

    The Muslim Ummah of Southwest Nigeria (MUSWEN), has offered prayers for President Muhammadu Buhari, his government and the nation.

    The prayer was held during its 13th Regular Meeting at Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, by its Central Working Committee (CWC).

    The CWC comprise of Muslim Communities/Councils of the six states of the Southwest, the major Muslim organisations domiciled in the region including Muslim women and youth organisations.

    The group thanked to Allah for responding to the prayers of Nigerians and bringing back the President in improved health.

    A statement by its Executive Secretary Prof Dawud Noibi, MUSWEN expressed profound faith in the fact that the span of life of a person is not determined by the wishes or claims of detractors by but by Allah’s decree, urging President Buhari and Nigerians to put trust in Allah and ignore the whispers of rumour mongers.

    The religious leaders also thanked Allah for giving the country and the armed forces victory over the Boko Haram menace and beseeched Him to complete the victory not only over the misguided insurgents but also over all other forms of threat to the security, unity and progress of the nation.

    They also prayed that the remaining Chibok girls be brought back safely.

    They hailed the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, for holding the forth for President Buhari so diligently over the period of the President’s absence.

    “Members took the advantage of the occasion to express condolences to the family of the former military governor of the old Western Region of Nigeria, Major General Adeyinka Adebayo (rtd) as well as the people of Ekiti State and the Southest on the occasion of his death. They pray that Allah grants his family and the nation the fortitude to bear the loss,” the statement said.

  • Fanta-Sprite brouhaha: much ado about…

    What the much consumed soft drink brands, Fanta and Sprite may just by a nit of chance contain substances harmful to health is stuff that would generate maximum opprobrium any day. But this is what a recent court verdict suggests. And expectedly the country is set abuzz. But it seems to be much ado about a small matter.

    First it took all of 10 years to arrive at a judgment in a matter that seems so straightforward. Imagine the harm that may have been done in 10 years if the allegations were true. While we urge NAFDAC to sit up and manufacturers in Nigeria to scale up quality control and be more consumer-centric, we do not think the Nigeria Bottling Company is remiss in this matter. There seems no intent to commit a reprehensible act, nor do we see a case of negligence.

    Every country has slight variations in export requirements and FOR EXPORT ONLY products have always been part of international trade.

  • Muslim women rally for hijab

    Muslim women rally for hijab

    Muslim women in Remo Zone of Ogun State has held a rally and lecture to make case for use of hijab in the country.

    Under the auspices of the Coalition of Muslim Women in Remo, the event was commenced with a rally round the major streets in Sagamu town with variety of Islamic slogans and rhymes.

    The rally which took off at about 9am at Sagamu Central Mosque to Maku road, Bright Fashion junction, Surulere,  Baruwa and  Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital Road, Ayegbami,  all within Sagamu township.

    After the rally that lasted for about three hours, the crowd returned to the Central Mosque where special lecture was delivered.

    An erudite Islamic scholar and Chief Imam of Ansar-ud-deen Society, Alhaji Abdul Rahman Otutu, emphasised the need for Muslim women to protect their chastity and fear Allah in their dressing, stressing that hijab is a fundamental principle of Islam that cannot be compromised.

    Imam Otutu urged Muslim women to be a role model and give priority to the care and training of their wards over other worldly engagement.

    The cleric used the occasion to pray for President Muhammadu Buhari.

  • Diagnosing the Nigerian malady (2)

    Diagnosing the Nigerian malady (2)

    Last week, we focused on the supernaturalistic account of the affliction that imperils Nigeria’s movement to greatness and found it inadequate as an explanatory model. Today, we will examine the humanistic account which pins our national malaise on human factor. There are at least three variants of the theory.

    First, it is argued that even if we grant that Nigeria had a divine beginning and a destined end, we must also admit that the God of Nigeria’s beginning granted her citizens the free will to determine the course of their nation with adequate provision of resources to last many lifetimes. If they make that determination without much thought and they miss the road, it is their responsibility to change course. That they have failed for more than 50 years is not the fault of God. I believe that this is the position of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

    The former President admonished us recently to “stop troubling God because God has done all we need for us. We only need to play our part…” As he might add, as humans placed in this part of God’s creative genius, we have failed woefully to our detriment.

    Whether as clerics, mullahs, priests, priestesses and sheikhs or as congregants, devotees and Ummah we know the ways in which we fail to play our part. Whereas the prophets of old did not shy away from confronting the corrupt practices of their era, with our trust in the gospel of prosperity, we aid and abet corruption in various ways. When we choose to accept the proceeds of graft as thanksgiving offering without asking pertinent questions, we thereby frustrate the development goal of the nation.

    As business professionals, we play an ignoble part when we cheat on tax payment or collude with international frauds. This is the case with oil subsidy scandals. As contractors, we ruin the future of the nation when we abandon our contractual responsibility for road construction and abscond with contract mobilisation fees. Is God responsible for these acts?

    As politicians, when we are motivated just by pure self-interest whether in our legislative priorities or in budget approval, we intentionally risk the future of the country. And when we allow our wants, whether material, mental, or spiritual, to overshadow the long-term interest of the nation, we fail to play our part in setting the nation in the path of development.

    Of course, we can pray to God to help us know what is right and do it. But we cannot blame God for the weakness of our will. This is the essence of the humanistic theory.

    Second, and following from the first, there is the account of leadership deficit and it is straightforward. The reason that Nigeria has not made it; the reason that it has missed the road often and has not been able to change course is that it suffers from a deficit of leadership. Of course, the theory does not deny that Nigeria has either elected leaders or has had leaders imposed on her since independence. The point is that those leaders have lacked the qualities that a leader needs to move a nation forward. Therefore, per this variant of the humanistic account, Nigeria has a leadership crisis, and until this crisis is resolved, it cannot move forward. Again, former President Obasanjo has recently doubled down on this position.

    It is important to tease out the claims of this variant, especially in the former president’s most recent presentation. While some may rightly blame leadership from the beginning of the republic, Obasanjo gave credit to his generation, which fought for the unity of the country, and the generation before his, which fought for independence. His beef, therefore, is with generation after his, which, according to him, lacks “focus, commitment, continuity and sometimes proper knowledge about economic and development issues.”

    Not a few may find this positing of the issue self-serving or more uncharitably, self-glorifying. But I want to cut the former president a little slack. Each generation of leaders faces a unique challenge. The first generation that faced the colonisers had no choice but to focus on independence. But the germs of later problems were clearly discernible even at the time of their struggle for freedom. Leading the country after independence, they failed woefully in the matter of unity and progress. As the military struck and leadership changed hands, that challenge of unity became insurmountable. Trained as fighters, the military leaders met the challenge the only way they knew. But while the rebellion was stopped, no one can deny that the war of unity was not won. Instead, there was an escalation of ethno-nationalistic mistrust. The leadership crisis that we have now is traceable to that juncture in our history.

    What Obasanjo’s generation, and he, in particular, needs to come to terms with is that the matter of leadership cannot be resolved in isolation from our historical trajectory. Leaders are not plucked from trees. They are the products of particular cultures, histories and philosophies. In our case, the diversity of such cultures, histories and philosophies, which, should normally be an additional advantage, have been adversely impacted by the politics of uniformity.

    The third variant of the humanistic theory of Nigerian malady chooses to give leadership a break while focusing on followership. The rationale for this is simply that followers either choose leaders or can reject them once they determine that those leaders lack the necessary qualities to lead. However, in the case of Nigeria, leaders and followers have been engaged in a game of mutual deception with followers yielding to the manipulative abilities of leaders for the satisfaction of short term wants at the expense of long term needs. If developmental goals are left unfulfilled because followers seek immediate consumption, they have themselves to blame.

    There is no doubt that each of the foregoing variants of the humanistic theory is an improvement over the supernaturalistic theory. For one thing, they place emphasis on human agency and, therefore, on our human capacity to change the course of the nation.

    Yet, as important as it is to recognise the significance of human agency, it is also crucial to understand its limitation, especially when the condition for the effectiveness of human agency to play its part is missing. Consider the fact that despite our lamentations regarding good leadership, we have had at least a few in our history that everyone, including sworn adversaries, attest to.

    As I prepare this piece, a friend dropped in my WhatsApp message box an excerpt of a statement on Chief Obafemi Awolowo attributed to Ikemba Odumegwu Ojukwu: “As a leader of the modern cast, he (Awolowo) has left Nigeria standards which are indelible, standards beside which future aspirants to public leadership can be eternally measured. He was, for a long time, the only Nigerian leader that enunciated principles and played down personalities… Awo was a leader of great stature…That he did not fulfil a presidential ambition cannot detract from his leadership… and us, poor us, who were not his people, must continue to regret that our own leaders had not led us as he did his people or achieved for us as he did for his people.”

    The crux of our challenge is in the last part of Ikemba’s statement. Do we see ourselves as one people or as different peoples with different agendas? If the latter, we do not have a leadership crisis. We have an identity crisis.

    Therefore, a further refining of the humanistic theory is needed. If we insist, as we should, that humans are the architects of their own fortune, it stands to reason that they should also be the builders of their national greatness. This entails the responsibility for ascertaining the right kind of institutions and structures that are essential for the management of their affairs and the progressive development of their nation. It requires active thinking and selfless abandonment of short-term gains for self or group in favour of the general good of the nation. The challenge for leaders is to set their minds wholly to this structural task.

     

    (To be continued)

     

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  • Sagay’s tiresome tirades

    In the heady early days of President Muhammadu Buhari’s ascendance, Professor Itse Sagay was the giant signpost of a no-nonsense anti-corruption era. An eminent professor of Law with a well-honed reputation for social activism, he also wears rather haughtily, a visage that seems to bear a permanent scowl against bad behaviour and official graft.

    When shortly after inauguration, Sagay was drafted to lead a high-calibre anti-corruption think-tank, many agreed that the PMB administration was indeed smart off the blocks.

    In August 2015, Sagay was announced chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC). And the mandate of the body is clear and without any ambiguity whatsoever: to advise the PMB administration on the prosecution of the war against corruption and the implementation of the required reforms in Nigeria’s criminal justice system.

    Other notable members of this committee are Prof. Femi Odekunle, Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye, Prof. Sadiq Rabba, Prof. E. Alemika, Dr. Benedicta Daudu and Hadiza Bala Usman. And funding was no issue as a matching grant of sort of about $5million was provided by three international development partners – the Ford Foundation; MacArthur Foundation and Open Society Foundation. “The fund is to assist implementation of key components of the Action Plan and the work of the Presidential Advisory Committee”, according to a release from the Presidency then.

    Sorry to note that more than one and a half years after, the Sagay Committee seemingly have made little or no impact in the anti-graft war. This columnist is not aware of any preliminary reports from PACAC or any notable impute it has made in the quest to rid Nigeria of acute and chronic systemic corruption. As indicated in its terms, PACAC seems to have been designed to be the intellectual backbone and guiding light of a renewed resolve to stem graft. We expected organisational retooling of anti-corruption agencies and of course fresh rules and laws to revamp and indeed return our policing, investigative and criminal justice systems.

    We expected new ways of battling financial and economic crimes; improved methods of monitoring the treasury, tracking revenues and executing public procurements. In fact, if the PACAC has been at work, nothing of it has been brought to the public domain at least to show Nigerians that it is not just another privileged, funds-guzzling bureaucracy.

    On the contrary, Prof. Sagay has since his appointment delved into what may be regarded as the politics of anti-graft war instead of tinkering with the technicalities that would deepen the war and imbue lasting solution.

    At almost every turn, the erudite professor has infused the media space with comments better left to political party spokesmen and information ministers.

    Some instances: commenting on the Supreme Court’s verdict in favour of the governors of Rivers and Akwa-Ibom states, he described the judgments as “perverse.” That of course, is a brashly impolitic statement to make in a bi-partisan affair, considering his status and position. In the matter of the night raid of the residences of some justices of the Supreme Court by the Department of State Security (DSS), Sagay had said: “Judiciary has lost its moral armour.”

    But this article is actually triggered by Prof. Sagay’s current outing in which he railed against the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

    “You will not believe that with all we are going through, the NDDC, which is the other name for uncompleted projects, has just bought over 70 cars,”  Sagay notes.

    He says further: “There is no difference in Customs since May 29, 2015. If you go to Tin Can Island in Lagos, it is business as usual.” He also berated the judiciary for side-tracking the administration of the Criminal Justice Act, 2015. He noted that contrary to the stipulation that an application for a stay of proceedings in a criminal matter should not be entertained, some courts still adjourn to wait for the outcome of an interlocutory appeal. “All these are illegal and strictly constitute acts of misconduct on the part of the judges. The outcome of all this is that we have over 100 high-profile cases not going nowhere.”

    To put it mildly, Prof. Sagay’s recent outburst can be seen as capitulation and an admission of failure by default. His fulminations over the NCS or the NDDC is at best a distraction as he has said nothing new or added value to the quest to clean these Augean stables.

    We have always known that most government departments and agencies are bastions of corruption. Any little Nigerian boy or girl can guess how rotten the Customs, NNPC, Immigrations, Police and others are. The main reason Nigerians voted PMB and APC is because of the aching need to stop the corruption monster. The reason the PACAC was among the first important moves made by this administration is to tackle this virus with forensic acuity. Not to wear us out with tiresome tirades.

    But 18 months down the line nary a dent has been made on the corruption monolith and as Professor Sagay rightly pointed out, it is probably worse now. Apart from the crude effort of Ibrahim Magu and his team at the EFCC, not much else goes on in the so-called battle. But Magu’s exertions, it has become clear, has been of no effect as the method is pedestrian and non-preemptive.

    Prof. Sagay is not the only one wringing his palms in utter helplessness, seemingly. Early in the month, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, had this to say about his industry: “Importation of petroleum products will have to stop. There is absolutely no reason why a country with the resources that we have will continue to import petroleum products. It’s a fraud on the system and we are going to end it.” Shall we just simply say good morning to Kachikwu that he finally stirs from slumber? Kachikwu has been in the sector and this matter has been with us for over two decades! He ought to have solved this problem yesterday.

    Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, also rose to the ‘great occasion’ recently albeit, belatedly. He says: “The power to do good or evil lies with a few people who form what we refer to as our Civil Service. When some of such elite see the opportunity as one of self-enrichment…. then the nation faces a monumental tragedy.”

    Wonderful, soul-stirring rhetoric but is this what we want to hear now? No! Do these denouncements stop the next procurement process abuse? No!

    This is why this column is particularly piqued by the way PACAC has turned out so far. To think that there are several things Sagay’s team could have done by merely making the right pronouncements, picking several quick wins and low-hanging fruits.

    For instance, the Office of the Attorney-General ought to be the impregnable war room from where anti-graft battles are planned and consummated. The office of the Auditor-General of the Federation – if it cannot be made fiercely independent, it can at least deliver its basic annual reports promptly and timeously.

    Same goes for the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Code of Conduct Bureau, EFCC and ICPC. These agencies could have been reshuffled and deepened to operate super-efficiently in line with the new spirit of fighting graft. But the problem is that old wines have remained in the old casks, maturing in their redundancies and old habits.

    But more irksome is that PACAC’s capitulation is almost akin to a force majeure in the fight against corruption. Enough of lamentations, please.

     

    Ali the obtuse

    They must have tagged it ‘operation show your Customs paper or be damned’. But thank goodness for the timely intervention of the Senate, otherwise Nigerians were about being subjected to the obtusest Customs rules ever enacted. Col. Hameed Ali (retd), Comptroller-General of Customs and his team had determined that they would not only follow smuggled products to Nigerians’ bedrooms and kitchens, but they were poised to drive every imported car owner up the electric pole.

    A deadline was already given and the stage was set: every second-hand car owner must show cause why he should be on the road. Just imagine for a moment Customs officials chasing about 50 million vehicles across the country – what a bedlam that would unleash on the polity! Again, thank goodness for the Senate’s intervention; it has asked the CG to junk what is obviously a junk idea meant to extort and overawe an already frazzled citizenry.

    It is hoped that our obdurate CG who won’t don the Customs’ uniform, would hearken to wise counsel this time. It must be noted, however, that Mr. Ali seems to lack the capacity to reform the Service. A rotten NCS now stinks. One instance: How did N5 billion worth of fake tyres get into the country recently? Another: Who imported those 566 AK47’s? How can we preempt smugglers instead of to pursuing them about town? The Service needs a holistic revamping, reorientation and retraining. It is an intellectual task, really.

  • PMB: 43 days on, plus one Igbo question

    It’s 43 days today since President Muhammadu Buhari hurriedly left his domain for a 10-day leave. The leave became tarrying a while for test results; further time to rest and now, a full blown and indefinite medical vacation. If nothing else, we have been availed the joy of new executive terminologies, as concerns vacations.

    While we do not know how much longer our President will be away, the drama of this presidential ‘virtual’ infirmity brings unexpected twists and themes.

    Now this one is for the laughs. Let us consider quickly, the little matter of the Igbo question and the eternal whimpers of marginalisation. Those who feared that PMB had always nursed a personal animus against Ndigbo may just have another straw to grab at. Here is it: for the entire 43 days Nigeria’s president has been ominously absent, no Igbo man (or woman) can affirm or confirm his well-being or actual state of health. This is because none has been allowed to venture near his now hallowed presence.

    Here is a list of those who have been afforded that most privileged information of vouching on PMB’s status: Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Chief Bisi Akande, Chief John Oyegun, Senator Bola Saraki, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, Hon. Yusuf Lasun, Malam Abba Kyari and of course, the redoubtable Mamman Daura. And on telephone from London, the President has spoken with the Vice-President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, the governor of Yobe State and most recently, Mr. Femi Adesina reported his telephone conversation with his boss.

    It is likely that in private capacity and at work related levels, some Igbo may have spoken or even had contact with our new London House power locus. But the politics and power equation lie on who is found around the President at this time; who is consorting and consulting with PMB right now. Of course, every call, every photo opportunity comes with a strategic undertone.

    That is power relations 101. And no Igbo man is near the centrifugal arena; he is not in the picture; he is an outsider, he is the man on the other side of the fence, in the cold waiting for second level directive or even reading the lips and studying the body language of close aides.

    It is the same logic and mindset that denied Igbo nation a seat in the National Security Council (NSC) and in the entire superstructure of the military, security, intelligence and paramilitary hub in Nigeria. If this London episode is not yet another proof of Igbo marginalisation then what is?

    Well never mind that small digression there. The issue of the day is that 43 days have raced by and we are still counting, since our President left our shores in a most unclear and indeed hazy circumstance. And certain crucial issues won’t quit tugging at our consciousness.

    First, what really is the problem with our President, what is this health issue that has kept him away for so long – incommunicado and indefinitely.

    We, the citizens who voted him to office deserve to know the exact health status of our President. It is our inalienable constitutional right. In fact, we ought to just click a button and find all the details of our President’s health records. That is today’s standard of transparency in governance. The Fidel Castro example continues to be the touchstone. Pictures of him on his sickbed was there on the cyberspace for the world to see.

    Beyond the issue of transparency and integrity, apologists would say so along as PMB handed over to the Vice-President, nothing is amiss and government is running unhindered. But this is a fallacy, a mere placebo to make us feel well. When President Umaru Yar’Adua was in the same situation – ensconced in Saudi Arabia – some party wags insisted the President could rule from anywhere in the world.

    But we must not allow stalwarts, beneficiaries and a cabal of usurpers to lead the narrative. They say the Veep (Acting President) is in charge, yet only yesterday we were told that he consults PMB on important issues. And there lies the problem. What are important matters? Is there any matter of State that is not of specific importance and significance? And if for any reason the Veep cannot reach the President, such ‘important’ matter remains in abeyance? How long would the Acting President wait on instruction from London to act?

    And by Jove, do we know who really is issuing instructions from the London end on behalf of PMB – a cousin, a personal assistant or chief of staff? APC bigwigs are right now sulking that some fellow speaking on behalf of the president in London would not let them come see their prez. Such is our national dilemma.

    If the Veep is truly in charge, can he elect to rejig the cabinet tomorrow to make for a more effective team or to suit his style? Can he reshuffle the service chiefs, and the security and intelligence brass in order to have people of his own character and temperament? In other words, is he the Commander-In-Chief when the commanders recently pledged loyalty to PMB? We wait… indefinitely!

    Again, are the President’s personal aides who are in some cases untouchables and larger-than-life answerable to the Veep? Let’s not kid ourselves, many of these are the fabled members of the cabal who manage the President and run the presidency. Make no mistake, they still hold the levers of power and they pull the strings still. By the way, these strings are located in the office of the president which is still live and alive. Our dear Veep is at best, a marionette; as long as this episode lasts, he is only re-enacting a semblance of motion and movement. No man can be number one while seated in the office of number two…

    This is the rude fact of our current situation. Thus, while many will want to pretend that all is well, we are actually in a most precarious situation right now. The country is actually in abeyance. An Igbo proverb admonishes that a man who is truly healed must discard the crutches. But here we are, dangling on double-handed stumps and we insist all is well.

    Apart from the other issue of exposing our President to all sorts of security risks out there (a desperate cabal can actually contrive to keep him there for as long as they can swing it, while they milk the treasury), we cannot continue like this. No country excels that lies to itself or lives an extended lie. Most of us are afraid to confront the truth, the crude truths of our national life today. We are loyal to our presidents instead of to our country. We revere our president at the detriment of our country. This is why our service chiefs will tell us to our face that they are loyal to Buhari and not the government or country.

    . The other day in the House of Representatives, it was ribaldry raised to an art as they quarrelled over whether the president is sick abroad or on medical vacation. But unbeknown to us, we seem to gaily commit collective regicide; this is self-immolation. If we are a thinking people, if we have a legislature, the current crisis ought to be grist for fresh laws that would peg upper age limits for presidential candidates; laws to insist on full disclosure of a candidate’s health records. This is how a nation makes progress.

     

     

    What’s the MTN-Arsenal deal worth?

    My heart breaks each time I see big corporate bodies in Nigeria dole out huge sums to English Premier League (EPL) clubs in the guise of seeking marketing buy-ins. MTN is the latest in this thing I like to call flight of fancy. Many big companies in Nigeria are shovelling millions of pounds to clubs in England and Spain while football in Nigeria suffers acute kwashiorkor.

    Here is a roll call – MTN, Glo, Nigeria Breweries, Chi Limited, Sterling Bank, to name a few. In the last few years, managers of the Nigeria Professional Football League have done a damn good job in spite of odds, to lift our football.

    They need huge corporate support; our clubs could use revenues from jersey and stadium branding among other marketing and promotional buy-ins.

    It aches the heart when one sees the profit from the beer we drink here or recharge card I buy, being shipped to Arsenal or Manchester City. You don’t carry water to the river, do you?

     

  • NASFAT: Nigeria’s timely revolution

    NASFAT: Nigeria’s timely revolution

    “Have you not seen how your Lord planted a seed of parable? A beautiful word is like a pleasant tree with firm roots and delightfully gorgeous foliages sprouting pleasantly into the firmaments of the orbit by Allah’s grace. It produces edible fruits from season to season….” Q. 14: 24-27      

    Preamble

    Many religious observers around the world have been wondering about the fortuitous emergence of a Nigerian Muslim Organization called NASFAT. Many others have continually been marveled at its astronomical rise and phenomenal spread across nations. It is one queer development that beats anybody’s imagination and transcends any tendentious guessing.

    Observation

    Two things are positively strange about this Organization. One is the timeliness of its emergence. The other is the manner of that emergence. At a time when some contemptuous non-Muslim Nigerians began to perceive and treat Islam as an anachronistic religion meant for primordial people, an infinitesimal, unassuming group of Muslim elite with diverse professional backgrounds fortuitously came up with an unprecedented stunner that held the world nonplused. It was a timely question. Never in the history of Nigeria has a Muslim Organization with so fragile a background and so mean a provision risen so astronomically within so short a time. It is unprecedented.

    From a one room congregation of a few men and women of faith in Lagos, a gargantuan Islamic Organization emerged like a colossal tree with incredible foliages forming a formidably protective umbrella of faith for millions of Muslim faithful across the world. Today, NASFAT is a global case study for people in the academia as well as other research fellows with religious inclination. The evidence is undeniable.

    What is NASFAT?

    The word NASFAT is an acronym for an abridged verse of the Qur’an which goes thus: “…Nasrun minal-Lahi wa Fathun Qarib…” (Q. 61:13) meaning: “…With (strong) help from Allah, victory is surely attainable”. From that Qur’anic verse, the name of the Organization was formed as ‘NASRUL-LAHI-L-FATIH’ Society and shortened to NASFAT for easy pronunciation.

    Initially, the Organization was conceived to be limited to Nigeria. But, unimaginably, within two decades, it rapidly outgrew even an African image and went global. Thus, whether you are in the US or UK or Germany or Canada or Netherlands, NASFAT is a familiar name with a familiar status.

    Profile

    NASFAT was founded as another Islamic Organization for Nigeria’s Muslim elite in 1996 by a group of young Muslim professionals. There had been a myriad of elite Islamic Organizations before it especially in Lagos and other parts of the South West Nigeria. Some of such elite Organizations include Ahmadiyyah Jamat; Jam’atu Islamiyyah; Ahmadiyyah Movement in Islam; Anwarul Islam Movement; Ansar-Ud-Deen Society of Nigeria; Nawairu-Ud-Deen Society; Zumratu Islamiyyah; The Companion; Federation of Muslim Women Associations of Nigeria (FOMWAN) and a host of others. At the advent of NASFAT, the objective of its founding was clearly reflected in its mission statement which went thus: “to develop an enlightened Muslim society nurtured by a true understanding of Islam for the spiritual uplift and welfare of mankind.”

    The Mission Statement

    That Mission Statement was like a dream not given a chance of realization but which turned out to be the most wonderfully realized dream of the century. If anything can be described as the 20th century success crown for Nigeria’s Muslim Ummah, it is NASFAT.

    The small group that had such a dramatic dream about two decades ago has now grown in limbs and in wings into such a magnificent conglomerate drawing members in their thousands to form a non-such formidable Organization that cannot be taken for granted. Its membership comprises of young professionals, Educationist, Muslim Scholars, Civil Servants, Journalists, Company Directors, Business Executives, Computer Experts, Members of Security Forces, Members of the Judiciary, Politicians, State Commissioners, Legislators, Traders, Artisans, Students. Name it.

    Today, NASFAT is, arguably, one of the fasted growing religious Organizations in the world. The similitude of NASFAT is like that of Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt, which was established as a Mosque by a small sunni group of Fatimids in 970 CE. The name Al-Azhar was coined from the appellation of Fatimah the daughter of Prophet Muhammad (saw) who was popularly called Zahrau (meaning adorable flower). With time, Al-Azhar University emerged from the Mosque and became one of the earliest established Universities in the world.

    Now about 1040 years old, Al-Azhar University is one of the three oldest Universities in the world today. The other two are Qarawiyyin University in Fez, Morocco and Zaytuniyyah University in Tunis, Tunisia. Being contemporaries in age and reputation, the tripod came to confirm that what we call University today is an Islamic heritage.

    Before Speculations

    There is tendency in some idle Muslim quarters to think that this columnist must have been paid handsomely by NASFAT for a public relations job. Such a tendentious thought is characteristic of certain ignorant Nigerian Muslims who have nothing to contribute to the growth of Islam but are quick in detesting the few well known contributors around as a way of cultivating some lotus benefit for themselves.

    As a thorough propagator of Islam, this columnist has never collected any gratification from any individual or group here in Nigeria or abroad. My principle is based on the Qur’anic verse that says: “We only feed you for the sake of Allah; we expect neither compensation nor gratitude from you…”. NASFAT members can testify to this.

    The problem with ultra-conservative Muslims in Nigeria is that of cacophony of gossip, witch-hunting, blackmail and sticking tenaciously to retardation on the bedrock of incurable ignorance. I am quite familiar with their parochial antics.

    NASFAT’s Branches

    When NASFAT was fast becoming unmanageable, due to an unexpected upsurge in its membership roll, the leadership of the Organization decided to create branches nationally and internationally for the convenience of all and sundry. That was in 2002.

    Today, NASFAT has over 315 branches in Nigeria and abroad cutting across the geo political zones of the world.

    Impression

    Whatever impression anybody may have about NASFAT’s mode of operation is immaterial at this stage as long as that Organization is not acting against the fundamental norms of Islam. After all, it is crystal clear that the real Da’wah champions in contemporary Nigeria are the Muslim elite who know little about Islamic theology, and not the so-called Imams and Alfas whose impact of theology is not felt in any way. All the above listed Organizations in Nigeria were established by progressive, non-clerical  Muslim elite including those of NASFAT. Those who feel otherwise should show us their own achievements.

    Perhaps, without NASFAT, there would not have been any Islamic University in Nigeria or at least in Southern Nigeria, today. If any other Islamic University now exists, NASFAT should be credited for showing the way and throwing the challenge that woke others up from their slumber.

    Note

    There is a sharp difference between a Muslim University, and an Islamic University. The earlier is registered in the name of an individual Muslim. The latter is registered in the name of an Islamic Organization. In that case, ownership is the main determinant of status.

    Only three of several private Universities attributed to Islam in Nigeria today are truly Islamic. These are Fountain University based in Osogbo, Osun State and owned by NASFAT, Summit University based in Offa, Kwara State and owned by Ansar-Ud-Deen Society of Nigeria and Al-Qalam University based in Katsina, Katsina State and owned by an….. Others generally perceived as Islamic Universities are only privately owned by individual Muslims and not Islamic Organizations.

    Fountain University

    Like Al-Azhar University founded by the Fatimids in Cairo over 1000 years ago, Fountain University is one of the major achievements of NASFAT. This University was founded by NASFAT and licensed by the Federal Government of Nigeria through the National University Commission (NUC) a few years ago and it held its sixth convocation just last month to the glory of Allah.

    Sited on 250 hectares of land where academic activities are in full and uninterrupted swing Fountain University is operating a fully accredited curriculum of any standard University in the world. Most of the graduates of Fountain University, so far, whether Muslims or Christians, ar now proud of thorough education and not just the certificate obtained from that University.

    Fountain is a University indeed by all standards. The freedom of religion entrenched in the administrative policy of that University is a clear evidence of religious sincerity on the part of the proprietors and management of the University.

    Daarus-Salam

    Among other NASFAT’s achievements is a Village, being planned to serve as ‘Daarus-Salaam’, (Home of Peace). That village is a model estate for Muslim families in a serene environment. The project is located on 40 hectares of land on Lagos- Ibadan Expressway, in Ogun State of Nigeria. It is meant for any NASFAT member or interested Muslim who wants to live peacefully with fellow Muslims. It is another revolutionary innovation.

    Hajj and Umrah Company

    As one of its achievements also, NASFAT is engaged in Hajj and Umrah Halal business aimed at making pilgrimage relatively comfortable for Nigerian Muslims without fear of exploitation. The company licensed for that business is called TAFSAN Tours and Travels.

    Not only that, NASFAT also feelt so concerned about the spate of poverty among Nigerian Muslims that it established an agency which handles Zakah and Sadaqah especially their collection and distribution for the purpose of alleviating poverty among the Muslims and advancing the course of needed Muslim projects in the society.

    Dawah activities

    Like some other prayer groups, NASFAT is known for recitation of prayers congregationally in a book which contains selected Dua’u from the Glorious Qur’an and prayers of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) every Sunday; It is also known for Providing economic empowerment for joblessness Muslim youths; fixing up the qualified ones among those youths in employment vacancies  and granting soft loans to those who require such loans  for small scale businesses as well as assisting in financing  genuine local purchase orders (LPOs) through the NASFAT”s Cooperative arm.

    There is also the Usrah (family) Classes programme where basic knowledge of Islam is imparted to couples, parents and children alike on a weekly basis. This helps not only in cementing the marital relationship of those couples but also in facilitating close relationship between the parents and their children on the basis of knowledge and piety.

    Educational Programmes

    Believing in education as the solid foundation of human existence, NASFAT organizes general   lectures pertaining to Islam, peace and morals for all its members who are interested in such lectures.   This programme is mostly handled by the Society’s Mission Board members including the Imams. Sometimes, guest lecturers are invited from within and outside the country to handle such lectures. Another programme is ‘Tutorial Class’ specifically designed for professional-male and female members of NASFAT and other interested Muslims   to learn the Qur’an and Hadith for the purpose of solidifying their understanding of Islam. This programme has produced about 1000 youth and adult graduates.

    Another interesting programme is that of Children Classes. In this programme, various classes are organized for children to teach them Qur’an and Hadith as well as well as inculcate in them Islamic culture and values.

    Scholarship Awards

    Another vital programme of NASFAT is award of scholarships to indigent Muslim student in Primary, Post-Primary and Tertiary Institutions. Such scholarships are funded from the Zakat collected during the year. An addendum to NASFAT’s education promme is educational recreation that includes children’s holiday camping, women’s week, youth week and National Qur’anic quiz competition. That programme also includes social services such as welfare visitations to prison yards, orphanages, old people’s homes and the likes.

    Besides all the programmes mentioned above, NASFAT has also confirmed its seriousness in acquisition of education by establishing ten standard Islamic Nursery and Primary schools and a number of secondary schools to cater for the future of Islam in Nigeria. More of such schools are still in the making.

    Conclusion

    If within 21 years of existence, NASFAT could achieve so much despite the hash economic environment and hostile religious tendencies, who says this unique Organization is not a front line model to be emulated in Nigeria? ‘The Message’ Column salutes the courage of NASFAT in its various activities toward the promotion of Islam and prays that such courage and the wherewithal to summon it should never, never wane.