The Nation Newspaper

Category: Friday

  • Oba Alani Oyede: In memoriam

    Oba Alani Oyede: In memoriam

    At 71, Oba Moshood Alani Adetoro Oyede, Arolagbade III, the Olota of Ota has joined his ancestors. Death is cruel. Death is heartless. Death is unbeatable. And as the sage observes, Iku to pa ojugba eni, owe lo n pa fun ni (When death strikes and steals away an age-mate, it sends an ominous message to the living.) But the Great Beyond needs not be in a hurry; for sooner or later, we are all going to be its guests. Oba Oyede has only just preceded us.

    My path crossed that of Kabiyesi Oyede in January 1966 at the start of my Grade II Teacher Training programme at the African Church Teacher Training College, Ifako-Agege. Alani Oyede had started the programme in January 1965 and was therefore my senior by one year in the two-year Grade II Teachers’ Certificate programme.

    Senior Oyede, as I fondly called him, was an all-round student, a talented sportsman, a brilliant student and a pleasant gentleman. He was the school goal-keeper, the captain of the volleyball team and the college librarian. He appointed me his junior librarian in mid-1966, and I succeeded him as the college librarian in January 1967 in my final year. We lived in the same Joseph House, and as I mentioned to him during my visit to his palace in Ota in January this year, I inherited his coveted corner space and sleeping bed in the House.

    Teacher training was a hell in those days. As I narrated in All the Way: Serving with Conscience, whether at the Grade III or Grade II training colleges, seniors behaved like monsters fashioned in the pit of hell with the sole mission being the dehumanisation of juniors through relentless physical and psychological harassment and humiliation.

    I will neither understand nor appreciate why prospective teachers were expected to go through such a programme of brutish training experience. Indeed, I do not think that it served any useful purpose unless one erroneously believes in the replication of boot-camp discipline. For juniors soon become seniors with a mind to have their own pound of flesh on new juniors, while seniors go into teaching to unleash terror on innocent pupils.

    There were a few truly notable exceptions to the callousness in the name of discipline that seniority appeared to excite in teacher trainees. These few demonstrated the core of humanity at its best, with an understanding that no condition is permanent. Indeed, roles were often reversed as a senior in one college became junior to a former junior in another. One of the notable decent exceptions was Oba Alani Oyede. He was empathetic and helpful. He was the go-to guy, with listening ears, for advice in dealing with practical issues of campus life. He would also advocate and solicit on our behalf for leniency.

    With time, I observed that it was the smart seniors that were more humane. This was because they were self-assured and self-confident with liberal attitude to life. Oba Oyede belonged to that class of genteel humankind, the ideal of God’s purpose for his creatures. The empty barrels, on the other hand, were the sadists, who used to make the loudest noise and to act the brute.

    Oba Oyede left Ifako and taught for a few years, took the General Certificate of Education (GCE) and got admitted to the University of Ibadan in 1970, the same year that I was admitted to the University of Ife (Obafemi Awolowo University). He read French and received his Bachelor’s degree in 1974. This was no mean achievement. French language was not a curriculum option for teacher trainees. It follows therefore that he studied the subject on his own and passed the GCE examination to qualify for admission, and then earned his degree. That proved my point about his smartness.

    Oba Oyede taught at several institutions at the federal and state level, and advanced to the post of principal before retiring in 1996. He ascended to the throne of Ota in 1997. And smartness, thoughtfulness, and Godliness, his intrinsic qualities, helped to shape his reign as he mobilised the various classes of Ota community—business, intelligentsia, traditional, women and youth—for the monumental development of the ancient town.

    As his knowledgeable biographer, Ruhollah Ajibola Salako noted, the development included the establishment of many businesses in Ota. Among them are the Vaswani Group of Companies, Nyeil Limited, Hong Kong Synthetic Fibre Company Nigeria Limited, De United Food Ltd., Aluminum Rolling Mills, Sona Breweries Ltd., Nigeria Distilleries Ltd., Avon Crown Caps and Containers, Federated Steel Mills Ltd., and Homan Industries Ltd. Higher education institutions, such as Covenant University and Bells University are also worthy of mention. The pace of the development of Ota is a living testament to the positive influence of the monarch and an evidence of his lasting legacy.

    I had not seen Oba Oyede since December 1966 when he completed his Teachers’ Grade II programme at the Ifako, until he graciously showed up at the public presentation of my book on December 21 last year. As those who were at the event witnessed, it was an emotional moment for both of us as he and I were visibly excited at our meeting on that day.

    That Oba Oyede chose to risk his frail health to honour my invitation was the height of affection, which we mutually shared. And rather than expecting anything from me, he also made donations to the Foundation which I co-chair with my wife.

    In January, I visited the palace of Oba Oyede. It was another demonstration of an uncommon affection as he monitored my drive to the palace, giving direction and ensuring that I was alright. At first, he called every 10 minutes, and later every five minutes until we arrived at the palace.

    At the palace, he prayed for me and my family and presented me with invaluable gifts to last a lifetime. He also ensured that he invited one of my former classmates, Bishop S. A. Odu and it was a great reunion. The Oloris, Chief Akinyemi, the Ajana of Ota, were friendly and pleasant hosts. And while I was struck by the modesty of his palace, his down-to-earth simplicity explained it all. At Ifako, many of us were not aware that he had blue blood running through his veins.

    Though, I noticed that he was not in the best of health, I prayed and hoped that he would be alright. It did not occur to me that it was a farewell get-together. And when sometime in March, I was informed that he was in intensive care unit at the University College Hospital, I tried unsuccessfully to reach him from my base.

    It is the fateful reality of mortals! As the holy books affirm, we are not much different from the grass: blossoming in one day, gone the next. What we do, how we touch fellow human beings and other creatures, and what we contribute to the advancement of humanity, are the legacies that will outlive us.

    Our memories in the hearts of those we leave behind matter a lot more than the riches we accumulate here on earth. Why many don’t pay attention to this simple lesson of life is mind-boggling. Attesting to Oba Oyede’s deep understanding of God’s purpose and directives for a meaningful life is very easy for those who came across his path as I did many years ago and most recently. He was truthful to God’s mandate.

    To Olori Adewumi and Olori Oluwakemi, to his adult and young children, his family and friends, his High Chiefs and Emewas, there are good reasons to stand tall and proud of the life and times and the legacy of Oba Oyede, a gem of human being, a classy and progressive traditional ruler, and a God-fearing monarch. The knowledge and understanding that many lack is coming to terms early with the fact of our humanity and mortality and the attitude that it requires of us. Oba Oyede was one of the few that had that understanding. I have no doubt that his generous and kind soul is already resting in perfect peace.

  • Details of Hajj

    Details of Hajj

    Preamble

    This is the season of Hajj. It comes up in the month of Dhul Hijjah every year. Hajj means aspiration towards a higher pedestal in spirituality. It is, divinely, a pillar of Islam made obligatory by Allah for Muslims who can afford it once in a lifetime. Hajj is an ordained pilgrimage and not a mere tourism. Thus, the visa issued to Muslims who perform Hajj annually is that of pilgrimage and not one of tourism. Whilst pilgrimage is a spiritual exercise, tourism is a pleasurable journey.

     

    Similitude of Hajj

    The similitude of Hajj in the life of a Muslim is like that of pregnancy in the womb of an expectant mother. The experience may vary from woman to woman as the foetus in the womb undergoes various stages of development before it reaches the stage of delivery. By the time the child is finally delivered, the mother feels a relief of her life while the child assumes a tabula rasa (clean slate) that makes him absolutely innocent.

    Spiritually, a pilgrim is like a newly born baby if he strictly performs Hajj as prescribed by Allah. But if he returns into the world of vanity after Hajj, he automatically becomes like a person in snow-white attire who finds himself in a palm oil market. Unless he spiritually guides his loins, he may immediately become a tainted person both in body and in soul.

     

    Rigours of Hajj

    Muslim pilgrims who are going on Hajj must be prepared to go through series of rigour both spiritually and physically. The rigour of getting the money with which to perform Hajj; the rigour of getting the travelling documents including visa; the rigour of taking care of the home front before embarking on the Holy journey; the rigour of boarding the plane with a sense of high risk; the rigour of going through the security checks at the embarkation point at the home of residence as well as the disembarkation point in Saudi Arabia;  the rigour of performing the Tawaf and Sa’y; the rigour of moving from Makkah to Mina on the 8th day of Dhul-Hijjah, then to Arafah on the 9th day of Dhul-Hijjah, and back to Mina via Muzdalifah on the 10th of Dhul-Hijjah; the rigour of locating the tents at Arafah; the rigour of throwing the pebbles at the Jamrat in Mina on the three or four days known as Ayamu-t-Tashrik; The rigour of performing Tawaful Ifadah at the Sanctuary in Makkah after the first day of throwing the pebbles; the rigour of shaving the head (by men) and slaughtering the rams by all; the rigour of performing the farewell circumambulation otherwise known as Tawaful Wida‘i,  all in the midst of millions of people can be too much to forget easily after Hajj.

    Whoever is not bothered by the money spent on Hajj should at least be bothered by the various stages of the rigour involved including that of visiting Madinah. To lose all these to the forces of Satan after Hajj is like losing one’s travelling passport after obtaining visa. The prayer of every genuine pilgrim is to retain the validity of Hajj forever.

     Conditions for Hajj performance

    Performance of pilgrimage must be based on certain fundamental conditions. These include genuine intention and high spiritual standard. An intending pilgrim must have attained puberty. He must have been an ardent practitioner of the first four pillars of Islam: (Salat, Zakah, and Sawm) all of which are fervently based on faith (Iman). Hajj without these pre-requisites is like a tree without roots. Money is a major pre-requisite for Hajj but it is not absolute.

    Hajj, the last pillar of Islam shows very vividly, the similitude of what mankind will experience on the Day of Judgment. Looking at the unique way in which pilgrims dress for Hajj and how they assemble at Arafat leaving their luggage behind in Makkah, one will realize how ephemeral this world is.

    Purpose of Hajj

    The various stages of preparation through which pilgrims pass before arriving at Arafat are symbolic of our peregrinations in life as human beings. Like the Day of Judgment, Arafat is the climax of Hajj performance. Anybody who misses Arafat misses Hajj. But Arafat is not by physical appearance alone. It takes a combination of factors to participate effectively in that great assembly which serves as the climax of Hajj.

    For Hajj to serve its spiritual purpose in the life of a pilgrim, certain steps must be taken before leaving home. They are as follows:

    • Fine-tuning the first four pillars of

    Islam very sincerely

    • Packaging the intention to perform Hajj
    • Ascertaining the security of the way
    • Providing adequately for the family and     dependants at home
    • Paying all outstanding debts including promises
    • Ascertaining the condition of health
    • Perfecting immigration procedures
    • Undergoing all necessary medical ser vices including inoculation
    • Assuming a mood of humility like that

    of a servant approaching his Master

    • Readiness to endure hardship and to

    tolerate fellow pilgrims’ attitudes.

    Admonition

    While admonishing Muslims on spiritual journey including Hajj Prophet Muhammad once said: “Actions shall be judged according to intentions. Whoever embarks on a spiritual journey for the sake of Allah will be adjudged on that basis. And whoever bases his/her intention for pilgrimage on marriage or material gains should not expect any reward beyond that for which the intention is based”. The steps to follow in the performance of Hajj are as follows:

    The Miqat

    Miqat is the specified place for the wearing of Ihram dress. There are five of such places in all. But the one earmarked for pilgrims from Nigeria cannot be reached by pilgrims travelling by air. It is over-flown while crossing the Red Sea. What most Nigerians do therefore is to wear their Ihram dress in Jeddah which has now been adjudged right through a Fatwah. Thus, Nigerian pilgrims can now wear their Ihram dress on arrival at the pilgrims’ airport in Jeddah. However, pilgrims whose first destination in Saudi Arabia is Madinah have no problem with Miqat. Such pilgrims should just wear their Ihram dresses at the Miqat in Madinat.

    Tawaful-Qudum

    Tawaf means circumambulation of the Ka’bah. The very first Tawaf to be performed by any pilgrim on entering Makkah is called Tawaful Qudum (meaning welcoming circumambulation). It is performed before a pilgrim settles down in any residence. Tawaful Qudum is an obligatory Sunnah from which only residents of Makkah among pilgrims are exempted.

     

    Residence in Makkah or Madinah

    Most Nigerian pilgrims often seek their accommodations in Makkah or Madinah close to the Haram. This is to enable them to walk to from the Haram conveniently at the time of any Salat. To minimise pilgrims’ regular occurrence of missing their ways, they are provided with hand bands bearing the addresses of their residences. Pilgrims are therefore advised to wear such bands at all times to enable them show it to either the official Saudi Hajj guides or Saudi policemen when the road is missed. It is also important for pilgrims to always be with their identity cards provided by Nigerian Pilgrims’ Commission or private agents. This is to enable them to be identified in case of sickness, accident or even death.

    Movement to Mina

    Pilgrims’ statutory movement to Mina is on the 8th of Dhul Hijjah. Such pilgrims must spend the night of the 8th of Dhul-Hijjah in Mina where they must observe Salatus-Subhi of the 9th day of Dhul Hijjah which is Arafah Day before proceeding to the Plain of Arafah. Pilgrims must be ready to undergo some rigour in the process of moving to Mina from Makkah. The rigour which normally affects all pilgrims is engendered by limited time available for millions of   pilgrims who must move to that spiritual camp before the sunset on the day preceding Arafah day. Such movement must commence from Makkah and after Tawaful Qudum. There is movement to Mina from Madinah since there is no Tawaf in Madinah.

    The Day of Arafah

    All pilgrims proceed to the Plain of Arafat are advised to stay under their tents and concentrate on the spiritual activities that take them to the place. They must reach Arafat not later than mid day when Salatu-d-Dhuhr and ‘Asr should be observed combined. Anybody who is not at Arafat by mid day is considered not to have taken part in the assembly and therefore missed Hajj.

    Immediately after observing the combined Salatu-d-Dhuhr and ‘Asr the Imam who led the two Salat is expected to give a sermon. Listening to such sermon is as compulsory as giving it by the Imam. The great assembly of Arafat terminates shortly before sunset (Magrib) while the pilgrims return to Mina via Muzdalifah.

    Muzdalifah

    At Muzdalifah, pilgrims are expected to halt their journey to observe Magrib and ‘Ishai combined. They are also expected to pass the night there and observe the Salat-s-Subh of the following day before proceeding to Mina. Muzdalifah is adjacent to Mina and a walking distance to the Jamrat (the stonning place).

    Jamrat

    Stoning of the devils (Rajmu Jamrat) begins a day after Arafat and continues for the next three or four days that the pilgrims are supposed to spend at Mina. This exercise is obligatory and without it Hajj is considered incomplete except when and where a pilgrim is hindered by certain inevitable conditions. There are three points at which stones are to be thrown. Seven pebbles are to be thrown at each point on every one of the three or four days to be spent in Mina.

    While going for the pebble-throwing exercise, pilgrims are advised to take their pebbles along with them. On the first day of stone throwing, only seven stones are thrown at only one spot. On the subsequent three or four days,   pilgrims are required to throw twenty one pebbles each day with seven stones thrown at each of the three spots provided. These amout to 21 stones each day.

    Picking such pebbles at the point of throwing them is forbidden. All pebbles must have been picked before leaving the tent for the ‘Jamrat’ or on the way to the ‘Jamrat’. For pilgrims who deside to spend three days in Mina, the total number of pebbles to be thrown is 49 (7 for the first day, 21 for the second day and 21 for the third day). For pilgrims who choose to spend four days, the total number of pebbles to be thrown is 70.

    Majzarah (Abattoir)

    Slaughtering of all sacrificial animals is done at the abattoir in Mina. Pilgrims do not need to bother themselves by going to the abattoir for the purpose of carrying out this compulsory obligation. They can simply buy the guaranteed ticket sold by designated Saudi agents. The ticket is the evidence that one has performed that duty. The slaughtering is done on behalves of the pilgrims by some authorised artisans who are paid by the Saudi Hajj authorities from the money paid for those animals. The animals to be slaughtered at Jamrat range from rams to camels. A pilgrim should slaughter one ram or more while seven pilgrims may combine to slaughter one camel or five of them may jointly slaughter on cow.

    Tawaful Ifadah

    For pilgrims who can afford to go to Makkah after throwing the first seven pebbles, it is good to perform Tawaf-ul-Ifadah. For those who cannot, the exercise can be deferred till the end of Tashrik. Pilgrims who have performed Tawaf-ul-Ifadah are free to shave their heads and change from their Ihram dress into civil or traditional dresses.

    The only reason for any pilgrim to go to Makkah from Mina during the camping period is to perform Tawaf-ul-Ifadah. No pilgrim should break camping rule by going to Makkah without performing Tawaf-ul- Ifadah. And after performing Tawaful Ifadah, no pilgrim should remain in Makkah or elsewhere without returning to Mina before sunset.

    With the completion of the camping days in Mina which is climaxed with Tawaful-Ifadah and the arrival of all the pilgrims in Makkah, Hajj has been completed except for Tawaf Wida‘i  otherwise called farewell Tawaf. That Tawaf is also obligatory.

    It is then left for pilgrims to decide whether or not to go to Madinah. Visiting the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah is not obligatory. But it will be spiritually odd for any pilgrim to choose not to visit the Prophet’s Mosque before or after performing Hajj in Makkah and its environs.

    Conclusion

    Throughout the Hajj exercise, what should be uppermost in the mind of a pilgrim is the spiritual benefit. Hajj is made compulsory only once in a life’s time for those who have the wherewithal to undergo it and can satisfy the conditions attached to its performance.

    On arriving home finally, pilgrims are not expected to start organizing parties in celebration of a successful Hajj performance as ignorantly done by some Nigerians. Maintaining Hajj is a necessity for those who know the value of doing that. Whoever is privileged to perform Hajj once should forever be grateful to Allah as no one is sure of getting another chance.

  • How to eat your elephant

    Today’s report is actually the size of an elephant and imagine for a moment that you are faced with the small task of confronting a whole barbequed elephas maximus…? Such is the setting for today’s piece which is partially an account of the Nigerian Guild of Editors’ conference held last week in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

    Obviously triggered by the dark images hanging over the nation’s horizon, the editors (apparently unbeknown to them) put up a crash programme on how to save Nigeria via agriculture revolution. It was  perhaps the most stirring agric summit one had attended and it turned out an eye-opener for the crowd of editors and senior journalists from across the country. The only downside was that the Federal Ministry of Agriculture was missing at a forum that was perfect for presenting its new plan – The Agriculture Promotion policy (2016 – 2020). More on this later.

    Stars of the story: Of the numerous speakers on parade, three examples stand out because their stories are not only stellar, they exemplify the power and ingenuity of youth; signalling to us that our great nation would yet rise to her billowing glory regardless of the scourge of poor leadership.

    The first to wow the crowd was a feisty young man known as Lucas Adeniji. If his energy could be converted to megawatts, it would probably light up half of Lagos; he is the managing director of Niji Farms and Allied Services Limited. Established four years ago in Kajola, Oyo State, the farm, he said, has about 3,000 acres of cultivated land of mainly cassava, yam and maize.

    An internationally-acclaimed agric entrepreneur, Lucas has managed to work his business through the entire agric value chain. In other words, he fabricates production and processing tools, he cultivates, processes and has even developed both local and international markets for his products. He collaborates at various levels with such major organisations as College of Agriculture, Umuagwo; National Root Crop Research Institute; International Institute for Tropical Agriculture, Ibadan and the Honeywell Group to name a few.

    He has a number of processed and packaged foods to his name, such as Niji yam flour, Niji garri, Niji fufu, Niji vita, etc. which are available in markets and malls across the country.

    The ‘uncowed’ milkman: The Economist of London after an interview with Alhaji Muhammad D. Abubakar in his Kano farm, it typically, titled the story ‘uncowed’. Such is the impact Abubakar is making with his L&Z Farms Limited in Kano. According to him, he left his bank job a few years ago to establish his dairy farm. And till today, his is the only full process diary farm in Nigeria which produces fresh milk.

    Successful and self-assured, Abubakar dropped a few, shall we say, verbal bombshells which had the large hall in disarray. One, he said 70 per cent of the powdered milk we have been lapping up in this country is not consumed anywhere else on the globe because they are infused with fat and used only as additive in manufacturing.

    Two, but here is the banger, he told us that MOST OF THE SO-CALLED POWEDERED MILK CONSUMED BY NIGERIANS CAN CAUSE CANCER. He would not name any brands but challenged the foods, drug and consumer agencies to run their tests and disprove him.

    Three, he told us so many other things we did not know. The so-called Fulani herdsmen he said do not actually need to move about or stay in large ranches for that matter. They wander about out of survival instincts. If they were aggregated into small cooperatives and there was a sure market for their products, there won’t be any need for them to ‘suffer’ so much wandering about.

    He continues: “If there were large dairy farms and meat processing factories that are off-takers of their products they would organise themselves around their living quarters and neighbourhoods. It is about creating viable value chains.”

    To drive home his point, he made us to understand that milk is better taken fresh and in liquid form; that is what obtains in other parts of the world except Nigeria. His fresh milk can be found in supermarkets in major cities of the country. He is not shy to say he has become successful from producing and selling milk in Nigeria, a feat no other firm has achieved.

    His company is assessed by the international accounting firm, Price Waterhouse Coopers and at least three multinational companies have applied to partner him. Just like what our leaders are wont to do, foreign companies (investors) come down to Nigeria to seek him out.

    Lastly, L&Z Farms runs on generator for 24 hours because of the nature of its products (fresh milk, yoghurt, cheese and chickens) which need to be refrigerated all the time; he has never borrowed a dime from any bank nor enjoyed any government financing. He urged Nigerian professional to take the huge advantages in agribusiness, especially at the processing end.

    Pretty Miss Farmer: This is the moniker by which Ms Mosun Umoru is commonly known by today. And she is indeed beautiful – tall, delicate and finely slender, any man would want to follow her to the farm if that is what it takes! She is the managing director of Harvesters Farms Limited in Ile Ife, Osun State. A 3000-acre farm city, it is an integrated farm that embodies many agric chains – from production to the dining table. Numerous processed products from the farm which include garri, rice, etc, are already in supermarkets in the country.

    She is hands-on, being able not only to drive her own tractors but she can maintain them as well. A graduate of Lagos State University and Stanford in the USA, she has created the very important though intangible advantage of making agriculture look cool to Nigerian youths who think agric is dirty and not ‘lucrative’.

    PMB’s Agric Promotion Policy (APP): So many other speakers spoke at the NGE conference including the managing director of the Bank of Agriculture and many agric commissioners, but these three stood out and made huge impact. One had expected the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development would have stormed the venue to sell its new strategy document released in June, but that was not to be.

    It is a story that would be told here another day soon. Suffice to say that it is a better articulated work compared to the Agric Transformation Agenda of the last administration. But articulation can be very cheap when put beside implementation.

    Back to the top, Nigeria’s agribusiness today is like a whole barbequed elephant: so gargantuan, so sumptuous yet so dauntingly offensive. How would you approach your elephant?

     

    The Imo conundrums

    Last week on this portion of space, one had interrogated the rationale for the deprecatingly novel three-day work week being mooted in Imo State. It is bad enough that the state’s civil service had been in the doldrums in this dispensation; to now design a lackadaisical work regime is to finally bury the bureaucracy. Perhaps the government may wish to completely do away with the civil service; whereupon we shall have the 8th wonder of the modern world in Imo State.

    Passing through the streets of Owerri, Imo capital last weekend, it is apparent that a hurricane had wreaked havoc on some major streets. Orlu road, Okigwe road and Mbaise road were troubling spectacles with wailing and mourning on the trail of the whirlwind.

    Now these roads were freshly revamped and dualised, but the governor is said to want make them eight-lane roads. Well the motive maybe noble, but eight-lane roads through the city cannot be the priority of a state that cannot pay its workers. Especially if we remember that many inter-state roads in Nigeria are still two-lane. Thus, knocking down shops, offices and buildings without compensation and in a time of hunger borders on callousness. Worrisome signs indeed.

  • Lagos: re-imagining a mega city (2)

    In the first part of this piece last week, we had surmised mainly that Lagos, like Nigeria, will not achieve the status of a modern mega city if it does not tinker with the current template. We said that unless the component parts (LGAs and LCDAs) are geared to work at optimum, there is nothing even a great governor can do to fast-track modernity.

    We gave the example of the USA; zeroing it down to a random example of the state of Michigan, down to a county (Lake County) and to the village of Baldwin. The crucial point being made is that at every level there is a government that is responsible for every inch of space in its domain and every individual within that space.

    Lake County and its smaller unit, Baldwin are both structured to function accountably and to take charge of every aspect of its socio-economic life i.e. revenues, security, law and order, judiciary, health, education, etc. The biggest revenues earner for Baldwin for instance is its well developed water and eco-tourism. But here, our water ways have been abandoned for militants and forests are breeding grounds for terrorists.

    Our third and fourth tiers of government across the country are practically shutdown with no funds, no creativity and hardly any productive activity going on. Lagos must buck this trend and reactivate the LGAs and LCDAs lest all the troubles of insecurity, unemployment and filthy underdevelopment will get worse.

    After putting the lower tiers of government on proper track, Lagos will have to rework other critical sectors not only to make them mega-city ready but to have them withstand the exponential growth of the city in the next decades. Some of the development indices that must be reframed include security, health, education, transportation, tourism and youth and sports, among others.

    A vulnerable city: Happenings in recent times have proved beyond doubts that Lagos has increasingly become very vulnerable. Almost every night, pockets of the city are savaged by hoodlums. It happens so frequently that the news media don’t even bother to report them anymore. Perhaps government would like to take a sneak peek at police reports to have an idea.

    Armed gangs have understood that the police and security agents are laughably under strength, they have become more emboldened. They hold out an entire estate for several hours coolly ransacking and damaging it. Most times they are gone before the police manage to answer any distress call. Sometimes when they manage to catch them in the act, they square up to the police and return fire.

    The truth is that Lagos is being overwhelmed by crime and insecurity. It gets worse by the day. The state must redraw the security template with the federal government but being careful not to mention ‘restructure’. Lagos and Abuja must as a matter of urgency set up a joint committee on Lagos project.

    The rationale is that Lagos remains a microcosm of the country and if Lagos works well, one third of the country would probably work. The committee will look at critical areas of intervention and recommend to the federal government.

    Security is one such area. You cannot have the same security template in Lagos as obtains in other cities. Lagos must broaden her security architecture, building cyber networks and deploying more technology than the current ‘kick and pursue’ approach to policing. In an emerging mega city, emphasis must be on pre-empting, deterrence and punishment for criminals.

    A local government area working properly would have a proper policing system anyway.

    City on a slow lane: Transportation and attendant mass movement are yet again, a big city’s boldest signature or albatross. Consider that about 150 years ago, when rail lines became fully developed as the best mass transit man had, London central area was already fully built up. What to do? The authorities decided to tunnel under London city and passed the rail lines underground. That was how come we have the underground trains in London, US, Europe and other parts of the world.

    If Lagos is already too built up, can we have the underground skirting it? Lagos waterways are the most undeveloped and underutilised one knows. Lagos has not even begun to scratch the riches of the bodies of water surrounding it in terms of transportation, tourism and sports. And the good news is that a big city that is gaining in immense importance like Lagos easily attracts international finance for big ticket projects. Unlike security, most projects in the transport sector would fend for themselves through PPP. A mega city is hardly built on taxpayers’ money.

    A city without a soul: Lagos must be the only one of its kind without major tourism, culture and entertainment signatures. The type of places and monuments reckoned with all over the world. Accra and perhaps Dakar have managed to extract some vengeance from their slave history by making their sites into a panoply of educational, cultural and tourism enterprise. Lagos has a better potential in Badagry. Combine the sites with a stretch of beautiful beaches of the Atlantic – paradise.

    The mouldy National Arts Theatre is the only cultural spot in this city; any major state museum? Where are the mini stadia, civic and recreation centres? Why can’t the city muster annual sports festival, big football league and annual film festival and so on? Big modern cities are made of stuff like these.

    To cut the story short, every sector, every index of development deeds to be reinvented in a bigger and bolder way. Health, education, agriculture, industry, power, ethnic relations, etc.; the idea here is to begin today to envision Lagos of 10, 20 and 50 years ahead.

    If we do not think in this wise, we shall merely be rolling from one crisis to another. CONCLUDED

     

    No to Okorocha Formula

    News emanating from Imo State right now is most laughable if not outright comical. Is it for real that the state government under Governor Rochas Okorocha has devised a formula of three days on and two days off for Imo civil servants?

    If this were true, it should trouble any reasonable Imo man or woman. What this marks, in case some people do not see it, is the final destruction of the Imo civil service. What is a state without her bureaucracy; especially a well-primed one?

    From the outset of Okorocha’s administration it had been apparent that he is anti-system. But the world is built on systems, institutions, processes, procedures and structures. Yes, Okorocha may have indeed built some monuments, but they would be standing in a vacuum without the requisite systems.

    Finally, this column cannot accept that Imo cannot produce enough to maintain her workforce and indeed meet her needs. This ‘Okorocha Formula’ cannot stand; it lacks rigour and deep thought. In fact it is ridiculous and should be rescinded.     

  • Is there light at the end of the tunnel?

    Is there light at the end of the tunnel?

    These are tough times. The economy is practically in recession because the stomach feels it. Workers are starving. Inflation is in a runaway mode. There is generalised citizen disenchantment. No matter how anyone chooses to parse this moment, the harsh reality is that it is not the ideal.

    Surely, in moments like this, the party in power bears the brunt of citizens’ collective angst. After all, in seeking the support of the electorate, the ruling party had presented itself as the one with the answer to the challenges facing the nation. Even if some or most of the challenges that eventually emerge were never anticipated, the victorious party now carries the unwholesome burden of meeting them. And it must deliver against all odds.

    Still it bears reminding ourselves where we came from and what has been our citizen share of the blame of delayed action in getting our economic house in order.

    We have to go to the very beginning of the republic to revisit the values of hard work and modest lifestyle that would have served us well if we indeed let it endure. Beside taking agriculture seriously and earning decent foreign exchange from that source, we also cut our national coat according to our cloth. Leaders led by example.

    We had a parliamentary system of government that moderated the cost of governance with members of regional assemblies serving on a part-time basis. Development plans were taken seriously and educational institutions were well-positioned, with well-trained teachers, who proudly took their jobs seriously and produced marketable graduates who had no problem securing employment with businesses, industries, and public service. These laid the foundation of a thriving economy to the end of the First Republic and beyond, until the seventies.

    Many things went wrong in the late seventies to mid-eighties. Education was bastardised. Values were dethroned from our  national life. We went from a nation of hard workers to a nation of loafers looking for easy money because that was what we were oriented to. It was the era of emergency contractors and sugar daddies in starched khaki and, later, in flowing agbada and babaringa. What can go wrong? That mindset, inimical to growth and development of the nation and individuals, has never been completely rebuked or abandoned.

    The blame can go round between military and political leaders who led us astray and citizens who betrayed our values of hard work and modest lifestyle, which every ethnic nationality imbibed from its ancestors. Rather than compete healthily for the products of industry and hard work, we threw caution to the wind and engage in the rat race for wealth that we did not produce. If we engage in objective soul searching, no one can go blameless.

    When politicians canvass for votes, what demand do we make of them? Do we take them to task to explain how they expect to move the nation forward and make life better for citizens or do we ask for our share of the proceeds of corrupt enrichment as a condition for them to receive our votes? And why do we reasonably expect that they owe us anything once they ascend to power?

    This accounts for the noxious phenomena of local government chairmen simply sharing among party stalwarts their allocation of funds meant for local development. It also explains the conversion of security votes and constituency funds into personal funds. We are all implicated in the cause of our present predicament.

    Of course, we can excoriate the leadership for its weakness of the will in not resisting forcefully the temptation to accede to the indefensible demands of political activists and hangers-on. The previous administrations must accept the larger share of the blame. So must the leadership at the state and local levels across political parties. Much as corruption has been the bane of our development, there is a much more fundamental source of our present predicament.

    It is not as if we haven’t been here before. But it is shameful that every time we face the reality of our dependence on a single commodity, we fail to take the necessary corrective action that has the potential to endure and put us on the path of economic advancement. Of course, doing this takes a strong political will and an uncommon courage to do what is right and damn the political consequence. While taking such a stand may be unrewarded and, worse, punished at the polls, the positive long-term outcome can be a lasting legacy to the leaders that refuse to be guided simply by short-term political interests.

    The Action Group lost an election shortly after it introduced an epoch-making policy of freely educating children of primary school age in Western Nigeria. But which leader and which party do we keep heaping praises on 60 years after? This is a great lesson in leadership.

    The Buhari administration has vowed to rewrite our economic playbook by redirecting our national development efforts towards the non-oil sector, especially agriculture and mining. It is about time. But it will get worse before it gets better, and the unavoidable hardship will deplete our individual and collective bank of endurance and perseverance. We must remind ourselves, however, that we are simply making transfers from our credit accounts into our savings and investment portfolio for a better future. We have been through 50 years of easy money from fossil oil. It is over for good. The developed world that needed our oil has moved on either because they have struck the black gold themselves or because they now have better environment-friendly alternatives. What is important is to avoid prevarication. The signs, thus far, are mixed.

    On the one hand, the ongoing anti-corruption war has been hailed by some and castigated by others. It is normal. What is more important is that the leadership does not vacillate in the face of expected pushback. How else can it be? Those who looted didn’t expect that they would be thus exposed and required to make restitution. But if deterrence is a moral justified tool of governance, there is no alternative to having them recompense.

    On the other hand, however, those who hail the anti-corruption war and would like very much to see its culprits exposed and shamed, will also be the first to ask for the crucifixion of the administration if the economy does not improve in the near term. This is also normal. In reality, however, the anti-corruption battle and the battle for economic restructuring are two fronts of the same war, the ultimate goal of which is to make life better for the people.

    This is why the Buhari administration must engage in serious multi-tasking and retain the services of economic experts to champion the recovery efforts. The perception of a dithering approach to the exchange rate regime that appeared to have sent wrong signals to investors and slowed down foreign investment, now hurting the naira badly, is regrettable. Lost time must be regained.

    There are indications that the administration is refocusing effort in this direction. The report that the non-oil sector has provided the majority of the revenue to the coffers of the federal government in the last quarter is admirable. The discovery of ghost workers in thousands and the sealing of the pipeline that feeds them is also commendable. Such funds must be directed to investment in infrastructure.

    On top of all these, however, three areas must attract the immediate attention of the administration. First, economic diversification must be pursued with fervour. Second, the public service must be restructured and organised labour must be an integral part of this effort. Labour cannot honourably resist restructuring whose goal is higher productivity, including the generation of internal revenue for states and local governments.

    Third, toughness in the pursuit of national economic recovery must be combined with an empathetic understanding of the grievances of groups and communities, especially minority populations, which have been under-represented and under-appreciated. Respect for diverse cultures and values is the essence of cultural democracy. Pluralism is our heritage, and to see the light at the end of the tunnel, we must embrace it.

  • Who owns the schools? II

    There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we (should) fail to protest (against injustice).”  By Elie Wiesel

    Preamble

    This is one of the very rare occasions when this column, ‘The Message’, is compelled to serialise an article. The last time that such occurred was about seven years ago.  That this article is being serialised now is a child of necessity. Ordinarily, professional Journalists who know their onions often strive to avoid serialisation of articles except if it becomes a necessity like on this occasion. Generally, serialisation of articles which often enables good readers to distinguish between professional journalists and mere writers has the tendency of leaving a sour taste in the mouth.

    However, the seriousness of this article and the referential importance of its contents are the factors that necessitate its inevitable serialisation. Surely, some serious-minded readers of this column who are intellectually inclined will appreciate the assertion here especially when the implications of the Appeal court in Lagos on the related case vis a vis the provisions of Nigerian constitution is taken into consideration. The delicate case of hijab wearing by Muslim female pupils in public schools, whether in Lagos State or elsewhere, cannot be separated from the big but unnecessary question of who owns Nigerian public schools in the 21st century.

     

    Problem of Diversity   

    One good thing about life generally is the ability of the phenomenon called environment to conveniently accommodate the positive angle of life along with the negative angle despite their seeming incompatibility. This means that diversity may not be an oddity after all. It may serve a more purposeful end than humanly perceived. Perhaps that is why the Almighty Allah created all living things in twins of males and females as well as in couples of colours and hues. Yet, despite their natural differences they manage to cohabit without any visible rancour.

    Of all the creatures on earth, only human beings believe and emphasise the problem of incompatibility. At least we know that on a single farm land, all sorts of plants ranging from sugarcane to bitter leaf trees grow and cohabit without any visible rancour. And in the ecosystem, (forests or oceans) both the herbivours and carnivours coexist without threatening their habitats. It is only among human beings that the well fed rejoice in preventing the hungry ones from feeding even on remnants. With regard to this manifest situation, what is true of human beings in temporal life is equally true of them in spiritual life. Otherwise, how can some people who are claiming to be of faith insist on preventing others from covering their heads according to the tenets of their faith in a co-financed commonwealth affair when those of others do not prevent the half-naked ones from walking about in nudity despite the natural eyesore that the latter constitutes?

    Genesis of schools takeover

    According to Dr. Amiel M. Fagbulu (quoted copiously in the first leg of this article last Friday), “the take-over of schools has not been reported upon sufficiently for most people to understand the nefariousness and Machiavellian dimensions attached to it. To start with, it meant loss of income to some proprietors who were actually milking the people while pretending that they were magnanimously making sacrifices for them. Next is the falsehood that the governments did not pay compensation to proprietors. Another was that it was the federal government’s decree that made takeover final and legal. Last but not the least is that by retaining their names government had conceded that take-over was just in name alone. There are other false assumptions that will be dealt with as they are made”.

    Fagbulu continues thus: “the takeover of schools was a final act of dissociation of former proprietors from ownership of their schools. The schools no longer belong to them. To talk of Muslim or Christian schools that are run with public funds is absolute nonsense. Any school that is run with public money is a public school. All others are private institutions at whatever level and by whatever name.”

     

    The question of compensation

    Also as a continuation of his expert treatise on education in Nigeria, Fagbulu further elucidated on the question of compensation for proprietors of old missionary and privately owned schools in Nigeria as follows: “the question of compensation was raised by the proprietors of most of the Christian- and Muslim-based schools. In the West (of Nigeria), the only bodies I clearly remember as handing over schools voluntarily and with no conditions attached were the Seventh Day Adventist group and Adeola Odutola who owned a fairly good secondary school at Ijebu-Ode. The noisiest ones were sole proprietors who individually owned schools. The discussions were preliminary and informal exchanges to advise both sides before the final decision was taken. The government of the Western State was glad to oblige but what silenced the demand were the conditions put to the proprietors based on government’s sense of fairness to the taxpayers whose funds had been utilised”. They were as follows:

    1. “Proprietors would calculate their investment on all structures in the school including the land (x) which by the education laws of the time must be registered in perpetuity in the name of the school (at least in the West)
    2. Proprietors would compute the total amount they had incurred in running the school from inception to date of takeover (y)
    3. Proprietors would compile a list of the value of all gifts and donations the school had received (p)
    4. Government would compile the value of all grants (general and special) that it had paid to the school up to the time of takeover (q).
    5. Compensation to proprietors would be C = [(x + y) – (p + q)]”

     

    Fagbulu’s personal comment

    When the discerning proprietors among them did the Arithmetic and found out that they would be seriously indebted to government at the end of the exercise, they blinked and went silent. A funny footnote to the exercise was the demand of one or two proprietors who wanted to be paid for their ‘brand’ name. Government had no use for their names anyway and when they eventually lost, they pleaded with government to kindly retain those names, a demand which was graciously granted.”

     

    His further comments

    “Heritage has at least two dimensions. Your child can only make claims to what belongs to you. That is one form of heritage. The other like UNESCO’s heritage, relates to values. The pleasure derived from listening to Sonny Ade’s music or reading Achebe’s books are golden gems they have bequeathed to the world. Achebe collects his royalty forever, which means that it is a heritage of his children. We who acclaim and cherish the books are not beneficiaries of the pecuniary offerings. Similarly UNESCO helps preserve those monuments in Egypt say, but it is the Egyptian government and people that own the monuments. The government, when it took over schools took over the land, the structures on them, and the responsibility to continue to run schools. Those who are capitalising on Heritage can be assured that it is their’s to cherish and share with the world. They are free to do so.”

     

    Analytical deduction

    In his analytical deduction on the unwarranted controversy over the ownership of public schools in Nigeria, the Octogenarian education expert revealed an eye witness account as follows: “A few students imported the Dancing Club from the Higher College, Yaba to the University College, Ibadan. We started the Bug and later others started the original Cult that was not malevolent. They are part of the history of that institution. The good things keep going from generation to generation and those who cherish them regard them as part of things to be retained forever. Heritage in the sense people are talking about it will survive on its own if the generations want them. There is no law that new influences cannot add their own quota before they pass away. There is nothing stopping those being locked out today from leaving their imprints that will be cherished behind”.

    He continued: “The form for the annual census of schools provides for three categories of ‘girls only’, ‘boys only’ and mixed schools. It is the responsibility of government to determine which of its public schools will be designated in any of the three categories. As a part of the process of development if it becomes necessary to alter the gender status of any school especially from a mixed to a single gender and vice-versa, it may be necessary to do some juggling of names. For instance a St. Agnes Girls’ School cannot become mixed and still retain its name. However it could become St. Agnes High School or something equally appropriate without much loss of identity. While the use of adjectives like Junior, Senior, Middle, High, and Primary are helpful indicators of level, those of gender like boy’s, girl’s, and mixed are pointless tautologies as names go. A St, Agnes should have no trouble ministering to both girls and boys, or doing whatever saints are supposed to do for both genders.”

     

    Elderly advice

    “Government should not exert any serious effort to take on the trivial exercise of changing the names of schools for the mere fun of it. There must however be rhyme and rhythm in naming schools. Changing the name of an institution will always generate some heat. University of Ife alumni protested to the heavens but UNIFE is today OAU and the heavens have not fallen. It should be possible to reconcile all views with no ulterior motives through dialogue.”

     

    False claim

    According to Pa Fagbulu, “the claim that the federal government enforced the takeover is false. Those who are old enough will remember that the exercise was not uniformly executed across the country. The Catholics put up a very tenacious resistance in the East and that slowed implementation. Some states only half-heartedly carried it out simply because Education has always been on the concurrent list and no central government could successfully enforce such a complex maneuver at a swoop even under the military. Decrees merely backed the intention of governments and the people who had spoken through Asabia.”

    He went further thus: “One lingering and unfortunate consequence of the takeover of schools is the undeniable fact that standards of education have fallen over the years since the takeover. It is in no way a direct consequence of the proposal but one of implementation by government. In fact the takeover was to be a new beginning whereby the following would take place in the spirit of Adefarasin and Asabia (recommendations): “

    1. All existing and new schools would be registered: that implied that the basic minimum requirements for providing good education would be provided in all schools irrespective of who was the proprietor. That would satisfy the demand of the NUT that all educational institutions should provide equal facilities for the children to learn and the teachers to teach
    2. All schools would be bound by the same rules and treated equally when being assessed in respect of management, number and quality of staffing, and other areas that deal with the evaluation of the outcome of learning. I had the unpleasant duty of writing to the government of the Western State to give notice of closure in respect of the famous Government College, Ibadan of which I was by law the stand-in proprietor on behalf of the government, due to poor accommodation and general neglect. That decadence as it developed had shown that governments could default in providing fully for their schools and that any measure to avoid that unfortunate situation must be a corner-stone of any changes.
    3. All schools would have properly constituted Boards of Governor to oversee the management of the schools as outlined in law. That body would be independent and good enough to get governments to act appropriately in funding schools.”

     

    Naked truth

    “At the primary school level in particular, the Local Education Authorities have been greatly handicapped to the extent that it is difficult to believe that they exist at all. The (naked) truth is that governments have increasingly been unable to fund education adequately and though the rates might have been perhaps slower, the rot would have set in anyway if even schools had not been taken over.”

     

    Undeniable fact

    Commenting on the recent hullaballoo over hijab and ownership of schools in Osun State, the sage observed as follows: “It is regrettable that a respected body like CAN can display so much ignorance in respect of education in Nigeria. To start with, the State of Osun like the rest of Nigeria cannot discriminate in the provision of educational facilities on the basis of gender or religion. Secondly CAN is operating from a false premise that some schools are Christian schools. All public schools belong to all the people irrespective of their religious beliefs.

    “If we Christians want to have schools over which we will have full control, the constitution provides for that. Finally the history of the take-over of schools credited to Gowon is also false. The take-over of schools was a direct consequence of the Asabia Commission and I was the originator of the idea with my colleagues who served after me as advisers to that body.”

     

    Reason for the brouhaha

    “A main reason for that action was that the proprietors who received grants from government and fleeced parents through high fees made education very expensive. In spite of not investing their own money in education they failed to pay teachers on time if at all; they tyrannised teachers; they even went as far as not promoting teachers on merit especially if those teachers belonged to other denominations. CAN should please do its research and acknowledge that Adefarasin emancipated teachers and Asabia, its sub-committee recommended the procedures for achieving that end, If CAN needs being educated on this issue, I will oblige. In the meantime, it should stop spreading falsehood.  Aregbesola may or may not be guilty of wanting to Islamise Osun; that is not my concern here. Accusing him of using education is however not true.”

     

    Conclusion

    Concluding, Dr. Fagbulu said: “it should be reiterated that public schools belong to the people and that government as the representative of the people has the responsibility to determine the future of education and the direction and shape schools take. There is no problem of education that cannot be solved through dialogue if those involved are sincere and have no hidden agenda. And for the sake of our children, let us take interest in education and make constructive inputs. Government should take the lead and we should walk and work with it all the way.”

  • Lagos: To re-imagine a mega-city (1)

    Re-invoking the ‘re’ words: A series of troubling occurrences in Lagos in the past few weeks prompted this discourse. But let us warn upfront that Lagos is only used here as a metaphor for Nigeria. Secondly, we have used the word ‘re-imagine’ with caution because the other word (‘restructure’) is now jaded, if not damaged and rendered a pariah in today’s Nigeria’s political lexicology.

    As most of you may know, ‘restructure’ has become a taboo word that slams the door in the faces of the citizenry and elicits a swift shutting of the mind among some of today’s leaders. Thus instead of ‘restructure’, we shall prefer in this piece, such words as re-imagine as above, re-appraise, re-engineer, revamp, re-direct, re-focus, re-think, re-boot, re-evaluate… and all the other wonderful ‘re’ words that providence has granted us to help us restore and re-awaken our minds and body when life begins to get too lethargic even for our good. We shall return to (re-visit!) this later.

    Bloody test-drive: Now to the scary occurrences in our mega-city: Mid July (16th), an armed gang, some dressed in military and police uniforms stormed Iba land in the vast Alimoso Local Government Area of Lagos State at about 10 pm. They overwhelmed the community, snatched the traditional ruler, Oba Goriola Oseni, Oniba of Iba land after injuring one of his wives and killing a couple of people. They practically strolled away and escaped through the waterway in the vicinity. As at yesterday, the monarch was still being held, while a huge amount is being demanded as ransom.

    Early this week, a gang of hoodlums numbering about 15 reportedly struck in the same axis of Alimoso; this time, Igando area. They also came through the waterway. During the ransacking of the settlement known as Pacific Estate, they were engaged by the police in a shoot-out, which lasted for hours until they escaped through the waterway. A couple of policemen were injured and residents fled the community in droves as they claim the attacks by armed gangs had become too incessant.

    In another incident, rival hoodlums in Ijora Badia area of Lagos clashed for about three days starting from last Monday. When the dust settled, two persons were reportedly killed and scores of residents had to flee the area. It took the combined efforts of policemen and men of the Customs Service to quell the uprising.

    Yet in another incident in Agege, another axis of the city, about a week ago, teenagers reportedly numbering about 100 stormed a school with machetes and various other weapons after the school’s valedictory party went awry. They attacked some officials of the private secondary school and damaged properties. It took the intervention of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) to disperse the rampaging youths.

    For nearly a decade, Lagos, a fledgling mega-city, has practically been held by the scruff by emergent neighbourhood cult groups. A phenomenon that may have derived its origin in the steamy, slum jungle of Mushin-olosa has spread to adjoining communities and far beyond. Places like Fadeyi, Somolu-Bariga and Onipanu grew to be hot zones of violent cult battles.

    The scourge has today spread further afield and almost pervading the entire state. Areas, such as Ikorodu, Ajah, Lagos Island, Ebute-Meta, Mile 2, Papa Ajao, etc; have witnessed incessant bloody cult rivalries, resulting in loss of lives and damage of properties.

    Cultism continues to manifest in different forms and permeate various communities of the city. We have seen the ‘One Million Boys’ and the ‘Awawa Boys’, which are attempts at organised robbery gangs run riot over some areas of the city. There are other not yet notorious groups in various stages of incubation. Traversing Oshodi daily, one encounters a large army of homeless, jobless youths loitering about this major hub of the city. Not to mention the ubiquitous and unmanageable commercial bikers and street traders.

    Recent brazen gang attacks through the waters around Lagos have been blamed on ‘militants’ from out of town, but one wagers that this recent manifestation is not unconnected to the oil pipe brigands who have made money from oil thefts. Having acquired more sophisticated weaponry, they have become emboldened. Several times they have gone on operation and so easily out-gunned the police and overrun any community they pick, while they return to base unscathed. And this may still be just test runs. By the time they are fully formed, they may seek bigger targets.

    Grim prognosis: In sum, we wager that it is a grim prognosis ahead of us, which is why we suggest a re-imagining of the entire affairs of our nation starting from our great, exfoliating mega-city.

    The new governor, it must be said, has done quite well operating on nearly two decades old template. Starting from 1999, Lagos State must be commended for having bucked the trend among states of the federation. It has been blessed with successive quality leadership, which has continued to lift it notch after notch.

    But what we call for here is a radical rethink. A few days ago, the state’s executive council led by the governor rose from a retreat in Badagry with a promise of immense goodies to be showered upon the people in the just about six months’ time. Great. Indeed, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has made giant strides in just few months of his ascension and setting the Fourth Mainland Bridge in motion and rethinking Oshodi are particularly noteworthy.

    What to do? Let’s go to Lake County, Michigan: some ill-informed analysts would aver that Nigeria is too big and that explains why it is not running well. But big as the US is, nearly every inch of it is governed and policed. The US like most other properly run countries is structured along federal, state and local authorities system in different names and guises.

    The US for instance has 51 states and 3,144 counties. There are also county seats and villages. Almost every village has a local council that is functioning; that has a president, clerk, treasurer, attorney, sheriff, etc. Each county or village council generates its revenue, maintains security, law and order.

    Pick any village randomly: Baldwin, Lake County, state of Michigan. Apart from finding all the officials, representatives and weekly meeting schedules online, you will find its population (1,208) and racial make-up; number of families residing in the village and the number of housing units and so much more.

    What this suggests is a country that is in charge of every inch of its space and everyone of her citizens. To reiterate, Lagos must show the way in bringing the LGAs and LCDAs to full bloom or we face doom in the near future. No matter how energetic or perspicacious Governor Ambode might be, there is no way he could be in Alausa or Marina and be on top of happenings in Alimoso or Badagry or the waterways of Ikorodu. He must restructure (sorry, re-imagine) the governance of the state to have equally capable Lagosians driving at full throttle from every corner of the state (LGAs and LCDAs) at the same time.

    Who is tending to thousands of inner street roads and drainages and primary schools; where are the councillors and ‘sheriffs’ of myriads of small communities? All these things can never be done effectively from Alausa no matter how hard a governor tries or how efficient he may be.

    Let us re-imagine this structure or restructure our imagination; whichever comes easier.

     

    Anambra’s $5m vegetable export

    The news of what seems like the greatest feat of these times got one very elated until one afforded it a second thought. Wait a minute, one exclaimed as questions started streaming through the mind.

    Five million dollars worth of vegetable must be a huge, massive lot. What types of vegetables? Which plantations or greenhouses yielded this quantity? When, where exactly was it planted and harvested? What about processing, packaging, warehousing quality control and shipping logistics for such highly perishable commodity? So many questions begging for answers in this beautiful story put out by Anambra State government. This story requires ample illustration to say the least. It is the same with the report about N300 million order for rice. How many rice mills are operational in the state for instance? Illustration is required to make what is a wonderful story by itself, palatable – in a manner of speaking.

  • Adekunle Fajuyi: 50 years on 

    Adekunle Fajuyi: 50 years on 

    There are two versions of the story of Adekunle Fajuyi’s death. But for my position here and elsewhere, it matters little which version is true: Fajuyi died a hero and patriot. Nonetheless, it is a sad commentary on the state of our union that the conflicting versions have been championed by the two victim groups of the counter coup of July 1966.

    One, allegedly narrated by Andrew Nwankwo, the former ADC of General Aguiyi-Ironsi, indicated that Fajuyi, Ironsi’s host was arrested along with his guest and that the mutineers killed Fajuyi first before they killed Ironsi. ADC Nwankwo also submitted that before his superior was killed, he had escaped into a ditch, with the help of Bello, Fajuyi’s ADC. Yet, he could confirm categorically that Fajuyi was killed first and that Ironsi could have escaped, but for his desire to prevent further bloodshed. It is a story of Ironsi’s patriotism.

    Nwankwo’s story contradicted the original narrative that Fajuyi had not been a target of the coupists who wanted Ironsi but that when Fajuyi inserted himself as a human wedge between them and Ironsi, they had no choice. They killed both guest and host. It is a story of Fajuyi’s heroism.

    With regard to the first story, clearly Fajuyi and Ironsi did not kill themselves. If the soldiers that committed the act were on a revenge mission, they got the wrong guys. Ironsi told the mutineers that he was not part of that coup but was only invited to return the country to normalcy. Not that these words exonerated him. But his captors had a good reason to look for the real January coup makers while they kept him in detention. They chose instead to kill him along with his host. Both were victims of a revenge for an aggression they might not have been a part of.

    What is the point of revisionists using this version to query the heroism of Fajuyi? Can the moral culpability of the coupists’ action be reversed just on the grounds that the victims did not voluntarily submit to their deaths? The fact that the revisionists’ version of the story was volunteered by one of the victim groups as a counter to the heroism of Fajuyi in the popular account, is a mirror of the state of an alliance that some still myopically see as the saviour to our current state of national hopelessness.

    Turning to the second story, that Fajuyi volunteered to die if Ironsi was to be killed by the coupists, we must address the following questions: What was at stake for him dying or living? Why did he choose dying over living? He was only 40 with a loving family. If indeed he chose to die, we have to look for clues in two related locations: his philosophy of life and the cultural values that shaped it.

    Meanwhile, assume that in the circumstance, he had chosen living, would he have chosen wrongly? In particular, would he have been guilty of betrayal? The answer, to my mind, is “No”.

    True, Fajuyi was Ironsi’s host. As such, his guest’s safety was his responsibility. But as Head of State (HOS), the guest’s safety was the responsibility of the national security team, which HOS controlled. However, it was a troubled time, with the storm over the first coup still raging, complicated by the promulgation of an unpopular decree that established a unitary system.

    The tight security provided for HOS was up against the determination of a stronger northern military rebellion against him. Fajuyi had nothing to do with this rebellion. He bore no responsibility for the actions that inspired it. For this reason, if, presented with the option, he had chosen living instead of dying with his host, his choice couldn’t be judged morally wrong. That the ADC who had responsibility for HOS’ safety chose to escape is significant.

    Fajuyi’s choice to die went beyond the call of duty. It was a supererogatory act. Surely, he had a moral duty to protect his guest from harm. That duty was discharged with the tight security provided by the agencies of national security. He also had a moral duty not to conspire with coup plotters. He wasn’t part of the mutiny. But he had no moral duty to insert himself as a human shield between the mutineers and Ironsi. In doing that which he wasn’t morally obligated to do, knowing fully that it was going to cost him his life, Fajuyi made a praiseworthy choice.

    What kind of human beings perform saintly and heroic supererogatory actions? People with special upbringing either by way of culture or religion excel in the performance of such actions. It is not surprising that Fajuyi chose that path given his cultural background and his faith.

    First, as a young man brought up in the Catholic faith, Fajuyi imbibed the idea that the faithful need to go beyond the observance of precepts and the keeping of commandments to attain the perfection inherent in the performance of praiseworthy actions. Whether it is as small as giving one’s last Naira to a starving child (with no hope of how one will make up the loss) or it is as big as inserting oneself as a wedge between an assassin and his victim, such actions are the counsel of perfection.

    Turning to Fajuyi’s cultural upbringing, the Yoruba concept of Omoluabi provides the clue for his motivation. A tii gbo o? How might it be construed? What meaning will it convey if the host were to live when his guest was killed in his presence? And what would living turn out to be like? At the individual level, an average Yoruba can relate to this moral predicament.

    But something more global than personal may have motivated Fajuyi’s heroism. Given the volatile nature of the state of the republic at the time, if Ironsi was killed and Fajuyi lived, how would the average Igbo understand that scenario? Would Fajuyi consider life worth living in the circumstance that his choosing to live ignited a hatred of the Yoruba by the Igbo?

    The brave soldier in him must have persuaded Fajuyi that there was something beyond life that was worth aiming for. It is called immortality, aiku in Yoruba. As the ancestors put it, Mo dogbogbo orose, emi o ku mo. Mo digba oke, mo le gboin (I have become an old ose tree. I will never die. I am 200  mountains rolled into one. I am immovable). Fifty years on, we are still appreciating Fajuyi’s heroism.

    If Fajuyi died to avoid the national distress that his living could trigger, how has the nation fared since his heroic death? In particular, what is the state of the relationship between the Igbo and the Yoruba? How has it affected the Nigerian project?

    In my contribution to The Road to Lalupon, I lamented the depth of animosity and resentment that still characterises the Igbo-Yoruba relationship since the end of the civil war. As Professor Achebe’s There was a Country clearly demonstrated, the strain is not just at the level of youthful bloggers and social media activists. It resides dangerously at the upper echelon of the divide.

    During the crisis that followed the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election, Nkemba Ojukwu made the critical observation that Nigeria was established on a tripod and one leg of that tripod must not be left out of equation. That was his ominous reflection on the Igbo position regarding the crisis. A majority of the Igbo paid attention. It did not matter that one leg had been left out of equation before. Think of 1960-66 and 1979-83.

    The arch of nationality cannot bend toward unity until each group is prepared to swallow the bitter pill of forgetfulness and advance the cause of a more perfect union. The alternative is a mutual acknowledgement of an unbridgeable gulf that reasonably requires the parting of ways in a peaceful manner. The consequence of such a decision on each group is unpredictable. But I am persuaded that the capacity for survival is in the African DNA that each group proudly carries.

  • Who owns the Schools?

    Preamble

    Experiences of life keep informing us of what people and institutions really are against what they are presumed to be. It is quite unfortunate that Africans especially Nigerians whose livelihood still depends heavily on the imitation of the misconduct of European colonialists without considering the implications of such imitation are the ones proclaiming civilisation in Nigeria’s contemporary times. The Yoruba elite of the Southwest of Nigeria are particularly guilty of this cultural bastardisation.  They are the ones who believe that the ability to speak and write the colonial language called English is what constitutes civilisation. With the foreign languages permanently on their tongues, they have battered their African brains for European brains.

    Unlike the Igbo people of Eastern Nigeria and the Hausa people of the North, the Yoruba elite have become a serious embarrassment to their cultural pedigree through the relegation of their linguistic heritage. To them, the legacy of their ancestral lineage is a primordial shame not worth to be called a modern heritage. Thus, in their homes as well as in their public and private discussions, the language of communication is invariably English. And whoever is incapable of speaking Queen’s English or writing Shakespearean prose is primitive and unfit to live in cities and towns. Watch out for an important occasion at the International Conference Centre of the University of Ibadan today and note the formal language of communication on that occasion.

    It is, culturally, a laughable orientation attributable only to a tribe of black people who prefer to substitute their naturally endowed culture for that of the wild white people and thereby getting lost in the wilderness of cultural confusion. How can such people who are deeply engrossed in colonial mentality believe in the cultural emancipation of others? Today’s article is not meant for discussing the details of this fundamental aberration that chains a people to the apron of perpetual colonialism. Another day in the near future will do.

     

    Appeal Court ruling in Lagos

    Reactions of various colours and hues have been trailing last week’s ruling of the Appeal Court in Lagos State in respect of a litigation over hijab wearing in public schools by Muslim female pupils in that state. But every reaction seems to be an exhibition of antecedent and level of civility on the part of those who have been reacting to it. Last week’s ruling was not the first to be pronounced by a Nigerian court of competent jurisdiction concerning hijab wearing in public schools. It was preceded by a High Court ruling in the same state three years ago and we can still vividly remember the reactions that trailed it.

    When a Lagos High Court ruling that prompted an appeal by the litigants in hijab case was pronounced in 2013, there were various reactions which have not lost on us. The affected Muslims, at that time, who got the wrong side of the judgment, did not bring fanaticism into it. They did not take the law into their hands by threatening fire and brimstone. Rather, they simply exhibited civility and adherence to the rule of law by appealing to a higher court. That is civilisation in all its ramifications.

     

    Precedent    

    The unnecessary controversy over the right of wearing hijab in public schools by Muslim female pupils in those schools is not peculiar to Lagos  State. A similar court pronouncement was made in an Osun State High Court recently and we know the reactions that trailed it. So we cannot be alarmed by any inflammatory reaction to last week’s ruling from any quarter since we are familiar with its trend as far as such quarters are concerned. The original aim of writing on this topic today is neither to celebrate any victory nor to vilify any recalcitrance. But to congratulate the Lagos State Muslims on their civilised behaviour throughout the period of the case and to further encourage them to stick to the upholding of the rule of law in all circumstances including one of unwarranted provocation.

    Meanwhile, the outcome of that case has thrown open a fundamental question which had for long remained tacit. Who owns the public schools in Nigeria generally and in Lagos State in particular? This question becomes germane not because of last week’s ruling that was more about freedom of religion and dressing but because of the future of our children who may have cause to ask questions and want to get the relevant and appropriate answers. The fundamental question of ‘who owns the schools’ deserves a fundamental answer that may become a reference point for our children in future. Luckily, yours sincerely needed not labouring much before answering that question. A foremost Nigerian educationist of Yoruba extraction, Dr. Amiel M. Fagbulu (from Ilesa in Osun State) who incidentally happens to be a Christian has provided the right answer in his (unpublished) professorial book entitled  ‘DEFINING THE FUTURE OF NIGERIAN EDUCATION’ which he wrote about November 2012. In chapter 2 of that book, Pa Fagbulu traced thoroughly the history of schools take-over in Nigeria. The chapter was titled ‘THE OWNERSHIP OF SCHOOLS IN NIGERIA’.

     

    From the book

    An excerpt from the book may be of useful reference to any intellectually endowed Nigerian who may be in need of such a reference now or in future. It goes thus:

    “Certain events in recent days make it imperative to clarify the issue of who owns schools in Nigeria. This search is complicated by the antecedents that define the history and development of Western education in the country. It is useful therefore to open the search with a brief digression into the history of that type of education with the view of gaining an understanding of the forces that shaped their development from their inception till today.

    It is pedestrian to repeat that Western-type education was an import of European missionaries and that the environment in which they propagated their type of education was entirely their personal or collective business, that is until government started meddling in the missionaries’ affairs. That movement started in England where some mainly rich do-gooders felt greatly concerned about the appalling conditions in which children of the poor worked and lived. Coupled with that was the horrendous imagery of the inhuman trade in slaves that filtered to these Christian countries to disturb the serenity of their conscience and awaken the humane elements in them that drove some to seek redemption in Christian deeds that included stopping the slave trade and making legal provisions to assist missionary schools at home and abroad. It must be acknowledged that saving the souls of those poor children was a professed and serious reason of those do-gooders who were so damn serious about that fixation that derived from the fervor of their religion.

     

    Historical background

    Education in England was not planned. Ordinances and education codes that were enacted as when needed were the main sources for policy formulation over a period of about 130 years from about 1820 to the time of Nigerian self-government. Some years after they were established and applied in England these bills, codes and ordinances found their way to the colonies where the colonial governments were obliged to adopt and apply them.

    Concerned and interested missionary and other groups took the initiative to establish schools and government’s concern was that the purpose for which they were established should be fulfilled. This development implied that sufficient assistance needed to be given to the schools to ensure that they survive to fulfill their dual role of harboring those freed from slavery along the West Coast and providing skills that would serve more the needs of the missionaries than the provision of life skills for those who were lured to go to, and who stayed long enough at school. The children in these institutions provided the fodder for missionaries to use in order to benefit from the fiscal intervention of governments in the form of badly needed grants”.

     

    Source of funds in public schools

    “Whichever face one puts on it, the bottom line was that governments became the major sources of funds without which the missionaries would have to go begging at home or abroad. They never adopted the option of closing schools; they persevered and made do with whatever they had. Under those conditions ‘schools’ could sink to any depth of badness. It was to obviate that possibility that governments at home and in the colonies accepted responsibility for ensuring that what was offered to the children especially of the poor in England and the converted in Africa would at least be of some benefit to them. That was how government got dragged into the business of assisting schools.

    The promise of grants-in-aid ensured that schools had reliable sources of funding if they attained defined standards.  So the giving of grants was a crucial factor in the rate at which new schools were opened and old ones expanded or improved qualitatively. The fact that schools did desperate things to get listed for grants speaks the obvious that grants have always been the lifeline of almost all missionary schools.

    We are lucky that the whole grants-in-aid saga is properly documented in the Phillipson Report. However, since that document is not widely available to the generality of people, I have taken the liberty to use some segment of my writings (Chapter 2 of my unpublished book DEFINING THE FUTURE OF NIGERIAN EDUCATION, November, 2012) here.

     

    The Grants-in-aid Report

    “This brief highlight is about the financial assistance that government gave to schools across West Africa as an instrument for improving the quality of instruction being offered to the children in those areas.

    The first purely Nigerian Education Ordinance was enacted in 1887. The Board of Education that assumed prominence at this time was empowered to use certain criteria to give grants to different levels from infant, through primary and secondary, to industrial schools. The Board even had the discretion to offer the sum of £10 to poor students to further their education at the secondary level. This and most of what follows come from the Phillipson Report.

     

    Phillipson Report

    As early as 1890, the familiar problems arising from the use of untrained ‘teachers’ in schools had become pronounced and problematic. Not only did demand outstrip supply, but many areas that also wanted schools could not be serviced. The consequence was that government had to step in to fill some gaps by establishing its own schools in areas where missionary influence was negligible. By so doing those schools became ‘models’ for the fund-strapped mission schools to copy.  (The Education Code of 1908)

    There were therefore generically three types of schools; the government, the mission, and the assisted schools.  Although the so-called government schools were government ‘owned’, the reality was that the local chiefs and Native Courts as appropriate were responsible for the buildings and their maintenance.  In fact, the recurrent cost for which government was supposedly responsible was covered in part by public funds.

    The 1916 Regulation abolished the ‘payment-by-result’ procedure of making grants to schools. That was replaced with a better one that took cognizance of the overall efficiency of schools. The immediate effect of this change was a rapid increase in the number of assisted schools. The carefully spelt-out conditions included visit(s) from inspectors. This in turn led to the increased and improved capability of the Department of Education to monitor the appalling and dubious quality of schools in the regions that the Governor-General had commented upon Important Information

    What is of importance in this narrative is that from as long ago as 1887, public fund had gone into the running costs of assisted schools. Second, government had actually transferred some of its own schools to the missions in the mid-fifties of the 19th century as contained at p.24 of that very authoritative report. This information has been ignored or denied by the missions when government had cause to reverse this trend more than 80 years later when the grant-in-aid system was being grossly exploited and abused mainly by private proprietors.

    After a thorough review of the grants-in-aid system which included one of the best documented and most authoritative writings on education for the period 1842 to 1946, Phillipson made his landmark and well received recommendations under the following heads (pp.93-98):

    1. Division of the grants-in-aid vote
    2. A national teaching profession
    3. Separation scheme for non-Government certificated teachers
    4. Staff and organisation of the Education Department in relation to the new grant-in-aid proposals
    5. Procedure in connection with the report: implementation.

    Documentation

    He (Phillipson) then went out specifically to make the following recommendations (p.99):

    1. That, in suitable areas and as an experiment, Native Administrations should be encouraged to introduce local education or school rates. (Paragraph 41 (b)).
    2. That the Native Authority Ordinance, 1934, be amended so as to allow of local education or school rates being applied to the support of approved Voluntary Agency schools (Paragraph 41 (b)).

    iii. That Grants-in-aid of the recurrent recognised expenses of schools and teacher training institutions under regulations 1 to 32 and 34 of the grant-in-aid regulation be classified as Nigerian expenditure and that grant-in-aid of capital and “special purposes” expenditure under regulation 33 should be classified as regional expenditure. (Paragraph 41(f)).

    1. That, subject to further consideration in connection with the first allocations of revenue to the Regions due to take place in July next, the special vote ( E150,000 in the 1948-49) Estimates) for Northern Educational Development should also be classified as Nigerian expenditure.
    2.  That the provision in the Nigerian Estimates for grants-in-aid of recurrent recognised expenses of schools and teacher training institutions should constitute a division of the Nigeria Estimate under Head 32-Education, the arrangement being as proposed in Paragraph 48.
    3. That the question of establishing national scales for certificated teachers, whether employed by the government, Native Administrations, Local Authorities or approved Voluntary Agencies, should be considered by the Director of Education in consultation with the authorities concerned.(paragraph 49)

    vii. That the general procedure after the publication of this report should be as outlined in Paragraph 52

    viii.   That for the better administration of the scheme proposed, the Senior Service establishment of the Education Department should be strengthened, particularly at the Provincial level. (Paragraph 51)

    1. That the method of payment of grants in aid of primary schools should be as outlined in paragraph 45 (n) and that action should be concerted accordingly between the Education Department and the Accountant-General’s Department as part of the work preparatory to bringing the regulations into effect on 1st January,1949.
    2. That the Government should definitely accept liability for the retiring benefit of non-Government teachers under the proposed superannuation scheme. (Paragraph 50)

    “The most relevant part of the Phillipson Report for the 1960s was that the question of establishing national scales for certificated teachers, whether employed by the government, Native Administrations, Local Authorities or approved Voluntary Agencies, should be considered by the Director of Education in consultation with the authorities concerned. (Paragraph 49).

    Further details on the ownership of schools will be published in this column next Friday in sha’Allah.

  • Love letter to gallant Kenyan women

    It is an old story which expectedly, won’t leave the social media circuit. It is the story of Kenyan women who took to the streets to protest their husbands’ underperformance and inability to get them pregnant.

    A touchy bed bedroom matter you would say, but some perspectives: first, it will amount to an over-generalisation to describe them as Kenyan women as stories have conveniently headlined. They are actually a section of women from a county known as Limuru, Kiambu. So it is not a country-wide phenomenon (unless more facts unfold to prove one wrong); not even country-wide.

    Having made that important clarification, the grouse of the women is that because their husbands imbibe too much alcohol, their ability to perform at optimum in bed as well as the other important function of getting them pregnant may have been impaired.

    Pressing the point further, they noted that married women abound in the county but only few are pregnant. And the problem is with both the young and old they claim, threatening to relocate to another county if nothing was done to assuage their obvious conjugal woes. For solution, they recommend that government should make strict laws to curtail their men’s binging on alcohol to certain hours during week days and weekend.

    This uprising actually took place late last year but it remains in the front burner because the issues raised are deep (no pun please), universal and I dare say, pervasive. Some Nigerian men have been talking like Don Juan in the social media, threatening to invade Kenya and give succour to the aching women. But I wager that that may be sheer braggadocio. I wager again that the average Kenyan fella is no different from his Nigerian brother in every material particular. We shall return to this later.

    One is inclined to see these women as heroines for taking to the highways, what is considered a bedroom taboo. These Kenyan women are truly stars of a new narrative having bucked the trend to voice their frustrations against what is obviously an incipient penile tragedy looming across Africa and the emerging worlds.

    One cannot help but love and admire the courage of these gallant amazons who have exhibited characteristic Masaiac courage in standing up, defying African tradition to highlight what might well be the new scourge afflicting the modern African man. Challenging what looks like a looming matrimonial atrophy.

    It is said that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. But let’s tweak that a little to say, there is no fury like a woman aroused and left unfulfilled. In fact it may well be better to scorn a woman by not starting at all than to leave her mid-sea. This I believe is the contention of these brave women. Why take a wife and bond her under your roof if you are not man enough at your conjugal duties? They are simply demanding for their men to man-up in the bedroom and stop sabotaging it all with excessive booze. A wife of course has a fundamental right to love and sex from her legally married husband. A full-fledged woman (and have you seen a typical Kenyan woman in her prime?) in a freshly consummated matrimony cannot ask for anything less than a regimen of steamy, intimate sessions which should culminate into a baby bulge in the shortest possible time. This is not too much to ask.

    Imagine the trauma and psychological agony of the denial of this matrimonial entitlement; and out of no genuine reason than male foolishness and waywardness. And you expect the other person to live and die in mind-bending silence? So protest may well be some form of therapy.

    Inebriating the mind, body and soul from the Central, down to the South and East of Africa, it is a well known fact that since the post-colonial era of the 60s, alcohol consumption has remained an issue. Many writers of these regions have highlighted it in their works. One such is Meja Mwangi who in Going Down River Road paints a grim picture of independent Africa covered in dusty poverty and suffused with cheap alcohol. The kind of liquor that chews the guts and damages the soul, not to mention libido.

    But these gallant Kenyan women may have rekindled a light and someday soon, Africa just might begin to pay attention to the effects of alcohol on the continent. Because the African man is of innate physical strength, he could imbibe heavily for a long spell of his life without his system being impaired. But this may be changing as modern living takes its toll.

    The hitherto redoubtable African stud is giving way to an effete mulatto nourished on junk-ish Macdonald’s fries and ersatz rice from Asia. Today’s African man bred on processed food is less vital than his father and even less so, his grand father. Yet he consumes even more alcohol today due to the stress of modern living. Of course too much alcohol bugs down his organs, wears his muscles and causes much lethargy to his libido. And don’t forget the new scourge of the African man, his withering prostrate gland.

    Like Kenya, like Nigeria. It may well be the same problem with Nigeria but because the Kenyan women are upfront and less inhibited, they have forged a noble coalition against their drunken husbands. There is, however, evidence of heavy drinking in Nigeria too. In the last decade, Nigerian men may have been imbibing more alcohol and performance enhancing drinks more than ever. From beers to spirits, wines, energy drinks and even wild, local concoctions.

    In the last five years, there has emerged in Nigeria, a rash of alcoholic ‘bitters’ both from the big brewers and dingy backyards. Many go by such suggestive names like ogidiga, mokogan, jango bitters, lion bitters, champion bitters, hit-and-run bitters; all sorts. And there is a legion of unlabelled others with exotic primary colours ostensibly made to imbue libidinal prowess.

    In a place where health and regulatory authorities have been overwhelmed and just anything goes … down the Nigerian man’s gullet and into his system, there is indeed danger ahead. With sustained consumption of these delirious poisons, not only will our male libidos suffer in the long run, more kidneys will crash and livers will fail.

    If nothing is done, in 10 years very few Nigeria men will be able to bring on a viable erection for nary one minute. Quietly, our new lifestyle is scourging our man and manhood. The African male specie must begin to re-learn a lot about life and living in this age lest African women migrated to ‘far countries’ to find conjugal bliss.

    In summary, the best masculine physiognomy is one in which the blood and the entire body systems are clean, fluid and uncluttered, not necessarily the muscular. Too much alcohol, too much junk food and lack of conscious physical exercise will only put a man out of action early in life.

    To think that simple antidotes work magic: natural foods, fruits and vegetables, moderate to no alcohol, a lot of water and hygiene is it. In fact, some of the simple cures for poor libido include watermelon, ginger, garlic, nuts, bananas, sweet potatoes and bitter leaf juice. And talking about hygiene, most of us men would climb into bed to our partners with breath booming with booze and such stuff we picked from those corner bars and we expect it to actually turn her on. I doubt that it does.

    But just as most women are thought to keep clean and many actually do; men too must be conscious to be clean, especially for bed. And guy, here is one test for you as you climb into bed tonight: take a peek at the sole of your feet – what you see is a testimony to the state of your body and even your soul.

    Once again, this is to the brave Limuru, Kiambu women of Kenya.

     

    OUK versus TA: Unending pettiness

    One is much troubled that the current debilitating inertia in Abia State has been reduced to a joking matter by none other than a former helmsman of the state who held sway for about 12 years. The stand-off in that state portends a huge economic and infrastructural debacle that may not be easily quantifiable. The people of the state are paying and will pay heavy price for some time to come.

    But former Governor Orji Uzor Kalu writing in his column (SaturdaySun, July 9, 2016) only trivialised issues by heaping all the blames on his arch-enemy, immediate past Governor T.A. Orji. In 41 paragraphs of a running drivel, he blamed all the woes of Abia and some of his own on TA.

    But one is a witness of the Abia story from 1999 to 2007 when OUK ruled Abia; and 2007 to 2011 of TA’s tenure he usurped. As it is well known, it was the locust years of Abia when nothing worthwhile sprouted in the land and nothing stood; a time of extreme violence when all Abia elders and statesmen were chased out of town.

    It is a long, sad story that one believes history has noted accurately. But suffice to say that at a time when worthy Igbo elders were brainstorming in Owerri over the Igbo condition, OUK was busy stoking the fire of parochial politics in Abia. What a pity, what pettiness?