The Nation Newspaper

Category: Femi Macaulay

  • Beauty can be beastly

    It is a thought-provoking irony that the anniversary of an incident of extreme ugliness was exploited for the promotion of beauty. On April 14, the second anniversary of the outrageous seizure of over 200 schoolgirls in Chibok, Borno State, by Boko Haram extremists, First Lady Aisha Buhari launched her  book, “The Essentials of Beauty Therapy: A Complete Guide for Beauty Specialists”,  at the old Banquet Hall of the Presidential  Villa, Abuja. Her husband, President Muhammadu Buhari, was on a one-week official visit to China.  Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo was the event’s Special Guest of Honour.

    The timing of the event was intriguing because it was insensitive. Mrs. Buhari’s book launch was evidence that beauty could be beastly. It was not the kind of therapy needed. It was therapy that was nontherapeutic. According to a report by Aso Rock watcher Olalekan Adetayo, “when Mrs. Buhari’s gorgeously dressed guests were driving or being driven in their posh cars into the Villa premises, armed security operatives were barricading the seat of power in order to ensure that activists campaigning for the rescue of the girls did not have access.”

    Of all days, why did Mrs. Buhari choose that day for her book presentation?  Her speech on the day spoke volumes for her superficiality. Her performance lacked a sense of occasion.  She said ”My natural passion for beauty and fashion developed the unique interest to work, teach and mentor young ones on beauty and fashion. In my over 10 years in the beauty industry, l have trained, mentored and empowered hundreds of young Nigerians in different areas such as facial, skin and body care.”  Mrs. Buhari exposed an emphatically shallow level of empathy by linking her show with the victims of the Islamist terrorist group that has terrorised the country’s Northeast since 2009. She declared: “I am dedicating this event and the proceeds from the sales of the books to be used to empower the mothers of the Chibok girls. Others are Buni Yadi boys murdered in their sleep in 2014 as well as support the malnourished children in the different Internally Displaced Persons camps and other children in such situation across the country.”

    Mrs. Buhari’s promotional enthusiasm on the occasion was pathetically uninspiring. Her words had a hollow ring: “As a mother, my heart is always with the parents of these children; I bear their pains and believe that this is one of the efforts to console them. The parents of these children brought to this event to witness this event are an indication that at individual level a lot can be done to alleviate their hardship.”

    The problem with this particular individual and individualistic effort to soften the tragedy of terrorism is that the donations were wrapped in secrecy. It is fascinating that the men and women of power and resources who attended the event didn’t say how much they were giving in support of Mrs. Buhari’s self-defined cause.

    Understandably, there are speculations that this monetary silence might have been influenced by the Buhari administration’s anti-corruption image. Indeed, the Vice President was quoted as saying: “The President and I are on half salaries. The President is very strict on money issues. So, don’t expect me to make a large donation.”  Also, a report said: “The book presenter, Senator Daisy Danjuma, also failed to make her donation public… The Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, who spoke on behalf of the 36 state governors, also followed the same line. Although he promised that state governors would make the books available to all the local government areas in the country, he did not announce how much they would pay.” Mrs. Buhari’s book reportedly had a price tag of N20, 000 per copy at the event.

    The question is: Doesn’t this unavailability of monetary information related to the book launch encourage public suspicion? At the end of the day, only the organisers would know how much they made from the event, and whatever they eventually give publicly, in connection with the advertised cause, may not be a true reflection of what they received privately. Wouldn’t that look like corruption? Like beauty, or even ugliness, corruption has many faces.

    There is no question that Mrs. Buhari’s book launch was lamentably opportunistic. The Chibok kidnap anniversary was not an occasion to be manipulated for personal purposes dressed as public purposes. The spotlight on beauty was symbolically faulty. When the world was focused on a hideous crime against humanity, which is what the girls’ abduction represents, it was ugly to trivialise the anniversary by highlighting cosmetology.

    No application of cosmetics can beautify the unattractive reality of the Chibok multiple kidnappings. Out of the 276 seized students of the Girls Senior Secondary School, Chibok, 57 managed to escape. It is a cause for concern that 219 girls are reportedly still missing, despite an international campaign that resonated across the world, involving U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama and Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai.

    Fundamentally, it is a failure of government that the strident popular demand for action, particularly political action by the political authorities, which was formulated as #BringBackOurGirls, has not brought the desired success. Notwithstanding initial footdragging by the Goodluck Jonathan administration that was in power when the terrorists struck in Chibok, and the associated complications, President Muhammadu Buhari must rise to the challenge. It is remarkable that the latest video attributed to Boko Haram coincided with the second anniversary of the Chibok abductions, and suggested that some of the caged girls were still alive and together. Undeniably, the unresolved kidnappings call for vigorous political will and creative dynamism. In this matter, the government of the day must demonstrate that it is conscious of its institutional and moral responsibilities.

    It is food for thought that on the same day Mrs. Buhari launched her beauty book in Abuja, a more soulful and soul-lifting expression of humanity was unmistakable at the scene of the horrendous happening of April 14, 2014.  Parents of some of the kidnapped Chibok schoolgirls and a team of Federal Government and Borno State officials led by Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima marked the sad anniversary on the school premises where the drama began.

    It was a poignant moment when one of the parents, K.K Yakubu, read lyrical lines: “We don’t know whether you are dead or alive, whether you have eaten or not, whether you are forced to do things you wouldn’t want to do or not, but we miss you and pray for you.” There was a spark that should spark action in the country’s power loop. This was a moment of true beauty as well as a true moment of beauty.

  • Agricultural revolutionaries

    this is the first time in the history of Nigeria that two states are collaborating to develop their agricultural potential,” Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode declared at the March 23 signing of a Memorandumý of Understanding between Lagos and Kebbi states toward a much-needed agricultural revolution in the country. This magical moment in Lagos may well represent a revolutionary activation of the country’s agricultural progress.

    The record-setting deal is a powerful example that should influence the powerful people that are well placed to make things happen agriculturally across the country. Kebbi State Governor Atiku Bagudu correctly captured the significance of the occasion and the vision of the collaboration: “What we are doing is that we are pioneering a collaboration that will bring other states on board later and we believe that our potential is enormous and we must have pacesetters to start that process of joint collaboration for our collective good.”

    This partnership of pacesetters reflects forward-looking gubernatorial thinking, and Bagudu significantly noted that it mirrors President Muhammadu Buhari’s aspiration to de-emphasise the country’s oil dependence.

    The logic of this agricultural partnership and how it will enable national food sufficiency and food security, apart from its employment-generation possibilities, is not only compelling but also commendable.

    Ambode painted a picture that impressively showed how the collaboration would create commodity value chains and boost food processing, production, and distribution. He said: “Lagos State is the largest consumer of food commodities in Nigeria by virtue of our state population. We have the market, with the required purchasing power also. Lagos State has an estimated consumption of over 798,000 metric tonnes of milled rice per year which is equivalent to 15.96 million of 50kg bags, with a value of N135 billion per annum.” He also stated that the state currently consumed 6,000 cattle daily, which may increase to 8,000 in the next five years.

    Ambode continued: “Lagos State is one of the largest producers of poultry and thus has a large demand for maize for livestock feed production. The state also houses most of the industrial users of wheat and sorghum; mostly flour mills, bakeries, breweries, and food manufacturersý. Kebbi State, on the other hand, is blessed with a vast arable land characterised by very large flood plains, lowland swamps and gentle slopes. In the 2014/2015 wet season, over 600,000 hectares of land was deployed for rice cultivation in the three senatorial areas of the state.”

    The beauty of this joint venture is its formalisation to the extent that it  will be implemented using a Special Purpose Vehicle called LASKEB Agricultural Production and Marketing Company (LAPMCO), which will focus on rice, wheat, groundnut, onions, maize, sorghum, and beef.

    The concentration on rice is particularly noteworthy, considering its status as a staple food in the country. Nigeria reportedly ranks among the world’s top 12 rice-consuming countries, but its rice-consumption level is dependent on rice importation. It is a testimony to Nigerians’ taste for rice that the country is reportedly “the second largest importer of rice in the world and the largest net importer in Africa”.  A recent report said: “Nigeria spends an estimated N356 billion on importation of rice annually, the bulk of which comes from Thailand.”

    It is striking that Ambode made an ambitious assertion in respect of rice importation. He said: “The era of imported rice is gone…We have the economic prowess to produce rice locally. The reality is for all of us to embrace the consumption of local foodstuff and commodities.” He added: “Our traders can become key employers of labour as distributors of ‘Ibile Rice’. We can also brand and package rice in the names of our distributors and traders. As a state, we shall adopt our local rice as a state dish in all ramifications.”

    According to Ambode, “The people of Kebbi are traditionally rice farmers with average land holding of about 10 hectares. Presently, Kebbi has over 50,000 metric tonnes of paddy in store produced from the last two planting seasons.” Interestingly, Bagudu projected that the partnership would provide 60 to 70 percent of the country’s rice demand.

    It is obvious that local rice production is still a far cry from the demand of local rice consumption. As long as a colossal gap exists between production and consumption, so long will a colossal problem exist. However, it is observable that the problem may not be about production per se. More problematic is the production standard as well as the standard of the product. Concerning acceptability and acceptance, there is no question that the production and the product will need to meet certain consumer standards. In other words, marketing local rice to local consumers must start with getting the rice right in production terms. Then it will be easier to get consumers to listen to promotional talk about locally produced rice.

    One big event recently highlighted the bigness of the country’s agricultural challenge. It may be considered a reflection of big agricultural thinking in the country’s power circle that the 8th Annual Bola Tinubu Colloquium focused on Agriculture. Appropriately, the catchwords of the March 29 event in Abuja were: Action; Work; Revolution. It is significant that the Federal Government took advantage of the platform to further clarify its agricultural vision.  Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Audu Ogbeh, who was the keynote speaker, said at the forum through Minister of State Heineken Lokpobiri: “We intend to achieve self-sufficiency in tomato paste by the end of this year and in rice, maize and soya beans by the end of 2018 as well as wheat by 2019.”

    There is no question that targets and target-setting are useful, but the question is whether the targets would be pursued with performance-mentality and result-mentality. It is easy to pay lip service to agricultural development without developing agriculture.

    Food is a hierarch in the hierarchy of needs. It is so primary and so pivotal that human survival and human society depend on it. This is so self-evident that it requires no emphasis. It is high time the country’s structures of power structured its agricultural growth.

    Lagos and Kebbi states, through Ambode and Bagudu, have demonstrated action and are set to work for the desired agricultural revolution. The revolution requires revolutionary thinking and more revolutionaries are needed.

  • History populariser

    In Nigeria, the study of History isn’t dead; but that doesn’t necessarily mean it is alive. Perhaps it is in that twilight zone where life and death commingle.

    It was fitting that a concerned senior citizen seized the opportunity of a celebration of history to prompt cerebration on history. In his speech during the celebration of the 50thanniversary of the Federal Government College (FGC), Warri, Delta State, J.O.S. Ayomike said:  ”I wish to use this occasion to make a call close to my heart. It has bothered many Nigerians that ‘history’ as a formal discipline is no longer taught in our schools up to the tertiary establishment. I call on the education planners in the country to rethink and go back to teaching history.”

    Ayomike was honoured with ‘an award for an exceptional life-time achievement’. It is impressive that the author of historical books and Chairman of the Itsekiri Leaders of Thought did not only demonstrate history consciousness; he also made a historic donation to promote history consciousness.

    Ayomike said: “On my part, as a first step, I make a donation to your library of historical tools that are significant to our development. (Obtained from UK museums): “Two large framed photographs of: (a) Nanna’s palatial residence, out –houses and stores in Ebrohimi before the war of 1894; (b) four British warships booming cannon fire on Ebrohimi (air filled with smoke) about a week before the fall of the town; (c) a dozen copies of the Biography of Prince Ogbe Yonwuren (A potentate, whose community where he lived over 100 years ago abuts your school premises); a dozen copies of other valuable books…”

    It is relevant to highlight the story of these newsmaking pictures. A June 16, 2015, report said: “The Johnson Ayomike family of Warri, Delta State, has acquired from a museum in the United Kingdom (UK) some historic photographs taken away by colonialists from the Nanna Living Museum, Koko, Warri North Local Government Area of the state.” The  report quoted the Chairman of Warri Study Group, Edward Ekpoko, as saying that the photos were those of the  Nanna palatial residence, adjoining warehouses, stores and town, as well as four British warships, Phoebe, Widgeon, Alecto and Philomel, depicting scenes in Ebrohimi before and during the British/Nanna war of 1894.  According to the report, Ekpoko said that the family would hand over the photos to the Director General of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments for the Nanna Living History Museum.

    Against this background, it is interesting that a Benin bronze sculpture known as Okukorrecently hit the headlines following its official removal from the dining hall at Jesus College, University of Cambridge, UK. The bronze cockerel was among the hundreds of treasures looted by British troops involved in a “punitive expedition” that resulted in the 1897 conquest of the old Benin Kingdom, which is now part of Nigeria. What happened in those days shouldn’t have happened.  This 19th century demonstration of the beastly aspects of humanity remains a haunting reminder of colonialism and its unflattering sins.

    It is noteworthy that the decision by the university’s authorities to take down the sculpture followed a campaign by the college’s student union in the context of increasing activism against symbols of Britain’s colonial past. The Jesus College student union had passed a motion saying that the sculpture should be formally handed over to Nigeria. The students said:  ”The contemporary political culture surrounding colonialism and social justice, combined with the university’s global agenda, offers a perfect opportunity for the college to benefit from this gesture.”

    Considering that the sculpture was a donation from the estate of a former British officer, George Neville, who died in 1929, the students argued that its continued display was a minus because it was plundered. The cockerel sculpture has been at the college since 1930 and symbolically reflects the surname of its founder, John Alcock. The college’s crest displays three cockerels’ heads.

    It is striking that the institution’s authorities reviewed the position of the sculpture after over 80 years. A university spokesperson was quoted as saying:  ”Jesus College acknowledges the contribution made by students in raising the important but complex question of the rightful location of its Benin Bronze, in response to which it has permanently removed the Okukor from its Hall.”  The spokesperson added: “The College commits to work actively with the wider University and to commit resources to new initiatives with Nigerian heritage and museum authorities to discuss and determine the best future for the Okukor, including the question of repatriation.”

    Worth mentioning is the report that the students’ “Benin Bronze Appreciation Committee” said it was in contact with a Nigerian government official who wanted the sculpture returned to Nigeria.  Since Nigeria gained independence in 1960, the country has pursued the return of hundreds of Benin bronzes looted by British expansionists as well as other artistic gems transported immorally and illegally to Western countries, especially during the colonial era.

    The drama of Okukor’s removal brings to mind the findings of art historian Philip J. C. Dark. In his work titled “Benin Bronze Heads: Styles and Chronology,” Dark said that about 6, 500 Benin artefacts could be found in an estimated 77 places across the world.  Of this number, the British Museum is believed to be in possession of 700 while the Ethnology Museum in Berlin holds over 500.

    At the heart of the looting of African artefacts by Western invaders is the question of morality. It is the same question that drove the campaign for the removal of Okukor from its pedestal in a foreign land. Hopefully, Okukor would be returned to where it belongs. Also, it is hoped that there would be an intensification of the campaign for the return of looted artefacts.

    The beauty of Ayomike’s example is that it is a lesson in history. It would appear that his concern about the teaching of history is well-founded. Listen to what columnist Kofoworola Bello-Osagie said in a December 2015 article titled “The History Curriculum question”: “I am tired of reading about the exclusion of History from the Nigerian national curriculum.  The subject is there.  It was never removed…However, while people should be glad to heave a sigh of relief that it has not been expunged from the curriculum, there are serious challenges facing the teaching of the subject in Nigerian schools.  So, the concern about the fate of the subject is in order.” She continued: “History is one the 12 subjects categorised under the Humanities department that secondary school pupils study from SS1-SS3. But one of the concerns of critics, which is worthy of attention, is that History is not taught right from primary school; and, even when it is taught at senior secondary level, it is an elective subject.”

    Johnson Oritsegbubemi Sunday Ayomike, who will be 89 on April 7, deserves to be celebrated for his services to History.  The country needs more popularisers of History like him.

  • A cross called concession

    Two major concession agreements and the disagreements about them highlight the major factors that militate against the success of Public-Private Partnership (PPP) in the country.

    Ironically, the political factor facilitates and frustrates. The news that an Arbitration Tribunal reached a decision in favour of Resort International Limited, concessionaire of the Federal Secretariat Complex in Ikoyi, Lagos, shows that arbitration can tame arbitrariness. The relevant Development Lease Agreement (DLA), dated October 10, 2006, granted Resort International Ltd a 99 years’ lease to redevelop the disused Federal Secretarial Complex into 480 luxury apartments.

    Redevelopment work was disrupted by the Lagos State Government in September 2007 on the grounds that the land belonged to it and the area of Ikoyi where the secretariat is located was not meant for residential purposes based on its Ikoyi Model City Plan. This is what happens when a concession is not conceded by an interested party; it is understandable.

    The dispute, Resort International Ltd claimed at Arbitration, created a situation in which it suffered damages totalling N88 billion as a result of the breach of a clause of the DLA by the Federal Government. Fundamentally, the company argued, the Federal Government, as a condition of the DLA, was expected to facilitate a ‘No-Objection Approval’ from the Lagos State Government, given that it had ‘good title’ to the Complex and full power and legal authority to enter into the agreement. The objection of the Lagos State Government, therefore, meant that the Federal Government had failed to fulfill an essential aspect of the concession agreement.

    The Federal Government’s defence proved to be no defence and was regarded as such. It asserted that the undertaking to ‘facilitate’ a ‘No-Objection Approval’ was no more than an obligation to produce documents in support of the company’s application to the Lagos State Government. It also claimed ‘frustration’ of contract as a result of the subsequent promulgation of the Lagos State Model City Development Authority Law.

    Interestingly, the Tribunal ruled in favour of Resort International Ltd and declared that the Federal Government had failed in its obligations to the company under the DLA entered into by both parties.

    The Tribunal importantly observed: “…were it not for the default of the Respondent in facilitating the ‘No-Objection Approval’ and resolving the challenge to its title by the Lagos State Government, the contract between the parties would not have been frustrated…”

    This is the heart of the matter.  Political differences were at the centre of the conflict of interests that arrested the progress of the redevelopment project. At the time of the disruption, the then Federal Government and the then Lagos State Government were controlled by antagonistically different political parties and political forces. It remains to be seen how the matter will develop now that the two levels of government are controlled by one and the same party.

    The Tribunal awarded damages. A report said: “The totality of the awards means that as at January 2016, the Federal Government owed Resort International Limited the sum of N54 billion which continues to accumulate interest at 17.26 per cent per annum. The Tribunal also confirmed Resort International Limited’s title to the Federal Secretariat property.”

    It is useful to consider the backdrop. Resort International Ltd came into the picture following the movement of the seat of the Federal Government from Lagos to the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, which necessitated the disposal of many of its assets. According to the Chairman, Bi-Courtney Group, Dr. Wale Babalakin, whose company won the concessional rights to the expansive secretariat complex, his company bid for the Federal Secretariat, Ikoyi, and won on September 28, 2006, after which the concession agreement was signed.

    Babalakin was a fitting speaker on the problematisation of public-private partnership in the country at last year’s Nigerian Economic Summit in Abuja, where he shed some light on  his company’s experiences regarding the Murtala Mohammed Airport Domestic Terminal II, Federal Secretariat, Ikoyi, and Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

    It is noteworthy that his group is still controversially enmeshed in another major concession agreement concerning the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.  Babalakin said the Development Lease Agreement in respect of the Federal Secretariat, Ikoyi, had anticipated the possibility of interference by the Lagos State Government, noting that a clause required the Federal Government to facilitate the obtaining of a ‘No Objection Approval’ from the Lagos State Government to change the use of the premises from offices to residential apartments. According to him, demonstration flats had been prepared, with 50 percent of the flats already sold and payments received.

    Significantly, Babalakin listed the drawbacks to public-private partnership in Nigeria: the attitude of the government, lack of respect for sanctity of contracts and the rule of law, lack of investor security, corruption and malice. It goes without saying that any concessionaire faced with these troubles will have nightmares.

    Arguing for public-private partnership, the Bi-Courtney chief said such arrangement would enable the government to harness expertise and efficiencies associated with the private sector in the delivery of certain facilities and services traditionally reserved for the public sector. He listed the advantages: “This will bring about basic amenities that are normally government’s responsibility, thereby allowing the government to concentrate on vital areas; reduce government burden of seeking and providing capital investment; serve as source of revenue generation for government; and help to reduce corruption and bureaucracy in the procurement of social infrastructure in government agencies.”

    Babalakin continued: “Nigeria’s budget has been totally inadequate to fund the responsibilities of government, and the country has considerable infrastructure deficit due to age, increase in population and dwindling revenue base due to the fall in global oil price…I am reliably informed that our recurrent expenditure exceeds our total earnings. Elementary knowledge of economics tells us that this trend will invariably lead to disaster…Huge debt profiles of state governments have been accentuated by government participation in projects best left for the private sector. Bureaucracy in the public service hinders rapid development.”

    Indeed, there may be arguments to counter the views of this champion of public-private partnership who carries his cross with such conviction that deserves contemplation, but there is no argument against the documented success of the PPP model in the development of sectors such as energy, mining, transportation and telecommunications in other countries. The PPP approach, which the concession concept represents, cannot be reasonably discounted in a modern economy, especially considering reported examples in Western Europe and U.S.A. where private investors are involved in infrastructure development based on concession agreements.

    As long as the disagreement remains, the Federal Secretariat, Ikoyi, will remain an ugly testament to the forced failure of public-private partnership.

  • Prayer has a price

    There is always a price tag, even when the service is prayer, which ought to be priceless and not pricey. The cost of prayers revealed by a former Executive Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Aminu Baba-Kusa, is indeed costly. But it is necessary to distinguish between the cost of prayers and the costliness of those hired to pray.  At the end of the day, the cost of prayers is actually the cost of praying.

    Baba-Kusa who is facing trial with a former National Security Adviser (NSA), Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.), and three others, said in his statement of witness filed in the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT):  “I approached the former NSA and discussed Boko Haram problems and I suggested there is need for prayers and he considered and accepted in 2013 when he first came to office. I personally sponsored many people locally and some few to Saudi Arabia. Some monies were later paid into our companies, which we paid to some of the mallams.” Baba-Kusa said he “used some of the mallams to organise prayers in Abuja, Zaria, Kano, Sokoto, Maiduguri, Kaduna and Saudi Arabia covering 2013 to 2015.”

    The prayer funder continued: “I give them funds as required from time to time, ranging from N500,000 to N30million, depending on their needs, traveling, sadaqat and others for local expenses and travels to Saudi Arabia for Umrah and Hajj…Most of the payments in cash were meant to give out cash to people that have been organising prayers.” Baba-Kusa added: “The proposal made to the former NSA was not documented by him or myself. The verbal proposal to him was for prayers to overcome Boko Haram within the shortest possible time. The engagement for prayers by organising some people to be praying was not formally written down. There was no amount of money agreed on. I said to him, I will start organising, which he agreed and said he will see what he would give at a later time.”

    In the end, the cost of organising these prayers came to N2.2 billion, according to Baba-Kusa.  But he reportedly kept no records of the expenditure. He was quoted as saying:  “I requested for no acknowledgement from them when I gave money to them.” Baba-Kusa said he had spent over N700 million of his own money on the prayer contractors before he started to ask Dasuki for money that was disbursed through the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).

    Alfred Lord Tennyson says “More things are wrought by prayers than this world dreams of.” In the context of the sensational revelations by Baba-Kusa, it would appear that more money is gained by organising prayers than this country dreams of.

    Without suggesting the probability of fraud, although that may well be the case, Baba-Kusa’s tale is not only suspicious but also ludicrous. The global village now knows for sure that public funds meant for fighting and winning the terror war, running into billions, were rerouted by powerful individuals in the discredited Goodluck Jonathan presidency. The corruption-spiced narrative is still unfolding, with Dasuki right in the middle of the mess.

    Under Jonathan, the country witnessed the absurdity of an ill-equipped national army struggling to overcome a mere militia. A panel probing past arms deals found out that the Jonathan administration purchased substandard weapons to fight Boko Haram extremists. The corruption-related finding further exposed the Jonathan administration’s scandalously counter-productive approach to the anti-terror war. There is an unmistakable connection between the mess of corruption and the messiness of poorly armed soldiers facing reportedly better armed terrorists. It is no longer debatable that the previous government didn’t do enough to checkmate the terrorists. Or, put more pointedly, the Jonathan government ironically did enough to ensure the prolongation of the war.

    The point is that the prayer financiers and the prayer service providers were disadvantaged by design. In other words, even while prayers were being organised at a colossal cost, there was a colossal lack of capacity on the battlefield as a result of a colossal diversion of funds meant to equip the country’s fighters for victory.

    Prayer may have a role in governance, but it requires the role of government to achieve the desired goal. The tragedy of Baba-Kusa’s confession is that it tends to give prayer providers a bad name. In the circumstances, prayer could not have reinforced what was non-existent. Since there was no anti-terror war as such, what was prayer meant to do? The situation defied the wise saying “Work and pray”. Even if there were prayers for Boko Haram’s defeat, the war effort was inadequate to realise the objective.

    On the question of work and prayer, Jonathan, a Christian, played the pilgrim and visited Israel twice during his four-year term, specifically in 2013 and 2014. It was not difficult to guess that Jonathan’s repeat pilgrimage was probably connected with his 2015 re-election dream. Jonathan’s 2014 itinerary in the sacred land included a visit to the Wailing Wall, where he reportedly prayed privately before going to Mount Tabor and Mount Carmel, and other spiritually significant sites. Interestingly, the highlight of the pilgrimage was a prayer for Nigeria at an interdenominational church service with the theme, “A day with Jesus for Nigeria in Israel”.  Whether Jonathan had a day with Jesus, or whether Jesus had a day with Jonathan, his defeat in the presidential election that crowned President Muhammadu Buhari was an eye-opening lesson that the power of prayer can be limited by the poor performance of power.

    This lesson should not be lost on President Buhari who interestingly visited Saudi Arabia recently for prayers, apart from the business of leadership.  Buhari visited Medina and the Grand Mosque in Makkah, where he reportedly prayed for the peace and unity of Nigeria. Buhari may pray for the country because the country may need prayers to escape its hellish situation.  But he should also remember that prayers may not be enough without work. Nigerians want him to work and make the country work.

    It could be useful to engage in prayers or engage prayer providers, but the ultimate approach is to work so that prayers may work for the achievement of purpose.

  • When will King be hanged?

    When will King be hanged?

    No doubt, Rev. Chukwuemeka Ezeugo, better known as Rev. King, will die many times before his death. Indeed, he has died many times before his death. But when will he really be dead?

    In other words, when will the quirky General Overseer of the Lagos-based Christian Praying Assembly die by hanging following the Supreme Court’s February 26 endorsement of his death sentence? The fundamental question is: How long should a convict on death row wait for death?

    It is clear that the purpose of a death sentence is to facilitate death by execution. It is counter-productive to have a condemned convict wait indefinitely for the execution of a death sentence, particularly because of the possibility that death may come during the waiting and consequently achieve what the sentence didn’t intend, which is death by causes other than execution. In a case where the condemned does not die as a result of execution, it would mean that the death sentence was foiled. What is the purpose of a death sentence that is not put into effect, with the effect that death results from execution?

    It is food for thought that a report said “Barely 24 hours after the Supreme Court affirmed the death sentence…some of his neighbours have asked for his immediate execution”. The report continued: “The landlords appealed to the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, to sign Rev. King’s death warrant to hasten the process.  A next-door landlord in Ajao Estate where the church is based applauded the Supreme Court for the judgement, saying he expected it.  The landlord, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said, “Now, we need the governor to quickly sign the papers… Another landlord, who asked not to be named for security reasons, said he wants Ambode to sign the death warrant as soon as possible. “I hope the governor will not be afraid of signing it. He should do it on time. We are waiting for what will happen next after this.” These reactions are sufficient to show that King’s neighbour’s didn’t see him as a good neighbour. It remains to be seen whether the Lagos State Governor will give the green light or decide to commute the death sentence to imprisonment.

    So, members of the public are eagerly awaiting King’s execution, just as King is awaiting his execution, although understandably not with eagerness.    Considering that it took nearly a decade to arrive at what may be described as a point of no return, it is apt to wonder whether the execution of the death sentence validated by the final rung of the justice hierarchy could also take that long.

    King’s trial began at the Lagos High Court in Ikeja on September 26, 2006. The cruel cleric was accused of the murder of a member of his church, Ann Uzoh, and attempted murder of five other members. He was said to have set the deceased and the others ablaze after bathing them with petrol for alleged immoral behaviour.  Thomas Hardy says: “Do not do an immoral thing for moral reasons.”

    Uzoh’s death on August 2, 2006, 11 days after the savagery, resulted from her burns.  The trial judge, Justice Olubunmi Oyewole (now a Justice of the Court of Appeal),  who delivered his judgement  on January 11, 2007,  found King guilty and sentenced him to 20 years imprisonment for attempted murder. In addition, King got a death sentence for murder. The Court of Appeal backed the death sentence. The Supreme Court, by its supreme judgement, supported the supreme sentence of death by hanging.

    Murderers are penalised not only for murder; they are also penalised so that others may not become murderers. It is thought-provoking that a report said: “During the first church service after the Supreme Court verdict at the Lagos headquarters at Ajao Estate, Pastor Ifeanyi King, who preached, said: “Our G. O. (General Overseer), the Most Holiness, Rev. King, is coming back. He said he would come back and we believe the words of his mouth. We believe his report that he is coming back. Everything happening now we know is the handiwork of witches and wizards. Soon a new story will emerge.”

    How and when did witches and wizards enter the picture? What is the meaning of this metaphysical reasoning? Does the supernatural argument apply to King’s murderous act as well as his death sentence? Of course, if there are no complications, a new story is expected to emerge. But the expected fresh story should be that King has been hanged and he is dead. Or what “new story” did the preacher have in mind?

    It is important to bring closure to this human drama of inhumanity. The longer Rev. King is allowed to live after the final judicial decision, the longer it will take to close the murder case.

    Curiously, King may live longer than his death sentence intended because, according to a report quoting Prisons spokesman Francis Emordi, there are no fewer than 1,639 inmates awaiting execution. This death-row congestion is inexcusable. As long as the death penalty is accommodated by the country’s justice system, there is no justification for keeping condemned convicts waiting. It is unclear how long these death-row convicts have been waiting, and it amounts to contempt for the authorities to perpetuate their wait.

    Philosophical arguments against capital punishment, which tend to suggest that mankind has perhaps evolved beyond the death sentence, sound too kind to the unkind. Where guilt has been unambiguously established and it has attracted a death sentence, there is ambiguity if execution of the judgement is unduly prolonged.

    Although the long duration of a murder trial and the extension of the appeal process may not guarantee an infallible judgement, an interminable wait on death row would not necessarily reverse a flawed ruling. It is complex enough to arrive at a death decision, and the complexity should not be further complicated by last-minute indecision when it comes to executing the decision. If judges are able to reach a death decision without the interference of extra-judicial considerations, the authorities should be able to carry out the decision without the hindrance of extra-legal thoughts.

    The debate about the death penalty for murder did not begin today. The debate will continue as long the society is unable to conceive a different punishment for murder that will capture the gravity of the crime. Murder is the ultimate crime and death is the ultimate punishment. Ultimate crime deserves ultimate punishment.

  • Native doctors and their cross

    Caught in the crossfire of a battle between the Osun State government and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) opposition, native doctors must be wondering about a cross they have to bear. It is a heavy cross indeed.

    The weight of the cross was highlighted by the Osun State chapter of the PDP which alleged that Governor Rauf Aregbesola of the All Progressives Congress (APC) was planning to sack striking doctors in the state and replace them with traditional healers. The party’s spokesman, Diran Odeyemi, said in a statement on February 21: “Now that all the ill-conceived measures to cow the doctors have failed and the Plan “B” of replacing them with new intakes had been frustrated by the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), Governor Aregbesola, wants to experiment with the use of native doctors.”

    The reaction of the Osun State government didn’t reduce the weight of the cross. A statement by the Director, Bureau of Communication and Strategy, Office of the Governor, Semiu Okanlawon, said: “Weird is the logic of PDP and nothing can change the illogical reasoning of people whose illogical ways brought Nigeria to her present predicament. Because of those who abandoned their jobs as a result of seemingly irreconcilable terms, the government has left no one in doubt on its efforts to deploy doctors from the state Ministry of Health, doctors in the Security agencies in the state to complement the consultants and local governments’ doctors who are working.”  The statement added: “The native doctors’ idea is in the imagination of those who are touting it and honestly such thoughts can only come from PDP and no other party on earth. It amounts to a waste of time not to ignore PDP.”

    This unflattering exchange should fuel the efforts of the National Association of Nigerian Traditional Medicine Practitioners (NANTMP) to lessen the burden native doctors carry. Interestingly, NANTMP President Prof. Omon Oleabhiele reportedly called for a traditional medicine bill at an event organised by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to mark the 2015 African Traditional Medicine (ATM) Day in Lagos State. Oleabhiele urged the National Assembly to sponsor a bill in support of traditional medicine and its practitioners in the country. He also argued for the creation of a Traditional Medicine Board in all the states of the federation for the regulation of traditional medicine.

    It is an indication of the importance of traditional medicine and traditional healers that since 2003 African Traditional Medicine Day has been observed every year on August 31. Ministers of Health adopted the relevant resolution at the 50th session of the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Committee for Africa in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. The special day is meant to promote the critical role of traditional medicine in Africa.

    African traditional medicine has been described as “the African indigenous system of health care”.  It has been argued that “In fact, the frequently quoted statement that 85 per cent of the people in Africa use traditional medicine is an understatement because this figure is much higher and continues to increase”.

    A picture by M. Kofi-Tsekpo illustrates the thinking about African traditional medicine at decision-making levels since the 1970s: “At the Alma Atta Declaration of 1978, it was resolved that traditional medicine had to be incorporated in the health care systems in developing countries if the objective of the “Health for All by the Year 2000” was to be realised. Notwithstanding this strategy, African countries did not come near the objective at the end of the 20th century. Therefore, the Member States of the WHO African Region adopted a resolution in 2000 called “Promoting the role of traditional medicine in health care systems: A strategy for the African Region”. This strategy provides for the institutionalisation of traditional medicine in health care systems of the member states of the WHO African Region. Furthermore, the OAU (African Union) Heads of State and Government declared the period 2000 – 2010 as the African Decade on African Traditional Medicine. In addition, the Director General of the World Health Organization also declared 31st August every year as African Traditional Medicine Day. All these declarations signify the importance and the approval by Governments and international institutions of the need to institutionalise African traditional medicine in health care. Therefore the mechanisms for institutionalisation have to be developed to make these resolutions a reality.”

    Clearly, the unfavourable perception of Nigerian traditional medicine reflected in the comments of the combatants in Osun State has to do with its infirm institutionalisation in Nigeria’s health care system. The clash shows that the establishment of NANTMP in December 2006 by the Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Health, although well-intentioned, has not made traditional medicine more acceptable at formal levels of governance in the country. At the time, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo was the President and Prof. Eyitayo Lambo was the Minister of Health.

    A NANTMP communiqué is worth quoting: “We thank the Governors of the states that have formed the Traditional Medicine Board in their states such as Edo, Lagos, Anambra and Bauchi states. We urge other Governors whose Commissioners of Health and State House of Assembly have not created the Traditional Medicine Board to kindly request them to do so with dispatch.”

    The body added: ”We also pray the Governors to ensure that genuine and registered members of the NANTMP be made Chairmen and members of the Board to protect the interest of the practice, unlike the present practice in some states whereby Medical Doctors and Pharmacists are made Chairmen of Traditional Medicine Board. What does a Medical Doctor who doesn’t want traditional medicine to be given to his patient want to do in a Board that is set up for regulation and promotion of Traditional Medicine Practice?”

    If native doctors are formally integrated into the country’s health care system, there won’t be this kind of politically motivated attempt by the Osun State PDP to ridicule their role as healers. Also, there won’t be this kind of defensive effort by the state government, which had the effect of ridiculing traditional medicine practitioners.

  • Temple of buyers and sellers

    WHERE justice can be bought and sold cannot be called the temple of justice. It may be more appropriately labelled as the market of justice.  A temple is not a place for buying and selling, except for those who are controlled by market forces.

    The temple concept is at the core of the justice business, which is not to suggest that justice delivery is a business activity. But when the pure idea is corrupted by impurities and justice becomes buyable and sellable, the business side prevails to the detriment of justice.

    This is the picture as lawyers and judges in the country collectively face an ironic public trial on account of the spotlight on the putrefying underbelly of their work.

    It is a sign of the times that some lawyers, provoked by group stigmatisation, have formed a collective of “Concerned Lawyers” to reject the stigma. The lawyers, led by activist lawyer Femi Falana (SAN), on February 18 took their case to the Lagos office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) where they were received by EFCC Chairman Ibrahim Magu.

    Interestingly, Falana said to Magu:  “We also want to urge you to beware not to fall into the fallacy of generalisation. There are bad lawyers and judges, but there are also good ones.” This logic is understandable, but perhaps the greater logic is that justice is too important to be left to the logic of good and bad. In other words, although the categorisation may be considered a fact of life, there should be no place for bad lawyers and judges in the temple of justice.

    Falana continued: “We are embarrassed by a few of our privileged colleagues who bribe judges, talk to them behind doors to pervert justice…We have a duty to this country as ministers in the temple of justice.”

     When a temple is corrupted by unholiness, there are unholy consequences. A portrait of corruption in the temple of justice was painted by no less a person than the Chairman, Presidential Advisory Committee on Anti-Corruption War, Prof. Itse Sagay (SAN), in a recent interview.

    Sagay said: “When we talk of the judiciary, we are talking of judges. As far as I am concerned, the judiciary is not the most blameworthy. That is the truth of the matter. The most blameworthy are senior lawyers – a number of senior advocates who have made it a speciality; who have developed particular skills to kill corruption cases so that their clients, after many years of delays and frustrations of prosecution, end up going away with their loot. And such lawyers, of course, share in the proceeds of crime. They get a part of the loot and that is why you see them buying private jets and so on. That amount of money from the proceeds of crime has completely blunted their consciences and they are as active as the accused persons – the looters – in trying to protect the loot because part of the loot now belongs to them by association.”

    Sagay added: “What I am saying, therefore, is that this is where it starts. These are the people who carry huge sums of money behind chambers to judges. They are the ones who corrupt judges. Really, if the struggle is going to be effective, we have to mark down the lawyers who are behind all these, not just judges. In fact, there are some retired judges too that are in the game. They are called consultants and they carry huge sums of money to their juniors they left behind in the judiciary and use their influence to get them to simply abandon justice and do the bidding of corrupt persons. It is a very serious situation. But, as I said, the very first port of call would be the lawyers that are behind it. Right now, they are doing it without control; they are doing it without consequences…”

    Relevant to this background, and perhaps a momentous test case, is the ongoing drama involving Lagos lawyer Ricky Tarfa (SAN) who is accused of willfully obstructing two officers of the EFCC, Moses Awolusi and Sanusi Mohammed, from arresting Gnanhoue Sourou and Nazaire Odeste, Benin Republic nationals suspected to have committed economic and financial crimes.  Also, and perhaps more significantly, Tarfa is alleged to have engaged in improper communication with Justice M. N. Yunusa of the Federal High Court, Lagos, and said to have sent money to him, while the case between the EFCC and two others was pending before the judge.

    Even more damaging is the EFFC’s allegation that Tarfa’s law firm made a habit of asking the Chief Registrar of the Lagos Judicial Division of the Federal High Court to assign his cases to Justice M. N. Yunusa, suggesting an unseemly rapport between him and the particular judge.

    Imagine a defence team made up of 99 lawyers, including 32 Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SAN). This curiously large team of defenders of Tarfa was announced at a Lagos High Court in Igbosere on February 16. Was the intention to intimidate the judge with an army of lawyers, senior and not-so-senior? The trial judge reportedly “bemoaned the number of counsel” in court for the defendant.  She also noted that there was no need for such mega support which she interpreted as harassment and intimidation of the court. The judge’s observation is thought-provoking.

    There is no doubt that lawyers and judges have a defining duty to keep the temple of justice sacred. When the temple’s sacredness is desecrated, it is the beginning of the end not only for the temple but also for the society that depends on the temple for justice.

    There is no room for bad eggs in the temple of justice, and there is no argument for their accommodation. Justice is so socially pivotal that its devaluation is a societal minus; and the temple of justice should be so morally unassailable that only good eggs are allowable.

  • Hurricane Muhammed

    It may not be an extravagant exaggeration to paint General Murtala Muhammed as a hurricane. His brief rule as a military head of state in the 1970s had the intensity of a hurricane. So intense was his touch, and so consequential, that the effects and after-effects endure as the country remembers his assassination 40 years ago on February 13, 1976.

    Muhammed was 37 when he died after being shot by coupists who took advantage of his fatalism. He was under-protected on the road when his killers struck. The black Mercedes Benz saloon car in which he was shot on his way to work in Lagos lies in a museum with all the blood stains of the bloodshed. Muhammed’s Aide-De-Camp (ADC), Lieutenant Akintunde Akinsehinwa, was in the car with him and was also killed. The historically significant car is a grim signification of times when the gun was the governor.

    It is a striking irony that a military ruler could have been so carefree concerning his personal security that only a pistol carried by his orderly, who was also in the car, suggested protection concerns. It is curious that Muhammed apparently underestimated his vulnerability, despite his leadership style that attracted hostility from enemies of his messianic zeal and the change he symbolised.

    The failure of the coup attempt led by Lt. Col Buka Suka Dimka, and   Muhammed’s succession by the thenChief of Staff, Supreme HQ, Olusegun Obasanjo, trigger reflections on what might have been and what might not have been.

    What if the coup attempt had succeeded? What if someone else, not Obasanjo, had succeeded Muhammed? What if Obasanjo did not have greatness thrust upon him at that critical juncture?  It may be said that the country’s political trajectory since Muhammed’s assassination cannot be divorced from his assassination.

    After the hurricane, there is The Hurricane, a new book on Muhammed by Taiwo Ogundipe, which will be presented on February 20 at the Coronation Hall, Government House, Kano. The book launch is part of activities organised by the Kano State government to mark the 40th anniversary of Muhammed’s assassination.

    The author said in a statement: ”To date, most of the books that have been written by some of the major participant-observers on the military’s involvement in Nigeria’s governance have only made passing references to Murtala. A number of books, which have been specifically written on his tenure, focus largely on his administrative policies and pronouncements. None so far has given a detailed human-angle account of his life and death.”

    Ogundipe described his book as “a product of extensive research and interviews.” He added: “This book traces the roots of the General and his progenitors. It also focuses on his birth, his growing up years, his schooling days, his life as a young man, his military training and career. The book also highlights his marriage and family life, his performance as a soldier, his involvement in the post-independence crisis that engulfed the nation, his emergence as a national leader, his role as head of state, his tragic death and finally the after-effects.”

    According to the publisher, Topseal Communications, “The Hurricane, after a thorough assessment, secured the official approval of the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council of the Federal Ministry of Education, Abuja, and has been certified suitable for use in  Nigerian educational institutions and recommended for the general public.”

    It is a testimony to the weight of Ogundipe’s book that no less a person than ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo wrote the foreword. This is the same man that succeeded Muhammed and realised his plan for civilian rule by handing power over to Shehu Shagari on October 1, 1979. This is the same man that sensationally returned to power as an elected president in 1999 and completed two terms.

    Obasanjo said: “General Muhammed may have been in power for only six months, before he was tragically assassinated, but those are six months that are indelibly embossed on records of modern Nigeria. For they were six months when Nigeria intensely experienced leadership that was focused, dedicated, dynamic and selfless. Most importantly, those six months provided the launching pad for the most positive developments in leadership orientation in this country, including the handover of power to the elected government in 1979.”

    Obasanjo continued: “The Hurricane has effectively captured the historical perspectives of the work of the General, depicting his effort to bring about discipline and sanitisation of the military and the Nigerian civil society. Given the present moral condition in Nigeria, where corruption is so pervasive, this book is a refreshing opportunity for reflections on the past…and the man who has since come to symbolise the crusade for the good of our country.”

    The crusade continues. After the hurricane, there is The Hurricane.

  • A road and the rule of law

    It is clear that the complications connected with the rehabilitation of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway are crying for clarification. Ultimately, clearing up the issues that make the project unclear cannot be divorced from the rule of law.  A violation of the rule of law facilitated failure in the first place; and attention to the rule of law is critical to the success of the rehabilitation project.

    Arbitrariness was responsible for the initial complication. It all began with the Goodluck Jonathan administration’s 2012 termination of a concession agreement with Bi-Courtney Highways Services Limited (BCHSL), which was supposed to reconstruct and manage the toll road. The past government alleged that the company failed to make progress on actualising the objective of the concession four years after the agreement signed with a preceding administration.

    It is over two years since the Jonathan administration in July 2013 rearranged the reconstruction, following a N167 billion contract, awarded to Julius Berger Nigeria Plc and Reynolds Construction Company Limited. Under the new arrangement, two sections of the expressway will be reconstructed: Section I (Lagos to Sagamu Interchange) and Section II (Sagamu Interchange to Ibadan).

    According to Bi-Courtney, “We are in court because the alleged cancellation of the concession did not follow due process. Apart from that, the so-called contract involving the two new companies handling the project was awarded arbitrarily without a bidding process.”  The company said:  “BCHSL won the concession to reconstruct and manage the toll road for 25 years. It’s a Design, Build, Operate and Transfer (DBOT) arrangement. According to the concession agreement, the road will be expanded to 10 lanes from Lagos to Sagamu and six lanes from Sagamu to Ibadan. Because of this expansion, structures that fall within 60.35 metres from the median on both sides of the road will be demolished, and government will compensate owners of the affected properties.”

    Like a winding way, the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway presents twists and turns. Another development further complicated the reconstruction of the expressway and reinforced the complications.

    The confusion was compounded by comments credited to the Managing Director of the Infrastructure Bank Plc, Mr. Adekunle Oyinloye, in a newspaper report. Oyinloye was quoted as saying:  ”Motorways Assets Limited (MAL) has been given consideration for the project. The Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) has to give the concession certificate, while the lenders and investors have to ensure that all the details are properly worked out. We have now got all the relevant approvals.”

    Bi-Courtney’s response correctly raised questions related to the rule of law. In a statement, the company posed a fundamental question: “Were regulatory procedures complied with by Infrastructure Bank?” The company continued: “They were not. The most fundamental steps in the granting of a concession under the law are as follows – Advertise the concession in national newspapers; there must be competitive bid/tender process as prescribed by the Public Procurement Act (2007); the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) ‘shall take custody of every Concession Agreement under this Act and monitor the compliance with the terms and conditions of such Agreement’; obtain the approval of the Federal Executive Council.”

    Conclusively, Bi-Courtney said: “Infrastructure Bank Plc did not comply with any of these steps.” It further said that ICRC officially “denied the existence of such a Concession.” The company added: “If the institution responsible for taking custody of the Concession Agreement and monitoring its compliance with the laws of Nigeria is not aware of the Concession, where then was the Concession created under the Law?”

    It is worth mentioning that in its response to the allegation of non-performance, Bi-Courtney blamed work delay on the Jonathan administration. It argued that in the period of three years and six months that the company had the concession, it was slowed down for two years and 10 months. According to the company, the design process which was expected to be completed within four months took 18 months as a result of bureaucratic bottlenecks at the Ministry of Works. Interestingly, the ICRC corroborated Bi-Courtney’s position.

    It would appear that the announced cancellation of the concession by the Ministry of Works on November 19, 2012, was the culmination of a chain of unprogressive behind-the-scenes manoeuvres by powerful people in the government of the day.

    Evidently, the Jonathan government’s arbitrary move was in conflict with the rule of law, and there is evidence to show that Bi-Courtney demonstrated more respect for the law. According to a recent report, Bi-Courtney, in January 2013, proposed arbitration to the then Minister of Works, Mr. Mike Onolememen.

    The company said in a letter to the minister:  ”… the ministry’s purported notice of the non-compliance with the Agreement is premature and invalid.” Also, it emphasised “the need for the Grantor to comply with the Agreement before it alleges non-compliance by another party”. Bi-Courtney declared: “We believe that a dispute has arisen which should have been resolved in accordance with the dispute resolution mechanism under Article 21 of the Agreement prior to the invocation of any termination clause. In the circumstance, we demand that the Dispute Resolution Board (“the board”) be set up, to determine the propriety or otherwise of your action under the Agreement.” Bi-Courtney listed its nominees to the Board.

    The company added: “Kindly appoint your nominees to the Board within 14 daysof your receipt of this letter. As you are aware, this should have been done earlier in the transaction.

    For the avoidance of doubt, we reiterate that your purported termination of the Concession is, according to law, invalid and should be discountenanced by relevant parties.” The report said: “But three years after, the Federal Government is yet to take action on the matter.”

    At the heart of the matter is the pivotal phrase “according to law”, which highlights the centrality of the rule of law. The simple point is that there can’t be rule of law without respect for the law; and there can’t be respect for the law without the rule of law.

    It is reassuring that the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN), recently expressed the Federal Government’s concern concerning  the lingering litigation on the  Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. Fashola was quoted as saying: “The Lagos-Ibadan Expressway is a story of what investors don’t like. The FGN granted a concession to a private company (Company A) and later withdrew and cancelled it. The FGN then entered into a construction and financing agreement with another company (Company B). Company A went to court and got an order to cancel the financing agreement with Company B.”

    ”As things stand,” he continued, “work has been stopped on the construction of the road…Regrettably, while not going into the merits and demerits of the FGN’s cancellation of Company A’s “concession”, it sends a not-welcoming message to foreign investors if the decision was without basis or influenced by politics…”

    When all is said and done, the rule of law is the problem and the rule of law is the solution.