The Nation Newspaper

Category: Columnists

  • Opposition gang-up against Tinubu

    Opposition gang-up against Tinubu

    The main issue in Nigeria’s politics of today is Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.

    The only question, as it was raised in the days of indomitable Chief Obafemi Awolowo, is whether you are with him or against him.

    Indeed, as the leader of Africa’s most complex, heterogeneous and populous country, many, particularly the eligible voters, are with him. They voted for him. They trust him to deliver. They understand him. They know his administration is working for all. They take him seriously. They have confidence in his ability. Many of them are conversant with the constraints he faces. They believe that he is the solution centre – a leader who cares for the people.

    But the voices of the multitudes are not heard on radio and television stations, and their presence is not well felt in the social media.

    In contrast, a few desperate politicians, particularly the gang of defeated opponents who are in despair over their electoral loss, are against him and eager to sustain the peculiar rivalry in the post-election period when politics should have given way for governance.

    Curiously, these principals and principalities of Nigeria are consistently loud in the adversarial media; they are permanently bitter, combative and manipulative. They are unpretentious about their subjective analysis, diversionary in their antics and focused on hijacking power, not for a patriotic desire to offer service to the masses but because they are driven by ego and self-serving agenda.

    Their disillusioned, petulant and delusional patrons – the ex-this and ex-that – devote a residue of energy in their blissful retirement to war-mongering, firing salvos from their comfort zones on borrowed platforms and delivering virulent criticisms to pull down, unconscious of the fact that the shaky foundation they had laid while in power, the decisive step they failed to take in the past and the treasury they pillaged through their penchant for primitive accumulation, have landed the bewildered country in a big and deep mess which the current administration is now clearing.

    In their rage, hate, envy and greed, they embark on destructive propaganda, taking along with them a few gullible social media miscreants who are enveloped in amnesia. In the past, particularly in 2023, they failed, and now, with bruised egos, they are on the prowl like a wounded lion, seeking whom to devour. But they are caged by conscience, which delivers a judgment of guilt for past misuse of power, and that internal version of self-punishment is troubling. Since their one-day, ephemeral coalition is not founded on strong principles, truth, sound convictions, progressive intent, and national interest, they will inevitably fail again.

    A political party is an umbrella for politicians who are united by similarity of ideas, principles and ethos, which outline its focus and direction. The question is: Which idea is uniting the coalition of actors nursing electoral injuries? While in power, they misruled the country, thereby becoming a liability to the people. Outside the corridor of power, they are heating the polity. Their tactics are old-fashioned, clearly outdated.

    Is it not confounding that opposition figures who cannot effectively manage their parties are seeking alliance with other smaller and dwarf parties? What is the attraction?

    To lead Nigeria in this trying time is the special assignment allotted by God and fate to President Tinubu, who has been anchoring the rescue mission and struggling to recover the country from the jaws of saboteurs, the unpatriotic actors who delude themselves into thinking or believing that Nigeria is their personal property.

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    The so-called fledging opposition is devoid of clarity of thoughts and superior arguments, and the message of their leaders lacks appeal. They are aggrieved and disgruntled as former men of power now left in the cold outside power. Their target is to bounce back to continue the liquidation of Nigeria.

    Tinubu is poles apart, clearly delineated from his conservative rivals by his power of ideas. He is an experienced, intelligent, courageous, focused, dynamic and result-oriented patriot, whose preoccupation for now is clearing the Augean stable, resetting the socio-economic order, pursuing reforms and fulfilling his campaign promises through the implementation of the ‘Renewed Hope Agenda.’

    A thinker, strategist, tactician and master of the game, his political and public service career are somewhat puzzling due to certain factors. His path and rise to stardom, despite the vicissitudes of life, have been unique, inspiring and instructive. The summary is that Tinubu has a rare divine grace to overcome obstacles and survive tribulations, and his uncanny capacity to always thrive in adversity is a core attribute of exceptionality.

    Those ganging up against the President recognise his potential. They know his ability. They know they can only underrate him to their peril. They also know that the Commander-in-Chief is fully in charge and cannot be tossed around by any cabal. They are jealous of his achievements in the last 22 months, particularly the bold reforms that are yielding positive and progressive results and other decisive steps that have checkmated and prevented them from appropriating the economic privileges and cornering public resources to the detriment of the masses. Therefore, they are working assiduously to create an imaginary hollow in the scorecard of the administration.

    Tinubu’s past accomplishments accounted for his towering profile as a political colossus. On the slippery political field, he had firmly established himself as a pro-democracy crusader, a democrat, a federalist, an astute administrator, financial surgeon, humanist, philanthropist, a workaholic, and a bold, brave and articulate political actor with a huge brain.

    An extraordinary statesman, he fully understands the grammar of politics: power is not served a la carte. Politically, he is consistent and dependable. Also, because he needs people, he groomed them for leadership. A very tolerant and accommodating leader, the Jagaban Borgu is quite electrifying.

    Loyalty is important in politics. But Tinubu is conversant with the influence and constraints of human nature. Thus, he said he was prepared for betrayals. That is anticipatory. It makes him a realist. But he never held grudges permanently because he also planned for forgiveness.

    Courage, determination, resilience, devotion to principles and commitment to the high ideals of democracy are the virtues that have defined and shaped the character of the enigma and icon in the 35 years of his sojourn in politics. His rise to presidential power underscores the triumph of a dynamic, resilient, consummate and total politician who has miraculously traversed the thorny path of life and triumphed to fame and glory.

    He had made his mark in the reshaping of Nigeria as an agitator, senator, governor, and opposition leader. That is why the eyes of the world are now on him as the leader of the most important country in Africa to build on his previous feats.

    In this way, the President is living up to expectations. For him, May 29, 2023, was a defining moment and a turning point in the nation’s history. On his inauguration day, he said ‘subsidy is gone.’ By halting the fuel subsidy regime, which had enriched a privileged few at the expense of the generality of Nigerians, he offended some “powerful” power brokers. It was a decisive step which jolted the profiteers. The negative effect has been colossal, but there is an assurance that it will fizzle out and Nigerians will savour the multiple gains of increased revenue in the national treasury as they are being appropriately channeled into people-oriented developmental programmes.

    The challenge of innovation is always resisted by those who profit from the status quo, apparently due to the fear of change. The profiteers started resisting, but the President refused to take the country backward.

    The President set up a cabinet of talent, equity and inclusion, which was also gender-sensitive. Women and youths ended their complaints about marginalisation.

    President Tinubu anchored his policies and programmes on his ‘Renewed Hope Agenda,’ which was carefully thought out and dictated by needs analysis and popular expectations. His government does not belong to the club of the clueless.

    President Tinubu made a promise to transform the economy. He terminated the Multiple Foreign Exchange systems, which “had constituted a noose around the economic jugular of our nation and impeded our economic development and progress”.

    Infrastructural development is accorded priority, being a key factor in guaranteeing a favourable atmosphere for business and investment. The Lagos-Calabar Coastal and Sokoto-Badagry highways are among the outstanding signature projects of his administration. They constitute a major expansion that would enhance the ease of movement of goods and services across four zones.

    There is now an increased oil production to more than 1.61 million barrels per day, and Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) of over $500 million have been attracted into the sector.

    The Compressed Natural Gas Initiative was launched to power the transportation sector and reduce costs. President Tinubu said: “This will save over N2 trillion a month, being used to import PMS and AGO.”

    A major feat of the administration is the setting up of the Student Loan Scheme in aid of indigent students. Under the scheme, the Federal Government has approved over N95.6 billion for Nigerian students. The scheme satisfies the yearning for youth inclusion. Besides, the President has unfolded plans to set up a National Youth Conference to serve as a platform for the younger generation to make cogent contributions to governance.

    Also, more tertiary institutions have been established in a bid to expand access to education and human capital development.

    The Consumer Credit Corporation was established with over N200 billion “to help Nigerians acquire essential products without the need for immediate cash payments, making life easier for millions of households”.

    The Federal Government is also building support for ‘Digital and Creative Enterprises’ to empower the youth, creating millions of IT and technical jobs. This is in addition to the ‘Skill-Up Artisans Programme,’ the Nigerian Youth Academy, and the National Youth Talent Export Programme – all for the nation’s teeming youths.

    Under the Livelihood Support Scheme, over N570 billion was released to the 36 states to expand livelihood support for their citizens, while 600,000 nano-businesses have benefitted from the administration’s nano-grants.

    The Federal Government has reduced the Revenue/ Debt Service Ratio from 97 per cent to 68 per cent in the first year of this administration.

    President Tinubu signed into law the National Minimum Wage of N70,000 last year. It was a milestone, and the move has drastically reduced labour unrest.

    His administration has approved and begun the payment of N77,000 as an allowance to National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members across the country. This has sent a wave of joy among the youths serving their fatherland.

    To resuscitate the moribund manufacturing sector, the government also set in motion the process of giving N1 billion each to big businesses for expansion. The move is expected to lead to job creation on a grand scale.

    Tariffs and import duties on essential commodities, including rice, wheat, maize, sorghum, drugs, and other pharmaceutical and medical supplies, were reduced.

    The Federal Government under President Tinubu has offered numerous incentives to farmers across the country to increase food production and make foodstuffs affordable to the citizens. Also, mechanised farming equipment, such as tractors and planters, worth billions of naira, have been procured from the United States, Belarus, and Brazil.

    The President has waged a relentless war against terror. The military has been equipped to tackle terrorism, banditry, kidnappings, and other forms of violence that threaten our sovereignty and peaceful living.

    In the health sector, facilities are being expanded, and there is a drastic cut in the cost of treatment for terminal and other life-threatening diseases, including kidney transplant, hypertension and diabetes.

    No government has ever solved all the nation’s challenges at once. But it is on record that the Tinubu administration has recorded far better achievements within two years in office than its predecessors. The programmes and policies of this administration can only get better. The President is not unmindful of some other areas that need attention. He is ready to proffer solutions to the challenges. But he needs Nigerians to work with him to record more successes. This way, those rocking the boat will fall into the ocean of ignominy, and this focused captain will sail the ship of state to glorious shores. 

  • Humphrey Nwosu and the undertakers of history

    Humphrey Nwosu and the undertakers of history

    Just two days before the internment of late Prof. Humphrey Nwosu, the former chairman of the National Electoral Commission (NEC) another side of the 10th Senate came to national and international focus. In what has now become a viral video, the Senator representing Abia South, Enyinnaya Abaribe and a few co-sponsors from the minority caucus  had  presented a motion of urgent national importance, seeking the immortalization of the late national figure, for his role in Nigeria’s democratic history.

    In their words, “Prof. Nwosu’s contributions to Nigeria’s democracy remain undeniable. Despite the challenges he faced, he conducted an election that remains a reference point in our electoral history. It is only right that this senate recognizes his role and honours his memory” argued Senator Abaribe. Sadly, the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele disrupted the argument by raising a point of order arguing that the senators did not have enough copies of the motion which in his view was a procedural breach. A representation the second day was fruitless still resulting in the walk-out of the South East senate caucus.

    The presiding Deputy Senate  President, Jibrin Barau, had interjected that, “It is controversial. Some people see him as one of those who truncated June 12, others say he was a hero of democracy”.  Senator Abaribe eventually moved the motion and the deputy Senate President put it to a voice vote and even though the obvious louder voice decibel of the ‘Yeses’ sounded louder, Senator Jibrin raised the garvel and ruled in favour of the ‘Nays’. That singular legislative action symbolically buried the motion, at least ‘temporarily’ as there seems a little window of opportunity of a representation.

    In the seeming legislative ‘politicking’ Senator Abaribe’s futile efforts to push forward the motion was tiring and he exacerbatedly asked, “what is wrong with this motion? What is wrong with a motion to immortalize Prof. Nwosu”?  His further efforts at convincing his colleagues under Order 1b and pointing out that they were operating under democratic tenets did not make any corrective impact. And so, Prof. Nwosu was interred in his Ajali, Anambra state yesterday being a victim of mere politicking in Nigeria’s 10th Senate.

    The 1993 election, more than any other since independence or even after 1999 with the return of democracy remains a great watershed in the history. It has been referred to as the “freest and fairest election” in Nigeria’s history. It is no political, social or ethnic patronage. Prof. Nwosu proved that integrity, education, bravery, patriotism and diligence can all be embodied in one single man. 

    A Prof. Nwosu had coined the socio-political social mantra, “no magomago, no wuruwuru” (which translates to no dubiety or corruption) into Nigeria’s political lexicon. This is rooted in the history of pre-1993 elections that had often been tainted with corruption, violence, rigging and post-election litigations and divisions along ethnic and or religious lines. In Nigeria’s political history, the damage that the military inflicted on the country still subsists till date. The winner-takes-all mentality, the authoritarianism, the power show and total lack of accountability are still the bane of Nigerian politics.

    A Prof. Nwosu had the bad fortune of working under a military dictatorship and came out almost immaculate. The recent launch of his appointer, former military Head of state, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida (Rtd.)’s latest book, “A Journey in Service, An Autobiography” more than vindicated him even if there was any iota of doubt about his stewardship as the electoral umpire in 1993.  He had used the very viable and transparent Option A4, Open/Secret ballot system that saw a late MKO Abiola win the 1993 presidential election.

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    According to the former self-styled military President, IBB, the annulment of the election was a totally military decision. His allegation against the role of the late former Head of State, late Sani Abacha that sacked the transition government of late Ernest Shonekan as the one who masterminded the annulment of the election is neither here nor there. Fact remains that the buck stopped at his table in 1993. It is interesting to note that he acted in ‘self-preservation’ by running with his tail in between his legs as his military colleagues messed up a good election that had produced a winner. Many political analysts are outraged that he is only speaking out the obvious truth a long 32 years after the now metaphoric June 12 presidential election.

    His declaration that the late MKO Abiola actually won the 1993 election but military power intrigues and manipulations  pushed for the annulment that cost Nigerian lives and socio-political disruptions and chaos ought to have been valid enough for the Nigerian senate to be sensitive to history and not play politics with history. The fact that  the historic 1993 election produced a winner that had no encumbrances of corruption and rigging should earn late Prof. Nwosu honours. It should not be a debatable motion or under the political doublespeak and chicanery of members of the highest legislative house in the land.

    Elections in Nigeria have been notorious for the electoral infractions that have been sometimes traced to the inefficiency of electoral umpires or even compromises from other government agencies. The fact that two University professors, Professor of Human kinetics, Mr. Uduk and another Prof. of Soil Sciences, Prof. Peter Ogban who had acted as INEC Returning officers in recent elections have been convicted and jailed for different electoral crimes should further highlight the value a Professor Nwosu brought to the 1993 election.

    Most Nigerian politicians are super egoistic, territorial, loquacious and self-centered. Most are still afflicted by the military hangover of the years of the locust.  These are so evident in the ways they grandstand and condescendingly address the electorate. Not many of them bother about due process, professionalism and personal integrity. This is precisely why our democracy seems to continually remain unweaned from both colonial and military mentality. This fuels the lack of patriotism in them and the utter disrespect for both the constitution and electoral laws from the political party levels to the general elections. There seems to be lack of intra-party democracy and this in turn accounts for the country having  some of the most litigious post-election cases in the world. Post election litigations often last for years and are as distractive as they are financially draining in a country where electoral funding is  very systemically unstructured and flawed. The result? A democracy that often does not work for the people but benefits the political actors hugely.

    A Prof. Humphrey Nwosu was one who stood tall and defiant of military bullying. He was as thorough as he was patriotic. Working under a somewhat brutal military regime, he defied all intimidatory tactics and demonstrated that his education and character were valuable assets to the country. The dubiety of the judicial disruption on behalf of ABN with a restraining other stopping the election almost on the eve of the election was ignored by the NEC chairman at the time.

    His choice of the OPTION A4 OPEN/SECRET BALLOT  SYSTEM  for the 1993 elections gave the country the most credible, freest and fairest election in the country’s history. All the artificial bottlenecks and fraudlent practices of most dubious politicians were crushed through a fairly transparent the system that suited both the literate and illiterate. It was seemingly rig-proof. In a country with low literacy level, low technology  and many poor citizens,  that electoral system proved to be the best option. 

    The system defied the age-long hypocrisy of politicians who always wanted to have an edge through ethnic and religious bigotry in addition to other fraudulent electoral practices.  The system in addition to thorough strategic diligence helped  give victory to the then Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate, the late MKO Abiola over his main rival, the late Ibrahim Tofa of the National Republican Convention (NRC) even in his home state of Kano. In the past, even unpopular candidates used the dicey ‘catchment area’ to claim victory through fraudulent actions.

    The voters’ voices were truthfully and loudly heard across Nigeria. There were no significant breaches like snatching of ballot boxes or stuffing of same by street urchins induced by some politicians. The system was so transparent that up till this day, many Nigerians of voting age still remember Prof. Nwosu’s chosen system as the must functional and transparent system  of voting. In a country where the political party system still operate on almost zero ideological leanings, personal credentials of candidates should remain the benchmark for voters.

    Religious and cultural bigotry have for decades been exploited by politicians to win votes. A 1993 election gave no room for any triumphalism on the basis of ethnicity or religion. SDP as a party defied the odds and ran for the first time in Nigerian history on a Muslim-Muslim ticket with an MKO Abiola and a Babagana Kingibe both muslims. What that showed was that stripped of those socially divisive rhetoric, Nigerian voters can make democratic choices unencumbered. The triumph of the SDP candidates was historic and should be something to celebrate.

    Truth be told, stories have been told about the 1993 elections, the former self-styled military president, Ibrahim Babangida has in his current autobiography affirmed the success of the election. The late Prof. Nwosu had equally written a personal account of his stewardship as the chief electoral umpire at the time. People might have and will express different opinions about the elections but no one can take away the historical, political and social value of 1993 presidential elections.

    For the deputy senate president to allege that some people see a Prof. Nwosu as one of those who truncated the 1993 election while others see him as a hero is surely beyond belief. There is clearly a unanimity of opinion about the success that Prof. nwosu made of the assignment he was given as chairman of NEC at a time there was no ‘independent’ as prefix for the electoral commission. He had the mental, patriotic and professional disposition to write his name on the pages of history. He goes to his grave proud of the legacy of excellence not just as an academic professor but as a patriotic Nigerian who gave his best. As the advocates of his immortalization insist, naming the INEC building after a Prof. Nwosu opened the door for putting a moral beacon for all INEC officials in particular and Nigerians in general.

    It is funny that most Nigerians with dented past have national monuments named after them but some senators feel that a Prof. Nwosu, the best of all the electoral commission chairmen does not deserve his flowers. Time like Euripides insists, is a babbler that speaks even when not asked.

    • The dialogue continues…

  • Super Eagles captain, Osimhen

    Super Eagles captain, Osimhen

    It is finished. We like listening to ourselves. We dislike being told the bitter truth. We think that things should be swung in our favour simply because we are Nigeria. Indeed. We have forgotten that it is easier to wake up a person deep in sleep than one who is pretending to sleep. For the latter, the pretender, he doesn’t want to listen to you. This is the story of Nigeria’s sports administration succinctly.

    Instead of spending the quiet moments before the game on Tuesday evening reflecting on the game, our busybody sports administrators spent time celebrating a likely deduction of three points from South Africa for fielding an unqualified player in their game against Lesotho last week Friday. Bafana Bafana won the match 2-0. The euphoria from a pyrrhic celebration soon got to the boys. And it was being discussed with the media celebrating what wasn’t in the bag, yet. It is important to ask NFF and those media people who escalated the infringement of the law by South Africa if FIFA would award the points to Nigeria instead of Lesotho.

    Zimbabwe coach Michael Nees mocked the Nigerian media in Tuesday night’s post-match conference where he reminded them of the need to be humble. “I said before that the World Cup qualification is over when it is over. If it is over for us then it is over for Nigeria also,” Nees said. His statement caused some laughter among the Nigerian journalists, and he replied, “You’re laughing, how many points do you (Nigeria) have?”This jab is below the belt.

    Again, we witnessed in Uyo where Nigeria’s Head Coach, Eric Chelle barred visitors, journalists, e.t.c from entering the team’s camp for maximum concentration for the boys. Yet, one of the federation’s sponsors was permitted to showcase their brands with the players captured driving the vehicles a day before the game. You need to have seen Ola Aina’s dexterity on wheels. Let’s ask the federation’s chieftains and Chelle if this exercise wasn’t a distraction. How about those skit-making girls seen on tape creating content from interviewing the players? Our players were the only ones on social media. Pity.

    We have surrendered with Chelle having the audacity to tell the media in a post-match press conference held inside the Stadium of Champions in Uyo on Tuesday night that Nigeria can still qualify for the 2026 World Cup as second best nation from Group C. What do you expect from a person who isn’t a world class manager? But even the task of being second best for Nigeria is a mountain to climb because currently the teams occupying these playoff spots are Gabon (15 points), Cameroon (12 points), Senegal (12 points) and Namibia (12 points).

    Comoros (12 points), Mozambique (12 points) and Burkina-Faso (11 points) are also ahead of the Super Eagles, who are on seven points.

    But for the fact that football is like biscuit where nobody can determine where it would crack, one would have suggested that the Federal Government should authorise the NSC and indeed NFF to begin the preparations towards grabbing the 2030 World Cup qualification ticket like Japan, New Zealand, Iran and Argentina have done with the 2026 edition. These four qualifiers have joined the three co-hosting nations, Canada, Mexico and the United States, as the early birds for the 2026 World Cup competition.

    With seven points and an away game to South Africa, it would require the players to play out their skins to beat Bafana Bafana at home in September. It is achievable arithmetically, but not with these players to prosecute the kill-and-go match plans to upset Bafana Bafana in Johannesburg. We would require all the players to play the game with the kind of passion, enthusiasm and hunger for glory displayed by Victor Osimhen in the last two matches, where he has scored three goals despite being marked tightly by at least two defenders.

    It is important to stress Osimhen’s significant contributions in the two matches. Of course, had Osimhen been part of the campaign from the beginning, perhaps our situation wouldn’t have been as precarious as it is today. Soon, nations playing against Nigeria would work strategies to stop Osimhen from scoring goals in Nigeria’s matches. That will be the day when certain lessons will be learned.

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    In fact, Troost-Ekong has apologised to his teammates and assured fans that the team remains focused on securing a place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. “Responsibility taken. Same target ahead. We will do it together! Nigeria Super Eagles,” the 31-year-old defender wrote on Twitter, responding to the backlash.

    Bafana Bafana’s remaining games are in South Africa. It’s almost impossible for them to lose any of these matches, which incidentally include the tie against Nigeria in September. What did Nigeria do when Lesotho and Zimbabwe chose South Africa as their home venues instead of a neutral ground? On Thursday, Lesotho graciously withdrew their protest against South Africa after they fielded an ineligible player in their 2026 World Cup qualifying match.

    As Nigerians, we all want the Super Eagles to be at the Mundial in 2026, but let’s be honest: These players have let themselves down, winning just one game out of six. It’s disturbing that Nigeria failed to beat Zimbabwe over two legs, drawing at home against South Africa and Lesotho and losing to Benin Republic on neutral ground in Cote d’ Ivoire.

    Last week, we advocated that if we won all our six games, we would be fine. Now, the tone has changed to us winning our remaining four matches. For how long would we continue to shift the goalpost? Is it until we move it to displace the crowd? Common NSC, NFF, coaches and the players – you have bungled it!

    Atlanta ’96 Olympic Games gold medal-winning coach Johannes Bonfrère raised concerns over the team’s tactical approach and lack of ruthlessness in front of the goal.

    According to Bonfrere: “I didn’t watch the game, but did the coach not have enough information on Zimbabwe? Did he use the wrong tactics? Or did the players fail to execute the game plan? Was it a loss of concentration? Why couldn’t the attackers score more goals? If they had put away two or three chances, Zimbabwe’s late goal wouldn’t have mattered as much.

    “It’s sad, painful, and unfortunate. Small teams are now looking the Super Eagles in the eye and asking, ‘What can you do?’ No team fears them anymore, and that is worrying.”

    Can Nigeria still qualify for the 2026 World Cup? Not anymore, great patriot. Let us rebuild the Super Eagles with Osimhen as the team’s captain. Any player older than Osimhen should excuse us. We can use the new squad to prosecute our next four qualifiers and see how well they perform.

    Time to infuse the home-based players into the Eagles, beginning with the defenders. don’t you think so? You tell me, dear reader.

  • New constitution as a political magic wand?

    New constitution as a political magic wand?

    Seek ye first the kingdom of a new constitution for Nigeria and every other thing – prosperity, stability, security, electoral rectitude, moral integrity, etc – that have largely eluded the country since independence will be added to her an influential school of thought appears to believe. For instance, the eminent pressure group known as The Patriots, when they paid a courtesy call on President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, in August last year, made the demand for a new constitution the fulcrum of their essentially two-point demand. Led by former Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, the group is made up of experienced statesmen and respected elders, including former governors and other ex-public office holders, distinguished professionals and accomplished leaders whose views are no doubt deserving of respect.

    Speaking on behalf of The Patriots at the meeting with the President, Chief Anyaoku appealed to him to send an executive bill to the National Assembly to convene a national constituent Assembly with the mandate to produce a draft people’s democratic constitution for the country. The group advocated that the proposed Constituent Assembly should comprise individuals elected on a non-party basis from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory. They also proposed that the Constituent Assembly should be supported by seven constitutional lawyers representing the six geopolitical zones and the FCT and that its deliberations “should take into account the 1960/1963 constitutions as well as the recommendations of the 2014 National Conference and indeed of the various national conferences that considered the Nigerian constitutions.”

    Continuing, the group advised that “The draft constitution, produced by the constituent Assembly should be put to a national referendum and, if approved, should then be signed by the President as the genuine Nigerian people’s constitution”. Insinuated subtly in this proposal is the belief that the current 1999 Constitution (as amended) is a fake document but The Patriots do not proffer any logical or empirical reasons for arriving at this conclusion. Although President Tinubu did not necessarily disagree with the proposals of his distinguished visitors, he hinted that his major preoccupation for now was to see through his administration’s ongoing economic reforms, after which the suggestions of The Patriots would be reviewed and carefully considered.

    However, the group of eminent persons has obviously not given up on its demand for a new constitution as the cure-all panacea for the country’s socio-political and economic maladies. Towards this end, the group plans to meet with the leadership of the National Assembly to further push its agenda for far-reaching constitutional reforms. Speaking at an event marking the 20th memorial anniversary of their founding Chairman, Chief FRA Williams in Lagos, the group’s General Secretary, Mr Olawale Okuniyi, reiterated The Patriot’s commitment to constitutional reforms stressing that their meeting with the National Assembly would focus on amending Sections 8 and 9 of the 1999 Constitution to allow for a referendum to enable Nigerians to directly influence constitutional changes.

    According to Okuniyi, “The 1999 Constitution is fundamentally flawed and structured in a way that benefits only a small elite while enabling corruption. We are calling on President Tinubu to convene a Constituent Assembly where Nigerians can negotiate a new governance framework that works for everyone”. Incidentally, The Patriots have the support of many eminent senior lawyers in their campaign for a new constitution. For instance, when he received a group, the Prestigious Sisters League at the Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti, campus last year, the founder of the university and respected Senior lawyer, Chief Afe Babalola, unequivocally threw his weight behind the demand of the Patriots.

    In the words of Chief Babalola on that occasion, “I read the publication of The Patriots visiting President Tinubu, and I am in full agreement with them. We need a new constitution. But I do not agree that we should go through any constitutional conference. Recently, you are aware that President Bola Tinubu asked us to go back to the old National Anthem; there was no conference for it before it was passed by the National Assembly and assented by the President. The 1963 constitution was the one made by all of us. By the same token, the parliament should bring back the 1963 constitution and reenact it”. This is an incredible view from a SAN of Chief Babalola ‘s pedigree. He spoke seemingly ex-cathedra and apparently saw no reason to justify through rational arguments his advocacy for a return to the 1963 Constitution under which the First Republic collapsed catastrophically, and the country drifted to a tragic civil war.

    Unfortunately, another esteemed SAN, Chief Wole Olanipekun, did no better when he delivered the 32nd and 33rd convocation lecture of the Olabisi Onabanjo University in February last year. Describing the 1999 Constitution as fake, Chief Olanipekun told his audience, including impressionable youths that “We need a constitution with a humane face. I’m a lawyer, but we are deceiving ourselves; our constitution is fake, and I have said this over and over, but then you will ask us, lawyers, ‘If we say the Constitution is fake, why are we practising it?’ Lawyers and judges apply the law as it is, not the law as it ought to be, so we apply the law as we have it now and we have been pleading that we should amend the constitution, let us overhaul it’. But Chief Olanipekun did not believe that he owed the public, given his legal expertise, the benefit of his rigorously articulated position on what he thinks a ‘genuine’ constitution should contain and why he describes the 1999 Constitution as fake.

    The casual and rather cavalier manner in which these revered lawyers approach the very critical issue of an appropriate constitution for Nigeria is a far cry from the seriousness with which Obafemi Awolowo undertook the same task. Awolowo seized the opportunity of his incarceration at the Calabar Prisons to undertake extensive research into the constitutions of most countries in the world at the time based on which he formulated rigorous, near-scientific principles to guide the formulation of an appropriate constitution for Nigeria. Among the principles he arrived at in this respect include that (1) If a country is unilingual and uni-national, the constitution must be unitary (2) If a country is bilingual or multilingual, the constitution must be federal, and the constituent states must be organized on a linguistic basis (3) Any experiment with a unitary constitution in a bilingual or multilingual or multinational country must fail, in the long run. He articulated his political ideas on constitution making as well as Socio-economic policy in such books as ‘Thoughts on the Nigerian Constitution’, ‘The People’s Republic’ and ‘Strategy and Tactics of the People’s Republic of Nigeria’.

    Chief Anyaoku talks so casually about the present Constitution breeding corruption but perhaps forgets that humongous corruption was a behavioural pattern of our political elite right from the First Republic. Indeed, the corruption of the political class in that period featured prominently in major Kaduna Nzeogwu’s coup speech in 1966 as one of the reasons for the military intervention that sacked the First Republic. In his seminal work on the failure of Nigeria’s First Republic, Professor Larry Diamond wrote that “Each ruling party set about in the early 1950s to use the lever of state power – the control over patronage, coercion and chieftaincy in particular -:to consolidate its political base and to suppress those elements that resisted consolidation…Rank favouritism in the award of loans, contracts, bank credits, positions on public boards and corporations and licenses to trade commodity crops gave rise in each region to a ‘privileged group’ of entrepreneurs who came sudden and fantastic success and who, in return, were expected to contribute substantially to party funds, use their wealth and influence to mobilize support for their parties in their various localities, and maintain unflinching loyalty to party leadership”.

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    Indeed, the flaws and ills of the 1960/1963 constitution informed the change from the parliamentary to the presidential constitution of the Second Republic and even then the rampant corruption, intemperate politics, blatant election rigging, promiscuous vagrancy of politicians from one party to the other that resulted in the collapse of the First Republic led to the breakdown of democracy once again with the coup of 1983. Another respected Senior Advocate in the person of Mr Babatunde Fashola, former Lagos State governor and Minister of Works, in my view, summarizes the crux of the matter succinctly and poignantly in his book, ‘Nigerian Public Discourse -‘The Interplay of Empirical Evidence and Hyperbole’.

    According to Fashola, “My summation is that “Nigerians want a better life, not a better document”. The conviction that the Constitution serves as a universal remedy, a magic bullet with the capacity to address all our tribulations, perhaps warrants a re-evaluation. Proponents of the perspective that our political architecture is the principal barrier to our progress may indeed possess a legitimate argument. However, l advocate that their contentions necessitate less rhetorical flourish and more exactitude”.

    Fashola continues, “Interestingly, while an impressive number of commentators and agitators for constitutional change endorse the 1979 Constitution, they disown the 1999 Constitution in many aspects such as to assert that it lied about its source and that it was written by the military. However, they continually forget that the 1976 Constituent Assembly leading to the 1999 Constitution and Justice Niki Tobi’s constitution debating and coordinating committee share one thing in common – they were both inaugurated by Military Heads of state. As I acknowledged earlier, there may be the need to further amend part of the Constitution, and indeed – the amendment was made in 2023, but those who seek those amendments must move away from wholesale condemnation and recommend specific amendments that they seek”. I concur.

  • PBAT@73: A leader of bold, audacious and tenacious reforms

    PBAT@73: A leader of bold, audacious and tenacious reforms

    The world stood still on Monday, May 29, 2023, when President Bola Ahmed Tinubu (GCFR) made the now-famous “Subsidy is gone” declaration at Eagle Square, Abuja, in his first address to the nation upon his inauguration as the 16th President of Nigeria, the biggest black nation on earth.

    This declaration not only caught everyone by surprise, but observers, analysts, and commentators were also stunned and wondered how much courage the President had mustered before uttering those three words. “Did the President know what he had just said?” many asked.

    But today, we can all testify to the stability and growth within Nigeria’s oil and gas sector. In other words, the average Nigerian enjoyed a festive period without queues at fuel stations across the country in December 2023, and this trend continues. Nigeria has already bid farewell to “Egypt,” symbolizing its emergence from a period of hardship.

    Leadership is neither a title nor an office; it is an act of responsibility, a burden borne by those courageous enough to chart a new course for their people. In President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Nigeria has found a leader whose governance philosophy is built on the foundations of resilience, reform, and renewal. Since assuming office, he has made the difficult decisions others feared to confront, prioritizing long-term stability over short-term populism. The measure of a leader is not in comfort but in adversity. He took office at a time of economic turbulence, structural inefficiencies, and social discontent. Yet, rather than retreat, he advanced—ushering in policies that, while bold and sometimes uncomfortable, are shaping a Nigeria that is stronger, more stable, and primed for sustainable growth.

    This is not just the passing of another year in the life of a statesman; it is a moment to reflect on the breadth of his reforms, the depth of his vision, and the courage with which he has navigated one of the most challenging periods in our nation’s history. Upon assuming office, President Tinubu faced economic challenges, including policy inconsistencies, unsustainable debt, and a distorted forex market. His administration swiftly addressed these issues. Today, one of his boldest moves was removing fuel subsidy to save trillions of naira for infrastructure, health, social safety nets and education just to mention a few. He also rallied the Central Bank of Nigeria to unify the exchange rate, restoring investor confidence by clearing $5 billion in forex obligations. Government revenue has doubled to over N9 trillion, while debt servicing costs dropped from 97% to 68%.

    In the oil and gas sector, production rose to 1.61 million barrels per day, and the Port Harcourt Refinery resumed operations. His Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Initiative has cut transport costs by 60%. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) deals worth over $500 million are boosting job creation.

    His administration prioritizes education and youth empowerment, launching the Student Loan Scheme with N45.6 billion already processed and N50 billion allocated. Programs like Skill Up Artisans (SUPA), Nigerian Youth Academy (NiYA), and National Talent Export Programme (NATEP) are equipping youths with employable skills.

    His governance reforms also include financial autonomy for local governments, a 300% salary increase for judges, and a minimum wage hike from N30,000 to N70,000. His leadership fosters efficiency, innovation, and impactful governance that are shaping and strengthening Nigeria’s progress.

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    For setting up a team comprising young people, technocrats and experts who have shown competence across their fields, the president’s vision was clear: governance must work for the people, and every institution must function with efficiency, integrity, and accountability. This guiding principle has empowered all appointees to drive historic reforms in various Ministries, Department and Agencies.

    For instance, the Ministry of Interior has transformed border security with a state-of-the-art Bola Ahmed Tinubu Technology Innovation Complex (BATTIC) commissioned to serve as the technological nerve centre with sophisticated  facilities such as the 8.3 petabyte Tier-4  Data Centre, the ECOWAS Biometric Card Production Centre, Visa Approval Centre, the Command and Control Centre and the deployment of the Advanced Passenger Information System (APIS) and Passenger Name Record (PNR) which has revolutionized border management. Today, through the support of Mr President, the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) can now pre-profile travellers before they arrive into the country.

    While this facility is a game-changer in the use of data-driven approach and technology to beef-up our border management, the solution also integrates global security databases into our immigration systems.

    The introduction of e-gates at our international airports has streamlined immigration processes, while centralized passport application process  and a contactless renewal system have made travel documentation seamless. Even more is that it saves the government billions of naira annually as well as gives Nigerians comfort without compromising national security. 

    For the first time, Nigeria has been enrolled in ICAO’s global security system including the PKD/PKI (Public Key Directory and Public Key Infrastructure), a system that is instrumental to enhancing passport acceptability in compliance with global standards. This was done after the service had cleared its backlog of passport applications over of 200, 000 within three weeks. 

    With a new visa policy set to be activated, Nigeria is opening up its space for tourists, investors and foreigners. This is the Renewed Hope agenda of Mr President in action, creating a conducive business environment for all without jeopardizing national security.

    Nigeria has also expanded electronic border surveillance, now covering 60% of Nigeria’s 4,047km border space following the deployment of technological solutions. Over 30 operational vehicles have been added to the fleet of vehicles dedicated to the surveillance and patrol of our borders, ensuring better territorial integrity.

    Reforms in the Nigerian Correctional Service have seen biometric registration of all inmates, aiding security efforts. Within few months of the Tinubu government, over 4000 inmates held in custody for their inability to pay petty fines were released via a collaboration with the private sector to raise about N600m to this end. This singular act decongested the already overcrowded correctional facilities by 5%. This also saved the government over a billion naira that could have been appropriated to feeding these inmates.

    As of today, the government has approved and commenced the implementation of a 50% upward review of the feeding allowance of inmates across correctional centres in the country. Beyond feeding allowance, the government has also swiftly swing into action in ensuring inmates are given the best of care with the renovation currently ongoing in the correctional facilities across the country. Kuje Correctional Centre and at least 10 other have worn a new look. 

    The government has also approved the relocation of 29 correctional centres already encroached by urbanization across the country. For instance, the Agodi Correctional centre in Ibadan, Oyo State is situated right inside a market while the Ikoyi Correctional centre shares a fence with the Polo club. Not only is this against international practices and protocols, it is also a violation of the Nigerian Correctional Service Act (2019) which provides for a 100m buffer between a correctional facility and the next building. 

    In making the correctional centre a place of correctional, reformation, transformation and reintegration rather than a place of incarceration, deformation, and condemnation, the government has trained thousands of inmates in vocational skills to reduce the rate of recidivism.

     Today, inmates can now dream again and can fulfil their dreams of acquiring degrees even up to PHD level with a lot of them now enrolled in different courses in the National Open University.

    Furthermore, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has been empowered to fulfil its core mandate of protecting critical national assets and infrastructure.

    The corps has swiftly moved to address critical issues such as oil bunkering, pipeline vandalization, protection of power and telecommunications facilities across the country. In the last few months, it has destroyed over one thousand illegal refineries and over 200 illegal oil dumps.

    The NSCDC has secured over 345 convictions, with 187 cases in court, while new operational vehicles, gunboats, and 10,000 trained agro-rangers now safeguard farms and the Mine Marshals now keep mining sites safe.

    The Fire Service has undergone a comprehensive rebranding, featuring world-class infrastructure designed to significantly reduce fire-related incidents nationwide. With the support of the President, 15 Rapid Response Vehicles and six heavy-duty fire trucks have been procured to enhance operational efficiency. Additionally, extensive renovations are underway at the National Fire Academy, with the goal of remodelling the institution to meet international standards and hub of capacity building for the west Africa sub region

    The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) only within few weeks last year cleared a backlog of over two million National Identification Number modification requests. This aligns with ongoing efforts to enhance identity management services in the country.

    The commission currently boasts of over 120 million enrolment in the national digital database. Also, in line with its commitment to streamlining the National Identity Management Commission’s database, the ministry has uncovered about 6,000 individuals from foreign countries who prior to this administration have illegally obtained National Identity Numbers (NIN). Furthermore, through collaboration with 257 institutions, a total of 332,715 students have been successfully registered for loans, with over 18,000 students already receiving payments under the student loan initiative.

    With the new Expatriate Administration System by the Ministry of Interior, the government is better poised to securing the country as well as supporting economic recovery plan by ensuring that all Expatriates working within the shores of Nigeria are documented in the database of the Nigeria Immigration Service.

    We cannot thank the President enough. He has used his good office to turn challenges to opportunities for growth and development. All inherited promotion backlogs for paramilitary officers have been cleared with over 50,000 paramilitary officers across agencies under the Ministry of Interior  promoted within eighteen months. Since its establishment in 1986, the Civil Defence Correctional Fire and Immigration Services Board had never commenced and completed promotion exercise in a calendar year. As we speak, the 2025 promotion exercise has started and is scheduled to be completed in the next few months.

    In strengthening the Board, the government has approved the expansion of its establishment structure to create vacancies and career path and growth.

    These acts of Mr President brought an end to career stagnation. Needless to talk about the approval and payment of peculiar and rent allowances for paramilitary officers to keep their morale high.

    Recently, the government approved the establishment of the National Paramilitary Academy which is a degree-awarding institution, like the Nigerian Defence Academy, that will train young persons. Young Nigerians will be admitted through the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) and undergo a rigorous four- to five-year training program. Upon graduation, they will receive certification and be deployed to manage paramilitary operations nationwide efficiently.

    Today, through the foresight of Mr President, we have moved from talks to action, a stage where policies don’t end on papers but are translated to actions —going on to become the foundation of a more secure, efficient, and accountable Nigeria.

    Beyond the achievements of our ministry, the impact of the Renewed Hope Agenda is evident across various sectors, driven by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s strategic interventions and leadership.

    One of the most significant infrastructure projects in Africa  is the ongoing Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, a 700-kilometer expressway designed to improve connectivity and economic activity across nine states. Construction of the first phase, spanning 47.47 kilometres from Lagos, commenced in March 2024 and is set for completion by May 2025.

    The ongoing reconstruction of the Lagos-Ibadan Motorway, the completion of the Second Niger Bridge, and the expansion of the rail network further reflect the government’s commitment to infrastructure, facilitating trade, reducing travel time, and creating employment opportunities.

    The ambitious 1,068 kilometres Sokoto – Badagry super highway project  which first phase will be completed in 2027, and traversing nine states along that corridor, speaks to the commitment of the government to the connectivity of one end of Nigeria to another end for economic prosperity. In the process, about 63 dams would be built to guarantee the enhancement of Nigeria’s agricultural potentials, as well as help to generation of power. These are legacy projects that would outlive the president himself.

    Today, Nigeria has also secured billions in investment commitments from international partners, including India and the Netherlands, and successfully issued a Eurobond, demonstrating strong investor confidence.

    The launch of the Nigerian Minerals Resource Decision Support software, a digital platform designed to facilitate investment in the sector, and the establishment of the Nigeria Solid Minerals Corporation  with the approval of a 50% equity stake for the private sector, 25% for Nigerians, and 25% for the Federal Government, will significantly transform the mining sector and lay the foundation for its sustainable development.

    Strategic diplomatic efforts have further strengthened Nigeria’s economic prospects. Renewed cooperation with Brazil has led to large-scale investments in agriculture and industry. This has facilitated the launch of the Green Imperative Agricultural Technology Initiative that is designed to advance food security and mechanized farming.

    In the fight against corruption and national asset recovery, the government has facilitated the transfer of millions of dollars in forfeited assets from the United States, reinforcing its commitment to transparency and accountability.

    The administration has also made notable progress in healthcare by improving access, infrastructure, and service delivery. The first-ever Sector-Wide Joint Annual Health Review enabled strategic planning. Free caesarean sections were introduced to reduce maternal and infant mortality. The launch of the Nigeria Climate Change and Health Vulnerability Assessment Report addressed climate-related health risks.

    The approval of the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative (NHSRII), demonstrate this administration’s resolve to enhance Nigeria’s health infrastructure. 

    So also the approval of employment of 774 National Health Fellows, this is a pivotal initiative led by the Federal Ministry of Health to foster sustained improvements within Nigeria’s healthcare system.

    The Federal Government approval of 80% subsidy on kidney dialysis services, thereby cutting the price from ₦50,000 to ₦12,000 at eleven federal hospitals nationwide, is a testament that this administration is committed in its bid to alleviate the financial burden of kidney disease treatment on Nigerians.

    Health data systems were strengthened, 53,000 health workers were retrained, and the Basic Health Care Provision Fund was expanded to cover 10 million Nigerians, with 2.4 million enrolling in the national health insurance scheme.

    In the Federal Capital Territory, major infrastructure projects have improved connectivity, benefiting urban and rural communities. Schools have been rehabilitated to create a better learning environment.

    The establishment of the Mandate Secretariat for Youth Development and other governance reforms has enhanced service delivery. Rural infrastructure improvements have also spurred economic growth.

    Agriculture has attracted over $20 billion in investments, including $14 billion from India and $250 million from the Netherlands. Additional commitments have been made for lithium development in Nasarawa State and partnerships with Germany.

    The aviation sector has undergone significant transformation, enhancing Nigeria’s compliance with the Cape Town Convention and strengthening its creditworthiness and safety standards. These reforms have positioned Nigeria as a key hub for aircraft maintenance in Africa through a partnership with Boeing. Upgrades to airport infrastructure  have enhanced efficiency. The finalization of Bilateral Air Service Agreements has boosted connectivity, increasing opportunities for tourism and trade.

    The four tax reform bills currently before the national assembly, including the Nigeria Tax Bill 2024, the Nigeria Tax Administration Bill, the Nigeria Revenue Service Establishment Bill, and the Joint Revenue Board Establishment Bill underscores the government’s desire for a responsible fiscal federalism.

    These bills, no doubt will overhaul tax administration and revenue generation in Nigeria, as many of the provisions contained in them are landmark in nature.

    Similar to this are the regional bodies being established especially with the President assenting to the South-west Development Commission Bill and the South-south Development Commission Bill, South East Development Commission Bill, North West Development Commission Bill, the North Central Development Commission Bil, leaving no geopolitical zone without its region body. This will become a mechanism to trickle down development and dividends of democracy to the grassroots.

    The government has recorded success in the area of security with a drastic decline in some of the security threats and challenged that faced us a could of years ago. 

    The government has secured the release of more than 4,600 hostages, neutralized over 9,000 terrorists, bandits, and kidnappers, and arrested more than 7,000 others.

    Large quantities of assorted weapons and ammunition have also been recovered and some of the rescued individuals had spent as much as three years in captivity and had long given up hope of freedom till the government came on board, through the rapid responses to rescue operations, of  school children to the release of students abducted from the Federal University of Gusau, and the recent rescue of Kogi students will go down in history as defining moments of this government.

    These achievements reflect a clear vision for national development, economic growth, and stronger international partnerships, laying a foundation for long-term progress.

    Across the various sectors, these are accomplishments that speak to bold decision-making and reform, encouraging a forward-thinking approach to governance. Through this, public servants have been inspired to embrace innovation and pursue impactful change.

    Mr President has diverted focus on results over rhetorics and has created an environment where governance is centered on delivering tangible improvements in the lives of Nigerians.

    This is defined by principle rather than political expediency. The President does not shy away from difficult decisions but instead leads necessary conversations that drive transformation.

    This administration is restoring faith in governance, institutions, and the nation’s future. Bold reforms have not only stabilized the economy but have also rekindled hope among Nigerians, fostering a belief in a future where hard work is rewarded, governance is accountable, and opportunities are available to all.

    From government offices to markets, from classrooms to factories, there is a renewed sense that the country is on the right path. Economic recovery is underway, social safety nets are expanding, and young Nigerians can now envision a future where their government actively works for their success. This is the essence of the Renewed Hope Agenda—building a Nigeria where governance is effective, democracy is strengthened, and every citizen has the opportunity to thrive.

    It is a consensus that a presidential, Bold, Audacious and Tenacious (PBAT leadership) is  not just one that takes the people to where they want to be but where they ought to be. To say we are on our way to the promised land may not be out of place at this critical juncture of our nation’s history because we can all agree that we are not where we used to be.

    The days of uncertainty are fading, replaced by the steady march toward progress. The economy is rebounding as we continue to build investors confidence, social safety nets are expanding, and young Nigerians can now dream bigger, knowing their government is working for them.

  • Do not die in their proxy wars

    Do not die in their proxy wars

    For the love of country is still their sexiest lie. The curvaceous plague of coalition politics. Every desperado cops a feel – the scorned ministerial hopeful, the tamed party rebel, losers at the 2023 polls. All partake in the prurient rite.

    They all identify as patriots, too. Thus, “We are doing this for country” becomes their arrant lie, the falsity that spurred failed presidential candidates from the People’s Democratic Party, Labour Party and the All Progressives Congress to mull a frantic coalition under the banner of the Social Democratic Party.

    Politics, however, fades to melodrama where the dubious patriot misinterprets his role. In his struggle to usurp privileges and power, he inflicts misery on ordinary citizens, those whose predicament supposedly triggered his “patriotic zeal.”

    This lie is native to the country; thus, this minute, the random youth pulses to their duplicitous love. Belligerent, cocksure and digitally-woke, social media is his brothel, the virtual bordello of his dreams, where pimps of strife and courtesans of the witless caress his furtive and manifest lusts.

    A nation perishes when its youth become playthings in the hands of frantic demagogues—when the youth, like the proverbial sapling, bend away from the light of reason, they wither in the gloom of manipulation.

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    Today, the rabble of coalition groups wear the garb of patriotism and chant democracy’s demise. Their passion isn’t borne of love for the country but a loathing for the man at the helm. They do not seek a nobler republic; all they want is a piece of the pie.

    Their outrage is nothing but a scorned man’s vendetta – think of them as sore losers who, having failed to capture the throne by ballots, now thirst for its overthrow by any means necessary. Nigeria’s youth must learn to shun their deception. They must resist the temptation to be led, blindfolded, into proxy wars where they serve as mere cannon fodder in a battle not their own.

    The agents of discord are seasoned in this game—offering nothing but illusionary glory to the naïve. We saw it in Rivers State, where young men, seduced by promises of relevance, blew up the Trans-Niger pipeline in the heat of the tussle between Governor Sim Fubara and 27 lawmakers. Had the federal government and security agencies not moved swiftly to quell the uprising, both Rivers and Nigeria would have borne the brunt.

    The political elites, however, sit ensconced in their fortresses, their sons and daughters untouched by the fire they lit. The script is old. The powerful always shield their own from the carnage they orchestrate. But elsewhere, the children of the poor—young men from forgotten alleys, girls from the margins of destitution—are recruited to be foot soldiers in a war that will never offer them recompense.

    The tokens for this conscription vary. Some are handed cutlasses and clubs, anointed as political thugs to unleash mayhem. Others, educated yet unmoored, are armed with keyboards, reduced to intellectual mercenaries peddling half-truths and slander. They are promised a seat at the table, yet they never dine; they are led to believe they are warriors, yet they are mere pawns expendable in the schemes orchestrated by the grand puppeteers.

    These agitators now decry Tinubu’s governance as the tombstone of democracy. They wail in choreographed despair, denouncing the emergency rule in Rivers as an apocalyptic omen. Yet, where was their voice when democracy was repeatedly desecrated as Fubara pulled down the state assembly and locked 27 lawmakers out?  Why did their tongues fail them when injustice flourished under their preferred overlords in previous dispensations? It is not democracy they defend; it is their bruised ego, their shattered ambitions, and impotence in the absence of power.

    Some have grown so drunk on their hatred that they subtly call for the military’s return—an invitation triggered by their personal vendetta against the incumbent government. They mask their desperation in righteous indignation, gaslighting the nation into believing that anarchy is a purgative for Nigeria’s ills. Yet history stands as an unrelenting witness—anarchy does not heal; it devours.

    The Nigerian Civil War bequeathed generations of broken men and women, ghosts of a nation scarred by its own folly. The wreckage remains a testament to the truth that war is never fought by the powerful but by the expendable, those who, like lambs, are herded into the slaughterhouse while their masters sip from goblets in safety.

    This pattern is neither new nor unique. Throughout history, the poor have been conditioned to serve as pawns in conflicts choreographed by the elite. The promise of glory, of escape from economic despair, of relevance in an indifferent society, is dangled before them like bait. Read Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front or Jones’s From Here to Eternity—the stories of young men lured into wars that had nothing to do with them, only to return disillusioned, discarded like broken marionettes once their usefulness expired. The same fate awaits every Nigerian youth who answers the call of these demagogues.

    Nigeria is no stranger to the deceit of its political class. The landscape is littered with the wreckage of those who mistook empty promises for bridges to a better life. The press, academia, civil society—all have at one time or another served as willing accomplices, weaving grand narratives to prop up the ambitions of the powerful. Yet, as Arundhati Roy once asked, “Are you walking the dog or is the dog walking you?” Who, indeed, controls the narrative?

    A nation held captive by illusions cannot prosper. The bitter truth is that Nigeria’s elite do not war for the people; they war for themselves. When the poor riot, they die alone. Those who engage in misguided battles are discarded as soon as their usefulness expires. Their broken bodies and spirits litter the nation like the remnants of a storm that never should have been.

    War, as Chris Hedges rightly notes, is always sold as a patriotic duty, wrapped in slogans of sacrifice, honor, and destiny. Yet up close, it is nothing but savagery—a cruel masquerade where the elite dictate, and the poor perish. It strips men of their dignity, reduces them to instruments of violence, and discards them as casualties when the dust settles. The horror of war is not in the battle cries of those who summon it; it is in the wails of mothers burying their sons, in the shattered dreams of those who once believed they fought for a noble cause, only to realize they were mere tools in a game they never understood.

    If history has taught anything, it is that nations do not crumble from external forces alone, they are undone from within, by the willingness of their youth to be used, by their ignorance of the patterns that have ensnared generations before them. Nigeria stands at a precipice, and the youth must decide whether to leap into the abyss or step back from the brink.

    Let those who clamor for war be the first to send their own sons and daughters to the battlefield. Let them, for once, sacrifice their own blood instead of the children of the impoverished. Let the Nigerian youth, weary of being pawns, demand better. Not through anarchy or destruction, but through a reclamation of their agency. It is time to scorn the charlatans, to rise not as foot soldiers in another man’s battle but as architects of a future where they are no longer expendable.

  • The future of higher education in Nigeria

    The future of higher education in Nigeria

    One may even cynically ask whether Nigeria can survive in the current form and situation in which our people do not want to pay taxes or tolls for bridges and road’s maintenance but just to survive on extractive industries and commissions on hydrocarbons exports. It is obvious that we cannot discuss this problem in isolation of other problems in Nigeria.

    Education is capital intensive so we will need a lot of money to develop it. UNESCO has suggested the spending by developing countries of at least 25% of annual budget on education. No government in the history of Nigeria has ever approached this. Most of our governments because of the political instability of the country spend substantial amount of their budget on security including the police and the military and other uniformed organizations like customs, immigration, prisons and civil defence organizations. No one can blame them because without security there can be neither education nor development. Unless Nigerian universities can go into ventures that will give them money they will hopelessly depend on government.

    Universities would have to charge economic fees graded according to courses where engineering and medical and STEM students will have to bear some of the costs of inputs their courses would need. Universities would have to be innovative and mount short courses which people in government and the private and public sectors would find attractive and relevant for their future development.

    I see no impediments to well established universities in Nigeria opening up colleges to teach and award degrees in less developed countries on the continent as the University of London did for almost two decades in Ibadan and Accra and which British and American universities are still doing in the Middle East and Asia.

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    Ibadan or Lagos could easily have done this in medicine in Sierra Leone and the Gambia and can still do it in Liberia Togo and Benin. It’s a question of correct branding. In the 1970s, University of Benin in Togo was teaching French to Nigerian students and staff and earning good money from it. I attended one of these courses from the University of Lagos and I wonder why Nigeria universities can also not mount courses in English for students and staff in Francophone countries surrounding us. I see a further challenge to Nigerian universities continued existence when for profit universities such as Stanford, Oxford, Cambridge or Yale and Harvard open branch campuses in Nigeria.

    Unless we ban this scenario, banning of which may be prohibited under international law, this may happen in the nearest future.

    Nigeria’s universities may also have to rationalize out of existence courses that are deemed not in tune with development. This is already happening in the United Kingdom. The present sharp divisions between the liberal arts and the sciences or social and environmental sciences may yield ground for combinations not currently considered possible.

    Faculties of law in the face of Artificial Intelligence (AI) dishing legal opinions may not sell as the hot cake that it’s currently the case. The same is true of medicine where once a few medical parameters can be established through laboratory tests using AI, a diagnosis and drugs prescription will follow. This is already happening in the USA where because of the expensive nature of medical consultations, short cuts are being explored.

    The success of private universities like Afe Babalola in Ado Ekiti nearby, may give governments the option of privatization of some existing universities if there are buyers who can run them better than government. This will cut off the pressure of trade unionism in our universities so that they can concentrate on teaching and research. For many of the universities to survive at all, there may be need for wholesale reimagining of what a university should be and what subjects they need to specialize in. The present academic homogeneity in the universities in Nigeria where they are all teaching the same curriculum must yield to different specialization which parents and students will find more attractive and interesting. There is no point in students going to University of Ibadan to study veterinary medicine when they can go to ABU to study the same subject for example or for Marine Engineering being offered in Kano rather than Lagos. The present pedagogy in universities may need to be re-examined and the optimal size of universities and classes interrogated. In this regard the use of digital resources and communication tools will increasingly need to be provided.

    One thing that is becoming clearer is that students and their parents will have to take responsibility for themselves. It’s rather a cruel thing to say that more than half a century after independence, the dependency syndrome that my generation benefited from would be difficult to maintain. I have a sense of guilt when I remember the luxury of university education my generation enjoyed in the 1960s in the University of Ibadan. The consequence of that period of indulgence can be seen in the total collapse of housing facilities for students.

    I also see a threat or challenge from government’s overweening influence in university administration manifesting in naming and renaming universities at their own convenience of honouring political bigwigs or those who passed on without thinking of the loss of the university brand name so renamed. Governments must stop taking universities for granted and respect university autonomy guaranteed by the laws setting them up. This has implications on universities self-financing.

    Most of my concern in this piece has been with universities and not with polytechnics and colleges of education. If the polytechnics were doing what they are supposed to do but not just being poor copies of the universities, one would have much to say, but they have not fulfilled their roles as producers of technicians and technologists needed for technological development of the country. In a place like the UK where polytechnics were highly developed, they were simply converted to universities by the government of Tony Blair without any problems. No one can equate polytechnics with universities in Nigeria, so until they are what they were planned to be, it would amount to waste of time to lump their future with those of universities. They are not in the same category and if there is a need to have technical universities, those in Germany provide enviable paradigm.

    Finally there are questions which need to be posed. Is there a correlation between higher education and development? If there is, how come that where there had been an advantage of higher education in Europe and Africa, they are less developed technologically than Northern Europe? Why are countries such as Italy, Spain, Greece, Egypt and Morocco behind their counterparts in Europe? This can of course be due to other factors such as location, politics, and religion and so on.

    Taken together however, the quality of life of areas with earlier contact with higher education may be better than those with more technological advancement.

    The question to ask is the purpose of education and particularly university education.

    The people who have made landmark achievements in this world were not products of universities nor were they professors. Innovation is not the preserve of universities. Bill Gates, a contemporary example, had to leave Harvard University to realise his great strides in scientific advancement just to give a recent example.

    Michael Faraday was a self-taught experimental physicist and chemist in the 19th century who made significant contributions to electromagnetism and electrochemistry. He is best known for his discoveries of electromagnetic induction, electrolysis and the laws of electrochemistry despite his lack of formal education. He is regarded for haven changed the world because his work laid the basis of motors and generators. The Wright brothers, inventors of aeroplanes did not attend any universities. These people may be out of the ordinary and cannot be considered as a general rule but the point is that as the Germans have proved to the contemporary world, the great lever of development is the SMEs, not the huge companies nor the mega universities, important as they may be. Every aspect of education from primary, secondary to university is very important and Nigeria had better have an holistic approach to educational reform which has become an existential struggle.

  • Much ado about Section 305

    Much ado about Section 305

    IT IS A section of the Constitution not frequently used, except the need arises. Whenever it is used, it causes a quake in the land. The country has been quaking since President Bola Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers State on March 18 after invoking the almighty Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution as amended. The imposition of emergency rule is not the problem, the din is over his suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, the deputy, Prof Ngozi Odu, and the House of Assembly.

    To critics, the President has no powers under the Constitution to suspend a governor or any elected person for that matter. According to them, Section 305 only confers him with power to declare a state of emergency in the federation or any part thereof, if need be; no more, no less. Citing the legal maxim: expressio unius est exclusio alterius, meaning the express inclusion of one thing is the exclusion of another, they have been using this Latin phrase to buttress their argument that the President is precluded from suspending those democratic institutions.

    Interestingly in this instance, the principle can be applied both ways. Why? Section 305 says nothing about the retention, suspension or removal of democratic institutions during an emergency. So, the President can do whatever he likes with democratic institutions during an emergency. Call it omnibus power, if you like; for that is what it is. A look at the section shows that these discretionary powers allow the President to do and undo, though critics will not agree. The section reads:

    (1) Subject to the provisions of this Constitution, the President may by instrument published in the Official Gazette of the Government of the Federation issue a Proclamation of a state of emergency in the Federation or any part thereof 

     Subsection 3 states the conditions under which the President can declare a state of emergency, viz:

    (a) when the Federation is at war;

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    (b) when the Federation is in imminent danger of invasion or involvement in a state of war;

    (c) when there is actual breakdown of public order and public safety in the Federation or any part thereof to such extent as to require extraordinary measures to restore peace and security

    (d)  When there is a clear and present danger of an actual breakdown of public order and public safety in the Federation or any part thereof requiring extraordinary measures to avert such danger

    Section 305 has six subsections, with (1) and (3) standing out because of their key provisions which touch on what the President has done in Rivers. Subsection three has seven elements (a-g), with c and d stating unequivocally in their texts that the President can take extraordinary measures to ensure peace and order and good governance at all times. The Constitution vests the President with enormous powers as the custodian, so to say, of the Federation, who though not an autocrat, can unilaterally exercise certain powers for the smooth running of the country and public safety.

    In one word, a state of emergency is a necessity, though it is perceived as an aberration by some people because it deviates from the norm of doing things. Under a state of emergency, things are not normal. It is because of this abnormality that the President is granted the power to take extraordinary measures to set things right until they become normal again. Those against his suspension of Fubara and others cannot say that things are normal in Rivers. Abnormal times demand abnormal remedy and this is what the President has done in Rivers.

    For the avoidance of doubt, Section 305 did not say that the President can suspend democratic institutions in times of emergency; neither did it say that the President cannot suspend those institutions during emergency. To go on a voyage of discovery in search of constitutional provisions on how a governor can be removed from office is what it is: a Mungo Park journey. Those provisions now being bandied by lawyers and laymen to suit their positions can only hold sway when things are normal. The provisions do not address an emergency situation as we have it in Rivers today.

    From my own understanding of Section 305, the President can suspend democratic institutions as the provision vide subsection 3 (c) and (d) allows him to take extraordinary measures to restore peace and order as well as avert an actual breakdown of public order and public safety in the Federation or any part thereof. Did he suspend the democratic institutions in Rivers to avert a clear and present danger to peace and security?

    The answer is YES. Did he act unconstitutionally by so doing? The answer is NO. I may be wrong, but I am ready to take a bet on my position until the Supreme Court which I pray will, one day, have an opportunity to address this issue frontally, speaks. Until then, all opinions by lawyers and others, including yours sincerely, remain just that: personal viewpoints

    Come to think of it, how can a governor keep his seat when he is part of the problem in a state where there is a state of emergency? Framers of the Constitution never envisaged that the chief executive officer of a state who is expected to promote public peace and good will become the chief troublemaker someday. Hence, 305 is not specific on how to deal with such unfathomable case.

    This lack of specificity should, however, not be misconstrued as tying the President’s hands to take necessary remedial actions. Otherwise, the section would not have spoken of extraordinary measures which give the President wide powers to do and undo during an emergency.

  • Rivers: The many uses of an emergency

    Rivers: The many uses of an emergency

    President Bola Tinubu truly set the cat amongst the pigeons when he declared emergency rule in Rivers State a week ago. Given that few saw it coming, initial shock was soon followed by reactions of volcanic proportions – along predictably partisan lines.

    We saw this movie and fallout in 2004 and 2006 when then President Olusegun Obasanjo interrupted democratic arrangements in Plateau and Ekiti States. It would be fair to say that the current action follows the template he put in place in those instances.

    Obasanjo’s action was met with cries that the apocalypse was upon us and democracy as we knew it was dead and buried. It should surprise no one therefore that in an already polarised country, Tinubu’s move would be greeted with an even more deafening chorus of disapproval in certain quarters.

    The critics would have you believe that the president is incapable of acting altruistically where the politics of Rivers State is concerned. They argue the emergency is a contrivance to neutralise Governor Siminalayi Fubara and empower his foe and former benefactor, Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike.

    In reality, the six month suspension was really a stay of execution that has preserved his status for foreseeable future, with prospects that he could even see out his tenure. Without that intervention, in a matter of weeks he could have become an ex-governor.

    The 27 pro-Wike members of the House of Assembly who had been waiting for over a year to take their pound of flesh from a man, who turned their temple into a pile of rubble, suddenly saw their quarry snatched from their grasp. They were set for the kill; the last thing they expected was intervention that gave the enemy second wind.

    Although, they had the numbers to achieve their goal, the impeachment process is unpredictable because lawmakers are not the only players. The easy part for them is drawing up gross misconduct charges. That notice has to pass through the Chief Judge who the constitution empowers to set up a panel of respected, impartial, apolitical people to review the accusation.

    He’s not under any obligation to pick those who would help the assemblymen achieve their ends. He can empanel those who would clear the embattled governor of all the allegations – bringing the process to a screeching halt.

    Just days before the president’s surprise announcement, Wike declared at a Port Harcourt reception that he wouldn’t stop the assembly from carrying out their constitutional duties. If it meant the impeachment of his successor, he assured his auditors the heaven wouldn’t fall.

    Amidst the din of criticism many can’t see that the president has done both sides a massive favour. For while the lawmakers could push the impeachment process forward, there was no guarantee that it would have delivered their preferred outcome. At the same time, Fubara was on the ropes, subjected to daily humiliations by those he once humiliated.

    Things were not going to get better with two sides determined not to work together. The governor’s praise singers at a point when he felt he had an upper used to chant ‘Dey your dey!’ – Pidgin English for stay in your lane. It was a ditty the legislators quickly adopted for mockery after the Supreme Court verdict which restored their power.

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    I am certain that those who criticise the emergency declaration wouldn’t have been any more enthused had the assemblymen pulled off the impeachment. Constitutional questions are being raised around the power of the president to suspend a governor. It should be pointed out that the Supreme Court skirted issue in the Dariye legal challenge. It would be surprising if they got themselves further entangled in a provision that gives the Executive sufficient space for discretion.

    The legality of the impeachment alternative, which no one disputes, wouldn’t have made it more palatable, given that unlike suspension, it involves a permanent separation from a powerful office.

    Tinubu insists he acted as any responsible president would to ensure peace and protect the nation’s strategic economic assets. His opponents argue his intervention was unnecessary and just part of manoeuvring towards the 2027 general elections. Anyone who understands Nigeria’s politics knows that to prevail in the presidential contest you must control at two least of three vital voting hubs – Lagos, Kano and Rivers States.

    Of the three, only Lagos is currently in the hands of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). Kano is run by Rabiu Kwankwaso’s New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP), while Rivers is held by a divided Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). This makes it a plum prize for those eying the next electoral contest.

    Seen from this context, it is tempting to view emergency rule as part of some Machiavellian scheming. But rather than convey any clear advantage to a side that favours him, what the president has done is deny the Wike group a winner-takes-it-all victory. Impeachment would have removed Fubara and his deputy, Ngozi Odu, clearing the way for Speaker Martins Amaewhule, to step in.

    The president could have allowed this outcome that favours his political ally and claim he only allowed the constitutional process play out. That would have been more helpful towards his 2027 ambitions.

    The fallout from the emergency declaration has been useful for an opposition struggling to get a bearing. Conventional wisdom suggests the only way to terminate APC rule is for all other parties to come together through a merger or in form of a coalition. It’s a typical ‘me-too’ idea that seems attractive because the current ruling party deployed a similar template to topple PDP in 2015.

    Key promoters of the idea like former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, saw in the firestorm an opportunity to energise their project. They hurriedly called a press conference to announce a coalition that obviously hadn’t coalesced. The cast of characters at this pre-unveiling event was sufficiently underwhelming you have to fear for the long term viability of the offspring they would birth.

    This was also an opportunity for the army of Nigeria’s would-be saviours to sing their usual dirge. It’s the same croaky rendition about the demise of democracy and all things good from undertakers who had their opportunity to make a difference. It’s almost as if by joining in the attacks their legacies would suddenly be washed clean.

    A case in point in Obasanjo who patented the declaration of state of emergency in Plateau and Ekiti States. He suspended the Joshua Dariye in the former and Ayo Fayose in the latter, naming sole administrators in their place. You would have thought he would stay out of this controversy given his past. No way!

    He has plunged in headlong, accusing members of the House of Representatives of receiving bribes to ratify the emergency proclamation. They have denied the claim and whatever evidence the former president has isn’t public knowledge yet. What we do remember is that today’s critic of legislative corruption has severally been accused of sending huge sums to effect leadership changes at the National Assembly and to prosecute his stillborn Third Term agenda. Fortunately for him Nigerians are famous for their collective amnesia.

    The emergency declaration and its aftermath has been a window for assessing the state of play in national politics as we approach the Tinubu mid-term. The constitution lays out how a president who wants to take this step should proceed. First, he makes a proclamation and then sends same with details of his programme to the National Assembly for ratification. This provision is a check against unilateral action by any emperor.

    The lawmakers must by two-thirds majority ratify his action or it is dead in its tracks, restoring power to those who had been suspended.

    APC doesn’t have two-thirds of the National Assembly members. An effective or united opposition could have halted the process, but almost all their legislators backed the president’s action. Shortly before the vote, Atiku grandly announced how he and his coalition partners were rallying lawmakers to hand the president a significant political defeat. In the end they were left with egg on their faces, quibbling about morality of using the voice vote to ratify the emergency.

    Unfortunately, this controversy has provided another opportunity for frustrated politicians and their supporters to attack the Supreme Court and others wings of the judiciary. It’s always amusing hearing laudatory comments when judgment goes in their favour and bitter jibes about compromise when it doesn’t.

    The president has acted and had his way. Emergency rule is in place and appears to be working in the early days. Legal challenges are flooding in to be adjudicated on by the same vilified judiciary. What fun it would be to hear the opinion of the critics if the courts rule against Tinubu.

  • Revisiting polytechnic education in Nigeria (2)

    Revisiting polytechnic education in Nigeria (2)

    The Chairpersons of the Governing Councils of federal polytechnics highlighted several problems facing the federal polytechnics and made recommendations to the government in a communique issued at the end of their meeting in Calabar (February 9-14, 2025). Three of those problems were discussed last week (see Revisiting polytechnic education in Nigeria (1), The Nation, March 19, 2025). The remaining issues are discussed below.

    Infrastructure

    The quality of infrastructure in the federal polytechnics is reflective of the quality of infrastructure in the country as a whole—bad roads, lack of electricity and water supply, and limited or epileptic WiFi connectivity. Although the focus of the Chairs’ recommendation is on power supply, the federal polytechnics need all these infrastructural facilities, if they were to function at optimal level. This has not been the case, however, which is why they are not able to carry out their expected mission “to produce low, middle and high-level manpower” (2019 Polytechnic Act).

    Aware of the difficulty of connecting the polytechnics to the national power grid, which has been collapsing every now and then, the Chairs recommended that the Rural Electrification Agency should be directed to power the federal polytechnics, by providing solar electrification. Fortunately, the Federal Government had recently allocated the sum of N100 billion for solar projects in selected public institutions throughout the country. Institutions, mostly polytechnics, in the rural areas should take priority in the project.

    Nevertheless, there are cases where step-down power stations only need standby technical workforce to function. As this is a distribution issue, the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, should work with the DISCOs to provide the necessary personnel and equipment to get such stations connected to nearby federal polytechnics.

    Security

    There are at least three reasons to ensure the security of federal polytechnics throughout the country. First, it is necessary to protect the innocent lives of students and staff in the institutions against bandits and kidnappers now operating across the country. Second, it is necessary to protect the institutions’ property (buildings and technical equipment) against damage, theft, or vandalisation. Third, it is necessary to protect the polytechnics’ land from encroachment, which is an ongoing problem in many of the newer institutions.

    The best way to achieve this tripartite goal is to fence the perimeter of each polytechnic from one corner of the entrance gate to the other. Additional security could also be achieved by installing Close Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras at strategic locations all over the campuses. Such cameras will not only aid in detecting possible encroachers, but they will also help in detecting infringements by internal members of the institutions.

    There also should be fully equipped security personnel at strategic locations around each polytechnic. If police personnel could be guarding politicians and businessmen all over the place, there is no excuse for not protecting federal polytechnics, which serve thousands of people at a time.

    Other recommendations

    While the retreat was going on, NBTE notified the Chairs of TETFund’s circular, indicating that federal polytechnics with less than 1000 students after three years of operation would not be entitled to intervention funds. However, the Chairs pleaded that the affected institutions were new ones, and they still needed intervention funds to make necessary progress. Besides, some of the affected polytechnics had spent only one year and had two more years to attain the 1000 enrollment figure. Moreover, it should be recognised that polytechnics are no longer as attractive to students as they used to be, because of limitations in the job market as well as discrimination against holders of HND vis-à-vis university degree. That’s why the Chairs recommended a focus on the development of entrepreneurial skills and the removal of the Higher National Diploma-B.Sc. dichotomy, by converting HND to B.Tech degree.

    Another issue in the Chairs’ communique is the appointment of Rectors of federal polytechnics. Up till now, only the Federal Ministry of Education could handle the appointment of Rectors for the federal polytechnics. This often led to the delay and politicisation of the appointment by civil servants. A review of the Polytechnic Act would be necessary to empower the Governing Councils o take on this role as is the case with university Governing Councils. After all, the Councils are much more familiar with the needs and peculiarities of their institutions and are better suited to appoint suitable Rectors.

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    Updates

    Some developments affecting polytechnic education have occurred or been accelerated, following the Chairs’ communique.

    On Tuesday, March 4, 2025, the bill to abolish the discrimination between university degrees and HND, by replacing HND with a B.Tech degree, has scaled the second reading in the House of Representatives.

    If passed, the bill would bring two critical innovations to the polytechnics. First, as indicated last week, the degree component of polytechnic education would have to be handled by the National Universities Commission to maintain parity of standards with university degrees. Second, a polytechnic Rector must have a minimum of a doctorate degree. Ideally, Rectors should be manned by Professors in order to be able to adequately drive the institution’s research agenda and enhance the degree component of polytechnic education.

    Work is also ongoing on the review of the scheme of service in the polytechnics. It is hoped that the polytechnic managements have been part of the process. Much too often, innovation trickles down from the civil service, without the input of critical stakeholders.

    Conclusion

    The state of infrastructure in the polytechnics today recalls a sociological dictum, proposed by Emile Durkheim, the father modern sociology, namely, that education can do no more than reflect society. However, in view of the need for our youths to compete not just within the local markets, but also in a global market, efforts should be made to upscale the infrastructure of educational institutions in the country to maximise their teaching and learning potentials. The Federal Government has a duty to ensure adequate funding of the polytechnics it established, beyond the funds provided by TETFund.

    In a way, the communique under discussion recalls the NEEDS Assessment of Universities of 2013. Eleven years after, federal universities remain in dire need. It would appear that the present Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, is determined to carry out the mandate of the present administration to rescue federal polytechnics from performance malaise. The starting point is taking this communique seriously.