The Nation Newspaper

Category: Saturday

  • Religion, politics and secularity

    Religion, politics and secularity

    By Dayo Sobowale 

    There is a saying that religion is the opium of the masses. Nowadays, however, the prosperity pastors have made religion a very  lucrative  business. The French Emperor Napoleon  Bonaparte is  on record  as saying  that  ‘Religion   is excellent stuff for keeping  the   common  people  quiet. Religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich’. Secularity or freedom of worship or religion  was what modern democracy used to curtail the fervor and  fanaticism of religion in the hope that such relegation will lead to a more reasonable and manageable polity. Nowadays however religion has crept out of where it was supposed to be stored safely or manacled,  to rear its head, ugly or not,  in global  politics in the last few weeks. Today we look at religious  differences and  tolerance in  the world at large while noting for starters that Nigeria and France, which especially holds our attention today, are secular states.

    Just look at the situation in France where an Islamist  terrorist  decapitated a teacher who was teaching  freedom of expression in France , land of the  French Revolution of 1789 whose motto  is Liberty, Equality, Fraternity. For supporting the  decapitated  teacher and making him a National  hero , Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan   asked the French president  Emmanuel Macron  to see a psychiatrist literally  and Erdogan said truculently  that the French  want  to start another Crusade . In  the US a woman was sworn in as a  judge of the US Supreme Court who  is known as a born again Christian and a judge against abortion. In  the Vatican in Rome  Pope  Francis  shocked  Catholics  world wide  when he  called gay  couples children of God who are entitled to civic marriages to secure their union. Again in the US American  Jews and their Rabbis in  an   unprecedented   move  endorsed Donald Trump as their presidential  candidate for the November 3 presidential elections. And  in Catholic Poland the Supreme  Court banned abortion literally by making it difficult  to facilitate.

    While all these religious rumbles were going on abroad,  Nigerians woke up from the curfew of the violent anti SARS protests on police brutality to  see the grim spectacle of the ancient Igbosere High Court and police stations razed  to the ground by hoodlums and miscreants who hijacked the protests from the youths. Indeed one does not know whether to mourn silently or cry  and wail,  the way the anti SARS protest went and ended so calamitously in terms of wanton destruction. Protests  are part of democracy and I do not think that there is anywhere in the world where people protest  more  regularly than France. But  such protests do not disturb  those who  have other things to do as the Anti SARS protests did and it was hijacked by thugs and hooligans. I think the lesson here is that a well  fed dog does  not play with an angry, hungry dog. The  miscreants  and hoodlums misread the music and food  and dancing of the youths as a slap  in the face of their own    miserable  and abject  hunger and poverty and they vented their spleen on our public buildings and police stations,  while the police already   handicapped or vilified no end  by,  and with the youth  protests, could only wring their hands   to   turn  a blind eye  to the   destruction of their police stations. One way or the other state governments must  coax or make  the police return to their duty of the maintenance of law and order, the absence of which led to the anarchy of looting and burning of police stations. The police must be encouraged, not discouraged by the ghost or specter  of brutality,  because the  police  needs   to have deterrence and the control of misuse of violence in our society so that we  all,  including the youths, can live safely in our society,  both day and night.

    The dispute between France and Turkey over the decapitated teacher shows vividly the fault line between Islam and Christianity. Erdogan  enjoys  this because he has an ax to grind with Christian Europe which is finding it difficult to ratify Turkey’s membership of the EU. Granted that France is stubbornly secular  France is historically Christian or Catholic. But  Erdogan  too is trying to live  like an Ottoman  Emperor of the former Ottoman Empire that crumbled after WW 1 to  be replaced by a secular  Turkey  under Kemal Ataturk  who  made Turkey a secular, albeit in Muslim state. Indeed Ataturk was credited with saying there is only one civilization and that is western civilization and Turkey was going west. Erdogan having survived a coup sometime and having won three back to back elections  has pitted Turkey  against the west and is using the threat of unleashing migrants through  its borders to flood Europe. The EU has paid turkey handsomely for holding the migrants  at bay in Turkey but Erdogan is an Oliver Twist  in diplomacy  and is using the cartoon issue again to blackmail not only France but indeed the whole of the EU on  the unsettled issue of Turkey’s  membership  of the EU.

    In  the US the swearing  in of Amy Coney Barrett  as  a judge of the US Supreme  Court on October 27 2020, a few days to the presidential election  of  November 3 2020  is  very  significant, culturally and in terms of religion in the US. If Donald Trump wins reelection it will be because of this appointment and if he loses it will  be because of  it. Win or lose however Trump  has changed the American cultural  and political  land scape  for a long time to come. There  are nine judges on the US Supreme Court and in just  one term Donald  Trump  has been able to appoint  3 conservative judges effectively  tilting the balance towards  conservativism in the American judiciary. The  balance now is 6 conservative judges to 3 liberal  judges. Conservative judges are anti abortion and anti gay rights. On gay  rights such  judges are on the same fence with secular Nigeria which has anti  gay laws  punishing homophobia with a 14 year prison term. The  Democrats which many Nigerians see as their shining heroes,  to be copied shamelessly, are pro abortion and prop gay rights. That is the party of the Obamas, Clintons and Kennedys  and  they will be looking forward to Joe Biden to win and redress the imbalance which has been so eloquently God-given for Donald Trump to do in just one term.  So  you  can  decide who is more desperate  to win this November 3 presidential  election between the   Democrats    of   Joe  Biden   and the GOP, the Republican Party of the US conservatives. Incidentally the US is not, strictly speaking  a  secular state  even though it practices freedom  of  worship. This is because America’s  motto is  ‘In  God  we Trust’, just  like the motto of my school, Eko Boys High School – In Domino Confidimus.

    Let  me round up with  the issues involving  Pope Francis  and his new  found love for gay  couples  which  is bound to embarrass even his cardinals, not to talk of devout  Catholics. In doing this I will  compare the present Catholic pontiff  with  his predecessors. These  are John Paul 11  and Pope Benedict  XV1, who  is still alive. Pope John Paul 11  was a Polish  Pope  and it is instructive  that his countrymen are faithful  to his memory  and are  mostly  anti gay and anti abortion . They  have likened gay rights to communism and have made it clear that such rights will  not be taught to their children or students in their schools. Pope  Benedict XV1 was the think tank and disciplinarian in  the  Papacy  of John Paul 11 and  was blamed by liberals  of the west  for glossing over the child  abuse  era of the  Catholic  Church in the past ,  hence his bowing out in retirement,  which  had  not happened to any pope for a long time. Pope  Francis came second to Benedict XVI  at  his election and was the natural  choice  to take over as Pope  Francis. Now  the Pope is pandering  to ‘ the fashion of the times’  which  his   predecessor  so ably resisted. Popes used to be infallible but  such  times are past. Pope Francis needs to reassure  his flock globally or else his papacy will  be dented with his liberal tendencies in a volatile world. Once again – From the fury of this pandemic Good Lord Deliver Nigeria.

  • 2023: Ihedioha revs campaign machinery

    2023: Ihedioha revs campaign machinery

    Sentry

    According to reliable sources, sacked governor of Imo State, Emeka Ihedioha, is back in town after months of staying away from the state following his removal by the Supreme Court, and he is seriously re-engineering his political machinery ahead of the 2023 gubernatorial election.

    Sentry gathered that the former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives is busy holding meetings with leaders and members of the party in pursuit of his dream to return to Government House.

    Read Also: Why Ihedioha is desperate to return, by Imo govt

    As part of his moves, he is said to be offering strong support to the Charles Ugwuh-led state executive committee of the party which has been under serious pressure from some powerful chieftains of the party. Ugwuh and majority of his men are loyal to Ihedioha.

    It was gathered that Ihedioha’s decision to start the race towards 2023 early may not be unconnected with alleged moves by some aggrieved party leaders within and outside the state to deny him the PDP governorship ticket at the next election cycle.

    Observers are keenly watching the unfolding drama as the PDP and its chieftains, plot against incumbent Governor Hope Uzodinma’s re-election.

  • OPIC: Between Abiodun’s men and Amosun’s loyalists

    OPIC: Between Abiodun’s men and Amosun’s loyalists

    Sentry

    The rivalry between supporters of Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun and loyalists of his predecessor and senator representing Ogun Central at the National Assembly, Ibikunle Amosun, is not abating.

    If anything, the gulf between the two prominent blocs within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Gateway State is deepening. Recently, the intra-party grudges heightened after Amosun’s loyalists went to town with allegations that Abiodun may have quietly embarked on a move to probe the former governor’s administration.

    Sentry gathered that the crux of the disagreement is than action taken by Ogun State House of Assembly. During the week, the assembly through its Committee on Public Account and Anti-Corruption called on the immediate past Managing Director, Ogun State Property and Investment Corporations (OPIC), Jide Odusolu, to explain the finances of the corporation under his watch – especially in relation to the running of its investments.

    Read Also: Abiodun: why I will complete projects abandoned by Amosun

    Hardly had the assembly issued the directive before tongues started wagging that Amosun was the target of the alleged probe. For their part, Abiodun’s supporters wondered why the senator and his men were disturbed if they had no skeleton in their cupboard.

    “Abiodun hasn’t got time to chase shadows. They are just afraid of their handiwork. Otherwise, must they interpret everything as being targeted at them,” a party leader asked on Wednesday.

    Reminding Sentry that Committee Chairman, Musefiu Lamidi, also directed the management of OPIC to furnish it with more documents on how the corporation was ran under Odusolu, a known ally of Amosun, a former commissioner in the state challenged the governor to come out openly with his intentions.

    “If he wants to probe his predecessor, he should say it and stop using ideas,” he told Sentry. As we speak, the rumbling continues.

  • #ENDSARS: Makinde reopens schools in Ibadan

    #ENDSARS: Makinde reopens schools in Ibadan

    By Yinka Adeniran, Ibadan

    Oyo has directed schools in Ibadan to resume normal academic activities from Monday.

    Governor Seyi Makinde gave the directive through the Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Olasunkanmi Olaleye, on Sunday.

    He said the new directive followed review of the situation in Ibadan metropolis, expressing appreciation to youths who have been cooperating with security operatives to maintain peace.

    The statement reads in part: “His Excellency, Governor Seyi Makinde directed the closure of schools in Ibadan metropolis on Tuesday, 20th of October, in the wake of #Endsars protests that rocked the state.

    READ ALSO: #ENDSARS: Two suspected hoodlums arrested in Oyo

    “His Excellency had in a message to the people of Oyo State stated that the situation will be reviewed on Friday 23rd October 2020.

    “Following a review of the situation as earlier promised, the state government is happy to observe that normalcy has returned to the state in the aftermath of the protests.

    “His Excellency, the Governor appreciates the youths who have been cooperating with security operatives to maintain peace, while assuring them that their demands are being addressed.”

  • Government, Anarchy and Democracy

    Government, Anarchy and Democracy

    By Dayo Sobowale

    I confess that I write as it were under the duress of patriotism and as a lover of the Nigerian nation who  cannot go  to sleep  while there is fire on the roof of our fatherland . Nigeria is on fire with the End SARS protests which  have been taken over by hoodlums and thugs and which has brought carnage and looting  to our major cities and state capitals   with the security forces intervening and killing innocent protesters while the hoodlums burn state   buildings  and cart away government properties  in broad  day light . One  after the other the state governors  have reacted in panic and ordered 24 hour curfews which  have only exacerbated the looting and insecurity and burning of more police stations .  The   police are  being blamed and asked to  maintain  law  and  order while their stations are incinerating and the looters are having a field  day after hijacking the protests from the genuine youths many  of whom  have now   paid the supreme price and sacrifice for demanding  an end to police brutality  in our nation . It  is a pathetic situation and I  tremble as  I  write  and really I do so with a heavy heart and please bear with  me , because honestly , I think Nigeria is on fire .

    If  it  is at all possible let  us look  at the issues involved dispassionately  and unlike the proverbial ostrich with its head buried in the sand in the hope that we will  see  our way through  to a solution which we should agree at the onset ,  is to have a return of peace and normality to our roads and cities  .So that Nigerians can  come out   and earn their living as before and not under the uncertainty and paralysis of  lock downs and 24 hour  curfews    by  our   state  governors  . Having  agreed this ,  we  need to remind  our selves of the meaning of government and governance , in  our democracy as in  any democracy so that we do not slide into the anarchy  which the End SARS protests  have inadvertently thrust on us most regrettably and so tragically in  the last  few days . Under  the circumstances  we shall  make observations  and offer  advice and  make comparisons with  other nations and their experience with police brutality and  protests to   obtain justice and make presidents and tyrants follow the path of the rule of law as required in  a democracy as our youths have done before it was hijacked  from them .

    It  is important to start with the youths because  they  are the catalysts  of  the situation  we are in . The  youths meant well    and  they acted within their rights and I am  sure they will  never have done what the  hoodlums who  hijacked the protests did  so violently  and so destructively . But  while we concede that it is the prerogative  of youths to be impatient   they should be told that the hood does not make the  monk and an actor quits when the ovation is loudest .  When  the government kowtowed  to their demands and banned SARS so obsequiously     they  should   have applauded themselves   and gone home . Instead  they interpreted this as a sign of weakness   and  started organizing discos and parties at our traffic interjections and waylaying commuters and workers going and  returning from their daily labour . The  youths  should know  or  be told  that a revolution or protest is not a tea party or an event  management production . With their parties and carnival they cast  opprobrium on their lofty and public spirited goal  of End SARS . What  has entertainment  got to do with  police  brutality and killing of innocent youths ? . Absolutely NOTHING . Our    youths  should  go home now because they  should be told , if  they   do not know as they may  not ,that  he who runs  today  lives to fight another day . The  moral  for them  here in the  End SARS tragedy is that life has no duplicate . Sam .

    In  terms of government  and governance over this End SARS  protests ,   I   take issues with  the governors over the imposition of 24 hour curfew .  The   protest  is not a curfew issue but one of   opportunity    of creation of assurance that government  is in  control of security of its citizens and their lives and property  ,  both at night and during the day . A 24 hour curfew creates more   insecurity  and while the fear of the lockdown of the pandemic still  persists  , with social distancing and  masks , the 24 hour   curfew can only compound the fear of the pandemic or even aggravate our sense of insecurity   the more,  when  hoodlums use the curfew to  attack government  properties and burn police stations . It  appears the 24 hour curfew is the governors’ hang over from the pandemic lockdowns . The  problems are different and the solutions cannot be the same . The  essence of governance is to control violence and protect the lives and properties of those who elected  the governors  , who  are the chief security officers  of their respective states . That  is  what governance and democracy  is all about . Not  asking people  to hide and quiver  in their homes day and night while hoodlums take  to the streets to  loot and cause pandemonium in a   raging  pandemic .

    Let  us now look at global reactions to the  killing of our gallant  youths  and   genuine protesters on the End SARS  saga  as well   as a comparative  analysis on  this .Of  course our  government  has called for calm which  is assuring but not enough . Also  the news that the FEC met this week and  nothing on the End SARS was discussed is un believable .  If  true , it is the height  of  aloofness  and lack  of empathy for the youths killed in these protests . Let  us now  look at messages of solidarity with  the youths on End SARS  and  the issue of  police brutality in the US .

    From  the US former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and   2020  Presidential   candidate  Joe Biden  both  of  the Democratic  Party,  have  come calls on our government to stop the killing  of innocent Nigerian youths by the security forces . For   this  we should   be thankful . I  do  not   however expect the US President Donald Trump   a  Republican  to say something like that because he is a law and order person  who  believes Police  should be supported when  looters hijack  protests  and attack policemen  as he did over the Black Lives Matter protests in the US . Indeed  Trump  is putting  his  political  life on the line over this law and under issue and it is the flagship of his  reelection campaign  for this November 3 presidential  election  . Trump  is against looting and the hijacking of protests by looters and hoodlums such as happened in our cities and state capitals in the last  few days . Nigerian  governors are well advised to borrow a leaf from the American president’s book on law and order . They  will  learn that it is not safe nor  is it good  governance to flee with the hunted and hunt with the hunter . Once  again From the fury of this pandemic  God Lord Deliver Nigeria .

  • BOS beyond coronavirus

    BOS beyond coronavirus

    By Segun Ayobolu

    Nothing in recent times has impressed better upon the human consciousness than the Coronavirus pandemic the enduring lesson of history, which is that the leadership factor, more often than not, makes the difference between flourishing or atrophying human societies. Over 500 days ago, the administration of Mr. Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu (BOS), the governor of Lagos State, was sworn into office riding on the wings of great expectations like any new government. Yet, almost immediately it ran into a hailstorm of fierce criticisms and vehement condemnations. The administration assumed office amidst the rainy season with prolonged heavy down pour daily resulting in severe flooding of the roads, the resultant traffic lock jam in large swathes of the state and the attendant hardships and inconveniences endured by the citizenry.

    An impatient public was unprepared to give the administration time to settle down insisting on instant ‘action’. Wisely, rather than giving excuses and endlessly lamenting the severity of the challenges it inherited such as a virtually collapsed waste management and disposal system as well as the blockage of most drainage channels across the state, the administration focused on fixing the root causes of the problem while pleading for patience from the public.

    Given the sterling credentials and private as well as public sector managerial experience of the governor, his deputy, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, and other key officials of the government, this column entertained no doubts that the administration would quickly surmount its teething problems and indeed ultimately surpass expectations in the actualization of its ambitious THEMES agenda. However, the unanticipated Coronavirus pandemic crept in like a thief in the night distracting governments across geo-political spaces and holding the world in a vice grip from which a beleaguered mankind is still struggling to extricate itself.

    In Nigeria, steering the affairs of Lagos, the county’s population hub as well as economic capital, BOS was particularly under pressure especially as the state understandably emerged as the epicenter of the pandemic.

    But every crisis, it is said, almost always invariably also provides an opportunity. This troublous, rampaging virus brought to the fore the leadership dexterity and acumen of the governor. There was the calm, confidence and surefootedness in action, which went a long way in reassuring the public at a time of great uncertainty and fear. There was the efficient mobilization, deployment and utilization of resources in response to the crisis. There was the daily communication with the public led by BOS himself from the grounds of the State House, Marina; briefings at which he exhibited remarkable emotional intelligence. There was the inspirational example the governor gave his team of commissioners and heads of extra-ministerial agencies many of whom rose to the occasion and contributed exemplarily towards containing the scourge.

    It would have been so easy and tempting for the BOS administration to utilize the distraction of the pandemic as an excuse and justification for non-performance. After all, huge unbudgeted sums have had to be diverted to contain the crisis particularly the procurement of medical equipment, construction of emergency health facilities, payment of allowances to health workers on the frontline and the provision of material and financial palliatives to succor large numbers of vulnerable members of the society. Beyond this, the BOS administration gave extensive tax and other fiscal reliefs to businesses, waived payment on property land use charges and offered other concessions that had negative implications on its revenue inflow.

    Yet, in spite of this, the administration has made a positive and impressive impact on governance over the last 500 days beyond its management of the Coronavirus pandemic. One indication of this is that the heavy flooding and debilitating traffic congestion that caused so much uproar against the administration last year has significantly abated even though the rains have been heavier. This has been as a result of continuous, intensive palliative works to fill pot holes and repair damages on inner roads, massive rehabilitation and reconstruction of over 500 roads across the state as well as ongoing de-silting, reclamation and restoration of clogged drainage channels throughout the state in addition to the construction of new ones.

    The Ministry of the Environment has within the short period substantially restored the efficiency and functionality of the state’s refuse disposal and management system, enhanced the efficacy of the Lagos State Waste Management Agency (LAWMA) and also restored normalcy in the operations of the Private Sector Participant (PSP), operators which is critical to the environmental health of the state. There is hardly any part of the state where the Ministry of Works and Infrastructure is not constructing new roads and bridges or rehabilitating and constructing new ones. This has, of course, created its own problems especially with regard to frequent traffic congestion on key arteries. I will not bog down the reader here with details of these roads, drainages and other projects as the state’s Ministry of Information and Strategy diligently and continuously provides all such information, including pictorial evidence, in the print, electronic and social media.

    In a discussion before writing this piece, a colleague was of the view that there is not a single major legacy infrastructure project that the BOS administration has initiated and completed since its assumption of office 500 days ago. This kind of perspective reflects a major problem with governance in Nigeria whereby every new administration tends to abandon uncompleted projects inherited from its predecessors and to commence entirely new ones for which it can take sole glory. Furthermore, there tends to be an emphasis on grandiose projects with phenomenal cost implication even where smaller projects with less visibility will add much more value to people and communities. The BOS administration has so far offered a refreshing departure from this unproductive and unhelpful inclination.

    Thus, it has placed primacy on completing most of the ongoing projects inherited from the preceding administrations of Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) and Mr. Akinwumi Ambode. For instance, it has completed the 13.68km Oshodi-Abule Egba BRT corridor while work is nearing completion on the Pen-Cinema Bridge, Agege, inherited from the Ambode administration. Similarly, the administration has recommenced construction work on the critical Lagos/Badagry Expressway started by BRF and the first phase of this road from Agboju to Trade Fair is already completed. In the health sector, the BOS administration has completed and commissioned the 149-bed Igando Mother and Child Care Centre in Igando; the 110-bed Eti-Osa Mother and Child Care Centre in Eti-Osa and the Mother and Child Care Centre in Badagry while the Epe Mother and Child Care Centre has reached an advanced stage. These projects were initiated by BRF.

    There is no space to reiterate here the BOS administration’s attainments in the education, job creation, Information Communication Technology, housing, justice and other sectors over the last 500 days. Let me thus just briefly refer to one example of the strategic innovation in policy focus by the administration, which is its emphasis on water transportation to make ample use of the state’s ample water endowment. Thus, it commissioned eight new ferries which commenced commercial operation in February 2020 and have so far conveyed 25,000 passengers. In addition, it has completed the channelization of four ferry routes; channelized the Mile2-Marina route; completed the Baiyeku waterfront jetty construction while work is at different stages of completion on jetty construction projects in no less than ten communities.

    Understandably, the BOS administration is not indifferent or insensitive to the need to bequeath to posterity its own legacy projects that will help to redefine and elevate the landscape as well as enhance the quality of life. It is noteworthy in this regard that it has short-listed 8 contractors for the construction of the path-breaking 38km 4th Mainland bridge while also recommencing work on the 27km Lagos light rail project from CMS to Okokomaiko. If the administration is to deliver on these massive projects in its life-span, however, it must at least make significant progress on them in its first term. BOS’s briefing of the people on the activities of his administration over the last 500 days, which holds on Tuesday, could not have come at a more appropriate time when Nigerian youths, through the #EndSARS/SWAT protest movement, are bringing the demand for responsive, responsible and accountable governance, once more, to the forefront of Nigeria’s evolving democracy.

    As BOS and his team continue apace on their journey of governance in Nigeria’s megacity, the governor will surely continue to bear in mind his memorable words at his inauguration: “We are but human beings. Our time on this earth is finite and shall one day pass. At some point, we shall all enter the book of history. This is inevitable. But we can choose how we walk into history. Shall we do so as masters of our fate, or as slaves to things that seek to suppress us? When the history of our time is written, let it not be told in tears of defeat, rather let it resound with the anthem of collective victory…While one cannot help but hear the kind words of friends, I must pay even closer attention to the voice of my critics. In constructive criticism lie the seeds of improvement”.

     

  • Friendly lessons for Eagles

    Friendly lessons for Eagles

    Ade Ojeikere

     

    THE deafening noise from most commentators after Nigeria lost 1-0 to Algeria on Friday in Austria looked like we lost our pride. Indeed, the Algerians had not lost a game since they clinched the Africa Cup of Nations diadem, recording an 18-match unbeaten run, with the win over Nigeria their 19th consecutive victories. Of course, critics have a right to air their views but they must not lose sight of the essence of playing friendly games – to expose players to teams with similar tactical formations as their next opponents.

    One thing that this current NFF board has effectively done since its inception is to get the Super Eagles’ players busy during most of the FIFA-free windows by playing quality friendly games. In the past, such high profile games are played on the pages of newspapers with the players idling away in their European clubs. This lull affected how the Eagles played and adversely affected the country’s monthly FIFA rankings over the years.

    This columnist has watched the game between Algeria and Nigeria thrice since it was played to find out if Super Eagles were truly annihilated since the score-line didn’t suggest that either. It will interest many to know that 70 per cent of the squad that played the match against Algeria was playing together in a competitive game for the first time. The players exhibited a commendable composure, especially after conceding an early goal in the sixth minute. Also worthy of mention is the Eagles’ goalkeeper, Maduka Okoye, whose sharp reflexes saved blushes for his side.

    Today, Nigerians won’t flinch if Maduka is fielded ahead of Francis Uzoho. With his performance in the friendly, he has established his ability to keep Nigerians heart safe when he is between the goalpost for the Eagles. In fact, Uzoho would brace for the challenges ahead while outside bets such as Alampasu, Daniel Akpeyi et al would queue behind Maduka until he loses form – if he does anytime soon and barring unforeseen circumstances. The team’s tactician has quietly addressed the issue of fielding a reliable and consistent goalkeeper since Vincent Enyeama’s exit. I recall the debates among journalists before Nigeria’s first game against Argentina at the Russia 2018 World Cup over the goalkeeping area. Most people still blame Uzoho for the country’s slim loss to the Argentines. Now, Rohr can close his eyes and pick four goalkeepers to camp based on their current clubs.

    Rohr is a defensive coach, though many lovers of the Eagles feel that the team should play attacking football. I laugh most times at this trepid assertion because most of our players are not regulars in their respective European clubs. This season, you can count how many Nigerians are first-team players, with those of them who are playing for less fancied sides. In the Clemens Westerhof era which they easily refer to, almost all our players were regulars in big European clubs. They carry their club form to the national team making them a joy to watch as they whip the opposition like a hot knife passing through butter.

    It is important to stress here that international friendly matches are meant to expose the strengths and weaknesses in a team – with one objective to find suitable replacements – ahead of major competitions. Coaches use such games to discover new players to replace aging ones and those in the twilight of their national team careers.

    Having lost to Algeria, this columnist looked forward to Rohr’s selection based on what he observed as the team’s flaws. Rohr made five changes which further strengthened the team’s defence. I wasn’t surprised at the outcome of the match for a side that wasn’t playing with its key midfielders which include Wilfred Ndidi, Joe Aribo, and Oghenekaro Etebo. This is not to forget the effect of the retirement of Victor Moses and Mikel Obi from the Rohr’s side. Also, Ogenyi Onazi is presently recuperating while those angling for the position are rookies in the trade. Is anyone, therefore shocked that the Eagles were tentative in the two matches?

    One good thing Rohr’s list brought to the fore was the invitation extended to ex-Golden Eaglets beginning with goalkeeper Dele Alampasu (FK Ventspils, Latvia), Kenneth Omeruo (CD Leganes, Spain), Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City, England), Samson Tijani (TSV Hartberg, Austria), Ahmed Musa (Al Nassr, Saudi Arabia), Samuel Chukwueze (Villarreal FC, Spain),),  Abdullahi Shehu (Omonia, Cyprus) and Ramon Azeez (Granada CF, Spain).

    The likes of Chidozie Awaziem (FC Boavista, Portugal), Moses Simon (FC Nantes, France) and Chidera Ejuke (CSKA Moscow, Russia) were part of the youth set-up in Nigeria but didn’t play in major tournaments. They’ve been absorbed into the national team following their consistencies in performance during games among other reasons.

    Today, we can point at Kevin Akpoguma (1899 Hoffenheim), Zaidu Sanusi (FC Porto, Portugal), Alex Iwobi (Everton FC, England) and Cyril Dessers (KRC Genk, Belgium) as Nigeria-born players not forgetting Joe Aribo (Rangers, Scotland) who dazzled in his first three matches in the midfield scoring goals. This columnist is comfortable with introducing foreign-based lads than scouting in the domestic front. Most of the ages being bandied by our domestic league players are false. This fraudulent trend jeopardises the team’s performance in subsequent matches as they grow older, become weary and eventually turn into tired legs. It is better to invest in truly younger players whose ages you can authenticate than fill the squad with grand old men in small bodies.

    Eagles’ defence has always been the team’s albatross in major competitions including during the Westerhof era. The Dutchman played many players outside of their positions to solidify the defence. Austin Eguavoen, Emeka Ezegwu, Ben Iroha et al who played in the defence for Westerhof had their roles changed intermittently depending on the opposition. It worked for the Dutchman because we lacked quality defenders in Europe then unlike now with the Nigerian-born lad. No coach would shut his eye on good players. If Westerhof was here now, he would have gone for these young lads than infest his team with old legs masquerading as boys.

    “We saw the confirmation for some of our players like in the goalkeeper (Okoye) position, like in the left-back (Sanusi) position, like also the new defender (Akpoguma) who is coming in choosing Nigeria instead of Germany, so he can play in the right side, he can play in the middle,” Rohr said to the Super Eagles Media Team.

    “We missed two more players because Kalu and Ekong were not here. I think the team is in a good shape, we worked well, we have more options now for our list.”

    Eagles in the two matches against Algeria and Tunisia lacked a leader in the mould of the late Stephen Keshi, Joseph Yobo, Austin Okocha, Sunday Oliseh, Nwankwo Kanu, Vincent Enyeama and lately John Mikel Obi whose performances on the field would have galvanised the players to give their best. the team unsurprisingly couldn’t string passes together for long period to dictate the pace of the game because midfielders such as Ndidi, Aribo, and Etebo were missing due to injuries.

    The lesson here for Rohr is to begin to think of a new midfield arrangement to fill this void when it happens next time. Alex Iwobi tried the few times he drifted into that position. He left the place yawning to join in the attack, leaving the midfield free for the opposition to exploit. This columnist won’t blame Iwobi since that isn’t his position. Such emergency assignments during matches don’t bring the best from players, especially when such roles were not practiced in training.

    Perhaps, if Victor Osimhen had played the two games, he could have conjured a goal or two to rescue the team. Osimhen’s presence in the game would have made the two countries to adopt a more defensive approach to check the Napoli FC of Italy striker from pouncing on mistakes to wreak havoc.

    Not a bad attempt by the Eagles in the two games. Most of the critics were benefactors in the business of influencing the selection process in the past, forgetting that nothing lasts forever. They may have lost grounds making it difficult to appreciate the gains which far outweighed the losses.

    This columnist would rather we make the mistakes during friendly matches than otherwise. My biggest joy is that we have a competitive team whose players’ average age is between 19 and 24 unlike in the past when it was 34, forget about the ages on the international passports of most of them in the past. Those Nigeria-born lads’ ages are verifiable not those with sworn affidavits. These players have a big future ahead of them. We wait.

     

  • Presidential spokesmen batter restructuring advocates

    Presidential spokesmen batter restructuring advocates

    UnderTow

    It is perhaps too late to do anything about the corrosive public statements of Nigeria’s presidential spokesmen. They are too set in their ways to countenance any change, regardless of public criticisms. In one day, both Garba Shehu and Femi Adesina frontally took on those they pigeonholed as detractors of the Muhammadu Buhari presidency. One of the supposed detractors was Enoch Adeboye, General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), who at a virtual symposium organised by the church last Saturday in conjunction with the Nehemiah Leadership Institute advocated the restructuring of Nigeria to forestall a potential breakup. It was probably the first time in recent years that the respected and reticent pastor would openly address anything properly describable as politics in Nigeria. That alone ought to ring an alarm bell among government officials, going by the novelty of the pastoral advocacy and the deeply controversial subject matter itself.

    Mallam Shehu is, however, not disquieted by anything or anyone. It seemed to him that the pastor’s candid opinion was a subtle attack on the Buhari presidency, especially seeing how the government had resolved to ignore all the signs pointing at trouble ahead if nothing significant was done to address the structural maladies afflicting the country. Indeed, Mallam Shehu described and elevated the pastor’s proposal as an unpatriotic outburst and a threat. Said the livid spokesman: “The Presidency responds to the recurring threats to the corporate existence of the country with factions giving specific timelines for the President to do one thing or another or else, in their language, ‘the nation will break up’. This is to warn that such unpatriotic outbursts are both unhelpful and unwarranted as this government will not succumb to threats and take any decision out of pressure at a time when the nation’s full attention is needed to deal with the security challenges facing it at a time of the COVID-19 health crisis. Repeat: this administration will not take any decision against the interests of 200 million Nigerians, who are the President’s first responsibility under the constitution, out of fear or threats especially in this hour of health crisis.”

    It is a mystery how Mallam Shehu concluded that Pastor Adeboye’s suggestion amounted to a threat, or why a clergyman of the general overseer’s status and reputation could be so casually dismissed as unpatriotic. Indeed, the country was astounded last week that the ink had hardly dried on the press statement before the spokesman flew into a rage, imperiously lambasting the pastor and anyone else calling for restructuring. Yet, the pastor’s suggestions were mild, logical, and anything but unpatriotic. He was quoted as warning that without restructuring, the country could break up. Hear him, after he had examined the presidential and parliamentary systems of government: “Can’t we have a combination of both and see whether it could help us solve our problems; because in Mathematics if you want to solve a problem, you try what we call Real Analysis, then if it doesn’t work, then you move on to Complex Analysis and see whether that will help you. If that fails, you move on to Vector Analysis and so on. I believe we might want to look at the problems of Nigeria in a slightly different manner.”

    Probing further, the pastor adds: “Some people feel that all our problems will be over if Nigeria should break up. I think that is trying to solve the problems of Nigeria as if it is a simple equation. The problems of Nigeria will require quite a bit of simultaneous equation and some of them are not going to be linear either  forgive me I am talking as a mathematician. Why can’t we have a system of government that will create what I will call the United States of Nigeria? Let me explain. We all know that we must restructure. It is either we restructure or we break-up, you don’t have to be a prophet to know that one. That is certain  restructure or we break up. Now, we don’t want to break up, God forbid. In restructuring, why don’t we have a Nigerian kind of democracy? At the federal level, why don’t we have a president and a prime minister?”

    Once Mallam Shehu saw the word ‘restructuring’, not to talk of its linkage with breakup, it was enough to make him dismiss the entire argument and logic of the pastor. But the warning was and remains in fact patriotic, much measured than how many analysts and politicians see the dangers involved in sustaining a political structure that has proved in the past few decades to be inept, distorted and unworkable. In taking issue with Pastor Adeboye, Mallam Shehu not only exhibited a disturbing streak of general uncouthness, he also more alarmingly, perhaps incidentally, gave the public a peep into how insularly the government he serves works. His uncouthness has lasted for as long as the Buhari presidency, and no one has been inclined to restrain or mollify his abrasive mannerisms, speeches and statements. If he has sustained his vitriolic responses to perceived threats, it may be because his employers and supervisors do not disapprove of his work. But for someone who came into the presidency job with decades of journalistic experience, much of it spent in turning the intemperate and disagreeable scripts of his juniors into palatable offerings, it is shocking that constant criticisms of his statements have not led him to any kind of moderation.

    More frightening is the other messaging embedded in Mallam Shehu’s diatribe against Pastor Adeboye and other proponents of restructuring. In the first instance, his denunciation of restructuring, while consistent with the administration’s views on how Nigeria should be governed, indicates more disturbingly that there has been no attempt by the Buhari presidency to re-examine many of the salient issues debilitating Nigeria’s growth and stability. They have made up their minds what they think of the system, and despite shifting political and social variables, seem determined to keep to their perspectives. They will not entertain any change, indeed they loathe change, and are unwilling to discuss or be persuaded about a subject made volatile by their ignorance and obduracy. Such ossification is troubling. Second, that no reflection or change has been countenanced by the Buhari administration since its advent five years ago may also reflect the insidious homogeneity of the body of advisers available to a leader presiding over the complex affairs of a heterogeneous, boisterous and demanding society.

    Clearly, by denouncing and threatening advocates of restructuring, the government appears oblivious of the constitutional protection Nigerians have been given to express themselves, disagree with or even protest against their government. The constitution does not presume presidential or governmental infallibility. It instead protects free speech in the expectation that vibrant even if disagreeable opinions would serve as an input in the consideration of national policies, helping the state fashion a better and stable union. But the Buhari administration has proved over and over again to be intolerant of dissent, especially of commentators whom presidential spokesmen have labelled in unsavoury terms and expletives. The government’s persistent denunciations will, however, not deter critics who have described the administration as impervious to change and resistant to progress of any kind, critics who are stupefied by the presidency’s unfathomable inability to read and interpret the stress marks on the polity as indicative of looming catastrophe.

    Mallam Shehu presumptuously supposed that he was speaking for 200 million Nigerians, as he glibly indicated in his press statement, while the ‘unpatriotic’ advocates of restructuring were not. But he has no empirical evidence to determine what percentage of Nigerians the administration is representing in the matter of restructuring, a rather popular even if controversial political subject. Secondly, the spokesman appears to suggest that government’s engagement with the COVID-19 health crisis should preclude any consideration of other serious issues affecting the country. He is mistaken. After all, the coronavirus crisis has abated considerably in Nigeria, and even at its apogee never implied directly or indirectly the discontinuation or diminution of other state policies.

    Final proof that nothing significant can be done to dilute the acerbity of presidential spokesmen in their response to public criticism was provided by Femi Adesina, the president’s special adviser on media. Responding to public disapproval of how the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) backtracked on its planned protest against fuel and electricity price hikes, Mr Adesina read meaning into the criticisms and scurrilously dismissed the critics. Said he: “Since Organized Labour toed the path of sense and sensibility last week, seeing reason with the imperatives of fuel price adjustment, and opening a further window of dialogue on the service based electricity tariff, some groups of Nigerians have been dolorous, disgruntled, and disconsolate. They had apparently perfected plans to use the strike by the labour unions as smokescreen to unleash anarchy on the land, fomenting mayhem and civil disobedience. But the plan blew up in their faces, and they have been in severe pains since then. They have launched series of tirades against Organized Labour. For some interest groups, their intention was to use the umbrella of the strike to further their whimsical and pie-in-the-sky dream of a revolution in the country. It went bust in their faces. For some others, Bitter-Enders, who have remained entrenched in pre-2015 and 2019 elections mode, it was opportunity to avenge the 2012 Occupy Nigeria protests, which they believe largely devalued the government of the day, and led to its eventual ouster in 2015.”

    Mr Adesina was unsparing and vitriolic. As far as he was concerned, the NLC showed “sense and sensibility” but critics of the NLC were “dolorous, disgruntled, and disconsolate” and had planned to “unleash anarchy on the land, fomenting mayhem and civil disobedience”. And then he mocked those he called “Bitter-Enders” for ruing the end of their “whimsical and pie-in-the-sky dream of a revolution”. Ah! Such strong words. The country must now grow accustomed to the bitter recriminations of these spokesmen. There is no stopping or mollifying them. Worse, the people must now tolerate their idiosyncrasies for another three years or so. Nothing more can be done. The presidency is of course at liberty to defend the NLC and sell government policies and programmes, including the humungous loans it is bingeing on. But if it must oppress the country and project its self-righteousness, could it not do so civilly, recognising that as powerless as the people have become, the right to at least have their say must never be taken from them? That right was given them by the constitution, yes the same bedraggled constitution from which this government supposedly derives its legitimacy.

  • Imo APC: Again, the cookies crumble

    Imo APC: Again, the cookies crumble

    Sentry

    After months of what most observers described as peace of the graveyard, things are once again falling apart within the Imo State chapter of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), as frontline chieftains of the party engage in serious infighting that now threatens its existence.

    Apart from Governor Hope Uzodinma and his predecessor, Rochas Okorocha, who recently went public with their face-off, the governor is also at loggerheads with Senator Ifeanyi Ararume, who recently returned to the party after contesting the 2019 gubernatorial poll on the platform of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).

    While the governor and Okorocha disagree over the report of a probe panel that indicted him over an alleged N106billion fraud, Ararume is angry with Uzodimma over the outcome of the last Imo North senatorial primary election that produced Frank Ibezim, an ally of the governor, as APC candidate.

    Read Also: Imo APC senatorial primary free, fair, credible, says Basiru

    During the week, the situation got messy as Uzodimma and Okorocha engaged in a war of words. Their aides and allies threw shade at each other without caution. This is just as supporters of Ararume are allegedly plotting to work against Ibezim at the October 31 senatorial bye-election on account of their disagreement with the governor.

    Sentry learnt the main issue causing the crises is the 2023 governorship ticket of the party. One source said: “The governor has come to the realisation that Okorocha, Ararume and some other bigwigs within the party will stop at nothing to stop his re-election. So he is out to neutralise them as much as possible before then.”

  • Elections, security and leadership

    Elections, security and leadership

    Dayo Sobowale

     

    Leaders come in various shapes  and sizes, have their values and idiosyncrasies, their strengths  and weaknesses  and have strategies  in  place most  times to confront threats to their leadership  and utilize to their advantage as well as that  of their  followers, the opportunities  that  come up during their constitutional tenure of office . Elections give birth to leadership tenures limited by the constitution. Elections are expected to be free and fair because  that is the litmus test  of political and leadership legitimacy.  After an election the security   of the electorate    becomes   the major responsibility and purview of the  elected  leader  whether they  voted for him or her  or not.

    A rigged election violates the rule of law  and should have no legitimacy and  such leadership   is  suspect and undeserving of the respect of the electorate whose mandate has been stolen. Such  elections do not have the respect that  the rule of law,  which   as  a component of  constitutionalism,  confers    automatically on  free and fair  elections. A rigged election makes leaders look like impostors or usurpers dressed in borrowed  robes because the electorate  knows  that leaders who have emerged  from such elections  can  be derided, taunted and  belittled with the contemptuous saying that the ‘hood  does  not make the monk‘. A  well  known,   global     ongoing example of a rigged election is the recent presidential election in Belarus where the long serving incumbent president who has  been ruling with a rigging fiat for decades,     underestimated the  long wounded indignation of his people,  who  this time have been on the streets in   protests  in their thousands , to  say that they  have had enough of this  leader and his rigging strategies and he  cannot  get away with murder this time around, and just must go.

    It  is with this in mind that  we look at the Ondo  state guber elections  today and  the new found proclivity of our president to  insist on free and fair elections,  regardless of his party affiliation and loyalty, as he did so eloquently  in the last   Edo  State guber   election  when he  was the first to congratulate the reelected incumbent  who  defeated a candidate from the president’s  party. We  shall  comment on the Ondo  State election today in  that  free and fair election mantra that our president has adopted. We  shall  also  take a look at the US presidential  election and the news that US President  Donald  Trump  has tested positive to the pandemic but has survived somewhat  and attributed his affliction to the ‘blessing  of God‘ while  all  the same telling Americans  not to allow their lives to  be dominated by the pandemic. We  shall  end up by looking at  how the American legal  and  security   system  looks after the security of Americans   globally  with the news that  two   terrorists  belonging  to a group called’ the Beatles‘  are to be tried   in the US for  beheading  American citizens in Syria years ago   and the way the American justice system in this Trump  era protects American  citizens  globally.

    The  promotion of free and fair  elections in a Nigeria   characteristically  and historically riddle with  rigged presidential and governorship  elections   is a novelty and the President must  be commended  for this  even  though his party leaders will  find that a bitter pill to swallow. But this president has a track  record of not caring whose ox  is gored on such  matters and he is in control.  The  body  language of the president  is similar  to the fight to death scene in the famous  film ‘Gladiator‘ when the poisoned hero Maximus fought the Cesar Commodus  at the arena. Caesar’s sword   fell  from his hand and he looked  to the Centurion to give the order to the encircling soldiers to give him a sword. But  the centurion gave the historic order ‘ ‘Sheath your sword‘ and that  meant  that Caesar was on his own and thus on the way to his death which  was  what  then  happened. In  Edo State  last  guber  election,  the president     literally said  ‘Sheath your sword‘ to federal  might and his party lost and he congratulated the   winner.  I  see him adopting the same attitude today in Ondo  state  even though he has pledged support for  his  party’s  candidate and  I  see him  congratulating his party’s candidate in victory . I  however pity Lagos Governor Jide Sanwoolu  who  took to twitter to campaign for his party’s candidate as Chairman of Ondo State  Campaign for the Ondo  state election. Twitter or social media  to me  is a very  decadent media  for serious issues like a state governor’s  election and I was horrified  by the abuses  and insults  some sent in the direction of the legitimate campaign  effort of the Lagos state governor. It was horrible  and serious  campaign issues in my view should  not  be brought  to  twitter in this nation. However given  the expectation of a free and fair election,  I  wish  the good people of Ondo state a   truly free and fair  election  today   given the fact that ‘ Big Brother’ is watching from Abuja with  the slogan’ Sheath your sword ‘to the security  forces   now  heavily  on the ground in Ondo State for today’s election.

    In the US presidential  campaigns  and November  3   elections it appears that  President  Trump  has cheated  death  with the way he has contracted the virus,  got hospitalized ,  ordered  to be given what cocktails of medicine was made available to him and emerged stronger from the ordeal that has killed thousands of  his country men. He  has gone on to refuse virtual campaign debates and is organizing rallies instead. He  could  be said to be belittling the gravity of the pandemic but  he has, like a veritable   cat with nine lives survived and he has my admiration,  albeit   grudgingly  for his  volatile,  bold and idiosyncratic leadership. To  his supporters Trump  has become  a charismatic  leader, almost  messianic  and that is why his accusation   that  the  coming   presidential  election  may be rigged is a threat to American  democracy and himself, if he wins  because he has already thrown his legitimacy  under the bus with his rigging  mongering  on the eve of this November 3 elections. Given  the way he has defied the virus  in his unique   manner, there is no  way  one could rule out  his chances  of winning or  write  him off because  from the way  he saw his survival  of the pandemic as a ‘blessing of God‘,  God  indeed  may not be finished with him yet  just  like Jesse Jackson said  of himself  some time ago.

    We  go now to how the Americans and the British  have cooperated on trying  the terrorists who beheaded their citizens some time ago in Syria. The terrorists  are  being tried on American  soil because the two legal  and   security  systems cooperated on this. According to the American Attorney General Office the UK agreed to allow the trial of the UK citizens and  terrorists because the Americans agreed to a life sentence instead of the death penalty  the US wanted. The Americans agreed on the ground that given such concession the British would give all evidence for a successful American prosecution on American soil. The  British had argued that the life sentence would enable the terrorists  to live out their punishment and suffer long for their crime of beheading citizens of the two nations. It  was the way the American attorney  spoke about the long arms of American justice that fascinated me immensely. He  said the trial would show America’s  enemy  anywhere that if they hurt Americans they  would be fought and tracked with American arms ,  tried in American    courts, and live and die in American jails. Which  in a way is what Nigeria too should do with those killing our citizens in the North East , the North West and North Central and other parts of the nation. More  importantly the American resolve on the Beatles as these terrorists were bizarrely  called resonated  firmly with the resolve of the American President George Bush Jnr  when he addressed the American Congress after 9/11 in 2001. The  American  president resolutely  assured his nation thus – ‘Whether we bring our enemies to justice or bring justice to our  enemies,   justice will  be served’. That  is   the type of  protective, vintage leadership that electorates at election  time vote for in free and fair elections  in all  democracies including Nigeria. Once again, From the fury of this raging pandemic, God Lord Deliver Nigeria.