The Nation Newspaper

Category: Saturday

  • 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.

  • Give the Youth Corps members living allowance!

    Give the Youth Corps members living allowance!

    In the shadow of our nation’s gleaming skyscrapers and political pronouncements of progress, thousands of our brightest young graduates subsist on an allowance that naturally can’t feed some household pets of a number of our politicos. I speak, of course, about the corp members serving under our mandatory National Youth Service Corps scheme – a program designed with noble intentions but now  maintained with shameful neglect.

    Let me be direct: The current allowance structure for NYSC members is not merely inadequate – it is a national embarrassment.

    These young men and women represent the culmination of our educational system, the future professionals and leaders we have invested in for decades. After years of academic struggle, they are dispatched to unfamiliar communities across the nation to contribute their knowledge and energy toward national development. And how do we compensate them for this mandatory year of service? With an allowance that barely covers transportation to their place of primary assignment.

    I recently spoke with Adebayo, a corps member serving at a particular ministry a driving distance  from the nearest city. “I spend nearly half my monthly allowance just getting to work,” he told me. “After rent in the only safe accommodation I could find, I’m left choosing between eating meagerly or saving up.” This is a young man with an engineering degree.

    Is this how we honor commitment to national service?

    The economic realities are stark. While inflation has spiraled and the cost of basic necessities has multiplied, corps members’ allowances at N33,000 have remained stagnant for years. What once might have provided modest but dignified support now relegates these graduates to a year of financial hardship that borders on destitution.

    The mathematics is simple and damning. The current allowance structure fails to cover even the most basic living expenses in most deployment locations. Rent, transportation, food, clothing, communication – the fundamental requirements for service – collectively exceed what we provide. This isn’t opinion; it’s arithmetic.

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    Critics will inevitably argue that national service is about sacrifice, not comfort. I agree. Service should indeed involve sacrifice – of time, of familiar surroundings, of immediate career advancement. But it should never require sacrificing dignity, health, or one’s safety. When corps members skip meals to afford transport to their assignment, when they live in unsafe housing because it’s all they can afford, when they cannot purchase the basic of their needs to perform their duties effectively – this isn’t noble sacrifice. It’s systemic exploitation.

    Others will point to budgetary constraints. “Where will the money come from?” they’ll ask. This argument rings hollow when considered alongside the extravagant allowances allocated to political officeholders or the mysterious disappearance of funds in various government departments. If we can find money for legislative furniture allowances and security votes, surely we can find it for the young people upon whose shoulders our national future rests.

    The consequences of this neglect extend far beyond individual hardship. It breeds that initial cynicism about public service among our youth. It undermines the effectiveness of corps members in their assignments. It creates a perverse incentive structure where seeking exemptions or gaming the system becomes more rational than genuine commitment to service.

    Consider what message we send when we mandate service while refusing to provide the means to serve effectively. We tell our graduates that their contribution is simultaneously compulsory and worthless. We demonstrate that national development is important enough to commandeer a year of their lives but not important enough to fund properly.

    This contradiction has not gone unnoticed by the corps members themselves. Increasingly, they view their service year not as an opportunity for national contribution but as an obstacle to overcome before real life can begin. This represents a tragic squandering of idealism and energy that could be channeled toward genuine national development. Is it for nothing that they have rechristened the meaning of NYSC to Now Your Suffering Continues!

    The NYSC scheme, when properly supported, has tremendous potential. It creates a unique opportunity for cross-cultural understanding in our diverse nation. It provides essential services to underserved communities. It exposes young graduates to the realities of different parts of the country and builds networks that transcend regional and ethnic boundaries.

    But this potential can only be realized when corps members are given the resources to thrive, not merely survive.

    What would adequate support look like? At minimum, it would include:

    An allowance of N70,000 that reflects economic realities and provides for decent accommodation, nutrition, transportation, and basic professional needs. This isn’t luxury – it’s the foundation for effective service.

    Functional accommodation in NYSC camps and subsidized housing options in deployment locations, particularly in high-cost urban areas or extremely remote communities, matter of fact can the NYSC authorities enforce a no accommodation- no deployment policy to any area of primary assignment that cannot provide decent accomodation or at least subsidise it by 50 percent.

    Let me tell you a story, as Regional Commander of the Oba Akoko axis, Ondo State, I got a fellow Corp member redeployed to another community because his area of primary assignment was stalling in providing the young man accommodation. I felt that it was unfair to ask a Corp member to take from his then N9,500 pay to cater for his own accomodation and got him redeployed, so how then can those in authority feel comfortable with corpers paying from their noses or squatting like refugees for such a time period.

    Healthcare coverage that addresses the realities of serving in diverse environments with varying health challenges as well as professional development resources that make the service year an opportunity for growth rather than a period of stagnation should also be provided

    These aren’t extravagant demands. They represent the bare minimum required for corps members to fulfill their obligations without compromising their wellbeing.

    The irony is that increasing corps members’ allowances would likely pay dividends far exceeding the investment. Adequately supported corps members would be more effective in their primary assignments. They would be more likely to engage meaningfully with their host communities. They would emerge from their service year with greater appreciation for national unity and more positive attitudes toward public service.

    Instead, our current approach teaches them that government commitments are hollow and that public service is a path to hardship rather than fulfillment. These are dangerous lessons for the future leaders of any nation.

    As we approach another budget cycle, I challenge our lawmakers and executive officials to look beyond the numbers and consider the human cost of their decisions. Each figure in the NYSC budget represents a young person who has committed a year of their life to national service. Each naira allocated or withheld has real consequences for their experience and effectiveness.

    The question is not whether we can afford to increase corps members’ allowances. The question is whether we can afford not to. The current situation isn’t merely unsustainable – it actively undermines the goals the NYSC was established to achieve.

    Our corps members deserve better. Our nation deserves better. It’s time to align our financial commitments with our rhetorical ones and give the NYSC the support it needs to fulfill its vital mission.

    The future of our national youth  service program – and perhaps of public service ethos in our nation – depends on it.

    I so submit!

  • Professor Diji Aina on factionalism, economic parasitism and state fragility (1)

    Professor Diji Aina on factionalism, economic parasitism and state fragility (1)

    Although his inaugural lecture interestingly delivered on the ninth day of March in the ninth year of his promotion to the rank of professor at the Babcock University some six years ago in 2016, Professor Diji Aina’s dissection of the phenomenon of factionalism, economic parasitism and state fragility with particular reference to Africa and Nigeria specifically is one of the most exhaustive and insightful searchlights on the subject that I have read. The issues raised in the lecture are ever so refreshingly relevant to the push and pull of communal life in diverse polities across time and space. Titled ‘Factionalism, Economic Vampires and the Fragile State’, the discourse analyses diverse forms of cooperative and thus healthy factionalism as well as competitive, conflict-laden and thus dysfunctional  factionalism in polities ranging from South Korea, Eastern Europe and Latin America, Western Europe, the United States of America and of course Africa.

    Although some scholars have an essentially atomistic view of man as an isolated individual fundamentally preoccupied with the selfish pursuit particularly of his existential material interest at the expense of others, the philosophical basis of the ‘economic man’ of capitalist society, man is basically a social or political animal in Aristotelian terms whose life can only be meaningful in his relationship with other fellow homo sapiens. The imperative of living in society since man is not created to live a Robinson Crusoe-type of self-reliant existence makes the interaction of individuals with others in society inevitable essentially through the formation of groups which may be economic, religious, cultural, military, professional, educational, ethnic, leisure-related or, of course, political in nature.

    The political association in the form of the political party in democratic polities’ is perhaps the pre-eminent group in society since it competes with other like groups for the control of state power and the legitimate authority to coordinate and allocate values as well as determine, in the formulation of the political scientist, Harold Lasswell, who gets what, when and how in the societal distribution of resources even though he is criticized for not paying sufficient attention to the production of those resources as well as how much goes to the constitutive classes of society.

    Stressing the inevitability of factionalism in organized society, Professor Aina notes that the phenomenon “is an integral part of the political process whether in corporate political settings, autocracy or democracy. Party politics globally has served only as a tool of factional strategy in order to achieve political power. In other words, party politics depended on factionalism because the goal of party politics has been about access to power, the route to economic resources”. He sheds further light on the concept of factionalism stating that “Whereas in the cooperative and competitive typologies, the State is strengthened; in the degenerative model, the fragility of the state is seriously highlighted. For instance, factionalism contributed to political paralysis of the Soviet Union in the late 1970s, delayed Gorbachev’s political reforms in the 1980s, made the prospect of Obama’s last two years dull, and created an ugly scenario in 2015 in Nigeria’s national politics, thereby stultifying the change mantra”.

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    Incidentally, for the first phase of governance in post-colonial Africa, the fractious character of democratic politics as captured by Professor Aina’s conception of factionalism bred a distrust for liberal democracy with some of the modernization theorists such as Samuel Huntington at the time in the early 60s and 70s,  perceiving and promoting the military, for instance, with its supposed organizational attributes of discipline, efficiency, primacy on order, hierarchy and promptness as a modernizing agent through what was described as ‘developmental dictatorship’. It was this same kind of rationalization that sought to justify the rash of military, one-party and one-man dictatorships across Africa at the time that was perceived as more suited for the attainment of Africa’s desired rapid development than the rancorous debates, noisy disputations, intra-party disputes and inter-party conflicts and protracted legislative deliberations characteristic of liberal democracy, a scenario vividly captured by Professor Aina’s conception of factionalism, which was seen as unduly distracting and obstructive of accelerated transformation in underdeveloped societies needing fast-paced transformation.

    It took bitter experience for African and other underdeveloped countries to see that imposing the peace and seeming order of the graveyard on a polity in the quest for development, rather than being a sure and speedy route to development, bred pervasive corruption, drove grievance, dissension and faction underground, inevitably nurtured political persecution, oppression and pernicious human rights abuse while worsening instability and deepening underdevelopment.

    In Nigeria since 1999, for instance, the most intense forms of intra-party disputations, political disagreements, poor governance, degenerative violence, unbridled corruption among other perverse manifestations of the political process have not tempted Nigerians to desire a return to military or any other form of dictatorship. Sometimes chaotic factionalism is increasingly being seen as an integral part of political contestation in a free and plural society and society must incrementally and systematically develop the capacity to manage such within the prism of democratic culture, institutions and processes.

    Illustrated throughout Professsor Aina’s lecture is the thesis that “Factions are ubiquitous aspects of life. From the Caudillos of Latin America where, according to Lewis (2006) strong colorful personalities impose their will on the people through the “hyper-presidential” system to political paralysis leading to Mikhail Gorbachev reform politics of the 1980s in the defunct Soviet Union to the gridlock cum divided government of the United States, factions have either strengthened or weakened the state”. But while relatively strong institutions as well as restraining moral or cultural values have been able to help contain the dysfunctional and disruptive consequences of governmental gridlock or democratic decay in advanced democracies such as Donald Trump’s America or Boris Johnson’s United Kingdom, factionalism has had more devastating and destructive consequences in underdeveloped polities like Nigeria.

    As Professor Aina explains, “Unlike in the United States where the political system is confronted by a gridlock and a divided government arising from multiplicity of interest groups and policy options, the Nigerian space is perforated by rampaging economic vampires, predatory elite gangs and a disoriented civic populace whose mind is sold to a complex web of patrons”. The economic parasitism of the political elite described by the professor as ‘rampaging political vampires’ is thus the key explanatory variable that links extreme and divisive factional contestations in Nigeria to state fragility and debilitating underdevelopment.

    As he pungently makes the point, “The concept of vampire is mythological. It conveys the idea of an entity or being whose goal is sucking out the life essence (i.e. blood or life sustaining fluid) of other living beings. In this lecture, we use economic vampires to represent all agents of the State and non-State actors who fuel factional flames and fan the embers of degenerative politics with the ultimate goal of preying on the economy. They come as political and economic entrepreneurs, multi-national corporation actors as well as other entities and persons whose apotheosis is putting profit ahead of all other goals and to the exclusion of ethical and moral considerations”.   In the concluding part of this essay, we will relate Professor Aina’s ideas to the character of politics, paralysis of governance, decay of values, heightened state fragility and developmental degeneracy in Nigeria’s fourth Republic with particular attention on the forthcoming general elections.

  • Rivers: Beyond emergency rule

    Rivers: Beyond emergency rule

    Six months will pass like a flash of lightning. Unless the right lessons are learnt and the warriors in the Rivers jungle embrace reason and retrace their steps from the path of perdition, the Southsouth state may still be back to square one at the end of the emergency rule.

    The advantage of the critical interregnum is that oil-rich Rivers State is steered away from violence that may cripple socio-economic and political life. An imminent harm to the national economy was also averted.

    While Governor Siminalayi Fubara and some politicians are still grumbling over the emergency regulations, the people have heaved a sigh of relief. There is peace in Port Harcourt and other parts of the state, and residents – the ordinary man in the street- are carrying on with their daily activities without let or hindrance.

    During the emergency period, tension would be further doused because there is no room for the misuse of power and authority by the suspended governor and the lawmakers. The governor and the aggrieved lawmakers are temporarily off the radar of influence, having been boxed to regrets and sober reflection. They now have an opportunity for the remission of sins and amendment of behaviour.

    The access to the state purse is suspended. Without power, politicians are empty, like a carcass without life and strength. Power is transient, and no condition is permanent.

    During this period, Fubara should be tutored by experienced politicians and statesmen to adjust to the requirements of politics and governance. The onus is on him to do away with the arrogance of power and disdain for the structure that threw him up and catapulted him from the back to the front seat. He needs assistance to overcome some adjustment difficulties associated with his change of status – from a top civil servant to a top political leader who is expected to work harmoniously with other leaders in the state.

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    The governor also needs to adjust to the blow of fate and see this period as another learning process.

    The emergency administrator is not in Rivers to pamper anybody, although he is expected to maintain neutrality in the dispute. An experienced top military officer, retired Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas would brook no opposition. His charge is to maintain peace, by peaceful means and force, and he is answerable, not to the divided leaders of Rivers but to the distant Federal Government  in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

    The retired naval officer was carefully selected for the job. He is conversant with the coastal region and the antics of troublemakers in the creeks. Therefore, vandals, thugs and other miscreants should beware. Lamentably, he is not in Rivers to initiate or really implement developmental projects dictated by popular yearnings and need analysis. Admiral Ibas was recalled from his blissful retirement to take on the restrictive burden of restoring peace in a state of pandemonium where commonsense, objectivity, and logic had taken flight. His assignment is to ensure that the jungle does not mature again.

    Here lies the huge cost of the emergency rule, which the combatants brought upon their state through their apathy to reconciliation and harmony, the threat of violence, recourse to economic sabotage, and disrespect for the Constitution, the rule of law, and due process.

    Democracy is partially crippled in the interim, and the blame goes to the polarised political class and the elders in the state who took sides and fueled the embers of disunity, instead of whipping the fighters into line through the deployment of moral weapons. It is ironic that elders who advised Fubara to jettison the peace pact initiated by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu later ran back to him in Aso Villa to save Rivers.

    As the House of Assembly is put in abeyance, democratic representation is also on hold – by federal fiat. It is noteworthy that the governor, who had forgotten the principle of separation of powers taught to him by his secondary school government teacher, plunged the state into chaos by derecognising the legislature, which is the first and the most important organ of government in a democracy.

    As the legislative complex was demolished and 27 lawmakers were unable to do the work assigned to them by their constituencies under the constitution, popular rule was emasculated and the constitution, the ground norm, was murdered in broad daylight.

    The casualties are the people. They were governed by ‘a government at half’ presided over by a governor who had become a divisive and destabilising factor. Fubara was aided by illegal commissioners and other members of the State Executive Council whose appointments were not approved by the Parliament.

    Historians will record that Gen-Z Governor Fubara of Rivers displayed a glaring naivety. His lack of tact and wisdom in handling his former political leader, Nyesom Wike, who has proved to be a veteran of political warfare in the state and his polarised Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), landed him in a pile of thorns. His bruised body and ego will take some time to heal if he gets out sober and educated. 

    The governor has more stakes. He has plans to consolidate his hold on the state. He is also gazing at 2027 for a second term. When he started the war of attrition, little did he guess, as a political rookie, that it would tax him to the brim. It was an avoidable confrontation.

    Did his Ahitophelean advisers ever imagine the raging fire in the corridor of power threatening to consume his tenure? If he must fight, why did he not fight in accordance with the law? How can the money illegally spent without appropriation be accounted for? Who takes the blame for the violation of laid-down constitutional procedures?

    Rivers may be at a snail’s speed for six months. Project execution may be unduly slowed down. Domestic and foreign investors can hardly explore the abundant opportunities in a tension-soaked environment. A crisis is not a positive factor in considering an environment conducive to development. Federal Government agencies and donor partners may even suspend collaboration till September.

    If the emergency rule is extended, it will take a big toll on those at war in varying degrees. The situation that would warrant an extension should be avoided by all means. After September, another six months would destabilise plans for strengthening political structures by the embattled governor and make him more vulnerable. Without deep experience and skills, the chance of political liquidation would be high as the state enters the preparation period for 2027 electioneering.

    The solution offered by the emergency rule is temporary unless the two sides settle the protracted conflicts on their own. What will be the status of the Supreme Court judgment in the light of the emergency period, especially the order withholding allocations to the state due to a lack of budget?

    After six months, what next?

    Unless the governor and the lawmakers reach a compromise on certain issues, the likelihood exists that they will resume hostilities and the Federal Government, which had hinted about the prospects of an extension, may find the justification for keeping Admiral Ibas in Port Harcourt for a longer period.

    The emergency rule does not invalidate the pre-existing impeachment move, which had jolted the pro-Fubara forces out of their delusion that the governor was immovable. Already, the verdict of the apex court had prepared the ground for his removal. The lawmakers obviously leaned on the strength of the final judgment in drawing up the 19 sins of Fubara, the gross misconduct that cannot be ignored. It, therefore, implies that the governor needs help from far and near.

    Mending the cracks in the wall of brotherhood is challenging. Political and social relationships have been crippled. Therefore, dialogue is crucial, and on this matter, the governor would be negotiating from the position of weakness as the aggressor and despot that has been momentarily caged by the law,  judicial pronouncement and the emergency rule.

    His ego is deflated. But Fubara should see it as a price to pay for leadership. He should see it as an opportunity to learn, re-learn and rise after his fall.

    The governor  should realise that having courageously endured so many ordeals and obstacles he had thrown on the path of the legislature in the last one and a half years, the lawmakers are likely to remain united in their bid to collectively weather the storm to the end. They have a formidable pillar of support and a backbone that cannot be broken easily. The governor’s predecessor and benefactor, the powerful and influential Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Nyesom Wike,  has conquered opposition forces – so far. He has resisted intimidation and overcome conspiracies.

    However, despite being in a position of relative strength, the lawmakers should apply the brakes from their understandable hardline posture and cooperate with the governor in fully complying with and implementing the court judgment. If the governor wants to faithfully implement the court judgement after the emergency rule, they should not resist him. They should not create hinderance. They should consider the interests of their state and the people they claim to serve. The conflict should not be allowed to fester permanently.

    The governor should take the initiative. He can also be assisted by well-meaning and neutral elders who have the interest of the state at heart.

    There are two possibilities. Reason may prevail and the governor and the lawmakers may amicably resolve the conflicts. There is no permanent friend or foe in politics; only permanent interest.

    Also, the governor and the lawmakers may shun dialogue and peaceful resolution. Then, the initial six months would be extended.

    The first option is better. It is in the interest of the people of Rivers.

  • Rivers crisis and the perils of unwisdom

    Rivers crisis and the perils of unwisdom

    There are those who have sought to draw parallels between Prime Minister, Alhaji Tafawa Balewa’s declaration of a State Of Emergency in the Western Region in the First Republic and the dissolution of the region’s democratic institutions and President Bola Tinubu’s similar action this week to address the obvious drift to anarchy in Rivers State where a debilitating political crisis had festered paralyzing governance for the better part of the last one and a half years. However, it is not a particularly accurate attempt at establishing historical equivalence.

    The State of Emergency imposed on the Western Region by the ruling Northern Peoples Congress (NPC)/National Council of Nigerian Citizens (NCNC) coalition at the centre was a premeditated and calculated plan by the federal government to obstruct, disrupt and dismantle democratic governance in the West, dislodge the ruling Action Group (AG) in the region, politically castrate the leader of the AG, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, who as Leader of the Opposition was perceived as an implacable thorn in the flesh of the ruling federal coalition and impose on the region a servile leadership more amenable to external control and manipulation.

    Thus, it was not the declaration of the State of Emergency in 1962 that instigated the widespread violence and unrest (operation wetie) that engulfed the Western Region and ultimately resulted in the collapse of the First Republic but rather the brazen rigging of the 1964 Western Regional elections that sought to foist the unpopular SLA Akintola-led Nigerian National Democratic Party (NNDP) on the people. In the Western Region, there was no breakdown of law and order anywhere in the region that prompted Balewa’s action but an instigated fracas by the minority in the Western Regional House of Assembly to prevent the majority from exercising its constitutional right to remove the Premier, Chief SLA Akintola, from office and appoint a new Premier. Balewa’s action in the West was the equivalent of a coup de tat which President Tinubu’s intervention in the continuously degenerating crisis in Rivers State could by no means be described as being.

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    In Rivers State, the protracted crisis between the immediate past governor of the state and now Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr Nyesom Wike, and his successor, Sir Similayi Fubara, had resulted in the criminal demolition of the premises of the state legislature to prevent the suspected planned impeachment of the governor, the consequent incapacitation of the legislature, the running of the affairs of the state with four out of 32 legislators, the holding of local government elections in defiance of a court order all culminating in the Supreme Court judgement of Friday, February 28, that stripped the Fubara government of any veneer of legitimacy.

    In the aftermath of the apex court decision, the majority faction of the legitimated Assembly initiated moves to commence the impeachment of Fubara and his Deputy which elicited threats by some militant ethnic-based groups to unleash violence in the state including the sabotage and crippling of the country’s vital oil pipelines. Governor Fubara himself had earlier, during the commissioning of a project, asked youths in the state to be calm and wait for instructions which would be given at the appropriate time. A few hours before President Tinubu declared the State of Emergency and suspended the executive and legislative arms of government, there had been explosions on at least two critical oil pipelines in the state and with no record of the governor as Chief Security Officer of the State warning against such actions or even convening a security council meeting to deliberate on strategies to contain the situation and prevent further deterioration.

    It is needless here to join the now largely academic debate on whether or not the President should have acted preemptively to avoid a descent to anarchy or the appropriateness of suspending democratic structures when declaring a State Of Emergency when a conflict between the executive and legislature in the state is central to the crisis.

    At the root of the crisis that has resulted in the unfortunate paralysis of democracy in Rivers State at least for the next six months in the first instance, is the self-sabotaging unwisdom of the contending individuals and groups in the politics of the state and this is not a characteristic that is peculiar to Rivers State. Rather, it is a feature of the political behaviour and culture of Nigeria’s political class across time and space which has led to debilitating systemic breakdowns at various times in the country’s political evolution.

    There is no doubt that the verdict of the Supreme Court amounted in reality to a decisive and massive victory for the pro-Wike forces in their battle with Fubara for the control of the soul of Rivers State. But was it a sign of wisdom or even strategic astuteness for them to have continued to push for the impeachment of the governor when they had him practically trapped and at their mercy? Moreso,  Fubara had already shown signs of softening his hard-line stance and stated his preparedness to implement the decisions of the Supreme Court, a matter in which he had little choice in any case. From the limited but significant triumph that the Supreme Court judgement meant to them, Wike and his supporters wanted overwhelming victory and the total political vanquishing of their opponents in Rivers State including the impeachment or maximum humiliation of the governor. It was unnecessary.

    Writing on the conflict between Awolowo and Akintola that degenerated to anarchy in the Western Region with all sides ultimately losing out, Professor Larry Diamond noted that “But neither was the Awolowo faction impressive in its commitment to the democratic rules of the game. While less flagrant in its abuses, it, too, manipulated the system in dubious ways for short-term gain: desperately trying to avoid a dissolution of the Western House that would necessitate a new election, secretly removing Akintola through petition before a House meeting, and rejecting, at every crucial point before the Emergency when it had the upper hand, any real compromise with Akintola”. Diamond could well have been talking about the Wike faction which squandered the upper hand that the Supreme Court judgement gave it and pursued a course of action that could most likely have led to widespread violence but for the President’s State of Emergency that demobilized all the contending factions.

    None of this is to downplay the gravity of the Governor’s constitutional infractions which were appropriately articulated by the Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr Lateef Fagbemi (SAN). Supervising the demolition of the House of Assembly structure and relocating the four legislators loyal to him to operate from the government house and illegally pass the state’s appropriation bill as well as approve the list of commissioners constitute the height of impunity. There is also the moral question of the governor turning so viciously and vehemently against his predecessor without whose support he could never have attained the position. But the unwisdom in Mr Wike’s widely perceived extremist utterances, his uncompromising stance and sometimes disdainful and dismissive attitude to the governor and his supporters elicited some degree of sympathy for Fubara who was perceived as the underdog.

    Beyond this, the conflict between the two had begun to assume ethnic undertones that could have complicated matters and aggravated the possibility of violence had attempts to impeach the governor continued. The truth is that Wike most likely acted impulsively in supporting Fubara as his successor rather than with the requisite care, diligence and meticulous consideration needed for such a decision. Having made that grievous error which revealed his inability to correctly assess and judge human character and leadership potential, the Minister should have handled the fallout in a less combustible manner and in a way that would not constitute a political liability for President Tinubu given his key position as a member of the Federal Executive Council (FEC).

    On his part, Fubara’s inability to more subtly and strategically manage his relationship with his predecessor and benefactor no matter the excesses of the latter exposes his naivety, political inexperience and deficiency of emotional intelligence. It is also a measure of his leadership capability that he has been unable to utilize the influence of his office to win greater support from the legislative arm of government but chose to antagonize the majority of the legislators till everybody was sent packing at least for six months. He is the greatest loser in the unfolding scenario in Rivers State and will most likely find out that most of those that urged him on in his confrontation with Wike were doing so not out of any sense of loyalty or commitment but for what they could benefit materially from the position he occupied. Sadly, the various leaders and elders in the state also took positions not dictated by the common good of the people of Rivers State but considerations of personal interest.

    At the inception of the crisis, President Tinubu convened a meeting of the contended parties with elders and respected statesmen from the state in attendance with a view to finding an amicable solution to the crisis. Unfortunately, the terms of the agreement which all the parties signed to at the meeting was subsequently jettisoned with people digging into entrenched and inflexible positions until the President wielded the big stick. But given his considerable political experience, strategic astuteness and the weight and authority of his office, President Tinubu is still in the best position to broker an acceptable peace that can usher Rivers State back to normalcy and such a feat will earn him considerable political capital.

    The Vanguard newspaper in its editorial of Tuesday, March 18, advised that “In this kind of situation, “might” may not be”right “. The two sides may not be in the mood to exercise diplomacy and implement the verdict through consensus. That was exactly the situation that the Lagos Assembly men and women found themselves in until the President intervened in a fatherly manner. We call on him to adopt the same attitude towards the implementation of the Supreme Court verdict in Rivers State”.

    In conclusion, the Vanguard suggested that “the President holds private talks with Governor Fubara and Minister Wike and commit them to peace and hold them responsible in case of a breach of the peace. …No side should be allowed to push its luck too far. Everything must be done to preserve the peace”. President Tinubu can break the vicious cycle of unwisdom in Rivers.

  • World Cup, our birthright?

    World Cup, our birthright?

    Super Eagles players are cruel. They repeatedly toy with our emotions with their lackadaisical attitude towards most of the matches leading to grabbing the qualification tickets to big international competitions such as the World Cup, Africa Cup of Nations etc. They report late to the camp, with many of them opting to go home to ‘flex’ as they say it in the discotheque parlance after the early release by the European clubs to play for their countries, in this case, Nigeria.

    These over-pampered players only get to be serious when the country’s chances of qualifying for competitions become dicey as if other countries should wait for them to wake up from their slumber. How can Nigeria play in a group that has Lesotho, Benin Republic, Zimbabwe and South Africa and we can’t win a game after four matches? Yet, we want to go to the 2026 FIFA World Cup. DEY PLAY!

    When they eventually decide to head for the camp, they show no remorse over their unbecoming attitude which always leaves the coaches with the short part of the stick whenever the results of the matches go awry. Sadly, it is the coaches who carry the brunt when the team loses or draws. Ironically, these boys get applause when Nigeria wins games. Our players rudely behave as if they are doing Nigerians a favour with their nauseating performances, forgetting that most of them gained international prominence playing for the country’s age-grade teams or/and playing for Nigerian clubs in domestic tournaments from where they are selected to represent the country in big international, continental, regional and national soccer competitions.

    The disturbing scenario of our players’ lateness to the Super Eagles camp is clearly noticeable when the team’s Head Coach is at the helm with the football federation’s officials unable to stem the slide. However, as we can see, these boys arrived in camp in Kigali on time with no stories of missed flights etc which underlines my earlier comment that these are cruel. I have chosen to do this column on Wednesday such that one can provide Eric Chelle with the background on why he must serve each player the team’s code of conduct book, going forward. The arrival in Kigali, without any iota of doubt gave Chelle the platform to have enough training sessions to set his plans for the Wasp of Rwanda on Friday irrespective of the outcome of the game which would have been known. I have taken the risk to discuss some of the problems that have kept Nigeria’s chances of securing Group C’s sole qualification ticket, which ordinarily should be a piece of cake, given our players’ exploits in the game all over the world. What our inept officials fail to realise when they make assurances about our abilities to grab the sole ticket is that three countries have seven points each before our game in Kigali. This makes it more precarious for us to achieve if we are to look at the group objectively based on how the countries have played in their last four matches. Until the Rwanda game on Friday evening in Kigali, Nigeria had only a miserable three points. Benin have seven points like Rwanda until their Friday (yesterday’s ) game against Zimbabwe. Or do they think it is only Nigeria who would improve on her poor standing?

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    The NFF people, unrepentant optimists of the Super Eagles and indeed like minds, should stop evaluating our chances of snatching the group’s sole qualification ticket in isolation of what others are likely to do with their remaining matches. It would be unwise for Nigeria to discount the South Africans who would be laying siege for us when we hit Johannesburg for the return game. Have we forgotten that Zimbabwe play their home games in South Africa. Do we expect them to beat Bafana Bafana at home? If yes, then show me a virgin as a maternity patient.

    I always feel like throwing up reading some of our players’ pre-match interviews, promising victories, only to deceive us with their shambolic displays, losing to countries who don’t have the quality, exposure and experience of our players who rule their world playing for their European clubs. We haven’t been able to run the rule over these kinds of players, preferring to heap the blame on the system that throws up incompetent sports administrators with their misrule. A body that was indebted to the players, coaches and backroom staff for 29 matches spanning into years can’t be said to be efficient. A body which doesn’t see anything wrong in taking two jets on a round trip amounting to N400 million, doesn’t understand the meaning of being prudent with funds. If only Nigeria had a national carrier. Pity!

    The Rwandans didn’t come to Uyo for the first leg with two charter jets to beat Nigeria 2-1 inside the Stadium of Champions, Uyo in 2024. I wonder what those busybodies’ would be doing in Kigali to necessitate their presence at the stadium. The two jets we were told were to convey spectators to the match venue on match day and back to the country after the game. Is that all they would do? One is forced to ask how players who played the game would relax and move around inside the aircraft on a loaded flight. What would they be telling the players  in the event that we don’t win the game (God forbid), which is the only result to get to rekindle our hopes for Group C’s sole qualification ticket?

    We have imbibed this eerie habit of leaving things late to create tension for Nigerians for issues and events others handle seamlessly. It appears we are moving closer to the stage where our fingers would be burnt. Nigeria was lucky that Zimbabwe rallied back from being down by two goals to tie the scores of the game against the Republic of Benin at 2-2 on Thursday, otherwise, Benin would have gotten 10 points instead of the eight points against their name on the points table. Can you imagine Nigeria placed behind Lesotho in the group as at Friday evening before the day’s matches? That is how poor the country’s outings have been. We can’t continue with this panicky measure every time for a tournament we had four years to prepare for.

    Once again, we are using our qualification matches to mould a team for the 2026 World and think it is fair that we snatch the group’s sole ticket simply because we are Nigeria. Who does that? The senior World Cup is a platform to showcase excellence while making the game beautiful to watch and savour. Not a forum to exhibit mediocrity. Are we not tired of going to the World to play the mandatory three-group games only to be edged out in the second round? The time to stop this tomfoolery is nigh.

    Come to think of it, is the World Cup our birthright? You tell me.

  • Where are our goalkeepers?

    Where are our goalkeepers?

    I don’t envy Super Eagles Head Coach Eric Chelle. He has a daunting task on his hands. I align with his decision to gamble on certain positions in the Super Eagles that require immediate surgery even if it means cutting off the nose to spite the face. These are emergency times for Chelle. Quick fixes? Call it whatever you like. Chelle, you have our backing because the rot in the Eagles is cancerous. Not one to paper over the cracks. Come on, Chelle, make the emergency moves now. Well done.

    Yes, I get irritated reading transfer stories on Nigerians who qualify to be invited to train with the Super Eagles being asked to sign for clubs in novelty leagues such as in Ethiopia, Tanzania, Burkina Faso, Niger, etc, with due respect to the countries. Imagine this transfer,  Wolwalo Adigrat University side in Ethiopia signed goalkeeper Olorunleke Ojo and the illustration picture was taken at one of those Super Eagles invitation camps. Really sad! The only reason I would accept this transfer is if Ojo is an undergraduate in this Wolwalo Adigrat University. What is the matter with the NFF? Ojo, at a time was the best domestic league goalkeeper, earning him repeated Super Eagles invitation letters only to resurface in Ethiopia. This is the reason our good goalkeepers no longer play for European clubs as it was in the past.

    Looking at the clubs where Nigeria’s three chosen goalkeepers are: Stanley Nwabali (Chippa United, South Africa); Amas Obasogie (Singida Blackstars, Tanzania); Kayode Bankole (Remo Stars), all have been invited for the battles against Rwanda on March 21 in Kigali four days later in Uyo against Zimbabwe, one is forced to ask what has happened to our talented goalkeepers? Time was when two or three goalkeepers in the Super Eagles plied their trade in Europe. Not anymore. Can Nigerians feel comfortable watching any of these three goalkeepers at the World Cup against established stars? No chance. More so when there isn’t anyone on the horizon that we can headhunt for in Europe as was our practice, when we used to shop for replacements in weak areas in the Super Eagles.

    Interestingly, Super Eagles goalkeepers at World Cup  beginning with the country’s debut appearance at the Mundial in the USA in 1994  were the late Wilfred Agbonavbare who manned the goalpost for Spanish side, Rayo Vallecano; Alloy Agu  was the regular goalie for Turkey side, Kayserispor and the Super Eagles regular goalkeeper in USA 1994 Mundial, Peter Rufai who brought his experience from playing in such European clubs as K.S.C. Lokeren, K.S.K. Beveren, Go Ahead Eagles, S.C. Farense, Hércules CF, Deportivo de La Coruña, and Gil Vicente FC in Europe, to bear during Nigeria’s 1994 World Cup matches.

    Nigeria participated at the France 98 World Cup with Rufai who had changed clubs from Portugal to Spanish side Deportivo La Coruña, Abiodun Baruwa who played then in Switzerland for FC Sion and Willy Okpara who manned the goalposts in South Africa for Orlando Pirates.

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    At the Japan/ Korea World Cup in 2002, Nigeria took a crisis-ridden Super Eagles squad, yet the team had a tested goalkeeper in Ike Shorunmu who was the regular first choice goalie in Switzerland for Lausanne. Shorunmu was spectacular in the opening game against Argentina. Shorunmu’s heroics ensured that the scores were respective with a nifty header of a corner kick score by Gabriel Batistuta being the only goal of the match.

     The bitter crisis between the players and chieftains of the defunct Sports Ministry threw up a lot of contraptions with Adegboye Onigbinde picked to rescue an almost sunk side. Of course, he had no choice but to pick the best two goalkeepers  namely Austin Ejide of Gabros FC in Nnewi, Nigeria and  Vincent Enyeama of Enyimba FC of Aba. Yes, Enyeama did well against England with some reflex saves against England who played for a draw.

    The flipside to the search for Nigerian goalkeepers in Europe was the report on Tuesday in the media that Maduka  Okoye has been re-registered for this season by his Italia Serie A, Udinese FC.  Okoye had been accused of betting infringements forcing Udinese FC’s management to de-register him for the season. It appears Okoye isn’t guilty. It is a welcome development.

    The crisis in the Eagles at the South Africa 2010 World Cup was awful such that the team had two leaders – the designated NFF recognised by FIFA and the Presidential Task Force headed by His Excellency, the former Rivers State governor Rotimi Amaechi leading the government team. It was a laughable setting yet the team had exposed goalkeepers plying their trade in three Israeli clubs, namely, Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv, Hapoel Petach-Tikva and Hapoel Tel Aviv. Dele Aiyenugba was on the sheet of Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv, Austin Ejide played for Hapoel Petach-Tikva and Vincent Enyeama’s magnetic fingers ensured that Hapoel Tel Aviv got rave reviews from the international media. Recall, Enyeama and Ejide were at the previous World Cup co-hosted by Japan and Korea.

    By the time of the Brazil 2014 World Cup, Enyeama had become a megastar in goal for  French Ligue Un side, Lille OSC with Ejide changing his Israeli side from Hapoel Petach-Tikva to Hapoel    Be’er Sheva and the third goalkeeper being Chigozie Agbim playing for one of Nigeria’s biggest clubs, Enugu Rangers International FC. The crisis in the Eagles in Brazil took an embarrassing dimension with the players refusing to train for the second round game except their $3.8 million debt owed them by the federation was fully paid. The Federal Government promptly paid to make sure it didn’t get into an international disgrace. Rather than train for the game against France, the players, coaches and backroom staff spent training time sharing $3.8 million cash. No prize for guessing right that France beat Nigeria 2-0.

    Russia 2018 World Cup had goalkeeper Francis Uzoho playing in Spain for Deportivo La Coruña bringing his European experience to bear on the team’s wobbly performance. Daniel Akpeyi, who played in South Africa for Chippa United, was officially the second-choice goalkeeper, and Ikechukwu Ezenwa of Enyimba FC Aba was the third-choice. You can see why our prayer sessions would be intense if Nigeria’s flag eventually got hoisted among the comity of nations at the 2026 World Cup, we pray O’ Lord.

    Super Eagles’ defence is lightweight going by the names of those picked such as William Ekong (Al-Kholood FC, Saudi Arabia); Bright Osayi-Samuel (Fenerbahce SK, Turkey); Bruno Onyemaechi (Olympiacos FC, Greece); Calvin Bassey (Fulham FC, England); Olaoluwa Aina (Nottingham Forest, England) and Igoh Ogbu (SK Slavia Prague, Czech Republic). Nigerians would have to pray throughout both matches against injuries and yellow or red cards. Bassey’s tackles are quite rough. He shouldn’t be encouraged to go beyond our half of the pitch because he isn’t a fast runner. He clutches on the opponents’ shirts when he realises that he has been outrun.

    Already, Nahan Tella and Simon are ruled out of both matches in Kigali and Uyo due to injuries sustained playing for European clubs. Big headache for Chelle as he would be left with no choice but to pick from those in the 39-man squad to replace Tella and Simon. Chelle has an impressive squad in the midfield to provide the passes for Ademola Lookman and Osimhen to score goals. I hope our players give their best during both matches. What is your opinion on this subject, dear reader? You tell me.