The Nation Newspaper

Category: Saturday

  • Why political parties matter

    Why political parties matter

    One of the disturbing weaknesses of the current dispensation of civilian rule, which commenced in 1999, has been the relegation of political parties to the background of near irrelevance. Once they assume office, elected office holders especially the executive arm of government simply carry on according to their whims and caprices with scant regard for the party. This is the most unfortunate trend that transcends partisan boundaries and is evident at all levels of government. Yet, the party is one of the most important and critical institutions in our own variant of the presidential system of government. The political party aggregates interests from a broad cross section of the population. It articulates those interests, values and desires into a broad policy framework known as its manifesto. The party sponsors candidates for public office who, if elected, are expected to govern on its behalf and on the basis of the party’s philosophy and programmes that is its binding social contract with the electorate. If the party’s role is so critical, why is it run in a most lackadaisical and informal manner across the polity? Why should our political parties be often subjected to the dictatorial control of the wielders of executive power? Why is it so difficult to find, in many instances, any meaningful nexus between a party’s manifesto and the actual policies being implemented by many governments across the land?

    I ask these questions at a critical moment in the evolution of Nigeria’s party system. The old order is dying but struggling desperately to remain afloat. A new order is struggling to be born. The institutional electoral mid-wife, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), seems to be in a dilemma. Should it aid the perpetuation of an old order that has impoverished the vast majority of our people or should the commission help bring about a new electoral system that will be more competitive and help meaningfully to promote development through democracy? No matter how we look at it, the country is at a critical cross road. The battle for the soul of Nigeria over the next two years will be fiercely and bitterly fought. The emergence of the All Progressive Congress (APC), a merger of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and a faction of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) sends strong signals of the possibilities of change come 2015.

    Of course, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), which has held on firmly to control of the centre since 1999 will not be expected to fold its arms and welcome the emergence of a formidable force capable of dislodging it from its current privileged position at the centre. Yes, the party’s National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, had boasted that on the field of Nigerian politics, his party can be likened to the mercurial Argentine soccer star, Lionel Messi with the opposition having no chance at all in an electoral contest. But the attempt to undermine and ambush the APC by getting shadowy elements to hurriedly register two parties with INEC and with the same acronym; a project that allegedly has the imprint of the ruling party shows that the PDP is taking nothing for granted. INEC Chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega has courageously declined the registration of the African People’s Congress (APC) because of its not satisfying section 222A of the constitution, which requires that the names and addresses of national executives of an aspiring party must be made available to the commission. As for the other shadowy party, the All Patriotic Congress (APC), it has reportedly agreed to adopt a new name to avoid controversy.

    It is important for the INEC Chairman to know that Nigerians are more politically sophisticated than ever before. They know which group first announced the name APC as its identity. They know which group can legitimately claim the acronym as its intellectual property. They know who the shadowy impostors trying to hijack a party name they were too lazy to think up in the first place are. Professor Jega’s handling of this issue will go a long way in determining how much trust the people will repose in his credibility and integrity to conduct satisfactory elections in future.In any case, Professor Jega’s INEC only recently de-registered a myriad of unviable political parties that existed practically only on paper. It would be a contradiction in terms for the same INEC to now register shadowy organizations hurriedly formed to thwart the emergence of a stronger, healthier party system in the country’s interest.

    But the APC leaders will be living in a world of illusion if they think that everything will be smooth sailing for the emergence of the new party. They should expect more surprises, even betrayals from right within their ranks. But those are unavoidable birth pangs of an emergent new dispensation. If the salvation of Nigeria is truly their aim, then they should put the nation above personal ambitions and work assiduously to overcome all the land mines that will most surely be put in the way of the new party. The prime objective of the new party must not be simply to replace the PDP as the behemoth in control of the centre. Rather, it must present the electorate with concrete alternative programmes in diverse spheres including national security, education, power and water supply, a modern rail system, reconstruction of our highways, agriculture, a transparent and efficient oil sector, job creation, poverty alleviation and a workable federal constitution among others. What the APC leaders are doing is indeed the first time in the history of Nigeria to form a genuine merger of parties. What we had in the first and second republics were two broad based alliances of parties that agreed to work together but retained their separate identities. In both instances such alliances proved electorally ineffective to dislodge the party at the centre.

    Even as the APC leaders continue with the arduous challenges of forging a merger, the PDP is embroiled in a deep seated crisis that may well lead to its implosion if not carefully managed. But not even the most implacable foe of the PDP must pray for its disintegration into anarchic fragments. Yes, it would do the polity a lot of good if the PDP’s overweening influence is significantly diluted. But the party must continue to exist as a cohesive entity to confront another equally viable party, the APC, in an emergent two-party dominant system that will make electoral choices easier for the electorate as well as encourage voting across primordial ethnic, regional or religious fault lines. But the APC would do well to learn the relevant lessons from the PDP crisis. At the root of the party’s current raging inferno is the over concentration of power in the hands of whoever is the incumbent President to the detriment of the party. This started with Chief Olusegun Obasanjo who assumed the role of national leader of the party. In that capacity he appointed and removed Chairmen and other national officers of the party at will. Now, President Goodluck Jonathan is following in the same steps and Obasanjo and his acolytes are on the receiving end! What goes around comes around. Due to the personalization of power within the party by the President, the PDP’s zoning formula was recklessly abandoned to favour President Jonathan in 2011. That sacrifice of principle on the altar of expediency continues to haunt the party and the entire country till date.

    No elected officer, no matter how exalted his position, must be above party discipline, guidance and control. This is true not just of Nigeria but also even of the United States from where we copied our presidential system. In his book titled ‘Running Alone: Presidential Leadership – JFK to Bush 11’, the American political scientist, James MacGreggor Burns, made precisely this point. He traces the decline in the quality of presidential leadership from John Kennedy through to George Bush 11 to the tendency for Presidents to run for office and govern alone with little input from their parties. In his words “America needs better leaders. Since Thomas Jefferson, great leadership has emerged from strong parties, from leaders who have run with such parties and presented Americans with genuine alternatives”. Professor Burns’ conclusion is equally poignant “In the past, political parties have been the vehicle for the empowerment of workers, farmers, African Americans, immigrants. Do they empower large masses of people today? Only to a modest degree. But given the challenges that confront any effort to achieve real change, they are the only institutional recourse if tens of millions of the unequal and the un-empowered are to run together and ultimately to govern together”. That is why parties matter.

  • Social  equities  and values

    Social  equities  and values

    When  the concept  of Federal  Character  was introduced into  governance in Nigeria, I  believe the motive was to  ensure fairness in the allocation of public offices such that  a sort of balance  and equity is achieved in terms of such distribution of positions. Thus the concept was a good one to achieve fairness such that no section of the Nigerian society took unfair advantage of the  other in terms of a head start for economic growth and use or misuse of power.  Globally too,   societies  and political systems try to reduce inequalities and disparities in incomes  between the rich and the poor so as to spread the national wealth in the hope that this will minimize friction and envy which can overheat the socio  economic environment and lead to violence  and chaos if not outright anarchy. I  acknowledge at the outset of this piece that there is not much difference between the two major ideologies capitalism  and socialism in this regard as  the advent of welfarism has been   suitable a bridge of sort in ameliorating over the years, the extreme claims of either ideology. Yet  some glaring anomalies exist   globally ,  in terms of values  and equity  both on the corporate and political scenes ,  in the execution of socio economic programs of  the  ideological divide  of these two systems, that we shall consider  here  today.

    Let  us start  with the incredible threat  this week  by North Korea that it will  attack  the US and that the attack includes a possibility of a nuclear attack. Some have said  this is a gimmick  but supposing it turns out to be  a real threat,  as the US  itself has acknowledged, and is not taking chances. What  could be the motive of the young man now in Charge in North Korea? In  Nigeria a list of key positions in INEC – the nations Independent National Electoral Commission  – was published  and almost all these positions were occupied by Nigerians  from the North West  and North East of the nation. What happened to the concept of Federal character and why the lopsidedness or monopoly of two geopolitical zones, in a nation of six of such, in the organization of elections which is key to the survival of any democracy,  not to talk of a volatile one like Nigeria?

    In  the UK  a new categorization of social classes has been evolved by sociologists who believe the old ones are not realistic enough in today’s modern society and new realities. Again the essence of this is to identify and   acknowledge socio economic disparities  and the sociologists say they have used three criteria namely economic  status, social standing  and culture to identify the new social order which is quite interesting. In  the same UK, Barclays, the banking giant,  commissioned a study on what led to its waywardness in cheating on interest rates on LIBOR  charges    some time ago    and the CEO  of the bank agreed with the report which  concluded that Barclays had deviated from its original culture of honesty and integrity and employees were more interested in short term gains  motivated by the greed to get bonuses.

     Also,  in the US  it  is the Republican Party that is left holding the can in defending the    Defence of Marriages Act   of 1996 –  DOMA – a law on marriages between  a man  and a woman. This  is because the Obama Administration  has abandoned the law  and refused to defend it because it discriminates against giving benefits to  gay couples  and the Obama Adminstration is committed to promoting gay rights.  DOMA  was made during the Clinton  presidency although   both Bill and Hillary Clinton are  now for gay rights like Obama. Yet  in Africa the  Democratic    Party  of the Obamas  and the Clintons is more popular than the Republican Party which is upholding traditional marriage between a man and a woman  which is the accepted norm in most African nations today. Really  it  is of such of surprises in terms of values and conceptions, strange bedfellows you may call them, that I want to talk about today   in the context of changing values and the quest for equity in pursuing such emerging  values.

    In  the Vatican  in Rome, Italy,  the new Pope  Francis set the tone of his Papacy by refusing to live for now in the posh palatial residence of his predecessors,  preferring to share a residence with some Cardinals instead . For a  new Pope who remembered to go  back  and pay his hotel bill  after his election as Pope, the message is that he will lead in a way that will not leave  simplicity, accountability and transparency, too far behind and he will  not be too far from the poor and needy and even prisoners who were included in the first set of people he prayed for on assuming office. In addition   the Francis Papacy’s hall mark is respect for the poor and a resolve  to lift those in the mire of poverty out of their misery. That to me looks quite commendable and laudable on its own. Let us see   however, how the other issues I have raised fair in comparison with Pope Francis’ new resolve in the Vatican.

    We start with  the list of INEC  directors in which almost all of them come from the NE  and NW of Nigeria. This is anti federal character and against the unity of our nation. Indeed it makes a mockery of the concept of unity in diversity and calls for an urgent explanation from Professor Jega , the Head of INEC  and a distinguished professor of political science. Professor Jega needs to be reminded that the Federal Character issue was initiated to make the north, which was lagging behind the south in terms of education,  to catch   up  and  a lot of catching up has been achieved ever since and some are even wondering if  the federal character is still relevant or useful any more. Definitely, no one will however  suggest or moot that it should be substituted or replaced by another northernisation, north easternisation  or   north  westernization   of  federal institutions in Nigeria, especially an important one like INEC. There is urgent need  therefore  for INEC to make a statement announcing an urgent review of its management structure,  as this is an issue that has damaged the impartiality  or credibility of INEC before the whistle has been blown on the 2015 elections. Or else,  the only fair and credible alternative is for Jega to make way for a more federal minded and fairer referee of elections,  instead of  the  blindly partisan one that the INEC list   key  directors has revealed.

    We  go next to North Korea where I believe there is real danger to world peace stemming from the economic quandary that N Korea has created for itself in having food shortages that make it unable to feed itself. The present leader’s grand father and father used the same tactics of nuclear threat to barter for less sanctions and more funds from the international community. This young new leader however looks so immature that one cannot ignore his threats. Perhaps because he thinks South Korea has a new president who happens to be a woman he can bluff his way through. But the new S Korean president too is the daughter of a former military president  and  is well groomed for the job and is familiar  with the antics of the ancestors of the young N Korean leader. Anyway I pray fervently that global peace is not disturbed unnecessarily  by a cash strapped, exuberant  and inexperienced N Korean leader, with his hand on the nuclear button.

    The  Barclays issue on culture drift speaks for itself and it shows again how financialism  has affected  the global financial business. Barclays was  a bank built on integrity, hard work and honesty which went to the dogs as employees were promoted based on their  greed for success and not hard work. Bonuses  overtook work ethics and customers and stakeholders interests  and this led to eventual tarnishing of the hard earned image of Barclays as a leading  global banking institution famous for the honesty and hard  work of its employees and management.  It  was nice however  to hear the Barclays CEO who commissioned the study say that    although  the document made uncomfortable reading but the right lessons will be learnt from it. That  really is the good news from a dismal past   for the present Barclays bank.

    In  Britain  a survey involving sociologists from London School of Economics and an American university has identified 7 social classes in the UK to replace the normal three of Upper, Upper Middle Class and working class. The seven range from the elite , to the affluent ending with the seventh – called the Precariat which are people with the lowest level  of social, economic and cultural capital. The beauty of this categorization  is that you can know your class yourself by   putting in data on your computer. I am sure this will interest advertising companies and those involved in making consumer goods tremendously. Also political parties which don’t want to waste time and energy  chasing the wrong target audience are well advised to tune in to this new class classification gimmick. Definitely    economic planning, demography, census and politics will benefit globally from this new class categorization that has started in the UK. The  thrill here is that you know your  position on the social ladder yourself based on your statistics. That I am  sure will minimize the feeling of inferiority which the earlier categorization seem to inflict on those down the  social  ladder. That  to me reduces tension and envy. Which really is some sort of equity which  can be a good booster to strive up the social ladder, and the society   could be  better for it, at  the end of the day.

  • Alone, all alone

    Alone, all alone

    For Stephen Keshi, these are not the best of times. Not after the heroic welcome that he received for guiding the Super Eagles to clinch the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations diadem in South Africa on February 10.

    Watching last week Saturday’s 2014 World Cup qualifier against Kenya in Calabar, one could feel Keshi’s pains as he bowed his head with his two palms on his knees in awe.

    The scoreboard clock read 91st minute. The minutes were ticking away fast towards the five minutes added time. His thoughts were deep just as he stood in a trance. Only Keshi can disclose what went on in his mind in those anxious minutes. He was lost in his thought such that when the equaliser eventually came, he was dumbfounded. He couldn’t celebrate. Relief was visible on his face. He tried to be happy, but the smiles refused to break through his heavy lips. He was certainly an unhappy person. There was conspiracy against him, he may not have known.

    What Keshi didn’t know was that the players were unhappy with their captain Joseph Yobo’s absence, according to one agency report on Thursday night. This was how Samson Siasia’s fall was plotted.

    “Why was Yobo dropped? Could it be because he stood up to Keshi and his assistants on how some of the cash the team got for winning the AFCON was to be shared equally among all the squad members?” asked a team official.

    “Yobo is very upset that Keshi did not bother to even let him know that he would not be involved in the match against Kenya. Like Emenike, who blasted the coach for not getting in touch with him after he returned to his Russian club injured from the AFCON, Yobo equally feels insulted by Keshi,” a reliable source informed MTNFootball.com. I digress!

    Keshi was alone, all alone after the game in Calabar. He must be wondering the limited number of calls he got, unlike after the Africa Cup of Nations’ feat. Such is life. Failure is not just an orphan, but also a destitute. Success has many fathers.

    Was this the result we anticipated? No. But that is the hallmark of the beautiful game- suspense, shocks and intrigues.

    Has Keshi learnt any lessons from what happened in Calabar? He should. The first lesson would be for him to plead with NFF eggheads for their support. Keshi must stoop to conquer – if he wants to guide the Eagles to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. He should work with the technical committee. They can have their say in his list, but he would have his way.

    A few suggestions won’t make him the puppet many people don’t want him to be. Perhaps, if the technical committee had scrutinised the list, they would have known that Efe Ambrose was ineligible.

    Keshi should know that there are many landmines on his path, occasioned by the incidents that trailed his return to the country on February 12, after the Eagles became champions, 19 years after he led Nigeria to lift the cup in Tunisia in 1994 as captain.

    It should strike Keshi today that he has been literally left alone. He has been allowed to do all the jobs that he craved for- free hand to pick his players, non-interference in the running of the team and uninhibited access to the President – in the event that his employers fall out of line.

    Last Saturday’s result has shown Keshi that the whole gamut of winning matches goes beyond these caveats because there is more that meets the eye in football matches. Need I say more?

    Would it shock Keshi to know that many people celebrated the team’s poor outing? The celebrations came from unbelievable quarters, with many saying: “Shebi im say naim do everything take make us win the cup?Oya make e do am again now.

    Look, my ears are full. Keshi needs help. If Nigeria doesn’t go to the 2014 World Cup, it would not be Keshi’s headache because he would either get a better job or return to his pundit work on big sports channels in Brazil while we would be faced with the unenviable option of watching other countries play in the World Cup, like it happened in 2006 in Germany.

    Those who celebrated the nerve-wrenching draw last Saturday, were the supposed stakeholders who told tales of the unexpected clandestine roles that they played in ensuring that Nigeria lifted the Africa Cup of Nations.

    Many thought that I was a Keshi antagonist because of my articles and commentar ies. But I shocked them with my response, insisting that as a watchdog, I warn about the dangers ahead; I do not plot anyone’s fall.

    It should worry Keshi that no one has asked him what happened in the game against Kenya. Nobody would ask because they are scared of hurting those in government. This is not good. Let me shock Keshi. Some of his backroom staff celebrated. Many said they have little input; in the team’s selection. But that is their self-serving style.

    Keshi may have heard the drums of the supporters in Calabar, but those were the innocent indigenes. The real supporters who will be in Nairobi, for instance, are unhappy. They say they you have not “seen” them- whatever that means. They may see you and greet you warmly. They are bitter. But what they say behind you won’t shock you, if you play back what happened in Calabar. I waited in vain to hear the familiar battle songs. Such songs as: “All we are saying, give us more goals.”

    They were missing or should I say inaudible because the supporters were absent-minded. They are definitely nursing a grudge that Keshi should address as we prepare to shock Kenya in Nairobi.

    The Eagles will qualify for the 2014 World Cup, yet Keshi should play the politics of ensuring that no force intervenes. Reconciliation is central in realising this dream. Phone calls to these stakeholders could do the magic. The choice is yours to make, Big Boss.

    Some of the dropped players are aggrieved. They have influence on others. They are planning a mutiny and I won’t be surprised if we scavenge to get a full complement of players to make the trip to Nairobi.

    We know those players who dodge away games. We know those who feign injuries weeks or days before crucial away games only to return to play for their European clubs after the Nigeria game. Keshi must work around this hurdle. He must get all his men in Nairobi. The Kenyans are beatable except that their fans are very unruly like we witnessed in 2011 when Nigeria beat Kenya 3-2 to snatch the 2010 World Cup qualification ticket.

    Keshi must show everyone that he once led this team. He should mend fences quickly. He should learn how to involve his key players in his selection, even if he doesn’t take their suggestions. Seeking their views makes them feel important. If the players stand and fight for you, half the battle for the World Cup ticket is won.

    I haven’t spoken to Keshi since I saw him before the game against Cote d’Ivoire in South Africa. So much has been said about our sour relationship. But I will surprise him with a call when he returns from his holidays. He will shout and rain curses. I expect such. I will allow him vent his anger without a word. Once he has spoken, I will drop the telephone. Case closed- until I see him eyeball-to-eyeball.

    Oboabona: Don’t listen to Sunshine

    Super Eagles defender Godfrey Obaobona is being courted by Arsenal FC of England. The news was like music to the ear.

    Oboabona’s Nigerian club, Sunshine FC of Akure, is said to have vowed not to allow him go for the trials. They argue that as an international and one of Africa’s best, Arsenal’s manager Arsene Wenger should sign him on.

    On the surface, this audacious demand looks good but only on the altar of ego. In concrete terms, it would pay Oboabona a lot more, if he attends the trails at Arsenal, given the pedigree of the team’s manager as a renowned tactician.

    Training at the Emirates Stadium in London offers Oboabona the best opportunity to learn new that would help him later. He would also rub shoulders with the Gunners big boys. His presence at Arsenal for trials would open a new vista for his game. Other European clubs would be angling to snatch him in the event that Wenger doesn’t.

    Besides, if Oboabona plays well in the trials, he could be signed on and seconded to another European club, until his game develops to the required standard.

    Great players started by signing for big clubs only to go to smaller teams to garner experience through regular appearances.

    Indeed, if Wenger thinks Oboabona is not ripe enough, he could drop his name with any of the European managers who defer to him.

    Interestingly, former Nigeria international Yakubu Aiyegbeni went to Middleborough because of his exploits against Manchester United in one of the UEFA Champions League matches.

    King-of-the-dugout Sir Alex Ferguson saw Yakubu’s talent and recommended him immediately to one of his junior coaches, McLaren. McLaren didn’t need to see Yakubu play the game. He relied on Ferguson’s impeccable judgment to pick Yakubu. And, as they say, the rest is history.

    Talks by Sunshine officials that they won’t allow Oboabona go is cheap. We have seen several cases where players bought out their contract to move to their preferred clubs. Obafemi Martins’s move to the Major League Soccer (MLS) is a classical example.

    If Obaobona knows what is good for his career, he should seize the opportunity. Arsenal is one of the biggest clubs in Europe with a fantastic manager, who has made several African players great. Ask Nwankwo Kanu. Obaobona, be wise!

  • Mourning Achebe

    Mourning Achebe

    The world has been united in celebrating Chinua Achebe since his passing last week. Commentators have hailed his contributions to learning, for he was a teacher. Essayists have applauded his impeccable literary effort, some of which earned him universal respect and prized awards to boot. Some too have chronicled his life and times, tracing the journey of a boy-child born in Ogidi in present-day Anambra State, who would forge an early pact with the academia, virtually living in the library, churning out a masterpiece at age 28 before passing on at 82 in the United States. Mention was made of his stint in the media, of his involvement in the Civil War, and of his flight overseas where he spent a good part of his memorable life. In the end, everyone seemed agreed that there, encased in a casket in America lies a great man, indeed one of the greatest Africa has produced.

    All of that fills me with a sense of personal gratitude. I feel like saying thank you to all of you for doing your bit in immortalising the great Achebe who, without knowing me helped in shaping my life the way fathers do. I never got closer to him than several metres at an event way back in time, and to this point I will return shortly, but the man had made an indelible impression on me even before that august occasion.

    Yet, for all the outpouring of encomiums, it hurts to note that much cynicism overlay or underlay some of the comments on Achebe. You could pick out the snicker when commentators mentioned his last literary effort “There was a country”. The cynicism was accentuated when analysts tended to minimise him as a tribalist or even credit him with little love for his country.

    If Achebe seemed disenchanted with Nigeria, it should be noted that it really was not about the country but about its leadership. Twice he turned down national honours not because he personally hated Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, who first offered it when he was president, or President Goodluck Jonathan who also included the celebrated author on his award list. Achebe never hid his disenchantment with what he perceived as a drift in leadership. Neither was he alone in this grief. Nigerians of different stripes are just as unhappy. Clerics bemoan the state of things. Writers and commentators continuously clamour for a better country. Even some who have accepted national honours have from time to time expressed worry at the profile of a potentially rich country hosting a mass of poor people.

    If Achebe was indeed a tribalist, he was no more than anyone else. Perhaps, his brand of tribalism was of the healthy sort, without poison or blood, machetes or bombs. He was a great man in every sense of the word.

    His Things Fall Apart helped to educate me more than some of my teachers tried. His simple yet profound narrative gripped me as a boy. It held me spellbound as a young man in the university. It reinforced what my HOD, Francis Ngwaba, once said that there is sophistication in simplicity. I found Achebe approachable. He encouraged me to study. But there was more to his works than simple language and unforced plot. He fictionalised the African reality but above that, did his best to correct a warped Western view of the continent and its people. Achebe gave back pride to the African, reminding the world that his history is not one long nightmare.

    For this, accomplished writers continue to praise him, some calling him a trailblazer, some father of modern African literature. Some regret that the Nobel authorities somewhat conspiratorially robbed Achebe of their prized honour. I do too. But I do not bemoan that. For the Nobel would not have made him a more profound writer, only a prize for what he had written. Besides, if he was deliberately ignored, other accomplished literary figures were likewise overlooked. The spite did not detract from their works nor from their worth; it only cast a shadow of doubt on the integrity of the awarding authorities. What indeed can you write to get the Nobel prize?

    Over a decade ago, Achebe delivered one of the Ahajiokwu Lectures in Owerri. I was there and there he was in his wheelchair doing his best wake up the Igbo and work towards a better future. He said Echi di ime, ma taa bu gbo, literally meaning the future may be unknown but you can start today. I cherish that distant meeting.

    There may be a point of disagreement with Achebe, though. He said in his greatest novel that the white man put a knife on the things that held us together and we fell apart. He blamed the white man’s cunning and his religion. I do not know how much of those words frozen in his fiction he lived out in his eventful life. If he really believed the white man erred by knocking down our gods and our shrines and planting his religion on the African soil, I do not. I also believe that this new religion in itself and true form is not injurious to us. Neither does it undermine us as a people. It is the false pretenders to the faith that are the problem.

    Still, I celebrate Achebe’s genius and his impact on the world.

  • Brics of change and hope

    Brics of change and hope

    This week in Durban, S Africa and for the fifth time in recent times, five nations met for a meeting to determine

    their financial fortunes and future by pooling their resources to help themselves, nations in their various environments and ultimately the whole world. The countries are Brazil, Russia, India, China and S Africa now popularly called the Brics nations – from an acronym of the first letters of their respective names. So its not as if one does not know the correct spelling of bricks as in ‘bricks and mortars’ but I reckon it is better to get used as quickly as possible to the vocabulary of change and hope for the developing nations of the world that the community of Brics nations – the leading global emerging markets represent in the present age and time.

    I explore today the promise of the nations in Brics for a new world order in the light of events concerning them individually in recent times as well as the conclusions and strategy that have emerged from their Durban meeting ; and what that portends for the future of the entire world in terms of growth and prosperity. I also share with readers my experience at the 5th Bola Tinubu Colloquium that I attended at MUSON which had as its theme – Beyond the Merger; ‘A National Movement For Change‘ –A New Generation Speaks -to mark the 61st Anniversary of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the former governor of Lagos State and co author of the best selling book, ‘Financialism‘- How the financial system drains the economy.

    Let me track the Brics nation first by events that concern or emanate from their domains this last week or days. First is Brazil which had to close one of the stadia it is to use for the 2016 Olympics because of stadium cover problems but which just signed a 30bn dollar buffer agreement with China which guarantees it that much in times of liquidity crunch or financial crisis like the global melt down of 2008. Next is Russia whose self- exiled Jewish oligarch Boris Berezosky was said to have died from hanging in London according to British police. India as at now is getting negative publicity from the way its authorities have not been able to nail in the bud the menace of rape in its major cities and towns. The Chinese public on its own is enthralled with the emergence of the beautiful wife of China’s new president Xi Jinping on the world stage and her accompanying her husband on the foreign state visits , a rarity for China’s leaders since the purge of the wife of late Chairman Mao after the Cultural Revolution. Also in spite of the euphoria of hosting the Brics nations’ fifth meeting, S. Africa braces itself for the inevitable as the great but legendary icon, Nelson Mandela, is admitted to hospital for respiratory ailment. Indeed at the Bola Tinubu Colloquium last Thursday, I had to hold my breath when the Chairman of the Colloquium, Nobel laureate Professor Wole Soyinka asked for a moment of silence for the dead as I thought he was going to mention Mandela but it turned out he was remembering the late Chinua Achebe and Chief Wole Awolowo who both died recently.

    Let us go back to the Brics nations, this time as a composite unit. Given the organization of the two – day event preceded by a business forum the Brics Summit seemed to be modeled after CHOGM – the Commonwealth Heads of Governments meeting, which Nigeria hosted in 2005. A Brics Business Forum has been formed as such to deepen economic ties between member nations. Most importantly an Infrastructure and Development Bank is to be formed although not immediately but within a year. In a CNN interview India’s Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram handled the announcement of this calmly but masterfully. He told the frantic CNN reporter anxious about the domiciliation of the Brics Development Bank that the planning has commenced and its location will be agreed by member nations. On the issue of a shift of world economic power from US and Western Europe being on the way, as the questioner said, the Indian Minister eloquently and firmly said the shift of global economic power has already shifted from the west to the east especially Asia and there was nothing anyone can do about it. Which really thrilled me no end the way it was said and that brings me to the crux of the matter and that is that the Durban fifth Brics nations meeting which was an important and historic meeting. To me it is indeed similar to the post second world war Bretton Woods agreement of the victorious allies – mainly US, Britain, and France who set up the World Bank and IMF for infrastructural development and loans under ideological conditions of free market economies and democracy for borrowers, a situation which has brought many economies to poverty and misery subsequently on taking the loans. This has culminated in the unfortunate creation of another acronym on debts and dread of defaults for nations now called PIGS- namely Portugal, Ireland, Greece, and Spain now the pauper nations of the euro zone, being bailed out now by Germany, which itself was reconstructed from the ruins of war by funds provided by the US Marshall Plan. So in effect then the Brics Development Bank will rise out of the collapse or withering away of the Bretton Woods Agreement of yesteryears and its aftermath; and from the ashes of the failed IMF loan conditionalities which had no regard for the social costs inherent in loan conditions of layoffs and austerity measures that treated human capital like cold figures and inanimate objects.

    More importantly though the Brics nations in Durban acknowledged and appreciated the efforts of the euro zone to get out of its financial crisis and is willing to learn from it but will not be hurried unduly on the path of economic growth it has chosen, by the western media. The fact that the first foreign state visit of China’s new President was to Russia and on the way to Durban showed cohesion in the workings and strategies of the Brics nations. As at now China is the biggest global consumer of oil and Russia its biggest supplier and oil is a dollar business and even the US whose currency it is, is not a member of Brics. So who is calling the shots in the global oil business other than these two Brics nations? Surely nobody but them and definitely not the US.

    In the case of Russia whose leader Vladmir Putin followed his Chinese guest to Durban so closely, the death of the Jewish oligarch Berezosky may be a sort of relief given the way Putin and his predecessor in office Boris Yeltsin were beholden to the Jewish oligarchs in Russia. In the early nineties when Yeltsin succeeded Gorbachev in the post Glasnost era and the marketisation of the Russian economy was underway in a highly charged and lawless manner, Yeltsin reportedly needed funds to run the Russian economy and win reelection as the Communists were poised to return to power. Yeltsin then evolved the–loans for shares deal –with the seven oligarchs, six of whom were Jews, and included Berezosky and Chelsea football club owner Abramovich. The deal enabled Yeltsin to have funds and win reelection but left Russia’s prize industries – oil, nickel, aluminium – in the hands of the oligarchs who became immensely rich. Putin too agreed to the deal before coming to power but changed his mind on coming to office in 2001 saying that he would separate power from capital and there will not be any political elite from amongst the oligarchs. He then went after those critical of his regime, which forced some like Abramovich and the late Berezosky into exile – and eventual death for Berezosky.

    Lastly let me make some observations on the Bola Tinubu Colloquium which like the Brics nations Durban Summit was the fifth one. Let me state again that apart from that similarity I see a greater similarity in comparing the great Mandela and the man after whom the Colloquium in Lagos has been named. In different contexts and time both have fought bravely for human rights and democracy. Before Mandela was sentenced to 27 years in jail, he told his prosecutors that he believed that only violent action would bring apartheid down and he said it in open court and even his colleagues were afraid he would be hanged but he was given a long prison sentence instead by the racist regime. On coming to power Mandela ruled with magnanimity and did not unleash the weapons of retaliation, nationalization and confiscation of his neighbor Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe, on the whites in S Africa and thus ensured political stability in S Africa till today even as he seems about to make his ultimate rendez vous with mortality.

    At the Bola Tinubu Colloquium Professor Wole Soyinka sounded the alarm that we may be a nation at war without our knowing and it is time to brace ourselves as such, especially with the Boko Haram in the south west. Aside from the Nobel Laureate’s observation however nobody has done more than Asiwaju Bola Tinubu to keep the one party state we have become inadvertently, on its toes in terms of offering alternative leadership and security for our nation and people. He has done this by studying the problems of our unique democracy and coming out with meaningful suggestions and solutions that even his opponents and traducers have to acknowledge in terms of quality except they want to bury their heads in the sand. This is becoming apparent by the quality of his pronouncements on democratic rights, legitimacy, rule of law, the electoral process, federalism as a fiscal concept in theory and in practice in Nigeria , and in the documentation of his role in the democratic struggle against military dictatorship in Nigeria . Here is a leader who has paid his dues in terms of sacrifice, commitment and leadership and is yet not carried away by his immense achievements but is still searching for ways and means to lead in a better way and improve the lot of his nation and people . In this regard I wish him a very happy birthday and find him a worthwhile consolation even as I grieve, perhaps prematurely I hope , on the looming departure of the great Nelson Mandela in S Africa.

  • Alamieyeseigha’s pardon : Beyond emotions

    Alamieyeseigha’s pardon : Beyond emotions

    The fashionable thing would be for this column to join the bandwagon of those who have been castigating President Goodluck Jonathan for recently exercising his power to forgive some persons found guilty and convicted of gross crimes against the Nigerian state and people. Thanks to the presidential prerogative of mercy, these persons now have a clean bill of health. They are born again and can enjoy the full benefits of Nigerian citizenship. Most of the critics have no grouse with the pardon of those military officers implicated and convicted in the phantom coup plots against the regime of the late General Sani Abacha. They had always been perceived anyway as victims of a sinister power game and the allegations against them pure fiction.

    The main point of contention has been the pardon granted Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, former Governor of Bayelsa State, President Jonathan’s former boss and the self-styled Governor-General of the Ijaw nation. Alamieyeseigha had been found culpable and convicted of massive corruption, money laundering and stealing. As Governor, he acquired property across the world on an obscene scale at the expense of the poverty-stricken people of Bayelsa State. In 2005, he jumped bail in Britain, mysteriously found his way back to Nigeria, was subsequently impeached by the Bayelsa State House of Assembly, tried in a court of law and duly convicted.

    Those who support the President’s action in pardoning his former boss and continuing mentor contend that Alamieyeseigha had made sufficient atonement for his sins. He had suffered considerable psychological torture. He had worn the stigma of a convict. He had forfeited considerable sums of money and sizable property to the state. In any case, no one has argued that the President lacked the legal powers to exercise the right of pardon the way he did. And to further strengthen the President’s hand, he had acted in concert with the National Council of State (NCS), the highest advisory body in the land. Rather than joining in crying over spilt milk, this column considers it more useful to reflect on what the Alamieyeseigha pardon tells us about state, society, power and politics in contemporary Nigeria. We will dwell on our existential realities as they are and not as we think they ought to be.

    The first thing that comes to mind, an issue frequently raised in this space are the phenomenal powers of the Nigerian presidency. Patterned after the American presidential system, Nigeria’s presidency wields enormous powers and privileges without the institutional, moral and societal restraints that largely circumscribe the conduct of his American counterpart. This is probably why the NCS simply acted as a rubber stamp on the Alamieyeseigha issue. Some critics have accused Jonathan of being largely motivated by self-interest, particularly considerations of the 2015 elections in pardoning his former boss. The calculation, it is suggested, is that Alamieyeseigha may be offered a powerful ministerial post, possibly the Niger Delta Ministry, that will enable him warehouse substantial funds and act as the President’s ‘Mr Fix-it’ in the South-South come the critical 2015 elections. Well, all this still lies within the realm of conjecture.

    However, I find it difficult to fault Jonathan who has already clearly begun his permutations to stay in office beyond 2015. This is simply the norm in Nigerian politics. Anyone who, in these climes, opts for the famous ‘Mandela option’ of staying just one term in office would be considered a mad man. Here, calculations for a second term begin almost immediately after the swearing in for the first term. This seems to be an iron law of Nigerian politics. It applies at all levels from the local governments to the presidency. Not even General Olusegun Obasanjo could defy this iron law of perpetuation in office. During his first coming as military Head of State, OBJ won worldwide plaudits for voluntarily quitting office and handing over to an elected civilian government in 1979. In his second coming as elected President, OBJ had grown much ‘wiser’. He tried in futility to have the constitution amended to enable him enjoy a third term in office.

    But then, there is something baffling about the way Jonathan is going about his ambitions for 2015. Here is a man who rode to power on the wings of a much trumpeted ‘Transformation Agenda’. Yet, midway into his tenure, there is little to show on ground in terms of concrete performance. Can the expected electoral abracadabra of the likes of Tony Anenih and Alamieyeseigha make up for this deficiency in terms of measurable achievements especially in the face of a determined opposition? Time will tell. However, a more serious question is why would Jonathan consider a man convicted of massive corruption like Alamieyeseigha a veritable political asset towards 2015? Should he not in a normal society be a grave liability that an incumbent President would want to keep at arms-length? And this is where we must transcend emotions in analysing this issue. Alamieyeseigha may have been a criminal in the eyes of the Nigerian state. But to his beloved people in the Niger Delta, he remains a hero and role model. This is the same thing with James Ibori who is currently serving a jail term in Britain for corrupt practices. If Ibori returns home tomorrow, he will definitely be accorded a hero’s welcome by ‘his people’.

    The huge outcry against Alamieyeseigha’s pardon has come really from a small band of social critics, human rights activists, radical academics and Non-Governmental organizations supported by the international community particularly the United States. Does this outcry represent the Nigerian society’s sense of moral outrage at the gargantuan scale of corruption that hobbles the land? I do not think so. Most Nigerians are simply going about their businesses absolutely unperturbed about the pardon and its implications. In other climes, the people would be out in their numbers protesting this kind of moral outrage on the streets. Why then must outsiders cry louder than the bereaved on this matter? Just think about it. Alamieyeseigha did not still money belonging to the United States.

    The money he stole did not even belong to the totality of the Nigerian people. It was the money allocated to Bayelsa state from the Federation Account during his tenure as Governor that he criminally privatised. Yet, what was the reaction in Bayelsa State at the announcement of his pardon? There was widespread jubilation! Who then are you and I to question Jonathan’s judgement on a pardon that the people of Bayelsa State- the victims of the massive corruption – have enthusiastically and wholeheartedly endorsed?

    This is not a matter on which we can afford to be emotional. We should face the facts realistically in order to be able to come up with effective guide posts towards a corruption-free Nigeria. For the majority of Nigerians, the Nigerian state at all levels remains an alien entity whose resources can be legitimately plundered at will. Those who have access to state resources and maintain a saintly, ‘holier than thou’ attitude are held in utter derision. Those ‘wise’ ones who utilise state power to ‘eat’ ravenously on behalf of their people are held in the highest esteem. They are offered chieftaincy titles and the most prominent places in churches and mosques. In other words, Alamieyeseigha may have acted illegally in the eyes of the law, but he remained morally untainted by the ethical canons of his local milieu. That is a major obstacle to scale before we can fight any meaningful anti-corruption war in Nigeria.

  • Code of conduct for Eagles

    Success intoxicates. It has an uncanny way of making people walk on thin air.

    Decorum is thrown into the bin. For the media, bad news is good news. Newsmen look for such scoops to sell their platforms. Will anyone blame them, especially in our case where a man bites a dog and people are not stunned? They have seen worse things.

    Indeed, the poor conduct of the top actors of the South Africa 2013 cup heroes reached its uncharitable and uncomplimentary heights last week Friday when Super Eagles striker Emmanuel Emenike fouled the air with scathing comments about his coach and eggheads of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF).

    The words Emenike chose were awful. They showed a high level of indiscipline, such that this writer kept wondering if a Nigerian could pour such invectives on his club’s management and coaches. Even though his reasons for anger were germane, he ought to have known that he could one day return to the squad to meet these people he tried to paint as irresponsible in the international media.

    Granted the failure to contact Emenike should elicit such angst from the player, yet he should have told us the attempts he made to reach the coaches and the NFF. This perspective has become expedient following the revelation that Emenike changed his telephone lines. He wouldn’t have expected the coaches to know about his change of contact, except he told them so. How does Emenike hope to curry the coaches’ favour in future, if he is a borderline case with another player for the list of those to be dropped?

    What Emenike’s rant means is that our coaches should urge the players to register in their Blackberry group where everyone’s movement can be checked? Emenike didn’t want the coaches or/and the NFF to visit him in Turkey. All he demanded was a telephone call (s) to find out how he was faring. Emenike’s demand wasn’t a difficult one, especially as he sustained the injury playing for Nigeria at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations held in South Africa.

    Interestingly, the coach behaved maturely, with his stoic silence. He has learnt from the Osaze Odemwingie saga.

    The need for a code of conduct becomes expedient when the story of John Mikel Obi’s text message to the General Secretary of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Barrister Musa Amadu, broke.

    The impunity of having to send a text message to the administrative head of the federation underscores how our players regard people in position of authority. Would anyone blame him when the NFF President was ordered out of the stage by the announcer at the presidential reception organised for the Eagles? Could Mikel have had the guts to do that to the smallest administrator in Chelsea? It is easy to say that they won’t owe their players. Yet there are better ways to demand for the cash than pushing out an audacious text message.

    Mikel’s message read thus: “Sec pls, I just want to let u know that if we do not get our match bonus for winning the Nations Cup, we are not playing this game ok.” Had Mikel been the Eagles’ captain, one would have said that he was speaking for the others. In what capacity was he sending that message? What was the hurry in sending the message when he was coming to Nigeria for the game? Couldn’t he have been more courteous to call Amadu, instead of the threatening text message? Would Nigeria seize to be a sovereign nation, if we don’t play a World Cup game? Did the world stop when Nigeria wasn’t at the 2006 World Cup held in Germany? Or are we back to the era of the mafia who held our football hostage with this irritating arm-twisting tactics? Or did Mikel hear that the cash had been given to Amadu? Our players should exercise decorum some when demanding their rights.

    The joke of the Mikel text saga is that it is being swept aside on the altar of whom it was sent to? Was it sent to the NFF Secretary-General or the team’s secretary? Little wonder Mikel laughed his naughty stunt off because he knew nothing would come out of it. Mikel didn’t deny that he sent it, but those desirous to debunk the story failed to ask the Chelsea star who he sent the text to?

    One won’t be surprised if Mikel goes unpunished for this act. We treat issues concerning the Eagles with sentiments for as long as they are doing well. This Mikel act is despicable because he was clearly speaking for himself. As a top player in the Barclays English Premier League, he should know better how such demands are made.

    Would he have confronted his compatriot in Chelsea, Michael Emenalo, if his club had delayed in paying his winning bonus? To begin with, does he even have access to Emenalo, despite that the man is also a Nigerian? Mikel knows that such untoward conduct is hardly condoned in Chelsea- and elsewhere in Europe. The truth of the matter is that our players are so uneducated and so unenlightened to know the right approach to issues. And this is where their European colleagues are years ahead of them. There is no way you will find a European player badmouthing his coach or employer, no matter the circumstance.

    Elsewhere, the skipper of the team would subtly remind the federation about their outstanding entitlements and get commitments. He would do this through their coaches. It is from their coaches that the players would be told the next line of action. Is anyone angry that Mikel chose to deal directly with the NFF? I no know book o! He certainly didn’t carry his coaches along. Like the late Fela Anikulapo-Kuti sang in one of his albums, ODOO, overtake don overtake overtake, ye yea…

    Going to the South Africa 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, the NFF’s budget for players’ match bonuses was graduated from $10,000 for the preliminary games, $15,000 and then $20,000. Eagles’ first two matches were convulsive. Indeed, the Sports Minister, in his wisdom – perhaps to further motivate the players, directed that the full winning bonus of $15,000 be paid for the drawn game against Zambia. This writer applauded the decision which was at grave cost to the NFF’s working plan of $10,000. Looking back, it was worth it because we broke a 19-year-old jinx. Our people felt like one and it opened a new vista for us as a country. People’s perception of Nigeria changed. The bonuses overshot the federation’s budget. The players didn’t really bother about the final game, having clinched the trophy.

    A labourer deserves his wages, but such demands should be done with wisdom. One expected to read that the NFF reneged on earlier promises in Mikel’s text. He didn’t reflect it. Emenike and Mikel have thrown potshots at the system? Whose turn is it next? We are watching.

     Ajimobi’s heart of gold

    Oyo State Governor Abiola Ajimobi is the man of the moment. He is not known to be an avid supporter of football. Yet he has given the family of ailing Nigeria international Jossy lad N850,000, in two tranches of N350,000 and N500,000.

    Jossy Lad has been diagnosed of a heart ailment. He needs help. The Oyo Government’s prompt response to a man who gave his life to Shooting Stars Sports Club (3SC) as a player, coach and administrator is commendable.

    The government has promised more. We need to assist our heroes when they are distressed. Jossy Lad is a good man and deserves all the financial assistance he needs to stay alive. This is the time to assist him and not when he is gone (God forbid). Come on folks! Join Ajimobi in getting Jossy Lad back on his feet. Jossy Lad must not be allowed to die.

  • Global housekeeping – Values and issues

    We take on housekeeping and cleaning chores today as we attempt to discuss and clear out some old issues that resurface this last week like stubborn cobwebs that have dogged global diplomacy for years. There are really quite a number of them and some have turned up in quite different apparels this time around. The first surprise was in Turkey where the leader of the PKK the well known Kurdish terrorist organization has, unbelievably, called for a cease fire. The second was at the installation of the Archbishop of Canterbury – Justin Welby – where a female Archdeacon installed the Archbishop whereas just four months ago the Church of England Synod voted against the ordination of women as priests. The third is Cyprus where in asking for a bailout fund of 10m euros from the IMF and EU, Cyprus is finding it difficult to raise its contribution of 7 bn euros before Monday and has attracted the attention of Russia whose citizens own about two thirds of bank deposits in that nation. The fourth is Kenya which had its presidential election recently and where the there have been petitions against the elections results and the pre trial sessions will commence in Nairobi next Monday. The fifth was the visit of the US President Barak Obama to Israel and the West Bank where he paid the usual US policy lip service to the two state solution to the Palestinian problem even as Israel continues its policy of building on occupied territories on the west bank.

    The news from Turkey reminded me of the way the news broke about the release of Nelson Mandela and his initial negotiations with the apartheid de Klerk regime in S. Africa. Even ANC representatives scoffed at the news as apartheid and racist propaganda and misinformation then. But then, it turned out to be true. I have the same hunch on this Abdullah Ocalan declaration that PKK fighters should drop their arms in Turkey. According to reports on the internet Ocalan said the struggle has entered a new phase of democratic struggle and an era of ideas and negotiations requiring different strategy and weaponry. Most Kurds and Turks are said to be relieved and happy at the news and the Turkish government should be happy with itself in achieving an important political coup that past military governments which regarded the military as the guardian of Turkey’s secular democracy, have found elusive.

    Although there have been reports that some elements of the PKK are against what they perceive as a capitulation of their leader under duress and in captivity, those close to Ocalan say that he has acted on his own volition. Any way it is up to the government in Ankarra to keep the peace momentum going to sustain the new peace in Turkey by giving the much sought autonomy to the Kurds for which PKK fought for so long and for which so many people have died in terrorist acts for decades. The Ocalan peace deal may even advance Turkey’s pursuit of what its government and people covet most, which is membership of the EU. This is because persecution of Kurds has always been a stigma used against Turkey in this regard, and this new peace deal should give the Turks immense opportunity to remedy this and boost their EU potential membership credentials and prospects.

    The installation of the new Archbishop of Canterbury was dogged in controversy coming from the era of his predecessor. The issue of enthronement of gay bishops was one that the African Anglican Communion had always opposed, albeit to no effect, with the British government and leadership of the Anglican Church of which the Archbishop of Canterbury is the Spiritual leader. The hope in Africa and Nigeria is that the new Archbishop will respect African values because he has worked in Nigeria as an oil worker and as a priest prior to his present great assignment. But already, he too has faced challenges at home as he voted just a month ago, against what the English Synod approved on the ordination of women priests. On equal rights for gay couples he is uncertain as he endorsed biblical marriage between man and woman but has said he has seen same sex couples capable of the same love as a man and a woman. More importantly, the Conservative – Liberal Party government that appointed him, led by PM David Cameron is determined to enforce gay marriages and equal rights for same sex marriage in Britain and sooner than later, this new Archbishop will play ball and I wonder what the African Anglican Communion will do then.

    We have seen on the internet that African Anglican Primates attended the ceremony but we were told they will not attend a meeting to be called by the new Archbishop later. Really, the African Primates have my sympathy because they have the problem of legitimacy, authority loyalty to face as these flow from the seat of the Archbishop of Canterbury to all parts of the global Anglican Communion. Yet, these Primates must brace themselves for hard knocks at home and abroad if they play ball with this new Archbishop. The way out is to stand for African values like former Nigerian Primate Peter Akinola did, till he retired and his successor Nicholas Okoh has been doing since. Which in effect means inevitable confrontation or schism in the global Anglican community. If however the umbilical cord is too hard to break, for whatever reason, a confederation of Anglican Communions will be more honorable for Africans than a global Anglican Communion led by an Archbishop at the beck and call of a British government committed to enforcing gay rights and same sex marriages. Really there should be mutual respect for cultural values even in matters of state and religion as in this particular instance.

    On Cyprus I am fascinated by the speed with which the Lenders are about to throw the baby away with the bath tub given the Monday ultimatum they are giving Cyprus to perform or get its banking system blown away. The Russian PM Medvedev is reported to have said that the EU and IMF are behaving like a bull in a China shop and that is quite interesting in the light of some information I picked up on Cyprus in a book in my library. The book – The Sink – written by Jeffry Robinson is on money laundering and how money from offshore banking is being used globally to finance, terrorism narcotics and crime and has some information on Cyprus that I want to share with readers. The book says in part –In Cyprus, Russian criminal organizations control a huge percentage of the 48000 shell companies registered there, 47000 of which have no physical presence whatsoever – no roof, no phone number not even a post box . I found this amazing when I first read the book some time ago. Now given Cyprus’plight and the on- going financial and banking reforms in Europe, perhaps the EU is doing serious house cleaning starting with shell companies and tax havens like Cyprus, and is sending a signal to criminal gangs this time from Russia and banks that back them that the era of dirty money and offshore illegality is about to come to an end, starting from Cyprus. We are watching.

    On Monday, the pre trial session of the petition against the election results that declared Uhuru Kenyatta winner will begin in Kenya. The Chief Justice Willy Mutunga has asked that the press should not comment on the issue once the trial, which will be publicized, starts. The petition include charges of rigging and figures manipulation. Again the personality of the CJ may be more fascinating than the case itself. He wears an ear ring which he said allows him to communicate with his ancestors and is a gay rights activist, although he says he is not gay. He has divorce case pending against him in a Kenyan court and has been a Catholic, Anglican and Muslim at various times. The petitioner Rahoula Odinga’s late father Oginga Odinga was his hero and he is a friend to the son. The new CJ has however assured all and sundry that he will be fair and just and handle the case according to the constitution of Kenya . Again , we are watching.

    Lastly we look at Obama’s three day tour of Israel and the West Bank and see how it has lived up to its billing which was that the status quo will be maintained. Well to me it has, somewhat and I really don’t like that. The status quo was a stalled peace process because the Palestinians said there would be no peace talks unless the Israelis stop building on occupied territories. Obama seemed to have supported that, till he said the contrary on this visit, which is really unfortunate. The only good thing out of the visit was Obama confirming he was for the Israelis and the US is as such. However his kowtowing to Israeli hawks like PM Benjamin Netanyahu and asking the Palestinians not to use building on occupied territory as condition for peace is unfortunate and very unfair to the Palestinians. Again I want to see how that will move the peace process forward in the area. Such capitulation, most unexpected, sure to send a strong signal to Palestinians and indeed all Arabs that the US is not to be trusted where Israel is concerned and that creates a mirage for peace in the Middle East and as is often the case, the entire world. Which also is a great pity indeed.

  • I beg your pardon!

    When a native English speaker exclaims: “I beg your pardon!” he is seeking clarification on what he heard, or expressing one of two possible emotions. An example is: “Where did you say you were going?” One of the emotions which the phrase conveys is surprise. Another is anger.

    As news broke last week that former Bayelsa State Governor Diepreye Solomon Peter Alamieyeseigha had been pardoned for his corruption offences, I found myself seeking clarification. As the matter developed first from rumour to denial and finally to certainty, I shuddered with surprise and then anger. A Nigerian, though, I felt justified to explode: I beg your pardon!

    In mid 2000s, DSP Alamieseigha was the news. If it wasn’t of his arrest in London for fraud allegations, it was certainly of his mysterious escape and appearance in Nigeria allegedly disguised as a woman, an allegation he has repeatedly denied. And if the media were not awash with news of his arrest in the country and prosecution by then Mallam Nuhu Ribadu-led EFCC, everyone was talking about his swift release from jail after being in detention for two years.

    In those days, Alamieyeseigha was the lead story. The allegations against him were weighty. He was, and perhaps, still is, a very influential figure in the Ijaw nation and was generally hailed the Governor-General of the ethnic group. Again, not everyone lost sight of the fact that he was at odds with then President Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, and for that reason, many thought his troubles were essentially political persecution. For these reasons, DSP was a big item on the news desk.

    Still, his state pardon was shocking and distressing. Reports said the National Council of State, a group of ex-presidents, state governors and other bigwigs headed by the President, approved Alamieseigha’s amnesty. A former bank chief convicted of fraud was also pardoned, as were several ex-military officers, a few posthumously.

    Many are shocked and distressed, from the opposition to legal circles to students to civil society to even the ruling party, the PDP, of which President Goodluck Jonathan is national leader. A PDP leader who reportedly spoke anonymously expressed his surprise at the state pardon, wondering what message it would send to the corrupt or to those fighting them. Some lawyers even question the legality of the Council of State granting such pardons, wondering if the council’s role is not essentially advisory.

    Alamieseigha’s pardon surprises and angers me for some other reasons? One of them is the manner the President’s spokesmen have defended it. One of those aides, Dr Doyin Okupe, said the pardon was proper because Alamieseigha was remorseful. Okupe also waxed philosophical, reaching deep into Yoruba adages to point out the futility of further punishing a surrendered thief. After chasing down a rogue and forcing him to give up what he stole, why continue the chase? he asked. Okupe also sought to tarnish the image of anyone who disapproved of the pardon, saying the President is like a parent whose decisions and actions should not be questioned by the children even if those decisions and actions may not always favour the children.

    Okupe does not say what he means by Alamieseigha’s remorse or to whom he expressed it, whether to President Jonathan or the Ijaw nation or the Nigerian people. In one breath, this medical doctor who speaks for the President tries to rationalise his principal’s action; in another, he labours to absolve him of blame, saying the pardon was indeed granted by the Council of State, not the President per se. When Okupe suggests that Nigerians should accept everything the President says and does without flinching, he does not say by what democratic standards or precedence his postulation is based. He is even insinuating that every critic is an enemy.

    I am also disturbed by the report that members of the Council of State were not thoroughly briefed on the agenda of the penultimate Tuesday session and that many of them got the memo at the meeting, not before. What will people make of that, if it is true?

    I am equally disturbed by the report that the real reason Alamieseigha was pardoned was to enhance Jonathan’s rumoured 2015 ambition. The President’s approval rating among ex-militants in his home state, Bayelsa, is said to be low and that he intends to improve it using the immense clout of the Governor-General who is reckoned to be quite close to the former combatants. Such reports, if true, do the President little good, not because it is unlawful for him to run but because people will perceive him as scheming for power.

    Okupe, who has been busy speaking to foreign and local media since the pardon, said Nigerians should respect national institutions, referring to the Council of State. But he seems to have forgotten that critics of the pardon are worried because national institutions are also being undermined. Take the EFCC which tried and jailed Alamieseigha. Like the National Council of State, it too was created by our laws.

    The Presidency, itself a creation of the law, should not be perceived or seen to be undermining the spirit and letter of the nation’s institutions. Like plea bargain, this state pardon emboldens fraudsters. They get the idea that if caught, they will be pardoned sooner or later. It hurts and makes you wonder if you heard aright.

  • Governor Orji politically transforming housing policy in Abia State

    Since the beginning of the administration of Governor Theodore Orji he has never relented in the provision of the infrastructure for the people of the state especially in the area of housing as he set out to ensure that there are houses for all categories of people in the state irrespective of where they are from or living.

    Orji started from the renovation of all general hospitals scattered across the state, then he moved to the building off 250 health centres in all nooks and crannies of the state, which are now being equipped.

    The governor worried over the development that many workers are still coming to work from outside the state capital, he set out to commence the building of housing estates in the state capital with the hope of making houses cheaper for everyone in the state.

    The special adviser to the governor on housing, Engr Nwabueze Onwuneme said that the governor has been worried over the lack of houses for the workers of the state most of who come from Aba, Owerri and other neighbouring state capitals and cities around the state. Onwuneme said that this made the governor to start the massive building of estates across the state.

    He said that the estate at Adelabu Street was started and completed in record time and the houses have been sold to the beneficiaries, stressing that other estates have been moving on simultaneously, thereby making the state one big construction site, where people of all shades and sizes have been coming to work and earn their living.

    Onwuneme said that the government of Abia state is set to commence the sale of 1000 housing units at Ochendo Liberation estate at Amauba and Isieke housing estate before the end of the year and has asked interested would be owners to collect the forms for the allocation.

    The Special Adviser to Abia state governor on Housing, Engr. Nwabueze Onwuneme said that the housing policy of the present administration has gone above 80% in the revolution aimed at providing housing for all before 2015, with the addition of more houses at the commissioner’s quarters. The governor believes that the state has the capacity to increase its executive council which caused the need for more houses at the estate.

    Onwuneme said that the state government under the present administration is determined to deliver over 1000 units of different categories of houses across the state by the end of the second quarter of this year apart from others earlier delivered.

    The housing adviser said that from inception, Governor Theodore Orji’s administration set out to ensure that housing problems will be a thing of the past, as the governor directed that a road map to housing revolution be produced and followed to the end.

    Onwuneme said that after looking at the United Nations data on housing in the state, “Which gave the state a deficit of 300,000 houses, we decided to change the situation by starting what we called mass housing so that there will be affordable houses for all”.

    He said that this made the governor to start the building of several housing estates like Amauba, Isieke, Amauba 2 for civil servants called Ochendo Liberation estates, adding that government is also developing a cluster business area apart from the housing estates.

    The adviser on housing said that the governor has directed that a new housing estate be established in all the three senatorial zones in the state, stressing that the aim is for housing pressure to be reduced in both Aba and Umuahia respectively.

    Onwuneme regretted that former governments did little or nothing in the area of mass housing and laying solid foundation for the growth of the state, “This why the governor is in a hurry to develop the state by doing the basic foundation after 21 years the state was created”.

    He noted that the governor’s housing projects have cut across all sectors of the society, “The governor has built 256 health centres, 2 diagnostic centres in both Aba and Umuahia, dialysis centre, new structures at the school of midwifery Amachara and the building of doctor’s quarters.

    We have also not allowed the judiciary to suffer as all old court houses have been renovated, new ones built; the legislature has not been left behind as new office complex has been built for them and the new government house.

    We are not going to forget the new state secretariat, international conference centre, four new additional blocks at the commissioners’ quarters, ASEPA building, the new markets for both relief and industrial and the administrative block for workers of the state radio/television among many others”.

    Onwuneme assured that the government of Theodore Orji will not have any uncompleted building by the time it will be leaving office in the next few years, “We know what we are doing as they are well thought out, which is why all our projects are moving at a lighting speed”.