The Nation Newspaper

Category: Saturday

  • New Pope, new hopes and expectations

    Argentina  in recent times has been widely known for the Falklands War   with  Britain and before that  for the debt default crisis of 2001 that almost collapsed the global financial system. On  a happier note  though Argentina is  respected   widely as the nation that gave the world soccer happiness – as the country that produced first Diego Maradona  and  now  Lionel Messi   of Barcelona.   Just last week the magic of Lionel Messi  put paid to   Italy‘s  AC Milan’s dream at the UEFA Champions League with a masterful display by the magical Argentine, Messi. Yet,   the  biggest  global news this last week  was the election of an Argentine by the Conclave of Cardinals  in  Rome  as the    new Pope  Francis and successor  to Benedict XVI, the first  Pope Emeritus in 600  years.

    However,  it was not only in Rome that an historic change  of guard or a unique event was taking place. Similar events in terms of magnitude and importance took place in China where  the Chinese Communist Party confirmed the new  President   Xi Jinping  as  president of the biggest nation on earth in terms of population; and in Kenya where  a new president Uhuru  Kenyatta was elected in spite of a case pending against   him  before the International Criminal Court at  the Hague.  Also  in Afghanistan President Hamid  Karzai rattled American nerves by lumping both ally and enemy together when he accused both the US military and the Taliban  of exacerbating the state of insecurity in his  nation on the eve of the departure  of US troops from Afghanistan next year .Similarly in Nigeria the Nigerian president gave  a State Pardon to his former  boss  who was jailed for embezzlement of public funds  and dashed  all  hopes of successfully fighting corruption in Africa’s biggest  black nation.    In essence then, from the speedy   and fruitful   Conclave in Rome, to the murder and mayhem on  the streets  of Kabul,  to the smooth transition in Beijing   and Nairobi; as well as the horror  created in Abuja, change  and transition underpin  the events and personalities on display in my analysis this week .I  will illustrate  my  observations in this regard with deductions which I think will be apparent to the discerning eye in all these situations.

    Again,  let us go back to Rome for the election of  Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario  Bergoglio   of Bueno Aires aged 76 as the new Pope  Francis. To  me this is a very  smooth  transition as some say  the  new Pope was second to Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger at the last Conclave in 2005  that saw the emergence  of Ratzinger  as the next Pope  Benedict XVI. Which simply means that the Conclave decided that the no 2  should take over where the no 1 has stepped down. Which really should be expected  of a College  of Cardinals which is no more that a gathering of conservative minds,  very suspicious of any drastic change especially after the rude awakening from the fact that it is possible for a pope  to resign, something that  had not happened for a long time.

    However, it is in the choice of an Argentine that I want to dilate on,  in the light  of what Argentina represents in the comity of nations – in essence its sovereign reputation. First,   in global finance Argentina represents  something of  a way ward child,  and most finance houses hold their breath doing business with that nation because of the threat of debt default. Indeed  an Argentine ship was seized in Ghana  of recent on account of the debt default saga   that  happened  at  the start  of the millennium. In  politics  however  Argentina  is a  highly  legalistic nation in that it has brought to book all past military  leaders who staged coups and toppled   democratically elected governments to gain power.

    These  included past military generals like Viola  and  Videla  as well as Galtieri  who was jailed for taking Argentina to the Falklands war without proper preparation leading to a disgraceful defeat by Margaret Thatcher’s Britain. So  Pope Francis ascension to the papacy in Rome is a  boon and a great boost to the ego and pride of Argentina  as a Latino nation and to Argentines generally. I wonder  how Britain or Britons will  feel about the emergence of an Argentine  Pope given  the two nations well known truculence  over the  tiny Falklands  Islands. I  also cannot resist  chuckling at what Argentina’s former colonial lord, Spain,  now in austerity chaos  and distress that has caused Spaniards to take to the streets in riot, do  now that they have to pray to an Argentine Pope at mass. Really,   the emergence of a Pope  from the slums and dirty streets of Buenos Aires, after the highly intellectual Benedict XVI  shows  God is not sleeping after  all;  and that even the poor masses of the world have  their hope in high places  as their champion and  past traveler in the bitter  experience of  crass poverty now occupies the high and exalted seat of St Peter in the Basilica  in Rome.

    Similarly  in Beijing  the Chinese leadership  gave the western world a  lesson in orderly transfer of power from one generation to the other albeit in  a 10 – yearly mode. This is in spite of the fact of the skepticism of those in the west who call  the Chinese leaders despots with scant regard  for human rights. Yet  the Chinese are the largest creditors of the US in that they hold the largest chunk of US treasuries  in the world. The situation has been compared to cold war ideological war between the US  and the former US SR when  mutual deterrence or  annihilation  was the name of the game. Only  that this time the game between China and the US  has been called  the financial mutual deterrence or  annihilation war because one can not do without the other in terms of trade and global business and as such they must cultivate themselves in the interest  of   global peace  and  stability. Instead  of scoffing at the democratic credentials of Chinese leaders,  the west is better advised learn something from the slow but sure progress and order in China under their leadership.

    Kenya’s  successful  election has shown that democracy is maturing in that part of the world as the people spoke and showed that democracy in local display can be immune to international pressure and clamoring. Uhuru Kenyatta has been elected and there has been no violence as happened last time around. Although Rahoula Odinga has threatened to go to court he should let sleeping dogs lie  and allow peace in Kenya. This is because Kenya’s CJ is known to be close to Odinga and his verdict will not be respected or acceptable if he overturns the voters verdict. A  word is enough for the wise.

    President Hamid  Karzai’s outburst against both the US forces in Afghanistan and  his enemy the Taliban as birds of the same  feather, also is a fine example  of ingratitude in high places. But for the Americans Karzai  would  have been  ousted out  of power   long ago  in Afghanistan  by the Taliban. Now  for him to say that  both his enemy and ally are  prolonging the war is extremely strange  and nasty. Anyway  that seems to be the fashion that US allies  in the region reward the Americans after taking their money to help snuff out terrorists in the region. Just last week the President of Pakistan an ally of the US met with the President of Iran to sign agreement on the building of an oil  pipeline between the two nations. This is after the US has spent millions on Pakistan to fight terrorists that all parties in the region know are funded by Iran, an implacable enemy of the US.

    Lastly  in giving state  pardon to former  Governor Alamieyesiagha, to whom he was a deputy governor President Goodluck Jonathan  carried cronyism and impunity to  new heights in the fight against corruption  in Nigeria . Undoubtedly the cancer of corruption is a major hiatus  facing the Nigerian nation state . But  at least the government can avoid embarrassing itself  by not bringing opprobrium on itself in enacting a pardon which after all is just an act of mercy. It  leaves a bitter taste in the mouth to discuss  this pardon  which  is an  avoidable embarrassment to Nigerians  not only at home but in the diaspora. We  know that it is within the president’s power and that of the Council of State to do what has been done. We  also know that the saying is true that to whom much is given much is expected. This was one pardon too many and is a real pity for Nigeria’s  sovereign reputation.

  • Siasia shine your eyes

    Samson Siasia is in the news again. This time he is not talking about dragging his employers to court or joining issues with his bosses over unpaid entitlements. Rather, Siaone is being tempted with another coaching job by people who threw him into the unemployment market for failing to take Nigeria to the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations.

    The posers, for Siasia, following this unenviable task of drinking from a seeming poisoned chalice should be: Can I trust these people again, given my previous experience? Should I swallow my vomit and accept the job on the altar of being patriotic?

    Shouldn’t I politely reject the offer and concentrate on my soccer academy? Would anyone listen to me, if I complain about my employer’s shortcomings again? Are these people not discreetly setting me up for a showdown with Stephen Keshi, in the event that the Dream Team VI wins the gold medal at the Brazil 2016 Olympic Games? Are there still talents at the grassroots to assemble a winning side?

    What did I forget in Nigeria’s soccer teams that I want to pick up? Can’t I look elsewhere for my coaching future? Have I complained to anyone that I desperately need a job?

    Siasia’s mind, no doubt, is full of these mind-boggling posers. Yet he must understand that most of his problems with his employers arose from youthful exuberance. He also didn’t have the capacity to manage the success associated with coaching the country’s U-20 and U-23 sides.

    He needs to improve on his temperament. He needs to see the essence of being a coach, like a teacher, who must learn to tolerate his students’ (players’) egos and idiosyncrasies. He should also imbibe the culture of respecting constituted authorities in matters of disputes.

    Siasia needs to look at his previous contract papers and get a knowledgeable lawyer to draft a fresh document that will adequately protect his rights against some of the pitfalls in the previous document. The new contract must spell out in clear terms the dos and don’ts. This fresh deal should have clauses which should checkmate breaches by either party. And such breaches must be binding on the offending party. This thuggish style of holding employers hostage whenever there is a breach of any contract puts a lie to actual contents of such documents.

    Our coaches resort to this arm-twisting method because they lobby to get such deals and do not pay attention to the details meant to protect their rights.

    Most times, our coaches pick up jobs to shake off years of joblessness. They get desperate and sign any document for as long as it ensures that they are not idle- no matter the dubious circumstances surrounding the offer.

    Luckily, Siasia cannot be said to be unemployed. He has been busy with his soccer academy, fishing out talents from the grassroots. So, he comes into this new association with the NFF armed with a “plan B.” He should insist on making the contents of his contract public, should there be a breach.

    The oath of confidentiality that Nigerian coaches seal with their employers is laughable because the public gets to know what they earn, when entitlements are not paid. Who doesn’t know that the Eagles chief coach earns N5m monthly? Who doesn’t know the story of how the NFF president raised the coach’s wages from N3 million monthly to N5 million and all the brouhaha that went with the decision by his board members?

    If this new move is being initiated by the NFF, which I doubt, then Siasia must insist on being paid upfront like we have seen with our former European coaches. Since 2016 is still quite a distance, Siasia can demand that all his entitlements are handed to him before he resumes work or no deal.

    Any business deal not witnessed by a legal expert with the seal of the court is a really big joke – I challenge any Nigerian coach, past or present, – to come forward with his contract. What they call contracts are loose sheets, which are at variance with what their employers have. This is why they resort to clandestine tactics meant to whip up sentiments from the public.

    As Siasia ponders over this new romance- if it is true- he must avoid the pitfalls of the past. It won’t be a bad idea if he accepts the job. It would underscore the need for him to be a specialist in grooming age-grade players for Nigeria.

    Like Ekigho, like Mba

    Not many people will remember Ehiosun Ekigho. He emerged from the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme to hit the limelight as a Warri Wolves player. He scored goals with aplomb and Siasia used him effectively in our matches.

    Having gained national prominence, he was pounced on by our shylock scouts. He was locked in controversies such that not many people know how such a talented young man found himself playing for an obscure club in Ukraine. Ekigho is lost. Keshi may not even know that such a talent showed much promise 13 months ago. He used his left foot superbly. Ekigho reminded me of Prince Afejukwu (aka Shuwa) of the defunct Bendel Insurance. I ask; where is Prince Afejukwu? I last saw him in Benin City. Take a bow sir.

    This script is about playing itself out again with Sunday Mba. If proper steps are not taken to fix Mba’s future according to the rule book, he would toe Ekigho’s path and it would be rather sad.

    Perhaps, the Mba saga should agitate the minds of NFF and NPFL eggheads to set the template where players’ inter and intra transfers are regimentally documented.

    An independent body should be charged with processing, confirming and releasing players for inter or intra club transfers. That way, it would be easier to locate our budding talents and also monitor their progress anywhere they are.

    It is instructive to state here too that clubs in other climes use cash from inter and intra club transfers to generate revenues for themselves. The supervisory bodies also get percentage of the cash involved as another means of generating revenue.

    Clubs globally are judged by what they earn from transfers, among other sources of revenue.

    NFF and NPFL must ensure that all sharp practices by players are detected and perpetrators punished. This idea of players relocating to new clubs without proper documentation must stop.

    What Mba did by parking his car in Enugu Rangers’ camp before going for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations is worse than what Osaze Odemwingie did, when he drove his car to London and remained at the gate of Queens Park Rangers’ camp on deadline day of the January 2012/2013 transfer window.

    Of course, QPR’s management and indeed the club’s security operatives knew the implication of allowing Odemwingie into the premises. It is, therefore, sickening to hear Mba trying to justify why he parked his car in Rangers’ premises. In Nigeria, anything goes. This must stop.

    NSC Bill

    I thought I was dreaming when I saw the report in my mail box on Monday evening. Reading through the report, especially the calibre of people who contributed to the debate, I was excited.

    For once, something good is in the offing for Nigeria’s sports. As we await the National Sports Commission (NSC) Bill, kudos for the Sports Minister Bolaji Abdullahi for having the guts to present this bill to the National Assembly without playing politics like those before him.

    The NSC Bill, from what I gathered, will professionalise the commission and ensure that only technocrats are in charge. Good.

    I do not know if the NSC Bill will still have NFF under its control, like Decree 101. I would wish that NFF is removed from the NSC’s apron string so that technocrats can concentrate on making sports what it is elsewhere- a business venture. There is hardly any sport that is not a money spinner- cricket, tennis, boxing, gymnastics, cycling etc. Why not in Nigeria?

    That giant leap would be made the day the NSC Bill is passed into law and the right people employed to promote the industry from its rustic past. Well done, Bolaji Abdullahi and indeed the lawmakers.

    I dey laugh o!

    Those celebrating the emergence of new stars in the Eagles should read this. A certain player, said to be in one of the Francophone countries is 21 years, according to his international passport.

    He is married with two children between ages 10 and seven. I didn’t say kids. What will our players not do to gain relevance? Please, don’t ask me if the player is still in the Eagles.

    Who invited Efe Ambrose?

    Those rooting for 100 per cent autonomy for our national team coaches must ask the Super Eagles chief coach, who invited Efe Ambrose for the Kenya tie in Calabar?

    Ambrose is banned from the game because of accumulation of yellow cards? So, why didn’t the coaches detect this flaw?

    We are just lucky that an alert NFF staff spotted the mistake. Otherwise, we would have lost the game, if the Kenyans protested and other stiffer penalties would have followed.

    The point being here is that no one is an island. Our coaches must be magnanimous to subject their lists to the technical committee for scrutiny. The mistake would have been spotted during the vetting session.

    Again, it shows the quality of our coaching crew. Maybe, the choice of players is a one-man show. How was it possible that no coach remembered that Ambrose was ineligible?

  • Between Jonathan and Borno elders

    The highlight of the just concluded presi dential visit to Yobe and Borno states was the open altercation between the august visitor and elder statesmen of Borno State at a town hall meeting in Maiduguri. Of course, it was obvious from his grave mien and unsmiling visage that, if he had his way, President Goodluck Jonathan would keep a good distance from the two embattled states in the North-East zone of the country. Only the naïve would believe the assertion by the Special Adviser to the President on public affairs, Dr.Doyin Okupe, that Jonathan had long planned to visit the heartland of Boko Haram’s activities and was only pre-empted by the governors of the emergent All Progressives Congress (APC). With characteristic bellicosity, Okupe described the governors as ‘power mongers’ and their visit a mere circus show. Well, rave as much as he likes, Okupe’s vituperations could not obliterate the fact that his principal, Jonathan, was spurred into action to visit Borno and Yobe by the initiative of the governors. The presidency was no doubt riled by Governor Rauf Aregbesola’s affirmation that for a patriotic and courageous leadership, no part of the country should be a no-go area. Before the initiative of the ten opposition governors, President Gooodluck Jonathan had exhibited an inexplicable paralysis of the will as far as the Boko Haram insurgency was concerned. For two consecutive years, he had presided over the national day parade within the safe confines of Aso Villa rather than the Eagle Square in Abuja as had always been the practice. For President Jonathan, the fear of Boko Haram appeared to be the beginning of wisdom. It was this image of cowardice and timidity that he tried to shake off through his visit to Yobe and Borno states.

    Of course, there was a qualitative difference between the visit of the governors and that of the President to the troubled North-East. The visit of the governors was spontaneous and hence more natural. They not only held their private meeting behind closed doors but went ahead to walk through the biggest and busiest market in Maiduguri as well as visiting a secondary school. Their action sent a positive signal to the world that the situation in Maiduguri is not as grim as being depicted and that life is indeed going on normally in most parts of the state capital. President Jonathan’s visit was another kettle of fish altogether. The two states were practically shut down during the duration of his visit. Public holidays were declared so that people could remain indoors. An armada of security personnel including 3000 policemen led by the Inspector General of Police himself was deployed to ensure the President’s safety. After the symbolic gesture of commissioning a few projects, the President then held town hall meetings with elder statesmen of the two states at the respective government houses. The Maiduguri Town Hall meeting turned out to be quite dramatic with the open disagreement between the President and the elders. This in itself is an indication that the visit was not thoroughly and meticulously planned as Okupe would want us to believe. In a carefully choreographed visit, grievances would have been ventilated and addressed privately while the main event would simply have been a public relations show for the benefit of the public.

    The major point of disagreement between President Jonathan and Borno State elders centres around the activities of the military Joint Task Force (JTF) sent to combat the Boko Haram menace in the state. The elders complained about the human rights atrocities being committed by members of the JTF stressing the arbitrary mass retaliatory killings that always accompanied the killing of even one soldier by the Boko Haram insurgents. They complained about the virtual militarization of Borno State with sand bags mounted on practically every street of the state capital as in a theatre of war. Did President Jonathan have any words of comfort for them? No, his reaction was rash and brash. According to the President “We are not happy to be spending so much money keeping the JTF in Borno State and other places. Definitely, we are not. In fact, if the elders agree now to come and sign agreement with me that I should move out all the JTF, but if anybody dies in Borno State, I will hold them responsible…If somebody dies, yes, I will take you. I am going to remove the JTF, but come and sign and I will remove the JTF and you guarantee the safety of life and property of individuals.” In the first place, it is strange in African tradition for elders to be addressed the way the President spoke in Maiduguri. Again, the President seemed to be abdicating his constitutional responsibility of protecting lives and property and seeking to place such responsibility on the shoulders of the elders. Do the elders control the police, army, navy, air force, secret service and other coercive instruments available to the President? Is the President suggesting that the JTF cannot do its job effectively without violating the rights and dignity of ordinary citizens? Would it have been out of place for the President to summon the leadership of the JTF and in the presence of the elders warn that he would not tolerate any continued violation of the rights of innocent citizens; that he is as concerned about the lives of ordinary citizens as he is about members of the JTF?

    It seems to me that in both Yobe and Borno states, President Jonathan wanted to sound tough and uncompromising to make up for his belated visit to the two states and also disprove the contention that he is a weak leader. It is my view that he could have spoken with greater wisdom and compassion without compromising the need to be bold and firm. However, despite their public altercation, the Borno elders and Jonathan share essentially the same philosophy and world view about the structure of the Nigerian federation. They both believe in the current excessively centralized structure that has become so obviously dysfunctional in meeting contemporary challenges. For instance, Jonathan and the broader Northern political elite do not see anything wrong in the prevalent centralized policing system that has failed so abysmally. They continue to live in denial of the need to completely overhaul the country’s security apparatus, particularly the need for some form of state police. Yet, it as a result of the failings of the police as currently constituted that military Joint Task Forces are operating in several parts of the country today. Not only are soldiers being drafted to undertake tasks they are not professionally trained for, their participation in peace keeping operations outside the barracks, makes them susceptible to unhealthy partisan political influences. If Borno and Yobe had state police formations of their own made up of personnel drawn from the local environment, the Boko Haram menace would most probably have been better contained. It is time to begin thinking outside the box and seek radical solutions to our deep-seated problems in a rapidly changing world.

  • Why Kwara police commissioner’s killing matters

    Since our soil has become used to receiving so many souls cut down so violently, why should the killing last week of a police commissioner Chinwike Asadu matter? 

    Asadu, until that Saturday, Kwara State Commissioner of Police, was visiting his home state Enugu. He had just dropped off a lawyer friend and was driving into his personal house when four gunmen fatally shot him, according to reports. His orderly and another policeman said to have been directed to give him further protection, were critically wounded in the attack, though they are reported to be responding to treatment in hospital.

    From this point, everything about the incident has been predictable. Police authorities in Abuja said the police commissioner’s killers have “murdered sleep” and will not find rest. That Shakespearean expression is a little fresh in these parts even though it is only another way to tell us what we usually hear when violent crimes are committed. Police traditionally say they are “on top of the situation” and that they will “leave no stone unturned” until they have found and dealt with the perpetrators of the “dastardly act”. That is what we are always told.

    In Enugu where the dastardly act took place, the command has assured the public that arrests have been made, though they will neither say how many suspects are held nor reveal their identities in order “not to jeopardise investigations”.

    Kwara State is reportedly mourning. The 82 Division of the Nigerian Army in Enugu has promised to help in catching Asadu’s killers. Amidst tears, the late CP’s widow, Oby, has resigned to fate, praying God to, in His own way and probably in His own time, deal with those who murdered her husband.

    Her clear pessimism typifies the larger Nigerian disposition in such circumstances. Over the years, we have seen the profile of violent crimes worsen so alarmingly and rarely have the criminals been brought to book, to borrow another favourite police phrase. Here, we are not just talking about robberies, however bloody they may be; we are also talking about carefully plotted assassinations and outright killing sprees. We are talking about the bloody and violent transformation of once serene and adorable Nigerian towns and cities, Jos being a classic example. We are talking about sudden bursts of gunfire and explosion silencing a large number of people and damaging property of inestimable value. And we are talking about the perpetrators vanishing into the proverbial thin air. It is needless here to recall unsolved high-profile murders or neglected reports of sundry investigations into large-scale killings in our communities. But in January, to mention a not-too-distant case, a community in Anambra State suddenly found no fewer than 19 corpses of young men floating on their river. In spite of the best efforts of the state government, the police have yet to explain how those bodies ended up on the river.

    Pessimism and aloofness are therefore justifiable. Gradually, the Asadu murder is being forgotten. It should not. The murder of a policeman is a serious matter. Whatever we have against the police, whatever their shortcomings, the killing of cop is a serious issue anywhere in the world. And for obvious reasons.

    The police carry with them the authority of the country. They are on national assignment and are orientated to keep the nation and it’s people safe. How they interpret their brief is a different matter.

    I did and still criticise Odi invasion not because the killing of the policemen there by youths did not matter but because the federal reaction was ill-advised and because a whole community paid for the crime of a few misguided youths.

    Asadu was not just a policeman. He was the number one law officer in Kwara before his murder. The state government and the people turned to him for answers to their security challenges. He moved around with armed security details of his own. If he had any safety worries, you did not expect them to be personal. He should worry about logistics and support to solve crimes, not to fear for his own safety. Even when he travelled out of Kwara, where he held a command position, he did not have to fear the worst.

    January 2 was a sad day not just for the Asadu family but also for the entire nation. The police should find his killers. No nation should get used to its police commissioners being cut down so violently.

  • Chavez, socialism and security

    I learnt of the death of Venezuela’s ailing President Hugo Chavez about the same time that I read about the appeal of the Sultan of Sokoto to the Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan to give a general amnesty to Boko Haram, just after its leader had reportedly threatened to unleash more terror in the North. At the same time, I was pondering over what I had just read in the book Financialism co authored by Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu and Brian Browne on the Nigeria military’s several incursion into politics. The book noted rather wryly that the Nigerian military adopted the central control pattern of political administration inherent in socialism in governing Nigeria, without any thought or intention of using that to bridge social inequalities which is the goal of socialism as an ideology.

    Also along the way, I was monitoring a story about a book launch on former President Obasanjo’s term in office in a two- volume book by 20 scholars whose editorship was coordinated by a professor of medicine Professor Oladipo Akinkugbe in which it was said that former Secretary to the Obasanjo Government Alhaji Yayale and present National Coordinator on the Economy Dr Ngozi Nweala, Obasanjo’s Finance Minister were the two people that scuttled the reforms planned and executed by the Obasanjo Administration from 1999 to 2007. These events, the issues and personalities involved form the nucleus of my discussion today.

    Venezuelans have trooped to the streets to mourn their fallen leader Hugo Chavez who fought cancer and death, as if both devils were part of his military command and at his behest and call. Of course he lost his life and the battle, but he never lost the love of his countrymen because of the way he used his adopted version of socialism to take care of their welfare and reduce social inequalities in Venezuela. Hence his adoration by his people, both on his death bed and his final passing. Hugo Chavez was not a saint but he was a very clever soldier – politician who at the age of 21 as a young military officer decided he would be a leftist in life and alleviate the poverty of his people and he succeeded to a large extent.

    He planned a coup and was imprisoned. When released the military were still suspicious of him and did not give him a combat job but asked him to handle training but he used the opportunity to recruit bright officers for his ambition of ruling Venezuela which he achieved by winning the presidential elections and ruling his nation for 14 years till he died this week. Chavez used Venezuela’s oil wealth to reduce poverty in his nation and to promote socialism amongst his neighbors hence reducing social inequalities in the region . His foreign policy was anti American just as it was pro Cuba and helped Cuba immensely to battle the crippling sanctions imposed on it by the USA.

    To rub salt on US wound and discomfiture on this, Chavez even created diplomatic rapport with the Iranians who are sworn enemies of the US because of that nation’s one – sided support for Israel over the Palestinian issue .In effect then, Chavez created a niche for his nation in the comity of nations as an effective and independent voice of socialism, fearless of the US, and not in any way beholden to its global financial agent , the IMF. Yet Chavez started out as a soldier before dropping military uniform for the politician’s attire and making a success of leadership on both fronts.

    It is in this light that I want to compare Chavez’s leadership role in Venezuela with the viewpoint of the co authors of Financialism on the role of the military alongside socialism in Nigeria during military rule. Ironically a staunch ally of Asiwaju Tinubu, the governor of Oshun state, Ogbeni Aregbesola noted at the book launch last Thursday that Asiwaju is more of a socialist in his concern for and actions on poverty alleviation than the capitalist he claims to be. But it is the assertion in the book that the military adopted the state control posture of socialism without any respect for poverty bridging ideals of socialism that I want to comment upon. This is because the military had the same opportunity that Chavez had in Venezuela but blew it literally as each military regime left the nation poorer than it met it. At the end of the day the Nigerian masses became literally fed up with military regimes and loathed their memories intensely. Indeed when the late General Abacha died people celebrated all over the nation, just as Venezuelans mourned the departure of their leader with deep sorrow this week.

    Again the admitted failure of the Obasanjo Reforms in his two terms and the identification of the culprits raise serious questions on leadership in Nigeria and again begs for comparison with Hugo Chavez’s record in Venezuela. This is because Chavez and Obasanjo had similar opportunities to change events in their nations. Chavez staged an unsuccessful coup before being elected president whereas Obasanjo did not stage a coup but was the beneficiary of a failed coup that made him the head of the military after the assassination of Murtala Muhammed. In addition Obasanjo was the first Nigerian military ruler that handed power over to a civilian regime; a feat that made his leadership stature to grow till today in diplomatic circles. Twenty years after this Obasanjo was elected a civilian head of state and served for two terms of four years only to end up with this damning report that two of his appointees sabotaged his reform program. Which really bothers me as I do not see the import of this information which is like crying over spilt milk which all the forces in the universe can not bring together. Or closing the stables door after the horses have bolted. Worse still I am surprised that the Obasanjo government did not expect the role played by the two identified culprits. I will explain.

    With regard to his Head of Service then, the information will definitely make him a hero amongst the Administrative Class in the civil service, both past and present. This is because he protected his fellow bureaucrats against the record of Obasanjo and the military against the leadership of the civil service. The 1975 purge of the civil service, when the late Murtala Muhammed daily announced that ‘this administration will not tolerate indiscipline, this administration will not condone abuse of office ‘ was all what Yayale was trying to prevent happening ever again, on his watch. This purge though popular then, decapitated the leadership of the civil service and Obasanjo was very much part of it first ,as the Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters, and later as Head of State and Commander In Chief . Unknown to Obasanjo, espirit de corps was and still is a guiding leadership principle for the leadership class of the Nigerian bureaucracy just as it has always been for the officer cadre of the army, in and out of office , or uniform till today.

    In addition the second culprit could not have performed otherwise given the fact that she was brought from the World Bank and her brief was for an IMF reform like the ones causing riots in Portugal, Spain and Greece of recent. The Obasanjo book noted that she curiously and suddenly resigned but it is no secret that she went back to her job and got promoted too for her effort as Obasanjo’s Finance Minister. Anyway she is back in the same job and should be able to speak for herself on her role in the Obasanjo Administration between 1999 and 2007.

    Lastly, I understand the concern of the Sultan of Sokoto on amnesty for the Boko Haram terrorists but I do not think he is right in making such a call. Boko Haram terrorists have killed and bombed Churches and attacked Northern leaders including the Emir of Kano and an amnesty will not stop them. Instead it will be mistaken as a sign of weakness on the part of the Nigerian state. Terrorism is a form of blackmail and this is no different. If amnesty is granted it will be like paying a ransom and once that is started there is no end to it. The cost of settling for amnesty in this case far outweighs the benefits or the insurance of security for the Nigerian nation in this avoidable and smoldering debacle that is fast consuming our national psyche and threatening our corporate existence so direly.

  • Looking beyond Kenya

    Football is a cruel game. It respects no one. It can be a leveler, especially for the side that approaches its game with the pride of the peacock. Indeed, it is such an unpredictable game that has humbled many a pundit.

    Soccer is the game for determined sides driven by the desire to upset the old order, hence its shocking results. Minnows thrive on re-writing the books. They are the ones who throw up new stars, making the game what it is- an intriguing enterprise.

    For the Super Eagles, only unrepentant supporters expected them to be African champions. Some of them may not admit it, but with the first two games, a few would have had their doubts; they kept fate in the elements of surprise associated with the Eagles whenever they are written off.

    Today, Eagles are Africa’s champions. The team others must beat. Every game will be like the finals, yet the beauty of the new team is that the coaches say that they are rebuilding. But can we believe them, given previous experiences? Many will nod in the affirmative. They are likely going to look at the 24-man home-based squad and perhaps the exclusion of Ejike Ezoenye, the little Enugu Rangers left winger who is on trial in France. But would that be a reason for dropping him? Or is it the coaches’ style of telling him to wait for his turn?

    We have passed this road before. Building new teams and destroying them because of seeming fixations with, the coaches saying that they would not change a winning side.

    True, no coach changes a winning side. But, in this winning team were flaws that need to be corrected to achieve the balanced side that will rule the world in Brazil in 2014; talking about the Eagles of our dream.

    Ezoenye’s exclusion was deserved. He did well in the early stages but melted away like ice cream in the sun in subsequent games. One would have thought that the other home-grown players who didn’t wear a shirt ought to have been excluded. The hindsight is that their experience would be handy now that the coaches are faced with the task of coupling a local league side that would confront Cote d’Ivoire in a two-legged qualifier, with Nigeria playing at home first.

    What the coaches must guide against is to stop managing injury-hit players. Coaches have a right to decide who plays, stays or drops from the squad, but they must understand that keeping half-fit players in the team robs better and fitter players of a place to contribute to the team’s fortunes. Besides, it robs Nigeria of the chance to introduce new players to the potential clubs seeking their services.

    This writer feels strongly that the inclusion of Gabriel Rueben and Ekwueke was a big disservice to the team no matter how talented they are when fit. It will be a travesty if Rueben and Ekwueke remain in the squad without playing.

    Goalkeepers Austin Ejide and Chigozie Agbim sat through the Eagles’ matches at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations. But they were our best, even though Ejide had a slight knock in the friendly against Cape Verde.

    In South Africa, the right back was one of the team’s weak positions, until Ambrose Efe fitted in perfectly. Sadly, Ambrose’s club form with Celtic in Scotland has been awful, although many have argued that his manager ought to have left him out of the squad following the hectic Africa Cup of Nations campaign with Nigeria. One only hopes that the coaches can comb the country for younger boys from the age grade teams, given what Kenneth Omeruo did when he was drafted to play in the central defence in place of recuperating Joseph Yobo. Omeruo was drafted in from the Flying Eagles to plug the weak spots in the team. Omeruo has been exposed and dropped from the Flying Eagles to give way for another talent. That is the way forward, NFF. Thumbs up for the NFF chiefs who insisted that Omeruo, Onazi and Sunday Mba must be included after the Eagles were tottering in the first two matches. Did these three gladiators not justify their inclusion? Why all the fuzz about NFF’s interference in the team’s selection? Yes, Mikel Obi justified his position. So did Vincent Enyeama, Victor Moses, Emmanuel Emenike and Oboabona, not forgetting Echeijile and Brown Ideye.

    Looking at the team’s left back position, Echiejile did well. His composure during difficult times was infectious. His surge upfront to strengthen the attack gave the Eagles added impetus, little wonder he scored the opening goal in Nigeria’s 4-1whiplash of Mali.

    Echiejile, like Ambrose, needs good substitutes. I feel strongly that the search should first be to draft the Flying Eagles stars who man those positions into the Eagles. That is how it is done in other climes. But, in the short term, the coaches should ask the domestic league coaches to give them the league’s best three. Juwon Oshinawa certainly isn’t the right choice for the left back position, I dare say.

    Godfrey Oboabona and Omeruo have made the fight for the cenral defence a titanic one. They shone like a million stars at the Africa Cup of Nations, even though the coaches drafted in Joseph Yobo for tactical reasons at critical moments in the semi-final and final games. Yobo did well, even if the minutes that he played were less than 12 in each game.

    What the coaches must not do is to dispense with Yobo on the altar of the Turkey-based star’s form at the Cup of Nations. It was obvious to everyone that he had issues with his knee and was indeed recuperating. We must learn how to stand by our heroes and not hound them out of the squad. This idea of using and dumping our stars should stop. Stephen Keshi found himself in Yobo’s situation and he knew how Clemens Westerhof handled his matter until his voluntary retirement.

    This writer must commend Keshi for dropping his characteristic two-man midfield for the quartet of Mikel Obi, Onazi, Mba and Victor Moses, even though he drifted round in the course of the matches- the hallmark of a creative player. It is instructive to note that Joel Obi would give the quartet the fight of their lives when he returns to the team. Don’t ask me where Rueben will play in this midfield arrangement. Or would anyone waste time pleading for the inclusion of those who fumbled in that position at the Africa Cup of Nations? This writer would rather the coaches give other untested Nigerians a chance to see if they would displace the Nations Cup quartet.

    It is cheery news that Everton Victor Anichebe is playing again. He comes and goes with injuries. Anichebe’s recurring injuries have to do with his rugged style. He certainly is a better option for Ike Uche who was unimpressive in South Africa.

    One was bowled over by Keshi’s comments that he could still invite Shola Ameobi. An Eagles’ squad with Ameobi, Anichebe, Emenike and Ideye would be awesome. I wish that they stay injury-free during the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. I cannot wait for this wish to be actualised.

    FROM MY MAIL BOX

    Dear Ade,

    I salute your thorough knowledge of Nigeria’s football, particularly the stars, and administrators. No sports writer can match your understanding and analysis of the problems assailing our national game and past time.

    My only problem with you is your apparent over-rating of the skills and commitment of Mikel the Chelsea star. Recent events must have helped you to assess the player appropriately. The issue really is that Mikel lacks passion, shies away from the vital area of the opponents, his balls and kicks are so tame, devoid of strength and power-making it easy for defenders and goalkeepers to handle him. It would take a thoroughly non – calculating and obtuse keeper to let in Mikel’s free kick or spot-kick. Where then lies his stardom?

    Now, the object of this letter is not Mikel but our common friend Stephen Keshi. His acrobatics in South-Africa and thereafter are in tune with the man. As we progressed into the competition, I knew he would throw some bombshell soonest. That he let it be known that he would resign, via a relation of his was characteristic of the man. Having won the acclaim of most Nigerians, including this writer, he attempted to make Nigerian fans (we are over One Hundred and Sixty Million, I am told) fight officials of the NFF. Remember some years ago when our players once attempted to refuse to play except some debts were settled by the football body? He probably knew about that threat. Did you know some of the antics of players when our man was Chief coach in some other African Countries? Find out.

    Now Big Boss is complaining that some people wanted him to stand up and scream and shout at the players when things were going critical. What was wrong in this? Imagine the electrifying atmosphere during the last 5 to ten minutes of play and our boys were ‘playing with the ball’ instead of playing the ball in their box area, shouldn’t a coach, our coach stand up, scream, shout and bag at the boys not to be complacent but to push balls out of the box? These are normal things in football. People who are critical of Keshi are typical Nigerians, and Keshi in his I –know-it all attitude is a typical Nigerian. We are all learning and should accept it so.

    •Deji Fasuan,

    P.O. BOX 1020,

    Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State.

  • Poverty of the marginalisation discourse

    Poverty of the marginalisation discourse

    There are two aspects to the issue of the alleged marginalisation of the Yoruba in the country’s contemporary political economy by the President Goodluck Jonathan administration – a matter of topical discourse in recent times. First is that raised by the reform-minded Afenifere Renewal Group (ARG) and has to do with the perceived persecution or bias against the South-West states in recruitment into different arms of the public service including the alleged mass retrenchment of officers from the region in certain ministries, departments and agencies of the Federal Government. This perceived marginalisation is of an essentially purely constitutional and legal nature as it revolves around the Federal Character principle provided for in the constitution. The imperative of reflecting the country’s federal character in appointments and recruitment into public agencies is meant to meet the criteria of fairness and balance in an ethno-culturally plural polity like ours without negating the critical factor of merit. To demonstrate this allegation of marginalisation of the South West, the ARG cited the example of 792 cadet officers recently recruited for training at the Customs Training College, Kano, with 263 from the North West, 168 from the North Central, 157 from the North East, 91 from the South-South, 68 from the South East and 45 from the South West. It would, of course, be important to know the total number of applicants from the various geo-political zones involved in this particular exercise as well as the criteria for recruitment before an objective and informed conclusion can be reached. There will also be the need for more detailed information on the recruitment, elevation and attrition statistics across a wider cross section of the service for a scientifically rigorous position to be taken. However, this form of marginalisation depicted by the ARG can be challenged legally as it involves constitutional issues and the Federal Character Commission can be taken to task on the discharge of its responsibilities. In the same vein, anyone unjustly dismissed from the public service simply for reasons of alleged ‘ethnic cleansing’ can seek legal redress.

    However, the second form of marginalisation complained of by the Yoruba Unity Forum (YUF) is largely political and far more controversial. The YUF is largely made up of progressive politicians of the older generation, mostly identified with the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s political thought and practice. They include respected elder statesmen such as Chief Reuben Fasoranti, Chief Ayo Adebanjo and Chief Olu Falae. Speaking on behalf of the group recently, Chief Olu Falae lamented that the pattern of political appointments by the Jonathan administration “is an attempt to excise the zone out of the federation.” He specifically contended that the interest of the South West had been negatively affected by the “side-tracking” of the Yoruba from such key positions as President, Vice-President, Senate President, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Deputy Speaker of the House, Acting President, Court of Appeal, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief of Staff to the President, Office of the National Security Adviser and the Head of Service of the Federation. I personally do not see what the millions of ordinary people in Yoruba land are missing because a member of their ethnic group is in none of these so-called key positions to “eat” on their behalf. After all, there are several illustrious Yoruba indigenes in the Federal Executive Council even if some would complain they are not in the so-called ‘juicy’ ministries (whatever that means).

    It is indeed not difficult to demonstrate the poverty of the kind of marginalisation discourse pursued by the YUF and Chief Olu Falae. A Yoruba man occupied the most important office in the land between 1999 and 2007. Did that improve the fortunes of Yoruba land? Did it reduce the level of unemployment and abject poverty in the region? Did it help in upgrading infrastructure? Despite Obasanjo’s dismal first term performance, the ‘progressive’ leaders of the region urged support for him in 2003 simply because he “is our son”. Of course, the wily soldier-farmer exploited the opportunity to rout the opposition and install PDP ‘mainstream’ governors in five of the six South West states excluding Lagos. The fortunes of the region continued to nosedive abysmally until the progressive resurgence that has resulted in the current developmental renaissance across the ACN states. The poverty-stricken state of most of the north today, despite the dominance of power at the centre of the region’s power elite for most of our post-independence history, makes nonsense of the notion that having your kinsmen occupying ‘juicy positions’ is a guarantee of development. It is equally as fallacious to contend that because Jonathan, an Ijaw man, is President today, means that the Niger Delta is any less marginalised than before he got into office.

    The truth of the matter is that the vast majority of Nigerians, irrespective of ethno-regional origins or religious faith, will continue to be marginalised from prosperity, excellent health care, qualitative and affordable education, effective security, first class infrastructure and jobs for as long as we maintain this monstrous structure that enables a few parasitic and ravenous elite to congregate at the centre through “key appointments” to engage in a feeding orgy ostensibly on behalf of “their people”. I identify fully with the view that we must substantially restructure this deformed federation to ensure substantial decentralisation of powers, responsibilities and resources to the lower levels of government to stimulate development from bottom up and not the other way round. Chief Falae argues that the South West supported Jonathan massively in the 2011 elections and that the President “got the endorsement of many Yoruba progressives, especially the leadership of the Yoruba Unity Forum”. Now, was this support given to Jonathan because the Yoruba voters wanted their kinsmen given “key appointments” or because they believed Jonathan could offer the nation effective and transformational leadership? Similarly, the argument has been made that Yoruba activists were prominent in the Save Nigeria Group (SNG) that insisted that Jonathan assume office as President in accordance with the constitution following the late President Jonathan’s incapacitation. Again, was this advocacy that the constitution should be adhered to borne out of principle or to secure future appointment favours?

    I see absolutely no reason why a Mrs.Mulikat Adeola-Akande should be preferable as Speaker of the House to an Aminu Tambuwal. All that matters is that the dynamics of the political process was allowed to play itself out in accordance with the constitution and stipulated rules. It does not matter one bit to the welfare of the vast majority of the people in the South West if a Yoruba is Senate President, Chief Justice of Nigeria, Head of Service or any of those other positions. What matters is that all positions be filled on merit, fair play and due process. In any case all this distracting marginalisation discourse does little credit to the amazing competitive developmental strides being undertaken today across the South-West including Edo State. That matters more to me than some parasitic “come and eat” appointments at the centre. Let us end with the following extract from a message sent to the Western Regional Conference of the Action Group in Ibadan on 6th July, 1963, by Chief Obafemi Awolowo who said “It has been suggested with unabashed falsity, that the Yorubas are being relegated to the background in the affairs of the Federal Government, partly because the Yorubas are not united, and partly because the Action Group has not participated in the affairs of the Federal Government like the NCNC and NPC…whilst the Action Group does not participate in the Federal Government since January 1960, some outstanding Yorubas have been in the Council of Ministers since the last Federal elections…It must be recalled that the Action Group did participate in the Federal Government from 1957 to 1959; and it would be interesting to know what the Yorubas gained especially because of this participation”.

  • Re : Champions Africa needs

    •I commend you on what you rightly observed about our mentality as a nation. I cannot agree less with you but as it may, sports if properly and well organized is a tool to national development. Sports, if well organized in any environment, is like an octopus with many branches that can reach every part of human endeavour. You can find sports in health, science, economy, law, sociology, psychology, nutrition etc. Even the unskilled labourer will have their share. If well organized, the poor will benefit more. Sports attracts poor people than the rich, Joseph Olutoyinbo, Minna, 07031517060

    •I really can’t thank you enough for your article ‘Champions Africa Needs’. How I wish we have more writers as honest and fearless as you are. Stay blessed, Britto, 08066938700

    •I agree that global sports supremacy is no path to meaningful national development. The question is, how many mouths does soccer feed in Nigeria?, Amos Ejinmoye, Kaduna, 08039727512

    •I think your article yesterday deserves commendation. Keep writing on that. Thanks, 07037158336

    •‘Champions Africa Needs’ is quite thoughtful. How I wish you would apply the same objectivity when it comes to the appraisal of ACN, kuteyi R.R, Ondo, 08062549133

    •Dear Segun, I am on your train on your piece: ‘Champions Africa Needs’. I saw beyond the charade, A.T. Mozie, Nsukka, 08033912409

    •Segun, thanks for yesterday’s piece. Do you know I was wondering if I am the odd one in this unnecessary hoopla about winning AFCON. Somebody even told me the transformation agenda of Jonathan is working. Personally, I see this madness as a distraction and the mediocrity of our rulers, 08083525724

    •Hello Segun, I just read your ‘Champions Africa Needs’. Thanks. I totally agree with you. The truth is that both the African leaders and the led are so illiterate though some may be just lettered. Do you see the attention they pay to issues that should not be our priority? Do you see how our unemployed youths focus on European league as if it in any way benefits them? Can an illiterate who does not even know or agree he is an illiterate be saved from his own ignorance? The Prophet Mohammed (Peace be unto him), taught that “The rescue of the ignorant is his question”. In our case the leadership and the led just follow without questioning “How does this benefit us”? No! if others are in it, we should be in it too. This is the attitude; an attitude of illiteracy. Therefore, we are going deeper in ignorance and our rescue is increasingly seeming a mirage than a thing ever to be attained, ShafihiKasimu-Ozeto, Abuja, 08091130804

    •Baba Sege, kudos on your illuminations today – ‘champions Africa Needs’. God bless you, LanreLugboso, 08054741162

    •My friend, give credit to whom it is due. If they had failed, same you would have lambasted Eagles, Keshi, NFF and Jonathan. Wise up, 08035768323

    •What has football got to do with Nigeria’s do-or-die politics? We have won an elusive trophy and it’s worth celebrating. All the countries that participated went there to win. Drogbaappreciated the fighting spirit of the young footballers so the issue of luck does not arise. If you have nothing good to write about this great achievement, please hold your peace, 08067177318

    •Segun, I want to say you made my day today for your in depth and down to earth piece – ‘Champions Africa Needs’. That is the golden fact. For Allah’s sake, what the hell is the practical impact of winning a football competition to the lives of majority of poverty-stricken Nigerians? As you rightly observed, luck on our side did the miracle. However, my kudos to Keshi for shaming his detractors, 08069310296

    •I agree with your article in totality. Thanks so much for that. Pius, 08068469668

    •If it is not an achievement of the Jonathan administration, is it an achievement of your father’s administration?, 07064958094

    •Thanks Segun for your illuminations – Champions Africa needs, Nestor, 08037433992

    •Mr Ayobolu, having just read your piece: ‘Champions Africa Needs’, I just wanted to thank and congratulate you on a great piece. With Best wishes, Anna Zalik, (a Canadian currently in Nigeria), 08098240803

    •Well said bro. Enough of mediocrity. Thanks for the paradigm shift; Africa’s crying need is excellence. Shallom!, Ariel, Lagos, 08168652214

  • Re : Centennial Delusions

    •Jonathan’s presidency is to say the least colourless, colonialist and fascist in all its ramifications. Under this nebulous and banal regime, the nation is celebrating her subjugation, subservience and political servitude to unabashed foreign rule. PDP once again is bereft of reason and cultural history dragging the nation inexorably to intellectual sterility and political mayhem. Where are the nation’s historians? Lugard’s bid to unify the nation was purely economic, a political masterstroke to deploy local resources to administer the vast territory for the greed of British overlords. It’s time we halt PDP and Jonathan’s vicious cycle of heinous rule started by Lugard’s ignoble indirect rule of 1914. We should resist this modern day slavery, AyodeleFagboun, Akure, 08169482226

    •“Centennial delusions should have been better captioned as ‘Centennial façade’, 08138971607

    •I’ve just finished reading your article in The Nation newspaper edition of 20/02/13. I must commend your literary and grammatical dexterity, Begi Solomon, Makurdi, 08061134115

    •Sir, you just hit the nail on the head about these Abuja-based centenary celebration inventors with your write up. Keep it up. I am a victim – a graduate of engineering with no job, 08033754008

    •You Yorubas hatred of Jonathan and his family has turned to obsession. Don’t forget that he is cleaning the mess a Yoruba man left behind. You can blame PDP all you want, Nigerians are not stupid, 08166802603

    •‘Çentennial delusions” is a joyful celebration of the beginning of Nigerian slavery and servitude to the British government. It’s quite unfortunate that our government will prioritise the mark of slavery over the mark of freedom. What a nation, what a leadership, AlhajiAdeyCorsim, Oshodi, Lagos, 07057631041

    •Dear Segun, your piece titled ‘Centennial Delusions’ touched me the most in The Nation’s Saturday paper for its relevance. What Federal Government madness to think of celebrating such and in such a manner, DasheMaximo, Jos, 07080471643

    •Mr SegunAyobolu! When will you believe in something good out of the lot? Be open-minded had been my advice on your write up. The President made it clear abinitio that the celebration and commemoration would be low-key. What else do you need? Is 2014 from 1914 not real as 100 years? Did the three regions not emerge from Lugardism? Did 1960 independence not come from Lugardism? What of many products past and present from the three regions? The Nobel Laureate from which Nigeria? Compare today’s infrastructure with 1914 at least in quantity, LanreOseni, 08023023745

    •You did well in your write up. You are in my prayers, Onuchukwu J, 07032686005

    •Hi Sege, the Centennial celebration, I am sure, is another ‘project’ off the stable of the ever prowling political vultures in Abuja with connections in high places. The government knows there is nothing to celebrate. They are, as usual, just looking for something to divert our attention from their crass ineptitude. There’s a bright side to this anyway. Since they said its going to be private-sector driven, let’s allow their friends who pocketed billions of Naira of fuel subsidy money put part of same into good use for once, Olu, 08033013597

    •Segun, your piece on the centenary celebration abridge the same conclusion of your principals and I feel it is high time you guys in The Nation portray intellectual discourse in your opinions rather than projecting that same Lai Mohammed political sycophancy on anything can never be good unless it is coming from his cronies. Segun, between 1914 and 1964, you lost so much time to appreciate why we must continue to celebrate Nigeria in the appropriate context not in this bandwagon style of condemnation. Nice piece but you can do better, 08057716603

    •Hi Segun, I agree with your summation about the stupidity of celebrating Lugard when an academic conference would have been enough. But unfortunately, the blackmail that the celebration is “private sector financed” would make them ignore your position. What a big shame and a self-destructing rush to what you aptly describe as “avoidable poverty”, 08037988252

    •Thank you for your work on centenary delusions. You know Ayim is just a balloon that is just there as a painted Sepulchre. There is nothing to celebrate. We are just deceiving ourselves, Chuks, 08035410176

    •Only a bastard celebrates his mother’s concubine. The white colonizers represent our mother’s concubine and if we celebrate the day our mother gave birth to the child born out of rape from the white conquerors shows how shallow the brain of those taking refuge in the inner chamber of Aso Rock. GEJ and his team are bereft of ideas and that is why they will spend Nigeria’s hard earned money on inanities. Even if all our roads have been painted black, all hospitals in world class status, the aged and unemployed collecting monies from government, will that make them lose their senses and commit abomination? Is it not contradictory if we celebrate the day we were free from bondage and at the same time celebrate the day we got into bondage? Those who conceived this idea need psychiatric attention, 08098117071.

  • Europeans, not whites please

    Super Eagles chief coach Stephen Keshi was exceptional in Monday’s interview on DSTV. He chose his words. He acknowledged everyone’s contributions towards the February 10 feat at the Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa.

    Keshi observed decorum as he responded to key questions. Rather than compound issues, he offered diplomatic answers. He raised the hope of a brighter relationship with his employers when he apologised over what he termed ‘annoying’ answers of the past. That is the way forward, Big Boss. Do not be deceived by those urging you to discountenance your employer’s contributions.

    One was particularly interested in what Keshi’s remarks would be on fielding Sunday Mba and the success story that the Warri Wolves striker struck in the country’s achievements.

    Keshi tacitly evaded that the question. Instead, he chose to look at the home-based kids as a group. That was commendable. But it is instructive to state here that the purported meeting that led to Keshi’s decision to throw in the towel came from the fact that his employers allegedly forced him to field Mba, Kenneth Omeruo and Onazi. I had thought that the coach would clear the air on this issue. He chose to wave it aside. I know that he would return to it soon. His body language suggested that he would spill the beans again.

    The story was that his employer didn’t see any reason why Joseph Yobo would play ahead of Omeruo. They were miffed that he played Omeruo at left back when he ought to have been fielded in the heart of the defence. I had thought that Omeruo’s inclusion arose from the gap created by the red card which Ambrose Efe had in the first game. There is more to this aspect of the story and I promise to unravel it.

    While in Johannesburg, it was disclosed that the coach’s employers wanted Onazi to replace a fumbling Igiebor in the central midfield along with Mba and Mikel. The question many would ask is- why did they have to recruit the coach if they could do his job?

    This expose is meant to open up what transpired in the ill-tempered meeting. It remains to be seen when Keshi would respond to some of these stories. Many of the board members had challenged Keshi to explain why he didn’t field these guys in earlier matches.

    Like in the game of draught, it is those watching that notice the players’ flaws. It was good that Keshi took their advice. He could have rejected their directives.

    As the interview progressed, it was quite interesting watching Victor Ikpeba challenge his former captain with certain facts. It was vintage Ikpeba. He was quite a stubborn lad as a player but massively talented.

    However, the flaw in Keshi’s brilliant interview was his consistent reference to foreign coaches as whites. It had a tinge of xenophobia, a subtle racist slant that belies his hatred for whites, when in actual sense he meant Europeans.

    One would have thought that a celebrity such as Keshi should have a public relations person who would groom him through pre-interview sessions to purge him of such irritating words as whites instead of Europeans.

    Would anyone really say Europeans are whites as the colour indicates? I don’t think so. I would rather that Keshi used the term Europeans, which makes more sense than the xenophobic word- whites.

    Aside this flaw, Keshi showed that he had learnt from his sojourn in Europe.

    Keshi referred to Aminu Maigari as his boss and friend. But his revelation left gaps about other members of the board. He held back for other members, although he did say that it was his employers’ responsibility to arrange friendly games and other logistics for him.

    True, but board members, such as Christopher Green, travelled with the squad throughout their preparations. No mention was made of his contributions? Did I hear you say that Ade has started again? No; this is stating the obvious because we must resolve the feud, if we truly want to move forward. Already, the board’s vice president, Mike Umeh, has challenged Keshi to name the two members. Umeh left unanswered what would happen if the coach doesn’t oblige. Fragile peace or peace of the graveyard, if you ask me.

    Keshi talked about two board members who gave him hell in South Africa. I don’t need an oracle to spot Green and Emeka Inyama, two men who have followed the game with passion with Sharks FC of Port Harcourt and Enyimba FCof Aba, before handling Abia Warriors.

    Green and Inyama know their onions. Perhaps, Felix Anyansi-Agwu, Mike Umeh and Deji Tinubu are as exposed as they are in the game. But Green and Inyanma played the game even though not to Keshi’s level. Some of their tips could be handy.

    In the spirit of true reconciliation, Keshi should embrace Green and Inyama. It doesn’t make him the weaker person. It would portray him as a mature man with a large heart and as an incredible team player. Time to sheathe the sword is now.

    The biggest lesson that Keshi should learn is how to be receptive to suggestions, no matter how poorly or rudely they were delivered. Hitherto, this writer received calls from the Big Boss.

    For many people, this writer hounded the former Eagles chief coach Samson Siasia because he wanted Keshi. Do they still hold this position now that Keshi has delivered the Africa Cup of Nations diadem? I doubt it.

    “Ade cannot change. He attacks every Nigerian coach. He wants a European coach for the Eagles.” These are some of the potshots thrown at this writer. I support foreign coaches because of their exploits with our national teams- until this feat by Keshi. No apologies for my position because I want the best for my country.

    Even Keshi is not averse to employing European coaches. Such coaches must be the best, he says and I agree. Such tacticians as Louis Van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Pep Guardiola etc. Why not? We have the cash.

    Keshi says he is prepared to learn from the best foreign coaches. That view tells the story of a man who wants to succeed. I hope that chieftains of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) watched the Monday night interview because we need a renowned European tactician to rejuvenate the body’s technical department. We need to define the way we want to play our football, using the finer qualities of the average Nigerian footballer.

    We need a football template that would be introduced to the youth at the grassroots such that it would be very easy to go to any of our age grade teams and pick a replacement(s) for any position in the Super Eagles. Nigerian football needs a style unique to us, like we see with Brazilians, Dutch, Germans, French and Spaniards.

    We could opt for the hybrid, but that initiative must come from renowned European coaches with a rich history of nurturing football nurseries. I wish Arsene Wenger were available for us. Perhaps either Harry Redknapp or Pep Guardiola would be the suitable option. I just wish they would come.

    Our footballers are talented, but they need to be taught the rudiments of the game at a much younger level. It hurts to see Eagles coaches teach our senior players how to control the ball and what side of the foot they should hit the ball with. These are elementary stuff taught at the academy levels, which are missing in our football system. Our local league is an eyesore. The state football federations don’t exist. We only hear of them when it is time to accompany the national teams to international competitions. They hardly have syncronised football programmes.

    The game is played in the state by government owned teams. Most of the state football federations’ chiefs lack the initiative to design programmes that would effectively engage the grassroots coaches and the players.

    A renowned European coach as our technical man would help train and retrain our coaches. It is true that Adegboye Onigbinde can man the position but he won’t earn the respect of our local coaches, some of who believe that his methods are not in sync with the modern time and that he needs to give way for the younger ones.

    Need I state how Onigbinde’s efforts have been frustrated by coaches that he even groomed as players? Nigeria is the only country where anyone can present himself as a coach and he gets the job. No standards are set. It is unbelievable that Nigerian coaches are in cadre C, the equivalent of primary six in coaching in Africa. It is not good enough, irrespective of what Keshi has achieved with the Eagles in South Africa.