The Nation Newspaper

Category: Lekan Otufodunrin

  • Nigeria: Big for what?

    Some years ago, I stopped writing travelogues comparing the developments, infrastructures and some other basic things I saw during my journeys outside the country with that of Nigeria.

    Before then, I never ceased to lament in my write-ups how our claim to being the giant of Africa doesn’t match up with the level of our development in many ramifications.

    It was understandable when I was writing about some developed nations in Europe and there was not much basis for comparison, but what about visiting some African countries and the reality of the successive mismanagement of our enormous resources stare you in the face.

    I remember taking the decision to stop the comparisons after a visit to Zambia.

    What really shocked me then was that there was uninterrupted electricity in the hotel I stayed for almost a week.

    If a country like Zambia had relatively stable electricity supply, I didn’t understand why my country with all the money we had made and was still making then from petroleum and other resources couldn’t guarantee power supply better than we had.

    I literally gave up and opted to save myself from the soul-depressing exercise of writing about what nobody in government seemed to be bothered about. Our leaders at all levels are not unaware of how they have failed to give us the quality of life we deserved like other countries they also travel to, but rather than take necessary steps, they prefer to take us for granted.

    Year after year, many development projects are provided for in the budgets but only few get done to improve on the infrastructure. Some of the ones implemented are so poorly done that they easily get dilapidated.

    I’m forced to talk about this worrisome issue again having been travelling in the last one week to Ghana, Ethiopia and South Africa.

    Once again, I am reminded of the need for our government to urgently address the yawning infrastructure deficit baggage we still have as a country that wants to be taken seriously in the committee of developing nations.

    Nigeria should have been the venue of the conference I went for in Ghana and the other one which held alongside the meeting I attended in South Africa but for apparent worry of many international organisations who can’t risk having to contend with lack of some necessary facilities to host their events.

    Our Lagos International Airport is a shame compared with that of the three countries I have flown through in the last week. Some basic facilities like the ones I saw in the other countries are not working optimally. Despite the huge amount the last administration claimed to have invested in developing airports in the country, the Lagos airport is still a traveller’s nightmare.

    A young colleague was so overwhelmed by the facilities at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, venue of the Global Investigative Journalism Conference, that she said she now knows better that the university she graduated from in Nigeria was not as good as she used to think, compared to some others in the continent.

    She is definitely in for a rude shock about the poor state of facilities as she gets to travel more outside Nigeria.  We definitely have a long way to go and we need to move faster not to remain the butts of jokes as not having much to show for our size and resources.

  • Worry for my country

    For once, I have never had any doubt that a majority of Nigerians made the best decision when they voted for President Muhammadu Buhari instead of renewing the tenure of former President Goodluck Jonathan.

    Given the dire circumstances the nation found itself after six years of ex-president Jonathan’s government, it would have been suicidal to retain him to continue in office.

    Buhari was our best bet against Jonathan to save the country from sliding into unimaginable economic and political crises, which would have been difficult to recover from. Thankfully, Buhari got elected and Jonathan did not behave like the typical Nigerian politician who would not accept defeat without all manners of protests.

    However, over two years into the Buhari’s administration, there are many reasons to worry why President Buhari is not living up to expectations that he is the saviour we need.

    His style of administration, which appears to take Nigerians for granted, is worrisome. Many instances that require swift actions have remained unattended to.

    Instead of speaking up on major issues, Nigerians have heard little or nothing from the president who definitely means well for the country but leaves us at the mercies of some aides who indulge in unnecessary name-calling or accusations.

    While Buhari himself is regarded as an epitome of integrity, some of his aides through their actions and inactions have put a big question mark on the anti-corruption crusade of the administration.

    While the government is yet to sufficiently deal with the accusations and counter accusations between the Minster of State of Petroleum, Dr Ibe Kachikwu ,and Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) , Dr  Maikanti Baru, the scandal of the surreptitious recall of the former pension boss,  Abdulrasheed Maina, who is wanted by the Economics and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), is yet another issue begging for firm action to be taken by the president.

    How can any official of this government approve the reinstatement and promotion of Maina despite all the allegations pending against him? From all indications, the Attorney General, Malami, is party to the deal which explains why he initially defended the recall on the grounds that no court has found Maina guilty.

    The Internal Affairs Minister, Abdulrahman Dambazzau, initially claimed that Maina was redeployed to his ministry by the Head of Service, only for Oyo-Ita to deny the claim. Yet another official of the government, media aide, Garba Shehu, found no other justification for the recall but that the Jonathan government was to blame for what I don’t understand.

    It is not enough for the president to sack Maina, more heads need to roll based on the report he has requested for over the incident. Unless the president takes necessary action to serve as deterrent to any other official or appointee who is not sensitive enough to the anti-corruption stance of his government, he would be further arming his critics who say there is a cabal dictating the direction of the administration.

    This is yet another test case like that of the suspended Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, which Nigerians are patiently waiting for Buhari to apply the big stick.

    The time to act is now, before those who claim that Buhari is not up to what he promised Nigerians who voted for him have the last laugh.

  • Kachikwu: Still waiting for Mr. President

    Mum is still largely the word from the presidency over the issues raised in the leaked letter by Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr.  Ibe  Kachikwu.

    But for the reference to the approval he gave for financing arrangements for the Joint Ventures between the corporation and the IOCs as contract and not loans, there would still not have been any official statement on the controversial issue.

    Instead of clearly stating its position on the complaints of the minister bordering on disregard for due process by the Group Managing Director of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr Maikanti Baru, on appointments and contractual agreements, the presidency seems to prefer speaking through faceless sources.

    Supporters of the minister and the NNPC have been having a field day making claims and counter claims on who should approve what while the presidency leaves Nigerians confused as if the officials involved are not answerable to any authority.

    Instead of playing dumb on the matter and allowing the theatre of the absurd and shame to continue to play out, the presidency has to speak up and clear whatever confusion it has caused. This should not be a matter of two fighting while those who should separate or penalise them watch.

    The real loser in this matter is the presidency whose claim to abiding by due process unlike the government it took over from is being questioned. Nigerians are eagerly waiting to see how the issue will be handled to make up their mind on what they should believe about the Buhari government.

    There is a sense in which the silence of President Muhammadu Buhari who is the Minister of Petroleum is being seen as total disregard for the public that he owes an explanation on how our crucial oil sector is being managed.

    If indeed President Buhari is truly in charge of the Petroleum Ministry, which he could have assigned to a competent hand to handle, it should not have taken this long for him to confirm or deny the claims made by Kachickwu and Baru.

    If Baru got permission from the president in accordance with the law guiding the operations of the oil sector to do some of the things he has been accused of doing without the approval of the Board, so be it. We need to know who is saying the truth and who is not.

    If he did not and he is guilty of what the minister has accused him of, he should not be treated as a sacred cow. The open altercation between the two top government officials managing a critical sector of our economy is not good for the image of the country.

    Foreign investors must be following the controversy with keen interest and everything must be done to resolve the issue on the side of truth and transparency.

    Like I noted last week, the matter would not have degenerated to this ugly level if the minister’s memo has been given the urgent attention it deserved and has been allowed to meet with the president who is supposed to be the supervising minister for petroleum.

    Like in the issue of the suspended Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, Babachir Lawal, and Director General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Dr Ayodele Oke  silence is not golden.

  • Kachikwu: Waiting for Mr. President

    As at the time of writing this piece, neither the Presidency nor the Group Managing Director, GMD, of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr Maikanti Baru, has responded to the allegations by Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr Emmaunel Ibe Kachikwu, in his leaked memo to President Muhammadu Buhari.

    Among others, the minister had alleged in the memo that $25 billion contracts were awarded by Dr Baru without the approval of the board. Kachikwu also accused Baru of “bravado management” through which he allegedly sidelined him and the board of NNPC on matters that required their approval.

    After meeting President Buhari on Friday, the minister declined comments from reporters. As it is, it is not certain what the position of the presidency is on this very serious allegation that puts a serious question mark on its anti-corruption policies.

    Normally, the presidency would have responded to issues like this swiftly with either a denial or a promise to investigate the allegation, but surprisingly mum has been the word over the matter.

    Reading through the damming memo of complaints about his frustrations, it is very clear that the presidency has a bad case on its hands. Kachikwu is not known to be one of those frivolous political appointees and for him to have taken his time to write the letter to the president, he must have been very sure of what he was complaining about.

    He sure knows the consequence of making false claims and must have been ready to defend whatever allegation he made. Though the memo, as he claimed, was usual official communication with the president not meant for the public, now that it has leaked, the presidency cannot afford to keep quiet over it.

    Having now met with Kachikwu as it should have been the case regularly considering the importance of the oil sector to our economy, Nigerians are eagerly waiting to hear from the president. He needs tell us his findings on the allegations and what he intends about it.

    It is bad enough that despite the adherence of due-process credentials of the federal government, the GMD could flagrantly violate the requirement to get approval of the board to award the huge amount of contracts he awarded.

    Based on Kachikwu’s memo, the GMD allegedly gave the impression that he had the approval of the president to do whatever he did unlike the heads of other parastatals who report to the minister.

    The president needs to confirm or deny Baru’s claim to serve as a deterrent to other government officials who might be making similar claims. No official should be allowed to get away with violation of laid down procedures due to their closeness to anyone.

    If only Kachikwu’s complaint had been taken seriously and acted on by the president appropriately since August 30 when he wrote his memo, there would not have been much explanation to give on it as it is presently required.

    The minister also raised the shocking issue of not being able to secure appointment to see the president despite many attempts. Why should it be so difficult for a minister who has an urgent matter to discuss with the president find it difficult to do so? Those in charge of booking appointments for the president have some explanations to give on why they disallowed Kachikwu to see the president.

    From all indications, Kachikwu is probably not the only one “suffering in silence” based on their inability to get many things done in their ministries. He is just the only one whose memo has leaked.

    If the Buhari government wants to be taken seriously, this is one issue it has to treat with dispatch to justify its claim that its administration is indeed a departure from the past.

  • The joke is on the patients

    Last Thursday, I went to keep a medical check-up appointment at a federal Teaching Hospital in Lagos. I left my house at about 6.30am, got to the hospital about an hour later, but had to wait till about 11.00am for my medical records file to be found.

    Some patients got theirs earlier while others waited endlessly without getting theirs.

    After the nurse on duty checked my weight and I was waiting with others for our blood pressure to be taken, she got a call that the nationwide strike by health workers has commenced and immediately packed the files.

    “Sorry, I have to leave now. Our strike has started and union officials will soon be here to chase us out,” she told dejected patients who have been waiting for hours to see the doctors.

    The doctors who just resumed from their own strike did their best to salvage the situation by attending to the few they could without the assistance of the nurses.

    A doctor who was not aware the nurses had hurriedly left their duty points came into the waiting room to check why files had not been brought to him. When he was told of the strike, he joked that the “no work, no pay” policy would be applied to the workers.

    Some nurses who tried to complete what they were doing before the announcement of the strike were chased out by cane-wielding union officials who threatened to beat them up.

    After seeing the doctor, I could not book my next appointment as the record officials have also been chased out by the union officials.

    The doctors promised to do their best but it was apparent that there was not much they could do without the nurses and record officers.

    I left a crowd of dejected patients, many of whom left their homes before 6am to be early enough for their appointments.

    I am still haunted by the desperate expression on the face of a female patient who was recovering from stroke and managed to come alone to the hospital.

    Her medical file could not be found. She managed to move round the clinic pleading with the record officers to retrieve her file.

    The very hard-working record officer who was obviously overwhelmed by the crowd he had to attend to tried his best to sort out the files before he was chased out, but the files were nowhere to be found.

    How can doctors attend to patients without their medical records?

    Twice, my medical file has been missing and a temporary one had to be opened without details of my past treatment.

    The joke is really on Nigerians who have to attend government hospitals where they cannot get prompt treatment because the medical officers are either inadequate, do not have enough facilities to work with and have to resort to  strike to get government attention.

    Unlike most Nigerians, our leaders at the slightest opportunity jet out at our expense to get medical treatment.

    Who cares about others who cannot go abroad for treatment?

  • We must not lose this country

    For some months now, I have been resisting the temptation to write an article titled We are losing this country. The topic keeps coming back to me every week I am thinking of what to write on, but I usually shudder at the thought of the implication of losing the country for any reason and therefore  prefer to dismiss it even when all the signs point in that direction.

    There are too many things happening in the country at the same time that can shake one’s faith about what the future holds for us. From one major crisis to the other, compounded by the health of the president, we have literarily been keeping hope alive that all will be well and we shall overcome whatever challenges we are facing as we have always done at great expense though.

    Thankfully, the uncertainty over the health of the president is over for now and speculations about who is really in charge of the affairs of the country between the acting president and the cabal have been laid to rest.

    For whatever it is worth, we can take it that the president is healthy enough to provide the country with the firm leadership we need at this crucial time in the history of our country when our unity is being called to question by ethnic agitators particularly in the east and northern parts of the country.

    What started like a joke by Nnamdi Kanu as agitation for the realisation of the Biafran dream under the auspices of his group, Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has become violent confrontations between the agitators and the military. Kalu and his followers have not helped matters with their flagrant disregard for the laws of the land, necessitating deployment of soldiers to curb their activities.

    Expectedly, the involvement of the military has assumed a worrisome dimension with the clampdown on the agitators and other innocent persons. Even those who do not support Kanu’s campaign have been forced to condemn the show of force by the military.

    Earlier in response to the Biafran agitation, some northern youths issued an ultimatum for Igbos in the north to leave. Though the ultimatum has since been withdrawn after the intervention of leaders in the region, there is still a lot of uncertainty about what could happen if Kanu and his gang continue with their agitation or attack northerners in the East

    During the week, a video on social media supposedly showed some persons searching for northerners in buses travelling through the East. Though the Inspector General of Police claims that there is no tension in the country, those who live in the affected areas know better.

    The agitation in the Niger Delta has remained with various groups asking the federal government to address the issue of neglect despite the revenue being generated from oil exploited in the region.

    As if the ethnic agitation and loud calls for restructuring by leaders of the various regions are not enough, workers’ unions appear to be competing over embarking on strike.

    First it was the university lecturers, then doctors and now many others including university non-academic staff, health workers and lecturers of other tertiary institutions. Though the doctors’ strike has been suspended, government officials are still battling to persuade other unions and groups not to complicate the situation.

    The federal government obviously has a lot on its plate to sort out and the situation calls for deft handling of the issues which have remained unresolved for years. As it is, united we stand, divided we fall.

  • Waiting for the real Lai Mohammed on Twitter

    While denying the false report of President Muhammadu Buhari’s purported plan to travel to the United States on Sunday, Information and Culture Minister, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, disclosed that he does not have social media accounts.

    “Numerous parody accounts have been opened in my name on the two platforms, when indeed I have no Twitter or Facebook accounts,” he stated while urging Nigerians to disregard what was credited to him.

    The minister also recalled how the same parody Twitter account, @MohammedLai used to disseminate fake news about the president’s purported trip was employed to circulate a fake report that he sharply criticised Senator Dino Melaye for attending the Notting Hill Carnival in the UK.

    He said these two instances highlight the dangers posed to the polity by the purveyors of fake news and disinformation, and vowed that the federal government would soon fish out those behind the shenanigans.

    I sympathise with the minister that the false sensitive information was credited to him by some faceless individuals who create parody accounts in the name of others, especially top government officials, to misinform the public.

    I totally agree with the minister that “Fake news, disinformation and hate speech are the antics of the naysayers; those who are pathologically opposed to this administration.” Everyone on the internet, including Nigerians, as he counseled, needs to be more discerning and should double check any information emanating from the social media.

    However, notwithstanding the wrong use to which social media accounts are being deployed, the minister cannot continue to justify not having Twitter handle or Facebook account.

    The accounts are too important in the present information age for information dissemination for any government official like the country’s information minister not to have.

    If President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and many other top officials of the federal government have social media accounts, why should the spokesman of the government not have verified handles?

    With two appointees for new media in the presidency and the speed with which the federal government’s information are shared on social media, this administration has proved to be digital savvy enough for the minister to remain analogue in a digital age.

    Parody accounts will always be created by mischief makers, but when the real ones exist and are used regularly, it will be easy to distinguish between fake and real information.

    Having social media account is not a choice for top government functionary like the minister, it is a must to effectively discharge his responsibilities. Whoever refuses to have one, will have one created for him and used for purposes he or she does not approve of.

    Alhaji Mohammed should take a cue from many members of this administration who are effectively using the social media to disseminate information to prevent the naysayers from taking advantage of his absence on the too-important-to-ignore platforms.

    He doesn’t need to operate them himself, like most top dignitaries do. He can get tech savvy assistants to keep Nigerians informed through the platforms and match the naysayers tweet for tweet.

  • Why Lai Mohammed urgently needs social media accounts

    Why Lai Mohammed urgently needs social media accounts

    While denying the false report of President Muhammadu Buhari purported plan to travel to the United States on Sunday, Information and Culture Minister, Alhaji Lai Muhammed disclosed that he does not have social media accounts.

    “Numerous parody accounts have been opened in my name on the two platforms, when indeed I have no Twitter or Facebook accounts,” he stated while urging Nigerians to disregard what was credited to him.

    The minister also recalled how the same parody Twitter account, @MohammedLai used to disseminate the fake news about the President’s purported trip was employed to circulate a fake report that he sharply criticised Senator Dino Melaye for attending the Notting Hill Carnival in the UK.

    He said these two instances highlight the dangers posed to the polity by the purveyors of fake news and disinformation, and vowed that the Federal Government would soon fish out those behind the shenanigans.

    I sympatise with the minister that the false sensitive information was credited to him by some faceless individuals who create parody accounts in the name of others, especially top government officials to misinform the public.

    I totally agree with the minister that “Fake news, disinformation and hate speech are the antics of the naysayers, those who are pathologically opposed to this administration.” Everyone on the internet, including Nigerians as he counseled need to be more discerning and should double check any information emanating from the social media.

    However, notwithstanding the wrong use to which social media accounts are being deployed, the minister cannot continue to justify not having Twitter or Facebook handles.

    The accounts are too important in the present information age for information dissemination for any government official like the country’s information minister not to have.

    If President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and many other top officials of the federal government have social media accounts, why should the spokesman of the government not have verified handles?

    Parody accounts will always be created by mischief makers, but when the real ones exists and are used regularly, it will be easy to distinguish between fake and real information.

    Alhaji Mohammed should take a cue from many members of this administration who are effectively using the social media to disseminate information to prevent the naysayers from taking advantage of his absence on the too-important to ignore platforms.

    He doesn’t need to operate them himself like most top dignitaries do. He can get tech savvy assistants to keep Nigerians informed through the platforms and match the naysayers tweets for tweets.

     

     

  • Campus journalism and repugnant management

    What is the future of campus journalism in the face of repugnant management and environment?

    I take it that by repugnant management, you mean school managements that have policies that are not acceptable campus groups like yours.  Managements that do not allow for freedom of expression which is your right as guaranteed in the Constitution of the country and laws of basic human existence.

    Normally, there should be no fear of managements outlawing activities of campus journalists. They may not approve of some of the things you publish if it is not in their interest, they have no choice but to live with campus journalists like the governments at various levels have to with media organisations.

    It should not be strange for campus journalists to be asked to justify what they publish, especially if it is false or makes the authorities uncomfortable, what is important is that campus journalists should be aware of rules and regulations you signed to abide with as, firstly,  a student of the institution, before being a campus journalist.

    As long as you abide by the acceptable code of conduct for journalists and I hope you know what they are, campus journalists should have no cause to worry.  Being harassed, quizzed or threatened is part of the hazards of being a journalist which you must be ready to cope with.

    Apart from the school authorities, even some of your colleagues who are students will find your publications REPUGNANT and some of them make take the laws into their hands to want to attack you physically or otherwise.

    Managements and other stakeholders on campuses should accept campus publications for what they are and should not deny them their rights to publish or unjustly penalise campus journalists for unfavourable publications.

    Campus journalists should, however, not set out to be anti-management. They should constructively criticise when necessary and commend when there are reasons to. Being a campus journalist is also not a license to abuse the rights of those being reported.

    Like lawyers will say, campus journalists should come to equity with clean hands. Your reports and views must be fair, balance and be truthful in all ramifications.

    This is what you need to do to be credible and be able to justify whatever you publish even when managements think otherwise.

    There will also be need for cooperation among campus publishers to interface with the management on issues of common concern instead of engaging in unnecessary competition which can be exploited by the managements seeking to break your ranks.

    In view of the threat of the new media, my advice is that you should use the various tools and platforms to reach your internal and external audiences.

    Your publications should be more frequent and timely since you can easily do so on websites, blogs and social media. You have no choice but to adopt these options considering that these platforms are now more easily accessible sources of information.

    I want to commend you all for keeping the tradition of campus journalism alive. The advantage you now have which you must explore is to become more innovative in how to report issues on your campuses. You have the opportunity of being multi-media in your approach with minimal cost.

    Excerpts from lecture delivered at Campus Journalism Seminar by MAPOLY Press Club

  • My father, my father

    August 9 was the first anniversary of my father’s death.  Hard to accept that the man who meant so much to me and did so much to make me what I am today by the grace of God died a year ago, but it’s a reality I, my siblings, family members, friends and others have to live with.

    Our father, Chief Adebisi Japheth Otufodunrin, Balogun of Imagbon, touched not only our lives but that of many others and will always live in our hearts.

    I can write a whole book on his life and times, but words failed me last Friday to put up even a few line posts in his remembrance on face book. What kind of writer’s block stops one from writing a tribute in memory of a loved one, like my late father, if not for bottled-up emotions which words cannot sometimes express?

    Not even the tributes by my siblings on their Facebook timelines could lure me to do what I usually would have done on occasions like this. I only managed to send a short message on our family whatshapp group.

    For whatever reason, I just wanted some quiet moments to reflect on the occasion instead of having to respond to the torrents of messages from well-wishers, many of whom I still owe a debt of gratitude for their support during the burial last October.

    I, however, succumbed to writing this column on the first anniversary of my father’s death, probably because he was perhaps one of the most adherent readers of my weekly views on issues. When I don’t write for any reason, he usually calls to find out why.

    Unfortunately, he can’t call again, but the best I can do to acknowledge how he inspired me to become a journalist, is to write about him for the world to know that he was indeed a father in a billion.

    His legacy of love, unity and generosity has kept me and my siblings going. His commitment to ensuring that all his children got university education, which he did not have the opportunity of getting, is our best inheritance.

    But for him, I would have been contented with seeking admission to just any tertiary institution, but he was too determined to ensure that I made it to the university and nothing else would do.

    Not even my initial poor school certificate results could discourage him as he got me to re-take the exam as a full-time student along with those who used to call me Senior Lekan.

    Even when I didn’t have enough scores to get admitted into the university, I was enrolled for Higher School Certificate and had to endure the two years on his insistence, even though I could have secured admission for a diploma course.

    When I got an admission form for the University of Agriculture for one of my brothers who he wanted to be a medical doctor, he told me I was joking and he would not allow him to attend the institution. Thank God for his clear vision for his children, he got his heart desire; a Dr Otufodunrin along with others who are graduates in other fields of endeavours.

    Like many others have attested, my father left his indelible mark, not only on the sand of times, but on the hearts of men.  Posterity will never forget him.  We will continue to celebrate the man who came, saw and conquered before returning to his maker.

    Sleep well, Baba.