The Nation Newspaper

Category: Niyi Akinnaso

  • US-Cuba relations: From embargo to total blockade

    US-Cuba relations: From embargo to total blockade

    By  Niyi Akinnaso

     

    As I approached the entrance to the Embassy of Cuba in Nigeria on Diplomatic Drive in the Abuja Central District on Thursday, February 18, 2021, for a press conference, I could not but notice its proximity to the Embassy of the United States on the same street. Interestingly, it mirrors the proximity of the island nation of Cuba to the United States. Cuba is only about 315 kilometers south of the sprawling city of Miami, Florida, in the Southeast coast of the United States.

    Moreover, the relatively low-keyed compound and structures of the Cuban Embassy contrast sharply with the imposing compound and structures of the American Embassy. The contrasts further illustrate the relative size, strength, and statuses of the two countries on the world stage. The population of the United States is about 331 million people; Cuba, only about 11 million.

    The proximity and contrasts notwithstanding, the United States has been exhibiting unprecedented hostility toward Cuba since 1960! However, the historical context of the hostility must be understood. It began partly as an extension of the Cold War between the United States and the old Soviet Union, given Cuba’s adoption of communism.

    The conflict was intensified by the opposition of the United States to Cuba’s Agrarian Reform Law, which culminated in the nationalization of American properties on the island, although not without plans for compensation. The conflict escalated, leading to the reduction of the US sugar purchase from Cuba. The final blow was the Cuban defeat of the American Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba in 1961. Its hidden agenda of changing the regime in Cuba had failed. The US government retaliated with an embargo on trade with Cuba as well as the support of terrorist activities against the Cuban government.

    Although the Cuban action was later validated by the Declaration on the Establishment of a New International Economic Order, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on May 1, 1974, which grants nation-states the power to exercise sovereignty over their natural resources, the United States continued with its policy of hostility toward Cuba.

    Yet, the phantom of communism used as excuse by the United States is no longer relevant. The Cold War had ended. The Soviet Union no longer exists. Its subsidy to Cuba had stopped. And the United States has normalized relations with the new nations of the old Soviet Union, particularly Russia. Yet, American hostility toward Cuba continues to this day.

    True, the 44th President of the United States, Barrack Obama, attempted to normalize relations with Cuba, including a presidential visit to the island, but the hostility resumed and even reached unprecedented heights during the administration of the 45th President, Donald J. Trump. More than ever before, Trump imposed total blockade against Cuba across the board.

    This was particularly evident in a recent 56-page report reviewed by the Ambassador of Cuba to Nigeria, Clara M. Pulido-Escandell, during the press conference. She went through the nature, extent, and effects of the blockade on Cuba’s economic and social development. The report, which focused on just one year (April 2019 to March 2020), formed the theme of the press conference and kept the press spell-bound in awe of the devastating effects of the blockade on every aspect of Cuban national life.

    Particularly affected are major production and service sectors of the Cuban economy, including the importation of fuel and other oil products; the construction sector; energy and mining sector; the transportation sector; the biopharmaceutical industry; tourism; and the communications and information technology sector.

    Equally adversely affected are the most vulnerable social protection sectors, including the health sector; food and agriculture sector; and education, sports and culture.

    Not done, the United States also imposed blockade on the external sector of the Cuban economy, notably, financial and banking sectors, including a ban on the use of the US dollar; ban on the use of courier services; and ban on the use of money transfer services, such as Western Union.

    As the Ambassador pointed out during the press conference, the effects of the blockade on Cuban lives and livelihoods cannot be overestimated. In financial terms alone, it is estimated that the accumulated economic damage over six decades of blockade is in the region of USD 1,098,008,000,000. The blockade constitutes to hinder the implementation of Cuba’s National Economic and Social Development Plan and the attainment of the 2030 agenda of the Sustainable Development Goals.

    It is difficult to estimate the human costs of the blockade, especially in this age of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the exchange of medical workers, and protective equipment, and drugs is sorely needed. Clearly, the blockade has imposed a major obstacle to the wellbeing of the Cuban people at home and to many others around the world, by reducing the government’s ability to provide adequate social protection for its citizens at home and by cutting off Cuba’s export of medical doctors and pharmaceutical products.

    The continued intensity of the American hostility toward Cuba has not gone unnoticed by the international community. On 28 occasions, the United Nations General Assembly reiterated its resolution, calling for the “Necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the Government of the United States of America against Cuba”.

    Similarly, various regional and sub-regional organizations have condemned the American blockade on Cuba, including the African Union; the Community of Caribbean States; the Association of Southeast Asian Nations; the Organization of Islamic Conference; the Group of 77 plus China; and the Non-Aligned Movement.

    Even within the United States, various individuals, groups, organizations, and even members of Congress have condemned the American hostility toward Cuba and called for the lifting of the blockade. Hopefully, the humane administration of the 46th President, Joseph R. Biden, will accede to the numerous entreaties.

    Remarkably, Cuba has struggled to hold its own. It is about time for Nigeria to step up its support for Cuba. One way of doing it is to partner with Cuba in the biotechnology and biopharmaceutical sectors. For example, one of Cuba’s strengths in these sectors is its experience in the production of vaccines. Its homegrown Soberana 02 vaccine to combat COVID-19 has now reached an advanced stage, with many countries now trying to pre-order doses for their populations. Cuba’s door is still open for partnership with Nigeria on its production, and the opportunity should not be missed.

     

  • The fish stinks first at the head

    The fish stinks first at the head

    By Niyi Akinnaso

     

    This old saying, traced to the Turkish poet, Rumi, in one of the six books of poetry he wrote in the 13th century, now has numerous variations, notably, “The fish stinks from the head” and “The fish rots from the head”. Taken literally, only the first of these variations is true of the fish. Usually, the fish first rots from the guts. However, the stink often comes out of the head unless the fish is perforated at the belly.

    Commentaries indicate that the original Turkish usage was a metaphor of responsibility. That is, it was another way of saying, “The buck stops at the desk of the leader of a family, an organization, a corporate body, a state or nation.” No matter where the rot begins, its genesis is often blamed on poor leadership and it is the leader’s duty to fix the problem.

    Perhaps no metaphor is more applicable to Nigeria at this time than that of the stinking fish head. Come to think of it. Nigeria is a very big fish, the biggest in the whole of Africa. Its stench is, therefore, more noticeable, not only to Nigerians and fellow Africans, but also to global observers.

    At no time in Nigerian history is the domestic outcry against the stench louder than it has been in the last couple of years. The outcry is now approaching a crescendo. But where is the stench coming from? From all parts of the nation-fish. If we liken the various sectors of national life to the body and the entire entrails of the fish, what we get is an offensive stench.

    The rot is noticeable in the national economy. There is hunger all over the land. Commodity prices have risen sharply. Not only for food and regular consumables but also for basic utilities, especially electricity bills. The pump price of petrol has increased. The Naira has fallen sharply in value.

    True, the situation has been worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the inflation rate has been steadily increasing over the last five years, driven largely by sharp rises in food and consumable costs. The falling value of the Naira and poor leadership are the chief drivers of the current inflation rate. Yet, no clear path to post COVID-19 economic recovery has been provided. Therefore, there are no indications whatsoever that a better tomorrow lies ahead.

    The education sector has been at a virtual standstill due partly to the COVID-19 pandemic and partly to the government’s failure to fulfill its agreement with the university unions. The attempt to provide online learning at the primary and secondary levels exist only on paper. In practice, neither the schools nor the students have the necessary facilities and training for online learning. It is not surprising, therefore, that only 39.82 percent of the candidates passed at credit level in five subjects, including English and Mathematics.

    The shortcomings in the nation’s healthcare system were vividly demonstrated by massive shortages of necessary equipment and facilities to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. At the beginning, there were only a handful of laboratories where PCR tests could be conducted. Thanks to domestic and international donations, more and more labs were built as the pandemic spread across the nation. But the focus on the killer virus has accentuated the neglect of previously inadequate facilities for other diseases. The result is a further breakdown of the existing facilities.

    Perhaps no sector has attracted more attention lately than the security sector, worsened recently by marauding killer herdsmen and widespread banditry. The herders not only encroach on farmlands and other private property, they maim, rape, kidnap, and kill. And without repercussion.

    In the absence of a coherent solution to the problem from the leadership at the centre, victims and their leaders have begun to resort to self-help. No father will fold his arms when an intruder shows up on his compound, threatening the inmates lives and livelihoods.

    Thus, in Ondo state, Governor Rotimi Akeredolu took a firm position against herdsmen, who encroach of the state’s forest reserves. They either register and obtain a license to operate or they will be prosecuted.

    A group of youths in Ogun state borrowed a leaf from the Ondo Governor by issuing a seven-day ultimatum to cattle herders in Yewa North Local Government Area, following fatal clashes between the herders and local farmers.

    In Oyo state, we saw Sunday Igboho rise up to fill the void left by the Governor of the state, Seyi Makinde, whose approach to the herdsmen’s atrocities was considered too conciliatory and at the expense of his subjects. Makinde’s inadequate action eventually led to the grave consequences witnessed in Shasha market in Ibadan last week. There were at least 20 casualties and hundreds injured or displaced.

    In all three cases, it took joint meetings between a group of Northern Governors and the host Governor to deescalate the conflicts at least temporarily. Till date, President Muhammadu Buhari has neither visited the affected states nor condemned the killer herdsmen.

    It can be deduced from the above why Nigeria, as the metaphorical fish, is rotting away. Unlike a literal fish, however, the leadership has a role to play in healing the rot of metaphorical fish. Unfortunately, the leadership has failed. Rather than stand up to the killer herdsmen, the presidency, many a Northern leader, including some Governors, and the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria have chosen to ethnicise the problem, by siding with, or seeking to protect, the herdsmen.

    The rot of the fish and its stinking head did not escape global scrutiny. That’s why Nigeria ranks low on all recent global indices of evaluation. On the Corruption Perception Index, Nigeria scored 25 out of 100, ranking 149  out of 180 countries ranked.

    Similarly, Nigeria emerged as the 14th most fragile country in the world after countries were assessed on 13 factors, including economy, security, group grievance, elite cohesion, and demographic pressures.

    Moreover, Nigeria’s Human Development Index now stands at 0.534, with an average life expectancy of 54.81 years. The likelihood of dying relatively young is very high indeed, if you live in Nigeria!

    In view of the foregoing analysis, many Nigerians are now asking if they even have a President. A President, who cares about them, if not for them.

  • Vaccine nationalism

    Vaccine nationalism

    By

     

    Of the new faddish terms associated with the mitigation and treatment of COVID-19, such as “social distancing”, “plateauing”, “second wave”, “spike”, and, most recently, “vaccine nationalism”, none seems to carry as much semantic load as vaccine nationalism, because of its connotations and implications.

    On the surface, vaccine nationalism is a me-first approach to the procurement of available COVID-19 vaccines by richer nations, while poorer nations are left in the cold. Not only have richer nations hoarded the technology and key components of vaccine production, they also have pushed for first access to a supply of available vaccines, by procuring doses of the most promising vaccine candidates even before they had completed clinical trials.

    By mid-August 2020, according to a report in the journal Nature in that month, wealthy nations had pre-ordered over 2 billion doses of six vaccines in development. The United States alone had secured 800 million doses of at least 6 vaccines, with an option to purchase about one billion more. The United Kingdom had purchased 340 million doses, about five doses for each citizen. Japan, Israel, and the European Union nations also had locked down hundreds of millions of doses of vaccines for their populations.

    That’s why by the middle of January, 2021, it was reported that 39 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine had been administered in wealthier nations, compared to just 25 doses across all poor countries in the world (The Guardian (London) February 3, 2021). By February 9, 2021, over 134 million doses had been administered in 73 countries, about 45 million in the United States alone.

    No doses were administered in all of Africa, except a few hundreds in Egypt, Morocco, and Guinea. South Africa, which had ordered one million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, could have been the fourth country but it suspended its vaccination campaign after a new study revealed that the AstraZeneca vaccine is less effective against a variant of the virus found in the country.

    From the foregoing, it is clear that Africa is the biggest victim of vaccine nationalism. The World Health Organization and the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization anticipated this problem. That’s why they both joined hands with the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, set up by the WHO, to negotiate with various vaccine manufacturers for the supply of COVID-19 vaccines to poorer nations. The ultimate goal is the facilitate equitable distribution of the vaccines across nations. This initiative is what has come to be known as COVAX.

    It is this noble goal that richer nations have sought to thwart with vaccine nationalism, a self-centered approach anchored on the hoarding of vaccines for their own populations. The initiative has been condemned worldwide as a morally bankrupt approach to the COVID-19 pandemic.

    This condemnation stems from the idea that the world has become a global village. What happens to any member of this village has potential ripple effects on other members. This is particularly true of a global pandemic, such as COVID-19. The proof is in the speed with which the virus travelled with airplane passengers from China to the rest of the world (see Jin Wu, Weiyi Cai, Derek Watkins and James Glanz, How the Virus Got Out, The New York Times, March 22, 2020).

    Although, under the COVAX initiative, WHO, GAVI, and CEPI have succeeded in acquiring a proportion of the vaccines to distribute to about 140 relatively poorer nations, none of these nations is ever going to have enough. It is, therefore, left to each nation to purchase as much more vaccines as it could afford.

    As part of efforts to make for the shortfall, the African Union also set up the African Vaccine Acquisition Task Team. Assuming Nigeria is able to secure the 16 million vaccine doses promised by COVAX and the 42 million doses expected from AVATT, only 29 million citizens will be vaccinated at 2 doses each. That will still be less than 15 percent of a population of over 200 million and a far cry from the 75 percent needed for a reasonable degree of herd immunity against the virus.

    It is unfortunate that Nigeria has put itself in this position. However, it is still not too late to fill this gap. The answer lies in an alliance with Cuba for a joint production of Soberena vaccine as I advocated last week (Why Nigeria should invest in Soberena vaccine against COVID-19, The Nation, February 3, 2021).

    Cuba, readers will recall, is one nation which decided early that it will never go bowl in hand to any Western nation to beg for alms. It developed one of the planned economies in the world and invested heavily in education, healthcare, and in medical and biotech facilities. It began its own COVID-19 vaccine production, not just one but four candidates. The most advanced of them is Soberana 02, now in the last phase of clinical trial.

    With its own vaccine production, Cuba has been able to turn vaccine nationalism by wealthier countries on its head. However, rather than engage in vaccine nationalism of its own, Cuba is taking two steps. First, it is committed to the production of at least 100 million vaccine doses on completion of trial in March. This immediately leaves an excess of about 80 million doses after vaccinating all its citizens.

    Second, Cuba is seeking partnership with willing nations interested in local production in order to ramp up production and help others. This is Cuba’s way of filling the moral gap left by wealthier nations hoarding COVID-19 vaccines.

    Again, I urge appropriate Nigerian authorities to take another look at the Cuban effort and consider partnership. It will not only provide enough vaccines for the Nigerian population, it will also provide a lasting facility for vaccine production as well as appropriate training. It could well be the beginning of a long-lasting relationship with mutual rewards.

  • Why Nigeria should invest in Soberena vaccine against COVID-19

    Why Nigeria should invest in Soberena vaccine against COVID-19

    By  Niyi Akinnaso

     

    Soberana 02 is the name given to the most advanced of four vaccine candidates against COVID-19, being developed by the small island nation of Cuba. The other three are Soberana 01, Abdala and Mambis. Having followed the development of Soberana 02 from inception, I have no hesitation in recommending it to the Nigerian Center for Disease Control; the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control; and the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 for serious consideration. But before you take your eyes off this page, please follow this brief introduction into Cuba.

    Cuba is a small country, consisting of the island of Cuba and several minor archipelagoes. As of 2020, its population is just over 11 million people, less than the population of Lagos metropolis. It is a Socialist Republic alright, but it is one of the most influential states of the Caribbean region. You don’t have to love or hate communism to appreciate Cuba’s social, economic, educational, and, especially, medical and pharmaceutical strides.

    Cuba is endowed with numerous natural resources, including petroleum, and cash crops, including sugar, citrus, coffee, tobacco, and livestock. Its land is very arable and the country is heavily industrialized. What is more, Cuba has one of the highest literacy rates in the world at 99.8 percent. While Nigeria ranks near the bottom pile in the recent Human Development Index at 0.534, Cuba ranks high at 0.778, higher than any African country and higher than other countries in its region.

    Cuba did not come about this achievement by accident. It invested heavily  in human capital development, as illustrated in its high literacy, and social welfare. Moreover, it deployed huge investment to its medical and pharmaceutical industries.

    Slammed by total embargo by the United States government ever since the project to dislodge Fidel Castro was established in 1962, Cuba has had to find its own remedies. It quickly looked inward and began to build its own medical and pharmaceutical industries, in addition to developing its own economy to self-sufficiency levels.

    In no time, Cuba emerged as the only country in South America and the Caribbean region to be medically and pharmaceutically self-sufficient and to even supply other countries in the region as well as in Latin America, Asia and Africa. Cuba’s advances in medical and biotech research attracted the attention of the famous American documentary film maker, Michael Moore, two decades ago. In a riveting documentary in 2007, titled Sicko, Moore compared the American and Cuban healthcare systems and gave Cuba the nod.

    Cuba’s health policy emphasizes prevention and primary care as well as robust citizen participation. The result is the total elimination of polio, tuberculosis, typhoid fever, diphtheria, and many other communicable diseases still afflicting African countries, including Nigeria.

    Of particular interest to me now is the attention Cuba has been paying to the development of vaccines, which led to the establishment of the Finlay Vaccine Institute, which has been in the forefront of its vaccine development in recent years. The communicable diseases listed above were eliminated with homegrown vaccines. Here’s how José Moya, local representative of the World Health Organization, put it recently: “Cuba has more than 30 years’ experience in producing its own vaccines and almost 80% of the vaccines in the national immunisation programme are produced in the country”.

    Against the above backgrounds, Cuba’s investment in vaccines to inoculate against COVID-19 is not surprising. Its leading vaccine candidate, Sovereign 02, is now in Phase 2B, after recording huge success at Phase 1 clinical trial, when early immune response was recorded at just 14 days of trial. What is unique about the Cuban vaccine is that, unlike others which rely on the live virus or Messenger RNA to induce immune response, Soberana 02 only uses part of the virus. Its placement in the body generates immune response, without causing major reactions. Therefore, it does not require extra refrigeration, like other vaccine candidates.

    The plan is to move the vaccine trial to Phase 3 with 150,000 volunteers in March. This will be the last phase before drug registration. Right now, Cuba is looking for partnerships not only in the trials but also in joint production of the vaccine in the coming months. Partner or no partner, Cuba’s plan is to produce at least 100 million doses of the vaccine this year and many more later. The figure can be ramped up with partnerships.

    Already, several countries have expressed interest in acquiring the vaccine. They include Vietnam, Iran and Venezuela as well as countries with Cuba has collaboration agreements, including Pakistan and India. So far, however, only Iran has signed a partnership agreement with Cuba for joint production of the vaccine. According to the Iranian Health Ministry spokesperson, 50,000 volunteers would be recruited to carry out the Phase III clinical trials in Iran. However, technology transfer and joint production were preconditions for allowing human testing in the country.

    Nigeria’s partnership with Cuba in this instance has three major advantages. First, it is much cheaper than investing about N400 billion in Western commercial vaccines to meet the shortfall in the free COVAX vaccine supply.

    Second, since Cuba is ready to produce the vaccine locally in Nigeria, the impact on reviving Nigeria’s moribund vaccine production facility and on human capacity development cannot be overestimated. It could well be the establishment of a long-lasting vaccine institute of international standards.

    Third, in addition to cementing South-South collaboration, such a partnership is sure to reinforce Nigeria’s international status and begin to wean the country from Western grips.

    Fourth, there is a high symbolic value to Nigeria’s collaboration with Cuba. Here is a country with deep African roots, where cultural practices of African, indeed Nigerian, origins have survived for centuries. This is not surprising, given the high number of about 800,000 African slaves shipped to Cuba, twice as many as those shipped to the United States. Today, Blacks account for at least 10 percent of the overall Cuban population, while those of mixed blood account for about 27 percent.

    For Cuba, the development of Soberana 02 to combat COVID-19 is a matter of sovereign pride. Indeed, that is why the vaccine is named Soberana in the first place. Soberana is Spanish for “Sovereign”. Iran’s partnership is also viewed by Iranians as a matter of self pride for their country. It could also be so for Nigeria and Nigerians.

     

  • Akeredolu and security in Ondo forests

    Akeredolu and security in Ondo forests

    By Niyi Akinnaso

    Anyone who does not know that, in addition to Boko Haram insurgents, kidnappers, armed robbers, rustlers, and, yes, herdsmen have contributed immensely to insecurity in Nigeria is either deceitful or lives in a bubble, where he or she is screened away from reality.

    Similarly, any Nigerian living in Nigeria should have known by now that the distinction between these categories of molesters of lives and deprivers of livelihoods has become blurry, partly because they are all armed and partly because they operate in similar ways. Besides, the effects of their operations on lives and livelihood are about the same. As a shorthand, I will henceforth use the term bandits to cover these categories.

    Given the high profile operations of these bandits in Ondo state since the kidnapping of Chief Olu Falae and the destruction of his farm multiple times, it is more than baffling that anyone would blame any Governor, who operates within extant laws, for taking necessary steps to defend the lives and livelihoods of the people in his or her state.

    For a brief illustration, let me recall the killings by bandits at various times within the past eighteen months of (1) Oba Adegoke Adeusi, the Olufon of Ifon, a first class traditional ruler in the state; (2) Mrs. Funke Olakunrin, the daughter of Chief Reuben Fasoranti, the leader of the Yoruba sociocultural group; (3) Professor Gideon Okedayo, Professor of Mathematics and Acting Dean of the School of Post Graduate Studies at the Olusegun Agagu University of Science and Technology; and, very recently, (4) Dr. Amos Arijesuyo, a Deputy Registrar and Head of the Guidance and Counseling Unit at the Federal University of Technology, Akure.

    As these killings were going on, major roads and expressways across Ondo state became increasingly dangerous-Sagamu-Ore road; Ore-Benin road; Ore-Ondo-Akure road; Ilesa-Akure road; Ikare-Owo road, Owo-Akure road; and Owo-Benin road, to name a few.

    On top of insecurity on the roadways, farmlands and forests became more and more insecure. Even unfenced compounds in cities were turned into grazing areas for herdsmen. The increasing incursion of herdsmen into people’s compounds, farmlands, and, especially, regulated forest reserves became a serious cause for concern. The sheer size of the reserve poses problems for supervision and patrol, which is why Governor Rotimi Akeredolu ensured that farmers and loggers in the reserve were duly registered. It is within this context that Governor Akeredolu mandated those who wished to carry on with their cattle-rearing business to register with appropriate authorities within the next seven days or risk evacuation from the forest.

    Against the above backgrounds, it is unfortunate that Governor Akeredolu’s instruction generated controversy. In order to fully grasp the furor that followed his instruction, it is important to probe into why the controversy occurred at all. There are three major reasons.

    First, the press was not helpful in reporting what Akeredolu said. Nor did anyone probe into the underlying reasons for the position he took. Rather, many reporters went for sensational headlines and inflammatory reportage, focusing on the ultimatum rather the substance of the order.

    Second, rather than seek clarification, the presidency, or at least its media department, inflamed matters by tilting its statement in defence of the herdsmen. For example, it was  Garba Shehu, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, who brought “language”, “ethnicity”, “geographical origins”, “religion”, and “language” into the discourse and implied that Governor Akeredolu might be unilaterally “ousting” herders from his state. Again, in reporting the statement by Shehu, the press focused on the implied negativity of his statement than on reporting Shehu’s attempt at a middle-of-the-road position.

    While many observers were surprised at the presidency’s immediate reaction to Governor Akeredolu’s statement, I was not, because it has become standard practice for this presidency to sprint to the press, either in self defence, in defence of sacred cows, or in defence of its nebulous position that the unity of the country is non-negotiable. With regard to herders, we have seen the presidency time and again drag its feet on matters affecting herders, even where it was clear that some of them committed criminal acts.

    Third, the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) understandably rose in defence of the herders. They acted more in reaction to press reports than to the substance of Governor Akeredolu’s statement. Understandably, the MACBAN would privilege herders over other groups in defence of their business.

    It is refreshing that, at the end of the day, when delegates of the Governors Forum, including the Governors of the tri-state area of Ondo, Ekiti, and Osun, met with delegates of MACBAN the other day, it became clear that the controversy was unnecessary after Both parties agreed that illegal occupation of the state’s forest reserve should be condemned and banned. In addition, night and underage herding were banned across the Southwest.

    Nevertheless, the controversy was useful as it allows for clarification of Governor Akeredolu’s statement and for expert opinion on the legality of his order to the herders (see especially Festus Ogun’s “Akeredolu’s vacation order to herdsmen is legal and constitutional”, The Guardian, January 26, 2021).

    The controversy also allowed Nigerians to appreciate the support for Governor Akeredolu’s order in the South, especially the Southwest. True, Governor Akeredolu was sometimes an outlier on some issues, but the people of Ondo state in particular and the Southwest in general stood with him on this one.

    There is also a lesson for state executives in communicating with the public and with our run-quickly-to-the-press reporters. Matters that have serious policy implications should not be presented casually or without sufficient preamble that would contextualize the policy. Governor Akeredolu had enough background to share with the press and the public when he gave the order for the herders to register like other users before using the forest reserve. He should have done so.

    Nevertheless, the focus on the forest reserve should not take the focus away from general insecurity in the state as indicated at the beginning of this article. It is heartening to note that Governor Akeredolu has begun to cast a wider net beyond the forests, by beefing up security measures across the state.

  • IVERMECTIN: The wonder anti-COVID-19 drug

    IVERMECTIN: The wonder anti-COVID-19 drug

    By Niyi Akinnaso

    If you are a regular reader of this column, you are most likely to believe that COVID-19 exists, infects, and kills people. But you may not know how devastating it has been for the world population. Specifically, as of 4:00pm on January 19, 2021, it has infected over 96 million and killed over 2 million worldwide. Here in Nigeria, it has infected over 112,000 and killed at least 1,449. Note that these are only reported cases locally and globally.

    Furthermore, if you are still under the impression that there is no cure for COVID-19, then please read further about a cheap drug that has now been found to be very effective against COVID-19, either as a prophylaxis to prevent infection from taking hold or as treatment after infection. The drug is Ivermectin, which is available as a generic drug or under the brand name Stromectol.

    This drug has been around since the 1980s. It was originally used mainly in creams and lotions to treat lice. A tablet form was later produced to treat parasitic infections of the intestinal tract, skin, and eyes. It later became a cure for roundworm infection and second-line treatment for scabies and rosacea, a skin condition that results in redness and causes pus-filled bumps on the face. Finally, it was also found to be a cure for onchocerciasis, also known as river blindness, caused by insect vectors, especially black flies, that breed in water.

    What is particularly interesting about this drug is that at least 90 percent of the parasitic infections it was designed to cure were prevalent in Africa. The drug was found to be so effective against these infections that it even eradicated them and related infections. The drug is so cheap that it was even distributed free of charge in many African countries, including Nigeria.

    As the world struggles to find a cure to COVID-19, a group of Australian researchers went to work on Ivermectin, only to discover in various experiments that it inhibited the replication of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The finding led to more research in human populations. Altogether, at least 27 studies have been conducted in numerous countries, including Argentina, Bangladesh, Egypt, India, Iran, Pakistan, Spain, and the USA.

    The findings show that Ivermectin substantially reduces the risk of death from COVID-19 by between 65% and 92%, depending on the severity of the case before the commencement of Ivermectin medication. Some of the studies show that death even could be completely averted, if the drug was promptly administered in the early stages of infection. Even more importantly, Ivermectin was found to be more effective than monoclonal antibodies and convalescent plasma, both of which are widely used in the treatment of COVID-19 in the United States.

    Similarly, when Ivermectin is used as prophylaxis, it substantially reduces COVID-19 infections, by as much 90% or higher! This puts Ivermectin in the same class or higher than available vaccines. When both are compared, it makes sense to invest in Ivermectin, which costs next to nothing, rather than in vaccines with their prohibitive costs and availability problems.

    Even more worrisome is the efficacy of available vaccines on the Nigerian population, especially since Nigeria was not a participant in any of the test phases of the vaccines. By contrast, many Nigerians have used Ivermectin one way or the other in cream, lotion, or tablet form in the past. Moreover, unlike vaccines, Ivermectin is globally available, low cost, and needs no special shipping or handling. Finally, unlike vaccines, whose tolerance has not been tested on the Nigerian population, Ivermectin is well tolerated.

    Unfortunately, however, the drug has suffered ignoble delay in recognition, especially in the United States, despite its long-standing approval by the Food and Drug Administration (the equivalent of our NAFDAC). There are two major reasons for this delay. One has to do with the conflict between the political and scientific communities in the United States as a result of the obstinacy of the outgoing American President, Donald Trump, and his demonstrated disregard for science and scientists. This is evident, for example, in his handling of COVID-19 and climate change.

    Another reason for the delayed response to Ivermectin is the early huge investment in COVID-19 vaccine by major Western and Asian countries, especially the United States, the UK, and China. Clearly, these investors would like to recoup their capital by selling the vaccines to other countries. As a result, they have remained tone-deaf to pharmaceutical remedies for COVID-19 or at least relegated them to the background.

    Recently, however, on January 14, 2021, the National Institute of Health in the United States approved the inclusion of Ivermectin as an option for use in COVID-19. This followed powerful and convincing presentations by Front Line COVID-19 Critical Care Alliance (FLCCC), which detailed the efficacy of Ivermectin in the prevention and treatment of COVID-19 to two relevant and powerful Committees in the United States.

    One was the American Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, which held a hearing on “Early Outpatient Treatment: An Essential Part of a COVID-19 Solution” on December 8, 2020.  The other was to the National Institute of Health (NIH) Treatment Guidelines Panel on COVID-19 on January 6, 2021.

    Fortunately, there is now a group of researchers in Nigeria, led by Professor Femi Babalola, the Principal Investigator of the IVERCOVID study, whose whose purpose is to conduct a double blind randomized clinical trial to assess not just the efficacy but also the safety of Ivermectin in the prevention and treatment of COVID-19 in Nigeria. The trial may also be able to provide useful guidelines for the dosage of the drug for prophylaxis and for treatment of COVID-19 as there are no such guidelines at the moment.

    This trial is now very urgent in view of the ongoing spike of infections in the country. It has cleared NAFDAC approval and given a nod by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19. It will be a great shame indeed, if the study were to suffer from lack of funding.

    For those, who are already taking the drug in Nigeria, it is best taken on an empty stomach about an hour before food. Finally, patients of asthma and liver condition should consult their doctors before taking it.

  • Oyewusi Ibidapo-Obe (1949-2021)

    Oyewusi Ibidapo-Obe (1949-2021)

    By Niyi Akinnaso

    It is very difficult for me to say goodbye to Oyewusi Ibidapo Obe just as he entered his first year of retirement. His sudden departure left everyone in shock, especially his family; his friends; the communities of the various universities as well as many industries, organizations, and professional bodies he served meritoriously at various times.

    By the time he bowed out on Sunday, January 3, 2021, Ibidapo-Obe had worn many hats and warmed many hearts. At least five of the hats stood out. First and foremost, he was an outstanding academic (as student, scholar, researcher, teacher and mentor). He was in flying colours from his first day at the University of Lagos, where he earned his first degree in Mathematics, suma cum laude, by bagging First Class Honours.

    He continued the streak during his postgraduate training at the University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, where he earned a Masters degree in Mathematics, with a minor on Computer Science, and a doctorate degree in Civil Engineering, specialising in Applied Mechanics/Systems. He published widely in learned journals and moved very quickly up the academic ladder, becoming a full Professor within seven years of earning his Ph.D.

    Although his formal academic training climaxed at the University of Waterloo, Ibidapo-Obe continued to rejuvenate his intellect and administrative capacity with new knowledge. At various times, he attended workshops, roundtables, and conferences in elite universities in Europe and the United States, including Oxford University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University.

    Second, he methodically prepared himself as an academic administrator by steadily climbing the administrative ladder as Head of Department, Dean of Faculty, Deputy Vice Chancellor, and Vice Chancellor, all at the University of Lagos. His administrative feat did not go unnoticed. He was again appointed by the Federal Government to be the pioneer Vice Chancellor of the Federal University at Ndufu Alike Ikwo in Ebonyi State.

    He extended the frontiers of academic and administrative excellence with the presidency of the Nigerian Academy of Science and the fellowships of the Academy of Engineering as well as the Nigerian Computer and Mathematical Association of Nigeria. He was also elected Fellow of the African Academy of Science and the World Academy of Science. He was also the Vice President of the Network of African Science Academies.

    Third, Ibidapo-Obe was an industrialist, although he never owned an industrial enterprise. Nevertheless, he sat on various Company Boards, including Zenith Bank and Ikeja Hotels, PLC, which gave him the opportunity to participate in the construction of the Sheraton Hotels in the country. Incidentally, Ibidapo-Obe’s foray into the industry was rooted partly in his early tint as a worker in British Petroleum and in his appointment by the management of the University of Lagos as the pioneer Managing Director of the UNILAG Consult, the university’s consulting firm. By his own admission, “That also brought some excitement about my interaction with the Private Sector. Some of my best friends, who are now directors and chairmen of banks and other organisations, I met them while doing that”.

    What was remarkable about Ibidapo-Obe was his unparalleled ability to promote an effective linkage between town and gown, by bringing the industry to the university and vice versa. This also allowed him to uplift the image of the university like never before.

    Fourth, in the course of forging a link between the university and various companies and industries, Ibidapo-Obe became a prominent socialite, especially in Lagos. As he moved from one social gathering to another, he earned the nickname of the People’s VC, while he was the VC of the University of Lagos.

    However, he did not suddenly become a socialite. He had been so all his life. Indeed, he met his wife, Sola, at a party. And, as fate would have it, his last major public outing was also a party he attended, barely a week before he died. It remains unclear whether or not he contracted the coronavirus at that party.

    Fifth, Ibidapo-Obe was an excellent family man. He loved and was dearly loved by his wife, four children, and many grandchildren. Open and liberal as he was, he was a strict disciplinarian at home. At the end of the day, however, his family was the better for it.

    Ibidapo-Obe was passionate, honest, and forthright about his work and thoughts. I once had a prolonged argument about the idea of federal character, quota system, and zoning, all of which which he vehemently opposed. “Oye”, I said to him, “how do you want to accommodate the multiplicity of nationalities, ethnicities, and religious orientations in the country”? “Egbon”, he responded, “I don’t care. Meritocracy should be the rule”.

    The debate ended when I told him I was not opposed to meritocracy but that it could be applied even within a quota system, that is, within the region, nationality, or ethnicity to which a position was zoned. We both agreed that certain positions, such as Service Chiefs, should be shared across the country, rather than be concentrated in one region.

    Ibidapo-Obe surely left indelible legacies. The world will forever have a share of his intellect, which survives in over 150 publications and the numerous students he mentored in nearly 50 years of academic engagement. He also provided a comprehensive account of his service as Vice Chancellor of the University of Lagos (2000-2007) in a 483-page book, From Excellence to Distinction: The University of Lagos on World Intellectual Map, published by Safari Books).

    I reviewed the book when it was launched and I was looking forward to also reviewing his stewardship at the Federal University in Ebonyi State and his chairmanship of the Technical University in Ibadan. He had informed me about the book midway or so into its writing and advised me to get ready to review it. The book’s working title at that time was The University of the Future. I don’t know whether he completed the book. I do hope, however, that whatever he wrote so far would be published.

    Ever since I knew Oye in the 1960s, he always bubbled with life, bouncing all over the place. His sudden departure due to complications of COVID-19 is yet another lesson to the elite, like every other Nigerian, that immunity against the virus has yet to appear. It still can shoot down anybody. However, it cannot take Oye’s memory and legacies from us.

  • Nigeria not a failed state

    Nigeria not a failed state

    Niyi Akinnaso

     

    HONESTLY, it is beyond me how Nigeria’s political elite, especially politicians in power and those aspiring to grab power from them, interpret information, including critical advice. Ever since the Financial Times used the words “failed state” in its advice last week to the Nigerian leadership to reset priorities in order to avert failure, politicians have been rolling over themselves, either in condemning the FT or in supporting it over its statement on Nigeria.

    Unfortunately, however, neither side appears to have thoroughly grasped the full import of the FT statement. Defenders of the ruling All Progressives Congress have been quick in condemning the FT for describing Nigeria as a failed state. Members of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party quickly jumped on the statement to declare that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC government has failed.

    The truth really is that there is nothing to condemn in what the FT said about Nigeria in the statement, just as there is nothing there to make the opposition trigger-happy against Buhari.

    In fact, the FT does not describe Nigeria as a failed state. Not at all. Beginning with the title of the statement and running into what could be regarded as a subtitle, the focus is on advising the Nigerian government to avert failure.

    Here’s the title of the statement: “Nigeria is at risk of becoming a failed state”. This is not a categorical statement that Nigeria has failed.

    And here’s its subtitle, which appears directly below the title: “With kidnapping and insecurity rife, the government needs to restore trust”. This is an invitation to the government to reset the clock.

    The first half of the piece outlines the risk factors. One is insecurity, typified by kidnapping, banditry, extortion, and topped by the Boko Haram insurgency.

    A second risk factor is poverty. According to the FT, “Nigeria has more poor people, defined as those living on less than $1.90 a day, than any other country, including India”. It then goes on to add that “in non-Covid-19 years, one of every five children in the world out of school lives in Nigeria, many of them girls”. With a population now over 200 million, and “growing at a breakneck 3.2 per cent a year” to double at 400 million by 2050, the poverty and children-out-of-school rates are a ticking time bomb.

    A third risk factor is the economy, which, according to FT, “has stalled since 2015 and real living standards are declining”. It goes further to predict a shrinkage of 4 per cent in the economy after Covid-19 dealt a further blow to oil prices. This is a bad omen for an economy currently propped up by heavy borrowing.

    The second half of the statement, which most politicians have ignored is FT’s recommendations on how to avert failure. First, the FT suggests that the government “desperately needs to put its finances … on a sounder footing”.

    Second, it recommends that the Buhari-led administration must “redouble efforts to get a grip on security”. This has been the persistent cry of the Nigerian mainstream and social media for years, especially since 2014, following the abduction of the Chibok girls.

    Third, the FT advises the government to restore trust in key institutions, especially the judiciary, the security services and the electoral commission, which will preside over the 2023 elections. This recommendation must have been informed by the escalating security problems in the country and the possibility of using the 2023 election as cover to sew chaos.

    Fourth, the FT recommends the “R” and “D” words, but without overtly using them. I mean “restructuring” and “devolution” of powers . Here is how the FT puts it: “A new, slimmed-down state – ideally one with fewer, bankrupt regional assemblies – must concentrate on the basics: security, health, education, power and roads”.

    Finally, the FT draws the government’s attention to the youths. This is necessary because Nigeria has one of the youngest populations, with over 50 percent of the population below the age of 35. With the population doubling by 2050, those born today will only be about 30 years old by then and most of the present political elite, overfed on state resources, would have naturally bowed out.

    This is why the FT emphasises the need to put necessary public goods in place so that Nigeria’s young people can turn the country round. Here, the FT piggybacks its hope on the ray of optimism provided by the broad coalition that found political expression in the #EndSARS protest against police brutality.

    Against the above analysis, I doubt if Nigerian politicians crying foul over the FT statement actually read the statement critically enough. I also doubt if they have been reading Nigerian newspapers in the past five years in which numerous editorials and columns have highlighted even more than what the FT has said. More importantly, I wonder what Nigerian politicians would say when they study the recent report on Nigeria in the 2020 Fragile States Index (formerly Failed States Index).

    After ranking 178 countries on 13 factors, Nigeria emerged as the 14th most fragile country in the world. Nigeria shares this shameful bottom ranking alongside countries, such as Haiti, Burundi, Zimbabwe, and Afghanistan, not far from the bottom five of Yemen, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Whither the Giant of Africa!?

    A brief look at the factors considered shows that this ranking is not a fluke. They are grouped under four major indicators: COHESION (security apparatus, factionalized elite, group grievance); ECONOMY (economic decline, uneven economic development, human flight and brain drain); POLITICAL (state legitimacy, public services, human rights and rule of law); and SOCIAL (demographic pressures, refugees and IDPs, external intervention).

    An objective appraisal of Nigeria on these factors will have a hard time giving Nigeria a pass mark. This, however, does not mean that the country has failed. And it does not mean that the Buhari-led administration is doing nothing. The truth, however, is that the government is not doing enough and it appears overwhelmed.

    Nigeria, and any country in its present situation, can fail, if nothing is done to reverse the present trend. The trend cannot be reversed by word of mouth. Not by TV appearances. Not by rebuttals of the FT statement or the Fragile States Index in newspapers. But by political will, policies, relevant projects, and actionable implementation.

     

  • Lagos: Person of the Year 2020

    Lagos: Person of the Year 2020

    By Niyi Akinnaso

    An enduring tradition was born in 1927, when Time Magazine named Charles Lindbergh as Man of the Year for his historic trans-Atlantic flight in that year. The goal was to feature and profile a person, a group, an idea, or an object that “for better or for worse… has done the most to influence the events of the year”.

    However, it was only twice in its 93-year old history that the Person of the Year was awarded to inanimate objects—The Computer (as the Machine of the Year) in 1982 and The Endangered Earth (as the Planet of the Year) in 1988. I follow this tradition today by naming Lagos as The Mega City of the Year 2020.

    The pre-eminence of Lagos has colonial origins. Following its annexation on August 6, 1861, it was declared a Colony on March 5, 1862. From Lagos, the colonial influence spread across the South, with Lagos as the capital. The Colony and the Southern Protectorate were merged in February 1906. By January 1914, when the Southern and Northern Protectorates were merged, Lagos emerged as the undisputed capital of the Protectorate of Nigeria and carried that status into independence in 1960 and beyond.

    Although Abuja was created as the new Federal Capital Territory in 1976, Lagos did not cease to be the nation’s capital until 1991. Today’s Lagos must be viewed against the backdrop of this rich history, which allows the City to house the first of most structures in the country—City Hall, High Court, Police Headquarters, Airport, Seaport, and so on. The movement of the capital to Abuja notwithstanding, Lagos remains the commercial, media, and social nerve centre of the nation.

    This award is not necessarily for the city’s sprawling and still growing size or its estimated population of between 23 and 25 million. Not for the abundance of options it offers for lodging, dining, shopping, and relaxation. Not even for its notorious traffic congestion that makes it difficult, if not impossible sometimes, to visit two places over five miles apart in the same day. And not for the notorious Area Boys, who claim to own open spaces from inside the overcrowded Ladipo market in Mushin to the beaches of the Atlantic Ocean. And not for the bravery, courage, and persistence of the smart and energetic Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who shouldered the City’s difficulties throughout the year like a giant.

    Rather, the award is for the City’s incorporation of all these characteristics and much more into its role as the epicentre of three major problems, which beset the City in 2020.

    First, as the location of the first and busiest airport in the nation, Lagos became host to the index case of COVID-19 from Italy on February 28, 2020. The early adoption of mitigation measures notwithstanding, the City soon became the epicentre of the pandemic and remains so till today. At the time of writing, Lagos had recorded nearly 27,000 cases, accounting for about 34 percent of the national total, and 236 deaths, representing about 19 per cent of the national total.

    True, Governor Sanwo-Olu exhibited exemplary leadership in leading the state’s COVID-19 team, but the City could not escape its susceptibility to the pandemic, given the various open local markets; the garrulous gatherings at motor parks, and other crowded spaces; the myriad artisans, professing various skills; and the back and forth movement of people from other states and foreign lands. Among these groups are the “no koro” people and those who would wear their masks below the chin. For these and other reasons, COVID-19 found good hosts in Lagos.

    But Sanwo-Olu pushed on, imposing and lifting bans, issuing warnings upon warnings, distributing palliatives, and keeping the people informed. Isolation centres, with adequate bed spaces and necessary equipment sprang up all over the place, even in the middle of a stadium. To prevent running out of bed spaces, some private hospitals were equipped and approved as Isolation Centres. Even those who could isolate at home were assisted in doing so. Lagos soon became the model for combating COVID-19 in the country.

    Just as Sanwo-Olu’s efforts were turning into a huge success story, with infection rates going down significantly, the #EndSARS protests marched in to afflict the otherwise resilient City, occupying primarily Alausa, Lekki Toll Gate, and even express ways. The protests were well organized alright, but motorists suffered because roadways were blocked and businesses suffered because customers could not reach them. Lagos was in the middle of another nightmare.

    Sanwo-Olu stepped in again, mingling with the protesters and listening to their demands. In his T-shirt and boyish look, he could be confused with the protesters. He didn’t mind. They threw things at him. Yet, he trudged the crowd of protesters. He even volunteered to be their messenger, by taking their demands all the way to Abuja. He got a presidential nod for them. But things were about to turn uglier for Lagos.

    A miscue about the timing of the curfew imposed to ward off the continuation of the protest beyond October 20, 2020, led to the early arrival of the military at the Lekki Toll Gate. Although the event of that night remains controversial, its aftermath is not. Lagos was bombarded by hoodlums, miscreants, looters, and all. They burnt structures, looted stores, ruined businesses, killed police officers, and much more.

    Within 48 hours, many notable structures had been destroyed or looted, including the High Court, City Hall, the Palace of the Oba of Lagos, TVC, The Nation newspaper, Lekki Shopping Mall, 84 BRT buses, several bus terminals, LGA Secretariats, and at least 25 police stations.

    Remarkably, within hours, Governor Sanwo-Olu was at it again. He inspected all the sites of destruction and ordered the immediate cleanup of the City. Within days, Lagos opened its eyes again. The Old Fat Lady could not be prevented from singing.

    At the end of the day, having traversed and surmounted the City’s difficulties, Governor Sanwo-Olu became Lagos. Just as the infection rate in the City began to spike on the advent of the second wave of COVID-19, he tested positive for the virus and went into isolation. Like Lagos, he too will soon rise again to share this award with the City he so loves and serves so well.

  • Insecurity and the death of tradition

    Insecurity and the death of tradition

    By Niyi Akinnaso

    Say what you will about the British. They value, respect, and preserve their tradition—the customs, rituals, beliefs, legends, and so on, reproduced from generation to generation by word of mouth and/or written records and by practice. Perhaps the greatest hallmark of the British tradition is the monarchy.

    While some other European nations subdued or wiped off their monarchy, the British retained and glorified theirs. Today, the United Kingdom (Britain, Scotland, Whales, and Northern Island) is governed as a parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy in which the monarch is the Head of State, while the Prime Minister is the Head of Government. Executive power is exercised by the government on behalf, and by the consent, of the monarch.

    Beside the role of the monarchy, another striking feature of British democracy is its unwritten constitution. Yet their democracy is reproduced from time to time without rancour, because, for them, conventions and precepts are as valid as a written constitution. And what is a written constitution anyway, if it is not respected and obeyed?

    Which brings me back home to two major institutions now under assault in Nigeria, namely, the monarchy and the constitution. My focus here is on the monarchy. I will visit the constitution some other day.

    The amalgamation of disparate nationalities with different traditional systems, typified by the kingdoms to the south and the emirates to the north, and the multiplicity of monarchs all over the place made a straightforward constitutional monarchy impossible.

    In their wisdom, the British colonialists established a parliamentary democracy with a President as Head of State and a Prime Minister as Head of Government. They also set up a House of Chiefs which gave the semblance of a role to the monarchs. In addition to being used as instruments of indirect rule, their chief role was to express historical or cultural perspectives on public policies.

    Everything was abandoned when the military took over power in 1966. Today, we have a presidential democracy with a written constitution, which borrowed heavily from the American constitution but skewed in favour of the centre and against true federalism. Today, the constitution exists more in its abuse than in its adoption. But that’s a subject for another day.

    Equally abused is the institution of the monarchy, which has been ravaged in recent years by widespread insecurity. Here, I focus on the denigration of the monarchy by kidnappers, bandits, and other perpetrators of violence.

    The present trend has been going on for quite some time but it reached a symbolic height over a year ago, on Friday, May 3, 2019, when Mallam Musa Umar, the District Head of Daura, the home town of President Muhammadu Buhari, was kidnapped right in front of his own house shortly after returning from the Mosque for evening prayers. Not a few residents of the town thought that the kidnap was staged to ridicule the President. Others thought it was meant to jolt the President into action against widespread insecurity.

    But the warning signs have been all over the place for some time. For example, over a year earlier, in January, 2018, the paramount ruler of Ikulu in Zango-Kataf Local Government Area of the state, Chief Yohanna Kukah, was kidnapped along with his guard right inside his own palace. The traditional ruler is a younger brother to the popular and vocal Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Bishop Mathew Kukah.

    About the same time, the District Head of Fadan Karshi, in Sanga Local Government Area of southern Kaduna State, Bala Makadi, was shot dead in his bedroom. His nephew, Emmanuel Tanko, was also killed by the same gunmen.

    Later in October of 2018, the paramount ruler of the Adara people in Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna state, the Agwom Adara, Maiwada Raphael Galadima, was abducted with his wife. Although his wife was later released, he was killed by the abductors.

    Beyond the symbolism of the kidnap of the Daura District Head in 2019, the year 2020 has turned out to be a bad year for the monarchy in Nigeria. Much earlier in the year, on Tuesday, January 14, 2020, the Emir of Potiskum, Umar Bubaram, was amongst those who sustained severe injuries when gunmen opened fire on commuters along the Kaduna-Zaria Highway. At least 30 people, including four of his drivers, were reportedly killed, while about 100 were feared kidnapped during the attack.

    Now fast forward to the recent case of the invasion of the palace of the Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwanu Akiolu, by looters and bandits in broad daylight on October 21, 2020, following the forceful dispersal of the #EndSARS protesters the previous night. They looted the palace and made away with the Oba’s staff of office. They reportedly were about to set the palace ablaze when the military arrived to whisk the monarch away and the police from Lion Building kept the rampage at bay.

    But by far the most heinous crime against the monarchy was the murder of a first class Oba in Ondo state, the Olufon of lfon, Oba Israel Adewusi, who was returning home from a meeting in Akure, the state capital.

    The above cases indicate more than an assault on private individuals. The kidnapping or killing of monarchs is an assault on whole communities. They also signal the imminent death of tradition in the land as the custodians of culture and tradition are being eliminated before our eyes.

    If this situation does not give the present government cause for serious concern, I really don’t know what else can.