Category: Letters

By Solomon Nmam Okocha

SIR: Before the advent of Governor Nyesom Wike, aside from Trunk B roads that ran through their areas, most communities in Port Harcourt and Obio-Akpor local government areas of Rivers State were groaning under the maniacal burden of inaccessibility. 

For instance, it was a herculean task to navigate through the Rumuokwuta junction on an average day. In fact, it was easier to move from Rumuola (the next town after Rumuokwuta) to Mile One Park, than it was to go from Rumuigbo (some yards away) to Rumuokwuta. 

Meanwhile, the Rumuokwuta junction is one of the link points for the Mgbouba/NTA Road that feeds directly from roads that connect directly to the East West Road. It also connects Diobu and other communities via the Ikwerre Road. 

So why was it left to linger in narrowness all these years? Why was it not given the prominence that it deserves, even with its enormous importance to the state’s economy? Mystery! 

Yes, before Wike, governance in the state was treated like a mysterious phenomenon. Development was mostly on a random basis with no direct impact on the contemporary realities of the people. 

The detachment was palpable, and those who lived around the Rumuokwuta axis hardly felt the presence of government save the unreasonable traffic conditions that greeted them every morning. 

But Wike has saved the day! Today, the movement through Rumuokwuta junction is now within the bounds of reason. The days of hour-long congestion are long gone for good!

The Rumueprikom-born politician has demystified governance to the point of localisation. Through him, the masses are beginning to feel the presence of government like never before — see the people, see the government! 

And trust Wike, the political pacesetter, he ensured that the Rumuokwuta Flyover, which is almost a stone’s throw from his hometown, was commissioned by the President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu — a first of its kind, thereby removing any remaining layer of mysteriousness around the corridors of governance in the state.

• Solomon Nmam Okocha, solomonokocha@gmail.com

By Fredrick Nwabufo

SIR: To suggest that the advancement of any society chiefly hangs on the elements of homogeneity and lateral filial connections is a self-determining fallacy. Nature bubbles in divergence and eclecticism. The beauty and wonders of our world are by the fashioning of heterogeneous intelligence. Man was not made to be culturally, socially, morphologically, and linguistically unipolar.

So, in essence, Nigeria’s multiformity is not the dominating factor for its seeming ungovernability. Rather, it is the abuse and exploitation of differences, abnegation of civic duty, denuded understanding of citizenship, refusal to submit to the collective interest, native nationalism, and the absence of a rallying identity and cause, that are the denominators of Nigeria’s quandary.

Those who say Nigeria needs to splinter according to ethnic determination to achieve unity, peace and progress are ignorant of the complexities of natural design. “Presumed homogeneity” does not guarantee unity, peace, or progress among a people.

In fact, a good number of the world’s most successful countries are so endowed by the nourishment and talents of their diverse population. There is wealth in diversity.

More so, homogeneity does not exist in the true sense of the word among any ethnic classification. For instance, in the south-east, which is wrongly viewed as a homogenous society, there are subgroups and splinter groups within the entity. There are also many varying derivative dialects across communities and towns, some of which native Igbo speakers may not understand.

The variant of Igbo spoken in my native town is different from that spoken in other towns within the same state. There is also no homogeneity in religion. And there have been cases of clashes among communities over differences bordering on politics, land, and other contentions. In fact, my native town and a neighbouring town do not agree. There is still a dispute over land to date.

So, essentially, the argument that a Nigeria carved up along sectional contours will become united and prosperous is a slothful one. It shows a vacancy of thought and reason. Nigeria’s challenge is not its diversity, but the unwillingness of its leaderships and followership to be deliberate citizens.

We are citizens of Nigeria by the fashioning of fate, marriage, or naturalisation. But are we deliberate about our citizenship? Being deliberate citizens implies a commitment to the ethos of the country and a discharge of our responsibility to the fatherland.

The 1999 constitution (as amended) spells out these responsibilities as: “Section 24 (a)

It shall be the duty of every citizen to – (As Nigerians, we owe our country to do the following:) abide by this Constitution, respect its ideals and its institutions, the National Flag, the National Anthem, the National Pledge, and legitimate authorities; (Obey the constitution and respect our national authorities and icons;)

 ”Section 24 (b) help to enhance the power, prestige, and good name of Nigeria, defend Nigeria, and render such national service as may be required; (Promote Nigeria’s reputation and power and defend the country if the need arises;)

 ”Section 24 (c) respect the dignity of other citizens and the rights and legitimate interests of others and live in unity and harmony and in the spirit of common brotherhood; (Live in peace and unity with all others, respecting their own individual rights;)

 ”Section 24 (d) make positive and useful contribution to the advancement, progress, and well-being of the community where he resides; (Support the development of your local community;)

 ”Section 24 (e) render assistance to appropriate and lawful agencies in the maintenance of law and order; and (Help government agencies maintain the law;)

 ”Section 24 (f) declare his income honestly to appropriate and lawful agencies and pay his tax promptly. (Declare and pay the truthful and complete tax on time.)”

 My interest here is in section 24 (b) and (c) which stipulates that as citizens we must promote Nigeria and defend its reputation as well as respect the dignity of other citizens and live in unity and harmony and in the spirit of common brotherhood.

 It takes deliberate citizenship to actuate these ideals. It takes an attuned citizenry to live by the laid downs of our constitution. Clearly, we have been remiss in this regard.

 Nation-building is, by and large, citizens doing the building. There is the place of leadership, but the office of the citizen is a critical trigger for the change we seek. We cannot abandon the responsibility of building Nigeria to anyone.

 Nation-building will not be possible if a number of citizens are largely ignorant or insouciant about their part in solving the puzzle. The leadership can do its bit, but in our pottery wheel lies the greater task of moulding Nigeria the way we want it to be.

• Fredrick Nwabufo, fredricknwabufo@yahoo.com

By Peter Ovie Akus

SIR: The campaign for the creation of special courts to try cases of corruption, drug trafficking and terrorism should move to the incoming 10th National Assembly. It is unfortunate that despite the advocacy by the Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC), Professor Itse Sagay, the 8th and 9th National Assembly failed to do the needful despite the fact that events in the country indicate the need for specialised courts.

Specialised courts will aid accelerated hearing and determination of cases. Today, when people are arrested for corruption and other allied crimes, the cases often drag on for many years during which the defendants will secure bail and roam freely in the society. Some of them attend parties and make posts on social media that portray them living a good life. With the humongous resources at their disposal, and the stalling of the case in court for a long period of time, they can compromise witnesses and other evidence that are necessary for a successful prosecution. This is the reason so many public officials who are arrested by anti-graft agencies often go scot-free because their cases are dismissed on technicalities. If we have a specialised court that disposes of all cases brought before it in 6 months, we can put a stop to this ugly trend.

Judges assigned to specialised courts will acquire the necessary expertise in that field of law. In most western nations, judges do not handle all manner of cases assigned to them. There are judges who specialise in one or more branches of the law. Some of these specialties of the law include crime, divorce, immigration, entertainment, business, civil rights, property etc. The net benefit of having judges who are skilled in handling cases of corruption, drug trafficking and terrorism is that they will be able to easily spot the shenanigans and coverups of those accused of such crimes, thereby making it faster to deliver judgement against them.

The case for specialised courts is obvious considering the challenges these three issues pose to our country. No doubt, corruption has remained a perennial challenge, whether under military or civilian administrations. Currently, Nigeria is ranked 154 out of 180 in the 2021 Corruption Perception Index of Transparency International. Although President Muhammadu Buhari made the anti-graft war a cardinal objective of his administration, the statistics reveal that corruption is actually increasing rather than reducing.

Drug trafficking and abuse of drugs, especially among the youths, is growing at an alarming rate and has become a menace to society. Most of the heinous and gory crimes committed by criminals and terrorists are done under the influence of hard drugs. According to the United Nations Office on Drug and Crimes (UNODC), about 14.4 percent of Nigerians are presently engaged in drug abuse.

The emerging trend of terrorism across the country is indicative that we need specialised courts now more than ever. If terrorists can be tried speedily for their crimes, it would serve as a deterrent to those who might be tempted to toe that line. We have more than enough laws in the statute books that deal with the issue of terrorism but paradoxically very few convicts.

The challenges of modern governance require modern tools. Specialised courts are one of them. Hopefully, the 10th National Assembly would rise to the occasion and ensure a successful passage of the bill creating specialised courts.

• Peter Ovie Akus, akuspeter@gmail.com

By Semiu Okanlawon

When people quit offices, it’s apposite that they reflect on their encounters, experiences, the gains and pains, challenges, and solutions that worked and those that failed while they held sway.

It is generally believed that such detailed accounts help society in multi-dimensional ways, and such authors appear more fulfilled not only with the achievements recorded in those offices, but because of the new insights they have provided which could be of immense help to those coming behind. 

Before I focus on the new book released by former Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Mrs. Hadiza Bala-Usman, ‘Stepping on Toes: My Odyssey at the Nigerian Ports Authority,’ its content and the controversies it is expected to ignite, let me say that post-tenure publications are as old as publishing itself, and that the world is not in short supply of books which leaders, popular and notorious, had blessed the coming generations with, in attempts to give their stewardships.

Now back to Hadiza Bala-Usman’s book. By her pedigree, the former NPA boss isn’t expected to be frivolous. She is believed to be well-honed in the radical creed of her father’s revolutionary fervour; a radical academic and historian who died a fighter for social justice and good governance.

 Of course, the story out there was that Hadiza was booted out over NPA’s non-remittance of about N165bn operating surpluses into the Consolidated Revenue Fund Account of the federation. That sounded a good alibi under an administration that claims to be fighting sleaze. But one would also have expected the investigations to have been much more thorough enough to end on a logical note for the rest of us to know where that money ended up.

But Hadiza claims in her book that the above was mere subterfuge to get rid of her by Amaechi as retaliation for her unyielding stance on some issues bordering on transparency and allied matters. That is what my boss and a leading columnist, Azubuike Ishiekwene, has described as “stepping on the toes of a big man.”

Indeed, one of the aides of the former minister even insinuated that the manuscript of Hadiza’s book was still in the works and that the lines which made their ways into the newsrooms on Tuesday April 11, were haphazardly arranged to meet the particular target of boxing Amaechi in the face as part of the do-me-I-do-you edging and elbowing that are ongoing in the All Progressive Congress (APC), especially as party stalwarts gather for the all-important butchering and sharing of the big booty of the 2023 general elections. 

And why would that surprise anyone following keenly the ‘politricks’ of the APC gladiators as the party winds down President Muhammadu Buhari’s eight years tenure? Didn’t you hear Amaechi’s damning revelation when he said that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, and the police, had conspired against Nigerians, and that Mahmood could not have been an unbiased umpire given the trajectory of his journey to becoming the boss of INEC. 

But Hadiza Bala-Usman’s book and the hoopla it will, no doubt, generate, are not the only intentions of this piece. It is to essay a guess of the shape of things to come post-Muhammadu Buhari administration, given the deals, counter-deals and other under-the-table fixings that are sure to have gone on in the eight years of the administration.

For an administration that rode to office on the credibility of its head’s perceived transparency dossier, should Nigerians expect a post-Buhari era of scandalous revelations, sleazy things where appointees’ hands have been dirtied, with hair-splitting facts? We may be close to a time when damning documents would be released to the public in torrents to show that the anti-corruption mantra has been, after all, a mere facade. 

I have been told that Amaechi has been advised by his lawyers not to respond to Hadiza until he sees the entire publication. It then means that what is to come from the accused either proves Hadiza to be a liar or confirms that Amaechi was on a mission, very ignoble.

Was it not an interesting coincidence that the controversial book hit the town the same week Nigerians were asking questions about how 12 airport fire trucks were procured at the cost of N12bn? Those who have raised the alarm claimed that similar equipment is displayed for far lesser costs in some other places, demanding why Nigeria’s own versions would be this astronomically prohibitive. 

But in what appeared like whipping up sentiments rather than explaining the reasons for the cost, the minister, Hadi Sirika, had launched into lamentations about how the absence of such fire trucks was the reason parents watched their children burn into ashes when the Sosoliso airplane came down in Port Harcourt some years back. I think Mr Sirika needs to face the issues of the figure, and not remind us of the tragedy that claimed those angels in the ill-fated Sosoliso airline crash.   

Will the post-Buhari era tell Nigerians the whole truth, whether Sirika’s ministry’s hands were clean in the fire trucks deal? We wait!

Under some ministers, serving and former heads of parastatals have tales to tell, and there are possibilities of such endless narratives once the supervising ministers are out of their current positions on May 29.

I am aware of a minister who unceremoniously eased out the head of one of the agencies under his supervision over something like Hadiza’s claims in her book. Someday, that agency head, who preferred to leave rather than submit himself to the alleged humiliating experience his minister-boss preferred, would tell Nigerians what truly transpired. 

As a matter of fact, I am aware that the said minister had made attempts to ‘use’ the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Offences Commission (ICPC) to hype some corruption allegations against the said agency head but realised his victim was ready to open to the public and spill everything, forcing the minister to beat a retreat. 

 For instance, what was the true story behind the removal of Damilola Ogunbiyi of the Rural Electrification Agency, and Marilyn Amobi of the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Company, by the Minister of Power, Mr Sale Mamman? 

Many of these removals were carried out without recourse to the Federal Government’s directive on modalities for sanctioning or removing heads of agencies by supervising ministers as laid down.

I recall vividly that the Federal Government had insulated appointees against such arbitrariness with a circular which was made public in 2020. Yet, some of the removals sailed through without consequences. Did President Buhari ask questions when some agency heads were yanked off?

With ‘Stepping on Toes’ by Hadiza Bala-Usman, even in the twilight of the Buhari administration, she may have watered the grounds for the shape of revelations to come any time after May 29. 

• Okanlawon, sokanlawon67@gmail.com 

By Akintayo Balogun

The attempt by the outgoing administration of President Muhammadu Buhari to conduct a last-minute long overdue population census in Nigeria met its Waterloo when the administration was forced to announce an indefinite postponement of the exercise, and a possible conduct of the census by the incoming administration. The census had been fixed for May 3 – 7, 2023, across the 36 states in Nigeria and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). 

Population census, which had been recommended by the United Nations to hold every 10 years, has not been achievable for successive governments in Nigeria. Nigeria, for most of the time, has depended on population estimations to determine its population which currently stands at 220 million based on Worldometer elaboration of the latest United Nations data. 

Knowing the country’s population strength is a fundamental requirement for the running of the government, the determination of economic policies, and the distribution of allocation from the federation account.

Since the inception of Nigeria as an entity, no census result has been entirely acceptable to all the regions of the country. There has always been protest from regions that believe their population was reduced while the population of other regions was inflated.

Although from the sample of the forms that have been in circulation, religion and ethnicity are not issues, there will still be allegations of manipulation of figures in favour of one state, one geo-political zone, one region or the other. 

Talking of the 2023 population census and the resultant postponement, there are notable problems. Firstly, the population census was not met with much enthusiasm by many Nigerians, particularly in the wake of the 2023 general elections that were marred with a series of irregularities, protests, malpractices, killings, snatching of ballot boxes and inflation of results and the resultant deflation in the confidence that Nigerians had reposed in the ability of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to execute free and fair elections.

Is it a country that failed to carry out an election involving registered voters of about 93 million persons, both dead and alive, that now seeks to conduct a population census involving nearly 250 million persons? A higher percentage of Nigerians are not even aware that there is a plan by the Federal Government to conduct a population census of its citizens.

 Secondly, the kind of funds being pumped into the population census is mind-boggling and extremely humongous. It is budgeted that an estimated sum of $1.8 billion would be required to execute the exercise. This is just to count Nigerians? This is absolutely unacceptable and disappointing for a government that came into office on the mantra of fighting corruption and wasteful expenditure of the government. The funds being committed to counting Nigerians can be used to fix the epileptic power sector that has been a thorn in the flesh of Nigerians and a cankerworm to industrial growth in Nigeria. It could have been used to fix every single road in Nigeria. Instead, it is being used to do a population census whose result will not be acceptable to many Nigerians. Why waste so much resources on a futile mission?

Thirdly, it hurts so much that a good chunk of the budgeted sum has been expended for a census that may not hold in the nearest future unless the incoming government shows an interest in the exercise. The National Population Commission (NPC) chairman, Isa-Kwarra, had disclosed to journalists that the commission had yet to get all the devices needed to carry out the census, noting that some devices will be procured in a few days. He stated further that about 800,000 PADs would be needed to execute the exercise, however, about 500,000 PADs have been acquired and the remaining is expected in a few days. Training has been carried out for ad hoc staff in some quarters, and training fees paid as well according to some of the officials of the NPC at state levels. What if the next government has no interest whatsoever in the counting exercise?

Fourthly, the government has failed to deal with some of the problems that have bedevilled Nigeria. Basic amongst them is the issue of insecurity, kidnapping, killings, and wanton destruction of properties. Who will go to volatile regions to do a head count? It is of note that INEC ad hoc officials were kidnapped during the last 2023 general elections. Nothing was done to secure their immediate release by the government, yet the results of elections from these regions were announced. Who wants to embark on a suicide mission? Would they not meet their Waterloo like the 9 innocent health workers who were killed when they went to administer polio vaccines to children? Who would go to some places in the southeast where some agitators have destroyed their Nigerian identities and are now claiming citizenship and allegiance to another? The challenges ahead of any census to be conducted in Nigeria are enormous and dealing with these challenges should have been the priority before considering a leap at the census. 

Fifthly, what happens to the several millions of full-blooded Nigerians based outside the shores of Nigeria? Do they not form part of the exercise? Do they lose their citizenship having been absent in the course of the population census? Are there modalities to have Nigerians outside the shores of Nigeria counted? 

Going by the recent development and the indefinite postponement of the population census in Nigeria, the entire clamour and uproar about the census has turned meaningless and a waste of valuable resources that would have been channeled into a more productive course for Nigeria. The funds already pushed into the exercise are already wasted because any government that wishes to embark on the same process would more or less be starting afresh. 

There are unconfirmed reports that the National Population Commission plans to meet with the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, even before his inauguration to discuss possible new dates for the population and housing census. This will only depend on the interest of the incoming administration in carrying out the said census. In the face of issues bedevilling the nation, from insecurity to high-level inflation that has befallen the nation in recent years, the least of what the incoming government would be expected to embark upon is a population census. 

• Balogun is an Abuja-based lawyer

By Ike Willie-Nwobu

SIR: The recurrent killings of defenceless villagers in Southern Kaduna put a lie to the government’s supposed commitment to the welfare and security of Nigerians.

On Sunday, April 16, 2023, Jacob Kwashi, the Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Zangon Kataf Local Government Area of Kaduna State, had some chilling words for the Nigerian Army, which he accused of bias. Speaking at the funeral of 33 residents who were killed, including a five-year-old boy who was beheaded, the cleric pointed out the stark differences in the response of the Nigerian Army when cattle are killed and when people are killed.

President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Nasir El-Rufai became president and governor of Nigeria and Kaduna State respectively in 2015 amidst high hopes. If both men have achieved anything as to leave any legacy at all, that legacy is one tainted by innocent blood.

That the Federal Government and the Kaduna State government have roundly failed to secure lives and property in an area that has always been a hotspot adds fuel to the fire that there is a conspiracy against the people of the area.

If there isn’t, how is it that people in the same area have continued to be systematically killed with the government doing very little to support or protect them.

The carnage that has become the lot of the good people of the area under the current administration is a danger signal to Nigeria’s unwieldy diversity, a signal the government continues to ignore at its peril.

While the Federal Government and especially the Kaduna State government have assumed a posture of helplessness over the killings, those most affected continue to be roundly ignored and abandoned to their fate.

Whenever anyone has stirred from their slumber to confront the nightmare, it has mostly been with the deployment of the wrong tactics and engagement with the wrong people.

Above all, the government must definitively show that it is not letting out less than what it knows about the killings. Let the government show once and for all that it is sincere about what can only be interpreted as a carefully calibrated attempt to exterminate an entire people.

Let the government show that it is committed to ending the crisis, no matter the heads that will roll. It is only then that it can be taken seriously on its avowed commitment to end the crisis threatening to annihilate an entire region.

• Ike Willie-Nwobu, Abuja