The Nation Newspaper

Category: Letters

  • Goodluck or good judgment?

    SIR: Truth be told, it is not exactly that President Jonathan has not done this or that. I have journeyed Lagos-Ibadan all my life and the roads have been bad for longer than just six years. Now see hands on it. There has been an improvement in power supply and we have come some distance from where we started. There are efforts in agriculture, housing and so on.

    President Jonathan is a nice gentleman under whose administration the parliament is stable. Recent economic rebasing indicates that our GDP has grown significantly in periods including under his administration.

    So why exactly have people lost taste of President Jonathan and are canvassing for him to be sacked ‘prematurely’?

    First, there are some impeachable offences that President Jonathan is seen to have committed in the parliament of the people. The issues are already there in the open: insecurity, corruption and poor economic management.

    Some of us find it difficult to relate directly with the situation in the North East.  The situation is desperate and it only seems to get worse with no help in sight. His failure is so fundamental and I imagine it is why the likes of CNN and others have chosen to wage a war against our President’s handling of the insurgency. This is one of our fears when a ‘nice gentleman’ like Jonathan holds the office of the President.

    Even the President’s most ardent supporters may not be able to defend him on his stance against corruption. The President has serially laundered the images of people who have either been convicted on the grounds of corruption or are found wanting for it. The anti-corruption institutions have not been able to prosecute any politician to a logical conclusion, yet these same politicians are easily convicted outside the shores of this country. The DSS has shamefully turned itself to an arm of Jonathan’s campaign organization. The President has made billionaires of political jobbers and social nuisances who ordinarily have not been known for any business acumen. Crooks are busy feasting off our national resources and he instead mounts the podium to celebrate the number of private jet owners in this same country that doubles as having the poorest in international statistics.

    You erect glorified secondary schools and call them universities. Churn out graduates with little intellectual or employable values who clog our unemployment data without commensurate employment opportunities and you wonder why everyone is against you? The government profiteers gather our money and refuse to create wealth within, divert the fund outside the country and you reel out data on how much wealth you have created that people refuse to see!

    A good sense of judgment is what you either have or do not have; it can hardly be groomed. The President is ultimately responsible for all the actions taken under his government but do you really trust him? Just as in marriage, election is a union between the government and the people because the decision made by government will impact on your life even after the government is no more. Seeing the way he has managed the boom in crude oil price, would you really trust him with your personal finances?

    Even on issues that bother on his own ambition and interest, has he made the right choices? Do you not watch the way they go about the electioneering campaign and wonder whether there are no thoughtful ways of doing same? Would you pick a tainted Femi Fani-Kayode to run a critical campaign for you if you were the President? Would you play as easily into the hands of the opposition as he has?

     

    • Titi Sanni,

    Eti-Osa, Lagos.

  • Nation at crossroad

    SIR:Most Nigerians are tired of promise and fail since 1999 till date. Lack of electricity is a good example. In 1999, President Olusegun Obasanjo, promised to stabilise Nigeria’s electricity situation in six months. When he was leaving the presidency after eight years in 2007, electricity was worse than he met it. Many Nigerians voted for his re-election in 2003 believing that he would do everything he could not do in his first term.

    Every day on national television (NTA), President Goodluck Jonathan’s ministers are on air to feed Nigerians with falsehood about the administration’s “feats” in “every area of Nigeria’s life”. Let’s take the example of roads. President Jonathan is said to have done, or is working on every crucial road in every part of Nigeria. Hardly can every Nigerian know what is happening in every part of Nigeria. But you can always go from the known to the unknown. I heard on the NTA that Ibadan-Ilorin road has been fixed by President Jonathan. This is false. Obasanjo completed Ibadan-Oyo segment; the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua completed Ogbomoso-Ilorin stretch that could not be finished by Obasanjo, while the old road between Oyo-Ogbomoso along the Ibadan-Ilorin route is still in use. Summarily, most federal roads are still terribly bad.

    Jonathan and PDP have promised and failed, since 1999 till date. President Yar’Adua promised to declare state of emergency on electricity. Again Nigerians believed and voted for Yar’Adua. He failed to declare any state of emergency on electricity after his election. On his own part, Jonathan promised to transform Nigeria in four years, electricity-wise and otherwise. He has been protecting corrupt persons, because they are his friends. Jonathan and his wife’s desperation have found expression in the instruction: “Stone the opposition.”

    Jonathan truncated rotational presidency, and has consistently refused to dialogue with Boko Haram. He has obstinately blocked every avenue to peace, and the Western/Asian predators are encouraging him, so they can sell their weapons. The Army is said to be winning, but Boko Haram is slaughtering and bombing. Should Nigeria continue to dodge dialogue?

     

    • Pius OyeniranAbioje, PhD,

    University of Ilorin.

  • Lost amazons of Chibokland!

    SIR: As the world celebrates great women and the inherent greatness of women as part of the “International Women’s Day”, we can only point to the debris of Chibok Secondary School where the dreams of great womanhood lay burnt  and buried from the fiery-furnace-touch of a meaningless extremism.

    Eleven months after the mindless abduction of more than 200 Chikok school girls, most Nigerians seem to have moved on. After all, shortly after that, our beloved President went dancing in Kano, and many have unashamedly and callously called it a ruse. Amazons like Oby Ezekwesili who have continued to scream for their return have been vilified and demonized. When recently the abduction clocked 300 days, it took the 17 year-old Malala to awaken the conscience of the world (after having awakened our president as to the need to see her parents earlier). I have read many say we should move on, after all, the world has moved on since the mysterious disappearance of victims of M15, the Malaysian airliner which dived to the bottom of the Atlantic and is yet to be seen.

    But how could the world forget? Or, more pointedly, how would History forgive? Forgive for the security that was not provided as constitutionally provided? Forgive the security officials who allegedly put hurdles on the way of their rescue for their own selfish gains? Forgive the moles in the Army which fed information and arms to our enemies? Forgive, again, the President who, even after so many missteps in the response (like most other things), rebuffed an offer by former President Olusegun Obasanjo who reportedly was to have facilitated the release of 100 of the girls in order to avoid appearing as not ‘being in charge’? How could History forgive this gross injustice against the daughters of peasants who would, who knows, have brought glory to the fatherland, if their dreams were left untampered by the mad extremists, rag-tag extinguishers of destinies?

    And so we see, recently, the government trying to bribe History in advance. They sent Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iwuala to Chibok to lay the foundation for the rebuilding of the damaged school and to meet with parents of the kidnapped girls. Methinks that was nothing but a political exigency at the eve of election which I think means nothing, inspires nothing and leads to nothing other than the need to #BringBackJonathan. No, it has nothing to do with the globally echoed #BringBackOurGirls. How could History forget in a jiffy that President Jonathan never bothered to mention them in his New Year broadcast, went to Maiduguri but did not bother with mentioning them among other mind-boggling indifference on their matters? After all, they are nothing but inconsequential children of equally inconsequential peasants. This visit, compatriots, is all about their 2015 goals; it’s not about our 219 girls.

    Today, the lost amazons of Chibok represents every girl, every woman, every boy abducted, violated and if they ever survive, that would have to live with lifetime scars. They represent the several lost dreams of our land. They represent the many children who are displaced without hope, the many orphaned without comfort. The Chibok girls’ saga reveals so glaringly the progressive loss of our humanity as a nation and the many lives whose issues have become politicized. The Chibok girls saga remains a timeless indictment on our government, on their complete apathy to children’s welfare, rights or safety (just as the stunning response to the brutal killing of young boys at the Buni Yadi school and the ensuring dance party), a stab on the dignity of our women.

    Meanwhile, alas, the dance parties, the apathy and the politicking continues!

     

    • Betty Abah

    Lagos

  • Basket of hope for Nigerians

    SIR: Nigeria is land of unity, opportunities and irrepressible hope, endowed with rich human and natural resources. By nature Nigeria is too integrated to be disunited. Even the great rivers of Benue and Niger understood the efficacy of togetherness hence the Lugardian amalgamation of 1914 was not a mistake since the confluence at Lokoja was never by chance.

    We should no longer concentrate on our differences but should move on and appreciate our similarities. This is not a time for virulent campaigns but a moment of goodwill and selfless service to the nation.

    This is not the time for blind optimism, because politics without principle is like putting vinegar in place of water. This is not a time for religious obsession but a period of sacrifice. Give your country that which you should expect to have as people seldom get results not deserved.

    History is all about the rise or fall of people and their actions. As a result many parties and allied groups have come and gone, yet this is Nigeria.

    Just like every tree is greater than its branches, Nigeria is bigger than every individual or group and will continue to be as strong as bone which remains when all flesh decayed.

    Our founding fathers anchored the foundation of Nigeria on peace, unity and faith but given the present political firmament it is crystal clear that wishful thinking and rhetoric alone would not consolidate the dreams of our fathers.

    Good governance with its attendant social-economic dividends can only be achieved through collective effort; same with security which is everybody’s responsibility. We cannot afford to do nothing as there could be hope of success in our action.

    There is hope that one day Nigerians will have faith in one another and support the best candidate for the job without minding whether he is a Christian or Muslim.

    There is hope that one day the citizens will speak with one voice and make progress. There is hope that one day the monster called state of origin will be erased from the admission forms and files in every Nigerian school and students admitted on merit.

    There is hope that one day Nigeria will be corruption- free and the issue of who gets what determined by national interest and not by tribal consideration. There is hope that one day the doom mongers will turn around and become agents of boon.

    There is hope that one day Nigerians will stand up to let the world know through their cooperation that there is unity in diversity. There is hope that rain will fall again and the seeds shall grow to the benefit of all Nigerians.

    Until that day, keep the hope alive and do not allow your emotion to manipulate your vision. If you want an ideal nation, you must first of all live by example and become the change you so much desired.

    Like water, there is no alternative to home. Nigeria is our native land, let us work together and reclaim our manifest destiny.

     

    • Comrade Chike Oguanya

  • Pohamba shattered the jinx

    SIR: Many of Africa ‘s political analysts had expected the 2015 Mo Ibrahim ‘s prize to go the same way it had gone five years ago. To their utter disappointments, someone was there working unnoticed for it. His name is Hifikepunye Pohamba, the Namibian president.

    In a continent characterized by political highhandedness, criminalization of opposition, enthronement of mediocrity and political impropriety, Pohamba stands out to be a model.

    He broke the four years unclaimed jinx that has griped the prize – the highest leadership  award. His success really  showcased the foundation ‘s rigorous cum value-free processes of selection.

    This feat by Pohamba has shown the speed at which southern African states are racing in the wheels of responsive and people’s oriented government. The three out of four Ibrahim laureate came from SADC states. So what’s the problem with East, West and North Africa? Why is Africa suffering from poverty of leadership?

    Pohamba – though dominant figure in Namibian politics – is relatively unknown outside Namibia. He is not Jacob Zuma that always want to dominate all the issues in Africa or a president of a strong country like Nigeria. He remains himself, a gentle soul – working to better the life of his people.

    ‘During the decade of Hifikepunye Pohamba’s presidency’ -the award citation runs, ‘Namibia ‘s reputation has been cemented as a well governed, stable and inclusive democracy with media freedom and respect for human rights’. Thus the award was really a recognition for a job well done – a thumb up for Mo Ibrahim foundation.

    Of course, the $50million (which is the annual $5m for10 years ) and annual $ 200,000 for life could be unattractive to Nigerian and other African leaders who can make all the money in a day by mere signing of signature. But what they seem to have quickly forgotten is the global respect it places on their reputation.

    Festus Mogae, Pedro Pires because of the award had been and will still be invited to lecture the world on how best to democratize Africa. But who can say the same about Paul Biya of Cameroon, Mugabe of Zimbabwe, Museveni of Uganda, Teodoro Obiang of Equatorial Guinea, Kibaki of Kenya, Obasanjo of Nigeria or even President Goodluck Jonathan?

    The primary aim of Mo Ibrahim prize is to spark up competition among African leaders on who will be top in  the good leadership strata but many of them don’t even notice the prize -little wonder it had gone for four years unclaimed.

    Pohamba and other Mo Ibrahim laureates have tried to answer the question – can any good thing come from African politics?  Let’s pray that the 2016 prize won’t go  unclaimed.

     

    •Asikason Jonathan,

     Lapai, Niger State.

  • Expand Ogbomoso dam

    SIR: In the 1960s pipe borne water was adequately supplied to all the nooks and crannies of Ogbomoso metropolis. Taps were running well. Today, the status of Ogbomoso has changed from what it was in the 1960s. It now has five LGAS, two in the city centre and three in the periphery. Its population has surged. It boasts of a state owned university, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, (LAUTECH) and a host of other privately owned institutions of higher learning.

    Water supply to the city centre is so poor that less than 20% of the inhabitants have access to pipe borne water not to talk of the periphery. Ogbomoso is the second largest city after Ibadan, the capital of Oyo State. Water supply in Ogbomoso began to drop from 1983 when it was alleged that the powerful engine meant for its extension was carted away by unknown people. The situation became worse in the 1990s.

    Asejire water dam is about 25km from Dugbe in Ibadan. Pipe borne water is supplied to Dugbe and the encompassing areas from Asejire. What is good for the goose should be seen to be good for the gender. Water is life. This essential public utility is indeed needed by all the inhabitants of the five Local Government Areas that make up Ogbomoso geo-political zone.  We appeal to the federal and Oyo State governments as well as international bodies to rescue us from water borne diseases by expanding Ogbomoso water dam so that water supply could be extended to about 30km radius. By this, taps will run in towns like Iregba, Iresaadu, Oko, Ajaawa, Odooba, Iwo Ate, Idewure, Dada and others while people’s longevity will be greatly enhanced.

     

    • Adelani Olawuyi

    Odooba – Ogbomoso,

    Oyo State.

  • Boko Haram: Lessons of regional co-operation

    SIR: The regional military co-operation against Boko Haram is a right step in the right direction; it promises to be the last straw that will break the back of the insurgents. With the deadly routing of the insurgents from hitherto occupied territories and villages in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states, it is earnestly hoped that the scourge of this rag-tag group that elected to turn civilisation upside will soon be over.

    The joint military operations have brought to fore the import of regional collaboration in not only managing the savagery and barbarism of Boko Haram but other regional crises. The success recorded in the military campaign and the on-going momentum should be sustained and not allowed to suffer any setback lest the group re-strategise. Officers and men of the Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF) who have placed their lives on the line need our support to regain the lost pride of our region. Boko Haram insurgents are not spirits but human beings living within our communities. It is therefore our duty to report suspected individuals in and around our vicinities to law enforcement agencies.

    That the sect was able to survive and acquire its notoriety was because the environment tended to sustain and accommodate the group’s ideology to the detriment of regional interest. In the words of Franklin Roosevelt, “let us never forget that government is ourselves and not an alien power over us. The ultimate rulers of our democracy are not the president and the senators and the congressmen and government officials, but the voters of this country.”

    However, why these joint measures were not taken in the last six years is disturbing. Could it be blamed on the differences arising from the colonial history on which basis the region has been unfortunately divided? In fact, it calls to question why African nations have thrown away the African renaissance and eventually forgot our well acclaimed culture of good neighbourliness.

    The formation of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in 1975 stemmed from need to promote “…better relations among member nations…by ensuring a stable and secure political environment in which (their) peoples can live in freedom…under the law and in true and lasting peace, free from any threat to or attempt against their security…” With the community threatening to fizzle out of reckoning into apocalyptic doomsday, it remains to be seen how these lofty goals can be accomplished.

    The scourge of Boko Haram has reminded individual countries in the sub-region of the urgent need to once again be each other’s keeper. They should continually rally support and identify with predicaments of neighbouring countries in all circumstances of distress and disaster.

     

    • Sunday Onyemaechi Eze,

  • 10 years of tobacco control: Nigeria fails domestication hurdles

    As the global community marks the tenth anniversary of the World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) Parties are again reminded of their obligation to prioritise health in their national policies through full domestication of the treaty.

    The WHO FCTC is a the product of proven researches which showed that more than 5.4 million people, mostly in developing nations like Nigeria die annually from tobacco smoke. The FCTC is the first international treaty negotiated under the auspices of the WHO. It was adopted by the World Health Assembly on 21 May, 2003 and entered into force on 27 February, 2005. It has since become one of the most rapidly and widely embraced treaties in United Nations history.

    To mark the accomplishments of Parties to the treaty during this decade, on February 27, the WHO Convention Secretariat brought together ministers, ambassadors, representatives of intergovernmental organizations, civil society among others to look at the journey so far and proffer ideas to further scale down the rate of tobacco-related deaths.

    Life-saving provisions of the FCTC which can cut down growing tobacco-induced deaths include price and tax measures, ban on Tobacco Advertising Promotion and Sponsorships (TAPS), provisions of packaging labeling, ban on sale to minors, among others.

    The WHO says that full implementation of the FCTC    will support global commitments to achieving a 25 percent reduction in premature deaths from non-communicable diseases by 2025, including a 30 percent reduction in prevalence of tobacco use in persons aged 15 years and over.

    It is no news that Nigeria is one of the signatories to the treaty. Nigeria signed and ratified the FCTC in 2004 and 2005 respectively As a Party, Nigeria is obligated to domesticate the Treaty and this has come in form of the National Tobacco Control Bill (NTCB) which was passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives in 2011 but unfortunately was not signed into law by the President Goodluck Jonathan.

    In April 2014 was re-packed by the Federal Ministry of Health and submitted to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) which gave its nod to it going forward. Though the repackaged NTCB has passed Second Reading at both Senate and the National Assembly, went for Public Hearing at both Houses, it still staggers on as the life of the seventh National Assembly nears terminus.

    The stagnation of the NTCB at the National Assembly has become very worrisome to public health experts in view of the huge cost on the economy in terms of lives that are lost daily to the tobacco malaise and the health burden the government bears.

    The delay in the passage of the bill will very well suit the tobacco industry which supports “weak legislations” or “no legislation” at all.

    The proposals of British American Tobacco Nigeria (BATN) and groups like the IPPI at the recent Public Hearings organised by the Senate and House of Representatives lend credence to this view.

    At the public hearing organised by the House Committee on Health chaired by Ndudi Elumelu, last year, BATN argued against increased taxes on tobacco products, a recommendation which the FCTC puts forward as a key to cutting back on the number of people who buy cigarettes.

    Interestingly, BATN tries to suggest that increasing taxes will fuel smuggling and puts this forward as the basis of advocating a weak legislation that makes it possible for minors to be able to afford cigarettes.

    The tobacco company and its front groups also wants Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), donations and other initiatives that tend to “induce” the public to be removed from a prohibition list that the FCTC advances. But activists insist that such legislation will only increase the number of smokers and by extension, deaths caused by tobacco products.

    It is in this light that our lawmakers must focus on and draw from what the WHO describes as achievements in the last decade that the 10th year anniversary marks. The WHO says that following the life-saving recommendations of the FCTC, 80% of countries have strengthened their tobacco control legislation since becoming Parties. In like manner, the cost of a packet of cigarettes has, on average, increased by 150% among Parties. Others are:

    – There has been a great increase in the use of graphic health warnings – such warnings cover 75-85% of cigarette packages in many countries and plain packaging initiatives are increasing;

    -Many countries have banned smoking in indoor and outdoor public spaces, which has helped to ensure that smoking is no longer seen as socially acceptable;

    -Some Parties have set the explicit goal of becoming “tobacco free” (with less than 5% prevalence of tobacco use), including Finland, Ireland and New Zealand, and the Pacific Island countries.

    The WHO believes that full implementation of the FCTC would support global commitments to achieving a 25% reduction in premature deaths from non-communicable diseases by 2025, including a 30% reduction in the prevalence of tobacco use in persons aged 15 years and over.

    For Nigeria, strict adherence to the FCTC in the domestication of the tobacco bill is definitely the way to go.  This National Assembly must leave a legacy of public health by speedily passing the National Tobacco Control Bill. This time we hope that President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan will do the needful by signing the bill into law immediately it is presented.

     

    •Dejo Iyiola

    Ilorin, Kwara State.

  • Akokwa is in darkness

    Akokwa is in darkness

    GOVERNOR Rochas Okorocha of Imo State is a man of the people. He has endeared himself to the people of the state through his policies which are in favour of the masses.

    I can boldly say that the governor will be re-elected to govern the state. His noble achievements will make this possible.

    But there is one matter I want the governor to attend to. I will appeal to him to give us electricity in Akokwa. This is very important.

    For the past 20 years, the town has been in darkness. Nothing is working as a result of this problem.

    If Akokwa is bailed out of darkness, the people of the town will not forget the people’s governor who has made life comfortable for his people.

     

    Ohuabunwa Chuwkuma,

    Umuopia, Akokwa, Imo State.

  • Help us tar our road

    SENATOR Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State is a great governor. He has removed sorrow from the lives of the people of the state through his programmes which are progressive in nature.

    The good governor deserves a second term because of the good he is doing for the people of his state.

    As far as I am concerned, he is the best governor of the state so far. Some people may question this claim, but a visit to the state will convince them of the greatness of this governor.

    But as he develops the state, he should not forget to tar Gbolasere Street in Ososami, Ibadan.

    I believe Senator Ajimobi will not waste time in tarring the road for us because he is a listening leader.

     

    Rev. Akinfolahan

    Ola, Ibadan.