The Nation Newspaper

Category: Letters

  • Peaceful change

    Dear delegate,

    I have been a keen observer of the CONFAB so far. Some of you have salient points which you have argued cogently, however, a majority of you simply do not understand that you hold the key to unlock the destiny of this great nation from the prison of underdevelopment.

    You may not agree with me that we need stable power supply to operate our SMEs, we may disagree on the fact that massive unemployment in the country is fuelling  gang-related crimes on the streets of Lagos, militancy and oil bunkering in the creeks of Niger Delta, cattle rustling and terrorism in the north and kidnapping in the south, we may argue about the fact that the present system of governance in Nigeria is not sustainable, but I bet you will agree with me that we need leaders who have the foresight to dream of a better Nigeria for our children yet unborn and the WILL  to pursue this selfless ambition.  The question is, can the presidential system we currently operate produce new Tafawa Balewas, Nnamdi Azikwes or Obafemi Awolowos at the national level without subsequent rancour, violence and litigations? Can this present system resuscitate the groundnut pyramids and textile industries in the north, can it revitalise the cocoa industry in the southwest or support genuine industrial revolution in the south east?

    Admittedly, no single system of governance is perfect, but sustainable development was at its peak when we had regional governments in Nigeria. The Federal Character policy which has promoted mediocrity and corruption was incorporated into Nigeria’s statute when the presidential system was introduced. However, until we have a system that makes each region accountable for its leaders and resources, civil strife and agitations against marginalisation will not cease in our societies. This is the greatest benefit we will derive from a parliamentary system.

    The courage of the average Hausa (military), the entrepreneurial sense of the Igbo (Industry) and the flair of the Yoruba for academics (Science and Technology) coupled with  abundant mineral resources makes Nigeria a potential superpower, if we can only open our eyes and tap into our strengths.  In the wake of terrorism and civic extremism in the country, we need to look inwards and holistically proffer solutions to prevent the total collapse of the Nigerian state. Sooner or later, this republic will be restructured, we simply cannot survive much less thrive on bigotry, corruption and mediocrity.

     How can  the Chibok girls, the victims of the Nigerian Immigration Scam and millions of other oppressed Nigerian youths be leaders of tomorrow if there is no tomorrow? The CONFAB may be the last chance we have to restructure peacefully.

    God Bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

    Yours faithfully,

    Femi Oloro

    Federal Housing Estate, Ado Ekiti.

  • Why government should tax cigarettes

    SIR: Cigarette taxes serve as an important source of revenue generation for governments all over the world. In jurisdictions where the revenue implications of cigarette taxes have been recognised, cigarettes rank among the most heavily taxed commodities. To appreciate the potential revenue implications of cigarette taxes, one may consider statistics put forward by RJ Reynolds Tobacco Company to the effect that various tiers of government in the United States realised over $500billion in cigarette taxes since 1998.  Indeed, the revenue generated from cigarette taxation may be employed towards more beneficial ends such as funding important developmental projects.

    Considering the fact that the increasing incidence of tobacco-related illnesses have led to strains on health expenditure, cigarette taxes may also be used to adequately fund the resultant costs of health-care. In jurisdictions where health-care is largely funded from public revenue, this is a very essential consideration.

    Revenue generated from cigarette taxes may also be channelled towards programmes and measures aimed at tobacco control. For instance, a percentage of earnings derived from this tax may be used to fund medical research on the adverse effects that cigarettes have on smokers, or legislative advocacy programmes that promote laws that seek to regulate exposure to environmental tobacco smoke.

    Cigarette taxes are perhaps a good illustration of the concept of ‘sin taxes’. While not directly prohibiting the supply, demand, and consumption of cigarettes, government use ‘sin taxes’ to check the prevalence of certain behaviours, such as cigarette smoking or consumption of alcohol. The US President’s Cancer Panel’s 2007 Report, whilst recommending the increase of cigarette tax rates, acknowledged the effects of such taxes on three groups of persons – current smokers, former smokers, and potential smokers. According to the Report, by affecting the pricing of such products, cigarette taxes can lead current smokers to quit or reduce cigarette consumption, deter potential smokers, and prevent the relapse of former smokers.

    Taxation is an important instrument for regulating and restricting social behaviour. By employing increased cigarette tax rates, the ultimate objective is to influence the demand for and consumption levels of such products. Trends in other jurisdictions establish that low-income earners constitute the bulk of consumers of tobacco-related products; and that raising the tax rates for such products has often led to a remarkable decline in the demand for them. An increase in cigarette tax rates will invariably affect the pricing of cigarettes, which may in turn lead to a decline in the volume of demand for cigarettes.  In this respect, tax rates play a particularly important role in influencing social behaviour among certain groups; for instance the incidence of cigarette-smoking among low-income earners who prove to be especially vulnerable to tobacco-related illnesses.

    In the 1950s when vigorous scientific research began to expose the adverse health effects of smoking, various tiers of government in the United States responded by increasing cigarette excise taxes as a means to curb smoking. Nigeria will do well to emulate these measures.

    Available data in other jurisdictions clearly portray the alarming menace and consequences of smoking by under-age persons. In the United States, for instance, statistics provided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives show that 1.5 million packs of cigarettes are illegally purchased for minors, and that 3, 900 teenagers take to smoking each day.

    While these disturbing statistics may not necessarily reflect the Nigerian situation, there are good grounds for arguing that cigarette taxes can be utilised to check the increase in the number of under-aged smokers in this country.

    The World Tobacco Day 2014, with its theme of ‘Raising taxes’ is without doubt an appropriate avenue to begin to implement and impose stiffer taxes on tobacco companies in Nigeria.

    •  Onaolapo Olatoyosi M.

    National Coordinator, Coalition Against Tobacco (CAT), Lagos

     

  • On Fani-Kayode’s Give me Oduduwa or I die

    SIR: Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence….Helen Keller.

    Give Me Oduduwa or Let Me Die is not just a slogan. It signifies the dawn of a new era, a veritable rallying platform for emancipation of South-west. What Femi Fani-Kayode said is not a diatribe but absolute truth about the hellish reality of Nigeria.

    To pretend that all is well is akin to a demented adult goat dinning and wining with pride of lions. This platform has come to stay forever. It’s our own subterfuge that will usher us to the proverbial promise land where the son and daughter of bricklayer, roadside mechanic, goat herder, plumber etc., can aspire to dream according to his or her capacity; where religion or social-economic status will not be a litmus test to gauge the capacity of any citizen; where the future of our daughters will not be subjected the whims and caprices of sexual predators.

    Today, we are living witnesses to gradual poaching of innocent citizens without provocation with brazen persecution of some citizens as persona non grata because of their faith, ethnicity and political affiliations. Never in modern history of sub-Saharan Africa have we witnessed such brazen act of bestiality where innocent citizens are endangered species in their own country; where some demented citizens have automatically acquired the medieval era franchise terrorist licence to deny innocent citizens the inalienable right to live in peace.

    With terrorism becoming an instrument of political negotiation and manoeuvre, it is obvious that the grape has gone sour and our honeymoon is over. Perhaps, some may say this is a lofty dream without substance but I make bold to say that the journey of 1,000 kilometres must start from zero point. There is no gain without pain because throughout human history, no struggle is ever successfully executed merely on rhetoric without blood and sweat.

    If Fani-Kayode is wrong by coining that phrase, we the good people of South-west don’t want to be right. Yes of course! The honey moon is over long time ago because Nigeria is splinter bomb,  imploding bit by bit. It’s a soulless entity because a section of this country deliberately wants it so and on this basis, some of us are making this solemn clarion call on our brethren that enough is enough, because it’s practically impossible to co-exist with predatory religious bigots and terrorists.

    The spate of bombing and terrorism going on in our country today is heart rending and traumatizing. These acts of savagery are alien and strange to Yoruba culture and heritage. The aspiration for a secular New State of Oduduwa is not an engagement in flight of fancy or an exercise in futility as postulated by naysayers. But like every other noble endeavours, it must pass through the normal metamorphic process because it is a realistic and legitimate project.

    #GiveMeOduduwa-or-LetMeDie.

     

    • Akinola M.A.

    Verona-Italy

  • Culture universities need to embrace

    SIR: Our university dons and managers didn’t only make us pay fees for half-baked loaves of bread called degree certificates, we also got over-fermented with their outdated lectures, including their incessant strikes that could be likened to the additive called “Bromate”.

    If only our universities had provided a Campus Investment Company for us to test our entrepreneurial and employability skills, then we wouldn’t be recording the catastrophic 80% of unemployed graduates presently in Nigeria. They practically closed their eyes to the numerous investment opportunities open within the university walls, and put the blame on the government for their insensitivity and underfunding.

    An average Nigerian public university has a population of over 15,000 (students and staff), yet we refuse to maximize the obvious enterprise opportunities which exists in the “Village”, headed by the Village Chiefs aka vice chancellors.

    I believe that if every university established a Campus Investment Company, the menace of half-baked, naïve, unprepared graduates will be reduced to the barest minimum.

    A company established from the scratch by students, to be managed by students and for the students would put all the theories they have been taught to the test. In other words, bona fide students will have a stake in the day-to-day activities and eventual success of such an enterprise; who else can identify and meet the needs in a student environment, if not the students?

    Have we ever wondered why Nigerian trained doctors are in high demand globally? The reason is not  far-fetched. They are engaged in practical medical companies aka teaching hospitals during the course of their learning. There they work with patients first-hand.

    This step should be replicated in all other fields of study.  For example, why can’t we have a well-structured auto-mechanic company within the university to allow Mechanical Engineering students fix vehicles of staff, fellow students and even the host community?

    Imagine a Dangote, Wale Tinubu, or Ibukun Awosika, as university vice chancellor. You can predict the positive impact it will have. Another example will be the appointment of high ranking commercial bank CEO to head affairs at the CBN, despite several deputies that could assume the position within the ranks.

    I believe the aforementioned will give rise to competitive graduates and knowledge-driven entrepreneurs that will drive the Nigerian business space and the society at large.

    ‘Bolaji Junaid,

  • Protect the rights of the deaf

    SIR: Nigeria ratified the United Nations convention and optional protocol signatures and ratifications of human rights for all on October 24, 2010. This was after the convention on the rights of persons with disabilities and optional protocol were formally opened for signatures at the United Nations headquarters in New York City on March 30, 2007.

    The convention strengthened the linguistic and cultural viewpoints of deaf people all over the world. It recognised sign language and the linguistic human rights of deaf people. The convention specifically states that government are to recognise sign language as an official language in the constitution, ensure professional interpreter services and guarantee education to deaf people in their sign language, in addition to recognising and supporting their cultural and linguistic identity.

    The deaf in Nigeria have suffered untold rejection, relegation and abuses of various forms. Contrary to what obtains elsewhere in the world and the specifications of the Convention, the deaf have virtually been reduced to the status of second class citizens in this country. This should not be allowed to continue in view of the enormous advantages inherent in integrating people in this category into the society.

    The deaf are often jettisoned and neglected when it comes to provision of social welfare, education, employment opportunities and right to information. The present situation whereby the deaf are always grouped alongside people with structural disabilities should change. As a matter of fact, the deaf should also be integrated into the conventional public school system. Deaf education and sign language should be part of the national basic education system as this will allow every other normal child to learn sign language as this is the only way integration of the deaf can be enhanced. A deaf person should be able to communicate with people around him/her.

    As a matter of urgency, the National Assembly should carry the deaf along in its proceedings and plenary by employing a sign language professional who will interpret legislative proceedings and should always be captured by cameras of TV stations and channels. The deaf have the right to know what goes on at the Federal Executive Council, judicial proceedings etc. To this end, the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) should make dissemination of information to deaf Nigerians a priority. News and major television programmes like the presidential media chats, documentaries, personal interviews etc should always be interpreted in sign language.

    In terms of employment, a special quota should be set aside for the deaf so as to give this category of Nigerians a chance to contribute to the economic well-being of their fatherland. These healthy, agile and intelligent men and women should be given the opportunity to channel their productivity to nation-building.

     

    • Hussain Obaro,

    Ilorin, Kwara State

  • Are Nigerian elites scared of Buhari?

    SIR: He directed the affairs of Nigeria with the late General Tunde Idiagbon and sought to develop her competitively when they held sway as leaders of government in the 1980s. Analysts say that the country was plagued with a lot of ills and needed a knight in shining armour to redeem her from a state of ruin. One of such recently said, “Let’s be brutally frank, if Mohammadu Buhari had ruled this country in the fourth republic, Nigeria wouldn’t have been in this jumble we find ourselves in.”

    But news media coverage about the General is frequently negative leading some to describe him as Nigeria’s most acerbic leader. Are the elites truly frightened of Buhari’s popularity? If not, why is he misjudged, blackmailed and smeared by the cream of the crop who many have said are determined to erase him from the pages of  the nation’s history?

    Why do people revel in his foibles in the press and other media? No mortal is free from errors. The enactment of Decree 4 to confine press freedom which saw to the detention of Tunde Thomson and Nduka Irabor of the Guardian newspapers etc., has been his greatest encumbrance but again, how many military rulers in the history of Nigeria have interacted with the press without restraints?

    He remains one amongst a small number of poor heads of state who led a Spartan life whilst in office unlike some who saw the nation as their fiefdom. He could have become very wealthy, but bucked the trend.

    Every country in the world turns out to be great when the people in it and their leaders set and promote the indices for greatness. Buhari’s supporters say that he earned the trust of Nigerians by imprinting his power on important aspects of our national life, including the economy, security, citizens’ rights, responsibilities and the fight against sleaze. He was not known to waffle on important issues that border on national security nor does he submit to kinsmen or people with the same religious leanings as he, typified by the slipshod deportation of Umaru Dikko from the United Kingdom. To the disappointment of his attackers who have written him off as a religious zealot, Buhari made an impassioned comment recently in the papers condemning the upsurge of insurgency in the land despite the threat to his life as a result of that intervention.

    Maybe people with influence do not love him because of his painstaking, serious, non-partisan demeanor. Maybe they don’t see him as a perfect gentleman because he never tolerated idle talk, illogical arguments, laziness or poor judgment.

    Maybe because he is intolerant of corruption, a major fault of the privileged elite.

    This country needs leaders whose body language bespeaks action and who will not waffle when it matters most. Waffling on big decisions has today made Nigeria a laughingstock, needing foreign intervention, because leaders can’t handle internal challenges leading to international embarrassment.

    This country needs leaders who, in the bid to fight corruption, will be audacious enough to jail corrupt politicians and spare no-one, be they Hausa,Igbo,Yoruba, Christian, Muslim or traditionalists. A leader the military can trust and who can inspire them to perform their constitutional duties of protecting the sovereignty of our land. This nation requires a leader who will, without fail, follow sharply the unambiguous title role and responsibilities of President.  Such a leader’s performance will not be abysmal, conflicting with the high expectations of the people and will not be a partisan administrator damaging the high calling of that office.

    The ever-burgeoning state and private armies of opposition against Buhari should eschew religion, tribal bias, regionalism, and promote the cause of humanity which would leave our doors open to all people and also forgives them. They should also concentrate more on encouraging national consciousness for a greater Nigeria by rousing the youths and all people from their state of disinterest for national growth.

    Why are the elites scared of letting Muhammadu Buhari become President of Nigeria?

    • Simon Abah,

    Port Harcourt, Rivers State

     

  • Ibadan’s Total Garden traffic light headache

    SIR: The traffic light at Total Garden in Ibadan was supposedly installed to reduce the traffic jam at the junction. For the past two and half years that I have been working in this neighbourhood, I have never experienced the kind of traffic delay we are going through now since the traffic light was installed. This is not to discredit the effort of Governor Abiola Ajimobi in repositioning and restructuring Oyo State. The effort is highly commendable, but the traffic light is not the solution to traffic jam at this junction due to the interlocking nature of the junction. The traffic light is daily adding to the pains of people passing through this roundabout.

    Oritamefa is too complex for a robot like traffic light to handle. The solution we have now is to leave the job for the traffic warders or Oyo State government should construct an overhead bridge at this junction like that of Mokola. The light should be disabled as a matter of necessity not minding the financial investment that has gone into this project because the initial rationale of the project has been defeated.

    • Taiwo O. Adigun,

    Total Garden, Ibadan.

  • Securing the Nigerian child

    SIR: The Nigerian child, if lucky to be alive, has travelled the narrow path of neglect in many ways. He has been through physical, psychological, emotional and social neglects. One in five children in the country dies before the age of five due to minor preventable ailments that have long been eradicated in other climes; others have been orphaned due to AIDS related disease or inter-tribal wars or as a result of activities of insurgencies. It is estimated that over two million girls are subjected to genital mutilation every year, a practice still rampant in some parts of Nigeria and all religious groups. Intervention into the practice is considered as a violation of privacy, yet many girls face several health risks through this, including severe bleeding and contraction of HIV infection through the use of unhygienic methods in carrying out the procedure. Statistical data shows that adolescent girls have HIV rate up to five percent higher than their boys’ counterpart.

    Only recently, it was disclosed that over 10 million Nigerian children are out of school and sadly over nine million of these came from the northern part of the country, the stronghold of the radical insurgents – Boko Haram. Since 2012, Boko Haram- the radical terrorist group- has targeted schools in northern Nigeria. Dozens of schools have been attacked or burnt down. In the last three months alone, the United Nations has reported that at least 15,000 children in the northern part of the country have stopped attending classes.

    In a single attack in February this year in Yobe State, 45 children were killed. As if this was not enough, on  April 14, over 200 girls were abducted from their dormitory in Government Girls’ Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State because they chose to go to school.

    In Nigeria, most children contribute to the economic well-being of their families through hawking and sundry work to generate additional income. Around 15 million Nigerian children under the age of 14 work in extreme hazardous conditions.

    Today, of all girls fears, that of being raped is the darkest .The rape epidemic in our society reflects the extent in which girls’ rights are being violated. Curiously, age is no longer barrier to who can be a victim. It has gone so bad that minors, as young as 4 years old, are now being raped.  Boys are not left out as they are now being recruited by militants and insurgents.

    It is imperative that government at all levels ensure the safety of all children in the country. Also, we need to ensure that our children are healthy, educated and have their rights respected with supports from all stakeholders. The Chibok girls experience is a case study in ensuring a safe environment for our children to learn and it has further revealed the need for us as a nation to prioritize issues of girl- child education. This is the right time for us to ensure that no one is left behind as the country moves towards achieving the Education for All (EFA) goal. The country needs a clear set of public actions that embrace issues of gender, religious, political and mental diversity to address not only economic shocks, but also social vulnerability.

     

    • Bilkis Bakare,

    Ministry of Information and Strategy,

    Alausa, Ikeja

     

  • Why we need state police

    SIR:  The state of insecurity facing Nigeria calls for a round-table discussion on the essence of providing adequate proper and efficient security for all. The major priority for any government is to secure the lives and property of the populace which they govern. Unfortunately, the federal government is finding it difficult to do so. Over 2000 lives have been lost since the continuous attack by the Boko Haram sect on the Nigerian people. I shed tears continuously due to the inhuman activities of Boko Haram sect.

    The political class continues to point accusing fingers rather than working together for a common cause. They say state governors are the Chief Security Officers of their states, but in reality, governors are not in control of any security outfit. The federal government recruits, dispatch and command the entire security outfit we have in Nigeria. How then can one say governors are the chief security officers? A governor does not in any way have a say in the deployment or removal of commissioners of police or any head of a security outfit in the nation. We have had examples when a governor would give a direct order on a commissioner of police and the commissioner would disobey the order and carry out a different agenda as we saw of Rivers Governor, Rotimi Amaechi and Police Commissioner Joseph Mbu.

    There have been a lot of anxieties that the creation of state police would give governors the power to use them as a tool to fight opponents and could also be used in the manipulation of election processes. The truth of the matter is that theory is baseless. The federal government has been controlling the police and various security outfits for decades; can we say they have used that machinery to witch-hunt their opponents? I don’t think so. How can you deploy an Edo man to let’s say Oyo State, where he has little or no knowledge of the terrain? How can he effectively fight crime? How would he know the fastest route or potential hide out of criminals?

    The best option to police ourselves is ourselves! An Osun man should be in Osun; ditto an Edo man should serve in Edo. The benefit of this outweighs the demerits; the police officers would be familiar with that terrain, speak the language, understand the culture or religious values and can easily identify potential individuals that are security threat due to their familiarisation within that community.

     

    • Folawiyo Kareem Olajoku

    Osogbo, Osun State

     

  • Yes, Lagos has always been different!

    SIR: I read with some considerable amusement and sympathy the article written by Idowu Akinlotan on the back page of Sunday Nation of 25th May, the writer was in total innocent of the recent history of the Western Region and the colony of Lagos.

    Starting from the 1950’s and with the advent of the Action Group at Ibadan, Lagos politicians were divided into two broad camps – Gedegebe l’Eko wa and Lagos belongs to the West. Even though the old Western Region extended to what was then known as Idi Oro, some Lagosians mostly Brazilian Returnees claimed that Lagos was a distinct political entity. Awolowo stuck to the belief that Yoruba West could not be separated from Lagos including indigenes of Brazilian extraction. Some die-hard indigenes thought otherwise. Common institutions like Western Regional Production Development Board, Western Nigerian Marketing Board, Finance Corporation and Property owning organizations belonging to the West did not have the blessing or financial contribution of ‘Gedegbe l’Eko wa’ people. This situation encouraged Nnamdi Azikwe and his NCNC to have a strong foothold in the Lagos Metropolis. Investments like the Airport Hotel, Nigerite, Dunlop, Niger Biscuits, Nigeria Textile Mills, Tower Aluminum, WIN, Pepsi Factory and many others, were established by the West in partnership with expatriate industrialists.

    Today, the question that arises is this, with industrial complexes in Agbara Estate, in Ikorodu area both in Ogun State, where does Lagos begin or where does Western territory end? Today, more than 25% of workers in the public and private sectors live in Ogun state but work in the heart of Lagos.

    That the idea of regionalism is being resuscitated is a reaction or defense mechanism to the deteriorating situation in the country. ‘To your tents O Israel’ seems to be the clarion call in today’s unstable Nigeria. it is a combination of doctorinaire politics and realism.

    Lastly, one may ask if subsequently the country breaks up into new nation states, and an Oduduwa nation finally emerges, where does Lagos stand? It is time we started reading the handwriting on the wall.

    • Deji Fasuan,

    Senior Citizen, Ekiti State