The Nation Newspaper

Category: Letters

  • Before and after 2015

    The much-awaited Nigeria Governors Forum election has come and gone but the intrigues that surrounded the controversial election will not allow us to forget it in a hurry. At last, the embattled Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State was declared winner with 19 votes to defeat his opponent Governor Jonah Jang of Plateau State who scored 16 votes. I believe we don’t need a Professor Chike Obi to tell us the highest number between 16 and 19. The best thing for Governor Jang to do if he is not satisfied with the outcome of the election is to approach a court of law for redress instead of parading himself as the chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum. By virtue of his status and experience as the oldest Governor out of thirty Six state governors we have as at now, nobody excepted Governor Jang to descend so low by accepting this dirty and dishonouriable assignment.

    As if all these were not enough, Governor Jang’s faction has opened its faction’s secretariat in Maitama in Abuja while Amaechi-led faction has its own secretariat at the Rivers State lodge in Abuja also. Can we describe all these events as the beginning of illegality ahead of 2015 general election or a planned work to achieve a planned goal?

    The focus of this article is to discuss those things that are likely to happen before and after 2015 general election. It is interesting to note that the ruling party – People Democratic Party has suspended Governor Rotimi Amaechi. Let us tell ourselves the bitter truth before it is too late. Suspension of members will not bring lasting and needed peace to the ruling party but would rather heat the polity and aggravate the situations on ground.

    With all these suspensions, intimidations, illegalities, impositions, court cases and character assassinations that are going on in the ruling party, can quality leadership still be guaranteed now and after 2015 election? Will some governors not be abducted on their way to government house as it happened to Governor Chris Ngige of Anambra State some years back? Will some Governors be allowed to attend executive council meeting in Aso Rock between now and 2015? Will some Governors not be denied their constitutional and moral rights because of their refusal to support a consensus candidate for 2015 general election? With the events and happenings within the ruling party in the recent time, one can conclude that the party is in deep and self imposed crises.

    To resolve most of the ongoing crises within the party, I am expecting the elders and stalwarts within the fold to wake up from their slumber and do the right thing before the whole thing will fall apart. Our expectation has been shattered as far as the role of elders in crisis resolution is concerned. Some of the elders or better still, godfathers in the ruling party we should consult for the way forward are now in different camps strategising and warming up for 2015 with different songs in their mouths. Whereas these so called elders fought tooth and nail to make the present political office holders what they are today, within the same house we now have disowned children and disowned parents. Can a house divided against itself stand?

    The tension created by our political gladiators has already made the political office holders to neglect their constitutional duties. The essence of power is to use it to better the lot of citizens not to use it to silence opponents. We have over 14 million jobless youth in Nigeria coupled with the security challenges our nation is facing as a result of Boko Haram’s activities in the northern part of the country. The revenue from oil subsidy disappeared into thin air without any explanation. As a Nigerian, I am expecting all our leaders to be having sleepless nights on how to resolve all these precarious situations and other challenging national issues facing us as a nation at present. Instead, they are having midnight meetings on how to retain their seats in next elections. They have already turned the game into a do-or-die affair and forget the fact that the power to elect or give a particular candidate second term lies in the electorate.

    May I ask that if this present situation continues, will it be safe for some candidates to contest in coming elections?

    By Olumide Aladejana

    Lagos.

  • You misquoted me

    I refer to the interview Sunday Oguntola had with me which was published on page 26 of The Nation on Sunday, of June 23, 2013 with the caption “Why Igbo Presidency is impossible in 2015.”

    This headline is very erroneous and misleading. Reading through the interview, one could see where you lifted your caption from. The words impossible and 2015 were not there at all.

    Please correct this wrong impression as I could never have said that Igbo presidency is impossible. Being a representative of an Igbo constituency who believes in equity and justice, I am sure that the Igbo as a major ethnic group will have their turn at the Presidency, but they need to be united and work with other Nigerians to realize it, as I said in the interview.

    Dr. Eddie Mbadiwe

  • Tribute to Fashola at 50

    Tribute to Fashola at 50

    SIR: The Lagos State chapter of the Action Congress of Nigeria salutes the Governor of Lagos State, Babatunde Fashola (SAN) as he attains the golden age of 50. His 50 years have been well spent in the service of fatherland and the country will always reflect the laudable landmarks he had brought to re-define governance in Lagos in generations to come.

    Fashola entrenched noble values in the years he spent as the Chief of Staff to the Lagos State Governor and mostly in the six years he has steered the ship of Lagos. His tribe needs to be replicated in every state and at the federal level for Nigeria to start real and meaningful progress march, in the face of the seemingly insurmountable challenges that strut the country.

    We salute Fashola, as he marches on with the template of good governance and redefines the sphere and scope of good governance in a badly governed country as Nigeria. We salute his courage, dexterity, sense of purpose and discipline in governing a complex, heavily populated and sophisticated state like Lagos, with its potentials and challenges. We salute the vision with which he creates a state that will not only serve the present but deal with the challenges of the future. We salute his competence in working out an effective state that handles the problems and anxieties of the bulk of Nigeria’s youths and employable, yet unemployed population. We hail Governor Fashola’s proactive role in equipping out a mega city with a capacity to absorb the over 50 per cent of Nigeria’s productive sector and fend for their dependents in other parts of Nigeria.

    We cannot but hail him as he continues to make indelible improvements in all sectors of the governance of Lagos. At 50, we believe he is still at the early stages of his service to Nigeria. We see him as a rare gift, acknowledged by all Nigerians across party lines and we believe that men like him hold the key to the country’s progress at a time the country is overwhelmed by feeling of hopelessness occasioned by bad, incompetent and corrupt leadership, especially at the centre. We see Fashola as nature’s rare gift the country needs to further tap to engage and fruitfully resolve the multifarious problems besetting the nation. We see Fashola as a positive role model the nation needs to export and indeed popularize among its youths and coming generations for the resuscitation of the flagging country.

    Lagos ACN feels proud of his achievements and holds it as a testimonial of the commitment of the party to improving the lives of Lagosians and Nigerians in general. We see him as a very positive brand the country needs to improve on the ever worsening face of governance in Nigeria. We therefore recommend him for higher roles at the national level, after his service in Lagos for we still insist that only the best is good for Nigeria.

    • Joe Igbokwe.

    Publicity Secretary.

    Lagos ACN.

  • Ezeship tussles and Imo communities

    SIR: Imo state Governor, Owelle Rochas Anayo Okorocha has once again proven to be a practical and result-oriented leader by his thoughtful decision to wield into the long standing ezeship tussles in the various autonomous communities in Imo State. It is a common knowledge that before this time, autonomous communities were reduced to battle grounds by powerful individuals who desired the ezeship stools by fair or foul means. As a result of the unhealthy situation, the peace, unity and development of the affected autonomous communities were swept off by cross-litigations, factionalisations, division of the town unions and mud-slinging by the parties to the disputes.

    The unsavory state of affairs has dealt a heavy blow on the self-help development spirit of our people by wasting their resources which would have been vital for development on the tussles. The implication of this sorry situation is that village heads, king makers and other traditional have either lost a sense of direction or compromised themselves for pecuniary gains. This feeling is based on the fact that the process of selecting an Eze is duly provided in the constitution of every community, hence, the issue of who should slightly be a traditional ruler need not to be a problem if the village heads and kingmakers defend and insist on the truth.

     It is against the fore-going that the on-going intervention of Governor Okorocha is eliciting public acclamation. This public ovation is hinged on the fact that the state cannot be considered peaceful and stable when many of her autonomous communities are engulfed in varying degrees of ezeship disputes.

    The action of the governor has proven that he knows where the shoe is pinching the people. That he decided to handle it himself conveys in an unmistakable terms, the importance he attaches to the exercise.

    It is an obvious fact that most of the tussles are by-products of flagrant abuses, violations or neglect of the tradition and constitution of the communities. One of the reasons which probably made past state administrations reluctant to get directly involved was the fear of being misunderstood. For Governor Okorocha, it does not matter, what matters is the end result. He therefore deserves our kudos for his courageous decision to tackle the problem headlong irrespective of the insinuation the action will generate. This mind set tallies with the views of a British Political scientist, Harold Stephenson that, “Great are the leaders who are undeterred by the distractions and encumbrances on their way because they are strongly convinced that accomplishing their mission will give humanity a leap forward”.

     Governor Okorocha has given broad indication of how far he can go to make Imo State better; so far he has given many reasons in practical terms why we should see him as a governor on whom we are well pleased.

    • Jude Okeke

    Owerri

  • Ogun and the quest for food security

    SIR:Despite the fact that Nigeria is blessed with vast agricultural potentials and readily available human resources for its exploitation, the country is still a far cry from guaranteeing food security for the populace. Also, numerous findings have shown that Nigeria’s agricultural sector can sufficiently be the driving force of its economy. Hitherto, the country’s GDP still depends on money made through crude oil while past governments at the federal level are yet to match their words with action in terms of developing the agricultural sector.

    The present administration in Ogun State led by Senator Ibikunle Amosun has taken giant steps to boost large scale mechanized farming in the state. This resolve can seen in the installation of two sets of rice processing equipment at Moloko-Asipa in Obafemi Owode area of the State; the resultant effect of this move is that there will be a great increase in rice production in the state and at the same time creating employment opportunities for people living in such areas

    Earlier this year, the administration acquired agricultural land clearing equipment and tractors worth about five billion naira for farmers in the state. Similarly, over 500 metric tons of different brands of fertilizer were procured and distributed to farmers in order to enhance the cultivation of crops in the state. It is believed that this will serve as succor to farmers who have previously found it difficult to procure these equipments for use in their farms, also increasing their farm output and productivity

    Another programme worthy of mention is the cassava revolution embarked on by the current administration. About 25, 000 bundle of cassava cutting was distributed freely to farmers across the state to enhance the production of high yielding cassava for consumption and also exportation purposes.

    These are positive indications of how the Amosun-led administration is gradually positioning the state as a front-runner in the quest for of food security.

    • Bimpe Amos

    Abeokuta, Ogun State

  • Lagos BRT fast losing its allure

    SIR: Just like the now rested Lagos Municipal Transport Service (LMTS), pioneered by Lagos Town Council in 1958, the much admired Lagos Bus Rapid Transit system, initiated by former Lagos State governor, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu and launched by the current governor, Babatunde Fashola (SAN) some five years ago is heading towards an open brand pit. A brand, which has been applauded by all and sundry, for bringing some resemblance of respect for orderliness and bringing us close to what is obtainable in other metro city is being threatened by neglect and decadence.

    The BRT system established with the intention of easing time and money spent commuting in yellow buses popularly known as danfos, has betrayed all indications of being a salvaging point to Lagos’s traffic gridlock, the time wasting of conventional commercial buses and their astronomical increases in transport-fare at the slightest excuse. The inability of the management to strategically make sure there is timed and chained flow of buses at their respective terminals have made commuter lose valuable and unquantifiable human time queuing for never arriving buses! An average pilot time to wait at BRT terminals today stands between 30minutes to one hour. It is even a disaster during rush hours.

    Since Lagos BRT is taunted to be “the first of its kind in sub-Saharan Africa, and the first example of a comprehensive and an integrated approach to improving public transportation”, one would have expected some standard in service delivery. Despite monetary review in the area of ticketing from N50 to N70 and N100 to 120, the quality of service has spiralled downwards and persistently moving below acceptable level. One thing the handler of the scheme must realize fast is that service delivery is what determines brand optimization. And brand failures are by-products of daunted service, breach of trust and capacity to deliver in record time.

    If a service fails, it’s the brand which produces such service that is having perception problem. Human dynamics have contributed largely to the fragility of perception, and as Nigerians, we have a value placed on service, and are always willing to pay even if we would complain about charges later. We value our time and money, thus, get easily dissuaded when there is no corresponding benefit for time, money and services we pay for. Unlike its usual self, the Lagos BRT brand is fast deteriorating beyond comprehension. And when a brand gets tarnished via public perception and exposes same to media decimation, it quickens such brand’s burial.

    Lagos BRT handlers needs to see this handwriting on the wall, no brand disregard the satisfaction of its clients/customers and remain in business, not even a brand trusted with the responsibilities of promoting other brands. With over 300 high capacity buses worth over 300 million in advert placement per annum, it would be insensitive on the part of Lagos State government not to salvage this enterprise before a post-mortem is required.

    LAMATA, LAG Bus, NURTW, EcoBank and all other partners need to understand that strong service delivery, in this case, time management, help to protect a brand. The slightest decrease in quality of service, hint of mismanagement or customer dissatisfaction portends a great danger to the survival of the brand.

    Can’t we just get things right for once? What could be the hindrance to Lagos BRT? Is it the participation of the refined “Agberos” – National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW)? One cogent point that needs to be noted is the disparity of service delivery between the conventional Blue-Line BRT and the Red Lag bus. The red buses seem neater and a little bit coordinated though their frequency of breakdown is at par!

    It is not yet uhuru for the visionary masterpiece called Lagos BRT… This brand must not wither!

    • Sulaimon Mojeed-Sanni

    Lagos

  • Adekunle deserves better treatment

    SIR: After reading about the pathetic condition of the former commander, Third Marine Commando of the Nigerian Army during the civil war, Brigadier-General Benjamin Adekunle in The Nation of June 13, I asked myself is it a mistake to serve one’s country selflessly? The question becomes imperative because there are many people who gave selfless service to Nigeria but ended up in penury and neglect by Nigerian government. Conversely, there are many who did not even serve the country in the real sense of the word but just were civil servants, politicians, et al, who have looted the country and got the pat on the back when caught and thereafter enjoy their loots.

    His contributions to the corporate existence of this nation, particularly his exploits during the civil war are so well documented that he does not deserve to be treated shabbily by the successive administration in Nigeria. As General Alabi Isama (retired) correctly noted, what sense does it make to set aside a day to remember soldiers who fell during the war while those who were fortunate to survive are neglected and living in abject poverty?

    This is food for thought for our decision makers. The above make me to think that our compatriots who see service as a mean of enriching one’s pocket might not deserve blame in view of the plights of those who gave selfless services to the country. My submission should not be misconstrued to mean that people should corner Nigerian resources for their selfish interests. Far from it, my position is that Nigerian government at all tiers should reward selfless service as means to encourage people to be more patriotic to the cause of the nation.

    The Nigerian Army alone does not deserve blame for not taking proper care of Gen. Adekunle; this is because he did not serve the Nigerian army alone but Nigeria as a country. Nevertheless, this is not to exonerate the army of its neglect of a duty to a selfless leader.

    Coming home to Oyo State and Ogbomoso his state and hometown respectively; are they waiting for his funeral to send condolence messages to his family and eulogize him? Leaf should be borrowed from Asiwaju Tinubu, Governor Babatunde Fashola and Otunba Gbenga Daniel who at various times in Lagos and Ogun states took care of people who are not even fit to untie Adekunle’s shoes.

    • Adewuyi Adegbite

    Apake, Ogbomoso.

  • Number portability: NCC’s silver bullet

    SIR: History was made in the telecommunication industry on Monday, April 22, when the new number portability policy was launched in Lagos by the Nigerian Communication Commission. With the introduction of this laudable policy, the Eugene Juwah-led NCC has not only succeeded in restoring back the power of choice to Nigerian subscribers, but has gone a long way in setting the transformational ball rolling in the industry which will ignite a positive revolution in the telecommunication sector.

    Before the conceptualization of this policy by NCC, Nigerian subscribers have been subjected to economic slavery by the service providers whose sole aim is to keep on maximizing profits by exploiting Nigerians at the expense of good service delivery. The service providers have not only beaten Nigerians like the proverbial child through fraudulent and unwarranted excessive charges, but made sure that the child did not complain or even cry!

    Imagine a situation whereby the service providers makes a mind-boggling and whopping sum of N1.5 billion on daily basis from poor Nigerians subscribers struggling to survive on less than two dollars a day without providing quality service that were being paid for; is nothing to write home about!

    I am not blinded to the challenges being faced by network service providers in Nigeria on daily basis; like power crisis, insecurity, environmental issues, etc, which are not witnessed in other countries, but Nigerian subscribers should not be over-burdened by making them to be paying exorbitant tariffs in other to cover up for the inefficiencies and deficiencies of Nigerian system which they are also victims of; rather they should be made to enjoy quality telecommunication services as obtained in other climes of the globe, especially when compared tariffs charged in Nigeria with what is being offered by the same service providers in other countries.

    Since the firing of this proverbial silver bullet by the NCC, network service providers have been running helter-skelter in order to retain their subscribers.

    Network service providers are now strategising on how to expand their network coverage; improve on the quality of their services; reduce their tariffs, re-brand their networks in other to attract new subscribers that are ready to port.

    The NCC has, by the portability initiative, proved beyond reasonable doubt that it does not take a rocket science or miracle to create a positive change, but with the power of a tested and trusted idea; because ideas they say rules the world!

    • Comrade Nwobodo Chidiebere

    Abuja.

  • Improving transparency in public construction

    SIR: At the third Building and Construction Round Table (BCERT3), a two-day workshop organized by the Quantity Surveyors Registration Board of Nigeria (QSRBON), with the theme “Enforcing Transparency and Accountability in the Nigerian Building and Construction Sector”, held at Musa Shehu Yar’ Adua Centre, Abuja, from May 23-24, the issue of transparency and accountability in the construction industry were discussed.

    The workshop held that lack of accountability is the major challenge to construction sector in Nigeria, which can only contribute a paltry 2.0% to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2012. The communiqué said that Quantity Surveyors are construction cost consultants from the beginning of a project to the end and implored them to always live above board.

    Quantity Surveyors are not only the factors affecting transparency and accountability in Nigeria’s construction industry. Our culture is a big challenge. When a contractor wins a construction contract, his colleagues and associates, family members and friends see it as manna from heaven, celebrate with him and urge him to see it as “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity and a share of the national cake.

    The anti-graft institutions like Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) were established to ensure there is zero tolerance to corruption in all sectors of the economy. The Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) was also established to instil sanity into public procurement and backed by Public Procurement Act 2007.

    But these institutions have not lived up to expectation because of their challenges major of which is the lack of federal government interest to eradicate corruption in Nigeria. If government is interested in forestalling corruption, at least in the construction industry, it will subscribe to the membership of Construction Sector Transparency Initiative (CoST).

    CoST is a country-centred multi-stakeholder initiative designed to promote transparency and accountability in publicly financed construction across the globe. It has as members, countries like El Salvador, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Malawi, Philippines, Tanzania, United Kingdom, Vietnam and Zambia.

    At CoST’s core is the belief that the processes involved in the construction of public infrastructure must be made more transparent. The public must be armed with the information they need to hold decision makers to account and to ensure better value for money in the construction sector. CoST is making this ideal a reality.

    CoST is a governance initiative that employs a multi-stakeholder approach. It involves government procuring entities and oversight agencies, private sector consultants and contractors, and civil society groups working together to improve transparency. It is a catalyst to driving change. It encourages demand and pressure for transparency by bringing together interested stakeholders from the public, private, and civil society sectors. CoST seeks to complement rather than replace a country’s supervision, audit, regulatory, investigative, and judicial functions. The complexity of the construction sector presents a major challenge to improving transparency. Nigeria’s construction industry will benefit if Nigeria can subscribe to its membership.

    • Olufemi Oyedele,

    Lagos

  • Why standard of education keeps falling

    SIR: The standard of education started taking a different shape when labour unions began to embark on a litany of strike which lasted for several months without the union reaching a consensus with the federal government. Students were left to their fate as they could not return to their studies. Consequent upon that, parents, especially those that could afford the bill resorted to sending their children abroad to complete their education,

    This development helped to kill the interest of teachers, especially those in the primary and secondary schools who saw teaching as non rewarding profession. The scenario saw a mass exodus of male teachers who joined other businesses with a view to providing for their families. Little wonder in our public schools today, female teachers far outnumber the male.

    The military dispensation with its attendant strikes has come and gone but the citizens of this country are yet to be convinced that democratic dispensation places more value to education than the military as our schools and tertiary institutions are nothing to write home about in comparison with their overseas counterparts in terms of infrastructure and academics. Most of our public schools are in a very bad shape. They are not conducive for learning as the classrooms are without doors and windows and enough seats for the pupils and students. Office of the head teachers and principals are like animal pens. More worrisome is that the classrooms have become havens for hoodlums where they settle themselves with wraps of cannabis and other drugs.

    Teaching is not the only factor that impacts positively on students. The environment and other factors like well equipped library and laboratory etc matter a lot. But unfortunately these facilities are lacking in our schools and the hope that they will be made available before 2015 is very slim as the country is now battling with the challenges of insecurity and the tussle for leadership in 2015.

    The utopian year when education is expected to regain its lost glory is fast approaching but so far the score board is blank. It would be foolhardy for the present government to over flood its program with politics instead of embarking on meaningful projects like revamping the education industry that would determine our stand with other climes in future. A nation without education is a dead one. Government should therefore focus on this very important issue instead of having many irons in the fire.

    • Nkemakolam Gabriel

    Port Harcourt