The Nation Newspaper

Category: Letters

  • On the perennial fuel scarcity

    On the perennial fuel scarcity

    SIR: It is saddening and a paradox that a nation richly endowed with abundant human as well as natural resources, such as crude oil could be in dire need of what is supposed to be a blessing. Our problems are generally hinged on bad leadership, corruption, poor maintenance culture, lack of patriotism and institutional failure.

    While many of the consuming nations, which buy crude oil from Nigeria are comfortable with their fuel situation, our dear country is engulfed in incessant fuel crises, which continues to take a toll on virtually all facets of its national life because of its strategic importance. The latest is the ongoing scarcity in major cities across the country. Many filling stations currently sell a litre of petrol for N115, while others sell for N150 or more, as against the official price of N97.

    Initial reports of the scarcity of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) described as ‘an ordinary hitch’ in the supply chain to some Northern states has now spread to other parts of the country. Reports say the scarcity may linger for many more weeks!

    The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has blamed the shortage on the continued closure of a vandalised NNPC System 2B pipeline at Arepo, Ogun State. Repair works at the vandalised pipeline were stopped after suspected vandals allegedly killed three NNPC engineers at the site. The scarcity has also been attributed to the reluctance by members of the Jetty and Petroleum Tank Farm Owners of Nigeria (JEPTFON). There are reports that most of them owe banks for fuel imported on behalf of the NNPC but which the corporation is yet to settle. There are equal claims that fuel importers have been unable to import because their subsidy payments had been stopped.

    The Ministry of Finance on its part, has stated that it paid N259 billion outstanding subsidies for 2011 and another N78.8 billion for this year despite the marketers’ outcry of an alleged outstanding payment of up to N200 billion.

    Going by the past experiences, the nagging episode the perennial fuel crises may not abate until concerted efforts are made by relevant stakeholders to address the problems. First, the activities of vandals should be stopped. It is unfortunate that our oil pipelines are insecure in this part of the world. Government and relevant security agencies must ensure that our oil pipelines are secure at all times to prevent recurrence of the ugly incident of the killing of oil workers on routine maintenance duties as witnessed at the Arepo village and elsewhere.

    Inadequate refineries, mal-functioning or under functioning of existing refineries is another factor in the incessant fuel crises. At the moment, none of the country‘s refineries is working efficiently, making the country to depend on 100 per cent fuel importation. Efforts should be stepped up to ensure that new refineries are in place so that there can be enough fuel for domestic consumption and if possible, importation. Refining of the country’s crude would lead to higher opportunities in a deregulated market; stimulate medium scale service industries, better industrial capacity utilization and creation of greater job opportunities for our teeming restive, unemployed youths.

    • Adewale Kupoluyi

    Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta

  • Sharp practices in varsities

    Sharp practices in varsities

    SIR: Most lecturers in our tertiary institutions are now in a serious business. The business , as you may think is not making sure that students are educationally equipped in all ramifications but are bent on enriching themselves at the detriment of the students.

    Under normal circumstances, a university graduate is believed to have passed through rigorous academic tests under the tutelage of lecturers who had sleepless nights with a view to making sure the students become envy of the neighbourhood and pride of the nation.

    But alas, what is going on now in our tertiary institutions amongst the lecturers is impoverishing the students by extorting money from them by one means or the other. They now force the students to buy handouts and any student that refuse would fail that particular subject. Another system in vogue is writing of textbooks which they sell only to the students and any student that fail to buy would not receive the blessing of the lecturer. In other words, no matter how intelligent or factual the student is he is going to fail that paper.

    But the worst of them all is sorting of papers syndrome. Here, students pay to pass any paper they take in the examination and the amount involved is outrageous, This attitude will never augur well for us if we are serious about raising the standard of education to enviable heights.

    So, my appeal is to Vice chancellors and heads of departments to investigate to confirm this allegation with a view to bringing those involved to book.

    • Nkemakolam Gabriel

    Port Harcourt

  • Dana Air: Aviation minister acted right

    Dana Air: Aviation minister acted right

    SIR: I can understand the national outcry when the minister of aviation lifted the suspension imposed on Dana Air. I can also relate to the families who lost their loved ones in the fatal accident on June 3.

    The loss of lives in a major airliner accident is naturally overwhelming and emotionally draining.

    But banning an airline that has been involved in an accident does not solve the problem of a repeated accident. The only solution is to find the probable cause(s) of the accident and proffer a solution to future occurrence. If Dana Air is banned from operating in our national airspace, it does not mean we have finally prevented future aircraft accidents. What it means is that another airline has been sent into bankruptcy, and more Nigerians have been sent into the dungeon of unemployment.

    What Nigeria needs most at this point is to demand from our government the cause(s) of that fatal accident with a view to preventing future mishaps. From knowing the reason for the crash, we can deduce and prevent future similar cases. This is what is important, not an indefinite suspension of Dana Air.

    Over the years, air safety has improved tremendously: airplanes are more reliable, more dependable, with improved safety measures .The only setback in flight safety or air transportation is human errors.

    Human factors account for more than 80% of all aircraft accidents in the modern world. The core issue of air safety is how to overcome or minimize the fallibility of man when operating a machine.

    For expert aircraft accident investigators, air crash is not the problem, but the factors responsible for the crash. An accident does not just happen; there is a series of events that lead to a crash.

    Unless the pieces of the puzzle are collated, analyzed and synthesized, it becomes difficult to deduce the probable cause of an accident.

    This is where the Aircraft Accident investigation Bureau (AIB), an independent agency of the federal government, comes into the equation. The agency, which reports directly to the president, according to Nigeria’s Civil Aviation Act 2006, is the sole authority in air crash investigation in the country. The nation should wait patiently for AIB to come out with its report on the cause(s) of the accident before raising undue alarm of a foul play.

    As bad as the Dana Air accident was, there have been worse fatal accidents in the recent history of aviation, involving today’s celebrated legacy airlines. What led to the improved safety records of major airlines like British Airways (BA), KLM-Air France, and American is repetitive, professional investigation into accidents and incidents involving their aircraft, and the adoption of safety recommendations.

    Below are two fatal aircraft accidents involving BA, and the reports of the investigations into the cause of the accidents:

    September 10, 1976: British Airways Trident 3B; Flight 476; near Zagreb, Yugoslavia: The aircraft had a midair collision with an Inex Adria aircraft, DC9-32. All nine crew members and 54 passengers on the Trident were killed. All five crew members and 108 passengers on the DC9 were also killed. The probable cause of this event was failure of the Yugoslavian ATC system to provide adequate separation.

    August 22, 1985: British Airtours 737-200; Flight 28M; Manchester Airport, England: The crew rejected the takeoff due to an uncontained engine failure. The failure led to a punctured fuel tank and a fire that spread to the cabin. The accident killed 53 of 131 passengers and two of six crew members. British Airways was not banned or suspended by the British government. Today, BA is one of the most celebrated legacy airlines, and probably the most loved airline by Nigerians.

    It may sound funny to some people in this country, but the major challenge facing aviation industry in Nigeria today is not regulation / safety oversight, but critical human factor elements.

    The more Nigerians, after every accident, distort professional investigation into the cause(s) of a crash, the more we dilute the zeal to pursue the facts for future lesson.

    • Capt. Daniel Omale

    Lagos

  • Still on Lagos and the new traffic law

    Still on Lagos and the new traffic law

    SIR: We will not appreciate the import of the new Lagos Traffic Law until we bring into focus some statistics about Lagos.

    The state’s land mass is only 0.4 per cent of Nigeria’s land mass, yet its population is more than 10 per cent of the country’s population. It is almost unimaginable that more than 70 per cent of Lagos population lives in the metropolitan area, which occupies only 37 per cent of land mass of the state. This cuts the picture of a megacity – the third largest in the world – bundled into a relatively small land mass. By estimation, it means about 13 million people live on just 1,324 square kilometres of land.

    Now, these people are not just lounging on the city’s extensive beach, coasting thorough the day. They are all in a race of economic pursuit, irrespective of language or colour. Like ants gathering food in the summer, everybody is on the move, as could be inferred from the following statistics: this littoral state consumes almost 50 per cent of the petroleum products in the country. The two seaports in the state account for 70 per cent of the country’s maritime activities. The Murtala Muhammed International Airport handles more than 70 per cent of all international flights in the country. About 40 per cent of Nigeria’s skilled workforce is in Lagos, where we have about 50 per cent of the country’s industrial and commercial establishments.

    It is possible that Lagosians can be seen obeying traffic regulations in other cities but a new “spirit” takes over once they are within Lagos boundaries.

    Let us keep this hyperactive nature of Lagosians to a side and consider some statistics about the city’s traffic infrastructure. Both rail and water still carry less than one per cent of overall traffic volume. The road network density of Lagos, put at 0.4 kilometres per 1000 people, is very low, even compared with other African cities. Also, there is an average of 222 vehicles per kilometre of road I Lagos, compared to the country’s average of 11 vehicles.

    A very unique feature of Lagos, compared to other industrial cities in Nigeria, is that traffic flows in unilateral direction. It is estimated that about six million people move to Lagos Island on daily basis to work. Therefore, even though, Lagos has about 16,000 kilometres of road network, about 10 per cent of this length carries the bulk of the traffic volume.

    Prior to 2008, about 75,000 minibuses, popularly called Danfo, and Molue ran the show on Lagos roads, providing hectic transportation services that drive people to high blood pressure. You needed to enter three buses to move from Ikorodu to Lagos Island.

    When we put all these together, there is no gainsaying Lagos needs a means, a law, to bridle the mad rush in the city – one strong enough to rid it of the current road malady and also protect it from whatever dimension its sprawling population growth may bring in the future.

    This law is needed for two altruistic reasons: first, the difficult transportation in Lagos accounts for disproportionate production cost and loss of valuable man-hour. If there is efficient transportation system, population density in the metropolis will reduce as people will not mind relocating to the suburb.

    Second, every injury and death to anyone in Lagos is not only devastating but also has far reaching impacts because many people “hustling” in Lagos, including the Okada riders, are breadwinners.

    Therefore, care must be taken to protect lives in Lagos because many other lives depend on what they earn. Too many needless deaths occur on Lagos roads and these would be reduced to minimal if this law is properly implemented.

    People complaining now should have done that during the public hearing stage. And this is a lesson that we must learn to participate in governance process. As for truck owners complaining that compliance with the law will lead to loss of revenue for them, I wonder how many times they have commiserated with those bereaved as a result of the reckless activities of their drivers. They do not seem bothered about many lives that have been lost to truck brake failures and unlatched containers falling off.

    Let us imagine the advantages this law will bring – a Lagos where we can all pursue our economic agenda safely – and accept it wholeheartedly.

    • Segun Balogun

    Lagos

  • What ails Nigeria First Lady?

    What ails Nigeria First Lady?

    SIR: It is almost a month since Nigeria’s First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan disappeared from the public scene. Although, her spokesperson, Ayo Osinlu and President Goodluck Jonathan later indicated that she went for a long overdue rest and would be back soon.

    Since then, there have been conflicting reports on the state of her health.

    Has the President forgotten he is no longer a private citizen? Has he forgotten he lost his privacy the moment he took the mantle of office and became the president of Nigeria?

    The silence surrounding the condition of the First Lady reminds of former president, the late Umaru Yar’adua when everything was made hush hush! It was the silence that aggravated anger from Nigerians. But in this case, we are not even sure of what ails the first lady.

    Is it not about time the president comes out and tell Nigerians what the problem is?

    President Jonathan should learn from his colleague, the Argentinean president who suffered from thyroid cancer. There was no secrecy!!! Everything was made public. Even the citizens were notified of the date of her surgery. She had their empathy and support. They rallied round her and they all gathered together at different places to pray for her.

    It is time for our leaders to start treating us like citizens. They should stop seeing themselves as masters and they shouldn’t forget that secrets comes back only to haunt and taunt.

     

    • Kemi Okunade.

    Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye

     

  • Ekiti teachers, NULGE should sheathe their swords

    Ekiti teachers, NULGE should sheathe their swords

    SIR: There is a Yoruba adage which says: ‘If a blacksmith concentrates his energy on a particular spot of an iron, he intends to shape out an end-product”.

    Whatever write-ups and reports had been done in the past on the Ekiti teachers’ proficiency test and the Ekiti NULGE’s current face-off with the government, however fair or foul the write-ups and reports had been, there had been motives on the part of the writers and motives on the part of those who reacted in various ways to the publications.

    Our motives are the crux of the two tussles at hand which we should frankly examine and determine whether they promote or hamper the main objective of the creation of Ekiti State.

    The singular objective of those who fought for and won the Ekiti State creation, was to see the state, hitherto the often forgotten division in the old Western Region, march forward and keep pace with the luckier divisions of that old order in terms of development.

    If, by that act of state creation, Ekiti division was finally placed to make development happen, how much of development have we witnessed since 1966 when a military administrator, Col. Inua Bawa, took off in the task of governance?

    While Col. Inua Bawa and his successor, Navy Captain Atanda Yusuf, were military rulers and non-natives, only one out of our three past civilian governors, Governor Niyi Adebayo, was able to complete a term of four years. The two others, Ayo Fayose and Segun Oni were, each, unable to do a full term.

    While Governor Fayose had his controversial tenure cut short, Oni was stopped by the court on account of electoral fraud. The situations were similar in their effects –the environment was rendered non-conducive for the goal of rapid development.

    It was as if the ancient Ekiti Parapo War for which the division was famous was being fought, ironically, now by the Ekitis against the Ekitis!

    Perhaps that also is why it should be pertinent today to appeal to both the teachers and Ekiti NULGE who are currently at logger-heads with their government to have a re-think.

    One would not want to over-flog the teachers issue but haven’t we retarded the progress of Ekiti State enough with sheer obstinacy?

    The two issues being contended; the Teachers’ Development Need Assessment (TDNA) and Staff Auditing, do fall squarely into the category of pre-conditions for success in developmental goals.

    Ekiti teachers cannot be collectively bad. So, why must Governor Kayode Fayemi who decided to sift the chaff from the grains among teachers not be appreciated?

    The Ekiti NULGE was not unaware that staff audit was being done and that, reasonably, it should be concluded before minimum wage was paid so as not to incur higher losses by paying minimum wage to ghost workers and dupes if they truly existed.

    In any case, the governor said he would pay arrears at the conclusion of staff audit. Why shouldn’t NULGE reason with him? Do they know that, by their actions, they are dancing to the tune of detractors whose agenda, from Day One, had been to have this new government truncated like the past two?

    • Jide Oguntoye

    Oye Ekiti

     

  • Memo to President Jonathan

    Memo to President Jonathan

    SIR: I would like to commend you for your thoughtfulness in acceding to the demands of most Nigerians in reversing the planned introduction of N5000 note and the deliberate ploy to annihilate N5, N 10 and N20 notes estimated to cost a whooping sum of N 40 billion.

    I am excited that your decision to put this redenomination and introduction of new N 5000 note on hold was premised on the popular decision and wishes of Nigerians. Sir, in line with this spirit of benevolence, I wish to appeal to you to replicate this kindheartedness also by completely reversing the increase in Premium Motor Spirit from N 97 to N65.It is not too much a surprise independence anniversary gift to your compatriots come October 1.

    Nigerians are yet to feel the impact of the SURE-P proceeds you promised. If you could not realise N1.3 trillion naira targeted, at least the international oil price has kept steady above the $100 per barrel mark – way above the budget benchmark price. You can impact our lives so much with that.

    Do you know that fuel queues have returned to our cities? You can put your detractors to shame once and for all by building more refineries and ensuring purposeful overhaul of the old ones. If you had thought of this immediately you took oath of office, on May 29, 2011, today the challenges of local refining of crude would have been a thing of the past. It would have been another good reason to roll out the drums and celebrate the breakthrough this Independence Day.

    You can start now.

    Boko Haram sect continues defiantly to ravage the North East/West and dangerously threatening the entire nation. How long would you allow this endemic blood-letting brute thrive to the detriment of our existence? Relying wholly on Ihejirika’s tactics could not guarantee the anticipated result. It will not and has not yielded better fruit anywhere else in the world. Change tactics.

    Thank you for honouring the Paralympians who made Nigeria proud and proved to the world that there is ability in disability. And Muhammad Tahir Zakari (MFR) of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture for his exceptional honesty in returning the sum of N6 million wrongly paid into his account. A good number of people would have zoomed off with the sum. But he followed the dictates of his conscience and chose the path of righteousness. Would it not have been better to seek for more Zakaris and the Paralympians and confer on them with National Honours instead of those you once accused as sponsors and members of Boko Haram?

    The licence of Dana Air has been restored less than three months after their flights crashed at Iju Ishaga in Lagos. As I put pen to paper, some families are yet to identify and recover the bodies of the victims. Kindly direct the aviation minister to take another look into the clean bill of health granted to Dana Air especially when the mandatory compensations have not been paid and inquest into the immediate and remote causes of the crash not concluded.

    Some national dailies have been speculating about the whereabouts and health condition of Her Excellency. Do not misconstrue the interest of the media for it is those we love, we ask after. It is our hope that as we celebrate 52 years of nationhood, we shall see her standing by your side as you wave school children and others march past you at the Eagle Square.

    Accept the assurances of my best regards and happy 52nd Independence Anniversary in advance.

     

    •Sunday Onyemaechi Eze

    Samaru Zaria

     

  • Is government winning the war on terror?

    Is government winning the war on terror?

    SIR: The Joint Task Force on Wednesday claimed it captured the operational base of the Boko Haram in Kano. The JTF also killed one of the influential members of the sect suspected to be its spokesperson with the name Abu Qaqa. Of course, these are remarkable achievements and deserve commendation.

    Although, there cannot be clean victory in the war against terrorism but the government can mitigate if there is consistency in counterterrorism policy with long term strategy that is dynamic in approach. The recent attack against the sect’s operational base will go a long way in reducing the terrorists’ activities in the northern part of Nigeria. There is no doubt in the fact that the JTF assault on the sect’s active base will weaken their organizational capacity to launch future attacks on innocent citizens.

    The JTF should continue and ensure they locate and destroy all Boko Haram’s operational and command centers in Nigeria. The government should also locate their sponsors and active sympathizers for arrest and prosecution under the new anti-terrorism law. The judiciary must rise up to the occasion by complimenting the effort of the security agencies.It is disheartening to see how those who have been arrested and charged to court with credible evidences have been released from time to time without punishments commensurate to their deed.

    Since his appointment as the National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (rted) has consolidated on the existing “carrot and stick” strategy with much emphasis on diplomacy, intelligence gathering and quality intelligence analysis for operational tactics. The product of this approach gives timely interventions that prompted the arrest of the influential cadres and enable the JTF to locate the Boko Haram’s operational centre in Kano. The ability of the NSA to coordinate the security agencies thus reducing the traditional rivalry between them is a major milestone achievement.

    The government must try to consolidate on this gain by reducing all those things that breed terrorism in the society. While the military, law enforcement in collaboration with the intelligence community are doing their best to clear the mess they never created, the policy makers should understand that the only way out to win the war is to reduce poverty, create employment opportunities for young people, reform the Nigerian justice system and deepen the countries democratic values.

    Finally, a comprehensive counterterrorism strategy must be centered on four goals: First, stop terrorists from committing acts of violence by capturing them, disrupting their cells, or if necessary, killing them. Second, keep the most dangerous weapons out of terrorists’ hands. Third, recognising that it is impossible to prevent all attacks. Fourth, prevent radicalisation by helping to deal with grievances that are spawning terrorists.

    The government cannot achieve all these with the only use of force but through a comprehensive approach deeply rooted in good governance.

     

    • Oludare Ogunlana

    abovejordan@yahoo.com

  • Ticking clock of revolution

    Ticking clock of revolution

    SIR: I no longer have time for theories, neither do I have time to criticise President Jonathan which has become the past-time of most of us. Though Jonathan sure has his own share of the blame for where we are at present, it is the graveyard peace that we still enjoy that allows for Jonathan’s or any other public officer’s criticism at that.

    The revolt in Libya did not start in a day, neither, in my opinion, was it a revolt against Ghadafi. It was a revolt against the greed of the ruling class, which Ghadafi represented – the kind of greed that thrives unabashedly in surplus amidst wants and grueling poverty. This is the kind we currently experience in Nigeria, made far worse by the arrogance of the ruling class which believes that Nigerians are too timid to take their destiny in their hands.

    This arrogance makes them look like gods and the rest of us slaves who must lose our dignity in kneeling to lick from the floor the crumbs that fall from their tables. This arrogance has so blinded them that whatever they ‘generously’ dole out to us from our commonwealth is considered a favour for which we must grovel and beg. Even now, our hands drip blood from the wounds of yesteryears and the present, while they shrink in fear of the wounds of coming years.

    There is a saying that humans are to be valued while things are to be used. Unfortunately, the Nigerian ruling class value things they are to use and use humans they are to value and love. Houses and cars are of more value to them than humans. In their eyes, there is no drop of mercy. Their hearts and conscience are seared. Our existence or death draws no joy or pity from them. After all, we are all just statistics: more than 70% living below the poverty line, 23.9 percent unemployment rate etc.

    Statistics we are and statistics we remain while they continue in their acquisitive nature.

    What Nigerian politicians forget is that the poor man with no dignity has got nothing to lose. It is the rich who build empires and if the empires crumble, definitely their health and hearts crumble with them. The man who has for years been pressed down will someday find his voice and stand to his feet from his master’s table with his wounded and bloodied hands to demand justice. In the words of Martin Luther King Jnr: “Oppressed people cannot remain oppressed forever. The yearning for freedom eventually manifests itself…Something within has reminded him of his birthright of freedom, and something without has reminded him that it can be gained.”

    Professor Femi Osofisan’s book “Red is the Freedom Road” best describes the situation. The poor man with bloodied hands has felt ceaseless pain from the soles of his master’s shoes so much so that pain now has its gains for him: it hardens and makes him heartless like his master. The mental picture of a heartless man (men) demanding freedom can be sickening to the point of vomit for the lily-livered.

    Freedom will sure be gained, but not without pain. As for the already dehumanised poor man, he has felt and mastered pain, but the spoilt rich man and his kids will feel it more and probably never survive it.

    • ‘Dimeji Daniels

    Ado-Ekiti.

     

  • Nigerians and London Met University debacle

    SIR: If by November 23, the United Kingdom Border Agency (UKBA), refuses to reverse its revocation of London Metropolitan University’s visa status and the case instituted by the varsity strikes no chord , close to 1500 Nigeria students studying in the University who cannot secure alternative admission in other schools might face deportation from the UK.

    On August 30, the UK government revoked London Metropolitan’s highly-trusted status (HTS) for sponsoring international students, based on its findings that a quarter of students studying at the university did not even have permission to stay in the country. UKBA also revoked the existing visas of the University’s pre-existing non-European foreign students, which automatically terminates their studentship and left them in the limbo of seeking admission somewhere else irrespective of the number of years already spent.

    According to the UK Immigration Minister, 142 of 250 (57%) sampled students from London Met had attendance issues. Which means they hardly attend classes. Except Nigerians want to lie to themselves, how many of the youths who leave the country on the pretense of going to study abroad end up doing so? Admission abroad is usually an opportunity to leave Nigeria with its woes of socio-economic disabilities and the few that ends up in school had to take up menial jobs to cover their fees.

    This, to a large extent, may account for their absentism but UK authorities would be killing the vision and aspirations of these determined immigrants by booting them out. The authorities at London Met have established that non-European student in the University are just 11% but the school generates 32% of its income from them.

    Penalizing legitimate international students for the sins of London Met is disproportionate and damaging to UK’s international reputation.

    Until African leaders appreciate that higher education is key to sustainable development, they would continue to subject their citizen to ridicule of this magnitude. One thing we fail to understand in this part of the world is the destructive implications of brain drain. If our government claimed ignorance during the slave trade era, their prompting us to enslave ourselves and get abused and humiliated in this era of globalisation leaves much to be desired.

     

    • Sulaimon Mojeed-Sanni

    Lagos.