The Nation Newspaper

Category: Opinion

  • Gender: A social construct

    By Sonia Chukwu

     

    In Nigeria as well as most nations, we are guided by values which define our individual roles in society. A defiant individual would usually face social sanctions. How can we really define gender identity when it is in itself a spectrum?

    From birth, we are assigned gender identities, whereas we are not born to be either man or woman. Agencies of socialisation, such as the media, families, and school contribute to the portrayal of these strict identities.

    In Nigeria, most of our beliefs are based on religion and this is the justifiable means by which we assign gender roles. However, religion is a complex phenomenon. If we cannot explain most of the experiences and ideas defined by religion, why then use it to quantify gender?

    Most people would explain that it is, in fact, our physical characteristics that determine our gender and there can only be two defined genders because there are only two defined sexes. However, our biological sex should not determine our gender because these are two different concepts.

    Similarly, sex is not defined. Reason? According to the Intersex Society of North America, the birth of a hermaphrodite occurs once in 2000 births around the world.

    The statistics for Nigeria is unknown but there have been reported cases of hermaphrodites usually associated with social stigma and violence. Most of this occurrence is as a result of the citizens’ignorance, which could be attributed to lack of education.

    Once these identities have been defined from birth, we are groomed to live by them; girls play with softer toys, watch softer cartoons and are sanctioned for behaving violently while boys who express these qualities are only said to be acting as ‘just boys’.

    In most scenarios, especially in Nigeria, the female is expected to grow up, get married and care for others, i.e siblings, children, among others.

    On the other hand, the male is attributed to growing up, going to school to get education, becoming part of the workforce and acting as the head of the family (leading and directing the family in his own way).

    However, as times evolved, and women now take up roles that were once the exclusive of the male folk, those age-long characteristics that a woman is supposed to exhibit still remain sacrosanct in societies like Nigeria.

    Read Also: How society makes gender degradation a norm

     

    Many people now accord special recognition to women who excel in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) courses than women in art-related or social science courses. This is because they believe, it is unusual and of higher esteem.

    In the Northern part of Nigeria for example, some communities still indulge in child marriage because they view women as sexual objects existing for male gratification. This is a fallout of over-sexualisation of the female gender, being ascribed to nothing more than being a wife and a ‘bed warmer’.

    Another problem this has caused is the limitations of positions or roles in society that a female can reach such as in politics or in the corporate world. There are many more problems that gender as a social construct has brought about.

    It is important, especially in this 21st century, to understand various forms that exist, which should not be assigned particular roles, some of which are cisgender, transgender, agender (genderless), bigender, polygender (multigender), intergender, and demi gender etc.

    Stereotypes of the male and female gender should be abandoned and the focus should be on individual differences. In the family, children should be nurtured in a way that allows them to define who they are. Schools and learning institutes should be able to educate them on the different forms that exist and why gender identification is non-binary.

    The media, which is one of the most powerful influences and an agent of socialisation, needs to portray issues on gender in as many forms as possible; in movies, cartoons, shows, segments etc.

    Once we are exposed to them, they become a norm and this eliminates the social construct of what gender is.

     

    • Sonia Chukwu is a 200-Level Mass Communication student of Babcock University, Ogun State.

  • Nigeria: Averting impending economic doom

    By Quadri Fatima Omoyeni

     

    A fool at 40 is a fool forever’ goes a popular saying. Sadly, this seems to be the part Nigeria is threading. Despite turning 40 19 years ago, the country’s growth has been at a snail speed. This situation will not last forever, as Nigerians are hopeful that their country can still bounce back and avert the impending economic doom.

    On June 26, 2018, the Cable News Network (CNN) reported that Nigeria with an estimated 87 million, has overtaken India as the country with the highest number of people living in extreme poverty with as  less than $1.90 daily.

    While this is saddening, may I say it does not spell the end for the country. Even though the future might look gloom, there is definitely light at the end of the tunnel. Nigeria shall find its feet amid this darkness.

    Nigeria’s GDP of $447.01 billion delivers only $2,244 per capita, while China has a gross domestic product (GDP) of $14.21 trillion, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

    Delivering a per capita income of $10,150, China becomes the world’s second largest economy and No.1 exporter. India’s GDP of $2.97 trillion makes it the worlds fifth biggest, ahead of the United Kingdom, France, Italy and Canada at sixth, seventh, eighth and 10th. Brazil, once our peer, pips in at ninth largest with GDP of $1.96 trillion and per capita income of $8,967.

    Singapore’s per capita GDP of $62,984 is ninth highest (IMF), South Africa’s is $6,377 despite the country’s economic slowdown.

    Read Also: Lawan promises peace, economic growth in 2020

     

    Although Nigeria’s poverty rate is quite high and had been made public putting our great nation in a shameful position, our leaders seem not to have come to terms with the reality that the country is becoming more economically ruined and putting more pressures on the masses.

    Against this background, the rich keep getting richer and the poor poorer. Worse still, the masses’ hopes dim amid the fact that those whom they elected into power have since abandoned their campaign promises.

    As at last June 10, findings on the website of the Debt Management Office (DMO) revealed that the Federal Government owed N13.1 trillion domestically, while the states and FCT combined owedN 3.97 trillion. Similarly, the external debt of the Federal government, states and FCT stood atN 7.8 trillion.

    A statement by the  DMO in Abuja stated that the debt stock comprises  domestic and external debts of the Federal Government, the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

    The statement further stated that the debt, which rose by N560 billion, was accounted for largely by domestic debt which grew by N458.36 billion, while external debt also increased by N101.64 billion during the same period.

    Despite Nigeria’s huge debt burden, the level of corruption in the country is still quite alarming and affecting economic growth.

    Consequently, projects have become costlier, job execution shadier, basic infrastructure worsening, with lack of job opportunities coupled with government’s inability to pay civil servants, university workers and their teachers in our various tertiary institutions nationwide.

     

    • Quadri Fatima Omoyeni is a 200-Level Mass Communication student of Babcock University, Ogun State.

  • A life and a mission: A personal reflection at 60

    By Tunji Olaopa

     

    “We often take for granted the very things that most     deserve our gratitude” – Cynthia Ozick

    “When it comes to life, the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude”. – G.K. Chesterton

    At 60, I cannot but remember a crowd of people who have played various roles in my becoming who I am today. These are people who inspired me and some of who are still around and continue to encourage me on the journey of life that has become obvious to me today as God pre-ordained. Starting with my late parents who sacrificed immensely for me to realise my potential and who actually saw these potentials before I did. In spite of their financial challenges, they ensured that I got the right kind of education both formal and informal which started me well in life and helps me on life journey. To this class of people belong my siblings and other members of my family. Today this group has increased to include my immediate family: my wife (a woman of great Christian faith, who has been a great stabilising force for me), my children and grandchildren. At 60th these constitute a rich memory and presence that nudge me on.

    There is another group of influence that has been very critical to what I am today. This group consists of the different and amazing people that served not just as role models but more like angels that God positioned at crucial junctions of our lives. They are treasured for the immeasurable values they add. These are the giants on whose shoulders I rode when I started this journey. People like late Professor Ojetunji Aboyade, Professor Akin Mabogunje, Chief Simeon Adebo, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, Prof. Adebayo Adedeji, my Awe townsmen and forebears such as Dr. J. A. Adegbite, Prof. E. Latunde Odeku, Africa’s first Neuro-Surgeon, Amb. Omolodun, Rev. (Dr.) S. T. Ola Akande, Dr. Ojefemi Aboyade, Mr. Taofeek Ademola Bello, Profs. Adesola Ogunniyi and Adebayo Okunade, Dr. Tunji Bolade, and many more. Added to these great minds are a number of very impactful formal and informal teachers who have helped in shaping the learning component of what has turned into a lifelong mission.

    These basic lessons were complemented by a range of political theory, policy-oriented literature and thoughts in philosophical discourse to which the following and many others contributed: Thomas More, Bertrand Russell, Albert Einstein, Karl Popper, Rudyard Kipling, John Maynard Keynes, T. S. Elliot, Mahatma Gandhi, John Kennedy, Abraham Lincoln, Winston Churchill, Napoleon Bonaparte, George Bernard Shaw, C. P. Snow, Nelson Mandela, Pandit Nehru, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Obafemi Awolowo, Ahmadu Bello, Thomas Paine, Cervantes, J. J. Rousseau, Francis Bacon, William Shakespeare, Rupert Waldo Emerson, Karl Marx, Che Guevara,  Lopsang Rampa and the mystics, Jean Paul Sartre and the other existentialists. Other great minds that attracted my attention were the likes of Tai Solarin’s “May your road be rough,” Wole Soyinka’s The Man Died, Ali Mazrui’s “African Triple Heritage,” Tam David-West and Sanya Onabamiro’s “Philosophical Essays,” Dag Hammarskjold’s “Markings,” James Allen’s As a Man Thinketh, the public affairs commentaries of  the likes of  Aiyekoto, Pat Utomi  and Olatunji Dare; Ebenezer Obey, Haruna Isola, Yusuf Olatunjis’ philosophical musical renditions and those of  Kenny Rogers, Dolly Parton & Desree;  Areoye Oyebola’s ‘The Black Man’s Dilemma’, Ngugi Wa Thiongo and Chinua Achebe, whose little book of irreducible wisdom on the Nigerian condition, The Trouble With Nigeria, specifically, inspired one of mine titled, The Joy of Learning.

    My mentors and seniors in the civil service, including Alhaji Lele Muhtar, M. Yayale Ahmed, Alhaji Moibi Shitu, S. B. Ajulo, Senator Ibrahim Ida, Prof. Oladapo Afolabi, Dr. Goke Adegoroye, Barr. Dauda Kigbu, to name just a few.  As I was maturing as an intellectual, I had the likes of Ladipo Adamolekun, M. J. Balogun, Pat Utomi, Ray Ekpu, Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah, Rev. Fr. Ehusani, Tola Adeniyi, Felix Adenaike, Odia Ofeimun, Toyin Falola, Femi Otubanjo, Eghosa Osaghae, Egem Odey, Babajide Owoeye, among a long list of people, as grand interlocutors to study for all that is meant by mentorship.

    I have also been blessed with a very rich complement of contemporaries in different categories. The likes of late Olusegun Oladipo, Ayo Olukotun, Yemi Dipeolu, Gani Adeniran, Festus Adedayo, Segun Ayobolu, Bunmi Fabamwo, Gani Ojagbohunmi, Tunji Irelewuyi, Bert Odiaka, Joe Abah, Tayo Aduloju, Edward Enejoh, Chike Ogbechie,  et al. These have continually been time tested iron that has helped to sharpen this iron. Another category of this group is a group of younger minds with whom I have had very productive engagements, including Olajumoke Jacob-Haliso, Adeshina Afolayan, Isaac Shittu, Edem Ossai, Feyi Ijimakinwa, among others. These upcoming ones are shaping up so impressively that one could gaze into the future and say with confidence that our tomorrow holds some hope. Therefore I have a lot to be thankful for: the circumstances of my birth, the angels in my life in the form of models and mentors, my companions, my education and my health.

    Under God, my health is top on my list of things to be grateful for. Whilst I have had many encounters and experience in this aspect of life, I vividly recollect an incident that happened in October 2011, few months after my appointment as a Federal Permanent Secretary. I was posted to the Presidential Villa and as is my practice, I always have a prayer session once I resume in a new office. It was during one of such sessions that one of the men of God that led the prayer session saw a vision of an impending disaster, the magnitude of which not only unsettled him but made him to request that a prayer band be raised to support me. Few months after this prayer session, I had retina detachment and technically went blind. By the mercy of God I overcame this health challenge and thereafter went on to publish six (6) new books, dozens of monographs and over 200 articles in the newspapers.

    In all of these and above them all is the undeniable God factor. Like the ancient hymn says, it is “Amazing Grace…that never ceases to show up for us”, even if it is simply to keep us on the path of righteousness. Without sounding churchy, I am a man of strong spiritual convictions. I have seen so many inexplicable divine interventions to know that, as the book of Proverbs says, “The heart of a man devises his ways but the Lord orders his steps”. One of such divine order is, as I recall how, what appeared as foolishness at the time but which became defining, the events that led to the establishment of the Ibadan School of Government and Public Policy (ISGPP) and later my professorship. I started planning for my retirement immediately I was appointed Permanent Secretary in 2010.

    I had planned to set this off with the publication of some public education series and articles for about three months but this went on until my untimely retirement in November 2015. Indeed, it was the research activities that took place during this period that supplied materials for those articles that inspired the establishment of the Ibadan School of Government and Public Policy (ISGPP) and later my professorship. Therefore, contrary to the observation of Cynthia Ozick and G.K. Chesterton, I cannot take for granted the very things that “most deserve” my gratitude. I for one take all of these with gratitude.

    Now at 60, it is confounding that most of the questions that troubled my young mind while I was growing up; the questions to which I have spent sixty years trying to find answers and for which reason I looked up to so many great minds that have crossed my path and impacted my life, are still unanswered and in some cases, are now more puzzling than ever. These disappointments and miseries that troubled the Mabogunjes, Bolanle Awes, and Aboyades, which found a voice in the Nobel Laureate, Wole Soyinka, who confessed that theirs is a ‘wasted generation’, are still very much with us today.  So, going by this sad admission, and being mindful of generational capital as a critical block in the Nigerian nation building process, it is safe to nudge ourselves into facing the superfluous questions at the heart of the Nigerian predicament. We must ask that self-probing question: “when will Nigeria help itself or be successfully helped, to take itself sufficiently seriously to stem the tide of these disturbing and dismal generational wastages and desecration?” I am speaking of disturbing realities – where the best in class; the nation’s intellectual and professional assets must look up to the third best for solace, to realise themselves. It is a reality where even the least complicated models, tested and proven in virtually all sane climes, never work in Nigeria. As such, one cannot shy away from asking, “When will the Nigerian elites and the corps of leadership be united in shared vision, to confront the obvious problem of lack of firm direction regarding the envisioned great Nigeria of the future that we are building?

    It is truly sad that in our 60 years as a nation we are yet to have a nationally shared vision regarding the Nigerian of our dream to which the leadership is committed, in spirit and in truth. Rather, Nigeria is being piloted metaphorically by three pilots in the cockpit. While one is looking to Saudi Arabia for vision, the other is looking to Israel in a manner of speaking. The third pilot, however, wishes that the plane would crash after he has escaped using the parachute. His uncanny dream is borne out of a desire to appropriate unto himself whatever is left as the ‘biggest contributor’ to the commonwealth. The consequent sociology, from these confused ideological underpinnings of the envisioned Nigeria, is contrived in the dubious behaviour of a political leadership class that repeats the same old game of playing chess with the destiny of the Nigerian nation. It is this failure of the leadership to come up with a shared vision of the direction towards which they are leading the nation, which makes it difficult for them to promote an active citizenship in Nigeria despite such brilliant initiatives and policies like the Quota system, Federal Character, National Youth Service Corp (NYSC), Ethical Revolution, MAMSER, the rebranding Nigeria project, and “Change Begins with You” amongst others. That would be the kind of citizenship that encourages individuals to work beyond their personal interests, in thought, speech and action, and to take their civic responsibility seriously as a common national aspiration that the political leadership is trusted in all its actions to achieve.

     

    Looking back ten years at my 50th birthday today and about four years after I left the civil service, I cannot but notice how many things have changed. Five years ago I was a permanent secretary at the heart of public service practice and reform efforts and within the Nigerian civil service system. Today I am a Professor of Public Administration with the mandate to teach, to research and to mentor a new generation of Nigerians who should be able at the end of the day to form part of a critical mass of people who will be willing to work towards bringing Nigeria out of its current quagmire and into realizing her great potential as the power house of the Black race. However, either in the civil service or in the academia, one thing remains constant: I am in the business of reform. I am still in the pursuit of a vision of how Nigeria can bring her rich human resources and potential into the practical service of national development, and public gains. My vision has not changed and my mission remains the same as it was ten years ago. I am still working at how to marry the intellectual capital and, consequently, the theoretical resources of our ivory towers on how to move Nigerian forward and the practice of public service and national development. The only difference, however, is that in addition to the academic space, I have the benefit of another critical space which is actually meant to be the meeting point of the gown and the town. This is the Ibadan School of Government and Public Policy (ISGPP). ISGPP was established in 2016 to interface several sectors in a multidisciplinary institutional framework and to engage the theory and practice of public policy discourse and problems in a professional, sustained and systematic manner. It is within these spaces that I am willing to devote the rest of my professional life and investment and hope to join many other gifted Nigerian intellectuals and policy advocates to move Nigerian towards true democracy and development and to stop the perpetual wastages of generations of Nigerians.

    Incidentally, the Nigerian project is equally 60 years old. I can only hope that in the next ten years at 70, my positivism and cheerfulness will not have been dampened into the same disappointment that haunts the generation of the Wole Soyinka, Kenneth Dike, Bala Usman, Emeka Anyaoku, Akin Mabogunje and Bolanle Awe today. I hope my enthusiasm will have the benefit of a nation already taking full advantage of its rich human and natural resources and which has successfully broken the spell of arrested development. I hope to be able to tell such a worthy story to my grandchildren at the end of the day.

    By the grace of God, we shall overcome.

     

    • Olaopa is a retired Federal Permanent Secretary and Executive Vice-Chairman, Ibadan School of Government and Public Policy (ISGPP), Bodija, Ibadan.

    tolaopa2003@gmail.com

  • Effects of taking drugs with carbonated drinks

    By Ogunremi  Oyindamola

     

    Carbonated beverages are drinks with carbon dioxide, a colourless and flavourless gas. Carbonated beverages have their base either in carbonated or soda water. They usually have flavours and sweeteners.

    Carbonated drinks can also be called fizzy drinks as the process of making them involves carbon dioxide under high pressure. When the pressure is removed, the carbon dioxide is released as small bubbles, which cause the solution to become effervescent, or fizzy.

    An example is the dissolution of carbon dioxide in water, resulting in carbonated water. Carbon dioxide is a weak soluble in water. Therefore, it separates into gas when the pressure is released.

    Drinks like cola, cherry cola, energy, enviga, red bull, jolt and monster are carbonated drinks with stimulants. Soda is the most common carbonated drink.

    Many people begin to drink carbonated beverages at a young age with a first sip of coke, Sprite, and Pepsi, or some of the common soda drinks, which are harmful to the body.

    Coffee is consumed mostly in the western part of the world. It is mostly taken very early in the morning to start the day’s work.

    Although the ventures didn’t succeed, star bucks tried to introduce a carbonated coffee beverage called mazagran and coke attempted the same thing with Kona. Water is consumed in every part of the world, but it can also be carbonated.

    Carbonated water, also known as sparkling water, fizzy water and seltzer, is popular among weight conscious or other people who want to avoid sugar sodas.

    It is mostly planned and in various light flavours like lemon, raspberry and vanilla. Juice they are some juice that has carbonated but check their nutrition labels to see how healthy they are like we have the Nantucket, nectars, line of lightly carbonated juices called Nectar fizz.

    Notably, carbonated drinks may cause you to experience pain in your nasal cavity. As reported at neuroscience news, one study conducted at the University of Southern California revealed that the carbon dioxide in carbonated beverages alerts pain sensors in your nasal cavity.

    Carbonated from beverages like soda causes two sensations, making your mouth taste sour and a tingling feeling in your nose and throat.

    The burning sensation that many people feel when drinking carbonated drinks stems from nerves that respond to pain sensation and temperature in your nose and mouth. Heart burn consuming one or more carbonated drinks per day also causes you to experience nighttime heart burn.

    One study revealed that heart burn at night, nocturnal gastro esophageal reflux, is fairly common, approximately 44 percent of Americans suffer from heart burns at least once monthly; if you experience heart burn regularly, you may be at the risk of contracting esophageal cancer, laryngitis, asthma, and  pneumonia.

    Read Also: Buhari: 14.3m Nigerians abusing drugs

     

    All said, medicines have several instructions, such as when and how the drug should be taken. Some even go as far as stating certain foods or drinks that should be avoided to achieve maximum therapeutic benefits to the patient. However, drug manufacturers have not explained the effects of taking drugs with soft drinks.

    Soft drinks or aerated beverages are carbonated. Most of them are acidic in nature, too. They are capable of decreasing the anti-bacterial actions of most medicines.

    The carbonated drinks, when combined with certain medicines, can lead to allergies or have adverse effects in some patients.

    Hence, soft drinks also restrict the absorption of iron, so if you are taking iron supplements or medicines with iron then consuming them with soft drinks can also reduce the effects of drugs on your body, thereby making them ineffective and slowing down the recovery process of all juices, grape juice must be avoided the most while taking prescription pills as the furanocoumarins in the juice inhibits the absorption of the drugs and can lead to adverse effects as for tea and coffee the tannins in the beverages reduces the digestion of the medication few medianes like calcium or Vitamin D supplements are advised to be taken with milk.

    Taking medicines with carbonated drinks can make medication to be ineffective. For tannic acid in tea will reduce the absorption of iron in drugs.

    In addition, milk contains calcium that reacts with some drugs to form calcium salts which are insoluble. This leads to reducing effects of the drug which is very common in many soft drinks like Coca-Cola.

    Ogunremi  Oyindamola is a 200-Level Mass Comminication student of Babcock University.

  • Benin indigenes, let us think (Part 2)

    Edun AKENZUA

    The curtain dropped in 2015 on the  dramatic scenarios that made  Comrade Adams Oshiomhole popular. The honeymoon was over. It was the twilight of his Administration. In July that year, I had a meeting with my brother, the Oba of Benin, Omo n’Oba Erediauwa. He asked me if BLT had begun searching for a successor to the Governor. The Oba named one person he believed would be a suitable successor.

    Few months after the meeting, BLT began the process of seeking for a suitable person to succeed the Governor. Oshiomhole had assured me on three different occasions that Benins would themselves nominate the person to succeed him and that he would give the person maximum support. The third occasion he gave me the assurance was on September 16, 2016 in my house. He had come to introduce his beautiful spouse to me. He was accompanied by Rev. Micheal Egharevba and his Chief Security Officer (CSO).

    We sat in my Study Room where my daughter, (Mrs. Yvonne Osunde) decorated her with coral bead necklace, bangles, and ear-rings. After the short ceremony, she and my daughters moved to the Living Room where Rev. Egharevba and others were sitting.

    Alone with Oshiomhole, I raised the issue of his successor, the desire of Benins to choose their own candidate by themselves and his promise to support whoever they chose. He said: “Your Highness, I’ve told you before. I assure you again, Benins will name the man they want. I will give him maximum support. That’s the only way I will show gratitude to our Papa (the Oba) for the support he gave me which led us to this stage. There’s no other way I can show my appreciation of the fatherly support,” I believed him. He sounded earnest.

    I disclosed to him the man the Oba believed would be a suitable successor to him and asked him if he would give the man his support. He said he would, if he was a member of his party. He added: “My only fear is the new law made by the party that a person who has not been registered for a given period, cannot run for any position in the party”.

    In January 2016, BLT invited 14 persons known to be interested in the governorship position to came and obtain expression of interest form, free of charge. The fourteen persons, drawn across party lines, were: Prof. Osayuki Oshodin, Prof. S.E. Orobator, Engr. Chris Ogiemwonyi, Dr. Pius Odubu, Barr. Osarodion Ogie, Prof. Ernest Izevbigie, Pharm Chris Iyare, Maj-Gen. Charles Airhiavbere, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, Sen. Ehigie Uzamere, Chief Solomon Iyobosa Edebiri, Adviser Nowamagbe, Dr. Tonnie Iredia and Col. Wisdom Ogbewekon. Nine of them responded.

    Towards the end of October, a rumour burst out that Oshiomhole was going to pick and sponsor a person to succeed him. I did not believe it. Did he not assure me only a month ago that Benins would choose their own man?  BLT members who heard the rumour suggested that BLT should issue a statement and re-iterate its position against godfatherism but I did not think BLT should act on a rumour. I requested for time to enable me contact the governor and find out from him if the rumour was true.

    I wrote letters and sent text messages to him requesting for audience. I tried to speak with him on phone.   Consequently, a press conference was called on January 5, 2016.

    After the press conference, Oshiomhole announced the name of Godwin Obaseki as the person he had chosen to be his successor. Thus, he unilaterally foisted a candidate on Edo people. It was bewildering.  What happened to the promise he made to His Majesty, the Omo n’Oba and to the people of Benin? For how long had he nursed the idea of sponsoring a successor? Did he demolish the godfather at Uromi in order to take his place?

    •Prince Akenzua is of the Benin Royal Family

  • Persons with disabilities, Osun-CSDP and social inclusion 

    Hameed Oyegbade

    The commemoration of the World’s Disability Day on Tuesday, 3rd of December offers an opportunity to ruminate and reflect on the challenges and plight of persons that are living with disabilities so as to call the attention of concerned authorities, where necessary, to act promptly and alleviate the suffering of these persons and affect their lives positively.

    In Nigeria, according to the Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities (JONAPWD), at least there are more than 24 million persons that are living with disabilities. JONAPWD is made up of six disability clusters namely National Association of the Blind, Nigeria National Association of the Deaf, National Association of Persons with Physical Disabilities, National Association of Persons with Intellectual Disabilities, National Association of Persons Affected by Leprosy and the Spinal Cord Injured Association of Nigeria. Each of these clusters has its own challenges while there are some problems that affect them together.

    In Osun State, there are 57,000 Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) as confirmed by the President of the Osun State Chapter of JONAPWD, Mr Kehinde Onitiju, in reference to the last head count of PWDs in the state in 2012. Of course, now in 2019, the number would have moved up as he noted the association is growing incrementally and only God knows who is next to become their member since most of them were not born with disabilities and every living human being is prone to become disabled.

    READ ALSO: Sanwo-Olu, World Bank, others urge inclusion for persons with disabilities

    While acknowledging that poverty is a general phenomenon and majority of the citizens of this country are seriously afflicted, very sadly, the manner persons with disabilities are overrun by this scourge is very pathetic. There is no gainsaying the fact that poverty takes advantage of the condition of the persons with disabilities to impoverish them beyond imagination. And because there is no proper plan to cater for them, a large number of persons with disabilities have become beggars while some other people even use some of them as objects of begging even under harsh condition.

    Persons with disabilities need economic empowerment and social inclusion so as to be reintegrated back into the society as normal citizens who equally deserve to live befitting and good life. In particular, the children that are living with disabilities deserve good education so that they would not become liability on the society as they grow up. Educated ones among them should get jobs, earn income and survive without resorting to  seeking alms.

    Their current plight and the state of neglect should not continue. Majority of persons with disabilities who managed to go to school and graduated are unemployed even several years after graduation whereas such persons should get automatic employment. Those that want to be self-employed among them lack financial capability in terms of initial capital and those in business already, couldn’t thrive because of lack of necessary supports. Many of them find it difficult to use some public facilities, especially those on wheelchairs as most public facilities still lack ramp. Yet, the stigmatisation persists and life is becoming unbearable for the persons with disabilities.

    Fortunately, in Osun, there is hope for the persons with disabilities given the compassionate nature and the gentlemanliness of the Governor that the state is blessed with, Mr Adegboyega Oyetola. For the first time in the state, an incumbent Governor spent a day with the special pupils at the school of Persons with Special Needs in Osogbo, the state capital. The pupils trooped out from their class to catch a glimpse of the state governor, an unusual event they never thought could ever happen. With empathy, the emotion laden Oyetola watched and admired the pupils displaying rear talents to convince the whole world that they have capabilities in spite of their disabilities.

    As he inaugurated some Socially Inclusive Micro-Projects including a Braille Press center for the blind, the girls’ hostel, school fence and six tricycles to ease transportation of the physically challenged persons, the Governor assured the persons with disabilities in the state of a new lease of life. The facilities were put in place with the support of the World Bank assisted Osun Community and Social Development Projects (Osun-CSDP). Governor Oyetola lauded Osun-CSDP for the feat and assured the persons with disabilities in the state that they would not be marginalized by his administration. The Governor commended the General Manager of Osun-CSDP, Mrs Abokede Aderonke Funmi for putting the persons with disabilities into consideration.

    For Abokede, these pupils must be supported to achieve their full potential in life regardless of their condition and status and this necessitated the support from Osun-CSDP particularly as poverty alleviation and social inclusion is part of the focus of the administration of Governor Oyetola and the real focus of the CSDP.
    Abokede noted that the state government in conjunction with the World Bank through Osun-CSDP committed N109,317,855 for 48 Socially Inclusive Micro-Projects across the state including the four inaugurated in the school.

    This is a milestone and these microprojects are contributing and will continue to contribute to the achievement of the state’s development plan. It is impressive that the state government under the able leadership of Governor Gboyega Oyetola is willing and committed to doing more for the inclusion of the persons with disabilities in the state.
    In conclusion, persons with disabilities deserve to live normal life and must be supported. Necessary mechanisms including the Disability Act/Law should be implemented without further delay and states should also domesticate it. The Osun State government and its agency, Osun-CSCP have done great and should do more. Other states must emulate Osun on this. We must all play our parts to make life bearable for the persons with disabilities so that happiness will go round and we will have the agape love.

    *Hameed Oyegbade, a social commentator writes from Osogbo, Osun State.

  • Obaseki: A tale of Herod and the born child

    John MAYAKI

    When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled” was the account of the Holy Book on the reaction of the cruel King Herod when he learned of the birth of the little boy, whose arrival to earth lacked any real sheen as it took place in a lowly manger, but was nonetheless destined to rule and perhaps, end the tyrannical reign of the wicked king.

    On Friday the December 13, ominously close to Christmas when plays depicting the birth and life of Jesus Christ would be aired across the globe, a similar sequence unfolded in Edo State with Godwin Obaseki, the governor of the state, playing Herod and doing his best to bring to muzzle the people’s right to associate and gather.

    The stage was set by the announced homecoming of Pastor Osagie Ize Iyamu to the All Progressives Congress, a party he helped build from the ground in the state, and the mega rally organized by the state executive of the party to herald his return home, one which the governor was sent a personal invite to alongside other government officials.

    Politicians leave and join parties all the time, especially in this clime, therefore not many would have expected this to go beyond a routine party function enjoying the blessing of all or disregard of some. But the problem is, Pastor Osagie Ize Iyamu is no ordinary politician. He is a man who, through decades of selfless and honest public and private service, has built a structure with strong foothold across the 18 Local Government Areas of Edo State.
    His return to the party was also not ordinary or routine; he arrived with thousands of members from his previous party, many of whom are experienced grassroots mobilizers and political bigwigs with significant influence in Edo State and the south-south region. The mega rally was meant to, at the very least, display this and remind those who may have forgotten who Pastor Osagie Ize Iyamu is and the level of support his integrity, political maturity and character has earned him over the years.

    This was the news Godwin Obaseki heard, the reality he saw – and, like King Herod, he was greatly troubled. Ordinarily, as a party-man, the news of another political juggernaut rejoining forces should be a thing of joy and assurance of the collective good but Obaseki loyal only to himself and prioritizes his political survival over and above everything else.  Thus, learning of the organic excitement trailing the return of Pastor Osagie Ize Iyamu, contrary to his own contrived support inspired by inducements and threats, as well as the grand reception planned by majority of party members who barely tolerate his own breath, he grew paranoid and like King Herod who ordered the killing of all born male children in Bethlehem to get to one, Obaseki’s ambition led him to do disturbing things.

    READ ALSO: Obaseki campaign team rejects APC reconciliation committee

    To avert the birth of a clearly favored politician into his party, in less than 48 hours, the government led by Godwin Obaseki issued numerous statements, first by closing all schools to deny Pastor Osagie Ize Iyamu a venue for the mega rally, then placing a frivolous ban on political activities as though the state is in a state of emergency, before proceeding, comically and illegally so, to issue threats of demolition or permanent forfeiture of properties to homeowners in Edo State who permit any political gathering in their houses.

    For a government and governor that claims to be loved by all, of what use is the deployment of force, violence, and abuse of state powers to deny people their constitutional rights of assembly and association?
    Evidently, Pastor Osagie Ize Iyamu is not and cannot be likened to a savior but for anyone who is either still in denial or doubts his influence, you only need to see the reaction of the state government to his homecoming. He has made no declaration of ambition, he has reached out to all parties, and has established his commitment to peace, yet they kick, cry and run helter skelter; for Pastor Ize Iyamu’s homecoming and influence isn’t the only driver of their desperation and irrationality.

    •Mayaki, an Oxford and Cambridge University-trained entrepreneurship, leadership and sustainability expert, wrote from England.

  • Iru Kingdom: The end of a dominating dynasty

    By Sunmonu Ayodele

     

    IT was Martin Luther King, Jr. who said that History will have to record that the greatest tragedy of this period of social transition was not the strident clamor of the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people. One of the appealing importance of history in society is that it helps to put things straight by providing facts and figures to occurrences. But how can citizens make better decisions without information? Without knowledge of our past and the intricacies of culture, we are oblivious of the secrets of state crafts and become bound by the mistakes of the past.

    The demise of the late Oniru of Iru land, Oba Abiodun Idowu Oniru, has brought about a vacuum in the highly coveted royal seat in the city of aquatic splendor. This season presents a window of opportunity to educate the good people of Lagos about the state and its rich cultural heritage.

    It’s important to note that there are only three Ruling Houses recognized by the Customary Law Regulation Selection to the Oniru Chieftaincy of 14th September 1993, approved under the leadership of the late Former Governor, Sir Michael Agbolade Otedola.

    The Ruling Houses include Abisogun, Akiogun, and Ogunyemi.

    The said Declaration leaves no space for second-guessing or any lacuna of some sort as it clearly states the number of Ruling Houses, the approved rotation and the procedure to be followed in the nomination of the candidates by the Local Government Authority.

    It is rather unfortunate that many Lagosians have been misled to believe that the Akiogun is the only Ruling House in the Oniru Kingdom owing to the fact that the Akiogun family has ruled for a stretch of about 72 years.

    Upon the demise of 13th Oba of Oniru, Oba Yesufu Abiodun from the Akiogun Ruling House, who reigned for 48 years between 1936 and 1984, it was the turn of the Ogunyemi Ruling House to produce the candidate to the stool of Oba of Oniru by all standards. But for some reason, the Ogunyemi Ruling House declined and approved their right to the Akiogun family. This was why the immediate past monarch, the 14th Oba of Oniru, Late Oba Idowu Abiodun Oniru from the same Akiogun Ruling House got nominated and selected as the Oba Oniru. He reigned from 1995 to 2019 until his death last September at the age of 82.

    In all ramifications, history has been fair and kind to the Akiogun Ruling House, and this honestly shouldn’t be taken too far so they don’t annoy the gods and the collective sensibility of the good people of Lagos.

    According to the rotation, it is actually no brainer that it’s time for the Abisogun Ruling House to step to the throne of their forefathers. It would have been a different ball game entirely if the Abisoguns accepts that the Akiogun family continues with the reign. In the absence of such agreement, it is important that we preserve the integrity of our traditional institutions and not distort history due to the chase for power or affluence which is transient.

    However, the four branches that make up the Abisogun Ruling Family namely, Omowunmi, Omishade, Oresanya, and Ewumi branches have stood up to say that enough is enough! They have presented a candidate for the family choice at the recently concluded elections, where Mr. Hakeem Oriyomi Ajasa of the Ewumi branch of the Abisogun Ruling House emerged as the winner to fill the vacant stool of the Oba Oniru of Iruland.

    The family has agreed according to a recent publication signed by the Head of the Abisogun family, Chief Bilinminu Sanni Abisogun, that Mr. Hakeem Ajasa will spare head the “otoge movement” which would lead to the end of a dominating dynasty. The elections which had credible pillars of the family come together help to set the record straight even as Lagosians look forward to a new king.

    It is instructive that the Lagos State Government through the Ministry of Education take a cue from this anomaly to make sustainable efforts to sensitize Lagosians with the basic history of Lagos state. It won’t only help to put things straight; it will also go a long way in ensuring that the future generations who school and live in Lagos are thoroughly educated and equipped for leadership.

    It is undeserving that any of the Ruling House is willing to ride to the throne on fake news, and misinformation, largely as a result of the ignorance of the good people of Lagos. Unprofessional publications filled with lies, tantrums, and balderdash are not supposed to be emanating from a Ruling House known for prestige and royalty.

    • Ayodele wrote in from Ajah.

  • Imo: The siege to the judiciary

    Ethelbert Okere

    It has become fashionable in our clime for political litigants to lay siege on the judiciary and its officers, with innuendoes on lack of diligence in their pronouncements or outright collaboration with opponents. The ongoing election matter in Imo state is typically illustrative of this scenario but the article by my good friend and colleague, Declan Emelumba, in the Monday, December 9, 2019, edition of The Nation further underscores it.

    Emelumba’s article, entitled “Imo Poll: All Eyes on Supreme Court” was at once an attempt to blackmail the judiciary and intimidate the Honourable Justices of the Supreme Court in particular even before they begin to look into the appeal by three governorship candidates in the March 9, 2019 election and whose petitions against the winner, Governor Emeka Ihedioha, have been dismissed by both the tribunal and the Court of Appeals. Let’s take a quick run to Emelumba’s concluding paragraph in the article under reference: “If the Supreme Court REFUSES to address the flagrant constitutional breach by INEC, it will mean a judicial confirmation that our constitution is not worth more than the ink with which it was printed and that men and institutions can breach it at will. Likewise will its DECISION on the results from the 388 polling units speak volumes on the relevance of our electoral laws indeed the world is watching”.

    Witness the word, “REFUSES”. It connotes that as far as the author and his sponsors are concerned, the Supreme Court Justices could simply REFUSE …; not that the Learned Justices will look at the matter on its own merit. Even when he alludes to the potential DECISION of the apex court, he does so in a manner that suggests that anything short of declaring the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Hope Uzodimma, the winner of the March 9 election on account of the fabled votes from the 388 polling units allegedly excluded by INEC, will mean that the Learned Justices has deliberately took side with Governor Emeka Ihedioha. Haba! Those insinuations are too weighty to arise from a case that has already been handled and decided by revered Justices, first at the tribunal level and then at the Court of Appeals.

    Mbadiwe wrote in so much superlative and took so much liberty in clichés. See, for example, clauses like, “… Our constitution is not worth more than the ink with which it was printed…” In as much as many Nigerians, indeed a far majority, are insistent that the operational Nigerian Constitution does not altogether elevate the integrity of our democracy, it is pedestrian to claim that the Imo governorship case is that one single matter that will turn the entire constitution into a trash. There are, of course, gamuts of issues Nigerians have raised with the constitution and the nation’s judiciary, in spite of its handicaps and challenges, has handled cases that are far more intricate than the instant Imo governorship case. To insinuate, as Emelumba did in his article, that the entire country will lose its constitutional sovereignty if the Supreme Court does not rule in favour of the APC candidate is completely lacking in tact and sophistication.

    That said, let us now look at the crux of the matter, beyond the attempt at blackmailing. Mr. Emelumba made the same hackneyed allusion to “technicalities”, something which some other commentators in his camp had previously suffered from. But the truth, and as has been posited by expert legal opinions, is that the judgments of both the tribunal and Court of Appeals had nothing to do with “technicalities” but everything to do with points of law; notably the failure of the petitioners, including the APC candidate, to put forward before the courts evidence to prove their cases beyond all reasonable doubt. Take the issue of 388 polling units.

    Fortunately, Emelumba in his article quoted the dissenting Judge at the Court of Appeals, Justice Fredrick Oho, thus: “The applicants had the burden of proving the reduction, omission the exclusion of their results from collation”. But did they? Clearly, they did not, beginning from the tribunal to the Court of Appeals. Yet, Justice Oho in the same breath, claimed that “the respondents had the burden of proving that the 388 polling units results sheets relied upon by the Appellants are forged”. These two opinions, coming concomitantly, throw every layman, like this writer, into total confusion. Which do we take? Is the BURDEN of proof on the claimant or the defendant? But what is out there in the public domain is that it is on the former. In any case, no wonder it is a minority judgment. Besides, lawyers have said that minority judgments are allowed but they do not constitute the judgment of the court. It is, therefore, to be seen whether the apex court will throw away the court ruling into the bins and consider a minority judgment.

    On the day the documents bearing the 388 polling units results were brought to the tribunal during the trial stage, the entire court was taken into a comic relief for the single fact that they (the documents) were so illegible that neither the witness nor the principal petitioner, himself, could read them. So, how would have the tribunal Judges been able to make anything out of the illegible documents that were supposed to provide evidence to help them take a decision? Were they to manufacture the evidence themselves? In other words, where is the “technicality” in a situation where a document that was supposed to guide the tribunal members in taking a decision could not be read? Election matters are not different from other matters that require those who make claims or allegations to provide evidence to prove their claims even if they are politicians. On the matter of the 388 polling units, therefore, the tribunal, having discovered that it could not make a meaning out of the documents dumped on it by the petitioner, dismissed the claims, a judgment which the Court of Appeal upheld.

    Now, to the matter of two-third of 27 local government areas. Mr. Emelumba’s write-up is perhaps the umpteenth time both his camp and those of the other two petitioners have tried to make a song and dance of it. It all sounds so sweet to the ears. “Ihedioha did not win two-thirds of votes in 27 local government areas”, they all chorus. But throughout the trial, none of those petitioners was able to prove that claim. At the tribunal they soon discovered that it was not enough to make a claim. They were asked to analyze the results of the elections to prove that section 179 (2) of the constitution as amended was not complied with but they failed.

    In his article, Emelumba said: “… It is COMMON KNOWLEDGE to even the apolitically inclined that he did not”, that is, talking about Governor Ihedioha. But “COMMON KNOWLEDGE” is a euphemism for “street knowledge” and in court matters, street knowledge is not enough. Yes, sentiments and emotions were raised on the streets of Owerri on the matter but when the chips are down, the claimants failed to meet up with the realities of the law. Emelumba referred to an article by one Mr. Udoji Egbujo where the later wrote about “demons”. For goodness’ sake, court matters, whether elections or otherwise, are not voodoism and the courts do not take evidence from demons.

    But what Emelumba failed to tell his readers was that the Court of Appeals allowed a cross appeal that established that by the provisions of sections 179 (3) (4) and (5) of the constitution, the APC candidate does not have a locus standi to challenge the March 9, 2019 result over whether or not section 179 (2) was complied with. By the provisions of sections 179 (3), (4) and (5), only the first-runner up in an election can raise issues regarding section 179 (2) because in the event that the court agrees with the petitioner, it would order a run-off which can only be between the winner and the first runner-up. In the instant case, the APC candidate came a distant fourth position and since he is not entitled to raise the matter, ab initio, it is to be seen how the apex court will grant him the audience which the Appeal Court in its wisdom refused to.

    Our judiciary should not be made a punching bag for politicians. In the article under review, Emelumba even had the temerity to ascribe to the Learned Justices an imaginary response from them when they eventually gather to hear the matter. He hypothetically quotes the Judges as follows: “Never mind about this constitutional stuff. Who are we to do better than a professor of Mathematics”. As far as I am concerned, this is a talk-down on our Learned and Revered Judges.

  • What Buhari should do to make Nigeria great

    Gbenga AKINWANDE

     

    THERE is no doubt that President Muhammadu Buhari has great vision for this nation, and I quite understand the frustration he faces on a daily over the challenges confronting him as a result of sabotage by unscrupulous citizens. The truth is that democracy, as good as it is, often frustrates leaders, particularly in an evolving democracy like ours in Nigeria. And, I know he will be placed in the league of great leaders such as Tafawa Balewa, Sir Ahmadu Bello, Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe and Chief Obafemi Awolowo in the history of our great nation.

    I write this piece based on my patriotism and natural affinity for him, moreso as I have been his loyal admirer since I was 8- years- old during his time as the Military Head of State of our dear country between 1983 – 1985. I still remember the discipline he brought to our nation then,  particularly, his war against corruption that had already eaten deep into the nation’s fabric. Unfortunately, those good values he was instilling on the nation came to an abrupt end when his administration was ousted by General Ibrahim Babangida in 1985.

    It was based on his antecedents and visions for the nation that led many of us across the country to subscribe to his candidacy as the President of our nation and jettisoned the PDP in 2015, most importantly his ability to form alliance with other progressive members in our country. I belong to the school of thought that for a nation like ours to get it right in democracy, we need a strong leader with military background at the inception of our democratic experiment like the Americans had the like of General George Washington as their first president after liberation from the tyranny of the British and Germans draconian leadership.

    At this juncture, let me categorically state that  the future of this nation and democracy rest squarely on him. A democracy without freedom of speech and vibrant opposition is a doomed democracy. The beauty of any democracy is a vibrant opposition. The danger in suppressing opposition is that the government of the day herself will fall short of ideas in developing solutions to the nation’s problems.

    Secondly, the  President should democratically ensure that come 2023, power shifts to the southern part of the country to ensure the north/south harmony and peaceful co-existence and continuity of the nation called Nigeria.

    Thirdly, the border closure policy of this administration is having adverse effect on the nation, most particularly communities such as mine (Ogun West) that are closer to the border areas. Though, the border closure has its own advantages on the nation, but the economic and social pains on Nigerians at the moment are severe.

    The state of our nation is worse than what it was five years ago, and unless the President as a chief helmsman cordially and courageously rise to the occasion by finding urgent solutions to many of these problems; our great party, the APC might pay dearly for it in the future. If a bag of imported rice before border closure was N12,000 and after border closure, local rice is being sold for over N19,000, then it is obvious that the policy does not make much sense. What the government should do is to control and regulate the price of rice and many other products to the price before border closure or start paying subsidy to the local farmers to lower their prices and thus reducing the burdens on Nigerians

    The state of roads across Nigeria calls for urgent action. Thus, it is imperative to declare a state of emergency in this sector. While, I will implore the President to grant the request of the state governors to dabble into federal roads within their domain if they have financial capacity to do so, but this should be in agreement with federal authority’s evaluation of the costs of such projects for proper reimbursement by the  federal government.

    Nigerian banks should be made to perform all banking services to their customers. In our country today, it is difficult for most customers (ordinary citizens) to get loans from banks for both private and business purposes because the requirements of the bank cannot be met by ordinary citizens. It is difficult for a nation to develop economically when there are no credit facilities to citizens and small businesses that are the engines of the economy growth and development.

    Also worth mentioning is ensuring that our electoral processes is free of rigging and manipulation by introducing e-voting, creating more temporary job opportunities such as the N-Power program to many of our young jobless graduates, encourage more investment in the power sector  and most particularly, ensure serious improvement in security of lives and properties in the country. The Nigerian Police Force needs to be overhauled, modernized and be made more professional to tackle the challenges of today’s security challenges.

     

    • Akinwande is a public affair commentator and President of Gbenga Akinwande Foundation (GAF)