The Nation Newspaper

Category: Commentaries

  • NEXIM Bank and solid mineral development

    NEXIM Bank and solid mineral development

    Solid minerals are found in every nook and cranny of Nigeria’s territories. The potentialities of these solid minerals, if harnessed properly, can propel Nigeria’s economy faster than crude oil which has become the nation’s economic mainstay.

    The failure of successive governments and indeed the citizenry to tap into other sectors of the economy, apart from oil, has been blamed for Nigeria’s economic woes. President Goodluck Jonathan-run government is not resting on its oars to diversify Nigeria’s economy through harnessing the country’s abundant solid mineral resources. Against this backdrop, the Nigerian Export Import Bank, NEXIM, has articulated and sustained a blueprint to enhance the development of Nigeria’s solid minerals through financial interventions. As at 2011, NEXIM has identified the subsectors in the solid minerals to include ferrous and non-ferrous metals, stones and gems and energy minerals. These subsectors have been identified as being highly capital intensive, characterised by heavy government presence as well as policy inconsistency. This sector is also largely untapped. Its projected growth was estimated at 8.96% as at 2009.

    NEXIM Bank’s framework from 2010 to 2015 targets making this sector to significantly contribute towards creating an internationally competitive and attractive destination for capital for the profitability of the nation’s mineral resources, provide 16.1% (about N9bn) of the solid mineral sector’s financing requirement, account for 0.82% of the sector’s GDP, and create and sustain 2, 885 jobs within the solid minerals sector through project finance activities.

    With the visionary and proactive leadership of Mr. Roberts Orya in NEXIM Bank, there appears to be a light at the end of the tunnel. Orya’s giant strides have repositioned NEXIM on its fundamental mandates.

    NEXIM Bank’s blueprint is aimed at propelling the non-oil sectors of Nigeria’s economy to a grand-level. The bank’s key areas of concentration are manufacturing, agriculture, solid minerals and services. The goal is to become the leading export development bank in Africa.

    The objectives of developing these non-oil sectors are to have a clear market focus and become a major contributor to non-oil exports, build a world-class institution which imbibes best-in class corporate governance and risk management practices; be a relevant player in the export market and significantly influence government trade policies; build a profitable institution with a robust balance sheet size with a highly skilled and motivated workforce.

    Findings indicate that NEXIM Bank has so far committed about nine per cent of its total investment development portfolio, about N2.5 billion, to the development of the country’s solid mineral sector since August 2009. Its MD/CEO, Roberts Orya, revealed this when he played host to the Patrons of the Miners’ Association of Nigeria. He disclosed to the joy of his visitors that the bank was ready to support the solid minerals as a cardinal sector under its MASS (manufacturing, agro-processing, solid minerals and services) agenda.

    Echoing him, “This commitment does not scratch the surface of the sector’s requirement if Nigeria is to take advantage and benefit from the huge mineral deposits which God has blessed the country. Solid minerals mining is a highly capital intensive area, and requires strong government intervention to unlock its huge revenue and job creation benefits for the country.”

    He made a clarion call on the association to produce its strategic framework to better structure and attract sustainable investments to the sector. He said the agenda focused on issues of mutual cooperation with NEXIM and the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development towards the development of the sector.

    He also revealed that Nigeria is endowed with more than 33 commercially viable solid minerals that could be exploited for the country’s economic benefit. These include gold, lead-zinc ore (Galena), iron ore, columbite, ilmenite, cassiterite, uranium, copper, molybdenite, manganese, wolframite, rutile and diorite, bauxite, gypsum, talc, bentonite and barite, rock salt, gem stones, and kaolin.

    Using the statistics from the Mining Cadastre Office and the Nigerian Geological Survey Agency factsheet, Mr. Orya said the picture of the benefits would be appreciated more when it is considered that some of these minerals are in very dense deposits. According to him, minerals like talc has been identified as having deposits in excess of 40 million tonnes in locations such as Niger, Osun, Kogi, Ogun and Kaduna states; iron ore, with over 3 billion metric tonnes of deposits in Kogi, Enugu and Niger states as well as the Federal Capital Territory; and lead/zinc veins, about 10 million tonnes of deposits spread over eight states.

    Others include bitumen about 42 billion tonnes deposits, which almost twice the existing crude oil reserves, making Nigeria one of the world’s most bituminous destinations owing to its low sulphur and ash content and the most environment-friendly; and coal, nearly three billion tonnes of reserves in 17 identified fields and over 600 million tonnes of proven reserves.

    Sources at the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, indicate that the solid minerals sector contributes less than one per cent to the country Gross Domestic Product, GDP, as against nine per cent of South Africa’s GDP in 2011.

    “For NEXIM, the critical issues range from how to get the government and other stakeholders to properly structure the mining sector, increase funding, and attract much needed investment capital; infrastructural development for the industry, especially the establishment of internationally certified laboratories and setting up of internationally recognized and endorsed mining calendar for Nigeria as prevalent in other regimes with dedicated attention to solid mineral exploitation,” Mr. Orya said.

    The president, Miners’ Association of Nigeria, Sani Shehu, had at the event thanked the NEXIM Bank management for its commitment and support to its members in the quest to open up the solid mineral sector. He said the group is overwhelmed by the passion of the bank to support the players towards the growth of the mining industry in Nigeria.

    As a capital-intensive industry, which requires long-term investments before its potential could be fully realised, Mr. Shehu cited the experience in India, which is less endowed with solid minerals than Nigeria, but is currently earning about $75 billion (about N11.3 trillion) annually from solid minerals.

    “It took South Africa more than 15 years of steady investment to get there and the country now earns over $30 billion (about N4.5 trillion) annually from the sub-sector,” he said.

    With the commitment of NEXIM Bank towards revitalising Nigeria’s solid mineral sector, it is hoped that it will bring a new dawn on the country’s economy which has been branded all sorts of name because of its oil-based nature and lack of innovations. All hands must be on deck to attain this goal.

  • There is blood in the land

    There is blood in the land

    Permit me to begin this contribution by quoting the insightful and powerful words of Hon. Dino Melaye who is undoubtedly one of the rising stars and stronger voices of the new and up and coming generation of political leaders in Nigeria. On the 19th of March 2013, just a day after the terrible bombings in Kano in which between 30 and 65 innocent Nigerians were killed (depending on whose report you choose to believe), Melaye wrote the following words on his facebook wall-

    ‘’The Kano bombing is barbaric, callous and wicked. God save us in this country. The Federal Government and indeed President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has demonstrated incapacitation and ineptitude by their inability to contain this growing insecurity. According to our constitution the fundamental objective of government is the provision of security and welfare for the people. Unfortunately Jonathan has failed in both regards. Our President is overwhelmed. He should take the path of honour, take a bow and resign. There is too much blood in the land. There is blood on our roads, air, police stations, army barracks, churches, mosques, clubs, car parks and homes. There is blood every where.’’

    This is a courageous contribution from a young man who obviously has tremendous passion for our country and who is deeply troubled by all that is happening today. I only wish that there were more young men like Melaye in Nigeria. Can any serious-minded person disagree with his observations on this matter? Is Nigeria not in a state of undeclared war today? Is this not a season of complete anomie in which human life no longer has any value and where life itself has little meaning? Do we actually have a government in this country today? Are the murderers that killed the innocents in Kano on the 18th of March worthy of life let alone amnesty? Are they really human beings?

    Can anybody, no matter how highly placed, respected or reverred, still talk about amnesty for Boko Haram now? What do such people suggest that we tell the families of the 60 that were slaughtered on the 18th of March and the 4000 that were killed before them? How do we wipe away their tears and ensure that they are given the justice that they so desperately seek? Do we tell them that it was just one of those things and that they should consisder the murder of their sons, daughters, wives, husbands, parents, grandparents, siblings, distant relatives and friends as part of their sacrifice and contribution to national development and service? Do we tell them that those that murdered their loved ones have now been granted amnesty for their efforts and that they have been forgiven by the state and reintegrated back into society? Is that justice? Is the very suggestion not utterly heartless and insensitive? No-one should ever sing the amnesty song again because too many innocent and defenceless people have been killed. In this matter justice must be done.

    Yet the sad tale does not stop at the loss of life. There is more. It is a sad testimony to our national malaise that in the very week that a refreshing and exceptionally compassionate and humble new Pope was elected to lead the 1.2 billion catholics in the world today, we have been reliably informed by the Catholic Churchin Nigeria, through Rev. Father Ituah,that no less than 50 of the 52 Catholic churches in Maiduguri,Borno State have been burnt down by Boko Haram. How does one explain this madness? How would the muslims of northern Nigeria have reacted if virtually every single mosque that had been built in one of the southern states had been burnt down by christian militants? Would they have shown the level of maturity and restraint that the christian community have displayed in the face of these provocations and attacks on their places of worship? Would they have insisted on amnesty for those who killed their people and burnt down their mosques?

    Why is it that Boko Haram and those in the muslim community in northern Nigeria that secretly sympathise with them cannot learn a thing or two from the billions of muslims in the world that live peacefully and happily side by side with other faiths including christians, jews and hindus? Why cant they learn from the yoruba muslims who are, generally speaking, exemplary and very liberal in their approach to adhherents of other faiths. Are they not muslims too? What is it about the islamist that he feels the need to kill and shed blood in the name of God? Indonesia has the largest number of muslims on this planet with 200 million practising muslims in it’s borders. Yet Indonesia is a secular state with a sizeable and respected christian minorty population which runs into millions. India has the second largest concentration of muslims in the world with a muslim population of over 150 million. The muslims of India are a minority because the country is predominantly hindu yet the religious rights of every Indian is guarded jealously and protected by the constitution because India, just like Indonesia, Turkey, Egypt, Malaysia, Pakistan, Algeria, Syria, Lebanon, Senegal, Tunisia, the Palestinian West Bank and many other predominantly muslim countries, is a secular state. Why can’t the islamists of Boko Haram in northern Nigeria learn from these great countries and these great people who have proved to the world by their conduct what a civilised, humane and decent religion islam really is?

    Boko Haram insists on trying to give islam a bad name and the challenge that they have thrown down to us is one that we must take up vigorously. Yet despite all the evil and ugliness that we see around us in Nigeria today we must not allow ourselves to lose sight of the light. St. Francis of Assisi whose name and memory has been resurrected by the new Pope Francis once said ‘’all the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the light of one candle.’’ And he was right. The darkness of Boko Haram will not extinguish the light of Nigeria but it is time for us to bring a firm end to their carnage before it is too late and before all hell break loose.

    Though the bitter truth is this- Nigeria will not know peace until the blood of every single one of the over 4000 innocent souls that have been cut short and slaughtered by Boko Haram, Ansaru and all the other Al Qaeda-affiliated islamist terrorist groups that have plagued our land and bled our people in the last 2 years is fully avenged. Until this is done, that sea of innocent blood that has been shed will continue to cry out to God in heaven for vengeance and it will attract all manner of misfortune and curses on our beleagured land.

    My solution to the Boko Haram scourge is simple and clear. The President, the Federal Government and the people of Nigeria must join hands together, rise up as one and seek them, their secret backers and their secret sponsors out. They must be unmasked, brought to justice, systematically eliminated and sent to hell where they belong. Enough is enough. Call it what you like- a crusade, a war against terror, a fight for justice and righteousness, a war against the kingdom of darkness, the final battle for the soul, liberation and independence of Nigeria or any other name that you choose. Let us take our country back from these heartless men called Boko Haram that were sent to our shores by the devil himself to slaughter and torment our people and to paint our land red with the blood of our women and children.

    Mr. President needs to wake up, smell the coffee, rise up to the occassion and do his job diligently by defending and protecting the lives and properties of the Nigerian people effectively. He must have no sense of restraint and he must give no quarter in this war. Yet if for any reason he cannot muster the will to do so then I would have to agree with my brother Dino Melaye that it is time for him to do the honourable thing; to resign and to leave the job for someone else who has the guts, the strength of character, the sense of urgency and the courage to do what needs to be done.

    Nigeria is dying. She is being bled to death by Boko Haram, Ansaru and Al Qaeda. Who will deliver her? Who will save her? Who will take the bull by the horns and ‘’fight the good fight’’? We need a President that has the stomach for that fight. We need a leader that harbours no fear, that has the courage of the biblical Joshua, Jehu and David and that is ready to stand up and openly confront the greatest evil that our country has ever known. It is time for old men to hold their peace and for young men to rise up in rage and anger and defend their values, their families, their faith, their lifestyle and their nation. It is time to put on the mantle of gallant men and to recite the inspiring words of King Henry V at the Battle of Agincourt. It is time to invoke the spirit of the great Greek warrior, the noble Achilles . It is time to remember the words of Mark Anthony and to shout ‘’Cry havoc ! And let slip the dogs of war.’’ It is time to save our beautiful nation Nigeria from the evil that stalks the land and from the enemy that resides within.

  • Where lies the rule of law in Nigeria?

    Where lies the rule of law in Nigeria?

    Consider the following situations if you will:

    In 2012, Jose Dirceu, Chief of Staff of former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva (popularly known as “Lula”) was sentenced to almost 11 years imprisonment for masterminding a cash-for-votes bribery scheme to win support from legislators for the government’s programmes. At the time, he was the most powerful man in Lula’s government.

    In the Philippines, former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is facing criminal charges for electoral fraud. The allegation is that she ordered the tampering of electoral returns in favour of a supporter to enable him win a Senate seat in the 2007 election.

    Three-time former Prime Minister, multi-billionaire and one of the most powerful men in Italy (even without political office), Silvio Berlusconi, was convicted for tax fraud, fined the equivalent of about N1.6 billion, sentenced to prison and banned for life from holding public office (the conviction doesn’t take effect until an appeal court confirms it).Berlusconi’s trial started in 1996, but was put on hold because he enjoyed immunity from prosecution while he was Prime Minister.

    In Great Britain, George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer (their Minister of Finance), sat in a first class compartment on the train when he only held a standard class ticket. The ticket inspector insisted that he must pay the £160 upgrade for the first class seat. A scandal “ticket gate” broke out and was a major embarrassment to the Conservative government and almost cost Osborne his political career.

    All the foregoing situations show clearly the supremacy of the law in those countries. Numerous other examples from other parts of the world can be cited. The great jurist Lord Denning puts it “Be you ever so high, the law is above you”.

    Is this the case in Nigeria? Cash-for-votes schemes are allegedly commonplace but who has ever been prosecuted for it? Allegations of tampering and manipulation of electoral results are made in almost every election petition and even where such petitions have succeeded, has anyone that matters in INEC or in government ever been prosecuted? Would a Silvio Berlusconi in Nigeria not have used his position as Prime Minister to sack all the officers investigating him, sent them to unwanted “promotion’ courses or even have them imprisoned? He would most definitely have destroyed the evidence against him making any prosecution after his immunity has lapsed impossible. We don’t have an efficient public railway system in Nigeria so we need not waste any time situating George Osborne in Nigeria.

    The rule of law hardly exists in Nigeria today. Law enforcement agencies and government officers are the biggest violators of the law and they do so openly, shamelessly and with impunity such that law-abiding citizens are made to look either stupid or weak. The highest office in the land appointed INEC Commissioners some of who included persons who are known prominent members of a political party contrary to the dictates of the law, which disqualifies such persons for appointment. Despite protests to this flagrant violation of the law, the appointees remain in place. Treasury looters are either walking freely or are given slap in the wrist fines. Government officials and the rich and powerful have police orderlies and escort, not necessarily for protection but to keep them above the law. These policemen ensure that they beat traffic by driving everyone else off the road in clear violation of traffic laws; gain access to privileged places they would not otherwise be entitled; avoid queuing at airports when they arrive late; park their vehicles in no parking zones and so on.

    Yet those very people who openly violate the law know its value. They treat the law with disdain while in office. They undermine and obstruct it, but once they are out of office or have fallen from grace, they turn to that same legal process for redress. If the law and our institutions are to be robust, independent and just for all and sundry at all times, public officials must learn to respect those institutions, in and out of office.

    It does not require a sociologist or criminologist to figure out that where the law is not supreme, there can be no proper and orderly society. Without order, there can be no peace and certainly without peace, there can be no progress. Martin Luther King jnr had said it – “without justice there can be no peace”

    No nation can be great unless its institutions are bigger than its individuals no matter how high and powerful those individuals are. History should rightly judge President Umaru Yar Adua for his attempts to make the observance of the rule of law one of the cornerstones of his administration’s programmes. We must start strengthening our institutions by adherence to the rule of law instead of weakening them by strengthening individuals. From the poorest economies and weakest political systems to the strongest and most advanced, for proper functioning of society, the rule of law must prevail and infractions to it must be punished no matter who the offender is. The final say here goes to President Obama who said when he visited Ghana in July 2009 that “ Africa does not need the strong man, but it needs strong institutions”. We need to heed those words in this country.

  • Where is the room for youths?

    SIR: Youths of today do not have hope for tomorrow as we do not know where we are going from here. We have heard from our teachers that we are the leaders of tomorrow, but it’s hard to see the tomorrow on the horizon.

    Ibrahim Babangida and Muhammadu Buhari are still contesting for the presidency nearly three decades after leaving office. Governor Murtala Nyako, former Governor of Niger State in 1976, is governor of Adamawa State 36 years after. David Mark who was the military Governor of Niger State in 1984, 28 years after is the Senate President.

    Let us come together to do away with all these. Let the youths stand up and fight for our rights. Let us fight for the generation unborn. We cannot continue like this.

    • Muhammad Zainab Gulu.

    IBB University, Lapai, Niger State.

  • ‘Holding charge’ has no place under the law

    SIR: The intolerable high proportion of prisoners awaiting trial in prolonged prison confinement is a cause of concern. It is well known that well over 60 percent of prison population in Nigeria falls within the class of awaiting trial. Any person that is conversant with Nigeria prison knows that this class of people suffer more than convicts because they are subjected to unimaginable indignity, even when they have not been convicted of any offence.

    One then begin to wonder whether the presumption of innocence of the accused is tenable in Nigeria because it seems that in Nigeria the accused is presumed guilty until he or she proves his innocence.

    It is however important to note that most detainees are held on a ‘holding charge’ which is a system of bringing an accused before an inferior court that lacks jurisdiction to try him or her for the primary purpose of securing a remand order and thereafter abandon him or her in prison under the pretence of awaiting trial. The primary aim of the police is however, to obtain a remand order from an incompetent court and then keep the accused in prison on the pretence of awaiting trial. It is pretence because the accused cannot be said to be awaiting trial when he has not been arraigned before a court of competent jurisdiction and his/her plea has not been taken.

    Stakeholders in the legal sphere have made a case for an effective criminal justice system that will tackle the menace of holding charge to decongest the prison and address the rights of the victims. However, little or nothing has been done in respect of this even in the face of several Court of Appeal judgments especially the resent case of AGUNDI V COP All FWLR (2013) PT 660 PG 1243, Where the court of appeal held that it is unconstitutional for a Magistrate court to take cognizance of an offence, remand a suspect into prison custody and make binding orders when the court lacks the requisite jurisdiction to entertain such matters.

    Although some state laws provides for this outrageous concept of “holding Charge”, it is worthy to affirm that those laws are void as they are inconsistent with the provisions of the constitution and Court of Appeal decisions which has guaranteed the personal liberty and fair hearing of an accused person.

    The lack of political will has robbed us of proper enforcement of landmark decisions of courts that primarily targets the reform of Nigeria prison and in fact the reform of our failing criminal justice system. Majority of inmates awaiting trial are accused of capital offences, yet their cases are still in magistrate courts that lacks requisite jurisdiction to entertain such matters.

    I submit that the three cardinal institutions in the Criminal Justice System – Police, Court and Prison should work toward the total eradication of the unconstitutional concept called “Holding Charge” as Justice Delayed is Justice Denied.

    • Tolulope Adekola

    Ilorin, Kwara State

  • Much ado about a pardon

    SIR: There has been such a hue and cry about the pardon of Chief Diepriye Alamieyeseigha, a lot of it unnecessary. Even the US was a bit hypocritical in its condemnation of the pardon considering that the country has a history of controversial pardons.

    For one, the popular President Clinton was roundly criticised for his pardon of Marc Rich whose ex – wife had contributed significant sums of money to Clinton’s campaign and his presidential library. Earlier in his career, Clinton had criticized President Gerald Ford for granting President Nixon a pardon in relation to the Watergate scandal. Clinton later tendered something of an apology to President Ford admitting that Ford was right. Clinton himself was to stumble later in his career.

    There is something to be learnt from the Clinton story. Who is to say that those crying the loudest now are not themselves in need of the pardon. Although nothing has been proved against him, the Farouk Lawan story should teach us a lesson how tables turn so easily in life. More than anything else, Alamieyeseigha is the beneficiary of some good luck, why sit in judgment over him?

    In a country where amnesty is granted to those who commit serious crimes, where revered leaders call for amnesty to be granted to religious extremists who daily blow up unarmed citizens, what moral authority do we have as a nation to condemn a pardon? Maybe we should pardon everyone and begin afresh as a nation.

    I wish that the amount of energy citizens put into condemning a pardon could be put into initiatives for reforming the justice system, particularly the criminal justice and penal systems. We have people who spend their whole lives awaiting trial, young men and women locked up for years on end for bogus charges preferred by prosecutors who have no intention whatsoever of prosecuting the matter. We have a prison system that is not designed to reform anyone but that ensures that the convict for drug offences becomes a murderer tomorrow; a system that hardens those who pass through it.

    Can we, by legislation, fashion a system that makes it difficult for a governor to steal even if he wants to? A system that makes all of the the state’s financial information and records as accessible to the janitor as they are to the governor? A system that plugs loopholes in public procurement laws, that reduces profligacy in government? Let more citizens come together to sponsor more bills like the Freedom of Information Act. Let’s propose ideas to make our court system more efficient, let’s demand that more judges who are worth their salt are appointed, that the Police Force be totally reformed. Let those who have finances sponsor those who have the knowledge and motivation and let’s work towards these goals. Let’s please stop wasting so much energy on just one case of pardon. Let’s quit being a reactionary citizenry.

    We talk about corruption and abuse of power but even in the private sector I see so much of these. From the clerk who demands or expects a tip to do his job to the bank teller who encourages friends and acquaintances to beat the queue, one experiences little doses of corruption and abuse of power almost on a daily basis. So before we shout ourselves hoarse condemning a pardon, let’s ask ourselves: are we really free of guilt? Does anyone really believe that Alamieyeseigha’s conviction was part of a war against corruption? That it was a deterrent to greedy governors? I believe it was more of a warning to governors not to get on the wrong side of the ‘oga at the top’.

    Let no one begrudge Diepriye Alamieyeseigha. Pardon is a beautiful thing. Should I stand in need of it, I hope to get one one day. I wonder if you don’t.

    • Soala Jumbo

    Port Harcourt

  • US drones in Niger Republic, Burkina Faso

    US drones in Niger Republic, Burkina Faso

    The United States has reportedly signed a “status of forces” agreement with Niger Republic, Nigeria’s neighbour to the north, to deploy surveillance drones in that country to carry out spying and monitoring missions on Islamist militants in the Sahel. A similar agreement had been signed with Burkina Faso, and US drones are already in operation there feeding French forces in Mali with information on Tuareg rebels and Islamist militants affiliated to al-Qaeda. It requires no clairvoyance to know that there would be a very limited sharing of intelligence gathered by the drones with the host countries. The agreement with Niger is said to impose no constraints on military-to-military cooperation. This means that the deployment of surveillance drones could easily graduate to deployment of armed drones. Ethiopia and Djibouti in the Horn of Africa preceded the West African sub-region in accepting US drones on their soils.

    It will be recalled that the use of American drones in countries such as Pakistan, Yemen, Afghanistan and Somalia have become so controversial that they have generated resentment among the local populace and civil liberties groups. The danger is how to draw the line between gathering intelligence on militants and attacking the militants on one hand, and gathering other kinds of intelligence on the host countries. In 1962, the Action Group political party sensitised Nigerians to the dangers of an Anglo-Nigerian defence pact, leading to massive demonstrations and the eventual collapse of the deal. Such sensitivity is lacking today. Apart from the secrecy that surrounds the operation of armed drones, there is also the unacceptably high incidence of civilian casualties. According to a foreign newspaper report, “The London-based Bureau of Investigative Journalism has monitored American drone strikes all around the world and calculates that in Pakistan alone there have been some 362 strikes since 2004. They are estimated to have killed up to 3,461 suspected militants in the country and as many as 891 civilians.”

    President Mahamadou Issoufou of Niger Republic has regrettably already given permission for the deployment of the drones. However, as in all the countries where drones have been deployed, there is no telling how far things can go or get out of hand. Meanwhile, Nigeria is just next door, and drones are extremely difficult to shoot down or to compromise. Only yesterday, this column deprecated the inability of ECOWAS leaders to be proactive on Mali, thereby allowing the situation to degenerate to the point of triggering French intervention. France was Mali’s former colonial master. It is evident that the quality of leadership in the region, nay, in Africa as a whole has declined horribly. There are no brilliant and perceptive leaders conversant with their countries’ histories, nor even keenly aware of the dangers of neo-colonialism and neo-imperialism. These mediocre leaders rule their countries badly, and embrace desperate methods, including opening up their countries to harmful external influences, to mitigate the effects of their misrule.

    It is not surprising that between 2009 and 2010, and also in 2012, the prestigious and most expensive leadership prize in the world, the Mo Ibrahim prize for good governance, was not awarded to any African leader. According to the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, “The $5m prize is supposed to be awarded each year to a democratically elected leader who governed well, raised living standards and then voluntarily left office. The $5m prize is spread over 10 years and is followed by $200,000 a year for life.” In 2011, Cape Verde President Pedro Verona Pires won the prize. The dearth of sound leaders should worry everyone, while the paucity of good leaders is nowhere more evident than in West Africa.

    A tragedy is befalling Africa – the tragedy of insensitive, retrogressive and unintelligent leaders. It is almost as if it is not the same Africa that produced the likes of Julius Nyerere, Kenneth Kaunda, Kwame Nkurumah, Gamal Abdel Nasser, and Nelson Mandela, among others. With the turmoil in Mali, the deployment of drones in Niger Republic and Burkina Faso, the likelihood of US-Africa Command, and the collapse of state economies, the continent, or at least West Africa, is being opened up for recolonisation. Sadly, African leaders, whose poor judgement led them to recently accept the new $200m African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa as a gift from China, have become inured to the dangers of external control which their incompetence and lack of foresight are engendering.

  • ‘Alams’ and Jonathan’s forgiving spirit

    ‘Alams’ and Jonathan’s forgiving spirit

    It was wholly predictable that the list of names for state pardon would generate uproar. And the protesters are not in a reflective mood, apparently blinded by a passion for hitting a straw man. It

    shows how emotion can overcome reason, as the President is subjected to name-calling, and his character is messed up on account of some ill-perceived wrong.

    Response to the news that President Goodluck Jonathan decided to forgive the sins of certain public figures, some deceased, has once again exposed the human tendency to be sanctimonious. The reaction in some quarters gives the impression that Jonathan committed a cardinal sin. There is no doubt that the redeemed man at the centre of the storm, Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, a former governor of oil-rich Bayelsa State from 1999 to 2005, was stained by official corruption. This crooked character, while still in office, had a cool one million British pounds stashed in his London residence; the loot was

    discovered during a search by London Metropolitan Police and another hefty sum of almost two million British pounds was found in his bank account in the UK.

    His dramatic and mysterious escape from London where he was facing money laundering charges in 2005 has become the stuff of legend, and it is believed that he fled the city disguised as a woman while on bail. Back home, he lost his position following his impeachment by an outraged Bayelsa State House of Assembly, and was subsequently prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, under the zealous Nuhu Ribadu. Alams, as the ex-governor is known to many who

    consider his name a tongue twister, pleaded guilty to theft of public funds and money laundering, forfeited humongous money and property to the government, and got a two-year jail sentence.

    It is interesting that, on account of his plea bargain, he reportedly spent no more than two days in the cage post-sentence, having been held in detention for two years since his apprehension. It is this

    dark background that has come back to haunt the man, and it might likely do so for years to come despite his pardon, given the signals from the protesters. However, the Alams affair indeed raises

    questions in the realm of moral philosophy. What constitutes sufficient punishment for a crime? When is pardon acceptable or condemnable? Was Alams, 61, expected to go to his grave in ignominy,

    no matter how long he lived after his fall?

    Alams should thank his lucky stars that Jonathan, who was his deputy and, in line with the 1999 Constitution, succeeded him as governor following his impeachment, is the President. His controversial pardon flows from Jonathan’s exercise of the powers conferred on him by Section 175 of the 1999 Constitution. Even if Jonathan acted out of a sense of indebtedness to his former political boss, he did so without flouting the constitution. Furthermore, he conformed to the constitution by involving the Council of State in the decision-making process that led to the pardon. In this matter, if Jonathan cannot be faulted for constitutional disobedience, it remains subjective whether his action was morally right or wrong.

    In the circumstances, criticizing the inclusion of Alams in the pardon list on the basis of a one-sided morality actually amounts to questioning Jonathan’s right to his discretion. The truth is that the

    constitution is silent on whether there are crimes that are beyond pardon. In the absence of such clear-cut framework for the exercise of presidential pardon, should Jonathan be blamed for his seeming opportunistic interpretation of the law as it is?

    It is possible that those who framed the constitution did not picture the Alams scenario. Or perhaps, the textual silence was deliberate, leaving the resolution of such development not only to the discretion of the President, but also to his sense of ethics. This is the sort of controversy that plays up the importance of character in the business of political leadership.

    It is not clear whether Jonathan’s action was informed by any insight into Alams’ state of mind concerning his inglorious past. Is the man penitent? Is he reformed? Is it conceivable that Jonathan would grant pardon to an unreconstructed ex-convict? Again, the constitution gives no clue on whether evidence of remorse and reformation should count in the consideration of pardon. As things are, it is left to the President, backed by the Council of State, to have mercy on whosoever he considers deserving of it. It is interesting that the Council of State endorsed the contentious pardon. Could it have acted otherwise, if the President was unconvincing?

    Now that Alams presumably has his honour back, it remains to be seen what he will do with it. In truth, such a man actually deserves to be pitied. What was the motive for his senseless accumulation of such mind-boggling wealth stolen from the very people he was elected to serve? What unconscionable greed controlled his mind? Reports say he is still under investigation for alleged ill-gotten wealth in some Western countries and risks arrest should he step out of Nigeria. So, even with his pardon, he is in chains. What a mockery!

    It is perhaps understandable that Alams became the focus of protest in a list that also included, among others, the names of a high-profile soldier-turned-politician and some military officers implicated in the

    1995 and 1997 coup plots against the late military head of state, Gen. Sani Abacha; a former bank chief convicted of fraud; armed robbers on death row and awaiting-trial suspects who have overstayed in prison.

    Apart from his record of nauseating corruption, for which he has been punished according to the law, he is from the President’s ethnic base, was his former boss, and remains close to him. So, it is easy for the critics to cry foul. However, these facts do not, in and of themselves, constitute grounds to discredit his pardon. Although Jonathan’s display of a forgiving spirit, even if supposedly self-serving, does not necessarily dilute the anti-corruption campaign, it throws into question the instrument for its exercise. Since there is no art to find a leader’s moral complexion in the face, the law could help in defining acceptable

    standards that should govern the exercise of discretion.

    • Macaulay is on the editorial board of The Nation

  • NYSC: National Youth Slavery Commission?

    NYSC: National Youth Slavery Commission?

    The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme was created in a bid to reconstruct, reconcile and rebuild the country after the Nigerian Civil war. It was established by decree No.24 of May 22, 1973 which stated that the NYSC is being established “with a view to the proper encouragement and development of common ties among the youths of Nigeria and the promotion of national unity”. The purpose of the scheme was to inculcate in Nigerian youths the spirit of selfless service to the community, and to emphasize the spirit of oneness and brotherhood of all Nigerians, irrespective of cultural or social background.

    In the months of March, July and November, Nigerian graduates are mobilized and sent to any of the 36 states and the federal capital territory to obey the clarion call of lifting their nation high under the sun or in the rain with dedication and selflessness. Then the suffering either begins or continues.

    There is usually a mad crowd at the point of collection of call-up letters in the various institutions. The queue at this point sometimes turns out to be the shortest in the whole of the service year. At the entrance of the 21 day incarceration camp called NYSC orientation camp, prospective corps members, as they are called, queue to be searched and before going in to begin their term and from then it becomes ‘Every man for himself, God for us all whoever is slow let the soldier take’. Depending on the local arrangements made by individual states, prospective corps members are registered, accommodated and kitted. At 4p.m the first parade is held, 7p.m dinner is served and 10p.m lights out.

    At 4:30a.m the soldier’s bugle is blown and the sound it makes is interpreted to mean it is you that finished schooling so you brought this yourself. At least if you didn’t graduate, you wouldn’t have to serve! Devotion, parade and drills are followed by a poor breakfast; long and boring lectures followed by a poorer lunch and by the time its dinner the poorest of meals is expected. However, miracles sometimes happen. The camp clinic usually receives a number of visitors in the first few days because of the ‘new food’ and paramilitary exercise but in no time the body acclimatizes and life goes on smooth and steady. The orientation programme gets more interesting as the days go by and when it is getting to the peak, the 21 day term comes to a rude end. Letters are handed out once again, but this time around it is either a posting letter or redeployment letter and fresh bouts of sobs begin for some people.

    Posting ought to be done based on the discipline of the corps member but preference is usually given to corps members who distinguished themselves during the orientation course, personal favourites of resident NYSC officials, and soldiers alike and those who arranged their posting with corporate bodies beforehand. Every posting letter has the name and address of the corps member’s place of primary assignment. It also carries a short note appealing to the prospective employer to offer necessary help to the bearer among other things. Some employers however ignore this note because they see corps members as national slaves and therefore sap them of all they can with little or no incentive; once again the tune of the soldier’s bugle comes to mind.

    To correct some of the abnormalities that characterise the ‘posting exercise’ as expressed above, a new posting policy was proposed. The policy is said to be aimed at making the scheme more responsive to the development needs of the country and this new posting policy seeks to post corps members only to four key sectors of the economy namely; agriculture, education, rural health, and infrastructure. As always, (a common Nigerian factor) the government did not prepare adequately for this causing the rejection of many corps members in these sectors across the country because they do not have enough to bear the burden of paying corps members’ stipends. Now, more corps members are roaming aimlessly about the streets looking for a place of primary assignment if only just to get their clearance form monthly but to no avail.

    Gone are the days when Corpers Beatitudes read thus: Blessed are you when you are posted to a bank for your account will be fat; Blessed are you when you are posted to a school for you’ll have students at your beck and call; Blessed are you when you are posted to a village for foodstuff will never be your problem; Blessed are you when you are posted according to your discipline for you have hopes of being retained.

    Now the closest it can be is: Happy are you when you are accepted in the village health post for many others were rejected; Happy are you when your school goes on break for you can run home to refill; Happy are you when wake up early to report on the farm, at least you have somewhere to go to; Happy are you when you maintain your country’s roads, bridges and buildings for many prayers would be offered for you.

    Even the service year that was once a year of learning on the job and knowing other parts of the country among other things is now a year of slavery and undue suffering. The National Youth Service Corps should not be scrapped but it should at least be transformed from a slavery commission which it has grown to become one that fulfils the basic aspiration of the nation’s youths.

    • Ms Omotayo, an ex-corper writes from Ibadan

  • Still on the dismissed youth corper

    SIR: I have observed reactions to the ejection of Tolulope Ekundayo, a graduate of Zoology, Lagos State University, from the NYSC orientation camp in Ogun State for refusing to wear the Khaki trouser meant for youth corpers.

    I feel very proud to associate with her. In spite of our decaying societal values and high level of disregard for Biblical provisions, she stood firm on her religious belief to challenge the moral decadence in this part of the world. The issue of this dismissed youth corps member has once again brought to the fore the need for the incorporation of religious tolerance in the law guiding the NYSC scheme.

    To many, the decision of this corps member to stand her ground is uncalled for, old-fashioned and primitive. Some even argued that she could have complied for the duration of the programme, supporting their arguments with a Biblical injunction in Hebrews 13:17 “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account…” The decision of the NYSC authority did not come to me as surprise because many staunch believers may have at one time or the other paid dearly in situations similar to this.

    The focus here is not to criticise the decision of the camp officials because according to them, her action contradicted Section 3 sub-section (h) of the scheme’s 2012 bye-laws, but to address the inadequacies and the insensitivity of the law itself to our religious practice/belief.

    I see this as great injustice to this hapless lady or is it not the same NYSC that youth corpers dress almost like masquerades and nobody dares throw them out of the camp? Does religious sentiment now exist in the NYSC scheme?

    Some years back when I had my NYSC in Taraba State, I recollect that some female Muslim corpers were allowed to use head ties (hijab) to cover their hair instead of using the NYSC cap while some wore white trousers for parades when they were expected to wear a boxer-like short and white shirt. These sets of people claimed that their religious beliefs did not permit them to expose their hair or any part of their body. If consideration is given to this category of people, while can’t the same be extended to the likes of Tolulope Ekundayo?

    I will be doing great injustice if I don’t commend the NYSC for some of its religious initiatives for corps members. For instance, provision is made for recognised religious organisations to thrive within the orientation camp. In some permanent orientation camp, there are mosques and churches. Also, every Sunday is a free day for corpers throughout the three weeks orientation period. This is to allow the corpers perform their religious activities without any interference and the time for Jumat on Fridays is usually adhered to strictly with no activity interfacing with it.

    This area of dressing code may be another area which the authorities concerned may start looking into and consider making it optional. This will help strike a balance among the two religions and further help in advocating religious tolerance.

    • Ayo Afuwape

    Iworo Badagry