The Nation Newspaper

Category: Commentaries

  • Planning for natural disasters

    Planning for natural disasters

    SIR: Nigeria experienced one of the world’s deadliest weather induced natural disasters in year 2012. The devastations of the flood was so much in areas along the river Niger banks that people were beginning to wonder if the Biblical time of Noah where flood was used to destroyed the earth was here again. In all, 27 states in the country were affected by the flood.

    There is no doubt that this singular occurrence had put to test our perceived physical planning initiatives, environmental management and planning policies, our prompt adherences to adverse weather warnings from relevant agencies as well as our collective readiness for natural disasters since they are ways the earth seems to bounce back when pushed to the walls by our day-to-day activities without any regard for replenishment. It is a reminder to all and sundry that climate change is surely here with us and urgent steps needed to be taken to mitigate its effects. Most importantly it is sort of wake-up call for us that we need to be on our toes anytime the rainy season begins to knock at the door.

    The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET), a Federal government agency saddled with the mandate of forecasting weather, advising the government and informing the populace about weather issues deemed it fit to organise a pre –rainy season conference on weather issues where several issues bothering on the roles of meteorological information in risk and disaster management and its utilization for national development planning was discussed. Indeed all speakers at the conference were of the unanimous opinion that, timely weather information is required for planning in all sectors, most especially agriculture, water resources, construction and transportation sectors, with an admonition for NIMET to make extra efforts to ensure the accuracy of their predictions. They advocated for a government policy that will make it mandatory for every sector to make weather framework an integral part of their policies. It was also submitted that NIMET should make concerted efforts to take the information to the real people that needed the information, that is, the common man on the street, farmers, transporters, traders and other important stakeholders rather than the government

    Perhaps, the most important question is what are the implications of the NIMET’s 2013 seasonal rainfall predictions? One, the prediction that most parts of the country will have normal rainfall amount indicates that, barring any abnormal rainfall in the Cameroon leading to the opening of their dams, states at the Niger banks would experience normal experiences they’ve been experiencing when there are normal rainfall. It should be expected that, aside the opening of the Cameroon Dam, every river, including the Niger, Benue and the Atlantic Ocean is likely to over-flow their banks during the raining season, this is assumed to be a normal situation known to the natives of these regions. Lagos and parts of Ogun state and other state capitals should also expect normal floods arising from improper physical planning, blocked drainages and environmental demeanours.

    Two, to the farmers, early onset of rainfall in parts of Niger, Anambra, Delta, Northern Cross River, parts of Ogun and Ondo states means that the planting season is expected to commence earlier than usual while the cessation of rainfall earlier than usual in parts of Ondo, Delta and Cross River states means the farmers have to plant early enough to avoid shortage of rainfall. However, it should be remembered that these states are located along the coasts and the rain forests zones and thus receives high rainfall most times in excess of requirements for annual crops; early cessation of rainfall may therefore be a good omen for maize farmers in these zones.

    Disasters will definitely be averted while food security would be guaranteed if the right attitudes are adopted towards the weather information provided by NIMET.

    • Zannu Ajibola Emmanuel

    Nigerian Meteorological Agency, Abuja.

  • Ilaje youths deserve fruits of amnesty

    Ilaje youths deserve fruits of amnesty

    SIR: Ilaje land is an oil producing area of Ondo State. There are three kingdoms: the Ugbo, Mahin and Aheri/Etikan. As an oil producing area, the youths have been left unemployed due to the hazards caused by the oil exploitation and exploration in which both fishing and farming businesses have become a thing of the past.

    The federal as well as the state government have done their bits by considering the interests of the people especially by providing some jobs for the youths.

    However, it has become a nightmare as the leaders in the said areas have not been allowing the youths to taste the dividend of democracy as per the allotted jobs.

    The most recent is the issue of security of pipelines which came from the federal government. More than 5,000 jobs were allotted to Ilaje land but these were hijacked by our leaders who are in the corridors of power. They gave recognition only to militant groups – those who once carried arms against the government but ignored other groups. Amongst the latter group is Mahin coastal youth which was registered for the interest of the youths in Mahin Kingdom.

    Our worry is that the leaders are benefiting in quite a number of ways; so also the militant groups who are the sole beneficiaries of Amnesty Programme. We are confronted with questions such as; must youths be rebels before they could be heard? Must those who benefit from amnesty be allowed to hold the other youths down? Why should the group alone enjoy the benefits?

    Our dear President, the time has come to intervene in this matter so that peace can reign in Ilaje land of Ondo State.

    • Ebuteiwa Vincent&Egbukuyomi Segun

    Ilaje Land

     

  • Governors’ Forum crisis: Not a fine moment for Nigerian character

    Governors’ Forum crisis: Not a fine moment for Nigerian character

    The photograph on the front page of this newspaper yesterday spoke volumes. It showed Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State addressing the press on a dreary night in Abuja. But it was obvious he was emotionally drained. He had endured more than one week of intense jockeying for relevance in the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF), with some of his colleagues intriguing ruthlessly for his post, or at least trying to get him off his perch. Behind him, almost behind his ears, was Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State, the man who continues to menace Amaechi and haunt his shadows so much that it must take extraordinary nerves for both gentlemen to stand in the same room. In the photograph, however, Akpabio displays unearthly calmness, with a mechanical grin trying to break on his face.

    Also in the photograph, and behind Amaechi to the right, was Governor Babangida Aliyu of Niger State, a man who has managed by the force of his eloquence and the strength of his conviction to carve some political and national relevance. He has stood rock-solid behind Amaechi, even as the Rivers governor is buffeted by enemies. In the same photograph, Governor Idris Wada of Kogi State, stood distractingly beside Amaechi. The governors were all emerging from a meeting in which some 16 of them attempted to unhorse Amaechi from the NGF chairmanship. The coup failed, and the battle has been postponed till May. Earlier, however, President Goodluck Jonathan had corralled a few governors led by Akpabio to form the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors’ Forum. To cut to the chase, everyone knows, in spite of Akpabio’s doublespeak, that the new Forum is designed to balkanise the NGF for spurning Jonathan’s cajolery and blandishments.

    There are many issues surrounding the NGF that discomfit the public, such as its unconstitutional overbearingness. But beyond all those issues, however, and even beyond the reasons that precipitated the presidential conspiracy against the Forum, is the disturbing impression a few of the governors have given to the world of their character. It is doubtful whether Amaechi would have attracted so much opposition and earned the intense enmity of the presidency had he been more restrained, less candid as a politician, more reflective as a person, and disarmingly more diplomatic. But he can at least take solace in the fact that with all his impetuousness, he is not shifty and his conscience is not for hire. Rivers may find his NGF politics a distraction, and even wonder whether they elected him to engage in interminable political jousting, but they will shrug their shoulders and say, well, he can call his soul his own, if nothing else.

    So far, nothing substantially untoward has been done by the pro-Jonathan group other than their engaging puerility. The group is doubtless entitled to pursue its own interests and fight its enemies, whether real or phantom. But by offering himself as head of the Jonathan army, and for a crusade of such enormous dubiousness, Akpabio managed to give the impression he is for hire, and his conscience as elastic as they come. Recall that in the photograph briefly analysed above, Hardball said he detected a forced grin on the Akwa Ibom governor’s face. Well, that kind of painful expression often indicates unbearable turbulence in the heart of a man full of both surrender and betrayal. Akwa Ibomites will revel in their appreciation of Akpabio’s great developmental projects, for the man is hardworking and focused, and take pride in his eloquence, for he is also a gifted public speaker with confident gait. But it is doubtful whether they would not marvel at how cheaply their governor had lent himself to be used by Jonathan, and also wonder whether it is always the case that brilliance must be compromised by lack of character.

     

  • From the Cell Phone

    For Gbenga Omotoso

     

    Corrigendum: it was actually soldiers who were killed in Odi and not policemen. Thank you! Anonymous

    The landmark judgment of Odi genocide is a victory for democracy. No matter how provoked, nobody has an inalienable right to take away the life of another. I pray that cases such as the Ogoni massacre and Jos’ should also be visited. Obasanjo should be tried for committing crimes against humanity. From Henry Kobo, Port Harcourt

    “After AFCON” remains our perculiarity of corruption, oil doom, Boko Haram, presidential wastages, turn-coat voice of masses, among other characteristics of a perculiar nation with perculiar people and perculiar happenstances. From Alhaji ADEYCorsim, Oshodi, Lagos

    Obasanjo should have let the matter die down because policemen are lambs kept for daily sacrifice in Nigeria. May God deliver them from the claws of the blood-thirsty ritualists. Anonymous

    It is a big disgrace to Nigerians for our leaders to lack manners and understanding to resolve issues among them. What legacy are they leaving when venomous words are exchanged? They should learn how to check their utterances as many Nigerians are looking up to them in the country. From Gideon Lama Kallah

    Please, add minister of almanjiries and beggars so that Professor Rufai and Wike can face education. Also, minister of potholes; minister of combating darkness through importation of generators to assist minister of Please Hold Candle Now (PHCN); minister of health (abroad) to cater for government officials who cannot go to our hospitals; minister of implementation to ensure government policies are actually implemented; minister of uniforms to ensure all students wear the same uniform (Osun style). Kudos! Anonymous

    Good day, Sir. Writing you this time is a pleasure. If and only if the High Court verdict on Odi massacre would have been the final judgment then, it could have saved costs instead of appealing and appealing. In other words, justice is on the way, whether the devil likes it or not. Furthermore, Odi, Zaki Biam or Benue and Biafrans massacre were all done by the same person. Does it mean that these people were cows or flies? “kakaka-kokoko and BOMB BOMB” everywhere is a proof of genocide. Hence, the third law of motion, according to Newton, is that action equals to reaction. So, Obasanjo’s acts should be condemned in totallity and he should tender an unreserved apology to the people and Nigeria at large. Finally, the security men should be properly cautioned because they were the ones who incited the community before they reacted just like what some policemen at Eneka in Port Harcourt are doing. From Sunny lgiri, Port Harcourt

    The Zaki Biam people in Benue State should also go to court to seek redress. Obasanjo should be sent to The Hague to face trial for genocide, it is overdue. From Nnamdi O.

    What are you talking about? Obasanjo deserves praise and respect from Nigerians, always! Now, it was when Baba called for a positive coherent nation that President Goodluck Jonathan could wake up from his slumber. Obasanjo will leave long to advise future leaders. Amen. Regards. From C-Samanja Awodi, Ilorin, Kwara State

    My brother, you will never cease to amuse me. Your thoughts on the new cabinet is a master piece. Let me quickly add that you will be appointed one day for optimal efficiency. From Ayo Apelogun, Ilesha

    To me, Obasanjo acted promptly on the Odi issue unlike the President. Compare the disgrace Boko Haram gave Nigeria in the comity of nations to the Odi episode. You know Nigerian economy is down because of insecurity. The President ought to resign. From Tunde Joe Kalamu

    Re: Thoughts on a new cabinet. The cabinet members and Mr. President are doing their best because they are only going at a slow pace. You journalists dislike hard and harsh leaders. Are you not blaming Obasanjo for Odi killings now? Are you not sad about Boko Haram destructions? Let us all embrace cassava bread to avert foreign exchange leakage! The recent N37.6 billion judgment, to me, was sentimental of Justice Akanbi. We need to be honest, period! From Lanre Oseni

    I am happy to be a Nigerian because of the everyday drama I see and hear. A fortnight ago, Boko Haram declared ceasefire, only for the sect to turn around, after some days, to kill some health workers in Kano. Where is our President and his cabinet members? Actually, to reduce terrorism in this country, there should be a minister of defence and also a minister of terrorism so that the minister of defence can have time for other things. Like what the President did by bringing Doyin Okupe to assist Abati in attacking anyone they believe is not loyal to the President. The following ministers and their portfolios: Ita Okon Bassey, minister of Science and Technology and a minister of Research to assist her; Zainab I. Kuchi, minister of Power and a minister of Mega Watt to assist her; Musa Muhammed Saada, minister of Mines and Steel. From Hamza Ozi Momoh, Dockyard, Apapa, Lagos

    The Odi verdict is excellent and perfect; it will serve as a major signal to those of them in power to begin to have respect for the sanctity of human life and to be civil in all their actions against the people. Anonymous

    Indeed, the court’s verdict on Odi killing is an eye opener to our leaders who have arrogated powers to themselves and have no respect for human beings. Obasanjo must be probed if we have a conscience. In fact, the judgment is a sign of new and better things to come. Thanks! From Charles

    Obasanjo, Jonathan and the Odi verdict. What are the people of Zaki Biam of Benue waiting for? Go to court, demand for N100 billion, too. Anonymous

    This will surely sound nice to the poor natives who lost their loved ones and properties in the Odi military operation. Also, the case of Zaki Biam in Benue State in which Dr. Alexander Gaadi took the Federal Government to court and won should be revisited with the hope that the Federal Government will begin to respect court orders. From Ahembe Enoch, Makurdi

    Thoughts on a new cabinet seems a deliberate attempt to make a jest at the former shoe-less boy’s effort to find jobs for the boys. I hope they are intimidated by your exposure, and not go ahead with a bogus executive council. Many readers will surely fail the poser in the last paragraph of your article. I could not get any right. From Alhaji ADEYCorsim, Oshodi, Lagos

    The late Mohammed Yusuf and members of his Islamist sect murdered 38 police officers, countless civilians and burnt dozens of churches before he was killed. He who goes to equity should do so with clean hands. From Patrick Oguejiofor, Abuja

    Boko Haram believes in the archaic wisdom that ‘might is right’ because its leadership is populated by half-educated people. The Odis are incomparable as, to them, wisdom is superior to might. Perhaps Boko Haram will now take their cue from Odi people. Anonymous

    For Olatunji Dare

    Sir, history repeats itself. The fact is a testimony to human stupidity. All past administrations in the country left office in disgrace as a result of treasury looting. Again, the PDP, today, is a house of excesses; each latest fraudulent act must out-do the one before. Why? Nigerian politicians should not find it impossible to learn from the age-old recorded experiences of the past. Or are they impervious to doing good? From Adegoke O. O., Ikhin, Edo State

    Stephen Keshi and his coaching crew achieved success in the just-concluded AFCON 20l3, where the bookmakers wrote them off. Thereafter, can the success be sustained in future competition? The largesse from the President to the players and coaching crew is well deserved and appreciable. From Gordon Chika Nnorom, Umukabia Abia State

    Thanks, for your well-concieved write-up. My fear is that the gift splash has now exposed the boys to the risk of kidnapping. The home-based are now sure targets. This goes to show how empty our so-called leaders are. May God help us. Anonymous

    The idea of a merger by political parties is good if they will allow it to work; personal interest must not come in. We don’t want Igbo or Yoruba or Hausa or Nupe president. What we want is President of Nigeria, who will shape Nigeria, a marketable candidate. The people that are troubling us in Nigeria are not up to one million. We should be able to put ourselves together and fight them to a stand still before we think of sharing any positions or else…. A more strategic planning will give us easy ride in 2015. From Prince Ade Ademeso

    A progressive agenda. APC should be cautious or else PDP will infiltrate and disorganise it. The masses should be courageous enough to make a change by voting in another party. One who knows one road does not know road. Unless one tastes different dishes he cannot tell the tasty one. PDP cannot fight corruption. The masses should try to understand and vote in APC. Their governors have shown sufficient evidence in their states that they are well informed to uplift Nigeria. Thank you, for your write-up. From Peter Chukwudum

    Re: After AFCON: Getting back to the basics. The team had won the Nations Cup for Nigeria, no doubt. It has done Nigeria proud. It has enlivened our hope in sports. However, I see the boys doing their own aspect of Nigeria. To me, they were over-pampered, with those pecuniary and materialistic rewards! What do we give the CBN Governor, his team and his staff, who brought the general price level to nine per cent from 12 per cent? What do we give a policeman who was able to apprehend a thief, a criminal? A little pat on the back. The awards/rewards showered on Super Eagles would in future spoil them. Anonymous

    If we must keep winning, corruption must end at all levels. Infrastructure in stadia must be developed, maintained and renovated. Power must be constant and freedom of the coach must be guaranteed. Finally, irrelevant superstructure such as the N4 billion for African first ladies peace mission, must be protested. Enough of squandermania! From Lanre Oseni

    Is it possible for this goverment to do anything right? Olatunji Dare should be given the opportunity to rule this country. Actually, he is the messiah Nigeria has been waiting for. Anonymous

    I have been trying to find the right words to describe the skill, the intelligence, the mastery of thought employed in crafting, After AFCON: Getting back to basics by one of the most brilliant minds Africa has ever produced – veteran journalist and sage Professor Olatunji Dare, a unique material for the building of a new Nigerian nation. But, alas, Nigeria has become a pleasure palace of incomparable banality and things have fallen apart before our eyes and the centre can no longer hold. Without doubt, he has said the minds of millions of oppressed Nigerians put in the cooler not only by the political elite, but, also, by their docility due to illiteracy. Their literacy spells trouble for their elite oppressors. To be literate would mean they will know their rights, demand for it, and become too hot for their oppressors to handle. From John Jimoh, Ijebu-Ode

    Great writing, doctor. I had resisted sending you a well-deserved commendation these years. For me, this week’s column is a masterpiece and mother of every opinion article in recent times. Thanks for your robust weekly engagement. From Sylvester

    Sir, no amount of cash gift is enough to thank the Super Eagles players for doing Nigerians proud in South Africa. Though I have reservation on Keshi’s selection process; a good coach no doubt, we would have had many Mbas if more domestic players, such as Reuben, Egwueke, Henry Uche, Papa Idris and others had featured in AFCON 2013. Keshi is a good coach but, he can improve in the areas aforesaid, just like President Jonathan must improve in goverance in the areas of transparency, cabinet selection, welfare package and the building of critical institutions for the triumph of his people- driven transformative agenda. Anonymous

    After AFCON: Getting back to basics. Thank you for the brilliant piece. Our leaders love chasing shadows. Why are they not talking about revamping Ajaokuta Steel? building more dams to generate more power? building more refineries? overhauling our health system and agriculture? In a nation where the life expectancy has been reduced to the lowest ebb, leaders cannot afford to be insensitive. Our leaders will be shocked the day Nigeria catches fire. Anonymous

     

    For Segun Gbadegesin

    Sir,you should help us to tell APC to give us a formidable and vibrant opposition party. From Feyi Akeeb Kareem

    “An Olu Omo at 6”’ is surely a historical perspective of a man who was in the genuine struggle that led to the exit of military rule. Sir, you cannot retire now and allow the wrong representation of the Yoruba nation. Given, your age, the likes of Mr Otubusin and others are urgently needed at the National Assembly to make things really work for Nigeria. From Alhaji ADEYCorsim, Oshodi, Lagos

    Sir, permit me to say you are simply special; a rare jewel and, indeed, the one that this pervasive generation can look up to as a role model. Though I have been reading your columns but, sincerely, I am captivated by this particular one “An Olu Omo @ 60”. The choice of words fit perfectly, the language is simple, the style is a free style with an indepth description. Truly, I am impressed. Wishing you the very best life offers. From Saliu David Kasim, 400 level Mass Comm, Kogi State University, Anyigba

    I commend your write-up on my cousin, Olu Otubusin as he turns 60. God bless you. From Dr. Omolaraeni Awokoya-Adadevoh

    Re: An Olu Omo @ 60. I join you in congratulating Olu Omo Olu Otubusin on his 60th birthday. I do not know him but the encomiums you poured on him showed that he is worth his salt. Whoever does good would one day get the reward. That is a lesson for us all. Many happy returns to Otubusin. From Lanre Oseni.

  • Still on Police College, Ikeja

    Still on Police College, Ikeja

    SIR: On Friday, January 18, President Goodluck Jonathan paid an impromptu visit to the Police College Ikeja. My only regret is that the President did not spare few seconds to walk across the little gate that separates the College from the Police Barracks. He would have seen the nauseating environment under which our policemen and women live.

    Nigerians expect him to undertake more of such unscheduled visits to other national institutions on the verge of total collapse. But this would work only if his government would see the media as partners in progress. Asking why a television station was allowed access to film the rot at the College is like leaving the message and chasing after the messenger.

    It has been argued that the decay at the College did not just start today. And that this government cannot be blamed for the decadence. So, tell me: who should we hold accountable? Since 1999, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been in control of government. The party also controls both houses of the National Assembly. So shouldn’t we hold it accountable and responsible for the deterioration of many of our national heritages and values?

    It has also been argued that poor funding is responsible for the sorry state of the police training college. In 2012, for instance, four hundred and ninety six million naira (N496m) was reported to have been budgeted for the College. While this is appalling, it is obvious that the police itself lack proper maintenance culture. Look at their barracks. Look at the vehicles they drive and how they handle them.

    There is a Deputy Inspector General of police in charge of these training colleges. How much supervision and managerial competence has he shown in this instance? There is a Ministry of Police Affairs in charge of police matters. There is the Police Service Commission. There are also various committees of the National Assembly that are expected to have oversight functions on these institutions. All these superstructures are there sucking public fund while the institutions under their watch are rotting away.

    Only last year, former Commissioner of Police, Plateau state, Emmanuel Dipo Ayeni, during his pulling out parade from the Nigeria Police force, had cause to lash out at the police institution he served for many years. According to him, “The way the Nigerian Police force is operating today leaves much to be desired not because its personnel are not professionally competent but due to some dangerous chemistry that has been badly mixed against the soul of this vital organization.” He dismissed the reform in the Nigerian Police force as “extremely cosmetic” incapable of taking the police force to the next level.

    Such calls are wake up call for us to sit back and take a second hard look at the country and what can be done to save it from imminent collapse.

     

    • Pascal Chimezie

    University of Education, Winneba, Ghana

  • If N4b AFLPM House sails through NASS, anything else can

    If N4b AFLPM House sails through NASS, anything else can

    So far, there is nothing to show that the National Assembly is softening its opposition to the N4bn proposed by the Federal Capital City (FCT) administration for the construction and perhaps equipping of the headquarters of the African First Ladies Peace Mission (AFLPM) in Abuja. But you never can tell, especially with the curious manner the prickly and scheming Jonathan presidency handles lobbying. President Goodluck Jonathan, if we judge him correctly, may yet unleash lobbyists to push the project that started as an NGO affair only to graduate, in the eyes of the president’s wife, into a legacy project. It will not matter to the lobbyists that the economy cannot sustain the level of profligacy being embraced by the presidency. And it will hardly matter that the project, cleverly sidetracked by other African countries as unarguably nugatory, will merely massage the ego of the First Lady and her sympathisers. However, if the government presses ahead irrespective of opposition, it should meet a resolute National Assembly stand pat on the democratic ramparts.

    But what is a little worrisome to every Nigerian is the First Lady’s rationalisation of the project. Not only did Dame Patience describe the lively and healthy debate on the AFLPM funding proposal as noise, she also cynically concluded that were men to be the inspirers of the project, that grating noise would be absent. She made this point while speaking in Abuja last Thursday during the presentation of the ‘PDP Women-In-Power 2013 Calendar.’Bringing gender politics into the controversy is far-fetched in every conceivable way, but it is nothing compared to the outlandishness of her comparisons. Hear her: “The wife of Gen. Ibrahim Babangida, Maryam, built the National Women Centre while the wife of Gen. Sani Abacha, Maryam, also built the National Hospital.” Since she always comes across as a little wanting in general moderation and is often insensitive to the weight of her words, she added this clincher: “None of them (former First Ladies) left with the buildings. I am not the owner of the AFLPM, and when I leave, I will not take it away. It is not a pet project of anyone.” But contrary to the impression she tried to create, her argument actually showed it is indeed a pet project, her own pet project.

    It is truly mortifying to hear the First Lady compare the AFLPM project with those of her predecessors. Frugality did not once feature in her argument, nor did relevance, nor, quite humbling, did reality check. Dame Patience forgets she is the wife of an elected president, not the wife of a military dictator. Her husband, she must be reminded, needs to either persuade the legislature to acquiesce to the project or he must find creative ways of funding it, such as the ingratiating fundraisers Abuja is conversant with and is now inured to. But the country must hope that on the AFLPM issue the National Assembly will not indulge the presidency or the FCT.

    As this column argued on February 6; “No matter how much the Senate wants to cooperate with the presidency, it is unlikely it can be persuaded to approve the expenditure for AFLPM as part of the FCT budget. After all, the sponsors of the project had vehemently clarified in 2011 and in July last year, during a dispute over supply of cars for the AFLPM summit, that it was an NGO. Taken together with its recklessness on the centenary project and other financial imprudence such as the N12bn proposed expenditure for the construction of two city gates for Abuja and rehabilitation of commercial sex workers in the FCT, it is clear that the President Goodluck Jonathan presidency has lost all sense of restraint in spending money and prioritising projects.” We hope flattering the Senate will get us somewhere. If it doesn’t, and the AFLPM budget sails through, there may be no folly left that is too big or too self-deprecating for us to embrace.

     

  • All hail King Eagles

    All hail King Eagles

    SIR: As we bask in the euphoria of the heroic victory of the Super Eagles in the Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa, it is important that we spare sometime to distil and reflect on the lessons inherent in the entire episode particularly the resilience of Coach Steven Keshi and his faithful soccer ambassadors.

    Interestingly, the Super Eagles and their handlers we celebrate and eulogize today were yesterday caricatured, derided and called names. Nobody gave them an outside chance of even qualifying from their group let alone winning the cup. They were harangued and variously described as “Super Chickens”, “Fatherless Eagles” and “Wingless Eagles” etc.

    Thank you King Eagles for freeing us from the suffocating grip of negativism and cynicism. We are really grateful to you for a gift so precious, something to love and cherish and something different from the misery and despair we feel from the daily dose of stolen billions, armed robberies, kidnapping and other myriad of social malaise.

    What is more, you and your dedicated handlers refused to be detracted by the barbed and irritating criticisms of pundits and analysts. Rather, these criticisms fired your spirit which has produced the result and handsome dividend we are celebrating today.

    For the Super Eagles it has been a triumph of determination over cynicism. While the rest of us wallowed in despair, the King Eagles and their handlers waxed stronger in faith and spirit. Their avowed intent was to win the African Cup. Happily, they have achieved their supreme objective and nobody can deny them the glory which richly belongs to them and by extension, to all Nigerians both detractors and supporters.

    What is really important now is for all of us to emulate the worthy examples of our glorious soccer ambassadors. This is reminiscent of John Kennedy’s inaugural address as President of the United States in which he passionately enjoined his people not to think of what America can do for them but what they can do for their country.

    It is important also to stress that people imbued with sense of character like Steve Keshi has demonstrated, are like possessed creatures, men and women in the thrall of belief so powerful that they ignore all else including criticisms however barbed and discouraging. This is similitude of what Margaret Mead once said: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world”. Yes indeed!

    Our newly crowned kings of African soccer have shown the way. All we need do now is to fall in step to move Nigeria forward. Nigeria has what it takes to be a great, prosperous, peaceful and a happy nation.

    • Chief (Hon) David Attah,

    david.attah@yahoo.com

  • Why is life so cheap in Nigeria?

    Why is life so cheap in Nigeria?

    SIR: There is no faith that does not recognise the sanctity of human life. The two great religions of the world, Christianity and Islam- for sure, certainly do. A mutual refrain in the two great books is: You shall not kill. It is therefore sacrilegious to take human life. This is on the side of morals.

    In our case, the contrary seems to hold sway. Our actions and inactions reflect the antithesis of the sanctity of human life. It seems praxis to flout God’s order of ‘You shall not kill’.

    A group of people are busy throwing bombs all around and attacking all places including places of worship in the name of religion. It is sheer delirium touting the reason of religion given that both Christians, Muslims, atheists and anybody are their targets.

    It will also be foolhardy to believe the economic angle. How will the death of hundreds of people on the streets of Kano, Zaria, Bauchi bring about a positive turn-around in Nigeria’s economy?

    Arguably, road mishaps remain the cause of the highest number of Nigerians. Statistics by the highly reliable Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) showed that most road accidents were caused by each or a combination of these factors: bad roads, reckless driving, over-speeding, over-loading, drunkenness et al.

    Why it took successive governments so long to find a solution to the slaughter slab that Lagos-Ibadan road was, is difficult to fathom considering the enormous resources at the disposal of the Federal Government.

    But, if government is intent in killing as many citizens as possible, why should we also be a willing accomplice? It is sad that the drivers themselves are ready and willing tools in the hands of the ‘devil’ to reduce the population of Nigeria. You need only a cursory attention at activities at our various parks and garages and you will be confounded by the assemblage of hawkers of an assortment of alcoholic drinks of various names and makes some under the guise of herbs.

    Same goes for cops who, under the influence of alcohol, pull the trigger. Only God knows how many lives have been lost due to ‘accidental discharge’.

    Can we count the number of Nigerians who have lost their lives in the hands of armed robbers, kidnappers, rapists, assassins and the likes? How can we describe robbers who forced hapless victims to lie on highways for them to be mauled by approaching vehicles? What do we call armed robbers who after dispossessing their victims of their hard-earned valuables still went ahead to wipe out the family?

    Nigerians’ proclivity to cheapen human life is inexorably tied to the incredibly high level of insecurity in the country. Any flimsy, mundane, even stupid, reason can draw cudgels, machetes, guns and other deadly weapons from any group of people against the other in a cult, gang, religious or tribal feud and before you know it, many heads would have rolled. Mere Street squabbles, beer parlour arguments, bus banter among others easily degenerate into violence, blood and deaths.

    Amidst all this grand madness, Nigerians descend on places of worship almost 24 hours every day to call on the same God that they have refused His simple injunction not to kill. If we attach a modicum out of the prodigious respect we attach to religion to regard to life, Nigeria will be a better place to live in.

     

    • Laitan Akinwunmi

    Ifako-Ijaiye

    Lagos State

     

  • Eko Atlantic: Lessons in visionary leadership

    History, it is said will have no mercy on leaders who are timid or simply fail to take critical decisions whether they turn out to be right or wrong. Being able to take the right decision as a leader never happens in a vacuum. It is a product of experience, intellectual training, political sagacity and economic wizardry in the face of many odds. For having the vision, for seeing beyond the present and a willingness to confront the future, Asiwaju Tinubu the former governor of Lagos State was called out for accolades and praise on Thursday when the Eko Atlantic Project was commissioned by President Goodluck Jonathan, Bill Clinton and Governor Babatunde Fashola.

    The unending praise Tinubu received for visionary leadership on that day is no way misplaced. It was earned. Here is why.

    Tinubu, while governor of Lagos state saw how the fury of the Atlantic stole away precious land from Lagos. How it wrecked havoc on the residents. How it mercilessly swallowed their homes up in raging water. He never prevaricated. He acted in the nick of time by leading a crack team to seek a permanent solution to the Atlantic waves. He wanted to reclaim what the waters forcefully took away from Lagos. He wanted to subdue nature through the use of modern human technology. He wanted to turn despair into hope and erect a modern engineering monument from the devastation left behind by the raging waves.

    He acted swiftly. He sought for ideas. He knocked on doors for solution. He tapped into his network of professional friends and international financiers. He invested time, resources and knowledge in this pursuit. He was undeterred even when many saw it as a gambit too many by a man who simply wanted to conquer every territory he chanced upon. But they were wrong. Tinubu was on a noble cause. He had a vision to rescue the coast line of Lagos and employed courage to pursue it. No only that, he tapped a most capable hand to continue with the vision of the project after he left power. Governor Fashola took off where Tinubu left off and never once looked back.

    On Thursday, February 21, it all came together. The pieces of a dream, the realization of a vision, the rebirth of another city within a city and the victory of vision over mediocrity all came together to give Lagos another new Lagos. The Eko Atlantic City.

    From 2005 to 2013 when what seemed impossible became reality. Two governors, many top civil servants, bankers and international financiers, key professionals, engineers and of course the Chagoury brothers who put together the funds and expertise for the project all worked together tirelessly to make the story of the victory of the human will over nature possible.

    Like Bill Clinton said at the launch, Eko Atlantic will remain one of the engineering wonders of the world and very soon, peoples from around the world will flock here to look at the careful mix of rocks of different shapes and sizes pilled together in special patterns to force back the raging Atlantic waves. He said the effort that has gone into reclaiming five million square meters of Atlantic land is a monumental and commendable one.

    The reclaimed area, almost the size of Victoria Island sits pretty well by and in the Atlantic ocean and professes proudly the undying power of man to subdue is environment and turn it to advantage. Lagos has again put Nigeria on the global map. Lagos has written a new chapter yet in the history of Nigeria and put Nigeria back into reckoning when it comes to ideas and leadership quality.

    And because one man had the idea, vision, the courage and the determination to push through what he believed in, all we celebrate in Eko Atlantic is possible today. As governor, Tinubu was full of ideas. Most of it out of the box, yet practicable. He never let pass by an opportunity to change the face of Lagos in road construction, in health infrastructure, in power generation, in revenue generation and resource management, in job creation and a tapestry of administrative initiatives that have since laid the solid foundation for the future of Lagos. He trampled on areas where others were too timid to thread. And from the tribe of his lieutenants he tapped on Fashola to achieve all that he could not achieve and move Lagos forward.

    From Lagos goes out the lesson of true leadership to all of Nigeria. From Lagos, we see the kind of leadership Nigeria badly needs. We glean what is possible when a few men of goodwill and vision occupy positions of power. Lagos signposts a Nigeria that can be great. A nation that can earn respect and take its place in the world. That is and can only be possible if we have men of vision and courage in the mould of Tinubu and Fashola at the helm of affairs. The crop of leaders we now parade, especially at the centre will not get us there. They live insular lives and are isolated from reality. They suffer from the paucity of ideas and wallow in corrupt practices. Parochial in thinking and clueless about power because they only chanced on it, they make Nigeria slip gradually into a failed state. But there is yet hope because the day of the people cometh soon, but most importantly, because other leaders are now rising up to challenge and contest for power. That is the way. The only way. Eko Atlantic is a reminder that even that is possible.

  • The 2013 Appropriation Bill impasse

    An assortment of invigorated back and forth arguments and submissions have appeared on the current impasse of the non-passage of the 2013 Appropriation Bill.

    Lining up on one side is the group which submits that the President is not bound by the provisions of Section 58(4) of the Constitution, but rather by Section 59(4) and that flowing from that, the President does not come under the full command of the use of the word “shall”. In order words, they submit that the combined provisions of Sections 58(4) and 59(4), merely makes it discretionary for the President to sign the Appropriation Bill within 30days and that in any case, even if his assent fails to attend the Appropriation Bill within 30days, he can still conveniently sign thereafter, and such in their opinion will not amount to an illegality.

    Arrayed on the other side, is a second group which argues that the President is not only constitutionally but mandatorily bound by the provisions of Section 58(4) of the Constitution, particularly as it relates to the pre-eminence of the use of the word “shall” and that the plethora of case-law and retinue of judicial decisions particularly from the Supreme Court on the mandatory nature of the word “shall” gives no room for further argument on the matter.

    They submit rather stoically that where the President purports to assent to the Bill a day after the mandatory 30days, he would be seen to have committed an illegality. With profound respect to all shades of opinion, I adopt the latter position as mine. Section 58(4)provides “Where a bill is presented to the President for assent, he shall within thirty days thereof signify that he assents or that he withholds assent”.Section 58(5) provides “Where the President withholds his assent and the bill is again passed by each House by two-thirds majority, the bill shall become law and the assent of the President shall not be required”.Section 59(4) provides “Where the President, within thirty days after the presentation of the bill to him, fails to signify his assent or where he withholds assent, then the bill shall again be presented to the National Assembly sitting at a joint meeting, and if passed by two-thirds majority of members of both houses at such joint meeting, the bill shall become law and the assent of the President shall not be required”.

    The considered view of this writer is that Section 58(4) & (5), has cited above is one that without equivocation caters for all kinds of bills that would come before the National Assembly, the Appropriation Bill inclusive (this emphasis is of importance). To that extent, no bill is excluded by the provision of Section 58(4) and (5). It is important to establish this.

    This section prescribes a mandatory 30days time-frame for presidential assent and it is deep-rooted legislative pronouncement anchored powerfully on the word “shall”. The unquestionable power vested in the use of the word “shall” has been settled by the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

    Thus, if the above provision where to be paraphrased, it would simply mean, without any shade of equivocation that all bills, no matter their nomenclature presented to the President shall be assented to within 30days.Section 59(4) now comes into the picture. In this instance, it does not stand on its own, rather it operates as a back-up provision, to buttress what had earlier be stated in Section 58(4), this time loudly pronouncing it as it principally relates to the Appropriation Bill.

    Given very nature of importance that an Appropriation Bill hold, it was necessarily important for the makers of the law to further strengthen its existence in Section 59(4) by holding that even as all bills shall be assented to by the President within 30days, which doesn’t leave out the Appropriation Bill, where that fails to happen so, so and so must necessarily follow.

    Thus, Section 58(4) is nothing but a fore-runner provision to Section 59(4). It is trite and salutary law that you cannot put something on nothing and expect it to stand, as there will be nothing to support the something. Section 58(4) is the something on which section 59(4) stands confidently.

    Given the core importance of the Appropriation Bill as the life-wire of the nation, more importantly as a document whose passage cannot be left in abeyance, the constitution goes ahead to provide in Section 59(4), that where the President, within 30 days fails to signify his assent, the bill is presented to a joint sitting of the National Assembly and thereafter passed into law.

    It is totally inconceivable that the spirit behind the phrase “where the President, within thirty-days fails to signify his assent”, would mean for it to be simplistically interpreted as giving the President the latitude to give his assent a day after, or perhaps so long after the mandatory 30 days. Thus, the logic rooted in Section 59(4) is a constitutional reassurance of the right of the legislature to the full exercise of its powers, where the President for whatever reason fails to signify its assent.

    If the constitution had not earlier mandated the President to assent to the Appropriation Bill within 30 days, why will it further give a direction where the President fails to do so within that time? The logic therein presupposes that the situation of failure to assent referred to in Section 59(4) can only arise because of the mandatory stipulation of time earlier provided.

    It amounts to nothing but standing logic on its head, to assume that it was the intention of the makers of the law from the outset to give any President in Office, “time infinitum” within which to assent to any Appropriation Bill, the contending issues notwithstanding. Obviously, the issues militating against the passage of the 2013 Appropriation Bill are clear; however this apparent clarity does not suggest that any solution is in the horizon.

    This is because there are simply too many imponderables involved to permit any easy conclusion, except that we can still sufficiently infer that there is just one thing central to the whole shenanigans – power. That is the burden our politicians have since become. As always, it is on the altar of the peoples’ livelihood and sustenance that they find it convenient to flex their muscles and massage their ego, which inordinately tells our national story upside down.

    Of course we are not the only country with a constitution, though we appear as one country whose rulers rejoice when that constitution is dragged in the mud. It is a significant fact, frequently not realised by the people, that again this new episode of legislative-executive recklessness once more underscores their seeming powerlessness (assuming, but not conceding it is so) as the real custodians of the collective destiny of our country in the midst of ruthless and indifferent power-mongers. Tragically, it is not anything preordained or celestial that now confronts us as the reason for our stunted national growth. It is the instrument of silence and apathy that the people have since fashioned. I make bold to say that in the ongoing Arab spring, the Egyptians have been very exemplary, taking their destiny in their hands and demanding for better governance on a daily basis.

    Now when Egypt turns out a better country tomorrow, Nigerians will be the first group of people to flood Egypt in search of greener pastures and then quickly lament when they are labelled as second class citizens. Chiefly, the ever-present threat to our democratic journey lies ominously in the vast and inscrutable forces in government, who are persons without a yard of love for their fatherland, concerned only with the safeguard of their political interest cum ambition, their growing heap of ill-gotten wealth and their primitive pursuit of vanity. Unarguably, no better time offers itself for us to question our apparent sense of abandonment to hopelessness than now, save that, we seem to have come to enjoy being taken for this ride as always.

    •Adegbite, Esq; a lawyer and writes from Abuja.