The Nation Newspaper

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  • Sad twist to Anambra UPP primaries

    What could anybody have done differently to have brought a different outcome? What was not done to make sure that everything went well? These are the questions officials of the United Progressives Party (UPP), have not ceased to ask since the current rumble in the party, owing to the August 19 primaries to select the candidate for the November 18 governorship election in Anambra State.

    In their determination to create a quintessential, exemplary, and seamless process to showcase that Nigeria could replicate what is done in other climes, they had gone to a great length to detach themselves from the entire process.

    In a recent media interaction, founder and national chairman, Chief Chekwas Okorie, underlined the raison d’etre for this. His explanation was UPP would not toe the line of selection instead of election that has become the bane of Nigeria’s democracy. Nobody wins in the party, except in the field, he asserted.

    This was why the party came up with a constitutional amendment adopted at its June 29 non-elective convention in Awka that all the delegates for primaries such as in Anambra, must be known in advance.

    This was to cure the situation in other parties, where war delegates become products of officials of political parties who come from the national headquarters to elect candidates most times strange to them.

    Hear him: “In Anambra, there are 326 wards. So, if you want to hold elections in those 326 wards, that party must have 326 electoral committees, who will not come from those places. And every member of the party in the ward is a ward delegate that will come to elect three people.

    “It is a logistic nightmare. It has never succeeded. Rather, what you get from that exercise, is different lists of those who have been purportedly been elected as delegates. So, when you now come to the state congress, it has happened severally all over the country, you have parallel congresses. And after that you have two or three candidates emerging. The battle is then taken to the national headquarters of the party, where only the national chairman and secretary have the authority to now sponsor candidates on behalf of the party by signing the nomination forms.

    “And so, the highest bidder will now have his own form sent in, while the losers will either go to court or work against the party, because they are unhappy. They have always lost in Anambra because of this.

    “What our party now did is to say, instead of three people per ward, make it five. But let it be Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, Woman Leader and the Youth leader of the ward. They are the delegates. Nothing stops the ward executives from meeting and saying you are going to cast votes on our behalf and this is the candidate we want you to vote for. It doesn’t bother me. But the important thing is that we know who our delegates are. Their names will be in our website. On the day of state congress, the accreditation will be in that order. If your name is not on that list, you will not be accredited to enter the ground. And they will all sit in the alphabetical order of their local governments. Then, it is going to be televised live.

    “Then, we will have the ballot boxes designated in the names of those who are aspirants and then we will be calling out the names of the ward delegates in alphabetical order. You will go and cast your votes in the boxes and people will be seeing you. So, if you have gone to take money from the aspirants, they will be there to see how you are voting.”

    Of course, among these were supposed to be 724 statutory delegates made up of 362 women and 362 youths, to give both segments adequate representation and voice, an innovation, which he said was exclusive to the party.

    So, where did the party go wrong? This question even becomes more germane for anybody who was at the Emaus House, Awka, the capital of Anambra State, on that June 29.

    Right there, before thousands of supporters and with the Klieg lights of tens of television cameras beaming the proceedings live to millions of viewers, the eight aspirants then, had sworn to ensure that they would neither do anything to scuttle the process before nor undermine its integrity thereafter.

    Of course, one of them was Hon. Chudi Offodile. Yes, the self-same Offodile, who, on Monday, August 21, made a show of resigning from the party. Why this new turn?

    He now claims that the delegates list which the party posted on its website, to ensure nobody was kept guessing was changed at the last minute and that the new names had no telephone numbers.

    What he did not explain to his media audience was that he had earlier failed in his surreptitious bid to stymie the entire event by filing a suit at the FCT High Court, Abuja, to obtain an ex-parte motion, while at the same time still showing still campaigning for votes.

    The second, was that the exercise should have been put off due to the death of one of the party members during a stampede at the venue of accreditation.

    First, the delegates list was posted on the party’s website on July 14, more than a month before the exercise.

    However, Chief Dike Ogbuehi, in putting a lie to the allegations insists that Offodile, participated in all the processes up to the eve of the August 19 primaries, only to demand that it be put off right at the point the exercise was well underway. Not only did he voluntarily purchase the party’s Expression of Interest Form, but presented himself for screening, after again, paying the nomination fee. Why would he surreptitiously sue the party, at the same time he was pretending to be fully involved in the exercise, if he had nothing up his sleeves?

    What would he be doing with the telephone numbers of the delegates on the morning of the primaries, if indeed that was part of his beef?

    Now, he argues that the party should have put off the exercise as a result of the death of its member during the accreditation without considering the logistics and other factors. A country’s entire football team had perished in the sea prior to a competition, yet a new team was raised to continue. People had even died on their way to wedding ceremonies, which still took place.

    The only plausible conclusion anybody could glean from the foregoing is this is a case of a typical Nigerian who is unable to deal with political defeat.

    Incidentally, Okorie tried to obviate this early enough. Three days to the exercise, exactly on Wednesday August 16, he held a meeting with Offodile and Chief Osita Chidoka, his opponent at the polls in his Enugu home. The purpose was to try to get them contest as friends and members of a family, which has obviously failed.

    As it were right now, Offodile, insists that the last has not been heard on the matter. He has asked his supporters to await his next step. But what step could have been more sensible and honourable than to reconcile himself to the fact that his streak of electoral misfortunes may have more to do with himself than those he usually accuses? Would a deep introspection ought not have been better instead of making trouble or blaming others for what appears some clear cases of self-inflicted woes?

     

    • Chinemere writes from Awka, Anambra State.

  • Buhari’s return and expectations

    President Muhammadu Buhari returned home last week after spending 103 days in his second medical leave in the United Kingdom. His return effortlessly put gaping holes on the prophecies of some dooms day prophets, who had emerged in the chaotic scene created by his absence to provoke fear over his health. For a moment, the frenzy that greeted his arrival made the atmosphere seem like the day he was declared winner of the presidential election on the platform of the All Progressives Congress party (APC), two years ago.

    From the ever-increasing and vociferous political pressure groups that took turns jostling for attention at the reception organized for him to state governors, many of whom are of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP); and the seemingly sudden quietude that veiled over a venomous social media that simmered with unbridled hate, dissent and disappointment, one could see that Muhammadu Buhari was a rare politician with some form of cult followership.

    Indeed, no matter the prism through which one ogles or dissects his personality, there can be few doubts over what he represents from across ethnic or religious divides. That he could have such an eclipsing and levelling grip on people after more than three months absence, and, at a time tempers were corrosively boisterous further points to the huge trust and enormous expectations from Nigerians, and how desperately they wanted him back. One broadcaster in a private radio station was so enthralled that he described him as the ‘Lion King,’ a powerful character in an epic animal movie. But President Buhari is much more, in reality.

    The mood, Saturday, August 19, coincidentally my wife’s birthday, in the country, especially the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, aptly captured how upbeat Nigerians were and how much they believed his presence can add momentum and give leadership direction to the country. Even more, perhaps, was how his presence could tweak the incredibly discouraging state of the nation. It is not a subject of conjecture that security of lives and properties wore a spectre of gloom while the president was away.

    Today, with his return after such a long absence has much more shored up enthusiasm as also expectations. Now, it would seem it is all coming afresh. As the binge stops, Nigerians expect President Buhari to hit the ground running by quickly attending to serious national issues and concerns that nearly drove the nation to the edge in his absence. Chief among them is to cover lost grounds through instinctive leadership in line with the APC programmes as enunciated in the party manifesto.

    As a matter of emergency, too, expectations are that the president would reshuffle his cabinet to inject new blood, as not much other than politics, has changed in most  ministries in the last two years and reason for which hunger, poverty and unemployment have had negative effects on the nation as against  campaign promises to address them head-on. It is high time performance of cabinet ministers are audited to know who is delivering in accordance with party programmes or set a fresh performance benchmark needed to keep them steadily on their toes. Governors and party leaders must be adequately consulted in the choices of their representatives, especially at cabinet level.

    Equally exerting huge concern is the growing worry over the state of the economy, which has levied most states with huge burden in the shades of months of unpaid civil servants’ salaries, rising crime, dearth of job opportunities, as well as, poor infrastructure, among others. In the face of daily reports about successful loots recovery running into hundreds of millions and sometimes, billions, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the government’s anti-graft agency, not a few had wondered what use government is putting the recovered loots, where and who, is managing such infused funds so it will yield maximum returns on investment for good of nation. As common in all democracies, the people deserve to know as in so doing, they will build trust with the understanding that those enjoying the trust are accountable and understand the value placed on it.

    Perhaps, sensitive as it is important and critically contributing to the increasing distrust and disunity in the nation, is the issue of restructuring as canvassed by major regions across the country. For decades, sections of the country have decried the level of development in the regions, attributing it to what they say is a sloppy design that left those everyone at the mercy of whoever controls the central government.

    It is high time the president liaised with the National Assembly (NASS) to address with finality the subject matter of restructuring in the interest of Nigeria’s unity which is currently threatened by the emergence of some secession-seeking ethnic-based groups like the Independent People of Biafra (IPOB) and Niger Delta militants. The president should put necessary initiatives in motion towards uniting as well as healing perceived wounds that have continued to have chiselling effects on national unity.

    For President Buhari, there is scarcely any better time to reciprocate the peoples’ undiluted love and solidarity than now, and doing so radically by providing far-reaching solutions to the plethora of problems besetting the nation at the moment. As a statesman, one expects that he would resist the temptation of trying to court Nigerians with the 2019 election in mind. All the nation needs is healing and bold initiatives that will dispel doubts as to his preparedness mentally and physically to fight on the side of the people and work for the majority in national interest as opposed to policy initiatives targeting the interests of a select few.

    There is no gain emphasizing fact that having waited patiently for his return, Nigerians are understandably desperate to discover some remarkable differences or, better still,  an infusion of wisdom and experience of a 74-year old that will separate between what was before his medical trip and his return. To do otherwise is to put the nation on edge.

    Enough of mudslinging between the executive and the legislative; it is time to unite the party and position it to deliver on its promises. Let the work begin.

     

    • Oba writes from Ilorin, Kwara State.

  • Lagos: Excellence in the face of challenges

    Lagos is a great state. It is great not because there are no challenges on the path to its dream. The lagoon and the skyscrapers that shade the setting sun to tint the skyline with gold lining at dusk are magnificent, but that is not what makes Lagos beautiful. What makes Lagos a Centre of Excellence is the peaceful coexistence of over 20 million excellent people of diverse culture, race, nationality, religion and social status who know that though they have to compete to achieve personal goals, only in unity would they achieve their collective dream of building one of the greatest cities of the world. Any other yard-stick devised to assess Lagos would therefore yield a result unacceptable to Lagosians.

    In these past five decades of its existence, Lagos has gone through different challenges peculiar to all cosmopolitan cities but it has always come out stronger and more determined to become one of the best cities anyone would desired to live in. Every city in the world including those in first world countries once in a while record ugly incidences, but such incidences do not determine how great they are, rather it is the way the systems respond that describe what they represent. Sophisticated cities in the western world with strict security networks still record terrorist attacks. World economic powers still exhibit to the world a perfect example of paradox by having destitute in street corners of their beautiful cities. Lagos has not arrived at its destination but it is certainly on the path of its destiny. A city of an intense dynamic mix of humanity in a race for success and opportunities would definitely have its downsides. It is therefore unfair for any sincere assessor to neglect the strength of Lagos and its huge successes to focus on its negligible weakness and challenges.

    To set the records straight, it is important to make it clear that Lagos is not infested by Boko Haram as claimed. To Lagosians in particular and Nigerians in general, this submission is laughable. It only shows that the source was embarrassingly ignorant of happenings in Nigeria, and not in touch with the true situation in Lagos. The report was not worth more than the paper on which it was printed. In this information age, where a dropped pin in Lagos makes sound in Los Angeles, it is an embarrassment to the intelligence of readers for anyone to publish a lie.  Lagos State is not treating criminality with kid gloves and Governor Akinwumi Ambode has always assured Lagosians of his readiness to sacrifice his sleep for their safety. Few months ago, when kidnapping was imported to the state, at the height of its escalation in some parts of Nigeria, particularly in the North-east and Niger Delta states with which it shares a coastline, the Lagos State government swung into action and arrested the situation. In the few recorded cases in Lagos, all victims were successfully rescued, most of the kidnappers were arrested and lots of kidnapping attempts were nipped in the bud before they could be carried out.

    Lagos State also shares the belief that human minds are the fundamental resources of any nation that wants to be great. Lagosians are enlightened, exposed and highly educated people who place premium on education and can sacrifice even their comfort to see their children through school. To fuel this drive, the state government has invested heavily in education through its free primary and secondary education scheme among others. However, we cannot deny the fact that there are several young people who migrate to Lagos from other states and neigbouring African countries in search of greener pastures. We are aware that most of them barely finished secondary school. We know it well that they could mount pressure on the system, but Lagos chose to show them care and make them believe that despite their limitations, their own Lagos success story is possible too. The report that Lagos has high drop-out of school pupils merely by advancing national average to represent Lagos is not only wrong but also a discouragement to our caring heart and accommodating spirit.

    Lagos has primary healthcare centres in every ward of the state and a General Hospital in all the Local Government Areas of the state. Health care is affordable, accessible and of high standard. Infant and maternal mortality has gone down drastically. Free medical care is available to the elderly and the very young. Health care delivery is improving, contrary to the report hinged on assumption and hasty generalization. Lagos as all its residents can confirm has witnessed huge infrastructural transformation.

    New inner roads are simultaneously being constructed, and many of the old ones have been rehabilitated in all the 20 local governments and 37 local development areas, to the delight of the residents who now have easy and better access to their homes and whose properties have appreciated in value. Through the construction of major road networks in most parts of the state, many communities have been linked and opened up for accelerated economic development. Lagos-Badagry express-way is witnessing a transformation that has never been seen in Sub-Sahara Africa.

    Lagos is the hub of African entertainment. The enabling environment and support for art and creativity qualify it to host Nollywood, one of the big three names in film and entertainment industry of the world. Greater percentage of new businesses and multinational organizations siting their operational base in Lagos attests to the fact that the state is fast emerging as one of the world’s biggest commercial centres.  Lagos is a state that rewards hard work, creativity and excellence; the reason why young Nigerian graduates are trooping to its shores, everyone knowing that his own Lagos Success story is also possible.

    Every system, no matter how efficient has critics and Lagos could not have been an exception. But irrespective of how and why critics arrive at their findings, Lagos city is striving and the future can only be better. Whether they could not access facts and correct information or they choose to ignore them to hurriedly arrive at their predetermined judgement, Lagos is rapidly growing and Lagosians have no reason to believe otherwise.  Although, the findings of critics are not the true representation of Lagos, their faults are pardonable. It could be a honest mistake born out of incompetence or lack of resources to analyze large data and process the pool of information required in research of such magnitude.  But if the study was to intentionally distort facts possibly for dubious motives, it calls for absolute condemnation from all well-meaning Lagosians.

    Expressing opinion in public domain is not the preserve of privileged individuals and prestigious institutions, not that of journalists or communication specialists of varied discipline alone.  It is the right of everyone.  We are all protected by our fundamental right to express views in public arena unfettered. But what distinguishes professional opinion molders are the expertise they can dispense through their knowledge and skills. Therefore, if they must truly provide moral leadership, Professionals are duty bound to constantly enhance their knowledge, sharpen inquisitive skill and jealously guide the trust people repose in them, operating with all sense of responsibility.

    The various achievements of the Akinwumi Ambode-led Lagos State government are a clear testimony that Lagos is flourishing and no opinion can constitute a destructive cog in the wheel of our progress.

     

    • Dr. Abdul-Lateef is commissioner for Home Affairs, Lagos State.

     

  • The corridors of power

    I was enthused, when I was invited to a meeting with Chief J. A. Obafemi Olopade, undoubtedly the most influential member of the inner-circle during the regime of former President Olusegun Obasanjo. I knew Olopade was powerful under Obasanjo even though he never held any official position. But to my amazement, going through his recent autobiography which he titled: In The Corridors, it is evident that Olopade had been in the corridors of power since the 1970s.

    Even though the meeting was scheduled to discuss legal services, I was determined to gain a few insights on power, politics and relating with Olusegun Obasanjo from the affable chief. After all, as Jesus said, nobody can go to the father except through him. And to know Chief Olopade is to know the indefatigable former President Obasanjo and so a few insights could help untangle for me, the political miasma facing our nation.

    Impatiently, after profusely greeting the 90-year old ‘young man’, I delved into my worries. I asked him, whether there is any hope for our country with all the crisis bedevilling it. With the sure foot of a structural engineer, he briskly took me through the engineering architecture of Nigeria, and like a teacher of a master class, he concluded that Nigerians must all exercise patience in the match to nationhood.

    Of note, I had meet the famous white bearded chief a few times in the past, through my mentor, Chief Charles Adebiyi, of blessed memory. Indeed, to know Chief Adebiyi was to know his mentor, Chief J. A. O. Olopade. But none of my past meetings was like the recent one. In the past, it was strictly business-like, but this time, I enjoyed elucidation on history, politics and business.

    I have since devoured the autobiography and I can say that the lucidly written 318-page book is in many respects a thriller. In the introductory pages, Chief Olopade held: “I have come to realize that the strength of character and moral fibre an individual has, almost always determines how far he or she will go in life. The bits I have been able to achieve are strongly connected to values I imbibed as a young boy and a young man”.

    Chief Olopade has bragging rights. After all, he has had untrammelled influence in the corridors of power for decades, and in business, he is the chairman of a number of companies, worth billions of naira. So, his book gave lessons on honesty, dedicated and professional staff, taking loans, right ambition, patience, relationships, lending a helping hand, integrity, investing in friendship, spotting opportunities, breaking through business circles, business today and money/business mistakes.

    He answered my enquiries on how he sustains the over four decades friendship with Chief Obasanjo, reeling out bonding instances, like when Obasanjo lost his child, while serving as military head of state, and he had the responsibility to secretly take care of the burial so that the country is not subpoenaed into mourning. Also his involvement, working behind the scene, to free Obasanjo from Abacha’s gulag. His fatherly relationship with Obasanjo’s children and vice versa.

    Talking further about sacrifices our leaders make, he revealed that while the former first lady, Stella Obasanjo’s death was publicised, she was not the only woman Obasanjo lost, while serving as civilian president. Yet the former president was not deterred. He talked about Obasanjo’s soft spot for children, warning that if you visit Obasanjo with your children, he will most likely concentrate on making them happy, while relegating you.

    On business, the chief revealed in the book that he goes into businesses that few go into and quickly make his money. He wrote about the importance of first impression, saying: “I grew up in a house where expatriates came around often so I observed a lot of things. One of the things I imbibed was the importance of presentations and first impressions, something I still value till today”.

    Olopade grew up in Port Harcourt in the 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s, before crude oil was discovered in commercial quantities in Oloibiri, in 1956. In his words: “The area that became Port Harcourt in 1912 was part of the farmlands of the Diobu village group of Ikwere, an Igbo sub-group.” The book contains the names of prominent families that made Port Harcourt thick in those days.

    Not shy to talk about his love for girls as a youth, the book contains stories of love, disappointments and broken marriages. He also wrote about his religiosity, especially his exploits as a chorister. Chief asserts: “religion also had a big influence on my interest in politics,” furthering: “many people do not realize that politics and religion are inseparable.”

    He emphasised on the right essence of politics. He differentiated between partisan politics and good politics, noting that politics in which people think about their parties alone and not of humanity or the generality of the people is wrong. Arguing that compelling religious belief is essential for a good politician, he gave the example of the Queen of England who doubles as the head of the Church.

    Chief Olopade’s love story with Jill Watts, the daughter of his school principal, for which he was expelled is interesting. He wrote that after several years in waiting, the girl’s father still refused her to marry a ‘nigga’. That made him to marry in his forties. An interesting angle to the story is that when on other occasions, he met Jill’s father, first in England and later in Nigeria, he never reminded him or sought a revenge.

    With 15 children and several marriages, Chief Olopade confessed that while he enjoys his adorable children, he would not advise anybody to be polygamous. Perhaps the subsequent failed marriages, were a kind of revenge for the failure to have Jill? Chief’s book teaches on nurturing friendship. In his words: “I make a lot of sacrifices to build my relationships,” admonishing: “You have to invest time and resources in building them.”

    Writing on over-pampering children, and inadvertently teaching them how to be indolent, Chief admonished: “we should take pride in telling our children, grandchildren and friends that there is dignity in labour and those who work and study should be admired and not scorned”. On his part, he wrote: “People like Herbert Macaulay inspired us…”

    In his insight into the challenges of our nationhood, Chief wrote: “what plagued us pre-independence, also plagued us post-independence (and still plagues us today). As it was then, we still want to outdo the next person at all costs. We want to take more than others while shutting them out. We have a zero sum mentality.”

    On a happy note, the nonagenarian postulates: “I have observed, over the years, that those who enjoy dancing and singing seem not to bear grudges or malice…. Men and women who love music and dance a lot, tend to be simple-minded and fun loving.”

  • The last argument

    “In your hands, my dissatisfied fellow countrymen, and not in mine, is the momentous issue of civil war. The government will not assail you. You can have no conflict, without being yourselves the aggressors. You have no oath registered in heaven to destroy the government, while I shall have the most solemn one to ‘preserve, protect and defend’ it”
    – Abraham Lincoln.

    This was vintage Lincoln who helped to preserve the American Union during the trying period when the supremacists felt that only the whites should be beneficiaries of the American liberty while sustaining the institution of slavery. The South wanted to opt out of the American Union.  Abraham Lincoln’s apparent disposition to the freedom of man irrespective of the colour of skin did not find support among prominent politicians and rich slave owners.  Though eloquent, his views and position were not popular but at the end he stood on the side of history and the evidence is the America we all see today.

    Today in Nigeria, the only popular view in our political syllogism is restructuring with its fluid meaning and perception across the divides; from true federalism to the call for secession.  It has become so loud and deafening that it is now penetrating our places of worship and their sermons in apparent partisanship. To the knowledgeable, those not so knowledgeable and the ignoramuses, the only solution to the Nigerian myriad of problems is restructuring; it is the cure-all elixir. If you have not joined the bandwagon, then you are not politically correct.

    While one is not averse to restructuring, whatever meaning we may want to attach to it, my humble thesis is that restructuring is not the answer to end all answers to our problems as a nation.  We have travelled this road before and history appears to be repeating itself in the self-same tragic way.  At independence in the 1960s, we had a federation that operated on a tripod of three regions on the altar of the three major ethnic groups.  The initial burst of activities and growth that was recorded across the country soon paled into graft and nepotism.  Our political leaders engaged in competition to outdo one another in the waste of our patrimony in the midst of grinding poverty amongst the citizenry.  The nation stank with corruption.

    The Nigerian situation then can be better appreciated if we encore  the coup speech of the young officers of the Nigerian army who, driven by patriotism felt they could change the dynamics of our arrested growth by the politician. The aftermath of the concatenating events led to the Nigerian Civil war that shook our corporate entity to its foundation.  From the civil war through to the administration of late General Sani Abacha we have had restructuring of our polity from regional government to 12 states structure to 19 and presently 36 and the Federal Capital territory.

    Today, graft, corruption and nepotism have been elevated to a height hitherto unknown in any recorded history.  With huge earning in oil revenue, the government cannot maintain basic infrastructures as common as road across the country.  The government is struggling with providing security of life and property of citizens while ethnic militias and gangsters are forming parallel governments and challenging the legitimacy of the state.

    Restructuring is good; state police is good and devolution of power and true federalism are all good but even if we restructure to the extent that my own household becomes a country of its own without tackling the basic problems of heist and official corruption, nepotism and impunity, we will remain the same wherever we may find ourselves in the new demographic configuration.

    I am not sure now how restructuring would change the leadership attitude that is paternalistic and patronizing.  I am not sure how devolution of power would create a generational shift in the circumstances of our money politics that is not ideologically driven.  I am not sure how restructuring would end the huge waste and corruption that runs in our political arteries.  It is difficult to fathom how restructuring will arrest the insecurity that is reducing us to jelly across the country.  Will restructuring bring angels to drive the governments that would be formed in our different enclaves?  I am not sure we are going recruit men and women from the outer space to form the state police that is being contemplated.  How will restructuring engender new security forces that will not be appropriated to sustain political agenda of persons and political parties in power?

    Our leaders across the ethnic divides, traditional, religious and political have for so long promoted primordial sectarian interest.  They are incurably divisive and prefer to create a feudal fiefdom away from the lion king where they can leech on their new kingdom in liberty.  We may restructure, fine; it is not an end to our problems.  Our leaders are daily buying up what is left of Nigeria’s national assets from the monies they have either stolen from the state till or awarded themselves by legislative fiat.  Our road and other infrastructures have collapsed across the country.  Yet we are being diversionary and dissipating energy in the wrong direction when we have not interrogated what our various governors across the country have done with the resources at their disposal.

    It is time for us to rise up and demand for accountability and hold those who have fleeced this nation to face the law.  We will be arming and empowering bandits if we create state police without first addressing the problems that have been identified with the present federal police force that we have.   You already have a police force that is incurably corrupt and abuse citizens’ right.  How then do we expect that it will birth state police that would respect the right of citizens and observe the rule of law; never!

    You have ‘Honourables’ that are used to fixing their own salaries more than any parliament in any part of the world.  They would simply mutate to fat cows in their new domain and sphere of interest and corner whatever is generated and ravage it the same way like locust with impunity.  Restructuring in the present circumstances of anger and venom from politicians and tribal leaders that no longer get patronage would just be creating feudal estate for them to conquer.

    Nigeria needs a statesman that see the entire country as his constituency; not one that is given to religious or ethnic bigotry. President Buhari is a patriot.  He is strongman, austere and discipline but lacks the unifying spirit of a statesman in a democratic environment. His poor handlers are to blame because they prefer to watch and read the President’s lips and body language rather than loosen him to the reality of pan Nigerian approach to issues in a democratic environment.  That was the reason why they could come out with the speech of the President after 103 days absence on medical vacation that did not capture the mood of the nation to sooth it. The language of the short speech was trenchant and bellicose with questionable deductions. To say that Nigerian unity is settled and not negotiable simply because of your discussion with a former warlord is too pedestrian.

    It is a familiar lesson of history that empire rise and fall; and before our very eyes, Soviet Union collapsed.  Britain is pulling out of European Union; Sudan broke up some six years ago and there are still agitations amongst the nationalities of South Sudan who thought that the North was their problem.  It is myopic and mental indolence to reduce our problem to restructuring and devolution of power without first interrogating and tackling the endemic problems of corruption and nepotism that have weighed the nation down. The call for restructuring may be loud and popular as it appears, it may well be delusion grandeur that it is the cure-all-elixir for our national malaise.

     

    • Kebonkwu Esq. is an Abuja-based attorney.

  • The Hate-speech Bill

    The fiendish spirit of divisiveness is on the prowl in the Nigerian nation-space. Everywhere you go, you can hear deprecatory protests against marginalization, against the corporate existence of Nigeria, against inequity, social injustice, ethnical and religious intolerance, against the unhindered ravages of Fulani herdsmen and hues and cries for the restructuring of the federation or even the outright balkanization of Nigeria as a country. These protests are given a common-on fillip by the philippics of the educated elite and the dichotomous diatribes of the proletariat, otherwise known as “hate speech”, ensconcing fissiparous tendencies, anti-group invectives, the germs of inter-tribal violence and even secessionist inclinations in their overt articulations. This is the untoward flicker of schismatic light which the federal government, with the aid of the legislature, wants to snuff out before it snowballs into a conflagration. Good.

    I am, however, in the grip of gnawing fears about the executive-driven Hate-Speech Bill, which is not unlikely to be signed into law, with efficient speed, by the executive, its author.  The bridle on the eruption and wildfire spread of hate speeches, which must include hate songs, such as was recently intuited and sung by one bucolic lady in the North to disparage the Igbo and to arrogate the Niger Delta oil to the North, must be applied. But is such a law not likely to trample upon the citizens’ fundamental human rights as enshrined in sections 22 and 39 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Cap. 10, LFN, 1990), in the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), etc. with regard to the freedom of expression?

    Will this prospective law not muzzle free speech, criticism and dissentient views of the government, particularly in socio-political and economic milieux in which rank injustice, inequity, howling nepotism, naked favouritism, cronyism on stilts, barefaced nonfeasance, malfeasance and misfeasance reign supreme?

    A corpus of questions has been thrown up by the proposed law: first, will the ruling party not use this prospective law to hound members of the opposition into extinction, considering that even the ongoing “war” against corruption is patently targeted at the opponents of the ruling party? Secondly, if the Hate Speech Bill is passed into law, and anyone is accused of a hate speech or song, what new-fangled legal name would be given to the offence: felony, treasonable felony, slander, libel or terrorism which, under the provisions of section 33 (1) (a) of the Terrorism Act, 2011, an accused found guilty thereunder, “is liable to life imprisonment or to a fine of not less N150 million”?

    Thirdly, how will a hate speech be determined? Fourthly, will this law be targeted at the common man in the society only or at the bourgeoisie as well? Fifthly, will the Hate Speech Law be powerful enough to look the northern elders and the Arewa youths straight in the face or is it intended only for the Niger Delta militants and Nnamdi Kanu and his group? Sixthly, if someone, for example, complains bitterly about the gruesome murder of a Gideon Akaluka or of a Madam Agbahime, whose murderers were either disingenuously not identified or identified and freed, would such a complainant be charged with a hate speech? Or, seventhly, when Fulani herdsmen brazenly enter into someone else’s farmland against all the principles of Ryland’s vs. Fletcher, destroying all his crops, killing the farm owner and raping his wife into the bargain, and the relations of the victim kick up a shindy, using caustic language against the ethnic nationality of the murderous criminals, would such “hate speakers” be accused of an offence?

    I have a hunch that a Hate Speech Law would introduce military rigorism and authoritarianism into the body politic and would definitely erode the citizens’ fundamental human rights. The way out of hate speeches and songs, I am persuaded, is good governance. The President should steer clear of military language and take the entire nation as his own constituency, to start with. The nation’s economy is in dire straits; this calls for a definite action plan aimed at the restoration of the glorious days when each region was self-sufficient and not a leech on the centre, no thanks to the notorious section 162 of the 1999 Constitution; the country’s economy remains a mono-cultural economy in spite of the threats from the European and American worlds that it would be an offence, in the foreseeable future, for any vehicle-manufacturing company to produce any petroleum-oil-using vehicles;  the infrastructural facilities in the country are either decayed or putrefying; the internecine feud in the ruling party is a clog in the wheel of good governance; the educational system is in the doldrums; the health sector is in shambles, which is why President Muhammadu Buhari has to shuttle between Abuja and London, in search of treatment, even though there are countless, highly qualified, medical practitioners in Nigeria. The Grade A roads in Nigeria are death-traps; staple foods are priced beyond the reach of the common man; the Naira-Dollar exchange rate is in the firmaments; these days, suicide has become a fashionable escape from grinding poverty…

    One big problem with Nigeria is that its leaders junket round the civilized world, see and enjoy beautiful facilities, drive, or are driven, on apian ways, stay in ten-star hotels (if there are, gambolling where the angels fear to tread), go to well-equipped hospitals in the UK, America, Germany, India, etc., and put their children in choice schools in those countries, then return to facilities-deficit Nigeria to live in their posh edifices, ride in their flashy cars and fly in their jets, leaving the very bad roads for Frank Fanon’s wretched of the earth! These are more dangerous pockets of war (the whys and wherefores of Nigeria’s regression) than hate speech!

    Nigeria has all the resources (human, mineral and material) to be a super power! These same leaders brazenly, and with aplomb, intone the indivisibility and inviolability of Nigeria as though Nigeria stood on a more solid substructure than the British Empire, India before 1948, Yugoslavia, before it balkanized into ethnic lines and Sudan, before South Sudan was born. It is high time the Nigerian government trod on the path of civilization: organize a plebiscite to determine the wish of the people concerning, for example, restructuring of the country, as was done in Brexit and in the referendum to determine whether or not Scotland should secede from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and shunned militaristic threats of blood!

     

    • Akiri, an attorney, writes from Lagos.

  • Following fashion blindly

    A northern lady would not put out her nu-nu jugs for all to see

    The ‘printers devil’ had pounced on a previous version of this piece – please enjoy this one now: walking down a busy New York street one chilly autumn day one time, wrapped up in my jacket like all the other people around me, a gust of wind forced me to put my face down because the wind felt as if it could easily freeze my eyes!
    Shortly though, I lifted my head to see where I was going, and could not believe my eyes at what I saw ahead of me. A tall rangy man was standing at a vantage point at a junction beyond where CNN is. He was dressed in nice cowboy boots and hat. And jockey pants. Nothing else. I was shocked at two levels; he was so scantily clad! And in that nippy weather.

    Well, he was being guarded by a benign looking black police officer. If the skin-show cowboy was tall, the policeman by him was a giant, standing at well over six feet tall. Slim and stately, the officer was dashing in his uniform,(The reason rodeoman had a police ‘escort’ is that nudity is a felony out there so they had to have someone keep an eye on him;lest he would have wanted to pull down his drawers; it was about ‘crime’ prevention!).
    I was actually almost upon the cowboy when I saw him, and when I got right up to him, I said to him – Go Get some Clothes On.
    Cowboy was completely shocked. His eyes widened like saucers. And then cowboy, whose cheeks were already pink because of the weather, turned bright red in the face.

    The police officer gave me a broad smile. You Tell Him – he said to me, making cowboy turn even redder.
    I can only guess that was the end of the body-show that day.
    Come back now to a cool evening stroll right in the estate where I live (the Deputy Governor and the Governor’s brother live here, amongst others).
    Walking in my direction were two ladies (although calling one of them a lady is a little hard to do). For the purposes of this story, I shall name her Lady J. Lady J was tall fair and elegant, but what she was wearing was unbelievable! She had on a very stretchy orange dress, very very clingy and it stopped just short of … ahem. Hmm.
    The effect was that with each step she took, I quivered with fear – what if her barely there dress should ride even a hairsbreadth higher, what if she lost her step and had to increase her stride – good grief! It was terrifying. But she just walked along, jistin gun concernedly with her friend who had a different and look from Lady J, hers was intimidating. She was tall too, but heavyset, and was wearing baggy combatant shorts and a T-shirt. She is one of these androgynous type women that look more like men with their short cropped hair and general look – I suppose you know the type. When they got alongside where I was, I did what was the only good thing to do, to save humanity.
    I smiled very brightly at Lady J, and said Hi. They turned and looked at me (no greeting). I started sweating even though there was no sun.
    Ermm, I said, (nervously). Emm your dress is err aa… aaa – a little sssh – short for you.
    HUH – she snorted loudly, instantly I began to calculate how many weeks I would have to spend in hospital if the two of them set on me that moment.
    Huh – she queried again, looking at me like I was an ant, while I stood wringing my hands and praying silently to my Creator.
    I, I, I, said, that your dress is a little bit short there emm mmm. As I finished my sentence, I looked awayfrom her murderous glare and glanced at the road behind her; where I would have long reached; if I had only kept my mouth…
    HaHa- A loud chuckle rang out. I looked at her again – but it was her friend who spoke.
    Eh-heh. I’ve been telling her too.
    I’ve told her.
    I just couldn’t believe my ears. Or my luck. I rocked from one foot to the other, gave them both a cheesy smile then dropped my poor hunched shoulders and proceeded along, a silent goodbye on my tongue and a thank you to my maker, for my deliverance.
    My goodness, those ladies could have ‘shown’ me just then, I thought. But then, lets face it, it’s worrisome what some ladies wear, right out in public.
    Upon all that the churches and educational institutions have been talking shouting and crying!
    I will admit indecent exposure has remarkably reduced over the past few years, but it is still with us, it is still disgracing us and I believe that just the way it sprang up, it can also be rooted right out of our society and sanity can return.
    Just pick up your Sunday Sun and your eyes will be assaulted at what is displayed there; the week’s worst.
    Big cities, small localities, there are always some young ladies out on the streets, putting out what is NOT for the streets.
    I’m talking about in shops, eateries, highways, byways –everywhere you go, it’s a menace all its own.
    I remember one day at the airport when a group of us were travelling out on a chartered flight. We were only two ladies on that trip whenone other lady who definitely should know better came by. Something dropped from her, and she bent to pick it up. The sight she gave us was enough to throw all of us into a one minute horrified silence,I will spare you details!
    After she had picked it and passed, and with the shame just settling on my face and that of the other lady in our group – our male colleagues turned and pounced on us!
    You see – See what your fellow woman is wearing. Just imagine, etc. They carpeted us thoroughly, and we were unable to say a word.
    Ladies, Ladies – your underwear is NOT your outerwear.
    Your bra should not be on the road – the contests are NOT for our eyes!!!
    Flimsy transparent clothes are a NO – NO, methinks not even in your own living room.
    The southerners, young and not so young ladies, this is for you, particularly. A northern girl would not put out her nu-nu jugs for all to see. Following fashion blindly should not make others go blind!
    Finally, if the motivation is simply to follow the dictates of fashion, then those exposing their sensitive parts are completely off the mark.
    Vogue UK, the December 2015 issue declared that Showing Cleavage Is No Longer Fashionable.

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  • Nnamdi Kanu and the Igbo race

    Nnamdi Kanu and the Igbo race

    There abound witty submissions in William Shakespeare’s literary corpus which have shaped methodology of opinions across the world. One such expression which I admire a lot is “I have come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.” In this piece, I am minded to squeeze that spectacular statement to extract tangible elements in order to lend my voice in the Biafra/Nigeria imbroglio. In my own case, I have come to praise Nnamdi Kanu, not to bury him. I am sure my reconstruction of Shakespeare’s celebrated statement will resonate across the country and possibly draw variety of reactions. There are those who conceive Kanu as an opportunistic nitwit and a nonentity whose followers are victims of schizophrenic maniac. People with such mindset are envious of Kanu’s sanctimonious grandeur. Well, he is not any of those and his followers are focused. He is a hero, a saviour, the liberator of the Igbo race, one who is committed to save his people from the emasculating socio-political stranglehold of Nigeria. Although Ojukwu made attempts in that direction, he failed woefully and fled the country after sacrificing over three million souls of Igbo people including women and children. Kanu has a different mission and I am ready to resist attitudes that will imbrue his immaculate personality.

    Kanu emerged in Igbo land at a time when the enclave desperately needed someone to lead them. Although many have inferred that he has not distinguished himself in business, in politics or in academics to qualify him for such a task, we must accept him as God sent, in the same way Moses was sent to deliver the children of Israelites in spite of his speech impairment. I have heard people draw a parallel between Kanu and Ojukwu. I think the comparison is grossly misplaced because Kanu is more of a warrior, has more charisma and is less ambitious. Ojukwu was Oxford trained, Kanu is UNN trained even if many posit that he dropped out and didn’t complete his education as if it matters in Nigeria. After all many senators, distinguished persons and politicians never saw the four walls of a university yet they have all manner of degrees, so why should Kanu’s case be an exception? Ojukwu was a military officer who had a career; his followership was drawn from distinguished people from the South East not just in Igbo land. Kanu’s career is shrouded in mystery, his followership is a gargantuan crowd, real or imagined drawn from mostly the uneducated who were not born during the war and therefore do not understand the nuances of violence, bloodshed and the ingredients of warfare. Kanu’s followership is in sync with modern trend where the people, ravaged by poverty and crippled by need, must engage themselves in any activity even if it means satisfying the whims of the upper class lounger to their own inevitable detriment. A colleague of mine last week queried me to know why Kanu has not designed any effective economic prognosis that will drive the Biafran dream like Martin Luther King did. I humbly begged him not to diminish Kanu by comparing him with Martin Luther. The “I have a dream” exponent belonged to another class; Kanu belongs to a different class. I leave you to draw the distinction.

    Kanu is a man of the people, his popularity is underscored by the number of people who troop out to greet him whenever he is driven around major towns in Igbo land in his Limousine. After all, a man of the people should show affluence which must contrast with the agonizing and impoverished status of those he wants to deliver. A certain lady got me really angry in a forum in Lagos recently when she argued that Kanu lives like a billionaire although he has no known means of income or any history of sustained entrepreneurship. As the lady rattled on, I turned around to give her a wicked look which made her disappear immediately. How shallow women can be sometimes. There are politicians in Nigeria who have never engaged in any meaningful business, yet they are billionaires. So why should it matter if Kanu advances the frontiers of opulence in indolence symptomatic of Nigeria’s socio-political aviary?

    I am deeply miffed when people argue that while Kanu’s wife and children are in the UK living a fulfilled life, he calls out the children of Igbo people to the streets to be wasted by both aimed and stray bullets. I have never heard or read anything more myopic. If my children are so docile to be deceived by a call to the streets where their blood will be used to litter the ground, let it be so. Kanu has no blame in the matter. His duty is to make the call and the people have the onus to either honour the call or ignore it. In the event that internecine war erupts resulting in carnage and mindless loss of lives, Kanu, the modern hero of the Igbo race should quickly fly out to the UK, he is a British citizen. We are ready to stay here and take the bullets, those of us who are disadvantaged to the extent that we do not have dual citizenship. I hear that Kanu has embraced Judaism as a personal religion and will make it a state religion should Biafra become a reality. If he has said Judaism is the religion for Biafra, let us all queue up behind him and bid farewell to Christianity which accounts for 90% of faithful Igbo. I support his religious inclinations; therefore let him give us literary manuals of the religion where the tenets are graciously outlined. His words are law and no mere mortal should oppose him.

    In the event that Biafra is actualized, Kanu should be made the life President, the Emperor and the everlasting spiritual head. Under Kanu I see a Biafra free from dictatorship, a land where milk and honey will flow endlessly, a land without any challenges, where our major item of export will be criminality of Oscar winning proportion, never mind the events of Ozubulu and Evans the rascal who didn’t play his cards well. Niger Delta can go with their oil, we will by manipulation and subtle subversion of cosmic order, design our own economic mainstay where dollars will fall from Heaven. By the way, God rained manner for the Children of Israel and because we are Igbo, God will do anything for us. In the event that Biafra becomes a reality, our sons and daughters all over Nigeria who have made significant progress in commerce and industry should abandon everything and return to Biafra. Nigeria has not been fair to the Igbo therefore, as we quit Nigeria, let us also uproot our intellectual and physical investments, relocate to Biafra, a land flowing with milk and honey. In Kanu we trust and in Biafra we will sing the songs of liberty.

     

    • Adiele is of the Department of English, Unilag.

  • ‘Chineke ! Why bring Buhari back so early?’

    Prior to offering himself for the Presidency, I hated his guts and motive for truncating the civilian administration in December, 1983.

    I’m writing about General Muhammad Buhari, the military despot of 1983 that churned out draconian decrees with the speed of lightning and sent “corrupt politicians” to life imprisonment or 200 years, as it suited his special military tribunals.

    My disdain for his style then was rooted in his political partisanship, evidenced in the indefensible preferential treatment accorded some of the detained political actors of the era. While some were treated with the kid glove of being kept under house arrest, others, some of who eventually had clean bills of health, were kept in various prisons for minimum of 18 months without trial. But time, the healer of hurt, had since intervened and resolved all that.

    When he caught the bug, and vowed that he had become born-again in democratic nuances and opted to run for the presidency over two years ago, I knew straightaway that the man who rode on the crest of undoubted integrity, would get my vote. He got mine and many more, and emerged the only Nigerian politician to date who deliberately sought to become Nigeria’s President and eventually succeeded. None before him, especially Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe and Chief Obafemi Awolowo, was that lucky.

    He hit the ground running and made no pretence as to where he headed. He resolved to secure the country, rid it of corruption and enthrone transparency in government business. The Central Bank’s introduction of BVN was a master stroke but he erred, due to indiscretion, by unwittingly announcing in advance that he would deal with those who had stashed away trillions of monies in various international denominations, with stern reprisals.
    Smart alecs, who should have been caught by surprise, had all the time to bolt away with their loot and thus left the economy prostrate. It was the reason for the shaky take-off of government as the much-needed funds for the smooth re-engineering of economic activities had taken flight.

    When it seemed he had taken the country off the initial troubled waters, his health sagged and instead of working on the ills of the economy, he himself became the patient to be treated; and after ‘go-come’ occasional medical trips abroad abroad, he was finally “arrested” for full intensive medical care in the U.K.

    That eventuality worried the genuine lovers of this country but it gladdened the hearts of the vicious and stupendously rich few who had brought the nation to her knees, economically, before Buhari’s advent. All manner of subterfuge was employed, the tactless ones among them, wished him dead. I’m sure if it were possible for such people to penetrate the British medical system, they would have done so, to procure his death by whatever means possible.

    The overtly politically ambitious ones among them wished 2019 was a few weeks away and had commenced underground manoeuvres that seeped through to the surface, to succeed Buhari, as if he had told them he was content with just one term. In the process, dissention and crass indiscipline become the order of the day in some state chapters of the ruling party.

    Buhari’s ill-health seemed to have been the tonic some parties, which had gone comatose hitherto, needed to let it be known that they were the parties to beat in the 2019 elections.

    The corrupt ones in the system, who had taken cover while the king was around, emerged from their hiding places to resume their despicable ways during his long absence; while the authors of hate speeches became more daring in spreading poison all around, such that the acting President had to come out forcefully against the trend.

    Tried as the meek man of God in presidential toga did, it was quite clear there was a huge difference between the substantive and the one acting for him. Something akin to the message in a pharmaceutical promo: “if is not panadol, it cannot be panadol”. But when the news suddenly came out that the lion king was ready to return, the wilderness instantly went still and the scavenging “animals” froze, with none able to find the voice to protest against the king’s sudden return.
    Their season of anomy suddenly ended when a much rejuvenated President emerged from the gangway of the presidential jet that brought him from London. And I bet that if the man’s health does not relapse, and the new chemistry between him and his deputy, who has earned a fitting tag as the true face of loyalty, goes into action, there can be no better time than now for Buhari to rekindle and restore hope and fire the nation’s imagination in positive, progressive movement.

    If he succeeds in doing that, he can well save his party, the APC, from a certain downward slope to which it had hitherto headed, at the national level. For now, agents of reaction and the nation’s tormentors who wished the status quo of retrogression maintained; as well as the overtly ambitious and perfidious ones in his party, whose plantain stem want to act as the teak in the forest, are most likely murmuring in their closets now: why has this man returned so early?
    Which reminds me of the info trending in the social media now that cases of high blood pressure had risen by 200 percent because of Buhari’s sudden return to the country. Who cares, if sudden deaths arising from hypertension visit those homes from where economic afflictions hit Nigeria and her citizens?

    Facebook against fake news

    In the Friday, August 4 edition of The Nation, on Page 40 is a news item titled “Facebook to step up fight against fake news with fact-checking”.

    In the story, Facebook was quoted as saying that it would send more potential hoax articles to third party fact checkers and show their findings below the original post.

    The world’s largest online social network said it was resolved to fight fake news, in reaction to its criticism as being one of the main distribution points “for so-called fake news which many think influenced the 2016 US presidential election”.

    Cheery news this, especially in our part of the world, where people’s minds are heavily blocked with prejudice that principles and sanctity of facts become the first casualties, in their quest to run down and damage the reputation of perceived adversaries, using Facebook as a ready platform for their mischievous or hatchet job.

    In the unending struggle between facts and fiction, I bet there will be no ghost of a chance for ice in hell; as truth will always prevail over falsehood.
    Thumbs up for Facebook on this move!

  • Lagos: Excellence in the face of challenges

    The Economist , in a recent publication, ranked Lagos second on the World’s Least Liveable Cities. Dr. AbdulHakeem AbdulLateef disagrees with the ranking in this piece Lagos is a great State. It is great not because there
    are no challenges on the path to its dream. The network of lagoons, beautiful coastlines, alluring beaches and the skyscrapers that shade the setting sun to tint the skyline with gold lining at dusk are magnificent, but those are the least that make Lagos beautiful. One major reason that Lagos is regarded as the Centre of Excellence is the peaceful coexistence of over twenty million vibrant and forward-looking people of diverse culture, race, nationality, religion and social status, who know that though they have to compete to achieve personal goals, only in unity would they realise their collective dream of building one of the greatest cities in the world. Any other yardstick devised to assess Lagos would therefore yield a result unacceptable to Lagosians.

    No doubt, in these past five decades of its existence, Lagos has gone through different challenges peculiar to most cosmopolitan cities, but it has always come out stronger, more united and ever determined to build one of the best cities anyone, from anywhere in the globe, would be proud and delighted to live in. Every city in the world, including those in first world countries once in a while record ugly incidences that might persist for sometime, but this do not determine how great they are; rather it is the way the systems respond that describes what they represent. Sophisticated cities in the western world with high security sysyems still record terrorist attacks. World economic powers still exhibit to the world a perfect example of paradox by having destitute in street corners of their beautiful cities. Lagos has not finally arrived at its destination, but it is certainly on the path of its destiny. A city of intense dynamic mix of humanity in a race for successes and opportunities would definitely have its downsides. It is therefore unfair for any sincere assessor to neglect the strengths of Lagos, its many successes and huge prospects, only to focus on its challenges.

    To set the records straight, it is important to make it clear that Lagos is not infested by Boko Haram as claimed. To Lagosians in particular and Nigerians in general, this assertion is laughable. It only shows that the source was embarrassingly ignorant of happenings in Nigeria, and not in touch with the true situation in Lagos. The report was certainly not worth the paper on which it was printed. In this information age, where a dropped pin in Lagos literally makes a distinct sound in Los Angeles, it is an embarrassment to the intelligence of readers for anyone to publish such blatant lie. Lagos State is not treating criminality with kid gloves and Governor Akinwumi Ambode has always assured Lagosians of his readiness to sacrifice his sleep for their safety. A few months ago, when kidnapping was imported into the State, at the height of its escalation in some parts of Nigeria, particularly in the North Eastern and Niger Delta States with which it shares a coastline, the Lagos State Government swung into action and arrested the situation. In the few recorded cases in Lagos, all victims were successfully rescued, most of the kidnappers were arrested and lots of kidnapping attempts were indeed nipped in the bud.

    Lagos State also shares the belief that human minds are the fundamental resources of any nation that wants to be great. Lagosians are enlightened, exposed and highly educated people who place premium on education and would sacrifice even their comfort to see their children through school. To fuel this drive, the State Government has invested heavily in education with its free Primary and Secondary Education Schemes, among others. However, we cannot deny the fact that there are several young people who migrate to Lagos from other States and neigbouring African countries in search of greener pastures. We are aware that most of them barely finished secondary school. We know it well that they could mount pressure on the system, but Lagos choose to show them care and make them believe that despite their limitations, their own Lagos success storiesare possible too. The report that Lagos has high rate of school dropouts by merely advancing national average figures to represent Lagos is not onlywrong and misleading, but can be quite disparaging. However, we are not going to be discourage,as our caring hearts and accommodating spirit is as strong as a steel.

    Lagos has Primary Health Care centres in all the Wards of the State and a General Hospital in every Local Government Area. Health care is affordable, accessible and of high standard. Infant and maternal mortality has gone down drastically. Free medical care is available to the elderly and the very young. Health care delivery is improving, contrary to the report hinged on assumptions and hasty generalizations. Lagos, as all its residents can confirm, has continued to witness huge infrastructural transformation. New inner roads are simultaneously being built and many of the old ones have been rehabilitated in all the 20 Local Governments and 37 Local Council Development Areas, to the delight of the residents who now have easy and better access to their homes and whose properties have appreciated in value. Through the construction of major road networks in most parts of the State, many communities have been linked and opened up for accelerated socio-economic development. Lagos-Badagry expressway is witnessing a transformation that has never been seen anywhere in the sub-Saharan Africa.

    Lagos is the hub of African entertainment. The enabling environment and unflinching support for art and creativity qualify it to host Nollywood, one of the three renown names in the World Film and Entertainment industry. Greater percentage of new businesses and multinational organizations siting their operational bases in Lagos attests to the fact that the State is fast-emerging as one of the world’s biggest commercial centres. Lagos rewards hard work, creativity and excellence – the reason why young Nigerian graduates are trooping to the State knowing that their own Lagos Success stories are quite possible.
    Every system, no matter how efficient, is subject to criticism, and Lagos could not have been an exception. But irrespective of how and why critics arrive at their findings, Lagos city is striving and the future can only get better. Whether they could not access facts and correct information or they choose to ignore them to hurriedly arrive at their pre-determined judgement, Lagos is rapidly growing and Lagosians have no reason to believe otherwise.Although, the so-called findings of these armchair analysts do not truly represent Lagos, their faults are pardonable. It could be an honest mistake borne out of incompetence or lack of resources to analyze large data and process the pool of information required in elaborate research of this nature. But if the study was to intentionally distort the facts for dubious motives, it calls for absolute condemnation from all well-meaning Lagosians.

    Expressing opinions in the public domain is neither the exclusive preserve of privileged individuals and prestigious institutions nor that of journalists or communication specialists of multifarious disciplines. It is the absolute right of everyone. We are all protected by our fundamental right to express views in public arena unfettered, butwhat distinguishes professional opinion moulders is the expertise they ought to apply through their knowledge, skills and access to mass media channels. Therefore, if they must truly provide moral leadership, professionals are duty-bound to constantly enhance their knowledge, sharpen inquisitive skills and jealously guide the trust that people repose in themby operating with all sense of responsibility.

    The various achievements of the Akinwumi Ambode-led Lagos State Government are clear testimonies that Lagos is flourishing and no concocted opinion can constitute a destructive clog in the wheel of our progress.

    •Dr. AbdulHakeem AbdulLateef is the Hon Commissioner Lagos State Ministry of Home Affairs.