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  • Matawalle: Nigeria’s civilian general still at work

    Matawalle: Nigeria’s civilian general still at work

    • By Segun Ibrahim

    At 56, Dr Bello Matawalle, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Defence,  exudes great commitment to the nation’s security that belies his age. For him, age is never a disadvantage in fighting insecurity. To him, it is not a matter of years spent, but more about the numbers of battles fought and victories secured. He has proven overtime with results that his appointment by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was not a mere political maneuver but a calculated decision rooted in the President’s deep understanding of Matawalle’s fighting spirit. Unlike many individuals who are contented with desk-bound strategies and boardroom deliberations only, Matawalle took the fight against insecurity to the very heart of the battlefield.

    However, beneath his seemingly and unassuming demeanour lies a steel-like resilience, a heart of a warrior that is wrapped in a civilian garb. His frail figure, deceptive in appearance, is immensely fortified with an unyielding resolve that has made significant strides in the war against terrorism, banditry, and insurgency.

    From the onset of his appointment, Matawalle wasted no time in translating rhetoric into action, going beyond the comfort of Abuja’s bureaucratic  confines, and marching into the treacherous zones where the nation’s enemies thrived.

    For the record, Matawalle’s proactive leadership style shattered the norm of past administrations. Instead of merely giving orders from the comfort of his ministerial chambers, he immersed himself in the battlefield, inspiring soldiers, evaluating war plans directly, and proving that leadership is a deed rather than a title. Some doubters thought it was merely a show when he wore full military fatigues, but those who understood the psychological impact of leadership by example recognised the gravity of his actions. An unwavering loyalty is inspired by a commander who shares the battlefield with his troops, and Matawalle did just that.

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    At the ticking of time, his efforts have been yielding remarkable successes in Nigeria’s unrelenting war against terror. The operational successes recorded under his tenure have not only decimated the ranks of insurgents, but have also reclaimed territories once overrun by bandits and terrorists. His impact is not theoretical; it is tangible, measurable, and evident in the numbers. 

    Under Matawalle’s leadership, Nigeria’s defence apparatus has undergone a renewed surge of effectiveness, marked by well-coordinated military offensives that have struck at the core of terrorist enclaves. The Nigerian Army, in synergy with the Air Force, executed precise airstrikes and ground assaults on insurgent strongholds in the North-West and North-Central regions. These efforts resulted in the neutralisation of notorious warlords, dismantling of terror cells, and significant recovery of arms and ammunition. 

    The precise airstrike that destroyed terrorist hideouts in Zurmi, Gusau, and Maradun Local Government Areas, severely impairing their ability to operate, was one of the noteworthy successes. In a bloody gunfight, the country also saw the defeat of the vicious rebel, Boderi Isyaku. His and his fighters’ deaths made it very evident that Nigeria will no longer serve as a haven for criminals. An array of weapons, including AK-47 rifles, hundreds of rounds of ammunition, and advanced communication devices, was successfully seized by the troops.

    However, the tally of terrorist commanders neutralised within the first quarter of 2024 is staggering. The director, defence media operations, Maj. Gen. Edward Buba, disclosed that among those taken down were Abu Bilal Minuki, alias Abubakar Mainok, the head of IS-Al Furqan Province (ISGS and ISWAP), and Haruna Isiya Boderi, both eliminated on February 21. Others include Kachallah Damina, who was neutralized on March 24, along with over 50 combatants, as well as several high-profile warlords such as Kachallah Alhaji Dayi, Kachallah Idi (Namaidaro), and Kachallah Azarailu (Farin-Ruwa), among many others. 

    The operational result in the first quarter of year 2024 (January to March) speak volumes. It’s in record that 2,351 terrorists were neutralized, 2,308 arrests made, 1,241 kidnapped hostages rescued, 2,847 weapons and 58,492 rounds of ammunition recovered, and N20.3 billion worth of stolen crude oil were intercepted in the hands of criminal elements.

    Further military operations between July and September 2024 sustained the tempo of victory. In figures, 1,937 terrorists eliminated, 2,782 arrests were effected, 1,854 hostages freed, 1,304 weapons and 43,347 rounds of ammunition seized, and N13.08 billion worth of stolen crude recovered.

    The continued offensive yielded the deaths of additional terror leaders, including Munzir Arika, Sani Dilla (Dan Hausawan Jubillaram), Ameer Modu, Matawal Bitrus, and Ibn Kasir, among numerous others. These successes were not mere coincidences; they were the results of synchronised strikes and well-executed military intelligence. 

    Leadership in defense is not about rhetoric or empty promises, it is about the courage to act decisively in moments of national crisis. Matawalle epitomizes this brand of leadership. While some leaders would have remained ensconced in the relative safety of policy chambers, Matawalle chose the road less traveled, one marked by dust, blood, and bullets. His presence on the frontline served as a morale booster for troops, reinforcing the belief that the government was not just issuing commands, but actively involved in the war against terror. 

    Moreover, his bold approach was one that shattered bureaucratic inertia, ushering in an era of relentless pursuit of national security objectives. Matawalle was not content with just simply speaking about the problem; he embodied the solution. With unwavering audacity, he took the fight to the terrorists, declaring war against them, and demonstrating that Nigeria would no longer cower in the face of insurgency. 

    Matawalle’s influence is reminiscent of great military leaders who realised that strategy, willpower, and a readiness to face the enemy head-on are more important factors in winning a war than diplomacy. Under his leadership, Nigeria’s military is now far more operationally prepared, and terrorists who formerly roamed with impunity now flee in terror.

    President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s choice of Matawalle as Minister of State for Defence was an inspired decision, one that has been vindicated by the string of military successes recorded under his watch. Truly, it takes a leader of foresight to recognise and deploy capable hands, and in Matawalle, Tinubu found a warrior-statesman willing to bear the brunt of Nigeria’s most pressing security challenges. 

    For too long, Nigerians have yearned for leaders who do more than make pronouncements, leaders who translate words into action, who see national service not as a privilege but as a duty. Matawalle fits this mold seamlessly. His efforts have reassured a nation once teetering on the brink of despair, proving that with the right leadership, insecurity can be tackled head-on. 

    However, while much progress has been made, the battle is still far from over. The Matawalle-effect has undoubtedly pushed the terrorists factions to lurk in dark corners, seeking opportunities to strike. But with Matawalle at the helm, there is renewed confidence that these elements will be systematically dismantled.

    Matawalle’s legacy as Nigeria’s Civilian General is already engraved in the annals of history. He has demonstrated that leadership is not about titles but about the level of impact made. His track record so far is an evidence to what is possible when leadership meets action. The war against terrorism has found a fearless champion, and Nigeria stands poised to reclaim its long-lost peace.  Some 8 months later, we can celebrate a national hero, and a general who reported for duty due to the successes recorded on the home front.

    It is now obvious that President Tinubu’s decision to entrust Matawalle with this important responsibility was never a mistake, rather, it was a masterstroke. While the battle against insecurity rages on, one thing remains clear: Bello Matawalle is relentless, very active, and still at work, and Nigeria is all the better for it.

    • Ibrahim, a Public Affairs Analyst, writes from Abuja
  • CBN pushing Nigerians back into the banking halls?

    CBN pushing Nigerians back into the banking halls?

    By Elvis Eromosele

    Public institutions in Nigeria have a knack for policy inconsistency. They can aggressively pursue a course of action one moment and, the very next introduce measures that directly contradict their stated objectives. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is currently at the centre of one such paradox.

    Everyone alive in the last couple of years witnessed the CBN champion financial inclusion, digital banking and cashless transactions. It actively encouraged banks to expand their digital footprint, increase adoption of digital payments and decongest the banking halls. Nigerians responded positively. People embraced digital banking, relying on ATMs, mobile transfers and POS terminals instead of entering the banking halls.

    The CBN has issued a new directive that significantly increases charges on ATM withdrawals. The move, under the guise of improving efficiency, threatens to erode public confidence in the cashless policy and could force Nigerians back into the banking halls. It raises questions about Nigeria’s commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially Goal 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth) and Goal 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure).

    The other day, the CBN released a circular announcing new charges on ATM withdrawals, set to take effect from March 1. Under the new directive, customers using their bank’s ATMs will not be charged. However, interbank withdrawals will now incur a fee of N100 per N20,000 at on-site ATMs and up to N500 at off-site ATMs. International withdrawals will be charged based on acquirer fees, and the previous three free interbank withdrawals per month ceased.

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    A person withdrawing N100,000 from an ATM that does not belong to their bank could pay close to N3,000 in fees. This is a huge increase from the existing system, where customers are entitled to three free withdrawals before incurring minimal charges. This new policy contradicts CBN’s previous commitment to financial inclusion and digital economy growth.

    Now, the introduction of new ATM withdrawal charges is likely to have several unintended consequences for Nigerians. One immediate effect will be the surge in the crowds in the banking hall, as many individuals, particularly those who cannot afford high transaction fees, will prefer to withdraw cash inside the bank. This defeats the purpose of the ATM expansion, which was meant to provide convenience and ease congestion in the banking halls.

    In addition, the ripple effect will be felt by POS agents. As ATMs become a less attractive option due to higher costs, more Nigerians will turn to POS terminals for cash withdrawals. This increased demand may push POS agents to raise service fees, making transactions even more expensive for everyday users.

    Moreover, these additional banking costs come at a time when inflation is already eroding the purchasing power of citizens. For many Nigerians struggling with economic hardship, the extra financial burden will worsen their situation. It will inadvertently make basic financial transactions more costly and less accessible. The new charges will pose a setback for financial inclusion and undermine the progress towards a more digital economy.

    So, what’s the way forward?

    To address the challenge posed by the new ATM withdrawal charges, the CBN should focus on policies that promote financial inclusion rather than discourage it. So, instead of imposing additional fees, it should encourage competition among banks by incentivizing them to expand ATM access, particularly in remote areas. This would reduce dependence on interbank withdrawals and improve overall efficiency.

    In addition, reintroducing the previous allowance of three free interbank withdrawals per month would help sustain ATM usage without burdening customers. At the same time, strengthening digital payment infrastructure is crucial if the goal is to transition to a cashless economy. Many Nigerians still struggle with failed transactions, delays and high mobile banking fees, which must be addressed to build trust in digital payments.

    The CBN should also regulate POS and mobile banking charges to prevent financial services from arbitrarily increasing fees in response to rising ATM costs. Without regulation, POS operators will likely raise their charges, making basic transactions more expensive for the public.

    Furthermore, before implementing major policy changes, the CBN must prioritize public awareness and stakeholder engagement. Consulting financial institutions, consumer advocacy groups and the general public will ensure that new directives are well-received and do not disrupt economic activities.

    The CBN’s new ATM withdrawal charges represent, in my view, a step backwards in the country’s financial inclusion journey. While the apex bank may claim that these charges will improve ATM efficiency, the reality is that they will discourage digital banking, force people back into long queues in the banking halls and impose additional hardship on the masses. I can almost safely predict it would lead to fights in the banking halls.

    For now, however, the question remains: Is the CBN pushing Nigerians back into the banking halls? This is precisely what it looks like right now. Nigerians deserve respite.

    •Eromosele, a corporate communication professional and public affairs analyst, wrote via elviseroms@gmail.com

  • Implications of Supreme Court’s judgment on lottery regulation

    Implications of Supreme Court’s judgment on lottery regulation

    By Fisayo David Oke

    On November 22, 2024, the Supreme Court of Nigeria delivered a landmark judgment that significantly altered the country’s regulatory landscape of the lottery and gaming industry. The court unanimously held that lottery regulation does not fall within the legislative competence of the National Assembly, as it is not expressly provided for in the constitution.

    This decision nullified the National Lottery Act, effectively dismantling the National Lottery Regulatory Commission (NLRC) and affirming that lottery regulation falls within the residual powers of state governments.

    The ruling has far-reaching implications, particularly concerning responsible gambling and Nigeria’s overall gaming regulatory framework. The judgment has led to the decentralization of lottery regulation, shifting regulatory authority entirely to state governments. Before this ruling, the federal government, through the NLRC, and the various state governments, had exercised regulatory control over the gaming industry.

    The Lagos State Lottery and Gaming Authority and the Oyo State Gaming Board, among others, played significant roles in enforcing responsible gambling practices within their jurisdictions. However, conflicts frequently arose between federal and state authorities over jurisdictional control, leading to the legal proceedings that ended in the Supreme Court’s decision.

    The ruling resolves these jurisdictional clashes by affirming that lottery regulation is an exclusive matter for the states, granting them complete autonomy over the industry.

    While this ruling reinforces the constitutional autonomy of states, it also presents challenges in maintaining regulatory uniformity across the country. The potential for a multiplicity of regulations could lead to a fragmented industry where states adopt different enforcement standards, potentially creating loopholes that unscrupulous operators may exploit.

    However, this challenge can be mitigated through cooperative agreements among states. Some states have already taken steps in this direction by establishing the Federation of State Gaming Regulators of Nigeria (FSGRN), a platform for harmonizing gaming laws and fostering collaboration.

    A treaty among states could further formalize these efforts, ensuring uniformity in critical areas such as licensing standards, responsible gambling enforcement, and consumer protection mechanisms. It remains to be seen how effective the FSGRN will be in bridging the potential regulatory gaps.

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    The ruling has also introduced new regulatory challenges. Operators with physical gaming platforms may benefit from eliminating multiple payments that previously involved federal and state-level fees.

    However, operators running online gaming platforms now face difficulty aligning their operations with various state regulations despite having previously complied with federal regulations.

    Furthermore, the fate of non-members of the Federation of State Gaming Regulators of Nigeria remains uncertain, highlighting potential disunity among states in regulatory approaches.

    Before the Supreme Court decision, some states had no dedicated regulatory bodies, relying only on revenue collection agencies for taxation purposes rather than comprehensive gaming oversight. This gap may result in inconsistencies in enforcement and consumer protection.

    Furthermore, states may lack the technological expertise required to regulate online gaming operations effectively, which could lead to enforcement challenges. One of the advantages previously enjoyed under federal regulation was the ease of collaboration with sister agencies, such as financial crime regulators and consumer protection bodies. With the shift to state control, such collaborations may become more complex, potentially affecting the efficiency of regulatory enforcement.

    Consumer protection remains a vital concern in the wake of this ruling.

    A fragmented regulatory system increases the risk of responsible gambling evasion, where individuals and operators may exploit jurisdictional disparities to circumvent responsible gambling safeguards. Without a unified national framework, there is a possibility that some states may adopt lenient policies that fail to adequately address problem of gambling, while others may implement stringent measures.

    This inconsistency could lead to increased gambling-related harm, particularly among vulnerable populations, including minors and individuals struggling with gambling addiction.

    Additionally, the absence of a central authority may limit avenues for consumer redress, exposing players to fraudulent or exploitative practices by unscrupulous operators who take advantage of regulatory gaps.

    However, the Supreme Court’s decision also presents opportunities for positive reform in the gaming industry. State governments, now fully empowered to regulate gaming within their jurisdictions, have the potential to develop tailored policies that better reflect the specific needs of their local economies and societies. Some states, particularly those with well-established regulatory frameworks such as Lagos, Oyo and Ekiti, appear to have a commitment to responsible gambling enforcement. The ruling allows such states to further strengthen their efforts without interference from federal authorities. Moreover, states can implement innovative, responsible gambling initiatives, including self-exclusion programs, public awareness campaigns, and partnerships with civil society and non-profit organizations which leads the campaign for safer gambling and protection and offers support for those put in harm’s way by gambling.

    Strengthening inter-state cooperation through mechanisms such as the FSGRN can help mitigate the risks of regulatory inconsistency and consumer exploitation. States must also invest in capacity-building to ensure their regulatory agencies have the expertise and resources to effectively oversee the gaming industry and enforce responsible gambling measures. In addition, partnerships with international regulatory bodies and experts in responsible gambling can provide valuable insights that will enhance the effectiveness of state-level regulations.

    The Supreme Court’s ruling marks a pivotal moment in Nigeria’s gaming industry, reaffirming the constitutional principle that residual matters belong to the states while presenting new challenges and opportunities. While concerns about regulatory fragmentation and consumer protection must be addressed, the ruling also paves the way for states to develop more effective and localized responsible gambling policies. Moving forward, a collaborative approach among state governments, policymakers, and industry stakeholders will be essential to ensure that the gaming industry operates in a manner that prioritizes consumer protection, promotes ethical gaming practices, and mitigates gambling-related harm.

    •Oke writes from Ibadan.

  • ECOWAS breakup could push up food prices and worsen hunger in West Africa

    ECOWAS breakup could push up food prices and worsen hunger in West Africa

    By Danielle Resnick

    The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) lost three of its founding members on 29 January 2025. Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger comprised 16% of the bloc’s population of 424 million and 7% of its economy.

    Some commentators have labelled their departure – first announced a year ago – as “Sahelexit”. The decision to leave ECOWAS was made by the three countries’ military leaders and is now poised to take effect legally. The three countries have created the Alliance of Sahel States (Alliance des États du Sahel, AES), a mutual defence and security pact formalised through the Liptako Gourma Charter in 2023.

    The decision to leave ECOWAS was prompted after the military leaders launched coups against democratically elected leaders in Mali in 2021, Burkina Faso in 2022 and Niger in 2023. The ECOWAS Democracy and Governance Protocol prohibits unconstitutional changes of government. The regional body therefore imposed economic, financial and travel sanctions on each country after each coup.

    Food was exempted from the sanctions. But the resulting increase in transport times and other logistical hurdles contributed to substantial levels of food price inflation in the region. In Niger, for instance, the average market price of rice rose by 38% between July 2023, when sanctions were first imposed, and February 2024, when they were lifted.

    Remaining ECOWAS countries were also badly affected. Benin’s revenues at the port of Cotonou, the main transit source for goods going into Niger, fell dramatically. The sanctions on Mali badly hurt revenue generation at the port of Dakar in neighbouring Senegal.

    All sanctions were lifted in February 2024. But the damage was done, and the three states began preparing their departure from the regional body.

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    ECOWAS has given these three states a transition period until July 2025 in case they backtrack and want to return. But the Alliance of Sahel States leaders have said their decision is irreversible.

    The exit from Africa’s largest political and economic union threatens to disrupt flows of goods, services and people. As a political economist who focuses on agriculture and nutrition policy in much of Africa, I worry that these developments will have serious consequences for food security in a region where almost 17 million children under five are already acutely malnourished.

    Already, the cost of a daily nutritious diet in the three Sahel alliance countries is 110% higher than the daily minimum wage in the West African region. The countries are also among the world’s hunger hotspots. In early 2025, 7.5 million of their population were classified as in crisis, emergency or famine conditions.

    The exit will also imperil regional cooperation on conflict. Insurgent attacks are moving further south of the Sahel.

    This will reduce access to safe, affordable food and deter investments in agro-processing.

    A blow to trade

    The implications of exit are most obvious for trade relations. Although the three countries will remain in the eight-member francophone West African Economic and Monetary Union, they are departing the ECOWAS customs union, which includes the region’s Anglophone countries. A customs union removes tariffs among its member states and establishes a common external tariff on non-member states. Members experience freer trade with each other while protecting their domestic industries from external competition. Since 2015, import tariffs for intra- ECOWAS goods have been eliminated. A common external tariff is levied on imports from non-ECOWAS countries.

    Leaving ECOWAS means the three countries will have to adhere to the common external tariff rates for their imports into ECOWAS member countries. They will also revert to using the World Trade Organisation’s Most Favoured Nation rates on imports from ECOWAS countries, which are higher for some categories of goods than the ECOWAS tariff.

    In other words, for some goods, including agricultural products, imports will be more expensive for all countries. The three states will be further hurt by the community levy, the 0.5% tax ECOWAS imposes on goods from non- ECOWAS member states to fund the bloc’s budget.

    All three countries are landlocked. Leaving ECOWAS means they lose access to ports like Tema in Ghana and Lagos in Nigeria. There will be implications for some of their biggest exports. For instance, almost 60% of Burkina Faso’s vegetable exports and 90% of its live animal exports go to Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire.

    Ghana, along with Côte d’Ivoire and Benin, is a key export market for Niger’s onions. Niger also imports a large share of its food products from Nigeria, one of its largest trading partners in the region.

    The tariff and levies therefore could increase the cost of food for consumers in both the Alliance of Sahel States and remaining ECOWAS countries.

    The withdrawal of the three countries will also affect food production through diminished access to electricity as well as wheat flour and edible oils. The trio face possible exclusion from the  ECOWAS West African Power Pool, which aims to increase members’ access to the regional electricity market. Burkina Faso and Niger import most of their electricity from Côte d’Ivoire and Nigeria.

    Finally, the livelihoods of Sahelian migrants living in ECOWAS countries remain uncertain. Due to the ECOWAS freedom of movement protocol, more than 1.3 million Burkinabes and half a million Malians live in Côte d’Ivoire. Many of them run small, informal sector businesses to support their families back home.

    Future scenarios

    ECOWAS marks its 50th anniversary in 2025. What could the future look like?

    Junta leaders are proposing various ways in which the relationship between the Alliance of Sahel States and ECOWAS will proceed. For instance, they have claimed that they will maintain visa-free travel from ECOWAS countries into theirs. But all 12 remaining ECOWAS states would have to approve that proposal. The alliance also launched its own passport, but it’s not clear how ECOWAS states will treat citizens who use it. 

    Another possible scenario is that they will negotiate bilateral agreements with their major ECOWAS trading partners and with other countries that offer sea access, such as Mauritania and Morocco. This scenario obviously undermines efforts to enhance regional trade integration.

    Finally, the problems surrounding the “Sahelexit” embody a larger set of tensions. These include whether political objectives should be embedded within trade arrangements — a debate also central to the possible renewal of the African Growth and Opportunity Act this year – and whether concerns over national sovereignty will undermine regional cooperation on increasing cross-border climate, conflict, and health threats to food security.

    •Resnick Senior Research Fellow, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).

  • 31 more states and theatre of the absurd

    31 more states and theatre of the absurd

    • By Mike Kebonkwu

    Nigeria has 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.  Most of the states are not viable and are unable to pay monthly wage bills.  We operate feeding bottle bureaucracies with states waiting for monthly allocation from the federation’s account. Some states are not even paying salaries of workers as at when due. 

    Recently, some governors were up in arms in opposition to the proposed Tax Reform Bill that has not been passed into law. Their fear is that it will impact negatively on VAT allocation to states on the basis of generation and derivation.  Most of the governors are also not paying the national minimum wage; pensioners are owed their salaries in arrears. The wage bills are simply bulging at the seams, and outrageous for both states and the federal.

    Now our distinguished honourables are poised to create 31 additional states, to bring the number of states to about 67, and the Federal Capital Territory.  They talked about regional-geopolitical balancing and equity; that is balderdash! 

    The United States of America has 50 viable states and Washington DC; with President Trump contemplating annexation of Canada as the 51st state.  The economies of some of the states in the United States are bigger than that of many countries especially in the emerging economies in the world.

    We have the most impulsive of parliament acting always on the spur of the moment without consideration of the impact on the country and lives of the people. They wake up one morning and  want to abolish capital punishment or death penalty; don’t bother to ask  why; in the face of the rising violent crimes and insecurity. 

    We are also contending with unrelenting insurgency, banditry, and kidnappers who would collect ransom from victims and still go ahead to kill them.  What about ritual killings that is now common place, carried out even in most unusual of places like worship centres, and activities of Yahoo-Plus that target young impressionable ladies!  Our girl child has to borrow sense or warn herself before going into that relationship because she might just be falling in love with ritual con artist desperate for money. 

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    In Nigeria, money is about everything; no conscience, no integrity, no morality!  Yet we have a very weak and manipulated criminal justice system. 

    Even with poor knowledge and education, our political leaders look at themselves as special breeds and super class; they increase their allowances and salaries and allocate brand new SUVs (sport utility vehicles) to themselves to be able to navigate the collapsed roads to their constituencies and villages where basic amenities are lacking instead of fixing the roads. One the other hand, the masses are poorly remunerated and the mass-transit vehicles available to the people have disappeared from the road due to economic hardship and cost of maintenance.  Taxes on all consumables and services have since gone up, including electricity tariffs, gasoline and telecommunication.  In all this, our honourables parade themselves with weird dresses and designers’ head gears with equally weird inscriptions. 

    Why should state creation be a priority in the midst of rising unemployment, hunger and hardship occasioned by non-performing economy where companies are migrating and relocating to neighbouring countries?  Why should abolition of capital punishment be a priority in the midst of rising insecurity across the length and breadth of the country? We are talking about rising wage bills and bloated bureaucracies and you want to increase government spending by creating more bureaucracies and new states.  Many of the states are not able to pay the minimum wage and pensioners have to go on street protests before they are paid their entitlements. 

    Contemplation of state creation no doubt is honest an admission that the federating units are not harmonious and working.  Making my village a state will not solve the problem of lack of inclusiveness or equity; it can only worsen it.  Would it not rather we muster the gut to review the constitution to include self-determination clause to allow people to choose to go their separate ways as the agitations are getting louder across regional blocks? 

    Our pretentious leaders whisper self-determination in their closets to their ethnic nationalities and come out in public to talk about Nigeria being one indissoluble and indivisible entity in the day time. These people cannot be representing us by their life styles and activities. Many of them are not even able to move simple motion on the floor of the house.  The worse of us become leaders because of corrupt electoral system managed by equally corrupt umpires and individuals without integrity. We corrupt every institution and have turned even the judiciary to mockery and a huge joke. 

    While we blame the political leaders for our woes, we should also take a good examination of ourselves because we allow ourselves to be used as pawns on their political chessboards to achieve their objectives, mounting the soapbox of religion and ethnicity. 

    Everyone and every institution are disoriented; the police cannot fight crime and secure lives and properties of citizens; indeed, they constitute part of the problem of insecurity.  The security forces continue to run commentaries on one local terrorist or bandit that they have turned into the apparition of the invincible!  Is our head paining us, come on!  We are blaming other countries for how they are treating our nationals and citizens but here at home we treat ourselves like sub human apes and cannot provide basic security; moving about like herds of cattle at the mercy of wolves and political predators. 

    We have ourselves to blame at the end of the day.  We lack honest men and women in position of authority, we lack men imbued with patriotic fervour to drive genuine change in our country. We have ethnic jingoists parading as national leaders.

    I tell you what; Nigeria need death penalty and capital punishment.  We should go further. The chief executives should respect their oath of office and sign the warrant of execution.  By the way, punishment is punishment because it is deserving and reflects the revulsion shown by the state and the people for the acts, not because it is going to stop crime.  

    We are not helpless; we should begin to scrutinize our leaders and representatives. We should also begin to interrogate the CSOs and some rights organizations that are also propping crooks up and setting agenda that is at variance to the well-being of the people.  Nigeria does not need additional state as a solution for the mounting unemployment, insecurity, corruption and underdevelopment. 

    On the way forward, the youths should begin to engage the government constructively rather than going into voluntary servitude and self-exile abroad only to be deported as illegal aliens.  They should not accept to be used as political thugs for ballot stuffing and snatching, or paid goons to eliminate opposition.  They should stop singing praises of crooks who buy them beer and other substances just to get them high.  We cannot continue like this and hope to make Nigeria great. 

    We have to change our value system and re-orientate our minds. When next someone who did not participate in a primary election is given mandate by the judiciary, we should make it our business and reject it.  We cannot afford to continue to have comedians and court jesters as lawmakers!

    •Kebonkwu Esq is an Abuja-based attorney. He writes via mikekebonkwu@yahoo.com

  • Road to prosperity: Lessons from Poland

    Road to prosperity: Lessons from Poland

    • By Radosław Sikorski

    Browsing the social media, I recently came across a map showing all the countries with GDP per capita higher than Poland’s back in 1990 and in 2018. The difference was striking. While, 35 years ago, there were quite a few such countries not only in Europe but also in South America, Asia and Africa, in time their number has significantly decreased. In 2018, there were no longer any South American or African states highlighted on the map. By 2025, the group has shrunk even further. According to IMF’s data, Poland’s GDP in 1990 was a mere $6,690 in current dollars. By 2024, it grew almost eight-fold to $51,6303 . All that in just three decades – one generation. And it goes on. According to the European Commission’s forecast, in the years 2024-2025, Polish economy will be the fastest growing large economy in the European Union.

    How did it happen? Apart from the hard work of our citizens, two major factors – or, to be more precise, two institutions – contributed to the economic success: NATO and the European Union. The first, which Poland joined in 1999, provided security guarantees and helped overcome decades-old division between Eastern and Western Europe. The second, which we joined five years later, took the process of easing long-standing disparities one step further. It granted new member states access to so-called “cohesion funds” but most importantly, to the common European market.

    Sources of success

     After the fall of communism in Poland in 1989 and the return of messy democratic politics, despite all day-to-day political squabbles, one thing remained constant no matter who was in power – Poland’s determination to join the two aforementioned organizations. Why? We are a great nation but a medium-size country. We cherish our long history. This year marks a millennium since the coronation of our first king – but our population is much smaller than that of merely Beijing and Shanghai combined. Poland needs allies to boost its potential on the international stage.

    What’s been true for Poland – in 1990, a poor country coming out of four decades of Russian domination and economic mismanagement – might well be true for many of the so-called “middle powers” in Asia, Africa and South America looking for room to grow. These countries often need what Poland desperately needed 35 years ago and still profits from: good governance, foreign investments with no strings attached, but above all political stability, rule of law, and predictable international environment with neighbours eager not to wage wars but work together for mutual benefit. In fact, these factors can benefit every country, no matter the level of their GDP.

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    Today, the international order is being challenged on multiple fronts. Sometimes for good reasons. Decades-old institutions – including the UN and its Security Council – are unrepresentative of the global community and incapable of dealing with the challenges we face. What they need however is to be thoroughly reformed, not entirely rejected.

    Imperialist illusions

    To those desperate for change, force might look appealing. It would be a mistake. Abandoning forums for international dialogue and resorting to violence will not get us far. Take Russia’s unprovoked aggression against Ukraine. According to Kremlin’s propaganda, it is a justified reaction to western imperialism allegedly threatening Russia’s security. In fact, it is a modern-day colonial war against Ukrainian people who – just like us Poles 30 years ago – want a better life and realise they can never achieve this goal by going back to subjugation to Russia. That is what they are being punished for – an effort to free themselves from the control of a former metropolis.

    Kremlin’s aggression is a desperate struggle of a failing empire to restore its sphere of influence. Russian victory – may it never come – would not create a more just global order. It wouldn’t benefit countries dissatisfied with where things stand now. It wouldn’t even bring about a more just and prosperous Russia. Suffice to say there are now more political prisoners in Russia than there were in the 1980’s when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. There are many more casualties as well. War is hardly ever a shortcut to prosperity. Over the last millennium, Poland experienced its share of invasions and uprisings against occupying forces. What finally brought us prosperity were three decades of peace, predictability, international cooperation and political stability.

    That is why on assuming the presidency of the Council of the European Union, Poland made its priority clear – security in its many dimensions, from military, through economic to digital. Europe safe, prosperous and open for business can benefit not only Europeans, but a greater global community. Just as it benefited Poland over the last three decades, it may sound dull but it worked. Just look at the numbers.

    •Sikorski is Poland’s foreign minister.

  • The remaking of security in Enugu

    The remaking of security in Enugu

    Peter Mbah

    Those who make history often do not immediately grasp the depth of impact their actions would have on humanity.

    I can sense the unfolding of a remarkable legacy before us, something that looks certain to outlive us, inspire generations, and be cited always as a reference on the power of collaboration – especially between the state, the people and corporate organizations.

    I began this speech on a very optimistic note. However, it wasn’t typically a cheery experience speaking about the security situation in Enugu State 20 months ago.

    Let’s try and recall for a moment what the ever-bustling Ogui Road looked like on a Monday morning about 20 months ago. The entire stretch was a picture of desolation as business premises – from banks to retail shops – remained shut for the entire day.

    Of course, it wasn’t a decision borne out of personal choice. They were compelled to do so by the so-called “sit-at-home” order issued by a criminal gang.

    At this time on Ogui Road then, the only sound you may possibly hear is the cry of a child in an apartment. You could indeed imagine the anxious parents consumed by fear as they tried to calm the child.

    I’ve listened to parents recount the heart-wrenching tale of how their children could not sit for some subjects in a national examination, because those subjects had been slated for Mondays. I received countless messages from parents who lamented how their children could not secure university admission, on account of having not written a compulsory subject required for admission.

    The complaints were mostly relating to Mathematics, because the subject had been scheduled on a Monday. This was a common experience. I’m sure if we sampled opinions, there would likely be someone here who knows a family where a child had experienced such cruel fate.

    Attacks on security officials almost became the norm, with a significant number of personnel fatalities as a sad reminder of that grim era. Back then, criminals gleefully posted bodies of security personnel and the arms they had stolen through their brazenly regular attacks.

    But what difference 20 months make! Such wanton attacks have been pushed to the darkest recess of history. We have gained control of our streets. The outlaws who once held our people hostage have either been neutralized or fled.

    We have substantially reduced crime rate. Statistics attesting to that abound. We can further glimpse this in the fact that night life has returned in full swing. Streets that were desolate and deserted have regained their groove.

    I still remember a phone call I got at a very odd hour. I thought there was an emergency. It wasn’t an emergency after all. The excited caller was at a popular social spot, and was eager to show me live footage of bustling night life via his phone.

    The pleasant experience arising from the vastly improved security is widespread: The businessman who could not open his shop and incurred losses as a result has found the confidence to do so; the child, who could not go to school every Monday in the past can now confidently do so without any fear; our security men and women can now carry on their law-enforcement duties without any brazen attack. What difference there has been in 20 months! But our job is not done yet; it needs to be sustained.

    The importance of security in any society can never be overstated. Our Constitution clearly emphasizes this when it notes, under the Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy, that “the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government”.

    So, the provision of security is a fundamental reason for the existence of the state – or governments, if you will. Security is arguably the single most important sector upon which all socio-economic goals of states and nations rest. It can make or mar our dreams.

    Few things incentivize enterprise as much as a reassuring sense of security. Conversely, nothing kills the spirit of enterprise as fast as a prevailing air of insecurity. We can indeed say that security and development have become inextricably intertwined in the world that we live in today. Investing in development projects without a corresponding investment in security is akin to spending vast sums to build a livestock farm, but yet leaving the doors of the pen open to wolves.

    These points and anecdote resonate particularly for us, because at the heart of our audacious growth plan is the goal to make Enugu State the premier destination for investment, leisure and living. Our targets to make Enugu the conferencing capital of Africa and, also, attract three million annual tourists will seem like mere posturing if those tourists do not feel sufficiently safe on the streets and in their hotels.

    Securing businesses, keeping the people safe, and improving their welfare are our primary motivation. And it is consistent with the pledge I made while seeking the people’s mandate. We have invested substantially in securing our state, and continue to do so, because there are no half measures in the fight against insecurity.

    The various security measures we have put in place underscore this conviction. You actually do not have to search for our interventions in security. They literally stare you in the face. The Enugu State Command and Control Centre is a logistical novelty built via cutting-edge innovation comparable to what exists in more advanced countries. It was a moment of pride for us when it was commissioned in January to national acclaim, by the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, His Excellency Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

    Even when no security official is in sight, our round-the-clock surveillance system that covers our streets and neighbourhoods still ensures strict vigilance. The ultimate goal is to nip crime in the bud.

    This crime-fighting device is complemented by the Distress Response Squad, designed to react swiftly to any security breach or threat of it. It is also further boosted by a large fleet of 150 security vehicles embedded with AI-enhanced cameras deployed across the state. The reassuring sense of security that these measures guarantee should not be for a moment in time only. It is important for it to exist at all time. This is crucial to the attainment of our ambition to grow Enugu State to become a $30 billion economy.

    But enthroning a water-tight security, such as we are implementing in Enugu State, requires a humongous amount of funds to sustain. I dare say, there’s hardly any state that can solely handle such responsibility. The Enugu State Security Trust Fund is therefore a child of necessity. Its emergence is rooted in the increasing realization that an active civic engagement of citizens, offers more enduring solutions to pressing social exigencies normally exclusively borne by the government.

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    We are thus witnessing a civic rebirth in Enugu State. I strongly believe this is the day that the timeless campaign that security is everyone’s business finally sinks in. The old saying “all for one and one for all” easily comes to mind here. However, while we take unrelenting steps to squash criminality and threats to businesses, it is just as vital to adopt some non-kinetic strategies.

    It is in this regard that the influence of our traditional rulers and towns union ought to shine forth as moral beacons of the grassroots.

    The non-kinetic approach should involve constant enlightenment to sensitize the people on the importance of being security conscious. Eternal vigilance by everyone is a boost for security.

    As a government, we are wholly committed to the values of accountability, and do not view any demand for it as an irritant. This citizen-funded initiative will further widen the doors of transparency. Let us donate, buoyed by the knowledge that we are giving to a worthy cause. Let us donate fuelled by the knowledge that we are collectively building the future we desire – and deserve. Let us donate, knowing that the future we dream of is one ruled by certainties – not one ruled by fear.

    This of course includes the certainty that business owners need to flourish, knowing that they no longer have to take extra measures to secure their businesses, which increased their operational costs in the past.

    No one should be overcome with anxiety whenever they think about travelling to their country-home. This is what we envision; this is what collective action can achieve.

    Such collective resolve will ensure that the target of N20 billion we have set for the Security Trust Fund this year, will not only be achieved – but surpassed.

    I congratulate everyone gathered here. You are all makers of a proud history and witnesses to its birth.

    God bless Enugu State.

    Tomorrow is here!

    Being  a speech delivered by Governor Mbah during the fundraising dinner organized by the Enugu State Security Trust Fund

  • Russia-Ukraine: Between being on the ‘menu’ and ‘table’

    Russia-Ukraine: Between being on the ‘menu’ and ‘table’

    By Charles Onunaiju

     “To be an enemy of America can be dangerous but to be a friend is a fatal” –Henry Kissinger

    At the annual Munich Security conference in Germany last year, former U.S Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken caused a stir when he suggested that “if you are not at the table in the international system, you are going to be on the menu”.

     The rapidly unfolding events from the nearly three-year conflict between Ukraine and her bigger neighbour, The Russian Federation bears out the fact of the cynical truth contained in Blinken’s opinion. The Washington of former President Joe Biden has railroaded its mostly European allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), a cold war era military alliance that survived and even thrived over its former Soviet-led Warsaw Pact Treaty by inventing new enemies, to believe that Ukraine’s conflict would be the sure path to deal a “strategic defeat” on Russia.

    After pouring in over $300 billion dollars in weaponry, sabotage, disinformation, and efforts at diplomatic isolation of Moscow, the collective West is nowhere near to strategically defeating Russia, while Ukraine itself has been considerably taken apart, losing more than 20 percent of her pre-war territory.

    President Donald Trump, who survived two deadly assassination attempts while on campaign trail by at least one known pro-Ukraine sympathizer, consistently told voters that the war wreaking Ukraine was unavoidable and that he clearly believed Russia was provoked. The European Union bureaucracy, a distant and increasingly unresponsive Brussels elite along with the brittle British Labour government did everything they can, even openly to circumvent the path to Trump’s victory, preferring Kamala Harris, the unknown quantity but a guaranteed war candidate, most likely to continue with the geo-political fantasy of inflicting “strategic defeat” on Russia despite the potential cost of a nuclear catastrophe and its consequence of eradicating humanity.

    Against the wish of the European bureaucracy and the White Hall in London, Trump made an astonishing return to the White House, with far more numbers both in the famed American Electoral College and popular votes than could have been imagined. And less than a month in the America’s Oval Office, he caused a rumble in Brussels and other European capitals. For 90 minutes, he held a direct phone conversation with President Vladimir Putin, agreed with Moscow to set the machinery in motion for a start of negotiation to end the war. The preliminary arrangement for eventual settlement would only be agreed by Washington and Moscow, with neither Brussels nor Kiev at the “table”, and both fearing that they would be on the “menu”.

    The U.K Prime Minister, Keir Starmer who many believed would have given a second thought to the former conservative government’s inordinate ambition to settle historical grudge against Russia when it urged Kiev to abandon talks midway in Turkey in 2022 and “fight”, rather doubled down on the myth of Moscow’s implosion.

    With talks opened in Saudi Arabia directly between the U.S and Russia and likely to pave the way for direct meeting between Trump and his Russia counter-part, Putin, Europe is scrambling for a role. The meeting that French President, Emmanuel Macron hastily summoned in Paris to craft European response to the fast moving Moscow/Washington entente fell apart, with the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz storming out in disagreement of potential European peace keepers in Ukraine, describing the proposal as premature. Poland and Spain agreed with him. Hungary stayed away, with Budapest calling the gathering, a conspiracy of “warmongers” and aligning itself firmly with Washington’s effort to broker a lasting peace.

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    Despite being potential menu on the settlement table of the Ukraine conflict, Europe is in turmoil for other reasons too. U.S Vice President J.D Vance caused a stir with his speech at the Munich Security Conference. He accused Europe mainstream parties of muzzling free speech and being afraid of their own people. The Defence Secretary, Pete Hegeseth has earlier caused more trouble for the Europeans when he outlined what he called “unrealistic” expectations from the Russia-Ukraine peace negotiations.

    A return to pre-2014 Ukraine border and a NATO membership for Kiev is off the table. Europe went into frenzy as if Trump and his team are stating all these for the first time. It has rather been a common theme in their campaign trail for the Presidency and it obviously resonated with American voters, who cast more votes for Trump than at any other time in their recent history.

    The Europeans seemed to be re-learning the lesson that Henry Kissinger, taught several years ago that “to be an enemy of the U.S can be dangerous but to be a friend is fatal”. However, to be fair to President Trump and his team, the European powers have had their fair chance for a negotiated settlement of the Ukraine conflict with her bigger neighbour, Russia and blew it. When the conflict broke out in the Donbass region of former Eastern Ukraine in 2014 following the coup that ousted the Russia-friendly democratically elected government in Kiev, a peace settlement negotiated and guaranteed by Europeans, majorly France and Germany culminated in the Minsk I and II agreement.

    The Minsk Protocol was drafted by the trilateral contact group on Ukraine which consisted of Ukraine, Russia and the Organization for Security and Cooperation on Europe (OSCE) with guarantees by the leaders of France and Germany in a formula that was dubbed the Normandy format. After elaborate and inclusive deliberations by all the parties, it was signed on September 5 in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, after which it was named. The package in the agreement consisted mostly of a ceasefire, withdrawal of heavy weapons from the frontline, release of prisoners of war and also constitutional reform in Ukraine, granting self-government to the Donbass region mostly populated by ethnic Russians.

    Soon, after the agreement, the Kiev regime back-peddled and rather imposed very harsh measures of banning Russian language, culture and even set out to dismember the orthodox Christian Church whose spiritual origins in Russia dates to millennia. Under the European watch, the Minsk agreement was torn to shreds. The former French and German leaders openly claimed that the Minsk process and the agreement produced from it, was a circus show meant to deceive Moscow, while Ukraine had the time to rebuild and create a “formidable army”.

    This is the actual background to the current exclusion of West Europe’s and Washington allies in the Atlantic alliance from the early framework of discussion for a negotiated settlement of the conflict going on in Saudi Arabia. Moscow would have insisted and rightly too that it would not accept to go through the deception of the major European powers, especially with its current momentum in the battle field.

    Ukraine, a country wholly dependent on foreign weapons, technical experts, international mercenaries for its war and foreign money and aids to fulfil basic and rudimentary functions like paying salaries of public workers, maintenance of basic services, would certainly have little say in how the war ends, especially after it walked away at the Istanbul process in Turkey which nearly ended the war barely after three months it started. Former British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson was alleged to have urged the Kiev regime to withdraw from the Istanbul process and just “fight”.

    However, flawed the unfolding peace negotiation may be, especially from the perspectives of Brussels and the U.K, it offers a significant opportunity to calm down and reduce the dangerous prospect of nuclear catastrophe that can happen from the error of miscalculations.

    The implication of the unfolding scenario for Africa is to understand the perennial mood swings in Washington whose longest span could be just one electoral calendar. While the U.S is still the world indispensable power on a number of key issues, it is vital to isolate critical issues of long term national interests of prospective partners and clearly identify a constituency from the fractious U.S politics with credible prospects to collaborate and advance it in the long term.

    Otherwise, it is wiser to assume that a week is too long in U.S politics, with ramifications and consequences for its external relations.

    For all President Trump confusing signals, he is digging out humanity from the trenches of near self-immolation and he may rightly now earn a Nobel Peace prize that he has always coveted.

    •Onunaiju contributes from the FCT, Abuja.

  • Justice Azuka and the unknown three

    Justice Azuka and the unknown three

    By Vitus Ozoke

    The manner of Justice Chukwunenye Azuka’s death, as painful as it is, presents a unique opportunity for reflection and insight, and a window view into the dark and ugly corners and underbellies of Nigerian politics. The decomposing body of Justice Azuka, the lawmaker representing Onitsha 1 North Constituency, who was reportedly kidnapped on the eve of Christmas of 2024, was found in the lower bushes off the Second Niger Bridge on Wednesday, February 5.

    Additionally, it offers a chance for a critical interrogation of the sorry state of Nigeria’s social and criminal justice system. The idea of using the murder of Justice as an occasion and opportunity for the discussion of the state of justice in Nigeria could not be any more ironic, yet fitting.

    Yes, Justice was kidnapped and murdered – and will be buried. And that is sad and bad enough. But even sadder and worse is the everyday kidnap and murder of justice in Anambra State, in Igboland, and in Nigeria. It is the shock and the indecency of the social risqué inherent in the kidnap and murder of justice as an existential principle that we must now guard against.

    Now, this is what we know. The decomposing body of Justice Azuka was found in the lower bushes off the Second Niger Bridge on Wednesday, February 5. A team of the recently constituted Anambra security outfit (Agunechemba) successfully arrested the culprits who led them to that scene of horror. Upon arrival at the scene, however, four bodies were discovered: Justice Azuka and “three others”.

    I say three others not because I am too lazy to mention and write out their names. No, it is because their names are unknown, and may remain forever unknown and unknowable.

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    Their names may never be known because Nigeria, even with all the wealth it produces, does not maintain a medical and dental profile database, nor has it invested in the technology for forensic posthumous identification. And even though this technology and the experts can be externally sourced and imported, there is no governmental appetite for such “unnecessary” stress over common, non-honourable, disposable, and expendable citizens. And I cannot imagine that their kidnappers and killers left the victims’ wallets and identification information on their deceased bodies. So, those three bodies, presumably victims of the same group of kidnappers and killers, may remain forever unknown. 

    So, to the credit of the gallant men and women of Agunechemba, Azuka’s body has been recovered. Azuka will be given a befitting burial, whatever befitting means in this chilling orgy of deaths. His body will lie in state at the Anambra State House of Assembly Complex in Agu Awka, and his fellow politicians will converge to pay their last respect. His body will be buried. His children will know where their father is entombed and will receive financial compensation, including scholarship to university level, from the governor and the government of Anambra State. Why? Because he was a politician, and he was “honourable”. The three others, the unknown and unknowable three, will rot at the scene of the gothic horror. Their family will forever live with the pain of the vacuum of their closed, yet open, life. That is the irony of living and breathing injustice at the death of Justice. And that, sadly, will remain a tangential and collateral legacy of Justice Azuka.   

    Since the discovery of Justice Azuka’s mangled and decomposed remains, Governor Charles Soludo and the Agunechemba team have taken victory laps, as they should. The Agunechemba team, yes; their victory laps are well deserved. But, Governor Charles Soludo, no.

    Professor Soludo was sworn-in and inaugurated governor of Anambra State on March 17, 2022. Hundreds, if not thousands, have been kidnapped and (or) murdered since Soludo has camped out at Agu Awka. Prior to his becoming governor, Soludo had seen insecurity up close and personal – or so it seemed. On Wednesday, July 31, 2021, during a political event at his Isuofia hometown, three police officers attached to Soludo, then a governorship aspirant, were killed by unknown gunmen. You would think that with that horrific experience, Soludo’s first order of business in Agu Awka would be a massive state of emergency on the perilous state of security (insecurity) in Anambra. It was not. Instead, it was this mad obsession with taxing Anambra people and businesses.

    And now, on the eve of his re-election, which is scheduled for November 8, Soludo wakes up – suddenly – to insecurity. On January 18, a man scheduled for re-election constitutes the largest security operation known in the history of Anambra State and Igbo land.

    Do not get me wrong: I commend the governor for that. I commend him for his sharp political instinct. But the security of Anambra people should not, never, be dictated by the whims and vagaries of politics. So, to Soludo his apologists who have argued that the governor moved quickly with the creation of Agunechemba on January 18, following the kidnap of Azuka on Christmas eve, I say drop that asinine argument. It is not a good argument for the governor.

    The only thing worse than a governor that left the open sore of insecurity to fester is the governor who swung into security action only after a lawmaker and fellow politician was kidnapped. If Soludo’s close shave with death in 2021, when three of his security details were killed by the mysterious unknown gunmen, did not do it for him, then surely, the kidnap of a lawmaker, from an opposing political party, did not do it for him. Something else did. November 8 did. Politics did. And it is a damn shame!

    The death of Justice in Anambra is also the death of justice in our society. With Justice Azuka’s kidnap and murder, the chickens of injustice may have come home to roost. Those wandering chickens have always been out there. They are the chickens of youth poverty and unemployment. They are the chickens of high cost of living. They are the chickens of hunger. They are the chickens of insecurity.

    Finally, my deep sympathies for the kidnapped and murdered Justice Azuka. We must now ensure that justice is not buried with Justice.

    •Dr. Ozoke is a lawyer, human rights activist, and public commentator based in the United States.

  • Easing the business environment and renewing hope

    Easing the business environment and renewing hope

    By Kunle Oyatomi

    Recently in Accra, Ghana’s President John Dramani Mahama, spoke of how African countries can ‘’unlock’’ their potential by exploiting what he called ‘’a game-changing opportunity for African businesses, entrepreneurs and industries.’’ Speaking at the African Prosperity Dialogues (APD), the Ghanaian leader highlighted the significance of the African Continental Free Trade Area, (AfCFTA), in creating multitrillion dollar market and promoting economic integration.

    But Mahama added this caveat: Investors and businesses would thrive in environments with predictable policies and the rule of law.

    He said: ‘’Prosperity cannot be achieved without good governance, transparency and accountability. Investors and businesses thrive where there is stability, predictable policies and the rule of law.’’

    In a word, you can’t have functioning, productive and prosperous business or enduring economic activity where there’s no conducive environment. It doesn’t add up to speak of growth and development where there are conflicts and stifling regulations and rules by the statutory bodies. This would lead to both a flight of capital and skilled manpower.

    There’s another potential tragedy: prized investment would not venture into such a hostile clime.

    These were the considerations of the federal government the other day when it reaffirmed its ‘commitment to improving the ease of doing business, ensuring regulatory stability, and fostering alliances to boost Nigeria’s economic competitiveness’.

    The central government made its position known at the Renewed Hope Global Virtual Conference 2025. Speaking on behalf of government, the Minister of State for Industry, Trade and investment, John Eno, said although ‘significant progress has been made, government was focused on streamlining business operations, reducing bottlenecks, and enhancing investor confidence’.

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    Eno declared: ‘Investors need assurance that today’s regulations will remain consistent, or if changes occur, they will be clearly communicated in advance. The government is fully aware of this and is working towards ensuring a stable business climate… Government policies are continually evolving to ensure the country remains competitive within the sub-region, the continent, and the global economy…the goal is clear, to create a business environment that supports industrial growth, attracts investment, and enhances job creation’.

    We have to note that this vision embodies a multi-sector participation. While government rolls out rules or a regime of policies on running the show, there’s a call for corporate and informal economy participation in the quest to build an environment fit to support business. Observers say since competitive business is not conducted in the main by government or its agents and public office holders, but by the informal sector, the latter should be grafted into this project of the ease of doing business. To be sure, the government would need their input to guide in formulating the laws that affect more than any other group.

    For instance, if units of the private realm operate at insular levels independent of each other, the positive dividends that should come along with pooling resources would elude them. They and the larger society would lose; they wouldn’t gain from the expected potential of government intervention. Would that be all? Of course not. The intended goal of creating a business environment that brings in foreign investment would not be achieved. The point I’m making is that government must convince the private sector players to not only buy into its vision, but also to quit the attitude of operating in their respective shells, unmindful of what is going on around them. They must macro-organize. Remember the saying: united we stand, divided we fall.

    The reason Africa is poor despite its gargantuan resources is because our business and economic environment is not coordinated. This has fouled the entire system and made it vulnerable to invaders who dictate the tune we dance to. These outsiders exploit the discord in our business climate. Whereas Western Europe which is smaller than Africa has a single currency and market, ours has a basketful of currencies that aren’t legal tender in the international community. It is cheap convenience to continue to lash at colonialism for this. And we can’t forever be playing this blame-game.

    Asian nations like India, Singapore, Hong Kong etc. also had depressing pasts. They came out of it and today they are not fatally messed about by external economic factors because there are strong internal guardrails protecting them. We can do what they did.

    They embarked on economic reforms that replaced the toxic system they met on the ground. What we inherited at the time of Independence in 1960 cannot any longer suffice. Government after government has held on it for decades, only to our tragedy.

    Interestingly, my early reference to Accra where Ghana’s president spoke on the need for Africa to stand together to build a united business climate internally and continentally, reminds us that Accra was where Ghana’s founding leader President Kwame Nkrumah proclaimed that Africa must unite, or forever be under the jackboots of imperial oppression. He even wrote a book on his plea, titled, Africa Must Unite. Those who didn’t want the genuine prosperity and progress of Africa came together to abort his dream through a coup in 1966. It is therefore instructive that another Ghanaian leader would, decades after, make the same clarion call for the unity of the African nations through evolving an atmosphere that eases business and economic activity among us.

    In Nigeria, that’s exactly what the Bola Tinubu administration is championing with his reforms. He’s strategic about his steps. First, he hopes to clean up the choking economic field, which must give way for a new order that allows liberal rules of engagement. Next, he will seek to convince local and international business players that Nigeria has proverbially fulfilled all righteousness, and is ready to accommodate the best of the lot worldwide in economic partnerships.

    Naturally, Africa is our first catchment area. After all, charity begins at home, as the saying goes. I see Nigeria becoming the preferred destination point for high-stakes international business ventures.

    •Oyatomi Esq., is on the Board of Independent Media and Policy Initiative, IMPI, based in Abuja.a