The Nation Newspaper

Category: Comments

  • Aba’s date with history

    The proponents of the restructuring of the Nigeria nation are unrelenting. Some youths, with almost uncontrollable emotion, in collaboration with some sleepy-eyed conservatives have continued to remind us of the opportunism that pervades the political space of this country.

    The doctrine of restructuring Nigeria started in 1951, mostly in the Western Region. The doctrine was a self-serving political gimmick which unfortunately and unashamedly took notice of the natural resources of the three major components to which politicians divided Nigeria. In the Western Region stretching from Lagos to Asaba, the economy was buoyant, relying mostly on cocoa, kolanut, forest resources and human capital. In like manner, the Eastern block starting from Onitsha to Calabar and Port Harcourt was bountifully endowed with palm produce (palm kernel, palm oil and palm kernel oil). The North, a thoroughly agrarian society grew groundnut, millet, other grains, etc. The North therefore constituted the food basket of the nation. In terms of relativity, the economies of the three regions were buoyant enough as to be able to sustain a reasonable level of standard of living. Together these primary products earned appreciable foreign exchange. As of this time, the early 50’s, crude oil and gas have not been discovered in commercial quantity.

    The major advocates of restructuring (the West) thought that the bounties of nature in form of agricultural products would continue. In part therefore it was a self-serving political doctrine which by today’s calculation and climate change is no more realistic.

    Coincidentally, apart from changing political situation in the country, the economies of the major component units began to change dramatically. The eastern block which also comprised peoples other than those in the Ibo states suddenly found themselves in the fortunate circumstance of having crude oil, literally in their compounds and near homesteads. Almost at the same time, the production of primary exports began to shrink dramatically in the West and in the North, making the proponents of restructuring less vocal in the West, but the seed of the political slogan has been planted.

    With the full integration of the Nigerian economy, export of crude oil and gas took the front burner resulting into about 80-85% of our foreign exchange earnings. Yet, the remnants of the political opportunism of yester-years persist. The resurgence occurs occasionally before and during national elections when ‘migrant’ politicians move from one political party to another. For example during the last dispensation in Nigeria, President Goodluck Jonathan thought vainly that the best way to ‘capture’ the West was to inform the politicians that he would implement the reforms recommended by the last Confab, including what the West and Eastern blocks called ‘restructuring’. Indeed during the campaign, tribal chieftains in the South-south and their collaborators in the South-west pleaded passionately for restructuring. Unfortunately our national rulers who gave tacit support for such misadventure were hoodwinked and manipulated.

    During the last Confab, the delegations from South-west were loudest in favour of restructuring the Nigeria polity. I was wondering what kind of restructuring would take place considering the level of representation even of the states in the West at the Confab.  For example, by sheer manipulation, Ekiti was represented by five members, Ondo nine, Ogun 19, inclusive of the opportunists called Civil Society Groups. In a restructured Nigerian society, the imbalance even in the West would be so obvious that we would be exchanging one imperialism with another (with Ekiti five and Ogun 19!). This of course is totally unacceptable.

    The above reference is in fact a minor issue compared with the near-catastrophe that will befall a section of the Nigeria society, if ‘restructured’. Restructuring in its entirety means annexing, managing of internal resources and unlike the present system where the components of the federation dip their hands in to the national till, a restructured Nigeria bordering on confederation will make the federating units assume authority on all matters, except defence and external affairs while contributing funds to the national treasury.

    I keep on wondering whether our politicians in West, some of whom have gone round the parties, ever appreciate the near disastrous condition of our resources, cocoa plantations and our palm produce. For example, Nigeria once third producer and exporter of cocoa, (behind Ghana and Ivory Coast), is today at the bottom of the international league including Brazil. Where will the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) come from to sustain a confederating Western Nigeria?

    I observe some young people who found themselves (husband and wife) at the National Conference now declaring themselves itinerant professors and making themselves available for incoherent lecture circuits in Nigeria. I am amused by the repetitive position of aged, if not saline Afenifere stalwarts who over the last 70 years have said nothing new. Apostles of ‘true federalism’ and ‘restructuring’ remind us of the 50’s and 60’s in the Western Region. In spite of the economic growth and funds available to government, development efforts and projects did not go round in the region. In my part of the region, Ondo Province, now Ondo and Ekiti states, there were no tarred roads, no pipe-borne water, only one hospital and no government sponsored educational institution. Is this the ‘true federalism’ we want?

    With all the above, one would ask what does the country need to survive as a nation? Minus our sluggish judicial system, there is nothing wrong basically with the present system. Problem is our institutions are not strong enough and we have not been led by the leadership that a nation like ours deserves. We only hope the present dispensation will bring out the change in our country and a quick adjudication of the problems that arise in the administration of the country.

    • Fasuan, MON, JP writes from Ado-Ekiti

  • COMMENTS

    ‘It is well that EFCC has woken up from their slumber to fight corruption that has made us a laughing stock for years. EFCC should bite seriously corrupted leaders, so Nigeria can move forward. We cannot continue to answer Obi is a boy every year when few people are siphoning money meant for development of Nigeria. EFCC should recover all the stolen money as a leader who dislike corruption is on the throne. He as  PMB. Judiciary should help EFCC to do their work by ensuring that corrupted leaders were sentenced according to the crime of corruption they committed for betterment of Nigerian. From Gordon Chika Nnorom’

    For Segun Gbadegesin

    Please sir, is it true tha the Acting INEC Chair, Mrs Amina Bala Zakari, is supposed to retire since last week? Anonymous
    Re: Much ado about acting INEC chair. Metuh did not see anything good about the woman for five years until now. It only tells us after the change of gear that, he (Metuh) deserves not to be taken serious. Anonymous.
    Everyone has the right to suspect an action. No one should expect less, from an opposition. As Metuh is free to make criticisms, others are free to defend any allegation. But I see nothing wrong in acting capacity! From Lanre Oseni.
    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) wants to be seen and heard now that they are in the opposition. They are so far doing it poorly. On this one too, they have failed woefully. Anonymous
    You mean this 2015 election is the freest and fairest till date? How about the 1993 election of the late Chief MKO Abiola? Anonymous.
    The pdp must not be seen as a dead and buried party. Can they win the battle? Anonymous
    Your piece on acting INEC Chair which appeared in The Nation is superb. Keep up the good job and forget people like Metuh.  From Joseph K. GBOKO.
    To me, what Metuh is doing is mere political hatred which the President Buhari administration does not give a damn about. What the administration is more concerned about is record. If your records are clean, then you are clean in the eye of law. Metuh can go to hell for all I care. Thank to The Nation for truth in defence of freedom. From Smat Shubee.
    Sir, I read your view on the INEC Chair and wish to commend your analysis as it is sound and perfect.  But will Metuh and his likes understand? Keep it up, Nigeria must move forward in spite of these dry woods at the centre of the ocean. Thanks. From Chinwo, Port-Harcourt.
    I think nobody should ever pay heed to these totalitarian thieves of our collective tilt. Remember it cost us tears, sweat and blood to dislodge them. If our PMB has another son or daughter, we want them positioned.Since Metuh and his men are never to be trusted. Whence they landed us in a state we wish not our enemy. Anonymous
    I do not believe the PDP, even in its diminished state, is as silly as some are portraying it. From Aondona Diwa
    President Buhari’s appointment of Mrs Zakari as an acting chairman of inec is well accepted by Nigerians, pdp Publicity Secretary Olisa Metu is a drowing man . Cheers to pmb. From Hon Ify Esione. Anambra State.
    Sir, as one of the good columnists, I have always cherished you when it comes to analysis of issues of national importance, I cannot hold back my thanks to you for a professional job on your piece: Much ado about INEC chair. Objectively, she is the most qualified not only in terms of long serving commissioner but in terms of educational background. Above all, PMB has demonstrated that women should have a place in governance. No wonder all the women folk, including 13 political parties drum up their support for her except PDP. Like you concluded, if PDP wants this battle, they should go on. From Dahil Dakon  Sambo, Plateau State.
    The ease with which most of the looting politicians are   often set free and declared innocent of such crime due to some legal technicalities, is simply the reason many Nigerians seem to prefer jungle justice to the constitutional requirements at that, whenever they apprehend robbers carting away their belongings. The major problem we have in recovering our stolen money from the looters comes from that aspect of our law which would insist that the “accused” remains innocent until otherwise established by a court of law. And unless something is done to that portion of the law for good, both the common thieves among us and the corrupt politicians would continue to smile home with their ill-gotten wealth, all in the name of adhering to due process in our bid to retrieve what was stolen from us. The so-called plea bargain that even allows a corrupt politician own substantial parts of what he had looted, worsens the matter. From Emmanuel Egwu.
    I want to say thank you for the article at the back page of The Nation newspaper of Friday July 24, 2015, Captioned “ Much ado about acting INEC chair”. It was very interesting. I would like to advise that the PDP looks for a better person, like Alhaji Lai Mohammed of the Governing APC, outside Mr Olise Metuh, who will properly manage the PDP information management when in opposition. Most of Mr Metuh’s reactions to national issues are his personal views and not the views of the PDP NWC members. He seems to see nothing good, in every of the actions of our dear President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB). Who else does he want PMB, to appoint? Himself or who? From Mr Andy Olude, Lagos.

    For Prof. Olatunji Dare

    May Almighty God bless you for your well articulated article of The Nation. Anonymous
    Re: EFCC: So much bark, so little bite . Mr. President is definitely   embarking on a national reform.  However, the EFCC is not adequately ready and prepared .Its barking now is just a smokescreen by its leadership to remain in office. Like Prof.Dare observed,”The suspect has in his corner some of the finest legal minds that money can buy,”; while EFCC would send lousy and even learning lawyers who might not even know the right court, and on shoddy investigation. Thus, the suspect escapes, for instance, in all the 40 charges or when found culpable fined N3 million for defrauding several billions of naira or US dollars. This is why official stealing and corruption is on the rise. The EFCC definitely requires an over-arch reform and a Special Court. The calibre of its prosecutors is very vital to be efficient in the war on official corruption. From Ladipo O. David, Gwagwalada.
    Re: EFCC: So much bark, so little bite. You have aptly captured the reason why corrupt public officials have always gotten off easily in Nigeria. I have been an ardent follower of your column and l know you are close to people who are close to the corridors of power now. It will make a world of difference if you can have a way of getting this advice to the President – thank God we have a President who is focused on tackling corruption.       A lot of us ordinary mortals are aware of this shortcoming coupled with corruption among the EFCC officials. Unfortunately, our voices cannot be heard; as such, we are reduced to watching and grumbling.

    Please do this as your contribution to our children and the future generations of this country.  May God bless and keep you in good health as you continue to contribute to the greatness of our dear country. Amen. Anonymous
    You’re in the right direction, indeed, with all you wrote concerning the killer of this country‘s economy and development called “corruption”. Do they read your  column and see the way out in this country? This cankerworm has come to stay unless those big bosses realise that Mr death is awaiting them. I like your articles any day. From Ola Dare Akams.
    True, none of the ethnic groups in Nigeria needs to grumble whenever omitted in appointments that should be done in reflection of the federal character principle, since it may not be possible to cover all the numerous ethnic groups of the country in such appointments at the same time. But even so, one would think the three major ethnic groups have come to be, having their unique share of the nation’s burden in all things too, and ought not be so negligently omitted in whatever appointments that have to do with federal character. But if that can’t be allowed at all times as the case may be, then such omission, I think, should better be made to be rotational, and not stationary. From the look of things, it appears the Igbo remain one major ethnic group in the country that is often, if not always, omitted whenever it comes to that. The recent appointments of the national security agencies by President Buhari simply point toward that direction. Too bad! From Emmanuel Egwu.
    Last week, I responded to Olatunji Dare’s ‘emergence and re-emergence’ piece by starting with his masterpiece of November 8, 2011 on Senator Saraki, only to discover that it was not carried. You probably did not understand what I was saying. I was trying to say that the Saraki of 2011, who made Kwara State to take care of him for as long as he lives and probably after, is still the same shameless, selfish opportunist. From Gbola Gbolagunte.
    It is well that EFCC has woken up from their slumber to fight corruption that has made us a laughing stock for years. EFCC should bite seriously corrupted leaders, so Nigeria can move forward. We cannot continue to answer Obi is a boy every year when few people are siphoning money meant for development of Nigeria. EFCC should recover all the stolen money as a leader who dislike corruption is on the throne. He is PMB. Judiciary should help EFCC to do their work by ensuring that corrupt leaders were sentenced according to the crime of corruption they committed for betterment of Nigerians. From Gordon Chika Nnorom.
    May I humbly propose that you do a proposal to President Buhari on this inspired article of yours of Tuesday, July 21, 2015. Kudos! From Solomon Aibangbe Esq.

    For Gbenga Omotoso

    Sir, your satire today reminds me of Chinua Achebe’s book, “Man of the People”. It reflects the insanity in our political system. You deserve the award as “BABA SALA “ of  Nigeria. As Fela said in one of his lyrics, one does not know whether to laugh or cry about state of corruption in Nigeria. From Tunde Bankole
    Take your time o, this advisory go put you for wahala for Ekiti. Keep on advising, nice piece as always. Regards. From Hakeem, Foreign Languages Dept, University of Benin.
    Though it goes more or less like a movie picture, your masterpiece, “An anti-graft war advisory”, is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Thanks. Anonymous
    Which side are you on this issue? They don’t need your help; they are doing exactly as you have said. We, on the other hand, need you to tell us how to go about recovery of most of our looted money. Thank you very much. From Mrs SaaAondo
    Well done, brother. Your advisory on anti-graft is, as usual, from a veteran satirist, very illuminating. Keep writing to release our cumulative tensions.
    From A.A.Akingba (aka Triple A).
    Your piece, “An anti-graft war advisory” is, actually, à satire and a lamentation but we will get through. They won’t always get away so easily. Sir, PMB means business and they now know. From Manasseh Ehile Manasseh
    Yea, you have said it all. They loot in mega but refund in bits, a real far cry from what was stolen. That’s why they keep on stealing with impunity. Thanks. From Okeoghene.
    Our problem is not knowing the ills of the country but how to solve the problems. The nation is richly endowed with theoretical experts who would pride themselves of knowing the much that is wrong with the country but unable to give a good solution because they are often part of the problem. For example, Chimaroke Nnamani as the then Enugu State governor was busy giving lectures here and there, with lengthy essays, condemning corruption in the country, among other things. Today, we have all seen how much he looted from his state even as he busied himself proffering “solution” to the nation’s problem. This time, it is El-Rufai, whose administration of FCT and BPE then, left much to be desired, canvassing death penalty for NNPC for being corrupt. A Wole Soyinka, Gani Fawehinmi or an Aminu Kano stands in a better position to tell Nigerians what to do with the hugely corrupt NNPC; not the El-Rufais of this nation, I think. From Emmanuel Egwu
    Your “Anti-graft war advisory” editorial is  a true picture of what has enabled corruption grow wings, only God  will deliver us. You did a nice job. From Elder Giddy Elena,Enugu Exile.
    Read your article. Brilliant. One template to serve them all and it does. The anti-graft war has been a charade but one wonders if that might change. Anonymous
    Keep it up. This is to wake government and anti-graft bodies not to pretend to Nigerians that they are working. From Tyotsugh  Richard. Abuja.
    Re-An anti-graft war advisory. Sir, you said it all. As far as I am concerned, the Judiciary is the main problem of anti-graft war in Nigeria. When EFCC brings a corrupt case to court, the case will be dragged to eternity and will later be frustrated. From Kunle Bello, Abeokuta
    I pray our politicians, lawyers, EFCC and judges will read your article on an anti-graft war advisory. May God bless you.
    From Manulu Sylvanus, Ilorin.
    Re: Anti-graft war advisory; I read this master piece with the submission that you Nigerian journalists are just gifted; in fact, you have covered all areas of how our money is being stolen and the aftermath. Only God can deliver Nigeria. Keep it up. From Ilori Ademola, Lagos.

    For Tunji Adegboyega

    Re: Beyond minimum wage. Agreed, good governance should be the fundamental concern of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC). Where workers see Mr President, the vice president, governors, deputy governors, the Senate President, Speaker of the House of Representatives and even the NLC president in bullet-proof vehicles with a retinue of convoys, what sinks in workers’ brains and thought is nothing other than ‘owoooooo’ (waoh, our money! Under such a circumstance, good governance breaks down and becomes secondary. Let me live and probably live well is the authentic need of workers/the common man. And not until about five eminent Nigerians proved to be fraudulent and corrupt are treated the ‘Tafa Balogun style’, denying workers their improved pay will not end. Although NLC leadership does not seem to lead digital, it continues to lead analogue of minimum wage only. Workers’ motivation here is minimum wage rather than as an incentive! From Lanre Oseni.
    Tunji, I read your comment on Sunday. Please let me advise that Labour shouldn’t be talking of salary increase, rather, they should be talking of price control. Thank you. From Dennis, Makurdi.
    The agitation for salary increase from the NLC to the NASS is good but Labour should have made the lawmakers know that their jumbo pay is a setback for development. Let them cut their pay but workers’ salaries should be increased to meet up their needs in view of the economic situation in the country. From Gordon Chika Nnorom, Umukabia, Abia State.

  • Kogi: Wada, a significant risk for PDP

    Since 1999, for many citizens of Kogi State, stasis has been a constant denominator in most actions of all its past leaders in government.  From Governor Audu Abubakar to Ibrahim Idris and now, Idris Wada, nothing seems to have changed.  The leadership of the state have been clouded by allegations of corruption and poor performance.

    The November governorship election therefore presents a fresh opportunity and high possibility for the revival of the fortunes of the state provided a set of quality leadership is introduced into Kogi politics.

    Luckily, for Kogi citizens, the problem and pains of having an Audu Abubakar as their next governor seems delightfully settled. This is so because the present political power tussle in the Kogi APC makes it very unlikely that an Audu Abubakar will emerge victorious against the wishes of many party heavy weights that are assumed to have already taken their case to the ears of President Muhammadu Buhari, a no nonsense man on corruption.

    Presently, the expectation is that President Buhari will neither be too deaf nor blind to the long list of Audu Abubakar’s alleged past atrocities. Already, the red signals from the National leadership of APC are pointing towards Audu Abubakar’s direction in line with President Buhari’s recent declaration to the world that his fight against corruption is not a respecter of political affiliation.

    On the other side of the political divide, is the incommodious intention of the incumbent governor, Idris Wada to seek a second tenure under the PDP. The reality on ground reveals that Wada’s desperation for a second term in office has already given rise to a revolt within the PDP as witnessed by the cancellation of the conducted state PDP ward congress which he was accused of manipulating and most recently, the imposition of his ‘men’ in the rescheduled election under the watchful eyes of Olisa Metuh – the National Publicity secretary of the PDP.

    Within the PDP party and in general, the Kogi electorate, Governor Idris Wada seems to have lost on both fronts. Recently, he has come under intense criticism from majority of Kogi citizens due to his compromised credibility and underperformance rating in governance. All these negative attributes have combined to be huge minus for his aspiration and the desires of Kogi people. Even though Wada and his inner circle have made various efforts to project him as a viable candidate in the elections, unfortunately, scandals being churned out on him appear endless and attempts by his lean supporters in the PDP to protect him from criticisms have not been  successful because  the voices of his critics appear to have grown too loud to be subdued and the facts in their hands on Wada’s inappropriateness cum mismanagement are enough to send even a strong politician to the gulag or political oblivion.

    To many analysts, Wada has not succeeded in providing appropriate leadership in both government and his party. Specifically, at the party level, under Wada the PDP has been fractured. In fact, since the elections of 2011which ushered him into office, a lot of PDP members have left the party because they felt aggrieved by his imposition on them and many more are still questioning whether they should leave the party if Wada gets the PDP ticket for the November poll. Indeed, if this happens, it will be a very deep dilemma for the PDP. As such, with Wada, it has become obvious that PDP has a very scary prospect in the forthcoming governorship election. Furthermore, the ousting of major PDP members from their seats at the National Assembly in the last 2015 general elections has been the lowest point and stark moment of failure for the PDP under Wada. Again, at the state level, in many respects, Governor Wada has failed and his inability to sustain the confidence of the

    Kogi people has also become a major problem for his leadership of the state. Thus, Wada’s continued stay in office will be akin to keeping a Captain that is taking its passengers to a crash destination. This is where many focused analysts believe that the eyes of the national leadership of PDP must be opened to the retrogressive purported decision of making Wada its candidate in the November election, otherwise, the party will be doomed.

    Contrastingly, in the past few months, Wada’s priority in the state has been on his political survival through the use of the state PDP structure and enforcers to manipulate the upcoming primaries rather than focusing on the implementation of projects that will reverse his unpopularity in the state. At the party level he seems to have made considerable inroad by installing his cronies in various party leadership positions. However, with a bad record card of governance under the PDP, the ready question herein is of what worth will another PDP governorship ticket be in hands Wada? For many sympathizers of the Kogi PDP, removing Wada on the contenders list is the most credible option because the governorship contest in Kogi State is beyond just producing a candidate from a party but more about projecting the candidate of choice.

    A quick recall of history shows that in the past three years, Idris Wada has made headlines in the media for all the negative reasons and there is no indication that his continued occupancy of the highest political position in Kogi State will restore normalcy, hope and appropriate life for Kogi citizens. Any other choice aside asking Wada to step down will spell doom for the PDP because it will be a mountainous task to convince the majority of Kogi voters that PDP means well for them with Wada on the ballot.  Simply put, politics of party destruction leaves the individual with no platform and the PDP cannot afford to hang on to any form of mediocrity that will give room to chances of losing such an important election. Wada has shown that he neither understands politics properly nor does he have capacity for proper governance. So where lies his potentials for good governance? A PDP governorship ticket to Idris Wada will further split the party and guarantee a bleak future as it will have a very long grim journey to comeback as a viable political party after a highly predictable electoral loss.

    For the greater good of the Kogi people, the best advice for the PDP is to pressure Wada to relinquish power and allow someone else that is competent and popular to take over in order to rebuild a united and peaceful party. This may even provide a very good soft landing for Governor Idris Wada as he will still be accorded a leadership status in the party and by extension in the state.  In all, the selection of a next Kogi State governor will depend more on voters’ choice than party sentiments and impunity. Nevertheless, the final decider remains God.

    ‘Any other choice aside asking Wada to step down will spell doom for the PDP because it will be a mountainous task to convince the majority of Kogi voters that PDP means well for them with Wada on the ballot’

    • Thomas wrote from Kabba, Kogi State.

  • NASS imbroglio: Beyond Saraki and Dogara

    No matter the shape and shade of a development or an experience, be it negative or positive, there is always one or two lessons to learn. It is in this context that I situate the scenes and scenarios that have been playing out at the Eighth National Assembly in Abuja, since the controversial inauguration of the august body on Tuesday, June 9.

    What brought us to this junction of confusion? The answer, which I believe many sincere and objective minds would share, is simply, the resolve of Senator Bukola Saraki, on one hand, and Honourable Yakubu Dogara, on the other, to defy the decision/directive of their political party – the All Progressives Congress (APC) – on whose platform they contested and won the National Assembly Election held on Saturday, March 28.

    The resolve of the two, to disobey the party, and consequently, the mode and manner of the election of foremost principal officers of the National Assembly – Senate President, Deputy Senate President, Speaker and Deputy Speaker House of Representatives, have thus brought us to the threshold of another constitutional crisis – party supremacy in conflict with independence of the legislature, the plank on which the duo and their supporters rests the rebellious stance against their party.

    A peep into the archives revealed that party supremacy was the main theme of the address of Chief Obafemi Awolowo to the Oyo State Conference of the defunct Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) on Saturday, November 8, 1980.  The sage, among others stated that: “…. our constitution clearly makes a registered political party the cornerstone of the activities of all the members of that party, including those of them in the legislature and the executive, as well as those of them operating outside these two organs of government. Indeed, the registered political party is the sole source from which candidates for election, and elected members of the legislature and executive, derive their lifeblood for acceptability, public status, and legitimacy…. In other words, by express provision, as well as necessary implications in the constitution, the registered political party is supreme and absolutely decisive in the conduct of our public affairs.

    “If the party is supreme, then it is simple logic that in the matter of dispute, conflict, or antithesis between the legislature and the executive, the party in power should have the last say whenever a consensus cannot be reached between them.”

    If I have my way, instead of brooding over the least expected potent elements of national dislocation and destabilization of the polity, brewing in the National Assembly, I would advocate that the development be seen as a veritable opportunity to resolve lingering interwoven issues that had bedevilled the growth and development of true and sustainable democratic culture and principles, in this land, towards firming up the loopholes often exploited by politicians for crass opportunism.

    Some of the salient issues and questions begging for answer and clarification, as well as constitutional provisions for which judicial interpretations are required to put the politicians in check and stabilize the polity, are still flying in the air.

    First, should the Clerk of the National Assembly have gone ahead with the inauguration of the Senate with half of the number of expected elected senators in attendance? Should the 10a.m indicated by the President in his letter for the Proclamation of the National Assembly be iron cast? Could it not have been taken that the event should not hold earlier than 10a.m? Would it have been unconstitutional for the clerk to exercise a measure of discretion to give some minutes of grace for the other members to come on board? If the President were to be present in person for the proclamation – like some governors did in the state – what would have happened if, for one reason or the other, he was not able to arrive at the venue at 10a.m? What would have happened if the clerk, owing to an unforeseen circumstance, was unable to arrive for the exercise at 10am?

    Should the one-third quorum Clause (Section 54. 1, of the Constitution) for decision making while the senate is in session, be validly applicable, at inauguration (when the Senate/House is not in session yet) for election of the Senate President? If as stated in Section 50 (2c) of the constitution, as amended, it would require votes of not less than two-thirds majority of the members of the House to remove the Senate President, should he have been elected by a lesser fraction of members?

    It is instructive to note that for the President to be elected, he is required, according to the constitution, to win majority of votes and not less than one-quarter of votes cast in each of at least two-thirds of all the states in the federation and the FCT (Section 134). In the same vein, as provided in Section 144 (1a) of the constitution, a resolution passed by at least, two-thirds majority of members of the Executive Council of the Federation would be required to affirm incapability of the President, and same two-thirds majority to endorse the resolution to remove the President from office – Section 143 (9) of the Constitution (as amended). Notably, in all these instances, – not less than two-thirds majority is constant and consistent. 

    The main contentious issue in the National Assembly crisis, on which so much revolves, is party supremacy. One of the requirements stated in the 1999 Constitution (as amended) for qualification for election as a member of the Senate/House of Representatives is that, the candidate shall be a member of a political party, and is sponsored by that party – Section 65 (2b). Also, as explicitly stated in Section 221 of the Constitution, “no association, other than a political party shall canvass for any candidate at any election…..” Furthermore, such political party can neither be so recognized nor function unless “a copy of its constitution is registered in the principal office of the independent national electoral commission …. “ – Section 222(c).

    In this wise, should the party constitution and its provisions not be respected by party members? Should sanctions prescribed therein for disobedience to the party constitution not be visited defiant members? In all honesty, there is the need to put the Constitution to test, to untie ambiguous knotty ends, tighten exploitable lacunas and settle issues that were not envisaged by the constitution, as was the case in the issue of tenure of governors involved in re-run elections, resolved by the Supreme Court and consequent birth of Sections 135 (2A) and 178 (2A) of the Constitution (As Amended).

    It is logical to assume that APC has been cautious in its handling of the Saraki and Co.’s matter, exercising restraint in the imposition of sanctions, as prescribed in the party constitution, for fear of the unknown. One can safely assume that Senator Saraki, Honourable Dogara and members of their group have been so emboldened, to be so brazenly defiant to the position of their party because the likely Plan B could, characteristically, be to defect to the PDP. The implications are better imagined.

    ‘’I would advocate that the development be seen as a veritable opportunity to resolve lingering interwoven issues that had bedevilled the growth and development of true and sustainable democratic culture and principles, in this land, towards firming up the loopholes often exploited by politicians for crass opportunism’

    Defection or cross-carpeting (in the language of old) has been the stock in trade of our politicians, in the present political dispensation. This immoral act of political prostitution is ventilated by the loose end provided by the questionable bile of a caveat to Section 68 (1) (g) of the constitution, that has been the bane of the stability of the polity. For the growth of the much desired truly democratic culture, there must be an end to the adventure of nectar seeking butterfly politicians, moving from flower to flower.

    • Akinyemi writes via akinyemiayo@yahoo.com
  • Saraki, Dogara: Victory as sour

    Saraki, Dogara: Victory as sour

    Sweet moments have always been but a chanced rarity in the land. Laughter is a scarce asset that dwells mostly in the mien of its seeming monopolist owners. These are but few gurus of cash and power. Power they deploy as their majesties deem fit to command and suppress the thoughts and destiny of a sprawling but less privileged majority.

    Not even the periodic sequence of post-1999 charades either masqueraded as political parties’ primary elections or general polls craftily staged to outwardly legitimize the intrinsically illegitimate – candidate anointment, imposition and selection in flagrant disregard to the extant regulations on internal democracy or national electoral laws – were least able to restore the hope of a better tomorrow to a beleaguered people until the miraculous event of December 10, 2014.

    The inaugural edition of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Primary Election, as imperfect as it might have seemed, was indeed a fortune-changer for the Nigerian citizenry. On this day, all things answereth not to the commands of dollars amongst Nigerians politicians who, for the first time ever, voted for their conscience by offering the party’ ticket to an aspirant widely reputed for his financial incapacitation. To find Nigerian politicians being bought over by the widely-acknowledged Muhamadu Buhari’s virtues of discipline, integrity and patriotism, instead of flying filthy lucre, was indeed awesome to the average citizen in whom the long-lost hope for socio-economic and political recovery of a bed-ridden nation was instantly reincarnated.

    To the naive, it was the ‘Change’ mantra of the APC that eventually endeared the party and its candidate to the electorate on March 28. Truth be told, Nigerians have long been so wizened by innumerable past broken promises of change which predated October 1, 1960 that the most conceivably beautiful rhetoric of mankind can hardly inspire them to such a gargantuan risk. The risk of defying the globally respected and efficacious wit of the Yoruba elders which admonishes thus – a Satan that enjoys long-term acquaintance is more preferable than an unknown angel. If anything, the English, being another globally respected race of witty sayings acquiesces with this West African ethnic nation in a bird in hand is worth more than a thousand in the air.

    On that epochal day at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, the open dramatization of the ‘Change’ being promised through the transparency of an open-field contest conferred irresistible admiration, affection and, ultimately, acceptance on the eventual candidate, Muhammadu Buhari, even amongst the rank and file of the then ruling party, the PDP. Yet, that APC-like risk cultivated within the PDP fold by elements disgruntled, generally, by the intra-PDP pre-election realities that were unlike the APC’s.

    Rainfall is indeed a respecter of none. Days leading to the hitherto destined February 14, therefore, turned a season of summer torrents that tormented every Nigerian soul outside the sailing Ark of Change. For the first time ever, the PDP had a cause to shiver and shudder in trepidation. Realising that every tick of the clock was an additional suppression of its own suppressive machinery by which it had always and still intended to repress the people’s wish, it stylishly caved in, forcibly snatching a sick leave to surreptitiously reinforce its tricks.

    Little did this retreating power cult know that the six-week postponement, contrived on a warped logic, would, ironically, expose it as a fallible weakling before the very crowd that, for 16 years, had dreaded it as an invincible behemoth. Regained, thus, was the long-lost sweet of the citizens which they hoped to savour from the May 29 ascension of a new order till eternity.

    Certainly, the sweetness of March 28 that begot the sugariness of May 29 was not merely the victory and ascension unto power of an opposition party but the transparency and all-inclusiveness that characterized the Presidential Election, traits that were not only reminiscent of the APC’s shadow poll, they were indeed the obvious necessities of the post-poll concession offered by the then incumbent President to the delight of all and sundry.

    But, alas! Just some few days after, specifically on June 9, some symptoms of the supposedly exiled politricks reappeared on the floor of our ‘hallowed’ chambers to once again, sour my people’s sweet, probably indelibly.

    Let no one engage in self-delusion that the Nigerian masses perceive the new Senate President, Senator Bukola Saraki, and House of Representatives, Hon, Yakubu Dogara, as products of the much-beloved democracy. Rather, to many a Nigerian, the twosome is but offspring of loathed democrazy, who crafted treachery to score off-side goals.

    Truly, what aches the masses is far from what pains the politicians. That Saraki and Dogara defied their party ranks low in the people’s scale of concern. After all, it’s no new reality under the Nigerian sun, going by the anti-party emergence of Tambuwal which actually delighted and, ultimately, benefitted the masses.

    Salient, here, is the line between the Tambuwal episode and the Saraki-Dogara drama. Critically viewed from the perspectives of the masses on whose behalf political actions or inactions are supposed to be contrived and implemented, the former is never a justifying antecedent for the latter.

    Tambuwal’s emergence was never divisive or conspiratorial, as it was engineered by an unprecedented breaking of barrier of partisanship by lawmakers, across party lines, who spoke with one voice to elect their leader. Since Tambuwal never spited his party, the PDP, with negotiated reliance on the then relatively huge strength of the opposition APC, he has entered the Guinness Book of Records as the first Nigerian Fourth Republic Speaker with an uninterrupted tenure.

    Worse-still, Saraki and Dogara with their staunch promoters within and outside the APC have, so far, failed to realise that growing popular resentment and venom against prolonged misrule by the former ruling party was the secret beneath the masses’ delight that greeted every misadventure or misfortune of the PDP, as illustrated in the Tambuwal 2011 rebellion. They also missed it, as they failed to recognize the invaluably facilitative role played by such popular anti-PDP sentiments in the eventual defeat of the erstwhile indefatigable.

    And, what is, perhaps, most unpleasant and, probably, unforgivable to the masses is that Saraki and Dogara’s victories have come with a back-door restoration of power to the cult which the long oppressed and suppressed people had not only perceived as the source of their woes but which they had prayed, fasted and deployed their constitutional sovereignty to crush in the last polls.

    As it stands, Nigerians are not unaware that, with the present configuration in our bicameral parliament, the legislative capacity of the PDP to launch a vengeful and anti-people war to reclaim their lost asset, rather than voting to aid the change that Nigerians expect from the new administration, has just been boosted. Boosted not by the twosome’s victories but by their messy manner, since posterity was already waiting close-by to exalt, particularly, Saraki, if, at that crucial moment he had opted for heroism by pushing for a considerable delay of proceedings or rejecting the nomination in honour of his absent APC colleagues. At least, we were all living witnesses to frequent delays in general elections, which were nevertheless held sacrosanct by our Temple of Justice.

    Soiling the mood of the citizenry at a rare moment of great and sweet expectations; reversing the positive background setting of those who would make laws for Nigerians in the next four years, who have been thus polarised into warring camps by the resultant discord; and, returning Nigeria’s global perception to the low and infamous level which it was just about exiting. In these and listless other sour points lies the disservice that Saraki and Dogara’s selfish victories have done to themselves and the nation, at large.  

    • Olokode, a media consultant, writes from Ikeja, Lagos

  • NDIC: Feeling the pulse of Nigeria’s economy

    ncreasingly, analysts and the Nigerian public are looking up to the annual report of the Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) to grasp the true situation of the nation’s economy, especially from the perspective of the banking sector. The 2014 report is out and remains as pungent as ever. Knowing how its report has become critical in decision-making, NDIC expectedly attaches much importance to the report.

    Ideas are only interesting if they lead to results. The idea of deposit insurance in Nigeria is blossoming year after year. The overall verdict of the 2014 annual report pronounces a positive outlook of the economy:  “The banking industry performance and level of soundness in 2014 indicated that 23 Deposit Management Banks (DMBs) were rated sound and satisfactory; only one DMB was rated marginal during the period under review. Overall the banking industry was safe and sound in 2014” – the report asserts.

    The barely two-month old administration of President Muhammadu Buhari is very likely to welcome the report for the assurance that the administration has not much to worry about in the fundamentals. So he’ll be able to concentrate his energies on tackling corruption and other financial crimes. He will do well to give special attention to the cyber variant of financial crime that has reared its ugly head in the banking sector. As the report shows, a whopping N6.2 billion was lost by depositors and banks in 2014 to cyber crimes with the majority of cases related to internet banking and ATM scams. According to the report, the total number of such scams grew astronomically from 3,786 cases in 2013, to 10,612 cases in 2014. While it involved about ¦ 25.61billion in 2014 (compared to N21.80billion the previous year), the actual loss was N6.19 billion.

    This is obviously a worrying signal that has the potential to erode the confidence of account holders and scare away those yet to enter the banking net. Nigeria, with 170 million population, has only about 28.5 million adult bank accounts holders. In February 2014 the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) introduced Bank Verification Numbers (BVNs), an initiative which obliges customers to do biometric registration and obtain a unique number for proper identification, which is part of measures to stem bank account fraud. By the end of June when the deadline for obtaining the number expired, only around 12 million account holders had complied.

    On a positive note, the report reveals that total loans and advances granted by banks across the country climbed from ¦ 10.04 trillion in 2013 to ¦ 12.63 trillion in 2014. The report is however quick to point that, despite significant improvements in banking industry’s asset quality, the volume of non-performing loans rose from ¦ 321.66 billion in 2013 to ¦ 354.84bn in 2014. But it allays any fears by stating that the ratio of the bad debts to total loans is within the regulatory threshold of five percent. Accordingly “all the DMBs in the industry had liquidity ratios in excess of the minimum prudential requirement of 30 per cent, as at 31st December 2014, indicating that all DMBs were sufficiently liquid”, the report says.

    The NDIC, as part of its mandate, carried out the risk assessment of all deposit banks in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria to provide reliable information on the banks’ risk assets quality, adequacy of loan loss provisioning and capital adequacy positions. And the result is something quiet promising: the assessment reveals that 15 banks have  ”high” and “above average” composite risk rating, while eight others had “low” and “moderate” rating, showing their level of compliance with banking rules and regulations, their risk appetite and the adequacy of their risk management frameworks.

    Credit risk, one of the many types of risks banks are exposed to, has a significant impact on the profitability of Nigerian banks. Therefore, while on the one hand the regulatory bodies (CBN, NDIC etc.) need to be cautious in setting up a credit policy that might negatively affect profitability,  on the other hand, the banks’ boards also need to know how credit policy affects the operation of their banks to ensure judicious utilisation of deposits. After all, approaches to risk management in general have changed across organisations and the whole world in recent times, as economists have observed. This necessitates  the recognition by many business leaders that risks are no longer mere hazards to be avoided – they also, in many cases, constitute opportunities to be embraced.

    This balancing act can be seen in the result of the report on credit distributions in the 2014 NDIC annual report. The report said the oil and gas sector led the banking industry sectoral credits distribution, accounting for 25.74% of the top 10 of 22 sectors of the economy that accounted for 87.35% of total credits, compared with 81.99% in the previous year.  The manufacturing sector was next with 13.19%, while the other sectors accounted for 12.65%, as against 18.01% of the total credits extended by the DMBs in 2013.

    NDIC’s achievements in the financial sector also include the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between it and the Poland-based Bank Guarantee Fund (BFG) in 2014. The issues included cooperation around Cross Border Supervision; Cross Border Resolution Colleges; Early Warning Models and Macro Prudential policy etc. Similarly, the World Bank granted technical assistance to the NDIC for development of Target Fund Ratio Framework. The assistance will enable the NDIC determine adequacy of its Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF) as well as address the deficiencies identified during the 2011 assessment of its compliance with the International Association of Deposit Insurers (IADI) Core Principles for effective Deposit Insurance System (DIS).

    At the regional level NDIC is in the forefront of the effort to articulate a collective vision for the continent. This was displayed at the Kenya meeting of the African Mobile Phone Financial Service Policy Initiative (AMPI) roundtable on the future of mobile phone financial services in Africa. Clearly, this is a fast growing area of e-commerce that needs effective regulation, especially with the vulnerability of the web-based platforms. With the speed at which telecommunication is evolving and breaking barriers to sharing information and accelerating collaboration across different markets, the role of regulatory bodies has become, more than ever before, imperative and urgent.

    The report also reminds the public of the state of the NDIC’s efforts at seeking the bill for the repeal and re-enactment of the NDIC Act 2006, which was pending before the just concluded 7th National Assembly and had scaled through second reading and was subjected to public hearing. One of the major issues contained in the proposed amendment is granting the NDIC power to pay insured amounts to depositors in the event of imminent or actual suspension of payment by an insured institution before the revocation of its licence. This is to forestall legal actions such as the ones shareholders of Fortune International Bank Plc. and Triumph Bank Limited instituted challenging the revocation of their licences, which is still pending in court.

    The bill generated unnecessary furore from unsuspecting quarters last year. But the 8th National Assembly needs to urgently look at the bill with a view to giving it speedy consideration, in view of the need to bolster the powers of the NDIC to carry on with its enormous work of protecting depositors by providing an orderly means of compensation in event of failure of insured financial institutions in line with international best practice. Surely, NDIC contributes to the financial stability of the economy through its function of assisting monetary institutions in formulating and implementing banking policy. It has a lot to achieve if given the correct measure of power. Its annual report is now the stethoscope the public confidently uses to take the pulse of the banking sector.

  • Keeping faith with Buhari’s pace

    While addressing some Nigerians in Diaspora in the course of his recent visit to the United States of America, President Muhammadu Buhari revealed that he was aware that some Nigerians are already becoming impatient with the perceived ‘slow’ pace of his government. He even informed his audience that some Nigerians now refer to him as ‘Baba go slow’. He, however, pledged that irrespective of his countrymen’s initial misgivings about his style of governance, his government would not disappoint the people.

    In reality, no one should begrudge Nigerians about their early distrust of the Buhari administration. Really, these are not the best of time for our beloved fatherland. The economy is currently in a comatose. The nation’s foreign reserve has been recklessly depleted. To worsen things, with the continued somersaulting of the naira, inflation and unemployment are at an all-time high. Indeed, one would not be missing the point if one should assert that the Nigerian economy is in shambles. The decline in the global price of oil has continued to deal a devastating blow on the Nigerian economy.

    With major consumers of our crude oil such as the United States and Britain now looking elsewhere to source for their oil needs, we have had to cut down on our daily crude production.  The reality of our awful economy situation is already biting hard on almost every facet of our national life. Lots of the States in the federation are almost grounded economically with some having difficulties paying workers’ wages.   Presently, aside the various federal government agencies and parastatals that are being owed various degrees of salaries and emoluments, about twenty State governments owe workers salaries ranging between seven and two months salaries while some have resorted to paying their workers half salaries.

    Aside the poor state of the economy and its devastating effects on Nigerians, the fuel situation remains largely unchanged as access to this all important product remains restricted to most Nigerians. In the few places where the product is available, it is being sold in very exorbitant prices.  In Lagos, motorists, commuters and others have continued to groan under the heavy yoke of fuel scarcity. From all indications, this particular occurrence might take a bit longer before it subsides as the Buhari government is yet to come out with any clear cut policy direction on local fuel consumption. The current fuel situation has, undoubtedly, brought untold hardship to many Nigerians. A major by product of crude oil, the availability of petroleum is crucial to the continuous survival of the country’s economy as factories, companies, industries and, indeed, homes hugely rely on accessibility to this product, on a daily basis. In essence, its non availability could spell doom for the local economy considering the not too reliable state of public electricity.

    The security situation is not getting any better either. Insurgency in the north –eastern part of the country is gaining a new momentum. Rather than diminished, the devilish activities of the Boko Haram group have gained astonishing impetus in recent time. Indeed, there is a renewed Boko Haram offensive in Yobe, Gombe, Bauchi and other northern states of the country as the group now strikes with disgusting audacity. According to reports, the “godless” and “mindless” group has killed close to 500 people within the few months of the Buhari administration. Nothing seems to deter them from perpetrating their dastardly act. For churches, mosques, schools and many other hapless Nigerians, the fear of Boko Haram is now the beginning of wisdom.

    From all indications, our beloved country is certainly passing through tough times. Many Nigerians are becoming frustrated that things are not getting any better as they would want it to be. It is, therefore, quite logical that some Nigerians are not satisfied with what they have termed the ‘slow pace’ of the Buhari government. Those who hold this view readily points to the inability of the

    Some of them based their reasoning on the inability of the President to form his cabinet after almost two months in office. Others also fault him for not coming out to make categorical policy statements on the agonizing fuel situation and other such critical aspects of the nation’s life. Many also claimed that he is foot-dragging on the issue of prosecuting perceived corrupt political leaders.

    While it is apt for Nigerians to express their reservations concerning the ‘slow pace’ of the Buhari administration, it is, however, important for all and sundry to keep faith with the government. Nigerians need to bear in mind that the rot in the Nigerian nation s too deep rooted to be taken care of within a few weeks of the Buhari administration. Almost every institution in the country has been dealt a fatal blow by years of poor governance and bad planning. To properly correct the rot in the system and put the comatose economy in good shape would, therefore, require lots of meticulous and painstaking strategizing on behalf of the government. In his Eid-el- Fitr, message to Nigerians, President Buhari clearly agreed that there are daunting challenges facing the country but at the same time emphasised that “we must do things well and carefully to ensure that the great opportunity which we now have is not lost to the “business as usual” group who selfishly or shortsightedly prefer a status quo that panders to their personal or group interests”.

    One thing that would definitely assist Buhari in his mission to rebuild the country, which past Nigerian leaders did not have in sufficient measure, is his integrity. Integrity remains Buhari’s best selling point. Among Nigerian leaders, past and present, Buhari is renowned for his anti corruption stance and honesty of purpose. He is one Nigerian who has seen it all as far as occupying privileged public positions is concerned. He  had been military Head of State, Minister of Petroleum Resources, Governor of old Borno state  and Chairman of the Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF), which was then the cash basket of the country. However, there has not been even an accusation of him using those positions to corruptly enrich himself. This is quite extraordinary in a country where people see public service as a means to an end.

    Through his handling of State affairs so far, the President has come through as a meticulous leader. What we owe him is to keep faith with his style of governance. Our present sorry state as a nation is partly a culmination of the previous cabinets, policies and programmes that were hurriedly put in place by successive administrations. Hence, we need to patiently trust Buhari’s cautious and painstaking style of government. According to Greek philosopher and critic, Aristotle, “patience is bitter but its fruit is sweeter” God bless Nigeria!

     

    • Ogunbiyi is of the Features Unit, Ministry of Information and Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja.
  • The phones no longer ring

    The phones no longer ring

    As spokesman to President Goodluck Jonathan, my phones rang endlessly and became more than personal navigators within the social space. They defined my entire life; dusk to dawn, all year-round. The phones buzzed non-stop, my email was permanently active; my twitter account received tons of messages per second. The worst moments were those days when there was a Boko Haram attack virtually every Sunday.

    Theintrusion into my private life was total as my wife complained about her sleep being disrupted by phones that never seemed to stop ringing. Besides, whenever I was not checking or responding to the phones, I was busy online trying to find out if the APC had said something contrarian or some other fellow was up to any mischief. A media manager in the 21st century is a slave of the Breaking News, a slave particularly of the 24-hour news cycle, and a potential nervous breakdown case. DeboAdesina, my colleague at The Guardian once said I was running a “one week, one trouble schedule”. There were actually moments when trouble knocked on the door every hour, and duty required my team and I to respond to as many issues that came up.

    Top of the task list was the management of phone calls related to the principal.In my first week on the job, for example, one of my phones ran out of battery and I had taken the liberty to charge it. While it was still in the off mode, the “Control Room”: the all-powerful communications centre at the State House tried to reach me. They had only just that phone number, so I couldn’t be reached. When eventually they did, the fellow at the other end was livid.

    “SA Media, where are you? We have been trying to reach you. Mr President wants to speak with you”

    “Sorry, I was charging my phone.  The phone was off.”

    “Sir, you can’t switch off your phone now. Mr President must be able to reach you at any time. You must always be available.”  I was like: “really? Which kin job be dis?”

    The Control Room eventually collected all my phone numbers. If I did not pick up a call on time, they called my wife. Sometimes the calls came directly from the Residence, as we referred to the President’s official quarters.

    “Abati, Ogadey call you!”

    If I still could not be reached, every phone that was ever connected to me would ring non-stop. Busy bodies who had just picked up the information that Abati was needed also often took it upon themselves to track me down. My wife soon got used to her being asked to produce me, or a car showing up to take me straight to the Residence. I eventually got used to it too, and learnt to remain on duty round-the-clock.  In due course, President Jonathan himself would call directly. My wife used to joke that each time there was a call from him, even if I was sleeping, I would spring to my feet andwithout listening to what he had to say, I would start with a barrage of “Yes sirs”! Other calls that could not be joked with were calls from my own office. Something could come up that would require coverage, or there could be a breaking story, or it could be something as harmless as office gossip, except that in the corridors of power, nothing is ever harmless.Looking back now, I still can’t figure out how I survived that onslaught of the terror of the telephone.

         Of equal significance were the calls from journalists who wanted clarifications on issues of the moment, or the President’s opinion. I don’t need to remind anyone who lived in Nigeria during the period, that we had a particularly interesting time. The Jonathan government had to deal from the very first day with a desperate and hyper-negative opposition, which gained help from a crowd of naysayers who bought into their narrative. I was required to respond to issues. Bad news sells newspapers and attracts listeners/viewers. Everything had to be managed.  You knew something had happened as the phones rang, and the text messages, emails, twitter comments poured in. The media could not be ignored. Interfacing with every kind of journalist was my main task.  I learnt many lessons,  a subject for another day.  And the busy bodies didn’t make things easy.

    If in 1980, the media manager had to deal with print and broadcast journalists, today, the big task is the dilemma of the over-democratization of media practice in the age of information. The question used to be asked in Nigerian media circles: who is a journalist? Attempts were subsequently made to produce a register of professionals but that is now clearly an illusion. The media of the 21st Century is the strongest evidence we have for the triumph of democracy. Everybody is a journalist now, once you can purchase a phone or a laptop, or an ipad and you can take pictures, set up a blog, or go on instagram, linked-in, viber etc.

         All kinds of persons have earned great reputation as editors andopinion influencers on social media where you don’t have to make sense to attract followers. The new stars and celebrities are not necessarily the most educated or knowledgeable, but those who, with 140 words or less, or with a picture or a borrowed quote, can produce fast-food type public intellectualism, or can excite with a little display of the exotic -Kadarshian, Nicki Minaj style.  But I was obligated to attend to all calls. The ones who didn’t receive an answer complained about Abati not picking their calls.

    My defence was that most editors in Nigeria have correspondents in the State House. Every correspondent had access to me. There was no way I could be accused of not picking calls, and in any case, there were other channels: instagram, twitter direct message, email, and media assistantswho could interface with me. But this was the main challenge: while in public office, people treat you as if you are at their mercy, they threaten to sabotage you and get you sacked, every phone call was a request with a price attached,you get clobbered; you are treated like you had committed a crime to serve your nation. Relatives and privileged kinsmen struggled with you to do the job – media management is that one assignment in which everyone is an expert even if their only claim to relevance is that they once had an uncle who was a newspaper vendor!

    The thinking that anyone who opts to serve is there to make money in that famous arena for primitive accumulation partly accounts for this. And that takes me to those phone calls from persons who solicited for financial help as if there was a tree at the Villa that produced money. Such people would never believe that government officials don’t necessarily have access to money. They wanted to be assisted: to pay school fees, to settle medical bills, to build a house, purchase a car, complete an uncompleted building, or link them up with the President. Everybody wanted a part of the national cake and they thought a phone call was all they needed.  If you offered any explanation, they reminded you that you’d be better off on the lecture circuit. Businessmen also hovered around the system like bees around nectar.

    But what to do? “Volenti non fit injuria,” the principle says.  There were also calls from the unkind lot. “I have called you repeatedly, you did not pick my calls. I hope you know that you will leave government one day!”.  Or those who told you point blank that they were calling because you were in the position as their representative and that you owed them a living.  Or that other crowd who said, “it is our brother that has given you that opportunity, you must give us our share!”

    The Presidential election went as it did, and everything changed. Days after,  State House became Ghost House. The Residence, which used to receive visitors as early as 6 am, (regular early morning devotion attendees) became quiet. The throng of visitors stopped. The number of phone calls began to drop. By May 29, my phones had stopped ringing as they used to. They more or less became museum pieces; their silence reminding me of the four years of my life that proved so momentous. On one occasion, after a whole day of silence, I had to check if the phones were damaged! As it were, a cynical public relates to you not as a person, but as the office you occupy; the moment you leave office, the people move on; erasing every memory, they throw you into yesterday’s dustbin.  Opportunism is the driver of the public’s relationship with public officials.

     Today, the phones remain loudly silent, with the exception of calls from those friends who are not gloating, who have been offering words of commendation and support. They include childhood friends, former colleagues,elderly associates, fans, and family members. And those who want interviews with President Jonathan, both local and international – they want his reaction on every development, so many of them from every part of the planet. But he is resting and he has asked me to say he is not ready yet to say anything. It is truly, a different moment, and indeed, “no condition is permanent.”

    The ones who won’t give up with the stream of phone calls and text messages are those who keep pestering me with requests for financial assistance. I am made to understand that there is something called “special handshake” and that everyone who goes into government is supposed to exit with carton loads of cash. I am in no position to assist such people, because no explanation will make sense to them. Here I am, at the crossroads; I am glad to be here.

    • Abati was Special Adviser Media and Publicity to former President Goodluck Jonathan

  • Oyeweso: Bold imprints of a scholar and teacher

    The ink of the scholar is more sacred than the blood of the martyr. – Prophet Muhammad

     It was the Scottish historian and essayist Thomas Carlyle (1795 – 1881) who once said: “No great man lives in vain. The history of the world is but the biography of great men.”

    Carlyle’s thoughts above wouldn’t have meant anything save for the fact that it was to tell the significant essence of great men in any society. His argument based on that great work of history On Heroes, Hero-Worship, and the Heroic in History was premised on the fact that the rise of world civilisation we know today was but the actions of heroes. Heroes are great men who did extraordinary things and have always had their names ingrained on the sands of time.

    I was a pioneer student at the Ikire Campus of Osun State University, Osogbo (UNIOSUN) at its take-off in 2007. I took a risk to sought admission in a new and yet unknown university despite having been admitted to one of the older universities in Ondo State. A new university that claimed to have mounted world class facilities, deployed first class academics, one of the brightest governing councils and senate, permanent structures across six campuses or colleges among others, to hit the ground running seemed to me a university that really means business in an age of decay in that sector.. After a very rigorous post-UME test, I resumed sometime in September as a student of English and International Studies.

    Few weeks after we started receiving lectures, I and about 30 others in the same class were moved to the Department of History and International Studies. I had queried the rationale behind this forced movement from my choice course of study to another unfamiliar terrain. This would bring me on a collision course with the pioneer Provost, Ikire Campus of UNIOSUN, one Professor Siyan Abdul-Gafar Oyeweso. All pleas to allow me return to my previous department proved abortive. He would, however, keep saying that I will one day come back to appreciate him for sending me to the Department of History and International Studies rather than my preferred choice.

    Prof. Oyeweso’s firm grasp of diverse fields of study in the humanities was a blessing to us students. This he brought to bear in all of his classes. Beyond the classroom, Prof Oyeweso meant a lot to many of us. He was a mentor and strict disciplinarian. He never condoned disrespect to authority or acts of indolence. He created channels for students to express their grievances. For instance, The Student Colloquium, the brainchild he always anchored held at least once every semester. It provided a platform for interaction and debate, in the absence of a student union at the time, between staff and students on a wide range of issues bothering us. This type of engagement lacking in most universities today, helped a great deal to resolve disputes and give room for crisis-free academic sessions while my studentship lasted.

    I could recall how he always impressed it on us that education and character go hand in hand without which a student remained superficial. Many of us today have exhibited in our different places of work and everyday life such simple life lessons which we mostly owe to him.

    The cordial relationship that existed between town and gown in Ikire led to student’s patronage of the emergent landlords in town and also helped in boosting the economy of the town. This was made possible by the unique networking skills of Prof. Oyeweso in engaging the different strata of Ikire town. Between 2008/2009 and 2009/2010 sessions, we embarked on educational trips to Ghana aimed at exposing us to the tourist and historical sites like the popular Elmina castle. Prof. Oyeweso, who initiated the trips, felt beyond the theoretical narrations in class, we needed to see some of these monuments and historical sites.

    It was believed by many that as a new university, we may never get the much needed accreditation by the NUC. Prof. Oyeweso, being a positive minded person and a goal-getter, hit the ground running. Between my first semester and the last, we were under the tutelage of first class scholars drawn from Nigeria’s first generation and Ivy-League universities abroad. We had international scholars like Insa Nolte of Centre for West African Studies, University of Birmingham, Regina Williams from Cleveland State University, USA; Vincent Harribaren from University of Leeds, Jendele Hungbo from University of Witwatersrand, South Africa, Chidozie Okoro from University of Cape Coast, Ghana and Dr. Akin Oyetade, School of Oriental and African Studies, London. Back home, we had the rare privilege of drawing from the fountain of knowledge of such outstanding scholars as Professors Akinjide Osuntokun, Femi Osofisan, Ayodeji Olukoju, Biola Odejide, Diji Aina, Charles Quacker Dokubo and Kunle Lawal (late), Victor Osaro Edo and Mallam Yusuf Ali (SAN). While some came to deliver lectures and seminars to whet our academic appetite, others remained for as much as two to three sessions, teaching and giving us the best on offer.

    With such rich calibre of scholars assembled in Ikire Campus, and the solid structures in place, the College was given full accreditation of its four Programmes in June 2010 by the NUC accreditation team who were very much impressed by what they saw and met on ground. It was remarkable that Ikire Campus was the only College out of the six campuses of UNIOSUN to attain that feat in the 2010 accreditation exercise. This was possible due to the personal sacrifice and painstaking efforts of the Provost, Prof. Oyeweso and the support of the Management and Staff. It is noteworthy that without this accreditation, 92 out of the original 115 pioneer students of the College would not have served in the 2011 national youth service programme.

    There is a bold imprint of Prof. Oyeweso’s immense contributions to the growth and development of not only Ikire Campus, but UNIOSUN as a whole that cannot be wished away. As one of its founding fathers, he helped built the university from the scratch and turned it into an enviable university that continues to grow in leaps and bounds today. His penchant for academic excellence and love for the university has yielded outstanding achievements and legacies that include the construction of 25 offices, 88 toilets, 2 libraries, Provost’s Chalet, 6-Room Studio Apartments, a building dedicated to ICT, 120-seater hall, a Language Laboratory, Communication Studio, one 300-seater library and a twin Lecture Theatre.

    Also, Prof. Oyeweso with staff of the university initiated a number of co-curricular cum educational programmes like Students Inter-Collegiate Competitions (debate, essay writing and football) which Ikire Campus won at all levels and helped set up social organisations like Ikire Creative Arts Club, Ikire Campus Joint Press Club, UNIOSUN Cultural Troupe, Ikire end of year get-together among others. Interestingly, Prof. Oyeweso chaired the Committee that produced the UNIOSUN Anthem.

    One could go on and on, however, one of the most enduring legacies of Prof. Oyeweso is the mentorship he provided most of us even after graduation. While some of us, after our compulsory service year, went on to work in both public and private sectors of the economy, others pursued one form of postgraduate degree programmes or the other. It is instructive to note that Ikire Campus was the first College after the graduation of the university’s pioneer set to produce its first Masters Degree holder in person of Miss Oluwafisayo Fatima Abdul, a 2011 graduate of English and International Studies, Ikire Campus who bagged an M.A in Global Media and Communication at the Coventry University, United Kingdom in 2013. After this enviable feat, other alumnus of the College has also graduated in one course or the other, in universities both in Nigeria and abroad. This writer intends to enrol for his PhD this year.

     Today, I work as a highly rated publicist for a multi-billion dollar oil and gas company in Abuja. I had studied History, why would I be working as a publicist, people may ask? The answer to this is not far-fetched. Apart from diverse knowledge historians are known to exhibit, studying under the tutelage and mentorship of Professor Siyan Oyeweso was a rare privilege. Prof. Oyeweso’s style of imparting academic knowledge in his students is refreshingly different. It was his affective teaching method and unique professorial touch lacking today in most Nigerian universities that made us proud and respected historians.

    Wherever we are today, we owe our success largely to UNIOSUN and the diverse number of teaching and non-teaching staff that dot the university during our sojourn in the university who moulded us to be able to hold our shoulders high anywhere. If the success of Ikire campus is now been talked about with a sense of pride, it is because few people took the pain to drive it to where it is today and the sacrifices of these forerunners should not be in vain. Rather than being vilified, they should be appreciated. Thomas Carlyle was right when he said no great man lives in vain. For us, Prof. Oyeweso is a both a great scholar and an extraordinary human being.

    Raheem Oluwafunminiyi, 08181284595, creativitysells@gmail.com

  • As Bayelsa woos investors

    When business leaders, investors, technocrats and allied stakeholders meet next week in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, for the second edition of the state’s Investment and Economic Forum, the attention would be on critical perspectives on economic diversification and the burning quest for industrialization in the state. It is also an auspicious time for the state government to brief the august gathering on its score card since the maiden edition last year, particularly on the investments generated and future possibilities.

    It has to be stated that the forum initiative is a commendable one which takes into account the nation’s vulnerable over-dependence on oil as its economic mainstay and the fact that the Bayelsa State government had been in the forefront of economic diversification before the current clamour for such idea as an inevitable course of action if Nigeria must survive now or in the future.

    But the challenge we face in economic development drive over the years is not that of policy but a decisive action plan to practically demonstrate our resolve to walk the talk and actualize our dream of economic viability with serious interest in an inclusive industrialization which is critical to the existence of a productive economy and thus effectively tackling the problem of job creation.

    This seems to be the fresh perspective which the Bayelsa State government is bringing into the mix of a calculated paradigm shift in addressing the inherent issues in economic development through an aggressive drive to woo serious investors to the state and ensuring a clement environment to do business with generous incentives.

    At a dinner with business executives in Lagos last week, the state Commissioner for Trade, Industry and Investment, Kemela Okara, brought the various issues and dimensions to the fore by explaining the difference which his ministry is making in making the investment landscape attractive to investors and the mutual benefits accruable to all parties. He reviewed the progress made from the maiden outing which drew over 800 participants as an avenue to showcase the investment opportunities in the state and the encouraging responses by notable investors who have already signed MoUs with the government to begin business in the state while further intensifying the clarion call for many others to come on board.

    However, in the second edition which holds from July 29 – 31, the focus, Okara said, would be to leverage on the success it had recorded by sensitizing investors to the major business areas where the state has comparative advantage like oil and gas, agriculture and power generation. The commissioner predicated the success of investment in these areas on the availability of raw materials and infrastructure, stating, for instance, that Bayelsa has the largest deposit of natural gas in the country and why power generation is being recommended to investors as a strategic move and great opportunity to add about 5,000 – 10,000 mw of power to the national grid, thereby adding fillip to the quest to transform the national economy. Okara also noted the huge potential in mechanized farming in the state with all the natural endowments as major incentives, especially in oil palm and rice processing, stressing that this is the reason why the government is bringing together large scale farmers to tap into the huge potentials which some investors are already exploiting as a lucrative business in the state.

    Yet the cornerstone of the on-going economic diversification in the state will have so much to do with industrialization. Conscious of the challenges, the state government, Okara said, will be selling the idea of its Eco Industrial Park (EPI) to the would be investors at the business summit. The EPI, as conceived by the government, is fashioned as world class 21st century model that can realistically meet the basic inter-related manufacturing needs of industrial concerns with the targets in chemical and pharmaceuticals, domestic and industrial plastics, rubber, wood and wood products, electrical and electronics, non-metallic mineral products, pulp and paper products and other manufacturing activities. Of significant value would also be the urea fertilizer plant which is being developed by the state government which Okara said would benefit those core investors who could key into its major facets of development and a major component of the nation’s agricultural needs with huge market and quite a lucrative investment. Real estate is also not left out which will place emphasis on both residential and commercial. Interestingly, some clever investors seem to be appreciating the message of the economic progress and possibilities in the state by signing MoUs with the government for business take-off including the N20 billion Kesio Building Materials Market which has about 500 stalls to create a cluster for people in the real estate just as others are participating in power generation, pharmaceuticals, telecoms, agriculture and ICT.

    This year’s edition of the business parley which has “Unfolding Bayelsa State’s Industrial Future”, Okara also informed the Lagos gathering, has attracted the participation of major private sector players like Shell Development Company, Okomu Oil Palm, PrescoPlc and Olam, among others.

    Although wooing investors is a normal step many governments have taken in the past, the difference in the Bayelsa foray is what the drivers of the initiative regard as the practical demonstration of the will to excel and help prospective investors actualize their business ideas and models in the state. The inter-related issues in this regard were well addressed by Okara when business executives and investors engaged him at the Lagos pre-event dinner, asking pertinent questions not just about the availability of natural resources but also on the critical support they hope could get from the government.

    These are very germane topics but which Okara answered by informing and assuring his audience that the Bayelsa State Government under the watch of Governor Seriake Dickson in the last three years had in addition to having invested massively in infrastructure, also worked tirelessly to create an enabling environment of stability, created institutional framework, legal structures and built relevant skills through manpower development. The major interest of government in the development of SMEs was also underscored by the disbursement of hundreds of millions of naira till date.  Thus economic diversification and industrialization had all along been in the front-burner of government economic policy which among other incentives would also encourage serious investors in the state with tax holidays and attractive Public-Private Partnership models.

    • Nnamdi wrote from Lagos.