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  • Questions Ladoja refuses to answer

    Immensely dislike it when someone self-titles himself without reflecting on the nuances of that appellation. Our politicians are most guilty of this. Many politicians blissfully preen when called “godfathers” while joyfully oblivious that the pejorative term is actually derogatory. Among several other titles now flying in our political space is “the issue.” Oyo State’s former Governor, Senator Rasidi Ladoja recently gave this new word a fresh meaning in the dynamics surrounding his latest quest to become the state’s governor again.

    Now, about Senator Ladoja. In my observance of Oyo State’s political terrain before now, I found him excitedly refreshing, especially during his infamous tug-of-war with late Lamidi Adedibu during the latter’s halcyon days of single-handedly bearing Oyo’s political fortunes in his pocket. I felt Ladoja’s doggedness and grace under pressure during those trying times marked him as a progressive worthy of favourable continued scrutiny.

    But, the same feat which should have earned Ladoja national greatness, heralds his personal tragedy. Maybe, those incidents which led to his impeachment and ostracisation within his former party apparently aged his spirit, stunted his mindset and failed to broaden his outlook. Since his removal from the gubernatorial chambers, he has not convincingly articulated the formerly-noticed endearing virtues that were associated with him. Bit-by-bit, Ladoja has become ensnared in undesirable traits which he accuses the opposition of.

    This new Ladoja is glaring in the volley of exchanges between him and incumbent Governor Abiola Ajimobi. The exchanges reveal the former governor’s readiness to stumble over the pits of infamy in order to join the ranks of destructive critics of the governor. This is especially buttressed by his evasiveness in pointedly answering questions posed to him by a group called Oodua Truth Seekers in an advertorial published in a national daily on February 17.

    The group query is straightforward and unequivocal. Some of the questions posed at him are as follows: “Can he tell the people of Oyo State what actually destroyed Trans International Bank (TIB), the only bank with headquarters in Oyo State, owned by indigenes of the state, thereby throwing thousands into the unemployment market? Did his government actually move Oyo State funds out of TIB and into First City Monument Bank Plc. (FCMB)? Does he remember Tola Duro-Ladipo, Dr. Shehu Ladoja, a driver and four policemen who died in an accident involving his convoy? Did he not drive straight to the Governor’s Office, even when the accident occurred, with the dead still swathed in their pool of blood and the injured writhing in pain? Did he wait after the accident that involved the latter to sympathise with and get help to save the lives of these aides of his? Was there a spiritual dimension to these deaths? Did he not abandon the families to their fates? These questions are too simple to warrant an evasion. Once he gives his answers, he would be free in the court of public opinion which thinks otherwise.

    Initially, I viewed Oodua Truth Seeker’s questions as one of the extremes of politicking in our clime. But, that idea became obliterated upon recalling that democracy’s elegance best shines during challenging moments like this as the wheels of political juggernauts criss-cross plains and valleys in scouring for the highest percentage of votes to secure power. Moreover, the public is afforded the chance to know salacious details of wheeling and dealings in quaint demonstrations of freedom of expression which, apart from titillating the masses on the happenings behind the shadowy power curtains, also shapes their voting choices during elections, the ultimate demonstration of expression.

    On that basis, I, alongside many other political watchers, waited with tense expectation for Ladoja’s swift and unapologetic answers to the group’s queries, especially as they are damning enough to hurt his current gubernatorial ambition.

    It never came. Instead, Ladoja responded through the simultaneously-timed issuance of a press release and advertorial. The press release described Oodua Truth Seeker’s advertorial as a “farago of lies and malicious doctoring of facts” and the advertorial introduces Ladoja’s self-title as “the issue” in Oyo politics. What manner of issue? “The issue” that Oyo stakeholders rather want as the recurring decimal is the continuing provision of affordable and qualitative education, sustainable health reforms, employment opportunities, good infrastructure and security. Calling himself “the issue” in order to score cheap political points insults Oyo people’s sensibilities. Nigerians generally have suffered so much and have been betrayed frequently often by those in whom they repose the strongest confidence, that it is natural that they should be suspicious of any whiff of wrongdoing.

    Probably, Ladoja sees himself as “the issue” for, according to him, embarking on road constructions and renovating classrooms eight years ago. But, Ladoja need know that government is a continuum; if he addresses some sectors, subsequent government would not duplicate efforts in focusing on such areas again. Rather, successive administrations would examine new challenges to address. Since Ladoja said his administration tackled all that effectively, it is imperative that Ajimobi tackles areas which the former senator failed to work on, like healthcare reforms.

    However, whatever records Ladoja recorded in office is inadequate reasons for discountenancing answering these latest accusations because the dowry of genius is not limited to Ladoja’s administration. In his advertorial, his Man Friday said “he is a man much loved by the people.” So, Ladoja should abandon this Robin Hood mentality of attempting rousing sympathies with patronising and diversionary references to his performance of normal governmental duties he constantly drones about in justifying his refusal to answer the posers raised in the advertorial. Particularly, he should answer Oodua Truth Seekers and Oyo people their queries.

    Rather than respond to these, Ladoja calls himself “the issue” in Oyo. I am unsure if his handlers are aware of the phrase’s double entendre. Stripped bare of any niceties, its nuances basically mean ‘problem, obstacle, hindrances.’  Judging by recent events, maybe Ladoja means he is synonymous with such negatives in Oyo State.

    While he wallows in self-absorption however, the present “issues” raised by the group are already rife from within crowds at Mapo Hill to traders at Ogbomoso markets and rallying talk among Saki weavers, including all lovers of Oyo State. Ladoja, with his attempt at wishing away these “issues” with his silence, now has giant question marks clouding his much self-vaunted integrity which he should address now, rather than brow-beating Ajimobi’s upward pendulum of progress with accusations and lawsuit threats.  Ajimobi has displayed that the hopes and fears, the hatred and bitterness, of past Oyo rulers are centred upon his shoulders at this time, not distractedly fixed on Ladoja.

    Ladoja’s advertorial says he “is a passionate leader of repute whose integrity cannot be questioned”. He should exemplify these attributes because remaining quiet is certainly not golden now. Ladoja should answer the posers raised against him with cold, hard facts. Now, is time for inflexible discharge of propriety. Act right, Senator Ladoja.

    • Abiola is a teacher.

  • As Gidado Idris hits 80

    A very rare civil servant, Alhaji Gidado Idris, GCON, will be 80 on Sunday March 15. He has served his country for 42 years.And he has seen it all. He has shaped and witnessed history in his years of service.

    An adage says” If you let me frame the question, I will get the answer I want”. Alhaji Gidado Idris, born into the royal Idris family in the ancient city of Zaria, framed the question of his career in the civil service years ago and got the answer by arising to the highest pinnacle of his profession before retiring in 1999.

    Soft spoken and highly principled, he cultivated a high degree of friendship from the lowest to the highest, across the country. He is like an encyclopaedia of events with accurate dates. He remembers all and forgets nothing.

    A trusted aide to the late Sardauna of Sokoto, Sir Ahmadu Bello (1910-1966), first and last premier of Northern Nigeria. An in-law to President Shehu Usman Aliyu Shagari, a trusted friend to Major General Muhammadu Buhari, General Ibrahim Babangida (72), General Sani Abacha (1943-1998), General Abdusalam Abubakar and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar. A very close aide to President Olusegun Obasanjo who gave him the national honour of CON in 1978. His wife Hajia Maryam Idris was the best friend of Hajia Maryam Babangida (1948-2009) – a friendship that started from their school days as secretariat students at the Federal Training Centre, Kaduna and spanned over 40 years until Maryam Babangida died on December 27, 2009 in a Los Angeles hospital in the United States of America.

    He cherishes friendship and builds trust among friends.

    On the directive of Sir Ahmadu Bello, Gidado Idris drafted and typed the dethronement letter of the former Emir of Kano, Alhaji Muhammed Sanusi, the father of the present Emir, in August 1963. A copy of the letter is still with him today.

    On January 14, 1966, the then Premier of Western Nigeria, Chief Samuel Ladoke Akintola (1910-1966) in company of Chief Richard Abimbola Osuolale Akinjide (84) flew to Kaduna in a chartered helicopter to warn Sir Ahmadu Bello of an imminent coup d’état  and of a grand plan to eliminate some key politicians including both of them.

    Sir Ahmadu Bello advised Chief Akintola that there was no point running from the country and if he was truly the leader of his people, it was most honourable to die among the people. Shortly after their departure back to Ibadan, Sir Ahmadu took a drive round Kaduna in an open car. Seated beside Ahmadu Bello was Gidado Idris. A few hours later Ahmadu Bello was killed.

    With others Alhaji Gidado Idris arranged a befitting burial for the late premier according to Muslim rites.

    Few days later, Major Chukwuma Patrick Kaduna Nzeogwu (1937-1967) assumed power in Kaduna. He then appointed Mr. Ignatius Julius Dawer Dulong as the Secretary to Government and head of Service in the absence of Alhaji Alli Akilu who was hidden by the Northern Nigeria Police Commissioner, Alhaji Muhammadu Diko Yusuf from being killed. In the present day Nigeria such an appointment will be greeted with thanksgiving but Ambassador Ignatius Julius Dawer Dulong declined the appointment insisting that he was junior to Alhaji Akilu and that procedure must be followed.

    Alhaji Gidado Idris who witnessed the drama once told me “that in life one must be righteous in all things”.

    Incidentally Alhaji Muhammadu Dikko Yusuf became the third Inspector General of Police and served between 1975-1979.

    He was the one who brought the traditional rulers from Northern Nigeria to the Ibadan meeting between July 27 to 30, 1966, during which General Johnson Thomas Uwanaikwe Ironsi (1924-1966) was killed. He co-ordinated their safety back through Ibadan/Ilorin to their respective palaces.

    The constituent assembly adjourned sine die on June 5, 1978 because members of the assembly became headstrong and recalcitrant and wanted to undertake executive responsibilities.

    The regime of General Olusegun Obasanjo was worried after the adjournment because it wanted to keep its October 1, 1979 pledge. General Obasanjo then summoned the chairman of the assembly and former Chief Justice of Uganda (63-39), Mr. Justice Egbert Udo Udoma (1919-1998) and Alhaji Gidado Idris on June 7 1978 to Dodan Barracks the then seat of government with an order to produce a new constitution before May 1979 so that the Supreme Military Council could ratify the new constitution before departure. With the assistance of the chief draughtsman of the assembly, Justice John Hezekiah Omololu Thomas, Justice Udo Udoma and Alhaji Gidado Idris sat for weeks and months to produce the 254-paged 1979 constitution without reconvening the Constituent Assembly. For doing a good job, General Obasanjo awarded Justice Udo Udoma CFR and equally awarded Alhaji Gidado Idris, CON.

    After the death of General Sani Abacha on June 8, 1998, it was Alhaji Gidado Idris as the Secretary of the Armed Forces Ruling Council in his position as the Secretary to the Government of the Federation who conducted the stormy meeting of the council where General Abdusalam Abubakar emerged as the new Head of State in the early hours of June 9, 1998 in Abuja. I still remember the way and manner he announced the new Head of State to a fatigued media and members of the secretariat of the executive council on that day who had not slept for 26 hours. To me it is still the longest day of my life.

    Alhaji Gidado was a product of the Institute of Administration, Zaria and that of University of Leeds in the United Kingdom. He was appointed District officer for Benue, Sardauna and Adamawa provinces which in the present day Nigeria will be regarded as governor. He later became private and personal secretary to the late Premier, Sir Ahmadu Bello. He served as Permanent Secretary in Kaduna State from 1971 to 1975. He was appointed secretary of the Constitution Drafting Committee in 1975 and in 1976 he was also appointed Secretary of the Constituent Assembly. He was appointed first Clerk of the National Assembly in the presidential system of government in 1979. After the overthrow of the presidential system of government, he was appointed Secretary and Director of Administration, National Institute of Strategic Affairs in Kuru near Jos.

    When General Sani Abacha took over in November 17, 1993, Alhaji Gidado Idris became the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance and a few months later, he was appointed the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, a post he held till he retired in 1999. Very urbane and shy, Alhaji Gidado Idris is a workaholic.

    His value has not declined even in retirement for the likes of Emeka Offor, Senator Musa Adede, Alhaji Shehu Malami, Olu Adekunle, Dr. Goke Adegoroye, Col. Sabo Dasuki (rtd.), Col. Lawan Gwadabe (rtd.), Dr. Akin Ogunlewe, Dr. Hakeem Baba Ahmed, Alhaji Baba Farouk, Dr. Aliyu Babangida and others see him often. Nothing gladdens his heart these days than to watch the Super Eagles and Arsenal football win their matches. He has paid his dues. He is a fulfilled man and totally at peace with himself.

    • Teniola, former director at the presidency, lives in Lagos.

  • Jonathan and Ekiti election scandal

    Few people are likely to be surprised that the Jonathan administration has not reacted to the recording released by Sahara Reporters in which a junior defence minister claims that he was mandated by the president” to draft a couple of army officers to facilitate and coordinate a subversion of the  2014 Ekiti governorship elections. Having personalised state security institutions, and having become accustomed to suborning law-enforcement agencies for partisan, often criminal, political assignments, any president overcome with hubris enough to play the strongman can afford to treat the people with contempt. Incidentally, barring a columnist’s comments, as well as brief stories from some newspapers, the public has maintained a funereal silence over this horrifying revelation. Does this seeming lack of interest imply a feeling amongst the populace that the country has, in any case, opted out of the civilised world, owing to the barbarity of Nigerian rulers, and their impunity-hardened proclivity for criminality?

    Or, perhaps Nigerians themselves have become indifferent to their own collective plight because everybody is preoccupied with “claiming” his personal material salvation in accordance with the individualism-ethos of miracle-peddling Pentecostal neo-Christianity? That none of our civil-society associations has so far raised its voice over this affair – NLC, NBA, Roman Catholic Bishops and Guild of Editors – also gives the impression that one and all have taken the Sahara Reporters’ revelation as no more than the latest token of the moral collapse of the Nigerian state.

    Nevertheless, I am personally surprised that Jonathan’s no. 1 attack dog has not been fuming with righteous indignation at what would, if untrue, be outrageous slander of his master’s reputation. This must indeed also be an awkward time for even the urbane artists at white-washing sepulchers. But, what can the smartest geniuses at advertising deep-black as sparkling white (depending on circumstances and inducements) do in this difficult-to-deny involvement of the president in a subversion of the electoral process? For now, these professional equivocators appear to be waiting for it to blow over, seeing their boss, like the proverbial dog fated to be lost, can no longer hear the hunter’s horn.

    In a situation like this concerning the alleged involvement of powerful people in serious crime for which they have not been formally charged, and over which they themselves are keeping silent, perhaps the only way to go is by the law of probabilities. The main issue, then, is what is already known about the abuses to which the Jonathan government has often subjected the security forces, including the military, during national elections.

    All Nigerian rulers, right from Prime Minister Tafawa Balewa, have always considered it part of their prerogative to use the army for partisan political interests, including influencing the conduct of elections. However, in matters of scale, and in the brazenness of the abuse, Jonathan would appear to have been far more daring than his predecessors. It was in the Ekiti elections of June 2014, conducted when the Boko Haram insurgency which began five years earlier was still fiercely raging, that the largest numbers of troops so far were deployed for elections. Yet, the polling was far outside the theatre of the insurrection. Apart from the regular army, the Ekiti elections, as well as the ones in Osun two months later, for the first time in the country’s history, witnessed a number of uniformed, gun-toting masked men. These “soldiers” it was subsequently learnt, were used to pick up opposition party candidates, along with party officials and agents, to be either locked up, or guarded by the uniformed and masked, party thugs for the two or so days the elections lasted. Some of these masked soldiers of spurious provenance also went about the streets of Ekiti and Osun towns, shooting into the air, intimidating the populace, and causing consternation and panic. It is also instructive that during the Ekiti elections, two state governors, who are members of the APC opposition party, were prevented by soldiers from entering the state. A “chieftain” of the ruling party, a professional political thug with obnoxious reputation, from Anambra State, was however escorted by soldiers to Ekiti where local opposition politicians had already been put away to ensure that they could not monitor the process and conduct of the elections either at the polls, or at the collation centres.

    A number of questions are pertinent at this point: Were the soldiers who prevented Governors Rotimi Amaechi and Adams Oshiomhole from entering Ekiti to monitor the elections, and those who escorted Chris Uba to the state not acting under orders? What duties, under the constitution were the police minister and junior defence minister, in Ekiti to perform during ‘the elections? And finally, why were the opposition party men incarcerated during the course of the elections, only to be released without charges immediately after? Whoever can adequately explain away these questions in relation to the mysteries of what actually transpired at the Ekiti governorship elections, can as well cast doubt on the audio, and now even the video, recordings, of the conclave of criminals, haggling over how to rig the elections.

    Short of a personal confession, it is obvious that only a judicial pronouncement can determine whether Jonathan indeed authorised a subversion of the Ekiti governorship polls. I am only, like any citizen is entitled to, expressing dismay at the president and his administration pretending that they are unaware of the grave allegations about their involvement. Equally grave are the implications for the president’s person and office, and for the image of the country and its people. This is as if Richard Nixon and his administration were to keep mum when the Watergate story’s dirty ramifications began to unfold. Even if Jonathan, in his usual self-and-office- compromising attitude, does not “give a damn” about what Nigerians think of his excesses, does he also not care about the standards and values which prevail in the conduct of public affairs in civilised countries, and about the opinions and feelings concerning pariahs that dare defy and defile these international usages? ‘Unfortunately, whether he takes these things into consideration or not, it is the country which ultimately suffers, just like during the regime of Sani Abacha, whose infamy Jonathan seems to be now aiming at surpassing.

    In view of the above, Jonathan should immediately empower the Chief Justice of the Federation to set up an independent panel of inquiry into the Sahara Reporters’ revelations. Should the president fail to do this, the Nigeria Bar Association should proceed to organise the probe.

    While the issue of Nigeria’s image in the international community over the Ekiti governorship elections affair is of the utmost importance, a far more crucial issue is the implications of the scandal for the current situation in Nigeria itself. In one respect, the Sahara Reporters’ revelations could not have come at a more appropriate occasion. Today, Nigeria again seems to be drifting into another crisis of political succession, a situation generated in the main by the ambitions of an incumbent ruler to do what other presidents before him have brazenly gotten away with – namely, to appropriate state powers to manipulate the electoral process to his advantage and that of his party. The eight-year rule of the loathsome moral nihilist, Babangida, was a study, as well as a variation of some sort, in this tragic political chicanery. Nor was the Obasanjo presidency much different. (In this context, I believe it is high time Abdulsalaami Abubakar, came before Nigerians to apologise for the stable-institution-inhibiting, and the pro-one-party dictatorship of a fraudulent constitution that he imposed on the country in 1999).

    Given Jonathan’s constricted and clannish worldview, unredeemed by weak character, he thinks that to fail in his bid for a second term in power would be tantamount to discrimination against him because of his ethnic origin. Hence he does not seem to care whether his schemes for re-election bring the country crashing down over his head. Jonathan should rather see his entitlement to enjoy the prerogative of even appointing the INEC chairman (not to talk of otherwise influencing elections) as comparable to exercising the antiquated divine right of kings. For, when the people decided to terminate such sweeping powers, they chopped off the heads of monarchs who resisted the tide of change. By the way, Jonathan swore to uphold something called the Nigerian constitution. So what does the faith he wears like his trademark hat say about allegiance to this sacred document? Perhaps his crowd of spiritual advisors should remind him.

  • I hate Buhari and I love Jonathan!

    I hated General Muhammadu Buhari. Intensely.

    This feeling developed in 1984. First, his non-smiling visage including that of Tunde Idiagbon, his late deputy, evoked no warmth. The apocryphal story that they wear permanent scowls because there was nothing cheerful about Nigeria’s situation at a period when South West Nigeria, encompassing his official abode, made Alawada Baba Sala the highest rated comedy show was paradoxical to me then.

    I was especially livid athis War Against Indiscipline (WAI) dictum mandating Nigerians to queue for virtually everything in a country where lawlessness is deified as wisdom. I scoffed at his directive’s impracticality against the odious rat race in Nigeria, especially in Lagos. Personally, my timely arrival at all destinations is guaranteed with a good meal for balanced legs, firmly tucking my handbag under my armpits to escape Houdini-inspired pickpockets, energetically elbowing other jostling prospective bus passengers and hopping, banana jump-style onto a moving Molue bus.  And I’m good.

    But the orientation worked. Apart from queuing, archetypal stubborn Nigerians became excellent examples of WAI-themed orderliness and discipline in thought, behaviour and expectation through eschewing all forms of indiscipline.

    Thirty-one years ago, Buhari foresaw that leaders’ ability to effectively lead is always dependent on the quality of followership behind him which Indiscipline obstructs in Nigeria.

    Economically, I blamed his austerity measures for causing reduction in my pocket money despite my Economics tutor’s adulations of Buhari’s removal or reduction of national expenditure excesses, startof Nigeria’s first vicious anti-corruption war, reducing the balance of payment deficit by tightening importation and executing 15 percent cut from his predecessor President Shehu Shagari’s 1983 Budget.

    Consequently, total capital expenditure decreased by 16.08 percent, capital defence expenses by 80.9 percent, while agriculture, transport and communication, education and health spending decreased by 78.7 percent, 76.1 percent, 58.2 percent and 58.7 percent respectively.

    These austere policies alienated him from the elite.  Probably, the country’s international airports would overflow with the rich departing Nigeria immediately upon his announcement as the country’s new president.

    Again, I smirked at his tenure’s controversies. Many journalists and politicians bemoaned Decree No. 4. Human rights groups flayed him for his government’s decision to execute drug peddlers. These issues among others denigrate peoples’ fundamental human rights. My distaste grew. Recently, an American friend prodded me to soft-pedal on Buhari because interpretations of profound political events continually evolve. “Even Abraham Lincoln is still vilified in certain parts of USA today for abolishing the slave trade,” he said.

    Then, a revelation from Dora Akunyili, the indomitable former Director General of Nigerian Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and former Minister of Information thawed me. She returned the remainder of allotted funds to PTF’s coffers after returning from a company-sponsored foreign medical trip while working, on secondment from University of Nigeria, with Buhari, the chairman, at Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF). The overwhelming positive impression she made on him led to Buhari’s recommendation of her when former President Obasanjo approached him for help in appointing a cerebral, bold and incorruptible NAFDAC’s DG to rid the nation of counterfeit drugs. Akunyili was Igbo and a born-again Christian. Buhari is Fulani and a devout Muslim. To Buhari, what mattered was the content of her character; he is neither a religious extremist nor a tribalist.

    Still, I mocked his perennial ambition to rule Nigeria again. I wondered why him? I dismissed him as lacking today’s energy and dynamism in tackling the country’s myriad problems. However, as the nation experienced three civilian leaders since 1999 without a commensurate improvement in Nigeria, I had an epiphany. Why not him? He is very fearless, disciplined and passionate about changing Nigeria. At his age, embezzlement cannot be his political aim. And as rumours spread about his health, I noted his vigour and lucidity outshine that of some in my generation. Besides, I churlishly cherish the idea of burdening Buhari with the job since his ilk saddled us with them in the initial analysis.

    Now, I love President Goodluck Jonathan. His affable persona and Mosaic dove-like demeanour is endearing. His ascension to power, never through vaulting over-ambition, but by events proudly proclaimed by his loyalists as predestined via positive happenstances provoked a fervent envy at his lot. In typical Nigerian copy-cat syndrome, the name, Goodluck, quickly became a fad. His trajectory from “having no shoes”to gaining a doctorate degree and variously occupying the topmost offices at state and national level is a record yet unmatched on Nigeria’s political landscape.

    Jonathan’s unemployment panacea as contained in his Transformation Agenda especially fascinated me for the plan noted “unemployment surged from 11.9 percent in 2006 to 14.6 percent in 2007 and 21.1 percent by January 2010.” Noticing the plan’s solutions, I practically swooned.That admiration quickly faded. No decisive or profound happenings occurred to concretise the hero-worship. Granted, we cannot beckon on Utopia overnight, but after six years of Goodluck, many previously employed when he created the plan are now jobless. Reno Omokri, Jonathan’s former special assistant on social media, said over 250,000 Nigerian youths are employed. Certainly, not from the general population but probably within the rehabilitated and amnestied militants now buying warships or moving from point A to point B in luxury jets.  Even, those are hardly half of that statistic.

    Everythingis in shambles. Equally troubling is Obasanjo’s revelations that Jonathan squandered $25 billion left by his administration in the Excess Crude Account and depleted $45 billion foreign reserves, which increased to about $67billion under Yar’Adua, to $30 billion. The response, that the balance is now $34.4 billion, is laughable.

    Feeding expenses is skyrocketing yet the Central Bank of Nigeria says inflation is less galloping now because it is at 9.50 one-digit rate and food import bill reduced from N1.1 trillion in 2011, to N648 billion in 2012, “placing Nigeria firmly on the path to food self-sufficiency.” But that statement rings hollow on any shopping excursions at Lagos’Mile 2 commodities market.

    In the 1960s, Nigeria was ranked an emerging economy alongside Malaysia and Singapore. Under Peoples’ Democratic Party’s rulership within 16 years, Nigeria declined from being a low middle-income country and amongst the 50 richest countries worldwide to one of the 30 poorest. Today, Singapore has the third highest per-capita GDP globally and Malaysia’s, $14,800.

    Nowadays, our bedfellows are Somalia and Syria.

    Jonathan’s buck-passing is mind-boggling. He said his inheritance of Nigeria’s problems excuses his inability to provide quick solutions. But, Jonathan’s emergence and continuing candidacy is on PDP’s platform,the same party under which the nation’s woes worsened. This implicates him. It is Jonathan’s conditions of service to provide solutions to Nigeria’s problems. He willingly applied for the position. And with or without a lion-like heart, Jonathan ought to have delivered. He did not.

    Not surprisingly, I am no longer enamoured with Jonathan or his continued rule.

     

    • Ogunbayo writes from Lagos.

  • COMMENTS

    For Olatunji Dare

    Good work sir, sometimes I wonder if Fayose and Obanikoro or “Koro” as fondly called are actually true sons of Yoruba, because these are people that have no shame, they are blantant liars. I pity thier generations, it does not matter how much money they gather by giving their souls to the devil. And on momah, he is a disgrace to the Nigeria army. What a shameful   officer? A loose joint in time of need. Above all, Koro for Minister! Under President Goodluck everything goes, like father like son. A man with broken promises! here is my prayer; may God pay them back with the same coin. Thank you sir. From Joe,Port-Harcourt.

    I really think this man called Fayose needs deliverance. He should be taken to Mountain of Fire Ministry. From Blessing, Aba

    We have been deceived for long by the reckless and arrogant PDP stalwart. They can only fool us for some time, but cannot fool us all the time.   From Jimabo Dogara Jmabo, Kwali-Abuja

    It is pitiable that the speed at which our leaders forget their oath of office, public trust and good conscience leaves much to be imagined as to where exactly we are headed as a people. I wonder why evidence as cogent as this shouldn’t cause a reawakening from all quarters of the country to the fact that we do really not exist again. Our funeral is either conducted or the reception is ongoing. Maybe at the point of tiding up only then we may know we were long dead, buried and gone. Why should this fact not be questioned? A word is enough for the wise. Anonymous

    Re-Annals of Political Debauchery.  Whoever listened to the Meeting-Audio would know that a meeting took place. The meeting was a meeting ‘to intimidate’ their Opponents. It was to harass the APC opponents. It was also to guard against their opponent- APC from moving faster than them, PDP. From their discussion, mention of ‘rigging, snatching ballot papers or/and ballot boxes were never mentioned. However does such explain why Fayemi lost? Finally, tagging the meeting as ‘How Ekiti election was rigged and won by Fayose’ was/is misleading. By and large, the meeting among the participants was/is a bad omen for Nigeria’s polity! From Lanre Oseni.

    If Fayose is a Christian let him mark his words because the people he wish dead are his very far senior so he ascended to be governor with cheating without God blessing. Did he know if he will attain the age of those he wish dead. Anonymous 

    Re-Old warriors, new alliances. Indeed shaky ground because Jonathan used National Conference for his political gain and wasted our resources. Let us wait and see his failure. Anonymous

    I read and heard all that the governor has said. There is no cause to go into unnecessary argument with people with low mentality. I only wish he retraces his unguarded utterances before it is too late. If it is the wish of the Almighty that Buhari is the next president of this country tens of billions of the likes of Fayose can never be a stumbling block. God blesses Nigeria. From Adeoba Dele

    Wishing your fellow human being dead in the name of politics is  against African tradition, even Christianity and Islam detest it. Fayose is not God, I have been expecting GEJ, PDP and Ekiti Elders to call him to order.Fayose should not set Yoruba against the North; definitely, Fayose is a disgrace to Yoruba land. From Comrade Rufus Olusesan, Lagos.

    I don’t know how Yoruba race known for  first class political sagacity allow a Fayose, whose way of life is comparable to a motor park tout become a governor of Ekiti known as a state of Professors. I think Fayose is running against time, knowing that he is likely to end the way of his first journey. From Victor Nwaugo, Imo state

    Yes, Lugard was right to have described black man as absorbed in the present with no remorse for his past or consideration for the future. Typically, those  Yoruba, fooled with the dubious 2014 National Conference “Egunje”, are still sucked in by hope of implementation of the outcome when obviously the conveners are no longer in position to do so. What a wishful thinking because the conference was simply a ruse to capture South-West votes in 20I5. Furthermore, without regional provisions, which states in South-West except Lagos stand to gain from the fraud? After the Yoruba have been obviously marginalised and maltreated, the world condemned GEJ maladministration full of corruption, insecurity, lack of amenities, impunity a la ‘Ekitigate’ and failure to conduct elections as and when due; why should any Yoruba choose PDP over Buhari/Osinbajo’s APC? Is the likes of Fayose the pride of the nation? Yoruba ronu o! Anonymous

    Fayose, Omisore, Mimiko  and others are disgraceful sons of Yoruba they are all desperate for power for their selfish interest. It is quiet unfortunate that Pa Ayo Adebanjo who I regard as a leader among political jobbers that held a meeting in Akure can associate with them. Truth of the matter is that election that brought Fayose as governor was fraudulent, he is looking for a cover because he knows if  Gen. Buhari enter, his days are numbered. Whatever utterances he may have made, about Buhari, he is not God, let Fayose mind his words before he truncate our democracy over his selfish interest. He has lost focus to rule Ekiti State. From Gordon Chika Nnorom

    The press should please stop giving Fayose unnecessary recognition, Fayose is a man to ignore. Mark you, the more you write about him, the more he believes in his rascality. From Ade

    Sir if Fayose has a good father, and was trained by same father, he would not be praying for Buhari to die mark my words, Fayose would die before Buhari . From Deji Olarenwaju, Ikeja, Lagos.

    Your Article titled ‘Annals of Political Debauchery’ in The Nation newspaper of Feb 24 refers. I believe Fayose has gone insane and deserves pity. Firstly, Yoruba culture abhors insult to elders just as the Holy Bible has spelt out punitive measures of same in the Book of Proverbs. Indirectly, Fayose has cursed himself. Its either he did not receive proper home training or he is already suffering from past misdeeds. In fact, he is a big disgrace to Ekiti indigenes in particular, to Yoruba race as a whole and to democracy. I see him as a governor with just an atom of intellect. He needs brain  and mouth therapy. He deserves pity. Fayose is tempting God. His supporters need three days vigil for him for God’s full forgiveness.  From Mrs. Adenekan

    The APC manifesto might be very attractive and its campaign message widespread, but that shouldn’t be enough to put fear in Jonathan not to conduct the election. Many Nigerians believe he will still win. But if he losses, definitely he has nothing to lose. He has done the best any leader can do in the circumstances. History will still enter him as a man who came, saw but did his best in the circumstances he found himself. So the one highest good he can do the nation and himself now is to conduct the poll and hand over to the winner, or win the election and improve upon his track records for the better. Either way, what the average Nigerian is interested in is good government that will ensure for happiness for all, and peaceful co-existence among all Nigerians. From Emmanuel Egwu.

    For Segun Gbadegesin

    Sir, what pains me most is the penchant of taking Nigerians by Jonathan as complete fools and morons. His actions are always at variance with his precepts. He does one thing and says the exact opposite. Is GEJ saying in all honesty that he knows nothing about the several bombings of APC offices and at rallies in Port Harcourt especially his wife’s place? This man is a green snake under a green grass. He had better prepare to account for all Nigeria’s monies wasted by him for his so-called campaigns. From Ndiana

    PDP and its members’ right from Obasanjo regime have been very problematic, actually. Yet to portray everything done by Jonathan and the party as satanic, and all about APC saintly, isn’t acceptable. No institution in human government is without its functional defects. Neither PDP nor APC can be said to be exception to the rule seemingly organisational prowess of the APC notwithstanding. After all, unlike PDP that has passed through the fire, APC is yet to be tested. From Emmanuel Egwu.

    My dear Prof Gbadegesin, on your article “All things considered (1) “ I say may your pen never dry. Truth is never denied anyone if in his heart asks for it. He will be led into the inner sanctuary where he will come face to face with reality. There’s the saying that when death wants to take a man, it will first make him deaf and blind. This is the case with our president and PDP co-travelers. This is the end. Anonymous

    Dear Sir, we have read so much about the political gimmick in our country, but I have never come across a more detailed analysis as you wrote on February 27, 2015. Though I’m very close to Gen Buhari, that notwithstanding, it is indeed marvelous and I look forward to reading your next article. Yours in friendship. From Sadeeq Adamu Adamu

     

    For Tunji Adegboyega

    It is very unfortunate that the leadership of CAN who had been shouting on top of their voice over the abandonment of the victims of Boko Haram actually did not mean well for the victims. How on earth could CAN, which should have been the mirror to which Christians are looking upon should engage insuch shameful act? The N7bn should have been used to rehabilitate the Boko Haram victims rather than engage in fruitless exercise. Oritsejafor should understand that leadership is about the capacity to lead and impact on people’s lives; not to destroy their lives. From Hamza Ozi Momoh, Apapa, Lagos.

    That the church is even embroiled in this bribery scandal is enough embarrassment for every Christian with the gift of deep reflection; whether it is true or not and whether the beneficiaries are ever made public or not. But mark this, every genuine child of God knows the true servants of God in this country and they also know those “men of God” who are nothing but servants of men and errand boys of politicians. Christians in Nigeria know where to turn when they want to hear God’s instructions; they also know those who are megaphones of men hiding behind the pulpit, faithful of Mammon. From Simon Oladapo, Ogbomoso.

    Re: Where is the fire? Refer the above captioned subject matter of yours. Your well crafted treatise reminds me of a literature book of ours in 1967 titled “Joseph Andrews”, where the oddities of men are laughed at without contempt. The exposure and hypocrisies of men in cassocks who were scandals to their profession were choreographed without bitterness while the stages of authority stealing were well satire chronologically without any qualm. Tunji, yours was a journalistic excellence. However, God dey o! with all ‘dis sharing’ of booties in broad daylight. I dey laugh o!. They shall definitely meet their Waterloo come March 28. From Ch Ayena Oniayiye, Igbemo-Ekiti.

    Tunji, we are not surprised about the N7bn credit to CAN. What happened to that jet in South Africa? Anonymous.

    Rather than deny the N6bn bribe, CAN only went into rhetoric. Has any state CAN denied theN3m bribe? The press should keep exposing this mess so that Nigerians will understand. Anonymous

    As both a professional and a patriotic Nigerian that you are, help investigate who Musa Dikwa is. Where is he coming from? Must we allow just anyone to work on our collective intelligence with idiotic cooked-up lies against perceived enemies with stories of N7bn? It would be interesting if you could do your findings both on the N7bn and $50,000. What is Musa-Dikwa’s interest in all these? There is God, o! Anonymous

    Now that allegation of some clergymen collected  N6bn to N7bn from the PDP has been opened up, let whoever collected the bribe return it to the government before the anger of God falls on them because it is our collective resources that is meant for national development. If they know that there is no money in the ministry, let them quit pastoral jobs and join politics because they cannot serve God and Mammon at the same time; let them choose one. Nigerians are suffering in abject poverty … You can force a horse to the stream but you cannot force it to drink water. It is very unfortunate that pastors can be after material wealth like this. But they cannot force their worshippers to vote where their mind is not welcome. They know there is God o! From Gordon Chika Nnorom, Umukabia, Abia State.

    God did not call any Nigerian. As a matter of fact, they called themselves to escape the biting poverty and unemployment ravaging the land. If there is any Nigerian called by God, it is Pastor T.B. Joshua. Anonymous.

    Really, there is God, o! You said it all in “Where is the fire?” More ink to your pen. From Dang, Jos.

    You got it right; the fire is gone contrary to Leviticus 6: 13. It is only in cold braziers that hens lay eggs (Aaro to tutu l’adie n ye eyin  si) But I believe God can still find five people in Nigeria on whose intercession He will have mercy on us. Since it has become a curse to preach without owning a jet and fleet of cars, what do you expect? Money for hand, back for ground. From Ayoola Deborah.

    It is true some churches may have degenerated but Amaechi is not the right person to make that accusation. Also, note that Jesus did not give a command to bar people from entering the church, rather, he instructed that they should be preached to. Lastly, some pastors may have soiled their hands but God still has faithful pastors standing for truth. Anonymous. 

  • President and his love of office

    The late music maestro, Sunny Okosun, once captured the current situation in Nigeria when, in one of his hit songs, he said: “Which way Nigeria”. The situation in Nigeria now calls for a more sombre and serious concern than the way the government seems to summarise it. No doubt, this is not the best of times for the Jonathan government which seems to be getting everything wrong even in its build up to the coming election. The country has been thrown into such a frenzy since the president decided to pursue his second term ambition in such a desperate manner. The whole country is now enveloped with confusion that nobody really knows or can predict the direction the country is headed.

    From politicians to businessmen, economy watchers, industry captains, professionals to the ordinary man on the street, everybody seems to be singing the same song “which way Nigeria”.

    Indeed, Nigerians are genuinely confused, as nothing seems to be working except the agenda to re-elect the president. Our people are worried because nobody is offering them explanation on why the economy is in shambles or how long the country will continue to cope with the no security, no light, no water, no employment and no food situation. They are in the dark as to when the rebased economy of the nation will translate to better life for them. They are eager to see the 25,000 km road the Jonathan government claims to have constructed and the improved rail system the federal government says it has built. People want to see where the achievement reported in the SURE-P scorecard are situated or who the beneficiaries of the government youth employment programmes are. They want to know who are those benefitting from the much publicized agriculture programmes of the federal government when majority of Nigerians are hungry. They truly want to know why our currency has been devalued twice in less than two months if everything is alright as the government wants us to believe. They are tired of living on promises that nobody will fulfill. They find it hard to believe that our country is destined to fail and cannot comprehend why it should be the duty of the President to come and be personally involved in inducing Lagosians with money or why our Vice-President should be desperate to the extent of leaving government business in Abuja and move office to Kaduna, for one week, to go and, like his boss, personally share money shamelessly.

    Our condition is even more worrisome now as the government appears not to know what to do to stop the naira from its daily slip against other currencies. Everybody is alarmed because never in our history has the naira been so battered, not even in the dark days of the Abacha regime because the naira was stable at 83 to one dollar even in the face of sanctions against the country then.  Unfortunately, the President seems more comfortable with the deceits and concocted message of acceptance he gets from his aides and the manipulated report of upwards movement of the economy he receives from his voodoo economists who for selfish reasons, always tell him that there is no cause for alarm. That is why he is still being fooled that Nigerians want him and will vote for him. But if only the president can ponder over the precarious situation the country is in now and compare it with when he was elected four years ago, he will be able to appreciate the extent at which things have really gone bad. In 2011, the naira was 120 to one dollar and Nigerians were crying; that time, kidnapping had not become so lucrative as it is today and that time, impunity had not reached the level it is now. That time, people still looked up to government to provide them security and that time, the country was one whole entity without a Boko Haram republic. Today, because the President has used the last four years pursuing his ambition, Nigeria has attained a terrorist nation status and more people have been killed by the insurgents than even during the civil war. We have entrenched corruption as a way of life so much that even stealing, to us, is no longer corruption; our naira now exchanges for over 200 to the dollar, and everybody now virtually lives in the hand of God, as the government cannot guarantee security for anybody. In fact, the only people that are getting it right, as far as the president is concerned, are the liars who tell him that the whole country wants him to run.

    The big question is of what use is the mandate that the President is seeking when he cannot use it to better the people. Why does he need another four years when he has not justified the current term?  Why should Nigerians re-elect him when he has failed his promises to them? Why is he going back on his words that whatever he cannot achieve in four years he won’t be able to do in 100 years? One is not sure that it is the same picture of Nigeria that the people are seeing that the president is seeing. Or could it be that it is his obsession for power that is taking the best of him?

    The president has to come clean about his agenda for the country now. He has to weigh his options and take a quick decision on the direction he wants the country to head for the sake of keeping the country together. He has to now decide which friends he wants to keep so that he can take a decision on which formula to apply to stop the country from meandering like a rudderless ship as it is currently doing. The President must now accept reality that change is inevitable and that change cannot be achieved if the country will still do things the same way by the same people using the same formula and allow the Nigerian people have their way. Everybody knows that Nigeria is sick and needs deliverance but whether the President will jettison his penchant for office and allow the CHANGE pill being offered by the people to save the country depends on how patriotic he is and more importantly whether he actually sees himself as the father of the nation. Perhaps it is right for the President to know that it doesn’t remove anything from him to step down and bow to the wishes of the Nigerian masses who are clamouring for that change. In fact, doing this will portray him as a statesman who loves Nigeria and will make him go down in history as the hero of our democracy.  It will give him a global fame, increase his coast and give him respect and recognition across generations. This is the best the President can do for himself, our country and our generation so that our case will not be like Libya or Syria.

    Therefore, the president should quickly call his praise singers to sheath their swords, mellow down on their aggressive and desperate politics and stop heating up the polity. Their unguarded statements in the name of politics and their careless behaviour are not in his best interest . What Nigeria needs now is to make a statement that we are truly the giant of Africa which will always show the world the best part of us. That is why the president should move the country forward with maturity, magnanimity and understanding. By allowing the people to have their way, he too will write his name in gold.

     

    •Ibirogba is a member of Lagos State Executive Council

  • Raising the bar in the anti-graft war

    The Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), has raised the stakes in the fight against corruption in Nigeria with the establishment of an anti-corruption academy. The institution known as the Anti-Corruption Academy of Nigeria (ACAN) is the training and capacity building arm of the Commission.

    The establishment of ACAN is one of the bold steps taken by the ICPC in recent years to step up the fight against corruption in a more structured, determined and concerted onslaught. It is also partly a fulfilment of Nigeria’s commitment to the global initiative to rid the world of the menace, as the Academy is a key enabling instrument required for the successful implementation of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) in the country.

    With this singular move, Nigeria has taken its pride of place among the nations that have shown seriousness to tackle corruption under the UNCAC initiative. When the Convention came into force in 2005, it was the first legally binding international anti-corruption instrument, clearly defining corruption in its various forms and setting templates to deal with them through constitutional and legal methods.

    The Convention required signatory nations to implement a wide range of measures in areas including law enforcement, asset recovery, mobilisation of stakeholders and international cooperation, for the overall success of the national and global anti-corruption campaign. The challenge posed by this tall agenda gave rise to the need for an intellectual and practical support platform to guide, direct and coordinate the campaign.

    That was what led to the establishment of the International Anti-Corruption Academy (IACA) with headquarters in Laxenburg, Austria, by the United Nations. The Academy began operations in September 2010 with a clear mandate to promote advanced academic research on corruption related issues, especially on newer types of corruption as well as provide superior anti-corruption training for various categories of law enforcement practitioners.

    IACA was also mandated to provide education, capacity building and necessary technical assistance to relevant groups of stakeholders involved in the anti-corruption fight in both the public and private sectors. The institution has been delivering on these core mandates. Nigeria joined IACA in 2011. Her membership was ratified by the Federal Executive Council in 2012 and the country is proudly represented in IACA’s faculty.

    ICPC’s Anti-Corruption Academy of Nigeria (ACAN) is therefore a necessity in the fight to rid the country of the menace. And like IACA, it is poised to make a difference. Situated in a serene environment in Keffi, Nasarawa State, the Academy began operations in November last year, two years behind the target set for its take off by the current Chairman of the ICPC, Mr. Ekpo Nta, due to funding constraints.

    However, the Provost of the institution, Professor Sola Akinrinade, who was appointed only last October hit the ground running, as if to make up for the delay in its take-off. The institution has already done its first training programme for officers in the Intelligence Unit of the ICPC, which was concluded in January 2015. According to the Provost, another training programme is scheduled for March 2015. This one, like some others being planned for the year, will involve external participants.

    Prof Akinrinade, before his new appointment, was the immediate past Vice Chancellor of the Osun State University, Osogbo and former Visiting Professor to the Nigeria Universities Commission (NUC). He describes the Academy as an investment in the future of the country, a centre of excellence in anti-corruption research, learning, teaching, knowledge dissemination, training and capacity building. According to him, this specialised institution is also expected to become the hub of the activities of IACA in the African region,

    Speaking on the mandate given to ACAN by its parent body the ICPC, the Provost listed five key areas of focus. First, its primary duty is to train ICPC staff to meet contemporary challenges of anti-corruption fighting, to enhance the operations of the Commission. By doing this, it will build the capacity of staff to effectively deliver the strategic plan of the commission in its areas of operations including investigation, prosecution, asset recovery, public education and enlightenment.

    Second, to engage ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in the public sector as well as organisations in the private sector, such as corporate entities, professional bodies and others to address issues of corruption within their own areas of operation. This involves running seminars and workshops to address areas where they are prone to corrupt practices. The academy is already working on the training of Anti-Corruption Units (ACTUs) in the MDAs.

    Third, to run special courses that will lead to the certification of anti-corruption professionals. To actualise this, the academy will collaborate with some universities and other relevant academic institutions both in Nigeria and abroad to run post graduate programmes up to Masters degree level for practitioners in the field of anti-corruption to enhance their knowledge and skills. Already, the Senate of the University of Calabar has approved a Masters degree in anti-Corruption studies in this regard.

    Fourth, the Academy will engage in knowledge production and dissemination. It has a research unit which is already developing a research policy on corruption related issues. This will make it easy to access information on such issues. The academy is backed by state of the art e-learning facilities. The research unit is headed by a renowned scholar from the University of Ibadan.

    Fifth, the Academy will network and establish linkages with institutions engaged in specialised training of professionals in both the public and private sectors. These include institutions related to the banking and finance industry, media and legal professions; and public service, among others. Recently, the Provost visited the National Electoral Institute where he sought collaboration to address electoral corruption ahead the 2015 elections.

    The Academy has a tall ambition to reach and educate not only the critical stakeholders in anti-corruption fight but also the general populace. This desire is underscored by the global shift of emphasis to preventive mechanisms for fighting corruption through proactive sensitization and education of all stakeholders on ethics and integrity issues as well as compliance with established rules.

    In this task, the Academy has the full support of the ICPC Chairman who is eager to have it be a world class institution that will address all the country’s capacity building needs in anti-corruption fighting. All these, however, will depend on the availability of adequate funding.

    •Adesanya wrote from Abuja.

  • An open letter to Ndigbo

    An open letter to Ndigbo

    y article 2015 Presidential Election: Reality or Myth?, has general fast and furious reactions. Quite interestingly, most of the fan mail from the southeast geopolitical zone admonished me to “think and write like an Igbo man”! I’m not unaware that a lot of falsehoods and outrageous things are being peddled about Buhari. But it is this same Buhari who is the only presidential candidate of a major political party in the nation’s history that has nominated two eminent Igbo sons as his running mate – Dr. Chuba Okadigbo in 2003 and Chief Edwin Ume-Ezeoke in 2007.

    It is this same Buhari, then a lieutenant colonel, that Pastor Angus Okoli, a war correspondent of the defunct Spear magazine, testified went beyond the call of duty to not only provide for the welfare of young Biafran soldiers captured from the Umuleri/Aguleri sector during the civil war but also ordered their release back to their base in “Biafra II” (that part of Biafra that was cut off from the main enclave when the Nigerian Army occupied a long stretch of the Enugu/Nkpor Highway. Shouldn’t a loathing for Ndigbo be made of sterner stuff?

    I was completely taken aback when I read news report of the Harvard University-trained former governor of Anambra State, Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife, declaring magisterially that there would be no elections as long as Professor Attahiru Jega remains INEC chairman – even after Jonathan and PDP national chairman Adamu Mu’azu recanted and passed a vote of confidence on Jega and vowed that the dates for the rescheduled polls and official handover are sacrosanct! Makes one wonder why members of our first eleven continue to have a man-Friday mentality and tend to weep louder than the bereaved at the drop of a hat.

    Ohaneze secretary-general, Dr. Joe Nwaorgu, also recently disclosed that the most important reason why the body has endorsed Jonathan “and can do so 100 times again” is because between him and Buhari, Jonathan is the one likely to implement the national confab report. Really? How? It is this kind of pedestrian effusion from Ndigbo political elite that makes one wonder if there’s more to the endorsement than meets the eye!

    But there seems to be a silver lining in the dark cloud, as not all our highly illustrious sons have allegedly sold their souls to the devil for an oil block or government hand-me-down. In an essay captioned “The Buhari of my personal experience,” Ignatius Olisemeka, a former Ambassador to the USA and one-time foreign affairs minister didn’t mince words when he declared that “Of all the Nigerian leaders, with the possible exception of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe and Alhaji Tafawa Balewa, Buhari has been the one that has most approximated my dream of what a Nigerian leader should be”.

    In another commentary published in The Nation on Sunday Eze Festus Odimegwu, former chairman of the Nigeria Population Commission, ex-managing director of Nigerian Breweries Limited and a close ally of both former President Olusegun Obasanjo and Jonathan, unapologetically faulted Jonathan for “seeing himself as a politician instead of the President of Nigeria” and one who “sacrificed and was ready to sacrifice anything and everything, anyone and everyone for re-election.”

    Odimegwu ended his piece by averring that “It is very clear to the discerning that that majority will vote for the APC presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari, to save Nigeria from bad leadership and an under-performing administration.” Phew! Truth be told, Buhari may not be a saint. No human being is; even the great Madiba, Nelson Mandela, rightly said he wasn’t one but see the stellar legacies he left behind after spending just four years in office. Buhari similarly embodies the new hope for hard-pressed Nigerian masses!

    Some have opined that voting for Buhari constitutes a movement backwards. If moving backwards means a naira that was at par with the American dollar, a more stable electric power supply, a more equitable society (through the supervised distribution of “essential commodities”), a more disciplined society when traditional values meant something, a safer and more secured nation and a time when corruption was less pervasive, then may we ever continue to move backwards, as a way of ultimately leap-frogging back to the future!

    If you look at the west, you’ll find three to five groups well represented in the major political parties. The same is true of the north. Such a strategic political diversification ensures that no matter which party wins, there’s still something in the pot for the different regions. It’s only South-easterners that have chosen to play the game with eyes blindfolded and hands tied behind their backs by placing all their bets on a racing horse without a thought for all the unmitigated risks of the horse neither racing nor winning!

    Before misgivings concretize and speculations run riot, let me hasten to add that I’m not canvassing for the splitting of our pan-Igbo organization as I believe it’s possible to achieve political diversification under one umbrella where honesty and sincerity of purpose subsist.

    What amazed me most in the course of my interactions with a random sample of south-easterners was that the broad consensus among them that if elections had been held as scheduled, Jonathan would have been beaten silly by Buhari! If we can see the handwriting on the wall, why then do we inexplicably insist on putting all our eggs in one political basket? Why are we allowing ourselves to be dragged by forces seemingly beyond our control (?) towards the wrong side of history? Our elders say that a prudent man must take immediate steps to dodge a stone he sees aiming straight for his head!

    Four years ago, Ohaneze publicly canvassed an Igbo bloc vote for Jonathan. An Ohaneze advertorial disclosed that among other promises Jonathan has accepted to use the powers of incumbency to facilitate the emergence of a president of Igbo extraction in 2015 (a tacit agreement that he would spend only one term in office) and create a sixth state in the Southeast. We were also assured that the president would approve the dredging of the River Niger and transformation of Onitsha into a thriving deep inland seaport. Furthermore, Jonathan pledged to build a second Niger Bridge before 2015 and complete the quality rehabilitation of the Onitsha/Enugu and Enugu/Port Harcourt Expressways.

    And our leaders – whose personal interests have probably been well taken care of – are now asking us to turn a blind eye at Jonathan’s scorecard in the zone, and as if hypnotized we are marching like sheep to the slaughter! Politics is a game of numbers and my greatest concern is that Ndigbo have myopically chosen to collaborate with those who cannot really help our larger interests while antagonizing those we ought to be fraternalizing with in order to realize our group objectives. We are not playing good politics at all; rather we are exhibiting pitiable naivety and wishful thinking.

    There’s neither sense nor logic to the opinions we continue to collectively hold. As things stand today, Ndigbo don’t occupy the plum offices of the President, Vice-President, Senate President, House Speaker, Chief Justice, Chairman and Secretary of the two major political parties, Chief of Defence Staff, Chief of Army Staff, Chief of Naval Staff, Chief of Air Staff, Inspector-General of Police, Director of the Department of State Security, Comptroller-General of Customs and Comptroller of Immigration.

    Yet, we constitute the third largest ethnic nationality and have consistently given any PDP Presidential candidate the largest bloc vote! If Jonathan wins, the status quo would remain because the posts are already occupied. It is only with an APC victory – and by Ndigbo maintaining a strong presence in the party – that things can drastically change for the better for us. The hen said that why it screamed when the hawk carried away her chick was not so that the predator would release the prey but so that those around would bear true witness to what happened.

    So, you call me an APC man if you like, although I don’t possess the membership card of any political party, but if that’s the price to pay for telling the truth as it is then so be it. Ndigbo, chenu ezigbo echiche!

    •Okoye writes from Abuja

  • Onafowokan: Essentials of an exemplary prince at 90

    One is bound to see old age as desirable, beautiful and graceful when you encounter a remarkable Nigerian in person of Prince Babatunde Adedapo Onafowokan (BAO), the founding Chief Executive Officer of Ladgroup Nigeria Limited. His carriage every Sunday, natural calmness, structured lifetime priorities, well-coordinated and simple disposition to human endeavours over the years point to one fact that he has been truly blessed by God for a distinct purpose, among others; so that his life can minister to people around and younger generations.

    For someone of my age who came to settle in Lagos in 1990, I could only see a tiny part of Baba Onafowokan in his LADGROUP days. In order to get a full picture of his amazing profile, it took me some research to place Baba Onafowokan in proper perspective in this write-up put together to celebrate him on his 90th birthday anniversary.

    It is amazing to record that within the past 90 years, BAO has been tested as a teacher, multinational company executive, diligent entrepreneur, humility and empathy personified, selfless philanthropist and a keen man of God worthy of emulation. Through his grace, Baba having committed most of his hard earned financial resources in old age to God’s work, he continues to dedicate his time and every other substance at his disposal as a gracefully aging old man to Church of Nigeria Anglican Communion.

    The prince of the Moko royal dynasty, Ikenne and the Tunwase royal family of Ijebu-Ode, BAO  was born on February 28, 1925 at Ikenne in Ogun State of Nigeria. He had his early education at Wasimi African Primary School at Ijebu Ode and St Paul’s Anglican School in Sagamu. His secondary education took him to Abeokuta Grammar School and Baptist Boys High School, Abeokuta.

    BAO gained admission into the University College, Ibadan on scholarship which attested to the fact that he was a brilliant student among his peers which is evident among his children to the glory of God. He was to train as a Surveyor, but changed the course of study to Mathematics in 1951. He passed the London Matriculation Examination in 1950 and the University of London Special Honours Degree in Mathematics in 1954 when he graduated from the University of Ibadan.

    His short stint in teaching started at Ogbomoso Grammar School in 1954 and left in 1955 for King’s College, Lagos. On August 6, 1956, Prince Onafowokan got married to Chief Mrs Victoria Abimbola Onafowokan nee Ogunlesi (1931-2008). She was a remarkably resourceful wife, servant of God and a great blessing to the family. He joined Shell Nigeria Limited as a Management Trainee between June 1956 and December 1957, was appointed Head of Marketing Service and Statistical Forecasting between 1958 and 1959. The hard-working prince was promoted Manager, Shell Nigeria Limited in charge of the Mid-Western Region of Nigeria in 1959 and Manager, Western Region in 1960.

    BAO was sent to London, Norway and Kenya in 1963 through to 1964 for Advanced Management Training Courses. He was subsequently seconded to British Petroleum to work in the retail division of the National Petroleum between 1965 and 1966. On return to Nigeria in 1966, he was promoted to the post of Retail Sales Manager. This position placed him as the first Nigerian to move that high up in the hierarchy of Shell.

    The visionary and perspective prince studied the economic environment and the entrepreneur in him took better part of his decision to go for early voluntary pensionable retirement in 1973.

    He founded Ladgroup Nigeria Limited as a commodity trading company in 1971 to essentially focus on international trade based on comparative advantage economic principle. Ladgroup was the biggest exporter of cocoa and other agricultural commodities till 1996 and it won national awards and enjoyed immense financial support from local banks. Record has it that Ladgroup was the first indigenous private company that imported rice from Thailand in Nigeria.

    The Head Office of Ladgroup was at 24, Abimbola Street, Isolo. I recall my first visit to the premises in the mid-1990s at the instance of his son, Kunle Onafowokan when Baba gave me an assignment. I was so inspired seeing Mama VA Onafowokan, the inestimable jewel of Baba Onafowokan and other family members working hard in the office for Ladgroup.

    May Baba see things of joy for the rest of his earthly journey as the family marks the 90th birthday with thanksgiving service at Anglican Church of the Ascension, Opebi Lagos, today.

  • Reflections on postponement of the elections

    On February 7, Professor Attahiru Jega, chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced the postponement of the elections from February 14 and 28 to March 28 and April 11, largely for security. The postponement is a glaring sign of incompetence or inability of the country to do anything good most of the times- a big shame and disappointment.  The cost is high. It shocked society, sagged trust, confidence and energy of citizens, threatened democracy, boosted the morale of the insurgents and increased the already high emotional and physical exhaustion and financial expenses of the campaign.

    Jega would want us believe that INEC was not ‘coerced’ but the public knows better that there are long knives around. It was the best he could do in the circumstance because as the great Zik once observed ‘only a mad man argues with the man with a gun’.

    Ordinarily the postponement could have been taken as given. After all the framers of the constitution and makers of the electoral made provision for postponement in sections 76(2),116(2), 132(2), 178(2) and section25 of the Electoral Act 2010 as amended. As Jega admits the period could be used to fine-tune some of INEC’s operations especially the distribution of the PVC.  But we are worried because of the threat which the postponement poses to democracy, its high cost in terms of emotional strains, physical exhaustion, financial wastage and general paralysis that attends campaigns in Nigeria, the broken trust between the people and government, the subtle attempt to meddle unduly with the electoral process and the damage to the image of the military.

    The growing involvement of the military in party politics suggests that democracy is under threat and trial in Nigeria. The postponement carries the traits of a well rehearsed drama: a hint to test the waters in London, some denials at home,  a passing remark before a visiting  US Secretary of State John Kerry, orchestrated demand for postponement by some parties, a  presentation at the National Council of States , an ‘advisory’ letter by the service chiefs asking for at least six weeks extension etc. All these are too neat and frightening to ignore and they tell much about our inability to do the needful most of the time.  Jega was on the right way before he met security road block.

    Though President Jonathan in a recent media chat assured that democracy was on course and come May 29, a new government  either headed by him or any other person would be in place yet the assurance has not dispelled the fear of interim government, rumour  of impending replacement of Jega and the looming threat democracy. There is the need to build trust and confidence in the system. Jega should not be sacked because the service chiefs did not allow him to work freely. Dr Jonathan is a product of democracy with its emphasis on the constitution and rule of law which ensured the election of a person from the minority zone as president of the country and he has the responsibility to protect and deepen it so that the baton will not drop in his time.

    Unfortunately in every society many things are done in the name of the king – some of them unclean and unauthorized and there are men and women ready to violate the system under the pretence of supporting the leader. While INEC chairman had insisted on hosting the election as planned, the service chiefs and the NSA were against it. Jega confirmed  his commission’s impotence when he observed  that  INEC ‘being not…a security agency that could by itself guarantee protection for personnel and materials as well as voters cannot  lightly wave off the advice by the nation’s  security chiefs’ .  Their obstructive role was too visible to be cloaked easily.

    Many things are at stake including the fate of democracy, integrity and image of the military, the broken trust of the average citizen in the system occasioned by the increasing but avoidable meddling of the political process by the security chiefs.  Though better late than the late, yet it carried more harm than good for the armed forces and the society at large. What did the security chiefs expect the average citizen to do by their public show of inability- extol or resign themselves to fate knowing that there is no hope for protection from them?

    By their action, the service chiefs opened their flanks to both internal and external attacks and ridicule of the armed forces.  We are so far lucky that the barbarians have not taken advantage of the ugly situation. The service chief’s action creates doubt, fears, distrust and hatred in the minds of the citizens some of whom may decide to seek ways for personal security. The problem of the high incidence of militias is already frightening enough and woe betides us all when many more are formed by helpless but desperate Nigerians in search of security, safety and protection of lives and property.  Public trust and confidence have been badly shaken if not broken-unwittingly.

    Once trust is lost it is difficult to reclaim and this is one of the reasons that we should not allow any one including the military to break the trust patriotic Nigerians have in democracy. As Barbara Misztal observes in her work – Trust in Modern Society: ‘Trust makes social life predictable, creates a sense of community, makes it easier for people to work together and there is evidence to show strong positive correlation between ‘higher level of social trust’ and economic development. The point here is that Nigerians placed their trust on the security agencies for protection but when their service chiefs wrote to express inability to discharge that function, there was great cause for alarm and distrust.

    It is dangerous to tempt the military with power –more so in developing countries where it is said to stand as alternate party and in more advantaged position to capture power because of its possession of deadly weapons. This is what made some scholars to say that the appropriate question to ask is not whether the military can seize power any time, any place  but why they are not doing so in  mature democracies?  The secret is the presence of strong public opinion and respect for it. Unfortunately public opinion is still weak in Nigeria.

    The service chiefs must do self –examination to warm the security agencies to the public and win their trust and confidence. The political class must find ways to keep soldiers far away from party politics, find answers to some questions such as why the gallant forces yesterday have become the cowardly type of today booed by foreigners and loathed by many at home? Why are there mutinies and squealing today? Still the military can be made to protect democracy if the public sharpens its eyes and speaks with one voice against any false step towards power. It needs some help to help itself and safeguard our hard won democracy. It should be insulated from partisan politics.

    • Dr Abhuere FNIM, CCYD writes from Uromi, Edo State