The Nation Newspaper

Category: Dele Agekameh

  • PMB’s aborted trip to Ogoni

    PMB’s aborted trip to Ogoni

    Three times in the last one month, President Muhammadu Buhari, PMB, failed to honour scheduled official visits to three states in the country. First was the visit to Lagos, the commercial capital of Nigeria. The President had scheduled a visit to the state between May 23 and 24. Everything had been put in place for the visit, which could have been his first to the state since becoming president on May 29, 2015. But barely 24 hours to the visit, Yemi Osinbajo, his deputy, was substituted for him. The tight schedule of the President was given by the Presidency as the reason for the last minute changes.

    Next was another scheduled visit to Cross River State. The visit would have afforded the President the opportunity to perform the ground-breaking of the Cross River State Super Highway initiated by Ben Ayade, the incumbent governor of the state. It would have also afforded the President the opportunity to commission the multi-billion naira garment manufacturing company put together by the governor to turn around the economic fortunes of the state. Like the Lagos visit, the visit was also put off at the dying minute.

    Again, last Thursday, the President was scheduled to flag off the cleaning of the oil spillage in Ogoniland, Rivers State. The visit had received a lot of attention from within and outside the country with attendant media hype. It was a well-deserved attention. After decades of widespread pollution, the exercise was going to be the beginning of the remediation of the Ogoni environment in line with the United Nations Environment Programme, UNEP, recommendations.

    UNEP had conducted an independent scientific investigation on Ogoni many years ago. In its final report presented on August 4, 2011, the body had noted that the environmental restoration of Ogoniland could prove to be the world’s most wide-ranging and long-term oil cleanup ever undertaken. The aim was to bring back the contaminated drinking water, land, creeks and important ecosystems such as mangrove, to full productive health.

    Unfortunately, for inexplicable reasons, Buhari’s predecessor, Goodluck Jonathan, who incidentally hails from neighbouring Bayelsa State, failed to implement the report. Instead, he established the Hydrocarbon Pollution Restoration Project, HYPREP, which was contrary to UNEP recommendation to oversee the cleanup. But the project never took off at all.

    But hope was not lost. During his electioneering campaign in 2015, Buhari had, at a rally in Ogoniland told the people that: “A lot is taken from Ogoniland and relatively little is brought back in return.” He then assured the people that “an APC-led Federal Government will fulfil all its promises in Ogoniland.” Perhaps, it was in fulfilment of that promise that Buhari personally elected to visit Ogoniland last Thursday and officially flag-off the cleaning exercise. The proposed visit attracted world attention as the sufferings of the Ogoni people has been well documented in various media outlets across the globe.

    The Ogoni oil pollution struggle had claimed several lives including that of four prominent indigenes of the area – Edward Kobani, Albert Badey, Theophilus Orage and Samuel Orage – who were rounded-up, branded vultures by protesters and then roasted alive in Gio, on May 21, 1994. The incident led to the arrest of Ken Saro Wiwa, the renown environmentalist and symbol of Ogoni struggle, along with Ledun Mitee and others. They were subsequently put on trial in February 1995 in Port Harcourt after eight months in detention and eventually sentenced to death on October 31, 1995. Mitee escaped the hangman’s noose. On November 10, 1995, Saro Wiwa and the eight other Ogonis were executed by hanging at Port Harcourt prisons. Their cruel death in the hands of the dictator, the late General Sani Abacha, sparked off global outrage and indignation.

    The President’s visit would have reassured the Ogoni people that the government was genuinely committed to the restoration of Ogoni to a land once flowing with milk and honey. Unfortunately, again, the visit was truncated. It was called-off at a time the President’s advance team had already arrived in Rivers State on Tuesday evening, about 48 hours to the planned visit.

    Apparently, many people believe the cancellation of the President’s visit may not be unconnected with the current appalling security situation in the Niger Delta. The security situation in the region took a-nose-dive few weeks ago, when a previously unknown group, the Niger Delta Avengers, NDA, took up arms and started blowing up oil installations in the region. They are demanding for a Sovereign State of Niger Delta, a call that has generated controversy among the ethnic nationalities in the region.

    Various groups and elders have spoken against the latest recourse to armed struggle in the region, but their pleas, seem to have fallen on deaf ears. Besides the fact that members of the NDA are faceless, their modus operandi of blowing up oil installations in the region is seen as a dangerous trend that might totally bring the nation’s economy currently in the throes of death, to its knees. Also, the economy of the Niger Delta region itself may be thoroughly ruined as mass exodus of oil workers trooping out of the region because of threats to their lives and well-being, has started.

    Perhaps, to convince everybody that they mean business, less than 24 hours to the President’s visit, in the early morning of Wednesday, June 1, agents of NDA successfully blew up two additional oil facilities belonging to Chevron Nigeria Limited. After blowing up the oil wells, the NDA issued a warning to the President to stay off the Niger Delta. The thinking is that security reports may have also advised the President to stay off Ogoniland on that day.

    But that is neither here nor there. No matter the security consideration or interpretation of the threat, the President’s handlers know quite well that it might look like an acceptance of defeat for the President to renege on his plans to visit Ogoniland to flag-off the cleanup exercise simply because of threats from the faceless NDA. They are also conscious of the fact that by their mode of operation, terrorists always drive fear into people. That is not all. As a former military commander and a tough-talking President at that, it is very clear that Buhari would be the last person to be cowed by the NDA’s threat. After all, Yemi Osinbajo, his deputy, represented him at the occasion and nothing happened. Anyway, because the President stayed away from Ogoniland, the NDA could have wrongly believed that they had scored a bull’s eye. The implication is that this could further embolden them to unleash more devastating attacks on the hapless people of the Niger Delta region.  That would make them destroyers and not avengers which they claim.

    At any rate, events that unfolded later culminated into the president travelling out of the country to London for medical treatment. From this, it was clear that he was slightly indisposed. That was why the trip was called off. The same thing happened during his proposed Lagos visit. His medical team had advised him to desist from flying in an aircraft because of the pains he was experiencing in his ears. Who says the President cannot fall sick? As a human being, yes, he can.

    The good news is that after more than 50 years of massive pollution and despoliation in Ogoniland, government and the oil companies have taken full responsibility for the remediation and restoration of the environment. This will positively rub off on the Niger Delta region as a whole. It is for this reason, that the NDA and their sponsors should be made aware that their latest acts of brigandage will only worsen the bad socio-economic situation prevailing in that region.

    The way it is going, a major catastrophe, with far more devastating consequences, seems to be lurking in the Niger Delta. The time to act and act fast, is now!

     

  • Edo State: One goof too many

    Edo State: One goof too many

    Not too long ago, the Comrade Governor, Adams Aliyu Oshiomhole of Edo State, uncharacteristically went into a fit of “semantics” overdrive by casting the departed Omo N’Oba N’Edo Uku Akpolokpolo, Oba Erediauwa, in a demolition raiment against the general notion that the late oba was the repository of peace, concord, amity and sustainable development that enveloped Edo State since March 23, 1979, when the late oba ascended the throne of his forefathers. Oshiomhole had, in a moment of executive over-exuberance, erroneously conferred on the revered monarch a parting but demonising appellation of an “iconoclast.”

    The governor was obviously carried away by the high-sounding elegiac word, specially chosen to wave good bye to his mentor of almost eight years.  However, what the comrade did not bargain for was that an “icon” (which he intended to use) can never be an “iconoclast” which unintentionally crept into his highly-obsequious condolence message. It was clear that semantic diarrhoea, as exemplified by his Chief of Staff, Patrick Obahiagbon’s volcanic grammatical vituperations (those high-falutin words again!), has gradually crept into the governor’s speech-writer’s diction.

    Immediately the condolence message hit the airwaves, it attracted serious reaction from well-meaning people who thought that the governor had goofed. They accused the governor of scooping more than he could swallow from the Alphabet Soup! Exactly 25 days after that onomatopoeic confusion of transposing “iconoclastic” for icon, Oshiomhole shot himself on the foot again.  Last week, he added another faux pas. Precisely, in a fit of executive malfeasance, the governor, by executive fiat, sent an unprecedented “Letter of Appointment” to the new Edaiken N’Uselu, upgrading and promoting him to the Obaship of the centuries-old Benin traditional stool, as if the throne is an integral part of the state’s civil service.

    As unknown and sacrilegious as this action may seem, the official “Letter of Appointment” dated May 24, 2016, purports to be one of the “lasting legacies” that Oshiomhole intends to bequeath to posterity while belittling the mystique, awe and respect the prime traditional and cultural entrepot of the Benin people, attracts within both the Nigerian nation and the African Continent.

    This precipitate action taken by Oshiomhole relegated to the back-burner, the revered tradition, norms and lores of the Benin Kingdom, which guides the ascension of the most senior son of the departed monarch in a graduated process, from the position of Crown Prince to the Edaiken N’Uselu and then to the Obaship in a seamless mode devoid of any government interference, legitimisation or imposition. In fact, the throne is the cradle of the first son of an incumbent Oba of Benin. The tutorials begin at birth until coronation with no roles reserved for any politician or political organisation.

    It is conventional wisdom that the Edo State government or any government at all, does not play any role or function in the choice of the Oba of Benin, except the presentation of a staff of office to the new Imperial Majesty, after the rites of coronation have been completed.  In fact, the presentation is a ceremonial one that can be termed a hollow ritual that has no traditional relevance or importance.  With or without a staff of office, the trajectory of a Crown Prince is known the day he is born and does not need the presentation of a government’s appointment letter to energise or legitimise the new Obaship of Benin Kingdom.

    Political pundits believe that the series of anti-tradition happenings in Benin kingdom point to one and only one direction; the ambition of one man to install a successor at all costs. It probably began with the “treasonable” coronation of Chief Richard Arisco Osemwingie as the surrogate Ogiamen of Utantan Benin nation instead of the missing holder. Then the attendant attempt to balkanise a section of Oredo Local Government Area by Arisco and his cohorts. Others are: the incessant media war orchestrated by the rebel Utantan group with the publishing of a newspaper, Ogiamen Trumpet; the sudden emergence of the hitherto reticent Elawure of Usen, with an “Independence Doctrine “and a new traditional nomenclature that bespeaks his new status; the sudden claim to governorship by Godwin Obaseki on an alleged Governor Oshiomhole’s sponsorship and mentorship and the resultant season of resentment from a concerned section of the Benin Palace against the bid. Last on this list is the semantic misadventure of Oshiomhole in labelling the departed Oba Erediauwa an “iconoclast” instead of an “icon” which he really is, as well as the rapid, terse Appointment Letter and the “Disappointment” Letter sent to the Edaiken N’Uselu on May 24 and withdrawn on May 25, respectively. All these may have been bits and pieces of a carefully-woven and activated plot to demonise and demystify the Benin Obaship, in preparation for a Godwin Obaseki governorship which will prefer to deal with a comatose and weak royal palace in the face of the ingrained century-old animosity between the Obaseki family and the royal family.

    It is also believed that the aforementioned happenings in and around the solemn traditional setting of the Benin Royal Palace, which is the engine room of the Benin Kingdom, are designed by a consummate puppeteer, to “castrate” the palace in order to gain political mileage. Perhaps, it becomes exigent as a much younger person (with a different worldview and orientation) is in the process of ascending the throne of his forefathers imbued further with new ideas, zeal, tolerance and forbearance peculiar to him.

    The fire brigade approach to the resultant impasse and resentment to the issuance of the Letter of Appointment authorising the Edaiken N’Uselu, Ambassador Eheneden Erediauwa, to ascend the revered throne of the Benin Kingdom, with the government claiming that it was done in “error”, is complete hogwash. Rather, it appears the Oshiomhole administration flew a kite to test the waters of resistance, reaction and resentment of the Benin people and the Royal Palace itself, to the Letter of Appointment.

    Palace sources say that the oba-designate took very strong exception to the content, intent and purport of the misguided correspondence.  It is more so, considering the fact and coincidence that the letter came from the Oshiomhole administration just as the programme of the traditional rites of passage of the departed Omo N’Edo Oba Erediauwa was released. It is crystal clear that by this executive misadventure, a curious and esoteric twist has been added to the ongoing undeclared fray to soften the turf for Oshiomhole’s anointed candidate for the September 10, governorship election.

    Prior to this remarkable blunder, an online media outlet edoworld.net, had drawn a parallel that connects the departed Omo N’Oba Erediauwa with the Obaseki family, albeit spiritually, in a bid to lessen the public outrage that has attended Godwin Obaseki’s declaration for the Edo 2016 governorship election. Whatever the veracity of this packaged story, the fact remains that the entrance of Agho’s biological grandson, Godwin Obaseki, into the 2016 Edo State governorship race, is causing disquiet and unease in the Benin Royal Palace and among the citizenry.

    Oshiomhole’s hidden agenda is to use Obaseki to demystify the Benin throne through an unprecedented procedure of “legitimising” the ascension of the Edaiken N’Uselu to the throne by issuing an official Letter of Appointment which will in turn empower the Oba-to-be to endorse Obaseki for the governorship of Edo State. The grain of thought within and outside the palace is that Oshiomhole wants to colonise the royal palace for selfish purposes.  It is quite unfortunate that a man, who, a short while ago, openly boasted that the era of godfathers in Edo politics is gone and gone for good, is now turning round to position himself as the new godfather of Edo politics. His desperation to strengthen his new status may be headed for a brick-wall after all. What a pity!

     

  • Buhari’s anti-corruption war (2)

    Buhari’s anti-corruption war (2)

    Surely, the ripple effect of the recent reckless comment made by David Cameron, the British Prime Minister, who described Nigeria as “fantastically corrupt”, is still smouldering. Like I said last week, Cameron’s comment was not totally off the mark, except that as a man occupying such a sensitive position, he could have been more circumspect. Anyway, as they say, truth is bitter. Now we know that we have a lot more to do to erase the ugly perception that Nigeria is a country where anything goes. It is not Buhari’s job to do alone. It is for all of us to change the current maggoty destiny of this country and create a new image altogether.

    So, who is really fighting corruption? And who are those sustaining corruption in the country? Although this piece is about corruption, our other security agencies who should be working in synergy with the anti-graft agencies have not fared better. They have often been found amazingly wanting. Recently, the Department of State Security, DSS, cried blue murder and came up with the dangerous insinuation that five Fulani herdsmen were killed and buried in a shallow grave somewhere in a south eastern state. I do not know the rationale in making such an explosive and uncharitable statement in a country where brothers go for one another’s jugular at the slightest provocation.

    The DSS said a total of 50 shallow graves were discovered. How the DSS was able to identify five of the graves as containing the remains of Fulani herdsmen is still baffling to many. Perhaps, those at the helm of affairs at the DSS now are ignorant of the pogrom that preceded the nation’s 30-month civil war between 1967 and 1970. At any rate, that official indiscretion by the DSS must have set the stage or laid the foundation for the massacre that later took place in Nimbo community in Enugu State, where several innocent people were slaughtered in cold blood and many houses razed by supposed Fulani marauders.

    Anyway, back on track, Nigerians are happy that the bad eggs amongst us are gradually being exposed. In other words, now that the chickens are coming home to roost, the talk everywhere is that this corruption war is politically motivated because only members of a particular political group are being harassed by the anti-graft agencies. I know that some people have said that it appears to be so because the PDP was the party that called the shots in the last 16 years. But even at that, it does not mean that the other parties are constituted by angels. Some of their members’ antecedents are well known and documented in the public domain. So, if the corruption war must be waged, it must be total and entire. Otherwise, we may end up scorching the snake and not actually killing it.

    Agreed, the President is determined to fight corruption with all the ammunitions at his disposal, but the sad thing is that he seems to be alone in this battle to get rid of corruption in the country. Right now, there are glaring indications that some of the people in the president’s camp may not be comfortable with his stance on corruption. It is obvious that some of them are eager to make money too to line their pockets for the advancement of their political ambitions. It is either they cannot get the president’s ear or he has not looked in their direction in terms of appointment of their cronies to juicy offices. Such disgruntled elements are believed to be working clandestinely to undermine the President. Whenever they find it convenient, they have criticised the President’s style of governance using some fronts. Some may have even chosen to take the war against the president to some international fora for maximum effects.

    The controversy that trailed the 2016 budget is a clear signal that corruption is alive at the highest level of governance in Nigeria. Those who smuggled items and money into the bill knew what they were doing. Of course, that was not the first time the budget was being padded by ministry and budget officials as well as members of the National Assembly, particularly members of the appropriation committees of both houses. In the first instance, some of those (dis)honourable members of the National Assembly got there after running down the finances of their states and ministries.

    As for the National Assembly, it is obvious that the members are not on the same page with the president in the war against corruption. There seems to be confusion within the ranks of the APC members in both houses of the National Assembly, but the division or schism is more pronounced in the Senate. It was that lack of cohesion and understanding that created a yawning gap and prepared the ground for both Bukola Saraki and Ike Ekweremadu, a PDP senator, to emerge Senate President and Deputy President respectively in June last year. The APC that has a slim majority over the PDP in the Senate has never recovered from the shock and trauma of losing the leadership of the Senate to entirely a new comer and a member of the opposition party. All attempts to dislodge the duo from their thrones have not produced the desired result. Instead, both Saraki and Ekweremadu have dug in and are still calling the shots.

    This is in spite of the case involving Saraki, who is facing charges of non-disclosure of assets before the Code of Conduct Tribunal sitting in Abuja. As bad as the case is, Saraki has continued to enjoy the support of his colleagues who appear to be solidly united behind him. Any day he appears in court, he is closely followed by a retinue of senators who have made it a duty to rally round him in his hour of trial. To these senators, they are not in the least bothered by the negative public perception that has trailed their presence at the CCT proceedings. It is very clear that the senators are alienated from the very public they claim to be serving. They are also daily distancing themselves from the vision and aspirations of the Buhari administration especially the war on corruption the administration is waging relentlessly with vigour.

    Furthermore, the recent fuel price hike, the scarce foreign exchange and the high cost of living, have all combined to depress Nigerians. The situation is so bad that today, Nigerians have almost lost hope in their country and their leaders. They may be right. Since the military regime of General Olusegun Obasanjo introduced some belt-tightening measures in 1976, the poor masses have always been called upon to make sacrifices while the privileged few who are neck-deep in the cesspit of corruption are living in opulence.

    In addition, the killings and kidnappings that are simultaneously going on in many parts of the country, as well as the current indiscriminate bombing of oil pipelines by hoodlums in the Niger Delta, have reached an alarming proportion. When you analyse all these unfortunate scenarios, you will discover that corruption is at the very root of all the confusion in the country.  Corruption in Nigeria is fantastically pervasive. It has almost ruined the country. Certainly, Nigerians are eager to see the change they voted for. Therefore, the Buhari administration will need to quickly go back to the drawing board and come up with a good strategy to bring succour to the suffering and suffocating Nigerians. urely, the ripple effect of the recent reckless comment made by David Cameron, the British Prime Minister, who described Nigeria as “fantastically corrupt”, is still smouldering. Like I said last week, Cameron’s comment was not totally off the mark, except that as a man occupying such a sensitive position, he could have been more circumspect. Anyway, as they say, truth is bitter. Now we know that we have a lot more to do to erase the ugly perception that Nigeria is a country where anything goes. It is not Buhari’s job to do alone. It is for all of us to change the current maggoty destiny of this country and create a new image altogether.

    So, who is really fighting corruption? And who are those sustaining corruption in the country? Although this piece is about corruption, our other security agencies who should be working in synergy with the anti-graft agencies have not fared better. They have often been found amazingly wanting. Recently, the Department of State Security, DSS, cried blue murder and came up with the dangerous insinuation that five Fulani herdsmen were killed and buried in a shallow grave somewhere in a south eastern state. I do not know the rationale in making such an explosive and uncharitable statement in a country where brothers go for one another’s jugular at the slightest provocation.

    The DSS said a total of 50 shallow graves were discovered. How the DSS was able to identify five of the graves as containing the remains of Fulani herdsmen is still baffling to many. Perhaps, those at the helm of affairs at the DSS now are ignorant of the pogrom that preceded the nation’s 30-month civil war between 1967 and 1970. At any rate, that official indiscretion by the DSS must have set the stage or laid the foundation for the massacre that later took place in Nimbo community in Enugu State, where several innocent people were slaughtered in cold blood and many houses razed by supposed Fulani marauders.

    Anyway, back on track, Nigerians are happy that the bad eggs amongst us are gradually being exposed. In other words, now that the chickens are coming home to roost, the talk everywhere is that this corruption war is politically motivated because only members of a particular political group are being harassed by the anti-graft agencies. I know that some people have said that it appears to be so because the PDP was the party that called the shots in the last 16 years. But even at that, it does not mean that the other parties are constituted by angels. Some of their members’ antecedents are well known and documented in the public domain. So, if the corruption war must be waged, it must be total and entire. Otherwise, we may end up scorching the snake and not actually killing it.

    Agreed, the President is determined to fight corruption with all the ammunitions at his disposal, but the sad thing is that he seems to be alone in this battle to get rid of corruption in the country. Right now, there are glaring indications that some of the people in the president’s camp may not be comfortable with his stance on corruption. It is obvious that some of them are eager to make money too to line their pockets for the advancement of their political ambitions. It is either they cannot get the president’s ear or he has not looked in their direction in terms of appointment of their cronies to juicy offices. Such disgruntled elements are believed to be working clandestinely to undermine the President. Whenever they find it convenient, they have criticised the President’s style of governance using some fronts. Some may have even chosen to take the war against the president to some international fora for maximum effects.

    The controversy that trailed the 2016 budget is a clear signal that corruption is alive at the highest level of governance in Nigeria. Those who smuggled items and money into the bill knew what they were doing. Of course, that was not the first time the budget was being padded by ministry and budget officials as well as members of the National Assembly, particularly members of the appropriation committees of both houses. In the first instance, some of those (dis)honourable members of the National Assembly got there after running down the finances of their states and ministries.

    As for the National Assembly, it is obvious that the members are not on the same page with the president in the war against corruption. There seems to be confusion within the ranks of the APC members in both houses of the National Assembly, but the division or schism is more pronounced in the Senate. It was that lack of cohesion and understanding that created a yawning gap and prepared the ground for both Bukola Saraki and Ike Ekweremadu, a PDP senator, to emerge Senate President and Deputy President respectively in June last year. The APC that has a slim majority over the PDP in the Senate has never recovered from the shock and trauma of losing the leadership of the Senate to entirely a new comer and a member of the opposition party. All attempts to dislodge the duo from their thrones have not produced the desired result. Instead, both Saraki and Ekweremadu have dug in and are still calling the shots.

    This is in spite of the case involving Saraki, who is facing charges of non-disclosure of assets before the Code of Conduct Tribunal sitting in Abuja. As bad as the case is, Saraki has continued to enjoy the support of his colleagues who appear to be solidly united behind him. Any day he appears in court, he is closely followed by a retinue of senators who have made it a duty to rally round him in his hour of trial. To these senators, they are not in the least bothered by the negative public perception that has trailed their presence at the CCT proceedings. It is very clear that the senators are alienated from the very public they claim to be serving. They are also daily distancing themselves from the vision and aspirations of the Buhari administration especially the war on corruption the administration is waging relentlessly with vigour.

    Furthermore, the recent fuel price hike, the scarce foreign exchange and the high cost of living, have all combined to depress Nigerians. The situation is so bad that today, Nigerians have almost lost hope in their country and their leaders. They may be right. Since the military regime of General Olusegun Obasanjo introduced some belt-tightening measures in 1976, the poor masses have always been called upon to make sacrifices while the privileged few who are neck-deep in the cesspit of corruption are living in opulence.

    In addition, the killings and kidnappings that are simultaneously going on in many parts of the country, as well as the current indiscriminate bombing of oil pipelines by hoodlums in the Niger Delta, have reached an alarming proportion. When you analyse all these unfortunate scenarios, you will discover that corruption is at the very root of all the confusion in the country.  Corruption in Nigeria is fantastically pervasive. It has almost ruined the country. Certainly, Nigerians are eager to see the change they voted for. Therefore, the Buhari administration will need to quickly go back to the drawing board and come up with a good strategy to bring succour to the suffering and suffocating Nigerians.

  • Buhari’s anti-corruption war (1)

    Buhari’s anti-corruption war (1)

    It was strange but not totally new. And when it happened last week, all hell was let loose by concerned Nigerians. A television station in the United Kingdom had aired the transcript of what appeared to be an “official gossip” involving David Cameron, the British Prime Minister who was caught on camera, at a dinner where he labelled Nigeria and Afghanistan as two “fatalistically corrupt” countries.

    Before Cameron’s mouth diarrhoea, a British tabloid had also run a story that was calculated to rubbish the anti-corruption credentials of President Muhammadu Buhari. The story had pointed accusing fingers at Buhari and his family which the paper described as living in opulence, with his children attending expensive schools in London and flying in first class compartments of aircrafts while the ordinary Nigerian is barely eking out a living.

    While the dust raised by the tabloid was still simmering, the British Prime Minister rubbed salt on the injury. His unfortunate statement came on the heels of last Thursday’s anti-corruption conference which was hosted by the British government where Nigeria’s President and a number of other leaders met to strategise on ways to end the scourge of corruption now ravaging everywhere.

    Expectedly, Cameron’s comment attracted wide outrage with some accusing him of not being a saint himself as revealed in the now famous Panama Papers. However, in spite of Cameron’s undiplomatic tantrums, Buhari was unruffled as he threw a direct jab at Cameron whom he pointedly told to double up efforts to return Nigeria’s stolen assets and wealth now domiciled in the Britain and other parts of the world.

    The Nigerian President was right. The United Kingdom is one of the most favoured destinations by corrupt Nigerian officials to hide funds stolen from the country’s treasury. And as these stolen funds trickle into the British economy, no concerted effort is made by the British government to question the source or legitimacy of these funds even when it is very clear that the funds are proceeds of corruption. Unfortunately, even when they are clearly identified as such, it takes eternity for the British government and other governments around the world to allow such funds to be returned to the legitimate owners. In that case, there is a seeming case of official conspiracy to commit money laundering or aiding and abetting corruption.

    At any rate, no one is in doubt about the seriousness and the tenacity with which Buhari has been waging the current anti-corruption crusade in Nigeria. Hope was rekindled among the generality of Nigerians after the President delivered his acceptance speech before a capacity crowd at the Eagle Square, Abuja, on May 29, 2015. The President had declared that he was going to wage a titanic war on corruption which had long become an endemic cankerworm that has eaten deep into the fabric of the nation.

    All along, Nigerians knew corruption as a hydra-headed monster destroying the nation. The reason is that everybody knows it. But nobody was bold enough or has been able to muster enough courage to tackle the menace. The closest we have come is for some past leaders to condemn the attitude by word of mouth whenever the opportunity presented itself, while they themselves, their cronies and acolytes are neck deep in nefarious activities.

    Nigerians believed Buhari and actually rooted for him. They were convinced by his track-record and they knew he could be taken for his words. So, Buhari rode on the crest of popular support into office. Not long after, he took off with the war on corruption in earnest. In the process, the gargantuan rot left behind by the immediate past government and other past administrations started being unearthed.

    It will be recalled that at the inception of democratic governance in the country in 1999, the party at the centre then was the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, a behemoth that ruled the country for 16 years – 1999-2015. At a particular point during this period, there was a time when the party was in control of more than 26 or 27 states of the federation. At that time, the opposition parties were so fragmented and too disorganised to tackle the PDP. This gave the PDP a free reign to plunder the nation’s resources.

    But thanks to the coalition of some four political parties and a splinter group from the PDP, the 2015 election saw the exit of the octopus PDP from power. It was succeeded by the Buhari administration which rode into the villa with its ‘change’ mantra. What is this ‘change’ mantra? The mantra entails that the country will have to change its ways from the way it did business in the past, to a new way with compliance to international best practices. It was obvious that the country was plagued by corruption at all levels–businessmen, bankers, politicians, civil servants, the Military, the Police and other surfeits of security agencies, are all intensely corrupt. And this was not leading the country anywhere. Instead, Nigeria and Nigerians had gained notoriety for corruption and corrupting influence.

    Over the years, corruption had been allowed to flourish unhindered in our public and private lives on a very debilitating and disturbing scale. Reversing this trend, therefore, will certainly not be a day’s job. It is going to be a long haul. The president himself has said this much at many fora that the anti-corruption war his government has embarked upon will be a difficult, tortuous journey but he is determined to get to the Promised Land. That Promised Land is to make Nigeria a country where due diligence and transparency are observed in doing business; a country where accountability matters; a country that operates on a level playing field with opportunity to all, etc.

    Of course, in the first few weeks of the Buhari administration, things appeared to be moving fine and people everywhere applauded the bold steps the new government was taking to address the decay of the past. Even outside the country, the applause reverberated. The general feeling was that a new Sheriff had come to town. Compliance with best practices suddenly became a norm rather than the exception. Even the DISCOs – (Electricity Distribution Companies) – as the lords of power distribution are now called, quickly whipped their men into order. Light was everywhere unlike in the past when it was a luxury to even have 30 minutes of electricity. Civil servants in Abuja got to work early and things appeared to be normal.

    People said it was a response to the new president’s body language. The nation’s anti-graft agencies, the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, ICPC and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, also scrambled to their feet as the new president’s “body language” seemed to have woken them from their hitherto deep slumber. What followed was a rash of indiscriminate arrests, obtaining confessions under duress and trial on the pages of newspapers. In my life, I have not seen where a security agency became as loquacious as the EFCC has been doing these past few months. It is interesting to note that up till this moment, not a single suspect has been found guilty of any financial malfeasance as the EFCC had made the public to believe through the media. This is worrisome.

    When Cameron said the country was fantastically corrupt, his statement, though unbecoming of a man in such a high political office, was not totally off the mark, more so, as the degree of corruption in Nigeria is incredible, scandalous and alarming. And with the snail speed at which this anti-corruption war is being prosecuted by the anti-graft agencies, especially their system of arrest before scouting for evidence to nail suspects, we might end up just scratching the monster in the face. May God help us!

     

  • A word for Edo politicians

    A word for Edo politicians

    In recent times, politics in Edo State has witnessed the most strident and bilious politicking in the state’s history.This has come with accompanying frightful potentials for exacerbating the already taut and fragile security situation in the state, especially in an election year, to choose who will take over from Adams Oshiomhole on November 12.

    We have been inundated with stories of the governor accusing Pius Odubu, his deputy, of recruiting a team of native doctors to kill him through spiritual means.  The deputy himself allegedly escaped assassination recently when he and his entourage were attacked with guns, cudgels etc, at an interactive meeting with prospective delegates in Auchi, within the governor’s senatorial district. Not only this. The relatively-peaceful Edo State House of Assembly witnessed a sudden “volcanic eruption” on May 3, as the Speaker, Victor Edoror was coyly replaced with Elizabeth Ativie, who is believed to be a crony of Governor Adams Oshiomhole.

    These incidents are a fallout from the camps of those members of the political class who have been fanning the embers of mutual mistrust, hatred and ethnic chauvinism with pre-determined focus to achieve their aims. It is quite obvious that the lies, misconceptions and deliberate misinformation often planted by the political class, through unguarded and inciting utterances and actions usually thrive because of political apathy and the poverty level of a large percentage of the electorate.

    Truly, in an election year like this, the politics of relevance determines what you get from the unfathomable pool called the “dividends of democracy”. Therefore, in playing the game of the survival of the fittest, simple rules of decency, fair-play, tact and facts are treated with uncommon levity and brazen insouciance.  In most circumstances, the prevailing spirit is “All is fair in war”, and in others conventionally-held rules of engagement are turned upside down to oil and authenticate deliberate falsehoods to strengthen the “amoury” of the beneficiary. This has been exemplified by the widely-condemned assassination attempt on the deputy governor, which the governor, in a fit of executive comedy, tagged a lie and a fabrication as, according to him, nothing like that happened.

    It is astonishing to see that one defining factor that has crept into the politics of Edo State is the violent streak being displayed by party supporters at the low and the high segments of the two contending political parties, the All Progressives’ Congress, APC, and the Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP. It is getting increasingly clear that their operating mantra now revolves around the Machiavellian doctrine of the “end justifies the means”. This dangerous importation has almost erased the hitherto peaceful and harmonious nature of the political process and politicking in the state. And doing this has elevated politicking in the state to incidents of assassinations and assassination attempts, ballot-box snatching and destruction, muggings, arson, cultic oppression, financial inducements, etc.

    In the actual sense, politics and politicians in Edo State are as variegated as those on the national platform, even though the hues may not be as diverse as on the former.  They are, in fact and essence, a microcosm of both the practices and vagaries of the power game in the true Nigerian context and application.  They are inseparable: One sets the stage for the acquisition of the power lever, while the other is the human factor that drives (and reaps from) the quest for it.

    From the advent of democracy on May 29, 1999, the PDP maintained its dominance over the political affairs of the state for years until its popularity and acceptance nose-dived and the party was consequently voted out of power. In losing the mandate, the guilty party members did so with selfish guile, angst and mutual distrust as the then Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, coasted home to victory. Political watchers had thought that past political experiences that culminated in the loss of power in the state by the PDP will help to weld the cracks and cement the crevices of interests and shades of opinion into a workable whole in both the APC and the PDP, but recent events have proved the expectations wrong.

    At certain critical periods such as primaries, local, state and national elections, the dreams of the founding fathers of both the ruling and opposition party in the state, have turned into near-interminable incubus interspersed with occasional cohesiveness in the affairs of the two major parties.  Like in all human aggregations, the coalition of persons, ideas and intentions that metamorphosed into the PDP and the APC, included unrepentant Fifth Columnists whose hidden agenda were masked by deliberate show of platonic camaraderie at the beginning of their political hibernation.  They barely concealed the veiled animus that they harbour when things are in their favour. They were always ready to jump ship for greener political pastures the moment their parties begin to falter.

    The fact is that politics involves interests, ideas and persons competing for power, position and influence.  It is virtually impossible to satisfy the aspirations of everyone in contention.  It is even more so for a vibrant ruling party like the APC and an equally well-entrenched opposition like the PDP.  The two parties are endowed with a teeming population of qualified, skilled, educated and intelligent members angling for the few elective and appointive positions available.

    The peculiarities of Edo State politics and corporate governance, at all levels, revolves around (a) Those who have a job to do (b) Those who covet that job and want to possess it by all means (c) Those who plan and scheme to stall or spoil that job, albeit, at all costs (d) Those who care about the job being done well and (e) Those for whom anything goes as far as they benefit from it.

    As the PDP engages its eighth year of being in the opposition in Edo State, its leadership and followership should do some introspection and find out where the initial amity, understanding and common purpose derailed – a fact that has caused it a long stint in the political wilderness. Surprisingly too, the APC, the ruling party, is not fairing any better.

    In its very pristine form, the beauty of politics is the all-important allure, ambience and aura of power.  In the Edo context, there is the added tendency for some of those wielding power to use it to accumulate economic capital for self, dependants and cronies.  In the light of the foregoing, we must situate the desperate and precipitate activities, actions and utterances of some sections of politicians across the political spectrum, who indulge in wanton disregard for constituted authority by engaging in rebellious acts designed to instigate other sections of the society against one another. This cadre of politicians believe that the art of politicking is another dimension of war that must be fought with uncommon vehemence, to achieve the primary aim of acquiring power and all its “appurtenances” that will necessarily follow.

    Of course, neither sustainable development nor the delivery of dividends of democracy can take place in an environment of mutual distrust, coven-like intrigues, unending subterfuge, tribal and ethnic considerations etc.The use of uncouth and offensive language laden with half-truths and barefaced lies as the wares of politicking, is often a prelude to violent engagements on the political terrain – a situation that may not benefit anyone in the long run. Therefore, the leaders of the two major political groupings (at all levels) should encourage the party administrators to put in place enduring conflict resolution mechanisms that will ensure that all aggrieved parties find solace and satisfaction therein rather than resorting to self-help.

    In the current race for the acquisition of political power in Edo State, the overall interests of the people the contenders are seeking to govern, should be of paramount importance as no credible election can take place in an atmosphere riddled with confusion and violence.

     

     

     

  • Benin Kingdom without Erediauwa

    Benin Kingdom without Erediauwa

    For almost a year, the rumours poured in intermittently, albeit, in hushed tones and coded banters that the uninitiated will hardly decipher.  Various allusions were also made to describe the eternal transition of the revered Oba of Benin Kingdom and head of the respected Eweka dynasty, Omo N’Oba N’Edo Uku Akpolokpolo, Oba Erediauwa I. But all these speculations remained hollow rumour until the traditional and official announcement of the royal transition of the Oba was made in Benin last Friday.

    In July last year when a prominent South-west monarch joined his ancestors, modernity had a head-on collision with tradition, as the social media came alive with report of the demise of the monarch. His transition was initially vehemently denied by the Traditional Council, but they could not hold on for too long before they buckled in the face of ceaseless media scrutiny. In short, modernity triumphed over tradition, or so it seemed.

    Now, in the case of the departed Oba of Benin, though the serial rumours of the imperial monarch’s transition started gaining currency about a year ago, perhaps, for fear of untoward repercussion, nobody, not even the ubiquitous social media, could dare announce the transition until the news was officially broken. In this particular case, the strong and undiluted tradition of Benin Kingdom won.

    The possible transition of the revered Benin monarch became manifest during the build-up to the last presidential election when Oba Erediauwa was not on hand to receive one of the presidential candidates who was on a tour of Edo State.  Some people made political capital out of the issue until the Benin Royal Palace explained that the Benin monarch was only “indisposed”. But if the palace thought that that will lay the matter to rest, they were mistaken. Rather than die, the speculations were soon reinforced by the upsurge of what looks like “traditional rebellion” or “coup” in some restive sections of the Benin Kingdom.

    Things came to a boiling point when a certain section of the city was delineated along primordial lines and one Chief Richard Arisco Osemwingie was “coronated” as “His Royal Majesty, Ogiamen of Utantan, Benin Nation. Stung by this calculated affront of the creation of an alternate “Oba of Benin”, on September 9, 2015, the duo of Arisco Osemwingie and his brother, Patrick Osabuohien, were arraigned before a Chief Magistrate court for conspiring to commit an unlawful coronation.  The case is still on-going.

    The rumours also became rabid at the same period the Benin Traditional Council became uncomfortable with the growing antics of the Elawure of Usen, who the Benin Palace accused of arrogating to himself certain traditional powers and nomenclature and claiming independence of the Royal Palace in Benin City.

    The internal rumbles on the traditional turf were not helped by the gradual eclipse of the oft visible and acerbic spokesman of the Benin Royal Palace, Chief Nosakhare Isekhure, the Isekhure of Benin Kingdom, who many came to know as the “conscience” of the royal governance, as he suddenly took a dive in his visibility and commentaries on traditional or state issues. The low level presence of the Isekhure in recent times is seen as a tactical withdrawal action designed to prepare him for the tenure of the incoming Oba of Benin. But speculations are rife that the new Oba may not be well-disposed to Isekhure’s penchant for publicity and hype, some of which had allegedly either embarrassed or implicated the Palace in the past.

    The late Oba Erediauwa was a crucial stabilising factor in the relative peace Edo State has been enjoying since he ascended the throne in 1979. It is imperative, therefore, to note that Oba Erediauwa left indelible footprints in the sands of time. He was at the vanguard of the prevailing peace in Edo State through the various mediatory roles he played in resolving some contentious issues that involved some high-profile politicians. One of such was his role in finding amicable solution to the misunderstanding between Chief Tony Anenih and former Abia State Governor, Orji Uzor Kalu. Another was ending the face-off between Chief Anenih and former Edo State Governor, Lucky Igbinedion. His wise counsel, advice and direction have also played a major part in the resolution of contentious state issues whether on the political or traditional turf. He was firm, assertive and always straight to the point.  In fact, he was one of the strident but powerful voices that did not support the perpetuation of the dark-goggled late General, Sani Abacha’s military dictatorship.

    Now that focus and attention have been placed on electing an Edo governor of Edo South extraction, from the two major political parties, the All Progressives Congress, APC, and the Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP, political watchers are wary of a situation where the late monarch’s advice and admonition will be totally absent because of this irreversible transition.  This is more so as it will be the first time since 1979, that an election will be conducted in Edo State without Oba Erediauwa sitting as the Oba of Benin.  It is even believed that some highly-visible and politically-connected chiefs in his kitchen cabinet may take advantage of his absence and assert their own relevance in the face of the perceived incoming Oba’s little knowledge of the state’s power matrix and the proximity of the forthcoming governorship election in Edo State.

    Another factor that will play a prime role is the alleged political configuration that is being forged by Governor Adams Oshiomhole to anoint a successor who will take over from him on November 12.  The anticipated beneficiary of the alleged faux pas, Godwin Obaseki, is a scion of the Obaseki family of Benin City, whose great-grand father, Agho, was said to have connived with the white colonialists to depose his bosom friend, Oba Ovonranmwen, after the Benin Massacre of 1897.  Agho was believed to have some self-interest in taking over the Benin kingship with the assistance of the new colonial masters.

    In the run-up to the present hustling towards the September 10, Edo governorship election, some of the palace chiefs have been allegedly fingered as aiding the election dreams of the governor’s man who is believed to be one that the core Royal Family members will not touch, even with a kilometre-long pole! But observers are of the view that the departed and well-beloved monarch tacitly supported the election and re-election of Oshiomhole and also extended his royal blessings to the governor’s urban renewal programme-especially in the state capital.

    Therefore, it is a matter of conjecture for one to specifically project an enduring position of the Royal Palace (especially the Royal Family) with respect to its support or otherwise, for the candidacy of Obaseki, who is a known protĂ©gĂ© of Oshiomhole. If invariably the late monarch’s siblings are united against the installation of Godwin Obaseki as the Governor of Edo State, they will be towing a line of action that many pundits would have loved to witness if Oba Erediauwa was still alive.

    Born on June 22, 1923 as Solomon Aiseokhuoba Igbinoghodua Akenzua, the late Oba was the 38th Oba of Benin. He attended Government College, Ibadan (1939 to 1945); Yaba College and then proceeded to Kings College, Cambridge, UK, where he studied Law and Administration.  In 1957, he joined the Eastern Nigeria Civil Service as a District Officer before moving to the Federal Civil Service where he retired as a Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health in 1973.  He had a stint as the Regional Representative of Gulf Oil before he was appointed as the Bendel State Commissioner for Finance, in 1975. By the time he was crowned the Oba of Benin on March 23, 1979, he was a seasoned administrator, whose experience over the years, eventually contributed immensely to his successful monarchical reign. May his soul rest in peace!

  • Fati Abubakar: A life of service

    Fati Abubakar: A life of service

    The date was Tuesday, April 12. The valedictory court session attracted top practitioners in the legal profession and other prominent Nigerians who converged in Minna, the Niger State capital, to wish an icon of justice, the retiring Chief Judge of Niger State, Justice Fati Abubakar, CON, farewell as she took her final bow out of office as the first female Chief Judge of Niger State.

    Justice Fati Lami Abubakar is an unusual woman who asserted, by her work, that the purpose of human life is to serve by showing compassion and the will to help others. At 65, she has a fire inside of her that burns brilliantly and true, brightening her features and framing the feline girth that shelters her persona. Her compassion and will, like preternatural folds of flesh, serve as furrowed pillows to her speech and windows to a femininity that captivates almost too often at first glance.

    Justice Abubakar saw her calling, as service to mankind; thus she sought to ennoble her work and herself. Left to the now retired judge, anyone who considers his or her occupation as merely a means of earning money, degrades it. At a time when history becomes capricious in its awards of fame, fixating on dramatic incidents while ignoring the quiet service that counts for more, the 65-year old wife of former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, GCFR, attracts enviable plaudits by her diligence in public service.

    Every first gaze at Fati Abubakar arrests the attention of the looker, irrespective of gender. The worthier breed or, put precisely, more discerning class of men and women, basically lose their heads and gape in awe at the extraordinary woman. Though vaguely rakish in demeanour and often mistaken as too strict, the retired chief judge is chummier than often imagined. Cloaked in swathes of moral and pleasant punch lines masqueraded as sardonic humour, the foremost justice and legal luminary flaunts that rare spark and spiritedness that most women of her ilk suffer a dearth of.

    The spark within her soul shines brilliantly today as it did in her youth. It was the lure that ensnared and kept on the leash of love that has blossomed and glowed between her and elder statesman Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar. Spurred by innate zeal and resolve, Justice Abubakar found the wherewithal to turn her gaze finally outward even as she summoned strength from within to achieve her dreams.

    In pursuit of her dreams, she had to juggle wedlock, motherhood, the justice system, helping the needy and the world’s disadvantaged. There is no limit to her bid to foster the rule of law and societal stability. She adjudicates and resolves the most troubling legal quagmires even as she jumps in the trenches to lay the bricks for the homeless’ shelter. She could do just about anything. Anything, to safeguard her profession. Left to her, walking the talk and doing her bit is the only comfort and assurance that she truly lives.

    Before being the first female chief judge of Niger State, Justice Abubakar was a former Attorney General of the state, a former Solicitor General of the state and a former state counsel among others. She held sway as the First Lady of Nigeria during the 11-month reign of her husband, General Abdusalami Abubakar, as Head of State (June 1998 to May 1999).

    Born on April 12, 1951, the retired Chief Judge holds an LLB in Law and Doctor of Laws (LLD) Honoris Causa from the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife. She’s the second child and eldest daughter of Alhaji Umaru Audi, the late first Waziri of Minna and Hajia Nana Asmau (daughter of the late Sarkin Hausawa of Minna). In line with Hausa tradition, she was taken away from her parents and brought up by her father’s elder sister, Hajia Hadiza. This notwithstanding, her father, a highly-educated administrative officer, ensured she enjoyed the finest education.

    She attended a Christian missionary school from where she proceeded to the Queen Elizabeth School in Ilorin, in 1965 and the Federal Government College, Sokoto (1970-1971). As at that time, Queen’s School was a unity school that picked the best female brains from all over Nigeria. After finishing high school, she gained admission to the prestigious University of Ife now Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, to study law and graduated in 1975.

    Justice Abubakar got married to General Abdulsalami Abubakar around the same time and even had her second child, Fati Ladidi, now a lawyer, at the time she was still a student at the Nigerian Law School, Lagos. This, no doubt, attests to her mettle as a tough, extraordinary woman. Unlike most women, she effortlessly combined family life with her career, with enviable results. Her husband, General Abubakar, became the Head of State following the sudden death of General Sani Abacha in 1998. Not a few pundits and political historians credit her for encouraging her spouse to be a man of honour and not hold on tenaciously to power.

    Even while her husband was Head of State, she was so committed and dedicated to her job as a lawyer that she never left the legal profession. This is very impressive as some other women see the ‘First Ladyship’ as a role of glamour and wanton frivolities. Her attitude and disposition as the country’s First Lady distinguished her as a woman of unusual morality and personal ethics among the country’s First Ladies.

    Like some other First Ladies before and after her, she had her own pet project. But unlike the others, even though her husband spent the shortest time in office as the country’s Head of State, her own foundation is still very much alive. In 1999, with just 11 weeks left for her husband in office, she established the Women’s Rights Advancement and Protection Alternative, WRAPA. It was registered as a Non-Governmental Organisation, NGO, non-political, not-for-profit, charitable organisation for advocacy and mobilisation for the promotion, protection and realisation of women’s human rights, the elimination of all forms of repugnant practices, as well as violence against women and the enhancement of their living standards.

    The acronym WRAPA, which denotes the one or two-piece cloth worn by Nigerian women irrespective of age, tribe or religion, underscores the national spread of the organisation. WRAPA enjoys considerable support from various bodies, agencies and other corporate bodies. WRAPA has 11 vocational training centres in nine states, 22 adult literacy centres in 12 states, and 10 legal aid centres in 10 states of the Federation.

    On October 12, 2001, Safiya Hussaini Tungar Tudu, a divorced mother of four, was sentenced to death in Sokoto State for adultery. Similarly, on March 22, 2002, a Sharia court in Funtua, Katsina State, also sentenced Amina Lawal to death for a similar offence. Both of them were to be executed by stoning. It was Saudatu Mahdi, WRAPA’s administrative and programme head and her legal team that battled to save the lives of the women. Unknown to many, it was Justice Fati Abubakar’s WRAPA, and other bodies fighting for Women’s Rights, that saved both women in March 2002. One of them, Amina Lawal, has since remarried.

    By virtue of her professional and academic achievements, Fati Abubakar, is unarguably the most erudite of all of Nigeria’s First Ladies. Yet, Hajia Fati, as she is popularly called, remains the most humble of all the country’s First Ladies and her humility taught her how to avoid the arrogance of power. In my numerous encounters with her either in their home or her office in Minna, she comes across as a serious – minded, highly principled, disciplined and firm woman. She is blessed with six lovely children – Amina Lami Abubakar-Bello, Fati Ladidi Abubakar, Rahmatu Tassallah Abubakar, Isa Danasabe Abubakar, Umar Danjuma Abubakar and Muhammadu Mustapha Abubakar, who are all doing well in their chosen professions.

    This is wishing her a happy retirement even as she is going to devote more time to her family and her pet project – WRAPA.

  • Boosting Nigeria’s rail system

    Boosting Nigeria’s rail system

    In the history of budget making in Nigeria, the 2016 Budget appears to be the most controversial. It all began with claims and counter-claims that the document had grown wings and disappeared from where it was kept. As the controversy gained momentum, two versions of the same document surfaced. At the end of the day, the truth was known to the public – some smart government officials had tampered with the original document and completely bastardised it. The President was enraged. An enquiry was set up which eventually led to the removal and repositioning of some top directors in the budget office.

    If Nigerians thought that was the end of the story, they were mistaken. Some few weeks back, the document finally got back to the President for his assent. Many discrepancies were noticed in the document. It was discovered that the National Assembly had removed funds earmarked as counterpart fund for the coastal railway project running from Calabar to Lagos as well as tampered with several other provisions made by the executive. There was bedlam. This raised a fresh crisis between the legislature and the executive.

    For the construction of the coastal railway project from Calabar to Lagos, the agreement reached between the federal government and the Chinese government which had agreed to finance the project, was that the federal government would provide a counterpart funding of N60 billion. This fund was incorporated into the 2016 budget. But the assembly members had, in their own dubious wisdom, cleverly removed this fund from the 2016 budget that was passed to the President for assent. According to the budget estimates submitted by the President to the National Assembly, there were two major rail arteries, among other rail projects, that were designed to ease transportation of commuters and goods in the eastern and northern parts of the country. They are, the Calabar-Lagos line and the Lagos-Kano line. Surprisingly, while the provision for the Lagos-Kano rail line was left untouched, the Calabar-Lagos was completely removed and obliterated. Similarly, the fund proposed for the Idu-Kaduna rail project which has reached advanced stage, was reduced by N8.7 billion, a development that will certainly make it extremely difficult for the project to be completed on schedule. Other provisions either removed or reduced drastically included that of roads, health facilities and others.

    But by far, it is the issue of the N60 billion Calabar-Lagos rail line project which the lawmakers removed from the 2016 budget that has put the National Assembly members on the spot as it has portrayed them as a bunch of unpatriotic Nigerians who are merely using their exalted offices to stall an important project meant to alleviate the suffering of the people. Since the latest controversy broke out, there have been fireworks between the Senate and Rotimi Amaechi, the minister of transportation under whose ministry the rail project falls. The controversy borders on whether the Calabar-Lagos rail line was actually included in the budget before it was expunged or that a supplementary provision should be made if it was not initially included. This is a needless muscle-flexing.

    The development of an effective and efficient transportation system is often regarded as very crucial to the process of the economic development of a country and Nigeria is no exception. This is so because transport in any form is essential to the execution of daily economic and social activities in any given society. The socio-economic development of any country is usually measured by the effectiveness of its transportation system. This is because most economic policies always consider transport as an integral part of the development process of a country. That is why any problem confronting transportation should be taken seriously. This is where the railway system comes in as one of the best system of transportation for economic development. This is the reason why there is a lot of concern when this system is not functioning as it should be.

    According to Umeh Christain Ikechukwu, PhD, Head of Department of Marketing, Imo State University, Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria, “rail transportation began much before road and air modes of transportation came into being. The first railway line in the world was built in England in 1825. The Americans took up the challenge and the Baltimore and Ohio railroad in the United States of America started operations in 1930.” The idea and plan to establish railways in Nigeria first came up in 1879. Eventually in 1895, Mr. Chamberlans, the British Secretary of State, for Colonies, sanctioned the construction of a 1067mm gauge railway from Iddo (Lagos) to Otta (Ogun State). The track covered a distance of 32 kilometres. However, the actual construction work could not commence until 1898. From then on, the rail line has been extended to major cities in the south and the northern parts of the country including lbadan, llorin, Jebba, Kano, Zaria, Bauchi, Port Harcourt, Enugu, Makurdi, Minna, among others.

    When compared with other modes of transportation, rail transportation is of great importance and advantageous to the Nigerian society and the world as a whole. The most prominent of this importance are as follows: Its high haulage capacity. The single trip haulage capacity of trains is very high and can be higher than that of any road vehicle, aeroplane or ship. This makes rail transportation to be the best means of mass transit. In terms of safety, rail transportation is safer than road transportation and less risky than water and air transportation. This is because trains are not known to be involved in frequent high rates of accident. An effective railway system can stimulate cash crop production and manufacture of goods for export especially in the West African sub-region. Above all, rail transportation will aid speedy movement of bulky cargoes on long distances. This is because trains do not have to stop in transit as often as motor vehicles. A single train can also carry, in one trip, the cargo which 10 trucks may require as many as 10 trips to carry.

    Rail transport provides cheap transportation because it is cheaper than trucks and aeroplanes for transporting passengers and cargoes. That is why railways are generally preferred by companies and individuals who are transporting bulky items most especially when such items have to be moved frequently.

    It is for the above reasons that the federal government needs to increase the allocation to the Nigerian Railway Corporation in order to make it possible to embark on capital projects that would enhance its services and revenue. In budgetary allocation for transport development, rail transportation should be able to get as much as road transportation. If rail transportation is to be brought out of its present stagnation, it has to be given more or at least equal attention with other modes.

    In addition, for the organisation to move forward the present narrow gauge should be phased out and a broader one installed. The narrowness of the railway gauge constitutes a great draw back to the modern development of rail transportation in Nigeria. Fast and safer locomotives cannot operate on railway with narrow gauge; therefore if real development is to take place in the Nigerian railway industry, the gauge of the railway network must be expanded. This should be followed by the construction of new railway to serve the country. This is because since the completion of the last rail line in Nigeria in 1964, there has been a lull.

    Today, the Nigerian Railway Corporation is suffering from the lack of political will by the nation’s politicians. What we need to understand is that transport improvement is indispensable to an acceleration of a country’s economic development. As far back as 1967, a United Nations study regarded transport as the formulative power of economic growth. Therefore, Nigerian politicians should not lose sight of the role which a well-developed transport system, particularly the rail system, can play in the socio-economic development of the country. That is the way to go in this era of diversification of economic dependence on oil.

  • Waiting for the Chibok girls

    It has been an endless waiting game. By tomorrow, Thursday, April 14, it will be exactly two years since the Boko Haram terrorists sneaked into the premises of the Government Girls Secondary School, located in Chibok town, Borno State, in the dead of the night  and made away with about 270 school girls. Exactly 730 days after that callous abduction, the fate or whereabouts of the girls has remained an unresolved riddle, very difficult, if not impossible, to crack. It has also become a crime too horrifying to comprehend.

    As the second anniversary of their kidnap comes up tomorrow, a report in the United Kingdom Sunday Telegraph newspaper edition of last Sunday, April 10, which formed front page news headlines in some Nigerian newspapers on the same day, indicated that the Boko Haram terrorists are demanding a ransom of $50 million (almost N16 billion) to release the more than 200 schoolgirls in their captivity. According to the UK Sunday Telegraph, the terrorist group is thought to have issued the demand during secret contacts with the government of President Muhammadu Buhari, who once said he was willing to negotiate for the girls’ freedom.

    When Buhari was sworn in on May 29, 2015, he promised that he would fight for the release of the school girls. Although he was quick to add that his government had no credible intelligence regarding their whereabouts, nevertheless, he assured the nation that his administration would do everything possible to ensure that the girls were rescued. Eleven months down the line, no significant progress seems to have been recorded on the fate of the missing girls.

    Now that the second anniversary of their abduction is here, the Boko Haram terrorists have decided to fly another kite – trading the schoolgirls’ freedom for money. But the Buhari government has denied any link or secret dealing with Boko Haram on the freedom of the school girls. This may have been in tandem with the government’s avowed determination not to enter into any discussion with any faceless group over the freedom of the kidnapped girls.

    In the last two years, the whole world has been gripped with horror and anxiety over the safe return of the schoolgirls. Day after day, hope of their return is raised only to be dashed by the next minute. This appears to be what is repeating itself with the recent kite being flown by the terrorist group to the effect that they are prepared to let go of the schoolgirls if only the government could grease their palms with a whopping N16 billion. What this means is that the Boko Haram spin doctors are probably working on target. They are aware that the Buhari administration would be marking its first year anniversary in power on May 29, less than 45 days from now. In this regard, their thinking is that the government may be desperate to showcase some of its achievements so far to the people. And since the government seems to be reeling under the heavy yoke of intractable problems such as lack of electricity, fuel scarcity, unemployment, high cost of living and a battered economy, to name a few, all of which have resultantly dashed people’s hope for a better country, Boko Haram thought by raising the spectre of hope for the release of the schoolgirls, the government will instantly jump at the dubious offer.

    That such a promise is coming at this material time when world attention is focused on the second anniversary of the abduction of the innocent schoolgirls is suspect. In fact, now that the Boko Haram terrorists have been receiving serious pounding from the relentless aerial and ground assault by the Nigerian Airforce and the Army, the real motive of the terrorists may be to use the promise of releasing the girls as a decoy to fleece the government of billions of naira to shore up their depleted fighting force and war arsenal. It could also be a well-orchestrated ploy by some scammers to dupe the government in the name of providing a window of opportunity for the release of the schoolgirls.

    In the past, unscrupulous individuals including some foreigners and unpatriotic government officials had used the issue of the release of the abducted schoolgirls and the cessation of hostilities between the terrorists and the Nigerian troops, as bait to defraud the government of huge sums of money. Towards the desperate last days of the former President Goodluck Jonathan-led administration, some crooks, possibly with the collaboration of other unscrupulous government officials, pulled fast strings on the government by claiming to be capable of brokering freedom for the unfortunate girls. It later turned out to be a big scam.

    But with Buhari, who is believed to be too tight-fisted, the scammers who may be trying to capitalise on the rage of the moment to pull a surprise one, may have hit the rock. Not only this. The Nigerian military has recorded significant gains against Boko Haram in the last few months by raiding a number of the terrorists’ camps located in Sambisa forest and freeing hundreds of women and children who had been held captive like the Chibok schoolgirls. It is, however, astonishing that in all the raids so far, none of the captured terrorists nor rescued prisoners have been able to give any convincing clue or accounts of ever meeting or seeing any of the abducted Chibok girls anywhere. But there are indications that the schoolgirls may have been kept away from the prying eyes of other captives because their captors see them as ‘prisoners’ with huge symbolic value. This consideration may have arisen from the activities of the #BringBackOurGirls campaigners who have been relentless in drumming up global support for the release of the abducted girls.

    At any rate, hope that the terrorists’ activities may soon end was raised last week by the Nigerian Airforce when it said that the terrorists are now surrendering in droves. This might actually signify that the end of the road has come for Boko Haram. But all these military successes against Boko Haram notwithstanding, the issue of the freedom of the abducted schoolgirls is paramount in the hearts and minds of the people particularly their parents who have been agonising for their return in the last two years. This issue is one of the greatest psychological traumas a nation can pass through and it will continue to dominate discussions all over the place until the girls finally breathe the air of freedom.

    The time has come for anybody who has any information about the missing girls to come forward and speak out. We have certainly passed the level of covering up the truth about the events of April 14, 2014. It is a shame that up till now, the country’s intelligence officers have not been able to crack the riddle surrounding the schoolgirls’ kidnap or locate their whereabouts. This is because the Defence Intelligence Agency, DIA, whose responsibility it is to provide accurate intelligence for the country on such issues seems to be comatose, with no hope of coming back to life anytime soon. The place has been turned into a gold mine for most of the uniform officers posted there.

    But for how long more are we going to continue to wait anxiously for the release of these innocent girls? We have had enough of rhetoric and sloganeering. Now it is time for President Buhari’s government to come out clean and explain to the public what it is doing to free the abducted schoolgirls. A Yoruba proverb says: “Omo mi ku, san ju omo mi sonu lo,” meaning: “My child is dead, is better than my child is missing.” It is high time we closed this horrible chapter in our nation’s history!

  • The Wike, Amaechi tango

    The Wike, Amaechi tango

    Last Easter Sunday, I put a call through to my brother and friend, Professor Steve Azaiki, a two-time secretary to the Bayelsa State government, who was holidaying with his family in Port Harcourt. He was away in Canada when the much talked about re-run election or bloodletting in Rivers State took place on March 19. I had asked him: “How is Port Harcourt?” In a subdued voice, he responded thus: “Port Harcourt is there looking like maybe Afghanistan or Syria. Anywhere you want to go, people will caution you not to venture into that area. Well, I don’t know. I don’t know!”

    For a person like Azaiki who likes to move around, visit people and places, it was a great lamentation. His obvious disgust on the security situation in Port Harcourt, the Garden City, now, turned into a place where life seems to be “short and brutish,” may have echoed the opinion of quite a lot of residents of the city.

    Port Harcourt was virtually a no-go area during the hot days of the militants’ agitation in the Niger Delta region. That was a time people moved about in fear and trepidation. Today, that era seems to have crept back into the Garden City. This time, not because of any agitation for resource control, but because of the selfish interest of some greedy politicians who will stop at nothing to remain relevant in the politics of Rivers State.

    The type of bitter politics that is being played in Rivers today is unparalleled in the history of the country. Perhaps, it can only be compared with the wetie period in the old Western Region, which earned the region the sobriquet “Wild-Wild-West”. That was the time unimaginable violence and arson took over the entire Western Region in the early-60s. The acronym wetie, meaning “pour petrol”, was notoriously acquired as people were doused with petrol in broad daylight, lit with matches and allowed to roast alive while people watched in horror. Houses were also wantonly burnt down. It is a similar scenario currently playing out in Rivers. Many lives have been lost to gun attacks or by the more cruel, callous and dastardly system of beheading by roving head hunters moving from one community to another, hacking down people and burning houses any time of the day.

    In spite of the restriction of movement on March 19, the day of the election and the flooding of the state with security operatives, several deaths and destruction of property were recorded in the state. Why the heavy presence of security agents in the state could not deter the criminal gangs, is still a mystery. What it simply means is that the killer gangs have godfathers and sponsors who enjoy some form of official protection. Otherwise, the gangs would not have been so bold to defy the heavy presence of security agents to perpetrate their evil deeds.

    At any rate, there are two major political parties locked in a fratricidal war for the control of the soul of Rivers’ politics. They are the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and All Progressives Congress, APC. Since the return to democracy in the country in 1999, the PDP had been at the helm of affairs in the state until some years ago when Chibuke Rotimi Amaechi, the then sitting governor, who was on the final lap of his second-term tenure as governor, fell out with his party, PDP. He then pitched his tent with the APC, an amalgamation of four or five political parties and a breakaway faction of the PDP. Since then, Rivers politics has never been the same.

    Attempt by Amaechi, the then outgoing governor, now current Minister of Transportation, to garner support for his surrogate to succeed him failed. Instead, Nyesom Wike, then Minister of State for Education and one-time chief of staff to Amaechi, beat Amaechi to the game and emerged as governor. In the first instance, people say Wike had actually been Amaechi’s godfather until he, Wike, was cleverly eased out of government and consequently sent to “Siberia” in Abuja where he was made a junior minister. When invariably Amaechi fell out with former President Goodluck Jonathan, Wike gained prominence and became a rallying point for the PDP in Rivers State. He exploited his inner knowledge of Amaechi’s government including his (Amaechi’s) strength and weaknesses to undo his former boss.

    As it is, going by the result of the re-run election with PDP winning three House of Representatives seats and nine House of Assembly seats, to APC’s two seats in the results so far declared by the electoral umpire, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, no matter what, it goes to confirm Rivers State as being firmly in the hands of the PDP. This is, probably, a bitter pill Amaechi and his supporters find hard to swallow.

    There is no doubt that Amaechi is a strong man politically. He is bold and serious minded too. But his rating at home in Rivers seems to be nose-diving for some reasons. Truly, people say he did not keep open doors when he was governor. He was said to have bolted the door against many people on the advise of Wike, his former chief of staff, who, incidentally, is now the governor of the state. Even within his kitchen cabinet, the Ikwerre-born politician had those that were close to his heart, while others complained bitterly. One thing to remember is that when Amaechi moved to APC, he urged his commissioners and others to embark on “Operation meet your people.” Whether the exercise produced the desired result or not, is left for Rivers people to determine.

    Again, his disagreement with former President Goodluck Jonathan seems to have plummeted his popularity at home. Frankly speaking, many in the Niger Delta feel that he betrayed Jonathan. Another challenge Amaechi is faced with is that he had followers who he empowered. These followers like him, but they cannot embark on a deadly fight for him. Yes, Amaechi embarked on a deadly fight for President Muhammadu Buhari, but how many of his followers can embark on a deadly battle for the immediate past governor at the moment?

    On the other hand, Wike has been trying to impress the Rivers people since he became governor about 10 months ago. He has recalled the judiciary and university workers and paid them their salaries. He has also embarked on the completion of road projects started under his predecessor and many other projects to the delight of the people. All these possibly account for the support he is now enjoying in the state.

    With the perceived arm-twisting posture of the APC in Rivers, Bayelsa, Ekiti, Akwa Ibom, Taraba and other states controlled by the opposition, some people, rightly or wrongly, believe there is no remarkable difference between the APC and the PDP. That is why the people’s sympathy for the APC appears to be waning. It now behoves on these two combatants – Wike and Amaechi – who obviously have said too many unprintable things to demonise and denigrate one another, to stop using gutter language on themselves while their people are suffering.

    Rivers people want peace. Therefore, to find a lasting solution to the violence and bloodletting that has taken over Rivers State, two people, Wike and Amaechi, must sit together and iron out their differences. This is all an ego thing. That is why the talk of imposing a state of emergency in the state is an idle talk because it is a supremacy war between two political antagonists. Unfortunately, it is the innocent, ordinary man on the street that is bearing the brunt. As they say, when two elephants fight, it is the grass beneath their feet that suffers. Wike and Amaechi are not greater than Rivers State. Let them embrace peace and rein in their foot soldiers.