The Nation Newspaper

Category: Editorial

  • Africa’s governance deficit

    Africa’s governance deficit

    Its persistence seems to worry the World Bank which has again advised on the way out

    Last week, the World Bank released 2024 Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) Report for Sub-Saharan Africa. Its central submission was on the urgent need for African countries to address persistent governance deficits that continue to impede the efficient delivery of qualitative social services to their people.

    The bank urged African governments to rebuild trust between states and citizens by transforming how essential services are delivered if understandably frustrated and dispirited citizens are to regain their trust in the system.

    It noted that the impressive achievements made by a few countries in enhancing fiscal discipline, digitalisation and social protections pale into insignificance against the widespread low quality of governance in Sub-Saharan Africa and the consequent devaluation of the living standards of their citizens. The Report states that “From infrastructure to health and education, African nations are falling behind. Inadequate transport systems and poor sanitation continue to impede economic activity and degrade living conditions. Meanwhile, the human capital base — vital for long-term growth — remains stunted due to substandard schools and healthcare.

    The report also points to soaring insecurity, noting a near tripling of conflict-related casualties between 2014 and 2024. Administrative inefficiencies further erode confidence, particularly in areas like business registration and access to finance, critical for job creation and private sector growth”.

    True, the report acknowledges efforts made through fiscal reforms in a number of African countries to reduce or eliminate wasteful fuel subsidies, strengthen exchange rate management, enhance greater transparency and improve the efficiency of social protection measures, among other reform initiatives. Indeed, the bank is one of the International Financial Institutions (IFIs) that had persistently pushed for these reforms in Africa despite fears of most political leaders on the consequent hardships they would impose on citizens and the possible negative consequences for political stability and social harmony.

    It is thus instructive that the bank now emphasises the imperative for African governments to translate gains of reforms into concrete impact on the welfare of their citizens stressing that “lasting development must go beyond economic statistics — it must restore trust in government by ensuring that citizens can see and feel the impact of policy decisions in their daily lives”.

    Incidentally, there is really nothing new about the observations and recommendations of the report on the continuing challenges of democratic governance, efficient public administration, better transparency and accountability in the management of public resources and improved social services delivery as well as infrastructure provision in Africa.

    It is indeed dismaying that this has been the recurrent theme of both external and internal African development institutions for the better part of the continent’s post-independence history, with only minuscule progress made in this regard. Whatever advances are being made in a number of African countries in improving the welfare of the majority of their citizens, alleviating poverty and enhancing prosperity through good and effective governance are too limited in scope and too slow. Thus, Africa remains a pathetic paradox of a continent rich in mineral and natural resources but with a population plagued by the worst cases of poverty in the world.

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    According to a global development journal, OutReach International, in 2024, Africa had “the highest poverty rates, globally, with 23 of the world’s 28 poorest countries which have extreme poverty rates above 30 percent. Using the poverty line of $1.90 per day, Africa’s extreme poverty was recently estimated to be about 36.5 percent. This rate is 6.6 percent higher than the average for the rest of the world”.

    Corroborating this submission, another report states that “In 2024, Sub-Saharan Africa accounted for 16 percent of the world’s population, but 67 percent of the people living in extreme poverty. Two thirds of the world’s population in extreme poverty live in Sub-Saharan Africa, rising to three quarters when including all fragile and conflict-affected countries. About 72 percent of the world’s population in extreme poverty live in countries that are eligible to receive assistance from the International Development Association (IDA)”.

    The inability of governments across Africa to effectively mitigate the challenge of poverty among the majority of their people weakens the legitimacy of the state and political leaders among their citizens. Indeed, confidence in the developmental potential of democracy as a system of government on the continent is shaken since, in most cases, democratically elected governments have proven not necessarily better in providing good, development-oriented governance than dictatorial governments. This is obviously responsible for the embarrassing situation whereby citizens flock the streets in jubilation when military usurpers have overthrown democratic governments as has recently happened in Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso and Guinea. Unfortunately, military rule is no credible alternative to democracy, as embedded in the fabric of any form of dictatorship are the inevitable seeds of instability since authoritarian rule provides no ordered and predictable mechanism for peaceful political change.

    Poor governance as a result of lack of leadership accountability, absence of transparency in the management of public resources and disregard for the rule of law and social justice in most African countries compound the problem of the humongous corruption for which the continent’s leaders are notorious. Because of the criminal diversion of the communal resources that ought to be invested in qualitative education and health services, efficient electricity supply, modern transport infrastructure as well as agricultural and industrial productivity to generate jobs on a massive scale, into private pockets, substantial numbers of people in Africa sink deeper into poverty.

    Worsening poverty accompanied by gross inequality between a few affluent families and millions of impoverished citizens in turn provide a fertile breeding ground for the pervasive violence such as terrorism, banditry, human trafficking and religious extremism that afflict large swathes of Africa. Poor governance has thus become an existential issue having serious negative implications for the dignity, wellbeing, security and sovereignty of African countries, and deserving urgent remedial action as the CPIA Report rightly affirms.

    Efforts must therefore be intensified to strengthen and expand democratic governance across Africa, reform and continually improve electoral systems to deliver credible elections and accountable governments, as well as nurture vibrant and virile but responsible civil societies that can check authoritarian inclination of leaders.

    The mass migration of young Africans in particular to more economically prosperous climes that is generating a negative backlash of forced emigrations in the United States and across the West, with negative implications for Africa’s image is largely a function of the low quality of governance that has impeded the actualisation of Africa’s immense potentials.

    We agree with the 2024 CPIA Africa Report which “underscores the urgent need for transparent management of public resources and effective delivery of quality services to address growing dissatisfaction and enable citizens to reach their full potential.”

  • Muhammadu Buhari (1942 – 2025)

    Muhammadu Buhari (1942 – 2025)

    • Nigeria buries “the honest one,” in grand style

    It was a historic triumph for Muhammadu Buhari, a retired general and former military head of state, when he was democratically elected President of Nigeria in 2015 after three unsuccessful attempts in 2003, 2007, and 2011. He achieved the feat following a significant merger of opposition parties leading to the formation of the All Progressives Congress (APC).  His victory, which reflected not only his resilience but also his irrepressible desire to make his country better, was even more notable because he had trumped the incumbent, Goodluck Jonathan – an unprecedented accomplishment in the country’s democratic history.

    Interestingly, he first ruled Nigeria following a military coup that toppled a civilian democratic government headed by Shehu Shagari, in December 1983.  This was just four years after the country returned to democracy in 1979, after 13 years of military rule. This military intervention involving Buhari ushered in another long period of military dictatorship that ended in 1999.

    In his attempt to sanitise the country after a period of poor governance by civilian politicians, his regime, which lasted only about 20 months, was marked by draconian laws and human rights abuses  — a common feature of military rule. He launched the War Against Indiscipline (WAI) in March 1984 to drive his corrective campaign. Things went awry in the ruling military body and he was removed in a palace coup led by Ibrahim Babangida in August 1985. He was detained in Benin City until 1988. 

    Born in Daura, in present-day Katsina State, Buhari was four years old when his father died. He entered the old Nigerian Military Training College (NMTC), renamed Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), Kaduna, at the age of 19, in 1962. He also attended Mons Officer Cadet School in Aldershot, England. He fought on the federal side in the Nigerian Civil War (1967- 1970).

    Under military rule, he served as governor of the North-Eastern State from August 1975 to February 1976. He was the first governor of Borno State in 1976 after the North-Eastern State was divided into three states, including Bauchi and Gongola (now Adamawa and Taraba states).

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    As a colonel, he was appointed Federal Commissioner for Petroleum and Natural Resources. He became chairman of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation in 1977. During the Shagari presidency, he led the country’s troops in the Chadian-Nigerian War.

    He was executive chairman of the Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF), an intervention agency set up by the Sani Abacha military regime in 1994. He held this position until 1999, when the agency was disbanded following the return of democratic rule.

    His decision to enter civilian politics may well have been inspired by a sense of personal unfulfillment and a need to demonstrate that he could lead the country to a better place, considering that a coup had abruptly ended his first regime. However, his entry and self-projection as a reformed autocrat attracted criticism and rejection in some quarters.

    Buhari’s two-term presidency as a converted democrat, from 2015 to 2023, had promised a three-pronged attack on corruption, insecurity, and poor infrastructure.  His personal integrity was widely considered unassailable. Given his military background, he was expected to significantly improve security in the country. However, his administration tried its best but insecurity persisted until his exit in 2023. It is being battled by the present government.

    But he made some impact in infrastructure. These included the Second Niger Bridge, Lagos-Ibadan Expressway reconstruction project, Abuja–Kaduna–Zaria–Kano Expressway reconstruction project, the Bodo–Bonny road and bridges project and Apapa–Oworonshoki–Ojota Expressway reconstruction project, among others. With regard to railway, we have Abuja–Kaduna railway project, Kaduna–Kano railway project, Port Harcourt–Aba railway rehabilitation, Lagos–Ibadan standard gauge railway and Kano-Maradi rail project, also among others. 

    Before he died from an undisclosed illness at a London hospital, on July 13, Buhari, 82, had been billed to attend the launch of a book on his tenure, scheduled for July 9 in Abuja. The author, Garba Shehu, served as his spokesperson for eight years. He could not be at the event because he was hospitalised abroad.

    Ironically, his death was announced as excerpts from the book highlighting his life of service were published in local newspapers.  A striking account in Shehu’s memoir, ‘According to the President: Lessons from a Presidential Spokesperson’s Experience,’ underlined Buhari’s reputation for incorruptibility.

    The author narrated how “a delegation of the Board of Directors of the giant construction company, handling government contracts such as roads, railways, bridges and facilities management,” had visited Buhari at the State House, on November 6, 2015. He had told the delegation: “We have been informed that percentage cuts, 10 percent or more, are built into your contracts, to be shared among government leaders and civil servants. This must stop. We will not accept kickbacks…

    “The added costs and all this padding must end. If we ask for quotations from you, tell us the actual cost that the project entails. No 10 percent, no added costs.”

    According to Shehu, “No one in the room complained against his assessment, nor was there any dissent.”

    Contradictorily, for instance, in April 2022, the Buhari administration had made a move that was widely seen as a corruption-friendly action. His government controversially listed a former governor of Taraba State, Rev. Jolly Nyame, and a former governor of Plateau State, Senator Joshua Dariye, among 159 people granted pardon and clemency.  Nyame was serving a 12-year jail term; and Dariye was serving a 10-year jail term. Both men had been jailed for “criminal misappropriation, diversion of public funds, and criminal breach of public trust and misappropriation of public funds.”  They were not expected to be set free without completing their prison terms. Their pardon was considered counter-productive, sending the wrong message to those who occupy high office in the country that corruption-related imprisonment can always be cancelled by the powers that be.

    Buhari introduced a “first-of-its-kind” National Social Investment Programme (SIP) aimed at reducing social and economic inequality. In 2020, he launched a plan to “lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty within the next 10 years.” Two years later, the national Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), in November 2022, said 133 million Nigerians, over half of the population of Nigeria, were “multidimensionally poor,” and “three out of five Nigerians live in poverty.”

    Towards the end of his second term, there was a currency crisis in the country after his administration tried to replace existing Naira notes with redesigned ones in November 2022. There was strong evidence of an untidy implementation, causing chaos, widespread hardship, and anger in the land. The Supreme Court faulted the Federal Government’s failure to obey its interim injunction that the old notes should remain legal tender until the conclusion of the case instituted by some states to challenge the naira swap policy. This was a violation of the separation of powers and the rule of law, the court said, stressing that under the country’s democratic system of government, the President or any other person could not vary an order of court. Apparently, Buhari was misadvised by both his attorney-general and minister of justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, and the then governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele.

    Importantly, Shehu noted that Buhari’s government “brought a new culture into government — a culture of personal integrity — and set new benchmarks in transparency with the institution of the treasury single account (TSA), tax identification number (TIN), bank verification number (BVN), IPPS, whistleblower; the usage of NIN number and the various other transparency-enhancing schemes.”

    His personal magnetism, built on solid honour, was undeniable. He was a true folk hero, which explains the grassroots popularity he enjoyed – an invaluable political asset.  His nickname, “Mai Gaskiya,” a Hausa phrase that translates to “the truthful one” or “the honest one,” was indeed a lesson in leadership.

  • JAMB’s policy meeting

    JAMB’s policy meeting

    Essentials include cut-off points and adoption of 16 years for varsity admission

    Cut-off marks for admission into the various tertiary institutions in the country for 2025/26 have been announced by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).  The marks emanated from the annual Policy Meeting of the board, held at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre, Abuja, on July 8.

    The 5th edition of the National Tertiary Admissions Performance Merit Award (NATAP-M) also featured at the ceremony. The award  was set up to encourage institutions that have performed well in the admission exercise as allowed within the ambits of the law.

    At the meeting, a benchmark of 150 was approved for admission into universities, 100 for polytechnics and 140 for colleges of education, including colleges of nursing.

    The marks were adopted based on voting by the stakeholders. While vice-chancellors voted to decide cut-off marks for university admissions, rectors voted to determine those of polytechnics and provosts the entry point for colleges of education.

    It is instructive that the JAMB registrar, Professor Ishaq Oloyede, and the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, were supportive of a cut-off benchmark of not less than 160 for universities but stakeholders had their way.

    The cut-off mark of 150 for universities this year was slightly higher than the 140 at which it was pegged in 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024. However, while the cut-off mark for colleges of education rose to 140 from the 100 which had been the entry point for these institutions since 2021, that of polytechnics has remained at 100.

    There are those who contend that the cut-off marks, which are less than half of the total available marks of 400 per subject sat for in the examinations are too low and indicative of general low quality of education in the country.

    Those who have this perception argue that it may result in a deficient standard of products of the country’s tertiary institutions, thus devaluing their global competitiveness, as well as impeding their capacity to contribute effectively to the country’s development in their spheres of specialisation.

    But what many people forget is that the UTME score is only one of the criteria for admissions. Other things like school certificate scores, usually with five credits, including English Language and Mathematics; post-UTME scores, where applicable, etc. are also graded alongside the UTME scores. The only thing is that the institutions cannot admit below the cut-off marks agreed at the policy meeting.

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    Indeed, the institutions usually admit candidates with higher UTME scores, especially for courses that are very competitive or where there are limited spaces for the desired programmes.

    This year’s annual policy meeting has also commendably laid to rest the controversy over the attempt to set 18 years as the minimum age for entry into universities on the basis that many children below that age, even though brilliant, were often not emotionally and psychologically mature enough to function in a highly independent university environment.

    Many parents who were aggrieved at the policy, which they saw as unfair to exceptionally brilliant and precocious children, should be satisfied with the minister’s announcement that the minimum admission age has now been fixed at 16, effective 2025/26 academic session. As the minister put it, “This policy decision reflects a balance between cognitive maturity and academic preparedness. Sixteen years of age is non-negotiable”.

    We think this is fair enough.

    JAMB deserves commendation for the tradition of involving critical stakeholders in tertiary education in its policy decision-making processes. They must jointly confront and find solutions to the challenges plaguing the sector. Here, we are talking, among others, about increasing sophistication of all manner of fraudsters who are always on the move, trying to circumvent the board’s processes.

    It is significant and equally laudable that JAMB is usually ahead of them and their antics, thanks to technology that the board heavily leverages on in its operations.

    Again, we would have thought that rather than keep establishing more public tertiary institutions, apparently for political purposes, the governments, states and federal, would do better to expand the facilities in existing institutions to cater to the ever-increasing number of admission seekers.

    The private institutions set up to fill the gaps are mainly for profit and are too expensive for all but a small minority.

  • Fair enough

    Fair enough

    There is sense in TETFund’s warning on abuse of its funds as well as in govt’s setting 1,000 students’ benchmark for beneficiary institutions

    Last week, two significant news items emanated concerning the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund). One was the warning by the fund’s executive secretary, Sonny Echono, to the effect that the fund would delist institutions that fail to access, utilise or retire funds in line with its guidelines, or that underperform in key academic or operational benchmarks.

    TETFund’s Executive Secretary, Sonny Echono, gave the warning in Abuja during a two-day strategic workshop for directors of physical planning, academic planning, and ICT from beneficiary institutions.

    The other was the pegging of the number of students that beneficiary institutions must have to be entitled to its support, at 1,000. This was previously pegged at 2,000 but was reduced to 1,000 after much pressure from the institutions, some of which saw the 2,000 benchmark as a tall order.

    The Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Ahmad, stated this at the 2025 Policy Meeting in Abuja.

    Given the dire situation of most public tertiary institutions in the country, we would have thought that the institutions would take advantage of every opportunity offered by TETFund to better their lot. This, unfortunately, does not seem to be the case.

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    According to Echono, “Let me reiterate, institutions that fail to access, utilise or retire funds in accordance with TETFund guidelines or that underperform in key academic or operational benchmarks may face delisting as TETFund beneficiaries.

    “This policy is not punitive but rather a mechanism to safeguard the integrity and effectiveness of our interventions.”

    Echono made it abundantly clear that the workshop was not the usual talk shop. “This engagement is more than a routine meeting: it is a strategic convergence designed to address recurring implementation bottlenecks, improve compliance, and enhance institutional performance.

    “It is our collective responsibility to ensure that the gains from TETFund interventions are not only sustained but amplified through timely and judicious utilisation of resources.”

    TETFund was originally established as Education Trust Fund (ETF) by the Act No 7 of 1993 as amended by Act No 40 of 1998 (now repealed and replaced with Tertiary Education Trust Fund (Establishment, Etc.) Act No. 16 of 2011). Its primary mandate is to improve the lot of the universities, polytechnics and colleges of education through diverse intervention programmes and projects.

    Most of our public tertiary institutions are shadows of their original state. Many of the universities lack modern libraries; many do not have state-of-the-art equipment even in strategic departments and faculties like science and technology, engineering, etc. Many lecture theatres in the institutions are inadequate to cater to the needs of the ever-increasing number of students, forcing many of the students to perch on windows in the lecture theatres to receive lectures.

    The infrastructural deficits also manifest in lack of basic facilities like regular water and electricity supply, inadequate accommodation, dilapidated buildings, etc.

    These were the considerations that led to the establishment of TETFund. A laudable idea; no doubt. But, like many other good initiatives in the country, it is sad that the very beneficiaries have to be appealed to or threatened before doing the rightful. This is an intervention model that does not require any counterpart funding. Apparently, the story would have been worse if, like some other interventionist programmes, counterpart funding is required from beneficiaries before accessing the fund.

    TETFund has funded 5,525 physical infrastructure projects in over 260 beneficiary institutions, sponsored 23,271 academic staff for Ph.D. programmes and 15,977 for Master’s degrees and awarded grants for 19,297 Institutional Based Research (IBR).

    We agree with the reasons behind the decisions concerning the fund last week. Funds are scarce and those that have the opportunity of accessing such public funds have a responsibility to ensure they are judiciously managed.

    We likewise support its funding going to schools with at least 1,000 students. As Dr Isaac Ode, Deputy Rector of the Nigerian Army College of Environmental Sciences, Markudi, Benue State, observed at the sidelines of the Policy Meeting in an interview with The Guardian, the policy would make ‘sleeping’ and ‘complacent’ institutions wake up or risk being defunded.

  • Again, the flooding question

    Again, the flooding question

    •That NIMET warns of flash flooding this July, in 20 out of 36 states, is alarming

    The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) just dropped its usual rainy season bomb. In July — this month — 20 states, out of 36, spread across five of Nigeria’s six geo-political zones, risk some flooding crisis, because of pounding rains.

    The states are Benue, Niger and Nasarawa (North Central), Adamawa, Bauchi, Taraba and Yobe (North East), Jigawa, Kaduna, Sokoto and Zamfara (North West),  Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo and Rivers (South-South), Lagos,  Ogun and Ondo (South West).  No South East state is in this dire forecast — but that’s only for July.

    But let’s go back to May, to havoc already wreaked; and using numbers from StatiSense, an environmental monitor, as published by The Punch newspaper.

    That month, flood blighted some 116, 711 Nigerians, in 12 states.  The breakdown: Zamfara: 58, 386, Kwara: 11, 830, Lagos: 9, 324, Enugu: 7, 763, Bayelsa: 5, 328, Kaduna: 5, 149, Benue: 4, 577, Ekiti: 4, 290, Oyo: 2, 040, Sokoto: 2, 971, Taraba: 2, 473 and Borno: 2, 250.  Here, all the six geo-political zones were represented.

    Now, these were not just mere statistics.  They were realtime lives blighted (at worst), adversely impacted (at best).  This was the high cost of intrusive water.  Put in socio-economic terms, laced with the psychological burden of misery, these were avoidable tragedies, had we in place efficient and effective water management and flood control mechanisms.

    More seriously: the entire Nigeria — vast territory, thumping population, and all — would appear yoked as near-hopeless laggards, when the issues are environmental education, flood control and the requisite infrastructure to effectively channel roaring water, when the rain is heavy.  Yet, do a content analysis of newspapers, and even radio talks and television shows every year, and you would find the media not wanting in useful information, on how to face down flooding.

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    Still, a caveat: in this season of climate change, hardly any jurisdiction, even the most environmentally disciplined in the world, escapes flash flooding — a temporary trapping of a heavy body of water, that nevertheless dissipates in hours.

    The Nigerian species is, most times, different: they are near-stagnant floodings that wreak huge, industrial-scale havoc: destroying houses and treasured appliances in households, wrecking farmlands and destroying harvests, and flooding factories and destroying machinery.

    Why is this so, and why is it so recurrent, year-in, year-out here?  The answer may well lie in the NIMET counsel to flood-prone areas, in its July advisory.

    The NIMET advisory: “ … Relocate if necessary, clear drainage systems, prepare emergency kits, turn off electricity and gas during flooding, strengthen mudslide prevention and promote community awareness.”

    But for the first two, the other bits of advice are in order: emergency kits, switching off electricity and gas, pushing mudslide prevention and building environmental enlightenment — all of these are legit emergency protocols that should either help to avert the crisis or minimise it to the barest minimum.

    But “relocate, if necessary” and “clear drainage systems”?  Odd!  If you must locate every rainy season from your abode, how did you — or your landlord — even get the permit to build there in the first instance?  Clearly, the planning authorities, urban or rural, and nationwide too, have been snoring on duty!

    Then, “clear drainage systems” — seriously?  Isn’t this supposed to be a routine, everyday affair, for municipal authorities, for town and cities, where the huge population results in huge generation of refuse and allied wastes?

    That NIMET gives this as emergency advisory is proof that these municipal services have broken down, almost everywhere!  If the local governments clamour for “autonomy”, they all should be judged by how they bring back these every-day cleaning of gutters and clearing of drains, for which the old Lagos Town Council (LTC), and later Lagos City Council (LCC), was very famous.  Now, the old Lagos Island is fissured into many local governments — as other councils nationwide — but the sanitary result is worse, not better!

    But aside managing drain facilities, there simply aren’t enough of those facilities around.  As population always sprints before planning, it’s common to see built-up spaces without a central drainage system to channel and discharge water, before it builds up to destructive floods.  Don’t forget too the dumping of wastes in drains by many undisciplined urban dwellers.

    Perennial flooding is a true mirror of Nigeria’s rotten environmental culture.  To solve this problem, we must enforce basic town planning rules, and the local councils must employ daily gutter gangs to clean and clear the drains.  There is no other way.

  • Local cover

    Local cover

    Father Hyacinth Alia, the governor of Benue State, has been bellyaching over the virtual impossibility of enforcing his state’s anti-grazing law, speaking through Kula Tersoo, his chief press secretary.

    Whereas the Benue State Protection Guards (the corps propelled by law to enforce the abolition of open grazing within Benue territory) carry Dane guns, the criminal segment of herders, who push their murderous right to carry arms, trot all over the place, their cattle in tow, bearing AK-47 and AK-49 rifles.

    Though his own basic headache is bandits that sack remote villages — not necessarily killer herdsmen — Governor Dikko Umaru Radda of Katsina State just pivoted down to a solution similar to Governor Alia’s: federating licit lethal arms.

    “We support the establishment of state police.  Fully.” He just told Channels TV in a live interview. “Without it,” he insisted, “we cannot equip our officers adequately to fight bandits using AK-47s, while we’re limited to pump-action rifles.  If we had state police two years ago, this issue would likely to be history.”

    The governor then pushed his model and vision of state police, referencing the recruitment and structure of the Katsina Community Watch Corps: “These officers are from the same communities under attack, and they know the terrain more than anyone.”

    What’s left?  Upgrading the calibre of arms and ammo lawfully at their disposal to face the security hazard confronting them.  Again, that’s federalising licit arms, within a vast federal territory.

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    But why is that simple logic so difficult to implement, to the mutual gain of everyone, including the last bastion of resistance in the current omnibus central police?  Because the message is often entangled with too much noise.

    Back to the Alia no-grazing headache in Benue.  These are clear criminals: the so-called herdsmen militia.  If they are herdsmen — a honest, honourable and legitimate trade — they can’t be militia.  In any case, not wholesale.  That would be a contradiction in terms: a honest guild of herdsmen can’t double as wholesale band of criminals.

    So, by separating the few criminal herders from the majority law-abiding ones, we can rid the criminals of the comfort zone of cynical appeal to clannish support, to carry on crime.  That way, the concept of ranching and its many benefits can become progressively sweeter to the ear of the traditional Fulani, even the simple minds that innocently — though ignorantly — claim grazing is a legacy they must continue with.

    If everyone agrees on ranching, the need for armed anti-grazing corps would vanish — and pastoralists will enjoy a new lease of peace and prosperity.

    But that might not completely eliminate insecurity in Nigeria’s far-flung places — and again, back to Benue and media reportage.  The governor called the Benue corps Protection Guards.  The Punch headlined them “Forest Guards”.

    Now, Forest Guards are a new central initiative — to root out bandits and allied terrorists from their forested bastions.  But states insist the concept is best implemented by states, recruiting home boys that know their vicinity inside out.

    In other words, for the Forest Guards to get the best of results, the concept must embrace the Katsina/Benue model of local cover. But without a law upgrading arms available to them — which the central authorities must midwife — it would be another gory tale of AK-47 versus Dane guns.

    So, it’s all back to the concept of federalising licit arms in securing a vast territory.  It’s a contrary concept to the extant practice: strengthening local cover for over all better security, against centralising the security forces but leaving far-flung areas to the mercy of criminal herdsmen, bandits and terrorists.

    The simplest manifestation of this not-so-new philosophy is state police, an idea which time has come, given the present security meltdown.

    Even then, state police is only the face.  Other centrally generated security concepts, as Forest Guards, would have to draw from the bottom-up “local cover” philosophy,  that not only secures the periphery but also assures the centre.

  • New U.S. visa policy

    New U.S. visa policy

    Nigeria must address the issues that led to the restrictions while America too must realise that global travels are mutually rewarding

    The United States of America’s government has announced a review of their visa policy. The US Department of State said that most non-diplomatic and non-immigrant visas issued to citizens of Nigeria, Ghana, Ethiopia and Cameroon and indeed all African countries, would from July 8 have a three-month validity and with a single entry. The State Department said in a statement that the reduction in validity was part of a broader technical and security-based review, and not based on any punitive actions.

    The department said that the policy is based on reciprocal non-immigrant visa policy, impacting several countries, including Nigeria, emphasising that the new policy would not have impact on those who had their visas approved before July 8, 2025. The statement also indicated that, “visa reciprocity is a continuous process and is subject to review and change anytime…”

    Visa issuance and the attendant conditions is the prerogative of countries, based on strong bilateral and multilateral relations in a world that has become a global village. Each country decides its domestic and foreign policy directions based on various variables. Each country’s government often decides the best routes to achieve both its domestic and foreign policy directions.

    United States President Donald Trump’s winning mantra in their last election was his hard stance on immigration and he seems to be employing his strategies to achieve his campaign promises. There is a sense in which the new policy is seen as the administration’s way to address immigration challenges. There have been allegations against some countries, including Nigeria, that some of their citizens often overstay their visas and increase the challenges of immigration for the United States.

    There have been questions as regards the issue of reciprocity mentioned in the statement. However, the US Mission in Nigeria has clarified that it was not a reciprocity issue. They equally denied the allegations that it was tied to the refusal by Nigeria to accept some Venezuelan deportees or Nigeria’s association with the BRICS nations. They insist it is part of an “on-going global review of the use of US visas by other countries, using technical and security benchmarks to safeguard US immigration systems”.

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    We commend the Federal Government that immediately faulted the US action. The presidency issued a statement debunking the ‘reciprocity’ rhetoric as it was not an accurate reflection of the situation. There has always been communication between the two countries as regards the charges and duration of visas. In the last two years, the US has increased the duration from two years to five years multiple entry visas for some non-immigrant visas.

    The urgent resolution is commendable given the long-standing bilateral relationship that has been mutually beneficial to both countries. The impact of the present policy can be far-reaching, given the value of travelling in the 21st century to the socio-economic lives of nations.  Some multinational oil companies from the United States have been in Nigeria since the discovery of oil in the 1960s, in addition to tourists, work and other economic travels in other areas. For Nigerians, they are great travellers going with their ideas, education, entertainment, skills and culture.

    In general terms, we believe that modern economies are interdependent and mutually beneficial. We however believe that the concerns of the United States government must be addressed. Immigration is a sensitive issue and each country has the right to set the barricades. Nigerian government must work at addressing the serious issues that have contributed to such a decision by a friendly nation. Citizen data is very important and there must be more information to citizens to respect the laws of any country that they are travelling to for tourism, education, business or any other reason.

    Respect for the laws of countries is at the root of diplomacy, both at individual or country levels.

    Visa guidelines must be respected by anyone who seeks and receives a visa. Visa issuance must be seen as a form of contractual interaction because every individual adult understands the terms of the visa they seek. Respect is reciprocal. We might not have gotten here if the laws of American immigration have not been breached by many Nigerians who often overstay or work, even when they should not do so.

    The US must also realise that global travels are mutually rewarding. A country with Nigeria’s population, influence and socio-economic power cannot be treated with such extreme measure in visa issues given the socio-economic implications.

    We therefore recommend a diplomatic resolution that can return issues to the status quo while Nigeria addresses those issues pointed out by the State Department. The global travel experience must be seamless for more mutual prosperity.

  • Limits of skits

    Limits of skits

    • Tsulange’s conviction should send the right message to social content creators on public sensibility

    The social media surely has a lot to offer, and the younger generation, especially, has grabbed the opportunities with both hands. As happened in Kano, they are also abused, as content creators sometimes use it to annoy the general public or individuals, who may be targeted.

    One of such social media platforms, the Tik-Tok, allows the creation of visual and audio contents, which can be educative, entertaining, or conversely, merely abusive. Combining visual and vocal contents, Tik-Tok, can be used for devastating effect. So, many have called for the regulation of what Millennials or Gen Zs, sometimes use as a weapon.

    In Kano, a Tik Tok sensation, Umar Hashim, known as Tsulange, was sentenced to one-year imprisonment, with an option to pay N80,000 as fine, by a magistrate’s court, for engaging in public misconduct. According to media reports, the court, presided over by Magistrate Hadiza Muhammad Hassan, of the Gyadi Gyadi Court, found Umar Hashim guilty of indecent behaviour, after he filmed a comedy skit, which involved bathing on a public road, while wearing a female undergarment.

    Many may wonder how the penal code captured such offence, which ordinarily would not be in contemplation of the law makers, except now that social media offers individuals, opportunity to reach a wide audience. Of note, section 198 of the Penal Code provides: “Whoever commits a public nuisance in any case not otherwise punishable by this Code, shall be punished with imprisonment for one year or with fine or with both.”

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    Section 183(1) of the Code defines public nuisance thus: “A person is guilty of a public nuisance who does an act or is guilty of an illegal omission which causes any common injury, danger or annoyance to the public or to the people in general who dwell or occupy property in the vicinity or which must necessarily cause injury, obstruction, danger or annoyance to persons who may have occasion to use any public right.” The court must have agreed that the act of Tsulange annoyed the culturally sensitive people of the area, where the act took place.

    No doubt the 1999 constitution guarantees free speech, which can be defined to include conducts done in protest by citizens, to pass a message. But we doubt if some of the acts which many engage in, to create content and traffic in the social media, would pass as exercise of free speech. A man bathing in a public space, dressed in female underwear, we agree is weird, and when filmed for public consumption, is intended to annoy a large segment of the public, which are culturally sensitive.

    Interestingly, the younger generation, commonly referred to as Millennials and Gen Zs, see some of the cultural sensitiveness as an aberration. They speak and act in manner considered weird by the older generation, and they are accused of being selfish about their preferences. The Gen Z particularly, grew in the age of the internet and mobile technology, and they exploit it for their utmost personal benefits. That clash of culture puts them on collision course with the older generation, who are more circumspect of what they put out in the public glare.

    While we do not advocate a clampdown on the social media space, we agree with those who propose some form of control. In some countries, there are limits on the use of Tik Tok, and some other social media handles. This is also needed for parental control, and what should be allowed as content, especially for the underage.

    As the conviction of Tsulange has shown, there must be a limit to what a content creator can put forward for public consumption. We agree on the need for laws, ensuring a delicate balance between private enterprise and public interest.

  • A big one for Nigeria

    A big one for Nigeria

    •Nigeria Customs boss’s election as WCO chair is commendable peer appreciation

     It is significant that the World Customs Organisation (WCO) found the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, worthy of election as its chairperson. Adeniyi, who took over from Edward Kieswetter, the South African Revenue Service Commissioner, assumed the new role on July 1.

    Adeniyi is the first Nigerian to be elected to the chairmanship position of the 72 year-old organisation with 186 countries as members. The election is an indication of the regard that his peers have for his leadership and achievements as the NCS boss.

    The WCO council is the supreme decision-making body of the organisation.

    As President Bola Tinubu noted, the election is a thing of pride to Nigeria. Adeniyi’s election is in recognition of his leadership of the NCS in the areas of revenue collection reforms, digitalisation of operations, and improved stakeholder engagement.

    Although Adeniyi is only about two years in the saddle, he has proved that it is not a matter of how long, but how well.

    One area that has witnessed substantial improvement in the two years of Adeniyi’s leadership of the NCS is inter-agency collaboration among sister agencies like immigration, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), the police, Nigerian Army, Navy, Nigerian Air Force, Quarantine, Department of State Services (DSS), etc. This collaborative spirit has seen the customs hand over different contraband to the respective agencies for further action.

    The collaboration is also visible at the international frontiers.

    To deal with the perennial issue of port congestion, some 7,000 overtime cargoes of about a decade were sold to bidders in the first quarter of last year, in order to free space and facilitate customs’s operational efficiency.

    Adeniyi has also improved revenue collection tremendously by optimising it, plugging revenue leakages, and addressing gaps in the customs clearance process. From a modest N3.2trn collected in 2023, the NCS generated total revenue of N6.1 trillion in 2024, a significant increase of 90.4% over that of 2023. This was N1.026trn (or 20.2 per cent) more than its N5.07trn target.

    In all of this, Adeniyi is not unmindful of the government’s ‘Nigeria first’ as enshrined in the campaign manifesto of President Tinubu.

    Adeniyi knows that the men’s capacity has to be improved upon, even as their welfare is enhanced to achieve the desired efficiency. The service has thus organised various training programmes for its personnel.

    On the international front vis-a-vis training and upskilling of personnel, the CGC also flagged off three days revised Kyoto Convention Workshop, where over 32 delegates from West and Central Africa, East and South Africa region acquired requisite knowledge on various treaties on global trade.

    Under Adeniyi’s watch, promotions are now done as and when due, and on merit. The appointments of two assistant comptroller-generals and 2,209 senior officers were confirmed by the Nigeria Customs Service Board, chaired by the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, in 2023.

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    Customs retirees are not left out, with Adeniyi’s plan to integrate them into the Nigeria Customs Service Healthcare project. He is also discussing with the minister to champion a bill establishing a dedicated pension scheme for them.

    The customs boss has also spiced these achievements with some humanitarian interventions and sports initiatives to enhance the physical fitness of his men.

    One thing that cannot be discounted in these achievements is Adeniyi’s wealth of experience garnered over the years, rising through the ranks.

    He had been deputy comptroller of customs (2012), comptroller of customs (2017), commandant of the Nigeria Customs Command and Staff College, Gwagwalada, Abuja, Assistant Comptroller-General in February 2020, during which he supervised the seizure of $8.07 million cash being illegally taken out of Nigeria through the E-Wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport tarmac in Lagos.

    Adeniyi became Acting Deputy Comptroller-General of the NCS in January, 2023, before his appointment as CGC in June of the same year.

    Indeed, he was also at a time the National Public Relations Officer of the NCS.

    Hence, he was able to hit the ground running. The result is not just about reforms within; it has also announced him to the global customs community.

    We congratulate the CGC on this new appointment. Much as we believe he has done things worthy of commendation, there will always be room for improvement. We urge him to see the appointment as a call to more dedication to the cause of both the NCS and the WCO.

  • The budget mismatch

    The budget mismatch

    We have to find a way of balancing recurrent with capital expenditures

    The report that the Federal Government last year spent a modest N4.99trn – some 20 per cent of its total N24.91tn budget – on capital projects once again highlights one salient factor that has remained at the heart of the country’s public finance crisis. We refer here to the age-long mismatch between the nation’s recurrent bills and capital requirements in a country acclaimed for its yawning infrastructural gaps.

    When the fact that the Federal Government actually earmarked N9.4 trillion for capital expenditure in the same budget (the actual expenditure representing a mere 53 percent of the budgeted sum), the picture of the odds facing the government in its mission to deliver in those critical areas comes into sharper focus.

    Clearly, the government cannot be accused of not putting its mouth where its heart is. This is because the capital provision for the 2025 budget is significantly higher– N14.85 trillion out of a total expenditure of N49.74 trillion – a quantum increase compared to the 2024 capital expenditure. Nonetheless, the fact remains that the recurrent expenditure has maintained a steep rise: it actually jumped from N14.71tn in 2023 to N18.4tn in 2024 – largely due to higher debt servicing and personnel costs. Indeed, debt servicing alone grew from N8.86tn in 2023 to N11.6tn in 2024.

    And all of this at a time the capital components are hardly ever optimised; which means that the underlying plans are hardly ever realised; and even when the size of the budget seems far too little to make any appreciable difference on the infrastructural situation. 

    The implications of this on the huge infrastructural deficit, which the leading credit rating agency – Agusto & Co. Ltd – reckons would require $3 trillion over the next 30 years to bridge, cannot be anything but unsettling. When this figure is broken down, it comes to an average of $100 billion annually required – all of this on infrastructure alone, which in the current circumstance is far from feasible.

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    Of course, we suffer no illusions that the entire capital provision can make any appreciable dent on the infrastructure situation. Or that the government’s approach to the revenue question, bullish as it appears to be, will turn around things overnight. But then, that is not what Nigerians are asking for. Rather, it is that those modest capital expenditures as laid out in the budget be scrupulously implemented and for the citizens to get the value for every kobo spent. After all, it is conventional wisdom that without deliberate prioritisation of the budget’s capital component, none of the deliverables spelt out in the budget would be realisable.

    The other imperative is for the government to focus more aggressively on growing the revenue side to stem the deficit. That would be a sure way to allay whatever concerns about the cost of debt service.

    The other issue is the cost of running the bureaucracy. Expectedly, there have also been a lot of talks about trimming the bureaucracy, particularly the avoidable wastes and duplication that have characterised its operations. Our expectation is that the government will take the issue more seriously if only to ensure a more balanced, acceptable budget.

    The bigger issue of course remains the huge infrastructure gap. Again, it has been said that the private sector has a big role to play under the oft-touted Public-Private-Partnerships (PPP) model. This is of course the way to go. It is the reason the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) was established. We have seen the model work admirably, particularly in the road sector and so there can be no reason for the government not to broaden the scope.

    The expectation is that the ICRC will pick up the challenge if only to justify its rationale.