Category: Editorial

• State governments, nonetheless, have to toe the path of fiscal discipline

THE long-sought succour finally came the way of cash-strapped states last week when the Federal Government rolled out some financial packages to assist them clear the backlog of salaries owed their workers. The three-part measures – an adroit blend of pragmatism and sound economics – seek to directly inject N713.7bn into the economy. The first part comes by way of the sharing of $2.1bn (N413.7bn) paid by the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (NLNG) to the Federal Government, made up of $1.6bn dividend and $500m tax; the second, a special Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) intervention fund of between N250bn and N300bn in the form of soft loan to enable the states to pay the backlog of salaries; and the third, a debt relief programme by the Debt Management Office, to help the states restructure their commercial loans currently put at over N660bn.

We commend the Federal Government for coming up with a strategy to address the problem. Given the embarrassing position in which many of the states have found themselves – (many are known to owe 10 months arrears of salaries) – any further delay can only be at the risk of putting the entire political economy in jeopardy. Even without the famed interconnectedness between public spending and the health of the economy, the quantum of outstanding arrears can only further spell trouble for the anaemic economy. We therefore see the measures as sound and pragmatic.

In the same vein, we must also admit that the measures have again thrown up the old, extant issues in our practice of fiscal federalism – the absence of transparency and due process in the remittances into the federation account. Indeed, only in the context of the old paradigm would the $2.1 billion paid by NLNG come for mention for whatever reasons under the bailout package – a claim which in all fairness could not be attributed to the Buhari administration.

Having said that, we must also state that the NLNG payment has opened a new chapter in transparency; what is left is to push the frontiers to ensure that agencies in similar categories pay what is due to the federation account. Indeed, our expectation is that the development would set a new template for those agencies to follow promptly and scrupulously. If we may dare to amplify: not only are there too many idle funds in the system that are not captured by relevant bodies for appropriation, we have not seen enough done by anyone to get the agencies obey the relevant statutes and the constitution, concerning their treatment of operating surpluses. The time has come to buck the trend.

How far the bailout measures will go is the million naira question. To the extent that the measures do not provide insurance against the conditions that created the mess, we see them as merely addressing the symptoms. Yes, the cry across state capitals is that the dip in oil prices is what has occasioned the present financial crisis.  The point that is often lost is that a significant part of the mess is the product of poor planning, high level of fiscal indiscipline, brazen corruption and warped priorities going on in almost all the state capitals. The bailout must therefore come with the understanding that it is not to be treated as freebies or as rewards for bad practices. Without stringent conditions attached, the package would turn out an endorsement of bad behaviour.

The other pertinent question is – what happens after? What happens in the unlikely event of oil prices rebounding; will the Federal Government be able to sustain the therapy? And for how long? This is where the states have a lot to do. A good way to start is for them to cut down on wastes and corruption while also realigning their expenditures. This is where the offer of technical assistance by DMO comes in.

Above all, we cannot over-emphasise the need for states to grow their internally generated revenues. While the way to go in the long run is for the states as federating entities to push for constitutional amendment to enable them have greater control on the resources beneath their soil as consistent with fiscal federalism, there is a lot they can do in the short-term to overhaul and expand their traditional sources of revenue.

•FG should rethink relocation of Boko Haram prisoners to the south east 

IT is not unusual in a democracy for people to protest against public policies for various reasons. This is the hallmark of the democratic order. However, in our clime, such protests and the response to them are often smeared by sectarian considerations. It is against this background that we see the plan by the federal authorities to move some insurgents serving terms in some Northern prisons to Ekwulobia in Anambra State in the South East, that is being stoutly resisted by the governments, leaders and people of the region.

Last week, governors of the five states in the zone rose from a meeting in Owerri, the Imo State capital, and requested that the Federal Government should restrict Boko Haram prisoners to the federal capital city, Abuja. They reasoned, quite logically, that the South East already has more than its fair share of security challenges. They also argued that only Abuja, with the concentration of security agencies, devices and personnel, could house such men and women.

But, earlier, the people of Anambra State had protested against the plan on the grounds that Northern prisoners should not be brought to their state. We consider that line of reasoning untenable as all prisons in the country are owned by the Federal Government and the prisoners were tried and sentenced under federal laws. If the protest along that line is sustained, there would soon come a time when deciding where to locate detainees and prisoners would become a problem.

Prominent political prisoners had been moved in the past from the scene of their alleged crimes. The late Chief Gani Fawehinmi was jailed at the Gashua prison while the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, after the famous treasonable felony trials of the First Republic was moved to the Calabar prison. The people could, applying sentiments, have protested the decisions on political, ethnic or sentimental grounds, or argued, perhaps irrationally, that the decision to move the political prisoners to their areas could generate tension and endanger the lives of their kith and kin in Yoruba land.

We, however, call on the prison authorities to consider the plea because of   inadequate security network in the area. It is known that dare-devil attacks had been launched by heavily armed insurgents to free their colleagues. In Koton-Karfe, Kogi State, such an attack was launched and prisoners set free. In Ado Ekiti, too, a jail break last year was said to have been informed by the presence of some Boko Haram insurgents there. When this is considered alongside the blood-chilling operations of the terrorists, it is not surprising that the Anambra State people are worried at the frightening prospect of sending some of them to the state.

In 2011, the suicide bombing of the United Nations House in Abuja and the unprecedented earlier attack on the Police Headquarters at the federal capital city caught the attention of the world. Since then, the sacking of military and police formations in Bama, Borno State, abduction of more than 200 secondary school girls in Chibok, Borno State, capture of towns in the North East, successes recorded against the Nigerian military and internationalisation of their operations have shown that Boko Haram is a well coordinated and funded group.

The war of words involving Anambra State Governor Willie Obiano and his predecessor, Mr Peter Obi, is uncalled- for. The suggestion that the relocation was approved by the former governor is ridiculous as the Federal Government does not need such endorsement regarding where to keep prisoners.

The Ekwulobia prison is small and thus unsuitable for such use. Jailed terrorists are meant to be kept in maximum security prisons where the security forces are at alert at all times and the facilities adequate to deter attempts at freeing them by force. We call on the Federal Government to upgrade facilities in all the prisons and improve security in and around them.

•The succour to Ruth Uche and her twins is ennobling.  But a more structured approach, to deal with such plights, is imperative

Although it had the elements of a publicity stunt, the move was noble; and it has worked well enough.

By her own admission, 34-year-old Mrs. Ruth Uche gave an insight into why she adopted the approach that has brought her favour and succour from sympathisers in the corridors of power, a private organization and even neighbouring individuals. Sensationally, the woman is in the news because her husband deserted his family ahead of the arrival of a third set of twins.

“I went for immunisation some days ago and I told them my condition; and why they have not been seeing me,” she told The Nation, “It was there that they advised that I should come to government. Government should please help my children; no one to help me with house rent, electricity bill, school fees, food and so on.”

Perhaps predictably, her dramatic appearance at the Lagos State Secretariat, Alausa, with her six children, two of them born only last month, attracted significant attention. The Lagos state governor, Akinwunmi Ambode directed the Deputy Governor Dr. Idiat Adebule to assume responsibility for the welfare of the mother and her kids.Dr. Adebule gave a cheque while Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation  will oversee the family’s welfare . Also, Mrs. Uche got a visit from Lagos State House of Assembly Speaker Mudashiru Obasa who, as her representative in parliament, donated foodstuffs and cash.

By the last count, the Voice of Divine Truth International Outreach, a faith-based organization, had offered her third  set of twins scholarship from primary school to the  Master’s level at the university — and, for the Uches, it would appear morning yet on blessings day!

While these responses are laudable and ennobling, the idea must not be encouraged that all any woman in similar distress needs to do is to follow Mrs Uche’s example of self-exhibition at the place of power. It is important for the government to put in place a functional institutional mechanism to address developments of this kind so that help is not personalised.

Expectedly, the run-away husband and father, 39-year-old Mr. Emeka Benjamin Uche, is the butt of jokes and a target of unsympathetic criticism. Why did he abandon his family? It would appear that he was overwhelmed by the thought of another pair of twins after the first two sets.  He didn’t even wait for their arrival!

According to Mrs. Uche, a secondary school graduate and teacher in a private school: “Since I gave birth to the children, I have tried calling my husband but he would not pick once he knows that it is me.”  But speaking from hiding, Mr. Uche told The Nation that he regretted abandoning his family; and only did so because he couldn’t bear to helplessly watch them suffer.  Though his wife pleaded with him to come back home, the run-away husband is scared of arrest and possible prosecution.

Mr. Uche is said to be a factory worker.  But this cannot excuse his irresponsibility.  There is no question: he ought to bear a moral responsibility to his wife and children, and he cannot reasonably plead inadequacy as justification for his action. Parenthood leads to parenting.  Given his parenthood, Mr. Uche cannot leave parenting to his wife alone.

Against the background of a 2011 state law criminalising men who abandon their pregnant partners, there is an interesting angle to this story that mirrors paternal irresponsibility.  The law subtitled “Desertion of Pregnant Woman or Girl, Section 277,” seeks to protect women and children.  It is noteworthy that Mr. Uche not only ran away while his wife was pregnant, he did so as a result of the pregnancy; and he has kept away from his wife and children.

It is a point to ponder that since the law came into force there has not been any known arraignment arising from its contravention. What is the use of a law if it is not enforced? With the spotlight on Mr. Uche, his may be a test case.  And if the state prosecutes Mr. Uche, would the newfound succour of his wife and kids be complete?

It is still possible to have a happy ending based on a family reunion, if Mr. Uche heeds collective wisdom and returns home, even at the risk of prosecution.

That would be a welcome conclusion to a riveting drama.

•For Nigerian football to grow, it must isolate itself from external

There are two kinds of football coaches, goes that cynical quip: those sacked and those waiting to be sacked!  That means a coach is as good as his last result.

That is why the Amaju Pinnick-led Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) should not have reappointed Stephen Keshi as Super Eagles coach after he flunked qualification for the 2015 African Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea.

Against all odds, Keshi won the Nations Cup in 2013; won a bronze in the  Championship of African Nations (CHAN) — for Africa-based football stars — in 2014 (both in South Africa); and made the second round in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

But failing to qualify to defend the title he won in South Africa should have nullified those previous glories.  So, by reappointing Keshi, NFF only rewarded failure.

In fairness, NFF was not too keen on re-engaging Keshi.  But the Goodluck Jonathan presidential court barely hid its preference for a Keshi encore.  Even then, a disapproving NFF handed Keshi a renewed contract, with reduced salaries and reduced powers; subjugating him, in the selection of players, to the control of the body’s Technical Committee.  Still, Keshi took the job, and in earnest won his first match, against Chad: a qualifier for 2017 Nations Cup in Gabon; perhaps hoping to ride the storm.

But then the sudden end: allegations of doubtful loyalty.  Keshi just got a new contract with Nigeria.  Yet, his name popped up in a list of coaches being head-hunted for the job by Cote d’Ivoire.  That was the final straw.  NFF screamed double-dealing.  Keshi pleaded innocence, claiming an agent’s indiscretion.  An NFF body to probe the matter ended with a seeming non-decision: probe was inconclusive.  But out of the blue, the verdict: the Keshi era as Nigeria boss was history.  Good riddance — and about time too!

But Keshi’s sack came at a delicate juncture, which could well plague the team with instability; and could well create an apologia for Nigeria’s non-qualification for Gabon, in a group that features six-time African champions, Egypt, Chad and Tanzania; only the winner of the group automatically qualifies.

Still, the lesson is clear: even if Nigeria fails to make it to Gabon, NFF would have learned the tough lesson never to subjugate its decisions to external influences — for such would always come back to haunt it.  Many would say that is easier said than done, given the over-bearing influence of government in football in Nigeria.  They won’t be incorrect.  But for Nigerian football to make headway and optimise its potential, it is imperative for the powers-that-be to give NFF the operational independence to steer Nigerian football.

If, despite the present crunch, Nigeria makes it to Gabon, NFF’s hands would be more strengthened, other things being equal.  But if Nigeria falters, NFF itself could be in jeopardy, with stakeholders calling for its head.  That would herald another round of instability that can only further doom Nigerian football.

Meanwhile, after Keshi, NFF is reportedly lining up Sunday Oliseh, another former Super Eagles captain and strong character.  Aside from a dearth of coaching experience (2008-2009 with Vervietois, a Belgian fourth division side), Oliseh belongs to the golden generation of Nigerian football: won Nations Cup in 1984, member of the first Eagles set to qualify for World Cup in USA 1994; and was in the Olympic team that won gold in Atlanta ’96 — the first African side to do so.

He played professional club football in Europe, is a member of FIFA Technical Study Group and runs a consultancy that regularly conducts periodic coaching clinics.  He also works as pundit during big football championships.

But not unlike Keshi, he does not suffer fools gladly.  Indeed, even as national team captain, he parted ways with the administration because of the constant cant coming from Nigeria’s House of Football.

So, after Keshi, can NFF cope with Oliseh?  We sincerely hope so.

politics and influences

SIR: President Buhari and APC made history on March 28, when they defeated an incumbent President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan. But they will fritter away the goodwill on which Nigerians elected them if care is not taken. APC is the party with a president on whose character, personality and strength Nigerians think they can experience a better life.

Nigerians cannot be blamed. For many years, they have been betrayed by governments. Past administrations have failed in bringing a new lease of life for a people that deserve better and bright future.

It is quite disheartening that happenings within the APC and the conduct of its elected members at the National Assembly makes one wonder whether the agenda of the party is continuity or change. Activities of government under the PDP after the 1993, 2003, 2007 and 2011 elections were same old same old. Their economic plan and public policies were all the same. This is to be expected from a conservative party like the PDP. Former President Jonathan’s economic policies were the worst despite having a Harvard and MIT trained economist as Minister of Finance. This was the reason Nigerians ended his tenure as President.

The APC seem to have a better economic plan and agenda different from that of the PDP. Former Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola exemplified this in the way he managed the affairs of Lagos State. Dr. Kayode Fayemi also stood out with his developmental programmes in Ekiti State before his unfortunate defeat by a man who many agreed ran a governorship campaign based on stomach infrastructure.

A great decision was made when Nigerians decided to try another political party. Nigeria is faced with numerous challenges and everyone look up to President Buhari and his political party to fix these problems. The new APC government need to live up to the people’s expectations and have a radical departure from what obtains under the PDP. APC should not be tempted to adopt the policies and style of the PDP. Doing things the PDP way is definitely not an option for members of the APC at all levels of government. APC needs to vigorously pursue its change agenda without any hindrance.

What played out at the inauguration of the 8th National Assembly on June 9, shows that true change may not have come after all despite President Buhari’s believe and avowal in his inaugural speech. The coup d’état in the senate, the emergence of a PDP Senator as Deputy Senate President and the dissenting voices of some disgruntled members of the National Assembly all show what the course of events would be in the next four years of our democratic experiment.

Nigeria is truly evolving; besides the APC is saddled with the responsibility of bringing about the desired change. It is up to APC to prove to Nigerians that what they voted for during the 2015 general elections is not continuity but change.

• Bolaji Samson Aregbeshola,

Lagos

•Boko Haram is no group to negotiate with, unless they are considerably weakened

In the six weeks preceding the April 22nd presidential election, the Nigerian military launched a fierce onslaught against the extremist Boko Haram insurgents reclaiming scores of towns and villages in the North-East zone previously captured by the sect and freeing hundreds of its captives. Most Nigerians were, however, unimpressed. They could not fathom why it was only six weeks to re-election that the former President Goodluck Jonathan administration was taking decisive action against a six-year-old insurgency that had claimed thousands of lives, displaced an even larger number of persons and practically paralyzed social and economic life in Nigeria’s North East.

This was a key reason why the majority of the Nigerian electorate decided to vote for incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who was widely perceived as best placed to rid the country of the Boko Haram plague given his military antecedents. However, the defeat of the PDP and the emergence since May 29 of the APC as the country’s ruling party has not stemmed the tide of Boko Haram atrocities with the immediacy desired by Nigerians. Indeed, the pre-election momentum of the Nigerian military has ebbed and the insurgents, utilising hit-and-run guerrilla tactics and suicide bombers, appear to be gaining the upper hand again.

It can logically be deduced from this that the string of victories recorded by the Nigerian military against Boko Haram prior to the elections stemmed, not from a carefully planned counter-insurgency strategy but rather a last-ditch desperate attempt to aid Dr Goodluck Jonathan’s re-election bid. Thus, the country still finds itself burdened with a largely crippled military hobbled by the structural, psychological, logistical and ethical problems that had humbled a once proud professional outfit before a rag tag Boko Haram force.

At least 500 persons have reportedly been killed by Boko Haram insurgents since President Buhari’s assumption of office.  Its victims over the last one month have included Christians and Muslims who have been killed in savage attacks in Potiskum, Yobe State, Jos, Plateau State, Kano metropolis and Zaria, Kaduna State to name a few. Many Nigerians are understandably getting increasingly frustrated and disenchanted given the high hopes they reposed in President Buhari to decisively tackle the country’s security challenges. But it is early days yet.

On its part, however, the administration sent out a wrong signal of weakness when the President’s Special Adviser on media and publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, recently indicated its willingness to negotiate with the extremists. Yes, a political resolution should be kept on the cards. But negotiation cannot be an immediate option for an organisation as anarchic, barbaric and nihilistic as Boko Haram. It is only when the organisation has been decisively broken militarily and is thus forced to seek a negotiated settlement that any political solution can be meaningful.

President Buhari has shown a commitment to ending the insurgency. He has visited the presidents of Chad and Niger Republics while the latter as well as the President of Benin Republic and the Defence Minister of Cameroun have also visited him in Abuja. The result has been the on-going evolution of a multinational task force billed to be fully operational at the end of July. He has also relocated the Military Command Centre to Borno State, the epicentre of the insurgency.

But then, the President must be sensitive to the fact that people are being killed by the insurgents on a daily basis and this must not be allowed to continue. The urgent and comprehensive overhauling of the current military high command will surely send a positive signal both to the military and Nigerians that this president indeed means business as regards the total routing of Boko Haram.

•Kudos to the Lagos Police Command for apprehending the dare-devil robbers but…

It was a most audacious outing by men of the underworld in the afternoon of June 24, when they held Ikorodu town hostage for hours and successfully robbed two banks. By the time the bandits escaped through the waterways with their loot, the State Command had lost more face than the banks lost cash.

It is apposite that robberies will always happen but for a gang to hold out an entire town in a megacity like Lagos and ransack two banks in broad daylight unchallenged draws the picture of a near Hobbesian state. And the questions are: could the state be so vulnerable; so unsecured and unmanned? In fact, a police division is within sight of the scene of the crime and the hoodlums reportedly fired shots in its premises and dared the policemen to respond. Of course, the men in uniform reportedly fled like crazy at the first boom of the robbers’ gun.

Though the police in this instance were neither proactive nor responsive but the good news today is that the miscreants have been apprehended by the Command. At least some of them; which we expect would culminate in the round-up of the rest. The out-gone State Police Commissioner, Mr. Kayode Aderanti, had over the weekend, paraded four men who had confessed to being members of the gang. Also on display were a couple of four-wheel drives they confessed to have acquired with the proceeds of the crime.

Better late than never, we aver, but modern policing has gone beyond mere reactive chasing and shooting after criminals. A few months ago, the same scenario as happened in Ikorodu had played out in Lekki axis of the state. Yes, the armed men were also reportedly apprehended, but after the fact of the loss of innocent lives and property.

While we commend the State Command for its efforts in making sure that criminals are always apprehended eventually, we ask that the entire policing template of the state be reviewed and revamped to suit a fast-growing city like Lagos. We expect a police force that is more proactive, that is steeped in intelligence and that can preempt crime much more than it apprehends criminals.

We also suggest the fortification of the divisions in a manner that they can hold out against hoodlums no matter how intense the attack may be. In the Ikorodu and  Lekki heist, we expected that signals would have gone out from the threatened divisions for reinforcement from the nearest area commands; we expected a nearby rapid respond squad to have been alerted and a helicopter squad to have been pressed to action. Where was the marine unit of the police? It is scary to think for a moment that the entire bodies of water surrounding Lagos State are no man’s land?

All these are certainly not too much to expect of a police force of a state of Lagos’ magnitude. It may be all right for the Inspector-General of police to swiftly shuffle around the ‘erring’ state commissioners; it may have the effect of making them to sit up but that would amount to playing to gallery if certain important measures are not taken.

During the Ikorodu ‘operation’ the fleeing policemen were reported to have said that they had never seen such kinds of arms as were borne by the robbers. The boom of the robbers’ guns alone disoriented them. The IG must do more; the Lagos State Government must collaborate with the police high authority in order to benchmark the entire security architecture of the megacity to some of the best in the world. It surely goes beyond passing down operational vehicles and bulletproof vests. We need to see more training and specialization, more segmentation and more depth.

The Ikorodu and Lekki robberies ought to be embarrassment to the state government too. We say never again should such brazen, daylight lockdown of the state by armed robbers happen.