The Nation Newspaper

Category: Editorial

  • Delayed or missing luggage

    Delayed or missing luggage

    •Air travellers in the country are not demanding their rights because they think they have little chance of success.

    As in most other sectors, the aviation sector globally has its own rules and regulations on several aspects of its operations. These are rules detailing the obligations of both passengers and airlines. These may be termed international best practice (IBP) or global best practices. That is; a set of methods or procedures that are used to enhance business processes.

    Thus, we have rules that prescribe the maximum free luggage limit for passengers, rules governing flight cancellations or delays, how baggage is supposed to be handled on connecting flights, and what should be the airlines’ responsibility in cases where luggage does not arrive with the owner or in cases of outright loss of luggage, etc.

    It is this luggage matter that the aviation regulator in the country, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has now decided to tackle more seriously.

    NCAA’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu, made the new position known on November 18. He spoke during a roadshow organised by the authority at the Lagos airport to sensitise passengers to their rights under the NCAA Act.

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    “For way too long, Nigerians have been claiming not to know about the existence and the duties of the NCAA. Our duty, which is what we owe Nigerians, is to bring awareness to the industry. The passengers need to become more aware of their rights so that airlines will not continue to cheat them”, Achimugu said.

    He added that “The little things about the regulations that the passengers need to know, for instance, if you arrive at an airport and your luggage didn’t arrive with you, most passengers do not know that they have a right to demand compensation from the airlines.”

    Not only did he make it categorically clear that non-arrival of luggage with the owner is an offence punishable under the law, he also specified the sanctions for such violations of passengers’ rights: “If it is a domestic flight, you can walk to the airline’s counter to demand for your N10,000 for not bringing your bag with you. For international flights, it is $170. A lot of passengers do not know this thing, but today, we are bringing an end to that cycle of ignorance. We are bringing the regulations to Nigerians in an exciting manner.”

    This awareness may be coming so late, it is better late than never. If, as Achimugu himself said, many Nigerians are not aware of what the authority does, it is because those activities are not well publicised or the agency had been somewhat laid-back in dealing with airlines that treat their passengers with impunity.

    It is incredible that about 19,274 passengers’ luggage, across all airlines – foreign and local — were declared delayed/missing in the first half of 2024 alone. This is humongous. And to think that all the owners of such luggage would do was bemoan their loss and pray that they never experience such again!

    Air travellers are the most sophisticated travellers in the country. So, there must have been a lacuna for most of such elite travellers not to be aware of such rights.

    That is why NCAA must ensure that this kind of road show comes up more regularly. It is laudable that the authority has recognised the need to hold it in other places outside of Lagos. This should spread the good news even faster and put the airlines on notice that it is now business unusual.

    All said, however, the will to enforce passengers’ rights is key. Whether the new deal is NCAA’s idea or a response to the Tinubu administration’s resolve to make consumers the king that they should be, the authority should be ready to walk the talk.

    We do not believe that some of the passengers whose luggage were delayed or lost did not know what to do. Many may have abandoned taking action because they feared it would not bring any result.

    It is the enforcement of a regulation like this that would let the airlines treat Nigerian passengers with dignity like they treat their counterparts in other parts of the world.

  • Alarming accusations

    Alarming accusations

    Tompolo’s allegations over alleged naval personnel’s involvement in oil theft are too weighty to be ignored

    Weighty allegations by Chief Government Ekpemupolo, alias Tompolo, demand the intervention of the federal authorities. Ironically, Tompolo, Chairman, Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited (TSSNL), a private security firm engaged by the Federal Government to secure oil assets, accused the Nigerian Navy of sabotaging the country’s fight against crude oil theft. He made the accusation while receiving the leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), led by its President, Mazi Afam Osigwe (SAN), at Oporoza, Delta State.

    According to him, the navy “is working at cross-purposes with other government and private security agencies saddled with the responsibility to curb illegal oil bunkering.” He supported his claim with two recent cases of alleged navy operations that went against the war to stop crude oil theft.

    First, he recalled that when men of Tantita intercepted a vessel carrying stolen crude oil in Port Harcourt, they found that personnel of the Nigerian Navy provided escort duties on board the vessel. He said these navy personnel “and others speedily mobilised to the scene with gunboats and other equipment, opened fire on our men and officials of civil defence corps and DSS, who insisted that the vessel could not sail further.” The outcome was that those who were protecting the vessel won.

    He added that a similar incident occurred at Ovwian community in Delta State when naval personnel “also overpowered and subdued Tantita operatives to secure safe passage for another vessel carrying stolen crude.” He declared that the cases of involvement of naval personnel in oil theft were “too many to recount,” adding that the Nigerian Navy “has sacrificed its constitutional obligation for pecuniary benefits.”

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    These accusations are bad for the image of the state security forces, which are not expected to work against the country’s interests. However, the Director of Defence Media Operations, Maj. Gen. Edward Buba, called the allegations “laughable” and “cheap blackmail,” saying, “We are all partners.”

    In July, during an investigative hearing on crude oil theft and revenue losses, Speaker of the House of Representatives Abbas Tajudeen observed that the statistics on crude oil theft were “very alarming,” and its negative impact on the economy “quite monumental.” He noted that between January and July 2024, Nigeria lost about 437,000 barrels of crude oil per day due to theft, vandalism and other criminal activities, resulting in a loss of over $10bn.

    At the same investigative hearing, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) George Akume, represented by the Permanent Secretary, General Services, Maurice Nnamdi Mbaeri, said crude oil theft and the associated losses had “devastating implications for our economy and national security.” Nigeria has continually failed to meet its daily production quota as set by the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) as a result of oil theft, he stated, adding that the situation “not only undermines our revenues but also hampers the provision of essential services that millions of Nigerians rely upon.”

    The SGF also said, since 2020, expenditure aimed at tackling crude oil theft and securing the country’s oil infrastructure had exceeded $1.5bn “allocated towards enhancing surveillance capabilities, securing pipelines, and increasing the presence of law enforcement agencies in critical oil-producing areas.”

    This is why Tompolo’s allegations are not only disturbing but call for urgent intervention by the authorities. The huge spending to stop crude oil theft may well be going down the drain on account of the alleged sabotage by navy personnel. 

    Private security agencies, including Tantita, were controversially contracted to secure the country’s oil infrastructure because of poor performance of state actors in the first place. Allegations of collusion with oil thieves worsen the case of poor performance against state actors.

    This month, Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) announced that it had increased oil production to 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) and hoped to get to two million bpd by December. The firm’s CEO, Mele Kyari, attributed the improvement to rigorous pipeline monitoring, among others.

    To ensure that the country continues on this path of recovery, the Federal Government must launch an independent investigation regarding Tompolo’s allegations and resolutely pursue the arrest and prosecution of oil thieves and their enablers.

  • Case closed. Court!!!

    Case closed. Court!!!

    •NJC’s recommendations on judges who falsified their ages and committed other crimes in the process is in order

    The National Judicial Council (NJC), led by Justice Kudirat Motonmori Olatokunbo Kekere-Ekun, GCON, at its 107th meeting held on November 13 -14, suspended two judges for misconduct. According to NJC’s Deputy Director (Information) Kemi Babalola-Ogedengbe, “The Chief Judge of Imo State, Hon. Justice T. E. Chukwuemeka-Chikeka, and the Grand Kadi of Yobe State, Hon. Kadi Babagana Mahdi, were recommended for compulsory retirement for falsification of their ages.” Justice Chikeka had two conflicting dates of birth – 27th October 1956 and 27th October 1958. On his part, Kadi Mahdi, had three different birthdays. He represented 10 December, 28th January and 28th July, all in 1959, as his dates of birth, while his actual year of birth is 1952. The council found him guilty of misconduct in violation of Rule 02908 (i) and (ii) of the Public Service Rules, 2021.

    While Justice Chikeka was supposed to retire two years ago, Kadi Mahdi, ought to have retired 12 years earlier. The council recommended compulsory retirement and refund of salaries and allowances they received in the past two and 12 years, respectively.

    We consider it shameful that such high ranking judges would engage in such criminal conduct. One wonders how the two heads of important arms of the judiciary could administer good conduct while being involved in dishonourable conduct themselves. As Chief Judge of Imo State who oversights the state judiciary, we wonder what disciplinary control Justice Chikeka exercised, being a felon herself. On his part, Kadi Mahdi interprets Islamic jurisprudence, with its strict legal consequences for criminal infractions. Litigants that the judges have passed judgments on would look with scorn at their fellow offenders, who sat in judgments over them. Some may even be tempted to seek to upturn such judgments, since in the eyes of the law, the judges were illegally occupying the office of judicial officers for the period they ought to have retired from office.

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    No doubt the judges have brought the offices they held to great scorn and ridicule in the eyes of the ordinary Nigerians. We commend the NJC under Justice Kekere-Ekun, for swiftly discharging their constitutional responsibility of disciplining the judges by recommending that they be sacked. The Third Schedule Part 1, Paragraph 21(g) provides that: “The National Judicial Council shall have power to – recommend to the Governors the removal of the judicial officers in sub-paragraph (c) of this paragraph, and to exercise disciplinary control over such officers.” The council in exercise of that function recommended to the Governor of Imo State that Justice Chikeka be retired effective from 2021, and to Governor of Yobe State that Kadi Mahdi retired effective from 2012.

    Two other judges were also sanctioned by the council. They are Justice G. C. Aguma of Rivers State High Court, for suspicious handling of a garnishee proceedings despite an order of stay from Bwari High Court, which was brought to his notice. He was suspended for one year without pay, and thereafter will be on the watch-list for two years. On his part, Justice A. O. Nwabunike of Anambra State High Court was suspended for one year, for breach of the Revised Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 2016. He will be on the watch-list for two years, thereafter.

    As for the Justices recommended for sack, we think they may have committed other offences like perjury, in seeking to perpetuate themselves in office. The fear of a mere retirement and refund of the monies which were unlawfully earned may not be enough deterrent for others, who may be tempted to follow similar path in the future.

    We urge the governors of Yobe and Imo states to effect the recommendations of the NJC, in obedience to the rule of law.

  • Scandal of vandals

    Scandal of vandals

    • The new council to protect our assets must act with emergency

    Nigerians may have taken the country’s critical assets and infrastructure for granted for too long. But the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, is now at the head of an effort to bring that scourge to an end.

    And what a better time to do it than today when the appetite for subversion is playing out in the brazen plunder of public assets.

    The assets are the reason we move, communicate, do business, provide our daily bread and guarantee our safety. So, such attacks seek to undermine our way of life.

    “Critical national assets and infrastructure, which underpin our transportation system, energy grids, communication networks, and essential services are the backbone of our society,” noted Ribadu.

    The onslaught come in a variety of ways and from different classes of people and that makes the task of the new body essential.

    “However, in an ever-evolving landscape, fraught with challenges, these assets are also facing growing threats from various sources: terrorists, bandits, saboteurs, malcontents, cyber-attacks, and other malicious activities,” Ribadu expatiates.

    The body is known as the Federal Coordinating Council for Critical National Assets and Infrastructure Protection (FCCCNAIP).

    The Second Niger Bridge, which was completed by the Buhari administration has attracted the attention of the government because vandals have removed concrete and metal rails. The works minister, David Umahi, drew attention to this recently.

    But what has made the story more potent is the attack on our power grid. Some notable incidents include the attack on the Lokoja–Gwagwalada transmission line 1, where towers T306, T307, and T308 were damaged on November 15.

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    There was also an attack on the 330kV Shiroro–Kaduna transmission lines 1 and 2 on October 18, as well as on the Gwagwalada–Katampe line on February 26, 2024, among several others. Members of the National Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) were recently ambushed by bandits and it led to the killing of about 50 bandits, but not without NSCDC casualties. They were undertaking a surveillance of the power grid.

    One of the incidents that drew the ire of Nigerians was their attack on and plunder of a transformer at Obajana, which was under construction, to transmit power to Kogi State and its environs.

    But none took the nation by storm more than the rolling blackout in many states in the north. This lasted for about a week and compelled a presidential order to restore the power immediately. But, according to reports, the repairs of the electricity installations and equipment gulped N9 billion of public funds.

    The amount is without prejudice to the billions of naira worth of goods, services and man hours wasted by the blackout resulting from the vandalisation.

    The International Human Rights Commission (IHRC-RFT), Nigeria Chapter put the economic toll for the entire northern region at N1.5 trillion. This shows that the maintenance of national assets and infrastructure is to safeguard against those who steal for profit and those who plunder for mischief.

    This newspaper has written reams of editorials over some corporate concerns who smelt irons and other metals bought from vandals, and we hope that the FCCCNAIP would also look at that dimension. Cyber attacks are now increasing, and with rising sophistication. It is the fear of the future. We may succeed in guarding our grid physically more easily than countering the masters of vicious algorithms who could do so in as remote a place as a shack in Ajegunle. We want to be as sanguine as the words of interior minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo who said: “The end has come for vandals and threats of CNAI across the country.”

  • Abysmally low

    Abysmally low

    • Nigeria must work on its tax-to-GDP ratio for sustainable development

    While the contentions over the tax bills presented by the Tinubu administration rage, House of Representatives Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas, has certainly done well to urge gladiators to focus on the big picture: the country’s abysmal low tax-to-gross domestic product ratio and its long-term fiscal sustainability.

    Putting the issues in context at an interactive session on Tax Reform Bills organised by the House last week, Speaker Abbas had stated: “Nigeria, despite being Africa’s largest economy, struggles with a tax-to-GDP ratio of just six per cent, far below the global average and the World Bank’s minimum benchmark of 15 per cent for sustainable development. This is a challenge we must address if we are to reduce our reliance on debt financing, ensure fiscal stability, and secure our future as a nation.

    “The proposed tax reform bills aim to diversify our revenue base, promote equity, and foster an enabling environment for investment and innovation…as representatives of the people, we must approach these reforms thoughtfully, understanding their potential implications for every segment of society. Taxes should be fair, transparent, and justifiable, balancing the need for public revenue with the burdens they impose on individuals and businesses”, he was further reported to have said.

    Speaker Abbas could not have framed the issues better. To use the Revenue Statistics in Africa 2023 publication for better understanding: Nigeria’s tax-to-GDP ratio, it found, only increased marginally by 1.1 percentage points from 5.5% in 2020 to 6.7% in 2021, whereas the average for the 33 African countries covered by the publication remained unchanged over the same period at 15.6%. The publication further observed that since 2010, the average for the 33 African countries actually increased by 1.5 percentage points, from 14.1% in 2010 to 15.6% in 2021, whereas for the same period, Nigeria’s tax-to-GDP ratio decreased by 0.6 percentage points, from 7.3% to 6.7%. It puts the highest tax-to-GDP ratio for Nigeria since 2000 at 9.7% in 2011, and the lowest 5.3% in 2016. By way of contrast, Ghana’s tax to GDP was 13.1% in 2020 and 14.1% in 2021.

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    This, to put it mildly, is scandalous. Unfortunately, the irony isn’t that the issues are any clearer now than they were in the past; rather, it is that successive governments were not ready to confront this patent anomaly by way of a comprehensive tax reform to enhance and streamline the process. For instance, we know that few Nigerians outside of the formal sector actually pay their taxes – and most in this segment actually fall within the category of those whose taxes are deducted at source. The rest, particularly the rich, moneyed class, are more often than not content to pay the minimum possible merely to fulfill all righteousness.

    As for the informal sector, their case is even worse; though known to contribute some 58.2 percent of the GDP, representing approximately $1,408 billion at GDP PPP (purchasing power parity) levels, the sector actually accounts for less than what could be considered to be commensurate share of applicable taxes.

    The challenge, though already well known couldn’t therefore be clearer in the circumstances: Ensuring that every eligible payer is brought into the tax net, simplifying both the laws and the process to make collection less cumbersome, and using technology to

    foster the process; in short, making the process and outcomes fairer, easy and accessible to everyone.

    These, being the declared goals of the tax reforms of the Tinubu administration, are measures that ought to have been taken by previous administrations. 

    Again, to borrow Speaker Abbas’ words: “This is a challenge we must address if we are to reduce our reliance on debt financing, ensure fiscal stability, and secure our future as a nation”.

    We couldn’t agree more. It is the reason we urge the support of every Nigerian.

  • Toilet statistics  

    Toilet statistics  

    • Governments must work on the country’s bad sanitation culture to avert epidemic

    Nigeria has a dire toilet crisis. That is what could be gleaned from the statistics by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) saying that more than 95 million Nigerians lack access to sanitation services. With 48 million persons out of the 223.8 million population without adequate toilet facilities, then the country is tottering on the brink of epidemic.  The coordinator and officer in charge (OIC) of the UNICEF field office in Enugu, Olusoji Akinleye, made these disclosures on Tuesday, at a media dialogue to mark the “2024 World Toilet Day”.

    Speaking on the theme “Toilets: A place for peace”, Akinleye said 48 million Nigerians practice open defecation, including 18 million children, while 95 million others are without access to basic sanitation services.

    “Also, 70 percent of schools are without access to basic sanitation services (91,000 schools); 88 percent of health facilities without access to basic sanitation (27,600 health facilities).”

    It is baffling that we are having this kind of crisis in a vital area of human existence, toilets. All human beings must make use of toilet facilities, no matter how highly or lowly placed. It therefore makes sense that adequate provision must be made for toilets all over the place, especially given that we cannot usually predict when and where we could be pressed and would have need for them.

    Yet, we find grown-up men and women by the sides of drainages, even in many urban centres in the country defecating in the public. Many of our commercial transport drivers stay right behind the doors of their vehicles to urinate in public.

    As a matter of fact, in many of our rural areas, people still defecate in the very rivers from where they drink water; many only move some distance away from their homes and do ‘shot-put’; that is defecate in paper or some other containers and throw the waste products away.

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    We agree with Akinleye that the problem of continued open defecation (ODF) in the country calls for more government interventions. If only N15 billion was committed to it from 2018 to 2022, then there is a huge deficit that ought to be fixed. The N15 billion in four years is grossly inadequate when about N675 billion was required for the four-year period (at his own projection of N168.75 billion annually). 

    It is more a matter of priority. Toilet facilities do not necessarily have to be grandiose or money guzzling. They only need to be functional and hygienic enough to prevent the outbreak of diseases. How, for instance, can we explain that 80 per cent of our markets and motor parks are without sanitation facilities? It is simply inexplicable because these are places where all manner of levies are imposed on those using them for business. What is the government and those collecting the money doing with it? Isn’t it equally ridiculous that only about “17 percent (134 out of 774) LGAs have achieved ODF, with nine percent of successes in UNICEF-supported states?” So, what are the other local governments doing?

    All hope is not lost, though. At least going by the contribution of Rebecca Gabriel, a wash specialist at the UNICEF Enugu office, who said all the states in Nigeria can achieve ODF before the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). That would rather seem a tall order; given that 2030 is only six years away.  But, with improved funding and renewed dedication to ODF, this is still achievable. Just that, as she noted, it would require the cooperation of all — governments, the private sector, individuals, associations and institutions.

    We also need to address the problem of rural-urban drift that is exerting pressure on facilities in the latter, with many of those migrating not having access to homes. State governments have to do more rather than continue giving their people the erroneous impression that it is the responsibility of the Federal Government to provide all facilities.

    More public enlightenment is also necessary so people would understand the health implications of open defecation. We cannot continue to treat the issue of ODF lackadaisically. We must work on our bad sanitation culture.

  • Our child prodigy   

    Our child prodigy   

    • Another Nigerian child invents, makes waves abroad

    Twelve-year-old Nigerian-American girl, Eniola Shokunbi, made headlines recently for her invention of an innovative air filter aimed at improving air quality in United States classrooms and curbing the spread of airborne diseases. She undertook the invention as part of a school project focused on enhancing safety during potential future pandemics. Her idea was birthed by the need for effective and affordable air purification system in U.S. classrooms.

    Little Eniola, from Connecticut, designed the low-cost air filtration system in response to a search for easily accessible means of combating airborne viruses such as COVID-19. While a fifth grader at Commodore MacDonough STEM Academy in Middletown, she and her classmates were given the assignment to devise a solution to enhance safety in schools during potential future pandemics. Her response is the low-cost air filter that has received $11.5million in funding support from the Connecticut State Bond Commission.

    The air filter that Eniola invented is remarkably simple and cost-effective, yet proven to be efficient. It is made of a box fan, four furnace filters, duct tape and cardboard. The cleverly assembled device attracts a production cost of just about $60 per unit, making it an accessible alternative to expensive commercial air purifiers. American media described the invention as showcasing innovation and cost-effectiveness. “The air goes through all the sides, and it comes out of the top, so it filters in and out,” Eniola was reported saying of her invention, adding that many people “don’t realise the only thing standing between them and getting sick is science.”

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    The simple device underwent rigorous testing with assistance from scientists at the University of Connecticut (UConn) and was found okay. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) also vetted the device and confirmed it effectively eliminates more than 99 percent of airborne viruses, thus indicating its potential to significantly improve classroom safety.

    Reports said the approval of $11.5million by the State Bond Commission was to fund the provision of Eniola’s air filter in Connecticut schools, as part of UConn’s SAFE-CT: Supplemental Air Filtration for Education Program that aims to provide every public school classroom with access to essential air purification systems. But the young inventor’s sight is set beyond Connecticut schools: she hopes to see her air filter deployed in classrooms across the U.S.

    The 12-year-old was celebrated in her U.S. community because she apparently resets the narrative of American schooling environment where nutty gunmen occasionally break into schools and commit mass murders, thereby making the environment risk-prone. On the contrary, Eniola has come up with an invention that promotes safety and wellbeing in schools and eliminates a health hazard in the environment. Where others were pulling down, she is building up; no wonder that Connecticut State Senator Matt Lesser hailed her as fabulous. “She wows every room she’s in front of. She’s a real rock star,” the lawmaker was reported saying of her. Beyond the U.S., the young inventor is our own ‘rock star.’ She is a kid genius that her ancestral land, Nigeria, is proud to be identified with and hold up as a worthy ambassador and role model for young ones aspiring to great exploits. She’s not only made a name, she is also well resourced – with ‘clean money’ as they would say local lingo – and may have hit the honey pot of a lifetime so early.

    But her story offers lessons for Nigeria to learn. Eniola is fortunate to have found expression for her genius within a system that recognises and promotes ingenuity. There are gifted young inventors in Nigeria that are neither recognised nor promoted, leaving many to waste away in neglect. Every now and then, reports emerge of such great talents who end up untapped. In April 2022, there was the report of two secondary school pupils in Akwa Ibom State who invented a rail line threat detection system that, according to them, could avert track vandalism. Their invention resonated because it followed a terrorist attack the previous month on an Abuja–Kaduna rail service in which no fewer than eight persons were killed and nearly 200 abducted by the terrorists. It is unlikely the youngsters’ invention has been harnessed till date, whatever it is worth.

    There’ve been other Nigerian inventors who were ignored by their home country but got eagerly harvested by other countries. Among them was 22-year-old Ignatus Asabor who used local materials in making drones, and who was lapped up into employment by a Finnish company that announced his arrival in Finland in 2021 with relish. There was also Musa Sani, who became an online celebrity after building a replica of the Kano overhead bridge, upon which a construction firm swiftly took him on board and gave him scholarship to study in the United States.

    Eniola’s lucky break is another wake-up call that Nigeria must become a country that recognises and promotes ingenuity, not ignore its geniuses.

  • Vandals again

    Vandals again

    •It’s time to find lasting solution to incessant attacks on power transmission lines in the country

    So soon after vandals plunged states in the North into darkness, the transmission line to Obajana in Kogi State has suffered a similar attack, threatening to inflict similar fate on businesses and the people.

    In recent years, enemies of state have continued to strike in parts of the country, leading to loss of billions of Naira,  and throwing many states into blackout. In the last week of October, most parts of the North were affected as the power transmission lines between Shiroro and Kaduna were mindlessly vandalised by criminals.

    It is bad enough that Nigeria does not generate sufficient power for consumption, still rooted on a daily supply of about 4,000 megawatts, where South Africa now generates more than 40,000 megawatts. The transmission lines not only want modernisation and backup, securing them is now an urgent task.

    The police have been unable to protect them, and they are thus left to the mercy of criminals who steal them at will. In Obajana, where construction of a substation is ongoing, assailants were said to have struck by 11.55 pm, and the attack caused a radiator to burst. The new substation is meant to enhance power supply to Kogi State that is bordered by nine other states.

    It is good that the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) has taken over the security of these state assets. To save the country from the regular embarrassment of national grid collapse, it is obvious now that technology has to be procured and deployed. In the 21st Century when there is appropriate technology to aid the task of security, the Federal Government owes it a duty to adequately fund the ONSA and the police, in ensuring that the needed equipment are procured, and when this is done at great cost, that they are not so easily lost to vandals.

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    In September, the Gombe-Damaturu-Maiduguri Power Line was attacked by suspected terrorists, thus plunging Gombe, Yobe and Borno into darkness. The vandals were said to have cut off four tower footings. The recent attack is one too many, that even led leaders of the Northern region to suggest that their people were being neglected and ignored by the centre. Such rancour should not be allowed to continue.

    Last year, the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) was reported to have bombed the 330 KVA line along Damaturu- Maiduguri highway. Power is too critical to security to be treated casually. All hands must be on deck. The government should mobilise the citizenry to join in the task of watching over all such important equipment. It is shameful that the transmission lines are said to be about 50 years old, thus making them outdated and vulnerable to easy vandalisation. Nigeria is not lacking in human materials to maintain the transmission lines if they are in good condition.

    The Nigerian economy is in such a precarious position that it cannot continue to suffer such regular attacks. Manufacturers continue to cry out that they are operating at great loss as energy cost is affecting prices and putting goods out of the track of consumers. They are also finding it more difficult to compete with imported products.

    This is not just about Obajana and Kogi State; it is about finding a lasting solution to power transmission crisis in Nigeria.

  • How come?

    How come?

    •We must get to the root of how suspected foreign criminals had access to police protection

    On November 4, the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) in Abuja arrested 113 foreign nationals, mainly from China and Malaysia, accused of engaging in cybercrime, hacking and other activities injurious to Nigeria’s security. Apprehended along with them were 17 Nigerians who were alleged to be collaborators in committing the crimes.

    No doubt indicative of how people with criminal intent surreptitiously infiltrate our communities to perpetrate their illegalities, the arrested persons occupied a three-storey building surrounded by several uncompleted structures and petty kiosks in a remote part of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). This was obviously to shield their activities from easy detection.

    Residents of the area told The Punch newspaper in an investigative story that the suspected criminals moved into the area in August and hardly interacted with other people in the community. What is even more intriguing than the arrest itself, however, was the allegation by some of those living or working in the vicinity that the persons in question had enjoyed police protection before their arrest.

    As one of the residents told The Punch, “Since I have been living in this area, I have never entered the house even though it is directly opposite us. There is security there 24 hours a day. I usually see police and regular guards there but neither the police nor the guards interacted with us”. Residents of the building were said to ride in SUVs, with sirens blaring when going out.

    The presence of police officers providing security for them had understandably created the impression that the suspects were prominent individuals engaged in legitimate business, thus reducing the possibility of those in the community raising suspicions about their activities. It is of course commendable that officers of the NPF still tracked and apprehended the suspects in spite of the fact that they were being protected by policemen. This suggests that there was no institutional collusion by the NPF as an organisation to provide security cover for criminals. But it is disturbing that persons accused of perpetrating activities that violate our laws enjoyed the protection of security agents who are supposed to uphold and enforce the law.

    The Inspector-General of Police, Dr Kayode Egbetokun, has, however, said the police officers involved were engaged in illegal duty as they were not officially deployed on such assignment. He stressed that the unit commanders of the affected policemen had denied deploying them for such purpose and those implicated had been arrested and would face the law. But then, did the unit commanders raise any questions when these policemen were not available to discharge their official assignments? Does the NPF have an efficient mechanism for monitoring the deployment of its men and preventing them from engaging in illegal duties?

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    While the IGP pointed out that there are prominent individuals categorised as Very Important Persons (VIPs) who require police protection, he admitted that police personnel attached to individuals who do not need them were often not formally deployed. According to him, “Recently, I issued a directive that any policeman found in such situations will be traced to their origin, and their commander or supervisor will be held accountable. We are confident that with the measures we have taken, such incidents will reduce.”

    But this incident only highlights, once again, the problem of rampant assigning of policemen to provide security for all kinds of persons who claim to be of VIP status, to the detriment of the collective security of society.

    The IGP had last year said that the NPF needed to recruit an additional 190,000 officers to secure the country adequately. With a current police strength of about 370,000, the country falls far below the United Nations recommendation of a ratio of one police officer to about 450 citizens. Within this context, there must be more efficient and effective use of available police human resources. Individuals who believe they need enhanced personal security should be encouraged to patronise private security outfits which must be well regulated to meet high standards of the requisite professionalism, capacity and competence.

  • Shame of a heritage  

    Shame of a heritage  

    • UCH must not shut down over unpaid electricity bills

    Sixty-seven years after it opened for business, the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, is a ghost of its founding vision. The tertiary institution is struggling to deliver services to its publics under crushing debilitation of power disconnection that forced relations and friends of its in and out-patients to stage a peaceful protest lately in the Oyo State capital. The present state of the institution – Nigeria’s pioneer teaching hospital – is a shame of a heritage.

    On Monday, last week, relatives of patients embarked on peaceful protest over incessant power outage at UCH that has been the experience since it was classified into Band A category of electricity consumers. Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC), on October 26, disconnected the institution from the national grid over alleged N400million debt. UCH disputed the bill and its classification into Band A with IBEDC, but the matter remains unresolved, leaving the hospital in perennial darkness.

    Protesters, last week, complained that incessant power outage at the hospital hinder quality medical service delivery. According to them, patients are dying because they can’t get medical tests required for treatment, and there is the risk of having medical procedures interrupted or delayed due to power failure.

    Reports cited some protesters recounting how their relatives took clinical tests without getting the results more than two weeks after, owing to lack of electricity to process the  tests, with doctors unable to proceed with treatment in the absence of proper diagnosis. They further alleged that when patients need blood, there is usually no electricity for screening and some surgeries can’t take place without screened blood waiting by.

    Besides, there is no water in the hospital and patients have had to resort to self-help, like using sachet water for bathing and flushing toilets. Some patients allegedly needed to bring in rechargeable torch lights for doctors to use. The protesters complained that the situation was taking a heavy toll on their relations seeking healthcare from the hospital, with those who could afford it being forced to seek help from private hospitals.

    All these isn’t mentioning the obstruction of training of medical and other healthcare professionals for the country and the West African sub-region, as the institution was envisioned to provide in the 1952 Act of British Parliament establishing it, following which it formally opened to the public in November 1957.

    In the wake of last week’s protest, the hospital management and IBEDC traded self-justifying narratives. UCH said it had held several meetings with the electricity firm on plans to defray the charges that accumulated since 2019 totalling N3,104,568,114.61. Of that sum, the hospital said it had paid  N2,916,567,724.27, leaving an outstanding of N392,075,161.05. Hospital spokesperson, ‘Funmi Adetuyibi, expressed the management’s deep concern over inconveniences faced by patients due to the power outage, adding that provisioning of alternative energy sources to alleviate the situation in the hospital had reached an advanced stage.

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    For its part, IBEDC said it was left with no choice than disconnect UCH from the national grid over the debt because it was faced with increased pressure to meet its financial obligations to the market. Company spokesperson, Busolami Tunwase, restated commitment to negotiations with the hospital on a flexible payment plan, saying outstanding debt by major customers like UCH directly contributed to liquidity crisis in Nigeria’s power sector.

     “IBEDC continues to advocate for timely payments by customers because a stable and reliable power supply is dependent on the financial health of the sector,” she added in her statement.

    UCH hit the rough patch with power supply following its classification into Band A, which the hospital argued it could ill-afford and demanded re-classification to a lower category. Chairman of UCH chapter of the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU), Oladayo Olabampe, was reported saying: “IBEDC put UCH on Band A, but we can’t afford the bill of Band A. This is why the hospital management told the company to remove UCH from Band A and put it in Band B. But it (IBEDC) did not. So, we now want government to prevail on IBEDC to return UCH to Band B where it can afford to pay.”

    It is a shame that a historical centre of medical excellence and British colonial legacy has fallen into such dereliction as we presently witness. The state of things at UCH rubs off poorly on the image of Nigeria’s health sector and portends a disturbing fate for other tertiary institutions that came after it. We urge that government shouldn’t allow the situation to persist. There was a promise of 50 percent government subsidy on electricity to select federal universities and affiliated teaching hospitals made late August through the then Minister of State for Health, Tunji Alausa, that apparently hasn’t been perfected for implementation. It is high time government walked the talk on that laudable promise.