The Nation Newspaper

Category: Editorial

  • Schools resumption

    Schools resumption

    •The Federal Government should have carried the doctors along

    In its wisdom or otherwise, the Federal Government, through its Ministry of Education, has fixed resumption date for schools in Nigeria for September 22. The initial postponement to October 13 by the government last month was to prevent the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) from spreading over the country, and especially in the schools where pupils are more prone to catching the disease because of their tender age.

    For the ministry, it appears that the problem of EVD in Nigeria was over, so that the coast was clear for our children to go back to school. Unfortunately, the Minister of Education could not speak for the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), those to face the fire in case of any emergency arising from Ebola.

    Expectedly, the NMA, on September 8 faulted the Federal Government’s directive to schools to resume on September 22. The new directive from the Federal Ministry of Education must have been as a result of its thinking that before that date, Ebola virus would have taken its flight from Nigeria. But this was not the case as the NMA, through its secretary, Dr. Olawunmi Alayaki, had this to say: “All schools ought to remain shut till all those under surveillance for the Ebola Virus Disease in the country had been certified free”. Also, said the NMA, “We are not happy with this decision on the resumption of schools. Schools should be shut till the last suspect is certified free of the virus”. The NMA, therefore, suggested that the resumption date should be shifted till December or early next year, or in the next three months, “to allow the government to have enough time to follow the standard procedure for containing the virus”.

    Any thought of reopening the schools when the disease is yet to be brought under reasonable control – there are still reported cases of the virus in Lagos and Port Harcourt and, maybe, some other undetected cases in the country – will amount to suicide by taking the avoidable risk of exposing the lives of innocent school children to unnecessary danger and untimely death. We also believe that the Federal Government should have waited till October when the situations in Rivers and Lagos states were expected to be conclusively managed – another safety measure the government should have waited for before the premature opening of schools– for it to act. Also, parents should not be in a hurry to get their children back to school by all means, especially as the case of one Ebola virus in a school can spread to other schools to the extent that cases of this virus could become so unmanageable for the government. Perhaps, each state government should decide its date of resumption based on its assessment of the situation on ground.

    Ebola is a serious matter, especially as there is no known cure for it yet. It would be an extreme folly if the government should dance to the tunes of proprietors of private schools to order the hasty resumption of schools. We do not have to wait until Ebola becomes much more serious than it is before taking knee-jerk responses to curb it. We would have thought the December period given by the NMA was rather too far but we believe the doctors are in a better position to know, in view of the “standard procedure for containing the virus” that they mentioned. At any rate, the advice for resumption date for the schools should not have been that of the education ministries alone, they ought to have carried the doctors along since they are the ones directly in the line of fire should there be problems.

    Because of Nigeria’s population, the consequence would be so severe that no one could predict its negative effects on the West African sub-region in particular, and the African continent in general should we make any mistake on Ebola, especially with our vulnerable ones. As we know, forewarned is forearmed.

  • #BringBackGoodluck2015# shame

    #BringBackGoodluck2015# shame

    SIR: It took the intervention of Washington Post to draw attention of the world and President Goodluck Jonathan to the primitive machinations of the president’s men who tried to use the hash tag, #BringBackOurGirls# to pursue their wicked and narrow agenda for 2015.

    First, it was the Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN) going about the zones, staging rallies even when INEC has not blown the whistle for campaign rallies and drumming support for President Jonathan’s 2015 agenda in the face of massive hunger, insecurity, lack of electricity, joblessness, decayed infractstruture, brazen corruption, impunity, threat of insurgency, weak leadership, etc

    The TAN advocates have been blurring our line of vision and insulting our sensibilities but we have been silent believing that a time will come when a spade will be called a spade. TAN is a resurrection of Abacha’s Youth Earnestly Ask For Abacha (YEA).Their mission and concept are the same and tallies with the decayed politics of our country.

    How can a people with minds of their own forget that nearly 300 of our young girls have remained in captivity for more than 150 days? How can they ignore the feelings of the parents? Do they know that some of these parents have died of heart break because of the missing girls? Are these people real parents?

    Why do they have to abuse the hashtag #BringBackOurGirls#?   Who is playing politics with the missing girls? Are these people not intelligent enough to find something else to use to sell their candidate than to steal the #BringBackOurGirl# hashtag? How can a people who claim to possess good education indulge in this show of shame in the 21st century?

    A friend once told me that you cannot lead people if you do not love the people. You cannot save the people if you do not serve the people. Has the PDP led the people of Nigeria? Have these people served the people of Nigeria very well?

    Another learned friend of mine tells me that it is better to present a weak argument strongly than to present strong argument weakly. The campaigners of President Goodluck Jonathan are presenting a weak argument weakly. In their thinking, Nigerians cannot think or recall otherwise, they would have advised their candidate that he and his government have not done enough to justify the votes they got in 2011. They would have told him that the mounting state of insecurity, the unacceptable level of poverty, the state of unemployment, corruption and infrastructural decay are not testimonials for re-election. Yes, they keep dividing Nigerians along ethnic and religious lines but these are not credible pedestals to power.

    We live in interesting times in Nigeria where fake drugs are being presented to us as original drugs. They are giving us fake currencies for genuine ones. Their campaign for re-election is structured on weak platforms. They are not structured on credible platforms of performance and integrity. They are not based on stellar performance. They are not based on facts. They are based on phantoms and fantasies. Now can this kite fly? It cannot.

     

    • Joe Igbokwe.

    Lagos

  • A suspicious order

    A suspicious order

    The attempt to compel INEC to award printing of ballot papers to the Mint could compromise the 2015 election

    President Goodluck Jonathan’s directive that the printing of ballot papers for next year’s general elections be handled by the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company (NSPMC) apears curious. He instructed that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) should ensure that the expertise of the Mint be tapped to build up internal capacity in handling such sensitive materials.

    No sooner was the directive issued than the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, made the move to sell the idea to INEC. He went to the commission and got its chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega, to give his consent. This could be a landmine that would haunt the 2015 elections. The CBN boss then dissolved the NSPMC management committee, with its managing director and the two executive directors forced to retire and new ones appointed.

    Mr. Joseph Ugbo, an engineer, is the new managing director, while a former special assistant to the CBN governor, Mr. Umar Masanawa, is the new executive director, finance and strategy. With the CBN governor himself an appointee of the president as chairman of the Mint’s board, the takeover is total, thus making the president’s directive curious.

    While acknowledging that the President and others who advocate that such printing jobs should be handled in the country by the foremost security printing firm in order to combat the scourge of unemployment and build up the national pride is not totally misplaced, the danger should be noted as outweighing the benefits.

    Elections have always led to combats and instability in the system. It sometimes leads to overthrow of presumably democratically elected governments. They have sometimes portrayed Nigeria as a country where anything goes. The 2007 elections, for example, led to an outcry not only nationally, but internationally. All the external observers indicated that the elections fell below even national standards.

    Everything that could go wrong went wrong. Materials were in short supply, logistics was a nightmare, and officials perverted the process. The sincerity of the Federal Government has been called to question in recent times. In the Ekiti and Osun elections that showed that the electoral commission could have turned a new leaf, the security forces showed that they take instructions from the Commander-in-Chief. Now that the president wants the Mint to print sensitive materials, the integrity question is being raised to another level.

    Can a company fully owned by the Federal Government, whose board and management are appointed by the president be trusted with faithfully producing ballot papers? And, where it does, would it be seen as having done so?

    It is unfortunate that the president’s directive is a clear detraction from the powers of the commission as derived from the constitution, the Electoral Act and INEC Act. The process of electoral reform that produced the 2010 Electoral Act was largely informed by a quest for an independent electoral commission. By the Act, the commission is believed to be more politically and financially independent than it was previously.

    But, by now deciding to issue directives to the commission, the president is acting ultra vires the provisions of these laws. If the president is allowed to get away with this action, he could begin to aggrandise his power more than envisaged by the extant laws.

    Had the Mint performed optimally and above board over the years, the order might not have been so suspect. In 2012, about N2 billion was said to have been stolen. Some old officials of the Mint have been taking their turns to answer to charges at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). Some officials of the CBN were also alleged to have received slush funds from Securency International Pty of Australia. The maladministration of the Mint has, over the years, led to steady decline in performance. There was an 85 per cent decline in its Profit After Tax between 2009 and 2012 and a N215millin loss last year.

    We call on INEC to resist this attempt to hijack its powers. Professor Jega and his team owe the nation a duty to ensure that the reforms are given effect.

    It is patriotic to expect that capital flight is halted. South African firms should not be encouraged to continually attract profit from Nigerian government parastatals. But this is the way to go in the future when confidence has been fully reposed in the commission. By then, INEC could establish good relationship with the Mint. By then, the management would have been tested, the competence would have been demonstrated and integrity would have been established.

    Before the hope of all Nigerians could be invested in the Mint, it ought to be tested in by-elections. The general elections include the presidential, governorship, Senatorial, House of Representatives and House of Assembly polls. It is too heavy to place all these on a wobbling company.

    This is one situation that calls for disregard of a presidential order in the country’s interest.

  • An uncompleted sentence…

    An uncompleted sentence…

    •Dimgba Igwe, wordsmith and ace journalist dies suddenly at 58

    Woe alas, he has become a hanging sentence… a hoary ellipsis, a dangling modifier even. Oh, death would not let him dot his i’s and cross his t’s. How perverse that death would force a full-stop on Dimgba Igwe’s story. Now he has become a low dirge sung in forlorn newsrooms. To term it death is to misname it. Call it the extirpation or extinguishing in the manner of putting out a fire. Or more appropriately, Igwe has been switched off; the bright light of Nigeria’s journalism has been quenched, a roaring torch has been doused even in this age of darkness.

    A long, beautiful sentence has been left hanging, semi-completed and near-meaningless. Dimgba Igwe was felled mid-sentence. He was out jogging at dawn last Saturday when he was knocked down by a hit-and-run driver. Igwe had bestraddled Nigeria’s newspaper industry since he graduated from the Nigerian Institute of Journalism (NIJ) in 1983. He rose rapidly through the National Concord newspaper group from Staff Writer in 1984 to Deputy Editor/Deputy General Manager of Weekend Concord in 1996.

    It was at the effervescent Weekend Concord which he co-midwifed with his long-standing soul mate, Mike Awoyinfa, that he proved his mettle as a journalist’s journalist. The weekend title which was refreshing, flighty and easy-to-read proved an instant success at the period and earned Igwe and Awoyinfa their unique place in Nigeria’s newspapering firmament. With a combination of good writing and quality management which the two friends embodied, the paper was not only a best-selling weekend title, it was also the highest circulating.

    The duo would replicate the Weekend Concord feat in 2002 when they led the team that founded the Nigerian version of the famous UK tabloid, The Sun. The coming of The Sun to the Nigerian newspapering landscape has vastly changed the equation, especially in the soft-sell genre. The title also became a circulation and readership success and has continued to wax stronger till date. Igwe was the founding Deputy Editor-in-Chief as well as the Group Deputy Managing Director until a few years ago when he and his friend, Awoyinfa, had to stand down. He was the Vice Chairman of the Sun Publishing Group up until the time of his demise.

    Born on May 16, 1956 in Igbere, Bende, Local Government Council of Abia State, he co-authored with Awoyinfa, The Art of Feature Writing for Newspapers and Magazines, in 1990 which became recommended text in many journalism schools and departments. His long-standing and twin-like relationship with his seemingly inseparable friend, Awoyinfa is a signpost of the peculiar nature of Igwe for those who never knew him. Theirs’ was a friendship that is rare today and with which they had accomplished many major projects; the one richly complementing the other. They were to present a major book to the public this month from their famous smithery.

    Igwe was not just a great journalist and administrator; he was also a man of immense goodwill and good nature. Everyone who came in contact with him testifies that he is a DHL personality: Diligent, Honest and Law-abiding. He took life very seriously and did all that mattered to make it worthwhile for himself and for all around him. This must explain why he excelled and succeeded as a journalist in today’s Nigeria.  Igwe was so meticulous in life that only a freak accident as happened to him September 6 could have cut short his life; it is sad.

    For one who cared so much about life and health, his country let him down when it mattered most. He was reportedly turned back by two hospitals and he gave up on the way to the third. If only he got first aid in one of the hospitals? In sane societies, there are ambulance services and various emergency responses to accident victims. In sane societies major streets and neighbourhoods have security surveillance. Not here. We may never find Dimgba Igwe’s killer. What a  country!

    Adieu, great man of the pen; we take solace in the fact that you left the world a much better place.

     

  • Francis Idachaba (1943-2014)

    Francis Idachaba (1943-2014)

    •A great scholar, teacher, researcher, administrator is gone

    He was not born great. He did not inherit greatness. He did not have greatness thrust upon him. Rather, he was born in Idah, Kogi State, on December 4, 1943, to poor, struggling parents. His father, Baba Idachaba Idoko, was a potato farmer and his mother, Ayo Salome Idachaba, a smoked fish seller. Yet, by the time he died on August 17, Professor Francis Idachaba had, through hard work, a sense of purpose and determination attained greatness as one of Nigeria’s most distinguished sons.

    Having lost his father when he was 18, it was his mother who laid the foundation for his exemplary success in life. She sent the young Francis to primary and secondary school through her smoked fish business and it was from her he imbibed the attributes of industry, discipline, routine and focus that propelled him to national and international recognition as  a scholar, thinker, researcher, teacher, writer and administrator.

    As a scholar, Prof Idachaba ranked among Nigeria’s most eminent men of letters. He obtained a B. Sc in Economics from the University of Ibadan in 1967 and an M. Sc in the same discipline from the University of Chicago in 1969. After obtaining his doctoral degree in Agricultural Economics from Michigan State University in 1972, he commenced a most exciting and productive career as a lecturer, researcher and consultant in universities and research centres in Nigeria, the United States, Canada, the Hague, the Netherlands and several African countries. The agronomist rose to become a Professor of Agricultural Economics at the University of Ibadan in 1981. His prodigious output as an intellectual included six published books and over 72 academic papers on diverse issues of agricultural development.

    Prof Idachaba was not content to be a theoretical, ivory tower intellectual far removed from reality. His research efforts in rural economics, crop subsector, crop marketing, commodity taxes and farm input subsidies among others, contributed significantly to enriching agricultural policy in Nigeria. He was a key brain behind such initiatives as the Agricultural Developmental Programmes (ADPs), River Basin Development Authorities (RBDAs), the Green Revolution Programme and the Directorate of Food, Roads and Rural Infrastructure (DFRRI). It is to his eternal credit that Prof Idachaba’s proposal resulted in the establishment of two Universities of Agriculture in Makurdi, Benue State and Abeokuta, Ogun State, in 1988.

    Beyond being an outstanding academic, Prof Idachaba was also an accomplished administrator. He was pioneer Vice- Chancellor of the Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi, from 1988 to 1995 and served as Vice-Chancellor of Kogi State University between 2005 and 2008. It is remarkable that during his tenure in the latter capacity, all of the 29 academic programmes of the university were accredited. Other capacities in which he offered selfless service to Nigeria included being a member of several bodies such as the Governing Council, Open University of Nigeria (2004-2008); Board of the Nigerian National Merit Award (2004-2010); Vision 2020 Committee (1996-1997); Governing Council of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, as well as a distinguished member of the Nigerian Economic Society. It was in recognition of his immense contributions to the country’s development that Prof Idachaba was awarded the Nigerian National Order of Merit (NNOM) in humanities in 2011.

    Prof Idachaba offers an inspiring example that it is possible for an individual to achieve financial success without compromising his professional integrity and ethical values. In his words, “My own experience shows that even as an academic, if one works extremely hard and shuns premature politics; God will surprise one with material rewards beyond one’s wildest dreams”. Even in death, he remains an enduring role model as the country seeks to redeem her broken educational system. May his soul rest in peace.

  • ‘Modest’ crooks and accidental ‘leaders’

    ‘Modest’ crooks and accidental ‘leaders’

    Sir: The Nigerian polity is one huge theatre of the absurd. The regular politician is a clown, albeit not a harmless one. I find many strategies employed by this category of citizens in the process of politicking entertaining in their silliness and would have simply smiled and moved on but for the grave implications and consequences on the society.  In fact some of the methods are so shallow and lacking in deep thought that the politician gets away with them is but an indictment on the society. Yes, it shows a shallow society bereft of capacity for analytical thinking.

    It is very common here for a politician to be ‘pressured’ or claim to be pressured to contest an election. Here and there, individuals, groups, forums etc. demand that so and so politician contest for one position or the other. As the 2015 election draws near, more of such demands reverberate across the polity. But this phenomenon did not start today.

    Some years ago, a certain group that went by the title, Youths Earnestly Ask for Abacha (YEAA), shouted itself hoarse, literarily begging the maximum ruler to transmute from a military to civilian ruler. Virtually all the existing political parties adopted the goggled one as their presidential candidate. Yet the one on whose behalf all the effort was expended gave the impression of being reluctant.

    Presently another group, Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN) is criss-crossing the country holding rallies where the president is called to contest the 2015 presidential election. Indeed I found it comical seeing prominent politicians including governors take to the podium to ‘demand’ that President Jonathan declare his interest to run without further delay.

    Now, does it mean that the politician being prodded is actually not keen to contest the election? Well, whoever believes so could as well believe anything. So, if a politician from the beginning had interest in contesting, why conscript people to publicly demand that he run? What is the rationale behind this gimmick? I think that besides testing the waters, it is so as to be seen in the eyes of (gullible) citizens as modest, not power-hungry. What fraud! Modest crooks.

    The truth is that there is nothing immodest about one who believes he has what it takes to lead making himself available for election. A true leader, one that has something to offer does not wait to be ‘pressured’ to serve his people, he does not even say: “if you need me I’m available”. He boldly steps forward. Moses never waited for the Israelites to demand that he lead them, he made himself available. I’m not aware of any great leader who was pressured into assuming a leadership position. On the contrary, many actually resolved to aspire to certain positions long before and eventually presented themselves to the people when they felt they were ready. One who waits to be pushed is not a leader. So politicians who claim to be pressured by people to contest elections are only intelligent by half and could only get away with it in a shallow society like ours.

    On another hand, let’s even assume that some of the politicians sincerely do not habour interest in contesting for the position but are being pressured by people to do so. The implication is that such persons are not ready for the position since they had not planned for it. One can hardly deliver on a position he had not planned to occupy. And is this lack of preparedness for an office not among the bane of our development? The country has had quite a number of accidental ‘leaders’, people who ended up occupying positions they never planned to. Some had intentions of being senators and others governors but were made presidents. Some had no plans to occupy elective positions but were pushed into one by some godfathers. In the end the country pays a heavy price for their lack of preparedness in the form of poor quality leadership.

    In the interest of the country, Nigerians should reject politicians who are pressured to contest for leadership positions, politicians who did not prepare for leadership. Only individuals who understood what leadership is all about and adequately prepared themselves are acceptable.

     

    • Nnoli Chidiebere,

    Aba, Abia State.   

     

  • Living in darkness

    Living in darkness

    •AfDB report that 57% of people in West Africa don’t have access to electricity is depressing

    The African Development Bank’s (AfDB) revelation regarding the percentage of people living without access to electricity in West Africa is startling. The bank, in its “West Africa Monitor Quarterly” for the second quarter of 2014 report says that more than 57 per cent of the people living in the sub-region live in darkness. The percentage reportedly approximated the average for sub-Saharan Africa in a global community where the minimum power denial percentage is 18 per cent.

    In a world where there is hardly any economic activity that can be done without power, it is shameful that a large percentage of people in the sub-region don’t have access to electricity.

    The breakdown of population with access to power in some countries of the sub-region, according to the report includes: Niger – eight percent; Burkina Faso, Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Guinea Bissau have 15 percent each. Ghana has 70 per cent of her people having access to power while Cape Verde has the highest percentage of 87.

    As usual, Nigeria is found wanting in the report even though Professor Chinedu Nebo, Minister of Power, reportedly revealed sometime ago at the 15th Herbert Macaulay Lecture organised by the Engineering Faculty of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, that less than 50 per cent of Nigerians currently have access to electricity. Shamefully, this is reportedly seven per cent lower than the West African average reported by AfDB.

    Surprisingly, the countries in the sub-region have diverse endowments through which they can source for stable power but have either failed to take advantage of them or are underutilising the natural blessings. For instance, hydro power with all the waterways across the sub-region has an estimated potential of 25,000 megawatts; yet only 16 per cent has reportedly been exploited. Also, several in-country lakes and dams hold promise for renewable energy development. The sub-region is blessed with good weather that could help tremendously in renewable energy sources good for generating wind and solar power.

    The governments of countries in the sub-region definitely know the importance of power and yet could not muster the required political will to make it accessible to the greatest number of their people whether in the rural or urban areas. For instance, the Nigerian government, despite its huge expenditure in the power sector, is still contending with inadequate generation capacity and unreliable/expensive service and irregular power supply, amongst others.

    Because of low electrification and poor rural infrastructure generally, there have been astronomical wide disparities in access to electricity between rural areas and urban centres in the sub-region. The report says that in Ghana, for example, 87 per cent of urban dwellers have access to electricity, compared with the five per cent in rural areas. The situation in Nigeria might be worse.

    The AfDB report connotes serious backwardness for the economic and technological drive of Nigeria and other countries in the sub-region. Nigeria in particular has a lot to do in view of her status in the continent. Electricity was not epileptic at a point in the country’s history. Apparently, corruption has eaten deep into the entire system because this is the only thing that can explain the huge gap between the funds committed into the power sector, especially in the last decade, and the output from the sector. It is curious that all we can celebrate today is less than 5,000 megawatts in spite of the investments in the sector..

    If this sad trend continues, it is doubtful whether Nigeria will ever attain the universal energy access target of 2030. But one thing is certain, if Nigeria gets it right, it will rub off on other West African countries.

  • FERMA ferment

    FERMA ferment

    •FERMA/SURE-P in Lagos would do well to fix federal roads instead of fulminating about state traffic law

    It is in order to say ‘here we go again’; we have seen this scenario played out over and over as national elections approach that we begin to wonder whether we ever make  progress in our national life. We refer to media reports that the Lagos State government and two Federal Government agencies are on a collision course over the control of portions of federal roads traversing the state. The agencies are the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA), Subsidy Re-investment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P) and their task force on highways.

    Many have wondered at the emergence recently, of uniformed militia-like men on some roads in Lagos said to be SURE-P/FERMA Federal Task Force. This is reminiscent of the situation in the run-up to the 2007 general elections when the then Minister of Works, Chief Adeseye Ogunlewe, introduced a similar task force which was locked in a turf fight with the state government. This time, the ‘force’ seems to spoil for ‘war’ as it seeks to repudiate Lagos State laws restricting the movement of commercial motorcycles.

    National Co-ordinator of the SURE-P/FERMA Task Force, Mr. Abdul Razak Otto, in a media statement noted that the task force currently at the toll gate end of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway had come to stay. He also suggested that his men would not impede the movement of commercial motorcycle riders (also known as okada) as Lagos State transport agencies  do on some roads in the state.

    The state government passed a law in 2012 restricting the operation of okada riders. The law, which allows them to operate only on the inner streets was enacted to curb a ‘trade’ that had become a debilitating menace to the city of Lagos and her citizens. The riders were actually restricted from only 475 major roads out of over 9,100 roads in Lagos State. And the result of the action has been quite salutary as prior to the enactment of the law; there were an average of 16 okada accident deaths and over 646 injury patients monthly. However, this gruesome statistic has changed drastically since the law came into force.

    Though many of the riders did not like the restriction, no responsible government would allow such littering of okada all over the city with its attendant traffic chaos, deaths and destruction. Apart from the hideous impacts on lives and limbs, uncontrolled okada ‘business’ comes with a huge cost on the public health system apart from other incipient socio-economic costs of pulling our youths away from craftsmanship and artisanal trades. No serious government would allow such a deleterious state of affairs.

    We are therefore taken aback that two federal agencies seek to turn the hand of the clock not only by repudiating a subsisting state law but by also attempting to throw a metropolitan city the magnitude of Lagos into chaos and confusion in the guise of tending to federal roads. We thought that FERMA would busy itself with patching up federal roads which are often in derelict state and usually rescued by the state government. We also would expect SURE-P which is awash with cash now to invest more in mass transit and road infrastructure in major cities of the country in order to further eliminate the need for the highly injurious okada mode of transport. Civilised cities don’t commute by okada.

    With the 2015 general elections at the corner, we dare to conjecture that the Federal Government deigns to raise an election ‘army’ in the guise of highway task force. We think it is wicked if not criminal to play politics with, and to so doubly jeopardise the lives of our youths in this manner: first as okada riders and second as inconsequential highway ‘militiamen’.

    In the interest of all that is good, we hope the Federal Government would have a rethink and disband its youth ‘gang’ so that they may go pursue a worthier course of life. But more crucially, we pray that some numbskull, out of desperation, does not arm them. The consequences often last longer and are dire. Niger Delta and Boko Haram are still alive and well in our midst.

  • God’s Own State

    God’s Own State

    SIR: I believe it was Sidney N. Bremer that said that “the greatest discovery of this century is not the harnessing of the atom, nor will it be in space exploration; it will be man’s discovery of himself. What matters is not the height you’ve attained sofar in your ladder but if your ladder is leaning on the right wall.

    The greatest ‘oil well’ in Abia State is located in its commercial capital, Aba. That oil well resides in the resilience of the citizens of this great city. Since human capital is the greatest asset of any nation, Aba could become world’s number one city, if its human capital is well-harnessed.

    In my childhood days, while on holiday in Aba, I still remember vividly thedefinition a fellow commuter in a bus gave to the name Aba: the city that people move to in order to grow rich. That definition never left my mind till today. It still stands. My position may appear somewhat strange, if you have visited Aba in recent times, due to the basic infrastructural challenges the city is currently facing. Well, great cities undergo such experience from time to time. Even the great Motor City of America, Detroit, is still recovering from sameexperience.

    The best shoes I have ever worn in my life were made in Aba.. If one out of every 100 persons on the face of planet earth wears made in Aba shoes, do you know that Aba would become tomorrow’s Singapore?

    Aba could move from being the commercial capital of God’s Own State to world’s shoe capital today. But, the Elephant city needs you. What can the Elephant do without its trunks?

    All we need is a change in our mind-set. Remember what Shakespeare said: “There is nothing good or bad, but thinking makes it so”. You can become the opportunity Aba is looking for today.

    Remember: the worst thing you can do is to do nothing. Become the change you want to see! Every nation is great that is greatly led. Singapore sings today because someone wrote their song yesterday.

     

    • Goodluck Ede

    Port Harcourt.

     

  • Maiduguri must not fall

    Maiduguri must not fall

    •President Jonathan must show that he is capable of defending the country

    For those who reside far away from the epicentre of slaughter and human flight, the surge of the insurgent group Boko Haram still carries the air of another man’s battle. Nigerians, especially those who live down south, only see video clips of the ghastly images as well as still pictures. There are also narratives of plunder, deaths, rape and kidnap.

    But the past few weeks have given greater potency to the story. They have been advancing from town to town, making mincemeat of residents and travellers. Above all, they have beaten our soldiers who seem to demonstrate little answer or imagination against these organised marauders in the name of Islam.

    It has seemed that as a nation we are dazed, frozen into inaction at times and tokenism of feeble counter-action. But in sum, we have shown ourselves below the task of defending our citizens and territory against the militants who are growing in armour, men and confidence.

    As at press time, major towns and locations have fallen into the savage hands of Boko Haram. We have mentioned such places as Buni, Damboa, Gwoza, Madagali, Marte, Dikwa, Ngala, Michika as already fallen. The past few days were characterised by intense battles for the key town of Bama. Conflicting media reports have befogged the status of the town as to whether it is in Nigerian hands or the so-called caliphate.

    Territories in Adamawa,Borno and Yobe states tremble. The three states are beleaguered. Some Nigerians no longer know the state of our defence as any place seems within the capture of the insurgents. The leader is hoisting flags all over its conquered territories. The fear now is Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State. The reasons for the fear are palpable. The governor, Kashim Shettima, was reported to have said that a third of his state has been captured by the militants. Some other indigenes are less sanguine as some have claimed that two-thirds have fallen.

    The other point is the leaflets that the insurgents have spread in the city of Maiduguri, warning of their imminent invasion. Such ominous literature shows a high level of confidence and clinical propaganda acumen.

    The third point is the rally of the youths. Recently they paid a visit to the palace of the Shehu of Borno and promised that they would fight to the death to defend the throne against the rapine of the zealots.

    The fourth concern is that our military has not shown exemplary firepower in earlier battles.  The government has not inspired us with confidence that Maiduguri will not fall. This is a clear and present danger.

    Maiduguri should not be allowed to fall. If it falls, the implications are huge. It is the capital of the state, and it is the seat of government. It also has the concentration of the state’s population. It is the commercial nerve centre of the state, and the northeast’s big dwelling. If it falls, all its gifts and virtues will belong to the insurgents.

    It will mean, to all intents and purposes, that all of Borno State will be a rogue caliphate under Shekau. If Maiduguri falls, there will be no Nigerian government in the state. We shall have 36 states only in name until we get it back.

    If Maiduguri falls, it will enrich a growing militancy with more resources. It is well-armed now, with Borno State in its hands, its armoury will increase. It can run rampant in the state, molest its citizens and slaughter at will. It could mount a vast concentration camp of perceived upstarts, Christians, nubile girls and other resisters.

    The citizens will be more facile to radicalisation. Because they are under the gun, the insurgents will happily recruit many youths into its army.

    With that assurance, we cannot guarantee that it will not rumble into Yobe and Adamawa states and bring them into the ambit of its counterfeit caliphate. By then, the country under the eyes of President Jonathan would have shrunken significantly.

    When the over 200 girls were abducted from Chibok, the nation was benumbed. The argument was, and still is, the Federal Government could get these girls out through either negotiation or some other sleight of hand. If Maiduguri falls, the story of the Chibok girls will be a footnote in a vast concentration camp of hundreds of thousands under the spell of a charismatic brute. The story is potentially a disaster.

    President Goodluck Jonathan has declared a state of emergency in the region, and issued a suite of rhetoric that was only fiery in words but short on action. The matter is getting so serious now that the president as commander-in-chief must show that he is capable of defending the country according to the oath of office.

    If he cannot, it is high time he stepped down. His first assignment is to defend his country. If he fails in this primary task, he has failed to justify holding that position.

    This is no time to apportion blame from the presidency. This is the same Nigerian army that has, over the decades, served as the symbol of the African pride. Our soldiers have acquitted themselves competently in Liberia and other areas of the West African sub-region. We have led in discipline, strategy and tactics. We have also served in other places in Africa, and the African Union as well as the United Nations have come to regard our army as indispensable in the pacification of the continent.

    For that same army to squelch under an apparently ragtag force remains unthinkable even as we are harassed by the day. Trillions of Naira have been expended on defence in the past few years, and should translate into a formidable force that should make a quick work of the militants. We have not seen that yet.

    It is on that score that we reiterate the need for the president to act as commander-in-chief. To do that he has not only to restore all lost territories but the lost pride of the Nigerian Army. Never again should we accept a situation where a neighbouring Cameroun would do with dispatch what our soldiers cannot dare.

    We reiterate that Maiduguri should not be allowed to fall because the consequences are serious.