The Nation Newspaper

Category: Editorial

  • Autocracy in Egypt

    Autocracy in Egypt

    Four months ago, General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi carried out a coup in Egypt that overthrew President Mohamed Morsi and imprisoned the leadership of the Muslim Brotherhood. Hardly a day now passes without some indication of how the new Egyptian regime seeks to erect a military-police state, crushing those who dare oppose it.

    On Wednesday, the Egyptian authorities arrested Essam El-Erian, one of the last senior figures in the Muslim Brotherhood still at large. Earlier in the week, Egypt’s state prosecutor ordered an investigation into whether a popular political satirist, Bassem Youssef, has harmed the national interest by ridiculing General al-Sisi in a television programme.

    Meanwhile, final touches are being put to laws that underscore Egypt’s slide into authoritarian rule. One law would give the police carte blanche to ban all protests. Another would restrict non-profit organisations from receiving overseas funding, a lifeline for those who advocate against human rights abuses.

    As he presses ahead with what some describe as a shift to Bonapartism, General al-Sisi faces little obstruction. A few liberals inside the government still try to make their voices heard, insisting that the new regime is reversing the hard won gains of the revolution that drove out President Hosni Mubarak in 2011. But the general is otherwise riding high on the wave of nationalist fervour that has swept Egypt in the wake of his July coup, boosted by public detestation of the Brotherhood and by a robust media campaign portraying him as a benevolent leader.

    Any analysis of Egypt’s travails cannot completely exonerate the Brotherhood. Under President Morsi, it committed a catalogue of errors – including an overhaul of Egypt’s constitutional court – that fuelled the immense popular protest against his rule last summer.

    But General al-Sisi would be making a big mistake if he thinks his current popularity provides a sustainable basis for authoritarian rule. He must remember that the revolution of January 2011 that toppled President Mubarak changed the consciousness of much of Egyptian society, especially its youth. Most Egyptians crave stability after so much upheaval. But over time, General al-Sisi must allow those who are currently outlawed to find their way back in to the political process. The alternative would be to further radicalise the Islamists in Egypt, opening up a disastrous new era of sectarianism.

     

    – Financial Times

     

  • Nyiam’s show of shame

    Nyiam’s show of shame

    The retired Colonel’s unruly behaviour in Benin has called to question the real motive behind setting up the Okurounmu panel

    The show of shame put up by Col. Tony Nyiam as the Presidential Advisory Committee on National Dialogue sat in Benin City, the capital of Edo State, presumably to gauge the mood of the people, collate their views on the task of making recommendations on modalities for inaugurating the national conference is indeed a sad reminder that some non-democrats have been saddled with the task of ensuring that democracy is fully entrenched in Nigeria.

    At the October 28 sitting, Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State had told the committee that he had reservations about the ability of the committee to do better than previous panels that played similar roles. He expressed skepticism that a national dialogue at this time could come up with a different outcome from what emerged from the Babangida Constituent Assembly of 1988, the Abacha 1994 National Constitutional Conference and the National Political Reform Conference set up and funded by the Obasanjo administration in 2005.

    “I will be surprised if anything changes. Sincerely, I have no business to deceive or mislead anyone. I believe that the outcome of this conference will not be different from that of other conferences we have had in the past”, the governor said. He added that” All I owe Nigeria now is to speak my mind. It could be error of my head but certainly not of my heart. As much as I wish you well, I just want to say that I have no faith in this process and I do not think it was necessary at all,” Indeed, the governor introduced a new dimension when he brought in the question of how this would affect foreign investors: “And I honestly think that in terms of the private sector, when a country keeps debating how we can live together that cannot be one of the basis on which the outside community will invest in Nigeria. They may well wait until we know how we want to live in Nigeria.”

    It was vintage Oshiomhole. You may agree with him; you may not, but that is his view which he is fully entitled to. He believed in his postulations and he spoke with passion. He argued that there was no need for further rigmarole and waste of public fund. There was no doubt that the governor spoke the mind of a section of the country, and his voice in the matter as the elected governor of the state should have interested the committee.

    Rather than see himself as a collator of views with a view to determining the aggregate views of Nigerians, starting with the desirability of the dialogue, Nyiam flew off the handle, jumped off his seat and made to launch at the governor. He led a group of people who attempted to shout down the chief representative of the people of Edo State.

    If what Nyiam did was antithetical to the kernel of democracy, what he did thereafter by refusing to apologise tended to suggest that he was programmed to act that way. He contended that he was irked by the manner Oshiomhole allegedly spoke irreverently of President Goodluck Jonathan. How was that the concern of Nyiam at such a forum? Didn’t he understand that the committee has a chairman who was there to moderate the process? Does the retired Army officer think he was sent on a personal mission by the President and would therefore brook no criticism of a man who should be the chief servant of the Nigerian people?

    The utterances and conduct of Nyiam ran contrary to the President’s public declaration when he inaugurated the committee. He charged the Okurounmu panel to see the assignment as “a National Project, a sincere and fundamental undertaking, aimed at realistically examining and genuinely resolving, longstanding impediments to our cohesion and harmonious development as a truly united nation.”

    He also urged it to realise that “no voice is too small and no opinion is irrelevant. Thus, the views of the sceptics and those of the enthusiasts must be accommodated as you formulate this all-important framework. This conversation is a people’s conversation and I urge you to formulate an all-inclusive process that protects the people’s interest.”

    So, we ask, where did Col. Nyiam derive his mandate from? Did he receive a private briefing to which Nigerians are not privy? How many other members of the committee share the same views but have kept them till the collation stage?

    It is our view that, by his conduct, the place of Col. Nyiam on the committee is no longer tenable. Had he apologised immediately after his shameful conduct, it could have been regarded as a mere emotional outburst, but insisting thereafter that he did no wrong is an indication that, faced with another trenchant criticism, he would repeat his response. Members of the committee should seek a replacement for the retired colonel if they want to retain the confidence of the people in the process and win over those skeptical of the assignment. Governor Oshiomhole has said nothing significantly new and even if he did, Col Nyiam as a member of the committee has no right to interrupt him, not to talk of attempt to confront him.

  • NUT’s threat

    NUT’s threat

    The threat by the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) to withdraw services and shut down schools nationwide if the National Assembly carries out its plan to cede responsibility for payment of primary school teachers’ salary to local government councils as part of its on-going constitution amendment brings into focus, once again, some of the challenges confronting the education sector, local government administration and the country’s tortured federal system.

    Apparently unimpressed by the stated motive for the proposed initiative, which is to enhance local government autonomy, the NUT unambiguously stated that “NUT is not opposed to local government autonomy but if local government must be given autonomy, our teachers’ salaries must be removed from the local government, local government cannot pay their workers salary; and let us also understand that the Supreme Court ruling of 2003 gave the authority of running primary schools to state governments”.

    Of course, the fears of the NUT are understandable and perhaps legitimate given the country’s experiences. As the union rightly recalled, teachers were owed salaries for prolonged periods, particularly during military rule when local governments were saddled with the responsibility of primary school administration. This was why primary school teachers across several states were on strike for months due to unpaid salaries at the inception of this dispensation in 1999. It was only when state governments took over this responsibility that the backlog of salary arrears was cleared and the system stabilised, with the timely and sustained payment of primary school teachers’ wages.

    What is at once obvious here is that for the NUT, and majority of Nigerians would agree with the union, there has been little change in the character of local government administration even 14 years after the return to a supposedly democratic dispensation. The local governments remain largely as unresponsive and lacking in transparency and accountability as was the case under military rule. There is thus a continued heavy deficit of trust between local governments and the people to the detriment of effective, efficient and productive grassroots governance.

    A more fundamental problem is that most local governments, just like many state governments, are not viable and functional economic entities. Ordinarily, it should stand to reason that primary education can best be administered by the government closest to the grassroots. This would, however, presuppose a genuine federal system in which administrative entities at various levels are able to generate a reasonable percentage of internal revenue to provide essential services like primary education to their people. What obtains in our situation, unfortunately, is that all tiers of government are dependent on oil revenue and thus have little incentive to creatively maximise the potentials of the human and natural resources at their disposal.

    This flawed federal structure is in turn responsible for the stultifying uniformity that sees diverse categories of workers, including primary school teachers, demanding a unitary pay structure throughout the country, irrespective of the fiscal capacity of the various states and local governments. The attempt by the National Assembly to predicate local government autonomy on a parasitic economic base of oil dependency is, in our view, misplaced and diversionary.

    For one, the federal and state governments are the federating units and local government is not an autonomous tier. Again, the priority should be on fundamental structural changes that compel the component parts of the polity to become economically productive and self-sustaining as much as possible. Equally imperative is the need to strengthen the culture of accountability and transparency at all levels in order to address the kind of legitimate fears expressed by the NUT.

  • Unpleasant deputising

    Unpleasant deputising

    It was an ironic lesson in security management for Acting Governor Sanusi Rikiji when hundreds of youths descended on him with stones and sticks, to protest alleged “poor security provision” in Zamfara State.  The assault was condemnable, although the assailants demonstrated the apparent validity of their accusation by the fact that they were able to perpetrate such violence against the acting governor, who is technically regarded as the state’s chief security officer.

    The action not only underlined Rikiji’s vulnerability; more important, it exposed the inadequacies of the state security system. It is alarming that the intensity of the incident reportedly forced the acting governor’s police escort, the military and State Security Service (SSS) operatives to fire shots into the air to disperse the mob.

    Interestingly, Rikiji, Speaker of the state House of Assembly, who is deputising for holidaying Governor Abdulaziz Yari, was on a security-related visit to sympathise with the families of three Fulani youths allegedly killed by attackers in Tudun-Kuya village, in Birnin Magaji Local Government Area of the state.  The suspected killers were believed to be members of “Fulani killer gangs” said to be terrorising villages in various parts of the state.

    It is lamentable that the entire episode again highlighted the undesirable climate of fear and defencelessness, even helplessness, which persists in parts of the country, particularly in northern areas where insecurity is pronounced.  It is relevant to observe that a state of siege has effectively frozen normalcy, particularly in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states, where official emergency rule is in place, in response to the mayhem sponsored by the Islamist Boko Haram.

    In the context of deep popular disaffection, the riot may be understandable, but it is ultimately inexcusable. For, it is an invitation to a breakdown of law and order, which, in the final analysis, would be detrimental to the society. It is unfortunate that the youths reacted without restraint in the face of mounting insecurity, but perhaps the positive side of their release of emotional energy is the possibility that it might prompt a basic rethink by the authorities on overcoming the challenge of anti-social forces.

    It is certainly myopic for the police to threaten that anyone found to have been involved in the attack would face “the full wrath of the law.”  Without doubt, the law ought to take its course in this matter, but definitely not in a one-sided way.  It is important that the force should not play down the aggravating circumstances, specifically, the alleged murders that triggered the violence. It is worrying that the said “Fulani killer gangs” have continually gone on the rampage across the state, against a background of ineffective policing.

    Sadly, the ghost of ethnic strife is indeed visible in the situation, to go by the description of the alleged killers in terms of their ethnicity.  It is noteworthy that Zamfara is dominated by the Hausa and Fulani, with other ethnic groups, including the Kanuri, Nupe and Tivs completing the composition.  There is no doubt that the rivalry engendered by this diversity, if not controlled by the authorities, can always lead to social combustion.

    With regard to managing these dichotomies, it should be stressed that citizen enlightenment emphasising the value of unity in diversity is as critical as the role of the security apparatus in maintaining law and order among the various ethnic groups.  Certainly disturbing, and a potent point to ponder, is the fact that shared faith, in this case, Islam, has not been adequate in preventing terror-like bloodshed in the state.  This observation is especially significant given the state’s romance with Sharia, and the apparent religious homogeneity it suggests.

    Indeed, Rikiji’s unpleasant experience as stand-in calls for a thorough appraisal, not only of the state’s security system, but also of the divisive issues that cause trouble.

  • NSA spying shows how to lose friends and alienate allies

    NSA spying shows how to lose friends and alienate allies

    WE DON’T know what the National Security Agency (NSA) learned from tapping the cellphone of German Chancellor Angela Merkel. If the White House account is to be believed, no intercepts were deemed worth reporting to President Obama. But it is painfully clear that the damage from the revelation of the tap is considerable.

    A high-level German delegation was set to arrive in Washington Wednesday to address what Ms. Merkel’s government has called a breakdown in trust; another delegation from the European parliament was already in town to make the same point. There is talk in Brussels and Strasbourg of cutting off NSA access to vital electronic networks , such as the SWIFT clearinghouse for bank transactions, and of imposing onerous requirements on private U.S. technology firms that handle European Internet traffic.

    Mr. Obama seems already to have judged that the high-level bugging operation was a liability. He reportedly ordered it scaled back in August, and assured Ms. Merkel in a phone call last week that her communications were not being monitored now or in the future. That still seems to leave questions about the NSA’s spying on allied political leaders, which means there’s more cleaning up to do. How many presidents and prime ministers from NATO countries or major non-NATO allies have been targeted by the agency, and for how long? Who approved the taps, if not Mr. Obama? Was there ever a careful political review of whether such monitoring was worth the potential cost of disclosure?

    It’s important to make a distinction between the NSA’s collection of bulk foreign Internet and phone data for counterterrorism investigations and the surveillance of political leaders. The former has helped to protect both the United States and its allies, including Germany, from al-Qaeda attacks; when it came to light last summer, Ms. Merkel helped to stifle controversy about it. The latter can be connected to counterterrorism or non-proliferation operations only with a great stretch. While there may be some circumstances where spying on a nominally friendly allied leader may be justified — former German chancellor Gerhard Schroeder’s collaboration with Russia’s Vladi­mir Putin to counter the George W. Bush administration comes to mind — it should be rare. And it should not happen without presidential authorization and disclosure to Congress.

    Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), chairman of the Senate intelligence committee, made those points on Monday while disclosing that her committee had not been told about the political spying. Ms. Feinstein said her committee would “initiate a major review into all intelligence collection programs.” That shouldn’t lead to a witch hunt at the NSA, the dismantlement of vital collection operations in European countries or a surrender to the demands of European politicians, some of whose intelligence services are known to target the United States. But it should lead to the establishment of greater political control and accountability for sensitive foreign operations, starting with the president.

    – Washington Post

  • Jonathan in Israel

    Jonathan in Israel

    It is heartwarming that the Presidency last week denied reports that President Goodluck Jonathan would lead 19 state governors, some serving ministers as well as some 30,000 intending Nigerian pilgrims to Israel. Although what made the story somewhat ridiculous were the 30,000 Nigerians that reports said the President would lead to the holy land; it was still regarded as a possibility given the President’s antecedents of travelling with unusually large entourage. He has been criticised for this times without number without any change of heart.

    But the Presidency’s rebuttal of the story on October 22 somewhat calmed frayed nerves. A statement by Reuben Abati, President Jonathan’s special adviser on media and publicity, clarified the position: “irrespective of President Jonathan’s visit, thousands of Nigerians visit Israel annually during the pilgrimage season which goes on for months and they will undoubtedly do so again between now and early next year”. Apparently, the President’s trip to Israel had been mixed up with that of about 30,000 Nigerians who are to be in Israel for the pilgrimage this year.

    But this is not the only issue with the trip to Israel. There is also the question of the President’s mission in the place. Shortly before he left for Israel, President Jonathan had said he would be in that country partly to pray for Nigeria and partly to discuss bilateral issues with the Israeli leaders. “Nigeria needs both political and spiritual transformation. The country is facing a lot of challenges, hence this pilgrimage exercise will serve as an intercessory tool for the nation to seek the face of God in this trying moment of our national life. Christ is a winner and conqueror! I have no doubt that this exercise would help the nation overcome its current challenges,” he said.

    We do not intend to deny the President his entitlement to his faith, but we hasten to add that much as Nigeria needs spiritual transformation, most of the problems the country is facing are self-inflicted and clearly avoidable. For instance, do we need spiritual transformation to know that it is wrong to buy bullet-proof cars for a minister at highly inflated costs? Do we need spiritual transformation to know what to do with people close to the seat of power who loot pension and other funds? Do we need spiritual transformation to know that vendetta politics is bad for the system?

    These are issues within the purview of man and particularly the leadership. The way we are going, we may soon get to a situation where people will begin to ask God when to eat, what to eat and stuff like that.

    Well, now that President Jonathan has travelled to Israel since he believes he would find answers to our crisis of nationhood there, Nigerians expect to see a brand new administration fresh from the anointing in the holy land.

    Beyond all these, however, is the propriety or otherwise of government spending public funds to transport people on pilgrimage. Although this has been an age-long practice in our country, it does not make it right. Pilgrimage is a personal thing and since the country is recognised constitutionally as a secular state, governments should stay off religious matters, including funding of pilgrimage.

    People intending to go on pilgrimage should be able to foot the bill. None of the two dominant religions in the country makes it mandatory for people to go on pilgrimage whether they can afford it or not. This practice is in itself a form of corruption, especially when it involves public servants. Worse still, the religious exhibitionism has not resulted in good governance in the country. So, why waste public funds on it?

  • Ilorin stampede

    Ilorin stampede

    The Sallah stampede in Ilorin, Kwara State, is a reflection of the viral poverty level in a country of plenty. Yet, the nation wantonly fails in her duty to provide for her citizenry. It is poignant to note that over 20 people, virtually old women, died while jostling with others to have a bite of the Sallah crumbs donated by Sen. Bukola Saraki, the immediate past governor of the state. According to reports, most victims of the stampede were loyalists of the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

    The Eid-el-Kabir catastrophe reportedly commenced as a carnival at Ile Arugbo, Ilofa Road, Ilorin. But, by the time scrambling for the Sallah gifts such as food items and other commodities was over, the end result was not what was bargained for. Many were injured, the aged and the weak reportedly fainted, some of them never regained consciousness; they passed on in their worthless pursuit of consumables that may not last them beyond 48 hours!

    We recollect that similar incidents occurred in the state in 2010 and 2011. Sadly, the condemnable act is not restricted to Ilorin. For example, in Sokoto State at the start of the last Ramadan fasting, three teenagers reportedly died during a related act of charity in a scramble for gifts at the governor’s residence.

    Senator Saraki, the donor of the gifts, expectedly had expressed sadness over the fatalities. However, the issue at stake is beyond mere outpouring of condolences but more importantly the lessons learnt to forestall a recurrence. No doubt, the former governor must have inherited the charity tradition from his late father who was a politician of national significance and ‘strong man’ of Kwara State politics during his life time.

    But the demeaning culture of alms-giving, not only in Kwara but other states in the country, is a manifestation of the high retardation level of the people. The trend of alms-giving under the guise of observing religious injunction has created a needlessly subservient citizenry – a people that wantonly look up to the rich and politically powerful in the society for their survival. In most cases, the men of power deploy alms as a tool more for reinforcing power than as a mark of adherence to almighty God’s injunction.

    We ask: Why must citizens rely on alms from the well-heeled members of the society, especially those in power, before they could be happy during any festivity? Rather than institutional development, why should a public officer derive joy in individual doling out of gifts to the governed in the society at the expense of their right to dignity? We still wonder whether if Saraki in his eight years of governing Kwara State had entrenched the required safety nets for the people, incidents such as the last stampede would not have been averted.

    A system that allows the weak to remain perpetual slaves of the powerful should be discouraged in all parts of the country. And if it has to be done, it must be done in such a way that would not jeopardise the safety and dignity of beneficiaries?

    We deplore a situation whereby a festivity like the Eid-el-Kabir that is meant to save and celebrate life was turned to one that has taken lives in Kwara State. Senator Saraki should deploy his resources to correct things that he did not do while he was in power that has made Kwara people to remain poor today.

     

  • Africa at dawn

    Africa at dawn

    The tentative rays of prosperity breaking over Africa are reflected in statisticians’ increasingly urgent efforts to cast light on the continent’s economy.

    Reliable data are sorely needed. The International Monetary Fund has warned that “the quality of basic economic statistics in sub-Saharan Africa …is often so poor that it can lead to serious misdiagnosis”. In the past, similar problems have afflicted regions such as Latin America, the former Soviet Union and southeast Asia.

    African countries are improving the quality of the information they gather, beginning with their national accounts. The results are staggering. Ghana recently recalculated the size of its economy for the first time in more than a decade, taking into account new growth industries such as mobile telephony. Its gross domestic product turned out to be 62 per cent larger than previously thought. Gambia and Guinea-Bissau, two tiny west African nations, more than doubled their GDP estimates in a similar exercise.

    While acknowledging that the large revisions have “understandably alarmed many observers”, the African Development Bank is encouraging others to follow suit. In the past, official statistics have often missed the large informal sector of African economies, which includes subsistence agriculture. This has resulted in an overly gloomy assessment of Africa’s economic fortunes.

    Compiling genuinely illuminating data takes time and money, and some will question whether it is worth the candle. In a poor country such as Ghana, it seems perverse to shower government statistics agencies with resources that could otherwise be used to improve primitive schools and hospitals. Yet if reliable economic data create confidence they could deliver a surprisingly large return, lowering capital costs and attracting foreign investment. Balance of payments statistics, for example, are crucial for countries that wish to tap global capital markets.

    International agencies should prioritise help for the region. But Africa also needs to help itself. Too often, the continent’s leaders have punished western scholars for questioning government numbers. Critical voices have even been excluded from regional economic forums by means of informal bans.

    Taking criticism on board would be one worthwhile step. Granting independence to national statistics agencies would be another. Official statistics can only be credible if governments are willing to voice inconvenient truths.

    – Financial Times

     

  • A harvest of corruption

    A harvest of corruption

    •Rather than abate, corruption festers under the Jonathan administration

    The controversy kicked off by the purchase of two armoured BMW cars for the Minister of Aviation, Ms Stella Oduah, has brought to focus again the debate on President Goodluck Jonathan’s attitude to the battle against sleaze in the country. No sooner was he elected President than Dr. Jonathan announced to the world that he would tackle the monster with vigour.

    However, since he assumed power, fraud and dishonesty appear to have received fresh impetus. The first indication that the pledge to combat fraud could be cosmetic came to the fore as soon as the administration was inaugurated. Alhaji Umaru Yar’Adua who was Jonathan’s predecessor was quick, without prodding, to make public the declaration of his assets. The constitution merely requires of him to fill the necessary forms with the Code of Conduct Bureau. However, Yar’Adua chose to challenge whoever had contrary knowledge of his assets to come out with it. It was an indication that he intended to live above board and a signal that whoever would not be open and transparent about his or her transaction should not bother to take up appointment under him. It was refreshingly different.

    But, Dr. Jonathan who was his deputy needed to be needled to accept the challenge of following in Yar’Adua’s footsteps. It was an early indication of what to expect if he became the Chief Executive of the Federation. When he mounted the saddle as an elected President on May 29, 2011, he threw away the Yar’Adua example and rather chose to hide behind the fact that public declaration of assets is not made mandatory by the constitution. He would not be part of creating tradition and convention on declaration of assets.

    We note that, recently, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) cried out that it was broke and may not be in position to prosecute the plethora of fraud cases in court, especially those involving high profile politicians. This could be a further indication that the President is only paying lip service to the war against corruption.

    Last year, the landscape was seized by the desire of Nigerians to rid the country of thieves of public fund funnelled through payment of oil subsidy. Activists, patriots and nationalists trooped out to call for non-removal of the so-called fuel subsidy until satisfactory account was given of all that had been paid and a proper audit of the accounts had been carried out. Till date, nothing has changed in the mode of receipting, accounting for and expending oil money. Recommendations of the Nuhu Ribadu and the Kalu Idika Kalu panels have been kept in the shelves.

    The government demonstrated utter insensitivity by keeping the minister superintending the ministry in place. Rather than lose face as a result of the activities unearthed in the various National Assembly probes, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke remains a superpower in the petroleum resources ministry. Not even the weighty allegation that about N2 billion had been frittered away on private jet shuttles in a land where stark, absolute poverty reigns would move the President to sack the minister. Rather, ministers mainly known to be loyal to those regarded as “rebel governors” in the ruling party were shoved out.

    The pension fund scandal has led nowhere. In the federal legislature, Farouk Lawan remains a member of the House of Representatives. While it may be argued that the matter is before the courts, a charismatic leader would have made sure that such an issue is not allowed to linger for too long. Under the Jonathan administration, it is not considered offensive to national psyche that a legislator against whom such a serious allegation has been made remains in office and contributes to national debates.

    As a result of these scandals, frauds and other corrupt practices, others are emboldened to toe the same line. The reigning philosophy is that all that is needed to hold high offices of the land is to be in the good books of the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. During the tenancy of Dr. Jonathan in the portals of power, ex-militants not known to have requisite qualifications and experience have been handed the security of the coastal waters and the ports.

    We are not surprised that national assets and institutions continue to decay. Examples include the all-important Lagos-Ibadan and Lagos-Ore-Benin roads. The roads are very important to the social and economic life of the country and its citizens as they connect the commercial and most populous city to all parts of the country – North, East and West. Industrial goods are thus expensive and precious lives needlessly lost.

    The government, as it approaches the third year mark, should sit up and re-examine the mandate it was handed in 2011. More than most Nigerians, President Jonathan has been strikingly lucky with public offices. He is touted as the first doctorate degree holder to hold the office of the President and the only one so far to have held office as deputy governor, governor, vice president and acting president before assuming office.

    He has a duty to prove all critics wrong by working for the interest of the people and ensuring that justice is upheld in all cases. This is the only way to raise public standards and seal the leaking points in the public treasury.

  • Justice Salami’s retirement

    Justice Salami’s retirement

    •His last years of service will haunt the Jonathan presidency and the judiciary for the injustice he suffered

    Justice Ayo Salami, the unlawfully suspended President of the Court of Appeal (PCA), finally bows out of the judiciary after attaining the mandatory retirement age of 70. Unfortunately in complete abnegation of the rule of law, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan refused to allow the distinguished jurist, to return to his duty post, despite his later clearance of any wrongdoing by the National Judicial Council (NJC) that has the constitutional prerogative over him.

    Indeed, it is possible that those who successfully ran roughshod over the constitution in the Justice Salami’s case may be celebrating his final exit, instead of mourning the desecration of our constitution – the foundation of our democracy.

    On our part, however, we condemn without equivocation the action of the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, particularly President Jonathan, for the denigration of our constitution. When the history of the presidency of Goodluck Ebele Jonathan is etched in words, his complete jack-boot treatment of Justice Salami, a President and Justice of the Court of Appeal, the second highest court in Nigeria, may rank among the greatest injustice of the era.

    In a complete mockery of our judicial system, the learned jurist suffered injustice in the hands of President Jonathan, for gallantly fighting for justice. So, for a common man, it will be a hard sell to convince him, that justice can be gotten from our system.

    But the successful persecution of Justice Salami mocks more than President Jonathan. Indeed, it mocks our nation as a republic. For, if indeed we are truly a republic, it would have been impossible for one man, in this case President Jonathan, to have the audacity, to effectively take on the fundamental law of the land, and successfully give it a bloody nose, without any consequence. After all, in our so- called republic, President Jonathan merely heads only one arm of the republic, out of three. So, it is legitimate to state, that the other two arms – the legislature and the judiciary – may have either connived or acquiesced to the maltreatment of Justice Salami.

    But between the two other arms, the judiciary surely is the greater culprit. We say so because the constitution itself envisaged that authorities of the republic, such as President Jonathan in this instance, may occasionally act arbitrarily, and so provided a safeguard. By the provisions of section 6 (6)(b) of the 1999 constitution, the judicial powers of the courts established under the constitution, “shall extend to all matters between persons, or between government or authority and to any person in Nigeria, and to all actions and proceedings relating thereto, for the determination of any questions to the civil rights and obligations of that person”. So, we ask, how come the courts could not rise up, to order that justice be done to one of its own?

    Probably the justices in the various courts that Justice Salami approached to give him justice, over his maltreatment by the republic, failed to appreciate that they too are victims of the executive impunity of the President, and the NJC, under the former Chief Justice of Nigeria, retired Justice Aloysius Katsina-Alu. Now, with the imponderable humiliation of the judiciary successfully carried by the executive at the initial prompting of the NJC, how many judges would have the courage to live up to their oath of office? Let us note, however, that to his credit, Justice Salami suffered with his head unbowed, and history will be kind to him. For those who connived or acquiesced to desecrate our constitution, theirs is to worry, about their own end.