The Nation Newspaper

Category: Editorial

  • Incredible!

    Incredible!

    •How could a private firm have held on to N32bn metering contract sum for 21 years without delivering?

    It beggars belief that a private company could have held on to N32bn (about $200m then) belonging to the Federal Government since 2003, without delivering on the contract for which the money was paid. Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, made this known to newsmen sometime ago, through a statement by his spokesman, Bolaji Tunji.

    According to the minister, the money was for supply of three million pre-paid meters to electricity distribution companies (DisCos) within three years, via a tripartite agreement with Messrs Ziklagsis Network Limited and Unistar International.

    But nothing happened since then while the money was being moved from one bank to another. “The agreement was not implemented while the fund remained in the bank account of Ziklagsis at the then Prudent Bank from where it moved to Skye Bank, Polaris and lately, Providus Bank,” the statement read. The N32bn contract was based on the exchange rate at the time.

    It is curious that such a huge amount of taxpayers’ money was paid for a contract that was not honoured even though the contractor had been duly mobilised and no alarm was raised.

    What could now pass for cheery news is that the minister has been able to get about N12.7bn of the said amount returned to the government coffers.

    Read Also: Rowdiness mars Senate’s public hearing on $4.451b NLNG Train 7 project

    From the minister’s account, this was not a mean task because of the personality of the person involved. As a matter of fact, it wasn’t particularly easy for the minister to begin the process of recovering the money as he too had to involve the presidency which approved of the decision.

    “When I got to the office, I told Mr. President that we have to insist that this woman returns the money. The first thing I did was to ensure that she returned N12.57 billion to those who were supposed to meter all military formations”, the minister said.

    He added that “The balance is yet to be released by the company. And we are talking about the meter gap”.

    It is instructive that at the time the contract was awarded, Nigeria only had a four million metering gap. We can only imagine how much impact that would have had on the metering gap today if that contract had been faithfully executed.

    It is the N12.57bn so far recovered from Ziklagsis that forms a substantial part of the N12.7bn that is now being spent to meter military formations in the country. This was sequel to the military’s request to the presidency to assist them in offsetting their massive electricity debt and in metering their formations, a request that the government graciously granted under the ministries, departments and agencies’ (MDAs) metering project.

    We wonder what would have happened to the N32bn contract money had the minister not insisted on its recovery. We wonder too how many other such payments had been made in the power sector that the contractors did not deliver on, or only partially delivered on. These are definitely part of the reasons why the sector is not progressing. So much corruption has turned the power sector to a huge waste basket in which the government has committed so much resources without commensurate result.

    No matter the caliber of the persons behind Ziklagsis, the company must be sanctioned to serve as deterrent to others that the government would not continue to gloss over such fraudulent activities. As a matter of fact, the minimum that should be accepted in this case is a refund of the entire sum with interest calculated at the prevailing rate.

    Moreover, given the exchange rate at the time the contract was awarded in 2003, definitely the amount would have delivered more meters to the country if the contract had been duly executed. At the prevailing exchange rate, the number of meters it would deliver is far less. These are all what should be computed for Ziklagsis to pay. And if there were public officials who connived with the company to defraud the government, they too should be fished out and prosecuted. This is the only way to salvage the beleaguered power sector and make it deliver.

  • Taming inflation

    Taming inflation

    •Presidential order on price stability should work if faithfully executed

    It was perhaps long-expected that the Federal Government will somehow resort to extraordinary measures to address the monstrosity that inflation has become. With traditional monetary policy instruments showing fatigue, if not becoming entirely ineffectual, as citizens continue to reel under the burden of astronomically high prices, such measures seem the least the government can do to calm the restive citizenry.

    We refer here to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Executive Order tagged “Inflation Reduction and Price Stability (Fiscal Policy Measures, etc.) Order 2024”.

    The order, effective May 1, suspends import duty and other tariffs on staple food items, raw materials and other direct inputs used for manufacturing for six months.  Under the temporary regime: “authorised millers would now import paddy rice at zero duty and Value Added Tax (VAT) for a period of six months in the first instance, in order to improve local supply and capacity utilisation of rice millers.

    “Basic food items and semi-processed staple food items such as noodles and pasta; raw material inputs for the manufacturing of food items, electricity and public transportation; agricultural inputs and produce and pharmaceutical products are also covered by the order for a period of six months.”

    Read Also: Abiru urges Nigerians to remain steadfast

    For the purpose of import duties and levies, the order also pegs the applicable foreign exchange rate at N800 to $1 for six months, while the Federal Government, including the Federal Capital Territory Administration, are expected to “prioritise the implementation of approved capital expenditures on basic infrastructure which were essential to stimulate productivity and improve the lives of the people”.

    The order mandates the Nigeria Customs Service to ensure a fast-track clearing of agricultural equipment and food items, manufacturing inputs and pharmaceutical products at the ports, and aim at a minimum time reduction of at least fifty per cent. States and local government councils are to adopt necessary measures to enhance productivity while every MDA is to “refrain from any action, which may negatively affect the capacity utilisation or productivity of any business or a sector”.

    To ensure effective implementation, the order states that: “The Minister, Special Adviser to the President on Policy Coordination, the Nigeria Customs Service, Federal Inland Revenue Service may issue implementation guidelines in collaboration with any relevant agency or other stakeholders to give full effect to this Order”.

    The measures appear to us as well-calibrated as they are rooted in the current realities. They address the immediate, short term imperative to bring down the prices of food and other essential items. And, because the measures are only expected to last for six months, they also address the long-terms concerns about the need to protect the local economy – particularly the farming population and other indigenous entrepreneurial efforts.

    We do understand also that the measures come at the price of the huge revenue that would be lost to the government. Even the latter would seem the least sacrifice that the government can afford to make in the face of the current hardship.

    Of course, the measures have again brought to the fore, the salient point about the economy – its inability to grow its own food and boost its manufacturing capacity. For, no matter how pragmatic the latest measures appear, temporarily lowering import duties and other tariffs, either to bridge the gaps in local supplies or to bring down prices, stem from the same logic of inadequate domestic capacity. It speaks to the inability of the country to feed itself and produce its basic needs.

    Much as six months might seem a very short time, the truth is that a lot can still be done within the time to boost food supply, more so now that the farming season is set upon us. As it is, the Federal Government has done its own part; what remains is getting the agencies directly involved cracking; and this in the knowledge that this is neither the time for red tapes nor the season to condone corrupt practices. Surely, our institutions, from the ports to the customs could be made to work more efficiently. We expect clear delineation of roles and possible sanctions for below par performance. Corrupt practices should not be condoned on the part of the various stakeholders;  anyone caught trying to cut corners should be heavily sanctioned. It is one thing for the government to come up with the right policy measures, it is another seeing such through by patriotic devotion to duty on the part of the implementing agencies.

    The greater burden however devolves to the states and the local governments. What the season requires is aggressive opening of farmlands for cultivation, and all manner of assistance to farmers to get on with the job; time to open up our rural roads as indeed other rural infrastructure, to bring down the transportation and other logistical costs.

    Hopefully, with the prospects of heightened security, we expect the country to turn the corner in the shortest possible time.

  • A laudable decision

    A laudable decision

    •It is better to conclude electoral cases before swearing-in.

    The post-mortem assessment of the 2023 general election petitions by members of the tribunals and courts who had firsthand experience of the proceedings is a welcome development. No doubt, their recommendations, if implemented, would have far-reaching impact on the laws governing the practice and procedure of election petitions.
    The former tribunal members at a two-day workshop in Abuja, advocated that all election petitions and appeals should be dispensed with before persons declared as winners are sworn into office.
    We agree with this suggestion, if enduring measures, laws and regulations can be provided to make it happen. Our concerns are the same reasons why such practice in the second republic was jettisoned by the present constitution, as amended.
    Such practice was abandoned when litigants and lawyers complained that the time provided for the trial and determination of the election petitions before swearing-in date was too short to allow a full ventilation of cases by petitioners, which impinges on fair hearing.
    Sadly, when the law was changed to allow litigants and their counsel take necessary time to file their papers and argue their cases, unscrupulous parties and lawyers amongst them foisted an unending cycle of litigation on the courts, which allowed the party wrongly declared a winner to enjoy the unearned office, at least for some time. In some states, those who were eventually
    adjudged as fraudulently declared winners of the election nearly finished the term of office before the cases were finally determined at the apex court.
    The compromise was an elaborate Part III Section 285 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) which provided for time within which an election petition or an appeal shall be determined. Section 285(6) provides that “An election tribunal shall deliver its judgment in writing within 180 days from the date of the filling of the petition” while section 285(7) provides “An appeal from the decision of an election tribunal or Court of Appeal in an election matter shall be heard and disposed of within 60 days from the date of the delivery of judgment of the tribunal or Court of Appeal.”

    Read Also: INEC registers 269,992 voters in Edo, Ondo


    To ensure that election petitions are concluded before the person declared winner is inaugurated, the election may have to hold nearly one year before the end of tenure of an incumbent, unless the time for hearing and determining the cases and any appeal therefrom is further reduced. If the first is done, incumbents who would become lame
    ducks may protest the extension. Similarly, if the time for hearing and determining the cases are reduced, litigants and lawyers may complain.
    So, the task for the legislators is how can that desirable recommendation be achieved, without creating another undesirable outcome.
    In the communique issued, the workshop also recommended that “Section 187 of the 1999 Constitution should be amended to include a new sub-section stating clearly that the disqualification or non-qualification of a deputy governor shall not affect the governor-elect or governorship candidate of a political party.” Furthermore, that “Section 246 (3) of the extant constitution is proposed to be altered to reflect the finality of decisions of the Court of Appeal in all election appeals, governorship appeals inclusive.”
    Another far-reaching proposal made by the former members of tribunals is that “All pre-election appeals should terminate at the Court of Appeal.” An even more revolutionary proposal from the workshop is that Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) be applied in dealing with pre-election matters. Perhaps, the august body may be hinting at a shared electoral banquet, instead of the winner takes all of the presidential system of government.
    While the jurists may have spoken from experience, and with great insight, the challenge lies with the practicability of their suggestions.

  • Back to the land

    Back to the land

    • Southwest governors’ decision on farming should go beyond rhetoric

    Undoubtedly, the most important decision taken at the last meeting of the six southwest governors, which held in Lagos, was that the states in the region would immediately commence a collaborative effort towards achieving massive food production. Towards this end, the governors mandated their commissioners of agriculture to begin the process through which food security will be achieved in the zone.

    The commissioners are to set up a cooperative template that will enable the region implement joint programmes in the agriculture sector, and designed in such a way as to beneficially exploit each state’s comparative advantage.

    This initiative ought to have come long before now but it is better late than never. From the history of the region, the southwest is blessed with expansive fertile land and the requisite climate for agricultural production. The landmark programmes of the Chief Obafemi Awolowo administration in the first republic, which remain a model till date, were anchored primarily on agriculture.

    Such ambitious projects as the 25-storey Cocoa House, Liberty Stadium or the first television station in Africa, all in Ibadan, as well as the acclaimed social welfare programmes of the administration in education and health were funded through agricultural proceeds. That government even established cattle ranches in different parts of the region that made the southwest largely self-sufficient in beef production and consumption.

    The prevalent situation in which the southwest is dependent on other parts of the country for staple food items and even beef, pepper, tomatoes and vegetables is thus inexplicable and inexcusable. There is no doubt that the blame for this lapse lies with the lack of vision and political will of successive governments in the region.

    It is commendable that the current set of governors has realised the need to change this narrative.

    However, achieving mass food production in the region will take more than mere pronouncements. The words of the governors must be backed by concrete and purposeful action.

    Having saddled their commissioners of agriculture with the task of achieving this regional renaissance in food production, they must be given timelines within which to meet set targets. It must be realised that the food crisis in the southwest and the country as a whole has assumed emergency dimensions. Food costs constitute the most critical part of the multidimensional inflation arising from the removal of fuel subsidy and the deterioration of the value of the Naira, attendant on the merger of the parallel exchange rate markets.

     Prices of the most common food items such as rice, yams, gari, fish, beef, bread, eggs and poultry products have escalated beyond the reach of majority of Nigerians. And the southwest governors are setting the example that the solution to the food crisis does not lie with the Federal Government alone. Rather, state governments have a critical role in supporting the efforts of the centre through aggressive implementation of mass food production policies. They are the level of government that own and control land across the country and are nearer to the people. They are thus in a better position, working with the local government councils, to mobilise the people at the grassroots for massive food production.

    To achieve the goal of getting people back to the farms, however, the governors must also intensify collaborative efforts to boost security in the region. This is particularly so in those farming communities that continue to be threatened by herdsmen, bandits and other criminal elements. They must therefore not only strengthen the Amotekun Corps and other internal security arrangements in the region but play a catalytic role in mobilising their colleagues in other geopolitical zones to expedite action on current efforts to decentralise the country’s security architecture and establish state police outfits.

    Read Also: Obasanjo pays Sallah visit to First Lady Tinubu

    Again, the governors must pay attention to the construction and proper maintenance of roads that link rural food production centres to urban markets. A key aspect of the current crisis is inability of farmers to get their produce to markets on time due to bad roads as well as high transportation costs, leading to high rate of spoilage of huge amounts of food items.

    It is heartwarming that governors from the two political parties in the region — the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) — personally  attended the meeting. This underscored the importance they attach to the issue. It is equally heartwarming that they unanimously selected Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State (APC) to be the new chairman of the forum. The other governors at the meeting were: Seyi Makinde (Oyo, PDP), Dapo Abiodun (Ogun, APC), Lucky Aiyedatiwa (Ondo, APC), Ademola Adeleke (Osun, PDP) and Biodun Oyebanji (Ekiti, APC).

    Governor Sanwo-Olu must take the lead in ensuring that the resolution of the governors in this regard goes beyond rhetoric. If Lagos State could enter into agricultural partnerships with states in the north as regards rice production, for instance, there is no reason why it cannot do so with neighbouring states in the region. It is estimated that Lagos State

    consumes not less than 10,000 head of cattle daily and is the largest consumer of rice in the country, with about two million metric tonnes of the commodity being sold in the state per annum. It is certainly more cost- effective for Lagos to take advantage of the abundance of fertile land in neighbouring states in the region to meet the food needs of its huge population. These states must in turn not only aim at achieving food sufficiency for their populations but also supplying the massive market in Lagos. There is no reason for the current situation of food dependency in the southwest.

    We call on governors in other geopolitical zones to emulate this southwest initiative on collective approach to mass food production.

  • The Multichoice fine

    The Multichoice fine

    •The company has a right of appeal. But regulatory agencies should avoid a situation like this

    MultiChoice Nigeria, a subsidiary of MultiChoice Africa is unarguably the leading pay television service company in the country. The company was launched in 1994 as a joint venture between Multichoice Africa and Adewunmi Adesanya, an entrepreneur, to provide subscriber management services to DSTV subscribers in Nigeria.

    Before the arrival of Multichoice in Nigeria in 1994, there were smaller cable TV companies but most, if not all, had fallen off the cable TV radar due to a number of socio-economic factors. Since the arrival of MultiChoice and its DSTV, some other companies like HITV, MITV, Startimes, etc. have come on the scene, but not all have stayed the course. Startimes has been on and somehow attempted to get a chunk of the Nigerian market, but Multichoice, through its brands and sponsored programmes, seems dominant.

    Their partnerships with Sky Sports for the broadcast of international football leagues, sponsorship of Big Brother Africa (BBA) and Big Brother Nigeria (BBNaija) and partnership with the Nigerian film and entertainment industry, Nollywood/AfricaMagic had made them very popular. It also helps that they now have most Nigerian local TV channels in their bouquets. Their services have been above average in terms of consistency and service delivery across the nooks and crannies of Nigeria.

    Read Also: MultiChoice Nigeria to appeal tribunal’s N150m fine, free subscription

    However, the recent fine by the Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal on Multichoice Nigeria, of the sum of N150m and to provide its Nigerian customers with one month free subscription to its DStv and GOtv packages for disobeying its orders which restrained the pay-TV company from increasing its monthly subscription pending the determination of the suit brought before it. The suit had been filed by an Abuja-based lawyer, Festus Onifade, who said the eight-day notice given by the company for its price increase was inadequate.

    The first increase in DSTV subscription was in 2009 but MultiChoice introduced the low cost bouquet then at N1,500. In 2011, there was another increase to the premium and compact bouquets, leaving the lower ones unchanged. In August 2012, there was a 10% increase across all bouquets. In 2015, there was another 20% increase. In all these, the premium bouquet, which is popular amongst the elites has been increased by 55% in eight years, the access bouquet has attracted 26% increase. The company has about 6.7 million subscribers in both Nigeria and South Africa. However, given the population and economic power of Nigeria, they have a higher percentage of the subscribers.

    In a way, MultiChoice enjoys a seeming monopoly of the Nigerian cable TV market. Many Nigerians have criticised the incessant price increases but the management maintains that the increases are neither manipulative nor punitive. They point out that the operating environment continues to change, making it more difficult for the company to maintain a steady price for its services. They always draw attention to the inflationary economy that affects the cost of doing business in Nigeria as it affects every other company.

    Paradoxically, MultiChoice Group, has reported a $38 million loss before tax in its financial year ended March 31, 2024, attributing the loss to currency volatility and weak consumer spending. So, the company seems to be impacted by our economic and financial policy issues. However, we believe that when it comes to the law, the company must align with the industry guidelines and make sure that their activities do not breach industry or judicial guidelines and pronouncements.

    However, we believe that the Nigerian Broadcasting Commission and other relevant agencies that regulate the industry must do better in putting checks and balances in place to avoid similar matters becoming subjects to be adjudicated on by either regular courts or sectorial tribunals. A diligent and constant checks and balances as stipulated in the rules and guidelines setting up such agencies would keep companies on a straight line and save individuals and groups the task of going back and forth in tribunals or courts.

    Nigeria is not the only country that consumes the services of cable TV networks. It therefore follows that the government and its agencies must sit up and be active enough to avoid this kind of scenario. The company is an employer of labour in the country and anything that affects its financial standing will logically impact on the employees as there might be need to downsize by firing some staff. The economy does not grow through such unstable actions.

    We however believe that the company has a right to appeal which it has promised to do but more can be done to avoid the seeming monopoly of the cable market. Government must create the enabling environment to give more companies room for competition as is done in other jurisdictions.

  • Pilgrims or drug mules?

    Pilgrims or drug mules?

    NDLEA should look beyond the veneer of “pilgrims” to un-earth a possible, well-entrenched cabal

    It’s natural to be riled against some so-called pilgrims to Mecca, the Islamic holy land, caught in alleged drug smuggling. That, to not a few, is indeed a new low.

    So, the moral rage is eminently justified. Still, it won’t be the first set of smart Alecs using holy pilgrimage as veil to smuggle drugs into Saudi Arabia. There have even been grim summary executions of Nigerians, after trial and conviction, in that kingdom.

    Which is why we must always look beyond the surface, if we must penetrate the “holy” veneer to reach the vile truth. A deadly drug cartel appears embedded in that route, just as others, where drug mules masquerade as licit travellers. 

    The case of the latest Saudi Four might not be far different. By the raid that led to their arrest, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) was not only spot on in their approach, they also harbour no illusion on the enormity of the task. That is to be commended.

    On June 5, NDLEA cells raided an Oshodi, Lagos, hotel, where intending hajj pilgrims were lodged. From news reports, the quad — three men and a woman — were caught, bang in the act,

    swallowing wraps of cocaine, preparatory to their Mecca flight. They were lodged in two rooms, which points to a premeditated gang-up to commit crime.

    The four were Usman Kamorudeen, 31, Olasunkanmi Owolabi, 46, Fatai Yekini, 38 and Kemi Ayinla, 34 — the only woman in the quad. They were swiftly rounded up and paraded in public, even if legal rights activists would frown at such a parade as probably prejudicial to trial, since everyone is presumed innocent before conviction.

    Read Also: The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA)

    The swift raid and prompt arrest were awe-inspiring: two hundred wraps of cocaine pellets, weighing a cumulative 2.2 kilograms, had been prepared for two of the suspects to swallow, when NDLEA stormed the room and it was game over — with all the alleged incriminating evidences.

    The intelligence that delivered that was top rate. NDLEA should do more of that. What is left is to press the suspects hard to extract information to nab the real masterminds behind this ring. The balance of facts tends to confirm that indeed, behind it all, is a highly organised and deep-seated cabal.

    So far, the NDLEA comment after this swoop shows the agency has its head screwed in the right place. “The agency will work with our counterpart in Saudi Arabia,” Brig-Gen. Mohammed Buba Marwa, NDLEA chairman/chief executive said, “to ensure that the designated recipients of seized illicit drug consignments in any part of Saudi Arabia are also traced and dealt with accordingly.” Good talk! Noble goal!

    Still, beyond crime and punishment, NDLEA, supported by the network of religious leaders — and those especially must be concerned — should continue to mount a blitz of enlightenment, on why hard drugs not only ruin the economy, but absolutely destroy lives: lives of otherwise promising youths.

    Even if religious leaders were distracted, they can’t afford to sit on the fence now, not with drug racketeers carving out a chunk of their yearly pilgrims market to traffic their nefarious products — or what can be more cynical than hiding behind Muslim or Christian pilgrimages to be a drug mule?

    But beyond crime and morality, governments at all levels too must create opportunities as a matter of emergency. Yes, crime could be a cold part of the economy or even prosperity, just as inflation (no matter how marginal) goes with economic growth. 

    But it is also true that there is a direct link between enhanced and expanded opportunities in profitable entrepreneurship and gainful employment on one hand, and reduced crime on the other.

    So, the anti-drug war must be fought on the three prongs of a stiff punishment for crime, moral rejuvenation and perpetual policies that promote economic growth and citizen development. 

    It’s no mission impossible. The war can be won hands down.

  • Trafficked teenagers

    Trafficked teenagers

    A commendable rescue, but there is still room for improvement

    Yet another disturbing human trafficking case, involving 10 Nigerian teenage girls, showed that there is still a lot to be done to tackle the crime. A viral video showing the victims provoked public outrage. They were taken to Ghana from various states in Nigeria, including Imo, Plateau, Benue and Anambra. They were rescued following the intervention of the Nigerians in the Diaspora Organisation (NIDO) in Ghana, and anti-human trafficking authorities in Nigeria.

    Among them were sisters whose parents were said to be unaware of their whereabouts. One of them was reported saying they were “lured with the promise of better life and education in Ghana,” but they “ended up in a nightmare.” The victims also said they were forced into prostitution.

    According to the Director-General of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), Prof. Fatima Waziri–Azi, “The girls have been rescued and are safe. The perpetrator has been arrested.” The agency, she said, was “in touch with the Ghanaian Anti-Human Trafficking Unit.” One of the victims was said to be a relation of the unscrupulous perpetrator. Those involved in the crime must be prosecuted for a deterrent effect.

    The boss of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), Abike Dabiri-Erewa, visited Ghana and met with the rescued girls, demonstrating that the country’s authorities took the matter seriously. The rescued girls are expected to be handed over to NAPTIP for counselling and rehabilitation before they are returned to their respective states.

    The country’s fight against human trafficking, Waziri–Azi noted, led to “the conviction of 29 human traffickers from January 2024 till date, 67 traffickers in 2023, 80 in 2022 and a total of 670 human trafficking convictions since the inception of the agency, including the rescue of over 23,000 victims.” However, it is obvious that there is a need to intensify the fight.  

    Read Also: Suit seeking Ganduje’s removal as APC national chair June 26 for hearing

    The authorities have a major role in ensuring socio-economic conditions that discourage human trafficking, particularly by empowering the categories of citizens who are more susceptible to the sugar-coated assurances of traffickers. 

    Communities and families also have an important role in fighting the crime through increased vigilance. Parents, in particular, should pay greater attention to the activities of their children, to prevent them from falling prey to human traffickers. Preventing them from falling victim is better than hoping they can be rescued if they become victims. Sadly, some of the human trafficking victims cannot really be described as such because there are cases in which the so-called victims and their parents knowingly and willingly cooperate with traffickers.

    It is commendable that the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs announced a planned collaboration with NAPTIP concerning rehabilitation of human trafficking victims, following the recent case in Ghana. Minister of Women Affairs Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, who visited the headquarters of NAPTIP in Abuja, in connection with the issue of the Nigerian girls trafficked to Ghana, said her ministry “will join hands with NAPTIP to empower them, give them skills or send them to school.”

    There is a connection between this issue and empowerment of the girl-child. Females are the usual targets of human traffickers, whose objective is sexual exploitation. All levels of government in the country should do more to empower girls, which would enable them to resist the tricks of traffickers.  

    Notably, the minister also announced plans for advocacy targeted at diverse stakeholders, including operators of commercial transport companies, the aviation sector, the marine sector, and parents across the country. The relevant agencies should also increase their social enlightenment efforts regarding the issue.

    Indeed, the fight against human trafficking is a social battle. The authorities and the people must jointly combat the crime.

  • Rule of brutes

    Rule of brutes

    Abusers of 13-year-old who committed suicide must be brought to account

    A 13-year-old boy recently died by suspected suicide in Chikun council area of Kaduna State after he was reportedly brutalised by security operatives over an allegation that he stole a neighbour’s N10,000, which turned out later to be false. The lad, Wisdom Hashimu, was said to have taken his own life on June 6, at his parents’ home, few days after operatives of a Civilian Joint Task Force (JTF) office in Ungwan Maigero community tortured him for the alleged theft.

    Reports said Wisdom, who was sitting for his Junior Secondary School Examination, got into trouble when a 16-year-old daughter of his parents’ neighbours, named Hope Danladi, fingered him as being complicit in the theft of her money. Hope had allegedly invited over her boyfriend and serving soldier at Bodi Camp in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Segun Samson, to whom she complained about the theft. Samson, in turn, dragged Wisdom and Hope’s younger brother, who was accused alongside Wisdom of the theft, to the Civilian JTF office in Narayi area where he mandated that the boys be disciplined. Wisdom’s grieved father, Saul Hashimu, gave a narrative of the incident as he sought justice for his son thus: “On 1st of June, 2024, I was in Zaria when I received information that Wisdom was accused of stealing my neighbour’s daughter’s N10,000, I was further told that the Civilian JTF took the law into their own hands and beat Wisdom… This was after Hope called Samson, and he bundled Wisdom and Hope’s younger brother to the Civilian JTF office, and he prevailed on the Civilian JTF to discipline the boys.”

    Wisdom was allegedly so brutalised by operatives at the Civilian JTF office that he could no longer walk, and had to be taken to hospital by his parents for medical treatment. “We took him to the hospital where he received medical attention, while we reported the matter to the police station,” Hashimu recounted. The boy returned home after the medicals; but the matter took a new twist on Thursday, June 6, as his lifeless body was found dangling on a noose at the back of his parents’ compound when they were not around.

    Hashimu alleged that the brutalisation at the Civilian JTF office was selective, because Hope’s younger brother who was accused alongside Wisdom was spared maltreatment, only for him to be found as the culprit of the theft after he returned home unscathed. “Upon interrogation at home, her (Hope’s) younger brother confessed to the crime. When he was searched, N9,000 was found in his pocket, and he said he had spent N1,000 already,” Wisdom’s father said, adding: “Though my son is dead, I can’t question God. He is gone. But I want the authorities to ensure that justice is served, and that those who brutalised my son are brought to book.”

    Read Also: Alleged N1.85b fraud: Court sends two REA officials to prison

    Kaduna State Police Command confirmed being aware of the incident, and said investigation had begun to ensure justice is served on those behind Wisdom’s death. “Investigation has since commenced. The Commissioner of Police has directed the Department of Criminal Investigation to take full charge of the case and whosoever is involved will be brought to justice,” command spokesperson, Mansir Hassan, said.

    We consider this a straightforward matter of gross injustice, and perpetrators must be brought to account. It was monstrous injustice that a young boy was brutalised for what he had not done, though it wouldn’t have justified the brutality even if he was guilty of what he was accused. Perhaps young Wisdom’s helplessness amidst the absurdity of his experience was what drove him to the suspected suicide.

    Besides, it was the height of lawlessness on the part of Soldier Segun Samson to have taken to Civilian JTF operatives a matter that was the police’s call to deal with, if it could not be domestically disposed of. He apparently wanted to show off his service muscle to her complainant girlfriend – never mind that at 16, she is underage in the eyes of the law and their affair smacked of gross immorality, if not outright illegality. It was worse that Civilian JTF personnel at the office he took the matter constituted themselves into a torture court operating outside all parameters of Nigerian law. The squad typically deals with violent security challenges, not domestic squabbles. The treatment the Kaduna operatives meted out to little Wisdom evidenced the devaluation of human lives that presently plagues our society, only it is more odious this was by supposed custodians of law and order in the society.

    We call on security chiefs to show interest in this matter and not allow role players in the act of lawlessness get away with what they’ve done. They are already fairly identified, and shouldn’t be difficult to track down and brought to justice.

  • Harmful preservatives

    Harmful preservatives

    •Although NAFDAC is trying, it has to do more enlightenment on this issue

     Against the background of the current astronomical surge in prices of basic food items such as rice, beans, yam, bread, meat, fish, poultry, among others, in the country, the warning by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) on the health risks of utilising unauthorised chemical agents as food preservatives is timely and pertinent. For, with the attendant slump in the demand, especially of grains due to the escalating costs, sellers of these commodities will be under pressure to do all they can to preserve their longevity in their stores and shelves.

    In particular, the NAFDAC Director-General, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, has cautioned grain merchants against the use of dichlorvos, a chemical agent also widely known as sniper, to preserve their commodities because of its toxicity and resultant danger to health.

    Professor Adeyeye was reacting to a viral video that showed traders using dichlorvos and other unauthorised substances to preserve food items such as beans, stock fish and crayfish. She said that those who consume products preserved with such dangerous chemicals would be exposed to long-term negative health effects, including developmental abnormalities in their offspring, reduced fertility, memory loss as well as potential carcinogenic effects. The NAFDAC DG thus stressed the need for those selling these commodities to adhere to stipulated safety guidelines in using preservatives for food items meant for human consumption.

    Read Also: NLC defends shutting down national grid

    Although it is commendable that NAFDAC, according to the DG, periodically holds sensitisation meetings to enlighten traders on the need to avoid direct application of dichlorvos on grains and foodstuffs, the agency needs to step up its publicity campaign in this regard. The agency also reportedly subjects grains and food items for sale to laboratory tests to ensure that pesticide residues in them do not exceed maximum limits, both for internal consumption and export.

    Speaking at an event in Bauchi State to commemorate the 2024 World Food Safety Day, Professor Adeyeye reiterated her call on farmers, food manufacturers and dealers to desist from abuse and illegal use of agrochemicals, pointing out that food poisoning has been responsible for the death of over four million people globally. Stressing that one of the most harmful effects of unauthorised preservatives on food items is their ability to transform into carcinogenic agents that can be cancer-causing, she said food contaminants include abuse of agrochemicals, pesticides residues, veterinary drug residues, as well as illegal use of banned microbial contaminants, against which the agency has launched an aggressive mop-up exercise.

    Reinforcing the admonition of the NAFDAC DG, the Director of Veterinary Medicine and Applied Products ((VMAP), Dr Rametu Momodu, noted that even approved pesticides for use as fumigants should be deployed according to the specifications of manufacturers and should not be applied to food directly due to the attendant health hazards. According to her, once used, pesticide residues remain on or in the food as washing such food items will not mitigate the health risks since the preservative substances have been fully absorbed. She identified dizziness, vomiting, breathing difficulties, tremors, convulsions and in some cases coma and death, as some of the repercussions of ingesting such substances through food. Other experts have also reported that these unauthorised preservatives on food can cause damage to critical body organs such as the liver and kidney.

    Detection of these unsavoury substances on our grains and food stuffs also has inimical consequences on the ability of our merchants to sell their commodities in the international market, to the detriment of the economy. According to an online resource, “Artificial or chemical preservatives which are used to delay the contamination of foods are the ones that lead to health problems. These preservatives are artificially produced and synthetic in nature. These are often labelled as additives on food labels”. It also adds, however, that natural preservatives which are not mixed with synthetic items can help in increasing the shelf life of food items and also maintain food flavour with little danger of health hazards because they do not alter the chemical composition of food. NAFDAC has the responsibility to educate the public adequately on these issues.

  • Police recruitment

    Police recruitment

    •Things can only improve in the force if 10,000 are recruited yearly over a period

    Given the reality of under-policing in Nigeria, the announcement concerning the recruitment of 10,000 police constables into the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) is welcome news. The Police Service Commission (PSC), in a statement, said “9,000 applicants were approved for recruitment for general duty while 1,000 applicants were recruited for the specialist cadre,” adding that each stage of the recruitment process was “carried out with a high level of scrutiny and care.”

    It was striking that the commission said “a total of 609, 886 applications were received.” The high number of applications suggests that many of the country’s youths are interested in police work or are just desperate for any kind of job. In the end, 10 applicants were selected from each of the country’s 774 local government areas, which was intended to demonstrate fairness and inclusivity.

    The high number of unsuccessful candidates suggests that there will not be any lack of applicants in the various states in the event of the creation of state police, which is on the front burner. 

    Read Also:  Acting Inspector General of Police

    The PSC and the NPF are expected to determine the training period and the training institutions for the recruits. The 2020 batch of 10,000 police recruits, who completed their six-month training in July 2022, for instance, passed out from four police colleges and 12 training colleges nationwide. There have been public criticisms of the poor state of police training facilities in the country, and it is unclear whether such facilities have improved.

    Police recruits need to be well trained to conduct themselves professionally.

    Under the President Muhammadu Buhari administration, there was a policy to recruit 10,000 police officers annually over six years, to boost police manpower. However, this was hampered by conflict between the PSC and the NPF over who should be responsible for such recruitment. The Supreme Court, in July 2023, ruled in favour of the PSC, after a legal battle that lasted about four years. This should ensure recruitment continuity. 

    In August 2023, the then acting Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, at an event at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) in Jos, Plateau State, said the NPF “requires an additional 190,000 personnel to be at par with the United Nations (UN) recommendation,” adding that inadequate manpower had resulted in “low police presence.” This means that recruiting 10,000 officers for six years, which would amount to 60,000 officers, is not the solution to the manpower problem.

    He also argued that the Federal Government needed to increase the annual recruitment of personnel into the force from 10,000 to 20,000. At the time, Nigeria’s police strength was reported to be about 370,000 officers, with a ratio of one police officer to about 600 citizens. The UN-recommended ratio is one police officer to about 450 citizens.

    In November 2023, Egbetokun, as the substantive IGP, during a working visit to Adamawa State, was reported saying he had got the approval of President Bola Tinubu “to recruit 30,000 for the next four years.” According to him, “I know that once we give effect to this approval, the issue of manpower will be a thing of the past.” This should be implemented with a sense of urgency. 

    There is no doubt that the country needs to increase its police personnel, particularly in the context of a complicated security crisis.

     The creation of state police is looking increasingly attractive to political leaders across the country as the federal and state governments, in February, agreed to pursue this during a meeting between President Tinubu and the governors of the 36 states of the federation. Also, in May, House of Assembly speakers in the 36 states announced their support for the state police proposal. It remains to be seen how that pursuit will develop. The establishment of state police should change the reality of under-policing in the country. 

    Nigeria is critically under-policed, which is bad for security as well as law and order. This problem demands particular attention and a comprehensive solution.