The Nation Newspaper

Category: Features

  • A united battle against wildlife predators

    A united battle against wildlife predators

    In a world where greed and illicit desires threaten the very existence of wildlife, Nigeria is witnessing a fierce battle to protect these precious creatures. Criminals engaged in the illegal trade of wildlife are facing formidable adversaries. As these ruthless predators of the animal kingdom persist in their illicit activities, they find themselves locked in a relentless struggle against the combined forces of law enforcement agencies. In this report, JOHN OFIKHENUA delves into the ongoing war to safeguard Nigeria’s wildlife, highlighting the crucial efforts to combat wildlife trafficking and protect these vulnerable species from extinction.

    Despite the unwavering determination of wildlife criminals in their illicit trade against wildlife, they have encountered formidable opponents in the form of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). These agencies have intensified their efforts to combat these illegal activities.

    Under Section 245 (1) of the NCS Act, 2023, and in accordance with Export Prohibition Schedule VI of the existing Common External Tariff, which strictly prohibits the exportation of wildlife, the NCS has demonstrated its commitment by successfully seizing numerous wildlife items. Nigeria’s commitment to the CITES convention further reinforces its stance against serving as a transit hub or illegal wildlife market. Additionally, in a bid to enhance its capacity to combat wildlife crimes, the Nigeria Customs Service entered into a cooperative agreement with the Wildlife Justice Commission in 2021.

    This partnership requested continuous assistance from the WJC to enhance the effectiveness of the Customs Intelligence Unit, which serves as the overarching body for the NCS Special Wildlife Office. This partnership has yielded remarkable results, as outlined below. Between July 2021 and the present, nine joint operations targeting illegal wildlife activities have been executed, resulting in the seizure of over 10,819.48 kilograms of illicit goods. Furthermore, 21 individuals have been apprehended, with 8 already convicted, while others are currently undergoing trial in the Nigeria Federal High Court.

     Beyond these apprehensions, the WJC provided invaluable operational support, including the pioneering DNA analysis of confiscated wildlife and forensic examinations of mobile phones to aid wildlife investigations. Additionally, a workshop for the NCS legal department was conducted in September 2022, where the NCS Legal Advisor led a team of prosecutors in reviewing current wildlife cases. This involved an exhaustive examination of all case files, available evidence, and expert witnesses, aligning the NCS with the investigative practices of other Nigerian agencies such as the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU).

     Furthermore, in 2023, the NCS procured and installed an iBase (intelligence database) at the NCS Intelligence Headquarters. This state-of-the-art system is designed to centralise intelligence gathered from all wildlife-related cases, enabling proactive targeting, thorough investigations, and the apprehension of wildlife criminals. In light of these developments, the Acting Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, and his management team extended their commendation to the Wildlife Justice Commission and its generous donors. Their support has been instrumental in the NCS’s successful disruption of wildlife trafficking and the illegal wildlife trade in Nigeria, NCS said. It’s worth noting that Nigeria, as highlighted in the UNODC’s World Wildlife Crime Report 2020, has become a primary transit hub for trafficking illicit wildlife products. These include pangolin scales, ivory, and other protected species originating from Eastern and Central Africa, which enter the country through its borders.

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     Nonetheless, the Nigeria Customs Service has intensified its enforcement efforts against the illicit trafficking of wildlife and forestry products. In 2021, several significant seizures of wildlife and forest goods were executed. Notably, in January 2021, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) intercepted a container at the Apapa Port in Lagos containing a mixture of wildlife products. This haul included 2,772 pieces of elephant tusks weighing 4,752kg, 162 sacks of pangolin scales weighing 5,329kg, 5kg of rhino horns, 103kg of skulls suspected to belong to lions and other wild cats, and 76 pieces of processed timber.

     The most recent achievement in the NCS’s ongoing efforts to combat wildlife theft was the announcement of the seizure of parrot birds on September 25, 2023. According to the report, the Seme-Badagry Customs Command intercepted numerous African parrot birds with an estimated value in the millions of naira. During a briefing, the Area Controller, Comptroller Timi Bomodi, emphasised that the smuggling of these birds was in violation of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). He said: “On the 25th of September at about 0400hrs, Officers and Men of the Nigeria Customs Service, Seme Area Command while on patrol along Seme – Badagry expressway, acting on credible intelligence intercepted a luxurious bus enroute from Kaduna to Benin Republic.

      “Upon search of the bus, 51 live green parrots, five live African grey parrots, five dead green parrots, one dead African grey parrot, and one live hawk in iron nets and a paper box were discovered. Six of these birds have died due to the trauma of transporting them in this condition. Two suspects were also arrested in connection with the seizure.”

     He further disclosed that the African parrots carried a duty paid value (DPV) of N6,859,932. Bomodi strongly condemned the actions of these criminal traffickers, emphasising that their activities not only harmed the ecosystem but also violated the terms of CITES, an international agreement among governments that Nigeria is a part of. The Comptroller issued a stern warning to those engaged in this illegal trade, cautioning them to steer clear of the Lagos – Abidjan corridor unless they wished to continue suffering heavy losses. In alignment with the principles of the Nigeria Customs Service, which advocates for inter-agency collaboration and synergy, and considering the sensitive nature of the seized parrot birds, they will be transferred to the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS) Seme Command. Additionally, the NCS will notify officials from the National Park Service, as it falls under their jurisdiction to provide rehabilitation and protection for these birds, safeguarding them from further harm.

     In August 2021, the Nigeria Customs Service showcased sacks of different kilograms of Pangolin scales and Elephant tusks evacuated by the Nigeria Customs Service through the Customs Intelligence Unit and the Headquarters’ Strikeforce at a location on the Eastern side of Ijeoma Street, Lekki, Lagos State worth over Twenty-two Billion. The Seizure is said to be one of the biggest Wildlife Seizures so far.

     In February 2022, an Elephant was found wandering in Saki, Oyo State Westen part of Nigeria by a group of Farmers; the video quickly went viral, showing the jolly elephant, as it attracted both young and old, but only to be announced dead days after.  NCS also reported yet another seizure of 14 sacks containing 839.40kgs of pangolin scales and 4 sacks containing 40 pieces of cut ivory weighing 145kgs. In July 2022, investigators from the Nigeria Customs Service Special Wildlife Office arrested eight suspects in Lagos, where they were believed to be sourcing further illegal wildlife products to Asia.

    Further investigation revealed that three of the eight suspects are Vietnamese nationals with specialty in illegal wildlife trade. They were arrested with 7.1 tonnes of Pangolin scales and 850 kg of ivory. In July 2023, the Nigeria Customs Service arrested three persons allegedly involved in illegal wildlife activities around the Nigeria-Cameroon border. In a statement, the Wildlife Conservative Society in Calabar, Cross River State, said the NCS made the arrests following a series of intelligence-led operations they supported. The statement informs that one of the suspects was apprehended in Jimeta, Yola, Adamawa State, with four sacks of ivory weighing 89kg.

    Customs in Murtala Muhammed Airport Command said from the period of January – to July 2023, it made a seizure of six packages of suspected dried shark fins with an FOB value of 221,885,769.02 and twenty-five packages of suspected dried donkey genitals with an FOB value of 1,010,372,761.98 bringing it to a total of 1,232,258,531. The Customs Area Controller, Muhammed Sani Yusuf, during a press briefing said: “The suspects have been arrested, and investigation is ongoing. These items were seized mainly because of various infractions on export guidelines and failure to comply with CITES law on endangered species as enshrined in the Nigeria Customs Service Act,” he added.

     In 2022, a report by the World Customs Organisation (WCO) regarding the depletion of wildlife resources attributed the problem to a criminal network operating across various regions of the African continent. The report said:  “Criminal networks operating in West and Central Africa’s export hubs extend across a swathe of the region’s tropical rainforests and savannahs, presenting sustained threats to the last strongholds of forest and savannah elephants and pangolin species (white- and black-bellied and giant ground pangolins) in the region. Smuggling routes involve many countries, including Togo, Cameroon, Gabon, DR Congo, the Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic, Liberia, Cote d’Ivoire and Benin.”

     Meanwhile, wildlife experts say if proper care is not given to wildlife, in the future, only pictures will be used to describe wild animals to the next generation. Wildlife trafficking undermines and threatens the ability and efforts of states to manage their natural resources. It can result in severe economic losses, particularly affecting developing countries that rely on revenue generated by legal trade. Forest crime threatens rural livelihoods where people’s subsistence and income depend on wildlife, including those based on ecotourism.

    syndicate operation that has bet on decimating wildlife, it is expedient that all hands must be on deck globally to stamp out the criminals from their business or at the very minimum, reduce the crime to the barest minimum.

  • NDDC, stakeholders collaborate for region’s development

    NDDC, stakeholders collaborate for region’s development

    There seems to be a new ray of hope in the operations of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), which can engender development in the Niger Delta region. In this report, BASSEY ANTHONY writes that for the interventionist agency to accomplish the task of providing infrastructural development and other welfare packages that meet the peculiar needs of the region, it has to adopt a people-centered approach.

    Over the years, communities in the Niger Delta states have been agitating for the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to live up to its responsibilities in terms of meeting their peculiar needs. The problem arose from a wide disconnect and a lack of engagement between the NDDC and the oil-producing states/communities and various key stakeholders of the region.

     So, for the interventionist agency to accomplish the task of providing infrastructural development and other welfare packages that meet the peculiar needs and yearnings of the region, it has to adopt a people-centred approach. The reasoning is that critical stakeholders should be involved from the outset in the conceptualisation, planning and even the budgeting process that will help deliver good projects and programmes for the Niger Delta communities.

     Inspired by the desire to entrench collaboration, cooperation, partnership and synergy in the development of the region by all key stakeholders and states in the region, the NDDC convoked two-day Partners for Sustainable Development (PSD) Budget Conference on the proposed NDDC 2024 Budget christened “Budget of Reconstruction.” The forum, which was held at the Ibom Icon and Golf Resort recently, had as its theme, “Partners for Sustainable Development Forum-NDDC 2024 Budget Conference.”

    He emphasised the need for partnerships as the way forward for rapid sustainable development of the region; highlighting recent partnership engagements towards project development with the Rivers State Government, the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and Chevron. He also made reference to the need for effective collaboration and synergy between the commission and stakeholders of the region in fashioning out a strategic and active development blueprint in line with the Partnership for Sustainable Development (PSD) initiative.

     He said: “The collaboration and synergy must be implemented by the Partners for Sustainable Development (PSD) Forum, which had also been created as part of the Master Plan’s guidelines. In response to that presidential directive and in discharging that responsibility; key stakeholders in the region met several times under the PSD Forum and worked out the best strategy for actualising the provisions and prescriptions of the Master Plan across the board.

     “For the first time in the history of the Niger Delta, governors of the nine-member states, through their state officials, worked with other stakeholders to build a synergy with the NDDC towards streamlining their 2008 budgets for optimum delivery of development initiatives. As ground-breaking as it was, however, that very important collaboration did not last long, definitely not as long as the master plan itself, which expired in 2020.”

     On the reason for the PSD Forum in Uyo, the agency’s MD/CEO further said: “We are here, 16 years after that presidential directive, to renew our commitment as a region and as a people to work together for our common good and shared prosperity. Today, under a new leader, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu whose famed work in rebuilding Lagos State as governor emboldens us all to believe, once again, that there is hope for Nigeria and the Niger Delta region. In particular, we are laying a fresh foundation for the kind of partnership needed to facilitate regional sustainable development.”

     Dr. Ogbuku said the Uyo conference was vital as it will help in reviving the platform for the PSD Forum created as part of the regional master plan implementation guideline to bring all service providers and project implementers to the same table to fashion a common pathway based on the shared vision for the development of the region.

     The former Executive Director of Finance and Administration (EDFA) of the NDDC, Major-General Charles Airhiavbere (rtd), stressed why the forum was held, emphasising that the 2024 Budget of the Commission was geared towards stakeholders’ participation and restructuring of the Commission’s entire budgeting process. He said the aim was to achieve a realistic and implementable budget, as well as the achievement of strategic goals and objectives through the instrumentality of Public-Private-Partnerships (PPP).

    “We are here today to give an account of the process the Niger Delta Development Commission has undertaken in the preparation of the NDDC 2024 Proposed Budget. The Budget Cycle of NDDC began in April 2023 with the inauguration of the Management Budget Committee and the eventual issuance of the NDDC 2024 Budget Guidelines by the Managing Director/CEO. The 2024 Budget of the Niger Delta Development Commission is christened the ‘Budget of Reconstruction.’ The philosophy behind this is that it is the first time since 2018 that the full budgeting cycle of the commission is strictly followed by the system and also full commitment of the Executive Management to do what is right.

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     “This represents a fresh start for the Commission and an attempt to return it to its original mandate. The strategy to achieve the “Budget of Reconstruction” is a multi-pronged approach, which is: stakeholders participatory budgeting which is the involvement of all the stakeholders (internal and external) of NDDC in the budgeting process of the Commission. The stakeholders will be firmly determined by a thorough stakeholder mapping process. The entire budgeting process of the Commission is being restructured in order to achieve a realistic and implementable budget. The approved budget cycle will be adhered to as much as possible so that the NDDC 2024 Budget will get to the National Assembly via the Presidency by September 30 2023.

    “We have set out our strategic goals and objectives for 2024 which are centred on the drive to implementation of Legacy Projects and Programmes through the instrumentality of Private-Public-Partnership (PPP) as well as setting outside 20 per cent of each state’s revenue for payment of legacy debts and 10 per cent for counterpart funding.”

    Continuing, he said: “The NDDC budget is a product of participatory Budgeting process, which was done by the State Project Committees in conjunction with their respective stakeholders. The stakeholders will also be crucial in the quarterly Performance Implementation process of the Commission. We are here as critical stakeholders to review, harmonise and adopt the budget for onward transmission. It is our expectation that, by the end of this exercise, duplications of projects will be completely eradicated while having regional project ownership.

     “This exercise we are holding today is in fulfilment of the present Executive Management’s promise to the Niger Delta people that NDDC’s budget will be participatory and transparent.”

    The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Niger Delta Development, Dr Shuaib Belgore, commended the Executives and Management of the NDDC for convening the forum to seek stakeholders’ participation in the 2024 budget process of the region. Represented by the Director of Planning and Statistics, Alfred Abbah, Belgore commended the current management of the Commission for the stakeholders’ forum initiative. He said: “The way forward is to embrace robust and innovative pathways anchored on transparency and stakeholders’ participation towards right budgeting, thus maximising the available resources to address the most critical needs of the people.

     “Undoubtedly, NDDC budgets, over the years, have been faced with challenges, which included belated submission and delayed approvals, among others. These challenges have led to low/poor implementation which this conference intends to address. I commend the current management of the Commission for this initiative which has not happened in a long while, and it is the first since the ministry started supervising the Commission.”

     Stakeholders, in their goodwill messages at the forum, hailed the collaborative initiative of the NDDC. They promised to work concertedly to help the Commission to fulfil its mandate to holistically develop the region. For instance, the Acting National Chairman of the Association of Traditional Rulers of Oil Mineral-Producing Communities (TROMPCON), Oba Obatemi Ogbaro, called for more involvement of traditional rulers in the activities of the NDDC. “The NDDC should consult royal fathers in the region in the siting, supervision and protection of projects in the region,” he said.

     In a communique issued at the end of the two-day conference, it was resolved that the NDDC should strike a balance between meeting the political demands and serving the people of the region by executing people-centred projects. It was agreed that the Commission should operate a lean budget that will enable her to commence and complete projects within a certain and realistic budget cycle.

     Other recommendations were that “the budget of the Commission should have a spread to cover the several ethnic nationalities and communities in the region. For the 2025 Budget, less of new projects should be captured in order to ensure the quick completion of all ongoing projects under the 2024 budget.

     “The timeline for payment of contractors should not exceed 45 days, allowing for 15 days buffer after which penalties will accrue for non-payment of contractors. That a town hall meeting and engagement of the several ethnic nationalities of the region be convoked prior to budget sessions. This is to ensure that the budget receives inputs from the people directly. That completed projects should be removed from the budget to allow for more new projects to be introduced into the budget.”

     The communique also stated that “due to flood predictions and impact on the region, there is a need for provisions for flood-control measures in the 2024 Budget under the regional provision, as well as provision of Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps in the local government areas of the region for flood impact reduction.

    “To ensure equity among all the councils regarding the 2024 budget, the Commission should identify deserving ongoing projects with significant completion status and where the funds committed to such projects is insufficient; funds may be drawn from the legacy debt to augment.”

  • Tackling acute water shortage in the FCT

    Tackling acute water shortage in the FCT

    Tauheed Amusan is the General Manager of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Water Board. In this chat with Assistant Editor JIDE BABALOLA, he sheds more light on the achievements recorded by the Board and the challenges that it encounters in carrying its responsibility of providing water for the residents

    Stakeholders in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have expressed concerns about the inadequate water supply in the city. This, they say, should be one of the priorities of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.

     In a sprawling city such as Abuja, where modernity meets culture and governance intertwines with development, the provision of essential services becomes important. One such service is the supply of potable water.

     Tauheed Amusan is the General Manager of the FCT Water Board. The FCT Water Board has the responsibility of delivering potable water to the capital and its satellite towns.

     In a chat with our correspondent, Tauheed Amusan sheds light on the significant milestones achieved and the challenges that persist in the water supply sector.

     He said: “When I assumed office as the General Manager of the FCT Water Board, we had several major leakages which we have addressed.” He revealed his team’s dedication to plug the leaks that have been draining not just the water reserves, but also the Board’s revenue.

     Continuing, he said: “We recorded monthly revenue above N300 million for the first time in the history of any Water Board in Nigeria.”

     However, a flourishing revenue sheet doesn’t tell the full story. The inner workings of water supply are far more intricate than numbers on a balance sheet. “Our facilities are burdened,” Amusan added.

     Explaining the critical infrastructural gaps that plague the system, Amusan noted that “an installed capacity of 30,000 cubic metres in the Lower Usuma Dam which operates at a mere 47 per cent efficiency is akin to pouring a drop of water in an ocean.

     Admitting that the Board is working under challenging situations, Amusan said: “The FCT Engineering team is resilient so much so that it has managed to stay afloat despite the challenges the Board faces. Another challenge the Board is experiencing is that the major pipes that convey water from the treatment plants to the city are inadequate. The newest pipes laid to take water to Abuja City were carried out in 2000. Since then, no new or additional major pipes have been laid,” regretting that the population of the city has continued to increase considerably.

     He also stated that since the pipes were laid in 2000, the contract for the next major trunk of pipes that should have been laid was awarded in 2006. Since then, that contract is yet to be completed. So, you can imagine the circumstances under which we operate.

     With Amusan’s explanations, it seems that the FCT’s water challenges are like a complex puzzle.

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    While the major pipes that bring water from the treatment plants to the city remain inadequate, subsequent projects have stagnated, leaving a rapidly growing city with dry taps.

    This inadequacy isn’t restricted to the city; it is replicated in the satellite towns where the FCT Water Board struggles to keep up with rising water demand.

    In the circumstances, therefore, rationing water supply to the city and its environs, he said, becomes necessary; a measure to alleviate the pain of water scarcity among residents. Thus, for most parts of the city, water flows in an irregular manner.

     Even though some of the water supply challenges are not a result of a lack of infrastructure, lack of cooperation on the part of customers is another problem we face.

     “There are those who bypass our meters, those who do illegal connections… and those who fail to pay their water bills as at when due,” Amusan said. It’s taxing. Most times the Board resorts to warnings, negotiations and, in some cases, disconnections.

     “With the government agencies, you need to have a dialogue with them,” he explains, highlighting the delicate balance between accountability and diplomacy.

    “As a matter of last resort, the homes of some highly-placed Nigerians as well as recalcitrant federal parastatals get their water pipes disconnected from time to time,” he said.

     The Board has plans to end open defecation within the next two years. However, this ambition seems to miscarry. The situation, Amusan said, is saddening, because there is a link between water supply and sanitation.

     He said: “It is only the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 on water and sanitation that affects all other SDG goals. Water affects job creation, poverty alleviation and the environment. Water affects everything. Water is life!”

     Again, there is the issue of insufficient budget allocation. The amount of money requested to run the Board is not commensurate with the amount of money released to it.

    Amusan noted that there are other competing priorities which the government has to meet; he advised that there is the need to vote for substantial funds for the water sector.

     He stresses the urgency for significant investment in infrastructure, echoing the sentiment that short-term solutions, especially the usual resort to sinking boreholes, won’t suffice in a world moving towards sustainability.

     His words: “The budget I met for 2022 is N9.5 billion. In 2023, we have N8.6 billion and in 2021, the board received N6 billion as budget. Every water agency will make an effort to increase budgets towards meeting necessary investments in infrastructure.

     “I think we need more political will from the Federal Government, the sub-nationals, including the FCT, to invest more in water supply. The investment in water supply today is very low; at the rate we are going, we are not likely to meet the SDG 6 goal.

     “So, we need much more investment in infrastructure and in operation and maintenance of our water infrastructure. That is the only way out. We cannot continue running quick fixes; we are used to drilling boreholes all over the place but those are only short-term measures. For me, it is primitive to be drilling boreholes indiscriminately.”

     Amusan’s vision for the FCT Water Board is unequivocal. With a steadfast commitment to overcome challenges, his aspiration is clear is that “we can do much more and do better.”

  • Rising death toll amid widespread arms proliferation

    Rising death toll amid widespread arms proliferation

    Over the past decade, Nigeria has been plagued by a disturbing surge in gun violence, leading to the tragic loss of lives and serious humanitarian crises. While the government has taken measures to combat this issue by establishing the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW), persistent challenges such as inadequate resources, staffing limitations, and delays in enacting critical legislation, particularly the National Commission for the Coordination and Control of the Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons Bill 2022, have hindered the Center’s ability to fully fulfil its mandate. MUSA UMAR BOLOGI highlights the challenges in tackling the gun pandemic and their far-reaching implications.

    Sixty-two year-old Hassan Yusuf, who was battling with illness, was inside his hut alongside his wives and children in Magami village in Shiroro local government area of Niger State when terrorists forced their way in, dragged him out and shot him in full public glare. His son, who wanted to intervene, was also shot and killed. The criminals left Yusuf’s family grappling with trauma and agony that they continue to endure to this day. Like Yusuf’s household in the North-Central, the Olorunda family in Ilesha, Osun State, in the South-West geopolitical zone, are also nursing the pains brought on them by marauders who stalk the country with illegally acquired weapons of death. Olorunda was killed by a stray bullet during a clash between rival cult groups—a situation that is prevalent in the southern part of the country.

     Although the culprits were later arrested by the Police, the family never got their son back. This is the agony of the devastating effects of gun proliferation and the consequent deaths and destruction the anomaly has inflicted on the country. And Yusuf and Olorunda are just a few examples of casualties of this menace. Nigeria is plagued by insecurity across the six geo-political zones – terrorism in the North-East, banditry and kidnapping in North-West, herders/farmers crisis in the North-Central, separatist agitation in the South-East, cult clashes in South-West, and oil theft in the South-South. This violence, according to experts, is usually perpetrated through small arms and light weapons (SALW), such as rifles and pistols. While some of these guns are imported through various illegal means, others are made locally.

     The proliferation of these arms has contributed enormously to the insecurity and deaths of thousands of people in the country. Recent data obtained from Nigeria Security Tracker (NST), a project of the Council on Foreign Relations, which documents and maps violence in Nigeria that is motivated by political, economic or social grievances, revealed that 63,111 people were killed in the last eight years due to terrorism, banditry, herders/farmers clashes, communal crises, cult clashes, and extrajudicial killings.

    The link between small arms and insecurity

    There is a unanimous consent among security experts and researchers that the proliferation of small arms poses serious challenges to the sustenance of peace and stability of any society. They also agreed that the availability of SALW has a direct influence on the escalation and sustenance of insecurity. “The local roots and causes of insecurity are numerous and diverse. However, in nearly all these cases, the diffusion of small arms has played a decisive role in the escalation, intensification and resolution of insecurity,” says Dr. Osimen Goddy Uwa, Senior lecturer and Associate Research Fellow in the Department of International Relations and Diplomacy, Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti.

     In his 2022 research paper entitled “Small Arms and Light Weapons Proliferation and Problem of National Security in Nigeria,” Uwa stated that although Nigeria’s problem with SALWs is not new, “its increasing availability in the last decade has helped to stoke a wave of insurgencies, ethno-religious conflicts, cross-border banditry, kidnapping, armed robbery and other violent crimes.” Also, between May 2019 and April 2020, SB Morgen (SBM) Intelligence, with support from the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA), conducted a study into the proliferation of small arms in Nigeria and the links this proliferation has with mass atrocities and mass migration. The report of the study concluded that there is interconnection between the concepts as “proliferation of small arms drives mass atrocities, which triggers the movement of people within Nigeria.”

    A trail from the past

    Nigeria’s border with its neighbours and booming business of gun-running has been blamed for gun proliferation in the country. Over the past decade, arms proliferation in Nigeria continues to rise especially after the fall of Libya, as thousands of illicit guns found their ways through the Sahara and Sahel into Nigeria. A three-year study into the proliferation of weapons used by armed groups involved in Nigeria’s herder-farmer conflict, by the Conflict Armament Research (CAR), an independent investigative organisation based in the United Kingdom, “shows that most of the weapons were smuggled into the country from Libya, Turkey and Côte d’Ivoire.”

     Former President Muhammadu Buhari also shared the same view, when he said at the 16th Summit of Heads of State and Government that “a substantial proportion of the arms and ammunition procured to execute the war in Libya continues to find its way to the Lake Chad region and other parts of the Sahel.” He had said that despite the successes recorded by troops of the Multinational Joint Task Force and the various ongoing national operations in the region, terrorists’ threats still lurk in the region due to increasing arms proliferation. A security expert, Dr Abdullahi Muhammad Jabi, said arms proliferation surged in the country after the fall of countries like Somalia, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, and most recently Niger. “A lot of arms and ammunition come into these countries from the western nations, whose main interest is to sell their military equipment. And they know they can only do that in a country where there is conflict or instability,” he said.

    Jabi, who is the Secretary-General, International Institute of Professional Security (IIPF), Abuja, said unless coups are stopped in Africa, arms proliferation will continue in the continent. Although Nigeria’s porous borders are always the first culprit for arms proliferation, there are several ways to get a gun in Nigeria, and one of such is through the local blacksmith. There are several examples of blacksmiths that make local guns for hunters and vigilantes. A non-governmental organisation observing arms globally, Gun Policy, mentioned in a 2016 report that “unregistered and unlawfully held guns cannot be counted, but in Nigeria, they are estimated to be between 1,000,000 to 350,000,000.”

    Also, a recent report by SBM Intelligence noted that about 6,154,000 SALWs are illegally circulating among civilian non-state actors and criminals in Nigeria. According to the report, of this number only a total of 224,200 and 362,400 firearms were in the possession of the military and other law enforcement agencies, respectively. These ugly revelations on arms proliferation in Nigeria aren’t good news, particularly at this time the country is facing serious security challenges.

    Dangers

    The proliferation of SALWs is believed to have aided non-state actors like Boko Haram, bandits, militants and insurgents. It also undermines the state’s monopoly of instruments of coercion, portraying the country’s security system as weak. Another danger arises when SALWs fall into the hands of non-state actors: they become instruments of terror wielded by those who have no regard for international laws and conventions, thus complicating conflict resolution. Perhaps, it is the former Secretary General of UN, Kofi Anan that succinctly described the dangers of arms proliferation in his famous Year 2000 millennium report to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). According to him, “The death toll from small arms dwarfs that of all other weapons systems – and in most years greatly exceeds the toll of atomic bombs that devastated Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In terms of the carnage they cause, small arms, indeed, could well be described as Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD). Small arms proliferation is not merely a security issue: it is also an issue of human right and development. The proliferation of small arms sustains and exacerbates armed conflicts. It endangers peacekeepers and workers. It undermines respect for international humanitarian laws. It threatens legitimate but weak governments and it benefits terrorists as well as the perpetrators of organised crime.”

    Halting SALW proliferation

    Over the years, successive administrations in the country have tried to curtail proliferation of small arms and light weapons through regulations, such as Firearms Prohibition Act. However, in May 2021, the Federal Government established the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW), in line with the requirements of Article 24 of the ECOWAS Convention for the Establishment of Small Arms and Light Weapons Commissions by the member states, with the aim of stopping firearms proliferation in the region. The NCCSALW was established to replace the defunct Presidential Committee on Small Arms and Light Weapons, and is to serve as the institutional mechanism for policy guidance, research and monitoring of all aspects of SALWs in Nigeria.

    The Centre, domiciled in the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), has a broad mandate to coordinate and implement activities to counter the proliferation of small arms and light weapons, build public awareness about the dangers of illegal arms, and strengthen legislation and operational capacities to prevent, trace and eradicate illicit small arms and light weapons. Since its establishment two years ago, the Centre under the National Coordinator, Major General Abba Muhammad Dikko (retired), a former Theatre Commander Operation Lafiya Dole and Corps Commander Artillery, Nigerian Army, has pursued its mandate with vigour, and recorded several feats. Dikko, in his message on the Centres website, said it is his “utmost desire to position the Centre in light of prevailing insecurity caused by wanton circulation of illicit arms in the country through its vision, mission and core functions to promote an illicit arms-free society.”

    With this mind-set, the Centre activated some departments and zonal offices in the six geopolitical zones of the country as contained in the Technical Review Committee (TRC) report, in order to quickly mainstream the fight against SALW proliferation in our national polity. The Nation learned that these Zonal Offices, located in Ado-Ekiti, Calabar, Enugu, Kaduna, Minna and Maiduguri, have commenced operations with a limited number of staff, as approved by the National Security Adviser (NSA). The zonal offices work closely with security and intelligence agencies on prevention and control of proliferated arms, as well as tracking weapons in the hands of non-state actors. It was also learnt that the quick activation of this structure, in line with the requirements of ECOWAS Convention on SALW and global best practice, was responsible for the Centre’s achievements in the past two years. For instance, on November 24, 2022, the National Coordinator disclosed at an event in Kaduna that the Centre had retrieved over 3,000 illicit small arms and light weapons between May 2021 to November 2022, from various theatres of operations across the country, and those who willingly surrendered their arms.

     However, the number of illicit firearms retrieved in the first half of this year has surpassed the total from the past two years. Media reports revealed that the Centre has received 4,110 arms and 2,868 ammunition, between February to July 2023. Specifically, the Centre retrieved 3,980 illicit arms and 2,358 ammunition from the Nigeria Police in Abuja on February 16, 2023, while on July 31, 2023, it retrieved 130 illicit arms and 510 ammunition from Operation Safe Haven (OPSH) in Jos, Plateau State.

     The seizures, according to experts, are indications that the efforts of the Federal Government in curbing proliferation of illegal firearms in the country are yielding positive results, considering the volume of recovered illegal firearms within short period the Centre came into being. “When we look at the level of illegal arms and ammunition that were recovered across the country last year, and the recent one in Plateau state, it showed that with these kinds of efforts, in no distant time, we will be able to reduce arms proliferation in the hands of non-state actors, and consequently, criminalities will drastically reduce,” Jabi said. “Illegal arms can’t be curtailed in one day, but Nigeria is taking the right step. Presently, it is focusing on collection, control and utilisation; and that is the way it should go.”

     In 2001, UN member states adopted the programme of action to prevent, combat and eradicate the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons in all its aspects. In the instrument, member states agreed to, among others, improve national small arms regulations, strengthen stockpile management, ensure that weapons are properly and reliably marked, improve cooperation in weapons tracing and engage in regional and international cooperation and assistance. Early this year, the National Center for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons organised the first multilateral conference of stakeholders from the Lake Chad Basin to be hosted by Nigeria, as part of a regional and global initiative in the fight against illicit weapons. The conference, which was attended by representatives from Republic of Niger, Chad, Benin, and Cameroon, articulated a regional response to the menace of proliferation of illicit small arms and light weapons.

     According to the UN, one of the most important components in the fight against SALWs proliferation is weapons tracing. It was gathered that the Centre has conducted several trainings and workshops for its staff and arms bearing agencies on weapon identification, marking and destruction; appraisal of International Tracing Instrument (ITI); Customs Exemption Procedure on importation of arms, ammunition and related materials; Specialised Disarmament Demobilisation and Reintegration; and train the Trainer on Physical Security and Stockpile Management (PSSM), and Leadership and Change Management. One of the major core functions of the Centre is the establishment of a robust database that will warehouse critical information on all SALW in Nigeria. It was gathered that the Centre has prepared platforms for capturing information from all arms bearing security agencies, which has been operationalised.

     It was further gathered that the Centre has prepared 5 proforma for retrievals, which include SALW, ammunition, missing/recovered accessories, improvised and craft production and reporting of missing SALW. The data collated from returns of arms bearing security agencies and retrieved SALW are used to populate the Centre’s National Database. The Centre has also initiated the process of setting up an integrated ICT system that would interface with the office of the National Security Adviser, the centre’s zonal officers and arms bearing security agencies for real time information exchange. This, therefore, necessitates the need for a state-of-the-art ICT facility which is yet to be installed.

     As part of efforts to deepen and widen the campaign against the proliferation of illicit SALW, the Centre has also developed information, education and communication materials in both audio and visual in various major local languages for radio and television stations. Also, the Centre’s leadership had also met with critical stakeholders, including the Chief of Defence Staff, Service Chiefs, heads of paramilitary and intelligent agencies, and civil society organisations (CSOs) in order to get the needed support and commitment.

    Daunting challenges

    Despite achieving these much within a short period of its establishment, the NCCSALW faces several challenges, which security experts say is inhibiting the attainment of its full potential. The most significant of these challenges is lack of aforementioned legal instruments. Under the ECOWAS charter of 2006, which Nigeria is a signatory nation, it is mandated on each member state to establish an agency to regulate acquisition, use and disposal of small and light weapons. At present, all member states, except Nigeria, have given their agencies and commissions legal teeth to carry out its functions as required.

     To bring Nigeria at par with other countries in the ECOWAS sub-region, a Bill for an Act for the control of Small Arms and Light Weapons 2021, was transmitted to the National Assembly by former President Muhammadu Buhari shortly after the establishment of NCCSALW. In July 26, 2022, the Senate, at its plenary, passed for Third Reading the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons Bill, 2022. That would be the first time such a bill was passed for Third Reading in either chamber of the National Assembly since it was first introduced in the 7th National Assembly. The Bill is the product of the consolidation of three bills on the subject passed by the Senate for Second Reading at different times. These are: The Nigeria National Commission against the Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons (Establishment, etc) Bill, 2020 (SB. 283) – February 2020; The Nigeria National Commission against the Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons (Establishment, etc) Bill, 2020 (SB. 513) – November 2020; and The National Centre for the Coordination and Control of the Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons (Establishment, etc) Bill, 2021 (SB. 794) [Executive bill] in November 2021.

     The proposed Centre, when established, will identify sources and routes of illicit trade of SALWs, enhance coordination and collaboration among Ministries, Department and Agencies (MDAs) to address the challenges of the proliferation of SALWs and disseminate information among intelligence units and law enforcement agencies. Other functions of the proposed commission include providing training for officers in identifying individuals that are involved in the illicit trade of SALWs and establishing mechanisms for the prosecution of offenders involved in the illegal importation of SALWs. The Centre also requires the backing of an Act in line with the provisions of ECOWAS Convention on SALW, Ammunition and Other Related Matters. This is intended to give the necessary legal authority to function in line with global best practices.

     Pundits wonder that an important centre like the NCCSALW, established to curb illicit arms in circulation, and by extension help in the fight against terrorism and other forms of criminalities in the country, is left for too long without proper backing by an Act of Parliament. The delay in the passage of the bill into law has some implications on the centre and the country. As a result of delay in the passage of the bill into law, the Centre is yet to attain its full status which would accord it optimal benefits from the various capacity building resources and opportunities provided by multinational organisations. The delay in the passage of the bill has given room for fraudulent organisations to parade themselves as legitimate agencies saddled with the mandate to mop-up illicit arms in the country. The implication is that some unsuspecting members of the public are already dealing with such fake organisations, thereby jeopardising the effort of the federal government in the fight against illicit arms in the country. These organisations have also perfected ways of defrauding unsuspecting members of the public in the name of recruitment, thereby giving the impression that they are being backed by some powers.

     Another implication posed by the continued delay in the passage of the bill is that it would probably leave the Centre with inadequate funding, manpower and equipment that could enhance effective operations. It was gathered that the Centre currently engages a few staff on a contract basis due to the lack of legal backing for full-time recruitment. Undoubtedly, more staff is required to adequately and effectively position the Centre to perform its operational and administrative responsibilities. Inadequate funding occasioned by the delay in the passage of the bill has also hindered the centre to establish a robust database that will warehouse critical information on all SALW in the country; build national and state zonal offices and armouries across six geo-political zone where retrieved weapons and ammunition can be stored, Presently, the Centre stores all recovered SALW at designated temporary armouries situated in the nearest military establishments. However, many Nigerians believe that most of these challenges are surmountable if the SALW Bill 2021 can be speedily passed to law, especially now that the new government is about to settle down. “Everything revolves around good leadership, and we have gotten one in place now. The present administration is result oriented in terms of responsibility and obligation,” Jabi said. “The bill should be reintroduced, and the National Assembly should do the needful, as we are all suffering from the instability caused by arms proliferation.”

  • Oluremi: First Lady of philanthropy at 63

    Oluremi: First Lady of philanthropy at 63

    The First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, is 63 years old today. Deputy Editor EMMANUEL OLADESU writes on the personal attributes, political antecedents and philanthropic activities of the eminent politician, who has been a pillar of support for her illustrious husband, President Bola Tinubu.

    At 63, life goes on for Oluremi Folasade Tinubu, teacher, author, cleric, humanist, philanthropist, politician and progressive leader, who is First Lady of the Federal Republic.

    She is the Amazon behind the throne; a pillar of support for the President and Commander-in-Chief, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on whose shoulders rest the burden of guaranteeing a new lease of life over 200 million Nigerians across the six geo-political zones and foreigners alike.

    To her admirers, Oluremi is a first lady of democracy, good governance and philanthropy.

    President Tinubu has a settled home. There is no distraction by nuclear family troubles. As a devoted wife and mother of promising children, the home front is safe in the hands of a cultured, caring and compatible partner; a better half of principle, ideology, loyalty, tolerance, accommodation and humanism.

    Oluremi was destined to be a politician. Right from the Third Republic, the political exposure was certain as the political activities of her husband made her play host to statesmen, top government functionaries, top diplomats, traditional rulers, party leaders and pro-democracy forces.

    The journey to fame was long and tortuous for the First Family. Oluremi played her part very well, thereby offering inspiration to the younger generation who can draw lessons from her capacity for learning, courage, duty, resilience, role modelling, mentoring and discipline.

    Three things also stand Yeye Asiwaju of Lagos out. These are her compassion for the poor and vulnerable members of the society, indigent women and youths; and passion for education and human capital development. Those were the focus of New Era Foundation and her empowerment programmes as three-term senator from Lagos Central District.

    She is a stickler for time, firm but considerate, and result-driven.

    Oluremi rose from a humble beginning. A damsel, she is also a product of proper western education, always full of etiquette. She attended Our Lady of Apostles Secondary School, Ijebu-Ode, where she obtained her West African Senior Secondary School Certificate Exam (WASSCE) in 1979. She also attended Adeyemi College of Education, Ondo, where she earned a National Certificate of Education, (NCE) in Botany and Zoology.

    Later, she received Bachelor of Education degree from the University of Ife and a PGD from The Redeemed Christian Bible College.

     Oluremi is propelled by principled goals, and as a disciplinarian, there is no room for frivolities and nonsensical enterprise.

    As a teacher, and indeed, a technocrat in the classroom and school assembly hall, she had moulded thousands of lives. Many of them are making waves in their various promising careers. Those traits of a caring instructor have always shaped her thoughts and approach to issues as a public leader.

    As a former governor’s wife, she was formally inducted into politics and ‘executive administration’ to play behind-the-scenes roles, building on her experience as wife of a Third Republic senator and fighter for democracy. Yet, in that capacity, she was not idle as the founder of the trail-blazing New Era Foundation, which made waves, added value and became a reference point in grooming and extension of duties of care.

    As a politician, she has learned the ropes faster, making an impressive mark in the polity. Today, she can be aptly described as the matriarch of the political family. Indeed, behind the successful political megastar, President Tinubu, is her delectable and colourful wife, the First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

    Beyond rolling out the drums, reminiscent of when she was 50, when her birthday became a national event, Oluremi’s main preoccupation today is thanksgiving to God.

    Yet, the memory of 13 years ago still Then, at Eko Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, Dr. Enoch Adeboye, General Overseer of the  Redeemed Christian Church of God, prayed for the Deaconess, urging her and others present at the ceremony to learn how to count their days in thanksgiving and never relent in good works.

    The event was significant. It was unusual for Pastor Adeboye to get to the pulpit during private occasions like birthdays of church member. Oluremi’s was an exception.

    When she turned 60 three years ago, she was locked in sober reflection. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, there was no elaborate celebration. The celebrator pondered on divine blessings from God and distributed the Holy Books to mark her birthday.

    If Asiwaju is the Lion of Bourdillion, then, Oluremi is the Lioness. There, she is chief hostess for the progressive family. In both periods of peace and war, she has been the shield of the politically exposed family. Like her husband, Oluremi’s quest for service is legendary, making the couple share the same virtue with the late Chief Moshood Abiola and his wife, Simbiat. Their collective hobby is giving to people, wiping off tears and making others happy.

    It is a tribute to the colossus that she is not associated with any controversy. As a public figure, Oluremi affects, and she is also affected by the inevitable forces of socio-political pressure. Perhaps, this is her greatest asset and contribution to the political family, the reputation of her husband and image of her nuclear family. Asiwaju, an astute politician, has the singular luck of not being detracted by the burden of any troublesome wife, because Oluremi has led a life devoid of scandals.

    For the younger generation, there is a lot to learn from the lives of the one-time Lagos Central senator in a world that is perpetually full of ups and downs. On her lips are tales of victories, successes and sometimes, drawbacks. But, Oluremi had learned to convert difficulties into challenges. As a moral teacher, role model, initiator and cultivator of values, and exemplary leader, her experience can be recorded for posterity; for the instruction of future generations.

    In the future, the First Lady will write a comprehensive memoir. The materials are already in the public domain, her life being an open book.

    Oluremi’s 35-page book titled: The Journey of Grace: My Faith Walk captured her life, philosophy, vision and mission, projections and essence of womanhood. She dedicated the book to God, her creator, her husband and her crown head, and her children, who remain her joy and consolation. In her view, God, Asiwaju and the children have made her life meaningful.

    The marriage of the Muslim and Christian is an example of religious tolerance, which the Yoruba of Southwest has exemplified. It is also a contribution, as it were, to the cause of monogamy.

    Legal scholar, Yemi Osinbajo (SAN), who later served as vice president of Nigeria, said the narrative  is warm and inspiring, adding that Mrs. Tinubu “is not afraid of sharing her lows and challenges, alongside her incredible successes”. Hailing the small book, eminent cleric, Pastor Folu Adeboye, the Redeemed Christian Church of God Mother-In-Israel, prayed for Oluremi and Asiwaju as they continue to advance the welfare of humanity, at home and abroad.

    Life has been kind to the First Lady from infancy. She may not have descended from a clan of billionaires, but basic things of life were not in short supply. Childhood was beautiful for the last daughter and 12th child of the Ijebu chief, John Ikusebiala, who taught her the principles of focus and strong will.

    Reminiscing on her early experience, Oluremi said: “The first principle I learnt from him is that there is nothing impossible, if we are determined.” Instructively, the same principle, including hardwork, spirit of commerce and service through politics, were taught to her husband by the market women leader and Action Group (AG) chieftain, the late Alhaja Abibat Mogaji, who in her early life, learned the virtue of duty and diligence from the market matriarch, Madam Pelewura.

    Other virtues Oluremi learned from his father were contentment, avoidance of ostentatious lifestyles, and background consciousness: “Ranti omo eni ti iwo nse”. But, her mother complemented the domestic teaching of courtesy and etiquette. She taught her precious and promising daughter how to pray and seek the face of God at all times.

    It is desirable that young people should have role models to mirror. Oluremi’s role models, who also influenced her upbringing and growth processes, were women of note and substance; Mama Oye Williams, Mrs. Adetoun Mustapha and the late Pastor Bimbo Odukoya.

    However, the greatest influence on her life at adulthood is her heartthrob, Tinubu, accountant, financial surgeon and corporate guru-turned politician.

    It is not easy to play the role of a wife in Bourdillion. For her, fame and pleasure are accompanied by obvious denial of time and privacy at all times by the political colossus, who since his foray into politics in the aborted Third Republic, has become a national property. It is a political life she had to adjust to; her husband is always thinking about Nigeria, politics, political parties, party members, alliances, fusion, strategy meetings, campaigns, crisis resolution, and people generally.

    Oluremi takes solace in the innumerable feats of Tinubu, the most colourful politician in the Fourth Republic. “I thank the Lord for the partner He gave me, to walk hand in hand through life’s journey”, she said, adding: “My marriage has been quite fulfilling and I am now resting in the knowledge that we have more reward for our labour. I thank God that our labour has not been in vain.”

    The marriage has not been a bed of roses. At 26, she jumped into the life journey, which she did not plan for. She was only optimistic about eventual success. She put her heart into it, leaning on the promise of God which never fails. Today, it is not a story of multiple sadness and little joy. The wear and tear, she pointed out, were joy, sorrow, death of a child and surprises.

    Power is not served a la carte. That is Asiwaju’s most energising slogan. But, management of power and influence are more important than acquisition. The battle for power is a great struggle; time consuming, energy sapping, very expensive and sometimes dirty. The management of the achievements is more challenging.

    Power has added value to the couple’s life, just as it has imposed some burdens and constraints. When her husband became the governor of Lagos State, the couple had to send the children to boarding school. That adjustment to the requirement of motherhood was dictated by the compelling need to assist in state duties. As First Lady of Lagos State, Oluremi was the cynosure of all eyes, the voice of women and advocate of youth welfare.

    But, the glamour of the office did not becloud her sense of judgment. Neither did it alter her sterling qualities as a simple and modest woman. For her, the corridor of power is not a convenient avenue for primitive accumulation, but an opportunity to minister to the needs of people.

    Thus, Oluremi was not carried away by power, which was alluring. Her addiction to Christian ways of life assisted her in making the right adjustment. Throughout the eight years, she conducted herself with grace, decorum and decency. Her life as the First Lady was devoid of scandal and controversy, and this has endeared her to many people. “I grew and matured”, she recalled, pointing out that being born again assisted her to cope.

    Her husband has remained her pride. It even makes other women of substance envy her. Mrs. Tinubu, in her small, but inspiring book, spoke with fondness about Asiwaju Tinubu, saying: “My life with my husband, in reality, is too fast for my pace. My husband has such a great mind, that it takes someone who could sacrifice everything to have. Despite the fact that he is a Muslim, I found in him so many qualities expected of a good Christian-forgiveness, love for people and blessing your enemies”.

    Oluremi’s initial preference for a private life, reminiscent of when her husband was in the corporate world at Mobil, was annulled by politics. It is difficult for one to eat his cake and have it. What was required then, was adaptation. She recalled: “With politics and its diverse needs and expectations, one’s life becomes public property. Sometimes, one feels like a morsel of food waiting to be shared by many. I do not mean to sound offensive, but it feels like that tiny piece of meat with so many hands tugging at it. Your life is no longer yours and what belongs to you belongs to all”.

    It is an under-statement. When she mounted the rostrum as a senatorial aspirant in Lagos Central, street urchins, popularly called “area boys” swarmed her. Women encircled her. Youths bombarded her. How many requests would she meet? Her entreaties to them that she came out to serve fell on deaf ears. The chorus was: “give us money.”

    Oluremi had parted with more valuables in the furtherance of her principle of service. Like her husband, she hates poverty. As a giver, she had put smiles on the faces of many.

    Her philanthropic activities do not recognise border barriers. Worried by the plight of people in war-torn Liberia, she built a school for the devastated capital, Moronvia. Her pet project, New Era Foundation, survived her ‘tenure’ as the governor’s wife. Today, the Spelling Bee Competition is waxing stronger. Winners are still accorded the privilege of being “one day governor.”

    Remarkably, all the money she realised during her 50th birthday were channeled to the non-government organisation to advance the cause of education, social development and wellbeing of youths. The foundation’s Centre along Ibeju-Akodo Road is a masterpiece; a home away from home with recreational facilities for youths on holidays.

    When Oluremi finally entered the soap box, other hidden qualities unfolded. She became a researcher, party leader, effective political and public speaker baring her mind on national issues, including electoral reforms, integrity of the ballot box, increased roles for women in democracy, voter registration, women empowerment and social security for the elderly.

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    As a senator, she had pursued these goals in the interest of Nigerians. In the hallowed chamber, Tinubu’s wife was not a bench warmer. Having placed her hands on the plough, she never looked back. She served on many committees in the senate, including Education, Employment and Productivity, and Transportation. Her bill on social security for the elderly passed the third reading. She is active during oversight functions.

    It is lamentable that her bill seeking a special status for Lagos has not seen the light of the day. But, the bold effort has raised the bar of consciousness. Reflecting on this, Tayo Ayinde, Lagos State Chief of Staff, said in a congratulatory message that Mrs. Tinubu has offered quality representation to Lagos Central District and done Lagos State proud by raising fundamental issues that are germane to its welfare and progress. “Your legislative contributions have marked you out as a humanist, a core progressive ideologue and defender of public good,” he added.

    In Lagos Central District, Mrs. Tinubu always held Town Hall meetings to render her accounts of stewardship. At the Muson Centre, Onikan, and Balux Events Place, Yaba, Etiosa, Apapa and Surulere, he also collated views on aspirations and needs of the district. These shaped her representation of the zone in the Upper Chamber. Her constituency office along Herbert Macauley Way, Yaba, was usually a beehive of activities.

    She has never forgotten her pastime; the care for the needy. On the many occasions, she gave scholarship to indigent students and cheques to assist petty traders. These acts were lauded by the Lagos Central APC leader, Prince Tajudeen Olusi. The Second Republic House of Representatives member said: “Lagos Central has produced many senators; Oba Musediku Adeniji-Adele, Sikiru Shitta-Bey, Kofoworola Bucknor-Akerele, Tokunbo Afikuyomi, Musiliu Obanikoro, and Adekunle Muse. Oluremi is the first senator from Lagos Central to hold a town hall meeting to render accounts of her stewardship.”

    During the 2023 campaigns, the First Lady was very active. She was at the forefront of women and youth mobilisation across the country. She has also been playing reconciliation roles critical to conflict resolution in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

    The three APC senators from Lagos – Dr. Oluranti Adebule (West), Tokunbo Abiru (East) and Wasiu Eshinlokun-Sanni, in their congratulatory message, hailed her contribution to national development.

    In a congratulatory advert, they thanked God for her life of diligent service to Nigeria and humanity, unwavering philanthropy and wonderful contribution to the democratic development.

    They added:” You are a shining example and role model in the quest for good governance and development of Nigeria. We are proud to follow in your footsteps as senators of the Federal Republic of Nigeria because you have left a distinguished legacy at the upper chamber.”

    Former House of Representatives member Rotimi Agunsoye, in his tribute, hailed her passion for youth and women development, and advocacy of relief and better life for those in need of succour, either as victims of natural disasters and conflicts.

    Lagos APC, in a statement by its chairman, Pastor Cornelius Ojelabi and publicity secretary, Seye Oladejo, described the celebrator as a visionary, patriot, distinguished public servant and strong pillar of support for President Tinubu  in his bid to fulfill his ‘Renewed Hope Agenda’ for Nigeria.

    The statement added: “What you celebrate is the evidence of a worthwhile existence and accomplishments as a role model and pride of womenfolk, who has contributed immensely to the political and socio-economic development of our beloved country.

    “As a professional educator, exemplary political leader, Lagos State First Lady, and Distinguished Senator of the Federal Republic, you have added value, made a lasting impression on the polity and inspired more women in public positions to aspire to excellence.

    “It is gratifying that as the First Lady of the Federal Republic, you are a shining example of diligent service by leading a major advocacy for greater humanitarian society and relief for victims of natural disasters and conflicts.

    “Our prayer is that God should grant you long life, divine wisdom and more grace as you renew your commitment towards the realisation of Nigeria of our dreams.”

  • New vistas of development in Aliyu’s Sokoto

    New vistas of development in Aliyu’s Sokoto

    Sokoto State, known as the “Seat of the Caliphate,” is one of the seven states that form the Northwest geopolitical zone. Agriculture is the mainstay of its economy. The government of Sokoto State has been one that has both been admired and vilified in terms of development. Many believe Governor Ahmed Aliyu is doing all he can to make the citizens happy through viable development. Halimah Balogun reports

    One of the country’s most-rated novelists had noted that the only trouble with Nigeria is the failure of leadership. With this, Chinua Achebe was convinced that there was no problem with the country except the self-inflicted ones. He maintained that with good leaders, Nigeria could resolve its inherent problems such as tribalism, lack of patriotism, social injustice and the cult of mediocrity, indiscipline, and corruption.

     Development experts have also said that the worries expressed above have wreaked indescribable destruction in terms of economic, social and human losses. These losses affect societal development and growth awfully. Development experts have also noted that some of the duties of a good leader are to impact lives by being a goal-oriented initiator who must not only set but achieve goals.

     Leadership plays a pivotal role in shaping personal and organisational success. Leaders who possess and foster essential skills such as strong communication, collaboration, and motivation have the power to transform individuals and teams, driving them toward excellence and achievement. Other potential of a good leader are, apart from being a strategic and critical thinker, he must be responsible and dependable in order to achieve unceasing improvement.

    Any wonder that the late Prof. Chinua Achebe, in his The Novelist as Teacher, stated that his mission, (as a leader and novelist) was to help his society to regain belief in itself and to put away the complexes of the years of denigration and self-abasement. All may not be novelists or teachers before they impact society. The Sokoto State Governor, Ahmed Aliyu may not be a professional novelist or teacher. But he has continued to act as one. How?

     In Sokoto State, the APC-led administration under his watch has already begun to rewrite history by proving that leaders are born with leadership traits and not made. There is a new vista in Sokoto State that may prove the truism in the Hausa maxim that a “Good Friday begins with a promising Wednesday. Determined to impact the lives of his people, Governor Aliyu has caught political commentators unawares with his legendary development projects.

     There is a universal parlance that it is not how long a leader rules but how well he impacts on his subjects’ lives. It has become customary in society for leaders to mark their being in office for 100 days. Some of the leaders, governors in this instance, may not have performed creditably to warrant the celebration. This scenario may not be applied to Governor Aliyu as he has executed over 100 viable projects that would be unrivalled in decades to come.

     In the past 100 days, not only has Governor Aliyu made his party supporters proud, but he has also proved wrong those who might have disagreed with him earlier. It is worthy of note that even members of the opposition political parties have been commending his giant strides in office within three months and some days. The governor has certainly affirmed that Nigerian governors do not need eight years to change the old narratives, but rather the political will to so do.

     To prove that he is committed to the well-being of his people, he has fulfilled almost all the pre-election promises he made. The list of projects executed in Sokoto State within the past 100 days may be long drawn out due to space constraints; one would limit this piece to the most critical aspects of his achievements. After assumption of office, Governor Aliyu’s first official function was a visit to the state’s Water Board where he took note of its short and long-term needs.

      The taps of the water board have been dry for some years for unknown reasons; even when there are reasons, they may be unreasonable. Providentially, these taps suddenly began running by the morning of May 30, a day after the inauguration of his administration.  Within the past 100 days, most water vendors have disappeared from the streets as Sokoto metropolitan city now experiences longer hours of water supply. Apart from providing the immediate needs of the board to discharge its functions effectively, the government provided an additional 50 boreholes to complement whatever the state water board supplies each day. Out of the blue, there is no water scarcity in Sokoto State.

     Governor Aliyu’s love for knowledge and scholarship is known to many. Any wonder his other milestone recorded is in the area of education. Within 100 days in office, Governor Aliyu has effected the renovation of over 45 schools. What is more, not only did he renovate the schools, he also equipped them with standard facilities to enable pupils and students to study in an environment conducive to teaching and learning. No doubt, Governor Aliyu has recorded sufficient achievements to the admiration of many.

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    Again, he has liquidated all outstanding debts the state government owed to tertiary institutions particularly, tuition fees which almost denied most students the opportunity to write semester examinations.

     The civil service, which is the mainstream of governance, was not left out of the 100-day timetable as salaries are now paid between the 19th and 25th day of every month.

     Moreover, monthly cash allocation to ministries which has been in abeyance has been restored while all duty-bound allowances have also been reintroduced.

     In addition to the above, 50 new buses have been purchased for both intra and inter-city services while Toyota Camry saloon cars have also been purchased for taxicabs within the metropolitan city.

     In the area of security, the government has been proactive as state-of-the-art military vehicles have been procured. They were inaugurated by the Vice-President, Kashim Shettima on September 11, 2023. They are ready for use by the Nigerian Army as part of measures to combat terrorism, kidnapping and other heinous crimes.

     The government bought 22 new Buffalo vehicles to beef up security apart from brands of Toyota Hilux numbering over 20. To further equip other security outfits, the Aliyu-led administration has considered other para-military outfits to benefit from the crime-combating vehicles that were purchased.

     Infrastructure is also at the heart of the 100 days of mini-revolution in Sokoto State. In the area of roads, the government has an excellent scorecard to showcase. All roads in the famous Sahara Area have been given a new look and were recently inaugurated by the Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma who described Governor Aliyu as “a politician to watch.”

     Other notable roads reconstructed, rebuilt or rehabilitated are all the strategic ones linked to the Gawon Nama Area which harbours prominent politicians.

     One is likely to lose count of reconstructed roads in urban Sokoto because the entire city is glowing.

    Almost all the streets have been beautified with solar-powered lights while the road leading to Lodge Road Seat of Power is another wonder enough to engender national discourse.

    Health, they say, is wealth. As a former commissioner for health in the state, Governor Aliyu has not failed one of the sectors that brought him to the limelight between 2007 and 2015.

     After two weeks in office, he took a midnight trip to the Sokoto Specialist Hospital, which is the largest state hospital. When he arrived at the hospital, he was disappointed with what he saw. The entire place was dirty and in darkness. The hospital is now operating like a specialist hospital as he has provided all the necessary materials to make it function again.

     The government has restored the hospital’s cash allocation and provided a standby generator in order to complement whatever the national grid supplies.

     Governor Aliyu is a compassionate person. In the circumstances, the orphanage home was not left out in the 100-day scheme of work. This is because; he directed that everything possible should be done to make life lively for the kids in the home, even as he specifically gave an executive order that food supply to the orphanage home should be prioritised. He also assured me that he would donate additional vehicles. This promise he has already fulfilled.

     Still, on people’s welfare, the monthly allowance to disabled people has been reintroduced while all Imams and their deputies are now on the government’s payroll for a monthly stipend.

     So far, the state government has spent over N30 billion on people-oriented projects. Despite what has been achieved within a very short time, much more is expected.

    Listing the people-oriented projects executed within 100 days in Sokoto State may be taxing as they are somewhat countless. Governor Aliyu is a leader whose mission and vision is to serve humanity. And, as the days, weeks, months and years roll by, only time would tell how Sokoto State under Amadun Alu would be judged.

     However, it is glaring that the performance card of the governor has been excellent.

  • Northeast Development Commission’s N15b palliative programme

    Northeast Development Commission’s N15b palliative programme

    The Northeast region has struggled through nearly 12 years of conflict and instability due to the violence of non-state armed groups such as Boko Haram. About 8.4 million people need humanitarian assistance, of which about 80 per cent are women and children. The horrid situation led to the establishment of the Northeast Development Commission (NEDC) in 2017. The Commission is saddled with the responsibility of tackling the menace of poverty, illiteracy, ecological problems and any other related environmental or developmental challenges in the Northeast states. At the weekend, the Vice-President, Kashim Shettima flagged off a N15 billion palliative programme for the region. DUKU JOEL reports.

    One agency that will be critical in realising the Renewed Hope Agenda of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Administration, especially in the North is the Northeast Development Commission (NEDC).

     Established in 2017, the NEDC is saddled with “receiving and managing funds from the Federal Account and international donors for the settlement, rehabilitation and reconstruction of roads, houses and business premises of victims of insurgency.”

    The Commission also is saddled with the responsibility of tackling the menace of poverty, illiteracy, ecological problems and any other related environmental or developmental challenges in the Northeast states.

     The Establishment Act further mandates the NEDC to “coordinate the resettlement, rehabilitation, integration and reconstruction of infrastructure for victims of terrorism as well as tackling the menace of poverty, illiteracy, ecological challenges in the Northeastern states and other related matters.”

     Led by the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Mr Mohammed Goni Alkali, the Commission has carried out its mandate, which cuts across all the thematic areas.

     But there is still more to be done in bridging the infrastructure gaps, reducing poverty and improving the literacy level.

     There are indications that the NEDC will address the issues. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the globe, the commission rose to the challenge.

     It intervened in the health sector by upgrading infrastructure across hospitals in the Northeast region. It also distributed safety kits, food and non-food items to residents of the areas.

    The NEDC has also been addressing flood-related challenges and ameliorating the plight of the citizens.

    The Commission has, at the weekend, launched an ambitious N15 billion palliative programme for the region.

    Read Also: Northeast Development Commission needs N31tr, says MD

    The event was attended by the former Borno State Governor who is now the Vice-President, Kashim Shettima. Borno was then a state worse hit by Boko Haram insurgents.

     The V-P was glad that the Commission has so far delivered on its mandate to the people of the region, just as he urged it to carry out more road projects.

    He performed the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of about 22.5km of the Jere Bowl Road network.

     It cuts across many farming communities of Mafa and Jere local government areas of Borno State.

     He expressed his pleasure with the extent and quality of work carried out by the commission, stressing that the road network, when completed, will revive the state’s economic potential.

     Similar projects were carried out by the commission across some states in the region during the past administration. 

    They include the construction of 32km Garkida-Dabna Road worth N6.3 billion in Adamawa State; 22.5km network of roads worth N13.553 billion Jere and Mafa councils in Borno State; 53km Gombe-Abba-Kirfi Road in Bauchi State at the cost of N11.697 billion and the 54km Mutai-Ngalda Road in Yobe at the cost of N12.99 billion.

     Shettima also flagged off the distribution of N15 billion palliatives of foods and non-food items donated by the NEDC to the six states of the Northeast at the Government House in Maiduguri.

     The Commission recalled the carnage Boko Haram has carried out in the region in the past 10 years.

        It said: “Ten years ago, most parts of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states were under the control of Boko Haram terrorists.”

     The V-P lamented that $6.8 billion (N312.8 billion) worth of property was destroyed in the over-a-decade insurgency in Borno State alone.

    V-P’s agenda for NEDC

    Shettima underscored the strategic importance of the Jalingo-Yola Road, highlighting that it serves as a vital link between Jalingo and Yola and the Northeast and Southeast.

    He urged NEDC Chairman, General Paul Tarfa (rtd) to ensure repairs on this critical route are expedited.

     He also stressed the need to rehabilitate the Gombe-Bauchi, Maiduguri-Damboa and Gujiba-Biu roads, which are equally essential for the well-being of the populace.

     Shettima said: “The NEDC should take over the construction of all major roads in the region, whether they are trunk “A” federal roads or not.

     “This is very important because, it is the people of the region who are using these roads, whether they are Federal Government roads or not.

     “The NEDC has to construct them and then work out a plan for a refund. It’s the people of the region that are benefitting from such roads.”

     Shettima added: “The deplorable Gombe-Bauchi, Maiduguri-Damboa, and Biu-Gombi federal roads are to be undertaken by the NEDC this year.”

     The Vice-President commended the Managing Director of the NEDC, Mohammed Alkali for prudently managing the commission’s finances, leaving a substantial N237 billion in its coffers after his first term.

     He emphasised the need for accountability, urging the NEDC to hold contractors accountable for incomplete projects and recover misappropriated funds.

    ‘Road network will drive development’

     General Tarfa explained that most inhabitants are peasant farmers and entrepreneurs, hence the need for motorable roads for easy transportation of goods and services.

     At the inauguration of the project that cuts across Ngowom- Koshobe -Zabarmari -Gongulong- Kaddamari and other agrarian communities, Alkali said the first phase of the 22.5km Jere Bowl Road Network, if completed, would improve mobility, connect other communities, enhance livelihood and improve security and agricultural productivity.

     “The new road is expected to stimulate economic activities, enhance security, and facilitate the free movement of goods and people in the popularly known Jere-Bowl of the state.

     “It can also enhance social interactions, promote tourism and improve overall quality of life for the residents,” Alkali said.

    How the palliatives were distributed  

    On how the palliatives would be distributed, Alkali said: “We thank Almighty Allah for allowing us to gather here today to flag off the distribution of food and non-food items by the Commission to our citizens in all the 112 council areas within the Northeast through the governors of member states, and national and state assembly legislators.

     “This is a direct response by the Commission to alleviate the hunger and food insecurity being faced by citizens.

     “The present economic situation has led to soaring prices of food items and heightened food insecurity nationwide.

    “To key into Mr President’s initiative to improve food supply, the Commission is now poised to provide assorted food and non-food items to bring some succour to the people.

     “We will donate the following food and non-food items, which cost about N15 billion, through the Vice-President, to all the governors of the six-member states, the 18 senatorial districts, 48 federal constituencies as well as the six state houses of assembly constituencies for distribution to deserving beneficiaries across all the states in the region.

     “The items are 250,000 25kg bags of rice, 81,000 cartons of spaghetti/macaroni, 40,000 gallons of vegetable oil and 80,000 pieces of blankets.

     “Others include 80,000 mats, 40,000 shadda (men’s wear), 40,000 wrappers for women folk as well as 80,000 children’s wear.

    “Out of the 250,000 bags of rice available (worth about N10 billion), 65,000 bags will be shared to the six state governments for state-wide distribution, 36,000 bags to the 18 senatorial districts, 72,000 bags to the 48 federal constituencies and 30,000 bags to state assembly constituencies in the Northeast.

      “Similar road projects are ongoing elsewhere in the region such as the 32km Dabna-Garkida Road in Adamawa State, 53km Kirfi-Gombe Abba Road in Bauchi and Gombe states and 54km Mutai-Ngalda Road in Yobe State, among others.”

     Highlighting other projects by the commission, the NEDC MD said: “There are also numerous other projects of the Commission in other sectors such as mass housing, mega schools and hospitals, and others.

     “These infrastructural projects are the strides the Commission has been taking towards the development of the region as captured in the 11 Pillars of Northeast Master Plan. 

     This comprehensive distribution plan was aimed at ensuring a wider reach to the vulnerable population and promoting inclusiveness.

     Many state governments have already established their committees to facilitate the distribution of these much-needed palliatives.

    The NEDC’s commitment to addressing food insecurity and supporting the citizens of the Northeast reflects the government’s efforts to alleviate the economic hardships faced by the residents.

    QUOTE

    The Commission is poised to provide assorted food and non-food items to bring some succour to the people. At the moment, we will donate the following food and non-food items, which cost about N15 billion, through the Vice-President, to all the governors of the six-member states, the 18 senatorial districts, 48 federal constituencies as well as the six state houses of assembly constituencies for distribution to deserving beneficiaries across all the states

  • Exploring new realms of rail development

    Exploring new realms of rail development

    Stakeholders in the transportation sector have advocated for regional connectivity of rail networks to boost inter-city trade and facilitate development, writes ADEYINKA ADERIBIGBE

    Transportation, which is the movement of goods and services and persons from place to place and the various ways by which such movement is accomplished has continued to be buffeted with many challenges and unarguably the rail sub-sector has been much more so, with among others a law which for much of Nigeria’s journey in independence had precluded other sub-nationals (states) and other stakeholders and actors from participating in the development, administration and management of the rail system.

     Though the railway was arguably Nigeria’s oldest public utility still functional since its service began in 1895, its growth has however continued to be stunted by a law, encapsulated in the Nigerian Railway Corporation Act 1954, which mainstreamed anything pertaining to the development under an exclusive list. This ensured that rail development never grew beyond the whims and caprice of the federal government that blocked other state actors from any forays into rail development in the country.

     The journey to a new beginning started in 2002 when the Federal Government unveiled a 25-year Masterplan for rail development that saw the rehabilitation of the old rutted narrow gauge, with the second and third phases being the modernisation phase and the development of the wider, standard gauges and the third being the stabilization phase which is the consolidation of second phase and the expansion of rail networks coverage to all parts of the country.

     To former President Muhammadu Buhari’s glory was the delivery of three standard gauges – the Abuja-Kaduna, the Itakpe-Warri, and the Lagos-Ibadan to Nigerians. He crowned his landmark intervention in the rail sector by signing the NRC amendment 2023 into law on March 15, 2023, commencing a new journey that moves rail development away from the exclusive to the concurrent list.

     One of the direct negative fallout of the stranglehold on the railway sector is the fact that for over 60 years, Nigeria could only add less than 2,500 km of new rail lines to its national rail asset, a poor outing for a country with a population estimated at 230 million.

     Of course, the amendment was a direct fallout of recent developments in the sector that has seen the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, and Lagos State, (Africa’s fifth largest economy and Nigeria’s commercial and economic capital), investing massively in the rail sector. Though Lagos’ two light rails (one an Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) and the other, Diesel Multiple Unit (DMU)) are slated to take off by month end, the FCT’s monorail which also had stopped operation in recent time, would soon be revived.

    As the Federal Government rolls out the N500 billion palliative to cushion the harsh effects of the fuel subsidy removal on the poor masses, Nigerians are on the same page on the need for all levels of government to invest the palliative windfall wisely in order to bring the greatest and best effect to the Nigerians.

    Read Also: ‘Anambra railway masterplan design underway’

     Transport experts and stakeholders argued that the rail and mass transit buses remain the best investment in the short and medium terms to bring the needed succour to people who are at their wit’s end as to what to do to improve their standard of living and reduce the impact of the economic squeeze foisted on them by the new pump price of fuel.

     Stakeholders would love to see other tiers of government intensify efforts in connecting to the five national trunk lines (two narrow gauges –Western and Eastern Lines and three standard gauges namely Abuja-Kaduna; Itakpe-Warri and Lagos-Ibadan, all about 5,000kms of rail networks).

     The stakeholders, who gathered at the second yearly National Transport Technology Conference and Exhibition webinar organised by the Forum for Transport Commissioners on Wednesday, agreed that states could leverage the existing national rail networks to connect cities and towns and move the masses of people cheaper, faster, safer and in ways that are more accessible.

    The webinar was part of the pre-event conversation series ahead of the National Transport Technology Conference and Exhibition 2023 slated for October.

     Tagged “From the Exclusive list to the Concurrent list: Strategies for Rail Transport Development and Investments for Sub-Nationals,” participants proposed regional rail development companies as the best viable option that can be front-loaded to bring succour to the people and called on governors to begin discussion across regional lines to achieve the initiative.

     The lead faculty at the webinar Dr Alban Igwe insisted that at least six regional enterprises such as South-East Rail Service (SERS), South-South Rail Service (SSRS), South-West Rail Service (SWRS), or the NorthWest Rail Service (NWRS), the North-East Rail Service (NERS) and the North-Central Rail Service (NCRS), remain the best way to link the industrial and tourist centres with the cargo airports to create strong regional markets the last seen in Nigeria’s first republic with the three (and later four) defunct regional governments.

    If done, the six geo-political regions would not only be linked with the national rail network but would have achieved Buhari’s lofty dream of connecting all the 36 state capitals by rail as part of the third phase of the 25 years railway transformation masterplan which runs its full circle by 2025.

     For Igwe, rail in the concurrent list represents an excellent opportunity to rethink national development within, outside and without the box.

     Igwe, a Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, Nigeria (CILT) board member, said railways are a climate-smart and efficient way to move people and freight, explaining that “railways promote economic growth while cutting greenhouse gas emissions. They are a clean and compact way to move millions of passengers and millions of tons of goods across countries and continents.”

     With a world in a race against climate change and its diverse effects, states could by focusing on railways, aim at optimizing operational and energy efficiency, service attractiveness and slashing maintenance costs, while also placing focus on connecting the industrial centres to stimulate development and improve the quality of life.

    The lead discussant, the Executive Director of the Centre for Sustainable Mobility and Access Development (CenSMAD) Dr Kayode Opeifa, urged other states of the federation to take a cue from Lagos and the FCT, to develop railway systems. He said such strides need to be sustained in order to ensure that viable alternatives are provided to the travelling public.

     Much as he supports the mushrooming of regional railway enterprises to continue the nation’s rail connectivity, Opeifa, a member of the Board of the Nigerian Railway Corporation and former Vice Chairman of the Presidential Task Team on the restoration of order on Apapa road corridors as well as former Commissioner for Transportation in Lagos State, regional bodies must avoid rushing into rail development to avoid a return to the era of abandoned projects.

     For him, states should make judicious use of the national corridors as a co-user and co-connect by constructing a spur to provide intracity connectivity for the people.

     But much more, Opeifa said the current masterplan should be rested, as he called on the Federal Government to convene a high-level committee to come up with another masterplan taking into consideration all developments in the rail industry in recent times and the government’s dream and blueprint for the development of the sector.

     Special Assistant to the Ondo State Governor on Transportation, Tobi Ogunleye, said the theme of the meeting is apt, coming on the heels of the amendment of the obnoxious law that has held the nation’s railway strides down.

    He said the South-West is already discussing along the line of developing a regional railway system to improve regional integration and connectivity. He urged other regions to follow the route and democratize alternative means of transportation to the public.

     CILT Nigeria’s President, Mrs Mfon Usoro, said states should ensure they create policies within the rail system to encourage investors’ participation.

     Usoro said states should avoid toeing the Federal Government’s path which was strewn with mistakes that held down rail development as a way to achieving proper rail network.

     The Managing Director of Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), Fidet Okhiria, said the corporation is open to working with states in deepening the rail network in the country. He said lack of proper information has barred so many states from the opportunities embedded in rail transportation.

     He said the corporation would be most willing to cooperate with states where national rail lines pass through, to facilitate intra-city connectivity, adding that states are mandated to start with standard gauge lines.

    For him, the railway’s viability is not measured by naira and kobo, but by its impact on the community.

     Declaring the webinar open, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Transportation, Dr. Magdalene Ajani, said Nigeria’s transport sector is beset with challenges and the rail subsector is no exception.

    Nonetheless, the subsector, according to her, has experienced some landmark changes over the years, particularly the legislative framework governing its administration and management, which the former president accented to earlier in the year.

     Ajani said the movement of the sector from the Exclusive List to the Concurrent List comes with new challenges which the subnational governments must be abreast of if they must make success of the vision that warranted the change.

     She said: “Previously, the 1999 Constitution placed the rail subsector in the Exclusive List which gave the right of development and ownership of the rail system to solely the Federal Government. However, the demand for decentralised powers resulted in the amendment of the Constitution in 2010 to include it in the Concurrent List allowing the Federal and State Governments to legislate the subsector.”

     Ajani said the FMOT looks forward to engendering greater collaboration between the NRC and other willing state investors.

     The Executive Secretary of Nigeria Transportation Commissioners’ Forum, Mrs Chinwe Uwaegbute, said the webinar was intentional because of the urgent need for subnationals to key into the gust of fresh air offered by the amendment to the railway subsector.

     She said the Forum is happy to drive conversation around the railway since its movement from the exclusive to the concurrent list by the immediate past administration, adding that the process of engaging with stakeholders and partners has helped to conceptualise, revive and harmonize policies and provide a conducive framework and environment to attract investments and investors to states.

     But to some of the stakeholders, achieving rail development would not come until all states have a full-fledged ministry of transportation. The way to go, they argued, is for all the states to first have a Ministry of Transportation and for the states to establish a Department of Railway Services in the ministry to coordinate all issues relating to railway development, administration and management. Not until this is done, achieving rail connectivity may continue to be a mirage.

    QUOTE

    Previously, the 1999 Constitution placed the rail subsector in the Exclusive List which gave the right of development and ownership of the rail system to solely the Federal Government. However, the demand for decentralised powers resulted in the amendment of the Constitution in 2010 to include it in the Concurrent List allowing the Federal and State Governments to legislate the subsector

  • Dust over relocation of foreign airlines

    Dust over relocation of foreign airlines

    The relocation of over a dozen foreign airlines from the dilapidated old terminal of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) to the new facility at the Lagos Airport is not boding well for passengers processing their flights from the nation’s premier gateway. Aside the inconvenience of leaving their homes at least three hours before the scheduled time for departure, overburdened conveyor belts, succumbing to unprecendented surge in passenger numbers and uncoordinated procedures by aeronautical authorities, travelling through the new international terminal is becoming nightmarish, writes KELVIN OSA OKUNBOR.

    These are not the best of times for passengers processing flights out of the country through the new terminal of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport  (MMIA), Lagos.

    Reason: Airlines, passengers and other airport users are having a raw deal adjusting to the pains in the hurried relocation of processing flights from the new facility.

    Though the Federal Government had given up to October 1 for the foreign airlines operating from the over four decade-old facility to move to the new infrastructure,  a recent fire outbreak from the basement of the MMIA has altered the narrative.

    Only last week, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria  (FAAN) effected an accelerated implementation of the Federal Government’s directive forcing dozens of carriers to commence processing of passenger flight procedures from the new facility.

    But, the hurried arrangement  has not been without the anticipated hiccups as passengers continue to lament harrowing experiences using the new facility.

    FAAN had in a notice informed passengers that flights precessing had moved from the old terminal to the new facility, urging them to leave their places of abode at least three hours before their departure time to complete check-in and other procedures in  time.

    This arrangement has not gone down well with many passengers, who have raised concerns over the failure of the airport to ramp up its facilities ahead of the anticipated surge.

    Before the recalibrated passenger facilitation procedure, only six  carriers – Air Peace,  Qatar Airways,  ASKY Airlines,  South African Airways and African World Airlines  (AWA) – were processing flights from the new terminal.

    The new terminal has not been put to optimal use because of inadequate space to construct avio-bridges that could accommodate bigger aircraft.

    Despite the obvious error in construction design in putting in place such a modern facility without consideration for avio- bridges for wide-body aircraft, the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development Mr Festus Keyamo said plans were afoot to procure shuttle buses that would convey passengers from the new facility to board at the airside.

    The Minister recently said: “We have to find a way to use the new terminal. Like in many other countries, we have to get emergency procurement to buy big buses and move passengers to where the big planes can stop for both arrivals and departures so that Nigerians can have some form of comfort.

    “The long-term plan is that, we are going to find a way to build avio-bridges for the big aircraft coming in and that means some of those private hangars will have to go for public purpose, we have to relocate them so that we can have a beautiful, functional gateway to Nigeria.”

    Read Also: Nigeria eyes $40b airports’ digital advertising value chain

    To drive this however, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic Airways, KLM/Air France,  Lufthansa German Airlines,  Ethiopian Airlines, Egypt Air. Royal Air Maroc, Air Cote D’Ivoire, Rwand Air, Delta Airlines and others last week commenced processing of passenger at the new terminal.

    While many industry watchers described the relocation as good,  others said the government needed to put some things in place before implementing the directive.

     The former President, Aviation Safety Round Table Initiative  (ASRTI), Dr Gbenga Olowo commended the Federal Government for the development,  but urged the Federal Government to move regional flights from the Murtala Muhammed International Airport to the Murtala Muhammed Airport Terminal Two  (MMA2).

    Olowo said Keyamo’s directive was appropriate.

    But an industry player, who pleaded not to named in print, said the absence of buses to connect passengers from the local to the international terminal could stall the proposal.

    Worried over the development, the Federal Government set up a task force to address challenges arising from the relocation.

    To lead the task force, the government selected Hassan Musa, a retired permanent secretary and former Director, Air Transport Management; Adebayo Oladipo, the General Manager, Aerodrome, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA);   three Special Assistants to the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, namely, Mr. Collins Mukoro, Mrs. Uyoyou Edhekpo, and Mr. Henry Agbebire.

    It would be recalled that during Minister’s inspection of the Lagos Airport last week, he had given October 1 as deadline for the movement.

    However, the management of FAAN altered it when the fire broke out. It, however, pleaded for the public’s understanding of the situation.

     “The statement reads: “We urge passengers and other stakeholders to be patient and bear with us as the inconvenience caused will soon be resolved. Your understanding plays a vital role in making this transition smoother for everyone involved.

    “The primary objective of this task force is threefold, namely, to resolve passenger Concerns. The task force will work diligently towards resolving all concerns raised by passengers regarding congestion, discomfort, and related issues stemming from terminal relocation.

     “We are committed to ensuring that every passenger’s voice is heard and addressed promptly.

     The task force is also to work minimise discomfort: Our focus dwells on minimising any form of discomfort during this transition period. Efforts will be made in streamlining processes at both terminals while closely monitoring operations 24/7. Measures such as enhanced signage, dedicated support staff, improved communication channels will be implemented proactively.

     “Effective Public Communication: We pledge transparency throughout this process by providing regular updates on progress made in addressing concerns arising from airline relocations. FAAN aims at improving public relations strategies through various channels including online platforms and customer service helplines so that you stay informed about developments firsthand.

     “The Minister, however, extends his deepest regrets over the inconvenience caused and assures all travellers that we are fully committed to resolving these concerns promptly.

     “We pledge our commitment to passenger comfort, safety, and overall satisfaction during this transitional period.”

      There have been complaints of passengers missing their flights because of hitches in check-in, among others.

     Investigations indicate that many passengers missed their connection flights as the majority of the airlines left Lagos late, including British Airways, Air France KLM and Qatar Airways, which left four hours beyond their schedule.

     An airline official described the situation as chaotic because the new terminal had not seen  such upsurge in passenger movement to the extent that travellers found it difficult to identify the check-in counters of their airlines.

    There was also baggage belt malfunctions at the new terminal, which exacerbated the challenge.Though  the new terminal has state-of-the-art facilities, it is smaller than the old terminal tiriggering congestion, forcing passengers to spill outside the terminal. Travellers with big luggage found it difficult to move their luggage to the checking, a source said.

    Also, the facility has only one main entrance gate and passengers have to use escalator to climb to departures, which made movement sluggish, especially during peak hours.

    An official of the airport authority said: “The airlines actually knew what to do but the terminal was small compared to the old one and that is  what made passenger processing difficult, as check in took longer time and some passengers found it difficult to locate their airlines.

     “It was difficult for passengers that have many luggage because they have to wait for the lift but those with lighter bags use the elevator. But things got better at getting better, we hope it will continue to improve.”

    An official of a foreign carrier,  who declined to named in print, called on the Federal Government to address the challenges emanating from the use of the new terminal comprehensively.

     The official said: “The main issues are:  space constraint. The terminal does not have the capacity to accommodate the number of passengers that they’re forcing into space.”

  • Zenith Bank grosses N967.3b in first half

    Zenith Bank grosses N967.3b in first half

    Zenith Bank Plc grew its top-line by 139 per cent to N967.3 billion in the half-year ended June 30, 2023. It had recorded N404.8 billion in the first half of 2022.

    In a statement, the bank said the performance  is a clear demonstration of its resilience and strong market share despite a very challenging macroeconomic environment and persistent headwinds.

    According to the bank’s audited half-year financial results presented yesterday to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) ,  the triple-digit growth in the top line also srred the bottom line.

    The group recorded a 169 per cent increase in profit before tax, from N130 billion in first half 2022 to N350.4 billion in first half 2023.  Profit after tax also grew by triple digits, growing by 162 per cent from N111.4 billion to N291.7 billion in the same period. 

    The growth in gross earnings arose from both interest income and non-interest income.  Interest income grew by 72 per cent from N241.7 billion in first half of 2022 to N415.4 billion in first half of 2023, while non-interest income grew by 246 per cent  from N149 billion to N515.7 billion.

    The bank attributed growth in interest income  to the impact of both the growth and repricing of risk assets.  The liberalization of the foreign exchange market during the period spurred the growth in non-interest income as revaluations gains improved significantly.

    In terms of efficiency, cost-to-income ratio improved from 58 per cent to 38.5 per cent in the current period on the back of an enhanced income line.

    The liberalisation of the foreign exchange market coupled with the heightened risk environment resulted in cost of risk growing from 1.4 per cent to 8.8 per cent.

    Cost of funding also grew from 1.4 per cent  to 2.6 per cent based on spike in interest rates between both periods as interest expense grew from N57 billion to N153.6 billion. 

    Total assets grew by 31 per cent from N12.3 trillion to N16.0 trillion in December 2022, mainly driven by growth in customers’ deposits and the devaluation of the local currency.

    Customers’ deposits grew by 30 per cent from N9.0 trillion in December 2022 to N11.6 trillion in June 2023.

    Loans and advances also grew by 32 per cent from N4.12 trillion in December 2022 to N5.38 trillion in June 2023 partly due to the revaluation of the foreign currency denominated loans as well as growth in local currency loans.

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    “Non-performing loans ratio improved from 4.3 per cent to 3.9 per cent in December 2022 despite the deterioration of the macros and heightened risk environment because of the currency mix of risk assets. Capital adequacy ratio improved from 19.8 per cent to 22.0 per cent, while liquidity ratio reduced from 75 per cent to 61 per cent in the current period.  Both prudential ratios are still well above regulatory thresholds,” the bank said.

    The reorganisation into a holding company structure has advanced, as the Group adds new verticals to its businesses and expand into new frontiers.  As the year progresses, the Group will continue to remain dynamic in anticipating and responding to the changes in the fiscal and monetary environments in order to sustain growth across all its business segments and markets.

    Zenith Bank’s track record of excellent performance has continued to earn the brand numerous awards including being recognised as the Number One Bank in Nigeria by Tier-1 Capital, for the 14th consecutive year, in the 2023 Top 1000 World Banks Ranking published by The Banker Magazine; Best Commercial Bank, Nigeria, for three consecutive years from 2021 to 2023, in the World Finance Banking Awards.

    Best Corporate Governance Bank, Nigeria in the World Finance Corporate Governance Awards 2022 and 2023; Bank of the Year (Nigeria) in The Banker’s Bank of the Year Awards 2020 and 2022; Best Bank in Nigeria, for three consecutive years from 2020 to 2022, in the Global Finance World’s Best Banks Awards.

    Best in Corporate Governance’ Financial Services’ Africa, for four successive years from 2020 to 2023, by the Ethical Boardroom; Most Sustainable Bank, Nigeria in the International Banker 2023 Banking Awards; Best Commercial Bank, Nigeria and Best Innovation In Retail Banking, Nigeria in the International Banker 2022 Banking Awards.

    Also, the bank emerged as the Most Valuable Banking Brand in Nigeria in the Banker Magazine Top 500 Banking Brands 2020 and 2021 and Retail Bank of the Year, for three consecutive years from 2020 to 2022, at the BusinessDay Banks and Other Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards. Similarly, Zenith Bank was named Bank of the Decade (People’s Choice) at the ThisDay Awards 2020, Bank of the Year 2021 by Champion Newspaper, Bank of the Year 2022 by New Telegraph Newspaper, and Most Responsible Organisation in Africa 2021 by SERAS Awards.