The Nation Newspaper

Category: Hannatu Musawa

  • Stolen lives

    “Elham Mahdi al Assi was a young girl with great plans for her future. Those plans came to a cruel end when she married a man who would later become her murderer. One day after her marriage, Elham was taken to hospital due to excessive bleeding. The doctor who examined her saw that her internal canal was ripped and asked for her to be admitted. Her husband refused to adhere to the doctor’s advice and insisted in taking his wife home. Two days later he brought a motionless Elham back to the doctor in an emergency. Shortly thereafter, the doctor pronounced her dead from severe hemorrhaging resulting from the rupture of internal organs caused from intimacy with her husband… Elham Mahdi Al Assi was 12 years old at the time she was married off and 12 when she died.”
    “Fawziya Ammodi was a beautiful young girl, whose life came to a torturous end when she was forced into marriage with an elderly man. She became with child almost immediately and bore the complications pregnancy put on her very small frame. During childbirth, Fawziya went into brutal labor and suffered for three days straight. Together with her baby, she died of severe bleeding and shock. Fawziya was 11 when she was given out in marriage and 12 years old when she died.”
     “Nujood Ali was a girl with the ambition of one day becoming a doctor. Her dreams were halted abruptly and her troubles started when she was taken out of school and married off to a man over twice her age. Her husband beat and raped her continuously, but a determination within her prompted her to escape to a court house, where she demanded for the judge to give her an annulment. Najood was 10 when she was married off and 10 years old when she said “NO” and survived.”

    The case of angels like Elham, Fawziya and Nujood are a stark reminder of the increased risks placed on young girls who are married off too early and are clear examples of the justification for limits and enforcement of such limits on the age of marriage.

    In several Islamic countries such as Yemen, the trend of very early arranged marriage, where girls as young as 8 and 9 are pawned out to much older men are common. In such societies there is a preference for child brides because they are considered docile, submissive and subservient to a husband. Usually the parents of the girls are agreeable to such union because the marriage of the girls lessens the financial burden on the family. In some instances, the parents insist on an undertaking from the husband that the marriage would not be consummated until the girl gets older and is mature. But from the accounts of the girls, the husbands hardly ever adhere to this arrangement. The high rate of underage marriage is generally attributed to economic reasons and largely takes place in Middle Eastern countries or rural areas of third world countries.

    This week’s news that the Nigerian senate reversed a vote that appeared to outlaw underage marriage despite a senate policy that prohibits repeat votes on clauses was not only outrageous but disturbing and injudicious.

    The calamity of abject poverty, sheer ignorance, sordid influence, appalling desire and absolute disregard of liberty personifies the atrocious case of the senators or anyone else for that matter, making a case to permit the marriage of minors.

    Cases where andropausal men in the midst of their mid life crisis endeavor to purloin the innocence and childhood of a girl young enough to be their granddaughters, all in the name of matrimonial bliss are simply thoughtless, unfair and scandalous. Although the age at which a child assumes majority varies in different countries, depending on the jurisdiction and application, it would be difficult for anyone to make a case that a girl yet to reach the age of 13 has in anyway reached maturity or is any way near the threshold of adulthood, let alone view such a minor as a wife. It really is a contemptible catastrophe and a desecration of common decency for any adult Nigerian in this day and age to openly justify the rationality and humanity of such an unfortunate union. To take a young girl and treat her as if she were a woman is in all definition nothing short of child abuse and pedophilia.

    The distaste of the senators who are justifying the concept of child marriages is made even worse by the fact that the senators are senior member of a legislative body that is meant to make laws that protect every citizen of Nigeria, including young girls. What happened in the hallowed chambers last Tuesday is outrageous to the very highest level and a huge embarrassment to the Nigerian Senate. Under the Child Rights Act 2003, the rights of every child are categorically outlined. The statute provides “a child’s best interests shall remain paramount in all considerations” and they shall be given the care and protection that is necessary for their wellbeing. Such laws were made in order to shelter children, especially young girls, from the transgressions of elements in the society. As leaders, one wonders what kind of example the senators justifying underage marriage imagine themselves to be setting, especially in the light of numerous cases of child abuse that the government is fighting.

    One wonders where the senators place the concept of maternal mortality, which is so much higher in societies that fail to protect prepubescent girls from exposure to the dangers that come with being a child bride and the medical safety of young girls. It is absolutely medically unsafe for a child to be exposed in a way that makes them candidates for Vesico-Vaginal fistula (VVF). When a young girl, whose pelvis is too narrow to give birth, is exposed to carnal acts or carrying and bearing a baby before her body is ready, pressure from the baby’s head blocks the circulation in her anatomy, destroying her tissue and forcing a gape which allows for involuntary urine flow. These and other pregnancy and labour complications are the fatal and painful realities faced by young girls who are forced to marry before or as soon as they reach puberty.

    Every child should, at the very least have the right to grow up and every child should, in its most basic form, have the freedom of innocence. Regardless of any opinion, culture or religion, the issues regarding what values represent the right of a child to care, education, protection against violence and so many other basic liberties, are one and the same. This can certainly not be an un religious, western or imperialist viewpoint, but one of humanity.

    Elham Mahdi al Assi, Fawziya Ammodi and Nujood Ali were all beautiful young girls, who deserved to have a childhood that prepared them for adulthood, but it was stolen from them. And while Elham and Fawziya didn’t survive their ordeal, Nujood stands as a beacon of hope for all the pre-adolescent child brides who are the unfortunate victims of stolen lives.

    As the Nigerian National Assembly resume in voting for the laws that will eventually make up a revised new Nigerian Constitution, they should step up to their responsibility of protecting the rights and freedoms of the young by addressing this issue of such ridiculous early marriages and completely outlawing it.

    While they do that, in the interest of all the young girls in Nigeria, Egypt, Yemen and beyond, those who have the opportunity should please ask the senators and those adult men who forage on the innocence of other people’s young daughters, if they truly believe that marrying a small, little, preadolescent girl is a right, positive or fair act. If the answer to that question is in the affirmative, they should then ask those same senators and men whether they would be ready to accept such early marriages for their preteen daughters. If the answer to that second question is nothing less than an ecstatic yes, then they have conceded that marrying a girl at such a tender age in these times is not right; it’s taking advantage of a girl and rendering her life… stolen!

    Those of us who choose to stand on the side of the girl child and protect her from the dangers she will be exposed to as a child bride must all lend our voices in urging the senate to reconsider its position and resolution on child marriage. We must also pressure the House of Representatives and Houses of Assembly to reject any clause that gives life to underage marriage… And before they cast their votes, I urge the legislators to take a minute to think about their own preadolescent daughters’ best interest. Because whatever is in the interest of their own prepubescent young daughters is also in the best interest of another person’s preadolescent young daughter.

  • My Ramadan journey

    It’s that time of year again that I find to have so much meaning and beauty. To me Ramadan is so much more than fasting from dusk till dawn or feasting during Iftar. Not only is it a time when I endeavor to increase my Taqwa/Iman, become more charitable and strengthen my knowledge of the Holy Qur’an, it is also a time that I become closer to Allah and have a closer relationship with the Qur’an.

    Many of us who celebrate Ramadan take journeys at this time of the year and this Ramadan I want to take a journey on how I can get the most benefit from the opportunity Ramadan affords me and I want to encourage anyone who wishes to come along on this journey in making this Ramadan one of great triumph and blessings.

     In my Ramadan journey this year, I wish to, first and foremost, give top priority to knowing and understanding the true contents and message of the Qur’an. And also, I wish to take a moment to reflect on which aspects of my life; my routine, attitude, personality or behavior I need to improve on and what my plans are for changing for the better and bringing myself closer to the Islamic standard.

    An important part of this journey for me is to be as charitable as I can possibly be. When possible, every time I see people in anguish and poverty, every time my eyes fill with tears at the sight of senseless killings, blown up bodies, devastation and displacement of innocent people, I will open my purse and give charity. I will remember to forego some of my necessities in order for provide for those who are in more need than me. I will also opt not to spend money on frivolous things and luxuries so that those who are in more need than me and my family can be helped through my charity.

    Insha Allah, in my journey, I will sleep early after praying Ishaa and Taraweeh and go to bed with a clear and conscious intention of fasting the next day. Then, I will get up well before Suhoor time, thanking Allah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala for giving me life and then I hope to make special Du’aa for the mercy of Allah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala on our Ummah. From the start and right to the end of Ramadan, I will try not to sleep after Fajr, but instead study the Qur’an. In the last ten days of the Ramadan, I will go to bed with the intention of getting up early for Tahajjud prayers.

    Throughout the day, for the duration of the Ramadan, I will find time to revise and re-learn the Soorahs and Aayaat I already know. Once that is completed, I will learn at least one Aayah a day from a Soorah that I do not already know.

    Insha Allah, I will be extra kind, understanding, accepting, considerate and supportive to my non-Muslims friends and neighbors. I will listen to them, carry them along and find ways to have them participate in the blessings of Ramadan by sharing my food and gifts with them. I will counsel myself on my temperamental nature and strive to become calmer. I will try very hard to be forgiving to all those who have offended me, my family or my community. I will clear my heart from anger, suspicion and grudges.

    For the full duration of the Ramadan, I will kick at least one of my bad habits and make a special effort to speak only to add value and to say only what is meaningful and useful. When I do not have anything useful to talk about, I will remember Allah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala through the beautiful and peaceful words taught by the Rasul (SAW), while paying attention to their meanings and feeling the impact of the words on my heart, my mind, my thoughts and my attitude.

    Ramadan is a spiritual cleansing month not only for the soul but also for the body. It is said in a Hadith that the Prophet (SAW) said we should leave 1/3 of our stomach for water, 1/3 for air, and 1/3 for food.

     Therefore, this Ramadan, in addition to my spiritual journey, I will be going on a health and weight loss one as well. While I embrace Ramadan for its spiritual benefits and all the positives that it represents, it really is an excellent opportunity to shed some extra weight. It can be very tempting to devour anything and everything edible during Iftar, but the tendency of this is putting on more weight than one had to begin with and becoming unhealthier.

     When we fast, we are already resetting our metabolism by the protracted, long overnight fast, as well as the daily fasting. Our metabolism resets and our body begins to change the way it operates. There is no need to consume excess food at Iftar, dinner or Suhoor, but we usually do. And when we do that, our body thinks it is in a state of famine and will store everything we eat as fat, because it is worried about food supply.

    Furthermore, eating once a day scares our body and our body starts to shut down and slow down our metabolism. A diet that is less than a normal amount of food intake but balanced is sufficient enough to keep us healthy and active during the month of Ramadan.

    I know for me personally, each Ramadan in the past, I have always had a tendency to over-eat during Iftar. But this year, I want to be disciplined, eat healthy, eat slowly, avoid binge eating at night, listen to my stomach when it is comfortably full and practice constraint. I know Ramadan is not about losing weight, but I would like to use this opportunity, to address my issue of gluttony and use control and constraint on what I eat.

    It is nice to have support and encouragement whilst we fast during Ramadan and as part of my Ramadan Plan, I will be sharing my plan of improving myself, my spirituality and my health and diet, which I hope to follow during Ramadan, on my Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hannatu.musawa, my Twitter https://twitter.com/hanneymusawa, and my web site www.hannatumusawa.com (In the Blog section under Hanneyz Honneyz), should anyone wish to follow along with me.On these threads and forums, I hope we can share advise, Dua’s, thoughts on how we are coping, share things we want to improve on and share the things we are grateful for in our lives.

     Furthermore, on these sites, for the duration of the Ramadan, I will post the balanced diet plan and menu for the low fat, high energy healthy meals I hope to eat in order to avoid the Ramadan extra weight gain.

    If anybody wishes to follow this diet plan and come on this health and weight loss journey with me, you are welcome to do so. I will try to make the menu detailed and provide alternatives and recipes where necessary on the forums. However, while Ramadan is an excellent opportunity for overweight people to lose weight, please note that underweight or marginally normal weight people are discouraged from losing weight during Ramadan.

     If, like me, you have decided to make this a meaningful and triumphant Ramadan by moving closer to Allah and identifying areas requiring improvement in your life, may Allah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala assist you and bless you for taking this step in your life.

    If one can succeed this Ramadan in living as planned by the true tenants of the Quran, one will be able to look back and rejoice and feel inner joy and true happiness knowing that their Eid day will be the day of celebrating rewards from Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’aala.

    As we begin this journey for Ramadan, I wish each and every person welcoming this Ramadan a Blessed, fruitful, safe and peaceful month. Ramadan Kareem and Ramadan Mubarak!

  • What’s love got to do with it?

    The one thing I’ve always vowed never to tolerate from my husband has always been domestic violence. As Nigerian women, we are expected to honor and obey our husbands, but both my parents taught me, from a very young age, “If to obey your husband means constant beatings; it’s a private harm and a public shame, never to be tolerated”. Unfortunately, that is not the reality for most women who find themselves doomed to a domestic life of constant violence. I met one such woman last week when I went to visit a close relative in hospital. The lady in question caught my attention because she sat in an isolated manner and looked as though she had been in a terrible accident. I felt sorry for her so I went up to her to ask her how she was feeling. I could see that she was apprehensive about talking to me, but after some time, she decided to open up. I guess she felt as if I was some random person who she would never see again after that day. As she began to tell me about her story, I was horrified to learn that her horrendous wounds had resulted, not as a consequence of an accident, but from beatings that she constantly received from her husband. She told me about episodes where he would punch her in the face in front of her children to incidents where he would bite and strangle her. Basically, her 12 years of marriage was marred in the most brutal form of domestic violence. After much heartbreaking discussion, she confessed to me that she didn’t feel abused despite the severity of the beatings because she believed that her husband beat her because he loved her so much. It really didn’t surprise me because most abused women allow themselves to become victims because they don’t recognise the abuse for what it is. They tend to come to terms with the abuse by justifying it, and in most cases making themselves believe that their husbands love them so much resulting in jealousy, possessiveness and protectiveness and it is such traits that transmutes itself into this so called physical expression of love. But for anyone who is far removed from the hypnosis of the situation, it is clear to see that love has absolutely nothing to do with abuse.

     The gravity of domestic violence in Nigeria continues to be masked, underrated and unaddressed. A recent study found that domestic violence is common in all regions and spans all social classes and groups in the country. Never mind that it is the most common form of gender violence or that it results in significant physical, psychological and social impairment against women, this brutal act seems to be trivialized, accepted and maybe even encouraged. The brutality is so deeply embedded in our history; it has now become, for most affected women, a normal way of life. The crisis of domestic violence is intensified by social and legal constructions of the family as private and popular perceptions of male power as normative. This fuels the universal ideology of male supremacy that bestows on men the obligation and prerogative to chastise their wives. And since widespread communal beliefs allow men the right and obligation to punish women, then the very approach employed to achieve that discipline can be perceived as de-rigueur and necessary to preserve order domestically and by large communally. I’m not suggesting that any one should undermine the importance of the family structure. I’m making the point that a problem arises when that structure always seems to subsist at the cost of the woman’s health and well being. Wife-beating in Nigeria and most of the World has become a social license, a duty or sign of masculinity deeply ingrained in culture, widely practiced, denied and completely or largely immune from legal sanction.

     For the victims, their choices are limited due to the very nature of a woman’s role and place in our society. To start off, most women are paralyzed by their economic dependence on their husbands and lack an alternative. Furthermore, most victims are incapacitated by the terror, violence, threat and fear of being ostracized. Even those who reject the abusive relationship may not have too much of a choice because there are hardly any shelters available for victims of domestic violence in Nigeria and the government provides very limited services, legal or otherwise, for these victims. The police offer absolutely no protection and are totally hopeless in domestic violence cases.  They tend to rationalize the abuse as discipline, term it as private and normally turn the victim into the accused by accusing her of not being a good wife. So unless a victim is privileged enough to have her own individual support system, she may be fated to a life as a punching bag. Even in a situation where some women have the courage to take their case to court, the protection is lacking. The cases are heard in open court and the defense lawyer has no limits in his cross examination, thus discouraging most women from taking that necessary, bold step.

     The occurrence of domestic violence is a problem that implicates not only the aggressor but also our state, society and law. In Nigeria , there are no specific laws prohibiting domestic violence. What we do have applicable in Southern Nigeria is the provision of assault in the criminal code, which makes an assault on a woman a misdemeanor that carries a one-year sentence while assault on a man is a felony and carries a two-year sentence. In Northern Nigeria, the disparity is evident because under section 55 of the penal code, a man is empowered to beat his wife. As this kind of violence against women persists in Nigeria, little to no effective changes are being made to the laws that govern domestic violence against women.

     The above clearly shows an example of the legal lacuna that exists and the blatant failure of the state to use its power to deter, punish and prevent violence against women. Regardless of social beliefs and ideologies about gender and family relations, the prospect of prohibiting and punishing domestic violence depends, foremost, on the states willingness and capacity to reform criminal and family laws.

     Our societies also have a responsibility to reject and condemn the brutalization and intimidation of women at the hands of family members. But the real responsibility lies with each and every one of us who are adults. Boys are naturally bombarded with all sorts of influences inside and outside the home about how to act in order to be men. They need to know how to behave towards females in any relationship, express their anger, what is fair and how to treat women with respect. Parents need to pick up early signs of brutish behaviour, maybe from the way boys talk about girls to their friends, and most importantly, fathers need to present themselves as good role models. One cannot stress how important it is, especially for a father, to always treat women in a healthy way that young boys can learn from and admire.

     If the state does not begin to commit their resources to protect women from violence at home, they fail to assume their responsibility. If the society doesn’t begin to view domestic violence as battery and abuse rather than discipline and punishment, its nature of community is immediately obfuscated. Most importantly, if we, as parents, don’t teach our boys to treat women the way they want to be treated in return, then we have fallen short in our parenting skills.

     In my opinion men who beat their wives are simply cowards. Why can’t they pick on their fellow men, someone their own size instead of wrestling a woman whose strength is clearly not akin to that of a man? If we lived in an ideal world, every beaten, confined, intimidated and insulted wife would know that she deserves better and reject the abuse. But unfortunately we don’t and to stop the cycle of abuse, the cooperation of the state, community and parents is needed.

     I, for one, consider myself lucky. Apart from the fact that my husband would have my father to deal with if he ever thought of wrestling me, I’ve always known how to reject abuse because even as I write this article, I recall my parents saying; “Hannatu never agree to domestic violence, it’s a private harm and a public shame. If any man ever beats you and tells you that he is doing it out of love; tell him no because love is not supposed to hurt or render you black and, blue.”  I only wish my abused sister that I met last week and others all over the world knew the same.

  • That enigma of Kasper Hauser

    “ONCE UPON A TIME, A MYSTERIOUS TEENAGE BOY NAMED KASPER HAUSER WALKED INTO A TOWN. HE WAS DIRTY AND COULD BARELY SPEAK. NO ONE KNEW WHO HE WAS OR WHERE HE CAME FROM BUT IT WAS REVEALED THAT HAUSER HAD LIVED IN A SMALL CELL SINCE HE WAS A BABY. HAUSER CLAIMED THAT HE SLEPT ON A STRAW BED AND WAS ONLY FED BREAD AND WATER THROUGH A HOLE BY AN UNKNOWN MAN. HAUSER’S STORY SPREAD THROUGHOUT THE LAND, PEOPLE TOOK PITY ON HIM AND CAME FROM FAR AND WIDE TO MEET AND SUPPORT HIM. RUMORS AROSE THAT HE WAS OF PRINCELY PARENTAGE, POSSIBLY EVEN A DUKE, BUT THERE WERE ALSO CLAIMS THAT HE WAS AN IMPOSTOR. THESE CLAIMS INCREASED WHEN IT BECAME EVIDENT THAT THE BOY HAD A TENDENCY TO LIE. HE QUICKLY BECAME KNOWN AS A CHRONIC HYPOCRITE AND THE ATTENTION AND CURIOSITY THAT WAS INITIALLY AROUSED BY HAUSER’S STORY FADED WITH HIS BAD CONDUCT. BY THE TIME OF HIS DEATH, THOUGH THE MYSTERY OF KASPER HAUSER DID NOT DIE, HIS LEGACY WAS TAINTED, NOT LEAST BECAUSE OF HIS VANITY, SPITE, LIES AND HYPOCRISY….THE END!”

    This true story of a young, mysterious stranger, who was rescued to have great opportunity in life, but lost it due to

    his mendacity, has always been one to capture the imagination of mystery lovers all over the world. Kasper Hauser was an enigma of sorts, a man whose one step forward was tantamount to ten steps back. As one looks at the assortment of Kasper Hauser’s in the Nigerian polity, time has come for the congregation to have a word with one of them…!

    If only Governor Isa Yuguda didn’t have a hissy fit and thrown his toys out of the pram over what he perceived as a betrayal of the Northern Governors to their ludicrous gentleman’s agreement that adopted Plateau State Governor, Jonah Jang as the consensus Northern candidate for the Chairmanship of the Nigerian Governors Forum, his sheer duplicity could have stayed under wraps for a tad bit longer.

    Although he’d, of recent, not been seen as a particularly upright and reliable politician, Governor Yuguda’s gung-ho outburst where “he didn’t see any reason why he should attend the Northern Governors meeting for the next two years until one of the Northern Governors owned up to breeching their earlier agreement,” moved him, whether he liked it or not, from the ‘Special School of Hypocrites Anonymous’ into the realm of the ‘Kasper Hauser Institute for the Extremely Advanced Hypocrite.’

    And it was a pretty reckless move because, unless one is mistaken, hasn’t the same Governor Yuguda, who is now crying bloody murder over the breech of a political gentleman’s agreement, been part and parcel to the breech of other more critical gentleman’s agreements? When the PDP came up with their ineffectual, insulated agreement which demanded for power to shift from North to South, Governor Yuguda was very much aware of that gentleman’s agreement. When fate crashed the PDP shindig to hoist President Jonathan on a presidency that the PDP had prepped for the North only two years after an eight year stint by President Obasanjo, not a whimper came from Governor Yuguda’s mouth on that gentleman’s agreement. Not that anyone would blame him on that account since that was fate’s doing.

    However, in the run up to the 2011 race when President Jonathan denied being part of any gentleman’s agreement for power rotation between the North and South, despite the fact that he was the biggest beneficiary to the agreement, could it be that a big black cat got a hold of Governor Yuguda’s tongue since he didn’t murmur a peep about that agreement? But the real cracker comes when one considers the alleged gentleman’s agreement that Northern Governors, of which Governor Yuguda happens to be one, had with President Jonathan in 2011, when they all agreed that the president would serve for one term and allow the presidency to be zoned back to the North in 2015, in line with the initial PDP arrangement. Now that it is quite abundantly clear that President Jonathan is gunning to run for the presidency uncontested, allegedly, on the PDP ticket, many had begun to wonder whether Governor Yuguda’s larynx was not adjusting to his articulators in a manner able to filter the sound needed for him to belt out his swan song.

     But “Alas”, we can all rest easy; for Governor Yuguda did not lose his voice, he just lost the righteousness of knowing when to use it. When this self-described aficionado of honor used his own words to say, “By my own culture, background and religion, I strongly believe that whatever is agreed upon, we must stand by it unless it is illegal,” unless we are missing something, the star student of “The Kasper Hauser Institute for the Extremely Advanced Hypocrite” plunged a stake straight into the heart of what was left of his honor.

     Governor Yuguda seems smart, and brilliantly quick, and in the past, often served as an interesting, opposing figure, especially in the lead to the 2007 elections when he was persecuted and unjustly denied the PDP ticket, prompting him to move to the ANPP. Back then, traces of the righteous politician he once was somehow still defined him and his people fought tooth and nail to ensure that he reclaimed what was rightfully his. Back then, he was a peoples leader struggling for more accountability of government, against too much power held by the governor; he symbolized the downtrodden and became hope itself, he stood for transparency and the democratic tenant of ‘one man one vote.’

    However, having barely warmed his governorship seat, he decided to show his supporters the finger by leapfrogging back to the PDP from the ANPP. But that wasn’t his real crime. The real crime came when he decided to do what was done onto him; to bulldoze and persecute the ANPP faithful who refused to decamp to the PDP with him, including his deputy, Alhaji Mohammed Garba Gadi.

     It seems that when it comes to hypocrisy, Governor Yuguda believes the old adage, ”in for a penny, in for a pound!” And in his quest to overzealously prove loyalty to his faction of colleagues, his hypocrisy has been exposed at the greatest of price to him; for the incisiveness of his words and actions reveals all. His tenacious desires to save face for the blustering defeat his troupe suffered at the election of the Nigerian Governors Forum and publicly retain faith in whatever sordid plan President Jonathan allegedly has up his sleeve, makes him a poor reader of the daily satire being hurled at his very persona from every corner of the North. By the end of it all, this exposure will have cost Governor Yuguda his remaining straw of dignity in the eyes of his people.

     But if only he hadn’t had that hissy fit, he may not have totally exposed his sheer hypocrisy. Or to put it another way: if only he hadn’t overreacted and publicly try to throw the other governors under the bus, he may not have shown himself as the proverbially despised tell-tale stoolpigeon. Because this is, of course, what he did by challenging the other governors to come out and confess as to why they reneged on supporting Governor Jang. Of course Governor Yuguda had a right to be frustrated at his colleagues who had defaulted on their earlier agreement. And when it comes to the moral side of such things, promise is key of course.

    But were the governors, who refused to vote for Governor Jang, behaving immorally because they refused to be used as pawns on the Chess Board of President Jonathan or simply being canny? Did the fact that some of the governors decided to change their minds, after the meeting and before the election, warrant for Governor Yuguda to imply that they had no common sense, rationality, fear of God or honor when he said, “I expected common sense, rationality and fear of God to prevail?” How about whether the accusation that the Northern Governors did the North a disservice because they refused to support a Northerner and instead supported Governor Amaechi for the Chairmanship seat which was slated for the North? “Really Governor Yuguda… Really…?”

    These are legitimate questions that should be put to Governor Yuguda. And he could argue them till the cows come home, but if he really wants to see what immoral political behavior looks like, if he wants to glare at lack of common sense, irrationality and dishonor in government, if he’s desperate to stare at the archetypal Northern leader that continues to do the North a disservice; then he should grab the nearest mirror and gaze squarely into it… Therein he will see the answer to his conundrum!

     How does one remind politicians like Governor Yuguda of their own humanity; that they once believed in something else, something important and valuable… something called honour and democracy? Like Kasper Hauser, Governor Yuguda was a man who had the world at his feet but through his actions, his initial good relationship with his people seems to have soured amidst complains about his exorbitant vanity, and hypocrisy; this one in particular.

    Perhaps the sharpest judgment passed on Kasper Hauser was when he was described as a person with “horrendous mendacity” and “art of dissimulation.” Governor Yuguda still has a chance to redeem him-self and one hopes that he re-evaluates his actions in office before he well and truly completely embodies that, “Enigma of Kasper Hauser!”

  • Dear Michael

    “DEAR MICHAEL,”

    “HERE I AM” at the fourth anniversary of your death. It is hard to believe that June 25th will mark four years since you left us. Whenever I “REMEMBER THE TIME” I heard the “NEWSFLASH” on the “NITE-LINE” that your life was “ON THE LINE,” I prayed for your soul not to “FLY AWAY.” It was a “HEARTBREAKER” because by the “BREAK OF DAWN” when I learnt that you weren’t “GOING BACK TO INDIANA” but that you were no more with us “IN THE FLESH,” I felt as if I was “EATEN ALIVE.” I felt that “THERE MUST BE MORE TO LIFE THAN THIS” pain of losing you. Your death made me “SPEECHLESS” and made me “CRY;” I had to “STOP” and ask friends to “TELL ME I’M NOT DREAMING;” for Michael at the prime age of 50, you had “GONE TOO SOON.”

    There just “AIN’T NO SUNSHINE” without you, there’s just no one else that could “BOOGIE ON DOWN” and gives us “BUTTERFLIES” the way you do. As sure as “ABC,” for any Tom, Dick, Harry, “BEN” or “JOHNNY RAVEN” who grew up anytime between 1970 and 2000, you were part of our “CHILDHOOD,” even if it was just for “ONE DAY IN YOUR LIFE.” Whether we liked you or not, whether we saw the man “BEHIND THE MASK,” in life as in death, you remain an object of fascination, you remain “INVINCIBLE” not only for the “SUPERFLY SISTER,” “CIRCUS GIRL,” “ROCKING ROBIN,” “TABLOID JUNKIE” or even the “STREET WALKER.” From your “HAPPY” contributions to the “HOT STREET” of entertainment, to your “UNCONVENTIONAL” private life, most of us have our memory of you made palpable every time one becomes a “DANCING MACHINE” to “GET ON THE FLOOR” to “JAM” to your music till the “BREAK OF DAWN.”

    “WHATEVER HAPPENS,” the world of entertainment will never “COME TOGETHER” and “SHOO-BE-DOO-BE-DOO-DA-DAY” the way you made it. Never “AGAIN” will we have the kind of “SPEED DEMON” that could “BURN THE DISCO OUT” on the dance floor like you did; never again will there “BE A LION” of the ineradicable and “MORPHINE” talent that you were. They say some “PEOPLE MAKE THE WORLD GO ROUND;” you certainly did Michael because yours was the “GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH.” When we hear your beat, we don’t need to ask “WHO IS IT?” When you sing, it’s as if “WE’VE GOT FOREVER.”

    Your “HISTORY” began when your “MOTHER” gave birth to nine children in a family of talented and creative artists. From the very beginning there was “SOMETHING ABOUT YOU ‘BABY” Michael’ and your star shone brightly with “MONEY” and fame beckoning. You undoubtedly took all “THE LOVE YOU SAVE” because by the age of five, you were belting out a string of No.1 hits and everybody was wanting to “ROCK WITH YOU.” As you “EASE ON DOWN THE ROAD” to stardom you proceeded to “ROCK MY WORLD.” Your voice was the “MORNING GLOW;” your lyrics made us believe in “A BRAND NEW DAY,” your “MELODIE” gave us “THE HAPPIEST DAYS OF OUR LIVES” and your dance moves were just literally “OFF THE WALL.” You were phenomenal, electrifying and marvellous. The talent you exhibited was so epic that it was only “HUMAN NATURE” for you to be “COMFORTABLY NUMB” and unable to thrive as normal men do. Your controversies were a far “CRY” from the days when you were a “P.Y.T (PRETTY YOUNG THING),” who made millions “SHOUT,” “SCREAM” and jump “UP AGAIN” with joy. You gave us hits that could have easily been regarded as the ultimate “EARTH SONG.” “2 BAD” you lost your “PRIVACY” to “THE THIN ICE” of the media but your personal life also took a strange turn. Never mind the fact that you jilted “BILLIE JEAN,” your face and your lifestyle spelt “TROUBLE” and “THREATENED” your popularity. You appeared to be “STRANGER IN MOSCOW” than a conventional pop star when you traveled there to have a few face lifts.

    At that point I didn’t “GET IT” Michael, I thought “WHATZUPWITU” man? I no longer knew if you were “BLACK OR WHITE” when you transformed yourself from big Mike to “LITTLE SUZIE”. You looked like you “WERE ALMOST THERE”, but not quite; because you resembled “SOMEONE IN THE DARK”; like “ANOTHER BRICK IN THE WALL” of weirdness. To honestly “SAY, SAY, SAY” that before your death you looked like a voodoo-death-god “WAITING FOR THE WORMS” on the “CAROUSEL” is implying the subtlest of innuendos to someone rather thick; somewhat like saying Charles Taylor fought his war like a “LIBERIAN GIRL.” Before your “FAREWELL, MY SUMMER LOVE,” you didn’t look like the man who urged us to “HEAL THE WORLD,” you looked gaunt and ashen, much like the “GHOSTS” in the thriller video. You looked like a man that was “SCARED OF THE MOON” or one who had been electrocuted by “2000 WATTS.” Your eccentric conduct made me confused; and yet despite this, my admiration for you was “UNBREAKABLE.”  Even now that you are gone, even now that “YOU ARE THERE” and not here, “I CAN’T HELP IT,” every time I hear you sing, you “TAKE ME BACK” to “THE WAY YOU MAKE ME FEEL” when I first heard the Jackson 5 album.

    No longer looking like a “MAN IN THE MIRROR,” you hoped to “KEEP THE FAITH” in your Never-land Ranch because it kept you in touch with the child within. After you said “SHE’S OUT OF MY LIFE” to your first wife Lisa Marie and said “THE GIRL IS MINE” to your nurse Debbie Rowe, you went on to say “BABY BE MINE” when you had three beautiful babies. If I thought that the saga in your life was “OUTSIDE THE WALL” of normality or that your problem was that you were still “IN THE CLOSET,” I hadn’t seen anything till the 2003 documentary that featured you as “THE WIZARD” who did “MONKEY BUSINESS” with young boys like they were your “GIRLFRIEND.” Like a perverted “SUNSET DRIVER” or your proverbial “DIRTY DIANA,” you saw nothing wrong with sleeping in the same bed with underage boys. Unfortunately for you, many thought this incongruity was “LOVE GONE BAD” for the poor “LOST CHILDREN.” You were prosecuted for preying on vulnerable young boys, “TOO YOUNG” for you to urge them to “GIVE INTO ME”. You demanded for your adversaries to tell you, “WHY YOU WANNA TRIP ON ME?” You asked all your fans; “WILL YOU BE THERE” for me?” I know that you wondered, “IS THERE ANYBODY OUT THERE;” please “DON’T LEAVE ME NOW,” “DON’T WALK AWAY” and abandon me”. However, just when I thought “YOU CAN’T WIN” Michael, at “THE TRIAL,” your exceptional defence team insisted that all the people that “WANNA BE STARTIN’ SOMETHING” by accusing you of being a “DANGEROUS,” child-raping “SMOOTH CRIMINAL” should “BEAT IT” and be ready to “RUN LIKE HELL.” After you saw the child molestation cases “FLY AWAY” when the judge ruled the boys were “JUST GOOD FRIENDS” to you, you pleaded with the public to “LEAVE ME ALONE” since your kindness was treated like “BLOOD ON THE DANCEFLOOR.” Was it scary then, “IS IT SCARY” now?

    The one thing I knew about the people who wrongly accused you was that “THEY DON’T REALLY CARE ABOUT US” fans the world over. They said you were a “CHEATER” and you were “BAD,” they wanted you to “FALL AGAIN” but in “OUR SMALL WAY” and “IN THE BACK” of our minds, we knew you struggled to make the world a better place by reaching one person at a time with your music. We knew you were kind, gracious, generous, compassionate and burdened. We knew you felt like you had “GOT TO BE THERE” for those who were downtrodden and “YOU WERE THERE” for them. You must have had “LONELY TEARDROPS” at their false accusations and lies before you said “GOODBYE CRUEL WORLD.” But “HEY YOU;” don’t worry because “WHAT GOES AROUND COMES AROUND.” There is a saying that “EVERYBODY’S SOMEBODY’S FOOL;” you certainly were nobody’s fool Michael.

    “THIS TIME AROUND” everyone will agree that despite your battered reputation, amidst all the things you were and “ALL THE THINGS YOU ARE,” your gift was unparalleled. “THE FEELING THAT WE HAVE” when we hear you sing is rich enough to “TOUCH THE ONE YOU LOVE,” which was almost everyone. Your “MIND IS THE MAGIC,” you were a genius; “THE MAN” with the Midas touch. No scandal can torpedo your legacy now; “THE SHOW MUST GO ON” for the King of Pop. The “THRILLER” may be gone, but the thrill will always remain…”CAN YOU FEEL IT?”

    Michael you make me “SMILE” when I see your videos, when I hear your voice, your lyrics make me see “ANOTHER PART OF ME” and you make me believe that, as people, “WE ARE THE WORLD” and that “WE ARE HERE TO CHANGE THE WORLD.” You said that “PEOPLE MAKE THE WORLD GO ROUND” if only they could “COME TOGETHER.” You were “WORKING DAY AND NIGHT” to represent all this and I believe “THAT’S WHAT LOVE IS MADE OF.” I sing your songs to tell my “BEAUTIFUL  GIRL,” my daughter, “YOU ARE MY LIFE”, I mimic your words “TO MAKE MY FATHER PROUD,” I belt out your melody to let my mother know that “YOU’RE MY BEST FRIEND, MY LOVE,” I repeat your songs to tell my friends that “YOU CAN CRY ON MY SHOULDER”, I chant your lyrics so my sisters can know that “YOU ARE NOT ALONE” and they can “CALL ON ME” whenever and I use your vision to write to my fellow countrymen weekly that “WE’VE GOT A GOOD THING GOING” if we “DON’T WALK AWAY” from Nigeria.

    “I CAN’T HELP IT” Michael but your “MUSIC AND ME” are a match made in heaven. Through your music your “LOVE IS HERE AND YOU ARE GONE.” Whenever I hear your songs “I HEAR A SYMPHONY,” then “IT’S THE FALLING IN LOVE” and ‘whoosh,’ “I’M IN LOVE AGAIN.” “I JUST CAN’T STOP LOVING YOU” on my CD player. Your songs “ROCK MY WORLD,” have a “SERIOUS EFFECT” on me, “GIVE ME HALF A CHANCE” to “XSCAPE” and “SAVE ME” from boredom especially when there’s “NOBODY HOME.” “I WANT YOU BACK” for “ONE MORE CHANCE” to sing again and despite your troubled life, “I LIKE THE WAY YOU ARE” and “I’LL BE THERE” to listen to your music for as long as I live…I only wish “HEAVEN CAN WAIT!”

    “THIS IS IT,” I loved your music Michael, I remain your number one fan and I still believe in your ability to bring together people, cultures and kinds through it. I could walk more than “25 MILES” to celebrate your life and all your accomplishments and I know “I’LL COME HOME TO YOU” on my record player. You brought joy and entertainment to my life. Although I don’t “WANNA BE WHERE YOU ARE,” I still miss you. “MAYBE TOMORROW” or as “SOON AS I GET HOME,” I’ll put on your music and dance and when I “DON’T STOP TILL YOU GET ENOUGH,” I won’t blame it on you Michael; I’ll “BLAME IT ON THE BOOGIE.” …And “THE BEAT GOES ON;” Thank you. Peace to you brother…”FOR ALL TIME!”

  • Jubilee’ve it’s been 50 years?

    Jubilee’ve it’s been 50 years?

    Alhaji Ado Bayero’s appearance at the Durbar in Kano this weekend will cap a triumphant Golden Jubilee for a Monarch who is secure in his subject’s’ hearts and has emerged as one of the most successful and respected royal figures in the country.

    50 years ago, when the young Mallam Ado Bayero was summoned back to Nigeria while on a French course in France, little did he know the mammoth role that destiny would bestow on him. Upon the passing of Emir Muhammadu Inuwa, his uncle, Alhaji Ado Bayero was appointed the new Emir of Kano.

    Mallam Ado Bayero was born on the 15th June 1930, when his father, Abdullahi Bayero, had been on the throne for four years. Mallam Ado was the eleventh child of his father and the second of three born to his mother, Hajiya Hasiya.

    He trained vigorously in religious studies and latter enrolled in contemporary school. After graduating in 1947, he then took up employment with the British Bank for West Africa, now the First Bank of Nigeria.

    “Alhaji Ado Bayero left the bank to begin his career with the Kano Native Authority in 1949. While working for the Native Authority, he attended a number of clerical and administrative courses in Nigeria and abroad. In 1952 he attended the Clerical Training College, Zaria. He then took a course on Local Government in the United Kingdom. In 1953 he became the Chief Clerk of the Kano Town Council. He contested and won the election to the Northern Regional House of Assembly in Kaduna on the ticket of the Northern Peoples’ Congress (NPC) in 1954, and he made his inaugural speech in the House on 3rd. March 1955. In April 1957 Ado Bayero resigned his seat in the House to take up an appointment as the Police Chief of the Kano Native Administration Police. He was appointed Nigeria’s Ambassador to Senegal in late 1962.” With such a glittering career in his past, the Emir was well poised for the role in which his popularity is unassailable, the role that he has upheld for 50 strong years.

    Over the years, the Emir has widely been recognized as a true patriot and a man of great humility and justice. In reflection of these qualities, the Emir of Kano Ado Bayero, has often been called to play numerous mediating roles all over the country. This Golden Jubilee should not only be seen as a celebration of the Emir’s throne, but as an affirmation of his place as a national leader. People of different tribes all over Nigeria are this weekend showing their admiration for the Emir and their respect for the job that he has done.

    As the good people of Kano celebrate 50 years of a leader who has truly proven himself, many, all over the world will be overjoyed with the response to the jubilee, which has brought a natural expression of popular feeling to the people of Kano.

    Reservations over the security challenges that have plagued the north and even targeted the Emir himself seem drowned out by the Kano people’s enthusiasm in celebrating such a deserving leader. In the lead up to the Jubilee weekend, enormous crowds headed towards Kano, residents began packing the streets in order to book a place where they could get a glimpse of their Monarch. Witnesses to the emerging crowds speak of well-wishers of all ages who seem genuinely moved by this milestone in their history.

    And a milestone it really is because, once upon a time, the complete administration of Kano was under rule of the aristocracy before the conquest of the land by the Colonial Masters. With the arrival of the British, the power of the Aristocracy was taken away but the role of the Emir of Kano was maintained. In maintaining that part of their history, the people Kano remained loyal to the Emirate Council in accepting and obeying orders from the Emir.

    To rule over the exceptional and complex people of Kano for 50 years, given the cocktail of challenges and turbulence this country has gone through, while still maintaining the respect and love of his subjects, is a great testimony to the Emir. The people of Kano have, from time, proven themselves to be a resilient, independent, entrepreneurial, creative, hardworking and ingenious people. They have never opted for second best and have never been ones to suffer fools gladly. I know because I see it in my daughter, nieces and nephews who are all from Kano. With the likes of the late, great Mallam Aminu Kano, Alhaji Abubakar Rimi, Alhaji Bala Mohammed, Alhaji Maitama Yusuf, amongst others, Kano people have always been ready to stand up for what they believe in and reject what they don’t. And even though, their hospitality, warmth and sense of tradition has always provided a balance to their spunk in nature, had the Emir not ruled over them with the honour and grace he has, they would not be celebrating him in the way they are doing at this golden jubilee. Through this and by any accounting, his reign had been successful.

    As we head into an uncertain future as a nation, the qualities and legacies of leaders such as the Emir of Kano should be imbibed by all. May we, as citizens, learn from people like the Emir, behave in the manner of the Emir and lead in the way of the Emir. His leadership and the leadership of others like him revives hope.

    This weekend I will be celebrating along with my daughter, nieces, nephews, cousins, uncles, aunties, in-laws, friends, members of the Kano Royal family and all people of Kano on this great landmark in their history. I especially congratulate my step mother, Hajia Asiya Musawa (Nee Ado Bayero), my little brother Mohammed and my cousin Zainab Sanusi on the Golden Jubilee of their father, grandfather and uncle, respectively. May the next 50 years of this great Monarchy bring them the blessings, unity, forgiveness, strength, understanding and faith that the last 50 years have.

    I was not born at the time that the Emir of Kano ascended his throne, but I have heard great and wonderful stories from my father on what a glorious time it was then. As he sits down now to reflect on where all those years went, Dad tells me that, “the coronation of the Emir of Kano to the throne was just like yesterday”… Then after a moment he looks up again and says, “JUBILEE’VE it’s been 50 years already?”

     

  • Dead beat dads

    The shared act of child conception bestows on both a mother and a father the responsibility of an offspring. However as a consequence of a very unfortunate tragedy prevalent in Nigeria , the natural obligation of fathers is being abandoned with no consequence. In western societies fathers who default on their obligation to provide financial support for their children are known as “dead beat dads”. It is very common in this country to find households in which fathers abandon their families, fathers who rarely see their children or fathers who are too busy and have very little or nothing to do with raising their issues. Child support delinquencies have reached an epidemic level plunging many parents, mostly mothers and children, into poverty. Mothers with malnourished children have often been found to lack the consistent support of a husband. The trend is especially widespread with divorced couples and in some polygamous homes. The increased number of broken homes coupled with the economic hardship felt all over the country has resulted in strife for a large number of children. In some severe instances, unskilled single mothers who have been abandoned by their spouse and have no means of earning a living have sent their children out onto the streets to beg and trade in order to bring money home. It is all too easy for us to see young children begging and hawking on the streets and blame their mothers for letting them do so, but if the mother’s financial position is not strong enough to support these children, they resort to any kind of labour. Because of the makeup of our, somewhat chauvinistic society in which some urban and numerous rural mothers are not encouraged to work, trade or save money for a rainy day, the effect of an absentee father is tremendously challenging for a mother left to look after her children.

    While there is a recent hue and cry for the parity of men and women in numerous areas, including familial life, there are certain sociological expectations on parents that are not likely to change anytime soon. One of those expectations is that the father will provide food, clothing, financial support in education and other compulsory requirements for his family; especially the children. In the traditional setting, men are deemed as the bread winners while women stay at home to bring up the kids. However whatever role the parents play, it is a proven fact that the combined effort of both parents (if living) is needed to ensure the proper upbringing of a child. Unless we confront the problem of absentee fathers and tackle it from a societal, legal and administrative position, it will continue to have a profound effect on the innocent children that are victims of this trend. Regardless of individual circumstances, fathers have a duty to support their children financially and emotionally. In a situation where the parents are divorced and are unable to communicate effectively, the child should never be a victim because they never asked to be in that situation.

    In no way am I saying mothers do not have their own shortcomings; because they do, but considering we live in a patriarchal society, I believe that there should be more focus on the problem of “dead beat dads” because that’s where there is a high percentage and an urgent crisis. In some foreign countries child welfare is so important the government usually forcibly takes out a set sum from the wages of a defaulting father and diverts it for the child’s upkeep every month. In very extreme cases, men have been sent to prison for failing to honour their financial obligation to their children. But in our society, not much criticism is meted out to a father that fails to support his children. It probably stems from the inferior status our African culture gives to women. The Zimbabwean president, Robert Mugabe, expressively summed up this position in a speech he gave in a seminar back in 1979 when he said; “The child born of a woman despite the nine months spent in her womb was never hers by customary right of ownership and remained her child only as long as the marriage between her and her husband was good”. This perception is further illustrated by the abundant customary laws operable in Nigeria . Under customary law, the woman possesses no rights in the custody of her children upon the dissolution of marriage. As an alternative she has custodial rights only whilst the marriage subsists. Even in instances where the immediate consideration of the child’s welfare is in favour of the mother’s physical custody of the child, upon dissolution of the marriage she has no more than a day to day care of the child. Although in a very few cases the right of a mother has been considered in regards to a very young child. As far as maintenance, customary law only offers women the right to be maintained by their husbands during the lifespan of the marriage but fails to stipulate the means of legally and judicially enforcing that duty.

    Under Islamic law, the divorced mother of a child has precedence over child custody as long as she doesn’t remarry. However, even if she does remarry the right to custody does not necessarily revert back to the father of the child but to a number of the female maternal relations in the order given by the Quran. Even in the situation where the mother has physical custody of the child, the financial requirements and upkeep of the child are the duty of the father under Islamic law, even though a number of men refuse to conform to this provision.

    Under statutory law, the provision is relatively more equal because under section 71 of the Matrimonial Causes Act, the paramount consideration in child custody cases is always “the best interest of the child”. By taking this position the law refrains from distinguishing between the rights of either parent to have custody of the children of a marriage upon its dissolution.

    This is one of those unfortunate topics that we shouldn’t have to really talk about because fathers are supposed to love their children and not want them to go without. And as the saying goes “Elephants are never tired of carrying their tusks”. But why do so many men refrain from supporting their children despite the fact that they willingly agreed to pursue the responsibility of parenthood merely by conceiving the child? The straight answer is that some fathers are irresponsible while others do it because they can! If in this country we had stringent laws that forced fathers to pay child support and sanctioned those who evade payment, then two thirds of the problem would probably be solved. Like anything in life, consequences tend to steer human actions and if a situation fails to present penalties that people dread, then they will not conform to the rules of that situation. It’s like the rule of life and death where people adhere to the tenants of religion life as a deterrent to punishment of the hereafter and hell.

    What’s more, there are a large percentage of fathers who fail to pay child support because they are in such a dire situation financially. Though this is not so uncommon considering the current state of the country, as long as a man has the will and stamina to continue marrying women again and again and having kids like there is no tomorrow, then he has to be responsible for catering for those children. I sometimes see an old man begging near a suya joint not far from my home, one day I decided to ask him about himself and his family. Considering the fact the man looked so absolutely in need I was surprised to discover he was a breadwinner with four wives and twenty nine kids. A year had gone by before he next saw me and upon doing so, he approached to tell me of his divorce to one of his four wives, remarriage to a teenage bride and the birth of baby number 30 by one of his other wives. Now call me stupid but how on earth is a man who begs on the streets for a living supposed to feed thirty five mouths, plus the many more his young bride is able to pop out?

    The preponderance of dead beat dads are arguably the way they are because of pure male ego. By their very nature men like to assert control and authority. If a man wants to affect his spouse, the surest way to do so is by affecting her kids; if he makes them happy then their mother is happy and if he makes them sad she is sad. This is the reason why in some polygamous homes fathers are perhaps harder on the children of the wife they have issues with. This behaviour is magnified in a situation where the couple are divorced and the mother has custody of the children. By denying children support, men feel as though they are punishing the mother while providing the maintenance means that their authority has been undermined, slighted and it translates like they have lost a battle.

    Every situation must be judged upon its own merit, but the simple fact that a mother is the primary caretaker of a child right from its conception should entitle her to the primary right for the custody of her children; considering she is mentally fit, stable and willing. And in addition to this, the father should have the moral obligation, decency and will to provide for his child while in the mothers care regardless of how he feels for the mother.

    At some point in this country our lawmakers need to re-examine our laws on child support and take a more hard-line stance on those dead-beat dads who fail to honor thy children. Children are precious little lives that parents have a duty to nurture, groom and shape for tomorrow’s world. By providing support for the child, the father is providing a key factor to the fostering and culturing of their progeny. Children are innocent and we need to raise them properly if the next generation after them is to have any chance. It is commonly said “It takes the whole village to a raise a child”; absolutely this includes the fathers who produced them. Unless we reform our laws to protect unsupported children, unless society condemns the men who fail to take responsibility for their neglected offspring’s, then it is a crying shame and a disgrace for the fathers who are little more than dead-beat!

  • The conspiracy of the theory

    The unprecedented, horrific events of the Woolwich killings of a British soldier, James Rigby, in broad daylight on a London street last week forced a massive shock, not only in Britain but the rest of the world. The straw that broke the camel’s back (if you will) is the fact that both the suspects are of Nigerian descent and the dimension of the revelation further revealed that they are Nigerians from the southern part of the country. The fact that they are not Muslims from the northern part of Nigeria gives a more complex perspective to a phenomenon that would otherwise have been labeled by Nigerians especially as a Boko Haram terrorist activity. The overzealous and fascinatingly diverse conspiracy theories spun by Nigerians in the media, especially of southern descent, on dissipating the forensic evidence on the scene of the crime have been gigantean in nature. This is not the first of such unfortunate activity on an international platform of which a Nigerian has been involved. But in the first of such case, the media, especially those of southern descent, never expressed or entertained the possibility that the first case, which involved a northerner, could also lend itself to a conspiracy theory.

    Similarly, the recent preposterous outburst by the ridiculous Asari Dokubo, where he threatened fire and brimstone primarily targeting northerners drew anger from a wide spectrum of Northern leaders. While it goes without saying that Dokubo is nothing better than an ignorant and mad bumbling fool, who has directed his personal frustrations towards bigotry, the outrage of many northerners to the utterances of the ‘rabid dog’ has been as revealing as the complacency southerners treated his onslaught. But the truth is, even though the manner and approach adopted by Dokubo was, to say the least, crass and uncouth, several northerners have, in the not so distant past, made statements not so dissimilar to Dokubo’s. But when they did, northerners didn’t see fault in it and didn’t articulate outrage in the same way southerners haven’t reacted to Dokubo’s statements. The theory of this behavior, in each instance is that there is a conspiracy where all regions adopt the posture of victims whose existence and well being is threatened by some tribal covert grand design. And that in itself makes a conspiracy of the theory.

    The reactions to the Woolwich killings and Dokubos statements may not seem connected, but they are; in the most crucial manner. Assessing these diverse events and the reactions that have followed them, one can’t help but conclude the navigation of ethnic sensibilities. When such conspiracy theories came into the fold in Nigeria, one can bet that there is an assessment of tribe and our natural denial of anything that reflects negativity of anyone that comes from the same tribe as us. Instead of universally labeling inciting statements of both northerners and southerners wrong, instead of accepting that murdering extremists are nothing less than murdering extremists, we make excuses when our tribes are concerned; use conspiracy theories to rationalize bad behavior.

    When it comes to conspiracy theories, we here in Nigeria are the sharers out of nations. So dependent we are on story telling for our survival, especially in connection with tribal issues, we have lost the codes of rational reasoning and to properly and reasonably articulate our outrage.

    Don Delera, one of the most outstanding contemporary American writers, once said of conspiracy theories, “If we are on the outside, we assume a conspiracy is the perfect working of a scheme; silent nameless men with unadorned hearts. A conspiracy is everything that ordinary life is not. It’s the inside game, cold, sure, undistracted, forever closed off to us. We are the flawed ones, the innocents, trying to make some rough sense of the daily jostle. Conspirators have logic and a daring beyond our reach. All conspiracies are the same taut story of men who find coherence in some criminal act.”

    We do this to an art form in Nigeria. So easy is it to take refuge in the shadowy world of maybe or maybe nots. To blame all our failings on bogey men, on the ‘other’ tribes, on anyone except ourselves. It saves us the trouble of confronting reality. It saves us the trouble of having to take responsibility, of conserving our identity and our country; which we destroy so quickly and so shamelessly. It saves us from taking accountability for our actions and decisions and in the long run, we assassinate the potential of our young Nigeria in the span of one short lifetime. And it saves us from demanding better from our feckless rulers and depriving them of their overbearing and overwhelming power over us, especially when those rulers are the same tribe as us.

    It is becoming harder and harder to escape the sense that the narrow-minded idiosyncrasy we apply to the issue of tribe is the core threat to our development and existence. Being unable to assess issues objectively without giving it a tribal and ethnic dimension is disturbing and a further reinforcement that what we have got in Nigeria is a most disunited and leery order. As a people, our way of reasoning requires a stronger focus on inconvenient truths which are much too often swept under the carpet in exchange for an optical illusion that exonerates what we consider to be ‘our own kind.’

    It honestly is a woeful decree in the assessment of Nigeria that, a century since our formation; we are still unable to shed the garb of suspicion, intolerance and disparity. Still, unable to see beyond ethnicity, religion and regional origin. We; the black race, the people of Africa, Nigerians far and wide want to be accepted and seen as equals by the Europeans, the Americans, by the Caucasians all over the world. We complain when the Westerners make documentaries depicting our nations decline. We curse and cry bias when they refuse to grant us visas to their countries and when fellow Africans label us parasites, criminals and 419ers. Who are we to accuse anybody else of prejudice against us? We have no right to claim discrimination when we fail to exhibit the equality and understanding that we yearn from outsiders to our own people and in our own home. Through actions and words, all ethnic and religious groups in Nigeria are equally as guilty as each other of promoting the disharmony that is now drowning us.

    The downfall of any multi ethnic country is usually enhanced through the flaw of reasoning, social dogma or ignorance. Unless we are able to overcome our flaw in reasoning and ignorance that accentuates our ethnic distinctions, then we will remain unable to address our troubles, because even though we clearly see the truth, as Don Delera says, it will “forever be closed off to us since we can only see ourselves as the innocents trying to find coherence in some criminal act.” Let’s wake up and recognize that; “the real theory of the conspiracies lies in the conspiracy of the theory,” and it has nothing to do with a real rationale but everything to do with our prejudiced tribal sensibilities and denials.

    So as we come to terms with the emergence of a converted Muslim extremist of southern descent, as we enrage about comparable inciting tribal statements from northern personalities and Niger-delta militants alike, we might just need to take a minute and look for fault from within, give the conspiracies a break, put tribal sensibilities aside and lay blame where blame is due…, even if it is on our doorstep. Then and only then will there be no conspiracy in our theories!

  • Option to combat breast cancer

    Last week, an article written by Hollywood actress,Angelina Jolie revealed that she had undergone a double mastectomy to lower her risk of breast cancer, which was high due to her genetic inheritance. Angelina Jolie’s revelation of her mastectomy was a welcome development in opening up the discussion of a subject matter and operation that still carries a stigma for many women.

    Breast cancer and the options that women have to combat and fight it is a subject that I am very passionate about. Several years ago, I lost a good friend to cancer. She battled with breast cancer for a relatively short time before succumbing to the dreadful disease. She was quite young, vibrant and had an extremely healthy family with children. My friend was the last person I would have thought to be diagnosed with breast cancer. After all growing up, I had always been told that women who breastfed their babies were hardly ever candidates for breast cancer. Apparently not! That devastating incident made me feel vulnerable and scared; I realized that I lacked knowledge about a disease which threatens each and every woman.

    Cancer, unlike a lot of other fatal diseases is one of those that is potentially in all of our bodies. It is our responsibility to educate our families and ourselves so that we can do everything possible to help anyone dealing with this venomous illness. Something as simple as regular caution and self-test could determine the line between life and death, pain or otherwise. That is why this week I would like to share some information with my readers on the causes, symptoms and treatments of breast cancer. If nothing else, I hope this article will give the information that may reduce the suffering of a husband or a daughter or even save a neighbor. Knowledge is power and for those battling with the illness, the more they learn about their options and about the cancer, the better equipped they are to handle the challenges of the disease.

    Breast cancer is an uncontrolled growth of breast cells. There are different stages of breast cancer ranging from Stage 0 all the way through to Stage 4. Stage 0 signifies non-invasive breast cancer; at stage 1, cancer cells invade neighboring tissue. When the tumor reaches stage 2, the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm. At stage 3, the tumor has spread to lymph nodes, and nodes are clumping and sticking to surrounding tissue, the tumor may have further spread to the breast skin causing inflammatory breast cancer; a very serious, aggressive type of breast cancer that makes the breast look red. Sometimes doctors misdiagnose this as a mere infection so patients must always be aware. At stage 4 the tumor has spread to lungs, liver, bone, or brain. Stages 0 through to 2 are the early stages of detection and can be cured quite easily, stage 3 is a later stage with a chance of recovery, however stage 4 is the advanced stage, here the tumor has become quite advanced and complicated.

    Since the first couple of stages can be controlled, it is pertinent for every woman to practice early detection. The goal is to find breast cancer as early as possible, when it is most curable. Women can do monthly breast self-examination by examining themselves a couple of days after their monthly period. She should do this by lying down on her back and using her palm to feel for any unusual lumps. Not every lump means cancer, but a woman will come to know her body well if she regularly performs the examination making it easier for her to recognize an alien growth. It is also important to ask a doctor if he can do a more thorough examination whenever a person goes to the hospital especially if a woman is above 40 years old. Without a doubt, regular breast self-exams, combined with an annual exam by a doctor, improves the chances of detecting cancer early.

    If a woman finds herself in a position where she has breast cancer, surgery should be her first option. There are a number of surgical options ranging from breast conserving surgery, commonly known as lumpectomy, in which only the tumor is removed from the breast, or mastectomy, an operation in which the whole breast is removed; the kind that Angelina Jolie recently had.

    Radiation therapy, available in Nigeria is a highly targeted, highly effective way to destroy cancer cells that may linger after surgery and it reduces the risk of recurrence. Despite what many women fear, radiation therapy is apparently not as hard to bear as one would imagine, and the side effects are limited to the area being treated. The most dreaded of treatments, chemotherapy on the other hand is a systemic therapy, which affects the whole body by going through the bloodstream. The purpose of chemotherapy and other systemic treatments is to get rid of any cancer cells that may have spread from where the cancer started to another part of the body. However, there are a number of side effects associated with chemotherapy because other cells in the blood, mouth, hair nose, etc will also be affected, which is probably why patients try to avoid it at all costs. It is usually one of the last options to be tried and will only be done if the cancer has widely spread. Because prevention is better than cure, the best way one is able to fight breast cancer is to have regular check ups, scans and self-examinations.

    Even better than detecting the disease on time is little day-to-day things we can do to try and prevent the disease. A person’s immunity can be enhanced if they exercised regularly, ate healthy, reduced stress level and avoided obesity. The limitation of red meat and other sources of animal fat is always a healthy option because they contain stored hormones or pesticides; instead more fruits and vegetables would be a healthy substitute. For those who smoke and drink, try to stop or gently wean yourselves at your own pace.

     

    In no way am I saying that these precautions out rightly prevents any form of cancer, but it will increase a person’s immunity and put them in a better stead to fight the disease should one be unfortunate to be struck with the disease. And again in no way am I saying that when it’s your time to die, the above will prevent you from dying. Out destinies dictate that, with or without cancer, every one of us will die when our time is up, but it is wise to be precautious about a disease that we now know enough about.

    For the vast majority of us cancer is something devastating that just happens because of defective genes, a family history, one off unexplained phenomena or otherwise? Without a doubt, it is one of the worst scourges to visit a person. When a family member is inflicted with it, it extends to the rest of the family. The one thing worst than your own death, is to witness the suffering and eventual death of a loved one.

    Cancer doesn’t just eat up the body, it eats up hope and life, it doesn’t just affect one person, it affects everyone. One just prays that one day those scientists working round the clock to find a cure are able to achieve the seemingly impossible and save humanity from the suffering that cancer brings. But in the meantime, we do have an option to focus on our strength of mind and preservation of good health so that we can live the best life possible well into our future. For my friend it is too late but for Angelina Jolie and millions of women around the world, we have all the information at our disposal and the options to combat breast cancer before breast cancer combats us.

     

  • State of emergency to slate the insurgency

    State of emergency to slate the insurgency

    So after much deliberation and rigmarole, after much dissent by leading sec tors of Nigerians, after the massacres and nauseating murders of men, women and children, the government has finally declared a state of emergency in three states. The unexpected declaration of the state of emergency to deal with the high rate of violence and spate of deadly attacks by militant groups has taken many by surprise. Yesterday evening, 14th May 2013, President Jonathan delivered an address in which he gave the military powers to take over security in the states of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe. This step, which affects a broad range of civil rights, has already triggered widespread debate about the implications of the government’s latest strategy, from the opposition, to religious groups, civil society and even the governor’s forum.

    The state of emergency requires a presidential proclamation under conditions specified in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended under the provisions of Section 305 (1). It gives the authorities special temporary legal powers to arrest and search citizens without a warrant. It also imposes a curfew on the specified states, restricting residents to their homes between the times of a curfew. Other emergency powers regulations affect ‘habeas corpus’ and citizens’ rights to freedom of movement, assembly, association, speech, and privacy.

    Over the past two years, the rate of violence in several states has increased dramatically, fueled by the rise of militancy, extremism and the widespread availability of illegal weapons. Successive clamp down by authorities, an apparent trigger-happy task force, mismanaged deliverance of information on behalf of the government and a leadership that seems totally confused and not in control have had the utmost regressive effect, almost to the point of providing sympathy and understanding for the plight of the insurgents. In recent weeks, the country has been horrified by the series of violent murders. The situation became a lot worse, with the massacres in Baga and Bama town. Announcing the state of emergency, President Jonathan said, “The country is facing, not just militancy or criminality, but a rebellion and insurgency by terrorist groups which pose a very serious threat to national unity and territorial integrity”.

    While I am often at variance with the utterances and policies of President Jonathan, it is not so difficult for me to understand why the president felt the need to take such an aggressive reaction, especially along his reasoning that no terrorist group, religious or tribal has a right to pose a threat to national unity and territorial integrity. Not Boko Haram or tramps and vagrants like Asari Dokubo or any other ignorant yobs who fancies themselves as the new Scarface and who happen to all be the same kind of bigoted criminals disguised in different garbs. The country cannot go to war because of some criminal elements have been threatening to overrun the Nigerian state under the guise of religious extremism, resource control, militancy or insurgency.

    If reports that over a dozen local government areas in Borno State have been taken over by insurgents are true, if reports that in those local governments there is no semblance of authority are factual, then a state of emergency in those hotspots was absolutely and unquestionably necessary. Why should a whole nation be held to ransom by plundering and rancorous groups of brutes bent on creating havoc on a society, no matter how candid their grievance or cause? Why should a group of people organize themselves in guerrilla warfare and carry out the kind of offensive that is claiming the lives of innocent men, women and children? For goodness sake, when did our society sink to the depths of darkness we are in now; where we are forced to discuss the destruction of people’s lives and death of fellow human beings in such a blasé manner? That is what we have been reduced to. Every single morning, the minute one listens to the news or reads a paper, the first thing one is confronted with is stories of death, destruction and murder. I mean it is just so absolutely unbelievable for us to wake up every morning with news of the kind of senseless violence we have been witnessing. It is simply unacceptable. As a civilized society which has evolved from the dark ages, our current situation has got to be intolerable by every standard, even for those criminal Nigerians who are hell-bent on declaring a ridiculously, unnecessary and unfair war against innocent Nigerians.

    It may be easy enough for those of us who are not directly affected by the violence to sit and judge this draconian declaration by the government, but even those of us that have not been directly affected by the violence and unwarranted massacres in the affected states have been shaken to the core by it and shudder at its domino effect. The situation of the murders and total disregard for human life has reached epic proportions; proportions which call for the authorities to respond in the most decisive manner possible.

    There is no doubt that this measure which the government has taken will have an impact on the daily lives of innocent, law-abiding citizens in these areas and provide inconveniences for them. It will limit people’s movements and give the regiment powers to arrest; it will even infringe on the fundamental rights and freedoms of the citizens, but, unless someone in authority takes the bull by the horn and affects this kind of stringent system, the situation in those areas will not be brought under control and it will come to a point when the violence cannot be contained. Those affected by the state of emergency should look at the bigger picture and recognize the need to protect them and bring the current violence surge affecting them under control. Many people have lost their loved ones to unnecessary violence in the past three years and unless something is done to restore normalcy in those areas, it will likely get worse.

    Of course, there are other manners of dialogue and solutions that need to be adopted in order to bring this impasse totally under control; solutions that focus on long-term results to the problem and the fundamental issues that gave birth to the crisis itself has to be tackled. A state of emergency has a time-limit and therefore has a short-term effect and short term gain.

    Therefore, in addition to placing the state of emergency, the government must immediately sit down and identify what is driving this upsurge of violence in these respective areas and address the best way to bring an end to it, otherwise when the emergency is eventually lifted, it will be ‘violence’ business as usual.

    To show sincerity in its wish to end the violence, the government should immediately make an undertaking to release the innocent women and children that have been detained without cause in the quest to clampdown on the guerrillas. Government should further undertake to rebuild and relinquish the Mosques and properties that belonged to the Jam’a Ahl al-sunnah li-da’wa wa al-jihd movement before the Borno state government under the leadership of Ali Modu Sheriff launched its offensive against them, before the murder of their leader Imam Mohammed Yusuf. And most importantly, the on-going trial of the security operatives who murdered Imam Mohammed Yusuf and Alhaji Buji Foi should be intensified, together with the arrest and prosecution of the government officials who allegedly ordered their execution. Those actions would show the sincerity and commitment of government to tackle the root of this problem and bring it to an end.

    Now that the presidency has expressed determination to root out the insurgents in the affected areas, the good people of those states should endeavor to cooperate with the authorities in order to bring an end to the horror that surrounds them every day. To restore law and order to the states, people should be able to give accurate and dependable information as well as advice to all seekers of peace. It is expected that if the society as a whole resolves to end the crisis today, there will be no more killing or kidnapping of our people tomorrow. If the communities do not provide a safe haven for those who are out to disrupt peace, there will be no place for any criminals to hide. Our brothers that have turned renegades should also be persuaded to embrace peace and end the killings of innocent people.

    The security officials deployed in the three states ought to understand that democracy is still in place in Nigeria as a whole and even though a state of emergency has been declared in those states, we are still a democracy and overzealousness of any kind should by no means be exercised or tolerated. The authorities themselves cannot use lawlessness to fight lawlessness because violence begets and encourages more violence.

    One prays that we will soon see an end to the violence and hopes that the government, in enacting this state of emergency can tackle the mayhem in the troubled areas in the most responsible manner and be committed to placing every resource at their disposal towards winning this war in a way that is in the best interest of the collective.

    The current rate of violence dictated for more to be done and stronger action to be employed. The situation, especially in Borno State, could not have been expected to continue the way it was going without a response commensurate with the wanton acts of violence and lawlessness; it is a response that is necessary to halt the current spike in the hostile activity of insurgents in the shortest possible time. Desperate acts require desperate measures.

    So, even though the method is not ideal under our democracy, I can appreciate the current declaration of government to be more than a panic response. I do not see it through the lens of opposition, creed or tribe; I see it simply as a “state of emergency to slate the insurgency.”