Category: Abuja Review

Last week Tuesday night was another opportunity for the high and mighty in the country to take time off tight schedules and listen to rib-cracking jokes.

The occasion was the dinner and gala night for the maiden June 12 Democracy Day celebration at the old Banquet Hall of the State House, Abuja.

The hall, arranged to seat 500 guests, was filled to the brim about an hour to the start of the dinner.

What made the occasion more special was that it was attended by world leaders, who were in Abuja for the main Democracy Day celebration billed for the following day.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, was at his best and didn’t fail to thrill the guests.

His jokes, when the dinner was drawing to an end, made the guests, including the world leaders, to laugh intermittently.

The laughter in the well-decorated hall was almost out of control as some guests not yet through with their meals, almost choked.

Some of them immediately had dampened red eyes due to the impact of the jokes.

Osinbajo’s jokes started when he was asked to propose a toast to the President and the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

When he got to the podium, he first took his time to observe protocol and recognise the special invited guests in the hall.

When he finished that, most guests in the hall who expected him to go straight to the assignment of proposing the toast, were disappointed as some of them had started picking up their glasses filled with soft drinks.

Osinbajo veered off by first delivering rib-cracking jokes that could rival, if not better, those of big names in Nigeria’s humour and entertainment business.

His jokes centred on the major ethnicity in Nigeria, including Hausa, Igbo, Yoruba and Edo.

He said, “Let me tell you a story about an Edo man, who invited his friends to the burial of his mother. After lowering the coffin into the grave, the family members then put some yams, some rice and some meats into the coffin in line with tradition.

“His Hausa friend from Zamfara State asked him why did he do that, saying: ‘Why did you put food into the coffin?’

”And the Edo man said: ‘According to our tradition, the dead go on a long journey and they need all the food that they can get on that long journey.’

“The Hausa man from Zamfara State was very impressed, so he brought out a N100 from his pocket and put it inside the coffin and said: ‘When the food finish, buy some more.’

The hall immediately erupted in laughter.

Osinbajo went on: “But listening right behind him was a Yoruba man, who saw what the Hausa brother has done.

“He took out N50 and said: ‘Mama,  have this in case the N100 is not enough’.

The guests in the hall again started another round of laughter.

Not done with the jokes, Osinbajo said “Then Okechukwu, their Igbo friend, came out and brought out his cheque book.

The didn’t wait for Osinbajo to finish the joke before bursting out in laughter.

But the Vice President went on by saying “And he wrote a generous cheque of N200,000.

“He dropped it in the coffin and then took the N150 in cash as change.

Another loud round of laughter erupted as the guests kept clapping for the Vice President.

Osinbajo added “Then he said: ‘Nwanne, withdraw when you reach there. You know say na dangerous journey. When you meet armed robbers, them no go take your cheque. Travel well ooo,  Mama.’

The guests again burst out laughing and clapping for the Vice President at the same time.

Waiting game  

There appears to be an ongoing waiting game for the list of the next Federal cabinet members to be made public.

President Muhammadu Buhari had directed ministers in the last cabinet to submit their handover notes to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, latest 28th of May, 2019.

Since inauguration of the second term tenure on the 29th of May  2019, not a few Nigerians have been expecting constitution of a new cabinet.

It is also on record that some state governors, who ended their tenures last month, just like some ex-ministers, have been abroad cooling off and thanking God for ending their tenures well.

But some ex-ministers have continued to be regular faces in the Villa and all functions of government as if in a sort of waiting game.

There is also no doubt that some of the ex-ministers and cabinet members had great roles to play in the 29th May 2019 Presidential inauguration and the June 12th Democracy Day celebrations and had to remain visible around the government.

But others appeared to be hanging around the corridor of power waiting and praying to be in the next cabinet list.

One of them was even quoted to have declared in an interview his optimism of making it to the next cabinet.

He may be in for a surprise as most leaders are full of surprises and don’t like their actions and decisions to be preempted by anybody.

This set of the ex-cabinet members may also have to wait a bit longer to realize their ambitions as the Senate and House of Representatives have embarked on recess till 2nd of July, 2019.

Unless there is a special arrangement, these ex-ministers would have to wait for the next three weeks to know if they would be in the next cabinet as the Senate usually screens and confirms ministerial appointments.

But surely, the waiting game will soon come to an end and everybody can rest.

 

• This instalment was meant for publication earlier.

Relief is finally available for small business owners in the capital city with the advent of an initiative called #myabjhustle.

The event which recently held at River Plate Park, Wuse 2 on the 26th of May 2019, is the brain child of a young man, Ikenna Chidoka and was attended by many vendors of various online businesses with good  customers turn out.

According to Chidoka, the Small Business Owners Initiative events  is a concept to connect people with Products and services of Online based businesses through fairs.

It is meant to create the physical environment for producers and customers to meet and mingle, he said.

He said,: “We believe nothing still beats the face to face meetings as regards sales. It creates trust among parties. The fair has come free to both vendors and attendees. By this way we are creating immeasurable reach to our corporate sponsors.”

The young entrepreneur said based on the success of the Abuja event, they have decided to make it national.

‘The Small Business Owners Initiative is organizing The National Small Business Owners Expo Week, December 6 – 8, 2019 in Kano, Abuja, Owerri and Lagos.

“The Expo is to promote the importance of small businesses in Nigerian Communities, hence the name #My9jaHustle, and is to be held in 4 locations simultaneously. Never been done before.

“As part of giving back, our system is also designed for business owners to make some money through their social media handles when they share adverts from our platforms. The money can be used to pay utilities on our site or they can simply just withdraw the money.

He said the idea “is to do fairs in every single state. So, we have a website that we’ve developed, whereby we have business community leaders in each state. So far now, we have four states which we are trying to do the second pilot programme. We’ve done the first pilot programme here in Abuja and it was very successful.

“For now, were moving to four states. Our plan is to have be having 36 events at the same time, in 36 states. Every quarter we’ll have what you call National Small Business Owners Expo Week. Exhibition week.

“So, they will come together, once a quarter to exhibit what they have in their state and invite people to buy at discounted rates and make connections.”

Chidoka, who said he currently foots the bills of the event, hopes that in the future it will attract sponsors up to states or federal government level.

UFUK Dialogue, a non-profit organisation, makes a strong case for national cohesion, GBENKA OMOKHUNU reports

There is little doubt that Nigeria’s diverse faiths and religious backgrounds are not quite welding its people together, but rather driving them far apart.

It is against this backdrop that UFUK Dialogue, a non-profit organ, held in Abuja the seventh edition of its annual Dialogue and Peace Awards and Interfaith Friendship and IFTAR dinner.

The ambience of the gathering was electrifying as was the composition of the audience. Their attire revealed their religion. What makes it very interesting was the fact that on a table, you find people dressed in turbans and cassocks interacting freely with one another while dining.

All through the event, the message being preached was peace, love, and tolerance. So strong was the message that you would wonder if you were in Nigeria because of the intolerance level amongst us. Nigeria is now clearly divided along religious and ethnic lines which is unprecedented. And the attendant result has been a series of ethnic and religious clashes in the country.

In his opening remark, the president, UFUK Dialogue, Kamil Kemanci, said, “The 7th edition of Annual Dialogue and Peace Awards organised by UFUK Dialogue is the day to confer awards on some exceptionally fantastic personalities in Nigeria for their wonderful effort and support on developing a peaceful society.”

Speaking on the organisation’s commitment to the society, he said, “UFUK Dialogue serves to stand by societal peace, love, tolerance, respect, and compassion in support of human dignity and the greater good of humanity. As such, we are committed to universal values of freedom, justice, democracy, and the rights of all living beings.’’

He said UFUK dialogue also organises annual conferences with a theme of “Countering Violent Extremism through Love and Tolerance” which brings people of different faiths and ethnic backgrounds around the same table.

Kemanci, while stressing the need for a peaceful society said: “we need dialogue and peace more than we need food and shelter”.

He explained that dialogue and peaceful co-existence has always been and still remains a need, a necessity for us to have a healthy and more productive society. He explained that it is possible to transform conflict into cooperation.

The Interfaith Dialogue seeks to realise religions’ basic oneness and unity, and the universality of belief.

“Islam and Christianity all come from the same root, have almost the same essentials, and are nourished from the same source.

‘’Apart from the common points between them, they share the same responsibility to build a happy world for all of the creatures of God,’’ he said.

Explaining to the gathering how the organisation will succeed, he said we must forget the past, ignore polemics and focus on our common points. In order for everyone to live peacefully, it is important for individuals to rise above differences that drive us apart and that goes beyond any ideology or political system, and above any religious movement or authority.

Stressing more on the need for humans to recognise their selves first before religion, Mr Kemanci quoted from Fethullah Gulen, a Muslim scholar, where he said: “We must consider ourselves human first before we consider our belonging to a religious or cultural tradition. We are human first before we are Christian or Muslim or Ibo, Yoruba or Havza.”

He informed the audience that the dialogue has now expanded to the entire world. The results have been positive and the followers of all religions will find more ways to get closer and assist each other.

A “Peaceful World” is not something that can be naturally created. It is made by our hands. So, whatever it costs, we must continue to be a voice for dialogue and love between peoples of all faiths and cultures.

He charged everybody present to co-operate and build a peaceful world, “Let’s co-operate and create a peaceful world desired by every person. Let’s come together to listen and understand each other in empathy and look to the events from the mirror of justice and reason, not the partisanship of one group. This is the dream that we carry through the world. “That something wonderful will happen in a peaceful world.”

During the awards presentation, several persons were presented with awards who, in the opinion of the NGO, are “Peace – Loving People” who have dedicated their expertise to building bridges of peace between cultures and religions.

The awardees in appreciation thanked the organisation for counting them worthy of the awards, Catholic Archbishop of Orlu Diocese, Imo State, Most Rev Godson Ukwuoma, expressed his profound gratitude to the organisation.

He said the award was very significant because it shows that this organisation places and recognises cultural diversity as an opportunity for growth and also sensitises the people on building bridges among the various ethnic groups in Nigeria.

He advised that people of goodwill should help to build bridges of understanding as a way of resolving conflicts and minimising misunderstandings in the world among the various ethnic groups.

The speaker, Lagos State House of Assembly, Rt Hon Mudashir Obasa, who was represented by Eng Misbau Opeyemi Aminu, lauded the organisers for recognising his efforts. He has led Lagos for the past four years towards peace, progress and for the betterment of all Lagosians.

In her appreciation message, former deputy governor, Plateau State, Dame Pauline Tallen, said she dedicated the award to all Nigerians adding that they should have a heart of love, love one another as true children of God.

The event, once again brought together a lot Nigerians from different religious and cultural backgrounds among them are Prof. Ibrahim Mohammed of the Bayero University, Kano, Kano State and chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Lagos State and co-chairman, Nigeria Inter Religious Council (NIRC), Alexander Bamgbola.

Others are Executive Secretary, Nigeria Inter Religious Council (NIRC), Rev Cornelius Apebu Omonokhua; President CAN, Lagos branch, Dr. Ayokunle Ayokunle; General Secretary, CAN, Prof. Olalekan, SAN Barr. Joseph Daramola and many others.

The Director-General, Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Mr. Alex Okoh has explained that the bureau intervened in the renovation and provision of learning materials in Local Education Authority (LEA) Primary School, Dutse Alhaji in Bwari Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) because of indigent pupils.

Speaking during the commissioning of the renovated projects in Dutse Alhaji, he advised that intervention should not be targeted at those that are well to do because it is more impactful to give to the poor.

The project was the first Corporate Social Responsibility (CRS) project of the BPE, according, Okoh, who promised to also renovate the only block that was yet to be renovated in the school as soon as fund is available.

He said that “We think that the area of intervention should not be those who already have or those who have the capacity to access such facilities. For intervention to be impactful and meaningful, it has to be targeted at those who can least afford it.

“So we did a scoping, we did a scan of such institutions, primary institutions to university that fit the criteria in terms of being indigent and incidentally, that such threw up LEA Dutse Primary School.”

The BPE, said Okoh, at the celebration of its 30th anniversary recently, part of the decision of the celebration of the landmark was to identify a series of projects and sections in the economy and national life that required intervention as part of the bureau’s corporate  social responsibility.

He noted that the sections that were mentioned were the education, health, environmental  and people with disability, but eventually, the BPE decided to intervene in education.

He emphasised the importance of primary education in human and career development, stressing that without a solid and standard basic educational foundation the society, cannot be firm.

Okoh said that “among the primary school children you see today is another Director General ofthe Bureau of Public Enterprises. Perhaps, among the  people we are providing for today, there is the next President, Muhammadu Buhari, the president of Nigeria.

“So, it is important that we take this level of our education very seriously. It is the basic foundation upon which other educational pursuit will be built. And if the foundation is shaking, you can be lest assured that rest of the building will not stand.”

Confirming the gesture of the BPE, the school headmistress, Mrs. Idowu Ajoke Adebomi, enumerated some of the projects as : renovation of two blocks of classrooms, reconstruction of a modern toilet, construction of drainage system, provision of furniture, provision of school uniforms, provision of teachers tables and chairs,  provision of pupils exercise book and donation to the novel “Shun Violence and Embrace Peace” to ensure as well as to promote peaceful co-existence.

She called on HRH, Hakimi, Alhaji Abubakar Bako to help provide security for all the facilities.

Meanwhile, Bako promised to secure the necessary security for the school and its facilities.

He joined the headmistress to call on the BPE to also renovate the only building that has become an eyesore in the school.

A potter’s workshop which once enchanted the world and put Nigeria on the global map now lies in ruins, reports GRACE OBIKE

The history of Nigeria will not be complete without the story of the illiterate potter Ladi Kwali who rose to prominence by placing Nigeria on the world pottery map to the extent that she is the only woman on the Naira.

She is said to have made large pots for use as water jars, cooking pots, bowls and flasks from coils of clay beaten out from inside with flat wooden paddles and decorated her pots with incisive geometric, stylised figurative patterns with animal motifs.

Her great talent was showcased internationally, from 1958-1959 where she held two successful exhibitions at the Berkley Gallery. In 1961 she held another exhibition at the Royal College, Farnham and Wenford Bridge, London. In 1962 she exhibited Nigeria’s local pot making techniques in London. In 1972, she visited several institutions and galleries in the United States and held an exhibition at the Howard University, Washington DC. In 1962 the British government decorated her as the Member of the British Empire and she was awarded an honorary doctorate degree by Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) in 1970.

She gave lectures and demonstrations on her craft within and outside the country and was a part-time instructor at ABU Zaria. In 1981, she received the National Honour of the Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON). She also received a Silver Award for Excellence at the Tenth International Exhibition of Ceramic Art, Smithsonian Institute, Washington DC. With her death in 1984, great honour trailed her. The Abuja Pottery Centre was named after her. She was also featured on the Nigerian N20 currency note. Also, a prominent street in Abuja was named after her.

All of this was made possible after a famous British studio potter Michael Cardew established a pottery training centre in old Abuja (now known as Suleja), the centre served as a historic point for the intergration of western pottery with traditional Nigerian methods. Students at the pottery centre were drawn from Europe and communities in Northern Nigeria, he spotted the works of Ladi Kwali, a then local potter and invited her to the centre.

She was the first famale potter at the centre and introduced revolutionary skills that combined with the use of western technology, stunned the world. The centre was eventually named after her and at its peak, it was a training centre with over 100 employees and a tourist destination.

Sadly Nigeria is ranked 9th out of 18 countries leading in ceramics production but unfortunately Nigeria is the only country out of these that does not export any ceramics, even though Nigeria is home to 99% the solid materials required to produce pottery, no export can be boasted of.

Table wares, electrical insulators, spark plugs used in vehicles, eronotics, break shields, ballistics, bullet proof vests are all products of ceramics but unfortunately Nigeria is not trying to harness this great opportunities created by the minerals found in abundance in the country for these great inventions.

President Dajo pottery in Makurdi, Yakubu Dajo who was once a student of Ladi Kwali had a lot to say about the centre, “What you hear of Ahmadu Bello today is because of the centre, the Northern Nigeria college of arts and sciences which later became ABU took a cue from the centre because of what Cardew started and introduced ceramics in the fine arts department as a course, eventually it was made that all specialising students of ceramics must come to the centre for internship.

“From here he established the museum potter in Jos, from this centre the Maraba pottery in Kaduna/Jos road was established, the Jakaranda pottery in Kaduna and Alhabib pottery in Minna Niger state. A lot of people took cue from this centre and started establishing smaller potteries and in 1979, I established the Dajo pottery, pockets of centres across the country was established from this centre like the modern ceramics Umuahia, Okigwe pottery centre and the research institute for ceramics.”

Today, the Ladi Kwali centre that brought so much pride to Nigeria is in complete ruins. The centre which the  journalist Liz Moloney once wrote about is no more than a few ghost buildings, home to rodents and snakes, with crumbling walls surrounded by grass and empty and dusty floors that were once alive with activities of hundreds of potters.

After years of dilapidation, the Nigerian ceramics world can breathe a sigh of relief because the Federal Government in collaboration with the World bank is working on reviving the centre. The Minister of State for Mines and Steel Development, Hon. Abubakar Bwari recently led a delegation of the World Bank team to the centre, the minister who was represented by the director steel Mr Imeh Ekrikpo, said.

“It is no longer news that the once notable Ladi Kwali Pottery Centre and its training facilities have been allowed to decay by successive governments in Nigeria. To demonstrate the determination of this administration led by His Excellency, President Muhamadu Buhari to diversify the economy of the nation, I am here today as the Honourable Minister of State, Ministry of Mines and Steel Development to inform you of the Mission of Government to rehabilitate the abandoned Centre through the World Bank Assisted Mineral Sector Support for Economic Diversification (MinDiver) Programme.

“The Federal Government shall upgrade the Centre to meet the demands of contemporary modern pottery production which is expected to harness the abundant mineral resources requirements of the industry available locally.”

Life in Rugan Ardo community, a small, sleepy, rustic Fulani settlement under the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), is hard. The community lacks all the social amenities needed to make modern life comfortable. But of the numerous challenges facing the residents, access to clean water comes top.

Finding clean water, for 50-year-old Salamatu Alhaji and her two friends, Safia Muhammed and Zainab Musa, was a difficult task. Each day, the women would trek to fetch water from a stream. At some point, the women would sleep in the bush in order to be the first to access the stream in the morning.

Their search for water was worse during the dry season. They would walk a long distance to scoop water from a small, shallow pit beside a sizeable rock. The water from the well and the pit is unfit for drinking, but the residents have no choice, Salamatu narrated to this reporter.

That struggle for clean water has come to an end as the Centre for Communication and Social Impact (CCSI) donated a solar-powered borehole and four blocks of toilets and bathrooms to the community. On that day, the sleepy community came to life. Men, women, the old, and children trooped out to witness the commissioning of a borehole project expected to deliver clean water to their doorstep.

“Before this borehole, we used to trek for two hours – during dry season before we can get water. Sometimes we sleep in the bush so that we can wake up in the morning and be the first to fetch water from the stream,” she said with the help of an interpreter.

CCSI’s Executive Director CCSI, Mrs. Babafunke Fagbemi, said the provision of WASH facilities to the community was one of the ways the organisation gives back to the society. According to her, majority of the diseases killing children and pregnant women in the country are preventable if measures are put in place to promote good hygiene and the consumption of portable water across the country.

“Before now, members of this community travel over three kilometers to fetch water from the river which they often share with their herds of cattle..

“What we have provided here is a solar paneled borehole that would guarantee regular supply of water clean water for the people of this community and toilets that would ensure an end to open defecation and give women and men the dignity they deserve.

“We are excited when we see the smile of relief and happiness on the faces of the women and children who have had to bear the brunt of the WASH deficiencies in this community. By providing easy access to clean water and toilets, we have helped in alleviating their suffering so they can use their time for more productive ventures,” she said.

Unknown to many, and even the community, poor access to improved water and sanitation has remained a major contributing factor to high morbidity and mortality rates among children under the age of five.

The consumption of contaminated water and poor sanitary conditions result in increased vulnerability to water-borne diseases, including diarrhea which leads to deaths of more than 70, 000 children under five annually.

According to the United Nations Children’s Funds (UNICEF), there are around 2.4 billion people in the world who do not use improved sanitation and 663 million who do not have access to improved water sources.

Statistics from UNICEF showed that when it comes to hygiene and sanitation, Nigeria is at the lower rung of the ladder with only 26.5 percent of the population having access to safe drinking water sources and sanitation facilities. More worrisome is that 23.5 percent of the population defecate in the open.

Read Also: ‘Indigenous oil, gas firms play in deepwater terrain’

Fagbemi said without a partnership – that has led to the provision of WASH facilities to the community, 1000 members of the community would have been a part of the staggering statistics.

She said the provision of the borehole will help to reduce the number of people at risk of water-borne diseases in the country by 1000.

She said the organisation would continue to work with leadership of the community to ensure that there is continuous and steady maintenance of the facilities to avoid misuse. “This is why we are in partnership with the community because they also have a major part to play if the project must be sustained,” Fagbemi stated.

The executive director called on government at all levels to immediately give the issues of WASH the seriousness it deserves. “There are many Rugan Ardo communities in the FCT and they must not be left behind in infrastructural development and provision of water and sanitation. Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) goals 6:1 and 6:2 would depend on all stakeholders putting hands on the deck to reach every rural communities in Nigeria.

“We are pleased to announce that CCSI would continue to provide every technical assistance to the government and other stakeholders in ensuring that Nigeria does not fail on the global scale regarding the SDGs. We cannot afford to fail our children, who represent the future,” she added.

Chief of the community, Alhaji Muhammed Jibrin Yale, expressed gratitude and good wishes to CCSI for the projects.

Jibrin, who was recently promoted the Ardon Kasar Jiwa, recounted how members of the community would trek several distance before they could get water for use.

Also, the Hakimi of Idu, Is-haq Ibrahim, said he had never experienced a situation where a non-governmental organisation would come to an unknown village and construct a borehole project. “This is the first time in history. The area council is supposed to do this. We have seen their work on the ground today. We now have water and toilets because of you (CCSI),” Ibrahim, who was represented by Emir of Jiwa, Idris Musa, added.