The Nation Newspaper

Category: Saturday Magazine

  • How we ended Russia’s weaponisation of energy, by U.S.

    How we ended Russia’s weaponisation of energy, by U.S.

    In this briefing, United States Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Energy Resources, Geoffrey Pyatt, discussed the outcome of the tenth EU-US Energy Council’s meeting and the current state and future of global energy issues. Prior to assuming his current role in September 2022, Assistant Secretary Pyatt was U.S. Ambassador to Greece from 2016 to 2022 and U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine from 2013 to 2016. United States Bureau Chief OLUKOREDE YISHAU was part of the briefing. Excerpts:-

    The tenth EU-US Energy Council’s meeting

    Last week, I joined the U.S. delegation led by Secretary of State Blinken and Department of Energy Deputy Secretary Turk at the tenth U.S.-EU Energy Council meeting in Brussels.  This was the first council meeting since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The meeting was a tremendous success, both in terms of our broad agreement on a range of issues and in the substantive nature of the joint statement that we issued.  During the meeting, both EU High Representative Borrell and Commissioner Simson expressed their appreciation for the United States leadership, working with Europe in responding to Putin’s weaponisation of energy resources last year.  High Representative Borrell also pointed out that this effort has largely failed.

    Commissioner Simson highlighted that as we arrive at the end of the winter, the EU’s gas storage is at 56 per cent – a historically high level – and U.S. and EU imports of Russian-piped gas have fallen to 9 per cent from 40 per cent.  This council’s discussion of natural gas led to a consensus that Russia has simply ceased to be the defining factor in the European energy security equation. Our counterparts admitted that the European energy system has largely reoriented itself faster than even they would have predicted in February of 2022.

      The council continues to strongly prioritise the energy transition and the opportunities that it opens for all of us. We talked about the historic nature of the United States Inflation Reduction Act, and how we are working with our partners and allies to address their questions and concerns. And we also talked about EU efforts to incentivise clean energy technologies. We did recognise, however, that clean technology supply chains remain vulnerable to disruption if China continues to monopolise everything from critical minerals to hydrogen electrolysers and solar power components.  But we also sense that there’s a great opportunity for the United States and Europe to do more to build out these supply chains and to develop new technologies together.

    LNG as transition fuel

    We have a clear understanding as well that LNG is going to remain an important transition fuel for the European Union, as it is for the United States.  But we need to work together globally to lower the carbon footprint of that gas. We will need to improve in particular methane capture, especially in countries that still vent or flare a significant portion of the gas that they produce. I’m sure you all have seen the council’s joint statement. A few things stand out for me. The statement strongly condemns Russia’s unjust, illegal, and unprovoked war against Ukraine. It notes the council’s strengthened resolve to ensure EU energy security and to support Ukraine and Moldova. It also maintains a clear focus on achieving net zero emissions by 2050.

    The statement also noted the concerns of developing economies, which struggle to balance rapidly growing demand for energy and economic growth with climate concerns. These countries also strongly are affected by the energy market and related food and agriculture volatility that resulted from Putin’s war. The council’s endorsement of just energy transition partnerships and economic and workforce development assistance are two examples of how we recognise and address these concerns. In light of current events and the interest of diversifying energy supply, I was pleased to see the council express the intent for the United States and EU to coordinate our support for transparent, integrated, and competitive energy markets within the Western Balkans, the Black Sea region, Eastern Mediterranean, and North Africa. The statement also noted our intent to continue to work collectively on maximising the abatement and capture of leaks, flaring, venting, and other emissions.

     The council’s plans include advancing standards for measuring methane emissions and leaks along the full value chain, fulfilling one of the goals of the Global Methane Pledge launched by the United States, the EU, and our partners at COP26.  Entities like the U.S.-EU Energy Council play an important role in setting goals and standards.  But I was also pleased to see agreement on continuing outreach to the business community on issues like offshore wind and small and modular nuclear reactors.

    Ample energy storage

    With the energy system as it stands now, the European Union will enter the winter of 2023/24 with ample energy storage, while conducting ongoing work to decarbonise, including in hard-to-abate sectors such as steel and shipping.  Going forward, Europe and the U.S. will also continue to focus on increasing efficiencies through broad adoption of technologies, such as heat pumps and industrial efficiency measures. While I was in Brussels, I welcomed the opportunity to spend some time with Directorate General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations Commissioner Várhelyi and with my counterparts at the European External Action Service, who work on our G7 group supporting Ukraine’s energy sector. The United States and the EU maintain our clear resolve to continue this work, and we welcome Ukraine’s return to being an energy exporter to Europe. Ukraine’s future energy system will be clean, decentralised and sustainable, and it will face west.  Working together through initiatives like U.S.-EU Energy Council, we have defied expectations, improved our international cooperation, reinforced our close transatlantic relationship, and stood firm in support of Ukraine and Moldova.

    Russia’s attempt to weaponise energy resources

    I think it’s clear at this stage that Russia’s attempt to weaponise its energy resources against Europe, against Ukraine, and against the world has failed.  You see that in the dramatic reduction in European consumption of Russian gas, something I mentioned in my remarks.  You see that in the successful implementation of the G7 price cap on crude oil and refined products and the impact that that has had on Russian revenues.  And you see that in something that was so clear to me in our conversations in Brussels, which is the decoupling of Europe from Russian energy supplies and the reorientation of the European energy economy towards reliable, trustworthy global partners, including significantly the United States but also critical partners as well in North Africa, in the Caspian region, and elsewhere. So I think that phase of Russia’s energy war is over.  This – Russia’s weaponisation of its resources – has also ironically accelerated the investment in Europe in renewables and helped to advance our shared commitment to our climate goals.

    The main lesson for Ukraine

    I think the most important lesson is the extraordinary resilience and ingenuity of the Ukrainian people.  You saw there was an excellent New York Times story this morning about Ukraine’s return to its status as an energy exporter to Europe, about the innovations that Ukrenergo and Ukraine’s energy workers made in the face of this relentless wave of Russian attacks that began last October. We have to recognise, however, that the Ukrainian energy grid today is about 40 percent degraded, so we need to work together to provide Ukraine with the resources it needs to restore that capacity but also to build the greener, more sustainable, more decentralised energy grid that your government, that the Ukrainian Government, has committed to establishing.

    I think Prime Minister Shmyhal’s visit to Washington this week is an important opportunity to continue that work together. What we’re doing through the G7 group is also an element of this.  The volume of destruction that Russia has inflicted on the energy system is extraordinary, on the order of $10 billion according to the latest World Bank estimates. But I have also been deeply impressed that even amid all of this disruption, the Ukrainian Government, Ukrainian energy companies, are so clearly committed to building a future energy system which meets the highest European standards of sustainability, is aligned with European regulatory and implementation standards, and provides the power that Ukraine is going to need to sustain its reconstruction process. 

    Iraq and Kurdis agreement on the export of oil

    National Security Advisor Sullivan’s statement on Friday reflects the strong level of U.S. support for this agreement but also the attention that we have paid to this issue across the U.S. Government, including with our teams at our embassies in Baghdad and Ankara. You asked why we care.  There are a variety of reasons that we – that motivate our attention here.  But one of them, of course, is the fact that you have significant American investment in the upstream oil and gas sector in northern Iraq and the Kurdish region, so we are keenly focused on finding a mechanism to see that the flows are restored as quickly as possible.  We welcome strongly the agreement between Baghdad and Erbil to facilitate that, and we remain engaged with our Turkish allies as well to facilitate this agreement and the resumption of flows through Ceyhan.

     I would also draw attention to the other aspect of National Security Advisor Sullivan’s statement, which is his strong support also for the agreement that was struck between Iraq and Qatar Energy and Total for a new programme on one of the issues that I – that we talked about in Brussels at the Energy Council, which is measures to address venting and flaring in the upstream sector in Iraq.  There is a tremendous opportunity to achieve additional gains for the Iraqi people through this agreement. High Representative Borrell when we were in the Energy Council in Brussels made the point that worldwide there are something like 250 billion cubic meters of gas that could be captured through full implementation of the Global Methane Pledge. So this agreement between Iraq and Total and Qatar is very, very important to make progress on that goal as well.  So we remain closely engaged on these issues.  And as I said, we hope for full and speedy implementation of the new agreement between Baghdad and Erbil.

    Europe soon becoming dependent on LNG deliveries from U.S.

    I will say a couple of things.  Let me start with the first, which is, having spent a little more than a half year now in this job traveling around the world, talking to energy ministers and foreign ministries and governments, it’s clear to me that Russia is never again going to be viewed as a reliable energy supplier because of what the Kremlin did last year to weaponise its energy resources and to use those energy resources as an element of a larger strategy of coercion aimed at Europe, aimed at Ukraine, and aimed at the world.

  • Chimamanda’s epistle of garbage

    Chimamanda’s epistle of garbage

    By Femi Fani-Kayode

    Chimamanda Adichie’s “hollow democracy” diatribe is a shitty little submission, in a shitty little letter, written by a shitty little diva. It was hardly worth my time to read and ordinarily I would not have bothered.

     Like all faecal waste, it belongs in one place and one place alone: the bottom of a public toilet. We do not need any lessons from this over-rated and Igbocentric new age diva. Neither do we need to respond to her self-serving, self-seeking, jaundiced, subjective, partial, primitive, tribal observations and implausible ethno-religious sentiments.

     If anyone needs to know that lawlessness has consequences it is her candidate Peter and not the Nigerian people. And if anything is hollow it is her well-manicured diva head and not our democracy. She is not in this league and she would do well to stick to writing fairy tales.  Running to foreign leaders to report your compatriots does not sit well with me no matter what your Uncle Tom credentials may be.

     If you do not have respect for your own people and nation and if you have to go cap in hand to foreigners for validation then you are not worthy of being called a human being let alone a Nigerian. Africa has come of age. We do not need to get a congratulatory note from any Western nation before we sleep well at night.

    Read Also: Re: Chimamanda’s seditious open letter to President Joe Biden

    This is not some Hollywood film script or fantasy fairy tale. This is about the destiny, future, welfare and fortune of 250 million Nigerian people who deserve to have their place under the sun as a free, progressive and independent nation and not to be treated like some vassal state or an appendage of others. What this unpatriotic, hate-filled and overrated little diva has written is nothing but a long-winded, empty, tendentious and boring epistle of dishonest garbage.

     It is a litany of unwholesome mendacities designed to undermine our democracy, impress her global audience and incite her local ‘Obidient’ tribesmen against the Nigerian people and state. It is a reflection of her low self-esteem and inability to grasp the fact that no nation or people on earth are perfect in all their ways and that the America she is reporting us to is also in many ways questionable and flawed and faced with many challenges.

     The little diva is not worthy of much of our attention. She deserves nothing from us except ridicule, scorn and contempt. She should give us a break, spare the world her unsolicited counsel, desist from denigrating her nation from a foreign land, stop reporting Nigeria to her slave masters and, as President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda would say, “go and eat her mother’s something” .

  • ‘Resuscitate local manufacturing to strengthen naira’

    ‘Resuscitate local manufacturing to strengthen naira’

    The value of the naira has continued to slump against major currencies of the world, especially the US dollar. The Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Prostar Global Energy Group Limited, Chief Hyman Udemba, says the Federal Government should prioritise revamping local manufacturing to earn foreign exchange. He stresses the need to revisit development plans at the federal and state levels as it was done during the First Republic. LUCAS AJANAKU met him.

    How would you assess the performance of the economy?
    We are running an under-performing economic system courtesy of the glaring poor living conditions of the majority of the citizens. The fact that one can see many more waste bin scavengers in the neighbourhood speaks volumes. However, the real status may be determined by looking at the economic derivatives that inform performance of any economy with reference to comparable periods.
    Economically speaking, the most standard determinant of the function of any economy remains the per capita gross domestic product (GDP), which is the total output of goods and services shared by the population. This could be further explained as the success of the inter-relationship among the economic activities within the country, economic diversity, entrepreneurial ecosystem, and improved individual quality of lives emanating from those activities which could be assessed from the GDP per capita.
    A World Bank source for example showed Nigerian GDP in 2014 stood at $546.7billion with a population of about 176.4 million, and GDP per capita of about $3,000, which fell to $432.3billion and $2000 per capita respectively in 2020 with a population of 206.1 million. This shows a drastic drop in quality of life. It could be deduced, therefore, that the economy is under-performing with increase in GDP and increase in population comparably to 2020.
    Available statistics from World Bank and Statista revealed that the GDP rose slightly to $440.8billion or about N173.5 trillion in 2021. And according to Trading Economics, it is projected to reach about $445b in 2022. Considering the GDP in 2014 and the projected GDP this year with the accompanying growth in the population, there is no doubt that the economy is not doing well.
    Other indices exist confirming the economy in its knees begging for resuscitation. In the current globalised world, nations’ economies may not be assessed or examined in isolation as economies are interdependent through certain economic variables like the currency exchange rate, balance of trade, among other nations. There is no day that passes that discussion on the Nigerian economy will not be found in every media outlet. And one of the most discussed and of which the effect is observed in the national daily lives is the weakening of the nation’s means of exchanging goods and services, that is the naira. The naira has never levered against other major currencies since the last four decades and could be traced to continually weakened economic activities through economic mismanagement and unproductive national life. Take, for example, the Naira exchange rate in December 2014 was N185 to 1USD with an average of N165 to 1USD for the whole 2014. Compared with the average for the first half of 2022 at N645 to 1USD, it shows the economy going from better to worse with no sign of improvement in sight.
    The country is beset with revenue problem, how can this be fixed?
    Unless Nigeria is managed like a corporate organisation, the prevailing dwindling economic fortunes may continue unabated. Revenue sources abound for the government to leverage, but lack of political will to do the right thing at the right time may continue to stagnate every good effort for progress. The problems are myriad, but with the approach of corporate management, reducing waste to increase profit may be the game changer. The latest introduction of automated revenue remittance may have been a good step in a good direction, helping to cut wastes through diversion of revenues to private pockets, but lots still need to be done in ensuring greater compliance in remittances by revenue-generation agencies through investment in human resources for improved service delivery at all levels.
    The vast Nigeria economic base remains untapped as Nigeria already has diverse resources waiting to be tapped. This has been drummed for many years and refocusing in the area once neglected may be one of the ways available for the government to improve its revenue generation. Investment in agriculture, returning Nigeria back to its past glory of agricultural sustainability should not be paid lip service. Mandating regions to produce economic development plans for competitive endeavours in their areas of comparative advantages may see the country getting out of its current situation earlier than ever imagined. Need not to mention the waste in the stealing of the Nigerian crude oil by the privileged class. Plugging the loopholes will go a long way to improved revenue generation. These steps could be attained within months, show direction for sustainability and give hope to the citizens. The continued dependence on the centre for the funding of state governments’ functions is unacceptable with the current realities of failing Federal Government revenue sources. The Federal Government’s monolithic income source through dependence on crude petroleum has been a tragedy. With the zero remittance from Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Limited to the Federation Account sometime last year, there is no doubt that the outcry of the 36 governors of the federation over inability to pay salaries may happen this year. However, the proverbial stitch in time saves nine, may involve the government plugging all sources of wastes, entrench transparency in all transactions as a matter of urgency, and end the crude stealing since the sources are known. These efforts would go a long way in redirecting the ship of state from drifting.
    How can the naira be strengthened to improve the economy?
    The strength of a nation’s currency has a proportional dependence on the volume of her commodity exports. Unfortunately, Nigeria imports most of her needs and exports extraordinarily little comparatively. And with oil revenue at its lowest ebb, being the highest foreign exchange earner, this leaves Nigeria exposed to be seen as a failed nation. Nigeria has crude oil as its major export to have inflow of foreign currency, have had operational challenges meeting up with the production quota because of wastes resulting from oil thefts, pipeline vandalism and other criminal practices at the finance and management levels of the petroleum governing bodies. There is no doubt that the way out of the currency scarcity remains to fix the faulty governance system and manage the available resources with high level prudence. And it is only by increasing our exports that more foreign currencies could be earned with consequent leverage in exchange with the naira at advantage.
    What is the place of regular power supply in the economy?
    No country could make any meaningful development without regular availability of electricity in the current globalised world. Nigeria had for so long been enmeshed in electricity underproduction for more than four decades. Lots of investments have been made in the power sector without success. With current maximum installed capacity of 12,500megawatts (Mw) from both hydro and thermal plants, only roughly maximum of 6000Mw could be harnessed for reasons ranging from low water levels for the hydro units, shortage of gas supply to the gas-powered plants, and failure of the national grid to evacuate the generated power to consumers. It is critical to recognise that from National Electricity Regulation Commission (NERC) records that 74 per cent of the generated power to the grid comes from the gas-powered stations with 26 per cent from hydro powered stations. Unfortunately, the gas-powered stations are bedevilled with the gas supply shortages which could either be from non-payment for the gas or gas pipeline disruptions. The same could be said about the hydro-powered plants that depend on seasonal high-water levels for optimum power generation. With these monster variables, it will be impossible to generate optimum power from the installed capacity.
    Successful and reliable evacuation of the generated power to the areas and regions of need is made possible through transmission and distribution lines organised into a looped network called grid, otherwise known as a system of interconnection of more than power generation stations. While the transmission lines distribute generated power in high voltage across regions, the distribution system delivers the power to the consumers at comparatively lower voltage for industrial and domestic uses. Under normal conditions, the arrangement allows for uninterruptible power supply nationally even when one or two power generation stations or network linkages fail or when the grid is opened from a portion of the grid loop. Unfortunately, this rarely happens for reasons ranging from weak grid, vandalism occasioned by sabotage, bush fires and erosions that destroy transmission and distribution lines.
    The consequence of any one of the generation power failures or grid cut would usually have a consequential feedback effect to loads on the network and or other generating plants. The situation is most times better managed when the incident of grid disruption is anticipated or planned, like may occur during power shading, or relocation of transmission lines under threat of erosion or constant wildfires. In this case the grid failure and resuscitation would be well coordinated. In most advanced countries, defects from the transmission lines are usually caused by bushfires or other natural weather effects, whereas in Nigeria and indeed most developing countries are caused by human sabotage by way of vandalism of the fixtures of the transmission lines leading to emergency situations that cause longer periods of blackout. Effects from breakdown in the transmission lines and or generation stations would most times lead to load shedding which may cause load rejection, arising from generator overspinning and high frequency mismatch at generation plants. All these occurrences and their effects are complex and form the malady of the Nigerian power sector.
    It might be disheartening to know from NERC records that Nigeria had had partial and total collapse of the national grid for at least 152 times since 2010 and for about seven times between January and September 2022. This reveals a practically non-resilient grid system. Addressing the power sector would need government’s sincerity in tackling known issues which are linked directly or indirectly to the plagues of the sector.
    Would that include cancellation of the privatisation process as being pushed for by labour and others?
    This certainly does not include the cancellation of the privatisation process of the sector already finalised, unless for proven reasons of incompetence. Instead, let the parties review the terms of engagement with the IPPs and seek for more investment in the sectors’ infrastructure and human capital development with the consequent improvement in efficiency of the power generation, transmission, and distribution.
    It is obvious that the issues plaguing the power sector are complex, though the most obvious remains the grid collapse that simultaneously cripples every aspect of the economy affecting everybody at the same time. Addressing the problems of the power sector requires holistic re-engineering of the three legs of the sector- generation, transmission, and distribution. Sufficiency in power availability may start with considerable installed capacity by building more power plants with maximum capacity surpassing estimated maximum demand. This will enable stable electric power release from redundant generators whenever any of the generating plants fails or needs maintenance. It has been suggested at various discussions that the existing grid is weak to the extent that it cannot withstand the installed capacity evacuation to the areas of need. I, however, disagree with such insinuations believing that the primary thing would be to have available installed capacity and to release power as the need arises.
    The grid could be made more resilient by systematic upgrading of the fixtures, which include strategic and gradual replacement of the transmission wires to higher gauges. Improved networking may be achieved by increasing the number of transmission high voltage transformers to reduce pressure on the transmission wires resulting from voltage drop over a long-distance transmission. And expanding the network by inculcating additional web of transmission lines will make the grid less vulnerable as break in any part of the network could be circumvented very rapidly from a nearby close loop.
    Nigeria has a peculiar problem of vandalism on the transmission network and installing monitoring systems along all the transmission routes may curb the problem of vandalism of the grid. Besides, the monitoring will help to detect encroaching erosion that usually fell the transmission poles and open the grid. And bush burning which most times damages the poles may also be curbed by continual bush clearing along the routes of the transmission lines.
    The distribution aspect of the power grid is another area that requires attention. Distribution transformers and low voltage distribution wires are currently weak because of overloading resulting from poor environmental planning and load growth forecast, besides aging. Proper planning of the domestic and industrial areas will enable rated and balanced load distribution across installed distribution transformers.
    Other areas of concerns in power generation and evacuation which need to be addressed for improved power delivery may include protection of the gas pipelines for gas delivery to the power plant turbines, reorientation and retraining of the power generation, transmission, and distribution workers for more efficient power delivery services and restructuring of the power distribution system in load distribution planning matched with long term planning rated distribution wires and transformers.
    Private sector pioneered captive or private generating plants with excess to feed the grid at attractive rates should also be encouraged. Unfortunately, all these require time and financial input, and time is running out for the current government to achieve anything meaningful further in this respect. The incoming government may wish to set strategic plans to achieve all these by installing a mental increase in installed capacity of generating plants, expanding the transmission network and improving the existing transmission distribution network based on the current growth and long-term development pattern.

    What is your take about energy mix?

    Solution to the electric energy sector revitalization is a long-term and continuous project because of its technological complexities and huge financial requirements. However, for sooner relief on the pressure in the sector, government divestment in renewable energy mix is sufficed. And for sustainable development in this regard the tinkering on energy mix must be backed up with long term planning and balanced legislation in the form of policy and regulatory frameworks.
    It could be recalled that government had earlier established Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN) by Act No. 62 of 1979, and the Act amended 10 years after by the Act No. 32 of 1988 and act No 19 of 1999 when the body was saddled with the statutory mandate for the strategic planning and coordination of national policies in the field of Energy in all its ramifications including renewable energy. In the like manner, in order to increase local content in renewable energy products development the federal government established a research institution like National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) in 1992.
    Government effort in this direction has been progressive since 2015 as could be reckoned through the establishment of National Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (NREEEP) for the establishment of a viable framework. For speedy take-off of the initiative, the government became interested in inquest into the cost and quality for acquiring renewable energy component parts for implementation of renewable energy projects. And that led to the modification of the import tariffs through Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) and Standard Organization of Nigeria (SON) operational procedures to include the concerns in the renewable energy sector development on quality certification. In spite of all these moves, gaps still exist in actualizing the policy directives to logical conclusions because of administrative challenges and political will from the respective apex bodies, and lack of clear direction from the executive arm of the government. There is no doubt that sustainable policy frameworks matched with private sector and financial institutions participation could drive a speedy development in renewable energy of which private homes and rural communities could benefit immensely, with the tendency of relieving the national grid and allowing more power to be supplied to the industrial sector to enhance speedy economic growth.

    What are the challenges of deploying renewable energy in the country?

    One of the major setbacks in the deployment of renewable energy globally is the initial cost of the solar panels and the accompanying balance of systems including the storage batteries. Different countries devise different methods of delivering the alternative power to her people depending on the comparative advantages of the methods.
    In Germany which doubles as a consumer of the new energy and manufacturer of the component parts, the government initiated a program called 1000 roofs on solar in 1991, which success led to the expansion of the new German program to 100,000 roofs on solar on January 1, 1999. The government had a very clear objective. They aim to create a total energy-generating capacity of 300MW within six years and the cost of the program to the federal budget was 1 billion DM. The photovoltaic project was ranked the highest in the world and attempted to introduce PV to the national energy mix. All the participants had PV subsidy and long term of payment for the respective installed capacity.
    Other countries implemented only subsidized costs or both subsidies and much longer payment periods. Some also had carbon credit, a United Nations Carbon Offset Platform, an e-commerce platform established by Un to enable corporate organizations, individuals or private citizens purchase units to compensate for greenhouse gas emissions by installing photovoltaic systems, aimed at supporting actions on climate. All these add up to enhance take off renewable energy in so many countries benefiting both manufacturers and users greatly and driving down the cost.
    Similar program can be initiated by the new federal administration by collaboration with some financial institutions to facilitate support to the private sector in establishing renewable energy components manufacturing and supporting both private and corporate bodies to deploy solar energy at long term payment plans at subsidy for some lower income earners, especially the rural dwellers.
    A new policy could be promulgated to allow estate developers to inculcate solar systems in some percentages of their structures and sell or rent as complete with solar power. And to ensure the policy succeeds, the cost of the solar energy in the purchase of the structure also must be spread for the beneficiary.

    The massive deployment of the solar system will not only enhance living conditions, but it will also help to generate employment as many factories will spring up and many technicians trained to ensure professional installation and maintenance of the installed systems.

  • Tinubu’s government’ll re-integrate Nigeria – Kabir

    Tinubu’s government’ll re-integrate Nigeria – Kabir

    Alhaji Shitu Mohammed Kabir is a former presidential candidate and ex-National Chairman of Inter-party Advisory Council (IPAC). The All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain, who was the national chairman of the Advanced Peoples Democratic Alliance (APDA), is the Makaman Gwagwa, Dan-Malikin Jiwa and also the Garkuwan Matasan Arewa. According to him, Nigerians should look forward to better times ahead as the government of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the President-elect, will be for all Nigerians irrespective of political and religious affiliations. He made the declaration in Abuja during an interview with Assistant Editor, ‘Dare Odufowokan.

    AS the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration winds up, amidst complaints over security, economy and the likes, what should Nigerians expect from the incoming Bola Tinubu administration?

    Well, we borrowed our system of government from the American democracy. Every other countries practicing this type of democracy have mechanisms they put in place to localize the system to fit their own local character. That is what we are yet to do in Nigeria and that is why we are having all these challenges. Every time we have an election, this lack of local character in our democracy will show up to trouble the system. It is something we need to address quickly so that our democracy is no longer threatened.

    In a democracy, it is compulsory for one government to give way to another. That is why it is called a democracy. If you ask me, I will say what we should be asking ourselves at this point is how we got here? How did we arrive at this point where people are losing faith in our democracy? When I was the chairman of the Inter-party Advisory Council (IPAC), in conjunction with our partners, the Republican Institute and the Democratic Institute, we came up with three proposals to help our then nascent democracy.

    One of those proposals is that what we called proportional representation which is meant to ensure inclusive government after every election. It is meant to correct the situation where the winner takes it all and the losers go home to wait for another four years. We felt that was causing tension in our democracy and we must find a way of correcting the situation. Governance is for the people and we need to find a way of encouraging all those who are desirous of serving the people, even when they don’t win elections.

    We suggested that parties who contested but lost elections should get proportional representations in the National Assembly and if possible, in the executive arm of government too. It is something we were hoping to pursue as a bill before the National Assembly then because we believe it is the solution to the crises that always rock our democracy in Nigeria. With such an arrangement, we have two advantages; we will be nurturing our democracy and at the same time, creating ideological political parties that will stand the test of time and help the country.

    But today, because people lose election and they are worried that they have to go and wait for four years, they state fomenting troubles and throwing the whole process into disarray for no reason. I see the Bola Tinubu presidency as the one that will address this issue and deepen our democracy. He is a widely experienced democrat and he has all it takes to look at all genuine proposals and suggestions that can help the system carefully and take the necessary actions. I am convinced we have the right man coming to take charge and get things done. How will these ideas you are propagating change the socio-economic situation of our country from May 29 when Asiwaju will take over?

    I have heard Asiwaju Tinubu tell Nigerians that he will form a government of national competence. It gladdens my heart for we need to do business unusual for things to change. I am a component of merit. In achieving integration, peace and harmony of the country, we must accommodate all interests, on merit, in the new government. I will like him to also add the plan of a government of national integration because Nigeria as at today is so divided and disintegrated by many forces, especially the last general elections.

    We need to reintegrate Nigerians by giving every part of the country more stakes in the new government.

    That way, we will see that people will no longer be desperate to grab power. I am happy that Asiwaju has been in this game much longer than most people still around and active. That is the truth. He is the real Asiwaju in Nigerian politics today. He has come from being kingmaker to be king himself and that means he is coming with a lot of experiences and knowhow. As the President-elect today, he has seen it all and he quite understands the need for us to pursue reintegration and inclusiveness with the new administration. I have no doubt he knows what to do and he will surely do that.

    It is after that we can now examine the whole system and find out where we have been getting it wrong. We can no longer say our democracy is nascent 23 years after. We are supposed to show the world that we have arrived and lead other African countries how to localize democracy and make it work for them. China took democracy from the West and remodeled it to suit their character and culture. Now, their democracy is enshrined with the character of the Chinese people and it is working for them.

    We have to look at the federal system and how it works. Should we continue with it as it is or we need to tinker with it and remodel. We should also look at our party politics. Should we continue with the parties as they are or we need to reorder the system to suit our local factors and characters? All these we need to do. Luckily we have a man who understands what all these concerns are. We have told the aggrieved presidential candidates to go to court. It is the right thing to so. It is now left for the court to do their job fairly and freely so all nerves can be calmed.

    There are talks about plans in some quarters to prevent the May 29 swearing in from happening. We are also hearing about clandestine push for interim government. What is your take on all these?

    We have reached a time when Nigerians should know we have reached our promised land. Nigerians voted for Asiwaju Tinubu in a keenly contested election. He won and emerged as the best among other equally competent contenders. It is a choice that Nigerians made after months of comparing the contestants and listening to their plans for the country. I am optimistic that he will run a government that will be beneficial to all Nigerians. What we need to do is to avoid giving room for distractions and confusions.

    In 1999 when President Obasanjo came, the three political parties that participated in the elections were Alliance for Democracy (AD), All Peoples Party (APP) and the Peopels Democratic Party (PDP). Back then, AD could not win election outside the southwest. But today, that party has metamorphosed into the APC that is winning elections across the country and forming the government at the federal level. What I am trying to say is that people should not look at the winner takes all situations and start working against the system.

    We must not encourage such behavior. We must bring everybody on board and allow the process of democracy to continue. The next government should look at how it can assuage the grievances of some of these people. We must also tap into their know-how and see how they can help the administration. When the late Yaradua was governor, before he became President, I wrote a letter to him on nomadic education and its advantages if properly and effectively organized at the federal level.

    When he became President, he appointed me into the board for nomadic education and charged me to use my knowledge to develop the sector. If we had been allowed to continue with what we were doing there, we would not have been witnessing the farmers-herders’ clashes at the rate it is going on today. It is important for us to reintegrate the country. We need to also focus on our economy and touch the people’s lives urgently. We must find a way of improving our exports. The world needs grains and we have it here.

    But people are saying the incoming administration may be that of APC and its chieftains alone going by Asiwaju’s statement that he will form a government of national competence.

    That is not what he meant by that. We have competence outside the APC and we have competence even in the private sector. The Asiwaju Tinubu that I know will not do that. He is a team player. When I was IPAC chairman, he was one politician that consulted me severally, even for state elections. I don’t think as President, he will do otherwise. He is talking about merit and he is saying the same thing as I am saying today. He will do wide consultation and he will select his team from a wide range of interests. He is the one who brought about the marriage of many parties to form the APC we have today. So, I don’t believe what people are trying to pin on him because of the innocent but frank statement he made.

    He has made it clear that he will be concerned about merit in forming his government. But he has not said he will not consider other factors like the need for integration and inclusiveness. He surely will do that and he will put the interest of the country first. His Vice President is an example of what integration can do to us. He is from the north, he has stayed long in Lagos in the West and he has worked in the East and the Suth-south. Today, we have a Vice President elect that knows Nigeria very well and can serve Nigerians well.

    So in Asiwaju Tinubu and Kassim Shetimma, we have a pan Nigerian team that will give us a government that is meant for all Nigerians irrespective of where you are from and what you believe in. They cannot have such narrow mindset as people are trying to put up. They will search far and near. They will bring people who can help salvage the country on board, whoever these are and wherever they are from.

    What is your worry about statements coming from politicians that had ethnic and tribal undertones?

    I want to beg fellow politicians and all other stakeholders across the country to put the country first in all their endeavours and utterances. Patriotism should guide us at this crucial time more than anything else. We are first Nigerians before we aspired to be anything. The loss of an election or interest should not push anybody to say things that can burn the country down. That is not patriotic. It is when you believe in the country, that you will be making dangerous utterances. If we all put the nation first, we will be careful even when we are dissatisfied with the situation.

    The President elect is someone I have sat down to discuss about Nigeria. He is a Nigerian to the core and he is not vindictive. He will bring everybody together. We all should just give the new administration a chance to prove to us all that Nigeria can be great again. If you are patriotic and you want this country to move forward, we must allow the judiciary to show the world that we can solve our problems and move forward.

  • Imo guber: Anxiety mounts in PDP over Ihedioha

    Imo guber: Anxiety mounts in PDP over Ihedioha

    There is palpable tension and anxiety in the Imo State chapter of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) ahead of the November governorship election in the state. Assistant Editor, ‘Dare Odufowokan, reports that the unexpected withdrawal of former Governor Emeka Ihedioha from the race for the party’s gubernatorial ticket has left chieftains and members of the PDP in Imo state wondering what the former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives intend to do next.

    ON November 11, 2023, the people of Imo State will go to the polling units to cast their ballot in an election that will determine who will steer the ship of the state for the next four years. Governorship election in the southeast state is coming months after the 2023 general elections due to the belated inauguration of incumbent Governor Hope Uzodinma of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2019 after he was declared winner of the last governorship election in the state by the Supreme Court. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had earlier being sworn in as governor in May 2019.

    Uzodinma, who is rounding up his first term in office as governor, is eligible to run for re-election and has been cleared by the screening committee of his party, the APC to vie for its 2023 gubernatorial ticket in a primary election scheduled for between 27 March and 17 April 2022 ahead of the November general election. The opposition PDP, which lost the state to the APC when the Supreme Court sacked Ihedioha, says it is determined to reclaim Imo State in November. But observers of the politics of the state say recent happenings within the PDP have left many of its chieftains and members uncertain of its chances in the forthcoming election.

    For months, the gubernatorial ambitions of two chieftains of the party, former governor Emeka Ihedioha and Senator Sam Daddy Anyanwu, the National Secretary of the PDP, factionalised the PDP in Imo state and, according to party sources and other observers, militated against the party’s performance during the last general election in the state. Supporters of the two politicians engaged in fierce war of words and occasionally clashed physically as the rivalry over the governorship ticket escalated. The cold war between the two camps bred suspense and animosity within the party.

    The opposition party has between between 27 March and 17 April 2023 to hold its gubernatorial primary election and nominate its flag-bearer ahead of the November election in the state. Expectedly, when the national leadership of the party declared the race for the ticket open, both Ihedioha and Anyanwu signified interest as their supporters intensified the intra-party rivalry. Both expressed confidence of clinching the ticket. Another chieftain of the party, Hon. Jerry Alagbaoso, was mentioned to also be interested in the ticket. Amidst brickbats, party elders and other stakeholders urged the contenders to thread softly and avoid actions that can destroy the party.

    That was before Ihedioha shocked everybody by throwing in the towel and opting out of the race for the PDP ticket last week. His action immediately threw the opposition party into uncertainties as stakeholders expressed fresh concern over the chances of the party in the November elections with Anyanwu as the likely candidate of the party.

    Fresh worries

    The Nation gathered that the anxiety within the party is fuelled by the sudden withdrawal of former governor Ihedioha from the race for the governorship ticket and the silence from his political family since the surprised move. There are fears that the former deputy speaker, who boasts of very strong political machinery across the state, may still contest the November governorship election on the platform of another party or work against the PDP candidate at the polls.

    Speculations continue to trail his withdrawal from the PDP primary election. While some analysts attributed the move to the removal of Senator Iyorchia Ayu as the National chairman of the PDP, others claim Ihedioha is dumping the PDP to heed the unending call on him to join the Labour Party (LP) and seek its ticket. There have been indications that some chieftains of the LP have been urging the former governor to join the party and contest the November governorship election on its platform.

    Meanwhile the exit of Ayu as National Chairman is a big blow for Ihedioha who is a member of the Abubakar Atiku group within the PDP. Ayu is also a loyalist of Atiku’s. Anyanwu on his part is a loyalist of Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, who is believed to be behind Ayu’s ouster. Party sources said with Ayu out, the coast is clear for Anyanwu to use his current position as National Secretary to corner the ticket for himself. “Ihedioha was banking on Ayu to checkmate Anyanwu. He understands the game,” a source claimed.

    Checks by The Nation revealed that supporters of the former governor across the state are deeply hurt by the turn of events. “Many of them are blaming Anyanwu for Ihedioha’s decision to quit the race. They are accusing the PDP Scribe of bullying his opponents and his supporters. They claimed he used his position to install his surrogates in all available party offices in the state to the exclusion of Ihedioha’s supporters. They also claimed there is a plot to rig the primary election for Anyanwu.

    “To this end, many of them havwe vowed not to work for Anyanwu’s victory. They are waiting for Ihedioha’s next move. Many of them still believe the former governor will move to another party and contest the election. But others are even saying whatever Ihedioha decides, they will no longer work for the victory of PDP in the November election. This is causing serious anxiety within our party because we need all hands on deck if we are to defeat an incumbent governor and the ruling party in the general election,’ a party leader said.

    On 1 December 2022, the national PDP announced its gubernatorial primaries’ schedule and invited interested aspirants to pick the forms for the governorship primary election ahead of the November election in the state. The expression of interest and nomination forms, were sold to willing contenders from 16 to 31 January 2023. The National Working Committee (NWC) of the party vowed to provide a level playing ground that will ensure that the primary election in the state will be free and fair.

    A keen contest ends abruptly

    Last month, precisely on March 21, the party’s screening committee, seating in Abuja, screened two governorship aspirants of the party for the forthcoming governorship primary election of the party. Ihedioha and Anyanwu who were the only aspirants that obtained the nomination forms, were screened and cleared by the committee which noted that they were the only two persons who had shown interest in using the ticket of party to vie for the November 11 governorship election in the state. Alagbaoso did not obtain the forms eventually.

    Exuding confidence that he will clinch the ticket of the party and go on to win the November election, Anyanwu had said “I know the terrain, understand the politics and have built networks of political and social alliances across the state; I know the people, the issues, challenges, expectations, the possibilities and the potentials of the state. I will run a government that focuses on developing the economy of the state and making it the hub of South East market by identifying and developing viable areas of comparative advantage and encouraging private sector participation in developing the state.

    “A responsible and positive government should drive policies and programmes that would promote real development. If our natural and human resources have been properly harnessed and judiciously managed, Imo would have been one of the richest states, if not the richest in Nigeria. My goal is to serve as a bridge between the leadership and the people to ensure that the state is pulled out from the clutches of poverty, while ensuring timely payment of pensions and full restoration of civil servants’ salaries and emoluments.”

    On his part, Ihedioha reiterated his desire to do more for the people of the state as governor. The former deputy speaker said he was sure of returning as governor of Imo state in 2023. “I will remain faithfully committed to the ideals of our people. What I know is doing good for the people. I will continue to maintain those democratic principles that stand us out. When you made me your governor I did not disappoint you from the beginning to the final stages. These are challenging and tough times. They want to discourage us but it will not happen. I will keep my eyes on the ball.

    We must keep our eyes on the ball. The ball is the governorship of Imo state. My eyes will firmly remain on the governorship of Imo state. We are already there.” Expectedly, supporters of the former governor insisted that he was the best man for the job. According to some of them, there is no way the PDP will present any other person aside Ihedioha if it is serious about winning the November election. “We have the man who has defeated APC and Uzodinma before. If we want to win, Ihedioha is our best bet. He will do it again,” a chieftain of the party said.

    A queer charge and a surprise retreat

    But in a surprise charge after the screening exercise, Senator Anyanwu, urged his only rival for the ticket, Ihedioha, to consider quitting the race. The PDP National Secretary said that the only way there can be a consensus in the governorship primary election in the state is for the former governor to step down for him in the forthcoming primary election. According the PDP national secretary, “on the possibility of consensus, the only consensus is when he steps down for me because he has been the governorship candidate in the state three times.

    “That is why Imo state people are agitating for a new person. The question on the lips of our people is ‘how can you give one person ticket three times? So, this time, let a new person go. I have been screened. It’s almost ‘take a bow and go’ because I have passed through different screenings before becoming national secretary. I have served in different capacity. I have been a two term local government chairman, two term state house of Assembly member and a senator and I also ran for governor with Emeka Ihedioha in 2019.

    “So, I passed through the screening, even the screening panel said they don’t have any issues with me. Today, I even let them know what they don’t even know before about the issue of tax clearance, tax clearance can be forged out there, but I told them to always demand for the receipt. We are only two in the Governorship race, Emeka Ihedioha and myself,” he said. Anyan wu’s call on Ihedioha to step down for him elicited another round of war of words within the party as supporters of the former governor chided his rival for making the call.

    According to Hon. Stanley Ejam, a staunch supporter of the former governor, it is an insult for Anyanwu to ever think that he is better than Ihedioha. “Ihedioha is the best equipped between them. Aside the fact that he has been governor before and the people are still talking glowingly of his performance in the few months, he is the man who won the last election fair and square before the magic happened and robbed us of victory,’ he said.

    But last week, Hon. Ihedioha, in an unexpected move that caught many people, including his supporters unaware, withdrew from the 2023 governorship race for the PDP ticket. His action will pave the way for a consensus governorship candidate to emerge in PDP. Ihedioha made this known in a statement he addressed to the National Chairman of the PDP. According to him, “as I turned 58 years last Friday, March 24, I had cause to reflect on so many things, including the state of the people’s Democratic Party (PDP).

    “Having been a member since its formation in 1998, I align myself with the request made by our state chapter to the national working committee (NWC) for a consensus choice of the candidate regarding the 2023 governorship primaries in the interest of harmony and unity of the party. I have elected to make the personal sacrifice of withdrawing from further participation in the processes leading to the emergence of the gubernatorial candidate. This decision was not taken lightly.

    “My commitment to the service of our people has never been in doubt, and I am sure many of those who have on their own, already started mobilizing for me in Imo state will be disappointed. I sincerely seek their understanding and that of associates, admirers and particularly the electorate who have over the years aligned themselves and identified with my political aspirations. I am profoundly grateful for the opportunity to have served my various constituencies both as a legislator and a governor. I am also proud of the positive impacts I made, particularly in the seven months I served as the governor of Imo state,” he had said.

  • Controversy over N15b allocation to Refugees Commission as hunger ravages IDP camps

    Controversy over N15b allocation to Refugees Commission as hunger ravages IDP camps

    • Displaced citizens yet to get food supply in six months, beg for alms
    • How malnourished children were saved from dying
    • Questions also trail allocations to state emergency management agencies

    Internally Displaced Persons camps in Niger, Benue and other parts of the northern region of the country are yet to get food supply in the last six months in spite of huge annual budgetary allocations to the National Commission for Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons, the federal government body saddled with the responsibility of catering for the inmates. Following their inability to access food, the displaced persons have been left hungry and sick, INNOCENT DURU reports.

    ADO, an inmate of Internally Displaced Persons camp in Gwada Central Primary School, Niger State has become a recluse of sorts in the camp. The father of six avoids his children like a plague as they constantly weigh him down with cries of hunger.

    The camp, according to findings, has been hit by acute hunger in the last six months, following the failure of both the federal and state agencies saddled with the responsibility of catering for the needs of the displaced people  to supply them with  food.

    Consequently, Lado said: “I have been battling with hallucination that would not go away for some time now. The cries of my children for food reverberate in his mind everywhere I go. But I have no solution to their predicament because I am also a victim.

    “Every passing day, I try to get the thought off my mind, but this has been to no avail as the root cause of the problem remains unattended to.”

    To prevent the children from developing nutrition related illnesses and consequently dying, Lado said he and his colleagues comb their vicinity every day to see if they could get something to do and get some money to provide for their families.

    “I get between N800 and N1,000 each time I get somebody to engage me on his farm. The money is grossly insufficient but what can one do? I have seven children. Imagine feeding that number of children as well as my wife and I with N800 or N1,000.

    “It is better imagined than experienced because hunger has reduced our value as human beings. We look emaciated and weak every time because our stomachs are always empty.

    “It is God who has been saving us from slumping in the course of doing the hard labour we engage in to raise money to manageably cater for our families.” 

    With wrinkles lining his forehead, Lado said the children cry all day and night because of hunger, adding: “The camp is always polluted by their noise, but much as we are pained by their predicament, there is nothing we can do about it because we are also hungry.

    “The only difference is that we as adults can bear the pains of hunger but that is very difficult for children. 

    “The most painful part of all this is that when the children fall ill, we don’t have money to take them to hospital.”

    Another inmate, Joshua Bako, also looks ruffled by the fate of his family, wondering why the authorities don’t give them food  anymore.  “The government is very far from us, so there is no way we can ask them why they are no longer bringing food to the camp.

    “I have five children and it has been traumatising watching them cry because of hunger.”

    Aside from hunger, he said, “many of our children are also suffering from malaria and typhoid because they sleep in the open. Only a few people have mosquito nets while a good number don’t.”

    Decrying their plight, Dauda, a 35-year-old inmate, said life has been very, very unpleasant. “Food gives energy and you know the body cannot function well without food. We have been battling with hunger for a very long time.

    “Sleeping at night is a challenge, especially for the children because they are hungry. We also face the same challenge as adults but we can endure.

    “Hunger has emasculated us.” 

    Women are also not finding the ugly development funny as they are always with the children, watching helplessly as they  writhe in pains because of hunger.

    Asabi, a 32-year-old mother of six, said: “The children are crying daily for food. Before, we could manage to get something to eat twice daily but now, that has become impossible.

    “When we have something to eat, we will eat, and if there is nothing to eat, we would all stay like that.

    “It is disheartening to watch one’s children crying for food all day and all night. Their cries are heartrending and it is traumatising watching them holding their aching stomachs.

    “We never wished for this but that is what the challenge of insecurity has caused us.”

    Also decrying their ordeal, Rahab Moses, a  25-year old mother, said: “Surviving each day has been a miracle as we have no food to eat.

    “We go looking for food outside the camp every day. If we get food, we would eat, and if there is none, we just stay like that. Many of us have developed ulcer because of this.

    “We feel very bad about this and want to appeal to the government to speedily come to our aid. They should not just watch us die of hunger.”

    Benue IDPs yet to get food supply this year

    In Benue State IDP camp, Logo, checks revealed that the inmates have not received any food supply this year.

    The camp management told The Nation that the last time they got food supply was before the Christmas celebration last year.

    Levi Utim, Secretary of the IDPs in Logo area of Benue State, said the last time they got food supply was in December 2022.

    “Some of us go into the bush to look for firewood that we can sell to get money to at least get something for our families to survive each day.

    “The challenge we have here is that there is a limit to where we can go in the bush to get firewood. If you go deep into the bush, the herders will kill you.

    The implication of not having food for our people is that they feel very weak and always fall sick.

    “The pregnant women are worse hit because it is when a mother eats good food that the child will be healthy.

    “When a mother is hungry, how would the baby in her womb get something to eat and feel good?  This is disheartening for us.” Speaking on the efforts of the camp’s leadership to find a solution to their plight, Levi said: “Our chairman used to call SEMA, but there has not been any answer. It is very difficult to understand the SEMA in our state.  

    “We have never been lazy people. It was the menace of murderous herders that sacked our communities that brought us to this condition.”     

    Camp authorities confirm inmates’ claims

    The claims of the inmates were confirmed by the various camp authorities.

    One of the managers of the Gwada IDP camp in Niger State, who did not want his name in print, confirmed the inmates’ claims that they have not received food supply in the last six months.

    “Yes, it is true. Before now, the government, NGOs and politicians used to bring food for the inmates, but nobody brings food anymore,” he said.

    He noted that the inmates come crying every day “because we are their eyes.

    “We have drawn the attention of the authorities to their plight but there is no response till this time that I am talking with you.

    “When the inmates cry to me, I tell them to be patient until we get something to give them.

    “One thing that gives me joy is that the inmates are not lazy. They always go hustling to get something for their families.”

    A member of the camp management team in the Kuta IDP camp, Niger State said they have not had food supply for only four months.

    “The last time we got food supplies here in the camp was last year. It is about four months ago and that dates back to late 2022.

    “I can remember vividly that the new council chairman gave us some food when he came on board, and that was on December 12, 2022. No food supply has come to the people after that time.”

    Asked how the inmates have been surviving without food supply, he said: “It is by the grace of God that the inmates are surviving. Some of them are begging for help in the markets in order to have something to put on the table for their families.

    “The inmates, when begging, are always not after money. They just want foodstuff.

    “We have so many communities here in the camp. In the morning, some of the strong ones among the inmates will go into the bush to look for firewood while others will go to the town to see if they will get something to take home.

    “In the evening, they will gather everything they have got, cook them and eat.

    “They don’t eat very well at all. How can they eat well? I told you earlier that they are just surviving by the grace of God.”

    Explaining that the unpalatable development in the camp was not there at the beginning, he said: “When the camp was newly opened, the authorities were bringing things for them, but the story later changed.”

    On the challenge of hunger in the camp, he said: “There was a malnutrition challenge in the camp sometime last year. Four children were affected but we thank God that it didn’t lead to death.

    “The wife of the executive governor of the state has a non-governmental organisation that came to the camp to pick the affected children. They were taken to Minna, the state capital.

    “If you see those children now, wow, they have changed.”

    Apart from the problem of food supply, he said that the inmates are also bedeviled with the challenge of water supply.

    His words: “The motorised borehole was vandalized about five months ago. To get water, the inmates go to beg people in the neighbourhood for assistance.

    “We have some well-meaning individuals who have motorised boreholes in their compounds. We sought their help and they gave us time that we can always come and fetch water at their place. “Some disgruntled elements vandalised the motorised borehole in the camp. They removed the engine and it stopped working. Some boys were arrested for their destruction but they were later released after two to three days.”

    Questions trail multi-billion naira budgetary allocations to Refugees Commission

    Following the inability of the various IDP camps to receive food supply in the last four to six months, there have been questions about what the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and IDPs (NCFRMI) does with the budgetary allocations it gets annually from the federal government.

    Findings revealed that the commission has between last year and this year received over N15 billion allocations.

    In the 2022 budget, the sum of N5.74 billion was earmarked for the operations of the commission.

    In the 2023 Allocation Act obtained by our correspondent, the NCFRMI got a total of N10, 358,329,883 bringing the total allocations for the two years to over N15 billion.

    Though the sum released by the government to the commission could not be ascertained as at the time of filing this report, it is surprising why there has been no single food supply to the camps within the periods stated above.

    The commission, in the eyes of the inmates, does not exist. They are unaware of such a body. The displaced people in close to five years they have stayed in the camps only make reference to state emergency management agencies and well-meaning organisations and individuals as providers of food and other relief materials to them.

    The Benue State Emergency Management Agency, SEMA, Director General, Emmanuel Shior, spoke along this line when he sometime last year took a swipe at the federal government for abandoning the state and its teeming IDPs.

    He said: “It is unfortunate that Benue State has been abandoned and the IDPs have been neglected by the Federal Government. And the challenge at hand is very huge that it cannot be left to the Benue State Government alone.”

    Efforts to reach the official of NCFRMI covering North Central was not successful as the mobile line provided by one of their officers was not reachable.Subsequent efforts to get another contact of the North Central coordinator was unsuccessful as officials of the commission reached out to failed to respond.   

    The commission had last year, through the South West Zonal Head, Mrs Erinfolami, said to our correspondent that it doesn’t leave out any state in its support programmes.

    Her words: “We have been catering for every state with IDPs. As I am talking to you now, I am in Maiduguri for an intervention programme.”

    Budgetary allocations to State Emergency Management Agencies questioned

    While the Niger and Benue State Emergency Management Agencies appeared to have made provisions for the IDPs in the past, one is left to wonder what has become of the funds allocated for the displaced people in the last four to six months.

    Niger SEMA DG, Ibrahim Inga had this to say when our correspondent requested to know the last time the IDPs were provided with food: “I will have to get in touch with the relief department, because when we started the campaign of a thing, honestly, I know we had a template of how we used to give them food.

    “I will find out. I shouldn’t be giving you wrong information when another thing is happening on the ground.”  

    Recently, he said, the government is looking at providing more security within the environs “so that people  can go back and continue with their normal activities.  “We are trying to avoid the issue of dependency. If dependency sets in in an IDP camp, it would be very difficult for the government to manage it.

    “So, the government is channeling more of the resources to providing security within the areas so that people can go back and continue with their normal activities.

    “If there is a complaint, we will look into it and see what we can do to give them a better living condition.

    “Somebody who is in an IDP camp would have reasons to complain. Leaving his home for the IDP camp is a form of complaint on its own.”

    The Benue State SEMA DG, Emmanuel Shior, said the allegations of the displaced persons were untrue. “That is not true, especially the IDPs in Ayiin camp are given food monthly,”he said in a terse text  message.

    Emmanuel had last year disclosed that the state needed approximately N500 million monthly to provide the basic needs of its close to two million Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs.

     He explained that the state government was struggling with the burden without support from the Federal Government, saying, “We need about N500 million to take care of the basic needs of the IDPs on a monthly basis.

    “We know that food is very, very expensive. A truck of 25kg rice which is about 1,200 bags is about N18 million for one truck. What we have here is not enough to go round.

    “So in terms of purchasing food and non-food items that should be enough, we need approximately N500 million to buy enough items for the IDPs monthly.

    “Fortunately, Governor Samuel Ortom has been relentless not only in working and ensuring that he mobilises Benue SEMA on a monthly basis to respond to some of the basic needs of the IDPs, but also ensuring that in other areas of human endeavour, he works to ensure that the lives of Benue citizens are actually better.

    “The situation we have in our hands is not only humanitarian, in most of the communities that they attacked they also destroyed the infrastructure, farmlands, crops, schools, markets, churches and even bridges so as to make it difficult for security agencies to access the attacked communities and those they are occupying.”

  • Installation of two traditional rulers sparks crisis in Lagos community

    Installation of two traditional rulers sparks crisis in Lagos community

    • Outrage over botched arrest of Baale

    The appointment of two traditional rulers in a Lagos community is generating ripples as outraged residents, community leaders and factional traditional rulers protest, fight for supremacy, reports KUNLE AKINRINADE.

    A major crisis is brewing in Idioyin-Imoke community in Ibeju-Lekki Government Area of Lagos State, following the installation of a traditional ruler while Chief Saheed Omotayo Adeboye still holds sway.

    It was learnt that Chief Adeboye was appointed as the Baale for the community in 2015 by the immediate past paramount ruler and Onibeju of Ibejuland, the late Oba Olusegun Rafiu Salami, while Moruf Apena was appointed Baale about one month ago by the Oba of Araromi, Olayemi Lukman Adebambo

    Disquiet has since become the lot of the community following a failed attempt to arrest Chief Adeboye penultimate week.

    According to the aggrieved residents, Chief Adeboye’s appointment was approved and officially recognised by the Ibeju-Lekki Local Government.

    Adeboye is said be a member of the Baale-In-Council and has been on the throne for years before a parallel Baale was recently installed in the same community, setting off disturbances in the seedy community.

    The trouble peaked on March 27, 2023 when some thugs aided by policemen from the Elemoro Area Command allegedly stormed Adeboye’s palace and attempted to arrest him, but they were resisted by residents.

    The incident resulted in a free for all as the aggrieved residents exchanged blows with the thugs while the policemen appeared helpless and hurriedly retreated.

    The residents told our correspondent that the botched arrest of their traditional ruler was an attempt by the parallel Baale to intimidate him to submission.

    They wondered why the policemen who aided the thugs did not invite Adeboye to their station or show a warrant of arrest to justify their mission.  

    One of the residents, Mutiu Adekoya, said: “I am an indigene of this community; born and raised here. We didn’t have any problem in this community until the strange appointment of a parallel traditional ruler by a neighbouring monarch.

    “The only recognised Baale of our community is Chief Saheed Omotayo Adeboye, and it is sad that they have been trying to silence him.

    “These thugs who are being aided by some policemen from the Elemoro Area Command are on an illegal mission to arrest our traditional ruler, otherwise, why was he not invited for an explanation if there was any petition against him, and why did the policemen refuse to present any warrant of arrest when we demanded such?

    “Yet, they attempted to force their way into the palace in order to arrest our traditional ruler.”

    Another resident, Abeni Waliu, told our correspondent that the attempted arrest of Adeboye was needless and disturbing.

    She said: “Idioyin-Imoke community is a peaceful town that has witnessed unprecedented development since Chief Adeboye was installed as Baale, a few years ago. “Unfortunately, the appointment of a factional Baale in the person of Moruf Apena was needless and disturbing and the fallout is generating ripples at the moment.”

     Worried by the disturbing development, the leadership of Idioyin-Imoke Community Development Association, in a letter, urged the monarch of Ibejuland, Oba Waliu Olasunkanmi, who is the paramount ruler in Ibeju-Lekki Local Government Area, to intervene in the matter by calling the factional Baale to order.

    The letter dated March 29, 2023, reads in part: “The people and residents of Idioyin-Imoke community in Ibeju Agbe is (sic) bringing to the notice of your majesty, the Onibeju of Ibeju-Lekki Kingdom, the disturbances erupting in the community by one Mr. Moruf Apena, who has been disturbing the peace of this community with Police.

    “This exercise (sic) has really brought fear into the community and it has made residents not to be able to go about their daily activities.

    “We implore your Majesty sir to use your sovereign power to put an end to this so that peace can reign again within this community (and) to avoid chaotic and pandemonium outbursts in your kingdom sir.”

    In a telephone conversation with our correspondent, Chief Apena claimed that Adeboye had been removed as Baale before he was installed by the monarch of the Araromi community, Oba Olayemi Lukman Adebambo, about a month ago.

    He explained that the family that nominated Adeboye for the stool had withdrawn their support for him over his complicity in the unlawful sale of landed property and nominated him (Apena) as the new traditional ruler, hence, his installation by Oba Adebambo.

    He said: “The monarch of Araromi possesses the prescribed authority over Idioyin-Imoke land. Both communities (Idioyin-Imoke and Araromi) were founded by our progenitor, Oguntimehin.

    “We belong to the same family. His father was the former head of our family and it was the same family that nominated Adeboye for the position of Baale.

    “Curiously, Adeboye has been selling our family land for the past five or six years now and he has practically frustrated moves by the family to have him account for the land he sold, hence, the family removed him as Baale of the community.

    “He has no regard for the leadership of the family and has even refused to honour summons from the monarch. He is a brother to me but he was removed for his recalcitrant attitude toward our family and the family nominated me to Oba of Araromi as his replacement.

    “Truly, Oba of Araromi and Adeboye were installed by the same Onibeju of Ibejuland, who is the paramount ruler of Ibeju-Lekki, as Baale of Idioyin-Imoke and Araromi.

    “However, since Araromi’s stool was upgraded from Baale to Oba, the king of Araromi automatically becomes the prescribed authority over other nearby villages including the Idioyin-Imoke community.

    “It is therefore disturbing that Chief Adeboye has refused to honour summons from Oba Araromi when the monarch invited him in order to broker truce in the matter when the family reported him to the monarch.”

    He added: “Chief Adeboye is not a recognised Baale in Ibeju-Lekki.  He has not been gazetted and had no official recognition by the Ibeju-Lekki council area.

    “Also, he lied that I brought policemen to forcibly arrest him. On the contrary, I only led the policemen attached to Area J Command in Elemoro to serve him another police invitation after he had refused to honour several invitations from Akodo Police Station, the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Panti, Yaba, and the Area J Command, and his thugs stationed in the palace brutalised me.

    “He had stationed thugs in the community and I can no longer go to the community for my own safety.”

    In his remark, Oba Adebambo said he installed Apena as a replacement for Adeboye who has refused to recognise him as monarch and legal traditional authority since Idioyin-Imoke falls under his monarchical jurisdiction.

    “Adeboye’s father was formerly the head of our family. He is late now. He said he is not under my jurisdiction because he was installed as a Baale by the Oba of Ibejuland who also installed me as a Baale and later upgraded my stool from Baale to Oba. Adeboye and I are members of the same family because our patriarch called Oguntimehin founded Idioyin-Imoke and Araromi.

    “I have the right to appoint Baale over the communities within my jurisdiction; one of which is Idioyin-Imoke community.

    “He (Adeboye) has shunned invitations from Akodo Police Division, SCID, Panti, and Area J Command several times. His thugs even manhandled Baale Apena, who had accompanied policemen sent to serve him another invitation in his palace by the Area Commander.”

    “His men pelted the operatives sent to serve Adeboye and poured sand on the policemen. Their action infuriated the Area Commander, who ordered that the perpetrators must be arrested at all costs and that the culprits were picked up at nightfall.

    Speaking with our correspondent, Chief Adeboye said he was properly selected and installed as the Baale of the community by the late Onibeju of Ibejuland, Oba Olusegun Rafiu Salami, and had not been removed by Salami’s successor, Oba Waliu Olasunkanmi.

    He said that Oba Adebambo installed Apena as a parallel Baale to cause unnecessary disturbance in his domain.

    “I was installed as Baale of Idioyin-Imoke about eight years ago, precisely in 2015. The late Onibeju of Ibeju, Oba Salami was the one that installed me and Adebambo as Baale before Adebambo’s elevation to an oba by the new Onibeju of Ibejuland.

    “However, since my emergence as Baale, Oba Adebambo has never liked me.

    “My father was the head of our family at the time of my installation and he was the one that even nominated him (Adebambo) for the post of Baale before he became an Oba recently.

    “Since I became the Baale, God has been using me to develop my ancestral domain, the Idioyin-Imoke community.

    “I have never sold any landed property without accounting for the sale.

    “In fact, I bought the property which serves as my palace now from the previous owner. So I don’t use my position to covet other people’s properties.

    “Apena and Adebambo have written petitions against me asking the state government not to gazette my stool.

    “He claimed that I had not paid him homage in his palace. But if I had visited him in his palace and there was an exchange between us during the visit, he would have used it again that I humiliated him in his palace.

    “However, I congratulated him on the phone after his installation and even prostrated to him after the new Onibeju of Ibejuland, Oba Olasunkanmi intervened in the matter in his palace.

    “Therefore, I do not begrudge him at all because I am older than him, and because he is a monarch, I have always respected him at all times.

    “Contrary to the misleading accusations by Baale Apena, I was duly installed a Baale; I sit in the Baale-In-Council of Ibeju-Lekki Local Government and I also have an identity card issued to me as a recognised traditional ruler and I still receive my salary from the council area to date.”

    He added: “The thugs, aided by policemen, stormed my palace with the intention to forcibly arrest me. Unfortunately, I was not in the palace when they visited and the scene turned rowdy after they could not provide any letter of invitation or arrest warrant when they were accosted by residents.

    “I am still the legitimate traditional ruler of Idioyin-Imoke town. I have neither been removed by the Onibeju of Ibejuland nor the authorities of the Ibeju-Lekki Local Government.

    “All I want is for Baale Apena and Oba Adebambo to leave me alone and allow peace to reign in my domain, because I am a peace-loving person.”

    An inquiry our correspondent sent to the spokesperson of the Lagos State Police Command, Mr. Benjamin Hundeyin, had not been returned at press time.


  • WEIRD THINGS: Nigerians do to make ends meet as cash crunch persists

    WEIRD THINGS: Nigerians do to make ends meet as cash crunch persists

    The cash crunch occasioned by the Naira redesign may be receding but the memories of the hardship it entailed for the generality of Nigerians, especially the length many people went to survive, will linger for some time. TAIWO ALIMI chronicles the touching experiences of Nigerians from all walks of life who had to adopt different strategies to make ends meet during the austere period.

    A young lady of between 18 and 22 years old suddenly became a perpetual face at Mobil Fuel Station at Arepo on the Lagos/Ibadan Expressway.

    You might be tempted to take her for an attendant, only that she was not selling fuel or any of the allied products. She was not offering services to motorists either.

    But Sola, as the good-looking girl identified herself, would greet motorists with a smile before asking them in a polite manner if they would be paying with cash.

    If the response was positive, she would next fish out a Point of Purchase (PoS) machine out of nowhere and offer to pay for your fuel with her ATM.

    In turn, she would hand you a ticket, which you would then tender to the petrol attendant for your fuel purchase.

    Asked by the reporter what she was up to, Sola first said she was working for the station. Unconvinced by her response, the reporter probed further.

    “The truth is that I need the cash for my business,” she finally confessed.

    Sola is a PoS operator, and for her business to survive the cash crunch, she needed to think outside the box and find a ready source of cash outside the banks for her own customers.

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had announced last year the redesign of the N200, N500 and N1,000 notes.The old notes would cease to be legal tender across the country by 31 January, 2023.

    But an acute scarcity of the new notes made the 31 January deadline impossible, and prompted the apex bank, with the approval of President Muhammadu Buhari, to extend the legal tender status of the old notes till 10 February.

    The Supreme Court later ruled in favour of some state governors who had taken the matter to court for the CBN to return the old notes to co-exist with the new ones till the end of 2023.

    “It’s not been easy for PoS agents since money became scarce,” Sola added.

    She had only started the business when the cash crunch began.

    She explained: “I could not afford to be out of business as I fend for myself and my siblings through it.”

    She would move from one filling station to the other persuading motorists to let her pay for them with her ATM card while she would collect the cash they should pay to the petrol attendant.

    “I get lucky on some days and get as much as N20,000, which I take back to my shop for the day’s business. Sometimes I get less than that because most people don’t have cash so they buy fuel with their ATM cards.” She also had to be on top of her game to hit that jackpot of N20,000 by looking out for men receptive to her charm and beauty.  

    Her routine was not without risk, though.

    “As time went on it became difficult to convince people to part with their naira. I was snubbed some times and some motorists  made passes at me and attempted to touch me amorously as a condition for giving up their monies,” she said.

    So, why is she still coming back?

    “The cash I collect here puts me in business and the profit is good. I don’t pay anything for the money and due to  high demand, I make N300 on every N1000. Now, I’m charging less: N200 on N1000. As long as the scarcity persists I will continue to go back to fuel stations,” she said.

    Some other times Sola had to bail out the filling stations whenever they had an issue with their own POS machines.

    Her words: “There are times when the station has network issues and because I was handy, and in order not to miss sales, I will be called upon for my service. I make a legitimate profit on days like this as I will take my charges without any fuss.”

    Sola is not alone in this scheme to make ends meet.

    At Amuf Oil Station at  Magboro also on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, another lady in the profile of Sola was spotted making similar rounds.

    She was chatting away with a customer when this reporter noticed her. She moved from one vehicle to the other  and even buyers that came with containers trying to press them for their bills. Although some rebuffed her, others readily patronised her.

    Gloria can’t be more than 25. She is also a PoS agent and she has been in the cash mop-up scheme for one month.

    “I was introduced to it by another friend in the business. I do my thing within Magboro. Once I’m done here and notice that business isn’t moving fast, I’ll move to another filling station,” she said.

    There are five fuel-filling points in Magboro, so she has several options. But Gloria said the rendezvous, sometimes, comes with filthy consequences.

    She said: “I’ve been verbally abused by some people.

    “Just now a woman I approached because I saw her holding a wad of cash screamed at me.

    “She said I wanted to steal her money.

    “I simply walked away as people were looking at us.

    “People like that spoil business for us.”

    Like Sola and Gloria, Segun Michael, a young graduate working for a blue-chip company in Lagos Island, also frequents fuel stations in his area, though, for a different reason.

    Narrating her own experience, she said: “I found myself in this precarious position a couple of times, because I did not have enough naira bills to pay for transport to office.

    “What I did was to go to fuel stations around my house, begging the attendants to give me some cash, so I could transfer to their account. I had to practically go on my knees to get N2,000.

    “Of course, they made me pay extra charges, which went into their pockets.”  

    Michael said he was driven to take this route after all efforts to beg transporters to take transfer from him or take him for free were rebuffed.

    He said: “There was a day I spent two hours at the bus stop trying to convince commercial drivers to take money transfer from me to no avail.

    “At a point, I pleaded with them to take me for free but they also refused.

    “I had money in my account, but couldn’t access it. It was frustrating.” On occasion when public transporters agreed to accept transfers from their customers, it was lopsided and at a great loss to the commuters.

    Gbemisola Dada, a student of Leed City University, related her experience when she boarded a bus from Ibadan to Lagos during the general elections holiday.

    She said: “I was returning home from school and had no money on me.

    “Meanwhile, I had money in my account and I was told that transporters at Challenge Terminus were accepting transfer.

    “On getting there, I was informed that I would be paying through a PoS operator who was waiting nearby.

    “To my amazement, I had to part with N4,000 for a N2,000 ride to Lagos. I was angry but there was nothing I could do as school was already shut down.”

    Many other commutters who could not afford the exorbitant increase in transport fares had to resort to walking.

    Lanre Dipo, a factory worker in Ikeja, is in this category.

    “Most of the time I could not afford the charges from PoS, so I decided to be prudent with the cash I had.

    “If I had N1,000 cash, I would board a bus from Iyana Ipaja to Ikeja Along, and walk to my place of work located at Allen, saving more than half of the fare.

    “When returning home, I would do the same. Sometimes when I didn’t have cash at all, I would simply stay back in the factory until I could get some.”       

    Another PoS merchant Mrs. Ekaete Ezekiel, spotted at IBTC Automated Teller Machine (ATM) point at Ladipo Market, Mushin, Lagos, said she had to engage three hardy girls to scout for money to keep her business on. Their job was to move from one ATM point to another.

    “I didn’t sit down myself. I also moved around. My business is located in Ikeja, but I would come to Ladipo looking for money.

    “Sometimes I could have two girls combing the Mushin/Ojuelegba axis while one would go to the Iyana Ipaja area.

    “All of them had ATM cards which their boss got from friends and family members.”

    Mrs. Ezekiel explained: “I put money in their cards and parted with a token when I returned them to the owners.

    We usually got information from bank staff whenever they planned to put money in their ATMs.

    “So, we would get there early and wait for as long as it would take to get the money.

    “Sometimes, we would get there in the morning and wait in the queue till noon before we got money.”

    Mrs. Ezekiel’s charges did not come cheap.

    “Initially, I was charging N400 on a thousand naira. People would abuse us when we told them our charges but they didn’t appreciate the difficulty we went through to get money.”

    Managers and attendants of petrol stations also used the cash crunch opportunity to reap off customers.           

    At many filling stations, customers sometimes had to part with extra money to get fuel. The management would direct customers to a PoS point some metres from the station, where a woman would attend to them and charge N100 for every N5,000 fuel bought.

    ‘The Nation’ investigation, however, revealed that the PoS attendant actually works for the fuel stations and the said PoS machine, in fact, belongs to the same company.

    The plan was to fleece unsuspecting customers of extra money as PoS charges above what they should have paid for fuel. This was done after motorists vehemently kicked against N100 PoS charges on petrol sales.

    In Lagos, big markets such as Oshodi, Mushin, Eko, and others, The Nation investigation showed another pattern.

    Scores of traders selling clothes, food and beverages, assorted drinks, and wine have become PoS operators.

    A wine merchant at Mushin market Chinedu Okeke, attested to this.

    He said he became a PoS agent owing  to the cash crunch that affected sales badly.

    “Customers were not coming to buy wine again. For days, I would see one or two customers. I have two PoS machines which I use for business.

    “I realised I could augment my income by giving out cash. So, I asked my boys to go out for cash and we started giving out money with minimum charges.

    “It kept me going, but things are getting back to normal, so, I will stop the business soon.”

    Return of barter trade

    Mallam Yunusa Usman, a pepper seller, said he did not have much problem with cash as it is customary for him to keep a haul of cash handy for restocking market.

    He was however caught napping once.

    He said: “I had just returned from the market one fateful afternoon and I had spent all the money I had to restock.

    “I had not eaten anything as I left for the market quite early .

    “On getting back to my stall, I waited for customers to come with cash so I could  buy food, but market was dull.

    “By evening when the hunger became unbearable, I had to enter a restaurant close by to eat.”

    Luckily for Usman, the food vendor is one of his customers. She agreed to accept pepper in exchange for the food eaten by Usman.

    A similar scenario played out in Ketu, Lagos, where another food vendor posted a video of how she exchanged a plate of rice and meat with a local grocery seller for detergent.

    Some traders devised means of getting a percentage of sales in cash from buyers.

    A housewife, Mrs. Titilayo Nojeem, explained the process thus:

    “Since the cash crunch began, I’ve been paying for groceries with my ATM card.

    “After a while, I began to encounter some problems as the stores with PoS insisted on collecting payments in cash and transfer.

    “I was told to pay 20 per cent of my purchase in cash or else there was no deal.”

    Mrs. Nojeem said she bought goods worth N4,800 and had to pay N1,000 cash and transferred N3,800.

    “The store owner told me she also needed cash to attend to household things too.”

    Megastores taking advantage

    Some supermarkets were not left out as they extended their services to perishable food items, which people consume daily, but cannot buy from small holding retailers due to lack of cash.

    A housewife, Mrs. Sulaiman Adebiyi, said she now patronises the supermarket in her area for all her food items due to the ease of transaction.

    She said: “Before now, I used to buy my foodstuffs and pepper from a trader in the neighbourhood.

    “But since the cash crunch started, I’ve been buying these things from a supermarket. “Though expensive as prices are based on the weight of what you are buying, it is convenient because you can pay with your ATM card.”

  • Obidients at war with Soyinka over Datti

    Obidients at war with Soyinka over Datti

    The latest victim of ‘Obi-dients’ mob justice is Nobel laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka. Still smarting from the loss of their preferred candidate, Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP), in the 2023 elections, they recently unleashed their venom on Soyinka for daring to criticise Obi’s running mate, LP vice-presidential candidate, Datti Baba-Ahmed, over the latter’s comments during a recent interview.

    The Nobel Laureate had criticised Datti for addressing the Supreme Court in “fascistic language.”

    When Datti went on air, he spoke carelessly, saying the country had no president-elect despite the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announcing Asiwaju Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the election.

    The LP vice-presidential candidate fumed that Tinubu would be leading an unconstitutional government if sworn into office because the APC candidate “has not met requirements of the law.”

    The interview did not go down well with many, especially the opposition. It equally elicited criticism from diverse segments of the public. Subsequently, the National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) sanctioned the TV station for airing a “volatile broadcast capable of inciting public disorder and violating sections of the broadcasting code,” as well as a N5 million fine.

    Soyinka’s take on the issue was characteristically blunt. He wondered why the LP vice-presidential candidate tried to “dictate to the supreme arbiter of the nation,” he went on to accuse Datti of broad-daylight blackmailing of the judiciary.” His comments were unbecoming and a threat to the judiciary. It is a fascist language that alienates the people. It is unacceptable, and I refuse to be a part of it.” Soyinka fumed.

    Soyinka believes that Datti’s commentary presents a false narrative of the supporters of the party, especially the “Obidient” family, thus fanning the flames of fascism in politics.

    Analysing the aftermath of the 2023 polls, the Nobel laureate didn’t leave out the ethnic tension episodes that characterised the Guber elections. He condemned the attacks on non-indigenes in various states, especially in Lagos State, where violence and open threats broke out. He also suggested a decentralized system of sharing political power

    Expectedly, Obi’s supporters launched attacks on Soyinka declaring him an enemy of the “Obidients.”

    The incessant verbal abuse eventually irked many who rose sharply in defense of the renowned playwright.

    Over the years, the 88-year-old novelist has remained vocal and expressive, hardly ever talking about himself; but always speaking out about issues in the country and the way forward.

    Soyinka, without mincing words, said he had warned Obi that if he lost the presidential election, it would be as a result of his followers’ attitude. But clearly, Obidients have metamorphosised into a social media lynch mob, attacking opponents in packs and tyrannising those who do not share their views.

    Since Obi joined the presidential race, his horde of supporters have been the most intemperate, and at worst, find their expression in abuse, intimidation, the threat to use violence and utter disregard for the feelings and rights of others. Summarily, anyone who does not support them or share in their sentiments is an enemy.

    Aside from Soyinka, the likes of Pastor Poju Oyemade, Femi Otedola, Father Mbaka, Reno Omokri, Pastor Adeboye, Deji Adeyanju, Pastor Adefarasin, Femi Fani-Kayode, and a host of others once, had their fair share of hateful comments and threats from Obi’s supporters.

    Although Obi, had repeatedly made a show of admonishing his supporters to stop insulting or attacking his opponents and their supporters, the intolerance of opposing views by his supporters escalates in real-time thus truncating the beauty of democracy.

    While the dust raised by Soyinka is yet to settle. Soyinka is not new to controversies, many observers admire his courage and knack for speaking truth to power. Just like former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) deputy governor, Kingsley Moghalu echoed, Soyinka will survive the attacks.

  • Yes, Daddy! Still on Obi’s, Oyedepo’s leaked audio

    Yes, Daddy! Still on Obi’s, Oyedepo’s leaked audio

    Out of the blues, the catchphrase — ‘Yes Daddy’ joined the slang phrases trending on social media among netizens.

    The catchphrase, by its connotation, was initially a way of responding respectfully by Christians in interaction with their pastors. Two prominent personalities have, however, made the news over the catchphrase — one a politician, the other a pastor — and they have literally leapfrogged into a dilemma that may not go away anytime soon.

    The alleged discreet telephone conversation between the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, and the founder of the Winners’ Chapel, Bishop David Oyedepo, has come under severe public censure. The leaked audio which has been refuted to be fake by the former Anambra governor became the subject of discourse. Obi was heard repeatedly saying: “Yes Daddy” while the conversation lasted.

    Over time, a lot of controversies have surrounded both Obi and Oyedepo. While they are both of the same faith, they belong to different church bodies — Catholic and Pentecostal respectively. But most strikingly, they share a sweet relationship.

    What caught the attention of many in the leaked audio was the declaration by Obi that the 2023 presidential election was a religious war. It generated heated conversations with many condemning the LP candidate for championing religious bigotry in a multi-dimensional country like Nigeria.

    The incident stirred deep questions about Obi’s touted integrity: “Is this the type of leader Nigeria needs at this time? Will Obi not cause ethnic and religious war in Nigeria if elected?”

    Obi may have won in the hearts of so many Nigerians, young and old, but he has failed to rid himself of ethnic and religious prejudice; several Nigerians have accused him of introducing ethnic and religious bias into national politics.

    Expectedly, Obi’s supporters rose stoutly in his defence. They dismissed the leaked audio as an unnecessary distraction from the LP candidate’s resort to legal redress over perceived irregularities in the just concluded elections.

    Obi’s camp is clearly in disarray as the Labour Party has found it difficult to articulate a coherent response to the controversial audio. While the platform that leaked the audio stands by its story, early reactions from ‘Obidients’ and other LP apologists depict confusion.

    Some were quick to discredit the audio, arguing that it was created by artificial intelligence. But Kenneth Okonkwo, a spokesperson of the LP campaign, in a series of posts on his official Twitter handle admitted that “political criminals are trying to spin the conversation as if the LP candidate was making a religious comment,” thus affirming that the leaked audio is indeed authentic.

    Obi, on his part, has described the audio as fake even as Oyedepo maintained that he had no favourite candidate for the 2023 elections. Speaking during a church sermon, he skirted around the controversy of the leaked audio and cleverly avoided issuing a direct rebuttal or confirmation of it.

    In the just-concluded 2023 polls, Nigeria’s democracy faced a crucial test. Asides from ethnic sentiments, religion was deployed quite recklessly by political actors to gain an advantage over their rivals, at the expense of the country’s fragile peace and unity.

    Several religious leaders brazenly used their influence on the pulpit to campaign for their preferred candidate thus deepening the religious tension that seized the polity.

    Obi easily became the beautiful bride of the church. He wooed church bodies and sought the anointment of several pastors, who prophesied that he would emerge as the next president. His pronouncement: “Church, take back your country!” while addressing Christian voters resonated jarringly across the political circuit. It generated worry that his 2023 campaign was “a religious war” against the APC’s Muslim-Muslim ticket. Some observers wondered why the LP candidate was not frequent with his visitation to imams and major Muslim leaders in the North as he was with the pastors.

    Apart from Rev. Father Mbaka who took a swipe at Obi for being stingy and did not see him becoming the president this year, some prominent church leaders — Oyedepo, Paul Enenche, Johnson Suleman, Chris Oyakhilome, and others queued behind Obi.

    Some of the few takeaways from the 2023 elections are that an electoral contest should never be a ‘do-or-die’ affair and clerics should know where to draw the line in expressing their support for a political candidate. They are expected to demonstrate some sense of understanding that in the churches they lead, almost all the political parties are represented, hence the need to exercise restraint where necessary, rather than drag the pulpit to disrepute.

    Obi, on the other hand, must be prepared to play the long game ahead. Having resorted to litigation to wrest political power to his advantage, he must abide by the rule of law and urge his supporters to do likewise. Nigeria, after all, is bigger than any candidate and political party.