Category: Special Report

Will the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and former Imo State Governor Emeka Ihedioha succeed in their bid to get the Supreme Court to reverse the judgment which sacked him? Deputy News Editor JOSEPH JIBUEZE revisits similar efforts in the past.

Two Supreme Court judgments within a month sent reverberating shockwaves through the polity.

In the first judgment delivered on January 14, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was at the receiving end.

The Supreme Court removed Imo State Governor Emeka Ihedioha and ordered the swearing-in of Senator Hope Uzodinma, All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in the last March 9 election.

The PDP has been protesting against the verdict, with its chairman Prince Uche Secondus and other leaders urging the highest court to “revisit, review and reverse” the judgment.

An application to that effect will be heard tomorrow.

While the PDP protests were yet to abate, the roles unexpectedly reversed with regards to the Bayelsa State governorship election.

APC’s David Lyon was warming up to be sworn in as the governor when the Supreme Court dashed his and APC’s hopes.

The apex court disqualified Lyon because of irregularities in his running mate’s names on his certificates.

PDP’s Douye Diri has since been sworn in.

APC National Chairman Adams Oshiomhole said the party will explore “viable legal windows” to reverse the verdict.

He added: “We affirm our confidence in the judiciary even with pain in our hearts.”

An option for APC and Lyon would be to seek the judgment’s reversal, but will the PDP and APC succeed where others have failed?

APC, Uzodinma oppose PDP, Ihedioha’s prayers

In a February 5 application, PDP and Iheodioha are praying for “an order setting aside, as a nullity, the judgment…”

Their application is based on five grounds, including that the judgment was obtained by fraud and that Uzodinma misled the court.

Ihedioha and his party also argued that the Supreme Court lacked the jurisdiction when it heard and decided Uzodinma’s appeal and that its decision was given per incuriam (lacking due regard to the law or the facts).

The applicants said: “The appellants/respondents (Uzodinma and the APC) fraudulently misled this court into holding that a total of 213,495 votes were unlawfully excluded from the votes scored by the first appellant/respondent (Uzodinma) in the gubernatorial election of 9th March 2019 in Imo State.

“The first appellant/respondent admitted under cross-examination that he was the person, and not the third respondent (INEC) or any of its officials, who computed the result that gave him the 213,495 votes alleged to have been excluded from his total votes in the election.

“The fraudulent nature of the additional votes was demonstrated by the fact that the total votes cast, as shown in the first appellant/respondent’s computation, was more than the total number of voters accredited for the election and in some polling units more than the total number of registered voters.

“The fraud was also demonstrated by the fact that the result computed by the first appellant/respondent showed only the votes of the first applicant and the first appellant/respondent without specifying the votes scored by the other 68 candidates who participated in the election.”

But, the APC and Uzodinma are praying the Supreme Court to hold that it was late for Ihedioha and PDP to request the court to revisit their case at the expiration of the 60 days allowed by the Constitution.

They are contending that it was not part of the Supreme Court’s functions to sit on appeal over its judgment as being demanded by PDP and Ihedioha.

The respondents argue that since January 14 when the Supreme Court gave its decision, it no longer had jurisdiction to adjudicate on the case.

Uzodinma and the APC also argued that the Supreme Court’s rule prevents it from reviewing its judgment once delivered, except to correct clerical mistakes or accidental slips.

They urged the highest court not to indulge in an academic exercise or provide answers to hypothetical questions.

Oputa’s words of hope

The words of the late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa are always referred to by those who believe the Supreme Court can make a mistake and reverse itself.

In the case of Adegoke Motors Ltd. v. Adesanya (1989] 13 NWLR (Pt.109) 250 at page 275, the late Justice famously said: “We are final not because we are infallible; rather we are infallible because we are final.

“Justices of this court are human beings, capable of erring. It will certainly be short-sighted arrogance not to accept this obvious truth. It is also true that this court can do inestimable good through its wise decisions.

“Similarly, the court can do incalculable harm through its mistakes. When, therefore, it appears to learned counsel that any decision of this court has been given per incuriam, such counsel should have the boldness and courage to ask that such a decision be overruled.

“This court has the power to over-rule itself (and has done so in the past) for it gladly accepts that it is far better to admit an error than to persevere in error.”

The late Oputa reportedly quoted a former American Supreme Court Justice, Robert H. Jackson, who said in the case of Brown v. Allen, 344 U.S. 443: ”Whenever decisions of one court are reviewed by another, a percentage of them are reversed. That reflects a difference in outlook normally found between personnel comprising different courts.

“However, reversal by a higher court is not proof that justice is, thereby, better done.

“There is no doubt that if there were a super-Supreme Court, a substantial proportion of our reversals of state courts would also be reversed.

“We are not final because we are infallible, but we are infallible only because we are final.”

Some failed revsersal attempts: The Zamfara case

One of the most recent examples of a failed attempt to have a judgment  reversed involves the APC and its candidates on the last Zamfara State elections.

Last July 22, the Supreme Court rejected a request to review its May 24, 2019 judgment voiding APC’s participation in the polls.

A five-man panel, led by Justice Olabode Rhodes-Vivour, struck out the application filed on behalf of APC and its candidates by a leading lawyer, Robert Clarke (SAN).

Clarke said the application was for the Supreme Court to reconsider its judgment which transferred APC’s victory to PDP, which came second in the poll.

But, the justices faulted the application, saying the APC and other applicants did not provide a valid basis for a review.

Justice Ejembi Eko noted that the application was wrongly brought under Order 8, Rule16 of the Supreme Court’s Rules.

Justice Amina Augie noted that the grounds on which the application was brought did not qualify for the court to review its earlier decision.

Justices John Okoro and Amiru Sanusi noted that since the case, on which the earlier judgment was given, was a pre-election case for which the Constitution allows the Supreme Court 60 days to determine, the court no longer had jurisdiction to revisit the case.

Justice Rhodes-Vivour said: “The Supreme Court has no jurisdiction over the matter because anything that has to do with pre-election matter must be brought within 60 days after a decision had been delivered.

“We don’t seat on appeal over our own decision. We have no jurisdiction over this matter.”

Ogboru vs Uduaghan

In 2014, former Democratic Peoples Party (DPP) governorship candidate in Delta State, Chief Great Ogboru, had, through his counsel Dr Dickson Osuala, sought a review of the judgment which upheld former Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan’s victory.

Osuala claimed that Section 285 (7) of the Constitution, which the Supreme Court relied on to dismiss his client’s case, was “fraudulently inserted by the National Assembly”, and that its addition did not follow due process.

The Supreme Court dismissed the case and awarded N8million cost to Uduaghan.

Former Chief Justice Walter Onnoghen held: “The said N8million is awarded as cost against the person of Dr Osuala and is to be paid from his pocket to the respondents.

“The plaintiff, through his counsel, wants to resurrect a dead and buried horse.”

Ogboru twice failed in his attempt to have the judgment reviewed.

Omehia vs Amaechi

Former Rivers State Governor Celestine Omehia, whose tenure was short-lived, sought a review of the Supreme Court judgment delivered on October 25, 2007, which replaced him with Rotimi Amaechi.

In December 2006, Amaechi contested and won the PDP primaries, but his name was substituted with Omehia’s.

In 2007, Amaechi filed a suit challenging the decision. The Supreme Court held that Amaechi was wrongly substituted with Omehia. It declared Amaechi as the governor.

Omehia’s counsel, James Esike, argued that the verdict was without jurisdiction as the highest court made an order not sought for.

On November 2, 2009, the apex court dismissed Omehia’s application for a review of its judgment and awarded N100, 000 cost against him.

Former Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), the late Aloysius Katsina-Alu told the lawyer: “In my view, your action here is serious professional misconduct. We have given our decision two years ago and you are here asking us to review it.

“Even if we stay here till December, you will get nothing. At best, you can attract punitive damages. Whether right or wrong, that judgment stands.

“You are treading a dangerous ground by asking us to reverse ourselves. We have no right to sit on appeal over our decision. Our judgment is not a nullity and you can go on and appeal to God.”

Uba vs Obi

A former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s aide Andy Uba and others twice sought a reversal of the Supreme Court judgment of June 14, 2007, which validated Peter Obi’s status as governor.

Dismissing the application, the late Justice Katsina-Alu said hearing the applications would amount to a wild goose chase.

At Uba’s second attempt, the Supreme Court said the application was a “thorough abuse of the judicial process.”

Then CJN, the late Idris Legbo Kutigi held: “This court held in its earlier judgment that the notice of appeal filed by Peter Obi at the Court of Appeal was valid.

“Yet, after our judgment, the applicant went straight back to the trial court to ask it to void the same notice of appeal which this court had declared valid. When he failed, he went back to the Court of Appeal and failed and has returned to us.

“What kind of country is this where Senior Advocates of Nigeria are used to mess up the judiciary? We will not allow this kind of practice. This is wrong.

“The appellant has been shuttling from one court to another on a matter that the Supreme Court had already delivered judgment.

“If the Supreme Court makes a mistake, there are procedures of correcting the mistakes; not this way, and we will not allow it.”

Rays of hope

There are, however, historical instances of the Supreme Court reversing itself. In a 1971 case filed by Kobina Johnson vs Irene Lawanson, the applicant reportedly questioned a section of the Evidence Act.

The Supreme Court had earlier maintained that for a deed to be competent as contemplated by Section 129 of the Evidence Act, it must be 20 years old as at the date of proceedings. But, on February 12, 1971, the Supreme Court reversed itself.

It held that for a deed to be competent, it must be 20 years old “at the date of the contract”.

Justice G.B.A Coker held: “When the court is faced with the alternative of perpetuating what it is satisfied is an erroneous decision which was reached per incuriam and will, if followed, inflict hardship and injustice upon the generations in the future or cause temporary disturbances of rights acquired under such a decision, I do not think we shall hesitate to declare the law as we find it.”

A legal expert, Emeka Opara, noted that the United States Supreme Court had, in several instances, set aside its decisions.

In an article, he writes: “In Jones v. City of Opelika (II), 319 U.S. 103 (1943) the court vacated certain orders made in its judgment in Jones v. City of Opelika 316 U.S. 584 (1942), having found on the application and proper examination of the law, that it arrived at the earlier decision wrongly.

“This later decision was based on its decision in Murdock v. Pennsylvania, 319 U.S. 105 (1943) which had been brought to its notice.

“In the Civil Trials Bench Rules of Australia, it is noted (Note 2-6600) that a judgment or order can be set aside if entered or made irregularly, illegally or against good faith.

“Violi v. Commonwealth Bank of Australia [2015] NSWCA 152 and Chand v Zurich Australian Insurance Ltd [2013] NSWSC 102 are two examples.

“Coming home to Nigeria, in Oriker Jev & Ors. v. Iyortom & Ors. [2015] NWLR (Pt. 1483) 484, interestingly an electoral matter, the Supreme Court had in an earlier judgment ordered that INEC conduct run-off election in the case.

“Subsequently, the court discovered that it made the said order based on a wrong interpretation of Section 133(2) in conjunction with Section 141 of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended).

“On a post-judgment application by one of the parties, the court set aside the earlier order.

“It instead ordered INEC to issue the applicant a certificate of return.

“The court further held: ‘(1) That there is no constitutional provision for the Supreme Court to review its judgment as section 235 of the Constitution gives a stamp of finality to any decision of the Supreme Court.

“‘(2) That there is, however, as the Supreme Court has decided in several cases, an inherent power to set aside its judgment in appropriate or deserving cases but that such inherent jurisdiction cannot be converted into an appellate jurisdiction as though the matter before it is another appeal intended to afford the losing litigants yet another opportunity to restate or re-argue their appeal.”

According to Opara, where the ground exists, “Supreme Courts of basically all jurisdictions will not shy away from setting aside their judgments or orders and substituting them with others”.

What the experts said

Senior lawyers believe it will be difficult to get the Supreme Court to reverse its judgment.

Chief Ifedayo Adedipe, Dr Olisa Agbakoba, Mr Ahmed Raji, Babatunde Fashanu and Dr Paul Ananaba, all Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SAN), held similar views.

They spoke with The Nation before the PDP and Ihedioha filed their application for the review.

Adedipe said: “The Supreme Court is the final court of the land. Its decisions can only be changed by legislation.

“The provisions in the Supreme Court Act for a review of judgment have to do with correcting clerical mistakes.

“Besides that, the court cannot revisit any decision it has rendered. The PDP’s call, with profound respect, is mischievous.”

For Agbakoba, PDP’s review demand is unrealistic. He said: “The demand is not feasible as it is a final judgment and not amenable to review.”

Raji said while the Supreme Court rules allow for a review in a very limited way, there are other factors to be considered.

“If their case can be accommodated under the rules and the decided authorities on the point, why not? But the greatest challenge will be the 60-day time-limit.

“The position of the court is that after 60 days from the date of the judgment of the Court of Appeal in an election petition, the Supreme Court ceases to have jurisdiction. That is the hurdle,” Raji said.

Fashanu said the Supreme Court was functus officio in the matter and cannot revisit the case.

“A court can only revisit a case in which it has delivered judgment if the judgment is a nullity e.g. if the court lacked jurisdiction to hear the case or if the judgment was obtained by fraud.

“Nothing like that is being alleged here. So, let the loser wait for another election,” he advised.

But, Dr Ananaba said there was no harm in trying.

“An aggrieved person can make such a request. It is left for the Supreme Court to grant it or not. It is only the Supreme Court that can review its judgment.

“Because they are human, they can change their minds on a particular principle of thought. They may agree or not agree. By and large, their decision is final.”

Bill and Melinda Gates, in their 2020 annual letter titled ‘Why we swing for the fences’, reflect on the work their foundation has done in Nigeria and other countries around the world in the two decades of their foundation. Excerpts:

Reflecting on two decades of our foundation

When we started our foundation 20 years ago, the world was, in many ways, very different from the one we live in now. It was before 9/11, before the Great Recession, and before the rise of social media.

Then, as now, there was no shortage of worthy causes, and there was a good argument to be made for investing in many of them. We’d known for a while that we wanted to give away the majority of our wealth from Microsoft and use it to make people’s lives better. The challenge, of course, was how to do that in a meaningful and high-impact way.

As we were thinking about what our philanthropic priorities would be, we spent a lot of time meeting with experts and poring over reports. What we learned convinced us that the world should be doing more to address the needs of its poorest people. At the core of our foundation’s work is the idea that every person deserves the chance to live a healthy and productive life. Twenty years later, despite how much things have changed, that is still our most important driving principle.

There is no question that this new decade is beginning at a time of tremendous unrest and uncertainty around the world. But even in a moment as challenging as this one—in fact, especially in a moment like this one—we remain committed to supporting advocates, researchers, government officials, and frontline workers who are making a healthy and productive life possible for more people in more places.

For the last 20 years, our foundation has focused on improving health around the world and strengthening the public education system in the United States because we believe that health and education are key to a healthier, better, and more equal world. Disease is both a symptom and a cause of inequality, while public education is a driver of equality.

We know that philanthropy can never—and should never—take the place of governments or the private sector. We do believe it has a unique role to play in driving progress, though.

At its best, philanthropy takes risks that governments can’t and corporations won’t. Governments need to focus most of their resources on scaling proven solutions. Businesses have fiduciary responsibilities to their shareholders. But foundations like ours have the freedom to test out ideas that might not otherwise get tried, some of which may lead to breakthroughs.

As always, Warren Buffett—a dear friend and longtime source of great advice—put it a little more colorfully. When he donated the bulk of his fortune to our foundation and joined us as a partner in its work, he urged us to “swing for the fences.”

That’s a phrase many Americans will recognise from baseball. When you swing for the fences, you’re putting every ounce of strength into hitting the ball as far as possible. You know that your bat might miss the ball entirely—but that if you succeed in making contact, the rewards can be huge.

That’s how we think about our philanthropy, too. The goal isn’t just incremental progress. It’s to put the full force of our efforts and resources behind the big bets that, if successful, will save and improve lives.

To be clear, the risks we take are different from the ones the true heroes of global progress take all the time: the health workers who brave war zones to get vaccines to children who need them, the teachers who sign up to work in the most challenging schools, the women in the world’s poorest places who stand up against cultural norms and traditions designed to keep them down. What they do requires personal sacrifices we never have to make—and we try to honor them by supporting innovations that might one day make their lives easier.

Altogether, our foundation has spent $53.8 billion over the last 20 years. On the whole, we’re thrilled with what it’s accomplished. But has every dollar we’ve spent had the effect we’ve hoped for? No. We’ve had our share of disappointments, setbacks, and surprises. We think it’s important to be transparent about our failures as well as our successes—and it’s important to share what we’ve learned.

In this year’s letter, we write about the work we’ve done on health and education and why we think the risks we’ve taken have set us up for future progress. We also write about two issues that have emerged as priorities for us—the climate crisis and gender equality—and how they will factor into our next 20 years.

Some of the very first investments we made as philanthropists were aimed at correcting inequities in global health. So, we’ll begin this letter there, too.

GLOBAL HEALTH

Melinda:

Today, 86 percent of children around the world receive basic immunizations. That’s more than ever before.

But reaching the last 14 percent is going to be much harder than reaching the first 86 percent. The children in this group are some of the most marginalised children in the world.

Some of them live in fragile states where conflict prevents the health system from working well for anyone. Others live in remote rural areas. Frustratingly, some live just a few hundred meters from a health facility but are invisible to the health system. (Picture, for example, the child of recent migrants living in overcrowded, impoverished areas of Nairobi or Rio de Janeiro.) Gavi is now increasingly focused on working with countries to take a more targeted approach to the districts where unvaccinated children are concentrated.

As Gavi raises funds for its next five years of work, we want to encourage more donors to commit to extending this incredible success story to all children. More funding will allow Gavi to save more lives. We think going big on Gavi was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made—and we’re thrilled with the return we’ve seen on our investment.

Bill:

Our work on vaccines has parallels with another area we’ve been heavily involved with since the beginning: HIV and AIDS.

When our foundation opened its doors, the AIDS death rate in the rich world had finally started going down, thanks to new treatments. But as with vaccines, the tools that were saving lives in high-income countries weren’t available in low-income countries. The number of new infections in sub-Saharan Africa was skyrocketing. I remember reading a horrifying Newsweek article about how the virus would turn an entire generation of children into orphans.

In response to the growing epidemic—as well as the need to address two other big killers— in 2002 we helped support the creation of a new organization called the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. It had a similar goal to Gavi’s: to deliver medicines, technologies, and programs that save lives in low-income countries. It was also risky for all the same reasons.

But just like Gavi, the Global Fund has proven to be a tremendous success. In 2018 alone, nearly 19 million people received lifesaving HIV treatment in countries where the organization invests.

Once the Global Fund was established, we knew the world had a pipeline to get new innovations out to the places that needed them the most. So, along with supporting the Global Fund, our foundation invested in the development of new tools.

In the beginning, we put a lot of resources into HIV preventatives that needed to be taken every day. For a lot of reasons, those didn’t turn out as we hoped.

For example, we were optimistic that vaginal gels could help prevent infection, but they weren’t effective at stopping transmission of the disease. And while there is now a daily preventative pill that is 99 percent effective at protecting against the disease if taken consistently, it hasn’t made a real dent in the epidemic in low- and middle-income countries. Local health programs have struggled to deliver a daily pill in a way that’s appealing and fits into people’s lives.

Today we’re focused on longer-lasting preventatives. Imagine if, instead of having to take a pill every day, a person could get one injection every other month, an implant in his or her arm, or even a vaccine to entirely remove the risk of getting the virus.

Our foundation is also focused on longer-lasting treatment options. Thanks to major advances, an HIV-positive person receiving treatment now has the same expected lifespan as someone without HIV. But, just like with today’s preventatives, the medication has to be taken every day. We’re looking for new treatments that can be taken less frequently, as much as a year apart.

Even if we perfect long-lasting options, there are still a number of challenges to tackle before we truly reverse the course of the epidemic.

CLIMATE

Bill:

After we started our foundation, Melinda and I began traveling regularly to low-income countries to meet with people and hear firsthand about the issues we were taking on. We’d go to rural villages like Manhiça, in Mozambique, to learn about malaria and visit cities like Lagos, in Nigeria, to meet with local leaders about the HIV crisis.

But even though we were there to hear about health, my mind wasn’t always on diseases. One of the things I noticed on many of those trips was how little electricity there was. After the sun set, entire villages plunged into darkness. I remember seeing unlit streets in Lagos where people huddled around fires they had built in old oil barrels. I also remember thinking we should do something about this.

I didn’t know it then, but that was the beginning of my journey to working on climate change.

That phenomenon we witnessed—which is called “energy poverty”—is a real problem for 860 million people around the world. Our modern world is built on electricity. Without it, you are (quite literally) left in the dark. So, I started talking to experts about the issue and what could be done.

Two facts quickly became clear. First, the world would become a richer, healthier, and more equitable place if everyone had reliable access to electricity. Second, we need to find a way to make that happen without contributing to climate change.

That was nearly 14 years ago. Since then, I’ve spent a lot of time and resources exploring new ideas for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and helping people adapt to a changing climate.

When Warren urged Melinda and me to swing for the fences all those years ago, he was talking about the areas our foundation worked on at the time, not climate change. But his advice applies here, too. The world can’t solve a problem like climate change without making big bets.

Tackling climate change is going to demand historic levels of global cooperation, unprecedented amounts of innovation in nearly every sector of the economy, widespread deployment of today’s clean-energy solutions like solar and wind, and a concerted effort to work with the people who are most vulnerable to a warmer world. That won’t happen unless we decide what we’re going to do and how we’re going to do it.

In other words, we need a plan.

The good news is that we already have the ambition to get things done and goals to work toward. The ambition is evidenced by the amazing activism around climate, including last fall’s climate strikes. As for the goals, we can thank the Paris Agreement and all of the countries, cities, and states that have made bold commitments to zero out emissions by 2050.

So, what should the plan to meet that zero-emission goal look like? The answer is as complicated as the problem we’re trying to solve. But the short version breaks down into two buckets: mitigation and adaptation.

Mitigation is all about reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The key to making that happen is a combination of deploying the things that work now and lots of innovation to create and scale the technologies we still need.

When people talk about solving climate change, they usually focus on reducing emissions— which is a good thing! We need zero-carbon alternatives in every sector of the economy, many of which don’t exist yet. Mitigation is, by far, the biggest challenge we need to figure out, and it’s great to see so much energy being put into how to zero out emissions. (I’m also hopeful that the innovation being done in this space will help provide electricity to more people.)

But solving climate change will require more than just mitigation. We also need to take on adaptation.

People all over the world are already being affected by a warmer world. Those impacts will only get worse in the years to come. The cruel irony is that the world’s poorest people, who contribute the least to climate change, will suffer the worst.

No one will be hit harder than subsistence farmers, who rely on the food they grow to feed their families and already live on the edge of survival. They don’t have the resources to withstand more droughts or floods, a disease outbreak among their herds, or new pests devouring their harvests. At 4 degrees Celsius of warming, most of sub-Saharan Africa could see the growing season shrink by 20 percent or more—and that’s just an average. In areas with severe droughts, the growing season could get cut even shorter.

The result will be less food, for both the farmers themselves and others who rely on the crops they grow and sell. More kids will suffer from malnutrition, and the already enormous inequity between the rich and poor will get even worse.

The Global Commission on Adaptation (which I’m co-chair of) recently released a report outlining steps that governments can take to support farmers in the decades to come. I’m also hopeful that our foundation’s work on agriculture will play a key role in helping farmers withstand climate change. Over a decade ago, we began funding research into drought- and flood-tolerant varieties of staple crops like maize and rice. These new varieties are already helping farmers grow more food in some parts of Africa and India, and more climate-smart crop options will become available in more places in the years to come.

But even if we succeed in increasing crop yields, the reality is that climate change will make it harder for many people to get the nutrition they need—which will, in turn, make them more susceptible to disease.

The best thing we can do to help people in poor countries adapt to climate change is make sure they’re healthy enough to survive it. We need to reduce the number of children who become malnourished and improve the odds that people who do suffer from malnutrition survive. That means making sure that people have access not only to the nutrients they need but also to proven interventions like vaccines, drugs, and diagnostics.

Organisations like Gavi and the Global Fund are going to play a big role in this by improving health in the most vulnerable places. If we’re going to prevent a climate disaster, climate- specific interventions and solutions aren’t enough. We need to be thinking about the indirect effects, too, like how a warmer planet will affect global health.

Climate change is one of the most difficult challenges the world has ever taken on. But I believe we can avoid a climate catastrophe if we take steps now to reduce emissions and find ways to adapt to a warmer world.

ADEYINKA ADERIBIGBE, who rode on the Lagos-Ibadan Standard gauge train on Saturday, writes that passengers’ excitement is high at the prospects of the speed train.

Many of the passengers aboard the speed train last Saturday could not hide their excitement. Those boarding the train for the first time were dazed; others who had experienced the old rickety narrow gauge were awed.

Mrs Nkeiru Nwolasi was one of those who could not hide her excitement. She said it was her first time on a train in Nigeria and she would like to ride on the train to Abeokuta.

“I have heard a lot about this train. Some said it was too slow for their liking, but everyone who has boarded it has been talking of the wonders inside it and I decided to come and feed my eyes. I must say that I am pleasantly surprised at the level of comfort in the train and the determination of the present administration to ensure that Nigerians begin to have a different experience using the train. I thank the Federal Government for bringing this new train to the Southwest,” she said.

Officials of the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) said travellers have been having a swell time since the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) launched the free trial ride on the Lagos-Ibadan standard gauge corridor on December 2, 2019.

Minister for Transportation Rotimi Amaechi mid-November last year directed the NRC to commence trial run on December 2, first to send the signal that the train was real and working, and to provide a quality alternative to all those travelling out of the Lagos ahead of the Christmas and New Year.

“Since December, the surge in passenger traffic has remained constant, and this has not abated despite the fact that the NRC has cut down the number of coaches deployed to the route,” Roberts Otunla, another regular user of the train, said.

Otunla said his trip last Saturday was his third, and he had always targeted travelling by the train on weekends to see his family in Ibadan.

He said: “The first time I used this train, I was shocked at the luxury inside it. I was amazed that any government would think of making them available to the Nigerian masses for free, throughout the time the trial run will last. Initially, I thought they just wanted to deceive Nigerians or that this is just the first-class coach, but when I saw the same coach on my subsequent trips, it occurred to me that it is for real. I love the way the train is kept neat at all times. I can only pray that we maintain it as it is and improve on it.”

The NRC has run a single return trip from Ibadan since December. The train leaves Ibadan 7 am every day, excluding weekends, to get to Lagos 11 am and leaves Lagos 4 pm to get to the Moniya, in Ibadan 7 pm.

Though the Corporation runs only one 48 passenger coach on the line, for now, it was enough fore-taste of what is to be expected when commercial operation fully rolls out on the Lagos-Ibadan corridor in May.

The $1.6 billion Lagos-Ibadan standard gauge commenced at Ebute-Metta yard of the CCECC in March 2016, where Vice President Yemi Osinbajo turned the sod. Preliminary works commenced thereafter and by June, same year when Amaechi started the routine monthly meeting of the Steering and Technical Committee, the contractor had established some presence at Adumbu Village, near Papalanto, Ogun State, where they had another yard to supervise the project midstream – from Abeokuta to Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

With the tracks laying to the last mile achieved in October, the steering committee led by the Minister had resolved to commence trial running of the tracks ahead of the full commercial operation, despite the absence of all the stations along the rail corridor, and December was picked as the best time to commence that.

A passenger, who was boarding the train for the first time last Saturday, Richard Onwulike, a textile trader at the Dugbe Market in Ibadan, said he could not wait for the train to commence full commercial operation.

According to him, he had heard so much from friends who had used the train that he decided to also try it and he has seen that if well managed, the train has huge potentials for the unlocking of traffic gridlocks, safety and security of lives and property. He described the trip as “an eye-opener.”

Tola Adenubi, a reporter who was on the train ride, described the train as a wonder. Adenubi, who said he has always been afraid of boarding trains because of the rickety and decrepit nature of the narrow gauge, expressed happiness at the speed train. He said with this standard it would not be hard to convince the middle class and the upwardly mobile people to drop their cars and make use of the train.

“This is comfortable and pleasurable. I can say that Nigerians are in for a pleasant experience on this train. Apart from the normal first class and the economy class, the federal government has also acquired two conference coaches for the use of corporate Nigerians who may wish to hold mini-conferences, management meeting or training on the wheels. It comes with audiovisual facilities and comfortable seating arrangements that can sit a minimum of 40 persons,” he said.

He said each of the first-class coaches has a LED information board that would be detailing the trips and various stations while there are rooftop television receivers to broadcast films or programmes for the viewing comfort of all passengers, and restroom facilities on the train are still on tip-top shape with water running on board. Each coach has enough legroom and each seat has a reclining facility. There is an executive and exclusive suite with state of the art furnishings with a wall to wall television for viewing comfort of the executive on board.

An online newspaper publisher, Isaac Ummuna, said the CCECC has revolutionised train service in Nigeria with the speed train.

Ummuna, who owns News Express, said the old train was the only means of transportation for him and his people while growing up in Abia State.

“The train was the only thing we knew. I could remember that I boarded it several times as it was the only means of transportation that we knew as we were growing up. Then suddenly, the Eastern line collapsed and the trains were no longer running. It was for us in the south some terrible moment then because it means we have to start looking up to the buses and trucks as a means of transportation and see where we are today.”

He implored the Federal Government to ensure that it stayed with the vision of connecting all the state capitals by rail, adding that if everyone knows that this type of train is available it will reduce the pressure on the road.

Several passengers urged the CCECC or the operator – NRC to increase the number of coaches and the frequency of service on the corridor. “The fact that only one coach is being used makes it difficult for as many people as want to use the train to have the opportunity. Moreso as there is usually strict compliance to the number of passengers on board the coach. The NRC and the CCECC frown at anyone standing in the coach.

A trader, Madam Rashidat, said she had missed the train at the Agbado train station several times. She disclosed that to ride with it last Saturday, she had decided to get early to the train station. She said she was even surprised to board the train as it seldom worked on Saturdays.

CCECC’s Project Manager for the Lagos-Ibadan rail Xia Lijun, who was on the train in the company of other top management of the corporation, said CCECC has taken delivery of two new Diesel Multiple Units (DMUs) for the Standard Gauge rail line for the Lagos-Ibadan line.

He said the new DMUs would even make the journey between Lagos to Ibadan faster as this would only be stopping at the major stations of Lagos, Abeokuta and Ibadan.

Xia commended the Federal Government for the confidence reposed in CCECC on the project, adding that the corporation would leave no stone unturned in giving the best speed train experience to Nigerians.

The land border closure by the Federal Government aimed at curbing smuggling and encourage domestic production of rice seemed to have forced Ekiti State farmers to venture into rice production. Although, poor access to credit facilities and modern equipment appeared to have hampered production, but now the farmers have cause to rejoice, writes Correspondent RASAQ IBRAHIM.

Agriculture was the mainstay of Nigeria’s economy before crude oil discovery in Oloibiri in Bayelsa State in commercial quantity in 1958. During the golden era (1960 to 1969), the sector accounted for an average of 57 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and generated 64.5 per cent of export earnings.

From 1970 to late 2000s, the sector’s contribution to the GDP and export earnings steadily declined because the country’s focus shifted to petroleum exploration. Like every other part of Nigeria, Ekiti State, which lies south of Kwara and Kogi states, is also bounded on the east and in the south by Ondo State with favourable weather for agricultural activities. It was among the states that neglected the agriculture sector.

Ekiti used to be one of the major producers of cocoa, oil palm, kola nut, plantain, banana, cashew, water melon, citrus, timber, rice, yam, cassava, cocoyam, maize and cowpea. But with the discovery of oil, farming was relegated to the background as many of the youth abandoned agric sector for non-existing white collar jobs. This further created more social problems.

However, the story is already changing with the Governor Kayode Fayemi-led administration collaborating with civil society organisations, international organisations, local and foreign investors to revive the agriculture sector. The governor discovered agric potential to industrialise the state, boost Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) and provide employment for the teeming youths.

With the closure of the land borders last August by the Federal Government, attention has shifted to locally produced rice consumption to fill the huge gap created by the absence of foreign brands.

The development provided opportunities for local farmers in Ekiti State to further increase production capacity to meet high demand.

Governor Kayode Fayemi’s administration has been investing in agriculture and attracting investors to the sector, especially in areas where Ekiti has comparative advantage.

It is incontrovertible that Ekiti State has a huge potential in rice production which is in large quantities in Igbemo-Ekiti located in Irepodun/Ifelodun Local Government Area, but its capacity has been hampered by poor access to credit facilities for farmers and modern equipment.

The famed “Igbemo Rice” is a local rice delicacy loved by residents. Other communities in the state are also involved in rice production but with limited capacity.

However, the story is about to change as a civil society organisation, the New Initiative for Social Development (NISD), is attracting a huge investment from the Government of Japan to boost the capacity of local rice farmers in Ekiti State with provision of requisite facilities.

The NISD has entered into a pact with the Embassy of Japan in Nigeria to provide farmers with modern equipment to boost rice production and make the state a leading rice producer in Nigeria.

The organisation was presented with a cheque of $148, 209 by the Ambassador of Japan to Nigeria, His Excellency, Mr. Kikuta Yutaka.

The project is being driven under the Japanese Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects.

The Japanese Embassy hopes that this public-private partnership assistance will increase rice production in Ekiti.

It is therefore, providing power tillers and combined harvesters for rice farmers in Gbonyin Local Government Area.

Expectedly, the grant,  facilitated by NISD, is already eliciting excitement from the local farmers, who will benefit from the project.

On January 30, 2020 when the contract was signed at the Embassy of Japan in Abuja with officials of NISD, Ekiti State government and the Japanese diplomats, the local farmers knew better days are here for them.

At the event, Ekiti State government was represented by the Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr. Folorunso Olabode; Special Adviser to the Governor on Development Partnerships, Mrs. Margaret Fagboyo and Special Assistant to the Governor on Civil Society Matters, Mr. Biodun Oyeleye.

While Ambassador Kikuta signed on behalf of the Japanese Government and NISD  Programme Manager Mr. Martins Ogunlade,  signed on behalf of his agency.

According to the contract documents made available to The Nation, the Donor (Government of Japan) will make available to the Recipient (NISD) the grant of $148, 209 or its local currency equivalent as of the date of disbursement, which is March 31, 2020.

The project, initiated by NISD in Ekiti, will be implemented in collaboration with Toyota Tsusho Corporation, which will provide agricultural equipment from Yanmar Co., Limited and Mitsubishi Mahindra Agricultural Machinery Co. Limited to the farmers of Ekiti State.

The Japanese Embassy hopes that this public-private partnership assistance will contribute to increasing rice production in Ekiti.

Accepting the grant, the recipient agreed to provide the donor with documents relevant to the project such as procurement contracts for products and/or services upon request by the donor.

Ogunlade promised that the grant would be properly and exclusively used for the purchase of the products and services necessary for the execution of the project as stated in the agreement.

The NISD chief promised transparency in the disbursement of the funds as the agency would not misuse products and services purchased with the grant, even as it promised that the project execution  would be in accordance with the specifications and terms of adhering to prior written approval from the donor.

Ogunlade further explained that series of reports on the progress of the project would be forwarded to the Japanese government to ensure effective monitoring.

The reports, according to him, include project completion report (including an audit report on the grant issued by an independent accounting body) to be provided upon the completion of the project.

He added that the report would outline achieved results in the light of the original goals and objectives as stated in the application proposal for the project, which was expected to include accounting report of the allocation and disbursement of the grant.

While noting that the contract would be completed one year after the contract date, Ogunlade said the rice project is a boost to food security not only in Ekiti State, but in Nigeria.

He pointed out that the provision of the facilities would boost the capacity of rice farmers in the targeted area and ensure that the staple food is made available in commercial quantity.

Mr. Olabode thanked the Japanese Embassy for investing in rice production in Ekiti State, adding that Governor Fayemi appreciated the gesture.

Olabode said Ekiti needs more support from development partners to boost food security and create more job opportunities for its people.

The commissioner further promised that all equipment provided for Ekiti State would be judiciously used. He also assured that the state would be committed to the maintenance and sustainability of the equipment.

Special Assistant to Governor Fayemi on Civil Society Matters, Mr. Oyeleye said the state government’s investment drive has been yielding dividends, which he said would benefit the people and the economy.

Oyeleye said: “We really appreciate the Japanese Government through their Embassy in Nigeria for supporting the civil society in Ekiti to bring development to the state.

“The support given to NISD is to assist the state government in achieving the five-pillar development agenda under agriculture, adding that civil society has contributed to government’s achievement of this development.

“It’s a very great opportunity given to us by Japan for the civil society to contribute towards achieving the five-pillar agenda of Mr. Governor and we are looking forward to such partnerships. This should not be a one-off thing.”

Overjoyed by the news of the grant from the Japanese government, some local rice farmers described it as a welcome development, which would boost rice production in the state.

A rice farmer in Imesi-Ekiti, Femi Alowonle said: “We are very lucky in Gbonyin Local Government Area because this is one of the major rice belts in Ekiti. Provision of tillers and harvesters will make our jobs easier and we thank the government of Japan for this.

“This modern equipment will assist us to produce more. Besides, it will make more young men and women to embrace rice production because our young generation doesn’t want to work with bare hands again.”

Another rice farmer in Egbe-Ekiti, also in Gbonyin Local Government Area, Ola Ogunmodede, praised the Japanese government and NISD for making the feat possible.

Ogunmodede said: “We, rice farmers, have formed ourselves into co-operatives to be able to access loans and inputs. The provision of modern farming equipment by the Japanese will help us to realise our dreams.

“The rehabilitation of Egbe Dam by the Ekiti State government which will soon be completed is also a major boost for rice production.”

A member of Rice Growers’ Association in Ekiti State, Bode Lucas, urged the government of Japan and other development partners collaborating with the Ekiti State government to extend the gesture to rice farmers in other parts of the state.

Lucas said: “We appreciate what the government of Japan has done for our colleagues in Gbonyin, but we have rice farmers in virtually all the local government areas in Ekiti State. Investment in rice production is capable of turning Ekiti State into a major rice producer that can rival Kebbi, Ebonyi and other states because what the farmers need here is support in the areas of credit facilities and state-of-the-art equipment.”

It was providence at work because neither Obiageli Mazi nor Borno State Governor Babagana Zulum knew what was in the offing. Zulum visited a school where Ms Mazi was a teacher and her story has since changed. JOEL DUKU met Ms Mazi and she told The Nation the exclusive details of her life and the meeting with the governor.

 

As Obiageli Mazi, 54, is like the patient dog that is eating the fattest bone. She has been in the civil service for 31 years and has about five years to quit the Borno State Civil Service and was not expecting much, but a dramatic encounter with Borno State Governor Babagana Zulum has completely changed her fortunes.

The Abia-born woman met Zulum on January 7. The governor found her at work at the Shehu Sanda Kyarimi Primary and Secondary School in Maiduguri at about 6.30 am and was impressed by her dedication to duty. He rewarded her with a cash donation and a promotion to the position of Assistant Headmistress.

“The whole world has seen me. People are calling me from all over the country. Even in America, people have seen me.

Thank you to His Excellency, our governor, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum,” Ms Mazi told our correspondent at the Shehu Sanda Kyarimi Primary and Secondary School in Maiduguri.

Ms Mazi wanted the reporter to conclude the interview on time to avoid a clash with her schedule.

She said: “My encounter with my governor was on January 7, 2020. I got here 28 minutes after six o’clock in the morning. As I was about to write my name in the time book, I saw them enter the school compound at 6.30.

One of them walked towards me and I stood up and greeted him. Then he asked me who I am, that whether I am the headmistress. I said ‘no, I am a class teacher for primary one pupils’. He said ‘Ok.

And you came early like this’. I said ‘yes this is how I use to come’. He asked me where I live. I told him Shielk Zarma Street, Kumshe. He now told me that they came with the governor. He said he would report my case to the governor and he left.

“Later, I saw the governor, His Excellency, Babagana Umara Zulum, beckoned on me two times and then I grabbed my purse and started running towards him but the governor said ‘no, no, no just come gently’. I then slowed down but I moved very fast and greeted him and his entourage.

“The governor then asked me, ‘what is your name?’ I said ‘Obiageli Mazi sir’. He said ‘who are you and what are you doing here?’ I replied that ‘I work here as a classroom teacher and I teach primary one’.

He asked me ‘where do you live?’ I told him ‘I live at Kumshe at Shielk Zarma Street. He now said ‘and you are here at 6.30?’ He now shook his head and said ‘you must be rewarded’ and repeated that ‘you must be rewarded’. He asked me ‘which state are you from?’ and I told him ‘I am from Abia State’.

He asked me about my qualification and I told him ‘I have my NCE’. He asked me ‘which year?’ and I told him the year. He asked me about my salary and I told him ‘thirty-five thousand’. He asked me ‘how many years have you served?’ and I told him ’31 years.

He now said: ‘N35,000, 31 years, you must be rewarded’. He said ‘do you know me?’ I said ‘yes, I know you, you are our governor’. H went to his car and brought money to me.

I knelt down a prayed for him that God will bless him and he said ‘don’t worry, you will be rewarded’. Another person from the governor came out and asked me about my phone number and I gave it to him.

“When I held the money the first time, I didn’t even look at it and when my sister Amaka asked me how much, I told her ‘maybe it is N10,000.’

I didn’t know it was that much until I got home and people started calling me everywhere in Nigeria. They told me that the whole world has seen me, even in America.”

The Women Teachers College (WTC) Nguru-trained teacher said she made a vow to God that she was going to give her best to pupils.

“I have been teaching the children in this school since I was employed. When I got this job, I made a covenant with God that I will do it to the best of my ability and with dedication and sincerity to teach these children until the time I will retire from the work.

I made that promise because God gave me the job when I did not expect it. I told God that under sickness or serious difficulties, I have been encouraged by people,” she said, adding: “I was employed on 1st February 1989 and later transferred to Jere. I have taught many people here.

Some of the pupils that I taught are even outside the country and many of them are scattered in this town. They always encourage me anytime they see me. They tell me, Aunty, keep it up, God will reward you and I feel very happy all the time.

“Like the English people will say that a patient dog eats the fattest bone. Look at me now enjoying the fattest bone. Even my principal and our mummy are always encouraging me to continue doing your work and one day you will be rewarded.”

She described her relationship with her colleagues as cordial.

“God has been fateful to me and the children I teach also love me so much. Even my headteacher has also been encouraging me and I feel very happy doing my work. Honestly, the cooperation that I have with members of staff here is massive. I thank God for everything,” she said.

 

Her background

Ms Mazi was orphaned at a very tender age. Her grandmother took her up and raised her with strong religious and moral discipline which, she said, has shaped her life.

“I was very little when my parents died. It was my grandmother who took me and raised me up until she also died in 1979. I grew up in a God-loving family with a strong moral background.

As a child, my grandmother never allowed me to be moving about. She always kept me by her side every time. She kept me around her to observe everything that she used to do so I learnt to be patient.

My grandmother had a small chair for me that she would keep for me to sit down and be observing her even when she is cooking. My grandmother used to pray for me to succeed in life,” she said.

 

Surviving Boko Haram

She recalled: “It was indeed traumatic coming to school about that time but God has protected us up to this point that we are and we praise His name.

There is a day I was coming to school and I reached the Gamboru market and Boko Haram started attacking and shooting. I just stood in the middle of the road and bullets just came and passed me.

The shooting continued and I ran and hid in one house like that until the shooting stopped.

“Many times they even entered the school and all of us would be running. But it is only God. There is one of my Aunties, Madam Caroline Obi, who was teaching in primary school when Boko Haram attacked but God closed their eyes and they did not touch her. Mrs. Obi had a partial stroke and was later transferred out of this school. She is dead now. May God rest her soul.”

Read Also: Zulum’s exemplary leadership in Borno

 

Getting married

Ms Mazi, who has never been married in her life, hopes that her husband is on the way. According to her, she had a very serious ailment that almost claimed her life.

The ailment, she said, was responsible for the delay of her marriage. She is grateful to God for healing her from the ailment.

“Mazi is my father, I have not married. I was seriously sick and very close to the point of death. I thank almighty God for healing me and I am well today.

That sickness delayed my marriage but I believe my husband is on the way. I don’t want to marry anyhow person but God will surely bring my husband for me,” Ms Mazi said.

 

What her colleagues think of her

Some of her colleagues attested to the fact that her presence in the school at the time the governor visited was not a one-off development but a long-held tradition of punctuality.

Gamboru Primary School Headmaster Mohammed Buba Aliyu said Ms Mazi deserved more reward. According to him, “if you check the duty time book, she is always the first to come to school. Her name is always first in the time book.”

He added: “During the rains, during the hot Maiduguri sun and like this terrible harmattan, you will always see her punctual in the school. Whatever she gets is as a result of her dedication. She is supposed to be rewarded even more than this. She truly deserves it.

“She deserves anything that has happened to her. Any time you come to the school, she is always seated here with her register and her lesson plan always intact. She is very hard-working. We are saying this, not because she is here but it is the truth.”

Mariam Idris Hassan, who Ms Mazi taught in the school about thirty years ago, added that she is a source of inspiration to her.

“I see her as my mother. She taught me in primary one in this school. Now we are colleagues but I see her as a mother and a role model because of her dedication to duty.

Mama’s major concern is to do her job. She does not leave the children to engage in group discussion outside the class.

She is always teaching her children. We love her so much in this school,” Hassan, who is now an assistant headmistress in the school, said.

 

A business, which started in a garage in Ilupeju, Lagos about 40 years ago, has become a major employer of Nigerians in agro-allied and other sectors, writes CHINYERE OKOROAFOR.

It started in a garage in Ilupeju, Lagos. By August, it will be 40 years. That business, Cormart Limited, has grown into a multi-million dollar company with over 718 Nigerian employees.

When its founder, Martin Middernacht, left Belgium in 1979 for the first time in his life, it was Nigeria he arrived in. Since then, he has never left. Even his children studied in Nigeria.

Fresh from the university, he took an opportunity to come to Nigeria as a sales representative for a Belgium firm in 1980.

Although an engineer by training, Middernacht loved the production industry. This and the huge market he saw in his new country, motivated him to introduce Capri Sonne drink into Nigeria.

He said to make Capri Sonne, a special kind of orange concentrate is required and that was imported from Brazil at the time.

But in 1983, the then government policy was geared towards the growth of local industries and he began buying oranges from local farmers or planting his own orchard.

“I bought some land close to Ibadan, brought seedlings from the right orange trees abroad and started planting. But between planting the seeds and growing of its first fruit takes about five years. I had to wait but I was later allowed to continue importing the concentrate,” he said.

But he wasn’t making any money at that time. So, he started a poultry farm on the land, Cormart’s General Manager, Dr. Johannes Flosbach, told The Nation.

Two years later, a new government lifted the ban. Yet, no money was made from the orange trees, Middernacht had only his chickens.

However, this idea gave birth to Chi Farm Limited, the market leader in Nigeria poultry industry. Its processing plant at kilometre 51, Ibadan-Lagos Expressway, sits at about 80 hectares of land. There, 15,000 chickens are slaughtered every day in a disinfected environment. Chi Farm is also a sister Company to Cormart Limited, a leading chemical and food raw materials companies in Nigeria and a member of the Tropical General Investments (TGI) Group.

In the 1990s, when other partners joined, Cormart slowly grew. According to Middernacht, the biggest jump of growth came when the company had a high level of sales.

“That made a lot of difference. When we started with the drinks, we had Capri Sonne, we bought equipment to make Chivita. Then we saw other opportunities.

World Bank believes in liberalisation, no government involvement. And the World Bank told countries that it would not mind giving people or investors some facilities, loans but they have to take a step back forward out of the private sector and sell some of your own state companies. At that time, we bought some and it gave us an increase in turn over.

So, it all has to do with seeing opportunities, and having the courage to tap into it and invest in it.

“When we started, we decided to have our own source of forex. We started in activities which gave us export proceeds. We started with fishing feed. So, that gave us access to forex,” he said.

For Middernacht, Nigeria needs to develop industrially. This is one of his goals. He believes that if Nigerians go into production of goods instead of relying on importation, it will help promote employment and discourage substandard importation.

This is why the company is dedicated to providing top notch chemical and food raw materials to Nigeria industries in the paint and food industry, breweries and beverages, hospitality and agriculture industry.

“We want to contribute to the industrial development of Nigeria. If someone wants to produce something, we make it happen for them. For Nigeria to develop industrially, Cormart is basically at the centre of that development,” he said.

‘The secret of our business’

As the company which started with less amount of money grew with more Nigerians employed, the profit was always invested back to the company.

According to Middernacht, the profits were never taken out or stacked outside the country.

“But we grew, believing in Nigeria and giving employment. The secret of the whole thing is when we make profit; we didn’t put it in a stack account somewhere in London or Switzerland like some people do. But we plough it back to business. That is the secret of our success. We kept investing in the country. The secret of our business success is that we keep investing,” he said.

The ultimate goal

With hand on heart, money is not the main objective, Middernacht wants sustainability. He wants what he has planted to still exist in 50 years and more.

“The main goal is really not money making but sustainability. We want what we have planted here to still exist in the next 50 years and beyond. It’s not about taking the money and run. What we love to achieve is sustainability, not only for our company but for the people who work here. We want them to be sure about their jobs in the next 20 to 30 years. My main goal is to stay here, not like a lemon, to squeeze out, and throw away,” he said.

Business challenges in Nigeria

With more than 40 vacancies at the company waiting to be filled, the company is yet to find the right people for the positions. Middernacht said the situation has been the top challenge facing the company.

The Belgian, who expressed his admiration of the weather and people of Nigeria, said the country’s problem is not money, but education.

“The biggest problem that Nigeria has is not money, because you are a blessed nation. The biggest issue that Nigeria has is education of young people. We have more than 40 vacancies that people can start immediately but we don’t find them. No one with the right fit. The appeal is that government should train the youngsters, pay attention to the educational sector,” he said.

On power, he said: “The second challenge is power. In this company, we invest huge amount of money in having our own electricity. We don’t rely on the National Grid for power because of poor power supply. We are lucky that in our factory in KM 51, we have pipe gas which is cheaper than diesel. We are also lucky that the private sector invested in that and this makes production cheaper.

On finance, he said: “The third constraint we have is finance. We are lucky because the interest on loans (finance cost) is between 11-14 per cent depending on the bank. But we went through periods of 25-30 per cent. There is no place in the world where a business establishment, whether in the areas of food, industry, agriculture and chemicals, that can survive at finance cost.

“The fourth challenge is the availability of forex. The focus here is on availability of crude oil which the price rose to $52 per barrel. So, how sure are we that the government will be able to hold the value of the naira, devaluation and inflation?

In 2019, we had stability and the economy was better, the interest rate dropped from 20 to 12 per cent and in terms of power supply, we had pipe gas which is better. But in all, the government did extremely well. What I meant here is that we had devaluation of 50 per cent. But when you look at Venezuela, for instance, the country is completely bankrupt and also lives on loan. But the Nigerian government did well in comparison to other countries.

“There is also the challenge of port. We had a product we wanted to export to Ghana, which we had to bring back from the port because we could not get it to Ghana. This is very absurd. But everything we are bringing in compared to six to nine months ago, we are paying N400, 000 more per container to get it out of the port that is a $1,000 on one container.

“We also noticed that due to infrastructure problems, a lot of ships are waiting to come to Apapa and Tin Can Island Port. While those ships are waiting there, demurrage starts counting on them, and those amounts are huge,” he said.

Optimism about Nigeria’s economy

On the Nigerian economy, Mr. Middernacht said he was very optimistic. He said: “The government made very wise decision to stimulate the agriculture sector and pump money into facilities available because if you are importing agro-products such as soya beans, maize and others, the impact on your forex will be much.

“In 20 years from now, we have to focus more on alternative source of energy than electricity.  Therefore, there is the need for electricity which will impact positively on businesses.

“To develop the agro-value chain, the sector has to be better positioned to compete globally that is the only way it can survive,” he said.

 Expectation in 2020

The company expects a 40 per cent growth this year, with an investment of N2 billion.

“We are investing N2 billion in Cormart. The company is already preparing the project for 2021,” he said.

Advice to youths 

“My advice for young people is that they should be patient. They should believe in themselves and see the opportunities like we did in the garage of our house. We didn’t have a master plan of how we are going to do this or that. We fell over opportunities and we grabbed them. And of cause we have a lot of setbacks. Young people should constantly develop themselves until they become successful in life. They should have career development. Success comes through hard work,” he said.

Do political office holders deserve a review of their emoluments? This is a question without a direct answer as OBIKE UKOH finds out in this report.

Since Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) Chairman Elias Mbam hinted about a possible review of the salaries and emoluments of political office holders, there has been raging debate on the desirability or otherwise of a review.

Mbam was not specific on the direction the review will go, but according to him, it will reflect the current economic realities.

RMAFC is empowered by Section 32(d) Part I of the Third Schedule of the Constitution to determine the remuneration appropriate for political officeholders.

Mbam said after the review, the entitlements of the political office holders might either go up or down. “The review is a process and preliminary issues are currently being worked on.

“If the process is followed judiciously, we would get to the appropriate entitlements due to the officeholders. The review is to ensure that their remunerations reflect current realities.”

There were reactions, including newspapers’ editorials on the proposed review, and there was a consensus that it should be reviewed downwards.

One of the newspapers in its editorial opined that since the RMAFC is carrying out this long-overdue review of public office holders’ remunerations, it should be true and forthright with the public under whose mandate it operates.

“It should access and factor in all necessary inputs that should play a part in the determination of what is ideal and fair.

“In this regard, the commission should, of necessity, take into account, for example, the current level of government revenue, inflation rate, slow or negligible gross domestic product growth rate.

” Huge and unsustainable cost of governance, increasing and intolerable rate of poverty and insecurity in the economy, poor and overtly non-functional infrastructure across the country. The enormous amount of outstanding salaries, gratuities and pensions of serving and retired civil servants.”

The paper also posits that given the desperate situation the country finds itself and that a remuneration review has now been kick-started, there is nothing to suggest that some of the existing remuneration lines cannot be eliminated to cause reasonable reality to emerge.

The Coalition in Defence of Nigerian Democracy and Constitution (CDNDC), kicked against any upward review of salaries of political officeholders.

CDNDC Convener, Ariyo Dare-Atoye, said any upward review would be a disservice to ordinary Nigerians coming at a time the state governments were finding it difficult to pay the minimum wage.

He said: “Any upward review of salaries and allowances of politicians is a disservice to the common man.

“How can the commission think of increasing their allowances when our political leaders are the highest paid in the world?”

The Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association, on its part, recommended downward adjustment in the allowances of all political office holders to make the offices unattractive.

NECA Director-General Dr Timothy Olawale said the review was long overdue. He urged RMAFC to muster the courage and decisively adjust salaries and allowances of all political office holders to the extent that such offices are not made too attractive to the effect that getting there becomes a do or die affair.

Mr Samson Itodo, the Executive Director of YIAGA Africa, said any move that would increase the emoluments of politicians’ was a mockery of the avowed plan to cut down the cost of governance.

He said: “At a time legislators in some countries are seeking pay cut due to recession, poor economic growth, high cost of governance and poverty, we are considering pay rise.

“It’s quite unfortunate and disappointing. Increasing their pay at this time makes a mockery of the discourse on cutting down the cost of governance.

“It’s inexplicable that in a country regarded as the poverty capital of the world, a country ravaged by insecurity and humongous economic challenges, our priority is to increase the pay of politicians. The more we increase their pay, the more desperation to seek public office.”

Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) Executive Director Auwal Rafsanjani said pay rise for politicians could lead to political violence.

“As a matter of fact, this proposal of a pay rise for politicians is capable of increasing political violence and institutionalisation of corruption in the electoral process by making it a do or die affair.”

He noted that the proposal was coming when the government was finding it difficult to pay workers’ reasonable wages and advised RMAFC not to add more burdens to the economy.

Dr Paul Okorie, former Commissioner for Environment in Ebonyi, commended RMAFC for the planned review, hoping that it will not lead to an increase in the monthly salaries and emoluments of political officeholders.

Okorie, who also was a former Commissioner for Works, Housing and Transport, said any upward review of the remuneration of elected and appointed public officers would further deepen the already widening gap between them and the rest of Nigerians.

Okorie said: “If the RMAFC wants to review the salaries and emoluments of political office holders, let them review it downward.

“Look at what our politicians are currently receiving as their take-home salaries; it is too bogus and the payment does not reflect the country’s current economic reality.

“If you look around the world, Nigeria ranks among the highest in the world’s list of highest-paid political office holders including senators and others.

“I have come across a document that tried to compare emoluments of the National Assembly members across the world and our own is the highest.

“It is because of this bogus pay to politicians that people are now compelled to engage in a do-or-die approach including killings for a contest of political power.

“Downward review will reduce the cost of governance, make the political office less attractive and service-driven as well as discourage do-or-die syndrome that has characterised struggle for political power in Nigeria.”

Also, Prof. Eugene Nweke, the Dean, Faculty of Management and Social Sciences, Ebonyi State University (EBSU), said any upward review of salaries of political office holders would suggest that the government is insensitive to the plight of Nigerians.

He advised the Federal Government to reduce salaries and allowances of political office holders as part of strategies to reduce the cost of governance and make political competition less attractive.

“Any upward review of salaries of political office holders will be antithetical to the development and security of Nigerian citizens given the current poverty situation we find ourselves today.

“Instead of increasing, the wealth should be channelled into addressing some social issues that are aggravating poverty and that should be the appropriate thing to do,” Nweke said.

Remuneration of Nigeria’s political office holders has always been a contentious issue.

It echoed during the 2015 National Conference. Incidentally, Mbam was the Chairman of RMAFC then.

He clarified some issues before the Committee on Public Finance and Revenue.

Mbam was asked to explain why RMAFC approved outrageous salaries and allowances for political officeholders.

He said the committee that RMAFC never approved fat salaries for political office holders, insisting that no legislator earn more than N1 million as monthly salary.

He wanted the committee to propose the amendment of the Act establishing RMAFC, to grant it autonomy and enforcement powers to effectively monitor revenue utilisation.

“Contrary to what is written on papers; from what is approved for senators and members of the House of Representatives, none of them receives up to N1 million a month and they can testify to that.

“This is a consolidated salary, it is not salary alone. All the allowances and take-home pay are not up to N1 million. Anything in addition to that is not known to the commission,” he said.

Mbam said as far as the law was concerned, RMAFC still retained the power to determine the remuneration of political office holders, adding that whatever was decided by the commission as remuneration for the National Assembly members was final.

As for the executives and judiciary arms of government, the RMAFC chairman said that their remuneration was subject to further approvals by the National Assembly.

On the widespread allegation that a senator receives as much as N240 million as salaries and allowances, as against the recommendations of the commission, Mbam stressed that it was the duty of the clerk of the National Assembly to ensure compliance.

He said the clerk of the National Assembly was the government’s accounting officer, adding that anybody who contravened the provisions regarding remunerations and its disbursement could be charged to court.

“If any accounting officer fails in his function; of course, he should be held accountable and the same rule applies to the Auditor General of the Federation. These are agencies of government responsible for monitoring the use of public funds,” he added.

Stakeholders believe that the views expressed byA Nigerians since the issue of review of emoluments of political office holders was raised would be taken into consideration by RMAFC.

They said that the action of RMAFC was in order, as it is the mandate of the commission to determine the remuneration appropriate for political officeholders.

• Ukoh is of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)

Learning from the unimpressive outcome of its state-dominated approach to the implementation of the MDGs, the Federal Government has resolved this time, to adopt an all-inclusive approach to its efforts at attaining the SDGs. ERIC IKHILAE reports.

Nigeria, no doubt, did not do well enough in its implementation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). But, this time, there appears to be a determination to do things differently in the implementation of the SDGs, with the sole intention of making an appreciable impact in citizens’ lives when the programme comes to a close by 2030.

The Special Assistant to the President on SDGs (SSAP-SDGs), Princess Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire alluded to this change in tactics when she noted that the nation made no significant progress in its implementation of the MDGs, because it was government-driven, lacked the people’s ownership and commitment and was made to work in silos.

Orelope-Adefulire said the country now recognises the need to succeed with the SDGs, the successor programme to MDGs, and has resolved to do all within its powers to ensure that it successfully delivers on the programme’s targets.

Orelope-Adefulire spoke in Abuja during the second phase activation of SDGs with the theme “SDGs Activation Lessons for Families, Communities and Religious Leaders,” in the country. She said this phase is directed at stimulating individual and collective ownership of the SDGs, by bringing the SDGs to families, communities and religious organisations through the SDGs lessons and action plan to be delivered by teachers, peers, civil society activists and youth volunteers, across the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

In a chat with the gathering which comprises youths and adults, including traditional and religious leaders, that the second phase activation is meant to enable families, communities and religious leaders/organisations to understand the roles they could play in the achievement of the global goals, by stressing the importance of the SDGs and the need for mass participation in the race for Agenda 2030

Orelope-Adefulire, a former Deputy Governor in Lagos State, explained that the decision to target the family, among other social groups, was because “the family is the central social unit of all progressive societies and the achievement of the SDGs depends on how well families are engaged and empowered to contribute to the achievement of these goals.

“Similarly, local communities are at the core of the action, as progress would depend on the positive action taken at the local level, because the concept of the SDGs is about the people, it is about societal peace, about prosperity, it is about partnership and about knowledge.

“This understanding will aid our commitment to the actualisation of the SDGs in our various societies. But, if we refuse to participate and show lack of concern, we risk the misfortune of regressing as a people, while others are progressing.

“As much as the SDGs are about all of us, about the need to create a world that is sustainable, that is resilient and guarantees our future, we must all be part of the development efforts.

“That is why we are appealing to all to participate in this exercise. We intend, at every stage, to have more people key into this SDGs advocacy programmes so that we will be able to bring about the change we all desire.

“The idea behind this exercise is to make you part of the decision making process by drawing government’s attention to your areas of need. This is because, if you don’t tell us what you need, you will not get what you want, because your leaders need you to remind them of what your needs are,” she said.

Orelope-Adefulire took participants through all the 17 goals enshrined in the SDGs and how their achievement could help create a sustainable environment and make living worthwhile for all.

She stressed the need for more women involvement, in view of their capacity to influence changes in their families and communities.

The SSAP-SDGs, who spoke about the need to emphasise girl-child education as an empowerment strategy to enhance women’s involvement in development activities, recalled how she almost missed out on the opportunity to be educated, owing to her father’s belief that the male child deserved the better attention.

She, however, did not blame her father for the decision to discriminate in affording his children access to education. Adefulire-Orelope attributed the lapse to his ignorance of the girl-child’s capacity and capabilities.

“When I was young, my father’s belief was that once I was married, his name will be replaced by my husband’s surname. And therefore I did not need any education.

“But, my mother took up the challenge and sponsored by education up to the university level.

“A lot of things have happened to people who do not have the needed opportunities. I am saying this so that our fathers and our parents could change their mindset about the girl child. There is nothing that the men can do and the women cannot do,” she said.

The SSAP-SDGs stressed that the task of achieving the 2030 Agenda “is enormous and the government alone cannot do it. Therefore, there is the need for an inclusive and participatory approach at national and sub-national levels to ensure strong stakeholder engagement in the implementation of the SDGs. I invite you all to join us as we pledge to ‘leave no one behind’ by working together to reach the furthest behind.”

The Executive Director, DEAN Initiative, Michael Semiye added that the second phase of SDGs activation exercise is to bring everyone on board and to make the citizens participants in the task of building a developed and conducive country that everyone desires.

Semiye said: “The activation exercise is an initiative to mobilise action across board for development in Nigeria. When we see our colleagues around the world, the sacrifices everybody makes every day to realise the type of country they want, we are impressed. But, when we come home, what we do is only to complain, unmindful of the fact that there is nowhere in the world where complaints solve problems.

“It is the people that solve problems. The SDGs have provided a platform for us to push for the development of our country. Nigeria, being a signatory to the SDGs, it is incumbent on us to enforce the spirit of the SGDs as contained in the 17 goals that have been crafted.

“It is a fact that no government in the world has been able to solely solve the problems of the citizens, which informed the emphasis on enhanced collaboration between the government and the citizens.

“This activation is our own way of inviting citizens across the nation to be participants in ensuring the actualisation of the global goals in the country. Please, we encourage all to go out and conscientise the people on the opportunities that the SGDs presents and the roles expected of them.”

Before the family activation

The second phase of SDGs activation was preceded by the first phase activation in October last year, which was directed at sensitising and educating the children and youths from ages eight to 18 to enable them to understand the SGDs programme and support the aspirations behind it.

The Office of the SSAP-SDGs explained that the first activation was equally directed at assisting the youth in taking localised actions for the ambitions of the SDGs through the deployment of creative contents designed by the global group, the World Largest Lesson (WLL), whose implementing partner in the country is DEAN Initiative.

Orelope-Adefulire, who spoke about the success of the first activation, said her office was currently working on strong collaborative partnerships by connecting and coordinating across institutions, as well as engaging with parliaments, sub-national and local communities in unprecedented ways, “which reflects the ‘whole of society’ and ‘whole of government’ approaches.”

Foundational measures before first activation and beyond

The SSAP-SDGs noted that the Federal Government, in demonstration of its commitment to the SDGs, put in place foundational measures which included taking into account national and sub- national development priorities, including impactful and well-designed family-focused policies.

These measures, she added, “are in place to give a voice to our people, particularly the poorest and the most vulnerable. Additionally, my office, whose mandate includes horizontal and vertical inter-governmental coordination; multi-stakeholder partnerships; resource mobilisation; advocacy and strategic communications for the SDGs in Nigeria, has established multilateral structures and institutions to accelerate the SDGs.

“We have continued to engage with states through the Conditional Grant Scheme (CGS), to ensure that the SDGs do not remain a federal initiative alone, by strengthening inter-governmental collaborations in order to channel resources to projects and programmes that have significant impact on the poor and vulnerable people at the local level.

“It is pertinent to state that my office has continued to intervene in the provision of health, education, water and sanitation infrastructure as well as economic empowerment programmes across the 36 states and the FCT to fast-track the implementation of the SDGs,” Orelope-Adefulire said.

The SDGs

The SDGs came into being after the expiration of the MDGs in 2015. The United Nations, working with Heads of States and Governments of its 193-member nations, including Nigeria, developed the SDGs as a new development agenda, also known as Agenda 2030.

It is framed into 17 goals, 169 targets and 230 indicators, all aimed at developing the world and ending poverty in all its ramifications. It also aims at safeguarding the planet and ensuring that all the people of the world enjoy peace and prosperity.