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Tag: apology

  • Catholic Bishop demands apology from FG, Amaechi over killings

    Makurdi Diocese Catholic Bishop Most Reverend Wilfred Anagbe, has demanded an apology from the federal government, especially Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi for allegeldy attempting to change the narratives of the killing of two priests and 17 worshippers in Mbalom last April.

    Speaking yesterday at St. Ignatius Quasi Parish Ukpo, Mbalom during a homily to mark the rite of atonement and purification of the community from the spilled blood, Anagbe insisted the killing was carried out by herdsmen.

    Two catholic priests and 11 worshippers were killing by suspected Fulani herdsmen during mass in the parish.

    The killings attracted national and international condemnation.

    Anagbe maintained that survivors and witnesses were not in doubt the killers were herdsmen.

    The Bishop alleged the government was using Christians including the minister, APC national chairman as well as presidential spokesman to change the true narrative on the killings. He noted that it was childish and hypocritical for people to insinuate Benue people or Christians were killing themselves.

    He wondered if they were responsible for the killings in other states including Zamfara and Katsina.

    He said herdsmen sent Rev. Fr. Felix Tyolaha packing from Yogbo in Guma Local Government Area before and he had to plead with him to come to Mbalom and serve only to be killed.

    The Bishop stressed the changing narrative was an insult on the sensibilities of the Benue people and Tiv nation.

    He urged politicians not sell the Tiv people for what he described as leftovers.

    The Bishop offered special prayers at the spot where Father Tyolaha was killed before the celebration of mass.

  • 25 years later, apology and honour

    No one saw it coming. But everyone with a sense of history received it with utmost joy. Why?

    First, it was a gesture that many Nigerians least expected now after the injustice of June 23, 1993, when the Babangida regime annulled the June 12, 1993 presidential election which was globally recognised as the freest and fairest in the history of elections in Nigeria.

    Second, several administrations, both military and civilian had come and gone since 1993, including the transition government of Abdulsalam Abubakar under whose watch the winner of the election, MKO Abiola was killed in detention. This recognition and this honor could have been done by Abubakar for the sake of closure. He failed. Then, the hope of the fair-minded populace turned to the greatest beneficiary of the martyrdom of Abiola. In 1999, they expected newly elected president Olusegun Obasanjo to right the wrong. They waited in vain.

    And so, with the stroke of a master strategist, Buhari shamed and silenced all the co-conspirators.

    Notice that what was uppermost in the minds of those who resented the calculated injustice against June 12 was the acknowledgement that a wrong was done, a national apology for it, and a restitution that is appropriate to the wrong. A symbolic gesture was made by the Jonathan administration with the renaming of the University of Lagos after MKO. For many, that was ill-advised because it was inadequate, having appeared to regionalize MKO’s achievements and sacrifice.

    Third, then, the difference between Buhari’s gesture and the last symbolic attempt at righting the wrong cannot be clearer. For, as Femi Falana, SAN, rightly noted, Buhari has virtually declared Abiola as the winner of June 12, 1993 presidential election. The truth has come out at last, and that is soothing for both the immediate family of Abiola, who have suffered tremendous harm over the last 25 years, and for the many leaders and foot soldiers in the struggle for the realization of Abiola’s mandate, many of whom also died in the process, and most of whom suffered serious deprivation.

    Fourth, Buhari not only recognised Abiola as the winner of that momentous election, he also, on behalf of the federal government and the nation, apologised for its annulment. That is not something that I imagined would ever come from a man with a no-nonsense military background. But Buhari pulled it off to the delight of democrats across the nation. And the commendation is swift and unreserved.

    Is there a self-serving motivation behind the gesture? Who knows? And, really, who cares? Others before him could have done it with whatever motivation, selfish or altruistic. They failed. So why must anyone be bothered about motivation, which only the agent of an action, in this case, Buhari, is privy to? Truly, good and selfless motive grants moral worth to an action, as Kant would argue. However, motives do not detract from the rightness of an action. Buhari has performed a right action here, whatever his motive.

    While many, including lawmakers have commended the President’s action in conferring national honors on Abiola, his running mate and the late national gadfly, Chief Gani Fawehinmi (SAN), some have questioned the legitimacy of granting national honor posthumously or declaring June 12 as Democracy Day. It is easy to dismiss such a position as sheer sophistry. But it deserves to be taken seriously and addressed if only to expose its faulty reasoning.

    Surely, posthumous honors are not uncommon, and the objectors know it. The specific reference is to the constitutional provision which requires that a national honor be conferred on a Nigerian citizen. And for some strange reasoning on the part of the objector, a dead Nigerian is not a Nigerian. Therefore, either the constitution is amended, or the honor is illegal. It appears, from this reasoning that when we make reference to, and appreciate, the “labours of our heroes past”, we do not recognize them as Nigerians. They belong to the land of the dead, and not to Nigeria. This is so at odds with any of our indigenous belief systems and world views that it hardly warrants a response. But it came right from the sacred chambers of our lawmaking institution.

    With respect to the declaration of June 12 as Democracy Day instead of May 29, the president supported his declaration with cogent reasoning. It was on June 12, 1993 that Nigerians voted for a united nation, despite their differences in language and religion. And they voted peacefully and overwhelmingly for a (Muslim-Muslim) ticket that they embraced. They exercised their democratic rights in an atmosphere of peace and freedom.

    It was an affirmation of unity and democracy. Why did it not occur to General Abdulsalam Abubakar and President Obasanjo that June 12 was the most appropriate Democracy Day? Your guess is as good as mine. And what was the uniqueness of May 29? Does a day become uniquely identified with democracy just because after a long period of military rule the new president was sworn in on that day? Does it not matter that the military would not have been in power for that last long if they had respected the voice of the people clearly articulated on June 12, 1993? It does, and once the injustice was addressed, there is a need to also address the symbolism of dates.

    What now needs to be taken care of is the anomaly of inaugurating a new administration on May 29 marking the end of four years of an outgoing administration, and celebrating Democracy Day only a few days later, on June 12. If there is a will there is a way. The political will must be summoned to find a way to regularize this potential anomaly to give effect to the presidential declaration.

    As many have pointed out, Buhari’s gesture, though momentous and justly commended, is only the beginning of the end of a self-inflicted trauma that consumed the nation 25 years ago. Much more needs to be done to assure every section of the nation that they belong. This requires as much courage as has been summoned thus far in correcting the injustice of June 12.

    Abiola has been virtually declared winner of the election. Therefore, he is a former president. This should be formalized, and his entitlements be tendered to his family. NASS has rightly requested Professor Nwosu’s NEC to formally declare the winner of the election. It should follow it with a legislation retroactively proclaiming Abiola as elected president in 1993. This is what truth and reconciliation demand. In this holy month of Ramadan, it is what is required of the faithful.

    Finally, due to the lopsidedness of its structure, the nation is still far from its potential as a nation bound in freedom, peace, and unity. Many are rendered unfree because they do not have the basic needs to live in freedom. Unrest and violence, rather than peace, has been the portion of the majority across the six geopolitical zones. And these have detracted remarkably from any sense of national unity as we have seen in the rise of sectional and sectarian agitations.

    Many reasonable voices, including from this page, have been raised concerning the need to attend to the structure which has exacerbated the dangers of sectionalism and sectarianism before they consume the nation. Restructuring has been the rallying cry across the zones since 1999, and before then in the demands and agitations of the various pro-democracy movements. While the latter could rejoice in the partial victory of the recognition of June 12 and the honor done to its foremost champion, they would even be more appreciative of efforts in the direction of restructuring because this portends more benefits for the nation.

    Buhari can write his name in a bold platinum of history with an unflinching support for restructuring, starting with a fulfillment of the promise of his party to amend the constitution for devolution of power to the states. Together with the National Assembly, this can be completed in a jiffy, and they will be the proud beneficiaries of the gratitude of a nation truly bound in freedom, peace, and unity.

     

     

  • F-SARS chief seeks N2b, apology from Wike

    THE Commander of Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (F-SARS) in Rivers State, Mr. Akin Fakorede, an assistant commissioner of Police (ACP), is asking for N2 billion damages from the Rivers State government.

    He has given seven days’ ultimatum to the government to retract the libellous publications against him, and demanded an unreserved apology from the state government.

    Fakorede said the apology must be published on the front pages of national newspapers that carried the false advertisements.

    This, he said, should be published twice the number of times the advertisements ran in each newspaper.

    Fakorede’s lawyer, Ayodele Akintunde, in a 10-page letter, dated May 22, and addressed to Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Emma Aguma, yesterday in Port Harcourt, accused the state government of deliberately lying against his client.

    The F-SARS commander approached his lawyer after the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, authorised him to sue Governor Nyesom Wike and the government for the malicious, false and libellous publications against him, having been exonerated by the IGP of allegations levelled against him.

    Akintunde said: “The allegations that our client is an election rigger and an enemy of democracy, and that our client is recruiting, training and arming a special squad to rig the 2019 elections in Rivers State though violent means are totally false and baseless.

    “In the consequence, our client’s reputation has been seriously damaged and he has suffered considerable distress and embarrassment. We hereby demand that you retract the libelous publications contained in the national newspapers within seven days of the receipt of this letter and tender an unreserved apology to our client for the damage to his reputation and the distress and embarrassment caused him by the libelous publications.

    “The retraction and apology must be given as much publicity as your libelous advertisements and they must be inserted on the front pages of the same newspapers, in as large a type and in as prominent positions as your advertisements. The apology must also be printed/published twice the number of times your libelous advertisements were published in each of the national newspapers.

    “The Rivers State government must also give a written undertaking never again to publish any similar libel against our client in future.

    “Take notice that if you do not cause to be printed/published, a retraction and an unreserved apology, in the manner demanded within seven days of receipt of this letter, and pay an agreed amount as damages for the libel, we have our client’s instruction to commence legal action against the Rivers State government for N2 billion as damages for libel. You have been warned.”

    Fakorede’s lawyer faulted the government’s claim on the report of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on the December 10 legislative rerun.

    He said: “The words contained in all the advertisements are clearly intended to disparage our client in his duties as an ACP in the Nigeria Police Force and particularly as the commander of F-SARS, Rivers State and expose him to hate, ridicule and contempt.

    “All the allegations contained in the publications, including the report of INEC, are false, malicious and completely unfounded. During the 2016 Rivers State rerun elections, our client never assaulted Mary Tunkayo, Dr. C. Odekpe or any INEC staff. This is clear from all the written statements obtained from the relevant INEC staff.”

  • Apology or Repentance?

    “… And beware of a calamity that may descend to afflict not only those who incur it but also the majority of innocent people who had no hands in its cause. And know that Allah’s retribution can be very severe…” -Q 24: 62-64a

    Monologue
    Perhaps few people are as much familiar with the implication of public apology in any given circumstance as Bryan Davis who once said: “Sacrifice is at the heart of repentance. Without deeds, your apology is worthless.” His observation in the above quote is quite axiomatic.

    Nigeria is a peculiar country in nature and in character. She has artificial seasons for artificial conducts. And from time to time, those artificialities come up like battles in which adversaries engage one another with little consideration for implications. One of such seasons is now. Penultimate week, the National chairman of a political party called People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Uche Secondus publicly apologized to Nigerians for what he called misrule in the country for 16 years from 1999 to 2015. He did not explain the details of his reason for offering apology but the oral apology has since generated a fierce controversy as usual.

    Incidentally, this was followed by a public confession by Alhaji Ibrahim Mantu, a former Deputy Senate President during the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) regime, who is now a member of All Progressives Congress (APC). In his confession, he narrated how the leaders of PDP at that time economically pillaged Nigeria as a country and prevented her from growing into what she was supposed to be. Giving reason for his public confession and apology, Alhaji Mantu said;

    “I am tired of being seen as a criminal on the street of the world because you are a Nigerian. You assume that everybody is an innocent human being until being proven otherwise but whilst you are outside this country with a green passport and they see that you are a Nigerian, even if you are a pastor or an imam they will assume that you are criminally minded or you have criminal tendencies just because of where you come from. That must change.”

    He concluded that he was tired of the abundance of poverty in the country.  But while confessing his role in rigging elections for his former political party (PDP), he did not give us the benefit of his role in the alleged 3rd term saga for a political demagogue who at 70 was then a 2nd term President, but was still secretly scheming to create a despotic empire on which he would preside for life. Mantu was also silent on the strange political theories of “stealing is not corruption” and ’16 is greater than 19’that paved the way for the collapse of the PDP hegemony in Nigeria.

    Merits and demerits of apology

    While some people have attributed those apologies to the working of conscience, others have interpreted them to be a new gimmick typical of Nigerian politicians to further pave way for themselves towards subjecting Nigerians to a new era of slavery. From whichever angle they are viewed, such apologies have their merits and demerits. That for the first time in Nigeria’s political history, certain politicians have thought it wise to offer apology to millions of citizens who had been politically and economically decimated for years is one of those merits.

    Ordinarily, when apology is offered, whether publicly or privately, the first impression created is that the apologist has admitted certain errors and wants to rectify them. In such a case, the two aspects quickly jump to the fore to interplay either positively or negatively. Ironically, however, apology in whatever form is not offered in isolation. If it is genuine it must be accompanied by repentance. As a matter of fact, in any genuine apology, repentance comes first. Thus, without repentance no apology is considered genuine.

    Relevant questions

    Uche Secondus’s apology at this time has raised a number of questions which only the political jobbers can answer. For instance, which aspect of PDP’s misconducts that constituted misrule was Secondus offering apology for? Is it the reckless looting spree or the impunity with which such looting was carried out or the unbridled arrogance of power that dominated the political scene in Nigeria during that period? Or is it the continuous exhibition of impunity by former President Goodluck Jonathan who bluntly and arrogantly refused to honour the summons of a Law Court?

    At least we can still remember that instead of honouring such summons Jonathan reportedly asked to be paid the sum of N1billion for security before he could appear in court. And this was coming at a time when a number of former Presidents and Prime Ministers around the world were being subjected to trials through the laws of their countries for various misconducts while they were in office. It is a well known fact for instance, that former South Korean President, Park Geun-hye was recently impeached and subjected to trial for corruption. And in Pakistan, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was impeached as well and charged with corruption. Former Presidents Hosni Mubarak and Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Egypt and Brazil respectively were also charged with corruption in their various states. Although Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak has been acquitted after several years of trial and detention, his counterpart from Brazil, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has been sentenced to almost 10 years imprisonment. (Incidentally, Egypt has consistently been ruled only by the military since 1952 when King Faruq was overthrown in a military coup till date, except for 1 year (June 30, 2012 to July 3, 2013) of democratic dispensation led by former President Mohamed Morsi which was terminated by a military coup led by the current President, Abdul-Fatah Sisi for the continuity of military rule in that country). Also, President Jacob Zuma of South Africa and Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu are currently being tried for corruption under the laws of their respective countries.

    It is only here in Nigeria that virtually all major crimes are provided with either ethnic or religious immunity against the rule of law. It is in Nigeria that a serving or former public officer who is caught or suspected to have committed a crime suddenly becomes an ethnic or a religious citizen. And that is why a former Nigerian President like Goodluck Jonathan who had signed many bills into law could audaciously breach one of such laws by asking the court to provide N1billion before he could respond to a court’s summons. What message does that kind of impunity pass to Nigerian youths of today who are aspiring to become Nigerian leaders of tomorrow? And his only reliance to so flagrantly disobey a law court is on ethnic protection through blind blackmail.

    Gen. Murtala Muhammed for instance

    We can still vividly recall that in this same country, a onetime military Head of States, General Murtala Muhammed was sued into a court of law by a University Professor (name withheld) who alleged that the General as Head of States was corrupt. And in reaction, General Murtala Muhammed, a disciplinarian to the core, said he would personally appear in court in response to the summons as an evidence of the obedience to the rule of law and to clear his name of the alleged corruption. Unfortunately, the date of the court case had not come when the General lost his life in a military coup led by one Buka Suka Dimka on February 13, 1976. But when the case came up later after the death of General Murtala Muhammed, it was discovered that the allegation was false and the General was cleared of corruption.

    Thus, the Professor had to tender an unreserved apology to the family of General Muhammed and generality of Nigerians for misinforming them. Perhaps if General Murtala Muhammed had not been killed in a military coup, he would have been the first serving African Head of States to voluntarily appear in a court of law to clear his name of corruption. Taking a cue from General Muhammed’s example, one would have expected each of PDP’s apologists for unprecedented misconducts to exhibit repentance in practical terms rather than just offering oral apology.

    Primordial instances

    We have examples in history. When Adam, the primogenitor of human beings was challenged for transgressing against the instruction of Allah while he was in paradise with his wife (Hawau), he quickly realized the gravity of his error and apologized with grave remorse. But his ordeal did not end there. Despite this offer of apology he was banished with his wife by Allah to the earth where the couple had to labour and sweat before they could feed. And that was against the automatic feeding and other pleasures he and his wife had enjoyed in paradise. Adam was though the first example of such reprimand, he was not the only one on the ladder of prophets. There were several others after him. So, apology; whether oral or written does not prevent the punishment which any deliberate misconduct entails.

    This confirms that punishment for whatever offence is a punitive measure against future reoccurrence of misconduct in human beings. However, let there be no misconception that the issue of apology being addressed here is peculiar to PDP and its members. Other political parties including the currently ruling one must learn a lesson from it. It is PDP today; it may be another political party tomorrow. Meanwhile, which ruling class in Nigeria since independence should not apologize to Nigerian citizenry after repenting the political crimes it had unconscientiously committed?

    From all indications, what both the civilian and military regimes have done to Nigerian populace was a clandestine connivance to continue the colonization to which the British colonialists had subjected Nigerians.  No military regime since 1966 has ever ruled Nigeria without partnering with civilian politicians and no civilian regime since 1979 has ever ruled Nigeria without securing the support of the military. And in such a criminal connivance, ethnicity and religion have never mattered to the ruling class. The use of both dangerous ‘masquerades’ (ethnicity and religion) is a manipulation of the political environment to cover up their relentless atrocities against the people.

    Conditions for apology

    Whether in religious, political, economic or even social sphere, apology cannot be offered without satisfying its conditions. In religious sphere for instance, whoever will seek apology for a sin must first confess to committing that sin. If the sin entails any penalty, he must be ready to pay it except such a penalty is unconditionally overlooked. The essence of confessing a sin before apologizing for committing it is to give assurance that such a sin will not be committed again. It would be quite illogical for a thief to steal another man’s car and apologize after getting caught without returning the car to the owner. What feeling will such a thief expect from the owner of the car who sees it with him whenever he is riding the car around? For him to be forgiven, the thief must first return the car to the owner voluntarily and then pledge never to steal either the same car or any other car thereafter.

    The similitude of the apology offered to Nigerians by the PDP’s stalwarts is like that of a thief who stole somebody’s car and turned back to apologize orally to the car owner without returning the car to the latter. Many Nigerians are light-hearted and can readily forgive any offence for which apology is offered but only if such apology is preceded by repentance. 16 years in the life of a nation cannot be said to be short especially where more damages than repairs have been done.

    Shakespeare’s idea of forgiveness

    When the renowned English playwright, William Shakespeare came up with an axiom that “To err is human; to forgive divine”, he did not mean that every error could be forgiven through the seeking of oral apology no matter its gravity. There are inadvertent errors and there are deliberate errors. The one is humanly understandable; the other is like a deliberate sin for which seeking apology can only be like crocodile tears.

    If we may ask, why is it now less than a year to the next general election that PDP leaders are seeking apology? If such apology is granted, and the so-called errors are forgiven, what is going to happen to the billions or even trillions of Naira stolen or siphoned when that party was in power? Besides, how can forgiveness of thousands of Nigerians who had died as a result of PDP’s misrule in its 16 years of misrule be obtained? If Nigerians are light-hearted and forgiving as stated here, will the grant of apology, as now being requested by PDP refill the quagmire into which this country has been plunged through the said misrule?

    Observation

    Typical of certain Nigerians there is tendency that some parochial readers of this column will query the right of this columnist to write on politics or economy. Such a tendency is a clear evidence of blatant ignorance. Unlike some other religions, Islam is a full package of the total life of a Muslim and not a free-for-all straight jacket. There is no distinction among religious, political, economic, and social life of a Muslim. All are within the frame of worship as commanded by the Almighty Allah. The idea of “giving to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s” is quite irrelevant to Islam. In the sacred religion called Islam, both Caesar and whatever is attributed to his ownership belong to the Almighty Allah who never slumbers or dies and no mortal being can create a departure from that norm. Thus, writing about any aspect of life including politics, economy, and social life of a nation or her citizens is quite compatible with the tenets of Islam.

    And by the way, since Muslims do not concern themselves about the methodology of preaching in other religions except where obvious falsehood and hate speeches are involved, it will be foolhardy and absurd for some non Muslims to want to teach Muslims how and to which extent they should preach Islam. The Qur’an is clear on this in chapter 109 where Allah says “Oh you who disbelieve, I do not worship what you worship neither do you worship what I worship. Your religion is for you, and mine is for me.”

    Conclusion

    Progressive politics in any civilized society is not about what certain individuals or any political party can gain momentarily but about the legacy which the rulers of the nation at a particular time can leave behind for future generations.

    Finally, let those who have admitted the misrule of their political party for a period of 16 years go ahead to convince Nigerians that their apologies are genuine by returning the loots they have been alleged to have illegally cornered for themselves as an evidence of genuine repentance. “Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves. And when Allah intends for a people ill, there is no repelling it.” God guide Nigerian leaders aright.

  • Apology not enough

    The apology by Nigeria’s former ruling party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), is a classical case of how not to apologise.

    The party’s national chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, who was a powerful member of the party’s leadership when the misdeeds were committed, said having realised that the party failed Nigerians and thus paid for the sins by the poor performance at the polls in 2015, needed to seek forgiveness as another election is due in less than a year.

    The glib apology, while an improvement on the serial denials that followed the electoral failure of the party, is unacceptable as most Nigerians have since declared. If the PDP wants to be taken seriously, it has to come clean. What exactly is the party apologising for? The impunity with which national affairs was run, the mindless looting of the treasury by officials of the party and government for which many of them have confessed in court, the attendant rot in the schools, hospitals and other critical infrastructure, or the endangering of national security?

    When the African National Congress (ANC) took over the reins of government in South Africa, there was a need to draw the curtains on the sordid apartheid past, hence the setting up of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC). All those who were participants in the murder, oppression and repression that defined the essence of apartheid were told to come forward, confess their sins, tell the whole truth, seek and obtain forgiveness. That was how the past was buried to give way to a glorious dawn. Penitent officials came up with details of how they contributed to subverting the state. This is what is expected of those who ran the ship of Nigeria aground in the 16-year (1999 to 2015) that PDP was in power.

    Under the 1999 Constitution, political parties play a major role not only in recruiting leaders, but in consequently running the government. Therefore, for dashing the hopes of Nigerians and frittering away scarce resources, the PDP must demonstrate genuine penitence. This cannot be said to be the situation when the organising secretary of the party when impunity reigned, and internal democracy was utterly lacking, has now been rewarded with the higher office of the national chairman. The PDP continues to hail those identified as enemies of state under the Jonathan administration, thus suggesting that if it were to be forgiven by Nigerians, such elements would be returned to office.

    We know it is possible to shed tears apparently, while actually laughing at victims of one’s action or inaction. Such a tear is described as crocodile tears. If the PDP were to get away with the atrocities it committed against the Nigerian state and people, other political parties would have learnt no lessons. It would be an invitation to future security chiefs to embezzle money meant for the procurement of weapons and the welfare of officers and men deployed on the battlefield. It would mean rewarding those who ran the petroleum industry, rendering no account, but dispensing the billions of dollars raked in from the sale of crude oil. It would mean forgiving those who suborned electoral officials, armed political thugs and subverted the institutions that should serve as pillars of democracy.

    We cannot forget in a hurry that a meager N15 billion was expended on roads rehabilitation and reconstruction in 2014, while crude oil consistently sold above $100 per barrel. What happened to the revenue? How did states end up holding the short end of the stick, unable to perform the very basic function of paying workers?

    Nigerians deserve a virile opposition, but the PDP does not qualify to present itself yet as the alternative to the Buhari administration. Credible Nigerians can come together to play the role. As the 2019 election is only a few months away, Nigerians should insist on only the best materials for the country; those who shared the common patrimony and thus imperilled the future should be rejected.

    If we must have a new Nigeria, we cannot return so soon to the years of the locusts, nor should we permanently hoist the nation’s flag in the global hall of shame, while expecting that Nigerians would be treated as men and women of dignity by and in foreign lands. It is good that the PDP has confessed to failing Nigerians, but, in this case, the apology is not enough. It is simply ridiculous and unacceptable.

     

  • An apology and its crisis

    WHEN Afrobeat legend Fela Anikulapo-Kuti was jailed in Maiduguri, he took ill and was hospitalised. The judge who jailed him, Justice Gregory Okoro-Idogwu, was visiting. Told that Fela (of exciting memory) was hospitalised, he decided to see him. Perhaps out of sympathy or curiosity or troubling conscience – or all.

    The judge saw Fela and, according to the music icon, confessed that he was under pressure to jail him. He apologised. Fela, a master of yabis, quickly sent a message to his younger brother, the late Beko Ransome-Kuti, saying “the judge don beg me”. Newspapers picked it up, splashing the story on their front pages with the screaming headline, “Judge don beg me – Fela.” His fans, sense of defiance got tougher, with their hero’s unbroken spirit.

    Even after the death of the Abami Eda (the Weird One), as Fela loved being hailed by his admirers, the question remained in legal and social circles if actually Justice Okoro-Idogwu begged him for forgiveness, but his fans would not stop hailing him in public: “The judge don beg me!” He, characteristically, replied with a clenched fist thrown up in the air.

    The music giant also waxed an album, “Unnecessary Begging”, to reflect the mood of that time. The sober lyrics dramatised the often hostile encounter between a lender and his debtor. “Unnecessary begging as we dey call am for area, oro ebe o sele (We call this unnecessary begging; no need for it.”

    Why is “Editorial Notebook” waxing lyrical now? Is this a voyage into the  seductive world of music to take a soothing break from the depressing  occurrences of these days? No. Not at all.

    It is all in a bid to query the idea and spirit of the act of begging for forgiveness. When is an apology genuine? Is saying “sorry” a true reflection of a remorseful heart?

    Since the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said the magic word “sorry” on Monday, it has been difficult to ascertain whether Nigerians will accept the apology and let bygones be bygones. After all, we are known to forget so fast any evil visited on us as if it never happened. We even at times ascribe it all to God’s will against which we, being human, are powerless. Besides, we often say, to Him belongs justice and the power to say, “Go and sin no more”.

    PDP Chair Uche Secondus, who delivered the apology, said: “I am the very first to admit that our party made many mistakes. Consequently, we were roundly sanctioned by Nigerians, occasioning our loss at the polls in 2015. Let me seize this opportunity to apologise to Nigerians unequivocally for the several shortcomings of our party in the near and far past. It was all part of our evolution process without which there can be no maturity.”

    He spoke of “impunity”, “imposition” and all that. Secondus was not done. He  announced the PDP’s plan to “rescue” Nigeria.

    The apology sparked a wave of comments. The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) sympathised with the PDP and advised it to go all the way by confessing its sins , making some restitution and staying in the purgatory for more than the 16 years for which, according to the party, it sinned against Nigerians.

    As if taking a cue from the APC, many, including ordinary folks and notable compatriots, began to scream:

    “No, no; confess first.”

    “Eh!  PDP don beg, but where is the loot?”

    “Good, but surrender the loot first.”

    “No to half confession; full disclosure; tell us who stole what; where is the loot?”

    And so on and so forth.

    Before we could make sense of the fast motion the commotion was taking, Mr Secondus somehow recanted. He said the apology was for allowing  APC to mount the saddle in the first place.

    But that did not stop the hullabaloo; it only deepened the row.   It was the tower of Babel all over again – all because of a questionable apology.

    “Ha, can PDP ever repent, let alone confess? If PDP confesses, won’t Nigeria burn?”

    “Will Orubebe tell the world the writer of the script he was delivering as Jega was announcing the result of that election?”

    A colleague was wondering why Nigerians were driven to such frenzy by a  former ruling party’s mere apology on behalf of its reckless and feckless leaders.

    He had the answer. He said the Secondus apology came the same day when the news broke of the death of Mavrodi Mondial Moneybox (MMM) founder Sergei Mavrodi of a heart attack. Tens of thousands of Nigerians had subscribed to the Ponzi scheme, losing their life savings. Students eager to join the gravy train invested their school fees. Instead of making a kill, they killed themselves.

    Mavrodi’s death, needless to say, sparked an avalanche of comments on the social media.

    Samples:  “So finally confirmed. Sergei Mavrodi is dead. Nigerians. Amadioha and Sango double barrel strike for the man’s heart. Chai!”

    “MMM has been scamming people all over the world without repercussions…Just the small money scammed in Nigeria last year… the dude is dead. So Amadioha can kill someone in Moscow?”

    “Sergei  Mavrodi is afraid of Nigeria coming to the World Cup in June. He will resurrect in August after the World Cup.”

    And this: “JAMB 2019 question. What did Sergei Mavrodi die of? (a) Spiritual attack (b) Counter attack (c) Heart attack (d) Armed robbers attack (e) All of the above.”

    There is also a picture of a group of youths bearing stones of various sizes, peeping behind a wall, apparently laying ambush for somebody. The caption: “Nigerians who died because of MMM waiting for Sergei Mavrodi at the gates of hell.”

    Back to Secondus and his apology for the PDP:  “We are sorry – PDP. Sorry for what? Without confession, there is no forgiveness (1John 2:1),” many responded, going spiritual.

    Others rejoined: “Don’t mind them. Apology rejected. They know that the foreign reserve has gone up to $42.8billion. They are thinking of how to share it. No way.”

    Secondus’ apology came as former President Goodluck Jonathan protested that Vice- President Yemi Osinbajo said N150billion was looted from the treasury two weeks before the 2015 election. Dr Jonathan said he was in Sierra Leone pursuing the cause of democracy when he learnt that a smear campaign against him was in the offing. “When I was in power, I said my ambition is not worth the blood of any Nigerian. Even out of power, I continue to hold that belief.”

    He added that “no matter how far and fast falsehood has travelled, it must be overtaken by truth”.

    That, obviously, did not go down well with those Dr Jonathan was addressing. “While Jonathan is busy defending his integrity,” a source told this newspaper, “his wife Dame Patience is asking for an out-of- court settlement “of all suspicious transactions and funds traced to her”. Her lawyer, said the source, wrote to the EFCC. “About 31 persons and companies paid over $11,489,069.03 into her two domiciliary accounts,” he said.

    Mrs Jonathan had earlier claimed she inherited the fortune of her wealthy mother who had passed on. Is she ready to reveal how her mother came by this huge pile  and others reportedly found in her bank accounts?

    After Dr Jonathan’s reaction on his Facebook page, the official sources threatened to unveil more of the cesspool of corruption (or stealing, if you like) the PDP would have loved covered for ever.

    Can there be forgiveness without sincere contrition? Where is the place of justice in all this? Will a mere apology suffice for what some analysts have described as part of the greatest national heists of all time? Who and who have turned in their loot in exchange for no prosecution? Can those who betrayed our trust for 16 years, earning the sobriquet Papa Deceive Pickin be trusted again?

    Can the PDP ever truly apologise?

     

    The Police v Dino Melaye

    JUST one week after the police announced with remarkable glee that they had arrested three suspects who reportedly confessed that Senator Dino Melaye (Kogi West) armed them and gave them N430,000, the suspects have vanished into thin air. They escaped from custody, we were told yesterday.

    Police chief Ibrahim Idris removed the commissioner, Ali Janga, for negligence. Dino, who struts Abuja like any of our overfed lawmakers, has been declared wanted. He was at the National Assembly yesterday.

    What is going on in Kogi?

    Melaye is full of drama, thrilling the social media audience with videos in which he acts like a trainee comedian, pouring invectives on Governor Yahaya Bello, who is consumed by all manner of trivialities.

    He is more involved in its party’s politics  at the national level than in tackling matters that concern his state. Herdsmen and their cows are riding roughshod over farms that represent many decades of toil and sweat. Monarchs have not been  spared in the bloodletting that has seized the state. In Kogi, kidnappers have found a cozy home for their evil trade.

    For many of the state’s leading lights, it is politics first; all other things can follow later. Melaye, in particular, has been everything but a good ambassador of the state’s elite with his mendacious propaganda, part of the reason the Senate has been seen as a conclave of jokers who feed fat on our sweat.

    The drama in Kogi is getting more absurd by the day. The dramatis personae should spare a thought for the people and stop the nonsense. Today.

  • Fed Govt: apology not enough, return looted fund

    THE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) should complete its apology to Nigerians by returning all the funds looted from the public treasury during its 16 years in power, the Federal Government has said.

    A statement issued in Abuja yesterday by Minister of Information and Culture Lai Mohammed challenged the party to show the genuineness of its apology through a discernible change of attitude.

    “The PDP presided over an unprecedented looting of the public treasury, perhaps the worst of its kind in Nigeria or anywhere else in the world.

    “Therefore, the best evidence of penitence for such a party is not just to own up and apologise, but to also return the looted funds as anything short of that is mere deceit.

    The minister said with the paucity of funds, the administration had spent an unprecedented amount of money on infrastructural development and Social Investment Programme, among others.

    He added that returning looted funds would provide more money for the programmes and make life more meaningful for Nigerians.

    Mohammed also reminded the PDP of the quote: “If you find yourself in a hole, stop digging,” saying it applies to the PDP at this time.

    “PDP, press the reset button. Stop sabotaging the work of this administration, which is packing the mess you left behind, through your reckless statements and unfounded allegations.

    “Play responsible opposition politics. Put Nigeria’s interest over and above partisan interest.

    “Temper your desperation to return to power. Spend quality time in the purgatory and you will be forgiven,” he said.

    The PDP had on Monday reflected on its 16 years stewardship and admitted it made mistakes and asked Nigerians to forgive its wrongdoings.

    Its National chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, who spoke at a public discourse, had said the party was sorry for its mistakes.

     

  • ‘No apology for disclosing senators’ jumbo pay’

    Senator Shehu Sani (Kaduna Central) was spoke on a radio programme in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, on the controversial allowances for senators, the Election Re-ordering Bill and reconciliation in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). Correspondent BISI OLADELE, who monitored the programme, reports.

    Why  did you disclose to the public the controversial allocances earned by senators?

    I am not a typical politician. I came from a civil rights background and my politics is driven by conscience and a set of guiding principles and it was on that foundation that I contested and won election to represent my people. Based on the fact that I am not a typical politician, I should be expected to do things differently from the typical politician.

    It is not easy in a situation like this in the sense that whatever one would say, there would certainly be consequences. It is also not for the fact that I wanted to antagonise my colleagues or incite people against them. I am of the firm belief that things should not continue to be as they are for a long time.  My observation was that when I came to the Senate, I had read the public mood and perception and views when it comes to the issue of people in the National Assembly.

    The National Assembly is made up of distinguished personalities, doctors, lawyers, engineers, academics and all who have made it in life. But, because of this culture of secrecy and silence, people who found themselves in the National Assembly are criminalised and stigmatised. The dome of the National Assembly is being seen to house people of questionable character and integrity. So, what I did was to rescue the honour and credibility of the National Assembly by removing the veil secrecy to bring it once and for all to an end. It has been 19 years of civil administration and it has been 19 years of secrecy, of people not wanting to speak out. We have reached a point where people speculate and say so many bad things about the NASS. You see all sorts of figures of what senators are collecting. Some say N50million. Some speculate N100 million. But, whatever people say, naturally, others will believe because there is no counter-information, no truth coming from the other side. So, I said I know it is painful, I know that I will lose friends and colleagues within the very establishment that I serve. But, I need to speak because I was part of those who fought and struggled for the restoration of this democracy. I went to jail and was in the fore front of the protest against military rule. It is not possible for me to speak against the military rule and now I cannot.  And as such I say it is temporary pain.

    But, now that Nigerians know what the senators are earning, it is time for them to also ask what is happening in the Presidency, the judiciary and the other arm of government. Since I have come out to speak, we should also ask people to ask the members of their Houses of Assembly who also collect this money to speak. I know things are not going to be easy because when I made the disclosure, there was explosion, even right in my own house. So, I know very well that it comes with a lot of price. But, in the long run, our people will not be focusing on the senators. They will now be focusing on other areas and other people who refuse to come out and speak.

    Now that you have blown the lid open, do you intent to stop collecting the huge amount of money to further set an example for others?

    When I came to the Senate, I said this is what should be done. I said the RMFAC should let Nigerians know what we are earning. I even forgot that I said that until the Premium Times published what I had earlier said and that, that had always been my position. I will continue to collect as other are collecting too, until there is a law or there is an adjustment to say we should collect half of what we now collect. I will continue to collect because I am not collecting it for myself. I am collecting it for my people. But, what I see fundamentally is that it goes beyond that. We live in a society where there is a very low level of political consciousness and awareness. Our people are still unable to differentiate between executive and legislative duties. They want their legislators to build schools, hospitals, construct roads and so many other things. Money is being given to the legislators for them to be able to do this. Now, this money became the primary purpose why many people want to be in the NASS. Also, this money diverts the attention of senators and Reps from doing their primary duties of raising motions, bills and performing oversight functions. I would like a point where they will say what a Senator is earning is this much and nobody should come to me for school fees, rent and to solve their problems. We will then have only people with ideas coming to the NASS and this monetary inducement and enticement will come to an end. But, as of now, out of every 10 people that come to see a legislator, it is only one that comes on issues of motions and bills. Nine of them will be about their own personal bills for you to solve. So, we should reach that point. If you go to the NASS now, you will see people trooping in at the gate. When you ask them, you will see they are people who are coming to for notes to get some jobs of some form of work to do somewhere. Majority thinks there is a lot of money in NASS and actually there is. So, they come to collect the money. I would like to see those in my reception to be those who have come to discuss issues that took me to the NASS.

    I will appeal to Nigerians to now to shift focus to the governors, the ministers, those in the Presidency, the SGF, the Chief of Staff to the President, NNPC GMD, those in the Houses of Assembly, to ask them to say publicly what they earn monthly. I lost friends because of what I said. People were not happy, but I had to do it. We can’t continue to be like North Korea for the next 100 years. It is not going to work.

    How can the huge salary and allowances be reduced?

    When President Muhammadu Buhari took over on the platform of the APC, something happened. He publicly declared his assets and the Vice President followed. I was the third person that publicly declared my assets. Since then, there has been no other person, including governors. And I said it that you can know who is a saint or a sinner in Nigeria’s political parlance without people publicly declaring their assets. As long as there is a law that says you can go secretly, declare your assets and all you have written will be locked with a key and the key will be given to you and then, you go, then why should you call some people saints and some sinners?

    When we took over office and I went to the Code of Conduct Bureau, I was given a pen and a paper to write the number of houses I have, my cars, what I have in the banks and how I was able to acquire them. They gave me a page and I wrote my own. I was surprised when those who are in the hall with me for the same purpose were calling for more papers to be given to them as if they were writing an examination. Some filled documents that were almost like a volume.

    Could that be anticipatory asset declaration you are referring to?

    I don’t know. But, after doing that, they handed it over. All our forms, the cars, the houses are locked somewhere away from Nigerians who are outside without them knowing what are in the documents and declarations. But, we still call some people saints and some sinners.

    Today, does anybody in the political class have the guts to tell CCB to publish his declarations and let Nigerians see them?  You say those in the PDP are sinners and those in the APC are saints. Then, why is it that in the group of saints, only three people publicly declared their assets? Then, you should ask yourself whether you are being taken for a ride or not.

    Before any law can be changed, you need numbers. So, do you think that that number will be available? The good thing is that the Senate has been courteous to me because as soon as I said it, the spokesperson of the Senate confirmed it. That is maturity. And for now, there has been no sanction. I don’t know whether tomorrow or next there will be. I tried to make my colleagues to understand, though many don’t want to. Someone was not happy with me. So, I called him privately and asked him what religion he professes and he said Christianity. I asked him “do you know of the verse that says you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.” He said “truth may never set anybody free in this place, but will only set him to trouble.”

    To even open up is a monumental step, not to now talk about either reducing or expunging it. That is another thing. For me, I believe I have done my own best. Everybody collects this money, but the rule is that when you collect, you keep quiet. So, we have done our own. The next step is for pressure to come from Nigerians.

    The election re-ordering done by the NASS is said to have been done with the undercurrent of political ulterior motive. Can you clear the air on this?

    In a political dispensation or a democratic era, you can’t in every situation remove political motives, even in things the Presidency does. So, in things the legislature does, there should be political motives. But, I think the reason for the re-ordering of elections has to do with the attitude of the electorate during elections. If you have the presidential election first, then, there is every likehood that after voting the president and he has won, there will certainly be a bandwagon effect on other elections, especially when you have a popular president.

    Is President Buhari still popular?

    Well, that is another question. Maybe, we will talk about it the next time. But, the NASS is saying that in order to have a fair playing ground for smaller parties and, in fact, for all parties and in order to make it possible for Nigerians to independently assess and appraise their legislators, to make it impossible to have a mass trial, mass conviction of senators and Reps, we want a situation where legislators will stand in the dock alone and Nigerians will assess them. The NASS election is not joined to the presidential election so that Nigerians will not say because of the president, all the NASS members should be elected.

    If you look at it, the APC does not have an overwhelming majority in Senate and I think this should be put into consideration. If theAPC has the majority, the party will have its way in everything it does. Secondly, the APC house is in disarray. If the party is united and is doing what it should do, before any resolution or voting on any issue is done in NASS, the party would have called its members and told them the interest of the party and where to vote. But, we only read about the position of the party on the pages of newspapers. For the three years that we have been in the NASS, never for one day has the party called us to say its position on any issue A is vote B or vice versa. That has not been the case. In those days, the NPN, UPN and PRP would call their members and tell them their positions. The SDP and the NRC did same. The PDP did the same thing. But now, you can see the ‘civil war’ within the APC. There is both civil war and cold war in the party. Now, the APC is facing its own civil war, not to talk of ensuring peace in the country. Like Senator Ahmed Tinubu is given a task to solve the problem of Arab-Israeli, bring peace to Libya, Somalia, Yemen, Syria before 2019. This is what we have.

    Is reconciliation in the APC dead on arrival?

    I told you that if it is possible to bring peace in Syria, Afghanistan, Yemen, before the next election. But, I can tell you that in the Senate, we can achieve those things, but we need the numbers. I have done my best and it is for Nigerian to now decide. I think one thing we lack is the death of the culture of protest in Nigeria. The people who traditionally should have been on the streets, protesting on issues, have either pulled back or they have simply measuring their steps.

    Most of them are now in government…

    Oh, they are in power? So, we have left the street protest now to Charly Boy and Tuface and others. So, when you leave the stage to entertainers and comedians, that is where it is going to be.

  • Pro-Buhari comment: Senate rejects Omo-Agege’s apology

    Pro-Buhari comment: Senate rejects Omo-Agege’s apology

    In what appeared an about turn, Senator  Ovie Omo-Agege, yesterday tendered an unreserved apology to the Senate for alleged “offensive” comments against the upper chamber.

    Senator Omo-Agege in a subdued voice owned up that he over shot his bounds by claiming at a media briefing that the amended Electoral Act which reordered election sequence in the country was targeted at President Muhammadu Buhari.

    The Senate on Tuesday referred the matter to its committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions for investigation following the adoption of a motion by Senator Dino Melaye on the matter.

    Melaye prayed the Senate to refer the matter to the committee for investigation claiming that Omo-Agege’s comments impinged onthe integrity of the Senate.

    The Kogi West senator also said that Omo-Agege misled and incited Nigerians against the Senate by making unsubstantiated comments on reordered of election sequence.

    Omo-Agege said,” Yesterday (Tuesday), I was not here (Senate chamber). My colleague and my brother, Senator Dino Melaye brought a motion under Privileges which is in Order14 & 15 of the Senate Standing Rules.

    “Mr. President, I rose as a consequent on the debate on the sequence of elections in the Electoral Act amendment which was passed last week Wednesday.

    “In the course of that debate and subsequent upon that, I addressed the media at he Press Centre.

    “I made certain remarks during that interview which my attention has been drawn to. The comments are offensive, not just to Senator Dino Melaye, but to the entire Senate.

    “I rise to apologise to the leadership and the entire Senate for those remarks. I take back whatever I said. Thank you Mr. President.”

    Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu who presided over the plenary commended Omo-Agege for being courageous to apologise for what he said.

    Ekweremadu said, “He came under Order 53. In my view, it takes a lot of courage to do this. It takes a lot of courage to say I am sorry.

    “The matter has already been referred to the committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions. I urge the committee to quickly look into it so that we can have the report as quickly as possible. Then we will take a decision. Is that the wish of the Senate?”

    The Senators yelled “yes” as Ekweremadu promptly hit the gavel.

    An insider said that Omo-Agege acted promptly to apologise “because he risked indefinite suspension after appearing at the Ethics committee.”

    According to the insider, “Omo-Agege knew that he has shot himself on the foot. He knew that his case is a done deal. Whether his apology will be enough to mitigate his punishment for willfully impinging on the integrity of the Senate is what I cannot tell you at this point in time. You just wait and see.”

    Chairman, Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi told reporters that immunity on the floor of the Senate does not cover lies.

    Abdullahi said that senators who addressed reporters after the adoption of the conference report on reordering of election sequence peddled falsehood.

    He noted that the Senate did not believe in witch hunting any body “but today one of our colleagues rising under Order 43 owned up that his misfired.”

    Abdullahi added,”If anybody feels strongly about any issue, there are procedures and processes to go about it but let your personal interest not hinder or impinge on the collective interest of the Senate.”

  • Empress Njamah demands apology from media

    Empress Njamah demands apology from media

    Nollywood actress Empress Njamah, has dared two media houses to provide a proof of a story insinuating that she feels offended when younger men woo her.

    The actress refuted the statement credited to by a popular newspaper, from which  a blog took its reference.

    Reacting to the story which has gone viral, the actress and humanitarian took to her Instagram on Monday to address the issue.

    Njamah who said was not stupid to have made such comment, claimed she only spoke about her charity works and beauty tips.

    She said the statement credited to her by the news media defames her  character.

    “…If you cannot produce proof of how you came about how I said the above statement I will take this as an outright defamation of character and demand and apology. Journalists should understand that they wield a magic wand in the name of what they write and care has to be taken not to mare the characters of the people they write about especially when we take out time to grant them interviews. The masses can consume anything you give them regardless of the truth in the publication,” she said.

    In a chat with The Nation, the actress revealed that the said blog reported that the statement was extracted from an interview done with the newspaper.

    “I never granted such interview. I have done a disclaimer on my page and demand an apology from them. And they haven’t done that yet. And the so called guy that I granted the interview has no prove to show that I said that… We are taking the case up and I am actually going to sue …”