Kids in red shirts, holding numbered placards on which the names of the Chibok schoolgirls are boldly written, marching on the Ministry of Education.
With them were some of the girls who escaped in the night of horror on April 14, last year when Boko Haram insurgents hussled the over 200 pupils off their dormitories into trucks and drove them away into captivity.
The world was horrified; it still is —one year after.
Parents of the Chibok Girls Secondary School, Borno State, girls yesterday said they were hoping President-elect Muhamadu Buhari would find their daughters.
Gen Buhari will take office on May 29 and one of the burning issues he will inherit from the outgoing Dr. Goodluck Jonathan administration is the abduction.
Yesterday, there were activities in Abuja, Lagos and in some other major capitals across the world to mark the anniversary of the abduction which attracted worldwide outrage, especially when Boko Haram claimed responsibility and showed a video of the girls in captivity with sect leader Abubakar Shekau saying he would sell them off.
In Abuja, there were news conferences. In Lagos, Nobel laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka attended an event, where foremost economist Prof. Pat Utomi spoke.
A representative of the girls’ parents, Rev. Mark Enoch, declared yesterday their faith in Gen. Buhari and his ability to rescue the 219 girls alive.
He said things would be better because Gen. Buhari has the ability to destroy the Boko Haram sect like he destroyed the Maitasine Movement in 1984.
Rev. Enoch spoke on behalf of Kibaku Area Development Association (KADA), the umbrella body of the Chibok community in Abuja. His address was titled: “One year commemoration of the abduction of #Chibokgirls: the unending agony of a community.”
He said: “I know that as General Buhari is now the president-elect, things will be better. He can rescue our daughters, he can bring our daughters back home. He can end all the atrocities of the Boko Haram sect like he addressed the Maitasine movement in 1984 and our girls will return, so we the Chibok girls’ parents are excited.
“I will like to appreciate Madam Oby Ezekwesilli and members of the #BringBackOurGirls advocacy. They are the Mandelas of our time.”
KADA, in a statement signed by its National Secretary Battah Ndirpaya; National Publicity Secretary Dr. Manasseh Allen and Chairman KADA Abuja, Tsambido Hosea, said despite the gloomy picture of what is happening in their community before and after the abduction, they are still hopeful that the girls will come back home alive.
They said: “After the abduction, Chibok area was attacked six times with resultant high causalities, including 11 of the parents and guardians of the abducted girls. The people of Chibok are today haunted, displaced, traumatised and living in agony as refugees or internally displaced persons all over Nigeria and refugees beyond. There is also a looming famine in the Chibok (Kibaku) community and environs as a result of the terrorism that has virtually crippled farming activities. Wanton destruction of food stuff, granaries and livestock was perpetrated by the insurgents. There was also poisoning or destruction of water wells, the primary source of water for the community.
“Despite the gloomy picture of what is happening in the community, we are still hopeful that our girls will come back alive. We are hoping that Mr. President will keep his word by brining the girls back alive before leaving office on 29 May.. Even if he fails to achieve it, we are hopeful that the president-elect will bring back our girls alive.
“In the abduction saga, it is true that the girls are the victims, the parents and guardians are suffering the agony, trauma and pains, but the embarrassment is that of the government and the people of Nigeria, while the military suffered humiliation. We urge all to come together and find a lasting solution to this saga so as to save our face as a country.”
Members of the #BringBackOurGirls advocacy also said they appreciated Gen. Buhari for “his kind and soothing words” on the occasion of the one year commemoration and his promise to do everything to bring back the girls.
The group demanded the safe return of the girls as a major engagement during the transition between the Jonathan and the Buhari administrations.
The #BBOG described the Chibok girls as global symbols for the defence of the dignity and sanctity of human life, of the girl child, women, for those oppressed, repressed, disadvantaged, hurting and unsafe persons everywhere and they will continue to advocate for their return until everyone of the girl is accounted for.
The group spoke at a news conference in Abuja to commemorate the one year anniversary of the abduction. The statement signed by Dr. Oby Ezekwesilli and Ms Hadiza Bala-Usman on behalf of the group, said:
“Today, 14 April, 2015 is that dreadful day we never imagined will come without having back our missing precious 219 Chibok schoolgirls, abducted exactly one year ago today.
“Our #ChibokGirls are the global symbol for the defence of the dignity and sanctity of human life; of the girl a child, women, for all those oppressed, repressed, disadvantaged, hurting, unsafe persons everywhere. As long as they stay missing, it means nothing is as yet working. We must all prioritise their safe return.
“We thank Nigeria’s president-elect for his kind and soothing words on the occasion of this one-year commemoration; wherein he promises, among other things, to do everything he can to #BringBackOurGirls when he becomes the president, if they are still alive. However, this does not address our concerns. We demand that the safe return of our girls be the top agenda of the transition between the present and the incoming one.
“We have just concluded a march by #ChibokGirlsAmbassadors (part of the global schoolgirl march). We express our immense gratitude to our #ChibokGirlsAmbassadors for being the right voices to carry the message of their generational peers on a day like this.
“We have been demanding for the last nearly one year but nothing is more remarkable than having peers of our missing schoolgirls carry out an exclusive activity for their cause. This is a generation that will grow with a well-developed sense of humanity, of standing for others, and also demanding accountability from their leaders. We also thank their parents and guardians for not only allowing, but encouraging them to participate. Your efforts in raising kind, caring as well as responsible girls shall never be in vain.”
The group also reiterated and renewed their year-long demand to the United Nations, which states:
“That the UN should, through its relevant agencies, deploy relevant instruments in ensuring the prompt rescue of our Chibok girls and other abductees, as well as improve the security situation in the country.
“Escalate and process the request of the Chibok nation for the help of independent private investigators. Call on world leaders and other members of the international community to reactivate their support for the #BringBackOurGirls cause and push it back as a prioritised discourse because the only logical closure to this issue would be when our girls have been brought back and insurgency becomes a thing of the past.
“We are a non-partisan civic movement and therefore shall continue to advocate and demand for justice for our 219 Chibok girls. Until our girls are rescued, our Movement will not stop. .”
Members of the Chibok girls ambassadors and members of the #BBOG advocacy staged a peaceful protest to the Ministry of Education to demand for the release of the girls and demand to know what the ministry was doing to assist with the rescue efforts.
Although the ministry locked them out for almost an hour, the children were later allowed into the premises. The ministry’s Director, Human Resources Management, Mohammed Umar, met with the group. The girls gave an ultimatum of May 29 to rescue the girls.
The Christian Council of Nigeria (CCN) has called on President-elect Muhammadu Buhari to tackle corruption, electricity and religious disharmony.
President of the council Emmanuel Udofia made the call yesterday at a briefing on the 2015 elections.
Udofia said: “If you pick one of these and leave the other, Nigerians will still be in trouble. For instance, if Buhari wants to have a successful government, he ýmust make sure there is religious harmony to have peace nationwide.
“If corruption is not dealt with, I would not say Nigeria will not move forward but it won’t be the level we expected because corruption is not only in government but everywhere.
“In any nation where electricity is poorly supplied, there will be under-development. With constant power, people at the grassroots can create work for themselves, which will prevent migration to the city centre.”
The clergy, who said that the council engaged about 2,000 election observers across the nation, placed voters’ turn out to be 42 per cent.
He said the elections were orderly and credible, but urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to intensify voter education.
Udofia identified the need for INEC to commence a fresh electoral process, such as voter registration, advocacy, among others ahead of 2019 poll.
He said it should no wait until a few months to the next elections.
THE Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN) has advised the President-elect, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, to review the national communication architecture as part of his efforts to re-ignite the national spirit and positively project brand Nigeria.
The association’s president, Mr. Kelechi Nwosu, who said this, congratulated Gen. Buhari for winning the presidential election and praised President Goodluck Jonathan for honourably conceding defeat in a manner that doused tensions.
He noted that as a “neutral but patriotic body”, the AAAN had actively promoted a professional agenda for issue-based, ethical and smear-free campaigning among the political parties.
He said with the election over, it would be ideal for the incoming government to engage certified professionals in the task of projecting the immense potentials of the Nigerian brand.
Nwosu called on the president-elect to re-configure the national communication architecture “to give impetus to a robust economy, promote national re-orientation, inspire innovation, as well as enable entrepreneurship and create choice”.
The AAAN president recommended that the new government should also pursue local content, affirmation policy and allow experienced professionals to run government communication to avoid the lack of public support and buy-in that trailed certain policies introduced during the current tenure as a result of poor communication and engagement.
Nwosu said: “The AAAN would wish to propose nation-building initiatives to the incoming government such as National Re-orientation Project. Nigeria needs a re-orientation project that will build civic pride, promote ethical values and get Nigerians believing in Nigeria and her assets.
“A corollary to this is to ensure that Nigerians begin to appreciate and support Made in Nigeria products and brands.”
The association suggested that the incoming government should create a plan to inspire innovation, enable industry and reward productivity to make Nigeria a progressive and competitive economy.
“This will provide the opportunity to grow many dynamic and respected Nigerian brands. Advertising is a critical tool in this regard because we help create choices that fuel the economy and even the polity,” the association’s president stated.
On local content and affirmation policy, the AAAN president advised: “We will also strongly recommend a local content and affirmative policy that allows Nigerian professionals to do better business in Nigeria. We should moderate our consumerism, which drives importation and stop fueling other economies.”
•President-elect chides Fed Govt over Chibok school girls
President-elect Muhammadu Buhari has unveiled how his administration will tackle insurgency.
It will involve increased international collaborations, better use of the military and addressing the root causes of insurgency.
He chided the Federal Government over its handling of the kidnapping of more than 200 Chibok school girls on the night of last April 14.
“It took nearly two weeks before the government even commented on the crime.
“This lack of reaction was symptomatic of why the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan was swept aside last month, the first time an incumbent president has been successfully voted out of office in the history of our nation.
“For too long they ruled, not governed, and in doing so had become so focused on their own self-interest and embroiled in corruption that the duty to react to the anguish suffered by their citizens had become alien to them,” Buhari said.
He said his administration would act differently because, “it is the very reason we have been elected”.
The president-elect said: “This must begin with honesty as to whether the Chibok girls can be rescued. Currently their whereabouts remain unknown. We do not know the state of their health or welfare, or whether they are even still together or alive.
“As much as I wish to, I cannot promise that we can find them: to do so would be to offer unfounded hope, only to compound the grief if, later, we find we cannot match such expectation.
“But I say to every parent, family member and friend of the children that my government will do everything in its power to bring them home,” Buhari said.
According to him, the government would adopt new strategies in the fight against insurgency.
“What I can pledge, with absolute certainty, is that from the first day of my administration, Boko Haram will know the strength of our collective will and commitment to rid this nation of terror, and bring back peace and normalcy to all the affected areas.
“Until now, Nigeria has been wanting in its response to their threat: With our neighbours fighting hard to push the terrorists South and out of their countries, our military was not sufficiently supported or equipped to push North.
“As a consequence, the outgoing government’s lack of determination was an accidental enabler of the group, allowing them to operate with impunity in Nigerian territory.
“That is why the answer to defeating Boko Haram begins and ends with Nigeria. That is not to say that allies cannot help us.
“My administration would welcome the resumption of a military training agreement with the United States (U.S.), which was halted during the previous administration.
“We must, of course, have better coordination with the military campaigns our African allies, like Chad and Niger, are waging in the struggle against Boko Haram. But, in the end, the answer to this threat must come from within Nigeria,” Buhari said in a statement.
He added that more troops would be deployed to the Northeast and away from civilian areas in central and southern Nigeria.
Buhari also vowed to address the underlying causes of Boko Haram.
“We must work closer with our neighbours in coordinating our military efforts so an offensive by one army does not see their country’s lands rid of Boko Haram only to push it across the border onto their neighbours’ territory.
“There are many reasons why vulnerable young people join militant groups, but among them are poverty and ignorance.
“Indeed Boko Haram, which translates in English, roughly, as ‘Western education is sinful’ preys on the perverted belief that the opportunities that education brings are sinful.
“If you are starving and young, and in search of answers as to why your life is so difficult, fundamentalism can be alluring.
“We know this for a fact because former members of Boko Haram have admitted it: They offer impressionable young people money and the promise of food, while the group’s mentors twist their minds with fanaticism.
“So we must be ready to offer the parts of our country affected by this group an alternative. Boosting education will be a direct counterbalance to Boko Haram’s appeal.
“In particular, we must educate more young girls, ensuring they will grow up to be empowered through learning to play their full part as citizens of Nigeria and pull themselves up and out of poverty.
“Indeed, we owe it to the schoolgirls of Chibok to provide as best an education as possible for their fellow young citizens,” Buhari said.
According to him, Boko Haram feeds off despair and a lack of hope that things can improve.
“By attacking a site of learning, and kidnapping more than 200 schoolgirls, it sought to strike at the very place where hope for the future is nurtured and the promise of a better Nigeria. It is our intention to show Boko Haram that it will not succeed.
“My government will first act to defeat it militarily and then ensure that we provide the very education it despises to help our people help themselves.
“Boko Haram will soon learn that, as Nelson Mandela said, ‘Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world,’” Buhari added.
One of the parents of the abducted Chibok girls Rev. Mark Enoch has declared complete faith in President-Elect Gen. Muhammadu Buhari and his ability to rescue the remaining 219 Chibok girls in captivity.
He said that things will now be better because Gen. Buhari has the ability to destroy the Boko Haram sect like he destroyed the Maitasine movement in 1984 and bring back the Chibok girls that were abducted a year ago.
Rev. Enoch stated this Tuesday in Abuja, after the press conference held by members of the Kibaku Area Development Association (KADA) and umbrella body of the Chibok community in Abuja, titled ‘one year commemoration of the abduction of #Chibokgirls: the unending agony of a community’.
He said, “I know that as General Buhari is now the President elect, things will be better, he can rescue our daughters, he can bring our daughter back home. He can end all the atrocities of the Boko Haram sect like he addressed the Maitasine movement in 1984 and our girls will return, so we the Chibok girls’ parents are excited.
“I will like to appreciate madam Oby ezekwesilli, members of the #BringBackOurGirls advocacy, they are the Mandela’s of our time.”
KADA in their press statement said that despite the gloomy picture of what is happening in their community before and after the abduction, they are still hopeful that the girls will come back home alive.
They said, “After the abduction, Chibok area was attacked six times with resultant high causalities including eleven of the parents and guardians of the abducted girls. The people of Chibok are today haunted, displaced, traumatized and living in agony as refugees or internally displaced persons all over Nigeria and beyond. There is also looming famine in the Chibok (Kibaku) community and environs as a result of the terrorism that has virtually crippled farming activities. Wantom destruction of food stuff, granaries and livestock’s were perpetrated by the insurgency. There was also poisoning or destruction of water wells, the primary source of water for the community.
“Despite the gloomy picture of what is happening in the community, we are still hopeful that our girls will come back alive. We are hoping that Mr President will keep his word by brining the girls back alive before leaving office on 29th May 2015. Even if he fails to achieve it, we are hopeful that the President-Elect will Bring Back Our Girls alive.
“In the abduction saga, it is true that the girls are the victims, the parents and guardians are suffering the agony, trauma and pains, but the embarrassment is that of the government and the people of Nigeria, while the military suffered humiliation. We urge all to come together and find a lasting solution to this saga so as to save our face as a country.”
The World Bank spoke yesterday on Nigeria’s economic future, saying President-elect Muhammadu Buhari’s plan to tackle corruption will have consequences.
The bank projected a drop in the economic growth rate of Sub-Saharan Africa from 4.5 per cent in 2014 to 4.0 per cent in 2015.
The bank’s Chief Economist for Africa, Mr Francisco Ferreira, spoke during a video conference to inaugurate ‘Africa Pulse’, a World Bank Group analysis on issues shaping Africa’s economic prospects. The conference was monitored in Abuja
“I think it is very well spelt because institutions are built in parts on norms; one norm that has to be changed is the norm of impunity.
“I think the decision, hopefully, will have consequences for the future as institutions will be stronger and norms will be cleaner,” Ferreira said.
According to him, the downturn largely reflects the fall in the prices of oil and other commodities.
“The 2015 forecast is below the 4.4 per cent average annual growth rate of the past two decades and well short of Africa’s peak growth rates of 6.4 per cent in 2002 to 2008.
“Excluding South Africa, the average growth forecast for the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa is around 4.7 per cent”, Ferreira said.
Ferreira said an average decline, in terms of trade for Africa is about 18 per cent, a development he said, wouldlead to losses in purchasing power for the region.
He said that the decline in oil and commodity prices were among the challenges undermining the developmental gains made in the Sub-Saharan African.
“There is the issue of insurgency, fatalities as a result of conflicts, violence from political groups like the Boko Haram in Nigeria and Al-Shabaab in Kenya.
“The Ebola outbreak in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone has highlighted pre-existing weaknesses in the health systems of the three most affected countries, as well as others.
“A World Bank study estimated that the three countries will face at least $1.6 billion in forgone economic growth in 2015,’’ he said.
Also speaking, Ms Punam Chuhan-Pole, the bank’s Lead Economist said: “Large fiscal deficits and inefficient government spending remain sources of vulnerability for many countries of the region.
“It is urgent that these countries strengthen their fiscal positions and fortify their resilience against external shocks.”
She said beyond macroeconomic policies, there was the need for structural reforms to ignite and sustain productivity growth in all sectors in the region.
SIR: Without doubt, the victory of the All Progressive Congress (APC) and its presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari, at the just concluded Presidential election brings hope and a big relief to a distraught nation and her citizenry. Nonetheless, it is important to point out that the victory and relief may be short-lived if the President-elect allows himself to be entangled in the web of deceits and manipulation by some political jobbers and sycophants the way and manner they held the outgoing president spell bound.
The outcome of the presidential election did not come to many of us as a surprise, especially in the light of the generality of dissatisfaction and disenchantment over the squander of the country’s fortunes by the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the last 16 years and more particularly under the watch of the outgoing President Goodluck Jonathan.
Some of us are of the firm belief that if the elections were held as scheduled in February, the margin would have been too wide and embarrassing. But the outgoing President appeared to have stolen victory in defeat through his timely conceding of defeat to Muhammadu Buhari. President Goodluck Jonathan, for the first, freed himself from the cabals and hawks around
him and took the path of honour. This is the only aspect of the exercise that came to some of us as a surprise and nothing more.
As opined in the opening of this piece, the President-elect must be wary of those factors that made President Jonathan became disconnected from the over twenty two million Nigerian electorate that freely gave him their mandate four years ago. President Goodluck’s major problem appears to be his deliberate alienation from the masses and their sufferings as largely represented by some of his policies and actions . Instead he surrounded himself with questionable characters that only told him what he wanted to hear. They used him to satisfy their unbridled gluttony. They pilfered our commonwealth at will and with reckless abandon.
The incoming president must avoid these people like a plague. He must continue to maintain his closeness with the “talakawas” (the downtrodden) who championed his election victory through his government programmes.
Thankfully, the President-elect is noted for his zero tolerance for graft and indiscipline. He must maintain this attitude throughout his tenure in office. The incoming president must not allow the cacophonies of goodwill messages coming from all manner of people to distract his commitment towards building a corrupt free and safe Nigeria. He must not fall into such dubious and hypocritical gestures meant only to lure him to their traps as usual. These are obvious ditches the President-elect must avoid if he must sustain his electoral fortunes.
The interest of Nigerian masses must come first in whatever policy and programme his administration initiates. It is also necessary to remind the “People’s General” that he will soon discover the extent of damage and destruction which the outgoing administration and its cohorts had done to our economy and national pride? But regardless of these, the President-elect must somehow find a way to return the country to the path of glory and growth. And this is where his experience as an ex-Head of State will come to play.
He is not new to the system, and so Nigerians expect him to navigate his ways and the country out of this murky water and political cum economic landmine laid by the outgoing leadership. Moving forward, it is equally our collective duty to help the incoming administration succeed on its electoral promises. There is no better way to achieve this than through constructive criticisms that will constantly put the incoming administration on its toes. To do otherwise is to drift back to the era of impunity symbolised by the outgoing regime. It is essential too we come to terms that it is not until we completely wrest power from the cabals that we can shout Uhuru.
As Nigerians await the May 29 inauguration of the President-elect Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, more lawyers have set agenda for the incoming administration. Legal Editor JOHN AUSTIN UNACHUKWU spoke with them.
More lawyers have set agenda for president elect Gen. Muhammadu Buhari and vice-president-elect Prof Yemi Osinbajo (SAN).
•Ajibade
A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Dr. Babatunde Ajibade (SAN) said he expects more reforms in the justice sector, among others.
“My expectations are very high in the area of justice sector reform and justifiably so in my opinion. Prof. Osinbajo revolutionised justice sector delivery in his eight-year stint as Attorney-General of Lagos State from 1999 – 2007 and my expectation is that he will influence the same kind of revolution at the Federal level, albeit that he’s Vice-President elect and not the Federal Attorney-General.
“More importantly, I see a direct correlation between a complete overhaul of our justice sector and a re-design of the sector’s architecture and the achievement of the Buhari/Osinbajo campaign promise of eradicating corruption. In the absence of an efficient and effective justice sector, the eradication or even reduction of corruption will be no more than a pipe dream.
“The driving force behind the high levels of corruption in Nigeria at the moment is the palpable absence of efficient and effective enforcement mechanisms. The situation is so bad that the uncorrupt feel marginalised and frustrated because the corrupt get away with blatant acts of corruption and the system appears powerless to prevent this from happening.
“If this is to change, there has to be a root and branch overhaul of the system starting with the investigative and prosecuting services of the Nigerian Police (including the EFCC, ICPC and all other related agencies); the prosecuting services of the relevant departments of the various ministries of justice; the adjudicatory authority of the judiciary; and my own constituency, the representative duties of Legal Practitioners. All of these elements of the justice sector must be reviewed in detail and subjected to a thorough reform exercise.
“We cannot prevent or reduce corruption if the Police are not willing, able or empowered to carry out their investigative and prosecuting functions properly; the judiciary cannot convict anybody of corruption if the cases are not properly investigated and evidence properly assembled before charges are brought; and judges cannot convict anybody of corruption if they themselves are susceptible to corrupt inducement, invariably offered to them by Legal Practitioners representing the corrupt; and prosecution of corruption cannot occur if Legal Practitioners are permitted by timid and (with respect) lazy judges to stultify and delay the justice process by placing reliance on ridiculous technicalities that delay and frustrate the process.
“In the final analysis, the changes required are a function of leadership. The most important task ahead of the Buhari/Osinbajo presidency now is identifying and selecting the right personnel to head all the various agencies that have a bearing on the justice sector, to the extent that the power of appointment rests with them. It is the nature of these appointments and the mandate that those appointed are given that will determine whether our expectations of a robust reform of the justice sector under this incoming presidency will be met,” Ajibade said.
•Fagbohun
Director of Research at the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (NIALS), Prof. Lanre Fagbohun said he expects the new president and his vice to lead by example.
“Our wants as human beings are quite limited, but the greed of majority of our leaders is amazing and often borders on the ridiculous. The best leaders lead by example, thus, what I will expect of Gen. Buhari and Prof. Osinbajo as President and Vice- President is for them to lead by example.
“Impunity in governance has gone on for too long; the aspirations and hopes of Nigerians as reflected in the just concluded presidential election are that a Buhari government will begin to right the wrongs of corruption, meet the challenges of insecurity, move away from leadership devoid of vision, reflect sincerity of purpose, and introduce reforms that will positively impact on the social and economic lives of the people.
“Nigerians want to walk tall within and outside Nigeria; they want to be able to proudly introduce themselves as Nigerians. The acts and utterances of the Numbers One and Two citizens must therefore, be such that will inspire Nigerians to greatness, otherwise, the people will once again feel betrayed and disillusioned.
“For Nigerians, the base of the above conversation is good governance and this is what should be critical to this administration. Nigerians want to see respect for rule of law across the board; transparency; accountability; ethics in public service; national re-orientation geared towards promotion of dignity of labour as against the current syndrome of ‘get rich overnight’; and a more inclusive governance that allows for active public participation. Our institutions must be made credible and positioned to offer responsive services.
“The task is certainty not for Gen. Buhari and Prof. Osinbajo alone. When they offer leadership that ingrains the right mental attitude, everyone of us must also be ready to join them in the task of nation building. This is not the time for other arms of government to unduly antagonise desirable reforms. Let us all work cooperatively together in the collective interest of Nigeria, and be guided at all times by the Constitution,“ Fagbohun said.
•Eghobiamen
For Mr. Osaro Eghobiamen (SAN), the new administration should make honesty its watchword.
“My expectations are that the President-elect (with his strong military pedigree of discipline) and the Vice-President (with an equally accomplished pedigree in Law) will both seek to work on the ‘infrastructure of the mind’ by adhering honestly and sincerely to the fundamental objectives contained in section 23 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) which states: The national ethics will be discipline, integrity, dignity of labour, social justice, religious tolerance, self reliance & patriotism.
“These principles must be consciously and strenuously pursued in the aftermath of an election campaign which was provocatively divisive. With particular reference to reforms in the administration of justice, my expectations are as follows: all courts should be technologically equipped so that they may perform their constitutional role, dispensing justice within a reasonable time. Enhance capacity in Justice Administration: this will apply to the administrative staff as well as judges at all levels. In this respect, the process of appointment, removal as well as welfare of Judges must be revisited to attract the best quality ( men and women of character and learning).
“Strengthen the financial independence of the Judiciary: the State Governors must be held responsible for the complete shutdown of the Courts on account of their refusal to adhere to the principles of financial autonomy. This present situation may lead to anarchy. Every State Governor is under a duty to ensure that the Judiciary is completely independent. Chief Judges are expected to reciprocate by exhibiting an optimal level of integrity.
“Transformation of the Criminal Justice System: In this respect, three major institutions will need overall reforms – the Nigerian Police Force, the Prisons systems as well as the Courts. The success of this administration must be gauged by its pursuit of social justice as well as enhancing the moral fibre that keeps us together as a nation” Eghobiamen stated.
•Oku
For Jibrin S. Okutepa (SAN), the judiciary must be well-funded.
“First let me congratulate Gen Buhari and Prof Osinbajo on their well deserved victory. Nigerians expect a lot from them. They have articulated three key areas that are crucial and critical, these are corruption, insecurity and unemployment.
“For me, they cannot tackle corruption efficiently and effectively without effective and efficient justice system that guarantees easy access and quick justice delivery system. They must fund the judiciary well, ensure that both our procedural and substantive laws are reformed to make their application peoples and users friendly.
“In this regard the incoming administration must tackle the problem of delayed justice. They must equally ensure that the rule of law and its application become sacrosanct and all who breach our laws must be punished without fear or favour. In composing their cabinet they must go beyond party loyalty and party men and women.
“The incoming government is on redeeming mission, all best hands must be sought and used in government. The security operatives must be re-organized to tackle corruption. The current system of arresting before looking for evidence cannot tackle corruption. In this regard the operation of the EFCC, the police, the Directorate of State Security (DSS), and other security operatives under the justice system must be re-organized.
“The Ministry of Justice must be headed by a lawyer who is thoroughly a professional of credit and repute. A lawyer who is morally and legally sound in knowledge and character and who can tell the government the truth without bias and ill motive,” Okutepa said
•Ubani
Former Ikeja Branch Chairman of of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Monday Ubani described Buhari’s victory as the beginning of a new era.
“We are clearly overjoyed at the victory of Gen. Buhari and Prof Osibajo. We are happy at the cleansing of our country that has just taken place and the beginning of new era for the great nation of Nigeria. What gladdens most of us more is the seeming restoration of sovereignty back to the people. We as a people are careful to return all the glory to God for allowing this revolution to happen in our time and through our generation..
“We expect this new government that will be sworn in on the 29th of May this year to start running on assumption of office. No single time to waste, the truth is that Nigeria is lying prostrate, diminished and greatly violated as a nation for the last sixteen years. The people of Nigeria are on the edge, clearly impatient with any government that has no immediate answer or understanding what is at stake. Gone are the days and years where political actors who are not prepared for governance are forced upon the people. People who sought governance and understand its implications have been given mandate by the people and so no excuses will be entertained from them.
“The judiciary deserves special attention. An institution that interpretes the law of the land must be independent through and through, especially if we desire the enthronement of rule of law and the application of the principle that none should be above the law of the land. Therefore to complete its autonomy, the financial autonomy as enshrined in the constitution must be upheld by both Federal and state governments. Our judicial system is criminally slow and this must be addressed speedily. Factors that must be looked into to address this judicial lethargy are the issue of appointment of judicial officers(their qualification, their salaries and welfare, enthusiasm for the job and their moral integrity). More numbers of judicial officers should be appointed to ease the innumerable cases all over our jurisdictions.
“The states should be allowed to appoint the number of judges they need to man their judiciary. The present system of using NJC to appoint state judges is clearly faulty. The second issue is the review of our obsolete substantive laws and some of our procedural laws that act as a cog in the wheel of progress(for instance, interlocutory appeals on criminal proceedings should be abolished, these should be taken together at the conclusion of all trials). Our judicial system that still use long hand in taking proceedings and writing judgments in this 21st century is criminal and should be abolished forthwith. Our proceedings should be ICT driven from now onwards.
“All the basic infrastructures that makes for efficient justice delivery should be made available as a top priority immediately the government is sworn in. Things needed today for effective administration of justice are functional buildings with modern facilities like air conditioners, microphones and computers. Every judge must have lawyers as his research assistants and a recorder.
“Power supply must be constant in all the courts in the land. Everything about the judiciary must be functional. Non judicial staff must be looked into very urgently. Their salaries, allowances must be addressed expeditiously but above all, the issue of service of processes and execution of judgement must be overhauled if we are to make progress in justice delivery in Nigeria. There are so much troubles from that angle that impedes the operations of effective justice delivery.” Ubani said.
Former University don, Mr. Aina O. Salami said: “The result of the election of March 28, 2015 remains a watershed in the annals of the political history of Nigeria. While the outcome of this election clearly represents the yearning of Nigerians for change, we must however acknowledge the fact that the Buhari/Osinbajo Team is coming to governance at a time when the economy is pretty bad and almost every aspect of the life of the people has been badly hit and therefore need restructuring and resuscitation.
“With one hundred million Nigerians or thereabout reported to be living on less than one dollar ($1) a day, the coming new government should therefore be pro-poor and think more, act more for the poor and for the voiceless. The percentage of this group of people (over 60% of the population of Nigeria) obviously points to the fact that the incoming government does not have an enviable task.
“In the Justice sector of the Nation, the expected pro-poor policy of government should be seen in the area of support/assistance in aid of the poor to access Justice effortlessly and cheaply. Extensive prison reform need to be carried out too and of course overhauling the rights of the physically challenged and giving such rights the necessary prominence they deserve in order to build an egalitarian society. Fortunately the Vice President elect (Pro. YemiOsinbajo, SAN) has a wealth of experience to draw from as a former Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice who has done much in these areas before now.
“Apart from faith in divine being which Nigerians generally have as religious people, there is no doubt that the hope and expectation of Nigerians which is very high, is in the pedigree of these two (as people of integrity) that have been elected into the executive arm of government of this Nation, commencing 29th May, 2015.
•Olatoye
A university Don, Mr. Olatoye Kareem said: “The outcome of the election has already impacted positively on business confidence and economic climate generally. The capital market for instance railed on a positive note in an unprecedented manner while the Naira has also gained value against the dollars, a development attributable to the common dictum now amongst Nigerians called “Buhari effect”.
“Setting the agenda for the new government therefore l would say they must hit the ground running in areas of security, corruption, electricity, fast train and road networks, education, agriculture and Justice Sector reforms. All of these when properly implemented would effectively transform the economy, as most of the agenda elements are at the root of all problems we have in Nigeria.
“The Agricultural sector alone if properly handled is capable of giving employment to all unemployed youth in Nigeria. What is wrong with graduates engaged going to farm with ties on their necks as farm supervisors. A graduate is not discouraged taking up a job on the farm as long as he enjoys the same level of comfort, infrastructure and degree of dignity accorded those taking up white collar jobs.
“In the case of justice sector reforms, there is urgent need to reform the civil and criminal justice systems in Nigeria. The government needs to unearth problems of slow court processes which bring about delayed justice, an endemic phenomenon in the nation’s judicial system.
“The need for a functional court system capable of supporting a rapidly growing economy, guaranteeing basic rights and providing security and justice to all makes urgent reforms an imperative” Olatoye stated.
Mr. Nankin Bagudu said: “The two of them are a perfect combination in every sense of the word. They should know and realise that the greatest asset they have now is the trust and confidence of Nigerians as exemplified in the polls. this combined with hardworking Nigerians should enable them to maximise our natural resources to the fullest. I expect them to try new methods and new ways of doing things in Abuja. From day one let them tell us that no one owes us a living. We have to work hard to earn our pride of place on the world map. Also they have to help our country break our old fashioned, stupid and damaging prejudices that has become our way of life.
“I expect Buhari/Osibajo to be the first example of Nigerian leaders that would use our natural resources wisely. They must avoid extravagant expenditure on useless prestige/white elephant projects that we witnessed in many states and at the federal level in the succesive years such as governors squandaring billions on gangantuan government houses, airports, etc. They must invest in infrastructure, health and education, build up substantial reserve where it is possible and allow the private sector to thrive and eliminate or reduce corruption to the barest levels. They also need to revisit the Orosanya report and implement it to reduce waste. Also do something about pension scam especially of the security agencies. We understand many of the pensioneers have died but through connivance of the officals moneys are still been paid and shared. They should use every public function to talk about the challnges ahead and how they intend to tackel them. We should the new government two years, after which we shouldexpect to see.”
THE African Bar Association (ABA) is ready to partner with the administration of President-elect Gen. Muhammadu Buhari with a view to rescue the country from the shackles of corruption and ineptitude.
It said Gen. Buhari could always count on its support at the international level in his quest for global reformation and identity.
Its President, Hannibal Uwaifo, and Secretary-General, Mrs. Flavania Charles, who said this in a congratulatory message, added: “We trust that the other African nations that have carefully watched for the outcome of the Nigerian election have a lot of positive lessons to learn on it.
“On our part, we assure your government of a solid partnership in your resolve to elevate the stakes in Africa for good governance.
“This victory is significant against the backdrop of your slogan for change and total emancipation of the Nigerian people. The African Bar Association is equally proud of your humble, but sound background of disciple, honesty, sincerity, austere and focus.”
Vigorous enforcement of road safety regulations will be a plus to the new administration. For instance, relevant laws can be reviewed such that reckless drivers, who caused death within built up communities, should not enjoy bail while, as part of preventive measures, commuters can report reckless drivers who may have their licences withdrawn before they do harm. For FRSC, its inability to ensure road discipline and safe motoring on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, the main artery of Nigeria’s economic and social activities, thereby making motorists to suffer harrowing traffic gridlocks, and be prey to robbers, is a manifest instance of its incompetence.
As a columnist with Peoples Daily newspaper, I wrote a piece in my February 28, 2011 column captioned – Wanted: Road Accident Prosecution & Relief Agency (RAPRA) in which I indicted the FRSC for lacking passion in executing its core mandate where it lapses into civil service indolence, but very enthusiastic when it comes to cornering licensing revenue. The then Corps Marshall of FRSC, Osita Chidoka, now Minister of Aviation, had invited me to Abuja, from Iwo, where I am a teacher, to see their operations, apparently to disabuse my mind. I was at FRSC headquarters, Abuja, on June 1, 2011 and taken on a tour of its facilities by an assistant director. In fairness to Chidoka, the FRSC under his watch is a reservoir of data on various aspects of road management ranging from road fatalities, injuries, type and number of vehicles involved, driving licence approvals, speed limit violations and crashes by governors’ motorcades etc.
So, while FRSC may be strong in terms of database, it is very poor in its practical responsibility of ensuring road safety. And that has to change.
The celebrative victory party for Gen. Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress (APC) will be over by May 29, 2015 when he is sworn in as President, and the countdown to 2019 general election when the party submits again to the electorate’s verdict would have begun. The President-elect has accurately identified the demons of corruption and insecurity as the twin evils bedeviling Nigeria, which must be wrestled down. Nigeria has gone through cycles of euphoria and disappointments as the promise of any new government soon turns a mirage. This has bred what scholars have identified as the phenomenon of unfulfilled rising expectations leading to rising frustrations in many developing countries and occasioning a state of near permanent crisis. But Nigerians are hopeful that this time around, there will be CHANGE, for the better.
The Buhari Presidency will face its toughest challenge in the war against corruption. This is because over the past four decades, beginning in the 1980s, corruption has assumed the status of a cultural norm and as such will require not just a mechanistic legal approach, but a cultural re-orientation that must have a revolutionary fervor. So many people are on the corruption take, to the extent that even the economy runs on corruption. The new President may not be on the same page in the corruption war with some people, including those he may appoint to office. For ‘President’ Buhari, therefore, tackling corruption will, as in the title of Alhaji Babatunde Jose’s media memoir, amount to walking the tight rope. He had stated he wont delve into the past. But the past cannot be de-linked from the present and that would present a dilemma should people want to hold him by his words. However, the dilemma is not insurmountable. Gen. Buhari can stay in the background as the symbol of the anti-corruption campaign while his appointees in the relevant regulatory agencies become the point-men manning the barricades against the corrupt.
Because of corruption’s deep taproot in the society, any hope of successful war against corruption must involve the mobilization of the people to see it as the peoples’ war. The primary inducement to corruption is monetary and material wealth acquisition. A helpful habit is that many who acquired resources through corruption cannot seem to resist the temptation of ostentatious living. They brazenly flaunt the ‘dividends’ of corruption before our very eyes, without any fear of retribution.-, thus making the honest worker look stupid. It is this impunity that has encouraged a bandwagon effect where virtually everybody are now scrambling to get on the corruption train on their way to El Dorado of opulence. But since the corrupt live among the people, many of who feel offended by the put down attitude of the corrupt rich, such people would gladly expose the economic parasites.
A people-oriented approach will assuage the anger of the people while also giving them the feeling of being part of their own salvation. Before now, the culture of most ethnic groups in Nigeria was to have no regard for those seen to have amassed illegitimate wealth, often barring their children from marrying into such families. Children grew up nurtured into a culture of not taking things, which did not belong to them, with parents querying any lifestyle considered beyond the legitimate earnings of their children. That has changed – parents now even show contempt for their children who are not into corruption, citing the affluence of their children’s corrupt age mates. Also those who enjoyed collateral benefits of corruption – wives/husbands, adult children and friends – should also be charged for aiding and abetting corruption.
The media is of critical importance to the Buhari Presidency. The reality of the moment is that a President Buhari needs the media more than the media need him, since the media slant in projecting the activities of his government to the public can substantially make or mar his presidency. There are glaring excesses in the media, part of which manifested in the presidential election campaigns where many media outlets became platforms for hate and incitement, so much so that there was palpable fear of post-election violence that forced many to temporarily relocate to their ethnic enclaves. However, in spite of the negativism of many media establishments, print and broadcast, the Buhari Presidency will need to formally reach out to the media with a view to mobilizing them as partners with his Presidency. To signpost the importance his administration intend to accord the media, a Presidency – Media Summit holding within the first few days of inauguration will go a long way to establish mutual rapport. The Presidency needs to key the Nigerian press into Prof. Dennis McQuail’s Development Media Theory where journalists are made to understand their strategic role of being agents of positive change. Of course, the Buhari Presidency would have to accommodate media criticisms, including that of specific office holders, as necessary feedback mechanism for better service delivery.
The Nigerian populace look forward to an eventful and momentous first 100 days of the Buhari Presidency characterized by a frenetic pace of activities, not a slow-paced learning process. One area that the government can make dramatic impact is confronting indiscipline in government and among the people, with a President Buhari leading by example by being punctual at all official engagements. The War Against Indiscipline is needed now more that 30 years ago when his regime introduced it.
Olawunmi, is a Lecturer, Department of Mass Communication, Bowen University, Iwo; Fellow, Nigerian Guild of Editors and former Washington Correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria ( NAN)
