The Nation Newspaper

Tag: decent

  • Too decent to be romantic (9)

    Too decent to be romantic (9)

    Doctors, I thank you all, but I Still don’t know what to say or what to do. But it is a pity that this is happening to a man like me, a man who places his immediate family above other things

    THE popular choice with the fashionistas and celebs these days is trendy high-waisted wide-legged pants style with a smart top.

    They are very much in trend this season and its resurgence has been widespread. Even better news: they are pretty much flattering on everyone.

    They are comfortable and fun to wear. Whether  rock with heels or flats, you just can’t go wrong with it.

    Styling tricks

    *A pair of wide-leg pants with a high waist in and dark colour is flattering on almost anyone. If you lack height, it is better you choose a more discreet flare in the legs rather than big, billowy legs. The flare at the bottom of the wide-leg pants can help to balance out your shape.

    *The wide-leg pants can be elegant on ladies, if they are worn on the body hug top with a dramatic flare in the leg; it keeps the top glossy and simple. Try not making it look too busy by putting on a billowy top on it, especially if you are on the short side.

    *When putting on wide-leg pants, try wearing heels as they tend to visually cut leg heights. Choose slightly chunky shoes with a two to three inch heels rather than flats, if you want to step out in style. The shoes with pointed and long toes are flattering when worn with wide leg pants. If you are 5’4″ in height, I recommend you wear wide-leg pants that are without cuffs.

    *When wearing wide-leg pants, try using a belt on the waist; it brings out a good shape.

    Ladies, I believe the best way to determine what style of wide-leg pants you will look best in is to visit boutiques and try on various flares and I am sure you will find the one that the width is most flattering on you. IT was too hot to be believed. Yes, form both angles. From my husband who trusted me with all his zeal; and from me who knows the meaning of motherhood to a fault. The bombshell came with a pin drop silence, as if an angel was passing by and used his might to silence all.

    Everybody wore a gloomy look.  Only God knows why this was coming up at these hours of our lives. We had been in the hospital for more than a month, spent money to the extent of selling personal belongings, sleepless nights , amidst other things; and here we are now. God where is your face? God where do you reside? Are you still up there? I keep telling myself inside. I was too shocked to utter a word aside the ‘ah’ which I said in amazement when the bombshell was dropped.

    My husband was the first to speak and you did not need   to call a spiritualist to know that he was not only confused but he was highly embarrassed!

    “Doctors, I thank you for the support and care you have extended to me and my family members. But are you really sure you are saying the truth? I don’t want what will scatter my family. I don’t want my house on fire. I love my wife dearly and she has been very supportive since we got married. And I know I am man enough to bear children, why this hullabaloo? Is there anybody behind this? Please, if it is a joke, do kindly stop it because I won’t stay here and allow anybody, I repeat, anyone to put what God has joined together in disarray,” he said while dipping his hand into his pocket to bring out his handkerchief.

    He was sweating profusely and continued to mop the face.

    Dr. Iruobe moved closer to the centre of the room, cleared his throat and brought a pink- colour paper from his chest pocket. Unfolding it, he said: “I was also shocked when I heard  about the result and this was why I told the laboratory chief to come along today to see you too. I have known all of you as kids; you all grew into my care as the family doctor in this community. Even when your parents moved to a new area, they still  retained my service. Why should we lie to you”? Turning to the lady doctor, “Dr. Ebele , why don’t you say one or two things at this stage?”.

    “When we got the result, I really wanted to be sure of the findings, hence the need to use my own personal money to send the samples taken to two other specialists in Greece and Austria. They came with the same result. Dr. Iruobe was afraid of what the results finding might bring out, but we have no option than to tell you all the truth. And to save time and situation we found ourselves, the samples taken revealed that only one out of the five children is yours. We need to say this so that the air can be cleared once and once for all. The wound can heal at the same time all together.

    “Our concern is how this child will get well and I will advise you just don’t sit down there suspecting anyone. We need to find out what type pf blood will save the child,” Dr. Iruobe said.

    I felt like the ground swallowing me or to just see a big crocodile that can devour me at will. I was tired of life and also overwhelmed with the embarrassment. My clothes were soaked in my own sweat despite the cool weather.

    My husband looked up, looked down and finally said to me: “ Can you hear what the experts say? Did you also remember what my nephew said a week ago which is similar to this finding. Abeke, A-b-e-k-e, is it true? Is it true that you have been unfaithful to me all this while?

    “Talk to me and stop doing as if I am speaking Latin or French languages all put together. Clear yourself of this and let me tell the devil that he is a loser. Doctors, I thank you all, but I still don’t know what to say or what to do. But it is a pity that this is happening to a man like me, a man who places his immediate family above other things, a man that has sacrificed all he has to make life worthwhile for his wife and children. This is more than sad.………” He couldn’t continue as his voice and emotions failed him.

    Ukpabio ran outside the room. I heard Dr. Ebele urging Dr. Iruobe to go after him in order not to go and hurt himself.

    “Doctor, please, follow your brother fast. We don’t need to carry anybody in ambulance again. The situation on ground needs a relaxed mind to settle. Please, hurry up while I stay with Madam and the ailing child,” Dr. Ebele urged her colleague.

    I sat down there heavily downcast. It was as if my body was as heavy as the size of five bags of cement piled together. I bent down my head in shame. I can see the legs of Dr. Ebele where she sat down. Twice she came to where Taiwo was to   monitor her. I was weak, real weak in body and soul.

    Ebele came to tap my body after almost one hour that I had been bending the head down . He told me what she thought was the next thing to do.

    “Madam, now that the die has been cast, what do you think we should do? Do you want this child to die? Or you want her live? Remember that she did not ask you to bring her to this world, but you chose to bring her. Wake up to the realities on ground and let us find a solution to her pains.

    “Now, tell me the truth. Who is the real father of this child? I am not particularly concerned about the rest , but this ailing one for crying out loud. Let’s invite the person over and save the child.

    “ I will conceal his identity and save you from any disgrace except if you tell your husband yourself,” Dr. Ebele said to me looking straight into my eyes. She did not remove her gaze throughout the discussion.

    “Now, talk to me before any other person comes in.”

    “It is Smart,” I told her in tears. The water was pouring out of my misty eyes, mucous followed suit, the watery mucous was sweet and I was too weak to clean it or spit it out of my mouth.

    “Who is Smart? And are you really sure  this man, Smart, is the father of this child?” She asked me with pity written over all her beautiful face. I can see that those permanent smiles I know her with have disappeared a bit. Only little was left there. My matter has negatively affected her too.

    “I am sure it is Smart. He is my husband’s friend. He was my childhood love……..”

    “Don’t go too far,” Ebele cut me short. “ You shall tell me later. Let me have his number fast. We need to save this child. Saving this child will always be my motto until all is ok”.

    I gave her Smart’s number. Luckily, he was in town. I cannot really explain what she told him, but one hour later, Smart was in the hospital. His blood samples were taken and good enough to help Taiwo be on her feet again. He came over to our ward briefly, looked at me, looked at the child; he said nothing, but went out again with Ebele.

    The hours seemed so long and the saliva in my mouth seemed so sour. Sour and bitter than the bile. My appetite was dead as that of a ghost and my reasoning faculty was as lean as  of that of a first- class dullard.

    My husband was still not in sight, but I could see that Dr. Iruobe was back to the hospital. It was later that Ebele, told me she called him in order to be part of the whole recovery. So far, Iruobe was not a stranger to us, it was an easier affair.

    Time was 4:54pm; Taiwo was wheeled to the theatre. I was told to remain in my room. I had no option than to obey. I was praying fervently as   told to do by one of the senior nurses. No matter what mess I might have found myself, my child remains my child. I will not throw her away. I will not sell her for a million dollars.

    The medical teams were going up and down. I was always asking questions, but they did not even look at my face not to talk of answering me. They were occupied with what they were after; and that was ”saving a soul”.

    Four hours later, Ebele came closer to me and hugged me tightly, while telling me that the child was ok, but would still need to be monitored.

    “Congratulations! The child is now alright. What we need is a little monitoring to stabilize her health. Per your family matter, God will intervene. This is where my priority is and we are glad that Taiwo is ok. You can go in to see her in the next 30  minutes. Don’t touch her, but just peep in to make sure what we told you are real”.

    I burst out weeping uncontrollably. I was  happy for the child and felt bad for what I have put my husband through.

  • Productivity: Safe, decent working environment vital

    Director-General of the National Productivity Centre, Alhaji Kashim Akor has identified safe and decent working environment as a vital ingredient for productivity enhancement of workers.

    Speaking at a three – day National Workshop on Productivity Improvement Techniques, Workplace Safety, and Health Practices for Enhancing Organisational Performance Akor said safety in work places was key to promoting organisational effectiveness.

    He said Occupational Health and Safety practices should therefore be given a pride of place by all employers of labour in both the public and private sector of the nation’s economy.

    He said the workshop was primarily designed to highlight ways  and means of enhancing productivity in the workplace through the provision of adequate occupational safety measures.

    It was also aimed at teaching participants the concept and application of productivity; expose participants to basic productivity improvement techniques; equip the, with basic knowledge of workplace risks and implications on health and expose them to strategies for preventing workplace accidents and injuries.

    It also include to assist them towards developing a mindset of supporting the management in the promotion of preventive safety and health culture and assist them to develop Implementable work Plan/Performance Chart.

    In a communique at the end of the workshop, participants agreed that Occupational Health and Safety should be given its due priority as only a safe workplace can guaranty productivity.

    They also agreed that team building should be encouraged in all organizations, while the organizations should move with modern trends in all areas of ergonomics.

    They also recommend that there should be an effective and efficient utilization of human and material resources for enhanced productivity, while working tools should be provided for optimal employee performance, consider and encourage productivity gain sharing, while ensuring that staff performance assessment is evidence based.

     

  • Decent Work Day: Labour protests workers’ rights abuse

    The organised labour and civil society groups have stormed some industrial locations in Lagos to protest increasing abuse of workers’ rights, casualisation, indecent work and inadequate pay.

    The protest was part of activities to mark ‘Decent Work Day’ declared by the International Labour Organisation (ILO).

    The occassion also featured  seminar attended by stakeholders to highlight the rising cases of workers’ rights violation and the need for government to protect workers from further exploitation through casualisation, outsourcing, contract staffing and poor wages.

    Addressing the gathering on the essence of the protest, President of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Ayuba Wabba said indecent work and abuse of workers’ rights remained a problem for workers in the country, adding that NLC had resolved to create more awareness for employers to provide decent job by visiting some companies in Lagos.

    Wabba said issues such as decent work, safety of workers, workers’ rights, social protection for workers and promotion of social dialogue through collective bargaining will be addressed by the unionists as workers that create wealth must enjoy the benefits of their works.

    He said the non-provision of social protection for the weak, vulnerable and those not working are the reason why there is insecurity in the land, which is an indication that the state has not managed the youths well.

    Also  speaking, General Secretary, National Union of Garment and Textile Workers of Nigeria (NUTGTWN) and Chairman of the Industrial All Global Union Nigeria, Comrade Isa Aremu, condemned the pattern of job recruitment in the country. He cited example of the ill-fated recruitment exercise by the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), which claimed several lives, adding that such act would not bring development to the economy.

    Aremu said: “The ILO defines decent work as work that takes place under conditions of freedom, equity, security and dignity in which rights are protected and adequate remuneration and social coverage provided equally for men and women.”

    He said workplace practices outside the above are commonly known as anti-labour practices and despite the fact that Nigeria, with other countries subscribed to ILO decent work agenda, unbridled pursuit of profits by employers has made work indecent and precarious for workers.

    He said apart from non-payment of salaries of workers, casualisation of staff and outsourcing of workers under inhumane and criminal terms as seen in many commercial banks and government agencies have become the order of the day.

    “The rise of precarious employment has multiple consequences, it affects our societies, leading to deepening poverty, increasing inequality while the incidence of precarious work continues to grow at an alarming rate in all sectors of the economy,” he asserts.

    Comrade Aremu said due to the disturbing change of employment status from the conventional permanent to temporary employment in the form of casualisation, outsourcing and contract staffing, Egbin power plant in Ikorodu and Vik Limited in Isolo, would be picketed.

    Other companies cited that would be visited later are Lee Group, Dura Pack limited, Watson Pharmaceuticals, Finecoat limited, Jagal limited, Current foam and Coates and Paints.

    Similarly, at the seminar organised by the Association of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions (ASSBIFI), President of the union, Mr Sunday Salako, condemned a situation where workers were treated with disdain, noting that indecent employment was still being promoted in Nigeria by failure to adhere to the principle of tripartism.

    He said: “Tripatism is where labour, employer and government sit and agree to what should obtain in the labour system. Rather than adhering to the tripartism, what is happening in Nigeria is bilateralism, where enterprises are collaborating with those in government to make lives unbearable for employees.”

  • Oyo ACN: We’re too decent for Ladoja’s crude politicking

    The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in Oyo State has said membership of the party is not a requisite for employing teachers into the state Civil Service.

    The party was reacting to an allegation by the Accord that the government was demanding ACN membership card before recruiting teachers.

    In a statement by its Publicity Secretary, Mr. Dauda Kolawole, ACN said: “Former Governor Rashidi Ladoja and his Accord should tell the people what party card the government demanded from Ladoja’s brother, who is a commissioner in the present administration, before he came on board and the card we demanded from his party’s national officer, who is also a commissioner in our administration.

    “What party card did we demand from his Special Adviser nominees in our government and the board members and local government chairmen, who are Accord members? The allegation is the Ladoja and Accord hypocrisy at play, which cannot escape the attention of any rightful thinker.

    “In the history of politics and governance in Oyo, no administration has demonstrated the level of political tolerance the Governor Abiola Ajimobi administration has demonstrated, which is a pointer to the fact that it can never engage in such a mundane and self-serving exercise.

    “The people know the antecedent of these politicians, for whom politics is a mix of falsehood and propaganda. Our people know that ACN is too decent a party and its runners are too polished to engage in such base politics.

    “Ajimobi is teaching Ladoja and others a great lesson in political tolerance by still accommodating Ladoja’s men in this administration, even when the former governor has made it a daily sport to attack a government in which his sibling and nominees are part of and get their daily bread from.”

  • The decent society

    The decent society

    The one was an infighting within the peacock class. The other was a fury from below. In both instances, we saw a mirror of a people lost from the call of dignity.

    The second one happened first, but the first reflected the deeper underbelly of the greed and indecencies of our people.

    The second one was a drama in the glare of Goodluck Jonathan. It involved Malam Nuhu Ribadu and Stephen Oronsaye, and the issue was the report of how the oil business has soiled the haughty fingers of the rich and crooked.

    The first one was the story of the restriction of motorcycles (okada) riders away from the major arteries of the city of Lagos.

    At stake in both cases was the concept of the decent society, the society that sets before itself the ground rules of engagement, the laws, the courtesies, discipline and fiery obedience to the logic of legal retribution to the breach. That inculcates a social contract, a tension of law and punishment, with the capacity to lure the bad to the bosom of the best among us.

    Ribadu attracted flak from many, even within the inner sanctum of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), for taking a job under the man he reviled during the presidential campaign. A feisty, stubborn, if at times turbulent soul lurks in his fragile frame. It was an understated physical quality that rattled the seedy elite when he downed one peacock after another as the boss of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). He did not do this job with the flawless temperament of a Rabbi or a Christ or Alfa. With provable charges of selectiveness, his tenure as EFCC boss has remained controversial.

    Hence some saw his acceptance of the Jonathan job as a bounty for a loser and the loser gladly accepted. Maybe it was. Maybe Ribadu had a reflex of integrity and turned the bounty from a material gift to a crusading moment by saving his name. So his report unveiled the sleaze of the oil world under the stewardship of Jonathan. To rebuff the bounty, Ribadu probably damned the giver, the President with his report, and became an avenging angel. If that was what Ribadu did, he had his critics to thank for his image rebirth. Ribadu probably had the mischievous grace from the beginning to spite Jonathan before the criticisms raged. But only he knows the truth.

    The agony was the spectacle of the older Oronsaye, who played a puppet in a presidential oil game. The man condemned a report even though he was missing in action while Ribadu worked without sitting allowance. He had the shameless boldness to play righteous before the camera and the world. The point has been suggested that Orosanye, once a technocrat with tranquil grandeur and former head of service, became a rhetorical boxer defending a system as decrepit as it was dirty. Before the incident in front of the President, many did not know he had the gallery touch, the air of the bureaucratic impresario.

    Jonathan was quietly gloating over this public jousting. The President, in his serpentine style, came to the fore again. Why was Oronsaye doing another engagement that took him away from this all-important task? Why did Jonathan sign up to such distraction? Did Jonathan not see that Oronsaye’s rebellion against the report was capable of suggesting that the man was planted in the committee to cast sufficient doubt on its probity? A classical divide-and-rule tactic. Once that was done, then the government can exercise a right to whittle down the weight of Ribadu’s work and assign the document, after all the hoopla of protest, to the cynical silence that other reports on oil have suffered.

    This is a report about corruption, about billions of Naira fleeced without regards to law, bonuses appropriated with brazen fare, about the oil that immiserates the teeming poor in our society, about the lifestyle that furnishes outlandish holiday resorts abroad, cocky boats, soaring soirees, in private jets and palaces as homes.

    The Presidency has latched on to the Oronsaye indiscretion to question the report. Ribadu had noted that there was some imperfection in the work, but that did not detract from the basic premise of its conclusion. Why did the President not say, well, we shall extend your time, finish the work? Oil is our wealth, not a partisan matter. It is about our patrimony and prosperity. It is about the future of our children, of our infrastructure and education.

    The handling of the matter, above all, reveals our disregard for the basic decencies of civilisation. It is what Conrad calls “the nightmarish parody of administration without justice, without law, without order.”

    In Lagos, we saw okada riders take laws into their hands. The law said they should stay off certain areas. They defied the basic meaning of the law. Where in the world do we have bike riders as major transporters? So bad were they that they caused many a death, maimed many too, and impoverished the artisan sector with everyone from plumber to mechanic viewing the trade as a source of quick money. If the people at the top have no regard for law and decency, how do we expect the folks in the plebeian bracket to do same? The National Assembly has looked into many issues, but none has been resolved. No convictions although we all know there were crimes. The power sector is just an example.

    The okada question has raised the question of replacement taxis and buses. That did not happen today, and their organisation only paid lip service to the project so long as they could still scoot about legally. With the restriction, they can now settle to the ultimate model for development: a private-public relationship that we have seen with the phasing out of the molue.

    Let us not forget the Makoko incident. The floating slum dwellers agreed not to cross a line, but they did. When they were given a 72-hour ultimatum to leave, they turned it into emotional blackmail. The shantytown on stilts is an anomaly, but even at that they want to extend all the filth and danger to environment and health of the entire city by polluting the lagoon.

    All of this is corruption. But the root of the problem is far deeper. At an event last week, Professor Wole Soyinka argued that corruption is the cause of the decay around us. Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) saw it differently. Ribadu as EFCC boss noted with statistical dismay how corruption was the source of our bane. The governor, for example, argued that we should look deeper into our culture and our history. He saw corruption as a symptom. I agree. It is the society that creates corruption and not vice versa. As Jesus Christ said: “An evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.” The tragedy though is that we created corruption, but it festered so powerfully that it is recreating us.

    I blame all our founding fathers who did not set a ground rule for the nation. Rather, they travelled on ethnic tangents.

    We have not created a nation of laws. When the United States started, there was a conflict between President George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, who accused the leader of abandoning the revolutionary ideals. Jefferson dreamed of America as a rural paradise. Washington dreamed of a country of big cities and wealth. He hired Alexander Hamilton who crafted the rules by which American civil society operates, centering on the rule of law. Patent protection, the rise of the financial system, stock exchange, the prosperity of the world today derives from the genius of the immigrant trusted by a president who never attended university.

    I believe it is our lack of ground rules that has led us to the path of corruption. When men like Oronsaye and the okada riders ignore law and decency personified by a man like Ribadu in the report, we shall continue to plummet in standards of living, have students who cannot read and write well and an ominous future beckons us.

    What will rescue us is the shock wisdom that illumines Shylock’s eyes in Shakespeare’s classic, Merchant of Venice. When his impunity is exposed in court, he asks, “is that the law?” Rather, we mock the law.

    Until we allow the law nourish order, we shall never have a decent society.