The Nation Newspaper

Tag: embrace

  • Culture universities need to embrace

    SIR: Our university dons and managers didn’t only make us pay fees for half-baked loaves of bread called degree certificates, we also got over-fermented with their outdated lectures, including their incessant strikes that could be likened to the additive called “Bromate”.

    If only our universities had provided a Campus Investment Company for us to test our entrepreneurial and employability skills, then we wouldn’t be recording the catastrophic 80% of unemployed graduates presently in Nigeria. They practically closed their eyes to the numerous investment opportunities open within the university walls, and put the blame on the government for their insensitivity and underfunding.

    An average Nigerian public university has a population of over 15,000 (students and staff), yet we refuse to maximize the obvious enterprise opportunities which exists in the “Village”, headed by the Village Chiefs aka vice chancellors.

    I believe that if every university established a Campus Investment Company, the menace of half-baked, naïve, unprepared graduates will be reduced to the barest minimum.

    A company established from the scratch by students, to be managed by students and for the students would put all the theories they have been taught to the test. In other words, bona fide students will have a stake in the day-to-day activities and eventual success of such an enterprise; who else can identify and meet the needs in a student environment, if not the students?

    Have we ever wondered why Nigerian trained doctors are in high demand globally? The reason is not  far-fetched. They are engaged in practical medical companies aka teaching hospitals during the course of their learning. There they work with patients first-hand.

    This step should be replicated in all other fields of study.  For example, why can’t we have a well-structured auto-mechanic company within the university to allow Mechanical Engineering students fix vehicles of staff, fellow students and even the host community?

    Imagine a Dangote, Wale Tinubu, or Ibukun Awosika, as university vice chancellor. You can predict the positive impact it will have. Another example will be the appointment of high ranking commercial bank CEO to head affairs at the CBN, despite several deputies that could assume the position within the ranks.

    I believe the aforementioned will give rise to competitive graduates and knowledge-driven entrepreneurs that will drive the Nigerian business space and the society at large.

    ‘Bolaji Junaid,

  • Nigeria: Let’s embrace this treasure from the North

    In the midst of the storms and clouds of recent developments, we Nigerians can miss some very valuable treasures. We have been attracted to all sorts of intriguing images from the National Conference – some images of serious leadership, and many more images of shallow self-seeking and  downright irresponsible utterances, all posturing as free speech.  We have been overwhelmed by the horrors of Boko Haram’s atrocities – all of which seem to be a determined effort to drown out the voices of the National Conference. And we have been wooed to the images of an African economic summit – with its dandified images that differ radically from the realities of our economic life.

    In the course of all these, there has appeared one treasure that can be easily missed, but that I am determined that we should not miss. I refer to the statement sent by the former Vice-President of our country, Atiku Abubakar, to the National Conference a few weeks ago.

    Vice-President Atiku Abubakar’s message to the National Conference is a great national treasure for two important reasons. First, it is an excellent statement of the case for the restructuring of the Nigerian federation. It is almost impossible to find a better rendering of the case anywhere else.

    Secondly, because it comes from a very eminent member of the Fulani political elite of Northern Nigeria, it is more than unique; it is historic. What we Nigerians are used to hearing from our Hausa-Fulani political elite is a trenchant defence of the status quo in our country – the status quo consisting of all the distortions that were entrenched in our federal system step by step by the military dictatorships that ruled our country from 1966 to 1999. The military dictatorships, with the very active support of the civilian Hausa-Fulani political elite, turned our federal government into virtually the sole owner of all power, and the sole controller of resources and assets, in our country.  In their hands, our federation ceased to be a federation. Our federal government became an over-bloated, horribly inefficient, and viciously corrupt establishment, actively spreading corruption into our political life, our electoral system, and our management of all aspects of our public business. Ostensibly to satisfy our people’s local demands, the military dictators split our country into more and states – that is, into smaller and smaller states. Our states became impotent entities, easily manipulated by the federal monster, totally dependent on federal handouts for their existence, and essentially powerless to promote development in their domains. The inevitable loss of local push and morale quickly generated intense poverty in all parts of our country. All attempts at the development of local resources vanished, as the federal authorities encouraged every part of Nigeria to depend on oil revenue from the Delta. No truly informed Nigeria has any doubt that these changes are the fundamental causes of poverty, insecurity, and conflicts in our country, and the reason why our country now seems to be about to break up. Yet, unbelievably, the Hausa-Fulani elite insist on the preservation of this whole monstrosity. But now, at last, a prominent Hausa-Fulani servant of our country has taken the courage to step out to contradict his kinsmen. I repeat that this action by Atiku Abubakar is truly historic.

    Step by step, he states the case very thoroughly for the restructuring of our federation, for the reduction of the powers of our federal government, for  giving new powers and imparting new energies to our states, for reviving state and local initiative and morale, and for a new surge of development and prosperity in our country.

    The Hausa-Fulani elite, as well as some others who share some of their views, have made it routine to stigmatize  all Nigerians who advocate the restructuring of the Nigerian federation as enemies of Nigeria who desire to break up Nigeria. Atiku now says loudly that the accusation is not true and must stop.  “We must stop assuming” he says, “that anyone calling for the restructuring of our federation is working for the breakup of the country”.

    The Hausa-Fulani elite and some who agree with them have always insisted that the only way to ensure the unity of Nigeria is to make the federal government overwhelmingly powerful. Atiku now clearly contradicts that. He says, “And the notion that over-centralisation and an excessively powerful centre is equivalent to national unity is false.  If anything, it has made our unity more fragile and our government more unstable.  We must renegotiate our union in order to make it stronger”.

    In support of stronger and more virile states and local governments, he states, “Greater autonomy, power and resources for states and local authorities will unleash our people’s creative energies and spur more development. It will help with improving security. It will help give the federating units and the local governments, greater freedom and flexibility to address local issues, priorities and peculiarities. It will promote healthy rivalries among the federating units and local authorities. It will help make us richer and stronger as a nation”.

    From the way the northern political elite have always resolutely defended over-centralisation of power and opposed any suggestion for decentralisation, it is as if they are certain that a very strong federal centre benefits the North in some special way. Atiku now urges that we Nigerians should learn to discuss these matters dispassionately and objectively. He says, “We need to eschew emotions and knee-jerk reactions and examine these issues critically.  As is to be expected, interests have been formed and entrenched so that calls for devolution and decentralisation (mostly from the south) have been met with very strident opposition (mostly from the north). It is as though the over-centralisation of power and concentration of resources in the federal government benefit the north more than the south. Nothing can be further from the truth. In my view, and the evidence is there for all to see, the excessive dominance of the federal government has been detrimental to the development aspirations of all sections of this country.  It is precisely why we now rely almost exclusively on oil revenues, which come mainly from a small section of the country. It is what has, by extension, killed our agriculture, local control of schools, and promoted corruption that has eroded the quality of our public and even private institutions”.

    Vice-President Atiku deserves the gratitude of Nigeria for this historic intervention of his. And for those who still believe that their ethnic group has a vested interest in the status quo that is destroying our country, here is something to ponder.

  • Embrace entrepreneurship, Kalu advises students

    Embrace entrepreneurship, Kalu advises students

    Former Governor of Abia State Dr Orji Uzor Kalu has ueged youths across the country to explore the benefits of entrepreneurship and get rid of white-collar job mentality.

    He gave the admonition recently at a public lecture organised by the National Economics Students Association at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN). The theme was “Youth empowerment and good governance: A veritable tool for economic development.”

    He said youths should embrace the pursuit of goals that lead to the realisation of individual potential, adding that certificate acquisition was not enough to succeed in today’s world.

    “I implore you to begin to think outside the traditional assumption; I mean the false notion that the university education or degree certification is the key to a bed of roses. The reality on ground calls for your creativity in the engagement of your scholarship because opportunities for those who brandish only their certificates are limited,” he said.

    He called on government at all levels to be responsive to the needs of the people, saying “good governance is birthed on the foundations of transparency, accountability, participation and responsiveness to the needs and aspirations of the people.”

    Dr. Kalu urged the Federal Government to keep to its statutory responsibility of providing basic amenities to the people, encourage youth empowerment, promote security and welfare schemes, combat corruption, mediate in conflicts, conserve environment and fight against deadly diseases, including HIV/AIDs.

    Students who spoke to CAMPUSLIFE said the lecture was an eye-opener.

    Goodluck Onosetale, 300-Level Economics, said he was inspired to discover the importance of self-discipline and the role it played in idea generation.

    Dignitaries at the occasion included the Dean, faculty of Social Science, Prof C.O.T Ugwu, Head, Department of Economics, Prof C.C Agu and other principal officers of the institution.

    President of the association, Eze Ogbonna, in his remark, thanked everyone for making the event a success.

    The lecture ended with the presentation of award to Dr Kalu.

  • Embrace small-scale business, Trustfund urges workers

    Trustfund Pensions Plc has urged workers to embrace small-scale business models as veritable exit strategy from paid employment in order to have a more enjoyable retirement.

    Its Head of Customer Service, Mrs. Maha Longe, made the call at a pre-retirement seminar for the company’s contributors in the Southeast zone made up of Ebonyi, Imo, Enugu, Abia and Anambra states.

    He pointed out that early death of retirees is mostly caused by lack of economic activities after retiring from paid employment, stressing that the company has set out an enlightenment programme targeting contributors who have between six to 12 months to retire on how to run small scale business. According to her, small-scale businesses that are taught contributors are influenced by what is in demand in the zone.

    “In Ibadan, we taught them how to make soap. But here in Enugu, there is water, fish, grass cutter, and snail, which are things that really sell here,” she said, adding that the seminar would be carried out in other cities of the country including Port Harcourt, Lagos, Abuja, Kano, and Kaduna. She stressed that the training was part of the corporate social responsibility of her organisation.

    The Federal Government has re-appointed Umar Munir Abubakar as the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) for another term of four years.

    In a letter, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity, Dr Clement Ilo said the new tenure will take effect from December 28, last year.

    Abubakar promised to ensure the success of the Employees’ Compensation Scheme (ECS) as well as open rehabilitation centres for injured workers.

    He said: “I will use the next four years in office to complete the computerisation of the Fund as well as entrench the prompt payment of benefits/compensation to injured workers within the shortest period of time.”

  • Shoppers embrace ‘Before Christmas sales offer’

    More shoppers are visiting retail stores, supermarkets and malls – thanks to the seasonal price slash. This month, the rush has become intense as many go for the ‘Before- Christmas sales offer’.  TONIA ‘DIYAN reports.

    Shoppers in Lagos are taking advantage of the ‘Before-Christmas sales offer’ at malls, supermarkets, retail and even online stores. They are seen more in these places at weekends and after working hours during week days.

    Last Saturday, while stores were yet to open by 8.45am, shoppers in large numbers were already hanging around the Ikeja City Mall. Immediately, it opened for business, they thronged into the mall.

    At a houseware store, Mrs Romoke Adebayo, a marriage counsellor, bought a 12-piece Martha Stewart silver cooking set at 20 per cent less the price. “I’ve been planning to get something like this for a long time. But I just couldn’t afford it because, it wass very expensive. But with the ongoing offer, I finally have it!. Coming here early was definitely worth it; someone else would have picked it before my arrival. The sales person said it is the only one left.”

    While sales appeared brisk in malls, retail stores, supermarkets and online, household and electronics outlets which are either stand-alone stores or tenants in complexes and plazas, are not left out. They all have something to give away.

    However, it’s been observed that there more sales this year since the advent of shopping malls in 2006, when The Palms in Lekki opened shop. Same with online stores, which have been thriving for close to two years.

    Some retailers told The Nation Shopping that sales of electronics, clothing, jewellery and house hold items in the last two months, have increased following the offers which have been on since September.

    According to them, this year is witnessing the strongest sales not only of clothes and electronics, but also food and building supplies.

    The crowd at the Ikeja City Mall in Lagos was was a testimony.

    “It is, indeed, really crowded; the queue is discouraging and making payment after shopping is hell. People are already shopping for Christmas and prices heve been slashed everywhere,” a teacher, Mr Folorunsho Bashorun, said.

    Mrs Cordelia and her husband, Mr Caleb Otoide, both military personnels, took their daughters for shopping at The Palms in Lekki last weekend. “There are some combat/military-style boots that I’ve been wanting to buy,”Mrs Cordelia said.”

    We knew the crowd would be crazy, so we decided to visit the mall this early when there would be fewer people. But we were wrong, you know! We could hardly find a parking space,” she added.

    Ms Helen Thompson, South African-trained nurse, was among the early shoppers, took advantage of the discounts they would get on whatever they buy at The Omisson Emporium, a new mall in Lekki, Lagos. She went home with a 20-piece glassware set for N25,000 and a foot-long Santa Claus ornament she bought for her son  at 15 per cent discount.

    “Some of these items, such as the ornaments, are not cheap, when it is not sales period,” she said.

    Her sister, Ms Natasha, bought two large bags of goodies, paper holders, a few children’s bake sets and other house wares. “I’ve been able to save about N15,200 after my shopping, it is definitely worth being here at this time,” she said.

    Also, last Saturday, vehicular and pedestrian traffic at Alade Market, and other high street stores on Allen Avenue, in Ikeja, were high by mid-day.

    The market is the second destination for one of its residents, Mr Wale Bankole, who had stopped by the Ikeja City Mall to buy a Swatch wrist watch, a Daniel Ray handbag and a Nine West pair of shoes for his wife, Mrs Gloria Bankole. He testified of how he was able to save some money. “It seems to be a general offer. I have saved N38,000 altogether; ordinarily, I would have spent N38,000 more buying these many items from different places,“ he said.

    The Centre Manager, Ikeja City Mall, Mr Sander Norman, said sales increased in the last two months and customers have been very patient getting their vehicles into the mall. “We have experienced very massive sales because of the number of people who visit the mall daily. We meet very understanding customers who agree to work with the space we have.

    “Over the past week, stores have stocked more styles that were flying off the shelves quickly, said Mrs Modupe Shopeju of Delightsome Gifts Concepts. Alhaja Ganiyat Rilwan, who was shoe shopping at the store  with her six-year-old daughter Mila, said she decided to take advantage of the ‘Before Christmas sales offer’ to meet her immediate needs. “The fact that I am a Muslim and don’t celebrate Christmas doesn’t mean I can’t partake of the offer. I am only making use of the opportunity available to everyone,” she added.

    While Mila got the blue sneakers and a wedge sandal she wanted, her mother bought a pair of sandals and a black office shoe for herself. “The sales will continue till the end of December.’’ Said Mr Samuel Ejeh, managing director, Grocery Bazaar, Lagos.

    Jumia is also unwraping christmas early with the launch of the biggest online christmas store.

    The store is giving shoppers sale promotion of up to 70% off on specific items.

  • Embrace SONCAP registration, SON urges

    Embrace SONCAP registration, SON urges

    The Director-General, Standards Organisations of Nigeria (SON), Dr. Joseph Odumodu has urged manufacturers to embrace SONCAP registration, as this would check  the importation of substandard products.

    Odumodu, who was represented by the Director, Operation,  JohnAchukwu, made the appeal during a 5,000- man walk against substandard products in Abuja, stating that the event was important to Nigerians.

    He said: “We are appealing to Nigerians to embrace the SONCAP programme, it is a programme put in place to check imports of substandard products. This will make Nigerian consumers have more confidence in locally made products.

    “Nigerians should develop the habit of utilising locally manufactured products, this way influx of substandard products into the country will reduce drastically.

    “The objective of this walk is clear; please patronise goods that are made in Nigeria. Patronise goods that are our own, so that if you have any complain, we will be able to trace the manufacturers.

    “But when you keep buying goods that are made abroad, when there are complains, it becomes very difficult to trace the manufacturer and cut the scene and the root. Patronise made in Nigeria so there will be job availability, this is one of the key issues we are having this walk for SON.”

  • Before we embrace tobacco prohibition

    SIR: The debate around the tobacco control bill opens up a broader discussion about law making and enforcement in general. Legislation is passed with noble intentions, for the good of society, and it is often thought that the more severe the law, the greater the effect. That, however, is not always the case, with some legislation turning out to be impractical or even ineffective.

    Harsh penalties have not reduced crime in any country in the world. For instance, serious crimes such as murder are still committed in the 32 American states where the death penalty for such crimes is enforced. Bringing this example back home, it cannot be said that serious crimes did not exist in this country in the days of the firing squad.

    And the 1920s ban on the production and sale of alcohol in the United States, known as the Prohibition, not only turned out to be an enforcement nightmare, it created an entire criminal enterprise around the illegal production of alcohol, generated wealth for the Mafia and fuelled corruption amongst some of the government agencies that were charged with enforcing the ban.

    An esteemed American economist, Irving Fisher, was one of the most fervent champions of the prohibition of alcohol, based on his hard held beliefs about its effects on society. This sounds very familiar to today’s strident calls for strict controls, if not outright bans, on tobacco. The same Fisher later acknowledged the negative consequences of the ban while his colleagues, also eminent economists, counted the cost and ineffectiveness of the “experiment.”

    The modern day economist Mark Thornton, who wrote a policy analysis paper titled ‘Alcohol Prohibition was a Failure’ coined the phrase ‘The Iron Law of Prohibition’, around the concept that the more intense the law enforcement, the more potent the prohibited substance becomes.

    The key points of Thornton’s paper, written for the Cato Institute, a US think tank and public policy research organisation, are in essence that Prohibition failed to eliminate alcohol consumption; after an initial drop, consumption of alcohol rose steadily; illicit production and distribution (bootlegging) continued throughout Prohibition and heightened enforcement did not curtail consumption. Prohibition was eventually repealed in 1933.

    One of the most important points that Thornton made in his policy paper is that “when certain substances are prohibited, they will not be produced and consumed under normal market constraints, and will be adulterated with unknown or dangerous substances.” This is a crucial point that many groups are pushing aside, in their zeal to use the tobacco control bill to shut down legal, regulated producers of tobacco. Once prohibited, unregulated tobacco products will become available to willing consumers via underground channels.

    Instead of using harsh, emotive legislation to recreate the nightmare of the Prohibition, policy makers in Nigeria should be pushing for balanced, rational legislation that will enable all concerned parties to meet their objectives in a realistic way.

    The American experience shows that banning alcohol led to a rise in criminality and corruption, the very opposite of what the well-meaning legislators intended. Looking back at our experience from the late 1970’s to present times, when all sorts of commodities have been banned in Nigeria at one time or another, we have to ask ourselves: what did those bans achieve, beyond making the few individuals and groups who clandestinely made those goods available very, very rich?

    Adopting a prohibitive approach to the tobacco control issue is hardly likely to be successful, given that we face serious challenges when it comes to enforcement, corruption and management of our borders. Let us not be panicked into hastily adopting laws from other countries without first reviewing and considering their effectiveness.

     

    • Alaba Cole

    United Kingdom

  • CJ urges lawyers to embrace ADR

    The Acting Chief Judge (CJ) of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Justice I. M. Bukar, has urged lawyers to embrace Alternative Disputes Resolution (ADR) in order to reduce litigation.

    He spoke at the inauguration of nine committees of the Nigerian Bar Association (Abuja) branch executive.

    The branch Chairman, Mr Desmond Yamah, urged the chairmen and members of the committees to discharge their duties with the fear of God and impartiality.

    Justice Bukar asked lawyers to be disciplined to enable the Judges meet the performance evaluation standards set for them by the National Judicial Council (NJC).

    Under the new regime, the judges are to grant very few injunctions and give a required number of judgments per quarter.

    He said courts were yet to get the high level of automation and computerisation that will make judges expedite justice delivery at the speed of light.

    Lawyers, he said, must first explore the ADR before coming to the court to avoid flooding the courts with frivolous suits.

    He frowned at a situation, where a counsel would come to court on a day a matter is set for judgment and be applying to amend his writ.

    He solicited the cooperation of the Bar and bench to facilitate effective and efficient justice delivery.

    He promised to attend the NBA meeting to speak on how to manage cases and embrace litigation.

    The committees, which were inaugurated, are the Welfare, Judiciary, the Legislative advocacy Working, the Editorial committee of the Unity Voice, Law Reporting, Finance, Continuing legal education committee, the Young lawyers Forum, and the Section on Business Law.

     

  • Embrace dialogue, VC tells union leaders

    Embrace dialogue, VC tells union leaders

    The Vice-Chancellor of Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA), Prof Oluwafemi Mimiko, has urged leaders of the institution’s Students’ Union Government (SUG) to always embrace dialogue and not violence in demanding for students’ welfare from the management.

    The VC gave the charge after the union leaders were sworn in at a ceremony held in the school’s Multipurpose Hall. The VC said problems confronting students’ unionism in any institution could only be solved on a negotiation table if union leaders cooperated with management.

    He noted that the election which ushered in the new leaders was a demonstration of the commitment of his administration towards the leadership training and development of youths. He praised students for ensuring peace during the election.

    The Dean of Students’ Affairs, Prof Oluyemisi Adebowale, charged the union executive to see their election as a call to duty and not an opportunity to harass and molest students. “Be aware of the challenges ahead and maintain the integrity of the university. Also help us maintain strict adherence and compliance to the rules and regulation of the university, especially in the students’ use of identity card and dress code,” she said.

    Responding, president of the union, Julius Adeniyi assured the management of the union’s readiness for collaboration to ensure smooth running of the school’s academic calendar. “The union is ready to collaborate with the management to ensure there is no hindrance in the running of the academic calendar,’ he said.

    Julius sought the cooperation of the students towards achieving the union’s goals, urging them to stand for the vision of his administration.

    Other members of the union include Oluwaseun Emaye, Vice President, Samuel Oyegoke, General Secretary, Olajide Akinnibosun, Assistant General Secretary, Oladeji Bamishile, Welfare Director, Tolulope Betiku, Sport Director, Femi Nejo, Social Director, Olanrewaju Aiyelero, Treasurer and Ofunime Aiyegunle, Public Relations Officer.

  • Akpabio urges BRACED states to embrace manufacturing

    Governor Godswill  Akpabio has urged the Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Edo and Delta (BRACED) to focus more on the development of aquaculture in the South-south to create more employment opportunities.

    Akpabio, who spoke when BRACED Director-General, Ambassador Joe Keshi and commissioners of agriculture in the BRACED states visited him in Uyo, lamented that his state had not taken advantage for the development of aquatic lives.

    He said: “The South-south has some challenges such as poverty and insecurity. So, this is the time for us to take our destinies in our hands for peace and development in the region. So therefore, the BRACED Commission must focus and discuss more in their next summit meeting on the aquatic wealth of the nation for the employment of our people.

    ‘’Already, the South-South has a lot of shrimps which could be transported by boats for sale and for export. That could in turn generate revenue for the people. We must discuss how to provide the boats and finances for the processing of our marine wealth’’.

    According to him, Ghananians and other nationals have been engaging in fishing in the country’s territorial waters, urging BRACED to take advantage of the availability of aquatic lives in the region by exploiting such to create jobs for people.

    He said Akwa Ibom is committed to agriculture particularly rice production through Integrated Farmers Scheme, adding that the state has initiated Women in Agricultural Development Project (WAEDEP) giving N250,000 to each of the 4,500 women.

    He charged the commission in liaison with private investors to venture into the manufacturing with the tag of BRACED, saying “Also, we would want a manufacturing company from BRACED Commission where food products would be packaged and stamped and before you notice it, people would rush for it. So to this, let us have a technical committee to practicalise and ginger the manufacturing sector on what we would be discussing”.

    Earlier, Keshi said they were in the state to explore areas of mutual cooperation in agriculture. The cooperation, he said, commission members would focus  on cocoa, timber and rice, among others.