The Nation Newspaper

Tag: end-time

  • Wike and gubernatorial end time

    Things are happening here, Hardball dares to say!

    With the DSS-corrupt judges stand-off (which some passionate partisans have deliberately, if emotively, dubbed DSS-Judiciary showdown), Nigeria might even be on its way to recording its first case of a fugitive judge, never mind that violent contradiction.

    From the news, the sting operation in Port Harcourt was not quite successful. According to DSS, the target judge somewhat escaped arrest, no thanks to the alleged heroics of Governor Nyesom Wike, who virtually sprang from nowhere, with some lorry loads of policemen in tow.

    DSS then made it known it was extending an invitation to the judge.  Except he honours that invitation, and there is no court restraint to the contrary, Nigeria might just be on its way to producing its first fugitive judge!

    But perish that thought!  His Lordship would probably show up and everything would be sorted out.

    Still, that would hardly excuse Governor Wike’s scandalously ungubernatorial conduct, in the whole messy affair.

    Both sides to the drama have stated their respective cases. But there are notorious facts that still shine through.

    Fact: Wike had no business on that scene of alleged crime — not as a lawful citizen; much less as a governor, who the constitution grants immunity from criminal prosecution, as long as he remains governor.

    But an unstated code of that rare privilege seems to have been lost on the governor, as it is lost on too many: whoever is immune from criminal prosecution as governor is unlikely, by his exemplary conduct as a lawful private citizen, to ever run the risk of prosecution.

    In other words, (s)he is not unlike Caesar’s wife: not only above reproach, but must be seen to be so!

    But did Wike’s reported conduct portray?  As governor, he admitted he “blocked” the arrest of a citizen — a judge yes, but a citizen nevertheless — even, with a tinge of drama, claiming that he quit his crusade when the DSS operatives threatened to shoot him.

    Well, Hardball is glad no one eventually got shot.  But not so, that a governor, enjoying constitutional immunity, would turn himself into a wilful barrier against the law, in a scandalous but classic case of standing on gubernatorial dignity.

    Because he enjoys immunity against criminal prosecution, does Wike think he is above the law?  Or that unruly conduct is acceptable to the polity, just because he enjoys the privileges of a governor?

    Besides, if Wike as governor behaves in such a reckless manner, is his conduct telling us his natural instinct is to thumb his nose at the law?  And in future, must we conduct psychoanalysis on gubernatorial candidates before deciding which one of them merits the constitutional grace of immunity?

    Or, because of the Wikes of this world, should we then go ahead and remove the immunity clause, since Wike’s disgraceful conduct does not seem to appreciate the huge and solemn privileges attached to his high gubernatorial office?

    Besides, what was Wike’s business in a matter concerning a judge accused of soiling his hands?  Is he the chief of the judge’s judicial jurisdiction?  The chief judge of Rivers State?  The president of the Court of Appeal?  Or the Chief Justice of Nigeria?

    Why would any right-thinking governor stake the majesty of his high office to aid a judge allegedly accused of acts which could bring him and his high judicial office into odium and ridicule?  And to boot: that judge could well, thanks to Wike’s golden intervention, account for the dubious honour of doubling as a fugitive, one of a very few, if not the first ever in Nigerian history?

    You want answers?  A difficult chore!  But just pass it as Governor Wike’s heroics in a gripping movie: Wike and gubernatorial end time!

    Things are really happening here!

  • Is this Nigeria’s end-time!

    What is what a foreigner, a journalist who has travelled intensively in Africa and has written a very incisive book on Africa, wrote about Nigeria. He devotes a chapter to Nigeria in his book, and he titles that chapter with the staggering announcement, “Look out world: Nigeria!” – as if he is warning the whole world to watch out for a dangerousrolling explosive called Nigeria, a dangerous rolling explosive that could detonate at any time and without warning.

    Well, the journalist who authored that book is only one person, no matter how informed hemay be – and we Nigerians have a right to sneer at what he says about our country. But, not so fast, because here now comes another voice shouting about the danger that Nigeria poses for its component peoples, its citizens, its continent, and its world. This other voiceis much bigger and much more authoritative than that of any one journalist, indeed much bigger and more authoritative than the voices of all the journalists of the world put together. It is the voice of the United Nations Organization (UNO), the apex gathering house of all the countries of the world. Only a few days ago, the UNO issued an alarm on Nigeria.

    The UNO issued the alarm in its usual periodic report on countries of the world, the report known as the Common Country Analysis (CCA). The report describes Nigeria as a “deeply divided” country “on the basis of the plurality of the ethnic, religious and regional identities that have tended to define the country’s existence”. The report notes that for decades, different sections of Nigeria have, from time to time, cried out about being marginalized, or being short-changed, or being dominated, or being oppressed, or being threatened, or even being targeted for elimination. Painting a gloomy picture for Nigeria’s economic and social development, and noting that most of Nigeria’s development and socio-economic indices record far below acceptable standards, the report points out that the source of Nigeria’s problems are constraints on economic growth, constraints on social development, and general lack of good governance.

    The report then adds, “Nigeria is one of the poorest and most unequal countries in the world, with over 80 million or 64% of her population living below poverty line…Poverty and hunger have remained high… and these cut across the six geopolitical zones, with prevalence ranging from approximately 46.9 per cent in the South-west to 74.3 per cent in the North-west and Northeast.  Nigeria’s economy is currently in a recession and it is estimated that government revenues have fallen by as much as 33 per cent, which has further resulted in the contraction of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 0.36 per cent in the first three months of 2016…The vulnerable macroeconomic environment in Nigeria is affecting investors’ confidence in the domestic economy”.

    The report also adds that “Nigeria faces humanitarian and emergency crisis of considerable proportions fuelled by a combination of factors” including natural forces like climate change, recurring droughts and recurring floods, political factors such as inter-communal conflicts and violence and insurgency, and various factors of poor governance including heavy handed actions by security forces in their combating of crime and insurgency. Other factors are massive unemployment among Nigerian youths (with 42% of the youths unemployed), and widespread cases of physical and sexual violence against women and girls. The overall consequence, says the report, is “systematic and chronic internal displacement that has given rise to different humanitarian crises that include the most egregious and dehumanizing human rights abuses”.

    In another report published about the same time by the United Nations Regional Humanitarian Coordinator, Toby Lanzer, the growing humanitarian crisis in the Nigerian North-east is rated to be at the same level as humanitarian crises in war-torn regions across the world. Talking about the humanitarian crisis in Borno, Toby Lanzer is reported to have said, “Having worked in Darfur, Chechnya and South Sudan, this is about as bad as it gets”. In yetanother report, the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) has warned the world that if help does not come quickly, 49,000 children will die in the Nigerian North-east.

    Hmm! These conditions don’t look or sound ordinary or containableany more. And all around every one of us wherever we live, things are less and less ordinary or containable from day to day. Beggars – healthy bodied beggars – everywhere. Teeming millions of youthful and agile petty vendors clogging the streets of our main cities and scrambling desperately and dangerously across street roads, mostly in attempts to make sales that don’t happen. Countless daily reports of unbelievably daring robberies, daylight highway hold-ups, and other more serious crimes. Widespread kidnapping for ransom. Organizations (including some owned by pastors) snatching children for sale. Parentsoffering their children for sale, or selling their children for pennies. Prophecies of “harvest of suicides” and widespread reports of shocking suicides by young men and women, reports not infrequently displaying pictures of bodies dangling from trees. Widespread reports of cultists dispensing rituals that promise money and that use human blood or human body parts in the rituals, and, consequently, widespread reports of men, women and children vanishing mysteriously. A massof citizens rendered so hopeless, so desperate, and so unable to afford loyalty to anybody or anything, that they are no longer suitable to be employed by any business enterprise and put in charge of anything of value, and among whom brother can no longer trust brother with anything of value. A whole nationsunk and sinking down a bottomless void, or rushing in chaos through a dark night that promises no morning.

    As most Nigerians can see, the omens are not looking good at all for our country. We Nigerians have no earthly succour to look up to any more. In tentative hope some months ago, we cast our votes for a man who promised to be a president of change. Now, after months of his silence over critical issues affecting all our lives, and after months of his stubborn refusal to look at the changes that most Nigerians are clamouring for in hope, we are learning that change may never come through him – in fact, we are learning that needed change may be impossible to get in the context of Nigeria. Very many Nigerians who grew up loving Nigeria and believing in Nigeria are now being compelled to admit that, all things told, Nigeria is really an unrealistic and unsustainable idea, and that it is time to begin again theserious search for the path for bringing progress, prosperity and pride back to the lives of our nationalities and our people. 

  • End time signals

    Those tempted to construe this topic from the prism of the biblical end time should hold it. This is because the subject matter has neither anything to do with the scriptures nor the chain of events that will herald its projected end time.

    End time according to the scriptures, will be signposted by thunder, lightning, earthquake, fear and awe. On that day, humans, dead and living are expected to give account of their lives to the almighty God- a day of judgment with verdicts varying from the good, the bad and the ugly. That is as far as the scriptures are concerned.

    We are here concerned with events of politics and not religion. It would appear there is something in our current politics that shares some semblance with the biblical end time which should not be overlooked. This should not be surprising as the dividing line between religion and politics has always been a matter of intense debate.

    Medieval philosophers such as St Augustine and Thomas Aquinas made a classification between the corporal and ecclesiastical realms and contended that affairs of the state should be separated from that of the church. That has been a cardinal principle of the organization of modern governments in varying degrees.

    The end time setting may be handy in capturing the chain of events that played out in this country in the last two weeks or so leading to the change of leadership. Within that time frame, several negative events were either activated or played out within this country to raise fears as to whether we were about facing our own version of the political end time? With a few days to the handover to the Buhari administration which was eventually consummated at the weekend, the nation virtually came to a halt. It all started with independent oil marketers refusing to dispense petroleum products until they were paid all outstanding arrears of fuel supplied to the government. They were said to be afraid that the incoming government will not be willing to pay them especially given the controversy and scandals that have hallmarked the so-called subsidy payments. Then came in very quick succession, a plethora of strikes from sundry oil workers and organized labour unions demanding salary increases and all that.

    Their net effect was a virtual halt in economic and social activities such that raised fears as to whether our democracy and the impending handover would be eventually imperilled. The situation was so bad that banks had to cut down their working hours for lack of diesel. GSM providers also threatened to shut down for the same reasons. Not unexpectedly, these had very deleterious effects on power supply which further dipped to an all time low on account of non supply of gas and vandalism of critical power supply equipments. The nation was on edge as everything came to a near standstill. It was a period never witnessed even in the days of acute fuel scarcity which had stabilized in the last five years or so in many parts of the country.

    Since then, there have been varying views as to who to hold responsible. Accusing fingers have been pointed at the government since the buck stops at its table. Many see it as ample evidence of the running aground of the nation’s economy by the Jonathan administration.

    Yet, for some others like the Arewa Consultative Forum ACF, it was a deliberate plot by Jonathan to hinder the smooth take-off of the Buhari regime. Citing the energy crisis and fuel scarcity, the forum said the situation was a bad parting gift from Jonathan.

    But as the forum spoke, Jonathan was at the Federal Executive Council meeting blaming the chain of events on those who are out to sabotage his administration. Describing the situation as outright sabotage, he queried the coincidence of these strikes and demands for salary increases just a few days to the expiration of his administration.

    Before Jonathan spoke, the outgoing Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala had on another occasion sought to know why diesel that has already been deregulated was also scarce. She left his audience without doubt that there is more to the strikes than the dispute between the government and oil marketers on subsidy payments.

    That has been the blame game even as the situation has been stabilizing as the strikes have been called off with fuel selling well above the controlled price. With these, our fears of the political end time has been stymied albeit, temporarily.

    But issues regarding who was responsible for those chains of events would linger for quite some time. Discerning people would have to make up their minds between the ACF and Jonathan who is saying the truth. They will have to make up their minds on whose side the weight of guilt tilts. We need to consider the possibility that Jonathan engineered those who nearly brought his administration down in its last days, vis-à-vis what he stands to gain from it. There is also the need to take a critical perspective of the alleged plot to scuttle the smooth handover to Buhari through contrived strikes. What gains are there for him to make by activating a chain of events which outcome would eventually ridicule his regime in its last days in office? And at any rate, who takes responsibility for anything that imperils the nation before the handover? These are the issues to ponder.

    They should be resolved taking into account the issues raised by Jonathan that the strikes were unleashed to sabotage his administration with only a few days to go. They should be resolved taking copious cognizance of the scarcity of diesel that has long been deregulated. What were the demands of the marketers on the issue of diesel that it also went scarce during the period? These are some of the moot questions that may lead us to resolve some of the issues that have been bandied.

    Beyond these, Jonathan appeared to have raised the bar of these contradictions when in response to calls for his regime to be probed, he accepted the challenge but with a proviso that it should go beyond his administration.  He wants the probe to include the way oil wells and fields were allocated in the past. He wants such a probe to unravel how oil fields, marginal oil wells and others were in the past allocated and if extant laws of this country were followed.

    Since it is all about oil and oil revenue, the challenge by Jonathan must be taken up by Buhari having now been sworn in. There is a lot going on within the oil sector that needed to be exposed. Jonathan must have some vital information from his vintage office and Nigerians should demand full investigations into the entire oil sector. Much of the corruption we finger in the oil distribution chain may be a child’s play in the face the monumental rot in the allocation of oil fields and wells. He has let out the cat and no attempt should be made to cover it up. The time has come to expose the cabal that is making a fortune of our oil resources taking advantage of the high positions they hitherto occupied.

    That should be the heuristic value of the dialectics that have been activated by the clash of interests among the ruling elite bent on circulating power between themselves. Buhari must take up this challenge to disprove the Marxian notion that the state and its structures are instruments of oppression in the hands of the ruling class. The probe must reassure Nigerians that oil is our collective patrimony rather than that of a privileged class. The time for reckoning has come; our political end time.

     

  • ‘Conflicts,same sex marriage, signs of end-time’

    Increase in conflicts and terrorism among nations and the ordination of gay men as bishops are some of the signs predicted in the Bible as an indication of the end-time.

    That was the view of the founder of Chapel of Faith Bible Assembly International, Bishop Emeka Nwankpa, who spoke yesterday in Onitsha, Anambra State.

    He was addressing the congregation at a two-day programme for women expecting the fruit of the womb titled: “For the fruit of the womb”.

    Nwankpa said the signs that the world was ending had become convincing, as gay men, who flouted God’s injunction, were ordained as bishops in Western countries, making a mockery of Christianity.

    He urged women to abstain from lesbianism and other immoralities, as they are sinful.

    Over 700 women across the state testified at the programme, organised every three months.