The Nation Newspaper

Tag: facts

  • OAU NASU/SSANU and misrepresentation of facts

    It is with a heavy heart that I write in response to the open letter jointly written to President Muhammadu Buhari by the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) and the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), Obafemi Awolowo University branch. The referred advertorial, signed by the branch chairmen and secretaries, was published in the March 24, edition of The Nation. The crux of the misconceived article is the call on President Buhari to dissolve the Governing Council of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) on the invented pretext of ‘deliberate and irreparable violation of the statue and laws for the appointment of a new Vice-Chancellor’ in a bid to enable the outgoing VC’s successor to cover up the former’s ‘numerous allegations of corruption, vindictiveness, non-transparency …’.

    Any discerning mind who reads that boondoggle will not fail to note that the authors are out to distort fact, in fact, project bald falsity as concrete truth all in an attempt to mislead the public. For the avoidance of doubt, the ongoing process for the selection of a new VC to succeed Prof. Bamitale Omole whose five-year single-term tenure ends on June 23, conforms thoroughly with the OAU Statue 6, Sections 3a to e. Whatever NASU/SSANU perceive as violation is at best a figment of their fevered and febrile imaginations.

    As stated in Statue 6, Subsection 3a, it is the responsibility of the Governing Council to advertise the vacancy, outline the qualities of the applicants for the post, and ‘thereafter draw up a short-list of suitable candidates for the post for consideration’. But rather than stick to their claim that the Governing Council has adhered to the stipulations of that statue, they descend willingly into the abyss of specious reasoning by claiming that that highest ruling organ of the university drew up another criteria other than the advertised one to assess the applicants for the position of the VC.

    Except the OAU NASU and SSANU, every other group on campus, and, indeed, keen followers of the country’s universities’ affairs know that the teaching experience, international exposure, publication, ability to attract funds, years of being on the professorial cadre, supervision, and referees of the candidates vying for the post of a VC are exceedingly important. They constitute vital components of the eligibility criteria. Therefore, it is absurd that some groups, which should be in the vanguard of championing the emergence of competent administrator through an excellently rigorous process, view this as an infraction of the law. Since in the current process the OAU Governing Council operates within the ambit of Statue 6, it is entirely out of place for NASU and SSANU to dictate or insist on different course of action.

    It is against the foregoing backdrop that the call by those bodies for the dissolution of the OAU Governing Council comes clearly as misplaced and ill-conceived. That OAU NASU and SSANU are comfortably inured to unlawful processes also manifests vividly in their request to President Buhari to violate the law by dissolving a lawfully constituted Governing Council. To argue that those two bodies are unaware of the recent apologies and reversal of the Federal Government’s decision on the sacking of some universities’ governing councils is to excuse their calcified penchant for reckless mischief, wounding misinformation, and bizarre illogic. Those bodies would do anything, including having the federal government undermine the integrity of the university autonomy agreement, in order to both misinform the general public and project themselves as conscientious watchdogs that they lack the character to become. The university autonomy agreement, which the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) laboured mightily to wrench from the federal government, makes it impossible for the Visitor to dissolve the governing councils of any federal university. It also invests the governing councils with the power to hire and fire VCs. But ask the OAU NASU and SSANU, they will tell you it is right to throw out the baby together with the bath water.

    Additionally, given their stance on serving falsehood as sacred fact, both the OAU NASU and SSANU have decided to see the continuing process of appointing a new VC for the institution as flawed. It is remarkable to reveal that about two weeks ago, the OAU branch of ASUU expressed deep satisfaction with the selection by the Governing Council of six out of the 11 candidates for the position of the VC. While NASU and SSANU are flailing about concocting grand untruths, ASUU is adding value to the selection process by organising an interactive session with the six contenders. The committee to see to that laudable initiative is supervised by Professor Sat Obiyan.

    Again, the myopic and puckish minds of the OAU NASU and SSANU apparatchiks must be tutored and attuned to the fact that allegation of corruption on the pages of newspapers can never conduce to hard, irrefutable evidence. Rather than the inaudible calls by the imaginary ‘staff and students of the university for investigation by the EFCC’ to willy-nilly find the outgoing VC guilty of misappropriation of funds, NASU and SSANU will do well to compile a dossier detailing the VC’s acts of corruption and dispatch it to the EFCC for action. It is insulting and maligning for these unions to insinuate that the ongoing appointment process is being done to deliberately violate existing laws so as to throw up a successor that will conceal and wipe off the misdeeds of his predecessor. If, as it has been explained in this piece, the OAU NASU and SSANU are wrong in their claim that the OAU Governing Council is violating the law, it is pointless to further contend that they are insincere and reckless in howling that ‘The Vice-Chancellor is allegedly working together with the Pro-Chancellor to manipulate Council and ensure imposition of a successor, who would cover up his atrocities and continue on his track to the detriment of OAU’.

    It worries the mind that entities who advertise themselves as being ‘highly responsible unions’ feel no qualms and are happily at peace baking the bread of disinformation for the unsuspecting public. Unable to contribute sensibly to the appointment process of a new VC for the school, those amalgams infested by certain characters of oily manners deliriously choose to fire the darts of fantastic untruths, thinking inanely that their constructed edifice of distortion and perversion will take on the hue of truth and sense. The OAU NASU and SSANU must gravely note that just as it cannot convince any serious minds except theirs with misinformation on the smoothly-going process, so also will they become unhelpful in the efforts towards the development of this lighthouse of learning as a truly modern emporium of significant human capacity enrichment.

     

    • Alawode, a public affairs analyst, writes from Ile-Ife, Osun State

  • Facts and fallacies of ‘change’ 

    SIR: Nigeria, just like in some parts of the Occident, has been the greatest opportunity and the worst influence; a place of creation and decay, of freedom and subjection, of riches and poverty, of splendor and misery, of communion and lonesomeness—an optimal milieu for talent, character, vice and corruption.

    Many desirable things are advocated without regard to the most fundamental fact of economics, that resources are inherently limited and have alternative uses.

    In the 2015 presidential election campaign, the All Progressive Congress promised Nigerians ‘Change’; change from bad economy to good, from bad healthcare system to the best, from insecurity to safety, from unemployment to employment and so on. Who could be against good healthcare system, safety, or employment opportunity? But each of these things is open-ended, while resources are not only limited but have alternative uses which are also valuable. No matter how much is done to promote health, more could be done. No matter how safe things have been made, they could be made safer. And no matter how much jobs are available, more could be created.

    Facts and fallacies of ‘change’ of this administration subjects many widely held beliefs to the test of hard facts and it is glaring that many beliefs held about the ability of the present government to fulfill its electioneering campaign promises cannot survive that test, including some, like the creation of 3,000 jobs annually and payment of N5,000 stipend to unemployeed graduates that have already collapsed like a house of cards and others where the truth turns out to be the direct opposite of what has been so often asserted such as equating dollar with naira, increase in foreign reserve and others.

    Fallacies are not simply crazy ideas. They are usually both plausible and logical—but with something missing. Their plausibility gains them political support. Only after that political support is strong enough to cause fallacious ideas to become government policies and programmes are the missing or ignored factors likely to lead to “unintended consequences,”

    There are many reasons why fallacies have staying in power, even in the face of hard evidence against them. Elected officials, for example, cannot readily admit that some policy or programme that they advocated, perhaps with great fanfare during their campaigns have turned out badly, without risking their whole careers. Similarly for leaders of various causes and movements. Others who think of themselves as supporters of things that will help the less fortunate are finding it so painful to confront evidence that they have in fact made the less fortunate worse off than before. A bag of sachet water which sold for N70 in January this year is currently selling at N150; same with basic food items such as garri, beans, rice, Maggi and so on whose prices have taken a dangerous nosedive at a high level. In other words, evidence is too dangerous politically, financially and psychologically for some people to allow it to become a threat to their interests or to their own policies but the evidences of the current hardship faced by Nigerians are ubiquitous and dangerously harmful to destroy by any image launder of the government.

    Before the 2015 presidential election, Nigerians’ hope was to usher in a government that will revamp our ailing industries and reactivation of comatose refineries thereby reducing the cost of petroleum products on consumers and create jobs for the unemployed qualified graduates. This expectation remains a lost ball in the high weeds and regrettably lugubrious. Scarcity of the products goes on unabated, with a litre of PMS (Premium Motor Spirit) also known as petrol at between N150-170 today. While the change administration is making remarkable impact in its fight against insurgency and corruption, it has done little to improve the standard of living of the electorate. The common man can barely afford two meals a day, businesses have crippled due to fall in power generation and distribution and high cost of raw materials.

     

    • Onogwu Isah Muhameed,

    Lokoja, Kogi State. 

  • UI crisis: Facts, fictions and fights

    The current financial crisis rocking the University of Ibadan (UI) in which the management team says it can no longer pay some allowances, after struggling to pay salaries, clearly confirms what has always been suspected: insolvency, if not bankruptcy. Following the crash of prices of crude oil in the international market, observers had predicted that there would be tough time for the country.

    Indeed, the tough time is here. Many states across the country are not only impecunious, their workers are as indigent as their dependents who are in the poverty trap as a result of non-payment of salaries. The distress scenario is fast spreading to federal government’s agencies and institutions with major shortfall in financial allocation. This is the genesis of the on-going crisis in UI where workers are giving the new Vice Chancellor , Prof. Abel Idowu Olayinka sleepless nights over non-payment of what they called “earned allowance” for the month of February.

    This “earned allowance” which is a fallout of the 2009 agreement between the government and Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) is being paid in installment through the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), pending  when the government will reimburse the university. But with the shortfall in personnel grant released by the government, the VC had no choice but to cry out that the university will not be able to pay the allowance. The workers, under different unions, including Non Academic Staff Union (NASU), National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT) and Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) scoffed at the dilemma, insisting that the allowance must be paid. They believe that UI has the wherewithal to pay the money.

    Determined to douse tension, Prof. Olayinka in a release dated February 22, explained the financial situation to the workers, citing paucity of funds as his headache. According to him, In 2015, the institution received N932,714,026.24 from January up to November. In December 2015, the allocation on personnel cost was drastically reduced to N663,972,634.60 – a reduction of N268,741,391.64. He stated that the shortfall accounted for why deductions for the month of December 2015 could not be paid to all deserving cooperative societies and unions.

    For the month of January, instead of a monthly allocation of N1,080,954,864.75, the institution got N782,346,495.95, a reduction of N298,608,369.16 – the reason it could not meet up with 100 percent  of its commitment on personnel cost .

    Unfortunately, the workers believe that there is money in the system to pay the allowance. However, since the union leadership appears to know better than the ordinary members, a congress was called in which members of the three unions, excluding Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) were enjoined to converge on the main entrance of the university. As early as 7am, staff members had taken over the place, itching to be updated. The gates had been locked as usual. The vehicular movement had been effectively paralyzed.

    Wale Akinremi who spoke on behalf of other leaders, called the vice chancellor Prof. Olayinka unprintable names. Much sadder still, and more disappointing was the way he spoke with mannerisms of a street fighter, boasting with garage argot “ Omo Igboro l’emi o, mo de le ba anybody loju  je. Wa sa kaba kaba” roughly translated to mean “I am from down town and I can dent anybody’s face, you will run in defeat.

    This is indeed a sad commentary on civility, coming from a decent academic environment of Ibadan status. It is impertinence of the worst kind which must be condemned by all men and women of good moral standing. By the way, how did Mr. Akinremi emerge as SSANU chairman of Ibadan chapter? Well, what do we expect when decent people avoid politics and unionism like a plaque, leaving just any character to parade himself as chairman? One had thought Akinremi was too well bred and too fine a person to make a public display of such appalling bad manners, more so when he is said to have read Law from a sister’s institution. Beauty is truly skin deep. How else is indiscipline spelt?

    Respect for elders is one of the cardinal imperatives of our traditional customs. Anyone who could be audacious enough to make the UI VC the butt of his public grandiloquence, calling him unprintable names and describing him as “bastard” simply lacks good breeding.  Such a person doesn’t deserve to lead a union. A union leader who is worth his salt must employ cultured language and definitiveness of logic to fight his battle. Decent use of language is, to me, a maturity index. Importantly, linguistic competence dictates that one must be familiar with principles of politeness in spoken discourse. Insulting the VC, pelting him with a satchet of pure water as someone reportedly did at an earlier meeting is not only satanic, but repugnant to good conscience. It is a desecration of culture of civilization.

    Perhaps it is relevant to ask for Prof. Olayinka’s offence in all of this. Is he the one who caused economic crisis? Did the VC get more allocation than he has disclosed? Akinremi alleged that Prof. Olayinka did not behave as his predecessor, Prof. Isaac Folorunso Adewole! Haba! No two individuals are ever the same. Not even twins who passed through the same womb. In 2009, the late President Umaru Yar’Adua offered amnesty to the Niger Delta boys and achieved peace. The former President Olusegun Obasanjo had approached the same problem with force and failed. Does it mean Yar’Adua was the wisest president ever? Does it mean Obasanjo did not succeed in other areas? Every leader comes to the stage with his peculiar style and flavour. Therefore, it is invidious comparing Olayinka with his predecessor.

    Again, the VC was accused of reporting the union leaders to the security agents, the move which they said exacerbated the crisis. However, going by Akinremi’s pugnacious conduct and sadistic temperament, only a VC who will like to see UI burn will not report to the Directorate of State Security. Here is a supposed union leader who has created an impression that there is no evil from hell that is too heinous for him to sprinkle on his perceived enemies. Clearly, the threat deserves the attention of the Commander-in-Chief in Abuja!

    It is obvious that Prof. Olayinka has been unjustifiably maligned and publicly denigrated. He deserves apologies. Although that is part of the sacrifices he has to make as the 12th UI VC, he nonetheless deserves respect. His office as well commands regard of those who truly cherish intellectualism. Here is a man who has been demonstrating admirable maturity and wisdom since he took over on December 1, 2015, the mindset you associate with humble and confident learner-leader. He remains the leader to be proud of. He is the symbol of our collective academic excellence and achievement. Why then should anybody take joy in disparaging him?

    However, the earlier the workers in UI adjust their budgets to the current economic reality in the country the better. Manna does not fall in perpetuity. Heaven will not fall if the government directed the management to reduce the workforce by 30 or 40 percent because there is no money to pay everyone. Many will lose their jobs. They won’t be able to protest and lock gates.  Already, many state governments have started retrenching. Who says federal government cannot do the same? It is better we don’t push our luck too far. Incessant strikes over agitation for sundry allowance should be checked. It may sound stupid to those who have capacity to challenge their opponents to a roadside brawl, and dance naked in a market place, the fact is that the universities across the country should watch it.

     

    • Saanu is of the Directorate of Public Communication, University of Ibadan.

  • Edo Muslims: Mixing facts with fictions

    Edo State is entering a very peculiar stage in its political history. It is therefore expected that over the next few weeks or months, individuals and groups will, for partisan reasons, find it convenient to be biased in addressing issues of common interest. Indeed, as the race to replace incumbent governor, Comrade Adams Aliyu Oshiomhole, whose tenure winds up on Friday, November 11, heats up, stake holders will up the ante with antics deliberately designed to take the wind off the sail of their rivals’ ships. And without any doubt, the battle will be no-hold bared where ordinary onlookers will hardly be able to differentiate facts from jaundiced claims. It has begun in earnest as a faceless Muslim group took a full page advertorial in The Nation of Monday, January 25. In the said publication, the group called on President Muhammadu Buhari to save Muslims in the state from what it termed the Oshiomhole’s ‘…orgy of political repression and marginalization’. But a peep through the content reveals that the claim is a cocktail of falsehood deliberately orchestrated to turn a section of the populace against the governor.

    The first indication that the group is a front for the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, is its description of the governor, Adams Aliyu Oshiomhole. Besides referring to the state as an empire, it addressed the governor as an emperor, a unique description which fits aptly into the vocabulary of its chairman, the very loquacious Chief Dan Orbih. It is simply a proxy fight in the visage of the biblical hand of Esau, voice of Jacob.

    Ordinarily, the group made some weighty allegations that are worthy of attention. It however, messed them up with factual errors. For instance, it accused the administration of deliberately denying them of any worthwhile position in the cabinet, particularly in the distribution or appointment of commissioners. In its words, “When Adam Eric Aliyu Oshiomhole came to office, there was high expectation in the Ummah that he was going to reverse the trend of our under representation and low visibility in sensitive and key positions in government. This hope was immediately dashed when he constituted his first cabinet of over 18 commissioners without any visible Muslim presence. Only his friend, Abdul Oroh, made the list.”

    By interpretation, the group’s assumption is that Oroh lost his identity as a Muslim because he made the list not on the strength of the group’s recommendation but on his fraternal or personal relationship with the governor.

    While it is not very imperative to contest any claim by the group, one is however, constrained to point out its factual errors with regards to the number of Muslims in the governor’s cabinet. The truth is that though all of them are not commissioners, some of them can be said to be his eyes and ears. A few of them include his Private Principal Secretary, the very quiet and unassuming power broker, who took over from the late Olaitan Oyerinde, incidentally another Muslim, and Alhaji Mikano Kadiri, Special Adviser/Principal Security Officer, who commands such influence in the administration that no one can afford to ignore him. Others are Kassim Afegbua, his equally influential former Special Adviser, Media and Public Affairs, now information commissioner, Hajia Maimunat Momodu, Executive Director, Special Duties, Abdulahi Imhodagbe, Executive Director, Governor’s Office, Hajia Bilikisu, Executive Director, SACA, and Alhaji Abu, Permanent Secretary, Office of the Secretary to the State Government. The list is endless. Simply put, it is callous and wicked for anyone to deliberately turn facts on their heads all in an attempt to maliciously plant seeds of discord among the populace.

    The group also claimed that the state government denied it the use of the Samuel Osaigbovo Ogbemudia Stadium but conveniently excluded the fact that national security agencies provided the information that labelled its intended event as unhealthy for public safety. They also forgot that as the chief security officer in the state, the governor is duty bound to act decisively to forestall any breakdown of law and order, a reason for which he may have acted the way he reportedly did. Instead, it employed the so-called denial as an excuse to justify its scandalous accusation against him. They added that besides openly insulting and branding all Muslims in the state as “miscreants and thieves”, he went the extra mile of not sparing the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Mohammed Sa’ad Abubakar, who incidentally is the President General of Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, NSCIA. Unfortunately, it failed to establish how the governor insulted the revered Sultan.

    Rather than admit that its claims are mere attempts to whip up damaging emotions against the governor, the group went on to accuse him of gathering and sharing N3 million of state funds to Muslim leaders on January 16, arguably to correct the mistake of preventing the group from using the stadium facility to discuss its numerous plights. But any cursory observer can tell that its sole aim is to take advantage of some fortuitous events and mischievously paint same as established rules designed by the governor to stifle the ambition of Muslim community in the state, one of which now includes the deputy governor slot in the next administration. Successfully, it squandered any public goodwill it may have envisaged.

    Yet, the group committed more blunders by presenting its case in a cocktail of mind blowing grammar obviously designed to impress readers. In one fell swoop, it alluded to the forlorn hope of its members in the state by claiming that they are “…sanguine that a lugubrious past was going to be consigned to the waste basket of history… But little did we know that our lacrimation was not going to come to an end…” as the condition Muslims found themselves remained a “Store house of mortification, denigration and suffocating misery” a reason for which they continued to “…remain luxated from all things of honour…”

    In order to be saved from what appears to be more than “… cruel mendacity…” it called on President Buhari to “…kindly intervene to extricate the Muslims from the shackles of mortification”.

    Igodomigodo, the wordsmith and Chief Zebrudaya Okoligwe, the clown, must be going green with envy.

    • Omoarelojie writes from Benin.
  • Tales of Akpanudoedehe’s defection: The facts, hallucinations

    Tales of Akpanudoedehe’s defection: The facts, hallucinations

    We are not supposed to join issues with Umana Okon Umana and his small group of PDP defectors who have turned our party, APC, into a money-making machine for themselves.

    Senator Akpanudoedehe is the symbol of the struggle against the tyranical PDP government of Godswill Akpabio in which Umana Okon Umana was the engine room. Udoedehe midwifed the birth of APC right from the beginning. He has put in a lot to build the party and he has the right to jealously guard it.

    Umana’s tales about a plan by Udoedehe to defect to the PDP is a grand plan to keep the APC in Akwa Ibom divided so they will continue to reap from where they did not sow. Udoedehe as the Leader of APC in the state has written severally to the party’s National Chairman, Chief John Oyegun, drawing attention to the lack of inclusiveness applied by Umana and his co-PDP joiners and the irrational, one-sided suspension of members by the state chairman of the party ostensibly on Umana’s instructions.

    They have been boasting that no founding member will be part of the change that we fought for. During the struggle for change, we lost almost 100 people; some are still in prison awaiting execution on trumped up charges.

    It’s not just about Udoedehe. He is defending a struggle. No one has exhibited loyalty and commitment to the APC than Senator Udoedehe, who was imprisoned on trumped up charges in case after case instituted by Umana and his friend, Akpabio.

    Udoedehe was a member of the Merger and Constitution committees of the APC and appreciates President Muhammadu Buhari for showing the strength of character to reward those who stood with him from his CPC days. The president rewards loyalty; he doesn’t betray loyalty. Why should Udoedehe’s loyalty to the opposition be backstabbed?

    The National Chairman came to Uyo on the 28th November 2014 and introduced Umana as the new face of change, but we all know that Umana cannot represent change. The State Chairman of the party and some of his EXCO members, who we put in place sold out to Umana while we were doing the struggle and while Umana was still in the PDP.

    We left the PDP to bring the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) to the state in 2009, and since then, we have been the main opposition party in Akwa Ibom State.

    Senior ACN members, including Udoedehe’s running mate, the late Dr. Ime Umanah, were lured to join PDP after they were promised positions by Umana. But we stayed on and built the party. When he couldn’t make the PDP primaries, he came up to join APC.

    Why the so-called reconciliation could not stand is simple. The governorship aspirants were invited to a meeting to dicuss the inconclusive primaries and not ministerial nominations. The National Working Committee set up a committee under the chairmanship of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, who mandated the current SGF, Babachir Lawal, to meet with the aspirants. But the aspirants were shocked to learn from Lawal at the venue that the party had already sent in Umana’s name to INEC as a candidate.

    That announcement defeated the aim of the meeting. So, there was no peace meeting. Though there was a text message from Lawal about an offer, the idea that I tore any paper was false and misleading.

    Another Umana tale is that Udoedehe is in talks with the PDP having been promised N15 billion contract upon defection to the PDP. That is absolutely not true. These same characters in the PDP said in the past when Udoedehe brought ACN to Akwa Ibom State that he had collected N2billion naira from Tinubu.

    These fabrications were sent out during ministerial nominations, because they thought Udoedehe would be nominated and now boards and commissions are being compiled, they are at it again.

    It is also funny to accuse Udoedehe of engaging in anti-party activities. If you are bringing the president to Uyo, arrangements ought to be all-inclusive but the so-called new face of the party excluded founding members from party affairs. We were not informed when the president was coming to Uyo.

    They were suspending founding members of the party in the state and did everything to shut us out of the party. Even at the national level, we were not invited to serve in any of the committees, but we still supported the party. Accusing us the way they are doing is their way to have sympathy with whoever is sympathetic to them. The party has failed to handle this issue properly.

    Umana cannot be the face of change. He is just a pretender. He came to our party with misleading claims that he is coming with lots of people and money to the party.

    The settlement is that we are in court and the case at the Federal High Court Abuja will come up on the 13th of January. We believe that our party should have a candidate who represents the struggle for change.

    The projection of Umana Okon Umana and his fellow PDP defectors that Senator Akpanudoedehe would abdicate and hand over a party, which he founded and nurtured, is an extreme form of hallucination which can only elicit pity.

    Effanga, a lawyer and APC chieftain in Akwa Ibom State, writes from Abuja

  • Akwa Ibom election petition tribunals: Separating facts from fiction, half truths and lies

    Akwa Ibom election petition tribunals: Separating facts from fiction, half truths and lies

    For every good reason there is to lie, there is a better reason to tell the truth.” – Bo Bennett

    In its characteristic way, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Akwa Ibom State is seeking to manipulate the system to get reprieve from crimes it committed during last elections by adopting the roles of a victim. According to a news report, circulated by the party’s propaganda machine, it claimed its members are being harassed by the Department of State  Security (DSS), alleging that this agency of government is aiding and abetting the opposition at the venue of the electoral tribunals currently sitting in Abuja.

    Reading this report, one wonders if the State Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Akwa Ibom State, Obong Paul Ekpo, can recall vividly three months ago how  his party obviouly used the same agency and other security forces to harass, intimidate and kill innocent voters, who dared to resist snatching of ballot boxes by PDP political thugs. Why is PDP raising alarm over alleged harassment of members now the muzzle is facing it?

    As was expected, reportage of ongoing Akwa Ibom State Election Petition Tribunals have become highly controversial, reflecting conflicting interests in the state. On one side are reports from media correspondents on ground in Abuja, where these tribunals are ongoing and on the flipside are political appointees based in Uyo, who rely on second hand information, which are further sieved and skewed before release to the public through state sponsored media outlets and online platforms.

    Funny enough, these government apologists readily circumvent thorny questions raised as cases progress to exaggerate momentary and inconsequential issues, devising well known publicity stunts to sustain lies even though it would have been a lot easier to accept facts staring everyone in the face.

    Whatever is their reason for this deception, it is more important to note that ongoing election tribunals are different from previous ones as they have so far shown independence of the Judiciary, giving hope that the rule of law shall prevail above gimmicks and undue influence. The onus is therefore on both petitioners and respondents to argue their case on points of law regardless of whatever is peddled outside court rooms. This is the first and most critical fact.

    Secondly, supporters of the interim government are at liberty to present various shades of truth about what transpires in court daily, but they cannot undo major gains already made towards recovering what was stolen from the people. Their indiscretion cannot alter a dot in the coming judgment as it will be based on proven facts as stated in law “the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth”.

    Another stanch fact is that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and most of their candidates, including Udom Emmanuel, Godswill Akpabio and others, are before state election petition tribunals in Abuja, to defend allegations of stealing the mandate of Akwa Ibom people during the last elections. Hard pressed Akwa Ibom people have risen as one in a historic move to recover their mandate from a regime that has held them captive for nearly a decade and they will stop at nothing to ensure all respondents answer for their roles in manipulating a simple and straight forward electoral process into some twisted, complicated farce.

    To achieve this feat, the people are determined to take the whole stretch as could be seen in dispassionate testimonies of principal witnesses currently recounting their personal experiences of massive electoral irregularities, fraud and violence allegedly perpetuated by PDP and its agents in active connivance with some corrupt INEC officials. There are recorded evidences proving that April 11 elections in Akwa Ibom State were far cry from credible, free and fair elections stipulated in the 1999 Nigerian Constitution (as amended) and 2010 Electoral Act (as amended).

    Incidentally, these evidences and testimonies are received regularly in court notwithstanding what lies are peddled about them afterwards. The fact is, having listened to and adopted these evidences and testimonies, the tribunals may rely on them to deliver judgment.

    Above all, from available records published by Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, one can decipher the whole story on how electoral fraud were committed by the INEC in Akwa Ibom State. All it takes is a closer look of voter accreditation computed by INEC staff at polling units across the state compared to what INEC Permanent Voter Card, PVC, readers automatically computed and sent to INEC servers in the Headquarters unknown to Okojie and his cohorts.

    Before going through the records, recall that on the 2nd of April, 2015, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, issued a very clear directive to all its officers that ONLY the “Card Reader” electronic machines be used for the accreditation of voters for the governorship and State House of Assembly elections scheduled for April 11, 2015.

    This directive was reportedly confirmed a couple of days later, by Prof Attahiru Jega, the then Chairman of INEC, during a world press conference where he maintained that the April 2 INEC directive, emphasizing that in places where there are card reader malfunction up to 5 pm, elections in these places should be shifted to Sunday, April 12, 2015. Incidentally, there was nowhere in the over 2,500 polling units across Akwa Ibom state that field officers of INEC reported the malfunction of their card readers meaning there was nowhere in the state where elections were shifted to Sunday, April 12 as such  governorship and state house of assembly elections held on April 11 without problem but how come the numbers computed into the INEC server, which were automatically generated when  Permanent Voters Card (PVC) were verified at the Polling Units across Akwa Ibom state are different from those hand filled in FORM EC 8D by INEC staff at these  polling units? The fact is, those results written in forms EC8D were doctored by INEC staff unaware that back-up PVC verifications were being simultaneously documented in the INEC servers in Abuja!

    Shouldn’t it bother all concerned how the accreditation of voters in Akwa Ibom produced two (sets) of numbers per local government by the same electoral body, one handwritten on FORM EC 8D and the other automatically accredited by INEC Server via PVC; #Akwa Ibom? Answering this question will confirm that indeed an electoral fraud was committed.

    Can INEC explain the following inconsistencies in voter accreditation?

    Abak LGA | Form EC 8D = 45, 358 Accredited | INEC Server = 25,546 Accredited, Eastern Obolo LGA | Form EC 8D = 14,592 Accredited | INEC Server = 6,521 Accredited, Eket LGA | Form EC 8D = 53,576 Accredited | INEC Server = 26,472 Accredited, Esit Eket LGA | Form EC 8D = 28,279 Accredited | INEC Server = 18,812 Accredited, Essien Udim LGA | Form EC 8D = 89,313 Accredited | INEC Server = 8,729 Accredited, Etim Ekpo LGA | Form EC 8D = 45,922 Accredited | INEC Server = 15,481 Accredited, Etinan LGA | Form EC 8D = 44,228 Accredited | INEC Server = 3,383 Accredited.  Also, Ibeno LGA | Form EC 8D = 19,032 Accredited | INEC Server = 11,980 Accredited, Ibesikpo Asutan LGA | Form EC 8D = 39,467 Accredited | INEC Server = 22,512 Accredited, Ibiono Ibom LGA | Form EC 8D = 64,623 Accredited | INEC Server = 10,369 Accredited, Ika LGA | Form EC 8D = 34,697 Accredited | INEC Server = 10,487 Accredited, Ikono LGA | Form EC 8D = 45,666 Accredited | INEC Server = 10,767 Accredited, Ikot Abasi LGA | Form EC 8D = 24,958 Accredited | INEC Server = 9,956 Accredited andIkot Ekpene LGA | Form EC 8D = 52,335 Accredited | INEC Server = 23,218 Accredited.

    Note also Ini LGA | Form EC 8D = 33,554 Accredited | INEC Server = 6,850 Accredited, Itu LGA | Form EC 8D = 27,808. Accredited | INEC Server = 15,557 Accredited, Mbo LGA | Form EC 8D = 13,853 Accredited | INEC Server = 8,545 Accredited, Mkpat Enin LGA | Form EC 8D = 35,412 Accredited | INEC Server = 7,623 Accredited, Nsit Atai LGA | Form EC 8D = 24,748 Accredited | INEC Server = 9,606 Accredited, Nsit Ibom LGA | Form EC 8D = 13,090 Accredited | INEC Server = 13,088 Accredited, Obot Akara LGA | Form EC 8D = 35,836 Accredited | INEC Server = 13,189 Accredited, Okobo LGA | Form EC 8D = 24,280 Accredited | INEC Server = 13,745 Accredited, Onna LGA | Form EC 8D = 54,050 Accredited | INEC Server = 15,864 Accredited, Oron LGA | Form EC 8D = 27,468 Accredited | INEC Server = 17,142 Accredited, Oruk Anam LGA | Form EC 8D = 81,021 Accredited | INEC Server = 21,753 Accredited, Udung Uko LGA | Form EC 8D = 14,094 Accredited | INEC Server = 11,165 Accredited, Ukanafun LGA | Form EC 8D = 48,271 Accredited | INEC Server = 9,846 Accredited, Uruan LGA | Form EC 8D = 38,006 Accredited | INEC Server = 11,599 Accredited, Urue Offong/Oruko LGA | Form EC 8D = 8,141 Accredited | INEC Server = 5,405 Accredited and Uyo LGA | Form EC 8D = 47,990 Accredited | INEC Server = 38,022 Accredited

    In summary, Total Form EC 8D = 1,158,624 Accredited | Total INEC Server = 437,128 with a wide difference of 721,496, more than 50% error yet Akwa Ibom state was among the states that first published election results!

    Figures do not lie and, if the ‘sanctity of the ballot’ (borrowing the phrase from Obong Victor Attah), and by extension, credibility of last elections were founded on voter accreditation, using Permanent Voter Card machines, then one can rightly assert that there was no election in Akwa Ibom state especially on April 11 considering gross discrepancy between FORM EC 8D, compiled by reportedly compromised INEC staff, and those automatically computed by PVC readers and sent to INEC servers.

    Going forward, none of those sham elections (Governorship and State House of Assembly) held on April 11 would be deemed credible using records from PVC readers’ printout from INEC servers. For instance, it is safe to question Form EC 8E compiled by reportedly compromised INEC staff which says Governor Emmanuel Udom got 996,071 votes. How did he get these outrageous figures when PVC readers printout from INEC servers say there were only 437,128 accredited voters in Akwa Ibom State for the April 11 governorship? Mystery surrounding facts such as this is what the election petition tribunals seek to unravel not mannerism of witnesses or whether they spoke correct grammar or not.

    Ukpong, writes from Uyo.

     

  • Facts about Zakah

    Facts about Zakah

    Preamble

    Perhaps no institution in Islam has brought as much harmony to human societies as Zakah. Its divine decree and revelation to Prophet Muhammad (SAW) in the 5th year of Hijrah was a social revolution coming to mankind with an ecstasy of delight. That decree was the Fatwah that ushered Zakah into the world and made it the third pillar of Islam.

    Hitherto, there was no organised system of redistribution of wealth for the purpose of alleviating poverty in any society. Although the Prophet had introduced Sadaqah (voluntary charity) as a pecuniary bridge among the Muslim social strata, this was only done according to the whims of the rich. And it had a specific neither time nor a specific measure.

    While in Makkah, the Prophet was limited to only two pillars of Islam. These were ‘Iman’ (Faith) and Salat (observance of five daily prayers). The three other fundamental pillars of Islam came to him through divine revelations in Madinah. Of the three, Ramadan was the first to came in the third year of Hijrah. It was followed by Zakah which came in the fifth year of Hijrah. These two pillars were finally anchored by Hajj in the 7th year of Hijrah. However, Zakah is our immediate concern here.

     

    Essence of Zakah

    Zakah is not about redistribution of wealth between the rich and the poor alone. It is much more about social interaction of individuals and groups in any society for the purpose of boosting tolerance, security, peace and harmony. With the coming of Zakah as the third obligatory pillar of Islam, the mutual suspicion between the rich and the poor in Madinah was reduced to its barest minimum and the instrumentality of governance was formidably strengthened.

    Zakah is the only pillar of Islam that affects other people’s lives through the giving hands of the rich and the receiving hands of the poor. Other pillars of Islam such as Iman (Faith), Salat (Worship), Sawm (fasting) and Hajj (Pilgrimage) are all personal to whoever observes them. They cannot be shared with any other person. It is only Zakah that requires the giver and the recipient to interact heatedly to the benefit of the latter.

     

    Controversy over Nisab

    The main problem of Zakah in the world today is in the controversy over the interpretation of Nisab (i.e. the minimum taxable amount from which Zakah is supposed to be paid) as prescribed by Prophet Muhammad (SAW).

    Some modern scholars have become so lazy and perhaps so intellectually retarded that they only rely on research carried out by primordial scholars some centuries ago. Such modern scholars believe that the research carried out according to the situation of those primordial periods should suffice in projecting Islam to eternity. They have forgotten that Islam is a dynamic and not a dogmatic religion. Thus in matters of Zakah, such scholars are so rigid on using gold as the measure for determining Nisab that they do not even care if Zakah is no longer paid and the five pillars of Islam are technically reduced to four. They  have ignored the fact that the same Prophet Muhammad (SAW) who prescribed gold as a measure of Nisab for sellers and buyers of gold also prescribed silver (as a measure of Nisab for dealers in silver as well as the majority of Muslims who are engaged in other businesses). That same Prophet even went further to prescribe the specific amount of money that can be termed as Nisab in certain currencies available during his time. He said, as reported by Ali Bn Abi Talib, that if you have 200 Dirham or 20 Dinar you are liable to paying Zakah. This means that if you are in possession of a net income that amounts to 200 Dirham or 20 Dinar, Zakah payment becomes obligatory on you.

     

    How the Jews influence Nisab

    Since payment of Zakah is not about money alone, subjecting the Nisab of Zakah to the market price of gold is like surrendering a whole pillar of Islam to the whim of the Jewish gold dealers who invariably determine the price of that commodity to the detriment of Zakah as a pillar of Islam. It is generally known throughout the world that the principal traders in gold are the Jews. And they are the ones determining its price from time to time. While some scholars insist on waiting for the current price of gold to be able to determine Nisab of Zakah only a few people know that as of today it requires just a minimum of about 200 UAE Dirham (according to the Prophet’s prescription) which is an equivalence of $54 or N10,744 as the net amount of money from which Zakah is to be paid in a year. And only two and a half per cent of this amount which is now N268 (according to current rate of exchange) is payable from it. The figure here is based on 200 UAE Dirham in accordance with the Prophet’s prescription. By this, only those who have less than N10744 as net income in a year will not pay Zakah. Yet Nigerian Muslims prefer to spend thousands of dollars on Hajj every year without ever paying Zakah.

     

    Due Process

    In Islam, everything is done by due process. And Zakah cannot be of any exception. The process of paying Zakah includes the following:

    •Being a genuine Muslim

    •Attainment of the age of maturity

    •Intention to pay Zakah and not Sadaqah;

    •Timeliness (the amount must have remained in custody for one year);

    •Correct amount (i.e. to pay according to Nisab);

    • Ensuring that the paid Zakah reaches the intended recipient;

     

    Explanation

    The wealth on which Zakah must be paid are basically seven. These include: gold and silver; cash income; agricultural products; livestock; property and mineral resources.

    Every male or female Muslim who has a net income of at least N10,744 which is an equivalence of 200 UAE Dirham prescribed by the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) as reported by Ali Bn Abi Talib, the third Caliph should pay Zakah. The Prophet was quoted as saying that if you have a net income of 200 Dirham or 20 Dinar you are liable to the payment of Zakah. The fact that he mentioned Dirham which was coined in silver before Dinar which was coined in gold confirms his preference for silver over gold as a measure of Nisab. And based on the quoted Hadith, Umar Bn Khattab also laid emphasis on silver during his caliphate and provided opportunity for most working Muslims to pay Zakah.

    Both Dirham and Dinar are still very much in use today in some Arab countries. For instance in countries like the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Syria and Morocco, the currency in use is Dirham while countries such as Jordan, Iraq, Libya and Kuwait use Dinar.

    Most of the prescriptions of Nisab by today’s Nigeria’s Islamic scholars are based on the current global market value of gold as determined by the Jewish gold traders. This is contradictory to the position of the second Caliph (Umar Bn Khattab) who adopted 200 silver-based Dirham prescribed by the Prophet to enable majority of the citizenry pay Zakah even as he did not prevent those who preferred gold as Nisab measure from using it.

     

    Personal Comment

    Insisting on gold as a universal measure of Nisab in today’s world is nothing but a dogmatic ambush for Zakah as well as a clandestine collaboration with some enemies of Islam to ditch the third pillar of that divine religion. The Prophet had guarded against this by considering the implications of not paying Zakah before he prescribed Dirham and Dinar. Now, going by the current market price of gold, which has put Nisab at over N600000, more than 85% of Nigerian Muslims may not be able to pay Zakah. And this has been the case year in and year out for many past decades. The implication of this is that most Nigerian Muslims will never be able to pay Zakah throughout their life time. Yet, some Nigerian scholars insist on Nisab based on gold price not minding the plight of those who are technically excluded from the payment of Zakah.

     

    Using Dirham for Nisab?

    This column (The Message) chose the UAE Dirham as a measure of Nisab for Nigerian Muslims because of their familiarity with Dirham. Many Nigerians either travel to Dubai for business transactions or pass through that city which is globally acknowledged as an international transit on their ways to some countries in Asia or Australia. By that, they have become familiar with the UAE currency called Dirham which the Prophet recommended as a matter of priority. The argument that the Dirham of the Prophet’s time was different from today’s Dirham as being advanced by some so-called scholars is as pedestrian as saying that since the Prophet did not mention Naira as a measure of Nisab, Zakah should not be paid in Naira. Can anybody prove that the available gold or silver during the Prophet’s time was different from that of today? Just as gold is gold whether during the Prophet’s time or today so is Dirham or Dinar remains the same.

     

    Payable Amount

    What is statutorily payable from N10,744 = N268 (which amounts to 21/2% or 1/40) of that amount. Today, the Dirham used in the United Arab Emirates is globally recognised as denominated in silver just as the Dinar used in Jordan or Iraq or Kuwait is recognised as denominated in gold. It is therefore grossly erroneous to impose the price of gold as determined by the Jews on Nigerian Muslims as the only yardstick for measuring Nisab.

     

    Zakah of Property

    With regards to landed property, no Zakah is paid on a residential building that is not commercialised fully or partly. If however, a part of it is commercialised and made a source of income (i.e. a part of it is let out) Zakah should be paid on the amount realised from the income generated from the commercialised part. If an open land is rented out commercially, Zakah should be paid on the amount realised from it provided that the net amount there from reaches the prescribed Nisab of N10,744 per annum. But if the property is completely sold out the payable sum on it should be 21/2% or 1/40 of the amount realised from its sale.

    Other properties on which Zakah should be paid include machinery leased out which generates income or a plot of land leased out on commercial basis or a well of water used for commercial purpose. Whatever is realised from any of these should be assessed according to the prescribed measure and   21/2% or 1/40  of its net balance should be paid as Zakah after deducting all expenses incurred on its process as well as payment of any debt.

     

    Agricultural Products

    As for the agricultural products, the prescribed minimum quantity from which Zakah should be paid is 653 kilograms. Such products include cash crops, legumes, fruits as well as tuber. There is no payment of Zakah on anything less than that weight. And the measure to be paid on agricultural products generally is 10% if the farm is not irrigated. But if irrigation is involved, only 5% is to be paid. This is to enable the farmer to cater for the cost of irrigation. The Zakah on farm products is paid immediately after harvesting. Payment of Zakah on agricultural products, especially crops, may be more than once in a year because it is a matter of pay as you harvest.

     

     Livestock

    In the case of livestock, the quantities from which Zakah should be paid vary from animal to animal. For instance, one cow is given as Zakah out of every 30 cows. One goat or one sheep is given as Zakah out of every 40. One year old goat or sheep is given as Zakah on every five camels.

    The minimum taxable Nisab on gold is 20 Dinar. Out of this, half of one Dinar, which amounts to 1/40 of 20 Dinar is payable. Anything in excess of 20 Dinar is calculated accordingly. Besides gold and silver, there is no Zakah on mines until they have been converted into cash or cash-able values. Zakat may also be paid on expected payment of debt if the debtor is reliable and trustworthy.

     

    Beneficiaries of Zakah

    The statutory beneficiaries of Zakah are contained in Chapter 9 verse 60 of the Qur’an as follows:

    “Verily, Sadaqah (obligatory alms) are only for the poor and the needy and those who work on its collection and those whose hearts are to be reconciled (i.e. new converts) and to free those in bondage (debtors and prisoners) as well in the path of God (building of Mosques, orphanages etc) and the wayfarers; a duty imposed by God; God is all-knowing, all seeing”.

    The administration of Zakah to these people should be done by the State authorities in Islamic societies or a committee headed by Muftis of each locality with Islamic scholars as members.

    It is better to disburse Zakah within the extended family or in the neighbourhood than to carry it outside one’s environment. In countries such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Pakistan, Indonesia, Iran and the likes, the time for paying Zakah is set to coincide with Ramadan period. This does not however mean that every Zakah time must fall in Ramadan.

    Generally, the business of Zakah is as serious with Allah as it is in the lives of the poor masses that will benefit from it. Thus, it is not a topic to be fully treated in a single day column of this type. It may therefore be continued in this column in the near future.

  • Amaechi vs Wike: Between facts and fiction

    A Little after the present Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike accused his predecessor,  the immediate past governor, Rotimi Amaechi of looting and vandalising properties in the Rivers State Government House by taking away  items like bullet proof doors, carpets, cars, furniture, curtains and windows, a container of controversial narrations and analysis has emerged with Amaechi’s response that ‘the current governor is trying to intimidate, threaten and blackmail officials of his then administration, including civil servants into making false, phony and bogus claims of alleged corruption and corrupt practices against him and his wife, Judith’.

    Indeed, Amaechi’s detailed response has now made it difficult to sieve the truth from a big basket of allegations by Nyesom Wike. An understanding of how politics is practiced in Nigerian would suggest that what Wike has done with accusations of looting of furniture and cars at the Rivers Government House is nothing far from the usual strategy of distraction that is observed every time an incumbent governor hands over to an opposing party. As such, Wike’s disclosures are not strange, however what is different from the customary allegations is that this time round, it is not money that is being talked about but basic domestic items which ordinarily should have their inventory well documented in the office of the Permanent Secretary that serves as the chief accounting officer of the Government House.

    To claim that Amaechi looted the Rivers State Government House is very premature as confirming such allegations is far beyond using doctored images to portray a scattered house as vandalized in the presence of some selected journalists.

    Ordinarily, if Governor Wike meant well, good logic would have informed him to seek an inventory of what items were there in Amaechi’s stay in office and what he left behind at his exit from office. The simple question that has been raised is, did Wike know what was in Amaechi’s former bedroom to have been able to reach a conclusion of looting? Otherwise, Wike’s claims are best thrown into the dustbin and regarded as weak ploy to score cheap points. Indeed, until a proper and transparent inventory analysis is professionally conducted, it will be difficult to regard Wike as serious. Certainly, from every reasonable analysis, what Wike has done in his first day on duty as governor, shows that he is acting out a script which suggest that his main purpose in politics is to fight dirty rather than focus on the right measures that will advance the condition of the governed.

    Ordinarily, one would have thought that Wike as a trained lawyer would have known the essence of well articulated evidence when presenting a case. The pictures of scattered chairs and tables cannot sufficiently serve as proof that an accused is responsible for looting except where there exist documentary evidence from security cameras and or uncompromised individuals to buttress such.  On the issue of vandalised kitchen cabinets, I think if a man of Amaechi’s status really meant to cause discomfort for his successor, the seeming destruction of property should not start and end in a kitchen of  a house he literally renovated to an edifice status. Perhaps, if Amaechi had capacity for evil acts, he would have started the so-called vandalisation from the foundation than go to an irrelevant portion of the mansion. That Wike never mentioned any colossal damage to the said Government House rightly suggests that he is just obsessed with trying to get unnecessary attention on an issue that he could even be accused of simulating or masterminding.

    Granted that anyone that has held or is holding a government office deserves public scrutiny; but when such inquiry translates to blatant absurdity and half-truths as demonstrated by Wike, then the reasons behind such must be investigated thoroughly to ensure that this is neither an intent to divert attention, weak attempt to discredit another person nor design to deplete the treasury of the state.

    Consequently, any objective analyst should appreciate that the media outing by Wike is obviously a tragic error because what he attempted to portray on alleged looting could have been left for the journalists to confirm from witnesses present at the time of the alleged vandalisation or could it have been possible that as at the time he resumed office, the entire security personnel at the Government House had fled and  the security camera gadgets destroyed?

    Wike’s claims are appalling especially coming from a lawyer and he really needs to be reminded  that as a legal professional, he should have taken the proper step to assemble credible evidence before considering a visit with pressmen. Indeed, the churning out of this unconfirmed story in major newspapers is also huge minus for the press as it has exposed the embarrassing fact that in Nigeria, investigative journalism is almost dead or highly compromised. For anyone to use Wike’s  lies and misinformation, it simply suggests a willingness to stray from the truth in preference for reporting  a stream of fabrications. The big story for any journalist wanting a real scoop might be: who opened the premises for Wike and what did they see there, a vandalized house or not?

    For ease of recall, anyone that has given some reasonable attention to politics of Rivers State would agree that there is a wide gulf in the relationship between Amaechi and Wike, hitherto described as  two close friends before they went separate ways in the wake of 2015 general elections. Be that as it may, Wike from all reasonable logic, has acted dishonestly and appears to be venturing into dangerous political path scarcely towed in Nigeria. Granted that on many occasions, we know politicians to be economical with the truth, at other times we know them to stretch lies against the opposing camp, nevertheless, the disclosures made by Wike against Amaechi share great semblance with willful and purposeful lying. Indeed, it will be good for Wike to be challenged by the public on these allegations not necessarily for the purpose of advancing any political party’s interest  but for advancing both morality and integrity of Nigeria’s democracy.

    Wike’s stream of mistruths cannot reap him any political awards or  help win his case at the tribunal. Rather, these ostracized falsehoods will only thrust him further into unhealthy controversy. As such, now that a large section of the press has debunked his false claims, the honourable thing for him to do is to  concede the truth for the restoration of personal honour and integrity. Otherwise, the blatant lies Wike has tried to spread  must be confronted and exposed because any political office holder ought to distance himself from such  especially in any modern society which abhors lies and largely associates leaders with such traits of lying with incompetence.

    Wike’s attempt to engage lying as a useful political strategy clearly portrays him as a man that may be clueless on how to manage the affairs of Rivers State. The simple question to ask here, is why should he claim that he would need about four months to fix the vandalized items whereas some people can even build a house in less than four months? In fact, it is only a person that is dumb that will accept what Wike says without questions. Wike lack of truthfulness is not only huge indictment of the character of person the PDP has selected to rule Rivers State  but that his party has weak vetting process which encourages men of questionable character and dishonesty to be in office.

    Wike’s Rivers State PDP has a long history of attempting to smear the APC at any opportunity. For anyone still unaware, the smear campaign was launched by Wike when it became obvious that Amaechi had settled for another candidate as his successor as Governor from the APC. For the average peace loving person, this dirty politics should have been over but Wike’s recent expressed dishonesty is a real tragedy in the making. That is the truth, and it is time the Rivers people knew this and the consequences ahead.

     

    • Shaibu,a Public Communication Consultant,writes from Abuja.
  • Facts, figures on alleged $20b missing oil fund, by PwC

    Facts, figures on alleged $20b missing oil fund, by PwC

    Is $20 billion oil cash missing? No, says accounting giant PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC), in its forensic audit report on the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). It said $1.48 billion is missing, and directed NNPC to refund the cash to the Federation Account. It also also recommended how NNPC can be efficiently run to forestall a recurrence. EMEKA UGWUANYI reports.

    After about a year–and–a-half, the allegation of stolen $20 billion oil fund in which the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) was fingered as the culprit has been laid to rest, following the release of the report of the PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC) last month.

    But there is need for the Federal Government to implement some of the auditors’recommendations to enhance the corporation’s efficiency.

    The missing oil money saga started on September 25, 2013, when the former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, now Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, wrote President Goodluck Jonathan, alleging that between January 2012 and July 2013, NNPC lifted 594,024,107 barrels of crude oil worth $65,332,350,514.57.

    According to him, of this amount, NNPC paid only $15,528,410,098.77, representing 24 per cent of the value. This indicated that the NNPC was yet to account for, and pay to the Federation Account, over $49.8 billion or 76 per cent of oil lifted in the period.

    On September 27, 2013, the President passed the letter to the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, to explain the allegations against the NNPC. The minister forwarded the letter to the former NNPC Group Managing Director (GMD), Andrew Yakubu, on September 30.

    On October 4, 2013, the minister forwarded the explanations of the GMD to the President. Nothing was heard on the matter for over a month.

    The NNPC presumed the Presidency and CBN were satisfied with the explanations until it was learnt that on December 8, 2013, the contents of the CBN’s letter were leaked to the media, including the online publications. That is how one of the most controversial issues of the nation started. In view of the weighty allegations, the Senate Plenary directed its Committee on Finance to investigate the alleged unremitted $49.8 billion.

    The NNPC also explained to the public what happened. The Corporation stated that the CBN governor did not understand the workings of the oil industry and how revenues from oil lifting were remitted to the Federation Account, adding that the CBN actually understated the figures of the lifting by NNPC by 4.13 per cent. The Corporation explained what equity crude, royalty oil, tax oil, volume for third party financing and NPDC equity volume are, just to buttress its point.

    NPDC (Nigerian Petroleum Development Company) is an arm of NNPC. Yakubu stated that remittances of proceed from each of the five streams are made according to statutory and production arrangements, adding that all remittances due to the Federation Account had been made into that account.

    In the same period, the Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, directed the Inter-Agency Committee comprising the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget Office of the Federation, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), NNPC, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) to reconcile the various figures given by the two agencies of the government, CBN and NNPC.

    The Inter-Agency Reconciliation Committee had at the end of its job, established that $39 billion of the alleged that $49.8billion had actually been remitted to the Federation Account and Mrs Okonjo-Iweala announced that the Committee was still working to reconcile the balance of $10.8 billion.

    But when the Finance Minister and the CBN Governor appeared before the Senator Ahmed Makarfi- led Senate Committee on Finance, Mrs Okonjo-Iweala held on to the $10.8 billion balance but the former CBN Governor held on to $12 billion as the  unremitted revenue to the Federation Account.

    The Group Executive Director of Finance and Accounts, NNPC, Mr. Bernard Otti, to prove accountability of the alleged missing funds, gave a breakdown of the $10.8 billion unremitted funds as follows: Unpaid subsidy $8.49 billion, Maintenance of National Strategic Reserve$0.37 billion, Product and crude oil losses $0.72 billion and cost of pipeline vandalism and repairs $1.22 billion.

    The CBN Governor later insisted that the amount unremitted to the Federation Account was $20 billion and gave a breakdown as follows: outstanding $12 billion, $6 billion gross revenue earned by NPDC, and $2 billion being payments to third parties. The CBN governor stated that NPDC, being a subsidiary of the NNPC, must remit all its revenue to the Federation Account in line with the constitutional requirement in Section 162 (10) c.

    He also questioned the legality of NNPC floating subsidiaries to do business and keep their funds, and also the propriety of the process of incorporating NPDC and the strategic Agreements it entered into.

    The issue of subsidising kerosene also came up before the Senate Committee as well as the resistance by Nigerians when the government wanted to stop fuel subsidy, including kerosene in 2012. The report of the Committee was debated on the floor of the Senate at plenary and it adopted most of the recommendations of the Committee. It, particularly, resolved, based on the recommendations of the Committee, that the allegation of the former CBN governor that some money was missing was false and that no money (be it $49.8billion, $20billion, $12billion, or $10.8billion) was missing.

    On kerosene subsidy, the Committee observed that the government policy on the issue was ambiguous, an issue which made the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Petroleum to toe different lines on the matter.

    To ensure transparency and clarity on the issue, PriceWaterhouse Coopers (PwC) was appointed to look into the allegation and come out with an independent findings. According to the findings, total revenue generated, including additional revenue upon investigation, was $69.34 billion while actual remittance was $50.81 billion. Unremitted revenues by NPDC were $5.11 billion while petrol (PMS) and kerosene (DPK) subsidy was $8.70 billion. The costs attributed to domestic crude was $2.65 billion and other costs not directly related to domestic crude oil operations was $2.81 billion) while salaries and benefits was $1.52 billion.

    Monthly operations was $0.48 billion and other third party payments, including training course fees, estacode, and consultancy fees, and other vendor payments was $0.81 billion while the NPDC signature bonus was $1.75 billion and its taxes and royalties $0.47 billion. Therefore, updated expected refunds by NNPC/NPDC to Federal Government is $1.48 billion, the report stated.

     

    The facts, figures

     

    The PwC submitted its report on February 2, this year. The auditing firm stated that its findings bear out some of the key points that were made on proper reconciliation and accounting for crude oil revenues and related subsidy claims, costs and expenses defrayed, and the matter of Oil Mining Leases (OMLs) transferred to the NPDC. It said that the gross revenue generated from Federal Government’s crude lifting for January 1, 2012 to July 31, 2013, was $67 billion reported by the Reconciliation Committee and the total cash remitted into the Federation Accounts in relation to these crude oil lifting, was $50.81 billion and not $47 billion as earlier reported by the Reconciliation Committee.

    “The balance of the generated revenue is accounted for as follows: Revenue reported by NPDC of $5.11 billion by its then Managing Director Mr. Victor Briggs during the Senate hearings will be accounted for through the financial statements of NPDC, and any dividend declared will flow into the federation account. Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and Dual Purpose Kerosene (DPK) subsidy was $8.7 billion, NNPC’s initial costs verified and accepted by the Senate of $2.65 billion, additional NNPC costs, following the audit $2.81 billion.

    “Added to the revenue is the unremitted NPDC signature bonus due for divested assets and taxes/royalties totalling $2.22 billion. Hence the net amount attributable to the Federation Account following the above summary is $1.48 billion,” the report stated.

    PwC further stated that NNPC  provided information and explanations on the difference between the gross revenues and aggregate remittances leading to a potential excess remittance by NNPC of $0.74 billion, without considering the expected remittances from NPDC. Other indirect costs of $2.81 billion which were not part of the submissions to the Senate Committee hearings have been defrayed to arrive at this position.

    “NNPC and NPDC should refund an aggregate amount of $1.48 billion; this is after taking account of the excess remittance described above and outstanding self-assessed taxes, royalties and signature bonuses for divested assets transferred to NPDC. The transfer to NPDC of remainder interests in Oil Mining Leases (OMLs) divested by Shell were validly made to NPDC on the basis of a legal opinion provided by the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) to the Senate Committee on the matter.

    “By reference to the submission to the Senate Committee, NPDC reported crude oil revenues of $5.11 billion (net of taxes and royalties) in the period. Subject to defrayment of its costs, the AGF’s opinion holds that NPDC/NNPC are expected to, ultimately, effect a remittance to the Federation Accounts by way of net revenue (dividend) payment to NNPC. NPDC has not declared a dividend to NNPC on the basis of which remittances are to be made to the Federation Accounts in line with the AGF’s opinion. The matter of dividend (net revenue) from NPDC should be followed up for final resolution.”

    The auditing firm said that on the  subsidy on DPK (kerosene), the Presidential Directive of October 19, 2009 was not gazetted and there is no legal instrument cancelling the subsidy on DPK. The Senate Committee had also concluded that all that was required was for the Federal Government to propose appropriation for the unappropriated subsidy for the period in a supplemental budget. DPK subsidies in the review period amounted to $3.38 billion, according to the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA).

    The report further stated that the NNPC Act provides that “… Such money as may be received by the Corporation in its operations or in relation to the exercise by the Corporation of any of its functions under this Act, and from such fund there shall be defrayed all expenses incurred by the Corporation.”The Corporation defrays its costs and expenses (including the costs of its loss making subsidiaries), from crude oil revenues in line with the provisions of the NNPC Act.

     

    Recommendations

     

    The report noted that the application of the foregoing principle has resulted in the potential excess remittance situation, and indicates that NNPC operates an unsustainable model. It stated that 46 per cent of proceeds of domestic crude oil revenues for the period was spent on operations and subsidies. The Corporation is unable to sustain monthly remittances to the Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) and also meet its operational costs from the proceeds of domestic crude oil revenues and have to resort to third parties to bridge the funding gap.

    “At today’s crude oil prices at 62 per cent drop from 2012 levels), if NNPC’s subsidies and operational costs are maintained and crude oil production volumes are maintained at current levels, the Corporation will exhaust all the proceeds of domestic crude oil sales and still require additional third party funding for the deficit.  This means that the Corporation will have no funds to make any remittances to FAAC.

    “In view of the provisions of the NNPC Act which appears to grant NNPC a “blank” cheque to spend money without limit or control, and the gravity of the unsustainability of the NNPC operating model and its implications for remittances (or potential lack thereof) going forward, the NNPC Model must be reviewed and restructured as a matter of urgency. The NNPC Act should be reviewed as its visions contradict the requirement that NNPC be run as a commercially viable entity.”

    The forensic audit report, like the Senate Committee on Finance’s Probe report, clearly stated that all the revenue generated from Federal Government crude lifting for the period of January 1, 2012 to July 31,  2013 amounting to $69.34 billion was fully accounted for. The report also didn’t indict the NNPC over the allegation of unremitted or missing oil revenue. Therefore, anyone or organisation still circulating information about any unremitted or missing oil revenue or that NNPC was indicted in any report over the allegation is only either being mischievous or displaying disdain for truth, the NNPC boss stated at a forum in Lagos.

     

  • Buhari: Facts and fallacies

    SIR: Of all the lies being peddled by the PDP to blotch the personality of General Muhammadu Buhari, labelling him a religious bigot is most particularly damning and fraudulent. At the slightest opportunity, the PDP and its cronies resort to the religious card as part of the ploy to present him in bad light. What the PDP promoter of the lies are yet to tell Nigerians is how a man who ruled the nation as a military dictator and didn’t Islamize the country would do same as a civilian president, with all the democratic checks and balances in place.

    The truth of the matter is that Gen Buhari is a practicing Muslim and there is actually nothing wrong with this. The Nigerian constitution permits every Nigerian to practice the religion that he/she believes in and in the way he chooses to. President Jonathan has been hopping from one church to the other across the country. He was once in Jerusalem with some Christian leaders and a few Christian members of his cabinet and party. He is actually free to do this as guaranteed by the constitution of the country. But then, why is General Buhari being unnecessarily vilified for his faith?

    Till date, no one could actually lay claim to any instance when the General has acted in ways that hinder others from practicing their religion. As it is often said, opinions are free but facts are sacred. When General Buhari took over as the military Head of State in 1984, out of the 19 military governors, he appointed, 11 of them were Christians. The record is there for whoever cares to corroborate.

    The fear of the PDP as expressed by President Jonathan that Buhari would send some Nigerians to jail for corruption as soon as he becomes the president is no surprise. His government courts corruption, and deserve nobody’s sympathy. Corrupt public officers and their accomplices belong nowhere but jail houses. However, the truth is that under democracy, and the rule of law, due-process will be guiding principle. If the General, like any rational leader, is going to fight corruption, he would have to do that within the confines of the law. Nigeria is not a banana republic. The constitution remains the guiding document of faith in the country. It is true Dr. Jonathan has been treating this sacred document with impunity, and believes this would be the same under Buhari.

    What the country needs presently is a leader with the anti-corruption stance of General Buhari. Our major problem has been the mismanagement of our resources by a crop of visionless and selfish leaders. At the last count, the Jonathan administration could not account for over $100bn! Corruption remains the bane of the country and any leader who can tackle corruption headlong could actually move the nation to the Promised Land. What we have now is a government that has turned corruption and deception into instruments of governance. The end results are the several woes that have befallen the country. When sane and patriotic economic analysts in the country were cautioning our leaders about an impending economic woe, the all-knowing economic managers in Abuja simply shrugged it off as the ranting of ants. However, Nigerians now know better as a regime of austerity measures have been forced down our throats.

    For the PDP, corruption is a way of life. Fuel subsidy rip-off linking sons of ex-PDP  chairmen, the Halliburton scam, the pension scam, the national identity card scam, the electricity scam, the NPA corruption scandal, to mention just a few are some of the complex corruption cases through which the PDP has thrown the country into a mess.

    What stands Buhari apart is the very element that is lacking in the current crop of leadership we have in this nation today – INTEGRITY!

     

    • Lateef Raji

    Lagos