The Nation Newspaper

Tag: fictions

  • 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.
  • My fictions are based on reality’

    My fictions are based on reality’

    Ikechukwu Njoku has just graduated from the Department of Biochemistry at the Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT). Despite his science orientation, he has a flair for creative writing and has written a fiction book. He tells KINGSLEY AMATANWEZE (Material and Metallurgical Engineering) what inspires his writing.

    When did you discover you have a flair for writing?

    I discovered my talents when I was young. Precisely, I was 14 years old when I found out that I could write. Since then, I have been developing the talent.

    Which area of writing do you have your passion?

    My passion is in fiction writing. Although I also engage in general article writing but I have flair for fictions.

    How many fiction books have you written so far?

    I have four completed novels. One of them, Tale of a crying dog, was published last year. The book has 197 pages. The three others are yet to be published, because I am still working on them. I write every day to update the remaining books.

    What inspires your writings?

    I am inspired by the happenings in the county and situations around me. All my writings are based on true-life stories and experiences of people. So, I use my fictions to address the challenges for authorities to be aware of such conditions.

    What are your goals as a writer?

    The goal of every writer, to me, is for everybody in the world to have a copy of his book. But, my goal is quite different from that. I want to inspire people, especially the youth, through my writings.

    What are the challenges you are facing in writing?

    As a writer, one is bound to face many challenges. Sometimes, when I write in the night, my parent would be bothered and they would ask me to go to bed. Sometimes, you may be looking for inspiration and start going from one place to another. And another time, I discovered I was not studying my books any longer, because I excessively engaged myself in writing. But with God, I am surmounting every challenge that I have been facing.

    How were you able to combine Biochemistry with your literary engagement?

    It was not easy for me, because these are distinct intellectual endeavours. But, with the help of God, I could combine both excellently. At a time, it was a challenge for me. I did pray over it, because it was actually not easy at a point. I thank God surmounted the challenge.

    Do you wish you had studied literature in the university?

    I do not regret studying Biochemistry, because from the outset, my dream had been to become a professional in biological science field. To me, writing is a natural gift, which is endowed in me by God.

    Who is your role model?

    My role models are Chinua Achebe and my mother. I love Achebe’s style of writing, while my mother motivates me.

    What is your advice to budding writers like you?

    They should not relent. They should keep writing and never be discouraged. God knows why he gave us the potentials and we must fulfil it to the glory of God.

    Where do you see yourself in the next five years?

    I want to see myself as a prominent writer and see my works in every parts of the world.

     

  • Fani-Kayode’s flurry of fictions

    SIR, President Goodluck Jonathan left no one in doubt about the type of campaign he wanted to run when he picked well known loose cannon with no modicum of decency, Femi Fani-Kayode, as his campaign spokesperson. Known for throwing decency to the gutters with toxic Facebook posts, the Osun State-born law graduate, had conducted himself in the last few years in a manner that makes one wonder if the globally respected Cambridge University will ever be proud of such product.

    Fani-Kayode has since discharged his duty to type – daily regaling us with tissues of lies to demonize the candidacy of General Muhammadu Buhari and his party, the APC. First, he sold to the media the non-issue of Buhari’s certificate, and even when the Katsina School where General Buhari had his secondary education released the statement of result of the general and the master list issued by Cambridge University which conducted the exam in 1961, he declared it fake.

    Fani-Kayode and his Social Media hirelings have thrown everything – including the kitchen sink – in the direction of the General. They have forged medical reports in the name on a non-existent “Ahmadu Bello Teaching Hospital” to declare Buhari as having prostate cancer. They have circulated “minutes” of imaginary meetings to say Jega met with Northern elders in Kaduna (in other reports, Dubai) on rigging elections; they have hired commercial protesters to embarrass General Buhari in London. They have paid millions of naira to put up adverts in national dailies in the name of a fictitious “Muslim” group in the South West endorsing Buhari because “they wanted Islamization of the South West”.

    Fani-Kayode was yet again at his lying best when he addressed the press few days ago accusing APC of having made their vice presidential candidate, Yemi Osinbajo, sign to an oath to resign after six months in office. It is more unfortunate that the press which should have by now been familiar with the wicked fabrications of Fani-Kayode, gave this hogwash undeserved prominence.

    The election is less than four weeks, and I know Fani-Kayode’s fiction machine is still being oiled to produce more between now and the election date, if they ever allow the election to hold.  The task of extricating Nigeria from these fiction vendors and setting it on the path of progress is the business of every patriotic Nigerian.

     

    • Suraj Oyewale

    Ajah, Lagos