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Tag: future

  • Pillars’ Obiozor dispels fears over future

    Pillars’ Obiozor dispels fears over future

    Despite the contract impasse between Christian Obiozor and  Nigeria Professional Football League Champions, Kano Pillars which resulted in his leaving the camp and a subsequent ban transfer ban on the player for trying to force a move to Enyimba FC, Obiozor said he’s not perturbed about the development.

    Obiozor bailed out of the team just before their crucial first-leg tie away to Moghreb Tetouan during Pillars’ CAF Champions League Campaign. The Nigeria Champions conceded four  goals and were without a proven goal scorer with Gambo Mohamed still confined to medical supervision after the fateful bus attack few weeks before.

    The prolific goal scorer and former Enugu Rangers forward has featured for the home based Eagles and other national teams at various times including earning a call up to the Dream Team VI camp during the early days of the All Africa Games qualifiers.

    “I am not under pressure, I play for a big club and I have every intention to return as a better footballer. It’s a very great honor to play for the U-23, the home-based Eagles and for the Dream Team in the qualifiers for the All Africa Games,” Obiozor told www.footballlive.ng.

  • ‘March 28 election is about Nigeria’s future’

    ‘March 28 election is about Nigeria’s future’

    Barrister Babajimi Benson is the All Progressives Congress (APC) Federal House of Representatives candidate for Ikorodu Federal Constituency. He recently spoke to Assistant Editor , Dare Odufowokan, on his mission to the lower chamber and why he think Nigerians should trust General Muhammadu Buhari with their votes on March 28, 2015. Excerpts.

    How did you react to the postponement of the February polls?

    While I want to say that as a party, we in the APC have put the unfortunate development behind us, I want to believe that most Nigerians know the real reason behind the shift. Those behind it came up with the postponement of the polls through the back door because the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was afraid of defeat.

    You will recalled that the National Security Adviser, NSA, Col. Sambo Dasuki had earlier called for the postponement of the elections in London. After his call, we saw where they were heading. INEC was just intimidated by the security operatives to postpone the elections.

    In all these, I want to urge Nigerians to vote for APC in the general elections in spite of the antics of the ruling PDP. This is the only way we can restore sanity in the country. APC is the solution to all these unconstitutional acts. With PDP still in power, it will be difficult for us to witness equal rights and truthfulness in governance.

    Nigerians must be consistent and steadfast in the face of intimidation and provocation to ensure the resolution of the numerous problems confronting the nation. We must not be intimidated by these obvious acts of intimidation by people who want to perpetrate themselves in office against the peoples’ wishes.

    There are fears that Nigerians may resort to violence should there be another postponement. What’s your take on this?

    We must understand the current situation we are in as a nation very well. We must know that we cannot afford to resort to violence. That will only compound our problems. It will not solve them. As much as I want to believe that there will be no more shift in the dates of the elections, I want to strongly advise youths in my constituency, in the state and everywhere in Nigeria to shun all forms of violence before, during and after the 2015 general elections and avoid thuggery.

    Like I’ve being doing in all my campaigns, I want to use this opportunity to call for more political tolerance and understanding from Nigerians. We in the APC are progressives, we don’t fight. Even if their own prayer is for us to run into the streets and fight, we shouldn’t. In spite of all, we must continue to maintain law and order because the APC has come to stay to ensure good democratic governance. All hands must be on deck to promote the lofty ideals of the party. It is only when we patiently allow the elections to hold that the party can initiate peoples-oriented programmes aimed at improving the living standards of the people.

    Rather than think about violence, I urge our supporters to obtain their permanent voter cards for full participation in the electoral processes. It is only by acquiring the permanent voter cards that they can vote for APC candidates. Don’t allow any body to collect your card. You need it for the elections to achieve the political change of leadership. This is why we have being preaching peaceful elections through the “##No2ViolenceJustVote” awareness movement. This is one effort to preach tolerance and perseverance to Nigerians as we await the new dates of the election.

    Why do you think Nigerians should choose General Buhari ahead of President Jonathan?

    It is not just about Buhari or Jonathan. This is about Nigeria. It is about Nigerians. It is about our future as a people. It is about APC and PDP. It is about development and backwardness. It is about so many things that a vote for either of these two people can translate to. There is really no basis upon which to make a comparative measure of capacities or and capabilities between General Muhammadu Buhari and President Goodluck Jonathan. The current administration is guilty of lack of courage, energy and commitment to lead Nigeria. The biggest governance watchword in the whole world today is corruption. All governments are cracking down on corruption except our country, Nigeria. One of his biggest challenges is that Jonathan is surrounded with too many corrupt people. That will change with Buhari in office as President. That is one reason why Nigerians want Buhari. They trust him on that.

    How do you hope to achieve your plans for your constituency?

    We need a lot of good people to achieve all we have planned for our people. My joy is that I am working with a great team and my sojourn at the LSDPC has helped me build relationships and as it is said, success is a product of relationships. I think I have the wherewithal, impetus and the required connection to drive the development goal of Ikorodu and make it a priority.

    I will only stop when I see a smile on everybody’s lips. They have tried to stop us but we will not. The other day, I was attacked by hoodlums in Eyita, but unfortunately for them, such things make me stronger. My philosophy from day one is to make everybody happy. I know what my people want because I am part of them. I am from the prominent Benson family in Ikorodu. I am their son, brother and cousin. They are my people. They know me, I know them. So, together, we have resolve to put Ikorodu back on the right track and that is my priority for now.

    Lagos state was formed in 1967 with an acronym, ‘IBILE’. The first ‘I’ stands for Ikorodu and I do not think that in the scheme of things, Ikorodu has been at the fore front. In terms of development, we have not reached the level that our status as ‘Oga’ that we are referred to, deserves. And I believe that there are lots of potentials to make Ikorodu great.

    I want to see them smile always. Then, my profession as a lawyer is another reason I am going to the House of Reps. Most of the great leaders that I know are lawyers. Barrack Obama is a lawyer, Babatunde Fashola is a lawyer, just to mention a few of those great people who have changed our world as lawyers.

    What are your chances of coming out tops in the election?

    I started from ground zero, from the primaries. Nobody gave me a chance but I had a good team and strategy. I always put the people first and I believe strongly that the power of the people is greater than the power of the people in government. They know I’m sincere, they know I mean well. So, obviously they know what they want and they want change. They have seen the other party, they have ruled for 16 years and there has not been any change. The staple foods, the basic amenities are missing and the people know that it’s time for change.

    In spite of severe agitations by your people, Ikorodu couldn’t produce any of the gubernatorial candidates. What do you think is responsible for this?

    Yes, we could not produce a gubernatorial candidate maybe because the time is not right yet but not because we dont deserve it. I believe a time is coming when we will dominate the political scene. But we need to build, we need to be strategic, we need to be united and we need to be selfless. Once we have those, we can start thinking of dominating. Most importantly, we need to come all out and show our numerical strength in the forthcoming election. Because if we rank top three among the voters; we will get juicy positions in the state. I want to thank leaders of my party, the APC in Ikorodu division, leaders and members of Ikorodu Division Solution Alliance (IDSA) and other such organisations, for going all out to mobilise our people during the last voters’ registration exercise. That is being strategic. So when the time comes to appoint officers or patronages, Ikorodu Division would be considered. And that is where we can build capacity to come out big in the nearest future.

  • ‘The future we want’

    ‘The future we want’

    The outcome of the plan by the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) to switch from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) was the subject of discussion at a seminar organised by a Corps member in Taraba State. TOLULOPE BANJO (NYSC Jalingo) reports.

    Corps member in Taraba State, Nathaniel Efik, has held a seminar to educate the public on the proposed transition from Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by the end of the year.

    Nathaniel, a Batch “B” Corps member and a graduate of Environmental Science from the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT), tagged the seminar as National Preparatory Youth Summit on the Post 2015 Agenda. It was held at the Federal Science and Technical College (FSTC) in Jalingo, the state capital and it had in attendance, Corps members, secondary school pupils and other interest groups, including officials of the Ministry of Environment.

    Nathaniel emphasised the need to educate youths and community leaders on the transition from MDGs to SDGs at the end of the year and some of the possible outcomes of the action. He said the seventh goal of the MDGs, which is environmental sustainability, remained key issues that must be accomplished if the transition must be meaningful.

    He urged participants to be environmentally-conscious, pleading that human activities altering the nature of environment must be stop. He said with the help of the MDGs, a sizable percentage of people now know the importance of planting trees in their environments.

    The Corps member described sustainable development as meeting the needs of the contemporary time without compromising the capacity of the future generation to meet their own needs.

    The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) co-ordinator, Mr T.K. Freeman, represented by Jahphet Saidu, advised Corps members and students to focus their attention on knowledge about goals that would replace the MDGs. He urged them to work tirelessly in bringing positive changes to their host communities and places of primary assignment.

    FSTC Vice Principal, Mr  J.O. Ohene, told the pupils to learn about MDGs and the provisions could be sustained in 21st century. He hailed the organisers for hosting the event in the school.

    Dan Eseimokai, an official of the NYSC Public Relations Unit, encouraged the audience members to emulate good organisational skills of the organisers, advising them to key into the SDGs’ provision for youth development and good governance.

    Highlight of the summit was the division of participants into four groups to brainstorm on different key issues affecting sustainable development in agriculture, urban development, good governance and health. Participants were asked to produce workable recommendation that could be used to tackle various impediments against the sustainable development.

    At the end of the summit, participants came up with resolutions tagged: The future we want, which, according to the Nathaniel, will be sent to relevant agencies for action. The convener ended the session with a plea to the youth to contribute voluntarily to making Sustainable Development Goals a reality and work towards a smooth transition from the MDGs to SDGs.

    Also at the summit included the representatives of the Permanent Secretary of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA).

     

     

     

  • Political class and Nigeria’s future

    SIR: Members of the political class, who comprise of power-brokers and those governing, represent the soul of any country as they are the building blocks of leadership recruitment. By virtue of their calling, politicians are expected to show leadership and live up to their promises. They are also obligated to uphold and promote fundamental national values concerning political, economic and social imperatives. Part of these imperatives are representative democracy, good governance, popular participation, political stability, national unity, peaceful coexistence, law-abiding and dutiful citizenry, constitutionalism, due process, the rule of law, separation of powers, respect of basic human rights, social justice, sense of inclusion, equal opportunities, thriving economy, sustainable development, human welfare and international respectability.

    More importantly, members of the political class or elite should stand for national cause at all times, notwithstanding their party, ethnic, religious, cultural or ideological affinity. In this case, unifying and stabilising factors like pan-nationalism, patriotism, statesmanship, national unity, corporate existence, nation-building, national integration, multiculturalism and bi-partism (or even multilateralism) should be their watchword. No doubt, these factors and similar ones encapsulate the spirit of the guardian class whose enlightened members are driven by the impulse of national interest, which is paramount, not personal or sectional interest that has been the bane of politics and governance in many developing countries, including Nigeria.

    Going down memory lane, our nationalist heroes and founding fathers who featured prominently in the politics of the First Republic (1960-66), such as Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe and Chief Obafemi Awolowo (all of blessed memory), in spite of their human frailties, set a shining example of what are required from a model political class like selfless service, human touch, national fervour and integrity. For example, Dr. Azikiwe (the Great Zik of Africa as he was fondly called) was a tireless exponent of dignity of man, national unity and pan-African co-operation. On the other hand, Sir Tafawa Balewa was a grassroots and self-effacing political leader who espoused unity in diversity in Nigeria, just as Chief Awolowo (Awo) as he was popularly known) saw the future of the country as being inextricably tied to true federalism.

    If truth must be told, the aforementioned personages had shown through their laudable feats that they were in a rendezvous with destiny as they strove to shape the future of their expectant people. With our fatherland now at a crossroads in the face of dire political, economic and social challenges, members of our political class could be said to be in a race against time. Irrespective of their affiliations, they are called upon to soften their rhetorics and close ranks for the sake of the Nigerian future that is currently threatened by intense political wrangling, violent religious extremism and ethnic militancy.

    So, as we inch towards the decisive presidential and national polls on March 28 and those of the governorship and state legislative houses on April 11, our politicians owe it as a moral duty to help defuse the rising tension and uncertainties in the land over the possible outcome. Accordingly, they are implored to shun political mudslinging, hate speeches and inflammatory remarks that could lead to violence, bloodshed and depredation. In conformity with the spirit and letter of the Abuja Peace Accord for non-violent elections signed by various presidential candidates on January 10, 2015, all the political aspirants in the forthcoming polls in the country should drum home the normative message of this agreement to their staunch supporters and admirers who, in most cases, are the foot-soldiers of inter-party thuggery.

    May God save and bless our dear fatherland.

    • Okechukwu Emeh

    is a public analyst.

  • ‘Nigeria has bright future’

    RESIDENTS of Amuwo Odofin Local Government Area received the All Progressives Congress (APC) message of hope, when its campaign train stopped in the area, as part of its preparations towards the forthcoming general elections.

    The venue of the campaign was First Gate, FESTAC town, a community designated by the Federal Government for the memory of the World Festival of Arts and Culture (FESTAC ‘77). The words of the APC chieftains who spoke at the event fell on a good soil, given the dwindling infrastructure and other social nuisance that has become the lots of the residents of the community.

    They trooped out en-masse to listen to the APC’s call for a new order and social rebirth. Amuwo Odofin is the home of a large number of non indigenes from the Southeast. Imo State Governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, a notable APC chieftain from the Southeast, was a guest of honour at the event.

    Apart from the APC National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and host Governor Babatunde Fashola, the occassion was also graced by the presence of Nollywood artistes, who helped to electrify the campaign. An appeal to reject poverty, power failure, insecurity and economic failure entrenched by ruling the People Democratic Party (PDP) led-Federal Government was the central theme of the campaign.

    Asiwaju Tinubu told the enthusiastic supporters that the imminent change of March 28 will usher in a ‘common sense revolution’. He noted that any government that fails to meet the people’s expectation has lost the justification to continue in office.

    Tinubu said the future of Nigeria is bright. Nevertheless, he said the people must see themselves as stakeholders in the struggle to free the country, for things to change positively.

    “No patriotic Nigerian can afford to sit on the fence, when the majority of the people wallow in poverty as a result of misrule,” he added.

    He reminded the people that the choice of their birthplace and the language they speak was not determined by them. The APC leader noted that it is the wisdom of God rules the world and that it is the manifestation of His will that shapes the fate or tapestry of people’s journey in their earth lives.

    Tinubu said “man by nature is a usurper, who tries to subvert peoples’ destiny, but God will always triumph”, adding that those who have made life difficult for other Nigerians will be defeated at the polls.

    He said: “It is only God who will determine the destination of human beings, where you are born is not your choice. The language you speak is not your choice; it is the choice of God.

    Tinubu, who was governor of Lagos State between 1999 and 2007, said people relocate in search of greener pastures. “You relocate for goodness; you relocate for happiness; for prosperity; for good life; not for you alone, but for your children as well,” he said.

    He added that the good programme executed by the APC government in Lagos and other states is as a result of the wise decision of the electorate that voted for the party in past elections.

    He called on the electorate not to fall for the campaign of calumny of the PDP which, he added, uses religion and ethnicity to polarise the country.

    He said: “The roads we travel on are not labelled Christian or Muslim road, neither is it labelled Obatala road. Similarly, hunger does not discriminate, poverty has no tribal mark and you should not allow them to be deceiving you.”

    “The over 15 years of PDP rule in the country merely point to failure. Jonathan tells you pathetic stories that when he was in school he had no shoe. I am from a poor family; I know what poverty is. But, he (Jonathan) has forgotten.

    “Now he has plenty shoes, plenty clothes and plenty hats, but does that put garri on your table. If you spend five hours at the gas station without light for your business, is that what we want? They even ask you to pay for the electricity that you did not use. So, that is double jeopardy, by paying for diesel that you did not consume and electricity that was never utilized by you. In that situation, do you want them to continue? The crowd chorused “no” in response.

    Tinubu said the Federal Government refused to insure the soldiers who have been battling insurgency in the Northeast. “They have not paid insurance for the lives of the soldiers and police who are working in danger.

    “Their insurance has elapsed, but they are using state money in bribing people. For those of you who sell spare-parts, the exchange rate is almost crippling your business. He has put double duty on imported vehicles used or unused. When they have not been able to produce made-in-Nigeria vehicles.

    “Is that not a sign of failure?” In our schools in Lagos, did we register you on the basis of your tribe? Do we discriminate in our school fees? I am sure you are all aware of how we do things in Lagos. We believe we are the same, so we treat everybody equally. They have no intelligence, after six years, they have not been able to do anything meaningful for the people.

    “It is time for them to leave, to allow those with ideas and capability to lead the country. They do not have the skill to run an effective government, so they need to go back and take the position of apprenticeship,” he said.

    Tinubu added that the people call him the oracle of Lagos because his predictions always work. He said: “When I gave you governor Fashola did the man not work? The man has performed beyond expectation and that is why they call me the oracle of Lagos.

    “Now, I am giving you Ambode; he is tested in all aspect of financial and human management. I know that he will excel and Lagos will be better for it. So, on April 11, we should all come out to vote for this youth who will consolidate our efforts,” he stressed.

    Governor Okorocha who had earlier addressed the people, was welcomed with the shout of ‘my people, my people’, which was acknowledged with ‘our governor, our governor’. Okorocha added a little drama to it when he said he had a piece of news that will jolt the people.

    The crowd listened with rapt attention to hear the kind of news the Imo State governor brought to them. But, when he said he regrets to announce the death of the PDP, the crowd roared in thunderous applause.

    He said: “I have a message for you; it is very brief; I am here just for one reason. Let me inform you that I want to regretfully announce the death of the PDP. the PDP died when the APC was formed. The day Fashola, Rochas, other governors and our leaders came together to form the APC, that day the PDP died in Nigeria. We had fixed the date for the burial of the PDP on the February 14, but they changed the date of the burial to March 28.

    “We are waiting patiently to bury the PDP forever. But, let me tell you that you can change the date of burial but you cannot change the burial; the burial must take place. May the soul of the PDP rest in peace; the worst thing that can happen to any nation is to have a bad government.

    “The worst that can happen to any family is to have a bad father. Today, it is obvious that the PDP is a bad government. And we stood up and came together for a change. The change we came together for has started.

    “Let me announce to all of you that I am here because of one young man, Ambode. This gentleman is good; he will not deceive you. He will not cheat you or mislead you. He has a caring heart; he loves people, and he knows everybody. This is one man that can continue with the good work of Governor Fashola. Fashola’s name is known all over the world as one of the best governors Nigeria has produced. Look at Lagos today, everything is in order and he will hand over the baton to another good man that shall continue in a geometrical progression,” he said.

    Okorocha added that some governors who are not members of the APC would be meeting to fine-tune on the coming elections, noting that the governors were fully convinced of the sterling and leadership qualities of the APC presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari.

    He said Buhari has all it takes to redefine the country, noting that it was during his tenure as Head of State that Nigerians gave up the bad attitude of urinating, as well as defecating on roadsides and that the queue culture was also entrenched during his regime.

    Fashola also urged Lagosians not to yield to the plans of the PDP, which has been bribing people to vote for them.

    He said the Federal Government wants to follow a shortcut to success, without working for it. “All the promises they made to you, have they fulfilled them?

    “The man has been promising to do more, when he has not fulfilled the promise he made when he was seeking your votes.”

    Fashola maintained that his administration did not only put the police men on insurance scheme, but buys weapons to enable them function.

    “Go to your Ipad or the Youtube and listen to Senator Chris Anyanwu, who was chairman house committee on defence, begging for money for Navy to fuel their boats. Yet, Nigeria budgeted over N1 trillion for defence. They said Buhari did not buy guns in 1985.

    “Are you going to use 1985 weapons to fight 2015 war? They are a bundle of lairs and do not know what to do. Please don’t sell your PVC because it is your future and your power to vote out the PDP. The coming election is about how you secure your freedom. The money he should have used in providing infrastructure is being used to bribe people in order to get votes.

    “You gave me 1.5 million votes during the last election, and you can see the result of the vote. What I want you to do for me is to vote for Ambode. We need three million votes from you for Ambode.

    “When you voted for me in 2007, you gave me 800,000 votes as a mark of respect for Asiwaju. That votes surpassed other contestant votes with very huge margin. In 2011, one of the constants pulled 300,000 votes when he tried to contest it at the court; he made a retreat knowing that no lawyer will accept to defend him in view of the wide margin. That is what I want Lagosians to do in this case for Ambode,” he said.

    Fashola maintained that the PDP lacks the managerial capability, adding that if the President had the capacity to manage crisis some PDP governors would not have defected to the APC. He said Jonathan should have made peace with the former President Olusegun Obasanjo, but since the party is lacking in the skills of human management, things were bound to fall apart.

    The APC governorship candidate Ambode drew the attention of resident of FESTAC town to the Federal Government’s negligence of the city, which serves to keep the memory of the first World Festival of Black Arts hosted in Lagos in 1977.

    He said the over 15 years of the PDP rule has left the trail of tears in the lives of the youth, who are roaming the streets in search of non-existent jobs.

    He said: “Our coming here today for this campaign is to bring our message of hope and blessing to Amuwo Odofin. What I want to tell our youth is that they should observe for themselves what the APC is doing for them.

    “This is the place we are constructing the light train, it will take us from Okokomaiko to CMS in 30 minutes; we are constructing a 10-lane road from Orile Iganmu to Badagry.

    “The government of Fashola has provided what will be beneficial to the people of this community in the next 30 years. I want to assure you that I will complete the road being constructed from Orile to Badagry. The train from Okokomaiko to CMS will be completed by me,” he added.

    APC chieftain Rabiu Olowu who also addressed the rally said the postponement of the election was deliberate, adding that the PDP wanted to use it to buy time and perfect its strategy.

    “But, my message is that we should collect our PVC to defeat the ‘poverty development party’. We all can see the bad effect of Federal Government within the FESTAC town.”

    Former chairman of the Amuwo Odofin Comrade Ayodele Adewale said FESTAC is blessed with land mass and water body, but has been neglected by the Federal Government.

    “If APC wins at the centre our problem is solved. We must note that the election of the President is very important because of the bandwagon effect. When the APC wins the presidency, the natural thing is that the states will fall in line with the pattern.

    “So we must come out en-masse to vote Buhari, in order to liberate our country, correct all the deficit in governance and make Nigeria proud again,” he said.

  • ‘Obasanjo has torn PDP’s future’

    ‘Obasanjo has torn PDP’s future’

    The Ibadan People Association (IPA) has described the dumping of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) by former President Olusegun Obasanjo as the healthiest development in Nigeria’s democracy.

    Its National President, Abdulhakeem Adegoke Alawuje, said: “What Obasanjo tore is beyond his PDP membership card, he has torn the future of PDP in Nigeria.

    “If a former President and PDP’s founding father could tear his membership card in public, this is a sign that the PDP ship is sinking.

    “Whether we like it or not, Obasanjo remains a respected elder statesman in the country. He is not an ingrate as some people described him. He has warned President Goodluck Jonathan several times on the level of injustice in the party and after failing to address them, Obasanjo felt there was no point in remaining in the party. “

  • …For the sake of Oyo’s future

    …For the sake of Oyo’s future

    This electoral season has thrown up so many issues. One of them is the debate over whether the jinx of second term can be broken by some governors. Oyo is one of the states where it is believed, whether rightly or wrongly, that a sitting governor cannot be re-elected twice. This position did not just come out of the blues. It has empirical foundation in successive administrations in the states whose henchmen – governors – were not given the mandate to run for a second term in office.

    For instance, in the aborted second republic, the late Chief Bola Ige, the first civilian governor of old Oyo State under the defunct Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) was voted out in the 1983 general elections. That election, believed to have been rigged for Dr Omololu Olunloyo of the National Party of Nigeria (NPN), had serious reverberations round the state and the attendant consequences in Oyo and other southwest states reasonably culminated in the return of the military during that epoch.

    When a military-guided democracy returned in 1991 under military despot Ibrahim Babangida, Chief Kolapo Ishola contested for the seat on the Social Democratic Party (SDP) platform and could not even complete his term before despotic military leader, Sani Abacha carried out a palace coup against the Interim National Government (ING), dissolving all democratic structures in the process. That marked the Nunc dimittis of the Ishola government in Oyo State.

    The Fourth Republic that was guided by General Abdulsalami Abubakar came after the demise of Abacha and the late Lam Adesina of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) emerged as governor in 1999. In the state’s typical fashion, he was voted out in 2003 by the people of that state. Subsequently, Adewolu Ladoja of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) became the governor. His tenure was beleaguered and unfocused and he was eventually succeeded by his deputy, Adebayo Alao-Akala who was also voted out of office after just one term of miliki and igbadun governance. The demise of Alao-Akala government marked the end of PDP reign in that state. Then entered the new and current governor of the state, Abiola Ajimobi in 2011 on the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) platform. He is now seeking another term in the  February 28 governorship election under the more formidable All Progressives Congress (APC).

    Yet, most people within and outside the state believe this to be an impossible mission simply because it has never been done. Will the second term jinx be broken this time around? This is the question that this month’s election will provide answer to, particularly in Oyo State where the issue of second term

    jinx is on the front burner. What is going to happen at the end of the day in Oyo State? Will Ajimobi be returned for second term in office as governor? The truth of the matter is that there are some insinuations of misdemeanour on the part of the governor. Some perceive the governor as snooty and elitist; others condemn him for having allegedly given his wife too much latitude in the running of his administration.

    The two allegations are self-adjustable though the governor, in a recent interview in the Sunday title of this paper, denied ever relinquishing the running of his government to his wife whom he said was merely in charge of women affairs, nothing more. He, however, professed his unwavering love for his wife, a passion he had no apology for. His reason: He has just one wife unlike most ofhis other opponents that have wives and uncountable concubines. On the allegation of Ajimobi being conceited, this could as well be realisation of self-worth but by now, the governor ought to realise that in politics, a power holder must come down to the level of the people.

    Whatever some people might perceive as Ajimobi’s misgivings should have been nullified by the fact that nobody has publicly accused him of non-performance or fraud.

    Moreover, the man in nearly four years has performed more than all the governors produced by the state. Anyone who is conversant with Ibadan, capital of Oyo State for instance, will realise that the ante of development has been upped by Ajimobi. The air of freshness and neatness that has engulfed the landscape of Ibadan is something that was alien to that ancient town. Now, Ibadan is reasonably cleaner and neater when compared to the town’s air-fouling status of the past that previous administrations in the state failed to convincingly address. The overhead bridge at the Mokola Junction is a marvel to the air which only a progressive government of the APC can provide. Afterall, the PDP has been in charge of the state for years without known noticeable improvements in the general wellbeing of the state.

    One interesting area where Ajimobi has made remarkable progress is that of peace which is the bedrock of any meaningful development. Prior to his coming into

    office, members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in Ibadan especially, had turned the state into one battle-field where blood must flow every week. The era of lethal Tokyo and Eleweomo under Ladoja and Alao-Akala when residents of the ancient town lived in perpetual fear of violence that was then a recurring decimal is gone as Ajimobi, with deft determination, weeded all the miscreants away.

    The irony of it all is that these former governors of the state that were unable to bring tangible peace, security and development to Oyo State while in the saddle are now the leading contestants for the governorship slot with the incumbent. The people of that state must read between the lines and not play unreasonable politics of undue sentiment with the sustenance of their development which Ajimobi represents.

    This column believes that if the people of the state truly want development and sustained peace and harmony, they should ignore whatever shortcomings political opponents are trying to robe Ajimobi with and show purposeful mission by re-electing him in the coming election. This, in view of prevailing empirical facts, is the only guarantee of clear aversion for the nauseating looting and misgovernance of the past. ‘Forward ever, backward never,’ should be their new-found anthem now!

  • NNPP: Nigeria has bright future

    NNPP: Nigeria has bright future

    The New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) has urged Nigerians to be hopeful for a brighter future, assuring that democracy will stabilise in the country.

    The party advised stakeholders to reflect on the challenges confronting the country in this Yultide and cooperate with leaders in finding solutions.

    In a statement in Lagos, its National Chairman, Dr. Boniface Aniebonam,  observed that fears are rife that the next general elections may be marred by violence.

    He said: “There is palpable fear about the escalation in political violence.  There is  insecurity in the country, which is manifesting killings and suicide bombings and other activities of the Boko Haram sect.  Also worrisome are the activities of armed robbers and kidnappers.

    “The utterances and actions of some politicians point to the fact that the cohesion and indivisibility of Nigeria is undergoing its most serious test since the amalgamation of 1914.  Every passing day reminds Nigerians of the prediction or the warning by an American envoy,that Nigeria may break up in 2015.”

    Aniebonam said, inspite of the dark cloud, there is light at the end of the tunnel for Nigeria.

    He added: “Nigeria will weather the storm and come out more united and stronger.  This is the good tiding, which the party has brought to Nigerians.  The NNPP wishes to remind Nigerians that Nigeria is a special project in the hands of God to fulfill a purpose.  However, all hands must be on deck to ensure that the prediction does not come to pass.”

    Aniebonam urged politicians to play by the rules as the country prepares for the general elections.

    He said: “In this era of campaigns, politicians should go about it in a manner devoid of violence, mudslinging and character assassination. They should engage in issue-based campaigns.” Politicians should desist from turning the future leaders of our country i.e. the youths, into thugs, who are later unleashed on their political opponents and innocent Nigerians.

  • Embracing the future to lead the present

    Embracing the future to lead the present

    Innovation, entrepreneurship and digital revolution will  help Nigeria move forward. There has created a new generation  of young  entrepreneurs  with the mission to develop products of the future. They are adventurers who create  solutions to daily problems most don’t even see. Daniel Essiet reports. 

    He is among  emerging digital entrepreneurs.  He  dreams of  building  high-growth company with  an array of aggressively growing businesses in Nigeria  and beyond.

    He is  Silas Okwoche,cofounder, Ideacentric Global Systems Limited. He  is a  serial entrepreneur to watch.  Okwoche  is a young  tech entrepreneur taking  the  nation  by storm. He  is passionate about disruptive technologies. His  contemporaries see him as  one  of the future hope of the  nation having  established  himself  a leader in the business intelligence space. He read Chemical Engineering  from  Ahmadu Bello University,Zaria. A serial entrepreneur,he  loves self-  employment and shown  even while he was  in  school.

    While in university, somewhere between attending lectures,he  was   re-selling wrist watches,doing   freelance website designing and selling  peanut snack products.

    He  just  knew then  that  serial social entrepreneurship and problem solving  were  his  true passions. After graduating with a degree in  Chemical Engineering in 2005, he worked for a year with SOI consulting and YWAP international as lead web developer and head of business development ,before founding Ideacentric in 2007. But  Okwoche  and his  partner,Dimeji  started Ideacentric as a web design firm in Kaduna. Then, they did web- designs for scores of small and medium scale organisations. Soon their   skill-set increased and because of oral eferrals.

    They started handling  brand design and IT-projects for SME’s and some large organisations. In 2010, they   moved to Abuja and consolidated their service offering under strategy, media and information technology. They  provide services, such as online research and proposal writing, brand marketing, material design and productions, as well as web and mobile application design and development.    One of his ideas is to make school curriculum available on mobile devices.. The company is  set  to   manufacture  its line of mobile internet tablets, called SPAKC,which  will  run on the Google Android.

    Okwoche  and his  partner are building apps, in partnership with educators and publishers that provide intuitive user-interfaces to access high quality school curriculum content. The   content will  be  stored in the tablet’s internal memory or in their  e-library.”He is   optimistic the government, along with international development organisations, will be able to pay for the less-than US$100 tablet. This price is inclusive the e-education content. This will enable every secondary school student to have a tablet for free. They have got some positive feedback from the  government. Furthermore, they   believe the internet ready tablets and apps will fly in the open market even without the government buy-in.He   created a mock-up and tested the idea with potential customers – and the feedback he  got is good.

    He  has  been a big fan of visionaries. For him, great ideas represent  the starting point.  His   inspiration comes from those who have the ability to convert those ideas into a value proposition that society simply cannot dismiss.  For  him, ,starting  a tech  company  is   more than starting a firm  or building the next best must-have device; but  is  predicated upon a vision that inspires.

    At the moment,  his  organisation  is   looking for an underserved market to exploit or bringing one more “disruptive” technology to the masses.

    His co partner, Oladimeji Obimakinde, said  the journey so far had been quite humbling. His  words:” Knowing that God is setting me/us to be trailblazers to many young and old Nigerians and the world has been an amazing experience and knowing that we are actually been positioned for relevance in the IT sphere for me builds fulfillment in me and a drive to “do more”.

  • Nigeria’s democracy and its future

    SIR: Nigeria is the largest democratic nation in the Africa. Democracy has been regarded as an ideal form of government in which people are governed by their own elected representatives. It is a government of the people, for the people and by the people. It is a people’s government in which the voice of the people is supreme and where the laws are fashioned according to their wishes. The question whether democracy has a future in Nigeria has aroused grave concern among our educated ones. Even the most pious optimist believes that our democracy has a bleak future. It can have a future only when our politicians cease to be power mongers.

    With every sector crumbling, one wonders what the future really holds for our dear motherland. Tolerance is the essence of democracy. Judiciary is its backbone. One after the other, leaders of today have been showing their firm faith in the unity of the Nation. But the common man finds these very leaders, with knives of different size and shape putting deep scars on the face of the motherland.

    There is a gap between promise and performance. We enjoy every right in theory, but not in practice. Real democracy will come into being only when the masses are awakened and take part in the economic and political life of the country. Nigeria today is a rich man’s democracy. Our democracy is a democracy of the rich, for the rich and by the rich. The implementation of laws is almost nil in most of the parts of the country. If they are honestly implemented Nigeria will have been a dreamland for other nations, but the reverse is the case in our society. The National Assembly and state assemblies enact laws and pass them on to the administration not for their execution but for their non-execution.

    Our national leaders introduced adult franchise with one stroke of pen when 85% of our people were illiterate. It was a foolproof experiment to start with. Universal basic education should precede adult franchise. Election is always a costly affair and the lure of money works wonders especially among illiterate ones. The absence of an organized opposition the party in power resorts to dishonest means. No single party in Nigeria can claim to be really democratic.

    Violence has taken a serious turn in our country. Misuse of legislative privileges does not augur well for democracy. Defection from one party to the other on selfish and flimsy grounds has added to the instability of the government in our country. It is bad on both moral and political ground. There is no sphere of national life which can be described to be free from corruption. At the political level everyone – ministers, legislators, and party officials suffer from it. Our democracy has miserably failed on different front, agriculture, home, foreign etc.

    The masses are illiterate. They abuse their votes. They are easily bought. No democracy can succeed until there is widespread education and enlightenment among the people. Here the rich exploit the poor who have no voice or share in the democratic structure. Democracy is on its trial now. Democracy has not failed. It is we who have failed. If we develop democratic spirit, temper, and character and become Nigerians in true sense, it can certainly become a success. The future of democracy will be bright only when our people possess national character, consciousness and responsibility. Intellectuals should come forward and create better society with a true democratic spirit prepared to march further in a democratic way. It is still in the childhood, yet the hope for the future is bright.

     

    • Comrade Ahmed Omeiza Lukman,

    Kieve, Ukraine.