The Nation Newspaper

Tag: hide

  • ‘How banks hide bad debts’

    ‘How banks hide bad debts’

    Local and foreign investors rely on the integrity of financial statements to make decisions. To the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRC), only a financial statement that meets the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) will inspire them to invest in a company.  FRC’s Chief Executive Officer Jim Obazee said this and more in an interview with SIMEON EBULU and COLLINS NWEZE during his visit to The Nation.

    How has Financial Reporting Council streamlined financial reporting by companies?

    The FRC was established by the FRC Act 6, of 2011. Prior to this, there was the Nigerian Accounting Standards Board (NASB). The NASB in itself had some histories. Prior to the indigenisation, there were different companies, coming from different countries into Nigeria. And when they come, the rules that govern who they report their income and expense; assets and liabilities, were provided for by the standards issued by their home countries.

    So, you have companies from the United Kingdom (UK) reporting UK’s standards, and those from the United States, reporting based on US standards.

    We had a lot of mix ups. You can actually report fair results following those standards, but when you report, people who are interested in investing in your company, may be relying on very faulting foundation if both were given the same rules.

    How?

    For instance, a very smart managing director that is making loses will likely want to adjust the figures. Don’t forget that in some companies, the Managing Director’s emoluments are tied to percentage of the profit of the company. So, such MD is not interested in losses. So, he could gather smart guys in the office and say, gentlemen, our numbers are not looking right, what can we do? So, they are no longer discussing the business concept, they are discussing earnings management.

    It is actually fraudulent financing reporting. So, he would say, gentlemen give me some ideas, we cannot show our shareholders this result. He is not telling them the major problem which is the fact that he is not happy because he cannot get good salary. So, somebody needs to create the opportunity for him.

    Then a young man, would raise up his hands and say, you know the car we bought for N100,000 and the policy of this organisation is that the estimated useful life of the car is for four years. So, every year, we write off 25 per cent against profit. So, we write off 25 per cent of N100,000 which is N25,000. So, let’s change the policy to say the car will last for 10 years.

    So, if we are going to rely on 10 years, instead of writing N25,000 this year, we should write off N10,000. By adopting that structure, the company beefs up its profit by N15,000. This will now change the bottom line to look very healthy, even when there is no value underlining the result.

    What does that mean for investors?

    The investors will rely on the result to their own detriment. But don’t forget that the N15,000 brought into the profits, the Managing Director is entitled to a percentage of it. It was at that point that organisations in Nigeria decided to establish a new standards reporting setting body.

    So, eight organisations led  by the Central Bank of Nigeria, Securities and Exchange Commission, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, among others, came together and formed the NASB on September 9, 1982. They were churning out standards which lacked legal backing. The institutions were simply persuading companies to comply. Prior to that time, there were the Companies and Allied Matters Act, 1990.

    The promoters of NASB went to those putting together the CAMA, brought in Section 335 sub-section 1 of CAMA Decree 1990, which stipulates that financial statements prepared in Nigeria, must comply from time to time, with the statement of accounting standards issued by the NASB to be constituted by the Minister of Trade and Industry.

    So, they got legal backing by which the minister would constitute the board. The Minister of Trade and Industry constituted the NASB to become a parastatal of the Federal Government of Nigeria, reporting to the Minister of Trade and Industry in 1992.

    How was FRC formed?

    It was under the former President Olusegun Obasanjo that there were all forms of attempts to form the FRC, but it did not see the light of the day. When I was appointed the CEO of NASB, I made the formation of FRC my priority. Before then, the World Bank came and promised to assist Nigeria, provided there is a Financial Reporting Council, where you can have an all embracing structure.

    Firstly, I was the chairman of a committee on the adoption of IFRS in Nigeria and we needed to deal with the law. Before the 2005 banking consolidation, I said that only seven banks were healthy. My view came after I analysed the results of the banks and discovered that there was a problem. I needed to deal with what I saw then, which was institutional weaknesses.

    Tell us about those institutional weaknesses?

    Many of the banks had started opening up insurance companies to hide their bad loans. If a bank is owed N1 billion and the customer is not able to pay, the CBN would check the bank’s account and ask if it has been fully provided for. The bank would be asked to take the bad loan off its assets and profit and that would constitute a big problem on its balance sheets.

    What the banks did was to set up  insurance companies and, for instance, factor the N1 billion to the insurance company, and subsequently claim that the insurance company had bought the N1 billion bad debt. The insurance company buys the bad loan at N900 million, with the understanding that when it recovers the debt, it will make N100 million gain. So, the N900 million will now be quoted in the bank’s books, so that when the CBN comes for checks, the bank will be applauded as doing very well.

    The CBN is inspecting banks, not insurance companies, while the National Insurance Commission that inspects the insurance companies, do not check the books of the banks. You see, when I said banks should not own insurance companies, you can now understand why.

    What impact has the FRC Act had on companies’ reporting formats?

    The establishment of the FRC Act has brought sanity to companies’ reporting of their financial statements, and made it difficult for them to manipulate their earnings, as all accounts are now reported using the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). With the new reporting format, the practice where companies that are supposed to make losses, manipulate the result to post huge profits, would be difficult. Prior to the coming of the FRC Act, regulatory agencies, including the CBN, never took financial reporting seriously. No Nigerian demanded for the CBN account, let alone analysing what is inside. Because if you pick the financial statement of the CBN, and you have eagle eyes, you will raise several questions that they will beg you not to ask the questions. The law empowered FRC on some broad areas. First, financial reporting generally, which includes valuation of standards, auditing accounting standard both private and public, and then actuarial standard. It also empowered us to develop and co-ordinate corporate governance. Hitherto, there was no law governing the corporate governance in Nigeria. Now, it is only in the FRC Act that you see corporate governance. The FRC Act also says we are responsible for Corporate Governance Code in both public and private sector. Finally, FRC Act gave us power to check audit quality.

    What’s the impact so far?

    The FRC is committed to making Nigeria corporate reporting investment friendly. The FRC Act and its implementation is providing protection for investors. That is why you are seeing a lot of the fight. The judges themselves, when people started taking us to court, did not understand the type of organistion we are. Overtime, when they started understanding what we are doing, they started to embrace and know that we are bringing sanity.

    Does the National Assembly need to legislate on the National Code of Corporate Governance?

    It is not something you can legislate upon. It is a Code of Corporate Governance. It is like legislating on integrity.  We want to know, what are the roles of people that are entrusted with the direction, control and supervision of an entity? That is what Corporate Governance is all about. It is not an issue meant for the National Assembly. The Code of Corporate Governance for the public sector is talking about boards. All the boards of Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government, are already captured within the enabling laws of these institutions.

    Since they are already captured, it means you cannot bring a code that can override that law. Instead, it has to go to the Federal Executive Council through the Minister of Trade and Investment, so that a guideline, saying that the structure and composition of the board should defer to that of the national code. That is what we want to do. The reason is not far-fetched. Firstly, the code is talking about international best practices, and  reviewing the laws will take a lot of time.

    Tell us about the Code of Corporate Governance for Not-For-Profit organisations?

    The code of corporate governance for Not-For-Profit organisations has received very heated debates. Not-for-profit people are saying they are not ready yet. The reason is that the code will require them to be accountable. They must have financial statements before having a corporate structure. They are not happy with the committee structure because we are insisting there must be three committees.

    What about the extended audit report that FRC is canvassing?

    Very soon, we shall be inviting six big firms to a meeting. We want to talk to them on extended audit report. It will focus on key audit matters. The audit report will look at observations. We need to protect stakeholders, protect minorities and also grow the market.

    We have three major challenges. We have board concentration. All your board members are all friends. This leads to group thinking, where everybody thinks alike, nobody thinks at all. So, in board concentration, there is no healthy debate. We are campaigning that after one has served as Managing Director of a company for 10 years, such person should not immediately transmute as the Chairman. There should be a cooling off period. Immediately you transmute as the Chairman, you will become Managing Director one, the new Managing Director will become Managing Director two.

    We also have what we call ownership concentration. In the Nigeria capital market, we have just 20 per cent free float. We also have audit concentration. The four big firms are the ones auditing the companies.

    Are you having challenges with shareholders’ associations?

    Shareholders associations are also challenging us, saying we have brought out a rule, saying for you to be a Chairman of audit committee, you must be a professional accountant. Our reason for that remains that audit committee members should understand accounting.

    In our registration, we said one cannot sign a financial statement as a Chief Financial Officer unless the person is a member of the ICAN or the Association of National Accountants of Nigeria (ANAN). The moment foreign investors know that the companies are being policed; they will come and invest in our country. The first direction in fighting corruption is to ensure there are financial statements. Tell all government agencies to prepare their accounts, you will see there is a problem. Government agencies should have accounts.

    Are you still receiving 2015 financial accounts from banks?

    Yes, but Section 8 of the FRC Act says that public entities are to file their financial statements with the FRC not more than 60 days after approval by the board. So, they still have a two-month window. They are submitting their accounts and we are receiving them. But if the accounts are qualified, you cannot announce that account until we have looked at them. These are the things people worry about, saying – why is the FRC policing us. You need to be policed. The moment foreign investors know that the companies are being policed, they will come and invest in our country.

  • No need to hide

    Every Christian child is taught, from an early age, to regard God as ‘a rock and hiding place’ from all travails of life. So when the storms reach an all-time high as they sometimes do, the child turned adult remembers that he can always hold on to God as a strong tower.

    With this in mind, I was fascinated by former President Goodluck Jonathan’s words at the Ikenne home of the Awolowos. The former President, who was accompanied by his only  paid glowing tributes to the life and times of Mama HID Awolowo. He, however, spoke from the heart when he said: “…..within this period, my wife and I have been hiding; we don’t even go out. We thought we’ll be hiding for at least 12 months….but in this particular case, we cannot hide…….”

    Why would our uncle and brother-former President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria hide? And where did he choose to hide? In Yenogoa or Abuja?

    There are always two sides to a story, and the flavour added when the tale is retold, depends on the raconteur. In our brother’s case, there are the likes of Ayo Fayose who daily sings President Jonathan’s praise. GEJ (as he was fondly called in the early days) can do no wrong! Fayose even had the courage of his conviction to boldly declare: “Jonathan is a man to be recognized in the whole world. He conducted an election that worked against his interest but he gave it up. Jesus Christ did exactly the same.”

    We all know that there is a fundamental human right which entitles us all to freedom of expression. The Governor of Ekiti State will, undoubtedly, function well as a Press Secretary to GEJ. But I digress.

    The subject of my discourse is the rationale behind this seclusion. Can anyone of GEJ’s status or station in life really hide? He served as Deputy Governor, and later Governor of Bayelsa State. He then became the Vice President, and subsequently, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Remember how all Nigerians solidly cast their votes for him in 2011.

    The famous story of a young boy who went to school bare-footed charmed us all. We believed that he would empathize with the meek and lowly. We hoped that he would rescue us from the depth of poverty and despair. Indeed, we envisaged that, under his watch, nobody will pick food from dustbins. Alas, things did not turn out as we hoped!

    GEJ, I am told, is a good man at heart but had a team of women and men who were not-so-good. He believed in them, but many of them let him down. I am of the opinion that he chose a few really decent professionals who delivered first rate service to the people. It is a pity that the overall score was not an A! Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina, the new CEO of the African Development Bank, is a glaring example of his dedicated team members.

    Someone said we all need luck in life; that there are times you put in your best, but even that will not suffice to guarantee a brilliant success. It serves no useful purpose to reel out a catalogue of woes which led to GEJ’s exit from Aso Villa. I just remember that the Boko Haram boys did a lot of damage. The disappearance of the Chibok girls left a bitter taste in the mouths of all Nigerians. Many mothers are still being treated for depression cum hypertension as a result of their missing daughters. When you add this to the growing army of unemployed youths lounging around the street corners, you will understand why angry Nigerians voted GEJ out of office. For me, these are the best of times to highlight GEJ’s virtues nonetheless. You want to ask me why? The simple answer is that he is no longer the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (someone else is wearing that toga).Therefore, I cannot be accused of lobbying him for a public office!! But I am not going to hold hands with Ayo Fayose and start crooning like a Ballard singer waiting for dollar notes – not naira – to be pasted on my forehead. I am simply admiring GEJ- the husband of Aunty Patience. GEJ as a husband fascinates me. He lets his wife be. He gives her the respect she deserves and will never embarrass her. That, to me, is a good person to have as a husband. And having been given that leeway, no woman must attempt to abuse it.

     I recall that there were a couple of occasions when Aunty Patience got carried away and made some unpalatable comments about her husband’s competitor – General Muhammadu Buhari. But then we are told that all is fair during the kind of war both parties were waging. If you overlook the election saga and X-ray Aunty Patience’s role as the First Lady, you will agree with me that she scored some As. I am an old school teacher, so I shall reel out the criteria for scoring.

    These include: unalloyed loyalty to spouse, courage of conviction, determination to be taken seriously and forthrightness. Other qualities you might wish to add are: command of the English language and knowledge of one’s boundaries. But I choose to leave those out of my score chart. I warned you that I am looking at GEJ and Aunty Patience as a couple. I sincerely admire them.

    My maternal grandmother- Josephina Nowo – taught me to focus more on what is good about people. I have stuck religiously to this admonition. And it has brought me untold joys in a life-time of over six decades. Yes, we voted GEJ out of office, but Aunty Patience remains his greatest cheerleader. Even if she did not subscribe to “that famous phone call to Buhari,” she still remembers to give him daily hugs. Did you see her with her lovely braids and fashionable outfit during their visit to condole with the Awolowos in Ikenne a few days ago? And recall that they both went on a Safari to Kenya recently to unwind and catch up on lost times. The many years spent serving “thankless Nigerians” are best forgotten when God has blessed one with a devoted wife like Patience. She deserves our admiration for putting her weight solidly behind her husband all through his years of public service. All women should aspire to do the same. We just need a little more caution. We must be careful to “stay in our lane”. While we bask in the aura of our spouses’ love, we should constantly seek divine grace not to go off on a tangent.

    All things considered, life must go on, in or out of any office. There is no need to hide. Time, they say, heals all wounds. The loss of an election is, certainly, not an exception. I foresee a future where GEJ is running a noteworthy NGO and promoting a cause that is benefitting to humanity. I do not imagine that Aunty Patience can close her front door for long. Some of us believe that, should we get stranded in Portharcourt, Yenogoa is just around the corner and we can knock on her door, as long as we have an authentic National Identity Card. She, in return will demonstrate that she has a good heart by offering a meal of lobster and fresh fish. We look forward to seeing more of GEJ in his trade-mark hats. NO NEED TO HIDE.

     

    • Ogunrinade writes from Ibadan

  • TANning their hide!

    Goodluck Jonathan’s Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria have hit the polity with their inimitable acronym, TAN.  But who are TAN?  Who is TANning who?  And who are being TANned?

    Give it to the president and his pre-election propagandists: they sure know how to come up with memorable acronyms.  The last time, it was Neighbour-2-Neighbour, N2N, for short.  From N2N votes, legit or crooked, that body came up with stunning N2N harvest of public resources.

    That scandal sent a minister and former N2N empress crashing from her ministerial heights, at the very apex of Mount Olympus.  But never mind: no indictment, not to talk of conviction, so far.  All is just ill-tempered baying for blood by gross plebs, who cannot even distinguish between ordinary stealing and corruption!  And the ex-minister must have nodded to herself, just like that Achebe-an reptile: a lizard that falls from the high Iroko tree (and didn’t go kaput) praises himself, even if no one else did!

    But N2N is history. TAN is the future.  But the difference is between six and half-a-dozen.

    As N2N galvanised to harvest for Jonathan a pan-Nigeria mandate of Southern Nigeria and the Middle Belt, TAN is promising even more: to vault perhaps the most incompetent president Nigeria ever had to the country’s first unquestionable emperor!

    You doubt this claim?  Well, look at the Southsouth and Southeast.  It is a case of preaching to the converted — you only waste your saliva.  Jona is done deal!

    In the Southwest, reprobates are at work, set to pacify the electorate to willy-nilly enthrone the new emperor.  If you could incite the Igbo against their hosts, all the better!

    The Middle Belt?  Religious rancour is it: to the traumatised Christians there, Jona is new emperor come to save Middle Belt Christians from their age-old Arewa Muslim bullies and local colonisers.

    In the core North itself, it is carte blanche for Jonathan: the political paper tigers have been recanting by the dozen. Jona elixir is their new alchemy, at least intra-PDP.  What is more?  If Sai Jona likes, he could even junk Vice-President Namadi Sambo, for a now defanged Sule Lamido.  The Jigawa socialist may well fancy his chances as new vice-emperor.  Half bread is better than no bread at all, abi?

    But who are these magic workers strutting this new roar of halleluyah to the chief?  TAN, of course!  TAN has tanned the hide of Jonathan’s PDP challengers.  Pronto, they’ve turned sudden cheer leaders.  TAN also tanned the hide of Ebola. Even when it raged and threatened, not even that fear could stop the TAN-organised multitudes screaming for the chief to continue.

    But TAN could well be tanning your hide too. Newspaper reports claim TAN sucks its nourishment from federal parastatals, after pressuring ministers to pressure their underlings to “deliver”.  And pronto, the cash spigot!

    But wait: how can Jonathan be all foxtrot in election build-ups, witness N2N and now TAN; and yet is a damp squib when it’s time for the work he heartily campaigned for? Just call it the (un)presidential TANning of gullible hides!

  • NPDC’s questionable hide-and-seek

    If threats are anything to go by, the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) may soon have to close shops. The fate of Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) in Ogoniland may befall it.  For some time now, it has run into turbulent waters with many of its host communities in Delta State. Protests now characterise the company’s daily dealings with many of its host communities. Things have, indeed, fallen apart and the centre will soon give way.

     NPDC, which operates most of the divested oil facilities of the SPDC, is the oil prospecting and exploitation arm of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC).

    Of recent, not less than three communities in different parts of the state demanded the company’s exit over alleged agreement breaches. The people of Otu-Jeremi community, Ughelli South Local Government  Area last week threatened to shut down the company’s facilities if its management failed to repair a pipeline, which has been leaking gas into the community. They claim many residents have fled to avert sicknesses.

     The Otu-Jeremi issue was occasioned by an integrity test on the Abura line from the Utorogun Flow station. The leak has negatively impacted the environment in Iwhrekan, Iyara, Okpare and Agbowhiame, Otu-Jeremi’s neighbours, forcing many residents to seek refuge in safer places.

     The company is also in trouble in Opuama (Ikpotogbene) community, Warri North. Tuesday last week, it demanded that the company halt its operations in their area, citing the company’s failure to follow due process. Addressing reporters in Sapele, members of the community, under the aegis of the Concerned Oloduwa Descendants (COD), alleged that the company entered their “native-land and commenced clearing as well as dredging work without conducting the necessary Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)”.

    They also said the company failed to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with them.  The community’s list of grouses, which was titled “Our Demand”, was signed by Mr French O. Ukuto, Chief Samuel Peggy, Chief Stephen Ukulor,  Elisha Ukuto, Mrs Alero Ugedi, Ati Reach, Mrs Evelyn Ukulor, DSP (retired) Abel Sule, Ebipade Elisha and Damage-Clark Aboh.

     A neighbouring community to Opuama, Polobubo (Tsekelewu) earlier gave a six-day ultimatum to the company to either enter into what it called a “proper agreement” on how to use its land or wind up its activities. It threatened to deal with it if it did not heed their words.

     The company has dodged this reporter’s attempts to respond to the allegations against. All official channels explored were frustrated. When this reporter called its Manager (External Relations Department), Ugo Atugbokoh, on phone, he said he was in a meeting and promised to get back. He never did.  A repeat call to Atugbokoh  was unanswered. He also did not respond to a message sent to persuade him to respond to the growing opposition to his company’s interest in the state.

    The way things are: the company is dodging its hosts and the media, raising the poser: what does it have to hide? Issues, such as the ones raised against it by the host communities, should be addressed. When gas leaks into the atmosphere, like the communities allege, it has dire consequence on the ozone layer and the people’s health. These are things that should not be toyed with. And dodging press enquiries also give the impression that the company has something to hide. Atugbokoh has done the company a disservice by shunning enquiries.

  • Senate: we’ve nothing to hide on Ezu River

    The Senate committees on Police Affairs and National Security and Intelligence visited Anambra State yesterday for the second time in three weeks to investigate the Ezu River incident.

    Over 20 bodies were dumped in the river, a boundary between Anambra and Enugu states.

    After meeting with traditional rulers from Omabala Union, which comprises five local governments at the palace of Kenneth Okonkwo in Amansea, the senators said they had nothing to hide.

    The meeting was attended by Paulinus Nwagu, who chairs the Police Affairs Committee and Mohammed Magoro, the Chairman, National Security and Intelligence Committee.

    Also present were Senators Chris Ngige, Mohammed Saleh and Shaaba Lafiaji. Others were Anambra State Commissioner of Police Bala Nasarawa, his Enugu State counterpart, Tonye Ebitibituwa and State Director of the State Security Service (SSS) Alexander Okeiyi.

    Addressing reporters after the meeting, Nwagu said: “We have nothing to hide; we are the representatives of the people.

    “People are afraid to talk to us and that is why we decided to make it a private thing.

    “All we want to do is get to the root of the matter.

    “We want everybody to be involved, including the media.

    “Anybody who has anything that can help unravel the mystery should do so.”

    Ngige said: “Let me tell you nobody will rest or sleep until we get to the bottom of the matter.

    “The bodies were dumped in a river in my constituency. I am involved and concerned.”

    The committees would meet with Governor Peter Obi before leaving for Abuja today.

  • Chime’s hide and seek

    Chime’s hide and seek

    ON  Thursday, Enugu State Governor Sullivan Chime flew back to the country as quietly as he jetted out last September. His return brought relief on the one hand, and profound grief on the other.

    I explain. Chime’s departure was on medical grounds, as everyone later came to know; so his return is good news. In fact, as this piece shaped up, part of the story was that he was eager to pick up from where he left off. I rejoice in the governor’s recovery, knowing that life, even for the rich and privileged, is in the hands of God. But I am deeply troubled by the fact that Chime and his managers failed to use the opportunity of his return to correct the grave mistakes surrounding his departure over four months ago. One reason for this is that neither the governor nor his handlers realised they were in error in the first place.

    Leaving Enugu in the third week of September, the governor divulged little information beyond the fact that he was proceeding on his annual leave and that his deputy would govern the state in his absence. There was no indication of where he was headed. There was no word on how long he would be away. Neither was anything said about his real mission, his health. That was wrong and it brought Enugu people no joy, neither did it do Chime himself any good whether as governor or politician. Such executive silence was in utter disregard and disrespect of the people who voted him into power. Enugu people and the entire country were clueless as to the state of their governor’s well-being, just as they had no idea when he would be back home. Such behaviour of leaders suggests that the people they lead count for little and are not qualified to know their leaders’ health status. This is in spite of the fact that those neglected people provide the money with which the leaders feed and fund their privileges. It smacks of downright disregard.

    Chime’s silence created a vacuum filled only by rumours and speculation, both unhealthy for the people, their governor and their state.

    It was a grave error his administration failed to correct upon his return. The blunder of silence at departure would have been corrected on his return with full disclosure and a heart-felt apology. Such humility would have appeased the people and rallied them behind him with prayers and thanksgiving. Also, such humble dispositions have a way of not just winning the people over but also helping the leader to realise his immortality. For sometimes, leaders fall into error thinking they may possess some superhuman qualities. They imagine they cannot fall ill, but when they do, they think it best not to let lesser mortals know.

    This is erroneous and harmful, for we all have a headache or flu now and then. Our economic strengths may vary, as may also our options of where to seek remedy, but ailment is no respecter of persons or status. The sooner our leaders came to grips with this fact, the less secretive they would be about their state of well-being.

    “I have recently been told that I am one of the millions of Americans who will be afflicted with Alzheimer’s Disease… At the moment I feel just fine. I intend to live the remainder of the years God gives me on this earth doing the things I have always done…I now begin the journey that will lead me into the sunset of my life. I know that for America there will always be a bright dawn ahead. Thank you, my friends. May God always bless you.”

    President Ronald Reagan wrote those words in August 1994 as doctors diagnosed a disease without cure. Goodwill messages flooded his California home. He was aged 83 then, but lived for 10 more years before succumbing to pneumonia. Were Reagan a Nigerian, perhaps only his wife Nancy and one or two other people would have known what ailed one of America’s most memorable commanders-in-chief.

    All over the world, the health status of national leaders is not such top secret, except in old Communist and totalitarian regimes. Former United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s health challenges are public knowledge. She has spoken of her concussion and blood clot near her brain. Chelsea, her daughter, has not held anything back. Neither has her father, President Bill Clinton who, himself, has well-known health issues of his own.

    On these shores, things are remarkably different but Chime’s health secrets are nothing new. They only conform to an ugly standard set by even more powerful forces.

    On November 23, 2009, then President Umaru Yar’Adua was flown out of the country and did not return until February 24, 2010. In the period, everything that should not happen to a country, happened to Nigeria. Amid concerns over his well-being, there were agitations as to the direction of the country, considering that no handover instructions were left. In fact, Yar’Adua’s aides made such capital of the fact that the ailing president could run the country from anywhere in the world. When his condition was very bad, his minders said it was splendid.

    Late last year, the whole country was enveloped in a cloud of needless controversies surrounding the health and whereabouts of First Lady Dame Patience Jonathan.

    When will our leaders demystify themselves and learn to value the people they lead?

  • Chime’s hide and seek

    Chime’s hide and seek

    On Thursday, Enugu State Governor Sullivan Chime flew back to the country as quietly as he jetted out last September. His return brought relief on the one hand, and profound grief on the other.

    I explain. Chime’s departure was on medical grounds, as everyone later came to know; so his return is good news. In fact, as this piece shaped up, part of the story was that he was eager to pick up from where he left off. I rejoice in the governor’s recovery, knowing that life, even for the rich and privileged, is in the hands of God. But I am deeply troubled by the fact that Chime and his managers failed to use the opportunity of his return to correct the grave mistakes surrounding his departure over four months ago. One reason for this is that neither the governor nor his handlers realised they were in error in the first place.

    Leaving Enugu in the third week of September, the governor divulged little information beyond the fact that he was proceeding on his annual leave and that his deputy would govern the state in his absence. There was no indication of where he was headed. There was no word on how long he would be away. Neither was anything said about his real mission, his health. That was wrong and it brought Enugu people no joy, neither did it do Chime himself any good whether as governor or politician. Such executive silence was in utter disregard and disrespect of the people who voted him into power. Enugu people and the entire country were clueless as to the state of their governor’s well-being, just as they had no idea when he would be back home. Such behaviour of leaders suggests that the people they lead count for little and are not qualified to know their leaders’ health status. This is in spite of the fact that those neglected people provide the money with which the leaders feed and fund their privileges. It smacks of downright disregard.

    Chime’s silence created a vacuum filled only by rumours and speculation, both unhealthy for the people, their governor and their state.

    It was a grave error his administration failed to correct upon his return. The blunder of silence at departure would have been corrected on his return with full disclosure and a heart-felt apology. Such humility would have appeased the people and rallied them behind him with prayers and thanksgiving. Also, such humble dispositions have a way of not just winning the people over but also helping the leader to realise his immortality. For sometimes, leaders fall into error thinking they may possess some superhuman qualities. They imagine they cannot fall ill, but when they do, they think it best not to let lesser mortals know.

    This is erroneous and harmful, for we all have a headache or flu now and then. Our economic strengths may vary, as may also our options of where to seek remedy, but ailment is no respecter of persons or status. The sooner our leaders came to grips with this fact, the less secretive they would be about their state of well-being.

    “I have recently been told that I am one of the millions of Americans who will be afflicted with Alzheimer’s Disease… At the moment I feel just fine. I intend to live the remainder of the years God gives me on this earth doing the things I have always done…I now begin the journey that will lead me into the sunset of my life. I know that for America there will always be a bright dawn ahead. Thank you, my friends. May God always bless you.”

    President Ronald Reagan wrote those words in August 1994 as doctors diagnosed a disease without cure. Goodwill messages flooded his California home. He was aged 83 then, but lived for 10 more years before succumbing to pneumonia. Were Reagan a Nigerian, perhaps only his wife Nancy and one or two other people would have known what ailed one of America’s most memorable commanders-in-chief.

    All over the world, the health status of national leaders is not such top secret, except in old Communist and totalitarian regimes. Former United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s health challenges are public knowledge. She has spoken of her concussion and blood clot near her brain. Chelsea, her daughter, has not held anything back. Neither has her father, President Bill Clinton who, himself, has well-known health issues of his own.

    On these shores, things are remarkably different but Chime’s health secrets are nothing new. They only conform to an ugly standard set by even more powerful forces.

    On November 23, 2009, then President Umaru Yar’Adua was flown out of the country and did not return until February 24, 2010. In the period, everything that should not happen to a country, happened to Nigeria. Amid concerns over his well-being, there were agitations as to the direction of the country, considering that no handover instructions were left. In fact, Yar’Adua’s aides made such capital of the fact that the ailing president could run the country from anywhere in the world. When his condition was very bad, his minders said it was splendid.

    Late last year, the whole country was enveloped in a cloud of needless controversies surrounding the health and whereabouts of First Lady Dame Patience Jonathan.

    When will our leaders demystify themselves and learn to value the people they lead?