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Tag: legacy

  • Don’t destroy Awo’s legacy, APC tells Fayose

    Don’t destroy Awo’s legacy, APC tells Fayose

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State has condemned the intent of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led administration in commercialising basic education, which it described as a “disservice to the memory of the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo”.

    The party condemned a circular by the government that primary school pupils should pay N550 examination fee while junior secondary and senior secondary school pupils are to pay N1,000 each.

    In a statement yesterday by the Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun, the APC described the latest government decision as “another rape of the constitution, which guarantees free universal basic education from primary school to junior secondary school”.

    The opposition party wondered what informed the “insensitive policy”, saying by the decision, Fayose had marked himself out as the last bastion of conservative partisans insensitive to the universal quest to basic education.

    It regretted that “the governor had reduced all government engagements and governance itself as a concept that must be denominated in naira and kobo”.

    The APC said: ‘This is another hardship foisted on parents who are impoverished by the poverty-friendly administration of Fayose.

    “Governor Fayose’s lame excuse during his recent media chat that pupils of free education are not always brilliant is ignorance taken too far.

    “It reveals the lack of understanding and deep-seated contempt the governor has for education.

    “Many successful professionals in the Southwest today are products of Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s free education policy of the then Western Region. Therefore, we are at a loss how Fayose arrived at his conclusion.’

    “We urge the governor to stop promoting policies that have the potential to breed more thugs and criminals that are his favourites for political advantage, saying free education is not responsible for the falling standard of education in Ekiti State.

    “The problem in the education sector is brought about by the lack of will as being demonstrated by Fayose, with a long period of systemic rot, especially in motivation of teachers and lack of in”The Kayode Fayemi administration tried to bring back the lost glory of education by encouraging teachers through training and incentives by paying rural posting and core subjects allowance, Christmas bonus and regular payment of salaries and allowances.”

  • Keeping faith with a legacy

    When a despot becomes too overbearing, his subjects put on masks to give him a collective piece of their minds.” – Anonymous

    The present age has witnessed the depletion of the tribe of despots in the world. Although, there are still some of them around but their number is becoming fewer each day. People have become vociferous in rejecting despotic tendencies from their leaders and it takes courage before any leader see despotism as virtue in a world whose tentacle of freedom extends each day.

    The crux of this article is to discuss some issues discussed in articles published in the journal of Law students of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. One was the issues concerned the police and human rights volitions.

    It is a cliché to state that Nigerian police have a long and ugly history of brutality against the citizens. Their brutal actions, over the years, have negated the spirit of freedom and constitutional rights of the people. The slogan – policeman is your friend – is, to the ordinary people, the greatest and most heinous lie ever told by the people empowered to protect the citizens.

    If policemen know that they are friends of the people, why are they indulging in terrorising, intimidating, and with unconcealed impunity, carrying out abuses of human rights and violations of civic rule daily?

    Like an aged vice, this culture of unprovoked brutality and harassments has been integrated into the psyche of the police, making it almost unlikely for victims of their brutality to seek redress in court.

    It would appear the police are empowered to trample on human rights and harass the people at will.

    Successive governments have watched the police inflicting pain of the people without restraint. The enlightened citizenry and public commentators have also been seen to have succumbed to the impunity.

    A student, Ezenwaka Macdonald Chijioke, re-awakens the gory details of cruelty, hostility and convention of impunity of the police in an article titled: The Nigerian police force and human rights violations implication for the nigeria democratic stability, published in the journal. The article internationalised the crime of police brutality and the writer dug deep into the injustice being meted out to the people.

    His arguments were well articulated and his facts were marshaled to bring out a new dimension of human rights violation by the police.

    Another article that has a sound intellectual delivery is the one written on whether or not, the religious institutions should be taxed. This issue was courageously addressed in an article also published in the journal titled: Shall God’s money be taxed? I recommend that every student should get a copy of the journal and read.

    The law publication, which is dedicated to Barrister E.E. Egbunonu and to the memory of the late Prof. A. Amadi, is timely and it is coming at a time the youth are rising up to the task of nation-building. The journal is a good advocacy platform for human development. The exploits of the late Prof Amadi, the former Dean of Faculty of Law should be espoused by contribution of life-changing articles to the journal, which is being generously sponsored by Mr Uche Anyadiegwu.

    I must commend the journal’s Editor-in-Chief in the person of Nwaora Obiora, a final year students, who combined his excellence and brilliance to make the publication readable. The journal is, indeed, an uncommon academic feat for Law students of the UNN.

     

    Ezugwu is a Law student, UNN

  • A father’s legacy

    A father’s legacy

    It was a pathetic story as told by Mr. Uche Ephraim, one of the victims of the sudden closure of the Savannah Bank by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) some years ago. In his narration of the story, Mr. Ephraim lamented the loss of his father’s savings from the earned income, which was lost to the bank’s closure by the CBN.

    He lamented what the Savannah Bank had done to his family and how the bank’s saga led to the sudden death of his father: “All the earning of my father was saved in Savannah Bank for the purpose of the children but all turned to a disaster just at the moment we needed it most. This act brought untold hardship to my family and the shock of the bank liquidation did not spare my dad’s life as he suffered shock and finally gave up the ghost when there was no hope!”

    According to Ephraim, his father, a teacher and retired school vice-principal who married late, had children but could not enjoy his role as a father when he was in active service. He planned and saved for his family as his “will” clearly suggested.  He did that for the future. All his father’s earnings and savings for his children have gone into liquidation. Yet, the CBN has not taken a stand on recovering the depositors’ money from the defunct bank but instead “what it is interested in is N65 ATM charge” which, to Ephraim, is “nonsense”.

    He further cried out: “let CBN act and give me my money inherited from my dad’s “will” locked up in Savannah Bank”. He threatened to go into legal battle with the owners of the bank for the damages they have caused.

    Most certainly, Mr. Ephraim is not the only victim of Savannah Bank’s liquidation even as the bank is not the only bank affected by such liquidation. While we urge other victims of the banks who, for whatever reason, did not complain as Ephraim did in order to get the matter resolved one way or the other, to speak up and together form a pressure group to force the relevant authorities to take urgent steps to help their cause. We are familiar with the stories of how some of the banks’ executives fiddled with depositors’ funds; how some of them lived like oils sheikhs at the expense of their depositors, all because the apex bank did not do its job well.

    If it had, perhaps the situation where several depositors’ funds had gone with the winds would not have arisen and the harrowing experiences prevented. Now that the banks have collapsed and the creditors have complained publicly, we want the CBN to reopen the matter with a view to settling the hapless depositors.  Otherwise, the depositors should explore the legal option to get their money out. Of course we are not oblivious of the snail’s pace at which justice travels in the country. That still appears the only option left to them.

    The Federal Government should take up matters of this nature so that people who had put their life savings in commercial banks do not forfeit them through bank liquidation or sudden closure. This is not only unfair and wicked; it is akin to sentencing people to death. It is despicable and unacceptable, to say the least.

     

  • A legacy of possibilities

    A legacy of possibilities

    In less than two months from now (April 23), Port Harcourt, Rivers State will hand over its World Book Capital title to Incheon, South Korea, which won the 2015 UNESCO World Book Capital. A city has only a year in which to implement its agenda for books as outlined in the bid that won it the coveted title.

    After the highly publicised opening ceremonies last year it is stock taking and evaluation of the impact of the Port Harcourt Book Capital project whose ambition is to create an army of change agents informed and empowered through reading.

    A visitor to most parts of Port Harcourt since April last year, will be greeted by big colourful signs declaring ‘Port Harcourt World Book Capital: Partner School.’ As part of the programmes for children and youth, with a view to developing their reading and language skills, 200 book clubs have been set up in 100 schools. Working with both public and private schools, the clubs cater to senior primary as well as Junior and Senior Secondary School students and have a total of 2,500 students as members.

    At the primary level, the club members read a book a week while those at the secondary level read a book a month. These books were carefully selected and range from timeless classics to African folk tales as well as contemporary literature.

    The books that are read during the club meetings are donated to the school and on completion of a club meeting are kept in the school library. As a result, a total of 66,500 books have been donated to the libraries of the 100 schools participating in the programme. This means other students who are not part of the book clubs also enjoy these great stories. It also means the book clubs can continue to run after the World Book Capital year.

    To man and monitor the book clubs, 300 teachers, making an average of three teachers per school were trained on how to run and coordinate the clubs. They are assisted by a team of volunteers. About 100 volunteers have been trained to handle different aspects of the Port Harcourt World Book Capital (PHWBC) programmes, including coordinating and running book clubs. These trainings have equipped the volunteers, who are mainly young university graduates and the teachers, with skills on how to setup and run book clubs which skills they can now use to earn an income for themselves.

    Adults were not left out of the reading campaign, the book-of-the month programme, which highlights 12 outstanding books in the 12 months of the PHWBC year is the equivalent of the adult book club. Every last Sunday of the month, students, writers and the general public meet at the Hotel Presidential to hold conversations on the book in focus. These discussions are followed by a drama performance which is usually based on the book being discussed. Through this programme we have promoted the books and their authors and in collaboration with the Arts Institute, University of Port Harcourt, 5 of these books have been adapted for stage and performed.

    Through the PHWBC programmes, 73 writers both aspiring and established have been celebrated and promoted on the national and international stage. Many more writers have had their works showcased and introduced to a wider audience, through the publication of two books; ‘Nigerian Literature; A Coat of Many Colours’ (I and II). These books are a compilation of 100 authors in Nigeria and their work.  Another 2 publications, 100 Years Around Port Harcourt and I00 years Around Nigeria were a result of 600 secondary school students and 60 teachers from around Rivers State and Nigeria, participating in a writing exercise to commemorate the centenary of the city and that of the nation.

    In a bid to get the community involved 4 book donation drives were embarked upon, here the general public was invited to donate new or fairly used books for the benefit of indigent communities. Through this exercise over 6000 books were received and 6 ‘seed’ libraries have been planted in the city to benefit orphans, prisoners, out of school children among others.

    Rainbow Book Club has also taken the reading campaign to the world stage by participating in 4 International Road Shows showcasing Nigeria’s rich literary heritage. Twice the project was represented at the London Book Fair (2013 and 2014), and also present at the Cape Town Book Fair and at the world’s biggest book fair, the Frankfurt Book Fair. In all these tours, Nigeria’s literature and authors were exported to these countries by organising events with Nigerian authors and also selling their books.

    As Port Harcourt counts down to completing her tenure, mechanisms are in place to leave a lasting legacy whose ripple effect will benefit generations to come, not only in Port Harcourt or Nigeria but the continent as whole.

     

     

     

  • Legacy for Nigerian film industry

    Oscars brought the Academy $97.3 million in 2014

    THE Oscars was said to have brought the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences $97.3 million in 2014. That figure was up slightly from 2013 when revenue from the Academy Awards and related activities like Governors Awards amounted to $93.7 million. The bulk of that income comes from the sale of broadcast rights  ABC has domestic rights to the show through 2020, while Disney’s Buena Vista International has the foreign TV rights through 2020.

    The Academy’s total 2014 revenues totaled $151.5 million, up from $134.4 in 2013, the Academy said in its annual report, released Wednesday. Total expenses also grew from $97.3 million in 2013 to $105.1 million in 2014.

    The report noted that in 2013, the Academy closed the sale on the Homewood land and the building it held in Hollywood, which had originally been acquired when the Academy planned to build a motion picture museum in Hollywood for $45 million, incurring closing costs of $622,700. In 2014, it completed the sale of a neighboring piece of land on DeLongpre for $3.75 million.

    The Academy signed a lease agreement to build its new museum in the old May Co. building, belonging to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 2012. According to the report, the base rent for the 55-year lease (which is renewable for another 55 years at no cost) is $28 million. During 2013, the Academy made $5 million in lease payments, and in December 2013 the lease was amended to include an adjoining parcel of land that increased the total base rent by $8.1 million.

    Fundraiser established for piracy-afflicted Russian film

    FOLLOWING the leak of Golden Globe winner Leviathan’s on Russian piracy sites, a local producer unrelated to the film has set up a website to collect voluntary donations from those who have illegally downloaded the movie.

    In a situation that is highly unusual for the Russian film industry, independent digital producer Slava Smirnov set up the website Leviathan-film.ru, aimed at collecting donations, explaining his move as a desire to fight pirated distribution and make sure that users pay for online content.

    “Piracy harms production of content, so it’s vital that creators are compensated and online content is paid for in one way or another,” Smirnov said on his Facebook account. “I promise that all collected money will be handed over to the film’s crew.”

    The website was set up on Tuesday, and money collection is to continue through February 5, Leviathan’s official release date in Russia.

    Alexander Rodnyansky, Leviathan’s producer, was quoted by the Russian news agency RIA Novosti as saying that the film crew had nothing to do with the initiative but welcomed it.

    “We are very grateful for this show of empathy,” he said, adding that all the cash collected through the web site will be directed to the children’s charitable fund Give Them Life, run by actress Chulpan Khamatova.

    Leviathan, arguably the most anticipated Russian movie in recent times, won the best screenplay award at Cannes and Russia’s first Golden Globe since 1969. The pirated online release of the movie, which deals with acute social issues, caused a massive discussion in the Russian press and the social media, with some people hailing it as a masterpiece and others accusing the film of presenting Russia in a negative light. Officials from the Russian government snubbed the movie claiming that they had problems with the level of profanity in the film.

    A pirated copy of the film appeared on Russian torrents on January 11, just hours before Leviathan was announced as a Golden Globe winner in the best foreign language film category. Producers attributed the leak to a DVD sent to one of Academy members as Leviathan was also nominated for the best foreign language film Oscar.

     

    •Source: HR

     

  • A sense of legacy

    A sense of legacy

    Not long ago, the nation witnessed a case of self-accounting. Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi sought the permission of the state House of Assembly to draw on the state’s savings. The state had reeled in the past year. The Federal Government had cut its monthly allocation by several billions, and its oil-rich fable had faded away.

    Civil servants, teachers, and ambitious projects creaked desperately from neglect. He had to do something. Banks no longer obliged, so the road was shut to loans. Even the Federal Government had given a directive that banks should clear any state loans with the finance minister. The banks, run by timid souls, know the directive as illegal but they bow. They know it defiles banking independence and federalist principles, but they bow.

    Amaechi’s vision had, however, bought his independence. He did not need to go to Jonathan with a beggar’s bowl. He did not need to cajole the cowardly consciences of the bank chief executives. When he became governor, the state rustled with money. He admitted that palmy days were not forever. He had a balmy thought – to prepare for the rainy day. He did not expect misery to howl in the now, in his era as governor. He looked at a generation away. In his lens, he saw an era looming with empty oil wells and emaciated purses, when oil would no longer be the queen of resources.

    He had enough to work with, and so he chastened the spendthrift temptation of the day and kept at least a billion a month in the bank.

    Well, the rainy day came sooner than anticipated. His vision marked the difference between he who sees and he who looks. Amaechi saw, even when the Federal Government had turned the nation’s reserve into a bleeding mule, thinning from $68 billion to $37 billion. Rivers State can chew its cud while others cuddle with anxiety.

    What Governor Amaechi has done is the difference between a great leader and the routine man in the saddle. The Amaechi story is important because he is the chief shepherd of Rivers State, and that state is one of the pivotal entities in our federation. It is the beacon of the East, while Lagos holds the West and Kano the North. For a nation that relies on oil, Port Harcourt is the capital of oil. So, Rivers State is one of the states in the federation to watch as the present governor takes a back seat and a new one emerges.

    We need a governor with the same – if not better – sort of energy and organisational acumen as well as vision to pilot the state.

    Much has happened under the watch of the man who was once deprived of his right to the saddle. The Owu chief had a lifetime ago described with scorn his claim to the governor chair. He said his case had “K leg.” The cripple now walks with swagger. But the Rivers State he took over comes to memory, among others, as a state no one wanted to visit. I remember walking the street once and everyone in Port Harcourt had to raise their hands to indicate they had no guns. The air bristled with martial portent. Expatriates no longer loved the Garden City. Oil money became crude because safety was better.

    Amaechi became governor without access even to the rudiment of a governor’s safety. He reached to his colleague, the ebullient Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State, to help him with security vehicles. Yet, it was Amaechi that drove the militants out of town and anyone can walk the entrails of the Garden City with hands in the pocket.

    The job of any government is to eliminate poverty. In this society, the urban centres reflect the ugliness of class divide. The rich mock the poor with their extravagant decadence of cars, palaces, parties, private jets and boats. To bring the society into a place of fairness, we have often wanted governments to take infrastructure development and education seriously.

    None of our literary lights has in the picturesque skill of the realist painted the Nigerian poverty. Not Achebe, not Soyinka, not Clark. When Dickens wrote his Bleak House, David Copperfield, especially Oliver Twist, the Prime Minister was worried and asked him if his characters really lived in London. The graphic tales of inequality permeate the narratives of Jane Austen, and Balzac told tales of the depredations of the post-Napoleon and the new industrial societies on the ordinary folks. No one can forget Balzac’s Old Goriot. We have not seen the tragi-comic spectacle of the disabled embarking on a parade known as the feast of fools as graphically set in Victor Hugo’s The Hunch Back of Notre Dame.

    If our literature focuses generally on post-colonial anomie, it is probably time to tell specific stories of beggary and inequality. Right now it is newspaper reporters who bear that heroic task. But a great novel or play can immortalise this chasm between rich and poor. Festus Iyayi’s stories work as themes but not as artifice.

    Rivers State is one of such states where the governor has made efforts to address the inequalities. We know that governance is a continuum. His education programme, for instance, in which secondary schools look like some of our universities in ambience, facilities, teachers and architecture, require sustenance. It is not enough to have them. It is important to see them as a way of life, not privilege for a time. My former teacher, Prof. Biodun Jeyifo, wrote in his column how he visited the model schools and one of the teachers made a darkly funny observation. She said although the children in the schools were from poor parents, their parents were not interested in their education.

    An oil-rich state with so much inequality where the lazy and criminal live in plenty while industrious persons beg from them. The result is cynicism about education, which is a slow grind to light. Why wait for a nine-month pregnancy if you can induce the baby in nine days? That is the warped logic of oil in today’s Nigeria.

    So while Amaechi has built a solid foundation in education and infrastructure and health care, the state ought not be allowed to fall into the wrong hands. If his successor does not understand the dynamics of governance and only eyes the opportunity to be a fat-cat chief executive presiding over thin and miserable citizens, it will be tragic. It is very easy to reverse the work of a visionary. As they say, a good success depends on a good successor.

    It is going to be a slugfest between the urbane Peterside Dakuku and the PDP nominee to be decided Monday. Rivers State voters must guard jealously the legacy of Amaechi. If they vote the wrong person, they will see before their eyes the loss of what they have taken for granted. Rivers State is not only important to the people of Rivers State, just as Lagos State is not only important to Lagosians. Whoever takes charge of Lagos, Rivers or Kano holds a huge chunk of our patrimony in trust. But it begins with the people and their votes.

  • Legacy Pension Managers eyes informal sector

    TO grow its share of the market, a leading Pension Fund Administrator (PFA), Legacy Pension Managers Limited, is planning to go into Nigeria’s hugely under tapped informal sector.

    The move, which would it leverage on its yet-to-be released guidelines by the National Pension Commission (PenCom), would see the PFA explore effective strategies, such as bond building with operators in the informal sector to enable it penetrate the market.

    The pension managers, which has also paid over N20 billion in benefits in its eight years is also aiming to expand its information technology infrastructure to enable it boost its customer service delivery.

    Disclosing this at the sidelines of its  Customer Forum  in Lagos, Moustapha Muhammed, General Manager, Legacy Pension Managers Limited, said having seen a substantial growth on all fronts, against the backdrop of a consistent and focused management team, the firm is now set to grow its market footprint into the informal sector.

    “Since inception, we have had a stable and credible management board and this is a huge advantage for us, “ he said.

     

  • Abia’s journey, Orji’s legacy

    Abia’s journey, Orji’s legacy

    As Governor Theodore Orji led his people to celebrate the state’s 23rd anniversary last week, Associate Editor, Sam Egburonu, takes a look at Abia State’s journey so far and reports that the ‘legacy projects’ of the outgoing governor, if preserved and put in proper use, are poised to lay fresh foundation for future socio-economic and political development of the state.

    Monday, August 25 to Wednesday, August 28, 2014 will remain indelible in the minds of Governor Theodore Orji and the people of Abia State. Throughout those days, and indeed, all through the week, the state government and the people rolled out drums to celebrate the 23rd anniversary of the creation of the state.

    Created from the old Imo State on 27th August, 1991 by the then military government of General Ibrahim Babangida, the South-East state, with 2006 census population of 2,833.999, is one of the nine constituent states of the Niger Delta region.

    The celebration

    The colour, the dance and the joy that defined series of activities in Umuahia during the week-long anniversary reveal, according to a retired civil servant, Chief Nkemjika Udoka, “the notion most Abians share today – that in spite of criticisms, Abia, after over two decades of aimless crawling like a baby, has finally found her feet, a solid foundation to rest on in order to commence the journey for future progress and success.”

    Chief Udoka, who danced heartily with some women groups, during the Tuesday ceremonies at the Government House, Umuahia, told The Nation: “I am no longer in the service; but I was here when it all began in 1991, when we left Owerri (Imo State capital) to resume in Umuahia here. There were no offices. For over a decade when I was still here, the story remained the same. It continued and many of us, who have visited other states that were created at the same time with our state, were ashamed that we may celebrate our silver jubilee in rented and dilapidated offices. What we are seeing today, two years to the silver jubilee, shows that Abia is poised to wake up after all. That’s why an old man like me wants to dance today,” he said as he hurried off to acknowledge and join approaching Ohafia war dancers.

    For the people and their governor, Chief Theodore Ahamefule Orji, it is a period of camaraderie and stock taking as they approach the silver jubilee of the state fondly called “God’s Own state.”

    Legacy Concept

    The 23rd anniversary is described as unique for two reasons: Being the last anniversary the current governor, Orji, would host in that capacity, it is considered an end of a political era and the beginning of another and also a kind of send forth for the governor, or so to say. Secondly, admirers of Orji’s administration say his legacy projects have indeed laid a fresh socio-economic and political foundation for the state and will therefore be considered as the new dawn for Abia.

    The argument is that most of the basic infrastructural facilities needed for effective take off and administration of the state were not provided by the previous governments, thus leaving the state dormant and the capital look like an abandoned colonial village. Such basic facilities that remained mere illusion for over two decades in the life of Abia State included a functional secretariat, offices for ministries and parastatals, a befitting capital city, preliminary foundations for development of new cities, modern estates and projects that would launch and sustain new economic base for the state and her people.

    Given the absence of these elementary needs, it become clear to all that Abia needed a new beginning, a new foundation. It was his attempt to provide these primary needs, something that should have been done by the pioneers, that are referred to today as Orji’s legacy projects. If you ask him what he would like to be remembered for after his tenure as the governor, Orji, without hesitation would tell you, “I want to be remembered as a legacy governor.”

    So, what are these legacies the governor always harps on? Besides intangible but concrete legacies, like creation of conducive political atmosphere for unity, cooperation and progress, maintenance of peace through adequate security of lives and property; Orji refers to provision of the basic infrastructural facilities as the legacy projects.

    Talking about these projects, the Abia State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Dr Eze Chikamnayo, said in a recent interview: “In the last inventory that we took on the achievement of Chief T. A. Orji administration, we had over 10,000 standing projects that we can point at on ground.”

    Amongst the most outstanding of these physical projects are the ultra modern International Conference Centre, Umuahia; the new governor’s lodge, the workers secretariat complex, relocation of the old market that was at the centre of Umuahia to a more spacious location, the sprouting Abia State Events Centre at the location of the old market, roads, housing estates and others.

    Commenting on the anniversary and Orji’s legacy, Chief Bob Ogbuagu, a nationalist and one of the founding fathers of Abia, reportedly described this period as “the finest hour,” of the state. He added, “I believe in what Ochendo is doing. He is not doing most of them for now but for the future. They are what could pass as foundational projects. I commend him for what he has been able to do so far.”

    The governor, in his fraternal message at the current anniversary also emphasised what he set out to achieve and what the anniversary meant to him and to the state. As he puts it: “This year’s Abia Day Celebration is particularly unique in the sense that it will herald the last I will celebrate with Abians in my capacity as their gubernatorial steward. It hurts to say goodbye, but the expediency of exiting when the ovation is loudest cannot be over- emphasised. The inauguration of any endeavour is as vital as its closing activities.

    “Today in retrospect evidently brings to life how I was made a trusted instrument to fearlessly drive the much -expected new dawn in Abia, which was desirous of prosperity and a new lease of life.

    “The responsibility was enormous with the capacity to make one’s mind skip a bit, especially in the reconciliatory reality of gaping infrastructural decay and political confinement, which had been the pathetic lot of Abia since creation. Application of the much expected template however ushered the needed new horizon.”

    Political horizon

    Besides physical infrastructure which many agree is primary in the running of the state and for future economic boost, the search for a better Abia has been articulated mostly in the area of politics. Many observers have contended that the political fortunes of Abia since its creation has remained a shame, largely. It has been a long tale of rivalries, quarrels and political intrigues that left the state and her people politically raped in the open gallery.

    Hon. Mao Ohuabunwa, a former member of House of Representatives and one of the key players of Abia politics since 1999, captured this development in an interview he granted some editors as part of the preparations for the anniversary. As he puts it: “Immediately we came in, less than a year, the former governor had a problem with the deputy governor. The polity was heated up and from that time, things no longer got better. In 2001, there were serious problems too. Then, we had the Abuja Group with Chief Ojo Maduekwe, Chief Vincent Ogbulafor, etc leading the bloc. There was Lagos Group, Taliban Group, Home-based Group, name it. There was serious factionalisation and that posed danger to the polity and governance. But today, we no longer hear of Abuja, Taliban, Lagos, Home, Mao Ohuabunwa or Chief Onyema Ugochukwu Group. Today, it’s one group, all running around the governor.”

    Given this achievement ahead 2015 general elections, most Abians who spoke to The Nation in Umuahia during the week expressed hope that Orji will employ the same strategy he used in uniting the once warring political foes in Abia to overcome the current debate over power shift.

    Already, chants of political battle can be heard loud and clear. So, concerned observers are asking: “Who would be the next governor of Abia State? Who will Ochendo back? How will the current debate between sons and daughters of Ngwa extraction in the Central and South, over zoning of the office of governor, be resolved? Are the other stakeholders in the North, especially Isuikwuato, Item, Nkporo, Alayi, Abiriba, Uzuakoli, Nkpa, Ugwueke and so on, also being carried along adequately to ensure peace, cooperation and a sense of belonging?

    As Orji prepares to leave office next year, concerned observers are saying he should personally ensure such pertinent questions are resolved while he is still on seat ahead 2015.

    This is so because it seems widely acknowledged today that part of what has been the challenge in Abia politics is application of wrong strategies and or philosophies by some of the past leaders, especially what an analyst summed up as “divisive strategy.”

    So, if today, the application of new templates, as governor Orji said, is changing the face and fortunes of Abia state, there are genuine calls for him to apply more of such strategies before 2015.

    As Prof. Obasi Igwe, the Guest Lecturer at 23rd Anniversary of Abia pointed out in his paper entitled, “Contemporary Development Strategy in Nigeria: The Abia State Perspective,” “Strategy conceived in terms of means and methods is both unnecessary and redundant without a socioeconomic and political vision, guided by an emotional love for your people, total awareness of their historical and objective conditions, and a patriotic zeal to become a significant factor in addressing them.”

    It would appear this is what was missing in Abia political strategy before the current efforts of Orji’s administration. Igwe also made this point when he said “Abia is at a crossroads. A lot needed to be done that was not done since its creation 23 years ago in 1991, until a few years back when Chief T. A. Orji, touched by utter neglect by those earlier trusted to assume their responsibilities, and with almost nothing in the coffers, started amidst divers additional challenges imposed on him, to do something to actually inaugurate the process of building up Abia State.”

    From all indications, it is evident that this is just the beginning of the journey for Abia greatness.

  • Legacy School clocks 25

    As Legacy Schools, Akowonjo, in Lagos rolls out the drums for its Silver Jubilee celebrations, the school is set to extend its yearly scholarships to more deserving pupils.

    It also made calls to the public to send their wards to sit for her entrance examination, which comes up on Saturday, September 13 at the school premises.

    Shortlisted pupils, according to the school, will enjoy a 50 per cent discount in tuition and cost of books.

    Already, application forms, which attracts 50 per cent discount, are on sale to interested candidates. It  closes tomorrow.

    According to Legacy Head of School, Sunkanmi Vaughan, the board of the school has approved special scholarship for children endowed in fields such as academics, sports, ICT and music.

    Speaking with The Nation, Vaughan said over the last 15 years, Legacy Schools have committed to offering scholarships to children in orphanages. However, the board of the school has approved same gesture to more deserving pupils as part of activities to celebrate its 25 years of existence.

    “In the last 15 years, we have remained committed to our scholarships, which are mainly for children of the Little Saints Orphanages which forms part of our corporate social responsibility. But as part of our 25 years anniversary the board (of the school) feels gifted children should also enjoy same privilege.

    “For now, we are targeting children from Year seven and above because we believe this category of pupils are a bit more matured and can do things quite independently. We are though, not yet specific on the number of children to be considered for the scholarships. However, for a start, we are not looking less than 50.”

    As part of the celebration, Vaughan said a standard hostel and two Olympic-size swimming pool would be commissioned next month. The school, he added, is planning its alumni reunion to coincide with the school valedictory service next year.

    Legacy School was founded in 1989 as an elite international school. Its mantra is anchored on ‘providing a premium education with strong emphasis on morals’. It is a Cambridge Associated School accredited by the British Council/Cambridge International Examination Board. Legacy Schools is also accredited for the Nigerian Curriculum by Ministry of Education at both state and Federal levels.  It is a boarding /day school, which operates various arms including crèche, preparatory and high school.

  • Okey Wali: What legacy?

    Okey Wali: What legacy?

    After a two-year stewardship, outgoing Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) president Okey Wali will hand over to his incoming successor Augustine Alegeh (SAN) on Friday.  How did he fare in office?  ADEBISI ONANUGA assesses his tenure

    HOW did outgoing Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) president Okey Wali fare in office? Some lawyers believe he could have done better if he had got his priorities.  Others argue that he could not have done more than he did considering the circumstances.  Wali came to office with high hopes, promising to make the Bar the voice of the people. But under his watch, the NBA  leadership blew muted trumpet on virtually all issues.  The association seemed to be  cosy with government rather than being critical of it.  To a lawyer, Akintayo Iwilade, Wali  would have left a legacy if he ensured the democratisation of NBA’s electoral process.

    The Wali-led executive came into office in July, 2012.

    In his inaugural speech, Wali  said his vision was to move the association forward and went ahead to encapsulate his programme of action in 10 Cardinal Point Agenda as listed: “Branch Capacity Building; Professionalising the Secretariat ; Financial Responsibility; Human Capacity Building; Institutional Synergy with Regional and International Organisations, Bar Associations and Law Societies; Human Rights Programme; Anti-Corruption Crusade; Uplifting Professional Standards; Criminal Justice System and Access to Justice and Robust Legislative Advocacy”.

    He set three major tasks for his administration under the  cardinal programmes:

    i)Welfare of our colleagues. The welfare of our colleagues shall be paramount. We will run a Bar that cares and is felt by its membership, whilst ensuring that the best traditions of the profession are maintained

    ii)A watch dog or Gate keeper for the Nigerian People, we shall definitely intervene  on any issues, if and when we believe that the ship of state is adrift  and that

    iii)Justice sector reforms will be kept in the front burner.

    He said: “Law practice needed to be better organised and more well structured than it is now. For instance, how many lawyers are in practice in Nigeria? What minimum standard should be approved for a place to be called a law firm or chamber? Why should it take donkey years, as in litigation, to discipline a lawyer who has been reported to the Disciplinary Committee?” , he asked.

    “For me these are some of the fundamental issues in our justice sector and my 10-point cardinal agenda very clearly deals with those issues”, he further stated.

    Wali went on:“We shall take deliberate and determined steps to stem the tide. More disciplinary Committees will be set up. A situation where lawyers with pending disciplinary matters are elevated, even up to taking silk and judicial appointments cannot be right and must stop. In addition to ensuring that disciplinary matters are heard and determined promptly and adequate punishment meted out, we will ensure more education on professional ethics. Besides continuing legal education for lawyers, we will take steps to ensure that professional ethics is taught as a core subject in the Universities, as a few months of teaching professional ethics at the Nigerian Law School is obviously not enough education on professional ethics.

    “We have seen that so many cases of professional misconduct are sometimes, out of ignorance. From dress code, professional confidentialities, fiduciary problems to outright lack of integrity. As a lawyer, your integrity must be your greatest asset, lose it or do not have it, and you have nothing and you are not worthy to be a member of this honourable and noble profession. We will be interfacing with the Federal Ministry of Education and the National Universities Commission on this all important issue. We must return to the best traditions of the Bar and like I said to my colleagues while seeking this office, if I achieve the return to the ethos of the Profession as President, I will walk away a fulfilled man at the end of my tenure as president of Nigerian Bar Association,” he stated.

    Wali promised to look into the rot in the society which he noted was sipping into the profession, and stressed that it must not be allowed to continue.

    “We shall take deliberate and determined steps to stem the tide. More disciplinary Committees will be set up. A situation where lawyers with pending disciplinary matters are elevated, even up to taking silk and judicial appointments cannot be right and must stop,” he said.

    With these words and many more promises made, expectations were high within and outside the Bar that his administration would continue in the stead of his predecessors. But, midway into his tenure, members of the NBA started seeing the leadership in a different light. They accused the leadership of timidity in the handling of national issues and, most especially, infringements on the Constitution by the President among other issues.

    The administration of Wali witnessed the  inauguration of the Governing Council of the Young Lawyers’ Forum.  In his speech at the inauguration of the forum in Abuja, Wali had noted that the number of young lawyers keeps increasing every year, without commensurate efforts to meet the challenges these young lawyers face in terms of welfare and professional career growth. He said that it was to address the issues bothering on the welfare of young lawyers, which have been impeding their professional growth, that led to the establishment of Nigerian Bar Association Young Lawyers Forum (NBA-YLF).

    Two weeks ago, the Wali-led administration inaugurated a six-storey edifice on high brow Victoria Island, Lagos. The building, erected through Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT), is behind the NBA House and was built by Dr. Wale Babalakin through one of his firms, Stabilini Visinoni Limited. Wali said the property was developed to boost NBA status as well as shore up its revenue, just as he emphasised the need for continuity in governance.

    He also made landmark pronouncements on national issues.  At the end of a Peace and Security Summit in Abuja last year, the NBA called on the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency in the education sector to arrest its decline in the sector forestall the looming horrendous future, 20 to 30 years from, of the country being dominated by ill-educated and ill-equiped citizenry.

    To curb corruption by those holding executive positions, the NBA under the leadership of Wali called for the removal of the immunity clause which is vested on serving governors and the President for the fight against corruption to be meaningful. At the height of the crisis that rocked the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) last year, the NBA advised members of the forum to concentrate on the business of governance so as not to incur the wrath of the electorate. He advised them to resolve their crisis and focus on the delivery of the dividends of democracy. Expressing concern over the crisis of the NGF, Wali warned the Forum against deviating from its objectives adding that the recent activities of the NGF are an eloquent testimony to the primacy of politics over provision of good governance and development for Nigerians.

    To improve operations of the judiciary, Wali also last year, called for the use of automated recording system in courts to enhance speedy dispensation of justice. He reiterated the need for the judiciary to improve on court processes in order to meet up with the increasing number of court cases in the country, lamented that that Nigerian courts did not belong to the present dispensation technologically.

    “Our courts technologically speaking do not belong to this century and our judges cannot do much in this circumstance.”We do not have the facilities in the courts, so you have a situation where in 2013 our judges still take down notes in long hands and that is horrible.

    “If you go outside this clime and you watch court proceedings, you would discover that the whole thing is being recorded. We have to technologically update our courts. There must be automated recording system in the courts”, he  said urging  relevant authorities to quickly equip Nigerian courts to meet global standards.

    Wali declined to participate in the just concluded National Conference to protest the single slot allocated to the association by the Federal Government. At its executive meeting in Ekiti State, the association said one representative from the body was insufficient for it to make an impact at the conference. “In view of the fact that so many legal issues would be addressed at the national conference, it is only fitting and proper for the umbrella association of all lawyers, the profession with expertise on law making in Nigeria should have more than one slot,” the NBA President, Okey Wali, announced in the communiqué he signed after the meeting.

     

    REACTIONS

    Iwilade said: “I would have wished the lingering question of full democratisation of the electoral processes leading to choosing the national leadership of the Bar, through universal suffrage, was frontally addressed. But it wasn’t. Unfortunately, that remains the fulcrum on which our moral authority, to sermonise on issues like defense of constitutionalism etc, can sustainably stand.”

    However, a former Secretary of a branch of the NBA, who asked not to be named,  said the Bar did not fare well under Wali. He scored zero in some areas, adding that the outgoing did wellin other areas where  he made promises at inauguration .

    “Without mincing words, I’ll tell you straightaway that NBA did not fare better than the way it was before the assumption of leadership by the outgoing administration under the leadership of Wali .”

    On human rights, he scored Wali  zero. According to him, NBA at the national level did not do enough to speak and take action against many mindless violations of the rights of voiceless Nigerians and even the privileged ones who were battered and had their rights violated by government at various levels.

    On lawyers’ welfare, he said nothing was done to improve the plights of  lawyers particularly the junior ones in the last two years. “So, its zero performance as far as I know”.

    He, however, admitted that the “the NBA under Wali’s  presidency advocated for discipline in the Judiciary. The praise and glory however should go to the Chief Justice of  Nigeria, Aloma Mukhtar who has doggedly battled indiscipline in the judiciary.

    “On lawyers’ discipline,  the outgoing NBA President actually made discipline of lawyers a top priority of his administration. I’ll however say NBA saw more lawyers being disciplined by way of suspension or outright de-robing. But did that result into a decrease in indiscipline amongst Nigerian lawyers, I’ll say No”.

    He said Wali’s scorecard on the defence of the rule of law/Constitution is average, while admitting that  there were instances when the outgoing administration took some steps towards the defence of the rule of law, but no serious effort could be said to have been manifestly made in that direction.

    “Integrity of the Bar was a serious issue in the last two years. Even those who are not lawyers questioned the integrity of the Bar. It is certainly a very low rating for me.”

    On the performance of the NBA as the voice of the down trodden ” it is sadly a far below average performance for me. It will be more embarrassing to start listing instances where an average Nigerian would have expected action from the NBA, but silence was the case”, he said.