The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Metamorphosis

  • Metamorphosis

    Yenagoa, Yenagoa

    Twice I call you

    Like New York that is so good they call it New York, New York 

    Stretched out on water

    You wear the agbada of an

     Emerging voice in search of identity

     

    The signs on your junctions tell the tale of a land

     In love with Jesus

    If I were Olamide

    I would have screamed: ‘Jesu ti take over’ 

     

    Decorated with architectural masterpieces, ongoing and forgotten buildings

     And bubbling with excitement,

    You awake the bard in me

    And make me scream Yenegoa, Yenagoa

    A long way you have indeed come

     

    The Yenegoa I walked through for close to two hours on Easter Sunday got me singing. Gone was the one I knew when I last visited over a decade ago.

    Walking through the city reminds me of New York. Not in its glamour or illusions. New Yorkers will tell you New York is better seen on foot. New York is fun to walk through because of its walkways.

    The walkways on the Isaac Boro Expressway lured me almost from its beginning to the Flyover overlooking what would turn out to be Bayelsa’s best hotel.  I stopped counting the floors in this 18-storey hotel when I got to 12 or thereabouts.  Even its carcasses look promising.

    Passing through the edifice reminds me of how ex-President Goodluck Jonathan once described it. He called it ‘monument of disgrace’. That was because his successor as governor, Timipre Sylva, abandoned the state. Sylva said he took the decision after the contractor asked for a variation of N5 billion. The picture of its final look I saw shows that it will be a masterpiece when completed. I look forward to beholding this beauty.

    I would have missed a lot if I had driven through Yenagoa. Chances are high I would not have known that a land belonging to former Governor DSP Alamieyeseigha now hosts a signpost warning trespassers.

    I certainly would have missed the fact that Jesus has taken over Yenagoa. I must have counted no less than 30 churches between NIIT Junction and Kpansia. I would also have missed the interesting names of the churches.

    I saw Anointed Frequency International Ministries, Bethel of Fire Deliverance Ministry, Staff of Greatness International Church, Divine Connection Church, Flaming Fire Pentecostal Church, Omega Eagle City Church, Spring House Ministries International, Godspower Dominion Church and City of Zuph International Ministries.

    There are more:  Anchor of Hope Church, Fruit-Bearing Gospel Church, Garden of Intercessor Ministry, City of Righteousness, Royal House of Grace, Divine Power Liberation, Christ Envoy and Redeemer Methodist Episcopal Zion Church.

    Driving through would have made me miss the fact that traders in Yenagoa have something in common with their colleagues in Lagos. Despite a signpost threatening to prosecute them, they stay put on the road and litter everywhere.

    I saw the popular Aridolf Wellness Resort and Spa said to be owned by a member of an ex First Family. The grandeur once associated with it seems to be fading. Even the satellite dish sitting on top it is fast rusting. I also saw EFCC at work on a building.

    What else did I see? Yenagoa is no longer the village I knew a little over a decade ago. Its oil wealth is showing.  So many petrol stations are springing up. Standard ones and not petrol filling posts. Nice concrete inner roads that can give water a good fight.

    When I think of the uncompleted buildings, I cannot but remember my cab driver from Port Harcourt Airport. He told how under President Goodluck Jonathan money flowed and he used to make two trips every day to Yenagoa and how he was generously paid. He urged the government to recover stolen wealth and in another breadth wished a return of those days of free cash, a classical case of the clash between general and self-interest. Could some of the abandoned private buildings be victims of cessation of free cash flow to the owners? Just thinking aloud!

     

    BAYELSA GOT TALENTS

    They go by names such as Jah Wonder, GeeBonz, AJ, Senibo, Barrack Pikin and Funny Effizy. They all have something in common. They are all from Bayelsa State. They are also all artists. Some sing. Some are comedians.

    They all were part of the Restoration Easter Fest, which took place in Yenagoa, the state capital on Easter Sunday. The packed hall was kept engaged for over three hours. It was the government’s way of allowing the youths to be engaged, commissioner for Information and Orientation Daniel Iworiso-Markson said. There was music and acrobatic display. The comedy was great. Jokes upon jokes. Many original. A few from established hands in the business.

    A fantastic female comedian told us about how she went job hunting and was asked to do frog jump. She wondered if it was a sin to be fat. The salary of the job she was being asked to do frog-jump was a paltry N15,000. She insulted the employer and left.

    I can never forget the guy who did rap music in Ijaw. We know Phyno, who raps in Igbo. We know Olamide who does his in Yoruba. A star is in the making if given the necessary exposure.

    The goodness in these acts made a poet out of Fidelis Soriwei, my friend and Special Adviser to the Bayelsa State governor.

    Below is the song Fidelis sang on Facebook after seeing the show:

    “Last night I met her again

    Arrayed in the power of her colors

    The Easter tells of her story

    A true epic of blessings

    “Bayelsa is Great, Bayelsa is beauty

    Bayelsa breeds confidence

    Bayelsa! Bayelsa! the hope of the Ijaw Nation

    Truly, the Glory òf All Land

    “A river of talent flows through the land!

    So when her name is mentioned

    I refuse to see a conundrum of cultism,

    Never, the violence!

    “I see a land, so beautiful, so blessed

    Where talents, so natural  parade the cities

    A land of creativity, sprouting in strength

    Where many Timayas, Asu Ekiyes, Siasias, Finidis, Igali

    Are Waiting, waiting to explode!

    “Bayelsa!

    Truly, the glory of all land!”

     

  • Kachikwu’s metamorphosis

    Ibe Kachikwu, Minister of State is back once again to the old game of foretelling. Recall that he prophesied moments after the federal government hived off subsidy that petrol price would come crashing after six months? Never mind that the May 2016 prophecy never came to pass, last week was for him an occasion to roll out another audacious prophecy that product  prices will crash in the next four to six months! Like one reading from a crystal ball, he saw “competition inherent in the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) price modulation”, relative stability of the market, and, the three refineries are working simultaneously, although at 50 % of their capacity – for which we all must be glad that the good times are here – finally!

    To be sure, Kachikwu is no prophet; but even if he was, I’ll probably have taken him on, all the same – mindful of course of the story of that fellow in the Bible who ran into trouble after daring the prophet as told in the book of 2 Kings 7: 2. The no-nonsense Prophet Elisha it was that pronounced the cessation, within hours, of the terrible famine which reduced Samaria to a cannibal colony. A palace aide, obviously flustered by its sheer audacity had quipped “Behold, if the LORD should make windows in heaven, could this thing be?”  Well, sure as he said, the word of the prophet came to pass barely 24 hours later while the poor fellow died – trampled afoot – but not before witnessing ‘live’ its fulfilment exactly as the prophet had foretold!

    Six months of course barely 180 days from now – in which case, the miraculous could still happen. However, considering that Nigerians had just about twice the space of time to get the earlier prophecy fulfilled to their frustration, they ought to be forgiven for taking this latest voyage in futurology with a pinch of salt! For while Minister Kachikwu cannot be said to be new to the oily business, for the hard-nosed technocrat drafted by President Muhammadu Buhari to clean up a graft-ridden industry a little while ago, his metamorphosis would seem about now complete with his latest induction into the club of mealy-mouthed politicians.

    Remember how he started out: he wanted the refineries sold – if need be – as scrap. Later he demurred – arguing that they could be fixed with private funds. Now he’s drum major – if you like the champion – of the quest to get the government put scarce funds into the bottomless pits!

    Unfortunately, had the minister not been too eager to cart home the trophy before the game is called, we probably might be looking more dispassionately at the current state of the industry as against what he inherited.

    Left to the minister and his boss, progress is supposed to be served in tokens; from the sink holes described as refineries to the incurably obsolete pipelines right up to the dysfunctional dry depots, progress must come as incremental, snail-paced; that is supposed to be the rule at a time hydrocarbons are increasingly dated.

    That is why the so-called “competition inherent in the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) price modulation” is supposed to be big deal; something that would ordinarily be deemed as ordinary in an industry driven by volume. Never mind that the fundamentals have not changed in any significant manner. Or the question of whether the costs are truly going down or are there other dynamics at play? We are supposed to roll out the drums that the club of traders have, after flooding of the market with imported white products, are offering marginal discounts as one would in the normal run of business!

    The truth of course is that story of steady climb-down in the price of petrol is more farcical than real. While it is true that some stations sell for N143 per litre as against the official price of N145, the development is neither widespread nor has it proven to be sustainable to warrant the minister’s exaggerated notice.  As for diesel –a product which admittedly has ceased to be the high-priced commodity that it was in recent past, the reason is not far-fetched: the refineries – although in fits and starts – have lately been pushing limited quantities of the product into the local market; which of course explains why the price returned to the upward climb as soon as Kaduna and Port Harcourt refineries went out of action, leaving Warri Refinery, which itself is only now returning into operation after a break.

    Howbeit, Nigerians only need to recall that the current stability in supply was purchased at a princely cost of a hike in fuel price of nearly 80 percent if only to appreciate the true measure of the ‘achievement’.  Moreover, considering that the Jonathan administration, its predecessor never enjoyed the luxury –one would have expected that the administration to be less exuberant in staking such as achievement.

    Like the refineries, the other pressing issue in the industry is the state of the pipelines and depots. Last week, I did a quick enquiry. Here is what I found: The Satellite Depot in Ejigbo, Lagos has been out of action in the last six weeks; during the period, it has remained – dry. The one in Ibadan is said to have managed to receive some quantities of white products, but is yet to resume operations. The same with the depot in Ore and Ilorin; at the moment, no loading is going on in the two depots leaving Sagamu (Mosinmi) in the entire western zone in operation! As for the pipelines, while the federal government is said to have done a heroic job of tending to them, the reality today is that they are not yet in the fuel supply matrix. Rather than address those critical infrastructures considered as the life-wire of the downstream sector of the oil industry, the government, true to its character continues to sell the dummy of an imminent price crash.

    Six months will be here, soon enough.

  • Metamorphosis of Etisalat

    Metamorphosis of Etisalat

    The collapse of negotiations between Etisalat and its consortium of bankers over  a $1.2 billion loan got to its climax with Emerging Markets Telecommunication Services Ltd (EMTS), trading as Etisalat Nigeria, getting a three-week ultimatum to drop the brand name. Assistant Editor LUCAS AJANAKU writes that the telco may be on the path of rebranding.

    WHEN the 0809ja was launched in Nigeria in 2008, its promoter EMTS said it was to affirm the Nigerianness of its origin and sphere of influence. Trading as Etisalat Nigeria, it said in its nine years of operation that it has remained a prime driver and avid supporter of the Nigerian spirit of excellence.

    Its Vice President (Regulatory & Corporate Affairs), Ibrahim Dikko said the telco will continue to maintain the “Naijacentric identity”, adding that this notion has been strongly reflected in the company’s core messages and depicted in major projects and initiatives which it has been known to support.

    Dikko said: “All these initiatives have their foundation embedded in supporting key aspects of the Nigerian fabric: building Nigerian businesses and empowering Nigerian’s with a focus on the youth.

    “Nigeria remains the soul of EMTS business and we have made the brand alluring to our teeming subscribers who see a piece of the spirit and character of Nigeria in everything we do.

    “EMTS is here to stay and we wish to assure our esteemed customers that our core values of youthfulness, customer-centricity and innovation will remain the pillars on which we operate.”

    But, all the noble values which the telco so much cherished may have been eroded by EMTS’ threat to withdraw its trading name from the current board midwifed by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

    The board is headed by Dr. Joseph Nnanna, a Deputy Governor (Financial System Stability) at the CBN.

    If EMTS makes good its threat to withdraw its trading name, then the telecom sector may witness another round of rebranding.

    The present day Airtel began operation in Nigeria as Econet Nigeria, a brand many believed came from Zimbabwe.

    But, Econet soon faded away and Vodacom, South Africa’s second largest telecoms brand stepped in.  Vodacom was like a flash in the pan before Bharti Airtel Limited, an Indian global telecoms services provider based in New Delhi, India. Airtel operates in 18 countries across South Asia and Africa.

     

    Stakeholders react

    Subscribers’ umbrella body, the National Association of Telecoms Subscribers of Nigeria (ATCON), has assured its members not to panic but remain faithful to the Etisalat brand. According to it, what the telco is passing through is a phase in the evolution of a potential great brand.

    Its President, Deolu Ogunbanjo, who lamented that the fortune of the telco had been mismanaged somehow, said the new management constituted under the leadership of Prof Garba Dambatta of the NCC and his counterpart in at the CBN, Godwin Emefiele, should be given time to put the business on a sound footing again.

    He, however, counselled the new board and management to put on their thinking caps as they have lots of work to do. He urged members of the new team to gird their loins preparatory to rebranding.

    Ogubanjo said: “Etisalat is a brand that warmed its way into the hearts of Nigerians, especially the youth segment. The subscribers should not panic at all. They should not allow Etisalat to go down because it has deepened competition.”

    According to him, the damage from the inevitable rebranding may do to the telco may be inconsequential, recalling that Airtel rebranded about five times before it stabilised.

    He urged the new management to imbibe the principles of corporate governance, the absence of which was the undoing of the former managers.

    The Association of Telecoms Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) said the development will put more pressure on the new management to find an immediate buyer for the company, as EMTS has no recognisable brand name in the industry.

    Its President, Olusola Teniola, noted that the Etisalat brand was associated with the youth segment of the market and “it appears that there is urgent need to ensure that the services and products that EMTS delivers can replicate that unique experience!”

    Teniola went on: “The Etisalat brand name holds significant intangible assets to EMTS and this allowed the current subscriber base to hold faith with the international experience and good will that the Emirates brought to Nigeria.

    “It would be best for the new management to learn from lessons already learnt from the various name changes that EcoNet went through to get to Airtel and ATCON seeks minimum impact on the subscribers if those lessons come to bear during this difficult period of transition for the company EMTS and the stakeholders in the industry, most especially the consumers.

    “Proactive effective messaging from EMTS is key to the success of any brand name change and to remove the uncertainty that surrounds any identify change. From Customer Care right through to technical support, it is important that infrastructure that supports the company is reliably run and in place to cope with the deluge of calls requesting information on ‘what next’ for the subscribers. Remember the ‘Customer is King’ in this situation.”

    Teniola, who is the former Chief Executive Officer of IS Internet Services and now a Client Partner for Detecon International, a subsidiary of Deutsch Telekom Group, Germany, reacted through an email sent to The Nation yesterday.

    He said that his association had foreseen and predicted the development, warning other carriers to learn one or two lessosns.

    Teniola said: “We in ATCON predicted this outcome and need to see the precedent that this sets for the rest of the industry, in particular in the way and manner funds are used to deploy capital intensive infrastructure.

    “The relationship with the banks and our members needs to reflect the current reality in this harsh business environment and it is best for all stakeholders to work together to find a permanent solution to the ‘funding gap’ that exists in the manner and way the industry attracts FDI or utilizes debt to realise its ambition.”

  • Dalong’s metamorphosis

    The Minister of Youths and Sports, Solomon Dalong stunned his colleagues when he turned up for the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting at the State House a fortnight ago.Most of his colleagues did not recognise him from the distance until they came close to him and saw his face while he was busy chatting away with other cabinet members before the commencement of the meeting.

    They could not recognise Dalong because he was dressed differently from his traditional attire.

    Right from when the cabinet was inaugurated by President Muhammadu Buhari in November, 2015, Dalong’s dressing had always been unique to the extent that none of the cabinet members could mistakeDalong for anyone else even in the dark.

    Whenever Dalong appeared in public since the cabinet inauguration, he more than 99.9 % appeared dressed as a comrade.He always cut the appearance of a military man, clad mostly in brown khaki safari, red beret, black bootsand dark eyeglasses to match.He never failed to stand at attention like a military man during the rendition of the national anthem in the Council Chamber.

    By his posture and unique dressing, he was, most often, the only Minister competing with Buhari’s Aide-De-Camp (ADC), Lawal Abubakar, during rendition of the national anthem.

    But he was more relaxed as the national anthem was rendered a fortnight ago as if his transformed dressing had an influence on him.

    Dalong attended the FEC meeting clad in a black caftan, black cap, black shoes and a white shirt under the caftan. His new dress code made the Minister of Communication, Adebayo Shittu to jokingly refer to him as the latest capitalist in town.

    Among his colleagues who were impressed by his appearance and came to greet him where he was standing included Minister of State for Agriculture, Heineken Lokpobiri, FCT Minister, Muhammadu Bello, Minister of Science and Technology, Ogbonnaya Onu, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama.

    The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir David Lawal also shook hands with Dalong before calling the house to order in preparation for President Buhari’s entry to the chamber.

    As if Dalong’s new dressing code has come to stay, the Minister again represented Vice President YemiOsinbajo two days later at the National Central Mosque, Abuja dressed in the same manner.

    Dalong at the Public Lecture in the mosque was dressed in ‘Babanriga’. The occasion was part of events marking the 56th independence anniversary of Nigeria.

    But Dalong, a week later, reverted to his customary comradeship dress code.

    He met with President Buhari last week Tuesday dressed in brown kaki safari, red beret, black boot and dark eye glasses.

    Dalong was also dressed in his traditional attire when he attended FEC last Wednesday.

    He was the only Minister in kaki safari in the hall standing at attention and with his right hand on his chest pushed forward during rendition of the National Anthem.

    Another person like him in the hall was Buhari’s ADC who stood still at attention and taking salute behind the President through the duration of the national anthem.

  • Mr Will’s metamorphosis

    Mr Will’s metamorphosis

    Something hit him. Something uncommon. Something out of the ordinary.  Until that day, it had never happened that he would fall asleep in his office while sitting on a swivel chair. Was he tired? No. The night before, he did not do anything tiring and since the day broke, he had not done anything serious.

    He had a dream during the sleep. In the dream, he saw some people in all white attires. There was another group in all black dresses. There was a huge barricade separating them all. And in between the barricade was a security guard who was preventing the people in black from escaping to the zone of those in white. Those in white were in comfort. The weather was fantastic. Life, in short, was good and beautiful. And just a barricade away the people in black were going through hell. So, they were doing all possible to cross to the section occupied by those in white.

    Mr Will soon found himself discussing with the security man, who was trying to prevent him from entering either side of the divide. His reason for preventing him was that he was not qualified to enter either side. As he was struggling to get in, the security man thundered:”Go back to the world. Correct all the bad things you have done. That way, when it is time for you to come here, you will be able to stay with the people in white. If you return here without amending your ways, there are no two ways around it, you will be with the people in black. Going by what the Almighty has allowed me to see, you still have another 41 years on earth. Go back and live in accordance with His rules. Don’t play God.”

    It was at this point that he woke up, sweating and wondering what hit him. In a rush, all the things he had done of recent started coming to him. Only seven days ago he predicted death for people trying to get power through the back-door. His statement that all those who betrayed him would not get the key to Power House also came to his memory. He also remembered that two months ago, he fired some high-ranking members of his government. Their sin: failure to be part of his plan to anoint a successor.

    He was soon clutching his phone to dial Main Man’s number. As he wrestled with the phone, his eyes met with the photo frame of hand power fist on the sparkling white wall. The frame was a gift from an old friend, who was an activist in his lifetime. Putting it here was his way of keeping his memory alive. The friend was a true democrat, who would not support anything dictatorial.

    “See me immediately,” he said to Main Man.

    Few minutes later, Main Man was with Mr Will.

    “Good morning, Your Excellency!” Main Man said.

    “Good morning,” Mr Will said. “How is the campaign going?”

    Main Man looked at him smiling.

    “The campaign is going on well. Thank you, Your Excellency. What you did during the sod turning ceremony really did it. It has put fear in them. Who wants to die? They are running helter-skelter now. I am sure they will allow us have our way now. Stupid people. They were daring His Excellency. They seem not to realise that as far as this Abasi State is concerned, you are God and it is His will that you install me as your successor.”

    “Okay. I want you to do something for me. I want a shortlist of people who want to succeed me on the platform of our great Umbrella Peoples Party (UPP). I want it on my table tomorrow,” Mr Will said.

    He added: “Make sure you leave out nobody even the pretenders.”

    As the Main Man left, the scene at the sod turning ceremony for the secretariat of the UPP replayed on his mind’s frame.

    His voice boomed: “This party of ours is not where anybody can just come and dictate how we do things. Anyone who wants to take power through the back-door will die. Those who betray me will never get to Power House. They will die if they try to and UPP will continue.”

    He felt bad hearing himself speak that way, speaking as though he were God with the power to give life and take it.

    His attention was soon diverted by Second-in-Command.

    “Good morning, Your Excellency!”

    “Good morning.”

    He offered him a seat.

    “What do you think of the way I am running our party?” Mr Will asked.

    There was a surprise on Second-in-Command’s face.

    “And give me a sincere answer. No boot-licking. Don’t be afraid of being victimised.”

    Second-in-Command could not find his voice for a long time and when he eventually did, all he could mutter was: “Your Excellency, you are not doing badly.”

    He smiled and said: “That will be all for now.”

    Mr Will grabbed his gold-plated android and called Main Man.

    “I don’t think I have the patience to wait till tomorrow. Meet me at the party’s secretariat in 30 minutes,” Mr Will said.

    He put a call through to the party chairman and asked him to call other Exco members.

    He was thereafter driven to the secretariat. He insisted no siren must be used. Only one patrol vehicle led the way.

    The chairman, Main Man and Exco members were waiting when he got there. Straight they went to the conference hall.

    “My brothers, I am sure you are all confused. There is no need to be. I have come here to tell you all that our party is going to organise free and fair primaries to choose our party’s governorship torch-bearer. I am not going to force anybody on the party or on the people. Let the best man have the job.”

    Main Man wanted to voice an objection, but he cut him short: “I will not be party to imposition. If imposition had worked in 2007, I will not be governor today.”

    He bade them farewell. He thereafter paid personal visits to everybody he had offended either on account of Mr Main Man or any other matter. He asked for their forgiveness. And he vowed that for the rest of his second term and life, he would live right. He simply carried on as though this life mattered not— working to find a space among the people in white. It was, indeed, an uncommon transformation.

  • APC: The great metamorphosis

    APC: The great metamorphosis

    The opposition in Nigeria is pregnant. Will it deliver safely? The sex of the baby is already known. A name has been proposed for it. The mother is not proposing an abortion to the midwife, which is the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Will it provide an atmosphere for safe delivery?

    Nigeria is on the threshold of history. Latter-day opposition leaders are achieving what the first generation of political leaders and their lieutenants could not achieve in the earlier dispensations. With the successful completion of the national conventions by the three political parties; the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), All Peoples Party (ANPP) and Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), the coast is clear. The All Progressive Congress (APC) is knocking at the electoral door. In two year’s time, it will challenge the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at the general elections. The prelude to that proposed battle will be the governorship contests in Anambra State this year and Osun and Ekiti states next year, where the formidable mega platform will test its strength.

    APC will be a popular party from the onset. It will serve as the oak tree offering shades to the critical progressives, ahead of 2015. It will trade in robust ideas and articulate the alternative solutions to the national question. Being the product of a determined effort at forging unity and cohesion among the scattered leftist politicians canvassing an alternative route to federal power, it will also premise its intervention in national affairs on its unquestionable national outlook.

    Reality had dawned on the arrowheads of the three parties, other groups and individuals in the alliance that the PDP, despite its poor record in power, can only be dislodged by combined forces. The prospect of an alternative platform has ultimately rekindled the hope that the opposition can overcome the weakness imposed by their slight differences. More importantly, it is a signal that there is a government in waiting, if the rot in government persists. It has the potential . Now that the opposition can bark and bite, the end result may be good governance.

    However, the emergence of the APC has implications for the leaders of the ACN, ANPP and ANPP, who have to forfeit the platforms in the national interest. Despite the fact that they may not be able to accurately forecast what the future holds for the proposed APC, they have never been found wanting in self-sacrifice. Now that the three parties are winding up, the leaders and their followers have to frontally confront the challenge of collective migration to the new fold and adjustment to change.

    Following the conventions, the onus is on the party leadership to formally inform the electoral commission, which had earlier sent its officials to witness the terminal conventions. This process will facilitate the proposed eclipse of the three parties. According to the law, the chairmen, secretaries and treasurers of the three parties are expected to forward letters of notification to the INEC, backed with the required funds for the change of name. If INEC is not operating in the bedroom of the power that be, APC’s registration should not a hurdle. But more obstacles can be erected by the ruling party leaders who are already jittery about the unofficial, but legitimate restoration of two party system. Remarkably, two political associations have hurriedly be formed in a way that resulted into a clash of anonyms. That the INEC had initially disowned them was a great service to democracy.

    The challenges that will tax the APC leaders are threefold. The first is the challenge of the first mega convention and the setting up of party leadership at the federal and state levels. At Abuja, where the convention will hold, the party will be formally presented to Nigerians. The three parties and groups are not equal in strength. If the leaders and members of the collapsed parties and groups retain their old identities in the new fold, APC may pale into a big party polarised by caucuses. Therefore, in setting up party leadership structures, not only are the arrowheads and their followers expected to make more sacrifices, they should also begin to build a party culture of equity, fairness and justice in matters relating to the choice of party officers.

    The second challenge is the democratic choice of the APC presidential candidate and his running mate. The flag bearer will mirror the platform, its manifestoes, ethos, values and promise. Whoever will emerge is less important than how he will emerge. Therefore, the party faces the elementary test of internal democracy. The various positions and approaches germane to choice, selection and shadow election should be harmonised without internal bickering and bitterness. If the party puts its house in order at that level and there is no post-primary crisis, it will be fortified to forge ahead for the most critical battle.

    The third challenge, therefore, is the task of mobilising for power shift in 2015. The next general elections would be issue-driven. The campaigns will be issue-oriented. Judging by the national mood ahead of the contest, personalities may not be elevated over and above the issues. But the APC leaders also have an unfinished business. They need to press vigorously for more electoral reforms and insist on the sanctity of the ballot box.

    Between now and when the party is given the nod by the electoral agency, APC leaders should be vigilant. It is still a delicate moment. It is a critical stage of transition. The road to the promise land is laced with thorns. Without doubt, all the chieftains may not reach the political Canaan. The PDP, which is made up of the advocates of one-party system, retention of federal power for 60 years and “operation capture32 states”, will not be aloof to the threat. It will definitely bare its fangs. Observers contend that the ruling party may turn the heat on the APC through intimidation, harassment and blackmail. Pockets of dissention among the co-travelers should be envisaged and be properly managed within the parties in alliance to prevent the gravitation of party members to the party in power at the centre.

    This substantial achievement should be well managed by the merger drivers. What will sustain the young platform is the commitment of the merger drivers. The strength of the APC lies in its powers of ideas, the antecedents and pedigrees of its arrowheads, the impressive performance of its governors, its fanatical and loyal followers, and the vision and goals underlying the alliance. But the political brand should always be sensitive to the machinations of its ardent enemies. To succeed, the APC family must work hard. As one of its leaders has often remarked, power is not served a la carte.

     

  • Metamorphosis of a palmwine seller

    Metamorphosis of a palmwine seller

    Despite over two decades of sojourn in the United States (US), one of Nigeria’s contemporary artists, Mr Tunde Afolayan Famous, is still in touch with his roots. To him, every aspect of his country is as inspiring as it is colourful. At a preview session of his forth coming solo art exhibition, Visual Poetry, he recalled his childhood days in Ikorodu, Lagos, in a piece, Self Portrait, which shows a palm wine tapper rolling his old bicycle down the street of the historic town. Hanging on the bicycle are different kegs containing palm wine, which the tapper hawks along the streets. Notwithstanding the long walk each day, the palmwine tapper’s face radiates contentment.

    “That painting is homage to my uncle who raised me through proceeds from the sale of palmwine after the death of my father. After my elementary school, I joined my uncle in the business of hawking palm wine on the streets of Ikorodu. My school mates then would always call me, Omo Baba Elemu, Afolayan who wore his stained studio apron, recalled how the sale of palm wine made him.

    Visual Poetry, which will hold at the Watersworth Art Gallery in Lekki Phase 1, Lagos on Saturday, is Afolayan’s third major solo art exhibition since he left for America in 1985. In 1986, he held a solo show at the National Oil building in Lagos followed by Portrait of a time at the National Museum, Onikan, Lagos in 1989.

    The former art teacher at the Elizabeth City State University, US, regretted missing the opportunity of maintaining a steady relationship with his clients. He said Visual Poetry is not only a reintroduction of his works to Nigerian art, but also, a home-coming exhibition. The long awaited ‘poetry’ could either be discordant or harmonious depending on what the viewers make of it.

    Erinwo ya is one of his 28 paintings featuring at the exhibition. Like Self Portrait, Erinwo ya, which shows five adult cultists wearing white wrapper walking in a single file late at night, captures the socio-cultural milieu of a Yoruba community. It also highlights the ‘mystical’ procession of members of the Ogboni Fraternity during rites. “We were told never to peep at the Ogboni procession because if we do, we would die. And that stuck to our heads till date. However, apart from recalling such scenes, I see it as oppressive in a way,” Afolayan said.

    Though he sees himself as a colourist, but what appears domineering in all the exhibits is vibrancy of the colours. In fact, at first view, one is tempted to class him as one of the Auchi colour masters. The way he manages his medium is poetic and dramatic and he uses colour as an agent to express himself.

    “I work like a mad artist while in the studio. From that point I feel happier at the outcome of the paintings. In fact, I get therapeutic effect from the colourful pieces I work on in the studio. That is why I am not the artist that works to please collectors. I paint to satisfy myself.

    The colours are door openers that lead viewers to the messages of the work and they generate conversation.

    “For me, visual narratives are impetus. However, I never consider any painting finished. I love spontaneity and vibrant colours, which pull viewers into conversation with the works,” he added.

    Afolayan, who abandoned teaching six years ago for full time studio practice, is not a stranger to experimentations having done lots of experiments with found objects and installations. He described installation as a form of packaging art for sale and nothing spectacular.

    He lamented that despite the abundance of talented artists, Africa is not on the radar of the American art market. He added that there is the possibility for Nigerian arts to make impact in US because there are great artists in the land.

    Visual Poetry will feature exhibits such as Kongi, Metamorphosis, Melody, Omoge, Anticipation, Intimacy and Citizen (series). Others are Exodus, Struggle and Rites of Passage and run till April 27.

    Afolayan trained at the Yaba College of Technology (YABATECH), Lagos and the University of Missouri Columbia, US. He taught art at his alma mater, National Louis University,US, and Elizabeth City State University before quitting for studio practice in 2006.