The Nation Newspaper

Tag: One year after

  • One year after

    It was a year yesterday since my debut novel In the Name of Our Father was published. This ‘novelist’ journey is largely tied like a Siamese twin to my journalism career, which kicked off some twenty years ago with The Source magazine published by Comfort Obi and Maik Nwosu, the author of Invisible Chapter, Alpha Song and A Gecko’s Farewell.

    While working with The Source, the magazine had a section called Night Diary. It was meant for reporters to share their night experiences. Occasionally, outsiders were allowed to contribute. One of such outside contributions was about a pastor who joined the occult to acquire powers to perform miracles and attract people to his church. When I read the piece, I felt I could do a novel out of it. This was in 2002. Nwosu, my editor then, had published Invisible Chapter and Alpha Song, which made a large impression on me.

    At a point, I also felt that if the story was based alone on the pastor, it would be too ordinary. I decided to do a story-within-a-story. I was clear about what I wanted to do. So, I decided to do a prologue to introduce the narrator of the story-within-the-story before going into the main story.

    It occurred to me early that people could get confused by the shift from the prologue to the main story, but I took care of it by making it clear in the last line of the prologue that what would follow was reading from a book. Any reader who glosses over the prologue or misses this last line may be confused. But I am glad most people have been able to understand what I set out to do. I also made sure the link between the story-within-the-story and the narrator’s challenges were well established at the end of the book and this, according to readers, was a rude shock they did not see coming.

    As an apostle of art for relevance, almost every single work of art I have done, be it poetry or prose, has had a critical message for the society. This has been with me right from my days at the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, where some of my poems were featured in a collection called ‘Activist Poets’. This principle was on my mind when the principal script of In the name of Our Father was written while I was 24.

    One question that has kept cropping up since the book was released is whether or not I was conscious of the backlog it could have. The truth is: I never bothered about whether or not anyone would feel bad about what I was writing. I felt only the guilty should be afraid.

    I have also been asked what research went into conceptualising my major characters. For Prophet T.C. Jeremiah, I had to extra-study the Bible so as to get the necessary scriptures to use. I also read interviews and stories on cases of false prophets. I also read tons of reports and interviews about victims of incarceration during the last military dictatorship. The prison break in the book was so real that Hon. Wale Oshun, who had witnessed one while in prison, sent me a mail asking if I experienced it. Of course, I did not. It was pure research. Almost all the characters who were jailed in the book have real-life personalities they are modelled after. This was deliberate because I want the book, in a way, to be a blend of fact and fiction, which is known in some quarters as ‘faction’.

    For Justus Omoeko, who I modelled after Mr Kunle Ajibade, one of the founders of The News magazine, I also read about his travails and played on them. Of course, the bulk of the things that happened to the character in the book have nothing to do with Mr Ajibade’s life. They were just purely imagination. My book editor, Toni Kan, later helped to properly shape some of the characters and situate the period the book was set, which led to rewriting parts and taking out some four thousand words.

    I also drew inspiration from an interview I did with a man who claimed to have co-founded a church with a popular man of the cloth. He told me all kinds of stories about how wealthy men were coming to consult the prophet, day and night, for one favour or the other, including how to have more money. Politicians, according to him, paid nocturnal visits.

    This book was never intended to be innocent. So, when a critic said part of it was not tastefully done, I had no apology because that aspect was one of the reasons for the book in the first place. It was meant to draw attention to major socio-political issues, which in this case are religious deceit and the evil of military dictatorship. I resorted to the story-within-the-story format so that I can treat both issues together. I created a journalist, who wrote a book about a false prophet with links to the dictator in power. The journalist eventually got into trouble as a result of the novella he wrote on the false prophet titled ‘Angels Live in Heaven’.  He was jailed after being implicated in a coup and this allowed me to reveal the ills of military incursion into our polity.

    What have been the reactions of readers? Largely good. But I have seen two people who feel it was not properly thought through. One feels it is “structurally defective” and the other feels it was “prematurely published”.  So, I am enjoying the thrills of the army of admirers and enduring the knocks of the minority.

    In this second year of the book, my publishers and I are exploring new heights. Maybe the movie talks will also be solidified. Fingers crossed!

    My final take: We all know there are many false prophets out there misleading the people in the name of the Father in heaven. We should stop subletting our lives to ‘men of God’. God gave us brains to use, but many are not using theirs. Every important decision in their lives is taken by men of God, real and fake.

    …This piece is an adaptation of my interview with Daily Trust.

  • Akeredolu getting down to business, one year after

    Akeredolu getting down to business, one year after

    Ondo State Governor Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN) is marking his one year in office. Correspondent DAMISI OJO examines how the All Progressives Congress (APC) governor, who took over from Dr. Olusegun Mimiko of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on February 24, last year, has fared since his assumption of office.

    SHORTLY after Governor Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN) was sworn into office, as the helmsman in Ondo State on February 24, last year, he stood before the crowd at the Akure Township Stadium and promised to fulfill his campaign promises, by serving the people creditably.

    The governor, who inherited a backlog of seven-month salaries, told the people  that he was prepared to deploy the mineral resources available in the state to lift the people out of poverty, saying it was as a result of mismanagement of public funds by previous administrations.

    The former President of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) had promised that he would usher in a new dawn, by listening to the voice of the people to provide good governance. He said: “We stand before you to pledge, with the guidance of God and our resolve not to renege on our promises, that your welfare shall form the basis of all our activities.”

    Akeredolu said his administration would lead a patriotic, highly-inspired and competent team to rescue the state from poverty. He promised to rebuild the state’s economy, resuscitate damaged infrastructure, restore hope and return Ondo State, which has been nicknamed the Sunshine State, to a prosperous land. He said: “We are determined as an administration to break down the barriers that have made stagnation possible.

    “We will break down the barriers to honest leadership, to comprehensive development, to physical growth and social security. These we intend to do through the promotion of transparent leadership, the rule of law, extensive consultation, quality and accessible utilities and social security; all in a sustainable manner. We acknowledge the enormous challenges faced by the state and the severely limited resources available to meet these ever-increasing and compelling demands.”

    The governor broke his administration’s plan into a five-point agenda tagged: “JMPPR.” This stands for: job creation through agriculture, entrepreneurship and industrialisation; massive infrastructural development and maintenance; provision of functional education and technological growth; provision of accessible and qualitative healthcare and social service delivery; and rural development and community extension services.

    Although the state has been plagued by challenges of the economic recession, like other states, Governor Akeredolu has managed within the last one year to make some positive impact. For instance, observers have scored the governor high in the area of workers’ welfare, infrastructural development and putting the right policy in place to attract investors.

    Many of them are of the opinion that the governor deserves some commendation for the little he has been able to achieve, because of the poor state of the nation’s economy when he assumed power, which led to a sharp drop in the monthly allocation from the Federation Accounts. At least, he has not reneged on his promise of promoting workers’ welfare.

    Besides the prompt payment of workers’ salaries since he took over power, he has equally settled three months out of the seven months salaries he inherited from the immediate past administration. This was what impressed an analyst, Mr. Julius Alade, who said the governor had improved the frosty and battered relationship between the state government and the labour union.

    Alade, who claimed he has been monitoring activities of the government since its inauguration, said the it is focusing on its mandate of deploying public resources for the benefits of the greatest number of the people. He said Governor Akeredolu’s achievement is in the area of economic and social service, such as payment of workers’ salaries and pensions from February 2017 to date, as well as the settlement of August and 80 per cent of September 2016 salaries.

    The analyst also said Akeredolu’s achievements include the reinstatement and restoration of all benefits to politically victimised staff of the Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko, and the Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo, respectively.”

    In the area of job creation, Akeredolu had made it clear during his inauguration that he would use agriculture to solve the problem of unemployment, particularly among the teeming youths of the state. In the last one year, some of the jobless youths have embraced his administration’s ‘Youths for Agric Value Chain Empowerment’.

    Also, the administration has distributed palm seedlings to farmers across the state in its bid to reactivate the 10,000 hectares afforestation project at Araromi, in Ondo South Senatorial District. The disbursement of N210 million to farmers’ co-operative societies, under the FADAMA scheme and the establishment of various poverty alleviation programmes and the engagement of over 300 youths under ‘FADAMA GUYS’ programme, the Akeredolu-led government has mobilised no fewer than 35,000 farmers for the Federal Government’s Anchor Borrowers Scheme in the state.

    Akeredolu has also made some remarkable achievements in the infrastructure development. During the electioneering campaign period, the governor used to describe the state of infrastructure in the state as depressive. He had pledged then to fix the infrastructure to enable farmers and interested investors have access to markets in the towns and cities in the state.

    The Nation’s investigations at the state Ministry of Works reveal that the governor has started rehabilitation and total reconstruction of many roads across the three senatorial districts.

    A supporter of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Muyiwa Gbeminiyi, said the reconstruction of the notorious Oke-Alabojuto Road in Ikare-Akoko and the construction of a new access road from Akure to Idanre are among the most important intervention of the governor in that regard.

    Though the Ikare road is yet to be completed, Gbeminiyi hailed Governor Akeredolu for deeming it necessary to mobilise contractors to fix the road, after many years of neglect. He praised the governor for spreading the developmental strides to the three senatorial districts.

    Other roads rehabilitated or reconstructed are the access roads within the state Specialist Hospital, Akure; the 1.5km Iwalewa Road, Akure; the 1.2km Abusoro Road, Akure; internal and access roads within the Ondo State University of Science and Technology (OSUSTECH), Okitipupa; the 2.5km Sabomi Road, Ese-Odo, and others.

    On security, Akeredolu has tried to live up to expectations that it is government’s responsibility to protect the lives and properties of the people. Shortly after assumption of office, he initiated moves to resolve boundary issues between Atijere and Makun-omi community, to douse rising tension between the two communities. The decision, observer noted, has enhanced interpersonal and peaceful co-existence among residents of the once restive communities.

    The governor has also sought and received approval to have more police area commands in addition to the existing three ones, to reinforce security in some parts of the state and thereby forestall kidnapping and armed robbery.

    The State Security Council has also directed authorities in several communities to ensure regular clearance of bushes on the verges of roads that link Ondo State with the neighbouring states, to stem the activities of kidnappers and other criminal elements.

    Militancy, with its attendant destruction of lives and public properties, was the order of the day in the Ese-Odo Local Government Area before Akeredolu assumed office. But, all that has become history, due to what a security analyst, James Binuyo, termed as the governor’s deep understanding of leadership role and strategies.

    Binuyo said: “Governor Akeredolu deserves commendation for bringing to an end the era of militancy, which was responsible for loss of lives and properties in the riverine area.  Since the governor proclaimed amnesty for the militants, the restiveness among the youths in the area has subsided.

    “There was a time militants held the riverine communities to ransom. The nation’s water ways and the creek became a no-go area for even the boldest military men. From their fortress in the creeks, the militants launched deadly attacks on petroleum pipelines, which is used to transport the nation’s economic mainstay —- oil.

    “Also, there was a time hoodlums robbed banks, carting away several millions in cash. In recent times, kidnapping of family members of wealthy people had become a fad for the criminals. Militants, mainly youths, had resorted to such unlawful means of agitation, because of the perception that their area is underdeveloped, because of neglect by the different levels of government.”

    In an attempt to curb the criminality in the riverine area, Akeredolu set up a committee headed by his deputy, Mr. Agboola Ajayi, to disarm the weapon-bearing youths. Ajayi, who incidentally hails from the area, quickly swung into action with members of his committee and they were able to get the militants to sign an agreement to lay down their arms.

    Thus, to reciprocate the gesture, the governor on November 9, last year proclaimed amnesty for them, with 21 days to submit their weapons, so as to be listed in the expanded amnesty programme of the Federal Government. Akeredolu, while addressing the militants, said his government was determined to ensure the programme succeeds and administered only to those it was meant for. He said only those who submitted weapons would be listed in the amnesty programme.

    Akeredolu’s commitment to good governance is also paying off in the area of sound healthcare delivery. The governor liaised with the World Bank to facilitate $500,000 to enhance primary healthcare across all the 18 local government areas. This move attracted the benevolence of the People’s Republic of China, which donated 40 imaging medical items to the state medical village in Ondo town

    The governor has also tried to create a conducive atmosphere for governance, by ensuring that a cordial relationship existed between the executive and the legislature. On assumption of office, he met a factionalised state House of Assembly. The crisis centred on the 2017 budget, which the immediate past administration could not pass before it vacated office.

    But, the speed with which Akeredolu rallied members of the House of Assembly to sheathe their swords, in the interest of the state, facilitated the quick passage of the budget.

    Also, majority of the House of Assembly members, who were members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) became fascinated with the governor’s leadership style and consequently defected to the APC. In their interactions with reporters, the lawmakers hinged their decision to defect on Akeredolu’s vision for the development of the state

    In sports, enthusiasts have lauded Akeredolu for reviving the state’s football team, Sunshine Stars FC, which was on the verge of relegation.

    The only challenge confronting the administration is the paucity of funds. But, Akeredolu is poised to confront this challenge with aggressive revenue generation, proper management of resources and financial prudency. Many residents of the state have also urged the governor to encourage job creation for the teeming unemployed youths, ensure regular payment of workers’ salaries and also create a conducive environment for traders, artisans and others to work.

     

  • NDDC – One year after

    The current administration and board of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, came into office in December 2013.  To celebrate this landmark event, the board and management of the commission rolled out the drums on Tuesday December 16, 2014. The venue was the prestigious five-star Port Harcourt Presidential Hotel. The event was indeed a grand affair. There was plenty to eat and drink. Amongst the artists that featured at the event were Mighty Duncan, Gordons and Terry G.

    The event, however, ran into a hitch towards the end as the over 2000 participants, mostly youths from the Niger Delta region, started a mild protest which later erupted into a full-blown uprising which necessitated the officials of the organisation being smuggled out of the venue. The grouse of the youths was clear: While NDDC officials have reason to celebrate, the commission has failed woefully to take good care of them(the youths). One of the youths angrily informed that the NDDC had abandoned its mandate of developing the nine beneficiary states, while its officials are busy enriching themselves. According to the irate youths, it was time for the officials to allow the goodies to go round so that people of the Niger Delta can begin to enjoy their commonwealth.  One was heard loudly complaining that since the exit of the first managing director, successive administrations had just been feeding fat on the agency with little or nothing to show for it. They also believe that all these administrations have allegedly taken steps to ensure that they are never probed by the EFFC, the Police or the ICPC. In other words, the hands of the security agencies have been tied such that NDDC officials are free to indulge in excesses with no one to call them to order. Indeed, the local people now believe that the NDDC has become a drain pipe instead of being a change agency, while accusing the federal government of complicity in the rape of the agency and short-changing of the people of the Niger Delta.

    The youths also claimed that their hopes were raised when the new administration came on board, even branding themselves as the new NDDC. But no sooner had they settled down than it became obvious that it would be business as usual. Instead of the promised development of communities were widely circulated stories linking some NDDC officials to the skyrocketing prices of properties in Port Harcourt, especially in GRA Phase 2. To buttress this claim, one of the aggrieved youths had informed that it was on account of this that landlords prefer giving accommodation to NDDC workers.

    A resident of Port Harcourt was also quoted as saying that they know NDDC staff by their flamboyant lifestyles and the security apparatus around them.

    It should be recalled that the NDDC was set up by the General Olusegun Obasanjo administration as an intervention agency to address the many years of neglect of the Niger Delta region comprising the nine states of Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Rivers, Abia, Bayelsa, Imo, Edo, Delta and Ondo. Precisely, the agency was to address the issues of infrastructure such as roads, schools, hospitals etc.

    However, after 12 years many in the beneficiary states are of the opinion that there is not much to cheer. Indeed, an indigene of Delta State recently queried thus: Where are the schools built by them? Where are the roads? Where are the hospitals? He believes that if they had addressed most of the needs of the Niger Delta, the militancy could have been curtailed as there would be adequate jobs for the youths.

    One observes that even contracts are not awarded in line with due process as they are awarded to cronies of government and the agency. The jobs are either abandoned or poorly executed. And so no employment is generated in the process. In fact, the argument of the restive youths is that if NDDC contracts are properly awarded to reputable companies and professionally executed, restiveness in the Niger Delta would be over in no distant time as a lot of jobs would be created in the process. But this, unfortunately, is presently not the case.

    On further investigation, one notes that some roads have been built by NDDC. Some schools have been built and some renovated. There have also been half-hearted interventions in the health sector. They spend fortunes annually on medical training and medical outreaches using several agencies and hundreds of millions of naira are spent but with nothing to show for it. So far, no major hospitals have been built or equipped.  All annual budgets on medicals simply ‘walk” away, according to an informed source. Ditto for huge budgets on roads and other infrastructural projects.

    It is true that NDDC has done some good works but nothing compared to the huge sums of money which have accrued to it since its inception.  One wonders what will happen to it now that the oil revenues are dwindling so badly!!

    I strongly feel that since President Goodluck Jonathan is from the Niger Delta, he should either make NDDC to live up to its billing or scrap it and put the resources to the states rather than just allowing it to stay as a drain pipe. I also cannot understand why all successive board members and management staff of the NDDC have not been made to give account of their stewardship if the federal government is sincere in fighting corruption. In fact, the NDDC has so far failed to justify its existence.

    I understand that this is also the perception in Abuja, the seat of government. This is because the NDDC is one of those agencies whose impact has not really been felt in the beneficiary communities in spite of the huge funds yearly committed to their operations. In fact, I was shocked when one constant traveller to Port Harcourt claimed ignorance of the existence of the NDDC and what it stands for, saying he has never noticed its impact. This is why the federal government, including the National Assembly should endeavour to exercise due oversight functions in monitoring the activities of the NDDC and similar agencies of government to ensure that they discharge their responsibilities creditably. Those founding wanting or unable to live up to expectations should be discarded. By so doing, government would have demonstrated seriousness about its war on corruption and wastage of public funds.

     

    • Daukoru wrote from Yenagoa, Bayelsa State

  • One year after

    One year after

    For all the reasons that are too familiar to rehash, a viable opposition is indispensable in a democracy. An opposition is not viable when it consists of multiple political groupings, spread over the nation, each of which is dominant within an enclave, none of which poses any significant threat to the ruling party. And without a threat of being replaced by a strong opposition waiting in the wings, the ruling party bestrides the nation like a colossus, acting with impunity, leaving helpless and hopeless citizens in a state of despair. What follows that kind of sordid scenario is eerily woven into the fabric of our national history.

    A year ago, I thought to myself that finally we were going to lay the ghost of governance with impunity; that the era of a de facto one-party state was about to end and there was a good chance for the opposition to not only offer a constructive critique of the ruling party, but more importantly to present itself as a viable alternative ready to take up the reins of power on behalf of the people. My hope, as that of many citizens tired of how the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has taken the country for a ride in the last 15 years, was raised astronomically with the registration of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    It was a thoroughly exciting moment that day when the news broke. Opalaba thought that it was “a small step for a party, but a big step for democracy.”

    Then after the initial excitement, it occurred to both of us that the needful must be emphasised:

    “But it’s just the beginning, and the end is most definitely important. My only hope is that this beginning is not thwarted; that the leadership of the new party learns from experience; that internal democracy is their watchword; that they are sensitive to the presentation of a uniquely democratic alternative to the electorate because in the final analysis, it is what matters most. It’s a game of numbers.”

    What a difference a year makes! Don’t get me wrong, I am still excited about the coming into being of the APC and I still hold high hopes for the role it can play in this fragile democracy, not just as a credible opposition but more importantly, as a party with a mandate to govern for the benefit of the masses of our people.

    Of course, like all opposition parties especially in Africa, APC faces a number of challenges, not the least of which is that of a ruling party with a ruthless determination to hang on to power at all cost. Surely, Nigeria is not an authoritarian state and government cannot outlaw the opposition. But as a party, the PDP would rather not have an opposition despite its importance in a democracy. This is why the ruling party is not satisfied with its control of the centre and more than half of the states. It must have all and in perpetuity.

    With an unlimited access to state resources for which it is not accountable to anyone, and a shameless practice of withholding state allocations to punish the opposition, the PDP-led central government is able to outspend the opposition without having to worry about its performance. But that path, as shady as it is, is still short of the use of raw power. And since the ruling party must demonstrate its will to power, it is not reluctant to embark on the obnoxious practice of impeaching APC governors to emasculate and neutralise the opposition. It does not matter that if and when that happens, we have to bid democracy farewell.

    We cannot be so confident that it would not happen. APC emerged as the only credible alternative to PDP. Other parties, including Labour and APGA, conscious of the ruthlessness of the ruling party, have presented themselves as co-travellers with the PDP juggernaut. This was certainly the case with Anambra’s governorship elections and with how Governors Obi and Mimiko collaborated with PDP governors in the infamous NGF election. Neither of these two parties has any ambition to challenge the ruling party for the star prize at the centre. Should APC be deactivated, democracy is in serious danger. This is why what the ruling party chooses to do to APC is not just a matter for the latter, it must be a concern of all democrats to stand up and speak out. The use of state power and resources to decapitate the opposition is an unacceptable abuse of power.

    To be sure, APC has other challenges, including that of public perception for which the party may be partially responsible, but which is spawned out of the womb of PDP propaganda machine. When at the inception of APC, a presidential spokesperson argued that ACN, one of APC’s legacy parties, had by merging with others, lost the Southwest, not a few observers brushed it aside as a thoughtless proposition. Little did it occur to us that the vulgar propaganda war, for which the Presidency is the brigade commander, had just begun, with atrocious labels—islamists, terrorists, Boko Haram sponsors—pinned on APC and its leadership. When the Federal Government is unable to fight a ragtag militant group tormenting the Northeast, it resorted to the politicisation of security, blaming the opposition for the evil that ails the nation. And in its desperation, the ruling party almost succeeded in hanging the opposition just by calling it a bad name.

    How has the APC responded? How might it respond? Determined to show the nation that performance matters in governance, APC-controlled states went to work on infrastructural development and urban renewal programmes, the kind that make Fashola’s Lagos the pride of the nation. Those who criticise such development programmes as elitist must be forgiven for their ignorance or mischief. APC states also focus like a laser beam on innovative approaches to education, as typified by Aregbesola’s Opon Imo, an African ingenuity that has gained international acclaim. Health and social welfare programmes have not been neglected with models of free health missions in most APC states, including Oyo, Ogun and Ekiti.

    In truth, then, policy-wise, APC has delivered on its manifesto in all the states it controls. What else might the party do in the wake of its recent loss in Ekiti and the PDP ruthless machine of deception and intimidation? First, the opposition must come to terms with the reality that the battle of propaganda has been lopsided in favour of the ruling party, which has been on the offensive, especially with its embarrassing politicisation of religion or its benefit. With a sophisticated electorate, this may backfire. But the challenge is there, and the approach to this challenge requires not a reverse propaganda, but an intellectual and practical demonstration of what APC stands for and does well. The performance of the governors in the various sectors of the society in the APC states needs to be showcased for all to see through various media outlets.

    Second, if propaganda has a role, it is best played by the APC caucus in the National Assembly. Its members are in a position to x-ray the inadequacies of the ruling party in the legislature and executive. They have information about executive actions and policies. They have first-hand knowledge of the state of the nation as determined by Federal Government policies.

    Third, there is no denying the needless personality conflicts within the hierarchy of party leadership in several states. While one cannot rule out the corrupting influence of the ruling party and its aggressive effort to win back some of its defecting members, the APC must face the reality of serious internal disaffection that has nothing to do with greed. If it’s a game of numbers, a struggling opposition cannot afford to lose any of its supporters and must aggressively reconcile all factions.

    Finally, the leadership must take a cue from the Awolowo playbook. The Avatar rarely gave off-the-cuff remarks. But when he made a pronouncement on a national issue, it was always oracular. And as he would add: Verbum sap.