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Tag: poverty

  • Terrorism, poverty  and  the democracy agenda

    Terrorism, poverty  and  the democracy agenda

    In  Addis Ababa  this week the Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegh and current Head  of the African Union accused the International Criminal Court of Justice of racial bias in the prosecution of errant world leaders and pointedly stated that the AU is not well disposed to the prosecution of the current president of Kenya  Uhuru  Kenyatta and the Vice President for the  post election violence in the 2007  presidential elections in that nation. In  Accra Ghana  the president of the country noted that Islamic militancy will soon overcome the whole of West  Africa if care is not taken and that he is saying this even though Ghana does not have such insurgency on its hand right now. As  Nigeria celebrated the government’s Democracy day  on May 29 and key former presidents shunned the invitation of incumbent Nigerian president to the occasion, it turned out that the UN  Secretary – General  Ban Ki Moon was celebrating the UN  Peace Keepers Day   on the same day and was commending fallen Nigeria’s soldiers as ten percent of  the Nigerian UN Peace Keepers have died  in 2012 in the UN peace keeping role and the UN published their  names on that day.

    At  another global forum the   Jim  Yong Kim,   the Group MD of the World Bank  was audacious  enough to announce that the World body was planning to eradicate global poverty  by 2030  by making access to  health facilities affordable globally in pursuit of  the goal of global  poverty alleviation .At  the other end in Syria however   Bashar  Assad the president of that nation boasted  that the balance of power is with the Syrian army in its war with those he called terrorists  and he accused some nations namely Saudi  Arabia  and Turkey of financing the rebellion in his nation while acknowledging that Hizbollah, the Party  of God in Lebanon  is fighting alongside the Syrian army in the war to preserve what he called the territorial integrity  of Syria.

    It is my  contention today that world leaders  on occasions behave like the proverbial ostrich with its head buried in the sand while the body is there for all to see . Secondly while some cling to power by all or any means because they cannot contemplate life out of office, there  are still some who believe  that to serve humanity is still a possible task in spite of manmade  challenges  and obstacles  both  locally and abroad. Thirdly in the name of democracy, security  and political stability,   politicians and world leaders  mostly indulge in promoting their whims and caprices and  in muscling their opponents  to submission if not annihilation in pursuit of their   so called political agenda   and objectives. Let me now hook these observations to the news items I have highlighted today.

    Starting with Kenya, let me  state  categorically  that the accusation by the AU Chairman that the ICC is racially prejudiced against African Leaders is a false alarm and is indeed a dangerous case  of jaundice   and prejudice. It cannot survive any moral scrutiny either in Addis Ababa or Nairobi. This is a fact the  current president and Vice president of Kenya will be the first to admit as they were not on the same side during the 2007 elections or the  post  election violence. They later buried the hatchet and contested on the same ticket in 2013 knowing  that the charges at the Hague were  hanging on their neck like the proverbial sword  of Damocles . That their ticket clinched the Kenyan presidency in spite of the ICC charges is a victory for democracy and the dictum that a people deserve the leaders they have. That however does not absolve them of culpability in the murder and mayhem of the 2007 post election   violence in Kenya. The charge that 90%  of those being prosecuted  by ICC are Africans is sheer  persecution complex and a product of colonial mentality. The world is a global village and such sentiments belong to the past. That is why the Arab Spring revolution got rid of leaders like Housni Mubarak and Muammar Gaddafi. If the AU wants, it can   negotiate a reprieve or pardon or even a stay of prosecution for the Kenyan leaders. It should not however insult the intelligence of Africans by talking of racial bias towards African leaders by the ICC. That  is an anachronism and a dubious  charge  indeed  that  cannot hold water.

    On the charge by the Ghanaian President John  Mahama  that Islamic Militancy will  destabilize West Africa if care is not taken , I cannot agree  more. He  gave  the example  of the French Military  intervention in Mali  and the need for the AU  to form a standing intervention force to counter  regional insurgency  and I cannot agree more. What I  think is lacking is the moral  capacity  and commitment on    the  part of both political  and religious  leaders in the region to tackle the problem of militancy head on,  on a once and for all basis , instead  of the present half- hearted approach of thinking that the problem will go away as rapidly as it has surfaced. In addition the issue of negotiating or succumbing to blackmail while keeping  trained armed forces at bay is counterproductive as it gives the militants  a   false  sense of strength and importance  as such vacillations and dithering     give them ample time to select their next target  for terror with maximum impact.

    Next, according to UN reports, Nigeria made the largest contribution to world peace in 2012 . This is according to the UN Report that  17 Nigerians were killed  last  year  on peacekeeping duties  and this was announced on Nigeria’s Democracy Day  May 29  which also is the UN Peace  Keeping Day. The UN Secretary General   Ban Ki Moon therefore commended the Nigerian Peace Keeping Contingent for making the greatest human sacrifice for world peace in 2012. Which to me is a source of pride as a Nigerian  and I seize this opportunity to commiserate with the families of the gallant soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice in the service of their nation. Incidentally May 29 was picked by the Obasanjo Administration  as Democracy Day when it was elected  into  office in 1999. This year however Obasanjo shunned the Democracy Day in Abuja and was instead in Dutse, Jigawa State where he was showering praises on the state Governor Sule  Lamido at the First Jigawa State Investment Forum. In Abuja President Goodluck  Jonathan was busy,  lamentably and apologetically pleading with Nigerians bent on judging his two years in office, to have a marking scheme before doing that –whatever that means.

    At  the World Health  Assembly – WHA  in  Geneva,  Switzerland the World Bank Group MD Jim Yong Kim, an American and a medical  doctor spoke on the theme –  Poverty, Health  and the Human Future- and noted that to end poverty and boost shared prosperity, the nations of the world need to drive global growth by investing in human capital, health education and social protection for all their citizens. He made the revealing news that out of pocket health expenses force about 100m people into poverty every year. Heidentified three  areas that health delivery can enhance economic growth  and national planned efforts to make universal health delivery achievable through access, quality  and affordability. Yong Kim seems to be saying what one has always known that a sound mind needs a sound body. Coming from a global financial institution noted for infrastructure development and finance, the pursuit of poverty alleviation by 2030  by this unique American head of the World  Bank,  is a   most welcome  welfarist   approach  to  global growth  and economic    development.  This is because democracy at the end of the day is about the welfare of the citizenry and a better life for those who elected those who now tyrannise them globally  .Surely  the World Bank’s   Group  MD poverty alleviation approach to economic growth  and prosperity through access to quality and affordable health facilities by 2030  is highly commendable –  and is a huge, innovative step in the right  direction. We wish  him well.

    Lastly the war in Syria has shown clearly that democracy in that nation will not come on  platter  of gold. Rather than  be frightened by the prospect of becoming a Housni Mubarak being driven to court in a cage or a  Gaddafi  beaten to death by a mob, Bashar Assad  has dug in in Damascus and there is no sign of him giving up as the west is betting on . Better still for him,  his Russian supporters  have given him about 300  anti aircraft equipment in case of any creation of a no fly zone like the one that crippled Gaddafi’s well armed forces . So,   it is not always the case that nations fall like dominoes in the face of insurgency as happened in N Africa two years. In fighting insurgency  to a stand still and still retaining the loyalty of his army in the wake of international isolation, somehow the blood letting leader in Damascus   has my  grudging admiration. Perhaps the Russians have seen something opaque to the rest of us in siding with the son of an old ally Haffez Assad. Time, surely, will tell.

  • Poverty: Alleviation or prevention?

    Poverty: Alleviation or prevention?

    ‘In Islam, it is forbidden to live permanently on begging. Only necessity should force a Muslim into begging and such necessity must be temporary. As soon as the problem that leads to it is solved, begging in whatever form, must stop. Any further begging thereafter is an abomination’

    “I shall pass through this world but once; if, therefore, there is any good that I can do or any kindness that I can show to any human being,

    let me do it now; let me not defer or neglect it; for I may not pass this way again”.

    Little things that turn out to form the particles of greatness in human life do not necessarily emanate from men or women with silver spoon in the mouth. Greatness is neither by birth nor by heritage. No notable Prophet of Allah, whether Ibrahim (Abraham) or Musa (Moses) or Isa (Jesus) or Muhammad (SAW) was born great in the temporal sense.

    Yet all of those Prophets personify greatness in all its ramifications. History bears testimony to this.

    Perhaps the above quoted poem motivated an unassuming woman of substance to initiate a poverty alleviation foundation called in 2009.

    She is Dr. (Mrs) Lateefah Moyosore Durosinmi, a Senior Lecturer of Chemistry who is also the current Dean of Student Affairs, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife. Coming from a humble background this indefatigable woman’s topmost aspiration has consistently been how to show meaningful appreciation to the Almighty Allah over His bountiful blessings for her in life. The opportunity for making that aspiration a reality came in 2009 when she turned 50 and was incidentally elected the National President (Amirah) of the Federation of Muslim Women Associations of Nigeria (FOMWAN) that same year. Rather than celebrate her birthday with fanfare in typical Nigerian style, she chose a rare

    noble course that could assist her to leave a footprint on the sands of time.

    Some of her colleagues, friends and well-wishers who had always admired her exemplary humaneness and humility rallied round her to ensure that her golden wish of gratifying Allah was fulfilled. That

    wish was translated into a book entitled ‘Women, Islam and Current

    Issues in Development’ to which those who value knowledge and intellectualism contributed. The book jointly edited by Dr. Wole Abbas of the Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies, University of Ibadan and Barr. Jade Muhammad, a Principal Lecturer at the Federal Polytechnic, Ede, Osun State, was publicly presented and the proceeds there from were dedicated to the establishment of a foundation. The name of the foundation is Lateefah Moyosore Durosinmi (LMD) Foundation. Its objective of was to assist the less privileged people, especially among women and children in laying hopeful stepping stones for them in their life’s odyssey.

    The Foundation has a Board of Trustees (BOT) consisting of the following eminent personalities who are well familiar with the grassroots people: Fatimah Abdul Kareem, a Professor of Morbid Anatomy, University of Lagos (Chair); Muiz O. Durosinmi, a Professor of Dermatology, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife (member); Dr. Lateefah M. Durosinmi (founder and member); Dr. Wole Abbas, Senior Lecturer, Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies, University of Ibadan (member); Barrister Jade Muhammad, Senior Lecturer, Federal Polytechnic, Ede, Osun State; Dr. Sururah Apinke Bello, Lecturer, Computer Engineering Department, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife (Secretary).

    The Foundation also has an Executive Committee which consists of the following people: Dr. Lateefah Durosinmi (Chairman); Barrister Jade Muhammad (member); Alhaji Abdul Rahman Balogun (member); Mrs. Misturah Sanusi (member) Mrs. Misturah Sanni, Lecturer, Computer Engineering, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, (member); Dr. Rafiah Oluwatosin Lawal (nee Durosinmi) and Dr. Sururah Bello (Secretary).

    The first presentation of such assistance to the beneficiaries came up in 2012 at Ile-Ife, Osun State, where 50 indigent primary school pupils were aided with educational materials ranging from text and exercise books to complete school uniforms and some cash sums. It was a great delight to the parents of those pupils most of whom could no longer cope with the provisions needed by their children despite the free education policy of the government.

    The second presentation came up on Monday, April 1, 2013 at ‘FOMWAN HOUSE’ in Akobo area of Ibadan. The beneficiaries this time were 24 mainly underprivileged Muslim women from Ogun, Osun and Oyo States who were financially aided with various cash sums. The number was in accordance with the applications received by the Foundation. And yours sincerely was invited as Guest Lecturer at the occasion. The theme of the lecture was ‘Concept of Poverty Alleviation in Islam (with references to Islamic history’).

    In the lecture, I queried the word ‘ALLEVIATION’ which I had always perceived as unnecessarily political because it was the coinage of the ruling class used to deceive the poor masses in the society. I insisted that the word PREVENTION ought to have been used instead of ALLEVIATION as it was better to prevent poverty than to alleviate it.

    I then told the audience that once you allow poverty into your life it becomes very difficult if not impossible to alleviate it because poverty is like virus which forages all organs of the body. The more you try to curb it in one part of the body the stronger it waxes in other parts. I pointed out that it was wrong to limit poverty to lack of possession of money or material substances alone and classified poverty as physical, mental, spiritual, psychological and material. If a person is lacking in health or in spirit or in contentment or in conscience or in morals he can be said to be poor and no amount of money he possesses can rescue him. But since the focus of today’s world is money along with material substances, it may become necessary

    to examine the causes of material poverty.

    CAUSES:

    Material poverty is caused by a variety of issues and circumstances some of which can be enumerated as follows: (1) natural disasters like flood, drought, famine and epidemics (2) government policies like demolition, inflationary measures (e.g. increase in fuel price and power tariff), relocation or change of environment as well as prohibition of sale of certain products or banning of their importation (3) weather variation such as excessive of rainfalls or unexpectedly prolonged dry season or devastating dunes (4) self-enticed poverty like war, extravagancy, ostentation and prodigality. Of all these causes, none is as biting as self-enticed poverty which is particularly rampant among Nigerian women who must wear the latest fashionable dresses in vogue at all costs and celebrate birthdays and funerals with borrowed money. And after spending so much on such unnecessary trivialities, some necessities of life will surface at a time when the wherewithal would have been exhausted thereby pushing the concerned person into the market of borrowing and indebtedness.

    Women are also the ones who must celebrate their children’s birthdays every year with pump and pageantry thereby showing those children how to spend money without showing them how to make money. Thus, by the time such children grow up into men and women they would have become so much accustomed to spending spree that working for the money being spent would look like an aberration. As a result, poverty will set in and they will embark on stylish begging in the name of poverty alleviation.

    Every living thing created by Allah is endowed with sustaining wealth which is called talent. One man’s wealth may be his mouth (e.g. comedian), another man’s wealth may be his legs (e.g. footballer).

    There is no human being or animal or even plant without an endowed wealth. The duty of identifying such wealth and utilising it to one’s advantage is then left to every individual.

    In Islam, it is forbidden to live permanently on begging. Only necessity should force a Muslim into begging and such necessity must be temporary. As soon as the problem that leads to it is solved, begging in whatever form, must stop. Any further begging thereafter is an abomination. Even the institution of Zakah which is a whole pillar of Islam was introduced for the purpose of solving immediate problems for the poor, the indigents and the needy. No Muslim except an ally of Satan will take begging for a permanent job.

    A poor man once approached Prophet Muhammad (SAW) seeking his financial assistance to enable him and his family feed that day. He told the Prophet that he had nothing at home with which to feed his wife and children. The Prophet then asked whether he had anything in his house that could be sold to enable him and his family feed for the day. In response, he said there was nothing. Then the Prophet pressurised him to think of anything in his house that he could sell.

    The man then remembered a small bowl made of bronze which someone had given him several years back. He, however, told the Prophet that no one would want to buy it because it was useless. The Prophet told him to go and bring it. When he came back with the bowl, the Prophet took it from him and sought from his companions if anyone of them could pay for it. Sensing that the Prophet had reason for putting the bowl up for sale, one the companions volunteered to buy it for only one Dirham. The Prophet further sought to know if someone else could pay more for it. And another companion volunteered to pay two Dirham.

    Then, the Prophet took the money and handed over the bowl to the buyer while he gave the money to the owner of the bowl instructing him to spend only one Dirham on food and the remaining one Dirham to purchase an axe.

    The poor man rushed home and returned later with an axe as instructed by the Prophet. Then the Prophet told him to use the axe to fetch firewood and sell it so that he could use the money realised from it to feed his family the following day. The man followed the Prophet’s instruction scrupulously and after one week he returned with a better dress and informed the Prophet that he had been making 15 Dirham every day and therefore had no more problems feeding his family. There and then, Prophet Muhammad (SAW) came up with the Hadith that says: “the upper hands are always better than the lower hands” meaning that the giving hands are better blessed by Allah than the receiving hands. (This Hadith was related by Abu Huraira).

    The wisdom in the above Hadith is not just about dignity of labour but also about self-esteem in feeding from one’s sweat. This is the wisdom which Dr. Lateefah Durosinmi intends to inject the poor Muslim women who will be benefitting from her philanthropic largess some of whom were granted interest-free loan. The objective is to let those women know that it is far more dignifying to sell coal, firewood or sachet water to earn a living than to depend on begging for survival.

    If about one thousand other privileged Muslim women in the Southwest Nigeria could embark on a similar rewarding venture, surely, a reduction of poverty in this region would have become manifest by now.

    The book that led to the establishment of LMD Foundation is still available for purchase by any good-hearted person who may wish to support the foundation in one way or another.

    “Who shares his life’s pure pleasure and walks the honest road; who trades with heaping measure and lifts his brother’s load; who turns the wrong down bluntly and lends the right a hand; he dwells in God’s own country and tills the Holy land”. Dr. Lateefah has done this much.

    We are witnesses. She deserves encouragement from all those who want to join in sharing the bounties of Allah with her.

    The role of Zakah in poverty prevention and alleviation as well as the general misconception about Nisab which has turned many potential Zakah payers into Zakah recipients will soon be discussed in this column in sha’Allah.

    Erratum

    A verse of the Qur’an about the devastating effect of imperialists’ intrusion into a territory as discussed in this column last week was inadvertently misquoted as Chapter 12 verse….. instead of Chapter 27 verse 34. My attention was drawn to this by General Abdus-Salam of Nigerian Army. I pray Allah to reward him abundantly.

  • Governor, Ministers, stakeholders hold dialogue poverty

    Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi, the Minister for National Planning, members of the national assembly, heads of government parastatals with mandate to address poverty and activists will on Tuesday, March 12 gather in Abuja for a high level national policy dialogue on poverty.
    The National Dialogue on Poverty, according to the orgernisers , ActionAid Nigeria,  is in response to” the obvious need for a rethink of the current response to poverty in Nigeria”.
     “The current Nigeria poverty profile, which incidentally is produced by a government agency, has shown that in spite of the many government policies and interventions on poverty, the incidence of poverty in Nigeria has worsened,” the Policy and Campaigns Manager of ActionAid Nigeria, Tunde Aremu stated.
     
    The worsening situation of poverty in the country, according to Aremu is a paradox given the fact that “in the last quarter of 2012, Nigeria’s GDP growth rate was put at 7.1 per cent.”
    “This is a feet none of the top economies in the world achieved at that time. In spite of its wealth, infant and maternal mortality index in the Nigeria is among the poorest in the world”
     
    This situation according to the anti-poverty agency though may not be as a result of lack of will on the part of government and its agencies to address the state of poverty in the nation, there is still an urgent need for a critical look at interventions currently in place.
    According to Aremu, “No doubt a lot of progress have been made in terms of development in the country, but it is important that there is an appreciation of the level of progress if the country must meet the goals of the MDGs and in a broader context achieve its Vision 20 2020.”
    The poverty dialogues according to ActionAid is therefore organised to “take a critical and result-driven look at the issue of failure of several interventions in poverty eradication and development in general.
    “It will also build consensus on what should constitute the appropriate strategy to deal with poverty in the country, while providing a platform for discourse on the challenges and realisation of the MDGs as it still presents one of the most encompassing framework for development”
    The poverty dialogue will feature a public discourse which  will  be led by an international specialist, Professor Adebayo Olukoshi, the Director of the UN African Institute for Economic Development and Planning (IDEP).
     

  • Manufacturing will reduce poverty, says survey

    POVERTY can only be reduced if the manufacturing sector is rejuvenated, a survey has shown.

    According to the survey, a stable macro-economy cannot translate to poverty reduction, where there is lack of infrastructure, irregular power supply and an unsound industrial policy.

    The research was conducted by Dr. Chukwuma Agu, Dr. Hyacinth Ichoku and Dr. John Ataguba of the African Institute for Applied Economics (AIAE) . They investigated some households and their economic status.

    The researchers said as commendable as the government’s efforts to provide 3.5 million jobs in the agriculture, housing construction, solid minerals, aviation and the creative industries is, the inability of the government to grow the manufacturing sector would make the vision impossible.

    The research was commissioned by African Economic Research Consortium (AERC). It showed how the public sector has been crowding out the private sector, and how the much- talked about growth in the country is non-existent.

    The report listed factors that impact poverty to include household size, agricultural employment, geo-political cultural and religious peculiarities, deepening human capital. and corruption.

    The work also examines the impact of sector of employment and selected demographic indicators at the household level.

    Estimates, according to the report,were obtained for national level data and data from the six geopolitical zones. Determinants of poverty and inequality used in the study included both macro indicators and micro variables. And the findings are as interesting.

    “For example, the work found that household size, region of origin and sector of employment are some of the most important determinants of the probability of a household being poor in Nigeria,” Agu said.

    He added that many African countries that have posted high positive growth rates in the last decade have also seen significant rise in poverty.

    He said: “Between 2004 and 2010 (a period of less than seven years), the proportion of Nigerians living in absolute poverty jumped from 54 per cent to 70 per cent. This is despite the fact that the country has grown at about seven per cent consistently for nearly one decade and has also designed a plethora of poverty reduction strategies at all tiers of government. Though it has always been known that growth is not always a sufficient condition for poverty reduction and that tackling poverty regularly requires targeted programmes, Nigeria’s experience presents an absolute paradox. Both policymakers and private individuals are concerned about the drivers of growth and poverty. It is difficult to understand that an agriculture-driven growth in a country with nearly 60 percent of the labour force employed in the sector should produce such adverse growth and poverty dynamics”.

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Youths move against poverty

    Youths in the country have been advised to come together to fight poverty by establishing economic ventures within their environment. The call was made by the Senior Programme Officer of Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) in Lagos, Mr Kayode Ogunyemi.

    Ogunyemi gave the advice at the Stop Poverty Campaign organised by the African Alliance of Young Men Christian Association (YMCAs), Lagos, held at Ikoyi, Lagos.

    The rally with the theme: Shun Violence Embrace Peace brought together over 250 young people drawn from secondary school, Red Cross, Nigeria Police Force, Nigeria Army covering the entire Awolowo Road to Tafawa Balewa Square of Obalende by Awolowo Road, Lagos.

    According to him, youth can only provide the direction for the future of our country when they are innovative, creative and taking advantage of the various opportunities available within their surroundings.

    He said that the dynamism of the world have been sustained by youths.

    Ogunyemi noted that the revolution in the information communication technology and other sectors have been pioneered by youths who decided to go beyond the limit of their environment, harness their inate abilities and potential.

    Earlier in his welcome address, the coordinator of the rally, Jare Oluremi said it was meant to unite young leaders and provide opportunities for them to express their views and pursue their personal goals and aspirations in life.

    Oluremi noted that the level of corruption is becoming a threat to the future of young people  in Nigeria, hence many of them are lured into perpetrating criminal activities such as killings, kidnapping, robbery that can be addressed effectively through mentorship of credible leadership.

    He said “We believe that in the midst of our socio-economic challenges lies in our hope for young people who will dare to dream big and work toward it with godly principles

    Oluremi noted that YMCAs is a community based organisation providing relevant programme for the development of young people and empowering them to live a fulfilled life

  • Corruption, poverty threat to national development, says Tambuwal

    The Speaker, House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, has said that corruption and poverty are national social menaces that are detrimental to national development.

    He said this at a lecture on “Religion, Ethnicity and Corruption: Challenges of National Security” held at the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria yesterday.

    A News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) report said that the lecture was organised by the Centre for Peace, Conflict and Security Studies, ABU, in collaboration with Students’ Representative Council of the institution.

    Tambuwal, who was represented by Rep. Bashir Adamu, Chairman, House Committee on Defence, lamented over the prevalence of corruption and poverty in the country.

    “Corruption is not only in the public service but it cuts across all segments including schools, businesses and even our homes.

    “In the same vein, unity of Nigeria is a foregone conclusion. This should be a topmost priority because the idea of separation is not an issue,” he said.

    The speaker stressed the need for Nigerians to exploit all avenues to ensure corporate existence of the nation through unity, peace, tolerance and understanding of one another’s cultures and values.

    “For democracy to succeed, people must learn to accommodate, tolerate and embrace one another,” Tambuwal said.

    In his speech, the ABU vice-chancellor, Prof. Abdullahi Mustapha, observed that national conflicts were added conflicts emanating from ward, local and state levels.

    Mustapha, who was represented by Prof. Adebayo Joshua, dean, School of Post-Graduate Studies, assured the centre of the institution’s support.

    He hoped that more of such lecture would be organised to enlighten the people on the consequences of the menace.

    The guest speakers, Prof. Aminu Mohammed-Dorayi, of the Institute of Security Studies and Dr Abubakar Saddiq-Muhammad of Political Science Department, ABU, advised Nigerians not to use religion and ethnicity as a means of achieving political goals.

    They identified lack of political will to genuinely deal with corruption, poor criminal justice system, absence of moral code of ethics and integrity benchmark, as some of the factors responsible for endemic corruption in the country.

    The guest speakers also described lack of energy as a threat to national security and called for urgent measures to address the problem to provide employment opportunities to millions of Nigerians.

  • Transcending poverty

    Gbe Ku De is not just a peculiar Yoruba play in the context of satire and ululation of the oddities of life, it is formed and put in place by the original playwright Adegoke Durojaiye, to dramatise life in its entirety. But in translating the play into English with the name Death Entrapped, Deji Medubi, a lecturer at the University of Lagos, has succeeded in enlarging its literary scope and reach and appeal in order to portray to the world the place of Poverty, Death, Wealth, Contentious and more, in the organisation and perception of life.

    It is a play that draws extensively from the every-day method of living by the key players in the society. But in this format, Poverty takes the centre stage. He implores his own wisdom and gimmick to handle Death, distort the normal flow of things and put his wife, Contentious, where she belongs. He is not just the protagonist, he is a crook who hoodwinks all and sundry.

    It is ironical how poverty has continued to pervade the surface of the earth. Even when the opportunity to eradicate it presented itself on a platter of gold, Poverty is not only tenacious, and cunning, but aggressive and stubborn. In a case where he refuses to allow new trends to hold sway, both Wealth, Death, Intelligence and others have no choice but to bow to his whims and caprices.

    With Contentious as his wife, and a very contagious one for that matter, the duo continue to pose as a threat to the world. In their poverty, a very terrible one for that matter, they terrorise the world and pust their neighbours in jeopardy. Peace eludes them, so also the people around them. Poverty is not prepared to let go, his smartness is for the wrong reason and intent. For how long will poverty and hunger continue to mesmerise the world and be a force to reckon with?

    With a horrible wife whose tongue tears the heart like bad news in a harmattan season, no one can be in a proper frame of mind to plan and achieve. So, with the sort of wife Poverty deserves, so to say, the stage in now set to unleash on the world these two worrisome issues that the society may never wish away.

    A Stranger comes around and asks Poverty to choose what he wants in life. Surprisingly, he does not choose wealth or progress or peace; he chooses to have his only apple tree produce ripped fruits. Both the Stranger and Contentious are amazed. But then too, Contentious chooses the death of her man. But Poverty proves smarter, for in the process his landlord comes around and he ensures that his fingers are glued to the tree. So also is Death whom he makes to follow suit.

    With so much power and sense in the hands of Poverty, how can poverty, backwardness, idiocy and so on, be eradicated in the world? The story is to show that most people who find themselves in that position do not want to be free from it. It is incongruously the truth, but the sort of truth that the world will for ever live with. Poverty has come to stay, has come to invent various ways to manipulate the world and remain endemic. Who can then beat poverty in this game of intrigues and self-centredness and survival instinct?

    On page 40, Intelligence asks Poverty, “Ah, you ensnare Death? Poverty, you are a real man.” And so, as he does so, he goes far afield on page 42 where he says: “Yes, I’ve captured Death. So let him be enjoying himself there.” In his reply, Death squirms: “Poverty, you’ve cunningly bound me just because I’ve come to kill you. But I want you to realise that I’m working at the order of the creator…”

    The climax of the play is shown on page 40 where another funny character Feme, says thus: “As poverty will not die and his wife, Contentious, will not die, how will the world be conducive for one?” To which Intelligence gives a protracted reply that goes this way: “Oh yes, we kneel to choose destiny. We prostrate to take advice. We came to the world but become impatient … By marrying a restless woman he has carried a dead bush-fowl, thereby overloading himself with myriad of problems…” What a hard lesson to learn from the play!

    Apart from a few typographical errors, Medubi has shown that drama is the centre-piece of life. The play is instructive, having been originally written in 1970 but which still today harbours ingredients of lessons for mankind.

     

  • Local govt tackles poverty

    The Eti-Osa Local Government Area in Lagos State last week distributed various items to some residents of the council as part of its efforts to eradicate poverty.

    The programme which is held quarterly, took place at the council secretariat, Igbo Efon in Lekki. Lucky residents were given items such as deep freezers, microwave ovens, hair dryers, sewing machines and digital cameras.

    Delivering the keynote address, the chairman, Hon. Anofiu Olanrewaju Elegushi said the beneficiaries went through a screening process before the finial list was realised. He said further that the process of selection was devoid of any political or ethnic consideration.

    “The gesture behind this initiative is to distribute materials to fish rather than giving people the fish itself. Though the event is not flamboyant, its motive is to assist those that are in need within the community.

    “We have come up with a list of most needy and deserving people for this first batch of beneficiaries. This implies that other batches will follow at the appropriate time,” he said.

    Elegushi advised participants to make proper use of the materials especially those who received cash assistance. He also encouraged participants to carry out their duties as citizens by paying their taxes.

  • Govt can’t tackle poverty without economic indicators, says Jang

    Plateau State Governor Jonah Jang yesterday said no government can tackle poverty if there are no reliable and timely indicators on major sectors of the economy.

    The governor said there must be a good understanding of the status of poverty before a government can tackle the menace.

    Jang spoke in Jos, the state capital, at a two-day workshop of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) organised for journalists.

    He explained that planning and policy formulation can only be effective when statistics is promoted as a tool for development, planning and evidence-based policy-making.

    Arrangements, he said, were being made to reposition and strengthen the State Statistical Agency (SSA) in Plateau State to enable it cope with the challenges ahead.

    The State Statistical Master Plan (SSMP), which will drive the reform process has been produced and an Executive Bill on the establishment of the State Bureau of Statistic is being prepared, Jang said.

    The governor, who was represented by the Chairman of the State Planning Commission, Mr. John Daduut, said Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) as well as the local government areas would be strengthened to enable them collect statistics for their operations.

    He said: “I am aware of the responsibilities and challenges that statistical institutions face, bearing in mind that planning and policy formulation can only be effective when statistics is promoted as a tool for development, planning and evidence-based policy making.

    “Efforts at poverty reduction are at the centre of government’s economic programme. This can only be realised when there is a clear understanding of the status of poverty in Nigeria. In the same vein, to address the poverty situation in the country, there must be reliable and timely indicators on major sectors of the economy, such as agriculture, education, manufacturing, mines and power, health and transport, to mention but a few.”

    The Statistician-General of the Federation (SGF), Dr. Yemi Kale, urged state governments to establish a statistical infrastructure that would support complex decision-making processes as well as a proper planning of the socio-economic programmes.

    Kale, who was represented by the Head of Statistics Department, Mr. George Oparaku, said: “Viewed against the backdrop of the cautious approach the government adopts in pursuing its programmes, particularly in the ongoing Reform Agenda, it has become necessary for the Nigeria Statistical System (NSS) to further improve on its data generation.

    “To achieve this, the government, in collaboration with development partners, has designed a comprehensive National Strategy for the Development of Statistics (NSDC) for the NSS. The strategy is a five-year plan spanning 2010-2014.”

  • Sokoto, MDGs fight poverty with N300m

    •Governor Wamakko

    In an effort to reduce poverty, the Millennium Development Goals office and the Sokoto State government have provided N300 million for a comprehensive programme within communities in the state.

    The programme will give emphasis to widows with the burden of children and those abandoned by their husbands as a result of health problems such as Vesico Vaginal Fistula(VVF).The third category are parents that are incapacitated.

    Speaking at the inauguration of committees from eight local government councils in the Sokoto Central Senatorial zone at the Giginya-Coral five-star Hotel, the state Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Alhaji Farouk Malami Yabo said the programme is aimed at empowering the residents particularly the poor at the grassroots.

    According to him, both the state government and MDGs office will provide their counterpart funds of 50 per cent each for the programme.
    The councils whose committees have been given one week to come up with lists of 20 qualified would-be beneficiaries each include: Wamakko, Sokoto North, Sokoto South, Silame, Binji, Tangaza, Gudu and Kware respectively.

    Alhaji Yabo explained that the programme is expected to reach 2,300 beneficiaries across the 23 local government areas in form of trainings and take-off capital to support their respective trades.

    “ Our target is 50,000 beneficiaries because our vision is for the fold to keep multiplying while beneficiaries extend support to others,”he said.
    However, Yabo said the emphasis of the first phase which comprises of 120 communities would be on poultry farming and cattle breeding, adding that the training will be for three days and transportation has been provided to convey beneficiaries who will be entitled to N5000 as monthly allowances for 12 months.

    “ Already we have Skills acquisition centres at designated areas across the state where the training exercise will be carried out accordingly”, he added.
    Yabo explained that the essence is to responsively explore more efficient and effective avenues as poultry farming and cattle breeding for quick yield within the shortest possible time.

    “ It will enable the beneficiaries run at rapid gain in terms of egg production which can be of support to women beneficiaries as means of livelihood”, he pointed out.

    He urged would be beneficiaries to avail themselves the opportunity and ensure the success of the partnership.