The Nation Newspaper

Tag: President Muhammadu Buhari

  • VP Shettima attends wedding of late Buhari’s granddaughter in Kaduna

    VP Shettima attends wedding of late Buhari’s granddaughter in Kaduna

    Vice-President Kashim Shettima, on Saturday attended the wedding fatiha of Ms Halima Junaid, the granddaughter of the late former President Muhammadu Buhari and Mr Walid Muazu, the son of Iyan Katagum.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the wedding held at the Yahaya Road Juma’at Mosque, Ungwan Rimi, in Kaduna metropolis.

    Shettima was accompanied by the Deputy Chief of Staff to the President, Sen. Ibrahim Hadejia, Minister of Environment, Alhaji Balarabe Lawal, the Minister of Transportation, Sen. Sa’idu Alkali and Rep. Lawal Zannah.

    The Vice- President stood for the bride Halima Junaid, while Alhaji Shehu Mauzu stood for the groom.
    Dignitaries presence are; Abubakar Malami SAN, former Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, former Chairman, Economic and Financial Crime Commission, Abdulraseed Bawa,Yusuf Muhammadu Buhari, and the former Director-General, State Security Service, Malam Yusuf Bichi.
    Others are: Alhaji Tahir Muhammad Tahir, former Special Adviser to the President on Religious Affairs, prominent personalities within and outside Kaduna.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that immediately after the wedding fatiha, Shettima proceeded to the residence of the former Nigerian leader, Buhari and greeted the widow, Aisha Muhammadu Buhari.

    Shettima said he was specifically directed by President Bola Tinubu to extend his warm regards and reassure the family of his continued support.

    He also offered words of comfort and encouragement to the widow of the late President, Aisha Buhari, noting that late President Buhari will forever remain dear to both President Tinubu and himself.

    Shettima said, “I came to Kaduna to attend the wedding of Halima Junaid and after the wedding I decided to come and greet you and also to once again console you.

    Read Also: Shettima represents Tinubu at Sambo son’s wedding in Kano

    “I cannot come to Kaduna and go without coming to this house. May Allah grant his soul eternal rest and reward him with Aljannah and may Allah give you the fortitude to bear the loss. ”
    Similarly, Shettima, on behalf of President Bola Tinubu, paid a condolence visit to the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Vice Chairman (North West), Alhaji Garba Datti Muhammad, over the demise of his son.

    He said ” When I was informed by my boss, His Excellency, President Bola Tinubu that I was going to Kaduna to attend the wedding of the granddaughter of the late former President Muhammadu Buhari.

    “He (Tinubu) said it is absolutely essential that you should represent me at the wedding fatiha and most importantly, go and pay a condolence visit to the National Vice Chairman (North West) of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who lost a son..

    “On behalf of President Bola  Tinubu, I want to convey our deep sympathy and condolences to our boss, our party leader, and to the governor of Kaduna state,” Shettima said.

    (NAN)

  • Nigeria @ 59: We don’t need another national confab – Olatujoye

    Prince Anthony Olatujoye, former Legal Adviser of the Central Bank of Nigeria, is a seasoned public affairs analyst. In this interview with ‘Dare Odufowokan, Assistant Editor, the Managing Partner of Difigland Partners, Abuja, a firm aimed at the development of banking law, faults growing calls for another national conference as a way out of the country’s current challenges.
    He argues that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led federal government is working hard to move Nigeria out of the woods and should be supported by all and sundry.

    Nigeria is celebrating 59th independence anniversary. How will you assess the current administration?

    If we are to consider that the team just kicked off a new term, it is too early in the day to assess a cabinet that has not fully assumed official duties unless assessment in this contest means a commentary on the pedigree, character and industry of the individuals who make the cabinet. If so, I wish to submit without any equivocation that the choice of minsters by the President looks pretty good for the Next Level. More so when the president had earlier admitted he would personally select his team which would assist him to fulfill his promises or mandate; namely, fighting insecurity, rejigging the economy, fighting corruption.

    I say this having regard to the track records of a good number of these appointees who have either served as ministers with the President in his first term, or as ex – governors with intimidating records of performance, or legislators and technocrats who have distinguished themselves at various times of their services to the nation. I have in mind the likes of Babatunde Fashola (SAN), Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, Rotimi Ameachi, Zainab Ahmed, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, Dr. Chis Ngige, Dr. Ehaneri, Timipre Sylva, Abubakar Malami (SAN), Hadi Serika, the uncommon ex-Senate Minority leader, Godswill Akpabio, the cerebral Sunday Dare, the “O to ge” Prince of Kwara politics, Lai Muhammed, my indefatigable brother, Senator Tayo Alasoadura, et el. Indeed, I have no reason whatsoever to doubt the administrative and professional perspicacity and readiness of the 43-man cabinet to take Nigeria to the Next Level.

    Going forward, what new things would you expect the President and his team to do?

    The President has set out the agenda for his second term in office aptly tagged the Next Level, which is expected to move Nigeria to a level comparable to what obtains in developed economies. It follows therefore that the current strides by Mr. President in the areas of creation of jobs, improvement in the power sector, agriculture, the new vistas for fighting insurgency, banditry and kidnappings, setting up of an Economic Advisory Council, vibrant foreign policies, particularly  in relation to  the issue of xenophobia in South Africa, creation of  jobs, liberating 100 million Nigerians from poverty, and finally the zeal to actively challenge the corruption-ridden award donated to P & ID by a British court in respect of the $9.6 billion gas supply contract, give some hope that this President looks set for business . Therefore, my expectations from the Next Level governance architecture include but not limited to- enthroning a transparent and responsive governance structure in Nigeria; largely addressing the unceasing issue of restructuring with a view to according our federalism its proper place in the comity of nations;  demystifying corruption, kidnapping and other heinous crimes in the country; creating jobs for the youths to stem emigration to foreign lands; creating an enabling environment for Ease of Doing Business; progressive reforms of the public service to meet international best practice; massive infrastructural development  roads, rail system, airports, sea ports, et el; improving power supply to meet 21st century needs; enacting a new electoral law to deepen our democracy; and leaving a legacy clothed with integrity, unity, good governance, robust / democratic institutions of state  and a viral economy. It is hoped that Mr. President will set in motion the machinery for the actualisation of these expectations.

    Some prominent Nigerians in recent time have been advocating for a new national conference. Do you share in this view?

     With profound respect to the Noble Laureate, I do not think there is any country in the world without socio-political and economic challenges. Accordingly, I find it difficult to agree with the erudite professor that Nigeria’s current challenges have overwhelmed the President thus rendering him incapable to savage the situation. In fairness to the President, it is not difficult to see the efforts being made to neutralize some of the troubling challenges of insurgency, food insecurity, erratic power supply and infrastructure decay in the country. I am not aware that the President has ever behaved as a leader incapable of savaging the country from these challenges. This brings me to the suggestion of the Nobel Laureate on the desirability of another national conference to address the Nigeria question with a view to putting to bed the challenges which he believes are serious enough to convoke such conference. Frankly speaking, I do not believe that another national conference is the route to take. However, this position does not in any way derogate from the need to have a people-oriented constitution which will radically address some, if not all the troubling issues agitating the cerebral minds of the professor, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, Aare Afe Babalola and indeed some other Nigerians. It remains for me therefore to say that Mr. President, the National Assembly, the State Assemblies and indeed all of us should have a second look at the 2014 National Conference Report and others before it, so as to agree on those areas or recommendations that can be adopted for immediate constitutional alterations. The rapprochement between the Presidency and the National Assembly leaves one with the hope that a lot can be achieved in this direction instead of taking another conference pilgrimage which may distract government from actualising its agenda for the Next Level.

    What do you make of the accusations and counter accusations that have trailed the arrest and detention of Omoyele Sowore, convener of Revolutionnow Movement?

    Honestly, Omoyele Sowore’s ordeal has been over-flogged and should ordinarily be left for the courts to determine. But there is a need to advise other upcoming Sowores to always seek legal opinions before embarking on similar voyages which may not find favour with the law. Without prejudice to the matter in court, the government may magnanimously reconsider its position on the matter.

     The debate for and against state police has been raging. What is your opinion on the issue in view of the security situation of the country today?

    The debate on whether state policing is the right way to go has acquired such notoriety that one finds it unnecessary to add his voice. However, one clear issue that has come out of this is the need to decentralize the Force to meet the dictates of federalism. I have no hesitation in aligning myself with the popular position to wit- that the decentralization should be community based. In other words, I believe that community policing system, which is controlled centrally by the IGP, appears more attractive for now, if only to put a check or some of our powerful state governors from turning same as instruments of humiliation against their perceived political enemies. The overbearing influence of some of these governors over state electoral commissions readily comes to mind.

    How will you assess the handling of the Ikale/Araromi-Obu crisis in your home state by the Ondo State Government?

    When the news of the crisis between the Ikale and Araromi – Obu people first came to me, as an Ikale man, I shuddered at the initial reaction of the state government which to all intent and purpose was not only biased but highly humiliating. More worrisome was the unnecessary humiliation of the paramount ruler of Ikale land, His Royal Majesty Oba Faduyile by the state governor during the governor’s fact-finding mission to the Oba’s Palace. The good news however, is that  the matter is now receiving attention by the panel set up by the government to examine the immediate and remote  causes of the unfortunate imbroglio between the people of Araromi-Obu and the Ikales. It is common knowledge that there is a subsisting court order, affirming the rights of the Ikale people over the land in dispute. Let me at this juncture applaud the intervention of some prominent Ikale sons and daughters, led by Prince (Dr.) General Olu Bajowa, a leading star in Ikale land. I also salute Barr Samuel Adetuyi, commissioner of police (rtd); Ikale Progressive Association in Abuja and Ikales in the diaspora. Let me conclude that I have also spoken with His Royal Majesty the Abodi of Ikale land on the need to continue to uphold the cause of the Ikale people and to also cooperate with the panel of inquiry looking into the dispute. I wish also to admonish the Ikale and the Araromi-Obu people to sheath their swords and allow peace to reign and to also respect the  extant ruling of the High Court on the matter until and unless same is upturned by the Court of  Appeal or ultimately by the Supreme Court.

  • United … they cry out!

    For shoppers and traders, Nigeria @ 59 should bring massive turnaround, especially in food security and affordability, for the people. From the mundane to the ordinary, JANE CHIJIOKE reports that the position taken by this category of Nigerians sums up the yearnings of the retail sector.

    Nigeria’s 59th independence celebration last Tuesday turned out to be the worst for most traders and shoppers. But while some have tales of woes, others agree that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration has made some achievements.

    They lauded the administration for introducing the trader moni which they claimed has boosted their business. They, however, lamented the closure of the borders, which according to them has led to the high cost of food staples such as rice and others.

    Most of them who spoke to this reporter said since the year began,  prices of many food items  have been on the increase. For instance, they said a 10-kilogramme of Semovita now sells for N3,000 against its former price of N2,700 in the first quarter of the year; a kilo of chicken sells for between N1,500 and N1,700 against its former price of N1,000;  a bag of rice now sells between N17 and N23,000; five-litre of Kings Oil costs N3,000.

    Though the price of a basket of tomatoes has reduced from its initial price of N14,000 to between N8,000 and N10,000, shoppers complained that it was still expensive. Thier reason being that it was sold at N4,000  in April.

    Both shoppers and traders were united in their call for food security.

    The convener of Rice Revolution, Mr Aladejebi Gbenga, said efforts by successive governments to encourage local food production is the right step at ensuring that the country attains food sufficiency. However, he noted that affordability of food items still remained a major concern.

    Similarly, the Managing Director, ATMBeautyMpire, Asabe Moses, said the issue of food security in the country has to do with infrastructure availability. She explained that if there were good roads between farms and cities, food stuff would be affordable.

    “The roads are bad, before farm produce gets to the city it would have spoilt. Farmers pay heavity to transport their produce; so the government should look into this and food will be cheaper,” Moses added.

    For a shopper at the Ikeja Shopping Mall, Lagos, Mrs Helen Iselobhor, said there is nothing to celebrate as the country is facing hardship. Her position is based on the volume of trading in the past.

    “The economy has been bad for the masses; we have to deal with high exchange rates, inflation, hunger, recession, poverty all the time.  When the president came on board in 2015, it was really a tough time for the masses. There was hardship to contend. Till date, we are still feeling the brunt in all areas. The cost of food stuff is outrageous.  We cannot even afford basic foods. We are at the receiving end of unfavourable policies of the government and nobody listens to our cries. What have we achieved so far since independence?” she asked.

    She may be right. A look into the streets prior to the independence celebration confronts one with the stark reality. For instance, the country’s national flags, which were sold in traffic during festivals like this were a scarce item. It is the display of the national flag on vehicles and other areas that an average Nigerian associates with the independence celebration.

    For Mr. David Godwin, who owns a clothing outfit at Marina, Lagos, N500 worth of food can no longer satisfy him, owing to the increase of food items. He noted that if the planned increase in Value Added Tax (VAT) is implemented, it would put more pressure on his home.

    “This will affect the price of food items. At present, it has not been easy taking care of the home as prices of food and other basic necessities keep escalating.  If such tax is implemented, it will also affect my business because it will further affect the already dwindling customers’ purchasing power.”

    A consultant to the Mile 12 Market, Femi Odusanya, said the country has not achieved much to celebrate. He lamented that successive governments had not done much to make food available for the average Nigerian. Likewise, the government has not made the food production value chain attractive for investment, neither have state governments lived up to their billing in supporting the Federal Government’s efforts to enhance cultivation of food production.

    “So, in reality, food supply is a challenge for which citizens are pay more for less. In addition, a significant percentage of cultivation and other animal production is still peasant in nature. Ninety per cent of the country’s population is still facing the challenge of meeting the basic needs of food, housing and shelter.”

  • Kaduna house of torture

    • Its administrators should be prosecuted to send the appropriate message

    Reactions of the parents of some of the 300 persons freed by the police last week from what was supposed to be a correctional Islamic centre at Rigasa in Kaduna State exemplified the notion that ignorance is indeed a disease. It is the story of a rehabilitation centre in need of rehabilitation.

    What gladdens the heart is that some Muslim authorities have dismissed the notion that the school is an epitome of an Islamic school. According to President Muhammadu Buhari, “We are glad that Muslim authorities have dismissed the notion of the embarrassing and horrifying spectacle as Islamic school. The place has indeed been described as a house of torture and a place of human slavery.” Such a place where some inmates were chained to prevent their escape from the centre cannot be allowed in any country in the 21st century.

    Ignorance may be a disease; but it is not incurable. The cure in this case lies in massive enlightenment on the need for parents to give birth to the number of children they can cater for. One of the women whose children were freed from the rehabilitation centre said she had two children there while another said she had four.  Maryam Fatika, who had four children at the school said she saw nothing wrong with the way the school was being operated:  “there was nothing going wrong in the school because we took our children there willingly. We don’t know why the police raided the place,” she said, adding: “My children have never complained to me about abuse or anything. But we are aware that they were punished if they did something wrong because they are very dangerous and stubborn children.” Another parent with six children there, Hajiya Shafa’atu Zakari, said she took her children to the place because they were drug addicts that they could no longer tame at home.

    Obviously both the parents and their children need to be educated to see what is wrong with the way the centre was being run. We therefore agree with President Buhari that education is the panacea to child abuse and that children “will be safeguarded from roaming the streets and protected from all evil influences that assail idle hands and idle minds, when they are sent to school.” This is the essence of making the first nine years of education free and compulsory nationwide. It is a constitutional matter; what is left is for state governments and the Federal Government to activate the processes for enforcing this policy.

    We emphatise with the parents over the fate of their children. But that is one of the problems people run into when they have more children than they can take care of. Be that as it may, there is the need by government at all levels to do something about the country’s economic situation. More economic opportunities would take some of these children off the streets.

    Governments nationwide must be alert and alive to their responsibilities. The mushrooming of illegal baby centres is also an indication of lax monitoring and enforcement of laws guiding the operations of homes like the one in Kaduna and others that have been uncovered, either in recent times or in the past.

    We cannot close our eyes to the operations of such places. Government’s licence is required to operate such centres. Moreover, separate licences ought to be obtained for schools and rehabilitation centres. It is not a question of whether the parents willingly sent their children to the centre for rehabilitation; it is a question of whether laws have been breached. In this case, the answer is in the affirmative.

    So, we cannot pretend not to see the abuses that children in the home were subjected to in the name of discipline. A rational human being must know where discipline stops and torture takes over. The approach of the Kaduna centre can only promote fanaticism and fundamentalism, two scourges Nigeria cannot afford to nurture, especially given our experiences in recent years and the experiences of other countries under the spell of religious bigots. The school’s administrators should be prosecuted to serve as a deterrent.

  • NCS Act 2019: Ex-AGF Ojo seeks more justice sector reforms

    Former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Chief Bayo Ojo (SAN), has called for more justice sector reforms following the enactment of the Nigerian  Correctional Service Act 2019

    Ojo said plea bargain, suspended sentence and parole, among others, should be entrenched in our criminal justice system.

    Praising President Muhammadu Buhari for assenting to the NCS Act 2019, he said the law would stimulate an overhaul of the prison system and bring succour and sanity to prisoners and stakeholders alike.

    The Act, which replaces the Prisons Act of 2018, also changed the Nigerian Prison Service to Nigerian Correctional Service.

    Ojo said: “As Attorney-General and Minister of Justice of the Federation, I presented a memo to the then Federal Executive Council in January 2006, under the then President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, that any awaiting trial inmate who had spent time that is more than the sentence he or she would have bagged if tried and convicted of the offence  should be unconditionally released immediately.

    “Also, any awaiting trial inmate with the exception of those charged with capital offences like murder, armed robbery or terrorism that has spent up to five years in prison without trial should be unconditionally released immediately. Halfway homes should be established for prisoners who have spent 75 percent of their term to enable them prepare for re-integration back into the society. In addition, any convict that was  seventy years and above or with a terminal disease should be pardoned and released unconditionally.

    “He recommended that a stakeholders summit comprising all the Chief Judges in the country, all Attorneys-General and Commissioners of Justice, all Controllers of Prisons nationwide, all Commissioners of Police, Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Legal Aid Council of Nigeria, National Human Rights Commission, Civil Society and any other relevant body should be convened as soon as practicable to fashion out a permanent solution to the intractable problem of congestion in our prisons

    “The memo was approved by Council and led to the biggest and most ambitious prison decongestion exercise ever embarked upon in the nation’s history.

    “This is one of the events that has given me so much joy in my life.”

    On how  he became familiar with bthe plight of prisoners, Ojo said: “I was not actually on a new road in this regard, between 1999 and 2004, I  was the Chairman of the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria (LAC), a Federal Government parastatal established to assist the indigent in the society who cannot afford legal fees.

    “LAC provided lawyers for this category of people to represent them in court, especially in criminal proceedings.

    “In 1978, though  my place of  primary assignment was the Ministry of Justice, Enugu, I  also did part of my National Youth Service with the Legal Aid Council.

    “That was when I  visited the prison for the first time in my  life and the conditions there made a lasting impression on me  and I  resolved that if given the opportunity, I will do something to ameliorate the situation.

    “So, when I  became the Minister of Justice, my vision was to achieve three purposes. First was to fight the cases of so many poor people in court and see them released from prisons.

    “The second was to empower lawyers, especially the junior ones trying to find their feet in the profession and that was why I engaged many  lawyers and gave them briefs to fight the cases of the poor who were in prisons but could not afford legal representation. At the same time, this led to decongestion in prisons all over the country.”

    Explaining his passion for the oppressed, Ojo said: “Whatever is your calling in life, your only claim to real success is how you use your profession to impact positively on your environment, community and the lives of ordinary people of the society.

    “The need to do this is the motivating factor to use the law as a tool for social engineering. Above all, the humanity of any nation is determined by how it treats its prison inmates”.

    He commended stakeholders, including  the National Assembly and the  Attorney-General and Minister of Justice for the law.

    Immediately after Ojo left office, he was appointed as a member of the United Nations International Law Commission based in Geneva, Switzerland where he joined other egg heads from across the world to contribute to the development of the world in the area of the law.

    But whatever contribution he may have made to the society, Ojo believes he is only following in the footsteps of great Nigerian legal minds that have used the law for the benefit of their people.

    “We’ve had in this nation eminent lawyers like the late Chief Gani Fewehinmi SAN, Alao Aka-Bashorun and Kanni Ishola-Osobu, who all through their lives, stood for what was right and what was just. Above all, they stood on the side of the people. They fought oppression where ever it reared its ugly head. I salute their courage. They should be immortalised. May their souls continue to rest in peace”.

    Nevertheless, he observed that his personal achievements are incomparable to the challenges that lie ahead for the nation, which is why the reforms in the justice sector carried out by his successors is commendable.

    He added: “We should be able to have plea bargain, suspended sentence and parole, etc fully entrenched in our criminal justice system.

    “The prisons need to be rebuilt with better infrastructure and the welfare of prisoners improved.

    “We should also make progress in terms of improvement in procedure in civil cases and better case management. Above all, we must embrace IT in all ramifications including fast track courts, electronic filing of cases, taking evidence electronically instead of long hand and training of judges, lawyers and other support staff of the courts”.

    On the political scene, Ojo observed that most people pay attention to Governorship, National Assembly and Presidential elections.

    The focus, he suggested, should be on Councillorship, Local Government Chairpersons and State House of Assembly elections. “These are the elections that are closer to the people and the grassroots. We need to pay keen interest on who becomes our councilor and local government chairperson. The same for who represents us at the various States Houses of Assembly”.

  • Banditry pays

    The contradictions in the northern part of the country is escalating. Politically, the north has dominated leadership of the country for better part of Nigeria’s independence, and for some, under President Muhammadu Buhari, that domination is more entrenched. Those who argue as such, point at the political appointments as a confirmation of the agenda to dominate.

    While President Buhari’s minders would use the ministerial list, to contradict this point, it is disheartening that instead of the appointments helping to elevate the north, rather, it is stymied in deeper existential crisis. Unfortunately, the greatest challenge facing the region presently is no longer its political battles with the south, but rather the war amongst its constituent parts.

    The banditry by the so-called cattle rustlers may actually be a war between the indigenous Hausas and the wealthier migratory Fulanis. While it may be preposterous to theorise an organized rise by the indigenous Hausa against their more sophisticated Fulani masters, there is no doubt that the crisis is a manifestation of a deep schisms between the two cultures. Of course, apart from the rise of the more exposed Fulani in the political ladder, the itinerant Fulani is also doing better economically than the sedentary Hausa.

    The Fulani herder is a roving economy, with his control of about 100 to 200 herds. As scruffy as he looks, he is actually a mobile ATM, at least for the armed bandit, who could disposes him, of a few of his cattle. So, the Hausa talakawas who have been politically disposed since the 19th century and whom the modern criminality in post-independence governments have made even poorer, have resorted to a banditry economy of fleecing the Fulani of their cattle by all means possible.

    Last week, Governor Aminu Masari of Kastina State, in an interview with this newspaper put the ranging debacle in clearer perspective. Earlier, he had posed with a bandit wielding an assault raffle, perhaps to show those in the bush that you can keep your gun while negotiating with the state. But more scarily, the governor had said that in some parts of the north-west, there are criminal gangs whose sole agenda is to kill any Fulani in sight.

    In describing the challenge posed by the bandits in neighbouring Zamfara, the governor said: “we have what we call volunteers who are not even vigilantes. These volunteers went about killing any Fulani man, or Fulani woman they saw.” Yet, the apparatchik of state power at the federal and state levels are substantially in the hands of the Fulani elite. Yet again, many in the southern part of Nigeria strongly believe the Fulani have an agenda to overrun the entire country and dominate it.

    Perhaps, even if a few of them nurse such a grandiose ambition, it is reasonable to doubt their ability to actualize it. With their northern redoubt on fire, that may explain the downward movement towards the Niger-Benue trough and its environments. That may also explain the desperation to establish new settlements elsewhere, otherwise known as RUGA settlement. That may further explain the desperate plea by President Buhari to Benue people at the height of their confrontation with the herders that Nigerians should accommodate their neighbours.

    Regardless of one’s emotional disposition to the deep rooted existential crisis facing the country, there is the urgent need for what the inimitable essayist of this newspaper, Snooping Around, usually call elite consensus on minimal templates for governance. If this column has the ears of President Muhammadu Buhari, it is urging him to devote his second tenure to build consensus on national economy and politics. Those so-called kitchen cabinet who have been fingered as more interested in the 2023 succession plan, should look back to history and learn.

    Hopefully, the new Presidential Economic Advisory Council may provide new ideas on how to turn the economy around. Many have argued that the appointees have the pedigree, but it is the president who ultimately determines which way to go. Considering that the president prefers conservative economic policies, some commentators are wondering whether the president would be willing to accept the liberal economic policies that may emanate from the liberal economists that make up the team.

    Perhaps, the president has become a convert to liberal economic policies, seeing that his conservative economic practices have not yielded the expected economic boom. Assuming the new team can make any difference, most of their efforts will come to naught, if the political environment spirals into a tailspin, if the initiative to stoke the political environment succeeds. So, just as he has done in the economic front, the president needs a broad based political committee to proffer solutions to the political crisis confronting the nation.

    Such an approach would serve Nigeria better. As this column has severally argued in the past, those who really love President Buhari must help him to achieve some legacies, before he leaves power. That argument has become even more trenchant now, considering that in few months going forward, President Muhammadu Buhari would become what the Americans refer to as a lame duck president. He must therefore resist the effort of those who want to succeed him in 2023 and are trying to derail his presidency in their blind ambition to consolidate their hold on power.

    A serene political climate will also benefit his ethnic group, which he loves so much. If they have benefited exponentially, because of the special privileges he has as head of state, he should worry about their fate when inevitably he leaves power? So, a more pragmatic approach should be, to be seen to act more fairly in the distribution of political privileges, so that there would no serious backlash when he steps aside.

    More importantly, the approach to the war in the north is not sustainable. The nation does not have the capacity to keep borrowing to sustain an unending debacle. Even when the borrower is desirous to keep borrowing, the lender would at a stage refuse to lend anymore. Clearly, we are approaching that bend, and the earlier the political differences are tampered with to allow for economic revival, the higher the chances of Nigeria surviving the approaching tornado.

    Nigeria therefore needs a better handling of the war in the north-west and north-east. The indecorous rapprochement in the northwest is even more frightening. You cannot first further empower the bandits in the bush by paying ransom to them, and then ask them to disarm later. It is also silly to compare the raison d’etre of the struggle in the Niger Delta with the uprising in the north. Perhaps, it is such failure of strategic thinking that has afflicted the north more any other malaise.

  • Closure of borders yielding positive results -Buhari

    President Muhammadu Buhari says the closure of Nigerian land borders for a limited period due to massive smuggling is already yielding positive result for the economy.

    The president stated this when he received a delegation from the Nigerian Association for Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) at the State House, Abuja, on Friday.

    The delegation also comprised of the Federation of West African Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FEWACCI) and representatives of the Organised Private Sector (OPS).

    Buhari said that the closure was necessitated by the lack of adherence to the business ideals by various stakeholders which was detrimental to the country and its people.

    ”After many years of diplomacy and aggressive regulatory oversight which yielded few results, we decided to close our land borders for a limited time to assess the impact of this measure.

    ”Within a few short weeks, we are already seeing a decline in the volumes of counterfeit smuggled goods in some of our major markets across the country.

    ”This validates our action as a Government when we insist that the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) must not only promote free trade, but legal trade of quality made in Africa goods and services,” he said.

    Buhari says everyone must play by the rules when it comes to trade and business activities that are central to Nigeria’s economic development.

    He added that his administration would ensure that the trade and business sector continues to flourish in job creation.

    He said: ”Unfortunately, in recent times, many traders simply do not play by the rules.

    ”Our markets are flooded with smuggled and counterfeit goods. By these selfish practices, we help keep foreign factories working while closing ours.

    ”From medicines to electronics to food items, our potential to manufacture and create jobs locally is severely hindered by a handful of Nigerians who choose profits over patriotism.

    ”We have all heard stories about the dangerous and sometimes, fatal impact of fake drugs and foods on our citizens.

    ”We have also seen how fake electrical items have led to fires in homes and markets thereby destroying lives and properties.

    ”Most of these substandard and illegal items are smuggled through our land borders.’’

    According to the president, his administration will continue to solicit the support of the organised private sector, both in Nigeria and across West Africa, to bring an end to the dumping of substandard items.

    He urged the Association to continue its ‘‘positive and patriotic contribution’’ towards achieving a free trade area that employs Africans to produce quality made in Africa products.

    Read Also: Buhari orders security chiefs to end crude oil theft

    ”We will soon finalise the National Action Committee on the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area. Your Association is a member of this committee.

    ”I expect you to continue your positive and patriotic contribution to support us in achieving a free trade area that employs Africans to produce quality made in Africa products,’’ the President said.

    In her remarks, Hajiya Saratu Aliyu, President FEWACCI, NACCIMA and OPS, commended the recent decision by the President to constitute a new economic team to steer the Nigerian economy on the path of sustainable growth.

    On the Economic Advisory Council (EAC), she said: ”NACCIMA, FEWACCI and indeed the OPS are full of hope that a new era is on the horizon with the calibre of persons on the team which reassures us at the OPS that Government is ready to turn around the story of Nigeria.”

    Aliyu also hailed significant accomplishments recorded in all sectors of the economy including but not limited to reduced corruption, foreign exchange stability, bottom of the pyramid programmes, increased ease of doing business, increased capital expenditures, among others.

    The president of NACCIMA appealed for the President’s intervention in the provision of property within Abuja for the location of FEWACCI headquarters.

    She also briefed the President about the 21-point NACCIMA programme, tagged ‘‘Unleash the Giant’’.

    She added that the association intended to engage the Federal Government on 16 of those stated points with the goal of ensuring business growth and socioeconomic advancement through public and private sector collaboration.

     

    (NAN)

  • To new ministers: Start as you mean to go on

    The die is cast and the second tenure of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration is in full throttle. Critics looked favourably upon the time taken to the announcement of the ministerial list—even though the list leaves much to be desired—given that a 54-day wait is infinitely better than a 6-month wait.

    Screening exercise, portfolio assignment, and swearing-in ceremonies are now in the rear-view mirror and we look forward to the performance of the public servants over the next four years, barring unforeseen circumstances.

    Remarkable among the portfolios allotted to the ministers is the saddling of Mrs. Zainab Ahmed with the task of National Planning and Budgeting combined in addition to her previous responsibility of overseeing the nation’s finance. The enlarged portfolio certainly casts a heavier burden on the honourable minister who already had her work cut out. However, more surprising than Mrs. Ahmed’s new portfolio is the admission of the newly appointed Minister of Interior, Gov. Rauf Aregbesola, that he is not fully acquainted with the responsibilities of his office.

    The early signs from both ministers are inauspicious but their ministries remain immensely critical to the overall wellbeing of the nation, and as such it is imperative that they put their best feet forward from inception.

    Over the years, the deep-rooted anomalies in the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS)—a commission within the ambit of the Ministry of Interior—have all but abated. In fact, they are waxing stronger than ever. The heinous activities perpetrated in the commission range from outright circumvention of the vaunted Treasury Single Account (TSA) policy under the command of Mrs. Ahmed’s ministry—to bribery of officials and over-complication of the passport procurement process. There is no gainsaying the fact that the rot in the NIS is fostered and relished by a syndicate of villainous public officials.

    Nigeria’s social media sphere, Twitter and Facebook particularly, is constantly imbued with complaints from citizens centred on their travails at the hands of immigration officers in the process of securing or renewing their international passports. Residents rehash their travails at the hands of immigration officers for failing to accede to overtures for bribes to expedite the passport collection or renewal process. They offer their services as ‘’assistance’’ but the catch is that money must change hands for it to become active. Alternatively, citizens can go about the process without aid but the chances of obtaining their booklets promptly are zero to none.  The winding procedure is made inordinately tedious to ensure that everyone follows suit by soliciting the help of an official or their street vendors.

    These officials are often enabled by the interminable shortage of passport booklets, which they happily peddle to applicants in order to assume the form of liberators and hoodwink them into parting with their hard-earned cash. The corrupt practices are habitually perpetrated in the commission despite the presence of the Service Compact with all Nigerians (SERVICOM), a body formulated to promote efficiency and effectiveness in Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) at their offices. Even though SERVICOM is unapproving of the malfeasance, it has come to accept it as standard procedure and does little by way of ending the despicable practice.

    The perceptible absence of the Remita/federal government payment gateway raises a number of questions that cannot be left unanswered anymore. First, are the ministers of finance and interior aware of the undertakings of the commission? If yes, does it mean that the agency has been excluded from the TSA because no platform except from Remita-FG gateway has access to the account? If not, how do they intend addressing the malaise? Are the listed payment gateways connected to the Remita-FG gateway like others are?  Finally, how do they intend to mop up the last pockets of corruption in their agencies?

    With the performance of TSA in its four years of full implementation, any possible subversion of the policy must be thoroughly investigated and thwarted in its entirety. Nigeria cannot afford to be plunged back into the despondency that characterised previous administrations as a result of lax public financial management which foreran the deployment of MDAs as vessels of corruption. Profit generating MDAs such as the Nigerian Immigration Service, Nigeria Customs Service and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation should be fully compliant to the policy, and if for some administrative purposes they seek exemptions, that also must be publicly justified.

    • By Jeff Ogbeh

    Makurdi, Benue State

  • Between Buhari and Jonathan

    SIR: Had Jonathan Goodluck defeated Buhari Muhammadu in the 2015 presidential elections, Nigeria might not have come out of recession. He lacked the fiscal discipline to manage the economy, no disrespect to Jonathan, a very good man but goodness on its own never changed anything in history but brutal hard-headed leadership; and he made Nigerians boogied in the dark his entire period in office.

    Iweala Okonjo said so before she disavowed her position. With less money than what Jonathan got, President Buhari Muhammadu did his best to steer the ship of state away from possible depression.

    The bane of leaders in third world countries is the total collapse of real governance, there is no stability in the pursuit of policies. Away with the old and start with the new. The level of abandoned projects in Nigeria is befuddling. Every new government starts new projects and throws away all projects by the previous administration. They borrow money to start projects and never see it through to the end. This is not the case in Asia, irrespective of the previous party /government in power; new administrations pursue projects and complete them for the common good.

    The Buhari Muhammadu’s administration tower above Jonathan’s because projects inherited from the Goodluck Jonathan administration aren’t abandoned, they are investigated in the first instance and if established that they are not bogus projects awarded to cronies and that these tasks satisfy the aspiration of communities of people for whom the jobs are directed, these ventures are finished. He needs to be commended even though I am not his supporter any longer.

    Under Jonathan, states couldn’t pay salaries and even though it is not the responsibility of the federal government to pay salaries, bail out funds were given to states to do so. And now the government is on the tail of governors to recover said cash. Need I say also that even though the economy was rebased under Jonathan, it was just a boondoggle not felt by Nigerians and cash had to be borrowed to pay federal workers.

    It doesn’t appear to be business as usual.

    We never hear of wastages of the ecological funds under Buhari anymore but we once did under Jonathan. You follow? These funds are released for critical projects and not for the sake of elections. How was Norway in 2014 able to raise its sovereign wealth fund to $829 billion from a paltry amount set up in 1990, and everyone in Norway theoretically became a millionaire in Norway’s local currency?

    Probing people under the guise of fighting corruption is not the answer to Nigeria’s problems but the completion of abandoned projects.

    These projects are in every corner and bend in Nigeria and completing them would serve the needs of Nigerians more. Here is where the country needs to deploy civil servants to supervise the completion of outstanding jobs instead of employment for quota basis and for its sake.

    Legislation should be put in place to prevent politicians from awarding elephant projects as a pretext to lining their pockets with public money.

    The main challenge of the Buhari administration is his failure to tackle the security challenges all over the place in the country. His media men are interested only in the glare of publicity and do not have the correct strategy in communicating his achievements to the Nigerian people.

    All told, in rating the performance of Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari, the average performance of Jonathan for me (I may be wrong) was in the region of the 20th percentile. Jonathan had passion for the office of president of Nigeria but didn’t have purpose.  The average performance of Muhammadu Buhari for me (I may be wrong) in his first term in office was in the region of the 45th percentile.  Muhammadu Buhari’s purpose for the office of president of Nigeria was firmly fixed, but you could see that he didn’t have passion for the office, the chief reason he hardly speaks to Nigerians, hardly travels in-country to find out missing pieces but loves to globetrot to tell world leaders where these missing pieces are in Nigeria and how world leaders can help Nigeria and at such moments he forgets that branding exercises starts at home.

    I wonder aren’t people his age scared of frequent travel on air. Neville Chamberlain was scared stiff of flying but had to, to see Hitler so as to prevent eminent war with Germany.

    I need to consult my teachers to find out if both scores are pass marks in examinations?

    • Simon Abah,

    Abuja.

  • ‘I love to sing in God’s presence’

    Living right and giving thanks in all things are all we need the most as human beings because this world we are in is a temporary place; we will all go back to our Maker someday.”

    This was the admonition by a gospel artiste, Olawande Blessing, last Sunday at the Prophetic Praise concert and her album launch in Lagos.

    The programme, which held at the Muri Okunnola Park on Victoria Island, Lagos, was an evening of singing, dancing and laughing.

    Blessing and her group, Joyful Band, ensured there was no dull moment as they performed traditional, highlife and hip-pop gospel music to guests’ delight. Many danced and sang along.  Blessing also thrilled the guests with chants, saxophone performance, spoken words and song ministrations from other guest artistes.

    According to Blessing, who is also into theater arts and an entrepreneur, the album tagged: Joyful noise, has seven tracks rendered in Yoruba and English languages. “The songs comprise fast and slow highlife music, South African flow, traditional songs and chants. All the songs are mine, they are composed, written, led, sang and backed up by me,” she said.

    She explained that the message in the song is for everyone to make joyful noise to God because He is the source of our joy. The song, she added, also emphasises the need to appreciate God for the gift of life. She noted that the concert, tagged: Prophetic praise, was borne out of a covenant she had with God.

    “I passed through a lot of things last year and I told God that if He brought me out of it, I would start a praise concert the following year and it would continue yearly. The concert is also to showcase myself and my band to let people know what we have for the Christendom. The basic message in my music is appreciation and thanking God for what he has done.

    “The message also tells where people will spend their eternity after the end of this world. The songs speaks on that God should let us spend our eternity with him,” she noted.

    She urged all humans to know that one day ‘we will all go back to our creator and that we are in this world to buy and sell.’  “In anything we do in our life, we should know that this world will come to an end someday. We should be conscious of where we will spend eternity, be it in heaven or hell. The songs are reminders that no matter how rich or poor or positions anyone has attained, we will all die one day and all we have will not follow us to the grave. Our being alive, irrespective of our religion, we will go back to our maker and there will be reward for everything we are here on earth now,” she said.

    She, therefore, urged all to live right, have good character, fear God, love others and do what is right to all.

    According to her, Gospel music for beginners is tough and filled with challenges, but they must be determined.

    “My determination keeps me going because I love to sing in God’s presence and I am always happy when I do. Going into the theatre world and into chanting does not distract me from being a Gospel musician. I don’t want to be a one sided gospel artiste, I want to do a mixture of every style in gospel. My strength is traditional songs, but I cut across all other genres of music, including African, highlife and normal gospel songs. This is because I want to exercise what I have and enable me to flow in any setting I find myself because when I’m in the presence of God, I fulfilled and I am always happy,” he said.