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Tag: restored

  • Whatever is lost shall be fully restored!

    Whatever is lost shall be fully restored!

    •  Text:”….. I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten…….” (Joel 2:25)

    I have been divinely permitted to announce that heaven shall fully restore all that have either been stolen, destroyed, denied or killed to you. This is your season for full restoration! It therefore matters less what Nigeria is passing through now, with regards to the economy and security, there shall be a restoration of good things to the country. The Scripture says, that, “there is hope for a tree: if it be cut down, it will sprout again, and its new shoots will not fail. It’s roots may grow old in the ground and it’s stump die in the soil, yet at the scent of water it will bud and put forth shoots like a plant.” There is hope for Nigeria! Restoration takes a process which God has kickstarted. The ‘spiritual axe’ has been laid unto the root of all unprofitable trees that have not brought not forth good fruit, they shall be hewn down and shall be cast into the fire (Matthew 3:10). A time of restoration is a time for endless laughter, joy, peace and prosperity – it is transition from sickness to health, austerity to prosperity, valley to the top of a mountain, joblessness to employment, seemingly unending family squabbles to everlasting peace and bliss, a bad life to a good life, a movement from a house to a home and an unsafe society to a peaceful environment. The Psalmist said in Psalms 126:1 that, “When the Lord turned again the captivity of Zion (restoration), we were like them that dream”.

    God is not giving to frivolities; He is not like men of this world that will make promises when soliciting for support and give excuses when the time for indemnification is nigh. “….  The Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for He is not a man, that He should repent” (1 Samuel 15:29). Therefore, whatever He said, He has the capacity to fulfill because “…. the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof”(1Corinthians 10:26;  Psalms 50:10-11; Roomans 11:36)- He can suspend the laws of nature, reverse order, put logic to shame and make “… foolish the wisdom of this world” (1Cor. 1:20). It consequently does not matter what you may be passing through now, as the LORD lives, and according to His word, it shall end well, and it shall end in celebrations. This is your season of restoration! Weeping may endure for a night, according to David, but joy unstoppable shall come in the morning (Psalm 30:5b). This is your morning of joy!

    God promised in our text that there is hope for restoration for every issues of personal life, economy, matrimony or nation. Restoration makes an outcast a celebrity! Naaman, once a Commander of the Syrian army, was afflicted with leprosy and ought to have been confined to the colony of lepers but when he had an encounter with the Restorer, his lost years were restored. He left Syria as a leper but he returned with the skin of a new born baby (2 Kings 5:1-14).

    Restoration brings back latent capabilities!  There was a man named Jabez because he was conceived under a terrible situation. God created him with honour that surpassed the endowments of his brethren, he had the destiny of a leader but experienced the jaundiced life of a nobody. When Jabez identified this error, he cried to God and was restored (2 Chronicles 4:9-10). Gideon too had this same fate. God created him as a mighty man of valour but untoward circumstances of life reduced him to a lilliputan – instead of leading God’s army against the ‘Boko Harams’ from Midian, he was hiding his wheat from them until God found him out and restored him (Judges 6:11-12).

    The devil’s assignment in this world is to kill destinies and turn the journey of days into years, steal the joy and peace of homes and marriages, destroy the family unit, frustrate bonds of love in churches and fragment national cohesion by reverberating delimiting sectional cum political cleavages (John 10:10). Now that the devil is aware that he has but a limited time, he is more committed to his destructive agenda more than ever before (Revelation 12:12). The devil’s onslaught is launched in the affairs of men and polity when men are spiritually asleep (Matthew 13:25); that is, when spiritual things matter less, when vain glory of life are lifted high and celebrated, when love of/for money is placed above selfless service to humanity, when aspirants to political offices discountenance God’s plans for “getting there at any cost”, when people abhor the light, which is Jesus Christ, and cling more to darkness and its works (John 3:19).

    Read Also: Greedy politicians fuelling attacks on Tinubu over hardship -Arewa Think Tank

    Brethren, it doesn’t matter how grave your situation is, there is hope for you. Are you an economic or social outcast like Naaman? Have you been rejected by your family members like Gideon? You are not hopeless. The power that restored their lost years is still available today; is it that what is in your plate is far less than what you are truly worth? All is not lost as the power that restores is same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8 cf Job 14:7-9). What you need to do, is to return to God through our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the scent of water, during this Lenten season, He will accept you like the Prodigal Son and restore all the grounds that you have lost (Luke 15:11-24;John 6:37). He is a loving father. He is concerned about your state and all that you are passing through now, more than your parents or anyone else (Isaiah 49:15-16). He will do “exceeding abundantly above all you may ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20).

    •Prayer: Father, pay my life a visit today, wash me clean of my sins and restore unto me the joy of my salvation, in Jesus’ name.

  • Kogi deputy governor’s security detail restored

    The security detail of Kogi State Deputy Governor Simon Achuba, which was withdrawn on the eve of the presidential and National Assembly elections, has been restored.

    Achuba had cried out that his life was in danger, following the withdrawal of his security detail last Friday.

    The deputy governor’s security aides were allegedly detained at the Government House in Lokoja, the state capital, purportedly on the orders of the Aide-De-Camp (ADC) to Governor Yahaya Bello, on allegations of gun-running.

    Achuba has been engaged in a running battle with the Government House, culminating in the cutting off of essential services to his official residence and office.

    Some of his personal aides were allegedly sacked without his knowledge.

    He was later castigated by the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Edward Onoja, who attributed the gross underdevelopment in Kogi East to the handiwork of the former.

    The deputy governor’s security aides were restored hours after a media briefing he addressed on Saturday evening.

    At the briefing, Achuba alleged that following the withdrawal of his security aides, his life was under threat.

    He regretted that the police command appeared to have abandoned its role of protecting life to pursue personal interests.

    The deputy governor said he had been under constant harassment and rejection for sometime, adding that his impress had been stopped for over a year, aside the non-payment of his travelling allowances for over two years.

    He urged the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to ensure peace and order in the state and restore his security detail, saying he would hold the (Kogi) police commissioner accountable if anything happened to him, his family or any of his aides.

    Police Commissioner Hakeem Busari said he heard about the withdrawal of the aides.

    The police chief added that it was the responsibility of the ADC to deploy policemen at the Government House to work with the deputy governor.

    Busari said he had made arrangement for two mobile policemen to be assigned to the deputy governor, pending when the issue would be resolved.

    Few hours later, the deputy governor’s security detail was restored.

  • History restored

    •Kudos to the Federal Government for restoring the study of our past

    It is a good piece of news for the future. The reintroduction of history in the curricula of primary and secondary schools in the country is perhaps the best thing that has happened to literacy in Nigeria in over a decade.

    The clamour for the rebirth of history studies started at the tail end of the Obasanjo administration when it was excised as a worthy body of knowledge. Minister of Education Malam Adamu Adamu hit the right note when he ordered its restoration at the launch of the history curriculum and guide in Abuja, acknowledging that “the desire to realise this and national clamour for it to be back informed our decision to reintroduce the teaching of history in Nigeria’s primary and junior secondary schools.”

    He explained that the Federal Ministry of Education had developed its “strategic plan” that proffered a raft of initiatives, which highlighted the value of history scholarship. And it received the approval of the National Council on Education during its 61st ministerial session in September 2016. Consequently, the National Educational Research and Development Council was directed to disarticulate history from the social studies curriculum.

    This page has been one of the consistent voices calling for history to retake its pride of place in Nigerian education. So, we commend the Federal Government and the education minister for reviving the study of Nigeria’s past.

    Indeed a nation that does not understand where it is coming from is essentially moving in a “rudderless raft of time,” apologies to Collingwood, a history philosopher. So bad was it that famed history departments in some of major universities like Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, the University of Ibadan, the University of Lagos and Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, had to come to terms with the rest of the country to vitiate the study of history and merge it with international studies and other subjects.

    The consequence was that students who had not studied history were not likely to take it up as a course of studies. It created a gradual decline in a fervour for our past and the deletion of history studies as a subject of rigour.

    Happily it is back, but we need to sound a note of caution. It is not enough to introduce it as a course of study. We need to make history mandatory to be studied in all schools up to at least junior secondary school three  (JSS3). This will conform to the old practice when students studied history up till form three, after which they specialised in their areas of strength and interests.

    There is a lot to study in history, but such curricula should not be restricted to the study of Nigeria. In a fast globalising world, students should know that history evolves in an interconnected world. It is also worthy of note that historical scholarship is dynamic and it demands continual curiosity and that means a thirst for new research materials.

    The study of the Yoruba Wars does not end with the material already available. Research will yield more information that could update our perspectives of the past. Such excitement of studies, for instance, could lead new research into the Uthman Dan Fodio years and help us put in greater relief the rumblings of Boko Haram. Or more studies of the 1960’s elucidate the Biafran agitation.

    We have had great historians of world repute like Dike, Ajayi, Ikime, Igbafen, Oloruntimehin, Akinjogbin, etc., we need to birth new world class ones who will build or even recast the output of these men.

    It also means history departments will have to be turned into standalone units and degrees awarded accordingly.

  • Should independent candidacy be restored?

    Should independent candidacy be restored?

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) Committee on Restructuring has recommended independent candidacy. Group Political Editor EMMANUEL OLADESU examines the argument for and against the proposal. 

    It was his first baptism of fire in politics. In 1955, Abraham Adesanya, a fresh law graduate and a household name in Ijebu-Igbo, unfolded his ambition. As a member of the defunct Action Group (AG), led by the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, he sought the House of Assembly ticket to represent the old Ijebu Igbo Constituency. Party elders asked him to hold on, promising to give it to him in 1959. Adesanya refused, saying that he was popular.

    He hurriedly left the AG and contested as an independent candidate. Despite his popularity among the electorate, he lost his deposit at the poll. He retraced his steps to the party and he was later elected on its platform in 1959. Twenty years later, Adesanya became a Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) senator from Ogun East.

    The same scenario played out in Akure, the headquarter of the old Ondo Province. Akinola Aguda, the first indigene of Akure to become a lawyer, wanted to represent the constituency in the Western Regional House of Assembly. He decided to run as an independent candidate against the AG and National Council of Nigerian Citizens (NCNC) candidates, contrary to the advice of his friend and colleague at the bar, Ayotunde Rosiji. The people of the constituency rejected him at the poll.

    In Ijebu East Constituency, Oluwole Awokoya, the former Minister of Education in the defunct Western Region, sought re-election into the House of Assembly in 1955. The AG, having rejected his ambition, drafted Solanke Onasanya into the race. When Awokoya lost the ticket to Onasanya, he decided to contest as an independent candidate. He lost at the poll.

    But, at Ibadan, it was a different ball game. A prominent chief, Samuel Odulana, contested for the House of Representatives as an independent candidate in the early sixties. Then, the AG and NCNC)/Nigeria National Democratic Party (NNDP) were locked in a battle of supremacy in Ibadan. Lana, as he was fondly called, won. He became the Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister, the late Alhaji Abubakar Tafawa Balewa. Many years after, Odulana became the Olubadan of Ibadanland.

    Independent candidacy is not new. There was room for it under the parliamentary system in the First Republic. Across the constituencies, there were some independent candidates who either won or lost during the regional and federal parliamentary elections. However, majority of them were aggrieved defectors from major parties who wanted to ride to power on the strength of their individual popularity within their constituencies.

    Following the adoption of the presidential system, independent candidacy was abolished in 1979. In the Second Republic, the ill-fated Third Republic and since 1999, the practice has become old-fashioned. To be an elected councillor, member of the House of Assembly, Representatives, Senate, governor and president, membership of a political party is compulsory.

    Opinion is divided on the agitation for independent candidacy. What has motivated critics to clamour for the restoration of independent candidacy is the perceived politics of exclusion by party leaders and elders in major parties. Internal democracy in the political parties has been a major bone of contention. In their view, if there is room for independent candidacy, the fate of certain aspirants and candidates will have to be determined directly on poll day by the electorate.

    Party leaders have often sought to defend the alleged discriminatory approach, pointing out that party guidelines are meant to prevent the hijack of the parties by money bags who invade the platform, without any history of ideological affinity and belief in party ethos.

    The Constitutional and Electoral Reform Committee, led by former Senate President Ken Nnamani, had recommended independent candidacy in its report. Senator Stella Oduah, who is one of its advocates in the National Assembly, said it will halt the imposition of candidates by party leaders and pave the way for the emergence of leaders trusted by the people. “It has worked in the United States. It is a global best practice. It will give the electorate to choose who they want,” he added.

    Second Republic governor of old Kaduna State Alhaji Balarabe Musa supported the proposal, saying that it will give room for a wider choice for voters. “It widens the choice of electorates and democracy is strengthened. If the electorate don’t like the candidates presented by the political parties, they can support an independent candidate they like,” he added. The elder statesman said while an independent candidate may not win the presidency because money plays a great role at that level, he can win elections at the lower level.

    In the United States, former President George Washington was elected as an independent candidate. In 2007, Bernie Sanders was elected into the Congress in the US as an independent.

    In Australia, Andrew Wilkie from Denison in Tasmania and Cathy McGowan from Indi in Victoria became legislators as independent candidates in the House of Representatives. Senator John Madigan became an independent senator in September 2014 while Senator Jacqui Lambie and Glenn Lazarus became independent senators in November 2014 and March 2015 respectively.

    In Canada, Chuck Cadman from  British Columbia of Surrey North was elected to the federal parliament as an independent in 2004.

    In Germany, Joachim Gauck became president in 2012.

    The Legislative Council in Hong Kong is dominated by independents.

    In Iceland, President Olafur Ragnar Grimsson was an independent. Also, the ninth Prime Minister of Iceland, Bjorn Poroarson, was an independent.

    After the 2011 elections in Ireland, there were 16 independents in the lower parliament and12 independent senators in the Upper House.

    In Italy, Prime Ministers Carlo Azeglio Ciampi (1993-1994), Lamberto Dini (1995-1996), Giuliano Amato (2000 -2001) and Mario Monti (2011-2013) were independent candidates.

    In Kosovo, Atifete Jahjaga was elected the first female and independent President, not only for Kosovo, but the entire Balkans.

    In Malaysia, there are more than four independent legislators in the parliament.

    An independent candidate, Jaime Heliodoro Rodriguez Calderon, was elected governor of Nuevo Leon. He made history as the first independent candidate to win election in the country.

    In the Philippines, Noli de Castro, former Vice President, ran as senator in 2001 with no political affiliation and he had the highest votes in history.

    In Russia, former President Dimitry Medvedev and Vladimir Putin became presidents as independents. Although Putin became the head of the United Russia Party, he is not a member of the party.

    In United Kingdom, a journalist, Marthin Bell, was elected at Tatton into the House of Commons 1997 on an anti-corruption platform. He was the first independent to be elected to the Commons since 1951.

    But, how popular is the clamour for independent candidacy in Nigeria? In its report, the All Progressives Congress (APC) Committee on Restructuring, led by Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, stated that 67 per cent of respondents were opposed to independent candidacy. “There is support for independent candidacy from the Northcentral, Northeast, Southwest, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and online respondents. However, opposition to independent candidacy is stronger than support for it among respondents from the three northern zones,” it added.

    Despite the seeming popular opposition to independent candidacy, the committee recommended that the APC should support its restoration, saying that the practice will widen the political space. According to the report, “the party should note that this is popular among members of the National Assembly who have already approved it as part of their constitution amendment and awaiting adoption by the Houses of Assembly.”

    If independent candidacy becomes inevitable, the panel suggested that it will be necessary to introduce strong eligibility criteria and process checks to prevent abuse, especially by attention-seeking candidates who will demand their inclusion on the ballot papers and thereafter use it to create crises for the electoral process. “It is necessary and important to ensure that INEC is not inundated and overwhelmed by a large number of independent candidates, some of whom may be unserious,” the report added.

    For constitutional guarantee, the panel recommended the amendment of Sections 65(2), 106 (d), 131 (c), 176 (c) and 187 of the 1999 Constitution and Section 87 of the Electoral Act, 2010. The committee pointed out that the amendment of the Electoral Act will provide strong eligibility criteria, which must be met by the independent candidates.

    The committee recommended four criteria: the independent candidate should not be a member of a registered political party for at least six months before the date set for the election in which he intends to contest; his nominators must not be members of any registered party; he must pay a deposit to INEC in the same range as the non-refundable deposit fee payable by candidates sponsored by political parties, which amount shall be determined by an Act of the National Assembly; and the candidate must also meet other qualification requirements provided for by the constitution or any other law.

    Former Information Minister Prince Tony Momoh said independent candidacy should not be a priority, stressing that aspirants are free to join any of the 45 political parties to realise their ambition. He said while independent candidacy may be plausible during councillorship election, an independent candidate may not make any impression at the governorship and presidential elections.

    There is no shadow poll for an independent candidate. The hurdle of primary is removed. A lawyer, Henry Kelechukwu, said although the proposal is good, the bill on the independent candidacy, if it becomes law, is capable of denying the electorate the chance to vet the candidate through the primary. He said the peculiarity in Nigeria and its level of socio-political development may affect its implementation. “Our level of political development already set a faulty foundation that is going to make the bill, if passed to law, to be susceptible to abuse by politicians,” Kelechukwu added.

    A two-time member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Saka Fafunmi said independent candidacy may keep candidates running on platforms of political parties on their toes. However, he doubted the success of the option. The lawmaker from Ifako-Ijaye Constituency said: “Do you think an independent candidate can win election by having so much money? You do so by coming through a party. It is just going to be an exercise in futility.”

  • ‘Dickson has restored security in Bayelsa’

    ‘Dickson has restored security in Bayelsa’

    Bayelsa State Commissioner for Information and Strategy Jonathan Obuebite spoke with EMMANUEL OLADESU in Lagos on the first year anniversary of Governor Seriake Dickson’s second term, the security agenda of the state, the management of government/labour relations and how the state is coping with the economic recession. 

    It is a year into Governor Seriake Dickson’s second term. How far has it been?

    One year, how far? Ordinarily, because of the recession that we are into, governments across the states have been affected. But, in Bayelsa State, we have fared well. Within the one year, we have been able to complete so many projects. The good thing about the governor’s style of administration is that we made provisions for project funding and also for recurrent expenditure. Government decided that, based on the current realities, we had to cut our emoluments as government appointees. What we are getting now is half of what the commissioners used to get. That cut across all political appointees. Through that, we have been able to save some money which should have been used for personnel cost for political appointees and we channeled the money into project funding. That has reduced the recurrent expenditure.

    That’s a drop in the ocean. How much has the government been able to save through that?

    I think we have not saved enough from that. But, the number of political appointees has drastically reduced. That is the beauty of it. When you know you don’t have, you have to cut your coat according to your size. Now, we cut our coat according to the material available. So, in the last one year, we have been battling with a lot of issues and we are able to get it right in the sense that we were able to complete important projects. We were able to complete the new Governor’s Office, a multi-billion naira project. Also, we have been able to complete the Government House Hospital Complex this year. It has both the private and the public wing. It can be accessed from two frontiers. Also, we have been able to complete the House Officers’ Quarters, and the Federal Medical Centre, which is not a state project, but a Federal Government Hospital. But, since it is Bayelsa State and there is the need for that accommodation, we had to build it for them. We were able to complete the Diagnostic Centre; furnished and functional. We also have the forensic equipment within the same complex.

    What is unique about the Forensic Centre?

    It is unique. It is about the sixth we are going to have all over the country. Nigerians don’t need o travel out again for it. It is even good for security. It helps in curbing fraud and perjury. The centre can uncover the cause of the death of a person, if someone wants to attribute it to another cause. It is highly needed. The police work with it. It is very helpful to society. It is very important. It helps the society.

    What are other projects?

    Within the one year, we have been able to build the Civil Servants’ Hospital. We call it a clinic designated for civil servants. All civil servants go there and get treated. Where they are to pay N10 outside, they just pay three naira because they are civil servants. What they need is to show their identity that they are civil servants. Then, we have also completed the Cultural Boulevard. It has four different structures standing on their own. We have the Gabriel Okara Cultural Centre, the school of language studies.  We have also completed the Osborn Lake Pavilion. It is a place that will house about 3,000 persons at a go; with a VIP stand. It is a place of cultural activities. We want tourism to thrive in the state. We have competed the five hundred pounds acqua far. Each has a size of 50 by 70 metres. That is to tell you how big that place will be. It will take you three hours to go round. It has a processing factory, a conference hall, a restaurant. It is a village of its own. It was started and completed within the one year. The AIT/Sani Abacha Road was completed. It has two bridges. It is a dual carriage road, not a single lane road. We completed the Igbogini by-pass, linking the New Gate Road. We have done electrification in 50 communities across the three senatorial districts; in Sagbama, in Amasoma, where we have the Niger Delta University. The university now has a good power supply. The university cannot run with a generator alone. We now separate the school from Amasoma community. We have completed the Ijaw National Academy. It is going to be one of the best schools in Nigeria built by a state government. One thousand students will be in the boarding house. Al the beds and hostel facilities are provided for. We have completed the 11 boarding schools that the government has initiated. We have one in each of the eight local governments. For Southern Ijaw; Yenegoa and Sagbama, we have more than one because of the population. Then, we have completed the Tourism Institute. It has started functioning with students already admitted.

    How many projects are you commissioning during the one year anniversary?

    We are commissioning 34 projects. I don’t think you find that anywhere now in this period because of the recession. That is a cumulative of projects done from the beginning of his tenure from 2012. Some should have been commissioned. Most of the projects have a life span in terms of completion.

    What’s the cost of these projects?

    It is more expensive to construct roads in the coastal areas. In Lagos and the East, if you use N300 million to build a road, you will need almost N1 billion to build the same road. The studies have shown this. The oil companies will tell you because they also do social responsibility. Bayelsa State is more riverine than Rivers State. It is more delta than Delta State. That is why Bayelsa is the epic centre of the entire Niger Delta crisis. Bayelsa is the headquarter of the Ijaw Nation. Every Ijaw man has a root in Bayelsa. We have Ijaw in Ondo State, Edo, Delta, Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River. That is the fusion. If you look at the map of Nigeria, you will see what Bayelsa is carrying. Because the majority of the oil is found in the Niger Delta and the Ijaw area of the Niger Delta, the agitation is high among our people. They feel that the resources is taken from their area are used to develop other areas.

    Could you shed light on the security agenda of the administration?

    Bayelsa was adjudged the safest state in Nigeria. But, before the election, it became the worst state in terms of security because of the inflow of hooligans and thugs imported into the state. They were there before while the former governor was in the saddle. But, when Dickson came, he granted amnesty to the cultists. Then, the anti-cult law was passed. From that point, it means nobody will entertain cultism and crime from anybody. Moving forward, we now have the status of the most peaceful state in the country. But, that we lost within the spate of six or seven months. After the election, it became a major problem because they came and they did not succeed in winning the election. They left, but they left these criminals behind. It became a major problem for the Bayelsa State government. We had three-minute response rate before from Operation DOO-AKPO. Now, working with the security agencies, the governor was able to curtail those criminal activities. As I speak, all of them have left the state. There was an issue outside the state capital; the vandalisation of pipelines. Most of them were politically motivated before the Avengers came. You know Avengers declared me a persona non grata and threatened to kill me. They gave an ultimatum that they will kill me because of my openness and because of the government’s stand  on their activities. It was published in most of the national dailies. I was the person they said they were going to kill. If his commissioner for information could be threatened, that is to tell you government’s non-tolerance for crime and criminality. So, we fought seriously. Today, I must tell you, we have got it right again. Our crime rate response is three minutes. Some few days ago, the Assistant Inspector General of Police visited Bayelsa State and said Bayelsa State is now the most peaceful state in the Niger Delta and he also wished that other states should toe the line of Bayelsa State. Also, few days ago, the military intelligent officers that came to Bayelsa State and visited the Security Command Centre in Bayelsa State. Indeed, they also affirmed that it was a good thing that those facilities could be found here and that they can only be found in advanced countries.

    But, should there be no security in a state ruled by a governor who is a former police officer and a deputy governor who is a retired naval officer? How does that combination translate into security effectiveness?

    That is the beauty of it. The governor is a former police officer. The deputy governor is a retired Real Admiral. You can see the packaging. Because of whom they are, they enjoy a smooth relationship with the security agencies. Because of that, they have been able to provide what they need to do their job successfully. And that synergy between the governor, and the deputy governor and the serving security chiefs in the state has been helpful. We owe this to them because they are able to key in the state’s dream of making sure that there is no crime and criminality. When a security chief is posted to the state, the governor will tell him to deal with the criminal according to the law, irrespective of the person’s political tendency or leaning, and without political bias. It means if you are a member of the ruling party in the state, the PDP, you will be dealt with if you are found wanting. There is no alternative to that. He sings it like a song. Every member of the Restoration Government is guided by that. In everything in life, you need leadership. We have the right leadership when it comes to security and infrastructural development. The governor does not play with it. There are pockets of thieves. Even, in America, you find them, They are isolated cases. During that period of election, the governor’s younger sister was kidnapped for six months. He refused to pay ransom.

  • ‘Ilojo Bar must be restored’

    ‘Ilojo Bar must be restored’

    On the eve of the Eld-El-Kabir holiday on September 11, a developer pulled down the 190-year-old national monument, Ilojo Bar, at the Tinubu Square, Lagos. Director-General, National Commission for Museums and Monuments, Yusuf Abdallah Usman, recalls the commission’s long battle to preserve the monument.

    Ilojo Bar (formerly known as Casa De Fernendez or Angel House) was built 190 years ago and, in all these years, it stood as the best example of Brazilian style architecture introduced by Africans who regained their freedom from their “Portuguese masters” in Brazil. Its historical, social and architectural values have been well acclaimed, thus, prompting the Federal Government to give it special protection status as a National Monument through Gazette 25 Vol. 43 of April 5, 1956.

    Since then, the National Commission for Museums and Monuments has been maintaining, promoting and preserving the monument with members of the Olaiya Family, Lagos State government and other stake holders both local and international.

    The threat to this historic building has been unfolding for sometime due to rising commercial interest in view of its strategic location. In October, last year, a member of the family wrote to the Commission saying that one of them was trying to engage a private developer to demolish the monument and clear the place for commercial development.

    In response to this, a meeting was called with the family members led by Mr. Daniel Adewale Olaiya on January 19, 2016. The meeting discussed the issues around the monument, including its legal status, how the structure is put to use and the grievances of the family members. It was finally agreed that the statues quo of the monument should remain while they submit their complains through appropriate official channel but nothing was heard from them since then.

    The recent threat to demolish the monument came on July 2, 2016, when a developer in collusion with some members of the family mobilised a bulldozer and some armed men with the intent to demolish the structure. The National Commission for Museums and Monuments got information about the move and quickly mobilised the Lagos museum staff and Lagos State government officials, who accosted the group and frustrated the attempt. In the meantime the attention of law enforcement agencies was drawn.

    On July, this year, the developer again mobilised to demolish the building and this action was again rebuffed this time through the intervention of Hon. Agboola Dabiri Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on the Lagos Central Business District.Following his intervention,a stakeholders’ meeting was summoned at Lagos State secretariat Alausa, Ikeja where Hon.AbikeDabiri-Erewa did everything possible to avert the demolition of the monument.

    Subsequently on Tuesday, August 16, 2016 a stakeholders’meeting was convened by the National Commission for Museums and Monuments at the National Museum, Lagos involving major stakeholders. This include members of the Olaiya family, management staff of National museum, Lagos, representatives of Lagos State Ministry of Tourism and that of the Brazillian Consulate, Benedita Gouveia Simonetti and Adeniran Arimoro.

    During the meeting, the stakeholders agreed that steps must be taken to safeguard the monument from any threat, including involving law enforcement agencies and placement of notice on the site notifying the public about the status of the building. The meeting also agreed to revive an earlier plan to organise a gala night to raise funds for the rehabilitation of the monument.

    To our greatest surprise however, on Saturday, August 27, 2016, the same developer again mobilised his bulldozer and actually damaged a portion of the building. A petition was written and submitted to the Area Commander of the Nigerian Police (Lion building), requesting  the arrest and prosecution of the culprits but apparently the police did not find the matter serious enough to detain or prosecute them.

    Seeing the levity with which the Area Command handled the matter, another petition was written on August 29, this year to the AIG Zone 2 Onikan. Meanwhile on Thursda, September 1, 2016, Hon Dabiri-Erewa was again approached and he gave an official letter to the Special Adviser to the Governor on Urban Development requesting the ministry to withdraw a letter of permit for demolition said to be given to the developer. Another letter was written to the Governor intimating him about the status of the monument and seeking his assistance to safeguard it.

    However, despite all the efforts of highly responsible and patriotic individuals and government agencies, the developer on the eve of Eid-el Kabir (September 11, 2016) sneaked in with his instrument of destruction and wilfully demolished the Ilojo Bar, an outstanding historic and architectural monument that has adored the cultural landscape of Lagos Island for nearly two centuries.

    This sad event is a critical turning point in the history of heritage management in Nigeria. The shocking way the action was carried out without any shame and embarrassment is a source of serious concern for the National Commission for Museums and Monuments as heritage managers and for all responsible Nigerians who love history and culture. The action is not only criminal, but it has robbed us of an important heritage resource that helps defines us as a people and assist our understanding of our past and our projection of the future.

    The demolition has destroyed a masterpiece of the only surviving Brazilian houses in Lagos with its attractive arches and fine iron works as statue described as being “Gothic in style and balustrade reminiscent of a Venetian palace”.  It has done great injustice to the credit of African craftsmanship in architecture which has exerted great influence on Yoruba architecture that is today visible in all parts of Yoruba land.

    Indeed, the demolition has eliminated the tangible evidence of social and cultural impact of the transatlantic slave trade and its abolition. It has wiped away an outstanding source of memory and history of freed slaves and their roles and impact in the evolution and development of cosmopolitan urban Lagos. At the same time it has destroyed one of the outstanding symbolic evidence of cultural ties between Nigeria and Black diaspora in general and Brazil in particular.

    This dastardly act has distorted the eminent position of Lagos in colonial history as centre where returnee slaves from Brazil built houses in the new architectural fashion when Lagos was created as a colony, thus impoverishing Lagos of its rich architectural urban history and undermining its acclaimed status as centre of excellence.

    However, the NCMM will not rest on its oars until the perpetrators of this dastardly act are brought to book. In line with the powers and responsibilities conferred on it by NCMM Act, Cap N19, Laws of the federal republic of Nigeria 2004, the NCMM will ensure that criminal action is brought on the culprits as well as demand full compensation for the demolished monument. It will be reconstructed and fully restored according to professional restoration standards. We wish to assure all Nigerians that the Ilojo Bar will be restored as it is a fully documented National Monument with an up-to-date and comprehensive documentation of its architectural history and design details.   Consequently, NCMM is poised to restore Ilojo Bar back to its original authentic form.

    In the meantime, the site of the monument being an integral heritage space is being explored for rescue archaeology and heritage impact assessment.

    We call on all well-meaning Nigerians to join the National Commission for Museums and Monument in saving, protecting and maintaining our national heritage resources.

  • Team support restored my confidence – Efe Ambrose

    Team support restored my confidence – Efe Ambrose

    Nigeria international Efe Ambrose has revealed his confidence was restored by the support he received from Celtic after his errors in a UEFA Champions League game against Fenerbahce cost his team two points.

    The former FC Ashdod of Israel defender told the Celtic website that his team-mates and the management were there for him after the Fenerbahce game.

    Understandably disappointed and dejected after the game, Ambrose said he was boosted by the way in which the rest of the Celtic dressing-room rallied round him.

    “It’s not easy but as a player, sometimes you find yourself in these situations,” he said. “It can happen to any player. It was a gift for them but the most important thing was that the management, the players all stood by me because they knew that these things can happen in football.

    “When you know the team’s behind you, it does pick you up, so for them to stand by me was very important and I really appreciate it. And I’m taking the positives from the game, that we played really well and they didn’t create many chances apart from a couple of mistakes.”

  • Registered SIM cards will be restored, says NCC

    Registered SIM cards will be restored, says NCC

    Subscriber Identification Modules (SIM) cards deactivated by operators would be restored, if the owners had them properly registered, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has said.

    Many affected subscribers have inundated the regulator with questions, seeking clarification as to the status of their phone numbers. The NCC has however stressed that only those subscribers who register their SIM cards properly will have them reactivated.

    In a statement yesterday, NCC Director of Communication, Tony Ojobo, said the clarification became necessary following the deluge of enquiries at the Commission some of which alluded to the impression that their SIM cards have been withdrawn permanently. “This is not the situation,” Ojobo, said, adding that the deactivation exercise and decision was a result of a meeting with the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), the Department of State Service (DSS), the NCC and operators “after which the operators were given one-week to deactivate those unregistered and improperly registered SIM cards.”

    He said the operators were “specifically told that those subscribers whose lines were not registered and have not made any effort to register them, should be communicated before deactivation, pointing out that the deactivation of these SIM cards was in line with that meeting. “Subscribers who fail to register properly will have their lines deactivated, but those who comply will have them reactivated,” Ojobo said.

    He explained that proper registration means “a subscriber’s facial pictures, properly captured, biometrics/finger prints, valid means of identification and address, among others,” adding that these are part of the security measures to check incessant cases of crimes with the use of mobile phones.

    “People hide under anonymity to commit crimes because their lines are not registered, but all that has to change as the network operators have been told what to do,” he said.

    As he put it, “the ultimatum to deactivate unregistered SIM card expired on Tuesday this week. But enquires as to the status of the SIM cards necessitated this statement,” adding that operators were told among others to ensure compliance of all registration with the Data Dictionary, Technical Specifications on Finger prints and facial images and the business rules agreed by all stakeholder.

  • Nigeria‘ll be restored, says Osinbajo’s mum

    Nigeria‘ll be restored, says Osinbajo’s mum

    Mother of Vice President-elect Madam Bisi Osinbajo has predicted that Nigeria’s fortune will be restored with the election of a new leadership.

    According to her, the country will, from May 29, be in the hands of hardworking men, who will attend to its needs appropriately.

    She spoke in Lagos yesterday after attending an Easter service at The Cathedral of St Jude (Anglican Communion) in Ebute-Metta, Lagos.

    “Nigeria will be restored and the world will worship God with us,” she said on the incoming leadership while describing her son as “a hardworking man who has faith in God”.

    She was all smiles as she danced gracefully during the service.

    Mrs. Osinbajo could not hide her joy and members of the congregation exchanged pleasantries with her as she sat in the front row, where she has always worshipped.

    The vice-president elect is a pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG).

    On her expectations from the government, she said what she saw when she was praying was that “Nigeria will be restored”.

  • Fayemi has restored Ekiti’s core values

    SIR: Ekiti State was carved out of the old Ondo State on October 1, 1996 alongside five others by the military dictatorship of the late General Sani Abacha. Before the creation, it had about twelve local governments under the old Ondo State. Upon creation, it took off with sixteen (16) Local Government Areas and the status quo is still being maintained.

    Though, lacking in industrial development, the state is reputed to have produced the highest number of professors in Nigeria. Among several renowned academics from the state were Professors Adegoke Olubummo (the 1st Nigerian Professor of Mathematics), Adeyinka Adeyemi (1st Professor of Architecture in West Africa). Others include renowned academics like Profs J.F. Ade-Ajayi, Niyi Osundare, Sam Aluko and others too numerous to mention.

    From the foregoing, it is lucid that the sobriquet FOUNTAIN OF KNOWLEDGE, now LAND OF HONOUR, is not misplaced. Ekiti is historically, culturally, geographically, religiously and linguistically homogeneous. This homogeneity reflected in every son and daughter  of Ekiti in their stand for  industry, honesty, uprightness and justice. From the primitive history to this modern time, Ekiti people naturally loathe and always revolt against injustices and marginalisation being a socio-politically conscious race. It is on record that in the course of the struggle for the Nigeria’s independence, the position papers presented by the representatives and opinion leaders from Ekiti, were one of the adopted documents at the constitutional conference for the realisation of the Nigerian independence.

    But for good governance, all the good virtues, attributes of real Ekiti persons and core value that had been deeply rooted in our customs soon became history. In August 4, 2009, Ekiti State Command of the National Drug Law

    Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) rated the state as a leading producer of Marijuana a.k.a. Indian hemp in African continent, following the discovery of the largest single seizure  of Indian hemp in the state by the Agency and had earlier In February 2008  discovered about 53.7metric tons of cannabis in a storey building at Ise-Ekiti among other seizures which nearly eroded our dignity and cast doubt on the much-touted acronym, Fountain of Knowledge.

    Over time, education which was part of the prides of an Ekiti man was in shambles. More disheartening was the rating of Ekiti students as the 35th in WAEC, NECO and UTME in recent rating. Ekiti was fast losing her integrity, and were noted for election rigging. People no longer afraid or feel ashamed of being tagged election riggers. Ekiti became a state where truth was no longer the order of the day, no justice, no peace, the respect for individuals and elder became history.

    No wonder the speed of development in the state became very slow because where there is no justice there cannot be peace and consequently there cannot be development. The state, therefore, became notorious for ‘one day one trouble’ as violence of all kinds including killings became entrenched in our body politic. Apparently troubled by this worrisome situation and in his desire to bring back the lost core values of Ekiti, Governor Fayemi, upon

    assuming office, emphasized the need for Ekiti renaissance and put machinery in motion to actualize the objective.

    Firstly, he changed the Fountain of Knowledge cognomen to Land of Honour through rebranding with orientation that re-established and re-awakened the people’s consciousness.

    The Fayemi-led administration has done much more in ensuring that the culture of fairness, justice, hospitality, purposefulness and moral integrity are brought back. This was evident in the geometric increase in the rating of Ekiti from the abysmal 20 per cent recorded in 2012 to 70 per cent in Ekiti Senior Secondary School/West African Examination Council. It is noteworthy to conclude that Governor Fayemi’s three years in office, when he commissioned innumerable developmental projects had already eclipsed eight years of political upheavals, violence, uncertainty and anxiety that characterised the governments of his predecessors.

    The peace that had long eluded us has returned to Ekiti and the much-needed justice and honour to really revamp our values followed.

     

    • Gbenga Sodeinde wrote in from Ado Ekiti.