The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Restructure

  • Our Girls; Who killed education? Restructure

    Our Chibok girls were kidnapped on April 15, 2014 Inexplicably our Dapchi girl-child, 15, Leah Sharibu is not released.

    Still in regard to the Babangida autobiography mentioned in last week’s article, there will be a few truths which may be interrogated to explain some of the strange ‘never-to-be-forgotten-or-forgiven’ Babangida ‘error’ – the Dele Giwa BOMB BLAST, the two party system, Option A4, the annulment resulting in tyranny under the Abacha/Al Mustapha regime and the continued downward spiral of the nation spawned by the placement of the military in perpetuity in politics. I am not aware he, Babangida, needs my book-money in retirement. Ex-presidents are like governors-in-retirement in ‘satisfaction’, though many Nigerians certainly would need money from him if he is willing to give some up.  Many years ago in an article, I invited him, Babangida, to write a cheque of $10,000 to each of the 70,000 schools in Nigeria for books to fill the starved libraries instead of opening his secondary school and later university on the ashes of the many failed government schools, deliberately underfunded. Of course, he cannot be blamed for the profligacy of the PDP or the single-minded strategic exploitation of the citizenry of Lagos State to fund self and ‘war-like’ political campaigns nationwide. Those are for someone else’s autobiography. A question – is there a Babangida Foundation?

    Channels TV deserves every credit for the recent football and just concluded athletics meet as does Lafarge for the literacy competition and many others. What Channels and few other corporate bodies and individuals have done is only to reintroduce what we had before the military era and what all other countries have today to develop their youth. It is terrifying to know that some Nigerians entrusted with making policies for the good of our children decided instead to sabotage their future by destroying all ‘practical aspects of education’ be they practical sport, practical science, practical physics, practical chemistry, practical biology, practical art and literature, practical music and most heinous of all, practical library which permanently damaged literacy and knowledge dissemination. Now, if you think that practical aspects of education are expensive, you are correct. The result of this disastrous ‘Nationwide Cancellation of Practicals’ was really many millions of naira ‘saved’ while millions of brains and bodies were ‘lost’ and deprived of their full potential. Unfortunately all this money saved was just diverted and stolen, as originally planned. The second part of the plan worked as well. Nigerian students nationwide began a programme of lifeless minimal education. And technology was not left out in the planned, systematic destruction. No polytechnic is worth the name due to equipment lapses and failures. Even sport was practical-less resulting in students being taught the ‘Theory of Everything’ with resultant ‘knowledge of nothing’. The children could tell you the theory of litmus paper but had never seen it change from red to blue. They knew the measurements of a long jump pitch but had never jumped. Now if you are never given paper to draw, paints to paint, instruments to play, experiments to perform, libraries to read and get lost in, what type of grown up will you be to yourself and your children- Generation Next? Multiply that by a generation of youth to see why Nigeria is still underperforming.

    For teachers and students numbering millions nationwide in targeted Nigerian schools, Track, Field, Music Room, Laboratory and Library ‘hour’ became obsolete. ‘A Picture Is Worth 1000 Words Except In Nigeria Where Practicals Are Frowned On.’ And for this crime against the children of Nigeria, not one myopic, ethnic, parochial, reactionary, archaic and certainly non-science background, functionally illiterate education-imposter permanent secretary, minister, or director has been identified, prosecuted and jailed for being responsible or indicted for this crime against the collective youth brain of Nigeria. And if it was such a laudable activity why is no one willing to come forward and take the ‘discredit’? This means the secret anti-education education ministry Mafia has succeeded in destroying the dreams of millions and crippled our youthful ‘search and grow’ science and technology potential. Now our artisans and technologists know little of the practical aspects of their jobs and are displaced in the industrial market by foreign African economic migrants. It also explains why, abandoned by a conniving government at federal level and a spineless state government, we have to rely on good people at Channels to provide ‘Practical Sport’ as a support in finding the next athletes.

    Education depends on the goal. It seems our government planned for and succeeded in producing poor quality material. What a Human Rights crime against children that went unchallenged by state governors. If you have an education, you should get or make a job, earn money, be a heard voice in the future. Sometimes, the forces that draw us back must be overcome with argument. For years mobile phones were the exclusive preserve of the government elite. From them it trickled down to the top echelon of the business community. But some of us had seen the power of the cell phone. I mentioned it in my Obafemi Awolowo Lecture during the terror of the Abacha regime. From mining, waterways, VAT, corporate tax to roads, Nigerian will benefit from decentralisation or restructuring as with cell phones which freed us from NITEL. Even hospitals need freeing from the fist of federal might.

     

    • Uncover ‘I LOVE NIGERIA’ KNOWLEDGEABLE CANDIDATES for 2019 -SDG 16. 

  • How to properly restructure Nigeria

    IT is now consensually accepted by everyone, including the major beneficiaries that the Nigerian structure/system is unjust, undemocratic, inept, tailor-made for a small clique to monopolise the communal resources to the detriment of the vast majority, therefore corrupt, decadent, unholy and backward.

    However, as is to be expected, the beneficiaries of the evil system who have sufficient awareness to realise that the structure is collapsing already are also quite vociferous about the need for another structure. The difference between them and the oppressed classes is that they merely want an opportunity to replicate the failed structure in areas they consider as their political enclaves. These enclaves consist of territories where, by use of ill-gotten wealth, they have over the years, through an unrelenting financial attack on the sensibilities of the people, entrenched themselves as political financiers (a.k.a. godfathers) and/or terror mongers.

    The Nigerian masses, consisting of the largely marginalised middle class and the underclass, realize that the most important issue is the complete demolition of the current structure/system but largely have not properly been able to articulate a structure/system that will meet their yearnings and aspirations.

    The federal system of agglomeration of sovereign peoples and/or interests in its modern form is a product of the Social Contract Theory whereby certain inalienable rights and privileges are arrogated to the individual members of a society and the social contract between them represents the attempt to protect those rights from being abrogated or impeded by the institutions of state created to enhance the enjoyment of life by these members.

    In the United States of America, we see how this system has been used mainly for safeguarding economic rights already held by the constituent states before agglomeration/unification. In Canada and Switzerland, cultural interests are also instigative of the federal structure utilized.

    In Nigeria, it was quite clear, even to the colonial administrations that federalism if not confederalism (a looser federal arrangement) was the only way that the diverse cultural, ethnic and territorial interests prevalent in the “geographic expression” could be validly agglomerated as a state unit under the relevant principles of international law then in operation particularly the revolutionary principle of “self determination of ethnic nationalities”.

    In Nigeria what would represent true federalism would be the result of “devolution of powers of economic policy” which transcends mere resource control to return of power back to the constituent members of the Nigerian state thus creating a structure in which the power base is again the people and not the institutions of the state or their operators.

    Without this deliberate “holistic policy”, mere regionalisation would only result in a partitioning of Nigeria into enclaves for the same oppressors (now regional despots) to wield power to the detriment of the people of their regions.

    Each of the regions will have states and local governments, operating minimal structures, as the main legislative organ in the region becomes the regional assembly, a unicameral body from which the prime minister and his cabinet emerge. The governors of the states merely implement the laws passed in the regional assembly whilst the local governments operate as mayoralties.

    The prime minister of each region will be the chief executive officer of the region. Regional government shall include an independent regional judiciary and judicial system headed by regional chief justice with charge over all superior courts of record within the region including the high courts and the regional court of appeal (the highest court within the region). The states shall only establish the equivalent of magistrate courts.

    The regional government shall have control over education, agriculture, natural resources, regional law enforcement, taxes, health, lands and housing, labour relations, energy and economic policy, chieftaincy and cultural matters etc. The states within a region shall form the constituencies for the election of members of the regional assembly (MRA) and each state shall produce four MRAs each. The political party or coalition of political parties with a majority of MRAs shall form the executive arm of the government of the region.

    The federal administration (i.e. the central government) will consist of an independent federal judiciary consisting of the federal supreme court (from which appeals from regional appeal courts will lie), federal high courts with jurisdiction over matters relating to federal government revenue and the high court of the Federal Capital Territory (Chief Justice of the Federation shall head the federal judiciary); a compact legislature (the senate) also unicameral and an executive led by a president elected by no less than two-thirds of the votes cast in the election in all the regions. The president shall be the chief executive officer of the federal government.

    The federal government shall have charge over foreign affairs and relations for the entire federation, federal law enforcement including drug law enforcement, defence, fiscal and monetary policy for the entire federation, export and import taxes/duties and inspections, customs, immigration and the Federal Capital Territory.

    The regions shall form the constituencies for the election of senators and each region shall produce three senators each.

    Each region shall have control of natural resources within its territory whether onshore or offshore (within the continental shelf). The federal government shall control natural resources within the national territorial waters beyond the continental shelf.

    Each region shall be obliged to pay federal revenue tax to the federal government representing no less than 40 percent of the income from mining of natural resources within their territories, agriculture and taxes. Failure to pay in any year at the time set by the senate shall be sufficient ground for declaration of a state of emergency in such defaulting region followed by the dissolution of its assembly and the government formed by it and its replacement by a special administrator appointed by the federal government; all these only upon the recommendation of a resolution of the senate supported by no less than four fifths of the votes of all members of the senate.

    Government and state policy at all levels shall be for the protection and maintenance of the rights of citizens to a minimum standard of living including free education at primary and secondary educational levels, Medicare or Medicaid, unemployment allowance, accommodation, and all the rights enshrined in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights . All these rights shall be enforceable against the government and any other transgressor.

    Private prosecution for corruption against public office holders shall be allowed and no public officer including the president, senators, prime ministers and governors shall have any immunity from prosecution for any crime committed before or during their tenure in office.

    For purposes of prosecution of a public officer for corruption, guilt shall be sufficiently proved beyond reasonable doubt by production of evidence of assets owned directly or through proxies by the said public officer the value of which is shown to exceed the lawful income of such public officer.

    There shall be no time limitation for bringing of charges against a public officer or former public officer for any crime committed whilst he held office whether or not under the operation of a constitution.

    A verdict of guilt by a competent court or tribunal against any public officer for any felony shall automatically operate as an impeachment of that public officer from the office held or dismissal from such office as may be relevant.

    In line with the trend in many socially responsible states, it is necessary in view of the vast poverty and deprivation of the vast majority of Nigerians for government to embark on a socialist construction of the national economy. This means that production and services in the national economy should have significant participation by the state to ensure that everyone has access to basic amenities such as housing, energy, food, dignifying and comfortable public transportation, potable water and life sustaining environment.

    No doubt, true federalism is the answer to “Bigmanism” factor which often leaves African states run by these unpopular mediocres at the mercy of predator foreign states.

     

    • Oluyede, a lawyer, wrote from Lagos.

  • How to restructure Nigeria, by ex-LP secretary

    Kayode Ajulo, lawyer and rights activist, is a former National Secretary of the Labour Party (LP). He is also the founder of a non-governmental organisation, Egalitarian Mission of Africa. In this interview with EMMANUEL OLADESU, he speaks on Executive Order 6, next year’s presidential election and the anti- corruption war.

    We have 91 political parties registered by INEC, but a lot of people believe the contest is actually between the PDP and APC especially in next year’s presidential election. Do you share that view?

    Inasmuch as one may share that view, but don’t forget what happened in Osun is a pointer to what is to come. Today, we have over 90 political parties. Out of the 90, almost 40 to 50 have presidential aspirants. In Osun state, the main leading political parties happen to be PDP and APC, and at the end of the day, you can see the likes of Omisore did. Omisore determined the outcome of the election. I am sure that given the circumstances, there will be a new election in Osun because a lady Jumoke Lawoyin was unlawfully excluded from participating. We may not know what would happen; God does His things in His own way that marvels people.  Now, we have the likes of Olusegun Mimiko contesting on the platform of Zenith Labour Party, we have Donald Duke of SDP, Omoyele Sowore and others. So, we may not tell now what may happen, maybe these ones I mentioned may spring surprises.

    Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has endorsed Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the PDP presidential candidate, for the 2019  election. Do you see his endorsement carrying any weight?

    I want to believe that Olusegun Obasanjo only has one vote to start with, and he contested for presidential election twice in this country, and we know the position of the Yoruba during that time. Despite the fact that he was the candidate, his people refused to vote for him. How much more now that he is not even a candidate. So, the question we need to ask is ‘what will his vote do?’ We have to give it to him; he remains one of the greatest Nigerians alive today. I am not looking at the moral aspect of it, but for somebody to be a president twice, and in peculiar circumstances, I want to believe that the Almighty God is saying something. But, when you want to say whether that one will now translate to votes, I think with my little experience in politics as a former National Secretary of a political party, I must say there are indices, sentiments that always come with election, and I don’t think it really matter. However, as Christian, I think we need to congratulate Obasanjo for bearing no grudges against anybody. We should applaud him for that.

    Atiku also said that he will restructure the country in six months, if he becomes president. Do you see this as a reality?

    Atiku really does not even need six months to restructure.  I think two months is even too much to restructure the country. I think we need to realise what we call restructuring. The only time Nigeria have been allowed to talk without any form of interference, that passed through the test of time legally and morally, was during the London Constitutional conference, during the time of Tafawa Balewa, Obafemi Awolowo, Ahmadu Bello, Nnamdi Azikiwe, that was when all the ethnic nationality came together, and were allowed to talk. We deceive ourselves when we say we have one nation, because there are lots of nationalities in Nigeria. I have been following this argument that we have a constitutional provision that says that for you to restructure, you need to tinker with the constitutional provision. That is a lie. One of the major impediments of our restructuring is how to have equitable distribution of wealth. It could be done by just changing revenue sharing formula, you don’t need the constitution to do that.  RMAFC is there. The constitution and statute enabling that commission gave them freedom at every time to advise the federal government on revenue formula. What stops the chairman of the commission to say that the revenue formula needs to be changed in order to address the issue of restructuring? I don’t think that one will take more than 2 or 3 days. So, I believe Atiku may have a genuine intention when he said he will restructure in six months. This is something that could be done within few weeks and not six months, if actually we want to be pragmatic about it. We need to really understand what it means to restructure. Yoruba seem to be in the forefront of the agitation for restructuring but till now, they seem not to get it right. Restructuring is not about taking something from one ethnic group and giving it to another group. By restructuring it means to know what you have, and to know how to harness it for the wealth of the nation. Today, Apple Company posted $1tr. Our budget in Nigeria for the whole year is N7tr. Apple Company doesn’t have oil as we have here. They have brains. The human resources of Nigeria, the potentials of Nigeria are bigger than the oil we are fighting one another for. That is the essence of restructuring, and we need to realise that.  In Niger, you need to now the mining going on there. Who are those in charge? I don’t even think the federal government is interested. Even if they are interested, it is minimal. Nigeria happens to be the greatest country in terms of mineral resources, but why are we not harnessing this?  Every nook and cranny of this country has great potentials, but because of the focus on oil, everybody has forgotten this. Anytime I am in London, I like going to Liverpool that is where you see all those ships. Go through the harbour, and you will see great names of Yorubas from Idanre, from Ondo, from Akoko.  These are great cocoa merchants. These were the people who have been great over fifty years ago. Above all, the power that is being concentrated at the centre is something that calls for concern. How can the federal government solely control 60% of Nigerian wealth, while 36 states share the rest?

    President Buhari  got fewer votes in the Southeast during the 2015 election. Do you think he has made enough in-roads between then and now to get more votes in 2019?

    I don’t think so. It is something that even the blind man could see that he even has more problems in the South-East. It is so clear, and I am sure that if he was to be interviewed, he would tell you that where one of his biggest headaches would come from is the South-East, particularly with how the issue of IPOB was poorly managed.

  • ‘Restructure education towards leadership’

    THERE is need to restructure the education system in such a way that youths will be empowered with the right leadership, speakers at the  Time Attendance Management System (TAM) summit have said.

    They challenged the youth, who make up 50 per cent of Nigeria’s population, to  acquire the right leadership skills.

    LEAP Africa founder Mrs Ndidi Nwuneli, who spoke on the theme: ‘Making Nigeria work’, expressed confidence in the youth but feared that poor education might undermine their potential.

    Mrs Nwuneli, who was the keynote speaker, said: “Young people in Nigeria have what it takes to lead as they are not only the leaders of tomorrow, but today and for them to take centre place, they need right education. At present, our education system needs to be revamped because it does not encourage creativity.”

    For them to excel in the new world, Nwuneli said they needed more platforms for youth engagement, exposure to technology and innovation, and respect for human dignity.

    Lagos State Special Adviser on Education Mr. Bank-Olemoh, noted that the Lagos State government engages youths through various programmes, including the ReadySetWork (RSW) an employability and entrepreneurship programme aimed at preparing final year students across the state’s tertiary institutions for the workforce.

    A roundtable on “How to build a new generation of corporate leaders” featured the Pro-Chancellor, Lagos State University, Prof Adebayo Ninalowo;  Managing Director,  MRS Oil Nigeria, PLC Mr Andrew Gbodume;  Director,  TVC  Mr Ronan Redmond; and Business Coach,  Stanford Seed, Mrs Emily Linglet as panelists.

    They agreed on the need for policies, platforms and a reform that would focus on knowledge, skill and technology.

    Earlier, TAMS converner Mr. Afolabi  Abiodun, said the forum was to positively engage the youth, thereby attaining the paradigm shift Nigeria needs.

    “Nigeria belongs to the youth and the young ones have to be better equipped, set values and aspirations through global communication and interconnection, Abiodun noted.

    He continued: “It is not about merely saying it is time for youths to lead, we have to earn it. I am a Nigerian youth and you can see the steps I am taking, it doesn’t come as a gift. Those we referred to today as ‘old’ earned it, and the best way we can make Nigeria work again is to also follow that part.”

    At the event, over 50 Nigerians received awards and TAMS ambassadorship. They were include Bank-Olemoh, chairman of the  occasion, Yetunde Ogbomienor and  Lagos State, Local Government Service Commission (LGSECOM), Chairman, Mr Babatunde Rotinwa, among others.

  • Akinrinade, Ezeife, others: it’s time to restructure

    Akinrinade, Ezeife, others: it’s time to restructure

    Former Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Alani Akinrinade and other prominent stakeholders yesterday told President Muhammadu Buhari to brace for restructuring, insisting that it was time to unbundle the centre.

    Akinrinade, who delivered a lecture in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State to mark the sixth anniversary of Governor Seriake Dickson’s administration, specifically urged Buhari to initiate a bill in the National Assembly for power devolution.

    “President Buhari should go immediately for the clusters of consensus and low hanging fruits by initiating a bill for the structural unbundling of an overburdened centre through the removal of several agreed items from the Exclusive List and their devolution to the constituting states in a way and manner that does not enfeeble or endanger the manifest destiny of the nation,” he said.

    The retired general, who went down memory lane on the historical origin of restructuring, said the survival of the country depended on it.

    Traditional rulers, former governors, political appointees and lawmakers were at the lecture entitled: “Restructuring: the way forward for Nigeria”.

    Former Anambra State Governor Chukwuemeka Ezeife, President of Arewa Youth Consultative Forum (AYCF) Shettima Yerima; Afenifere Spokesman Yinka Odumakin and founding President, Nigeria Oral Literature Association Prof. Godini Darah were panelists for the lecture.

    Akinrinade, whose lecture was punctuated intermittently by applauses, maintained that restructuring was inevitable and unavoidable for Nigeria.

    Listing the expectations of a restructured country, he said: “I hope to live to see the day in a properly federalised and restructured Nigeria, the return of the groundnut and cotton pyramids to Kano wrapped with colourful hides and skin, huge cocoa plantations to the West, the palm oil and kernel industry to the East and the appearance of yam skyscrapers in Makurdi, Gboko and Jalingo

    “Governor Seriake Dickson sir, I hope in my lifetime that you or one of your successors will transform from an administrator to a true governor that will not need to look elsewhere to adequately protect and safeguard his people and their properties.

    “That will be free to plan and execute without hindrance the utilisation of her natural resources, including oil and gas to the benefit of Bayesians first, and observing and enforcing best practices for environmental protection…”

    But the lecturer cautioned that “restructuring does not lead to an automatic El Dorado, adding: “It is not a panacea for good governance but a strategic ancillary.”

    Dickson reaffirmed his position that restructuring held the key to preserving the unity, stability and economic prosperity of the country.

    The governor said those championing the restructuring crusade were the true patriots of an egalitarian, just and fair Nigeria.

    He called on all well-meaning Nigerians to support the restructuring movement towards actualising the Nigerian project.

    He said: “Those in support of restructuring and constitutional amendment to address the imbalances in our nation are indeed believers of the Nigerian project and not the other way round.”

    The panelists emphasised the need for more interactions among Nigerians, particularly the northern people to assuage the fears and misconceptions surrounding the issue of restructuring.

     

     

  • Let’s restructure before 2019 elections, says Dickson

    Let’s restructure before 2019 elections, says Dickson

    THE Bayelsa State Governor, Henry Seriake Dickson has called on the Federal Government and other stakeholders to ensure that the country is restructured before the 2019 general elections. Dickson said restructuring and other recommendations contained in the report released during the week by the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) should be treated as a matter of urgent national importance.

    The governor charged the ruling party to convince the Nigerian people of its sincerity in fast tracking work on the report and ensuring that implementation takes off before the general elections. He however, called for a multi-party committee to be set up for the purpose of studying the report, with the view to engendering popular participation and fine tuning it to reflect a broader view.

    This, he said, must be done before a final submission to the National Assembly. Commending the leadership of the APC for coming up with the report, the governor said the recommendations contained in the document had further strengthened the agitations for true federalism and resource control in the Niger Delta. Urging the Federal Government to be sincere in the implementation of the recommendations, Dickson also enjoined other stakeholders to shed primordial considerations for the overriding interests of the country.

    He expressed optimism that restructuring Nigeria would go a long way in calming frayed nerves and violent agitations and would also strengthen the unity of the country. Among others, the APC committee report had recommended state ownership of onshore mineral resources including oil and state control of the police, prisons etc. According to Dickson said had emanated from “unexpected quarters”, having been produced by a committee headed by Governor Nasir el Rufai of Kaduna State.

    El Rufai had been one of the strident voices opposed to restructuring of the country. The Governor said the committee’s report addressed some fundamental issues that have been bothering the minds of patriotic Nigerians. Dickson said, “This development came from an unexpected quarters in a matter that is dear to us; the subject matter of restructuring to address the inequalities in our country. Yesterday, Governor El Rufai, who chaired the APC committee submitted the report; While it is true that we are dealing with a proposal, this is coming from an unexpected quarters, and in the light of the opposition to structuring from some leaders, I thought that what the APC did was unexpected.

    “Let me start by commending the committee and the leadership of that party for making what I will call the most fundamental proposal dealing with the issue of restructuring. “This is very refreshing, and for me, when I see what is right, I commend it; when I see what is in the best interest of our country, I commend it because my politics is driven by conviction and not by convenience. “With the kind of recommendations that they have made, I thought I should appreciate their patriotism and commitment to building an equitable and prosperous Nigeria”.

    He advised the the job of mobilising national consensus on the report should start in earnest, with active involvement of the National Assembly. “All of us need to mobilise national consensus to engage the National Assembly. So that we can drive all these issues before the next election. That is the test of sincerity”. On his part, the Governor said he would intensify consultations across party lines to work towards the actualisation of the desired implementation of the report. On the possibility or otherwise of meeting up with the 2019 general elections, Dickson insisted that it would not be too late to implement the report before the polls. According to him, this is possible because the APC controls majority in the national and state assemblies and that given genuine commitment on the part of everyone, there is hope for timely implementation.

  • Bakare: Nigeria must restructure

    Bakare: Nigeria must restructure

    The convener of Save Nigeria Group (SNG), Pastor Tunde Bakare, yesterday said the failure of the government to address previous injustice led to the killings by herdsmen in some parts of the country.

    Pastor Bakare, who was the running mate to President Muhammadu Buhari when he uncessfully ran in 2011, told members of his Latter Rain Assembly Church during  a State of the Nation briefing that Nigeria needed restructuring now more than before.

    The cleric said President Buhari’s New Year address failed to point the way on salient issues germane to the survival of the nation.

    He said: “The President’s failure to give victims of previous attacks a path to reconciliation and hope of a united Nigeria led to reprisal attacks on herdsmen, resulting in a vicious cycle of death and destruction.”

    He condemned the recent killings and prayed for the repose of the dead.

    “I am also saddened by the terror attacks on places of worship during the festive season. My heartfelt condolences go to the families and communities in Guma and Logo Local Government Areas of  Benue State.

    “Those who began the year in grief because of the murderous activities of heartless criminals, I pray that they, and every hurting Nigerian, will experience the comforting hand of God,’’ he said.

    Giving his address, with the theme: “It is time to renegotiate our union”, Pastor Bakare noted that the call for restructuring could not be wished away in view of its popularity”.

    He said the Buhari administration that recorded some measure of progress within the first thirty-one months in office, now appeared to be merely patching cracks on the wall.

    The cleric stressed that Nigerians were losing their jobs daily, the war against corruption had not yielded the desired impact and insecurity  had attained a frightening dimension.

    He stressed that government policy outlook on the three main thrust of security, job creation and anti-corruption had been circumvented by retrogression.

    “I stand to prick the conscience of a nation that has turned the other eye in deliberate sinful silence of a conspiratorial magnitude while Nigerians are being murdered in various parts of the country by marauding herdsmen.

    “The ineffectiveness of the anti-corruption war is seen in the loss of crucial corruption cases. For instance, in April 2017, the Federal Government lost four high profile corruption cases in 96 hours.

    “These losses are in addition to the bizarre development such as the failure of the government to confirm a substantive chairman for the EFCC, despite the fact that the same political party controls both the executive and the legislature, not to mention the public showdown between EFCC and the DSS to the confirmation of the Acting Chairman of EFCC.”

    He said restructuring could leapfrog the country within 10 years to become a global industrial powerhouse.

    He said: “The Northcentral zone can optimise its mechanised agricultural potential and harness the Rivers Niger and the Benue not just for irrigation but also for hydroponic farming.

    “It can become a centre of world class cattle ranching that will quell the menace of herdsmen attacks and also incubate allied opportunities, such as meat, milk and leather processing.

    “The zone can then transit into heavy industries, including steel manufacturing and auto-manufacturing, while also harnessing the rivers as inland waterways and tourist attractions.”

  • Nigeria must restructure to address agitations -Dickson

    Nigeria must restructure to address agitations -Dickson

    The Bayelsa State Governor, Mr. Seriake Dickson, speaks on why Nigeria must restructure; his concerns about the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and other knotty issues in the country and Bayelsa State. Mike Odiegwu, was there.

    How do you view the recent clamour across the country for restructuring?

    I keep saying I am not a politician of convenience whose positions will change according to changes in the weather. I am a politician of conviction and my views on this are essentially what have informed my politics, since the dawn of this democratic era from 1998 till now. I have been part of the struggles of my people. Whereas, I believe that this struggle should be pursued, through non-violent and political means, I believe that, these issues should be raised from time to time. And, therefore, my views on restructuring are very well known.

    I believe that, if we want a balanced, stable and united Nigeria that will stand the test of time; we have got no option than to review the structure of the country. We have to build consensus, put our cards on the table, our fears as well as the complaints and then find a way around it. The present attitude of the Federal Government and the President to the issue of restructuring is something that I disagree with. And, unlike other politicians, I stand with my people. And, I am in politics not for myself, but for my people.

    As a Bayelsan, as governor of this state, as an Ijaw man, a Nigerian from the Niger Delta, I believe that this country has to have a meeting and discuss how we can make Nigeria more stable, prosperous, and therefore, a Nigeria that can last. We love Nigeria. Those of us talking about restructuring are the true lovers of this country. There are those who feel they have advantages they want to protect, so they want a status quo maintained.  In that case, you are either talking of an individual that has interest or you are talking of regional interest or an ethnic interest. You are not talking of Nigerian interest.

    Agitations are normal by the way, so all this heck about agitations from South-South, South-East, I do not understand. Every country is an artificial creation. It is the duty and responsibility of leaders to rise to the occasion and rise to the responsibility of fears, so that even if those fears are imaginary, unreasonable, you explain and you engage. Up till now, our own colonial masters are still dealing with their issues of restructuring, devolution of powers to Scotland to Wales, to Northern Ireland. And last year, the Scottish had a referendum on whether they should be an independent nation or not. Heavens did not fall. Because you engage and create a platform for people to ventilate, I do not believe that you have majority of people in any part of this country that will today decide to break up this country.

    As I have always said, Nigerian unity is desirable. But, do not tell me it is not negotiable. We want to be in a big prosperous strong country. But, we have to stop this issue of every year and every time people are agitating and people are dying and running away and creating unnecessary tension in the country. That is inimical to the growth of the Nigeria we love. So, when we say restructuring in Bayelsa, in the Ijaw nation, in the Niger Delta, we mean that we sit with our brothers and sisters to discuss issues of how we control our resources, what kind of federation do we have to run? This is a unitary state and that is why you have all these conflicts.

    We want to be in a truly federal Nigeria and so the federal government should discuss modalities of organising not a talk shop, but I have said there should be multi-party or a bi-partisan committee, made up of officials of the Federal Government, National Assembly, because in the end, you are going to talk about a constitutional review. All these talk about true federalism will end in the National Assembly. So, the leadership of the National Assembly, state governors, speakers representing the various state parliaments, the leaderships of the major political parties and other selected interest groups will meet behind closed doors and agree on the issues we need to address now. You do not need to address everything.

    Do you foresee the PDP relaunch itself as a force to reckon with at the national level?

    After our governorship election, because of what we went through in the hands of the party at the centre, I was very serious about rebuilding the party to take over power at the centre and everyone knows what I did. I did everything to build consensus. But, there are forces within the PDP that are against a cohesive and strong PDP that can take power at the centre but these forces are surmountable if party leaders eschew selfishness and bitterness and work for the interest of PDP. I pray that the party overcomes or realizes the need to overcome these forces within the PDP that are placing selfish ambition and ego above the need to build a strong party.

    I pray that, the party survives these internal forces. I have always believed that this country needs two strong parties, a strong cohesive party in government, which incidentally the APC is not, but we should also pray for the APC to get their acts together. But the tragedy of our democracy today is that we neither have a strong party in government nor a strong party in opposition. Clearly Nigeria needs a strong party in opposition and I agree with what the former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, said few days ago, when he said that, the PDP has disappointed because it has not proven to be a strong party in opposition. That is very sad, because I am essentially an opposition man and I am very comfortable being in opposition. There are not many governors who can survive the type of election I survived in this state. I believe that my party has a lot of work to do, we should pray for it, so that the country can have a real taste of two strong parties. That is all I can say.

    People have expressed concerns about military operations in Nigeria. What is your take on the ongoing Operation Crocodile Smile II in the Niger Delta region?

    I would not speak for the military authorities who are organising that exercise. That is a military exercise. The state government is not involved in it, but as the governor of the state, the commanders have come to explain a few things to me. Once the military want to do anything in this state, I tell them to brief me and I ask them to be as professional as they can be. This state has been very peaceful as a result of the collaboration and the hard work of all the security forces. The security services and the military have been a component of that success story and I give all of them credit for it.

    In my view, the military have their job to do and if in their judgment they think that an operation helps them train themselves and prepare for situations, real or imagined; for me, I think that an exercise, which involved going round creeks in a show of force, has the advantage of scaring away the bad guys and limiting the movements of these people who do not care about the lives and property of the people. I recall that some weeks ago, there were cases of piracy in some local government areas. So, professionally conducted exercises like this, in my view, has a way of impacting directly on the safety and security ratings of the state. I have listened to the military officers and the exercise in this respect has my support and I call on all in Bayelsa to also support them.

    Your administration has been talking about civil service reform, what does it really mean and what have you achieved with it?

    This is one key area that we have been doing a lot of work since 2012. You are all aware of how we have worked so hard to reduce the wage bill, blocking the leakages and wastage because in this state we need every kobo to be put into development. After paying salaries, we barely have N5m left and we have a very low IGR base, which we have raised from between N60million and 70million to about N500million and N600million. But that is nothing compared to what other states are receiving. States around us are raking in N10billion monthly and some about N6billion, but our IGR is nothing to write home about, because the companies are not here and our people do not pay tax except those in the public service.

    Therefore, this state needs to be very prudent, which is what we are doing. Some people may misunderstand it, but we are in need of development and I need every kobo that comes into this state to go into development and it is in the same line that we are asking for support, in terms of further solving the challenges of leakages and wastages in the salary system in our state. Currently, we have been able to bring down our wage bill to about N3.8bn every month, but we think that is still too high; that is why I want to commend genuine civil servants, who are going to work and are doing very well; teachers, especially the secondary school teachers, who have done so well. That is why, our rating now in all national examinations is improving, but there are still some black legs in the public service and we want to fish them out.

    Look at the sacrifices our primary school teachers are making, a number of them in some local governments have not been paid for several months. The ones affected most are in Ogbia Local Government and we have checked and we now know what has happened. People have just been putting names of fake people, non-academic staff, teachers, who do not go to work. In all our primary schools, we have very pathetic situations, not only because of the delays in payments of salary.  All these have to stop. After this reform, one of the areas that I will put a stop to is the issue of non-payment or delay in payment of salaries of primary school teachers.

    That nonsense has to stop in this state this year. That situation is so, because in almost all the schools you have one headmaster, few teachers and then you have over 40 non-academic staff getting paid for doing nothing, for not even going to work.  The money that ought to have been used for the payment of genuine teachers’ salary is being used to service other people, so teachers end up being short changed. That has to stop. We are formulating a policy which, I will announce in no distant time.

  • ‘Nigeria must restructure now or else…’

    ‘Nigeria must restructure now or else…’

    The Senior Pastor of Foundation of Truth Assembly Lagos, Rev Yomi Kasali speaks with Sunday Oguntola on the restructuring debate and how Christians can save the nation. Excerpts:

    Giant Killers Conference has just ended. What have you been trying to achieve with it?

    It is our convention and a platform to celebrate our anniversary. We also try to stimulate our members to renew their commitment to the local church and the body of Christ globally. We bond, fellowship and deal with issues that are very apparent in the body of Christ.

    This year, we thrashed the theme gladiators to remind ourselves that we are soldiers for Christ. The bible says we are fighters and warriors. It is to fight the recession spirit out there. Believers are beginning to give up. Marriages are breaking and ritual killers are increasing.

    You see many vices out there today in response to people’s attempts to beat the recession spirit. People are really tired and giving up. Many believers are becoming depressed and giving in. So, we tried to tell people to fight back. You can’t just give up. We must fight recession out of our lives and nation.

    We are gladiators, we are more than conquerors. It is to revive the gladiatorial spirit among Christians. The church should never give up. We should fight spiritually and morally to ensure we uphold the faith. We must fight back.

    Many are saying Christians should fight back the several attacks against them. Is that the kind of fighting back you have in mind?

    Obviously, the bible tells us that our weapons of warfare are not carnal. We are not to fight human beings. We are into spiritual warfare. The moment you become a child of God, you become an enemy to some spirits. You are to fight back against them, defending the faith you have.

    Our fight is a good fight. It is about defending the faith, defending the family and our value systems. It is not about focusing on human tools distracting us. We have been involved in money and mammon that are distracting us. We have become too civilians than most soldiers. That is why we are depressed.

    So, we are fighters and we must understand that. It is not about running after human elements but values and ethics of our faith. Divorce is rising and you must know that it is never the mind of God. Even when Eve misled Adam, God didn’t ask him to divorce her. It is never on the agenda. So, we must fight back for our families.

    In the last 15-20 years, church leaders have been pretty much raising what I call Aje butter Christians-lily-livered believers. Those are not strong, expecting any challenge or tribulation. At the sight of any pain, they go back and feel God has deserted them. They backslide and return to their vomits.

    So, we need to change our messages and let people know that there would be tribulations and challenges. We are to stand strong, not shrink when they show up. That is what the bible tells us-it is about surviving the arena. So, it is not about cursing anybody or mounting pressures but standing tall.

    Some Christians believe in waging wars against those hurting or cursing them so much so that there is a growing doctrine on this. What is your position on cursing one’s ‘enemies’?

    It is absolutely unscriptural and I have been speaking against it for years. Jesus said we should bless those who curse us. It is very simple and easy to understand. As a Christian, when they curse you, you must bless them.

    We have physical enemies because of who we are. It could be because we are from affluent families. The bible says we should love and bless them. We have spiritual enemies because of what we stand for. If I am a Christian, they would fight me because we operate a different value system.

    The bible says we should fight them spiritually. We should not ‘kill’ them physically as we want to believe but we are to pray that God glorifies us above them. If you ‘kill’ 20, they would raise another 100 and the killing won’t stop.

    I was a Muslim some years ago. Imagine if they have ‘killed’ me, I wouldn’t be in faith today. I wouldn’t have been a preacher. All these fall-down-and-die prayer is absolute nonsense. In fact the person that the bible says should fall down and die is you. You are the one to die, not your ‘enemies’.

    It is down for us to fall down in the spirit and die to flesh so that we can become productive as Christians. I see such prayers as emotional therapy.

    Frankly speaking, they don’t expect results when they say such prayers. It has never yielded results. The churches into such prayers should point out those who have died in the last 20 years from the prayers. It is just emotional therapy. You feel someone hates you and wants God to kill them. But God isn’t going to kill anybody. He is not in the business of killing people.

    It makes people feel good, gives them a therapeutic feeling of venting your anger but the truth is the prayers do not go beyond the ceilings.

    What do you say to the clamour for restructuring?

    I am 110 percent in support of restructuring. This country cannot continue as it is going.  I can guarantee you if we don’t restructure peacefully, it would be violently down. I feel it is the lawmakers that are basically against it. I hope they can recall as many of them as possible as they are doing to one of them now.

    I think restructuring is the only way forward. To what? I prefer back to the regional government we had in 1957-1966. Those were the best moments of Nigeria. It didn’t last long because of the coup but this country developed a lot then.

    The centre is just too strong and overloaded now. We need to devolve powers to the federating units. We are messing up and flip-flogging. We cannot practise the Presidential system well because we are not mature enough.

    That is why we have agitations everywhere. We need to act fast because we are losing this country. The National Assembly doesn’t have a choice than to listen to us. We need a referendum to go back to what works. We go abroad and see what they have done. We come back and feel ashamed of what we have here. We have too many politicians than patriots.

    Politicians build their parties and empires but patriots build the nations. We need more of them within the church and even in the political arena.

  • Time to restructure NDLEA

    Illicit drug trafficking and abuse have remained a quandary in Nigeria for decades now. The extent of this mire or messy muddle was first brought to public attention on April 10, 1985 during what might be termed Muhammadu Buhari’s ‘First Missionary Journey’ to Nigeria. For those old enough to know, and/or those that might be interested in the history of illicit drug in Nigeria, April 10, 1985 remains morbid a watershed. It was on that day that the narco-trio of 26-year old Bartholomew Owoh, 29-year old Bernard Ogendengbe, another 29-year old Akinni Lawal Ojuolope were publicly executed by firing squad upon their sentence by a special military tribunal for trafficking in illicit drugs. Their execution was backed by Decree 20 which was enacted in 1984. The death penalty was however soon abolished after Ibrahim Babangida took over in another military coup on August 27, 1985. Since then the prevalence of drug abuse and its exacerbating social consequences have lingered on in Nigeria.

    Recent times have unfortunately witnessed some astronomical prevalence in the phenomenon. Illicit drug trafficking and abuse are presently done openly. These drugs can be obtained in clubs, some major hotels, inner street areas and even over the counter (OTC) in pharmaceutical shops. The sociological consequences of this situation can hardly be imagined. Many young people are either dying or wasting away due to their involvement in drug abuse. Just recently two friends of David Adeleke, a popular Nigerian hip-hop music star artist popularly known as Davido reportedly died of drug overdose. The first victim was Umueke Tagbo, who was said to have ingested a combination of substances in addition to 40 shots of tequila at a pub in Lekki, Lagos. Gbemiga Abiodun alias DJ Olu, Davido’s other friend and son of Dapo Abiodun, multi-millionaire oil magnate, also allegedly died of drug overdose. These unfortunate incidents and many more involving low profile persons infer the extent of the drug menace in our country at the moment.

    But the aforesaid is just one part of the story. The other part, which is equally disturbing, is the fact that the country’s image continues to be enmeshed in disrepute as many Nigerian get convicted of drug offences and are being sentenced to death in countries like Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam among others every now and then. A few examples will suffice here. Not long after Michael Ikenna was put to death by lethal injection in Vietnam, another Nigerian Iwuchukwu Amara Tochi got executed in Singapore. Two years ago, two other Nigerians namely Solomon Okafor and Daniel Enenuo were in one swoop put to death in January 2015 in Indonesia after being caught with heroine. Some months later, precisely in July 2016 three other Nigerians were executed having been sentenced to death in the same country. There are many more that have been arrested, tried, sentenced and are awaiting execution in those and other countries where drug offences attract the maximum death penalty.

    A valid question that may be asked at this point is what government is doing about this ugly trend?  Without disregard for the existing drug war architecture in the country, the nation seems to be performing rather very poorly in the war on several fronts. The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), the statutory agency of the Nigerian government charged with the responsibility of addressing the problem is apparently overburdened, very poorly funded and grossly understaffed. NDLEA is therefore unable to adequately tackle this debilitating social menace which has a clear correlation and tie of consanguinity with violent crimes like kidnapping, robbery, rape, terrorism and other transnational crimes. Apart from the fact that personnel of NDLEA are ill-equipped to sustain the fight headlong, they also appear laidback on any meaningful impact in the area of drug demand reduction (DDR), having particular regards to treatment, counseling, rehabilitation and social reintegration. The main reason for the agency’s laidback approach to DDR is tied to one of the provisions in the NDLEA Act. In part II of the Act which deals with offences relating to drug abuse and trafficking subsection (1) of Section 10 thereof, the possession and use of drugs like cocaine, LSD, heroine among others is spelt out as an offense liable on ‘conviction to imprisonment for a term not less than fifteen years, but not exceeding twenty-five years’. The logical implication of this is that addicts and/or rather victims are seen by the Act as criminally liable. Of course nobody who considers himself criminally liable will go to NDELA for help.

    Yet subsection (3a) of section 7 of the Act provides for a counseling unit in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, which essentially is a DDR function. Under this section, the agency undertakes education, after-care rehabilitation and promotion of the welfare of convicts. This is perceived as absurd, inconsistent and unreasonable when considered critically; for there is no drug abuse victim who is aware that possession of heroin or cocaine or even ordinary cannabis will easily send him to jail that will submit himself or herself to the NDLEA for counseling and rehabilitation. Of course there is no way anyone can use any substance without first possessing it

    It is in the light of the above, that the action which the upper chamber of the National Assembly took on Tuesday, October 11, is considered a positive omen pursuant to the effort to tackle the drug menace in the country. On that day Senator Baba Garbai representing Borno Central Senatorial District moved a motion at the Senate plenary on the urgent need to check the rising menace of drug abuse among youth in the northern part of the country. In moving the motion, Garbai prayed the Senate to mandate its committee on drugs, narcotics and health to investigate the drug scourge pursuant to appropriate action thereto. Whereas Senator Garbai’s motion is thought of as timely, it is however unfortunate that it focused only on a particular section of the country. This is considered unfortunate against the sad reality of the prevalence of the drug menace across the nation.

    Though it has been alluded to earlier, it suffices to add here at the risk of accentuation, that current participant observation research efforts are indicative of the fact that a wide of controlled substances can now be procured by young people over the counter (OTC) in pharmaceutical and even patent medicine stores or joints in villages, towns and cities within the country. The situation, to say the least, is pretty scary and awe-inspiring. Controlled substances are so-called because of their detrimental effects on general human health and well-being irrespective of their pharmacological value. It is for this reason that these substances are usually registered and scheduled by government and strictly controlled with penalties for those who violate these controls. Considering the fact that it is not all such substances that are illicit, and that some of them fall under prescription drugs which could be available to members of the public in pharmacy shops, but strictly on medical prescription, it amounts to unwholesomeness and gross ethical malpractice therefore if there are dispensed for abuse over the counter (OTC).

    In view of the above, it is strongly suggested that the Senate Committee on Drugs, Narcotics and Health in investigating the matter, should among other steps, consider the review of existing laws on the scheduling of drugs. The committee may in so doing consider nascent scientific trends on bio-psycho-socials dependency potential and other effects of these substances by borrowing a leaf from the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) scheduling system.

    A new controlled substances Act should not only strictly forbid and punish the production, possession, illegal sale and dispensing of such substances but make it socially unattractive to be involved in abuse of such drugs. The later part of this advocacy is achievable through conscientization. This should begin with the restructuring, strengthening, adequate staffing, better funding and equipping of the NDLEA for execution of interdiction of drug offenders. Sections of the existing NDLEA Act that are clearly absurd, contradictory and inconsistent should be expurgated from it in order to severe the crippling effects that have seriously hampered its function of ridding our society of the illicit drug scourge.

    Finally, it is hereby very strongly advocated that drug counseling centres should be established in every Teaching Hospital and Inspectorate Unit of the Federal and State Ministries of Education in the country. Such units should also be set up in social welfare department and related agencies to effectively deal with the wide range of issues in drug demand reduction (DDR) in the country.

     

    • Bassey is President, African Council on Narcotics (ACON), Abuja.