The Nation Newspaper

Tag: REVOLUTION

  • Bayelsa’s infrastructure revolution

    At inauguration, Governor Seriake Dickson clearly spelt out the strategic value of the Restoration Agenda of his administration. His swift proclamation of this template of renewal definitely wasn’t a cheap move to join the bandwagon of political sloganeering. Rather the Restoration Agenda was in response to the people’s cry for urgent development and progress.

    The governor actually had a personal experience of the deplorable situation during his campaigns. Everywhere he went, he had to deal with emotional calls for the building and upgrading of infrastructure, meandered through bad roads and saw other dilapidated infrastructure in need of urgent rehabilitation.

    Understandably, accelerated development of infrastructure was made the core of the Restoration Agenda. And quickly Governor Dickson rallied his team to action, underscoring the sense of urgency to change the state of infrastructure throughout Bayelsa and in particular the state capital, Yenagoa.

    He tasked members of his team to appreciate that for the state government to actualize the lofty goal of diversifying the state’s economy through tourism, agriculture and industrialization, the construction of new infrastructure, including a good network of roads and the expansion of other existing infrastructure must be a priority.

    At different forums, the governor emphasized the importance of opening up the state for easy accessibility across the three senatorial districts as it would go a long way in promoting trade and industry.  He also noted the implication for investors who will be able to navigate the entire state and opening businesses wherever suitable without worrying about basic infrastructure. With a good road network in Bayelsa, farmers and agro-allied businesses will easily transport their products to markets just as tourists could move around to locate and enjoy the natural beaches and visit the numerous tourist attractions in the state.

    To the joy and relief of Bayelsans, Governor Dickson hasn’t only been talking. Many will agree and rationally too, that his actions on infrastructural development in the last two years speak louder than words. It is akin to a revolution by any serious evaluation.  Despite the marshy nature of Bayesla State which makes infrastructural development relatively costly and cumbersome, the administration has a lot to show for its short period in office.

    So far, over 350 kilometres of roads across the state have been completed. Government has also constructed 15 bridges, over 50 public buildings and 2 flyovers. Dualisation of 18 roads and two outer ring roads are in progress while the secretariat for the Traditional Rulers Council in Yenagoa has been completed. The road linking the old and new campuses of the state-owned Niger Delta University at Amassom is also completed.

    Government is set to award contracts for the construction of 15 internal roads in Yenagoa which will also be replicated in all the eight local government headquarters in the first phase of total rehabilitation and transformation of roads in the state for easy accessibility.

    The expansion and upgrading of many of the roads particularly in Yenagoa would, however, inevitably lead to demolition of some houses, not because they offended any town planning regulation but as necessary price to pay for the greater good of a modern city. The expansion of Opolo-Imiringi road, for instance, has necessitated the demolition of the governor’s personal house which is a demonstration of commitment to this cause.

    Yet the ambitious new Yenagoa city is coming on stream soon, to further open up the state to investors, which when completed is targeted to be the new Dubai in Africa especially in terms of facilities and business opportunities.

    Among other on-going projects is the construction of the state archive, museum, language centre, new secretariat annexes, governor and deputy governors’ office complexes, modern police mess, the rehabilitation of the Gloryland Cultural Centre and construction of the Government House Clinic, now close to completion. And of course, work is ongoing at the pharmaceutical storage and distribution centre, which when completed will be the first of its kind in Africa.

    Allied to the provision of roads are the strategically located bridges in the three senatorial districts in addition to the equally strategic construction of an airport and the Agge Deep Seaport. In the estimation of Governor Dickson, the successful completion of these two projects will speed up the quest for a diversified and vibrant economy, thereby making oil just one of the sources of income for the state.

    The governor’s dream is that the Bayelsa airport will, among other benefits, create a direct link to Yenagoa, thereby consigning to the past the two- kilometre drive from Port-Harcourt airport. The seaport will also jump-start the state economy so much in terms of massive job creation, boom in trade, leading to a huge leap in income for the state and of course a greater lease of life for the people.

    The people of Bayelsa, visitors and experts alike have noted with satisfaction the quality of the jobs undertaken as they were awarded to reputable construction firms including Julius Berger, Setraco and CCECC. The unusual volume of construction has also created fresh opportunities for a legion of youths as well as qualified engineers, architects and quantity surveyors in the state.

    Many won’t dispute the fact that in the last two years, the Seriake Dickson-led Restoration Government has displayed its commitment and determination to make a difference in the lives of the people by providing such massive and strategic infrastructure throughout the state.

     

    • Iworiso-Markson writes from Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.

  • The emerging gay revolution (3)

    If there is one very powerful force that affects our lives in more ways than we care to think about, it’s the media; hence the notion that the pen is mightier than the gun – it actually is. With influential media members, the gay community in the west has effectively and successfully used the media over the years to gain acceptance and sympathy and push their agenda. With the media firmly in their grip, they are now attacking the ‘last frontier’- the Church.

    As I mentioned last week, the Church in the west has already caved in. As smart as they are, they latch on the Church’s message of grace to gain acceptance leading some churches to throw their doors wide open to them without causing a change in their orientation.

    Get me right; as a Christian, I believe in the message of grace without doubt because we are all saved by grace; however, Apostle Paul in the book of Romans 6:1-3 asked a very powerful question, “…shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase?” He answered the question immediately; “By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?”

    I believe there is a strong place of responsibility in Christianity and anyone who denies this is not a true follower of Christ. This means that even though we are saved by grace, we are not to deliberately live in sin because grace abounds. That is the strong point Paul is making here. I’m so proud of the African church because it has stood its ground and said point blank that homosexuality is a sin and no amount of blackmail, I believe, will shift that rock solid Biblical position.

    When Paul writes that same-sex sex is “against nature,” he means it goes against the order of creation, as “nature” for Paul means the created order. Those who engage in sexual relations with people of the same sex are acting “against nature” in defiance of the Creator.

    Why does Paul single out homosexual intercourse here? I believe Paul does so because it so graphically reflects the way in which human rebellion against God is expressed in ways that blatantly distort the way God created things to be. When rebellious human beings “exchange” their created sexuality for same-sex intimacy, they manifestly show how sinful human beings have “exchanged the truth about God for a lie” (Romans 1:25).

    The created order – the natural pattern – points toward the exclusivity of heterosexual marriage as the context for appropriate sexual intimacy. The entire Bible supports this understanding. This normativity of heterosexual marriage provides the context for the Bible’s univocally negative explicit mentions of same-sex sexual activity and orientation.

    The fact that some human beings might feel a strong sexual attraction toward people of the same sex is not to be understood as necessarily good and trustworthy. Due to the depth of the power of sin in the human heart, even our involuntary impulses may be corrupted.

    So, what does the Bible further say about it? There are six passages that refer to same-sex behaviour or lifestyle, and they are all negative. Three of them are direct and clear. In the Old Testament, in Leviticus, male same-sex relations are prohibited, and labeled an “abomination.” And in the New Testament, in Romans, Paul speaks of women “exchanging natural relations for unnatural ones,” and of men abandoning “natural relations with women and committing shameful acts with other men.”

    And so both the Old and the New Testament are consistent in their rejection of same-sex relationships. In the opening chapters of Genesis, God creates Adam and Eve, male and female. That was the original creation – before the fall, before sin entered the world. That was the way that things were supposed to be. This has led some ‘gay Christians’ to say their sexual orientation is a sign of the fall, a sign of human brokenness.

    However, the Bible is clear, both in what it negatively prohibits and in what it positively approves. Christians who are gay are thus called to refrain from acting on those attractions, to deny themselves, to take up their crosses and to follow Christ. In essence, being gay, I must reiterate here is not the unforgivable sin, God forgives our sins if we truly confess and renounce them. He knows that all of us are sinners.

    Deep in my spirit I’ve held on to the conviction that being gay has emotional and psychological roots. My conviction was confirmed when I got a call and a SMS from two ex-gay individuals who have been following this write up. They confirmed that no one is born gay. According to them, they imbibed the lifestyle while in secondary school and even continued well into adulthood. One said he was ‘forced’ to abandon the lifestyle when his parents forcefully brought him a wife at the age of 45 and remained in his house for six months. He said he had no choice but to learn how to sleep with a woman, “and today I am straight”.

    The Biblical teaching against same-sex sexual intimacy in the rest of the Bible all presupposes the Genesis portrayal of normative marriage and is consistent with that portrayal. The main reason the Bible speaks so clearly about sexual activity which does not occur within the context of opposite-sex marriage is, in my view, because illicit sexual activity is understood to be a threat to the very social foundations of the Bible’s faith communities.

    Paul’s writings reflect the creation ordering of human sexuality. A key text is Romans 1:18-32. This passage begins with a reference to idolatry as the root cause of the immorality that the verses that follow address. Paul points here to an inherent connection between idolatry and homosexuality. He singles out same-sex sexual activity because he seeks a vivid image of humankind’s primal rejection of the sovereignty of God the creator. Since God’s intent for opposite-sex marriage as the only appropriate context for sexual relationships, the denials of the exclusivity of this context implicit in same-sex relationships means rejecting God.

    I started this article with the “seven social sins” outlined by Mahatma Ghandi: politics without principles, wealth without work, pleasure without conscience, knowledge without character, commerce without morality, science without humanity, and worship without sacrifice. For the purpose of the issue at hand, I singled out knowledge without character.

    Over the years we have succeeded in raising a generation of youths who are highly knowledgeable, but lack the requisite character that a good education is supposed to imbibe, in essence, some are morally inept. That is why the anonymous caller who triggered this write up in the first place can confess that his parents gave him the best education money could buy, yet his way of repaying them is by being gay.

    Five star school have sprang up in the last decades where the emphasis is on producing “first class brains” with no form of responsibility whatsoever. What kind of leader would a ‘gentleman’ be who has never for once washed his own clothes or swept his room because his school has a laundry department? Or what kind of wife or mother would a ‘lady’ become who does not even know how to put the gas cooker on because everything was done for her? Such individuals would have all the time in the world to watch television or be on the internet 24/7 and try their hands on anything ‘fashionable’ like homosexuality. I’m not in anyway implying that have a laundry department or having some perks that makes life a bit easier is bad or wrong.

    And don’t forget – as I conclude – that most of our ‘first class brains’ are groomed for leadership positions. So, if you have such individuals as your future President, Governors or members of the National Assembly etc, what kind of a nation would we have?

     

     

     

  • FUTA plans food revolution

    The Vice-Chancellor of Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), Prof Biyi Daramola, has said the institution is on the threshold of emerging the African Regional Centre with support of the governments of African countries and the World Bank.

    He said the institution is hosting the N1.2 billion World Bank grant for the centre of excellence in food production and security.

    With this development, Prof Daramola said the university might provoke a revolution in Nigeria’s agricultural productivity that would make the country fully secured in food production and sufficiency.

    Daramola, who made the disclosure during the fifth FUTA Registry annual lecture held at the main auditorium of the institution, said the institution and Multi Trex Integrated Foods, has entered into partnership on cocoa processing for export and local consumption.

    According to Daramola, the partnership will create an enduring mutually beneficial relationship between the university, Multi Trex and end users.

    He said the institution is committed to conducting high impact research into food production, processing, packaging and storage.

    The Vice-Chancellor said the development was aimed at boosting the nation’s food production out put, generating income for the institutions as well as serving as a training ground for the younger generation.

    At the event, the President of Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), Mr Femi Adesina; former Vice-Chancellor University of Ibadan, Prof Olufemi Bamiro; the immediate past Ondo State Head of Service (HoS) Mrs Kosemani Kolawole; and Managing Director, Multi Trex Integrated Foods Plc, Mr Dimeji Owofemi were honoured with the FUTA registry award for distinguishing themselves in their various callings.

     

  • From revolution with love

    From revolution with love

    Not many Nigerians eyed with enthusiasm the rumbles in Tahrir Square in Egypt last week. Not many are glued to it even now, in spite of the earthquake significance for the Nigerian political earth. It is not a revolution for the young alone. Its rage dissolves hierarchies. About the French revolution, the poet William Wordsworth crooned that “bliss it was that dawn to be alive/ to be young was very heaven.” Wordsworth wrote bliss that did not belong to the French Revolution. Not after the guillotine of paranoia that saw head after head fly out of bodies as hysteric crowds cheered with the glee of hyenas.

    As I write, the revolution has nothing of the neatness of theory, about one order going for the anointing of the new. Revolutions are not sacraments. Often they carry the mournful halo of butcheries. Don’t forget the other ones, including the Russian and Chinese revolutions. They woke up their societies, teased them with dreams of a promised land and, through waves of blood, anger and destruction, returned them to their default pennies and penuries, to their inequities and inequalities.

    That is why this writer is wary of revolutions. The best revolutions are reforms that over long periods become revolutions. So we can talk of the American Revolution not in terms of the result of the war that ousted England, but the country that resulted over 50 years later and became the model for other nations. The non-political ones like the industrial or scientific revolutions did not appear so until late in the day.

    So while many call for revolution Egypt style, I applaud their passion for Nigeria. Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, called for it last week. I love a revolution for Nigeria. But unlike many, I think we wax romantic about this subject. We are not close to a revolution.

    Nigerians are too happy for a revolution. We love our tribes too much for a revolution. We love God too much for a revolution. We love our suffering, as master masochists, so we prefer the pain now to paradise tomorrow. We sniff crude oil every day, and the greatest tragedy is that we love oil too much to contemplate a revolution.

    We have never in our history manifested, in any collective way, a revolutionary ferment. We have only pretended it. We have only romanticised it, like in the June 12 struggles and the charade of a labour standoff we had about a year ago. We lack the spirit of endurance and the sense of sacrifice that embroiled Egypt last week and compelled an elected officer who was president to make an apology of a broadcast after dealing a high hand in the fashion of a pharaoh.

    The point though is not that Nigeria is not ripe for a revolution. We are. The problem is that we are too ripe for a revolution. The translation is that we have passed a situation that could have driven other societies to the streets. But we escaped every chance for a revolution. I think three reasons account for this.

    One, tribe. I try not to use the stylised word ethnicism, because what assails us in Nigeria is tribal. The hate in the air that divides us is savage. It is like the loss of innocence dramatised in the Nobel Prize-winning novel, Lord of the Flies. Hatred is no longer hatred if the other group does not fall and die. I recall the old national anthem, “though tribes and tongues may differ/ in brotherhood we stand.” We sang that anthem before we killed each other in a fratricidal war. We see this now in the Niger Delta, in Plateau State, and in the blood fest of Boko Haram around the North. We see it all the time in election cycles.

    The second is religion. I am a Christian, but I see Pentecostalism and the Islamic fundamentalism as twin villains of the day. We are compelled to see Nigeria as the kingdom of God, and we place emphasis on individual redemption as against collective liberation. This contradicts Bible injunctions, but individual salvation should not counter collective bliss. We should be our brother’s keepers. But the religious leaders key into the capitalist ethos to profit from the misery of the day. The consequence is a lack of insistence on change but in finding individual escape routes. It is always “my God, or my Allah.” As Max Weber wrote, capitalism preys on individual piety. The religions as they are practised endorse the status quo.

    The third is oil. Oil reminds me of a story in Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities. In the centre of a town near Paris before the city quakes under a revolution, a big vat of wine cracks on a rock. It leaks in furious temptation. Everyone scurries to have a share. Those with cups come. Those with buckets come. Ditto those with handkerchiefs. Everyone has their share of the drink. They thrill to this inebriate heaven. Mothers dance with their children. They make circles; and men, women and children rejoice in the liquid spell. But drink comes to an end, the alcohol clears and the whole society regains sobriety. Farmer goes back to farm, mother remembers where she leaves the child, seamstress defaults to her tools, etc. The party is over, and sadly they embrace the repressed reality again. That is what oil means to us. In one way or another, oil defers our engagement with our misery.

    Today we have to face it. Nigerians have not suffered enough. You would think the depredations of Boko Haram would trigger something. Nope. You would think that the stealing of treasuries everywhere would awaken us to integrity. No way. Somebody said recently that the kidnappings indicate our closeness as the poor are sending signals to the rich. But I believe the kidnappers are not thinking about ruffling the rich but want to be rich too. They don’t detest the rich and their corruption. They just want to be like them. That is not revolutionary.

    I think the thieves should steal more. The roads should decay more. The hospitals should be worse than consulting clinics but chambers of death, although they already are. The schools should churn out more illiterates and the bridges should collapse everywhere. Tribal strife should descend to deeper atavistic savagery. The Americans and Europeans should ban us from living in their countries but they won’t. They want our money. We should have a government that gambles all our oil to another country or firm in the West or China. We shall wake up one morning to see that our country is in a shipwreck and all of us are sinking together and there is no one with a God to pray to and a fat bank account to latch on to. We become dependent on our collective salvation.

    Then by our actions, we will begin a meaningful conversation about revolution. Meanwhile, we have a party in which some have wines costing a million naira and others are staggering on paraga, a local brew, or apetesi. Make your choice.

    I despair at this scenario. We are too adept at creating illusory heavens out of hell. So, let us just dream. A dream can be an end in itself. So let us just dream about it, and see Egypt on television.

  • Creative Ogbeni’s education revolution

    Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar got it right vividly last week when he joined the State of Osun people in his wife’s town of Ilesa to launch of Opon-Imo.

    He was quoted: “Our greatest asset in this country is not oil; it is not cocoa; it is not cassava or groundnuts. And I respect all our farmers and their contributions towards our development. Our greatest asset is our people, the Nigerian people. We have to educate and train our teeming young population if we seriously hope to develop this country.”

    From experience, he believes education and training will open doors of opportunity to students and help in rebuilding the nation. “Only education can guarantee the future of our young people. The education of our children and the overall development of our human capital is something that we can all agree on, irrespective of our political parties or platforms. We may disagree on how and where. But very few people would ask why we should give our children quality education,” he summarized approvingly.

    Undeniably, one of the issues depressing Nigeria’s development today is the waning state of education. That people now prefer sending their children to school in Ghana is a pointer to failure locally. But I have become excited with the move taken by the governor of the State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, which was authenticated by Nobel Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka, as step to revolutionize the education sector.

    The innovation of Opon-Imo (the Tablet of Knowledge), a standalone e-learning tablet that provides the high school pupils with the contents required to prepare for school leaving examinations manifests the optimism of practical transformation. To radically democratise access to learning, regardless of means, location or status, 150,000 of the tablets are being distributed to all government high school students across Ogbeni’s state.

    Opon-Imo, a portable electronic device, which is controlled through its touch screen interface, is the first of its kind initiative in Nigeria, Africa and possibly, the world. As informed by the governor, it will tackle the learning problem using contemporary ICTS, indigenous content, and taking into account socially-embedded factors. It is a mobile learning tool pupils can utilize in multiple at home, in school and any other location and fitting for a country like Nigeria with unreliable networks because the customized content will work regardless of data networks.

    With 56 tutorials and e-textbooks covering 17 subjects, there are also more than 40,000 practice questions and answers, seven extra-curricular books capable of tracking pupil’s academic progress. To make it more usable, beyond being powered by electricity, independent powering communal solar charging systems have already been installed in all the schools as a resourceful initiative in a nation stressed with awful power system.

    Apart from bringing the schools closer to the students and serving as “a silver bullet to the learning challenges,” Ogbeni affirmed that the project aimed at building a knowledge-based society and digital-drive economy will ultimately work towards the development of the nation. This benefit will even be beyond saving the state an estimated annual textbook procurement cost of N8.4billion ($53million). What a unique novelty.

    Just like Atiku counselled, notwithstanding political parties or platforms, Ogbeni has shown commendable inventive way other states and the central government can integrate into in order to transform this nation in reality. Also in the same manner Asiwaju Bola Tinubu applauded Ogbeni, he has indeed been performing as a man of “principle, determination, optimism and progressivism who always believe in achievements and transformation.”

    With the Opon-Imo creativeness, it is established that Ogbeni governing in ways that are not usual has “all it takes to perform wonders because he is a tested and trusted administrator who knows his onions.”

     

    Please, boo misinformation minister more

    What a pity that Information Minister Labaran Maku has lost the correct spirit of journalism which is based on the truth and truth alone. He now acts and talks the way of typical Nigerian politician, fabled in sham and fickleness.

    Why things have not been working in the country was because of the insincerity of those in power. They strive to impress themselves instead of dedication to pleasing the people who they used to attain power.

    In the exertion to satisfy the President, and not Nigerians, Maku was gallivanting at the 2013 Ministerial Platform of the administration’s mid-term report. He bragged that the Federal Government intervention in road and transport sector were unprecedented in Nigeria’s history. To him, the work on rail and water are so marvellous. “We have never seen anything like we have seen since 1960” on the jobs being done. Really? He claimed that since Tafawa Balewa administration in the 60s, no government was able to fulfil promises as much as GEJ’s. Na wha o!

    As he was over-shooting himself, as if those he was talking to were dumb and blind, he lashed Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola as a non-performer who merely generates 80% of the state revenue from federal infrastructure. According to him, “most of the projects in Lagos State where taxes are being collected are federal projects;” adding that “Lagos State does no significant thing other than environmental sanitation.” What an imprudent assertion?

    And that was how he fell to the hands of the thousands of participants at the event – comprising his erstwhile media colleagues, civil society organisations officers, MDA officials and members of the public who couldn’t see any sense in his cacophony. They all booed him just the same way he is now being booed all around for his inanity, folly and senseless talk.

    Even an adversary of Fashola with wisdom cannot rebuff the impact of his performance on Lagosians.

     

    FEEDBACK

    Re-Please, make Nigeria indivisible

    Sir, I agree with your piece. I must say that any government which fails to recognize the welfare of her subjects as primary duty deserves condemnation avalanche. Nigerian governments need to improve their service deliveries to the common people. May God bless Nigeria with good leaders. From Comrade Ishowo Olanrewaju, Ilorin.

    Soji, the dog that will get lost can, and will never listen to its owner’s whistle. Tell me, who can atone the sin of election abracadalists? The whole scenario is a game of sanctimonious hypocrisy. From Soji Oloketuyi Jnr, Igbemo Ekiti.

    “The nation that once had the potentiality of greatness has been stagnant for too long” was your last statement. You are not a young boy. If you’ve been watching Nigeria’s event with objective mind, you’ll know where our problems are from.

    I’m not happy with today’s Nigeria, but the ‘gully erosion’ that has devastated our lives actually has its origin.

    From Amadi Ibeleme

    Thanks Soji for your piece. Those still hoping on Jonathan to use federal might on Amaechi are living in fool’s paradise. The governor’s supporters in Rivers State are more than his rivals. But let GEJ know that the game is up. From Wenenda, PH

    Sir, not only that am I pleased with your write up, I also want to encourage you for good work. NGF election was monitored online by Nigerians. So, who are those fooling the president? From Solomon Vambe, PH

    Gov. Akpabio has a character issue. Can you ask him what practice he was into before entering politics? His real character came out when he couldn’t check that Yobe and Gombe governors’ names were on the list, that original date was cancelled and Gov. Jang’s name was added with a biro. What a shame is that in democracy? From Tony

    I wonder aloud whenever I saw or hear Akpabio behaving on telly. Are his subjects in Akwa Ibom so daft that none of them can call him to order? Yoruba has a name for his likes: omo aijobe to’ja epo sara. Thank you. From Samuel Oke Aro

    Thanks for your article on Amaechi. I am from South-South and I know I won’t vote for Jonathan in 2015. 2347057483717

    PDP and GEJ are shooting themselves in the combined foot and making way for the opposition. From Utah

  • The undeclared revolution

    The undeclared revolution

    SIR: There is a consensus among a broad spectrum of Nigerians including respectable folks that to salvage the country from its pathetic state and set it on the part to real growth and development requires a revolution. Many declare that the country is ripe for one; some say it’s even long overdue. Indeed the conditions that inspire revolution abound in the country.

    However, a debate has raged on whether Nigerians have what it takes to make revolution. This question particularly came to the fore at the height of the Arab Spring. For some, the answer is no. These base their judgment on the argument that the citizens are so hopelessly divided and lack the pluck so crucial for a revolution. For some others, Nigerians have all it takes to rise up against the unhealhy status quo and could do exactly that once their burden becomes totally unbearable.

    Another question has been what nature the revolution will take. Is it going to be peaceful or bloody? While most citizens acknowledge the likelihood of revolutions to turn brutal, they, however, make it clear that they would rather have one devoid of violence. Such revolution would have to be properly planned and possibly led by intellectuals or the labour unions.

    But while Nigerians debate the above questions and ponder who would lead the revolution, when etc., a revolution is going on right under their nose. Yes, a revolution is currently going on in the country but has remained largely unacknowledged because it is neither taking the form majority of the people envisages nor led by personalities they recognize.

    With the possible exemption of the civil war years, the security challenge currently facing the country is almost unprecedented. Armed groups are unleashing mayhem and overrunning parts of the country, robbers, kidnappers and other felons are on rampage. Security agents are becoming some of the most vulnerable citizens, the authority of the state is being seriously challenged. This is the undeclared revolution. It may seem a strange one, but then, we live in a strange land.

    While the majority moderates dally, the minority extremists and criminal elements are already engaged in a grim struggle to either mold the state to their grisly taste or seize from it whatever they fancy. Unlike the rest of the people, criminals and extremists across the country do not need to be united or form committees to begin their revolution. Their goal is not noble, their success therefore will spell disaster; they’ll bring the house down on everyone. The situation is that serious and requires equally serious and urgent measures.

    Moderates and responsible members of society must recognize that the much talked about revolution is already on but unfortunately is spearheaded by the wrong fellows. They must now take the bull by the horn, they must now launch their own revolution or should I say counterrevolution. The time for futile talks is long gone, the issues of the moment call for action. Men of goodwill must get ready to reclaim the country from incompetents and forever banish from the polity, individuals who do not mean well for the country and whose deeds led to the present sorry situation.

    The task of restoring the dignity and integrity of the state is one that cannot wait; the citizen’s confidence in the state must be quickly restored through good governance. This is the most credible means to stem the advance of the dark forces of anarchy.

    • Nnoli Chidiebere

    Abia State.

     

     

  • Still on the revolution we need

    Still on the revolution we need

    SIR: Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno state spoke truth to Nigeria’s self-absorbed political elite during the week, when he received a 32-member Senate Joint Committee on the Massacre in Baga. He told the committee: “the nation can be consumed by a revolution”, noting that, in the near future, Nigerian “youths will chase politicians out of power,” if the socio-economic malaises fuelling violence in the country are not adequately addressed. According to him, “only and until we address some of these issues, believe me, the future is very bleak for all of us as the current crisis is just an appetizer of things to come. Very soon, the youths of this country will be chasing us away.”

    He further noted that, the political class is indifferent to the plight of the poor, but animated by sit-tight syndrome and the desire to illicitly acquire more assets: “How we can perpetuate ourselves in power. How much we can steal, how many mansions we can buy in Florida, Dubai and London, this is what agitates the minds of the elite of this country, including you and I.”

    This is quite contrary to Rivers state Governor Rotimi Amaechi’s opinion, recently, during the second Nigeria Symposium for Young and Emerging Leaders. Amechi had ruled out the possibility of a revolution, because, “Nigerians are too timid.” Nonetheless, he thinks revolution is the magic bullet to all woes. He said, “Yes, revolution can happen outside Nigeria. But here, I do not think so. Tell me what happened in Sudan, Libya, Zimbabwe and other countries that have not happened here. Our elasticity has no limit”.

    Indeed, all is not well in Nigeria. Leaders at various strata of our society seem to have chosen an education in corruption, instead of one in service. As a result, the Nigerian state is weak. Public institutions are inefficient and seen as mere “avenues for chop-chop.” And public servants are perceived as parasitic sleazebags.

    Let it be said: We do not need violent revolution to move Nigeria forward. We do not need youths to chase politicians out of offices before everyone can truly enjoy the dividends of democracy. We do not need a campaign of violent negativism to bridge the high income inequality between the haves and have-nots. We do not need ethno-religious warlords to determine our secular orientation as a nation state. We do not need the revolt of the masses for it subjugates passion to reason, almost always.

    What we need is simple. We need servant-leaders who are responsive to the legitimate aspirations of the citizenry. We direly need empathic leaders who are animated by the desire to elevate the socio-economic status of the poor. We need leaders who will approach youth empowerment and wealth creation from a programmatic stance and not the occasional doling out of handouts. We need leaders who will massively revamp our dilapidated infrastructure.

    One way to ensure Governor Shettima’s prophetic warning does not become a reality is for us to engender ethical reformation. We must concertedly work at creating a society that elevates principles above people, justice above tribal sentiments, right above might, work above wealth and the common good above the narrow self-interest of the political elite.

    The revolution we need is ethical. The present ethical basis of the Nigerian society cannot foster sustainable economic development for all. The impunity of Nigeria’s elite, which is well-known around the world, has entangled us in the web of poverty, backwardness, social injustice, crony capitalism and political instability. Our chequered political history shows: Sustainable national advancement is elusive, when the ethics of transparency and public spiritedness do not sufficiently influence policy formation and implementation. I dare say that as long as many public programmes and projects are conceptualised and executed to advance the narrow self-interest of the power class, Nigeria will keep descending the slope of self-annihilation. We need to collectively, urgently and hugely revamp the ethical framework of leader-follower engagements.

     

    • Omozuwa Gabriel Osamwonyi

    Abuja

     

  • Reverse moral revolution

    Reverse moral revolution

    Oke-ogun is on my mind today. But I need tofollow a detour to get to my favorite landscape and its innocent people.

    The credit for the 21st century popularisation of the term “moral revolution” is, without argument, Kwame Anthony Appiah’s. It was his 2009 book, The Honor Code: How Moral Revolutions Happen that reintroduces the term and injects it into our modern consciousness as the moral equivalent of scientific revolution. In his account, a moral revolution occurs when a people who have been long engaged in a shameful, embarrassing, immoral way of life or behaviour abandon it in favour of a decent or morally defensible practice. Among his examples, one that resonates with us in this part of the world is the abolition of transatlantic slavery.

    The practice of hunting, capturing, parking, and transporting, against their will, thousands of human beings across the Atlantic and forcing them into servitude was so inhumane and barbaric that it is still now a surprise that it was considered acceptable and legitimate for such a long time in spite of the efforts of a number of abolitionists and beyond the lifetime of the pioneers. That is the nature of tradition.

    “Tradition” is a customary way of doing things that is unique to a group, a habitual way of life, what sociologist Edward Shils defines as “anything which is transmitted or handed down from the past to the present”. Of course, being handed down does not necessarily entail being accepted. A tradition is a tradition only because it is accepted by the next generation. The acceptance of a traditional idea, belief, or practice is subject to what the people it serves make of it in terms of their well-being. The notion that a tradition necessarily has a suffocating grip on a people is, therefore, misleading. The influence of a tradition depends on the moral weight that the people accord it. A tradition survives if subsequent generations accept it, and that also depends on how they assess it relative to their interests.

    Beneficiaries of the practice of enslaving African peoples obviously found it acceptable relative to their interests; hence their tardiness in accepting the abolitionists’ logic. When eventually they saw the proverbial light, the tide shifted and moral revolution occurred.

    With the foregoing as a backdrop, I am interested here in what appears to me to be movement in the opposite direction of the kind of moral revolution that I just described. Hence my title: reverse moral revolution.

    If there is moral revolution, can there be a reverse moral revolution? Can a people with a good moral tradition abandon it for whatever reason, reverse course, and initiate a practice or set of practices that negate human flourishing? To my mind, the answer is “yes” and there can be no better example than the realities of our everyday experience.

    We are heirs of a rich tradition of cultural and moral values which privileges the community as the bearer of value and the protector and benefactor of the individual. Distant relatives would gladly contribute pennies and shillings for the upkeep of a young boy or girl on the way to school or college. They saw themselves as the keepers of their brothers and sisters. Teachers were accorded due respect as the guardians and mentors of the youth. Religious harmony was taken for granted as clerics of all faith took seriously their calling as shepherds of the entire people. Religion was an instrument for forging communal peace and allaying fear about the unknown. For the Yoruba, the individual who exemplifies its ideal of the human person is an omoluabi and that was what everyone desires to be.

    Failure at realising the goal of becoming an omoluabi is not just the failure of a family; it is the failure of the entire community if the young ones turn out to be exiles from the moral community. When communal values that enrich human flourishing are set aside by a new generation, there is reverse moral revolution; and since such a revolution is against the ideal of human flourishing, it a communal failure.

    There is no doubt that this is where we are now even as we are yet to place our feet on the first step on the ladder of development. We have fully embraced the post-modernist distaste for moral values even as we collectively suffer from its suffocating grip.

    It is happening in real time in unusual places. As Georgia was on the mind of Ray Charles, so Oke-ogun is always on my mind. And as I sit by my current River of Babylon, contented and grateful for my life’s story, I cannot but remember my Zion, and I am certainly not ashamed to sing of its heritage, its innocence, its virginity, its rustic beauty, and above all, what I still celebrate as its core values: hard work and contentment. While the opportunities were limited, we learned that tenacity of purpose and perseverance paid out. And there was communal cooperation in the training of children. While four eyes were there in the making of the baby, two hundred are involved in its upbringing. It was the tradition I grew up in and my generation accepted it and passed it on.

    I am uncertain what is going on now and has been for some time. Do teachers still see themselves as the conduit for the transmission of communal moral values? Or are they overwhelmed by the incessant urge for primitive acquisition that defines our national life? Of course, teachers cannot take on the responsibilities that parents and the community abandon. And when parents run after the elusive happiness of material wealth, they ought to be reminded that the children they fail to train will end up squandering whatever wealth they are lucky to accumulate.

    The foregoing is not without a context. I received two calls in the past week from two friends for whom I have a lot of respect. They were both concerned about the current terrain of the moral tradition of our people. In particular, they raised issues about the young ones who cut school, do drugs, and engage in cult activities, and about parents who appear to have no time for the education and upbringing of their children. They offer solutions as well, which is part of what makes them respectable.

    One solution is the recruitment of role models among the successful members of the professional class—those who passed through the proverbial fire and were not burnt; those who did not reach the pinnacle of achievement by cutting corners, and those who do not take political activism and participation as a means to self-advancement at the expense of the community. I hasten to say that Oke-ogun is not lacking in such individuals who put others, and especially the community before self, and that is one reason I applaud and endorse this suggestion as a viable option.

    The issue, of course, is not all that simple. Successful role models are willing and ready to make contributions and pay back a debt of gratitude to the community that gave them a chance in the first place. But you don’t get clean hands when you use just one hand to self-wash. And when one side lifts, and the other pushes down, you don’t get the luggage onto the head as you desire.

    This is the predicament of Oke-ogun today as it is of Nigeria as whole. There is a side that is genuinely concerned about bringing up the next generation to their God-given potentials. And there is a side that sees the youth as exploitable entities. For the latter, good education is an impediment. I believe that the forces of good can and will overcome through tenacity and persistence. After all, that is the proud and enviable tradition of Oke-ogun.

  • Revolution is imminent, says Gaya

    The Senator representing Kano South, Kabiru Gaya, has backed the stance of former President Olusegun Obasanjo that the country is gradually drifting towards anarchy and uncertainty.

    Gaya, who spoke with reporters yesterday shortly after the bye-election in Garko and Gaya constituencies, said there might be revolution if the Federal Government does not wake up from its slumber.

    The senator expressed bitterness over the conduct of the by-election and threatened to write a petition to the Inspector General of Police and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over the election into the House of Assembly.

    Gaya, who was yet to cast his vote, alleged that the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has hijacked the House of Assembly bye-election in Garko and Gaya.

    According to him: “It is unfortunate that corruption has eaten deep into our fabrics as corrupt officers celebrate their loots while those who venture to expose them become potential prisoners.”

     On the remand of Hon. Farouk Lawan in prison, he challenged the logic behind putting the bribe receiver behind bars while the giver is busy organising party on Lagos Island.

    Stating this can only happen in Nigeria, Gaya said: “You dare expose corruption in Nigeria you are in trouble. Farouk has been sent to jail by the power that-be, while Otedola, the friend of the family, is having a party on Lagos Island.

    “This is unimaginable and it can only happen in Nigeria. That is why today the nation is ravaged by corrupt and corrupt officers.”

    Gaya, who is the chairman Senate committee on Local Government, recalled his ordeals during the public hearing where the Pension Board boss refused to appear before the committee despite series of summons.

    He lamented that the same man is moving about as a free man in the country.

    According to him: “All these and many other problems bedevilling the country today have remained unsolved. It is now that I agree with President Obasanjo’s worry over such sensitive issues.

    “What I thought is that Obasanjo might be angry with certain issues but today I think he is right by raising alarm and if care is not taken, the country is at the brink of collapsing.”

  • There ‘ll be no revolution, says Kukah

    There ‘ll be no revolution, says Kukah

    Advocates of revolution were yesterday told to apply the brakes, because it can’t happen.

    Catholic Archbishop of Sokoto Diocese, Rev Mathew Kukah said there are many reasons why it can never happen and that is our source of strength.

    Rev Kukah spoke at the 10th Daily Trust Annual Dialogue in Abuja.

    The Bishop also said all the Presidents that have ruled the country since Independence came to power by accident and “our goodluck has become bad luck”.

    Also, two human rights activists, Ms Ann-Kio Briggs and Lagos lawyer Mr Femi Falana (SAN) poured venoms on the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan, describing it as a government without hope for Nigerians.

    Speaking on the theme: “Nation building: challenges and reality,” Rev Kukah said no matter the conspiracy or problem the nation is facing, “nobody is going to build the country for us,” adding that the sovereign national conference some people are agitating for is nothing but a romantic idea.

    He disagreed with those comparing Nigeria with other countries that have made better developmental stride. He said these countries have not experienced coups like Nigeria.

    The Catholic Bishop warned those, who are calling for revolution, saying “no revolution is going to take place in this country.

    “There are many reasons why it will not happen and that is our source of strength. We must trace the history of our dislocation in this country and we must identify what the previous leaders have done and build on it. People that said we cannot progress without a sovereign conference are joking because it is a romantic idea.”

    House Speaker Aminu Waziri Tambuwal warned those in position of authority to know that leaders hold their positions not by any divine law, but by the leave of the people, adding that they are only leaders by proxy.

    He said: “This fact is common knowledge. But since we are talking about the reality of nation building, we must agree that more often than not, we leaders behave as if the people owed us rather than the other way round. Once we get power, we become selfish and arrogant and forget that we are servants of the people and not masters of the universe.

    “This is the fundamental cause of our leadership crisis. Although we see daily proof that power is transient, it has not tempered our predisposition to misuse the opportunity when afforded us; and to squander the public’s goodwill on the altar of greed.”

    Ms Briggs, who also described the Jonathan administration as shameful and disgraceful, questioned the rationale behind the celebration of the nation’s 100 years, adding that there is nothing to celebrate as Nigeria is full of corruption.

    She said the people in power accept criminality and hooliganism, noting that corruption has eaten deep into the fabric of the nation to the extent that the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) now look as debt collector.

    “Spending our money to celebrate 100 years is nothing, there is nothing to celebrate. God did not put Nigeria together; it was Lord Luggard that put Nigeria together. The challenges Nigeria face in building a nation will remain elusive because we are not yet prepared to develop as a nation. There is distrust in the country and that needs to be addressed. The 1999 Constitution is a false document, we need to sit down and come out with a document with mutual respect for one another.

    “Fraud is rampant and the so called political elites will not do without rigging election. Government of today is a government the people put in place and which the people are ashamed of,” she said.

    Falana said no Presidency and Governor’s Forum can tell Nigerians how much oil the nation produce a day, adding that they only protect the interest of the imperialist.

    He said: “Nation building in Nigeria is in crisis. The problem of Nigeria is impunity. Pirates have taken over power in Africa, particularly Nigeria, so much so that some people are dangerously rich and many are dangerously very poor. Nigeria is a country of paradox; it has crude oil but poor refinery. If the Federal Government does not address the problems in the country, the nation will be faced with serious crisis to the extent that what happened in 2011 will be a child’s play.