The Nation Newspaper

Tag: YES

  • Yes, this drug can cure over 500, 000 ailments.

  • Ekiti: Yes, thunder can strike twice

    The question to ask, therefore, is why such persons would like to deliberately imperil the chances of the party in an important election like this. 

    O yes, PDP can win in Ekiti again, and heavens will not fall. This, however, will not be because of anything Governor Ayo Fayose, the quintessential, practical Nigerian politician, does, or does not do, but principally because of the complete disharmony that now envelopes the Ekiti chapter of the APC with its current 26 but still growing, number of wannabe governors. Let me quickly say, though, that this piece does not contemplate a serious look at the forthcoming governorship election. That will come sooner than later, God willing. Rather it should be seen as an essential input into what should reckon as the  unavoidable efforts to properly reposition the party ahead of the election which will obviously not be a walkover, incumbency at the federal level, or not. It therefore seeks to encourage true lovers of the party to ensure that a reasonable synergy emerges within the party ahead the 2018 election. There is a massive, and urgent need to immediately dissuade many of those indicating interest in contesting the election.  It is a mad house as it presently stands. The APC leadership must therefore move like it is being pursued as the Ondo  crisis which considerably fissured the party must not be allowed to repeat itself in Ekiti. It is sincerely hoped that APC is a serious enough party to know that this huge number is no indication of party popularity. Rather it demonstrates a putrefying self interest, simplicita. Many of them will not be bothered, whatever happened to the APC, as I shall try to show.

    Ordinarily, the party should not have been in the current mess in Ekiti but for a totally unexpected misunderstanding which erupted shortly after the 2014 governorship election but which, happily,  appears to have since run its course. Had that not happened, the party should, by now, be at its strongest ever, in the state.

    Not unexpectedly, therefore, party activities was in the doldrums for a long time with none of the former state governors – Adebayo, Oni and Fayemi (unwilling to upset the apple cart) – showing up to champion a permanent détente. This situation continued until a measure of anxiety led some respected elders like former governor Bamidele Olumilua to step in to forge a rapprochement which was well received by the highly traumatised party members and supporters.

    But gubernatorial ambitions would appear to have returned matters to the status quo ante bellum.

    While most of these contestants are men of honour, in Ekiti, we sure know ourselves. Our people will, therefore, have no difficulty identifying those who are mere place holders, just as they know the jokers among them who are hardly of any significance back in their home towns. They equally know those whose primary motive is to use the occasion to make money in form of contributions from friends.  The question to ask, therefore, is why such persons would like to deliberately imperil the chances of the party in an important election like this.

    It is called enlightened self interest.

    To properly validate the huge joke going on in Ekiti APC right now, I present below, a cast which would give most Ekiti people a belly laugh. They are those whose names have been paraded as contestants on the platform of the APC, without a rebuttal. Any questions should be directed at the Ekiti Whatsapp groups where this has been running, uncontested, for quite a while.

    Hon. Olufemi Bamisile

    1. Dr. Adebayo Orire
    2. Hon. Bimbo Daramola
    3. Hon. Bamidele Faparusi
    4. Senator Gbenga Aluko
    5. Senator Babafemi Ojudu
    6. Senator Ayo Arise
    7. Hon. Debo Ranti
    8. Hon. Opeyemi Bamidele (MOB)
    9. Otunba Yinka Akerele
    10. Dr. Femi Thomas
    11. Dr. Owolabi S.
    12. Chief Sesan Fatoba
    13. Dr. Oluwole Oluyede
    14. Mr. Yemi Adaramodu
    15. Hon. Funminiyi Afuye
    16. Hon. Bayo Idowu
    17. Otunba Bisi Aloba
    18. Chief Dele Okeya
    19. Mr. Bodunde Adeyanju
    20. Mr. Kayode Adaramodu
    21. Engr. Segun Oni
    22. Captain Sunday Adebomi
    23. Mr. Bayo Babalotin
    24. Mr. Muyiwa Olumilua
    25. Mr. Kola Alabi
    26. Mr. Kola Adu
    27. Mr Kole Ajayi
    28. Hon. Diran Adesua
    29. Mr. Kayode Oladipupo
    30. Mr. Ishola Fapounda
    31. Mr. Olajide Akinyemi Junior

    One of Ekiti’s most poignant philosophical sayings is: Aan tan ra oni je, I ri re meaning you can never profit from deceiving yourself. It is analogous to the farmer who planted 200 heaps of yam but claims he has a thousand heaps. There is no reason, whatever, to think that our people will be deceived, this time around. They know each of these men like their palms.

    I decided to put out this list for two main reasons. One, that family members – parents, wives and children, would critically examine their interested family member, and since two heads are better than one, properly counsel him as to its reasonableness, or otherwise. At a recent social outing in Lagos, I ran into a friend, who contested as the governorship candidate of a major party in the state, and, indeed, performed fairly well, but never mentioned a word of his intention to his wife until he had spent over N250 Million. Because these things do happen, relations on seeing their names here should be able to give proper advice. This is a humongous contest you do not get into in a flight of fancy. An adjunct to this is that his town’s people should also have a role to play lest an unserious contestant jeopardises their chance of striking an agreement with a more viable candidate.

    The more important reason, however, is to draw the attention of the party leadership to what could very well be far worse than the Ondo conundrum. Writing to me from London on the matter only this past week, Banji Ogungbemi, former Managing Director of the Republic of Benin National Oil Corporation, wrote: “Egbon, this motley crowd brought memories of Lagos just before BAT chose RAF. I am still amazed at how the “me-too” succession chaos was managed without any collateral damage to the Lagos team. However, because of our unique Ekiti characteristic of obduracy, the APC risks acrimony and fragmentation that may give the incumbent governor a chance of installing his man”.

    This exactly is why APC should allow history be its guide. Many of  those indicating interest  are decampees from the PDP. While it is a truism that politics is a game of numbers, it must not escape the party leadership that back in 2007, about 12 members of the AD, inclusive of some of these contestants, left the party to join the PDP directly after the primary elections which they lost. Many of them rose to prominence in the PDP, a party that is now aggressively, and feverishly, going round the country, wooing its aggrieved members. In this, not even men of timber and calibre like former Vice Presidents, Alex Ekwueme , and Atiku Abubakar or Senate President Bukola Saraki, are spared the renewed onslaught. APC should therefore be extremely careful as the PDP will eagerly be awaiting their members defeated at the APC primary. Also, it must be understood that Ekiti politicians are uniquely obdurate. Towards the 2011 elections, I served as a member of the national Screening Committee of the A C N, for Ekiti. Of all the constituencies, it was only in Gboyin where Dr Wale Omirin, later Speaker, comes from, that had a consensual arrangement. Everywhere else in Ekiti, because of inability to agree on anything, virtually all towns presented contestants for every elective position, a times, 2 or 3 from the same town for the same position. The party must therefore not expect any gentlemanly agreement to reduce the number.

    As a first step, before putting in place an absolutely transparent primary election process, the outcome of which will enjoy sustainable acceptance by most contestants unlike what happened in Ondo State, I will like to advise that the party enpanels a committee of solely, non-Ekiti, members to weed the field.

    The committee must call for a comprehensive bio-data of every contestant, which a committee of the state chapter must forensically ascertain with the assistance of the security agencies before they are remitted to the national committee. Given the absolutely unwieldy field, APC must improve on the PDP requirement of a minimum of two years period of unbroken membership, or a waiver, to qualify to contest elections. This must be increased to a minimum of 36 calendar months as it is far less painful to disqualify when an intending contestant has not spent much money or sold property, than to want to propitiate him after losing at the primaries.

  • No, No… Yes!

    Benjamin Franklin was born on January 17, 1706 as one of the seventeen children of Josiah Franklin. Though his father wanted him to school with the clergy, there was only enough money for Benjamin to go to school for two years. He had to continue his education through personal voracious reading. At the age of 12, Benjamin became a printing apprentice with his brother James who founded The New-England Courant three years later.  Benjamin wanted to seize the opportunity of his apprenticeship to write a letter for publication in his brother’s newspaper but it was denied. Therefore, he created the fictitious name, Mrs. Silence Dogood, a middle-aged widow, and wrote letters to the paper. Not only were the letters published, they became subjects of conversations in town.

    Benjamin Franklin later achieved outstanding feats such as becoming one of the founding fathers of the United States of America but those are not the focus of this article. Our focus is that he did not allow a “no” to keep him from achieving his goal. Those letters written by “Mrs. Silence Dogood” are today valuable pieces of the American history.

    Several people’s lives have been marred by the “no” responses they received. They have chosen to be discouraged and have given up because someone said “no”. You must learn that when people say “no” to you, it doesn’t mean you are worthless. It is an evidence of their slowness or outright failure to recognise your worth. If one person does not see it, another person will. I don’t know how long you have to keep going until you find someone who appreciates your talent; all I know is that you have to try the next person.

    You think you are the only one who has been rejected? Try this for size. William Golding wrote his first novel, Lord of the Flies, and hoped to have a good career in writing. The novel was, however, rejected 20 times before it was published. Even after it was published in 1954, only 3,000 copies were sold. Amazingly, it has been adapted to film twice, was listed by TIME magazine in 2005 among the 100 best English-Language novels from 1923-2005, and William Golding won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1983. I wonder what would have happened if he gave up after his 19th “no”.

    Gone with the Wind, written by Margaret Mitchell, was rejected 38 times before publication in 1936. By 1937, the author had received the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for the novel and a National Book Award from the American Bookesellers Association. Gone with the Wind polled twice (in 2008 and 2014) as the second favourite book among American readers after the Bible. The novel was adapted to film in 1939 and it received 10 awards at the 12th Academy Awards, setting a record that took a while to beat. It also became the highest-grossing film produced up to that time and held the record for another 25 years. Can you imagine how all these would have been lost if Margaret gave up and kept the draft under her pillow?

    The stories of those who persevered until they succeeded are the ones that inspire us; no one is motivated by the story of those who gave up. We may not be able to control other people’s reactions towards us but we can determine our response. Why should someone who is too blind to recognise your talent rob generations unborn the blessing of the gift you have inside you? Surf on the ‘No” until you get a “Yes”.

     

    Dr. Amodu teaches at the Department of Mass Communication, Covenant University, Ogun State.

     

  • 40,000 apply for BoI’s 10,000 ‘YES’ scheme

    40,000 apply for BoI’s 10,000 ‘YES’ scheme

    The Bank of Industry (BoI) received 40,000 applications  for its 10,000 Youth Entrepreneurship Support Programme (YES-Programme), Industry, Trade and Investment Minister Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah has said. The applications exceeded the 10,000 target by 300 per cent.

    BoI introduced the YES-Programme with N10 billion last March as part of the Federal Government’s job and wealth creation programmes aimed at addressing unemployment.

    Enelamah, who spoke at a forum in Lagos, said the development showed the youth’s desire to work.

    He said the Federal Government might have found the panacea to  youth unemployment. The minister assured youths of the government’s commitment to its financial inclusion programme, promising that it would assist BoI to  implement the YES-Programme.

    BoI Acting Managing Director Mr. Waheed Olagunju said the bank realised that youths have demonstrated their desire to contribute to economic development. He said the bank received 13,272 online applications as at April 1, 2016 – two weeks after the scheme was launched – which is in excess of the 10,000 applications that were projected to be filed in six weeks.

    He said the geo-political analysis of the applicants was an indication of the wide acceptance of YES among youths. Olagunju noted that the Northeast is leading with 1,300 applicants, followed by Southwest with 1,150 and North Central with 663.

    According to him, considering the enthusiastic response to the scheme, the bank and its 11 partnering enterprise development institutions are taking proactive steps to increase the number of applicants that would attend the five-day capacity building sessions at eight centres in the six geo-political zones.

    He added that the fund size would also be increased to meet the increasing number of applicants that could potentially be transformed into successful entrepreneurs in the required critical mass and ultimately employers of labour.

  • Unemployment: BoI’s ‘YES’ project raises youth’s hope

    Unemployment: BoI’s ‘YES’ project raises youth’s hope

    As part of measures to tackle unemployment, the Bank of Industry (BoI) has unfolded a N10 billion Youth Entrepreneurship Support (YES) programme. It is expected to create 36,000 jobs yearly. TOBA AGBOOLA reports.

    Unemployment, arguably, is one of the most critical socio-economic problems  facing Nigeria. According to the latest report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), about 1,972,722 Nigerians have been unemployed since June last year. The Federal Government, however, appears determined to tackle the problem.

    Through the Bank of Industry (BOI), the government has launched the N10 billion Youth Entrepreneurship Support (YES) programme. The scheme is expected to produce at least 36,000 direct and indirect jobs annually, with each beneficiary getting between N5 million to N10 million loan at nine per cent interest rate with a tenure of five to 10 years.

    At the launch of the programme in Abuja, the Acting Managing Director of BOI, Mr. Waheed Olagunju, said the programme aimed at equipping youths to become self-employed by starting and managing their own businesses and eventually becoming employers of labour. While noting that Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are the bedrock of any economy, he said there is need to develop the capacity of the youths with a view to ultimately fund their business plans.

    Olagunju said while previous empowerment programmes for the youths concentrated more on training, the YES project will provide funds for the beneficiaries. According to him, it is a critical success factor in the establishment of small businesses. “The capacity building programmes also hardly take care of the entire training value chain. The YES scheme that is being launched today would therefore, provide an opportunity for BOI to address the worrisome phenomenon of lack of finance,” he said.

    Olagunju highlighted some of the bold steps taken by the Bank in recent times to address some of the developmental challenges facing the country. The most recent, he said, was the merit-based N2 billion financial inclusion scheme for youths known as the Graduate Entrepreneurship Fund (GEF). The GEF, launched by the Bank in October 2015 in partnership with the National Youth Corps Directorate, is the precursor to YES.

    “GEF is targeted at serving members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). The programme is an innovative approach aimed at tackling the social malaise of graduate unemployment. The strategy was to identify the innate talents of the young graduates as soon as they leave school, build their capacities for self-reliance and also empower them to establish their own businesses;  thereby creating jobs not just for themselves, but for other youths that they may employ. Indirect jobs would also be created as a result of ventures promoted under GEF,” the BoI boss explained.

    Explaining further, he said the programme entailed an online business ideas competition in which 3,100 serving members of the NYSC made their submissions out of which 1,000  top scorers emerged. The successful candidates, he said, underwent entrepreneurship capacity building programmes in seven locations in the six geopolitical zones of the country, including the special centre in Lagos, to facilitate access to finance for their business plans.

    The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr, Okechukwu Enelema, said government will continue to grasp with the sharp decline in revenue from crude oil, which has been the main stay of the economy. He, however, said the nation should not be unmindful of the opportunity the situation presents.

    “It is very important we look inwards in this period and look at ways of exploiting the entrepreneurial spirit and the zeal of  our people. The intense energy of our large youthful population is a strength that we need to exploit by re-orientating them towards positive engagement in entrepreneurship. The nation’s unemployment rate has assumed a worrisome level in view of its implication for national development and competitiveness,” the minister said.

    Speaking with The Nation, one of the beneficiaries of the first phase of the scheme, Mr. Vincent Chinedu, said with the introduction of the portal, it will be easy for anybody to apply unlike before when it was difficult. He said it was not easy when he initially started because of the stringent collateral. He, however, said BOI has relaxed the condition, adding that this will encourage and help others to apply for the loan.

    Chinedu said he graduated as a Chemical Engineer in 2012/2013 and instead of looking for job, he applied for the loan with his NYSC certificate. With the presentation of two guarantors, he said he was given the loan. Today, he is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Nedhills Industries. “We are into palm kernel oil production and I have five people working for me at the moment. I am planning to employ more people because we are expanding,” he said.

  • Yes Magazine holds annual lecture series

    Yes Magazine holds annual lecture series

    The 3rd Annual Lecture Series/Cocktail Party of Yes Magazine took place recently at the Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), Victoria Island, Lagos. Dignitaries who graced the occasion included the Secretary to the Ogun State Government,  Taiwo Adeoluwa; former Lagos State Commissioner for Environment, Muiz Banire; Sir Steve Omojafor; Ras Kimono; Wunmi Obe ;Prince Ifeanyi Dike; Emeka Opara, Director at Airtel,  and others.

     

     

  • How govt can create jobs, by Ezekwesili

    How govt can create jobs, by Ezekwesili

    Former Minister of Education Mrs Oby Ezekwesili has urged the government to create an enabling environment for the private sector to thrive as a way of creating jobs and solving unemployment challenges.

    Dr Ezekwesili spoke at the weekend during the Youth Empowerment Summit (YES), organised by the Deeper Christian Life Ministry at the auditorium of the Deeperlife Campground on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

    She said the decline in the education system caused the teaching profession to lose its prestige.

    This decline in the education sector, she said, has accounted for the 40 per cent rate of jobless youth population.

    She addressed the children and youth on the topic: ‘Skills for excellence and Employability in the Modern World.’

    Suggesting a way out of the menace, she urged government to set up micro, macro and structural policies.

    Mrs Ezekwesili said the low quality of governance over the years has been a contributing factor to what has led the education sector to a bad state.

    She said: “The structure of the economy must be diversified so that new sectors can open up to provide more jobs and employment opportunities. also, the quality of the teachers makes all the difference in the society because the profession is too important to be left behind for the low minds.”

    Dr Ezekwesili urged the participants to be accountable to their talents and use them for the good of the communities.

    She described the recruitment exercise conducted by the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) as the most outdated human recruitment process, describing it as a scam.

    “This is contemptuous of the citizens of this land and the government must bring back the dignity of the country by providing jobs, not by offering jobs on a platter of death, and by according prequisite punishment for bad behaviour,” she said.

    General Superintendent of the Deeper Christain Life Ministry, Pastor William Kunmuyi, also spoke to the children and youths on the topic: “Growing to Glow and the Price and Prize of a Significant Life’.

    Pastor Kumuyi said the aim of the programme is to allow the young ones know the purpose of God for their lives and to expose them to skills that can enable them know their talents which will enable them grow and glow.