In 1989, the call of duty and pull of family necessitated that I travel from my London partial base to New York. I was checked in on  a British Airways flight from London to New York. We were set to leave Heathrow shortly after the usual pre-departure rituals.

I was seated on an aisle seat on row 2 in the First Class cabin courtesy of my employers then. I noticed that on both sides of the aisle in my front, the two seats on each row were unoccupied. It was a bit curious. I reckoned it was either a VIP reservation or there would be air Marshals on board. But marshals do not occupy prominent front row seats on aircraft they are protecting.  Those were the days when it had become mandatory for major Western airlines on international routes to have armed marshals on board in the event of terrorist hijack attempts.

As the pre- departure announcement was about to commence, the four ‘missing’ First Class passengers boarded. I looked up. There was a stately lady accompanied by three  smart- suited gentlemen. They allowed the lady to take her seat before they sat down in a manner that flanked the lady in a window seat on the left side of the aisle. Before the lady took her seat, she courtsied and flashed a brief plastic smile at those of us seated immediately behind her with a hardly audible “Good afternoon”.

On came the Captain’s voice: “Honorable Prime Minister and valued guests, welcome to this British Airways intercontinental service taking us straight to New York’s Kennedy Airport….Flight time is… En route weather…Mild turbulence on the Atlantic crossing….”

The  female last minute passenger was none other than  the then British Prime Minister, Mrs. Margaret Thatcher. That was her penultimate year in office. She was flying a commercial airline as a passenger to New York, obviously en route Washington. 

On arrival in New York, Mrs. Thatcher courteously disembarked, accompanied by her three self -effacing security escorts. They just disappeared through the crowd followed by the rest of us passengers. No limousines at the foot of the aircraft. No long assault rifles, horsewhips, combat gear  and orchestrated commotion. etc.

As Chairman of the Editorial Board of the renascent Daily Times under Dr. Yemi Ogunbiyi, I went to Harare to interview President Robert Mugabe in 1992. He was scheduled for a state visit to Nigeria on President Ibrahim Babangida’s invitation. I flew to Harare via Nairobi on what used to be Balkan (Bulgarian) Airlines. After my interview, Mugabe kindly asked me how I was returning to Lagos. I told him. Then he politely offered me a seat in his jet: ‘ we have a large plane and can offer you a seat.’

The next day, I showed up at the airport. After the president’s ceremonial departure rituals, his aides took me on board the aircraft and got me seated. It was an Air Zimbabwe Boeing 727 with clear commercial livery. The crew were Air Zimbabwe pilots, cabin crew and co-pilots. The president was proudly flying a commercial aircraft and was proud of it. As soon as we reached cruising altitude, the president walked round the cabin for courtesy chats. He stopped by me to express delight that I accepted his offer of a ride. He told me Nigeria trained most of their combat pilots prior to independence.

I provide these anecdotal experiences against the backdrop of a simulated debate that is brewing in the country. A few voices have been raised in the National Assembly in support of buying two new aircraft for the presidential fleet to replace the current aircraft. If the kite flies, the President and the Vice President respectively would jet around the world in brand new luxury jets.  To all intents and purposes, the aim of the brewing noises in the NASS is to give legislative legitimacy to a decision that may already have been made. I am not sure whether there is any provision in the 2024 budget for these aircraft or the idea is just a whiff of presidential wish that needs some legislative stamp. It is too early to tell but clearly, the matter of new presidential jets is on the table of public debate.

Those who are pushing this agenda have cited recent hiccups in the performance of the jets in use. When the president recently travelled to the Netherlands on an official visit, his follow -on trip to Saudi Arabia for the World Economic Forum had to be undertaken in a hired aircraft as the presidential jet reportedly developed problems in Amsterdam. Shortly after that, Mr. Shettima who was headed for the United States to represent Nigeria at a major foreign policy event reportedly had to make  an air return early in the flight as his own aircraft also reportedly developed a fault mid air. The conclusion is that these aircraft are either too old or poorly maintained to be trusted to ferry the two first citizens around safely.  Whatever the political nuisance value of our first two citizens, we want them alive and safe.

The matter of safety of high level aircraft in use by heads of government has been elevated by two recent air accidents that claimed the lives of incumbent high level government officials. The first was the helicopter crash in the mountains of northern Iran that claimed the life of the Iranian president, Mr. Raisi. The second is the incident that claimed the life of Malawi’s Vice President, Saulos Chilima. In the absence of detailed accident investigation reports on both incidents so far, the easy conclusion has been that faulty aircraft may be the prime causes of these unfortunate events. The lazy and convenient conclusion is of course that the only way to get presidents and their deputies to arrive their destinations in one piece is to equip them with brand new aircraft. The Nigerian  purveyors of this lazy option have spared no time for possibilities of weather, sabotage, bad maintenance or indeed human error.

Consequently, those advocating the purchase of new aircraft for Tinubu and Shettima have tacitly accused opponents of the huge expenditure  on new aircraft of wishing our president and his deputy dead if they continue flying in the old aircraft.

Irrespective of such morbid thinking, opponents of the purchase of new presidential jets are predicating their contention on purely socio economic reasons. The self evident argument is that the purchase of new presidential jets cannot qualify as a priority given the sorry state of the national economy and the avalanche of problems and hardships that Nigerians are currently living with.  The facts are self -evident.

The nation is in a poor shape. Hunger and poverty are too prevalent. Everyone is unsafe as swarms of bandits and casual killers are all over the place taking lives and inflicting harm sometimes for the fun of it. Healthcare is beyond reach as the prices of essential drugs and medications have shot through the roof. The state itself has its back on the wall as most economic indicators –inflation, exchange rate, interest rates, unemployment, foreign investment etc- are all flashing red. The matter of new presidential jets in those circumstances becomes a matter of deficient prioritization. Why would we prioritize the procurement of luxury jets when the vast majority of our people are in desperate deprivation while the government is preaching sacrifice and imposing a battery of inexcusable taxes of everyone for the most essential service and public goods?

The political opposition has weighed down heavily on even the mere suggestion that any government of Nigeria in these circumstances would even dream of additional luxury jets for Tinubu and Shettima in these times. Justifiably, the opposition has pointed at recent instances of unnecessary luxurious indulgence by the administration in the 2024 budget. They point at the purchase of countless expensive luxury SUVs for legislators and high government officials, the contentious presidential yacht, the expensive new habitations for the Vice President, the expensive refurbishment of official residences and offices of the already over indulged executives etc. The obvious conclusion is of course that a government that can prioritize unnecessary items of luxury at huge costs while the people wallow in poverty and extreme deprivation can only be insensitive and callously indifferent.

Yet the transportation of Presidents, Vice Presidents and other key officials of state have become part of the architecture of the modern nation state. The Presidential jet in particular has become an emblem of national prestige and status.  In some ways, the size, functionality and opulence of a country’s presidential jet has become an unstated indicator of the diplomatic gravity of the nation in question. However, the presidential jet as an indicator of national strength and grandeur is more meaningful when the nation in question is an industrial power and therefore produces the aircraft used by the leader to project and exhibit national power and greatness. America’s Air Force One, Vladimir Putin’s clone of the American model or Mr. Tsi Jiping’s aircraft or that of Narendra Modi have all become emblems of the greatness and technological advancement of these countries.

As a matter of fact,  Air Force One is not a badge name permanently affixed to any one aircraft. It is merely a call sign. Any aircraft in which the US President is travelling at any given time is called Air Force One!  The customized Boeing 747 normally associated with the Air Force One label is merely an emblematic showpiece. It is not only one. There are more than one with the same specifications, outfitting, self-protection counter measures and communication gear such that the president of the United States can literally run his country and the world from the aircraft anywhere in the world.

On the basis of its stature as the biggest black nation in the world, the Nigerian president should not travel in dilapidated aircraft that park up at every stop. Minimally, our presidential aircraft should be air worthy and reasonably impressive without being ostentatious. The current aircraft in use is a modest Boeing 737 Executive jet that actually understates Nigeria’s stature. Any two penny American company Chief Executive owns or flies in something better and more impressive. We should do better.  But the time is wrong to even contemplate a fleet of new aircraft. It is not just enough to purchase one aircraft each for the President and Vice President respectively. Ideally the shopping list ought to be for at least two – a main and a back up – for each of them. But we cannot afford these now.

There are options that could be cost saving. The first is to fly the present Boeing 737 Business jet in use by the President back to the Boeing  factory in Seattle, Washington  for a thorough comprehensive factory overhaul. That would be less expensive than ordering a brand new custom made aircraft. The overhauled and updated aircraft should serve our president another couple of years while the pressing issues in the nation’s economy are hopefully fixed. The amount of savings made on such an overhaul alternative should be made public.

A more realistic, politically savvy option would be to hire one of Air Peace’s Boeing 777 long range aircraft each time the president has to make a long distance journey. For the purpose of such a hire, the hired aircraft will carry the call sign of “Nigerian Air Force One” till it finishes the mission. For the purpose of such an arrangement, the Nigerian Air Force should have a presence in the cockpit of the aircraft in question. This arrangement would be realistic, cost effective and patriotic. The political capital would complement the economic gains and give the president a win-win dividend at home where his popularity rating is at best abysmal.

If reason fails, the Kamikaze option would be the one that is already being rehearsed. Get National Assembly approval for new jets, submit a supplementary budget to accommodate the cost of these new jets, order the aircraft but continue to hire or travel by commercial aircraft till the new jets are delivered. There will be both turbulent headwinds and violent tailwinds with this option. But for a government that can withdraw fuel subsidy, devalue the Naira, revert to the old national anthem overnight and sign the N18 trillion  Lagos- Calabar Alaskan highway contract and damn the consequences, mere controversy over aircraft purchase may  just be a passing noise. Heavens will not fall, so their thinking at the Villa goes. But what if Nigeria falls apart?

Many times, the rich fruits expected are so late in coming, some wives lose faith and sight of what they saw and married. Some women give up and move up the road in search of ripe fruits waiting to be harvested. However, there are scores of women whose predictions paid off and are indeed living in mansions, being waited on by uniformed stewards and ferried around by liveried chauffeurs.

To many, marriage is about love and passion. To others, it is an investment, and to someone like me, it is all of that and also black market. You can love all you want and not be able to keep the glow. You can be as passionate as you can and still not be able to keep the fire burning or your spouse in your bed and within your vows.

As an investor, we all know you can’t get it right all the time. Some investments are just not destined to last long or become blue chip. Many just fizzle out. You watch your profit margin diminish as the operations cost soar until you are in the red, bankrupt and then you go into receivership, if you are lucky.

Some women get a second chance to re-invest, others have to live sadly forever thereafter with their first bad investment choice.

Whatever your description of marriage – passion, love, investment or even a divine call, what is common to all marriages is that it is about flying blind, with only faith providing the wind for your wings. Think about it, even when two pastors marry, they are not sure of anything, except their faith that tomorrow will be all right and God will see them through. You just set out on this long journey, hoping for the best, not sure what tomorrow will bring or if tomorrow will come at all.

Let’s look at the investor-bride for instance. There are women who for reasons of background, or whatever, are clear-eyed when choosing a husband. He’s either rich or not. There is no middle road. Maybe not Dangote-rich but he must be able to afford the good things of life. This bride is not turned on by humble-beginnings or aroused by let’s-start-together-from-the-scratch pitch. The soup must not only be cooked and ready to be served, there must also be a servant to serve it. But what is the guarantee that that is a wise choice, that the soup will not go sour one year down the road?

There are dozens of cases of once-upon-a-rich men who are today barely picking their bills. There are tons of women who used to be pampered silly but are now breadwinners. You see what I mean by flying blind? You just take off and hope you’ll land safely, with faith and determination as your wings and wheels.

A dear friend once told me to take a census of women; wives driving choice cars in and out of Banana Island, Lagos. His point? That I’d see they are the ones in their 40s to early 50s in Mercedes Benz G-Wagons, Lexuses, Porsches, etc. They are not overly dressed or wearing heavy make-up. According to my friend, “these are women who made the right choices years ago. They saw prospect in certain young men and married them and today they are reaping the fruits of their labour in the lap of luxury.”

What do you think? I didn’t, still don’t agree with my friend. First, his theory credits women with clairvoyance, the ability to see tomorrow. Yeah, women have uncanny intuition but we are not always on point, our choices and prediction not always on the money. In other words, not all gambles on prospect in a ‘toaster’ pan out. Some just peter out into near penury. Many times, the rich fruits expected are so late in coming, some wives lose faith and sight of what they saw and married. Some women give up and move up the road in search of ripe fruits waiting to be harvested. However, there are scores of women whose predictions paid off and are indeed living in mansions, being waited on by uniformed stewards and ferried around by liveried chauffeurs.

I once watched a movie that got me thinking, again, about the import of the choices we make when it comes to marriage and the staying-power we all must have to wait for our dreams to come true, as women. I’ll not reveal the synopsis of the movie, so I don’t spoil the fun in case you have not seen the movie. I’d tell you another story you and I can relate with.

I read in the City People magazine the interview of a man who used to sell rat killers, rat gum, local insecticides, then planks and later cows. For years he suffered. His wife, whether she saw the millions in his future, stood by him. Until four years ago when he hit it big with an herbal drink that is now raking in the big bucks, with choice automobiles packed on the premises of their mansion.

I once watched a movie that got me thinking, again, about the import of the choices we make when it comes to marriage and the staying-power we all must have to wait for our dreams to come true, as women. I’ll not reveal the synopsis of the movie, so I don’t spoil the fun in case you have not seen the movie. I’d tell you another story you and I can relate with.

Benita and Joe met when they were in their final year in the University of Benin at the graduation party of Joe’s roommate. Joe studied Geology, while Benita did Biochemistry. It was that kind of relationship that graduated smoothly into marriage plans. The two surely wanted to be together forever. They knew the number of children they’d have, where and what they would be and live in 20 years.

Benita was sure Joe would be rich, even if not filthy rich. He’s a geologist and his eyes were on any of the oil companies.

Twenty years ago, when they both graduated, those oil company jobs were not as scarce as they are now. Joe promised Benita they’d have a huge fifth year wedding anniversary since he couldn’t afford a big wedding. Their wedding ring was from roadside shop. Each time she came home with an ‘Okada burn’ or torn skirt from alighting from a moving bus, he promised to buy her the latest Range Rover.

The couple had non-stop landlord trouble because they were never able to pay their rent as at when due, even though they lived on the outskirts of the city.

Joe applied to every International oil major, then he scaled it down to oil service companies, yet nothing happened. Benita had a teaching job which could barely keep them fed and clothed. They made two babies in four years and life just got harder. She took on private teaching and selling ‘this and that’ to her fellow teachers and neighbours. She moved from wearing old dresses to second-hand dresses. Her kids too. Joe’s promises and reassurances began to sound like unrealistic dreams. She began to be irritated by his consolation. She simply got tired of the ‘I will make it, just be patient’ stories. She was perpetually tired and stressed from being breadwinner, running around. Joe’s golden fleece didn’t seem like it would ever materialise.

Long story short, all those good things of life that he promised Benita went to another woman, Joe’s new wife who seemed to have arrived just in time for prosperity. She was the one who got the diamond ring, the society wedding, the G-wagon and the beautiful house on rich people’s island. She got it all.

Yet, Benita trudged on, living on hope, though her determination was waning by the day. Then her second child, her beautiful daughter died in her arms because they got to the hospital too late. The poor girl had been running temperature for days and she had been giving her the anti-malaria she bought down the road. She told herself that she would take her to the hospital for test and better treatment when she got her salary the following week. Then the baby started convulsing. She barely made it into the consulting room before the beautiful girl took her last breath.

Benita went berserk. Her daughter died because her husband didn’t have a job, they were poor. She was just tired of the struggle. She needed a man to take care of her. She was done with this life of dream and promises. Joe just brought her bad luck. The doctor already told her she might not be able to have a third child. Now she was left with one. She was not going to risk losing the remaining one to ‘this poverty-infested life’.

And so Benita moved out, left Joe to sort himself out. It was over, she said. She filed for divorce. Joe was disconsolate. He couldn’t even insist on the custody of his son. He loved his wife and could see her in pain. It was a sad end.

Then barely 18 months after Joe and Benita parted ways, fortune smiled on Joe. A friend called him to supply diesel to a company. It was the beginning of open doors. One supply led to dozens and then several. In less than six months, he was able to rent an office, move into a decent apartment.

Long story short, all those good things of life that he promised Benita went to another woman, Joe’s new wife who seemed to have arrived just in time for prosperity. She was the one who got the diamond ring, the society wedding, the G-wagon and the beautiful house on rich people’s island. She got it all.

Benita’s investment did not lead to harvest. Her stress, pain, and loss were just seeds for another’s comfort.

Was she impatient?

Was she right to leave after her daughter died?

Was she wrong when she saw Joe’s prospect all those years ago?

Why did fortune smile on Joe when Benita had lost a child and her space?

My conclusion? Only God knows the dreams that will come true, the prospect that will materialise. The bride can only gamble, fly blind and hope she lands safely and not on her bare buttocks.

On Saturday, 22 June, former Vice President of Nigeria and presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the 2023 presidential election, Atiku Abubakar led other stakeholders of the party to the Daura residence of former late governor of old Kaduna State, Alhaji Lawan Kaita on a condolence visit over the loss of the matriarch of the family.

The visit, which was greeted with warm reception of Atiku across major townships of the Daura Emirate also saw the former Vice President paying similar courtesy visits to the the Emir of Daura, HRH Alhaji Farouk Umar Farouk and the former President Muhammadu Buhari. He also paid a courtesy visit to the Emir of Katsina, HRH Abdulmumini Kabir Usman.

A press statement from the Atiku Media Office on Saturday stated that the visit was meant for Atiku to express his love for Katsina State in particular and to familiarize with distinguished personalities of the Daura Emirate.

“The meeting of His Excellency Atiku Abubakar to Katsina State today is essentially a continuation of his courtesy visits since the end of Sallah celebrations and, especially to condole with the family of his late old friend, Mallam Lawan Kaita,” the statement signed by Atiku’s media adviser, Paul Ibe said.

Pictures:
Pics 1-3: Former Vice President of Nigeria (1999-2007) and presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (2023), Atiku Abubakar and former President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari during a courtesy visit by Atiku on Saturday, 22nd June, 2024.
Pic 4: Former Vice President of Nigeria (1999-2007) and Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (2023), Atiku Abubakar, former President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, Senator and former Governor of Sokoto State, Sen. Aminu Tambuwal, former Governor of Adamawa State, Bindo Jibrilla during Atiku's courtesy visit to Buhari at the weekend.

Signed:
Paul Ibe
Media Adviser to Atiku Abubakar
Vice President of Nigeria (1999-2007) and Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (2023)
Katsina

During my participation at the Covenant Nation’s The Platform event, on June 12, 2024, I promised to provide a reasoned contribution to the conversation on minimum wage. Here it is. The extant law on minimum wage is the National Minimum Wage Act 2019, which came into force on the 18th April, 2019; and it provides in Section 3 (4) that: 

“The national minimum wage expires after five years, and it shall be reviewed in line with the provision of this Act.”  

Please note that it is the “minimum wage” that has expired but not the Act, and as is shown in the underlined portion above, the review of the 2019 minimum wage provisions, after the period of five years, shall be in line with the provision of the 2019 Act.

What is the minimum wage? 

The answer is to be found in Section 3 (1) of the law where it provides that: “Every employer shall pay a national minimum wage of not less than N30,000 per month to every worker under his establishment, except as otherwise provided under this Act.”

Please note the words used in the underlined portion of the provision, namely; “wage” and “per month”.

Bearing in mind that this is a federal law, there must be constitutional authority for the Federal Government through the National Assembly to make laws on wages. 

This authority is to be found in item 34 of the 1999 Constitution as amended in the Exclusive Legislative list which confers power on the NASS to legislate on: “Labour, including trade unions, industrial relations, conditions, safety, and welfare of labour; industrial disputes, prescribing a national minimum wage for the federation or any part thereof; and industrial arbitrations.”

On the face of it, all will seem to be normal until we examine closely what a wage is. 

In my recent monograph: “The Nigerian Public Discourse: The Interplay of Empirical Evidence and Hyperbole,” I had made the point at page 89 that: “…the word…used in item 34 of the Exclusive Legislative list is minimum wage.” 

It does not talk about salaries. I further stated that “…it has also been shown, wages and salaries are different and should not be conflated.” I posited that: “…efforts to improve minimum wage must be that and nothing more. It must not translate to a salary overhaul by accident.”

What then is the difference between “wages” and “salaries” and what has NASS legislated? 

All the definitions available recognize that wages and salaries are common methods of compensation open to the employer.

However, a salary is a fixed annual amount, payable at specific intervals subject to agreement. It can be paid weekly, bi-weekly or monthly. 

On the contrary, wages refer to payment based on an hourly rate and the number of hours the employee works. 

Therefore, it seems obvious from this definition that by making a law in Section 3(1) of the Minimum Wage Act that the minimum wage of N30,000 shall be paid monthly, the NASS may have acted unconstitutionally by legislating on a SALARY (monthly payment) when they only have power to legislate on WAGES, an hourly payment. This is important while the conversation on minimum wage is being had in 2024 because in Section 3(4), the minimum wage “shall be reviewed in line with the provisions of this Act” which includes Section 3(1) that has prescribed a monthly amount instead of an hourly wage. 

If we follow the proper definition of wages as an hourly rate and apply the global method for computing it, which is to divide the gross annual sum by 52 weeks, and further by 40 hours recommended per week, we will have for Nigeria a minimum wage that is not N30,000 per month, but rather N30,000 X 12 (months) = N36,000 divided by 52 (weeks) = N6,923.07 divided by 40 (hours), which will give a minimum wage of N173.07 per hour. 

In other jurisdictions where the minimum wage is applicable, amendments to increase them do not necessarily translate to massive distortions across the salary compensation scheme.

Those who are bound to pay minimum wage can also adjust their ability to pay by limiting the hours that employees work and maximise productivity, while employees cover the gap by working the additional hours in other places.

What we have done is to erroneously fix monthly minimum salaries as wages, and then effect consequential adjustment for all other SALARY EARNERS, which results in a bloated compensation wage that employees find difficult to meet. 

It would seem that since the employer has a choice to compensate the employee by either salary or wages, it must be presumed all institutions whether of Government or the private sector that have opted to compensate by salary payment are not bound by the minimum wage Act provisions if they do not pay hourly rates.

This perhaps explains in part, why some employees observe the law in breach than in compliance.

The exemption provided in Section 4(1)(b) of the Act for “an establishment employing less than 25 persons” from being bound by the provisions of the Act to pay the minimum wage also raises serious doubts about whether we have enacted a minimum wage Act if small businesses who barely have 25 employees but who employ the largest number of the most vulnerable people are exempted from the law as currently legislated. Who then is the law protecting? 

Of course, if and when we decide as a country on the implementation of a proper minimum wage, we must then design a formula to review salaries of those who do not earn wages in order to assist them deal with cost-of-living challenges. 

This may yet be the most fruitful outcome of the dilemma of appropriate employee compensation as it may lay the foundation for national productivity, wealth creation and prosperity. The opportunity is too big to miss or waste.

When cost of living rises as they have now, the lowest and the highest income earners are impacted to varying degrees and therefore deserving of reasonable adjustments whether they earn wages or salaries.

This is the time for the experts in labour law and compensation matters to put their thinking caps on and to seek help from the best faculties around the world.

As we do this, we must be mindful of the need for a POSSIBLE amendment to item 34 of the Exclusive list in the constitution to include SALARIES because it currently does not.

. Fashola, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, was a former Minister of Works and Housing.

The Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 presidential election, Atiku Abubakar has paid a visit to the immediate past President, Muhammadu Buhari.

Naija News reports that Atiku, a former Vice President, visited Buhari at his Daura residence on Saturday.

It was gathered that Senator Aminu Tambuwal, the immediate past Governor of Sokoto State, alongside other PDP stakeholders accompanied Atiku on his visit. 

The visit to Buhari comes few days after Atiku paid a similar visit to former Military President, Ibrahim Babagida and former Head of State, Abdulsalami Abubakar, in Niger State.

[NaijaNews]

As the security challenges facing the nation grow in leaps and bounds, the efforts at their containment multiply by the hour. These efforts range from the direct commendable interventions of individuals and institutions of state charged with the responsibility of securing the nation, to the well-meant suggestions of regional sociocultural organizations, as well as the actions of militant groups, wishing to proffer solutions of their own. They are all eager to see the situation change for the better. 

In all of this however, especially in the many retreats, conferences and summits on national security held all over the country for decades now, there seems to be a preponderance of what can best be described as “lamentational” and descriptive submissions. Yes, many of them offer detailed descriptions of the problems, their historical origins and their negative impact on our lives. Then you also find many generalized recommendations, devoid of clear implementation strategies. In all, we remain on the same spot, complain about, and condemn, the military and security agencies, especially the Nigerian Army.

 There are also, presumably very insightful and patriotic Nigerians, who never get tired of insisting that the solution lies in the declaration of a State of emergency on national security, followed by a complete overhaul of the nation’s security architecture. The problem here, however, is that no two members of this clan of patriotic Nigerans can give you the same definition of “Nigeria’s security architecture’, or what is so wrong with it that it needs a comprehensive overhaul. They are also usually not in the position to say what aspects of this supposedly faulty architecture need urgent medical attention.

Concerning declaring a State of Emergency, we should all ask ourselves what is to be gained by a simple verbal declaration that there is now a state of emergency on national security.  Will that make uncooperative communities suddenly start plying the military and security agencies with the local intelligence they have been holding back for a long time now? Will it improve the availability of arms and ammunition, or will it dramatically raise the morale of officers and soldiers who are overstretched and also hamstrung by the missteps of a civilian ruling elite that has created a massive pool of impoverished and unemployed youths?

It was the need for a purely solutions-based engagement that is driven by objective and clear-sighted third-Party narratives that led to the Partnership between the Nigerian Army Resource Centre (NARC) and Development Specs Academy (DSA) to refocus the direction of all our conversations about national security. Yesterday, NARC and DSA held a well-attended press conference in Abuja, as part of activities leading up to their planned national Roundtable designed to interrogate “Asymmetrical National Security Challenges, the Army and National Development”. This is an event that would call from very specific, and implementable Action Points from the participants.

Also at the conference yesterday were the Strategic Partners of DSA, all who teamed up to make the roundtable a phenomenal success. They include, but are not limited to the Nigerian Institute of Public relations (NIPR), the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), the Voice of Nigeria (VON), the News agency of Nigerian (NAN), the Institute for Strategic Development Communication (ISDEVCOM), Nnamdi Azikiwe Business School, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), and the Institute for Peace, Security and Development Studies (IPSDS).

The point of securing the buy-in and deep commitment of these Strategic Partners was to make these credible and highly regarded professional bodies, institutes and institutions, as well as agencies of government that are headed by professionals in public communication, professional information management and the media to make these pillars of credibility part of the dominant voices that are heard on core issues of national security.

The organizers of the Roundtable went round, consulted with these Partners and other stakeholders, achieved some measure of consensus on the core issues at the heard of asymmetrical national security challenges and came out with a template for pragmatic and realistic solutions. The Roundtable thus stands out as a Third-Party initiative, designed to distil Implementable Action Points (IAPs) on pressing asymmetrical national security challenges in the country.

These are security challenges that do not take the simple form of easily-identified, routinely compartmentalized, properly isolated and unilaterally targetable problems. No! They range from embedded targets, refusal to help the army and other security agencies with local intelligence, the targeting of military personnel for hostile civilian attention, unproductive community engagements, deliberate misrepresentation of the activities and achievements of the Nigerian Army through fake news, to deliberate misinformation and disinformation, among other disruptive environmental variables.

What we need today is a people’s RoundTable that will drive non-partisan national interest narratives. Believable national communication needs the twin elements of objectivity and professionalism, while promoting public understanding of the roles, and achievements, of the nation’s military and security agencies and platforms. In the end, it is all about creating a groundswell of that aspect of public communication that is usually best described as National Interest Communication without Propaganda (NIC–P).

From the pre-event investigations, surveys and consultations of the organisers, this forthcoming RoundTable needs to bring out the roots of growing spate of attacks on military personnel, as well as the crisis of targeted general hostility towards the Nigerian Army in particular.

It is unacceptable that more and more people see and treat national security problems as purely the business of the military and, especially, the Nigeran army. That such problems are also so clear and present as to be threatening their lives is a matter of little concern to many of them. That is why this RoundTable must drive a new narrative, by getting Nigeria’s various publics to see and understand their roles, and the roles of other key actors, in the wider national ecosystem of synchronized security.

For good measure, this Roundtable seems set to re-emphasize, as much as possible, the specific and general roles of the military, particularly the Nigerian army, in the cocktail of structures, activities and processes that constitute the national security architecture. It would, in the process, address the emerging challenges and deliberate misrepresentations of our men in uniform as objectively as possible.

Thus, we are looking at a national Roundtable on “Asymmetrical National Security Challenges, the Army and National Development that would, among other things, showcase facts-based reviews of current asymmetrical national security challenges. It should also highlight the achievements of the Nigerian Army in the war against banditry and insurgency, as it presents a holistic perspective on the imperatives of a “whole of society approach” to national security challenges.

As the organizers have declared that the event would be strictly guided by Chatham House Rules, the use of Third-Party presentations, narratives and suggestions to problematise asymmetrical security and the solutions to such challenges should be a harvest of the best possible indicators for those looking for Action Points and plans for an end to some of our most telling national security challenges. This will, no doubt include many things that the Nigerian Army and other players in the national security framework may not be a able to put in the public domain, because of the constraints of professional protocols and political considerations.

The Roundtable should also establish informed linkages between the negative fallouts of political decisions, overlooked multiplier effects poor civilian leadership and emerging national security challenges in different parts of the country. This should be in addition to presenting the nation’s general and specific security challenges and the efforts and achievements of the military, particularly the Nigerian army, in a way that does not try to mask any ugly truths. But the aim shall be to find and present realistic solutions, rather than the mere fact of discovering and celebrating problems alone.

Of course, it may be objected here that there has been so much talk and meetings about our security challenges. That is correct. The question for us is whether such talks and meetings, even where and when they do not deliver certain results, are necessarily pointless. Sometimes, all it takes for a presumably pointless conversation to make meaning is for the content, mode and desired results of those conversing to change. That change is expected in next week’s Roundtable.

It is left for us who are interested to head to the Nigerian Army Resource Centre, Mambilla Barracks, in Asokoro, Abuja on Monday the 24th and Tuesday the 25th, next week, since admission is free.

A Note on Kano-Ju-Nastics

We are all looking at the ancient city of Kano with bated breath. Two monarchs are at war in the “peace” of Kano. There is no seating monarch, since the two claimants to the royal stool have both been asked not to sit on the throne. So, if we must call either of them the monarch of Kano, depending on which of the court judgments flying around we subscribe to, we must say that they are “standing”, not sitting, monarchs.

We must also say that both monarchs, in so far as two people can be the kings of a kingdom that has provision for only one king, are in a state of partially suspended animation, since neither can live fully as monarch; or exercise the full constituent powers of that office.

All said, the situation in Kano City and Kano State at the moment defies even the best attempts at a semi comprehension. It is a combination of the convoluted politics of the state and the roundly confusing gymnastics of the judicial officers who have been rendering contradictory, or at least conflicting, judgments. The moves, the formulation of the sentences in the judicial pronouncements, the near-equivocation and contrived befuddlement cannot remove the fact that there are some truths some people are not determined to tell us.

How it plays out remains to be seen, but one thing is sure: there are deeply entrenched interest on this matter that are not anywhere physically close to Kano city and kano State. Bayero’s inexplicable return to Kano to contest his ouster, after seeming to have calmly accepted same, was not done on a whim. Sanusi’s sudden reinstatement, without almost anyone seeing it coming, was not thought up on the spur of the moment. Enough said.

Chelsea have not ended their interest in Victor Osimhen.

The Blues remain keen to bring the Nigeria international to Stamford Bridge this summer.

Caught Offside reports that Osimhen is a sought-after man this summer and Chelsea are still willing to take him.

However, the reported €130 million release clause slammed on him by Napoli could pose a problem in any potential deal.

The 24-year-old is now among the most lethal strikers in world football and Chelsea are in the market for a new striker to help them return to the top of the table.

While Nicolas Jackson did not live up to fans’ expectations last season, Romelu Lukaku spent the 2023-24 campaign on loan with AS Roma and is no longer part of plans at Stamford Bridge.

Contrary to recent rumours, Caught Offside reports that Arsenal are not pushing for Osimhen.

The striker and Napoli have agreed he could leave the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium this summer.

Interestingly, Napoli are looking at Lukaku as a possible replacement for Osimhen, which could work in the west London side’s favour.

[Leadership]

While it is almost impossible to chronicle all the people who played one role or the other in Nigeria’s quest for a return to democratic governance from June 12, 1993, until May 29, 1999, some names missed out in President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Democracy Day speech have been tagged as too significant to be left out.

In his speech on June 12, the president listed 32 names as heroes of democracy, starting with the late Chief MKO Abiola, the presumed winner of Nigeria’s arguably freest election in 1993, to Chief Ayo Opadokun, the Secretary-General of the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), an association of several pro-democracy and activist groups that championed the call for the military to exit the stage and hand over to Abiola.

Referencing the sacrifices made by the coalition, the president said, “The precious gift brought about by their selfless devotion can neither be repaid nor forgotten.”

However, many Nigerians observed that though the president noted that the list was not exhaustive, as several names who also played critical roles, some with their lives, were not mentioned.

Some of the names said to have been worth mentioning include Walter Carrington, Frederick Fasehun, Col Dangiwa Umar, Bagauda Kaltho, Joe Igbokwe, Mohammed Adamu, Dr Junaidu Mohammed, Alhaji Bukar Zarma, Nosa Igiebor, Bayo Onanuga, Sunday Dare, Gambo Sawaba, Mike Ozekhome, Clement Nwankwo and Alao Aka-Bashorun.

‘Proper planning would’ve ensured significant names weren’t omitted’

The immediate past Managing Director and Editor-in-Chief of The Guardian, Martins Oloja, in an interview with Daily Trust Saturday, said, “Immortalising people and doing all this thing on June 12, is a very good cause, but since the president decided to name some people as heroes of democracy, I believe they omitted some significant names and only remembered the prominent figures.”

Using Rick Warren’s Purpose Driven Life to differentiate between significance and prominence, Oloja, who was the editor of the Abuja Newsday that was shut down during the period, said that being a reporter and editor during the period of Nigeria’s democratic struggle he knew several persons not on the list read out by the president but that played significant roles in the struggle and thus deserved to be recognised as heroes of “our” democracy.

He noted that people like the late former Vice President, Alex Ekwueme, with his organisation of political groups; the late Justice Dolapo Akinsanya, who declared the Interim National Government of Chief Ernest Shonekan illegal, were left out.

Meanwhile, President Tinubu had before then described the late Justice Akinsanya as “one of the heroines of the present democracy in Nigeria for the courageous judgement she delivered against the legality of the Interim National Government in November, 1993.”

Oloja added that the names of people like Joe Igbokwe, with his constant letters to editors for the actualisation of democracy; and Dr Kayode Fayemi, a former Ekiti State governor, who was generally described as the brain behind Radio Kudirat – the indispensable voice of the June 12, struggle that was broadcasting not only to Nigeria, denouncing the military dictators, but also sensitising the international community on the struggle to end military dictatorship in the country, were also not on the list.

He further said, “Even for the media, the president just mentioned some media establishments but didn’t mention some of the people who suffered specifically. For instance, Bayo Onanuga, the current president’s media adviser, who resigned from his job as the Editor of Concord as a result of the struggle. He resigned when it came to apologising to the military about a story. He refused and left.”

He also highlighted the roles of Ray Ekpu, Yakubu Mohammed and Dan Agbese, all of Newswatch, who were arrested on the same day for publishing an interview with David Mark on the intrigues that led to the cancellation of the June 12, 1993, presidential election.

He added that even among the activists, it was a great oversight to ignore names like Mike Ozekhome, Clement Nwankwo, Alao Aka-Bashorun and Chief Amos Akingba, especially as the president decided to include the names of their contemporaries like Olisa Agbakoba, Femi Falana, Abdul Oroh, Senator Shehu Sani and Governor Uba Sani.

Oloja noted that while it was impossible to have an exhaustive list, proper planning of an event of that nature would have ensured that some significant names that readily came to mind were not subsumed under “among others” as the president did in his speech.

Walter Carrington

For instance, the late Carrington, a former US Ambassador to Nigeria, was so interested in Nigeria’s struggle for a return to democracy that his position was erroneously interpreted by the then military regime as the intention of the United States (US) to kick out the General Sani Abacha regime.

In his condolence message, former President Muhammadu Buhari described Carrington as a “long-time friend of Nigeria and an astute and courageous diplomat,” adding that the story of “Nigeria’s democracy under the Fourth Republic will not be complete without a mention of the heroic roles of the likes of Ambassador Carrington.”

Carrington remains arguably the most popular US ambassador to Nigeria even after his death in 2020. The road where the US Consulate and several other countries’ consulates are situated is named after him in Lagos.

Alao Aka-Bashorun

Similarly, Aka-Bashorun, a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), was another name believed to be too important to the democratic struggle to have been excluded.

One of his children, Dipo H Aka-Bashorun, in an opinion article to respond to the absence of his father’s name during the president’s June 12, dinner speech, said June 12, like with so many notable Nigerians, was inextricably connected to his name.

He wrote, “Where to start? His conviction of G.O.K. Ajayi (SAN) to join him and mount the legal defence of Chief MKO Abiola, the widely acclaimed winner of June 12, at his trial for treason. How about his years in exile; having had to leave Nigeria with a passport issued by the United Nations after the People’s Chambers (his law office) had been raided, sealed off, and his Nigerian passport seized? His role as a leading member of the human rights movement to take the case of Nigeria’s human rights abuses to the United Kingdom and the United States.

“His unwavering support of Mrs Kudirat Abiola’s resolve, commitment and determination to see the actualisation of her husband’s mandate? On June 4, 1996, Alao Aka-Bashorun was one of the first people to see Kudirat Abiola’s bullet-ridden body at the hospital. She had been on her way to pick him up for a meeting. The shock was too much to bear and he broke down at the scene and would never fully recover his memory again. Such was his price to pay for democracy in our beloved country, Nigeria.”

The younger Aka-Bashorun added: “The omission of his name at a dinner speech notwithstanding, history has been kind to his legacy. Associations like the Ikeja branch of the Nigerian Bar Association, which have held a widely acclaimed annual lecture since April 29, 2010, in his name as a bar leader and incomparable activist, have lived up to the creed that ‘the labour of our heroes past shall never be in vain’ and are doing their part so that his name and achievements are not overlooked at the dinner table.”

Another of Aka-Bashorun’s children, Morayo Afolabi-Brown, said she was not surprised when her father’s name was omitted in the president’s speech “because when June 12, was officially made our Democracy Day and there was quite a bit of attention on the heroes of that day, my dad wasn’t mentioned. People were given post-humous awards, but he wasn’t recognised. As a family, we chose not to make a fuss.”

Morayo, who is the MD of TVC Entertainment, further said while their father had not gotten the recognition his role in Nigeria’s democratic struggle earned him, “A few people in government and well-meaning Nigerians have acknowledged to me privately the role my father played, but none of these has been publicly or officially stated by the government in power or others before them.”

Frederick Fasehun

The leadership of the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC) also described President Tinubu’s failure to acknowledge its founder, Dr Frederick Fasehun, in the list of the June 12, heroes as a mark of ingratitude.

The President of the Yoruba socio-political organisation, Otunba Wasiu Afolabi, said that it took the family and estate of Dr Fasehun to blow their father’s June 12, trumpet for the younger generation to know and acknowledge him as one of the heroes of Nigeria’s democratic struggle.

Afolabi recalled that the medical doctor-turned activist sacrificed his livelihood and liberty to fight for the disannulment of Abiola’s mandate and the restoration of democracy through the OPC and NADECO.

He said, “Baba was jailed several times. Hundreds of innocent OPC members were killed. Some were arrested, jailed, maimed for life and extra-judicially killed.”

Bukar Zarma

Also recollecting the years of the struggle to install democracy, veteran editor of the then New Nigeria and publisher of Abuja Newsday, Alhaji Bukar Zarma, told Daily Trust Saturday that there was no hard feeling about not being recognised in the president’s speech because, looking back, “We can say the struggle was worth it. What is important is that the work was done; it does not matter who gets the credit. If they give one credit, fine; if they don’t, you should be happy that the work was done.”

Alhaji Zarma, who is now the Coordinating Secretary of the Leadership Selection Committee of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), recalled that, “At one point when New Nigeria was the only newspaper in Northern Nigeria and I was the daily editor, all of us (editors) were in detention. I was detained at the NSO office in Lagos, and my roommates were Femi Falana; then Editor of Tribune, Folu Olamiti; and late elder statesman, Alhaji Sule Katagum, a former Chairman of the Federal Civil Service Commission.

“Even for Abuja Newsday, as small as it was, I, as the publisher, and the editors were always arrested and detained. The paper was proscribed alongside others, but unlike others, it never recovered. All these only illustrate the crisis that befell the media during the struggle for democracy. I don’t think there is any group of professionals that paid the price journalists paid. Of course, there were the agitators who were often arrested and detained, but journalists were walking corpses because they picked you on the streets, in your houses and all others, and nobody can go to court to secure your release.”

Mohammed Adamu

Also sharing his experience during the struggle, Mohammed Adamu, a former editor of African Concord, who himself was identified as worthy of recognition, recalled in one of his writings on the struggle that: “For nine months I was in the dungeon of what we knew then as the SSS – bearded to the navel – and in just about four months I was beginning to dreadlock as I was hemmed daily between two giant air-conditioning power machines that supplied the entire building.”

His offence was the writing of an expose with the title: “El-Mustapha: The ruthless iron man behind Abacha’s junta”, which he said was “about the first ever to unravel and deconstruct – if you will – the once shadowy Chief Security Officer (CSO) who initially loomed large behind the throne even though he enjoyed de facto privileges to the subjugation or capitulation of all armed and unarmed forces in the country.

“By the sixth month in detention, TELL’s Osifor Whisky Onome was brought in to join me, and together we were now told that we had our hands in the Diya coup attempt, an event that ironically happened six long months after I had been taken in and three months after Onome had been. And to show how serious they really were, some of the civilian suspects in that coup attempt were moved to our tiny cell as a combined team of military police, the SSS and others began to interrogate us, preparatory, they said, to our being moved soon to Jos where the tribunal would sit.”

But after failing to establish a case against them, Adamu recalled that he and Onome were informed that they “were culpable because our writings, over time, having damagingly denigrated the junta, had, wittingly or unwittingly, motivated the coupists to act and also prepared fertile ground for the public to welcome the coup – had it succeeded.”

Joe Igbokwe

Also speaking with Daily Trust Saturday, Joe Igbokwe, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State, said he was recognised as he was invited to the anniversary dinner.

He said, “I was in that hall. He (President Tinubu) could not mention all the names. We thought he would mention all the names, but he did not mention all the names. I was there.

“You know, those of them that occupied power after the June 12, crisis in 1999 never knew anything about the struggle for democracy. Obasanjo came and hijacked Abiola’s position. After that, Yar’Adua came, Jonathan came and then Buhari. These are not the heroes of democracy. It’s now that we have heroes of democracy in power.

“I feel elated. Being remembered is the most important thing. If Asiwaju had not been elected, nobody would remember us.”

Nosa Igiebor

The co-founder and president of Tell Communications, publishers of Tell Magazine, Nosa Igiebor (72), told Daily Trust Saturday that he did not feel anything personal with his name not being mentioned among the heroes of June 12, and democracy.

Igiebor was arrested and imprisoned because of the June 12, struggle before he later went into exile.

He said, “June 12, has come and gone. I didn’t feel anything personal about not being mentioned, as there are many others left out, maybe inadvertently. I didn’t feel much celebrating June 12, as we have not fared better after 25 years, and we are even worse off than when we were fighting to end military rule and enthrone democracy.

“What matters to me is that Nigerians should be better off than they are. June 12, and democracy would have meaning and be appreciated by Nigerians if their lives are better with democracy and they are assured that there is hope and a future for their children.

“When the leaders were celebrating June 12, millions of other Nigerians were unfulfilled that the democracy they laboured for and expected dividends were not forthcoming.”

President will acknowledge all in due course – Presidency

Reacting to the concerns of many Nigerians, the presidency said the president would in due course acknowledge all the men and women who fought for the democracy currently being enjoyed.

The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, noted that the omission of some names was not an indication that the president snubbed them.

Onanuga said, “Even some of the names you mentioned here are not exhaustive. The fact that the president did not mention some names does not suggest he snubbed them or didn’t remember them. Indeed, while reading his speech, the president twice added, ‘among others’, because he realised the names were merely representative of the whole.

“The president, in due course, will acknowledge all the men and women who fought for the democracy we are enjoying today.”

Morayo Afolabi-Brown, said she was not surprised when her father’s name was omitted in the president’s speech “because when June 12, was officially made our Democracy Day and there was quite a bit of attention on the heroes of that day, my dad wasn’t mentioned. People were given post-humous awards, but he wasn’t recognised. As a family, we chose not to make a fuss.”

Morayo, who is the MD of TVC Entertainment, further said while their father had not gotten the recognition his role in Nigeria’s democratic struggle earned him, “A few people in government and well-meaning Nigerians have acknowledged to me privately the role my father played, but none of these has been publicly or officially stated by the government in power or others before them.”

Tobi Amusan failed to defend her women’s 100m hurdles title at the 2024 African Athletics Championship due to illness.

The reigning world record holder was aiming to win her third straight gold medal in the event.

Amusan came tops in the women’s 100m hurdles in 2018 in Asaba and two years ago in Mauritius.

Had she competed and won, Amusan would have joined Maria Usifo and Glory Alozie as the only athletes with three consecutive African titles in the women’s 100m hurdles.

Nigeria’s Adaobi Tabugo has already qualified for the final.

Team Nigeria won two gold medals on the first of the competition on Friday.

[DailyPost]

The Lagos State Government has attributed the recent cholera outbreak in the state to an unregistered tiger nut drink.

The cholera outbreak has impacted multiple local government areas in Lagos, including Lagos Island, Eti-Osa, and Kosofe, with hospitals reporting the highest number of cases.

As of June 21, Lagos has recorded 24 deaths and 35 confirmed cholera cases, with Eti-Osa identified as the epicenter of the outbreak in Nigeria’s commercial capital. 

In an interview with Punch on Saturday, Kemi Ogunyemi, special adviser to the Lagos state governor on health, mentioned that upon noticing a rise in suspected cholera cases in Eti-Osa LGA, the government conducted a direct assessment of the area.

Ogunyemi revealed that a survey indicated a common factor was a tiger nut drink being sold, while noting it was not registered with the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).

She mentioned that authorities were then sent out to locate the drink in order to test samples for cholera.

Her words: “We found empty bottles with a name on them, but we discovered that it wasn’t even registered with the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), the regulatory body that ensures the safety of consumables.

“There was a phone number and a name on the bottle, and we started tracing. We did contact tracing, similar to what we did with COVID-19.

“We combed the area to ask people where they got the drinks from. We couldn’t find any full bottles. We only found empty ones, which were of no use because we could not test them. The phone number on the bottle was not reachable.

“Cholera is also water-borne, so we took samples of the water to test it. The bottom line is that we took stool samples because different things cause diarrhoea.

“It could be anything else. We found out that it was confirmed cholera, specifically Vibrio cholera subtype 01, which is the most infectious and aggressive type.

“There are different types, but we identified this one. In Lagos Island, Eti-osa, and Kosofe, we recorded the highest number of cases that went to the hospital.

“I’m not talking about reported cases. These are the people who did the right thing by going to the hospital to complain of symptoms, and they were treated. That’s when we were alerted.”

Ogunyemi urged residents to practice good hygiene and ensure that the items they purchase for consumption are registered with the appropriate government agencies.

[Vanguard]