In the Idimu area of Lagos State, the price of cement continues to soar, selling between N10,000 and N11,000 per bag, despite an agreement reached with manufacturers to cap the price at N7,000.

This discrepancy has left many retailers and buyers frustrated, questioning the effectiveness of the agreement.

A local retailer, known as Alhaja, expressed skepticism about the reported agreement, labeling the news that cement should sell for N7,000 as merely a hoax.

She highlighted a significant issue during the negotiation period with the Federal Government, where Dangote Cement, a major manufacturer, allegedly blocked all payment portals. By the time these portals were reopened, prices had already surged again.

This situation has raised concerns among residents and stakeholders in the construction industry, who are feeling the impact of the inflated prices on building projects.

The failure to adhere to the agreed-upon price cap not only strains the wallets of individuals looking to buy cement for personal or business use but also poses broader implications for the construction sector and housing market in Lagos and potentially beyond.

The ongoing discrepancy calls for a closer examination of the factors contributing to the persistent high prices and the mechanisms in place to enforce agreements made between the government and manufacturers.

As the situation unfolds, those affected await concrete actions that will lead to a resolution and the stabilization of cement prices at the agreed level.

She said: “Even BUA which was selling for N3,500 was the first to hike prices. In fact, the Dangote payment portal was blocked last week, only for them to reopen it and the price was increased by another N400. All the noise of N7,000 is just in the media, it’s not real.

“But we pray and hope it is effected soon enough because this price hike is really slowing down business.”

Another outlet did not have any stock on the ground. The owner, who pleaded for anonymity, corroborated Alhaja.

He said, “At this point, I don’t know what else to do. Cement is off-limit for now because I don’t even know how to restock. The N7,000 price being bandied in the news is unreal. The price was increased by N400 after manufacturers met with the government. We just hope things return to normal as soon as possible.”

Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, has urged Nigerians, particularly those holding political offices, not to set the country on fire in spite of the current challenges facing the people.

Dogara made this charge during the burial program of his late mother, Mama Saratu Yakubu Tukur held in his country home, Gwarangah, Bogoro LGA of Bauchi State on Saturday.

According to him, “We have no any other country to run to if we set Nigeria on fire. It is true there is anger across the country because of hunger, but we must tread with caution.”

The former Speaker stressed that the situation is affecting everybody irrespective of ethno-religious differences and so, the situation is not beyond redemption

“The problem is not one man’s problem, it is beyond one man, we must all join hands to solve the problem, each one of us has a role to play.

“If we set the country on fire, we will not be able to do anything, we will not even be here in this church for the burial program. I am appealing for caution in the way we react to the situation.

“Let us take an exception to what is happening in other countries, we must do things that will make the situation better. Things are going to get better very soon,” Dogara said.

He then called on Nigerians to engage in prayers for divine intervention in the situation, saying that there is nothing God cannot do to turn the situation around.

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Wale Edun, has lamented that only about 5% of Nigerians have more than N500,000 in their bank accounts.

Edun said it is not acceptable that the wealth of the nation is concentrated in the hands of a few while the majority languish in poverty.

Speaking during an interview with Channels TV, the Minister said the administration of President Bola Tinubu is working hard to address this imbalance in which just a few elites have the advantage over the majority of others.

Edun stressed that part of the moves to correct the imbalance, which has been on for about eight years, is the various economic reforms introduced by the current administration.

The minister said that the reforms are corrective measures to mop up the liquidity in the economy that is not tied to production or supply of goods and services, adding that these imbalances only benefit a few people in the economy.

“There has been an effort to ensure that the people’s money is not in the hands of a few. And on that point, I must emphasize that when we talk about the last eight years before Mr. President came to power, there was this liquidity built up.

“The Issue was that the funds were going to a few. Only about 5% of the population have bank accounts that have more than half a million in them. So, the majority was left out for eight years. They are on the sidelines while a small minority enjoyed.

“That is the major correction being made by Mr. President now. That is the major microeconomic reforms that have put in place.

“So therefore, government revenue that was outside the federal government consolidated revenue funds have been brought back to the government funds,” Edun said.

The Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, has declared that he will contest in the forthcoming state gubernatorial election, scheduled for November 16, 2024.

Naija News reports that Aiyedatiwa made this known on Friday while featuring on TVC news, shortly after the remains of the immediate Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, was buried.

Recall that Aiyedatiwa was, on December 27, 2023, sworn in as governor of the state following the death of Akeredolu after a prolonged illness.

The remains of the former governor was interred at his country home in Owo, in the Owo council area of the state, on Friday amidst tears and political associates who had attended the event.

Speaking after the burial, Aiyedatiwa said he would run for the governorship election, stressing that nobody wants to be governor for one year.

He said, “I will be running. I’m already a sitting governor and let me say this, nobody wants to be governor for one year. Give me what the Constitution allows me to do.

“At least, let me also have the chance of running for one more time.”

The manager of Nottingham Forest, Nuno Espirito Santos has revealed that Super Eagles of Nigeria defender, Ola Aina, played the 2023 AFCON final with an injury.

Ola Aina was one of the Super Eagles of Nigeria players who played virtually all the games in the 2023 AFCON.

Aina was seen as the Eagles’ best player in the tournament but played below expectation in most parts of the 2023 AFCON final against the hosts, Ivory Coast, on February 11, 2023.

Due to his slow form of play, the Ivorians enjoyed their time in the game as they defeated the Super Eagles 2-1 to win their fourth AFCON.

Ahead of Nottingham Forest vs Aston Villa Premier League game at 4 p.m. later today, February 24, coach Nuno Espirito Santos revealed that Ola Aina sustained the injury during the 2023 AFCON semi-final clash against South Africa.

The semi-final clash ended in a 1-1 draw and was decided by penalties in which Aina missed his kick. But Nigeria went on to win the shootout with a 4-2 scoreline.

Due to the injury, Aina who was highly criticized for his poor performance in the 2023 AFCON final, has not been available for Nottingham Forest since the tournament ended.

Espirito Santo said: “Ola got injured in the semi-final and played the final with an injury, he tried but didn’t really play in the final.

“Ibrahim, the same, he was struggling since he was there at the AFCON.

“So the three of them (Ola, Willy, Ibrahim) are not available for this match, which is bad for us. We don’t have a date for their return.”

Dear Readers 

This weekend marks a year since Nigerians went to the polls to vote in the new administration led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima. Like most things in Nigeria, the process was very contended, highly divisive, rowdy and very improvable; that is all done now anyway. I am tempted to say I dare anyone to come out to say that they truly suspected, imagined or let alone warned anybody that a year from 25th February, 2023, one GBP will be worth over N2000, one US dollar will be worth over N1750, that a litre of petrol will cost over N550 or that a bag of rice will cost over N65,000 in a situation wherein the felt inflation seems way higher than the reported inflation. If such people exist, they should come forward to receive prizes for their scientific ability to predict government and market or deliverance from witchcraft. 

Let us face it, neither the most adherent supporters of the President and his party nor his fiercest opponents can truly say they knew things would be this tough by today. 

As with lovers that approach their beloved with passion and hope, those that wish Asiwaju well and are happy with his victory and believe in him, the first reaction is surprise and confusion, then silence, for as hopefuls they are confused and dumbfounded at the harsh way things currently stand. As with those forced to coexist, there is little time for surprise, the first reaction is anger and a desire to mock, expose and fight. The reaction of citizens that feel forced to coexist with a leader is very similar to the passengers of a commercial vehicle in Lagos: in times of crisis there is no empathy for the driver or conductor, what erupts is a sense of suspicion, anger and the desire to ensure that the culprit does not get away with an inch. 

Of all the difficulties that the country is facing however the most pervasive and uniting is that of hunger. The hunger is due to the inability of people to put food on their tables or just on their plates. Whilst economists ponder and argue if the inability to get food is caused mainly by scarcity of food that stems from low production or mainly by increase in cost of production and distribution that translates into increase in price, normal citizens are just hungry and angry. The anger that comes with hunger is a very well treated link in popular literature. For all, let us remember the 17th Century maxim made popular in our times by Bob Marley with his warning that “a hungry man is an angry man”. Also widely known are some effects of hunger like violence, crime, sins and even cannibalism. 

What is less discussed is the link between hunger and some non-violent perhaps even non-criminal acts but that are nonetheless acts and pronunciations that are at odds with reality and expectations. Genius or psychotic come to mind. 

Hunger or fear of hunger must have been what led some people to believe and try to make others believe that Mohammed Umaru Bago, the Governor of Niger State, ordered that food stuff produced in the state should not be allowed to leave the state. Without hunger in the land, I am assuming that most will quickly see that no Governor can order such in a country with a common currency, national parliament, common law and most importantly wherein States go to the Federal Government to receive money for sustenance. I even heard some normally sane and even informed people propose some kind of retaliatory measures. Signs of the time….

Also worthy of mention is the happy portion of the society that in what appears to be some sort of newly acquired sadomasochistic taste claim to be happy that the country is going through hard times. These are people who with no trace of irony but with palpable sardonic presentation claim to be pleased that people are suffering. Some of the people in this category have gone to the point of saying they want to see more hunger in the land. There is a video making the rounds on social media, it is the video of some happy men with no food but with lots of drinks chanting “Jagaban you’re good for us / Who God has made king/Nobody can take it from them”. To each their own….

In the middle of all these, senior citizens of the country, organised and presented as the Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP), are threatening to come out naked to show Nigerians how they have gone mad from hunger. Their national President, Godwin Abumisi, used a prepared text to warn the world that Nigerian Senior Citizens are ready to come out naked to the butt to demonstrate their discontent with the state of affairs in general and also their non-inclusion in the minimum wage committee. I am assuming that their protest will be a peaceful one since the NUP President’s only concern seems to be that they might be arrested for coming out hungrily and nakedly. 

For the records, the first set of people to shout they are hungry were the people of Lagos who while being arranged by the police in a way that they will not disturb the jolly ride of the President and his visitors with their own existence shouted “we are hungry”. I am happy to observe that Lagos legislators have requested that members of the executive meet to discuss plans for this season of hunger. 

There have also been some people who, though adults and with a voice on social media, have gone on to question the rising price of locally made products like catfish and garri, asking if these have anything to do with the dollar and concluding that traders are just evil unpatriotic Nigerians. It is safe to assume that to such people macroeconomics was an optional accessory in life until hunger made them think they should have on opinion of it.  

Elsewhere, in the north of the country, some people are intercepting trailer loads of food items destined for a neighbouring country. Ordinarily, trailer loads of food items leaving Nigeria would be praised as export, as a source of forex generation and a symbol of much hoped diversification from crude oil dependency and mono export economy, some patriots would even have boasted that Nigeria is feeding other countries. At times like this however, export is seen as sabotage and even criminal. Hunger is indeed not only bad for the tummy but it is clearly also bad for the mind. 

We have also seen normally taciturn traditional and political leaders warning us that this particular hunger might not end well for the president and country. To these newly found voices, many are quick to respond that these leaders were inaudible during the lacklustre years of the administration led by their fellow northerners. Hunger aside, the responders pointing fingers at those that were mute when things were going bad during the Buhari years should be careful because a full list of hitherto muted voices will include many of those currently in power, starting from our darling President Tinubu. 

Join me if you can on X @anthonykila to continue these conversations. 

. Prof. Kila is Institute Director at CIAPS: www.ciaps.org.

Ministries, Departments and Agencies, (MDAs) of government in the state working with Development Partners should synergise with the State Economic Team towards harmonising programmes, projects and activities for the benefit of people across the state.

Ogun State Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Mr. Olaolu Olabimtan, who stated this during a Stakeholders Engagement on Development Partners, at the Conference Room of the Ministry in Abeokuta, added that there was need for the MDAs to cultivate an open channel of communication with the Department of Development Partners Coordination under his Ministry for proper and effective coordination of activities.

Mr. Olabimtan explained that the meeting was deliberate and targeted at addressing noticeable gaps affecting the implementation of services to the people, ensure that political heads and accounting officers were abreast of project objectives, towards actualising the partnership goals.   

He urged participants to ensure that outlined programmes and projects of their respective agencies were incorporated into the Medium Term Sectoral Strategy (MTSS) and yearly budget, restating the need for agencies to have a clear understanding of the prospect list of their MDAs.

The Commissioner said they should endeavour to make projects initiated conform with laid down guidelines, stating that some of the challenges identified including, underreporting and duplication of efforts, uncaptured partners, poor budget performance, lack of alignment, among others would be addressed for effective service delivery.

Contributing, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Mrs. Olufunmilayo Dada, said the meeting was to synergise with the heads of MDAs in charting a course for a successful outcome of goals, highlighting the benefits of the partnership to include, improved governance, provision of technical assistance and financial support, diversification of resources, social impact and so on.

Also speaking, Senior Special Adviser to the Governor on Development Partner Coordination, Mr. Lanre Adenekan described the meeting as a mechanism for effective coordination of development partners' projects across the state, assuring that the projects would have a direct impact on the people.

Earlier, the Director, Development Partners Coordination, Mrs. Funmilayo Tade revealed that the department coordinates project information and communication, monitors how Development Partners support is being utilised by the government while ensuring efficient and effective utilisation of existing support, among others.

The Ogun State Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Mr. Olaolu Olabimtan addressing Political heads and Accounting Officers of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDA's) at a Stakeholders' engagement meeting on Development Partners, held at the Conference Room of the Ministry in Abeokuta.

The Zone ‘B” Federal Operations Unit of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has intercepted two Niger Republic-bound trucks loaded with grains, a  PREMIUM TIMES report said.

In the last few days, officials of the NCS intercepted grains being taken to Niger Republic in Katsina, Sokoto, Kano and Jigawa states.

PREMIUM TIMES said it gathered through a service intelligence report that the two trucks were intercepted on Thursday around 1pm by Kebbi and Kangiwa/Argungu Natsini “FOU roving team.”

Grains in the two trucks include maize, millet and beans, according to the report.

“Two canters loaded with grains, comprises maize, millet and beans going to Niger Republic were also intercepted. Both vehicles were taken to Customs House in Kebbi,” part of the report reads.

According to another memo seen by PREMIUM TIMES, the FOU Zone ‘B’ Kaduna has deployed more officers in its area of responsibility to ensure there is no movement of goods or people in and out of the country.

The memo, prepared by S. M. Mansur, the Unit’s staff officer, was approved by Wasa Chedi, the zonal comptroller.

“All borders in our Area of Responsibility under Zone ‘B’ remained closed pending federal government’s directives. All officers in charge should ensure that nothing goes out or comes in, including grains of all sorts,” the memo read.

Mansur warned officers in charge of units to ensure compliance as “any breach of this instruction, the O/C will be held responsible.”

Back story

Following the 2023 coup that ousted Mohamed Bazoum as president of Niger Republic, Nigeria shut its land borders with the country and cut its electricity supply as part of sanctions against the military junta.

Security has been intensified on the borders and around border communities, especially in the North where Nigeria shares expansive borders with Niger Republic, covering Kebbi, Sokoto, Zamfara, Katsina, Jigawa, Yobe and Borno states.

In recent months, Nigerians have been grappling with inflation and economic hardship being exacerbated by the removal of fuel subsidy and floating of the naira last year.

The prices of foodstuffs and other commodities have been soaring, weakening the already fragile economy of the country.

The Customs Service said it intended to intensify surveillance to stop grains from being taken out of the country, which it said was aggravating the hard economic situation.

About 15 trucks of grain were intercepted in Sokoto State on Sunday, while 50 more were intercepted in Zamfara State on Monday and four intercepted in Kano State, also on Sunday.

Customs sells 25kg rice at N10,000

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Customs Service has commenced the sale of seized bags of rice to the public at the cost of N10,000 per 25kg.

The comptroller-general of the NCS, Mr Adewale Adeniyi, said the process for the sale of the food items had been done, such that a form with all the details of the applicant, including the National Identification Number (NIN), would be submitted and a bar code generated for the collection of the commodity.

Adeniyi stated that 10 registration points would be opened for members of the public, with a view to easing the purchase process.

He said the move to sell the seized items was to crash the price of food items and shore up the value of the naira.

He warned against the resale of purchased rice, adding that anybody caught reselling will be arrested and possibly prosecuted.

Daily Trust Saturday reports that thousands of people stormed one of the facilities belonging to the Service on Harvey Road at the Yaba area of Lagos to buy bags of rice.

Some of the beneficiaries who spoke to our correspondent thanked the Service for coming to their aid at a time they felt all hopes had been lost.

A petty trader who identified herself as Shade Tajudeen, said the price of rice in the market had made the items far from the reach of the downtrodden masses.

Another beneficiary, Chika Maduka, said the rice would go a long way in easing the suffering and hardship brought on common Nigerians as a result of food scarcity.

CBN slashes Customs duty rate to N1,488

In an action that appeared to have resulted from the call in a Daily Trust editorial of Thursday, 22nd February, 2024, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in the official foreign exchange window on Friday,  slashed the exchange rate for computing Customs duties to N1,488.

The Customs duty rate was reviewed downwards from N1, 605.82/$ to N1, 488.896/$ yesterday,  according to information on the official trade portal of the Nigeria Customs Service. That cut rrepresented a reduction of about 7.3 per cent.

Still, on November 14, 2023, the rate was adjusted to N783.174/$, and in December, it was adjusted to N951.941/$. On February 2, it was moved to N1,356.883/$ and on February 3, it was moved to N1,413.62/$. Later this month, it was adjusted to N1,417.635/$ then N1,493.23/$ and ultimately to N1604.08.

Yesterday’s cut in the rate comes as some sort of relief to importers who have been battling high duty rates, which results in higher prices of items when they reach their final consumers.

[DailyTrust]

Residents of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja, are helpless over the soaring cost of rent in the nation’s capital.

This is as some house owners in the capital city blame the high cost of building materials for the troubling situation.

Some landlords complained that while the cost of erecting a new building in Abuja has gone over 200 percent from what it used to be some months ago, maintaining the old ones is no less a task.

According to them, materials used for the construction, development, and maintenance of buildings were no longer affordable in Nigeria.

A building goes through maintenance throughout its lifespan and some landlords say it is no longer an easy task.

A check by DAILY POST at different markets where building materials are sold within Abuja, showed that major materials such as, sand, cement, granite, concrete, wood, Plaster of Paris, POP, glass, paint and plumbing materials are now beyond the reach of the ordinary man.

A 50kg bag of cement, for instance, is now sold for N15, 000 and above which is more than three times what it was sold just some weeks back.

Nigerian infrastructure development and economic growth are significantly influenced by the building and construction industry.

Cement is an essential ingredient in the construction of buildings, but DAILY POST understands that many buildings under construction have been abandoned by the owners due to the high cost of this material which now ranges from N10,000 to N15,000 per 50kg, depending on the product.

Flexible binding wires in Nigeria now sell between N8000 to N12,000 while a 10 kg roll costs between N85,500 to N125,000.

A bundle of solid binding wire ranges from N12,500 to N13,800, and a 10kg coil costs between N69,000 and N72,000.

For tiles, 30 × 30 ‌ranges from N12,500 to N13,500; 40 x 40 ranges from N12,400 to N13,800; 30 x 60 ranges from N12,700 to N13,000 while 60 × 60 ‌ ranges from N14,700 to N16,000.

Vitrified tiles within the range of 300×300 pack costs N9000-10,000 while 450×450 pack costs N10,100-12, 500

So are the prices of Polished Porcelain, Steel Rod, Concrete or Granite, Sands

Building Blocks, Laterite, Roofing Sheets, Woods In Nigeria, Woods, windows, Doors, etc, all on the high side.

Mr Jov Richard, who owns a 16-bedroom apartment at Gudu District of the FCT, told DAILY POST that the question of why rent is skyrocketing should not come into play since everyone is already aware of the economic situation in the country.

According to Jov, a Tiv native, “This question shouldn’t be asked at all. Who is not seeing what is happening? How much do you buy a bag of cement today? How much was the nails when I built my house? Do you know how much a block is sold today?

“Please go to the nearest block industry and ask. Have you tried to buy tiles or sand? I wanted to start developing my piece of land in Kuje but had to stop immediately when I heard the current price of cement. Anybody you see building a house now is a politician. So, this question has answered itself.”

Also speaking to DAILY POST on the subject matter, National President of Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria, REDAN, Mr. Aliyu Wamakko, blamed the high cost of building materials for the sky-rocking rent in Abuja.

He said, “You see, the high rise in price of everything, including commodities and rent is what we are experiencing now because of the economic downturn. You need to understand that. How can you now sell a bag of cement for N22,000 and expect an affordable rent? So, it is something you cannot even comprehend.

“The high rise of building materials’ price is the cause of the situation. Do you know that some house rents are being paid in dollars? And how much is a dollar to naira now? The exchange rate is what is now adding another problem to the rent issue. Some of the apartments you see are paid in dollars. And the forex is fluctuating to a terrible stage.

“So these are some of the reasons the house rent goes up. And to add to that, there is a lot of house deficit in the country which we feel this government should do something to ameliorate that issue.

“You could remember we have insurgency, banditry and natural disaster like the floods and all these are issues that encourage the house rent to move up.

“Also, these issues are connected to the subsidy removal and it is unfortunate that the government did not prepare well before taking the decision.

“Look at the salary of the workers, N30,000 (minimum wage). How much are they selling a bag of rice? So you should understand. You have house rent to pay, you have feeding, transport, school fees for your children and you need to cloth yourself. How do you think it is possible?

“I call on you people to ask the country, both Christians and Muslims to keep praying for the stability of our country. That is the only way out. For now, nobody can tell you ‘this is the way out.”

The Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, Director of Press, Tony Ogunleye had earlier told DAILY POST that there’s no law in Nigeria regulating how much a landlord decides to collect as rent.

He insisted that rent has always been on the high in Abuja.

According to him, “Abuja rent has always been high when you compare to places like Lagos and Port Harcourt; it is not something that started today.”

Speaking on unoccupied buildings around the FCT, Ogunleye said that “owners of those empty buildings you see are conducting themselves within the law. They have not gone against the law of the land.

“As far as they are paying their ground rent. Someone can build 10 houses and decides to leave them empty, it’s nobody’s business. They don’t have anything to worry about as much as they are complying with what the government demands of them.”

[DailyPost]

No one can dispute the fact that Nigerians are going through harrowing times. The digital channels, namely Twitter, FaceBook, WhatsApp, SMS, name them, fill Platforms with lamentations of hard times. All blame is heaped on the leadership. We least understand the place of personal responsibility including the responsibility we bear in the choice of leaders at different levels, or even aloofness which are in themselves choices and decisions we make. Says renowned author Herbert Vollmann (1903-1999) in his unique book, A Gate Opens:

“Every moment man gives cause to fateful consequences in the future and every moment he stands in the reactions of previous decisions from the present and from past earth-lives. Thus, men living on earth today must also be answerable to themselves for what they willed and thought in former earth-lives. In this connection it matters not whether the volition was general or directed at definite other human beings. This should exhort us to act with caution, and heighten our sense of responsibility, so that in future, whether on earth or in the beyond, evil reactions that darken and make our lives painful will no longer be possible.”

He went on: “Therefore let everyone who is struck by more or less severe ‘blows of fate’ remember, above all, that he is the originator, and not some other person.  Perhaps at one time he has done something evil to a fellow human being, who had to suffer innocently. To the innocent sufferer the Laws of Creation always bring compensation in some form or other, provided he forgives the wrong-doer. But to the guilty one dark threads of karma become attached at the very moment of the deed, which unfailingly return to him as the fruits of his volition. This is then the ‘punishment’ he inflicts upon himself. In reality it is the just balance of his evil volition, the real ‘compulsion to atonement.’”

In view of the foregoing, what does the future have in store for us, for our brethren, that is, those who kill, kidnap or torture their fellow men, or inflict pains on the hapless? Those who engage in man’s inhumanity to man of whatever nature or form? And what has the present yet to unfold? In deep contemplation in closets as well as in restaurants; in clubs, in casual conversations, the question has a way of agitating the minds: What has our today got to do with our past? These are said to a person who sometimes feels some stirring within or pangs in menace of the past. The past is dead and long buried is always the retort, sometimes as a balm, or comfort and reassurance. A great many of us are wont to blame others, but ourselves that we go through excruciating experiences in our daily living while others live in splendour.

As I did write five years ago and the present conditions necessitate a recap: There are two main conceptions of the past. This is when we discountenance the transitional past which could be a few hours past, a day or two days past which may not fall strictly under the definition of the recent past. Recent and transitional past fall within memory. There is a wider and longer stretch that covers contemporary history, the range of individual lives, and lives of nations. The past we are wont to have in mind when we speak of the past is our past within living memory or the facts of history that we may have experienced or read about. In other words, it is the past we can remember or the past of which we have tangible material evidence.

It is not infrequent when we hear it said—the labour of our heroes past. The Americans would talk about Abraham Lincoln, Franklin Roosevelt, George Washington, Truman, Thomas Jefferson or John F. Kennedy, or Martin Luther King Jnr., and Barack Obama who broke the glass ceiling, to use the words of Hillary Clinton, and has undoubtedly entered the book of record. The British would, with nostalgia, mention Queen Victoria, the Victorian Age of etiquette, of culture and refinement. They would speak of Winston Churchill. The French would talk of Napoleon.  Coming nearer home, the Africans would mention Nelson Mandela as a citizen of the universe. Ghanaians would be quick to name Kwame Nkrumah as their icon. Nigerians would refer to Herbert Yinka Macaulay, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Obafemi Awolowo, Ahmadu Bello and Aminu Kano as their heroes and in Senegal, Leopard Senghor. In Tanzania, Julius Nyerere. And in Guinea, Sekou Toure. But all these are earthly past.

The past man has the proclivity to throw into oblivion if and wherever it is hinted at is the past for which there is no tangibility, that which is beyond the earthly. In its full unfolding that past for which there is no material evidence but which nevertheless exists and determines the present and perhaps the future, depending on how each individual stands in its currents streaming into our world; and when we talk about a nation how people collectively stand. The past beyond the earthly is in conception the Cosmic Past. This is the past that is filed away and which with any little hint of its existence, is said, without any second thought, to be dead and buried. And changeless!

Today is a past in the making, filled with activities. Tomorrow, it will be past. In a hundred years, in two hundred years, or a thousand years, the past slips into the Cosmic Past of which man has no memory in the main. It is the larger segment of the past, which, indeed, is the real past. It stretches from the unknown to the known. The history of the earthly past, recent or contemporary, can be re-written and indeed it is re-written or amended to suit whims and caprices, to satisfy fancy, or to provide the correct rendition of accounts. The re-writing of the contemporary tangible past suggests that man realizes that the past is not dead as he has led himself to believe. Often the objective is to whitewash. Through the re-writing many publications thought infallible in later years are often found to have suffered from distortion as a result of limitation or deficiency of memories. You may just have to read writings about events of the last 70 years in Nigeria by different authors and you will get my drift.

Regardless of the arrogance of man, the whims and caprices, his cleverness, subterfuge, and the proficiency to cover tracts, the real past is untouched and uninfluenced. When the stone leaves the hand of a man he has no control over it anymore, but he is tied to the consequences of the action. The past thought dead is in truth alive, driven by the living and eternal Laws of Creation, which may also be called Cosmic Laws, Laws of Nature, or Divine laws; they mean the same thing. As I have repeatedly stated in this column, they are immutable, perfect, incorruptible, self-acting, and self-enforcing. They affect all human beings whether they are aware of their existence or ignorant of them. They issued from the Hand of the Almighty Creator, from and for all eternity. Again, as I have stated quite often, they are the mechanism with which the Creator governs His Creation. Thus, the first and most urgent duty of every human being is to have a thorough knowledge of these Laws. They form the foundation of all true spiritual teachings availed us by Teachers of mankind, and the Prophets. It is from these Laws that the Ten Commandments of God were revealed to Moses, first given by him to the Israelites but meant for all mankind, are derived. And didn’t the Lord Christ say, whatever a man soweth that shall he reap? As I explained last week, the Lord was referring to the Law of Sowing and Reaping, the Law of Reciprocal Action.

In the Cosmic Past as well as the contemporary past are stored all thoughts, all speeches and deeds where they go through the maturation process, each according to its nature, ripen and are available for harvesting by no other than the sower. The Cosmic Past cast into oblivion of our own creating and at best of our own imagining is called in circles that have preoccupied themselves with it the Book of Life. As we now know in higher knowledge spreading on earth today, all names of all human beings are inscribed in the great Book and the pages are the souls of the human beings themselves. Each person is his own recorder, his own historian as it were. He fills the pages himself. Thus the past is not dead even though it may be changeless. It has a life of its own derived from the same Laws in which the arrogant and conceited ‘all-knowing’ man has his life and being. From the extensive discussion of the Laws last week, it could be seen that there are three main Laws: The Law of Reciprocal Action; the Law of Attraction of Homogeneous Species which may be called the Law of Similarities which stipulates that creatures of the same nature and characteristics live together. So is it that we have tilapia fish in the bed of the sea in the school of tilapia fish; cat fish, whales among their own kind, and different animals in different colonies.

Go to the ants and learn, and be wise, the saying goes. Soldier ants do not mix with termites. Although human beings have the same spiritual origin, they are grouped by the Law into different peoples, into different tribes or ethnic groups according to the degree of their inner development, that is, their spiritual maturity, each to develop according to its own light and at its own pace. It is so that none will interfere with the other in their development, but may learn from one another. Man in his vaunted conceit to know better than the Creator of all the worlds, discarded the Law and has disarranged the order stipulated for formation of societies and the entire Creation with the attendant harmonious swinging and development. Man thus became a lawless animal, creating chaos and disharmony everywhere. The third principal Law is the Law of Spiritual Gravitation; all the negative and ennobling activities including thoughts and speeches are deposited on the souls, the negative making the soul to be heavy and the beautiful and ennobling making the soul to be light. If it is continuous light and beautiful the ascent to On High ensues. The negative and ignoble souls are dragged down in line with the degree of its weight, in the dark region of the Beyond.

There is also the Law of Movement and closely related to this is the Law of the Cycle which stipulates that the end must go back to the beginning. Everything in life must be kept in motion, failing which atrophy sets in. A man long on hospital bed soon loses the use of his limbs. To walk again, he has to relearn it. We can see from the chest of boxers or from the legs of a footballer the beauty of the Law of Motion manifested in the exercises of their bodies. The implication of the Law of the Cycle is that everything man says or does comes back to him in harvest as ripened fruits of his own sowing.

In the present time, it is the past that is catching up with every human being on earth. It governs where and the environment each person is born and what his experiencing will be, drawing from his store of his long-forgotten past and also of the recent and contemporary past.  In the words of Herbert Vollmann, “Anything that befalls man in the way of hardship is very often called fate, and looked upon as a higher power which determines his life. But in reality it is men themselves who shape their fate or karma, which depending on their free decision is either good or bad, exactly in accordance with the Law that he who has sown it must reap the seed many times over even if it be only in later earth-lives.”

Our world is now in the End-Time with its forces relentlessly sweeping through all lands, energized by the abundance of power of the Light now pouring into our universe, Ephesus, with the return of the Star of Bethlehem. The power is awakening and driving into activity all that is slumbering or all that is dead in each human being to face judgment as foretold. Hence all the aberrations and collapse in most societies at the moment. Intensification and acceleration of events everywhere—whether it is war, famine, pestilence, drought, hurricane, tornadoes, landslide and volcanic eruptions, and even man reasoning upside down—are trumpets of judgment. Everything is being brought before the Light, exposed to face judgment. No society will be spared. The modern man cannot continue to believe that his ability to tamper with the physical relics of the past with modern gadgets at his disposal is synonymous with the ability to tamper with the tapestry of life in the present time. Once he has acted and inscribed something in the Book of Life, he loses control over it. Our today is our past living reality. It is what we have individually and or collectively planted in the soil of life. This explains why some obviously good people suffer. The suffering seemingly inscrutable is flowing from the past earth-lives as life is a continuum; it is one continuous existence. Today is thus the harbinger of our tomorrow!!