I WAS part of an international trade union delegation to observe the potentially explosive 2002 Zimbabwean presidential election. It was like a contest between that country and the West, and Zimbabwe had denied visa to many observers. I had just a few days to get to Harare, so I needed a visa fast. My best option was to get across to the ambassador and convince him to issue me a quick visa. I got to the embassy in the evening and told the staff that I had an urgent message from the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, which I could disclose only to the High Commissioner.

I was ushered into his reception where I waited as he had a guest with him. Then the door opened, and there was Lindsay Carlton Eseoghene Barret walking out. He asked what I was doing there. I explained to him, and he went back to see the ambassador. The ambassador apologised that he had only been informed I was from the NLC, but Barret had just told him who I was. He asked me to submit my passport and return the next day as he was sure I will get a special waiver from Harare. Such was the reach and influence of Barret, the global citizen who had a choice to make any part of the world his home, but chose to navigate the oceans from Jamaica back to Africa, where his forebears had been snatched over 400 years before.

He was 25 when he left Paris in February 1966 to attend the First Festival of Black and African Arts and Culture in Senegal. His plan was to move on to Kwame Nkrumah’s Ghana and if possible, work in that country which was the Black Star of Africa.

He wanted to explore the communities from which his African ancestors had been abducted to the Caribbean, and initiate the renewal of their African ancestry as Marcus Mosiah Garvey, the Pan Africanist giant had done five decades before. Unfortunately, before the festival ended, the Nkrumah administration had been overthrown in an American Central Intelligence Agency, CIA, coup.

Rather than be discouraged, Barret moved to Sierra Leone as a Correspondent of the West African Magazine. The then Vice Chancellor of the University of Sierra Leone, Professor Davidson Abioseh Nicol, suggested that Barret would fulfil his quest better in Nigeria. So in July 1966, he moved to Nigeria where he was already friendly with leading playwrights, John Pepper Clark and Wole Soyinka, both of whom he had previously interviewed in Europe. He had stayed ever since, naturalised as a Nigerian and adopted Bayelsa as his home state.

 Barret had come to Nigeria some months before the Civil War. He used his skills to promote the restoration of national unity under the Gowon regime. In fact, he was present at the 1970 ceremony in Owerri when the exchange of the peace instrument between Biafra, represented by the Chief Justice, Sir Louis Nwachukwu Mbanefo, and the Inspector General, P.C. Okeke, on one hand, and the Federal Government represented by then Colonel Olusegun Obasanjo, was made.

Barret also supported the consolidation of regional peace enforcement in Liberia and Sierra Leone. Former Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf said of his role in Liberia: “Lindsay gave his tremendous talent of thought and words, without meaningful compensation as he sought to promote gender equality and regional cooperation.”

The tremendous talents she alluded to include Barret the novelist, playwright, poet, essayist, journalist, publisher, broadcaster, literary critic and photographer; a jack of all these trades and master of all.

Barret’s service to the continent helped him to build wide connections and enduring friendship with people like Kofi Awoonor, author of the famous 1971 novel: This Earth, My Brother; Mohhamed Ibn Chambers and Abas Bundu, former Executive Secretaries of the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, and Dr Amos Claudius Sawyer, the former Interim President of Liberia. Sawyer who affectionately calls Barret, ‘Sir Lind’ told him: “Liberia has benefited greatly from your dedication and loyalty to Africa and your enduring faith in the people of the Black World…all that your narrative on the significance of ECOWAS in Liberia was authentic, insightful and professional. You wrote from your head seasoned in experience, and your heart full of love.”

Expectedly, it is in Nigeria Barret has had the most impact deploying his creative and professional talents in helping to build a country he so loves. Former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan told Barret that his most significant contribution is in traversing the world, telling the stories of the Black people, “amplifying their voice and sustaining a narrative of hope through your works.”

Former Foreign Minister, and one-time Labour Minister, retired General Ike Omar Sanda Nwachukwu, who has been Barret’s friend for decades, wrote about him: “He is calm as a dove yet strikes like an eagle. He is discerning and unafraid to report or comment on any matter of national interest. He stands by the truth, speaks to issues and stays on them until they are acted upon.”

Barret made his major mark in journalism, a profession in which he has many friends. When he turned 80 on September 15, 2021, two men reputed to be among some of the best columnists in Nigerian history, penned him hilarious pieces.

Peter ‘Pan’ Enahoro from his London home wrote: “Today is your commencement of real old age. Your experience until now was that you were not getting younger. You don’t feel any different from the person you were yesterday but there’s a style to being 80. If your wisdom was to think before you spoke, you must now learn to speak before you think.

“If what you say is a load of nonsense people will struggle to make sense of it thinking you profound. Drop off to sleep when you want, wherever you like. It is the privilege of the elders. Do not smile often; old men’s teeth should be seen only by dentists.”

Uncle Sam Amuka, publisher of the Vanguard Newspapers, who ran the witty ‘Sad Sam’ column, wrote: “Dear Lindsay, Jamaican-born who has become a cherished Naija idol, happy birthday. Look, Lindsay, you gave all your children native names from where you bore them. So, tell me, what name you go give the one you go born in Abuja. Cheers, boy!”

On Sunday, September 15, 2024, when the inimitable Barret marked his 83rd birthday, I went on a pilgrimage to his home in Abuja. Armed with a bottle of alcoholic wine which is the drink of elders in the Niger Delta; I genuflected and handed over the bottle. I was in the company of my elders, Epa Tom Odemwingie and Aare Agbaakin Wole Olaoye as we celebrated with the living ancestor.

When I was approached to be the guest lecturer for the 2024 Very Reverend Father Slattery Memorial Lecture, I quickly recalled the reputation and standing of Reverend Father Dennis Slattery, who, though an Irish missionary in Nigeria, was a foremost speaker and campaigner for Nigeria’s independence; he was a sports enthusiast and sports promoter of repute, a visionary administrator of education who pioneered technical education in post-primary institutions in Nigeria with the founding of St. Finbarrs College Akoka in 1956 and, above all, he was a moral compass for discerning Nigerian leaders, especially in the immediate pre-independence period. Indeed, these were the qualities and attributes that informed my conferment of the Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) on him as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 2001.  

Again, I recalled the exemplary moral disposition and courage of some of my younger colleagues in the military who attended St. Finbarrs College like Rear Admiral Patrick Koshoni, Colonel Mike Akanji, and Brigadier General Cyril Iweze, just to mention a few.  For those of us leaving secondary school in the mid-1950s or entering university, Father Slattery was a household name and we followed him, particularly in football.  He was a sort of hero. He made significant contributions to the development of the game in Nigeria in the 1950s.

Father Slattery set his feet on Nigerian soil for the first time in May 1941 during the 2^nd World War.  In fact, the convoy of ships among which Father Slattery was in, was attacked by the Germans and some of the ships got sunk.  From 1941 until his demise in July 2003, Father Slattery was in Nigeria except when he went for further studies or on leave.  He was Irish and white in skin colour but he was a Nigerian at heart, in action, orientation and in his missionary, educational, and militant anti-colonial, politico-religious weekly Nigerian Catholic Herald.

With the personality, reputation, and achievements of Father Slattery, I gladly and enthusiastically accepted to give the Lecture for this year to honour his memory.  I had hoped that I would be with you physically until I received the invitation from President Museveni of Uganda to be with him on 18 and 19 September.  Please accept my apologies.  The subject given by the organisers to give the Lecture is also very alluring and very topical and relevant, “The Imperative for Moral Rectitude in Governance”  There are four important words in this subject matter as we go along.  And they are Imperative, Moral and Morality, Rectitude and Governance.

Imperative indicates something of vital importance, something crucial and not to be ignored or neglected.  It is something that is very essential, of utmost importance and absolutely necessary.  It is something of a command and must be made to happen.  It is domineering and well above others.

Moral is an adjective from morality which entails and concerns principles, values between right and wrong and correct conduct, behaviour, thinking, saying and action with moral compass content – beliefs and process regarding right and wrong.

Rectitude goes along with morality and using the word ‘moral’ to qualify rectitude is just to underline the importance of rectitude which itself is morally correct behaviour, thinking, action and reaction.  It is both right and righteous.  Rectitude also entails acceptance and approval by the people concerned for their own good and in their own interest.

Governance is the action or manner of administering a state, organisation, or any human institution.  It is the act or process of overseeing and oversighting the control, management and administration, welfare and well-being of human institutions of any group at any level.  It entails ethics, character, attributes and values.

Going on from here, we can see that governance at any level is an important aspect of directing human affairs for good or for ill.  We have also seen that governance covers the administration of any human group, big or small, and the main objective is the welfare and well-being of all the individuals that make up the group.  This begins from the family level through the state level to the international organisation and corporate conglomeration.

The most important demand of anybody involved in governance at any level but particularly at the state level is accountability.  If you are going to be granted and trusted with governance of people – putting their welfare, well-being and interests in your hands -, they have right to make categorical and important demands of you.  This is where and how rectitude comes in.  It is again morally correct behaviour, thinking, action, reaction and saying.  But here, we want to focus on governance at state level where politics come into play.  Politics are the activities associated with the governance of a country, state or area.  These activities are normally aimed at improving and enhancing the status, welfare and well-being of citizens or members of the human institution or organisation.  Politics and governance go hand-in-hand.  Where there are bad politics, there is bad governance.  The foundation of good politics is moral rectitude – appreciation of right and wrong and doing the right, being righteous.

There must be morality and principles which must manifest from character, attributes and values in politics and subsequently in governance.  If you have no character, morality, principles and moral compass, you will have no rectitude which is must have for good governance and effective delivery for the welfare and well-being of the people.  If morality and character are essential for the path of rectitude in governance, the imperative of moral rectitude in governance is overwhelming and unsurpassed.  There can be no crown without a cross nor can there be gain without pain.  There can be no good governance without good character and moral rectitude.

Let us look at what we have today and we may be able to understand why we are where we are.  Some erroneously claim that there should be no morality, principles, rectitude and character in politics.  When they lie, they give politics as an excuse.  When they steal, they give politics as an excuse.  They turn politics into a bad thing but it is not politics that is bad but themselves.  If we have men and women of no character in politics, you will have bad politics and bad governance.  If you look clinically at the people in government today at both executive and legislative levels, some of them should be permanently behind bars for their past misdemeanour and criminal misconduct.  You cannot expect thieves to give good judgement in favour of the owner of the property.

The first thing that shocked me when I went into politics was the level of corruption of election officials which was taken as normal.  The second was the level of general and criminal misbehaviour which was taken with levity and impunity.  We were at a meeting and a man lied and I confronted him, and the next thing he said is, “It is all politics, Sir”.  Every bad thing they do is passed on as politics which means politics has no room for morality, principles, rectitude, ethics, good character and attributes.  These are, of course, not true.  People invariably bring what they are into politics and into governance.  And because of the suffocating and polluting influence of the bad eggs, the whole tray of eggs may be regarded as bad.  Therefore, those who are people of honour, integrity, and decency, following the path of morality, principle, integrity and rectitude should never deviate because it is imperative for good politics and good governance.  Where they are absent, there will be little hope for development, growth and progress overall.

Is there a way out from the dungeon that we are in – lack of peace, security, stability, and predictability and with almost everyone sinking into greater poverty, economic misery and deep despair?  Yes, there is.  We need transformational leaders rather than transactional leaders, truth instead of lies, honesty instead of dishonesty, integrity instead of disintegrity, hope instead of despair, the production instead of deduction, and inclusion instead of exclusion and marginalisation.  God has given us all we need to be a great country but we have often squandered it.  We need to go back to basics and for re-armament and those things that we did to make things good in the past – avoiding waste domestically, eliminating corruption, leading by example, and avoiding debt.  But we must work for togetherness, fear God, and seek the face of God in all things.  Where we are is not the right and proper place for Nigeria and Nigerians.

Thanks for listening.

Obasanjo, a former Nigerian president, spoke virtually on Thursday at the memorial lecture of Denis Joseph Slattery, the late cleric. The event was organised by the Old Boys’ Association of St. Finbarr’s College at Civic Centre in Victoria Island, Lagos.

Let me be upfront: I commiserate with everyone affected by the Borno flood. This is a catastrophe that goes beyond physical devastation; it is about systemic failures. I appreciate Governor Babagana Zulum’s leadership so far. In response to the crisis, he outperforms the typical Nigerian governor with swift action, pragmatic decisions, and an unflinching commitment to the people. I join the people of Borno, particularly those affected by the flood, in thanking everyone who has expressed concern about the terrible but avoidable humanitarian situation in Nigeria’s Northeast.

According to yet-to-be-verified accounts, exceptionally heavy rains in September caused the Alau Dam to collapse just a few kilometres outside Maiduguri. By Tuesday morning, September 10, about half of the city was submerged, displacing thousands of families, destroying homes, and crippling critical infrastructure. The flood has directly impacted over 150,000 people in Maiduguri alone, with several communities completely cut off due to submerged roads. According to the Borno State Emergency Management Agency, over 30,000 homes have been damaged or destroyed, and critical facilities, including schools, hospitals, and markets, have been inundated. The extensive damage to farmland, affecting more than 12,000 hectares, threatens food security in a region grappling with severe hunger and malnutrition.

This year alone, floods have affected multiple local government areas in Borno State, including Jere, Konduga, and Dikwa. Reports from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) indicate that over 250,000 people across Borno and neighbouring Yobe and Adamawa states have been displaced by floods in 2024. The tragic death toll stands at over 50, with many more still unaccounted for. The economic losses run into billions of naira, exacerbating the region’s already dire humanitarian crisis. The tragedy starkly highlights our vulnerability to extreme weather events, exacerbated by climate change and lack of preparedness.

In line with global standards of response to humanitarian disasters of this nature, humanitarian organizations, the World Health Organization (WHO), local and international NGOs, and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) quickly mobilized to provide relief materials such as food, healthcare supplies, and sanitation facilities to assist affected persons. Notable contributions also came from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the World Food Programme (WFP), the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPCL), the Aliko Dangote Foundation, and the Presidential Committee on Flood and Disaster, showcasing a wide-ranging but often uncoordinated response.

Federal and state governments joined the “disaster relief donation club,” and politicians and the business elite, some genuinely altruistic and others merely grandstanding, started outcompeting one another in the publicized donation of funds and supplies. However, this influx of generosity was more about optics than solutions. The flood brought politicians and business people of all persuasions into a symbolic handshake—not to address the root causes of the disaster nor to create a system that prevents future recurrences but to protect elite interests and boost political capital. Amidst this, desperate and displaced Nigerians, struggling to rebuild their lives, began keeping mental records of who was donating what, hoping against hope that the show of support would somehow translate into lasting change.

But the real work remains undone. What was the root cause of this flooding that displaced millions in the Northeast? With a plethora of governmental institutions, including the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NiMET), why did we not have accurate intelligence or early warning systems to forestall this disaster? Nigeria’s reactive approach to disaster management is a recurring theme; each year, communities face floods, and each year, relief arrives too late for many.

It is impossible to ignore the impact of climate change on these weather patterns. This flood is not an isolated incident but part of a broader, troubling trend of extreme weather events linked to global climate change. In 2022 alone, floods across Nigeria displaced over 2.8 million people, with Borno among the worst affected states. Yet, how seriously are we taking climate change? Our policies and actions seem disconnected from the urgent need to build climate resilience. Despite being one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries, Nigeria’s response to these challenges is often piecemeal and needs a more strategic vision.

The Borno flood is an exposé on deeper, systemic issues plaguing our government and country. Beyond the relief efforts, it is time for the government and stakeholders at all levels to address sustainable development, particularly poverty alleviation, environmental degradation, and the dire lack of requisite infrastructure that makes our communities vulnerable to disasters. It is high time governments adopt proactive policies that anticipate potential disasters rather than merely reacting after they occur. This includes monitoring dams and related infrastructure, regular updates to disaster response plans based on past experiences, and integrating climate adaptation strategies.

Prevention is key.

Nigeria does not have a comprehensive warning system for landslides, floods, and other natural disasters. We tend to wait until calamities strike before mobilizing resources for the affected, highlighting the inefficiencies and inconsiderate disposition of our political leaders. The urgent need for a comprehensive warning system cannot be overstated. Very often, short-term political agendas overshadow long-term flood and disaster prevention measures.

As I stated in my earlier essay on reactive governance, dated July 10, 2023, our political leaders cannot continue to prioritize short-term relief over long-term readiness and resilience planning. This shortsightedness hampers effective disaster management in situations like the Borno flood. The emphasis on short-term aid reflects a larger pattern in which political narratives precede genuine efforts to implement innovative measures to avert future disasters. Moreover, it undermines the efficiency of response efforts when disasters do occur.

The critical question is: what kind of flood management system do we need to implement to prevent a repeat occurrence? Here are some key strategies that Nigeria, should consider adopting:

First is building a comprehensive flood risk mapping and early warning systems. Flood risk mapping is essential for identifying flood-prone areas and implementing risk reduction measures. By investing in robust, real-time early warning systems, authorities can provide timely alerts to residents, enabling them to take precautionary measures. These systems should be integrated with weather forecasts from the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NiMET) and real-time river basins and dams monitoring.

The second is improving and maintaining Dams and Drainage Systems. Critical infrastructure failures like the Alau Dam are a significant contributing factor to Borno’s flooding. Regular maintenance and upgrading of dams, levees, and drainage systems are vital to ensure they can withstand extreme weather events. Governments should establish a monitoring framework to regularly assess the integrity of such infrastructures and carry out necessary repairs and reinforcements.

Third is a Reforestation and Sustainable Land Management project. Deforestation and land degradation significantly increase flood risks by reducing the land’s natural ability to absorb water. Reforestation, particularly in flood-prone areas, helps stabilize soil and reduce runoff. Promoting sustainable agricultural practices and managing land use can also mitigate flood impacts.

Fourth is executing urban planning and Flood-Resilient Infrastructure. Urban areas in Nigeria often suffer from poor drainage, unregulated building practices, and inadequate flood defences. Enforcing stricter urban planning regulations and investing in flood-resilient infrastructure, such as elevated roads, floodwalls, and permeable pavements, can reduce the impact of flooding. Moreover, relocation of communities from high-risk zones to safer grounds should be considered.

Fifth is to create a Community-Based Flood Management. Engaging local communities in flood management initiatives ensures that responses are tailored to the specific needs and vulnerabilities of the population. This includes raising awareness about flood risks, emergency preparedness training, and involving communities in maintaining flood defences. Community-led initiatives can enhance resilience and ensure faster, more coordinated responses when floods occur.

The sixth is to develop and implement a Climate Change Adaptation Strategy. As extreme weather events become more frequent due to climate change, Nigeria must develop a comprehensive climate adaptation plan. This includes integrating climate risk assessments into national and regional planning, adopting water conservation techniques, and creating policies that promote climate-resilient agriculture. Proactive climate action can significantly reduce the long-term impact of flooding.

Finally, providing Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM). Effective flood management requires a holistic approach that considers upstream and downstream impacts. IWRM promotes coordinated development and management of water, land, and related resources, ensuring that flood prevention measures are harmonized across sectors and regions.

Natural disaster prevention and management are intrinsically linked to how seriously we take climate change. All stakeholders must take urgent and sustained action to address the issue at stake because the severe threats posed by climate change demand it. This is especially true in Nigeria, where a sizable part of the population depends on agriculture and other climate-sensitive sectors for their livelihood. Therefore, the government must implement practical, tangible, and fit-for-purpose measures to mitigate climate change risks and ensure sustainable development.

This is a clarion call for change. The Borno flood must not just be another tragic entry in our history books but a pivotal moment that sparks transformative action. The path forward demands courage, commitment, and the will to prioritize our collective future over the moment’s politics.

Development is an ever-present idea that continues to evolve as human society reaches new possibilities and comes to a new sense of awareness of its strengths, opportunities and environmental advantages. The theory of development has preoccupied economists, policy makers and a wide range of other professionals for centuries. Improvement or lack thereof, in the living conditions of the various demographics and income groups, was the first layer of interest in the study of development. As society began to advance, scholars turned attention to other equally important frontiers of fulfillment beyond the material well-being of the populace. This era opened new vistas of attention in the quest to understand the evolution of our progress as social justice, respect for the fundamental rights of citizens, democracy, and transparent governance systems began to count as important development metrics. Evidently, the understanding of development will continue to expand as researchers break new grounds into the dynamic nature of individual and social aspirations.

The principle of dynamism drives the study of development across epochs, supporting the understanding that nothing is static. Adam Smith, James Steuart, David Hume, and John Stuart Mill, whose thoughts and ideas pioneered the subject of development studies, focused extensively on the principles of wealth distribution and the best path to eliminating poverty and lack among the majority within the community. As the subject continued to expand, scholars began to look beyond just material comfort to draw attention to how the principles of equality, freedom and justice resonate with the ideals of development across broad frontiers. These expanded parameters influenced the policy decisions of leaders who sought to improve the material well-being of the citizens while also addressing the challenges of inequality through deliberate initiatives that are aimed at reducing the gap between the haves and have-nots.

Through a careful analysis of the above insights and scholarly philosophies on the path to attaining improved living conditions for the general population, one finds that not much attention was paid to the future, the generations that will be here when we are gone.

In addition to the scant regard paid to the needs of future generations, another major failing of the regular economic development philosophy of the 18^th, 19^th, and early 20th centuries was the blatant disregard for the condition of the environment and its continuing capacity to sustain man’s financial activities beyond the immediate. Although T. R. Malthus did call attention to the dangers of explosive population growth vis-à-vis limited food supply in a 1798 essay, future scholars were only able to highlight the loopholes in the theory, especially as technology and discovery of new lands further increased food supply even as population grew. This seeming paradox raised unsettling questions about the postulations of the British scholar and, of course, the validity of his theory.

Although the 1972 book The Limits to Growth by Meadows et al. discussed the uncertain fate that awaits humanity when, ultimately, exponential economic and population growth are eventually confronted by the reality of finite resource supply, the work was greeted with cynicism as many scholars accused the authors of promoting pessimism. Subsequently,  Beyond the Limits, published in 1992 in an attempt to address the criticisms raised in the 1972 edition, was met with even fiercer criticisms as cynics argued that the projections were misleading and incorrect. These criticisms clearly showed that interests in the planet’s future and the limits of natural resources were very peripheral to mainstream economic development theorists’ consideration.

Things would however take a new turn in the development circuit as fresh perspectives around the subject of sustainability began to move into mainstream debates. The publication of a Gro Harlem Brundtland report in 1987 titled Our Common Future opened a new vista for scholarly discussions and debates around the subject. This report gave the first standard definition of sustainable development as one that meets the needs of the current generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

The Brundtland report and the interest it generated formed the background for the interactions at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992. Participants reached a consensus that sustainable development must be made a priority of the International Community, recommending that national strategies be realigned to reflect the new global consciousness on the dynamics of sustainable development, including the new framework’s economic, social, and environmental demands. A 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South Africa (Rio+10), reviewed the progress recorded in the efforts at achieving sustainable development and developed new strategies for pushing the agenda mainly through a multi-stakeholder partnership framework. A subsequent summit (Rio+20) in 2012 held in Rio de Janeiro highlighted the importance of the Green Economy and the urgency of developing an institutional framework to drive the agenda on a global scale.

The development of the core elements of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) framework, which came to the fore in 2015, started at the Rio+20 Summit. The SDGs are built around a set of clearly defined global goals related to protecting the environment and addressing the international community’s political and economic challenges. Featuring 17 critical areas of focus designed to build on the progress made through the Millennium Development Goal (MDGs) framework, which ran from 2000 through 2015, the SDGs architecture sought to drive a global agenda to eradicate poverty and end the menace of hunger, amongst other carefully articulated objectives consented to by world leaders in September 2015.

The priority of attacking poverty and hunger is proof that the primary concerns of improving the living conditions and welfare of the general population remains ever present, like in every other economic development model. The superiority of the sustainable development framework is, however, found in the attention it gives to measures aimed at protecting the environment, including the push for cleaner, renewable energy, climate action, and responsible production and consumption.

The sustainable development framework generally offers a global perspective on social, economic, and environmental policies, considering the present and future needs. The recognition of the importance of biodiversity, the appreciation and imperative to protect indigenous cultures, the cultivation of economic and social equity, and the importance of robust governance mechanisms dedicated to solving problems and making good use of the resources of the earth collectively add to the appeal as a more robust and all-encompassing paradigm for long term economic and social development in all parts of the world.

Its wide acceptance notwithstanding, the sustainable economic development paradigm has also been strongly criticised by scholars who describe it as vague and lacking in specificity. It has also come under attack for lacking critical milestones that can be quantitatively measured, which further lends credence to the views of those who criticise it for vagueness.

Abia, one of the five states in the South-east region of Nigeria, has a population of about 4.8 million people and a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of about US$7.1 billion. Abia has two important urban locations — Umuahia, the State capital, and Aba, the commercial nerve centre. Aba is also one of the most crucial trade destinations in West Africa. Farming and trading are the predominant occupations of our people. Abians are also known for producing high-quality fashion products and several other household and industrial goods that are sold in markets across Nigeria and West Africa.

We bought into the sustainable development framework long before assuming office in May 2023. Our campaign manifesto was built around the sustainable economic development model because we noted that it holds great potential to drive the development of the various communities in the State and ultimately make the future more prosperous through the prudent use of resources. Additionally, it clearly focuses on building systems that support our people’s economic and political aspirations.

Permit me, however, to share my views on the subject matter of climate change as it relates to clean energy and net zero emissions for purposes of intellectual honesty and presentation accuracy. While we agree that the reduction of carbon footprint is unavoidable, we contend that the deadlines set by countries in Europe and America may be a little too aggressive and unrealistic for Africa. We also note that the cost of reaching net zero emission in countries like Nigeria who rely on oil and gas to run their economy may be extremely high. We see gas as a cleaner hydrocarbon quite unlike coal and believe it should pass as a transition fuel in the march towards net zero emission. This argument is eloquently canvassed in my article titled “Can Renewables Change the Future of Gas?” (Thisday Newspapers, September 13, 2021). Again, in my column in the wake of COP 26, titled “Of Glass Houses, Stones and Glasgow,” published in THISDAY Newspapers of November 22, 2021, I had maintained that all the regions and nations of the world are not on the same development pedestal with respect to climate responsibilities. In Africa for example, our development realities still revolve around hygiene issues as scores of millions of people around the continent wake up each morning preoccupied with concerns about where the next meal will come from. Challenges of unemployment, poverty, and access to basic amenities including clean water, quality road networks, and stable electricity still dominate social and political discourses across the continent.

In another 2021 article, I shared a depressing report from the World Bank which ranked Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, as being the largest energy-deficient country in the world with more than 40% of the total population lacking access to grid electricity. The implication is that active production is hampered as machines and other resources lie idle across factories and production centres. This perhaps explains Africa’s record of low emissions at just 3.8% of the global total.

My argument at the time, as it would be today, is that while we shall do well to keep our eyes on the future and work closely with our global partners for an emission-free world eventually, it would not be realistically prudent to immediately follow the same trajectory as those who have since conquered the existential development challenges we are still grappling with today. Our task as leaders is to constantly appraise the state of affairs in our society and make decisions that will be in the long-term best interest of our people, taking cognisance of available resources, and competing needs of the populace. Again, we have to state that an honest appraisal of our development reality imposes a certain burden on us as leaders of the developing world to adopt initiatives that will improve the socio-economic development of the general population, prioritising programmes that address the challenges of mass poverty, hunger, unemployment and limited access to education and health services.

Dr. Otti, OFR, is the Executive Governor of Abia State. He was on the editorial board of THISDAY Newspapers between 2016 and 2022 and maintains the column, ‘Outside The Box’

The just concluded Edo State Governorship poll could well be described as a three-horse race. The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Dr. Asue Ighodalo; the All Progressives Congress (APC) which featured Senator Monday Okpebholo; the Labour Party (LP) with Olumide Akpata. There were also 14 other parties and their candidates.

In concrete terms, Akpata and other parties’ candidates right from onset lacked the wherewithal to upturn the chances of the big two (APC and PDP) to make any difference. The two big parties were already household names and their rivalry did not just begin yesterday but since the advent of the Fourth Republic over 25 years ago.

Although APC’s emergence into a national political force actually began in 2015 when it won the presidential election, it has remained an opposition element with different nomenclature like Alliance for Democracy (AD), Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and lastly, the All Progressives Congress (APC) after a coalition was born.

On the other hand, the PDP has been a dominant force right from the emergence of the present democratic dispensation.

Labour Party, though not too new as a political force, but the only time it made wave was during the 2023 general election when it fielded the former Anambra State governor, Mr. Peter Obi as its presidential candidate as well as the ability of the party to win one governorship seat and a number of national assembly seats.

Therefore in the just concluded Edo gubernatorial poll, it was clear that it’s either the PDP or APC that will carry the day.

Incidentally, the APC displaced the PDP this time around after the outgoing governor had ran on the platform of the two parties. First on the platform of APC and second with the PDP.

Obaseki was able to defeat the APC in 2020 not because he was well grounded politically, but because the Edo electorate saw him as someone being oppressed by a political godfather and benefactor. The infighting in APC both at the national and state levels contributed to his being re-elected for second term.

However, he was carried away by his successes and neglected the human element in governance, hence his political opponents began to see him as someone who lack empathy but derives joy in fighting those that helped him politically.

One had thought that after parting ways with his predecessor, Comrade Adams Oshiomohle, who helped him in his first shot as governor, he would have mellowed down and settle down for proper governance of the state.

But immediately he got his second term through the help of the PDP, Obaseki began to display similar characters to those he met in the party. For instance, if Oshiomohle was “overbearing”, there was no reason why Obaseki should part ways with Chief Dan Orbi, former governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, former Speaker of the state assembly, Hon Kabiru Adjoto, Charles Idahosa, Anselm Ojezua, Gideon Ikhine, Omoregie Ogbeide-Ihama and many others who were there for him then when APC showed him the way out of the party ahead of the 2020 governorship poll.

Even with his deputy, Philip Shaibu, who was impeached by the state assembly through the push of Obaseki was unnecessary. Rather than finding a way to tolerate Shaibu, he went for the jugular by ensuring he was removed from office.

Similar behaviour played out when Obaseki championed the non swearing in of 14 elected state lawmakers in 2019 and their fate still hanging in the ballance with another set already in the saddle.

All these culminated in the gang up against Obaseki. It is not as if his candidate, Ighodalo lacks the knowledge and swag of governance having played significant role in the administration of Oshiomohle and in the present government, but what played out is just a gang up to teach Obaseki some political lessons that you can’t have it all the time.

Unfortunately, his preferred candidate, Ighodalo and running mate, Osarodion Ogie, are the sacrificial lambs that suffered Obaseki’s self centred behaviour, politics of alienation and annihilation. Two fine unassuming gentlemen are now the ones to carry the cross of Obaseki’s uncompromising attitude.

Comparatively, Okpebholo in terms of governance quality is a minus compared to cerebral people like Akpata and Ighodalo but he is the one the entrenched political class both in the state and at the national level chose to foist on the people of Edo State known for their sophistication. This was due to Obaseki’s hard stance on issues and holier than thou attitude to others especially people that opened their doors for him when it was raining heavily outside.

Therefore, even with all the infrastructure put in place, the agricultural revolution, the ability to build an independent power station, the inroad in education and the propensity to build high Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), the political hawks said No! You can’t continue to have your way.

Though the victory of APC may not have anything to do with Obaseki’s relationship with the Oba of Benin and the issue of proposed return of artifacts and where to house them, the party to a large extent used it as a campaign strategy to create enemity between the Oba and Governor Obaseki, especially among indigenes of Benin dominant in Edo South senatorial district who look up to the paramount ruler as god on earth. That sentiment played significant role in demarketing Ighodalo because of Obaseki’s support for him.

To them, a victory for Ighodalo and Ogie is victory for Obaseki. So the best thing to do is to stop their aspirations even with the best of intentions. The best thing is to throw away the baby with the bath water.

Another critical issue that played out is the unguided utterances during the electioneering campaign. “Edo will burn if PDP did not win the election”, “Edo no be Lagos”, a slogan that worked during the 2020 governorship forgetting that this is 2024.

It would be recalled that in the build up to APC presidential primary election, then presidential aspurant, Bola Tinubu had promised the party delegates that if he wins, he will return Edo back to APC fold. He may not have given such assurance for the sake of campaign. Today, opportunity knocks and he has to fulfil his promise using what he has to get what he wanted.

The last straw that broke the camel’s back was the accusation by the Edo PDP Chairman, Tony Aziegbemi during the symbolic Peace Accord signing organised by the Kukah Foundation in conjunction with former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar in Benin. At the meeting, Aziegbemi openly accused the police of bias concerning the arrest and detention of some PDP members few weeks to election. In his response, the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun told Aziegbemi frontally that if arresting and investigating persons allegedly involved in the killing of a Police Inspector is bias, he (Aziegbemi) will live with that dream forever.

Such combative attitude is not the best approach knowing fully well that implications will no doubt have a rebound and other ripple effects. And today, the PDP is struggling for legitimacy in a state it once holds sway.

Nonetheless, nothing is meant to last forever. Like Moises Naim in his book, “The End of Power”, said: “From boardrooms to battlefields and churches to states, why being in power isn’t what it use to be.”

In other words, power like every other sphere of life is in constant shift.

The fight against corruption in Nigeria is often described as a relentless battle, particularly when seen from the prism of the dictum that says, “If you fight corruption, it will fight back.” This powerful statement has become a reference point in Nigeria’s ongoing struggle against corruption, and it seems especially relevant today as allegations of fraud and abuse of office emerge against Nigeria’s Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs. Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye.

In fact, in recent weeks, the political landscape has been shaken by allegations of corruption against Ohaneye-Kennedy, Nigeria’s Minister of Women Affairs. These charges have raised eyebrows and sparked debates across social media platforms, public forums, and even within the halls of government. As the dust settles on these allegations, one pressing question emerges: Is this case merely a reflection of corruption’s tenacity, or is it a calculated attack on a minister striving for change in a deeply entrenched system?

To contextualize the allegations, it is expedient to opine that Ohaneye-Kennedy was appointed with a mandate to address critical issues facing women in Nigeria, including gender-based violence, economic empowerment, and social welfare. However, as initiatives began to roll out, whispers of corruption surfaced, claiming that funds allocated for women’s programs were mismanaged or diverted. While some hail these allegations as justified concerns about governance, others argue that they are strategically timed efforts to undermine her authority and discredit her agenda.

Without resorting to taking sides or exonerating anyone in this piece, it is germane to opine that since assuming office that Mrs. Kennedy-Ohanenye has publicly declared her commitment to fighting corruption within her ministry. However, in a dramatic turn of events, she now faces allegations that threaten to undermine the very cause she claims to champion. A petition brought before the House of Representatives accuses the minister of fraud, abuse of office, and economic sabotage, charges that have not only shaken the Ministry of Women Affairs but also raised broader questions about the nature of corruption in Nigeria.

The petition, filed by St. Gilos Solicitors on behalf of Mela Chiyoma Pat Limited and its Managing Director, Mrs. Patricia Stan-Dioka, centers around the “Women for Food Security” program, an initiative aimed at empowering rural women in line with President Bola Tinubu’s food security agenda. The program was set to deliver a much-needed boost to Nigeria’s rural economy, and Mrs. Stan-Dioka and her company were appointed as official agents to oversee its implementation.

However, according to the petition, things quickly went awry when Mrs. Kennedy-Ohanenye allegedly directed that donor funds be paid into her personal account or that of her son, a request that was promptly refused by Mrs. Stan-Dioka. This refusal, it seems, sparked a series of events that culminated in public embarrassment and a disrupted event in August 2024, where the minister reportedly accused Mrs. Stan-Dioka of being an imposter, an act that not only caught national attention but also caused diplomatic embarrassment as the Deputy Prime Minister of Uganda, a guest of honor at the event, was caught in the crossfire. The petition claims that these actions not only jeopardized the program but also sabotaged potential investments that could have brought Nigeria over $200 billion in incentives.

The allegations against Mrs. Kennedy-Ohanenye fit into a broader narrative in Nigerian politics, where high-ranking officials who have taken strong stances against corruption often find themselves accused of the same malfeasance. Over the years, similar cases have emerged, showing how Nigeria’s anti-corruption war is often fraught with complexity, intrigue, and high-stakes power struggles.

One of the most infamous examples is the case of former Finance Minister Kemi Adeosun. Adeosun was seen as a reformer, pushing for transparency and fiscal discipline during her time in office under President Buhari. However, in 2018, she found herself at the center of a scandal involving allegations of forgery. It was revealed that her National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) exemption certificate, a mandatory requirement for public office in Nigeria, was forged. Despite her contributions to Nigeria’s economic reforms, Adeosun was forced to resign amid mounting public pressure, a stark reminder of how even those hailed as champions of reform can be caught in corruption scandals.**Is the Corruption Allegation Against Ohaneye-Kennedy, Minister of Women Affairs, a Case of Corruption Fighting Back?

The notion of “corruption fighting back” is not new. It suggests that actors within corrupt systems often mobilize to protect their interests when faced with reform or exposure. Ohaneye-Kennedy’s efforts to implement transparent governance and champion equity for women pose a direct threat to entrenched interests that benefit from the status quo.

If the allegations against her are driven by individuals determined to maintain their influence and continue the practices of mismanagement and graft, they reflect a broader trend seen across various sectors in Nigeria. It raises a critical point: Are these allegations part of a larger narrative where those benefitting from corruption are pushing back against change?

Public sentiment towards Ohaneye-Kennedy varies significantly. Many citizens support her efforts, recognizing the importance of accountability and integrity in governance. Others, however, might view the allegations as a legitimate inquiry into her leadership, calling for thorough investigations regardless of the motive behind them.

The implications of this situation are profound. If the allegations are proven unfounded and rooted in a campaign to discredit a reform-minded minister, it could represent a significant setback for anti-corruption efforts in Nigeria. Conversely, if there is merit to these allegations, they would underscore the need for stricter oversight within government ministries, especially those charged with implementing social programs.

As the allegations against Ohaneye-Kennedy unfold, it will be vital to monitor not only the judicial processes but also the narratives that emerge around them. Disentangling genuine concerns about corruption from politically motivated attacks is essential for safeguarding the integrity of governance in Nigeria. The question remains: Is this case an instance of corruption fighting back, or an opportunity for genuine accountability? Only time will tell, but one thing is clear, the stakes are high, both for women’s rights initiatives and the broader fight against corruption in Nigeria.

In fact, the question that now looms large is whether Mrs. Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye is the latest victim of corruption’s counterattack. Is this a case where entrenched interests are fighting back against her attempts to reform the Ministry of Women Affairs? Or is she indeed guilty of the allegations brought against her?

With several dramatic developments such as political violence, mudslinging, commercialized processes, threats and other incidents which reflect what is known as ‘federal might’ in Nigeria during elections, yesterday’s governorship contest in Edo State can easily qualify to be the story of the moment but it is certainly not the best story for posterity. This is because there is no difference between the said Edo governorship and any other Nigerian election.

Unknown to many people, there are numerous bizarre events in our country other than electoral malpractices that are always swept under the carpet but which really deserve to be heavily publicized. One of such matters concerns the wilful destruction of the career of fellow citizens by some people in authority. The story of an innocent jurist, Walter Onnoghen, Chief Justice of Nigeria CJN (2017-2019) aptly fits in here.

Last week, the media was replete with reports that the Court of Appeal Ibadan Division had approved a proposal by the federal government to settle out of court with Justice Walter Onnoghen, a former CJN who was challenging his premature removal from office in 2019. The Code of Conduct Tribunal had convicted the former CJN for failure to correctly declare his assets as a public official. Although Onnoghen appealed the judgment at the time, it is only being heard now! One of the first things posterity stands to learn from the case is that some 5years ago, the Nigerian judiciary did nothing about the decision of the executive branch to illegally disgrace the head of their own arm of government out of office.

It was not the first time that politicians had attempted to so act, but in other similar cases, the judiciary decisively and promptly struck down the plan. In 2009 for instance, the then Kwara State Governor and the State House of Assembly had acted together to remove the Chief Judge of the State, Justice Raliat Elelu-Habeeb. The judiciary however rejected the attempt for the fundamental legal reason that the Chief Judge of a state “cannot be removed or disciplined without the input or participation of the National Judicial Council NJC.” Interestingly, Justice Walter Onnoghen was one of the 7 justices of the Supreme Court that heard the case. The Apex court had taken the same position when similar attempts were made to remove or appoint the Chief Judges of Rivers, Plateau and Ekiti states.

Each time the executive and the legislature attempted to remove a chief Judge (CJ) without involving the Judiciary,the NJC did not only reject the action, it went on to penalize any judge who accepted to be sworn in to act as CJ because every judge was expected to be reasonable enough to reject being part of an unconstitutional transaction. For example, in 2018, the NJC at its 85th meeting expectedly rejected the purported removal of Justice Theresa Uzokwe as the CJ of Abia State. It also penalized Justice Obisike Oji “for allowing himself to be sworn in as acting chief Judge thereby colluding in, and aiding an unconstitutional process.” With the handling of the cases in Kwara and Abia, which were followed in dealing with similar cases in other states, the NJC had set a standard no one expected it to depart or shy away from no matter whose axe was gored. 

But in 2019, when the then CJN, Walter Onnoghenwas wrongly removed from office, the executive branch headed at the time by President Muhammadu Buhari also proceeded to appoint and swear in another justice of the Supreme Court, Justice Tanko Muhammad to serve as Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria.The NJC neither rejected Buhari’s action nor did it penalize Tanko Muhammad for accepting a constitutional breach which favoured himself.  Indeed, the Judiciary relying on the technicality that usually a court trial is never stopped allowed the trial of the nation’s Chief Justice at the Code of Conduct Tribunal. The NJC also ignored the petition by the erudite Olisa Agbakoba SAN to extend to Tanko Muhammad what it applied to Obisike Oji a year earlier. Instead, the NJC after a few months took two steps, first, it recommended an extension of Tanko’s illegal acting appointment and second, recommended a few months later, that the appointment be confirmed.

Now that the federal government is seeking an out of court settlement over the removal of Justice Onnoghen, one is tempted to ponder over what the sacked CJN did not do before that he has now done to deserve the olive branch that is currently being offered to him. Could it be that the earlier charges against Onnoghen were fake? Of course, it can’t be otherwise because the government has no business seeking to settle out of court with a judge it removed from office after a conviction by its favourite court – the Code of Conduct Tribunal. The only other way to look at the subject is to accept the thinking in many circles at the time that Onnoghen was coerced to face trumped-up charges to stop him from playing any role in the election petitions that would follow the nearby 2019 presidential elections.

Posterity would consume much time to marvel at the role played by certain actors in the saga. To start with, why was the nation’s top most judge subjected to media trial? Onnoghen was accused of submitting an inaccurately completed assets declaration form to the Code of Conduct Bureau. It was also said that the former CJN naively admitted that it was an error on his part which made the government feel justified to arraign him to face prosecution at the Code of Conduct tribunal (CTC). Virtually everyone perceived Onnoghen as a crook especially as government indicated that it had uncovered many of his hidden assets which reportedly included 55 houses and several bank accounts. It was in fact stated that the former CJN in breach of extant laws, maintained foreign accounts.

Forgetting its foremost ethical value of balance and objectivity which demands that all the sides to a story must be published, the media indiscriminately opened all its organs for several uninformed commentaries. Some legal professionals actively joined in the unfortunate media trial which they knew to be an undue interference in the process of justice delivery. In fact, one senior judge who claimed to have been in practice forabout half a century said his own assets were a little fraction of what the former CJN allegedly had in his accounts. Yet, no one, be it journalists, lawyers or average citizens bothered to get the views of the suspect who had become indicted before trial. The nearest the nation got to hear from the accused was what people said Onnoghen claimed to have said.

In addition, the nation did not get to know how the relevant law expected Onnoghen’s alleged offence to be handled. Meanwhile Section 3(d) of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act which is a public document specifically provided that where a person who failed to document all his assets makes a written admission of his non-compliance, no reference to the Tribunal was necessary. In other words, the immediate intention of the law was to first ensure compliance rather than rush to punish non-compliance without an opportunity for the wrong doer to effect corrections to his error. If so, why was Onnoghen summarily sent to the tribunal for prosecution instead of being offered a second opportunity to collect fresh forms to include his alleged previously undisclosed assets.

There are more important questions. First, why were some publicity-seeking senior lawyers calling for Onnoghen’s resignation as if that was the exact punishment legally prescribed for anyone with incomplete assets’ declaration? Second, why did analysts keep quiet when it became clear during the kangaroo trial that government was unable to identify up to 5 of the 55 houses earlier said to belong to the former CJN? Third, why did the protagonists of ‘Onnoghen must be punished’ go dumb when it was revealed that what the former CJN only operated government approved domiciliary accounts for public officials and not foreign accounts? Fourth, why was Buhari’s government not condemned for what my favourite Professor Milo Moro would describe as devious opprobrium? Fifth, will the present government that has shown good disposition to Onnoghen’s case, appropriately immortalise him through the naming of one major national edifice after him? Anything less would be ungodly.

Anthony Joshua has revealed why he was knocked out in the fifth round by Daniel Dubois during their heavyweight clash on Saturday, which saw Dubois retain his IBF heavyweight title.

The fight, held at Wembley Stadium in front of a massive crowd of 96,000, showcased a dominant performance by Dubois.

The 27-year-old floored Joshua four times before delivering the decisive blow in the fifth round—a powerful right to the chin that ended the contest.

During his post-match press conference, Joshua reflected on the loss, attributing his defeat to a series of mistakes made throughout the bout.

He said: “The first round? Overhand right, chin in the air, no defence kaboom.

“And it was a bit of a downhill slope from there. Tried to change the tides but it just weren’t my night tonight.”

Revealing what went wrong with him in the fifth round despite starting it strongly Joshua said:

“I caught him with a good shot I think and then I tried to go for it, and then I got caught with an overhead right, when I was throwing the uppercut.

“Thing is, I wasn’t setting shots up. In a shootout like that you really got to be a bit more sniper-esque.

“But when you’ve been hit a few times, it’s survival, I’m in survival mode.

“I just want to get him out of there and we had a shoot out and he hit me.”

Vanguard News

Compassion is an intrinsic value of leadership. Where there is compassion in leadership, there is healing, solidarity, and community. Leadership exists not in a vacuum but in the furtherance of ideals, welfare, and the protection of lives and property. A show of compassion is an affirmation of that critical essence of leadership – to serve the people.

An unforgiving flood coursed through parts of Maiduguri, Borno state, a few days ago, displacing citizens, wolfing property and lives, and leaving a ghastly trail of devastation. According to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the flood began after the Alau Dam overflowed owing to torrential rains, resulting in the state’s worst flooding in 30 years.

As the consoler-in-chief, a few short hours after he returned from his official trip abroad, President Tinubu spared no room for niceties, he travelled to Borno State to sympathise with the people, inspire hope and resilience through the rough patch, as well as provide firm assurances of support.

In Maiduguri, the President announced a relief fund to assist citizens hit by floods and other disasters. He visited the Shehu of Borno, an internally displaced persons’ camp at Government Secondary School, Maiduguri, and had an immersive assessment of the situation with a drive-through of the areas impacted by the contretemps of nature.

“After my visit to the Shehu of Borno and the IDP camp, I have been reflecting on how to tackle this kind of disaster and the effects of climate change. There must be a disaster relief fund. I will invite the private sector to team up with us and help rebuild the affected areas. If we take a small percentage from FAAC and put it as a disaster relief fund, which will include all of you, we will be activating and strengthening our sense of belonging,” the President said.

The President also sympathised with other states affected by flooding, stating: “For all the people of Yobe State, I sympathise with you. We will create an outstanding programme for Nigeria to recover from this calamity. We will build our nation together.’’

Of great essence is President Tinubu’s clarity and precision on a strategy to address the tragedy, to help the people build back better, and prepare for future unforeseen natural accidents.

Pending the activation of the relief fund, so far, 100 trucks of relief materials, comprising 50 trucks of maize, 30 trucks of sorghum, and 20 trucks of millet, as well as cash donations have been provided to citizens imperilled by the mishap by the federal government.

In an accustomed display of charity, Seyi Tinubu and Yinka Tinubu on Friday also led a team to Maiduguri, where they donated N500 million towards the relief effort. Seyi emphasised the transcendence of the unity of wills and purpose at a time of great concern, such as now in Borno.

He said: “We are here today, not just as representatives of our family but as members of a collective effort of young Nigerians to bring hope and relief to those who need it most. This is a moment for solidarity, compassion, and immediate action. Maiduguri and Borno State have rich histories. The people are resilient. Despite the issues of the past few years, they have braved all odds, which is why such a painful national tragedy that befell the state deserves our collective effort, support, and prayers. Even more, it deserves our active collaboration and contributions.

‘’When my dad, President Bola Tinubu, visited Maiduguri earlier this week, he spoke about the urgent need for the private sector and individuals alike to step up in support of the communities affected. Inspired by his call, my wife Layal, and I through the Noella Foundation, my brother Yinka, our friends, and numerous private sector partners have joined hands to respond swiftly to the needs of those displaced by this tragedy.

“However, we hope this small contribution brings comfort and relief to those in need. Together, we can rebuild and heal, for in unity, there is strength. The Nigerian youth stand shoulder to shoulder with the people of Borno. We are in this together, and our thoughts and prayers are with you all. Just like President Bola Tinubu said on Monday, Borno will rise again.”

Other items donated to the state include 10,000 pieces of mosquito nets, blankets, mattresses, kettles, wrappers, buckets, mats, sanitary pads and wash kits, as well as critical supplies to cover prescriptions for almost 50,000 children and adults, antimalarials, anti-hypertensive, anti-parasitic, anti-diabetic, analgesics and antibiotics.

These fine examples of compassion uplift the human spirit, renew hope, and emphasise our shared humanity. They show that with composite efforts towards compassion, we can have a moment of paradise. Leadership is healing.

Fredrick Nwabufo is the senior special assistant to the president on public engagement

One by one, three Nigerian former military rulers, Olusegun Obasanjo, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida and Abdulsalami Abubakar, arrived at Babangida’s Hilltop Mansion in Minna, Niger State, last Sunday. So did former National Security Adviser (NSA), General Aliyu Gusau. The Minna meeting had every trapping of African witches assembling at the coven. Like owls, a pervasive symbol of African witchcraft, did they fly to and perch on their Minna assembly nest at nocturne? Yoruba attribute the kind of powers this trio had/have to witches. They eat the head from the arm and masticate the heart from the liver. In any case, age and interminable presence in the theatre of Nigerian governance should qualify the trio as witches. Yoruba, for instance, approximates age to witchcraft. T’óbìnrin bá pé ńlé, àjé níí dà they say.

When the Minna ‘witches’ were done, like witches who leave their covens lips-sealed, the meeting was without communiqué. In the 1970s, Yoruba Adawa music exponent, Dele Abiodun, gave insight into the post-meeting relapse into dumbness by witches. In a very arresting and velvety voice, Abiodun sang that even if midnight raindrops pelted a witch on their way from the coven, at home, they kept sealed lips. His lyrics: “òjò t’ó pà’jé l’óru, b’ó bá dé’lé, kò ní lè so…” So, several interpretations began to emerge from the meeting of the Minna ‘witches.’ To spittle can carriers of present Nigerian government, the ‘witches,’ to clone lawyers’ lingo, had no moral locus standi to discuss Nigeria. In the words of the phlegm eaters, everyone else could complain about the visibly rudderless economic policies of this government but certainly not the trio. To some others, the Minna meeting forebodes evil for the polity. In their estimation, in the meeting of these Owners of Nigeria, the raspy, grisly and hissing sounds of vultures must have roused them from their sleeps.

The pacifists who feel that the ‘witches’ lack the moral right to discuss the Nigerian crisis remind me of bed-wetting and bed-wetters. Known as enuresis, in Africa, bed-wetting brings with it a lot of scorn. It signifies dirt and shame. In folklores, proverbs and wise-sayings, bed-wetting was ridiculed. It is even worse if the bed-wetter was of the male gender. While female bed-wetting was equally disdained, male bed-wetting was the limit. He was demasculinized by the fact of his bed-wetting. Traditional laundry operators, known in ancient Yoruba society as Alágbàfò, suffered urinary incontinence of the bed-wetter. They had to put up with the acrid ammonia smell of urine that caked and drew maps round their clothes. After dry-cleaning them, especially if they were white-coloured, the Alágbàfò added “aró”- to the clothes for effect.  Apart from smelling nice on clothes and dissolving the ammonia smell, it prevented the clothes from losing form. So, when Alagbafo come to pack clothes from customers for laundry, they looked out for ones that smelled of urine. Due to the inconveniences these smelly clothes put the drycleaner through, Yoruba had unpleasant words for bed-wetting customers who had the temerity to haggle over prices of laundering or the aro. To them, it was double shame. So they couch an apt saying that demonstrates their disdain: Everyone else could haggle over an Alágbàfò’s laundry charges but certainly not a bed-wetter, they say (Ó ye eni gbogbo k’ó yo’wó aró, sùgbón kìì se atòólé).

Two days after meeting at the Minna coven of IBB, Abdulsalami Abubakar met the leadership of the Campaign for Democracy (CD). The former Head of State said hardship in Nigeria had hit the firmament. On same day, former Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Theophilus Danjuma, an ultra-rich member of the ex-military top-brass coven, at an event in Abuja, wondered why it was taking the military an eternity to stop the Nigerian insecurity.

Speaking frankly, what could have scurried Army Generals and ex-Nigerian Commanders-in-Chief of the Armed Forces out of their holes like rats escaping a harmattan field set on fire? Did Abdulsalami, in a way, leak the communiqué? Could it be that, like witches who see beyond their noses, the Owners of Nigeria saw beyond the now into the turmoil to come? Are they afraid of a revolution that can consume them and the ragtag ring leaders of the present mess? Nigeria had become a feisty state of a hen perched on a rope; both rope and hen are thrown into listless restiveness. Government’s economic plan, crafted to please global neo-liberal economic police, lacks human face and the people are hurting. Nigerians die in droves from hunger, distressing hardship and diseases. Yet, rather than own up that solution was beyond its ken, Aso Rock gallivants about with magisterial self-assuredness.

However, those who hold that the ‘witches’ possess no moral right to lament the excruciating time Nigeria found itself, from facts of history, will seem to be justified. The rain didn’t start pelting Nigeria today. According to a January 30, 1970 edition of The New York Times, even after a ruinous, brutal and destructive civil war, Nigeria’s economic structure and promise remained almost unscathed. The country’s spending on prosecuting the needless civil war, put at $1billion, made it one of the few countries in the world which fought an intra-national war for three years without any known record of indebtedness. Times reported that Nigeria adopted the “cash and carry” method for her arms and ammunition procurement. More astoundingly, she didn’t have to draw down on her foreign currency reserves which, pre-war, stood at $400 million. Oil, discovered just before the war and comfortably padded by a fairly widely spread export portfolio of cocoa, groundnuts, tin, rubber, timber and a “$30 million or so”, which was in the hands of the marketing boards and private firms, kept the economy bubbling, even while the armaments of war ricocheted in the air. With an oil production capacity which, as Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu declared at secession in May, 1967, was soaring at 570,000 barrels a day, Nigeria literally didn’t touch her oil during the war, so much that by 1968, production had plummeted to 50 barrels a day. This rose to a record 550,000 barrels a day immediately after the war, with royalties and taxes netting an annual $100 million and which, in 1975, rose to $1 billion from oil companies.

Armed with a humongous oil wealth, a vast population and the mantra of one out of every black person in the world being a Nigerian, these soon “entered Nigeria’s head”, as the street lingo went, and the thought that the country could be an African superpower became a near-national ideological obsession. Between 1967 and 1977, Federal Government revenue was said to have soared by 2,200 per cent. Nigeria’s economy was so strong that, on January 1, 1973, the country abandoned its pound sterling currency, a colonial relic, and created a new currency – the naira. Nigeria was then managed by an exuberant crop of unaccountable military leaders who had scant leadership and economic training. The height of it was Yakubu Gowon’s infamous statement abroad in 1973 that Nigeria’s problem was not money but how to spend it. The huge oil wealth was soon squandered on the altar of naivety, arrogance and knavery.

It became so bad that in 1975, the Gowon government placed accumulated orders for 20 million tonnes of cement, paid for by Nigeria’s buoyant petro-dollars. The cost of the mind-boggling cement orders was put at about $2 billion, an amount which was a quarter of Nigeria’s oil revenue in 1975. This order was, at the time, more than the cement capacities of a combination of Western Europe and the USSR. Apapa was thoroughly overwhelmed and shipping lines all over the world scurried to Nigeria for a bite of the raw, mindless orgy of profligacy. Most of the shipments entered demurrage, in what was infamously dubbed the Cement Armada. When Murtala Muhammed took over from Gowon in a sudden coup and set up a panel to investigate the 12 governors under him, only two of them and two other ministers were found blameless. It was easy for the exuberant military leaders, many of them in their 20s and 30s, some of whom were bachelors like General Jack, the Head of State himself, to extend the spatial control mentality of military psychology into governance.

Thus, in 1972, Nigeria signed a pact with Niger Republic to supply her 30,000 kilowatts of electricity from the Kanji Dam hydropower state, even when local electricity needs were not met. Again in 1974, Nigeria donated millions of naira worth of relief materials to the same Niger Republic when it was ravaged by drought. Earlier, in early 1975, Gowon was in the impoverished island of Grenada with 90,000 inhabitants. Off the cuff, he paid the salaries of all Grenada’s civil servants, sent a contingent of Nigerian police to train Grenadian police, as well as giving a soft loan of $5,000,000 to Eric Gairy, its PM. After the widespread Soweto massacre riots of 1976, Nigeria brought into the country hundreds of “Soweto kids” and several other South African black youths and offered them scholarships to study in Nigerian universities. This continued till the end of Apartheid. In 1972, Gowon sent Nigeria’s troupe to Niger to forestall an imminent coup against his friend, Hamani Diori, with huge financial implications to Nigeria. Throughout his headship of Nigeria, Nigeria paid millions of dollars financing a third of ECOWAS’ budget, even though it was headquartered in another friend, Gnasingbe Eyadema’s Togo. During the Nigerian civil war, Eyadema intercepted a Biafran plane loaded with seven million Nigerian pounds but rather than return it to us, chose to negotiate with it. At negotiations, he demanded two million pounds. Gowon paid him two million British pounds. As at this time, Nigeria’s foreign reserves stood at #32million. Indeed, this squandering of Nigeria’s wealth was one of the reasons provided for removing him as Head of State.

To understand the psychology of the recipients of Nigeria’s deranged spending, we must go back to the year 1972 or so, to the reply of the late President of Niger Republic, Ahmadu Diori, when asked why Niger supported Nigeria as against the secessionist Biafra during the Nigerian civil war. According to Diori, as quoted by Temitope Ola in “Nigeria’s assistance to African states: What are the benefits?”in the International Journal of Development and Sustainability, Niger depended on Nigeria for economic survival. In his direct words, made in French, Diori had said, “quand le Nigeria etermue, le Niger fact plus qu’attraper la grippe, il se trouvedeja a l’hopital” “when Nigeria sneezes, Niger not only catches cold, it is already on admission in the hospital”.

Under Obasanjo, Nigeria established a South Africa Relief Fund (SARF) in 1978, where Nigerians poured about $20 million of their hard-earned money into. In June 1976, Obasanjo presented a cheque of $250,000 to the liberation forces of Rhodesia through the Mozambican Foreign Minister, Joaquim Chissano. He then handed over to President Samora Machel of the newly independent state of Mozambique the sum of $1.6 million as development assistance.

The Big Father Christmas also constructed an expressway from Lagos to the outskirts of Cotonou with several millions of dollars, while spearheading the integration project of a regional gas pipeline for sub-regional economic development. Nigeria equally established the Technical Aid Programme and created a Trust Fund at the African Development Bank (AfDB) for Africans, with a soft loan of $100 million to be lent to least developing African countries.

In 1989, upon the paralysis of the Beninoise government by a bludgeoning workers’ strike occasioned by its inability to pay salaries, Nigeria, under Babangida, offset the salaries, while also donating 12,000 tonnes of petroleum products to the government. The year before, Babangida’s Nigeria funded the Ibrahim Babangida School of International Studies in Liberia and donated seven Nigerian academics to the institution, while Nigeria constructed the Trans-African Highway and bought over Liberia’s debt valued at $30 million. There must have been a-thousand-and-one other frittering off of the Nigerian wealth which took place under cover, which are not open to the rest of the world, all in the name of foreign policy. For instance, as at 2009, Nigeria had sent about 3000 troops to Darfur for the African Union (AU) peacekeeping force. Obasanjo, as civilian president, also sent 5,000 Nigerian soldiers on peacekeeping operations.

In mid-1970s under Mohammed, Nigeria sunk what today will amount to trillions of Naira in Angola. In fact, in his book, Diplomatic Soldiering (1987) Joe Garba wrote: “There was a general feeling among the member-States that the Nigerian treasury was an inexhaustible source of funds.” Ghana and Togo owed the country over $30m from concessionary sales of crude oil. Masquerading under diplomatic recognition to MPLA, in 1975, Nigeria granted outright $20m to Angola, bought military hardware, from rifles to MiGs and more for Angola. Nigeria opened its doors to MPLA delegations and spent on them lavishly. Nigeria’s national airplanes shuttled Luanda and Lagos, fully paid for by us, with its delegates decked in latest designer’s suit of Pierre Cardin. Angola demanded a new F28 aircraft from Nigeria, two used F28 and a new presidential-type F28 aircraft. They were to be delivered with their spare parts. Nigeria, which was importing chilled meat from Argentina, was also asked by President Neto, in whose memory the new airport was named, to send meat to it! The Obasanjo military government also ordered Nigeria Airways to fly Lagos – Luanda daily, at huge loss to the Nigerian government. However, when Nigeria struck a deal with Angola to import, then Angola’s greatest fish resource, it balked and sold exclusive fishing rights to Russia. With all Nigeria did for Angola, when Murtala Muhammed was assassinated in 1976, Angola sent neither delegation, nor any condolences to Nigeria for three weeks.

Recently, TotalEnergies chose to invest a whooping sum of $6billion in energy projects in Angola, over Nigeria. It cited tardy policies. According to its CEO, though Nigeria’s Niger Delta is the most productive field in West Africa, an erratic policy investment climate made the decision inevitable and its investment in Nigeria untenable. Angola also recently constructed a new airport named Antonio Agostinho Neto International Airport (AIAAN) worth $3billion. Fully funded by the Angolan government as a public investment, the project is certain to make Angola the hub of economic activity in African airport transportation. Today, that country is the eighth-largest economy on the African continent and one of Africa’s most resource-rich countries. It is also ranked 16^th among world largest oil producers in 2023 and fourth-largest rough diamond producer by value in 2022.

Muhammadu Buhari, in continuation of this profligate indiscretion and misplaced priority, and a time when Nigeria’s economy had begun to contract, also purchased N1.14 billion ($2.7 million) worth of 10 luxury vehicles for neighbouring Niger Republic.

So when, at a meeting with the forum of former presiding officers of the National Assembly last week, President Bola Tinubu said, “Yes, there is hardship, but how did we get here? What did we do when we had very high crude production?” he was obviously referring to the ‘witches’ parading themselves as Messiahs.

Today, Nigeria, which frittered trillions of Naira like a possessed spendthrift, is faced with a gasping economy. Its clueless government sends bags of rice to its people as if they are in IDP camps. That same government is struggling to pay $43 as monthly salary to workers. In the same statement where Tinubu spoke brilliantly about the rain that began pelting Nigeria a long time ago and how past Nigerian leadership was on a national bazaar, in an oxymoron-like twist, he said, “People say ‘we’re hungry’; yes, I understand… there is no free beer parlour anymore.”  It was as if the spirit of arrogance just clambered the president, leading him to deploy a figure of speech in which what is amiss with his spirit – liquour – could be directly interpreted from the words he used.

Tinubu should, as a matter of urgency, acknowledge that his economic policies of the last 16 months have hit the wrong chord and people are dying. He needs to backtrack. His government’s predilection for living large, at the expense of the comatose economy and his inhuman distancing of self from suffering Nigerian people’s plight put him in the same heartless frame with the ‘witches’ of Nigeria.