As I was saying, 'Even in South Korea, rated as No.5 in the world, in terms of budgeting and funding for research and development, the brand maker of Samsung, there is a separate Ministry of Knowledge Development apart from the Ministry of Education - all in a bid to use quality in education of their citizens and public servants weapon of country and global competitiveness.
What is more the United States that often boasts of its exceptionalism in the world order, has been recorded as having subscribed to a scientific way of producing unknown geniuses for both public and private sectors.
In a ground-breaking work, David Plotz, a professor in 2005 wrote about how in 1980, an eccentric American millionaire launched a Nobel Prize Sperm Bank, intended to create a new generation of super-kids. Stocked with the seed of gifted scientists, inventors, businessmen and thinkers, including several Nobel laureates, the 'genius factory' produced more than 200 children before it quietly closed its doors in 1999. The book titled, 'The Genius Factor: Unveiling The Mysteries of The Nobel Prize Sperm Bank hints at a fact that the project 1980, which traced some of the sperm donors could have produced the brilliant progeny that the founder expected -and that reveals why America has been producing more Nobel laureates and remains Number One in economy and inventions.

That shows clearly that you cannot make progress with a policy instrument that elevates the illiterate of the 21st century who Alvin Toffler, a futurist says cannot learn, unlearn and relearn wherever they are. Toffler says: 'The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn'
Let's continue on the way forward for a new public service: Senior citizens need to speak some truths to power at this time that development is no longer a mystery but a well understood process that a fair number of countries have successfully undertaken. What is more, the foundations for success lie in getting the politics right. After that important lessons learnt by other countries can be implemented. As it is recorded in 'Making Africa Work: A Hand Book' (Mills, et al, 2017), Central to the turnaround of many countries, enabling them to implement pro-growth policies was creating a sense of urgency, a realisation that business as usual would lead to disaster.
Several Asian countries, including f Singapore, Indonesia, South Korea and Taiwan, were able to use their crises to create a narrative that allowed leaders to implement difficult policies and to explain why changes were needed. Leaders were able to show first that the state itself, protector of the current population, would be threatened if difficult decisions were not made immediately.

By implementing good policies, leaders will be able to convince their citizens that the sacrifices demanded would not be in vain but would, in fact, result in a better economy and society for their children because the government is a competent steward of the economy. Experience in national planning highlights the fact that it is both possible and necessary to distinguish between cross-cutting and specific sectoral actions when planning reforms. Moreover, despite being founded on solid analysis of the constraints, African reform initiatives are often characterized by sweeping, big-picture reforms with unrealistic goals.
There is a need to break these down into deliverable actions such as: There has to be a premium on getting things done. To tackle national priorities, there needs to be a ruthless prioritisation that focuses available government capacity on delivering the essential elements of a reform programme on Quality education for progress: there must be compilation of reliable education statistics to know where we are in the world of technology beginning with STEM subjects in post primary education
Opportunity for devolution of educational development as suggested by Adamolekun (2022). The UBE Act 2004 should be amended or repealed and such responsibilities should be transferred to sub national governments. Besides, the fact that only the National Universities Commission (NUC) and Joint Admission and Matriculation Board are setting standards and regulating about 266 universities of federal, state and private ones can't work The agencies were set up when there were only 22. universities.

There should be robust funding for education at all levels as a matter of priorities. When corruption is stemmed, funds saved should be available for remarkable investment in education including ICT infrastructure in universities: Google in 2018 took its Al Centre to Ghana when no Nigerian University was equipped enough to play host to the Centre because of poor equipment in Computer Engineering Schools.
There should be a concomitant opportunity for university autonomy, which has been legalised. There should be more serious meetings and elite consensus on how we can use education quality to produce our genius factories.
There should be focus on control of public finance so that political leaders can't just waste and spend public funds arbitrarily on election petitions and other personal matters including purchase of real estates and investments. For instance, how do we prevent members of the families of our leaders from hijacking procurements? What happened to the old policies of Permanent Secretaries as chief accounting officers?

How do our leaders get billions they allegedly pay big lawyers for their elections petitions? When can the Public Procurement Council, a 2007 Act established be inaugurated? How can the senior civil servants in National Assembly reduce opaque accounting system there? Another take away from this construct here is in the conclusion here: The primary purpose of government in any modern state is goods and services delivery to the public and so the primary instrument of government for the service delivery is the Civil Service. Therefore, any reform should be capable of tackling bureaucratic delays and reduce opportunities for corruption as these are essential elements for setting up the business environment for success. Foreign direct investments will continue to be a mirage if we can't produce ethical civil and public servants who can reduce opportunities for corruption.
There is a need to keep government costs (and overheads) low and match ambition with pragmatism, and growth will follow quickly as the examples of Ethiopian and Emirates airlines have shown around us in Africa and the Middle East.
This is why civil servants should be made to ensure that the implementation of the 2012 Oronsaye Panel Report isn't what Shakespeare calls another 'tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury again, signifying nothing' after the report of yet another committee by President Tinubu.

So, the deliverables again:

The federal character principle should not trump merit if we are to lead the black race. The education sector must be reformed and well funded to be able to produce
the best brains for the public and private sectors too.

Such institutions need autonomy and investment in a devolution that will allow them to prosper.

There is a need for reform of public finance management system; the office of the Auditor General of the Federation and the 36 States and Abuja should be made to work to prevent media trials that some anti-graft agencies do. If the Civil Service works as the old federal and regional ones, opportunities for corruption will be reduced.

There should be audit of the system to flush out corrupt officers from the system.
But before I draw the curtain, what happened to the February 25, 2001 remarkable document called The Kuru Declaration, which set out to settle all the challenges that we have gathered here to discuss? Let’s revisit the declaration:

We Ministers, Special Advisers and Permanent Secretaries of the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, having participated at the 4th Retreat for federal Ministers and Permanent Secretaries, hosted by His Excellency President Olusegun Obasanjo at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, 23-25 February 2001 and having discussed, analysed and fully considered the new Orientation as proposed and presented by His Excellency, Olusegun Obasanjo, HEREBY DECLARED THAT:

(1) We subscribe to the New National Ideology, which is, to build a truly great African democratic country, politically united, integrated and stable, economically prosperous, socially organised, with equal opportunity for all, and responsibility from all, to become the catalyst of Black Renaissance, and making adequate all- embracing contributions, sub-regionally, regionally, and globally.

(2) We adopt the New Orientation as an agenda for: dealing with immediate and future issues of governance of Nigeria; Removing impediments to efficiency and effective implementation and execution of programmes initiated by the Federal Government; and Expeditious actualisation of Government objectives and vision of national renewal and re-construction.

(3) We rededicate ourselves and those who serve under us to the values of patriotism, honesty, hard work and diligence, merit and excellence, trustworthiness, personal discipline, tolerance and mutual respect, justice and fairness, love, care and compassion.

(4) We pledge to eschew corruption, slothfulness, nepotism, indiscipline, bitterness, prejudice and other manifestations of anti-social behaviour.

(5) We shall undertake a critical review of practices and procedures in every Department of Government, so as to rapidly increase their productivity and service delivery to the public;

(6) We shall foster a culture of efficiency in the management of funds and other resources; maintaining high standards of resource management; and reducing waste at all times.

(7) We shall efficiently supervise all Government Departments and Agencies, ensuring timely returns and reports, and undertaking regular spot-checks;

(8) We shall abide by the terms of the Code of Conduct, which we all have signed as expression of our commitment to the crusade against corruption, and working; with all relevant agencies such as the Independent Corruption Practices and other Related Offences Commission, the Code of Conduct Bureau and the Public Complaints Commission;

(9) We undertake to strengthen the partnership in working with the private sector, since this partnership translates to a better appreciation of the wealth- creating capacity of this sector, and the need for Government, through its various ministries and legislative processes, create an enabling environment for the sect to function efficiently as the major driver of the economy.

(10) We shall strive to strengthen and inculcate the culture of working closely and in consultation with the leadership of labour and Civil society organisations.

(11) We shall mobilise, involve and promote the interest of all stakeholders, namely, the society in general; since, in the ultimate, all decisions and actions of Government are aimed at the promotion of public welfare, there is also the need for a new attitude that has that welfare permanently in focus, as the only goal, a1 the economic well-being of all citizens, under unfettered freedom, is of cardinal importance;

(12) We shall design strategies and techniques of implementation for the New Orientation so as to ensure that the values being inculcated permeate all levels of Management and staff".

We can see that the demon we need to kick out is the one that has always prevented us from implementing policies that will define change. So, the nation waits for the public sector to help the present government to renew its strategy for development. And looking at The Kuru Declaration (2001) again, that should be the starting point.

Concluded!

The Federal Government is looking forward to receiving around $2.2 billion single-digit interest loan from the World bank and another budget support facility from the African Development Bank (AfDB).

Minister of Finance, Wale Edun disclosed this during the press briefing at the end of Nigeria’s activities at the World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings in Washington DC, the United States on Saturday.

While speaking on the sources of international funding to the Nigerian economy, the Minister listed diaspora remittances, foreign portfolio investments and facilities from the World bank and other international development partners.

• He stated, “We have qualified for the processing just this week to the Board of Directors of the World bank of a total package of $2.25 billion of what you can call ‘the closest you can get to a free lunch’- virtually a grant. It’s for about 10- 20 years moratorium and about 1% interest.
• “In addition, there is a similar budgetary support – low-interest funding from the African Development Bank (AfDB) and, clearly, there are also ongoing discussions with foreign direct investors across many sectors.”

Edun also tapped issuing dollar-denominated securities specifically targeted at Nigerians in the diaspora and those with foreign-denominated savings in Nigeria as another measure to attract forex inflows into the country.

He disclosed that the Federal Government hopes to issue the bonds later this year.

Efforts of fiscal side of the economy to spur growth

Furthermore, the Minister highlighted the efforts of the fiscal side of the economy in complimenting the recent monetary policy reforms by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

According to the Minister, the issuing of government securities at an interest rate closer to the CBN’s monetary policy rate (MPR) is an indication of the collaboration between both sides of the economy in tackling inflation in the country and attracting forex inflows.

He listed the agricultural sector as one area the Bola Tinubu administration is looking to spur growth in the medium term, noting that efforts in that area include the distribution of fertilisers and seeds to reduce food prices and enhance food security.

Other programs, according to the Minister, are: increasing power generation to about 6000 megawatts within six months, provision of infrastructure especially housing with the goal of making low-interest mortgages available to Nigerians, revamping of the social investment program and proposed economic stabilisation plan.

 [Nairametrics]

President Bola Tinubu will on Monday, April 22, open the African Counter-Terrorism Summit in Abuja.

The Special Adviser to President Tinubu on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, made this known in a statement on Sunday in Abuja.

He said Nigeria, with the support of the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT), is organizing a high-level African counter-terrorism summit under the theme, ‘Strengthening Regional Cooperation and Institution Building to Address the Evolving Threat of Terrorism’, in Abuja, from April 22 to April 23.

Ngelale stated that the objective of the summit is to enhance multilateral counter-terrorism cooperation and reshape the international community’s collective response to terrorism in Africa while emphasizing the importance of African-led and African-owned solutions.

He disclosed tha the summit will provide a platform to review the nature and severity of the threat of terrorism on the continent, with a view to agreeing on concrete strategic priorities and measures to address this scourge.

Ngelale added that the summit will also foster deeper regional collaboration, enhancing the institutional capacity of member states and facilitating the exchange of best practices and knowledge to combat the multifaceted threat of terrorism in Africa.

The statement added: “Heads of state and government and high-level government officials across Africa, representatives of international organizations and multilateral institutions, members of the diplomatic corps, and members of civil society groups are expected to attend the summit.

“Ms. Amina Mohammed, the United Nations Deputy Secretary-General, will attend the event.

“Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, National Security Adviser, and Mr. Vladimir Voronkov, the Under-Secretary-General for Counter-Terrorism, UNOCT, will deliver the concluding remarks at the end of the summit.”

[NaijaNews]

Manchester City midfielder, Bernardo Silva, has admitted he “didn’t sleep” after his penalty miss against Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-final.

Silva was one of the City players that missed their kick as Madrid won 4-3 at the Etihad in midweek.

He, however, bounced back by scoring the winner in the 1-0 win over Chelsea in the FA Cup semi-final on Saturday.

“It was a frustrating night for me [on Wednesday],” Silva said.

“[And a] frustrating week for me personally, for the whole team, because we wanted to go after another historic season and we can still go for it, but it was a big disappointment to get knocked out of the Champions League.

“First night, I didn’t sleep much, second night, you sleep a bit better, the third night you sleep almost the whole night, but it is what it is.”

[DailyPost]

The All Progressive Congress (APC) in Kano State has once again labelled the recent suspension of the National Chairman of the party as another case of impersonation.

The Secretary of the party in the State, Ibrahim Zakari Sarina, made this known while speaking to our reporter via phone call.

Daily Trust had reported that the crisis rocking the party in Kano took a new twist when new executives emerged from Ganduje’s ward and issued fresh suspension to acting National Chairman of the party, Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje.

Last week, Ganduje was suspended by another faction of the party executives in his ward.

However, in yet another twist, the group led by the secretary of the ward, Jaafar Adamu, on Sunday said 11 out of the 27 executive members of Ganduje ward were the legitimate ward excos legally elected on 31st July, 2021.

Adamu said a fresh suspension had been slammed against Ganduje.

But reacting to the development, Sarina said it is still a case of impersonation sponsored by some elements who were not legitimate executives in Ganduje Ward.

While acknowledging some of the said Ward executives to be party members, he said they were not executives and did not hold any position in the party at any level.

“It is a case of impersonation still, they were also sponsored to come out and did it late evening on Saturday. We were called and told that this is what is happening.

“Some of them are party members of the APC but have never in any way been Executives nor held any position. Even the so-called Chairman has never been an executive.”

Sarina added that the party in the State was working towards bringing the real and genuine party executives to clear the air soon.

[DailyTrust]

Despite a successful burial ceremony for the former Anambra state governor, Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife, organized by Governor Chukwuma Soludo, tension allegedly rose between the Igboukwu community and the governor due to alleged violations of the state’s burial laws.

Ezeife, who died few months ago, was buried on Saturday at his Igboukwu country home in Aguata local government area of the state.

However, Anambra state governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, is not happy that despite the existing law in the state, the kinsmen of Ezeife went ahead, ignoring the government’s earlier warning

During the burial, the family printed brochures, banners, flexes among other things that made the burial more expensive, which were against the burial law of the state.

The Anambra burial law was passed by the state house of Assembly and signed into law by the former governor Willie Obiano in 2019

Soludo said: “Okwadike that I knew was a stickler for process, for the law and that’s why he held Nigeria accountable to observe the principles of the federal character in everything because he believed in the law. 

“So all these fanfare that make burial very expensive, run contrary to the Anambra burial law which was passed three years before I became governor. I didn’t pass it. It has been there. It is the law. 

“Those things that play no role should be avoided. All that is required is for us to respect the dead. We have given Okwadike for God to grant him eternal rest as we lay him to rest in accordance with Anambra burial law. 

“That law also says that all burial funerals, condolences must be for one day. You don’t have a waiver for laws, you can only waive for rules.

“You either obey the law or amend it. Once it remains the law, it is to be obeyed. And that’s not the society that Okwadike dreamt of. The foundation we are working on, is the one he left for us” Soludo said.

However, two of Ezeife’s kinsmen, who spoke with The Nation, said the governor was on his own on the burial law of Anambra state, describing Ezeife as a national figure and not a local man.

The High chief, who did not want to be mentioned, warned Soludo not to cause the body of Ezeife not to rest in peace.

A lawyer from Ezeife’s community, commended Soludo for his support in the late Octogenarian’s burial, but warned him to desist from raising such issue in Okwadike’s burial.

“Yes, we know the law, but the great man is not the type of person you expect to bury like a fowl, though, law is for big and small, but Soludo should think twice” he said

The Nation, gathered Sunday that Soludo is already, preparing a document to be served on the Ezeife family very soon for flouting the burial right, despite his earlier warning.

[TheNation]

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project has urged Nigeria’s 36 state governors and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, to account for the spending of Federal Account Allocation Committee allocations to states and the FCT since 2019.

It also asked them to provide and widely publish documents on the spending of FAAC allocations received by their states and the FCT since 1999.

The Federal Account Allocation Committee is responsible for reviewing and adopting the allocation of funds to states and the Federal Government of Nigeria.

The requests followed reports that the committee disbursed N1.123 trillion to the federal, state, and local governments for March 2024 alone. 

The breakdown showed states collected N398.689 billion.

SERAP’s request was contained in the Freedom of Information inquiry dated April 20, 2024, and signed by its Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare.

“Without this information, Nigerians cannot follow the actions of their states and the FCT, and they cannot properly fulfil their responsibilities as citizens.

“Trillions of FAAC allocations received by Nigeria’s 36 states and the FCT have allegedly gone down the drain. The resulting human costs directly threaten the human rights of socially and economically vulnerable Nigerians,” it said.

It added that publishing the documents would enable Nigerians to meaningfully engage in the implementation of projects executed with the FAAC allocations collected.

“We would be grateful if the recommended measures are taken within seven days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter.

“If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall consider appropriate legal actions to compel you and your state and the FCT to comply with our requests in the public interest,” it added.

The FoI requests read in part, “Secrecy in the spending of FAAC allocations received by your state and the FCT is entirely inconsistent and incompatible with the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended] and the country’s international anti-corruption obligations.

“Secrecy in the spending of FAAC allocations received by your state and the FCT also denies Nigerians the right to know how public funds are spent. Transparency in the spending would allow them to retain control over their government.

“The documents should include the evidence and list of specific projects completed with the FAAC allocations collected, the locations of any such projects, and completion reports of the projects.

“The documents should also include details of the salaries and pensions paid from the FAAC allocations collected, as well as the details of projects executed on hospitals and schools with the FAAC allocations.

“Despite the increased FAAC allocations to states and FCT, millions of residents in your state and the FCT continue to face extreme poverty and lack access to basic public goods and services.”

[Punch]

…says Damagum’s survival is not defeat for Atiku or victory for Wike, it’s for the interest of PDP

The Senate Minority Leader, Senator Comrade Abba Patrick Moro, PDP, Benue South has given insight why the MInister of the Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, Nyesom Wike was allowed to attend the National Caucus meeting of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, preparatory to last week’s National Executive Committee, meeting of the party.

According to Moro, there was no way Wike would have been stopped from attending the meeting since he has not been found guilty of any crime and penalized by the party.

The Minority leader said that if the party’s disciplinary committee, headed by former President of the Senate, Senator Bukola Saraki found Wike guilty of the alleged antiparty activities and have him sanctioned, he would stop attending the party’s meetings.

Moro said the survival of Amb. Umar Lliya Damagum as Acting National Chairman of PDP was not a victory or defeat for anybody but a decision that was unanimously agreed on by the relevant stakeholders for the party to forge ahead.

Senator Moro’s reaction was against the backdrop of rumours in some quarters that Amb. Damagum’s survival, against call for his resignation, was victory for the former governor of River State, Nyesom Wike, and a defeat for PDP Presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections, Atiku Abubakar.

In a statement on Sunday by his Media Adviser, Emmanuel Eche’Ofun John, Senator Moro said the activities and inactivities of PDP should not be translated to Atiku and Wike.

He said the whole issue was not about victory or defeat for anybody but about PDP; about providing an alternative formidable platform for Nigerians to look up to.

Moro said, “We cannot translate the entirety of PDP’s activities and inactivities to Wike and Atiku, out of millions of other members of the party across the country who also have their own thinking and reasons for being in the party.

“The whole issue was not about Wike or Atiku, or victory for Wike or defeat for Atiku, the issue was existential.

“We came together and reasoned together, that in the present scenario where Nigerians are hurting due to the maladministration of the APC government, what do we do to provide an alternative platform for Nigerians to look up to? In that circumstances, we decided to thread with caution so that we dont throw away the baby with the bath water,” he said.

On why the National Caucus of the party allowed Nyesom Wike into their meeting, the Minority Leader said, “The constitution of our party is very clear on who is a member and who is not a member of the caucus of the party and I dare say, at this point, that as a former governor who is still a member of the party, Nyesom Wike is a member of the National Caucus of the party.

“If actions had been taken immediately after the elections and people who are perceived to have acted contrary to the desires and yearnings of the PDP have been sanctioned, then we can say that having been expelled or suspended, you can’t be here, but as it is, non of such actions has been taken, so you can’t just ban people from attending meetings.

“One of the fallouts of the last NEC meeting was the resuscitation of the Reconciliation and Disciplinary Committee, which is saddled with the responsibility of identifying the area of antiparty and the dramatis personae involved in the activities, and recommend appropriate punitive measures against those who have been found guilty to serve as deterrent to future occurrence.

“Unfortunately, that hasn’t been done, and so to that extent, as a voluntary organization, if the members involved insist they are still members of the party, until actions are taken by the Reconciliation and Disciplinary Committe we want to take that they are still members of the party.”

On expectations from the next NEC meeting scheduled for August 15 as it concerns the position of the National Chairman of the party, Moro who noted that the party’s constitution had a well spelt out succession plan, said, “The constitution of our party has a well spelt-out succession plan. Section 35 (3C) states that where a vacancy exists, someone from the zone of the immediate past occupier of the office shall be appointed by NEC to complete the tenure of the person who vacated the office.

“For the position of the National Chairman, we will look at the succession plan of the party, in accordance with the constitutional provisions, and produce a replacement for Senator Iyorchia Ayu from North Central now that he has heeded to our plea and withdrawn his case from the court. We will go to the next NEC meeting with open minds and invoke the relevant sections of the constitution to produce his replacement.”

Senator Moro who appealed to members and stakeholders of the party to have some level of circumspection and restraints in their actions and utterances so as not to further polarize the party, assured that everything humanly possible would be done to put the party on its winning ways, to rescue Nigerians from the grinding poverty and sufferings that the ruling APC has plunged them into.

[Vanguard]

Na as goat stand for market dem dey price am.

For Naija, make we yarn about correction,

Wey dey needed for dis our nation.

E go better make we face di truth,

And tackle corruption wit strong resolution.

From top to down, e don dey enta bone,

Government people dey flex, dey chop alone.

Money wey for develop, e dey disappear,

Na so e dey happen year after year.

Election time, na so we dey see,

Politicians dey share money, dey do jamboree.

But wen e reach to serve di people right,

Dem dey vanish, dem no dey in sight.

From police station to di highest court,

Corruption dey reign, e dey carry clout.

If you no get money, you no go fit win,

Na so many innocent people dey enter bin.

E don do, we need to make correction,

Fight corruption, make we no dey fear action.

Make we join hand, make we stand as one,

Make we tame the lions, the snakes and monkeys

If not the wildlife go dry…

For Naija to better, e go take correction.

Corruption in Kogi State, Nigeria, has been a longstanding issue that has hindered the state’s development and progress. Like many other states in Nigeria, Kogi has grappled with corruption at various levels of government and society, impacting sectors such as infrastructure, education, healthcare, and public services.

One of the significant challenges is the mismanagement of public funds, where government officials, both elected and appointed, have been accused of embezzling public resources meant for development projects. This mismanagement has led to the deterioration of infrastructure and basic amenities, further exacerbating the living conditions of the residents.

Political corruption is also prevalent, with reports of vote-buying, electoral fraud, and manipulation during elections. This undermines the democratic process and erodes public trust in the government.

Furthermore, there have been allegations of nepotism and favoritism in government appointments and contracts, where individuals with connections to those in power are awarded lucrative deals at the expense of merit and transparency.

The lack of accountability and transparency mechanisms exacerbates the problem, as there is often little oversight or consequences for corrupt practices. Civil society organizations and anti-corruption agencies have highlighted the need for stronger institutions and enforcement of existing laws to combat corruption effectively.

So, away from the English above, Kogi state is the land of the white lion, turned lame goat…if you know, you know. It is the land of Dino Melaye, the land of Lugard. The only state in Nigeria to border ten other states. For those that do not know, economically, Kogi State is largely based around agriculture, mainly of coffee, cashew, groundnut, cocoa, oil palm, and yam crops. Other key industries are crude oil extraction and the livestock herding of cattle, goats, and sheep.

It is the land of Ajaokuta, that industry that keeps chopping money, any honest audit would show that the project has long since become an elephant project.

In case you forgot, the state which is nicknamed the “Confluence State” due to the fact that the confluence of the River Niger and the River Benue occurs next to its capital, Lokoja. It is also the state of the Igalas, very dominant in Kogi East with nine local governments, the Ebiras who are in Kogi Central with five local governments and the Okun in Kogi West with seven local governments. These three ethnic majority do juju, are beautiful and schooled (make your choice).

It is the land of great lawyers, diplomats, great media practitioners, and very disrespectful fuel attendants. It once had a bleaching governor and also a disappearing governor, it is the land of a tree climbing senator, and a mouthed motor loving politician…

This is what makes the white lion stories very hurtful, did you know that Kogi state has 21 local government areas. No World Class Hospital, the Kogi Reference Hospital is supposed to be one, but story for another day. The state does not have a FIFA standard football pitch, that 80billion could build 40 football pitches at 2billion each or that 80billion could build 21 primary health care centres?

The roads in the state are in terrible state, there are no world class schools with state of the art teaching facilities, and imagine what 80billion could do?

Have you ever seen the smallest overhead bridge in Kogi and the amount it gulped, did you see the allocation that Kogi got in eight years, yet workers were paid a minimal percent of their salaries and in cases where debited immediately after being credited…Let me help us understand, According to FAAC Kogi state from 2016 — 2023 got ₦750.60 billion, from the NBS the state generated internally ₦107.51 billion, its domestic debt for 2023 stood at ₦121.81 billion and external debt for 2023 was $51.17 million according to the DMO. According to EFCC a white lion misappropriated and made away with over 80billion 

in the words of my friend and colleague in the struggle, Steve Aluko, aka Maradona a son of ze shoil, the house of assembly should impeach the current white hen for aiding and abetting the white lion?

If you thought this was about Kogi state, follow let us conclude then. Efforts to address corruption in Kogi State require a multi-faceted approach, including:

1. Strengthening anti-corruption institutions and ensuring their independence and effectiveness in investigating and prosecuting cases of corruption.
2. Implementing transparent procurement processes and financial management systems to prevent misappropriation of public funds.
3. Promoting civic engagement and public participation in governance to hold elected officials accountable.
4. Enhancing awareness and education on the detrimental effects of corruption and the importance of integrity in public service.
5. Encouraging a culture of ethical leadership and accountability among government officials and civil servants.

You see the solutions I proffered above is not just about Kogi state but a majority of Nigerian states, there are white lions, green serpents, blue monkeys, red onions and all sorts masquerading as governors and fleecing their states. 

While combating corruption in Nigeria is undoubtedly challenging, sustained efforts and collective action from government, civil society, and citizens are essential to drive meaningful change and promote good governance and development in Nigeria, but we must tame the lions or else the wildlife will suffer—May Nigeria win.–

Prince Charles Dickson PhD