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[OPINION] Our Senate is a white Elephant - Ugoji Egbujo

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Our Senate is a luxury. Akpabio, the Senate President, can’t choose his words carefully.

Recently, he reminded a female senator that the Senate is not a nightclub. He was rebuking her for not obtaining his permission before speaking. In his flippancy and uncouthness, idleness could be gleaned.

Senator Akpabio received a letter from Ganduje, APC chairmen, and read it in plenary. Then, robotically, he revved the engines of the Senate and dumped Ndume. That sequence would have been fitting in a one-party communist state like China. Ndume’s sin was that he criticized the president. He said the president had good intentions but was inexplicably inaccessible and aloof, and his government was filled with crooked gatekeepers and kleptocrats. That was deemed apostasy. So the president must have fumed and ordered the National Assembly, through the party, to punish the rascally Ndume.

But the heretical letter didn’t stop there. It asked Akpabio to tell Ndume to resign from the party. Since the Senate has become the president’s distinguished handkerchief, Akpabio didn’t flinch while reading aloud the portion that asked Ndume to leave the party. The hallowed senate chambers might not be a nightclub, but isn’t it degenerating into a motor park where crude jokes mingle with acts of savagery, and the outrageous don’t often provoke any outrage?

Some have argued that the quality of the legislature is a reflection of societal decay. They had said the same thing about the clergy in churches and mosques, that they reveal the average morality of the collective. But these warped justifications of mediocrity only quicken the rot. A country that borrows to pay salaries must avoid frivolity as much as possible. Our leaders like to say we must not protest against bad governance so that foreign investors do not run away. But do they ever care about how our creditors feel when they see our leaders frittering away our resources wantonly? The Senate has to be scrapped because we have no financial strength to carry a huge white elephant on our lean back.

The country must trim down. We can’t run two legislative houses with members who live like nags and lack the sobriety to draft laws for development. The present Senate looks like an exorbitant superfluity. A surplus we can slough off to breathe better. This federation, just like the states, can thrive on a reformed unicameralism. However, this reformed legislature, as must happen in the states, should be filled with only part- time lawmakers. With a fundamental change in orientation, the lawmakers can understand their roles.

Making laws from Tuesdays to Thursdays, eight hours daily. That will be sufficient for the country. What the
country needs the most is ethical re-orientation. Not more laws. The masses need role models and transformative leadership that can birth enduring institutions. Living examples of moral probity laying down visions. Since laws are not made every day, the part-time lawmakers will have enough time for committee work, hearings, oversight visits, etc.

The part-time engagement will allow them to pursue other careers alongside legislative and associated responsibilities. The current bloated legislature isn’t just draining the country of resources with humongous perks and privileges the current lawmakers get; it sets the tone for profligacy across the arms. The legislature exists to check other arms of governments and re-orient them through legislation. But if the legislature becomes the epitome of slothfulness and wastefulness, then how can they be effective ethical standard bearers?

The country has an abundance of upright and noble citizens who can represent the people and make laws without fleecing the state. Only sitting allowances ought to be paid. Only those willing to contribute to the development of the country should contest. Lawmaking is a civic responsibility.

The only role our Senate plays that can’t be taken up by the existing House of Reps is the expression of equality of states. All states, regardless of population, contribute an equal number of senators. But since, in our case, all states must produce a federal minister by law, that expression will be preserved. A unicameral legislature is sufficient. We have never really embraced true federalism. So what exactly do we need a Senate for? All its present functions can be handed by the House of Reps where most members are also idle and passive.

But if we populate the single chamber with politicians, then the mischiefs that ail us might still persist. That single chamber will need a framework of statesmanship to lead and sustain a national rebirth. A situation where a Ganduje will transmit a letter for the removal of the whip if he criticizes the government’s Olympic preparation must be checked. The new legislature must have the gravitas to withstand the most overbearing president.

We could craft a unicameral legislature that fuses the House of Lords with the House of Commons. So, under this arrangement, only half of the seats will be filled by elections. The other half will be filled by statesmen and noble citizens nominated through a rigorous process from traditional and religious institutions; the military, police and other security agencies; civil society and professional bodies; etc. The participation of these stakeholders and institutions will offer backbone stability to our fragile democracy. Whatever inherent ideological democratic deficits this idea produces can be ameliorated by allowing only elected persons be elected by members to the leadership positions.

With a unicameral house of stakeholders and elected politicians, the legislature will help to protect and leash the country against political waywardness. A house of part-time lawmakers would be cheaper and more efficient. To complement this legislative rightsizing and refocusing, the country must reconsider a return to the parliamentary system of government. Our presidential system feels like borrowed oversized shoes. They don’t fit. We have neither the finance nor the electorate sophistication to run it.

We can start with a constitutional amendment to fix the federal legislature. From it, the states will have a practical model. If we can’t find a transformational president, then we must seek alternatives. Once we have a responsible and thinking federal legislature, the reforms needed in the other arms and across the agencies can begin.

Let’s scrap the Senate. And redesign the House of Representatives. Let’s start from there.

[OPINION] A parastatal worse than a rubber-stamp Senate - Emmanuel Aziken

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It is remarkable that two of the most prominent political actors who topped the news this week

on account of their blistering attacks on the performance indices of the Bola Tinubu administration were about the most energetic enablers of Asiwaju’s presidential aspiration.

Senator Ali Ndume was until this week, the Senate Chief Whip, and Comrade Salihu Lukman was also until recently, the national vice- chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.

Senator Ali Ndume apparently buoyed by Senator Kashim Shettima’s influence in Borno, supported Tinubu’s presidential aspiration and dynamically pushed for his victory in his Borno South senatorial district.

Indeed, Senator Ndume followed up his support for Tinubu’s successful presidential bid by also assuming the role of director- general of the campaign for Senator Godswill Akpabio’s Senate Presidency project.It is worthy of note that it is almost the tradition that whosever leads the successful campaign that brings in a new Senate President either gets the position of Senate Leader or chairmanship of a juicy committee, and notably, the Committee for Appropriations.

In Ndume’s case, he got neither. He was bested by Senator Opeyemi Bamidele as Senate Leader and then, by Senator Olamilekan Adeola for the position of Appropriations chairman.

He was settled with the position of Senate Chief Whip, the number four position in the ruling party and then with the vice-chairmanship position in the Committee of Appropriations.

Was it at this point of losing those two positions that he became bitter? Or was it at the point of losing access to the president? Or even more pointing, was it at as he claimed in his own words when he discovered that the aides of the president were the least competent persons in the land?

Those are deep questions that demand much introspection.

Remarkably, Ndume’s campaign for Tinubu was against the desire of another prominent son of Borno South, Mr Daniel Bwala who had prior to the 2023 election forsworn Tinubu’s presidential aspiration. Bwala’s rejection of Tinubu was based on the Muslim-Muslim tilt that he saw as inconsiderate of a religious balance. Indeed, Bwala followed up by etching one of the most quoted lyrics regularly sung by the opposition that “human brains don’t work when you join APC.”

A year after, Ndume who canvassed Tinubu has now been shuttled to Siberia with an open declaration that he
could well leave his chilly political confinement for any other opposition party.

Meanwhile, Bwala after his tour of duty with the Atiku Abubakar campaign in the PDP has returned to the APC reaping where he did not sow.

Unlike Ndume who cannot get access, Bwala apparently gets access to Tinubu either in Nigeria or abroad.

Senator Ndume in at least two blistering interviews reduced the Tinubu presidency to the unenviable bottom of being beyond comparison with the Muhammadu Buhari administration. According to him, that uninviting assessment arose from the emergence of a kakistocracy in the administration.

For emphasis, a Kakistocracy refers to a government presided over by the worst and most incompetent persons in a country.

This correspondent believes that the term may be too far-reaching and may only be parroted by the most extreme of Tinubu’s critics. It, however, suffices that Ndume ordinarily as chief whip should not be a critic.

Rather, as the chief whip of the Senate, he was to marshal senators towards the attainment of the party’s positions on issues.

Unfortunately, he was not able to do so, citing what he claims was the lack of access to the president.

Whether he was too blunt in his assessment of the situation can only be judged by examining the efforts he made towards obtaining the required access.

But it must be said that in a virile democracy that truly lives to its name the Chief Whip is a very sensitive position who commands the loyalty of lawmakers with his ability to apply the whip.

The letter dismissing Ndume as Chief Whip was authored by the national chairman of the APC, Dr Umar Ganduje and the national secretary, Senator Ajibola Basiru.

Some have described the letter as indecorous on the claim that unelected political actors appear to have shoved away the two elected senators from their positions. It is quite shocking and a reflection of the low esteem that the Senate may have tumbled to in the present dispensation.

It was in respect of that depiction that Comrade Salihu Lukman described the Senate under Senator Akpabio as a parastatal of the executive branch of government.

Lukman, of course, has his own axe to grind with the APC. He resigned his position as National Vice Chairman of the party and subsequently dumped his membership of the party after venturing on the same issues as expressed by Ndume.

Shockingly, the APC senate caucus has become a supple conclave shorn of institutional memory or its powers of articulation.

It is unarguably on account of these letdowns that the former APC national vice-chairman, Lukan now refers to the 10th Senate as a parastatal of the administration.

It is a term worse than the rubber stamp that was derisively etched on the Ahmad Lawan Senate.

[OPINION] How I quit smoking (II) - Tunde Odesola

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Cocaine, opioids and alcohol addiction is in the same league as tobacco addiction, says the Center for Addiction and Mental Health, Canada’s largest research and mental health teaching hospital. Members of the opioid family include heroin, morphine, codeine, oxycodone, hydrocodone and fentanyl, according to the Johns Hopkins University medical website.

Unbelievable! Cocaine, heroin, codeine, and morphine sharing the same podium with cigarettes?

Surprise dropped my jaws, disbelief wrinkled my forehead. I had thought cocaine and opioids were the GOAT of narcotics. Little did I know the nicotine in tobacco qualifies the cigarette for the big league, to

How on earth did cocaine and its siblings become comrades-in-harms with cigarettes? It’s because inhaled cigarette smoke delivers nicotine to the brain within 20 seconds!

Home to breakthroughs in psychiatric research and the revolutionary discovery of dopamine receptors, CAMH says: “Nicotine releases a chemical called dopamine in the same regions of the brain as other addictive drugs. It (nicotine) causes mood-altering changes that make the person temporarily feel good. Inhaled smoke delivers nicotine to the brain within 20 seconds, which makes it very addictive—comparable to opioids, alcohol and cocaine.”

According to the foremost Canadian hospital, a simple way of identifying addiction is the cohabitation of 4 Cs in an addict. The 4 Cs are: (1) CRAVING (2) Loss of CONTROL of amount or frequency of use, (3) COMPULSION to use, and (4) Use despite CONSEQUENCES.

Relatedly, addiction explains a chronic condition experienced when a substance or behaviour is withdrawn from the user, e.g. someone addicted to coffee might feel restless if he doesn’t get coffee when the craving arises.

Globally, millions of people battle various forms of addiction such as gambling, masturbation, hard drugs, overeating, kleptomania, shopping and alcoholism.

In general, there are four levels of addiction: physical, emotional, mental and spiritual. A study published in the American Psychological Association says religious faith and spirituality may help people recover from substance abuse. The research, “Religious Denomination Affiliation and Psychological Health: Results From a Substance Abuse Population,” was authored by Thomas G. Plante, Ph.D, et al.

Let’s go back to me. How did I eat my frog? Firstly, I took myself to the mountain of transfiguration through the valley of awareness. That was when I brought myself to the realisation that cigarette was evil for my body. I criminalised cigarette and viewed it as the most despicable consumable product. When I laid it upon my mind to stop, I began to see smokers like me as victims pinned down under the weight of Zuma Rock. I knew it would take more than a mere wish to rescue me from under the yoke.

So, I personally took the matter to God. This is the second stage of the fight. I went on my knees in prayer. I didn’t run to no pastor or imam or babalawo because I knew that God, my Maker, would hear my supplication quicker and clearer than He would hear it from any third party cassocked, turbaned or ‘lawani-ed’ as a saintly servant of God brandishing scented scriptures. Did He not say, “Ask and it shall be given. Seek and ye shall find. Knock and it shall be opened?” No mortal intercessor can convey the needs of the child better to the Father in filial terms than the child, except the child be illegitimate. I’m a legitimate child of God. Christ finished the work of intercession on the Cross and flung open the door to the Father for all.

At the second stage, I stumbled many times. Before leaving home in the morning, I would pray to God to guide me against smoking but would find myself still heading to Muhammed’s kiosk up the street. That’s when I would remember there was something I needed to discuss with Sola Tomoloju aka Sholay or Lai Ibidunni aka Layo Osha or Ayo Akinola aka Lado or Fela aka Orunmila or egbon Kole Ebisemiju aka Katuzi or the late Kayode Tomoju aka Sir Kay. All these great men lived opposite the mallam’s kiosk. Did they smoke? They belched smoke like a locomotive train.

I knew I shouldn’t go there. I knew I couldn’t escape smoking once I got there. I would say to myself, “Tunde, pádà. Turn back. There’s no way you won’t smoke there.” But I would warn myself strictly, “Listen, you mustn’t stay more than two minutes there o. Just brace up yourself. Do everything pá pà pá and leave,” – I would find myself helplessly propelled by an unseen force towards Muhammed’s kiosk. Little did I realise that the conversation within me was a raging battle inside my conscience between good and evil. It wasn’t the devil. It was a battle of choice, of free will.

As the war within me raged and I approached Muhammed’s kiosk, I would meet one of my fellow smokers, especially Sir Kay, who was fun to be with. “Professor, you look good,” he would say, adding, “Collect two Consulate and Tom Tom from Muhammed, I’ll pay.” While contemplating telling him to pay and that I would come and smoke later, Sir Kay would bring up a political topic, “Dis our political class ehn, dem don finish us.” My resolve would evaporate. I would light the cigarette, take a puff, and tears would well in my eyes. I would flick the ash of the cigarette as it burned without smoking it, holding the conversation and blinking away my tears.

Seidu was another mallam in my area whose kiosk hangared a hodgepodge of stuff comprising mosquito coil, chewing stick, paracetamol, aboliki, kuli kuli, sugar, Maggi, tin tomato, milk, pencil, kola, soap, blade and, of course, cigarettes. Every kiosk-owning mallam in Lagos sold cigarettes.

Muhammed and Seidu were Fulani from the Niger Republic. Their credit facilities were better than any known Nigerian bank. Even though you owe, you would be given fresh commodities if you pay for the new ones you’re buying. At the end of the day, they would whisper to you gently, “Me, I dey go market next week,” informing you of your debt and the need to pay. I wonder if those folks ever made a profit. I never really owed, though. Whenever I said, “I’II stop smoking,” I’m sure they would say in their minds, “You, major shareholder, stop smoking? Abi I dey craze? You no go ever stop in Insha Allah!”

Separately, both would openly say, “E good make you stop. Me, I wan stop too. Siga no good at all,” and other fellow smokers would join in the conversation, expressing their views on the goodness and badness of smoking. This was when nobody cared where anybody came from. It was when the Fulani were the yardstick for trust and frugality. This was long before Muhammadu ibn Buhari came and put a knife into what held us together… things fall apart as madmen and specialists took the reins.

Later, I changed my tactic by changing my route; I refused to pass by Muhammed or Seidu’s kiosks. But, at times, I would have succeeded in evading all cigarette-selling mallams all day only for me to want to chill out with a bottle or two in the evening and I would inexplicably find a cigarette between my fingers. “Ha, Tunde!” I would sigh, feeling myself a letdown.

For many, smoking and drinking are Siamese twins. Separating the two is akin to using a sword without its handle. Smoking is the scabbard, alcohol is the sword, both work hand in glove, like the two hands of the grandfather clock; when you see one, know the other is coming behind, counting – tick-tock – telling smoke-weakened lungs, kidneys and liver, “Your cock has a few more corn to eat before its final crow. The body is willing but the organs are weak. RIP, soon.”

I succeeded in separating alcohol from smoking. Though I still drink rarely, I no longer rum like a pirate. I stopped ‘beering’, I now seldomly wine red wine, whisk whiskey, swish vodka if brandy isn’t available and down some scotch to scorch the cold in me – all in line with the advice of Apostle Paul in Timothy 5:23, which says, “No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for your stomach’s sake and your frequent infirmities (KJV).

Something happened when I visited Israel on a pilgrimage many years ago. We visited many religious sites. Some of them bore the inscription, “Silence” or “No noise, please.” Our guides would tell us the solemnity attached to the place of visit but as soon as Nigerian pilgrims got in, they would begin to shout, casting and binding to Hades all manner of imaginary spirits, speaking in a million tongues.

These were the same people who would stuff their pockets with boiled eggs, fruits, etc after mealtimes even when they knew there would still be an overabundance of food when they returned for their next meal.

I had stopped smoking then. But I always bypassed them on my way to the bar whenever they gathered in the hotel lobbies, praying for long periods, disturbing other hoteliers. Some of them would eye me from afar as I nursed my $6 beer, and I would mind my beer, saying in my mind, “I don’t serve a Pharisee God.”

. Concluded.

[OPINION] Fanatical mindset - Salihu Moh. Lukman

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On July 17, 2024, Senator Ali Ndume was removed as Chief Whip of the Senate and replaced with Senator Tahir Monguno following a directive contained in a letter sent to All Progressives Congress Caucus in the Senate signed by Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje and Senator Basiru Ajibola, APC National Chairman and National Secretary respectively. In the letter, Senator Ndume was alleged to “have been making uncouth and rabid outbursts against the government, before the international and before the global community is not only harmful to the government’s image alone but also undermines the party’s unity and cohesion and in addition, undermines the government’s efforts to bring in foreign direct investments to Nigeria”

What is the “uncouth and rabid outburst” made by Senator Ndume?

The letter referred to a televised interview with Arise Television where Senator Ndume expressed the concern that the APC government of President Bola Tinubu is going down, because, according to him, the government is being run by kakistocrats, which he explained to mean “a government run by the worst, least qualified, or most unscrupulous citizens”. He went further to add that the ‘government is populated by kakistocrats and kleptocrats’, explaining that kleptocratic component refers to people “who are in government for what they can make for themselves”. Accordingly, the letter to the Senate requested Senator Ndume to “honourably resign the membership of APC and join any opposition party of his choice formally instead of hiding behind the veil of grass activism to decimate the hard-earned cohesion and goodwill that …the APC is enjoying within and outside the country.

In an ideal democratic setting where the organs of the party are functioning, a competent organ of the party would have been convened to deliberate on the issues raised by Sen. Ndume. In fact, if the organs of the party are functioning, instead of raising the issues in a television station, the issue would have been raised at a meeting of a competent organ of the party. Such a competent organ would have been the National Caucus, National Executive Committee (NEC) or National Advisory Council. Rule of fair hearing would have required that Sen. Ndume or anybody making such weighty allegations is invited and called upon to explain. The truth is, if organs of the party are functioning, the problem of lack of access to the President wouldn’t have arisen.

Somehow, the letter directing the removal of Sen. Ndume confirmed the allegations of a government of Kakistocrat. Dr. Ganduje and Sen. Ajibola and perhaps a small group of party leaders who have caged the President usurped the powers of organs of the APC and proceeded to pass judgement on Sen. Ndume. It is very doubtful if members of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party are given the benefit of being part of those who took the decision to remove Sen. Ndume as the Chief Whip of the Senate. It is also doubtful if members of the APC Caucus in the Senate are consulted before the decision is taken to both remove Sen. Ndume and appoint Sen. Monguno as his replacement. It is simply an action taken by party leaders with fanatical mindset of blocking any attempt to scrutinise the President and actions being taken either directly by him or by his representatives, in whatever guise.

Beyond issues of fair hearing, the substantive allegation made by Sen. Ndume is that President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is inaccessible. Those he refers to as Kakistocrats and Kleptocrats have caged the President so much so that even Ministers are not able to access him. These are not new allegations. The way the government is being managed is quite worrisome. Anybody who knows Asiwaju Tinubu and how he has operated throughout his political life, will certainly know that it is unlike Asiwaju Tinubu to be insular. Many of the decisions taken betrays the true Asiwaju Tinubu. For instance, it is doubtful if Asiwaju Tinubu as Governor of Lagos State for eight years has had any instance of reversing any of the decisions he took. But as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in the last one year, Nigerians are beginning to lose count of the number of decisions he took and ended up reversing them.

Unlike the true Asiwaju Tinubu who as Governor of Lagos State was surrounded by competent and visionary appointees, he is surrounded by third rated appointees or Kakistocrats as rightly described by Sen. Ndume. A vintage Asiwaju Tinubu, confronted by the kind allegations coming from Sen. Ndume would have publicly engaged Sen. Ndume and proved him wrong. It is debatable whether after proving him wrong he will call for his removal. By extension, therefore, it is also contestable if a normal Asiwaju Tinubu would have allowed the organs of the party to have been demobilised in the manner that is being done now. The truth is, President Asiwaju Tinubu has lost his credentials of being a democrat, a progressive politician and an Awoist. That is the main essence of the criticism made by Sen. Ndume.
The point is that there is a big difference between the old Asiwaju Tinubu, who was the Governor of Lagos State and was as an astute politician, constantly engaging and having strong relationship with people, from the Asiwaju Tinubu who is the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in the last one year who has become insular and inaccessible. Decisions taken in the last one year have betrayed the progressive orientation envisioned when APC was formed, or even any claimed Awoist credentials. In fact, it is very embarrassing that there is very weak correlation with even the campaign promise made by President Asiwaju Tinubu as contained in the Renewed Hope 2023, which was the campaign document of President Asiwaju Tinubu.

The way things are, it is almost as if President Asiwaju Tinubu has resolved that he will only be a one term President. Under his watch living conditions of Nigerians is continuously getting worse. Instead of making effort to develop clear plans to address the situation, the government is becoming more intolerant to criticism. In the last one week, the government has developed a fanatical mindset of condemning and criminalising criticism so much so that it is resorting to bribing religious leaders to declare that protests are ungodly. Everything is being done to suspend free speech in the country. It is almost as if we are back in the Abacha era, or even worse. As it is, personal liberties of citizens are being threatened. Fair hearing is no longer guaranteed. Sadly, we are having democracy without democrats.

All patriotic Nigerians must wake up to the responsibility of rescuing the country. How can we have a democracy that produce leaders who are intolerant to criticism? Why should we allow a situation whereby so-called leaders of the ruling party will behave like officials of military tribunals who operate with the fanatical mindset of condemning everyone accused of wrongdoing without the benefit of fair hearing? It is quite interesting that Dr. Ganduje and Sen. Basiru could ask Sen. Ndume to ‘honourably resign the membership of APC and join any opposition party of his choice formally’. Already, with nonfunctioning organs, the APC has basically dismissed all its members.
Nowhere in the Constitution of APC where the National Chairman, National Secretary, or any official, or even the National Working Committee is given the powers to summarily remove any principal officer of the National Assembly. It is a shame that the APC Senate Caucus will permit such an act of illegality. By so doing, they have set a precedence that will further erode the independence of the National Assembly. Already, with the way Sen. Godswill Akpabio has been conducting himself almost reducing the Senate Chamber to the status of a parastatal of government, the action of the APC under the leadership of Dr. Ganduje to direct removal of principal officers for criticising President Asiwaju Tinubu’s government highlight the fanatical mindset undermining Nigerian democracy.

Any democracy that cannot accommodate criticism is no democracy. A democracy that subverts fair hearing is a dictatorship. A democracy that permits a ruling party to demobilise its organs and inadvertently expels its members is worse than a military government. All patriotic Nigerian political leaders must unite to restore Nigeria’s democracy. Nigerian opposition leaders must unite to build a truly strong political party to rebuild Nigerian democracy. All our opposition leaders and orphaned leaders of APC must come together and unite. Sen. Ndume being the newest APC orphan is welcome to join the effort of political leaders in the country to restore and rebuild our democracy. So long as APC, its leadership and Asiwaju Tinubu’s government have taken the self-destructive path, which is equivalent to a declaration of working end their tenure in 2027, patriotic Nigerians must help them to ensure their defeat in 2027!

[OPINION] Dilemma of a nation in food crisis: Will Tinubu’s open border, tax free approaches solve the problem? - Adetola Odusote

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The announcement on Monday July 8, 2024 by the Federal Government granting approval of a 150-day duty-free import window for food commodities into Nigeria to tackle rising inflation which had impoverished many Nigerians, was inevitable.

This intervention shows a wall of difference between the leadership of President Tinubu and his predecessor Buhari who had thick skin to citizens’ plight, and who built the foundation for the present situation of the country.

President Tinubu approved the 150-day duty-free window for the importation of maize, husked brown rice, and wheat as a strategy to combat rising food inflation in Nigeria for several reasons which include: To reduce food prices: By allowing the duty-free importation of essential food items, the government aims to increase the supply of these products in the market. An increased supply can help lower prices, making food more affordable for the population.
Another reason is for the purpose of addressing shortages: Nigeria has faced shortages in the production of certain staple foods due to various factors such as climate change, insecurity, and other disruptions in agricultural activities.

Importing these items duty-free helps bridge the gap between demand and local supply.
The third reason is for the purpose of controlling the current haphazard inflation: High food prices contribute significantly to overall inflation. By lowering the cost of key food items through duty-free imports, the government hopes to mitigate inflationary pressures and stabilize the economy.

Other tenable argument would be to support vulnerable populations: Rising food prices disproportionately affect low-income households. By reducing the cost of staple foods, the government can provide some relief to these vulnerable groups, ensuring better food security and nutrition.

The free import window will also encourage agricultural reforms: While addressing immediate food shortages, this measure will also give the government some time to implement and support longer-term agricultural reforms and initiatives aimed at boosting domestic production and achieving food self-sufficiency.

Overall, the 150-day duty-free window is a short-term intervention aimed at stabilizing food prices and ensuring food security while longer-term solutions need to be developed and implemented. For me, five months would not be enough because it will take nothing less than five years for the food gap to be met in Nigeria.

The Buhari government had allowed critical damages to the food sufficiency model that he met which was sustaining the nation. He allowed so much destruction by the bandits, and the recalcitrant Fulani herdsmen who undisguisedly displayed sense of entitlement to the government because one of their own clans who was sympathetic to their Fulanisation agenda was the president.

Buhari’s body language and subtle support, and protection gave them the impetus to destroy and take over farms, maim and kill farmers. This group of brigands forcefully took over hundreds of farm lands in places considered to be the food baskets of the nation where mass of food commodities is generated and supplied to different parts of Nigeria. Those are the major causes of the present food crisis in Nigeria.

Also, wrong advices from the economic advisers with ancient economic theories, led the Buhari administration to banning food items Nigeria did not have comparative capacity to produce in sufficient numbers. In fact, shutting down the borders against importation and exportation for almost two years was the worse damage any leader could inflict upon his country. Multi national manufacturing firms could not access forex, and therefore were not able to import raw materials for their production. They were being forced to chase very few of such inputs they could get locally, making huge demand on the limited supply resulting in higher pricing. That was the case with such items as rice, millets, sorghum, sugar etc. The macro-economic environment became tensed. The foreign exchange that was meant to be saved and available in surplus, due to the ban became extremely scarce, as politicians and unscrupulous black-market traders manipulated the situation under a very corrupt CBN leadership.

Enough research was not done to identify factors influencing high inflation and forex imbalance. A 50kg imported bag of rice that was being sold for N10,000 jumped up to N30,000 after the ban, and it started climbing to its present state at over N100,000 in a country where minimum wage is N30,000 a month. Local rice farmers and millers had not started planting, nor set up plants when President Buhari jumped the gun banning rice importation. It became an issue of the higher the demand, the higher the price.

Fortunately, President Bola Tinubu came with so much hope for the people. But his reckless announcement of removal of fuel subsidy on May 29, 2023 at his swearing ceremony became the monster that has been making life miserable for all Nigerians, with chain reactions that have brought misery, sorrow, tears and deaths to hapless Nigerians.

The subsidy removal has had a significant impact on food inflation. Fuel subsidies typically help keep transportation and production costs lower, which in turn can help stabilize the prices of goods and services, including food. When these subsidies were removed, the cost of fuel has been increasing unabatedly, leading to higher transportation costs for goods. This rise in transportation costs is being passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices for food and other essential items creating galloping inflation.

Additionally, higher fuel prices have increased the cost of agricultural inputs like fertilizers and pesticides, which are essential for food production. This combination of factors couples with insecurity, have been contributing to rising food prices, leading to acute food inflation.

Though the announcement by the Minister of Agriculture and food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari of the 150 days foods import free window is part of efforts of the Presidential Accelerated and Stabilization Advancement Plan to mitigate the hues and cry of Nigerians, looks good, it is just a window dressing. The utmost long-term solution is to tackle the root causes of the problem.

Strategic Solutions to Foods Insecurity in Nigeria

Addressing food insecurity in Nigeria requires a multifaceted approach that considers the complex socio-economic, environmental, and political factors involved. Here are some strategies that could help mitigate food insecurity in the country.

Number one is to set up machinery for the improvement of agricultural productivity by encouraging farmers to embrace the use of modern farming techniques, such as precision agriculture, improved seed varieties, and efficient irrigation systems.

Government at all levels also needs to create access to inputs: Ensure that farmers have access to quality seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides.

Training and Education: Provide training programs for farmers on best practices, pest management, and sustainable farming methods.
Secondly, the government should as a matter of urgency begins to strengthen infrastructure that would enhance transportation networks: Improve rural roads and transportation networks to facilitate the movement of goods from farms to markets. Encourage public private partnership in the provision of Storage Facilities: Build and maintain adequate storage facilities to reduce post-harvest losses.

The Ministry of Agriculture should also create market access. This can be done by developing better market systems to help farmers sell their produce at fair prices.
Support for Smallholder Farmers.

Microfinance and Credit: Provide access to microfinance and credit facilities to enable smallholder farmers to invest in their farms.

Cooperatives: Encourage the formation of farmer cooperatives to enhance bargaining power and reduce costs through collective purchasing and selling.

The Ministry of Agriculture should strengthen agricultural extension services to support farmers with technical advice and information.

State and local governments should face reality of their peoples needs. They should support and cooperate with the federal government in addressing the food shortage situation of the nation. Every state should as a matter of necessity, prioritize agriculture development. Provide organize support base for farmers in their states
Policy and Governance. If the Tinubu government really wants to demonstrate sincerity of purpose it will embark on policy reforms that will support, protect and encourage many young populations to go into farming. The government can start this with: Land Reform: Implement land reform policies to secure land tenure for smallholder farmers, making it easier for them to invest in their land. Provide targeted subsidies and incentives to support agricultural production and reduce the cost of farming inputs.

Develop and implement comprehensive food security policies that address the needs of the most vulnerable populations.

Nothing stops the government from converting the National Youth Service Scheme into National Youth Farming Scheme, whereby all youth corps members are trained right from camp on various areas of agricultural farming, animal farming, seeds production etc. The host states should be mandated to provide weeded arable land, farm tools, farm inputs, and other resources, including financial resources required to succeed by the young corps members in their respective states. At the end, the state governments through the local councils will help to purchase whatever the youth corps are able to yield from their farm lands. Naturally, some of these corps’ members will embrace farming when they finished their service year. Moreso. they will have enough capital and experience to embrace farming rather than be looking for unavailable white-collar jobs, or go into crimes.

Lastly the Federal Government should begin to foster international partnerships to access funding, technology, and expertise, leverage international aid and support to implement large-scale food security programs and projects.

Implementing these strategies requires collaboration among government agencies, non-governmental organizations, private sector stakeholders, and the international community. A coordinated and sustained effort is essential to address the root causes of food insecurity and ensure long-term food security for Nigeria.

Odusote is a Corporate Communications and Public Affairs Consultant, a Partner at CMC Connect LLP, exclusive affiliate to Burson, based in Lagos, Nigeria.

[OPINION] “Mesu jamba,” a Slur against Ilorin People, is a Linguistic Fraud - Farooq A. Kperogi

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One of the responses I got to last week’s column repeated a historically and sociolinguistically suspect claim about the supposed contempt Hausa people have for Ilorin people to justify why Kano State NNPP chairman Hashim Dungurawa’s sly disparagement of the Ilorin blood in Emir Aminu Ado Bayero was unsurprising.

Hausa people supposedly called the people of Ilorin “masu zamba,” which translates as fraudsters or swindlers, and that “mesu jamba,” the slur Southwest Yoruba people habitually hurl at Ilorin people in moments of inflamed passions, derives from it.

I reproduce below a column I wrote in November 2018 to question the accuracy of this claim. Enjoy:

For those who are not clued in on Yoruba cultural politics, “mesu jamba” is a term of insult that Yoruba people deploy to demean Ilorin people. Its usage spiked exponentially in the last three years with the ascension of Bukola Saraki to the Nigerian Senate presidency.

Yoruba people loyal to Bola Tinubu routinely slur Saraki as “mesu jamba” because of his Ilorin origins, which, incidentally, some reactionary, intellectually impoverished Ilorin nativists are now calling into question.

Interestingly, too, in a September 2018 tweet, former culture minister Femi Fani-Kayode extended the insult to Lai Mohammed, who is not from Ilorin but from Oro, a town in the Irepodun Local Government Area of Kwara State where people speak a dialect of Yoruba called Igbomina. Fani-Kayode taunted Mohammed as an ''ugly little mesu jamba parrot.''

I don’t know if this extension of the “mesu jamba” (sometimes spelled as “mesujamba”) insult to all Yoruba-speaking Kwarans is widespread among the Yoruba of southwest Nigeria. Nevertheless, “mesu jamba” is often said to be a Hausa loan in Yoruba to mean “fraudulent people.” (Since it is sometimes used even for a person, it can denote a “fraudulent person”). But this is a linguistic fraud, and here is why.

If the expression were to be written in Hausa, it would be rendered as “masu zamba,” which would mean the people of fraud—or simply scammers. “Masu” is the plural form of “mai,” which functions as what linguists call a “relater” or a particle. It is used in Hausa to introduce nominal (and sometimes verbal) phrases and to indicate possession of or close association with the noun (or verbal phrase) mentioned. So, a person who sells water is called a “mai ruwa.” Groups of people who sell water would be “masu ruwa.” Zamba means fraud in Hausa. So, one fraudulent person would be “mai zamba” and multiple fraudulent people would be “masu zamba.”

The expression “masu zamba” (which was supposedly corrupted to “mesu jamba” in Yoruba) reputedly stems from Hausa people’s experience with the widespread fraud among Ilorin people. The problem is that, historically, Hausa people have never had any untoward relationship with Ilorin people to warrant characterizing them as scammers. If anything, as I pointed out in my two-part series titled, “Ilorinis an Ethnogenesis: Response to Kawu’s Anti-Saraki Ilorin Purism,” Hausa people are integral to the founding of Ilorin in its current form.

“The Ilorin identity is the product of the fusion of Yoruba, Fulani, Hausa, Baatonu (Bariba), Kanuri, Nupe, Gwari, and Gobir ethnicities and influences,” I wrote. It is a relatively new ethnogeny that was birthed in the full light of history. As I pointed out in my article, a Hausa man by the name of Bako nearly became the first emir of Ilorin and, as I’ll show shortly, ex-Hausa slaves from Oyo were part of Afonja’s foot soldiers.

Phonological fraud

It is phonologically implausible that “masu zamba” would be rendered as “mesu jamba” in Yoruba. Yoruba does not have a “z” sound, and whenever it borrows a word from another language that has a “z” sound, it almost always substitutes “z” with “s.” That is why Aziz becomes Lasisi, why Zubair becomes Suberu, why Zakari becomes Sakari (and later Saka), why Zamfara is pronounced Samfara, etc. For more on the phonological and morphological domestication processes of Yoruba, read my July 13, 2014, column titled “Top 10 Yoruba Names You Never Guessed Were Arabic Names” and my May 13, 2012, column titled, “The Arabic Origins of Common Yoruba Words.”

There is no instantiation I can find of a “z” sound from a donor language being substituted with a “j” sound when borrowed in the Yoruba language. I see no reason why “zamba” would defy the enduring phonological logic of the Yoruba language and become “jamba.” I welcome any Yoruba speaker with contrary information to challenge or educate me.

Interestingly, in my native Baatonu language, (which Yoruba people call Baruba, Bariba, or Ibariba), the Hausa “zamba” is domesticated as “samba,” and it means not just fraud but guileful fraud. Baatonu, like Yoruba, has no “z” sound and always substitutes “z” with “s.” So, what is true origin of the expression “mesu jamba”?

Etymology of “mesu jamba”

As I pointed out earlier, Ilorin is an ethnogeny that is synthesized from a multiplicity of disparate ethnic identities, among which are Hausa or Hausa-speaking people. When Afonja rebelled against the Alaafin of Oyo in the early 1800s, he assembled a multi-ethnic army he called “jama” (sometimes spelled as “jema” in the historical literature). Jama is the corruption of the Arabic jama’ah, which translates as “congregation” or “community” in English.

Professor Abdullahi Smith’s book titled A Little New Light, which I cited liberally in my “Ilorin is an Ethnogenesis” series, clearly shows that Afonja’s “jama” had in it Yoruba, Hausa, and Fulani foot soldiers who were notorious for their unfeeling ruthlessness. Afonja invited Alimi, the forebear of Ilorin’s contemporary traditional ruling family, to permanently settle in Ilorin and to become his spiritual guardian. Afonja later told Alimi to relocate his entire family from Sokoto to Ilorin.

But Alimi brought more than his immediate family. Several Hausa-speaking Muslims from Sokoto, who were not his blood relatives, came along as well. And since, according to historical records, Afonja’s jama was still active even after Alimi’s death, the newly arrived Hausa-speaking Muslims from Sokoto referred to Afonja and his foot soldiers as “masu jama’a,” which denotatively means people of the community, but which connotatively meant members of Afonja’s jama army. The singular form of “masu jama” would be “mai jama.”

These expressions—“mai jama’a” and “masu jama’a” are still active in the Hausa language. The nickname for Hon. Zakari Mohammed, the House of Representatives member from Kwara State representing Baruten and Kaiama local governments, is “Mai Jama’a,” which connotes “man of the people.”

But the “jama’a” in the original “masu jama’a” referred only to Afonja’s army, which, as I’ve pointed out, was literally called “jama” (or “jema” in the writings of Yoruba historians). Over time, “masu jama’a” came to mean the Ilorin people who were loyal to Afonja, who died in a battle with Alimi’s descendants in the 1830s. That’s the historical basis for the pejorative undertone of “masu jama’a.”

In the course of time, however, Yoruba speakers domesticated “masu jama’a” to “mesu jama” (and later “mesu jamba”). Phonological intrusion isn’t uncommon when languages borrow from another language, so the intrusive “b” in “jamba” isn’t unusual. The fact that members of Afonja’s jama were war-mongering mercenaries and bandits, not to mention non-Muslims, redounded to the semantic derogation of the term. Since the jama was disbanded and most Ilorin people pledged allegiance to the emir, “masu jama” went into disuse in Ilorin.

Nevertheless, the term was picked up by Yoruba people in the southwest, who have no awareness of the etymology of the term. They now use it indiscriminately as a catch-all slur for all Ilorin people. It’s a linguistic fraud that should get to the end of its shelf life now.

Isn’t it a supreme irony that a fraud is deployed to characterize people as frauds?

Students and Associates Celebrate Prof Chinedum Nwajiuba @ 60

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It was a gathering of who is who in the academic and educational sector in Nigeria as the maiden conference on Climate Justice and Just Energy Transition in Developing countries in honour of Prof. Chinedum Uzoma Nwajiuba at 60 took the centre stage at Coal City University, Enugu. The two days conference was organised by the former students and associates of Nwajiuba in collaboration with the Centre for Climate Change and Development, Alex Ekwueme Federal University Ndufu Alike, Ebonyi State and Faculty of Natural and Applied Sciences of Coal City University, (CCU) Enugu, Nigeria. Dubbed the birthday with a difference, it was an honour due to an academic, erudite Professor of Agricultural Economics, climate resilience and advocacy of climate justice and former Vice Chancellor, Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu-Alike, Ebonyi, State, Nigeria as he hits the milestone of 60. The event which took place at the state-of-the-art auditorium, Coal City University, Enugu witnessed a gathering of high profile academics from the National Universities Commission and many other universities across Nigeria as a mark of honour and respect for the foremost climate change ambassador and an icon. The chancellor, Coal City University, Sir (Dr.) Chinedu Ani was on hand to lend unflinching support to the man of the moment.

The highly rated academic event commenced with a courtesy visit to the Vice Chancellor, Coal City University, Prof Afam Ichia-Ituma, who doubled as the host of the maiden Nwajiuba conference at 60. The management, staff, students and indeed the entire university community were on hand to receive and identify with the celebrant. In company of Nwajiuba was his lovely wife Dr. Chinyere Nwajiuba, mni and other high profile academics from various universities across the country. The Deputy Vice Chancellor, Coal City University, Professor Sylvester Emeka Igwe, stood in for the Vice Chancellor, Afam Icha-Ituma who was unavoidably absent. He led other senior management staff of CCU to receive the celebrant and his entourage.

The Deputy Executive Secretary Academics, Nigerian Universities Commission, Dr. Noel Saliu who represented the Executive Secretary, Ambassador Chris Maiyaki brought good tidings. He thanked CCU for her warm reception and for blazing the trail in university education in Nigeria. He added that, “we are here to celebrate an icon at 60 who has contributed to the body of knowledge and a national colossus in climate change. Prof. Nwajiuba thanked the Vice Chancellor and the university community for providing a fertile ground and support for the conference. He was elated and appreciated the University for encouraging a high number of students to participate in the conference. This conference is about the young ones and the university has the "temperament and emerging character for me to host the event."

Responding, the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Prof. Sylvester Emeka Igwe, welcomed Prof. Nwajiuba and his team to Coal City University and thanked him for finding the university worthy of hosting the maiden edition of his conference. He noted that Prof. Nwajiuba is a mentor to many renowned scholars including the Vice Chancellor of the university. Adding that, the university is proud to be associated with the indefatigable spirit and character of the celebrant.

The Vice Chancellor Prof. Afam Icha-Ituma whose address was streamed live welcomed in a special way, the Ag. Executive Secretary of National University Commission, Ambassador Chris Maiyaki, who chaired the opening ceremony of the conference. The Executive Secretary was ably represented the Deputy Executive Secretary of NUC (Academics), Dr. Noel Biodun Saliu, and the high profile team from NUC. The Vice Chancellor in his remarks commended, "the Executive Secretary of NUC for taking keen interest in every aspect of this Coal City University. I applaud him for the giant strides being recorded by the Nigerian University System under his dynamic leadership. Our work in the development of Coal City University has been tremendously enriched by the unflinching support from NUC and we are profoundly grateful, he said"

Continuing the elated VC said, "I am very delighted that our visionary Chancellor and Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Sir Chinedu Ani is present at today’s event. We are honoured by his esteemed presence and I thank him so much for all his contributions to ensure the success of this conference. It is with great joy that I heartily welcome our distinguished honouree, Professor Chinedum Uzoma Nwajiuba and his amiable wife Prof Chinyere Nwajiuba, mni and members of the Nwajiuba dynasty and so many colleagues, friends from AE-FUNAI and other universities who have gathered to celebrate Professor Nwajiuba’s 60th birthday anniversary. Special appreciation to Professor Ikenna Uzuegbunam, from Howard University, US. Your presence at Coal City University today, and your contributions to what promises to be a highly engaging and impactful conversation on climate change, demonstrate the level of regard in which Prof Chinedum Nwajiuba is held, and the admiration and respect we all have for him."

Furthermore, "I most especially thank you all for coming to Coal City University to celebrate a remarkable milestone in the life of Professor Nwajiuba, an intellectual giant, and a globally recognised champion of climate justice. Professor Nwajiuba has done the academic community and broader society several admirable services through his institutional leadership, thought leadership, and numerous public services. I had the pleasure of serving in various capacities including as a Dean of Faculty under his dynamic leadership as the Vice-Chancellor of AE-FUNAI. There are different types of institutional leaders. Some cast long shadows in an institution, while others shine sunlight that helps the rest of us find our way and find the paths to make our contributions. My gratitude to Professor Nwajiuba lies here, and I know that many others can report similar experiences. His exceptional and special leadership abilities and charismatic personality were readily apparent in AE-FUNAI and beyond. As we converge on this auspicious occasion, we honour not only Professor Nwajiuba's 60 years of remarkable life but also his tireless dedication to the pursuit of a more sustainable and equitable world. His contributions to the field of climate justice and just energy transition have inspired generations, and his legacy continues to shape our understanding of the critical issues that face our planet. It is, indeed, befitting to host a conference in his honour."

"Indeed, the theme of this conference “Climate Justice and Just Energy Transition in Developing Countries” is very timely and apposite. There is a growing scholarship investigating the ways climate change has uneven impacts throughout the world. Research in the field of climate justice and political ecology addresses how we understand the structural forces shaping human and nonhuman responses to the climate emergency. It is not merely intellectually rewarding to discuss climate justice and related issues in developing countries, but a matter of profound policy relevance. And thanks to the network of Professor Nwajiuba, we are privileged to have many prominent speakers to offer their insights. I am delighted that distinguished experts, thought leaders and policymakers will be sharing their knowledge and experience at this conference. We look forward to hearing what the erudite keynote speaker and panelists have to say on the theme of the conference. I am fully confident that the speakers will go some way to equip us with the capacity to ideate, articulate and implement nature-preserving sustainable practices that will inspire positive change in developing countries, particularly Nigeria. As I end this opening remark, I applaud Professor Nwajiuba’s former students and members of the Local Organising Committee headed by Dr. Robert Onyeneke for having the presence of mind to organise this conference and for working conscientiously to ensure its success. Nwajiuba, an outstanding scholar, educational administrator, institutional builder, former Vice-Chancellor and former pro-chancellor of two universities. Humanity is Professor Nwajiuba’s dominant feature, and that is why beyond esteem, what we all have for him is affection."

In his welcome address, the Chairman, Conference Organising Committee, Dr. Robert Onyeneke said, “today we gathered not only to deliberate on pressing issues but to celebrate a remarkable individual whose work has significantly shaped our understanding of climate justice and energy transition.” Prof. Nwajiuba’s contribution have been both timely and impactful. From his rigorous academic research to his dynamics policy engagements, he has been a vanguard in the environmental discourse. His work with the Building Nigeria’s Response to Climate Change and Africa Adaptation Projects, Nigerian Environmental Study Action Team (NEST), and his pivotal role in delivering the national Adaptation Strategy and Plan of Action on Climate Change for Nigeria (NASPA-CCN) have laid foundational strategies for national resilience.”

The conference witnesses an array of renowned academic presentations and well researched topics on climate change. The keynote lecture entitled “Climate Act: Implication for Climate action in Nigeria.” was delivered by Hon. Sam Onuigbo, a former member, House of Representatives, who represented Ikwuano/Umuahia Federal constituency. Hon. Sam is regarded as the father of Nigeria’s Climate Change Act, 2021, for sponsoring the bill which was assented to by President Buhari on November 17, 2021. The Act led to the establishment of the National Council on Climate Change. His lecture dwelt on the role of legislation in climate change, comparative review of some climate change laws, key provisions of the climate change act and government action in line with the provisions among others.

Dr. Noel Saliu, the Deputy Executive Secretary Academics, Nigerian Universities Commission, who represented the Executive Secretary, delivered an outstanding piece entitled, “The Core Curriculum and Minimum Academic Standards: The Role of NUC in Mainstreaming Climate Change Migration and Justice in University education in Nigeria.” His lecture focused on the effects of climate change, the need for climate justice, climate change mitigation in the university education, climate change mitigation education among others.

Reacting to the presentations, Prof. Nwajiuba noted that the lectures though technical simply points to the direction the world is going and drums up support for active involvement of government and the people of Nigeria on energy transition from the fossil fuel to renewable energy. He emphasised that Nigeria cannot be left behind as the school is the right place to begin the plantation of the idea. The right place to begin with is Coal City University for it has the right spirit and culture of educational excellence. Goodwill messages poured in from Delta State University, Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu-Alike Ikwo, Ebonyi State, Kingsley Ozumba Mbadiwe University, Imo State, University of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, Umuagwo, Imo State. Major highlights of the event featured cutting of birthday cake by the celebrant and entertainment of the guests by Coal City University Cultural troupe.

Sunday Onyemaechi Eze, Lecturer Department of Mass Communication, Coal City University, Enugu

[OPINION] Umo Eno’s 18-storey Lagos building - Etim Etim

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I am not surprised that Gov. Umo Eno’s plans to invest in property development in Lagos and a hotel in Abuja has generated some controversy among his people. Few trust their governments in Nigeria; so, every action is taken with a high dose of cynicism. Akwa Ibom government is erecting an 18-storey building for commercial use on Bishop Abayode Cole Street, Victoria Island, while the state’s liaison office in Abuja would be converted to a four-floor hotel. The VI building, to be known as Ibom Towers, will consist of one- and two-bedroom flats (31 of them) and some business suites, that would be sold to investing public. Conservative estimates indicate that the government may generate up to N100 billion from this transaction. The VI property is a small bungalow sitting on a large parcel of land acquired over 30 years ago. It served as the governor’s office annex in Lagos, providing the chief executive with ample space for meetings and official business in the nation’s most industrialized city. I actually met Governor Godswill Akpabio there sometime around 2009. He is the last chief executive of the state to use the place.

In 2017, Gov. Udom Emmanuel acquired a more modern property on Coopers Road in Ikoyi for use as official residence and office. The VI property had long remained largely unused. Similarly, the Abuja property, located in the Central Business District, has also been abandoned for many years now. Converting it to a hotel and handing it over to a successful hotel manager to operate makes business sense. In addition to these two, investments, Eno is also building a low-density residential estate in the heart of Uyo. He hopes to sell the residential units to the public. But it is the Lagos development that is kicking off the most storm. Many a commentator believes that the Akwa Ibom people will benefit more if the funds to be used in developing the property were invested in some economic activities in the state. They have a point, but the government’s decision also has some merit. A commercial property development in VI, Lagos is not a bad venture.

The reason the governor is being criticized is because of our recent experience in property investment. In 2021, Gov. Emmanuel completed a 21-storey building in Uyo. When he mooted the idea, he was trenchantly criticized for wasting resources on such a white elephant project. But the governor claimed that ExxonMobil was soon relocating its corporate headquarters to the state and would occupy several floors in the building. I doubted the claim and said so publicly, having spoken to many Mobil executives then. It turned out that the oil company was at that time exiting its onshore operations, which were based in the state, and were actually selling off the business to Seplat Energy, an indigenous oil-producing company. Udom Emmanuel was actually lying to the people, and till today the 21-storey building has remained unoccupied, apart from two floors donated by the government to the Bank of Industry. Many other investments made by the former governor and located in his hometown, like the coconut factory; the syringe manufacturing plant; the electric meter manufacturing plant and the flour mills factory, have all floundered. In May, the former governor announced at a public function in Uyo that the 21-storey building is still vacant because of COVID-19. Such a barefaced falsehood!

This why our people are so distrustful of their leaders. They do not want to be deceived the second time in this property business, and that is why they are kicking against the 18-storey development. I understand their position; however, I should emphasize that the government is not always wrong in its investment decisions. In 2019, it launched an airline, Ibom Air, and I was one of those who expressed reservations about its viability. Airline business, I reasoned, is risky, largely unprofitable and difficult to run successfully. Five years on, Ibom Air has become the nation’s favorite domestic carrier and a major source of employment for young people. I understand that the airline has since broken even and is not relying on government to meet its operational expenses. But the government continues to support it in in capital investments like aircraft acquisitions and training of young Akwa Ibom people in aviation careers.

A residential development in Victoria Island should be a huge commercial success, and in this particular case, an abandoned, non-earning asset would be converted into a profitable business transaction. I support it, but it is, however, important to emphasize that if the expected N100 billion proceeds are not well managed, the raging criticisms would have been justified. For one, the proceeds should not be used to pay salaries, wages, pensions or gratuities. The money should be invested in sustainable income-generating and jobs-creating businesses. For instance, Ibom Power plants should be upgraded and made to adequate power to the state. regular supply of electricity will trigger untold multiplier effects. Parts of the proceeds should also be invested in a wealth fund, established by law, for future generations of Akwa Ibom State.

I enjoin the governor to handle the Lagos investment, and indeed, all others, with utmost transparency and openness; and reject any urge for him and government’s officials to profit from them personally.

[OPINION] Nigeria and the Dangote Refinery Conundrum - Marcel Okeke

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For several years now, especially since May, 2023, when it was commissioned by (then) President Muhammadu Buhari, the Dangote Refinery, located in Lekki, Lagos, has remained Nigeria’s only hope for substantial local supply of petrol (Premium Motor Spirit, PMS). This hope became even more desperate from May 29, 2023, when President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in his inaugural address, announced fuel subsidy removal which was anchored on almost 100 per cent imported PMS.

Sequel to the subsidy removal and kindred economic policies of the Tinubu administration, prices of goods and services in the country hit the rooftop, driving inflation rate to unprecedented levels. From slightly over 22 per cent in May 2023, inflation rate (measured by Consumer Price Index, CPI) has skyrocketed to 34.20 per cent at end-June 2024. PMS which price per liter rose from below N200 in May 2023, to above N700 soon after the subsidy removal, has remained scarce, with the price now ranging between N800 and N1000 per liter in various parts of the country. Fuel scarcity has remained unabated!

In the face of all this, with the economy practically pushed into the doldrums, the hope of PMS from the Dangote Refinery has come to appear forlorn; or, indeed, lost. Since the commissioning of the facility in May 2023, almost every month in the past one year has been proposed/promised as the time the ‘essential commodity’ would start gushing out from taps at the refinery. But rather than the hope being realized, PMS importation has remained the order of the day, with so much scarce foreign exchange (FX) being dissipated by the importers.

On the other hand, in the course of the past one year, the Dangote Refinery itself seem to have been unwittingly enmeshed in twists and turns beyond its control. The critical raw material for the Refinery, namely, crude oil, could no longer be sourced from within Nigeria. The reputed largest producer/exporter of crude oil in Africa, Nigeria, suddenly found itself incapable of supplying crude oil to the local refinery. This bizarre situation got so bad that the management of Dangote Refinery had to accuse the multinationals (international oil companies, IOCs) in the country of ‘organized sabotage.’

Specifically, Devakumar Edwin, Vive-President, oil and gas, at Dangote Industries Limited (DIL) reportedly accused the IOCs in Nigeria of “doing everything to frustrate the survival of Dangote Oil Refinery and Petrochemicals.” Edwin said the IOCs were deliberately frustrating the refinery’s efforts to buy local crude by jerking up crude oil prices above the market price, thereby forcing it (the refinery) to import crude from countries as far as the United States, with attendant huge costs.

In addition to this, Edwin also lamented the activity of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), which he accused of “granting licenses indiscriminately to marketers to import dirty refined products into the country.” He further lamented that “the Federal Government issued 25 licenses to build refineries and we are the only one that delivered on promise,” saying “in effect, we deserve every support from the Government.”

The DIL chief said: “the IOCs are keen on exporting the raw materials (crude oil) to their home countries, creating employment and wealth for their countries, adding to their GDP, and dumping the expensive refined products into Nigeria, thus making us depend on imported products.” He regretted this scenario, saying that “unfortunately, Nigeria also plays into the hands of the IOCs by continuing to issue import licenses at the expense of our economy.”

Surprisingly, and in spite of these lamentations and serious allegations by the DIL chief, Dangote Refinery had to resort to importing crude oil from very far-flung places like the US and Brazil. Specifically, early in 2024, the 650,000 barrels per day refinery took delivery of about 10 million barrels of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude from the US “to offset unreliable domestic supply.” The Refinery has also issued a tender for additional 11 million barrels of US crude oil over the next six months. This new tender, closing on July 21, aims to procure two million barrels per month of WTI Midland crude for the refinery, reputed to be the world’s largest single-train facility, for the next six months, starting from August.

In a tender reported by Bloomberg, Dangote Refinery purchased five million barrels of WTI Midland crude for delivery in the coming months of August and September. Additionally, the company initiated a tender process to acquire an additional six million barrels of US crude for October. Bloomberg has also reported that the Refinery is set to import a cargo of Brazilian crude, to “add to the large number of overseas barrels of crude feedstock that the Nigerian firm imports.”

Obviously, this importation of crude oil by the Dangote Refinery is a vivid pointer to the beleaguered state of the Nigerian hydrocarbon industry. It looks ridiculous, even incredulous, that with Nigeria’s ranking among African crude producers and the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), it is yet unable to meet the crude input need of just a few local refineries in the country. And Dangote Refinery is the only one of notable capacity; others are small modular refineries.

Dangote Refinery resorting to importing crude from abroad is portentous for Nigeria. First, it puts a huge question mark on the country’s long-hyped crude oil production/exporting capacity, which gave it high ranking in the hydrocarbon business world. Secondly, the lack of capacity to meet the crude input needs of local refineries exposes the precarious state of the oil sector in Nigeria. In recent times, the oil exploration and production (E & P) business has been buffeted by a myriad of challenges, including the menace of massive oil theft.

Militancy and youth restiveness, coupled with outright sabotage and assets vandalism, have adversely affected E & P over the years in the oil-producing Niger Delta region of the country. Ageing equipment and lack of fresh capital investments have also been the lot of the industry. Also, the long delay in enacting the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) made most operators to either withhold or divert their investments elsewhere. All these have obviously led to very low production and export volume of crude from Nigeria.

In point of fact, for several years now, Nigeria has been producing and exporting crude far below its allocated OPEC quota. While the oil cartel expects Nigeria to bring about two million barrels per day crude to the global market, the country has hardly been able to produce/supply anything more than 1.3 million barrels per day. The recent exit of most of the IOCs from Nigeria (especially from onshore operations) has also caused some hiccups in the E & P arm of the oil and gas business.

The upshot of all these, perhaps, is manifesting in the dire situation of Dangote Refinery having to depend on crude oil importation for its operations. What may not also have been obvious is the fact that other much smaller refineries (modular) have also not been having reliable/adequate crude supply from within Nigeria. Indeed, it has become quite revealing that much of crude oil produced in Nigeria has been mortgaged in the past couple of years as ‘collateral’ for the Federal Government loans.

Even as the Dangote Refinery’s embarrassing situation of importing crude oil from abroad became public knowledge just recently, the Nigeria National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited was reportedly processing another US$2.5 billion oil-backed credit facility for funding its operations. This implies that a large chunk of current oil production has been ‘given out’ to secure loans from multilateral financial institutions.

The import of all these is that Dangote Refinery’s crude oil importation will drive up its cost of operations; and this will ultimately be factored into its pricing of PMS from its plants. Worthy of note also is the fact that the Refinery is located in a free-trade zone, which automatically empowers it (if it chooses) to stick to exporting its products, rather than serving the local market.

The Dangote Refinery is first and foremost a business; and might not choose to serve the Nigerian market with cheap PMS at huge losses. Not after going through the harrowing experience of crude oil importation and scaling willful but insidious hurdles by government and non-government agents in Nigeria. So, cheap fuel from Dangote Refinery might end up a mere wishful thinking. Let’s wait and see!

The author, Okeke, a practising Economist, Business Strategist, Sustainability expert and ex-Chief Economist of Zenith Bank Plc, lives in Lekki, Lagos. He can be reached via: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (08033075697 SMS only)

[OPINION] Local government today and tommorrow - Abdu Rafiu

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The news of the Supreme Court pronouncement on the financial relationship between state governments and local governments hit everyone like a thunderbolt—the various tiers of government and public affairs enthusiasts, those who pre-occupy themselves with public affairs. Private citizens who occasionally reflect on matters of this nature only in their closets because of its over-arching implications cannot be indifferent. The judgment is seen as weaning off, indeed freeing local governments from the apron strings of the state governments. The Supreme Court reaffirmed the constitutional rights and obligations of local governments, rights state governments had glossed over all of the 25 years since the take off of the Fourth Republic in 1999. They will now have financial autonomy to fulfill statutory obligations to the people in their localities.

With the Supreme Court ruling last week which lawyers would say has become a case law, financial share of statutory allocations for local councils will be going to them straight from the Central Authority. Governors are divested of power to dissolve elected local council assemblies. Hitherto, a governor could just wake up from a bad dream and send a local government council packing at his whims and caprices and replace the elected officials with handpicked caretakers who owe no allegiance to the community, but to their appointers, the governors. Because such sack sends cold shivers down their spine, local government chairmen advise themselves accordingly. Thus, they became no more than prefects owing their loyalty only to the governors. The result has been that the share of revenue to the councils has been wooly or at best what the state executives dimmed fit, not what councils may statutorily be entitled to collect to develop and maintain their communities. All that is shrouded from the public gaze and enquiries. Doubts then arise in the minds of the public on whether local governments ever have budgets at all. The doubts trigger speculations that in cases there have been allocations councilors, chairmen and officials just gather to share the revenue. True or false, that has been the low esteem in which the councils have been held and the contempt the state authorities have been assailed over their relationship with the local councils. Ask anybody, it is as if local governments do not exist in Nigeria. After Ademola Adeniji Adele, I do not know the name of the chairman of Lagos City Council. In his days Adeniji Adele could be mistaken for the governor of Lagos State. After Chief Michael Adekunle Ajasin, I don’t know the names of the chairmen who had mounted the saddle at Owo in succession to him since 1978. Can it ever be forgotten that Dr. Abubakar Ibiyinka Olorun-Nimbe and Ganiyu Olawale Dawodu were at different times chairmen of Lagos Town Council, Dawodu on the platform of Action Group and Dr. Olorun-Nimbe, on the platform of NCNC? Each would pass as governor of Lagos State in these modern times. What with the Administration that transformed Lagos, building what was then referred to as New Lagos, (Surulere)–the medium and low cost houses there, and which provided public buses with the inscription LMTS,(Lagos Municipal Transport Service) among a string of legacies. In the First Republic, local councils were more visible. They built schools, they paid teachers; they constructed roads. They had Native Authority Police Force (NAPF).

Last week, the Supreme Court rose admirably to sanitize the hinderances and inadequacies that have bedeviled local government administration in the country. The government of a state and local governments sharing the same umbrella are henceforth to work collaboratively, yet independent of one another. The governors have generally expressed support for the Supreme Court judgment although the last may not have been heard from them. The chairman of their Forum, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, Governor of Kwara State, said he and his colleagues would study the judgment and come back. The Governor of Oyo State, Seyi Makinde, could hardly contain his displeasure. He is setting up a committee to look at the judgment. Other fears have been expressed. Former Governor of Delta State, James Ibori, sees the Federal Government remitting money directly to accounts of the local government councils as a set-back in the nation’s march to true federalism. Viewing it as dangerous, he believes very strongly that the judgment adds to the burden of over-centralization of government at a time there is a loud clamour for loosening up and upholding the principles of federalism.

He refreshes our memory with sections of the Constitution with particular reference to Section 162 (6). This states as follows: “Each state shall maintain a special account to be called ‘state Joint Local Government Account’ into which shall be paid all allocations to the local government councils of the state from the Federation Account and from the Government of the State.” Ibori then said: “The court’s ruling on the matter is an assault on true federalism. The Federal Government has no right to interfere with the administration of Local Governments under any guise whatsoever. There are only two tiers of government in a federal system of government.” He said, yes, it is wrong for states to fiddle with allocations to the Joint Local Government Accounts and he is opposed to it, but he argues, that “does not call for this death knell to the clear provisions of section 162 of the constitution.” Further in his words, “The Supreme Court’s ruling appears to contradict the explicit provisions of the 1999 Constitution. The ruling potentially shifts the balance of power between the Federal Government and the states. By allowing federal intervention in local government finances, it arguably centralizes more power at the federal level, contrary to the principles of federalism. This decision could be seen as an erosion of state autonomy. States are meant to have significant control over their internal affairs, including the administration of local governments, in a federal system.”

Financial independence: “The ruling may impact the financial inependence of states and local governments. If the federal government can directly intervene in local government finances, it could potentially use this as a tool for political leverage”. Ibori sees a precedent being set as “this decision could set a precedent for further federal interventions in areas traditionally reserved for state governance, potentially leading to a more centralized system of government over time. That Local Governments must be democratically elected ‘goes without saying. Yes, I agree. That’s the position of the constitution but withholding their allocation is not the way to go. It’s wrong. In the coming days, we will begin to fully understand the implications of the Supreme Court decision. An assault on the constitution is not the answer to fiddling with the Joint Local Government Account. If the ruling is saying governors cannot tamper, touch or fiddle with the Joint Accounts, that’s fine because they shouldn’t be doing that in the first place. But asking the Federal Government to pay Local Government allocations to the account of the local Government directly will lead to utter chaos and avoidable friction in governance.” Ibori would like the Supreme Court take another look at its decision.

Erstwhile Governor Ibori has made solid points on over-centralization of power. Given the level of our inner maturity which underpins leadership attitude to opposition views and which triggers unconscionable carpet crossing, the sort we are witnessing in Rivers State, a narrow demagogic leader may arise at the centre who may decide to teach a recalcitrant opposition local council a lesson by withholding its allocation in order to cripple it. But then there appears to be some in-built mechanisms to prevent abuse by the Federal executive powers on the issue. What the Constitution Section 162 (2) says is that the President is to lay before the National Assembly proposals for revenue allocation from the Federation Account following which the latter will determine the distribution formula. The tabling before the National Assembly is upon advice from the Revenue Mobilization, Allocation and Fiscal Commission. The same Section, article 3 then states and I quote: “Any any amount standing to the credit of the Federation Account shall be distributed among the Federal, State Governments and the local government councils in each state on such terms and in such manner as may be prescribed by the National Assembly.” The process leaves little or no room for the Executive to withhold the allocation to any state, local council or a group of states and their councils. At every stage, there is input of the National Assembly. It is also pertinent to wonder if the state governors have demonstrated fidelity to the letters and spirit of the Constitution on the administration of local councils in the country.

My take, therefore, is that it is the states that brought the misfortune on themselves with the court ruling scrapping the channel for onward release of local council funds through them. They put in the way of effective local councils devices to hamstring them. If they were remitting the local council share of the revenue to them as and when due and doing so transparently, there would have been no acrimony. No one would have gone to court to bring them to an awakening. In many cases as noted by the court, the funds were withheld, not disbursed to the local councils. The governors did not take a cue from the Federal which publishes its own disbursement month after month, the amount that is shared and what goes to which tier of government. The experience over the years is that a majority of the state governors have been derelict, using funds as instrument of manipulation and power aggrandizement, thus leaving councils and by extension their communities they are expected to serve to suffer. The consequence is that there is hardly evidence of development anywhere. Because local government areas hold no promise for the youths, they flee to towns and cities where they create social problems. The governors have had 25 years to reflect on the rightness or otherwise of withholding of allocations to local councils and dissolving properly constituted councils.

Justice Emmanuel Agim said this much in the Supreme Court leading judgment: “I hold that the states’s retention of the local government funds is unconstitutional. Demands of justice require a progressive interpretation of law. It is the position of this court that the federation can pay LG allocations to the LGs directly or pay them through the states. In this case, since paying them through states has not worked, justice of this case demands that LG allocations from the federation account should henceforth be paid directly to the LGs.”

It can also only be enheartening that no elected local government council can henceforth be dissolved by governors and only democratically elected local government councils are to be paid and not any longer caretaker committees. The Supreme Court declaration on the vexed issue is “that the state government has no power or control to keep the local government council money or funds”. The court made further declaration barring state governments from dipping hands in the local council public till what Justice Agim called “an order of injunction restraining the defendants (that is state governors) by themselves, agents or privies from spending local government allocation.”

Local government councils are the officials closest to the people in towns and villages, what political pundits are wont to call grassroots and as in other lands, their functions include establishing orderliness in localities through licensing of trucks, bicycles, wheel barrows and canoes. They are charged with construction and maintenance of roads, streets, street lightings, drains and other public highways, parks, gardens and open places. They are supposed to be in charge of provision of public conveniences, sewage and refuse disposal; control and regulation of outdoor advertising, movement and keeping of pets of all description; shops and kiosks; restaurants, bakeries and other places for sale of food to the public and licensing, regulation and control of liquor. They are to collaborate with the State Government with respect to provision and maintenance of primary, adult and vocational education, the development of agriculture and natural resources, other than exploitation of minerals and in the provision and maintenance of health services. These functions are well spelt out in the Fourth Schedule of the Constitutions. In the Western World, it is Mayors that the populace looks up to for their wellbeing and security.

It is a gratifying landmark judgment which the nation had last week for which the Supreme Court and the Federal Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi deserve commendation. Fagbemi’s action was predicated on 27 grounds, asking the Supreme Court to issue an order banning state governors from unilateral, arbitrary and unlawful dissolution of democratically elected local government leaders. The Supreme Court decision points the way to civility, orderliness as well as progress and development in our local government councils.

The galaxy of stars of the month of July in our firmament

I woke up, turning my gaze up to scan the firmament. What did I see? Bright stars, all, in the month of July. Consider the list, all beaming their rays of their shine to our world. Professor Wole Soyinka: Aremo Olusegun Osoba; Prince Henry Odukomaiya; Chief Ajibola Ogunshola; Professor Olatunji Dare; Prince Nduka Obaigbena; last but not the least, Dr. Stephen M. Lawani. The brightest of the stars and citizen of the universe, Professor Wole Soyinka; he was 90 on 13 July, last Saturday. It was the day Osoba, ace reporter, editor, Managing Director of the Daily Times, The Herald and Sketch, two times Governor of Ogun State and now political godfather to a great many, set off the waves with the release of his latest book, ‘My Life In The Public Eye’ ahead of his great day which was last Monday, 15 July. He was 85. Unknown to many of us, the day passed quietly, marked privately with members of his family, Prince Henry Odukomaiya, we fondly call editor of editors; pioneer Managing Director of National Concord and pioneer Managing Director of The Champion, was 90 on 10 July. He had his brightest days at the Daily Times. Celebrated columnist with an exceptional mastery of the English language, Professor Olatunji Dare, turned 80 on Wednesday, 17 July. He was chairman/editorial page editor of The Guardian after which he went on lectureship tour of the United States. Before his days at The Guardian, he had been a lecturer at the University of Lagos and chairman of Nigerian Herald at Ilorin.

Step forward Chief Ajibola Ogunshola, a very thoughtful fellow who is particular about standards and honour. He cannot tolerate carelessness, superficiality or wastage. Here is a glittering testimonial from a well-informed and hard-hitting columnist of The Punch, Abimbola Adelakun last Thursday: “He is a no-nonsense man with high professional standards. He brooked no sloppiness and approached any slack in quality with the sternness of a colonial-era village headmaster. In those days he would scan newspaper piece written by a journalist, make corrections with a red pen, put the copy in a white envelope, and address it to the writer.” In accordance with the Law of Homogeneity, he could only have worked with an executive with similar standards and taste and a workaholic. He found that fellow in Ademola Osinubi as his Managing Director while he was Chairman of The Punch. They transformed the paper and raised it to an enviable height. Ogushola turned 80 on Sunday, 14 July.

Just as well, next is Dr. Stephen Lawani who with Ogunshola was a university scholar at the University of Ibadan. Both were awarded scholarship by the university at the same time for their brilliance. Lawani read chemistry and Ogunshola mathematics. Because he led his class Lawani got two scholarships to do his doctorate programme, one in Chemistry and the other in Library Science. He elected the latter, drawing from his love of reading. The condition attached to Library Science scholarship was that he would on completion of his studies go back to Nigeria to set up the IITA library at Ibadan. After living IITA he worked in the World Bank in Washington, United States. Lawani is author of five books, the first being Christian and Reincarnation, then Future Societies to mention just two. Lawani was 80 also last week.

Here is the man we call the Duke! I am referring to none other than Prince Nduka Obaigbena. His credo that unrelentingly drives his spirit is He Who Dares Wins. This was the parting address Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher left with the British troops as they departed to fight Argentina over Falkland Islands in 1982, the engagement that was more known as Forklands War. Obaigbena is an exceedingly resourceful fellow. Gbolabo Ogunsanwo, the late celebrated columnist, was to say to me one day: “If you lock Nduka Obaigbena up in a room, the following day, like a Jew, he would come out with a bomber. There is nothing in his hands that he cannot turn into money if he wants to, squeezing something out of nothingness.” The testimonial says it all about a genius in the publishing world who always thinks out of the box. He is publisher of THISDAY newspaper and owner of Arise News Television which has been announced is live in 54 African countries and viewed in Europe on Sky platform. He turned 65 on Sunday, 14 July.

I can write a full length article on each of these eminent men, who are our joy and our pride. To do so will take seven weeks, each person per week. Five of the articles will undoubtedly fall out of season. It suffices, therefore, to draw attention to their great days and to invite us all to rise, clink glasses and say hip, hip, hip Hurrah!!! The glowing thread that connects them is writing. There they are, our bright stars up in the firmament!!! Hearty congratulations to all.

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[OPINION] Obi at 63: Introducing Obimentalism - Valentine Obienyem

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Over the years, I have written about Obi on his birthdays, a tradition stemming from my annual tribute to Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu while he was alive. I celebrate individuals deserving of recognition, those who understand that a person's worth is not measured by wealth amassed but by the positive impact left on the world. This encapsulates our subject, who turns sixty-three today and is making a huge impact on society in diverse forms.

Because of his recognized impact, he is the major topic of discussion among serious and even unserious minds that irritatingly use his name to chase clout on social media platforms. Last month, I had an unexpected encounter with Fr. Jude Onebunne, who teaches philosophy at Nnamdi Azikiwe University and Pope John Paul II Seminary in Okpuno. My discussion with Fr. Onebunne centered on the philosophy of Mr. Peter Obi. Fr. Onebunne shared that he had devoted time to studying Obi and found his philosophical insights compelling. He emphasized the importance of studying Obi's political and existential philosophies, not just for Nigeria but for humanity as a whole. As a lecturer, Fr. Onebunne had begun incorporating Obi's philosophy into his teachings, urging his students to analyse and expound.

Father was absolutely right, and I concurred with him. Just as we discuss Thomism for St. Thomas Aquinas, Aristotelianism for Aristotle, Confucianism for Confucius, and Cartesianism for René Descartes, Obi's philosophies, variously described as “Obism,” “Obinometricism,” and “Okwuteism,” should be distilled into a single term and actively introduced to students, taking on a life of its own in society. Before concluding, he analyzed the names ascribed to Obi's philosophy and noted that “Obinometricism” sounded more like economics than philosophy and should be ceded to economists. The fact is that Father is at work and beckoned others to set out to work as well. I am at work as well. I therefore propose that we term the corpus of Obi’s philosophy “Obimentalism.” We shall come back to that.

Fr. Onebunne clarified that his promotion of Obi's philosophy had nothing to do with Peter Obi as an individual but everything to do with the enduring impact of his life and philosophy on society. “Val, we do not know Plato or Aristotle personally, yet we still study them because their thoughts continue to function actively in society. Peter Obi deserves similar adulation” Fr. Onebunne concluded, while bursting with energy.

Now, who is Peter Obi? If we subject his actions to critical analysis, what philosophy can be gleaned from them? Can we distil a consistent political, ethical and economic philosophy from his engagements? At sixty-three, how do we define him? Who among us is equipped to dissect such a multifaceted man?

From a young age, Obi earned money, starting even in primary school, yet he never let wealth dictate his life. This distinction in business followed him into public office, where service has remained his watchword.

As Governor, his priority was the welfare of the people, driving him to govern differently. He concurrently pursued all sectors and excelled in each. Those close to him marvelled at his capacity for long and intense mental labour. He has remained a volcano of energy and astonishes by the variety and accuracy of his knowledge in philosophy, politics, economics, and life itself. In a nation where governors often leave their states in debt, Obi left unimaginable surpluses - over 75 billion Naira.

We talk about him today and seek to align our ideas with his because, over the years, he has proven, like all great men, to be a man with a mission. Thus, it has not been smooth for him as his whole life has remained a battle—against those who rigged him out, those who impeached him as governor, and those who truncated his tenure. He fights against friends who, at each turn in his battles, want him to compromise his principles or abandon his struggles through the courts in favour of a gentlemanly protest politely established and easily forgotten. He has seen the end of his numerous battles against injustice. He sustains his principles through discipline, manifest freedom from every kind of corruption, and superiority to all considerations of money, which have often allowed him to rise above the baseness of human nature to the erect stature of the self-conquered man. Such a man deserves to be philosophically celebrated!

“Obimentalism!” This is what we shall call it—coined from Obi and development. “Obimentalism” is a philosophy that aims to inspire and guide individuals to become active participants in building a better society, where everyone has access to opportunities and resources to thrive. Is it not a great term to describe Peter Obi's philosophical approach? “Obimentalism” as a philosophy emphasises: O - Opportunities: Creating opportunities for all to thrive. B - Building: Building human capital, infrastructure, and institutions. I - Inclusivity: Promoting social justice, equity, and inclusivity. M - Meritocracy: Rewarding merit and hard work. E - Empowerment: Empowering individuals and communities. N - Noble leadership: Demonstrating noble leadership and good governance. T - Transparency: Ensuring transparency and accountability. A - Accountability: Holding oneself and others accountable. L - Legacy: Building a lasting legacy for future generations. I - Integrity: Upholding integrity and ethical standards. S - Service: Prioritising service to humanity. M - Mentorship: Mentoring and inspiring future leaders.

At this juncture, I join Fr. Onebunne in urging academic philosophers, economists, and political scientists to conduct and encourage thorough research on him. Students should be encouraged to write projects, theses, and dissertations on various aspects of his legacy. Some possible research topics could be: “The Ethics of Prudence: An Analysis of Peter Obi's Fiscal Responsibility,” “The Philosophy of Education: Peter Obi's Vision for Human Capital Development,” “The Politics of Integrity: A Case Study of Peter Obi's Leadership,” “A Philosophical Analysis of Peter Obi's Political Career,” “The Intersection of Politics and Philosophy: Peter Obi's Approach to Development,” “The Virtue of Frugality: An Exploration of Peter Obi's Simple Lifestyle,” “The Ethics of Resource Allocation: Peter Obi's Approach to Budgeting,” “The Ethics of Accountability: Peter Obi's Approach to Transparency and Governance,” among others. This is very possible because, as a postgraduate student, there are few classes in economics, politics, or philosophy where lecturers do not cite Obi’s policies, governance framework, or economic strategies as exemplars. As a student of Prof. Chiyere Stella Okunna, we were given an assignment to use any mass communication principle to analyze Obi's speech at Chatham House. This is exactly what we are advocating. I hope the likes of Dr.Nze U. Nze are taking notes.

Therefore, Obi is a fully researchable subject. More than any Nigerian, he has been the subject of numerous newspaper and journal articles. Even Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala gave him a chapter in her book. Books written about him unsolicited are legion. In fact, this morning there will be a public presentation of a book titled “Democratic Leadership: Peter Obi and the Passion for a New Nigeria” by Mr. Fred Emeka Eneje in Enugu. A few weeks ago, my very good friend Mr. Sola Fasure drew my attention to a forthcoming book entitled “The Gaullist Obi: Reshaping Nigerian Politics.” In his message, he said, “Val, one of our friends wrote this book and I wish to bring it to your attention…” This is what a good leader garners many years after leaving power. Here is a man who refused to sponsor any book or panegyrics about him while he was governor.

If popularity is measured by the acceptance of one’s policies and way of life across diverse contexts, Obi is undoubtedly one of the most revered individuals globally today. I am aware of how people from all corners seek to associate with him, a testament to his magnetic philosophies deserving of deeper exploration by academia.

In conclusion, Peter Obi’s journey exemplifies a life lived with purpose and unwavering dedication to the common good. As he celebrates his sixty-third birthday, his impact is evident not just in his accomplishments but in the philosophical legacy he has left behind. The concept of "Obimentalism" seeks to capture the essence of his approach to leadership and development, emphasizing the values of opportunity, inclusivity, and integrity. His life's work invites us to delve deeper into his philosophies, encouraging scholars and students alike to explore and analyze the principles that have guided his actions. As Obi continues to inspire and challenge conventional thinking, his legacy serves as a beacon for those committed to building a better, more equitable society. Let us embrace and expand upon this new philosophical framework, ensuring that the lessons from his life contribute meaningfully to the discourse on leadership and development.

[OPINION] Africa’s Hobbled Hegemons - Adekeye Adebajo

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In the face of regional turmoil, rising extremism, and heightened geopolitical tensions, Africa urgently needs strong leadership. But its two most significant regional powers, Nigeria and South Africa, are too constrained by domestic challenges to represent Africa’s interests effectively on the world stage.

Nigeria and South Africa account for one-third of Africa’s economic production and have also spearheaded many of the continent’s peacemaking efforts over the past three decades, including the establishment of the African Union (AU). As I noted in my 2023 book The Eagle and the Springbok, Africa’s security and development rest heavily on the leadership of these two regional powers.

Nowadays, however, both countries are too preoccupied with domestic economic challenges and political turmoil to represent Africa’s interests effectively on the world stage. In Nigeria, President Bola Tinubu’s first year in office has been marked by a currency crisis and reports of the president’s ill health. In South Africa, the ruling African National Congress recently lost its majority for the first time since 1994, forcing President Cyril Ramaphosa to form a unity government with the ANC’s main political rival.

As Africa’s most influential powers, Nigeria and South Africa have a relationship that is both cooperative and competitive. This partly reflects their distinct cultural identities. Nigeria, home to the world’s largest black population, is the continent’s most linguistically diverse country; South Africa is its most Westernized.

Although both countries remain beset by corruption and crime, their growth trajectories have diverged considerably in recent years. South Africa is set to become the continent’s largest economy this year, while Nigeria – which held the title as recently as 2022 – is projected to fall to fourth place, behind Egypt and Algeria.

Instead of reversing Nigeria’s economic decline, Tinubu’s “Renewed Hope Agenda” has accelerated it. Having inherited a struggling economy with a national debt of $113 billion and 33% unemployment, Tinubu’s decision to remove fuel subsidies that kept gasoline prices low has triggered a massive cost-of-living crisis. Moreover, his administration’s attempt to float the naira by devaluing it has led the Nigerian currency to depreciate by roughly 70% against the US dollar over the past year.

These disastrous “shock therapy” policies, a misguided attempt to embrace economic orthodoxy, were initiated without much consultation or planning. After gasoline prices nearly tripled, inflation skyrocketed to 33%, and labor unions took to the streets, the government quietly reintroduced fuel subsidies.

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Fearing widespread labor unrest, Tinubu’s administration also announced cash transfers of $54 over three months to the country’s poorest households. But with 40% of the population living in extreme poverty, and bread prices nearly doubling since 2023, these payments fell far short of what was needed.

To be sure, Nigeria lacks the funds to do much else. The government currently spends more than 90% of its revenue on servicing the national debt – six times what it spends on health and education – and the reintroduced fuel subsidies are projected to consume half of its annual oil revenues. Compounding these challenges, the country loses 400,000 barrels of oil per day to theft and vandalism.

At the same time, while the naira has depreciated by 40% against the dollar in the first half of 2024 – making it the world’s worst-performing currency – devaluation has failed to achieve the government’s stated goal of attracting foreign investment. Instead, multinationals like GlaxoSmithKline and Procter & Gamble have exited the country.

Tinubu’s struggles extend to his foreign policy. As chair of the Economic Community of West African States in 2023, Tinubu threatened to intervene in Niger following the country’s military coup, vastly overestimating Nigeria’s military capabilities. This resulted in an embarrassing retreat after Niger’s junta defied his ultimatum and, together with Mali and Burkina Faso, withdrew from ECOWAS.

Shortly after assuming office, Tinubu unveiled his “4D” foreign-policy doctrine: democracy, development, demography, and diaspora. But this framework seems to be more about alliteration than action. In September 2023, as part of his foreign-policy overhaul, Tinubu recalled all of Nigeria’s ambassadors. Ten months later, many of these posts remain vacant.

Despite Nigeria’s declining economic weight and political influence, many Nigerians continue to cling to the outdated notion of the country as the “giant of Africa.” Meanwhile, the kleptocratic political elite shows blatant disregard for the plight of ordinary citizens, imposing austerity measures while continuing to spend lavishly.

By contrast, South Africa seems to have adopted a more measured approach. Following the election’s stunning outcome, the ANC has formed a coalition government with the business-friendly Democratic Alliance (DA), which won just 4% of the black vote. Confronting an external public-debt burden of $158 billion and the world’s highest income inequality, Ramaphosa’s administration is rightly focusing on addressing the country’s electricity crisis, infrastructure challenges, and corruption.

But tensions are already emerging. While many within the ANC want to boost social-welfare spending, the DA has consistently opposed the ANC’s welfare policies. Indeed, many ANC leaders would have preferred a coalition with two left-leaning ruling party offshoots: former President Jacob Zuma’s uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK) and Julius Malema’s Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF).

As political commentators have repeatedly warned, the “markets” – meaning South Africa’s white-dominated corporations and foreign investors – would punish any coalition that included the MK and EFF, owing to both parties’ support for nationalizing financial institutions and land expropriation. Moreover, the fact that the ANC has been in power for three decades without shifting to the left suggests that such a move was unlikely.

Having garnered 15% of the national vote, the 82-year-old Zuma remains a powerful political player. Notably, MK won Zuma’s home province of KwaZulu-Natal with 45% of the vote, while support there for the ANC dwindled to 17%.

In an unexpected twist, the ANC, DA, and the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) managed to form a coalition, effectively excluding MK from the provincial government. Considering that MK won nearly as many seats as the next three largest parties combined, its exclusion could fuel instability in the traditionally volatile province, which is home to Sub-Saharan Africa’s largest port.

With Islamist terrorism on the rise and the United States, Russia, France, and China expanding their respective military footprints in Africa, the continent urgently needs strong leadership. But Nigeria and South Africa are unlikely to provide it. Constrained by domestic crises, Africa’s major powers have become hobbled hegemons.

[OPINION] Nigerians have no inheritance in the UAE - Owei Lakemfa

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I AM bemused by the sense of elation exhibited by some government officials and elites that the United Arab Emirates, UAE, has lifted the entry ban on Nigerians.

Immediately the announcement was made this Monday, July 15, some Nigerian officials started falling over themselves to assure the UAE that Nigerians would be of good behaviour and, pledging to strengthen partnership with it.

The lifting of the ban, which ordinarily should be a non-issue, took over our airwaves and the media. Then there is the accompanying melodrama whether in truth, apart from visa fees, the UAE is also demanding that each Nigerian applicant provides a six-month bank statement showing a minimum $10,000 balance and, pay N640,000 for a document verification number.

Whether these other requirements are part of a scheme to defraud Nigerian applicants or not, is not my primary focus, but the insult of the UAE banning Nigerians in the first place. This rudeness was compounded by the fact that the ban remained even after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had personally intervened when he met the UAE leader Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on September 11,2023.

As someone who had frequently visited Dubai and Abu Dhabi mainly on-stop over trips and, stayed a few weeks on two occasions, I could not understand why some Nigerians are fascinated with a country in which Africans are, at best, fourth class citizens. UAE unofficially rates its citizens as first class, fellow Arabs as second, Europeans and Americans as third, and Africans as fourth, if not fifth after all other people.

Most Nigerians I met in that country were either traders at the Deira Markets or taxi drivers. UAE goods were not really cheap; how can they when the country is not a manufacturing hub?

In terms of trade, the UAE exports to Nigeria in 2022 totalled $653 million. The breakdown showed that the main product exported was refined petroleum- $352m. This was due to the gross ineptitude of our elites that ensured that despite Nigeria being an oil producing country; we do not locally refine our petroleum product needs. The second UAE export was broadcasting equipment worth $159m. This, from a country that in 2022 imported $20.3 billion worth of broadcasting equipment while it exported $17.7 billion. The third exports were cars worth $149m from a country whose cars are manufactured by Nissan and Toyota.

Comparatively, Nigeria’s exports to UAE was $752 million, with gold accounting for $489m. Ironically, Nigerians travel to Dubai to buy the same gold! The UAE did not export any services to Nigeria because that country itself depends on imported labour. As late as 2019, the UAE population of 9.8 million was made up of 8.8 million migrants. Migrants made up 90 per cent of its total workforce.

In reflecting this reality, I recall a professor from the American University Dubai, at a training workshop in Dubai, telling us that the joke amongst his colleagues was their reference to EMIRATE as an acronym for ‘English-Managed, Indian-Run, Arabs Take Everything.’ Another added that EMIRATES is actually an acronym describing the migrants condition: ‘English-Managed, Indian-Run, A Thousand Expatriates Suffering.’

Some Nigerians buy property in UAE and I wonder why. This is because except for the “freehold” areas introduced in 2002, if you are a foreigner, the ownership of your property expires in 50 years after which it reverts to the original owners.

Except that in comparison with Nigeria, UAE has a disciplined elite that has used its oil wealth to develop their country; that country has little or nothing to teach Nigeria. If anything, Nigeria has a lot to teach the UAE in terms of comportment and civilized behaviour in the international arena.

Internationally, the UAE is predatory; it plays hyena diplomacy. In 2011, it contributed 12 aircraft to bomb Libya, including the convoy of President Mouammar Ghadaffi, leading to his summary execution.

In 2012, it contributed troops to crush peaceful protests in Bahrain. Also, the UAE was involved in the establishment and funding of the Islamic State, ISIS, before that terrorist organisation became a monster which had to be put down by its sponsors.

When Qatar declined to crack down on rebels in the Islamic world like the Islamic Brotherhood; refused to stop its relations with Iran and, rejected the ultimatum to shut down the Al Ajazera international television network, the UAE contributed militarily to blockade that country.

Taking advantage of the crises in Somalia, the UAE is buying up parts of that country in order to own lands in Africa. It paid leaders of the rebel Puntland State in Somalia, $336 million to take over the port of Bosaso and its environs. It also paid the leaders of the rebel Republic of Somaliland $440 million to take over the Port of Berbera and adjourning areas.

Perhaps the most infamous foxy moves the UAE has made, is its invasion and seizure of parts of the Yemeni Republic. Houthi rebels had overthrown the government of President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi and a civil war ensured in 2005. The deposed President fled south and Saudi Arabian and UAE troops were deployed to stop the rebels from taking over the entire country. But the UAE had its own selfish plans. After pretending to protect the factional Hadi government in southern Yemen, it raised an internal force to fight Hadi. It then invaded and occupied four Yemeni islands and two islets that make up the Yemeni archipelago. In seeking to justify its colonisation of the Yemini lands, the UAE claimed that it was maintaining security, providing stability and supporting the inhabitants of the island in their development projects. It is instructive that the Puntland lands UAE has acquired have borders with the Yemeni Gulf of Aden which it is trying to acquire.

Nigeria has bent backward to maintain good ties with the UAE. Perhaps it is in our nature to make and maintain friends. But a basic principle in diplomacy is reciprocity. We should treat countries as they treat us. We should maintain some dignity in our relationships.

I tried to quantify what Nigeria might have lost when the UAE ban was on. It wasn’t much. So what did we gain during the ban? I think plenty. To begin with, we saved the scarce foreign exchange, including flight tickets we were expending travelling to a country that has little or nothing to offer.

The main attraction of the UAE, especially Dubai, is that it became a status symbol where rich Nigerians spend ‘their’ money. It had become the playground of Nigerian Big Boys like Ramon Olorunwa Abbas, alias Hushppupi. Even a Nigerian First Lady became identified with Dubai.

If we do not want to discourage Nigerians travelling to countries like the UAE, government should at least not encourage them.

[OPINION] Has Nigeria become an impossible country? - Ikechukwu Amaechi

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IN his 1994 book, The Impossible Country: A Journey Through the Last Days of Yugoslavia, Brian Hall related his encounters with Serbs, Croats, and Muslims – real people, likeable people – who had been overcome with suspicion and anxiety about one another.

He painted the tragic picture of a country, its politics, its history, and its seemingly insoluble animosities. Reviewing the book, Atlantic Monthly, the iconic American magazine founded in 1857, said it was “a tragic portrait . . . presented with sympathy and frequently with humor . . . (of) a disparate people who were never united except by their resentment of a foreign conqueror.”

The question that concentrates my mind each time I read Hall’s book is whether Nigeria, like the ill-fated Yugoslavia, has become an impossible country. Why is it that nothing works in the real sense? Why are there statesmen who hanker after public good? Instead, there is a glut of wayward, errant political actors and there is a world of difference between the politician and statesman because as James Freeman Clarke, the 19th century American author poignantly noted: “A politician thinks of the next election; a statesman of the next generation. A politician looks for the success of his party; a statesman for that of his country. The statesman wishes to steer, while the politician is satisfied to drift.”

Nigeria is drifting and every issue is viewed from the prism of politics, which is why the Supreme Court ruling on Thursday, July 11, 2024, granting financial autonomy to the 774 local governments in the country will also become a problem sooner than later.

Why? Because those who went to Court to procure the judgement have their eyes on the next election rather than the next generation.

In the unanimous judgement of its seven-member panel, the Supreme Court upheld the suit brought by the Federal Government to strengthen the independence of LGs in the country, by granting them financial autonomy.

Insisting on what it termed the demand of justice which requires a progressive interpretation of the law, Justice Emmanuel Agim, who read the judgement said: “It is the position of this court that the federation can pay local government allocations directly to the local governments or through the states. In this case, since paying them through the states has not worked, justice demands that local governments’ allocations from the federation account should henceforth be paid directly to the local governments. I hold that the states’ retention of local government funds is unconstitutional.”

By granting financial autonomy, the Supreme Court ordered the Federal Government to pay the 20.60 per cent monthly allocation of the 774 LGs directly to their exclusive accounts and not to accounts controlled by governors. The Court also ruled that state governors do not have the power to dissolve elected LG councils and replace them with caretaker committees as that violates Section 7(1) of the Constitution.

The judgement was well received by many. Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, former governor of Abia State, ululated thereafter: “The Supreme Court judgement on the autonomy of local governments is one that should be hailed and applauded, especially for the courage and independence shown by the judiciary. The Supreme Court being a policy court did what is right and beneficial to the society.”

Those in Kalu’s corner have a point. Since 1999, governors have made a mess of the local government system by not only fiddling with the allocations to the Joint LG Accounts, but also, contrary to the dictates of the Constitution which states unequivocally that local governments must be democratically elected, continue to run them with caretaker committees.

But some Nigerians like Chief James Ibori, former governor of Delta State, demur.

Ibori, who together with Kalu belong to the Class of 1999-2007 governors with President Bola Tinubu, said on the contrary, the judgement is a coup against true federalism.

“Supreme Court has dealt a severe setback on the principle of federalism as defined by section 162(3) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended),” Ibori lamented, adding: “The court’s ruling on the matter is an assault on true federalism. The federal government has no right to interfere with the administration of local governments under any guise whatsoever. There are only two tiers of government in a federal system of government.”

Ibori believes that if the judgement subsist, it will erode the powers of the state governments and give more powers to the Federal Government, contrary to the principles of federalism. This, he contends, will be a dangerous precedent because “if the federal government can directly intervene in local government finances, it could potentially use this as a tool for political leverage.”

That is the crux of the matter – lack of political altruism. While it is true that governors have made a mess of the purpose for creating local governments, Tinubu, who created 37 local council development areas in Lagos, is not a great apostle of local government autonomy.

So, the judgement is more political than legal. Could it be that the executive railroaded the judiciary into handing Tinubu control of local governments for the purposes of 2027 elections?

But how far can the president go? He who pays the piper dictates the tune. Even if elections are conducted, as long as the state governors control the State Independent Electoral Commissions created by section 197 of the Constitution, there is not much anyone can do. They will decide who wins elections at that level and LG autonomy will continue to be a mirage.

In fact, in their brazenness, most governors routinely dissolve SIEC boards put in place by their predecessors and reconstitute them with their own loyalists as soon as they assume office.

The credibility and quality of elections into local governments have to be sorted out if LG autonomy is to be guaranteed. But how can that be when the Secretary of Local Government and other key administrative staff are appointees of the state government? Besides, the state Houses of Assembly which exercise oversight on local governments are still strongly tied to the apron strings of their respective governors and could be used to witch-hunt any LG chairman or councillor who fails to do the bidding of the state governors.

Some have suggested that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, should be saddled with the responsibility of conducting LG polls. But with what the Professor Mahmud Yakubu-led INEC has become, there is little or no difference between SIEC and INEC.

And that takes me back to Brian Hall’s book. Nigerians are right now overcome with suspicion and anxiety about one another, a disparate people never united, not even by their collective misery inflicted on them by the ruling class – their oppressors.

To make matters worse, there are no statesmen. All we have are desperate politicians adept at gaming the system, people will do everything to win the next election even if it means pulling down the roof on everyone and everything. So, it does not matter what the Supreme Court rules or what the Constitution actually says, Nigeria will remain an impossible country as long as the status quo remains.