The heritage of Edo-Akures

DR NOWAMAGBE A OMOIGUI

The heritage of Edo-Akures is both military and commercial. Many parts of modern Ondo and Ekiti states were part of the Benin Empire and thus many Edos traded within the territories, often living in "quarters" (like sabongari). Also, victorious soldiers often stayed behind to rule over small dominions, leaving behind descendants born of local yoruba mothers. Those who remarried Edos retained their links. Those who did not, tended to get assimilated into the Yoruba tribe - preferring to benefit from the status of a majority tribe as the influence and power of Benin declined. Prior to recent developments, this interaction resulted in the development of a unique language (a cross between Akure-Yoruba and Bini) which is almost lost.

To appreciate the role of Edo-AKure (or Bini-AKure) one must first understand that there were two main axes of trade within old Benin. One was called "waterside trade" focused along creeks and the Benin River involving Itsekiris (as middle men) and white men. The other was called "upcountry trade" which occured along three axes: (a) Ekiti-Ilorin (b)Ishan (c) Afemai. Each group was organized into trading associations with the Oba as patron. The traders of the forest (called "Ekhen-Egbo") were the group that operated in Ekiti country all the way to Ilorin. Their main bases were at Usen and Akure. Each trading association was highly organized and even had its own Odionwere. Ilorin beads were particularly valuable in exchange for brass carvings, salt, guns, matches, tobacco, necklaces, palm kernels, woven cloth, leather, ivory etc.

In Benin there was also a small group of so called Akure-Bini
chiefs. The role of this community of Bini-AKures has been significant. For example, when Ovonramwen signed the treaty in 1892 with Vice Consul Gallwey, the sole interpreter was a man called Ajayi who spoke 'Akure' dialect of yoruba and translated to Edo.

Before that AKure played an interesting role in providing
one of the first challenges to Ovonranmwen in 1889 when the Deji tried to make ceremonial swords without approval. A warrior was dispatched to settle the issues - which was done. [Oba Adolor earlier intervened in a dispute between Ekitis and Oyos - based on historic alliances between Benin and Ekiti]

The role and regimental seniority of AKure-Bini chiefs came under scrutiny during the trial of Benin chiefs in 1897. One of them called Osague had been identified as the individual through whom Ovonramwen allegedly sent a message to Ologbose and others in Ugbine not to kill Phillips and his party. But in retort another Benin chief claimed that no-one could take orders from an "Akure-Bini" chief. The British rejected the plea.

But more importantly, in April/May 1897, when Ebohon and Ologbose were organizing resistance to the British a large number of Akure refugees enlisted to support Ebohon. In the period after the deportation, the Usen-AKure axis was the focus of intense competition between Lagos traders and Benin based British officers who had long term plans for the development of Rubber plantations.

Later on when the monarchy was restored in 1914 the Benin community in Akure made strenuous efforts to reestablish ties with the Oba. They were stopped by the British. A tribute they had sent to Benin was actually returned!

However, the role of "Akure" in Benin politics was to show itself again and again. In 1918, for example, when Iyase Agho Obaseki had a fall out with Eweka II, it was widely rumored that arrangements had been made to import poison / juju from Akure to eliminate the Oba. Again, in 1937/38 during the serious water-rate crisis in Benin, Chiefs Oshodi and Ezomo were accused of conspiring with one Fagbemi (a native doctor in Idanre, near Akure) to make poison for the purpose of liquidating Akenzua II. As a matter of fact, correspondences were discovered (by telegram) necessitating a full inquiry authorized by Bourdillon. Oba Akenzua initially hired the services of a Yoruba lawyer called
Alakija - before the matter was settled out of court.

One of the most famous Iyases in Benin history was called
Okoro-Otun. His original name was Omokhua. He was born in Benin in
1819 but moved to Ekiti land very early, where he became highly
successful as a trader. He, however, visited Benin in 1904 and
predicted that Aiguobasimwin would some day become Oba. His prophecy
came to pass. During the period before he finally returned to Benin in
1915 as the Esama, he fought in the Ibadan-Oyo conflicts and Ijaye
wars. In 1921 he was appointed district head of Ehor. When Akenzua II
became Oba he made 'Okoro-Otun' Iyase in 1928.
Unfortunately, Okoro-Otun clashed with Akenzua II over a number of issues one of which had to do with wearing beaded head dresses of Yoruba origin. This summary is meant to illustrate how and why
Akure-Binis (with a heritage dating back to the trading association days) were generally successful, politically well connected and wealthy. Many families re-emigrated back to Benin bringing not only their skills and business contacts but also (in some cases) their new religion - Islam, acquired through contacts with Nupe jihadists. This 'community' became known as 'Edo N'akhue' - to connote the link to a great migratory commercial (and diplomatic) heritage.

Hence the names like Yusuf, Bello, Giwa and Dawodu - along with other Yoruba names (and arabic influences from Ilorin). Dawodu, for example, is a corrupted form of Daoud - the Arabic translation of David. Of course it is entirely possible that in old deep Bini (or "acure" dialect) it had an acquired meaning - such as "first son". Note that "pure" Edo names typically begin with the letters A, E, I, O, U. But of course there are many modified Edo names that begin with other alphabets.

Although the description "Edo N'akhue" may be perjorative (when used to describe someone whose behavior is stereotyped as slippery and unreliable), the Edo-Akures are the equivalents in Benin of the descendants of prominent American families, for example, who spent most of their lives abroad as diplomats and multinational businessmen. They are a vital and bonafide part of the complexity that is Benin.

In modern Nigeria, certain administrative delineations reflect these old historical links with the Ondos/Ekitis. The Benin-Owina River Basin Authority, for example, covered old Bendel and old Ondo states. Until it was disbanded, the old 4th Infantry Brigade of the Army was similarly deployed. Most recently, one of the zonal offices of OMPADEC based in Benin-City covers Edo, Delta and Ondo states.

Regards,

NAO

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Note the following in the attached write up:

a) Chief Okoro Otun was made the Iyase of Benin by Oba Eweka II after the death of Chief Agho Obaseki who died in the early 20's. He was born at Uvbe village near Abudu. He was one of Oba Eweka's II "foot soldiers " in the struggle for the restoration of the monarchy. He is fondly remembered as OBA MU IYASE KOMI-the Oba has given me the title of the Iyase ( a mixture of Edo-Bini and Akure- Yorubaialects. His house is at Sakponba Road, Benin City, opposite St. Mathew's Cathedral, Benin City. His descendants simply go with the surname IYASE or Iyasere.

b) At the restoration of the monarchy in 1914/15, Oba Eweka II encouraged and lured many of the Edos in Akure and other Yoruba land to return home and help him rebuild the remnants of the ancient Empire. Chief Okoro Otun was one of the "returnees".

C) Oba Akenzua ascended the throne in 1933/4.

Ademola Iyi-Eweka.

Flip-flopping and insecurity: Speaking tongue-in-cheek or speaking in tongues?

By Jide Ajani
Is Iran funding the Jamaatu Ahlil Sunna Lidawati wal Jihad, otherwise known as Boko Haram; or is there any form of foreign funding for the sect, the Under Secretary of State for African Affairs, Ambassador Johnny Carson, was asked during a congressional hearing on the possibility of designating the group a Foreign Terror Organisation, FTO? He did not believe so, he said.  This was some time in the middle of the year.
But during investigations into the bombing that rocked the military cantonment of the Command and Staff College, Jaji, something frightening was discovered: An explosive that was not the usual Improvised Explosive Device, IED, was believed to have been used.  There was also the hint that it was imported.
So, the question is: Where did the explosive come from? Let us leave that for now and turn to the issue of ambivalence.
In the affairs of men, ambivalence plays the role of a spoiler.
It becomes worse when it is seen as the directive principle of governance.
Presidential Adviser on Media had said there were back door channels being explored in dialoguing with members of Boko Haram.
But his boss hinted of a possibility of not doing any of such; and, therefore, penultimate Friday, news hit town that the Federal Government of Nigeria had placed a bounty on leaders of the group promising about a quarter of a billion naira.
72hours later, the group struck and bombed a church in a prestigious military barracks.
Another 24hours after that, they attacked a police station and released some detainees in the process.
So, what next?
The security nightmare that a flip-flopping Commander-in-Chief creates for heads of security agencies and the endangerment of operatives can be enormous.
If the security chiefs understand what they are dealing with, signs coming from the presidency suggest a disconnection between that knowledge and presidential directives.  That is what the naked eyes can see. We may never really know what is going on.
For instance, when “Ambassador Anthony Holmes, Deputy to the Commander for Civil Military Activities (DCMA) of United States Africa Command (AFRICOM), revealed that members of Boko Haram are being trained by Al Qaeda in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and that they are also believed to have ties to the Somalian militant group al Shabaab”, was it not to be expected that this cooperation, combined with the increased sophistication of attacks executed by Boko Haram, should lead to concerns about the sect’s intent and capability?  This was part of a report of the American congress on Boko Haram.
Again, when in early April, the American and British governments issued a terror alert, the response from the Federal Government of Nigeria could at best have been described as lame.  That was not the first time such a response would be made.  The government, through its Information and Communication Minister, Labaran Maku, said such alerts coming from America and Britain would only serve to further instill fear in the citizenry; that such do not in any way help to bring calm.  But if calm was what the Federal Government was expecting, Boko Haram had its own grand design.
Officials of government had boasted that the activities of Boko Haram would be terminated by June, 2012.  The group quickly came out, via a Youtube video, to scoff at government’s boastfulness. It then warned that it did not like the way media houses were misrepresenting its side of the story and that it would strike.
Therefore, by mid April, the peace of the land was shattered via the bombings in Jos (where some sports lovers had gone to watch a live football match); Kaduna (where an explosion killed three, injured eight  outside ThisDay office); Kano (where a bomb factory was discovered at Haye, a suburb of Hotoro Arewa quarters of Nasarawa Local Government  Area); and Abuja (where ThisDay office was bombed).  The group sent a clear message to those in government that it is more coordinated than government officials think, or would want Nigerians to believe.
One thing, however, that can not be denied – even by those in government – is that the group is far more sophisticated and entrenched than most people would want to admit.
Even the attempt at dialoguing with members of the sect, a move that created a controversial life of its own, was reportedly bungled by the same government.
Perhaps vindicating the earlier position of the Boko Haram  members that it did not trust government’s move, it was Alhaji Datti Ahmed, the once proposed middle-man for the dialogue in April, who suggested that government sold him out.  In an attempt to interview Alhaji Ahmed in April, Sunday Vanguard was made to understand that the time for an interview was not then.  The elder statesman politely turned down the request, insisting: “I do not want to talk about it, please”.
The refrain of President Goodluck Jonathan has always been classic and standard:  “We shall deal with these people”, “Boko Haram would soon be a thing of the past” – these are statements that President Jonathan has been making since last year.
No doubt, there have been successes recorded against members and leaders of the group with arrests and preemptive strikes which create the impression that the group is being weakened by the day. Just lastFriday, the authorities bursted a bomb-making factory in Kaduna
However, coordinated attacks by the group, as was the case last Sunday and Monday, are clear unequivocal statements that it is not about to go away.
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s approach to the Odi crisis may not have been the best under the circumstance but confirmation of such by another president sends a signal
of weakness.
Some Others Do Have Them
Nigeria is not the first and only country to be confronting insurgency. You have The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia—People’s Army (Spanish: Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia, FARC, in Columbia-that is on the verge of total surrender, after decades of resistance; the Palestinian Liberation Organisation, PLO, is adopting a more moderate stance on the issue of nationhood as against HAMAS’ hard line position; the Irish Republican Army, IRA, after many decades of bombing campaigns and insurgency against the British government in Northern Ireland, came to the table to negotiate; the BASQUE  separatist movement has not called off its demand for separation but is softening its approach.  People’s Liberation Army, United National Liberation Front, People’s Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak; Naga insurgent group like NSCN-K and ULFA (anti-talk faction) and NDFB, are operating from North East Myanmar.  As you have insurgency groups in Indonesia, so do you have them in the Philippines, but the approach adopted by governments of those countries has never been one of ‘either , or’ but one of resolute confidence in the power of the state to deal decisively – which does not necessarily mean cruel engagement or needless excessive force.  It is about approach.
Whereas Barack Obama of America is trying to break the Republicans’ position on tax cuts and the looming fiscal cliff by appealing to members of the public to hold Congress accountable, a move which seeks to turn the public against hard line Republican legislators, not minding the so-called pledge to Grover Norquist’s Americans For Tax Reforms, the question should be asked of President Goodluck Jonathan:  To whom is he appealing, with a view to stemming the tide in the viciousness of Boko Haram’s campaign of violence against his government?
The bigger danger is that the economy of the entire North, specifically the north-eastern flank, is becoming non-existent.  The people continue to suffer.  The question has often been asked, why is President Jonathan refusing to visit states in that part of the country that have been the brunt of the insurgency?  Yet, some of the leaders of those areas, too, including former state governors and serving senators, speak in tongues, and tongue-in-cheek when describing the activities of Boko Haram.  And they do so out of fear. Still it is their people who suffer.
It was Democrat President Harry Truman who, in frustration, declared:  “I sit here (in the Oval Office of the White House) all day trying to persuade people to do the things they ought to have the sense enough to do without my persuading them”.
Is it not time the Federal Government of Nigeria and the leaders of the North- East and, by extension, the entire North have the good sense to do what is necessary to stop this carnage without being persuaded?
This is all about being decisive and resolute, not speaking from both sides of the mouth.
Vanguard

FG may fine telcos more for bad service

Telecommunication companies may have more fines levied on them if their services haven’t improved by the time service quality checks are made in December, Communications Technology Minister Omobola Johnson said.

The telecommunications regulator fined companies including MTN Group Ltd. (MTN) and Emirates Telecommunications Corp. (ETISALAT) a combined 1.17 billion naira ($7.4 million) in May for failing to meet minimum service standards. Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country with more than 160 million people, is targeting voice penetration of close to 100 percent by 2014-2015.

“Fining isn’t something we want to do every six months, so we’re working very closely with them,” Johnson said in a Nov. 26 interview in the southern city of Warri. “Many of the companies don’t want to get fined again, but if they do not meet those quality of service indicators, they will get fined,” the minister said, adding that most customers say the service hasn’t improved.

The Nigerian Communications Commission fined South Africa- based MTN and Abu Dhabi-based Emirates, or Etisalat, 360 million naira each for failing to meet the service standards. New Delhi- based Bharti Airtel Ltd. (BHARTI) was fined 270 million naira and domestic operator Globacom Ltd. 180 million naira.

The regulator threatened last year to stop operators from signing new customers unless they reduced the number of dropped calls and improved connections. MTN and Etisalat cited lack of power and sabotage as reasons for the poor service.

Power Cuts

While the companies need to increase their spending on infrastructure, the ministry is trying to “remove a lot of delays and bureaucratic bottlenecks that are in their way,” Johnson said. Power cuts are a daily occurrence in Nigeria, where demand for electricity is almost double the supply of about 4,000 megawatts.

MTN is investing $1.4 billion in Nigeria this year to improve infrastructure and capacity. Etisalat said after it was fined in May that it will spend more than $500 million on its network.

The ministry has banned some sales promotions, including lotteries for free minutes, because they added pressure to the system, Johnson said.

If the necessary infrastructure is put in place, voice penetration should reach almost 100 percent by 2014 - 2015, compared with about 70 percent now, she said. Data penetration should reach 30 percent by 2017 from 6 percent now.

Stock Exchange

Nigeria wants international companies operating in the country to list on the Nigerian Stock Exchange “to democratize the wealth and the revenue that they’ve generated in Nigeria,” Johnson said. While none of the main four telecommunications operators are listed on the exchange, the authorities have stopped short of compulsory listing “because that will be seen as targeting telecommunications companies, and really and truly, it wasn’t a requirement or a condition for when they were investing, particularly the international ones,” she said.

The government should encourage companies to list by standardizing regulatory requirements with global exchanges and removing barriers, the minister said.

“We’re looking at a lot of things that detract or discourage investors including some of the shareholder activism that we’ve seen in the recent past, again managing that much better than we’ve done,” she said.

BusinessNews

2015 face-off: President in fresh plot against Obasanjo

 by: Yusuf Alli

Loyalists of former President Olusegun Obasanjo have raised alarm over alleged plans by the Presidency to discreetly ‘deal’ with him for allegedly launching a ‘cold war’ to discredit the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan.
According to sources, the Presidency is under pressure to revisit investigations into the $180m Halliburton scandal. They claim that some groups are being covertly sponsored to file petitions at the International Criminal Court (ICC) against the former president over the killing of innocent people in Odi and Zaki-Biam communities in Bayelsa and Benue States respectively.
The former president had during his tenure ordered troops to invade Odi over the killing of military men by militants. A similar infraction that provoked the same measure happened in Zaki-Biam.
The alleged counter-attack by the Presidency is coming against the backdrop of recent public criticism of President Goodluck Jonathan’s handling of the Boko Haram insurgency and other security challenges by Obasanjo.
Barely a week after the airing of the critical comments, Jonathan hit back during his presidential media chat saying that rather than stamp out militancy, the Odi invasion only killed innocent old people and children.
The spat between the president and his erstwhile godfather is seen in political circles as the latest evidence of increasingly tense 2015 power struggle within the ruling Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP). Obasanjo is said not to be favourably disposed towards backing a Jonathan second term. He is suspected to be one of the boosters of a potential presidential bid by the Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido with the Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, as the undercard.
Investigations by our correspondent confirmed that the camp of the former President had been gripped with fear in the last one week over the alleged plot by certain forces in the presidency to launch a campaign of calumny against him.
It was learnt that the ex-President after receiving intelligence alert last weekend tried to stop some negative advertisements against him in some newspapers, but he only succeeded in convincing a South-West-based newspaper to grant him concession.
Apart from media attacks, loyalists of the ex-President are disturbed about moves to revisit investigations into the Halliburton scam, as well as plans by some influential groups to go to the ICC.
A highly reliable source in Obasanjo’s camp, who spoke in confidence yesterday, said: “They are planning to deal with Baba because they think he will not support the 2015 project. Already, they have started this plot with media attacks, including placement of indicting advertisements against Obasanjo.
“We have got intelligence report that some people are trying to prevail on the Presidency to revisit the $180m Halliburton scandal since Mr. Adeyanju Bodunde, a former Personal Assistant to Obasanjo, was implicated in the alleged scam.
“They are plotting to frame up the ex-President in the Halliburton scandal. It is sad that they are desperate; they want to hang something on Obasanjo’s neck in order to intimidate him to shelve any involvement in 2015 project. Yet, we are in a democracy. Obasanjo should be entitled to his opinion no matter how bitter it is.”
Bodunde was arraigned in 2010 alongside George Mark, Jeffrey Tesler (now at large), Hans George Christ, Heinrich J. Stockhausen, Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, and Bilfinger Berger GMBH.
George Mark, Jeffrey Tesler, Hans George Christ, Heinrich J. Stockhausen; Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, Bilfinger Berger GMBH were alleged to have sometime between 2002 and 2003 conspired to make several cash payments of $1million (five times) totalling in equivalent the sum of $5million to Bodunde. They were alleged to have committed the offence contrary to Section 16 of the Money Laundering Act 1995(as saved by Section 23(2) of the Money Laundering Act 2004) and punishable under Section 15(2) and (3) of the Money Laundering Act 1995(as saved by Section 23(2) of the Money Laundering Act, 2004). Julius Berger had engaged in plea bargain.
The source also admitted that if there is any worry at all in Obasanjo’s camp, it is the ICC dimension to the plot against the former President.
“They want to use some groups to write petitions to ICC on Odi military campaign in 1999 and the Zaki-Biam issue. Their plan is to put an obstacle before Obasanjo to distract him from serving as a rallying point for politicians of like minds seeking a fundamental change in 2015,” he said.
“At least a group from Bayelsa State has indicated interest in filing petition before the ICC. So, you can see what we are saying and why we have every cause to be concerned. Even at that, Obasanjo has not told any of his associates the direction he wants to go in 2015. I do not know what is behind this witch-hunt.”
When contacted, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, said: “What I can say is that this government is not witch-hunting anybody, it does not do so.
“Let me put it on record that it is not the style of President Goodluck Jonathan to witch-hunt or intimidate anybody. The President is an extremely liberal person, he does not believe in vengeance or oppressing anyone.”
Okupe also denied any crisis of confidence between the President and Obasanjo.
He added: “The media may present the situation as if there is a problem between the President and ex-President Obasanjo, but there is no truth in such insinuation. From inside, I do not see any issue or disagreement between the President and our former leader.
“Ex-President Obasanjo is an elder statesman and somebody that enjoys the love and respect of the Presidency.”
TheNation

Electricity in Nigeria: A disturbing dimension

By Tonnie Iredia
Each time Nigerians grumble over the failure of successive governments to provide them with electricity, government officials are quick at pointing out that Nigerians are impatient adding that ours is a nation seeking to enjoy within a few years in existence what the developed countries got after hundreds of years.
No one makes effort to verify the accuracy of such ‘official’ statistics. Instead, everyone tends to note the counseling by government with mixed feelings hoping for some change in the near future which has never come. Getting the true position is however not exactly as hard as we imagine in view of the ease with which this writer gathered from one journal a few days ago that electricity was first produced in Lagos, Nigeria in 1896 less than 15years after it happened in England. Thus, we have as a community been dealing with electricity in the last one hundred and sixteen years.
This revelation renders absurd, the charge that Nigerians are impatient about development and some level of improvement in their daily lives. Could it then be true that official deceit more than anything else, is our real dilemma concerning electricity? As we shall show shortly, a new trend in the disposition of elected office holders to the activities of the Power holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) tends to lend credence to the theory.
It would appear that because our leaders have ‘light’ most of the time, they hardly understand the common man’s unending pains of darkness. First, they are serviced by generators from our common purse. Second, virtually all of the little power the nation can produce is always given to those in the corridors of power.
It was so when the subject was handled by the Public Works Department (PWD) from the beginning of colonial times till 1950. There was no change from then till 1972 when it was under the Electricity Corporation of Nigeria (ECN) and it has remained so since 2005 when the PHCN was established.
Interestingly, the leaders have a tendency of not paying for services rendered to either their homes or offices. Whenever “there is a break in transmission” in their areas for a few minutes, a near war situation is declared on PHCN and their operatives are assaulted at will. This bizarre dimension is no doubt disturbing.
For example about a week ago, the management of the Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company, KEDC, a subsidiary of the PHCN, accused the Governor of Sokoto State, Aliyu Wamakko of personally assaulting its workers. According to the Acting Managing Director of the Company, Mohammed Adamu, Governor Wamakko, flogged a PHCN manager for failing to supply electricity to his community.  Adamu at a press conference on the subject described the assault which took place on Saturday, 20th October, 2012, as an unusual and unfortunate event which was beyond his company’s comprehension.
He explained that his business manager for Gwiwa Business Unit, Sokoto State, Moses Osigwe, was invited by the Governor to his personal residence, over the issue of lack of power supply to his hometown, Wamakko, as a result of a failed 2.5MVA transformer.
He added that as the business manager was trying to explain the problem, the governor brought out a horse whip (popularly known as bulala in Hausa language) and lashed him thoroughly. Two hefty mobile police men were allegedly ordered by the Governor to continue with the beating spree until the business manager fell on the ground and became unconscious. Two other PHCN operatives- namely, Isyaku Daura, Officer 2 (Electrical) and Nuruddeen Mohammed, Staff 1 (Lines) were similarly reportedly manhandled.
On its part, the government denied the allegation. According to the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor, Sani Umar, the Governor only demanded an explanation for the N17 million he gave to PHCN to install a new transformer in Wamakko which they failed to do.
We would have doubted the PHCN version of the story because it looked too barbaric and uncivilized to be credited to a Governor but for the fact that the allegations were made at an open Press Conference. In addition why should the lives of workers like Isyaku and Nuruddeen be in jeopardy on account of the PHCN’s alleged breaches?
This is the second time this year that a report of assault by state government officials on PHCN staff has been made public. The first time was when officials of the Ekiti State Government allegedly beat up PHCN managers operating in Ado Ekiti.
The Managers-Messrs, Julius Ige, in charge of Marketing and Ilori Kayode  Brown, Head of Public Relations were reportedly abducted in the night of Friday June 29 by aides to the state Governor and ‘brutally’ held till 1.15am of the next day because PHCN disconnected power supply to the Government House over repeatedly demanded but  unpaid electricity bills.  While there is nothing wrong in prodding PHCN to be proactive, to assault their staff in the process leaves the nation not just in the dark but indeed in the jungle.
Since no law permits government officials to manhandle fellow citizens, the above reports ought to draw attention to no less than 2 important issues. The first is the continued retention of immunity clause in our constitution which stops the common man from suing “Area-Boy” governors who unduly inflict pain on the less privileged.
Does the immunity clause empower elected executives to take the laws into their own hands and abridge the rule of law? The second issue is the vexed subject of State Police. State Governors in Nigeria only remember that they have no powers over the Police when they are accused of not tackling insecurity in their states.
They don’t tell us why in spite of their acclaimed disability, they are always able to use the same federal police to harass their real or imaginary opponents. Can anyone imagine what would have happened to the PHCN officials in Sokoto if the Governor had what is called State Police?
Vanguard

No plan to reconcile Jonathan, Obasanjo –PDP

 by ALLWELL OKPI 

Former president Olusegun Obasanjo and President Goodluck Jonathan

The Peoples Democratic Party has said it has no plans to wade into the rift between President Goodluck Jonathan and former President Olusegun Obasanjo, over the best way to tackle militancy and terrorism in the country.

The National Publicity Secretary of PDP, Olisa Metuh, told SUNDAY PUNCH that the party had not seen any reason to intervene in the argument.

He stated that though Jonathan and Obasanjo had expressed divergent opinions on the 1999 invasion of Odi, it did not amount to conflict between them.

Metuh said, “You only reconcile people who have a misunderstanding or are in a squabble. As far as the party is concerned, there is no quarrel between President Goodluck Jonathan and former President Olusegun Obasanjo, so there is no plan to reconcile them.

“Though both of them have expressed divergent opinions on some national issues, both of them are still working together towards deepening democracy in Nigeria and making sure that we deliver on our promises to the people.”

Earlier, the National Secretary of the PDP, Olagunsoye Oyinlola, had dispelled speculations that there were political differences between Jonathan and Obasanjo.

Oyinlola said, “Some individuals want to use the controversy surrounding the Odi killings to set the two leaders of the PDP against each other.

“There is no friction between the President and Obasanjo. The issue of Odi killings will not cause hostility between the two leaders of our party.”

The argument between the two PDP leaders ensued about three weeks ago in Warri, during the celebration of Pastor Ayo Oritsajefor’s 40 years in the ministry. Obasanjo told the gathering that Jonathan was guilty of allowing terrorism to fester, without taking a decisive action.

He used the invasion of Odi in Bayelsa State and Zaki Biam in Benue State as examples of his decisive actions against militancy while in government.

During the November 18 Presidential Media Chat, Jonathan replied Obasanjo, saying Odi invasion was a failed exercise, which resulted in the death of the aged and children, and not the militant youths.

Special Assistant on Public Affairs and subsequently Minister of Aviation during Obasanjo’s regime, Femi Fani-Kayode later said Jonathan got the facts of Odi invasion wrong and that the action of the Obasanjo-led government arrested the incessant killings of security operatives by militants in the Niger Delta.  

ThePunch

Unasked Questions About Corruption

Femi Falana

For most Nigerians, a discussion of corruption is often an opportunity to lambast the state and its managers. The media will continue to report cases of corruption. Sometimes corruption probe panels turn out to be the subject of probes themselves!  In other words, a demon calling the devil bad! It is based on the foregoing that the state has always received knuckles. But is blaming the state the only response that should guide our response to corruption? Why has public focus been limited to the activities of the state and its actors?  What happens to the individual and group levels of analysis in the corruption matrix? Is the state the only liable institution?

We should ask the unasked questions in our attempt at locating and fighting corruption. First, what are individuals doing wrongly in the fight against corruption? Secondly, how do groups in the society, some of which often claim to fight corruption, contribute to the flourishing of the menace?

In a society where corruption is centralised, monies stolen from the public purse is redistributed and used to create employment and infrastructure within the society. Thus, rather than send such monies to Swiss or British Banks as the late Gen. Sani Abacha and Mr. James Ibori did thereby creating employment in Switzerland and Britain, the organised corruption follows the methodology of Suharto of Indonesia. It is therefore argued that the Suharto regime did not condone the exportation of corruption largesse hence the development of Indonesia today! What would have happened if all the stolen funds from Nigeria were retained in the Nigerian economy?

The State and Graft punishment

However, a cursory examination of the ant-graft laws in Nigeria today will reveal that there are sufficient laws to deal with the issue of corruption. Sadly however, according to the perception index of Transparency International, Nigeria was ranked 144th out of the 146 countries, beating Bangladesh and Haiti to last position. The KPMG also recently released a report in which Nigeria was ranked as the most corrupt state in West Africa.

As stated above, it is not because Nigeria does not have sufficient laws to deal with the issue of corruption. In fact, there may be very few countries with more anti-graft laws, the problem however, is that there is no political will in addition to the fact that our system harbours sacred cows and the “untouchables”. We are all witnesses to the Halliburton scandal and how it was bungled by Nigeria in order to shield the powerful.

In other words, while accused persons may file interlocutory appeals, the EFCC should have enough courage to drag judges who grant orders staying proceedings to the National Judicial Council (NJC).  Similarly, lawyers who file such sham applications and other frivolous motions should be reported to the disciplinary committee of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) for gross misconduct.

Corruption in Nigeria, no doubt has assumed a dangerous dimension, which percolates all the strata of the society. The civil society is not spared in this menace. In fact, it has so much eaten deep into the fabrics of our society that the hitherto insulated places have now been taken over by corruption. Rather than being a conscience of the masses, the civil society has become a tool in the hands of corrupt people. Our NGOs have become corruption vessels and the effect is what we see today - a society without conscience.

Foreign aids meant for specific roles have been converted to personal use. Gone were the days when NGOs stood and spoke for the oppressed masses; now, they are agents of retrogressive, oppressive and corrupt personnel. The situation is even made worse due to the proliferation of NGOs where people just register organisations whimsically.

The roles of religious bodies in the fight against corruption have also become a source of worry. These bodies have become haven for corrupt individuals whose monies are used to sustain them.  Instead of speaking the truth, religious leaders have suddenly become appendages of the ruling class using their vantage position to enrich themselves at the expense of the poor members of their congregation who often see them as next to God.

Why is it that in spite of the stinking poverty in the country, religion is hastily becoming another source of psychological trauma for the ordinary Nigerian? A poor man goes to church or mosque and is greeted with SUVs and other flashy vehicles belonging to the cleric. Even when the congregation cannot afford to eat two balanced square meals in a day, some of our religious fathers deliberately or inadvertently display wealth? Do the religious fathers think about repercussion of some of their actions? How many religious leaders are so committed to feel for the poor families in their congregation to a point where they are touched to leave out some of the worldly things like gold wrist watches and of recent private jets? For a good number of youths, it is not therefore evangelism or the love of Christ that makes them heed the call, rather it is a bid to become like my pastor in materialistic wealth. Most especially, while industries are grounding, religious structures are rising.

Hence, a new source of wealth has arrived. It then becomes easy to understand why some of the most corrupt individuals in Nigeria find it easy to go to churches and mosques on Sunday and Friday without fearing that tough messages await them there.

You would recall that a few years ago, there was a move by a state government to impose taxes and levies on churches, mosques and other religious centres. All those who were opposed to the policy should be having a second thought in view of the growing opulence of some religious leaders. In the United Kingdom a Nigerian "bishopreneur" is currently being investigated for fraud by the police. Indeed, one of the issues being looked into is the propriety of collecting tithes from poor congregants only to channel the proceeds to acquire limousines and private jets.

Pastor Tunde Bakare of the Latter Rain Assembly was reported to have said that not until the religious leaders, including himself, were incarcerated, there wouldn't be sanity in the churches. He said churches have failed their congregations, as pastors have now become tyrants, oppressors and leaders without care for their followers.

In a swift reaction, President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, who  acquired his jet a couple of weeks ago, took a swipe at Bakare for condemning their crave for jets and opulent life. He said everything a pastor could get for evangelism should be acquired. Not minding the economic situation of the people, I think the statement credited to this leader is uncharitable knowing full well that many Christians today would fare well if the resources used in buying these jets are made available to them. Just like Bakare said, there is need for sanity also in the civil society. It is sad that poor members of the congregation cannot afford to put their children in the schools ‘owned’ by their churches or mosques because the tuition fees are colossal and beyond their reach. What a sad plight!

If this is the case, then, the tax authorities must extend their dragnets to all religious centres where substantial income is generated on a regular basis in the name God. A few months ago, a contractor donated a church worth several millions of naira to the Otuoke community in honour of President Goodluck Jonathan. Just last week, an ex-president raised N400 million to build a small mosque in the premises of a library. Such business ventures and schools including universities set up by religious institutions which charge exorbitant fees that the children of the poor members cannot afford should pay taxes to the state. The prosperity pastors who are buying jets to preach the gospel to those who wallow in abject poverty should be assessed according to their wealth and be made to pay commensurate taxes. After all, they pay appropriate fees for parking their jets at local and international airports at home and abroad.

In reaction to bias of the law in favour of the bourgeoisie there has been a popular demand by Nigerians for the introduction of the death penalty in corruption cases. Since armed robbers are sentenced to death for robbing individuals violently of a few thousands of naira, it is logical to argue that those who divert billions of naira budgeted for fixing of roads and equipping of hospitals which led to the loss of many innocent lives should face the death penalty.

Notwithstanding the horrendous effect of corruption in the society, we should not be frustrated to support the campaign for the brutalisation of humanity through the death penalty. Even in Nigeria, our experience with murder and armed robbery has proved that the death penalty is not a deterrent for violent crimes. A state that cannot enforce a law that prescribes a punishment of two years for money laundering will frustrate the trial of any member of the ruling class for corruption under a law that provides for the death penalty. While the Criminal Code has prescribed the death penalty for certain offences, the Lagos High Court has held that the execution of the death penalty by firing squad or hanging is illegal and unconstitutional as it violates the fundamental rights of convicts to dignity guaranteed by section 34 of the constitution.

Lest I forget, parents too are no longer the representation of exemplar behaviours. Thousands of parents know that their children are corrupt but won’t speak up. Rather they thank God for giving them “the opportunity”.  Children without any job buy cars and parents are not perturbed.  The role of the family as the first point of socialisation is being challenged by greed just as in some grandeur men of God.  Elite theorists, in spite of their criticisms have noted that the masses are gullible. Unfortunately, Nigerian masses seem to represent this gullibility. There was Occupy Nigeria for increase in fuel but what has happened with the multi-billion cases of corruption?  Nigerians as individuals are still waiting to hold their leaders accountable.

What is to be done?

My conclusion is simple: Nigerians must take their destiny in their own hands. Nigerians must know that corruption does not just happen but it survives on the level of morality at the individual and group levels. Youths must shake themselves out of the bondage of unscrupulous politicians who have nothing to offer but the bastardisation of values. Where are their children? Ask yourselves? Progressive religious leaders must take back religion from the business people that have hijacked it for materialistic gains.