2015: Here Comes The Bride! By Pius Adesanmi

Pius Adesanmi

Beijing. The upper five floors of the most expensive hotel in town have been temporarily renamed “Abuja Floors” because the management of the hotel has never had a presidential delegation book by number of floors instead of by number of rooms. Warned by their Embassy in Abuja, the Chinese had taken the precaution of soundproofing all the five floors booked by the Nigerian presidential delegation. On every floor, there are telltale signs of Nigerian power and money: rooms and hallways are littered with discarded tissue paper, empty whisky bottles, empty cans of Guinness and Heineken, bones of half-eaten chicken wings, kolanuts, bitter kola, tomtom, empty packets of Benson & Hedges and St. Moritz.
Most of the rooms are in a party atmosphere as members of the delegation jostle between official engagements with their Chinese counterparts and partying in their rooms with aspiring Nollywood actresses dispatched to Beijing ahead of their arrival. Girls, girls, girls everywhere. Occasionally, a directive comes from Oga at the top in the presidential suite: take it easy boys. Make it less rowdy. Amidst all the chaos, some key Presidency aides are rushing to an emergency meeting summoned by Mallam Dan-Ahmed Kalug, a political adviser to the President. The usual suspects, Orontus, Ruby, and Renoks engage in animated discussion as they approach Kalug’s suite at the end of a long hallway. Ruby hums under his breath
A l’owo ma j’aiye
Eyin le mo
Awon to j’aiye l’ana da
Won ti ku won ti lo

(If you get money and you no chop life
Na you sabi
Those wey chop life yesterday
Don quench comot for dis world)

Knock, knock. A door opens and the aides file into Mallam Kalug’s room
“Mallam Kalug, how now? Na which one be dis emergency meeting wey you call so? No be today we dey all go back home?”
“Oga Orontus, welcome. Ruby, Ruby! How now? Chief Renoks, how far? Una welcome. All is well. Better dey. I have summoned you all to discuss a fantastic opportunity for Oga. I presume you’ve heard the news from home today?”
“Ehn, Amaechi don quench?”
 “Shege, Ruby, na so you hate di man reach? Amaechi never quench o. That’s not the news I am talking about.”
“Oho, you mean the news about that old man with a white mane abusing our mother? We’ve heard.”
“Renoks, why will I summon you guys because of that? Am I Ayo Osinlu? I say there is a situation developing wey fit help us for 2015.”
“Then Oga Kalug, tell us wetin dey happen now.”
“Well, the news coming out of Nigeria today is that a Court of Appeal has finally freed Abacha’s butcher and told him to go home.”
“O ti o! Abacha’s butcher is free?”
“Yes o, Oga Orontus, he has been released from prison.”
“Okay, even if he is free, I still don’t see the connection. Why summon us so hurriedly to this meeting because Abacha’s butcher is free?”
“Yes o, Mallam Kalug, I’m with Renoks on this one. I don’t exactly see the connection.”
“Chei, wallahi Ruby and Renoks, after two years with us, you guys still haven’t fully learnt all the tricks of our political chess game. How can anybody hoping to continue chopping with Oga after 2015 not see the fantastic opportunity presented by the butcher’s release?”
“Okay, Mallam Kalug, agreed, we are still neophytes. Please explain all of this to us.”
“Ruby, look at how miserable your life has been because of an emboldened opposition. Oga and Madam even had to hire Alagba Doyin Okupe to help improve your firepower. Even the NGF under Amaechi has joined the emboldened opposition in poking ten fingers inside Oga’s two nostrils. And you, Renoks, when was the last time you slept properly? You are up 24/7 managing your many fake identities on social media, fighting Oga’s enemies, supervising the cells you hire to clog the websites of hostile media with anonymous commentaries. Everybody is having Oga for dinner. We have never been more vulnerable as 2015 approaches.”
“That may be true, Mallam Kalug, but I still don’t see the connection.”
“Well, this man that has been released from prison, have you all forgotten the talents he put to such extraordinarily good use for his former boss?”
“Ehn, Mallam Kalug, I hope you are not thinking what I think you are thinking o. That is a no-go area for Oga o.”
“Oga Orontus, let me land now. I am not necessarily saying that Oga should use the Esa Oke Protocol on members of the Opposition and those trying to take 2015 from us.”
“Then what exactly are you saying? The Esa Oke Protocol is the only talent that the man in question has. That is what he was born to do and did so well for his former boss. But he was doing it as a soldier working for a soldier. I will support our using every gutter strategy in the book for 2015 but I will not support the Esa Oke Protocol. Even Oga no go gree.”
“Oga Orontus, you still don’t understand! If we hire him and make him very very comfortable before others get to him, we will be killing several birds with one stone. You yourself have admitted that the Esa Oke Protocol is the only thing the man knows how to do. How long do you think it will take him to reactivate old networks and get back to business as we approach 2015? And now, he will be out there as a mercenary, waiting for the first or the highest bidder. Can we really afford to let anybody else hire him?”
“Orontus, I think Mallam Kalug has a point there o.”
“I agree, Ruby, but I am not fully sold on this yet. I cannot approach Oga with this kind of talk unless I see that there are advantages without our having to make the man activate the Esa Oke Protocol for real. Oga will not have anybody’s blood on his hand.”
“But Oga Orontus, apart from making sure his services are not available to those who may really want to use him practically for the Esa Oke Protocol, the greatest advantage of absorbing him into our camp lies in appearances and deterrence.”
“How so, Mallam Kalug?”
“Have you forgotten the reputation of who we are talking about? This is the Army Major before whom Generals prostrated and pissed. This is the Army Major who made 150 million people shit in their pants at the mere mention of his name. That name has not lost its symbolic power of terror. Once it goes public that he is now working for us, do you see Lai Mohammed running his mouth against us? Do you see Amaechi misbehaving? That foolish Ribadu will forget about sinking ships and take one chance back to exile. Everybody will run for cover. Nobody will know that we don’t really intend to use him for the Esa Oke Protocol. But they must believe that that is what we hired him for in order for this strategy to succeed. The mere mention of that name will make half of the Presidential hopefuls in the APC deny their presidential ambition. Oga could almost get re-elected unopposed in 2015 if we hire the man.”
“Ah, now you are talking, Mallam Kalug. This is a fantastic plan. Put a proposal together quickly that I can submit to Oga. How much do you think Operation Hire Abacha’s Butcher would cost?”
“Well, assuming we make the man Special Adviser to Oga on Security and Special Intelligence Services, he will work for us between now and 2015. Something like N20 billion should be okay. Four of us here worked on this plan. We can add N10 billion to it as our own consultancy stipend. That makes it a total of N30 billion.”
“Okay, Mallam Kalug, put the proposal together so I can present it to Oga on the flight back to Abuja. Round it up to N50 billion.”
“Okay. I must say, however, that nothing is predictable. We may say here that we are just hiring him for intimidation and appearances only to discover as things heat up in 2014 that we actually need him to move beyond appearances…”
“Mallam Kalug, prepare and submit your proposal.”

In Ota. Ebora Owu breezes into his living room. An ebullient light-complexioned man and a dark man prostrate. Ebora Owu quickly moves to lift up the light-complexioned man. Hugs, back patting, and riotous laughter. The dark man sits down, feeling a bit ignored

“The Tura Boy of Ogbomoso himself! Awo e yi ma ndan si lojojumo o! Your skin is getting lighter and brighter every day o. Ope ni fun Tura o. We thank God for Tura o.”
“Ah, Baba, you and this your Tura jokes. Ola Oloun ni o. We are shining by God’s grace o.”
“Iwo wi! The Tura boy himself! And what are you doing in my house with this boy? Ayo, you are not ashamed to come to Ota? Iwo omo alai lojuti yi. Did you not open your mouth to call me a father of bastards? A whole me, you abused me in public and called me a father of bastards. Now you are here with Tura Boy. Ah, Alao, o se wo ni o. You shouldn’t have brought this stupid boy to my house.”
Alao and Ayo prostrate, begging Ebora Owu profusely. After one and a half hours of begging on their bellies, he finally asks them to seat down.
“So, Tura Boy, mo ngbo yin. What can I do for you guys?”
“Baba we are here to give you progress report on our strategy to recapture the entire southwest for the PDP in 2015. We have made a lot of progress, especially in Lagos where Lagos Boy has taken the battle fully to our enemies. In fact, he would have come with us today…”
“Ehn, did you say you would also have come here with Bode George? Ah, Tura Boy, o fe mi fun re o. You don’t like me at all. Are you not aware that I asked him for tibi when he got out of prison and he still has not delivered? That boy got away with the N80 billion he stole at the NPA and I asked him to do omoluabi with only N20 billion to those of us who helped him get away with the loot. That greedy boy did not deliver. Soponna would have struck you if you brought him here.”
“But, Baba, we cannot recapture Lagos without him o. Once we recapture Lagos and take away the treasury from Asiwaju, I will personally make sure he does omoluabi to you in ilopo mewa. Tenfold omoluabi, I guarantee it Baba.”
“Okay, if you say so. So what do you guys need for complete success in Operation Wet the Southwest in 2015?”
“That’s why we are here Baba. Irohin ayo la mu wa. There is fantastic news in town. Won ti release omo Gambari Abacha yen?”
“Ehn, that omo buruku who nearly killed me has been released?”
“Yes o, Baba, he has been released. And we need to recruit him quickly for our operations in the Southwest before others get to him.”
“Yes, Baba…”
“Ehn, Ayo, you are talking? You talk when I say you talk. If you are not careful, we may not award you Government House in Ekiti after driving Fayemi out. So, let Tura Boy do the talking.”
“Baba, if we can hire that Gambari boy, we can consider the southwest in our bag in 2015. All he will need to do is apply the Esa Oke Protocol to a few targets and our opposition will fizzle away.”
“Okay, I will give your plan a chance. You guys will have to mobilize the funds to hire him. Make sure he does not take out more than three targets. Remember to establish a scholarship fund for the children of the targets when the deed is done.

Bourdillon Road. The Lord of Oluwalambe Lodge breezes into a huge living room. About 25 political associates prostrate. They sit only after the Lord of Oluwalambe Lodge sits.

“Ehen, eyin ara’bi, I understand that one of you has a proposal for us to consider?”
“Yes, Baba Oluwalambe, ke pe fun wa sir. May your dominion over us last forever. The recent release of Abacha’s caretaker from prison is what got me thinking.”
“Thinking about what?”
“That we should move quickly and hire him as part of our strategies for 2015. Given that prison could not have taken away his God-given talent, we must bring him into our camp before others get to him sir.”
“Okay, I need to be somewhere in the next two minutes. Explain the full details of your plan to the boys. If they approve it, give us a budget and I will see which of my appointed Governors will fund it.”
The political associates burst into a solidarity song as Baba Oluwalambe exits with a few aides
Baba o baba o baba o
Oluwa da baba si fun wa
Baba o baba o baba o
Oluwa da baba si fun wa

(Baba o baba o baba o
God grant long life to our Baba)
Saharareporters

NIGERIA: IT'S THE CORRUPTION, STUPID?

or those that followed American politics towards the end of George Walker Bush era and the coming of Bill Clinton, they are probably aware of someone who came up with the phrase: "It's the economy, stupid". The phrase was used to question George Bush's handling of the American economy. In this article, the phrase "It's the corruption, stupid?", will be used to question whether corruption is actually the bane of Nigeria economic development and advancement. When I encounter Nigerians discussing the country's woes, the common denominator in their argument is that corruption is the key issue, it is the bane and the real issue that need to be tackled to get the country out of the economic and development doldrums. Without undermining this claim, I want to posit in this article that corruption is not the real issue; corruption is, in my opinion, acollateral damage that came out of the real issue. The real issue at the heart of Nigeria problem, in my own opinion, is the country's "organization structure" or if you like, the constitutional arrangement. Nigeria government portrays Nigeria as a country governed by a Federal constitution, but in reality, it runs a Unitary system where power is centralized and firmly in the hand of the federal government. The federal government has control over the resources and makes monthly payment to each state from the federation account. However, there is nowhere in the constitution that empowers the federal government to demand accountability from the state Governors for the huge monthly allocation. The word accountability was mentioned once in the constitution i.e., in section 22 that empowers the mass media to uphold the principles outlined in Chapter II of the constitution. The constitution goes further to grant immunity from prosecution to state governors i.e., a governor cannot be charged for crime of corruption until the end of his tenure. The same constitution allows the governor to run for 2 terms of four years each. In essence, the governor is given a large sum of money for 8 years without being accountable to federal government and he is immune from prosecution if he chooses to mismanage the money. Though the constitution under sections 121 and 122 seems to subject the Governor to the state house of assembly, we know that the members of that assembly are, in most cases, under the governor's feet because he has money to "deal" with whoever challenges his authority. The people of the state are indifferent because the money is from a remote federal government and the source of that money is not from a resource that comes out of their soil which means they have no vested interest or moral obligation to direct their representatives in the house of assembly to demand accountability from the governor. As a governor, after 8 years of serious embezzlement, I have a large war chest to fight both EFCC and ICPC lawyers; I have enough money to engage the services of the best lawyers in the land. I challenge those reading this article to tell me how many governors have been successfully prosecuted and sent to jail. If the man at the helms of affairs at the Presidency is my friend, then I do not have to worry. This is the real issue. The present system of having states to go cap in hand to the federal government cannot bring about economic development because there is no incentive or need to be innovative. All over the world, economic growth and development come from the constituent parts of the federation not from a remote federal power. When you give power for revenue generation and control to the regions like we have pre independence, you create incentive for regions to compete and develop at the pace of their human and natural resources. The people from whom the regional resources flow will demand accountability, i.e., the agbekoya uprising in the old Western region . In each region where there is a manifest failure of governance, you will have the "Niger Delta militant" experience where the people will demand justice and accountability. When the issue of Niger Delta militant and struggle came up, we the people from other parts of Nigeria did not understand their position, we do not care because we do not know where the 'shoe pinches', we are remote from their pain, but we get to share from their wealth. We, through our governors, are like someone who collects welfare cheque. People who collects welfare cheque has no history or record of prosperity. I know some people will counter this article and its position by asking "how much of the federation account goes to the states? Yes, that is a valid question. The answer to this lies in another flaw with the current centralized system. The present system creates an incentive for people to vie and fight for power at the centre to squander the money that they do not care how it is made. I want to challenge those that oppose my position to tell me why the federal government has consistently failed to develop non oil resources that abound in many states in Nigeria? It's simple, the person is there for 4 years or 8 at most, and he does not have incentive or push to pursue development agenda. In his first term, he is struggling and accumulating wealth to get a second or third term in office, the states that have non oil resource to tap is not his state, he has no agenda to develop that state since the easy money from oil is still flowing. Like the state governors, he has immunity and he is not accountable to anyone. The people whose bosom the oil comes from have few representatives in the national assembly, so they lack the political muscle to demand accountability and people from non oil states careless. Beyond the issue of flawed constitution, let us look at corruption from the human angle. I am a Certified Fraud Examiner. I studied the human psychology of corruption. Let's look at what the fraud examiner called the Fraud Triangle vis a vis the current system we operate in Nigeria and how it provides the atmosphere for corruption to proper. The fraud triangle has: Pressure at the top, Opportunity and Rationalization at the base. Pressure is that negative influence from immediate family and society. A governor is under pressure to get a second term and be relevant in the society after leaving office. Opportunity comes from a system that has no accountability, check and balances. Rationalization comes from the governor saying that: I have served this country or state and I need to be compensated, my pension is not going to meet my new taste and may not come if my political foe becomes the governor. He looks at those that have served the state honestly and diligently in the past and discovered that they are men of yesterday. They are no longer relevant; they have no financial muscle to be relevant. This is the human behavior aspect and how our current system need to be fixed. It is time we reexamine the present constitutional arrangement and make changes. Nigeria is at the brink, not only because of corruption, but because of a system that makes corruption humanly possible. It is time to fix Nigeria. If we fail to fix the constitution, we will continue to blame corruption. We will continue to leave the deadly "skin cancer to treat eczema". Adekunle Ajisebutu is a professional Accountant and Certified Fraud Examiner. NigeriaWorld

Abimbola Adelakun: Buhari reminds me of Jesus Christ

by Abimbola Adelakun

Muhammadu Buhari, former Nigerian military ruler and presidential candidate for the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) speaks during an interview with Reuters at a private residence in Lagos February 19, 2011. REUTERS/Akintunde Akinleye

Now he has rejected the poisoned chalice, there are commentaries that he is sore that he lost last year’s Presidential election and would rather sit back and watch Nigerians bombed than offer his goodwill.

Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) reminds me of Jesus Christ. Not that I think he’s a Messiah but how you can be webbed in a double-bind trap. Jesus was asked if the Jews should pay taxes to their Roman overlords. Had he replied in the affirmative, he would be labelled a state apologist; a position antithetical to what a Messiah should be. If he replied otherwise, he would be risking treason. So he gave what Ibadan indigenes call Mesiogo answer – a witty response to idiocy.

Boko Haram’s choice of Buhari as a mediator appears like even a triple-bind. If he accepts the role, he would fall into the hands of those who would say, in local parlance, something like, “We no talk am? He has been their sponsor all along!”

And if he succeeds in brokering peace, he becomes the proverbial hunter who killed a notorious elephant with just his cap. He would have proved he had Boko Haram’s remote control all along.

If, still, he mediates and fails, he would be demystified because his famous influence among northern youths would seem mere exaggeration.

Now he has rejected the poisoned chalice, there are commentaries that he is sore that he lost last year’s Presidential election and would rather sit back and watch Nigerians bombed than offer his goodwill.

There is, clearly, no way he can win.

He has given a not-so Mesiogo response, and I think it is sensible.

Nigeria should not waste time negotiating with Boko Haram. One, up till now, nobody knows precisely what the angst of its members is. Sometimes, they claim they want a religious state. Other times, they are anti-corruption and, infrequently, they are just as confused as everybody else. I doubt if the members themselves can point to their grouse. So, how do you talk with nebulous anarchists?

Certain mischievous commentators have made a case for negotiations by comparing them to the IRA. This is quite disingenuous. The IRA had a valid basis, however faulty methods, for their uprising. The fact that Britain eventually capitulated via the Good Friday Agreement is not the same here.

Nigeria does not owe Boko Haram what Britain owed Ireland; neither does Nigeria owe Boko Haram what it owes even the Niger Delta. What Nigeria owes Boko Haram is not different from what it owes millions of Nigerians.

Two, which of the sect’s factions is ‘mandating’ a negotiation? They are not a single group whose manifesto is pasted on a plaque at their Headquarters’ reception. It has splinter groups and factions. So, how does Nigeria deal with the politics of which to meet?

Three, where does Saudi Arabia stand in this? Personally, I have always found Saudi Arabia’s stance on Islamic terrorism worldwide curious. I wonder why they do not actively denounce it since such a move might burst the bubble of people who believe they are killing for God (although I also understand they’ll like to avoid meddling in local politics). Yet, using their country as a meeting place between Nigeria and Boko Haram is bad diplomacy.

Four, I think it is time Nigeria stopped talking about this balderdash of negotiating with Boko Haram. I know how it is to wake up to news of people dying in the hands of these killers. It might be wearying dealing with them and might even be taxing on the Nigerian Army but after mindlessly killing an estimated 3,000 Nigerians, they should be made to pay, not compensated.

YNaija

Opinion: Why we should apologise to Boko Haram

by Segun Ayobolu

Is the Boko Haram leader, Imam Abubakar Shekau, reading this? Or can anybody reach him? Please drop your guns. Your point has been effectively made.

Make no mistake about it. I totally disagree with their methods. I abhor their violence. I loathe the taking of innocent lives. I detest their bestial, savage, barbaric killing of innocent school children. But then, could there possibly be something right about Boko Haram’s claim that western education is a sin? The majority of Nigeria’s western educated elite so much vindicate Boko Haram’s position that the sect certainly does not need the current shedding of blood and wasting of lives to make its point. In any case, what is sin?

In my view it is a violation of God’s laws such as lying, stealing, murder, adultery etc. It is a breaching of moral codes. It is a negation of ethical standards. Most of Nigeria’s western educated elite particularly in public office exhibit these vices on an industrial scale. They steal. They lie. They cheat. Their wanton corruption has stunted a remarkably endowed country’s development resulting in the continuing avoidable deaths of millions of valuable lives. Yes, western education nurtures the intellect. It liberates the mind. It has led to the astonishing accomplishments of humanity in diverse spheres of endeavour. But it does not necessarily endow the individual with the moral values imperative for maintaining a decent, sane, humane and healthy society.

Most of Nigeria’s western educated elite simply utilise their acquired knowledge and skills to commit the most heinous sins against their country and fellow country men and women. A good example are those bankers whose venality and moral depravity resulted in the collapse of several banks with severe, damaging implications for millions of depositors and shareholders and with consequences that continue to haunt the fragile Nigerian economy. But let us move to another set of Nigeria’s western educated elite whose actions amply validate Boko Haram’s position thatwestern education is sin.

The country has 36 governors. These eminent citizens represent the cream of the country;s western educated elite. Among them are medical doctors, lawyers, soldiers, engineers, architects, academics and so on. These respected citizens came together and voluntarily formed an association, the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF). 35 of these highly enlightened citizens gathered in a room to elect their chairman. No one was coerced there. We assume that they knew the meaning of elections and the implications of democracy before participating in the election. They voted. The votes were counted. The process was electronically recorded. A winner emerged. He had 19 votes. His opponent had 16 votes. Yet, the minority claims to be the majority. To these eminent western educated Nigerians, 16 is greater than 19. The loser not only parades himself as Chairman of the NGF, his faction has opened a secretariat in Abuja! This is is lying. This is cheating. This is deceit. This is a form of robbery. This is brazen fraud. This is original sin. Boko Haram members must be
having a good laugh. They are surely vindicated. Western education, at least in this case, is grievous sin.

But let us go to a more tragic scenario. In 2011, we trooped to the polls and elected as President a man called Dr. Goodluck Jonathan. As a child he had no shoes. We identified with him. He went to the redemption camp and publicly knelt down before the revered Pastor Enoch Adeboye. We admired his humility. Many also voted for him because he is the first Nigerian President to have a university degree, a Ph. D for that matter. The Ph. D is the highest attainment in western education. The holder is a Doctor of Philosophy. He is assumed to be sound not only in knowledge but in character. He should be a beacon of integrity. But what are we seeing? This Ph.D holder is proving to be even more coarse, brutish and utterly disdainful of the rule of law, constitutionalism and the values of democracy than his rustic predecessor and benefactor who has now been publicly and irreparably deconstructed by General Alabi Isama as a blundering, cowardly and utterly incompetent General. But that is a matter for another day.

This Ph.D holder, despite denials by his aides, is clearly the one behind the crisis in the NGF. He openly expressed his opposition to Governor Rotimi Amaechi’s re-election as NGF Chairman. The presidency actively sought to coerce and intimidate governors against re-electing Amaechi. The election held. Amaechi won. The Ph.D holder lost face. As an academic and supposed intellectual, would he accept the verdict? Not on your life. He publicly recognised the loser as the winner. He lent the weight of his prestigious office to falsehood. He encouraged deceit. He embraced lies. I hope the respected Pastor Adeboye is reading this in case somebody wants to play the kneeling game at the redemption camp sometime in future!

Somebody has suggested that elementary arithmetic may not necessarily be a precondition for obtaining a most distinguished Ph.D. I disagree. But then the tragedy got even messier. This admirable product of western education has done everything to undermine the legitimate government of Rotimi Amaechi in Rivers State. He has divided the PDP in the state. He has caused mayhem in the state House of Assembly. He sanctioned, according to the mysterious arithmetic of Zoology, the attempted impeachment of the Speaker by 5 members of a 32-member House. He has looked on indifferently as the Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Mbu John Mbu, continues to jeopardise the security of the state and compromise the personal safety of the Governor.

To make matters worse, this Ph.D holder has allowed another Ph.D holder, Dr. Reuben Abati, to brazenly lie that the presidency has no hand in the Abuja instigated descent to anarchy in Rivers State. Luckily, the most amiable and adorable First Lady and co-President of Nigeria, Dame Patience Jonathan, has exposed the highly cerebral Dr. Abati’s lies. She told a group of 16 Bishops from the South-South who visited her on Wednesday of her grouse with Governor Rotimi Amaechi. We now know why there is such a desperate attempt by Abuja to pull down Amaechi at all costs even if it means destabilizing the country and endangering our democracy. I once described the Jonathan Presidency as a distracted one obsessed with his ambition for a second term in 2015. Many of my readers from the Niger Delta were unhappy with me. But the unfolding scenario in Rivers State proves this beyond doubt. For, Amaechi’s only crime is that he is suspected to have higher political aspirations in 2015 that may jeopardise Jonathan’s political interests.

Let us, therefore, apologise to Boko Haram. They have a point. In many ways western education is a grievous sin if a Ph.D holder can perpetrate, directly and indirectly, the kind of atrocities being witnessed in Rivers state. Is the Boko Haram leader, Imam Abubakar Shekau, reading this? Or can anybody reach him? Please drop your guns. Your point has been effectively made.

YNaija

2015: North prepares for war •Beware of another civil war, US report warns Nigeria

by  Olawale Rasheed

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A new report entitled ``Nigerian Unity in the Balance” authored for the United States Army War College has, again, warned Nigerian leaders to beware of another civil war or an outright break-up following what it called ongoing divisive trends in the country.

The report released by the Strategic Studies Institute of War College was written by two former American servicemen, Gerald McLaughlin and Clarence J. Bouchat. McLaughlin is a graduate of the U.S. Army War College while Bouchat is also an adjunct professor at the U.S. Army War College (USAWC)
The report, whose foreword was written by the Director, Strategic Studies, Institute and U.S. Army War College Press, Professor Douglas Lovelace, observed that divisive forces were becoming more stronger than uniting forces in Nigeria, warning that unless this was reversed, Nigeria`s existence could be jeopardised.

According to the report, “Parochial interests created by religious, cultural, ethnic, economic, regional, and political secessionist tendencies are endemic in Nigeria. Under such stresses, Nigerian unity may fail.

“Should Nigeria’s leaders mismanage the political economy and reinforce centrifugal forces in Nigeria, the breaks to create autonomous regions or independent countries would likely occur along its previously identified fault lines,” the report warned.

“Having already experienced one brutal civil war, Nigeria is at risk for a recurrence of conflict or dissolution, especially since some of the underpinning motivations of the war remain unresolved,`` the report observed, detailing many fault lines speeding up disintegrative tendencies in the country.

“Indeed, East Timor, Eritrea, Croatia, and Somaliland indicate that the weakest point of failing states is along colonial borders. Of more interest for Nigerian unity is that this may also occur between regions separately administered by a common colonial power, as occurred between Malaysia and Singapore, and North and South Sudan, where differences proved irreconcilable after the departure of British administration. At least, some of the resulting regions and states of a possible Nigerian devolution may divide along such internal lines”, the report projected.

While conceding that Nigeria’s fate is primarily in the hands of Nigerians, the report noted that such could be positively affected by actions of the US, adding that “Nigeria’s future is in balance and the United States should help tip the scales.”

The report particularly warned that religious differences were taking the centre-stage in the emerging conflict situation in the country, disputing repeated reports that economic reasons were to blame for the insurgency and other conflicts in the country.

The Strategic Studies Institute (SSI) is part of the U.S. Army War College and is the strategic-level study agent for issues related to national security and military strategy with emphasis on geostrategic analysis.

Click here to read more...

NigerianTribune

Tonnie Iredia: Behold, the PDP of violence and anarchy

by Tonnie Iredia

No one has faulted its claims of being the largest political party in Africa. It accommodates everybody -the rich and the poor; geniuses and illiterates, philanthropists and rogues, diplomats and hooligans…

Some few years back, a bosom friend who wanted to get into partisan politics after retiring from the Federal Public Service pleaded with me to sleep over the subject and come up with the most suitable political party for him. I promptly replied that he had no option but to pitch his tent with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) – the only national political party in Nigeria. Of course until the recent merger arrangements by some groupings, every other Nigerian political party always operated like a small regional party. For me, my friend was too big to swim in any of the little streams when a big river was available.

I could not have been wrong because the PDP is indisputably large. As the current chairman of the party Alhaji Bamanga Tukur testifies, it is the only party that has a candidate in every election everywhere across the nation. He is correct because during the 2011 Presidential electioneering period for instance, the PDP candidate visited many states to campaign whereas some of his opponents were not seen at all in many states. Indeed, it is usually only the PDP that has party agents in every polling unit during elections.

Again many politicians supposedly in other camps did not only begin in the PDP, they are only away for awhile depending on the vagaries of political weather. The CPC governor of Nasarawa State and that of Labour in Ondo State may be back shortly just as the Bauchi State governor who left came back while his deputy who refused to return was impeached.

In my state – Edo – it is only our Governor whose roots in the PDP are not quite clear. While one school of thought says he begged in vain to contest the governorship election in the state under the banner of the PDP, another school says it was the PDP that struggled in vain to attract him. Head or tail, PDP is involved. Our deputy governor and all other major ACN office holders in our state are certainly PDP by birth.

Thus, that the party is exceedingly large is a notorious fact. No one has faulted its claims of being the largest political party in Africa. It accommodates everybody – the rich and the poor; geniuses and illiterates, philanthropists and rogues, diplomats and hooligans etc. Notwithstanding this rich mix, what is it principally known for? The public by convention has a way of pinning an issue on a political party hence in spite of its many wonderful works, Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s Action Group of old was known for its free education scheme. Somehow, PDP appears to be living in everyone’s sub consciousness that it is a violent organization

The recent bloody fight in the Rivers State House of Assembly, a purely PDP state was the handiwork of PDP members only – no political opponents were involved. The aggressors and the aggrieved as well as those they were and are still fighting to support are reportedly fellow party members of the PDP.  At the peak of the crisis, four state governors, Murtala Nyako (Adamawa), Babangida Aliyu (Niger), Sule Lamido (Jigawa) and Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano) were in Port Harcourt on a solidarity visit to Governor Rotimi Amaechi. The four governors and their host are all PDP governors. They were ambushed on arrival by thousands of protesters who threw stones at them. According to media reports, the protesters are PDP supporters loyal to Chief Nyesom Wike, himself a Minister in the PDP controlled federal government.

It is doubtful if anyone is about to save the PDP from itself because at about the same time of the Port Harcourt embarrassment, PDP members in Ekiti State were engaged in a vicious public fight which left some of their members badly injured. The issue at stake was the selection of the party’s candidate for the forthcoming governorship election in the state.

Why is the PDP so crisis ridden? Interestingly, some of its members are hopeful that normalcy would soon return to the party. Jelili Amusan who until recently was a member of the House of Representatives from Ogun State says he would not be surprised “if, like the legendary Phoenix, PDP rises anew from the ashes of what looks like an unending crises”. But who will kick start the process?

The national leadership of the party which by logic should arrest any ugly incident within the party is according to reports trying to do something. But is the leadership itself sobre enough to effectively handle the situation? It is true that the national chairman a few days after the Rivers crisis called for a truce while reminding his members that “democracy cannot thrive in an atmosphere of violence and anarchy”.  In reality however, the chairman has himself been under tension for longer than makes sense – the latest being the south west zonal congress and mini national convention of the party scheduled to hold on August 24 and 30 respectively.

The party had earlier put up a committee led by Prof Jerry Gana to organize the events. But last Monday; the Alhaji Tukur-led National Working Committee (NWC) through a press statement suddenly halted the activities of the team. The latter is reported to have dismissed the directive and continued with its work thus bringing to the fore a new controversy whose end no one can predict. Is the chairman not party to the composition of the Gana team? If so why is he against it now? Is the team working independently of a sitting chairman of the party? If so, who swore-in the team? Who will blink first and what will be in use – raw force or brainwork?

Irrespective of the answers to these questions, it is time for members of the public who have any business near the PDP secretariat to be watchful of a fracas shortly as well as the possibility of stray bullets as the party has of recent increased its tempo of violence. Oh yes, from its posture in the last one year or so, it is as if the PDP is in hot contest with the National Union of Road Transporter Workers (NURTW) as to who should lead in the game of hooliganism in the nation.

YNaija

Myne Whitman: Child marriage – Where we ALL got it wrong!

by Myne Whitman

It is said that a large number of Nigerians don’t really know the law or their rights, and I think the lawmakers fall into this category. Those who pushed to delete section 29(4)(b) did it on the grounds that it infringes the right of a child by allowing early marriage but I think otherwise. 

If you asked me whether the Senate really changed the age of marriage, the
answer is, I don’t think so. Yesterday, some people around my social media
sent me a couple of links to www.change.org petitions to stop the Senate, the
House of Representative and the Nigerian government, from altering the
constitution in a way that would allow for child marriage. By then, I had
seen the headlines on some blogs, and was fulminating inside, thinking of
writing a scathing post, or something.

I went over to sign one of the petitions, and there was a link to a Premium
Times article that initially reported the constitutional amendments
currently being voted on by the Senate. These parts of the report caught my
attention immediately.

The contentious provision, Section 29, allows citizens who are of age to renounce Nigerian citizenship if they wish. For that purpose, the constitution says, 18-year-olds and above shall be considered to be “of age”.

In addition, a woman or girl who is married, shall also be considered to be of age-a section that could be interpreted to imply that even a day old child, once married, shall be considered to be of age.

The Senate’s amendment committee had proposed that definition be deleted.*

So it turns out we’re talking about a woman’s right to renounce her
citizenship of Nigeria, and at what age and marital status. Which is very far from the viral stories of the Nigerian Senate sneakily passing a law that made pedophilia legal through early marriages.

Even the Nigerian Feminists Forum was hoodwinked. They recently released a
statement about how “greatly concerned” they were “about the resolution by
the Senate to alter section 29(a) of the Constitution which stipulates that
a woman shall not be qualified for marriage until she attains 18 years of
age.”

Should we blame the ThisDay journalist whom they quoted without verification? Because that is not what section 29 of the constitution is about at all. Section 29 relates to the renunciation of citizenship, and this is the section in full.

29. (1) Any citizen of Nigeria of full age who wishes to renounce his Nigerian citizenship shall make a declaration in the prescribed manner for the renunciation.
(2) The President shall cause the declaration made under subsection (1) of his section to be registered and upon such registration, the person who made the declaration shall cease to be a citizen of Nigeria.
(3) The President may withhold the registration of any declaration made under subsection (1) of this section if-
(a) the declaration is made during any war in which Nigeria is physically involved; or
(b) in his opinion, it is otherwise contrary to public policy.
(4) For the purposes of subsection (1) of this section.
(a) “full age” means the age of eighteen years and above;
(b) any woman who is married shall be deemed to be of full age.
The part under contention is actually section 29(4)(b) which the senators had wanted to remove because it seemed to be a repetition since Section 21 of the Child’s Rights Act of Nigeria already forbids the marriage of persons below 18 years with a punishment of N500,000 or a 5 year jail term, or both.

In as much as I might disdain his personal life, Senator Yerima, former
governor of Zamfara state, champion of Sharia, and husband of a 15-years-old
girl, was actually calling the other senators to proper order. The constitution does not allow the legislature to rule on issues of Islamic marriage.

Item 61 of the Second Schedule, Part I in the Exclusive Legislative List
says the Legislative Powers include “The formation, annulment and dissolution of marriages other than marriages under Islamic law and Customary law including matrimonial causes relating thereto.

I took time to read more of the Nigerian constitution – which you can download free from GooglePlay or read online here - and it does not stipulate in any section the full age as regards marriage.

So contrary to reports that some clauses were removed that defined the age
of marriage for women, a clause was left in for women, or in this case girls, who are married before the age of 18 to be deemed of “full age” not for any other reason, not voting, not age of liberty (majority), but for the sole purpose of renouncing their Nigerian citizenship.

It is said that a large number of Nigerians don’t really know the law or their rights, and I think the lawmakers fall into this category. Those who pushed to delete section 29(4)(b) did it on the grounds that it infringes the right of a child by allowing early marriage but I think otherwise. Section 21 of the Child’s Rights Act already stipulates legal age of marriage, though I don’t know if it covers Islamic marriage. I believe section 29(4)(b) of the constitution deals with the age of a woman after the fact of marriage, and what rights she has at that time.

There are gender and child discrimination in the Nigerian constitution for sure, with only 2 mentions of the noun ‘woman’ and 7 uses of ‘child/ren’ compared to 235 appearances of the pronoun “he”. However, after my study, I support that the senate left in the clause allowing the under-age girl who is married the right to renounce her Nigerian citizenship. I see some sweet scenarios where this right may be used;

Senator Yerima’s Egyptian child-bride who is probably now a Nigerian
citizen by registration using section 26(2)(a) can decide she’s no more a
Nigerian right now instead of waiting till she’s 18, and leave Nigeria back
to Egypt. She, and other under-aged Nigerian women married under duress or
coercion, can also seek Asylum and citizenship with another country without
being burdened by their Nigerian citizenship. For a lot of countries, you
can only have one, two and most times not more than 3 countries you’re a
citizen of.

But I temper my support based on a second scenario where this right can be
abused. The husband of an under-aged Nigerian wife may be able to force her
to renounce her citizenship either to deny her rights to freedom under the
Child’s Right Act or citizenship and other rights under the constitution.

The petition we should be signing is one asking the entire legislature to
find ways to make the constitution more woman and child friendly. They need
to stipulate age of marriage in the constitution and remove the inability
of the house of assembly to make laws covering Muslim women and children,
especially where under-age marriage is concerned. Also, they should change
all the appearances of ‘he’ to ‘they’ to cover all genders.

PS – While it means there’s one less occurrence of woman in the constitution, I like that section 26(2)(a) has been amended to allow women married to non-Nigerians to grant them citizenship by registration – a simpler means of becoming a Nigerian than by through naturalization. If you know of the Niger Wives Club made up of foreign women married to Nigerian men, we may be having a Naija Husbands Club soon.

 YNaija