A MUST READ AND FOOD FOR THOUGHT. OPEN LETTER TO THE CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (CAN)

Sirs,

I will not express any pleasantries, for we are clearly in unpleasant times - apparently the worst - in the life of our nation Nigeria since the end of the civil war in 1970. However, I express my love, which serves as the board from which this epistle jumps from.

Being the association that represents the bulk of Christian believers in Nigeria, which seem to also serve as the voice of these same believers, I am compelled to write and draw your attention to the ominous silence of this association to the steady drift of this nation into the abyss.

The political temperature of Nigeria has risen to the point of burning the top cylinder gasket that holds the beautiful mix that makes this nation work. This is made so by the apparent selfishness and desperation being exhibited by the political class, especially those of them closely associated with you. And this selfishness and desperation have combined to create a climate of insecurity and fear among the people hopelessly suffering the consequences of misgovernance, which has been feathered and furthered by your apparent lack of rebuke.

You will recall that I did warn you in August 2011 in my long article 'As the Church Slept...' (The first series of it) of the consequences of your partisanship in that year's presidential election of which you adopted and vigorously campaigned for president Goodluck Jonathan in your churches and other areas of influence. You will also remember that I advised you to make sure this government works to succeed so that the integrity and honour of the Christian faith is not diminished, because there was nothing successful in the tenure of Goodluck Jonathan as governor of his state, Bayelsa other than massive corruption, a fact you people woefully and stubbornly refused to consider before plunging the church and the entire nation into this avoidable calamity, which is in dire conflict with the biblical instruction that says "Let every man's work speak for him." However, by the current mess the country is thrown into now, and by your loud silence over the mess, it is clear you have not heeded my counsel, which could also mean you care less about how the corporate image and integrity of the Christian faith is being muddled by your "favourite politician" the president. You seem not to understand that whatever he does shall be deemed as springing from a "Christian behaviour" or attitude, and I am compelled to ask whether you people in CAN lack shame or are not ashamed of the unprecedented corruption and insecurity being perpetrated by this regime whose worth is no more than the worth of broken dry leaves carried in a whirlwind?

There are so many scandals bordering on corruption and insecurity, which should have drawn from you appropriate rebuke and demand for comprehensive disclosures, but you chose to be as silent and as dumb as a graveyard in the desert. Instead, all you seem to care about is your continuous odious relationship with these same charlatans who only mention God with their lips but despise Him in their hearts and actions.

If you have not thrown away your Bibles you will not have missed how the Men of God in the Bible were a torment to the (unrighteous) rulers of their time. Those Men of God served as the conscience of their nation with the people always running to them to seek reprieve from oppressive tyrants, but in your own case you seem to have become accomplices in the campaign of plunder and rape of the common wealth of the people. Your consciences appear to have been "seared with hot iron" as the Apostle Paul would say, and without any sense of shame and rebuke you all seem to gladly open your altars to these same liars and thieves to stand and mock God and to further ensnare your followers with their lies! No one among you seem to have the courage now to "speak truth to power" but you would rather "speak truth according to power" as a wise man somewhere appropriately put it. Your altars are no longer points where fire is spitted to convict evil in the land, rather they have become points from which "messages of comfort" are spewed for our thieving rulers and other vandals that throng worship places for fun and recognition, and little wonder there appears to be no change in the land that can be attributed to convicting messages from the altars and pulpits.

You may not know it, but shouldn't you have figured out the danger of politicising your altars or pulpits? Already, you have wittingly or unwittingly set up the next political campaign to be on religious basis exactly the way you and your favourite politician did in 2011, and the danger is you are now setting up your innocent followers for any unpleasant consequences after the election if its outcome turns out to be considered as flawed like it did in the past. And considering the desperation of your favourite politician, president Goodluck Jonathan, there are signs already that he will not mind using crude and crooked means to assert himself in power, including the use of killer snipers (Obasanjo has not been certified mad by a competent doctor to have made that allegation), and you may have conveniently forgotten that up till now he has not bothered to even visit to commiserate with your followers who lost lives and properties in the 2011 fiasco after you have goaded them to vote for him because he goes to church.

We have had church going leaders in the country like President Nnamdi Azikiwe, Gen. Aguiyi Ironsi, Gen. Yakubu Gowon, Gen. Obasanjo and President Obasanjo, but none of them ever made government policy announcements in church in honour of the secularity of the nation and in recognition of the sensitivity of religion in our polity, and in the same manner none of their Muslim counterparts ever made any government policy announcement in the Mosque. And I am very sure now that if any Muslim politician goes to any Mosque to campaign or make any similar announcement you will be the first to come out smoking hot against the person. Of course, evidences of your double standard and hypocrisy abound. Are we taking in vain the Golden Rule set by the Lord Jesus Christ that says "Do unto others what you want them to do unto you"?

You also seem to have kept quiet over the Boko Haram conundrum. Is your silence occasioned by the realisation that this Boko Haram nonsense has always been a "Boko Haram" contrivance set up to disorganise and depower a particular part of the country and to blackmail certain persons considered hostile to, or more popular than your favourite politician? Let me clearly warn you that the evil conspirators behind the magnification of this Boko Haram madness shall be duly exposed and punished by the LORD God Almighty with an "overflowing measure" of punishment before this year 2014 ends! The time has come when the Lord God Almighty will clear His Holy Name from the filth filthy politicians have rubbed on His Name!

Why are you also very quiet about the contrived lockdown in Rivers State? Are you also not courageous to tell the clear aggressor to stop the nonsense? Isn't Rivers State located in the "Christian South" which should have attracted your care and concern? Or is there any part of the "Christian South" that should be destroyed for the benefit of your favourite politician just as the north-east of Nigeria? Is your silence due to the allegation that quite a good number of you were heavily "dashed" some very huge sums of cash for the unwise endorsement of 2011? Can you see why the Bible in Proverbs chapter 15 verse 27 says "He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house; but he that hateth gifts shall live"? And if you have noticed a lot of Nigerians disenchanted with you over your clear romance with these rogues in power, it is because the Bible has said it in Proverbs chapter 29 verse 24 that "Whoso is partner with a thief hateth his own soul: he heareth cursing, and betrayeth it not."

Receiving cash or material gifts from rogue politicians or businessmen will muffle your voices from rebuking them, and, moreover they don't give such gifts for any good; it is so that they can buy your conscience and voices. Proverbs chapter 17 verse 23 says "A wicked man taketh a gift out of the bosom to pervert the ways of judgment." If your voices and consciences have not been bought by "the wicked", Nigerians need and desire to see you doing what Proverbs chapter 27 verse 5 says: "Open rebuke is better than secret love."

History and the coming generation will not forgive you if you fail to stand up to compel positive change in Nigeria, for they will read about how you slept and colluded with those destroying their nation. And most importantly, remember that you will be expected to give account of how you discharged the mandate of being "the light and salt of the world" before the Lord God Almighty! But at that time the LORD will not be seated on The Mercy Seat but The Judgment Seat!

Sharon Faliya Cham,
Abuja, Nigeria
February 2, 2014

Oba Ovoramwen reappears in an epic movie to be released soon

By Fidelia Salami

Oba Ovoranmwen died in 1914 in Calabar 100 years ago. His death coincides with the year of amalgamation of Nigeria by the British government, thus to clear misconception surrounding his reign and to also mark the centennial remembrance of the late monarch; a top film producer in Nigeria, Mr. Lancelot Imasuen, is set to release a movie titled, ‘Invasion 1897’.
http://www.bronzefm.com/category/news/entertainment-news/title/?article=35

The position of Iyoba of Uselu

In Uselu which is the official residence of Edaiken who is the eldest son of the reigning Oba and the heir apparent to the throne, there is Egua-Iyoba {Iyoba Palace}, where the reigning Oba’s mother officially residence. As is customary in Benin kingdom, reigning monarch normally confers the Iyoba title on his mother. When this title is confirmed by the oba, the Iyoba moves to her residence at lower Uselu where Eguae-lyoba is established.

Oba Esigie started this tradition probably to forestall the conflict that would have arisen between his mother and himself over the exercise of political power. An almost independent domain of the Queen mother was therefore carved out for her.

Thus it has become strongly -established in Benin tradition that a year or two after the coronation of every Oba, he invests his mother with the title, lyoba (Queen mother) and sends her to reside at lower Uselu in Eguae-lyoba (Palace of the Queen mother). If it happens that the mother dies before the coronation of the son, the body is preserved for a year or two after the coronation to enable the Oba confer the title lyoba on her and later bury her at Eguae-lyoba.

More often than not, the oba’s mother {or Queen mother} moves to her residence at uselu before the title is conferred and confirmed on her. In this are of uselu, there are various residence occupied at one time or the other by various Iyobas. What really happens is that each Oba builds a residence for his mother within the area of Uselu generally referred as Eguae-Iyoba.

To assist the Iyoba to officiate in her Eguae {or palace}, the Oba grants her a privilege of recommending to the oba people who she wishes to be conferred with specific titles peculiar to her palace. When approved these titles are then conferred on the incumbents. At the demise of an Oba’s mother {queen mother}, the Iyoba palace becomes her last resting place hence all over the area called Egua-Iyoba there are sepulchers which have been more or less converted to shrines in memory of the various Iyoba who have so far been buried at Uselu.....

Decision 2015: Memo To The President

By Dapo Thomas
My dear President, the release of the election time-table by INEC must have triggered a lot of pressure on you from well-meaning Nigerians like Mama Peace and co. to hastily declare your interest in the 2015 election so that work can begin in earnest. I support   the Pressure Group because the task ahead of you and your party is herculean and I doubt if this can be done in just one year. Therefore, there is no more time to waste on whether or not you should go for another term. I feel it is my responsibility as a citizen, and also as a friend, even though we have not met before, to offer you my personal advice in this crucial period of decision making.
Without any equivocation, I will tell you straight that you should go for the second term because it is your constitutional right to do so. And besides, you are more than qualified. Are you not a doctor? The fact that you are from a village in Bayelsa called Otuoke does not make you a village doctor. You are indeed a Ph.D holder; a real doctor who knows book and also knows how to read speeches flawlessly, fluently and perfectly.
Don’t mind those mischief makers in my neighbourhood who gossip about your pronunciation of some technical and difficult English words. They are just jealous of your achievements. They are not happy that of all the “shoeless boys” in the country, you were the only one favoured by Providence to become the President.  By the way, must we all speak English like the Oyinbo people? Wetin concern Ijaw man with grammatical niceties and lexical formalities? Idea is need. Abeg let’s proceed.
Mr. President, I am seriously encouraging you to contest because of your wife, Madam ‘Damned”, nay, Dame Patience Goodluck who had invested so much resources and energy into the 2nd term project despite her health condition. Do you want all her Abuja rallies and women parleys to be in vain? Why must you deny her the opportunity of completing her two terms when others before her enjoyed such luxury.
Sorry, that was a mistake. The two first Ladies before her, never completed their two terms. Fate, not Patience, prevented them from completing their terms. Stella Obasanjo died two years into her own second term (Oct. 2005) and Turai’s husband died prematurely in May, 2010. Now that your wife is called Mama Peace; she needs more years to settle the crisis she caused in Rivers State when she was “Mama Trouble”. How do you expect her to solve the problems of Rivers State in one year? The crisis in Rivers State, if you must know, is a very big project that cannot be abandoned. She wants to carry her load herself. Also, Mama Peace wants to take her peace message round the globe, especially to all the troubled spots of the world.
My President, remember that you have other women that you have to protect and save from shame and disgrace. You still have Stella Oduah, your Minister of Aviation, the one that her detractors want to pull down because she is very beautiful, attractive and very hardworking. Some useless boys in my neighbourhood are peddling rumour that she is “very close” to you. Sir, I don’t know what they mean but I am sure it is not what I am thinking. Because of space and time, I won’t want us to waste much time on the meaning of “very close”.
But it is because of this “very closeness” that you have to consider her so that the two of you can become “very closer”. Is it even their business to determine family ties? Why will people not mind their business? Is it not the responsibility of “Mama Peace” to determine who is “very close” to her husband? Useless boys of no fixed address (SSS please note).
As for Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, the Finance Minister, she does not need much protection. She is well connected internationally.
But you still need her to stay with you for 4 more years to resolve her waiver palaver with The Punch otherwise, she will just pack her baggage and go back to World Bank or is it “Wrong bank”; that bank where development means different things to different countries and different continents. She also has enemies and detractors that will mock her if you don’t run: the Abuja lawmakers who think she is too arrogant. Well, it is left for you Mr. President to determine whether it is not noble to seek 2nd term in order to save the face of an “arrogant woman”.
The last of the women in Jonathan’s life, as one disrespectful writer wrote recently, is Diezani Allison-Madueke, the oil chaperone whose diligence and efficiency have helped Nigeria in making a lot of money that we save in the Sovereign, or should we say, Suffering Wealth Fund (SWF). If people are saying there is stability in the oil sector and that Nigeria is a very rich country, I think the credit should go to this angelic woman. Through her honesty, transparency and accountability, Nigeria is what it is today, a wealthy gaunt. Though some envious and idle women in my neighbourhood are attributing her shining body and beauty to Nigeria’s oil money, when did petrol become anointing oil that the woman will now be using it to cream her body? They should know that her beauty is a gift of nature and not oil money. Those who are complaining of missing oil money are traditional trouble makers like Rotimi Amaechi and his Nigeria Gossip Forum (NGF).  And who in Nigeria is taking them serious? If a “holy Diezani” says our money is not missing, why should we say she is lying. Do beautiful women lie? The same envious jobless women in my neighbourhood are also saying: “there is something going on” between you and this respectable angelic woman, Sir, what else could be going on than “good rocking”, sorry, it was a slip of biro, good working relationship? She also will want you to go for 2nd term so that she can continue to enjoy this “good working relationship”.
I am tired of talking about Jonathan’s women as if our President is only protecting women. Before people start thinking I am being mischievious, let me show your detractors, that your second term is also in the interest of men who are “very close” to you., I can mention my good friends, Reuben Abati, Sanya Awosan, Bolaji Adigun now Bolaji Adebiyi and my big brother, Doyin Okupe. Some people (not in my neighbourhood this time around) are calling them all sorts of names “attack dogs”, “defence wolves”, “desperate hyenas”, “terrorist tigers” and “Jonathan’s pets”. With all these names that my friends are being called, I won’t be surprised if they were considered in the millions that you voted for the animals in your Zoo at Aso Rock? Don’t people have better names to call them? Why dogs, wolves, tigers, hyenas and pets.
These people sef.  I am intervening on behalf of my friends by asking you to run for second term. As Bamanga Tukur begged you in his last days in office, “please save my friends from disgrace and joblessness”, and if for nothing else, pity them for what people call them.
Mr. President, Rotimi Amaechi is enough reason for you to run again or you want to create the impression that you are running away from him. As far as I am concerned, that boy is too disrespectful, stubborn and disobedient. He needs to be dealt with. If you decline to run, he will now call another rally tagged “The Fall of Jonathan” where he and his militant supporters will now be dancing to celebrate your fall.
By now, you must have heard how ecstatic they were when Bamanga Tukur was presidentially eased out of office to Railway Line. It was because of Amaechi and his men that Tukur was running to Madam and you to save him from disgrace. Now that you have sacrificed Tukur, why do you need to sacrifice yourself again?
How do you want Nyesom Wike to feel if you do not run again? Wike has been very wicked to Amaechi and his supporters because of you. He has, with the support and assistance of the hypocritically efficient Joseph Mbu, fought Amaechi to a standstill in Rivers State. Certainly, Wike will become weak morally and psychologically while Mbu will be booed by Amaechi’s men once you announce that you will not run. Please, don’t disgrace your trusted aide and an efficient police officer that is causing insecurity in Rivers State with the zeal and the passion of a hired killer.
Sir, don’t forget to also consider your achievements in the PDP. You sent Bamanga Tukur packing; PDP now have other affiliates or subsidiaries namely APGA, Labour Party and DPP; PDP lost 5 State governors and 37 House of Reps members to the All Progressives Congress (APC) and is about to lose 17 or 19 PDP Senators to the same APC. Those who say you have destroyed the Party are not being sincere.
You are only trying to instill discipline in governors who talk to you as if you are their houseboy (apology to Jeremiah Useni). And if they don’t understand that, tell them PDP is only undergoing a destructive reconstruction with the objective of achieving unstable balancing. My President, why should you feel satisfied spending only 6 years in power when you can spend 10 years? People like Ghadaffi, Mobutu Sese Seko, Hosni Mubarak, Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali, Robert Mugabe and Bashar al-Assad were/are in power for more than three decades. Why should yours be different? Are you not an African leader like these people? Did Obasanjo not seek 3rd term? Don’t let them exploit your gentleness and quietness to deny you a legitimate claim to 2nd term. It does not matter whether you have something concrete to show for those years or not, at least, you have enjoyed yourself for 10 years as the President of the most populous Black African nation in the world.
For all these reasons and more, please run Mr. President. If possible, sprint like Usain Bolt towards 2015 with tactical retreat. It is your decision. It is your ambition. You should act and decide according to your volition.
As for those snippy boys and nosey women in my neighbourhood, don’t worry about them because I will soon stop hearing their nonsense talk. I assure you that I am leaving that contaminated neighbourhood very soon, probably before the next coming of Christ, before they infect me with their “gossip flu” and put me in trouble with our very friendly and civilized security agencies.
TheSun

Professor Emmanuel Emovon, CON

We must rethink our education policy

By HENRY OKONKWO

In 1971, he became a Professor of Chemistry and was subsequently appointed the Vice Chancellor of University of Jos in 1978. He spent seven years, which is a two-term of four years and three years.

His brilliance did not escape the notice of the military administration headed by the self-confessed evil genius, General Ibrahim Babangida who appointed him Minister of Science and Technology, an office he held  for about four and half years. Following a cabinet reshuffle, he was appointed as the coordinator and chief executive of Sheda Science and Technology Complex (SHESTCO)  in 1990; he held this position till his retirement in 1998 having attained the age of 60.
 A respected Benin chief, he holds the title of Obayagbona of Benin kingdom, which translates to ‘World is a gift to the Oba.’
Talking about gift, Emovon has been one great gift Nigeria, nay the black race, cannot forget in a hurry. His name resonates in the annals of who-is-who in science and technology. His strides in this field have proven him as a distinguished scientist, researcher and administrator. Professor Emovon has played a major role towards placing Nigeria in pole position in the comity of scientific and technological advanced countries. In particular,he played a pivotal role in the development of the National Policy on Science and Technology; the establishment of the National Science and Technology Fund; the restructuring and re-organization of research institutes in 1998; the pioneering of Science Village and the establishment of National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development.
He speaks on his life at 85, the lessons, travails and achievements.
Enjoy it:


As a younger scholar, what motivated you to study Chemistry?
My interest in science generally started in Edo College. Back then, I excelled more in the sciences. I was also good in the Arts, History and the rest. When I did the entrance examination to the UCI, I passed. The core subjects I chose were Chemistry, Physics and Botany. Those subjects were courses for the study of Medicine. I got admission to study Medicine, but I didn’t have the money to pay my way through school, until I won a scholarship from the Benin Native Authority, BNA.
But I couldn’t study medicine because the BNA wanted to train scientists at that time. So I made up my mind that rather than just stay at home and wait for the next year to write the exam, I should take the opportunity and enter for a science degree.
During my first year, I won the university scholarship. That took me through the course of my education. After my Intermediate B.Sc examination, which we used to write in those days, the professor of physics and chemistry wrote to me from London to come into their honours classes. I was in a dilemma which course to choose between physics and chemistry. Looking at the Nigeria situation at that time, physics was a little bit more limited than chemistry. So, I opted for chemistry.
What were some of the challenges you had to grapple with during your reign as vice-chancellor and minister?
Admission is the most critical thing in the university system. During my time, people had what they called catchment areas for university and the NUC tended to put the number of students that would be admitted into the university along with the financial allocation; so that the more students a university had the higher their allocation, hence universities started to admit to bloat up their numbers without caring if the amenities were available. That created a lot of problems because universities were admitting students without due regard to facilities available. It was one of the challenges I encountered and tried to correct. But it is still happening today because students completely outnumber facilities the schools have. The government tried to solve it by building more universities and issuing licence to private universities. However, building more universities would raise the question of skilled manpower to provide the necessary tutelage to the students.
The other one is when we tried to enforce the use of local materials in production. Even the cassava production we are making so much noise about now, we had used it in my time to make bread and other confectionaries. But we didn’t have enough funds to carry on the research further than what we did at that level before I left. But certainly we made bread and many confectionaries from cassava floor.
Then again, we tried to malt corn and guinea corn to be used in the brewing of beer. We insisted that since we could malt corn and guinea corn, we should stop the importation of barley malt. President Ibrahim Babangida agreed and we went into it. But at a time, because of too many vested interests, the brewery failed to back that project. And the project could not be sustained.
As an academic that have also served in government, what is your take on recurring wrangling between government and academic unions? Do you share the notion that ASUU was unreasonable in their demand or blame government for not keeping to its agreement?
It takes two to tango. The government had its own blame on the issue; the universities also have their own share of blame. When you reach an agreement with someone, you are expected to make your word your bond. Having regard for personalities on the government side; a man like Gamaliel Onosode was chairman of the committee. He is not a frivolous person, he is responsible enough. And I am sure that while negotiation was going on, he must have been briefing the government on the issue. And government signed that agreement without ever complaining or making a fuss. But when it came to implementation, government failed.
ASUU on the other hand were right to stand their ground because things were not getting better in the universities. We must admit facilities were deteriorating, hence the academic bodies decided that they must do something to force the hands of government. Strike is not usually the best but there is no other way labour can assert its rights.
Facilities in our schools have deteriorated greatly; yet we were establishing more and more universities. The rate of production of manpower for the university is not commensurate with the rate at which we are establishing universities. So, we don’t have enough staff and  facilities, including electricity and water. If you’re carrying out a research, particularly in the sciences, medical and engineering, those things are vital. If they are not available, it creates a lot of problems. Chemistry experiments require a lot of water and sometimes water is not available or sometimes you start your experiment and in the middle of it, suddenly power goes off. These were the things that force d the academic union into the strike.
As a former vice chancellor, we had gone through all these processes but we tried as much as possible to be reasonable in our reaction. Having made your point, at a certain level there should be a halt, but it depends on the reaction of the other party. So, if one side is determined not to honour an agreement it willingly entered into, then the other side would stick to its guns to down tools. It was a considered agreement, it wasn’t something that was sprung on either the government or the academic bodies.
What does the strike portend?
Government tells Nigerians and the world that education is a priority and that they would invest as much as they have. Take for instance, the UNESCO recommendation that about 25 per cent of the budget should go to education, and in particular, university education. Our government comes out and pledge it was determined to fund the universities or education generally. A few days after saying that, the budget is released, you notice that the allocation to the education sector falls short of what they promised. This makes you wonder how serious the government takes education. Rhetoric can catch many people and sweep them off their feet, but when it comes to implementation now the government falls short, thus disappointing the people.
What should universities do to cushion the six months lost to strike?
The scheduled programme of universities must have been disrupted by the strike. All they have to do is to settle down and see how they can recover from the strike. In fact, they must not try to rush through the semester by compressing lectures they are supposed to do in one year, into two days, otherwise, we would be producing half-baked graduates. If I was in their position, having lost six months, we would recover it by extending the semester, cutting down on the holidays. You can’t eat your cake and have it.
How would you rate science and technology in Nigeria?
I think we haven’t done too badly. We made success of many programmes in the scientific field. In some of our universities, the researches have been positive. And having been a member of the Academy of Science, I would say that we have done fair enough.
At a time, we were importing heavily; almost all we needed in this country were imported. So, when I was a minister, I charged my staff that all we should do was to ensure that all our productions contained a high proportion of local content, instead of  just throwing up our hands and depending on imported materials. And the research institutes rose to this challenge. That was why in my time, we set up Raw Material Research and Development Council. We also thought of the Nigeria Pharmaceutical Research and Development Agency; all were geared towards making our raw materials useful in our manufacturings.
In the wider field, let say engineering, we have also done very well. I gave a lecture in Boston about 20 years ago, and the topic was, ‘Nigeria’s achievement in Science and Technology: Are we really in the right direction?’ We were once at the same level with the Asian Tigers, but they have gone far ahead of us because of their heavy investment in science and technology. We are lagging behind because we didn’t do that. You find on our streets, the latest model of any car. Even before they appear on the roads in the country of production, we are already driving it in Nigeria. So, there seem to be a false impression about what we do as per manufacturing; the manufacturers association complain that they have not been given necessary encouragement to match the exploits of other countries.
What should we be doing to catch up with other countries like the Asian tigers?
It all depends on our system. Our system should be geared towards producing a lot of science graduates. Now, if you look at our education policy; we run the 6-3-3-4. I have always said that our universities are saddled with all sorts of graduates, some of whom have no business being in the university in the first place. This further complicates the already complicated problems in our tertiary institutions.
Now, you come to our secondary schools, they have the same problem of dearth of good teachers, lack of facilities and so on. However, to gain admission into an institution of higher education, I have always maintained the university should preserve what they have before in their degree programmes. But that the country should make provisions for students to attend a higher school after completion of their secondary school before going to the university. I mean that instead of the 3-3 we should have a 3-3-2. The two-year  post senior school certificate should be used for HSC (Higher School Certificate) or GCE Advanced Level; people should be admitted into the university from result of their HSC which should be written in the secondary school. In other words, JAMB should be phased out so that universities would not have to set up their post-JAMB examinations.
Have you directly made this recommendation to government?
No, but I have made it known in our private discussions and so on.
So you haven’t really made concrete move to put this in black and white for the authorities?
No, I haven’t. I would do it someday. I am trying to write my autobiography and there I would spell out my ideas to the government and to Nigerians.
With the system we have on ground, do we have the prospect of excelling in science and technology?
Oh, yes. We have the prospects but what is lacking is the ability to harness. Look at the performance of Nigerians in science and technology in other countries like America, Britain and so on; we certainly have a bright prospect. But we must be prepared to fund that sector of development, because if we don’t, of course, we would continue to see our scientists leave the country to other countries for greener pastures. We must be able to encourage them not only by providing the facilities, but we should be able to pay them well to spur them to want to do more for the country.
At 85 what has life taught you?
Life has taught me many lessons. I have learnt that human relationships is vital for one to have a clear idea of what one wants to do, because you cannot live as if you live in an island all by yourself.
I have learnt too, that one has to be honest in whatever one sets one’s hands on. Honestly, there is so much corruption in this country that a good deal of our efforts is being spent on trying to correct the ills of corruption. The monies cornered by corrupt individuals, if channelled towards any sector of development, can go a long way to change the face of this country.
Also, life has made me understand that it pays to have honesty, integrity and hard work as your watchword. These are things I have learnt and I wish we adopt. And our youths themselves should not follow the beaten track. Somebody was saying some years ago that may be our generation was a lost generation, but we were honest. But when I look at this new generation, I don’t just know what would become of them.
What virtue would you want the present generation to learn from Professor Emovon?
One, that mountains are not climbed looking at them, but you have to work hard. Those that have gone ahead have worked very hard to attain the heights that they have found themselves. So hard work is the first thing I would want them to adopt. Others are integrity and humility.
What would you want to be remembered for?
I want to be remembered for my hard work, and that I have set up institutions which are working to ensure that Nigeria excels in the global comity of science and technology.
How do you relax and spend your free time?
I go to the Oba’s palace. Once I am through with this interview, I would head straight to the palace. Years ago, Benin had instituted a certain legal system which ensures justice. That is because the Oba holds a court almost every morning listening to his citizens and he tries with the help of his chiefs sitting around him to ensure that justice is meted out to all.
I enjoyed sports as a young man. I played soccer, tennis and cricket. And I was so good that I was made captain of the university cricket team back then. In fact, I played cricket till my 70s, perhaps that is why I am still fit now (laughs).
But now I no longer indulge in rigorous sporting activities, but I still enjoy playing chess, snooker and being with my friends.
What is your greatest achievement in life? Do you feel fulfilled?
I would say that my achievement is that I participated in the training of manpower for my country as a university teacher. So, I feel fulfilled because in any gathering I go to, I meet my students. Even when I have forgotten their faces many of them would walk up to me and introduce themselves as my students. And I would say, ‘Wow! You are now a huge personality.’ So I feel fulfilled in that direction.
And I have participated as a member of the Federal Executive in shaping certain policies in the country. Also, I have trained my children and they are doing well in their different fields of endeavour. I have six children-three boys and three girls. I first had two girls, followed by two boys, another girl and then a boy.
All these add up to make me believe that I have lived a fulfilled life.
 

TheSun

APC: Message from island of Patmos

Blessed is the All Progressives Congress (APC) member who reads this piece, and keeps those things that are written in it; for the time is near.
Yes, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has released the timetable for the long-awaited (and dreaded) 2015 general elections.  On the day the world celebrates love next year, February 14, Saint Valentine’s Day, Nigerians will be filing out to declare their love for a new president, and members of the National Assembly.  And two weeks later, they will be on the march again to choose new governors, and lawmakers into the state assemblies.
Since we returned to democratic ways in 1999, this is perhaps going to be the most keenly contested, the most pulsating election in the country.  The rampaging Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which has won every election at the centre, and in majority of the states, now has to contend with a rainbow coalition, an amalgam of opposition parties that has formed a confederacy to wrest power in 2015.  I tell you, this may be our keenest election ever.
John the Divine, one of the apostles of Jesus Christ, was banished to the island called Patmos, “for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.”  From there, he received revelations that are still unravelling about 2,000 years later today.
Well, ‘Prophet’ Adesina was also in the spirit earlier this week, and he received messages for the All Progressives Congress (APC), which if they heed properly, they will have cause to smile after the elections next year.
Destabilisation, sabotage, subversion and treachery are legitimate weapons in politics.  The APC will have plenty of it from people already planted in the fold by the PDP.  The party has been fishing in all kinds of waters, landing big fishes, small fishes, all disgruntled members of the PDP, who have joined the ranks of the APC.  Because “there is no art to find the mind’s construction in the face,” agents of destabilisation are also already in the fold.  Their duty is simple: rock the party to its foundations, sow discord, and set the members in disarray.  How the APC copes with these fifth columnists will determine how far it goes in next year’s elections.
Again, wrangling by founders and joiners may be a mighty centrifugal force.  See the scenario in many states.  Attahiru Bafarawa was a key figure in the merger process from the Action Congress of Nigeria end.  He also had influence in All Nigeria Peoples Party and Democratic Peoples Party.  He was even a presidential aspirant in the 2011 elections on the platform of the ACN.  Now Gov Aliyu Magatakarda Wamako of Sokoto State, a sworn political enemy of Bafarawa, has joined the APC.  Like a wild horse, the latter kicked, saying over his dead body would his former deputy governor, whom he forced to resign, become the party leader of which he (Bafarawa) was a co-founder.  The matter had festered for months, and now, Bafarawa has gone into the PDP.
Here is the message from Patmos: let Bafarawa go.  He is now a lightweight, mere feather in the politics of Sokoto State.  If he remains bilious and grouchy against his former subordinate who upstaged him in the political game, then he has not much to bring to the table in APC.  Politics is about permanent interests, not about permanent friends or enemies.  If Bafarawa refuses to see the larger picture, and holds on to deep-seated animus and antipathy, then let him go.  An aching tooth is better out than in.
But even as Bafarawa left in Sokoto, I wouldn’t have canvassed the same in Kano. Whatever it would have taken, APC should have held Ibrahim Shekarau tight. The man is a positive influence, added value to any political party.  Shekarau is one of the brains behind the formation of APC, just like Mohammed Buba Marwa from the Adamawa end.
True, there’s been no love lost between Shekarau and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso in Kano.  The former had upstaged the latter from the governor’s seat in 2003, and spent two terms in office.  But in 2011, like a typhoon, Kwankwaso swept back into office.  Since then, Kano has been polarized politically into pro-Shekarau and pro-Kwankwaso camps.  But you need the influence (and possibly the funding) that incumbent governors can bring to bear on the process.  So, APC embraced Kwankwaso with open arms when he defected.  But what do you do with Shekarau in terms of who leads the party in Kano?  Dilemma.  Quandary.  Puzzle. There should have been rapprochement between Shekarau and Kwankwaso, despite the long years of political bitterness.  The leadership of APC should have facilitated it.  Kano is a big political pool, and wrong splashes cannot be afforded from that direction.  Now Shekarau has gone into PDP. Tufiakwa!  It should never have happened.  I have the sneaky feeling that the former Kano State governor, a man I respect so much, has made a mistake, and an egregious one at that. Shekarau is too much principled to join a party he had always excoriated for its bad practices.  What Bafarawa lacks in political influence, Shekarau sure has aplenty. APC should have held tight to him.
What of Marwa in Adamawa?  Same scenario.  The urbane former Borno and Lagos State military governor brought verve and panache into public service.  If Nigeria was not such a self-destructive country, a land that consumes its best people, people like Marwa should be giving quality leadership at the centre now.  Should APC then let him go?  Remember that song by King Yellowman, the reggae artist:  “If you should lose me, oh yea, you lose a good thing…” APC should not lose Marwa.  Whatever it takes to reconcile him and Gov Murtala Nyako, the party should do. And this is straight from Patmos.
The same with Dele Belgore and Bukola Saraki in Kwara State!  Belgore ran for governor in 2011, but Saraki succeeded in installing his own protégé in Abdulfatah Ahmed.  Belgore had been in the vanguard of opposition as symbolized then by the ACN, which became a major part of APC, and then suddenly, Saraki and his people joined APC.  About 20 lawmakers in the Kwara State House of Assembly have also defected from the PDP to APC.  Who then leads the party, the founders or joiners?  The joiners have plenty to bring to the table in terms of influence and resources.  So who does the party hand the baton of leadership to?  Another puzzle.  Dilemma.  But the party leadership must resolve it amicably, making concessions here and there.
In Bayelsa State, the same scenario exists between the old members, and supporters of former governor, Timipre Sylva.  In Ondo State, Ogun State, and many others, the party is equally being rocked by leadership tussles.  What the APC leadership at the national level does with these pockets of discontent will go a long way in determining its fortunes (or misfortune) at the polls next year.
Another message from the island:  APC, watch the processes by which your candidates emerge.  Your adversaries are waiting for that time, and they are already predicting that it is the time the alliance would crumble and scatter.  Can you afford to have a carryover of the tendency in ACN, in which candidates are handpicked by the powers that be?  Never!  Or the disorder in the old Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), in which you never knew who the candidate was, even on voting day?  Never again!  Who will be the presidential candidate of APC?  Muhammadu Buhari?  He has not thrown his hat into the ring yet.  Nuhu Ribadu?  Marwa?  Kwankwaso? Rochas Okorocha?  Or even the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, who still has one leg in PDP?  Whoever it is must emerge through a free and fair process, transparent for all to see.  The same with gubernatorial candidates, National Assembly, state assemblies, indeed, at every level.  APC must be a true analgesic to all the headaches and body pains of the past, caused by undemocratic tendencies in the previous parties.
Continue to fish in all waters.  I know the APC has come under severe criticism for this.  The new chairman of PDP, Adamu Muazu, says they are poachers.  But I ask: if you don’t fish in PDP waters, poach in PDP game park, where then do you do it? Mars?  Wresting power from an incumbent is never a picnic, nor tea party.  The APC needs all the hands it can get, despite the strident criticisms.  There are talks about lack of ideology, but let somebody show me that single party that has held stubbornly to clear-cut ideology in Nigeria, and ever got into power. Such parties only produced “the best president we never had.” And for how long should that happen?  A child gets circumcised with pains and peppery sensations.  So is the power game too.  Let the APC continue to poach, but only be careful to sift the grain for the chaff.  In the process of ingathering, moles and saboteurs will be brought in.  The onus is on the party to be able to separate the wheat from the tares later.
Sell your programs to Nigerians.  Yes, a lot of people are tired of the PDP, they believe the party could have served the country better in the 15 years it has held power at the centre, but they are also in the valley of decision.  A good number are sceptical, even cynical.  They say all parties, all politicians are the same, and then conclude that the devil you know is better than the one you don’t know.  So, APC, sell yourself, and your programs to Nigerians.  Time for campaigns will come, be ready.  Showcase things your governors have done, and tell us what you will do better at the centre.  Nigerians are yearning for change, but they also want to look before they leap.  They don’t want change for change sake, they want the change that will give them a better country, where the resources available are utilized to make life better for the vast majority.
And then this!  APC, don’t think the PDP is dead.  I wrote on this last week.  When a snake is scorched, and not killed, it becomes more venomous.   That is the state of the PDP.  The party has been weakened by the crises of the past year, but it still has ample time to rally back, with a new leadership.  Don’t think PDP is dead.  It is not.  To underrate the party is to be in for a big surprise.  In the states, at the federal level, it will take a big fight to dislodge the PDP.  Be ready for it.
On Saint Valentine’s Day next year, it will be a battle of love. An old suitor and a new one will seek our hands in marriage.  Who do we go with?  Of course, the one that courts us best, making us lofty promises, and singing sweet songs into our ears, even if those songs are really sweet nothings. But one thing is sure: we will not allow anybody to marry us on credit again.

TheSun

Aso Rock not the end

It seemed strange that the lawlessness, which all along ravaged Rivers State, suddenly gave way to rule of law as provided not only in the Nigerian constitution but also in monumental judicial pronouncements.
The police eventually allowed a public rally where citizens aired their views on the prevailing political situation in the state, contrary to the police sacking of a similar gathering in the same Rivers State, a week earlier.
The adherence to the rule of law came less than a week after a major political party,  the All Progressives Congress, (APC), directed its members in the National Assembly, to perform their duties as provided for in Nigerian constitution by checking the excesses of the Presidency, which had been violating the autonomy of states clearly preserved under the constitution.  The Judiciary and National Assembly are so empowered under the constitution. For the Judiciary to perform that function, it must be approached by the offended party while the National Assembly can act all alone depending on the voting strength interested parties acting as a group can muster. That is the practice in any democracy all over the world.
Completely unserious if not ignorant groups made vain attempts to befog the issue with baseless allegations and threats of unleashing security apparatus. Only the future and history will adequately appreciate those who, at least for now, are patriotic enough to stabilise the rising political tension in the country. It can only be hoped that the return to rule of law in Rivers State is permanent. Meanwhile, was it without reason that a major political party had to alert the National Assembly to check the Presidency from sustained and seeming unrepentant violation of the constitution?
The facts need to be summarised to appreciate the magnitude of violation of Nigerian constitution. For over a year, a Commissioner of Police has not only been confronting but also defying the Governor of Rivers State, Chibuike Amaechi (henceforth the state governor) duly mandated by the people of that state to conduct their affairs for the stipulated tenure. If the state governor deviated from the mandate, Nigerian constitution provides relief for the electorate to call him to order, even if it means impeaching him but strictly, not on instigation from outside political interests especially for purposes of vendetta. What is more, it is not the business of a Commissioner of Police and not within the power of the same officer to obstruct a state governor from performing his duties or his movements within his official residence or the state.
Among those who have been subjected to this intermittent humiliation by the Commissioner of Police, along with the state governor are visiting fellow state governors, former speakers of state houses of assembly, serving speakers and the governor’s local and visiting political associates. Reports of these ugly incidents are regularly carried in local and foreign media. Stripped of all sentiments, there is only one word for this breach of constitution –subversion. A Commissioner of Police is under the direct supervision of the Inspector General of Police (IGP), to whom the state governor had severally reported his officer.  Better still, is the Inspector-General of Police unaware of the regular media reports of the unpleasant events in Rivers State?
Owing to the fast deteriorating situation in Rivers State including instigated violence in the state House of Assembly to make sittings impossible, the House of Representatives had to assume constitutional responsibility. Still, the situation did not improve. What reports were the Inspector-General getting from the Commissioner of Police in Rivers State? That is really begging the issue. The Inspector-General of Police directly reports to the Presidency, that is President Goodluck Jonathan. Is Jonathan not aware of the violation of the constitution in Rivers State? If Jonathan is unaware, that will be bizarre. But if Jonathan is aware of that breach of constitution in Rivers State, what has he done about it? When successive service chiefs could not conquer Boko Haram insurgents, Jonathan fired them, one set after another. What therefore, is peculiar about the ongoing subversion in Rivers State not to attract the concern of the Presidency?
This was the apparent background to the step of the All Progressives Congress in alerting the National Assembly to check the deliberate or unconscious indifference of the Presidency. By the time the National Assembly stall executive bills, including finance bills, the message will be sent that Nigeria cannot finance subversion in whatever guise. If the National Assembly fails to act and allows the Police or even the Presidency to have their way in Rivers State, the remaining 35 states will be similarly vulnerable to be politically slaughtered.
There should be no pretence about the root of the tensed political situation in Rivers State. Governor Amaechi is known not to support President Jonathan’s second term bid. Is that a crime for any state governor even if a PDP member? Under the Nigerian constitution, every citizen is free to hold and express political views different from another’s. Even if the PDP constitution compels a member to support the re-election of a sitting President, (there is no proof of this), it is always the argument of Jonathan’s supporters that whatever prior agreement to which he might have committed himself to any group or person, such commitment, according to Jonathan’s supporters, is rendered null and void by the supremacy of Nigerian constitution, ala various rights. If therefore, Jonathan enjoys the supremacy of Nigerian constitution, all other members of the PDP are equally entitled to the same rights. The beginning of Nigerian constitution is the end of any other agreement, documented or not.
Governor Amaechi may not be believed in his denial of any interest in 2015 presidential elections. But then, who is that Nigerian politician to be believed? Goodluck Jonathan? Northern Governors accused him of reneging on a 2011 agreement not to contest in 2015. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo only recently also confirmed Jonathan’s commitment not to contest in 2015. Jonathan not only denied any such agreement, but conveniently demanded written proof. Yet, these same governors and Obasanjo were the chief backers of Jonathan in 2011. That such strong backers later conspired to concoct a non-existing commitment against Jonathan? This does not mean Obasanjo is better than Jonathan. A major dent on Obasabjo’s recent otherwise timely letter to Jonathan was that he (Obasanjo) must acquire the necessary credibility for such an exercise considering his futile attempt to mutilate an amended constitution in 2005 to enable him stay in office for a third term. Obasanjo was to later deny telling anybody of a third term bid, the very denial, in exact words, Jonathan echoes today. Yet, Jonathan is expected to declare himself soon. Or what is the Rivers State war about?
As noted earlier, President Jonathan might pretend not to know about police violation of Nigerian constitution in Rivers State. Today, Jonathan, after the alert of National Assembly by the APC, can no longer claim to be unaware. By the time National Assembly informs President Jonathan for necessary action, the man has no option except to stabilise the subversion in that state. If still, Jonathan allows the Rivers State issue to prolong, he would be rendering himself liable to necessary sanctions by the National Assembly under relevant sections of the constitution for being unwilling or unable to perform his duties, especially in violation of the Oath of Office to which he swore. Among others, President Jonathan swore that “…I will not allow my personal interest to influence my official conduct or my official decisions; that I will, to the best of my ability preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; that in all circumstances, I will do right to all manner of people without fear or favour, affection or ill-will…”
How are personal political interests involved in the Rivers State issue? Section 143 (11) also clarifies possible impeachable offence of gross misconduct to mean “…a grave violation or breach of the provisions of this constitution or a misconduct of such nature as amounts, in the opinion of the National Assembly, to gross misconduct.” What are the chances with a hostile National Assembly such as is building up?
President Jonathan should, in fact, be grateful to the APC for an unsolicited gift in alerting the National Assembly on the grave situation in Rivers State, which should not be underestimated or disregarded. Consultations or persuation might have been an alternative, and if none worked, so be it. As Shakespeare writes,  “The fewer men, the greater  share of honour.” Noticeably, almost all the remaining PDP governors are keeping quiet in the full if embarrassing knowledge that Rivers State is not it. In short, none of them would like a similar experience.
The risk is not worth it. By all means, Jonathan can proceed to contest the 2015 presidential elections. The worst that can happen is that he may not win Rivers State, which is only one. In contrast, Obasanjo lost the entire six states in the South-West in1999, yet, he became the elected President. Due consideration should be given to life after Aso Rock. Admittedly, 2015 is not 1999 or 2011. The more reason Jonathan should reflect on his past since his days as deputy governor of Bayelsa State. Fate, rather than agitation, was the sole determinant all through to the seat of power at Aso Rock. That is how it should be in the affairs of men.
At the end of the day, the choice is Goodluck Jonathan’s.
•Postscript: This headline is the personal philosophy of the masses as displayed on Izuchukwu minibuses plying Lagos-Benin -eastern highways.
If Bamanga Tukur forgets

Eventually, erstwhile National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bamanga Tukur, had to step down despite all the assurances to the contrary, leading him to deny any intention to quit. Only Bamanga Tukur could not have seen it coming from the very day he was installed in office. He never belonged to that gang and he was so warned in this column from the first day. Acknowledging him as a nice man and a business expert, he was warned on this page that politicians would use him, destroy him and dump him. Why Bamanga Tukur continued to believe any of them especially in the last one month in office, would not be clear. Regretfully, the media were particularly used to portraying him in bad light, especially that he vowed that even President Jonathan could not sack him. Tukur had occupied public positions for decades and would realise that the boss, in that situation is always the boss even if the rules are to be bent. It would be a surprise if he indeed spoke in that tone.When the moment called for it, Tukur was used by some state governors to provoke some of their colleagues out of the party, so that the schemers could consolidate themselves around the seat of power. Even when the law courts nullified the expulsion of some key national officers, one of whom was the national secretary of the party and former governor of Osun State, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, those schemer governors pushed the party under Bamanga Tukur’s chairmanship to resist Oyinlola’s resumption of office. The pretext was that the party appealed against the court judgment. Tukur was thus portrayed as the only stumbling block to the return of peace to the party. After the bitter experience, it is most unlikely that Bamanga Tukur will ever mix with political vampires again.
 

TheSun