The blame game over toxic petrol import continues By MUYIWA LUCAS

The controversy rages on over the importation of toxic petrol. In what has suddenly turned into blame game, a revelation of past atrocities committed by the supplier, Litasco, exposes the level of due diligence that the sole importer of petrol conducts on its suppliers and vendors. As authorities and stakeholders are trying to get to the root of this crisis, it has been a blame trading episode across board. But what really are the issues? MUYIWA LUCAS asks. ONE week after, the country has continued to groan from the effects of the “Off Spec” premium motor spirit (PMS) or petrol that found its way into the market. However, the controversy has continued to trail the entire saga, with accusations and counter accusations enveloping the air. The more the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited tries to exonerate itself from the scandal, the more it keeps sinking deeper. For instance, it took an advertorial in national newspapers by MRS, a major oil marketer, before the NNPC could offer any tangible explanation, and in the process, exposing other culprits involved. For instance, the “Off Spec” fuel was shipped into the country from Antwerp, Belgium, by Litasco, a Geneva, Switzerland-based oil firm. A quick check on Litasco’s website paints an impressive image of this Geneva-based firm with over 450 workforce. Litasco, a firm founded in 2000 in Switzerland, is the exclusive international marketing and trading company of Lukoil Oil Company, a Russian firm. Litasco describes itself as one of the world’s major traders of crude oil and refined petroleum products. However, beyond these glorifying eulogies of this Swiss commodities trader, a deeper check unearths the “dirty” side of the firm. The company may not be new to sending substandard petroleum products to West Africa, if a report of the Dutch entitled: “Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate” (ILT) is anything to go by. This is because a 2016 report indicted Litasco as one of the European companies that “deliberately and systematically” use toxic blend stocks in mixing fuels. ILT, according to a report dated July 10, 2018, presented a report to parliament about the composition and hazardousness of fuels exported to West Africa from Amsterdam and Rotterdam. The investigation highlighted the decisive role played by commodities trading firms that maximise profits by taking advantage of lax West African fuel standards. In contrast to Holland, neither the Swiss firms named in the report – Vitol, Gunvor and Litasco –  nor the Swiss authorities recognise their responsibility for this scandal that harms the health of millions of people. Stakeholders said if this report is anything to go by, then it raised further questions on the extent of due diligence done by business owners or even the NNPC in their choice of partners for engagements. The report, entitled: Dirty Diesel: Dutch Environment Inspectors Confirm Dodgy Business of Swiss Commodities Traders, was published on July 10, 2018. In September 2016, Public Eye’s Dirty Diesel investigation uncovered the business model of sending low-quality and harmful fuels to Africa. The Dutch government was forced to promise the legislature a report in which the environment inspectors confirmed the role played by Swiss commodities trading firms: Vitol, Gunvor, Litasco as well as other companies, deliberately and systematically use toxic “blend stocks” in the mixing of fuels. Starting in 2017, ILT researched the loading of 44 tankers destined for West Africa. It found diesel with 300 times more sulfur and twice as many cancer-causing hydrocarbons as are allowed in Europe. Gasoline contained elements high in sulfur as well as cancer-causing substances like manganese, in concentrations up to 30 times over the European limit. The report concluded that the concerned companies either ignored or were unaware of the European regulation for chemical substances (REACH) and the Dutch law. The environment inspector also investigated fuel oil for sea-going vessels and found products from two commodities trading firms that are categorised as illegal waste. These results show that West African countries like Nigeria, where the implementation of stricter gasoline standards has been blocked for months, must urgently enact the standards, to protect their people from such toxic cocktails. The United Nations Environment Director Erik Solheim, in his response to the report, called out the corporations profiting from this political indecisiveness: “Substandard products should not be sold even if they meet national standards,” he said. With this investigation, the Netherlands has taken responsibility as a location for the production and export of hazardous fuels. A further investigation is in progress to determine if “Dirty Diesel” companies are violating the OECD guidelines for multinational corporations. Meanwhile, in Switzerland, where the concerned corporations have their headquarters, there has so far been no political response to the scandal, not to mention an investigation. This inaction by the authorities on a flagrant violation of the right to health of people in Africa is another example why the Swiss Responsible Business Initiative is necessary. The spirited efforts of the NNPC to absolve itself of complacency in the importation saga also seems not to be holding waters given that some firms fingered by the company in the deal have come out with proof to absolve themselves of any involvement in the importation of the 50, 000 metric tons or 100 million litres of petrol. NNPC, for some years, has being the sole importer of PMS. This, the company, does by awarding contracts to its vendors for the shipment of the commodity. The vendors in turn, depending on their partnership with several oil merchants, subcontracts them for shipment of the commodity into the country.But for those with a discerning and critical mind, the question is: at what point was there a slip in the supply chain for this product to get into the market? This is because a look at the importation process of fuel shows that for every country, there are specifications for their PMS requirements. Usually, before a fuel laden vessel leaves its port of embarkation, tests are carried out on the contents to be sure it meets the correct specification. Further tests are carried out on the high sea on the content and upon the arrival of the consignment in Atlas Cove jetty- which is off the coast of Lagos, the Nigerian Midstream Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) moves in to the vessel to test the conformity of the product with the Nigerian standard before it is released into the market. The highest methanol level for Nigeria is just about two per cent. The controversial fuel has a 20 per cent methanol level. Once the product meets the required standard, it is then sent to the depots for onward discharge to marketers through the various means of transportation available, including through the pipelines. But the question on stakeholders’ mind is: At what point could the product have been contaminated? For some, what happened might not have been contamination of the product in the real sense of it. This is because the vendor contracted to import the fuel already knows the standard requirement of the country. Therefore, bringing in something contrary from means it is an “off Spec”. Yet, others believe that there could have been a compromise in the supply chain. Reason: Inspectors from the NMDPRA are expected to check the quality of the fuel upon landing at Atlas Cove before it is released into the various markets. Insiders in the oil sector posit the following as specifications for standard petrol for the market: The erstwhile DPR (now NMDPRA) and SON specifications state that petrol must be clear and bright; whereas the appearance of the controversial petrol was clearly hazy; SON/NMDPRA specifications states clearly that petrol range must be between 0.7200and 0.7800g/ml; whereas the imported product has a density of 0.7865g/ml; SON/NMDPRA specification for petrol’s Full Boiling point (FBP) is 210 degC; whereas that of the controversial fuel 211 degC; The imported petrol’s solvent washed Gum content is 6.5mg/100ml; whereas SON specifies parameters of 4.0mg/100ml; The controversial petrol oxidation stability is 329 minutes, compared to the SON/NMDPRA specification of minimum 360 minutes levels. Another question is: Why did the NNPC appoint few petroleum products marketing companies (some of them portfolio companies) to import petrol leaving out other more competent marketing firms? Also, why did the NNPC cancel the PMS import intervention scheme that involved the NNPC, CBN, prequalified petroleum marketers and independent auditors, which a former NNPC GMD put in place? This process was adjudged to have been very transparent. Going by the sample of the fuel as seen in a viral video, it is evident that the fuel could not have met the parameters for the market. A reliable source in the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) said since the organisation has been chased out of the ports, all sorts of substandard products enter into the country. And until an investigation is done, there will remain more questions than answers. Providing a graphic chronicle of the unfortunate incident, the NNPC CEO, Mallam Mele Kyari, said on January 20, 2022, that the company received a report from its quality inspector on the presence of emulsion particles in PMS cargoes shipped to Nigeria from Antwerp-Belgium. He explained that NNPC investigation revealed the presence of methanol in four PMS cargoes imported by the following Direct-Sale-Direct-Purchase (DSDP) suppliers as listed in the table below. He noted that cargoes quality certificates issued at loadport (Antwerp-Belgium) by AmSpec Belgium indicated that the gasoline complied with Nigerian Specification. “The NNPC quality inspectors, including GMO, SGS, GeoChem and G&G conducted tests before discharge also showed that the gasoline met Nigerian specification,’’ he said. Kyari noted that as a standard practice for PMS import to Nigeria, the said cargoes were certified by inspectors appointed by the NMDRA. “It is important to note that the usual quality inspection protocol employed in the load port in Belgium and our discharge ports in Nigeria do not include the test for per cent methanol content and, therefore, the additive was not detected by our quality inspectors,’’ he stated. However, to prevent the distribution of the petrol, the NNPC CEO said the company promptly ordered the quarantine of un-evacuated volumes and the holding back of the affected products in transit (truck & marine).

Toxic fuel: More questions than answers By Muyiwa Lucas

By last Thursday, the silence that enveloped the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, over the importation of “Off Spec” petrol into the country, had given way. The spirited effort of the NNPC to absolve itself of complicity in the importation saga also seemed not to be holding water given that some of the firms fingered by the company have come out to absolve themselves of any involvement in the importation of the 50,000 metric tons or 100 million liters of petrol. NNPC, for some years now, has been the sole importer of PMS into the country. This the company does by awarding contracts to its vendors for shipment of the commodity. The vendors in turn depending on their partnership with several oil merchants, contract them for shipment of the commodity into the country. But for those with a discerning and critical mind the question is at what point was there a slip in the supply chain for this product to get into the Nigerian market? This is because a look at the importation process of fuel shows that for every country, there are specifications for their PMS requirements. Usually, before a fuel-laden vessel leaves its port of embarkation, tests are carried out on the contents to be sure it meets the correct specification. Further tests are carried out on the high sea on the content and upon the arrival of the consignment in Atlas Cove jetty- which is off the coast of Lagos, the Nigerian Midstream Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), moves in to the vessel to test the conformity of the product with the Nigerian standard before it is released into the market. The highest methanol level for Nigeria is just about two percent. The controversial fuel has a 20 percent methanol level. Once the product meets the required standard, it is then sent to the depots for onward discharge to marketers through the various means of transportation available, including through the pipelines. But the question on stakeholders mind is at what point could the product have been contaminated? For some, what happened may not be contamination of the product in the real sense. This is because the vendor contracted to import the fuel already knows the standard requirement of the country. Therefore, bringing in something contrary from the requirement means it is “Off Spec”. Yet, others believe that there could have been compromise in the supply chain. Reason? Inspectors from the NMDPRA are expected to check the quality of the fuel upon landing in Atlas Cove before it is released into the various market. Insiders in the oil sector list the following as specifications for standard petrol for the Nigerian market: The erstwhile DPR now NMDPRA and Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON) specifications state that petrol must be clear and bright; whereas the appearance of the controversial petrol was clearly hazy. SON/NMDPRA specifications state that petrol range must be between 0.7200-0.7800g/ml; whereas the imported product has a density of 0.7865g/ml. SON/NMDPRA specifications for petrol’s Full Boiling Point (FBP) is210 degC; whereas that of the controversial fuel is 211 degC. The imported petrol’s solvent washed gum content is 6.5mg/100ml; whereas SON specifies parameters of 4.0mg/100ml. The controversial petrol oxidation stability is 329 minutes, compared to the SON/NMDPRA specification of minimum 360 minutes levels. Another food for thought is why NNPC had to appoint few petroleum products marketing companies (some of them portfolio companies) to import petrol leaving out other more competent marketing firms? Also, why did NNPC cancel the PMS import intervention scheme process that involved NNPC, CBN, prequalified petroleum marketers and independent auditors, which former NNPC GMD, Dr. KachikwuIbe, put in place? This process was adjudged to have been very transparent. Going by the sample of the fuel as seen in a viral video, it is evident that the fuel could not have met all the parameters for the Nigerian market. A reliable source in SON said since the organisation has been chased out of the ports, all sorts of substandard products now enter into the country. Until an open investigation is done, there will remain more questions than answers.

Russian warship chases off US submarine near Pacific islands -Moscow Agency Report

A Russian anti-submarine destroyer chased off a US submarine near the Kuril Islands, forcing it to leave the country’s territorial waters, Moscow said on Saturday, amid rising tensions over Ukraine. The US military however denied the account. Russia’s defence ministry said that during planned military drills the Marshal Shaposhnikov destroyer had detected a US Navy Virginia-class submarine in Russian territorial waters near the Kuril Islands in the northern Pacific. When the submarine ignored demands to surface, the crew of the frigate “used appropriate means” and the US submarine left at full speed, the ministry said, without providing further details. The ministry said it had summoned the US defence attache in Moscow over the incident. “In connection with the violation by the US Navy submarine of the state border of the Russian Federation, the defence attache at the US embassy in Moscow was summoned to the Russian defence ministry”, the defence ministry said. The statement from the US military, however, said: “There is no truth to the Russian claims of our operations in their territorial waters.” Captain Kyle Raines, spokesman for the US Indo-Pacific Command, said he would not comment on the precise locations of US submarines. Read Also But he added: “We do fly, sail, and operate safely in international waters.” The Kurils, which lie north of Japan’s Hokkaido island, have been controlled by Moscow since they were seized by Soviet troops in the waning days of World War II. The alleged incident took place near the Kuril island of Urup, which is controlled by Russia. It comes amid rising tensions between Russia and the West that have seen Moscow surround Ukraine on three sides with more than 100,000 troops. Washington has warned that an all-out invasion could begin “any day”. Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Saturday condemned such claims as a “provocation”. AFP

PVC does not expire, says INEC By Steve Oko

INEC, 2023 presidential election …Takes voter registration campaign to Gregory varsity The Independent National Electoral Commission INEC, has explained that contrary to misconceptions in some quarters, the Permanent Voter’s Card, PVC, does not expire. Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, in charge of Abia State, Dr. Joseph Iloh, who made the clarification while sensitising students at the 10th Matriculation ceremony of the Gregory University Uturu, said “PVC is as valid as the voter is alive”. He urged students of the university who were eligible for voting to arm themselves with PVC ahead of the 2023 general polls. INEC also advocated active participation of the university community in the electoral process since the electoral umpire usually recruits its ad-hoc staff from the university environment. Earlier in his address, the Vice Chancellor, Professor Augustine Uwakwe, tasked the 484 matriculants to focus on academic excellence and shun all forms of distractions associated with campus life. The VC who said the university had zero tolerance for cultism, drug abuse and internet fraud, charged the students to eschew all forms of vices as anyone caught indulging in such abnormality will be decisively dealt with. READ ALSO: INEC Appointment: CSO replies Prof Gumus’ legal team, we’re ready to meet in court The VC who said the university was poised to break global records in many fields urged the students to take advantage of the entrepreneurial Centre in the Institution to acquire vocational skills for self reliance in addition to their certificate. He said that the Institution had world-class facilities including library and laboratories with modern facilities comparable with those in any standard university in the world. In a remark, Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu, described Gregory university as the fasted-growing university in the South East region, saying he is proud that the founder is an Abian who had shown capacity in many fields. Ikpeazu who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Professor Anthony Agbazuere, urged the students to select their goal in life and pursue same with undivided single mindedness. The governor who commended the university management for its special attention to entrepreneurial studies urged the staff to complement the efforts of the Chancellor by putting in their best despite the challenges of working in the private sector. VANGUARD NEWS NIGERIA

Nigeria desires pragmatic legislative oversight By Tonnie Iredia

Whereas Nigerians are agreed that their nation is in dire need of several projects to arrive at some considerable level of development, there are by far too many views and counter views as well as actions blocking the way forward. For now, almost every topic has an opposite perspective that can confuse leadership. This includes even serious security issues bordering on terrorism and banditry. A few days ago, former Imo Governor, Rochas Okorocha argued that although he has never supported the activities of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) he did not agree with the appellation of terrorists given to them. Instead, he says “I see them as children who have not been properly educated on the happenings” they are reacting to. On his part, Islamic scholar, Ahmad Gumi had insisted that banditry was essentially a business because the “big weapons bandits were using could not have crossed the borders into the country if money was not exchanging hands.” Unfortunately, arguments such as these which appeal to the emotions and sentiments of some people cannot help the nation. A more substantive issue different from the allegation of money changing hands, is the other point made by Gumi that our military troops were colluding with the bandits. Perhaps because the military refuted the claim little was done about it. In other climes, the media would have on the basis of their mandate of holding those in authority accountable to the people followed up the subject. But in Nigeria, that is almost impossible because our media professionals are greatly hindered by several handicaps among them official policies, ownership control and poor media financing. How can the media hold government accountable in Nigeria when her leaders are enacting laws which in all respects have the same provisions as those of the obsolete law of sedition which imperialist agents used against activists during the colonial era? These days, every media report that is not exactly favourable to government is classified as hate speech capable of destabilizing the country or state as the case may be. Before the reporter can defend himself especially in states such as Ebonyi, he has already been traumatized by law enforcement agencies who are relying on some local laws on fake news. Thus, with government leaders using their offices to stop the media from holding those in authority accountable to the people, what other options are available to the nation? Why for example couldn’t the relevant committees of the legislature take up the allegations raised by Gumi and indeed any other allegation? We are encouraged to raise this poser following the report a few days back that the House of Representatives had resolved to investigate the on-going recruitment exercises into the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) and other agencies under the Ministry of Labour and Productivity. The House allegedly found that only people from a particular part of the country were being recruited in breach of the federal character principle. The resolution of the House includes an appropriate sanction for anyone found culpable of undue favouritism in the exercise. The probe is to last four weeks. Any well-meaning Nigerian ought to commend the decision of the House of Representatives. However, how come it is only the Ministry of Labour and its agencies that are so selected for investigation? Is anyone suggesting that the House is unaware that the allegation which is the sing-song in today’s public service affects virtually all Ministries, Parastatals and Agencies (MDA)? When will the exercise be extended to such other bodies? Our point must not be misunderstood; we depart entirely from critics who oppose the checking of wrong doing at one location simply because all other culprits are spared the agony. We call on all committees to investigate MDAs in their spheres of oversight with respect to the same exercise which is to hold at the Ministry of labour shortly. We recommend that the terms of reference of the committees should include the identification of powerful citizens in government behind the trend of favouritism in personnel recruitment in Nigeria. I will be shocked if many legislators will not be indicted. It is our hope that the investigations would not take the pattern of previous exercises that were fitful and whose results were never made public. It will be recalled that in November last year, the Senate had raised an alarm that some officials of the federal civil service had engaged in secret recruitment while wrongly claiming that there was an official embargo on employment. Having discovered that some Nigerians who graduated some 15 years ago were yet to be employed we had thought the Senate would follow the subject through and reduce the tension of unemployment in the land. Painfully, we are yet to see any positive development. We hope the alarm raised by the Senate was not just a ploy to get spaces for their relations in some agencies and that this investigation into the Ministry of Labour and its agencies would be more transparently handled in the public interest. Indeed, the issue of adhering to the federal character principle should not be toyed with because it is high among the items creating disaffection in the land. It would do more harm if our top office holders continue to pay lip service to it. When the police announced recently that many applications were not received from some states in the South, many people expressed surprise. With the revelation two days ago by Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa state that the police recruitment template was skewed, those in charge must return to the drawing table. As argued by Diri, “equitable recruitment into federal agencies can only be achieved if the process was in tandem with the federal character principle as enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution.” It is in truth a different ball game if the template used was based on number of local government areas in a state which is unjustifiable and lacks merit. The point Governor Diri is making is that there is a need for consistency in our understanding of the federal character principle. We cannot, as many politicians are doing now, pick and choose when to or not to adhere to it. Some presidential aspirants and other leaders have of recent made a strong case for merit which on its own has many advantages. But we cannot be seen to be describing rotational presidency as obsolete and unmeritorious while still hanging-on to our quota system and federal character principle which offer selective gains. If Nigeria has developed enough to have its president come from anywhere, our entire structure should be devoid of those lower and unimaginative prescriptive criteria. In fact, we cannot continue to operate a federal character principle when the body set up to ensure its observance is itself in breach. Among all agencies, the federal character commission cannot but have a federal character. Last year, two allegations were made against the commission. The first was that its tradition which from inception has been to ensure a chairman and a secretary are periodically sourced from North and South was breached as both offices are now held by appointees from same region. The second was that 20 out of the 37 commissioners had drawn attention in vain to the fact that the chairman had been engaged in secret recruitments in which 50% of those employed were sourced from her kinsmen. Nothing appears to have been done to these allegations. If, however, anything was done, it probably did not attract same publicity as the breach of the federal principle making it difficult for many people to know about it. But if nothing has been done since then, efforts must now be made to handle it simultaneously with that of NSITF so as to send the correct message that we are set to rebuild our nation without fear or favour. We must put our legislature into better use, rather than engaging them in bogus impeachment exercises such as the wind blowing currently in Zamfara state. Vanguard News

Jamboree of presidential aspirants, shortage of turnaround ideas Ayo Olukotun

“Nigerians should deliberately search for leaders with foresight, intelligence and experience that can turn the country’s fortunes around” – Pastor William Kumuyi, General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Christian Ministry (The PUNCH, Thursday, January 27, 2022) Have you noticed that the list of aspirants for Nigeria’s coveted number one political office, come 2023, lengthens by the day? On Wednesday, two new aspirants—Senator Bukola Saraki, former Senate Leader, and Senator Rochas Okorocha, former Governor of Imo State—announced their intention to join an already elongated roll. Bear in mind that previously we had Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress; David Umahi, Governor of Ebonyi State; Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, former Governor of Abia State; Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello; Prof. Kingsley Moghalu; Dr. Philip Idaewor of the United Kingdom branch of the APC, not counting a host of others who have either declared by subterfuge or are encouraging rife speculations that they are very much in the race. This latter group is also a long and unfolding one including current Vice-President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo; former President, Goodluck Jonathan; former Vice-President, Alhaji Abubakar Atiku; Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal; Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, among others. Conceivably, the list might billow up to 25 or more. Were the country in a routine season, there may have been no need to comment on what is fast becoming a jamboree of aspirants; however, as Pastor William Kumuyi quoted in the opening paragraph correctly recognised, Nigeria is trapped in a period that requires leaders who will “turn the nation’s fortunes around.” Of course, chorus boys and automatic endorsers of the current administration perpetually project an image of normalcy or superlative achievement by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.). But those who feel the hurt and who live in the desperate travails of the hour know where the shoe pinches. A couple of days back, a junior colleague decided to make the journey from Ibadan to Lagos by train. “Why would you subject yourself to that ordeal?” I inquired gently. He answered with the frightening narrative of how portions of the road linking the two cities had been converted into a traveller’s nightmare by acts of violence, including shooting at passenger buses in recent times. Notwithstanding that security officials claim that the attack is a one-off, those smart enough know that this predicament begins usually with a limited number of kidnappings and daring attacks on travellers. In other words, Yorubaland, which was once thought immune or relatively immune to the kind of banditry that virtually annulled the possibility of peaceful commuting by road between Abuja and Kaduna has drifted southwards, increasing the devastating national peril. That is not all. The ongoing brouhaha about fuel subsidy has opened a Pandora’s Box when the eternally opaque Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation told us that Nigerians consume fuel to the tune of 65.7 million litres daily and that it will require a sum of N3 trillion to underwrite the cost of the postponement of fuel subsidy removal by 18 months. Unsurprisingly, an irate Dr Kayode Fayemi, Governor of Ekiti State and Chairman Nigeria Governors’ Forum fired back that “there is a lot of fraud in consumption and distribution figures,” suggesting that no one is sure anymore about the competing and contradictory figures churned out by NNPC. Please note that this was precisely one of the cardinal sins of the Jonathan administration but after eight years of so-called reformism, we have come full circle regarding the abracadabra of subsidy, resulting in a gargantuan foreign debt and the spectre of national bankruptcy. This apart, the Minister for Finance, Zainab Ahmed, confirmed recently that the deepening suffering of Nigerians as a result of high inflation is one of the reasons why the removal of fuel subsidy earlier slated for June has been put on hold. Doubtless, in an intensely political season, the electorate will be thrown all kinds of unusual favours for well-known reasons. Recall the famous words of the Swiss philosopher J. J. Rousseau, made centuries ago, that “the people of England regards itself as free, but it is grossly mistaken; it is free only during the election of members of parliament. As soon as they are elected, slavery overtakes it…” Needless to say over time, the British people have deepened their democracy to the point where it can outlast the unusual generosity of the politicians during elections, leaving countries like Nigeria in the lurch of polling-determined policies and promises that will fade out when elections are over. That is to say, the country has only pushed back the frontier of misfortune for a country that produces oil but which is unable to maintain its refineries or keep its currency stable enough to avoid wide fluctuations of its exchange rate. Moreover, successive governments have seized upon the incompetence of earlier ones to make failed promises the object of their campaigns in a never-ending cycle of violated social contracts. To the politicians playing this game, it is perfectly okay. The problem, however, is that the chickens of earlier unkept promises have come home to roost with a vengeance, with the result that the country is kept in the stranglehold of a dark tunnel. Browse the promises made to Nigerians in successive elections since 1999 and you will marvel at the magnitude of the differences between oratory and performance. Buhari, like Jonathan, promised to end the reign of darkness in the power sector and decisively bring electricity generation up. What do we have today? The country generates megawatts of electricity, fluctuating between a figure lower than the administration inherited or just a little above it. So what happened to the sweet promise made during campaigns of amplified and sufficient power generation? Do you want to look at the education sector where no Nigerian university is in the first 500 universities on global league tables contrasted with South Africa which has 9 public universities in the first 50 and the University of Cape Town in number 20 position? The reason for underlining the dismay of Nigerians as another election rapidly approaches is that the current harvest of presidential aspirants has been disturbingly short on policy matters much less turnaround ideas. If these gentlemen do not know what is required is not business as usual in a nation threatened by existential crunch but transformational and visionary leadership. The political parties as well as the soaring number of aspirants are silent on roadmaps for redemption and reinvention. There is no mention of the woes of a distorted federal structure nor of the prospect of a national conference to renew the federal bargain. In other climes, policymaking is serious business with political parties hosting policy conferences, both to feel the pulse of the people and to design a compass out of the woods. What obtains here is policymaking by turnkey. Do you recall turnkey projects imported hook, line and sinker from abroad, leaving you only to turn the key? The correlate is turnkey policymaking featuring policies written by intellectual contractors with no input from our leaders. Enough of this jamboree of the soaring number of aspirants with little or no ideas for redesigning a failing state. Let the race to salvage Nigeria truly begin now. PUNCH.

BETWEEN DEMOCRACY AND ETHNOCRACY by SANUSI L. SANUSI

Two experiences in my life, or rather, one experience gleaned from two incidents a year apart , made a profound impact on my mind and altered drastically my perception of Nigerian politics. Both incidents occurred about two decades ago in my early years at Ahmadu Bello University and my first real contact with national politics. The first was in the 1977/78 session during the “Ali must go” riots. The Obasanjo government had announced its intention to partially withdraw subsidies from higher education, which would increase the cost to students of feeding and accommodation. Feeding cost in the dining halls would increase from 50k per day (for three square meals) to N1.50k per day. I do not recall the figures for hostel accommodation. Southern universities led the call for resignation of Colonel Ali, the Education Minister. Northern universities were still looking up to A.B.U for leadership as all others were young and some had just metamorphosed from A.B.U Satellite Campuses to separate universities. Thus the Universities of Maiduguri, Sokoto, Jos and B.U.K were waiting for us to take the lead. The dilemma for the students’ leadership was this: northern universities had a predominantly northern student body practically all of whom were on state government scholarships and would not be in any way affected by the policy. Southern universities, on the other hand were predominantly populated by students from the South who were paying their own bills and this increase would stretch parents' resources and force some of them out of the universities. The National Union of Nigerian Students (NUNS) led then by Segun Okeowo had the task of carrying ABU Students’ Union on a national protest over an issue that was of little direct consequence to the majority of its members. I was then the youngest member of the Students’ Representative Assembly (SRA) or students’ parliament. The debate went on and on into the morning hours with the parliament divided. Okeowo and his PRO, Nick Fadugba, had come to Zaria to lobby. I strongly endorsed the boycott of the lectures and forcefully spoke on the need for ABU to rise above ethnic sentiments and fight the cause of Nigerian Students. Fresh from the nation’s premier Unity School (King’s College) I was convinced that one Nigerian was not different from the other and that ethnic considerations were backward and reactionary. We won the debate, northern students joined the boycott, a number of A.B.U. students were shot, wounded and killed, and the rest is now history. But we were up to that point proud of ourselves and what we had done, even though it was condemned by Northern elders. The second and final component of the experience happened one year later, during the JAMB crisis. The genesis was the publication on the front page of the New Nigerian Newspaper of a histogram showing the distribution of the students admitted into Nigerian Universities for the first time by JAMB. There were 19 States in the Federation then, 9 of them in the South. Eight of the Southern States took the top eight positions in the ranking followed by Kwara and then Cross River, the final southern state. The States of the north other than Kwara took the last nine positions. Bendel State alone had more students admitted than the ten northern states combined. Northern students were alarmed. The understanding was that part of JAMB’s mandate was to help bridge the educational gap in the country and promote national integration. It was clear that the skewed admission would only widen the gap. Moreover, northern students were not taken into southern universities who refused to recognise the IJMB, while southern students filled northern universities. We tried to have a national protest. Delegates sent from A B U to the universities in the South were evaded and the only courteous response came from the University of Calabar. The problem divided the students’ body and southern universities made it clear it was a northern problem. The boycotts took on a regional character as northern universities ended up closed. To add insult to injury, the Students’ Unions at UNILAG and UNIFE actually issued statements supporting the military junta and condemning the protests. The exercise was to be seen as the enthronement of merit over mediocrity and the government was urged to make sure that half-baked school-leavers should not fill our universities. For many of us who just one year earlier had championed a southern cause, the experience was traumatic. It confirmed the warnings of all those who considered us naïve in our struggle for national unity. But worse, this experience has not remained on isolated item but an example of incidents and attitudes with which our political history is replete. It seems that the failure of the Nigeria opposition can in the main be traced to this inordinate fear, contempt and resentment for the ‘north’, feelings that are borne primarily out of ignorance and misunderstanding. An issue that concerns the north is seen as purely parochial while one that affects the south is a national question. The Nigerian opposition, by failing to rise beyond their desire for an ethnocracy has denied the people of this country of an opportunity to forge a truly democratic opposition. When in 1992 the electoral process seemed certain to produce two northern presidential candidates, the opposition press raised alarm at what it called northern designs to present the country with a faits accomplis. Politicians snowballed the process and played straight into the hands of Babangida. The illegal cancellation of the primaries and the banning of the politicians in violation of existing electoral law were not condemned by most of those now calling themselves democrats. It was only the annulment of June 12, 1993 which involved a southern politician that was viewed as a travesty of democracy. Let me state for the avoidance of doubt that I condemn the annulment of the June 12 election. But I also condemn the annulment of the primaries in 1992. And I also condemn the coups d’etat which overthrew Shagari’s democratically elected government. The difference between the democrats and the ethnocrats does not lie in whether or not June 12 should have been anulled, but in whether June 12 was an issue at par with all travesties of democracy, or a special case because of the ethnic pedigrees of the victim. M.K.O. Abiola was elected by all Nigerians. He won the election in Kano and Jigawa, defeating Tofa, the so–called son of the soil. The dissolution of that election was a violation of the rights of all Nigerians who voted to freely choose their leader. The action was that of an individual who wanted to remain in power at all cost. Why did Abiola accuse the “ north” of stopping him? Why does the opposition attack the same “north” that voted for Abiola? Why has Abiola, a man seen by all Nigerians as one of them, suddenly been transformed into a “southerner” on the landscape of political action? How much justice do we do ourselves if we expect the north to lead the fight for June 12 in the face of what it sees as a betrayal? The result of defining June 12 in tribal terms was the transformation of previous allies of Abiola into allies of the military or at best, passive by-standers. Key supporters joined the Military Junta. Many of these could claim, in good conscience, that hey did not betray MKO or democracy. They had simply abandoned a cause which had been hijacked and derailed. Abiola before and up to June 12 was the leader of a broad-based nationalistic front about to take over from a military dictatorship. After June 12, the cause had been hijacked by “ethnocrats” who had always seen Abiola not in terms of what he may have had to offer the nation but in terms of where he was from and what he, in their view, represented: A chance to get rid of northern leaders. In this, Abiola’s greatest enemies are those who claim to be his friends, people who contributed nothing to his campaign and had always mistrusted him because of his detribalised outlook. Sadly, the lesson has not been learnt. Tunji Braithwaite recently joined the race for the nation’s presidency and lost the election on the first day by defining his agenda in anti-northern terms. It was a sad day for us, northerners who welcomed his declaration for politics and hoped to rally behind him or M D Yusuf or any other serious candidate with the capacity to make self-succession for the military a difficult, if not impossible task. A few days after Braithwaite’s press conference, Arthur Nwankwo, a prolific writer, dismissed M D Yusuf’s candidacy on the pages of This Day Newspaper. Nwankwo was not the first to do this but his primary reason seems to be that M. D. Yusuf is from the North, and that a northern candidate is unacceptable to Nigerians. The likes of Braithwaite and Nwankwo will again play directly into the hands of Abacha. The opposition will always fail unless it transcends the fight for ethnic ascendancy and fights for enthronement of the people’s rights and defence of their liberties. The greatest shortcoming of the political philosophy of the opposition lies in the redefinition of democracy to mean the emergence of a southern president. In this, the philosophy is no different from that of the northern bigots who believe only northerners should rule the country. For northerners who want democracy, the fight is a two–pronged one: Against so-called elders who out of selfish interests subvert the will of the people and falsely claim to speak for us, and against those who would make all northerners carry a cross that is not their own and answer for the deeds which they condemn and leaders whom they reject. Ethnocracy as an ideology pitches the northerner against the southerner Democracy pitches us all against dictatorship and violation of human rights.