Missing crown: Police charge Ayiri, others to court By Jimitota Onoyume

The Police in Delta State have filed a three-count charge of burglary, stealing and felony against Chief Ayiri Emami and others at large before a magistrate’s court sitting in Warri. The charge, MW/178 C 2021, the Commissioner of Police vs Chief Emami. reads: “That you Chief Emami and others at large on March 30, 2021, about 11.30p.m., at Olu of Warri Palace, Warri in the Warri Magisterial District did conspire among yourselves to commit felony, burglary and stealing.” Count II: “That you Chief Emami and others now at large on March 30, 2021, about 11.30p.m., at Olu of Warri Palace, Warri in the Warri Magisterial District with intent to commit a felony, breaks into a dwelling house of the Olu of Warri.” Count III: “That you Chief Emami and others now at large, on March 30, 2021, about 11.30p.m., at Olu of Warri Palace, Warri in the Warri Magisterial District did stole two crowns value at N2 billion.” According to the charge sheet, the alleged stolen crowns belong to Itsekiri. It also stated that the offences are punishable under certain sections of the Criminal Code Laws of Delta State. Chief Ayiri pleaded not guilty to the charge. The Chief Magistrate, Ejiro Diejomaoh, granted bail to Ayiri in the sum of N2 million, with two sureties, who must not be persons lower than Level 15 and in like sum. Vanguard

Lee Kuan Yew Prime Minister of Singapore

BY The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Lee Kuan Yew Lee Kuan Yew, (born September 16, 1923, Singapore—died March 23, 2015, Singapore), politician and lawyer who was prime minister of Singapore from 1959 to 1990. During his long rule, Singapore became the most-prosperous country in Southeast Asia. Lee was born into a Chinese family that had been established in Singapore since the 19th century. His first language was English, and only upon entering politics did he acquire a command of Chinese as well as Malay and Tamil. After attending school in Singapore, Lee briefly enrolled at the London School of Economics and Political Science before earning a law degree (1949) at Fitzwilliam House, Cambridge. There he headed the honours list. He also became a socialist. Although he was admitted (1950) to the English bar, he returned to Singapore. Appointed legal adviser to the Postal Union, he participated in negotiations to obtain higher wages for postal workers and subsequently did similar work for other trade unions. Singapore was a British crown colony and the site of Britain’s principal naval base in East Asia, which was ruled by a governor assisted by a legislative council. The council’s members consisted primarily of wealthy Chinese businessmen, most of whom were appointed rather than elected. When, in the early 1950s, constitutional reform was in the air in Singapore, Lee formed an alliance with two other political newcomers—David Saul Marshall, a lawyer, and Lim Yew Hock, a trade unionist—to challenge the hold of the businessmen on the council. Lee, however, soon broke with his two colleagues to take a more radical stand, becoming secretary-general of his own party, the People’s Action Party (PAP). The party included some communists, Lee having accepted communist support for some years. In 1955 a new constitution was introduced that increased the number of elected seats on the council to 25 out of a total of 32. In the elections, the Labour Front, founded by Lee’s former colleagues, won 13 seats, while the PAP won 3—one of which, for a district inhabited by many of the poorest Chinese in Singapore, was won by Lee. The following year Lee returned to London as a member of a Singaporean delegation that unsuccessfully sought self-rule for the colony. Unrest in Singapore followed, during which a number of PAP leaders were imprisoned. In 1957 negotiations in London resumed, again with Lee on the delegation. After agreement was reached on a measure of self-government, Lee won a by-election in Singapore by an overwhelming majority. A brief power struggle within the PAP then ensued: in August Lee was ousted from the secretary-generalship by the party’s left wing, but he regained his post in October. The next year (1958) in London, Lee helped negotiate the status of a self-governing state within the Commonwealth for Singapore. Elections were held under Singapore’s new constitution in May 1959, and Lee campaigned on an anticolonialist, anticommunist platform calling for social reforms and eventual union with Malaya. Lee’s party won a decisive victory, gaining 43 of the 51 seats, but Lee refused to form a government until the British freed the left-wing members of his party who had been imprisoned in 1956. After their release, Lee was sworn in as prime minister on June 5, 1959, and he formed a cabinet. He introduced a five-year plan calling for slum clearance and the building of new public housing, the emancipation of women, the expansion of educational services, and industrialization. In 1961 the PAP’s left-wing members broke away from the party to form the Barisan Sosialis (“Socialist Front”), and Lee subsequently broke his remaining ties with the communists. Henceforth Lee and his fellow moderates within the PAP would dominate Singaporean politics. In 1963 Lee took Singapore into the newly created Federation of Malaysia. In elections held soon afterward, the PAP retained its control of Singapore’s Parliament, and Lee thus continued as prime minister. In 1964, however, he made the mistake of entering his party, 75 percent of whose members were Chinese, in the Malaysian national elections. The growing tension between Chinese and Malays resulted in communal rioting in Singapore itself. In August 1965 Lee was told by his Malaysian colleagues in the federal government that Singapore must leave the federation. Although Lee passionately believed in the multiracialism that the federation represented, Singapore had to secede. It then became a sovereign state with Lee as its first prime minister. Lee’s principal aims were to ensure the physical survival of the new state and to retain Singapore’s national identity. Surrounded by more powerful neighbours (including China and Indonesia), Lee did not press for the immediate withdrawal of Commonwealth forces from Singapore. Instead, he sought to phase them out slowly and to replace them with a Singaporean force locally trained and patterned on the Israeli model. More importantly, Lee recognized that Singapore needed a strong economy in order to survive as an independent country, and he launched a program to industrialize Singapore and transform it into a major exporter of finished goods. He encouraged foreign investment and secured agreements between labour unions and business management that ensured both labour peace and a rising standard of living for workers. While improving health and social welfare services, Lee continually emphasized the necessity of cooperation, discipline, and austerity on the part of the average Singaporean. Lee’s dominance of the country’s political life was made easier when the main opposition party, the Barisan Sosialis, decided to boycott Parliament from 1966. As a result, the PAP won every seat in the chamber in the elections of 1968, 1972, 1976, and 1980, after which opposition parties managed to claim one or two seats. Lee sometimes resorted to press censorship to stifle left-wing dissent over his government’s fundamental policies. Lee brought his country an efficient administration and spectacular prosperity at the cost of a mildly authoritarian style of government that sometimes infringed on civil liberties. By the 1980s Singapore under Lee’s guidance had a per capita income second in East Asia only to Japan’s, and the country had become a chief financial centre of Southeast Asia. The PAP won the general elections of 1984 and 1988, and Lee remained prime minister, though the question of the succession of leadership became an issue during that decade. After satisfactorily arranging the succession, Lee resigned the office of prime minister in November 1990, though he remained the leader of the PAP until 1992. Lee’s successor as prime minister, Goh Chok Tong, named Lee to the cabinet position of senior minister, from which Lee continued to exercise considerable political influence. Upon Goh’s resignation as prime minister in 2004 (he was succeeded by Lee’s son Lee Hsien Loong), Goh became senior minister. The elder Lee remained in the cabinet as “minister mentor,” a position he held until 2011, when he finally stepped down from the cabinet. He held his seat in Parliament until his death, however, winning reelection in 1991, 1997, 2001, 2006, and 2011. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Adam Augustyn.

LEE KUAN YEW’S OPEN LETTER TO MALAYSIAN LEADERS FROM THE GRAVE

Dear Malaysian leaders, I want to appreciate your condolence messages to Singaporeans since my death on Sunday, March 22. Having died at the age of 91, I would not say I died young. In fact, life expectancy in Singapore, which I led as prime minister for 31 years, is 80 years for men and 85 for women. You may even say I spent an overtime of 11 years. I would say I lived a good life which I devoted to the progress of my country. I can confidently say that everything I did — including that for which I was heavily criticised for being “highhanded” — was for the benefit of my people, not for personal gain. I died a fulfilled man with no regrets whatsoever. May I briefly tell you the story of Singapore so that you can understand why it is often told with admiration all over the world. We were a small, hopeless Island. We thought we were so poor it was impossible to survive on our own. We decided to go into a union with other countries to form Malaysia in 1963. But because of ethnic riots, we were expelled from the union in 1965, and I broke down in tears because I did not see how we were going to survive as a country. It was so bad we had no potable water. We relied on other countries for water to drink! We had no natural resources. No oil, no gold, no solid minerals, nothing. All we had were human beings — and ports. Dear Malaysian leaders, we did not give up. We decided to pick the pieces of our lives. We resolved to turn our fortune around. Today, our story has changed completely. So you know, we are no longer a Third World country. We are one of the four Asian Tigers — so-called because of our incredible development story. Singapore is the only Asian country with the top AAA rating by all credit rating agencies. We are the fourth largest financial centre in the world. We have one of the five busiest ports in the world. Manufacturing accounts for around 30% of our GDP. And Singapore has the third highest per capita income in the world. Permit me some more immodesty. Unlike Malaysia, we don’t have a single drop of crude oil on our land. But also unlike Malaysia, we are one of the biggest exporters, not importers, of petroleum products. Our country is in the top three of oil-refining centres in the world, yet we don’t have oil! We have some of the biggest refineries in the world. Meanwhile, Malaysia, with all the oil you produce, has been importing petrol, diesel, kerosene, engine oil and other petroleum products for decades! Let me shock you: we are the largest oil-rig producers in the world! The World Bank ranks us as the easiest place to do business in the world. I’m blushing, even in death! Let me explain how we attained these feats. We are no magicians. We are no angels. We are human beings like you, dear Malaysian leaders. The first thing we recognised is that quality leadership is non-negotiable! I understand that ordinary Malaysians get all the blame for Malaysia’s problems under the pretext that if the followers are bad, then leaders will be bad. I disagree. {THE LANGUAGE OF MAD MALAYSIAN - IMBECILE} If the leaders are good, the followers will be good. The leaders take the critical decisions and show direction. That is why they are called leaders. It is the dog that should be wagging the tail, not the tail wagging the dog. Don’t blame passengers for bad driving. Countries are transformed by good leadership. Why does a country need competent and exemplary leaders? Development starts from visioning. No country develops by accident or co-incidence. Development is planned. The leader, who must understand the critical issues, puts together a team, shares his vision with them, assigns them responsibilities and leads them from the front. That is where it starts. It is when you have a vision of society that you will know that education is key, electricity is key, health is key, infrastructure is non-negotiable. It is when you have this vision that you know where to direct your energy and resources. You know the kind of people to put in charge of key ministries and agencies. Furthermore, leaders must not be obsessed with instant gratification and personal comfort. That is one of the biggest problems you, Malaysian leaders, have. You are too obsessed with the perks of office that you have forgotten why you were elected in the first instance. I understand that aside the presidential jets in town, you are more comfortable with chattered jets. What a waste. I will share a story with you, which you can read in my book, From Third World to First. The story is on pages 363-364 and it had to do my trip to Ottawa, Canada, for the Commonwealth meeting in 1973. The Bangladeshi Prime Minister, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, arrived in style in his own aircraft. When I landed, I saw a parked Boeing 707 with “Bangladesh” emblazoned on it. When I left, it was still standing on the same spot, idle for eight days, getting obsolescent without earning anything. As I left the hotel for the airport, two huge vans were being loaded with packages for the Bangladeshi aircraft. At the conference, Mujibur Rahman had made a pitch for aid to his country. Any public relations firm would have advised him not to leave his special aircraft standing for eight whole days on the parking apron. You want aid but you are showing opulence to the world. Presidents of Kenya and Nigeria also arrived in jets. I wondered why they did not set out to impress the world that they were poor and in dire need of assistance. Our permanent representative at the UN explained that the poorer the country, the bigger the Cadillacs they hired for their leaders. So I made a virtue of arriving by ordinary commercial aircraft and thus helped preserve Singapore’s Third World status for many years. However, by the mid-1990s, the World Bank refused to heed our pleas not to reclassify us as a “High Income Developing Country” — giving no Brownie points for my frugal travel habits. We lost all the concessions that were given to developing countries. Dear Malaysian leaders, I understand that you are very, very religious. The Muslims among you pray five times day, go for hajj so often, fast during Ramadan and mention the name of Allah as punctuation for every word and every sentence. The Christians among you are always speaking in tongues or eating communion, paying fat tithes and heavy offerings and holding prayer sessions at home every morning. Yet, I am told you loot your state treasury without compassion or compunction, inflate contracts recklessly, operate killer squads, and watch — without conscience — as your citizens struggle without clean water and good hospitals. Unfortunately, I died an agnostic. I neither denied nor accepted that there was a God. Though two of my younger brothers, Freddy Lee and Lee Suan Yew, are members of the Anglican and Methodist churches respectively, I was not a churchgoer. Don’t misunderstand me: I am not saying you should not believe in God. But I only wonder: how can you say you believe in God and fail so woefully in what the Holy Bible and Holy Qu’ran teach about loving your neighbour, caring for the needy and showing responsibility as a leader? I cannot understand it. You guys never cease to amaze with how you can conveniently combine religion with greed. On a final note, I appreciate that you are mourning my death and describing me as great. Thank you very much. But I want you to know that you too can become great by putting the welfare of your citizens above your personal comfort. MALAYSIA too can produce a Lee Kuan Yew. I go to my grave a happy man. Ask yourself: will you go to yours fulfilled? Adieu! EndBadleadership

Buhari Petitioned To Sack Justice Peter-Odili For ‘Serving As Complainant, Prosecutor And Judge In Her Own Case’. BY SAHARAREPORTERS

Odili and his spouse, Justice Mary Peter-Odili reportedly saw Okponipere as the architect behind their loss of the PDP presidential and vice-presidential tickets A lawyer and human rights' activist, Timipa Jenkins Okponipere, has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to sack Supreme Court Judge, Mary Ukaego Peter-Odili over allegations of judicial misconduct and abuse of privilege. SaharaReporters gathered that Okponipere's troubles with the Odilis began sometime in December 2006 when he led his law firm, First Law Solicitors, to conduct a referendum on corruption and politically-motivated killings in Rivers State under the former governor Peter Odili and Justice Mary Peter-Odili as First Lady of the state. Following the widely acclaimed referendum, Odili lost the presidential primary election of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) held on December 12, 2006, at the Eagle Square, Abuja. The former governor also lost out in the shadow race for the PDP Vice presidential ticket, as Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan was declared the running mate to Alhaji Umaru Yar'Adua, the eventual winner of the presidential ticket. Odili and his spouse, Justice Mary Peter-Odili reportedly saw Okponipere as the architect behind their loss of the PDP presidential and vice-presidential tickets, and promptly got him arrested and charged before Justice Biobele Georgewill of the Rivers State High Court on January 17, 2007. The matter subsequently progressed from the Rivers State High Court to the Court of Appeal (Port Harcourt Division) and eventually, to the Supreme Court in 2010. By that time, however, Justice Mary Peter-Odili was already a Justice of the apex court, and she eventually sat on the Supreme Court panel which heard and determined the suit on February 8, 2013: a criminal appeal in which her spouse was the Chief Complainant and Prosecutor against Okponipere. The lawyer in a statement made available to SaharaReporters said several petitions he wrote to the National Judicial Council (NJC) against the judge were not acted on. He urged the Nigerian Bar Association to pressure Justice Peter-Odili to submit herself to the disciplinary jurisdiction of the NJC while the commission should redeem its image by standing up to its responsibility. Okponipere called on President Buhari to rescue the situation as the judge “deserves nothing but dismissal from the Supreme Court of Nigeria.” He said, “Justice Mary Peter-Odili abused her position as a Judge of the apex court in the country when she simultaneously became the Complainant, the Prosecutor and the Judge in Criminal Appeal No: SC 250/2010 (TIMIPA OKPONIPERE Vs. STATE) which came before the Supreme Court in 2013. “This unprecedented judicial misconduct is capable of seeing her being dismissed from the Supreme Court bench. In the over 60 years history of the modern Supreme Court of Nigeria, not a single Justice of the revered apex court in the country, apart from Justice Mary Peter-Odili, has been so dragged before the NJC for such an unbefitting judicial conduct. “The legal principle/maxim of NEMO JEDEX IN CAUSA SUA (one cannot be a Judge in his own cause) is an elementary principle of Law. For a Supreme Court Judge of Mary Peter-Odili’s calibre, she rose through the ranks from the Magistracy to fall foul to such an elementary principle, explains her shallow knowledge of Law but deep involvement in judicial corruption. “On January 12, 2007 the Rivers State Government filed an 8 counts Information/Charge known as CHARGE NO: PHC/30CR/2007 (STATE Vs. TIMIPA OKPONIPERE) at a Rivers State High Court sitting at Port Harcourt against TIMIPA JENKINS OKPONIPERE, Port Harcourt lawyer and human rights activist, upon a criminal complaint by the then Governor of the State, His Excellency, Sir (Dr) Peter Odili. Certified true copy of the 8 counts Information/Charge is attached herewith. “All of the 8 counts of the Information/Charge were directly linked or connected with the person of Dr. Peter Odili and his failed 2007 presidential bid. So, under his watch as Governor of Rivers State, vigorous prosecution of the matter commenced before Justice Biobele Georgewill (now of the Court of Appeal). Dr. Peter Odili thus became the Complainant and the Prosecutor in the matter while Mr. Okponipere, being a Legal Practitioner, defended himself in person. “By means of an Interlocutory Appeal, the matter progressed from the Rivers State High Court to the Court of Appeal (Port Harcourt division) and eventually, to the Supreme Court in Abuja as Criminal Appeal No: SC 250/2010 (TIMIPA OKPONIPERE Vs. STATE). At about the same period, Justice Mary Peter-Odili, wife to Dr. Peter Odili (the Complainant and Prosecutor), had also been newly elevated to the Supreme Court bench. “By virtue of her status as wife to Dr. Peter Odili (the Complainant and Prosecutor), Justice Mary Peter-Odili ought to have recused herself from hearing and delivering Judgment in Criminal Appeal No: SC 250/2010 (TIMIPA OKPONIPERE Vs. STATE) when the matter progressed to the Supreme Court. “However, against all known canons of natural justice, equity and good conscience, Justice Mary Peter-Odili shamelessly and brazenly sat on the 5-man panel of Justices of the Supreme Court of Nigeria which heard and delivered Judgment in a Criminal Appeal where her husband, Dr. Peter Odili, was the Complainant and the Prosecutor. Automatically therefore, she simultaneously became the Complainant, the Prosecutor and the Judge, in her own cause. This was a clear and manifest abuse of judicial privilege. “Judgment was delivered in the matter on February 8, 2013 with Justice Olukayode Ariwoola delivering the Lead Judgment. Other members of the 5-man panel of Justices included Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad (the current Chief Justice of Nigeria & Chairman, National Judicial Council); John Afolabi Fabiyi; Mary Ukaego Peter-Odili (delivered Concurring Judgment) and; Kumah Bayang Akaahs. Certified true copy of the Lead Judgment and Justice Mary Odili’s Concurring Judgment are attached herewith. “In a petition on oath filed at the Federal High Court in Abuja on July 17, 2020 (over a year ago!) and submitted same day to the office of the Chief Justice of Nigeria & Chairman of the NJC, Mr. Okponipere urged the NJC to take disciplinary action against Justice Mary Peter-Odili for gross violation of Rules 8 and 12 of the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers in Nigeria. Copy of Mr. Okponipere’s petition to the NJC is attached herewith. “Rule 8.1 of the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers in Nigeria states thus: A Judge shall not allow the Judge’s family, social or political relationships improperly to influence the Judge’s judicial conduct and judgment as a Judge. “Rule 8.3 of the Code imposes a duty on Judicial Officers to avoid pursuing self-interest. It states: A Judge who takes advantage of the judicial office for personal gain by his or her relative or relation abuses power. A Judge must avoid all activity that suggests that his or her decisions are affected by self-interest or favoritism, since such abuse of power profoundly violates the public’s trust in the judiciary. “Rule 12 of the Code makes provision for “Disqualification”. Justice Mary Peter-Odili is particularly liable under this Rule. Among others, Rule 12.1 states: A Judge should disqualify himself in a proceeding in which his impartiality may genuinely and reasonably be questioned, including but not limited to the instances where: (a) he has a personal bias or prejudice concerning a party or personal knowledge of facts in dispute; (c) he knows that he individually or as a Judicial Officer or his spouse or child; has a financial or any other interest that could be substantially affected by the outcome of the proceeding. “In a letter with Reference No. NJC/F.1/SC.11/I/241 dated 24th August, 2020 the Honourable Dr. Justice I. T. Muhammad, CFR Chief Justice of Nigeria and Chairman, National Judicial Council acknowledged receipt of Mr. Okponipere’s petition and assured him that action was being taken. Copy of the letter is attached herewith. “However, more than a year after, no action has been taken against Justice Mary Peter-Odili. There seems to be a grand design by the NJC to sweep Mr. Okponipere’s legitimate petition under the carpet. Once Justice Mary Peter-Odili retires from the Supreme Court bench in May, 2022 the petition shall naturally become worthless. “No responsible government would sit idly and watch its Supreme Court being denigrated and ridiculed by the controversial actions of one of the Justices of the same Honourable Court. Accordingly, I call on President Muhammadu Buhari, Africa’s Champion of Anti-Corruption, to rescue the situation. Justice Mary Ukaego Peter-Odili deserves nothing but DISMISSAL from the Supreme Court of Nigeria. “The NBA should be made to call on Justice Mary Peter-Odili to submit herself to the disciplinary jurisdiction of the NJC. 30. The NJC should redeem its image by standing up to its responsibility. Firm and decisive disciplinary action should be taken against Justice Mary Odili, without delay. Finally, the media should jettison all forms of gullibility and display courage and bravery in the overall interest of preserving the integrity and dignity of the Judiciary in the country.”

The Hunger Republic of Nigeria, By Dakuku Peterside

The rising cases of hunger and malnutrition is a ticking time bomb waiting to explode. …food inflation is part of poverty and is at the root of the current ravaging hunger level. Tackling the supply side of food will help not only to make food available but will also force the prices down. The rising cases of hunger and malnutrition is a ticking time bomb waiting to explode. Now is the time to tackle this head-on and avert a crisis waiting to happen. A stitch in time saves nine. Every day, ordinary Nigerians from Maiduguri to Oyorokoto-Andoni in Rivers State, Okerenkoko in Delta State, to Wamako in Sokoto State make difficult decisions. They are forced to choose between having a meal or paying essential life-sustaining bills. This anomaly does not affect the people at the lowest rung of the economic ladder alone, but also the middle class. The cliché, the rich also cry, is truer now than ever in our country. The increases in the prices of food and essential items are not abating. The proverbial ‘three square meals’ that serve as evidence of good living and the conquest of hunger is gradually becoming a mirage. This basic feeding pattern has been replaced with various feed patterns that guarantee only one or maybe two meals a day – the quality of which is not even considered in this equation. The goal is often to put food in the stomach. The above is the reality of millions of families in Nigeria. Hunger is in the land, and there is no denying this. Many families have gone into survival mode, and food is a trade-off with other essential necessities like medication and school fees. Children are the most hit. They lack the necessary nutrients they need to grow and develop physically and emotionally, due to the lack of nutritious food. Two statistics in recent times drive home the point that Nigerians are facing the reality of hunger. The Global Hunger Index report ranks Nigeria as the 103rd of 116 countries, indicating that hunger is severe in the country and may become alarming if nothing is done about this urgently. As if that report is not indicative enough, the World Bank, in a new report titled, “COVID-19 in Nigeria: Frontline Data and Pathways for Policy” posits that an additional six million Nigerians may be pushed into extreme poverty and hunger by the end of 2021 due to food inflation. These damming reports call for urgent actions before many Nigerians face an existential threat. One may be inclined to dismissing these reports as being just alarmist. However, the reality on the ground is evident for all to see. If the fortunate wealthy few are also feeling the pinch of hyperinflation in Nigeria, one can only imagine how the over 80 million Nigerians earning below one dollar, ninety cents per day survive. Consider how a family man who makes the minimum wage (N30,000 per month) will feed his family and pay all his bills when a bag of beans is almost N100,000 – three times the salary – and a bag of rice is over N30,000, which is equivalent to his monthly salary. A pack of spaghetti is now N350, from N200 a few months ago. All these increases in prices are simultaneously happening as income is static or falling, and many are losing their jobs due to the COVID–19 induced economic crises. Hunger fuels criminality and crime; it affects education and school enrolment, alongside quality healthcare. Most importantly, hunger affects political choices. Politicians are already using it as a weapon, as we march towards the 2023 general election. From the prevailing situation, it will be a significant weapon available to politicians to influence voters. One cannot blame voters entirely if they fall to the weapon of hunger, because a hungry man cannot reason objectively; neither would he worry about the future, when all he is struggling to do is to feed himself and his family at the present moment. It is dangerous for our democracy to allow the weaponisation of hunger and the proverbial call for ‘stomach infrastructure. The implications of these on Nigerian development are dire. There is a nexus between hunger and unemployment, increased poverty, food inflation, the widespread loss of income and low productivity. How can we fuel our economy to grow to greater heights when most of the consumers are hungry and cannot afford to participate effectively in the economy? Granted, this administration is doing all it can to tackle hunger and poverty in various parts of Nigeria, and through various interventions. Nevertheless, for every recipient of poverty and hunger palliatives, many are left out. And more people are joining the ranks of the poor and hungry in their millions. The government should rethink its hunger and poverty alleviation policies and approaches and make them fit for purpose, given the current realities. For instance, it is surprising that the government, through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), is giving out more loans and grants to the agriculture sector, but their impacts are minimal or not felt on the dinning table of families. Data from the Ministry of Agriculture suggest that we are producing more rice in the country, but the price of rice is yet skyrocketing and beyond the reach of ordinary people. One would expect that there should be a corresponding increase in food self-sufficiency in Nigeria with such CBN interventions. Besides, it is either that the money from CBN is not getting to the actual farmers or it is not being used for farming purposes. We cannot pretend not to know that the prevailing insecurity makes it almost impossible to farm in most parts of the country. The other issue is that most of the investment in the agriculture sector goes to subsistence farming and not mechanised and large-scale agriculture. Subsistence farming cannot help Nigeria address the problem of hunger and food inflation. Recently, the Central Bank posited that its various interventions in agriculture have led to the food import bill dropping from $3.4billon in 2014 to U$0.56 billion in 2020, representing a drop of over 80 per cent. However, this does not reflect on the affordability or availability of food in the market and homes. Statistically, our bill for food import has dropped, but it has not bridged the gap in food self-sufficiency. Conversely, CBN may have inadvertently imposed suffering on the people or denied access to food stock by 80 per cent. A country that works is not necessarily about statistics alone but the everyday experience of ordinary people. Food is not there, but the little available is beyond the reach of the common person. The government should explore a strategy that combines incentives for the mass production of food and stimulus for influencing the supply chain to make sure that food is available and affordable. The sooner government tackled the insecurity situation in the food corridors of Nigeria, the better for everyone. Farmers should be encouraged and protected from attacks when they go back to their farms. The infrastructure needed for the movement of food and services allied to the food industry must be improved as a national urgency. We must equally strengthen the supply end of food security. Food security must be at the heart of national security, and a rethink of the existing national food security strategy is needed. We want a situation in which economic growth aligns with the alleviation of hunger. As such, collaboration is required among relevant government agencies to address hunger and poverty. The present hunger ravaging Nigerians is precarious because many other factors are pushing Nigerians to the brim. The fragile and perilous state of our polity is marked by heightened insecurity, divisiveness, and ethnic agitations. Therefore, I call for a declaration of a national state of emergency against hunger by the Federal Government. It is anathema for a hard-working citizen of Nigeria to go to bed without food, not out of choice but out of lack. The sooner government tackled the insecurity situation in the food corridors of Nigeria, the better for everyone. Farmers should be encouraged and protected from attacks when they go back to their farms. The infrastructure needed for the movement of food and services allied to the food industry must be improved as a national urgency. We must equally strengthen the supply end of food security. Food processing is also crucial. Not only is demand outstripping supply, leading to demand-pulled food inflation in Nigeria, but supply is not being strengthened due to the waste that occurs, especially with seasonal food. The government should encourage the food processing and storage industry to thrive in Nigeria, with the aim of making Nigeria a net exporter of food on the long run. We know that farmers need a moderate increase in food prices to make the food business economically viable. The effective synergy between farmers and the food processing and storage industry may help control and stabilise prices for the benefit of both farmers and consumers. The demand for food in Nigeria will continue to increase. Not only is our population growing daily, but we also are at the centre of the supply chain for smaller neighbouring African countries. At present, the demand pressure may not come down, and policies to achieve a reduction will only work in the short to medium long term. Therefore, I implore the government to focus on immediate remedial actions to salvage the situation. Unfortunately, on the broad sectoral performance, agriculture grew by 1.22 per cent in real terms during the third quarter of 2021, lower than the third quarter of 2020, which recorded 1.39 per cent. This is worrisome. How can the agriculture sector grow less in 2021 in comparison to 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic was at its worst state? One explanation may be that insecurity in food corridors has had a more negative impact on agriculture than COVID-19. Also, the medium-term effect of insecurity and COVID-19 on agriculture may have started to show by the third quarter of 2021. Whatever may be the case, the government should strive to turn this trend around. As a temporary stop-gap measure, the government can allow for the importation of selected food items to cushion the impact of food inflation and gradually phase them out as food security is achieved and things stabilise. It is also not unreasonable to argue that the food inflation Nigeria is facing now may have been caused partly by the devaluation of the naira, which has increased the prices of food and other goods… There is need to collaborate with international organisations dealing with the food crisis to alleviate the impact of the lack of food or the high cost of food on poor people in Nigeria. We do not have to wait until hunger overwhelms our system before looking for international collaborations to ameliorate the problem. The implication may be too challenging to contemplate. As a matter of urgency, Nigeria should revisit the policy of reducing the importation of food, especially now. There is no prescription that every nation has to meet its food self sufficiency needs from domestic production. What nations must not fail to do is to identify their competitive advantages in terms of agricultural production for domestic consumption and export. The economic theory of specialisation and international trade provides that countries should import what they do not have competitive advantage in producing, while they export what they produce competitively. As a temporary stop-gap measure, the government can allow for the importation of selected food items to cushion the impact of food inflation and gradually phase them out as food security is achieved and things stabilise. It is also not unreasonable to argue that the food inflation Nigeria is facing now may have been caused partly by the devaluation of the naira, which has increased the prices of food and other goods imported from abroad at the new exchange rate. In conclusion, it is our contention that food inflation is part of poverty and is at the root of the current ravaging hunger level. Tackling the supply side of food will help not only to make food available but will also force the prices down. The rising cases of hunger and malnutrition is a ticking time bomb waiting to explode. Now is the time to tackle this head-on and avert a crisis waiting to happen. A stitch in time saves nine. Dakuku Peterside is a policy and leadership expert.

Religious violations: Presidency knocks Kukah, others ‘feeding US with incorrect positions’. by Kayode Oyero

Bishop Matthew Kukah and the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) The Presidency on Monday knocked the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, Matthew Hassan-Kukah, and other Nigerians “going to America, going to feed them with incorrect positions about what is happening in the country.” Presidential spokesman, Femi Adesina, made this known on Channels Television’s ‘Sunrise Daily’ breakfast programme monitored by The PUNCH. Adesina made the comment when he hailed the United States for removing Nigeria from its 2021 list of religious violators. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in a statement last Wednesday, had blacklisted Russia, China and eight other countries as religious violators, leaving out Nigeria which was placed on the same list of ‘Countries of Particular Concern’ on the issue of freedom of religion in 2020. Blinken, who was later in Abuja last Thursday and Friday, reportedly told the Nigerian President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), that the delisting of Nigeria from the list of religious violators was based on facts. Many Nigerians and groups including the Christian Association of Nigeria, have since faulted the removal of Nigeria from the list, insisting that Christians are still being persecuted in the country amid an alleged plot to Islamise Nigeria. However, speaking on the television programme on Monday, Adesina said Nigeria has no business being on the list in the first instance but blamed some individuals for running to the US to state “incorrect positions”. The presidential aide, who did not mention the names of Nigerians “feeding” the US with “incorrect positions”, made a veiled reference to Kukah, and other critics of his principal who have cried out to the US for help in recent times. Kukah, a fiery critic of the Buhari regime, had in a virtual appearance before the US Congress in July 2021, accused Buhari of nepotism and of making key appointments that favoured individuals of his faith (Islam), an allegation the Presidency had denied. Speaking on the removal of Nigeria from the watchlist, Adesina said, “Nigeria being taken off the watchlist of countries that repress religion. Very good, the Secretary (Blinken) spoke about it: he said America did it when they found out that putting Nigeria on the watchlist was not based on facts and we know the things that happened; Nigerians themselves going to America, going to feed them with incorrect positions about what is happening in the country. That was why Nigeria was put on that watchlist but when America discovered that it was not based on facts, Nigeria was removed from the watchlist. It is a very good development for us.” When contacted for comments, Rev. Fr Christopher Omotosho, the Director, Social Communications of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto told The PUNCH on Monday that the Adesina does not deserve a response. Omotosho also told our correspondent that at the appropriate time, Kukah would speak on the removal of Nigeria from the list of religious violators. The respected Christian cleric and unsparing critic of the Buhari regime has been having a running battle with the current government which came into power in 2015. PUNCH.

APC Leader, Bola Tinubu’s 2023 Presidential Manifesto Leaks. By Opeyemi Damilare

While speculations about Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s interest in the 2023 presidential election have been rife for months, the leak of the former Lagos State governor’s manifesto has put to rest any doubts about whether the All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain would run for the country’s top job. According to Naija News, Tinubu got a leaked manifesto over the weekend, indicating that it is just a matter of time before he declares his candidacy for the presidency. The manifesto, titled “Seven Point Agenda: The Rebirth Manifesto,” outlined Tinubu’s vision for Nigeria if he were elected president. Education, technology, infrastructure, domestic enterprise, leadership, true federalism, and democratic process were among the seven essential issues included in the campaign master plan. Leadership Provide transformational leadership that has the ability to unify all of Nigeria and lead us to the attainment of shared goals and vision. Technology Leverage modern technology for digital transformation and economic growth. Security Create conditions that allow citizens move and transact freely across the Nation. Infrastructure Commence extensive infrastructural development by building basic foundational services (24 hrs access to electricity, roads, bridges e.t.c) that connect (power) people and businesses ultimately improving the quality of living. Homegrown Businesses Build platforms that enable and empower homegrown businesses to scale and compete favourably in the global market. Education Deploy initiatives targeted at promoting knowledge and equipping learners of all age groups with the skills and values needed to address modern-day challenges globally. Propagate and activate strategies that also promote a sense of pride and awakening amongst all Nigerian citizens to the extent that people feel extremely patriotic and ecstatic to be Nigerians. True Federalism and Democratic Processes Promote democracy, realize human potential and create conditions for prosperity and progress. Sources disclosed to Naija News that Tinubu, a former Lagos State governor, would declare his presidential ambition officially. “Our leader (Tinubu) would declare interest in the presidency very soon. We are confident he is the man to take Nigeria forward if you look at what he has been able to achieve both in government and privately,” the source said. Bola Tinubu has remained silent about his interest in the role despite the rumors and speculations. Several organizations, including the South West Agenda for Asiwaju (SWAGA), have instead taken it upon themselves to rally support for Tinubu’s candidacy. Tinubu’s latest moves, which included a visit to Kano State earlier this year, have given his presidential ambitions even more legitimacy. According to observers, the visit was designed at bolstering connections with the north ahead of the next election. Orji Uzor Kalu, a former governor of Abia State, recently paid Tinubu a visit, sparking rumors about his bid to succeed Buhari. Despite the allure of presidential authority and his influence in Nigeria’s political environment, particularly his role in President Muhammadu Buhari’s ascent in 2015, many experts say the former Action Congress leader should be a kingmaker rather than a king.