Nigeria

By Aliyu Ammani Junior

Leadership has been one of the common unbalanced difficulties in Nigeria’s political space since independence: 1964 Federal Election Crisis, January 1966 coup, 1966 counter-coup, Nigeria/Biafra civil war, Gideon Orkar’s failed coup, post-June 12 political crisis, and more. All in one way or another—linkable to one part’s sentiment of being marginalized, omitted, or denied the sense of representation.

Ideally, merit, competency, integrity, and capacity are the benchmarks in selecting a leader, not a power rotation or sharing formula. Nevertheless, the situation in Nigeria, a complex country of multiethnic and multi-religious organizations with uneven federalism that is almost consolidated, is not about competency, merit, integrity, and capacity.

A centralized structure ravaged by agitation, deep suspicion of fear of ethnic and religious hegemony demands a rotating power between north and south to accommodate the emotions and sentiments of these regions and their people. Providing a rotation formula would go a long way in sustaining a united Nigeria considering the existing deep divisions among Nigerians. It will produce fairness, equality, equity, justice, a sense of possession, and identification.

Unless a requisite equate is attained, where every part and tribe has developed a sense of possession, identification, and the federalism is no longer leaning; Nigeria will always require a practical formula for unifying the diverging segments that formed ‘The Federal Republic Of Nigeria.’

The fault of power rotation is theoretical and unrealistic; some argue that it is ‘undemocratic’ because it deprives certain people with competence, capacity, and experience the right to be voted—for when zoning does not favour their locus. There is no universal structure of democracy; what is universal about democracy is the basic principles that guide it. The focus of democratic practical demands remains locally confined. As a substantial social value, democracy has complex and diverse considerations and needs. Therefore, it should be hacked to suit local conditions and circumstances.

It is deceiving and tricky to limit the democratic system to mechanical conditions (popular will) without referring to instrumental conditions like the blanket sense of identity—inclusiveness—possession from every component.

Another narrowed argument against the rotating formula is that it is ineffectual and of no help – since a typical citizen from the leader’s zone is not better comforted ‘materialistically’ than other citizens from distant zones. Realistically, it is restricting, reducing, and neo-Marxist to limit the decisive quest of political aspirations and struggles to ‘distribution of resources’ without appreciating other factors; recognition, possession, and sense of identification. In a heterogeneous populace, it is significant to feel represented and connected by having someone from your spot and its experience, occupying a high post (including the office of the President) at least—in a while.

As earlier acknowledged, in usual events—merit, competency, integrity, and capacity should be ‘benchmarks’ in deciding a leader, not a formula. Undeniably, the merit, competency, integrity, and capacity test is a dubious and probable trial.  With a power rotating procedure, the questionable and possible trial remains untouched. Except that something is going to be fixed, every portion will develop a sense of possession, identification, and responsibility “I played: it’s time for someone.”

Aliyu Ammani Junior

Kaduna, Nigeria.

By Muhammad Sabiu

By Sumayyah Auwal Ishaq

The Nigerian Correctional Service has, on Sunday, confirmed the attack of the Medium Security Custodial Centre, Jos, Plateau State.

The spokesman for the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCS), Controller of Corrections, Francis Enobore, confirmed the incident, saying “The Medium Security Custodial Centre in Jos, Plateau State came under attack by gunmen who reportedly stormed the facility in large number with sophisticated weapons”

He further stated that “although they gained entrance to the yard, they are however trapped within as men from sister security services were immediately mobilised to assist the armed guards to cordon the perimeter wall and the entire area”

The attack was said to have been carried out at about 5pm on Sunday, and sophisticated weapons were said to have been used by the attackers.

By Abdullahi Adamu

Rape is dishonourable, immoral and sinful to humans and must be outrightly condemned by all. Everyone has a woman in their life – mother, wife, sister, niece, or daughter. We should understand that rape is a crime to the existence of humans and must be kicked out of this nation now.

It is dishonourable because it takes away the victim’s pride that has been raped and her skin engraved in a deep wound that may take years to heal.

It is immoral because society frowns at it as it goes against the general acceptable way and conduct in any given community. It is also sinful because it goes against the dictates of the creator and amount to stealing from the other person, the victim.

We have heard the government of Nigeria speak against it but with no pragmatic line of action. Instead, we have seen the hand of the law taking a long but slow road to this issue.

One of the challenges of rape is the low level of prosecution despite the high number of media-reported cases. As a result, some victims agree to ‘settle the matter’ with the active connivance or encouragement of law enforcers. Although the Penal Code of Nigeria (Section 282), the Criminal Laws of Lagos State (Section 258), and Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act (Section 1) all present rape as a serious offence.

One unconfirmed report states that there have been only eighteen convictions in Nigeria! Most rape cases are never reported. Even some ladies find it difficult or impossible to tell their parents or guardian

Government should declare a national crisis on rape. Women and children safety must be paramount across Nigeria. The security agents should wake up and take a necessary measure on the issue of rape in the country and stop keeping mute like a  dog that cannot bark.

As a woman, you need to take it upon yourself to resist the societal attempt to objectify yourself. Your “womanness” is not by how good you conform to the stupid societal standard of you being an object. You’re a woman, and that alone validates your “womanness”

And as a man, you need to understand that the idea of being “a dog who respects no fair play in the game” only puts you on the same pedestal as animals. Your real trophy will come from the number of women you choose to treat strictly as “women” and not “objects” like society implores you to do. You’re a man, not a dog!

Rapists are criminals and should be prosecuted and convicted. Victims identities should be protected. Known rapists should be named and tagged. A special anti-rape police unit should be created in the Nigeria Police dominated by trained women.

Abdullahi Adamu can be reached via nasabooyoyo@gmail.com.

I support the removal of fuel subsidy with conditions attached for the government. I have known that fuel subsidy is giving corruption a legal garb. But IMF didn’t tell government the whole truth. For government that cares for its people, removing fuel subsidy should only be done after the following conditions are taken care of:

1- Repair the refineries. As long as the refineries are working, petrol will come at reasonable price to Nigerians. The transport, NPA, custom duty and throughput components of the price will be taken care of.

2- Stop importation of petrol- fuel subsidy is not the only way government wastes money. Fuel importation in the most corrupt and wasteful venture of the government. As at June 2021, Nigeria spent N1.09trn on fuel importation. It is the cause of the deteriorating value of the Naira and Nigeria’s biggest import, the cause of our balance of trade and current account deficits. In fact fuel importation is the major cause of Nigeria’s economic crisis. As long as Nigerians will buy fuel without subsidy, they will be subsidizing government corruption and inefficiency.

3- Address the macro-economic crisis facing the country especially exchange rate and food inflation. Life is unbearable for Nigerians and removing fuel subsidy that will increase price of petrol will add more hardship to Nigerians. Fuel price increase has negative multiplier effects on cost of rents, transportation, school fees and prices of goods and services. When Nigerians are down with excruciating economic problems why add more hardships on them by jerking up the price of fuel?

4- Provide effective transport system like rails, good roads and bus services. In Nigeria, only Lagos has public transport system, even at that Lagos does not have rail system. Abuja has no public bus system and the light rail only covers a small fraction of the town. You can live in Abuja for months without seeing the train because it covers few stops. Other Nigerian cities don’t have public transport system.

5- Improve salaries of workers. Even without fuel price increase inflation has made Nigerian workers paupers. Without commensurate increase in salaries people will be working for nothing.

6- Solve the deliberating security situation affecting the roads and villages. People have no livelihood because they can’t farm. People cannot connect with towns and do business because of insecurity. Bandits have overrun most states in the Northeast and Northwest and people can’t till their lands or rear livestock.

7- Reduce cost of bureaucracy. The minister of finance said government did not budget anything for fuel subsidy for year 2022. But ask her, how much does the government budget for maintaining political appointees and you will know that the government thinks of itself not the poor Nigerians. According to former CBN governor and former emir of Kano State, Malam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, at least 70% government revenue is spent on officials.The money to be spent on the president, vice president, ministers and CEOs of parastatals and members of house of assembly is far more than the fuel subsidy they are talking about. That covers fat salaries, allowances, estacodes, new expensive cars and even planes. But they will not touch their welfare. It is the same at state levels.

If the government can address these it can go ahead and remove fuel subsidy, otherwise it will be punitive to make life unbearable for Nigerians. Even the rich are crying in today’s Nigeria.

Aliyu Nuhu: is a social analyst, he lives in Abuja.

By A. F. Sesay

When I was young I had a pure heart, bright eyes and a sparkling smile. All I wanted then was to grow up quickly and set things right. I wanted to be a shoulder for the poor, a shield for the oppressed and a think-tank for my nation. I grew a bit older …. And then there was a minus one to my dreams.

Then I entered youth with exuberance and disillusion I knew the people who have ruined the nation more than I knew myself. I wished I had the power to remove all of them from power.  I knew I was a good young man but I never gave much thought to the realities of life, not more the realities of power. I grew a bit older and I got my first job (as well as my first shock). And then there was a minus one to my dreams…

Here I am today with so much money but very little direction. With a special room in every seven-star hotel, I lay my “ears” on. Yet I have very little peace in my mind. I thought money was all I needed to change the world. If I could stop being poor and deprived, I had thought, then I would be happy and resourceful. Little did I know that money had little to do with wellbeing.

True, sometimes money brings the tools of happiness, but it takes a grateful and content mind to put them to good use. What use will the money be, when all people around me wallow in mud and dirt poverty? I wonder. But people like and respect me even though I am a  corrupt rich man. Corruption persists when all around you insist that your La Vida Loca life is an inspiration for them, without asking for your source of income. Actually, they don’t want to do bad belle for you.

I spray money at their functions to feed my empty ego. I donate a lot of money (well that’s a very tiny per cent of the loot) to charity organisations in return for publicity and praise. But deep within my soul, the truth keeps me debased. The wound of conscience brings more pain than a thousand dagger cuts. I spend here and I spend there. But at night, I secretly spend much more to feed the dirty flesh. Then I grew older …. And then there was a minus one to my life.

Sometimes, I make more money in a day than some unfortunate PhD holder may make in his/her whole lifetime. Don’t mind these Doctors of Philosophy! They talk a lot about the evil things we do. But when they cook up “research” to carry out,  they bring the proposals and we give them part of that evil money and they are all smiles. Now that’s the power of corruption trumping the power of “knowledge”. You get the point now.

I grew a bit older and I started losing the taste for money. All efforts to seek reliable sources of pleasure proved abortive. No amount of beautiful women, or exotic cars or houses or even new places ever sang the you-have-finally-arrived song I heart longs for. The more I got, the less fulfilled I became. Then I made a resolution to give up bribery and corruption, but my soul resisted. In fact, the organ that transports blood to my heart almost became rotten in protest. I was rushed to my doctor and he vehemently advised that I should not give up corruption so that I can pay all my medical bills on time. And some more during medical tourism. As you know, the nation can’t afford that so I have to foot my heavy bills.

My children told me they are tired of studying overseas where they are daily exposed to insults over race and nationality. So I had to look for them the best private school in the country. Their school fee per annum is my exact salary for a whole year! But never mind, I have a way of fetching it in a twinkle of an eye.

In this final quarter of the year, I discussed my resolution to give up corruption with my children’s school principal, a tiny white man, who reminds me of my grandfather’s master before the 1960s. He is a practical man. also told me, “Be fair to yourself,” He emphatically told me. In sum: if I knew I was sincere about giving up corruption, he had posed, why did I bring my children to their school when salary was not paid in pounds sterling.  I grew a bit older …. Then there was depression looming in the air. Ready to take me to my grave, even before I have eaten a tenth of what I have ‘worked’ for.

I look around again and it seems everything around me encourages me to remain corrupt. After all, everybody is doing it (or so I thought). One day in my solitary reflections, two stubborn questions popped up in my head. What if  I suddenly die without repenting, will God punish me for all my sins? Will I be deprived of all that I have done in life? I tried to fight them by asserting that the Hereafter is an ancient tale told by religious men who wanted to exercise their will to power. But it is difficult to convince myself. Deep within me, I harbour doubts since there had been no standard (or even a substandard) experiment to nullify the belief in life beyond the grave so as to prove these religious folks wrong. And the complex process of life from inception to death also betrays a complete denial to resurrection. There has to be an Intelligent and Just Lord waiting in ambush! What will I say to Him, if Hell turns out to be true?  Will I enter it alongside my beloved wife and children who are nourished by the fats and protein public wealth?

Truly, I am afraid, but I am also afraid of poverty. If I give up corruption and become poor, my enemies will think it is their curse that overtook me. But if I die with the wealth of the nation in my private account, will my enemies assist me against the Angel of Punishment?  I am somewhat torn between the devil and the deep blue sea.

My dear friend! Imagine if what you just read was a false confession from a young man who is reflecting on what he will make out of his life were he to be a public officer, will his false confessions make any true impact on your life? What if it is actually a true confession of an old civil servant or politician who has approached old age (and subsequently death) will you learn any lessons from his “wasted” years! It is important for us to know, fellow citizens, that people’s wealth can never be ours. Both conscience and religion deny us that.

Let’s be honest and work hard and sincerely for whatever we want in life. Just because we are living in hard times, does not mean we have got a licence to take bribes. Many became billionaires without reliance on the public treasury and many more will.  So, O young man, why are you afraid of relying on God and unleashing your potential to the fullest! Be wise now that you still have some time.

By Muhammad Sabiu