The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission has sealed the Chinese supermarket located within the China General Chamber of Commerce in Abuja, the nation’s capital.

Officials of the FCCPC stormed the premises and shut the supermarket on Monday.

The commission’s officials sealed up the place following the interrogation of Nigerian workers at the supermarket.

Recall that Nigerians had expressed outrage over a discriminatory policy implemented by the Chinese Supermarket for barring Nigerians.

The supermarket only granted exclusive entry to Chinese nationals in the country.

According to the facility manager of the complex, Shaibu Sanusi, Nigerians from outside the complex do not shop but Nigerians within can access it.

This was as facilities workers at the store disclosed that the owner of the supermarket had fled the premises.

The workers, who were largely Nigerians, disclosed that the owner of the supermarket had fled when the officials of the Commission stormed the supermarket on Monday.

The workers said that the owner of the supermarket, a Chinese lady, Cindy Liu Bei, fled on Monday at 8:26 am with her family as confirmed on the Closed-Circuit Television camera.

The FCCPC officials subsequently shut down the supermarket.

[Vanguard]

There is no disputation that Naira abuse or more specifically the act of spraying money at social events has become an acceptable norm or cultural practice in Nigeria. Nigerians have a cultural affinity for lavish social gatherings. Many people regard these occasions as a means of displaying social status and wealth. Spraying Naira notes, and other currency notes, at events progressively appears to be the ultimate way to flaunt your social standing.

Even burials that are supposed to be sober moments have been turned into considerable fanfare. This has created a new industry of mint note trading and events management. All of these constitute the social infrastructure of Naira abuse. A new dimension of the social infrastructure of Naira abuse is the arrival to the scene of the nouveau rich. Society has labelled them with all sorts of terminology: Yahoo Boys, Yahoo Plus, and 419.

Nigeria has since recognised the dangers of Naira abuse but that is not the focus of this piece. The government has made rules and laws to check it and provided enlightenment campaigns to educate people. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) gave Naira abuse as one of the reasons why it is pushing for digital-based financial transactions. Naira abuse, like its ancestor-mother social epidemic of corruption, has remained stubborn and refused to go away.

There is ambiguity about what constitutes Naira abuse. Section 21 of the CBN Act 2007 clearly defines Naira abuse and prescribes various punishments to deter citizens from abusing the Naira. They include – spraying banknotes at events; writing on banknotes; stapling banknotes; tearing banknotes; dancing or stamping on Naira; defacing the bank notes with substances or ink, oil; selling currency banknotes; mutilation of the Naira note; money bouquets. However, law enforcement has been lax. It is commonly believed that the laws against Naira abuse are either symbolic or desuetude because no one is held accountable, everyone gets away with it, and things have normalised.

The social phenomena of Naira abuse, especially the spraying of money, have become an epidemic in Nigeria. Lately, it is of significant concern. We have exported this to many parts of the world, and social media is replete with evidence of this in weddings and other social events attended by Nigerians in different parts of the world.

Malcolm Gladwell’s book, “The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference” explores the idea that social phenomena, like trends and epidemics, often reach a tipping point where they suddenly become widespread. He identifies three key factors that contribute to this tipping point: the Law of the Few (the idea that a small number of people have a disproportionate influence), the Stickiness Factor (how messages or ideas stick in the minds of people), and the Power of Context (how the environment influences behaviour).

Through engaging anecdotes and research, Gladwell illustrates how understanding these factors can help individuals and organisations create or manipulate trends and epidemics. The book emphasises the importance of attention to small details and understanding the social dynamics behind spreading ideas and behaviours. The fundamental concepts of the book about Naira Abuse are twofold. First, the cultural context or external environment provides the soil for bad or good behaviour to grow and spread. Second, key people with remarkable personalities can cause or stop social epidemics because of their social profile or social network.

There is a link between the recommendation of Malcolm Gladwell and the arrest and prosecution of Idris Okuneye better known as Bobrisky, a cross-dresser and social influencer, for Naira abuse, and the arrest and ongoing prosecution of Cubana Chief priest Pascal Okechukwu in connection with Naira abuse. Why selectively arrest the duo when everybody is involved in some form of Naira abuse either by trampling, spraying, mutilation or rumpling? It is nearly impossible for any law enforcement organisation to find and apprehend every perpetrator. Resources exist in limited supply. It is simple wisdom to begin with people who have disproportionate influence. This is perhaps what EFCC has done.

The first common ground is that both of them enjoy considerable social media influence whether for positive or negative reasons depending on your value system. These two cases, though similar, are following different paths. Bobrisky, in court, pleaded guilty and has since been handed six months imprisonment. Cubana Chief Priest did not plead guilty, so his case will go to full trial, putting the law to the test. This court case will assist us in providing answers to some critical questions: what are the societal ramifications of Naira spraying, and how can Naira misuse be proven? Is there a need to amend the existing law and make it more relevant to the challenge? Will this fresh wave of enforcement stop the epidemic of Naira abuse? Regardless of how the legal proceedings turn out, they have highlighted how important it is to take the triplet societal plague of poor social behaviour, Naira abuse, and their ancestor-mother corruption very seriously.

I have identified six pillars to control or stop Naira abuse: Fight corruption because it is an enabler for abuse of the Naira. The incestuous relationship between corruption, illicit financial transactions and Naira abuse is well established. Second, the government should deepen knowledge and change people’s orientation by embarking on mass enlightenment, people must understand clearly what constitutes Naira abuse and what the punishment is for such offence. Third, address cultural issues relating to Naira abuse through community engagement. People gifting money to celebrants on occasions is no crime but the manner of gifting is the issue. Fourth, the government should renew the push for digital transactions. Fifth, the government must strengthen the structures of law enforcement. It is not just a police and EFCC matter. The judiciary must upend its knowledge of the subject matter. Sixth, the government must be impartial and objectively enforce the law to change cultural norms and public behaviour that defaces the Naira. This may entail revisiting and improving the law.

The CBN, Police and the EFCC should study different models of changing public behaviour in the past and draw up a model and strategy to deal with the issue of Naira abuse, especially since it has become embedded in some cultures. Good examples abound abroad and in Nigeria. The British government employed various strategies to change public behaviour regarding spitting and other personal vices. Spitting in public places was prohibited by local bylaws or municipal regulations but it is social persuasion that gave the result. These laws serve as deterrents and can result in fines or other penalties for offenders. They launched public awareness campaigns, collaborated with community stakeholders, and monitored and enforced the law. However, most of all, they leveraged social norms and peer pressure to influence behaviour and encourage individuals to conform to accepted standards of behaviour by highlighting the societal consensus against spitting and certain destructive behaviours and showcasing positive role models who embody desirable conduct. Today, the practice of spitting publicly, urinating on the road corners, and other public nuisances are controlled to the barest minimum.
In Nigeria, good examples of efforts to change public behaviour can be seen around us. Most were successful to a greater degree. The government should revisit some of these campaigns and learn from them.

A model that seems to be working in Akwa Ibom State is the State Ethical and Attitudinal Reorientation initiative. Before 1999, the Akwa Ibom people experienced a severe social epidemic, “The Pervasive and prevalent House help Syndrome,” which gained widespread notoriety and led to the dubbed moniker “Ekaette” for nearly every female domestic helper. The administration of Obong Attah took up the task of reorienting the Akwa Ibom people’s mindset. He established the Ethical and Attitudinal Reorientation Commission (EARCOM) in Akwa Ibom and gave them the responsibility of raising public awareness about the importance of “minoring” vices and “majoring” in moral principles.

The struggle has persisted throughout the regimes, and Pastor Umo Eno’s present administration appears to be taking it to newer, more profound heights by hiring assistants for each ward and unit and charging them to carry out the commission’s work of value reorientation in remote areas. As bait, he is using the incentivisation and social support model, drawing on the country’s current food and hunger crisis to reach out with the message of value reorientation. Today, a negligible number of Akwa Ibom daughters are house helpers, and the majority are highflyers in the professions and business.

The success story of Akwa Ibom is a model that the federal government can replicate. Changing public behaviour requires a multifaceted approach that combines legislation, education, community engagement, social support and enforcement efforts. By addressing the underlying factors contributing to undesirable behaviours and promoting positive alternatives, governments can effectively shape public attitudes and foster a more socially responsible society.

The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) has revoked the certificates of incorporation of the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) subsidiaries over improper procurement.

The subsidiaries include NIPOST Transport and Logistics Services Limited and NIPOST Transport and Logistics Services Company Ltd

In a statement on Monday, CAC said the properties were improperly procured, hence the revocation of certificates.

The development is coming three months after the discovery of an illegal transfer of N10 billion in restructuring funds released by the federal ministry of finance to the agency’s subsidiaries.

“The general public is hereby informed that the Commission, sequel to its powers contained in Section 41 (7) of the Companies and Allied Matters Act No. 3 of 2020, revoked the Certificates of incorporation of the below-mentioned companies because the same was improperly procured,” CAC said.

“These companies are NIPOST Transport and Logistics Services Company Ltd RC 1673881 and 2. NIPOST Properties & Development Company Ltd RC 1673971.

“By virtue of these revocations, the Companies are deemed to be dissolved and their assets and liabilities transferred to the Nigeria Postal Services established under the Nigerian Postal Services Act Cap N127 LFN 2004.”

On November 21, 2023, the house of representatives approved the winding up and deregistration of the subsidiaries of NIPOST, deeming their establishment irregular and illegal.

The house also directed an investigation into the N10 billion released by the ministry of finance for the proposed NIPOST restructuring and recapitalisation.

According to the lawmakers, if the funds were found to be misappropriated, it must be fully recovered.

This decision was part of the lower chamber’s efforts to enhance transparency and accountability in the public sector.

Every law in force in every jurisdiction; be it religious or secular law forbids and frowns upon the act of killing another man and this act of killing another man is dealt with the most serious punishment available which is killing the killer in return. But there is only one instance when a person is permitted to kill another person and he will not be punished for it. The only time you are permitted in law to kill another man is in self-defence; i.e. you are in a kill-or-be-killed situation and you killed your attacker in defence of yourself; you just have to do it to save your own life, ie in the defence of your person or self-defence. 

In the case of Ekeozor V State (2016) LPELR-40951(CA) the court of appeal held that for an accused person to rely on the defence of self-defence, “it must be seen that the life of the accused was so much endangered by the act of your adversary that the only means of escape from imminent death was to kill the attacker”. See the case of Okordudu v state (2014)LPELR -23210(CA)

This legal permission to kill another person has qualifications and these are some of its qualifications;

Firstly, It must be in a kill-or-be-killed situation. This is to say that you are only permitted to kill in the defense of your person or your property. 

Secondly, your response to the attack must be commensurate or equivalent to the force or threat by your attacker. For instance, you are only permitted to defend yourself with a gun or other deadly weapons if someone attacks you with a gun or other deadly weapons but you cannot defend yourself with a gun or with other deadly weapons against an attacker who is only confronting you with a fist or without any weapon. This second qualification therefore implies that your reprisal attack must be commensurate or equivalent to the perceived threat/ attack by your adversary if not you have committed murder if your adversary dies from the reprisal attack and therefore will not be permitted to rely on the defence of self-defence. 

Thirdly, the reprisal attack or response to the attack against your adversary must be immediately or at the moment of the attack. For instance, if someone shoots at you, you must shoot back in that instant for it to amount to self-defence, if you have to wait later or to catch the person unaware before you shoot the person, it is no longer self-defence. Therefore, the response or reprisal attack must be in the heat of the moment for it to qualify as self-defence

Stan Alieke is an Abuja based legal practitioner and managing partner at Law Capitol, Abuja. 

Calls Alleged Statement “Odious Inanity” And “Lie From The Pit Of Hell

In a strongly worded response, renowned Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Prof Mike Ozekhome, has vehemently denied authoring a statement that criticized the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for failing to arrest former Zamfara State Governor, Abdulaziz Yari.

The alleged statement, which was published on the website Arewa Agenda, suggested that the EFCC was applying the law selectively and engaging in media trials.

Ozekhome, who has been a friend and lawyer to the current Zamfara State Governor, Bello Matawalle, for many years, described the statement as “odious inanity” and a “lie from the pit of hell.” He emphasized that he would never contemplate making such a “banal statement devoid of common sense and reasoning.”

The Senior Advocate, known for his advocacy of human rights, due process, democracy, and good governance for over four decades, questioned how he could be linked to a statement that suggests meddling in a matter that is subjudice or engaging in media trials and convictions before a proper trial.

Ozekhome called on members of the public to ignore the statement and its banner headline, labeling them as “utterly false, baseless, unfounded, and simply idiotic.” He referred to the authors of such statements as “faceless idle internet crawlers” and “millipedes of the internet,” borrowing a term coined by Nobel Laureate Prof Wole Soyinka.

The Senior Advocate further pointed out the absurdity of the alleged statement, noting that it quoted an earlier statement purportedly made by him about defeating the EFCC 11 times in court. He argued that he could not have been authoring a statement while simultaneously quoting himself.

Ozekhome urged the public to disregard the statement and consign it to the “trashcan of history where it rightly belongs.”

I attended the second Annual General Meeting of Access Holding Plc last on Friday mainly to discern the direction of its new leadership and pick up the strategic focus of the institution in the years ahead. The return of Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede to the Board as chairman last month created quite a buzz in the industry and within the institution. I take interest in studying leadership styles and so I was bent on attending this AGM. As a former staff, shareholder and student of strategy, I took in every moment of the two-hour meeting, listened to every word spoken, drew conclusions and and came away with six takeaways. Number 1: In all the comments, including the opening and closing prayers, it was clear that the shareholders have deep-seated faith in their new chairman, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, and the company’s leaders, Bolaji Agbede, the acting Group Chief Executive and Roosevelt Ogbonna, the managing director and chief executive of the bank, as well as others.

There were loud cheers from the shareholders as the directors walked in, an understandable exhalation after a painful and mournful period. Aigboje himself went around shaking hands and hugging the shareholders. It was clear that the investors habour no apprehensions about the direction of their company; not a sense of it veering off from its time-tested traditions and the foundation that created the financial powerhouse which it has become. No doubt that they backed and passed all the resolutions overwhelmingly, thus paving the way for the bank to meet and surpass the N500 billion minimum share capital base.

Two, I could glean deliberate efforts on the part of the chairman to project Bolaji and Roosevelt as the new leaders of the banking group; or should I say, he was careful not to overshadow them. I will mention an incident to buttress my point. After the meeting, Aigboje and Bolaji were facing two different cameras simultaneously, talking to two different group of journalists. In fact, I think Bolaji had even started her press conference before the chairman was ready. The bank’s communication team moved back and forth between the two to ensure that everything went well. I took it all in, remembering my days as a reporter. I was a business journalist covering events like this for many years and later, a PR executive managing things of this nature for a long time. I can’t recall seeing the chairman (least of all, an owner-chairman) and the CEO facing different cameras for post-event media briefing. In fact, it is the CEO that would be running around gathering the press for the chairman, who would first appear uninterested, before he saunters in with a magisterial arrogance! I think Aigboje just wants to encourage and build confidence in the team as emerging global leaders, even if he has to step behind.

Three, and this is very important. Raising capital has never been a problem for Access Bank, and I can’t see it as one this time. Between 2004 and 2007, the bank raised an equivalent of $2 billion when Aigboje was the CEO in his 30s, leading the same team which is in charge today. Now, the bank is seeking to raise an equivalent of $300 million (N365 billion) from a significantly larger base. With a more visible brand and bigger footprint across Africa and beyond, I don’t foresee Access not meeting this milestone within a record time. Speaking to journalists after the meeting, Aigboje disclosed that Access Holdings will deploy digital technology in raising its capital. ‘’In 2004, we went around Nigeria and it led to the democratization of the capital market. Other banks followed suit and the number of banks’ shareholders increased in manyfold and our capital market grew immensely. This time, we have the digital technology that we would deploy fully’’, he said.

Four, the Group’s decision to go by Rights Issue signals the its inclinations to protect the retail shareholders from dilution, and this is the promise Aigboje and Herbert made to them in 2002. They duo had told the shareholders then that they would always be carried along as the bank grows. Integrity is key in life. Five, there was a noticeably active participation of women shareholders at the AGM. In fact, the meeting commenced with the chairman requesting a shareholder, Mrs Bisi Bakare, to step forward and decorate him with the bank’s lapel pin to symbolize his assumption of duty. That simple, but touching task essentially set the tone for the rest of the event as the women shareholders participated fully and actively in the meeting. The roving microphone got to them more often than the men, or at least in equal measure, and the women expressed themselves loudly and clearly. The bank continues to lead in gender issues, just as in issues of sustainability and diversity.

Six, and this is my final takeaway, Access continues to dream big and Access people sure believe in their dreams. When I joined as a staff in 2008, the dream then was to make the bank one of the five biggest in the country. It appeared as a pipe dream then. But only four years after, it was achieved! Now, by reiterating to the shareholders that Access Holdings will become Africa’s best banking group (benchmarked against the South African giant, Standard Bank Group), the chairman noted that the company will be Nigeria’s best stocks in terms of returns in the nearest future. Another big dream! As a onetime US First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt said, the future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.

“Our advocacy should be to begin to develop the people and the land , make our youths productive ,initiate Agric projects that will engage our youths so food can be plenty and we can produce for the world , train them to acquire skills in thousands , free our women from the bondage of poverty by improving their trading skills into production .Afenifere ,led by Fashoranti ,Adebanjo and Akintoye and all Yoruba groups must be tuned to this new campaign for our land”

Self determination , Restructuring or even parliamentary style of governance will collapse or will be impossible to achieve with the present political class of leadership .

From ward level , in the different parties ,to the Local Government ,state and National Assembly membership ,we don’t have good quality minds that think of the populace like in the early days of Western Region .

Until we consciously especially in YORUBALAND begin the process of insisting on good governance , accountability in office ,and rapid promotion and development of the minds of our people and their environs in a glaring and commendable way and fashion to the admiration of other nationalities we shall spend a long time in the trenches and maybe be buried there.

Our advocacy should be to begin to develop the people and the land , make our youths productive ,initiate Agric projects that will engage our youths so food can be plenty and we can produce for the world , train them to acquire skills in thousands , free our women from the bondage of poverty by improving their trading skills into production .Afenifere ,led by Fashoranti ,Adebanjo and Akintoye and all Yoruba groups must be tuned to this new campaign for our land

Churches and Mosques must be made to have a production and human development skill acquisition centres to assist in the rapid development envisaged .

Another election mood will start in 8 months time and we won’t have been able to achieve anything by the time a second tenure campaign starts .

It is only when we on our own develop our land and free our people from the bondage of poverty can we begin to galvanise our Yoruba populace to see the value in the true and real Nation we dream of .

We should consciously and deliberately improve her land to be the envy of other nationalities ,it is only then that an overwhelming groundswell of support will truly emerge to demand for a true Yoruba Nation not the one built on this corrupt ,crime infested skeleton of our present political leadership that are groomed to loot ,trained to plunder ,and taught to ignore the wailings and ,cries of their people.

The people remain hopeless and defenceless in their hands as they continue to hammer the poverty nails in our heads and in the process extinguish our middle and upper class citenzry.

You need the People before you can have a Nation and right now we don’t have the People yet .let us start now or forever complain while we remain and die in the trenches .You can force a horse to a stream but cannot force it to drink water ..

He wore a grey goatie. The term “goatie” dates back to the ancient Empires of Rome and Greece, with Pan (a god) depicted as wearing a goatie. Our departed National Icon popularised it in Nigeria. He carried the goatie with admirable grace and panache. It exuded wisdom, intellect, patriotism and service. The series of events marking the transition of the erstwhile Governor of the old Anambra State (1992-1993), Chief Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife, bears eloquent testimony to the towering stature of a man who stood head and shoulders above most of his contemporaries in Nigeria’s political and social landscape. Yes, it is not an exaggeration to say that the Okwadike Igbo Ukwu was a colossus among men. He was many things all rolled into one: patriot; Harvard-trained development economist; public administrator; bureaucrat; civil servant; school teacher; consultant; politician; political activist; public affairs analyst/commentator; and many more.

The week-long programme of events which his political associates, admirers, kinsmen and family members organised in his honour is therefore befitting for a man who is honoured in his homeland. It cannot but be so, because Dr. Ezeife lived an impactful and richly fulfilled life. Julius Caesar’s wife, Calpurnia, was right when she said, “when beggars dies, there are no comets seen; the heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes” (Act II Scene II, Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare). He came of age when Nigeria was on the cusp of political independence and was, therefore, a child of circumstance. But, that opportunity could and would have been wasted had he not seized it – and more importantly – were he not equipped to do so. 

In this case, that preparation came in the form of education – Western-style education. Austere and Spartan-like Ezeife proudly benefitted from the best that was available, both in Nigeria and beyond: a first degree in Economics from Nigeria’s premier University – Ibadan – followed by Post-Graduate Ph.D degree in Harvard on Rockefeller foundation scholarship. And he certainly put them to good use: joining the newly-emerging (nascent) federal civil service in post-colonial Nigeria as an Administrative officer in the Federal Ministry of Economic Development, where he rose steadily to become a Permanent Secretary before he voluntarily retired in 1984. I first met him in 1984 (shortly before his retirement) when my late mentor, fiery Chief Gani Fawehinmi led me to him in his office to protest certain issues being handled by the Federal government.

Ezeife had acquired valuable consultancy experience with the Arthur D. Little Foundation. All these were to prove invaluable when Dr. Ezeife emerged somewhat surprisingly – as the 2^nd elected civilian Governor of the Old Anambra State, with the partial return to democracy in December 1991, beating seasoned politicians in the process. From all indications, his tenure as Governor was a resounding success, as he brought his unique wealth of experience and sound academic expertise and pedigree to bear in moving that state to a much higher level than he had met it. Subsequent, governments have merely built on his inerasable legacy.

Following the unfortunate termination of that Republic with the criminal annulment of the presidential election held on the 12^th day of June, 1993, Dr. Ezeife stood up to be counted as one of those who courageously called for its validation and respect for the popular will as expressed by the Nigerian people in that result. He actively associated with and joined other patriots in agitating for the release from political detention of the winner of that election proverb-smith, Chief Moshood Abiola.

Chief Ezeife is renowned for the historic “Handshake Across the Niger” which he and his Kinsmen (fellow Igbos) initiated by reaching out to their compatriots in the South-West in forging a Pan-Nigeria alliance which contributed in no small measure in easing the military from public space, thereby ushering in the democracy which we presently enjoy. The newly elected president of that Republic, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, needed little prompting and wasted no time in appointing Chief Ezeife as his Political Adviser; a position he served meritoriously to the admiration of all. His mature, calm, quality and informed advice on that beat has been severally acknowledged by his then principal, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo. This is to Chief Ezeife’s eternal credit.

However, beyond his public persona Chief Emeife was, in his lifetime, a man of God, a devout Christian and a man for all Seasons. Indeed, these beliefs and ideals were reflected in his choices as a public administrator and politician, ensuring that he always governed with a human face. He was never insensitive nor inconsiderate, and he always put people first in all his policies and programmes. This was aptly demonstrated when he successfully lobbied the Babaginda Administration to take over two State-owned institutions, the Anambra State University of Science and Technology as well as the State-owned Polytechnic, later renamed the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, and the Federal Polytechnic, Oko, respectively. The objective was to ensure their survival through access to the obviously deeper Federal purse. 

Chief Ezeife’s retirement from politics did not draw a curtain on his public engagement. He continued to preach good governance, transparency, accountability and the rule of law, which he articulated with his characteristic eloquence, erudition and wit. He had the gift of the garb and it was always a pleasure listening to the orator whose goatie gyrated slowly with the rhythm of a sage. We participated together at all the National Conferences since 2005 (2005 National Political Conference; Vision 2020; and the 2014 National Conference).

At these National Conferences, aimed at rejigging the weak fabric of the Nigerian Nation, I worked closely with the Okwadike as one of the leaders of thought of some Pan-Nigerian advisory teams that emerged from the conferences. The job of these select groups was to discuss very hot, emotive, controversial and divisive matters that threatened to tear the conferences apart. Along with these select leaders from all the geopolitical zones and different strata drawn from high profile delegates, we engaged such touchy issues, discussed them dispassionately and nationalistically and agreed on how best to steer the ships of the conferences during plenary sessions. This strategy helped douse emergent acrimony, mutual suspicion, religious nuances and ethnic misgivings during plenary debates. We broke down artificial barriers and agreed to work for one Nigeria. Dr. Ezeife was simply a marvel to behold when marshalling out his well-researched opinions. Nigeria in general and Ndigbo in particular have lost an irreplaceable gem.

Adieu, Okwadike, man of the People; man of letters, patriot, advocate for good governance, Bureaucrat, Pan-Nigerian; more!

Bye bye till we meet again on the final day.

In his days as governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello assumed the nickname ‘the White Lion’. Many people thought it was befitting, in an ironical sense, for an elected governor who saw his fellow men – his constituents – as prey. He hunted and haunted them to no end during the eight years of his tenure.

His favorite pastime was boxing. He never tired of showcasing himself in the gym with different makes of boxing gloves, and with those huge biceps of his, one could imagine he packed some deadly punch. Behind the faćade, however, Bello is a coward who lacks the courage of a lion and the strength of a boxer. While his tenure lasted, it was convenient to intimidate the people around him. Recent events pertaining to the inquisition into his tenure have put him on the run and exposed him for the lily-livered bully that he truly is.

Kogi has not been blessed with great leaders since 1999, but Yahaya Bello takes the biggest price in ineptitude. For the eight years he was in office as Governor, he did little to lift the spirit and circumstances of the poor and hapless people of the state and improve the deplorable condition of its infrastructure. And like I wrote elsewhere, on his watch, Lokoja the state capital, remains like a fishing settlement.

Bello ran Kogi State like an emperor: aloof, self-centred, boastful, overhearing, clannish and intolerant of dissent. He arrived full of promise and at a relatively young age of just 40, but he turned to be a huge disappointment to the youth that looked up to him. Civil servants stagnated, businesses and commercial activities collapsed and governance was reduced to a close circle of family, friends, and political acolytes. The political space in Kogi was literally shut down, and those who raised voices against the emperor ran a risk with their lives in a state where terror was believed to be state-sponsored.

He superintended a state where billions of Naira were diverted to private pockets and projects existed only on paper.

Yet, after what was a listless performance, Bello single-handedly nominated and succeeded, against the odds, in installing his former Chief of Staff, Ahmed Usman Ododo, as his successor. It runs against the grain of understanding that, in a state that stands on 3 legs, so to say, the Okun people would produce the governor after the Igala and the Ebira have taken turns. Trust Bello to fight tough and dirty; in the end he beat most of the dissenting voices into submission and got his kinsman into the seat.

Those who guessed that he wanted to continue ruling the state by proxy were right. From every indication right from the start, Ododo was adjudged fit-for-purpose and well prepared to ensure his (former) boss survives the imminent turbulence that many predicted would follow him after office.

The official declaration of Ododo as governor is still being contested in court, but the governor, in his short tenure so far, has proved useful, defending Bello’s inglorious tenure, offering him shelter and recently, turning himself and his office into instruments of obstruction to his arrest from the law.

Considering the litany of financial indiscretions while in office, Bello’s ongoing travails are to be expected. And when the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) came up with charges that N80.2 billion developed wings under Bellos nose in Kogi State, not many people were surprised. I wager that, humongous as the amount is, N80.2 billion is still a tip of the huge iceberg. A full inquisition into the tenure of the 48 year old man who allegedly owns one of the most exquisite private jets in Nigeria, would reveal so much more.

What we didn’t expect was that the sturdy muscular feet of the boxing enthusiast would turn to jelly so soon. The boast that he was ready to face any inquisition into his tenure in office has turned empty, after all. Bello, the lily-livered lion now lacks the courage to stand in his own defense, preferring to hide, literally, under Governor Ododo’s bed.

In the face of revelations by the EFCC, ‘the White Lion’ became cowardly. Reports since he left office, and since the EFCC inquisition started, make mockery of the man’s famed boldness. He allegedly holed up for months somewhere in Lugard House, seat of the state government in Lokoja, from where he occasionally sneaks out of town and into his Abuja mansion.

Ododo is also learning from the feet of his predecessor. He has not taken off on any resounding start since being inaugurated last February, but he has spent precious time either defending or covering up Bello’s malfeasances. Last week, he deployed his official vehicles and security details to Bello’s Abuja home to rescue him from imminent arrest by the anti-graft agency’s officials and drive him out of the city. How wrongly does a governor use tax-payers resources to thwart the course of justice?

Like the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) described the clear obstruction to the arrest, Ododo’s act is “insufferably disquieting”.

Bello can only run for a while. He will ultimately face the law since the EFCC has declared him wanted, placed him on the watch list and mounted a manhunt for him by the security agencies. The hunter is now being hunted like a common felon.

It is still morning in what may be a long manhunt and subsequent trial to reveal one man’s greed, avarice and financial indiscretions. Yahaya Bello will surely have his day in the law courts. After the EFCC trials, hopefully, we can raise questions about the sordid acts that led to many questionable killings in Kogi State and other acts of the state government that ensured that the political space in Kogi State was closed for all of eight years.

Bello has enjoyed his day in the sun, plundering such a poor state and victimizing millions of its inhabitants while satisfying his avarice. He will surely have his day with the cold hands of the law.

As I was saying, 'Even in South Korea, rated as No.5 in the world, in terms of budgeting and funding for research and development, the brand maker of Samsung, there is a separate Ministry of Knowledge Development apart from the Ministry of Education - all in a bid to use quality in education of their citizens and public servants weapon of country and global competitiveness.
What is more the United States that often boasts of its exceptionalism in the world order, has been recorded as having subscribed to a scientific way of producing unknown geniuses for both public and private sectors.
In a ground-breaking work, David Plotz, a professor in 2005 wrote about how in 1980, an eccentric American millionaire launched a Nobel Prize Sperm Bank, intended to create a new generation of super-kids. Stocked with the seed of gifted scientists, inventors, businessmen and thinkers, including several Nobel laureates, the 'genius factory' produced more than 200 children before it quietly closed its doors in 1999. The book titled, 'The Genius Factor: Unveiling The Mysteries of The Nobel Prize Sperm Bank hints at a fact that the project 1980, which traced some of the sperm donors could have produced the brilliant progeny that the founder expected -and that reveals why America has been producing more Nobel laureates and remains Number One in economy and inventions.

That shows clearly that you cannot make progress with a policy instrument that elevates the illiterate of the 21st century who Alvin Toffler, a futurist says cannot learn, unlearn and relearn wherever they are. Toffler says: 'The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn'
Let's continue on the way forward for a new public service: Senior citizens need to speak some truths to power at this time that development is no longer a mystery but a well understood process that a fair number of countries have successfully undertaken. What is more, the foundations for success lie in getting the politics right. After that important lessons learnt by other countries can be implemented. As it is recorded in 'Making Africa Work: A Hand Book' (Mills, et al, 2017), Central to the turnaround of many countries, enabling them to implement pro-growth policies was creating a sense of urgency, a realisation that business as usual would lead to disaster.
Several Asian countries, including f Singapore, Indonesia, South Korea and Taiwan, were able to use their crises to create a narrative that allowed leaders to implement difficult policies and to explain why changes were needed. Leaders were able to show first that the state itself, protector of the current population, would be threatened if difficult decisions were not made immediately.

By implementing good policies, leaders will be able to convince their citizens that the sacrifices demanded would not be in vain but would, in fact, result in a better economy and society for their children because the government is a competent steward of the economy. Experience in national planning highlights the fact that it is both possible and necessary to distinguish between cross-cutting and specific sectoral actions when planning reforms. Moreover, despite being founded on solid analysis of the constraints, African reform initiatives are often characterized by sweeping, big-picture reforms with unrealistic goals.
There is a need to break these down into deliverable actions such as: There has to be a premium on getting things done. To tackle national priorities, there needs to be a ruthless prioritisation that focuses available government capacity on delivering the essential elements of a reform programme on Quality education for progress: there must be compilation of reliable education statistics to know where we are in the world of technology beginning with STEM subjects in post primary education
Opportunity for devolution of educational development as suggested by Adamolekun (2022). The UBE Act 2004 should be amended or repealed and such responsibilities should be transferred to sub national governments. Besides, the fact that only the National Universities Commission (NUC) and Joint Admission and Matriculation Board are setting standards and regulating about 266 universities of federal, state and private ones can't work The agencies were set up when there were only 22. universities.

There should be robust funding for education at all levels as a matter of priorities. When corruption is stemmed, funds saved should be available for remarkable investment in education including ICT infrastructure in universities: Google in 2018 took its Al Centre to Ghana when no Nigerian University was equipped enough to play host to the Centre because of poor equipment in Computer Engineering Schools.
There should be a concomitant opportunity for university autonomy, which has been legalised. There should be more serious meetings and elite consensus on how we can use education quality to produce our genius factories.
There should be focus on control of public finance so that political leaders can't just waste and spend public funds arbitrarily on election petitions and other personal matters including purchase of real estates and investments. For instance, how do we prevent members of the families of our leaders from hijacking procurements? What happened to the old policies of Permanent Secretaries as chief accounting officers?

How do our leaders get billions they allegedly pay big lawyers for their elections petitions? When can the Public Procurement Council, a 2007 Act established be inaugurated? How can the senior civil servants in National Assembly reduce opaque accounting system there? Another take away from this construct here is in the conclusion here: The primary purpose of government in any modern state is goods and services delivery to the public and so the primary instrument of government for the service delivery is the Civil Service. Therefore, any reform should be capable of tackling bureaucratic delays and reduce opportunities for corruption as these are essential elements for setting up the business environment for success. Foreign direct investments will continue to be a mirage if we can't produce ethical civil and public servants who can reduce opportunities for corruption.
There is a need to keep government costs (and overheads) low and match ambition with pragmatism, and growth will follow quickly as the examples of Ethiopian and Emirates airlines have shown around us in Africa and the Middle East.
This is why civil servants should be made to ensure that the implementation of the 2012 Oronsaye Panel Report isn't what Shakespeare calls another 'tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury again, signifying nothing' after the report of yet another committee by President Tinubu.

So, the deliverables again:

The federal character principle should not trump merit if we are to lead the black race. The education sector must be reformed and well funded to be able to produce
the best brains for the public and private sectors too.

Such institutions need autonomy and investment in a devolution that will allow them to prosper.

There is a need for reform of public finance management system; the office of the Auditor General of the Federation and the 36 States and Abuja should be made to work to prevent media trials that some anti-graft agencies do. If the Civil Service works as the old federal and regional ones, opportunities for corruption will be reduced.

There should be audit of the system to flush out corrupt officers from the system.
But before I draw the curtain, what happened to the February 25, 2001 remarkable document called The Kuru Declaration, which set out to settle all the challenges that we have gathered here to discuss? Let’s revisit the declaration:

We Ministers, Special Advisers and Permanent Secretaries of the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, having participated at the 4th Retreat for federal Ministers and Permanent Secretaries, hosted by His Excellency President Olusegun Obasanjo at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, 23-25 February 2001 and having discussed, analysed and fully considered the new Orientation as proposed and presented by His Excellency, Olusegun Obasanjo, HEREBY DECLARED THAT:

(1) We subscribe to the New National Ideology, which is, to build a truly great African democratic country, politically united, integrated and stable, economically prosperous, socially organised, with equal opportunity for all, and responsibility from all, to become the catalyst of Black Renaissance, and making adequate all- embracing contributions, sub-regionally, regionally, and globally.

(2) We adopt the New Orientation as an agenda for: dealing with immediate and future issues of governance of Nigeria; Removing impediments to efficiency and effective implementation and execution of programmes initiated by the Federal Government; and Expeditious actualisation of Government objectives and vision of national renewal and re-construction.

(3) We rededicate ourselves and those who serve under us to the values of patriotism, honesty, hard work and diligence, merit and excellence, trustworthiness, personal discipline, tolerance and mutual respect, justice and fairness, love, care and compassion.

(4) We pledge to eschew corruption, slothfulness, nepotism, indiscipline, bitterness, prejudice and other manifestations of anti-social behaviour.

(5) We shall undertake a critical review of practices and procedures in every Department of Government, so as to rapidly increase their productivity and service delivery to the public;

(6) We shall foster a culture of efficiency in the management of funds and other resources; maintaining high standards of resource management; and reducing waste at all times.

(7) We shall efficiently supervise all Government Departments and Agencies, ensuring timely returns and reports, and undertaking regular spot-checks;

(8) We shall abide by the terms of the Code of Conduct, which we all have signed as expression of our commitment to the crusade against corruption, and working; with all relevant agencies such as the Independent Corruption Practices and other Related Offences Commission, the Code of Conduct Bureau and the Public Complaints Commission;

(9) We undertake to strengthen the partnership in working with the private sector, since this partnership translates to a better appreciation of the wealth- creating capacity of this sector, and the need for Government, through its various ministries and legislative processes, create an enabling environment for the sect to function efficiently as the major driver of the economy.

(10) We shall strive to strengthen and inculcate the culture of working closely and in consultation with the leadership of labour and Civil society organisations.

(11) We shall mobilise, involve and promote the interest of all stakeholders, namely, the society in general; since, in the ultimate, all decisions and actions of Government are aimed at the promotion of public welfare, there is also the need for a new attitude that has that welfare permanently in focus, as the only goal, a1 the economic well-being of all citizens, under unfettered freedom, is of cardinal importance;

(12) We shall design strategies and techniques of implementation for the New Orientation so as to ensure that the values being inculcated permeate all levels of Management and staff".

We can see that the demon we need to kick out is the one that has always prevented us from implementing policies that will define change. So, the nation waits for the public sector to help the present government to renew its strategy for development. And looking at The Kuru Declaration (2001) again, that should be the starting point.

Concluded!