ONCE in a while I visit the newsstand to feel the pulse of the people. The People’s Parliament is what some call it. When I got there last Thursday, I met them discussing the Ebora Owu.

“Don’t mind Baba. Age is telling on him. We tried the parliamentary system; we tried the military; we tried dictatorship, and we have now tried the presidential system – which was better?”

Another man cut in: “That is why the Baba is saying we should try our own African system”

“Which African system? The type where the king can commandeer your wife and you must not talk or where he can ask them to cut off your head just for the fun of it?”

“Of course, not! The world is more civilized than that now!”

“It is not enough to simply condemn a system that is working elsewhere. The question the Baba must ask is why is it working elsewhere but is not working here”

“He has answered the question! He said it is not working here because we are black. Black man, black ideas, black brains, black stomach, black everything; black behaviour!”

“It means Baba himself is part of the problem. He was a military dictator and he was also civilian president. What were his achievements?”

“We should ask him to tell us somewhere in Africa where the system he is advocating is in operation”

“He is advocating a brand new system; we have to invent it ourselves!”

“You see! Baba does not mean well. We should begin to waste time inventing a new system which no one is sure will work”

 

“I don’t understand why you people are wasting your time on Baba. Is the same Western model of democracy not working in Rwanda? Since the military coup in Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso, is military rule not also working in those places better than the previous governments?”

“So, what you are saying is that the problem is not the system but in the operators of the system?”

“Exactly!”

And I remembered Cassius telling Brutus in William Shakespeare’s “Julius Caesar”: “The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars but in ourselves, that we are underlings” With Nigeria’s foundations already destroyed, no antediluvian African system of government will perform any magic. Work on the foundations, if they are still repairable.

Keeping abreast of all the arguments from different angles was impossible; so, I let some pass, but not those on Premier League and other foreign leagues. It amuses me that, abandoning their own home leagues and rooting for foreign leagues, they did not understand that they are part of the problem of capital flight and brain drain. I said so but to no one in particular and someone responded:

“I used to support Rangers International but that was when Rangers was Rangers”

Another said “ Up Bendel!”

“Bendel don die!” jeered one.

Then I remembered that I used to be a lover of ICCC Shooting Stars of Ibadan. UP SOOTIN! But that was then. SOOTIN, too, is now a shadow of its former self. I cannot remember the last time I watched a local league match. I have also stopped being a supporter of any of Nigeria’s football teams, be they male or female and whether at international or continental level, but I broke with tradition and watched the last Cup of Nations. Was I disappointed!

My reason for being aloof was echoed by one of the men when he said, “Sir, if you don’t want to develop high blood pressure and die suddenly, stop following the national team or local league”

”It is true ooo!”concurred another.

“Have you forgotten how many people died when the Super Eagles failed some months ago in Cote D”Ivoire?”

Yes, I knew people died, but so also do people die when the foreign clubs they support fail. The incontestable fact is that our people enjoy foreign leagues better than home leagues.

“If you want to enjoy good football, watch Man. C .”, chanted one as he began to gyrate all over the place with shouts of “Man. C., Mam. C”. Not to be outdone, chants of Arsenal, Man.U., Barca for life were raised by those clubs own ardent devotees. Why are our own clubs and local leagues not popular with our own people? The quality is poor! And little or no effort is being made to improve things. Then, of course, our people lack a sense of “our own”. Patriotism is alien here! A people who do not see what they enjoy or benefit from the country, and who have no hope the country is ever going to move in the right direction, will look elsewhere for succour.

Suddenly, someone shouted: “Make dem die finish!”

“Who dem be/”, another inquired. “

Wu-ko and Fine bara!”

Wike is the one the man called Wu-ko! Wike’s gutterish voice imitates that of someone about to cough, hence “wu-ko” which means “cough” while Fubara is “Fine bara”!

“If I find somebody who puts me in a position to make me dey chop, I won’t struggle with am ooo! Ten percent don do me; make imdey take the remaining 90 percent”

“Na im  be say you be mumu. How you go dey a position and another man go dey control you so tay you no go fit breathe again”?

“Na greediness dey worry Fine bara. Him fit get there without Wu-ko?”

“Too much of everything is bad! How can the governor take 10 percent and the former governor go take 90 percent?”

”God that created us, what percentage does he take from us? Is it not 10 percent? Oju-kokoro, greedy eyes, no good!”

So, these people also know the scriptures! Tithe, truly, is 10 percent. But should public funds be sequestered for personal use by political office holders in the brazen manner we have witnessed all over the country, I asked and one of them volunteered: “Oga, it is like that everywhere. Tell me one place where it is not like that?”. I scratched my head as I pondered the question. I called it a day after two hours at the newsstand.

I returned again the next day and met them discussing the Labour-FG tango over a new minimum wage. “How does that concern me? I am not a salary earner. How do I benefit from any minimum wage nonsense, except that it will fuel inflation again and I will be the worst for it?”

”Don’t be selfish! There must be someone in your family who will benefit”

“Will that person share his or her salary with me?”

“Are you, therefore, saying that there should be no salary increase?”

“I am saying that Labour should also consider those of us who are not salary earners and pursue policies that will benefit everyone, not their members alone”

“Labour is fighting for everyone. Salary increment will have multiplier effects on everyone, including even the market men and women”

“Exactly, the multiplier effect of inflation on house rents, school fees, transportation costs, foodstuffs…”

One man, who had maintained stoic silence since, now interjected: “Please tell us what you think Labour should be doing – fold their arms and pretend there is no suffering in the land?”

“Rara o! Who is talking of folding of arms? I am saying they should fight for benefits that will reach everyone”

”Like what and what?”

“If we go back to agriculture and begin to grow both cash and food crops, food prices will drop and everyone will benefit. If they pump money into the health and education sectors, everyone will benefit”

You would think he was not interested in the discussion but the vendor himself now interjected: “What of public transportation because that is what concerns me most? ”

“Do you  know how many millions of vehicles are on Lagos roads alone? How many vehicles can the government provide on Lagos roads alone? Transportation is best left to private initiatives, with the government only providing the enabling environment”.

Until she spoke, I did not notice there was a woman there among what is called the “Free Readers’ Association. It used to be free but not any longer! To be allowed to read any newspaper, a fee is charged, which varies from place to place.

“When will the government stop spending money on power supply?”

Everyone’s looks expressed surprise at the question. Shouldn’t the government be expected to spend more on power supply so we can have electricity?

“Because”, she continued, “the more money they spend, the more darkness we have”.

The front page news of many of the newspapers was another N3.3 trillion that the Federal Government was spending again on power supply. Casting my mind back, I began to recall the billions of dollars that this same power sector has consumed, from the presidency of Obasanjo to the present administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The more you look, the more peculiar the mess! But are you surprised! The power minister is said to be the scion of First Republic Ibadan politician, Adelabu Adegoke aka Penkelemesi( Peculiar Mess). Truly, it is a peculiar mess of the highest order when the minister was reported as saying why we are in darkness is because Nigerians waste power by putting on their fridges and freezers days on-end! What a Peculiar Mess!

I got jolted from my thoughts by one one fellow: “For as long as our leaders have access to generators and do not feel what we feel, don’t ever expect a solution from them” Sounds plausible! Rita Marley, Bob Marley’s widow, says it is he who feels it that knows it.

The vendor again turned to me and said: “E gbo, when will the price of fuel come down? Or has Dangote refinery not started operations?”  I cleared my throat, like Wu-ko, as I pondered what to say.  I said: “There is scanty information out there on this very sensitive matter. Some say the refinery has started full production while some say it has not. Some also say Nigeria is not producing enough crude oil; that we are not meeting our production capacity by more than one million barrels per day. Therefore, our contractual obligations to other customers may have constrained our meeting the refinery’s crude oil needs and it has to resort to importing crude to feed itself…” I hadn’t landed when one of them interjected, “So there is no hope that the price of petrol will come down any time soon?”

I said goodbye to the vendor, meandered my way out of the crowd and headed home – filled with floods of thoughts. Even if we meet Dangote’s crude oil needs, will the price of petrol reasonably come down here? With the IMF insisting that subsidies on fuel and electricity be removed, shouldn’t they tell us what the government should subsidize for Nigerians since their own governments subsidize one thing or the other for their own people?

Grammy Award-winning singer Damini Ebunoluwa Ogulu, popularly known as Burna Boy, has revealed why he is not yet ready to have children.

During an Instagram live session monitored R, Burna Boy explained that his desire to provide the same level of love and dedication his parents gave him is the reason he is not having kids.

“Why haven’t I had kids yet? Bro, it’s because I don’t want to have kids,” Burna Boy stated. “Like, have you seen my operation? Have you seen my mom the way she loves me? Have you seen my dad the way he loves me?”

He further elaborated, “Bro, I know I can’t give that to anyone right now with the life I live. So until I am settled and can be there for my children every day, every minute of every day, I am not having any kids.”

[Nigerian Tribune]

They say if the heavens fall, everything on the surface of the earth will bear the brunt. In a comparatively minuscule scale, that is what happened to the 100-level students of Obafemi Awolowo University caught under the falling roof of their university’s amphitheatre last week. They were in the midst of a lecture when a rainstorm brought down the roofing of the building on their heads. Scores of students were injured in the ensuing scramble while two of their colleagues who were critically injured were hospitalised.

Anyone not familiar with how far things have degenerated in Nigerian universities and the many ‘creative’ ways in which university administrators have been trying to cope will naturally ask what business students had in the amphitheatre at that time of the morning, and where the falling roofing flew in from. Under normal circumstances, an amphitheatre is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek, ‘amphitheatron’, meaning ‘viewing from both sides’.

Amphitheatre

Isidore of Seville— the Hispano-Roman scholar and theologian who wrote numerous books, including a dictionary, an encyclopedia, a history of Goths, and a history of the world— in his work, Etymologies, elucidates: “The amphitheater is so called because it is composed of two theatres, for an amphitheater is round, whereas a theatre, having a semicircular shape, is half an amphitheatre.”

Ancient Roman amphitheatres were oval or circular in plan, with seating tiers that surrounded the central performance area, like a modern open-air stadium. In contrast, both ancient Greek and ancient Roman theatres were built in a semicircle, with tiered seating rising on one side of the performance area.

Typically, therefore, an amphitheatre is an open circular or oval building with a central space surrounded by tiers of seats for spectators. Whereas a theatre is designed with a semicircular seating gallery, an amphitheatre provides double the space because the sitting area virtually embraces or attempts to hug the stage.

That was the original concept of the world class Israeli architect who designed Africa’s most beautiful campus, Obafemi Awolowo University. His name was Arieh Sharon. He had trained at the Bauhaus in Germany in the 1920s before moving to Tel Aviv where he created numerous government buildings and landmark structures. He brought experience in designing for hot climates as well as intimate familiarity with Modernism to Nigeria as the emerging gale of independence on the continent gave the promise of Africa as a forward-moving entity.

Sharon designed the university in 1961. His OAU buildings varied in their dates of construction, but are made mainly from concrete, designed to accommodate the tropical climate and sun exposure, with ventilation provided through open hallways and stairways. The alluring visual twists and turns of his designs are even, till now, simply breath-taking.

The amphitheatre is the open air ‘twin’ of Oduduwa Hall, the university’s flamboyant ceremonials building. Constructed from 1972 to 1976, Oduduwa hall has a dramatic shallow-steps approach from the plaza and has a sitting capacity of 1400 which is often stretched to 2000, while the amphitheatre can house a larger audience of 3500 routinely extended to 5000.

No Need For Roofing

It would be difficult, if not impossible, for any Great Ife student of the 70s or early 80s to conceive of the amphitheatre with a roof! There are certain things that simply do not fit, like a leash around the head of a hen! An amphitheatre by definition is an open air affair. If it required a roof, that would have been conceived with the design and construction — and then, its name wouldn’t be ‘amphitheatre’. Everything about the facility had been well calculated at inception. For instance, its design allows the voice of anyone on stage to ‘carry’ across the womb of the space. Specific acoustic calculations must have been factored in.

But as the years rolled by and the then military government progressively reduced investment in education, university administrators, caught between a burgeoning population of students and inadequacy of facilities, chose the easiest way out — conversion of existing facilities to new uses. That accounted for why the venue for the General Studies (compulsory) course was moved from the existing auditoria to the Sports Centre because only that complex could hold the teeming population of students. A visiting foreigner would wonder what a stadium had to do with classroom activities!

That was the kind of milieu in which the amphitheatre was ‘desecrated’ with a roof! I still remember the Fela gigs we had at that venue in the 70s. The originator of Afrobeat, the great Abami Eda himself known for originality, confessed that the Great Ife amphitheatre was one of the most purpose-built venues he had ever performed in. For a man who had seen it all as far as theatres and such venues went, that assessment can’t be waived aside.

As far as I know, this is the second scary incident that has happened in the Oduduwa Amphitheatre in just over two decades. In 2021, three students were rushed to the University Health Centre following a stampede that occurred at the amphitheatre as a result of the large number of students taking the SER 001 (Use of English) mid-semester test. SER 001 was a compulsory course for all freshers.

Due to the large population and restiveness of the students, the time schedule stated for different batches of students was not adhered to. There was a massing up of batches and the situation resulted in a scramble as those entering the venue pressed against those attempting to leave, resulting in a stampede in which many students sustained injury.

The recent incident was more serious both in the number of casualties and extent of injury. The students were having an early morning lecture when the storm that tore the roof came calling. The Vice-Chancellor physically led rescue efforts and accompanied the victims to the hospital. He thereafter ordered that the amphitheatre be sealed off while an investigation was underway.

Restoration

The consensus among the university’s alumni on social media is that the amphitheatre be restored to its original state, sans the alien roof. The university ought to think of other ways of coping with its burgeoning student population than roofing an ideally roofless building.

The installation of the fallen roof was an original sin against aesthetics and civil engineering. It was also an insult to unprofaned amphitheatres all over the world. My humble demand: Tear down whatever is left of that offending roofing and let good old Oduduwa Amphitheatre be!

Christopher Who?

Nigerians took to the microblogging platform X.com to demand that British journalist Christopher Wilson apologise for his Nazi insult directed at Nigerians in the wake of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s visit to Nigeria.

Wilson had, last week, compared Nigerians to Nazis in a now-deleted post which reeked of hate for the Prince of Sussex and racism towards his wife, Megan. Comparing Nigeria to Nazi Germany for the love and hospitality shown to the couple also showed that Wilson is probably also mentally unstable. His drivel: “Desperate to show his wife they were still ‘royal’ in the eyes of the world, the Duke of Windsor took Wallis on a tour of Germany in 1937. Nigeria’s human rights record is not far short of Nazi Germany’s”.

The coward crawled back into his mother’s womb when Nigerians descended on him on the X platform. Check his photograph again. A cursory analysis of his face with its unmistakable scowl shows undiluted hate, the type common among the wannabe children of fellow commoners who, detesting the base steps from which they climbed the ladder of life, imagine that by inventing royal enemies, their own ‘aristocracy’ is assured. Imagine the temerity of this nameless plebeian!

Nigeria’s U-17 women’s national team defeated their counterparts from Burkina Faso to advance to the fourth and final qualifying round for the 2024 FIFA U17 World Cup in the Dominican Republic.

The Flamingos powered to a well-deserved [6-0] win over their West African neighbours inside the National Stadium in Abuja to secure a [7-1] aggregate victory.

Harmony Chidi was Nigeria’s outstanding performer as the young forward netted an excellent hat-trick while Peace Effiong claimed a brace to inspire the Flamingos to another huge win.

It would be recalled that the two teams played out a [1-1] draw at the Stade 26 Mars in Bamako, Mali, last week.

However, the Flamingos were in no mood for niceties in Abuja on Saturday as the coach Bankole Olowookere took a two-goal lead into the halftime break.

Chidi gave Nigeria the lead in the 11th minute before Peace Effiong doubled the advantage just past the half-hour mark.

Nigeria extended the superiority after the interval with Chidi heading home her second of the match and the Flamingos’ third and Ramota Kareem’s brilliant effort compounded the woes for the visitors.

Chidi completed her hat-trick four minutes from time before Peace Effiong bagged her second of the encounter as the rampant Flamingos made light work of Burkina Faso.

The Flamingos’ [6-0] win equals Nigeria’s biggest win during the qualifiers and the country’s best result since beating Azerbaijan 11-0 at the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup in 2012.

Nigeria have now advanced to the final qualifying round of the 2024 Women’s World Cup, where Flamingos will face either Senegal or Liberia.

The Flamingos won a bronze medal at the 2022 edition of the U17 Women’s World Cup in India after beating Germany in the third-place match.

[Leadership]

The drama of political bad manners in Rivers State is about to enter  the ‘last corner’.  Incumbent governor Mr. Siminalayi Fubara has dealt a survival kick after being pushed to the wall for most of his one year tenure. In quick succession, he has turned the table on his chief adversary, FCT minister, Nyesom Wike. Mob support for the embattled governor has invaded the streets of Port Harcourt. The governor has won a decisive and most significant court fight to invalidate the legitimacy of the pro-Wike legislators. The 25 former legislators are now illegal occupants of their very quarters. A better funded appeal may yet problematize the subsisting court outcome. For now, Mr. Wike is yet to find an appropriate political vocabulary to describe his fading political glory.

In the interim, all the political outcomes seem to favour the governor.  Similarly, most of the significant political voices in the state have come out openly to challenge Mr. Wike’s long standing domination of the Rivers political turf. From most indications, Mr. Wike’s imperial reign seems to be entering its last days.

Unfortunately, as the unfolding drama goes on, there is very little real governance going on. If this turf war goes on and worsens, Rivers state may be another case of a state with immense resources but an arrested development. The ordinary people of the state may end up as the ultimate losers in this drama of an emperor with his ultimate nemesis.

The unwritten handbook of godfatherism in Nigerian  politics is about to be shredded. Mr. Wike had done an untidy job of handing the baton of state governorship to his former state Accountant General. The illicit logic was perhaps that the critical challenge of all former governors in Nigeria is the extent to which they control the bag of tricks played while they were in office. Who better to guard your money secrets when you leave office than the chief book keeper of the state? That thinking seems to be up in smoke now that governor Fubara, the ex- Account General turned governor has rediscovered that he is first and foremost a state governor and not an errand boy of a departing emperor. His recognition seems to be that  he needs to be in both office and in power in order to command credibility no matter how they got to office.

The trouble is perhaps that Mr. Wike schemed to put Fubara in office and not in power from the beginning. The governor  seems to have realized that the opposite is what he needs. He needs to be in both power and in politics.  The key hubris committed by Mr. Wike is that he did  not allow Fubara to be  minimally in office. He therefore reportedly surrounded the new governor with commissioners whom he himself chose. He reportedly dictated the portfolios, reporting line and created a separate line of reporting which ultimately ended with him in far away Abuja. Most importantly, all the state legislators were sponsored and loyal to Mr. Wike. As it were, Wike was to run Rivers State from his duty post in Abuja. He also put in place a coterie of local government chairpersons in all 23 local governments. Effectively, the entire political structure of Rivers state was in Mr. Wike’s back pocket. He himself openly boasted that he had paid the nomination fees of all political office holders in the state.

In order to keep his home base in tact politically, Wike maintained an eagle eyed watch over the state as an extension of his political manor. He had while in office either alienated or marginalized all major political voices in the state. An army of political jobbers and handpicked war lords maintained surveillance for Mr. Wike from inside the governor’s office,  the state assembly and the local governments. An imperial rule was put in place over an entire state and has lasted for nearly 9 years.

But in pursuit of his imperial oversight  over the state, Mr. Wike forgot a few rules of power incumbency. A man in a powerful political office such as that of a state governorship would want to be seen to wield the power of his office. Secondly, there can be only one captain on board a ship of state.  The commissioners were either serving Wike or Fubara. Similarly, the state legislators could not afford to be at variance with the governor who pays their salaries, allowances and sundry costs. Most importantly, the rule that governs the relationship of a political god father and his surrogate is ruled by distance. The political god father must keep his distance . A god father who insists on having overriding influence over  his surrogate and also sharing political visibility  and the limelight with the surrogate is preparing for suicide. Wike wanted both control, influence and visibility. At the slightes opportunity, he was present in Rivers state, attending church events and converting them into political sermons, visiting key constituencies and holding sundry political meeting.  Confronted with such a god father, the incumbent who wants to survive in office has only one choice: commit political regicide in order to regain his freedom.

The initial role of President Tinubu in the crisis was a bit more problematic. He had a primary responsibility to ensure peace and security in Rivers state failing which he would be confronted with an impossible national security challenge. He needed to protect Wike who had become his political axe man in Rivers in order to use him to guarantee APC support in the strategic state. Ostensibly , Wike had risked his political neck in order to guarantee both electoral victory and political support for Tinubu and the APC in Rivers. The President needed to play multiple impossible roles: impartial political arbiter as head of state, interested political leader of an embattled APC in Rivers, the protector of the political interest of his minister  of the strategic FCT. That was the source of the early agreement that restored minimal co-operation between Wike and Fubara. But that respite evaporated soon enough because it was untenable and not founded in any sensible appreciation of the realities of Rivers politics.

But the grounds of that agreement were precarious and tenuous. It did not have understanding or control of the crucial factors that determine what happens in Rivers politics. The flow of money to oil the machinery of support could not be controlled from Abuja. There is no open campaign and so ‘political money’ cannot be used to buy support in the state. There is a limit to Wike’s war chest. He is not contesting an election in the state and cannot run riot with FCT resources as he probably could as Rivers state governor. Only Mr. Fubara has control over the money and power required to keep political support in Rivers State. 

Most importantly, the abiding polarity in Rivers politics is the divide and balance of power between the demographics of the upland areas counter balanced by the resource base of the riverine areas. It is a balancing act between the Ijaw of the ancient oil river areas and the rest of the state. In recent times, Ijaw nationalism has acquired an unmistakable militancy  which it has weaponized in pursuit of resource control at  national and international  levels. Niger Delta nationalism in pursuit of resource equity in Nigeria has become part of the international vocabulary about minority rights in the world.

The ability of the Ijaw to make life impossible for the rest of Nigeria is no longer in doubt. That capacity is even more enlarged in the context of states like Rivers, Bayelsa and Delta especially.

Therefore, Mr. Wike’s open threats to Fubara’s governorship reminded the governor that he is primarily an Ijaw son. He has now weaponized that latent political asset to arrive at the present pass. This obviously creates serious problems with President Tinubu’s initial apparent support for Wike. As the table seems to have turned in favour of Fubara, Tinubu has retreated under the fire of the changed canvas of the confrontation. He cannot afford to endanger the national golden goose of the Niger Delta. He cannot also afford to back a minister who seems to be losing his support base very feast. It is safer to play and sound neutral and statesmanlike. That is the safe harbor where Tinubu is right now.

In line with the logic of the twist of power towards more of governor Fubara,  the political pendulum in the state is fast shifting towards support for the previously embattled governor. Key political figures like Odili, Secondus, Opara, Omehia and others have swung towards the governor. There is no end to the number of political enemies that Wike made during his imperial rulership of the state as governor. These have now become natural allies of the governor. Inside his own party, the PDP, Mr. Wike may not find the support to fight a local battle in the state. A state that had previously been celebrated as a PDP state is now so badly shaken that it is neither a PDP state nor an APC state. Wike has himself become something of a political bat, neither a bird nor a mammal. He is neither APC nor PDP.

At the national level, he is tolerated by the APC hierarchy as the president’s hatchet man  and ‘friend’ but a risky political capital. If Tinubu admits him into APC, it will be a risk he took alone and may have to pay for later. The PDP at the national level cannot re-embrace Wike because he is a divisive figure who has grossly damaged the party and literally neutralized its national and state chances.

The real nightmare for emperor Wike is the impending probe of his governorship by his successor.  Mr. Fubara has uncovered his trump card. He believes that Wike wanted him politically dead. He is likely to fight like a mortally wounded lion. He has all the paperwork on Wike’s glorious days as emperor of Rivers state. It may in fact be the first time in Nigerian history where a chief accountant of a state becomes the chief advocate of a probe of the tenure of his imperial predecessor. Nigerians cannot wait for the probe to begin. Even the sheer entertainment value of the proceedings, preferably on live television, may uplift our collective subdued mood in these troubled times. It promises to be a curious combination of comedy and tragedy, scenes and slides difficult to forget.

So we have an increasingly isolated figure who may not have much political use in the near future. Yet he does have a residual nuisance value. He can cause Fubara a few sleepless nights through purchased mobs and miscreants inside Rivers. He could try to recover political relevance at home using the blackmail of money and intimidation but to little avail. He could just serve out his tenure with Tinubu depending on his nuisance and embarrassment value. If he is indicted by a fair probe, he is likely to leave the stage a badly bruised and miserable lonely man. If he survives the probe, he will be more of a political pariah, an embarrassment to all who embrace him.

Incidentally, there would be no tragedy either a s an art form of a fact of real life if emperors do not rise and then fall resoundingly.

After nearly 70 years of agitation, Nigeria finally looks set to establish state police. That is, every state will have its own police force. On Thursday, House of Assembly speakers in the 36 states of the federation announced their support for the proposal. That means we should expect state legislators to endorse an amendment when it gets to them. First, two-thirds of National Assembly members must pass it. Only 24 of the 36 states are required to endorse it by a simple majority of the Houses of Assembly. It will finally require presidential assent for it to take effect. President Bola Tinubu has been campaigning for state police for decades, so I guess he will sign off as soon as it gets to his desk.

The book, ‘The Police in Modern Nigeria, 1861-1965: Origins, Development, and Role’, authored by Prof Tekena Tamuno and published by the Ibadan University Press in 1970, offers some insight into the historical battle for the control of police. The agitation for “regional police”, now called “state police” (since the federal structure has morphed from three regions to 36 states), started in the 1950s under colonial rule. As Nigeria prepared for limited self-rule and, eventually, independence, the structure and control of the police force became a hot topic, championed in the main by the now-defunct Western region, which is today’s south-west zone plus Edo and Delta states.

As related by Tamuno, a professor of history and former vice-chancellor of the University of Ibadan who died in 2015, S. Akinola, representing Ijesha (Western region) in the Federal House of Representatives, raised a couple of proposals during the house debates in 1955. One, he wanted police deployment to be done predominantly along ethnic and linguistic lines. That meant Yoruba would dominate the west; Igbo, the east; and Hausa/Fulani, the north. His second proposal was more radical: he wanted the police regionalised and placed under a “Regional Authority” rather than “remotely controlled” by the “big man in Lagos” — referring to the inspector-general of police.

Chief Obafemi Awolowo, who was premier of the Western region, was a fierce advocate of regionalised police. He argued that it was a feature of federalism (what we call “true federalism” in modern-day Nigeria) and that of all the federations he had studied, only the Federation of Malaya (now defunct and succeeded by Malaysia) centralised the police force. Awo said as a premier, he considered it “humiliating” that a regional government that was constitutionally vested with the power of maintaining law and order was denied the power of managing its own policing. He warned that the central government could become “authoritarian” under the existing policing structure.

From my reading of history, regional police was an idea loved and promoted largely by the Western region. The Eastern government preferred “a unified Federally-controlled Police Force”. The Northern Peoples Congress (NPC), the biggest party in the Northern region, was not that interested in the regional police debate, maybe because there was already the Native Authority Police which operated at the local government level. The Western region had local government police too, but it wanted the arrangement replicated at the regional level. Notably, the Eastern region did not have local police. Eventually, the constitutional conferences of 1957 and 1958 did not endorse regional police.

We, therefore, went into independence in 1960 with the federal police structure unchanged, although local police remained in Northern and Western regions. The 1963 Constitution also retained the structure. Western and Northern regions resisted attempts to absorb the local police forces into the Nigeria Police Force (NPF). In 1965, the Eastern region — perhaps, having observed how politicians were using local police in the other regions — decided to establish its own, but this was not implemented before the military took over in 1966 and thereafter amalgamated all the police forces in Nigeria. We have had the same structure and control of the police force since then.

However, with growing insecurity across the federation, the campaign for subnational police, initially viewed as the agenda of the south-west, has started winning disciples in other zones. In fact, the south-west defiantly set up Amotekun and the south-east Ebube Agu to do some form of internal policing in the heat of the debate a few years ago. With state police, the governors — as chief security officers — will assume some control over policing in their domains, including recruitment, appointment and funding. In theory, they will have no say in operational matters, such as deployment. But in theory, too, the president has no operational control over the federal police.

There are several arguments in favour of having state police. The most compelling is the need for efficiency. It is argued that a police force spread across 774 local government areas and controlled from Abuja offers something of a logistical nightmare. This is somewhat exaggerated: I have never heard that the police were informed of an ongoing robbery in Egbeda and they said they needed an order from Abuja to respond to the call. However, responsiveness is not something associated with the current structure. But is it the centralisation that hampers efficiency? Is it poor funding? Is it corruption? Is it a lack of local content, such as community policing? These are important questions.

Another argument for state police is the political abuse and misuse of federal police by the federal government. One of the resolutions of the constitutional conference held in London in 1953 was that “arrangements should be made to avoid the danger of the police coming under the control of a political party”. This is difficult to implement, whether at federal or state level. In 1955, members representing Asaba, Warri and Benin in the Western House of Assembly complained about the activities of local police in areas not under the control of the dominant Action Group (AG). We may end up only decentralising the political abuse of police when the states set up their own forces.

I must admit at this stage that I was once totally against state police. My reservations — which I will restate shortly — have not changed. But I have amended my position. I am now willing to watch us perform the experiment, even though I am not expecting any spectacular change in our situation. The problem starts from the way we identify problems and proffer solutions in Nigeria. We often narrow down to one out of several causes — and then propose a cure-all solution. Sadly, when an ailment is misdiagnosed, increasing the dosage of medication is not going to solve the problem. Most times in Nigeria, we are more interested in treating scabies than getting rid of leprosy. It is what it is.

A case for state police is “efficiency” — that is, the states will manage the forces much better than federal government. Really? Where is the evidence? There is this assumption that states manage things better than federal government. But are state-owned universities better run than federal ones? Are state-owned hospitals better? Are state roads better? What really do states do that can be classified as better than what the federal government does? For instance, there are far more federal employees enrolled in the contributory pension and national health insurance schemes compared to the states. But, somehow, we just believe that the police force will be better off under the states.

We certainly need better policing in Nigeria. But efficiency is not a function of what tier of government controls the police. It is about how police organise themselves and their operations. It is about professionalism and sophistication. For example, street lights, drones and CCTV, along with biometrics, can efficiently prevent or resolve crimes more than thousands of policemen and women mounting checkpoints and roadblocks in the streets. Also, a well-developed strategy of community policing — in which police officers bond with the community where they are serving — can efficiently improve intelligence gathering and tackle little and big crimes. We just need to think.

Moreover, we should not dismiss the fears of political and ethnic minorities who think state police might be used to oppress them. They have a reason to be afraid. The Northern Elements Progressive Union (NEPU) opposed regional police at the 1958 constitutional conference for this reason. The Willink Commission opposed regional police for the same reason, and its report was adopted by the conference. Today, will an Igbo feel safe in say Damaturu if all the police officers speak the same language? Will a Fulani feel safe in Imo state? The ethnic and religious diversity in federal police is a form of restraint and comfort on its own. We must think about this while designing state police.

There are so many reservations that must be addressed before we perform this experiment. Aside the fear that political thugs may form the core of state police, I think there are already too many uniformed agencies on the road harassing, terrorising and extorting ordinary Nigerians every day. Abuse of human rights could be an extra burden on Nigerians — as if they are not suffering enough. Meanwhile, some governors use federal police to harass journalists, activists and opponents. I wonder what the situation will be with state police. More so, a country with a history of mutual suspicion and ethno-religious rivalry should be careful with state police because of loyalty issues.

My misgivings notwithstanding, I admit that decentralised policing has its merits. It is not just a feature of federalism, local policing is also a feature of unitary systems. The part I am still unclear about is whether it should be at state or local government level. I am also unclear about the calibre of their arms they should carry and the extent of their powers. I worry about possible jurisdictional tension between federal and subnational police. We really need to think carefully about the bolts and the nuts. My experience with public policy in Nigeria has been traumatic. Many ideas that are brilliant on paper and work excellently abroad only produce sleaze, nightmares and aches in Nigeria.   

AND FOUR OTHER THINGS…

CAGING CANCER

I have always believed that medical scientists will find a solution to cancer someday. The journey may still be far, but advances are being made all the time. The latest news from the UK Oxford Population Health is very heartwarming: its researchers discovered hundreds of proteins in the blood that could warn people of cancer more than seven years before it is diagnosed. They pin-pointed proteins linked to 19 types of cancer, including bowel, prostate and breast. Why cancer is so brutal in killing people is the fact that it is hardly discovered before it maligns. With this test, it will be possible to treat the disease at a much earlier stage before it spreads. It can even be prevented altogether. Progress.

DEATH PENALTY

A bill proposing to impose the death penalty on convicted drug traffickers recently passed third reading at the senate. Senator Tahir Monguno (Borno north), while presenting a report on behalf of the joint committees on judiciary and drugs and narcotics, said there is a need to strengthen the war against drug trafficking. This is very interesting indeed. We need to strengthen so many wars in this country, although we are picking and choosing the ones to pour our righteous anger on. We already have the death penalty for armed robbery and, I think, kidnapping. Can we also have the death penalty for budget padding and extortion of ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs)? Vital.

COMMISSIONS GALORE

Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC). North East Development Commission (NEDC). And now, North West Development Commission (NWDC). Well, almost. The senate has just passed a bill to establish the NWDC “for the development of the north-west geopolitical zone”. We may soon have the North Central Development Commission (NCDC), South West Development Commission (SWDC) and South East Development Commission (SEDC). We will then create for every state and every LGA. All for political patronage, less about development. Since President Tinubu directed the implementation of the Oronsaye Report, we have been creating agencies per second. Continue.

NO COMMENTS

Insurgents have been attacking power transmission towers in Kasaisa, Gujba LGA, Yobe state, cutting the state from the national grid and plunging it into darkness all the time. The Yola Electricity Distribution Company (YEDC) recently reported that the insurgents attacked the towers in December 2023 and February 2024. The solution? Spiritual warfare. Mai Mala Buni, the state governor, on Wednesday led a team of clerics and students in prayers against the sabotage carried out by the insurgents. Cows were also sacrificed as part of the prayers. And that is where my interest lies: how much in total was spent on cows and the prayer session? Are you thinking what I’m thinking? Wink.

A Traditionalist, Oba Ìsèse Of Ogun State and Chairman "Ìsèse Kingdom Of Truth, Association Of Nigeria," Ifarotimi Adifagbola Balogun has said that celebration of the Ìsèse festival in Ogun State would continue to be celebrated annually.

Speaking on International Ìsèse Day with newsmen, the Oba Ìsèse in Ogun State, Adifagbola Balogun said their group was trying as much as possible to ensure the festival did not go into extinction as they infuse the culture into their children.

Adifagbola Balogun said, “When we observed that our fathers had gathered and had observed this festival, where they stopped, we get involved. If there’s a festival and we don’t involve our children, such festival would get destroyed, that is why we have the religion of the Ifa Council gathered together.

“We, the youths of today, gathered together in a temple way, we gathered children together in order for them to know that this Ìsèse should not be moved away from them.  You don’t have to be afraid of it, it is not something children should not see; that is why we gathered children for them to know that it is an important thing. It is the word of God being established, it is Irumole’s word we follow. It is how we are created; it is very important.

“In what Orunmila told us, the word of God is established, we have chosen a leader to teach us various languages. When he would gather some of them, he taught them various religions on Ìsèse. He taught them to follow any religion that suited them, and he said one should not hinder one.

“We would observe that this Ìsèse, we met it on earth. It was celebrated before the strange religion came in; that is why we youths of today turned it to religion so that our children would not be taken away. Then we started gathering children because they made them to be afraid of it. We gathered ourselves so that there would be peace. If we have various religions today, we are also there in between them. One religion is not stopping the other; what you believe in you serve with your heart.”

He said that five southwestern states in Nigeria including Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital have declared every August 20th as a holiday, that is, work-free to mark Ìsèse Day, a traditional Yoruba festival celebrated on August 20, every year. The other states are Ekiti, Ogun, Osun, Oyo and Ondo.

Adifagbola Balogun said this draws attention to the need to preserve cultural heritages and the inevitable marriage between culture and education, noting that it would also promotes religious tolerance.

"Indeed, the the Ìsèse Day has been set aside to celebrate the indigenous Yoruba culture and traditions as well as the preservation of the Yoruba heritage, and there is a need to accommodate Ìsèse festival in the country, so that every religion should be accommodated."

“We all know what’s called an idol. Irumole was well-known everywhere. Let’s accommodate ourselves. Peace is religion. Together with Ìsèse, let’s accommodate ourselves, we are not touts.

“We have so many religions, let us not push ourselves away. Let us not hinder ourselves. Anybody can worship what they like as religion; we have so many ways to God; you can’t say this is the purest religion. There is no language that God does not listen to. Let us accommodate ourselves, and let us accommodate peace,” Adifagbola Balogun submitted.

In the annals of military accomplishment, courage, dedication, and altruistic service to the nation, the name of Rear Admiral Peter Ebhaleme (Rtd) stands tall, as a beacon of unwavering commitment and exemplary leadership. As we pay tribute to the passage of this distinguished officer, we reflect not only on his remarkable career, but also on the indelible mark he left in the hearts and minds of all who had the privilege of knowing him, or crossing his path. He has gone – gone from this sinful world – but he lives with us in our hearts.

The Rear Admiral who was born in 1948 attended the Nigeria Military School, Zaria; the Nigeria Defence Academy, Kaduna; and the Britannia Royal Navy College, England. He later attended the University of Lagos in 1990, where he bagged the LL.B (Hons) degree. He did not rest on his oars in his crave for knowledge and education. Ebhaleme went ahead to the Nigerian Law School which he passed and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1995. As a military officer, he held several command and staff positions. He started as a Commanding Officer NNS in Enugu 1994; Gunnery officer NNS Dorina in 1995. He later rose to become Chief of Administration, Defence Headquarters between 2001 and 2002. He topped it when he rose to the position of Chairman. The Admiral retired honourably from the Nigerian Navy in 2003 after a distinguished military career.

The Admiral’s journey is one marked by uncommon dedication to duty, exemplary service and profound contributions to his nation and the international maritime community. Throughout his illustrious career, Rear Admiral Ebhaleme consistently demonstrated an exceptional blend of strategic vision, tactical prowess and unwavering commitment to excellence.

As a naval officer, Ebhaleme rose through the ranks with distinction, exhibiting exceptional leadership qualities at every turn. His tenure saw him undertake a myriad of critical roles, from commanding naval vessels, to overseeing complex maritime operations, all with a steadfast focus on safeguarding Nigeria's maritime interests and promoting regional security.

Rear Admiral Ebhaleme's legacy extends far beyond his military service. His visionary leadership played a pivotal role in shaping the Nigerian Navy's capabilities, modernizing its fleet and enhancing its operational use and effectiveness. Under his guidance, the Nigerian Navy expanded its footprint in combating maritime threats, including piracy, illegal fishing, bunkering and smuggling, thereby contributing to the stability and prosperity of the Gulf of Guinea region.

Ebhaleme's influence transcended national borders, as he actively engaged in collaborative efforts with regional and international partners to address common maritime challenges. His diplomatic acumen and strategic foresight were instrumental in fostering meaningful partnerships for greater maritime security cooperation across the African continent and beyond.

Beyond his professional achievements, late Rear Admiral Ebhaleme is respected for his character, integrity, humility and compassion. At his 70th birthday and book launch on the 28th day of July, 2018, former Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo described him as a man with the spirit of God and whose Counsel has always been right. Osinbajo scored the bull’s eye. Ebhaleme spoke truth and was a man of honour. He was a mentor and role model to countless young officers, inspiring them to uphold the highest ideals and standards of professionalism and ethical conduct. His selfless dedication to duty and unflagging commitment to the welfare of his subordinates earned him the respect and admiration of all who had the privilege of serving under his command.

Surely, Woodrow Wilson, former American president, was right when he declared, “if you lose your wealth, you have lost nothing; if you lose your health, you have lost something; but if you lose your character, you have lost everything”. Till death, Ebhaleme never lost his character. So, by dying, he has lost nothing. He has merely transformed from the physical to the spiritual; - from the terrestrial to the celestial; from mortality to immortality.  

As we reflect on Rear Admiral Peter Ebhaleme's remarkable journey through life, let us join hands to pay tribute to a fine officer and gentleman; a total family man and a conscientious Esan, Edo State Elder Statesman and true maritime pioneer, whose indelible legacy will continue to inspire generations of naval officers and maritime leaders. His profound impact on the Nigerian Navy and the broader maritime community serves as a testament to his enduring legacy of service, industry, honour, dignity and excellence. May Admiral Ebhaleme’s contributions never be forgotten; and may his spirit continue to guide and inspire us in the pursuit of a safer, more secure maritime environment for all. Amen.

The Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has disowned a WhatsApp post claiming that she is bringing investors to Nigeria.

In a post via her official X handle on Friday, the former Minister of Finance stated that she does not use the WhatsApp Broadcast feature and the message did not originate from her.

Describing the message as fake, the WTO boss urged members of the public to desist from relying on information circulating on WhatsApp purportedly originated from her.

She described the message as a “bad example” of using social media, stating that peddlers of such misleading information “will not succeed.”

Her post reads: “It’s been brought to my attention that another fake message has been manufactured and is being forwarded on WhatsApp in my name. I want to make clear that this fake message is not from me. I am pleased that those who know me instantly recognised this as fake.

“Thanks to friends who brought this to my attention. Please be aware that I do not use WhatsApp broadcasts, thus, anything forwarded to you purporting to be a WhatsApp message from me is FAKE. This is a bad example of the use of social media. I want to warn those in the business of manufacturing FAKE messages, that they will not succeed.”

[NaijaNews]

The Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) has admitted additional 402,082,657 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each per share of Cadbury Nigeria Plc on its platform. 

This was contained in the NGX’s weekly report seen by Nairametrics. 

According to the report, the additional shares listed on NGX arose from Cadbury’s conversion of N7,036,446,501.26 intercompany loan to equity. 

The statement read: 

“Trading Licence Holders are hereby notified that additional 402,082,657 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each per share of Cadbury Nigeria Plc (Cadbury or the Company) were on Thursday, 16 May 2024, listed on the Daily Official List of Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX).

The additional shares listed on NGX arose from Cadbury’s Conversion of N7,036,446,501.26 Intercompany Loan to Equity.

With this listing of the additional 402,082,657 ordinary shares, the total issued and fully paid-up shares of Cadbury has now increased from 1,878,201,962 to 2,280,284,619 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.”

Shareholders of Cadbury Nigeria recently approved the conversion of an intercompany loan into equity by allotting 402,082,657 ordinary shares to Cadbury Schweppes Overseas at a price of 50 kobo each.  

 Each share ranked pari passu with existing ordinary shares and was priced at N17.50 per share, reflecting the company’s share price at the close of trading on December 27, 2023. 

The company resolved to convert its intercompany loan of $7.718 million, equivalent to N7.036 billion, owed to Cadbury Schweppes Overseas Limited into equity. 

This strategic restructuring of Cadbury Nigeria’s capital structure appears to be a response to its recent financial performance. According to the company’s unaudited financial results for the 2023 fiscal year, Cadbury Nigeria recorded a post-tax loss of N27.633 billion, largely due to a significant foreign exchange loss of N36.933 billion. 

This substantial loss has led to negative retained earnings of N19.906 billion, and shareholders’ funds have declined to a negative N15.081 billion from a positive N8.478 billion at the end of 2022. Despite these challenges, the company showed strong topline and midline performance, with gross profit increasing by 130.4% year-on-year to N17.79 billion, and operating profit surging by 4,226% year-on-year to N8.397 billion, indicating robust profit margins. 

Given these financial vulnerabilities, converting the intercompany loan to equity could address several critical issues. It has the potential to eliminate exchange losses on intercompany loans, reduce interest expenses, and lower overall debt levels, thereby strengthening the company’s financial position. 

Cadbury Nigeria closed its last trading day on Friday, May 17, 2024, at N16.25 per share on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NGX). Cadbury began the year with a share price of N19.00 but has since lost 14.5% off the price valuation. 

[nairametrics]