Clay Richie

Corruption, either directly or indirectly, is the bane of poverty in Nigeria, various reports and researches have suggested. The Corruption Perceptions Index, released annually by Transparency International (TI), also gives credence to the pervasive corruption in the sub-Saharan country. Nigeria has always floated at the bottom of the list, among the most corrupt nations in the world.

“A serious government will fix the power problem in 6 months”- Babatunde Raji Fashola SAN

With the exception of Rivers state — where former friends are at war — governorship elections have been concluded across Nigeria on the not-so-unfamiliar note: the good, the bad and the ugly. As typical of Nigerian politicians, if they win, “the election was free and fair”; if they lose, “the election was rigged”. No politician rejects a result that favours him or her. It is worth celebrating, though, that many are accepting defeat these days and sending congratulatory messages to the winners. We can take this as a positive trend — as the Fourth Republic approaches its 20th anniversary. And, yes, I intend to take you through some interesting historical facts today ahead of the anniversary. A lot has happened in 20 years that we need to recollect.

“The legitimate object of government is to do for a community of people, whatever they need to have done, but can not do, at all, or cannot, so well do, for themselves in their separate, and individual capacities” is how Abraham Lincoln wrote in one of his collected works, Fragment on Government.

Fellow Nigerians, I’m sure you are probably familiar with the stories of Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola. Yes, stories, for he was a man of many parts. MKO, as he was fondly called, had three initials that were synonymous with money (Money, Kudi, Owo). Each of the stories around him was the stuff of fiction, fact or “faction.” MKO was a man of sharp intellect, rare sagacity, and uncommon wit. He was a great storyteller, possibly in the mould of the ancient griots of Mali. His knowledge and repository of oral tradition and fables was legendary. He had remarkable tales for every occasion, and the way he stammered made his delivery unique and unforgettable. I was fortunate to have met and known this sensational prodigy who taught me so much, as an adopted son, and my great mentor.

Anytime I think of ‘Iberiberism’ I think of it as a spell-at worse, a demonic whim. And at such moments I remember my favorite Mount Zion Movie-Agbára Ńlá (Ultimate Power).

It’s time Mr. President you walked the talk and really make integrity count. You have integrity, but many around you are not perceived to have the scarce commodity. With this condition, Mr. President, you remain a lone wolf and captive of a few who use your good name to soar and sap the nation’s economy.

The late former Chief of Army Staff in the military regime of President Ibrahim Babangida, Lt. General Salihu Ibrahim once described the Nigerian Army as an “army of anything goes”. He was lamenting the unprofessionalism and politicisation that had permeated the military; the misuse of the army to achieve the selfish and winding ambition of Babangida – which had begun to seriously erode discipline in the military. Needless to say that the Babangida government as a measure of self-preservation, cultivated, pampered and empowered a select group of junior and middle cadre officers in the chain of command with money and good postings over and above their superiors, which in turn encouraged indiscipline and insubordination, subtly prodded by Babangida himself.

Resistance/confrontational journalism sorrowfully died in order to make way for brown envelope journalism; where many pen warriors have some sort of surreptitious pocket affinity with the governorate, who has grabbed them by the lapels. This is not to say that the truth has died. No. Rather, it entails that current issues may not be well addressed as they ought to be.

It all started when the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on February 27, 2019, declared that President Mohammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC) won the last presidential election with 15,191, 847 votes to beat Atiku Abubakar  of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) who polled 11, 262, 978 votes.

Like the drunk who habitually forgets the ignominy that his indulgence brings on him, the ruling All Progressives Congress is about to tread on the path of confusion that finished it before it started out in 2015. But it is hardly surprising. Any gathering of people intent on self-delusion would most certainly fall into errors of the past and if care is not taken, harvest worst consequences.

Two years ago, following the convocation ceremony of a private university where 188 students graduated with first class degrees, there was an online discussion on the lack of quality control in our educational sector. According to the report that generated the conversation, 568 other students obtained second class upper degrees while 322 graduated with second class lower and 47 with third class. With 17 percent of the graduating students coming out with first class and another 50 percent with second class upper, the two alone accounted for 67 percent of the entire graduating class! This same issue is now the focus of attention in the United Kingdom where, as we all know, the quality of education is of the highest standard.

For most families in oil producing areas of the Niger Delta, the discovery and exploration of oil rather than be a blessing bringing improvements in their lives, has been a constant source of woes.

I hardly attend ceremonies, because I am an indoors person, but many years ago, in the city of Ibadan, where I hail from, I attended a wedding ceremony. It was what you call—a society wedding ceremony. Through-out my stay at the venue, where the wedding ceremony did take place, one name was on all our lips—the bride’s name. It was her day and how she was gorgeously dressed did confirm it. It would be an attempt in futility for anyone to try to reign on her parade.

With the 2019 general elections substantially behind us, except for the plethora of litigations that may naturally arise, worried Nigerian patriots must now address their minds to what collectively the nation can do to have a more credible, free and fair and violence free election post 2019.

The importance of the budget for effective service delivery in any country cannot be overemphasized. It has been recognised that the budget is perhaps the most important instrument for the development of any modern state apart from the constitution. It can be argued that it is only through the instrumentality of the budget that the government can allocate resources to deliver services to the people especially the poor and excluded.

The greatest challenge facing the democratic process in Nigeria, as in most developing nations, has to do with management of the post-election transition process. The political tension and acrimony between parties and politicians peaks at the polls and tends to escalate during collation and announcement of results, giving electioneering a “do-or-die” tendency. This situation impacts negatively on the democratic process as election-related violence often takes a heavy toll on lives and property, disrupts elections and ultimately threatens national stability.

The 2019 general election in Nigeria has been described by international and local observers, stakeholders, direct participants and the electorate themselves as a “disappointment”, “ a bad day for democracy”, “a step back from whatever Nigeria may have achieved since the return to civilian rule,”, “a shameful exercise”, “below par”, “an affront on international standards and best practice”… indeed, there is a near-universal consensus that the 2019 elections have failed the test of integrity. However, no one should expect that democracy will produce perfect results: it is in the nature of democracy itself to spring its own surprises and contradictions, be it in the United States which is yet to recover from the issues arising from the 2016 Presidential election, or in the United Kingdom where democracy has created a Brexit crisis and the people are seeking to correct the problem with more democracy, or in Thailand where a military junta and the monarchy seem to have conspired to ex

Absence of security and humanitarian intervention has left the state of Zamfara in a hazardous condition. The killings of innocent people in the state has made it unsafe and without security for at least four years. Experts have cited the continued carnage to the poor handling of the affairs by the government. As the primary actors of peace and tranquility, the Federal Government has neglected its responsibility to protect. Regional organizations like the African Union and the Economic Community of West African States have also shown little interest in tackling the issue. Hence, locals are left defenceless and vulnerable to attacks by bandits. 

As disclosed in a leaked memo from the State House, Abuja, to the Group Managing Director of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), dated March 1, 2019, with reference number SH/COS/24/A/8540 and signed by the Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari, the nation’s apex oil concern through its upstream subsidiary Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) was ordered to take over the entire operatorship of the crisis-ridden Oil Mining Lease (OML) 11 not later than April 30, 2019.

The axiom designating readers as leaders can't be more sacrosanct in the face of dubious governmentality in Nigeria. It further explains why supersonic nations that have made education basic, compulsory and criminalized illiteracy are zooming into the moon and making heaven on earth for themselves and the unborn generations why backward-looking nations like ours are receding into the caves and caverns.

Who else is an expert in Nigeria and Nigerian affairs if not former United States (U.S.) Ambassador to Nigeria, John Campbell? He also happens to be the go-to person for those that are desirous of setting the country ablaze.

The major and foremost reason there is always so much tension, crisis and bloodshed in our polity during elections is because governance in Nigeria is a multi-trillion naira industry for a few, not a tool for national development. Sadly, it is the only industry in Nigeria that is working. Also, it is the only industry that can make you a millionaire overnight—on the condition that you know what to do and where to go. In politics, you can go to ed a pauper and wake up a millionaire!

In case you missed it, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), an advocacy group, has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to appoint Muslim ministers from five south-west states when he constitutes his cabinet for his second term. Why? The group says because five of the south-west governors would be Christians, that is the way to go — to address the “marginalisation of Muslims” in the geo-political zone. Put plainly, what should determine the choice of ministers from the south-west should be religion, religion, religion, religion and religion. The press release said Yoruba Muslims have been marginalised in ministerial appointments for too long “despite being in the majority”.

The Presidential and National Assembly elections of February 23 2019 and those for the Governorship and State Assemblies of March 9 2019 seem to have underlined two points: first is the eagerness of many Nigerians to be part of the processes of leadership selection, with many queuing up for hours under inclement weather – or despite the security challenges in their areas – to exercise their franchise.

Ademola Adeleke’s victory at the Election Petition Tribunal is a locus classicus for democracy.  It jogs the cerebral cortex and revivifies cautious hope in the judiciary. But really, the victory is just one small step to the archipelago of power in Osun state for the “dancing senator”.

Fellow Nigerians, please don’t get it wrong, I’m not a Judge and I’m not about to deliver a judgment in favour of the ‘suspended’ Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen. I lack such capacity and jurisdiction. Besides, as the lawyers say, the matter is ‘sub judice’ i.e. under judicial consideration and therefore not meant for public discourse or discussion anywhere else other than the Court.  What I’m doing here is to reiterate my initial reaction to the kangarooistic justice manner he was harassed, terrorised, convicted in the media, ahead of trial. My sympathy for Chief Justice Onnoghen didn’t stem out of his status as a very important personality BUT AS A MATTER OF PERSONAL PRINCIPLE that no Nigerian, regardless of tribe, gender, creed or social status, should suffer unnecessary humiliation and degradation in the hands of gods with feet of clay.

The history of census in Nigeria is all but summed up in the following excerpt: ‘Attempts to conduct a reliable post-independence census have been mired in controversy, and only one was officially accepted. The first attempt, in mid-1962, was cancelled after much controversy and allegations of over-counting in many areas. A second attempt in 1963, which was officially accepted, also was encumbered with charges of inaccuracy and manipulation for regional and local political purposes. Indeed, the official 1963 figure of 55.6 million as total national population is inconsistent with the census of a decade earlier because it implies a virtually impossible annual growth rate of 5.8 per cent. After the civil war of 1967-70, an attempt was made to hold a census in 1973, but the results were cancelled in the face of repeated controversy. No subsequent nationwide census had been held as of 1990, although there have been various attempts to derive population estimates at a state or local l

As the country grapples with the spate of inconclusive elections by INEC, it is important to examine the powers of INEC to conduct elections and whether the penchant for declaring elections inconclusive is within the scope of its lawful powers under the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Electoral Act, 2010 as amended.

I totally agree with His Excellency Peter Obi, that there is no worst corruption than electoral fraud and I will add that electoral fraud is a felonious crime against the nation and its people. If you stole the mandate of the people in order to rule them, there is no how you will have the slightest respect for them. You are wont to believe that with the right contacts and the right resources, you can always have your way in power and you can afford to treat the people with disdain.

Dear Chief Tinubu, The back page of your The Nation of Tuesday 12 March where one of your Rottweilers under the FORGED name “Segun Ibirogba” wrote “Odumakin’s anxiety over vanishing feeding-bottles” has un-paused the button on this serial.

There is no alternative to good health, and public health seeks to meet the health needs of the public. According to Everett Koop, “Healthcare is vital to all of us some of the time, but public health is vital to all of us all of the time.” Regardless of space and time, class and status, it impacts everyone. The field of public health entails prevention and education of the general public to help improve the overall health and reduce risks to a population, as opposed to the provision of individual medical treatment to one patient at a time.

In July last year, my church hosted an empowerment programme to which we invited the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Okey Enelamah as guest speaker. As convener of the session, I had to introduce Enelamah and I reeled out his impressive list of academic and professional qualifications. What stunned the audience was the revelation that the minister is actually a medical doctor, having read medicine at the University of Nsukka where he graduated in 1985.

The famous French political philosopher, Alexis Tocqueville, in his classic: Democracy in America, wisely observes that in the United States no sooner does a political controversy arise than it transforms into a legal dispute.

I find it gravely unsettling, confusing, even, whenever we resort to preaching “Aku Ruo Uno” (Invest In AlaIgbo) as a response to hate-induced business policies targeted at Igbo businesses in either the North or the West.

Nigeria tales has been rehashed but badly the more. The addendum has proven to be a sad composition, repulsive and stench. Just within this, a friend of mine became perplexed asking him about his thought as regard the just concluded election — 2019 Presidential Poll .

A few days ago, when the news broke on social media that Otunba Gbenga Daniel was quitting active politics, I knew that he was only dumping the PDP for APC, not quitting active politics! I equally told one of my team members—that it was impossible for him to quit active politics at this time in his political career. I also knew that he wouldn’t quit politics, because he cannot afford to let being famished, alone and forlorn exterminate him.

The word martyr connotes a religious Icon who attains the lofty height by virtue of the person’s insistence on sticking to the truth as revealed by his/her religion and by so doing pays the supreme price.

Here is yet another account of what I saw in the politics of Ogun State and Nigeria. One of my early teachable moments was the realization that you are required to dress like the people whose votes you are looking for, and operate at that level, be like them, connect with them. When the 2019 political struggle began, I used to attend meetings wearing suits. Party members looked at me suspiciously. I couldn’t miss the glances, the whispers, the murmurs but I couldn’t quite figure out what was amiss until one Sunday afternoon, I arrived at a scheduled meeting all suited up.  As soon as I stepped in, I thought I overheard someone saying quietly: “Even on Sunday evening!” I didn’t think that comment was meant for me. Whoever said that was probably talking to someone else. The pieces soon fell in place when one of our apex leaders accosted me: 

Early on Wednesday, February 27, 2019, by 4.40 am and four days after the presidential election held in Nigeria on Saturday, February 23, the Chairman of the ‘Independent’ National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Mahmood Yakubu, announced that Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has been reelected Nigeria’s president.

In both 2011 and 2015 presidential elections, I voted for Mohammadu Buhari because then I believed he will be a refreshing contrast to Goodluck Jonathan, whose moribund, visionless and rudderless governance was running the country aground and accentuating all its societal ills. I was nostalgic for Buhari’s earlier stint as a military ruler when his military government was guided by a clear vision of revamping a hobbled economy, and fighting corruption, indiscipline, and civic indifference. Then, his administration, in its military ethos, was tough-handed in its approach to attaining its stated goals and objectives. It was my belief that a visionary, tough-minded and tough-handed leader, operating within the confines of a democratic constitution, will be a model for Nigeria that motivated my repeated votes for him.

The 2019 elections in Ebonyi State has now become history. As a national officer of the Alliance for New Nigeria, I was actively involved and picked up some lessons in the process. One of such is that many folks refuse to learn from history.

There is something melancholic about the mentality of an average Nigerian. I was almost tempted to say a black man, but it will be inappropriate to generalise it to such oceanic spread. But just to make the point that our animalistic tendency and conduct in Nigeria has gotten to an unimaginable proportion that one often wonders where exactly we are headed. Just a simple conduct of election to choose who governs us at different levels has become a theatre of war with cake of crimson.

My dear Bob Dee! One could have easily made up his mind not to read or respond to anything you wrote after seeing the rather unprincipled queuing up behind Senator Bukola Saraki and then abandoning him, moving on to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, and then deserting him as well. But I felt one should respond to your attempts to create a false narrative from the very hollow lamentation of the recent elections as the “worst in our history”.

Let us perform an experiment. Let us make a Super Law that says if you are an elected public officer at any level of government, you must enrol all your children in public schools. You cannot send your children to private or foreign schools. If they are already in private or foreign schools, you must withdraw and enrol them in Nigerian public schools after you are elected into office. Also, you and your family members must receive medical treatment at government-owned hospitals in Nigeria. Your wife must give birth at a primary healthcare centre. No member of your family, including yourself, can receive medical treatment in a private or foreign hospital, except treatment is not available in Nigeria, and this has to be confirmed by the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA).

On behalf of Nigerian women home and abroad who are lovers of peace and believers in Democracy, congratulations on your victory at the just concluded presidential Elections of 23rd February 2019.

I know Femi Kusa. He is a friend and a classmate. I knew of him from his Daily Times days. Then we met at the University of Nigeria shortly after the end of Nigerian Civil war. I have read his reflections on Ndigbo and the politics of Lagos. And have followed with considerable curiosity the Galestorm his article set off and some of the responses to his rebuke of Ndigbo.

Selfishness, the pursuit of self-interest and self-aggrandisement are the driving forces of Nigerian politicians. From bottom to top and back again, of those emotions, not one is free, not one is clean, not even President Muhammadu Buhari, Nigeria’s widely touted emblem of what is sane and altruistic in the polity.

“When you have a mountain in your path, do not sit down at its foot to cry, but rather, get up and climb it.” For no reason other than he was just doing his job with dignity, dedication and utmost integrity, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) was on a campaign to destroy one of the most respected Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) who was assigned to Akwa Ibom State, Mr Mike Igini. He had become the target of a series of well-orchestrated smear campaigns before the presidential and national assembly elections, and more desperately, before the governorship elections.

Now that we are done celebrating the fall of Iberiberism in IMO State, here are some lessons we must never dis-remember from the incident. (1) Ndigbo as a people akarigo mmadu ikwo n’azu n’emeki love to their mother (The Igbo are not the kind of people you back while making love to their mother) That is one insult we don’t take and that is exactly what the Imo state governor tried to do.