Take a bow as Senate’s albatross

Tribune Online
Take a bow as Senate’s albatross

THE take a bow and go or for short, take a bow, is among the novel phenomena that are fast becoming part of the lexicon in Nigeria’s political history. Mired in controversy, the weird idea crept into the body of the rules and norms or what some senators recently described as the tradition and convention of the parliament.

The ‘take a bow and go’ phenomenon entered the vocabulary of the Nigerian parliament in 2003. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo had sent his list of ministerial nominees to the Senate for confirmation. The President of the Senate that time was the late Senator Evans Enwerem, who was quoted to have asked the late cerebral politician, Chief Ojo Maduekwe, to take a bow and go, following the impressive remarks and submission about his credentials and profile, by two other two ministerial nominees from his home state, Abia.

Between that time and now, the controversial ‘take a bow and go’ fad has been forwarded, especially with the rising number of ministerial nominees as beneficiaries. At the initial stage, the promise was that each of the 43 ministerial nominees by President Buhari would be appropriately grilled during screening. But it turned out to be a repeat of a similar promise by the leadership of the Sixth Senate that each of the then nominees would have to pass through the furnace. Out of the 43 ministerial nominees screened by the present Senate, a total of 18 of them benefited from what some of the senators described as the novel tradition and convention of ‘take a bow and go.’ The latest beneficiaries are: Godswill Akpabio (Akwa Ibom), George Akume (Benue), Emeka Nwajuaba (Imo), Adeleke Mamora (Lagos), Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers), Tayo Alasoadura (Ondo), Mustapha Baba Shehuri (Borno), Timipre Sylva (Bayelsa), Chief Adeniyi Adebayo (Ekiti), Chris Ngige (Anambra), Muhammadu Musa Bello (Adamawa), Sa’adiya Umar Farouk (Zamfara), Sharon Ikeazor (Anambra), Ramatu Aliyu (Kogi) and Abubakar Aliyu (Yobe), who also benefitted on the grounds that his brother is not only a former lawmaker, but also a member of Senate President Ahmed Lawan’s constituency.

At the resumed session of the Seventh Senate in June 28, 2011, the then Senate Leader, Victor Ndoma Egba, had declared that there would be no application of the ‘take a bow and go’ treatment for any of the nominees. This, according to Ndoma-Egba, was because of the mood of the Senate. But the Senate under David Mark recanted, as the list of the nominees included names of 14 former ministers. They included: Emeka Wogu, Senator Bala Mohammed, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, Godsday Orubebe, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu, Navy Captain Caleb Olubolade (retd), Professor Ruqayyatu Rufai, Dr. Shamsudeen Usman, Mohammed Saada, Mohammed Adoke, Mr. Olusegun Aganga, Labaran Maku, Yusuf Suleiman and Obadiah Ando.

Others were Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Zainab Maina, Professor Ita Bassey-Ewa, Mrs Stella Ogiemwonyi, Abba Moro, Dr. Samuel Ortom, Bukar Tijani, Mike Onolememen, Professor Barth Nnaji, Senator Idris Umar, Professor Viola Onwuliri, Dr Bello Haliru Mohammed, Bolaji Abdullahi, Ambassador Olugbenga Ashiru, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, Olusola Obada, Ms Olajumoke Akinjide, Tonye Cole, Dr Yerima Ngama, Ambassador Bashir Yuguda and Zainab Kuchi.

 

The snag

The general opinion is that the use of ‘take a bow and go’ by the Senate only makes a mockery of the fundamental aim and objectives of the screening exercise. One, it deprives the system of knowing the true profile of the nominees beyond the contents of their curriculum vitae. The exercise, it is argued, should have provided the veritable opportunity for the people to know the competence and capability of the nominees, especially against the public schism on the performance of some members of the last federal cabinet. It is also the view of many other pundits that the part of the ‘take a bow and go’ culture, which some of the senators espoused as ‘tradition and convention’ of the Senate, calls to question the stance of the Senate on the issues of transparency and integrity. This is against the background of the cases of malfeasance of number of high profile politicians pending before anti-graft agencies.

In other words, the Senate is seen as having turned a blind eye to the obvious breach of public trust by a number of hitherto top government officials. More importantly, the ‘take a bow and go’ syndrome is at variance with one of the cardinal responsibility of the Senate. It seems to have relinquished its oversight function to other arms of government and agencies. Those who belong to such school of thought contend that it is a pointer to it that the place of checks and balances in the emerging political dispensation seems to hang in the balance.

 

Experience from other lands

The process of screening of nominees for the 15-member federal cabinet in the United States is predicated on secretary. Under the US Constitution, all the members, apart from the White House Chief of Staff, are required to be confirmed by the Senate. The list includes the secretaries of agriculture, commerce, defense, education, energy, health and human services, homeland,  housing and urban development, interior, labour, state, transportation, treasury, and veterans affairs, as well as the attorney-general, director of the office of management and budget, administrator of the environmental protection agency, US trade representative, ambassador to the United Nations, chair of the Council of Economic Advisers and administrator of the Small Business Administration. Emphasis is placed on competence, integrity, capability and pedigree of the nominees during the process of screening by the Senate. Each of the nominees is required to submit his credentials and grilled by agents of both the White House and Federal Bureau of Intelligence (FBI), especially on issues relating to financial disclosure reports, security issues and criminal records.

Part of the process before confirmation has to pass through four other conditions that include that a nomination be passed to the relevant Senate committee; that the Senate Judiciary Committee, for example, handles the attorney-general nomination.

Thereafter, a committee will then hold hearings, vote to move the nomination straight to the Senate floor for a vote or not move on it at all (in which case, the committee effectually kills the nomination). After hearings, the committee votes to report a nomination to the full Senate, requiring a simple majority. It may vote to report the nomination favorably, unfavorably or without recommendation. If a committee sits on an appointment, the full Senate may vote to invoke cloture and move the nomination along. The last phase requires that if a nomination has been cleared by a committee, it will then move to the Senate floor for a simple majority vote, which sometime in the past led to rejection of ministerial nominee by the Senate.

The senators usually rise above narrow party interests to do the needful. Statistics indicate that the US Senate has rejected only nine of a president’s cabinet nominations.

 

South Africa

The situation is slightly different in South Africa, where the president is fully empowered to constitute his 28-member cabinet without recourse to the parliament. In Chapter 6 under the NATIONAL EXECUTIVE (ss. 75-95), the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa stipulates the condition for the appointment of ministers. Part of the provision reads: (1) The Cabinet shall consist of the President, the Executive Deputy Presidents and not more than 27 ministers appointed by the President in accordance with this section; (2) A party holding at least 20 seats in the National Assembly and which has decided to participate in the government of national unity shall be entitled to be allocated one or more of the Cabinet portfolios in proportion to the number of seats held by it in the National Assembly relative to the number of seats held by the other participating parties.”

 

Justification of bow and go

The screening exercise is in conformity with Section 147 (2) of 1999 Constitution. Like in the past, the exercise drew flak from many quarters this time, necessitating frantic efforts by some senators to shed light on their action on the matter. For instance, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele (Ekiti Central) claimed misrepresentation of the screening and confirmation proceedings of ministerial nominees, particularly Amaechi. Bamidele further insisted that the process of ministerial screening was misconstrued as confirmation by the general public. He said: “It is important we explain to members of the public that the only reason they are asked to take a bow and go is because, we could have been asking them to clarify certain things that we already know. The Constitution of Nigeria is very clear as to qualification to appointment as a minister. You must be qualified to serve as a member of the House of Representatives. All of us are aware of the qualifications. If people have been through this and they have had the opportunity to serve in the House of Assembly, it is taken for granted.

“However, that does not prevent the Senate from still scrutinising the document that they have submitted like all other nominees. I just felt members of the public should be made aware as we commence the exercise of the day.”

On his part, president of the Senate, Lawan, justified the action of the senate, but with a caveat that a nominee could still be disqualified.

“If there is anything that disqualifies a nominee, the fact that the nominee passed through the National Assembly chambers does not protect that nominee from being disqualified. So far, this tradition of the Senate is maintained. I sustain your point of order,” he said.

A former Senate Leader, Senator Teslim Folarin, also offered explanation for the action of the Senate on the ‘take a bow and go’ controversy.

“We have our traditions. If you are a former member of the National Assembly, it is our tradition to allow you to bow and go. Nigerians may not like it, but that is the way it is. If you had been a governor of a state before you came to the National Assembly for clearance, we must respect you because you had been entrusted with a huge responsibility before. Again, in some cases, once they talk for like five minutes, you would know what they have in stock. You don’t have to keep people for like one hour before you screen them. If you screen somebody for five minutes, you would know if the person is sound or not,” Folarin said.

However, the senator representing Kogi West, Dino Melaye, was averse to the practice, saying the screening was a mere smokescreen.

He said: “The process has been more of adoption than screening, but we are talking to ourselves. I am not a principal officer. I don’t know whether it is a rubber stamp. But I want to assure you that as long as some of us are there, we shall do our best.”

He blamed part of the problems on the refusal of the president to indicate the portfolio of the nominees.

Another legal practitioner described the practice as an unconstitutional arrangement made to honour former serving senator, adding that it is not good for democracy.

Mr. James Agbo, a retired permanent secretary in the Nasarawa State civil service, said this in an interview with Sunday Tribune.

“The issue of bow and take a leave is not provided by any law. But I think the Senate has developed that and incorporated it in the rules guiding the conduct of the chamber. The tradition was basically established for the purpose of honouring their colleagues; persons who were once members of the chamber.

“So, anybody who is one-time member and is appearing before them, as far as they are concerned, is a person of integrity. They would not subject such person to rigorous questioning. Such a person is fit and proper, as far as the Senate is concerned, because it is viewed that his integrity is the same as that of those who are screening him. And for that alone, he might take a bow and go.

“But then, in doing that, the Senate may be allowing so much filthy water pass through unchecked to the detriment of the people that voted them. And of course, that is not good for our democracy.

“I believe the National Assembly already has the profile and curriculum vitae of each nominee before they even appeared for the screening. Moreover, there is no laid-down guideline for the process.

“Ideally, before you are nominated to appear in the Senate, the president is supposed to know every detail about you. I don’t know whether the ministerial nominees have declared their assets before their names were forwarded. But what I know and what the law says is that as soon as you are appointed, within a period of two to three months, you should declare your assets by filling the code of conduct form.

“I will like to advise that whenever Mr. President is forwarding names for nomination, he should also specify the portfolios or office they will be posted to so that every question will be related to the office he or she would occupy. But then, the president is hiding that from to the public. It makes no sense, because we all know that democracy is about transparency and accountability.

“So, the nominees are not going to work for Buhari, but for Nigerians. Therefore, Nigerian will want to know their capabilities in the office they will be assigned to be in charge.”

An Associate Professor of Sociology at the Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU), Ago-Iwoye, Ogun State, Obatunde Bright Adetola, said screening done for the ministerial nominees at the National Assembly was far from screening as obtained all over the world.

He said; “screening is the evaluation or investigation of something as part of a methodical survey, to assess suitability for a particular role or purpose. Going by this definition, what happened at Nigeria’s Senate cannot be named screening. And what we all saw and witnessed during the so-called screening cannot be a universal practice.

“This is not healthy for a nation that is desirous of progress in the right direction. The issues of integrity and competence could not be seen because what we saw did not show nor point to integrity or competence. If anything, it was a show and a celebration of mediocrity.

“However, it was transparent, because we all had the opportunity to see another type of screening as against what we all know before now. The implication is grievous, because it shows what to expect from this government in this next level. Nothing serious will come out of this type of arrangement. It looks like what Fela Anikulapo-Kuti called ‘Army Arrangement,’ which can never be in favour of the people.”

 

• Additional reports by Godwin Enna and Olayinka Olukoya

Take a bow as Senate’s albatross
Tribune Online

Source: Tribune

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AfCTA: Stakeholders Seek Private Involvement, Government Seriousness

President Mohammadu Buhari recently appended his signature to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement. OYENIRAN APATA, OLUSEGUN KOIKI and CHRIS EBONG present positions of stakeholders at different fora on the development and Nigeria’s membership of AfCTA.

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was officially launched at the 12th Extraordinary Summit of the African Union (AU) in Niamey, Niger on Sunday July 7,2019.

At the summit, Nigeria alongside Benin signed the AfCFTA agreement; all African countries except Eritrea have now signed. Gabon and Equatorial Guinea also deposited their instruments of ratification, bringing the number of countries that have ratified the agreement to 27.

Several instruments to facilitate the implementation of the agreement were launched at the summit, including rules of origin, a trade-in-goods dashboard, a payments and settlements system, and a dashboard of the AU Trade Observatory.

Ghana was also announced as the host of the AfCFTA secretariat. However, critical parts of the agreement have to be finalised before countries commence trading under the AfCFTA on July 1, 2020, including on schedules of tariff concessions and services commitments, and policies around investment, intellectual property, and competition.

Background

It would be recalled that the 18th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in January 2012, adopted a decision to establish a Continental Free Trade Area by an indicative date of 2017. This deadline was, however, not met.

The Summit also endorsed the Action Plan on Boosting Intra-Africa Trade (BIAT) which identifies seven priority action clusters: trade policy, trade facilitation, productive capacity, trade related infrastructure, trade finance, trade information, and factor market integration.

The AfCFTA will bring together all 55 member states of the African Union covering a market of more than 1.2 billion people, including a growing middle class, and a combined Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of more than $3.4 trillion.

In terms of numbers of participating countries, the AfCFTA will be the world’s largest free trade area since the formation of the World Trade Organisation. Estimates from the Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) suggest that the AfCFTA has the potential both to boost intra-African trade by 52.3 per cent by eliminating import duties and to double this trade if non-tariff barriers are also reduced.

Objectives

The main objectives of the AfCFTA are to create a single continental market for goods and services, with free movement of business persons and investments, and thus pave the way for accelerating the establishment of the Customs Union.

It will also expand intra-African trade through better harmonisation and coordination of trade liberalisation and facilitation and instruments across the RECs and across Africa in general.

The AfCFTA is also expected to enhance competitiveness at the industry and enterprise level through exploitation of opportunities for scale production, continental market access and better reallocation of resources.

African leaders held an Extraordinary Summit on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) in Kigali, Rwanda, during which the Agreement establishing the AfCFTA was presented for signature, along with the Kigali Declaration and the Protocol to the Treaty Establishing the African Economic Community relating to the Free Movement of Persons, Right to Residence and Right to Establishment.

In total, 44 out of the 55 AU member states signed the consolidated text of the AfCFTA Agreement, 47 signed the Kigali Declaration and 30 signed the Protocol on Free Movement.

Status of Negotiations

During the 32nd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the Union in Addis Ababa in February 2019, H.E. Mr. Issoufou Mahamadou, President of the Republic of Niger and Leader of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), presented a report on the status and progress made in the AfCFTA negotiations the Road Map for Finalisation of Outstanding Work on Phase 1 and Conclusion of Phase II Negotiations; and Draft Guidelines for Services Negotiations under the AfCFTA Protocol on Trade in Services.Ratification status

The African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement came into force on May 30, 2019 for those countries that had deposited their instruments of ratification before this date.

According to Article 23 of the Agreement, entry into force occurs 30 days after the 22nd instrument of ratification is deposited with the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC) – the designated depositary for this purpose – an essential step for the AfCFTA to enter into force.

On April 29, 2019 Sierra Leone and the Saharawi Republic deposited their instruments of ratification with the depositary, paving the way for the AfCFTA’s entry into force. Since then, five countries have deposited their instruments of ratification. Cameroon approved ratification on July 19, 2019.

Nigeria’s Membership

After refraining from append ing his signature on the agreement in 2018, President Mohammadu Buhari last month signed the treaty in the presence of African Heads of States and Governments, delegates and representatives from the private sector, civil society, and the media attending the 12th Extraordinary Summit of the AU Launch of the Operational Phase of the AfCFTA.

The President in a statement issued by his media team declared that Nigeria’s commitment to trade and African integration had never been in doubt nor was it ever under threat.

He told the Summit that Nigeria will build on the event by proceeding expeditiously with the ratification of the AfCFTA.

“Nigeria wishes to emphasise that free trade must also be fair trade. As African leaders, our attention should now focus on implementing the AfCFTA in a way that develops our economies and creates jobs for our young, dynamic and hardworking population.

“I wish to assure you that Nigeria shall sustain its strong leadership role in Africa, in the implementation of the AfCFTA. We shall also continue to engage, constructively with all African countries to build the Africa that we want.”

President Buhari went on: “We fully understand the potential of the AfCFTA to transform trade in Africa and contribute towards solving some of the continent’s challenges, whether security, economic or corruption.

“But it is also clear to us that for AfCFTA to succeed, we need the full support and buy-in of our private sector and civil society stakeholders and the public in general.

“It is against this background that we embarked on an extensive nationwide consultation and sensitization programme of our domestic stakeholders on the AfCFTA.

“Our consultations and assessments reaffirmed that the AfCFTA can be a platform for African manufacturers of goods and providers of service to construct regional value chains for made in Africa goods and services.

“It was also obvious that we have a lot of work to do to prepare our nation to achieve our vision for intra-African trade which is the free movement of ‘made in Africa goods.

“Some of the critical challenges that we identified will require our collective action as a Union and we will be presenting them for consideration at the appropriate AfCFTA fora.

“Examples are tackling injurious trade practices by third parties and attracting the investment we need to grow local manufacturing and service capacities.”

President Buhari noted that Nigeria’s signing of the AfCFTA and its Operational Launch at the 12th Extraordinary Summit was an additional major step forward on the AU’s Agenda 2063.

With Nigeria and the Benin Republic signing the Agreement at the Summit, 54 out of 55 African countries have signed the world’s largest free trade area deal, encompassing 55 countries and 1.2 billion people.

The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) is a piece of legislation that was approved by the U.S. Congress in May 2000.

The purpose of this legislation is to assist the economies of sub-Saharan Africa and to improve economic relations between the United States and the region. After completing its initial 15-year period of validity, the AGOA legislation was extended on 29 June 2015 further by 10 years to 2025.

Stakeholders lamented that Nigeria has never taken full advantage of the potentials due to over reliance on oil while other Africans are turning around their economy with this programme.

The AGOA project initiated by the United States of America in 2000 was to help develop trade and facilitate exporting over 6000 goods into America with no tariff.

The trade agreement primarily set up to galvanise the African economy covered 15 years and has since elapsed in 2015.

However, Nigeria and other Africa countries on the programme have been given a second chance when the programme was extended by another 10 years.

According to the Nigeria American Chamber of Commerce (NACC), 14 years after its establishment, Nigeria precisely as at 2014 only exported $6 million worth of goods to the USA compared to $6billion accounted for by other Sub-Saharan African nations.

Speaking on the bungled opportunity provided by the AGOA project, Sherifdeen Tella, a Professor of Economics at the Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU), Ogun State, stated that the benefits Nigeria may derive from AfCFTA are enormously provided the country will do the needful to take maximum advantage of the opportunities therein.

“On the other side is the lack of seriousness of Nigeria in all of these opportunities. Nigeria is yet to effectively tap into AGOA where South Africa seized the opportunities to record growth and became industrialised.

“The fact that the agreement allows for unification of all markets in the continent gives us a vast market to operate. In that sense, it means if we improve on our output it means we can get market for our produce and goods in the continent and by implications reduce unemployment and provide jobs in all the sectors where we produce for export.

It will also lead to an increase in income for the country”.

Addressing Nigeria’s failure with the AGOA initiative he said: “We are unable to take maximum advantage of the opportunity because we are a single product economy. The implication is that for us to benefit from AfCFTA we need to sit right and develop other sectors of the economy particularly the extractive sector.

“However whether Nigeria is ready to do all of these and avoid mistakes of the past is a different ball game.

“As we have not been able to benefit from AGOA because of lack of seriousness on the part of the government it will not be a surprise if the new opportunities go the way of others before it. Other countries are aligning, growing their markets and trading among themselves. If Africa can also do more intra-trade it will be better for the continent.

“When Africa unites it provides an opportunity to all member countries to collaborate, do business together and improve trade among them. Unfortunately, such does not exist as they are competing among themselves on trade with outsiders.

If the countries are ready to improve on their output in different sectors they will, in the end, benefit from the potential opportunities that the AfcFTA will offer.

“Unfortunately most African countries don’t have established institutions that will guarantee steady growth and galvanize African trade.

According to him, “It was unfortunate that many African countries missed the benefits offered by AGOA leaving South Africa to benefit immensely through a deliberate plan for industrialisation and export of goods and services into America.

“Within the African continent, intra-trade is still at its lowest ebb. The African trade pact is supposed to improve intra Africa trade growth but many lacked the required institutions to drive growth and develop their different sectors”.

He submitted that the 53.2% projection could be realized if African countries make up their minds to trade among themselves rather than trade with countries outside the continent.

Speaking in the same vein, Dr. Ayo Teriba, the Chief Executive Officer of Economic Associates, recently told SUNDAY INDEPENDENT at a stakeholders meeting in Lagos that Nigeria and other African countries lack the financial capacity to actualise the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), saying that the needed solution is for the government to position the country’s economy to attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to drive the intra-African trade initiative.

In his presentation at the meeting organised by the Financial Derivative Company (FDC), he stated that Nigeria lacked enough liquidity, saying that the country had been plagued by all forms of illiquidity including capital illiquidity.

He said: “If Nigeria cannot produce, it cannot adequately take advantage of the AfCFTA which has been adjudged the biggest trade treaty in the world. “The country inability to take advantage of the AfCFTA would, therefore, imply that the essence of signing the treaty is defeated”.

Speaking on the dearth of infrastructure, Teriba added that Nigeria’s road and rail transportation system has deteriorated over time, saying all of these add up to make it difficult to guarantee a successful actualization of the new trade pact.

He charged the federal government to take advantage of these opportunities like its peers in the developing world.

Ambassador Chiedu Osakwe, Director-General Nigerian Office for Trade Negotiations, described governments as monstrous creations all over the world and wondered where the government will source the money required to drive trade in the country.

He tasked the private sector to step in to provide infrastructure and warned against companies getting carried away by forgetting the government by resorting to whatever they like.

Not impressed with the activities of the Economic Community of West Africa (ECOWAS), Ambassador Osakwe advocated for a reorganisation of the regional body to fit into the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), saying that the operation of the continental trade agreements would be a test case for ECOWAS to make AfCFTA work for West Africa.

The Lagos Chamber Of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) at the end of stakeholders meeting on AfCFTA earlier in the year, expressed fear about the existing numerous bilateral trade pacts agreements of some AU countries with the rest of the world and Nigeria’s underdeveloped industrial & infrastructural profile.

The Chamber argued that this Agreement will potentially make Nigeria a dumping ground due to our uncompetitive manufacturing sector, large market size and population.

The stakeholders at the conference noted that for trade to be effective and benefit from the AfCFTA existing trade focused bodies such as the Nigerian Diaspora Direct Investment Summit, National Trade Consultative Committee and the Nigerian Industrial Policy and Competitiveness Advisory Council should be bolstered, with trade and infrastructure interconnected.

The participants therefore, proposed that safeguards be put in place for the Nigerian economy and sensitive sectors on transhipment, dumping and expected a surge of import.

As stakeholders proposed an effective framework for the enforcement of Rules of Origin, they equally expressed concerns on the prevailing disconnect between regulatory agencies and policy inconsistencies among countries on the continent.

Participants, however, called for policy coherence and the reinforcement of interconnectivity between agencies to protect consumers and the Nigerian economy, as well as, enhance the interface between, trade, investment and governance.

The deep concerns about the lack of data on trade within the continent and likely negative effect of poor statistics on the implementation of AfCFTA was expressed.

The stkaholders, therefore, concluded that though the opportunities in AfCFTA outweigh the drawbacks but the necessary safeguards, systems, soft and hard infrastructures including viable ICT policies must be activated to maximize the potential benefits such as; consumers and market right of access to multiple and diversified products and services; protection against abusive and injurious parties in and outside Nigeria based on ongoing capacity expansion of trade laws; investment opportunities for innovative Nigerian entrepreneurs.

Speaking at the FDC organised stakeholders meeting, Mr Muda Yussuf, LCCI Director-General said: “I worry that I have not seen any evidence on how we are going to create an enabling environment for AFcFTA to thrive.

“We need to position the economy to take advantage of AFCTA. There is no policy pronouncement on how to tackle electricity supply to industries. ECOWAS is still grappling to ensure free trade among member nations,” he said.

Proponents of the continental free trade area say it will lead to a 52.3% growth in intra-African trade by 2022. But where is this figure from?

The pan-African free trade agreement no doubt has enormous potential but it is subject to current economic realities. The pan-African free trade agreement no doubt heralds great benefits but for those to be harnessed, current economic realities will have to change.

The African Continental Free Trade Area’s (AfCFTA) entering into force is a laudable development, building on existing initiatives for regional integration and laying the groundwork for more. The immense support from countries and leaders across the continent is merited.

At the same time, however, AfCFTA’s strong political backing and the excitement surrounding its rapid progress has led to some claims of its potential benefits going unchallenged, particularly surrounding intra-African trade gains. Most commentators appear reluctant to interrogate publicly a popular pan-African project, even when this analysis might be constructive.

According to Africa Arguments, this is a problem because a misleading impression has been created that signatory countries should soon enjoy the benefits of improved trade levels.

Specifically, following repeated citations by international organisations and the media, the estimate that AfCFTA will lead to a 52.3% increase in intra-African trade by 2022 is now widely taken as a given.

Though seldom cited, this number comes from a paper presented in 2012 by two UNECA specialists to the 7th African Economic Conference. And, importantly, the report’s authors make clear that their projection of a 52.3% increase by 2022 – compared to a 2010 baseline – is based on several assumptions: a fully-liberalised and continent-wide trade area by 2017; harmonisation of external tariffs across the continent by 2019; and a series of practical trade facilitation measures.

The post AfCTA: Stakeholders Seek Private Involvement, Government Seriousness appeared first on Independent Newspapers Nigeria.

Source: Independent

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Youth Empowerment Through Prayer

Rev. Fr. John Damian Adizie

This topic may sound a bit strange. What has youth empowerment to do with prayer? How many young men and women are willing and ready to pray? If prayer is a channel to youth empowerment what about the numerous poor prayer warriors in our society today? Can one ever give out what he does not have? What is the relationship between prayer and youth empowerment? How can we empower the youths through prayer? Above all, what is the best way to pray and what are the principles of true prayer?

There is a popular adage that says, “A prayerful child is a powerful child whereas a prayer-less child is a powerless child.”

Children and even young men and women are empowered through prayer. Prayer is indeed the most powerful force on earth. It is often said that God rules the world but prayer controls God. Prayer makes the impossible possible. It is the only channel through which we can communicate with God Almighty.

Prayer is a channel of transformation. Early this year the Holy Father, Pope Francis, describes prayer as the only force that can change reality.

“Prayer always change reality, let us not forget that: It either changes things or changes our hearts, but it always changes.” For the Holy Father, therefore, prayer has the power to change lives and heart.

Prayer, the Holy Father declares, is powerful. It can heal, it can give, and it can change lives.

“It is a mission of compassion for the world… a prayerful itinerary that transforms people’s lives”. With prayer a nobody can be transformed into a somebody; a poor man can be transformed into a wealthy man. Even an ugly situation can be transformed into a favourable situation.

Young people need to be connected through prayer. A tree cannot make a forest.

Unfortunately, most of our youths are looking for connections in the wrong place and the wrong directions. They even go to the wrong people for connection. They forget that prayer is the greatest and the wireless connection anyone can have. Prayer connects the creature with their Creator. It connects the needy with their Provider. It even connects the earth with heavenly beings.

Prayer is the master key that unlocks every treasure. It is the only key to success. You cannot succeed without prayer, neither can you excel without prayer. Clement Stone describes prayer as man’s greatest power. Prayer is not just man’s greatest power; it is also man’s greatest weapon. A prayer-less man is like a fenceless house.

Prayer is the channel of divine favour. In the gospel of Mark 11:24 our Lord Jesus Christ declares, “Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” This is a divine promise! An assurance from above! With prayers all things are possible!

Prayer Is The Only Way Out! There are so many ways to kill a rat but when it comes to human existence and problem, prayer remains the only way out. You must have heard a lot about prayer. Am sure you have been praying. You might even be among the powerful prayer warriors in town. But permit me to share something very important and very peculiar about prayer.

To start with, you must be wondering why most people complain that their prayers are not answered? Apart from prayer is there any other solution or short cut to solution to people’s problem? Am here to prove to you that prayer is the only way out. It is the solution to all our problems and the answer to our questions.

In the gospel of John 15:5 our Lord Jesus Christ told his followers, “Apart from me you can do nothing.”

I doubt, if one can ever succeed without prayer; because prayer is the only key that unlocks every closed door. It is the only channel through which we can communicate with God Almighty. There is no other means through which we can receive favour from God except through prayer.

Human beings are suffering unnecessarily because they have refused to pray. As St. James rightly declares, “You do not have because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.” (James 4:2-3).

This explains why most people are living in ardent poverty. It is also the major reason why people are suffering from one ailment to another. Most people are so lazy when it comes to prayer. They are ready to spend their last penny in the hospital but when it comes to prayer, they are not just reluctant but full of doubt.

In the second book of Chronicles 7:14 God declares, “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” St. James also declares, “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms” (James 5:13). With this, it is obvious; therefore, that prayer is the only solution to human suffering. It is the only means through which our land, our families and even our nation will be healed and liberated.

Most people thought they have been praying but in the gospel of John 16:24 our Lord Jesus Christ declares, “Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” What most people call prayer is not prayer.

The day you will start praying in the right way and in the right direction, you will start receiving. And when you start receiving your life will never be the same, you shall experience fullness of joy.

In today’s gospel from Luke 11:1-13 one of the disciples said to Jesus, “Lord, teach us to pray…” He said to them, “When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.

3 Give us day by day our daily bread. 4 And forgive us our sins, For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one.” This is the famous our Lord’s prayer!

Most people are familiar with this prayer. It is the most famous prayer amongst the Christendom. This prayer works with faith. With this prayer, your case is settled. The impossible shall become possible. Every closed doors shall be opened. Things will start turning around for your favour.

Just as our Lord Jesus Christ assured his followers, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” In his letter to the Philippians 4:6 St. Paul declares, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.”

Finally, St. James 5:16 concludes “Pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” There is nothing prayer cannot do for you. Through prayer you will receive much from God. You will receive your healing, your deliverance and your restoration. Above all, through prayer our young men and women will be gainfully empowered.

The post Youth Empowerment Through Prayer appeared first on Independent Newspapers Nigeria.

Source: Independent

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Prices Of Fresh Tomatoes, Pepper In Sliding Trend

Prices of fresh tomatoes and pepper which had steadily been on the high side since early this year have eventually witnessed a decline in the week under review.

Consumers seemed to be taken aback at the turn of events as prices of the produce for some time had not been favourable, fluctuating adversely to the inconvenience of consumers.

The presence of fresh tomatoes from Zaria, Jos, South-West and neighbouring countries such as Cameroun and Benin Republic has helped the situation such that traders had no option but to bring down the prices of the produce to encourage patronage.

Despite the drop in the prices of the produce, many of the traders and consumers were of the opinion that the fall was not really significant especially when compared with what they were previously.

During the week findings from a market survey across some states by the Business and Market Intelligence Unit of SUNDAY INDEPENDENT revealed that prices of the commodity fell by over 15 percent between July and August 1, 2019.

Improved supply and low demand were predominantly mentioned as reasons responsible for the drop.

Checks at the Dei-Dei Market, Abuja, showed that prices of fresh tomatoes and pepper were at a sliding trend. For example, prices of a big basket of fresh tomatoes which increased to between N14,500 and N15,000 last month fell within the region of N11,700 and N12,500 within the week. But this depends on the size of the basket and the bargaining power of the customer. Likewise, that of fresh pepper, declined marginally to N13,800 from N15,000 earlier sold.

Mallam Nasir Abu, who trades in the produce at the Dei-Dei Market, Abuja, linked the situation to onset of its season of harvest as he opined that prices of the produce would soon crash further.

For that of Achau Market, Kaduna, prices of a basket of fresh tomatoes which previously went for between N15,000 and N15,800 reduced to between N12,500 and N12,800 while that of a bag of fresh pepper dropped to N15,000 from N17,000 initially sold.

A pepper seller named Iliyasu Jonah, at the Achau Market, Kaduna, in a chat with our correspondent ascribed the situation to improved supply.

It is the same scenario at Ogbeogologo Market, Asaba, where prices of a basket of fresh tomatoes currently range from N18,000 to N18,500 down from N20,000 previously sold. Likewise, that of a bag of fresh pepper is currently selling for N15,000 as against N18,000, sold before.

Mrs. Oluwakemi Ajagun, who retails the produce at the Ogbeogologo Market, Asaba, related the decline to low patronage coupled with increased availability.

For Ose Market, Onitsha, the trend was not different particularly with prices of a basket of fresh tomatoes attracting between N17,500 and N18,000 as against N20,000 previously sold. That of a bag of fresh pepper also fell slightly to N14,500 from N15,500 earlier sold.

At the Oba Market, Benin City, Edo State, prices of a basket of fresh tomatoes were at a downward trend, declining to N17,000 from N19,500 previously sold. Whereas that of a bag of fresh pepper sold initially for N16,000 fell to between N14,000 and N14,500, of which most of the traders attributed to a gradual arrival of its season of abundance.

For that of Lafenwa Market, Ogun State; prices of a basket of fresh tomatoes fell within the region of N14,500 and N15,000 as against N18,000 previously went for while a bag of fresh pepper dropped to N14,500 from N16,000 earlier sold.

Mr. Sola Edu, a trader at the Lafenwa Market Ogun State, connected the drop with increased supply usually associated with the season of harvest that is slowly approaching.

But a lady who came to shop for food items at the Lafenwa Market, Ogun State, told our correspondent that the effect of the decline in the prices of the produce was not significant, stressing that it did not reflect on her purchases.

Visit to Bodija Market, Ibadan, during the week indicated that prices of a basket of fresh tomatoes which previously went for between N18,000 and N19,000 declined, currently ranging from N13,500 to N14,500, depending on the size of the basket and the bargaining power of the customer.

Likewise that of a bag of fresh peeper, currently selling for between N16,000 and N17,000, down from between N 19,000 and N19,500 previously sold.

Mr. Busari Ahmed, who trades in the produce at the Bodija Market, Ibadan, said the reduction in the prices of the produce had not translated in to sales as consumers still patronised the alternative, tomato paste to augment the fresh one.

He, however, said that with further increase in the supply of the produce, especially from other areas in the North that are yet to harvest the produce coupled with availability, prices of the produce would certainly decrease the more such that affordability would not be an issue.

In Lagos, visits to popular Mile 12 markets indicated that prices of fresh tomatoes were at a declining trend particularly with the presence of different species from Nigeria and neighbouring countries.

The increased number of trucks carrying the consignment was also a determinant factor influencing the price either positively or negatively.

In spite of increased supply which seemed to affect prices of the produce positively, traders and consumers were still of the opinion that prices were still on the high side especially when compared with what they were previously.

Mr. Gbenga Adediran, who sells the produce in bulk at the Mile 12 Market, Lagos, said that the drop was still not favourable as some of them were unable to sustain their normal purchases because of the huge amount of money involved.

Despite the drop, prices of a basket of fresh tomatoes currently sells for between N14,000 and N15,000 as against N18,500 and N20,000 previous sold while that of fresh pepper previously sold for between N19,000 and N20,000 dropped to between N17,000 and N17,500.

The post Prices Of Fresh Tomatoes, Pepper In Sliding Trend appeared first on Independent Newspapers Nigeria.

Source: Independent

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The burden of doing business in Nigeria

Tribune Online
The burden of doing business in Nigeria

RATHER than searching for primary or secondary school teaching jobs, Mrs Ifulanya Offor, a graduate of Education Administration from Abia State University preferred to learn craft and teach others technical skills in the informal sector.

After her national youth service, Mrs. Offor who spoke with Sunday Tribune, said she enrolled to acquire skills in bead making while still serving in Lagos State. After a year’s apprenticeship, she started producing artistic earrings and necklaces.

Mrs Offor, now has a business outfit located at Okota, Lagos, which she has operated for the past eight years, empowering women and reducing poverty in her own little way. But Mrs Ofor’s small scale business is facing challenges. According to her, Nigerians are too interested in foreign designers and this reduces their patronage of locally made fashion items. This, coupled with lack of finance for expansion and high cost of running businesses in this part of the world, has made it difficult for her to cover cost and make profits.

Mrs. Offor is one among millions of entrepreneurs whose business expansion has been hindered by lack of finance and other operating bottlenecks. Other factors identified by small scale business operators are poor power supply and bad road network among others adding to woes of SMEs.

Even as all these put pressure on their cost of running the business, one thing is clear: whether it’s a small barber shop, the roadside vulcanizer or a dry cleaning shop down the street, SMEs drive national economies.

Ironically, lenders shy away from giving loans to start-ups due to a number of reasons, among which is the argument that the opaque nature of many SMEs does not help support the idea to  advance loans to them.

“SMEs have to pay for everything, from electricity to other inputs, in a dollarised economy. This weakens their viability, and therefore their credit-worthiness. As a result, banks are reluctant to lend,” says Razia Khan, Head of Research for Africa at Standard Chartered Bank.

Also, speaking with Sunday Tribune, an economist and ex-staff of defunct Oceanic Bank, Mr. Kenny Daniels said that the issue of growing SMEs goes beyond providing the fund. To him, power supply and capacity building is most important to sustain their investment, because many of them with laudable ideas are still having challenges of how to push forward.

Speaking further, he is of the opinion that there are other sources of funding for serious entrepreneurs in the sector.

“I believe that if my idea is bigger than me and I have a market for it I can sell my personal property to fund it. I believe there should be other social entrepreneurs organising young people to get clustered and fund their ideas. There is no need rushing to micro-finance or commercial banks when you know the challenges. Also, when the government is finding it difficult to provide power, how do you expect private business owners to do so effectively and still break-even,” he told Sunday Tribune.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), SMEs in Nigeria have contributed about 48 per cent of the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the last five years. Also, available records show that in Nigeria, SMEs account for 96 per cent of businesses and 84 per cent of employment. In South Africa, SMEs account for 91 per cent of businesses, 60 per cent of employment and contribute 52 per cent of total GDP.

This means that despite claiming to be the giant of Africa, Nigeria still lags behind neighbouring countries in most parameters. One of such is glaring in the above example where South Africa’s SMEs sector contribute about 4 per cent above what obtains in Nigeria to the GDP.

With a total number of about 17.4 million, the NBS said SMEs account for about 50 per cent of industrial jobs and nearly 90 per cent of the manufacturing sector, in terms of number of enterprises.

 

More Challenges

The Chairman of Abuja Chapter of Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Professor Uche Uwaleke, is concerned that in Nigeria, poor access to finance constitutes a major constraint for Small and Medium Enterprises.

According to him, the high borrowing rates discourage the SMEs from accessing bank loans.

“Loans from commercial banks especially to sectors considered as high-risk are usually collateral-linked, involving in most cases, a charge over assets of the firm. Such conditions are often too stringent for many start-ups particularly if the payback period for the project to be financed is long,” he stated.

In the same vein, while assessing current market conditions and business growth prospects for SMEs, the duo of Esiri Agbeyi, Head and Partner, Private Wealth and Omosomi Omomia, Senior Associate at PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PWC), identified challenges impacting business growth, particularly financing, taxation issues; and other factors as major hindrances to SMEs growth in Nigeria.

Though significant growth has been achieved in the SME sector, there is still much to be done. The experts from PWC said SMEs find it hard to access funds due to the category of funding they belong to.

” Other challenges encountered by the sector include lack of skilled manpower, multiplicity of taxes, high cost of doing business, among others,” they observed.

The views of Agbeyi and Omomia are in agreement with that of a group of operators in the SMEs space. They have at different occasions lamented about multiple taxation which they said reduces the profits made by SMEs. Most entrepreneurs, they said, pay taxes in the local government, at the state level and at Federal level, all of which often impact of their profit margins.

Worried by the issue of multiplicity of taxes, the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) recently proposed to have concessionary tax rate for the SME sector of the economy. In a communiqué issued at the end of its council meeting held recently, the LCCI noted that small businesses were more vulnerable to the current challenges in the economy and suffered high mortality rate as a result.

An Abuja Federal Capital Territory (FCT)-based chartered accountant, Alhaji Saheed Aderibigbe, who also spoke with Sunday Tribune on the impact of taxation of SMEs said governments all over the world see taxation as a means of revenue generation, “but it should be handled in a way to make it beneficent to tax payers.”

“Taxation all over the world is one of the major sources of revenue for governments. The administration and compliance should be seamless and convenient for individuals and businesses.

“The current leadership of FIRS has set a target of N8 trillion to be generated as revenue through implementation and enforcement of both popular and unpopular tax laws.

“The irony of this is that the country is just coming out of recession, coupled with the fact that these SMEs have little or no support from financial institutions as regards credit facility, let alone single digit interest facility, double digit inflation rate and no infrastructures to stimulate an enabling environment for businesses to grow. Yet, government is projecting a whooping sum of N8 trillion to be raised from taxation. These account for huge percentage of SMEs folding up,” he said.

Another tax expert, who is also the Managing Consultant of Full Arcade Consults, Mr ‘layinka Bakare, said “any taxpayer who walks newly into one of the Federal Inland Revenue Services offices or state tax authorities will be surprised at how the offices are structured. In there, you will find sectionalised units in form of Large Tax Offices (LTOs) and Medium/Small-scale Tax offices, among others.

“They all are classified according to the volume of the taxable incomes being handled as applied to the line of businesses and economic interests of the tax payers.

“All taxpayers have something in common: The legal requirement to declare their incomes at a specific period of time for taxation purposes. If you are selling taxable goods or services in any state in Nigeria or you earn some income from working in the country, paying tax is ‘a must.’ What this translates into is that you are required by law to collect, file and remit sales and use tax.

“In most cases, some entrepreneurs are to pay up huge sum of money for their long-term default which may in turn affect their inputs to the country’s per capita income, if they close shops.”

• Nigeria’s dehumanising debt profile

Still on finance, the Central Bank governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele agreed with PWC experts and other stakeholders who have noted poor access to credit as a significant constraint to the growth of MSMEs.

While revealing efforts by the CBN to assist the sector, Emefiele however, insisted that it was more important to restart the flow of credit to Micro-Small and Medium scale Enterprises (MSMEs) to enable them engage in productive activities that would support growth.

“As part of efforts to support this objective, we created N220billion MSME funds, which has been critical in supporting the growth of MSMEs in the agriculture and manufacturing sectors,” he disclosed, while giving his five-year plan to increase growth in the economy.

But most analysts fear that given the identified poor business structure of these SMEs, it means that even if the CBN succeeds in making affordable credit easily accessible for them, the banking watchdog would have to address the issue of some of the small firms not being properly structured to repay loans.

Chief Olatunji Oshati, an hotelier is also worried on the issue of multiple taxation which he said is driving many entrepreneurs out of small businesses.

According to him, “There is too much multiplicity of taxation in the system; governments come asking for similar types of taxation with different names; radio tax, tenement tax, land tax and all kinds, all in the name of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR). Government should streamline everything.”

 

Poor electricity

An array of small business owners who spoke to Sunday Tribune were unanimous in their view that poor electricity is a major headache for them. A metal construction technician (welder), Mr Adeleke Abiodun Wahab; the Executive Secretary, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, South-West zone, Mr Olalekan Edunjobi; restaurant operator, William Okpanam and Mr Tunde Oyatokun Zion, an Ibadan-based baker, all berated the state of power supply in the country identifying it as a major impediment to smooth business operations in the country.

Mr Oyatokun Zion, the baker while speaking on his bakery business said: “diesel is the key problem to powering our machines. It is too expensive. When it was sold at N180 per litre, we could do business with some gains. Now, it sells for between N220 and N250 per litre. Yet, every week, to produce the one bag of flour per day that I do, I use at least 10 litres. A measure of yeasts that used to cost N350 now sells for N500. Even, ordinary tape to seal bread nylon jumped from N200 to N400. It is getting unbearable. But there is no other means of survival.”

 

 Solution

There is a general consensus that solutions to the problems facing SMEs and ease of doing business are not far-fetched. The Federal government through the Central Bank of Nigeria has been taking several steps to revive the sector, but operators said such efforts are not enough as most of the policies enunciated are done without carrying them along. Others also said that the Central Bank is, without knowing it, holding back the banking sector from lending with too much cautious approach.

But, in the words of the CBN governor, Mt Godwin Emefiele, “We set up the National Collateral Registry and supported the passage of legislation governing the activities of the National Collateral Registry and the Credit Bureaus. These measures have helped to encourage the flow of credit to SMEs by allowing them to provide movable assets as collateral in order to obtain finance from banks, relative to the previous process which required that they provide fixed assets.

“So far over N400 billion worth of assets have been registered in the collateral registry by MSMEs. The activities of the credit bureaus are also reducing the risk encountered by banks in lending to businesses, as it has helped to identify credit worthy borrowers.”

However, Emefiele believes that the CBN has been doing well in supporting the MSMEs. He said the bank›s Pro-Growth policy approach means that policies are geared towards lower interest rate so that MSMEs can have access to credit.

“And, when that happens, the productivity level will increase and more people will be engaged. Easy access to credit through pro-growth policy will help to reduce unemployment which is the major challenge the economy has now” he explained.

Yet, experts believe that among other measures, a proactive strategy is necessary to address the 6-key constraints faced by the sector which are: access to finance; weak infrastructure; inconsistency of government policies; access to market; multiple taxation and obsolete technology. Other constraints that must be addressed according to them are: capacity-building and record keeping skill; effective and secured financial systems as well as targeted lending and good institutions at all levels of government supporting and promoting MSMEs.

As for electricity, though the federal government had in the last decade committed hundreds of billions of naira to make things work, it remains to be seen how much impact this has made on constant power supply. Several steps had been taken including recent signing of an agreement between the Federal Government and a German company Siemens AG for an electricity road map for Nigeria for the next five years in which installed capacity is expected to increase systematically.

Perhaps by the time these bottlenecks are removed in no distant future, Nigeria may begin to experience a more prosperous economy in which the ease of doing business would have become more appreciable to the extent of attracting more attention from foreign investors.

 Additional story by Stephen Gbadamosi.

The burden of doing business in Nigeria
Tribune Online

Source: Tribune

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Pastor Adeboye must rue this

Tribune Online
Pastor Adeboye must rue this

WORK on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway has been going on, on-and-off and at snail’s speed for God-knows-how-long. Even the king of dullards know that this is the most important road in the entire country; its economic value, not to talk of the political, is incomparable to none; yet, it has been left to deteriorate and decay, causing untold hardship to travellers; leading to avoidable loss of life and property; and causing colossal economic loss to individuals, corporate organisations and the country as a whole.

Work on the road has been in fits. This can only happen in a country that does not set its priorities right and which takes decisions on sentiments and other base considerations. We take critical decisions to reward loyalty or punish “enemies” regardless of the hurt we inflict on our common good. Where people put their money where their mouth is, construction work on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, which has outlived three civilian presidents since 1999, would long have been completed. Even now that a fourth president is struggling half-heartedly to finish off the job, it is obvious to all that the volume of traffic on the road today dwarfs what was applicable when the reconstruction of the road was on the drawing board decades back. In other words, using outmoded statistics to build the road, it already has fallen far behind its usefulness. The Lagos-Ibadan expressway, even after its completion, will not serve the purpose of ease of transportation. In other words, we shall be thinking of expanding this same road and adding arteries and by-passes immediately – or ever before – it is completed! Is that not how we have dilly-dallied on the gas project, on power, desert encroachment, Ogoni clean-up, and, wait for it, on the restructuring of the country? We delay until it becomes too late or virtually ineffective. That is one point; the other is the reported closure of the expressway for four months – not days and not weeks – without viable alternatives already provided!

This is a country of suffer-heads, to quote Fela. It is also, on the other hand, a country of joffer-heads. The people suffer but their leaders enjoy to the hilt, ironically, on the wealth of the same suffering masses. No consideration is ever put into place to see that the people do not suffer or, at the very least, to ameliorate their suffering. Otherwise, how can anyone think of closing the Lagos-Ibadan expressway without, one, giving adequate warning of months and not just days as they have done? Two, how can they contemplate such partial closure without first of all providing effective alternative routes rather than directing commuters to already congested and in-bad-shape “alternative” routes? Three, how can they choose this period of the year when the masses are engaged in the rat-race of making hay before Christmas and New Year? Four, how can they decide on this within the annual convention of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, which attracts millions of worshippers from home and abroad? Does this government ever care about its image? We know already it does not care a hoot about the suffering of the people.

Pastor Olaitan Olubiyi, spokesperson of the RCCG, tried to douse tension when he announced that the mission had discussed and reached an agreement with those concerned on how to avoid this catastrophe but, pronto, government officials countered that the closure would proceed apace! This is a mission that boasts the sitting Vice-President, who usually attends RCCG programmes! Anyway, he may fly in, in a chopper! On hire, choppers are usually US$7,000 per hour! You see what I mean! I will love to see the VP drive into RCCG Campground during the road closure. What respect and leverage does this VP command in a government in which he is the Number Two?

Perhaps, more importantly, is the suspicion that the road closure at this point in time may have been targeted at Adeboye – a warning that, see, we can hurt you and your interests. Or a punishment for the jabs he had been forced to throw at the powers-that-be for reasons beyond his control. As careful as Adeboye might have been, public pressure will not let him be. That RCCG boasts the VP is enough pressure and blackmail on its own. People will ask: Is that why Adeboye is keeping quiet? Why you say he has not been keeping quiet; they will ask: Is that why he has not been as forceful as expected? The other day, some activists stormed the RCCG campground to insist that Adeboye speak out more forcefully on the State-of-the-Nation. His protestation that as member of the PFN and CAN he stands with the decisions of those two organisations does not satisfy many. Now, it would appear that Adeboye stands between the rock and the hard place; he may have found himself between the devil and the deep blue sea. What will he do? Will he read the handwriting on the wall and withdraw into his shell? Or will he damn the consequences and stand by the truth? Adeboye has taught in his daily devotional “Open Heavens” that not speaking out against injustice and oppression; knowing the truth and shying away from speaking it makes anyone as culpable as the vile offenders. Will he, then, practise what he preaches or will it be “do as I say and not as I do”? The world watches!

I must conclude by saying that I do not envy Daddy G. O., as Adeboye is fondly called by Redeemers and non-Redeemers alike. I stand to be weaned off my conviction that the closure of Lagos-Ibadan expressway at this point in time is both punishment and blackmail. It is also scantily-concealed threat and warning to the man of God. It is an affront to the God of the man of God. If they tarry for just one week, is that the “delay” that will prevent them from delivering this project on schedule? Pray, how many “schedules” have we seen them move forward again and again on this same road? May Pastor Adeboye receive grace and strength to stand firm even in the face of this obvious provocation! He must not waver because, apart from the outsiders who may taunt, there are also fifth columnists waiting in the wings to mock and disparage if he wavers. The most vicious enemies of a man, usually, are those of his own household. In conclusion: It is not the truth that you know but the one that you speak out and stand up for that sets you free.

• Bisola Johnson: In defence of SCOAN

Leah Sharibu: Whether living, whether dead

The fact is, when men carry the same ideals in their hearts, nothing can isolate them – neither prison walls nor the sod of cemeteries. For a single memory, a single spirit, a single idea, a single conscience, a single dignity will sustain them all. —Fidel Castro in “History will absolve me”

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, for thy sake we are killed all the daylong; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. —Romans 8: 35 – 39.

The vile and empty characteristically dance and defecate on the grave of true patriots, obviously to desecrate and deface their memory. They danced on the grave of Awo. After frustrating his yeoman’s efforts to be president, a pedestal he had hoped to use to better the lot of the common man, they praised and eulogised him to high heavens at his death. The vilest of them all, the ones who were unsparing in their opposition, the Brutus, so to say, were the loudest in their ululation of Awo, shedding the most crocodile tears as they waxed lyrical. One of such described Awo as “the best president Nigeria never had”. He was right – but he was one of those who ensured Awo never reached his goal.

They danced on the grave of MKO Abiola. “On June 12 we stand” became “On June 12 we eat”  Last year, the locusts returned ostensibly with good tidings; saying they had come to honour MKO. Thank God you can deceive some of the people all the time; you can deceive all the people some of the time but you cannot deceive all the people all the time.

They danced on the grave of Funke Olakunrin, not minding the additional misery they were piling on his grieving family and forlorn 95-year-old father. For some of them, it was the best time to rub insult into injury.

They are getting ready now to dance on Leah Sharibu’s grave.  When rumours broke concerning her “death” before the elections, Government quickly denied it. “Don’t put sand in our garri”, they seemed to be saying. It is not true that they really want Leah out of incarceration. It would demystify them. Tell me what efforts they have made to free her. The other day they said her captors demanded some billions which they said was too much – but they have reportedly given N100 billion to Miyetti Allah and are already spending whopping billions on RUGA for killer herdsmen.

But angelic Leah Sharibu will never die! Leah has taught us Christian chivalry, courage, and strength of character as of the times of old. She has taught us godly love as practised by Christ and the apostolic Fathers. She has taught us how to focus on God and the things of God, not distracted by worldly living and the things of this world. She is a living example of what Peter meant when he told the Lord Jesus that they had left home and family and everything else and had followed him. “And Jesus answered and said: Verily I say unto you, there is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel’s, but he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life” – Mark 10: 29 7 30.

For mockers and scorners, Leah’s immediate reward here is that she has etched her name in gold. Jesus raised Lazarus from death: what was the eventual end of Lazarus? Methuselah lived 969 years: what became of Methuselah? Sir, Ma, what will be your eventual end – and what will be mine? Pray, what will be the eventual end of the captors/killers of Leah and those dancing or getting ready to dance on her grave? In another 100/200 years, if the Lord tarries, many of us will no longer be remembered even by members of our immediate families.

But Leah leaves in the present times in our heart. And, as they say, to live in the heart of those we love – and who love us – is not to die. Leah will live in future times on the pages of history. Her memory and remembrance will outlive that of presidents. Kids like her will read about her. Adults will study her. Academic theses and dissertations will be conducted on the chivalry and example of Leah Sharibu.

Leah has run her race well. She will one day finish her course. And like the apostle Paul said, “…there is laid up for (her) a crown of righteousness…” (11 Timothy 4: 8).

Let mockers and scorners know that the vile murderers and terrorists, their sponsors, defenders, backers and, above all, the cause they purport to advance, are the losers – ultimately. Another set of losers are tongue-tied Church leaders who, unlike John the Baptist who spoke truth to power, specialise in what they euphemistically call “wisdom” instead of picking up the gauntlet.

 

EDITOR’S NOTE: This column was put to bed before the announcement shifting forward the road closure under the searchlight here.

Pastor Adeboye must rue this
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What Nigerians must do to make new ministers perform —ASUU president

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What Nigerians must do to make new ministers perform —ASUU president

HOW do you explain the Senate position asking any ministerial nominee who were once state or federal lawmaker to just ‘bow and go’ during screening?

For me, to ask nominees to just bow and go on the floor of the Senate for people who are to become ministers is grossly undemocratic. It is indeed a very funny practice. For the Senate to insist that is their tradition for any ex-senator or House of Reps member is not binding on the rest of Nigerians. They are supposed to be responsive to our feelings. The Senate ought to probe their past and deeds. They should be subjected to interrogation on the floor of the Senate so that Nigerians can actually know the true profiles of those who are going to head one ministry or the other.

And I want to believe that one of the things that might have informed that practice could be because the nominees are not being attached to any specific ministry or portfolio in the documents before them.

And it appeared that the presidency did not also give Nigerians enough room to actually know how well those who are going to administer our various ministries are prepared or equipped for the job and assignments before them.

So, as academics, we believe that there is no issue that cannot be questioned or interrogated. And if anybody had anything in the past and that person is assigned to a leadership role, he or she should be ex-rayed.  Somebody might have even been accused  wrongly of misdeeds while in office in the past and now being pushed forward for another role like that of a minister, the screening should have been a good opportunity for them to defend themselves before the public. So, for me, that so-called screening should have given them the opportunity to clear their names from  the mess because there could have been wrong allegations against somebody. But this ‘bow and go’ system just on the basis of once being a senator and all that is not acceptable to Nigerians. Or is it that the Senate is saying that all senators are perfect human beings and cannot be wrong? That can never be. Though, there are some senators who are not benchwarmers and who performed well,  there are still some even among the current ones who are just benchwarmers and perpetual absentees. So, if such people should come back and as ministers in future, do we say we should extend that same gesture to them? People could have served in any capacity, either as governors or legislators or even ministers and so forth, their past should be subjected to open investigations. That is a normal way to go in an ideal setting.

 

Maybe, the practice has bearing in older democracies in advanced countries.

No. The system does not in any way support democratic ethos. Democratic ethos is about questioning assumptions and allowing reasons to prevail. So, you cannot assume that somebody is a good man and by the time you diagnose that person’s past, you may discover that he or she is a wolf appearing like a sheep.

Similarly, I don’t think that practice is known to other parts of the world.  You know Nigerians can be so funny.  In other jurisdictions, a sitting president can be questioned and that is what democracy is about. Your leaders or potential leaders should not be afraid to answer any question and anybody should be able to ask any aspiring leader questions, especially as regards their visions and how to bring them to fruition when in office. But when you protect or over-protect them as is the case in Nigeria and we say, well in this chamber, they are sacred cows, then the Senate has denied Nigerians the opportunity to actually know their leaders and their true colours.

 

What then are the general implications of the practice to our democracy and to the country as an acclaimed giant of Africa?

The implications are huge and they are all negative. The first one is that we might have elected a leader who would have put ministers in positions they may not be capable of handling well. This is because giving a minister a wrong portfolio is to prepare him for poor performance when eventually in office. And part of that preparation is insensitivity to people’s feelings. You put people in positions they lack capacities for just because they are senators and all that. That someone who should be interrogated and scrutinised to see if they fit into position of authority are not allowed to go through such by the same platform is not a good signal for us as a country.

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So, does it mean that once you are a Senator, you are not accountable to anybody? That is why, to me, one may be put in a position one does not fit in.

Another implication is that, they may begin to see themselves as being powerful and bigger than the law and the entire system. The third implication is that we are making a mockery of our democracy. The global community will be watching us and what would be their perception on our ministerial screening model, where you ask somebody to just bow and go when it is not that all is well? Definitely, they will be laughing at us. They would be asking if we are really serious about developing as a country. So, we should stop forthwith this mockery of our democracy and the country at large.

 

Then what about the nominees, I mean their composition?

The composition, generally, I believe, does not actually bring any innovative perspective to leadership in our democracy. When you talk of innovative perspective to leadership, we can use the example of what happened recently in the United Kingdom, where someone below 40 years and a Nigerian for that matter is made a minister.  So, you see when you are looking for innovation, we will not mind where somebody is coming from. But what we are doing in Nigeria is not to look for performers, competency, credibility and integrity, but to look for people who can bring a political mileage in terms of electioneering and voting. So, what I see in the composition are those who can probably help in the next general election. Those who are well positioned to support the ruling party in winning the next elections. And we cannot actually attract the best. There are crack technocrats out there who know their games,  who are skillful, experienced and exposed and who could actually and meaningfully add value to our democratic culture and could deliver on the dividends of democracy without being allied to any political party. But, we could describe the composition as a party-based nomination for election process. But we shouldn’t over-politicise governance. Otherwise, we would not get the brightest and the best people for the system. And we should look for them and bring them on board so that we can have what is good for us as a country in terms of transformation, progress and development.

So, there is nothing new in the composition and nothing inspiring about the list. It is that the politicians are just recycling themselves without electoral values. They were selected based on what contributions they made in the last election and what contributions they can make in the next elections.

 

What then should Nigerians expect from them?

That is a great question. Well, I don’t see them performing much different from what they did the last time. However, if Nigerians can pile up pressure on them, I think we can force them to do something much significant this time round because Nigerians deserve the best.  And what that means is that we should not let down our guards and that we should be active in monitoring and advocating the best from them. And what that also means is that our agitation for continued improvement and development of the country should now be taken more seriously by intensifying efforts in asking for and insisting on the best from them.  That will put pressure on them and if we then need to bring technocrats in to support them, the president should not hesitate to do that. We are far from where we are supposed to be as a country.

What Nigerians must do to make new ministers perform —ASUU president
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Between Fatoyinbo and Dakolo: Interrogating a rape allegation

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Between Fatoyinbo and Dakolo: Interrogating a rape allegation

There is a growing suspicion in several quarters that the dark cloud orchestrated by the trending story on the conventional media organisations- electronic and print, as well as all the social media platforms is a smoke screen aimed at concealing the real intention of those behind the rape saga in the house of God.

This ugly allegation and the issues it has thrown up is even made more delicate because it is woven around a highly respected man of God whose ministry has been making national and international impacts in fulfilling its mandate of bringing the unsafe to the saving grace of Jesus Christ, healings and deliverance, empowerment programmes for the underprivileged in the society through massive humanitarian activities, among others.

Indeed, the rape allegation against the colourful pastor of Commonwealth of Zion Assembly (COZA), Biodun Fatoyinbo, by the wife of the popular singer Mrs. Bisola Dakolo, has been dominating public, especially social media space for weeks now. I am however worried and miffed at the same time by the biased conclusions and public hysteria over the matter. Particulary I am deeply alarmed by the silent proclamation of many of guilt on the pastor, who has not even been tried in a law court by many who ae now calling for his head. Could the whole allegation have been deliberately plotted to bring down an innocent man of God?  Whatever the answer might be, I believe is it is pertinent to deeply query the authenticity or otherwise of the weighty allegation.

Rape is not only abominable, barbaric and repugnant to natural justice; it is also a criminal offence punishable under the extant laws of the federation. To this end, it is only natural and logical for any victim of rape to seek redress in a court of competent jurisdiction rather than hide under the guise of public outrage, inspired by calumnious and unsubstantiated campaign on the media space. There are many cases of rape in the land but the unprecedented protest, with beautiful and expensive placards and handbills against the Pastor means a lot to those who are sincere and neutral. It is one rape too many.

A case as serious as rape should not be left in the hands of unschooled and uninitiated in the temple of justice who take pleasure in sitting on the court of public opinion and passing verdicts on the accused without recourse to the fact of the case or calling of witnesses before sentencing their victims to death.

Though, I am not a lawyer, my little knowledge of law supports my opinion that the court of public opinion or media trial as it is popularly called is opposed to several legal principles. For instance, there exists a principle of presumption of innocence in the legal parlance, which provides that one is considered innocent unless proven guilty.

This principle was traditionally expressed by the Latin maxim ei incumbit probatio qui dicit, non qui negat (“the burden of proof is on the one who declares, not on one who denies”). In constitutional democracies where rule of law is practiced, presumption of innocence is a legal right of the accused in a criminal trial. It is also in the international human right under the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 11. Under the presumption of innocence, the legal burden of proof is thus on the prosecution, which must present compelling evidence to a judge or a jury.

The principle presupposes that the prosecution must in most cases prove that the accused is guilty beyond reasonable doubt and if reasonable doubt remains, the accused must be acquitted. Also, 3 out of the 20 maxims of equity readily come to mind in this raging debate thus: “One who seek equity must do equity”, “He who comes into equity must come with clean hands”, and “Equity will not suffer a wrong to be without a remedy.”

But how can there be remedy when the alleged victim has continually refused to take any legal step that will lead to her getting justice if the allegation is proven beyond reasonable doubt. Another Latin maxim states that Audi alteram partem (or audiatur et altera pars), meaning “listen to the other side”, or “let the other side be heard as well.”

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This legal principle posits that no person should be judged without a fair hearing in which each party is given the opportunity to respond to the evidence against them. Regrettably, the justices in the court of media trial seeking justice against Pastor Fatoyinbo have inadvertently raped justice in a most brutal manner by willfully jettisoning the aforementioned legal principles.

It is on this premise that one is tempted to believe the growing whispers in certain quarters that Dakolo and his co-accuser are not seeking justice against the rape allegation against COZA pastor but are out to destroy the man by dragging his name through the mud for some reasons best known to them.

If the aforesaid hypothesis is not credible, why the uproar over the invitation by the police that would have afforded Dakolo and his wife to shed light on all that they know about the rape allegation so as to start the legal process that will guarantee them justice and permanent healing if the allegation is proven to be true?

Why are they hell-bent on social media trial more than conventional trial? There is a huge allegation hanging on the shoulders of the Dakolos, which is that they could have had a hand in mobilisation of some elements who came to disrupt innocent worshipers at COZA in the name of seeking justice.If that allegation is correct, then it is not best way to get justice. That action only amounts to harassment and violation of the fundamental rights to free association and freedom of worship of other COZA worshippers and not just of Pastor Fatoyinbo. The Dakolos need to make themselves available to the police to provide more information necesary for their case. You cannot just incite members of the public against any person and not just a man of God and expect that you should sit in the comfort of your home and get justice. No.

The Nigerian Police Force are already investigating the rape debacle in order to establish the fact of the matter with a view to ensuring that justice is duly served, the Dakolos are under obligation to fully cooperate with the police. It is their case. They therefore cannot be seen as avoiding police invitation under the pretence that they are being threatened by police or strange faces.

• Nwachukwu sent this piece from Port- Harcourt.

 

Between Fatoyinbo and Dakolo: Interrogating a rape allegation
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El Paso Texas Walmart Shooting: 20 Killed, Shooter Identified As Patrick Crusius Arrested

El Paso Texas Walmart Shooting: 20 Killed, Shooter Identified As Patrick Crusius Arrested Allen Texas-based Patrick Crusius has been arrested in connection with the shooting death of 20 people at a Walmart located in El Paso Texas on Saturday. At least 20 people including a four-month-old baby, were wounded on Saturday after a the suspect  […]
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