The prevalence of the comic spirit is one of those distinctive features of Nigerian life and society – one of those things that make us who we are – our capacity to turn every season, every occasion, serious, not so serious, even sombre, into an opportunity for mirth, that is - plain rambunctious, defiant or deprecating laughter. In my earlier life as a teacher of comic theory, it was an interesting time teaching the special veins of wit and humour and how the aesthetics of laughter defines national character and culture, a people’s capacity for word-play, and satire or parody. This trend, embodied in the Nigerian character, North or South, East to West is in part responsible even in an electronic age, for the fantastic humour that Nigerians create on social media. There was so much of this on display during the recent Nigerian election and indeed perhaps, a documentation of the process would be incomplete without recalling some of the highlights of the humour that marked it, from the macabre to the grotesque, the irrational to the verbal magic of some of the key political players and their supporters. This account is merely representative; it is by no means exhaustive.

The place to begin is the verbal gem that the Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, then an aspirant, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu dropped in Abeokuta on June 2, 2022 when he used certain words which may well end up as part of Nigeria’s political lexicon viz: “Emilokan. Literally, the Yoruba word means “it is my turn” or “I’m next”. Asiwaju Tinubu had categorically told his audience that it was his turn to become President of Nigeria, having helped the incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari to gain power. Highly rated as a kingmaker in Nigeria’s power politics, Tinubu on that occasion announced that the kingmaker was tired of anointing others, he would rather ascend the throne personally. He was firm, assertive and throughout the season that followed, he did not waver despite criticisms that his was an expression of a sense of entitlement and disregard for the right of the electorate to choose. Tinubu’s supporters felt inspired by his confidence. To illustrate his determination, Tinubu said when Buhari failed thrice to become Nigeria’s President – O lu le, once, twice, thrice, he was the one who told the President to wipe his tears, and he helped him in 2015 to achieve his dream. In other words, the auto-suggestion by the APC Presidential aspirant was that it was pay-back time – one good turn, as the cliché states, deserves another. He wanted his goodwill reciprocated. If anyone was in any doubt, Tinubu turned towards the sitting Governor of Ogun State, Prince Dapo Abiodun and told his audience that even “Eleyi” (This One) could not have been Governor without him.

The three phrases in Yoruba and the underlying rhetoric captured public imagination and caught on like wildfire. Musicians in various genres have turned Emilokan into lyrics – each singer adapting the phrase to suit his or her taste and creativity. The National Association of Seadogs – the Pyrates Confraternity, during the group’s 70th celebration in September 2022 came up with an adaptation of the Emilokan phrase in a highly personal, satirical song. Professor Wole Soyinka, father-figure of the Confraternity dismissed the song as distasteful. In a subsequent statement, the group said it was not out to mock or discriminate against the subject and that it was apolitical. The apology was rather late. Disc jockeys, musicians, notably the Afro-beat singer, Dede Mabiaku had done their own re-mix versions of the song. Several other remixes also showed up on social media platforms. But as many would recall, Tinubu’s Emilokan turned out to be prophetic. Days after the Abeokuta incident, he went on to win his party’s primaries in Abuja scoring 1, 271 votes. He defeated 13 other contestants, with some of the original total of 23 aspirants stepping down for him before the commencement of voting. The closest person to him – Rotimi Amaechi then Minister of Transportation scored 316 votes! Tinubu also received the endorsement of President Muhammadu Buhari who raised his hand at several campaign rallies and who voted for him on February 25, enthusiastically showing off his ballot paper to prove that he voted for the APC, even if that gesture amounted to a violation of the Electoral Act 2022. Asiwaju Tinubu was later declared winner of the Presidential election by Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) with 8, 794, 726 votes, beating 17 other candidates. Four political parties – PDP, LP, AA and APM and their candidates have since gone to the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal to challenge the results.

Anyone who in interested in a position now borrows the phrase - Emilokan in the hope that just as Asiwaju Tinubu willed his ambition into reality, their own dreams would also come to pass. The other day, the Senate Chief Whip, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, freshly re-elected (Abia North) generated not a little laughter when he too announced that it is now his turn, and the turn of his village, Igbere, to produce the next Senate President of Nigeria. Our democracy is now becoming “turn by turn” but let’s see if the Emilokan magical word would work for Senator Kalu. In Ogun State, Tinubu’s host who was called “Eleyi” (This One) has been re-elected. Prince Abiodun can now confidently say that he is more than an “Eleyi” in Ogun State, having secured a second term without any Godfather pulling all the strings for him.

Next to Tinubu’s verbal inventiveness would be the memorable exertions of the Governor of Rivers state, Nyesom Wike and his colleague-PDP -Governors – Samuel Ortom (Benue), Seyi Makinde (Oyo) Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu) and Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia) who took a principled stand that it was the turn of the South to produce Nigeria’s next President, and that it was wrong for their party to have elected a Presidential candidate from the North, and also the Chairman of the party from the North in the person of Senator Iyorchia Ayu. They wanted Ayu to step down as party Chairman at the minimum pre-condition for dialogue. The party refused. Wike was accused of sour grapes, having lost his bid to be the party’s Presidential standard bearer at the primaries. The G-5, as the group was known stood its ground. It later expanded into a bigger body known as the Integrity Group. Publicly, they taunted the PDP and their presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar. Wike, the obvious leader and main spirit openly identified with members of the APC and Labour Party. Whereas he invited members of those two parties to Rivers State to commission projects and treated them to generous receptions, he snubbed the PDP candidate and members of his own party at the state level who were pro-Atiku.

He made it clear that he would only support the PDP in the state elections, and that he and his colleagues in G-5 would not leave the party. Daniel Bwala, PDP Presidential Council spokesperson derisively referred to the G-5 as the Jackson 5. Other PDP spokespersons – Aare Dele Momodu and Senator Dino Melaye were also convinced that the PDP would not be affected at the polls by the G-5 rebellion. In the just concluded general elections, the PDP paid heavily for this disunity within its ranks. On February 25, it lost in states where it should ordinarily have won because the five Governors did not lift a finger to help their own party’s Presidential candidate. In Enugu, Abia and Benue the PDP Governors lost their bids to go to the Senate- in a karmic sense perhaps. In Oyo State on March 18, Governor Seyi Makinde, also of the G5 survived and was re-elected; in Rivers, Governor Wike fulfilled his promise of installing his own successor (a puppet?) although other parties in that election insist that what happened in Rivers state was not an election.

Before, during and after the election, the G5 would be remembered for introducing to the grammar of politics a song titled: “As e dey sweet us, e go dey pain dem.” It is a triumphal song of defiance and self-assertion. Wike gained much attention with his unique style of dancing to this song and with his usual riposte: “Enough is Enough”. When the dust settles, Wike will not be forgotten for his many colourful displays, sometimes bordering on the farcical and the grotesque. For example, drinking a 40-year-old bottle of whiskey at 11. 30 am and boasting that he would even drink a 50-year-old bottle. Rotimi Amaechi who originally accused Wike of using state resources to consume alcohol has not said anything further on that matter. Any other response has been swallowed! Wike’s response of course would probably be: “As e dey pain dem, he go dey sweet us”. This line has gained currency across the country. When Alex Otti was declared winner of the gubernatorial election in Abia State, after a suspension of the collation of results to resolve alleged irregularities in Obingwa LGA, his supporters trooped to the streets in jubilation. One of the songs on their lips was: “as e dey sweet us, e go dey pain dem.” Nigerians have not heard the last of that song.

Yet another creative figure on the scene is the current Governor of Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke of the PDP. The Osun Gubernatorial election was held on July 16, 2022, and he was declared winner. The APC challenged the victory at the State Election Petition Tribunal. The three-man panel at that Tribunal upturned the election, and handed victory to former Governor Adegboyega Oyetola of the APC. Adeleke and the PDP promptly filed an appeal at the Court of Appeal, which has now ruled in favour of Adeleke, upholding his victory. The APC has vowed to go all the way to the Supreme Court. A major thing in Nigeria today is to tell aggrieved election losers to go to Court! Governor Adeleke says he is confident that the Supreme Court would rule in his favour. With Seyi Makinde of Oyo state having joined the G5, and former Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti aligned with the same group, the lot fell on Adeleke of Osun State to lead the PDP in the South West. On February 25, he won Osun State for Atiku. On March 18, the PDP further won 25 out of the 26 seats in the Osun State House of Assembly, losing only in Boripe/Boluwaduro LGA where former Governor Oyetola hails from. But what is most noteworthy about Governor Adeleke is his passion for dancing. He became popular as a Senator of the Federal Republic for his dancing prowess. He and his erstwhile colleague, Dino Melaye turned dancing into a tool of political communication. I have it on good authority that the first day he reported for duty as Governor, the civil servants of Osun asked him to dance for them.

The Osun State Election Petition Tribunal in the lead judgement delivered by Justice Terse Kume, in fact mocked him for always dancing to “Buga” – the song by Kiss Daniel. The Court of Appeal through Justice Mohammad Shuaibu while acknowledging that a judge can speak “obiter” was however of the view that this comment by the lower court was “uncalled for”. The truth is that Governor Adeleke loves to dance. He has even added drumming to it. There is a video in circulation showing him, in the company of others, drumming away with a Bandiri local drum. When he came to The Morning Show (TMS) on Arise TV on Monday, March 27, I had raised the question about dancing and drumming, and whether he is planning to launch a musical band, like his sons - B-Red and Sina Rambo - and his nephew, Davido. His response was that there is a time for everything, thus echoing Ecclesiastes 3: 1 – 11. He also quoted Shakespeare’s Macbeth. I was tempted to ask him to show our viewers a few dance steps. But I let him be. Without doubt, he will be noted for the colour lent to contemporary politics by him and the likes of Dino Melaye - who has since added acrobatic falls to his displays and who now says he wants to be the next Governor of Kogi State.

There is possibly no way I would leave out: “Eluu Pee 74, Eluu Pee 75, 76, 77, Obi 78, Kererenke 79, Obi 80, Obi Nwannem 81..” – a very catchy tune created by Mr. Kleb and Obidients to promote the Labour Party and its Presidential candidate, Peter Obi. The word is a play on the local, Igbo pronounciatiion of the 12th and 16th letters of the English alphabet. Turned into a song, it became an instant hit. The imitative pronounciation was not an issue but the sub-text, and in many instances, Obi’s supporters rounded up the Eluu Pee, antiphonal-responsorial with another song - “Obi kererenke, Obi”. This is an old folk song adapted with reverberating effect as Disc Jockeys and party members turned it into a popular song from Nigeria to Ghana, to Kenya. Peter Obi joined the Labour Party on May 27, 2022. In less than one year, he has transformed a hitherto marginal party into a vote-winning, game changer in Nigerian politics. This should be a useful case study for students of the making of political parties in Africa.

The general, on-cycle elections of 2023 have been concluded except in Kebbi and Adamawa states still declared inconclusive and a few outstanding constituencies in the National Assembly, and over 100 election petitions already filed but one remaining highlight is how the candidate of the PDP, Pastor Umo Eno won the Gubernatorial election in Akwa Ibom State by promising the people: “Happy Hour,” every Friday. His promise is that every Friday, selected restaurants and bars in the state would serve the people food and drinks at a subsidized rate to make the people happy. In his acceptance speech after his declaration as Governor-Elect his key message to the people was: “Happy Hour is Here”. It has been reported that indeed, last Friday, even without a formal take-over as Governor, a “serve them round”, “come and eat”, Happy Hour was declared in the state with people enjoying pepper soup, edikang ikong, tombo and other delicacies at cheaper rates. Pastor Eno has a programme of action called “Arise Agenda” but he has successfully found his way to Government House by grabbing the people through their stomachs. Can he sustain it? How would he ensure fairness, equity and transparency? And would Akwa Ibom close its borders every Friday, because if the “food is ready” programme is sustained, no one should rule out the possibility of people in neighbouring states and even farther away showing up on Fridays in Akwa Ibom. We are effectively in the season of hunger, hypocrisy and political opportunism.

There’s a saying: “If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck.”

This appears to summarise section 299 of Nigeria’s amended 1999 Constitution that designates the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, “as if it were one of the States of the Federation.” That’s, if the FCT mimicks a State, then it’s a State!

This is one of the knotty issues that Justices of the Presidential Election Petitions Court (PEPC) are called upon to untie, by not mere application of the laws, but doing substantial justice to all parties before them.

The main opposition candidates in the February 25, 2023, presidential election have filed petitions in the court, to nullify the return of former Lagos State Governor and candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, as winner and President-elect.

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party, and former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi of the Labour Party claim they each won the poll, and should be returned elected and sworn in as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Atiku and Obi’s complaints and prayers are contained in separate filings lodged on March 21 and March 20, respectively.

Atiku lists INEC, Tinubu and APC as 1st, 2nd and 3rd Respondents, and has option for fresh poll between him and Tinubu.

While Obi lists INEC, Tinubu, Shettima and APC as 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Respondents, he urges that Tinubu be barred from a repeat election.

Hence their demands vary only in style and language, but both seem to pull the same strings: calls to cancel the prior poll, and order a fresh one, as a last resort.

Below are some of the claims in which Atiku and Obi ask the court to order the Independent National Electoral Commission to withdraw the Certificate of Return it awarded Tinubu, as winner of the election:

(1) Tinubu wasn’t validly elected at the APC primaries, as his running mate, Kashim Shettima, violated the laws as a nominated candidate for Senate and President at the same time.

(2) Tinubu wasn’t qualified to contest having been fined for drugs offences by a U.S. court

(3) For reasons of (1) and (2), the votes credited to Tinubu are wasted votes.

(4) Tinubu didn’t score majority of lawful votes

(5) Tinubu didn’t comply with the laws, as he failed to secure one-quarter (25%) of the votes cast in at least 24 States and the FCT, Abuja.

(6) INEC breached the relevant laws, regulations and guidelines by failing to transmit results from the polling units electronically, and in real time.

(7) INEC reduced the votes of the petitioners, and added votes to Tinubu’s scores, which they pledge to prove with polling unit results and Forensic reports during court proceedings

(8) The election was marred by corrupt malpractices.

In the results announced by INEC, Tinubu won the poll in 12 states, scored 8,794,726 votes, and secured one-quarter (25%) of the votes cast in 27 of 36 States – that’s three States more than the 24 required by law.

The INEC Chairman and Chief Returning Officer for the poll, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, declared Tinubu winner and President-elect.

But Atiku, who won in 12 states, polled 6,984,520 votes, and secured 25% in 17 states; and Obi, who claimed 11 states, scored 6,101,533 votes, and secured 25% in 15 states, disagreed with INEC’s returns.

They argue in their petitions that Tinubu didn’t meet requirements of the law, viz: 1999 Constitution (as amended), and Electoral Act 2022.

Among the issues raised is a potential boobytrap for a candidate not securing one-quarter of votes cast in at least 24 States and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

What does the Constitution say about election of two or more Presidential candidates? Let’s look at section 134(2)-(4) that deals with the scenario of February 25.

“134(2) A candidate for election to the office of President shall be deemed to have been duly elected where, there being more than two candidates for the election–

(a) he has the highest number of votes cast at the election; and

(b) he has not less than one-quarter of the votes cast at the election in each of at least two-thirds of all the States in the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

(3) In default of a candidate duly elected in accordance with subsection (2) of this section, there shall be a second election in accordance with subsection (4) of this section at which the only candidate shall be–

(a) the candidate who scored the highest number of votes at any election held in accordance with the said subsection (2) of this section; and

(b) one among the candidates who has a majority of votes in the highest number of States, so however that where there are more than one candidate with a majority of votes in the highest number of States, the candidate among them with the highest total of votes cast at the election shall be the second candidate for the election.

(4) In default of a candidate duly elected under the foregoing subsections, the Independent National Electoral Commission shall within seven days of the result of the election held under the said subsections, arrange for an election between the two candidates and a candidate at such election shall be deemed to have been duly elected to the office of President if–

(a) he has the highest number of votes cast at the election; and

(b) he has not less than one-quarter of the votes cast at the election in each of at least two-thirds of all the States in the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.”

Going by INEC’s declaration, Tinubu secured not less than 25% in at least 27 States. But he secured 19% in the FCT, which Obi, who scored 59% there, places heavy weather on.

The implication of this is that if the court pronounced the FCT as a State, and Tinubu scored 19% of votes there, his victory would be annulled, and a second poll organised between him and Atiku, who’s runner-up to Tinubu.

In that case Obi – the second runner-up – would be out of the race. This may explain his plea to bar Tinubu from any fresh poll, so he (Obi) and Atiku would duke it out.

That circumstance would present two candidates appealing to ethnic and religious sentiments, with Atiku guaranteed the Presidency without breaking any sweat.

Inevitably, power would elude the South – and remain in the North – after President Muhammadu Buhari would’ve completed his eight-year tenure on May 29, 2023.

This brings us to the burning issue: Is the FCT, Abuja, a State – as defined by sections 2(2), and 3(1), (3) of the 1999 Constitution?

While section 2(2) states that, “Nigeria shall be a Federation consisting of States and a Federal Capital Territory,” and section 3(1) lists the 36 States (excluding the FCT); section 3(3) states that, “The headquarters of the Government of each State shall be known as the Capital City of that State…

If the FCT, Abuja, is a State, what’s the name and location of its Capital City in the Territory?

Proponents easily refer to Section 299 of the Constitution, to justify their claim that the FCT is a State.

Section 299 states that: “The provisions of this Constitution shall apply to the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja as if it were one of the States of the Federation…”

Section 299(a) states that all legislative, executive and judicial powers vested in the House of Assembly, the Governor and the courts of a State shall, respectively, vest in the National Assembly, the President and in the courts… established for the FCT, Abuja.

Section 297(2) vest “ownership of all lands… in FCT, Abuja in the Federal Government,” as if the area is a State, as all lands in a State is vested in the Governor.

Section 300 says that the FCT, Abuja, shall constitute “one Senatorial district…” (and not one State, as purports section 299).

Section 301 says without prejudice to section 299 in its application to the FCT, Abuja, this Constitution shall be construed as if–
(a) references to the Governor, Deputy Governor and executive council of a State… were references to the President, Vice President and the executive council of the Federation, respectively.

Ditto for (b): that references to the Chief Judge and High Court Judges of a State were references to the Chief Judge and Judges of the High Court established for the FCT, Abuja.

Section 302 says the President may… by section 147 of the Constitution… appoint for the FCT, Abuja “a Minister who may exercise such powers and perform such functions as may be delegated to him by the President, from time to time.”

Did the framers of the Constitution truly envisage a President doubling as Governor of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, where Ministers and other officials act as Commissioners and officials of a State Government?

Despite the posturing, the FCT is akin to a “Protected Area” of the Federation administered by organs of the Federal Government.

Will the Justices of the Presidential Election Petitions Court arrive at a contrary decision? They certainly have their work cut out for them, to deliver substantial justice to all parties to the petitions!

A recent visit to Addis Ababa – the centre of African diplomacy and home of the African Union (AU) – triggered musings on the outlook for the continent in 2023. The concerns among “Afrocrats” in the Chinese-constructed AU Commission glass building revolved around restoring stability to the Sahel, Somalia, South Sudan, Libya, and the eastern Congo; implementing the Tigray peace accord with Addis Ababa; pushing for greater African representation on the United Nations (UN) Security Council and the Group of 20; and achieving an African Free Trade Area by 2034, built around eight subregional pillars. But, how can one square these lofty aspirations with continental realities in 2023?

West Africa: Marabouts and Militaries

The year started with elections in Nigeria: Africa’s most populous country and largest economy, with 64% of West Africa’s economic might. Despite a low turn-out of 27% amidst a chaotic change of currency and fuel shortages, it appears – barring a successful court challenge - that the veteran septuagenarian and political marabout, Bola Tinubu, will become the country’s next president. He would inherit a $98 billion national debt and widespread insecurity that led to 10,000 deaths last year. Nigeria which had led praiseworthy Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) peacekeeping missions to stabilise Liberia and Sierra Leone in the 1990s, has now become an exporter of insecurity across the Lake Chad Basin, a Gulliver tied down by troubles that prevent it from establishing a Pax Nigeriana.

This has opened the space for coup-making colonels and captains to seize power in Mali, Guinea, and Burkina Faso, even as instability has spread across Mali, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Togo, Benin, and Côte d’Ivoire. Mali’s Colonel Assimi Goïta is struggling to contain a decade-long insurgency in which Islamic militants have taken over large parts of north and central Mali. The situation is exacerbated by a geo-political rivalry between France and Russia which has seen the expulsion of French troops and the increasing use of Russian Wagner Group mercenaries. A 12,000-strong UN force, with a limited mandate, has struggled to keep the peace. There are also reports of the presence of Wagner “guns-for-hire” in neighbouring Burkina Faso – led by Captain Ibrahim Traoré - which similarly halted its cooperation with the French gendarme and, like Mali, expelled the French ambassador from its country. Traoré has lost half of his country to Islamic jihadists, with two million people displaced. Niger – with a $100 million American drone base and military presence – also continues to suffer from jihadist attacks. Guinea’s Colonel Mamady Doumbouya has, however, largely avoided the scourge of jihadists that are bedevilling his neighbours.

Southern Africa: Limping Liberationists

Flood-hit Southern Africa continues to see dominant liberation parties stubbornly clinging to power, but losing support and legitimacy. South Africa accounts for 60% of the subregional economy. Its ruling African National Congress (ANC) has been wracked by factional fighting and corruption scandals in which state utilities have been milked as cash cows. The outcome of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farm scandal - in which a large amount of dollars was stuffed into furniture on his farm – may well be a watershed moment for the rule of law in the post-apartheid era. The ruling party could dip below 50% in polls next year, and would, in such a scenario, need a coalition to stay in power. Angola’s Joăo Lourenço only narrowly won re-election last August in a country in which entrepreneurial generals are still powerful. This mirrors neighbouring Zimbabwe where a repressive politico-military complex will use any means to prevent an opposition electoral victory this July. Mozambique’s Filipe Nyusi will continue to struggle to contain an insurgency in the gas-rich Cabo Delgado province. European Union (EU)-funded Rwandan peace enforcers – backed by a Southern African peacekeeping force – will continue to lead the fight to protect the regime and Western corporate interests, resulting in muted Western criticism of Kigali’s intervention in the eastern Congo.

Central Africa: Congo, Cameroon, and Crises

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is scheduled to hold elections in December, and along with oil-rich Cameroon, accounts for 60% of Central Africa’s economy. Rwanda, however, has been accused by UN experts of fomenting unrest in the eastern Congo using M23 rebels. A staggering 5.8 million people remain displaced in the eastern Congo in a conflict that has raged for over two decades. Cameroon’s French-backed, seemingly senile, 90-year old president, Paul Biya, has now entered the fourth decade of his misrule that has triggered a separatist conflict in the West of the country. War-ravaged Central African Republic – another theatre in which Pax Russica has battled Pax Gallica - has one million displaced people, with 16,000 UN peacekeepers mostly observing the slaughter for a decade.

Eastern Africa: Conflict and Cooperation

In Eastern Africa, Kenya and Ethiopia account for half of a subregional economy still threatened by drought and famine in 2023. Conflict has displaced 4 million people in South Sudan, with Upper Nile, Jonglei, and Central Equatoria particularly volatile, and 76% of the population - 9.4 million people – will need humanitarian assistance this year. Military brass hats will continue to wield power in neighbouring Sudan in 2023, despite half-hearted efforts to transition to civilian rule. Two million people have been displaced in Ethiopia, Somalia, and Djibouti. AU troops have kept parts of Somalia stable amidst continuing attacks by al-Shabaab militants, while the AU-brokered Ethiopian peace treaty with the Tigray region has ended a destructive two-year conflict which killed an estimated 600,000 people. Amidst these crises, there are some hopeful signs of successful regional integration in 2023: Uganda and Tanzania are completing an East African Crude Oil Pipeline; Kenya and Tanzania will continue to resolve beggar-thy-neighbour trade disputes in order to bolster a $1 billion bilateral trade relationship; while the East African Community (EAC) has brought the DRC into its club, and will conclude the deployment of peacekeepers to the eastern Congo.

North Africa: Dog Days in the Desert

Finally, North Africa will continue to experience political autocracy and economic stagnation in 2023. Egypt and Algeria account for nearly three quarters of the subregional economy. Autocratic rule is firmly entrenched in Cairo under Abdel Fattah al-Sisi who has stifled all dissent. Monarchical rule is also increasingly practised in Tunis under Kaïs Saïed whose dog whistle xenophobic outburst against black Africans resulted in attacks against them, culminating in mass evacuations by West African governments. Libya will continue to struggle to hold elections this year in order to unite a country divided by a dozen years of conflict following the NATO-assisted fall of Muammar Qaddafi. Morocco’s King Mohammed VI’s health will remain a concern, while bilateral relations with Algiers will continue to be tense. Algeria’s politico-military-business rulers – le pouvoir - will continue to pull the strings, backed by high oil and gas prices that will be used to calm discontent. Algiers will also continue its delicate balancing act of juggling close economic ties with the West with strong military ties with Moscow.

Africa will thus resiliently continue to muddle through in 2023.

Professor Adekeye Adebajo is a Senior Research Fellow at the University of Pretoria’s Centre for the Advancement of Scholarship in South Africa.

“The 2023 elections may not be over in Abuja and in other states but the governorship election is over in Oyo State and that is where I hang my consolation and escape from Nigeria’s current madness. There was an election to elect the governor of Oyo State on Saturday, March 18. INEC announced a winner and everyone who fought the victor immediately dropped the sword and embraced the victorious. I found that to be very strange in rancorous Nigeria. If you know any other state in Nigeria where that has happened, please tell me. There is even no imitator. But why?”

“The ides of March are come,” Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar says in utter derision and dismissal of a life-and-death warning. And the soothsayer replies “Ay, Caesar; but not gone.” And truly, they were not gone. The 2023 elections should be over by now but they are not. There are people everywhere mocking poets and prophets. Clouds of uncertainty are hanging. Even our president has had to issue a statement denying saying in secret that he won’t hand over to his victorious Khalifa. There are threats of protests and counter-threats of arrest over the process and the outcome of the presidential election held over a month ago. Labour Party’s vice presidential candidate vowed on national TV that the president-elect won’t be sworn in; the election winner replied with a vow to arrest and lock up Labour and its symbols even before he is sworn in. There was a dream: What does it mean to have flood in dry land? You sleep and see two hundred elephants clinking tusks; you also see two hundred buffalos pooling together four hundred horns. If the inner eye is still seeing, you will know that the world is shifting and drifting – or about to. Confusion and chaos are ingredients of war and they appear afoot. Since that is the case, what I look for now are streaks of hope, to keep my sanity.

My ancestors in Old Oyo said with pride – and even arrogance – that they were different from other species in the specificity of their character and characteristics. “You can only hear of Oyo imitators; Oyo does not imitate anybody.” Their neighbours never liked hearing that from them but they never stopped acting it and shouting it from their rooftops. The 2023 elections may not be over in Abuja and in other states but the governorship election is over in Oyo State and that is where I hang my consolation and escape from Nigeria’s current madness. There was an election to elect the governor of Oyo State on Saturday, March 18. INEC announced a winner and everyone who fought the victor immediately dropped the sword and embraced the victorious. I found that to be very strange in rancorous Nigeria. If you know any other state in Nigeria where that has happened, please tell me. There is even no imitator. But why?

I read a cartoon in a national newspaper when I was in secondary school. The newspaper I cannot remember, but the cartoon and its caption I cannot ever forget: A former president, Nnamdi Azikiwe, is shown counseling a victorious young politician on power and its ephemerality. “My son,” the ex-leader says with sadness, “I have been to the mountaintop; it is quite slippery there.” What makes the mountaintop that slippery? Because I work and live in Ibadan, three days to the March 18 governorship election in Oyo State, a senior newspaper editor in Lagos sent me a text: “What are the chances of the incumbent?” I replied that “the man respects the people and has done well all round, so, he will win with more than 60 percent of the votes.” He kept quiet and left me with my “unrealistic projection.” After the results were announced on Sunday 19th, that editor sent me another text: “You said so. He won. Great. I was scared for him.” I replied with the smile emoji and added that the winner “did not leave the street for a day”; he knew the terrain and served it and so could not have slipped on Election Day.

Eleven incumbent governors contested elections to retain their seats for four more years; one of them lost and has been very quiet; another is still fighting to breathe; eight won with a lot of panting and limping back home from the battlefield; the man in Oyo has been congratulated by all his opponents. So, what made the re-election way smooth for one and bumpy for others? There was a 14th century Islamic scholar called Ibn Khaldun, author of the Muqaddimah. Some scholars say he was the greatest social scientist of the Middle Ages; others say he was “the father of historiography, sociology, economics, and demography studies.” Ibn Khaldun propounded a theory of leadership which states how leaders emerge through blood ties and group feelings. He calls that process Asabiyyah. But it is not enough for a leader to emerge; how about sustenance of that leadership? It is that sustenance that presidents and governors seek in the name of second term ambitions. But not all who seek to stand stand. Why is the mountaintop slippery? Ibn Khaldun had an answer. He came up with a list of what he called the personal qualities of a leader – the “perfecting details” that sustain leadership. What are those details? He said they include “generosity, forgiveness of error, patience and perseverance, hospitality towards guests, maintenance of the indigent, patience in unpleasant situations, execution of commitments, respect for the religious law, reverence for old men and teachers, fairness, meekness, consideration to the needs of followers, adherence to the obligations of religious laws, and avoidance of deception and fraud.” (See Ibn Khaldun of North Africa: An AD 1377 Theory of Leadership (2008) by Yusuf Sidani).

AT the weekend, after my ear drums had been continuously assaulted for few weeks about how well the government has done, especially on security, my mind went back to one of its ‘success’ stories.

The Tanko Salihu Islamic School is in Tegina, a densely populated town in Rafi Local Government Area of Niger State. It runs a nursery, primary and junior secondary school. It also has Islamiyya and Hadda “The testimony” classes in the evenings and at weekends.

On Sunday, May 30, 2021, bandits entered Tegina. In a guerrilla-style operation, they attacked the police station and went round the town shooting into the air. In the ensuring pandemonium, they headed for what apparently was their target, the Islamic school where pupils, as young as three, were learning.

They rounded up 148 of the pupils and about 50 others, including the teachers, and marched them away from the Zungeru Junction school premises into the forest. The children who were taken through paths, bushes and forests must have walked for hundreds of kilometers before they were located in Kebbi State.

One of the older boys, Musa, gave an idea of the torturous journey: “We trekked for days without food and water. We only rested a little when the bandits noticed that we were tired and afterward continued. And it was so difficult since we had to carry the little ones on the back as they could no longer walk because they were weak and tired before we finally got to the hideouts of the bandits in the forest.”

The school and parents organised themselves to seek the release of their children from the bandits who initially demanded a ransom of N300 million which they scaled down to N100 million. They were frustrated for they were mainly peasant farmers who could not on their own raise 10 per cent of the ransom.

Their frustration was further heightened when after one week of their wards abduction, and, despite the wide publicity the case attracted, neither the state government nor the Federal Government visited the school or the town to even make an assessment or liaise with them. Only the Local Government Chairman showed visible concern. The people were abandoned to their own devices, including negotiating ransom and raising funds.

The Headmaster of the school, Abubakar Garba Alhassan, who had evolved into the coordinator of the school and parents platform, cried to the press: “None of the state government officials either came to us or contacted us, apart from the Rafi Local Government Chairman who is always here to sympathise with us.”

When confronted with these claims, the state government, through the Deputy Governor, Ahmed Mohammed Ketso, responded thus: “It is strategic for us not to have visited the families and people of Tegina, but we are making frantic efforts.”

Incredible! What strategy was it abandoning a populous town at a period the residents were most traumatised?

The Presidency also responded with a bland statement that: “President Muhammadu Buhari has charged the nation’s security and intelligence agencies to expedite efforts towards the recovery of the 200 children kidnapped from an Islamic school in Niger State.”

The parents and school sourced for funds from various sources, including selling their valubles to pay the ransom.

Meanwhile, the pupils were going through a nightmare. One of the bigger boys, Musa said: “We went through hell. We were beaten and they even threatened to kill us if our parents did not pay the ransom they demanded…We told them we were poor and that our parents were mere farmers. But they neither listened nor cared about us, even though we were speaking the same language.”

One of the abducted pupils, Furera Isah, recalled: “They would call us out in the night and beat us. We were never comfortable…They called us to beat us every day, but they allowed us to say our prayers. Sleeping was also another problem. We slept in a shabby place under the rain and the sun. Since we got kidnapped, we never took our bath. We were fed with small amount of noodles or beans on our hands. Some days, we stayed hungry as there was nothing to eat. We were kept together in one small room in the forest. Sometimes, we were beaten if we try to complain of hunger or ask questions.”

Finally, after 88 days in captivity, the children were released. But not all returned. On the pupils release, Alhasan, the co-ordinator of the negotiations, told the media: “I am feeling comfortable now that they are back. Only one died but we thank God that we got them (others) back alive. The child who died is my child. We are not closing down the school, we will continue with it. If we do close the school, the generation that we are protecting will feel bad. I believe it is my child’s destiny to die that day because if he was at home with me, he could have died that same day as well. So I thank God for everything.”

There had been mass kidnap of students before the Tegina one. In February 2018, a total of 107 students of Government Girls Science and Technical College, Dapchi, Yobe State, were kidnapped. After ransom payment, they were released, except Leah Sharibu, a girl who refused to renounce her faith. She has now spent five years, one month and three days in captivity.

On Friday, December 11, 2020, over 300 students of the Government Science Secondary School, Kankara, Katsina State were abducted. On February 17, 2021, bandits attacked the Government Science School, Kagara, Niger State abducting 27 students, three staff and 12 of their relatives.

Government Girls Science Secondary School, Jangebe, Zamfara State was attacked on February 26, 2021 and 279 female students aged between 10 and 17 were abducted. The Federal College of Forestry Mechanisation, Afaka, Kaduna State was attacked in March 2021 and about 30 students abducted. They spent over 50 days in captivity.

After the Islamiya School incident, more schools were attacked and students abducted. These include the July 5, 2021 kidnap of over 120 students of the Bethel Baptist High School, Damishi, Kaduna State. At least one of the abducted students remain with the bandits; the 20th month in captivity.

In June 2021, bandits invaded the Federal Government College, Birnin Yauri, Kebbi State, kidnapping over 90 students and teachers. Twenty nine of those students are still held by the bandits having spent one year, nine months in captivity.

All these occurred and are happening in a country with a Commander-in-Chief who says he has done marvellously well on security and deserves medals. I do not doubt that the C-in-C reports for duty which may be why the budgetary provision is being expended, but why does he seem to be perpetually absent from duty? 

Of the many political salvoes fired on the Nigerian political scene last week, one that most heralded the shape of things to come was fired by the freshly minted Governor-elect of Abia State, Dr. Alex Otti. Three days after he won the Abia governorship on Labour Party’s [LP] platform, he said in a television interview that he did not win because of the party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi. In his long acceptance speech, which was aired live on television, Otti did not mention Peter Obi’s name even once. It was puzzling because many analysts thought that Obi, who swept all five South Eastern states in the presidential election three weeks earlier, created a bandwagon effect on which Otti rose to power, but the former banker denied it.

Otti said, “In 2015 when I ran [for Abia governorship] under APGA, there was no Peter Obi. And we have it on our record that I won that election. At the time we were joining Labour Party, Peter Obi had not joined. It took a week before he called me and said that he purchased the presidential nomination form and he was coming to Labour Party… Peter Obi is a great addition to our campaign, but I can tell you that we won an election before in Abia without him.”

Several important political messages in there. Otti said according to his records, he won the Abia governorship election in 2015 even though it is outgoing governor Ikpeazu who was officially declared as winner. Either we accept official results or we do not. One cannot insist that he won the last election, when he was not returned, but gladly accept that he won this one, because he was officially returned. What if other losing candidates in the 2023 election continue to insist for the next four years that they actually won this election in Abia but Otti was wrongly returned?

All over the country, we saw this dissonance in the past month in the attitude of the major opposition parties. A party that rejected the results of the presidential election as rigged, nevertheless turned around and celebrated the victory of its Senate and House of Representatives candidates in the same election. Presidential candidates who were busy assailing the February 25 election as flawed were seen warmly receiving their party men and women who were victorious in the National Assembly elections that held the same day and time, by the same INEC, using the same BVAS, the same personnel, the same Electoral Act and the same election guidelines. I thought the two elections should morally swim or sink together. Either they were all rigged, or they all reflected the wishes of voters.

Probably the most telling observation in the governorship and state assembly elections of March 18 was the steep decline of LP. Its presidential candidate won 11 states and Abuja on February 25 but three weeks later, the party won only one governorship election. If Dr. Otti’s claim is true that Obi’s stature had nothing to do with his victory, then LP fell from 12 states to zero in just three weeks. Of the four major parties in the presidential election, LP suffered the steepest decline. I saw figures calculated by one analyst, that its votes fell from over six million in the presidential election to 600,000 in the governorship polls, whereas the total votes of APC, PDP and NNPP only slightly dropped. This was understandable because eight states and FCT did not vote for governors on March 18.

It was noticeable that Obidients did not question their party’s dismal performance in the governorship election nearly as vociferously as they protested the presidential election results. Why? Is presidency the only impactful public office in Nigeria? One can deduce that most Obidients were only concerned about winning the presidency. This is a very faulty premise in Nigerian politics, but not without precedent. In 2003 when INEC registered UNPP and NDP as new political parties, they did the same thing, raised a lot of dust about their presidential candidates Jim Nwobodo and General Ike Nwachukwu respectively, but had no governorship or senatorial candidates in many states. No wonder those two parties soon fizzled out. Elu Pi should learn a lesson from that history, that winning governorship and legislative seats is an important part of preparations for the future, including the all-important issue of “structure.” Although LP propagandists tried to ridicule all talk about structure, anyone could see that lack of structure crippled the party in many regions in 2023 and, despite many odds, it was nationwide structure that saved APC.

If it is any comfort for LP, there was another precedent in recent times. Almost exactly the same thing happened to the defunct Congress for Progressive Change [CPC] in 2011. Its presidential candidate Muhammadu Buhari won twelve states outright in the presidential election, only for Sifisi to win only one state governorship two weeks later. Umaru Tanko al-Makura, who won the Nasarawa State governorship on CPC’s platform in 2011, could have more justifiably said what Otti said last week, that he did not win because of Buhari. It would have sounded more true because Nasarawa was not one of the 12 states that Buhari won, whereas Obi did win Abia in 2023. Loyal partyman Al-Makura however never said so. Like Obi, Buhari also believes to this day that the 2003, 2007 and 2011 elections were rigged and that the first credible election was the one he won in 2015. He said as much on the day he collected his Certificate of Return.

Another aspect of Otti’s remarks also reminds me. In Nigerian politics, there is a certain element of danger for a party’s national leaders when the party has only one or even a few state governors. The party easily falls prey to an upside-down leadership arrangement where the governor becomes its effective leader. He tends to overshadow its national executive officers and its former presidential candidate. Mr. Peter Obi is very familiar with this because that was what happened in APGA. With only the governorship of Anambra for most of its existence, first Obi, then Willie Obiano and now Prof Charles Soludo became its effective national leader. There was this recent interview by former APGA national chairman Chief Victor Umeh, where he said that for years, he pleaded with Obi to hold local government elections in Anambra so that the party will have some more elected public officials, but he refused. In APGA, no one towers above its lone governor [at one time it had two, plus Rochas Okorocha of Imo].

Actually, LP had a state governor in 2008-16, Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo. He became synonymous with the party and completely overshadowed its national leaders, until he later returned whence he came from, to PDP. In the 2007 election, Orji Uzor Kalu’s PPA party won the governorships of Imo and Abia, but both governors soon defected back to PDP. It was alleged at the time that it was Kalu’s overbearing nature that drove the men, Ikedi Ohakim and Theodore Orji, out of the party. At least, unlike Otti, Orji could not say that Kalu’s stature had nothing to do with his victory in Abia because he was in fact cooling his heels in prison on the day he was elected governor. There was even much discussion on TV at the time as to what would happen on Inauguration Day. I remember one lawyer saying on NTA that the Chief Judge of Abia State would have to enter the prison and swear in Orji, after which he will gain immunity from arrest and walk out of the cell!

There are lessons here for NNPP, the other party that, like LP, grabbed only one state governorship in the 2023 election. In 2015, departing Kano State governor Rabi’u Kwankwaso played the political gentleman and anointed his two-time deputy governor Abdullahi Ganduje to succeed him. They had a nasty quarrel soon afterwards, so this time around, Kwankwaso plotted the succession more carefully. He anointed his son-in-law and former commissioner, Abba Kabir Yusuf, popularly known as Gida Gida, who won the election on March 18. Again unlike Otti, Gida Gida never said Kwankwaso was not a factor in his victory. Gida Gida got only slightly more votes on March 18 than Kwankwaso got on February 25.

Now, if Kalu was said to be so overbearing that he pushed two governors out of his party, Kwankwaso, from the look of things, is several times more forceful, much more combative and a much more hands-on party leader than Kalu ever was. Nor is he very magnanimous in victory. I saw a video last week where he was saying he could have ordered NNPP thugs to storm the Kano Government House, bring out Ganduje and “eat him like carrot.” Storming the Government House could have meant a lot of dead Kwankwasiyya men. It was true to type because in 2011 when he was re-elected to his second term as governor, Kwankwaso said in an interview that his main regret was that “I defeated [Malam Ibrahim] Shekarau’s boy [Sagir Takai]. I wanted to beat him himself.”

Kwankwaso should tread carefully because Kano has a history of nasty clashes between party leaders and anointed governors. The fall out in the Second Republic between PRP national leader Malam Aminu Kano and Governor Mohammed Abubakar Rimi left a permanent imprint in Kano politics between the so-called Tabo and Santsi factions. A godfather is not safe even with his own son as governor, as the political fallout in Ilorin in 2011 between Oloye Olusola Saraki and his son, Governor Bukola Saraki showed.

These are my personal views and I am constrained to express them given the fact that one Ben Llewellyn-Jones, a misguided, mischievous and clearly unlettered Englander who does not know his place, threw away all caution and mentioned my name in his inglorious commentary.

I would advise this Ben, who I am told is the Deputy High Commissioner of the UK to Nigeria, to keep his dirty nose out of our internal affairs.

Nigeria stopped being a British colony 63 years ago and we need no lessons from him on how to run our affairs or conduct our politics.

I know that his preferred candidate did not win the presidential election but that does not mean he should cross the line and take liberties with us here. I wonder who the hell he thinks he is?

I am not one of those Nigerians that bows, shakes, shivers and trembles before the British or indeed any other foreigner.

And unlike most I do not need any validation or endorsement from him or his ilk and neither can I be intimidated by his veiled threat of a visa ban.

Frankly I could not care less.

I would however take this opportunity to assure him that regardless of his views and desire to compel us to accept their godless so-called "humanist" and "libertarian" values and introduce evil practices and policies such as same-sex marriage in our country this will never be the case.

My aversion for sod*mites remains as constant as the northern star and whether he likes it or not we will never allow a sod*mite to be our President.

Neither will we accept lessons in decency, etiquette, what to say or how to speak from a fading British civil servant and a man that represents a nation that has committed more atrocities than perhaps any other in the history of humanity.

I advise this little Englander to respect himself and remain a silent observer when it comes to the politics of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

As a nation we are not a poodle of the British and we came of age 63 years ago.

He should be more concerned about the shrinking fortunes of a once "Great Britain" and the systemic racism, inherent injustice and insufferable arrogance that is entrenched in the British establishment and society than in the intra party politics of Nigeria.

He should also be more concerned with the efforts of his nation to bring us one step closer to WW3 given the unfolding events in Ukraine.

(FFK)

“We have become a community with different codes, values, and facts. We have mastered the art of destroying others to outshine and ascend the ladder of success.”

Dear Governor-elect, Fr. Hyacinth Alia,

It is a great pleasure and honor to write this open letter to you. Let me take this opportunity to formally congratulate you on your success in the March 18 poll. I have never met you in person. However, I have heard some good stories about you. Even after I joined the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), I continued to hear about your ministry in Benue. A few years ago, I was surprised to learn that you announced your intention to become governor of our State. Ahead of the election, you demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to the people of Benue through a strong campaign. Now is the time for all constituents to unite and support your shared vision of a strong and healthy nation. I may not be the only one among the Benue diasporans writing about the difficulties facing Benue State. However, I speak from experience and understanding of the conflict in Benue State. Indeed, the Benue people had high hopes that they had elected a government that would serve them, judging from the campaign promises and the failure of the previous government to meet the yearnings of the Benue masses. It is light at the end of the tunnel.

You did a commendable job engaging the Benue people in your acceptance speech. You spoke to us about where we are and took the time to explain our predicaments, contributions to your campaign, and challenges we face as a State– all of which have significantly impacted every facet of the State. You made a promise that inspired hope. Hope is a virtue we hold profoundly in our hearts because it has been and will always be the strength and success of the Benue people. I am writing you this open letter hoping you will take the time to read it and understand the importance of this message and why I decided to write you personally. To address the deep-rooted issues of Benue, which you mentioned in your acceptance speech, it will take more than one man or one administration to conquer. But with the support of the entire State, I know we can work together to bring to life the changes you promised.

In a few months, you will officially transition from a governor-elect to the serving governor of Benue State. I must extend my congratulations once again to you for the uncommon feat of defeating the opposition candidates, even as your emergence epitomizes a victory for democracy and a reflection of the preferred choice of the good people of Benue State. This victory is a testimony to your tenacity, resilience, determination, courageous planning, and clinical execution over the uninspiring leadership of the outgoing governor. The people of Benue State spoke in one resounding voice and rewarded your resilience with the highest stewardship in the land. It is now your turn to reciprocate the support of the people by justifying their choice at the poll through people-driven governance, accountability, and accessibility by those who have invested their trust and confidence in you.

Your excellency, as you rightly stated in your acceptance speech, the task ahead of you is daunting but not impossible with the right team and political will. The backlog of arrears of salaries, pensions, gratuities, the IDPs, and the persistent insecurity challenges had sparked an enormous challenge for a prosperous Benue. But it is, however, my belief, one shared by a great deal of the people of Benue State who gave their votes to you, that you are a man of focus who will not betray the aggregate hopes of those who have put their confidence in you and that you will not renege on your campaign promises nor stray from the noble path.

Your excellency, you should be proud to have earned the privilege to become the governor of our State. The youth (young men and women) of Benue State were at the forefront of your campaign, helping you to overcome the financial temptations of money politics to hand you a resounding victory. The measure of any successful government is how it carries its young populace along, not just in stomach infrastructure but in entrusting positions of authority to them as parts and parcel of the government. I sincerely beg you to make young people the cornerstone of your administration. To build a transcendent legacy, you need the trust of the young demographic who are now driving political portends and conversations more than at any other time in our political history. You may need the support of these young leaders of tomorrow to deliver on your many promises with humility and grace. Indeed, the government that deprives the quality of its youth representation can never be taken seriously in these times. I can confidently say that Benue State University has trained several youths of uncommon competence who have proven themselves in public or private service. It is your job to discover them and give them roles to rebuild the State. The choice of bringing youth to work in your administration must not happen in a rush. Hence, your administration should consider qualities such as ideology, personal competence, general acceptability, capacity, and integrity. It is to these that a great many young men and women of Benue State will look up to in a measure of how they relate to you and your government. I do not doubt that you will act rightly toward them as this fact is at the heart of the support you will enjoy amongst many of us in the civil society scope. To betray the youth population of Benue State would be to betray the trust of people who have used their platforms to canvass popular support for your candidacy and eventual emergence, and one that will regrettably catalyze a reversal of that broad trust and support. We, however, stay affirmed to your government as we share the conviction that you are a man in touch with the realities of the time and committed to working for the people and the State.

Your excellency, as the governor-elect waiting to take over the mantle of leadership, you have a challenging task ahead of you. I am sure you also recognize the difficult task ahead of you. You might be aware that the State is grappling with various issues, such as ethnic and religious divisions, rampant corruption, poor economic growth, a high unemployment rate, security challenges, and inadequate healthcare and educational systems. To address these problems, you must set a clear agenda that will prioritize the interests of all Benue people, regardless of their background or religious status. Your excellency, always remember that while you might claim that the Benue people elected you, they were the majority of others who never liked you to win. You were mocked and accused of ceding the State of Benue to Tinubu. Others wrote articles to question your antecedents as a priest and challenged you to prove that you healed people during your healing ministry. There was even the establishment in the Church hierarchy that fought you hard.

This attitude of looking down on a brother or sister is not new to Benue people. Benue people (especially the Tivs) are all too familiar with the entire episode. It has become a recurring decimal in our existence as a people. J. S. Tarka, in all his popularity and fame, was brought down by his people. Aper Aku, widely credited with laying the foundation for modern Benue, suffered the same fate at the hands of his people. Yet, today there is no single past leader of the State to equal Aku’s legacies. Rev Fr. Moses Orshio Adasu suffered the same indignities from his people before his death. Yet, he was a man whose service to the State was so selfless that he died without building a house for himself throughout the one year and ten months of his tenure as governor. He constructed the modest house he lived in and died while serving as a priest long before he became governor. Sometimes, I intend to attribute the Benue man’s penchant for destroying their best to the witchcraft tradition. According to witchcraft tradition, only the very best is sacrificed or wasted. The worthless ones, the thugs, the hoodlums, gangsters, criminals, drug addicts, and the hemp smokers are immune. In the retrogressive witchcraft ideology, people expect young people to hide in the background to avoid being noticed by the elders or those in authority, no matter how brilliant their ideas are. Benue, therefore, today boasts only of dead heroes. Be aware that you will go through the same criticisms. But the right way to respond to such critics is to remember the encounter between Jesus and the adulterous woman in John 7:53-8:11. He or she who has no sin should be the first to cast the stone. Many of us have quickly forgotten the story of an adulterous woman, which provides an excellent example for us to follow when we find ourselves reacting judgmentally or with attitudes of self-righteousness toward someone else’s sin.

Today, Benue State is at a disadvantage, as it has been since Nigeria’s inception. Still, ironically, we have dealt the deadliest blows from within, creating the most significant obstacles for ourselves. We cannot spare anybody from the destructive drive. As a Benue public policy student, the Benue Cement Company is a painful source of concern. No sensible Benue indigene passes by that company and sees a swath of the landscape destroyed without moaning. The billions of Naira quarterly declared as profit by the Dangote Group does not have any corresponding thing to show. However, the condition of those of us who work there as casual laborers is pathetic. Most are now contract workers who will never receive a pension at their retirement. For some time, a few Benue sons and daughters have taken it upon themselves to bring the plight of the Benue people to the fore through publications and in the national dailies to no avail.

In recent years, an investor said his peers had injected money into the Taraku Mills Company to revive it. This ailing industry aimed to produce the finest grade of all edible oil and different kinds of flour, including all forms of animal feed. In its heyday, Taraku Mills supplied vegetable oil to all parts of northern Nigeria. But corrupt managers and sheer government neglect have not only killed the company but have also killed the efforts to restore it. The pertinent question is, why would the state government allow corrupt persons to supervise the revival of this industry that holds enormous prospects for the people? This company is the legacy of the first civilian governor of the State, the late Aper Aku, and should be protectively guarded, but sadly, our government treated it with negligence. Beyond doubt, Aku’s regime initiated the idea to set up other similar industries such as Otukpo Burnt Bricks, Benue Fruit Juice Factory in Makurdi, Benue Packaging Company, Gboko, and Benue Education Supply Company to develop the State’s agricultural and natural resources. Ostensibly, the Aper Aku administration had envisioned that these companies would gainfully employ the youths, the farmers who formed the majority of the rural population would have ready markets for their produce, and the government would also generate enough revenue to boost the socio-economic sector of the rural and civil service state. Confidently, not a few persons during the glorious birth of the dilapidated company had believed that the good intention of the governor, who in only four years of his tenure left footprints on Benue soil, could be easily muzzled and die quickly for lack of proper management.

Taraku Mill started full-scale production in 1989 after installing the necessary equipment. The government installed all the machines between 1986 and 1987. The government centrally located this company at Taraku, a four-kilometer distance from Otukpo, to serve the three dominant groups of Tiv, Idoma, and Igala that form present-day Kogi State. The prediction was that the site’s proximity to a nearby railway station, with the large expanse of land at its disposal, would encourage farmers to grow soya beans and benni seed to feed the factory’s needs. Moreso, the availability of raw materials would create an enabling environment for job seekers and an avenue for people to market their farm produce to the company. The intention was to add value to agricultural production for a rural state so that other economic activities related to farming and agriculture could gradually pick up to enable the population to survive in an agro-allied economy. But as it is, tales of disappointments, agonies, and disillusionment replaced the noble dreams of the founding father, especially for the fact that in the last decade of their epileptic operations, the ailing mills were reputed to be the largest of their kind in West Africa had undergone pathetic stages of abject neglect in the hands of successive administrations.

Today, the Benue State government has shut down Taraku Oil Mills and laid off its staff. The laying off of staff and the delay in paying them has caused severe hardship to the affected workers. Sixty persons died while waiting for their benefits. Some of whom are my family members. I cannot forget how excited and happy some people were when they realized you won the election and became the governor-elect. I will not forget how gloomy and unhappy some Benue people were when they realized you won the election. Many such people will be hostile and aggressive to your administration, looking forward to your failure, so they can proclaim themselves prophets that saw the future in your collapse. A successful option is that you can become the governor of Benue and all Benue natives, addressing the divisive challenges and issues plaguing Benue. But that is if you care for the State. As a Benue indigene, my concern has always been to see a prosperous and healthier Benue. Hence, I sincerely pray for your success in realizing these dreams for a greater Benue.

As a concerned Benue indigene, let me highlight the areas that I think you must prioritize in your administration as you prepare to assume the office of the executive governor. As a matter of urgency, you must prioritize restoring the unity of the Benue people. The unity of Benue has never been this fragile and polarized since the creation of Benue State. Today, you have emerged as the governor-elect in the most polarized State. In the last few years, it has become clear to anyone living in Benue that we are facing an issue of polarization. And the force that empowers this polarization is tribalism, ethnicity, and religion. Deep antagonism stirred by political leaders against each other has hindered parliamentary and government cooperation and triggered a cascade effect of divisions among the Benue people. Political parties and indigenes who have become followers of party leaders have replicated these conflicts. But what do these events tell us about the State of polarization in Benue? In recent years, polarization has increased between the people and the party elites. Confidential debate, confined to the fringes of older circles, has made its way to the Facebook pages of the Benue people. We have become a community with different codes, values, and facts. We have mastered the art of destroying others to outshine and ascend the ladder of success. In our public debates, it seems that we no longer disagree. We reject each other premises and doubt each other motives. We question each other’s characters and close our ears to different points of view. At home, polarization has destroyed personal relationships, ruined companionship, and torn families apart. We are experiencing these divisions in our workplaces, neighborhood meetings, and even our places of worship. At media interviews, analysts attack and mock opponents and talk over each other. On the internet, social media has become a hotbed of outrage, takedowns, and cruelty—often targeting our brothers and sisters. But this notion can change. Most of the Sons and Daughters of Benue, what I would call an exhausted majority, have had enough of our polarization. They know we have more in common than what divides us: our belief in sovereignty, uniformity, and common dream. They share a deep sense of gratitude that they are indigenes of Benue. They want to move past our differences. It is possible to abolish the disunity between us – but it will not be easy for you. As much as we have differences and disagreements, you should be able to listen to us to understand those differences and find common ground. That should be one of the goals of your administration. To understand better what is pulling us apart and what can bring us back together.

Polarization today reflects a perfect storm: unsettling changes in our community and society have left many Benue sons and daughters feeling like strangers in their land. Old certainties are gone. The concept of eating and giving to a brother or sister, the notion of I am because we are, and the safety of neighborhood life where everyone knew each other all feel like relics of a bygone era. It feels as though hard work is no longer accepted, yet the gap between those who have and those who do not have widens yearly. Many sons and daughters of Benue wonder who else they can trust. The institutions that once bound us are disappearing, and we no longer seem to have each other’s backs. Everyone appears to have a varying version of world events. Hence, it becomes more challenging than ever to sort fact from fiction. Our news feeds seem to echo our views, and when people post alternative opinions, they often get attacked by angry mobs. We do not disagree without perceiving another person’s views as stupid, wrong, or evil. We are being played off each other and told to see each other as threats and enemies. The loudest and most extreme voices get heard, while others feel they are outsiders. Nobody wants to turn the clocks back because several things are not right about the world of the Benue people. Today, we seem more fractured and fragmented than anyone can remember. Instead of helping us find solutions to move us all forward, politics is driving us apart. When people fail to understand each other, they cannot converse or find common ground. Yet somehow, if you could only press a reset button, things could be different, and we could move forward together as one community. The time to reset that button is right here and now.

Your excellency, the people of Benue will appreciate more if you list unity as part of what your administration will focus on in addition to your seven-point agenda and promote policies that will foster greater understanding and cooperation among the Benue people. This suggestion is necessary because we have too much unpleasantness, animosities, resentment, hostility, and bitterness in our land. People are hurt, impoverished, and have become beggars in their land. You will be the governor of such people, whether we like it or not or whether we voted for you or not. Hence, you could rise above sectionalism, regionalism, and indigenous sentiments to become the governor for all. My opinion is that you should create time to help us live peacefully and participate in the socio-political activities of the State. It is ridiculous that the people of Benue should suffer in a State that belongs to all of us. The Benue indigenous people living in the State should not be considered strangers.

Finally, your excellency, you will receive congratulatory messages from people of all worth of life, social media advisers, and content creators congratulating you on your victory at the polls. These people were often harshly critical of the priesthood and your choice to become the governor. Some took their anger out on you to divide our church deeply. I would, therefore, remind you to be wary of sycophants in the corridors of power whose interest is to engage in bootlicking and hypocrisy. These people will do everything now to praise you but they will also be the first elements to criticize you when you fail to deliver on your mandate. I urge you to be wary of these people, steadfast, focused, and dedicated as you steer the affairs of the State. The Nigerian expression goes: Shine your eyes and do not fall our hands! If you fail, it will be devastating and heartbreaking. As a Jesuit Catholic priest, I would be ashamed. But if you succeed, you will put the Catholic Church in the position of having authentic and transformative leaders who play a fundamental role in inducing a positive change. People will believe in our church as the only institution with genuine leaders to serve others. When it was clear you were the winner of the just concluded election, someone wrote on Facebook that if you let down the Benue people, the last hope would be to try the traditional herbalist or witch doctor. We do not wish to go to that level where people will make a caricature of the Catholic priesthood and the church.

Your election is a battle we desperately need to win in Benue. Right now, we are facing an economic crisis that has exacerbated job mobility for the people of our State. Our standing as the “food basket of the nation” with a conducive environment for business has also fallen. I pray that our legislatures will work with you to stem this decline by promoting policies that help create and retain the “food basket of the nation.” In doing this, you will ensure Benue’s continued success as a desirable place to be and raise a family. The people of Benue have provided an opportunity for you to set a new tone and direction for this powerful place we call home. As a brother priest, I am confident that you understand the Benue issues and that your experience can help move the State forward. Once again, I congratulate you on your election as governor and wish you a smooth transition. I envisage a powerful collaboration between your administration and legislative session to ensure that Benue, once again, becomes an attractive place to work and live.

Rev. Ma, S.J, is a Jesuit Catholic priest and PhD candidate in public and social policy at St. Louis University in the state of Missouri, USA.

The theme for World Autism Week 2023 is colour: the powers that be want to promote autism awareness with a splash of colours. As usual, the autism activists will be out there in force on sponsored walks, raising money, and doing talks trying to educate the general public on autism.

I believe those on the autistic spectrum really don’t care about an awareness week devoted to trying to understand what they are: most would prefer to be given a fair chance to live in a world that rejects them and treats them like circus freaks. Perhaps more time should be spent on educating the ordinary man on the street about what autism really is like and how those affected by it try to live their lives.

Autistic people are no different to anybody else except their brains are wired differently: the same human being but a different way of thinking and living. The common belief that all autistic people are non-verbal retards is not exactly true, some will be but not all, and in the same way not all ‘normal’ people are clever and can boast of high IQs. The mere fact you’ve met one autistic person doesn’t mean you’ve met them all. Don’t stereotype! People like Elon Musk, bullied as a kid in South Africa because he was autistic and weird (- he still is weird!) is on-and-off the Worlds Richest Man following in the footsteps of people like Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Warren Buffett and Mark Zuckerberg, all rumoured to be on the spectrum, who are using their unique talents and abilities to re-shape the world we live in. Recently Jason Arday an autistic 37-year-old Black Briton became the youngest Black professor at Cambridge University: he didn’t utter a word until he was 11 and didn’t learn to read or write until he was 18. A few years down the road and he worked hard and quickly got a first degree, 2 Master’s degrees and finally his PhD in Educational Studies. Not bad for an autistic ‘retard’!

The mere fact somebody is slightly different to everybody else, perhaps a bit antisocial and weird is not an excuse to discriminate against or ostracise a person.

Discrimination is a big crime in the world today: we prosecute people for discriminating against others because of their race, sexual and religious orientation and cultural differences. But sadly, people who have autism and other mental health conditions seem to be exempt from this rule. For some strange reason its ‘OK’ to bully, harass, ridicule, alienate and ostracise people who have mental health conditions.

Nobody has any control over what they are born as, it’s a Lottery of Life: if you were born ‘O.K’ you’re lucky, if not you’re stuck with whatever you are born as for the rest of your natural life. Think about that next time when you’re ridiculing somebody who’s on the autistic spectrum or who has mental health issues.

So Autistic Awareness week, in my opinion, should be dedicated to not just learning more about the condition – or making a song and dance about it – but to showing how people live with a condition that imposes certain limitations on how they live their lives: limitations the average person would find impossible to live with. Simple things like going to a shopping mall, or attending social functions can cause a sensory overload or even going outside of their own front doors can be difficult for most people on the spectrum and that’s not to talk of being hyper-sensitive to common things such as noise, bright lights, smells or even certain foods and at the same time being prone to meltdowns, struggling with depression, loneliness (-often leading to suicidal intentions), while at the same time being de-humanised by everybody around them.