I was compelled to write this piece, and set about it, in the third week of February, 2024. That was  after the Aboki fruit seller at the road junction to my office in the suburb of Lekki , unapologetically  refused to allow me price down one unit of red apple . My Aboki friend had offered to sell one at  five hundred naira, but,  just back in December, 2023 he sold me 4 pieces of same quality  for eight hundred naira. Was I jolted! 

I however held back closing this paper until today to benefit from listening to Prof  Kingsley Moghalu OON’s, keynote speech at the Leadership Conference and Awards at Congress Hall, Transcorp Abuja  on the topic “An Economy in  Distress ; Which Way Forward.” My unorthodox thoughts after listening  to the erudite lawyer-cum-development economics professor became even more . He is the author of the seminal book : Emerging Africa ; How the Global  Economy’s Last Frontier  Can Prosper and Matter” . Since I first encountered him in his days as  Central Bank Deputy Governor  about a decade ago he has never ceased intriguing me by clarity of his original hypothesis on overcoming Afrocentric economic development challenges. 

Being a roadside economic animal, and using Prof  Moghalu as a sounding board, here is my perspective. Nigeria is only an aspirational private sector-led economy. The fundamentals that should underpin its superstructure are fragile. The structural defect  is arguably reversible . But that may only result from an intentional, sacrificial, audacious, strategic and visionary investment of appropriate resources in human, intellectual and  engineered processes  of change, across  critical sectors to achieve a competitive and  sustainable growth. By nearly all economic parameters, Nigeria is now an under-developing  economy – our year-on-year and decade-on-decade regressing GDP statistics alone say it all . Over the last one year,  Nigeria’s money supply ballooned to an all-time high of N93. 72 trillion as of January 2024, which amounts to 76% surge from the N53. 14 trillion recorded in January 2023. We prodigally created more money without producing matching quantity of goods and services to by them with. Having neither worked harder or smatter nor produced more than we previously did, there is no prize for guessing why the bubble liquidity is chasing after less than the previous year’s GDP’. This alarming statistics must be recognised as a doomsday warning. It must task  the economic managers (on the fiscal and monetary sides) to swiftly  course re-direct towards repositioning and gaining re-admission of the country  into the family of  developing countries in the medium term.

The resultant effect of this misalignment of means and end  manifests in a distorted socio-economic system which hardly responds to orthodox neo liberal western-style  management tools. The challenge has never been more starkly presented than what the country is currently experiencing - the twin fiscal and monetary policy decisions of fuel subsidy withdrawal and dollar market fusion for  pricing parity across the financial market . This is consistent with  President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s campaign promises and manifesto encapsulated in the Renewed Hope Agenda (RHA). That audacious move required to be prosecuted by thinking  outside the box to “fetch water from a dry well”. But as Prof Moghalu wrote in his referenced Book “Many development indicators are published and tracked , but as informative as they are, it is paramount for success that the portfolio of measures used to track the performance of the strategy are those that matter for understanding  progress toward the nation’s strategic destination.”

The unintended but easily predictable consequences of not following through with the required rigorous articulation and heavy lifting value creation, that should  accompany the twin policy choices  are  Galloping Inflation, Forex Volatility and vulnerability , unmanageable sovereign debt , unprecedented descent into multidimensional poverty by majority of the population; and now, lately – a jarring food insecurity and threat to peace and security posed by non-state actors. 

Time has come for a decisive, all-hands on deck, strategic plan of action to be proactively iterated and articulated. That is a move that compels unconventional urgency with intent to onboard and implement  well defined deliverables by all stakeholders. I am regrettably afraid, that we are, instead, staring at a recipe for an atrophied economy and a state tending to ultimate collapse.

With dwindling foreign reserves largely resulting from progressively contracting revenue from the nations’ mainstay - crude oil, the Nigeria is unravelling as   less self-sustaining , less-productive , less confident of its steps and less predictable for long term business plans. It is struggling, so badly, to create new opportunities for increased prosperity on a scale necessary to keep more of our people out of poverty  (rather than taking them out of that territory). This is  despite our geometrically expanding population.

The urgency of the dire situation commends exploitation of immediate low hanging homegrown opportunities ; those that we have capacity and competence to explore and  swiftly activate. It will be akin to President  Roosevelt’s New Deal of the 1930s that rescued the  USA from its worst economic depression in history and led to her emergence as the world’s enduring  economic super power. That Deal can be contrasted with the  Marshall Plan contrived as economic reconstruction aid package for post-world war II Western Europe.  So, as  an emergency national agenda for  economic self reliance, my vote will be for the Roosevelt  Way  (aimed at rekindling our  self-belief)  rather than an aid -dependent  Marshall Plan as the preferred lead option. External support by way of foreign investment attraction  should only be a sweetener  for a country that is sinfully underutilising its enormous indigenous potentials.  The mantra should be to banish our loss of self-belief and empower Nigeria to confront our fears with daring courage ; so that, as that wheelchair-bound President Roosevelt said to his fellow Americans in their lowest moment of economic depression,  the only thing to fear … is fear is itself.

REGENERATION PROPOSAL: 

It is contended that for immediate hope-re-envisioning and impactful outcome,  the route to go is NOT by experimenting with fanciful palliatives and tokenistic programs or initiatives. The challenge calls for a roll out of audacious, visionary, focused and engineered strategic PROJECT OF FUNDAMENYAL ECONOMIC REBIRTH away from crude oil revenue dependency. This is what informs  the proposed PROJECT   3-in-3 RHA. It identifies and nominates  three strategic economic sub-sectors for game-changing reinvention in 3 years. The project will be scoped and kicked off for implementation in a matter of 3 months with full participation of a  broad spectrum of the  populace. All those  whose inputs as critical stakeholders outside of government are vital to elicit their unflinching buy-in and involvement must be brough on board.

The project is to  achieve predetermined deliverables around a  unique publicly promoted ( but not state funded)  massive investment in development of  Railway lines  (linking all state capitals), Housing ( to be a mix of quality commercial and social mortgage-ready stock,  to incrementally reduce housing deficits)   and Agriculture ( encompassing the allied cottage industries and value chain) for  recalibration and diversification of the Nigerian economic landscape. It is to be delivered in the  first phase   over three 3 years - starting from 2024- effectively from the date when the Implementation Coordination Team (ICT) (which must be corporate governance complaint)  submits  the framework that targets creation of at least 5 million (direct and indirect) new fulltime, living wage jobs  as a catalyst for reviving our fast vanishing middle class and create  two new thriving economic sectors as providers of revenue sources for reinvesting in  massive associated infrastructure assets and spin-off businesses in the second phase  replicating the proven  template.

This project will draw principally from our most underutilised but abundant domestic endowments and  capacities (with land as the pivot). The project 3-in-3RHA is to be deployed to reposition the national  economic base from consumption and overdependence on offshoring and foreign  support ; and to lessen  pressure on external reserves which may then be  reprioritised for use in funding acquisition of complex high tech machineries, know how; with preference to  those   genuinely unavailable economic inputs services that the country lacks  competitive, practical or suitable alternative domestic  substitutes for.

The broad framework will involve the following actionable tasks.

1. Constitution of Project 3-in-3 RHA Implementation Coordinating Team (ICT) with mandate to generate and submit “Project  Scope Statement of Work” within 3 months.   The team must subscribe to adherence to transparent corporate governance rules and be insulated from bureaucratic public service constraints.
2. The “Project Scope Statement of Work” must shift attention to subnational as engines of economic revitalisation by providing competitive, peer to peer capacities for states to deepen their productive economic potentials thus becoming less dependent on federally allocated revenue  and appropriations to more effectively meet their governance mandates as suits a properly structured federating states.
3. The target candidate productive sectors (Rail , Housing and Agriculture) are identified as derivatives of land surface resources (not import or forex dependent). Happily, the country has fallow land in abundance. It is still  largely socialised under the  Land Use Act, such that it can be conveniently    aggregated, mapped for use and dedicated to the project with minimal complications and constraints .
4. The three project sectors are outside of exclusive federal control and mandate-  this makes for flexible empowerment and diversified  intervention by sub-national governments and private sectors under federal overarching coordination as the prime  fiscal and monetary policy enabler .   
5. States and local governments as anchor implementers are to leverage on their control of land assets as dead capital for conversion into credit for creating cost effective financing scheme to fund the Project 3-in-3 RHA. The aim is to convert their dead capital into financial resources for investment in productive ,   high impact , fast trackable  sectors of the economy.  My simplified descriptive  term for dead capital, first coined by the Peruvian Economist , Hernando de Soto Polar is Idle Asset. In the hands of the rich it must be appropriately taxed; and in other respects it must be mobilised and invested for optimal return.
6. The tripodal economic course re-direction project must be productivity focused, value- and merit-driven; insulated from legacy cultural constraints of prebendal political patronage syndrome and with preeminent participation of the street level private sector  players and segmentation to accommodate different level of business models and sophistication for micro-small and medium enterprises . For this reason, the Project  must leave out big players who can crowd out the targeted sectors that need the empowerment and grooming. It  should  embrace an  all-inclusive , and party-neutral paradigm.    
7. Affordable credit guarantees on the back of predictable and credible data-driven inventories and receivables for off-takers of the commercial outputs and services from the projects by leveraging on a robust application of Secured Transaction In Movable Assets Act, of 2017, boosting consumer credit and  enhanced financial inclusion to restore peoples inflation-eroded purchasing power and support domestic demands for the sectors’ outputs.
8. The federal Government will have to commit to commission a broad implementation framework, templates and targets to be  adapted by each sub-national to suit their local circumstances ; and also provide seed credit guarantee through securitisation of inventories and receivables from Project 3-in-3 RHA to raise sovereign bonds in the capital market at  market rated (but government subsided single digit)  medium tenor interest rates to the tune of  TWENTY TRILLION NAIRA  (=N=20,000,000,000,000.00) for disbursement in predetermined  tranches through commercial banks  to support sectoral milestones over the project timeline.
9. The interest subsidies on the bond will cease after the initial five  years by which time they will be priced and traded on competitive capital market rates without government underwriting.  It is intended to be a creative avenue for mopping excess liquidity driving extant galloping inflation in the economy and to  reinvest those idle funds in the ring-fenced  productive sectors  targeted under the  project with the attendant multiplier effects in the subnational space. The expected short term outcome is that the project will turn  the entire 774 local government areas in the 36 states of the country into satellite of productive and quality work sites thus boosting their economies simultaneously. In the medium terms it should serve to reverse the uneconomic internal migration of unemployed, unskilled  and unemployable demographics at   state capitals and urban centres in search of perceived opportunities that do not exist . These are the marginalised , hapless citizens feeding crimes and creating  antisocial army of recruits posing  security threats across the country.    

• Federal Government will at the same time facilitate a credible audit of accessible domestic and open source technical research resources immediately usable to drive the project in collaboration with states across relevant research sources and institutions in the respective states.
• There is need to produce and issue a presidential executive order for mandatory collaboration and  patronage of indigenous  academic and research bodies imbued with resources and relevant consultancy expertise in close proximity to operational bases of eligible entities . This should be incentivised by its stipulation as a prequalification requirement to access or draw  on Federal Government  supported credits, grants,  subsidies or procurements related to the respective areas of focus under the Project . The added benefit is to facilitate the creation of functional and structured interface between town and  gown in the candidate sectors as model templates  for eventual adoption generally in other segments of the economy. It is anticipated that this strategic innovation will lead to better  appreciation of  scientific imperative of a workable plan for national development as the economy expands in sophistication and depth  in line with the goal of  the Project.  It is unimaginable that any well conceived plan to revive the country premised on indigenous effort and self reliance  will not assign a crucial role for our centres of knowledge and research to play as development partners and facilitators . 
• Deliberate effort must be made to reverse the Brain-Drain conundrum’ and retain, in-country, our best and brightest for the new phase of socio -economic revitalisation. As at 2023, Nigeria  had 170 universities comprising  federal-, state-, and privately-owned  in a ratio of  43, 48 and 79, respectively . Similarly, there are  over 160 accredited polytechnics ; they are  spread all over the country producing technical and vocational professionals with adaptable skills and competences in the three candidate sectors of the Project 3-in3 RHA. Considerable proportion of the products of these institutions are presently engaged in flexible online jobs as trollers, content creators, skit makers, bloggers, data miners,  or awaiting their emigration papers to “japa” with their underutilised skills and youthful creative minds. 

THE PROJECT THESIS :

What  Project 3-in-3 RHA proposal seeks to deliver is to extract latent value in the states-owned dead capital (Land vested in states as trustees under the Land Use Act),  and use it by way of adaptation of the   financial engineering technique in the oil and gas industry to fund and  bail out Nigeria from its desperate existential economic crisis that entered steroids territory in 2023.  The Project is conceived to deploy , subnational idle and under-utilized asset – LAND- as substitute for proven reserves applied in the  oil and gas industry for Reserve-Based Lending (RBL) as axtra-budgetary  financing mechanism to raise economic revitalisation investment capital. The model will finance the Project 3-in3 RHA by mimicking the financing technique that oil exploration and production businesses deploy for huge project funding. The designated land as a  readily available collateral asset is to be aggregated and committed in place of   RBL as a “borrowing-base” type of loan, sized on the basis of the projected Net Present Value (NPV) of cash flows to be generated by the underlying assets and investments under the Project  3-in-3 RHA  business plan.  

By this strategy, the Land Use Act provides a diamond in the raw which can be converted into a unique asset class available to  states for productive  investment  as against the constraining role it has played for so long in stultifying efficient exploitation of land for real estate value amplification since its promulgation in 1978. It is  comparable to the hidden value recently unlocked by the  NNPC Limited in structuring and collaterising its forward sale to secure lending from Afreximbank  in the region of  $3.5 Billion dollars for  advance dividend payment to the Federal Government. In the present proposal, a fairly long-term funding is to be originated, structured to be repaid from domestic economy that is not dollar denominated. It will nevertheless be priced attractively enough to whet appetite of even Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPI), as repository for repatriated/laundered  funds ,  as well as add to investment baskets of diaspora remittances.

While RBL financing exploits extractive resource  vested exclusively in the Federal Government under the constitution (mineral oil); the target asset in this Project is surface right over land vested exclusively in the sub-nationals - the 36 federating states that are performing sub-optimally relative to their true potential as economic enablers . With the exception of Lagos State, being the 5^th largest economy in the continent, most of the states are cost centers feeding off federal grants  sustained through burgeoning  and unsustainable ways and means- while their humongous internal potentials for wealth creation are left unharnessed.

PROOF OF CONCEPT:

The audacious Eko Atlantic City in Victoria Island and the Dangote Refinery Complex Corridor at Ibeju Lekki, both erected on expensively reclaimed land from the sea in collaboration with the host state government as their landlord are examples of how viable the  land-asset-backed Project may prove to be against the backdrop of land that is ready and available for use from get- go across the 36 states of the federation. The replication of such bold, ingenuous, rigorous  and gusty creative thinking that birthed those signature multi- billion dollars projects in Lagos ,  is what the present circumstances of Nigeria nation needs at this desperate time. But it must now be one  that has diversified sectoral application designed to positively impact  the fortunes of the entire federation , in order that the country may escape a looming economic collapse .

EXPECTED OUTCOME :

Igniting the subnational economic potentials by optimizing their  dead capital to reflate and recalibrate their economies productively while taming cost-push, and  forex speculation-driven inflation.  In addition, it is to provide a robust  foundation for a new economic base. Project 3-in-3 RHA, promises  validation and seamless  translation of the Renewed Hope  Agenda for real value  creation vide state-backed strategic investment in Railways, Housing and Agriculture over the next three years. It will constitute the nucleus of a new productive economy. It is from its base that other critical economic sectors now struggling or moribund are to be jump-started and resume flourishing for ultimate restoration of the country on the path of sustainable prosperity. 

PROSCRIPT: 

The second part of this thesis will address options for de-dollarizing the Nigerian economy with a view to optimally benefiting  from the wider and fairer international trade currency  regimes free apron strings of  the dollar for settlement of cross border and multilateral financial obligations. The ultimate goal is to create  a respected Nigerian convertible currency tied  to a basket of foreign convertible currencies most connected to the Nigerian balance of trade objectives.

The Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Pastor Umo Eno has approved the appointment of Rev (Dr.) Ndueso Ekwere(JP) as the Honorary Special Adviser to the Governor on Religious Matters.

This was contained in a release by the Secretary to the State Government, Prince Enobong Uwah.

The appointment takes immediate effect.

Rev. Ekwere is the immediate past Chairman of the Akwa Ibom State Chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, and a Gospel Minister of the United Evangelical Church, (UEC) (founded as Qua Iboe Church).

Media Unit
Govt House, Uyo

In the intricate realm of governance and statecraft, stability stands as the cornerstone. It is the bedrock upon which reformed institutions and structural engineering are built. Leadership, therefore, plays a pivotal role in catalyzing these reforms, steering the ship of democracy towards a stable and prosperous horizon.

At the helm of Akwa Ibom State, His Excellency, Pastor Umo Eno, embodies this vision of transformative leadership. His administration, anchored on the A.R.I.S.E Agenda, is a beacon of economic development for the citizens of Akwa Ibom State.

For Governor Umo Eno, political stability is not a mere concept, but an actionable commitment and an embodiment of his character and persona. His outreach to fellow politicians across party lines, welcoming them back into the fold of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), is a testament to his dedication to unity and progress; an inclusivity that paves way for peace and continued economic advancement.

With the understanding that security is the foundation of all development, Pastor Umo Eno has shown great commitment towards ensuring that we Akwa Ibomites live in a safe environment. The state's flourishing peace and order attests to this. Safe to say that the legacy of security, upheld by successive administrations, finds new vigour under Pastor Umo Eno's governance. The establishment of the Ministry of Internal Security and Waterways is a clear indication of his unwavering commitment to safeguarding the state against any form of threat.

In the face of economic challenges such as the removal of fuel subsidies and currency fluctuations, Governor Umo Eno has taken decisive steps to shield the people of Akwa Ibom from the harsh tides of poverty. To this end, the Governor introduced two pivotal executive bills:

1. The Infrastructure and Assets Management and Maintenance Bill: This legislation aims to create an agency responsible for the upkeep and sustainability of the state's infrastructure, ensuring that public assets continue to serve the community effectively.

2. The Bulk Purchase Agency Bill: With the goal of stabilizing and subsidizing food prices, this bill seeks to establish an agency that will oversee the procurement and distribution of food commodities, thereby securing food availability and affordability for all residents.

On establishment, the Agency shall be saddled with the responsibility of procuring, distributing, stabilizing and subsidizing food prices in the state with the aim of making food available and affordable for all in the state. The Agency shall have as its Chairman, the State Chief Executive, His Excellency, Pastor Umo Eno, alongside other economic advisory and management team at supervisory roles to undertake the onerous task of repositioning the state in a drive to ensure food security.

These initiatives reflect a profound understanding that infrastructure is the lifeblood of societal function, encompassing essential sectors such as health, education, and agriculture. By prioritizing maintenance and management, Governor Umo Eno is not only preserving the state's achievements, but also instilling a culture of sustainability.

As we await the manifestations of the benefit of these initiatives, it is clear that Pastor Umo Eno's leadership is a guiding light towards a stable and prosperous Akwa Ibom State.

Tony Johnson, MNARC, is the Lead Team at Leadership Security and Development Hub.

The junta in Niger Republic is in a serious dilemma even as it has agreed to release the ousted president of the country, Mohamed Bazoum, and his wife, Khadija. 

Multiple sources in Nigeria and the neighbouring Niger, have confirmed plans by the military government to release the ousted president before or within the few days of Ramadan. 

It was learnt, however, that the biggest dilemma of the top echelon of the military in Niger Republic is the insistence by Bazoum to remain within Niger, on the grounds that he was not interested in relocating to any other country. 

Bazoum has the backing of France President Emmanuel Macron, and by extension, Nigeria’s President and Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) leader, Bola Tinubu. 

The two leaders are not in the good books of the Niger military government, as evident in the back and forth that ensued since the removal of Bazoum and the series of sanctions slammed Niger Republic, alongside Mali and Burkina Faso.

To make things worse, French symbols in Niger, including diplomats have been expelled by the military leaders, even as they have turned deaf ears to all the entreaties extended to them by ECOWAS, including the lifting of bans like border closure and a return to the regional body. 

The sources that spoke to Daily Trust on the planned release of Bazoum included diplomats and journalists. 

Some locals in the capital, Niamey, as well as Maradi, one of the major cities in that country, said at least one prominent newspaper in the French speaking country had carried a story on the plans to release Bazoum. The sources said the military authorities were working on how to “get it right”, in the event that they allow Bazoum to remain in Niger Republic. 

Part of the fear of the junta is the possibility of sympathisers of the ousted president to stage protests demanding for “absolute freedom” for him, since the agreement at the moment is that Bazoum will still remain under some sort of house arrest. 

Niger tabloid De L’enqueteur, citing credible sources, said, “The couple will have their detention turned to house arrest any moment before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan due to start Monday and Tuesday.” 

Daily Trust reports that Bazoum, his wife, and his son, Salem, were arrested and detained by the coup leaders who took over last July. 

The younger Bazoum was released provisionally by the tribunal on January 9. Our sources said there was no French or ECOWAS contribution in the plan to release the ousted president. One of the sources said the plan to release Bazoum was home-grown, meaning it was planned and agreed within Niger. 

“The coup leaders have moved on, they are not thinking about France or ECOWAS and they are not looking back,” the source said. 

“Neither France nor ECOWAS, and by extension Nigeria has any input in what Niger is doing,” the source added. 

Another source said that Bazoum, at his own volition, expressed a clear desire to remain in Niger after his release, thus testifying to his unwavering attachment to the country despite the political turbulence. 

“And this is where the coup leaders have some issues…They would have loved a situation whereby Bazoum will leave the shores of the country and go somewhere,” one of the sources said. 

“They are mindful of his popularity even though they have, to a greater extent, also proved to the citizens that they are patriots and not puppets of anyone. 

“While they are not averse to releasing the removed president, one thing is clear, they are not willing to bring him back to power.

“They will also prefer to keep him in one of their facilities as a freed man. He will be entitled to state protection while enjoying the freedom to receive guests,” the source said. A journalist in the capital, Niamey, told the Daily Trust on the telephone that the former president may likely remain at his private residence in the capital. 

According to De L’enqueteur, under house arrest, the former head of state could have increased access to means of communication that could allow him to broadcast messages to his followers and influence public opinion. 

Meanwhile, the development could create dissent within the de facto ruling military junta of Niger, Conseil National pour la Sauvegarde de la Patrie, (CNSP) – the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland – itself, between the liberals and hardliners among its members. 

Contacted, a university teacher in Niamey, Dr Mamman Manzo, said he was not aware of any plan to release Bazoum. 

“A lot of things are happening but I am not privy to the issue you are talking about. I would have to make some findings,” he said. Early last August, media reports had it that Bazoum and his family were being held under inhumane conditions by their military leaders, who had cut off the electricity to the presidential residence, leaving them to rapidly lose weight while food rotted in the fridge, the president’s daughter told the Guardian at the time. 

The West African regional bloc, ECOWAS had in late February lifted most sanctions imposed on Niger over last year’s coup, in a new push for dialogue following a series of political crises that have rocked the region in recent months. 

Earlier in February, the head of the military government in the Niger Republic, General Abdourahamane Tchiani, vowed that none of the three Sahel countries would rejoin the regional bloc. 

Late January, the leaders of the three Sahel nations – Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso issued a statement, saying it was a “sovereign decision” to leave the ECOWAS “without delay”. 

Why Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali are silent on return to ECOWAS 

In an interview with the Daily Trust, Ali Kabre, an independent journalist with ample knowledge of happenings in Burkina Faso, said anything could happen in the three countries. 

“I want to speak about Burkina Faso specifically. The junta here has moved on and they are forging new alliances. 

“As you can see, they are not even looking at the direction of ECOWAS because they have a feeling that the regional body is not in the first place meeting their expectations. That is why even when the ECOWAS leadership asked them to come back, they kept mute.

“Most importantly, getting supply of essential commodities is also not a problem for Burkina Faso. They have unfettered access through other neighbouring countries,” Kabre said.

Burkina Faso, a landlocked country shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Niger and Mali.

“They get supplies with ease from Benin and in return, they have also opened their borders for Niger, which also gets supplies without many difficulties,” he said.

On the body language of the citizens, he said there are divergent opinions.

“Some citizens believe ECOWAS is not fulfilling its mandate. For instance, the issue of ECO as a single currency has not been resolved. Also, contrary to expectations, all these years, trade has not been free, there are a lot of gaps for free trade. So, some citizens don’t really care about going back to ECOWAS,” he said. He said from the body language of the three countries, they could survive as independent nations while strengthening their economic and developmental cooperation. 

“They all have issues with terrorists and they felt ECOWAS did not play the role of a key senior ally to support them. With the establishment of AES, they are now pursuing a common front,” he said.

Foreign ministry mum 

When contacted to react to the news of the imminent release of the ousted President of Niger Republic, Alkasim Abdulkadir, the media aide to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, declined comments.

However, a reliable source in the ministry, who pleaded anonymity, said the release of the ousted president was expected. The source noted that ECOWAS had listed the release of the ousted president as part of the conditions to lift the sanctions placed on the Sahel country but had to soft pedal after the intervention of Gen. Yakubu Gowon (Rtd). 

“The Nigerian government right from day one has been demanding the release of Mohamed Bazoum. It used to be a precondition for the lifting of the sanction but because of Gen. Gowon’s intervention, because of the Lent and because of Ramadan, the sanctions were lifted. 

“If President Bazoum is released now, I think it’s good for democracy, it is good for them as a country because President Bazoum has not done anything to warrant him being under house arrest,” the source said. 

On the reports that Niger had vowed not to deal with Nigeria and ECOWAS by extension as a result of loss of trust, the source declined to comment, saying it was wrong to make any comment based on speculations. 

“I can’t speak to hearsay. If it is documented, if there is a letter to that effect, then, I can speak about it,” the source maintained.

[DailyTrust]

Former Real Madrid striker, Ronaldo Nazario has hailed Jude Bellingham, comparing him to his former teammate Zinedine Zidane.

Ronaldo said he loves to watch Bellingham play for Real Madrid.

“I was watching a few matches at the Bernabéu and I was looking for Bellingham,” Ronaldo was quoted by Madrid Universal as saying.

“He reminds me a little bit of Zidane with his quality. I love the way Jude Bellingham plays.

“I love to watch him play, he goes forward all the time.”

Bellingham joined Real Madrid from Dortmund last summer.

The 20-year-old has scored 20 goals and provided nine assists in 31 games for Carlo Ancelotti’s side so far this season.

[DailyPost]

Apart from being a strategy against defective memory, diary-keeping is an extraordinary tool in literary craftsmanship. One, it infuses writing with greater realism or a deeper breath of reality if you like. In English literature of the early twentieth century, the technique was popularised by writers like Bruce Cummings, who adopted the pen name, Nero Barbellion, and his major work is entitled, “The Journal of a Disappointed Man.”

As the title suggests, “The Journal of a Disappointed Man” is a bitter-sweet account of a provincial young man who arrives London to start a career in science, then he becomes disillusioned, and begins to stumble from one unhappy love affair to another. His emotional misery is soon compounded by the onset of ill-health which searing pains he details meticulously until the approach of death.

Sadly, Cummings died at the age of 30 in 1919.

Back home, we see the technique of diary deployed by our own Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, in his prison memoirs entitled, “The Man Died”. To his jailers who sought to break his spirit by starving him of reading and writing materials for more than two years, “Eni-Ogun” overcame by scribbling his thoughts on toilet-sheets and other forms of improvisation while in prison.

But unlike Soyinka’s case that dwells on the Nigerian civil war, the diary is, of course, implicated in a bitter love story many of us are familiar with, which is documented by one of the former spouses of a one-time Nigerian leader. In a language of spite, the grand old lady chronicles a riveting love story that initially sizzled on British soil, only to devolve into bouts of domestic fisticuff after the couple returned to Nigeria.

Of course, someone took the position of First Lady when her former husband eventually became two-time Nigerian leader. But never mind. To those who might be gloating at hijacking the fruits of someone else’s labour, she reveals some dark secrets. In her tell-all, she details, in black and white, how the future commander-in-chief used to diligently launder, not with washing machine, but bare hands her dirty undergarments in the winter cold of London back in the day.

As if to remind the new mistresses that what they now claim to possess is not exactly factory new, but a fairly-used vessel.

However, Sam Omatseye’s own book is neither about estranged lovers nor forsaken love. “Beating All Odds: Diaries and Essays on How Bola Tinubu Became President” is a meticulous chronicle of events preceding and following arguably the most divisive election in Nigeria’s history. It gives context and content to a phrase recently enrolled in our political lexicon — “EMILOKAN”.

Sam’s book is divided into two parts — the diary section and the other a potpourri of essays published as column in The Nation newspaper. The diary opens on the nineteenth of August, 2022 after the presidential flag-bearer of APC had emerged, and was now arrayed against the candidates of PDP, Labour and NNPP ahead of the 2023 general elections.

The diary closes on the seventeenth of February, 2023, a week to the elections.

In Part 1 of the book, Sam vividly captures the dramatic twists and turns, the high and low moments of the electioneering season. From the insurgency of pastors against APC’ Muslim/Muslim ticket, to the intifada of northern hegemons paranoid at the prospects of the north relinquishing power to the South after Buhari’s eight years at the Presidential Villa. From the feral rampage of Labour’s online trolls, to the unprecedented absurdity of a former Central Bank Governor practically draining the national economy of cash in a desperate maneuver to rig the electoral outcome against Bola Tinubu, the reader is confronted with the prospects of a macabre drama.
Sam’s entries also do not exclude the comedies of Wike’s mocking dance-steps and the accompanying guttural lyrics of “As e dey pain dem, e go dey sweet us” and “Yemdeba… Yemdeba… Yemdeba… Yemdeba.” Nor the leak of the illicit invocation of “Yes Daddy” by one of the candidates in what was supposed to be a nocturnal chat with his spiritual godfather, in the pursuit of a sectarian agenda.

In PDP, we are reminded of how the flag-bearer called the five insurgent Governors “traitors” who don’t respect elders and the accused in turn call Atiku a “prodigal father” blinded by inordinate ambition for 30 years.

In the media, we see top journalists engaged in foul exchanges in the pursuit of conflicting interests until the media elders imposed a ceasefire.

Of course, Sam’s radar also captures the audio apparition of a former leader — one of the so-called “Owners of Nigeria”, a great granddad for sure and prolific, all-knowing letter-writer camped close to Olumo Rock, inciting unsuspecting youths to march on the streets of Lagos and Abuja when early results indicated his anointed candidate was losing, not minding if they ended up as a sacrificial lamb in possible crossfire, all in a last-ditch attempt to truncate democracy and set Nigeria back on the road of June 12.

In a way, this is also a book of vindication that is not just poetic in cadence, but also prophetic in prognosis. The great romantic poet, Percy Shelley, tells us that “poets are the unacknowledged legislators of the world”. With an uncommon prescience, most of what Sam said came to pass indeed. The man he pitched for won. How prophetic his essay entitled, “Again, a Lagos Original”, published on February 20, barely five days to the much-anticipated D-Day, turned out.

Hear the author: “He (Tinubu) is rich. He is powerful. He has influence. He has changed lives. He transformed a city. Made men and women. Yet he attracts quite a few adversaries. The scriptures say when Isaac roared into success, the Philistines envied him.

“They deny him the right to be human. When he is sick, some wish him dead or eternally crippled. When he is not seen, some conjure his ghost as a dead soul. When he reappears, they won’t even credit him as a revenant, a man who came back from the dead. Rather, they wait for another date with the grave – in their imagination. Through the primaries, he gulped up mileage against his opponents’ little acreage. In the elections season, he bounded from huge crowd to huge crowd with breathtaking regularity. His opponents, including the ‘youth’ among them, waited to take a breath and measure the breadth before the next flight.”

As for those who pronounced a “fatwa” on the writer for exercising a poetic license in coining “Obi-tuarists” in August 2022, Sam could be said to have had the last laugh when the ballots were tallied in March 2023.
For four months, we learnt that Sam was advised, as a precaution, to stay completely off the radar while Obi’s supporters preached hate in what evoked the dark memories of Salman Rushdie’s ordeal after Iran’s Ayatollah Khomeni pronounced a fatwa on his “Satanic Verses”. But, alas, the bullies grew limp and desolate once their idol lost.

But rather than gloat, in an essay entitled “I Pardon All” published on June 19, 2023, conciliatory Sam writes: “It was a pun but they did not see the fun. Yet, I am not writing in jest, but to follow the rhetorical footprints of President Bola Tinubu in his inaugural speech that echoed another great man, Abraham Lincoln. I write, as this essayist has always done, with ‘malice towards none.’

“When I wrote the piece, Obi-tuary, there was a tempest in the land… It was a hectic time for me and my loved ones. I did not go to the office for four months. I was a hermit, except my trips for TVC Breakfast show, and I had got here in disguise. I attended no parties, no public events, and restaurants. I was as Americans say a home buddy. But I forgive all. I forgive them who did not understand English enough to know that I was using a figure of speech.”

Again, the central banker Sam pooh-poohed yesterday is now today’s butt of national joke for presiding over a criminal enterprise. Long before Godwin Emefiele fell on his sword of fiscal perfidy, Sam had seen it coming in a satirical piece entitled “Mefy’s beauty”, published on November 7, 2022. Listen to him: “Godwin Emefiele must think himself a great economist and stylist. Or maybe he sees himself as a sort of reincarnation of Steve Jobs, the Apple avatar who brought design to the service of technology. Mefi, as his acolytes call him, must believe he wants to bring style to the service of the economy.

“So, to do this, he goes to the president, and tells him it is an elixir of good news. Mop up the naira and the politicians who stashed away money will groan. It will smoke out bandits from their barricades. The naira will neigh like robust horse. Inflation will bow. The common folk will renew ‘Sai baba’ chants. His unsung legacy on song.”

As prophesied, Emefiele only ended wrecking a national economy he was hired to nurture. Of course, while the great magician performed all sort of abracadabra at the exchequer, he was egged on by a tribe of media contractors who often outdid themselves in declaring him either “Banker of the Year” or “Banker of the Decade” regularly. But following a raft of serious charges brought against Emefiele in court, the media praise-singers have since lost their voices.
When Emefiele’s campaign posters first appeared on the streets, Sam was one of the few courageous columnists who bucked the conspiracy of silence in the media by voicing outrage against the sacrilege in a piece entitled “Here We Go”.

Here him:
“An abuse of office is going on with Godwin Emefiele. His so-called committee of friends failed to protect the CBN governor. Rallies are around town. Posters are everywhere. He is still mum. If he wants to run for president, he should resign his office. He should not hide under pieties about God or Muhammadu Buhari.

“He wants to have his dollar and pounds in one transaction. He should either run and resign, or stop an amorphous group from trumpeting an ambition for a man whose only image outside of banking is a kneeling posture to some oligarchs.

“It is an abuse of office to enable a shadowy crowd of friends fretting in public over questions of the CBN chief who is stumbling to segue from a technocrat to a democrat. The so-called committee of friends was a shadow show.
“It was a limp exhibition, whose prose called for better editing. Emefiele has a spokesman officially. That is the only voice that counts, not a camaraderie of cowardice hiding under a coterie of friends.”

Unperturbed and unashamed, Mefy’s hired flutists doubled down in a rejoinder splashed in a sponsored two-page advertorial in The Nation newspaper.

Without a doubt, this book is significant because it is the first attempt at documenting a momentous period in our recent history. As many will now agree, never in living memory has the nation found herself dragged into an electoral contest where religion and region were brazenly weaponised.

Nor has the nation ever witnessed an aberration where the sitting administration was viewed, rightly or wrongly, as working energetically and transparently against the victory of the candidate of its own party in a national election.

One remarkable thing about the diary Sam kept for seven months is the sense of great suspense, dark foreboding expressed by the writer as the nation tottered dangerously near the precipice.

For instance, hear Sam’s suspense-filled entry on the seventeenth of February, 2023:
“The week before the election shaped out very tense, especially for the ruling party. It seems obvious that the worries that Asiwaju Bola Tinubu expressed about efforts to scuttle his path to victory have never been better revealed than when the president went on television and defied the Supreme Court ruling.

“The president gave ammunition to the other contestants because his decision energised the rage against his government and the APC. He decided against the suggestions of the Council of State, against the ruling of the Supreme Court, against the judgment of the governors and many people in the political class and civil society. His decision was in lockstep with that of the CBN chief, the Labour Party’s presidential candidate Peter Obi and PDP counterpart Atiku Abubakar.”

Overall, there is no disputing that Sam writes with the fragrance of a much-decorated poet and the gravitas of the nation’s most garlanded, most consistent columnist in the last two decades. As The Nation’s columnist in the last eighteen years, not once has Sam failed to deliver every Monday. His multidisciplinary depth surely shines through this chronicle. But even more evident is the authority Sam brings. As a senior editor with vast network of contacts in high places, he surely knows, smells and hears things not open to small players.

However, it must be said that, here, Sam is not a neutral chronicler. Indeed, in Nigeria’s literary community, only a few can be said to be as invested as Sam in Nigeria’s democratic struggle when the cost was most prohibitive. To ignore the history of the popular struggle against military despotism of the 90s is to, therefore, completely miss the spirit that feeds Sam’s muscular metaphors.

Not many will remember that, as Concord editor in 1997, the writer narrowly escaped being captured by then rampaging Abacha goons at the Muritala Mohammed International Airport in Lagos. He and Tunji Bello, his inseparable ideological twin brother, had turned Sunday Concord newspaper into a thorn in Sani Abacha’s flesh. Of course, that close shave with the death squad of the military regime marked the beginning of Sam’s ten-year self-exile in the U.S.

Well, Aristotle said we are all political animals. The difference with Sam is that he does not hide his bias in a sophistry. His partisanship is undoubtedly for Bola Tinubu, a key player in the pro-democracy struggle of the 90s. No wonder, in this book, Sam is unsparing of those he considers traitors to Asiwaju. And they are quite many. From those who climbed on Tinubu’s back to power in Abuja and later denied the help, to those who disowned him in his own hour of political need. They know themselves.

Overall, contrarians are likely to find Sam’s language rather offensive or maybe exaggerated sometimes. But like Khalil Gibran tells us, exaggeration is only a truth that has lost its temper.

However, as magnificent as it appears, Sam’s offering is not without its own production infelicities which border largely on the infiltration of non-English words or phrases. They permeate the entire work. But Sam must be reminded that not everyone speaks or understands Yoruba or his native Itshekiri. Conventionally, such words are italicized or put in inverted comas. These can corrected in the next issue of the book.

All said, the book is, in my view, a razor-sharp snapshot of Nigeria at a critical moment. I strongly recommend you get a copy and read.

Thanks for listening.

Payment of wage award to workers by state governments will bring big relief to a cross section of Nigerians, the President said yesterday.

He challenged the governors to toe this path in collaboration with the Federal Government as part of efforts to alleviate the economic reform pains.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu spoke yesterday in Minna, the Niger Sate capital, where he inaugurated Governor Umaru Bago’s massive agricultural programme.

He also laid a foundation for a terminal building at the airport, which was renamed after him.

The President spoke before governors Hyacinth Alia (Benue), Ademola Adeleke (Osun), Usman Ododo (Kogi), Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos) and Chair, Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq (Kwara), who were guests of Bago.

Following the withdrawal of petrol subsidy, the Federal Government initiated the payment of N35,000 monthly wage award to its workers for six months. This has been paid for five months.

Some states have been paying wage award ranging between N10,000 and N25,000, but majority of states are not paying.

This is in spite of the huge increase in the inflows to states from the federation account following the termination of petrol subsidy.

Whereas, the amount shared to the tiers of government averaged between N650 billion and N850 billion before the withdrawal of petrol subsidy, the average now is N1.1trillion.

Yesterday, the President said: “Let all the states start paying the wage awards.

“Whatever they are taking now plus the wage award would relieve the public.

“I am appealing to you states, start paying the wage award, let everyone start paying it. It will bring relief to the people.”

The President also spoke on some of his cardinal programmes, such as the student loan, which will be inaugurated on Thursday.

He said: “The student loan programme will commence.

“There will be unemployment benefits for our graduates.

“The social security programme for the elderly and vulnerable will commence.

“We are fine-tuning all these areas. We will relieve people of hunger.”

On the plans to address violent attacks and cattle rustling, Tinubu said: “Give me two to three weeks.

“You will be part of the inauguration of the livestock change in Nigeria.

“I know what it means as an economic sabotage for roaming cows to eat up the crops and vegetation of our lands.

“It can be painful but when we re-orientate the herders and make provision for cattle rearing, you will see the difference.

“The governors should provide the lands and as the President, I am committed to giving you a comprehensive programme that will solve this problem.”

He praised  Governor Bago for ensuring agricultural revolution for food security.

The President promised that the Federal Government would support him.

He added: “We have seen the level of commitment here from the state level.

“We have seen leadership and the success story of any leader is the ability to do what they ought to do at the time they ought to do it.

“You are doing the job, you are walking the talk and it is necessary for me to support you.

“Whatever support you need, you will get. We appreciate your efforts in the infrastructure development of the state.

“I guarantee you of federal support. We flag off the hope, you deliver the hope and you reassure Nigerians.”

The President stated that his administration was not concerned about making excuses or blaming past governments but was determined to reengineer the country by staying on the right path.

Bago said his administration was prepared to seize every opportunity to achieve growth and engender prosperity for the people of the state and Nigeria.

He pointed out that when he assumed office as governor, he met a comatose infrastructure which his government is working hard to correct.

He added that the 3,000 hectares of land is for the special agro-processing free zone out of which 1,000 hectares have been dedicated for greenhouses, 1,000 for dairy and meat processing, and 1,000 for agro-processing storage, aggregation, and other value chain development components.

Bago said: “To further buttress the lead role Niger State is playing in agriculture and contributing to the overall food security of Nigeria, we shall explore over three million of the 8.3 million hectares of arable land, large water bodies with a multitude of tributaries, 23 grazing reserves, and 94 forest reserves.

“Therefore, Niger State stands as a beacon of hope and promise in the realm of agriculture and our springboard to harvest our potentials in the Green Economy and associated gains.”

The governor assured President Tinubu that Niger State would serve as a champion for his food security agenda.

“Niger State intends to be the largest sub-national food exporter in Nigeria.

“To achieve this objective, we are determined to attract investments, private sector equity, and loans totalling N500 billion annually over the next seven years,” he told the President.

Sanwo-Olu stressed the importance of the nation feeding itself.

He said the partnership and agreement between Lagos, Niger, Benue, Kogi, Kwara and Osun states would go a long way to enhance food security in the country.

Sanwo-Olu added that Lagos was building the largest food warehouse where agricultural produce from the partner states would be stored. 

[TheNation]

The All Progressive Congress, Peoples Democratic Party, Labour Party and some other political parties on Monday, called for a thorough probe into the allegation made by the Chairman, Senate Committee on Population, Abdul Ningi (PDP, Bauchi Central), that N3.7tn was padded in the 2024 budget.

While the parties called for a probe into the allegation, some northern senators disowned the claims made by Ningi, saying the Bauchi State senator did not speak for them

The Bauchi senator, however, maintained his position on Monday that o N3.7tn could not be accounted for in the 2024 budget.

This came as Senator Jimoh Ibrahim called for the arrest of Ningi, on the grounds that the lawmaker was attempting to breach the peace at the National Assembly, among other concerns.

He, however, stated that he was misquoted, stressing that he never mentioned that President Bola Tinubu was running two budgets.

He further stated that he spoke in the interview as a lawmaker and not on behalf of the Northern Senators’ Forum.

Ningi had in an interview with the British Broadcasting Corporation (Hausa Service) on Saturday, alleged that the budget passed by the National Assembly for the 2024 fiscal year was N25tn, while the one being implemented by the Presidency was N28.7tn.

In the interview, he was quoted to have said, “For the first time in Nigerian history, today we are operating two different budgets. One budget was approved by the National Assembly and signed by President Bola Tinubu and the one was implemented by the Presidency.

“The one approved by us is N25tn while the one being operated by the Federal Government is N28.7tn

“Apparently, we discovered N3tn was inserted into the budgets for projects without locations. This is the highest budget padding that happened in Nigerian history under Senator Akpabio’s watch.”

The Bauchi senator was further quoted to have said, “We resolved as the peoples’ representatives to see President Tinubu on this issue, with facts and figures, to ask him if he is aware of this embarrassment or not, then from there we will take action.

“Let Nigerians be patient with us. This is a national issue; it affects all Nigerians irrespective of party, tribe or religion.”

The Senate through its spokesperson, Yemi Adaramodu (APC, Ekiti South) had in a chat with our correspondent refuted the claim on Saturday night, stating that there was no padding whatsoever in the budget.

But during a press conference on Monday, Ningi told journalists that he never said that the President was running two budgets, rather there was N3.7tn in the 2024 budget yet to be accounted for.

No two budgets

He said, “At no time did I say Bola Ahmed Tinubu is implementing two budgets. There was no time; at no time did I say Bola Tinubu was biased against the North. The Hausa version is there. At no time did I say Bola Ahmed Tinubu is implementing a N25tn budget.

“I said we have established beyond reasonable doubt that about N25tn so far has a nexus in the budget. That means that there is money, there is a project and then there is location. But we have yet to ascertain N3.7tn of that budget. We have established the N3tn of that budget; we have not established its location and the place.”

The Bauchi Central senator insisted that the powers to appropriate reside with the National Assembly and not the President, so it would be ignorant of him to say that the President was running a separate budget.

Ningi said, “What the President proposed to the Senate are proposals. What the Senate passes is appropriation. There is no way I will talk about N25tn and N28tn. The President has no powers for appropriation.

“It is even a misnomer for the executive to tell the National Assembly members, we are bringing a budget and don’t touch it; it is a misnomer.

“The constitution is clear on who has the power for appropriation. I couldn’t have said what they had suggested. There is no way a President will implement a budget that is not passed by the National assembly.”

He explained further, “But I said going forward, the budget evaluation is ongoing. And I said lastly, the intention of the northern senators as regards budgetary allocation was to meet the Senate President with our findings and subsequently meet President Bola Ahmed Tinubu with our findings.

“So if one is questioning our desire to relate with Bola Tinubu, how will I say that the findings of the Northern Senators Forum will go to the senate president and then to the President and Commander-in-Chief?”

Ningi consistently mentioned N3tn at the press conference, when asked to clarify the money with no projects. He said, “N28.7tn was passed as the 2024 budget, N25tn was allocated for, so the money without allocation is N3.7tn.”

Responding to reports that there were plans to suspend him, he noted that he was ready to bear the brunt of his statement even if the punishment that came with it was to get him suspended.

“I am not afraid of suspension by the Senate. I stand by what I said: N3.7tn is not traced to any project in the 2024 budget. I spoke for myself and not on behalf of the Northern Senator Forum. I never said the federal government is operating with two budgets. I only said N25tn was traced to projects and N3.7tn was not traced to any project,” he said.

Parties demand investigation 

But the LP, APC, PDP, New Nigeria People’s Party, and Peoples Redemption Party demanded an investigation into the alleged padding of the 2024 budget

The PDP’s National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, stated in an exclusive interview with The PUNCH on Monday that the allegation required attention.

“I would like to receive detailed information to be able to respond appropriately. Having said that, if it’s true, any such issues require attention and should be addressed at the necessary level,” he stated.

On his part, NNPP National Publicity Secretary, Yakubu Shendam, urged President Tinubu to investigate what was happening.

He said, “Mr President should be able to sit down properly because this is his government for which he was given a mandate to lead. If he really wants to stamp out corruption, he should be able to look inside, meaning the people he’s operating with, to find out what is happening about this. Because at the end of the day, it is his government that will be blamed.’’

The PRP Acting National Publicity Secretary, Muhammed Ishaq, stated that if true, it represented gross misconduct and a blatant disregard for the principles of transparency, accountability, and fiscal responsibility that the nation deserves, especially during these trying times.

On his part, the Chief Spokesman of the Labour Party Campaign Organisation, Yunusa Tanko, told The PUNCH that such an allegation was too weighty to be swept under the rug.

He said, “We support the probe. They have to give us an account of exactly how much is the budget and what the over N3trn is for. There should be a line-by-line examination of the budget as well as further confirmation of the figures as already given by each of the relevant ministries, agencies, and departments.

“It is at that particular point in time we will know and ascertain whether the budget was padded or not. That way, we will also have a clearer understanding of what that particular N3tn is for and who will come out to make the claim. Once that is done, we will know who to hold responsible. But as it is now, both the Federal Government and National Assembly have to come clean as regards the issue of the padded budget.”

The Deputy National Organising Secretary of the APC, Nze Chidi Duru, however, doubted that such a humongous amount could be inserted in such a budget without the knowledge of the two chambers, whose processes were known to be rigorous.

Duru nevertheless demanded that a thorough investigation be carried out to verify the authenticity of the allegation.

The former lawmaker also expressed conviction that if Ningi was found to be gaslighting or raising an unfounded claim, he was certain that necessary sanctions would be meted out on him.

“We are not in the Senate and there is no way one will know the internal workings of the 10th National Assembly. But we know once a budget is passed, there are ways by which it will be harmonised. One will find it strange, to say the least, that such an addition outside of what has been agreed intra-chambers in a bid to have a harmonised budget, can be unilaterally inflated by one person or chamber. It will be one of the eight wonders of the world for them to consider that.

“But assuming without conceding that it was unimaginably possible, that calls for the highest level of investigation. However, I think it is too difficult to believe such a thing can happen in a chamber that is regulated and follows due process in passing the budget.’’

Senators disown Ningi

Senators under the Northern Senators Forum dismissed the claims made by Ningi.

In a statement signed by a cross-section of lawmakers across different Northern zones, they said they were a part of the passing of the budget and would not discredit their collective effort.

The lawmakers said, “We, the undersigned, on behalf of the Senators from the 19 Northern States and the FCT, under the aegis of Northern Senators Forum, hereby state that Senator Ahmed Abdul Ningi of the Peoples Democratic Party, Bauchi Central Senatorial District, who also happens to be the Chairman of our forum, was on his own in the claims he made on the BBC Hausa Service on the 2024 budget.

“As such, the view he expressed was his personal opinion, sentiment and unfortunately skewed, incorrect and misleading.

“There was never a time where we held a meeting and mandated Senator Ningi to address the press on the said matter.”

They added, “The budget was presented to the National Assembly during a joint session of the two chambers – Senate and House of Representatives – by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on November 29, 2023, in line with the requirement of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“Both chambers of the National Assembly diligently and meticulously debated, processed, and passed the proposal of the President. And satisfied with it, the President assented to it.

“It is clear that Mr President presented a budget of N27.5tn to the National Assembly and the assembly passed a budget of N28.7tn based on the need to make increases or decreases in the appropriations of the various MDAs, which is in tandem with the legislative powers of the National Assembly in order to address critical projects and services across various sectors.

“Therefore, the statement made by Senator Ningi that the 2024 budget presented to the National Assembly by Mr President was the sum of N25tn was not correct and that should not be taken as the position of the Northern Senators Forum.”

The Northern Senators stressed further, “To the best of our knowledge there was no budget padding, whatsoever that was done to the 2024 budget. The assertion by Senator Ningi that certain things were done to the bill is his personal opinion. It is not the view of the generality of us, the Northern Senators.’’

Some of the senators who signed the statement include Senator Jibrin Isah (APC, Kogi East), Diket Plang (APC, Plateau Central), Senator Saliu Mustapha (APC, Kwara Central) Senator Lawal Adamu Usman (APC, Kaduna Central), Senator Abdulaziz Yar’ Adua (APC, Katsina Central), Senator Aminu Abass (PDP, Adamawa Central) Senator Ibrahim Bomai (APC, Yobe South).

Reps minority

Meanwhile, the minority caucus of the House of Representatives has constituted a study group to investigate claims by Senator Abdul Ningi that the 2024 budget was inflated with as much as N3.7tn with no projects tied to the huge amount.

Speaking with one of our correspondents on Monday, Minority Leader of the House, Kingsley Chinda described Ningi’s allegations as a “very issue.”

He said, “We have commissioned a study to ascertain the veracity of the claim before we take a position on the same. It is a serious issue if confirmed to be true.”

The position of the minority caucus is in line with calls by some civil society organisations who have called for a probe into the allegations made by the Bauchi federal lawmaker.

Also, some opposition lawmakers in the House of Representatives called for an investigation into the allegation made by Ningi.

Speaking with The PUNCH, a member of the PDP representing Obokun/Oriade Federal Constituency, Osun State, Mr Oluwole Oke, urged Nigerians to be patient, noting that having already passed a motion for the review of the 2024 budget, the House would unravel the truth or otherwise of Ningi’s claims.

He said, “The 2024 budget as passed by the National Assembly is itself, a work in progress in view of the current realities but do not forget that the House in plenary last week, passed a motion to review the 2024 budget.

“This review will reveal whether the allegations reportedly made by Senator Ningi are true or not. However, the budget we passed on the floor of the House is not N25trn but N28.7trn.”

Similarly, the Deputy Chairman, the House Committee on Justice and member representing Ezeagu/Udi Federal Constituency, Enugu State, Sunday Umeha, stated that opposition members of the House would support a probe into Ningi’s allegations if a case of budget padding was established.

Umeha, a member of the Labour Party said, “So far, my investigation of the 2024 budget has not revealed the allegations made by Senator Ningi, but if it is established that indeed there was a case of budget padding, we will definitely call for a probe. I don’t think it is right to speak on speculation because, at the moment, it is an allegation that has not been proven.”

Asked about his position on the matter, a PDP chieftain and Chairman, Public Accounts Committee, Bamidele Salam, simply said, “Only the Minority Leader can speak on behalf of the caucus.”

In a related development, the lawmaker representing Ondo South, Jimoh Ibrahim (APC), has said he will prosecute his colleague for misinforming the public and lying against the Senate.

He said, “What Ningi said is very embarrassing. We are the 10th Senate and will not just fold our hands. The Senate approved only one appropriation for 2024. We never approved two. The presidency of Nigeria cannot operate with two budgets.

“Senator Ningi made this false information and it’s unacceptable. It is causing uncomfortable pains to our integrity; integrity of children and family as people read it all over the world and are raising questions.”

He noted that he had personally taken it upon himself to request the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, to as a matter of urgency charge Ningi for criminal misinformation and conduct likely to cause a breach of peace.

He said, “If the Senate will not move to do that in the next seven days, I will write a letter, and I have started doing that to the IGP to investigate the circumstances leading to approval of two appropriations and if the IGP will not do it, I will ask for the order of mandamus to compel a public officer to do that.”

“Senator Ningi must be charged to court. The charges must be preferred by the criminal justice department for the governments and after thorough investigation.’’

[Punch]

The Presidency has fingered some sub-regional forces for the escalating incidents of kidnapping of students and other security glitches in Nigeria.

Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, alleged that some sub-regional forces were “actively conspiring” against the stability of the country during an interview on TVC news late Sunday.

He, however, assured that the Federal Government is “responding” to the conspiracy of these sub-regional forces.

Recall that last Thursday, bandits abducted no fewer than 287 pupils/students from a primary and secondary school at Kuriga, a community in Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State.
Days later, bandits also abducted some Tsangaya students at Gidan Bakuso in Gada LGA of Sokoto State. Tsangaya is a school that combines Islamic and Western education.

Speaking on the spate of kidnappings in the country, Ngelale said President Bola Tinubu is working hard to secure all parts of the country, noting that the US government had promised to provide assistance for the release of the abducted Kaduna school children.

The Presidency spoke as the Pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, urged President Tinubu to go after sponsors of terror.

Also, experts against financial crimes drawn from Anglophone member states of the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, and the Intergovernmental Action Group against Money Laundering in West Africa, GIABA, yesterday, called for concerted efforts against terrorism financing and money laundering.

Meanwhile, on a day bandits demanded N40trillion ransom for 16 abducted Kaduna residents, one of the kidnapped students in Kuriga, Mustapha Abubakar, who escaped, narrated his ordeal in the hands of their captors, saying he stealthily hid in a shrub like a snake and escaped, while they were being moved by the bandits.

Sub-regional forces conspiring against Nigeria’s stability

Speaking on the conspiracy against Nigeria, Ngelale said: “Across the North, we understand that some of the sub-regional geographical forces are actively conspiring against the stability of the Nigerian nation. We are responding to it. We are doing it in a way that is concerted with our neighbours.

“It is worth noting that the United States government has also pledged its assistance to ensure that there is a full return of all school children, who were kidnapped recently in Kaduna.

“We will continue to intensify our collaboration not only within the region but internationally to make sure that some of the regional actors that are conspiring against our nation are brought to justice and ultimately silenced for the future of our country.”

Go after sponsors of terror, Afenifere tells Tinubu

Reacting to the recent kidnapping of school children in Kaduna and Sokoto states, Afenifere, in a statement by its Publicity Secretary and Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Mogaji Gboyega Adejumo and Prince Justice Faloye, asked the President not to leave room for excuses.

Lamenting the rising wave of insecurity, Afenifere said: “The recrudescence of this human tragedy is as clear to the Afenifere as the daylight is distinct from the eventide.

“Since democracy took off, this pattern remains constant, ever present; create chaos, destabilize the government, embarrass the President, finally, and disgrace the President out of office.

‘’No president since 1999 has escaped this scourge, coming with the political Sharia against Obasanjo, the Niger Delta violent political agitation of Obasanjo and Yar’Adua and cleverly solved by the duo; the Boko Haram religion-later-turned-political instrument to embarrass a sitting Southern Christian president as it was with Jonathan, who was told to convert to Islam, followed by the kidnapping extraordinaire of the Chibok girls’ type, the final straw that shocked Jonathan out of office.

“The Abikus, coming once a regime and for repeated times from as far back as the Zango-Kataf crisis, come with land-grabbing, human displacement and subjugation of a people over another, often planned, aided, lauded and prompted by those self-styled as owners of Nigeria.

“They were terrorists; Buhari curiously preferred to call them bandits. Their acts as aggressors, killing farmers, destroying their produce, and stealing indigenous peoples’ lands, clearly marked them as terrorists. “Buhari’s government would rather term these acts as farmers/herders clashes. The most disturbing expository, elucidatory, explicative reality about the whole saga is that these terrorists are known to the government.

“Mr President, you have to be brutally reminded of these recrudescences in history, a disease constant, an Abiku, real, clear and present.

“On Christmas Eve in 2023, there was a massacre on the Plateau. Chief Ayo Adebanjo, leader of Afenifere, led other leaders that make up the four zones from the South-West, South-East, South-South and the Middle-Belt on a condolence visit to the governor and the Gbom Gwom Jos and to the entire people on the Plateau. About 300 humans were slaughtered like rams.

“A hero makes history, is not afraid, and does not turn a blind eye. Mr President, arrest these perpetrators now, no excuses, Mr President…

“It is down to you, Mr President if you would rather go the way of your predecessors, by looking the other way and letting innocent blood flow, be disgraced and set for an early exit or find the strength, the will and the courage to face the sponsors of terror, with the resolve to eradicating this Abiku scourge from ever again taking root anywhere in our land.

“Through your policies, fiscal and monetary, the local currency has suffered the worst trajectory of devaluation of 35% in just your very first nine months in office, the very first massive devastation in the history of this country.

‘’The naira plunged to its lowest point on record in official trading as a shortage of US dollars persisted, despite promises by the government to boost supply.

“Go after the sponsors of terror. Restructure this country. Expedite action towards creation of state police. Return the country to a parliamentary system of government. Bring back Regionalism. And watch our countrymen and our hopeless children begin to live again in dignity, right before your very eyes.”

ECOWAS experts move against terror financing, money laundering

Speaking at the opening of a two-day Training of Trainers, ToT, on Countering the Financing of Terrorism, CFT, for Anglophone GIABA member states at the National Institute for Security Studies, NISS, in Abuja, Director-General of GIABA, Edwin W. Harris Jr., said money laundering and the financing of terrorism continue to adversely impact the socio-economic development, peace, and security of member states and beyond.

He said in the last decade, the ECOWAS community had experienced an increasing level of terrorism, radicalisation, and violent extremism at an alarming rate.

“The GIABA Community shares this global concern regarding the current situation in the Central Sahel area and North-Eastern Nigeria and will continue to provide the necessary support to mitigate the money laundering and terrorist risks identified in line with the ECOWAS Priority Agenda,” he said

According to him, GIABA’s typology reports revealed the rapid evolution in the sources, methods, and techniques of terrorist financing, taking advantage of loopholes in legislation (such as the incompleteness of the terrorist financing criminalization regime), and the opportunities offered by digital finance and the power of cybernetic tools.

He said: “Even though the banking sector in most of our countries have taken steps to implement the UN sanctions lists (UNSC Resolution 1267) in terms of targeted financial sanctions linked to TF, there is still a vast majority of the private sector (particularly the DNFBP sector, Electronic Money Issuers, microfinances, Money and Value Transfer Services, insurance companies etc) that are struggling to align themselves.

“As for national sanctions lists, they remain severely handicapped by lack of operationality of national designation mechanisms under UNSC Resolution 1373.

“GIABA’s approach to supporting countries in their fight against the financing of terrorism is to bring their prevention and enforcement systems in line with international standards, particularly those of the Financial Action Task Force, FATF.

“In practice, this means providing countries with appropriate legal and institutional frameworks and building their capacity to implement these frameworks effectively. Most recently, in November 2023, GIABA organized a regional stakeholders’ workshop for operational agencies to engage them on the outcomes of our various typology reports for future adaptations and their responses to emerging threats.

“Counterterrorism can no longer be the exclusive domain of the military services. GIABA and FATF’s studies have rightly revealed that terrorists are increasingly using legitimate commercial enterprises to raise funds, as well as non-profit organizations, the abusive exploitation of extractive and mining resources, donations, crowdfunding, and above all, the proceeds of criminal activities such as kidnapping for ransom, extortion, illicit drug trafficking, illicit trade in small arms and light weapons, trafficking in arts and antics, etc. Terrorists also manage to move these collected funds through front companies, money or value couriers, using payment methods such as prepaid cards, mobile banking, or virtual assets.”
Terrorist financing networks must be disrupted – DSS

Also speaking, Director General, Department of State Services, DSS, Yusuf Magaji Bichi, who was represented by the Director of Training and Staff Development, Mrs Bolatito Sure-Olufe, said while military and intelligence efforts had achieved notable successes in disrupting terrorist operations, terrorist financing networks must be disrupted.

According to the D-G, depriving these groups of the funds that fuel their activities is crucial to undermining their capabilities and ultimately defeating them.

“Terrorist organizations rely heavily on a steady flow of funds to sustain their operations, including recruitment, training, procurement of weapons and explosives, and execution of attacks.

“By targeting their financial lifelines, we can strike at the very heart of these groups, limiting their reach and hampering their ability to carry out acts of violence.

“Moreover, the financial trail left by terrorist financing activities provides invaluable intelligence that can help uncover the structure, connections, and intentions of these networks, enabling more targeted and effective interventions.

“By strengthening our ability to follow the money trail, we can deprive these groups of the resources they need to carry out their heinous acts, ultimately contributing to a more secure and peaceful world for all.”

Why we need urgent actions – Nuhu

On his part, Nigeria’s Ambassador to ECOWAS, Amb. MS Nuhu, noted that the challenges posed by terrorism in the Sahel region, as well as the movement of terrorist groups towards coastal areas, underscore the urgency of actions.

He said in light of these challenges, ECOWAS in 2018, initiated the development of a regional framework for counter-terrorism.

“It is crucial to highlight that component six of the ECOWAS Regional Action Plan is dedicated to countering the financing of terrorism within the region.

‘’This underscores the critical importance of addressing the issue of terrorist financing, which serves as a significant enabler for terrorist activities.

Need for national, regional collaboration

Director/CEO of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, NFIU, who is also the National Correspondent of GIABA, Hafsat Bakari, said blocking the channels, routes and techniques used to move these funds within ECOWAS nations and across their borders required cooperation not just at a national level but also at a regional level.

According to her, this can only be achieved through a proper understanding and application of the role of the military, intelligence services, law enforcement agencies, prosecutors and the judiciary in this collective endeavour.

She said one of the strategic objectives of the National Counter-Terrorism Financing Strategy is enhancing the capabilities of Nigeria’s front-line military, intelligence, law enforcement, and prosecutorial authorities.

I hid in a shrub like a snake to escape from abductors – Kuriga student

Abubakar was among nearly 280 school children kidnapped at Kuriga but he and 27 others were able to return to their respective families.

The kidnapped children, both male and female, were between the ages of five and 18.

Speaking in an interview with the BBC Hausa monitored in Kaduna, yesterday, Mustapha Abubakar explained that the bandits moved the children like a herd of cows.

He said: “We trekked in the bush, sometimes we crawled. We were so thirsty, that some of the girls were becoming weak and falling due to tiredness. The bandits were lifting them and putting some of them on motorcycles.

“We later reached a big river where we drank water and continued trekking. There was a plane that hovered above us. That was when the bandits ordered us to remove one of our clothes and lie down.

“Even the bandits were exhausted. They had no food and were eating leaves and wild fruits. They gave us nothing to eat.

“While we were moving, I noticed a shrub, which was brown like my trousers. I hid inside and crawled like a snake. I was there until it was completely silent before I came out and headed to the bush.

“I later met an old man, who was having difficulty walking, I asked him about the pathway to the main road or any nearby place so that I could get water to drink.

“I had a marathon race, I was exhausted but I pushed on as evening time was approaching. I later arrived at Gayan, a community near us and that was how I eventually escaped.”

Bandits ‘demand’ N40trn as ransom for 16 abducted Kaduna residents
Meanwhile, bandits, in an unprecedented move, have reportedly demanded N40 trillion as ransom to release 16 residents abducted from Gonin Gora area of Kaduna.

Speaking with TheCable, yesterday, John Yusuf, a community leader, said the bandits contacted family members of the victims and also demanded 11 Hilux vans and 150 motorcycles.
This is the first time bandits would make such a huge demand since abduction for ransom started in Nigeria.

After the attack, residents of the area, on February 29, blocked the Kaduna-Abuja highway for several hours to protest against the killing and abduction.

Yusuf said the bandits attacked the community twice within a week. “The bandits have contacted us. They are demanding N40 trillion, 11 Hilux vans and 150 motorcycles for the release of 16 people they are holding captive.

“Where are we going to get this kind of money? Even if we sell the entire community, we cannot raise N40 trillion. Even Nigeria as a country has never made a budget of N40 trillion.

“The abductions happened twice within a four-day interval. During the first attack, three people were kidnapped, while in the second attack, 13 people were abducted, bringing the total number of people being held captive to 16,” he said disclosing that the communities in Birnin Gwari were surrounded by bushes serving as hideouts for the bandits.”

While noting that the establishment of a military base would tackle the criminal operations in the area, he said: “We are pleading with the government to come to our aid by establishing a military base behind our community where the bandits take advantage of the bushes to invade our community.

“From our community down to Birnin Gwari, which is over 150 kilometres, is a stretch of bush. We also have another stretch of bushes from Gonin Gora down to Niger State. “

Vanguard News Nigeria

Against the run of play, Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago of Niger State ruffled feathers with his speech at the 2023 annual Leadership Newspaper Conference and Awards held in Abuja last week. This speech was an instant hit online and trended at different times on both Instagram and X (Twitter). Governor Bago’s arguments in his speech can be summarised in three ways: First, as a nation, Nigeria cannot achieve economic freedom and eradicate poverty without being productive, especially in agriculture, where we have a comparative advantage.

Second, it is indefensible for a nation with an estimated arable land of 40 million hectares and a reasonable youth population to accept grain donation in whatever guise from war-torn Ukraine; and third, because of natural and human endowment, Nigeria can feed the people and export the excess to other countries. There is nothing Governor Bago said that we do not already know, but as a nation, we have egotistically refused to accept these truths or act on them. These arguments are significant because they were made by a serving Nigerian governor, a member of the powerful club that has enjoyed the monthly sharing arrangement called the Federation Account Allocation Committee( FAAC).

Governor Bago ended his speech by throwing a challenge against the federal government’s promise to deploy and distribute 42,000MT of grains from the strategic reserve, that the Niger State Government will deliver and distribute 100,000MT of grain by June 2025. Make no mistake about it, Governor Bago was not just exercising his bragging right; he was marketing his strategic plan to rescue Niger state from the sharing mentality, economic doldrums, poverty, unemployment, and criminality. A quick review of what the Niger state government is doing to accomplish the vision of food sufficiency might give us a better perspective. Niger state, over the next year, plans to cultivate one million hectares of farmland, inclusive of a 50,000 hectares fully irrigated food production hub. Over 500 large-capacity tractors, 1000 pieces of irrigation and agricultural equipment, 2000 power tillers for smallholder farmers, 2000 petrol water pumps, 3000 solar pumps, and 5000 tube wells to support dry season farming have been delivered. Besides, the government has acquired about 100,000 bags of fertilisers, plus herbicides, pesticides, and fungicides have also been obtained. Governor Bago’s commitment to this agricultural revolution in Niger state is self-evident and realistic.

Governor Bago’s challenge in his speech and what he is doing in Niger state is founded on solid historical precedence and economic reasoning. Before we discovered crude oil in commercial quantity and started depending on it as a mono-product, which made us lazy in thinking, diminished the value of hard work, and elevated monthly sharing of FAAC to a religion of sorts, sub-national governments (regional governments) relied solely on agriculture to develop the regions. Some of the iconic infrastructure projects were executed with money realised from groundnut, cocoa and palm oil trade. The choice of agriculture as an engine of economic growth was because of its multiplier effect. It has an excellent capacity to create employment and wealth. Those reasons are still valid today. The neglect of agriculture and the food production supply chain led Nigeria into many of the economic malaise we are suffering today – from food insecurity, unemployment, criminality and poverty to a shortage of foreign exchange. Some countries that were our contemporaries developed their food production and supply, which became the mainstay of their economy.

Governor Bago’s speech represents a significant shift in thinking in recent times, giving some hope. Some state governments have started working towards creating a clear vision of increased productivity, providing an enabling environment for such productivity, and building on this productivity to improve their internal revenue generation. These governors are using food security in Nigeria as fuel to engage in food production in a way that has not been done in Nigeria for a long time. They understand that the question of food security in Nigeria starts with food production, then food processing, food distribution and food commercialisation, both locally and abroad. But first and foremost, ramping up food production is the first step in tackling the food insecurity conundrum. It is a matter of how much food Nigeria produces. It is determined by what individual states bring to the table. In that regard, the message of self-reliance from the Niger governor is on point. Production of food for local consumption and export is vital for Nigeria’s economy because it solves two significant problems that have recently thrown Nigeria’s economy into a wild spine – food inflation and scarcity of foreign exchange.

Increasing our production capacity and, by extension, enhancing our internally generated revenue is imperative. States waiting to go to Abuja to pick up peanuts monthly is not sustainable. States, by the design of the 1999 constitution, ought to be growth centres – actively participating in creating the institutional framework, structures, and environment to make this possible. However, only a few states have taken advantage of this vantage position to lift their people out of poverty. Most states function as salary payment centres. This must change if any meaningful development strides will take place in Nigeria.

The era of states becoming a leech on the centre, milking the Nigerian state dry, is over. Every state must look inward and decide the best path to economic progress. Each state must have the mentality that if the tap of crude oil is switched off today, how will it become sustainable? This calls for chief executive officers of the states (governors) to wear their thinking caps now, holistically review their productive comparative advantages, develop an audacious strategic plan, and execute such to achieve a clear vision for the state. Anything less than this is not acceptable to Nigerians.

The idea that consistent productivity at the sub-national level is one critical ingredient among many ingredients that will get us out of the economic mess we found ourselves in is more germane today than ever. The significance of this statement is that state governments are responsible for figuring out the best strategy to make their states viable and contribute to wealth creation and employment generation. Each state must tap into their comparative and competitive advantage to contribute to the national food basket.

A strategy for economic viability will require dealing with internal security issues coupled with medium- and long-term planning. The most crucial short-term action critical to agricultural production presently is to provide security and a safe environment for such economic activities to occur. The states must make farming safe and allow farmers to return to their farms without fear of attacks from bandits or terrorists. Insecurity is a great headwind against agricultural productivity.

Agro-industrialisation is crucial in massive food production and increases local revenue and foreign exchange generation. We are embracing new agro-technology and jettisoning old agricultural practices that have provided suboptimal productivity over the years. This is also a time to bring real entrepreneurs into the food production and processing value chain. State governments should leverage various public-private partnership investments available to bring in seasoned investors and ‘agropreneurs’ to work together to put in place modern mechanised agricultural facilities for the mass production and processing of food. Recently, I had a long discussion with the governments of Edo, Jigawa, Nasarawa and Akwa Ibom State who are leading in this new PPP arrangement and are collaborating heavily with the private sector (both local and foreign) to produce food for all and revenue to the state and our economy. I could feel a new mindset away from the “sharing mentality”.

Still on agro-industrialisation, agricultural exports accounted for about 90% of Nigeria’s foreign exchange earnings in 1960. In quarter one of 2023, three products alone, Cocoa seed, sesame, and cashew seed, even without maximising our potential, gave the country N297 billion. In 2022, Malaysia’s gross domestic product from palm oil export was estimated to be 36 billion Malaysian ringgit (approximately $8 billion).

Governor Bago has thrown an open challenge to the federal government and his fellow state governors. There is a need for constructive engagement and healthy competition around subnational food productivity. Most importantly, the food imperative allows some states to improve their domestic revenue situation. Agricultural productivity has become an economic lifeline for the states, especially in the north. Kofi Annan argued that “Food security is not only a moral issue but also a strategic one: without food, people have only three options – they riot, they emigrate, or they die. None of these are acceptable options”.

The fight against poverty, unemployment, hunger and malnutrition is one of the most significant challenges of our time, and it’s a challenge that can be won in Nigeria. Nigeria can work towards achieving food security by applying the essential spirit of Bago’s challenge. Quality and affordable food is the fundamental to Nigeria’s development. We must take care of the basics before travelling to the moon. Nigeria’s development hinges on this!