On Tuesday, June 27, former Super Eagles player Ogenyi Onazi hosted Victor Osimhen and Asiwaju Lerry.

Super Eagles veteran Ogenyi Onazi was seen hosting Napoli striker Victor Osimhen and media personality Asiwaju Lerry in his villa in Lagos in a viral video that has surfaced on social media.

Osimhen came to Nigeria to spend his vacation after a fantastic season in Serie A in which Napoli won the Scudetto for the first time in 33 years.

After representing the Green and White over the international break, the 24-year-old Napoli target man is now back in his home country.

Osimhen scored twice as the Super Eagles defeated Sierra Leone 3-2 on the road to earn a spot in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Ivory Coast.

Osimhen came to Nigeria to spend his vacation after a fantastic season in Serie A in which Napoli won the Scudetto for the first time in 33 years.

Osimhen also went to his childhood home in Olusosun and the elementary school he attended, where he received a massive reception.

In a video on the official Twitter page of Asiwaju Lerry, Osimhen was seen praising the former Lazio player for the support he has been giving him ever since his move to the Italian Serie A.

In the video, Osimhen said, “I am here to thank you for all you have been doing for me and I pray that God Almighty will bless you and you will never fall.

“Many don’t know what you have been doing, but me that you are doing it for knows.”

In the photos, Osimhen is seen playing the Whot card game with Onazi.

Onazi also thanked Osimhen for his visit, along with photos on his official social media platform that said, “It was really great to have you at my place last night, so much fun..

“Oboy na dis picture make me know say I tall.??❤️??@victorosimhen9.” he wrote

Osimhen took to his official Instagram account to post photos of his meeting with Onazi.

The Alaba Amalgamated Council has called on the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, to probe the demolition exercise carried out by the Lagos State Building Control Agency at Alaba International Market, Ojo Local Government Area of the state.

A statement signed by the council, and made available to The PUNCH on Tuesday, revealed that over 30 properties worth billions of naira were demolished.

President-General of Alaba Amalgamated Council of Sectional Heads, Mr Geofrey Mbonu, revealed that some buildings that were not initially marked and with no sign of defects were demolished during the exercise.

He narrated that prior to the demolition, there was no notice given to them by the agency.

He said, “We were not given time to even evacuate our goods. On Friday, June 16, 2023, officials of the LASBCA and armed policemen were seen in the market and on Sunday, traders’ properties were brought down.

“We the leaders of Alaba International Amalgamated Association want to show our displeasure in the way and manner this exercise was carried out.

“The leaders of the market were never carried along neither were the property owners given enough time to evacuate their goods and this led to the unmitigated loss of wares and properties. The demolition has brought hardship and loss of livelihood.

“We call on the Executive Governor of Lagos State, His Excellency, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, to come and inspect what is going on in the Alaba International Market.”

The President, Alaba International Market Association, Electronics Section, Mr Camillus Amajuoyi, said the demolition took place suddenly and the extent of damage was enormous.

Amajuoyi said they had written several petitions to the Lagos State Government on the exploitative activities of miscreants in the market, adding that the state government did not pay attention to their needs.

Owerri the capital of Imo state, which prides itself as the “Heartland of the South East” of Nigeria, was taken up by the cream of the Nigerian media from Thursday, June 15 to Saturday, June 17, 2023. It was the second time in eight months that the topmost professional deck of the media will be guests of the state. Whereas the November 2022 event was the traditional annual converge of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, (NGE), the more recent event was the biennial convention of the body. It holds every two years to produce new leadership for the guild.

This year’s edition was simultaneously deployed for the reappraisal of issues critical to popular governance. The event, therefore, had as its theme ‘Post 2023 Election: Promoting Professionalism for Enhancement of Democracy and Good Governance’. Hope Uzodinma, governor of the state, was the chief host.

Aircraft after airplane landed on Thursday, November 15, 2023, at the Sam Mbakwe Airport, located in Umuene Obiangwu in the Ngor-Okpala local government area of the state. They mostly conveyed enthusiastic delegates to the programme from across the country. The quality, diversity and mammoth attendance at the event belied the dreadful profiling of Imo state in particular, and the southeast. The exploits of criminal perverts masquerading as unknown gunmen and militias of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra, (IPOB), have collaborated to paint the southeast of the country black in national consciousness.

That very critical segment of the country has unwittingly been dubbed the axis of bone-chilling killings, needless bloodletting, and even barbaric savagery. The ride from the airport into the belly of Owerri cosmopolis was pretty smooth and uneventful. I engaged my driver in a conversation about developments in the state. The airport is a whistling ride of just about 20 minutes to Owerri and I grilled him about why that short distance cost N15,000. He attributed it to the recent removal of fuel subsidy by the federal government.

I missed the last conference of the guild in that city, which doesn’t translate to my being a stranger to Owerri and indeed Imo state. I underwent the mandatory one-year National Youth Service Corps in the city between 1985 and 1986. The Owerri airport was still in gestation within the period and the singular occasion I accessed the city by air was through the Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa. I concluded my trip by riding in an airport cabby which took me through Obinze which hosts the 32 Field Artillery Brigade, into Owerri. My one-year stint in Imo state, left me with sweet-savouring experiences and perfumed memories, as different from worrying contemporary realities. Apart from demystifying stereotypes about subsisting post-civil war cannibalism and similar stories in our time, I met some of my best friends to date, from that NYSC year. I was quite adventurous too, never missing opportunities to visit Oguta and board the ferry across to Awomama, inhaling the soothing breeze of the lake.

Owerri had moulted considerably as I would find out on this trip, away from what it was almost 40 years ago. I had to rely on my mental compass to identify sections of the Imo state capital with which I was hitherto very familiar. We had our four-week pre-primary assignment orientation at Alvan Ikoku College of Education on Amakohia Road. I was subsequently deployed to teach “Use of English” at the College of Technology, Nekede. Both institutions have been taken over by the federal government and summarily rechristened. I lived at Ikenegbu Layout, MCC Road, something of a highbrow section of the fledgling city and frequented the Iwuanyanwu Stadium being a soccer aficionado. With friends, notably Tony Olofu, now an assistant inspector-general, (AIG), I watched the games of the foremost football club in the state at the time, Iwuanyanwu Nationale.

That an election was in the air was evident as you stepped into the delegates’ accreditation venue of the event at the host facility, Rockview Hotel, Owerri. Back in time, the hotel used to be known as Modotels, a part of a hospitality chain reportedly owned by Nigeria’s Second Republic Vice President, Alex Ekwueme, before the change of ownership and its concomitant change of name. Delegates were handed flyers marketing aspirants to the various offices, even as contenders made last-ditch efforts to appeal to the convictions of prospective voters. It was instructive that the polls into leadership positions in the Guild of Editors were being taken so seriously.

Immediate past president of the guild, Mustapha Isah welcomed delegates to the convention. He noted that Imo state has made history by becoming the first state to host the annual conference and the biennial convention within months of each other. He expressed the collective gratitude of the guild to Governor Hope Uzodinma who he noted is an authentic friend of the body. Justifying the theme of the convention, Isah noted that it was auspicious to appraise the performance of the media during the recent general elections. It is equally important, he said, for the media to gird its loins to hold public officers to account, vis-a-vis their electoral pledges and promises during the electioneering.

Isah highlighted the myriad of tempests plaguing the media within the context of an underperforming economy. His words: “This convention is holding at a time the media in Nigeria is facing enormous challenges. The cost of newsprint and broadcast equipment is prohibitive. The economy is underperforming making it impossible for media organisations to generate enough revenue from adverts and sales. I don’t even want to delve into the challenge posed by online media”. Isah alluded to federal government bailouts to some sectors of the economy which has not been extended to the media. He submitted that the media as a realm empowered to serve as a watchdog to the establishment cannot be the best of allies with the state. He enjoined the press to push back attempts at its asphyxiation and continue to perform its assigned responsibilities.

Host Governor Uzodinma expressed the gratitude of the state to a preeminent body like the Nigerian Guild of Editors for preferring Imo state to other options, by scheduling two major events back to back, in Imo state. Owerri, he noted is the “hospitality capital of the southeast”. He commended the guild for courageously choosing a subject of common interest to all Nigerians such as the interrogation of reportage of the last elections. Said Uzodinma: “I’m impressed that you have chosen this path of self-examination which I consider germane in our collective bid to enhance good governance and strengthen our democracy”. According to Uzodinma, “while the media has the responsibility of holding public officers to account, they should, in addition, encourage government through constructive criticism and well-intentioned suggestions on how things could be done differently to achieve better results”.

Uzodinma used the opportunity to showcase the successes of his administration. A booklet titled ‘Imo State Is Looking Up In All Sectors’ which contained his address, highlights the high points of his administration. These include prompt payment of salaries and pensions, and the prosecution of a “prosperity agenda encapsulated in a three-dimensional pursuit of reconstruction, rehabilitation and recovery” of the state”. He alluded to the massive dualisation of roads in the state capital and across the three senatorial zones. Uzodinma also alluded to the ongoing dredging of the Oguta Lake-Orashi River-Degema-Atlantic Ocean mega project, which includes a river port. He noted that upon completion, the project will re-energise the economy of the southeast.

It was dark when the day’s itinerary wound down. It was too late to begin to attempt a nighttime quest for our street-side ugba, nkwobi, okporoko and angharan joints of old. A feast of isi-ewu typically required “Bretton Woods stakeholder’s collaboration” between interested parties to fund, so it was an occasional indulgence. My accommodation was reserved at the Immaculate Hotel on Owerri-Port Harcourt Road. I could still remember the direction of Orlu Road which now spots an impressive shopping centre, Market Square, where I picked up some analgesics. To our left on a slight elevation as we drove towards the hotel, was a monument from Nigeria’s civil war past, called Control Post those fiesty years. The name has stuck ever since even as the landmark is now host to Assumpta Cathedral, Owerri, a huge Catholic facility. “Oga’m, you be ama’ala o, di way you still sabi this places,” my driver smiled, saluting my geographical currency.

The Owerri convention was a veritable forum for a reunion amongst several generations and tendencies in the profession. An estimated 400 financial members of the guild attended the Owerri convention. Elder statesmen at the event included Olusegun Osoba, FNGE, CON, former managing director of the Daily Times of Nigeria and two-time governor of Ogun state, who was “Father of the Day”. Onyema Ugochukwu, FNGE, CON, a former executive director of the same organisation and pioneer chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission, (NDDC), equally graced the event.

Canice Nwachukwu and Akarachi Amadi, both members of the House of Representatives, honoured the convention. Tunde Awobiyi, Eluem Emeka-Izeze; Atah Manyan of Ossomala, Anambra State, Igwe Victor Awaogu; Baba Dantiye, mni; John Araka; Lanre Idowu; John Ndukauba; Dupe Ajayi-Gbadebo; Isaac Ighure; Gbenga Adefaye; James Akpandem; Taiwo Obe; Eniola Bello; Bayo Onanuga; Gbemiga Ogunleye; Hakeem Bello, all fellows of the guild, were present. There were also Funke Egbemode, (former president of the guild and immediate past commissioner in Osun state); Gbenga Oni-Olusola; Raheem Adedoyin, Martins Oloja; Tunde Rahman, Lanre Ogundipe, Kenneth Ugbechie and Lanre Arogundade. Steve Omanufeme, Gbenga Onayiga, Gbenga Adesina, Uju Ejeye, Jide Ajani, Angela Agoawike, Funke Atohengbe, Steve Nwosu, Gbenga Aruleba, Yemisi Fadairo, Eddy Odivwri, Soni Daniel, Tony Iyare, Kelly Elisha, equally attended the Owerri converge.

Eze Anaba, Editor of the Vanguard daily newspaper, emerged as the new president of the guild. Husseina Bangshika of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, (FRCN), was returned as deputy president while Sheddy Ozoene was elected vice president, (east); Kabir Alabi Garba, vice president (west) and Umoru Ibrahim became vice president (north). Iyobosa Uwugiaren was re-elected general secretary; Gabriel Akinadewo as assistant secretary; Charles Kalu, Social/Publicity Secretary and Steve Nwosu is the treasurer. The standing committee members are Dom Isute (East); Chinedu Egere, Onuoha Ukeh, Rose Moses and Wole Sogunle, all members of the standing committee for the west. Paulyn Ugbodaga and Mohammed Sanusi emerged as members of the standing committee for the north. The newly emplaced Eze Anaba-led national executive of the Nigerian Guild of Editors is expected to impact the body within the next two years, before the next biennial convention.

Olusunle, PhD, poet, journalist, scholar and author is a Member of the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE)

The allegations – or do we call them the road to prosperity – that human rights activist and legal luminary, Comrade Femi Falana, has forcefully pushed into the public domain in the past one or two weeks are too weighty to be ignored by the Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration. It is like you have a problem and someone says not just that “I have a solution” but “this is the solution!” You either try his solution or tell us why his touted solution is not the solution. Falana’s argument is that subsidy should first be withdrawn from the rich; that if and when this is done, there will be more than enough funds in the kitty to fund government activities and there would be no need to inflict more pain on the long-suffering Nigerian masses who are the ones always being called upon to tighten their belt. Falana also posits that there is so much corruption and wastages allowed the rich and powerful; that if the leakages in the system are plugged and the low-hanging fruits, which he enumerated, are brought into the basket by the government with little or no effort - except the political will and honesty of purpose to act against the concerned members of the ruling class - then, there will be no need to multiply the misery and sorrow of hapless Nigerians. There is no denying the fact that Tinubu’s “medicine” in his first few weeks in office has monumentally increased the suffering of the mass of our people – and we are still counting!. Whether or not this is desirable in the short run as some have argued is beside the point. Are there alternatives to the excruciating pain in the land? Falana says there are! Let’s listen to him! If someone says he knows the road to our collective prosperity, we should follow in his footsteps unless someone can prove to us that his road is no road or that there is a better, faster and pothole-free road to our collective prosperity as a country.

Titled “THE REAL SUBSIDIES ARE NOT FOR THE POOR BUT FOR THE RICH”, Falana listed 22 items to justify his argument that the government has ignored low-hanging fruits to gratify the rich while inflicting avoidable hardship on the poor. Hear him:

“Globally, subsidies, whether for food, transportation, energy or housing, are part of good governance. So, the issue is not subsidies but who benefits from them. In Nigeria, subsidies are primarily of the rich, by the rich and for the rich. I will highlight a few, how they are being manipulated and how huge sums of money can be recovered not just to subsidize fuel but also provide funds for development.

1. Additional Revenue of $1.5 billion payable to Federation Account: In July 2015, I drew the attention of the Federal Government to the fact that the 15-year fiscal incentives given to the oil and gas companies operating under the Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Contracts Act had expired in June 2014. When the Federal Government ignored our request, we drafted a Bill for the amendment of the law. The Bill, which was adopted and sponsored by Senator T. Orji, scaled the first reading in the Senate but was not passed before the dissolution of the 8th National Assembly. However, the same Bill was modified and passed by both houses of the 9th National Assembly and assented to by President Muhammadu Buhari on November 4, 2019. In justifying the passage of this Bill, Senate President Ahmed Lawan announced that the new law would increase the revenue of the nation by not less than $1.5 billion per annum.

2. Outstanding royalties of $62 billion. In campaigning for the amendment of the Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Contracts Act, I requested the Federal Government to collect outstanding royalty payable by the International Oil Companies under the Act. The Federal Government admitted that the country had lost a whopping sum of $60 billion but my demand for the collection of the huge fund was ignored. The governments of Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Bayelsa states then approached the Supreme Court which, on October 20, 2018, ordered the Federal Government to collect the royalty for the past 18 years. The Federal Government confirmed that the outstanding royalty withheld by the IOCs is $62 billion but has not collected it.

3. $7 billion fixed in 14 banks: Sometime in 2006, the CBN yanked off $7 billion from the nation’s foreign reserves and fixed it in 14 commercial banks in Nigeria. The deposit and the accrued interests were not recovered from the banks. When I reported the matter to one of the anti-graft agencies, the CBN claimed that it had forgiven “the forbearance”.

4. Sale of Heritage Bank, Keystone Bank, Union Bank and Polaris Bank by CBN: The CBN took over Heritage Bank, Keystone Bank, Union Bank and Polaris Bank, spent trillions of Naira to revitalise them only to turn round to sell them under the table. For instance, CBN invested N1.3 trillion in Polaris Bank but sold it for N50 billion!

5. Theft of Crude oil: The Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has revealed that Nigeria lost 619.7 million barrels of crude oil valued at N16.25 trillion ($46.16 billion) to crude oil theft between 2009 and 2020. Immediate past National Security Adviser, General Babagana Monguno, said that Nigeria might lose $23 billion in 2023 to crude oil theft.

6. Theft of gold and other solid minerals: The theft of the nation’s mineral resources is not limited to crude as solid minerals are equally smuggled out of the country by highly-placed criminal elements. Former Minister of State for Mines and Steel Development, Dr Uche Ogah, recently disclosed that private jets are being used by the rich for gold smuggling in Nigeria. He stated this at an investigative hearing on $9 billion annual loss to illegal mining and smuggling of gold organised by the Senate Committee on Solid Minerals, Mines, Steel Development and Metallurgy. During his contribution at the hearing, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu disclosed that Nigeria lost close to $54b from 2012-2018 due to illegal smuggling of gold.

7. AMCON is owed N5.4 trillion by the rich: A few years ago, commercial banks were going to collapse due to toxic loans taken by members of the ruling class. To prevent the impending economic doom, the Federal Government set up the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) to buy off the loans with trillions of Naira provided by the CBN. AMCON has not been able to recover the loans of N5.4 trillion from about 370 corporate bodies.

8. Indiscriminate import duty waivers: A few privileged members of the business community buy dollars at an official rate while they are allowed to import all manners of goods into the country. In the last five years, import duties worth N16 trillion were waived for them.

9. N10 trillion diverted by CEOs of Government enterprises: The Buhari government revealed on December 19, 2018 that government enterprises, including the CBN, owed about N10 trillion in unremitted operating surpluses as at August 2018. The details were provided.

10. N6 trillion unpaid ground rents by buyers of Government properties: On March 29, 2023, the Senate noted that since 1992, over two million houses across the 36 states and the FCT had been built and allocated to beneficiaries by the federal government without evidence of payment of ground rent on the properties. Consequently, the Senate set up an Ad Hoc Committee to recover over N6 trillion unpaid ground rents from property owners in the country.

11. Stolen crude oil valued at $29.17 billion: A group of lawyers engaged by NIMASA confirmed that 60.2 million barrels of crude oil valued at $12.7 billion was stolen and illegally exported to the United States of America between January 2011 and 2014. This has not been recovered. Also, the House of Representatives investigated and confirmed that undeclared crude oil worth $17 billion was exported to global destinations during the same period. The affected companies are known but the government seems to lack the will to bring them to book and recover the sum of $29.7 billion, being the value of the stolen crude.

12. Oil theft of N16.25 trillion: The Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) revealed that between 2009 and 2020, Nigeria lost 619.7 million barrels of crude oil valued at N16.25 trillion ($46.16 billion) to oil theft. The security forces have not been able to stop the stealing and smuggling of crude oil from Nigeria. However, Tantita Security Services Nigeria Ltd (TSSNL), a private company, discovered pipelines through which crude oil was being diverted from a 40,000 barrel per day Forcados pipeline to the high seas for export. The indicted oil companies, including an IOC involved in this grand theft, are yet to be prosecuted.

Falana listed 22 items; we have picked only 12 here. Interested? The Tinubu administration should reach out to the activist. If you ask me, I will say it is better to go after low-hanging fruits than go cap-in-hand to International Finance Capital in search of more loans. Are we not indebted enough!

Nigeria is a nation of aberrations, inanities and paradoxes. Top politicians, many very deceitful, play on the intelligence of equally docile citizens of the nation. I have followed the politics of Orji Uzor Kalu since 1999. Half-baked by all standard material, he has always covered his inadequacies via grandstanding and pandering to the whims and caprices of the feudal power bloc in the country. He is self-centred, in fact, there is no iota of Igbo interest in him. His mantra has always been: me, myself and I. For too long, he has worked against the collective Igbo interests. He routinely betrayed their cause for personal gains or advancement.

What have been his views on serious national issues? As a lecturer, a major part of my duties and responsibilities is teaching and examining or evaluating students, people and national/societal events. This is in addition to research and community development services. I am also a student of the environment and development activist. With due respect to Senator Kalu and without sounding condescending, whenever I listen to him on national news, his views have always been banal – unintellectual or lacking mental riguour.

After Buhari’s eight years in power, the natural thing was for power to return to the South (Southern Nigeria), particularly, South-East. South-West has had 8 years in the person of Olusegun Obasanjo as President and 8 years Vice Presidency in the person of Prof. Osibanjo. The South-South had the Presidency for 6 years in the person of Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, and South-East has had zero tenure. This is since 1999. I have had course to deliver lectures in public fora, particularly for a group known as South East for Presidency 2023(SEFORP) led by one Reverend Obioha (September 25, 2020, in Port Harcourt). The title of my lecture was and is, “Equity and Justice as Panaceas to United Nigeria: Making a Case for South-East Presidency in 2023.” Further justifications for my thesis showcasing prime minister-ship, head of state and presidency of the various geo-political zones in Nigeria, right from independence include:

i. North-West – approximately 22 years in 2023.

ii. North-Central – 18 years approximately.

iii. South-West – 12 years plus a possible 4 or 8 years with Tinubu as the President.

iv. North-East – 5 years

v. South-South – 6 years

vi. South-East – 6months (the ill-fated regime of General Aguiyi Ironsi).

Is it not funny that with the above information that is in the public domain, Orji Uzor Kalu and some of his equally selfish politicians from the South-East, sprang up and started supporting the former Senate President – Ahmed Lawan, from the North (precisely North-East), to be President? Even when Bola Tinubu emerged as the Presidential candidate of APC (coming from the entire Southern Nigeria), he and his co-travelers remained adamant. How on earth did he expect Tinubu and APC’s hierarchy to support his Senate President candidacy? That is vain glory taken too far. Money cannot and will not be everything in life. One can’t eat his cake and have it back. So used to entitlement mentality, he thought that his equally selfish politicians will forget so soon, of his thoughtless, ignoble and betraying roles, before and during the electioneering campaigns, between 2022 and early 2023.

Of greatest and enduring importance and legacy (a bad one indeed) is his ever-readiness to sacrifice his people – the Igbos, for selfish goals. He did everything to cast aspersion on his race (a God blessed race). He made a number of careless and self-serving statements against South-East thus: “South-East is not ripe for the Presidency”; “South-East should spend more years building bridges across the nation,” “there is nothing wrong in Muslim-Muslim ticket,” etc. It turned out that as he was busy making senseless and unguided statements, he was assiduously working secretly to be the Senate President, to represent the same South-East he was routinely and faithfully disparaging. And I ask – with what intellectual or administrative pedigree? I am not a fan of Senator Godswill Akpabio (mind you, he is also a lackey from South-South, Nigeria), but there is no doubt that he is oratorically, intellectually and administratively far ahead of Orji Uzor Kalu. He is even a better politician than Orji Uzor Kalu. People are free to contest this assertion.

Nigerians, particularly politicians of Igbo descent, have refused to study history or apply the lessons of history. They have bluntly refused to study the antecedents of their feudal lords. It is important to point out here that “betrayers are cursed.” All betrayers will be used and dumped, today, tomorrow and forever.

Imagine Orji Uzor Kalu claiming to have built the country! How? With what qualifications or struggles? When? Where? And about his claim that he employs 13,000 workers in his businesses. Truth be told – if economic/intellectual contributions to the national economy/development are used as criteria for South-East’s share of national cake or positions in Nigeria, and it is thrown open, will Orji Uzor Kalu qualify to represent the Igbos? I strongly doubt.

At 63 years +, crying openly like a baby is the height of self-deceit and embarrassment. It smacks of fakeness, idiocy and grandstanding, all intended to achieve cheap sympathy or giving the impression that he is fighting the Igbo cause. Pathetic indeed! In fact, Senator Kalu has no shame or self-respect. The Yorubas have a proverb (let me paraphrase), to the effect that if you sell your people cheap today, you may not be able to rebuy them tomorrow. You can see that the Yoruba elders were/are natural economists. They had factored in: time value of money, inflation and profit motive in this eternal proverb. One needs to benefit from his investments today in the future. Wisdom per excellence! This is food for thought for all top politicians in Nigeria, especially those from South-East.

Was he and other political lackeys of Igbo descent not the ones that worked against the presidential aspiration of Dr Alex Ekwueme (an intellectual and complete gentleman) in 1999 and 2003? And still gloated about it? Were they not struggling to outwit each other in the prowess of speaking Hausa language at the PDP convention in Jos in 1999? Were they not the same political jobbers and insatiable nit-wits that worked against the presidential bid of South-East in the 2023 general elections in their various parties, especially the two leading parties – APC and PDP? Suffice it to say that majority of Igbo politicians are selfish, self-centred and morbidly acquisitive. They undermine the collective interests of their ethnic group. They are ready lackeys in the hand of the oppressors of their people for pecuniary benefits.

As born-agains will always say, let me use Senator Kalu as a point of contact to also address the other Igbo political leaders that are suffering from short-termism, materialistic opium, and vain-glorious grandeur.

What exactly do South-East governors discuss in their forum? Why have they not revived the moribund industrial estates built by Nnamdi Azikiwe and Michael Okpara or built new ones? Do they have any economic blue-print for the zone, knowing fully well that Igbos are business people or industrialists? They are simply visionless. In fact, they are suffering from the chronic form of “Sambo Personality” (see my article on: “Poor Public Sector Management and Underdevelopment in Nigeria”). South-East governors even go about killing businesses in their states for selfish reasons. For example, did Rochas Okorocha not close down completely a very busy road – Douglas road (in Owerri), housing many businesses including banks, for 3 years, in the name of constructing gutters? He also woke up one morning and closed Ekeonunwa market (popularly known as Ekeukwu Owerre) and Timber market, without first providing alternatives. In all cases, thousands of businesses were dislodged and people’s investments lost. Many business people did not recover from this abuse of power by an acquisitive emperor.

Are South-East governors not supposed to be championing the noble causes of their zone? Do they go to governors’ forum meetings for mere jamborees or to compare notes on who has embezzled more funds from their respective states? Why can’t South-East have numerous industrial clusters and technological centres? I gave a public lecture to members of Aba Chambers of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture with the title – “Economic and Technological Emancipation of South-East: Key to National and Global Relevance” on November 24, 2021. Why are they not engaging the various Igbo trade associations across the nation to start thinking home – the Aku – rue – ulo philosophy (another article of mine)?

At this juncture, I need to ask Senator Kalu further questions.

1. As a “bridge builder,” Senator and longtime politician, that have friends in high places, why has he not proposed a bill and seen to it that it is passed into law for the reparation/compensation for the Igbos, for the complete destruction of their region during the civil war and the seizure of their assets in some major cities? Say a N50 trillion plan over a five-year period. We can call it “Orji Uzor Kalu Development Plan.” This will be similar to the Marshall Plan – named after Secretary of State, George Marshall, 1948 ($15 billion; a four-year plan to reconstruct cities, industries and infrastructures heavily damaged in Western Europe during the Second World War and to remove trade barriers between Europeans neigbours).

2. What has he said about the perennial and choking infrastructural decay in the entire South-East like roads? Is Orji Uzor Kalu not aware that the entire Port-Harcourt road in Aba (a.k.a Eyimba City) and the commercial nerve centre of Abia State (a federal government road), with hundreds and thousands of businesses, is completely un-usable, unpassable and overgrown with grasses for over 15years now? What is the state of Ariaria international market and other markets in Aba? What is the state of the industrial wing of Ariaria market known as Bakassi, where all types of shoes, bags and other related leather products are manufactured? How many businesses have closed shop because of the terrible state of infrastructures, particularly inaccessible roads in Aba and Abia State? What did he do about the Obigbo – Aba highway (starting from Imo River bridge) that has been a death trap for over 8 years?

3. Was Senator Kalu not the first governor that introduced familiocracy and clique syndrome or mentality in governance in Nigeria, that held the entire Abians hostage and traumatized for 24 years until rescued recently by Dr. Alex Otti? Throughout his tenure, his mother had a funny title of “Maa-her excellency,” or “mother – excellency.” Thereafter, Rochas Okorocha took familiocracy to a higher level. Imo and Abia States have been mis-administered by non-altruistic and self-centred governors since 1999.

4. What has he said about the entire South-East being under siege? What is his opinion about his region, where there is no crisis, having more security agents like Soldiers than regions that have more security challenges such as banditry and terrorism? I returned from Enugu two days ago, where I went for post-graduate external examinations, shockingly, there are more than 45 military/police/road safety road blocks from Enugu to Aba. This scenario is virtually the same from Port Harcourt to Owerri, from Owerri to Onitsha, from Umuahia to Owerri, from Aba to Owerri, from Onitsha to Enugu, and all other major federal roads in the region. Around Ihiala, passengers are forced to come down from their vehicles and trek for more than 2 kilometres. And around Imo River, on the Aba – Owerri road, after Owerrenta, passengers are also forced to trek more than 1 kilometre. All these mean both extortions and inconveniences of motorists and passengers. In other words, travelling in South-East is hellish.

ALSO READ: Buhari: A Legacy of Indolence and Parasites

5. Why does he compensate herdsmen whose cows were killed in their numerous attacks in the South-East without giving a dime to families who lost family members in such barbaric attacks? Is it not to please his feudal masters?

ADVERTISEMENT

6. Did he oppose the aborted RUGA Project like many politicians from Southern Nigeria? Was he not the first governor that started his own version of RUGA at Lokpa, in Isikwuato LGA, Abia State, as governor of Abia State? How have the surrounding communities fared with his thoughtless Lokpa project?

7. What did he say when Igbo voters in Lagos were suppressed, intimidated and brutalized in the 2023 elections?

8. What is his view about the proposed anti-Igbo legislations (though unconstitutional) by the new Lagos House of Assembly?

9. As a politician and national law maker, why has he not, for once, condemned the skewed and high tariff walls for those goods mostly imported by Igbo business men, regular seizure and auctioning of their goods, etc.? This is in addition to most of them being forced to source their foreign exchange requirements from the black market at exorbitant exchange rates, while their counterparts from other regions are given favourable/official exchange rates. Even those who are not in business, just for racketeering purposes access foreign currencies much easier and cheaper. Yet, we talk about one Nigeria, while Igbo leaders are just picking crumbs knowing fully well that their people and region are suffering endlessly.

10. What is his opinion about the sufferings and extortion of importers, majority of whom are his brethren having to travel hundreds of kilometres to Lagos to clear their goods? Why has he not sponsored a bill, making it imperative for the federal government to develop seaports, railways, and major bridges in South-East and South-South geo-political zones?

11. What has he said about the orchestrated, persistent and sponsored hate speeches against his race?

12. It is only in a backward nation like Nigeria, with visionless leaders and helpless citizenry that landmass as against population density and contribution to national cake and productivity, is used for revenue sharing and appointments. South-East has the least number of states and local government councils in Nigeria. It has 5 states and 95 LGAs. Every other geo-political zone has 6 states except North-West that has 7 states for obvious reasons. Check out this hard facts! The old Kano State was split into two, the present Kano and Jigawa States, all in North-West. The current numbers of LGAs in the two states are: Kano – 44 and Jigawa – 31, totaling 75 LGAs. In other words, only 3 or 4 states in North-West have more LGAs than the entire South-East, an enclave of a major tribe in the country, in fact, the third biggest tribe in the country. Check out the other annoying records:
a. North-West = 186 LGAs
b. North-East = 112 LGAs
c. North-Central = 115 LGAs
d. South-West = 137 LGAs
e. South-South = 123 LGAs
f. South-East = 95 LGAs
g. FCT = 6 LGAs

My question to the “bridge builder” is, what has he done as a “notable” politician and Senator including South-East governors and other political bigwigs from the zone and the leadership of Ohaneze, to redress these anomaly, inequity and injustice?

13. What has Senator Kalu done as a “messiah,” to ensure that members of the National Assembly (Senate and House of Representatives) actually executed all the constituency projects like their colleagues from the other geo-political zones? What is his view about the mismanagement of the 13 percentage derivation fund by the two oil producing states in South-East (Abia and Imo) and indeed all other revenue and intervention funds all these years, by the governors in the South-East? Is it not obvious that majority of development projects in South-East are individually and community driven, while politicians feed on our collective resources?

I can go on and on to ask my dear “bridge builder” these existential and strategic questions. The evil men in the ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), in the contraption called Nigeria will continue their anti-Igbo policies and schemes, but God’s will and plans for His people will surely prevail, to His glory.

Honestly, writing on the myopic and non-strategic mindset/activities of the political leaders from South-East and the dire consequences on the masses, will be a book.

Finally, Orji Uzor Kalu should be told in unmistakable terms that the South-East geo-political zone and Igbos are building enduring and solid bridges. Definitely, not his self-centred, unethical and greedy type that lack structural and engineering integrity, with very short-term life span. I do not have any doubt that betrayers will remain cursed. In addition, it is high time the Igbos started loathing Orji Uzo Kalu and other Igbo leaders of his ilk, and their nuclear families. This will serve as a deterrence to those lurking in the corners.

In conclusion, giving the avalanche of anti-Igbo policies and schemes in Nigeria, particularly after the Civil War (in 1970), till date, it is the federal government and her hateful agencies/agents (in their own interest) that should commence the building of genuine bridges across the South-East and to the Igbos, the oppressed race. That will be the starting point for peaceful coexistence, sincere reconciliation and full integration. It is after this full reconciliation and integration that Nigeria will start seeing development in real terms. If not, the country will continue wobbling and remain in self-denial, darkness and gross underdevelopment. For you cannot persistently oppress a blessed race and want to develop. Take this to the bank. As usual, I come in peace.

Professor Onuoha wrote from University of Port Harcourt 

Peter Obi, Labor Party Presidential candidate
has urged Muslims in Nigeria to imbibe the spirit of love, brotherliness, and peaceful co-existence.

Obi made the call in a series of tweets on Wednesday.

He said Muslim faithful should use this year’s Eid-El Kabir festivities to engender the spirit of oneness and also re-dedicate themselves to the virtues of love, patriotism, and unity for the desired national development.

“Sallah gives us ample opportunities to appreciate our creator whose mercy and grace to us are enormous, even when we do not deserve them.

“Nigerian Muslims should use this solemn period of Sallah to present Nigeria’s discomforting situation to Allah for His prompt intervention.

“I urge Nigerians to devote themselves to the values that unite and bind all citizens in love. Let us permanently put behind all divisive tendencies.

“We should not despair and miss the essence and meaning of Eid-el-Kabir festivities, and the divine succour that it brings in assuring us that there is always a light at the end of every tunnel. A new Nigeria is Possible.

“Happy Sallah Celebration!"

[DailyPost]

Former President, Muhammadu Buhari has reportedly received assurance and cover from his successor, President Bola Tinubu concerning any political anti-corruption probes by the new government.

Naija News gathered that Buhari at a meeting with Tinubu on Monday night in London, United Kingdom had discussed that he and his close aides be left off of any political anti-corruption investigation by the Tinubu-led administration.

Buhari’s request follows a series of attempts by the Tinubu-led government to investigate anti-corruption acts from principal officers of the past administration.

Calls for probe into the activities of Buhari and his ministers have also been intensified in recent times.

Recall that the suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, and the suspended Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa are both in custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) over issues bothering corruption and related matters.

However, a source told SaharaReporters on Tuesday that part of what formed the subject of Tinubu and Buhari London discussion on Monday was an agreement that Buhari and his close aides would not be bothered by any probe or anti-corruption war during Tinubu’s tenure.

“Tinubu met Buhari to reportedly discuss that Buhari and his close aides will not be bothered with any ‘corruption war,’” the source said.

Meanwhile, Tinubu, who was initially scheduled to be back in Abuja on Saturday, proceeded to London, United Kingdom, for a short private visit,  after participating in the two-day New Global Financial Pact Summit, held in Paris, France.

He returned to Nigeria on Tuesday.

[NaijaNews]

The World Bank has projected about N3.9 trillion revenue savings for Nigeria to enable it reduce the current fiscal deficit as a result of removal of subsidy on gasoline.

The new federal administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announced full deregulation of the oil sector on May 29, 2023, causing a sharp increase in prices of petroleum products from N194 per litre to between N537 and N542 per litre across the country.

World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has been among the key advocates for removal of fuel subsidy and the floating of the nation’s hitherto managed exchange rate regime.

Speaking at the presentation of the World Bank report to assess Nigeria’s economy over the past six months that was released in Abuja yesterday, lead economist at the bank, Alex Seinart, projected that the removal of fuel subsidies would yield fiscal gains estimated at about 3.9 trillion Naira in 2023.

Seinart however warned that the subsidy removal would likely lead to a temporary increase in inflation in the coming months but predicted it would contribute to disinflation in the medium term. 

Based on the report, the World Bank has expressed its support for the federal government’s decision to remove subsidies and unify the country’s exchange rate.

World Bank country director, Dr. Subham Chadhuri, said although the policy would be painful, it is essential for rebuilding the nation’s economy.

He also called for measures to mitigate the impact on the population moving forward.

Dr. Chadhuri revealed that the World Bank’s concessional funding to Nigeria currently amounts to over ten billion dollars, underscoring the organisation’s commitment to supporting the country’s economic reforms.

On the exchange rate, the senior economist highlighted that the previous foreign exchange management approach hindered investment and economic growth, contributed to inflation, and undermined the effectiveness of monetary and fiscal policies.

[Leadership]

Revered Father Michael Ifeanyi Asomugha, a priest of the catholic diocese of Okigwe, in lmo state was kidnapped on the evening of Saturday,  April 15,2023. Father Ifeanyi from childhood, wanted to be a priest and was overwhelmed when he was ordained on September 18,2021 and posted as assistant priest of St Paul’s parish, Osu, lsiala, Mbane local government area of Imo state. But as fate would have it, he was kidnapped along Ofriagu-Obodo road while on his way back from a Diocesan Diaconate ordination. He was kidnapped while trying to remove a huge stone right in the middle of the road, an innocent act of a good citizen that could have cost him his life. His brother priest who was in the driver’s seat managed to escape and reported to his superiors and later to the police. It took some time to find the appropriate police unit to report to and of course in his words, l spent money.

The Nigeria police reaction to the incident, was not like its counterparts any were in the world. There was no sense of urgency. Rather than activate the system, first alert other police formations in the state, appoint an investigator or hand over the case to a team of experience crime busters like police in advanced countries would do, to begin to track the kidnappers, the Catholic Church was advised to ‘start putting money together’. Nothing more was done.

As the church broke the news to the family of the kidnapped priest who had given his life to serve God through the church, it advised the family to start looking for money as the church of Christ, as a policy do not pay ransom. This perhaps is the marked difference between the Catholic Church and the Baptist whose Primate was rescued from captivity at the pricey sum of a hundred million Naira. Unlike governments around the world which occasionally pay ransom but denied paying, the Baptist church action in reveling the ransom paid to rescue its leader did not escape the attention of bandits and kidnappers operating almost throughout the country. They couldn’t believe they have been so stupid over time asking for peanuts when they could make the big bucks and retire to live of luxury like our governors some of whom as state governors could not pay salaries to state civil servants but in retirement could donate N250 million at a book launch. No sooner thereafter, the Abuja- Kaduna train was attacked, captives taken and ramson of a hundred million demanded for each head in captivity.

Families scrambled to pay to recue their loved ones, and so when the news of father Ifeanyi began to spread, the family practically got the same message from everybody including retired and serving police and intelligence officers, army generals, friends, and coworkers, with an additional information that everyone pays. Even the lmo state governor’s office was not left out in encouraging them to ‘get money ready’.

Indeed, when the kidnappers called, they asked for hundred million Naira. When the family made it clear that it was in no position to meet their request and pleaded for the life of their son whose parents were retired civil servants, they were declared unserious.

Father Asomogha was in captivity for a little over two weeks. But for a period of four days that the kidnappers did not call, they engaged the family in telephone negotiations over how much would eventually be acceptable to them. In all these negotiations, the police was no where to be found. On the night of his release, to evade the police who were fast asleep, the kidnappers did what they do best, took the family on a merry go round until they were sure the police was not tailing the family before they finally named a spot where the ransom was deposited and father Ifeanyi released, battered, bruised and traumatized. If the police knew of his release, they probably read about it from the media and no police investigator had called to talk to the priest.

The sad reality of today’s Nigeria is that because of the weakness of the Nigeria police force and other related agencies especially the Directorate of State Security, Nigeria’s equivalent of the American Federal Bureau of Investigation we have encouraged, sustained, and made banditry and kidnapping a very lucrative business. It is almost impossible to believe the police has no nationwide tracking system to listen to the chats or negotiations between family members and criminals and to be able to locate their hide outs. Even worse is the growing police ineptitude or sheer lethargy in the discharge of their core mandate which is essentially to prevent crimes and maintain law and order. The truth we must admit to ourselves is that the Nigeria police has lost it soul, it’s bearing and needs to be recalibrated for the good of all of us.

Thanks to our leaders and elites, we have watched the police loss it’s bearing. It’ is estimated that the strength of the Nigeria police is close to or a little more than 400,000 police officers of which almost half work as personal security details for politicians and all kinds of businessmen and women. The few that are left to do real police work spend more time devising means of making money either from harassing motorists, Keke riders or from cases brought to them.

You only have to visit police stations or barracks in Nigeria to appreciate the myriad of problems confronting the police, the least of which is money or funding. The Nigeria police like most agencies in the country suffer from poor leadership, corruption and mismanagement of resources, poor training, indiscipline , lack of accountability and poor recruitment. It is slow like most government agencies in embracing technology and where it had acquired some equipment to aid its work, lack of adequate training and commitment continue to affect officers’ sense of responsibility. These ills have become so ingrained that police personnel cannot even recognize when they are accomplice to crime like we saw during the last general elections where they contributed to the credibility problems of the elections. If you doubt it, take time off to read the reports of both domestic and international observers that monitored the election. I cannot recall which of them did not roundly condemn the police and other security agencies for the role they played in scuttling the people’s will. And this is what makes reforming the police difficult. Those that should be expected to reform the police are praising the police for helping them win power.

There have been some reforms since 1999, funds raised for the police, vehicles donated in hundreds by state governments, companies and public-spirited rich Nigerians (most of which have either been destroyed or cannot be accounted for) not to talk of almost annual promotion of police officers. All these plus constant public outcry against police behavior and brutality including the ENDSRS# protect which the Buhari and the Lagos state government suppressed at the cost  of young innocent lives have in no way affected the police or convinced it’s leadership of the need for self-introspection and reform. This simply means either the police is incapable of reforming itself or it is reading the body language of its political masters whom they serve more than the general public

Despite this, it is in our collective national interest to do something about the police and other security agencies. It is to our peril if we continue to ignore the situation of the police or indeed other security forces. Whether the police assisted the incoming government to win the last election or not, reform of the police and reorienting its officers must be treated as priority. First is to decentralize the police command and devolve more powers, authority, and resources to state commissioners and subsequently to the divisional officers. A situation in which the IGP, from Abuja had to order the arrest and investigation of Seun Kuti for assaulting a police officer should compel us to appreciate that the police structure created by the colonial administration and reinforced by the military regime is overdue for change, especially if we believe in a federal structure. In doing this, the state police commissioners/divisional police chiefs would be held responsible and accountable for the protection and safety of lives and property in the states not the IGP who unfortunately bears the responsibility for all what is wrong with the Nigeria police. In almost all federations except Nigeria, there is no where you find a man/woman running a national police force.

Second, the police needs and to review its recruitment policy. All kinds of characters have been recruited into the police in the last couple of years including criminals and area boys engaged in drugs. A new recruitment standard needs to be put in place, including background checks. Third, a lot could change in our police if for the next five years a group of middle level officers, inspectors, assistant superintendents of police, superintends, are sent abroad, to some commonwealth countries for training especially in police management and investigation with particular attention paid to crime investigation, detection, and utilization of technology to do police work.

Fourth, and indeed the whole civil service needs to imbibe, embrace, and utilize technology. The police l understand have trackers and the question then becomes why they’re not put to effective use in incidents of kidnapping and banditry. It will be interesting to find out if police vehicles stationed at various junctions round Abuja and Lagos have communication gadgets. Once upon time up, the police had the best communication system in this country. Fifth, police facilities throughout the country, police stations, offices, training schools, barracks and hospitals must be upgraded and properly managed. How officers can live and work in an environment not better than a pig’s den beats me. And the system of asking complainants to go and purchase papers and pens to write their statements must be stopped immediately. It is difficult to believe that police budgets do not include stationaries. The opaque system of our police must give ways new methods of policing utilising technology.

I am reluctant to talk about police renumeration not because it is not important or that civil servants do not deserve better pay but more because l fear that the culture of greed and corruption in Nigeria, perpetuated by the political class is such that no matter what you pay the police or civil servants, it will not change  anything, until there is a general attitudinal change in our society  and people pay for their actions.

•Amb Joe Keshi writes from Abuja