On Thursday May 18, General Aliyu Gusau(rtd), CFR, will be 80. If you call him General Aliyu Mohammed or General Aliyu Gusau, you are referring to the same man. The talk in many circles, in this country, is that if you have a problem that you cant solve, contact General Aliyu Mohammed Gusau. He will give you  a solution. He is a brilliant man with very few words. He loves to operate in the background and rarely talks. You either fear him or you love him. He is someone, you cannot ignore his call.  Inspite of all said about him, General Gusau is a man who values friendship. He goes out of his way, even bend rules to help his friends. His circle of friends is beyond religious, tribal, military or even political groupings.

The Nigerian Defense Academy was established in 1964 to replace the Nigeria Military Training College (NMTC) for the purpose of producing junior leaders (officers) for the Nigerian Armed Forces. Hitherto, Nigeria Armed Forces Officer Cadets were trained in oversea countries, notably Royal Military Academy I (RMA), Sandhurst England, German Air Force Academy and Teshie Military Academy, Ghana. The First Regular Course (Regular Course 1), which consisted of Army and Navy Cadets only of the duration of 31/2 years. Air Force Cadets were later admitted and trained with the subsequent courses.

The outbreak of the Nigerian civil war in 1967 made it imperative for the Emergency Commission Course (ECC) to be introduced to produce officers for the prosecution of the war. The duration of this type of training ranged between 4-8weeks. The ECC was eventually phased out at the end of the war in 1970 when the need to produce officers of such cadre in the Nigerian Armed Forces was no longer as pressing. In its place the Short Service (Combatant) Commission (SSC) course was introduced with a duration ranging between 6-9months.

This type of training draws largely on the pool of graduates from the Nigerian Universities and other technical colleges to meet the manpower need of the Nigerian Armed Forces on a short-term basis.

This type of training was designed to give the cadets essential professional knowledge that will enable them to be competent platoon commander in their respective units on commissioning. Cadets from other sister African nations have also been trained all along in this august institution. In the mid 1990’s the three services of the Nigeria Armed Forces namely: The Army;Navy and Air Force transferred the training of their cadets under the direct short service commission (DSSC) course to the NDA. With this, uniformity in training standards for officers of the respective services of the Nigerian Armed Forces has been achieved.

One of the students of the Nigerian Defence Academy first Regular Course 1 was General Aliyu Muhammed. His other course mates included Lt-General Oladipo Diya, Lt-General Joshua Dongoyaro, Major General Ishola Williams, Major General Salihu Ibrahim and Admiral Allison Madueke.

Others were Major General O. Daramola, Brigadier General Ibrahim Bako, Brigadier General Rafuka, Major General Karawu, Major General Suleiman, Colonel Anifowose, Major General Abdulahi Mamman, Major General Idahosa, Major General Peter Adomokhai, Major General Haladu Hananiya, Major General Samuel Olajide and Colonel Awodeyi.

General Aliyu Gusau, since joining the Army in 1964, has been able to build national and global contacts. He speaks seven languages including Hebrew, French and German. He is also vast in  Arabic.  Before he retired from the Nigerian Army, he rose to the position of the Chief of Army Staff.

 In 1967, he fought during the Nigerian Civil War. He was Commander of 9 Infantry Brigade, Abeokuta (April 1976 – July 1978). He later became acting Governor of Ogun state. During that time he formed strong friendship among strong Ogun state elites and the friendship still last till today. General Aliyu Gusau became Adjutant General of 2 Mechanised Division (July 1978 – September 1979) and Director of Personnel Services, Army Headquarters (October 1979 – November 1979).

From November 1979 to December 1983, Aliyu was Director of Military Intelligence (DMI) along with Brigadier General Ibrahim Bako, Major General Ibrahim Babangida and Major General Muhammadu Buhari. He played an important role in the coup that ousted President Shehu Shagari and the Second Nigerian Republic on 31 December 1983 and brought General Muhammadu Buhari to power.

When Major General Babangida took over power in 1995, General Aliyu was appointed Director of the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) and Acting Director-General of the National Security Organisation (NSO) from September 1985 to August 1986, then Coordinator on National Security from August 1986 to December 1989. He reorganised the security and intelligence apparatuses, which had fallen in disarray under Rafindadi during the Buhari regime, breaking up the NSO into three organisations: State Security Services (SSS), National Intelligence Agency (NIA) and the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA).

General Gusau was appointed General Officer Commanding 2 Mechanised Division in Ibadan from December 1989 to August 1990; and Chief of Administration, Defence Headquarters, in Lagos from August 1990 to February 1992. He was Commandant of the Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna from February 1992 to January 1993.

Aliyu became National Security Advisor in January 1993, and was promoted to Chief of Army Staff when Babangida passed control to the short-lived civilian government of the Nigerian Third Republic in August 1993.

In November 1993, in a bid to consolidate his power General Sani Abacha removed Aliyu as Chief of Army Staff replacing him with General Chris Alli.

General Ibrahim Babangida GCFR once told me that the greatness of General Aliyu Gusau lies in personal contact with him. He said General Aliyu Gusau is “a wonderful man, a personal friend and a loyal officer. I am always proud of him”.

His son Mahdi Aliyu Gusau (born 1981) served as deputy governor of Zamfara State from 2019 till 2022. His daughter, Aisha,is married to Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, the Vice Presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the last Presidential election.

From 1983 till now, every Nigerian leader had one way or the other had contacts with General Aliyu Gusua. In his home state of Zamfara, he is regarded as the Godfather of politics in that state. I think the source of his greatness is his simplicity.

Those who know him love him, infact too much. Those who hate him do not know him at all.

It was a great privilege to be invited as one of the three keynote speakers on a security management symposium and book launch under the theme ‘Sustaining the Gains of War Against Banditry and Insurrection’ held at Ibeto Hotels, Abuja on 4 May 2023. The other two keynote speakers were General Lucky Irabor, Chief of Defence Staff and Solomon Arase, retired Inspector General of Police and Chairman of Police Services Commission who was ably represented by Ferdinand U Ekpe, Director of Police Recruitment.

The two books presented were ‘The Nigeria Police Force and the Dynamics of Election Security Management System: Essays in Honour of Habila Joshak – Deputy Inspector General of Police (Rtd)’ and ‘Countering Banditry in Nigeria’ edited by Al Chukwuma Okoli and Ikechukwu  Kingsley Uzoma. Professor Olayemi Akinwunmi, Vice Chancellor of Federal University, Lokoja reviewed both books which were published by Unilag Press & Bookshop Ltd.

I intend to properly report and interrogate the very robust presentations at the summit soon, especially the highly illuminating speech by General Irabor, which he delivered extemporaneously, on the general theme of the symposium and on the synergies between the Army and the Police in the fight against insurgency, terrorism and banditry.

Today the focus is on my own presentation entitled ‘Beyond the Rhetoric of Winning the War Against Insurgency, Terrorism and Banditry: The Task Ahead for  the incoming Government’. The reason for this is not because of any special intellectual merit of my presentation but more because, with the inauguration of the President-elect  less than three weeks away, the incoming government needs to be strongly reminded that the war against insurgency, terrorism and banditry remain unfinished.

What do we understand by Insurgency, Terrorism and Banditry? What are their drivers and manifestations?  And what is the relationship between the three concepts?

An insurgency is a violent political struggle for control of people and resources.  It is not a mode of warfare but primarily a political process. Insurgent groups aim to undermine the legitimacy of the government and bolster their own standing with the population. They seek to alienate the population from the government by creating alternative social, political and cultural institutions. They are essentially a struggle of the weak against a materially superior ruling power. IPOB and the  Yoruba nation agitations are typical examples of insurgencies.

Terrorism is an emotionally charged term with no consensus in the literature on its definition.  Broadly speaking, it is the use of intentional violence and fear as tools to achieve political or ideological aims. The term can also be used in a political sense to de-legitimize any group.  People also talk of state-sponsored terrorism. There have been several theoretical explanations of terrorism including David Rapoport’s waves of terrorism theory in which he argued that  terrorism moves in waves, with each wave lasting approximately 40 years before it mutates into another form. There are equally the poverty, state failure and crisis in our nation building arguments which supposedly force some groups and individuals to de-link from the state into other contraptions they feel offer them better alternatives to negotiate life.

Banditry is a form of organized crime which typically involves the threat or use of violence. In Nigeria bandits famously terrorise communities in the North West region and other parts of the country. Their activities include kidnapping, arson, shooting, rape, cattle rustling, killing, and looting. The prevalence of ungoverned and under-governed spaces where the government’s control is ineffective or absent is a major factor giving rise to banditry. Ungoverned and Under-governed spaces coupled with the country’s porous borders have increased the influx of small arms and light weapons from the Sahel region – thus increasing the opportunities for crime. This is facilitated by vast forests which allow the illegal arms trade to fester. Additionally, the challenging socioeconomic conditions in the country leave many of the youths vulnerable to recruitment for criminal activities

There is a nexus between terrorism, insurgency and banditry. While terrorism and insurgencies are driven by forms of ideology, banditry is pure criminality by armed gangs driven primarily by economic gains. The three groups are however increasingly converging on their strategies: just like bandits, terrorists and insurgents are known to have raided communities, looted property (foodstuff and livestock), and abducted civilians.  There are also suspicions that the three groups may have established forms of collaboration in some areas.  

How far has the Buhari government fared in the fight against Terrorism, Insurgency and Banditry? In his inaugural address in 2015, Buhari vowed to crush Boko Haram within three months and recover all the territories it had seized. While some gains were made in the recovery of lost territories held by Boko Haram, the emergence of a splinter group in 2016 known as Islamic State- West Africa (ISIS-WA), heralded a new dawn of terror.  At the same time there was an increase in banditry in the North-west and in insurgencies in the South-east and to a lesser extent the South-west primarily as a result of the government’s mismanagement of the herdsmen’s crisis which led to non-state actors moving in to promise the local populace protection from the rampaging herdsmen.

So what should one recommend to an incoming government?

One, if there is anything the elections of 25 February 2023 and 18 March 2023 showed, it is that the chasms in our traditional fault lines are deeper than previously thought. Since insurgencies and terrorism are rooted in groups feeling alienated from the state and consequently de-linking from it, it will naturally subsidize if faith is restored to the nation through deliberate use of state instruments to wield together the diverse nationalities that make up the country.

Two, healing from the bitterly fought elections cannot work if those who played active roles in promoting ethnic and religious hatred during the elections – the likes of Bayo Onanuga, Fani Kayode, MC Oluomo - are given front row positions in an incoming government. Nasir el Rufai is a smart and courageous man. However, given his role in initiating the Muslim-Muslim ticket in Kaduna State and in trying to institutionalize it by making sure his handpicked successor also opted for a Muslim-Muslim ticket, any front row position given to him in an incoming government will be viewed as an affront by the Christian community and a tacit endorsement of the anomaly he created and sustained in Kaduna state. In essence, an incoming government must be sensitive to the role of optics in nation-building.

Three, an incoming government must devise a better approach for fighting the herdsmen terrorism. Though the herdsmen crisis has its roots in the struggle for environmental resource, it has become politicized largely because of its total  mismanagement by the Buhari government who chose to treat the herdsmen with kid gloves thereby unwittingly creating insurgencies like IPOB and Yoruba Nation agitators who moved in to  promise  citizens protection from the excesses of the  herdsmen.

Four, is the need for not just an increase in the number of policemen but also an introduction of multi-level policing to address the issues of ungoverned and under-governed spaces. Improving the quality of governance and providing well-targeted socioeconomic interventions will reduce the role of poverty and unemployment in pushing people to criminality or alienating them from the state system.  

__________________
Jideofor Adibe is Professor of Political Science and International Relations at Nasarawa State

University, Keffi and Extraordinary Professor of Government Studies at North Western

University, Mafikeng South Africa. He is also the founder of Adonis & Abbey Publishers and can be reached at 0705 807 8841(Text or WhatsApp only).

The losing side in the 2023 presidential election has been dutiful and purposive on its agenda to push Nigeria to the precipice. Time and time again, this group has made provocative pronouncements, and keeps kindling the furnace of its malicious intents.

What could be more provocative, desperate, and dangerous than the call for the suspension of the sacerdotal May 29 inauguration of President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu? What could be more heinous, psychedelic, atrocious and befuddling than this obtrusive contempt for Nigeria’s peace and stability?

It is clear that the pursuit of power by the foremen of the losing side was never out of compulsion to fix Nigeria, but for some deep, blinkered advantage. According to this group, governance should be suspended, and Nigeria can wait in limbo until by some wizardry conjuring, they ‘’reclaim their mandate’’. This is utterly ridiculous. What mandate?

The facts of the election have been emphasised again and again. President-elect Tinubu fairly, convincingly won the 2023 presidential election. He has an inexorable date with destiny. On May 29, 2023, he will be sworn in as Nigeria’s president. The Nigerian people freely, and enthusiastically gave him their mandate. They entered an accord, a social contract, with him on the strength of his leadership example.

What is staggering is that the call for this obvious sabotage of Nigeria is not only coming from some votaries of the losing side on the internet, but from some respected Nigerians soiled by partisanship and provoked by desperation for access to power. These Nigerians seem to be having difficulty adjusting to life after the taste of the allures of power. They are irascible, irrational, and seem primed for political suicide-bombing. They are ready to risk their careers and vaunted reputation for partisanship. How depressing?

May 29 inauguration is inviolable. There are judicial precedents, like President Buhari’s case against former President Obasanjo’s inauguration in 2003, which the court ruled in Obasanjo’s favour. There are also political precedents, since 1999 never has the inauguration of an incoming government been put in abeyance over electoral litigation.

What these devotees of dystopia are calling for is simply anarchy. So, because a politician lost an election, Nigeria should be made to pay for that? Our peace and stability should be threatened because a politician was rejected by Nigerians?

The same group, which hounded the Buhari administration in the past eight years, now want him to tarry awhile because of their pursuit of a self-absorbent goal. It is no longer about Nigeria, but about what is good for them and their candidate.

And for this genus, it is not about good governance either. To them, good governance is natively partial; it is selective of candidates based on kinship, religious orientation, or some manufactured puritanism. It must be their candidate as president, or doom and gloom befall the country. So, they constitute themselves into a bulwark of cynicism, scorching conversations and the polity with hate, prejudice, and fear.

But what happens when the election petition tribunal upholds the will of Nigerians by affirming the election of the president-elect? Will they persist in their enterprise of scorching the country? Will they accept the decision of the court? Or will they embark on a political trench war to perturb country?

I ask that we allow the court to do its duty without intimidation, threats, and fear. It is unpatriotic to harass judges on the ungoverned social media with tainted suggestions as to how they should do their job.

A SEASON OF GREAT EXPECTATIONS

A beautiful start. I believe good governance will silence doubters and scoffers. Every step the President-elect takes rings "united Nigeria, unity, peace, and progress". The zoning of national assembly positions by the APC seems fair. Each zone was incorporated into the leadership matrix of the parliament, except for the north-central which I understand will be equitably compensated.

The politics of representation has always been a knotty one here. Not that there are any tangible accruals to the zone represented, but I know it gives some sort of soothing effect, a feeling of inclusion, to those represented. There are often claims of marginalisation by different sections of Nigeria. But the reality is, we all face the same challenges as a people. We need food, good schools, functional hospitals, security, infrastructure, and jobs. We are more connected by our shared needs, and goals, than we know it.

No zone should feel entitled to any position. I believe the only entitlement one should have as a citizen is of good governance. Every Nigerian is deserving of good governance. Every Nigerian is entitled to good governance.

It is a season of great expectations, and a beautiful start.

God bless Nigeria.

At the heart of Nigeria’s troubled and enchanted existence is wild and minacious politics. Politics defiant of patriotism and national interest; politics vacant of soul and righteous purpose; politics of predation and degradation. Politics of gladiatorial contests and duels. Destructive, dangerous politics.

The losing side in the 2023 presidential election has been dutiful and purposive on its agenda to push Nigeria to the precipice. Time and time again, this group has made provocative pronouncements, and keeps kindling the furnace of its malicious intents.

What could be more provocative, desperate, and dangerous than the call for the suspension of the sacerdotal May 29 inauguration of President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu? What could be more heinous, psychedelic, atrocious and befuddling than this obtrusive contempt for Nigeria’s peace and stability?

It is clear that the pursuit of power by the foremen of the losing side was never out of compulsion to fix Nigeria, but for some deep, blinkered advantage. According to this group, governance should be suspended, and Nigeria can wait in limbo until by some wizardry conjuring, they ‘’reclaim their mandate’’. This is utterly ridiculous. What mandate?

The facts of the election have been emphasised again and again. President-elect Tinubu fairly, convincingly won the 2023 presidential election. He has an inexorable date with destiny. On May 29, 2023, he will be sworn in as Nigeria’s president. The Nigerian people freely, and enthusiastically gave him their mandate. They entered an accord, a social contract, with him on the strength of his leadership example.

What is staggering is that the call for this obvious sabotage of Nigeria is not only coming from some votaries of the losing side on the internet, but from some respected Nigerians soiled by partisanship and provoked by desperation for access to power. These Nigerians seem to be having difficulty adjusting to life after the taste of the allures of power. They are irascible, irrational, and seem primed for political suicide-bombing. They are ready to risk their careers and vaunted reputation for partisanship. How depressing?

May 29 inauguration is inviolable. There are judicial precedents, like President Buhari’s case against former President Obasanjo’s inauguration in 2003, which the court ruled in Obasanjo’s favour. There are also political precedents, since 1999 never has the inauguration of an incoming government been put in abeyance over electoral litigation.

What these devotees of dystopia are calling for is simply anarchy. So, because a politician lost an election, Nigeria should be made to pay for that? Our peace and stability should be threatened because a politician was rejected by Nigerians?

The same group, which hounded the Buhari administration in the past eight years, now want him to tarry awhile because of their pursuit of a self-absorbent goal. It is no longer about Nigeria, but about what is good for them and their candidate.

And for this genus, it is not about good governance either. To them, good governance is natively partial; it is selective of candidates based on kinship, religious orientation, or some manufactured puritanism. It must be their candidate as president, or doom and gloom befall the country. So, they constitute themselves into a bulwark of cynicism, scorching conversations and the polity with hate, prejudice, and fear.

But what happens when the election petition tribunal upholds the will of Nigerians by affirming the election of the president-elect? Will they persist in their enterprise of scorching the country? Will they accept the decision of the court? Or will they embark on a political trench war to perturb country?

I ask that we allow the court to do its duty without intimidation, threats, and fear. It is unpatriotic to harass judges on the ungoverned social media with tainted suggestions as to how they should do their job.

A SEASON OF GREAT EXPECTATIONS

A beautiful start. I believe good governance will silence doubters and scoffers. Every step the President-elect takes rings "united Nigeria, unity, peace, and progress". The zoning of national assembly positions by the APC seems fair. Each zone was incorporated into the leadership matrix of the parliament, except for the north-central which I understand will be equitably compensated.

The politics of representation has always been a knotty one here. Not that there are any tangible accruals to the zone represented, but I know it gives some sort of soothing effect, a feeling of inclusion, to those represented. There are often claims of marginalisation by different sections of Nigeria. But the reality is, we all face the same challenges as a people. We need food, good schools, functional hospitals, security, infrastructure, and jobs. We are more connected by our shared needs, and goals, than we know it.

No zone should feel entitled to any position. I believe the only entitlement one should have as a citizen is of good governance. Every Nigerian is deserving of good governance. Every Nigerian is entitled to good governance.

It is a season of great expectations, and a beautiful start.

God bless Nigeria.

By Fredrick Nwabufo, Nwabufo aka Mr OneNigeria is a media executive.

Without prejudice to what transpires at the Presidential Election Tribunal on the February 25 election, and the request by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and others that the proceedings should be televised live – no problem about that, as long as the parties involved can bear the cost in defence of the ideal of transparency - it seems certain nonetheless that Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, President-elect and Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), the ruling party, would be sworn in as President of Nigeria on May 29, 2023. The Federal Government has set up a Transition Committee, the President-elect has also set up an Inauguration Committee with some Nollywood stars named unto that committee already behaving like party boosters on social media. While the Election Petition Tribunal continues to keep, hopefully to its promise that it would consider every application on its own merit, Tinubu and APC are already preparing for their own Coronation ceremony on May 29, complete with jollof rice and aso ebi parties and a scale of pomp and pageantry that could rival the Coronation of King Charles III of Great Britain on May 6. Nigerians are very good at imitating the colonial masters. No one should be surprised if Tinubu arrives at the Eagle Square on Inauguration Day on a horse-drawn golden carriage. The morning after, he would swing into action, real time.

The sword of power would have been handed over to him. He would have such authority and access to resources that his challengers in court cannot hope to match. He would in fact have been placed in a position to exercise authority over those who are challenging him, their businesses and their needs. Even the courts would have taken notice of the fact that Nigeria is under a new dispensation. Tinubu has been in politics for a long time. He knows what power means. He has been a Senator. He has been Governor twice. He has been a Godfather in Nigerian politics for more than two decades. He has been a kingmaker. He is a veteran of the game. The real threat to our democracy is that we may have been presented with a fait accompli, while the lawyers shuffle papers and quote dead authorities and precedents in order to earn their pay. Even if the matter goes all the way to the Supreme Court let it be noted that the apex court is a court of law and also a court of public policy. This is why there is merit to the emerging argument that our electoral system needs further reform, and the Constitution must be amended accordingly to ensure that post-election, all election petitions are determined before anybody is sworn in. That is what they do in Kenya. Why not in Nigeria? For now, Bola Tinubu and the APC will benefit from this omission in the Nigerian Constitution. But the people’s consciousness has been awoken. Legal frameworks emerge on the basis of lessons learnt. Those who doubt the integrity and the legitimacy of the process that made the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to declare Tinubu as President-elect are bound to stay on this question until it is resolved, ahead of future elections. Such persons have the right to raise questions.

For now, therefore, let us reflect on the reality of a Tinubu Presidency that stares us in the face. He has not yet been sworn in, he is already acting as President. He has since moved into the Defence House, the traditional residence for Nigeria’s President in waiting. The other day, the Rivers State Government invited him to commission two projects and a two-day holiday was declared to host him. His supporters are now taking out family attires, the famous aso ebi. Materials have been submitted to tailors and fashion designers. No one should be surprised if Tinubu invites the opposition party leaders to his inauguration and quite a number would show up on D-Day. Has Action Alliance (AA) not withdrawn its petition at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal without giving any reason? For Bola Tinubu, May 29 would be a significant moment – the day that the kingmaker of many years takes the throne for which he had long prepared himself. His campaign slogan was “Emilokan” – “it is my turn”- May 29 would be a culmination of a life-long ambition, carefully executed over the years, from the days of NADECO struggle to Senatorial position, Governorship, and a crafty, deliberate, even if cynical construction of power, name recognition and influence. It would be history made on May 29, because Tinubu would have become the third South Westerner and the fifth Southerner – after Aguiyi Ironsi, Ernest Shonekan, Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan to lead Nigeria.

In 1966, July, in the heat of the counter-coup, Brigadier Babfemi Ogundipe who was next in line to Ironsi had to flee abroad when his Northern aides threatened to kill him. In the First and Second Republics, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, who was most prepared for office and leadership never achieved the dream of becoming Nigeria’s President. In 1993, Chief MKO Abiola who emerged winner of what has been adjudged the freest and fairest election in Nigerian history was denied victory because the military led by General Ibrahim Babangida annulled the election. When Tinubu wears the Presidential sash on May 29, he would have succeeded where other clearly accomplished Yoruba sons “failed”. Such is the irony of life, but it is also the reason why Tinubu as a Nigerian President from the South and from the South West would be assuming a heavy burden of history. Being President alone, even for a week is probably enough for him – his name would have entered the annals of history. But that cannot be enough. The President-elect must not look forward to the fulfilment of naked ambition. He cannot go to Aso Villa in Abuja to drink tea, eat free food, and pick his teeth afterwards with toothpick. I dare say that toothpicks should be banned from Aso Villa forthwith. When a man sits on the stone of destiny, he sits atop a huge responsibility.

Bola Ahmed Tinubu as Presidential candidate engaged Nigerians with an 80-page manifesto which he titled “Renewed Hope”. I would be surprised if he has read his own manifesto. It took some time for that manifesto to be announced. His campaign managers disowned several versions before they finally decided on the 88-page document. Now here is the deal – in Nigeria, political manifestoes are written by a hired team who put out textbook ideas and tell the people what they want to hear which is why all the Presidential manifestoes in the 2023 Presidential election mouthed the same platitudes, an expression of the lack of clear ideological lines in contemporary Nigerian politics. This is the reason why under the Buhari administration, we had the interesting experience of a sitting President denying some of the contents of his own campaign manifesto. The ideas were not his, they were put there by the political jobbers aiming for the right sound bites. Nobody should be surprised if Tinubu also distances himself from some of the verbiage in his campaign document. But we expect him to reduce his priorities to clear, policy choices that can be monitored. No verbiage, just very clear actionable points. President Umaru Yar’Adua (2007 – 2010) had a seven point plus two special interest issues agenda for Nigeria. President Goodluck Jonathan (2010 – 2015) announced a Transformation Agenda with four special targets to seek profound changes in social, economic, political and the institutional structure of the country. President Muhammadu Buhari (2015 – 2023) eventually reduced his campaign manifesto to a specific three-point agenda. President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu is advised to follow the same pattern. I propose the following actionable, eight-point agenda, not necessarily in their order of importance.

One: The first big elephant in the room that the Tinubu administration has to deal with when it assumes office on May 29, right after the inauguration banquet is the removal of fuel subsidy. It is first and foremost a matter of law. Both the Appropriation Act 2023, and the Petroleum Industry Act 2021 prescribes a window of exit from the petroleum subsidy regime that does not extend beyond June 1, 2023. There is no provision for the funding of subsidy in the budget beyond that point. The Buhari administration had cleverly avoided taking responsibility for removing fuel subsidy and shifted the goal post claiming there could be “consequences” in a Bloomberg interview. The same administration has further saved itself from public backlash by saying it has secured an $800 million facility from the World Bank for the provision of palliatives, but it is now up to an expanded committee including the in-coming administration’s team to take a decision. It looks like a set up to me. Buhari would walk away as the man who was wary of “consequences”. Tinubu will be required to use his head to break the coconut. If the subsidy remains beyond the provisions of the law, and no attempt is made to amend the law, Tinubu would be starting off his Presidency by breaking the laws of Nigeria.

The government would have set out on a note of illegality. It would be akin to the Buhari administration violating the Procurement Act and the CBN Act with regard to CBN Ways and Means, and here on the eve of Buhari’s Departure, the National Assembly says it has approved the violation of the law. When the legislature breaks its own laws, and does so with immunity, then a country is in trouble. If it may be any consolation to those who are opposed to INEC’s declaration of Tinubu as President-elect, the truth is that the man is going to inherit a troubled nation. The country is broke. After May 29, it may not be able to meet its financial obligations. The question of fuel subsidy is a kind of poetic justice for Tinubu. In 2012, he and his allies organized designer protests at Ojota, Lagos and elsewhere to oppose fuel subsidy removal. If we had removed subsidy then, Nigeria would have since adjusted. Tinubu is saddled with the evil day that he postponed. He must either show courage or act cowardly. Economists for more than two decades have not changed their position from Lagos to Washington DC, that a fuel subsidy regime is unsustainable. It is important to state this because there are some ruling party hangers-on who have been saying that once Dangote Refinery comes on stream on May 22, then government can remove fuel subsidy. The two must be separated. It would be the ultimate act of cowardice to use the Dangote Refinery and the expected 650, 000 barrels a day as the fall guy for years of government incompetence. It is either Tinubu has the courage to act, or he would take a cowardly option which would again postpone the evil day.

Two: Revenue is a problem. We have been told this again and again by Nigeria’s financial managers and that the main challenge is to widen Nigeria’s revenue base. The Bretton Woods institutions in their Economic Outlook Reports on Nigeria have said more or less the same thing. Nigeria’s next administration has to find ways of increasing revenue. The easiest recommendation is to say government has to collect more taxes or widen the tax base. Nigerians are already groaning under the weight of too many taxes and they can’t see what anybody does with the taxes, and so, whatever government proposes, the people are suspicious. Tinubu, given his reputation as the man behind Alpha Beta, the tax collection agency in Lagos would find it difficult to tell Nigerians to pay more taxes. They would think he just wants to hand over Nigeria to Alpha Beta and collect bigger shares of the cake. Tinubu cannot be a tax collector of Nigeria. He will be resisted by everybody! His advisers must therefore look at other options. He has to prune down the cost of governance, starting with his own example. He must start by implementing the Oronsaye Report on Governance. All forms of duplication must be eliminated. There must be legislation telling Governors and Local Government Chairmen that they cannot have more than two assistants, maximum five and that everybody must stop going about as if they have just inherited the world. The COVID-19 crisis has shown that if Nigerian leaders stay at home for medical care, they can survive. Everyone, including the President must be told clearly that whatever they cannot treat in Nigeria may as well kill them. We are in the age of technology. Jumping around at public expense to treat gout and arthritis is unacceptable. Whoever wants to do so must show proof that they are spending personal funds! Tinubu must address Nigeria’s health sector crisis.

Three: Tinubu has been a long-time apostle of federalism. He has written a book on it. Symposia have been held in his honour on the subject. As Governor of Lagos State, he took President Olusegun Obasanjo to court on the subject of the creation of Local councils and the true reading of Section 162 of the 1999 Constitution. He won. I am not very sure that President Obasanjo has forgiven him for that. He now steps into the same shoes that Obasanjo occupied. He cannot run an imperial Presidency! If that sounds like another curse of nemesis, Tinubu must be made to realize that given his own antecedents and causes that he championed, he has to show that he truly believes in Federalism. One of his first tasks must be to support the devolution of powers, give the states more responsibilities and make the Federal Government more compact and effective. Anything otherwise would be used against him. He could come across as a hypocrite on the question of federalism, and he would have allowed OBJ to have a very good, last laugh in this emerging game of thrones.

Four: Tinubu has been a champion of a special status for Lagos. He is now in a position to make that happen. But he must resist the temptation to be a Yoruba or Lagos President. It is not only Lagos that deserves a special status. He must add to that agenda, Kaduna and Enugu. He must be the President of all of Nigeria, a unifier, not a divisive village chief. The same Lagosians who did not vote for him on February 25 would expect that he should do more for Lagos. He must not repeat the error of ethnic irredentism in Nigerian politics. He must avoid a winner-takes-it-all approach.

Five: He must sanitize the budgeting and procurement processes. Six; he must take a quick look at the foreign exchange regime. Seven: empower the security agencies, particularly the police. Eight: respect media freedom and the demands of Nigerian youths. These are low-hanging fruits. We wait. We watch.

He was acting in the line of duty, but I came off from my first and only encounter with him, not particularly liking him. It was in December 2016. My very good friend, maybe alter-ego, Tivlumun Nyitse and I were driving into the premises of Louis Edet House Nigeria Police Force Headquarters, (NPF-HQ), Abuja, to catch up with an appointment in the multistorey complex. Donald Ngorngor Awunah of blessed memory, who was the force public relations officer (FPRO) at the time, a mutual friend of Nyitse and I, had invited us for a morning meeting in his office. Ibrahim Kpotun Idris was the Inspector General of Police, (IGP) and he entrusted the very urbane and cosmopolitan Awunah to help cultivate a more positive public perception for the Force.

Awunah was a perfect fit for the job, a rounded Nigerian. His mother is Igbo from Delta state, and he began formal education in Ogwashi-Uku, his mother’s birthplace. He had regular conversations in fluent “Delta Igbo” with his mother. His father was Tiv from Benue, and he obtained his first degree from the University of Lagos (Unilag). He underwent the National Youth Service Corps, (NYSC) in Jos, Plateau state, and his career in the police took him around the country and beyond. He had friends around and about.

Don Awunah took every assignment very seriously. Nyitse and I are senior and experienced mass communications professionals and Awunah believed his official brief will be enriched by our insights. On a regular basis, therefore, he compelled us to come to have “coffee” in his office so we could exchange ideas. He always jocularly threatened Nyitse who shared his official accommodation, with eviction and we all had good laughs. Indeed, he received approval from his principal to have us accredited as “media consultants” to ensure seamless access to the restricted FHQ. And so on this day, we had been cleared at the various checkpoints en route the premises of the organisation when we were stopped by security personnel in plain clothes. They said they had “orders from above” to deny us admission into the complex for two hours. We wouldn’t know what was going on therein and nobody explained to us.

One of them gestured conspiratorially to a prosperously-built top cop who was pacing about in the background. Every officer in view deferred to him via a smart salute or an impulsive freeze. That top gun was Usman Alkali Baba who was an Assistant Inspector General, (AIG). I would later get to know that Baba and Awunah were indeed coursemates in the 1988 batch of police cadets, much as Awunah was at that time a Deputy Commissioner of Police, (DCP). He eventually made the rank of AIG before his unfortunate transition last year. His last brief was superintendence over the brother states of Bayelsa and Rivers.

Usman Alkali Baba was appointed Inspector General of Police, (IGP), by President Muhammadu Buhari on April 6, 2021, to replace Mohammed Abubakar Adamu. He thus became Nigeria’s 20th indigenous IGP. His appointment for me seemed routine and perfunctory. It could have passed for any regular civil service appointment to the position of permanent secretary or head of the civil service of the federation. One can’t seem to place too many appointees in this position, whose performances were markedly exceptional. Tafa Balogun, the second IGP under the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo was probably the last “all action IGP” who readily comes to mind.

In the military too, Ibrahim Attahiru, of blessed memory, the immediate past Chief of Army Staff, (COAS), for example, was one recent occupant of that office who gave us some excitement and optimism about prospects for the rebirth and rediscovery of the Nigerian Army of yore. I’m glad my brother John Obasa, a retired army general, invited me to the first-anniversary memorial of Attahiru last year. He knows how passionate I was about Attahiru, much as the departed COAS and I never met. Before him, Paul Dike, arguably Nigeria’s first Air Chief Marshal, (ACM), a four-star airforce general was another top military professional I deeply admired. Dike who rose to become Chief of Defence Staff, (CDS), was an exemplary military chief. Megalopolitan, urbane, thoroughly hands-on and amiable, I followed his trajectory from the State House where, as a Group Captain, he was Commander of the Presidential Air Fleet, (PAF), all the way to the apex of his career.

I’m uninspired by President Buhari’s recent celebration of Nigeria’s military’s ascension by three places in the classification of militaries in Africa. According to him, we are now in the number four position, up from number seven before the advent of his administration in 2015. Wasn’t our military the high-flying African Numero Uno under the leadership of Ibrahim Babangida, Sani Abacha, through to Olusegun Obasanjo? It used to be said in those good old days in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Somalia, among others, that “the fear of Nigerian troops was the beginning of wisdom”. It has been suggested that Nigeria’s “air show of force” through the flypast over Banjul of Nigerian airforce jets in January 2017, compelled the intransigent Yahya Jammeh to step down from office. He had previously lost his presidential reelection, after three terms to Adama Barrow in late 2016.

Back to IGP Alkali Baba. I’ve always admired southpaws. Maybe that’s one reason I’m having a rethink about my hitherto minimal expectations of him. Former United States Presidents Bill Clinton to Barack Obama, through Works Minister, Babatunde Fashola, to my brother, namesake and silent revolutionary Babatunde Irukera of the Federal Consumer Competition and Protection Commission, (FCCPC), fit into this description. Same for my brother and diligent editor, Bolaji Afolabi, my little nephew Oluwatise Adetona-Alao, and my “granddaughter,” Jomiloju Aiyegbusi. Maybe because I’m not. IGP Alkali Baba falls into this category of special breeds and somehow I’ve begun to take an interest in his enterprise in the sanitisation of the Force. It may not be as bad, after all.

True he may be chubby-cheeked and smooth-skinned. But Alkali Baba has so far demonstrated the capacity to be independent-minded. Not for him those representations from the high and mighty seeking preferential postings and placements for their wards or candidates. You report and serve wherever it is you’ve been deployed as police personnel. He can be strict and tough and has evidently prioritised professionalism and discipline, both imperatives for a respected and respectable Force. He is cognisant of the uninspiring public perception of the Force, arising from the indiscretions and lawlessness of just a fraction of personnel in the organisation. He’s not sleeping over this reality.

The propensity of some officers towards indiscipline, misconduct and overzealousness, are regularly coming under his direct binoculars. Extortion of road users and members of the public, roughing up and manhandling of law-abiding citizens, and the penchant for bullying by some cops at the slightest provocation in certain instances, are beginning to catch his attention. Social media has been a notable enabler and Alkali Baba is taking advantage of the opportunities it offers in detecting and recalling such errant characters.

More frequently than in recent memory, the Force Headquarters plays host to erring operatives who are paraded before the cameras and summarily disciplined before the public. The rule books are diligently applied and defaulters have been dismissed from service, demoted, have their promotions delayed, or sanctioned as their offences may require. They are subsequently handed over to appropriate security agencies for appropriate interrogation and further punishment as may be necessary. Such reprimands are to serve as deterrents to potential offenders. There is no hiding place for them under the sun.

I also get a feeling that Alkali Baba is taking matters of remuneration, motivation, reward and promotion in the Force very seriously. I understand that the pay packets of officers and men enjoyed a 30% fillip last year. He is equally concerned about the appropriate placement of members of the Force as evidenced by their elevation, as and when due. There seems to be a new synergy between the Force, and the Police Service Commission, (PSC), now headed by Solomon Arase, a former IGP himself. Arase for me, holds the record of being the most accessible holder of that office. As serving IGP, he took his calls and responded to text messages. He refused to outsource his responsibilities preferring to be first to get the information for good or for not so pleasant. Issues of promotions can be quite touchy and emotional and one is glad the Alkali Baba regime is managing this. It’s heartwarming that some good friends in the system have earned their ranks under Alkali Baba’s watch. I should betray my interest here because I have good friends who have been beneficiaries at various levels.

Not a few times have I recently gleaned reports, too, of the payments of entitlements to families of service personnel who are felled in the line of duty. This is one area the NPF needs to reform as a matter of urgency and priority. Figures often quoted as gratuities for professionals who lose their lives for the rest of us to live are ridiculous jokes, juxtaposed with existential realities. Service to the fatherland should not be rewarded with the manner of measly tokenism that retiring cops or the survivors of those who are caught in the line of fire are paid. This is one issue requiring urgent review and re-evaluation by the police authorities under the Alkali Baba regime.

Alkali Baba we understand, has been gifted a two-year extension by the president which should keep him in office till 2025. His successors, according to a new legislation will be appointed for a term of four years each. This accords the incumbent IGP ample latitude to pursue, implement and entrench multilayered reforms in the service. The Alkali regime has been commended for providing accoutrements for serving personnel, for example. I’ve visited very senior police officers at their desks, who personally furnished and equipped their offices, all the way to sanitary ware. This and a whole lot of other issues require remediation in the Force which should be initiated by a proactive IGP.

Substandard will be a mild description of the quality of official accommodation in place for our police personnel. There are frequent expositions on this subject in the media and the matter commends spontaneous action. For all their exertions in the rain and sun, on the streets and lonely highways in an era where policing is at best manual and somewhat pristine, these compatriots should retire each day to liveable homes. The same applies to operational automobiles imperative for the mobility and effectiveness of serving personnel. A sustainable template must be developed for the management of such assets which rapidly fall decrepit ever so often. Regular training, retraining and tune-ups are imperative for officers and men. These needn’t wait until there is a national emergency, an election or an invitation to participate in a foreign mission. Nigerians earnestly look forward to a holistic makeover for our police force, to enhance performance, effectiveness and acclamation at home and abroad. The ball is on your side of the field, IGP Usman Alkali Baba.

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

The House of Representatives has queried the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) over 1014 projects under the Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF), including an e-Library project that was carried out to the tune of over N2 billion.

 The House frowned at a request by the Commission for N700 billion to ensure that 27 million Nigerian who do not currently have access to telecommunication get coverage.

 This was as the Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, along with other officials appeared before the House Ad-hoc Committee investigating the failure and inability of the Commission to promote widespread availability mobile telecommunication network service throughout Nigeria as well as accruals and utilisation of funds in the USFP.

The Committee chaired by Hon Bamidele Salam, pointed out that there was no specific description of what was done in the contracts and they were captured in a manner that they would be hard to track, alleging that 80 per cent of the projects had no specific location.

 The Committee requested that the NCC should provide the specific addresses and project description and specifications for each of the contracts that were awarded and listed in the 91-page document it submitted, by 2pm today.

It noted that most of the contractors also had no addresses specified on the document.

The lawmakers also queried the Commission for unilaterally deciding how much money goes to the USPF, saying that, “There is a list of contracts awarded by the USPF since inception provided for us here, which is about 1014 various contracts on which a few observations have been made.

“There is also the submission of the annual audited report of the USPF which has been from 2007 till date, but a few years missing from the audited reports.

“A few observations have been raised out of that and I want members to let us address those issues so they can take the answers holistically.”

 The Committee has also summoned the Minister of Telecommunications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, the Accountant General of the Federation, the Auditor General as well Chief Executive Officers of telecommunication companies over the issue.

They were summoned to appear before the Committee alongside the NCC on Wednesday, May 10, 2023.

Danbatta while responding said the USPF regulations stipulates that the Commission would determine the contributions from time to time.

 But the lawmakers argued that a regulation made by the NCC cannot supersede its enabling Act.

 Hon. Mark Gbillah said “The challenge is that the NCC has given itself the power to annually decide what it is going to annually allocate to USPF.

“Looking at the documents presented, administrative expenses rose from N19 million to N127 million. The expenditure on staff rose exponentially. Let me say that it is important for the NCC to let us know the premise on which you annually determine allocate the USPF or otherwise and what annual allocation they have proposed and implemented from inception till date.

“We need to know what the funds have been used for. For instance, the e-library alone you spent over N2 billion. How functional is the library based on the amount that have been allocated to them when a lot more should have been allocated in my opinion to the deployment of Base Transceiver Stations to have more coverage across the country?”

Another lawmaker queried why in 2015, despite the staff strength reducing from 48 to 45, there was an almost 100 percent increase from N434 million to N824 million.

Earlier in his response, said, “In 2013, there was a consultancy driven by the NCC to identify clusters of access gaps in the country. 207 clusters of access gaps according to that study and in these clusters of access gaps there were about 37 million Nigerians.

“Since then, through the Commission’s efforts, the number of people without access had been reduced to 27 million. What we have done to bring telecom services to people living in rural, unserved and underserved areas of this country, totalling 37 million people courtesy of the consultancy that was conducted in 2013.

“By 2019, we succeeded in reducing the clusters of access gaps to a 114 through the deployment of the necessary infrastructure needed to bring services to people living in rural, unserved and underserved areas of the country.

“This deployment of infrastructure are the base transceiver stations. I am going to give information about the base transceiver stations we have so far. This resulted in the reduction of Nigerians in those clusters from 37 million to 31 million in 2019. By 2022 we had reduced the clusters of access gaps to 97 from 207 in 2013.”

[ThisDay]