Sudan, Africa’s third largest country is at the brink of disintegration, because two belligerent Generals _ Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan of the Sudanese Army and General Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, head of a paramilitary group known as the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are determined to destroy their own country for selfish reasons. They were allies previously when they worked together to oust Omar al-Bashir, the dictator and butcher of Sudan, but now the two Generals have turned against each other. They are fighting over power and position, backed on both sides by powerful outside interests whose main target is access to the rich resources of Sudan – gold, oil reserves, and gum Arabic. Sudan is the confluence for the White and Blue Nile to form the Nile. Egypt and Ethiopia have serious need of the Nile. About 10% of global trade passes through the Red Sea, around which Sudan is also strategically located. In the international community, there has been a scramble for the rich resources of Africa, since the colonial times, leading to the partition of Africa, slave trade, and the reduction of Africa to a source of raw materials to be exploited at cheap rates by Western and Eastern powers for their own gain.

The international community, for more than 100 years has talked about a global community of values, the equality and sovereignty of states, globalization, human rights and the common heritage of mankind but the same people who mouth those ideas the most are the most hypocritical. Africa is their convenient play-ground. Russia is seeking to control more of Sudan’s gold. It is backing the RSF in Sudan through the Wagner mercenaries. China also has its eyes on Sudan. Egypt is backing al-Burhan. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is pro-RSF. This is part of the drama playing out in Sudan: the hidden hands of hypocrites. But this has been possible before now in Liberia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sierra Leone, Mali, Cote D’Ivoire and elsewhere because Africa has an unlucky supply of bad leaders. General Omar al Bashir brought Sudan to its knees, instigated a civil war in Darfur. He ended up as an international felon and left behind a deluge. His country has not known peace since he was ousted in a coup in 2019. The same people who got him out of power are not better either: Generals Burhan and Dagalo have frustrated Sudan’s transition programme and now that country is practically in a war situation. Sudan is an apt illustration of the saying that “when two elephants fight, the grass suffers.” Indeed the people of Sudan are suffering. Hundreds of them have been killed, thousands have been displaced, artillery guns are booming on the streets of Khartoum. Normal life is impossible.

As Sudan slips into chaos, and a humanitarian crisis explodes, the international community, apart from urging peace and a ceasefire, has embarked on the evacuation of their nationals in Sudan. Every country has a responsibility to protect and secure the lives of its citizens whenever they are in distress in any part of the world. We have seen that happen during the war in Ukraine, the crisis in Somalia, and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nothing inspires patriotism and nationalism more than the feeling that your country truly considers you important. It is in this sense that we have seen many countries rushing to Sudan and getting their people out of harm’s way before the imminent blow-out. By Sunday, April 30, Britain had airlifted about 2, 122 people on 23 flights from Sudan through the Wadi Saeedna airfield near Khartoum. Yesterday, Britain further told UK citizens to head towards Port Sudan for an extra flight out of Sudan. Initially, the British government had said that NHS doctors without passports would not be airlifted, and that priorities would be given to British citizens and their families. James Cleverly, the Foreign Secretary who had initially complained about complexity has since said that those without passports have now been included in the flight to Cyprus, before the final journey home. The Royal Airforce and the Navy led the evacuation exercise. They went right inside Sudan and got their people out.

Similarly, the United States has dispatched its special operations forces to Sudan, aerial surveillance assets and unmanned but combat-ready drones. A Naval ship – UNS Brunswick, a fast-transport vessel was deployed by the Pentagon to the Port of Sudan. Two other ships are on the ground – the USS Truxtun, an Arleigh-Burke class destroyer and the USS Puller. The US Africa Command (AFRICOM) based in Stuttgart is co-ordinating the evacuation. On Saturday, the US evacuated all its embassy staff out of Khartoum. Other US citizens have been ferried out of Khartoum in buses, guided by drones and other aerial assets. With China and Russia involved in the Sudanese crisis, and given the strategic regional importance of the country, America’s interest in Sudan is understandable. Part of its present mission is to ensure “Red Sea Security”. The US is a partner of the Sudanese Armed Forces. Our key point is that the US, like 10 other countries, has moved swiftly to protect its citizens, and chosen to be strongly on standby off the coast of Sudan in case the situation further deteriorates. China has also sent a military vessel to the Sudan to evacuate Chinese personnel. India over the weekend also dispatched a patrol vessel, INS Sumedha to the Port of Sudan with two Indian Air Force aircraft – the C-130J transport aircraft stationed in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. India has so far evacuated 3, 000 of its nationals from Sudan. Other countries that have acted pro-actively include Germany, Canada, Italy, Turkey, Belgium, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, South Africa, France and the Netherlands. It is not an easy operation. On Sunday, a convoy trying to take French embassy staff in Khartoum to safety ran into a hail of gunfire. France has shut down its embassy in Khartoum. There is a race out of Sudan, as a 72-hour negotiated ceasefire and a further extension have failed, and bodies litter the streets, aerial bombardments continue, and Sudan begins to look like a convenient ground for geo-political war.

The foregoing picture leads us inexorably to one question: what is Nigeria doing to rescue its own nationals, about 5, 500 of them, and more who are mostly students who are stranded in Sudan. The figure is probably higher. Data from official sources in Nigeria are never reliable. Nigerians have been going to Sudan since the era of trans-Saharan Caravan trade, ad there may well be millions of us in that place. As the conflict in Sudan enters its third week, it is a crying shame that all that we have been getting from the Federal Government are excuses and such funny explanations that no serious country should offer. We have seen videos of Nigerians that are stranded in Sudan, most of them students, complaining about how they have been neglected by their government. We have seen families crying out for help. Nigerian youths are so aggrieved they have threatened to attack family members of Nigerian Embassy officials in Sudan. They say our Embassy officials are charging them $250 to be put on the evacuation list, Sudan is charging $8 per person, and those who have managed to get to the border of Egypt are being asked to cough out $25. While the Sudanese are fighting, Nigerians are staging a backward drama of their own. Nigeria’s Ambassador to Sudan, Safiu Olaniyan has had cause to cry out in a voice note, appealing to Nigerians in Sudan not to attack Embassy officials. He made it clear that they, the Embassy officials, are as vulnerable as other Nigerians in Sudan, and that nobody should attack them. According to him, the responsibility for managing the evacuation of stranded Nigerians is with the Ministry of Disaster and Humanitarian Affairs and the Nigerian Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) back home in Nigeria, but that he and his team would continue to liaise with the Nigerian authorities. Can you imagine a country’s envoy throwing his own home authorities under the bus? It is not just Nigerians that are stranded in Sudan, it is Nigeria itself that is stranded. Compared to what other countries are doing, Nigeria looks like it has no shame.

Last Friday, I asked for explanations on another platform in order to give Abuja the benefit of the doubt. They had promised that the first batch of Nigerians would return from Sudan on Friday. Allen Onyema, Chairman and founder of Air Peace Airline publicly offered to use his aircraft to airlift Nigerians out of Sudan, without charging a penny. His aircraft were ready. Since the Nigerian government had promised that Nigerians would be airlifted through Egypt, he went ahead and secured landing rights for Air Peace at his own expense in Egypt. The Aliko Dangote Foundation has also announced that it would partner with Air Peace to do whatever it takes to get Nigerians out of Sudan. Countries benefit from the philanthropy of some of their best citizens who complement government’s efforts without expecting anything in return. We saw that during the COVID-19 pandemic when Dangote led a private sector coalition to provide help. We saw that when Allen Onyema went to Ukraine to bring Nigerians out of Ukraine when war broke out. We saw that when during the xenophobic attacks in South Africa, Allen Onyema took the risk of helping to evacuate Nigerians. But the Nigerian government always disappoints, and that is precisely what they are doing in Sudan.

Once upon a time, Nigeria had the dream of becoming a world power. We boastfully referred to ourselves as the giant of Africa and our leaders could call the shots across the African continent, and fight for a seat at the United Nations Security Council. When Professor Bolaji Akinyemi was Minister of Foreign Affairs: he talked about such ideas as the Concert of Medium Powers and the Black Bomb and Nigeria as a world power. The situation in Sudan has just exposed how we have lost it. Three weeks after the Sudanese crisis began, Nigeria is talking about how much was spent to hire buses that would evacuate Nigerians. Dr. Sani Gwarzo, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Disaster and Humanitarian Affairs has given a press conference where he reportedly affirmed that Nigeria had set aside $1.2 million to engage bus drivers and that so far 26 buses have been engaged, each at a cost of $30, 000. N24 million to hire a bus from Khartoum to Port Sudan or Aswan? He said the money was sent through third parties. Dr. Gwarzo and the Situation Room on the Evacuation of Nigerians from Sudan which he chairs, must be told that they have more explanations to offer. He said 40 buses were engaged, but only 26 have been seen. What happened to the $1.2 million then? There was even that ugly incident as reported, whereby drivers taking Nigerians to Aswan, the Egyptian border stopped in the middle of the desert and told the distraught Nigerian passengers to pay or be left in the desert. They were there for five hours! The buses eventually started moving, only for us to be told again, yesterday, that one of the buses conveying 50 Nigerian students, tagged Katsina 1, caught fire. What kind of embarrassment is this? Are we serious at all?

What is worse is that the Nigeria Air Force (NAF) on Saturday sent a Hercules C-130 to Aswan, Egypt to get Nigerians back home. The NAF crew of 14 left with food supplies, but that crew is stranded at the airport. What is meant to be a swift operation has turned into a nightmare. The NAF is being charged heavily by the Egyptian authorities. The NAF crew is stranded. In Sudan and back home in Nigeria, we are told that the country is having logistics and diplomatic challenges. After three weeks, nobody is sure when Nigeria would airlift its first batch of evacuees. The Nigerian Air Force crew of 14 is suggesting that it is better to use Port Sudan, rather than Egypt, which is insisting on visa and payments.

What the hell is happening to African Unity? Egypt has provided support for other countries. Sudan has not asked the Americans for money. Somalia took its people out through the Ethiopian border. Sudan is surrounded by seven African countries. Nigeria is being snubbed by Egypt. Can’t we arrange to evacuate our people through another country? Or are we so hated diplomatically in Africa that nobody would offer our people easy passage? Why would Egypt ask Nigerians for visa in an emergency rescue operation? This is clearly a failure of diplomacy. Every African country treats us shabbily, especially the North African countries. The only exception was Muammar Ghaddafi of Libya during his lifetime. He had a grand vision of African Unity, but other North African leaders relate with sub-Saharan Africa only when they have something to gain. Please, where is the African Union and the regional economic groups in Africa? What is left of African integration? Has anybody deemed it necessary to summon the Egyptian ambassador in Nigeria? The NAF crew is recommending that Nigeria is better off evacuating our people through Port Sudan. Have we sent an aircraft there? Do we have a functioning Naval vessel that can provide transportation from Port Sudan to Nigeria, or do we need to hire Navy transportation?

Nigerians in Sudan want to be rescued from a war situation. Their families at home want them to be safe. If Nigerian officials have nothing intelligent to tell us, the minimum that they can do is to bring our people home, and until they have something concrete to tell us, they should do us the favour of avoiding plainly stupid excuses. It is painful that a country like Somalia is able to rescue its nationals from Sudan and my own country is busy telling Moonlight tales. If they need help, let them approach the British and the Americans or even the International Red Cross, or perhaps the Chinese, without getting involved in any matter beyond rescue and evacuation. As I write, a story pops up that the Egyptian President has now approved that Nigerians can be airlifted out of Aswan after President Muhammadu Buhari spoke to him, but with stringent conditions. Are we supposed to be excited about that? Did Egypt insist on the same stringent conditions with other countries? For the past four days, over 600 Nigerians have been stranded at the Egyptian border. For two days, our Air Force has been treated shabbily in Aswan. The only thing to say is that when our people are safely evacuated back home, we would believe the endless stories. What a country!

It was on Saturday, 22nd April, 2023, that it happened. At 12:30pm, I was airborne on Ibom Air, flight VM1601, from Lagos to Abuja. My seat was 16E. We were simply about 10 minutes, or thereabout, to landing in Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport, Abuja. Then the unexpected happened. The Pilot announced to bewildered passengers something we did not want to hear about. The flight will not land yet. Oh my God! Why? Hearts in our now dry mouths, we waited with bated breath; in suspended animation. The calm voice of the Pilot announcer said something which I considered to be at par with, perhaps, INEC's now infamous ''glitches''. Yes, "glitches" that would not allow us to land as scheduled! The type of “glitches” that would enable INEC miraculously (through Prof. Peller's abracadabra magic) transmit results of the Senate and House of Representatives elections held on Saturday, 25th February, 2023, straight ELECTRONICALLY from the POLLING UNITS to it's IReV; but could not do same for the Presidential election held simultaneously for the same voters at the same time, on the same date, at the same venue, and with the same Bimodal accreditation. I have vainly searched for answers through all forms of logic, philosophy, scriptures, permutations, scientific and literary thoughts - some OUTSIDE the box, and even some WITHOUT the box - (thanks to my good friend, CR State Governor, Prof. Ben Ayade, who told me it is better to think WITHOUT THE BOX than merely thinking OUTSIDE THE BOX). The former, he carefully explained to me, is boundless; while the latter is circumscribed. I have since been using this template up to this moment. But till date, I have not been able to appreciate or digest this INEC’s contradiction, duplicity, equivocation and ambivalence. Or, can you?

 THE AIR “GLITCH”- THE “VIP MOVEMENT”

Then, the pilot explained what he meant: "We are sorry to inform you that we cannot land yet. The Control tower has just informed us about "VIP movement". We are therefore going to circle round till we are cleared to land. We estimate that this will take us about 20 to 25 minutes. But, there is nothing to worry about". His voice was soothing and calming. But the pilot announcer did not tell us who the VIP or VIPs was or were. Pilots and crew announcers never ever disclose the names of such oppressors. Otherwise, passengers would lynch some of them; or pelt them with pure water and tomatoes. It was sufficient that some top brass, kahunas or head honchos was flying; and we lesser mortals must be held up in the skies. “Here was the Pilot telling us that there was nothing to worry about” for being held in the air against our will, under looming danger, fear of death, fear of the unknown, and fear of fear. In William Shakespeare’s “Julius Caesar”, Cassius (the jealous “lean and hungry look” of a man), said to Brutus, “Men at some time are masters of their fate: The fault, dear Brutus is not in our stars, but in ourselves, that we are underlings” (Act 1 Scene II). This may well have been between these two vile conspirators who schemed amongst themselves thousands of years ago to assassinate the flamboyant and overconfident Julius Caesar. Was it in our stars or ourselves, that in 2023, we were being held up in the air against our wish and will? Were we to blame? Certainly not. But, here we were nonetheless in the air, at the mercy of God- helpless and hapless. Did we hear the pilot announcer correctly? As expected, some passengers immediately panicked. Some sweated. Others prayed. Some eyes popped. Some other eyes closed. A passenger sitting close by me brought out his Viks inhaler, to inhale some fresh breath and perhaps, clear his probably congested lungs. One could hear some passengers’ murmurs of visible disproval and disappointment at being held up in the air by unknown "VIPs of waste". Who was he/she? Who were they? We were never told. Nor do I know till date.

 THE TENSION; THE ANXIETY

Our tension, anxiety, curiosity and fears were soon justified. The aircraft started experiencing some slight turbulence. Why was this turbulence, which in my first flight in the 90’s I had called gallop in the air? Was it because the aircraft was within range of heavy clouds which it was piercing through as a result of its low altitude before the sudden alert about VIP movement? Was it because it was attempting to fly higher, above the clouds? Was it because it was circling? Was there sufficient aviation fuel to withstand the extra forced time in the air? Too many thoughts swirled in our minds. Not being aeronautical engineers or pilots, we did not know why. We were scared stiff. As turbulence and bumps increased, I was equally scared. But because many passengers on board had immediately recognized me as I entered the aircraft (including those sitting nearby), I had to deliberately put on a bold face as if I was not frightened. But, I was agitated and terrified. Lizards crawling on their bellies surely do have stomach ache; but their flat position does not allow us to notice. Yes, fowls do sweat, but their feathers hide the sweat from us human beings. So, I hid my fears in smiles, affability and geniality. Edo no dey carry last.

I needed to put up this courageous and fearless visage to assure and reassure my more frightened neighbours that all was well. But, was all really well? Whoever has never experienced turbulence in the air may not know and appreciate God. When you do, you will become an emergency Cleric, an Imam, or a tested Sango worshipper. You will suddenly become a “prayer warrior”, reciting from your memory, rich verses of the Holy Bible and Holy Quran. You will speak in tongues. You will suddenly remember your spouse, children, parents, loved ones and friends. You will even remember your enemies, traducers, benefactors and beneficiaries, you will recall your wealth, money starched away in secret banks; vaults and hidden steel safes. at that moment, you will remember hell and heaven; and then pray silently to God for the forgiveness of your sins. The vanity of life will stare you in the face like an apparition. (See Ecclesiastes 1: 2-8).

 FACTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR AIR TURBULENCE

On a later date after our safe delivery (thank God), (a man who also knows much about aerodynamics), upon my inquiry, told me that turbulence (or gallop in the air as I called it during my first N15 flight from Benin to Lagos in the early 90s), could be caused by a combination of factors: turbulent air on earth atmosphere, as the streaming around the earth can cause sudden changes in the wind speed, thus rocking the airplane. There is also thermal turbulence which is said to be created by hot rising air from thunderstorms or cumulus clouds. My friend lectured that turbulence may also occur when tall buildings, mountains or landscapes distort the wind flow in the sky above the objects. This is called mechanical turbulence, he said. He finalized that airplanes’ wings can cause turbulence when planes fly closely behind one another, or take the same flight part, during taking-offs and landings. He however assured me that risk is very low during turbulence, as modern aircraft are designed to withstand sudden rises and falls (even nearly 100ft at a time). God forbid! Thus technological advancement has ensured that turbulence has not caused any plane crash in over 40 years; though turbulence has risen up to between 40% and 90% since 1958 over Europe and America, he lectured. Please, lecturer, I don’t like turbulence. I am not (and I believe all flyers) interested in lectures about weight, lift, thrust and brag of that massive piece of iron and steel in the air. We are simply interested in our safety. Sikena! Opoo!

Who cared about this scientific analysis at a time we were literally “dancing” in the air for the next 22 minutes in the hands of a very capable and competent pilot whose reassuring voice had at least lowered blood pressures and calmed frayed nerves? Who cared?

 “VIPs OF WASTE” INDEED

These so-called VIPs who endangered our lives in the air are, in my humble opinion, “VIPs of waste”. They fit squarely into the solemn words during the Radio Nigeria broadcast of Major Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu when he led the first Nigerian military putsch of 15th January, 1966. Said the handsome, … Sandhurst-trained, fire-eating, bold and idealist Okpanam, Delta State-born, devout catholic and teetotaler, “Our enemies are the political profiteers, the swindlers, the men in high and low places that seek bribes and demand 10 percent; those that seek to keep the country divided permanently so that they can remain in office as Ministers or VIPs at least, the tribalists, the nepotists, those that make the country look big for nothing before international circles, those that have corrupted our society and put the Nigerian political calendar back by their words and deeds”. Conceding the coupists were “not promising anything miraculous or spectacular”, he, however, promised “every law-abiding citizen …freedom from fear and all forms of oppression, freedom from genual inefficacy …..We promise that you will no more be ashamed to say that you are a Nigerian”.

Major Gideon Orka, in 7 am April, 22, 1990 coup broadcast to tyrannical Nigerians, heralding the aborted overthrow of the Gen. Ibrahim Babangida military junta, had identified the elite cliquism as those responsible for the “intrigues combination and internal colonization of the Nigerian state by the so-called chosen few”. He identified this group as being “responsible for 90% of the problems of Nigerians.

Majors Nzeogwu and Orka must be turning in their 57 and 33 years (respectively) cold graves to know that all the problem areas they identified in his coup broadcast have since magnified and increased geometrically; not arithmetically. He would be shocked to hear that kick-back is no longer 10% today, but between 50% and 80%. He would shudder to know that corruption now walks on steroids, strutting about like a proud peacock. They will grimace to know that state captors have tightened their asphyxiating grip on the dry throats of conquered Nigerians. Otherwise, why would any sane leader (of whatever post or position), endanger the lives of his/her people in the air just to be seen flying the airspace alone? What special security would such a leader require that should also not avail the people? Were such a leader’s handlers not aware of the schedule of his take-off and landing time such as to alert all airlines and tarmacs to delay their flights (on ground) for that period of his flight, rather than allow them to first take off and be hung in the air? Why this crass sense of irresponsibility, insensitivity and insensateness? Do such leaders appreciate how many hundreds (or even thousands) of Nigerians and Nigerian families whose lives they endanger by their sheer megalomania and narcissism?

On March 23, 2022, one Obiora Okonkwo, representing the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) at the House of Representatives Committee on Aviation, publicly hearing, bemoaned VIP movement as one of the major reasons for the delays and disruption of flights. He said regulations only allow them to announce that flight delays are “due to operational reasons”, and no more. This is to mask the real reasons, including VIP movement. He explained: “You can imagine when you have waited one hour or one and a half hours in Lagos and you have taken off to land in Abuja. And when you get to Abuja airspace and there is VIP movement, you cannot control that,”…….
“You have to wait as long as it takes the VIP movement before you are cleared for landing. And when you land, before now operators could say because of VIP movement, but today, we have been restricted not to mention VIP so that the blame should not go to somebody else.”

 No wonder passengers often hear of delayed and disrupted flights due to only “operational reasons”.

For those VIPs who also keep hapless citizens standing under the sun and rain while their long convoys snake their way through crowded cities do they ever reckon with how many citizens die prematurely, in the process, for not getting to hospitals in time to get urgent medical attention? Have they ever thought of how many students have missed their examinations; or entrepreneurs who have missed crucial corporate meetings and appointments by being held hostage through such reckless VIP movements? Do they even care? Do they still have the attributes of humanity?

MY FREE LEGAL ADVICE

For those VIPs who do not know, let me give you free legal advice here. Anyone who causes the death of, or damage to, any air passenger, road- user, or train commuter, who thereby suffers damages due to being held down by VIP movement, you are legally liable for such recklessness. Such VIPs could be damnified in huge punitive, aggravated, exemplary, consequential and compensatory damages in negligence, for individual and corporate liability.

The Court of Appeal was quite emphatic about both the rulers and the led observing the Rule of law. In JAMES v. GOV. OF EDO STATE & ORS (2021) LPELR-54203 (CA). It held:
"Above all and when all is said and done, in law as in every society governed by democratic norms in which the Government is of the people, by the people and for the people, every offence, every restriction on movement and every penalty to be imposed thereon must be within the confines and ambits of the operation of the Rule of Law in a democratic society such as Nigeria. See Raymond Temisan Omatseye V. Federal Republic of Nigeria (2017) LPELR -42719 (CA) per Georgewill, J.C.A. In modem contemporary jurisprudence, the rule of law is the condition in which all members of the society, including the rulers and the led accept the supremacy of the law. It is neither an option nor one of choice. It is a concept in which the citizen is entitled to the observance of the principles of natural justice in the determination of any question involving his rights and obligations under the law. It denotes absolute supremacy or predominance of law. Thus, under it, the Constitution is the supreme law and the observance of the laws of the land must be the guiding code in the daily life of both the Rulers and the Led, so much so that none whosoever is exempted from the observance of the laws of the land. This is indeed the true essence of the rule of law.”

In APPH & ORS v. OTURIE (2019)LPELR-46301(CA), the Court of Appeal was again on song when it held that the “rights of freedom of movement and residence pursuant to Section 41 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) guarantee unhindered residence and movement to all citizens all over Nigeria and except on suspicion of commission of a criminal offence. The said rights protect against expulsion of citizens except in pursuance of valid extradition proceedings. See WILLIAMS V MAJEKODUNMI (1962) 1 ALL NLR 413 and FEDERAL MINISTER OF INTERNAL AFFAIRS V SHUGABA DARMAN (1982)3 NCLR 915." Per MUHAMMED LAWAL SHUAIBU, JCA (Pp 14 - 15 Paras D - B)”

In EZIEGBO & ANOR v. ASCO INVESTMENT LTD & ANOR (2022) LPELR-56864 (SC), the apex Court dilated on the importance of section 41 of the 1999 Constitution which guarantees freedom of movement throughout Nigeria. It held that: “The primary aim of the section is to generally protect persons from abuse of power; official and individual. See Onwo v. Oko (1996)6 NWLR (ppt. 456) 587.” Per MOHAMMED LAWAL GARBA, JSC (Pp 7 – 8 Paras F - C)”

A CAVEAT TO VIPS
Those who are President, Vice President, Governor and Deputy Governors should stop wallowing in shielded VIP movement aggrandizement by feeling protected with immunity under section 308 of the 1999 Constitution. This is self-delusion. I laugh. I guffaw. Protection? Not so fast. Only temporary relief. The ephemerality of power and its destined expiration would sooner stare them in the face. Let them read the powerful statement of the Supreme Court in IMB Securities v Tinubu (2001) All NLR 264, to the effect that although this set of people cannot be prosecuted while in office because of their immunity, they can however be investigated. And such investigation can always be used against them after they leave office. See also the case. In Fawehinmi v IGP (2002) All NLR 357, the Hon. Justice Samson Odemwingie Uwaifo, an iconic Jurist of immense intellectual fecundity, said with great erudition, as follows:

“That a person protected under Section 308 of the 1999 Constitution, going by its provisions, can be investigated by the police for an alleged crime or offence is, in my view, beyond dispute. To hold otherwise is to create a monstrous situation whose manifestation may not be fully appreciated until illustrated…Now, if the police became aware, could it be suggested in an open and democratic society like ours that they would be precluded by Section 308 from investigating?… The Police clearly have a duty under Section 4 of the Police Act to do all they can to investigate and preserve whatever evidence is available. The evidence or some aspect of it may be the type which might be lost forever if not preserved while it is available… The evidence may be useful for impeachment purposes if the House (of Assembly) may have need of it. It may no doubt be used for prosecution of the said incumbent Governor after he has left office… But to do nothing under the pretext that a Governor cannot be investigated is a disservice to the society”.

A word is enough for the wise. As our elders tell us, it is only the stubborn fly that follows the corpse into the grave. To say more will be otiose. VIPs, please, leave us alone in the air. Go your way. Let us go ours. We also have our lives to live. Do you hear, hear, hear me? Haba!

To suggest that the advancement of any society chiefly hangs on the elements of homogeneity and lateral filial connections is a self-determining fallacy. Nature bubbles in divergence and eclecticism. The beauty and wonders of our world are by the fashioning of heterogenous intelligence. Man was not made to be culturally, socially, morphologically, and linguistically unipolar.

So, in essence, Nigeria's multiformity is not the dominating factor for its seeming ungovernability. Rather, it is the abuse and exploitation of differences; abnegation of civic duty, denuded understanding of citizenship, refusal to submit to the collective interest, native nationalism, and the absence of a rallying identity and cause, that are the denominators of Nigeria's quandary.

Those who say Nigeria needs to splinter according to ethnic determination to achieve unity, peace and progress are ignorant of the complexities of natural design. "Presumed homogeneity" does not guarantee unity, peace, or progress among a people.

In fact, a good number of the world's most successful countries are so endowed by the nourishment and talents of their diverse population. There is wealth in diversity.

So, essentially, the argument that a Nigeria carved up along sectional contours will become united and prosperous is a slothful one. It shows a vacancy of thought and reason. Nigeria's challenge is not its diversity, but the unwillingness of its leaderships and followership to be deliberate citizens.

We are citizens of Nigeria by the fashioning of fate, marriage, or naturalisation. But are we deliberate about our citizenship? Being deliberate citizens implies a commitment to the ethos of the country and a discharge of our responsibility to fatherland.

The 1999 constitution (as amended) spells out these responsibilities as: "Section 24 (a)

It shall be the duty of every citizen to – (As Nigerians, we owe our country to do the following:) abide by this Constitution, respect its ideals and its institutions, the National Flag, the National Anthem, the National Pledge, and legitimate authorities; (Obey the constitution and respect our national authorities and icons;)

 "Section 24 (b)

help to enhance the power, prestige, and good name of Nigeria, defend Nigeria, and render such national service as may be required; (Promote Nigeria’s reputation and power and defend the country if the need arises;)

 "Section 24 (c)

respect the dignity of other citizens and the rights and legitimate interests of others and live in unity and harmony and in the spirit of common brotherhood; (Live in peace and unity with all others, respecting their own individual rights;)

 "Section 24 (d)

make positive and useful contribution to the advancement, progress, and well-being of the community where he resides; (Support the development of your local community;)

 "Section 24 (e)

render assistance to appropriate and lawful agencies in the maintenance of law and order; and (Help government agencies maintain the law;)

 "Section 24 (f)

declare his income honestly to appropriate and lawful agencies and pay his tax promptly. (Declare and pay the truthful and complete tax on time.)"

 My interest here is in section 24 (b) and (c) which stipulates that as citizens we must promote Nigeria and defend its reputation as well as respect the dignity of other citizens and live in unity and harmony and in the spirit of common brotherhood.

 It takes deliberate citizenship to actuate these ideals. It takes an attuned citizenry to live by the laid downs of our constitution. Clearly, we have been remiss in this regard.

 Nation building is by and large citizens doing the building. There is the place of leadership, but the office of the citizen is a critical trigger for the change we seek. We cannot abandon the responsibility of building Nigeria to anyone.

 Nation building will not be possible if a number of citizens are largely ignorant or insouciant about their part in solving the puzzle. The leadership can do its bit, but in our pottery wheel lies the greater task of moulding Nigeria the way we want it to be.

We hear and read of Adenuga’s astounding life-saving interventions involving the high and the low, particularly the low. I remember a case: A member of Globacom’s PR team sent me a WhatsApp message three years ago. It was a video clip that had gone viral. The sender accompanied it with a request: “We are looking for this woman. Can you help?” The lady in the video was stark naked. She was shown in her thatched hut flinging away her own scant wares. She was obviously not insane. What I was seeing in that video was not madness; it was the world showing the woman how wicked it could be. The strange behaviour was the victim’s reaction to the harassment she was getting from some agents of state; the wicked could be heard behind the camera issuing threats. We tried and searched everywhere but couldn’t locate the woman. Months later, I read in a Glo in-house magazine that the hunt had yielded results; she was discovered deep in the woods of a village on the outskirts of Badagry, Lagos State. She was met broken and bruised by life. The woman’s consequent trip to Adenuga’s presence in Banana Island was a journey of total rebirth and reinvention; her story changed positively forever. There are many of such search-and-rescue stories involving the quiet man of means who clocked 70 on Saturday.”

It was almost a missed call; or, more appropriately, an ignored call because the telephone number was unusual – an eight digit number. But, something told me: pick it, and I did.

“Hello, is that Mr. Lasisi Olagunju?”

“Yes, sir,” I answered, waiting for what would come next.

“My name is Mike Adenuga…” It took me two, three seconds to process what I just heard: Adenuga? Of Globacom? The voice sounded real. I heard myself exclaim “Ha!” He heard me too and burst into laughter; he laughed heartily.

Then, he followed up; telling me that he called to appreciate what I wrote. “I have just read your most recent article,” he said while commending the language, the choice of words. That was four years ago. He was referring to my August 19, 2019 piece I entitled: “Awujale’s Ojude Oba ‘swansong.’” He, particularly, thanked me for the mention I gave him and his company in that piece. But – I told myself – words about him and his exploits were in not more than two paragraphs, yet he was effusive in appreciation!

“Are you from Ibadan,” he asked me.

“No, sir. I am from Eripa.” I could guess what would follow.

“Eripa? Where is Eripa?”

“Eripa is in Osun State, sir.”

“Osun State. Osun State. Why are you not from Ibadan? You should have come from Ibadan.” I burst into laughter; he laughed too.

Then, he said some other great things and ended the call. The significance of that conversation was not lost on me. The man who just called and spoke so affectionately with me is one of Africa’s authentic richest and best. The call was a surprise king-size call; it is impossible to forget that moment.

That reach-out speaks to the man’s humanity and the values undergirding his essence. I noticed that the hugely successful businessman used the Yoruba honorific pronoun ‘e’ for poor me throughout that encounter. It was a lesson in humility and the reason why the great is great and will remain so. It was a privilege that was also a reminder that the world was reading and watching; and that the writer should be very careful about what he writes and how he writes it. When you choose to speak or write, you’ve become an egg thrower; you cannot repack whatever you have unleashed. I learnt that lesson from home and had it burnished one busy evening in 1996 or thereabouts. Mr Biodun Oduwole was our Editor-in-Chief. He sauntered into the newsroom that evening, glanced through a story, looked up and commented: “You people should be careful in your choice of words when you write. These things that we write, just one line is enough to build or destroy…”

I have, these past days, read with relish tomes of tributes from Adenuga’s fans and beneficiaries on his 70th birthday. The climax came on Saturday, 29th April; it was his day and the way it was marked showed that what was celebrated was not just the billionaire or his billions. More significantly celebrated was the social value of the billions the man has – the humanity behind the wealth. How does it feel to be 70 in great wealth and gracious quietude? Those who have been there will tell us. We know one thing, however: Man is not born perfect; he has weaknesses but men of distinguished provenances age quietly and get better; the tannins get dissipated; a bouquet of rich flavours seep in – exactly like extraordinary wines of 70 years, preserved and aged under ideal conditions- right temperature, stable humidity. I carefully read many of the tributes, testimonies and testimonials. His ways teach us that you don’t have to be in politics and public office to impact humanity in positively unforgettable ways. Adenuga deserves every great thing that has been said about him. He deserves more – including this postscript.

We hear and read of Adenuga’s astounding life-saving interventions involving the high and the low, particularly the low. I remember a case: A member of Globacom’s PR team sent me a WhatsApp message three years ago. It was a video clip that had gone viral. The sender accompanied it with a request: “We are looking for this woman. Can you help?” The lady in the video was stark naked. She was shown in her thatched hut flinging away her own scant wares. She was obviously not insane. What I was seeing in that video was not madness; it was the world showing the woman how wicked it could be. The strange behaviour was the victim’s reaction to the harassment she was getting from some agents of state; the wicked could be heard behind the camera issuing threats. We tried and searched everywhere but couldn’t locate the woman. Months later, I read in a Glo in-house magazine that the hunt had yielded results; she was discovered deep in the woods of a village on the outskirts of Badagry, Lagos State. She was met broken and bruised by life. The woman’s consequent trip to Adenuga’s presence in Banana Island was a journey of total rebirth and reinvention; her story changed positively forever. There are many of such search-and-rescue stories involving the quiet man of means who clocked 70 on Saturday.

Adenuga has had very many profound engagements with the Nigerian society. In my 2019 piece on Ijebu’s Ojude Oba, I said the king’s thoughts had an intriguing confluence with Adenuga’s intervention in telecoms in Nigeria; the need to enthrone the right values in public and personal policies. Nigerians of 30 years and younger might likely not know that digital mobile telephony came as expensive as wanting to be president of Nigeria. Payment was as unfeeling as Multichoice’s erratic, ever-increasing DSTv subscription fees; the SIM card you get for free today was N30,000 or more. Worse, it did not matter that you made a phone call for just a second – you must pay for 60 seconds. It was ‘buy a second, pay for a minute’ –which was N50. Phone users cried and wailed but the kingly ‘foreign’ operators dispensing telecom favours in 2001, 2002 insisted that per second billing was not possible. Then the Ijebu man came with his Glo on 29 August, 2003 and, from that point, telecom kingmakers stopped playing god – a second’s call started attracting a second’s pay across all platforms. SIM cards became affordable; Glo leveled the ground for the rich and for those on the other bank of life. What heartless business said was impossible became possible; Adenuga’s entry and intervention snatched back for Nigerians their country from the jaws of invasive Shylocks in telecoms. The crocs ate their own jaws, teeth and all; they surrendered. You can now see why the beneficiaries of Adenuga’s life and business choices are not only Globacom’s 55 million subscribers. The entire country is his beneficiary. That is why his quiet 70th birthday was made deafeningly loud by usual and unusual people. The reason I am writing this, wishing him well.

How does it feel to be wealthy? A Yoruba saying says having a lot of money gives peace of mind (ìfòkànbalè); an old musician, Yusuf Olatunji, defines “having money at home” as the father of peace (baba àlàáfíà). And, so I ask: What is the purpose of wealth? Or, how does wealth advance one’s goal in life? I go to Aristotle, ancient Greek philosopher, who exhaustively engaged the subjects of wealth, life and happiness. What is the ultimate purpose of life, he asked? It is to be happy; and happiness is “to find joy, contentment and satisfaction in one’s pursuits and relationships.” He further described ‘happiness’ as “the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence.” He said a person is happy “who lives in accordance with complete virtue and is sufficiently equipped with external goods, not for some chance period but throughout a complete life” (Nicomachean Ethics, 1101a10). In other words, to be truly happy, you need money, you need lovers, friends; you need skill, knowledge, sound education, sound health and other “external goods” sufficient for a lifetime, enough for “a complete life” – and you deploy all these “in accordance with complete virtue” for the general good. When a man of means sets targets of goodness and meets them; when he chooses a life of ‘seclusion’ and of quiet bonding and connectedness with the high and the low; when he avoids the tempting flashlights of loud giving, he achieves for himself a definition of happiness that goes beyond the limits set by the masters of philosophy.

I read some headlines that described Adenuga as the “Spirit of Africa.” What I see is the never-say-die spirit of the Ijebu in the man. Many roads lead to the Ijebu market; the successful homeboy, most times, chooses that one which is rarely taken. And it leads gracefully to the throne of grace. The apple never falls far from the tree. The 2019 article that attracted that telephone call from the Globacom chairman was on Oba Sikiru Adetona’s preemptive demand on the kind of person that should be allowed to succeed him as the Awujale. The oba spoke at that year’s edition of the annual Ojude Oba festival sponsored by Adenuga’s Globacom. And there, he said what no oba likes to say – words about death and succession: “When I eventually go, please, go for a capable successor. Reject any candidate that will put Ijebu land into regression. Do not politicise the process of selecting my successor. Do not go for people that will draw Ijebu backwards. If the next ruling house does not present a viable candidate, please, reject him and go for the next ruling house with a capable candidate. Do not go for moneybags that will destroy the achievements Ijebu land has recorded so far.” I felt (and still feel) that only an unusual king of an unusual people would so calmly breach the iron wall of fear; a sovereign talking so loudly about his own after-reign.

Two things stand out in that royal statement: viability of leadership and repudiation of unethical deployment of resources. If the oba had said what he said before a Nigerian general election, his dove would have been accused of chanting incantations to the hearing of our politicians’ irritable pigeons. What he said is truth that gives allergies to priests and principalities of Nigeria; angels who share kola nut lobes with the devil. But, the oba’s words were straightforward and his audience well-defined. His Ijebu people were his audience. Every Yoruba person knows something about the Ijebu’s affinity with money. They are not menial because they know money lives in elevated grounds. While the Yoruba of the hinterland were beating their chest with cutlasses and hoes and saying ìgbé l’owó wà (money is in the bush/farm), the Ijebu, very early in life, rejected that business sense; they proudly told themselves that the city was their own farm. Daniel R. Aronson’s ‘The City is Our Farm’ (1978) is about Ijebu families and their very eloquent ways and means to fame, power and wealth. People who know the Ijebu know they’ve always had money and know how to spend money. Their carriage, however, suggests that the value they place on wealth is directly proportional to how it benefits the world of the wealthy. It is the functionalist route; a rejection of wealth for wealth’s sake. They measure the social value of money in terms of the functions money performs. That, incidentally, is the position of grand old economist, Walter Stewart (1885-1958) in his ‘Social Value and the Theory of Money’ (1917: 984). Wealth profits the wealthy only when it is virtuous in usage and makes the less fortunate happy. Did you not read testimonies on this in articles, columns and advertorials, etc celebrating the essential Mike Adenuga on Saturday?

Every nation has founding ethics which define its values and shape its people’s politics and economics. The Awujale knew his people and why he believed leaders affect destinies – and that money should not be a city’s electoral college. What picks leaders is in their history. Tradition says the story of Ijebu and its stellar spirit started with the migration (from wherever) of an inventive people. Read T.O. Ogunkoya’s The Early History of Ijebu (December, 1956). It tells us how from their beginning and across centuries the Ijebu have proven to be a resiliently resourceful people with a very rich history in war, politics, trade and commerce. They have always been a people of “change and continuity.” They traded with Europeans before colonialism and gained power and prestige. They are a people who send power and money on errands, not the other way round. They can be very tenacious in pursuing goals and unyielding to challenges. Like lions, they hold their ground and defend their territories. The British-Ijebu war of 1892 was essentially a war over trade and routes. They lost that war, but they gained the respect of the British who saw how worthy the Ijebu were as an adversary.

We gain a better insight into what is stocked in that DNA when we read the words of a pioneer Yoruba clergyman, R. A. Coker of the Church Missionaries Society (C.M.S.) in one of the church’s ‘Annual Letters’ dated December 19, 1897: “The Jebus are an ambitious people and will not be rivalled. They are quick at acquiring the art of anything and are too impatient to go through a thing systematically. For instance, they cannot see why the art of reading could not be acquired or accomplished in a week at most (as well as) master carpenting, shoemaking and tailoring. One man learnt to read the Bible in a month. Very large numbers of books are sold – 600 portions of scripture….Many begin to read from curiosity or in order to know what their companions may be boasting of or from some other motive” (see J.D.Y. Peel, 1977: 130). That was over 200 years ago. There is no way you read their contemporary history and look at them today without those same traits winking at you. If Adenuga was denied a GSM licence in 2001, lost $20 million and he dug in and reapplied, paid $20 million again and got it in 2002, you can understand where he was coming from.

Excellence is never an accident; that, again, is from Aristotle. The philosopher added that excellence “is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, and intelligent execution; it represents the wise choice of many alternatives – choice, not chance, determines your destiny.” Trees tower in the forest because they mastered the art of putting the wind on the leash. With their deep roots and sturdy stems, they shame storms; they habitualize excellence for the world to marvel at and applaud. And, the fruit is a product of the tree and the soil that sires it. Peel (1977) said Ijebus are “one of the most distinctive Yoruba-sub-groups.” The British sociologist was right. In politics, commerce, religion, scholarship, entertainment and in virtually all other sectors, Ijebu’s exclusivity and distinction have not stopped to amaze the world around them. That sub-group gave us Obafemi Awolowo; gave us Tai Solarin and Wole Soyinka, Prince of Isara. It is a corridor with a womb for giants, producing world champions, the pride of the black race. Think of boxers Anthony Joshua and Israel Adesanya, current global sensations. Today’s biggest is Mike Adenuga who sits atop the throne of business – and of philanthropy.