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The Edo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Tuesday alleged an attempt by security operatives to arrest one of its star witnesses ahead of the resumption of the governorship election tribunal sitting on Wednesday.

Naija News reports that a viral video circulating online showed the PDP’s governorship candidate, Asue Ighodalo, alongside the party’s lead counsel, Ken Mozia, and other party members, intervening as a plainclothes operative attempted to detain the witness.

 

The video, which surfaced late Tuesday, captured heated exchanges as party faithful tried to prevent the arrest.

 

One individual, believed to be a PDP supporter, claimed the witnesses and counsel were in a conference room at a hotel, preparing for the tribunal proceedings, when the attempted arrest occurred.

The governorship election tribunal is set to resume on Wednesday, with the PDP presenting its case challenging the outcome of the September 21 poll.

The party alleges irregularities and is seeking to overturn the election results in favor of its candidate, Ighodalo.

The PDP chieftain said, “All of a sudden, one of the security operatives said that the EFCC want to arrest witnesses of Ighodalo who are supposed to be in court on Wednesday in the first public hearing.

“They had no papers, they had no warrant of arrest, they had nothing and they just presented an identity card. Who does that? And taking into the fact that it is like reinforcing brazen criminality

“Ighodalo was even diplomatic and he let them to understand the enormity of what they are doing. The Nigerian Security Services and the EFCC cannot be an offshoot of a political party or people who want to pervert justice. So they are doing this on the eve of the case.

“These witnesses are not on the run.There is no invitation prior to this time asking these people to report anywhere. They just came and there are three young who now went back to their vehicle and left the whole place in chaos.”

An official of the hotel believed to be owned owned by a popular politician in the state said that the operatives claimed they were on investigation and that the individual who were looking for was not a lodger in the hotel.

[NaijaNews]

The burial of Comrade Bene Madunagu on Friday in Calabar will be a fitting farewell to a socialist revolutionary, scholar, feminist and patriot whose life and times could be summed up as the struggle for human progress. 

Tomorrow, family members, comrades, friends, colleagues and well wishers are expected to assemble to celebrate her in a potpourri of funeral activities including a feminist forum, lecture, tributes, cultural performances and renditions by mentees.

She was 77.

Comrade Bene, who died on November 26 last year, retired from the University of Calabar (Unical) as a professor of botany after many years of teaching and influencing generations of students and mentees. Before then she was an assistant lecturer at the University of Lagos.  Bene and her spouse, comrade and life-long collaborator, Comrade Eddie Madunagu, moved to Calabar in 1976. 

She earned degrees from the University of Lagos and University of Ibadan.  

Not a few members of the generation of university students of the late 1970s would, perhaps, have it etched in their memories the momentous events now historically dubbed “Ali Must Go.” The Ali in the slogan was Colonel Ahmadu Ali, the federal commissioner for education in the military government of General Olusegun Obasanjo. While tuition was free, students had staged a nation-wide protest against increases in the cost of accommodation and feeding. Things turned bloody and lives were lost. In the aftermath of this struggle for socio-economic justice, the military government responded with some repressive measures. Two vice chancellors, some lecturers, non-academic staff and a journalist were sacked. Student leaders were rusticated.

Among the victims was a Unical couple- Bene and Eddie Madunagu. The military government got Bene deported from the United Kingdom where she was pursuing an academic programme. They were ejected from the staff quarters.

This was just one of the better known sacrifices that Bene made gallantly in the course of the struggle.

In her younger days of revolutionary energy, she had even elected in company of other comrades to make the struggle for socialist Nigeria a full-time career. 

Significantly, a number of Bene’s comrades have been paying tributes to her revolutionary memory. These include the recall of events at different periods in the last 50 years of Bene’s life by Comrades Najeem Jimoh, Owei Lakemfa and Chido Onumah in sweep reviews of her activities and thoughts in various organisations to which she belonged. Some of those organisations were the Nigerian Youth Action Committee (NYAC) Anti-Poverty Movement of Nigeria (APMON), the Calabar Group of Socialists and the Movement of Peoples Democracy and the Democratic Action Committee (DACOM).

 Hopefully after the funeral there would still be conferences and publications on the various aspects of her versatile life defined by remarkable brilliance and untiring hard work.

From whichever perspective you reflect on the revolutionary career of Comrade Bene what you would find unmistakable was her immense humanity.  Ideologically, she was distinguished by her clarity of purpose, courage of conviction, notable consistency and unyielding commitment.  She was never a pretender on matters of principle. A well-organised human being, Bene could be brutally honest in making her point. I used to tease her that if we had a socialist government I could never propose her for the job of a diplomat because she was frank to a fault. She would retort that I was rather suited for that purpose because the nature of the movement was such that comrades had attributes for different purposes. Hence she nominated me to be the external relations officer in our Calabar group, DACOM. My task was to liaise with other comrades and groups in different parts of the country.

To her younger comrades, Bene was first and foremost an inspirer. She never doubted that popular-democratic struggles could be the basis for the transformation of Nigeria into a humane social order. She was always quick to add that this could only be a result of a disciplined organisation. Rather than agonise, she would rather call for proper organisation. In her praxis, she demonstrated a good mastery of the dialectics of tactics and strategy.

After the Fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, many socialists in the world became disillusioned and began to doubt the efficacy of socialism as system that could be efficiently productive as well as ensure distributive justice. The Nigerian Left was not spared of this atmosphere of despair enveloping many socialist parties and groups globally.

In many ways, Comrade Bene’s ideological personality was an exemplar of her generation of the Nigerian Left and the generation preceding it. The virtues of this generation include deep comprehension of the ideas of the struggle and the conscious efforts to reproduce cadres. For instance, Comrade Eskor Toyo, who also operated from Calabar during the same period, was in the generation before that of Comrade Bene. He was also a huge inspirer and a great mobiliser. Unfortunately, and this is on a self-critical note, succeeding generations have not been able to make sufficient advancement of this legacy.

 As a Marxist, Bene was also a self-professed feminist. In a 2008 piece she wrote for an international publication entitled “Voice, Power and Soul: Portraits of African Feminism,” Bene put the matter squarely like this: “I am an absolutely confirmed feminist, with no ”ifs’ or ‘buts.”  I am a feminist by choice and conviction… I am passionate about combating gender discrimination and insensitivity in whatever forms. I am a committed human rights defender and I work in defence of victims of sexual abuse and all forms of violence against women and girls.” She was neither abstract nor vulgar in her feminism. The feat she achieved with the Calabar branch of Girls Power Initiative (GPI) remains a testament to her feminist practice. Here is a solid establishment on ground for the empowerment and orientation of girls about their rights and responsibilities in the society. In partnership with Grace Osakue, the GPI was established in Nigeria in 1993 with the national headquarters in Nigeria. Scores of girls have been trained in the institution and its community activities have extended to other south-south states. Bene was also a founding member of Women in Nigeria (WIN), a feminist movement that emerged in 1982 to reframe the gender debates in Nigeria.   

Bene was a leader in the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).  She was a two-term chairperson the Unical branch of ASUU with a national prominence.

It was Comrade Sonni Anyang who introduced me to Bene and Eddie in 1978 and since then I became a comrade member of the family. I often stayed in their house during holidays.  Anyang, now a member of the Revenue Mobilisation and Fiscal Commission (RMAC), was then the leader of the Unical branch of the Movement for a Progressive Nigeria (MPN), a Marxist students’ group, with branches and allied groups on campuses. MPN was such a fertile ground for breeding cadres with ideological clarity. For instance, President Umaru Yar’Adua once said in an interview that he was a product of the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) branch of MPN.   

Comrade Bene often referred to me as her ideological son and I called her my ideological mother. In a 2017 publication of tributes to mark the 70th birthday of Bene, Eddie expressly acknowledged this relationship between me and Bene.  In that piece, Eddie also said the same thing of Comrade Biodun Jeyifo (BJ), who is the Chairman of the Advisory Board of the magnificent Socialist Library and Archives (SOLAR), the nucleus of which is constituted by the books, papers and other documents. The digitalization of SOLAR is in earnest. By the way, at another level Eddie and BJ constitute an ideological duo.  

Comrade Bene could sometimes be sharply critical of me; yet she was often my unyielding defender. Whatever concerned me was taken as her business.

Maybe it would suffice to recall a few touching moments to illustrate this mother-son relationship.  

In the light of the mood in the family during Bene’s 70th birthday, she and Eddie opted to have a quiet moment at a resort in Uyo. I was invited to make a trio for the occasion to reflect on a number of issues.

Some years ago, Bene called to inform me about an attack on her by robbers, who dispossessed her of some valuables.  From her voice it was evident she was seriously traumatised. In the evening of the following day I called to ask about her condition and how to replace some of the lost items especially the handsets. Her response: “KK, I had expected you would be in Calabar by now given what happened to me.” I was speechless and moved to tears. I arrived Calabar two days later in the true sense of solidarity.

The day I introduced my wife, Funmi, to Bene as my fiancée, Bene told her that I was her son and she should be conscious of the implication of getting married to a Marxist socialist. From that day on she also adopted Funmi as a daughter.  When she died the sad news was broken to our children as the death of the grandma in Calabar.

Very early in the relationship, Bene and Eddie left me in no doubt about my integration into their family apart from the fact that all of us belonged to the same movement as comrades. There was an issue on which both of them not  only agreed to seek my view but  to consent  whatever verdict I passed on the matter. With Bene behind the steering in their blue Volkswagen Beetle, the comrades came from Calabar to see me, a 22-year old youth corps member, in Takum Taraba State (it was then part of   the old Gongola State). I shared a humble three-bed room flat with two other corps members. To the amazement of my co-tenants who had known my visitors by reputation as radical lecturers, we didn’t look for a hotel room. Eddie and Bene spent the night in the little house where we had frank and comradely discussions till early hours of the following day. Issues were resolved and the visitors returned to Calabar in the morning. Till I left Takum other youth corps members kept talking about the comradeship displayed by Bene and Eddie. 

Invariably, a tribute to the memory of Bene would compel a salute to Eddie, in particular for one reason. The last seven years of Comrade Bene battling with Alzheimer’s have indeed been trying times for Eddie. His movement has been restricted to Calabar (without any court order!) as the chief career of Bene. I often told those who asked after Eddie that he had been virtually a detainee as he took care of Bene every day. The condition of Bene has also progressively drained Eddie physically, mentally, emotionally and, of course, materially. But he has soldiered on with a rare dedication to his wife and comrade.

In a tribute paid to Bene on her 70th birthday, Eddie dwelt on “the meaning and attributes of love.” Eddie, who professes no religion, wrote inter alia: “I refer my readers – revolutionaries and non- revolutionaries, Christians and non-Christians- to what Saint Paul said in the 13th Chapter of the First Letter to the People of Corinth…” My comrade was referring to this passage in the Bible: “So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love’’ – 1 Corinthians 13:13

Eddie found himself later in a psychological laboratory for testing this biblical doctrine for seven years. I dare say that he has done incredibly well by demonstrating to Bene the genuine love while she might  not even be conscious of his presence.   

Yet, this tribute would not be complete without expressing gratitude to comrades, friends, colleagues and well -wishers who have shown love and solidarity to both Bene  and Eddie in the last seven years. The support received  so far  has been nothing but great.

With the death of Comrade Bene a genuine revolutionary has indeed departed from our midst.

May her tribe increase.

Wednesday, 15 January 2025 06:34

Every Vote Must Count In 2027 – Akpabio

Senate President Godswill Akpabio has pledged the National Assembly’s commitment to completing the electoral reform process ahead of the 2027 general elections, emphasising that every vote must count.

Speaking Tuesday as the Senate resumed after the yuletide break, Akpabio, in a speech titled “Rising to the Greatness of Our Calling,” stressed the importance of strengthening electoral processes for party primaries, congresses and conventions.

“Electoral reform must be completed this year. As the nation begins preparations for the next election cycle 2027, we have a unique opportunity to strengthen our electoral act for the congresses, primaries and conventions,” he said.

Akpabio said, “It is our chance to give Nigerians an election that is transparent and credible and reflective of their will. Every vote must count.

“The foundation of every thriving democracy is trust in its electoral process. Electoral reform is not just a legislative duty; it is a moral imperative. It is our chance to gift the Nigerian people a system that is transparent, credible and reflective of their will.”

The Senate president urged lawmakers to remain steadfast in their responsibilities and dedicated to fostering peace and unity in the country. He identified two key priorities: the passage of the 2025 budget and completing electoral reforms.

Akpabio, a former governor of Akwa Ibom State, called on senators to rededicate themselves to the task of nation-building, saying, “We must rise to the greatness of our calling to fix Nigeria.”

On his part, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Abbas Tajudeen, outlined the House’s legislative priorities for 2025, with a focus on passing the Tax Reform Bills and the Appropriation Bill.

In his address, read by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Okezie Kalu, Abbas emphasised the significance of the reforms in driving economic recovery and fiscal stability.

“Our legislative agenda for 2025 prioritises the passage of the Appropriation Bill and the Tax Reform Bills, both pivotal to broadening the tax base, improving compliance and reducing dependency on external borrowing,” he said.

The speaker stressed the importance of equity in implementing the reforms, ensuring they address the needs of all Nigerians, particularly vulnerable populations.

He acknowledged the socioeconomic challenges facing the country, including hunger, poverty and recent tragic events like stampedes during palliative distributions and civilian casualties during military operations, as stark reminders of governance complexities.

To promote transparency and inclusivity, Abbas announced plans for a Citizens’ Town Hall on the national budget. This initiative aims to provide Nigerians with a platform to engage directly with lawmakers on fiscal matters, reinforcing public trust and accountability.

He further noted that constitutional amendments would address governance challenges and promote inclusivity and equity.

The speaker reaffirmed the importance of constructive collaboration between the legislative and executive arms of government while maintaining institutional independence.

 

“Our collective efforts should be focused on policies that prioritise the welfare of the people and strengthen the foundations of our democracy,” he added.

[DailyTrust]

Nigerian workers have again demanded at least 50 percent wage increase from the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu government to cushion the impact of the country’s untamed inflation.

The demand was re-echoed in an exclusive interview with DAILY POST on Monday by a senior executive of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, who preferred anonymity.

The wage rise demand comes barely six months after the minimum wage increase in July, 2024.

The workers want the presidential economic team to double down on policies that are inflicting pains on Nigerians in the last months.

“We have called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for a wage review. There is a difference between wage review and minimum wage negotiation.

“We had a meeting with the Secretary to the Government of the Federation; about seven or eight ministers were in attendance.

“They agreed that due to the country’s inflation, that there is a need for a wage review. We will officially write to the government for a wage review.

“On the proposed wage review, the leadership of NLC will meet to determine the exact amount, as you are aware prices have doubled after the last minimum wage review.

“Similarly, the President and his media team should double down on their harsh economic policies,” the NLC source told DAILY POST.

Meanwhile, calls DAILY POST made to NLC spokesperson, Benjamin Upah and its Secretary, Emmanuel Ugboaja were not responded to as of the time of filing this report.

DAILY POST reports that the central reason for the call for a wage rise was due to the rising cost of living in Nigeria.

Recall that Tinubu, in the build-up to the N70,000 minimum wage rise, had said he would accept a N250,000 wage rise if fuel prices were increased.

The President of NLC, Joe Ajaero, confirmed Tinubu’s position on the reason the union accepted the N70,000 minimum wage increase.

Despite the eventual minimum wage increase approved by Tinubu in July last year, the rise in the price of Premium Motor Spirit and other macroeconomic challenges had depleted the impact of the N70,000 minimum wage increase.

For instance, an average fuel price that stood at N770.54 per litre in July 2024 rose to between N935 and N1,100 on 13th January, 2025.

This means that between when the minimum wage was approved and now, fuel prices, a major determinant of the prices of goods and services, rose by N339, or 30 percent.

The National Bureau of Statistics, in its November Consumer Price Index and Inflation data, said headline and food inflation rose to 34.60 percent and 39.93 percent, respectively.

To this end, it is the eroding value of the N70,000 minimum wage that has made Nigerian workers demand a wage rise.

Also, speaking on the controversy of the four tax reform bills currently before the National Assembly, the NLC member asked Tinubu to review the threshold for workers that would enjoy zero taxation from N800,000 per annum to N1.5 million.

He aligned with NLC president, Joe Ajaero’s recent remarks that with the way the tax bill is structured with the minimum wage of N70,000, the majority of workers would have to pay more to the federal government as tax.

According to the source, the current structure of the tax bills means all Nigerian workers would pay more taxes to the government.

DAILY POST reports that President Tinubu, in his first media chat, said that four tax bills, namely the Nigeria Tax Bill 2024, the Tax Administration Bill, the Nigeria Revenue Service Establishment Bill, and the Joint Revenue Board Establishment Bill, are needed to retool the economy.

However, the bills had continued to generate controversies. Among those opposed to them are Northern governors, the National Economic Council, and other leaders from Northern regions.

Reacting, the NLC source decried that instead of the government lifting the pains of Nigerians at the time of skyrocketing costs of living, it wants to add to the burden.

“You are paying the lowest paid N70,000 as a minimum wage and you want to exclude only those from N0-N800,000 to be zero-taxed.

“What does that tell you? When you multiply N70,000 by 12 months, it will amount to N840,000; thereby, this means every Nigerian worker will pay more tax to the federal government.

“If in reality the government wants to exclude lower-income earners, the threshold should be N1.5 million, not N800,000, because inflation has eroded the value of the Naira.

“What is the point of collecting tax from a people already impoverished and who cannot afford a bag of rice?

“The government should be talking about how to reduce the burden on Nigerians, not add more by taxation,” he said.

DAILY POST reports that Ajaero had said the Nigerian government should address concerns in the tax bills.

[DailyPost]

The National Assembly Joint Committee on Finance has given revenue-generating agencies 48 48-hour ultimatum to appear or risk being withdrawn from government funding for 2025 operations.

It decried their failure to honour invitations for their 2025 budget defence and their revenue-generating profile.

The agencies include the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), the Nigerian Postal Service (NPS), and the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC).

Others are the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Tertiary Education Trust Fund, Oil and Gas Free Zones Authority and the National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).

The Nigerian Copyright Commission, National Insurance Commission, National Pensions Commission, National Space and Research Development Agency, and the Nigerian Metrological Agency are also included.

 

The rest are the Nigerian Agricultural Insurance Corporations, Airspace Management Authority, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas Limited, Transmission Company of Nigeria, Bank of Industry (BoI), and Nigerian College of Aviation Technology, Zaira.

Speaking during the second day of the revenue profiling exercise, Chairman of the Senate Committee of Finance, Senator Sani Musa (APC-Niger), said President Bola Tinubu, while presenting the 2025 budget to the National Assembly, mandated all ministers and heads of agencies to appear to defend their respective budgets before the Assembly.

According to Senator Musa, members of the National Assembly had to cut short their Christmas holidays to attend to the national assignment.

“But to our dismay, a lot of agencies have refused to honour our invitations to appear before us, for us to scrutinise their performances in 2024 and look at their 2025 projection, if it is justifiable.

 

“These agencies have refused to honour the Joint Committee’s invitation.

“So, by virtue of the constitutional powers given to the Joint Committees on Finance of both the Senate and the House of Representatives, we are given the chief executives of these agencies 48 hours within which to appear before this Joint Committee.

“Failure to do that, the Committee will not hesitate to recommend to the Appropriation Committee to withhold any appropriation to these agencies.

“If these agencies are self-funded, we will also request both the Minister of Finance and the Accountant General of the Federation to withhold their funding,” he said.

Chairman of the House Committee on Finance, James Faleke (APC-Lagos State), said the essence of the budget defence exercise was to boost revenue generation and cut down on borrowing.

“If these agencies refuse to appear before us, the needful will be done by the National Assembly,” he said.

The Senate adjourned plenary till January 28 to enable heads of ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) to defend their allocations in the N49.7trillion 2025 Appropriations Bill before its relevant committees.

The Senate’s resolution to suspend plenary for two weeks followed a motion moved by the Deputy Senate Leader, Senator Ashiru Oyelola.

Senators approved the motion when it was put to voice vote by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.

[TheNation]

Close your eyes and imagine Nigeria without security personnel – police and military. Will there be law and order? Will you and I be able to sleep with our eyes closed? Would we be able to travel in comfort without being ambushed by the bad boys? What would have been the state of crimes and criminality in Nigeria? Will foreign investors be coming to do business in Nigeria? Don’t you think the much-condemned japa syndrome would have quadrupled with everyone fleeing to saner climes? Sincerely, without the Nigerian Armed Forces, Nigeria would have disintegrated. This country would have been in what the great philosopher, Thomas Hobbes, called the State of Nature, where life is short, poor, solitary, brutish and nasty.

Yes, Nigeria still faces a Herculean task in terms of insecurity. Crimes and criminality daily occur and many Nigerians are living under perpetual threat from bandits, kidnappers and insurgents. Nonetheless, governments at all levels are trying their best to bring the situation under control. It is noteworthy that insecurity is a global phenomenon. Even theocratic states like Saudi Arabia and Vatican City have their fair share of crimes and criminality. I completely agree that the Nigerian government can do more and should bring about a society of peace and tranquility where people can live without let or hindrance.

Today, January 15 marks the celebration of 2025 Armed Forces Remembrance Day.  According to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, “The Armed Forces Remembrance Day, also simply known as Remembrance Day, is observed on 15 January to commemorate the servicemen of the Nigerian Armed Forces. It also honours veterans of World War I and II as well as the Nigerian Civil War. In 2024, the name was changed to “Armed Forces Celebration and Remembrance Day”. This is to celebrate members of the Armed Forces still serving and remember the fallen heroes thus correcting the notion that the day is meant mainly for the fallen heroes.”

Indeed, serving, retired, incapacitated and dead members of the Nigerian Armed Forces namely those of the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Air Force and Nigerian Nany deserve accolades. They fought in the First and Second World Wars and battled the separatist Biafra Army for three years from 1967 to January 15, 1970, to keep Nigeria one. They have been fighting against other separatist movements such as the Niger Delta Avengers, Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta, Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra better known as MASSOB and more recently Indigenous People of Biafra aka IPOB agitators. Members of the Oodua Peoples Congress and Yoruba Nation Agitators are not also spared by the Nigerian military who have relentlessly quelled their rebellion.

If not for the Nigerian military, Boko Haram insurgents, Islamic State in West Africa Province popularly called ISWAP and Lakurawa ideologues would have overran Nigeria and set up their model Islamic Caliphate here. It is the Nigerian Armed Forces that have been repelling their attacks and thwarting their inimical expansionist agenda. It is worth mentioning that if the task of internal security had been left to the Nigerian Police and Department of State Services alone, the security situation of Nigeria would have worsened. That is why personnel of the Nigerian military have been deployed across all the 36 states of the federation to complement the Nigerian Police who are already overwhelmed given the fact that they are understaffed and not well-resourced financially and materially.

According to Thisday newspaper of September 11, 2016, more than any other period in the nation’s history, the Nigerian Armed Forces are engaged simultaneously in at least 10 major internal security operations across the six geo-political zones of the country. These major internal security operations include the war against terrorism, deadly herdsmen, cattle rustlers, kidnappers, oil thieves and pipeline vandals, and the joint police/military security outfits against criminal activities, such as armed robbery in the 36 states of the federation. The various operations involve huge deployment of military assets and manpower and are being prosecuted simultaneously at a period of dwindling national revenue and protracted war against terrorism and insurgency.

 

In the North-East, there is Operation Lafiya Dole, which handles the overall counterterrorism and counter-insurgency operations. This has dovetailed to other specialised operations like Operation Crackdown to wind down the war against insurgents and clear the remnants of the Boko Haram sect in Sambisa Forest; Operation Gama Aiki, which serves the same purpose in the northern part of Borno State and Operation Safe Corridor, set up for the de-radicalisation and rehabilitation of repentant Boko Haram terrorists.

The North-Central has Operation Safe Haven stationed in Plateau State with an area of operation extending to Benue, Kogi, Nasarawa and Kwara States to quell ethno-religious conflicts and other criminal activities. There is also Operation Sara Daji and Operation Harbin Kunama in the North-West, established to battle the criminal activities of armed bandits, cattle rustlers and robbers operating particularly in Zamfara, Kaduna and fringes of Sokoto, Kebbi, Katsina and Kano States.

Down South, the military has a major operation codenamed Operation Delta Safe, which was formerly Operation Pulo Shield. It is now complemented by the Nigerian Army’s Operation Crocodile Smile and the Navy’s Operation Tsera Teku. These operations are all aimed at crushing the resurgent Niger Delta militancy and other acts of criminality like oil theft, vandalism, and bunkering in the region. In the South-West, there is Operation Awase with a mandate to contain the criminal operations around the Ogun-Lagos axis, particularly in Arepo, where illegal oil bunkering and pipeline vandalism are regular occurrences. South-East has Operation Iron Fence to combat armed robbers, hooligans and kidnappers. In addition to all these operations is Operation Mesa, which is a Joint Task Force operation against all forms of criminal activities in all the states of the federation.

Without these military operations, Nigeria could have gone to the tatters. Now, this is why there is a need to celebrate our living and fallen heroes. They sacrificed their comfort and lives so that you and I can move freely and actualise our noble dreams. Imagine the sub-human conditions under which the Nigerian military operates. Thousands of them have been killed in combat and ambush by the bandits and insurgents. Several thousand have been temporarily and permanently incapacitated in the course of serving their fatherland.  These serving and fallen heroes deserve better welfare than they currently receive. Yes, there is annual ritual of holding thanksgiving services in mosques and churches and laying of wreath at the national monument erected in their honour. However, something needs to be done by the authorities about prompt payment of salaries and allowances of serving military officers.

Most pitiable is the delay in the payment of the pension and gratuity of retired military personnel. Just last week, Tuesday, January 7, 2025, news media widely reported that retired military personnel barricaded the entrance to the Ministry of Finance in Abuja with canopies and chairs, demanding the full payment of their long-overdue entitlements. This protest follows a similar action in December, during which the retirees shut down the ministry over the government’s failure to settle their claims. For months, the retirees were told there were no funds to clear their entitlements, despite an official approval for payment. They are owed a 20 per cent to 28 per cent salary increment covering January to November 2024. The retirees are also demanding payments for other outstanding benefits, including palliatives for the period between October 2023 and November 2024, an additional N32,000 added to their pensions, a bulk payment of the Security Debarment Allowance, and a refund of pension deductions from the salaries of medically boarded soldiers. This is simply heart-wrenching!

A recent video footage projects Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni as a library with tomes of economic information that could turn the fortune of Africa around, if the leaders understand his thrust and have the spunk to wean the peripheral economies of their countries away from the tethers of the metropolitan economies and look inward for appropriate economic solutions.

Anyone who knows the pedigree of President Museveni, from his days as a political science student, student union leader and founder of the University Students’ African Revolutionary Front at Makerere University in Tanzania, would not be surprised at his revolutionary submissions.

He eventually became the leader of a failed Ugandan version of Fidel Castro’s 26th of July Movement that launched a protracted guerrilla campaign that led to the eventual resignation of Cuba’s President Fulgencio Batista on January 1, 1959.

In 1980, Museveni lost his presidential bid to rule Uganda to incumbent President Milton Obote. He later rallied opposition political parties into the National Resistance Movement that won the Uganda Bush War to become Ugandan President in 1986, after the decisive Battle of Kampala.

 

Though Museveni is now a dictator and has ruled Uganda since 1986, you cannot dispute his profound insight on how best to turn the economies of African countries around and free them from the grips of Euro-America’s International Monopoly Capital.

First, he explains that “the crisis… in Africa is because of philosophical, ideological (and) strategic mistakes, which we have been talking about since the 1960s”. He worries that agencies like the World Bank are preoccupied with “sustainable development,” which he thinks is a limiting paradigm.

Then he argues, “Africa does not need (what he sarcastically describes as) ‘sustainable underdevelopment,’ (but) needs socio-economic transformation.” He adds, “The main reason why there is no (economic) growth (in Africa) is because the growth sectors are not funded (by the multilateral lending institutions).”

He identifies four areas that African countries must concentrate on to achieve a low cost of production that will enable their economies to grow: These are railway transportation, electricity, low interest rates for the manufacturing sector and integration of the people into what he described as the “money economy”.

He explains that by starting with transportation: “You must have low transport cost… (which) comes from the railway.” He asks, “If you don’t fund the railway, how do you get low transport costs? Where will low-cost transport come from if you don’t have a railway?”

His discussion about electricity, which he describes as the second (low) cost pusher, starts with a query: “If you don’t fund electricity and you talk about sustainable development, what are you talking about?” He insists, “We must have low-cost electricity, not exceeding five cents per kilowatt hour.”

Though he did not explain how cheap electricity tariffs can be achieved, everyone knows that the tariffs of municipal electricity companies are usually cheaper than the cost of running personal electricity generators. Cost accountants and electricity engineers will know how to achieve his low-cost electricity idea.

He makes his case for cheap cost of capital, or low interest rate, for borrowings from development banks, instead of commercial banks, for the manufacturing sector, with the declaration that “The only person who can borrow from a commercial bank and pay back is a trader”.

His final argument is an insight into most African citizens being “outside of (what he calls) the money economy”. He notes that before 2013, more than 68 per cent of Ugandan homes “are in what is called subsistence sector”, and disclosed that from 2013, “61 per cent of the people were in the ‘money sector”.

Of a truth, those at the subsistence level of the economy will only work and eat. If they are farmers, they will only produce food crops and no cash crops that can be exchanged for money in the local and international commodities markets.

 

Whereas those who operate in the “money economy” will produce on a large scale for trade, even if they will consume a portion of their produce. If they are farmers, they will produce cash crops that will command high returns in the commodities market.

Then he reveals his disdain for African civil servants and policy advisers who seem to have taken the economic principles enunciated by Europhilia Adam Smith to heart. He complains, “Our civil servants talk about import support,” and declares with emphasis, “But I don’t want to import. I want to export!”

One of the major submissions of “The Wealth of Nations”, the seminal book written by Adam Smith, is that peripheral economies, like those of the Third World or the “Economic South,” must be encouraged to accumulate foreign currency to finance their importation of consumer goods from the metropolitan economies.

And, by the way, that neo-colonial device, is the foundation of the mercantilist exchange rate that requires more of the currency of a weaker nation for the stronger currency of a richer nation. An unproductive economy needs the currency of a more productive country.

This process of increased demand for foreign currency automatically raises the value of the currency of the selling nation. Thus, the exporting country trades two commodities, its currency, which must be bought at a premium, and its manufacture or produce that the weaker economy does not produce.

However, this scheme is reversed against Third World countries: If America wants to buy Nigeria’s petroleum, it does not have to first acquire the naira. It simply plunks its dollar onto the laps of Nigeria, almost with a take-it-or-leave-it attitude.

India, whose economy appears to have substantially moved away from the subsistence Third World level, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, appears to have discovered an obvious paradigm that many Third World countries appear not to have discerned, or discovered.

Interestingly, the railway, one of President Museveni’s favourite planks for economic development, leads the pack of physical, social, educational and digital infrastructure that headlines India’s paradigm shift out of poverty.

This is followed by a deliberate policy to remove as many citizens as possible from the clutches of poverty, by using a policy of inclusiveness that uses banking, housing, healthcare and even cooking gas, to migrate citizens to what President Museveni calls the money economy.

By encouraging innovations and manufacturing startups and removing archaic laws that hinder the growth of commerce, to enable the economic ecosystem to deliver more, Prime Minister Modi was able to up the performance of the Indian economy.

It is about the same way Dr Jumoke Oduwole ran the Office of Ease of Doing Business to prime the Nigerian economy to perform more optimally under the watch of former President Muhammadu Buhari. But somehow, the government of Mai Gaskiya did not deliver much on this score.

Anyway, between the praxis or practical application of the insights and theories of President Museveni and Prime Minister Modi, members of Nigeria’s economic management team should be able to tease out Nigeria’s road to economic recovery.

And while they are at it, they might think about the phenomenal Italian “economic risorgimento” that led to Italy’s blitz of economic growth, industrialisation and modernisation that occurred within a magical six years, between 1958 and 1963!

If members of President Tinubu’s economic team can swing this magic, their names may be etched in gold.

The National Bureau of Statistics, Nigeria’s key agency for data dissemination, is still reeling from a cyberattack on its official website, which occurred on December 18, 2024.

As of January 14, 2025, the website remains inaccessible, raising doubts over the timely release of its much-anticipated Consumer Price Index and inflation data, typically published on the 15th of each month.

The hack came just days after the NBS released its controversial Crime Experience and Security Perception Survey, which revealed that Nigerians paid an estimated N2.3tn in ransom within a year.

The sensitive nature of the report has fuelled speculation about a possible link between the survey’s release and the cyberattack.

 

Following the breach, the NBS took to its official X (formerly Twitter) account to confirm the incident, assuring the public that efforts were underway to restore the website.

The agency advised users to disregard any information from the compromised platform until the situation was resolved.

Despite these assurances, the prolonged downtime has disrupted access to critical economic data, sparking concern among policymakers, analysts, and investors who rely heavily on the bureau’s statistics for decision-making.

In a related development, the NBS has announced plans to introduce three new indexes in its monthly CPI.

The new additions are expected to be part of the rebased CPI.

The continued inaccessibility of the NBS website, however, casts doubt on how this critical report will be disseminated.

 

NBS spokesperson Joel Ichedi did not immediately respond to calls and WhatsApp messages from our correspondent on Tuesday.

However, he earlier told The PUNCH that the delay in restoring its website was due to a thorough investigation of the incident and the extended holiday period, which has hindered timely recovery efforts.

He assured the site will soon be accessible to Nigerians as efforts are ongoing to restore it.

The PUNCH earlier reported that the National Bureau of Statistics has earmarked N35m in its 2025 budget proposal for “Capacity Building on Cybersecurity and Data Centre Management.”

In addition to the cybersecurity allocation, the NBS’s 2025 budget proposal includes several other projects aimed at improving its operational efficiency, modernising infrastructure, and enhancing service delivery.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Marketing Research Association recently pledged to develop private-sector alternatives to ensure the availability of economic data in situations like this.

The association emphasised the importance of diversified data sources to mitigate the impact of disruptions from official agencies.

As the NBS battles with the attack on its website, The PUNCH observed that the Central Bank of Nigeria has moved its Monetary Policy Committee meeting previously scheduled for January 27 and 28, 2025.

The updated calendar on the apex bank’s website showed that the committee will meet five times this year, with its first meeting slated for February 17 and 18, 2025.

[Punch]

…Says Nigeria can’t afford to be left behind

 

The Director-General of the World Trade Organisation, WTO, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has advocated a decentralised approach to electricity supply in Nigeria.

 
 

She spoke on the critical role of Artificial Intelligence in socio-economic development at the 10th convocation ceremony of the African University of Science and Technology, AUST, in Abuja, yesterday.

According to the nation’s former Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Nigeria must increase internet access for her citizens to be able to upskill them in AI, a feat that would not be possible without access to constant power supply and that Nigeria could not afford to be left behind in AI.

She said: “Underpinning all that, of course, is access to reliable electricity power supply. Power outages and constant interruptions might prove a more challenging constraint in Nigeria and other African countries to internet access and AI adoption than anything else.

“In other words, we could lay out the smartest approaches to the adoption of AI, like the federal government and AUST are trying to do, but find that efforts undermine our lack of access to the very basics – electricity infrastructure.

“Here, I would propose that we take a more decentralized approach to electricity provision in the country in light of the improved affordability of renewable energy.

“Each production, consumption and learning unit that is able should try to create its electricity supply through renewables. I’m proud to learn that AUST is embarking on this path, with feasibility studies for hydro and solar sources that can carry the campus. The issue is to mobilize the N200 million needed to make this happen.”

Put AI regulations

Dr. Okonjo-Iweala, one of the university’s founders, noted that it was necessary to put regulations in place to guide the use of AI to ensure data security.

“We also need to bear in mind that relying on AI-driven systems could pose challenges to data sovereignty and security. Many African economies currently depend on foreign technology providers for AI tools and platforms, potentially raising concerns about privacy, governance and the protection of sensitive information.

“All these risks, combined with limited regulatory frameworks in many African countries, including Nigeria, underline the need for robust oversight and ethical guidelines tailored to local context.

“Nigeria and other sub-Saharan African nations must work hard, so they can overcome the lag in AI readiness. We score 0.34 on the IMF’s AI Preparedness Index, which evaluates factors such as digital infrastructure, workforce skills, innovation, economic policies and ethical regulations.

“Putting in strong regulatory guardrails is crucial to ensuring that AI serves as a tool for inclusive and sustainable development, rather than a source of new vulnerabilities. So on the road ahead, let me try to bring my talk to a conclusion,’’ she said.

We need investments to benefit from AI

The WTO boss urged investments in ICT infrastructure to enable Nigerians enjoy the benefits AI provides.
Her words: “I’ve been saying throughout that for people in Nigeria and across the continent to fully harness the gains from AI, we need investments. Investments in basic infrastructure first and foremost, investments in regulatory frameworks, in digital literacy, in upskilling our young people, in creating appropriate business ecosystems and more.

“But I’m confident that with foresight and careful planning for implementation, Nigeria and Africa can do it.”

She said over the past few years, AI had evolved from being a technological curiosity to becoming a force within industry and within people’s lives.

“It has already starting to redefine how we live, learn, work, and trade. AI has been likened to the advent of electricity, a transformative force that reshapes everything it touches.

‘’In my view, it’s already clear that AI is the most disruptive and transformative technology since the advent of the Internet a generation ago. It will transform the nature of work.

“It will change existing jobs. It will create new ones we had not thought about. And yes, it will probably take some jobs away.

‘’The potential gains are enormous. The consultancy, Pricewaterhouse estimates that AI could boost global economic activity by up to $15.7 trillion, or roughly 15% by 2030. They predict that this growth will not be confined to the industrialized north.

“The global south, including Nigeria, has much to gain. But countries across the developing world will need to be proactive to seize this potential, and we cannot afford to be left behind,’’ Okonjo-Iweala added.

[Vanguard]

Wednesday, 15 January 2025 06:01

Fire engulfs Focus Holiday hotel in Abuja

Fire has gutted Focus Holiday Inn, an upmarket hotel in the Garki area of Abuja, Nigeria’s capital city.

Eyewitnesses said the fire, which began around 3am, started from a section of the building before engulfing the three-storey structure.

Personnel of the fire service are currently trying to put out the fire.

There are no reports of casualties at the time of filing this story.

 

Fire incidents have become commonplace in the federal capital territory (FCT) recently. On November 2, 2024, fire razed a telecommunications facility in the Maitama area of the city.

On November 13, a popular fitness centre in Gwarinpa was also gutted by fire.

[TheCable]