OTHERS' VIEWS

OTHERS' VIEWS

Monday, the 2nd of April was marked globally as World Autism Awareness Day. Despite the millions of families who grapple with the challenge in our country, the day passed us by without much awareness. Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that about one in 88 Nigerian children is on the autism spectrum. That means we have more than two million autistic children in the country; children who have been left without a future. I know many families who have had to relocate abroad to seek treatment and better living condition for their autistic children and countless others who live a miserable existence in Nigeria because they are helpless.  

Unfortunately, the problem is far deeper. As I have argued repeatedly on this page, the tragedy of Nigeria is not in government failure but rather in the failure of society. The former is merely a consequence of the latter. And to that extent, until there is an attitudinal change at the level of society, we are not likely to see much improvement in the way we are governed. Today, we live in a country where to have any form of health challenge (be it mental or physical) is to be criminalized and dehumanized, no matter your status. Increasingly, we are becoming a jungle where only the ‘fittest’ survive, without consideration or compassion for the weak and vulnerable. That was what Debola Daniel experienced last week. But we know about his plight only because of who he is. Debola is son of Otunba Gbenga Daniel, a former Governor of Ogun State who is currently a Senator. But because of his physical disability, he suffered humiliation at an eatery where he was known. 

For those who may have missed the drama, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) last Thursday ordered the closure of the Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) outlet at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos. This was after Debola narrated (on his social media page) how he was denied entry due to his use of a wheelchair. “Being disabled often rolls over my spirit, leaving behind a trail of shattered dignity and forgotten humanity. Nowhere more so than in Nigeria,” Debola lamented, while drawing attention to the prevalence and broader implications of these discriminatory practices in our country.

What makes the case compelling, as Professor Ebenezer Obadare wrote in his American Council on Foreign Relations blog on Monday, is that even for a status-obsessed society like ours, disability still trumps privilege. Because the KFC staff who dealt with Debola knew who he ‘IS’! Yet, they had the temerity to treat him the way they did, which shows the level of stigma attached to living with disabilities in Nigeria.

Let’s take a few lines from Debola’s account of what transpired: “I arrived at the airport as normal for my Virgin Atlantic flight to London. I’m a frequent flyer and I’m extremely familiar with all due processes at Murtala Muhammed Airport. Years ago, after all security and immigration formalities have been completed, I would normally go to the OASIS lounge to wait for my flight. For the past three years, the lift to the lounge has been out of service so I’ve often found solace in other establishments, sometimes lounges, sometimes restaurants. Today I chose KFC – what a colossal mistake. I entered the restaurant with four other travel companions consisting of my brothers and wife. The security personnel at KFC, Samuel, greeted me by name as I’ve been there multiple times. Just as we were about to sit, the lady at the till – who was apparently the manager – called out loudly, ‘NO WHEELCHAIRS ALLOWED’. Our group paused in confusion, before my brother, Taiwo, asked what she meant. She refused to listen to reason and stood her ground that at @kfcnigeria Murtala Muhammed branch, wheelchairs and wheelchair users of all shapes and sizes were not permitted in the premises and we should leave immediately.”

Debola then went on to narrate the various interventions by people around him with the KFC management that failed to yield any positive result before he concluded on a philosophical note: “It harkens back to dark periods in recent history. ’No wheelchairs allowed’; ‘No coloureds allowed’; ‘No blacks allowed’…Today I felt less than human, like a guard dog not allowed into the house. Lonely and isolated…There are approximately 27 million Nigerians living with some form of disability. That’s over 13% of the country…”

I understand that the KFC management has apologised to Debola as demanded by FAAN but that does not mitigate the gravity of what happened. Or that it will not happen again elsewhere. Incidentally, in January last year, Debola had expressed a similar concern based on another discriminatory experience. “To be a disabled Nigerian is a lonely, scary, and isolated place. I have often struggled to articulate my Nigerian experience in a way people could understand,” Debola wrote while sharing the story of a concert he could not attend at the time. “There’s never a place for you. Not in the infrastructure, not in social settings and increasingly not in society.” 

What happened to Debola was not an isolated incident. It reflects the attitude of our society towards the physically challenged. In every area of life, people with one disability or another are discriminated against and deprived of their rights. For instance, most hospitals, schools, places of worship etc. are not wheel-chair accessible across the country. In their 29 September 2020 paper, ‘Social inclusion of persons with disabilities in Nigeria: Challenges and opportunities’, two World Bank staff, Rosa Martinez and Valarakshmi Vemuru, argued that when the attitudes of a community are negative towards a vulnerable group, they will struggle much more to realize their potential. “Persons with disabilities in Nigeria persistently face stigma, discrimination, and barriers to accessing basic social services and economic opportunities,” they wrote. Cosmos Okoli, an enterprising man who has proved that there is ability in disability once buttressed the same point: “We have had cases where some principals and head teachers refused admission to candidates not on the basis of incompetence but for their disabilities.”

When on 23 January 2019 President Muhammadu Buhari assented the Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, there was excitement among stakeholders. But, as we have seen over the years, the challenge is more about the attitude of Nigerians to the plights of this vulnerable group. It has little to do with the law. Even during the military era, we had the ‘Nigerians with Disability’ military decree of 1993 which provides “a clear and comprehensive legal protection and security for Nigerians with disability as well as establish standard for enforcement of their rights and privileges.” That offered no protection to them and decades later, even under a democratic dispensation, nothing has changed. That the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), FAAN and other agencies are responding after Debola recounted his experience at KFC is not because they care but rather because of his status.

Remarkably, one of the early reports released by Agora Policy, an Abuja-based think-tank spearheaded by the former Nigeria Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (NEITI) Executive Secretary, Waziri Adio, was on ‘How to Deepen Social and Political Inclusion in Nigeria.’ I was privileged to participate in some of the validation workshops along with Dr. Ejiro Otive-Igbuzor, Professor Abubakar Muazu, Mr. Martins Abantlehe, Ms. Chioma Agwuegbu, Hajia Saudatu Mahdi and Mr. Samson Itodo. The aspect on the plights of People with Disabilities (PWDs) in Nigeria is quite revealing. “Many cultures and religions perceive disability as a curse or repercussion for wrongdoing. This explains why in many communities, spiritual solutions are sought, a person with disability is isolated, sometimes hidden by their families out of ‘shame’’, the report stated. “Many PWDs, through their socialisation, learn to self-stigmatise and isolate for fear of negative reactions and exclusion by their community members. Children with disabilities are body shamed by their peers, girls and women with disabilities are sexually violated and their complaints, when made, are often dismissed by law enforcement agents.” 

The tragedy is that we have a considerable population of PWDs in Nigeria. The World Bank reported that in 2018, about 29 million of the estimated population of 195 million Nigerians were living with a disability. “Data from the 2018 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey reveal that an estimated 7 percent of household members above the age of five (as well as 9 percent of those 60 or older) have some level of difficulty in at least one functional domain, seeing, hearing, communication, cognition, walking, or self-care; and 1 percent either have a lot of difficulty or cannot function at all in at least one domain. These estimated rates, while significant, are probably even higher because current available data likely underestimate the prevalence,” the World Bank stated before the damning conclusion: “Findings indicate that persons with disabilities lack access to basic services and that attitudinal barriers represent a major impediment to their socioeconomic inclusion. Inclusive policies are either non-existent, weak, or inadequately implemented.”

As I stated earlier, whether it is physical or mental, there is little or no protection for people with such challenges in our country. Incidentally, until President Buhari signed the National Mental Health Act, 2021, legislation in place for dealing with mental health was the Lunacy Act of 1958 which, even as the title suggests, is about stigmatisation. That explains why across the country, you still find people with mental health chained and paraded the streets like animals. Clearly, Nigeria is not a compassionate society. I shudder to imagine what would have happened if the late Stephen Hawking, one of the greatest scientific thinkers of our generation, had been born a Nigerian!

Deliberately, I shared the draft of this column with a close friend who has a special needs child.  This was her response: “As you know, my daughter is neuro divergent. It has been a battle to get her educated in Nigeria. If I ever give up on this country it would be because I want to give her the fighting chance that Nigeria refuses to give her. Healthcare for her is literally costing me my life savings and the way this society treats us makes it so difficult to create normalcy for her outside the home. This is why many parents in Nigeria, including affluent parents, prefer to hide their challenged children at home and the less affluent ones abandon them to the streets when they are young adults. There is nowhere really for them to go because the society does little to try and accommodate our children.” 

While we applaud Debola Daniel for speaking up, what happened to him is not unique. It is what millions of people with similar challenges face every day in our country. As my friend’s example illustrates, raising children who are neuro divergent is a difficult task in Nigeria. It is the same with those with physical challenges, as Debola Daniel’s experience also demonstrates. But it is beyond what government alone can resolve. What we must begin to deal with includes the exclusion, discrimination, isolation, lack of empathy and frankly, the absence of thought in all facets of our society for the weak and vulnerable among us.

Notes from Asaba

With sundry criminal cartels operating across the country almost with impunity, the task of maintaining internal security, peace and order, is now being carried out by the military. Yet, fighting and defeating security threats entails more than an application of force. Apparently mindful of this, the Nigerian Army yesterday held a stakeholders’ session with the media in Asaba, Delta State capital. With the theme ‘Imperatives of military-media partnership for the attainment of national security’, I was one of the discussants of the paper presented by Professor Godwin Oboh of Benson Idahosa University. He spoke to several issues, including how the military role has been expanded in our country to include resolving social conflicts and the collateral damage arising therefrom. The conversation that followed, brilliantly moderated by ARISE Television State House correspondent, Omoruan Adesuwa, was as exciting as the previous session after the paper by former Commandant, Nigerian Army Engineers, Major General Olusegun Adeleke.

That the Voice of Nigeria (VON) Director General, Jibrin Baba Ndace, was guest of honour at the forum is an indication that the army understands the essence of genuine partnership. Ndace, a former spokesman to the governor of Niger State between 2015 and 2019, was for several years a respected defence correspondent. That reflected in his brief presentation at the session attended by many top military personnel and media practitioners. The security challenges that Nigeria faces are complex and multifaceted and to effectively address them, according to Ndace, there is need for a collaboration between the military and the media.

In his opening remark, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt General Taoreed Lagbaja (who was represented by the General Officer Commanding, 6 Division, Major General Jamal Abdusalam) revealed what most people have always suspected. “The need to restore law and order in aid of civil authorities has necessitated the deployment of the military especially troops of the Nigerian Army in all states across Nigeria to conduct internal security operations,” Lagbaja admitted. “However, the attainment of national security requires more than just the deployment of troops and the acquisition of advanced weaponry; it entails the trust and cooperation of the citizens and media.”

Whether we want to admit it or not, it is the failure of the police that accounts for why the military that should ordinarily channel its energy and resources towards protecting our territorial integrity as a nation has had to deploy troops in all the 36 states of our country today. While I am aware that most ordinary Nigerians have more faith in our soldiers whenever they are in situations of distress, there is also a case of familiarity breeding contempt. That, I guess, accounts for some of the ambush killings that have been witnessed in recent times. It is therefore time to strengthen the police so that the military can be restricted to their constitutional responsibilities in a democracy.

Air Peace, the Nigeria’s flag carrier commenced Lagos-London flight services last Saturday March 30 after seven years of test of endurance. Allen Onyema, the airline chief executive officer (CEO) deserves accolades for a hard-won victory which has also been hailed by many as victory for Nigeria and Nigerian air travellers.

And to discerning Nigerians, it cannot be anything less.  To those who are passionate about our country, it is a victory over swindling of Nigeria of about N3.7 billion annually by foreign airlines including British Airways that was by 2014 charging non-competitive fare of $10,070 for a First Class return seat from Abuja to London while the same facility through Accra costs $4, 943. It is also a relief for Nigerians relieved of the burden of having to travel to Ghana, South Africa or Morocco in search of cheap foreign airline tickets. It is also hoped this victory will bring into a closure ex-minister, Stella Oduah’s battle against deliberate violation of Nigeria’s aviation laws by foreign airlines.

And for those who have faith in our country, it is also a victory over local powers and principalities who cannot stand the success of their fellow compatriots but will rather cooperate with outsiders to kill their own “sun’ (apologies to Saro Wiwa) whether he be Chinua Achebe’s Okonkwo, Ghana’s Kwame Nkrumah, Congo’s Patrice Lumumba or Nigeria’s Obafemi Awolowo.

The betrayal by Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), as narrated by Onyema during his ARISE TV interview was despicable.  And no less repulsive was the complicity of corrupt bureaucrats in the  avoidable  frittering away of N200m by Air Peace to secure the services of consultancy firms from IATA just as  the action of unpatriotic government officials  who deliberately derailed the commencement of services operations long after the Nigerian flag carrier had  “actually procured their three-triple seven because of this route’,  because they wanted to give it the blow that it deserved at that time” cannot be anything but loathsome.

Onyema also did not forget to remind us of the international aero-politics which he admitted while speaking with ARISE Television on Monday, can be very dirty. He must  have been referring to having to clear his name over U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Georgia’s  November 22, 2019 press release alleging fraud and money laundering for moving more than $20 million from Nigeria through United States bank accounts out of which ‘over $3 million of the funds used to purchase the aircraft allegedly came from bank accounts for Foundation for Ethnic Harmony, International Centre for Non-Violence and Peace Development, All-Time Peace Media Communications Limited, and Every Child Limited.’. Added to this international conspiracy was the Gatwick authorities’ unusual demand of non-refundable 20 million pounds deposit, before Air Peace could start operation”.

 

Last Saturday victory lap was anchored by Onyema who took a leading position in the private airline operators’ battle against government’s proposed national carrier they argued was detrimental to the survival of airline local operators.

Buhari had in 2014 disclosed that President Jonathan fleet of about 11 aircrafts would form the nucleus of his planned national carrier.  It was not until July 18, 2018, that “the name, logo, colour scheme, structure, and types of airplanes of Nigeria’s national carrier were unveiled at Farnborough International Public Air show in London”. There we were informed about $308.8m had been set aside to cover aircraft acquisition and running costs for the airline’s take-off, with five of the projected 30 aircraft needed expected in Nigeria by December 19 2014. The new national carrier, we were told would operate 40 domestic, regional and sub-regional and 41 international routes. And that it would be a private sector driven ‘Nigeria Air’ in which government would own only 5% with Nigerians owing 46 per cent equity, while 49 per cent shares were reserved for strategic foreign investors.

 

Unfortunately, Buhari had credibility deficit especially with Hadi Sirika last minute stampeding of Air Ethiopia as favoured strategic partners on terms the current minister whose official report is yet to be released said was unfavourable to Nigeria,

Nigerians derived little joy from government past interference in the activities of the airlines especially the Stella Oduah’s ‘N330b Aviation Intervention Fund meant to address the financial challenges faced by airlines in the country” with N232.6b of it paid to 21 participating banks.  But records as at 2015, when Jonathan left government, showed that domestic airlines like Arik, Aero and Air Nigeria whose managing director led the crusade and got N35.5 billion government bail-out were owing AMCON over $700m debt

 
 

The mishandling of Nigerian Airways, Virgin Nigeria, Nigerian National Shipping Line, the four public refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna, of Ajaokuta Steel Rolling Company, Nigeria Railways Corporation” NEPA PHCN, banks oil companies, insurance, hospitality industry only increased Nigerians apprehensiveness about involvement of government in setting up of a national carrier or involvement of government in any business for that matter.

 

 

 And counting in favour of anti-national carrier, domestic airline operators and Air Peace this time around is the fact that they are not asking for government bailout. Their battle cry is that past government interference had been a disaster.

But while we celebrate the success of Air Piece and the triumph of domestic airline operators, it is important to remind Nigerians youths who lack a sense of history and the rest of Nigerians, who often suffer from collective amnesia, that there is nothing wrong with public enterprises. The problem was with our ill trained military men and their thieving new breed politicians

Our founding fathers following in the footsteps of Europe adopted the Keynesian macroeconomic model which supports government intervention for the purpose of national development instead of depending on market economy to liberate our people from poverty.  And this paid off as most of the public enterprises established by our founding fathers brought rapid development until after the civil war.  For that season, public enterprises formed the backbone of our economy. In fact, it was the golden era of Nigeria when the naira was as strong as pound sterling and stronger than the dollar with Nigeria giving interest free loans to some African and European nations. Up to 1983, estacode for those visiting Britain who by the way needed no visa, was N500 (five hundred naira).

 

Our nightmare started with Babangida’s ill-advised commercialization and Structural Adjustment Programme which saw many thriving federal and state-owned public enterprises sold to retired military personnel and their fronts who were never equipped to run such enterprises. Obasanjo and his military baked new breed politicians completed this betrayal when from 1999, they sold Nigeria’s total investment of about $100 billion acquired between 1959 and 1999 for a paltry $1.5 billion.

From then on, public enterprises became the scape goat to cover up the greed of politicians. It was used as an excuse by politicians without vision to justify underfunding of public universities to allow those who have access to state funds set up their own private universities, sabotage public water supply, the mainstay of our urban centres in the 60s and 70s to pave the  way for a regime of private water merchants  and to destroy Nigerian Airways to justify the setting up of Albarka, Okada, Oriental, Concord, Harka, EAS, Triad, Harco, Savannah, Bellview, ADC airlines their today’s reincarnations.

Onyema, like Dangote and other members of their tribe might be good corporate citizens, always aiding Nigerians in distress, celebrating Falcons, after victory and flying our national colours. But at the end, he is profit-driven business man running aviation business, perhaps one of the most sophisticated businesses in the world. He has to recoup costs of all the aircrafts he claims to own while the aircrafts must be certified globally.

 

Onyema is not into charity. He is in business to make money. And making money under market economy means taking advantage of the less privileged that our abandoned public enterprises were designed to protect.

 

Recently, the CEO of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, got on the wrong side of the internet when he said anyone earning N200,000 monthly in Nigeria is better off than someone earning £2,000 in the United Kingdom. According to him in a TV interview, the Nigerian with a mere N200,000 can afford a maid, a driver, and other domestic staff while the person who earns £2,000 in the UK can barely get by. His superficial comparison somehow reminds me of Nigerians who conclude they live a better life after comparing the cost of Coca-Cola in their country to the US/UK.

Now, thanks to the internet, Onyema has received more than enough riposte to warrant him thinking hard and long (if he cares to anyway) about the degree to which he is out of touch with the Nigerian reality. If he believes that a person earning N200,000 in a country with a bag of rice around N80,000 can hire at least three others, it also tells you how poorly he thinks wage workers should earn. Yes, he is a private individual with the right to his opinion, but he also hires people and that is why his opinion on wages matters.

But what I find interesting about his comparison between England and Nigeria and the subsequent pushback from the inhabitants of social media is that it leaves off the important question of how much Nigerians should earn. What amount would be sufficient for an average household in Nigeria to live? Without an empirical determination of what people should be paid to live, the best we can do is to resort to facile comparisons about what a sum of money can buy under regimes of their respective currencies without factoring other intangibles being bought along. The way Nigerians—particularly the ones who cannot get over other people’s “japa” decisions—talk about how hard life can be abroad because people there pay bills, bills, and more bills makes you wonder if they are even aware of the extent to which their own supposedly “bill-less” society relatively over-taxes them. Nigerians probably pay far more—at least relative to their income—in social services than their foreign counterparts.

While a society like the UK might pay people a sum as low as £2000 (in Onyema’s estimation by the way), hardly anyone is left to live on just their income. Their public infrastructure and social security are so relatively excellent that even though one might not have enough cash to stack up in the bank, one is unlikely to be shouting “ebi ń pa wá!” on the streets either. In a place like the United States, a person with that low an income will qualify for public health insurance, food stamps, and possibly even rent assistance. So while they might be considered “poor” by their society’s (and Onyema’s) standards, their poverty is not as stark as that of a society with no such provisions.

 

The question of what a Nigerian household should earn to live is complicated by differing ideas of what constitutes a standard household in Nigeria and what it even means to “live.” In a culture where there is a high percentage of polygamous marriages and our family structures are largely communal, it is hard to benchmark a standard household. For one, “household” here is unlikely to be a nuclear family arrangement. Then, what it means to live varies because of the increasing privatisation of our entire lives. Those who live in societies where they earn a measly £2,000 monthly do not generate their own electricity and water, provide their own security, send their kids to third-rate private schools, or even be called to donate money towards ransoming an abducted relative. If they do not hire a driver, maid, and maybe even a gateman on their salaries, it is not simply because their incomes are too poor. It is because, despite their mere £2000, their system allows them to own a car (or at least have access to an efficient public transport system); they have home appliances that eliminate the need for a maid; and their mode of securing society does not involve high fences and metal gates manned by a “gateman.”

There are practical implications to not knowing what is a just and fair income and thereby making silly comparisons. One of my observations when hiring workers in Nigeria is that most lack an idea of proper calibration of their wages. Because they have not developed a statistical sense of value for what they do, they place the moral burden on you who is hiring them by telling you to pay what you consider fair. Value for their labour is thus negotiated, and contingent on moral considerations and sentiments rather than a standardised measure. Recently, I spoke with someone who pointed out how “corruption” was distributed through every aspect of our society. His example was an instance of price gouging by “pure water” vendors, but what came through in his complaints was the problem of not calibrating value. That is why even the modest attempts of a low-income vendor to make a living looked to him like a rip-off.

In 2019, I talked with some friends regarding the standard of living. There are a family of six (two parents, three children, and a relative). During our conversation, I argued that, for a household like theirs to live a relatively comfortable life, they should earn nothing less than N500,000 monthly. Husband and wife, both school teachers (in a public and private school), understandably laughed. They agreed their lives would considerably improve with a higher income, but who would ever pay teachers that amount? Of course, the question of who can pay such an amount as average income in the country is pertinent. Nigeria simply does not have enough economic activities for any employer, public or private, to pay people enough for them to live well. The minimum wage proposals the Nigeria Labour Congress has bandied about ranged from N500,000 to N1m, and people think the union leaders are being ridiculous. At the bottom of those figures being thrown up is the unsettled issue of how much people should earn in order to live and how to standardise it.

Meanwhile, about five years after I spoke to that couple, their income barely increased but the cost of living leaped up by many miles. Nigeria is no longer where it was in 2019; most people are barely coping. When people seeking to justify the Nigerian dysfunction mention the high costs of living in Western societies that drain their poor £2,000 salaries, I also remind them that as hard as things might be over there, they do not spend 80 to 120 per cent of their income just buying food. Nigerians earn so little that people even take loans to buy food. Not luxurious feasts, just enough food to survive. That does not make any sense.

Through the experiences of this couple and several others I would argue that to the matter of what Nigerians need to earn in order to live should be appended the question of how frequently those kinds of figures need to be updated. The Nigerian costs of living change so frequently that the income that hired three domestic wage workers years ago can barely sustain a four-person family now. Whereas the hypothetical person earning the £2,000 pittance can still do most of the things they were doing years ago. Their reality is not upended as quickly as that of Nigerians.

That is why, instead of wasting time and absolving responsibility by talking about what the person living abroad and ensconced within a system with tight social security and welfare benefits ultimately lacks, we should focus on fellow Nigerians and define what it would mean for them to really live.

When the CBN governor, Mr Olayemi Cardoso indicated last year that they were in the process of setting a new minimum capital base for Nigerian banks to enhance their capacity to support a one trillion dollar economy, I welcomed the idea with open hands and assumed that this administration was finally going to get something right about the economy especially given the way that they had been bungling economic policies since the inception of their administration.

While setting the minimum capital base for banks with international operations at N500 billion seems rather high, when we do a comparative analysis with other African countries where banks have billions of dollars in capital base, we realize that we are just scratching the surface. We need to do a lot more if we are serious about supporting a one trillion-dollar economy.

Apart from the contradiction of Nigeria being the largest economy in Africa and yet not a single Nigerian bank is among the top ten banks in terms of capital base, we also have a situation in Nigeria where banks are very reluctant to support the economy and would rather just lend money to the government and a few large blue chip companies while millions of entrepreneurs all over the country have little or no access to credit to finance their operations from the banking industry.

It is instructive to note that less than 3% of Nigerians have access to credit from Nigerian banks. Yet, the banks keep making huge profits every year mostly from government securities and forex trading which add very little value to the economy.

 

To support a one trillion dollar economy, we need to create a banking system that will not only be willing to give credit to support economic growth through entrepreneurs, we must aggregate enough capital within the banking system to finance their activities.

We need to go from a situation whereby very few entrepreneurs have access to bank credit to one in which credit is available for all eligible businesses in the country. It is only then that businesses will be able to grow at an exponential rate for the country to realize the dream of a one trillion-dollar economy.

Ironically the CBN governor’s vision of wanting to support a one trillion dollar economy is contradicted by his monetary policy direction of increasing interest rates which in itself is a disincentive to businesses that will lead to economic growth.

 

While the CBN governor’s reason for increasing interest rates was allegedly to fight inflation, I have argued that interest rate hikes will only work to curb inflation in a society in which the majority of the people have access to bank credit which is not the case in Nigeria. I also observed that the current inflation that we have in Nigeria is a cost-push inflation and not a demand-pull so it doesn’t make sense to increase interest rates to curb demand when most Nigerians already have very weak purchasing power.

The real reason behind the high inflation rate in the country is the fiscal indiscipline of the government that is expressed by their huge budget deficits and “budget padding” which is then financed through loans from the banking system and through Ways and Means advances which both increase money supply in the system without any additional productivity and this is what leads to inflation.

If the CBN governor is serious about fighting inflation, he needs to prevail on the federal government to cut the deficit and stop releasing funds to them to fund the deficit while commercial banks are also restrained from lending money to the government. This is what should have been done instead of punishing the victims of their hapless economic policies with higher interest rates in the guise of fighting inflation.

In my previous article on this subject matter, I suggested that the CBN set the minimum capital base for tier-one banks in the country at $5 billion or its Naira equivalent if they are truly serious about supporting a one trillion dollar economy. This is because banks supporting the economies of much smaller African countries than ours have capital in excess of $5 billion while Standard Bank of South Africa has a capital base of $13.2 billion yet they are supporting economies that are much smaller than ours.

 

For Nigeria to grow into a one trillion dollar economy, we need to have a fundamental shift in the way banking is done in the country. We need to move from the current system where banks just need to invest in government bonds and treasury bills while trading in forex to make huge profits to a system where banks will focus on funding the real sector of the economy, housing development, and consumer credit.

To achieve this, there must be deliberate government policy to restrict the issuance of government debt instruments like bonds and treasury bills while banks are incentivized to lend more to the public while lowering interest rates.

More importantly, we will need to significantly enhance the capacity of our banking industry to adequately finance our population which is more than 200 million people, and to achieve this the banking industry will have to aggregate a lot more capital than the current N500 billion minimum capital base for tier-one banks can muster.

It was certainly a step in the right direction for the CBN to increase the minimum capital base for banks in the country. However, the new minimum capital announced doesn’t reflect the CBN governor’s goal of supporting a one trillion dollar economy nor will it stimulate the needed seismic change that the banking industry needs to play a more supportive role in the economy.

 

Oshobi, a development economist, management consultant, and author writes from Lagos.

Has Nigeria learnt any lessons from the Okuama massacre?  Will the incident repeat itself or offer profound lessons against future experience?  In the journey of life, no individual or nation or country is immune from occurrences thrown up by circumstance, which may be pleasant or painful.  Lessons learnt from such experiences are deployed to prevent possible future recurrence, failing which the same catastrophe repeats itself. In context, the gruesome murder of army officers at Okuama in Ughelli South Local Government Area, Delta State, which transcends ethnic emotions and accompanied by wide condemnations, is a confirmation that Nigeria has not, and does not learn from lessons, otherwise, the calamity would have been avoided. 

The incident was not the first. It happened at Odi, Bayelsa State; Zaki Biam, Benue State; and Gbaramatu, Delta State.

 

Yet, it appeared neither the federal government nor the Nigerian Army learnt any lessons therefrom.  This is evident from the Okuama saga, a proof of the country’s insensitivity to bloodshed and exposition of poverty in the policy making process.  

 

This notwithstanding, the Okuama calamity has again thrown up another opportunity for lessons to be learned.  If Nigeria fails again this time around to learn from these happenings, then the country risks further carnage, which may possibly take a more complex form with unmanageable and unpredictable consequences.  It may be too costly for the country’s fledgling socio-economic balance and stability. 

Therefore, the lessons are crucial, and should be identified by the government and harnessed as feedback for proactive purposes to forestall future recurrence.  It is a tragedy for any country with a relapsing experience not to have a codified strategy encapsulated in a template to resolve related matters. In specific terms, what then are the lessons and takeaways from the Okuama disaster?  

 
 

Lesson One: To have allowed a land dispute over fishing rights between Okuama and neighbouring Okoloba community in Bomadi Local Government Area, Delta State, to escalate means there were no proactive measures and concerted prompt intervention by the Nigeria Police Force and Delta State Government in response to petitions written by Okuama community. 

 

The community, through its lawyers, I. Ejedegba and Co., had written a petition to the Commissioner of Police in Asaba, Delta State which was acknowledged on January 31, 2O24, while the petition written by Okuama community leaders and addressed to the Delta State Governor was received on February 2, 2O24.  This was over one month before the gruesome murder of the military officers on March 14, 2O24. 

Since the Police is the first line of defence and statutorily responsible for civil matters, they should have wadded in upon receipt of the petitions to nip the crisis in the bud, aside previous joint meetings among the communities, the Police and the Delta State Government that yielded no solution.  Under this development, the Delta State Governor should have been advised to wield the big stick by acquiring the land in contention for public interest to end the crisis.  

Lesson Two: Inviting the Army for a mediatory and peace mission to Okuama for resolution of land dispute between two communities that were not at war, was an error in judgement. The dispute was civil in nature, and it was only when efforts by the Police and the Delta State Governor had failed, and there was evidence of likely escalation into a dangerous dimension beyond the capacity of the Police, that would have warranted intervention by the Nigerian Army.  It is not the responsibility of the Army to broker peace in a civil matter.

Lesson Three: Central to the killing of the military personnel in Okuama, is presumably oil.  Oil appeared to be the underpinning motive behind the horrendous and senseless killings.  Mere land dispute between two communities could not have led to such a mindless massacre. Soldiers are deployed to the Niger Delta region to protect oil facilities, and in the course of this duty, they might have been marked as “enemy” by those profiteering from illegal oil deals. 

Those involved in crude oil theft and other illegal activities, including processing of locally refined products might see the Army as an obstacle to their business interests.  The military high command should have known this, and prepare the soldiers for possible eventuality and collision with entrenched oil thieves.  The circumstances of their death showed that the military men were taken unawares.  It was likely that crude oil thieves and other vested interests might have planned and taken advantage of the soldiers’ peaceful disposition to unleash mayhem in such a horrific and despicable manner.  

Lesson Four: The mass destruction of Okuama by the Army in response to the death of the soldiers without singling out the culprits, was unhelpful, as innocent children, mothers, elderly, the sick and even pregnant women, were either killed, rendered homeless or died while trying to escape.  To bring pains on an entire community over the action of a few criminals, is indefensible.  Reprisal attack and collective punishment are incompatible with international laws.  

Recalled that after destruction of Odi by the Army, the community resorted to litigation and got a favourable judgement, leading to payment of N15 billion out of court settlement, as compensation.  Justice Lambi Akanbi of the Federal High Court had condemned the government for a “brazen violation of the fundamental human rights of the victims to movement, life and to own property and live peacefully in their ancestral home.”  Since the Okuama experience is reminiscent of the destruction at Odi, it is likely Okuama may seek redress in the law court for compensation over reprisal destruction of lives and properties.  

Lesson Five: As the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, Bola Tinubu’s order to the Army was too hasty and reactionary without taking into consideration innocent lives in Okuama that were caught up in the web.  Granting “full authority” to the military to bring anybody found to have been responsible for the attack to justice, was an obvious blanket licence for the military to invade Okuama. 

Instead, the President should have ordered the security agencies and the Police to specifically intervene, identify and arrest the criminal elements in the community, while instituting an independent high-powered panel of enquiry to unravel the causes of the mayhem.  A future restraint on the part of the President is imperative to douse tension and minimise further collateral damage.

Lesson Six: The Army’s decision to lock down and lay siege to Okuama without granting access to the Delta State Governor, the Police, humanitarian agencies, and even the press to assess the situation on ground, has given rise to speculations about the plight of the members of the community, particularly the innocent, helpless and indigent persons.  This is unhelpful to the image of the Army. 

By not allowing access, the Army has, unwittingly, opened its operations to speculations. For example, it was alleged that the Army killed over 50 persons in Okuama, with other survivors hiding in the bush, including old women, children, the elderly ones and even the sick, with no food to eat and water to drink.  This is a gross violation of their fundamental human rights.

To avoid being put on the spotlight, it is imperative for the military to grant access into the community to enable humanitarian agencies and volunteer groups to extend help and assistance to the innocent ones to prevent further fatalities. This will also serve the interest of the Army’s reputation.

Lesson Seven: After the destruction of Odi, initial public sympathy for the military waned.  Same is replicating itself at Okuama over the conduct of the Army.  The Army, like other federal government agencies, is not a supreme institution that is above the Constitution and the Nigerian State, neither is the civilian population subject to military laws.  Indeed, the Army is subject to civil authority under Democracy. Therefore, it must change its current tactics at Okuama where it has refused access to the community, assumed sole information provider on goings-on, and subjected civilians to investigation, arrest and detention.  

It is hoped that these lessons will serve as reference and guide for the state governments, the Police, the Army and the federal government in handling related crises to avert future disaster.  

. Dr. Owhoko, a Lagos State-based public policy analyst, author and journalist

Looking at Africa’s future through the lens of progress, evidence, foresight, and optimism – although it’s difficult to predict the future with certainty, several African countries have shown great potential for development. Countries like Ethiopia, Rwanda, Ghana and Botswana have made significant strides in economic growth, infrastructure development, and social progress. 

Egypt, South Africa and Nigeria are the top most powerful countries in Africa, according to US News and World Report’s 2019 power ranking. 

 

Several African countries, including Mauritius, Botswana, Cape Verde, Seychelles and Rwanda, are known for good governance. These countries have made significant progress in political stability, rule of law, and control of corruption. Speaking of issues of uniqueness, diversity, duration of existence, and variety, I would say, that Africa is sufficiently primed for greatness.

 

Let me continue with the profound words of Joshua J. Marine. Marine posited: “Challenges are what makes life interesting and overcoming them is what makes life meaningful” Yes! Leadership cum politics are phenomenal realities – as a continent, we sure need to get our art together. For example, each country faces unique challenges and opportunities, and their development paths will likely depend on different factors including governance, economic policies, education, and international partnerships. Suffice it to say that It is still rudderless as far as many of the countries in the continent of Africa is concerned.

Succinctly put, to view Africa solely as a hotbed of disease and hunger is to ignore the significant strides that countries and communities have made. There is still much work to be done. But looking to the past can provide some hope for the future: Rwanda, once known primarily for its tragic genocide, is now known as a model of stability and economic growth, while Eritrea and Ethiopia signed a peace agreement this year to end two decades of war and enmity. African countries must push for further peace initiatives while they continue to support refugees and populations affected by conflict to improve stability and growth on the continent further.

 
 

Before I proceed, I want to be clear, don’t get me wrong, Africa lacks selflessness in  leadership. Unarguably, Africa is the most resourceful continent and the naturally wealthiest in the world. Despite the amazing advantage of having nice weather, massive forests with fruit, vegetation and plantations, wildlife, gold, diamonds, Uranium, various metals, and manpower willing to work hard for low wages, Africa is the poorest economically in the world. Because leadership is everything and due to corruption, stupidity, and greed, nearly all African leaders are failing with some few exceptions.

 

Collectively, the continent has more to gain pulling together and harnessing its vast natural resources to finance the development agenda towards greater prosperity. It must also ensure that future growth and exploitation of natural resources is results-oriented, climate resilient, and sustainable. Nearly half the world’s gold and one-third of all minerals are in Africa. 

Here’s a look at the resources African countries have below:

Africa area = 30,37 million km2

China area = 9,6 million km2

US area = 9,8 million km2

Europa area = 10,18 million km.

– Africa has 60% arable land.

– Africa owns 90% of the raw material reserve.

-Africa owns 40% of the global gold reserve.

– Africa, 33% of the diamond reserve.

– Africa has 80% of Coltan’s global reserve (mineral for telephone and electronics production), mainly in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

– Africa has 60% of the global cobalt reserve (mineral for car battery manufacture).

– Africa is rich in oil and natural gas.

– Africa (Namibia) has the world’s richest fish coastline.

– Africa is rich in manganese, iron, and wood.

– Africa has thirty-half million km2 (30 875 415 km2).

-Africa has 1,3 billion inhabitants (China has 1,4 billion inhabitants in 9,6 million km2).

Which means Africa is SUB-POPULATED.

– The arable lands of the Democratic Republic of Congo can feed all of Africa. And Africa’s arable land is a cord to feed the whole world.

– The Democratic Republic of Congo has important rivers that can illuminate Africa.

The problem is that the CIA, western companies, and some African puppets have destabilised the DRC for decades.

– Africa is a culturally diverse continent with dance, music, architecture, sculpture, etc.

– Africa accommodates 30.000 medicinal recipes and herbs that the West modifies in its laboratories.

– Africa has a young global population that should reach 2,5 billion by the year 2050.

In the meantime, countries such as China are moving quickly to invest in Africa’s future, while the United States and other Western nations have taken more passive roles.

After weeks of anticipation, the Central Bank of Nigeria last Thursday released a circular reviewing the minimum capital requirements for all commercial, merchant, and non-interest banks operating in the country. The review came exactly two decades after a former Governor of the CBN Prof Chukwuma Soludo raised the minimum capital requirements for banks from N2 billion to N25 billion, and three months after the current governor Yemi Cardoso, gave banks a heads up that they would have to raise fresh capital to serve as buffers against risk assets on their balance sheets, prevailing economic headwinds, and bolster their ability to handle big ticket transactions.

Under the current review, commercial banks with international banking licences would have to raise their minimum capital to N500 billion, national banks to N200 billion, regional and merchant banks to N50 billion, non-interest national banks to N20 billion, while non-interest banks will have to meet a new minimum threshold of N10 billion. To meet the new capital requirements in two years, the CBN directed banks to consider the injection of fresh equity capital through private placements, rights issues and/or offer for subscriptions. They could also consider mergers and acquisitions and/or upgrades or downgrades of their licences.

However, the clincher in the circular was the central bank’s definition of what it meant by minimum capital. It said minimum capital shall comprise of paid-up capital and share premium only and shall not be based on shareholders’ funds. CBN further excluded Additional Tier 1 (AT1) Capital for the purpose of meeting the new minimum capital requirements by banks. Shareholders’ funds refer to the net worth of a company after all its liabilities have been deducted from its assets. It comprises the share capital and retained profits or earnings that have been reinjected into the business by its shareholders. AT1 Capital, on other hand, are debt securities or instruments that have no fixed maturity. They usually comprise preference shares or high contingent convertible securities.

By excluding shareholders’ funds and AT1 Capital, the CBN prioritised direct cash injections into the banks over accounting entries to satisfy recapitalisation requirements. Also, though not a member of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in Basel, Switzerland, whose mission is to support global central banks’ monetary policies and financial system stability, the CBN by its recapitalisation guidelines deviated from the Basel III criteria for regulatory capital.

Basel III reforms were introduced in December 2010 after the global financial crisis of 2007-2009, which revealed several weaknesses in the capital bases of existing banks, as definitions of capital varied widely between jurisdictions, regulatory adjustments were generally not applied to the appropriate level of capital, and disclosures were either deficient or non-comparable. These factors contributed to the lack of public confidence in capital ratios during the global financial crisis. To address these weaknesses, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) published the Basel III reforms with the aim of strengthening the quality of banks’ capital bases and increasing the required level of regulatory capital. In addition, the BCBS instituted more stringent disclosure requirements.

Under Basel III, components of regulatory capital for banks comprise Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) Capital made up of common shares and stock surpluses, retained earnings, other comprehensive earnings, qualifying minority interest and regulatory adjustments; as well as Additional Tier 1 (AT1) Capital, which is the sum of capital instruments meeting the criteria for AT1 and related surplus, additional qualifying minority interest and regulatory adjustments. CET1 and AT1 are classified as Tier 1 Capital for banks on a going concern basis. Then there is Tier 2 Capital which is gone-concern capital and applies to banks that have failed. Tier 2 instruments must absorb losses before depositors and general creditors do so.

While it must be acknowledged that Basel III is not legally binding in any jurisdiction, and as earlier indicated, the CBN is not a member of the BIS in Switzerland, Basel III was intended to form the general basis for national or regional rulemaking for regulatory capital. Nonetheless, as with Basel I and II, even BIS members have taken different approaches to implementing Basel III. Some regulators have even gone as far as arguing that the rules apply to banks with $100 billion in assets or more. This in effect addresses any concerns raised by some market analysts at the weekend that the CBN was not complying with Basel III reforms in its latest recapitalisation programme. Besides, no Nigerian bank can boast of a balance sheet size of $100 billion in assets. Despite all their sound and fury, not one of them comes close!

Basel III aside, no Nigerians banker worth his or her salt can say that they did not see the recapitalisation programme coming. They did not need a Cardoso (or Cardi-B as he is often called in social media circles) to tell them that their banks had to initiate measures to raise fresh capital. For instance, Access Holdings Plc, in its 2023 financial accounts that was released 24 hours before the CBN circular, announced its intention to raise N365 billion through a rights issue in 2024. There was also speculation among market analysts two weeks earlier, that Guaranty Trust Holdings Plc (GTCO), which is yet to release its 2023 accounts was toeing the same path with a capital raise of N350 billion to N500 billion.   

Effectively, bankers who did not have their heads buried in the sand already knew that the naira devaluation and spiralling inflation had wreaked havoc on their risk assets, notwithstanding the supernormal profits that they declared in the second half of 2023 due to FX revaluation gains. Buttressing this, Cardoso last December revealed that due to the impact of the forex unification policy and efforts to remove the subsidy on petrol by the federal government, banks had breached some of the key metrics such as single obligor limits, resulting in the erosion their capital. It also led to a deterioration of their asset quality that could easily clog up banks’ balance sheets with non-performing loans. And as any banking system regulator knows, low asset quality affects banks’ capital and therefore their soundness.

But what the banks did not anticipated was that the CBN would not allow them to use their shareholders’ funds, which has retained earnings as a key component, as the basis for computing revised capital requirements. Unsurprisingly, since the release of the circular, there’s been disquiet in the banking sector as Nigerian lenders and their shareholders absorb the enormity of the daunting task over the next two years. Add to this a seminal WhatsApp group dedicated to all things markets that I belong to, which almost blew a gasket at the weekend as members heatedly debated the merits and demerits of the non-inclusion of retained earnings in the new capitalisation requirements for banks.

Had the CBN allowed the banks to use shareholders’ funds as a basis for the new capital base, most, if not all banks, would have carried on with business as usual because the retained earnings on their balance sheets already exceeded their paid-up capital and share premium combined by several hundreds of billions of naira. As things stand, some Tier 1 bank holding companies and banks have retained earnings in excess of N500 billion – the new capital base threshold for international banks. These are Access Holdings – N715.13 billion, FBNH Plc – N608.73 billion, UBA Plc – N750.81 billion and Zenith Bank Plc – N894 billion, while GTCO at N424.50 billion is not far off. By implication, if banks’ retained earnings are added to their current paid-up capital and share premium, they would meet and exceed the new minimum capital requirements stipulated by the CBN.

Another concern that came up was that with the exclusion of retained earnings, the options given by the CBN for fresh capital injection through either private placement, the issuance of new shares (or public offers) and/or through mergers and acquisitions was dilutive for existing shareholders of the banks. One of the first persons to throw the first salvo over the new recapitalisation guidelines released by the CBN was Mustapha Chike-Obi, Chairman of Fidelity Bank Plc and Chairman of the Bank Directors Association of Nigeria ((BDAN), who was quoted on Arise News Channel on Friday morning as stating that the non-inclusion of retained earnings would not work and called on the CBN to provide additional clarification on the issue.

Similarly, Johnson Chukwu, CEO of Cowry Assets Management Limited, faulted the exclusion of retained earnings and advised the CBN to align the new capital requirements with industry dynamics to facilitate a seamless transition. According to him, the exclusion of retained earnings will result in banks incurring recapitalisation costs, adding that this would force banks to declare cash and bonus dividends for their shareholders and undertake rights issues.

Other market analysts further posited that the exclusion of retained earnings from new capital requirements for banks would put them under pressure, given the huge amounts lenders would have to raise in an environment where capital is already constrained. According to one such analyst, “You have a situation where the CBN has adopted a contractionary monetary policy stance with high interest rates and is issuing OMO bills at 27%. This was done to curb inflation, attract foreign portfolio investors into the market and thereby improve FX liquidity. As such, capital is constrained in the country due to the tight monetary stance of the CBN. So how are banks expected to raise an estimated N3 trillion to N4 trillion to meet the new capital thresholds? This is just contradictory.”

He also wondered what the of objective of the CBN was, asking if it is to improve capital buffers of banks and strengthen their ability to fund big ticket transactions to grow the economy, how will this be achieved with the high interest rates on treasury bills that have crowded out the private sector? “In addition, with the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) at 45% and Liquidity Ratio at 30%, how are the banks expected to lend money to their customers. So, if the banks raise fresh equity capital, are they going to continue lending to government?” he asked.

Though it is true that the CBN’s contractionary stance is at variance with its decision to compel banks to raise fresh equity capital, it will be short-sighted for anyone to think that the current monetary tightening will be remain in place for an eternity, as the policy measures are short-term in nature. Like any central bank, once the CBN determines, say12 months from now, that inflation is beginning to recede and FX stability has been achieved, it will begin to lower interest rates and loosen its stance on CRR and the liquidity ratio, by which time the banks will be recapitalised or nearing recapitalisation and ready to create new risk assets for economic growth. Yet, for the CBN’s monetary policy to succeed, a lot of action will still be required from the fiscal side which has continued to run an expansionary budget and has failed to implement measures to address structural bottlenecks that are adding to Nigeria’s economic woes.

But even as bankers and market analysts at the weekend were losing sleep over the exclusion of retained earnings, CBN officials countered that there was either an absence of sincerity on the true position of things in the banking sector or there was pervasive ignorance. A CBN official who spoke to this writer off the record, dismissed the retained earnings of several banks, calling them mere accounting entries that are not worth the paper on which they are written. According to him, a lot the banks had been granted forbearances over the years and if the forbearances are withdrawn by the CBN, their retained earnings will be wiped out. He said total forbearances in the industry were roughly the capital the central bank is asking the banks to raise.

Providing further insight, he said almost all banks in the country have massive exposures to defaulting debtors, particularly in the energy sector (power sector and oil and gas loans), that they have scant hope of recovering. “These are loans that were given out 10 years ago to power sector investors during the privatisation exercise that have not been recovered. Then there are loans that were given to local oil and gas companies to acquire the assets of oil multinationals. All these loans are impaired, and the banks have little or no hope of recovering them. Yet, the CBN kept rolling over the forbearances to give the semblance of financial system soundness and stability. This was what Cardoso inherited from his predecessor Godwin Emefiele who was very lax with the forbearances that he gave to the banks, and they were too many of them,” the official disclosed.

The official said that save for the foreign banks – Citi Bank, Standard Chartered Bank and Stanbic IBTC – and to a lesser extent a few local banks such as GTBank, Zenith Bank and perhaps Access Bank, all the other banks have significant exposures to bank debtors whose non-performing loans (NPLs), running into trillions of naira, have not been written off against their income. He added that withdrawing the forbearances in one fell swoop would be injurious to the system, so the best route is for banks to raise fresh capital and for the CBN to allow them to bite the bullet in a phased manner.       

However, a few market analysts who sensed that the CBN has no confidence in the retained earnings of several banks, are questioning why the regulator cannot simply isolate banks that are under forbearance and allow the few without forbearance to count their retained earnings against capital. They were of the view that the blanket decision to disregard a significant portion of the book value of the banking system would amount to discrediting the financial statements of banks that external auditors and CBN examiners had approved over the last couple of years. They also felt that the CBN should tighten and monitor the calculation of risk weighted assets (RWAs) of banks so that they are not fictional, and once this is done, the CBN should focus on capitalisation of ratios. (RWAs are bank loans and other assets, weighted according to risk.) Furthermore, they recommended the exclusion of some part of retained earnings such as unrealised gains on assets and FX revaluation gains.   

Responding, the central bank official said CBN examiners had been acutely aware of the problem of rising NPLs and made recommendations to several banks to raise fresh capital in their respective examination reports, but their recommendations were ignored by both the banks and CBN executives. “Instead of being a proper regulator, the CBN became an enabler by not enforcing its own prudential guidelines,” he said. The CBN official added that the hot air being blown by banks over retained earnings was misplaced because the bulk of it was not cash and the objective of the central bank is to inject fresh cash into the balance sheets of banks.

“If they have confidence in their retained earnings, the banks should pay them out as dividends to their shareholders. But realistically, they cannot do so because a lot of these retained earnings have gone into various aspects of their balance sheets and are probably part of their risk assets which are impaired, they are also probably part of their fixed assets which you cannot immediately liquidate. So, it is difficult to include such retained earnings as part of their capital because it’s not actually cash. And since it is the CBN’s objective is to create new risk assets by way of loans, this can only be achieved through fresh cash injections,” he explained.

In addition, CBN is not unaware that the supernormal profits arising from FX revaluation gains that a lot of banks will declare for the 2023 financial year are not cash backed, so for them to pay dividends, they would have to do so from depositors’ funds. Banks can get away with it, according to Ugochukwu Obi-Chukwu, Founder/CEO of Nairametrics, “Because banks’ cashflow statements include depositors’ funds, so it is fungible and often impossible to know what funds the banks are paying out.” This interchangeability of shareholders’ funds with depositors’ funds on the financial statements of banks, renders it difficult for the public to know when a bank is distressed just by looking at its financials. It is for this reason, Obi-Chukwu noted, that central banks can only detect looming bank failure when they conduct stress tests. This, he added, reinforces Emefiele’s position when he oversaw the CBN that banks are not owned by their shareholders but by depositors because they have a significantly higher stake in banks and must be protected at all cost. In essence, without depositors, shareholders have no banks.

Well, as the banking sector recapitalisation exercise slowly but surely kicks off from today, it is expected that so many issues will be thrown up for the CBN and banks to wade through. Although it is uncertain that the central bank will back off from the non-inclusion of retained earnings to the revised capital base for banks, it will be advisable for the regulator to revisit the 30-day deadline given to banks to submit their implementation plans for recapitalisation.

For one, the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) renders the 30-day target unrealistic, as the Act stipulates that any changes to a company’s equity structure must get the approval of its shareholders. Two, a company’s shareholders can only meet by way of an annual or extraordinary general meeting after its board of directors must have met and considered the alterations to the equity structure. Three, to convene an AGM or EGM, at least 21 days notice must be given, to enable shareholders attend and approve or reject the changes to the capital structure.

It was the morning of December 26, 1983 at the shooting of ‘Blues for a Prodigal’, a film by Wole Soyinka. The dry, mild harmattan morning was filled with dust and haze. The location was the Rotunda, a small bar, tidily tucked in at the back corner of the vast Oduduwa Hall complex of the University of Ife (as it was known then). The unique architectural feature of the Rotunda was its round and almost squat-like design with a door and several large, similarly round windows which were almost the size (but not the regular rectangular shape) of french windows. It is a fitting rendezvous between two thugs (emissaries of a highly-placed politician) and an undergraduate who chooses to dine with the devil.

As we sat down waiting that morning, we watched the film's production crew led by ace cinematographer, Bankole Bello, set up their equipment. The late Steve Awana from Lagos was in charge of continuity. Presently, the writer and director of the movie, Professor Wole Soyinka arrived. In tow was his secretary whom we commonly called Francis. He was a wizard with the typewriter and cyclostyling machine. The personal computer was still in its embryo, undergoing pregnancy tests then.

Apart from a few professional actors and technical practitioners from outside Ife with some members of the University Theatre, the rest of us in the Rotunda were students of the Department of Dramatic Arts of which Professor Soyinka was the Head at that time. Somehow someone had spread the word, just before the Christmas break, to many of us students present that morning that Prof would be conducting an audition for a movie. So we did not go home for Christmas and came to the Rotunda with much expectation. We soon learnt that the audition and casting for the movie had been done and the shooting had started a few weeks earlier at locations outside the campus at Ife and even as far as the beautiful and serene Takwa Bay, an islet off the Lagos Harbour.

For this particular scene and a few others at the Rotunda, a few persons were needed as bar-room patrons - a crowd scene kind of. It was not therefore a fresh audition for roles as such. Having learnt this, we still decided to stay back, contented to be part of the bar-room crowd. After all, being a passer-by or waka-pass (as commonly called in Nollywood), in a Soyinka film would be a huge priviledge on its own.

In the bar-room scene, if my memory does not fail me, two political thugs (Prof christened them Enforcers) are billed to have a meeting with a young undergraduate who is paid to carry out an assignment for a politician. The undergraduate seems to be reluctant to do the job.

By mid-morning, Mr. Bello, the director of photography, and his crew were ready. But the rehearsal could not go on. The person playing the undergraduate, the movie's lead role and who was central to the shooting that day, Felix Okolo, was not on set. No one knew where he was. But it appeared he had not returned from the Christmas holiday. The now-ubiquitous mobile phone was still nearly a distant two decades away then. So there was no ready means of calling or knowing where Felix was.

The director paced the floor for a few moments, thinking, and then decided on the next line of action. He asked that a stand-by be found for Felix so the rehearsal could go on while still waiting for Felix's arrival. A quick search round the room for Felix's look-alike... and Prof spotted me. I was handed a copy of the script. Moments later I was sitting directly opposite the much-storied Jimi Solanke (Enforcer 1) and his ally-in-crime, Jimmy Johnson (Enforcer 2) who was at that time a television star in Lagos. I felt small.

Jimi Solanke was already quite known then within and beyond the arts world. By the time we arrived Ife as undergraduates in 1980, he was not there. But his name and fame had travelled well ahead of him. We were regaled with his exploits at Ori Olokun Theatre under Prof. Ola Rotimi. Before then, he had cut his teeth in the early 1960's at the Mbari Club in Ibadan which paraded path-finders like Wole Soyinka, Chinua Achebe, Demas Nwoko, Chris Okigbo, Mabel Segun, Bruce Onobrakpeya, Uche Okeke and subsequently at Orisun Theatre along with the likes of Segun Olusola, Ralph Opara, Segun Sofowote, Yomi Obileye and Tunji Oyelana. He later went to the School of Drama at the University of Ibadan where he had formal training in acting, music and dance. He joined Ori Olokun Theatre under the Institute of African Studies of the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) in the early 1970's. The theatre then was in town, off-campus, at Arubiidi in Ile-Ife. There, he worked and got further training under Prof. Ola Rotimi (acting), Prof. Akin Euba (music) and Peggy Harper (dance).

With Ori Olokun, he had many glorious nights when he lit up the stage and the spark in many a heart. One of such was at the command performance of Ola Rotimi's Ovonramwen Nogbaisi in Benin in 1972. The story rang through the campus of how deeply absorbed Jimi Solanke was into the role of Oba Ovonramwen that many in the audience were moved to tears. So enthralled were the guests that the governor of the Mid-Western State, Brigadier-general Samuel Ogbemudia, at the instance of the Oba of Benin, did not allow him to return to Ife with the troupe. By military fiat, he was appointed Senior Cultural Officer in the state's Mid-West Arts' Council where he worked for about four years.

He left for the University of Ibadan in 1976 to join the activities at the opening of the National Theatre in preparations for the 2nd World Black Festival of Arts and Culture (FESTAC '77). At FESTAC, he played several roles. He acted in Nigeria's main drama feature, Langbodo, Wale Ogunyemi's adaptation of D. O. Fagunwa's epic, Ogboju Ode Ninu Igbo Irunmole, playing the lead role, Young Akara-ogun. The play was directed by Dapo Adelugba. He also had solo vocal performances under Akin Euba's direction while he was Assistant Director, Dance to Peggy Harper.

After the festival, he took off to the United States. It was as if he was being awaited. Moments after his arrival in New York, through a phone call, he got his first job. Two days later, he took part in the recording of The Path, a song by Hugh Masekela which also featured Miriam Makeba, Groover Washington and George Benson. It was a big hit which set him on the path of more successful hits. He soon moved to Los Angeles where he started a series of school shows which he called Africa Revue, a feast of songs, story-telling and drama sketches - similar to what he was doing at Orisun in Soyinka's Before the Blackout. This was the precursor of his story-telling and songs programme on several Nigerian television stations.

He returned to Nigeria in 1982 to the University of Ife Theatre at the Institute of African Studies. I recall seeing him in a few plays. He played the lead role in Kole Omotoso's Equitorial Trials in 1982. Early in 1983 he took one of the major characters in the premiere of Wole Soyinka's Requiem for a Futurologist. He also took part in Etika Revo Wetin? - a satirical musical production also by Soyinka on the rather concerning state of things in Nigeria at that time. It was released ahead of the August 1983 General Elections.

On a couple of times in 1982, at the invitation of the director, Iyabo Folayan, Jimi Solanke came to the Pit Theatre to see our rehearsals of Fate of a Cockroach by the Egyptian playwright, Tewfik Al-Hakim. The present writer played the lead role, the King, while Sharon Hamlet (daughter of the Carribean lecturer, Prof. Hamlet of the Literature in English Department) was the Queen, with Joke Muyiwa as Um Attiyah, Okey Okoesime as the Savant and Tunde Oduwole as the Priest. Jimi Solanke offered some vital suggestions for improvement. I benefitted from his advice on voice modulation, enunciation of words as well as the use of appropriate mobile eye and facial movements towards achieving optimal theatrical effect.

Now back to the set of 'Blues...' The rehearsal with Jimi Solanke and Jimmy Johnson went on till break-time, but Felix did not show up. After break, a few short scenes where Felix did not feature were rehearsed and shot. We continued the rehearsal all day without Felix showing up.

The next morning, Prof asked me to see him. He explained that since no one knew when Felix would come and we could not afford to lose any more day because of the cost of production, he had decided to go ahead with the shooting. He had therefore re-written a few new scenes. This was easy, he said, since he was writing daily as the shooting went along. To my utter amazement, the master craftsman had overnight created another character, a younger brother to Felix, and transferred most of the lines I rehearsed the previous day to the new character whom he named Sope. He gave the script which he had typed himself to his secretary, Francis, who quickly had copies ready for cast and crew.

After rehearsing several times, and seeing I had mastered the role and the lines, the director called for a recording:

"Silence! Bar-room noise! Camera rolling, sound, lights..."

Just as we were about to begin shooting the scene, Felix Okolo walked in.

"Cut! Cut! Cut!", the director bawled. You would think this was in itself a scene from a play. And silence reigned all over the Rotunda...

All eyes were on Felix...and then shifted from Felix to Prof and from Prof to Felix... not knowing what next to do... But Prof wasted no time. He said that it would be unfair to ask me to go back and join the bar-room audience after nearly two days of rehearsal. He insisted on the new arrangement: that I would play the new character and he promised to make necessary adjustments in all parts of the script to accommodate the new role. He asked Francis to give Felix a copy of the new script for him to study.

This was how the illustrious professor, for whom the Nobel Prize was still three years away, graciously created a character for little me. He gave me a role in his movie and also ensured I was paid at that time a whooping N250. Before then in all the previous roles I had featured on stage and television, I had never been paid more than N25 for any of the performances. But in the twinkling of an eye, on the set of 'Blues...', I was transported, far beyond my imagination, from the crowd scene to playing a supportive role in the movie. I was on top of the moon. Several years later as I asked him to autograph my copy of his new collection of poems, Samarkand and other markets I have known, at the National Theatre in Lagos, I tried to remind Prof of how he gave me a role in 'Blues...', he looked at me with a blank expression on his face. The Nobel laurate could not remember. For him, what I cherish till this day belongs to a time long gone, a brief but forgotten and faraway scene in one epic drama of several lives rolled into one.

But, Jimi Solanke's bark jerks me back to the moment. All eyes and lights are riveted on us in that corner of the Rotunda. His threatening trademark booming baritone and his bulging eyeballs accentuated by a scar above one of the eyelids fill me with terror. His gaze is terrifying... holding me exactly where the director wants him to. The tormentor-in-chief is barking and asking after my brother. His companion is also not relenting. They are bent on cowering me into revealing my brother's whereabouts.

The effect is almost stupefying. It seems the director and everyone on set are satisfied with the effect and enjoying the moment. I stutter my words nervously... as I am meant to anyway. I am sweating and suffering from the enforcers' threat and the heat of the camera's lights. My assailants are unrelenting until I can bear it no more. The scene ends in a pandemonium with me suddenly rising and turning the table, drinks, ash-tray and all against the two enforcers as I bolt for the door. But Enforcer 2 stands in the way and makes to grab my shirt. I turn and the next moment I fly out the nearby french window, evading my two tormentors. And they come after me...with my footsteps whipping the harmattan dust up their faces.

Later, Felix (I still can't remember his name in the film) with his girlfriend, Rekyia (played by Yinka Adesina) and I appeared in a few more scenes with the enforcers in hot pursuit.

Those were some of my brief but cherished and unforgettable moments with 'Uncle' Jimi Solanke on the set of Soyinka's movie, 'Blues for a Prodigal'.

Much said, it was sheer fun to be on the same set with him. For any fledgling like me, there was usually one thing or another to learn from him. Off-set, when we let our hair down, he carried no airs around him. He was always good company. Tall, slim and dark: you would not, as they say, miss him in a crowd. Try ignoring him, his iconic voice would always rise above the raging din of the market-place, striking and soothing even the most impervious ear. The last time we met, a few years ago at Prof. Tunde Babawale’s birthday at the University of Lagos, he sang and danced as if to bring back the old days. The moments were suffused with old school music and dance and nostalgic recollections of times past.

Doubtless, Solanke's tutelage under Soyinka from 1960 helped to form and shape his professional career. The high point of that career and his working with Soyinka was perhaps the enactment of the role of Elesin Oba in the latter's beautiful play, Death and the King's Horseman. According to Professor James Gibbs, one of the best known authorities on Soyinka's works, in his tribute on Jimi Solanke which was published in The Guardian (Nigeria) of February 18, 2024:

"In 1976, he created the monumental role of Elesin Oba in Death and the King's Horseman. Thanks to Gerald Moore, who reviewed the University of Ife production for West Africa magazine (10th January, 1977), we have a vivid account of Solanke's outstanding portrayal. Moore wrote as follows:

'Fortunately Jimi Solanke, who has to carry the bulk of the play in the role of the Elesin, turned in what must be the performance of his life. His expressive body and eloquent dancing were matched by a voice of great range and flexibility. Not a word was lost, and each word in the right verbal texture of this beautiful play was made to work within our understanding.'

History was made by that production and that performance..." - James Gibbs

And what a production! What a performance!

The ground squirrel, hands in the air, was once quoted to have wryly declared: 'whatever one knows how to do well always effortlessly comes out like magic! Whenever he is going on a farm, he does not know how groundnuts roll into his mouth'.

Those words suit Solanke when he bestrode the stage. But as the years and the nation rolled on like a bolekaja lorry and theatre activities disappointingly dwindled, he devoted more time to music - a love from his younger days.

Born on July 4, 1942 in Lagos, he had started out much early with highlife music. He wrote the lyrics of Roy Chicago's 'Onilegogoro' when he was still in secondary school. He later joined musical bands and sang highlife pieces at night clubs in Lagos and Ibadan. He formed and ran a highlife band with Orlando Julius Ekemode. Thanks to highlife and juju pioneer, I. K. Dairo who bought the duo musical instruments and a vehicle. They toured the towns a bit until they crashed the lorry and, with it, their dream. That was in the 1960's. In-between acting, however, he continued his music. He recorded a few albums here in Nigeria and in the United States. When he returned home, he teamed up with Biddy Wright for musical shows at the National Theatre and elsewhere. They formed the high-flying Wura-Fadaka band which lit up the social circles of the late 1980's and early 1990's with old school music. Biddy Wright would tragically later perish in a domestic fire incident in the mid-90's.

Solanke's music, a kind of afrobeat, is a fusion of highlife, jazz and local rhythms and themes. 'Bare Eni Joye' and 'Ojooje' are some of his popular pieces. His songs are evocative, directed to the soul. They strike and stir the spirit.

Jimi Solanke would be better remembered as the man with the song and the story. He would be remembered as Baba Agba, the aged story-telling grandpa, on several Nigerian television stations. He would be remembered by children who, gripped, gathered round him to listen to his spellbinding stories. Younger generations would see him as the old piper whom they, enchanted, followed out of town even as he too led their path. As Baba Agba, he made the role of the African story-teller most fascinating, transporting his audience, right on and through television, back to the days when there was no television.

Today the arts landscape is considerably diminished by the singular departure on February 5, 2024 of this great actor, singer, folklorist, dancer and visual artist, Jimi Solanke. True, he could so often struggle with himself. Yet, in the end, as a masquerade with cloaks of many colours, he wore many more masks than most. And there was hardly anyone he wore that he did not, in spite of himself, breathe and stamp a unique and captivating presence onto.

'A man is either born to his trade, or he is not.', Soyinka would say in Death and the King's Horseman. Jimi Solanke would in all estimation appear to have been born into his. He was in his elements in leading roles. He could combine easily the majestic movements of the royal with the stately features and gait of the tragic figure. And he could sing to boot! A delight to watch any day, he was always almost sufficient spectacle at any show.

We remember his wife and children at this time. Mrs. Toyin Solanke would appear to be the proverbial woman behind her man. She too was at a time a member of the University of Ife Theatre. Through the uncertainties, the ups and downs, and the ons and offs like 'NEPA' (our national electricity supply), like most marriages, she stands like a pillar... showing that indeed love conquers all.

Baba Agba, these children clambering about your feet ask for but one more song, one more story... Baba Agba, they are here. Baba Agba, they are all ears... Alas, it's all silence as lights dim and curtains close! Ale le, awo mi lo (Night falls, the adept departs). A new song, a new act unfolds only in the horizon. Jimi Solanke takes a bow and exits the stage. A stalwart heads home. He feels for direction. May he find guidance on his path...


(Akin Orebiyii is a farmer in Ogun State, Nigeria)

The maiden flight of Air Peace airline to London on over the Easter weekend is a perfect moment to discuss an important aspect of our aviation sector which has been on my mind for a long time. Why can’t the federal government enter into some agreement with Air Peace and officially designate the airline as our national flag carrier? Note that in aviation, a flag carrier is different from a national carrier. This question became quite pertinent after the Hadi Sirika fiasco last year in which the former aviation minister tried, but failed to float a national carrier. While a flag carrier is basically a privately-owned airline (or shipping line) flying the flag of its country on international operations and may enjoy certain privileges, a national carrier is owned and operated by the national government and they usually have certain sovereign advantages. As we all know, British Airways (BA) is not owned by the British government; neither are the many US carriers that bear US colours and flags.

Since the liquidation of Nigeria Airways in 2003, it’s been so difficult for the government to float a replacement. In 2004, the Virgin Group, owned by British billionaire Richard Branson, established a Nigerian subsidiary known as Virgin Nigeria - a joint venture between Nigerian investors and the Virgin Group. The deal was facilitated by the Obasanjo administration. But Branson soon pulled out of the deal and the company collapsed after a few years in business. Branson explained later that he had to quit because Nigerian officials were pestering him for bribes. The airline was then renamed Eagle Airlines and later Air Nigeria. The business ultimately ceased operations in 2012.

Over a decade after, the idea of a national carrier still remains a national fascination, but the government has neither the appetite nor the resources to invest in such a venture, especially given pervasive corruption and the ineptitude of our bureaucrats. When Sirika, a retired pilot, arrived the scene as aviation minister in 2015, he resuscitated the idea, but could not pull it through.

A truly branded flag carrier will make up for the absence of a national airline. If Air Peace becomes our flag carrier, its planes (especially those on international routes) would bear our national colours and flag and ‘’NIGERIA’’ would be prominently emblazoned on it as part of its livery. It will project our national brand and unique Nigerian attributes, culture including cuisines and hospitality to many parts of the world. That’s why flag carriers are sometimes referred to as ‘’Embassy on Wings’’.

Already, Air Peace has promised to serve Nigerian cuisines on its London route and it was also heartwarming seeing those beautiful airhostesses dressed in ‘’ishiagu’’ designs. In return, Air Peace will enjoy enhanced customer loyalty as passengers usually prefer their flag carriers out of a sense of national pride. The government will also provide the airline with many incentives such as official assistance to develop more international routes in accordance with our bilateral air services agreement (BASA) and support in aircraft acquisitions. Air Peace could also access FX at official rate. I should emphasize that such partnership with the government does not imply that the government has assumed any proprietorship or ownership rights on the airline; and so, government officials will not interfere in the management of the airline and shall not seek to make any appointment into its board or management or demand for free or concessionary tickets.

 Air Peace has shown considerable resilience and determination to succeed in the face of huge challenges. It therefore deserves to be supported by Nigerians and the government. With over 50 aircraft, 30 destinations and 5,000 employees, it is Nigeria’s biggest carrier, serving major cities in the country and flying to many African countries and the Middle East. Coming in the 11th year of the company’s existence, the London route is a marvelous attainment for a privately-owned African airline. London is the airline’s seventh international destination and it ‘’signals our entry into the European market’’, according to Chairman Allen Onyema. New York and Houston routes are also coming. The London operations would be carried out with Boeing 777 and Boeing 787 Drealliner aircraft. It would be operating daily flights to the Southern Terminal of Gatwick Airport, with fares far cheaper than what competition was offering. The inaugural flight with 260 passengers took place seven years after the last indigenous airline, Medview, operated this very lucrative international route.

The immediate impact of Air Peace’s entry into the Lagos-London route is the drastic fall in airfares charged by other international carriers. They were forced to reduce fares from N4 million to between N1.8 m and N1.9 m, compared to Air Peace’s N1.2 m for economy. Besides, these foreign airlines were also piling pressure on the CBN to sell them FX at discounted rates. The UK has 21 weekly slots into Nigeria with BA alone operating 14.

In a recent TV interview, Chairman Onyeama acknowledges that his airline and other Nigerian-owned international carriers are automatically regarded as flag carriers. This is not enough. Those aircraft must be appropriately branded. He also listed the many challenges which Air Peace has been facing both within and outside Nigeria in the course of applying for the London route. The Nigerian government must do everything to ensure that Air Peace succeed.

What you value is what you invest your riches in. A wealthy man with a million slaves dies, but in his wardrobe is found one lone dress (Oun tó ndun ni níí pò l’órò eni. Ológún erú kú, aso o rè kù ìkan soso). That is my people’s proverb for otherwise wise men with deliberately misplaced priorities. We’ve always known that politics pays better than education in Nigeria. The N90 billion Hajj subsidy is higher than the combined 2024 budgets of the University of Ibadan (N23.4billion), Obafemi Awolowo University (N17.1 billion), Ahmadu Bello University (N29.2 billion) and the University of Lagos (N19.4billion). So, what is the matter prioritized here? The government did not spend that money for religion. It was for politics and the need to avoid the political consequences of hurting Nigeria’s powerful entrepreneurs of pilgrimage”.

From Lagos, one Ayinde Salihu wrote to the Sardauna of Sokoto and Premier of the Northern Region, Alhaji Ahmadu Bello, on 19 January, 1964, describing the premier as the “Prophet of Nigeria.” The man wanted the Sardauna to take him to Mecca for Hajj. Buliyaminu Oladiti Fadairo wrote from Ibadan on 21 January, 1964, saluting the Sardauna as “Nigerian Holiest Father.” It was his way of massaging the big man’s ego so that he would make him a pilgrim in that year’s Hajj. Same day from Kabba, Aruna Agbana wrote begging the Sardauna to sponsor his pilgrimage to Mecca “in the name of Allah and Annabi Muhammadu, the Holy Prophet…and in the name of Usman Dan Fodio…” The Sardauna had a standard response for all of them: “Pilgrimage is not obligatory if one has no means…” American professor of history, Mathew M. Heaton, has all the above in his ‘Ahmadu Bello and the Politics of Pilgrimage’. It is a chapter in his book on ‘Decolonising the Hajj’ published in 2023.

 

What the Sardauna said about pilgrimage not being “obligatory if one has no means” is the correct injunction prescribed in Islam. But, the injunction might be canonically true in 1964, it is no longer so today. Never mind that John Bunyan in ‘Pilgrim’s Progress’ says “what God says is best, is best though all the men in the world are against it.” The poet just wasted words. There are egregious carts everywhere today for the pilgrim to ride in short-circuiting faith and its precepts. They say the times determine what law to keep. They say that at every point in time, what the world carries is the child the times birth for it.

The way we fart while pricing irú (locust beans) is not the way we should fart while buying salt. But now, there are no limits to misbehaviour. Everywhere stinks. We shit in holy places and receive effusive thank you from the guardian priests. If he were alive, the powerful Sardauna would not have resisted the pressure to pay today – and remain relevant. A multitude of Nigerians (Muslim and Christian) desire the bliss of paradise which may be in holy pilgrimages but everyone wants someone else to pay for it. And they get it. ‘FG bows to pressure, approves N90 billion subsidy for Hajj fares’ was how The Guardian headlined its report on a payment of subsidy for Hajj. I read it in other papers also. The payment is unprecedented in the hugeness of the figure. And the government has not said the media lied. Hajj is an obligation which applies under clearly stated conditions – these include financial and physical capability. But now, every year, pressure, threats, and blackmail are rained on presidents and governors to sponsor pilgrims. And they cave in to do what is wrong. They forget that they were elected to say no to irregularities; that sometimes, resistance may be politically inexpedient and tough, but in resisting wrong lies victory. “Dark clouds bring waters, when bright bring none” – Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress again. Robbing the Peter of millions of Nigerians to foot the bill of elitist Paul is a mark of the beast. But it is the new normal. Governments sponsor thousands to Mecca and Jerusalem in exchange for political support.

I call the Nigerian elite culture which allowed this payment an ‘Aj’ìfà’ culture. Aj’ìfà is that person who grows fat reaping big where he sows little – or reaps without sowing at all. Someone else said elsewhere that Nigeria is an “Aj’òfé society.” That somebody is Ladun Anise, late professor of political science, who explains in a 1979 journal article that “the word Aj’òfé is a Yoruba word meaning ‘free-loader’ or ‘parasite.'” I nodded as I read his further explanation that “an aj’òfe society carries a parasitic culture; builds its expectations on what the government can and must do (for them) with no sense of individual or group responsibility…It is a culture in which people are determined to turn constrained privileges into fundamental constitutional rights or even the precepts of natural law.” I understand that some of the intending pilgrims are threatening to pull out of this year’s hajj unless the government pays the balance of N1.9 million for them. The country is a fallen elephant before a pack of cleavers.

We married a wife in the month of famine and in that same month of lack, she decided to use pounded yam to build a house. What name would you give that kind of wife? What baby would the woman birth, and what will the name be? The question is elegantly answered in the original Yoruba version of that proverb: Ìyàwó tí a fé l’ósù agà tí n fi’yán mo’lé, yóò-báa-ní’bè l’orúko omo rè yóo máa jé. ‘Yo-ba-nibe’ (e go meet am there), the reserved name for the expected product of the conjugal error, forebodes tragic delivery. I thought our husbands said the country was broke and all subsidies should go -and was gone. Now we know they lied. The Federal Government that said no to what benefitted 200 million Nigerians last May has released N90 billion to subsidise the purse of about 50,000 persons (or of their rich sponsors) so that they could make a personal religious journey to Saudi Arabia. It is a subsidy for politics.

What you value is what you invest your riches in. A wealthy man with a million slaves dies, but in his wardrobe is found one lone dress (Oun tó ndun ni níí pò l’órò eni. Ológún erú kú, aso o rè kù ìkan soso). That is my people’s proverb for otherwise wise men with deliberately misplaced priorities. We’ve always known that politics pays better than education in Nigeria. The N90 billion Hajj subsidy is higher than the combined 2024 budgets of the University of Ibadan (N23.4billion), Obafemi Awolowo University (N17.1 billion), Ahmadu Bello University (N29.2 billion) and the University of Lagos (N19.4billion). So, what is the matter prioritized here? The government did not spend that money for religion. It was for politics and the need to avoid the political consequences of hurting Nigeria’s powerful entrepreneurs of pilgrimage.

The Obafemi Awolowo government of the old Western Region set up Nigeria’s first Pilgrims Welfare Board vide Western Regional Gazette No. 39, vol. 7 of 5th June, 1958. The board’s existence was dictated by the need to attend to issues of welfare of hajj pilgrims from Western Nigeria. The northern region followed that example seven years later in 1965. Both boards were restricted by law to collecting Hajj fares from intending pilgrims, arranging passports for them, helping intending pilgrims to get visas and other consular interventions, assisting them with flight tickets and with vaccination, getting them comfortable accommodation and transportation in Saudi Arabia – all at their own expense. The limit of the responsibilities of the boards was the limit of government involvement in Hajj operations. Apart from one VIP Hajj flight per year involving the Sardauna and selected members of the northern elite, there are no records of any government-sponsored Hajj trip for anybody in any of the regions.

What is the official explanation (reason) for the Federal Government’s release of that subsidy for the Hajj? Each of the 48,414 intending pilgrims was initially supposed to pay N3.5 million, then it was jacked up to N4.9 million when the dollar raced past the strength of our sense. N4.9 million is a huge amount in this season of want. There was an outcry which the anti-subsidy government in Abuja heard and doused with a subsidy coolant which translated to N1.6 million per pilgrim. This N90 billion pilgrimage subsidy paid by this government I could not find anywhere in the 2024 budget of the Federal Government. Even in the pads and paddings, it is absent. So, where did the president conjure that humongous sum from?

Even after that intervention, there are further subsidies to pay. Because the forex crisis has set every plan ablaze, the total hajj fees payable is no longer N4.9 million per pilgrim. The hajj commission last week raised the fare by a further N1,918,032.91 blaming forex volatility. The amount is now N6.8 million per pilgrim. The arithmetic is well explained in a report by the Daily Trust some days ago which quoted a Hajj commission source: “By the previous calculation, the N90 billion given by the Federal Government can only subsidise 19,000 intending pilgrims by ₦3.5 million. But by spreading it on 50,000 pilgrims, it (the subsidy) reduced it (the shortfall) to N1.9 million. This means that the federal government has subsidised each pilgrim by ₦1.6 million…” There is still a shortfall of N1.9 million which each of the pilgrims has to pay. But they may not pay anything. Some state governments are paying it for them.

A friend asked when this culture of using public funds to fund private religious acts started. It is difficult to know but it didn’t start with this regime. When a head would go bad, it starts its descent gradually, unnoticed. What I know is that there used to be pride in people using their hard-earned money to go to Mecca. O.E. Tangban in his ‘The Hajj and the Nigerian Economy’ (1991) traces this tradition of going to Mecca and notes that at the very beginning “ordinary people went on Hajj by land routes across Chad to Sudan and then by boat to Jeddah” – with their hard-earned money. Even big men did. Dunama, the second Muslim Mai (king) of Kanemi – what we know today as Borno – followed that route. History says he was the first around here to go on pilgrimage to Mecca. He went the first time and came back. He went the second time and returned in peace. He went the third time and perished in an accident in the Red Sea. There is no record that he stole from the poor to fund his Hajj.

Nigerians are a very religious people. You would think being this religious coheres with piety. Some of those whose Hajj fees we’ve just paid have gone to Mecca in many and repeated times – like Abiku. Indeed, for some, it is business – legit and illegit. A lot goes with pilgrimages – to Saudi Arabia and to Israel – which mocks the reason and essence of pilgrimage. On the current Hajj list will be mistresses, paramours and concubines of some ‘pious’ persons of influence. I witnessed a case some years ago. We are using scarce funds to sponsor the good and the bad and the very ugly. Some of the officials particularly hate the smell of roses. It is a chain. The known faces are mere masks of the very big men of religion who preach fiery sermons of godliness. To them, pilgrimage is their soup pot, their business, and they always find one verse somewhere to validate what they do. It didn’t start today.

A big businessman from a wealthy family in Kano was arrested, tried, convicted and fined £7,000 in Sudan in April 1957 for currency trafficking. He was the sole agent in charge of the welfare and wellbeing of all Hajj pilgrims from Northern Nigeria. For that year’s Hajj – which many from the north did by road, the big man collected money from poor intending pilgrims and decided to do brisk business with it. He was arrested in Sudan “for illegally smuggling over 21,000 Egyptian pounds into the country.” Quoting several 1957 and 1958 editions of ‘The Nigerian Citizen’ newspaper, Heaton, in another chapter of his book referenced above (page 160), wrote that apparently the man “had been taking the deposits made by his Nigerian clients (pilgrims) and trading them for profit rather than forwarding them to the next location for dispersal. Deposits made in Nigeria in British sterling were traded in Beirut for Egyptian pounds” netting the man “a 50 percent profit on the original deposits that he could then pocket before delivering the funds to Sudan for distribution to pilgrims and his contracted agents…” His victims, the pilgrims, suffered and got stranded; two of them died of meningitis while waiting to be sorted out. The big man absconded to Nigeria and soon got into bigger trouble: His home was searched and found with “printing presses, currency moulds and £5,000 worth of forged £1 and £5 notes.” He was tried and, on 22 November, 1957, jailed for eight years. But if you are big here, no net will be big enough to restrain your fish. The man came out of prison earlier than ordered; he joined the ruling party and was elected into the House of Representatives in 1965. End of story.