Over the last few days, I recoiled in horror and disgust as the fairly straightforward case of JAMB exam result fraud by 19-year-old Mmesoma Ejikeme of the Anglican Girls Secondary School in Nnewi, Anambra State, unwarrantedly intensified Nigeria’s preexisting primordial fractures, deepened a sense of persecution complex among a demographic group, and hardened phobias and hate on social media. It didn’t have to be that way. Here are three lessons from this saga.

One, evidence-free imputation of ulterior motives to the declarations of non-political, non-partisan institutions like the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) is always a slippery slope that will lead to both real-life and rhetorical wrecks. There was no logical reason to presume that JAMB as an institution had a vested interest in denying the genuine claims to a superlative performance by a poor, unknown candidate like Ejikeme. 

 If the West African Examination Council, for example, says a result that some nondescript person parades is fake or genuine, it’s best to assume that it probably is—until we have firm, indisputable evidence to doubt the truth of its declaration.

A Facebook lawyer friend by the name of Dorcas Amina Miango (who goes by Ciroman Miango) captured this sentiment best. “If an institution says a document is not theirs, there is a presumption of authenticity in their favour until it is proven otherwise,” she wrote. “That is the law, it is simple. You can make moral arguments but that is not the law.”

The second lesson flows from the first, and it is that not everything is reducible to the politics of ethnicity and religion. It was starkly obvious that the ballyhoo over Miss Ejikeme’s Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) result was refracted through the prism of ethnicity, religion, and partisan politics. Most of the people who threw logic, evidence, and caution to the wind in defense of an obvious fraud by Ejikeme did so because they share the same ethnicity, religion, and region with her.

The enduring divisions in the polity in the aftermath of the last presidential election also influenced how certain people approached the young lady’s exam result fraud. People who have been persuaded that a candidate with some political presence in only 16 of Nigeria’s 36 states (and almost zero presence in 20 votes-rich states) won a national electoral “mandate” that was “stolen” extended their delusions to Ejikeme’s fraudulent claim.

 It didn’t matter that the actual best student whose feat JAMB had announced weeks ago shares the same state of origin as Ejikeme. Or that Ejikeme isn’t the only one whose false claim to superior performance in the UTME has been impeached by JAMB.

 JAMB’s spokesperson Dr. Fabian Benjamin told the gripping and audacious story of a candidate by the name of John Ifesinachi Chinedu, 19, from Enugu who, in 2021, also claimed to have scored 380 when he actually scored 265.

Like Ejikeme, he falsified his result, accused JAMB of altering it, and hired a well-heeled Enugu lawyer by the name Ikeazor Akaraiwe who demanded that JAMB set a fresh UTME for Chinedu and pay him 1 billion naira in restitutive damages. After JAMB unfurled unimpeachable, foolproof evidence against him, he collapsed like a pack of cards, confessed his fraud, and asked for forgiveness. He was handed over to the police.

Premium Times of July 5 reported other cases such as Kingsley Unekwe, 18, who, in 2019, altered his score from 201 to 269 but was outed by a JAMB investigative panel; an Adah Eche, 18, who fudged his UTME score of 153 to 290 and wrote to JAMB demanding it “correct” his score; a Cletus Kokowa who changed his score from 162 to 206 and later confessed to having paid N10,000 to a crime syndicate to help him electronically alter his score; and a Rejoice Mordi, 19, who changed her score from 164 to 264 and later confessed to getting help for her fraud from WhatsApp through someone identified as Iyanu Oluwa.

Had the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ) not convincingly shown in a July 4 investigative piece how Ejikeme used a free Google Play app called “JambFun-Fake Jamb Result Maker” to simulate the UTME result she paraded as hers, the debate over her “innocence” and JAMB’s villainy would probably still have been raging. 

Unfortunately, even after FIJ has shown how you can create a fake UTME result in a few minutes— and several hilariously fake UTME scores have proliferated on social media using the JambFun-Fake Jamb Result Maker” app— former minister Oby Ezekwesili who stuck out her neck in defense of Ejikeme, tweeted on July 5 that “it should be clear to any reasonable person who cares about Exam Integrity in Nigeria, that more needs to be done to unearth how she obtained the 362-score result which @JAMBHQ disavowed. The Public needs to know these facts through an Independent Technology Investigation.”

An “Independent Technology Investigation” (whatever in the world that means) to find out how Ejikeme downloaded the “JambFun-Fake Jamb Result Maker” app on her phone to generate a fake UTME result? Ha! And this lady was an education minister! It’s true what they say: prejudice distorts what it sees, deceives when it talks, and destroys when it acts.

Ejikeme clearly only forged the UTME result because she wanted to deceive individuals and her state government into funding her university education. No investigation is needed to unearth that. We learned that after getting Innoson Automobile Company to award her a ₦3 million scholarship, she approached the Anambra State government to demand both a recognition of her “feat” and a scholarship.

This was a low-level fraud that had the blessing of her parents—and later the witting and unwitting support of millions of people who share her primordial characteristics. It’s exactly why corruption will be difficult to stamp out in Nigeria.

The last lesson in this, for me, is to learn to never make judgements solely on the basis of surface impressions. A lot of people assumed the innocence of Ejikeme on the basis of her age and looks. Several people also presumed the guilt of JAMB on the basis of their preconceived prejudices about JAMB registrar Professor Is-haq Oloyede.

Oloyede is a professor of Islamic Studies whose first degree is Arabic. This fact became like a red rag to a bull for a lot of commentators. But the truth is that Professor Oloyede, by all accounts, is the most transformational registrar JAMB has ever had in its existence. Throughout his tenure as registrar, he has ensured that the conduct of UTME every subsequent year is invariably better than the preceding year.

I have never met the man. I am also always reluctant to vouch for people in public office because the intoxication of power and authority can cause people to change without notice. But most people who know the man attest to his unflinching commitment to fairness and justice for everyone irrespective of their faith, ethnicity, or politics.

I have also been told that he is a compulsively methodical, organized, self-critical, and forward-looking person. That was why he had a successful tenure as Vice Chancellor of the University of Ilorin even though he is from Abeokuta in Ogun State—in a time when “outsiders” are not allowed to be VCs of even federal universities. His tenure saw the dramatic rise in the profile of the University of Ilorin. 

He has brought that same spirit to JAMB. I am sure he has his foibles, like everyone else, but to judge him on the basis of what he studied and taught and ignore his record is both unfair and unproductive.

Northern leaders have rejected a call by former governor of Zamfara State, Malam Yerima Sani, asking President Bola Tinubu to negotiate with terrorists and bandits in the country and grant them amnesty as it was done for Niger Delta militants by the late Umaru Yar’Adua’s administration. In their separate views, they argued that such negotiations will continue to fail because the bandits do not have a central command of leadership and they never kept the agreements reached with some of them in the past by some states and communities in the north.

President General of Mzough U Tiv, MUT, worldwide and Chairman of the three sociocultural/ethnic groups in Benue state, Chief Iorbee Ihagh said: “there is no way President Bola Tinubu’s government will negotiate with bandits and terrorists. These were people who were brought into this country from parts of West Africa to prosecute elections for some persons in 2015. After they won their elections they failed to keep to the agreement they entered with the criminals and that is why they took to banditry and terrorism and tormenting the North. Those who brought them into the country know themselves. They should be made to go and clean up the mess they created for Nigerians.

“I am happy that President Tinubu has brought in people who can tackle insecurity in the country unlike what we had in the last government when nepotims beclouded them. They had wanted to turn Nigeria into a Fulani state but God came to our rescue as a people. So, there will be no bargaining, President Tinubu should never accept that. He has started well and we are praising him, but if he does that, nobody will be behind him again. Government cannot go and beg criminals, they should come and surrender. More so, armed herdsmen should be made to go back to their respective places so that the millions of Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs, scattered in our state and other parts can go back to their ancestral homes.”

On his part the State Vice Chairman of APC Benue South District, Bishop Pinot Ogbaji said: “When I heard of the proposal of the former governor of Zamfara state advising President Tinubu to negotiate with terrorists and bandits, I was shocked. I know that in everything there is negotiation and dialogue but negotiation means that we encourage that attitude and character. Then when you negotiate with a deadly group in the North another group would probably surface in another part of the country seeking negotiation. Let me ask, what manner and kind of negotiation is he talking about? Is it to grant them amnesty or what? Or true repentance. We don’t even know the extent to which the negotiation will go, we do not know their demands. For me, negotiation is not an issue at all. Of course there could be amnesty which is not negotiation. It entails that somebody volunteers to repent, then he is brought back to the the society of normal beings and re-orientated”.

Also the National President of the Middle Belt Forum, Dr. Bitrus Pogu said: “Unless he is one of them and he is trying to protect them, otherwise who negotiates with terrorists. The problem we’ve had is a northern problem. People from the North took this Boko Haram and banditry as their own game. We have somebody there, though his election is till in dispute, but it appears that this person will not tolerate a situation where people will be serving some parochial interests rather than the Nigerian nation. And that is what I believe Tinubu is trying to achieve. To negotiate with terrorists means to endorse criminality and encourage non state actors to have the courage to come up and start something again in the future. The way forward is to crush them, to take them out of existence.

So, deal with them in such a way that henceforth somebody who will want to rise for whatever reason will think twice before he does something. It should even go beyond that, those who are involved in propagating this thing should be fished out and dealt with decisively because Nigerians have suffered enough and any call by such characters should be questioned and queried. And if you remember it is the same Yerima who started the Sharia thing under the then President Obasanjo. To me he is a suspect any suggestion from him should not be taken seriously.”

Chairman, Birnin-Gwari Emirate Progressives Union (BEPU) Ishaq Usman Kasai, in his view explained that Yerima’s call reflected the lack of understanding of the structural formation and divergent goals of the armed bandits in their forests who have been causing mass destruction, deaths, and destabilization in the country. He argued that, “to successfully bring an end to armed banditry business in Nigeria, all bandits’ camps in our various forests must be dislodged as anything short of this will only be a window-dressing that will not bring lasting solution. Engaging in negotiations with armed bandits will never yield significant positive outcomes because past experiences have demonstrated that criminal elements such as armed bandits, often exploit negotiations as a means to buy time, regroup, and strengthen their positions.

They view negotiations as a sign of weakness of the government, which emboldens them to continue their violent activities. We recall that many of such negotiations were carried out with bandits by many state and local governments and individual communities in the Northwest region of the country. Past experiences from areas where this type of negotiation was carried out show that the bandits only exploited the opportunity to receive more money, easily trafficked illicit drugs, acquired more arms and raped women including teenagers and married ones. In fact, all the communities and governments that entered such negotiations with the bandits later regretted it.

Negotiating with the bandits will also send a dangerous message to Nigerians particularly rural dwellers signaling government’s incapacity, weakness and official acknowledgement of parallel governments within the Nigerian State. Our question to the advocates for negotiation is – which bandits’ group or leadership is the Federal Government going to negotiate or dialogue with? Are those bandits groups’ leaderships in Zamfara, Katsina, Sokoto, Niger, Plateau, Benue, Nasarawa or Kebbi State? This is because, we are aware that, the armed bandits in Nigeria lack a centralized leadership structure, making it difficult to ensure compliance with negotiated terms. We could recall that Zamfara and Katsina States as well as various local governments and individual communities in the North West region tried the said approach.

“The Zamfara State Government, then under Abdulaziz Yari agreed that, for the peace deal to be perfected, the bandits must surrender their arms and never invade or attack any person or community. To ensure commitment to the peace deal, we are aware that, five Solar Boreholes were constructed by Government for the Fulanis in Subulu, Fakai, Maniya, Gangara and Manawa villages in Shinkafi Local Government Area with artificial ponds for feeding livestock. This was to show the bandits sincerity of purpose and commitment of government towards respecting the terms of agreement.

Huge amount of money was also alleged to have been given to appease the bandits to drop arms and accept peace deals. The Zamfara State Government then also came up with the idea of establishment of Ruga communities within the state for Nomads with the first Ruga project sited at Maradun Local Government Area which was almost completed. So much resources have been spent in that regard.

But the bandits didn’t respect the agreement thinking they were doing the government and the people favour. We want the President to be aware that, even in Zamfara State, where the negotiation was tried in 2016, it failed. Some of the bandit leaders who dropped arms and received monies from government used it to purchase additional arms. Negotiating with armed bandits in Nigeria will continue to fail because the bandits lack central command/leadership and common goal.

It will be difficult to bring them to a common negotiation table and any agreements made with one group may not be binding on others”.

Dr. Mikailu Barau, a northern leader and an academic from Zamfara State, lampooned Yarima for contributing to the escalation of the crisis while he served as Zamfara State governor. He however said “the issue is really controversial. The last thing that an average person from Zamfara would want to hear is making negotiation with the bandits. But from what we have seen so far, all attempts to use force against them have not been fruitful as they now reach out for support beyond the borders of Nigeria. The truth of the matter is that if you find a sincere leader who will speak to the warring parties and ensure that the bandits keep their own part of the agreement the problem would be solved. In Zamfara for instance, the past governments were not sincere in their approach as they would fail to monitor the bandits after reaching an agreement with them believing that they have dropped their arms.

There is no conflict that ends with the power of guns. People have to sit at a round table and negotiate to reach an agreement at one point or the other.

Urges Sanwo-Olu not to demolish Igbo properties or inflate taxes against them

Other tribes should invest in Igboland as Igbo’re doing in theirs

President General of apex Igbo socio-cultural organization, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Dr. Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, is in Lagos for a three-day visit during which he will meet with Igbo leaders and Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to address issues affecting Igbo in the economic capital of the country.

In an interview after one of the engagements with Igbo leaders in Ikoyi, on Wednesday, he spoke on issues around his emergence as Ohanaeze leader, his agenda for Igbo, the blowing wind of insecurity in the South-East and how the Federal Government can arrest it among others.

On issues surrounding his election as Ohanaeze leader

Some months ago I was elected leader of all Igbo, which is the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo. Frankly speaking, at over 80 years, it was a very difficult thing for me to accept, although I saw that my people were very passionate about having me serve them. All the leaders came to me expressing their support and confidence in me. All the five governors of the South-East also came to me saying they were with me.

All the seven presidents of Ohanaeze in the various states – Rivers, Delta, Imo, Abia, Enugu, Anambra and Ebonyi came too. All these made me realise that I had no choice. It is my belief that any gift possessed by an individual is from God. Therefore, if your people call you to serve them at any time and you fail, you are not fair to God the creator who has given you the gift.

Opposition from his nuclear family

My wife and children didn’t want me to accept it. However, I had to convince them. Some said I would die, but I told them that if I die at 80 it is not too early.

First official tour of South-West

Where am I today? I am on my first official tour to South-West Nigeria. I have come to meet Igbo in the South-West. I met the elders last night (Tuesday) in what we call Ime-obi, which is where we meet in Igbo culture to make far-reaching decisions. We had a meeting in the house of one of our elders, Cmdr. Ebitu Ukiwe, retd. It was a very successful meeting.

As I arrived at the airport, my people gave me a wonderful reception. All the Ezes and town union presidents lined up. I have just finished a meeting with the Ezes because we have a system that demands that we organise ourselves wherever we are. Every success that Igbo have achieved over the years is because we have the capacity to come together at a short notice. The town union is part of our structure,
The people I have met here today are very important people in the lives of Igbo. Wherever I go, I meet with these people, and they whisper the condition of things to me. I am here essentially on my first official tour to South-West and I have been very well-received. I am very happy because my people have shown a lot of trust and confidence in me. I have made up my mind and I pray to God Almighty to give me the capacity to serve them and to help me so that I do not fall below their expectations.

What are your plans for the Igbo?

I have studied the map of Igboland and I have carried out a very comprehensive study on agriculture, our mineral resources or natural endowment and intellectual capacity. Based on these things, I am quite convinced that we have a lot of prospects. I am bent on transforming Igboland; I believe that by the plan that I am making, I will transform agriculture, the industrial base and commerce because our people are trade-inclined, which is a major part of our wealth.

Without fear of contradictions, when you talk about Gross Domestic Product, GDP, in Nigeria today, I think Igbo contribute more to the GDP than any other group because we are there in every local government. There is no local government in Nigeria today where you won’t see Igbo. Wherever they are, they carry out their businesses which could be trading in one commodity or the other, even farming. Whatever they do, they pay taxes, build houses and live peacefully with the people there. I believe they are doing well for Nigeria.

We are very proud that our people are contributing positively to Nigeria. Many patriotic Nigerians appreciate it.

There is a lack of clarity on the President of Ohanaeze in Lagos State. Is Chief Sunday Ossai the president?

We have our constitution. Professor George Obiozor was the chairman before he died. Ambassador Okey Emuchay is the Secretary General. They handed over Sunday Ossai to me as the President of Lagos branch without informing me of any dispute. The report I had was that the former man, Solomon, who I don’t know and I have never met, had completed his four-year tenure. This man, because he probably believes that some powerful people are going to support him, wants to destabilise Ohanaeze. This is the impression that I get from people. I want to make it clear that the former President General of Ohanaeze handed over Sunday Ossai to me as the President of Lagos branch.

We have had a very unfortunate experience recently. Out of personal interest, some people are doing everything to undermine Ohanaeze, which is the hope of Igbo. It is our hope of development and unity. You see a small boy jump up to say he is the Secretary General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo. The Secretary General is Okey Emuchay, who has served Nigeria in various capacities. He is a man with impeccable academic credentials and civil service credentials. Ohanaeze Ndi Igbo cannot just pick anyone as its Secretary General. For Publicity Secretary, you have Dr Alex Ogbonnia. All these scoundrels who mislead the public should be reported to the police for fraud.

Are the Ezes in Lagos recognised?

The concept is part of Igbo culture. Igbo have always believed in leadership. We believe that if you don’t come together with a leader, the problems of life cannot be fought. The problems could arise from humans, society and the economy. What has saved Igbo wherever they live either in Nigeria or outside is that wherever they go they come together. It has helped us in many areas. As President General, the Ezes are part of the people who have supported me and they have confidence in me. Their position is unchallengeable because we need their leadership, we need their position.

As the President General, how do you intend to ensure that the Igbo are well-protected in Lagos?

Before 1914 when Nigeria was amalgamated, Igbo had started coming to Lagos. When Igbo started coming to Lagos, there was no Ikoyi, most of Ikoyi was riverine. There was no Victoria Island, there was no Lekki.

Igbo are part of the development in Africa and Lagos. Right from the time the first railway lines were built, Igbo were here. There is no way anybody can talk about the development of Lagos with all honesty and exclude Igbo.

When you talk about Lagos, some Igbo have lived in Lagos since their grandparents began living here, which is as far back as 1914. The truth about this thing is that we have a character in Igboland which makes us different. We know that we have a home and our home is in Eastern Nigeria. Wherever we go, we know we are visitors, and we have never gone anywhere to claim their land. Every Igbo man who owns a property in Lagos does so legitimately.

We have not come to preach a sermon that God gave us the land in Lagos. We paid for it. People from Igboland have not only developed lands, they have built houses. If you go to Lekki, Victoria Island, Lekki, everywhere, these things were built by humans. Lagos is Lagos because people, like the Igbo, came and invested. They include northerners and those from other tribes. Igbo came, invested and developed the place without forgetting the fact that they are visitors. Every Igbo man is told from home to obey the law of his host community and Igbo have done that all through history.

Recently, we started hearing all these stories, I think we can solve the problem and we are only appealing to them because asking people to leave is a new phenomenon. We are not worried about it because I have discussed with top indigenes of Lagos. Leaders in Lagos are not in support of this view. I want to let you know that Ohanaeze under my leadership is working with the five South-East governors on this issue. Hope Uzodimma told me that South-East governors would meet with their colleague (Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu). I was pleased that they had a good meeting with the governor of Lagos State where they came up with a communiqué. Lagos State governor did very well. In fact, people are happy.

During the election, Ohanaeze Ndigbo supported Peter Obi in the election because we believed that it was our turn based on the zoning arrangement. We have nothing against Tinubu as a person. We supported Peter Obi because we believed that it was our turn and we believed that he is capable. Today, Tinubu has been sworn in as the President and we have many Igbo in the All Progressives Congress, APC, who cannot be stopped.

Peter Obi is in court and the decision isn’t ours to take but the judiciary. I learned that the governor is in Abuja, I will try to see him, but even if I don’t see him, I am quite satisfied that Governor Uzodimma has seen him. What we don’t want is the demolition of properties belonging to the Igbo or to inflate taxation against them.

A lot of rumours are flying all over the place but I don’t believe these things are true because I don’t believe any right thinking government can do that. I can tell you that at the moment, we have no problem. I have told the Igbo that I have discussed with top Lagosians. I have also told the Igbo that they are safe and they have no problem in Lagos State, Igbos are happy and they are going to stay.

What programme do you have for other tribes who live or intend to move to the South-East?

I have a programme. I am going to create more towns, business centres in Igboland. We want other tribes to come and invest in Igboland. We have helped to develop Lagos and other parts of Nigeria. During my tenure as President General and the leader of Igbo, I am calling on other people to come and reciprocate. They should come and develop Igboland. If they have any problem, they should report to Ohanaeze. We will intervene and ensure that entrepreneurs interested in investing are given land and encouraged to invest.
Don’t you think insecurity and Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s issue will be a hindrance to potential investors?

We don’t have security problems in the South-East. We have said ‘release Nnamdi’ because the young people are supporters of Nnamdi Kanu, which is an excuse that they give.

When we look at it seriously, we have not seen any offence committed by Kanu. In fact, the court has said he should be released. As Igbo leaders, we do not see the reason he is being kept in detention. These people are giving it as an excuse for their sit-at-home. We believe that keeping Nnamdi Kanu in prison is an effort to collaborate with some elements who want to destroy the economy of states in the South-East. We are appealing to the Federal Government to release Kanu because if he is released, we can now know those who are proper criminals and agitators.

I believe that President Tinubu will be able to release Nnamdi because we have not been told he committed any offence. He is being detained even though he was not caught carrying AK-47. Nnamdi Kanu is sick and if he dies in prison, it will create a lot of problems for us. Every Igbo leader has talked about his release including the five South-East governors.

I think if any Nigerian leader has respect for the Igbo, he will release Kanu because once he is released the security problem will be reduced. I want to tell you that South-East or Igboland is not worse than other places.

Security is bad all over the country but release Nnamdi Kanu, let him be free and let us attack our own insecurity. There are people causing insecurity in the North and they have even gone to the prison in Abuja to release everybody, yet nobody has put anyone on trial.

They had even kidnapped people in the train and they negotiated with them. Nnamdi Kanu has never been involved in any of these things.

More than a month after the removal of fuel subsidy, Nigerians are expressing mixed feelings over the failure of the federal government to fulfill its promised palliatives to cushion its effects on citizens, Daily Trust Saturday reports.

The removal of fuel subsidy has led to an increase in inflation and hike in the cost of goods and transportation.

Speaking to our correspondent in Uyo, the capital of Akwa Ibom State, some residents said Nigerians were smiling and suffering as the cost of fuel increased the rate of hardship on the people.

A media practitioner in Uyo, Patrick Titus, lamented that the masses were worst hit by the subsidy removal and not the government or its officials.

He said subsidy removal had affected the cost of living.

He said, “We have not seen the palliatives and what it is made up of. In Nigeria, we are becoming used to suffering and smiling. Nobody is happy. And even if the government gives palliatives, how many people would benefit?”

A self-employed graphic designer, Mr Uwem Asian, said the failure of the government to provide palliatives to cushion the effect of the subsidy removal one month after the implementation, showed that it was not a well-planned decision.

“It was obvious that the government did not plan well. If they removed subsidy there should be adequate plans to cushion the effect. Government just removed the subsidy to stop a selected few from benefitting, but now, it is the masses that are suffering.

“After one month into the subsidy removal regime, the situation shows that there was no plan. The masses are suffering. Let’s hope that the money they have saved would be judiciously used,” he said.

A civil servant in Ebonyi State, Mbam Ogodo, said the president should not have removed the subsidy when there was no plan in place to cushion its effects.

A trader, David Okorie, also said citizens were helpless in the face of the hardship occasioned by subsidy removal.

“Nigerians are suffering and there is nothing we can do about it. We can’t fight them or protest,” Okorie said.

A teacher and petty trader, Princess Adebayo Esther Aderonke, said provision of palliatives by the government would go a long way in ameliorating the pains of Nigerians.

In Kano, residents, especially salary earners, are lamenting that their incomes are nothing to write home about as it only caters for one third of their needs.

A primary school teacher who did not want his name mentioned, called on the government to, as a matter of urgency, initiate the policy of price control to discourage businessmen and women from exploiting consumers.

He said, “Initiating a price control system is a form of palliative that will reach everybody. But if you share money or food items, how long will it last? At the end of the day you will discover that it just had a short term effect.

“Honestly, we are suffering. The prices of what your salary used to buy have tripled and you cannot do anything about it.”

On his part, Abdulkarim Musa advised the government to work on a sustainable and more efficient transparent model of disbursing the proposed palliatives so that every citizen would feel its impact.

“For me, the way and manner the palliatives would be distributed is the issue. If we adopt the pattern of how palliatives were distributed during the past administration, no doubt, it will only go to those known by someone at the top. We know how corruption has eaten deep into the system. At the end of the day, it is the poor that suffer.”

In Jigawa, residents are also lamenting the delay in palliative disbursement promised by the federal government as a result of the subsidy removal.

Many parents said they could no longer take their wards to school in their private vehicles but now use alternative means, including hiring tricycles while other children are forced to stay at home.

A 52-year-old man, Mukhtar Wakili, a resident of Dutse metropolis, said six out of his 10 children were at home due to the increase in transportation fare, adding that all of them are in various primary and secondary schools.

“The situation is so bad that sometimes we eat only twice a day. I am very confused and disappointed at the federal government,” he said.

Another resident, Abubakar Kabiru, a 50-year-old man said, “We lose hope in Nigeria daily because there are no changes; rather, the gap between the poor and rich keeps widening,” he said.

In Lokoja, the Kogi State capital, residents are at crossroads over the removal of fuel subsidy without accompanying palliative measures to cushion its effect.

Findings revealed that socio-economic activities have been affected as farmers, market women, shop owners, motorists and commuters are under the heavy burden of the fuel subsidy removal.

Majority of the people who spoke to Daily Trust Saturday over the removal of fuel subsidy praised the federal government for the decisive decision, but complained that the idea should have been anchored on palliatives to cushion the effect of its consequences.

A former state chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Emmanuel Omata, said the hardship emanating from the removal of fuel subsidy was biting hard, and the aged and pensioners were the worst hit.

“It is disheartening to note that a month after such major decision that drives the economy of the country, no palliative measure has been introduced to cushion its negative effects.

“Some are suggesting that various state governments should venture into mass transport schemes to cushion its effects. That is good, but it is just like scotching the snake, not killing it,” he said.

He said the idea of floating mass transport schemes to cushion the effect of fuel subsidy may work in some states but not all.

Comrade Omata, therefore, advised the federal government to create special palliatives for the aged, pensioners and farmers as it is done in developed countries.

A civil servant in the state who simply identified himself as Sefinetu, said the burden of high transport fares since the removal of fuel subsidy was worrisome, making many civil servants to abandon work for some days.

“A month after this unexpected pronouncement by the federal government, nothing seems to be in the offing to reduce the hardship associated with the policy,” she said.

In the same vein, members of the National Union of Transport Owners Association (NUTOA) and National Union of Road Transport Workers Association (NURTWA) are concerned over the drop in patronage of their services due to the removal of fuel subsidy.

Both unions claim that their businesses are being affected as people appear to have reduced the rate at which they travel because of the sudden rise in transport fares.

Daily Trust Saturday gathered that the transport fares for all routes from Lokoja have either tripled or doubled since the fuel subsidy removal. For instance, a trip from Lokoja to Anyigba now attracts N3,000 instead of N1,500, Lokoja to Abuja, which cost between N2,500 and N3,000, now attracts N5,000 and above. A trip from Lokoja to Lagos, which was between N8 and N10,000, is now from N15,000 upwards.

Students trekking

Majority of those who spoke with our correspondent said the permanent solution to the situation was to encourage investment in building refineries and deregulate the oil sector.

“Let the federal government create an enabling environment for individuals, regional governments and cooperate organisations to invest in building refineries so as to make fuel available in abundance so that demand and supply would determine the price of fuel,” Dr James Adajole, an economist in Lokoja said.

An Abuja-based public analyst and economist, Prince Tijani Dauda, said the federal government must ensure that the removal of fuel subsidy is not seen as a single solution but one of the many steps to be taken to improve the economy.

“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu must re-engineer the economy to ensure that there are many suitable options that increase prosperity, growth, industrialisation and diversification.

“There must be a strategic plan in place to ensure that Nigerians can still afford fuel while boosting the economy through infrastructure, improving social welfare programmes and creating an enabling environment for business growth and sustainability,” Comrade Dauda said.

Also, people in Plateau State, like those of other states, are no longer finding live easy since the removal of petroleum subsidy.

A student of the University of Jos, Peter Pricilla, said, “The removal of subsidy is not a bad idea, but government did not prepare its citizens for it. The government just took everybody unawares, and that is why everyone is in pain.

“As a university student, I feel the pain more because all my feeding money is now being spent on transportation to and from school.

“I can no longer buy foodstuff. It is a difficult situation. I wish the government would help the university with buses to convey students to school.”

Mrs Nanchin Nanzim, who teaches in a private school in Jos said, “The removal of subsidy is adversely affecting my job because of high cost of transportation. I have resorted to trekking to school. While battling issues of transportation, the cost of household items, especially food has tripled. The little salary I collect can’t afford anything, the situation is just terrible. I collect salary today and in a week it is finished.

“I want the government to bring palliatives to help citizens, especially the poor. Government must do something to reduce the cost of transportation and living generally.”

Mrs Felicia Falope, a business woman also said, “The way and manner the subsidy was removed was too harsh, no one was prepared, and the government did not put anything in place to help reduce the burden. My business money is being taken away by the high cost of petrol.”

Madam Able Luka, who sells secondhand cloths in Dadin Kowa, Jos, said, “Because of the sudden removal of fuel subsidy, my customers no longer come to buy goods. I am appealing to the government to do something to help us reduce the cost of transportation and cost of living generally. We are starving; we can’t buy food anymore due to its high prices.”

Mrs Nancy Dajan, a self employed quantity surveyor also said, “I am shocked at the sudden removal of fuel subsidy because I was expecting a relief from a new government. How can you just remove petrol subsidy without making adequate provision to cushion the impact. The price of everything has tripled and we are suffering.

“Subsidy removal is good, but Nigeria is not ripe for it now; government needs to bear certain costs for its citizens. Government should take concrete steps to bring relief to the suffering masses. It should introduce buses that use gas so as to reduce cost of transportation,” she said.

Committees have 6 more weeks – Labour

Speaking on the delay of interventions to cushion the effects of subsidy removal, the Organised Labour said the sub-committees set during the last engagement with the government were working round the clock to conclude the mandate given to them.

In an interview with Daily Trust Saturday on Friday, the general secretary of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Comrade Nuhu Abba Toro, said various sub-committees had six more weeks to conclude their assignments.

He said the committees were on the cost of governance, energy and power, mass transit, social sectors like education, as well as intervention funds.

Comrade Toro told one of our correspondents that the original timeline was eight weeks, adding that the sub-committees just spent two weeks out of what was given to them.

The labour leader explained that it was agreed that there would be a presidential steering committee that would fuse all the ideas, suggestions and recommendations of the sub-committees.

He said, “Majorly, the last discussion we had was to agree on some practical ways to cushion the immediate effect of the subsidy removal. We did highlight some of the immediate areas of intervention; for instance, salary review, cash transfer and those, in our opinions, that are the interventions that could mitigate the itching of the fuel subsidy removal.

“We also have a sub-committee on cost of governance because you will agree with me that if the government needs to tighten its belt, Nigerians automatically also ought to tighten their belts.

“We are going to have a presidential steering committee that will serve as a clearing house. There’s also a secretariat.

“All of these committees will sit and come up with suggestions to the clearing house, which is the presidential steering committee, which of course include all the social partners. They will look at it and forge ahead.

“I can tell you that the committees are already meeting. The sub-committee on cash transfer met yesterday (Thursday). All the committees cannot meet at the same time, but they have scheduled their meetings.

“Don’t forget that we have a timeline, which is eight weeks, when we should consummate all the interventions and hit the ground running. The TUC under the leadership of Comrade Festus Osifo will strive to ensure that it is achievable, by the grace of God.”

Says recognising former governor will undermine loyal party members

The Rivers State Chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has called on President Bola Tinubu not to succumb to antics by some people to force former governor Nyisom Wike to hijack the party in the state. The party said recognising Wike would undermine the loyalty of party members, who had kept faith with the APC.

In an open letter to President Tinubu, dated 6th July, and sighted by newsmen in the State House, Abuja, Friday, the Rivers state branch of the APC also called on the President to reject former governor Wike’s overtures to stealthily foist himself on the party in order to take control of its structures in the state.

The letter signed by its Publicity Secretary, Comrade Darlington Nwauju, warned President Tinubu to be wary of Wike and his cohorts, saying the former governor’s claims of working to favour the party now will only undermine loyal and dedicated APC members and other stakeholders.

The party said, “We wish to clear the air that Gov Wike did not deliver any value to our dear Rivers State APC. Mr. President Sir, we wish to recall that during the 2015 presidential election, APC members in Rivers state and their families faced unquantifiable brutality with countless casualties. Yet the Rivers APC resisted the onslaught of former Governor Wike led aggression on innocent party followers and members.

“Dear Mr. President, we wish to clear the air that Gov Wike did not deliver any value to our dear Rivers State APC, rather he fought against our dear Rivers APC.”

The chapter urged Tinubu as a consistent party man who built his ideals of party growth and sustainability on practical people-oriented philosophy, and a known rewarder of stewardship, to resist former Governor Wike “because he has no political ideology as a script which he follows.”

“We know that your leadership will not allow those who believe in political thuggery, those known by local and international community as perpetual abusers of our democratic stability and mischief markers, to highjack our dear Rivers APC because they now see party politics as tradeable commodity,” the Rivers APC said.

An official of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Achigili Raph Ogili, has been arrested for allegedly forging a University of Abuja certificate to get promotion at his place of work.

The result with Registration Number 2720700176, was reportedly forged in collaboration with one Mr Sunday Okpara and his accomplice, one Mr Rasaq Abdulrahaman Dabiri.

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) disclosed this to journalists in Abuja on Friday.

The spokesperson of the anti-corruption agency, Mrs Azuka Ogugua, said the trio have been charged for alleged conspiracy and falsification of documents which both are punishable under the law.

She explained that they were subsequently arraigned before Justice J. E. Obanor of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court 29 sitting in Jabi, Abuja.

According to Ogugua, the FRSC official was also accused of forging a letter confirming the fake statement of result as genuine, purportedly written by the Deputy Registrar (Academics) of the University.

“In a Charge No: CR/321/2023 filed before the trial court, the Commission alleged that the 1st accused person (Ogili) used a forged University of Abuja statement of result with Registration Number 2720700176 to support his application for upgrading in the Corps.

“On the other hand, both the 2nd and 3rd defendants were charged for their complicity in the forged letter confirming the fake statement of result as genuine.

“Their offences are contrary to sections 96 and 366, and punishable under sections 364 and 368 of the Penal Code Act, Cap 532, Laws of the FCT, Abuja 2006,” the ICPC spokesperson said.

Speaking further, Ogugua said the accused persons entered a “not guilty” plea when the charges were read to them and their lawyers in three separate motions raised bail applications on their behalf which were not opposed by the prosecution counsel, Dorathy Suleman.

She said the defendants were then admitted to bail in the sum of N500,000 and a surety in like sum who must reside within the jurisdiction of the Court.

Ogugua said the matter was adjourned till 30th and 31st of October 2023 for commencement of hearing.

The Rivers State Police Command said its men killed six suspected kidnappers during a shootout at Obelle community, in the Emohua Local Government Area of the state.

City Round gathered that the gang members, led by one Uchechukwu Daniel, opened fire on men of the anti-cultism unit, who stormed their hideout.

However, the cops reportedly returned fire, killing six of the suspects and arresting six others.

The state Commissioner of Police, Emeka Nwonyi, disclosed this while briefing newsmen at the police headquarters, Moscow Road, Port Harcourt, on Friday

He, however, said aside from those gunned down, some of the miscreants escaped with bullet wounds.

In another case, the CP said operatives on patrol along the King Perekule Junction, GRA, Port Harcourt, intercepted and rescued some kidnap victims.

“On Friday, June 30, around 1000hrs, while on metro patrol along King Perekule Street, GRA, following a tip-off, operatives intercepted and rescued victims of a kidnap case reported to the command.

“The victims narrated that one of their friends was kidnapped and taken away by hoodlums, who were operating in a carton colour Lexus RX 350 after shooting at their vehicle’s tyre.

“Pieces of 7.2 empty shell and a Techno phone belonging to the victim were also recovered,” Nwonyi stated.

The police boss further disclosed that following credible information, operatives trailed some suspected kidnappers to their hideout at Ozuoha, in Ikwerre LGA, where a victim was rescued unhurt, while one of the suspects, Buchi David, 20, was arrested.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of Khana LGA, Dr Thomas Bari-Ere, while briefing newsmen, narrated how men of the Bori division while acting on a tip-off, stormed a suspected kidnappers’ camp and recovered a human skull, a pump-action rifle and two AK-47 rifles.

He said, “We received intelligence that one of the suspects in police custody by the name of Ojukwu has a place where he stores his arms as well as human skulls.

“He uses them to administer oaths to his victims for them to keep his identity secret.

“So, we alerted security operatives; the Bori Police Division, alongside the anti-cultism unit, acted swiftly. The operation was successful. Two AK-47 rifles, a human skull and a pump action were recovered.”

Yoruba nation agitator, Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, is set to return back to the country, his lawyer, Mr. Pelumi Olajengbesi, has revealed.

Igboho escaped from the country in 2021 after operatives of the Department of State Services, DSS, raided his residence in Ibadan, an operation the security agency confirmed led to the death of two persons and the arrest of about 13 others. 

The DSS, through its spokesman, Dr. Peter Afunanya, said it carried out the raid after intelligence reports revealed that Igboho allegedly stockpiled weapons in his house.

It, thereafter, launched a manhunt for Igboho who was subsequently arrested in neighbouring Cotonou, Benin Republic, while trying to travel to Germany.

However, addressing newsmen in Abuja on Friday, Olajengbesi, said the embattled Yoruba nation activist, who had since regained his freedom, would soon return back to the country.

“Igboho is doing very well and he will soon be in Nigeria in a very ceremonial way. The arrangements are on,” Olajengbesi told newsmen.

He, however, lamented his inability to enforce a judgement that was delivered in favour of his client, a situation he said was made difficult by the fact that the consent of the Attorney-General of the Federation must first be secured before security agencies could pay judgement debts.

While calling for a review of that provision of the law, Olajengbesi, urged the Federal Government under President Bola Tinubu to have a rethink about people he described as “freedom fighters.”

The lawyer maintained that people like Igboho, the detained leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu, as well as the embattled convener of the RevolutionNow protest, Mr. Omoyele Sowore, deserved to be listened to by the government.

He commended President Tinubu “for his purposeful leadership drive, restructuring of the governmental policies and operational systems since assuming the office,” adding that he has “rekindled the hope of average Nigerians that government can serve the common good of the people.”

“We therefore encourage Mr. President to continue in this direction with equity and justice as his working value system.

“We equally want to commend the acting Inspector General of Police; Olukayode Egbetokun for an unusual reforms in the Nigeria Police Force and his commitment to holding errant officers accountable for abuse of official duties and violation of human rights. He is bringing a new value system to the Nigeria police system and this new drive must be sustained.

“We must also commend INEC for filing charges against its suspended Resident Electoral Commissioner, Hudu Yunusa Ari in Adamawa State. This is a step in the right direction and it is commendable.”

Highlighting what he termed as certain critical issues in the country that has become a sordid tale for the people, Olajengbesi, asked FG to immediately scrap its Service Compact With All Nigerians, SERVICOM, insisting that the agency has failed to serve its purpose.

The lawyer warned that the Federal Government should stop the tax payers money from being used to fund a moribund organization like SERVICOM which he claimed, is no longer serving any useful purpose.

“The body was supposed to be a mechanism through which Nigerians can lodge complaints against tyrannical and errant public officers whose conducts falls below the standard required of a public and civil servants. SERVICOM customarily have offices in all federal government agencies, take complaints and ensure efficiency, justice and fairness in all government agencies.

“Unfortunately, this body has now failed to uphold the purpose of its establishment. The agency no longer addresses complaints and has now become very ineffective.

“The organization leadership and modus oparandi has accordingly encouraged abuse of official duties on the one hand as well as precluding victims of these errant officers from accessing appropriate remedy within the administrative system,” he added.

Besides, he decried that extant laws in the country has continued to subject citizens to various double taxation policies.

He said: “For instance, the trite position of law is that owners of business names duly registered with Corporate Affairs Commission is not under a legal duty to pay tax over the business name; rather such a person is expected to pay Personal Income Tax pursuant to Section 2 of CITA.

“Unfortunately, it is now a compelling practice for Business names to separately obtain Tax Identification Number (TIN) which consequently expose them to payments of tax while the proprietors of such business names equally pay Personal Income Tax resulting in double taxation.

“Additionally, the government just announced plan to impose the sum of One Thousand naira levy on Nigerian as an annual vehicle proof of ownership levy.

“This is in addition to Personal Income Tax being paid annually by vehicle owners and thousands of naira being paid annually for renewal of vehicle particulars to the government.

“It is our position that these are issues of double taxation that must be keenly considered by the government.”

In many countries, those who are interested in the management of public affairs join political parties to actualise their career in the public domain. Usually, the political parties profess distinct appoaches, which make people qualify them as either progressive or conservative. The classification notwithstanding, parties usually have programmes they intend to execute in furtherance of public good. That is called manifesto. It is same in Nigeria as in other parts of the world.

But here, one of the indicators of our stunted development since flag independence is that there seems to be a wide chasm between what the politicians come up with, which they execute while in office, and what the people REALLY need to live better lives. That explains why today, there are very few states left in the country that do not have an airport. Many state governors continue to embark on airport projects, irrespective of the fact that they may not be commercially viable.

The widening chasm between what politicians do in office and what the people expect and/or need came to the fore earlier in the week just ending, when the Secretary to the Federal Government, Senator George Akume, hinted that in the future, government will reciprocate Chinese goodwill to Nigeria by seeing to it that faculties where Chinese languages will be taught will be established in Nigeria universities. He was receiving a Chinese delegation led by the Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria, Cui Jianchun, in Abuja. Let me quote Akume:

“We appreciate the fact that you have given scholarships to our students studying in various universities in the Peoples Republic of China and some have graduated. We want to appeal that you step up the issue of scholarship and give us more. You won’t regret it, before you know it, you find many Nigerians speaking your language. We look forward to the time we will also establish faculties in Nigerian universities where Chinese language would be taught to students,” he said.

I do not think Akume said the right things to the Chinese delegation that visited him, and also do not think that teaching Chinese language in Nigerian schools is the way to reciprocate Chinese goodwill. The best way, in my book, to say thank you to the Chinese is to use whatever loans we took from them for the purpose they were taken, and repay, according to the terms.

In 2020, African countries with the largest Chinese debt were Angola ($25 billion), Ethiopia ($13.5 billion), Zambia ($7.4 billion), the Republic of the Congo ($7.3 billion), and Sudan ($6.4 billion). As far back as 2018, China bidded to take over the Kenneth Kaunda International Airport should the Zambia Government fail to pay back its huge foreign debt on time.

We should not be as remiss as some of our fellow African countries, who risk losing control of key infrastructure to the Chinese because of loan defaults. It will be nightmarish for us to have the Chinese managing the Nigerian Railway Corporation, or the Murtala Muhammed and Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airports and others, for which loans were taken by the Buhari government to refurbish and upgrade.

As for teaching Chinese language, SGF Akume should withdraw that as it is simply a NO-NO. If you set up departments of Chinese language in Nigerian universities, you’ll have to import Chinese to come and teach the language, and that will come at huge cost in terms of foreign exchange. Besides, it will open a new vista of re-colonisation by a fast-rising Asian power, while we are still struggling with the effects of European colonialism. I am one of those who believe fervently that much of the ingredients needed for the greatness of Nigeria in all fields of human endeavour remain locked in our languages. We will truly be on the path to national development and greatness when we start delivering educational instruction in our languages. What SGF Akume should bother himself with is how to get the educational system to start teaching Mathematics, Physics, Biology, Chemistry and other STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) subjects in our languages. I know the Russians, Germans, Japanese, Koreans, and other developed non-English speaking countries educate their people in their languages. That is easy to confirm. Graduates of German universities are plenty in Nigeria, and will testify that you go to language school, first, and pass, before continuing with the course you were originally admitted to study.

So, if tomorrow, we find ourselves cozying up with the Russians or Ukrainians and start getting Russian credit, we would reciprocate by teaching Russian? Or Ukrainian?

In reality, Nigerians have endured enough torture trying to use other peoples’ languages to get on in the world. The new government headed by President Bola Tinubu, in which Akume is SGF, should begin earnestly to look inwards for local solutions to the things we spend huge resources to procure from foreign lands. There is bountiful talent in Nigeria; what remains is how we use them for the greater good of all.

Undoubtedly, Nigerians have been swamped and wearied by a barrage of policy pronouncements by the new Federal administration in the country in the past one month. Unexpectedly, these new policies or ‘reforms’ have left the economy worse off than in the first five months of the year. Indeed Nigeria’s economic situation has become a subject of global interest, attracting analyses, reviews, critiques and ‘warnings’ from nations and institutions across the world. Multilateral financial institutions like the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), African Development Bank (AfDB) among others, have all in various forms and manners expressed their views about the ‘supersonic’ pace of ‘reforms’ ongoing in Nigeria.

In line with this trend, Bank of America (one of the world’s leading financial institutions), a few days ago, warned that Nigeria’s hyper-inflation rate may hit 30 per cent by the close of this year. In an interview with Bloomberg, the Bank’s sub-Saharan Africa Economist, Tatonga Rusike said “at the current trend, inflation may quicken to 30 per cent by the end of the year from 22.4 per cent in May.” He advised that “the Monetary Policy Committee of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) may need to increase interest rate by at least 700 basis points before the end of the year to curb inflation.” Rusike then warned that “if this decision is not taken, foreign investors might exercise caution before investing in the country.” In sum, he said “if the negative real interest rate is not reversing, then it is less likely to see foreign inflow coming into the country,” and raised a doubt that “it is less likely the CBN will do such level of interest rates increases.”

These admonitions by the Bank of America (BoA) largely contain all the pains and hardships so far unleashed on Nigerians by the economic ‘reforms’ of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration in the past one month. Run-away inflationary trend, impoverishment of the populace, low/diminishing foreign investment inflow, quantum Naira devaluation, rattled apex bank that is muzzled by political expediency, etc., have all become features of the economy since May 29, 2023. Although desirable, the sudden removal of petrol subsidy immediately led to skyrocketing prices of goods and services beyond the reach of majority of the citizenry. The purchasing power of the masses (especially, salary earners and others on fixed incomes) as well as their standard of living dropped very sharply. Many businesses (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, MSMEs) were forced to close shops owing to escalating costs—rooted in high prices of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) which powers their operations.

As these ugly unintended consequences were unfolding, the Tinubu administration, apparently driven by heroism or playing to the gallery, forced the merger of exchange rates to happen. The CBN, already cowed by the suspension of its (former) boss few weeks earlier, did the puppet’s job of not only forcing the merger of the exchange rates but also dismantling ‘every support’ for the local currency. By every economic consideration, the closeness of petrol subsidy removal and exchange rates unification and ancillary actions amounted to a ‘suicide’ of sorts. A country in pursuit of an export-led economic growth can devalue its currency to make its goods and services attractive.

But clearly for Nigeria, an almost wholly import-dependent and largely mono-product economy—a wholesale floating (or devaluation) of its currency is certainly counterproductive to economic progress. From time immemorial, a large proportion of the citizenry have preference for foreign goods and services; manufacturers import machineries and raw materials; Nigerians in their numbers go for foreign degrees and certificates as well as medical tourism—all paying in hard currencies. This culture and preferences have existed side-by-side with shortage of dollar and other foreign currencies over the years. As a largely mono-product economy—depending almost entirely on earnings from crude oil export, Nigeria has no substantial foreign exchange inflow from the export of non-oil items. Indeed, successive administrations had over the years paid only lip service to diversification of the national economy.

Unfortunately, oil and gas sector—the mainstay of the Nigerian economy—is consistently bogged with motely intractable problems: crude oil theft, to which the country loses over seventy per cent of her oil output; widespread vandalism of oil installations and assets; outright sabotage, among others. All these have whittled the nation’s oil production capacity—leading to inability to meet her OPEC-allocated quota for a long time now. Again, all these have led to diminishing earnings (forex inflow) from crude oil sales. And only a minuscule comes from non-oil exports!

In a manner of throwing away the baby with the bathe water, the Tinubu administration’s ‘reform hurricane’ also pulled down the well-packaged non-oil export drive/incentives put in place by the CBN early last year. Tagged ‘RT200’, the initiative with its bouquet of incentives for non-oil export promotion had gained the buy-in of stakeholders in the past on year. Within the period, it had recorded substantial foreign exchange inflow—an addition to crude oil sales. But the CBN has been ‘forced’ not only to cancel this effort but also to liberalize access to domiciliary accounts by their owners—with authorization to withdraw cash to a maximum of ten thousand dollars daily. So far, the result of all these has been lingering acute shortage of foreign exchange in the forex market: gross undersupply of forex vis-à-vis huge rising demand. And the Naira keeps crashing in value against the dollar and other foreign currencies.

The continued weakening Naira translates to (high) cost-push inflation as producers of goods and services factor in huge (unplanned) volume of the local currency for forex procurement. The more Naira they commit to acquiring forex, the higher their overall cost of production, ultimately. In turn, worsening forex scarcity translates to more Naira per dollar—now standing at about N760/$, up from N460/$ a month ago! This collapsing Naira value—and implied inflationary pressure—translates to declining purchasing power and impoverishment of many citizens. This trend is yet likely to be worsened by the Federal government’s plan to license more companies to import PMS, rather than the fast-tracking of the re-streaming of the existing local refineries.

The PMS importers will obviously utilize volumes of dollar, and thus add pressure to the already scarce forex, and their (selling) prices will surely reflect the high exchange rate. This will likely keep pushing up the prices of goods and services in the polity—in the form of the runaway inflation as warned by the Bank of America. But beyond the dreaded high inflation, Nigeria’s overall investment climate is anything but attractive. Widespread insecurity, barrage of new policies, multiplicity of taxes and levies, ever weakening consumer demand, deeply entrenched corruption, among others are serious disincentives to investors—local or foreign.

Indeed, Nigeria remains uncompetitive in the world of investments; it is only hope for a better future that keeps some optimists going—businesses and individuals alike! They are looking forward to the Eldorado that may never come, because in the words of the revered Economist, Maynard Keynes: “in the long run, we are all dead.” In truth, the Tinubu administration is yet to place before Nigerians and the entire world, its full economic development roadmap. What is happening now is more of a whimsical arbitrariness and staccato disruption of the economy. Some kind of ‘dismantling’ of perceived ‘ugly’ past, in the face of uncharted future pathways. We hope it doesn’t end up as a mere grope in the dark!

• The author, Mr. Okeke, an economist, sustainability expert and consultant on business strategy lives in Lekki-Lagos. He can be reached at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.