Alberto Fujimore: A Lesson in Power Game

The truth in the aphorism that the guilty are afraid was animated recently with the case of the former Peruvian President, Mr Alberto Fujimore, who was recently jailed for six years by Peruvian court on charges of human rights abuses and corruption.
But for his guilt, no man having ruled his country fairly and kindly should be fleeing his country after service to his fatherland. On the contrary, a former president should walk graciously into the nation’s hall of fame, and like an oracle, become one frequently consulted on core national issues, as a true statesman.
But with Fujimore, the story is the exact opposite. His government having collapsed in Year 2000, he fled his country for Japan, his father’s root, and hibernated there for five years. He later moved to Chile where he sought asylum. But the Peruvian government insisted on his extradition so he could answer for his actions while in government. Although Fujimore, 69, for two years tried to raise legal stakes to block or frustrate his extradition, the Chilean Supreme Court sealed his fate when it finally ordered his extradition, following which he was bundled to face his accusers in Peru.
While in power for the ten years he ruled Peru, Fujimore was like a wild dictator. Like all despots, he played host to the twin vices of human rights abuses and corruption. He ran a deadly killer squad which spilled blood with relish. Expectedly, opposition was muscled and terrorized. In the killing binge, students, academics, and even children were not spared. The Chilean court noted that in all the massacres, two notoriously stood out: the Barrios Altos murder and the La Cantuta murder, both in the early 90’s.
For several years the Peruvian government under Fujomore carried out mass murder, and “disappearing” thousands of activists and ordinary people amidst many other atrocities.
How can a man so malevolent hope to have peace after leaving the temporary shield offered by official power? And so, Fujimore literally began running from pillar to post, trying to battle the consequences of his actions. But just recently, it snapped, as Alberto Fujimore, was found guilty by the Court and was finally jailed for six years.
This is a lesson for those in power and those who crave to be in power. Many a times, those in power act and carry-on as if they will be in power forever. Thus they rule most ruthlessly, riding roughshod over the people, robbing the treasury blind, and committing all forms of unimaginable atrocities, simply because they enjoy immunity.
But as it has shown with the experiences of the former governors, no immunity lasts forever. So, a day certainly will come, when those who have served will be invited to account for their stewardship while in office.
Where such account is adjudged satisfactory, they walk into the hall of fame with grace and candour, but where they fall short of expected standard, they pay for it, sometimes in jail, like Fujimore is now doing.
We call on all leaders to always be conscious of the day of accountability and indeed, history, and above all, how the people whom they ruled perceive them. Little wonder that several leaders, after leaving office can neither walk the streets, nor ever live a happy life after, as their past hunts them.Fujimore is a free but essential lesson

e-Passport Challenges

THE Nigerian Immigration Service, NIS, faces the teething problems of change, as it moves from the outdated manual manner in which it has conducted its affairs into the electronic sphere.

Nowhere has the challenges manifested more than the issuance of the electronic passport, the new travel document that would restore the dignity of the Nigerian traveler.

The only business many Nigerians have with the NIS is over passports, unless they are business people, who require expatriate quotas for their organisations. Passport administration is the ultimate platform Nigerians use to judge the NIS .

The transition from the machine readable passports, currently in use, to e-passports has been fraught with many speculations, resulting mostly from the fact that the NIS did not have the resources to handle the deluge of demands for the e-passports once they were introduced.

A logjam resulted which the NIS has managed by opening more e-passport centres (more are planned) and extending the date for phasing out the old passports to 2010.

Yet, the NIS deserves commendation for introducing the technologically advanced e-passport, which adequately tackles the problems of multiple applications, passport thefts and fake passports. Every passport captures the personal data of the applicant, in addition to storing these in a central data base, which raises an alarm if the same applicants make fresh applications for passports.

The central data base is one of the new dimensions of the e-passport.

Personal data are electronically embedded in the passport and are invisible to the eye. The appropriate reading machine deciphers the date. Pages of the e-passport are tamper-proof, unlike the easily forged machine readable passports that are being phased out. If for any reasons someone is able to replace the pages, the machines can detect the fraud.

The challenges of the e-passport include the capacity of the NIS to make them available to millions of travellers who immediately want to be beneficiaries of the better treatment its holders get abroad. The NIS ’ insistence on online applications has been criticised as out of touch with the country’s literacy level and availability of information technology facilities.

NIS admits these challenges. It is sticking to online application because it enhances the fidelity of the process, captures revenue promptly, and leaves no room for the racketeering and touting that were associated with passport administration.

The NIS argues that since all arrangements for international travels (ticketing, inoculations and visas) are conducted in the urban areas, e-passport applicants would not bear any extraordinary burdens.

As the NIS grapples with the challenges of modernising its operations, including more effective policing of the borders, electronic recruitment and pay roll, its successes are sterling examples of better ways of conducting even government business.

Governments should align their processes to the information age for global compatibility and relevance.

Tankers Of Death

TANKERS have become sources of serious hazards to road users. With thousands of litres of combustive fuel in them, their drivers still move with the least consideration for their dangerous contents. They harass smaller vehicles. Tankers are gradually becoming agents of destruction, responsible for the high degree of carnage on our roads.

At the last count, more than five tanker accidents had occurred this year in the South West part of the country. The figures should be higher for the entire country. Last week, a fuel tanker burst into flame consuming seven vehicles, some of which were near it and others that ran into the scene of the accident that occurred at night. About 50 people died while many others were injured including a two-year-old boy and a family of eight.

In Lagos, at various spots including Mile 2, Ojuelegba and the Sango Otta toll gate, there have been tanker explosions which led to loss of lives and property, all within the last three months.

Across the country too, more lives were lost in avoidable accidents that resulted from poor conditions of the tankers, dangerous driving and bad roads. Where the roads are in motorable conditions - a rare situation these days - they are not lit. Poor driving skills and mechanical faults manifest in some incidents where tankers drivers lose control in heavy traffic, causing unimaginable havoc on motorists.

Their companions are trailer drivers, especially those bearing containers. The unfastened containers fall at will, with deadly consequences.

Governments have indicated no interests in these matters outside the occasional visits to the site of the accidents. Immediate measures are necessary to minimise these incidents. Legislations to limit times these vehicles can operate to the wee hours have become necessary in the limit of the havoc they cause to other road users.

The tankers will require more security for the night trips. While government is working on legislations, it is important that immediate steps are taken to control the menace of these vehicles. The first move can be through stringent check of their road worthiness. Most of them are accidents waiting to happen, they should not be in use at all.

Allocated timing and better vehicles, alone, cannot solve the problems. The government should realise that it was the moribund state of the rails that made the roads the major means of transporting heavy goods to most parts of the country.

The importance of rail transportation remains understated. The rails are safer and cheaper means of moving goods to their destination. Their revival will keep most of the trailers off the roads and lengthen the life spans of the roads that are very short, partly due to over use.

While waiting for these, governments must engage tanker and trailer drivers and their owners on ways of reducing the number of accidents on the roads.

On the part of governments, something needs to be done quickly about the state of the roads, they are getting worse daily.

Banditry in the Niger Delta

The activities of militants in the Niger Delta area are getting out of hand and it is worrying that the renegades seem to be having it easy and sometimes cosy. And that is enough to wonder whether the authorities are really feeling embarrassed by the havoc that these young men have caused in the oil producing enclave.

Perhaps, Nigerians should begin to appreciate that the activities of these people are no longer what will continue to be treated as mere stirrings of angry young men. Their effrontery has graduated to something akin to terrorism.

Their latest onslaught in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, was more than irritation of agitating nationals. It was a bare-chested urban terrorism, on a new year’s day. Reports said the New Year serial attack on the police and their stations started about midnight along Aba Road where they were said to have opened fire on a police patrol team, injuring two of the policemen. They then headed for the Trans-Amadi Police Station.

On their way, they ran into some policemen on stop-and-search duty wherein they opened fire on the police, killing an Inspector and a 25 year-old man. The reports further said, not satisfied with their devilry so far, they went ahead for another police patrol team and fired repeatedly at their van, shooting the driver in the head.

After that, they were said to have headed to and attacked the Presidential Hotel where a security supervisor was killed. Not done, the militants boarded their vehicles and headed for the Borikiri Police Station where they ran into a police Armoured Personnel Carrier (APC).

They had encounter with the APC after which, according to the State Commissioner of Police, Felix Ogbaudu, “they moved into the Police Station and threw dynamites, they freely fired at the station and at the end of the day, they killed three more policemen.” On the whole, between 12 and 14 people were killed that night, including four of the gunmen.

Such criminality has now become the feature of the militants’ engagements in the area. Last year, some other gunmen sacked the Bayelsa Government House in such brazen fashion. Vice President Goodluck Jonathan’s house in Bayelsa was later burnt down. Such ugly incidents have continued to assault Nigerians on a daily basis in the media. The Nigerian nation cannot allow this to continue. This has gone far beyond rights agitation. What we now have is plain criminality, of local war-lords who are holding the states, nay the nation, by the throat. They have been working all manners of evil – from wantonly blowing up of oil pipelines to kidnapping.

We insist that government at both state and federal levels must be decisive in dealing with this new dimension of militants’ activities in the Niger Delta, just as they must find enduring solutions to the larger problems of the area.

We want to believe that the frequent militant stirring there has festered because the peculiar problems of the region have remained unresolved. In such a confused and volatile milieu, it is always convenient for all types of criminal elements to operate and in this instance, under the guise of agitating for a new lease of life for the people. It is time the government distinguished between genuine agitators and common bandits who now resort to hostage-taking and urban terrorism. Each should be dealt with accordingly.

Season Of Scandals

A MUNICH State court, Germany on October 14 linked four former Nigerian telecommunication ministers, a serving senator and several civil servants to an $8.6 million bribery scandal that spanned three countries.

The court convicted Siemens, German telecommunication company of giving bribes totaling about $7.1 million to Nigeria officials in anticipation of lucrative contracts. The rest of the money was spent as bribes in Libya and Russia for other contracts.

All the Nigerians mentioned in the elaborate court rulings that included amounts given, the names of the givers and in some cases dates, have denied any involvement in the deals. We hope they will be heading to court to untangle themselves from this evolving scandal. Investigations are continuing abroad.

The country’s image has been dented in recent times by other scandals. Wilbros, an American firm’s allegation of giving $6 million as bribes to government officials is pending in court. Wilbros officials are insisting that they gave Nigerian officials bribes to win oil contracts.

Another case involved Chief Dan Etete, former Minister for Petroleum in General Sani Abacha’s administration who was convicted and sentenced in absentia by a French court over money laundering offences. The court also ordered him to pay 150,000 euros to the government of Nigeria for his poor conduct.

Corruption is a serious problem for developing countries. Nigeria has been exceptional in poor handling of corruption cases. The United Nations investigators say that between 1960-1999, the nation lost $400 billion to corrupt practices by public officers. This amount does not include loot laundered though other sources.

For Nigeria to make progress, cases of corruption have to be prosecuted diligently. There is also a need to review anti-corruption laws, there are enough loopholes to allow suspects to escape with their loot. Sanctions on financial institutions that help the officials in laundering money should be more stringent, including possible loss of their licences. The role of these financial institutions in the transfer of money and concealing loot remain understated.

The latest scandals took place outside the tenure of this administration, but they offer another opportunity for the government to enforce its avowed zero-tolerance policy for corruption. It is an opportunity it should not miss.

President Umaru Yar’Adua has promised a thorough investigation that would establish the involvement of those mentioned. After the investigations, those involved would be charged to court. “In this Siemens scandal, as in all cases that border on good governance and transparency, there will neither be sacred cows nor a cover up for anybody found culpable of breaching the law,” the President said.

Nigerians need to see strict enforcement of these law, no matter who the offender is. Most corruption charges against public officers were not conclusively decided. The impression is then created that the law is meant for certain category of people. We hope the investigation of these matters will make the point that government’s anti-corruption war is well and alive in words – and indeed.

Igbos and the Jewish connection

The grouse is that the Igbos are claiming connection with the Jews, and out of sentiment, he started disparaging the Igbos without disproving the claimed Jewish connection.

He started by quoting scientific methods and application. How he has put the Igbos in the scale and weiged them and found them wanting. Yet he made this point and I quote: “and one who says that he sees anything as it is, without his own self affecting what he sees, is talking rubbish.

We cannot know what is going on in other person’s mind, all that we can do is engage in projective identification, that is, say what we think we see in other people”
After saying all this, he did not restrain himself but went on to describe one Igbo as a “palpable fool”. “uncultured, uneducated, a bushman”. Haba Mr. Makinde – what you see in this Igbo may not be exactly what he is. In other words you may be wrong, why not take it easy.

The very brutal way he was attacking the Igbo goes to show that the Igbos and the Jews have indeed this thing in common i.e hatred, envy and despise. There is nothing special about the Jews except, may be, suffering and fighting for survival which is what they have in common with the Igbos.
Their supposed relationship with God did not prevent the Holocaust neither did the Igbo suggested connection with the Jews prevent the repeated pogroms in Nigeria.

In truth, there are many similarities between the two races especially our four market days among other points which have been mentioned here and there. Infact, the name “Igbo or Ibo” is suggested to be a corruption of the name “Hebrew.” What offence have all these caused to the other peoples of Nigeria – especially the Yoruba?
All Igbo political leaders, according to history, have always sought to co-operate with the Yoruba until when they are despised and rejected. Zik embraced the Yoruba from day one in spite of all the treachery until he died.

Ojukwu, through recorded correspondences, has always sought the friendship and understanding of the Yourba up till today-all to no avail.
What are we getting in return? Obasanjo, through his posturing and utterances claimed that he, single handedly, defeated the Igbos and he has continued to defeat them daily till today, 37 years after the civil war. Then, this paricular article from Makinde is intended for maximum damage. To promote intense hatreld toward the Igbos from the other tribes of Nigeria.
I wouldn’t be reacting to this article if the Igbos are accused of being foolish. I would have agreed with that.

Are we not foolish for not having some unity in Igboland? Are we not foolish for not speaking with one voice. Are we not foolish for not resisting police brutality and deprivation. Wherever your see any serious road-block in Nigeria-East, West, North and South, be it Police or Customs, they are there waiting for the Igbo man. They are not waiting for the Hausa man, not waiting for the Yoruba man. These people have Godfathers! As for the Igbos, they are orphans! They have nobody except, may-be, God in heaven and again may be their Jewish blood!

All human beings are basically the same. Good and bad are natural. God created the devil not out of mistake but because the devil is necessary. For God to be all good, somebody else has to be all bad, hence the devil. So what is our problem as Nigerians? The Igbo man and the Ijebu man have many areas they resemble. Yet there is no complaint because the Yoruba has tribal unity. The Hausa has religious unity, the Igbo has nothing except individualism. Instead of pitying his foolishness your rather keep taking of his”pride and delusion”.

The Igbos may be foolish but please do not kill them because they are foolish. Again he went further to describe he Igbo’s as having “delusion disorder”. That Igbos behaviour is reminiscent of Adolf Hilter’s behaviour. That they see themselves as gods or elect of God etc.
All these descriptions are highly unnecessary and a waste of time. Let me tell Makinde that there are thousands of quiet Adolf Hitlers in the world today. We only know of Hitlers when they erupt.
Disparaging the Igbo in a patch-patch country like Nigeria is weakening their postion and that is counter productive.

I remember during the Obasanjo presidency, one Yoruba opposite my office came to me to tell me that the Yoruba are a special race. This was when Obasanjo was dishing it out to Nigeirans as he pleases. I just turned it into a laughing matter. After I had a good laugh at him, he left and I am sure my laughter spoke more volumes than words.
Human beings are the same the Igbos the Ijebus the Jews, the Chinese, the Russians, the Western world – we are all one.

Those who are foolish today may become wise tomorrow. Despite western world’s propaganda- the Chinese are making it today. And who knows tomorrow? Examples are emerging everyday, even here in Africa.

Stop America’s Insults

NIGERIAN leaders owe their citizens a duty to protect the country’s sovereignty, the soul of its national pride. No serious country treats issues that bother on its national security with levity.
Ours cannot be an exception. Certain actions of the United States of America impinge on the sovereignty of Nigeria.

As if Nigeria is one of its states, the US authorities dumped an American criminal, Grayson Ernest Eugene, serving jail sentence in one of the prisons in Reebok, Brooklyn, New York, on the tarmac of the Lagos airport. He arrived manacled with their keys to his entanglements dropped by his side.Eugene’s complaints at the US Embassy landed him in police custody. He was subsequently arraigned at a Chief Magistrate Court in Ebute Metta, Lagos, charged for breach of peace. It has been the beat of Nigerian security agencies to keep harassing him. The man insists he is an American. Why is it Nigeria’s role to prove he is not? The action of the US Embassy in Lagos is suspicious because the US does not toy with welfare of its citizens. Suppose Eugene is a spy on mission for his beloved country? The government of this country must not take this issue lightly.

Another slight is the litigation instituted in a US court by some Nigerians against General Abdulsalami Abubakar, Head of State between 1998-1999, for torts committed by the State before and during his tenure. The alleged torts were not committed in Abubakar’s personal capacity, regimes before his committed them. Under Nigerian laws, General Abubakar has immunity for his actions in office.


In contempt of the sovereign status of Nigeria, a US court expects our former Head of State to stand in its dock and answer questions bothering on our national security. This is not a United Nations court and the alleged offences were not against the US government or its citizens. The Nigerian government has obtained an injunction to stop the trial.


Recently, the Americans pompously expressed their interest in establishing a military base in Nigeria to protect its interests, especially stable crude oil supply. Its efforts at total control of Nigeria’s security could not have been better put.


These actions demonstrate US government’s contempt for Nigeria. The US will not condone the dumping of a criminal citizen from another country in its territory or litigation against any former US president in a foreign land. America hardly allows its citizens to be tried abroad.


We are not advocating a diplomatic war with the US. However, the line has to be firmly drawn in this relationship. Eugene must return to his prison in America. His visit to Nigeria must be probed.
The Federal Government must tell America to stop insulting Nigeria by its overbearing attitude in our relationship. There are several ways to do this, but maybe it is not yet time to apply the full rights of our sovereignty in determining who are truly our friends.

Niger-Delta revisited

Niger-Delta problem as a recurring decimal in the nation deserves urgent attention. Two issues constantly come up when the region is mentioned - insecurity and underdevelopment.

Attempt at resolving these problems have led to the creation of agencies like former Oil Mineral Producing Areas Development Commission, OMPADEC and now Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, saddled with the responsibility of bringing about development in those areas.

Inspite of efforts of these agencies, underdevelopment and insecurity loom large in the region.
President Umaru Yar’Adua disclosed before the National Assembly that N444.6 billion had been earmarked for security in Niger-Delta in next year’s budget. The outcry that followed led to official clarifications that the money was meant for development and not security.

The situation up till now is not clear as the most authentic information remains what the President read out before the joint sitting of the national assembly. The desire of government to better equip the military to face challenges posed by insecurity in the Niger-Delta is a good initiative. The involvement of the military in the high scale insecurity in that region helped in bringing brigandage and violence to a manageable level. Sustaining this commendable tempo must have informed government’s decision to jack-up budget meant for security in the region next year.

The improvement of the military is sine qua non to restoration of peace but this should not be done at the expense of real development which Niger-Delta region as a whole greatly needs as a result of decades of official neglect. The budget of N444.6 billion for security alone is out- rageous and unacceptable to us.

Absence of infrastructure, environmental degradation, squalor and abject poverty are negative indices that inhabilitants of Niger-Delta live with everyday. These are enough indicators to breed insurgence among the aggrieved people of this region which can only be discouraged with the adoption of the right panacea.

The government should focus attention on upgrading the living standard of people of this region. In outgoing year 2007, the budget of Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, was N24 billion.N69.9 billion is being allocated to it in 2008 but compared to the N444.6 billion for security, it pales into insignificance.

We call on the government to give priority attention to development in the Niger-Delta region without underestimating security of the region. Serious efforts must be made not to militarise the region so that prospective investors will not be scared off.

Actual development of Niger-Delta should not be compromised on the altar of security attention. Governors of states in the region have a role to play as they must dutifully and diligently utilise monies allocated to them for developmental projects that would impact on lives of the people and not on frivolities. With more than one third of entire distributive revenue of one trillion naira disbursed in the country given to the region between 1999-2005, the development on ground is quite disdainful-a far cry from the reality of value of the alloted sum.

There should be a change of attitude through genuine spending of budgets of the region on purposeful projects that would change lives of the people for good.

Nigeria and global clinical research

The recent revelation by medical experts that Nigeria is among African countries that shy away from participating in global clinical research is worrisome. As a result of this negligence, the country does not benefit from the over $60 billion spent worldwide yearly on clinical trials.

According to the Chairman of Association for Good Clinical Practice in Nigeria (AGCPN), Dr. Ifeoma Okoye, the field is dominated by India, China, Latin America and until recently South Africa.
It is a fact that clinical trials “outsourcing” is now a major business in India predicted to worth between $1.5 and $2 billion by 2010. Part of this amount will be missed by Nigeria in view of our non-participation in global clinical trials.

There is no doubt that clinical trials is the in-thing now as many countries require that it must be conducted within their own population before approval can be granted for marketing a drug in their countries.

This is borne out of the fact that drugs imported from foreign countries might not be suitable for local population considering variation and difference in human genome, among races. This is the main reason Nigeria should participate in future drug trials. The unethical drug trials episode in Kano some years ago should not discourage us from profiting from immense health benefits that a global clinical trial offers.

The concentration of most pharmaceutical companies in developed countries has thrown up the challenge of competing for same population for drug trials. Under the scenario, it has become more arduous to gather together enough subjects from this population suitable to achieve a meaningful trial. For instance, the lack of access to enough subjects is perhaps one of the most common reasons behind trial delays in the United States.

It is the need to augment this shortfall that has made the offshore outsourcing of clinical trials a necessity for many pharmaceutical companies.

It is therefore not in doubt that such off-shore outsourcing which India and China have long been tapping would likely offer huge benefits as well as challenges to a developing country like Nigeria with myriads of health problems.

We think that our government should, through the Federal Ministry of Health, make Nigeria embrace fully the initiative of global clinical research in view of its obvious medical advantages and not necessarily the anticipated monetary gains. We say this considering the fact that Nigeria is home to most world’s endemic diseases that decimate our population on a daily basis. Moreso, our population is highly prone to cardiovascular and endocrine diseases that could only be managed because of their terminal nature.

The Health Ministry should rise to this challenge and launch Nigeria into the best medical and pharmaceutical practices such trials would expectedly engender. It is regrettable that the authorities have closed their eyes to researches in preference for mundane things.

There is no way we can compete with other countries in this wise due to our long neglect of research in the medical field.

If we really want to move ahead as a country in a 21st century world, there is the need for us to take medical research and allied researches very seriously. The present lethargy on medical research should be broken in order to launch the country in the global web and orbit of advanced medical research. There is no sitting on the fence on the matter. Let the health authorities take the decisive step.

The turmoil in Kenya

Kenya, one of Africa’s most stable democracies and strongest economies, is reeling on its knees. The country has been struck by the blight of election malpractices and irregularities, which most democracies in Africa have suffered and are still facing.

Kenyans had gone to the polls on December 27, 2007, to elect a president. After a three-day counting process, president Mwai Kibaki who was seeking reelection was declared winner. But his challenger, Raila Odinga, said he was robbed of victory by fraud.

European Union observer mission, which monitored the elections said “they were marred by a lack of transparency in the processing and tallying of presidential results which raises concern about the accuracy of the final results”.

This damning verdict spurned agitations of different hues. Observers called for the setting up of an independent inquiry to resolve the dispute and urged the Kenyan Electoral Commission to cooperate fully in this regard. The observers also said that an audit of all the voting returns was vital and called for results from every polling station to be published in newspapers and on the Internet.

Even though the government denied complicity in all of this, Odinga, backed by the Luo community, rejected the results. But the issue went beyond the rejection of the outcome of the elections. Tribal rivalries have been ignited by the development. Violence and all manner of brigandage have ensued.

The people are now pitched against one another and this has taken a huge toll on life and property. The Red Cross said no fewer than 70,000 people have been displaced in the Rift Valley region of the country. Death toll is said to have risen above 300. By last week, the matter almost got out of hand with allegations of genocide and ethnic cleansing making the rounds. Last week as well, over 30 people were burnt to death in a church. They were said to be of the Kikuyi ethnic group, Kenya’s largest and richest tribe. President Kibaki is of this group.

The Kikuyis were initially believed to be the target of the killings. However, the violence escalated when they (the Kikuyis) rose in revenge against their assailants. The situation has put Kenya in a state of meltdown.
The situation in Kenya is unfortunate. It is another manifestation of the evils of election malpractices which most countries in Africa are known for. In a continent where incumbent presidents are scared stiff of defeat, untoward steps are usually taken by them to stamp their authority and impose their will on the people. This is usually the case in many countries of Africa.

However, Kenya’s case is particularly regrettable considering the fact that the country has enjoyed political stability since its independence from Britain in 1963. Even though the country has a history of guerilla warfare, the people have managed to live together in peace and harmony, and have withstood the turbulence that usually goes with political transition.

The situation in the country at moment is therefore an unfortunate reversal of the gains the country had made in the area of democratic growth and maturation. The breakdown of law and order may have resulted from an act of bad faith which should be redressed immediately.
But the way to go is not by taking the laws into one’s hands. Those who have taken up arms should sheathe their sword and give peace a chance. Violence and the deaths that come with it are disagreeable manifestations which do not make for progress.

The way out of the crisis is for the government and the electoral commission to listen to the wise counsel of concerned groups and observers who have called for a probe into the allegations of electoral malpractices. It is, indeed, salutary to note that the government of Kibaki has declared its willingness to allow an independent investigation into vote results that led to Kibaki’s disputed victory.

The investigation should be allowed to go on unhindered. While we hope that the probe will assuage the nerves of one and all, we urge other African democracies to learn a lesson from the Kenyan experience. In a world that has become a global village, peoples and institutions should always strive to conform to internationally accepted standards in whatever they do. African leaders must shun the easy route to power.

Poor Rating Continues

The2007/08 United Nations Development Programme, UNDP’s, Human Development Index, HDI, ratings of 177 countries of the world had been released. Expectedly, the country notched the ladder by a negligible step at number 158 compared to last year’s 159th position.


The nation struggled at the bottom of the list with countries like Central African Republic, CAR, Chad, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger Republic, Guinea Bissau, Mozambique and Sierra Leone. The best placed African country, Mauritius, occupies the 65th position. Of these countries, none has vast resources of Nigeria, yet mismanagement and poor leadership focus has placed Nigeria in the same class with countries that command less than the resources available to some of our 774 local government areas.

The HDI report has been condemned because it was done by a foreign body but were the statistics used foreign? Parameters like poverty level, unemployment rate, school enrolment, women and children health and mortality ratio based for the studies as they obtained in the various countries.
Nigeria should present contrary statistics to disprove the way HDI rating portrayed it. We do not think there is any. If the government is sincere, it would not need the HDI to know how badly Nigerians live. Rather, the rating sufficiently captures the reality.

Instead of apportioning blames, the government should come out genuinely to address the exposed inadequacies in our general well being.


No excuse is tenable for the nation’s consistent poor showings on the HDI scale. In the last eight years of touted reform agenda cutting across all sectors of national life, little has been done at bringing to fruition the Millennium Development Goals target of 2015.


The country is in infrastructure far behind less endowed countries in the African continent. It will take a miracle to stop the country from sliding on the HDI table because nothing serious is being done to address problems plaguing the identified areas.


President Umaru Yar’Adua’s administration has promised to make the nation among the 20 most developed economies by 2020. Meeting this official target will largely be determined by how far the country has gone by 2015 in realising the MDGs target.


Due attention must be placed on infrastructure that are near obsolete or poorly maintained. The deepening energy crisis has to be handled as no country can make meaningful progress without stable electricity.


The time to redress the identified problems in the HDI report and catapault the nation to top spot of respected countries of the world is now. This is a reminder of the enormous work that is ahead. Excuses no matter what they are cannot solve these problems.

The turmoil in Kenya

Kenya, one of Africa’s most stable democracies and strongest economies, is reeling on its knees. The country has been struck by the blight of election malpractices and irregularities, which most democracies in Africa have suffered and are still facing.

Kenyans had gone to the polls on December 27, 2007, to elect a president. After a three-day counting process, president Mwai Kibaki who was seeking reelection was declared winner. But his challenger, Raila Odinga, said he was robbed of victory by fraud.

European Union observer mission, which monitored the elections said “they were marred by a lack of transparency in the processing and tallying of presidential results which raises concern about the accuracy of the final results”.

This damning verdict spurned agitations of different hues. Observers called for the setting up of an independent inquiry to resolve the dispute and urged the Kenyan Electoral Commission to cooperate fully in this regard. The observers also said that an audit of all the voting returns was vital and called for results from every polling station to be published in newspapers and on the Internet.

Even though the government denied complicity in all of this, Odinga, backed by the Luo community, rejected the results. But the issue went beyond the rejection of the outcome of the elections. Tribal rivalries have been ignited by the development. Violence and all manner of brigandage have ensued.

The people are now pitched against one another and this has taken a huge toll on life and property. The Red Cross said no fewer than 70,000 people have been displaced in the Rift Valley region of the country. Death toll is said to have risen above 300. By last week, the matter almost got out of hand with allegations of genocide and ethnic cleansing making the rounds. Last week as well, over 30 people were burnt to death in a church. They were said to be of the Kikuyi ethnic group, Kenya’s largest and richest tribe. President Kibaki is of this group.

The Kikuyis were initially believed to be the target of the killings. However, the violence escalated when they (the Kikuyis) rose in revenge against their assailants. The situation has put Kenya in a state of meltdown.
The situation in Kenya is unfortunate. It is another manifestation of the evils of election malpractices which most countries in Africa are known for. In a continent where incumbent presidents are scared stiff of defeat, untoward steps are usually taken by them to stamp their authority and impose their will on the people. This is usually the case in many countries of Africa.

However, Kenya’s case is particularly regrettable considering the fact that the country has enjoyed political stability since its independence from Britain in 1963. Even though the country has a history of guerilla warfare, the people have managed to live together in peace and harmony, and have withstood the turbulence that usually goes with political transition.

The situation in the country at moment is therefore an unfortunate reversal of the gains the country had made in the area of democratic growth and maturation. The breakdown of law and order may have resulted from an act of bad faith which should be redressed immediately.
But the way to go is not by taking the laws into one’s hands. Those who have taken up arms should sheathe their sword and give peace a chance. Violence and the deaths that come with it are disagreeable manifestations which do not make for progress.

The way out of the crisis is for the government and the electoral commission to listen to the wise counsel of concerned groups and observers who have called for a probe into the allegations of electoral malpractices. It is, indeed, salutary to note that the government of Kibaki has declared its willingness to allow an independent investigation into vote results that led to Kibaki’s disputed victory.

The investigation should be allowed to go on unhindered. While we hope that the probe will assuage the nerves of one and all, we urge other African democracies to learn a lesson from the Kenyan experience. In a world that has become a global village, peoples and institutions should always strive to conform to internationally accepted standards in whatever they do. African leaders must shun the easy route to power.

The great petrol scam

I HAVE often wondered in amazement about the Nigerian's ability to accommodate pain and suffering without complaint or protest. We really must be very tolerant people, or maybe we are just plain docile or dumb? Millions of Nigerians and transporters alike are being cheated daily at the petrol pumps, and apparently no one is aware of this or even cares.

I have been a motoring enthusiast for four decades, and I take issues concerning motoring safety, running costs, maintenance and motoring regulation seriously. I am therefore alarmed that the fraud perpetuated at the petrol pumps daily has not ignited the anger or concern it deserves.

My personal research over the years has shown unequivocally that virtually all petrol stations in Lagos and most probably all over the country for that matter, deliberately short-sell petrol to customers regularly without fear or risk of sanction.

The following scenario illustrates this ubiquitous fraud. I drive into a petrol filling station with my car that has a dry tank capacity of 80 litres, the fuel gauge reads three-quarter empty, (i.e. quarter tank or 20 litres left) and ask to be filled up. At the end of the fill-up, I got a bill on the meter that my car has received 90 litres of petrol when even the reserve warning light had not come on and the car was driven to the station, not pushed! How do you explain filling an 80-litre tank with 90 litres of petrol when the tank still contains about 20 litres of fuel! This same scenario has unfolded to me with several different cars over the years with unchanging regularity! I have even kept receipts of some of these bogus sales.

When I raise hell after some of these sales, and the attendants realising they are now in an indefensible situation with a knowledgeable customer, often quickly apologise for a "bad meter" and a promise to have it fixed as soon as possible, but I doubt if they ever fix anything. On one particular occasion I made so much fuss that I got some refund back!

The last episode which finally prompted me to write this article occurred just before last Christmas when I was sold 65 litres of petrol into a small car with a dry tank capacity of 50 litres when the fuel gauge was still above quarter tank, Haba! Even if my fuel gauge was faulty there must have been some fuel still in the tank!

The explanation of this obvious capacity mismatch is that filling stations have mastered the devious art of adjusting their meters to dispense less than one litre of petrol for every one litre sold to customers! Who benefits from this "error"? The filling stations of course! The margin of error in favour of the filling stations is usually in the order of 20 to 25 per cent from my experience and calculation over the years.

The dry fuel tank capacity of every vehicle is stated in the owner's manual, and it is of course an accurate measurement dictated and monitored by law in the country of vehicle manufacture, so this cannot be an error. A litre is a universal unit of volume which does not vary from country to country like for example the Imperial gallon compared to the U.S. gallon. So why is the Nigerian litre less than the universal standard? I know of 'African time', maybe even 'Nigerian time', but there is no 'Nigerian litre', except we agree to introduce the 'Nigerian factor' which unfortunately often translates to fraud.

If you want to be charitable, you may wish to suggest that these are just random calibration errors which can occur in any measuring system. Fine, but why doesn't the error ever favour the car owner? Why doesn't a filling station ever oversell to customers? I am yet to find a filling station that is calibrated to deliver more petrol than you paid for. The law of averages dictates that random errors will occur evenly over time and cancel each other out. In any case, any measuring system meant for trade must not have a margin of error in excess of five per cent. By law, all our filling stations as of today should be shut down with immediate effect.

The unearned profit from this illegal and wicked practice runs into millions of naira annually for these petrol stations and their owners. No wonder petrol stations are springing up everywhere and the owners are smiling all the way to the bank! I have calculated that for every tanker load of petrol containing 33,000 litres delivered to a filling station, the average unearned (illegal) profit is about four hundred thousand naira.

Each vehicle that buys over 40 litres of petrol loses about six hundred naira to seven hundred naira! Nigerians are actually now paying about one hundred naira per litre for petrol without knowing it! I am then amused when we protest anytime PPRA adds five naira per litre to the price of petrol, when we ignore the thirty naira per litre 'hidden' premium we are paying regularly to these petrol thieves over and above the statutory profit margin which had already been factored into the official pump price.

Why has this ugly situation persisted for so long? Because most Nigerian vehicle owners are often careless and apathetic towards their own well-being. Most 'educated' Nigerians who own cars cannot tell you the fuel capacity of their cars, so how can they even know when they are being cheated at the pumps? It is this generalised and pervasive apathy towards detailing and observation that characterises most Nigerian motorists, and this often spills over to safety issues like tyre pressures, tyre sizes and tyre speed rating. For example most Nigerian motorists don't even know that tyres have expiry dates, after which you drive with them at your own peril. Most accidents on Nigerian roads are still due to bad tyre choices and wrong pressures.

Is it because fuel is actually too cheap (as has been suggested by some people) in this country that we do not care much about vehicle fuel capacity and fuel consumption of our vehicles? In most advanced countries, everybody can tell you off-the-cuff the fuel capacity and consumption of their cars and trucks. But try to ask the average Yuppie Nigerian or 'Big Man' with their cool 'Jeeps' and other exotic cars, and what do you get? Total shameful ignorance! How then do we even begin to sensitise Nigerians to environmental issues concerning fossil fuel burning, the ozone layer and global warming!

Most Nigerians (even if they do not care or worry about global warming and this ozone stuff), are unfortunately not wealthy enough to be indifferent to petrol price or vehicle fuel consumption and yet they deal with these issues in such a cavalier manner.

The perpetuation of this petrol fraud is of course not the fault of the motorist alone. There is actually a government regulatory body charged with the responsibility of monitoring petrol filling stations to ensure they practice within the law. This is the DPR, (Department of Petroleum Resources), with offices at Kofo Abayomi Street, Victoria Island, Lagos. I am however yet to be convinced the DPR is doing anything to police these erring filling stations, because while they have the power to shut down any errant station, none is being shut in spite of the flagrant robbery going on daily. DPR staff are expected to randomly visit petrol stations armed with fixed measured litre containers with which to measure dispensed fuel, the volume of which must not be outside the agreed margin of error.

Is the DPR not aware of its functions? Has it abandoned these functions? Does it lack the personnel or equipment to do the job? Or are the staff of DPR colluding with the petrol stations and marketers to defraud Nigerians? These are questions that need urgent answers, and I hope someone in the DPR or NNPC or higher in Government can rise to this challenge.

But until the DPR does its job properly, I will advise you my fellow Nigerians to dust your vehicle owner's manual (if you can still find it!) and check its fuel tank capacity. When next you fill your tank with petrol or diesel (yes, diesel pumps are also 'fixed') you will be totally amazed as to how much 'fake' fuel you are paying for. If many more of us raise hell with these filling stations, and threaten to report them to the authorities, maybe they will be frightened enough to change their ways. But, I somehow doubt it. We could certainly use a Ribadu in the DPR. Happy motoring.

NUC’s PhD Rule

The National Universities Commission, NUC’s 2009 deadline for doctorate degree as minimum qualification for teaching in our universities remains contentious. Any lecturer who could not earn his/her doctorate degree at that time will be shown the way out of the system. And the NUC sounds serious about enforcing this order. Some members of the university community see the directive as a welcome development.

At the same time, there are other people within and outside the university system who see it as a desirable step that would not easily be attainable. The directive may be impracticable.

There is no doubt that NUC as regulatory agency of government is expected to set minimum standards in staffing, programmes content and facilities. All these constitute requirements for accreditation.
However, a good idea or recommendation may be impossible to attain due to prevailing realities. For example, does the existing university law say that doctorate degree is the minimum teaching qualification? If yes, why the delay in implementation before now?


By 2009 would we have produced enough doctorate degree holders to service 25 federal universities, 27 state universities, 22 private universities, four inter-university centres and 26 research institutes?
Doctorate degree holders in the university system right now are only about 28,000. By 2009, all those institutions mentioned above would require about 100,000 doctorate degree holders. Can we produce that number of doctorate degree holders between now and 2009?


We should consider the fact that the university system has experienced profound brain drain over the past ten years or more. Where are the professors that would train this high number of doctorate degree holders?


Would it not be better to look at the existing programmes, staff strength and facilities and adopt a gradual approach to the implementation of the directive?


As lawyers say a law that can not be enforced is as good as dead. A directive that is impracticable would become inactive. What may eventually happen is that universities will still have master’s degree holders on their staff list, as lecturers, even after 2009.


It is not a PhD that makes a good lecturer. It is convenient to forget that some of our best professors do not have PhDs. Wole Soyinka and Chinua Achebe are great examples. Have their mates with PhDs produced better students?


The rationale for this directive is not clear. There is no indication that a doctorate degree holder would make a better lecturer than one without that qualification. If what the NUC is looking for is improvement in the quality of university teachers, academic qualifications would not be enough. The teaching conditions are inadequate to produce the number of quality teachers to man the positions in the universities. Poor conditions of service have robbed the universities of the first shot at keeping their best students.


A country that does not take the welfare of its teachers serious cannot turn around to impose qualifications for those teachers, who are barely available, and in great demand elsewhere.

Tears For Our Roads

MINISTER of Transport Deziani Allison-Madueke must have realised by now that her tears would not be enough to get Nigerian roads to a useable state. All the defences about the rains being the reason for non-repair of the roads have collapsed. The rains are gone, the roads are still bad.
Bad roads hugely account for the carnage on our roads. The Federal Road Safety Corps in its latest figures has annual estimates of 48,000 deaths from accidents. The figures only represent deaths at scenes of accidents. The statistics do not capture those who die in hospitals, or outside the vicinity of the accidents. In real terms, the figures are bound to be much higher.

Only few of our roads are exceptions to the general decay that appears to be the national standard. What is very clear is that the contractors and their supervisors have done a poor job of repairing the roads. It may also be true that a profound approach has not been found for the funding of the country’s road network. The billions of Naira spent on the roads in the past eight years bore little fruit. Worse still, little effort has been made to find out what went wrong, an important aspect in the search for a new direction.

Stretches of abandoned road projects litter the country. We think that the Minister can do something about the situation. The bad roads were inherited from the previous administration, but the present government has to fix those roads. No excuses are acceptable for the state of the roads.

A first step for the Minister could be to ascertain what happened with the hundreds of road contracts that were announced after every Federal Executive Council meeting. There is hardly any major road in the country that was not awarded for repair in the last eight years. Almost all of them were poorly done, or are still under repairs without gladdening results.

The best example is the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway that has been under repairs since 2000. Prominent patches of pot holes follow every little part of the road that is tarred. The Minister must get all the details on these roads. The Lagos-Ibadan Expressway and Lagos-Ore-Benin Expressway, easily the busiest roads in the country, are famous for the number of accidents on their undulating surfaces, which also harbour many failed portions.

Who are the contractors? What were the details of the contracts? Did the contractors meet the terms of the awards? Did the government meet its financial obligations to the contractors?
The way things are, she may have no alternative than to call in the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. The issues at stake are high economic crimes that should be investigated and punished.


It is important that the Minister wades through these details quickly in order to commence the repair of the roads. Some of the contracts may need to be revoked, others may have to be funded, while new contracts have to be awarded. She has to start immediately.

The untidy handling of Ribadu's posting

THAT the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu is going on a one-year study leave at the elite National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru should, ordinarily not attract the public interest, or suspicion, or condemnation that it has ever since the posting was announced recently by the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Mike Okiro. After all, AIG Ribadu is a career officer who, by the rules explained by his professional boss, qualifies to proceed to Kuru. But that is on the face of it.

Mallam Ribadu is, in his present duty post, not just another senior cop; and, in the peculiar circumstances of our corruption-ridden country, he is not just another public officer heading just another government agency. No. Nuhu Ribadu, as the government's anti-financial and economic crimes point man is, by public perception, Nigeria's No. 1 warrior against corruption in our country. Furthermore, he heads the nation's most challenged, and, we dare say, most active, anti-corruption agency for the simple reason that the financial and economic dimension - and damage - of corruption in this land supersedes by far other effects of this evil.

Against this background, it should be clear to the authorities why the sending of the EFCC Chairman on study leave at this time arouses so much suspicion. The work of the EFCC as a body and Ribadu as a person, have assumed great symbolism in the eyes of Nigerians. The widespread interest in the removal of the pioneering EFCC boss from 'active duty' clearly shows that Nigerians desire a persistent, effective war against corruption. Second, it appears that, backed by political will, an agency of government can deliver on its mandate. The EFCC under Ribadu has proved that this can be done.

Third, corruption in all its manifestations and the nature and methods to confront it, entail great personal risks. Mallam Ribadu and his courageous team have, in truth gored the oxen of many men of power, means and influence. Did they make some mistakes? Certainly, yes. Were they overzealous? Sometimes. But the bottom line: Ribadu and his team achieved results unprecedented in the history of the fight against corruption in this country.

Put differently, Nuhu Ribadu was, by and large, on course. But it is understandable that affected persons would marshal their immense but dubious means against their tormentor. And now, he is out, at least for the time being, and the impression hangs heavy in the air that anti-EFCC/Ribadu forces may be winning. Nigerians, high and low, are worried by this as well as by statements and acts of officials in the recent past that seem to convey the impression that the Yar'Adua government may be slowing down on the war against corruption. Indeed, the way and manner in which the EFCC Chairman Ribadu was re-assigned is untidy and only lends credence to suspicions of a hidden agenda.

Some questions: one, the chairman of the EFCC is appointed and removed by the president in line with Sections 2(3) and 3(2) of the EFCC Act 2004. Regardless of the fact that he remains a career policeman, a statement re-posting this officer who is on a special national assignment should, by this law, and by commonsense, emanate from the Presidency. The news of his first appointment and re-appointment did not come from the police, so why did this information come from the Inspector General of Police and at a press conference? Two, Ribadu was not aware (so he claimed) that he was to proceed on a study leave even as his boss was announcing it to the world. Why so? Three, how come a successor to understudy Ribadu was not named along with the news of his new posting?

Many people, including the Presidency, acknowledge the good job that EFCC under Ribadu is doing. Now, if excesses and/ or mistakes have been committed, or measures wrongly taken, if there are properly channeled complaints against the anti-graft body and/or its chairman, surely there are administrative and more matured ways of handling these.

Besides its poorly contrived procedure, the posting out of Ribadu from the EFCC is ill-timed. We agree, as many have argued, that no one is indispensable and that there may be even some who can lead the EFCC better than Ribadu. But this line of thought remains in the realm of conjecture. It is all well to seek to build de-personalised institutions that can function well regardless of the personalities involved. But institutions, like nations, assume the 'personality', for good or ill, of their leader(s). We certainly have in Ribadu a man that has proven to be uncommonly courageous in the performance of his duties. Under a less courageous, even if competent head, the EFCC may not be as successful.

Indeed, anti-graft laws have been in our statute books and the Police have had departments to enforce them long before now. How many highly placed thieves were tried at all in the pre-EFCC years? The point then is that we need to build our institutions around men of ideas, conviction and courage. Sadly, there are not too many around.

However, the anti-graft war must not abate in the least because of this change of guards at the EFCC. Any one who replaces Ribadu, in an acting capacity, at the commission can only strive to surpass him. This is in that successor's interest, as well as in the interest of Nigeria. And since the President has not sacked the EFCC Chairman, it is to be assumed that immediately after his study leave at NIPSS, he will return to his duty post to complete his tenure of office.

The head of the EFCC must enjoy the confidence of the president to be effective. Even as Mallam Ribadu goes on study leave, Nigeria must stay the course of confronting corruption with maximum political will, and with all the means at its disposal. This is the current sentiment of the Nigerian people, and of our friends around the globe. And it is the right path to tread under the circumstances.

Not Just Local Matters

SOMEONE has to nudge President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua into more immediate actions over the violence the local government elections produced in various parts of the country. He just acknowledged the problem, but woefully failed to attend to it decisively, a trait he must acquire if he is to do this job with acceptable distinction.

From Kano State, where many people lost their lives over the polls weeks earlier, to last weekend’s incidents in Edo, Enugu, Oyo, Ogun, it was clear the violence in Kano left no lessons.
After the violence in Kano, which took the military to quell, we had thought the security agencies would have known the trouble spots and prepared to counter any moves that would have encouraged violence. If they did, the efforts were ineffectual. More need to be done.

Politicians were at their best seeking advantage in the do or die manner that has become their common creed. Opposition parties boycotted the elections, a regular feature of elections at that level since 1999. One thing is certain - if cases at the tribunals go the way of some of the litigants, new state electoral bodies would be constituted and the newly elected officials sacked. Oyo State is an example in this direction. The constitutional rigmarole over control of the local government councils is steeped in permanent disputation.

The violence is of immediate concern to us. What happened to the security organisations? Why could so much violence and loss of lives be perpetrated over elections and the President is doing absolutely nothing?

He has summoned the governors and political leaders to a meeting. The meeting would be at an undecided date in January. The action is perfunctory. Why the delay if this is important?
Why is he going through the officious routine of summoning governors who barely have any control of the security situation in their states? The governors would come to the meeting and tell Yar’Adua what he knew in his eight years as governor: security instructions, the ones that are to be obeyed, issue from the central command in Abuja. The President is in charge!

The delay in holding the meeting underscores its unimportance, and a certain under-rating of the extent of the violence and the implications.

Government thinking must be that there are holidays, so the convenience of those who should be at the meeting must not be compromised. Their pleasure is too important to be disturbed.
Leaders of a country under security cloud do not go on holidays. The meetings should be held immediately, not in January, especially at an uncertain date.

Localised violence has deeper implications and spreads faster. Contenders for local government polls usually live within close distances of each other. Revenge for losses at the polls would also draw some fuel from outstanding communal feuds, which are never in short supply.

Nigerians deserve peace. Government should tackle the violence now.

ANC: Democracy at work

The African National Congress, ANC, South Africa’s ruling party sets a precedent of transparent political maturity that political parties in African countries must emulate. The majesty of democracy came to the fore in its last convention as baton of leadership changed from President Thabo Mbeki to Jacob Zuma. This is achieved not through force as is the case in other countries but by popular votes.

Zuma is not favoured by the establishment but triumphed because democracy is a game of numbers through which people express their preference. The vilified Zuma scored 60 per cent of the total votes.
In other climes within the continent, winning an election against an incumbent is a rare feat. All means except fairness would be adopted to frustrate opposing candidates.Except the impossible happens, Zuma by this victory would take over after the 2009 elections as successor to President Thabo Mbeki.

The orderliness and transparency of that convention should be emulated in countries across Africa. For not interfering with the outcome, like most of his peers in Africa, Mbeki deserves commendation. This is an uncommon occurrence for an incumbent to accept defeat with equanimity.

The defeat might be painful to the incumbent and his supporters, his acceptance of the result shows him as a man of honour - a statesman who is not ready to tinker with ideals that could stagnate democracy in South Africa.

Whatever character flaws Zuma might have, they should not be ground to dump the wishes of majority of ANC members who voted for him. His flippant, immodest sex life and poor public finances records all contributed to his forced resignation as Deputy President.

His alleged involvement in a 1999 four billion dollars arms deal in which his financial adviser is currently serving 15 years jail term remains a permanent scar. Zuma is also slated by South African National Prosecuting Authority to face prosecution on further charges of corruption which his supporters described as a witch-hunting exercise.

Democracy is at work in South Africa. The leadership of that country should blame itself for encouraging a system that throws up someone like Zuma whose academic record, intellectual depth and economic viewpoint remain a far cry of what is necessary to steer a bourgeoning country like South Africa.

His emergence showed that Mbeki’s popularity among his party men has waned and he should blame himself for not grooming a successor who could be seen as a better alternative.

Other countries in Africa, especially Nigeria, should borrow a leaf from the ANC election in South Africa. It is a shame that Nigeria’s People’s Democratic Party, PDP, that prides itself as the biggest party in Africa and which has ruled the country for over eight years has had its plans for convention mired with controversies. The time for correction of all political anomalies is now.

Year 2008 begins

The first page of another 365 days journey opens today. At midnight, 2008 expected to usher in new tidings begins. As usual with every New Year, high hopes and expectations of people fill the air. This has become an annual ritual through which people do a wholesome appraisal of their lives - account for past failures and plan for future success. Today affords people the opportunity of having New Year dreams.


Whether the dreams would come to fruition depend on individual focus and more importantly an enabling environment engendered by realistic and people-friendly government policies. In the past eight years, New Year hopes and aspirations have been impeded by lack of official sincerity in the delivery of democratic dividends.

Government’s action through its reform in the last one year showed little considerations for the well-being of the people. The hope of having free and fair elections was dashed by the massive rigging, irregularities and fraud that marred last April’s general elections. Local government elections conducted by States last December were worse examples of what a democracy should be.

Political distortions and violence are a recurring decimal that are slowing down real development. We do hope that disregard for rules and condonation of violence elevated, especially, among the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in its subdue of oppositions will stop in the new year. Hostage taking in Niger-Delta region was a national issue in 2007. The intervention of Joint Task Force has reduced violence but genuine developmental efforts by government will quell to a significant level the nefarious activities of militants in that region.

There are several petitions pending before Tribunals and Appeal Courts in the country. Among them are the petitions challenging the election of President Umaru Yar’ Adua. There is need to expedite action on these petitions so that the end of justice will not be delayed and probably be defeated. 2007 witnessed lots of landmark judgement by the judiciary.

The upturn of Rashidi Ladoja’s impeachment as Oyo State governor, return of Governor Peter Obi of Anambra and judicial declaration of Rotimi Amaechi as governor of Rivers State were judgements that raised people’s belief in our democracy in 2007. More of these epochal judgements are expected in 2008 from the judiciary.

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, under Professor Maurice Iwu disappointed Nigerians in its shoddy conduct of elections. An over-haul of the place is inevitable in 2008.
Nigeria’s growth and development will be determined largely by government’s pursuit of right policies and programmes implemented in an atmosphere of transparency and accountability. The government must ensure that an enabling environment to allow for progress of Nigerians and the nation are put in place and allowed to thrive.

Klieg light on corruption

THE mind bugling corruption oozing out of public office is reducing the prestige of such positions. Corruption has created few wealthy Nigerians while majority live in misery — paying the price of greed and avarice of those who see public positions as avenue for personal enrichment at the expense of public good and development.


The situation is getting worse as the till is getting depleted due to corrupt conducts by public officers. The Fifth Schedule Part 1 of 1999 Constitution contains a gamut of provisions serving as Code of Conducts to public officials. They are observed more in breach than compliance except on very few occasions such as the sentencing of Tafa Balogun, former Inspector-General of Police, when a case of corruption could be said to have been conclusively pursued.

We can do better to help our society, promote institutions and instill discipline in the minds of holders of public positions. The situation on ground is not cheering. Tepid attention is given the monster called corruption except in official sloganeering.

The Senate Committee on Narcotics, Drugs and Finance Crimes gave fillip to this view by restating in its recommendation to the Senate the constitutional 10-year ban on corrupt public official rather than propose new and additional measures that could abate spread of corruption gene in Nigeria’s public life.

The restatement diminishes the inspiring role a Senate albeit the National Assembly should be playing in the important crusade of reducing corruption in our polity. The current attitude could not discourage public looting which the United Nation says stands at 500 billion dollars as at 1999.

The task of elimination or reduction of corruption should involve diligent monitoring of our institutions and the making of amendment where necessary. The Code of Conduct Bureau created in Third Schedule Part 1 of 1999 Constitution is the custodian of assets declaration documents made by public officers. Its operation has been hampered by the environment in the effective discharge of its duties especially as specified in Section (3)(C) that empowers it to “retain custody of such declarations and make them available for inspection by any citizen of Nigeria on such terms and conditions as the National Assembly might prescribe”.

The reality is that declarations made by public officials to Code of Conduct Bureau even on request are not easily accessible to Nigerians. We expect the National Assembly to look critically into why this is so and make recommendations that would make lives of public officers more transparent and open for justifiable people’s scrutiny.

The Code of Conduct Tribunal has the power to impose punishment of a ban not exceeding ten years on any public official convicted of corruption as stated in section 18(2)(b).It has not really been availed of opportunity to do so. The tribunal is also to act on “ such other punishment as may be prescribed by the National Assembly.”

The Senate should attune to reality by making propositions that would bring about laws that could reduce or eliminate graft in the nation. The battle can be won through creative and realistic efforts and not repetitions of already known laws that have not been really put to test.