My June 12 day was hectic as usual; it started very early in the day as I led my parishioners to pray against destiny destroyers. There are many intriguing cases of destinies that were, well, inexplicably destroyed in the Bible; a few examples were Abel, whose offering God accepted but who, as a result, got killed by his brother Cain whose own offering God had rejected; a thoroughbred and conscientious soldier, Uriah the Hittite, whose brutal murder was orchestrated by a loafing King David to cover up his adultery with Bathsheba, Uriah’s wife; and the conspiracy of King Ahab and his notorious wife, Jezebel, that led to the gruesome murder of Naboth. In all the three cases, the victims were blameless as far as ordinary eyes can see; yet, they were victims of destiny destroyers. In His manifest wisdom which no mortal can query, God punished the vile offenders but only after the deed had been done. That must be an object lesson for all of us!

Abiola’s protest and effort to retrieve his mandate led to his arrest and detention, where he eventually died. He was not allowed to fulfil his destiny by destiny destroyers.

A similar fate befell Chief MKO Abiola who won the June 12, 1993 presidential election fairly and squarely but was not allowed to enjoy the fruits of his labour. The military junta in power, led by Gen. Ibrahim Babangida (IBB), annulled the election. As he was “stepping aside” from office under a barrage of protests by Nigerians led by civil society groups and activists, IBB installed an inept Interim National Government headed by Chief Ernest Shonekan. Gen. Sani  Abacha, the most senior military officer after IBB’s exit, wasted no time in dismissing Shonekan and taking over the reins of office. Abiola’s protest and effort to retrieve his mandate led to his arrest and detention, where he eventually died. He was not allowed to fulfil his destiny by destiny destroyers.

From church I landed at the Lagos State Television (LTV) where I was one of an array of analysts that discussed the various angles to the June 12, 1999 presidential election, the protests that followed its annulment, the political impasse or logjam that dragged for years, the eventual return to civilian rule on 29 May, 1999 and the progress made so far, if any. If anything, the current Fourth Republic is the longest-running in the history of the country and if it is true that experience is the best teacher, then, Nigerians must have learnt one or two lessons on how to sustain and nurture our renascent democracy. Challenges encountered so far, and the roadmap for a better tomorrow, were also dissected.

From there, I moved to the Oodua People’s Congress commemoration of June 12, the 30th in a row, at the Excellence Hotel, Ogba. The place was jampacked and the atmosphere was electric. It was my first participation in OPC’s commemoration of June 12. Activists and civil society organisations, traditional rulers and various chapters of OPC from far and near made the hotel premises too inadequate for the event. Leader of the OPC and Aare Onakankanfo, Iba Gani Adams, said in his speech that Nigeria cannot achieve much if our democratic aspirations are tied to the 1999 Constitution. He enjoined President Tinubu to find a way to get the constitution reviewed. Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin encouraged June 12 activists not to give up the struggle. She demanded that Abiola be placed on the same pedestal as former presidents of the country. On fuel subsidy removal, she counselled that the sacrifice demanded by our leaders should flow from top to bottom and not the other way round.

READ ALSO: The confessions of Dino Melaye, By Bola Bolawole

Dr. Tunji Abayomi described the 1999 Constitution as the fruits of a poisonous tree and urged the National Assembly to pass a law that will vest the Nigerian people with the powers to give themselves a Constitution. The Guest Lecturer, Dr. Oseni Taiwo Afisi, said June 12 transcended the identity politics of ethnicity, religion and such other primordial instincts. Veteran journalist, Otunba Gbenga Onayiga, also supported the demand for a new Constitution while also calling for the immortalisation of other heroes of democracy, which included journalists. Another veteran, Dare Babarinsa, said answers must be found to why the Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar regime that succeeded Abacha failed to release Abiola from detention when other detainees were being released. He urged President Tinubu, the first activist to become Nigeria’s president, to order an investigation into this.

There were many other speakers, including this writer, but space will not allow us to mention them. I left the gathering resolved to attend future activities of the OPC as I find convenient.

NCC chairman, Prof. Adeolu Akande’s golden advice to 10th National Assembly

Election of principal officers into the 10th National Assembly has come and gone and everyone must have simmered now, as they say. The next battle will shift to the composition of Senate and House committees. That will be the first litmus test of how competently Godswill Akpabio (Senate President) and Tajudeen Abass (Speaker of the House of Representatives) can bridge the gulf created by the keen competition for their respective seat and rally the chambers behind themselves. The robust intervention of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was what made what had initially threatened to be a fight-to-finish look eventually like a storm in a tea cup, judging by the ease with which Akpabio and Abass sailed through. But the wisdom of our people says you can help someone to land a job but you will not be the one to execute the mandate for him. So, the ball is now in the court of Akpabio and Abass and the task of rowing the boat rests squarely on their shoulders. Can they rally their colleagues? Do they have the required leadership skills? Are they selfless? Will they be listeners who will be patient servant-leaders and not dictators? I came across the advice given by Professor Adeolu Akande, chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), and felt that not just Akpabio and Abass but the entirety of the 10th National Assembly need it to succeed.

Hear the professor of Comparative Politics: “Now that the winners have clearly emerged after all the horse trading, I want to enjoin all the lawmakers to put Nigeria first and collaborate with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in actualising his “Renewed Hope” agenda. So far, the country is moving in the right direction. I expect members of the National Assembly to collaborate with the Executive in moving the country forward. President Tinubu, since his inauguration on May 29, 2023, has left no one in doubt on his vision and mission to make Nigeria one of the best economies in the world. This can only be achieved with a cooperative and collaborative Legislature.” It couldn’t have been better put!

Prof. Akande then assured that the Board of the NCC, which he leads, will continue to initiate lofty ideas that will lead to poverty reduction, wealth creation and employment generation. Since every politics is local, Akande did not forget his home base of Oyo state as he also felicitated federal lawmakers from the state on their inauguration as members of the 10th National Assembly. He told them “to consider this as a rare opportunity and call to serve our fatherland. I pray God grant you the wisdom and good health to succeed in this national assignment!” Again, well said!

FEEDBACK on “Will Osinbajo rue missed opportunities?

Hello, Bola, o t’ojo meta! Just read your piece on Osinbajo in today’s Tribune:  Sobering, poignant, and VERY instructive. ‘Kuu’se o’! -Niyi Osundare.

I pity Osinbajo, our gentleman professor of Law. He was a prisoner of power while in Aso villa. I believe he became a target of jealousy the few times he stood in for his principal; they were worried by his brilliance and potentials in power. That’s why they ended up taming him while ensuring that he lost friendship with Tinubu. Like you, I await his memoirs on his travails in power. It would be an interesting read. More ink to your pen, as usual. Please send the e-copy of your UI lecture to me after delivery. – Dipo Onabanjo.

Very sad story! He was marked out by the cabal. – Prince Suyi Olateru-Olagbegi.

Thanks very much, Sir. Osinbajo, like Obasanjo, needs to tell us the type of devil that resides in Aso villa that makes them forget their ancestral home. – Bello Mohammed Adeola.

I greet you once again for always standing on the side of not just the fact but also the truth! To start with, those who brought Obasanjo to power only gave him the office of the president but kept the authority and power of the office to themselves. Obasanjo was only able to grab and snatch 70% of the power towards the end of his second term; that was why he longed for third term! Under the Nigerian system, vice presidents are like spare tyres. Everything you said about Osinbajo is 100 per cent true. Keep the good work going, Sir! -Titus Kosemani Ayojesu.

Osinbajo was a disappointment all the way… There was no sign of a pastoral understanding on his part.  He was put in position for “such a time like this” but… he was not sensitive to the Holy Spirit and had no sacrificial calling of “if l perish l perish” in order to do the needful. I am sure he and his cronies will have tons of lame excuses. I pray God will forgive him for being a bad example of a Christian in position of authority! By the way, let me have a link, if available, to your upcoming lecture at U. l. I will like to watch it either live or later. If that is not possible, please avail me an electronic copy to read. Blessings, my big brother! Reminder, please work on the compendium of your works. Or will you want me to do it? -Dr. Revd. Demola Sodeinde.                                                             

You can now see the deceit in human behaviour! Where are the youths shouting and hailing him on the APC primaries ground in June last year? Some of us didn’t like his steps at that time but where are those defending his actions as the right thing to do? Why have they forsaken him so soon? That’s a peculiarity of the Yoruba race. Similar story followed Aregbesola but as a politician he has started to apologize and shift the blame of his misbehaviour on Satan! I wish Osinbajo would follow suit! Everybody likes power; however, it was rumoured that (Borno state Gov. Babagana Umara) Zulum was approached to be VP (to Tinubu) but he said no; that they should first approach his boss, (Kashim) Shettima. If Shettima was not interested, Zulum said he would then accept the offer; unlike Osinbajo that did not look back, even when his (former) boss had signified his intention. I did not expect him to grab the offer. It was a very grievous mistake. The performance of Osinbajo as VP and a Christian made me to conclude that the religion of the VP is immaterial. When people were raising objections to the Muslim-Muslim ticket of Tinubu/Shetima, I was not bothered. Also as a lawyer of repute, he disappointed me. Nevertheless, he has done his best. Thank God he returned home safe and sound! Welcomed by a crowd or not, he has acquired the big title of “EX-VP”! Welcome, Your Excellency! -Kola Oloye.

Dr. Tunji Abayomi described the 1999 Constitution as the fruits of a poisonous tree and urged the National Assembly to pass a law that will vest the Nigerian people with the powers to give themselves a Constitution.

Sir, don’t mind the ex-VP, Yemi Osinbajo; he was just there for eight years for himself and his family only! l do not see anything to remember him for. l pray he  sees this your write-up one day! So, the day he passes through Lagos/Abeokuta road or Shagamu/Ikorodu road, who is he going to blame or accuse of abandoning those roads? So sad that all our past leaders from the South didn’t do anything tangible there! l pray President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s case will be different for good. -PST. Austin Igharoro.

*Bolawole (turnpot@gmail.com / 0705 263 1058), former Editor of PUNCH newspapers, Chairman of its Editorial Board and Deputy Editor-in-chief, was also the Managing Directo/r Editor-in-chief of THE WESTERNER newsmagazine.He writes the ON THE LORD’S DAY column in the Sunday Tribune and TREASURES column in New Telegraph newspaper. He is also a public affairs analyst on radio and television.

The post Remembering MKO Abiola: Thirty years after appeared first on Frontpageng.

The state has nine forest reserves among which is the largest, Omo Forest Reserve in Ijebu East Local Government Area, about 80 km East of Ijebu Ode. This nature reserve covers an area of about 130,500 hectares made up of both dense forest and savannah vegetation. Considering the fact that the reserve harbours hundreds of dwellers including farmers, hunters and loggers, most of them illegal occupants, the state government expects much more revenue in terms of levies and ground rents.

Almost on yearly basis, it threatens to expel illegal dwellers and those who exploit resources in the reserve but pay peanuts into government’s coffers. The most annoying of this group are loggers who fell trees that they do not plant, destroy farmlands and haul the logs through Ondo State, a neighbouring state which charges them thousands of Naira in levies and other charges. Ogun state where the resources are pilfered only gets peanuts to the bargain.

It is an irony that in spite of these legal and illegal payments, government is still playing the Oliver Twist. It has tasted the pudding and is unwilling to let go, in a forest which flora and fauna should be preserved.

Apparently unwilling to play the fool in this regard, the state in 2009 allegedly concessioned the reserve to a Chinese company which reportedly pays about #250m as annual ground rent to the government. But moves to eject illegal dwellers in the forest have proved futile as the dwellers, particularly farmers who are unwilling to lose their economic crops, notably cocoa, palm trees and kolanuts put pressure on politicians and civil servants as well to help abort the plan.

The pressure is in several forms. Knowing government officials as being covertly and overtly corrupt, dwellers begin to tax themselves and oftentimes raise substantial amounts of money with which they lobby government officials. In this regard, forest guards are often the first port of call. The guards make so much money through frequent arrests of farmers and loggers in particular.

The allegations are mostly that the farmers are cultivating government lands illegally. The guards dictate the limits of government reserved land and the farmers, mostly illiterate, upon arrest and unwilling to lose their farms and farm tools, plead for mercy and open negotiations with the guards. If the price is right, money exchanges hands and the “captives” and their “captors” move on looking for other preys. Only very few cases get to the “ogas” in the ministry and when they do, the prices are most high.

The loggers are similarly exposed to this corrupt tendency. In addition they also pay substantial sums to the government through their association, one of which is the Ijebu Sawmillers and Timber Contractors’ Association, STCA. In a three-page petition to the ministry of forestry last August, they claimed they were paying about #800 million every year to the state government and wondered why government should concession the forest reserve to a foreign company which has been threatening to dislodge their members. Government, the association complained recently, raised the logging fee per member from #22,000 per annum to #60,000 per annum allegedly without “prior notice.”

READ ALSO: A promise fulfilled, By ‘Dipo Onabanjo

It is an irony that in spite of these legal and illegal payments, government is still playing the Oliver Twist. It has tasted the pudding and is unwilling to let go, in a forest which flora and fauna should be preserved. This is probably because the government purse is still leaking in the sense that officials are grabbing more than what they should. What to do? The state government hatched a plan to reduce the leakages by asking the concessionaire to take full control of the forest through a thorough delimitation exercise and adjustment of boundaries between long-established enclaves, villages and reserved forests.

Government is also asking the company to eject illegal dwellers among whom are farmers that have encroached on reserved land, loggers and criminal elements who hide in the forest to perpetrate criminal acts such as illegal mining of mineral resources, poaching and killing of wild animals, kidnapping and armed robbery. Expectedly this threat of ejection is not going down well particularly with economic users of the forest. They argue that this will lead to loss of their means of livelihood and increase in the number of the unemployed in the state.

The fear and tension being generated by the quit notice may cause some unrest in the local government area if care is not taken. Many farmers and dwellers in about 60 enclaves in the forest are alleging, rather bitterly, that the concessionaire is surreptitiously extending the forest reserve boundaries and trespassing into farms and communities that were not initially part of the reserve. In larger enclaves such as Ajebandele, J4, J5 and J6 for examples, many traditional farm lands that have existed for over a century are allegedly being encroached upon by the Chinese company.

For many dwellers in the area, since this push is becoming a shove, they are mobilising in their hundreds to cause a policy shift. Afraid that the issue might lead to an unrest, the forest ministry, goaded apparently by the Ijebu East LGA Chairman, Mr. Wale Adedayo, met last month with some traditional rulers including baales, community leaders and selected farmers and loggers in the area to explain matters, douse tension and find a way out of the potential crisis. Discussions were frank but the agreements reached seem to push more burden on the rural communities and their poverty-ridden population.

At the meeting, Ministry officials bemoaned losses in revenue as the main reason for concessioning the forest. They even admitted, rather embarrassingly, the corrupt tendencies of some of their colleagues especially forest guards; and blamed farmers and loggers for allowing themselves to be victims of this exploitation. Rather than devising ways to catch the corrupt, the officials asked the community leaders to carry out a proper survey of their enclaves and register the survey plans with the state government to save their investments.

Of these suggestions, the survey option looms large. It is the newest of the engagement package. During the colonial period, the colonial governments surveyed the forests stating clearly the number of miles available to the enclaves for expansion purposes. The military governments continued with this tradition as the hunger for farmlands grew larger with more people migrating southwards for economic sustenance. But successive governments later abandoned this more pragmatic approach and thus gave room to land grabbing by powerful elements backed by political party stalwarts. The snag in this area is astronomical survey costs that may leave the communities prone to exploitation by surveyors in government ministries and other land speculators.

The payment of ground rent to government every year by farmers is not new to the stakeholders. What is new is the directive that loggers should keep their logs in centres designated by forest guards and refrain from freighting them through illegal routes to Ondo state. Also new is the plan to allocate land to loggers on which they must plant trees.

Although these arrangements appear to help douse tension, they hardly remove the penchant for extortion by the rampaging locusts in the guise of forest guards, dubious community leaders, surveyors in the ministry of forestry and hoards of touts along the criminal chain. At the Ogbere meeting, an official joked in Yoruba, “a jo maa d’awo ku ni,” meaning “we will all pay levies till we die!” This is a statement that coarsely and brazenly explains the ruthlessness of revenue collection business in the area. It is also not new to all the stakeholders at the meeting. To many of them, it underlines rather brutally the reality of the game at hand.

The game throws up rent collectors in and outside government, many of them political jobbers, thugs masquerading for politicians and civil servants angling for substantial shares in the forest pie. What the state government has been encouraging in that sector therefore is a rentier economy dominated by extortionists who by their modus operandi have become locusts who eat up much of the disposable income of many of the rural dwellers in the area and offering almost nothing in return.

The fear and tension being generated by the quit notice may cause some unrest in the local government area if care is not taken.

Apart from public schools and health centres, government’s presence in that area is almost nil. Hardly any of the rural roads are motorable. Before he became the chairman of the Ijebu East LG, Wale Adedayo alias “Babalawo” lamented that the area lacked infrastructure such as “roads, potable water, electricity, drainage/deflooding, etc”. He said he would give special attention to Ajebandele, Imobi I and II and Ogbere wards because ” these are the places generating revenue for the federal government (and state government)…but are seriously underdeveloped.” Almost half time into his tenure, not much has been done to fulfil his promises in this regard.

Perhaps this is why he is interested in driving more revenue into the state government’s coffers through the forest reserve in his domain. The concessionaire, forest guards, surveyors in government ministries, transactional leaders at community levels and political jobbers, etc are now on the prowl in the forest reserve and the enclaves therein, chasing farmers, loggers and other stakeholders for more revenue. How much will eventually go into the state government official coffers and how much will be remitted to the host LGA may still remain a matter for conjecture as the locusts gain more ground.

*’Dipo Onabanjo, a journalist writes from Lagos. He can be reached via e-mail: dipsonbanjo@gmail.com

The post Locusts in Ogun forest, By ‘Dipo Onabanjo appeared first on Frontpageng.

But he is not flying away

Then he is running

But he is not running away.

The president grows wings

Each time ISWAP strikes

But he strikes hard

When IPOB fights dirty

Only he knows why.

The president is wise

To fly out of trouble

Better not fish in trouble waters

Or stay At home

When the ‘Boko boys’ bully.

The lame does not wait

To witness a looming war

He starts crawling early

As soon as war drums sound

At dawn he sets forth

And leaves Aso chambers hollow

In strategic withdrawal.

After all, he wins

He who fights

And runs away!

The post Between flying and flying away, By ‘Dipo Onabanjo appeared first on Frontpageng.

He however said that because it was a genuine mistake, God made him to overcome the challenges that came with it.

Atiku was vice president to Obasanjo during his reign as president of Nigeria.

Obasanjo made the remarks on Saturday during a questions and answers session at a programme by Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship, SAGE, for selected secondary schools that participated in the final of the National Exhibition and Awards.

The event was held at the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, Abeokuta, Ogun State.

Although Obasanjo did not mention Atiku’s name, the allusion was obvious since he was the only vice president he had.

His words: “One of the mistakes I made was picking my number two when I wanted to become the President. But because it was a genuine mistake, God saved me.”

The former president also described his refusal to accept the offer of asylum by America during the regime of the maximum ruler, General Sani Abacha, in Nigeria, as another mistake.

“The second one was when Abacha wanted to arrest me. When he wanted to arrest me, I was told by the American ambassador that they would arrest me and that America had asked that I should be given an asylum. I said ‘No’. It could have been a mistake because I could have lost my life.

“I will say there are many things that could have been a mistake but God saved me from them all,” he said.

Obasanjo who spoke on various issues advised against religious intolerance saying no religion should be considered inferior to the other.

Said he: “If God had wanted all of us to be of the same religion, he would have made it so and since He did not make it so, no person should attempt to make it so.

“Young people should learn at a very early age in life that if there are five religions in the world, that is how God wants it to be.

“If there are 10, that is how God wants it. All religions originate from the same source.

“If you are a Muslim and you did not live the way God wants you to live, you cannot enter Aljannah.

“Or you are a Christian and you did not live the way God wants you to live, the same thing, you will not enter paradise.

“If this is the basis of religion, doing the right thing for the benefits of mankind, you don’t have to condemn any person, because of what he believes.

“Practice your religion the way God wants you to do it and don’t condemn another person.”

Obasanjo spoke on the problem preventing the youths from taking over the rein of power in the country.

He said it was obvious that the older ones were not ready to relinquish power despite the Not Too Young to Run campaign.

He asked: “You can see that those that are contesting now are between 70 and 80 years old. How can the youths run?”

“Another thing inhibiting youth from running is the amount of money involved in going into politics. I hope that things should not continue like this.

“I was 39 years old when I became the Military Head of State. Twenty years later, I came back as civilian president, but those there now do not want to allow the youths. If things continue like this, I do not know how you can come in,” he said.

The post I made genuine mistake of choosing Atiku as vice president –Obasanjo appeared first on Frontpageng.

To politicians and their contractors, it has been a recurring source of undeserved wealth having put tonnes of Naira into their greedy pockets. It is also an example of unhealthy rivalry between federal, state and local governments whereby all the levels of government waste resources due to lack of cooperation in strategies and planning.

Again, it represents an eye opener for community dwellers and people of conscience to get more involved in government projects that touch their lives so as to monitor such projects and compel completion or prevent their abandonment.

Last July, I reported here that the Centre had been transformed from a rat and bat-infested dungeon into a citadel, indeed a glittering one though poorly equipped at that time. No beddings, fans, furniture and other fittings. I commended the Ogun State governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, his health commissioner and all other stakeholders involved in the clinic’s transformation and pleaded with them to complete the rehabilitation process by procuring all the needed items for the sake of the people.

Either by a stroke of luck, coincidence or by divine intervention, the state government did the needful last month by supplying many of the items thus fulfilling the promise earlier made by the health commissioner.

I was at the clinic last week with the Baale of the village and its community leader. It was a scene to behold as the hitherto empty clinic became filled up with mattresses,  delivery beds, weighing tools for mothers and babies, wheel chair, ceiling fans, etc while the stores brimmed with drugs and other medicament.

As if waiting to be so adorned, the main ward shone along with the new materials still wearing their “tear-rubber gowns” beckoning us to savour their ‘taste’.

We looked but saw no traces of the federal government’s involvement through the eighth National Assembly (NASS) which had budgeted ten million naira for the repair of the clinic as part of the constituency development projects of its members. The red roof they installed including iron-cast doors and windows had disappeared!

In their place are imprints of the state government. What this means is that the state government being true owners of the clinic has taken full possession of its property and would not brook any intervention by any other tier of government. Thus the amount the Federal powers spent on the clinic through NASS and the Office of the Secretary to the Federation has gone down the drains! What a waste! It is an indication  that there was no proper consultation between the FG and Ogun state government before and during its rehabilitation in 2017/2018.

As usual, neither the Federal authorities nor the state government has yet deemed it fit to be accountable to the people. How much really did the FG spend on the project? How much has the state government spent so far? Your  guess is as good as mine: mum is still the word!

But the joy is that the clinic on which millions of Naira has been spent can now be seen, felt and put to good use.

Many thanks therefore to the state government for what it has done so far. I learnt that it is yet to provide tables,chairs and other fittings for staff and patient’s use. The reception part of the building is still a junkyard. With what has been done so far, there is no fear that this promise to provide the furniture would be fulfilled soonest.

However, it would have been wiser and more cost effective if the state government had improved on what the FG had done rather than dismantling it. This would have freed some public funds for other pressing needs in the community.

While commending the state government, mention should also be made of BugIT, an NGO which has been tracking government budgets in the country with a view to ensuring their efficient implementation to the benefit of the people. It was this organisation that first brought the attention of the community to the project and the apparent conflicts between the FG and the state government.

On several occasions, it sent its field officers to inspect the project and brief the community about it. To them and other stakeholders including the mass media, we say a big thank you!

The post A promise fulfilled, By ‘Dipo Onabanjo appeared first on Frontpageng.

His heart burst

And he flew away

To be seen no more

Except in dreams!

Pa Jubrila Amereya

Baba Ilu, patriarch of our village

The eldest of the elders

Head of hunters, wise and witty

Kind, thorough  and truthful

Ogboju Ode who talked to the gods

On our behalf he consulted the spirits

He knew the secrets of the past

And the abodes of the gods

The pantheon of our forefathers

Herbalist, moralist, spiritualist

He healed the sick and the afflicted

Dancer, crusader, masquerader

He was all, yet so pure

His talents he used as he deemed fit

And for the goodness of all

Too bold to bow to tyrants

He whipped the wicked

With tongues of flame

But cuddled the just and the weak

Now this cultural icon is gone

To the abode of the gods

Who next to show us the way?

Except the One who called him

To His high abode

Where we all shall meet

To part no more.

Rest in peace, Papa Ameriya

You live in our hearts

To die no more!

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This is why I’m seizing this opportunity to thank Prince Dapo Abiodun, governor Ogun state for what he has done in my area, nay my village, within the short time he is in power.

But let me digress to state that Ogun state does not lack very fit and capable hands when it comes to governance but the problem has always been that governors would start well but finish poorly, particularly the two-timers. Sebi, you know them?

However, there is a big BUT in the saga of this clinic… The structure attracts from afar but barren when you peep in!

Now, what has Governor Abiodun done in my village to warrant some commendation? And where is my village? Let me tell you that my village is no other one than Ajebandele in the far East of Ijebu East LGA of Ogun State. It is where River Oni, flowing Southwards from the famous Yoruba hill, separates Ogun state from Ondo state, which also calls its border village Ajebamidele (Ipaye). Mine is Ajebandele (Ijebu).

In my small village, governmental presence is felt only in three places: public schools (primary and secondary), the health institution (the only health centre) and in the forest where you see forest guards shuttling like a loom looking for rogue loggers who invade forests and farmlands mostly in the night, cutting trees they did not plant! Both the illegal loggers and forest guards usually become more friendly after some confrontations. Sebi you know the game, abi? But I digress again.

It is what the Abiodun government has done in the area of health that really warrants this piece. In the centre of the village is the Community Health Centre which in those days was a small building painted in white and black, standing tall like Mother Theresa, watching our health. It was a good place to visit, neat with efficient health workers, always willing to help.

Like almost everything Nigerian, this public asset degenerated particularly within the last decade, to the level it was harbouring rats, bats and other fearful creatures. No toilet facilities, no beddings, no water, no furniture and fittings even for workers to use!

The situation worsened when Ebola, that dreaded hemorrhagic  fever, was rampaging the continent. But the lord saved our people even when the then ruling power in the state redeployed three of the five medical team in the clinic at a go, without replacing them!

Then in 2016, the National Assembly (NASS) through its constituency projects voted ten million naira for the repair of the clinic. We clapped with joy. They changed the roof, replaced the windows and washed it in national colours, green and white. But by the time the contractors left in 2018 or thereabout, they left the place as hollow as they met it: no equipments including those mentioned above. Worst still, the bats refused to go and the place reeked of foul odour. Did they spend the N10 million on the clinic? Your guess is as good as mine. The contractors picked their teeth while politicians thanked their stars for the windfall. Everybody went to bed but the people’s health challenges remained.

But during my visit to the village last month, I saw a ‘new’ clinic! With a red roof, the clinic now wears its old white colours combined with new burglar proofs, ceilings and toilet facilities. A new borehole serving the clinic (and the public) potable water had been dug and equipped with taps and other fittings. A  generator has also been procured to provide it with regular electric power. And whodunnit, as Americans would ask? I was told the state government through its health ministry did the magic.

Please, complete the job,  t’ori Olorun! I know that through you, the governor will hear our cries better. This project should not be abandoned as the Eighth NASS did through the Office of the Secretary to the Federation.

I learnt also that the community’s health management committee, had also started receiving N100, 000 per month to ensure maintenance of the edifice. Good deal, abi? The state government must have spent a fortune on the clinic this time around. How much, only God knows.

However, there is a big BUT in the saga of this clinic. It’s still a work in progress as I write. Like before, work stopped – temporarily, I suppose – at the point of providing beds and beddings, furniture and fittings including all that can make patients and health workers enjoy the new edifice. The structure attracts from afar but barren when you peep in!

And this is where my appeal comes in. And it goes to the health commissioner at Oke Mosan in far away Abeokuta. Madam, your ministry has done well so far. Please, complete the job,  t’ori Olorun! I know that through you, the governor will hear our cries better. This project should not be abandoned as the Eighth NASS did through the Office of the Secretary to the Federation. Much money has been thrown into this project and if care is not taken, it will soon become a bottom-less pit, much to the chagrin of the helpless villagers.

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So the clock says

As she continues counting

Four years make a term

Two years equal half term

So our democracy says

Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock

Six of eight years gone

Two more years soon to go

And no more time for ‘politricians’

Who turn things upside down

Rather than turning things around.

Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock

The time-up gong will soon ring

And Baba will have to go

Same for Yaro, Ishehu, Mal-amin

With Panta-min and his pantomime.

Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock

Freedom day is nigh

Patience, ye regionists, nihilists

Ye ethnic jingoists, religionists beware

There’s time for everything.

Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock

Time to come, time to go

These ravening clouds will go

They shall not possess the sky

So, when it’s time to go

No one can say nay!

Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock

Ye said “Sai Baba” years ago

Thou shall say “Sai Gobe” soon

After “Welcome, it’s “Bye-bye”

Time waits for no man.

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People, like querulous hens, become frenetic and ready to lash at each other like a lion baulked of its prey.  With banditry and kidnapping lending ugly hands to herders-farmers’ bloody clashes, and insurgency by the Boko Haram vampires compounding the situation, the landscape is tense giving room for ethnic warlords to cash in on the situation to sell their toxic wares – war and secession threats!

Indeed, perceiving the ominous signs, the vultures are gathering!

One major reason for this anomaly is government’s apparent weakness in tackling the issue of insecurity frontally. Certainly, a government that cannot secure its people is courting failure and risks handing over the reins of governance to criminals. And with bare-faced criminals taking over, ethnic, religious and other divisive tendencies rise to compound the situation, threatening fire and brimstone, in defence of their selfish tendencies.

One of the issues that were hitherto rashes on our collective skin particularly in the South west and middle belt regions of Nigeria but is gradually metamorphosing into cancer in those areas, is the hijab issue as it affects female pupils in primary and secondary schools.

Then the cracks in the polity begin to widen and issues that hitherto commanded lesser attention or should ordinarily be ignored, start to fester and soon gain greater momentum on their own, to harm the polity.

One of the issues that were hitherto rashes on our collective skin particularly in the South west and middle belt regions of Nigeria but is gradually metamorphosing into cancer in those areas, is the hijab issue as it affects female pupils in primary and secondary schools. The drama in Kwara where Muslim students claim they are “entitled” to add hijab to their uniform even in schools formerly wholly owned by Christian missions (and are still parading their Christian labels), has not ended yet. As expected, two major religious tendencies – Muslims and Christians – are at each other’s throats, ready to war-war in obvious defence of their beliefs.

Really, it is not the students themselves that are at war. It is their parents/guardians and some busy bodies associated with mosques and churches that are fomenting the crisis in this state of harmony, and elsewhere. To them, they are fighting over what they allege constitutes discriminatory policies against their wards.

The Muslims claim that the refusal to allow their female wards to wear hijab in some Christian-labelled schools since the state  government has taken over the schools, constitutes an infringement of their rights. But the Christians insist they have a right to determine what should constitute a uniform in the schools they founded and that the hijab certainly is not part of the uniform for girls in the affected schools.

Thus, innocent students are being encouraged to see themselves as religious rivals on account of their parents’ or guardians’ different religious beliefs. Whereas this had not been so over the years. Between 1983 – when I had my National Youth service in the old state from which Kogi state was created – and 1986 when I left the state for the then Gongola state, Kwara was a deeply harmonious state in spite of its religious, tribal, cultural and social differences.

Now those who want to fight God’s cause on His behalf, the fanatics, are rocking the boat of peace in the state. In doing so, unfortunately with the connivance of the ruling administration, they are unwittingly threatening the state’s growing education sector thus destroying the future of their children, their tomorrow, just like Boko Haram is doing in the north.

Pray, what has hijab got to do with learning? Does it have any effect on the wearer’s level of religious piety? In other words, does wearing hijab by female students improve their intellect or academic performance? Or, does it make them less exposed to immoral acts?

I attended both Christian primary and Muslim secondary schools respectively. At the time I was at Ijebu Muslim College, IMC in Ijebu Ode, none of my female school mates wore hijab because then, it wasn’t part of the uniform for girls in the school. Except by gender, which is natural, you could not, by looking at us differentiate between Christian and Muslim students except on Fridays when Muslim brothers and sisters went to the mosque while Christians, males and females, were free to observe their prayer sessions even right in the school premises.

It was during our impressionable years and we were left to worship God/Allah in our own ways or as our parents or guardians preferred. That was when we really sought knowledge in line with the school’s motto: pete scientiam cum invenias, a Latin phrase meaning, “seek knowledge till it is found.”   Even leadership selection among we students was based strictly on academic performance and moral standards, not membership of any religious group/faith.

Then the School’s governing board, full of respected Islamic leaders in Ijebu land, offered both Christians and Muslim teachers scholarships and grants. Brilliant teachers from other ethnic and tribal groups were even given due consideration in this regard, all because the goal then was to spread knowledge and a better future for the students.

It is, however, lamentable that with more fanatics being churned out from our citadels of learning, particularly those of Muslim and Christian faiths, there is an increasing level of religiosity that borders on extremity,  obsession and intolerance. Faith is fast manifesting into a fashion fad where sartorial presentation in schools is now an aspect of learning.

Pray, what has hijab got to do with learning? Does it have any effect on the wearer’s level of religious piety? In other words, does wearing hijab by female students improve their intellect or academic performance?

I observe with concern that even in Muslim schools where hijab was not part of the female gender uniform, the face cover has now become the norm. I saw this recently in my old school, IMC. Surprisingly, even this is being promoted or condoned by some products of the school who then didn’t have cause to wear hijab!  What point are we trying to make?

Are some parents/guardians who were products of Christians mission schools who while in school did not wear hijab, trying to avenge their inability to wear hijab while in those schools? Or, are they out to wreak vengeance for past discriminatory policies in some mission schools in those days?

Why are some people making a mountain out of this mole hill? Why are we so much determined to cause disaffection amongst our children and thereby wreck their future?  Certainly, there is a high level of senselessness in this struggle.

Let us pause and engage in serious and deep reflection. I have not seen any society that benefits from religious extremism. Religion is a personal affair between man and his God or Allah and let no man claim that he knows Him more than his fellow man, as only He knows those who worship Him and keep His commandments.

It is senseless therefore to use our children as cannon fodders for any senseless struggles. Enough is enough!

*Onabanjo is a journalist based in Lagos.

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I agreed with him but the question was which court to go since court cases take several years, as the wheel of justice here grinds rather slowly, sometimes annoyingly so.

My lawyer friend opted for the Lagos Multi-door Court House, an arbitration and dispute resolution centre. As the one versed in law, being a learned man who also read mass communication in the school I also attended, I asked him to handle the case. And he did, quite brilliantly.

By the first week in April 2018, we had held two mediation sessions at the high court complex on the Lagos Island with a representative of the debtor company, and myself the complainant, in attendance. A debonair magistrate presided at the sessions.

The company stopped paying! Two, three…..four months, no payments!

I couldn’t believe my eyes that I was getting so close to justice at the drop of a hat! Indeed, on April 18, 2018, the magistrate ruled in my favour since the company only disputed the amount it was owing me and we mutually agreed on an amount which should be paid in instalments within five months. I was very happy. It was my second time of getting justice in a Lagos court.

By the end of May 2018, I received a bank alert for the first tranche! “Hey man”, I called my lawyer, “this justice is swift!” and I walked tall, crowing to anyone near me about what that blind lady with a pair of balanced scales holding a sword (the icon of Justice) had done to me! Then, the unexpected happened.

The company stopped paying! Two, three…..four months, no payments! I got hold of my lawyer friend and back we were at the multi-door court house. Certainly, Lady Justice would not allow her order disobeyed, and with impunity, by the erring company!

My lawyer filed all necessary papers and the waiting game started. Year 2018 went, 2019 followed. Then the Corona virus became a world-wide pestilence in year 2020. The year also came and went by.

Who will God send? The clock continues ticking while the waiting is getting painful, very painful!!!

Up till the time of writing, there has been no news about the case. The case file is lodged somewhere in the vault of the Lagos Multi-door House probably gathering dust. Neither I nor my lawyer could access it, tried as we did!

My interpretation: Justice has been locked against me in the Lagos Multi-door Court House! Since then, I have been seeking God’s intervention. I’ve pestered my lawyer so much that he has learnt to say, “Brother, calm down. Let’s exercise some patience.” But is it not said that justice delayed is justice denied?

Mine is a story told. But how many are Nigerians whose stories at various courts have not been told? How many of such people have died in the course of seeking justice? How many more will die, their prayers in court unanswered for ever? Questions, questions and questions! No answer!

Up till the time of writing, there has been no news about the case. The case file is lodged somewhere in the vault of the Lagos Multi-door House probably gathering dust. Neither I nor my lawyer could access it, tried as we did!

That’s why my ranting will not stop until somebody opens the door of the Lagos Multi-door House and gives me justice. I ask for nothing more.

Who will God send? The clock continues ticking while the waiting is getting painful, very painful!!!

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