₦airaland Forum

Why are media people arguing about whether or not, Sowore was shot?

Isn't the job of the media to investigate issues before publishing?

Just locate the hospital Sowore went to and confirm if indeed, it was gunshot they treated.

Unfortunately, our media seems to enjoy the controversy and conspiracy, instead of reporting the truth.

Idiko1:
Let the northern region of Nigeria embark on the revenge of death of Ahmed Gulak. The IPOB wants nothing but self-determination. If the death of Ahmed Gulak or any other person shall quicken the actualization of Republic of Igbo land or even Republic of Biafra, I say so be it. Nigeria can go to hell. the agitators for home land do not give a finger.

Be careful of what you wish for.

ozowarac:
What a stupid and foolish man.

Gulak was one of the earliest supportters of Jonathan he had a knack for supporting southern politicians.How does killing gim support the cause of South Easterners.?

*Stop campaign of hate and violence in South East, Olawepo Hashim Appeals*

- Urges Northerners not to revenge Gulak's murder

Businessman and Presidential Candidate in the 2019 Presidential Election, Mr. Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim has condemned the gruesome murder of Hon. Ahmed Gulak and appealed to Northerners to avoid acts of revenge.

Mr. Hashim who described the killing as a cowardly act said the sad development was a reprehensible conduct that could plunge the nation into further conflict, calling for an urgent action to end ongoing killings in the country.

In a statement issued on Monday by his media office, the business mogul said "the murder is reminiscent of first republic killings but appealed to Northerners to avoid any act of reprisal in this moment of grief.

"In this 2021, we should bear the pain as a sacrifice for national unity. We need no revenge action as the perpetrators of this evil act have been promptly apprehended and will certainly be brought to justice by the police.” Olawepo-Hashim noted.

Speaking further, Olawepo-Hashim appealed "to northern youths, in the name of God to maintain dignified calm even in the face of this obvious provocation. There should be no reprisal attack, it is unnecessary”. Mr Hashim said.

"At this juncture, it will be profitable to counsel elders in the East to rein in the youths to stop their campaign of hate and violence which may have severe consequences.

"No amount of complaints over political marginalization can justify the continuous murder of police officers, the targeted destruction of security facilities, the burning of federal establishments and the latest assassination. The best path to justice is the way of dialogue and peace, not the type of targeted violence against law enforcement officers and politicians from other regions," he said.

Mr. Hashim commiserated with the family of the deceased and the good people of Adamawa State, where Gulak was Speaker of the State Assembly, as well as the entire people of Nigeria on this sad departure of a true Nigerian who sees the entire Nigeria as his constituency.

KEYNOTE ADDRESS AT A BOOK LAUNCH TITLED – “NIGERIA: CYBERPOWER AND NATIONAL SECURITY”
DELIVERED BY MR. GBENGA OLAWEPO-HASHIM.
 
 
Distinguished Author, Members of the Fourth Estate of the Realm, Ladies and Gentlemen.

I am delighted to present the keynote address at the presentation of this very important book, titled: “Nigeria: Cyberpower and National Security” written by Professor Dare Ogunlana of the University of Texas, United States of America.

Nigeria may have quietly emerged as a Cyberpower unsung, unknown and unnoticed by many. The country is now home to the 6th largest users of internet in the whole world. According to verified data from the National Communication Commission (NCC), Nigeria internet users rose to 104.4million in 2021. A staggering 19million users were added between 2020 and 2021 alone. Nigeria will yet play a more strategic role in the cyber space within the next ten (10) years. As it transits to a producer of content for global consumption, as well as a key participant in the global market for outsource services alongside with India and Brazil. Nigeria has an advantage – the mastery of English language by a sizable percentage of her population. Cyber security therefore,becomes an important question of her competitiveness in the cyber market; the cyber market is the immediate future of Nigeria beyond oil, and the Lekki Peninsula would be the world’s “Silicon Island.”

Professor Dare Ogunlana’s work, “Nigeria: Cyberpower and National Security” would not have come at a better time. This Giant, Nigeria, is embroiled in its most ever crucial security issues, where different strain of insecurity is at their highest points, no less cyber terrorism. Right from the introduction of the book, subtitled "The Foundation", the reader is acquainted with the reality that cybercrime is here, with examples of the attack on Nigeria's Vice President’s twitter account in August 2019, the Boko Haram hacking of the Department of State Security's (DSS) database in 2012 and the Hacktivist’s assault on the Nigerian Army’s website. The ubiquity of cyber criminality is brought out in bold relief, thankfully. The author also reveals that there exists already, a strategy of containment captured in the 2014 Nigeria cyber security strategy.

In Chapter two (2), the author measures the depth of the ocean of cyber threat and in chapter 3, he presented a report of available technology to navigate and stay on top of this vast ocean of threat. Chapter four (4) is a review of how the cyber threat is played out in the era of Covid 19 pandemic, a time that has seen a phenomenal reliance on the cyber space for Business, Health, Industry, Art and Culture and everyday usage. Chapter five (5), the final chapter, contains Policy recommendations for Nigeria and for Africa in the author’s word: “Nigeria must (should) enhance its cyber capabilities to remain relevant and be respected in the global community. Gaining the cyber security to prevent, defend and fight back quickly, recover when cyber-attack thus occur”.

Permit me at this juncture, to congratulate the author for doing a good job. He has presented his work in a form, format and style ‘decision makers’ like; something you can breeze through in twenty-four (24) hours. I am not disappointed in Professor Ogunlana, whom I have been associated with as my younger brother and friend for over 2 decades. We have stayed in close contact through his evolution as a Student Union Leader, Right Activist, Diplomat, Bureaucrat and now a Counter Insurgency Expert. He is already playing the role that the enormously educated Nigerians in diaspora will play in Nigeria’s transformation.

I recommend this work to important Nigeria's and Africa's decision makers in business, Civil Service, State Institutions and Government. It will be useful also, as a resource material for counter insurgency specialists worldwide.
 
Congratulation once more, Professor Ogunlana.
Thank you all for your attention.

*Kwara On Express*
By Abdulrazaq Hamzat

Kwara Express is taking a new look. It is about to become the most efficient, visionary and service oriented transport company in Kwara state.

However, before the present administration came on board 2 years ago, the company was already dead. It actually died in 2012, when those managing it at the time not only consume the surplus of the company, but also drained the capital, thereby turning the company into *pangolo* and accumulating huge debt via unpaid salaries and default in contractual obligations.

Despite the injection of over N600million by the company that inherited the corpse of Kwara Transport Corporation otherwise known as Kwara Express, Harmony Holdings Limited, the transport company didn't come back to life till it was eventually buried in 2015.

In 2015, Harmony Holdings Limited started a new company, Harmony Transport Services Limited (HTSL), which inherited the remaining assets and liabilities of Kwara Express, but unfortunately, they were unable to outgrow the debt and burden of the defunct Kwara Transport Corporation. That is the situation of the company until the current administration came onboard in 2019.

However, sometime in November 2020, shortly after lifting the covid 19 imposed lock down, Harmony Holdings Limited (HHL), a private company, managing the business interest of Kwara State government invited me to head a Business Review and Investigation Committee (BRIC) of one of its subsidiary company, Harmony Transport Services Limited (HTSL) which retained the brand name of Kwara Express.

The mandate of our team, which comprises of seasoned professionals in transport management, business development and other relevant discipline is to review the business model, mode of operations, administrative structure and profitability index of Kwara Express, with the aim of recommending to the management, how best to reposition the company for sustainability.

After painstaking engagement, investigation and thorough analysis, our team delivered on its mandate and the implementation is birthing a modern transport company worthy of its brand name, Kwara Express.

If you pass through Kwara Express premises today, you can't but notice the ongoing reform. That's what the current government has been about in the past 2 years. Reforms from sector to sector.

You can disagree on some areas needing improvement, you may even prefer a better approach on some issues, but in all, if improving governance approach is the question, the administration of Governor Abdulrahman has been the answer.

I make bold to say that, nobody in their right frame of mind will oppose the current administration in the state on the basis of its focus on good governance and sustainable democratic practice.

Except for those with narrow political consideration, nobody can claim that the administration is not working.

We all saw it during ENDSARS protest, when the Kwara State Government took ownership of the agitators complaints and managed the situation responsibly, transparently collated, thoroughly evaluated, and generously compensated business owners, who were victims of the endsars crisis, making Kwara one of the first state to do so in the country.

We also saw the transparent recruitment process in TESCOM and SUBEB to add value to our education sector, in which Kwarans are now being employed strictly based on the strength of their own capability, and not on the connection of who they know.

We saw how Kwara, a state blacklisted by Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) since 2013 has metamorphosed into a state paying counterpart funding and accessing billions of naira and preparing to build over 600 schools.

We als saw how the state responded to the COVID 19 global pandemic, fixing over a decade abandoned oxygen plant, rebuilding dilapidated hospitals and equiping them to meet patient needs, and modern standards.

We saw how over 150 road projects are being constructed, rehabilitated or upgraded across the 16 local government areas, 120 of which are already completed.

We also saw how social investment programs in which thousands of people are benefiting are institutionalized through the Kwara State House of Assembly to serve the elderly, artisans and women.

We saw how youths are being equiped and empowered through technical skills acquisition and support for enterprises. We also saw how agricultural development is gaining the best of attention, not only on cultivation, but also in the value chain addition.

Check the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) index and Human Capital Development rating of Kwara State, they have risen significantly, compared to what was obtainable 2 years ago.

All of these development took place before our very eyes and we cannot claim they are less seminal.

Ofcourse, there are areas needing improvement. There is an urgent need for civil service reform, which is inevitable. There's need to grow internal capacity for efficient service delivery. There's also need to improve internally generated revenue, all of which are works in progress. The security situation also needs to be improved upon, despite the proactive response of the state, especially the active support for local and community policing

However, even if all these were done, there will still be people not happy with the government, as it is typical with politics. This is not unexpected, as it is part of who we are. But, it is clear that, more than 90% of people that are opposed to the administration inherited the opposition from their bosses, mentors or political leaders.

As individuals, many have nothing concrete against the government in terms of governance. Actually, most of them can see the work the government is doing, but they have to oppose it to demonstrate loyalty to the cause of their leaders, largely those within the ruling party.

If their bosses, mentors or political leaders reunite with Abdulrahman today, they will turn 360 degree within 24 hours and start singing a different song.

Some, however, will have un-met personal expectations, which is not unexpected. Personal expectations are usually difficult to meet, world over.

But for those interested in governance, they are happy that Abdulrahman is building a new generation of workers in Kwara State, who can confidently beat their chest and say that, i am here because I am qualified to be here, and I am here because I am the best. They are equally happy that education, health and infrastructure are getting the much needed attention. Those concerned about the growing youth restiveness are also happy that the government is creating enterprising opportunities for the youths, ranging from Kwara tech and skills acquisition, to Kwara fair to pitch ideas for grant opportunity, to Kwaraprenure to access loan for growth and development and the many other loudable initiatives.

While the state still has a very long journey ahead of her, it is also clear that the one thousand miles journey to Kwara development has actually started with some steps.

To say it differently, Kwara is on Express to her destination.

Although, the place it is going is still far, very far away, but definitely it is on the way that leads to that destination.

*Abdulrazaq Hamzat writes from Abuja, Nigeria*

*Kwara On Express*
By Abdulrazaq Hamzat

Kwara Express is taking a new look. It is about to become the most efficient, visionary and service oriented transport company in Kwara state.

However, before the present administration came on board 2 years ago, the company was already dead. It actually died in 2012, when those managing it at the time not only consume the surplus of the company, but also drained the capital, thereby turning the company into *pangolo* and accumulating huge debt via unpaid salaries and default in contractual obligations.

Despite the injection of over N600million by the company that inherited the corpse of Kwara Transport Corporation otherwise known as Kwara Express, Harmony Holdings Limited, the transport company didn't come back to life till it was eventually buried in 2015.

In 2015, Harmony Holdings Limited started a new company, Harmony Transport Services Limited (HTSL), which inherited the remaining assets and liabilities of Kwara Express, but unfortunately, they were unable to outgrow the debt and burden of the defunct Kwara Transport Corporation. That is the situation of the company until the current administration came onboard in 2019.

However, sometime in November 2020, shortly after lifting the covid 19 imposed lock down, Harmony Holdings Limited (HHL), a private company, managing the business interest of Kwara State government invited me to head a Business Review and Investigation Committee (BRIC) of one of its subsidiary company, Harmony Transport Services Limited (HTSL) which retained the brand name of Kwara Express.

The mandate of our team, which comprises of seasoned professionals in transport management, business development and other relevant discipline is to review the business model, mode of operations, administrative structure and profitability index of Kwara Express, with the aim of recommending to the management, how best to reposition the company for sustainability.

After painstaking engagement, investigation and thorough analysis, our team delivered on its mandate and the implementation is birthing a modern transport company worthy of its brand name, Kwara Express.

If you pass through Kwara Express premises today, you can't but notice the ongoing reform. That's what the current government has been about in the past 2 years. Reforms from sector to sector.

You can disagree on some areas needing improvement, you may even prefer a better approach on some issues, but in all, if improving governance approach is the question, the administration of Governor Abdulrahman has been the answer.

I make bold to say that, nobody in their right frame of mind will oppose the current administration in the state on the basis of its focus on good governance and sustainable democratic practice.

Except for those with narrow political consideration, nobody can claim that the administration is not working.

We all saw it during ENDSARS protest, when the Kwara State Government took ownership of the agitators complaints and managed the situation responsibly, transparently collated, thoroughly evaluated, and generously compensated business owners, who were victims of the endsars crisis, making Kwara one of the first state to do so in the country.

We also saw the transparent recruitment process in TESCOM and SUBEB to add value to our education sector, in which Kwarans are now being employed strictly based on the strength of their own capability, and not on the connection of who they know.

We saw how Kwara, a state blacklisted by Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) since 2013 has metamorphosed into a state paying counterpart funding and accessing billions of naira and preparing to build over 600 schools.

We als saw how the state responded to the COVID 19 global pandemic, fixing over a decade abandoned oxygen plant, rebuilding dilapidated hospitals and equiping them to meet patient needs, and modern standards.

We saw how over 150 road projects are being constructed, rehabilitated or upgraded across the 16 local government areas, 120 of which are already completed.

We also saw how social investment programs in which thousands of people are benefiting are institutionalized through the Kwara State House of Assembly to serve the elderly, artisans and women.

We saw how youths are being equiped and empowered through technical skills acquisition and support for enterprises. We also saw how agricultural development is gaining the best of attention, not only on cultivation, but also in the value chain addition.

Check the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) index and Human Capital Development rating of Kwara State, they have risen significantly, compared to what was obtainable 2 years ago.

All of these development took place before our very eyes and we cannot claim they are less seminal.

Ofcourse, there are areas needing improvement. There is an urgent need for civil service reform, which is inevitable. There's need to grow internal capacity for efficient service delivery. There's also need to improve internally generated revenue, all of which are works in progress. The security situation also needs to be improved upon, despite the proactive response of the state, especially the active support for local and community policing

However, even if all these were done, there will still be people not happy with the government, as it is typical with politics. This is not unexpected, as it is part of who we are. But, it is clear that, more than 90% of people that are opposed to the administration inherited the opposition from their bosses, mentors or political leaders.

As individuals, many have nothing concrete against the government in terms of governance. Actually, most of them can see the work the government is doing, but they have to oppose it to demonstrate loyalty to the cause of their leaders, largely those within the ruling party.

If their bosses, mentors or political leaders reunite with Abdulrahman today, they will turn 360 degree within 24 hours and start singing a different song.

Some, however, will have un-met personal expectations, which is not unexpected. Personal expectations are usually difficult to meet, world over.

But for those interested in governance, they are happy that Abdulrahman is building a new generation of workers in Kwara State, who can confidently beat their chest and say that, i am here because I am qualified to be here, and I am here because I am the best. They are equally happy that education, health and infrastructure are getting the much needed attention. Those concerned about the growing youth restiveness are also happy that the government is creating enterprising opportunities for the youths, ranging from Kwara tech and skills acquisition, to Kwara fair to pitch ideas for grant opportunity, to Kwaraprenure to access loan for growth and development and the many other loudable initiatives.

While the state still has a very long journey ahead of her, it is also clear that the one thousand miles journey to Kwara development has actually started with some steps.

To say it differently, Kwara is on Express to her destination.

Although, the place it is going is still far, very far away, but definitely it is on the way that leads to that destination.

*Abdulrazaq Hamzat writes from Abuja, Nigeria*

True

Open Grazing Should Be Banned All Over Nigeria, activist tell FG
By Jerrywright Ukwu -

The conversation surrounding open grazing is still ongoing nationwide

- Pressure is mounting on the federal government to ban open grazing across the country

- Experts say the old practice of pastoralism has done more harm than good for Nigeria

The convener of a pressure group, Kwara Must Change, Abdulrazak Hamzat has stated that open grazing should be banned all over Nigeria.

The Abuja-based activist made the statement in an exclusive interview with Legit.ng while reacting to the ban on open grazing across southern Nigeria by the Southern Governors Forum.

According to him, open grazing is not only archaic, it is unbefitting of any civilized nation in the 21st century.

He continued: “The herders-farmers clashes that have also become a regular part of the open grazing challenge have made its ban even more inevitable.

“So, banning open grazing is not only right and proper, it is just one end of the issue. There's a need to go beyond just banning open grazing, to creating a real enterprise industry around the sector, through adequate investment and mass sensitization of the stakeholders in the industry.

“However, while I am in support of the ban on open grazing, I think the ban should not come from just the southern governors, it should be banned across the 36 states, including the FCT, not only by the state governors but also by the federal government.

“This is so because, if we have a problem, we should be solving it together, not one party solving it against the other, thereby creating a sense of we against them.

” He added that the blanket ban by the Southern Governors Forum gives the impression that Nigeria has been divided along regional lines.

His words: “In my opinion, the ban from the southern governors sends a wrong signal of regional division in the country, which is not a good thing.

“Instead of the Southern Governors Forum, Nigeria's Governors Forum should have been the one spearheading the initiative. Nonetheless, the action was inevitable.

” Recall that the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) had earlier said northern governors should address the ban by their southern counterparts. National secretary of MACBAN, Baba Othman Ngelzarma declared that northern governors must rise up to the challenge by working out a solution of their own that will be generally acceptable.

Meanwhile, Delta state governor, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, on Saturday, May 15 said resolutions reached at the Southern Governors Forum's meeting held in Asaba recently were for the good of Nigeria.

The governor said that anyone casting aspersion on the resolutions of the forum towards a better Nigeria did not mean well for the nation

Read more: https://www.legit.ng/1417430-open-grazing-should-be-banned-all-over-nigeria-says-hamzat.html

akinwale701:
This Nairaland online President should just shut the Bleep up.

You, the nairaland online noisemaker should start thinking properly.

Olawepo Hashim is making sense

brickswrites:
The worst thing that can happen to Nigeria at this point is being disintegrated.

The same you will not be able to stay in the path you have choosen. The foolishness of the youth is overwhelming when we don't think properly but take sides when half barked self acclaimed leaders take a position.

Nigeria is the best thing happening now. I expect the youth to speak on the wayforward which only Olawepo-Hashim can give.

Lets begin to think #BetterTogetherWithGOH2023

True

wht141:
Nigeria will remain as one

Very true

jerseyboy:
Yoruba Nation
Bendel Republic
Igbo Nation
No More Nigeria

Wake up...

Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim was the presidential candidate of People’s Trust during the 2019 general elections. He was a notable pro-democracy figure in the then Global Pro-Democracy Resistance in the late 1980s and a respected youth leadership voice from Africa.

In this exclusive interview, he spoke on the need for a national agenda in addressing growing agitations and security challenges in the country, the indivisibility of Nigeria, the recent resolutions by southern governors, his 2023 political ambition, amongst other issues.

What is your take on the growing agitations and security challenges bedeviling the country?

I think we all know the issues, so I am not going to repeat the lamentations. There are both local and external factors driving the insecurity. Underlying this, we have increasing poverty, illiteracy, hatred and bigotry mixing with local and external cause of insecurity.

If you look at the external causes, there are massive migrations going on in the Sahel region. It is generally acknowledged that the Sahel is becoming increasingly warmer by 1.5 per cent degree celcius, higher than the international average of global warming. It is making water and land to dry off and there’s increasing migrations down South.

We have an estimated 50 million herders in the Sahel region who are searching for grass and water. Imagine 50 million herders desperately looking for water and grass, and then, you have criminal elements mixing up with them and they are coming down South, and that means Nigeria.

That’s a problem on one hand. You also have the problem of banditry that is associated with non-state actors who have been working with all kinds of elements in Libya. And they have all moved down to Chad, Niger, Nigeria, Burkina Faso. Some of them are people who have been doing illegal mining operations while some are doing cattle rustling, and what have you.

These are dimensions. Now, you also have the ongoing agitations by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and agitations in the South-West. When we look at these issues, we made recommendations in a statement we reeled out on a six-point agenda. Number one; it appears the military is overwhelmed; most of the things we are drafting the military to do are not their jobs. These are jobs that should have been handled by the police and civil institutions.

When you are talking about coping with migrations, these are things that fall squarely within the purview of cooperative agreements in the Foreign Affairs Ministry. What strategies have we evolved with our neighbouring countries in terms of coping with migrations? Migration is a problem anywhere in the world, including Europe, and that’s why you see that European countries will go into negotiations with bordering countries in the Mediterranean.

If we have been voting money for foreign affairs, how are we prioritising the Sahel in terms of our expenditures? What kind of cooperative agreements do we have? Do we need embassies in every country of the world, or right now, we priortise our expenditures to surrounding countries that are impacting on our security? Also, do you want to have a defence cooperative agreements with a friendly country so that you can at least get some stability before you rebuild the army? The new chief of army staff said his priority was to rebuild the army, but this will take time. I also saw the president talking about that. But now, you see that the problem is already here. So, before rebuilding the army, what do you now do that the enemy is right at the door? How do we ensure that at least we are able to push them backward? You will need a high level defence cooperative agreements with the friendly countries to be able to stabilise the situation, especially in the North-Central states that are around Abuja before you begin to rebuild the army, which will take some time, in terms of training, equipment, doctrine. It is not going on happen overnight. That’s the essence of defence cooperative agreements we are advocating.

We have to quickly put framework for state police. I think this is already gaining some understanding, even within the government circle. But I think this is something we need to do fast. Let me emphasise that we need police at levels. We don’t want to turn state governors to some local czars. You must have protection for minority communities who are best represented by their local government administrations. Let’s have a dialogue with various shades of opinions; and most importantly, we ask for an all-inclusive cabinet that’s going to be broad-based and will inspire hope and efficiency. This is what we need now to deal with these crises. The All Progressives Congress (APC) is too narrow and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is not there. You need more than any party’s wisdom to be able to deal with the current crises.

As you rightly said, the civil space is ungoverned; what do you think should be done for security agencies, apart from the military, so that they can quickly take charge of their primary responsibilities?

It is good to give them the resources they need for operation, but more importantly, states and local governments should be allowed to raise their own police.

Few days back, southern governors met and came up with a resolution on the need for a national dialogue on issues affecting the country; what is your take?

Immediately after their conference in Asaba, I had a phone conversation with one of the former heads of state. The first thing he said was, “I didn’t see them condemn the IPOB; why didn’t they do that?’’ My take on that is that they have spoken as southern governors, and people have the tendencies to focus on issues they think are of priority to them. When northern governors meet, they are also likely to focus on things that are of priority to them.

What we need to do now is to have a national agenda, not regional. And this has to be driven from the centre. That’s why we proposed a 6-point agenda. We must also be able to agree while discussing issues that are local and regional in nature. And we will all agree to the fact that Nigeria is indivisible; this is what our founding fathers signed for. This was the proposition of Nnamdi Azikiwe and it has been incorporated in our constitution. Some people think it was a military dictated principle; it was not.

Azikiwe was of Igbo extraction; is the agitation for Biafra out of ignorance or just a political gimmick by some people?

People have legitimate concerns; they are disgruntled about a whole lot of things. But are those things a basis to ask for secession? I will say no. People are disgruntled by the fact that in the national security agencies they don’t have a voice. But quite funny, if you go to the records, these were things the other regions were complaining about the South-East domination of all the security agencies in the First Republic. Now, the table has turned and some people are complaining. Every side has their arguments, but if we must have a united Nigeria, we must ensure we find friends and loyalists we can trust from every region; that is the way to calm everybody’s nerve. Secession is not an option.

You vied for the office of the president in 2019 under People’s Trust. Some people are attributing the problems we are facing today in the country to 2023 elections, what would you say on this?

I think the insecurity problem has been there, even before President Buhari came into the government. And I think some of the factors were even compounded under Jonathan, to be honest with you. A lot of people don’t like this line of discussion, but it is a fact we have to face.

When some foreign powers decided to overthrow Gadaffi, the African Union (AU) heads of state warned against such a move because of the consequence it would have on the West Africa sub-region particularly. What happened during that intervention was that there was power disequilibrium in the region, having introduced superior training in arms and armaments by non-state actors. You have a situation where non-governmental entities now have more superior firepower more than all the states in West Africa.

Some of these arms are all over in Niger, Mauritania, Burkina Faso, Cameroon and other places. So you need to upgrade armaments and trainings at the disposal of the various states in that region.

What’s your plan ahead of 2023?

Politicians will say that having been a presidential candidate means that I am on the field, but it will be quite insensitive for any politician to go about talking about 2023 when we are in 2021 and don’t know what is going to happen. Who is going to vote for you when all the people are dead? We first have to focus on how to secure, stabilise and unite the country. This is what I am currently focused on.

You were in People’s Trust in 2019; ahead of 2023, which political platform would you align with?

We are already zeroing down on where we will be; and we have done all the consultations. Of course, if you are talking about the next election, you can be talking about making a choice between the APC and PDP. I think this will become public very soon

.

https://dailytrust.com/only-natl-agenda-will-solve-nigerias-challenges-olawepo-hashim

abifarinajii1:
The present "Break Nigeria" choristers are made up of three groups: Political actors who have lost out in the power game; activists who are tired or seeking more relevance and an uninformed army of youth/elders goaded on by the first two groups.
I want to submit here that even at the height of the fight against military rule, the 'National Dialogue' of July 1990 packaged by the Alao Aka Bashorun-led National Consultative Forum, NCF was not about break up, but about addressing the Class relations and proper democratic structures in the country.
The Kaima Declaration of 1994 by the people of Niger Delta was not about break up, but about democratic governance and Resource Control.
Likewise the Yoruba Agenda signed by prominent Yoruba Leaders of Thought on the 11th of May, 1994 was not about breakup, but about fashioning an "opportunity for self government within ONE NIGERIA". Lets read out history. Lets look at these documents
Nigerians had always want to be one. Lets address the problem.
Just like what Olawepo-Hashim said, #WE ARE BETTER TOGETHER

I agree with you 100%

proxillin:
No wonder u didn't become the president.

U can never be

That's why you will always have a Buhari

Olawepo has said nothing but the truth.

He his not an empty chest beater, arrogant sensational talker, but a sound critical engager.

If you have any solid point to disagree with him, step forward.

Insult and abusive language has expired

Hum

[size=8pt][/size]

*Agitators for Biafra, Yoruba Nation are illiterates -Ex Presidential Aspirant, Olawepo-Hashim*

Oil mogul and former presidential candidate in 2019, Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim has dismissed those agitating for secession in the country. In an interview with ADETUTU FOLASADE-KOYI, he also speaks on how to resolve the country’s political imbalance and why a referendum, ahead of the 2023 general election is unnecessary.



There are calls for secession in two regions of the country now. Is that not worrisome?

This is just nonsense, to be honest with you. It is pure nonsense. Nigeria, in the Independence Constitution that we had, there were democratically-elected leaders. They were not handpicked and they went to the Lancaster conference in 1957 and 1958.



The Eastern delegates were led by Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, the Western delegates were led by Chief Obafemi Awolowo and the northern delegates were led by Sir Ahmadu Bello. And an Independence Constitution was negotiated. One of the critical elements of the Independence Constitution, which remains with all the constitutions that we have had, whether midwifed by the military or whatever, is the principle of indivisibility and indissolubility of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; this was agreed by all the regions.

So, this theory by some illiterates – and some of them may be professors – and they go about talking nonsense as if that is the truth. This theory that Nigeria was put together forcefully by the British is false because the people of Nigeria did negotiate the constitution, led by democratically elected leaders. And, the principle of indissolubility and indivisibility of the Federal Republic of Nigeria was agreed. In fact, it was thoroughly debated at the Lancaster Conference in London, where component regions should have the right to secede or not.

The South West wanted it, the Northern Region also did not mind it. In fact, the most compelling argument for national unity came from Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe who said that we should have a model constitution like the constitution of the United States of America where secession is an act of treason and that Nigeria should exist in unity in perpetuity!



But with the present realities, are you telling me Nigerians cannot renegotiate our unity?

I am not convinced that the unity of Nigeria is the problem. What I think is the problem is the mismanagement of our diversity. That is the issue.

What do you mean by that?

Well, in the sense that we have not allowed the elements that can guarantee efficient management of state power to operate. We had a coup in 1966 that took powers from the sub-national authorities that would have efficiently managed the situation like security you are talking about. If anything happens in a local government, the people who live in that community will know who the criminals are.

It is easier when security is managed at that level than when it is managed from the central government. There is always a problem with even trust. People will not volunteer information easily. So, some of the security problems we are having is traceable to the fact that powers that were residing at the local level have been taken away and dumped at the federal level. And, you know, interestingly, a lot of people like to blame the Fulani but, the people who carried out the 1966 coup were not Fulani.

So it is not about Hausa or Igbo or Yoruba, it is about the fact that we have distorted the most essential element of managing diversity; which is to have a level of control mobilisation and development and two key elements, security and the economy are the most important elements of activities in a society.

And when you have taken those powers and dumped them at the centre, then you snuff out creativity and efficiency and the state can no longer function at its optimum. When we decentralise, we will regain our balance and I do not think that the issue is our unity. The issue is that we distorted the essential principles of managing that diversity and now we must restore it. That is the solution, not secession and I have not seen an African country that achieved secession that has been better off. Eritrea is not better off than they were. They fought for almost 30 years to leave Ethiopia; what have they achieved after they left? Look at South Sudan; they are now even fighting and all that.



And, let me tell you, Nigeria is more of a blessing than a curse. When people are talking: ‘let us secede.’ Secede to where?

Before Nigeria was amalgamated, there was nothing called a Yoruba nation. What you had was Oyo Empire and the various sub-nationalities in the present South West were in 200 years war against Oyo, the Ekiti and all that. They were all fighting Oyo; to be independent of Oyo. There was so much insecurity. This was a war that was fought) for 200 years. So what do they mean by a Yoruba nation? There was no Yoruba nation before the British amalgamated Nigeria. There was Oyo Empire under Alafin and the Egbas had their own flag and they had their own generals fighting Oyo, fighting Ibadan. Ibadan was the city state that was aligned to Oyo. Even the lower flank to the North, Ilorin, that one had broken up from Oyo. It wanted its own independence. Everybody wanted independence from Oyo Empire. So what is the Yoruba nation that they are talking about?

And the ones in the East that are talking about Biafra, they didn’t even have a kingdom. They didn’t have any empire. What do you mean by Biafra? Everybody was at the clan level when the British came to that place. The only thing in the South-East and South-South that was a big kingdom was Benin and everybody was either a vassal to Benin directly or indirectly in those areas. Secession is pure nonsense. Secession to where?

Some agitators point at the current imbalance, saying one tribe was favoured over others in appointments. Yet you say our Constitution maintains our indivisibility and indissolubility?

Well, that is the problem with the character of a government; it is not a problem with the character of the country. Yar’Adua was president of Nigeria; were all his appointments from Katsina? So, must you break Nigeria because now you are having issues with appointments? If you are having issues with appointments, there are constitutional remedies to correct that. We have the Federal Character Commission; there is no state in this country that is not represented in the Federal Character Commission. Where is their report? Where are the voices of their state representatives? They all keep quiet; they don’t say anything! Then, apart from the institution such as the Federal Character Commission, where is the party? We have governed this country before, in 1999, and 60 per cent of all federal boards were appointed by the committee set up by the National Regulatory Committee. We zoned every big board appointment!

In our time, if the chairman of the Nigeria Ports Authority is zoned to the South-South, that of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation cannot be retained in the South-South; it goes to another region. That was how we did it and, at the end of the day, even if (former) President (Olusegun) Obasanjo wanted to do otherwise, it was impossible for him to do. So, one of the problems that you have is not just with the government, virtually all the institutions have collapsed and they have to do with the character of the occupants of those institutions not because those institutions cannot work. Even if you go your way, it is not the guarantee that there will be development in those places. Some people will still be oppressive if you don’t have good leaders. If you don’t have people who are ready to speak up and take up responsibilities that they have signed for, those countries, if they become independent, will not do well.

In the Second Republic, whenever the party spoke, the state actors toe that line. After 2003, progressively, it is a different ball game for our political parties. Can we go back to that era?

Yes we must. Even in countries of Africa that were one party states, the party was strong. All the noise against (late President Robert) Mugagbe, he did not leave until the ZANU PF took a decision and said ‘okay!’ Mugabe knew it was all over at that point, even as the country was a one-party state. The ANC (in South Africa), when they turned against (former President) Jacob Zuma, that was the end of him. So, you need a strong party.

But political parties are not as independent as before. How do we go back to that era because moneybags, governors and political state actors have hijacked the parties?

Some of the people who are shouting today, they were the ones who killed the political parties. I was expelled from the PDP in 2000 because we were insisting on the doctrine of party supremacy. Some people in government humiliated those of us who formed the PDP because they wanted unlimited control over government. Myself, (late) Harry Marshal, some of the founding fathers of PDP then, we were all expelled in one day, in a well programmed attack against the national executive committee of the party, by some people who were shouting that they want to be president today, by some people who are crying that democracy is suffering, they were the ones who killed democracy!

They did not want the party founders; who are great men. I was one of the youngest of the Group of 34 that started PDP and these were great men, those were people who had been in government and they have never stolen money. (Late) Chief Solomon Lar never had a piece of land in Abuja here. (Late) Alhaji Adamu Ciroma never had a house in Abuja here yet, he had been governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria. He had been Minister of Finance. He had seen money more than anybody else had seen. We were inspired by leaders who wanted the best for this country and we respected them, not because they were moneybags. We followed them. We spent our money behind them because we believed in them.

Then, some miscreants came into government and they didn’t want this structure that brought them into government to have any influence on their policies and we were always fighting, it was war from 1999 between the party and some people. Do you know how many times the PDP secretariat was surrounded by armoured tanks? The party itself! They brought armoured tanks to the party secretariat because they wanted to get some people out of the party forcefully. The fight that happened in PDP, between 1999 and 2001 has not happened since then and this was why we lost it. Now, regrettably, the same people who caused the problem are busy jumping about pontificating! One of the problems of Nigeria is that most Nigerians don’t have a sense of history. There is a sense of collective amnesia in this country and people pretend not to even remember things that happened six months ago. So there is no way you can make progress as a country if you don’t have a sense of history.

So, back to the issue, it is not just about (President Muhammadu) Buhari. It is not about secession, it is not about any Fulani, you need strong institutions to have a functioning democracy. Some of the people that are saying they want to secede, how are their governors managing their states? Some of them don’t have five kilometres of functional local roads. Even with the money that is available right now. Is it Buhari that is doing that one?

So, we have a lot of issues but where we are is very simple. Let’s first of all deal with issues that we can agree on and then move forward gradually from there and the rest questions will be resolved politically, democratically on the field of the election if we allow programmes to govern our choices.

Once it is election time now, nobody is focused on the candidates, where is he coming from, who is he, what is his pedigree? You, the media, also have to help to moderate the debate about choices and what issues should govern the political contest. So, we all have our various roles to play in this issue.

Is a referendum necessary now before we go into 2023 elections?

That will be a distraction. Referendum for what?

Well, referendum to address how to move Nigeria forward

Do we need to complicate issues? Look, Boko Haram and the bandits are in Shiroro (Niger State) and few kilometres from Abuja. There are some bandits in the forest of Kaduna. Is it a referendum that you need now or you need to get those guys out of that place and move them back as much as possible? What we need now is to secure, at least, let us secure the North Central states that are around Abuja and that is what my six-point agenda is all about. We need to immediately guaranty security in the various states and local governments.

And we can write our lawmakers now, to amend the sub-sections of the constitution and get concurrence from the states. We can actually do this within the next 60 days. In fact, we can get this done, if there is the will, within the next 30 days. We can actually do it so that the states and the local governments can legitimately raise their local police instead of this vigilante stuff. We need proper police not vigilantes. The vigilantes themselves will become terrors. There must be standard operating procedure that is modern, that even civilised people who want to provide assistance can relate to. A modern structure. I mean, what assistant and support can you get when their insignia is like 15th Century village hunters?

https://www.sunnewsonline.com/agitators-for-biafra-yoruba-nation-are-illiterates-ex-presidential-aspirant-olawepo-hashim/

*Kwara Must Change to commence Local Govt and Executive Watch*

A leading Pro Democracy group, Kwara Must Change, in conjuction with Grand Plan Consult has announced plan to commence an assesement of the Executive and Local Government, which it described as Local Government Watch (LGW) and Executive Watch (EW).

This came, few weeks after the public presentation of its maiden assesement report on the legislators, known as Legislative Watch (LW).

In a statement by Convener of Kwara Must Change, Abdulrazaq Hamzat, the group stated that, sustainable development is beyond individual performance and the group is institutionalizing governance accountability to ensure all arms of government and departments are functioning at their uptimum.

Hamzat explained that, all of the performance measuring instruments being developed by Grand Plan and Kwara Must Change are to be known as Good Governance Watch (GGW), a series of professional assesement of government institutions in order to strengthen them to function uptimally.

According to him, these assesement templates being developed by Kwara Must Change should not be misunderstood as being overbearing, but rather, it should be seen as a baseline assesement for different arms of government and institutions.

"World over, baseline assesements are used to determine current state of affairs in an environment, so as to determine most appropriate cause of action that would assist in improving the situation".

Local Government Watch (LGW) and Executive Watch (EW) should therefore be seen as tools to assist government in helping our institutions work better.

"In furtherance to our quest to become an organization that institutionalized good governance and accountability, devoid of undue personalization of governance processes, and following the massive success of our maiden report on the Legislative Watch, we are notifying the public of our decision to commence the development of Local Government and Executive Watch" he said.

Hamzat maintained that, Local Government and Executive watch is not the assesement of individual head of a local government or government MDA, but the general assesement of both political and administrative affairs.

He therefore urges all Kwarans to support Kwara Must Change's mild efforts at enshrining institutional based good governance in the state of harmony.