majamajic:
where's her workshop ?

I wan her to service my ' propeller

Her Instagram handle is @omolabake_mech

.

22-year-old female mechanic, Ganiyu Olawunmi Adijat continues to thrive in a male-dominated profession with the support of her family and friends. In this chat with Tobi Adebayo, correspondent, makeitglobal.biz, the native of Oyo state, talks about her journey into the automobile repair business and the challenges that come with it.

What inspired you to become a mechanic?

After I completed my secondary school education in 2013/2014, I gained admission into Ibadan Polytechnic in 2014/2015. That same year, my father became so ill that my mother had to sell most of her personal belongings, including the land that my father owned, just to make sure that he stayed alive.

I had no one to pay my acceptance fee not to talk of school fees so I had to apply for casual work at International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in 2014 to enable me to make ends meet. Unfortunately, I got my first salary during the second month of resumption and the school portal was already closed. I had no choice but to change my full-time admission to a part-time programme because I really wanted to go to school. I applied for Science and Laboratory Technology but was given Mechanical Engineering.

I was combining my work at IITA with academics. My contract ended at IITA after I completed my academic project in 2016/2017 because I spent three years in school for my National Diploma (ND). Throughout the three years I spent in school, I was squatting with friends because I couldn’t afford to pay house rent.

After obtaining my National Diploma, I could not afford to continue paying my school fees and I didn’t want to go into prostitution so I decided to practise at a mechanic workshop so I could practise the vocation. since then I have been assisting my family from my little savings.

How long have you been doing this?

I have been on this journey since 2017 till date

What were the reactions like at first from your parents, friends, and others who felt you could have done something more different?

My parents supported my decision from start to date. A few friends supported me at the beginning while many of them never did. But my mind was already made up and I was focused on my decision.

How challenging is the job?

It is a very challenging job because you will experience and tolerate all sorts from customers, whether good or bad. Also, you have to be open to learning every day because more advanced cars are built every day. You have to seek more knowledge and training on how to use some modern tools, else, it would be very difficult for you to progress as a mechanic.

One has to also be always very careful to avoid sustaining injuries while at work, some of which could be life-threatening.

What reactions do you get when you introduce yourself as a mechanic?

I get a lot of positive reactions. People are always very surprised and a lot of them do not believe me until they see me while at work. It is something I have gotten used to.

Do you feel any form of discrimination since this is mostly a male-dominated job?

Not at all. Instead, I get more inspired every day. The love and encouragement I get from people have always kept me extra motivated.

How do you handle the attention you get while at work?

I always focus more on improving my skills and avoid being distracted by the attention I am always getting. I always remind myself the reason I decided to be a mechanic so it keeps me focused

Are there any brands you specialise in?

I specialize more in German Cars, American Cars and Japanese Cars.

Do you have any advice for females who are afraid to make that major move?

My advice is that as humans, we must have it at the back of our minds that life is all about choices. Every choice we make will determine what happens to the person next. We should not be afraid to make certain decisions that will be good for our own upliftment. We have to always make positive moves because there is no limit to what we can achieve as females.

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/careers/olawunmi-ganiyu-female-mechanic/


cc 1forall, Crazyman

Desola Aluko, a Lagos based lecturer, is a customer of Guaranty Trust bank. She had noticed that each time she makes an online money transfer, an additional N52 is deducted from her account. Since it is no large sum and is supposedly a service charge of sorts, she wasn’t much bothered. Not until she learnt from a colleague that inter-bank charges using the United Bank for Africa, UBA mobile app for money transfers attracts only N11 per transaction, while transfers made to another UBA account, zero charges.

Unlike Desola, many bank customers have in one way or another found themselves enduring inconsistencies in such transaction charges. And with most of these inexplicable irregularities and deductions, the customer loses paltry or significant sums, while the involved bank’s coffers stay healthy.

On his part, Olubunmi Rotimi, a businessman discovered an anomaly in deductions made whenever he makes ATM withdrawals at the Akute branch of the First City Monument Bank, FCMB. Olu, who uses a UBA issued debit card sometimes had reasons to also use the FCMB ATMs at Akute. And he is ever conscious of opting for the FCMB machines only when his previous withdrawals had been through an ATM at any UBA branch to avoid unnecessary deductions. Yet, the FCMB ATM machine never fails to deduct the N65 that should normally be charged after his third withdrawal within a month at ATMs different from that of the UBA.

Olu told makeitglobal.biz that he had always observed that most of the withdrawals made on the FCMB ATMs at the Akute branch are by people with debit cards of other banks. And he concludes that the bank must somehow be taking in significant sums from deductions that most ATM users take for granted.

Unlike Desola who is not much bothered about GTB’s inexplicable deductions, Olu, now very wary, steers clear of FCMB ATMs when he has no option but to make withdrawals from other bank’s machines. But he has no intention of taking up the issue with the bank. For him mitigating future loss as he has done, will do. He is satisfied with no longer losing money in trickles as he experienced with the Akute FCMB machines that he now avoids.

Henry Ijezie, a First bank customer also narrates his unpalatable experience. Henry is quick to call the bank unprintable names courtesy of what he describes as First bank’s “reckless deduction of my money without any justification and blaming it on MasterCard.”

The much-riled customer took to the comments section of a very recent First Bank Facebook home page post to vent his displeasure. “This issue has lingered for over three months, my money wrongly debited severally and kept in my ledger balance for over three months, and I cannot access the money, even after visiting several First Bank outlets and mails forwarded on my behalf to e-services,” he stated.

He explained that he had filled the e-services complaint form several times online with no results. “I have disturbed my account manager to the extent that he doesn’t respond to my emails anymore. The most disheartening thing is that none of them can explain what happened and why that money was lodged in the ledger balance instead of my main balance,” Henry stated.

He went further to reveal his account details. “I will use whatever means it takes to ensure my money is refunded, help me and share this post till it gets to the right person, 3092114350 is my account number, First bank,” submits Henry. However scathing as the post is, the bank’s Facebook minders failed to address the comment, but rather skipped it to address the next comment from another customer.

Another First Bank customer, Oluwapelumi Ayodele, a student, also told makeitglobal.biz about her recent unsavoury experience. On 5 July 2019. She used the bank ATM and N10,000 was debited twice from her account, while the machine failed to yield any cash. One of the transactions was reversed the same day, but 22 days later, the second N10,000 debit wad yet to be reversed. “I have lodged complaints in two different branches but I am still waiting to get my money back,” Oluwapelumi laments

Oluwapelumi and Femi Balogun’s cases are similar. Femi’s grouse is with Wema Bank where he lodged a complaint last year about transferring N10,000 twice to a friend’s account in error. He had N25,000 only in his account prior to the transaction and was told his N10,000 extra debit would be reversed. The transaction was done in November 2018. Femi only recently came to terms with the fact that the refund may never come.

Segun Akure, an Ilorin based Pastor told makeitglobal.biz his frustrating experience concerning a recent failed mobile money transfer. A week ago, his Lagos based junior brother had urgently requested for N2000 as transport fare to attend an interview in Lekki, Lagos. Segun attempted sending the sum through his mobile phone for hours to no avail. However, the amount, which failed to reach his brother’s account, had been deducted. ” My problem now is the cost of subjecting myself to so much effort to start making endless trips to the bank just to resolve the issue, considering the amount we are talking about. And even if it is reversed, the purpose is already defeated” he said.

The longer Segun waits to seek redress, the higher his risk of never getting his money back. Experts posit that most failed transactions not resolved after 30 days are as good as hopeless cases. And many complaints taking too long to get resolved, stand the risk of staying unresolved. Having been inundated with sorry tales by customers in terms of ATM, Point of Sale (POS) machine and fund transfer failures including other bank service shortcomings, the Central bank has gradually been stepping up attempts to put things right. But banks which by the nature of their establishment are always after enormous profits seem to always have surreptitious and inexplicable means through which such monies continue to trickle in.

Many bank customers have sought redress through the bank’s social media pages and e-mails to no avail. Complaints to banks over unsatisfactory services are actually better routed through the CBN Consumer Service platform. Banks tend to resolve such complaints expeditiously, bearing in mind CBN’s power to mete out proper sanctions and reprimands to erring banks. The CBN has always emphasized that all such matters be resolved within periods not exceeding a week.

The section of banks which aggrieved customers should approach to sort out various complaints have also been found wanting in many instances. And while most banks usually list some numbers to be reached by customers when they run into problems on mobile banking platforms, for instance, calls to these numbers hardly ever connect.

Concerning Point of Sales, payments, POS the customer’s card is sometimes declined while the card owner’s account is soon debited. And in September 2018, the CBN served Nigerian banks a circular notifying them of a fine of N10,000 for every failed card transaction not refunded within 24 hours after complaints were lodged. But some banks still claim the N10,000 fine is not applicable to POS transactions, which negates the CBN rule. Cases of wrongful debits and delayed refunds abound still.

Many customers end up frustrated, eventually giving up on their complaints. This has prompted CBN’s latest effort at straightening out the Customer Service department of banks towards more efficient and prompt handling of complaints. In January 2019, prompted by unceasing barrage off complaints, the Apex bank mandated banks to subscribe to the Consumer Complaints Management System, CCMS, where they should upload complaints on a daily basis, assigning tracking numbers for each complaint received by customers from 2 January 2019.

The automated system was put in place towards a quick resolution of complaints to boost customer confidence towards sustaining the cashless policy. But despite the directive to banks to always comply with the stipulated time in the CCMS to address customer complaints, with hanging threats of sanctions, the step is yet to yield desired results.

The CBN, much bothered by the ceaseless complaints has issued yet another fresh directive to banks last month, July 2019 to set up desks specifically for ATM and other card-related complaints. Banks have been asked to publish names, telephone numbers and email addresses of the help desk staff to be contacted when the need arises.

The CBN has also set up a help desk for receiving public complaints on electronic card transactions towards fast-tracking resolutions by affected banks, making available the telephone numbers and email addresses of the contact persons. The outcome of the new CBN directive is still being awaited by many customers who till now have unpleasant tales to tell.


https://www.makeitglobal.biz/top-news/banking-tales/

cc dominique puskin naijacutee FOD

*Call for a probe by anti-graft agencies


Some Nigerians have slammed telecommunications giant, MTN’s appointment of former Executive Vice Chairman of Nigerian Communications Commission, Mr Ernest Ndukwe and former Minister of Communications and Technology, Mrs Omobola Johnson, as its board members.

MTN recently announced that Ndukwe was taking over from Paschal Dozie as Chairman of the board while Johnson who was in the cabinet of the former president, Goodluck Jonathan, was mentioned as one of the newly appointed board members.

Speaking with makeitglobal.biz, the Executive Chairman, Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, Debo Adeniran said, “These appointments should be looked into. Serious investigations should be carried out. I honestly think they are trying to cover up for something. Some Illicit transactions must have taken place and they are trying to sweep them under the rug with those appointments.

“Remember that the NCC was reluctant to impose punishment on MTN when the firm was alleged to have violated the code of conduct for service providers. Basically, that is unethical. The Federal Government and the SEC are not expected to have allowed that. It means that they are also corruption compliant.

“We expect SEC and anti-corruption agencies, especially the EFCC and ICPC to step into it and probe the transactions carried out under the former EVC and ensure that if any illicit activities are uncovered, they should prosecute whoever is found culpable,” Adeniran stated.

Human rights activist, Comrade Mark Adebayo said that it was not only morally reprehensible but also an indication of prior underhand dealings that might have favoured MTN, which is a foreign business concern, at the detriment of Nigeria’s economic interests.

“The two former senior officials of NCC can legitimately be alleged to have compromised the integrity of their offices while in service and the trust invested therein.

“I am of the strong opinion that their activities while in office be thoroughly investigated by an antigraft agency, particularly the EFCC, to determine if they did or did not use the privileges of the offices they formerly occupied to commit economic crimes against Nigeria.

“I have serious suspicions that they have used their positions to shortchange Nigeria and their payback was their appointment into MTN’s board. It’s not in tandem with the best practices in the world and therefore irresponsible, preposterous and indefensible. It must be reversed immediately,” Adebayo said.

A Lawyer, Olumide Akindiya lamented about the lack of professionalism in MTN’s action. He added that it would only make MTN have more access to NCCs secrets.

“It would now be easier for MTN to lobby their way out of trouble because they now have a former insider on their team. NCCs confidential information will now be available for MTN to take advantage of.

“What MTN is doing is to keep playing smart with the government. I am not aware if such appointments are prohibited by the law. If they aren’t then they are to MTN’s benefit, having those two personalities onboard their team,” Akindiya stated.

But former 2nd Vice-President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Monday Ubani said there was nothing wrong in what MTN had done.

“These people are experts in their field. It is their expertise that has made MTN look towards that direction. If you want to have Nigerians on the board of directors of such a gigantic company, they would have to go for the ones who have the experience.

“MTN probably does not want to offend the laws of the land. They just want those two appointees to bring their knowledge and experience to help move forward the company. I won’t jump to the conclusion that the telecoms giant is trying to cut corners by appointing those who have worked with the Federal Government before. They no longer work with them so there is no foul play here. They just want them on board to help them not to break laws in regards to telecommunications in Nigeria.

“The company is trying to avoid a repeat of the huge fine they had to pay recently. They need those appointees on board so as not to fall into that kind of trap again. In the absence of any proof that MTN is trying to cut corners by appointing those two, I would rather stick with the opinion that they were selected based on their expertise,” Ubani added.

All efforts to get MTN senior spokesman to speak proved abortive.


https://www.makeitglobal.biz/top-news/mtn-controversial-appointments/


cc dominique Puskin FOD naijacutee

It is already happening.
Our education system has taken a nosedive.
No wonder most of our graduates are unemployable.

Terribly sad.

donbachi:
It should have been"the elegant woman who salvaged eleganza empire"...kudos mami.

Thank you.

Modified: We cannot make that adjustment as it is the headline on the website. Thanks for the suggestion.

If Alhaji Taju Adeleye and his wife, Nimota had hired an astrologer to peep into the future of Folashade, their daughter who was born in Lagos on April 25, 1977, they most probably would have been completely dumbfounded to hear about the messianic role she would play in turning around the fortunes of a haemorrhaging business empire.

But this was exactly what the gods decreed for Folashade. When the Founder/Chairman of Eleganza Industries Limited, Alhaji Razak Okoya who was then 59, got married to her 21 years ago, he was actually bringing into his family a woman who would turn out to be the saviour of his legacy. By her drive, commitment and business sagacity, Folashade has proved that she could only have been an Avatar of Mami Wata, the water goddess who was venerated throughout Africa. According to J.F. Penn, the acclaimed British author who specialised in writing about religion and psychology, Mami Wata, the deity, can be volatile and dangerous, yet protective and nurturing.

In her case, Folashade has been the reincarnation of the latter attributes of Mami Wata and she has brought good financial fortune to Eleganza Industries.

Folashade’s beginnings

Folashade who grew up in Lagos, read Banking and Finance at the Lagos State Polytechnic, Isolo, where she bagged an Ordinary National Diploma (OND). She later studied Sociology at the University of Lagos.

The Amazon who was raised by her grandmother had this to say in an interview about her upbringing:

“I grew up in a family where discipline was the watchword, a family that did not compromise on respect, irrespective of your age. When I grew up under those circumstances, I had no difficulty taking after my grandmother. She was everything to me. May her soul rest in peace.

“I had a strict, but loving upbringing. My childhood memories are still very fresh. My grandmother was very strict and apart from that, she was a businesswoman. I learnt part of that from her. Majorly, I was determined that I wanted to be a businesswoman when I grow up and make money for myself.”

Rise and decline of Eleganza

Alhaji Razak Akanni Okoya born on 12th January 1940, started his business in a very small way. With 70 pounds, he began importing and trading in goods from Japan.

Okoya’s first wife, Kuburat Okoya inadvertently gave her husband his first break. She was obsessed with costly jewellery, according to Wikipedia. She imported them at very expensive prices. Okoya was baffled with the cost of the imported jewellery in view of the abundance of the raw material in Nigeria. Since the local demand for jewellery was high, he travelled abroad, bought some jewellery manufacturing machines, brought in some experts, and started manufacturing the jewellery at low costs. The success was phenomenal and this led to a remarkable major break for him. After the establishment of the Eleganza Jewellery brand, the business mogul commenced the importation of shoes in large quantities.

The organisation also went into the manufacturing of pens.

However, the fortunes of the business, after many years, began to dip.

A Deborah steps in

The emergence of Folashade as the superintendent of the business reminds one of the Biblical story of Deborah.

It was one of the darkest periods of the history of ancient Israel. For 20 years, God’s chosen people were under the oppressive rule of foreigners, the Canaanites. All the men of valour had gone weak. No one dared to stand to lead the Israelites to revolt against their foreign oppressors.

But Deborah took up the gauntlet. She influenced Captain Barak to mobilise forces against the Canaanites. And victory was the consequence of her efforts. This biblical story also bore similarity with the strategic intervention of Moremi Ajasoro in saving the Ife people from Ìgbò marauders.

In Alhaji Okoya’s old age, Eleganza Industries Limited had suffered a setback. But by some stroke of genius, the business is on a rebound as Eleganza Industrial City Limited with Folashade as the Managing Director.

The company currently sits on a 35- hectare land at Km 68 Lekki- Epe Expressway, Ibeju Lekki, Lagos.

Eleganza has now become a foremost producer of chairs, tables, school tables, cooling boxes and food warmers, baby diapers, sanitary pads, suitcases, pet bottles and beauty soaps, slippers for both ladies and men, disposables and re-usable products.

The company manufactures over 68 different designs of standard chairs for various organisations including churches, event centres, eateries and hotels.

The plan is not to export the company’s products just to West African countries, but all over the world.

Eleganza is said to have over 2,000 workers now. It has become a classic modern case of a swift trajectory from ashes to smash hits.

Celebrated more for her visibility in the social circle than her cerebral contributions to Nigeria’s industrial renaissance, Folashade has proved that it is indeed possible for a frontline socialite to be an accomplished business icon.

Having done well to rescue the Eleganza business empire, perhaps, her next target is to become the glue that unites the Razak Okoya family. It’s just about time!!!

Honours and titles

Folashade was on 23rd August 2014 conferred Doctor of Science, D. Sc (Honorary Causa) in Business Management and Corporate Leadership by the committee of the European American University.

She also has several chieftaincy titles, which include: Bewaji of Lagos, Otun Aare Iyalaje of Ajiranland, Yeye Oge of Epe Land and Ajisewa of Oke Ona Egba

Quotes from Folashade Okoya

“As you know, repositioning is the key. Eleganza Industries had suffered a major setback over the past years, but it has returned bigger, stronger and better under the name Eleganza Industrial City Limited with premium products at affordable prices.”

“I’ve always looked forward to being a businesswoman. Being married to my husband has added to that. I don’t believe in failing. I get a little bit shy of failure. I don’t want to fail in whatever I tried to do. It’s a is a no-go area for me.”

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/featured/53317/


CC: Crazyman 1forall

Nnamdi Anene, a Customer service strategist, banker and corporate trainer shares his knowledge with makeitglobal.biz on customer service in Nigeria and how to handle troublesome customers.



Do you agree with the saying “customers are always right?”

[b]I’m pretty sure you would want to expect to hear a yes from me, on this. But I will shock you. No. customers are not always right. But they should be treated right.

Let me give a little background perspective to that cliché that has gone rounds for ages.

That statement was actually a slogan or motto credited to three men, Harry Gordon Selfridge, John Wanamaker and Marshall Field. Prior to that time, customers were not given much attention as per excellent customer service, until these men showed up on the scene and enforced that mentality among their staff. It went a long way to change the dynamics of serving customers as members of staff of these stores were trained to see their customers as being right regardless of what they did.

The result? Customers literally flowed in their direction and these brands became super successful and credited their successes to this mindset of customer service.

On the flipside, however, let me also add. Some brands have literally stretched this cliché to extremes, unfortunately, to the hurt of their own staff. And some customers, understanding that these firms uphold this mindset by the book, make extreme demands, cheat staff and seek to get away with it. It is really surprising that some companies today will rather side the customers against their own staff even in clear cases of wrongs done against the staff by these customers. These things exist, sadly.

There has to be a balance. And every company should have a clear policy where their staff should be protected from abusive customers.

So, to put things in perspective, customers are not always right, but they must be treated right, regardless.
[/b]
What are your tips for handling nagging customers?

Every customer-facing professional has to be armed and trained with the needed skills to face their customers.

First things first, the customer-facing professional should have some working knowledge of customer intelligence. This should enable you to profile the customers aright when they approach your desk or office. There are different types of customers out there, and your clear understanding of the personality of the person standing before you would help you serve them appropriately.

For instance, we have the irate customer. This is the guy who is literally angry with everything you do for him. How do you serve such a person in the midst of tension and noise he raises in the business premises?

We also have a friendly customer, who is all happy and jovial. We have the elitist customer. These are your High Networth Individuals (HNIs). You do not serve these customers just anyhow, etc.

A customer facing professional should have what we call ‘de-escalation skills’. These are skills and strategies to effectively deflect tensions. I’d share only a few for want of space and time.

The first thing to use here is the isolation principle. Here, you should smartly isolate that customer into say, an office or a sideways and calmly address the situation. This is used to skillfully starve the customer of the attention they seek from the public. If you don’t do this immediately, you would have a ripple effect on others.

You don’t handle a shouting customer in the midst of everyone else. This works every time. And you would be surprised that the very same person who was boiling awhile ago suddenly becomes all cool.

Another tip to use is to ask smart questions. By asking questions, you give the customer an opportunity to vent. This in itself sends a message to the customer that you are ready to listen to him or her. Truth be told, what most irate customers need is just that…attention. And by asking them to share what exactly made them angry, you’re clearly on their side.

Also, acknowledge the issue. Don’t be evasive about it. Don’t wave it off as though it doesn’t matter. It’s already an issue. So, acknowledge the customer’s complaint. By doing so, you validate the customer’s feelings and that’s very important.

Next off, you apologize. As the receptionist or customer-facing staff of your company, you serve as the shock absorber of your company. When you apologize for the bad experience the customer has just received, it doesn’t necessarily mean you are the reason for the issue. And the customer clearly knows this. It just means you are willing to step in and resolve the issue.

It must be clearly mentioned that in handling a customer who is dissatisfied, communication is key. What you say is as important as how you say it.

In a lesson I handled somewhere, one of the participants shared a terrible experience she had with the staff of a company. The staff obviously in a bid to handle her complaint waved it off as being not too important because of her financial standing with the company. That was a very wrong thing to say. There are words you must never use in resolving complaints with a customer.

Know when to add humour to the equation. A good joke well introduced, helps to calm the already frayed nerves and will help to lighten up the customer who is having a bad day. Don’t work all bottled up. Allow the air to be relaxed so as to resolve the issue expertly.

When you have tried your best to manage the situation and it looks still bleak, expertly bring in a third party. This could be a colleague or better, your supervisor or boss. This third party comes in as a peacemaker who wants to broker peace.

The key thing here is to take action. Be seen doing something. Don’t just acknowledge and do nothing. Nothing appeases a customer as seeing you take action on his or her complaint.

These are only a few of the many other strategies available.

The goal in all of these is that the same customer becomes not only your customer for life but your advert billboard in the market.

How would you rate customer service in Nigeria?

Well, it’s a progressive slope. Things are beginning to pick up gradually, especially with customers’ awareness of their rights

In the past, many customers would readily accept just about anything thrown at them, and even consider a service they paid for a favour done to them, but today, they now demand more from companies.

Also, the advent of social media has turned the table in customer service.

Time was when a complaint by a customer could be ignored by a company, but today, it’s a different ballgame.

Every minute, there are social media call outs of brands that treat customers shabbily. And you know, you cannot ignore these trends. And the reason is obvious. For instance, there are about 3.2 billion social media users worldwide, according to a 2019 report by Emarsys. One wrong mention online can wreck a brand’s image and reputation in the market.

So forward-looking brands are adopting what is known as ‘social listening’ as an effective way of keeping track of all keywords, mentions, and hashtags in the cyberspace.

Are there enough professionals in this line of work?

There are enough personnel in customer service here in Nigeria. By its definition, every person in a company which interfaces with the market is a customer service professional. From the CEO of the company down to the receptionist, even the sales staff. Everyone who meets with a customer out there is technically in customer service.

What we lack, however, are ‘trained’ professionals on the field.

Are there professional courses you can recommend?

Yes, there are lots of courses available both offline and online.

There is a chartered diploma course by the Chartered Institute of Customer Relationship Management (CICRM).

You also have the Customer service training by 1st Degree Consulting, headed by Adegoke Omotola.

There is also the Customer Service Relationship/Customer Service training by ANDAVOY Limited.

You also have the CCXP certification which is an international certification for customer experience professionals.

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/featured/53162/


cc dominique FOD, Puskin, naijacutee

Racoon:
Nice move if implemented but proscribe BH, Fulani Herdsmen first before Almajiri.

Meanwhile, what becomes of the polygamy practice, early marriage/ child bride issue, radical religious indoctrination, among other disturbing issues?

Proscribing AlMajiri is the first step. It is the root of the evil.

I'm just afraid that it might not work or take years to achieve.

The back and forth argument over the issue of the server provided for and cash-backed for the 2019 elections and the uncertainty of INEC’s position makes a laughing stock of Nigeria, the famed giant of Africa and the administration of Muhammadu Buhari which has tried strenuously to put on the toga of an anti-corruption government. In fact, it is as if Nigeria is not a serious country having been portrayed as a country incapable of organizing free and fair elections.








Going by the unending gymnastics with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over the issue of the server promised by the electoral body for central collation of result which has emerged at the Presidential Election Tribunal, it seems that the present INEC is not comfortable with the fact that people are holding it responsible with the organization of the 2019 polls.

Developments at the tribunal on the question of the server, particularly the demand by Atiku Abubakar and his party, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), to be allowed to examine the server to determine some of the results declared by INEC, have shown that the election authority is not comfortable with whether it procured a server or even used it. Today, INEC denies that it had a server, another day; it says that indeed it had one but that votes cast at the presidential elections were not transmitted to the latter. In another breadth, it claims that it only experimented with servers.

Something is indeed wrong with INEC and it seems that within its management there was little or no coordination before or during the elections. It could also be that some interested parties in INEC are telling bare-faced lies to Nigerians whose tax money was used to organize the elections as well as pay regular salaries to officials of the Commission.

The INEC as presently constituted is a drain pipe as Nigerians who voted in the 2019 polls and had high hopes that their votes would count seem to have been shortchanged because the electoral umpire cannot categorically state its position on a number of issues critical to a free, fair and credible election.

The back and forth argument over the issue of the server provided for and cash-backed for the 2019 elections and the uncertainty of INEC’s position makes a laughing stock of Nigeria, the famed giant of Africa and the administration of Muhammadu Buhari which has tried strenuously to put on the toga of an anti-corruption government. In fact, it is as if Nigeria is not a serious country having been portrayed as a country incapable of organizing free and fair elections.

The recent report on the elections by the European Union Observer Mission is also damning to a large extent. In summary, the report aligns with those Nigerians who maintain that the election was anything but free, fair and credible. The EU final report went as far as calling for far-reaching electoral reforms which the Buhari government has vowed to implement. It is doubtful, however, whether the promise of the government can be believed when it keeps people like those currently in INEC on their jobs.

INEC seems to have organized a half-hearted election that a concerned Nigerian recently opined that given the opportunity, the Commission would deny that it was in charge of the 2019 polls that has caused distress and doubt.

Nigerians were given the short end of the stick by INEC. During the elections, many parts of the country were like war theatres as political thugs under the control of influential political leaders were unleashed on innocent citizens in the bid to force them to vote in a particular way for a particular set of politicians and parties. In all this, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), was complicit and INEC looked the other way. Several deaths of innocent Nigerians occurred. The EU report puts it at 58. Other reports say the figure is higher, perhaps reaching a hundred. No election anywhere in the world can be described as free, fair and credible if innocent people died in the process except for those who died in automobile accidents!

The argument on the server, the inability of INEC to allow the election petitioners to access and examine it, means that the result declared by INEC from the president down is not believable and Nigerians may not have got what they expected and deserved in terms of those who occupy public offices today.

In all sincerity, a review of the preparations for the elections and developments in the polity before the polls indicates that the all-important election was designed to fail by those whose duty it was to ensure that Nigerians got free, fair and peaceful elections.

The most important sign that the elections were designed to fail and end in controversy was when President Buhari refused to sign into law, the amended Electoral Act. That President Buhari failure to sign the Act created apprehension among Nigerians and foreigners alike that the President and his party wanted to make organizing the election difficult for INEC which is the reason for the commission’s lack of confidence in explaining its stewardship of the elections.

This is where the Judiciary comes in as the last hope for justice. All Nigerians including those who are being accused of doctoring votes of the opposition candidate and his party in the February 23 2019 presidential election are now at a loss and cannot hold their heads high in celebration of their supposed victory.

In view of the emerging evidence of collusion, lies and outright falsehood about the conduct of the elections and the release of results, everyone now looks up to the Judiciary to determine the truth about who won that election. Also, in many parts of the country, the environment was not conducive for people to vote. Thus, instances of low participation and no-voting were very high casting doubt on the credibility of the election. And with identified violence in as many as 20 states of the federation, one wonders how any credible election could be possible in an atmosphere of violence.

Thus it behoves on the Judiciary to ensure that the cause of justice is served so that those who have come before it would confidently say when its job is done that the truth has come out after a thorough examination of arguments by counsels to the litigants and the evidence adduced.

Mahmud Abubakar, a Sociologist and Public Affairs Analyst wrote from Bauchi.

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/opinion/2019-election-petition-eyes-judiciary/


cc MYND44 OAM4J LALASTICLALA SEUN

Herdsmen have turned virtually the whole of the country into a bedlam. Sokoto, Zamfara are suffocating under the bloody rat-a-tat of their AK47 guns. The Southwest is gasping under the blood-soaked jackboots of these emissaries of tears’ vice colonization of their territory. The other day, they invaded Nsukka, Enugu State town, killing and maiming villagers with gusto. In Benue, we are yet to be told the actual statistics of the farmers they murdered in cold blood. At first, it was claimed that the blockade of their cows’ grazing routes was the culprit of their maniacal onslaught. Gradually, it is occurring to Nigeria that she had lived all these years with psychopaths from Fouta Djallon as neighbours whose core ideology is blood, tears and sorrow.






As one of the two guest lecturers at a June 12, 1993 election commemorative anniversary and celebration of the unique proclamation of the day as Democracy Day in Nigeria by President Muhammadu Buhari, held in Ibadan, Oyo State last week, I walked out of my wont: I showered effusive praises on Buhari for this unique feat. Conversely, I literally asked that hot coal be poured on ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo for his disdain and hatred for the person of MKO Abiola, his classmate at the Baptist Boys High School, Abeokuta. I asked psychologists, political scientists to help posterity by downloading and connecting the missing tissues of Obasanjo’s disdain for MKO before the Otta farmer breathes his last, lest, at his passage, Nigeria still wallows in guesswork as to the real reason why Obasanjo never honoured MKO. In my amateurish psychoanalysis, I have on occasions diagnosed Obasanjo as a modern day African witch. This witch, who traditional Africa believes that, for her to eat her favourite cuisine of the human heart, callously burrows her blood-thirsty teeth through the victim’s kidneys and devours the victim’s liver from his bile-duct, has no place in her heart for mercy. The African witch’s pot of soup is rich in the flesh and entrails of her children, benefactors and close confidants.

Take a study of Obasanjo from the moment he glided into the limelight. Like the witch, he devours those who are close to him and takes delight in being their pall-bearers. Look at Major Kaduna Nzeogwu, his friend and classmate, whose father reportedly used to ask Obasanjo to advise to get married. Unascertained and perhaps unascertainable rumour claims that Obasanjo, privy to Nzeogwu’s plan to strike in the first coup of January, 1966, leaked the plan to federal forces. Again, when Colonel Bukar Suka Dimka and Major General Iliya Bisalla struck and killed General Murtala Muhammed in 1976, Obasanjo escaped the hail of their bullets by a whisker. A frightened Obasanjo, like a coyote with its tails tucked into its furs, ran to the home of Ilesha-born millionaire, S.B. Bakare where he holed up till the coup was quelled and he was named the Head of State. Bakare was one of the first victims of Obasanjo’s 3-year Head of State-ship.

Then, look at his first wife, Remi, who stood by him through thick and thin of the furnace of rookie soldiering. One day, Obasanjo went to Remi’s house and removed the roof over her head. And this: while in prison on Sani Abacha’s trumped-up treason charges and the goggled General expired mysteriously, General Ibrahim Babangida, Chief SM Afolabi and others gathered to nominate him as Nigeria’s president in 1999. Did you read Babangida’s evocative letter to Globacom’sThe Bull, Mike Adenuga a couple of years ago? I paraphrase the letter – “Mike,they fought, sought to intimidate and harangue you to implicate me without you bulging.” Who was the they? It was Obasanjo who harassed, demonized and even got Adenuga to scamper out of Nigeria to live abroad like a fugitive because he would not yield himself as the crucifix to hang the self-styled military president. Obasanjo had, as Queen Herodias demanded that her daughter, Salome should ask King Herod for the head of John the Baptist, wanted IBB’s head on a platter and needed Adenuga to be his Salome. ReadAwujale of Ijebu’s account of Obasanjo’s macabre craving in his autobiography.

S.M. Afolabi, Obasanjo’s senior in the secondary school, who risked his name to support his presidential candidacy, at a time Obasanjo was a pariah in Yorubaland, Obasanjo personally parceled inside a coffin. Again, check the list of the first set of governors Obasanjo sent Nuhu Ribadu after in 2007; they were his boys who fought Atiku Abubakar to the hilt for attempting to disgrace Obasanjo out of power. Ask Otunba Oyewole Fasawe, one of Obasanjo’s most trusted friends while in power. It was said that Fasawe used to enter the president’s bedroom. Obasanjo eventually smoked his head at the fireplace. There are a thousand and one other victims of our own Witch of Endor.

Having said all that, however, at the lecture, I submitted that we should critically examine the motive of Buhari’s recent fascination with MKO Abiola and June 12. Apart from being one of the major beneficiaries of Nigerian military top brass’ unconscionable annulment of the election as a de jure Head of State, being the Chairman of the Petroleum Trust Fund, (PTF) with its humongous budget and power, Buhari had never been ascribed a quotation in support of the June 12 struggle in 25 years. Underground sources even said he disdained MKO’s temerity to want to become Nigeria’s President. Never did Buhari say a word complimenting that unique democratic struggle and today, further sources claimed that Baba-Gana Kingibe, Al-Mustapha and many other villains of that struggle, are embedded round the seat of power like a boa constrictor enfolds itself round its impala prey. I told my audience that Nigerians should thus be wary of this illogical, unscientific affection for the June 12 course by Buhari, lest it be an affliction in disguise. I also submitted that, in the last couple of years, Buhari and Obasanjo’s disdain for each other has been colossal. Could the June 12 day proclamation be an attempt to finally kill whatever adulation Obasanjo’s kinsmen have for him? Also, it is on record that Buhari has never forgivenIbro – IBB – for snatching his power inheritance in 1985 and slamming him in detention. IBB, you will recall, is perhaps the most brilliant, the most cerebral of the rulers of Nigeria thus far but who got a permanent scar that he will carry to his grave in the June 12 annulment. Could the Democracy Day be the final opportunity Buhari feels he has to pierce the dagger intoIbro’s navel?

Also, I asked my audience: between 1993 and now, is the quality of your life progressing for the better or retrogressing for the worse to warrant us throwing the cymbals in celebration of June 12 today? Should a Nigeria which, in 1993, you could travel round, from Kaura Namoda to Jalingo, from Jalingo to Nkalagu and down to Ilu Abo without molestation, which today has become one where you needed travel advisory before moving within a state or outside it, be one that should evoke praise for a man who, in four years, has worsened the take for the country? I concluded by telling my audience that, in my own estimation, aside its fascinating symbolism, we should weep, rather than celebrate, on June 12.

Herdsmen have turned virtually the whole of the country into a bedlam. Sokoto, Zamfara are suffocating under the bloody rat-a-tat of their AK47 guns. The Southwest is gasping under the blood-soaked jackboots of these emissaries of tears’ vice colonization of their territory. The other day, they invaded an Nsukka, Enugu State town, killing and maiming villagers with gusto. In Benue, we are yet to be told the actual statistics of the farmers they murdered in cold blood. At first, it was claimed that the blockade of their cows’ grazing routes was the culprit of their maniacal onslaught. Gradually, it is occurring to Nigeria that she had lived all these years with psychopaths from Fouta Djallon as neighbours whose core ideology is blood, tears and sorrow.

Key elements in Southern Nigeria have been scampering for the way out of this mid-day subjection of their land into a colony by alien aggressors. South West governors recently met and proclaimed feeble remedies and antidotes. The truth is, none of those folks can raise a finger to help their tormented constituents. Raise a cudgel against cow tenders kith and kin of the C-in-C and risk artillery fire of underground scuds of Aso Rock Villa? Unbeknown to those frantically scampering, seeking remedy to the cow lords’ malady in faraway Sokoto, the antidote to the malady of these bloody re-colonizers is right by their pocket, the sokoto. It is encapsulated in that war study theorem which states that you cannot continue to water the trough of your enemies’ frontiers and expect stoppage of artillery attack on your base. The South has been watering the trough of herdsmen’s frontiers by its stupid and illogical consumption of herdsmen’s cow meats. This is what gives the constant rampaging of the South by the herdsmen a muscle of its own.

What to do? Let the victims begin a concerted campaign against cow meat and a boycott of the killers’ beef. In doing this, it will not be doing anything atypical. Arondizuogu, Imo State-bornMazi Mbonu Ojike (1914 – November 29, 1956) showed the world that we could make ideological statement by boycotting what we have made part and parcel of our being. Ojike was Vice President of NCNC, an Nnamdi Azikiwe staunch acolyte, Deputy Mayor of Lagos in 1951 and later became eastern regional Minister of Works in 1954 and Minister of Finance same year. Between 1947 and 1948, Ojike was General Manager and columnist with Azikiwe’sWest African Pilot, and was renowned for his two columns, Weekend Catechism and Something to Think About with his scathing analyses of issues. Ojike was more famous for his sloganeering of boycott the boycottables where he pioneered the boycott of cloths, food, dress, religion and dances that had no indigenous fervor and, in the process of promoting his own variant of Africanisation, chose a persistency in the consumption of African-produced brands. In place of imported gins, Mbonu consumed palm-wine andabacha, sauced with ugba in place of salad, etc.

So, the victims, from Sokoto to Zamfara, Benue, Nasarawa, to the whole of the South West, can effectively mimic Ojike in this quest to rout their tormentors. In doing this, they must first conduct a medical assessment of this destructive pastime of beef consumption it had engaged in for centuries. How healthy is beef consumption? Medics say that beef is one of the most dangerous foods man injects into his body. Its consumption has been linked with heart diseases, truncal obesity, low immunity and suchlike diseases. Do we know that the herdsmen themselves don’t eat the poison they want to kill the whole of humanity to protect? That is why they live longer, are healthier, thrive in bushes and when their wives give birth, have less obstetric complications, with babies that are smaller and are not delivered through caesarean operations. If the herdsmen can survive without eating their own beef, their victims too can. Like Ojike, local substitutes will readily come handy. Substitutes like bush meat, chicken, cat fish and the like. If this boycott succeeds and no one buys the killers’ cows, there will be no sale of cattle, no cattle colonies and no need for their patron to ban guns procurement by victims who want to protect themselves against rampaging herders. The boycott will ultimately prove to be a more lethal weapon against the tormentors than their AK47.

While writing this, I remembered the General Superintendent of Deeper Christian Life Ministry, Pastor William Kumuyi’s warning to Nigerians to stop criticizing Buhari and other Nigerian leaders. This was contained in his June 2 sermon at the church’s Headquarters in Gbagada, Lagos. Kumuyi’s reason for this admonition, according to him, is in conformity with the biblical admonition that God Himself appoints leaders and frowns at their stricture. Thank God that Nigerians didn’t allow this admonition to grow cold before they gave Kumuyi the back of their tongues. By the admonition, Kumuyi and his pastoral ilk merely wanted to continue flourishing their flock of morons and zombies, like the herders. For decades, this same Kumuyi decreed that his adherents should abstain from watching television, claiming it was the footstool of Satan. Today, it is this same television with which he conducts his global televangelism. You can draw an episcopal parallel to this obviously lax thought in the One Love Family head, Sat Guru Maharajji’s recent call on Buhari to make him Minister of Petroleum. What these spiritual leaders or herders crave is a community of idiots, pliable for their use. They are at home with the hopelessness of decades that governmental leaders inflict on the people because it is in the hopelessness that their flocks will increase, with more cash and a fleet of jets to cruise the whole wide world. Kumuyi should be told that that biblical admonition rests on the prong of leaders who were voted or selected by the people themselves. Nigerian leaders select themselves in their appointed conclaves and are not representatives of the people. Does he realize that the few developmental mileages Nigerians have got from their so-called leaders were got through agitations and protestations? Our leaders are, apology to writer, Ifeoma Okoye, men without ears.

A common thread links the need for us to boycott cow meats with the need for Nigerians to, for a minute, act like rational beings and not a community of cows. As rational beings, let us lift the veil and go beyond the veneer of Buhari’s June 12 day as Democracy Day. When you now situate this side by side Kumuyi’s doggerel, you will see that all that Nigerian leaders and their episcopal accomplices want is a cowed country or a country of cows.

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/opinion/boycotting-killers-bloody-beef-kumuyis-cow-country/

The Federal Government says Nigeria is projected to become a net exporter of refined petroleum products with its 7BigWins initiative.

According to a document released by the  Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resource, the initiative which was launched in 2016 under the chairmanship of the immediate past Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu,  has the overall objective of putting  “working structures in place towards broadening the activities of the oil and gas industry, moving it beyond mere crude oil export by adding value through refining and petrochemicals production”.

The initiative, the document says,  is anchored on seven objectives of Policy Regulations, Business Environment and Investment Drive, Gas Revolution, Refineries and Local Production Capacity, Niger Delta and Security, Transparency and Efficiency and Stakeholder Management and International Coordination.One of the achievements of the initiative so far, under the leadership of Kachikwu, according to the document, is the ease of availability of petroleum products.


It is also stated that the oil and gas sector is being turned around through strengthening of the oil and gas institutions, appropriate ICT and automation and proper performance management.Other steps being taken are  efficient communication strategy, fostering of stakeholder relations and management, and strengthening of  international energy relationship and bilateral cooperation.


Speaking on the positive  developments in the petroleum sector,    Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources,  Dr Folashade Yemi-Esan, said the Buhari administration ushered in a new dispensation in the Ministry that has brought about a synergy between the industry and the Federal Government that was hitherto nonexistent.


“Before 2015, the oil and gas industry had a lot of challenges, especially fuel scarcity, coupled with a lot of distrust because people were not sure of happenings there and there was no transparency.”She added that worse still, there were no clear-cut policies to attract investors.


According to her, the initiative has been structured in collaboration with industry experts and leading organisations such as FOSTER, the European Union and DFID.Dr Yemi-Esan noted that new policies arrived at, have been gazzeted to underline transparency towards  boosting  the  confidence of  investors.


https://www.makeitglobal.biz/top-news/nigeria-exporter-petrol-7bigwins-fg/


Cc naijacutiee dominique puskin foj

A protege of the National Leader of the ruling All Progressives  Congress, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and former Chairman of Amuwo Odofin Local Government area of Lagos State, Mr Ayodele Adewale, has urged the Federal Government to constitute a special panel to determine the actual value of the assets of late winner of June 12, 1993 Presidential election, MKO Abiola frozen by the military government.

Adewale said the call for the assessment of the real value of MKO’s assets, which he claimed is worth several billions of dollars, became imperative in view of the strong need for the government to compensate MKO’s family and others affected by the military clampdown on agitation for the actualization of the mandate freely, fairly and overwhelmingly given by Nigerians.

The call also came ahead of the first official celebration of June 12 as Nigeria’s Democracy Day in honour of Abiola’s June 12 mandate on Tuesday and last week’s revocation of the oil licence of Summit Oil, a company founded by MKO Abiola over legacy debt.

Speaking in an interview with www.makeitglobal.biz, Adewale said though President Muhammadu Buhari deserved to be commended for making efforts to right the wrongs as far as June 12 was concerned, he should nonetheless go a step further to pay reparation for the deliberate act of injustice meted to MKO and his associates.

“MKO’s money really cannot be quantified because you have to look at the interest it must have accrued all of these years. MKO was a member of the Paris Club and he had so many pounds sterling, dollars foreign exchange accounts and Naira accounts and so on. All of these accounts were grounded. So, it is for the Department of State Security (DSS), Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI) to really do that because they have details of all the accounts and even the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Since they have all the accounts, what we are appealing to the Buhari administration is that just as they did to the Biafran soldiers whereby they brought out all the records and paid them; similarly for the Nigerian Airways Staff and some other pensioners, we are also appealing that he should do the same thing for the Abiola family directing the CBN to produce all the Abiola accounts that were frozen and also pay them in the current rate with interest.“It is important for the Federal Government to do this especially looking at the assets that were destroyed as a result of the government’s action like Concord, Wonder Loaf,  Abiola Bookshop,  Volkswagen, Abiola Farms and so many of his properties that were taken away.

“We appreciate what the Buhari administration is doing by righting the wrongs in the Nigerian history but we also appeal to him that he should please, beyond giving MKO Abiola the GCFR, and honouring June 12 and Alhaja Kudirat Abiola, they should pay reparation; they should inaugurate a special committee which will comprise of members of the Abiola family, officials of CBN, DMI, DSS and office of the President to look into it and work out reparation for the Abiola family, especially for the children of Kudirat Abiola who lost both their father and mother and of course all the unsung heroes that were unjustly killed during the June 12 episode,” he said.

Adewale said aside the direct clampdown on MKO and his investments, there were those who became incapacitated as a result of bullet wounds during the struggle, while many of his business associates suffered similar fate.Asked to put a specific amount to MKO’s assets affected, Adewale who was an active participant in the June 12 struggle, said: “I’ll do a disservice to the spirit of Abiola and to Nigerians to do that. Like I said, for somebody to be a member of the Paris Club, you should know how wealthy he was.

The richest black man in the world today, Aliko Dangote was a mere boy to Abiola when he was alive. You should understand what I mean by that. If you put the Femi Otedolas of this clime and all of them together, they were not having 10 per cent of Abiola’s wealth as they have today and so you can imagine how wealthy Abiola was.“It is important for the Buhari government to do this. You see, people have forgotten that members of Abiola’s family are seriously suffering.


You would be amazed that some of Abiola’s children were rescued from under the bridge in Lagos and this was a man that laid his life for the country for us to have democracy that some people in the National Assembly and some Governors are mismanaging today. Even, one of Kudirat’s children, was kidnapped and not found till tomorrow,” Adewale said.

Adewale who has a robust credential in pro-democracy activism, was also a mobilisation and liaison officer for the late Chief Anthony Enahoro led Pro-National Conference Organisation (PRONACO).

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/nigerian-news/abiolas-frozen-assets-billions-dollars-tinubus-protege/


Cc MYND44 OAM4J LALASTICLALA SEUN

By Festus Adedayo




I have this hunch that by the time President Muhammadu Buhari leaves office after his second term, there may either be no Nigeria as properly so called or the nagging questions of our existence would have led to the ultimate violent resolution of our identity and leadership crises. Two issues that cropped up during the week that just ended cemented this haunch of mine.

One was the establishment of the radio station by the Federal Government which is said to be principally devoted to Fulani herdsmen; the other being ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo’s antagonistic engagement of and with what he called the Fulanization of Nigeria and Africa by Boko Haram, as well as his activist pronouncements in recent time. The increase in Fulani herdsmen’s incursion into the South West and the ease with which hopelessness is seizing the land like a pestilence, that culminates in young men and women taking their own lives, are the morbid icing on this cake of sorrow. Already, the Katsina State government has literally cancelled the May 29 celebration because bandits have almost taken over the President’s state.




At the Anglican Synod of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) Oleh, Delta State last weekend, Obasanjo shouted a decibel higher than his earlier trenchant opposition to the Buhari government. According to him, if the Federal Government appeased Miyetti Allah with N100 million as is being circulated, it should appease other ethnic groups in the country with same amount of money, after all, the presidency said there was no difference between these notorious herders andAfenifere, as well asOhanaeze Ndigbo.

Buhari’s media machine, spearheaded by that inveterate propagandist, Minister of Information Lai Mohammed, launched into an uncouth diatribe against the former president, accusing him of “spreading divisive agenda at the twilight of his life.” Some other veterans of the Nigerian civil war, who know the import of this war-without-warriors that is being fought on the soil of Nigeria, have spoken in support of Obasanjo. Former governor of the defunct Western State, Maj.-Gen. David Jemibewon, (rtd) and Col. Theophilus Bamigboye (rtd), former Military Administrator of Bauchi and Osun states, literally told Muhammed and his boss to shut their traps.

Perhaps the most foreboding support of Obasanjo was the one that came from the unusual flank of Nobel Laureate, Prof Wole Soyinka.“We should be careful not to be too dismissive over the matter. The Federal Government is leaving aside the substance, which is the high level of kidnapping, youth suicide and terrorism in the country. I support unity in Africa but we need to particularize the area of unity we seek. Even Boko Haram also tries to unify everybody.

“When you talk about Uthman Dan Fodio, what comes to people’s mind is threat to dip the Koran into the Atlantic Ocean. There are many people in this controversy. My feeling is that the response of Minister of Information shows that they are leaving behind the substance, and worried about the language. Obasanjo was calling for a meeting to tackle some of the serious issues in the country, including youth suicide. He said there are immediate needs to sit down and discuss these issues. And I am saying there are more immediate needs to do that,” he said.

If you read through the lines of the recent statements by Obasanjo, they will clearly pass as ones made at moment of purgatory or penance. Since his enlistment into the Nigerian Army in 1958, Obasanjo has been a serious advocate and devotee of the Nigerian god of nationalism, defending the interest of the North when it conflicted with the South. It was not surprising that when his friend, Murtala Muhammed, was assassinated, the Northern military oligarchs, represented by Generals Domkat Bali, Theophilus Danjuma and others, felt very comfortable with him as the Head of State. Perhaps as a payback, Obasanjo felt no qualms in demonizing his kinsman, Obafemi Awolowo and handing over power to the scions of the north who were magnanimous enough to hand over power to him “on a platter” in 1976. In 1999 when it was obvious that if the North did not cede power to the South, there would be a massive revolt, Obasanjo was still the most trusted ally the North felt most comfortable to invest power with. And for eight years, he did not rock their boat, pandering to the whims of the north at critical intersections. The truth is, seldom would the South or even the West claim, in the real sense of it, that it had a presidency of its own in the Obasanjo presidency.

One word Obasanjo never wanted to hear was Awolowo’s preachment that you had to have an ethnic identity before you have a national identity. In other words, you cannot just be a Nigerian from the blues; you have to first be a Yoruba, a Hausa or Igbo before the latter Nigerian identity.

Now, apology to Chief Sam Mbadiwe, push is coming to shove and the guest who overstayed his welcome, according to the Yoruba wise-saying, is being shown the last cut of the yam tuber as the only meal left at home. It is time for the guest to return to his father’s house. And Obasanjo is returning to the home he had always desecrated. When Awolowo sought to fortify his people and their development, Obasanjo spearheaded attacks on him as an ethnicist. Now, in his very before, as they say, Obasanjo can see children of those he relentlessly fought their battles, with the connivance of our own children sired definitely not by our father – I forgot now what they call such children! – raining abuses on him for standing by the truth of our ancestry.

When Obasanjo stood by and abetted Murtala Muhammed, a known hater of every other tribe aside his own Hausa ancestry, who unconscionably massacred Igbo in their hundreds in Asaba, including Maryam Babangida’s father, he was acting within the confines of war. Now, a Muhammed incarnate, Muhammadu Buhari, is prosecuting the agenda of his ethnic Fulani people and an Obasanjo, who had always been an efulefu (traitor) of the Southern agenda, is riled. This same Buhari had earlier before he became president attacked the Goodluck Jonathan government for being unfair to the North in its rout of the dreaded Boko Haram. Nobody said a word. Now, Fulani, a very tiny fraction of Nigeria’s over 350 ethnic groups, is going to have a radio of its own, financed by the collective Nigerian purse and Obasanjo is raising hell.

Miyetti Allah and its herder compatriots were killing Nigerians in their hundreds and Buhari was concocting all manner of theories to legitimize their onslaughts; nobody spoke. Now, same poeople are on our lands, kidnapping and killing us and demanding N100 billion of our money to stop attacking us and the whole country is crying blue murder. Where was Obasanjo and the likes when all these were happening?

In all these, I see a resolution of our national crises coming soon, faster than we imagined. We may just start counting who the last Nigerian President will be. Like the holy writ says, when you see the fig tree’s branch become tender, with its branches sprout and start putting out leaves, you should know that summer is near. In the same vein, I think the end has surely come. Since I was old enough to access public comments of eminent Nigerians, Soyinka and Obasanjo had never come to agreement over any issue, no matter how nationalistic or developmental the issue may be. Over this issue of the notorious blood-baying Fulani herders and the unceasing violence and killings under the Buhari government which have become so scary that we have to seek travel directory to move from any point to the other, even in the erstwhile tranquil West, the two kinsmen are in amity. Let us look towards the dark firmament – the resolution we seek is nigh.



Your Excellency, have you gone to the Ipebi?

In about 80 hours from now, the four-yearly ritual of swearing in men into the sacred office of governor of Nigerian states will commence. Like in all rituals, regard would be had to precedents or what Yoruba call isese. As the oath taking progresses, the Chief Judge is decked in his ceremonials, reciting some poetic-sounding sentences, expected to be joined in a refrain by the excited new occupant of the stool. If you have ever been to one, in form and content, the oath-taking reminds you of the propitiations made in traditional Yoruba ancient Ogun shrine. A beheaded goat is firmly held by the Chief Priest, blood dripping from the dismembered head of the hapless animal as the inductee excitedly observes the regimented process. The Chief Priest then recites some ancient incantations which the inductee choruses after him. In a short while, the process is completed, shouts of excitement rend the air. Sworn abidance by the codes is assured and celebration follows.

On May 29, a regurgitation of this Ogun groove process will take place in many Nigerian state capitals. Unlike the latter however where attendance is restricted to a clique of worshippers, millions of people will troop out in their Sunday best to witness this exercise. The pomp and ceremony that attend it can be likened to the yearly masquerade festival the Yoruba call the Odun Egun. Before those jealous religions of Islam and Christianity divested adherents and communities as a whole of this yearly celebration, Odun Egun was like a saturnalia that every community looked forward to.

Sorry, I digressed. On May 29, there will be intense competitions to imprison the hearts and minds of the new governors, literally and metaphorically. Hundreds who crave appointments or contracts in the government that is just coming into being will muscle one another for their attention. The celebratory atmosphere will be reminiscent of the lowering of the Union Jack. People are already excited at the imminent departure of an immanent tormentor, a Lawrence Anini who, for four or eight years, stole their wealth blind but, in most instances, unbeknown to them, they are welcoming the arrival of a greater tormentor-in-chief and Ali Baba. From the Nigerian experience in the last 20 years of this democratic practice, it is obvious that, save for its frills, oath-taking and merriment, on a four yearly basis, Nigerians merely exchange some colonizer for another. So why is it that, so soon thereafter, the excitement, the expectations, the invested hopes, the projections, the lustering promises made to us at campaign podia, explode in our faces like balloons? And why is it that, in spite of the periodic explosions and deliberate stabbing of our hearts, our incurable optimism still takes us to the swearing-in venue every four years, only for us to repeat this unpleasant ritual in the next four years?

Permit me this short spell of immodesty: having closely observed two governors pre, during and post-governorship since 2003, I know what goes wrong between May 29 and the day after; the transformation of the pleasant, ideas-filled, development-oriented and passionate political leader pre-office into a behemoth, roundly criticized and generally unappreciated leader at point of exit. It is the brass-tacks of this sudden change that I intend to discuss today as a sequel to the one I did last week which concentrated majorly on the fate that awaits governors who are statutorily being bundled out of office in the next few hours. It is hoped to serve as a lesson to the next occupants of this sacred office.

One very key process which a holder of an office of this magnitude needs to undergo is what I call the humbling process. The governor-to-be needs to encounter the office he is about coming into mentally, shred it into ample sizes in his mind and develop a handy mental prospectus which he will carry about with him in the next four years. What do I mean? Between the day he is proclaimed governor by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the morning of May 29 when he will undergo that ritual of swearing in, he needs to confront the office, download it and draw a mental graph of how he wants to navigate its nebulous geography. If he makes the mistake of leaving this task till when he eventually occupies the office on May 29, he will wake up lost and may not be able to keep pace with the flowing river of the office he is coming into.

Apparently aware of the importance of this humbling process, Yoruba traditional society makes its princes nominated as kings to go through it. After the rigorous exercise of selection by either the oracle or kingmakers, or even both, the prospective king will undergo a usually three months period of seclusion in a sacred place called the Ipebi. It is a place where ancient rituals take place and which a prospective Yoruba traditional ruler must undergo. It is a rigorous process of self-denial, restrictions and seclusion, including sometimes sleeping on a bare mat. Apart from the meticulous training in the custom, tradition and practices of his people at theIpebi, this period is for the prospective king a moment of spiritual communing with ancestors, both recent and ancient, who had earlier occupied that stool and are expected to metaphysically impact in him the paths they trod to success and to ruins. He will learn the history of the town, the requirements of Obaship and the etiquettes of the stool. Some Yoruba Oba-to-be are taken through theOsugbo shrine (chamber of highest spiritual authority) and there is a rumour that they are made to eat the heart of their predecessor therein. In totality, the Ipebi is the place where the king-to-be encounters the office, is taught about its dynamics and how to plot the graph of his kingship. United States of America has its own Ipebi in the Ivy League schools that virtually all American Presidents attend and the Camp David they periodically retreat to for spiritual retooling.

Any of the heirs apparent to the governorship stool to be sworn into office on Wednesday who hasn’t encountered the office by now or hasn’t gone into his own personal Ipebi will fail. Going into your personal Ipebi is resolving that you are going into the sacred office to leave eternal footprints. If your resolve on the office is that your time has come to amass wealth and deal with your enemies, you have failed ab initio. This is because, you will soon find out that the office of the governor is one of the most vain top offices in the land. The statutes creating it, the powers ascribed to it are such that they make a god of man. Adulators and fawners will make you look like a superhuman. You will soon find out that that that Government House is one huge prison and you are like the captive inside the dark cave of the Plato allegory. Governors are seldom told the scorching truth that singes their flesh. The new governor is one to remind himself that his shit smells like the vagabond on the streets and that he will someday be, like every other man, a recipe for maggots who have no respect for human constituted authority.

If, in the process of his personal Ipebi, that prospective prisoner from May 29 does not acquire a steely resolve on what to do with the office he is coming into, the office will castrate and railroad him. Those he will relate with in the next four years are vultures, vermin, bloodsuckers and characters who have no blood flowing in their veins. Appointees, advisers, contractors, politicians, civil servants and the like whom the governor will encounter won’t do anything for the love of country/state but their acutely insatiable palates. They will also confront a migraine-inducing, difficult-to-assimilate reality, to wit that the people they purport to come to government to liberate – the common man on the streets – actually constitute 75 per cent of the problem of why their state is backward. The governors-to-be will, overall, confront Nigeria in its unclothedness as one huge pool of sewers where ancient maggots and blood-baying crocodiles have festered for ages. You can either be a trail blazer, the unconventional revolutionary or what legal practitioners call the participis criminis(participant in the crime). The choice is yours.

Ancillary to the above is the importance and consequence of the first 100 days in office. You have to forge the character of your government within these days. Americans who formulate the concept are no fools. Within this period, the people are critically watching. Inspire others, especially those who will work with you; repose confidence in them; show honest and purposeful leadership; exude commitment and passion; communicate the office as much as possible; be creative with power, empathize with the suffering of the people and don’t set out wanting to come back for a second time. Most fundamentally, be against-method. If you want to do it like others before you did it, you have failed from the start. I can assure you that if you don’t go to the Ipebi, Your Excellency-to-be, in four years’ time, in you we will mourn yet another great opportunity missed and a man who yet again lost the opportunity to make the difference.

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/opinion/nigerias-last-president/

cc Mynd44 OAM4J Lalasticlala Seun

He is Stephen Adebanji Akintoye, also known as Banji Akintoye, the teacher of teachers. A walking encyclopaedia of History. A dandy of diction. A well of wisdom. A proboscis of brilliance. A totem of intellect. A tendon of integrity. An exemplar of excellence. An edification of dignity. Primus inter pares. And a PATRIOT.







By Remi Oyeyemi

When he set out on his journey for intellectual quest in 1943, the world was not in the position to fathom the magnificence of his brilliance. The world knew that education had great benefits. It knew that with education, one’s horizon could be honed. One’s depth could be deepened. One’s breadth could become boundless. With education, the World knew that anything could be possible.

But when education becomes immersed in unbridled intellect; or becomes pulsated by seminal luminosity; or inured with effulgent resplendence, it elevates to the seventh heaven of intellectual inebriation. An inebriation buoyed by a brilliance perching and sparkling on the pedestal of splendour, unequalled and unrivaled. This, the world came to discover later about him.

A deeper look at the journey from Emmanuel Primary School, Ado- Ekiti, through Christ’s High School, Ado-Ekiti to the then University of London, now University of Ibadan, Ibadan, showed that at every point, at every turn, an inspiring intellectual sagacity, a humbling radiance of brilliance, a marvellously awesome ingenuity, intimidating in its irresistible magnetism has been the hallmark, it has been the trademark, a sort of emblem, the signet of his quest. Becoming distinguished at every point, at every level, at every turn became just a matter of course.

To him, being brilliant could be fairish, a kind of humdrum, very middling, boring in fact, because it is a common place. Yet the awesomeness of his intellect, his brilliance, is just what it is, awesome. His is alarmingly breath taking; delightfully terrifying, fragrantly frightening. Intimidating yet comforting, bullish yet affectionate, bewildering in its buoyance and sublime in its ebullience.

When he discusses History as a subject or of a place, or of a people or of a particular era in the timeline of humanity, his listeners are guaranteed a soulful food that buoys their spirits and beings. His lectures on and in History, are like fountains of life, flooding the firmaments of our fantasies, creating a curative curiosity that coerces our consciousness into a “furnacious” desire to want to be free, to want to know thyself, familiarise with thy trajectory, thy History, and thy heritage bequeathed.

His lectures, in and outside the classroom, for those lucky to have gone through him, are like introduction to addiction. It makes you feel excited. It makes you feel high. You feel afloat, like a spacewalker. And you become hungry. Ravenously so, because you want more. You are transported from the environment of your consciousness to witness in your imaginations, centuries of heroism, villainy, building of kingdoms and empires and the destruction of others.

It could be about the Chinese. Or the Indians. Or the Europeans. It could be about the North America; or Canada. It could have been about South American countries of Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Paraguay and or any of the adjoining countries. It could be about the Caribbean countries, their travails and triumphs. It could be about the paths paved by the Pharaohs, the authentic Negroid ones or the vicissitudes of the peoples of the African continent.

It could be about revolutions and political systems. It could be about social changes and the factors that enabled them. It could be about developmental History of any people of any Nation around the planet. He seems to know it all. And when he speaks, especially off the cuff, and you watch him, as you listen to him, one feels the aroma of a beautiful and irresistible champagne that has been centuries old. One becomes calmly excited and helplessly drunk on the knowledge disemboweled. One becomes quietly crippled by curiosity and stupefied by details that would have eloped from the memories of others.

The suction of the diction, the phonetics and phonemics, the inflection and intonation, the eloquence and elocution marinates you in phonological and philological pensiveness. One is transmuted into blissful delirium, taken into the boundless boundaries of paradisiac haven. The substance, always arresting, was often delivered in a beautiful and thrumming language.

And when the subject is even Yoruba History, it becomes something special. It becomes ethereal. It becomes divine. It becomes celestial. It becomes a different thing entirely. Unwittingly, you glow with unconscious attestation to the valiance, gallantry and the courage of your forebears. You imagined their mistakes and you become a born – again patriot. You become a born again true born. Without you knowing it, you, as a matter of course, exude with marinating pride.

With your arms extended and shaped like that of a crab, you begin to walk around with your head held high having discovered more of yourself, more of your being, more about your ancestors, your forefathers, the progenitors of your race. You become imbued with a more solidified self-esteem. You become educated, in the real sense of it.

His book, “A History of the Yoruba,” is sans pareil of its genre. It is the finest and most complete in its encapsulation of and on Yoruba as a people, as a Race and as a Nation before and since Samuel Johnson’s “A History of the Yorubas from the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the British Protectorate.” Samuel Johnson was an Oyo Prince, a grandson of Alaafin Abiodun Adegorolu just like him, who is an Ado-Ekiti Prince.

The book by this teacher of teachers, is the manifestation of rigorous, meticulous, exacting, focused, ascetic and severely organised intellect. I had come across the transcript in his Hatfield, Pennsylvania home in the US, while rummaging through his Library. The materials that stared at me as I flipped through the pages gushed with rigour of hard work, richness of resources, depth of dedication, tantalizing intellect and brimming brilliance.

As one of the privileged few to read the transcript before it went to the press, one could easily fathom the amount of sweat that went into such humongous product. The prodigious intellect and the stupendous brilliance that went into that work was discernible and decipherable. A work of 35 years of research via reading, travelling, interviews, archeology, arts, musicology, linguistics, folklore et al. If you want to have credible knowledge about the Yoruba Nation and its peoples, go and buy a copy.

You will also be doing yourself a great favour, if you would seek out “Ife: Before Oduduwa,” another seminal work of research by this great mind. You would be greatly rewarded for doing so. You would be disabused of unfounded tall tales trolling around. You would be able to separate mythology from authentic History.

Looking at his curriculum vitae, one did not even have any idea of how to refer to him. Would it have been alright to call him a “Prince,” which he is; or a “Pastor” as which he has distinguished himself? Would it have been right to call him a “Professor,” as which he has been eminently edified? Or would it had been better if one calls him “Senator” which he was in the Second Republic and during which period he turned enemies and detractors to friends and admirers because of his transcendent brilliance on the floor of the Senate?

To be honest, to delve into his records would be a titanic task. But one could easily avail the readers the fact that he has taught 18 different subjects in History. He supervised Doctoral students for 16 years. He has held 27 different positions in different Universities in Nigeria and abroad. He has held 16 Public Offices. He has held 5 different position in different churches. He has published 10 different chapters in different Joint Works. He has published articles in 7 Academic Journals. He has published 7 books. He has delivered 23 research papers at seminars across the world.

In 1970, the Ministry of Education, Western State of Nigeria requested him, to prepare for the Ministry, scripts and teachers’ notes in African History for the use of Nigerian Secondary Schools and Teacher Training Colleges during the School year of 1971. The scripts and notes were to cover the later periods of the School Certificate syllabus in African History. “African in the 19th and 20th Centuries”. He prepared these materials under the general title of “Emergent States of Africa”.

Under this general title, he set out 28 topics, and prepared a main script and a “teachers notes” on each topic. The main scripts were broadcast as radio lessons by the Ministry of Education to Nigerian Secondary Schools and Teacher Training Colleges throughout Nigeria. Following demands by the teachers and their students to the Ministry and to him that the scripts be published, the Ministry began to serialize them in 1972, in its school’s journal, Pupil. In 1972-73, under a programme of International cooperation between Kenya and Nigeria, the Kenyan Broadcasting Service broadcast the scripts to Kenyan schools.

Consequent on the success of the 1971 program, the Ministry asked him again in 1972 to prepare a similar program in the second history syllabus of the West African School Certificate – “West Africa from 1500-1800” – for use in the 1973-74 school year. This, under the general title of “West African Kingdoms and empires in Pre-colonial times” was also made up of 28 thirty-minute lessons that were broadcast one per week throughout the 1973-74 school year.

He was a member of the panel of historians set up in 1969 by the Nigerian Federal Government to assemble, and advise on the preservation of, the documentation of the recent history of Nigeria, especially the history of the Nigerian Civil War 1967-70. From 1968 to 1972, the History Department, Obafemi Awolowo University charged him with the duty of building up the facilities for a new course entitled “History of the U.S.A.”. This course has been regularly taught in the Department since then. In 1981-90, he was appointed by UNESCO as member of the International Scientific Committee on a ‘General History of Latin America’.

As Director of the Institute of African studies at University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University, he directed the designing, organization, promotion, funding and supervision of collaborative, inter-departmental, and individual research in a broad spectrum of African Studies: History, Art History, Archaeology, Musicology, Linguistics, Folklore, and Cultures of the African Diaspora.

He was member, Nigerian National Archives Commission, 1970-78. Member, Nigerian Museums & Antiquities Commission, 1975-79. Member, Nigerian National Council for Arts & Culture. Special Adviser, Nigerian Delegation to the Inter-governmental Conference on Cultural Policies in Africa, Accra, Ghana, 1975. Secretary, National Committee for Nigerian Cultural Policy, 1976-78. Assistant National Secretary, Unity Party of Nigeria, 1978-83.

As a Senator of the Federal republic of Nigeria, 1979-83, he was member, Foreign Relations Committee of Senate: member, Senate Committee on Petroleum & Energy; member, Internal Affairs Committee of Senate. He was also Chairman, Senate Delegation to the United Nations Peace-keeping Force in Lebanon, 1981; member, Nigerian National Delegation to the 1981 General Assembly of the United Nations Organization. He was a Nigerian Delegate to World Conference on Actions Against Apartheid, London, 1981 and member, Nigerian Senate Delegation on Fraternal Visit to the Soviet Union, 1982. He was also the Commissioner for Health, Ondo State, Nigeria, 1983-4.

Immersed in activism from birth, he has been unable to extricate himself from the binding cords of activism dedicated to the improvement of Nigeria in general and the Yoruba Nation in particular. From his days at the University of Ibadan to now, he has been a constant fighter for the improvement of his people. He was President, All-Nigeria United Nations Students Association (ANUNSA), 1958-1960 and Nigerian Delegate at the General Conference of the International Students Movement for the United Nations (ISMUN), Lund Sweden, 1960. He was the First International Vice-President, International Students Movement for the United Nations (ISMUN), 1960-63 (elected at the General Conference in Lund, Sweden, 1960).

He was the Secretary-General, Nigerian Committee of the World University Service, 1958-1961. He was Nigerian Delegate, Second Pan-African Students Conference, Tunis, 1959. Nigerian delegate, World Assembly of the World University Service, Tutzing, Germany 1960 and Leader of Nigerian Delegation, East, West and Central African Students Conference, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 1960. At the International Seminar on the United Nations Organization, Ibadan, 1960, he was the Chief Host as President of the All-Nigeria United Nations Students Association. He was also the Special Guest, Council for Leaders and Specialists, U.S. State Department, Washington, D.C., March – August 1971.

He was the Leader of Visiting Team on Research Project, ‘African Diaspora’, Bahia, Brazil, 1975. He presented the major paper, at the Seminar on ‘The Military in African History’, Accra, Ghana, 1975. He was the presenter of the lecture at the Seminar in Honour of Leopold Sedar Senghor, Dakar, Senegal, 1975. He was a Nigerian Delegate, World University Service Seminar, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong 1976 and Leader, Nigerian Delegation, World University Service World Congress, Manilla, Philippines, 1976.

He was a Nigerian Senate Delegate on Official Visits to Countries of West Africa, 1980. Special Guest, UNESCO Seminar on ‘African Contributions to the History of the Americas’, Barbados, 1980; to United Nations Annual Conference, New York, USA, 1980; to Morocco, 1981; to the Soviet Union, 1981; to Argentina, 1981; to Indonesia, 1982; to Taiwan, 1982 and to India, 1982. He was Guest Speaker, Institute of International Relations & National Security, Seoul, South Korea, 1982.

A first class patriot of the highest order, I have watched him cry, yes, shedding silent bitter tears in the glare of all present, on the geometric degeneration of the Yoruba Nation into an unmitigated miasma, at an occasion in Wilmington, in the State of Delaware, United States in 2013. Pierced to the marrows by the poisonous effluvia permeating and pervading the Yoruba polity, the pains of unfulfilled dreams of what the Yoruba Nation could have been was always patently inscribed on his demeanour.

He does not fear to say that the Yoruba nation is too industrious to be poor, and that the massive poverty now existing among Yoruba people is a product of the fact that Nigeria has been dragging the Yoruba nation down. He also does not fear to say that he himself would be ready, if and when the time is right, to give his support and energy, in this his old age, to serious efforts at the liberation of the Yoruba nation from its present imprisonment in Nigeria.

In spite of his age, at 83, he remains a voice of hope to a dejected and dithering Yoruba Nation. He is one voice of clairvoyance and courage that keeps soldiering on. He has intractably, kept close to his roots in academia, spoken to student classes in some universities, and served as convocation lecturer at some university and polytechnic graduation convocations. “I cannot cease researching and writing”, he often says; and those close to him are aware that he is always working on some important writings and books.

He is Stephen Adebanji Akintoye, also known as Banji Akintoye, the teacher of teachers. A walking encyclopaedia of History. A dandy of diction. A well of wisdom. A proboscis of brilliance. A totem of intellect. A tendon of integrity. An exemplar of excellence. An edification of dignity. Primus inter pares. And a PATRIOT.

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/opinion/akintoye-a-teacher-of-teachers/

cc RICHIEZ FYNESTBOI OLAWALEBABS

Umar, an International Affairs analyst wrote in from Kano.


When the news broke at the Presidential Elections Tribunal that the legal team of All Progressive Congress (APC) led by Lateef Fagbemi SAN, had raised question over the nativity/ nationality of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate in the 2019 Presidential elections Alhaji Atiku Abubakar – claiming that he (Atiku) is not a Nigerian but a Cameroonian, one was tempted to ask if the APC team of lawyers are really familiar with the political history of Nigeria and Cameroon.

The legal team of the APC needs to note that Nigeria and Cameroon are located on the West Coast of the Continent of Africa. Both of them share common political and economic institutions as part of the British West Africa. Nigeria with population of over 180 million covers a land area of 924,630 KM extending from the Gulf of Guinea in the South to Niger and Chad Republics in the North. It shares common border with the Republic of Benin on the West and the Republic of Cameroon on the East. Cameroon, on the other hand, is a relatively smaller country both in landmass and population. The population of Cameroon is estimated at 24 million occupying an area of 475,442 Km. Cameroon shares borders with the Republic of Chad on the North; with the Central African Republic on the North-West; with the Republic of Gabon and the People’s Republic of Congo on the South and with Nigeria on the West.

Boundary development between Nigeria and Cameroon cannot be traced in isolation of events in the entire African continent between 1830 and 1960.

Looking at the boundary development between 1920- 1960, at the end of the first Word war, with the humiliation of Germany, all her African possessions were lost. They became mandate territories to the advantage of the British and the French. The League of Nations which emerged apportioned the Western area of Cameroon (North and South) to Britain which was ruling Nigeria. In addition, the British gained Tangayika (in Tanzania) and jointly ruled the Sudan with the Egyptians who had attained independence in 1922. France on her part gained the larger chunk of Cameroon (Eastern Cameroon) and Togo.

Naturally this partitioning was not kindly received by the people of Cameroon as some resistance movements emerged. At the same time, resulting from the presence of the Pan African Movements and other “enlightened” clamouring for independence to be granted to all colonized people in Asia, Latin America and Africa. And under the auspices of the United Nations which succeeded the League of Nations, all mandates territories in Africa in 1946, became Trusteeships. As a result, the Mandate territories of British Cameroon and French Cameroon were Trusteeship until 1960. That, with the pressures from groups within Cameroon, particularly, the Union Populaire Camerounaise (UPC) and from within the United Nations, Britain and France were forced to grant independence or self-rule to the people of the Cameroons.

As a result, in 1957, the French Cameroon became internally self-governing. And in January 1960, it was granted Independence. So as also was Nigeria (not a Trusteeship, but with British Cameroon still a part of it) in October 1960.

However, in 1958, before Nigeria’s independence, the United Nations had to decide the fate of the trusteeship territory of British Cameroon. Administratively, both the Northern and Southern sections of British Cameroon were integral part of Northern and Eastern Nigeria respectively. But in 1954, a minor administrative change made the Southern section a separate region in the Nigerian Federation. The change was necessitated by a series of complaints of political neglect and lack of proportional representation in the Eastern Assembly by people of British Southern Cameroon. This further prompted the United Nations to send a visiting mission. The visiting mission after an intensive tour discovered that though British Cameroon was supposed to be a single trusteeship, there were separate developments – politically and economically – between the North and South. Most noticeable was the difference in political activation. The South was more politically activated. The mission therefore recommended that plebiscites should be held for the people to determine their own future. In the first of such plebiscites in 1959, the population of the North voted to continue trusteeship . Whereas in the South the population was divided between the choice of re-uniting with Cameroon or uniting with Nigeria.

And in the plebiscites which were finally conducted in 1961, the North voted by a margin of 146, 296 to 97,659 to remain with Nigeria, while the South with a margin of 233,571 to 97,741 voted to re-unify with independent Cameroon. As a result, by October 1, 1961, border adjustment was made with Nigeria retaining (please underline the word: retaining) the former Northern Cameroon, and this section constitutes former Adamawa Province where the former Vice President Alhaji Atiku Abubakar was born. Of course, Cameroon Republic retained the former Southern Cameroon. The two countries had therefore, inherited with few adjustments the boundaries delineated by former Western Imperial powers. And these delineations were largely boundaries set out by various agreements between Britain and Germany before 1920.

This excursion into history has really set the record straight concerning the nativity of Atiku Abubakar as a result of the existence of Pacta sunt servanda which means that every agreement entered by parties must be respected and be kept as a basic principle of civil law, canon law, and International Law.

As stated by a respectable elder statesman, Alhaji Tanko Yakasai that it is “strange for leaders of the APC to claim that Atiku is not qualified to seek to be the president of Nigeria. It is a display of ignorance of the highest order on the part of APC, and it is the least among political parties in Nigeria to make such unpatriotic statement.

“There are people sponsored by the party who contested and won elections to elective offices and are, today, occupying such positions. Atiku is equally or even better qualified to hold any public office in Nigeria than some of such people.”

As for Sule Lamido the former Governor of Jigawa State, he made his observations by saying that the debate about Atiku’s nativity/nationality, which started as a hilarious joke is now threading on a very dangerous divisive path, and that “we must all rise to call ourselves to order otherwise the authority we have as a nation within the African Union will be lost”.

Lamido noted that there were already too many cracks in the unity of the country, warning that “if we remain on this line of ethnic, religious and tribal differences the doom of our nation cannot be averted”.

Lamido, Nigeria’s former minister of foreign affairs, also said that his heart is pounding and that he is beginning now to worry about Gaddafi’s prediction of doom about our dear country, that Nigeria will break up one day.

He said: “If we do not like the children of those whose parents chose to join Lord Luguard’s assembled tribal natives called Nigeria, let us allow the former Northern and Southern Protectorates secede to form their own country.

He, therefore, advised that Nigeria needs to be restructured to restore what the country has lost as a nation.

Recently, the Waziri Adamawa, Atiku Abubakar has also come out to debunk the allegation that he is not a Nigerian. Atiku said his father, Garba Atiku Abdulkadir was a Nigerian who hailed from Wurno in present day Sokoto State, while his mother, Aisha Kande was also a Nigerian who hailed from Dutse in present day Jigawa State. And that all his parents are Fulanis – a community/tribe indigenous to Nigeria.

He went further to say that his birth in Jada in the present day Adamawa State was occasioned by the movement of his paternal grandfather called Atiku who was an itinerant trader from Wurno in the present day Sokoto State to Jada in the company of his friend, Ardo Usman.

And his mother Aisha kande was the granddaughter of Inuwa Dutse who came to Jada as an itinerant trader too from Dutse in the present day Jigawa State.

Now that Atiku has cleared the air, it is high time the legal team of the APC concentrated on the real issues of electoral irregularities which Atiku and the PDP claim marred the 2019 presidential election.

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/opinion/atikus-nationality-apc/

Segun Agbaje’s clean-cut, youthful facial features belies his 55 years of age. His trim appearance also exudes discipline and purposefulness. Listening to him speaks volume. Nobody is left in any doubt that intelligence is also an additional quality of this very accomplished banker.

Agbaje, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Guarantee Trust Bank Plc, through quality leadership and innovativeness, has sustained GTB’s momentum of steady growth. Undoubtedly a thoroughbred banker, he has improved the bank’s fortune since he took control in 2011.

Agbaje cuts the image of a polished, elitist executive, an imagery accentuated by a noticeable British accent when he speaks on developments in the banking industry. His serious and preppy carriage has endeared him to some, while he is perceived by others as rather aloof. Perhaps, the singular factor which finds a commonality among observers of the Segun Agbaje brand is his total commitment to elevating GTBank’s status from a leading Nigerian bank determined to establish its pedigree as a reputable international institution, to an African financial power house with enviable global ranking.
His beginnings

In 1964, Olusegun Agbaje was born into the family of Chief Julius Kosebinu Agbaje and Mrs Margaret Olabisi Agbaje. His father was a banker and the mother, a teacher. The young Agbaje had therefore been familiar with the banking profession from a young age. Julius Agbaje, Segun”s illustrious father, ensured his son received quality schooling. For his secondary education, he attended both St Gregory’s College, Obalende, Lagos and St Augustine Academy, Kent, England. St Gregory is reputed for being at par with the best in this clime in terms of sterling tutelage and grooming of young, impressionable minds towards purposeful pursuits in life. Agbaje went further to the University of San Francisco where he obtained a first degree in Accountancy and a master’s degree in Business Administration. He is also an alumnus of the Harvard Business School.

Career Odyssey

To have become an auditor at Ernst & Young (San Francisco branch), Agbaje fired an early warning shot about his desire to reach the pinnacle of his career. Ernst & Young is a gargantuan accounting firm which presently employs about 270,000 people worldwide and is ranked amongst the world’s top four firms in its category. In 1991, Agbaje took a bold step by quitting his job after a two-year stint with the prominent firm and retutned to Nigeria to start a banking career as a pioneer staff of GTB.

Steady rise
Agbaje’s climb to the topmost position at GTB was no sudden leap. He rose through the ranks and fully embraced the bank’s vision and mission from inception.

The various roles he played in upholding GTB’s core values of innovation, building excellence and superior performance, coupled with a commitment to higher return on investment to stakeholders, did not go unnoticed by his predecessors. This stood him in good stead as a candidate for the bank’s top position eventually. As a pioneer staff of no mean repute, he played his part in the earlier groundbreaking innovations championed by the bank. In return, the bank rewarded him with a steady climb on the leadership ladder. He became Executive Director in year 2000 and rose to the post of Deputy Managing Director as far back as 2002. To hone his financial and administrative crafts, Agbaje traversed and supervised almost all the departments in GTBank. When he became Deputy Managing Director, he was in charge of Institutional Banking Division, overseeing the telecommunications, treasury, energy and corporate finance groups. He held the post for eight years before becoming the MD/CEO in June 2011. He has since been piloting the affairs of the bank towards securing for it a permanent spot as a reputable global brand.
Pushing the frontiers

As Deputy Managing Director, Agbaje was the leading force that pushed GTB’s initial Public Offer of N2.5 billion in 2002 and in 2007, he played a role in the actualisation of GTB’s unprecedented $350 million Eurobond offering.

Agbaje, a proponent of the new age banking regime, has since plugged into modern models and opportunities to drive innovative financial services that has continued to attract more customers to GTBank.
He disclosed recently that the bank now boasts over 15 million customers, yet it still aims to spread operations to five more African countries in the next 5 years. Apart from Nigeria, the bank is also in Liberia, Ghana, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Gambia, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda and the United Kingdom.

Under Agbaje, GTBank also pioneered SMS banking by introducing the *737# mobile feature, enabling money transfer through SMS on mobile phones to any account. Call credit cards can also be bought through bank accounts. Other banks have since copied the initiative.
He is very conscious of the very fast changing nature of banking from the rather tedious brick and mortar operations and has been leveraging on data and artificial intelligence, constantly adapting to global trends.

Lately, Agbaje has been paying more attention to the Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, SMEs, with plans to have stand alone groups for small businesses by designing products to meet their needs. The idea is for GTBank to further explore the potentials of SME’s that is presently just above 10 percent of the bank’s deposits and 2 percent of its loan books.
Agbaje says the bank intends to maintain a larger percentage of corporate business, but will grow retail and SMEs over the next three years through a more robust digital technology and strategy. He has thus been pushing for a reduction in data costs to further boost mobile banking services.

In the financial services market place, GTBank has introduced Quick Credit for Customers, GTWorld, GTMobile Apps and the Habari App which offers unique services to customers.
Agbaje’s era since 2011 has witnessed a steady rise in profits for the bank which has continued to offer dividend payments annually. Over N350 billion has been payed out thus far during his tenure. In 2017, the bank declared N79.4 billion as dividend, the highest figure before then in the bank’s history. And GTBank’s share price has also climbed to over 200 percent since Agbaje became the head of the bank.

GTBank Plc’s unaudited financial results for first quarter ending March 31, 2019 shows improved performance over 2018 records across all financial metrics, with earnings increasing by 1.2 percent.

GTBank’s subsidiaries outside Nigeria were able to muster 12 percent of the bank’s profits in 2018, an achievement quite pleasing to Agbaje and his team.
Courtesy of these attainments, that has kept the bank in the lead, Agbaje is named the May makeitglobal.biz remarkable Entrepreneur of the month.
A member of several boards

Agbaje wears many caps with aplomb. He is a board member of Guarantee Trust Bank in United Kingdom, Gambia, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. He is also a Director of MasterCard Advisory Board Middle East & Africa. He has also served as a Director of AXA Mansard Insurance PLC, FBN Quest Merchant Bank and InterSwitch Limited.

Quotes:
– “The only wealth that is sustainable is the wealth you work hard for, build and God blesses”.

– “If you work harder than anybody else, you will be smarter than anybody else”.
– “The ingredient to success remains the same, just as the way value remains the same, discipline, hard work
and integrity”.

– “The banks that will survive Will have to reinvent themselves. Innovation will have to be the bedrock of everything they do.”

Accolades

In the course of carrying out his duty of steering the affairs of GTBank towards excellence and profitability, Agbaje has been found worthy of several awards including:

-2012 & 2013- African Banker of the Year Award from The African Banker and Euromoney respectively.

– Under his leadership, GTBank Plc won in 2011 and 2012 The Best Bank in Nigeria awards from Euromoney.
-2013- GTBank under his leadership got the Best Bank in Africa Award from the African Banker magazine.
-2011- Also under his leadership, the bank got The Best Bank in Nigeria Award from London- based EMEA Finance magazine.
-2013- EMEA Finance magazine recognised Segun Agbaje as the Pan-African CEO of the year.
-2015- West Africa’s Business Leader of The Year Award, during the 2015 All Africa Business Leaders Awards.
-2017-Ai 100 CEO’s of the year by African Investors Awards.

-2018- Banker of The Year (Africa), at World Finance Awards.
-2018- African CEO of The Year at ADIC Awards.

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/featured/agbaje-the-banking-mogul/

cc: crazyman 1forall

If only we could see through eachother!



VISIT https://www.makeitglobal.biz/ FOR ALL YOUR ENTREPRENEURSHIP/BUSINESS STORIES

All of the issues were about the involvement of the leadership of Miyetti Allah and getting them to prevail upon its members and they are many. What does the presidential spokesman mean by this?





When the news filtered in that the Muhammadu Buhari government, embarrassed into a scamper by the spate of killings of innocent Nigerians in Zamfara State and other parts of the North West of Nigeria, had sent a delegation to meet with the national leaders of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, (MACBAN) in Birnin-Kebbi, capital of Kebbi State last week, Alagba Adebayo Faleti’s 1965 Yoruba classic, a 48-page short novel entitledOgun Awitele (A War Foreseen/Foretold)immediately leapt on my mind. Faleti, who died recently, lived between December 26, 1921 and July 23, 2017. He also carved a renown for himself by writing the famous movie, Basorun Gaa, which roundly trounced modern governmental despotism. He was one of Africa’s first broadcasters, stage plays Director and first film editor with Africa’s first television station (WNTV/WNBS). If you read Ogun Awitele, you would imagine that the fabled Faleti, way back 54 years ago, had Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari, his Chief of Army Staff and the whole Nigerian security architecture in mind while writing it. These men are today running from pillar to post to stem the tide of banditry in the northern states..

Though details of that meeting were shrouded from view, Abdurahman Bello Dambazzau, the Minister of Interior, who led the meeting, had told journalists that the “dialogue” was “with leaders of herdsmen as part of (a) process,’’ while Acting Inspector General of Police, Muhammad Adamu, who was also at the meeting, said “criminals have infiltrated the crisis, and we should cooperate and deal decisively with the culprits, hence we called for this interaction.” Governor Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State was also part of the curious “dialogue.” Excited by the whole exercise, Alhaji Muhammad Kiruwa, MACBAN leader, had said “This is the first of its kind in the history of this country, for the President to direct his security aides to interact with an aggrieved party to air its views.”

As usual, the presidency, in the bid to stave off the harvest of attacks that this ill-advised decision bred, went on a junket of inanities. Garba Shehu, who must have substantially contributed to the deconstruction of the Buhari presidency in the estimation of the world in the last four years, travelled on his usual journey of cants. MACBAN, according to him, is like Afenifere and Ohanaeze Ndi Igbo socio-cultural groups and should thus not be criminalized.

“There are criminals within the Yoruba race and you cannot say because of that,Afenifere is a group of criminals. The Nigerian government is speaking with the leadership of the Fulani herders association, Miyetti Allah. All of the issues were about the involvement of the leadership of Miyetti Allah and getting them to prevail upon its members and they are many (italics mine). We asked them to assist the administration to recover weapons which were owned by a lot of these elements,” Shehu said.

No sooner had they finished this curious tete-a-tete than rumour mills went on their trail. N100 billion was alleged to have been offered to this amorphous group for this weird assignment. You will recall that MACBAN’s Life Patron is President Buhari himself and whose splinter leaders had openly acknowledged being the brains behind several killings of farmers in Benue State in the first couple of years of the Buhari government.

Then Faleti crept in to dissolve the inexplicable riddle with his Ogun Awitele. A Yoruba town in the pre-colony was being ravaged by bandits, just like Nigeria under Muhammadu Buhari. Like Buhari, the Baale(village head) was worried stiff. Zamfara and the North West in general have amassed the notoriety of the Boko Haram and raised red flag of concern in the West African sub-region. Life of man had become of less worth than that of the Agama lizard. With billions pocketed by Buhari and his minions in the security who co-incidentally hail from that troubled region, coupled with the bravado of their Air Force fighter jets hovering in subdued pomposity in the sky, the apparently untrained bandits have been ravaging non-stop, even extending their suzerainty to other parts of the North.

One day, the Baale received a very audacious letter from the leader of bandits in the province telling him of the particular time and day they would come to rout the town. Troubled the more, the Baalesummoned the Oluode, his own Chief of Army Staff, his own Tukur Buratai. No, not to surreptitiously haggle over peace with the bandits as Buhari is doing with his macabre MACBAN. Nor to hand them the purse of state as ransom for peace. His decree was to cut the bandits to size.

Thus, the gathering of armaments and weaponry began. Oluode also summoned his war Generals, the Ikolaba, Balogun and others. Phials and amulets were sourced from all frontiers. Their weaponry was multiplied. Those who needed to make propitiations to their gods were given money for sacrifices. And on the D-day, they had become super-human. Their eyes were dilating like pellets of ice soaked into oil, even as they perfected their war strategies. Faleti painted a scary picture of the 30-man bandits’ appearance when they eventually filed into the town at the wee hours of the morning. Four women led the rampaging army of bandits in a single file of appearance, two of whom carried a heavy phial-laced pounded yam mortal on the head and the other backing a carved effigy. After a titanic battle waged with metaphysical armaments, guns and cutlasses, the hunters won, to retain the dignity of their fatherland. Faleti concluded this novel by stating that a foretold war should ordinarily not capture a wise cripple.

Rather than yield to the wise counsel of Faleti’s Baale who chose not to negotiate peace with bandits, our own Baale, Muhammadu Buhari, chose to engage acquaintances – and I dare say – accomplices, of those selfsame people who have made the shedding of same people’s blood their sworn credo. They are Buhari’s weird choice as those who would find solution to the bloodshed. We need to ask the President where in the books of war he found this reversed and inverted logic, other than a quest to benefit his Fulani brothers.

All of the issues were about the involvement of the leadership of Miyetti Allah and getting them to prevail upon its members and they are many. What does the presidential spokesman mean by this? First, this is an acknowledgment we have sought all this while from the presidency to authenticate the fact that MACBAN is indeed what the world says it is. You will recall that Fulani herdsmen had earlier been declared as one of the deadliest terrorist groups in the world by the Global Terrorism Index (GTI) which, in a survey, had said that the herdsmen, mainly of the Fula ethnic group, were terrorist organizations. Prevail on its members terrorizing Zamfara and other northern states? With due respect, this is tantamount to the presidency finally acknowledging that Fulani herdsmen are indeed notorious criminals. This is same set of people Shehu unconscionably referred to as variants of the very noble southern socio-political groups whose activities led to the democracy which pot of honey Garba and his likes are feeding fat on. Who canvassed this wonky logic to the presidency, to wit that criminals should be allowed to benefit from their own wrongdoing which this action of the presidency indicates?

The presidency, especially thedramatis personaeempowered by Buhari to enter into agreement with the Fula descendants, have disclaimed the viral claim across the country that presidency indeed offered the terrorist group N100 billion to stop this bloodshed. Fine. No government should be caught in a blood-caked deal like this. But, if we may ask, what was the consideration – I mean payment – that was the core of this negotiation? What was on offer by the Federal Government? Or were the MACBAN disciples ordered to bring about this elusive peacepro-bono? If not, how much was on offer and was there an acceptance? When these characters called government leg-men talk, they apparently assume that the people they talk to have their brains fastened to the soles of their feet. Because, their defence of no payment to Miyetti Allah is, please pardon my usage of the word, idiotic. Also, when Kiruwa, MACBAN leader, commended Buhari for sending his security aides to interact with “an aggrieved party to air its views,” what did he mean? If the purpose was to dialogue with aggrieved party to a crisis, why were farmers in Benue whom MACBAN has almost decimated, not party to this “dialogue”?

The ostensible mode of operation of this pleading with MACBAN by government was either to use counter force against their fellow bandits, which will require government releasing arms and ammunition to them to engage these accursed blood shedding felons in the forest; or arm them with cash with which to persuade the herder terrorists to abandon their pursuit. Whichever path government chooses to tread has deleterious consequences for Nigeria. In the first, those arms will someday come back home to roost and be used against ordinary Nigerians; second, arming apparent enemies of state with state fund is a recipe for total destruction, apology to Bob Marley, and more chaotic banditry.

The most painful implication of this negotiation with Miyetti Allah is that Buhari is openly raising his arms in the sky in surrender as affirmation of his inability or incapability to ensure peace in the country. It is also an affirmation that he is, by that very fact, ceding the power to maintain peace to some unorthodox and amorphous group of criminals. Since the foundation of every government is said to be security, deductive reasoning concludes that Buhari can as well outsource governance to his kinsmen, the notorious killer group from Foutajallon Island.

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/opinion/cant-outsource-nigeria-miyetti-allah/

cc MYND44, OAM4J LALASTICLALA

The Igbos has a virile apprenticeship model, called Igba-Odibo which has through the years produced more success stories than failures. This model has led to the emergence of many successful Igbo entrepreneurs across different sectors.







]
The Igbo people, one of the three largest Nigerian ethnic groups, are renowned for their outstanding entrepreneurial drive.

The Igbos has a virile apprenticeship model, called Igba-Odibo which has through the years produced more success stories than failures. This model has led to the emergence of many successful Igbo entrepreneurs across different sectors.

Under the Igba-Odibo model, a ward/mentee is directly under the full care of a master (mentor) whom they serve for at least four years. The purpose is for them to acquire the managerial and business skills of buying, selling, promotion and distribution of goods. After the years of apprenticeship are over, the mentee with the becomes established in the same business by the master.

Austin Ikechukwu, a native of Nguru in Aboh-Mbaise Local Government Area of Imo state is a beneficiary of this model and to him, no school can impact such an experience on anyone in such a short time.

“I was 16 when I was brought to Lagos state by my oga (referring to his boss). He owns several shops where he sells foodstuff. Before I left our village, he met with my parents and with their blessings and prayers, I followed him to come and learn the trade.”

Austin, who has his own shop and is now his own boss after five years of apprenticeship is full of praises for his oga and the system that has made him self-sufficient and he plans on returning to the village to bring another apprentice.

“My oga is a very rich man, who has a lot of cars and houses. So, I was happy when he said he wanted me to come and learn how he became rich. Now, you can see my shop. Under him, I learned the art of bargaining, how much profit I can make from a bag of rice, beans and others.

“This system is not for the dishonest people as you will be exposed to a lot of money. If the oga is happy and you don’t steal his money, he will set up a business for you after you have finished serving him”, he explained.

Ifeanyi, a spare parts dealer at the popular Oshodi Market in Lagos state, is another beneficiary of this tested and trusted business model.

Unlike Austin, Ifeanyi has two young apprentices already learning the ropes of the business and if things go well, they will also one day own their businesses and continue with the tradition.

Ifeanyi who served his boss for nine years narrated his experience.

“I started learning this business at a young age. I was 12 years old when I was brought to Lagos by my boss, who is a friend to my elder brother. I didn’t come alone. I came with four other boys from our village, Ebenebe, in Anambra state. It wasn’t easy as we had to learn everything. I couldn’t differentiate between car brands and names of spare parts but it was worth it.

“Being young, carrying those heavy spare parts wasn’t easy but I grew into it. By the time we got home, mostly late at night, we were all tired but we still had to do some house chores for madam (his boss’wife). The others couldn’t endure what I endured. Emeka, Simon and Toochi all left early. They were returned to the village but I heard Emeka is back in Lagos.”

makeitglobal.biz was able to track down a few of those not successful in their entrepreneurship training, to get them to share their stories.

Timothy, a 28-year-old father of one, was not so fortunate with his boss. According to him, “My boss was the definition of the devil. Everything he promised to do, he didn’t do.”

“When he met with my parents, he promised them he would take care of my education and ensured that I learned his business also. He was into flour business but when I got to his place, I was like a house help, doing all the chores and running the errands. He didn’t allow me to go to school but instead, I faced his business fully.

“The agreement was that I would serve him for 9 years. I didn’t spend 5 years with him before he took me back to the village and terminated the agreement. He looked for different excuses just because he didn’t want to set up a business for me. It was a total waste of time for me but I still thank him for bringing me to Lagos.”

Uwana also shared a story similar to that of Timothy. He said when it was six months to the end of five years agreed for his apprenticeship, his boss deliberately fought with him over money. According to him, his boss accused him falsely of stealing.

Uwana reported him their kinsmen who summoned both of them to a meeting. At the meeting, he, Uwana, accounted for every stock in his care but still his boss insisted that his money was missing. Unknown to Uwana, that was the style of his boss – use and dump.

makeitglobal.biz spoke to an Igbo entrepreneur who identified himself as Buchi and shared his experiences with his mentees.

Buchi is the owner of six supermarket stores in Lagos state. At each of the stores, he has an average of four boys attending to customers. The reason, according to him, is to provide what he calls “checks and balances.”

“The boys are to serve as watchdogs to one another. That way, one is trying to act as a policeman to the other. From experience, the possibility of the four of them working together against the business is very low.”

He gave an insight into the types of apprentices he has had over the years.

“To be sincere, there is a special kind of hunger with the Igbo boys. The need to succeed at all cost. You see some of them hawking in traffic, selling various things. That’s the hunger. That is why they are different from other tribes. So, when I see some of these boys, I can see that hunger in them and I just channel that drive into the right places.

“Some of the boys just want to be successful in life. They see you as a mentor, a father, an uncle and confidant. So, from the moment you take them into your wings, try and be that mentor, father, uncle and confidant. That way, you will have their trust. They will be loyal and will likely not steal from you.

“I have had cases of peer influence which led to some of my boys stealing. When that happened and they were caught, I drove them back to their people and didn’t pay a dime because they breached the agreement. I even involved the police in the matter. The reason was to put the fear of God in others and ensure they don’t steal from me.”

But Buchi accused some masters of deliberately exploiting the kids and sending them back without setting them up as promised.

“In this business, I can give you over five names of bosses who cheat their mentees and refuse to set them up when the agreed time is up. But the truth is that these bosses are not doing well. They can’t do well at all because karma is always real.

“I have set up over eight of my boys and I am really glad that they are doing fine. When they run into trouble, they come to me for help and I do what I can. That’s the essence of the whole Igba-Odibo business model. You can imagine how many people are doing fine today because of that. The system has helped us a lot especially in a country when you are not guaranteed a job after spending years in school. With this system, you are assured of starting your own business once your agreed year of mentorship has been exhausted.”

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/top-news/igbos-raise-entrepreneurs-igba-odibo-apprenticeship-system/

cc dominique FOD puskin naijacutee lalasticlala seun

Chief Executive Officer, E-leo Watches, Everistus Onwuzurike shares his experience with makeitglobal.biz on how he intends to make Nigeria a hub for the production and distribution of quality wristwatches both locally and internationally. He also speaks on how the Government can provide entrepreneurs with low interest loans to grow their businesses.

Tell us about E-leo Watches?

E-leo Watches is an online store that is dedicated to the sales of mechanical, automatic, chronograph, sports, digital, divers and military styled timepieces to customers within Nigeria. We cater for consumers who desire quality but affordable wristwatches. Also, we are committed to delivering durable wristwatches for majority of Nigerians seeking an affordable alternative to highly priced timepieces.

We strongly believe that one doesn’t have to break the bank to look stunning, and same goes for owning a quality and beautiful wristwatch. Wristwatches from E-leo Stores vary with unique designs that are difficult to go unnoticed.

When and how did you start E-Leo business?

E-leo watches was borne out of my love for simple, quality and affordable wrist watches. Growing up, I loved wristwatches so much. I can vividly remember saving my lunch money just to buy that colourful calculator watch. I started selling watches in 2015 during my National Youth Service in Benin City, Edo State. Then, I would buy few wristwatches, bring them to school (My Primary Place of Assignment) and sell to both students and staff members.

The demand for wristwatches began to increase as old customers kept on giving good recommendations and referrals. Later on, I began to seek for diverse ways to conquer my immediate environment and sell to outsiders. I shared my idea and visions with some friends, those who bought into it decided to work with me to achieve this goal. We assigned roles based on our strengths and set targets.

I opened my online store first on Instagram and Facebook. Initially it wasn’t easy. We didn’t get any order in our first three months on social media. Our “foot soldiers” were still making sales offline but I felt the need to break the jinx. So we resorted to running sponsored ads. Today, the rest is history and I’ve been into this business for two years, and I believe we can always get better.

How do you stay motivated?

I do this always by putting the big picture in front of me. As an entrepreneur, I don’t frown at my losses. I am not always discouraged when I lose out in a business. And I can clearly say it that I am the only entrepreneur that celebrates his losses. I do this because it paves way for me to get better and improve in areas that made us loss. According to John Maxwell, sometimes you win, sometimes you learn.

What habits do you have that drive you to succeed?

I try to grow with the industry. I learn new things every day and I always try to stay updated in my area of business. I take out time to plan before I act. Presently, I have a master plan for my business which is time sensitive. We intend to become a hub for quality watches. The fashion industry is a viable one.

How do you intend to edge out your competitors?

We have many competitors in this industry. I pay close attention to almost all of them to find out what they are doing differently and the areas that they are underperforming. We leverage their low performing areas and better the services there. Competition is healthy for this business.

Are you into partnership with any wristwatch company? How do you get the wristwatches you see to people?

For now, we are not in partnership with any company. We only have business relationship with many wristwatch companies. We intend going into partnership with big wristwatch companies like Micserah when we finally have our own wristwatch – Eleo. We know the importance of partnership with companies and how healthy it is.

How do you think Government can help improve on e-commerce in line with your business?

The success and growth of local manufacturing is an important recipe for a vibrant e-commerce economy. So Government can start by encouraging young entrepreneurs who intend going into manufacturing by giving them low interest loans to encourage their businesses.

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/nigerian-news/entrepreneur-celebrates-losses-onwuzurike-ceo-e-leo-watches/

cc puskin naijacutee FOD dominique

Marie Antoinette, the last Queen of France before the French Revolution, had taken the liberty to pass a mean comment on the people like Chris Ngige, Nigeria’s Minister of Labour and Employment too.

She was married at age 14 in May, 1770 to then Prince Louis-Auguste who was heir apparent to the French throne and later became Queen, upon Louis XV1 ascension to the throne. Antoinette was however roundly disliked by the French populace on account of accusations that she was wasteful, profligate and promiscuous.

To cap it all, allegations that she offered embrace to France’s enemies, especially her native Austria, were hung on the cusp. France’s excruciating financial situation was also blamed on her ostentation.

In spite of the suffering of the people, Antoinette was accused of devoting heavy French patrimony on fashion, luxuries and her gambling passion, oblivious of the intense suffering of the people.

In fact, in 1785, she got enmeshed in what is called the Diamond Necklace Affair, an accusation of criminal involvement in defrauding of some jewelers in an expensive necklace scandal
The staple food of the French peasantry and the working class at this time was bread, upon which they spent half of their income. Bread was thus an object of national interest to which the French were rankly obsessed. Its shortage during this time thus threw France into turmoil.

In 1775, as a result of the scarcity of flour to make bread, a Flour War erupted in France and Antoinette’s reputation for aloofness to the people’s travail was further damaged. A famine had indeed occurred.

In 1843, when told of the wide suffering engendered by widespread bread shortages, Antoinette the Queen was quoted to have said “Then let them eat brioche (bread)!”.

Though no one can claim precisely that Antoinette uttered the word, it was held as representing the obliviousness and selfishness of the French monarchy to the plight of the people.

French philosopher, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, in his Confessions, gave authorial confirmation to this claim when he said, “At length, I remembered the last resort of a great princess who, when told that the peasants had no bread, replied: ‘Then let them eat brioches.’” Years after, Antoinette and her husband were disgraced from the palace. Captured by the French Army and being escorted to Paris, she and her husband, Louis XV1, were jeered, insulted by French people as they had never done before to any occupier of such exalted office. It was said that the honour and prestige of the French monarchy had never been that lowered ignominiously.

Antoinette was so obsessed with power and its allures that she forgot that the imperial castle she occupied was a product of the people’s bequeathals. While Louis XVI was tried and executed by the guillotine on January 21, 1793, Antoinette was guillotined in October of same year, her head displayed for all to see.

During the week that just ended, Chris Ngige, like Antoinette, was equally hanged on the crucifix of the people’s tongues, guillotined for his infelicity. His crime: he unguardedly stomped on Nigerians’ sore foot, provoking the people’s rank discontent.

From the wide-ranging snide comments and insults hauled by the jeering crowd on the diminutive minister in discussions across board, it is apparent that no other issue in Nigeria today clearly signposts and manifests the people’s touchy disposition as the decay in their country’s health sector.

As if laying a foundation for the eventual tongue-lash that awaited Ngige, the Punch had devoted same week to very excruciating revelations of the decay. In an interview with some Chief Medical Directors (CMDs) of federal universities’ teaching hospitals, Nigeria’s shamelessness and the precarious state of health of Nigeria’s healthcare was unboweled.

In their lamentations, the CMDs said the underfunding of the hospitals that should attend to the people’s primary and secondary health has given them challenges in treating even common ailments like cold and malaria. Obafemi Awolowo Teaching Hospital CMD, Victor Adetiloye, for instance, said the hospital survives on charity from foreign donors and alumni.

So when, on a Channels TV Sunrise Daily programme, Ngige said Nigeria had enough medical doctors and the emigration of medics raised no cause for alarm on the country’s health sector, he was a sure meat for roast. “No, I am not worried. We have surplus. If you have surplus, you export. It happened some years ago here. I was taught chemistry and biology by Indian teachers in my secondary school days… who said we don’t have enough doctors? We have more than enough. There is nothing wrong in them travelling out, when they go earn money and send them back home here, yes we have foreign exchange earnings from then and not just oil…” he was quoted as saying.

Apparently threatened by the outpour of grievances by Nigerians at this ministerial infelicity, which shows ruling elite and governmental disconnect from the people’s pains and agonies, Ngige, almost immediately, attempted a riposte, in form of a rebuttal.

This eventually turned out not only feeble but worse than his initial infamous gaffe.

In a statement signed by Nwachukwu Obidiwe, his Special Assistant on Media, Ngige merely whitewashed his own sepulcher by going into an unnecessarily boring history of his connect with the field of medicine.

After his dogo turenchi however, he arrived at that selfsame unthinking and uncritical juncture of infamy where he had earlier departed.

What can unlock the padlock of this riddle of government appointees regularly taking fancy at stomping on the wound of the people? Many people have submitted that it is what is called the Marie Antoinette or Emperor Hui spirit.

In Nigeria, we have had similar afflictions, chief of which is labeled the David Mark spirit.

Nigeria had had similar infelicities from her own Antoinette and Hui when then Brigadier David Mark, as Minister of Communication, had wondered why the mass of the people wanted the luxury of a telephone.

It is a spirit whose major credential is conceit for the lowly and underprivileged. Another character in history who made similar insidious comment against his people was Emperor Hui of Western Jin who lived from 259–307.

Cited in the Book of Jin, which is a chronicle of Chinese Jin Dynasty, it was recounted that when the Emperor was told that his people were starving due to shortage of rice, he had quipped, “Why don’t they eat (ground meat)?”

The Nigerian health sector has suffered considerably over the years. From the consulting clinics excuse that military hijackers of state power gave as alibi for their strike in the 1900s/1990s, the sector has worsened almost irretrievably thereafter.

Thousands of our countrymen have met their untimely deaths in the theatre of death that Nigerian hospitals have become.

Multiple factors of governmental abandonment and lackluster disposition to its sustenance, dangerous Nigerian work ethos of pilferage of equipment and drugs, lackadaisical attitude of staff and aloofness to the survival of the workplace by workers are the malaises that bedevil the Nigerian health sector, which have almost clobbered it to death.

It is so bad that one must daily pray never to be a victim, called patient, of any Nigerian hospital or else, it is a passport to die from avoidable, cheap ailments.

There are no equipment to properly diagnose what ails our people, prompting Nigerians to daily wheel scarce foreign exchange to India and other countries.

American billionaire, Bill Gates, puts the urgency of a revamp of our healthcare succinctly at his visit to Nigeria in 2018. “Nigeria is one of the most dangerous places in the world to give birth, with the fourth worst maternal mortality rate in the world, ahead of only Sierra Leone, Central African Republic and Chad. One in three Nigerian children is chronically malnourished…If you invest in… health, education, and opportunities—the “human capital” we are talking about today—then they will lay the foundation for sustained prosperity. If you don’t, however, then it is very important to recognize that there will be a sharp limit on how much the country can grow,” he had said. Muhammadu Buhari was represented at that event by his vice, where Gates spoke that searing and scalding truth to power and yet, the health sector is still gasping for its last breath.

It is global knowledge that Nigerian hospitals are about the worst in the world with an impudent and gross violation of the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendation of 1 doctor to 500 people. In Nigeria, it is about 1 medic to 5000 patients. With a population of about 200 million, Ngige’s submission that Nigerian medical doctors are too many is not only jaundiced, it is otiose for the reality of now.

At present, about 72000 doctors are said to be on the register of the Nigerian Medical Council, 40000 in active practice, with the rest caving in to an earlier shambolic advice by the Minister of Health, Isaac Adewole that doctors should go till the land and abandon the stethoscope.

Adewole had said this on Friday, September 21, 2018 at the opening ceremony of the 38th Annual General Meeting and Scientific Conference of the National Association of Resident Doctors of Nigeria (NARD). “The man who sews my gown is a doctor. He makes the best gown. And some will be specialists, some will be GPs, some will be farmers,” he had said of a Nigeria that is in dire need of doctors. He was Ngige’s precursor in that bombastic claim that there was no shortage of Nigerian doctors. In 2011, President of Ibadan College of Medicine Alumni Association (ICOMAA) worldwide, Dr Benedictus Kunle Ajayi, had told a stunned world that, of over 15,000 doctors trained by the college, a large chunk of them work in foreign countries “due to an unfriendly working environment in the country.”

Perhaps the most insidious of Ngige’s waffle was his justification of doctors emigration on account of the equipment they send home and the cash they repatriate therefrom. “When they go abroad, they earn money and send them back home here… I know a couple of them who practice abroad but set up medical centres back home. They have CAT scan, MRI scan which even the government cannot maintain… Yes, we have foreign exchange earnings from them and not just oil,” the minister had stupidly said.

Only an unserious country administered by leaders who can see seldom beyond the tips of their noses would engraft the wellbeing of their country on incidental earnings of her citizens who run away from her harsh environment to take refuge as concierges in another man’s country.

It is simple arithmetic which shows that this meager repatriation home cannot match the huge national subsidy expended by the Nigerian government on training of doctors. It is also common knowledge that before these doctors can repatriate a hundred dollar of money which I call destitute cash home, their foreign consort countries must have benefitted five thousand dollars in earnings from mortgage and other ancillary deductions which fatten their own economies.

Why don’t we organize our own country in such a way that we will keep our doctors here and the world can come here to pay us foreign currencies to get treatment, as it was in the 1950s, 1960s Nigeria? UCH used to have referrals from overseas at its establishment. Why have the leaders of Nigeria regressed that sector this badly?

These kinds of comments from Nigerian leaders are reflective of the quality of their thought process. The comments signpost a decadence of mind that even a degree in Oxford cannot disinfect.

They find anchor in the mind of Marie Antoinette, Emperor Hui and their ludicrous estimation of the people. It is typical of the ruling elite all over the world but more localized among Nigerian leaders whose praetorian and demeaning conception of the ruled is legendary.

Check the so-called minister’s leadership pedigree and tell us what you make of it. You will recall that it was this same Ngige who had entered an occult deal for power with his sponsor for the governorship of Anambra State. In reneging, he had told a stunned world that he went to the Okija shrine with his bible!

He had submitted all electoral documents that could validate his stay at the Government House, Awka to the shrewd and calculative political merchant of Chris Uba hue.

That is the wild mind of the man who superintends over the ministry where negotiations would be reached with the labour workforce. If Buhari can go AWOL from the presidency to the United Kingdom and his commissars say he owes us all no explanation as to his whereabouts, you can gauge the leaking valve of the minds of those who rule us. So if Ngige, Adewole or any of their ilk tomorrow say Nigerians should go roast on the iron gauze, we should not be bewildered. We are the sheep, they are the wolves.

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/opinion/ngige-doctors/

cc mynd44 oam4j lalasticlala seun

With just President Muhammadu Buhari’s response the only one pending to complete the cycle of arguments and counter-arguments arising from the conduct and outcome of the 2019 presidential election, it may pretty well be said that the orchestra of the February 23 tragic-comedy is just beginning to set its own stage.

The highlights of the petition from the Peoples Democratic Party and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar against the Independent National Electoral Commission and the All Progressives Congress very well paint the picture that the February 23 presidential election was rigged to favour incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari.

Both Atiku and the PDP had raised some salient questions such as the allegation that the results that was officially declared by INEC was different from the result that was electronically fed into the back-end server of the commission and that the electoral commission did not follow its own guidelines on the use of card readers. The third major red flag that the PDP raised was that President Buhari lacks the basic educational requirement by the 1999 constitution that should have qualified him to participate in the election.

The PDP/Atiku legal team went a step further by providing the actual data captured on the server of INEC which shows that the opposition party defeated the incumbent by a margin of about one million, six hundred thousand votes. And so, expectedly, the sound-bite of the stolen mandate had rented the air and it was assumed that the response of both INEC and the APC to the petition will put paid to that sound-bite.

Regrettably, that was not to be.

In separate replies to the petition brought before the Court of Appeal presidential election tribunal, both the INEC and APC came up with two ludicrous claims that, other than bemuse public sensibilities, is very infirm to float an argument that the February 23 election was indeed free and fair.

In the case of INEC in its reply, the commission makes a shameless volte-face on its own guidelines concerning the use of card readers; and rather than dismiss figures being bandied by the PDP and its candidate by presenting the actual data captured in its server, the electoral commission retorts that its servers are blank of any data.

In its own reply, the APC made a more prostrate submission, saying that Atiku is not qualified to be elected as Nigeria’s president because he is a foreigner from the Republic of Cameroon.

Many commentators have been interrogating the topic of Atiku’s nationality since last week Friday when APC made the laughable claim. But it is doubtful if the intention of the APC was to actually make an issue out of Atiku’s Nigerian identity, but rather establish a construct in parallel with the allegation that Buhari’s educational background does not merit his being presented for election as Nigeria’s president.

However, whether Atiku is not a Nigerian or Buhari is too illiterate to be elected Nigeria’s president is better left for the court to decide. In either case, if Atiku is indeed a Nigerian, he will not require 15 senior advocates to prove his case in court and if President Buhari too has the requisite education he should simply give the country a breather by proving his case beyond all reasonable doubts.

What is even more interesting, if not stupid, about the argument being advanced by the APC on Atiku’s nationality and eligibility is that by saying that anyone who was born before 1961 around that specific place in Adamawa cannot contest for Nigeria’s president also implies that the ballot cast by those people is also null and void on account of universality of franchise in the Nigerian law – a good enough ground to throw out the entire election.

It is so disingenuous how the APC in aiming at just one individual will ram an entire electoral demography under the bus. And, to think of it, between Atiku and Buhari the latter has raised his fingers in the air high enough for all to see that he probably has a soft spot for a neighbouring country of Niger Republic more than Atiku has shown any inclination towards Cameroon.

If, as Vice President, Atiku had championed the construction of a railway line from Maiduguri straight into the heart of the Cameroonian territory or political VIPs from Cameroon had graced Atiku’s campaign rallies, one only wonders how plausible the allegation by the APC would have been. There is absolutely nothing in public record to accentuate the argument that Atiku is in any way related to Cameroon, but President Buhari’s profile in the last four years of his presidency is a rich lode of evidence that the president has some sort of affiliation with Niger Republic that is too cold for comfort.

Again, it is an insult to the intelligence of Nigerians when INEC came up to announce that the card reader was only for the purpose of authentication of the ballot process (whatever that means) and that nothing was transmitted electronically to the backend server of the electoral body for the purpose of vote counting during the election.

The director of public communication of INEC, Festus Okoye was unequivocal about it when he said, few weeks before the presidential election and indeed after, that the non-use of card readers in the 2019 election may lead to the outright cancellation of the election.

It was a major news item on every of Nigeria’s newspapers and blogs on March 5, 2019 that the electoral commission denied a selective use of card readers and even stated clearly that the technology will be a major fulcrum upon which the credibility of the election would rest.

The question to ask then is why is it that INEC is changing its words over a commitment to technology it had made to all political parties and stakeholders in the election?

Why would the electoral commission commit a whooping sum N27 billion into constructing backend servers when it knew that it would not transmit any result thereto?

It is thus not difficult to read the handwriting on the wall that in-between the fallacious claim by APC that Atiku is not a Nigerian and the fraudulent decision by INEC to renounce its commitment to technology for the credibility of the election is a deliberate attempt to hamstring the course of justice at the presidential election tribunal.

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/nigerian-news/atiku-petition-apc/

CC MYND44 LALASTICLALA OAM4J

The most laughable aspect of the presentation of the Area Boys’ Party, the APC at the Presidential Election Tribunal is that apparently, all the party chiefs, their high officials in the government and their internet warriors do not know that it is not only by birth in a country that somebody becomes a citizen of a country. Among the diverse ways to become a citizen of a country include; naturalization, registration, presidential decree or grant or when a country acquires territory in which case, millions of people at once become citizens of another country recognised under both municipal and international law.






Once again, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and its lackluster government has shown that they are too bereft of knowledge of even the history of the country, Nigeria whose government it controls in the type of information it dishes out to the public.

When the news went round that the APC while presenting its argument at the Presidential Election Tribunal sitting over the election case brought against it by the opposition, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, said that Atiku Abubakar is not a Nigerian citizen but a Cameroonian, because he was not born in Nigeria, I was taken aback. The thought that came to my mind was that has the ruling party become a children’s party to give such information to a tribunal whose work is of a public nature, perhaps thinking that the information would be treated confidentially, and not shared with the public.

It seems that common sense of the APC delegation or defence team at the tribunal failed them abysmally when they uttered that travesty. Atiku Abubakar comes from Adamawa State where he has been Governor-elect before being elevated to the distinguished position of a Vice President of Nigeria, and a holder of the country’s second highest national honour, the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON).

Adamawa State is the second of the 36 States listed in the First Schedule, section 3 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as constituting the component parts of the Federation of Nigeria. Let’s assume that the top echelon of the party and even the Presidency were busy thinking of how to inflict more hardship on ordinary Nigerians by increasing the pump price of fuel, what of the young Turks of the party and the government who are always on the internet abusing Atiku. It seems that the internet warriors of the party and government because of the problem of falling education standard and rabid dislike of Atiku Abubakar whose noble ways contradict the crude manners for which the APC is known, there were no people in the party and government sober and educated enough to call the rest to order. Now, this nonsense about a former Vice President of Nigeria being a Cameroonian has gone out to the World thereby exposing the deep ignorance and poor education that characterize the APC people and their government for which Nigerians are afraid of their remaining in power.

If Atiku Abubakar, a former Vice President of Nigeria is not a Nigerian citizen as the APC would want us believe, it means the party has served notice to many leading Nigerians from Adamawa, Taraba and Borno States, who were not born in Nigeria before independence to start thinking of where they come from! Among these people are many members of the APC party like Boss Mustapha, the Secretary to Federal Government and the Chief of Army Staff, General Buratai and others too numerous to list.

The most laughable aspect of the presentation of the Area Boys’ Party, the APC at the Presidential Election Tribunal is that apparently, all the party chiefs, their high officials in the government and their internet warriors do not know that it is not only by birth in a country that somebody becomes a citizen of a country. Among the diverse ways to become a citizen of a country include; naturalization, registration, presidential decree or grant or when a country acquires territory in which case, millions of people at once become citizens of another country recognised under both municipal and international law.

Atiku Abubakar and his generation including their parents became Nigerian citizens through the last method when millions of people in the then Northern Camerouns became Nigerian citizens after a special vote for that purpose, supervised by the defunct United Nations Trusteeship Council, not INEC, in 1961. Originally a German colony, the British and French invaded the colony of Cameroun at the outbreak of World War One and quickly subdued it. They agreed to divide the territory between them. This division was confirmed by a League of Nations Mandate after the war. They were referred to as the Northern and Southern Camerouns. Both of them were administered from the neighbouring colony of Nigeria. In 1954 both parts were joined to the Nigeria colony. However at independence only the Northern part remained with Nigeria, the Southern part joined the Republic of Cameroon, following the same plebiscite of 1961.

It should be noted that the Northern Cameroons, was neither a colony nor protectorate of Northern Nigeria, but a mandate of the League of Nations (1922 to 1945) and later, a trusteeship territory of the United Nations (1945-1961) handed to Britain to administer after Germany was defeated by the allied forces in the First and the Second World Wars. At the close of colonisation and the independence of most African countries, particularly the British colony, Nigeria and the French colony, Cameroon in 1960, the political future of the Northern Cameroons as an integral part of Nigeria was actualized by the plebiscite of 1961.

The question now arises as to why did the APC, the Presidency and their handlers commit this tragic error? Could it be that they thought that the UN plebiscite is like the elections which they organize under INEC which are usually inconclusive and hence can be nullified in a competent Court or they do not know their own country’s history? If it is the latter, then it is tragic indeed!

Atiku Abubakar, a Man of God by his many good deeds, was born on November 25, 1945 in Jada local government of Adamawa State. Atiku Abubakar’s father was from Sokoto state and later travelled to Borno for farming and trading activities as is the practice among the Fulani people. Later, his family settled in Jada which is now Jada local Government of Adamawa State.

After his education, he joined the Nigeria Customs and worked for 20 years, rising to the position of a Deputy Director and second-in-command of the para-military outfit. On April 30, 1989, the law abiding Atiku paid the mandatory three months’ salary and left the Customs.

Atiku’s political odyssey, triumphs and failures are entertaining and puts the toga of troublemaker on any person or group that questions his citizenship. Such nonsense has been done in the past by mercenary politicians in the defunct National Party of Nigeria (NPN) during the second republic, who have resurrected in the APC, when then President, the late Shehu Shagari was misled by his party hawks to deport to neighbouring Chad, the then Majority Leader of the Borno State House of Assembly, Alhaji Shugaba Abdurrahman Darma. The NPN people lied to themselves that Shugaba, a hard fighting politician and member of the defunct Great Nigeria People’s Party (GNPP), was not a Nigerian citizen. The Supreme Court eventually quashed the ill-fated case, following the footsteps of the Maiduguri High Court and the Federal Court of Appeal, Kaduna.

Atiku’s politics is so profound and far-reaching that many Nigerians would attest to his willingness to assist both individuals and political parties in the hours of their need. He has also fought many political and legal battles to deepen democracy, human rights and the rule of law as well as engaged in good causes that has improved the lives of the downtrodden and oppressed peasants in Northern Nigeria.

The ruling APC and President Muhammadu Buhari have at different times and circumstances benefitted from and eulogized Atiku. In 2014, the man whom they say is a Camerounian took part and came third position due to underhand dealings at the presidential convention of the then fledging All Progressives Congress in Lagos, after APC leaders begged him to join the newly-formed party.

In fact, for the dangerous falsehood they unleashed at the Presidential Election Tribunal, and for seeking to deceive and mislead our people and distort the country’s history thereby laying foundation for division and civil strife, the APC deserves to be proscribed while its leaders and its accomplices in the Presidency are deported to Cape Verde, the adopted home of their National Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole!

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/opinion/atiku-nigerian-dreams/

cc mynd44 oam4j lalasticlala

Businesses run on funds. Regardless of how innovative your idea or service is, it can only come to fruition and be sustained when funds are available to keep it running.

To run a business effectively, entrepreneurs need to acquire requisite knowledge and skills to manage their funds effectively. Here are a few tips that can help entrepreneurs succeed in financial management.

1. Establish financial goals

Goals are important, they are the gateway to financial success — J. D Roth
Goal setting is essential to the success of any business. We not only set organisational goals we also need to set financial goals. Financial goals are targets, often driven by specific future financial needs.

To achieve financial success, entrepreneurs must set SMART (SMART means — Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely) goals that will ensure they are accountable and make real progress.

2. Separate business expenses from personal expenses
Keeping business and personal expenses separate is important. Never mix the two. Also, as an entrepreneur, your personal finances, should be in good shape. This means the leader cannot worry about something like, how to pay for my house rent, or other expenses, if they are building a top quality business. It is necessary to save 12-18 months of monthly budget requirement.

3. Have an effective savings scheme
As an entrepreneur, it is important to have a savings plan. This is because when your personal financial situation is put at risk, your company will also be put at risk. Whether you are currently navigating the entrepreneurial waters or plan to take the leap in the future, make sure you build up your personal emergency reserves.

Though this is not a rule of the thumb, experts advise savings at least 20 per cent of your income periodically. This could be setting aside 20 per cent of your income daily, weekly or monthly either in your account or in a place where you may not have immediate access to it.

According to a financial expert, Chinenye Okoli, you should see it as paying yourself first.

“Every day you are paying somebody, either the driver, the water seller, the internet service provider, or your are paying for utility, one way or the other, you are paying everybody but not yourself. Savings is a way to pay yourself first”.

4. Invest wisely
According to Phil Lodico, a social entrepreneur and angel investor, the more a company can diversify and invest in its future, the greater its chances of success. As an entrepreneur, you cannot build the company of your dreams or make the billions you desire by just saving a few cash steadily, you have to invest.

Thankfully, there are different investment opportunities you can try out. The Nigerian Stock Exchange for instance, offers a wide range of products including shares (equities), exchange traded funds (ETFs) and bonds, all of which are available for purchase and sales on the largest stock exchange in the West African sub-region.

5. Track your expenses
Running you business with monitoring the cash flow is akin to driving a vehicle blindly. One needs know seer to tell what the end of such journey will be. It is important for you to be well aware of how the income accrued is utilised towards achieving your organisation’s goals.

This, experts say, will help you make better decisions and give you better insights on how you and your entire team need to spend your resources.
Remember, if you do closely monitor your cash flow, you are going to be out of business soon. If you can, hire a full time staff to handle the ledgers but if you cannot, you can work with an expense tracking software. Do not forget to always work with a realistic budget.

6. Get the services of a financial expert
You do not have to do everything yourself. Seek the service of a financial analyst. However, it is also good for you as an entrepreneur to acquire some knowledge and skills in financial literacy.

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/entrepreneurs/financial-success-entrepreneurs/

cc dominique FOD naijacutee puskin

TechPlace24:


Read More At: http://www.techplace24.com/2019/04/11/get-your-site-approve-by-google-adsense-in-few-hours-or-days/

OP, what do you do when you change your blog address and the ads do not display on the blog any longer but the adsense is still active?

The execution of the Nigerian woman in South Africa recently, the arrest of another five for armed robbery in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the xenophobic attacks on Nigerians in South Africa are tripodal issues that call the attention of Nigerians to their worth in the outside world.

Eight Nigerians were earlier executed in Saudi Arabia in recent time and twenty other Nigerians are listed today on death row in the same country while many others are in various prisons in other prisons in Saudi. These are critical social issues that should bother us as a people and which invariably point fingers at the deteriorating situation down here at home. They also underscore the absence of Nigeria in the day-to-day affairs of Nigerians and why successive governments have killed thousands of Nigerians vicariously in the last decades.

The five Nigerian men were arrested in a seven-minute armed robbery said to have taken place at about midnight on March 20, 2019, at a money exchange house in Sharjah, UAE. In their 20s, they were alleged to have stolen currencies of about Dh2million in the robbery. Armed with hammers, they reportedly smashed the panel of the exchange, jumped into the safe box site and had access to the cash therein.

South Africa has over the years been at the fore front of violently bringing out muck from Nigeria’s eye and derogatively hoisting it for her to see. This it does by unleashing xenophobic attacks on Nigerians living in that country. Beginning about 2015, a bloody wave of attacks against blacks stirred up unprovoked in this country that Nigeria spent millions of her patrimony rescuing from apartheid. The widespread hate was shot up by derisive racial remarks by the Zulu King, Goodwill Zwelithini, which stoked the fire of resentment against the black population in the country. The major complaint of the attackers against the black is that they had always had upper hands in job placements and were the hub of crime. Nigerians resident in South Africa are held to be in the majority, especially in an area called Hillbrow, Johannesburg. Areas most affected by the anger of the locals and victims of this hatred are said to be black foreigners in the North West Province of Brits and the Kwazulu-Natal province of Durban. A few weeks ago, three Nigerians were said to have been shot at Sands Hotel Area of Berea in Johannesburg and two of them died immediately, with one of them in a critical situation. These issues are not isolated; they are matters that crop up almost periodically in all parts of the world against Nigerians.

Since the era of brain drain under the regime of President Ibrahim Babangida when Nigerian professionals began an unprecedented exodus out of the country in search of greener pastures outside the country, there has been no let in the migration of Nigerians out of their fatherland. Virtually all countries of the world where Nigerians have constituted immense and consistent embarrassment have expressed disgust and exasperation with them. In January this year, the Czech Republic promised to pay Nigerian immigrants so that they could leave their country and never to return. Under a programme it tagged ‘Returns,’ Nigerians and their immigrant counterparts from Afghanistan, Iraq, Mongolia, Russia and Vietnam were cajoled to leave the country for their gross fouling of all immigration laws of the country.

A US- based research firm, Pew, in a recent survey, disclosed that almost half of Nigerian adults have indicated their willingness to leave the country in the next five years. Conducted in the year 2018 and spreading across 12 countries and tagged, “Many Nigerians, Tunisians and Kenyans say they plan to leave their countries in the next five years”, Pew said “In Nigeria, Africa’s most populated nation, nearly half (45 percent) of adults say they plan to move to another country within five years, by far the highest share among 12 countries surveyed across four continents.”

The above are not in consideration of other Nigerians who die in the process of crossing the Mediterranean. Only recently, a report claimed that no fewer than 10,000 Nigerians died between January and May 2017 in the process of illegally migrating out of the country through the Mediterranean Sea and the deserts. The report claimed that 4,900 of them died in the Mediterranean while others died while crossing the deserts, all in an attempt to leave Nigeria and cross to Europe. Many of them, when told about the dangers in their bids to cross the Mediterranean, were quoted to have said that it was better for them to perish in the sea than to continue enduring life in Nigeria.

In saner countries, these global embarrassments by Nigerians of Nigeria should call for attention of governments and stakeholders in general. The questions to be asked are, why is it that Nigerians do not care a hoot about Nigeria? Why do Nigerians find it more honourable doing dishonourable jobs outside the country rather than doing modestly honourable ones at home? Why does Nigeria count little in the estimation of Nigerians once the issue of emigration is at issue? Ultimately, why is Nigeria absent in the life of a Nigerians?

The issues involved in this social crisis revolve round the crisis of leadership in Nigeria in the last few decades, the mismanagement of the country’s resources by these selfsame leaders and the inescapable recession that has gripped Nigeria in its aftermath. All governments in Nigeria, from General Yakubu Gowon, down to Muhammadu Buhari, have millions of pints of blood of Nigerians on their hands, especially the youth who have been killed in the process of or aftermath their decisions to exit the country. Beginning with Gowon, whose myopia about the challenges of the future that is today, manifested grossly, Gowon had once said that Nigeria’s problem was that it had too much money. In the Cement Armada where Nigeria lost equivalents of today’s billions, Nigeria was just on a frolic with her money which ought to have been invested to take care of today. The cluelessness of Gowon’s and successive military and civilian administrations in investing in Nigeria’s tomorrow was one of the foundations of the current calamity which did not begin today. Successive governments, especially the Babangida government, also squandered the resources of Nigeria that were needed to fortify the future that is today of Nigerians.

Thus, the crisis we have on our hands today did not just happen today. Perhaps the most tragic aspect of it is that even today, government doesn’t see that there is an impending calamity which will fall on us all, its route being the consistent hopelessness in the land. For instance, is there any particular state in Nigeria that is making any attempt at securing the future of Nigerian youths? Is there any one of them that understands that the abandonment of the youths and their future is a bomb that will soon explode? The central government is not faring better. Its policies are less than short-term and there is no manifest plan for averting the manifest danger ahead. For instance, is there anyone in government who is bothered that the various Nigerian higher institutions churn out multiple of graduates every year and there is less than two per cent of them who get employed? They are rather investing in the future of their children and wards, neglecting the future of million others.

The situation is apparently worse than we may think. Nigeria is not part of the calculation of any Nigerian, talk more of the youth who daily seek to migrate out of the country. How can anyone blame these youths who pine away daily in Nigeria every minute, with no job and future?

Nigeria is not attractive to Nigerians to live because it has become a Hobbesian world where life is nasty, brutish and short, a 17th century phrase which described the life that mankind lived in a state of war. Unfortunately, Nigerian governments and leaders do not see this as a ticking time bomb and prefer to spend the Nigerian commonwealth on elephant projects which will apparently not endure. The truth is, until governments and relevant stakeholders see these cases of killings and disaffection with Nigerians abroad as an emergency, we will continue to be embarrassed, killed and get destroyed in the Mediterranean in the process of escaping from the tragic Nigerian situation.


https://www.makeitglobal.biz/opinion/killing-of-nigerians-adebayo/

Let them support this man so we can take Nigeria to the next level

KINDLY VISIT OUR SITE FOR EVERYTHING ENTREPRENEURSHIP

https://www.makeitglobal.biz/