Nigeria

Nigeria 21

The Raging Unemployment in Nigeria

Even though a sizable number of ”pressmen” as government officials always say, are on the payroll of the ruling party in Nigeria today, that does not distract professionally resolute Journalists from outlining the chameleon nature of governance.

Failure is a recurrent feature, when the people’s voices are ignored and the imposition of the desires of a few occupy the front page. Politicians have over the years groomed army of youths to promote their selfish interests.

Majority of these youths do not necessarily possess the basic qualification-Senior Secondary School Certificate(SSCE) to make any meaningful impact in life.

To fill the vacuum, politicians console these category of youths with limitless supply of outlawed substances and alcohol, so long as the youths do their bidding.

The unemployment rate in Nigeria is at an all time high, with unemployable graduates constituting  a significant number of the unemployed.

Of worry is the fact that most Primary, Secondary and tertiary institutions of learning are ill equipped and have on their pay rolls, poorly motivated manpower to impart the required knowledge. 

State Governments now employ graduates to positions originally meant for unskilled labor, as political patronage and nepotism determines who gets what.

Professionalism no longer  exists in the civil service of most states, as workers continue to redefine their positions to reflect the survival of the fittest ideology currently in vogue. It is on record and it is already a reference point that the All Progressives Congress(APC), the ruling party had its first progressive governance lecture series on 24 February, 2014, in Ibadan, Nigeria.

At the lecture series, Ayo Teriba, Chief Executive Officer, Economic Associates, delivered a lecture titled ”NIGERIA’s HIGH GROWTH-HIGH UNEMPLOYMENT PARADOX”. Teriba had said, ”As Nigeria’s growth surged in the past one and a half decades, unemployment rate has increased three fold. Elected officials have been unable to translate growth to increased employment, largely because they have left the task of fiscal and monetary policy management growth, constrained domestic demand and worsened the employment rate. 

To make democratic governance a tool for delivering economic tangible and enduring economic benefits in the future, Nigeria needs to make monthly employment data available before the end of each month, fix rail transportation, rethink fiscal policy, refocus monetary policy and ensure that elected officials accept responsibility for policy formulation and coordination”.

However,  the future is here and it is doubtful if Teriba’s recommendation are being followed. Interestingly, Owelle Rochas Okorocha,the then Governor of Imo state and Chairman, Progressives Governors Forum had lamented ”the current unemployment situation in Nigeria is unacceptable and is a danger to the social, economic and political stability of Nigeria.

It also impacts negatively on our ambitions as a country, after all, how can Nigeria, with over 20 million youths who have no jobs and millions of others wasting away claim that we want to be a major  power in the comity of  nations ?''

''That claim would be laughable if not tragic-tragic because we come across as refusing to empower the youths on whose shoulders will rest the task of taking Nigeria to the next level.

We can no longer remain insensitive to issues around unemployment and crises of governance in Nigeria”. Will the President Muhammadu Buhari led administration reverse the current trend of economic and other sectoral challenges ? Nigerians are already taking note and stock of the activities of the present administration for reference in the near future.

Patent medicine

Drug, Distribution, Health Insurance and The Ambitious Quack

Nigerians have for long contended  with the problems associated with the pharmaceutical drug distribution network and the increasing presence of quacks in the health sector.
Indeed, unauthorized persons prescribe, dispense and handle medicines in open markets, major roads, street corners and bus-stops.
These persons have now occupied leadership roles in drug distribution, mainly for their personal interests, to the detriment of millions of Nigerians, who patronize them.
Sadly, Government is yet to come to terms with the visible dangers that abound  in the unstructured  distribution channels, while relevant regulatory  agencies are handicapped when  it involves the implementation of the provision of the laws on drugs.
  It is a known fact that quackery  cuts across all professions including journalism.
Presently, jobless Nigerians in various fields, Secondary school leavers and in some cases drop outs are engaged by phony health insurance companies to propagate their objectives for ridiculous fees.
They deliver health talks at Government owned Primary Health Care centres, clinics, Maternity and nursing homes among others.
This, they do in conjunction with the operators of the unstructured distribution channels.
Advertisements outlining vacancies for various positions in health insurance dot the nooks  and crannies  of the country. 
These organizations, on recruiting new staff introduce them  to the nitty gritty of the business, with claims that they are working in conjunction with the World Health Organization.
A sizable number of state Governments are behind these quacks.
Of note, is that the salient provisions of the 2005 National Drug Policy makes dispensing , sales and display of drugs, the exclusive  professional privileges and rights of Pharmacists in Nigeria.
In  the guise of providing enlightenment on health  insurance, a group of quacks from a phony health  insurance company, delivered a health talk  on the celebration of the 2017 World Teachers Day celebration, organized by  the Oyo state council of the Nigeria  Union of Teachers(NUT) at the Teachers House, Oluyole estate, Ibadan, Nigeria. 
After the health talk, the quacks charged a token of N50.00  per Teacher, to carry out medical examination.
This trend is not only disturbing but worrisome.
Sadly, quacks have taken advantage of the loop holes in the health sector to make money, while educated citizens are now their preys. Very ridiculous

Nln

National Library Act Non Compliance-Govt MDAs are Culpable-National Library

Nln 1The failure of authors, publishers and Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies to abide by the legal deposit law in Nigeria and poor funding have been identified as the major challenges confronting the National Library of Nigeria(NLN).

This was the submission of Mrs. Laureta Isioma Ekwemuka of the Legal Deposit Department of the National Library, in a paper titled ‘’Evaluation of Legal Deposit Collection at the National Library of Nigeria(2014–2018) at the South Western zonal session of the Nationa Library two day sensitization workshop on Legal Deposit Compliance ISBN & ISSN, held in Ibadan.

‘’Some major challenges of the National Library include the uncooperative attitude of Authors, Publishers, Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies, when it comes to the submission of copies of published works to the National Library. So many Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies publish quarterly, bi-annually and annually, but they do not deposit copies of their published works to the National Library. Another major challenge is lack of adequate funding. We have been trying our best to overcome these challenges’’, Mrs. Ekwemuka stated.

Similarly, in a paper titled ‘’Evaluation of ISBN/ISSN Acquisition at the National Library of Nigeria(2014–2018), Mrs Taye Abena of the International Standards and Programs Departments expressed worry over the proliferation of fake ISBN numbers saying’’ people tend to do things their own way, they go to publishers to collect fake ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits, in the process of collection, 3 digits are removed, and these three digits represent the numbers of the international center’’.

In his remarks, the Head of Branch, Oyo state, Mr. Bashiru Salawu warned Nigerians not to obtain the ISBN and ISSN from sources other than the National Library, adding’’ISBN and ISSN emanating from other sources are fake’’.

The National Library Act was passed in 1964 and later reviewed in 1970 with emphasis on deposit obligations and bibliographical functions.

The Act №29 of 1970 applies throughout the country and has supremacy over any library laws of state governments in the event of jurisdiction conflicts. Read the Act here-https://bit.ly/2Pou5ck

Benue

The Hopes in Agriculture for a Better Economy

Agriculture has the potentials of been a major revenue earner in Nigeria, if only farmers had not been neglected for several years and deprived of needed incentives.
Indeed, farmers in rural areas have never been encouraged to remain within their localities to propel increased farm production, while production at the local government level has made the availability of schools,Primary health Care Delivery, functional electricity and potable water a mirage.

The caretaker committees at the grassroots have only succeeded in impoverishing the rural populace.
At present, agricultural equipment and machinery are sourced from advanced countries, this alone, is an impediment to self sufficiency in food production.

Indeed, sub-standard farm equipment and machinery to a large extent affected output in most farms in the country, just as access to finance is a major challenge for farmers. Bank interest rates are not friendly, if at all the banks are ready to give out loans to farmers. Although the Federal Government assures that it would fully support the agricultural sector, inadequate funding of the sector, closely trailed by diversion of funds meant for agricultural production is still common place.
The erratic power supply, prohibitive cost of petroleum products and the activities of insurgents, bandits and kidnappers have all contributed to make the agricultural sector less attractive.
Truly, government monopoly in critical sectors is an advantage, but bad management as a result of corruption is the idiscussion on every motuh in the land.
At Nigeria’s level of development government ought to invest alongside private individuals. But waiting for the agricultural  sector to blaze the trail, is a sign of lack of vision. It is only when the country has reached full employment level, that government can think of divesting.
Has Nigeria reached the level of full employment ? This might not be so, as the National Bureua of Statistics is very reluctant to make public the rate of unemployment in the country, even though the answer could be seen on the faces of millions of jobless Nigerians.
Without doubt, the agricultural sector can provide millions of jobs, once the leadership appreciates what is required to transform the economy.
But good management revolving round a porous judicial system and law enforcement agencies  are  never the panacea for sustainable development and growth.

Ni

The Search for Exemplary Leaders in Nigeria Continues

The present administration in Nigeria insists that it  to anchors its policies on transparency, integrity and honesty.

For several years successive administrations in the country have failed to incorporate the aforementioned in the national life.
Rather, activities and actions have been channeled towards stagnancy, retardation and underdevelopment.
At the inauguration of boards and parastatals in Oyo state, on 24 June, 1999, the then Governor of Oyo state, Alhaji Lam Adesina, of blessed memory, stated : ”We took our time in ensuring that men and women of integrity and probity are chosen among innumerably qualified men and women. We don’t like to be proved wrong and this is why we implore you to rise up to the challenge and improve the lot in your work place.''
”We are very serious when we promised our people that probity and public accountability will be our watch word, most of the areas, you have been posted to, are afflicted and already grounded by financial impropriety and squandermania. We, as an administration have made covenant, with our people and we shall not renege on it”, Alhaji Adesina concluded.
Indeed, Nigerians are still wondering, if the present crop of political appointees at both the Federal and State levels would make probity and public accountability their watch word, considering the rot in the system. Interestingly, the appointees are yet to publicly declare their assets.
In 2009, the Day Star Christian Centre organized a conference, ”Excellence in Leadership”. In attendance, was the then Governor of Lagos state, Babatunde Fashola, who is now the Minister of  Works and Housing.

Fashola had emphasized the need for Nigerians to embrace the basic values of good conduct.
”By sowing for an early crop, the capacity to ‘lead’ particularly in our youths, we can guarantee this nation, a harvest of exemplary leaders that our people so dearly expect and indeed deserve”.
Without doubt, the country is in dire need of principled and visionary leaders. However, the absence of  people with good leadership qualities has for long served as a major impediment towards achieving developmental goals.
But the existence of principled and visionary leaders, seems to be a mirage, when confronted with the fact that most power brokers end up managing wayward children.

In the political scene, the Father continues to contend with issues of governance, while the Mother runs around to boost the fortunes of her pet project.

At the end of it all, the children grow up without parental care, with their behaviour, similar to that of their Nannies and Teachers.

The ”World is yours” becomes their creed, while the state and its resources are at their beck and call. Indeed, transparency, integrity and honesty is not yet within reachable distance.

Eze

I am not in support of Hate Speech but........-Vice President (South)Association of Eze ndigbo-in-Diaspora

The hate speech bill currently in the National Assembly which recommends death penalty for those found culpable is a sign of leadership failure in the eyes of millions of Nigerians. The political class, government officials and the citizenry are culpable.

Indeed, hunger, poverty and unemployment are the lot of Nigerians today, even as the Federal, State and Local Governments feebly struggle to come to terms with the reality of the times.

In this interview, the Eze Ndigbo of Ibadan and Oyo state, who is also the Vice President(South) of the Association of Ezendigbo-in-Disapora, Eze(Dr.)Alex Anozie opines that once government at all levels addresses the major challenges confronting the country such as kidnappings, killings, banditry, corruption, hunger, poverty and unemployment, hate speech would be reduced to the barest minimum. Excerpts :

What is your reaction to the hate speech bill which recommends death penalty for offenders, presently before the National Assembly ?

 

Most times I wonder what is happening. What is the priority? Why go to that area of death penalty for hate speech? Considering all that is happening in the country. People are hungry, people are in pain. I am not in support of hate speech. It is dangerous and a threat to the unity of the country, but that is not the priority now.

The Federal Ministry of Information and the National Orientation Agency (NOA) should go ahead to campaign against hate speech.

But taking it to the level of death penalty, sounds strange. It was not there before, not to the alarming rate it is now. What and what is causing hate speech. We should be able to ask ourselves this question.

Is it not killings and the wanton destruction of lives and property, sufferings, hardships and religious hatred? All these are the causes of hate speech.

Corruption, lopsided appointments and lopsided development are also the causes of hate speech.

If all these challenges are addressed hate speech would fizzle out.

Government should continue to talk to the public about hate speech.

Government should also do things better. Government should ensure that the killings in every part of the country stops. The rate of crime is on the increase, it is crime here and there.

It is kidnapping, killing or militancy; we are not hearing good news anymore.

I am not in support of hate speech, but we should all work hard to know how it  came about.

There is never a smoke without fire.

When marginalization is at play, there would be hate speech, when justice and equity are not in place there would be hate speech, when the people are hungry, a hungry man can open his mouth and say whatever he likes, if he has the strength.

 Finally, I say it again nobody must support hate speech. Whatever we want to say out we should ensure it helps to build the nation, it ensures peace and tranquility. We have to identify the root causes of hate speech and remove them.

Politicians open their mouths to say whatever they like, in their desperation to pull each other down. This also constitutes hate speech. When people are hearing of how Billions of Naira are been stolen and stashed away in foreign countries, do you expect them to shut their mouths? All they say constitute hate speech.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pensioners

Executive Bill on Taxes : President Buhari should consider Poor Nigerians by not Assenting -Pensioner

President Muhammadu Buhari has been called upon not to give his assent to the Financial bill recently passed by the Senate.

This call was made by the former National Vice President of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners(NUP), Alhaji Lateef Adegoke.

''President Muahammadu Buhari should not sign it. I advise  that the increase should  be reversed for the benefit of poor Nigerians. If 10 per cent out of 200 million Nigerians are better off financially, then the President should reconsider this and not sign the bill. Things are not okay for Nigerians, people are suffering, people are hungry, the President should consider the plight of poor Nigerians by not signing the bill'', Alhaji Adegoke advised.

Police

The Other Side of Safeguarding the Lives and Property of Nigerians

In July 2005, the then Inspector General of Police Mr. Sunday Ehindero put in place a committee to investigate the circumstances that led to the alleged killing of five Igbo traders and their female friend by some policemen at the Apo  mechanic village, Abuja on June 7 of the same year.
However, the committee was  headed by, Mike Okiro, then a Deputy Inspector General  of Police.
 
However the committee was dissolved by the then President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo.
 
The President hinged his decision on the fact that the Police could not be a Judge in its own case.
In addition, the President's action was predicated on the testimonies of a  photographer, hired by the Police in the Federal Capital Territory(FCT) to take photographs of the lifeless bodies of the six Nigerians sent to their untimely graves. 
The photographer confessed that the police were responsible for the crime, as he stated that he saw the police bring guns and placed  by the side of the corpses of the six, to make them look like armed robbers, after which, the police ordered him to take their photographs.
 
The photographer further stated that, he could not believe his eyes, when he saw the Commissioner of Police of the Command, explaining to Nigerians that those killed were armed robbers, while making particular reference to the photographs. Such instances abound till today.
 
This development emboldened the President to put a stop to the Police investigation, to avert a situation whereby the outcome of the investigation would favour the Police.
 
Without hesitation, the President set up a Judicial Commission  of Inquiry to find out how the six were killed and the role of the police in the incident. 
 
Nigerians now realized that the action of the President, was an indication that he lacked confidence in the competence of  Ehindero, as Inspector General of Police.
 
Complainants are converted to accused persons at Police stations, when money exchange hands, just as criminals boast of their cordial relationships with compromised officers and rank and file of the force.
Corruption and inefficiency have become recurring decimals in the law enforcement agency, this has affected almost all senior officers, who have occupied the number one  position in the agency.
In this dispensation, Nigerians heaved a sigh of relief, when Ibrahim Idris assumed office as the Police Boss. They thought that they would soon begin to sleep with their two eyes closed This was not the situation, considering the manner the Police had handled several cases.
Sadly, for several years, there has been a disconnect between the IGP's office and the 36 state commands. This informed the establishment of special task forces by successive Inspectors General of Police to tackle crime nationwide.
Accusation of deprivation of funds and counter accusation of mismanagement of funds have characterized the relationship between the IGP's  office and the 36 state Police Commands.
Indeed, on issues bothering on corruption, the Police cannot be a Judge in its own case. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) is an anti-graft agency, with a number of policemen involved.
Indeed, the question of funding of the police still remains in the circle of administrative bottlenecks and the late release of funds by the Federal Government. Sabotage is now the order of the day. The insecurity in land addresses the question.
Of worry, is the communication lag between the office of the IGP and the Police Service Commission(PSC). The PSC is  not responsible for the appointment of the IGP.
Successive occupants of the IGP's seat have always been suspicious of any suggestion or advice emanating from  the commission.
Interestingly, some state governments, which are vigorously agitating for the establishment of state police, have taken advantage of the insecurity in the land.
However, state police cannot fly, in an environment filled with political office holders bereft of ideology and principles.
Nigerians should not be deceived by the activities of some selfish and greed-driven citizens, who continuously discredit the present  centralization of the  police structure, in favour of sectional interests and design.

Prof

Today's Teachers are in the Profession to Keep Body and Soul Together-Prof. Olagoke

Nigerians are unanimous in their clamor for the re-introduction of Teacher Training Colleges as part of the efforts to salvage the falling standard of education in the country from total collapse.

Indeed, a sizable number of teachers have overtime exhibited tendencies and behaviors not in line with the dictates of the noble profession, while pupils and students alike have emulated same.

In this interview, the Founder, Spiritual Head and Grand Imam of Shafaudeen-in-Islam Wordlwide, Prof. Sabitu Olagoke insists that present day teachers are in the noble profession for the purposes of survival not for the love of the profession. Excerpts :

Do you think the re-introduction of Teacher Training Colleges would play a significant role in salvaging the falling standard of education in Nigeria ?

The policy makers over the years in Nigeria have displayed a high level of over zealousness when it comes to adopting to adapt new trends in the areas of advancement in education.

They failed to look inwards, our cultural background and the needs of the society. The basic background that could be traced to 6–5–4 system of education, whereby the five years in the secondary school could be augmented with advanced level classes, before proceeding into the universities. This was far better mainly because it was effectively managed in terms of teachers and the facilities needed on ground. Some people may adduce this to the fewer number of schools and teachers as well as fewer population of students to cope with then.

The greatest advantages then, were the people’s appreciation of the value of education, the immediate opportunity for graduates to be absorbed from the labor market as well as the best discipline on offer as a necessary prerequisite that would enable seriousness in learning.

It was an era when boarding schools were facility laden with trustworthy house masters.

It was also a period when religious houses were sacred for the much needed vitamins of the fear of God for the teachers and the students.

However, with the advancement of education, it was good to discontinue the use of auxiliary teachers, most of whom were more matured and committed in the classrooms, than today’s graduates, most of whom are unhappy with the teaching profession, but for economic survival, take the teaching job to keep body and soul together.

The establishment of the Universal Primary Education(UPE) for which Teacher Training Colleges became popular, was a very good policy in the right direction.

The graduates were basically trained on the methodology of teaching in education, the preparation of lesson notes and the keeping of records in an environment of high level of discipline and respect for constituted authority with a high level of focus on building a happy home in which future leaders for the society in particular and nation as a whole must be brought up.

Graduates of the Teacher Training Colleges were fully committed to the profession and were always time conscious with respect to punctuality and regularity at work. They were always ready to be directed and managed by their Headmasters or Principals, whose instructions must be obeyed and who happened to be graduates of universities, most of whom took courses in education at the post graduate level, with Grade I and II qualifications in their kitty before acquiring university education.

Headmasters and Teachers were then role model parents who believed in working for government for good, holding tenaciously to the principles of transparency and accountability.

Government would have left this phase of our educational institutions when creating the Colleges of Education, rather than phasing it out.

They ought to have restricted the activities of graduates of Teacher Training Colleges to the grassroots level of Primary Schools, while those in Colleges of Education would have been trained for the Junior Secondary Schools in the 6–3–3–4 education system.

While graduates of universities and probably Polytechnics at the HND level all with technical bias towards specific vocations, with some knowledge in entrepreneurship studies would have been prepared to manage our Secondary schools. With this arrangement based on relevant disciplines and subjects, the instructional facet of all segments of our educational levels would have been appropriately captured and fixed. This is because graduates of each sector of our lines of educational development and structure have good opportunities of resorting to, based on their capacity and capability at the time, apprenticeship for artisan ship, vocation and entrepreneurship for possible self job creation ability and promotion of employment opportunities for others, to lessen the pressure on graduates hustle for white collar jobs.

The mistake made in the phasing out of the Teacher Training Colleges, is the present mistake that is about to be repeated in the case of the Technical Colleges, which would have served the nation if well funded and equipped in the following areas :

  1. Foundational step to engineering and other professional technical appreciation needs.
  2. It would have been a technical forum to train our artisans, who control our economy on the need for skill acquisition and proficiency needs. The class would have been for the development of initiative, innovation and creativity as and a center for talent discovery.

Generally, Nigeria’s policymakers, most especially in the areas of education, must always take cognizance of our background and our needs for our graduates to be relevant directly in the areas of community service, society development and nation building.

After all, all our professional bodies have family pyramid structure. For example, craftsmanship, technicians, technologists and corporate membership. All of them are yet to take care of sectors of artisan ship for proficiency needs while their fellow cadres are yet to be specifically saddled with serious assignments of mentor ship, research and development .

Suffice it now to say, that no segment of our educational system like the Teacher Training and Technical Colleges should be phased out or neglected because our developmental needs in Nigeria have not outgrown them.

The two sectors would have assisted us in bridging the gap between the needed strong foundation and the advanced stages of education and development.

In the area of affective education, happenings in our schools, Primary, Secondary and Universities are characterized by examination malpractices, sex-for-marks scandals, cultism, admission racketeering among others. All these portends that the goal of education regarding our attitudinal correction are yet to be effected.

Kleptocracy in governance equally reflects in the activities of these graduates, old or new, as an attestation that there is not no single impact of what they learned in their behavior.

In the area of cognitive education, there is a misplacement of priorities. For example, we have failed to run effectively our Polytechnic system as a result of a lack of facility update for research and development and the training need of students to be in tandem with the necessary industrial essence with what obtains in companies.

Nigerian graduates still need to undergo a lot of training before they can be certified fit for employment in industries.

Why is it that Nigeria is just realizing the need for technical universities ?

To what extent have our Schools and Universities of Agriculture served the nation in terms of poverty alleviation and eradication ?

Why is it that there is still limited spaces for successful candidates, who passed the UTME and post UTME in the educational institutions in the country ?

Recently, China retraced its steps, on the need to survive through the development of technical education and technological development, by converting 600 of its universities into polytechnics while Nigeria is on the verge of collapsing the HND certificate program.

Policy making must go beyond the rhetoric of politics because it is about the life of our people and the future of the nation.

Eze

Governance at all Levels Ought to be all Inclusive-Eze(Dr.)Anozie

Government at all levels have been advised to ensure governance is anchored on the all inclusive principle.

The Ezendigbo of Ibadan and Oyo state Eze and the Vice President(Southern zone)Association of Ezendigbo in Diaspora(Dr.)Alez Anozie gave this advice in a chat with Federationews2day.

‘’When government at all levels is all inclusive, it will go a long way in uniting the country and it will also go a long way in making people to have confidence in the true unity of Nigeria’’, Eze(Dr.)Anozie asserted.

Similarly, a statement by Eze(Dr.)Anozie disclosed that the President of the Association of Ezendigbo in Diaspora, Eze Ibekwe called on Igbos in the 36 states and Abuja to be law abiding. 

Eze Ibekwe, according to the statement, made this call in Ibadan, during the general meeting of all the recognized Ezendigbos residing outside the South East Geo-Political zone in Ibadan.

The statement further said that the Chief Host, Eze (Dr.) Anozie was earlier on hand to receive members of the association at his palace in Ososami, after which they proceeded on a courtesy visit to the Olubadan of Ibadanland’s palace.

It also said that both the executives and members of the association and the Olubadan gave assurances of mutual cooperation and peaceful co existence among the two tribal groups.

 

Prof. sabitu olagoke

The Community must be Sensitive to the Lifestyles of Landlords and Tenants-Prof. Olagoke

Residents of several communities in Nigeria have expressed worries over the criminality, lawlessness and disorderliness which now characterize daily living in these communities.

Sadly, owners of houses in these communities have repeatedly failed to thoroughly screen prospective tenants before accommodating them. In the process of residing in the rented apartments, criminals of sorts ply their trade.

Indeed, community leaders and the executive and members of Landlords and Tenants Associations have by design been unsuccessful in reversing this ugly trend, in addition to the proliferation of beer parlours, ‘’Ogogoro’’ joints and hotels in residential areas.

In a sizable number of communities, the critical stakeholders have been repeatedly accused of sponsoring criminals and crime.

In this interview, the Founder, Spiritual Head and Gran Imam of Shafaudeen-in-Islam Worldwide, Prof. Sabitu Olagoke opinest that Landlords, tenants, the police, religious leaders all have roles to play to reverse the ugly trend.

What do you think can be done to curtail criminality, lawlessness and disorderliness in communities in Nigeria ?

Nigeria is made up of units or sub-systems bound by ethical principles to promote sanity in the society for ease of interpersonal and social interactions based upon the concept of peaceful co-existence. Each unity or sub-system can be regarded as a community with peculiar characteristics that may feature as a tribe, ethnic grouping, language and some traditions that show the kind of social entertainments, peculiar works as well as dressing modes and dress codes. Customs have varieties of religious undertones that maybe originally cultural or metamorphosis of assimilated foreign religion mixed with their beliefs.

Each of these are based on some value system which keep the community peaceful safe and secured for human sustenance in their struggle to entrench sustainable development. At the national level, regionalization of communities with similar traits keep up the Geography. Fortunately, this is the basis upon which Nigeria was built through several nationalities.

It should therefore not come as a surprise that agitations based on access, equity and development do emerge, but with different causative factors. For example, various agitations leading to militancy through youth restiveness in the South-South is basically environmental and ecological devastation. That of the South-East maybe based on issues of erosion, while that of the South-West is on fall in the standard of education and setback in development.

Generally, the North suffers from desert encroachment, educational backwardness and issues of poverty in the midst of plenty leading to the increasing insecurity as exemplified in the religious fracas of the likes of Maitasine and Boko-Haram issues fueled by poverty stricken youths in the wicked environment of begging for alms for sustenance.

The question now is the relevance of our Town and Gown philosophy on the impact of the expected socio-economic impact, value laden with the light of civility expected of rural integration programs into city urbanization effect.

However, community or village primitive nature dominates the Ivory Tower civilization because the ideal and substance of the value of education is always grossly abused through unwarranted under funding, with graduates preferring to be Personal Assistants to mediocre s, other than even searching for any job which in reality will fetch them less money for sustenance, rather than the ones to earn from the corruption ridden elite, who may not necessarily have a diploma certificate.

Other questions on the roles of all stakeholders in the scheme of nation building and community service on the issue of the core values of integrity that are supposed to make the people to be law abiding and measure up to become responsible citizens.

The Obas, Emirs and Obis were the custodians of the community’s cultural values those days, only credible people with a high level of integrity were usually put into the revered positions of power through divination that would enhance them to be people oriented on matters of justice and equity. They were expected not to run foul of the law they make and monitor, to ensure that people comply.

Unfortunately, some of them sold their people out during the colonial era on a platter of token sum or gift from their foreign colonial masters, thereby throwing most of their people to the jungle of enslavement. Since then, these revered positions neither seriously respect the oracles on the matter of choice, but rather receive blood money to enthrone the worms against the wishes of the gods and goddesses. The choice is now based on who can corruptly enrich the purse of the kingmakers.

This is why customs and traditions are now mere paper tigers and nasty objects of funfair of ceremonial importance.

On the religious scene, sacredness has been torn into shreds of profanity and religious substance has been sacrificed on the platter of commerce and deceit, rendering the scripture to a poor second of mere literature books of poetic importance. It is more of an entertainment program for people’s relaxation or mere opium.

This is the very reason why religion is only been used deceptively to choose our leaders, who will never apply, even by intuition, the concept of religious lessons or application of the scripture on the issues of management and administration in governance.

For the non-performance of government that has created the environment of poverty, religious issues are now shrouded in mysteries of magical wands by many self-acclaimed religious leaders to facilitate miracles to hoodwink the innocent, gullible and unsuspecting souls.

In all these processes, the community or the nation becomes fraught with anti-social and anti-divine activities, all in the name of survival of the fittest.

Unfortunately, poverty has also affected the fabric of every home that are either further impoverished or getting richer through the soiled hands of self enrichment or corruption.

Poor parenting, a situation where responsible Fathers are absent , creates an atmosphere of single parenting or separation and even divorce. This situation has only succeeded in putting children and the youth at the risk of poor peer group, most especially when they have the opportunity of mixing in schools with others from equally poor parenting homes.

Unfortunately for us, Nigeria is bedeviled with almost 13.9 million out-of-school children, with the possibilities of joining bad company in an environment of impunity.

Education is meant for all, to the secondary school level, hence must be free and made compulsory by government.

The community service must be directed towards having grassroots harmony. this is why all stakeholders starting from the Obas, Emirs and Obis, must shun self, but uphold the principle of altruism in discharging their divine and traditional responsibilities. Parents must equally direct their energy towards the God given assignment for them to ensure good parenting that would uphold the principles of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs on psychological and sociological needs, safety and security, self esteem and self actualization for the growth and development of their children.

Taking the golden path of assured safe and good child custody, sexuality education to manage the crisis ridden regime of puberty/adolescence stage of life as well as keeping close contact with the nature nurturing needs of the children to adulthood stage of independence.

For the security of the community, every home must participate effectively in the Landlords/Tenants Association’s activities, monitoring and controlling the inflow and outflow of tenants.

The community must be sensitive on the issue of the lifestyles of all Landlords, tenants and their children, while there must be good Police/Community relations.

It is now the trend to have Police stations at the ward level. This is important just as there are Medical centers for grassroots welfare and development.

Above all, parents and religious leaders must teach and implement the provisions of the scripture to be good role models by living exemplary lifestyles, that are worthy of emulation by the children and the youth.

Nigeria 20

Office of the Tutor-General Alien to Oyo state Civil Service Rules-NUT

The Oyo state Wing of the Nigeria Union of Teachers(NUT) says that the office of the Tutor-General is alien to the rules of the state civil service.

Th state  wing of the NUT  made this declaration  last week Saturday  through its state Chairman, Comrade Tojuade Adedoyin at an event to commemorate the 2019 World  Teachers Day in Ibadan.

''The office of the Tutor-General recently  announced by the Honourable Commissioner for Education in the state is strange to existing civil service rules of Oyo state.  Therefore for fairness, equity and justice, the teaching profession should neither be exempted nor isolated from the extant civil service rules'', Comrade Adedoyin stated.

The NUT, however, expressed its gratitude to the state Governor for his approval  of qualified Primary School teachers to be promoted to Grade level 15, adding ''we strongly appeal in furtherance of your unprecedented inclination and love for teachers and the teaching profession that the office of Permanent Secretary(Schools' Administration)should subsist to fill vacancies in al TESCOM  Zonal Offices and among the three  senatorial districts''.

Sadly, a sizable number of teachers, speaking incognito, argued that faulty political appointments was capable of affecting governance negatively.

'' There are several professionals locally, who can deliver, we do not know why they were not engaged'', the teachers wondered.

The general insinuation is that the state government is working to promote unfriendly policies inherited from the immediate past administration, while it also silently introduce certain policies that might not go down well with the people.

Teacher

Shortage of Qualified Teachers in Oyo State a Problem-Rev. Alamu

The dearth of trained teachers in Oyo state has been blamed on the reluctance of successive administrations in the state to address the problem.

This assertion was made by Reverend J.A Alamu, who was the chairman at an event with theme’’YOUNG TEACHERS, FUTURE OF THE PROFESSION’’, organized by the state council of the Nigeria Union of Teachers(NUT)to commemorate the International Teachers day in Ibadan, Nigeria.

‘’I shall be happy if our present government can look into this. We knew how we recruited teachers in those days, most of whom came into the profession without formal training, but we were committed, we climbed the ladder until we became true professionals. Since the teacher training was abolished, we have run into a problem of not having trained teachers.’’

‘’ This problem can be remedied. If we can’t re-introduce teacher training, we can work hard on training and retraining. All of you who came into the profession between 20 and 30 years ago are retiring, where are we heading to ? The government should do something about it, if we want to make progress in the education sector of this state and Nigeria generally. I hope the present regime under my son, Seyi Makinde will look into this, deliver my message, tell him Alamu said so. May God grant all of us long life to reap the fruits of this great profession,’’ Reverend Alamu concluded.

In his remarks, the Chairman of the NUT in the state, Comrade Tojuade Adedoyin appealed to the state government to as a matter of urgency engage the services of trained, qualified and competent teachers.

‘’Your excellency Sir, let me call your attention to the urgent need for the recruitment of new teachers in both primary and secondary schools in the state. Sir, the current statistics obtained across the state on the dwindling number of our teachers occasioned by the retirement of our teachers without new recruitment several years back needs much to be done by your administration.

‘’This year alone, Sir over two thousand(2,000) teachers have retired as at 30th September, 2019. The leadership of NUT is strongly appealing to the government to urgently employ trained and qualified teachers devoid of much political maneuvering and interference as we believe that the recruitment should be based mostly on merit’’, Comrade Adedoyin stated.

Of worry, is the fact that the shortage of qualified and competent teachers is already taking its toll on the attitude, behavior and activities of pupils and students alike.

Majority of them now use obscene language, as medium of expression, exhibit uncouth behavior and engage in crime as a means to an end.

For better understanding of the almost hopeless situation, most children of school age,primary and secondary school age, particularly residing at, but not limited to Olorunsogo, Molete in Ibadan display behavior and ways of life synonymous with crime. While the girls engage in prostitution, the boys take to various forms of crime. The high rate of drop outs in this community is already a problem. Those yet to drop out, attend both public and private schools.

Nigeria 17

Nigeria at 59-We Have not Been Fortunate to Have Good Leadership since Independence-Eze(Dr.)Anozie

Eze dr anozieAs Nigeria clocks 59, millions of citizens across the country lament that discrimination, nepotism, favoritism, injustice and inequality are the hallmarks of governance in the past and present dispensation.

In the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, non-indigenous people who constitute a bulk of the population, have interesting stories to tell of their experiences.

Also, in a sizable number of these states, first term Governors are towing the people unfriendly policies of their predecessors to the consternation of all concerned.

In this interview, the Eze Ndigbo of Ibadan and Oyo state, Dr. Alex Anozie, who insists that he remains the head of Igbos in the state with particular reference to the matter the the Appeal Court Ibadan Division, opines that the country has not been fortunate enough to have good leadership since independence.

Nigeria is 59, in your views, how has the journey been ?

Well, if one is not careful, one might be tempted to say that he is disappointed, I say so because with the way God blessed Nigeria, I was expecting something better than what we have in this country called Nigeria. Why ? because we are blessed with human resources, we are blessed with natural resources, good weather and climate, God has blessed us with everything. Sadly, God has not blessed us with good, focused, dynamic, corruption free and de tribalized leadership.

Since our independence we have not been lucky to have such leadership. We have been wobbling. Countries all over the world are disappointed.

Nigeria should be a country where everyone is running to, but Nigerians are running out of the country, to engage in jobs that are demeaning.

I believe that we shall make it by the grace of God.

If we had good leadership since independence, we would have gone far.

Nigerians ought to have free education,good roads and stable electricity supply all over the country.

This government that says it is fighting corruption, corruption is in their rooms. Everybody is corrupt.

Africa is not moving forward because of corruption in Nigeria. When Nigeria sneezes the whole Africa catches cold.

We have everything, except good leadership. God will help us to have it.

All our elections have been fraudulent. Even though we have development in some places, this is not enough when you hear of the trillions been stolen away. If these are not stolen, why should we be having graduates without jobs ? Tell me why should we be having armed robbers ?

And we are Christians and Muslims, who claim to know God, but we are not showing signs that we know God. It is a pity.

Let us all begin to practically display the fear of God, not just by preaching, but in practice.

Everyone will give account of his or her deeds.

People will leave all these worldly things to give account of their deeds.

If you claim to be a good Christian or a good Muslim, you must display it practically. People are suffering.

I don’t want to believe that we don’t have good leaders. We will keep on praying for the government. They should take the right from the wrong and do the right thing.

Serious consideration must be given to restructuring.

There is a need for Nigerians to ensure that the next President comes from the South East. All the Political Parties must source their candidates from the South East, this will calm frayed nerves and all the agitations will cease.

Labour 3

Non-Implementation of the New National Minimum recipe for Low Productivity-AWC

The All Workers Convergence(AWC) has declared that the non-implementation of the new national minimum wage of N30,000 is capable of discouraging high productivity among workers.

The AWC made this declaration through its National Coordinator, Comrade Andrew Emelieze.

''What the Minister of Labor and the Federal Government do not know is that the poor pay of workers and the non-implementation of the N30,000 new national minimum wage  will not encourage  the high productivity of workers and this is also an indication of the failure of governance.''

''The pronouncement of the Minister of Labor, Dr. Chris Ngige is very unfortunate, though we are aware that workers of Grade Levels 01 to 06 in the Federal Civil Service have had their salaries adjusted with a very meager amount. To us in the AWC, the payment is just an award from government and until the new minimum wage issue is resolved, implementation is yet to commence'', Comrade Emelieze state.

 

Nig

Insecurity in Nigeria : Facts that ought not to be ignored

Nigerians have expressed visible worries over the activities of criminals operating in commercial motorcycles, vehicles with tinted glasses, vehicles with foreign plate numbers, and vehicles without number plates.

They argue that most crimes in different parts of the country are committed through these motorcycles and vehicles and express surprise over the way the criminals beat the scrutiny of law enforcement agents along the road.

Innocent citizens who reside in Lagos, Ibadan, Benin City, Port Harcourt, Warri, Onitsha, Aba, Kaduna, Kano, and Abuja, among others, have continued to recount their tales of woe to whoever cared to listen.

Sadly, the law enforcement agents, saddled with the responsibility of ensuring law and order and the adherence to the road safety rules and regulations, have for long adopted a conspiratorial attitude, mainly because of the benefits that would accrue from aiding and abetting criminals.

Nigerians are now of the opinion that the laws of the land are either no longer functional or the law enforcement agencies are deliberately sabotaging the enforcement of the laws.

A victim of the worrisome state of insecurity in Ibadan, Nigeria, who spoke incognito, reveals his experience.

‘’There is a beer parlor opposite the Iyanganku Magistrate; it is among the several shops that share the same fence with the police barracks. A door inside the beer parlor leads into the barracks. Visit the beer parlor and observe those who patronize the beer parlor, and you will agree that those who break the law have the blessing of the persons whose statutory functions include the protection of lives and property, he stated.

The general feeling is that some criminally minded law enforcement agents make use of criminals as proxies in carrying out their statutory functions, which has resulted in the harassment, intimidation, and arrest of unsuspecting citizens.

Of worry is the adopted official status of lawlessness, indiscipline, and criminality in different parts of the country.

Indeed, illiteracy and ignorance have also contributed significantly to the scheme of things as presently constituted.

The mental psyche of millions of Nigerians has been dehumanized; this has resulted in unthinkable occurrences.

These occurrences have consumed a sizable chunk of those in charge.

The widespread, uninhibited prevalence of the lawless acts, to millions of Nigerians, is an indication that there is already a failure in leadership; with no visible remedy in sight for now.

Prof. sabitu olagoke

Discipline Must be Restored in Our National Life to Curb Cultism-Prof. Olagoke

Cultism has for long become part and parcel of the educational system in Nigeria at the Primary Secondary and Tertiary levels.

In addition, most communities in the country now play host to cultists, with emphasis on the active roles played by parents and guardians in the activities of the cultists.

A good example is the Molusi, Solanke, Olorunsogo, Molete, Felele communities in Ibadan, Oyo state, Nigeria which have for lone served as abode to the cultists, who have committed grievous crimes while law enforcement agents have all the time feigned ignorance , with full support of the community leaders and the Landlords and Tenants Association.

A cross section of Nigerians  insist that these cult groups in educational institutions and communities are feeder platforms for those responsible for the increasing  rate of kidnappinsg, killings and other violent crimes in the country.

In this interview, the Founder, Spiritual Head and Grand Imam of Shafaudeen Worldwide, Prof. Sabitu Olagoke opines that the only way cultism can be stamped out of our national life is when the Nigeria returns to the era of enforcing discipline in al aspects of life. Excerpts :

 

What do you think is the way out of the increasing involvement of  students and the  youth in cultism ?

 

Nigeria was once a safe and secured place to live in, with high level of discipline among the people and within the families. That was the era when we experience functional agents of socialization because in Africa, we used to uphold the philosophy of been our brother's keeper as well as been ambassadors of the families we come from.

Children and the youth were always reminded by the elders, who themselves happen to be role models of good character, teachers on the other hand were role models, who combined their primary assignment of teaching with parental roles of molding the character of the pupils or students.

Respect was fundamental, for the good parents, the children could not afford to disappoint, same applied for the disciplinarian teachers, who commanded respect of the children, thereby ensuring sanity in the management of education.

Those days parents are always very satisfied  having children in boarding schools or when they live in quarters because there was no case of cultism then, unfortunately Nigerian leaders failed to realize that in the time of crisis and possible conflict  resolution challenges, infiltration of idiosyncrasies could easily arise as challenges.

The first coup in Nigeria on January 15, 1966 opened the floodgate of blood shedding as part of our national life, followed by coups and counter coups that changed the political climate of peace and development into that of military rule of 29  years of dehumanization and economic bastardization.

Under this messy cloud, government option to destabilize the network of activists  at the school and the national terrain created  the era of student impersonation to disable student unions.

 All these later snowballed into the formation of various cult groups, beside the Pyrates Confraternity.

 The network of old and new generation cult groups added colour to some scientific approach to some ritual killings which everybody is now paying for dearly toady, most parents, biologically, even produced satanically controlled children, who later became dominant in cult activities .

Th solution therefore, lies in our going back into revolutionizing back the era of discipline, starting from the home and religious houses, that must teach morals and the scripture respectively.

We must equally go back to the era of the Late General Murtala Mohammed, who institutionalized government service as a no go area for cultism and occultism. God save Nigeria.

National hospital

Government wants to abandon National Health Through Concession-AWC

The move by the Federal Government of Nigeria to concession the 22 Teaching hospitals in the country has been described as a calculated step to empower the elite.

This position was made known by the All Workers Convergence(AWC)through its National Coordinator, Comrade Andrew Emelieze.

‘’From all angles and social indices before Nigerians, it has become obvious to everybody that our so called government is giving up its responsibilities, therefore governance is been abandoned systematically. This, Nigerians have seen as an attempt to concession the 22 teaching hospitals in the country. In a nut shell, government is trying to privatize these government hospitals, thereby making the prospect of health care delivery only for the highest bidder, which of course is the elite, more of a cash and carry process’’.

‘’It therefore means that those who cannot afford the bills are free to die. The position of the AWC, is that government should immediately reverse the idea of concession of the 22 teaching hospitals it owns’’, Comrade Emelieze declared.

Nigeria 18

Once Govt Places Emphasis on Building Strong Institutions Incurring Debts Shall No Longer be the Priority-Prof. Olagoke

Prof. sabitu olagokeNigerians residing in the South West Geo-Political zone are worried over the continued borrowing by State Governments in the Geo-Political zone.

Already, a report puts the total debt profile of the states at N1.3 trillion, even though the debts are not commensurate with the results of governance.

The people express great doubts over the possibility that good governance and economic development shall be achieved in the next four years, as the state Governors continue to borrow.

In this interview, the Founder, Spiritual Head and Grand Imam of Shafaudeen-in-Islam Worldwide, Prof. Sabitu Olagoke asserts that if Nigerians leaders concentrate more on building strong institutions instead of strong individuals, the emphasis would shift from incurring debts to generating revenue. Excerpts :

Are you not worried over the rising debt profile of state in the South West Geo-Political zone of Nigeria ?

Recently, the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed, stated that the major headache for economic development is more revenue generation rather than debts.

Analyzing this within the context of our culture of impunity and corruption, the two are more of threats to the development of the nation and that of the South West because on ground, there is not much to appreciate in terms of development, most especially in the areas of provision of employment, basic amenities and functional infrastructure, apart from the fact that the debts incurred would be more of frictional resistances to the performance of any incoming administration, after the tenure of the borrower must have elapsed.

The general problem of government in Nigeria, both Federal and state, is the lack of continuity in project and policy implementation, most especially when there is a change in leadership. Yet the debts will continue to be an hitch of liability. A notable characteristic of Government in Nigeria, included poor finishing or outright abandonment of projects, no matter how laudable.

Take for example, the way we abandoned vision 2010, for vision 2020, which if it had been well executed would have propelled Nigeria to stardom, placing the country among the 20 most economically viable nations in the world.

Researches were conducted by various institutions in the country with the aim of agreeing to work towards viable and strong foundations for its feasibility on the premise of erasing our Gross Domestic Product(GDP) to $900 billion, power generation to at least 6,00 megawatts and the economic growth rate of 7 per cent, but unfortunately, 2020 is just less than a year ahead, with records of abandonment, lack of visibility, lack of viability and with almost nothing to equitably distribute.

With the sustainable development goals accompanied by with grants from various world bodies, the culture of impunity and corruption have not only weakened governance, but failed us into the mirage of sustainable development.\My advice for debt rate reduction is in the following these guidelines :

  1. Donor agencies need to direct interventions to specific areas of need.
  2. Revenue generation must move up from a status of 55 per cent of 2018.
  3. Judicious use of the interventions with close monitoring mechanism must be in place to ensure it is fraud free.
  4. Nigerian government must avoid imposed programs that are foreign without direct impact on the lives of the people.
  5. There must be coordination of debt management to ensure virement of grants or borrowed money by the network of the Debt Management office, management staff of the Ministry of Budget and Planning, Ministers, Permanent Secretaries and the Directors, should be held accountable for any financial shortcoming.
  6. Let the anti-corruption agencies proactively work with the Ministers, Permanent Secretaries, Directors, all staff of the ministry of Budget and Planning for wholesome or all encompassing cleansing of the land on the generated revenue, grants and borrowed funds with the programs and projects they intend to execute for the nation’s development using the advantages of the Treasury Single Account, The Integrated Payroll, Personnel Information System and intelligence gathering of the whistle blowers’ efforts.

Generally, the diversified economy and import dependent

economy of any nation cannot sustain such country hence there would be the need to live on debt for project execution.

To avoid this situation, the area of entrepreneurship should be given adequate attention to recover rapid economic growth.

Presently, the inflation is rate is about 11.2 per cent, while the nation operates two digit interest rates on loans.

This economic climate is never favorable to the growth of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises(SMEs), which are currently suffering from the following lackluster factors, despite the presence of Entrepreneurship studies in the curriculum of our institutions-Secondary schools, Technical colleges, Polytechnics and Universities : paucity of funds, dearth of managerial expertise, irregular power supply with high cost for substitution, no homogeneous consensus of quality and standard among SME entrepreneurs with consequent poor products against the spirit of globalization on global best practices.

There is also the lack of patronage because of low policy design and implementation of Nigeria’s SMEs’ products by government and its agencies.

In addition there is the insensitivity to global competitiveness essence due to the use of obsolete technology form, processing.

Furthermore, there is tough government business regulation on ground that are usually unfriendly to businesses and hence discourage start ups.

Government must therefore, invest on the provision of functional infrastructural facilities to thrive entrepreneurship, to increase efficiency and productivity and provide access to available markets and sustainable growth and development.

Above all, Nigerian leaders need to focus on building a strong nation, rather than building strong individuals, for any worthwhile development to come by, through high revenue generation and less of legacy debts.

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China

Leadership : Between China and Nigeria

Mao Zedong popularly known as Chairman Mao, was successful with his noble goals for China through despotic means.

His leadership was severe, dictatorial and personalized.

For as long as Chairman Mao's  cultural revolution lasted, thousands of Chinese died of starvation and inhuman labor.

Mao and his co-travelers argued that same was the price their people had to pay  for re-education.

This brand of governance ensured the extermination of the heroes of the civil war and the old party chieftains by the President's armed squad.

Chairman Mao is perhaps the role model of those who hold sway in Nigeria today.

Indeed, the Kaduna state Governor, Mallam Nasir El Rufai is among several other political office holders, who adore President Muhammadu Buhari.

Those in support of this argument insist that on a number of occasions, the Kaduna state Governor had knelt down to greet and/or consult with the President. They maintain that this is only a sign of respect in the traditional African setting.

However, those against this order of things, stress that the underlying factors revolve on hypocrisy and boot licking.

Nigerians are yet to stop complaining of constitutional breaches and the unabated trampling of the rule of law in the dust, without noticeable changes by the powers that be.

From recent events in the country, the economic reform programmes of the All Progressives  Congress(APC) led government at the centre and  in the states, are modeled along the thinking of a free market economy.

It is doubtful, if government, in the last three years, has managed the economy for the benefit of Nigerians.

At a particular point in time, the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo launched the ''Trader Money'' in Abuja.  

The target beneficiaries are petty traders in the country and the collateral free loans for them, ranges from N10,000 to N15,000.

But the fundamental questions Nigerians  are asking include, Why are the interest free loans coming at this time ?,  close to  the governorship elections in Bayelsa and Kogi states. Is this not  a modified form of vote buying ? Considering the fact that a day after the launch, the Vice President was in Osogbo, Osun state to campaign for the APC Governorship candidate in the 22 September Governorship elections in the state.

This is irrespective of the fact that the state government has just resumed payment of full salaries to its impoverished workforce, after paying them half salaries for over three years.

Of worry is the state of manufacturing industries, which could be said to be epileptic, even as food security is a  mirage, insecurity is the chorus everywhere, while crude oil remains the major hope of the present administration.

Interestingly, the future growth of the Nigerian economy  rests comfortably on diversification and focus on  visionary and creative people friendly economic policies, although government still over-rely and over-depends on crude oil to fund its programmes.

Can the present administration turn around the troubled economy ? Nobody knows.

 

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