Noel Adeniyi: In Defence Of Ibrahim Salisu Buhari

In Defence Of Ibrahim Salisu Buhari

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By Noel Adeniyi Decker
It is common place these times to wake up in the morning,catch the early morning news on television and leave for work depressed. On your way to work you tune on the radio, listen and arrive work depressed. Lunch time, you read the newspapers and get back depressed. Our days are constantly filled with news of wickedness. Man’s inhumanity to man. Wars, earthquakes, avoidableaccidents claiming lives and maiming others, floods, rapes, murders, name them. Nothing is an aberration to modern man.
In the midst of all these we are often prompted to search inwards for answers on how to thrive amidst such wickedness. The only solution seems to be with us. Doing good. It is imperative for us to be the change we want to see in the world because no one, no being will do it for us. We should step out each day with the mission of doing good. Looking for someone to do good to, touch someone’s life with goodness. Our lives should never be dictated by hurtful or painful experiences we have had over the years at the hands of many who might have taken us for a ride. It should only make us wiser. But good we must strive for because our Creator out of goodness He created us and our lives must be a living example of our Creator who is good.
The recent rumpus over the appointment of Hon Ibrahim Salisu Buhari as a member of the University of Nigeria Nsukka Governing board has been viewed with cynicism which is totally superfluous.
The various ravings and mud-slinging on the person of the former speaker of the federal House of Representatives clearly shows that we as a people prefer to chase the shadows at the expense of the substance.Why the campaign of denigration over his appointment as a member of the governing board of the University? They attributed their criticisms based on his past conviction of fraud and age falsification.
We should not forget that it is on record that Ibrahim Salisu Buhari is the first and only public officer till date who publicly apologized to millions of Nigerians with tears in his eyes over his actions which was inimical to the nation in an era when public office holders see themselves being above the law and even subverting judicial processes with the powers, connections and funds at their disposal. Some say he was shedding crocodile tears and were not fazed at all.
What in their view expresses remorse? Should the man inflict himself with serious injuries and bleed on television in addition to the tears, or simply put a gun on his head and shoot himself on national television for a wrong action he took in his zeal to serve his fatherland?
No individual should be judged based on past mistakes or behaviours as they can change and make good choices once they get another chance in a free society. Success is not only for pious people who have never been convicted or made erroneous deeds. Success is for anyone who wants it. It is so sad that we live in an extremelyjudgmental society were people have various sorts of prejudice. Prejudice is not just racial or religiousdiscrimination, ageism, sexual preference or against those who are overweight, but a prejudiced person can judge a person based on their past.
I was surprised to note in many of the articles criticizing his appointment that no mention was made of his achievements at the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council [NERDC] in 2005 where he held sway as the Chairman during the twilight of the Obasanjo era. The uproar generated over his recent appointment was not generated then, so why the storm now? Were they not informed, do they have a problem with the President who appointed him now? Its quite amazing the issues we blow out of proportion while a lot needing our attention is never mentioned at all.
I wish to commend all the great Lions and Lionesses for their great heritage over the years and wish to implore them to welcome the former speaker of the Federal House of Representatives with open arms in the tradition of their great hospitality not forgetting that the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council never had it so good during the Chairmanship of the former Speaker who is not known to court media attention over his accomplishments in a society where silence is often seen as a sign of weakness.
In this period of holler for reformation and transformation in the polity we should never forget some sagacious sayings such as that of Alexander Pope 1688-1744: to err is human; to forgive, divine and the saying of the Great Rabbi ‘he that is without sin, let him cast the first stone’.
Noel is a media practitioner and writes from Abuja
deckernoel@yahoo.com

A revolution is coming! – Ogunjimi James Taiwo

“The time comes in the life of any nation when there remains only two choices – submit or fight.” – Nelson Mandela
When we talk of revolution, when we talk of the people revolting and seizing power from the thieving ruling class, so many people are of the opinion that it may have worked in other countries, but won’t happen in Nigeria. Such people base their assertions on the obvious lack of unity both in religious and tribal fronts. They also say that Nigerians love life too much to lay it down in a bid to regain the nation from a ruling class that is bent on running it down by pandering to the threats of terror groups, being pawn in the hand of the IMF, enthroning corruption on a large scale, gross misuse of public funds, arrant disregard for the rule of law and practicing anti-democratic acts in a democratic regime.
Recent developments however will perhaps cause them to have a change of mind and a difference of opinion. Signs are clear now that the end is near for this current leadership that has held Nigeria hostage with their fake dose of democracy. The telltale signs are here. They are slipping. There are acts of desperation everywhere. Illegal arrests and detention, attempts at silencing voices that disagree with their policies, unguarded comments, withholding of vital information; they are slipping!
April 8 2013, a freelance journalist, Cyriacus Njoku, who had challenged the eligibility of President Jonathan to contest at the polls twice, was arrested on charges of rape and was taken to Suleja prison where he was held under tight security, denied the services of a lawyer and denied access to visitors. In fact, it was claimed that had it not been that a note was smuggled out, his whereabouts wouldn’t have been known. It would be recalled that prior to his arrest, his lawyer, Mr Ugochukwu Osuagwu had fled the country with his family after seeking political asylum with the German embassy who granted him the asylum to protect him from assailants who he alleged were threatening to eliminate him.
Journalists are being harassed, brutalized and arrested. August 9, 2012, Mr Benedict Iwalaka, a photo journalist with Leadership newspaper was brutalized heavily when the corpses of the victims of the Dana crash was being released in Lagos.
November 9, 2012, Basil Ogbu, Michael Ogwa, Sunday Omogo, Philip Nwankpa, Eze Ndubisi, Ebuka Eze, Obinna Ofor, Joseph Udoh and Uchechukwu, members of Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Baifra (MASSOB), were arrested at MASSOB security office at Onitsha, Anambra State by a combined team of the army, police and State Security Service men and were handed over to the State Anti-Robbery Squad headquarters, Awkuzu, Anambra state. It was their corpses however that surfaced on the Ezu river on the 19th of January 2013.
On April 8, 2013, four journalists with Leadership newspaper were arrested on the orders of President Jonathan and were quizzed in a bid to make them reveal their sources of a report they published. On April 10, 2013, following the conditional release of two of them, Mr. Tony Amokeodo and Mr Chibuzo Ukaibe, the management of the newspaper house released a public statement condemning the obnoxious act in the strongest of terms. “The Nigerian government must understand that this very crude tactic of arresting journalists and invading media houses is dated. Even smaller African countries do not engage in those uncivilized acts anymore. And certainly, no democracy in the world still does it.” April 15, 2013, both of them were re-arrested.
On Monday 24th February 2013, four students of the Nasarawa State University, Keffi, were shot dead by security operatives during a peaceful demonstration in the university premises over scarcity of water and power in the institution, while about 17 of them were arrested.
November 8, 2011, the President of National Youth Council, Mr. Wale Ajani was arrested by the SSS in a bid to stop the planned hunger strike/protest that was supposed to hold in Unity Fountain, Abuja on 11-11-11.
April 21, 2012, Convener of United Action for Democracy, UAD, Jaye Gaskia was arrested and detained by SSS in Abuja in a bid to stop UAD from coordinating a general protest against the government of President Jonathan over massive corruption in the payments of fuel subsidies to the tune of $6.8 billion.
December 19, 2012, Dr. Dipo Fashina, Comrade Abiodun Aremu, Comrade Hassan Taiwo Soweto, Comrade Oladunni Segun and Comrade Usman Oloyede were arrested while leading a protest in defense of motorcycle riders in Lagos state, on orders of the Deputy Commissioner of Lagos State, Mr Babatunde Sobulo, who alleged that the organisers “lack the right to hold the protest.”
September 3, 2012, the special adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati denied allegations that the nation’s first lady, Dame Patience Jonathan was indisposed and had been flown abroad for treatment. In his words, he claimed the report “was a rumour and there is nothing like that.” February 20, 2013 however, the first lady, in what was described as a spiritual event, power show, fashion statement and political gathering held in the banquet hall of Aso Villa, confessed that her sickness was so severe that she ‘died’ for 7 days.
March 9, 2013, Akwa Ibom State Governor, Godswill Akpabio, who also doubles as the PDP Governors Forum Chairman, during a visit by a delegation of the National Good Governance Tour led by the Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, confessed to manipulating the result of a 2007 People’s Democratic Party senatorial primary election in the state by single-handedly replacing the rightful winner’s name with the name of his own preferred candidate, Aloysius Etuk. In his words, “The people of Ikono and Ini from 1960 have never produced a Senator. I used my own hand to strike out the name of the person who has won before, and I produced Senator Aloysius Etuk for you; that’s where he comes from.”
February 4, 2013, 39 beggars were arraigned before the Special Offences court in Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos state for soliciting alms. According to the Lagos state government, they were arrested because they constituted public nuisance. While 29 of those arraigned got 72 hours community service, 10 of them were sentenced to 3 months in jail.
Demolition of houses is a common thing now. Over 3000 houses were demolished in Abuja, thousands were demolished in Lagos state, Ogun state government is not left behind too. Recently, the Zamfara state government said it would demolish over 800 houses to make way for the construction of a new airport.
April 14, 2013, a former Nigerian lawmaker and self-acclaimed anti-corruption crusader, Mr. Dino Melaye, escaped assassination. Mr Melaye, a staunch government critic, claimed the attack was as a result of his stance on corruption.
I could go on and on listing the numerous signs that points to the fact that a revolution is imminent in Nigeria. We are entering a stage where there will be continuous protests, unrest and crises. The refusal of the Boko Haram sect to accept the questionable government amnesty, the resumption of MEND hostilities, OPC has been offered a paid responsibility of guiding pipelines; the government is blundering! The end of an era is near. Crime now pays better; illegality now pays better than adhering to legal ways.
For those who still have reservations about whether or not Nigerians will revolt, watch all these signs carefully; study the signs as they glaringly stare us straight in the eye, IT WILL HAPPEN! Nigerians are getting to that stage where they have been pushed to the wall, the thirst for information is unquenchable.
A revolution will happen, and it will first be a revolution of personal transformation that will divest us of mental and ideological orientation that have crippled the sense of reasoning of the masses and silenced their quest for change. A revolution is coming that will break the stranglehold of religious houses on the masses and turn pulpits to a platform where the voice of freedom will boom out. A revolution is coming that will challenge the monopolistic powers of traditional rulers and their ability to continually repress the masses while earning their pay from the thieving elites. A revolution is imminent that will reclaim our oil wells from those who have shared it between themselves. A revolution is coming that will reclaim the jobs of our youths from those who have huddled it for their kids. A revolution is coming that will transform the state of public schools. A revolution is coming that will provide a good health plan for ordinary Nigerians and bring down mortality rate. A revolution is coming that will upset the balance of oppression and repression. A revolution is coming that will consume the very foundation of corruption and mismanagement. Nigerians will revolt; believe it!
A new Nigeria is possible; don’t ever doubt it!
Ogunjimi James Taiwo
E-mail: hullerj@yahoo.com
Twitter: @hullerj

Our Suffer Neva Start–By Akan Imoh And Isaac Kolawole

By Akan Imoh And Isaac Kolawole

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True, true, our suffer neva start.
We are just seeing the prelude; the real movie is coming soon. We never start to cry, we never start to dey hungry, we never start to dey bury loved ones. We are still experiencing jollyment in comparison to what’s in store for us if we continue in our lackadaisical “siddon-look” attitude.
It is irritating to see how Nigerians adapt to every horrible and terrible situation like Chameleons. We have become silent survivors of suffering, yet smiling and moving on; gathering experiences of suffering and adding it to our curriculum vitae to be told at round tables to children yet unborn, who would also continue the chain of suffering and smiling with no plan to break the cycle of suffering.
It is more irritating to see the youths, the supposed leaders of tomorrow, sacrifice excellence on the altar of mediocrity, sacrifice progressive and positive change-oriented activism on the altar of ignorance, sacrifice political participation on the altar of indifference.
We always believe that one day things will magically get better. We pray always for a better Nigeria, as if God will come down from heaven in His splendor and majesty to set things right in Nigeria. We spit fire and brimstone in buses while being held in traffic on terrible and unmotorable death traps called roads, arguing blindly about corrupt politicians and how much they have looted. We keep forgetting the collective power of the masses and the fact that change can be effected by our collective efforts, if channeled in the right direction.
Yet, our youths prefer to discuss the round bottom of Kim Kardashian and Nicki Minaj, passionately tweet about the fight between Rihanna and Chris Brown, prattle with empty heads and fine faces; bimbos of the highest order.
I get frustrated when I read bios of youths on facebook, and I see ‘Not Interested’ in the column for politics. Ignorant big boys and girls; who should be more interested in politics if not the youths?! How can you not be interested in politics. If we all leave politics to these drained-out, geriatric and fatigued men, where will the radical change come from?
From lootocrats ready to change party without batting an eyelid and with no consideration for ideology? I think not.
A mentor of mine, Chude Jideonwo of Y! Naija, in his article – ‘Don’t get it twisted – anger is good’ opined that we all need to get angry, we all need to rise up with vexation and cry out in pain. It was collective anger of the people that led to the House of Representatives Ad-Hoc Committee on Fuel Subsidy “Mis-management” ; it was anger that led to the delay of tolling on the second phase of the Lekki-Epe Expressway; it was anger that caused the PDP to lose the governorship in Edo State; it was anger that led Mr. President to rescind his decision to rename the University of Lagos.
My take on that opinion is quite simple: Our youths do not even know what to be angry about. Ignorance has been used to rub our faces like petroleum jelly. We are blinded by mediocrity and lack of interest in who and how we are governed.
Tell me, how many young people know what the foreign reserve is about? How many young people know about the Sovereign Wealth Fund? How many young people know that serious countries are seriously looking for alternatives to petroleum? Have you realized that a news story on Whizkid or Davido sells better than a political analysis?
Parents warn their children to steer clear of politics. We have been taught that it is a dirty game and only dirty people can play it. As if that’s not enough, a popular religious sect sees it as a violation of rules for its members to go into politics. The members of this sect do not even vote during elections, yet we want a better Nigeria. Don’t worry magic will happen.
We so much believe in that part of the bible that says ‘a thousand and ten thousand shall fall by our sides, but nothing shall happen to us’, so we act like we don’t see the people that are being killed by accidentsand armed robbers on Benin-Ore road. We act like we don’t see the people being murdered by Boko Haram. We act like we don’t see the people being murdered emotionally when they have to write UTME five times before getting admission into a university, or the ones that have to trek the length and breadth of Lagos to secure a job. No, we are only conscious of our well being.
Until we rise and start asking the right questions and getting involved in politics, we may continue in this downward trend into the abyss.
We are @ovasabii and @newnaija on twitter.

OPINION: Beyond The Recommendations Of The Oronsaye Committee Report ~ By Theophilus Ilevbare @tilevbare

Beyond The Recommendations Of The Oronsaye Committee Report ~ By Theophilus Ilevbare @tilevbare

In spite of repeated assurance from the government to appropriately down size its unwieldy work force and cost of governance, most Nigerians doubt the commitment of the government to fully implement the recommendations of the Presidential Committee on Rationalization and Restructuring of Federal Government parastatals, commissions and agencies headed by Steve Oronsaye. The committee recommended the scrapping of 102 statutory agencies from the current 263, abolition of 38 agencies, merger of 52 and reversion of 14 to departments in the ministries. The 800-page report also recommended the discontinuation of government funding of professional bodies and councils.
The high cost of servicing the public sector is antithetical to economic growth. As the Governor of the Central Bank, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, rightly pointed out, the civil service is over-staffed. There is an alarming 45, 000 ghost workers in 251 MDAs. In no small measure, the civil service has contributed to the culture of corruption, cronyism and foot-dragging.
From time immemorial, recommendations and solutions to Nigeria’s myriad of problems has never been in short supply, it is the political will to implement that has been the bane. As far back as 1975, government restructured the Federal Civil Service with a massive purge. In 1984, under the then head of state, Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, another 3,000 civil servants were sacked for laziness, idleness, lack of initiative, lateness to office, absenteeism and inefficiency. A Presidential Advisory Committee (PAC) chaired by T.Y Danjuma, which had in January 2011, called for “a more effective and optimal use of national resources,” advised the government to restructure and rationalize to eliminate waste. Earlier, in 2000, there was the Ahmed Joda Panel White Paper on the Review, Harmonisation and Rationalisation of Federal Government Parastatals which was not implemented until the Oronsaye committee was set up in 2012.  By summoning the political will to implement the Oronsaye report, the FG will spare successive governments the waste of resources and time in setting up similar committees. If the government of the day is serious about the planned restructuring, it knows exactly what to do to prune the cost of the civil service without constituting any committee.
Perhaps, government can start from its duplicity of committee functions when it constituted a committee led by the minister for Justice and AGF, Mr Adoke to review the work of another headed by Oronsaye. A third committee was set up by President Jonathan to review the public sector reform, headed by Ahmed Fika. Maybe we now await the constitution of an implementation committee to fast track the execution of Oronsaye’s report. This is a duplicity that the committee itself was set up to ratify. After all, from the government’s antecedents, there is a probability, that the work of the three committees might be left in the cupboard to gather dust.
In the mean time, palpable fear has pervaded UTME, NECO, EFCC, ICPC and other agencies under the sledge hammer of rationalization. But there are clandestine moves to stymie the implementation of the report by those who benefit from the bloated bureaucracy that allow about one percent of the population enjoy allowances estimated at N1.031 trillion representing 35% of the N4.926 trillion been the total budget of the federal government in the 2013 budget. Expressing its displeasure with this data, the Fika committee report said, “It is certainly not morally defensible from the perspective of social justice or any known moral criterion, that such a huge sum of public funds is consumed by an infinitesimal fraction of the people.”
Mallam Nasir Elrufai, former Minister of FCT, in an essay why the cost of government is unsustainable in Nigeria, said “It costs nearly 2.5 million naira on the average annually for the upkeep of each of the federal government’s nearly one million public sector workers – in the police, civil service, military and paramilitary services and teachers in government schools and institutions. That is why we should ask questions when ministries are created and more ministers are screened by the Senate and sworn in! Each one costs billions!” The implication is that our entire oil earnings for the year cannot pay the salaries and allowances of politicians, public sector workers and their overheads.
Recently, the overlapping functions and battle for supremacy between government agencies was brought to the fore in the shooting of two Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps, NSCDC, officials by men of the Police Force which ignited a war of words. It took the intervention of President Goodluck Jonathan to bring the situation under control. This particular incident highlighted the conflict and acrimony that has always existed between agencies with overlapping functions.  The two paramilitary outfits have been embroiled in an age-long mutual mistrust, over what the officers of the Nigeria Police often tout as the NSCDC’s intrusion into its statutory roles. “It is a fundamental breach of good public sector governance to create a new agency or institution as a result of the failure or poor performance of an existing agency in order to suit political or individual interests.  That such practices have been precipitating systemic conflicts, crises and collapse at a substantial but avoidably high cost to the government cannot be contested,” the Oronsaye reported said.
The scope of the Oronsaye committee should have been expanded to federal ministries. The duplicity extends to one office for ministers and another for ministers of state. Like deputy governors, it seems the constitution does not have clearly defined role for these ministers of state. And how about their numerous Special Advisers? Ministries with overlapping functions such as the ministry of petroleum and that of solid mineral resources should be merged. The merged ministry can aptly be renamed ministry of petroleum and solid mineral resources.  There is no reason why there should be separate ministries for information and communication. Can we safely conclude that since we now have a Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs which birthed after amnesty was granted to Niger Delta militants that the federal government will create another for North affairs if amnesty is eventually granted to the dreaded Boko Haram terrorists? How has the ministry for Police affairs since its inception improved the workings of the Nigeria Police Force? How does an inefficient and corrupt police force necessitate the formation of a ministry at the federal level? You would have observed too that we hardly hear of more than fifty percent of the ministers or ministers of state in cabinet for the better part of four years of an administration.
But a handful of agencies should be left to function separately. The EFCC and ICPC for instance. Both should be repositioned and made independent of government. Merging them with the Police Force will further weaken the fight against corruption.
After all said and done, it can never be over-emphasized that the Nigerian public sector needs to be reengineered. The endemic corruption in the sector must be fought with renewed determination and vigour, which should start from the restructuring and rationalization of agencies and parastatals. Their proliferations, motivated by selfish interest, to near redundancy are concomitant effects of sleaze.  Until the corruption in the system is tackled, we might just be moving in circles.
By Theophilus Ilevbare (theophilus@ilevbare.com)
http://ilevbare.com
twitter: @tilevbare

Musings! By Efe Wanogho: On Nigerian Unity.

 On Nigerian Unity.

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In the post-World War 2 era, the international arena witnessed an increasing resort to international groupings as a means to resolvingconflicts and furthering a peace-engendering multilateralism. The forming of the United Nations Organisation has been credited by many to be the singular most important reason for the non-occurrence of a Third World War, a marked departure from the seeming haste that brought about the Second World War, not long after the First World War. In Europe, the formation of the European Union, which succeeded the European Economic Committee, has seen to the non-resurrection of the virtually ubiquitous feuding that characterised the countries in the region in the period preceding its formation. The point of the above and it’s relationship to the subject of discourse is to bring to the fore, the increasing resort to a coming-together of peoples for the purpose of their mutual development interests.
In more recent times, the world stage witnessed the formation of BRICS, by the emerging national economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. An amalgam of nations strategically brought together to further their interests. The gains of coming together of even a seemingly diverse people, cannot be over-emphasised. Countries that are far apart from each other, are seeking closer ties to address issues of collective concern. One would then wonder, why Nigeria, five decades after political independence, and almost a century after the amalgamation of the North and South of the country, is still being plagued by discordant tunes. Is it impossible for the people of Nigeria, with their ethnic and religious divergence from each other, to live together in peace and harmony? Is there anything inherent in our cultures and religions that forbids us from peaceful coexistence with people of varying origins? Is it not possible to understand the so-called differences of the various parts of Nigeria, evolve an atmosphere of mutual respect for such differences, and derive strength from the conscious working together of the divergent parts?
Apart from the increasing need of people to cooperate to address common issues, Nigeria has a prevalence of adherents of the Christian and Islamic Faiths; religions which preach a common ancestry for humanity. If both religions are right about the common origins of man, and by extension, all Nigerians; what then is fuelling the debilitating intolerance of people of other faiths, as is particularly witnessed in the Northern fringes of the country? Wouldn’t it be sheer hypocrisy to purport to be followers of supposedly peace-loving and peace-propagating religions, whereas, at every flimsy excuse, we are quick to be at daggers drawn against those who have different ethnicity or who profess different religions from ours? Who does this situation of needless rivalry among peoples – for matters that were clearly a function of the circumstances of their birth – actually benefit? If we are ever to be intolerant, such intolerance should be targeted at vice and criminality, the very bane of our socioeconomic quagmire; and not at others who are themselves victims of criminality in public and private office.
It must be stated, however, that the argument for a united Nigeria, need not be predicated on its being sacrosanct and non-negotiability. People have an inalienable right to self determination and should not be forced to cohabit. What should be paramount in advancing Nigerian unity, should be the comparative advantage that the unity brings to everyone in the arrangement, as against a state of suspicion and pernicious rivalry that would attend a balkanised Nigeria. This brings me to the crux of the matter.
What is the Federal Government, which should be the main unifier in the Nigerian arrangement, doing to further the course of national unity? What resources are being deployed to get the citizenry to have faith in the continued unity of the country? Are federal institutions strengthened or receiving enough support to respond to crises situations, so much so that, ordinarily dissident groups would have a sense of belonging that their fears would be sufficiently addressed in the subsisting arrangement? What is the correlation of amnesty to national unity? Does the brand of amnesty witnessed in Nigeria since the era of militancy in the Niger Delta, and which is being clamoured for Boko Haram terrorists in the North; do anything to further the unity of the country? I think not. What the amnesty does is to empower and embolden dissident groups through cash gifts, multi-million Naira contract awards, and the assuming of an air of invincibility occasioned by the ineffectiveness and incompetence ofsecurity agencies and policy somersault on the part of the government; to prepare for an armed onslaught against the Nigerian State, and resulting in the emergence of ethnic-based and militant-led empires.
I would reiterate what I have stated endlessly on this column: the surest way to promote criminality is to clothe it in the robes of ethnicity or religiousity by generalising the perpetrators and referring to them as unknown gunmen, whether of the Southern, kidnapping and robbing stock, or of the Northern, bomb-detonating and mass-murdering stock. Every crime is perpetrated by an individual or a group of individuals. The perpetrators should be tracked and brought to justice according to the law of the land as it pertains to the crimes committed. The surest way of bringing a Nigeria to an end, is to continue to pamper criminals and dissident groups, which, sooner than later, would be positioned to successfully engage and overpower the State, militarily; or railroad the country to a sovereign national conference, with a predetermined end of national disintegration.
I am @efewanogho, on Twitter.
Laus Deo!

Tom Rogan: Why Thatcher Was The ‘Iron Lady’

Why Thatcher Was The ‘Iron Lady’

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Editor’s note: Tom Rogan, 27, is a conservative writer for TheWeek.com and The Guardian. Although he’s American, he grew up inLondon, England.
Margaret Thatcher, one of the seminal political figures of the 20th century, will be remembered for her unswerving belief in the virtues of free market capitalism and the vices of socialism, and for her role in the downfall of communism.
People might wonder why Thatcher evokes such positive emotion from young conservatives, such as me, who were children during her heyday. The answer is simple. In our era of politics in which spin seems to take precedence to substance, Margaret Thatcher was an icon for what politics should be about — courage, spirit and the determination to change things for the better.
In pursuit of the defeat of what she saw as socialist totalitarianism, she made a close alliance with U.S. President Ronald Reagan and built a relationship with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, while still standing firm in opposition to the Soviet empire. Without question, she was one of America’s closest and most important friends and was instrumental in winning the Cold War for the West.
She refused to be bowed by terrorism and stood against it in all its forms. After the Irish Republican Army attempted to assassinate her and her Cabinet at the 1984 Conservative Convention in Brighton, narrowly missing Thatcher but killing five people, she insisted on continuing the conference the next day.
“The fact that we are gathered here now, shocked, but composed and determined, is a sign not only that this attack has failed, but that all attempts to destroy democracy by terrorism will fail.” Her courage brought moral clarity in highlighting the atrocity of terrorism as a means of political activity.
Her resolve to stand against any threat to British interests was clear in the Falklands War. After the invasion of British territory by Argentine military forces, Thatcher said it would not stand. Fully knowing the real prospect of defeat, Thatcher ordered a British military task force to re-take the islands. They did.
Along with foreign policy successes, Thatcher, known as “The Iron Lady,” scored domestically.
Facing high unemployment rates, a crippling union stranglehold and an unproductive, stagnating economy, the United Kingdom of the 1970s was a country in dire straits.
Thatcher believed that pervasive unemployment and growing inflation were not just temporary threats, they were burying Britain’s future. She believed the root causes were found not in the shifts of economic cycles, but in the failure of Britain’s flawed economic model.
She guided Britain’s economic base away from domestic monopolies and toward global capitalism. Because of her privatization and deregulation policies, the United Kingdom became a center for international finance and investment. In 1987, Thatcher was elected to a historic third term.
Despite her successes politically, she was a polarizing presence and had relatively low approval ratings during her tenure. Many Britons detested her attempts to curb the unions, her cuts to social programs and education, and her introduction of the Community Charge, called the “poll tax.” Her Cabinet did not share her views on the European Union. She resigned as prime minister after three terms in 1990, believing her party had betrayed her.
Still, there can be no debate of her enduring impact. Tony Blair’s historic 1997 election and return of the Labor Party to power is often pointed to as a moment of renewed liberalism in Britain. In many ways, it was. But under the banner of a new Labor and Blair’s embrace of a “third way,” it is also evident that Thatcher had changed Britain’s economic debate forever. She had moved the political discussion from one of statism versus capitalism to a basic acceptance of free market economics as a standard of British political consensus.
Although many on the British left oppose what Thatcher did and what she stood for, there is a quiet, begrudging perhaps, but unmistakable admiration of her strong and unswerving leadership.
History will record Thatcher stood for what she believed, and that both Britain and the world are better for it.
culled from CNN

Adeniran A.A: Let The Noise Go Beyond Social Media

Let The Noise Go Beyond Social Media

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By Adeniran A.A
In view of the last address of the nation by President Jonathan, I am convinced beyond reasonable doubt that having an iota of hope in him now will be the most foolish thing to do on earth. I thus want to implore all fellow CCOA (Collective Children Of Anger) to please let’s direct our efforts and anger in ensuring a positive change; orchestrated of course by us.
Our parents’ generation has failed us, and we are already failing our children. But God forbid that we should fail them completely! Most tweeps have been saying we are just ranting on twitter, that nothing will change from just ranting online, that we need to do more than rant, that we need action.
I think they are right; nothing will sincerely change from mere online ranting. But I have being thinking about what can be done differently.
I realized that the percentage of those of us ranting here online is a drop in the ocean when juxtaposed with those who will really swing votes at the polls. Serious grassroot liberalisation is needed all over Nigeria. People at the grassroot are still awaiting a Messiah. We need to sensitize these people and re-sensitize ourselves. I was chatting with my friend on BBM a while ago and he was reminding me about the level of corruption among our youths. He wanted to know if the change I was implying could be achieved with this same set of young people. That was when I felt a lot still needed to be done in sensitizing our youths: both the so called educated and most importantly the uneducated ones out there on the streets.
The determination of the youths is what is needed to fight this enemy of the society called corruption. And we need to raise a huge data base of youths to achieve that. We need to let the apprentice in the mechanic workshops, the tailors, shoemakers, Danfo drivers, Okada riders, butchers, the market women, traders, know what we collectively stand for. They all need to be carried along. We cannot do it alone. We need to enlist an army of people needed to take back our country.
Something serious needs to be done– needs to be put in place before the election period. We need to educate people beyond the social media. We need to begin kicking asses–and hard!
It is we, the CCOA on social media that can champion the course. We cannot afford to look up to the mainstream media as it has been bought over and we need to get across through other channels.
To go about this, I suggest that templates of messages to pass across should be made. We are agitating for change here because we are aware of what is going on in government circles. Most people don’t. Let us make the information we have also available to other like minded folks.
These information can be designed into templates, uploaded on various known blogs like Ekekeee, omojuwa, etc. It should be designed in a manner printable in pamphlets to minimize costs. It can be in different languages but with the same message. Poster templates can as well be made by those who can still afford it among us.
Then everyone who is dedicated to change in Nigeria should see it as a duty to print and distribute same to these people. A copy can be printed and photocopied. Of course, it has financial obligations. A sacrifice of like #500 per month is not too much to make for our country. We spend more than that sum on girls, parties and the likes. Someone needs to take responsibility. We all have to take responsibilities to move this country from this tortuous level.
The information or message intended to be passed across could be made in series. Each individual should ensure that he gives out 10 of such pamphlets per month. Let’s paste them on school notice boards, mosques, churches, bill boards, road sides, let’s distribute them while in the Danfo, BRT, mass transits, school buses, garages, car parks. Let us get our own campaign started now! These people (thieves) are already mapping out strategies on how they are going to continue enslaving us, but we are yet to set out plans concerning how we will free ourselves from their shackles.
2015 is almost here, the fight is for all of us. Let us all contribute our quota to ensure we achieve the change we need and crave for in this country.
I cannot start this because I don’t have a well publicised blog neither am I influential, but I am sure if this campaign is supported by the so called social media elites, we will reach across to more youths beyond the walls of social media. We need them. We need to back our rants with actions. Let’s make the noise more audible on the streets; let us shout louder. Let’s bring down the roof of corruption and bad leadership with a scream on the streets!!!
The revolution we seek is not an event, it is a process. Let it begin; and now!
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I will like to use this opportunity to congratulate the Ekekeee team on the one year anniversary of Nigeria’s best political blog and also to congratulate the blog’s ‘Don Jazzy’, my brother, Chinedu Ekeke on the occasion of his birthday. You are a blessing to this generation, and “The UpNEPA generation and the memories of Biafra” are ample testaments.
The writer is on twitter @mrbhiyi (Adeniran Adebiyi