The former Nigerian Senate President Mr. Ken Nnamani ventured into the Zoning Debate this week. He should not have. Mr. Nnamani is definitely one of the eminent Nigerians of this decade. His Senate Presidency displayed a man with a good sense of what National Interest really means. He presided over the senate with integrity and was primarily the last hurdle that stood between Mr. Obasanjo and the third term agenda. He handled it as only a sure footed legislator would.
His reputation soared and he left the senate with his head held high.
By the way Mr. Obasanjo was from his party.
But his journey into the murky field of zoning is a different story any way one looks at it. He defended zoning via the most illogical argument possible. First he says it is the only way an Igbo presidency could emerge. This raises all kinds of headache for everybody. It smirks of tribalism for starters. It gives the impression that he is no longer the great statesman that his senate presidency suggested; that the triumph of the Igbo is the guiding principle in his mind.
Something else is wrong with this line of thought. Is Mr. Nnamani implying that the Igbo cannot compete in Nigerian politics? What is the evidence? They have competed successfully in all other spheres of activity in Nigeria from the football field to economic achievements to educational honors. Why is politics different? He should let the Igbo sink or swim. A hand out is not the solution. If the Igbo have not learned politics, the best place to learn is on the field, playing.
Give a man a fish or show a man how to fish, which works best?
Mr. Nnamani's other idea, that it emanated from the south is not reassuring. I want to accept that he is factually correct. But so what? Should we accept it just because it is a southern idea? What of the merits of the principle? Is it the best way to get the best man or woman to guide the country? That should be the thought that is uppermost in everybody's mind, not the source of an idea.
The most ridiculous concept of all is his assertions is that it benefits the south more than the north. If this were the case, it is enough and sufficient reason to debunk the arrangement. A system that favors one group over the other is bad for the country. We should be advocating a system that does not play favorites, a plan that would give equal access to all Nigerians.
There are other differences among Nigerians than the north/south divide. There are religious differences, not just between Christians and Muslims but within each religious group. How would such differences be resolved through zoning? There is nothing like south or north. The Yoruba is not any closer to the Igbo than he is to the Fulani. Why should it be just north and south and not east and west? One makes as much sense as the other.
If Nigerians want zoning, the first logical step would be to abolish national elections. Let us zone the presidency to the 774 local governments, which would ensure that every area gets a chance to select a president. We can start by casting lots. With this arrangement only local government elections would be necessary. The current N70 billion would be reduced to no more than N1 billion.
What Mr. Nnamani should have said is that an amendment to the constitution of Peoples' Democratic Party should be amended to allow all Nigerian citizens to compete in a free and fair election. If the election always produces only the Aduba's of Eastern Nigeria so be it.
Let the rest of Nigeria figure out how to beat them.
So long as their elections are beyond doubt free and fair.
Friday, October 22, 2010
Budget: Reps summon Aganga, rap President
Finance Minister, Dr Olusegun Aganga has been summoned by the House of Representatives to explain the alleged poor implementation of the 2010 budget. He is expected to brief the House on the subject.
This was as the federal lawmakers recently resolved not to accept 2011 budget proposals from President Goodluck Jonathan until the National Assembly is convinced on the level of budget implementation.
These were highpoints of a motion deploring the alleged poor budget implementation by the executive arm of government.
The federal lawmakers who took turns to criticize the Jonathan administration for the poor budget implementation said it amounted to a criminal offence for any government official to subvert implementation of the budget which was duly passed into law.
Chairman, House committee on Police affairs, Abdul Ningi urged his colleagues to go beyond criticism and wield the big stick against public officers hindering smooth budget implementation.
Disclosing that the anomaly dates back to Olusegun Obasanjo's presidency, Ningi said it is now time to put a stop to the practice in the interest of the nation's economy.
He wondered how the various macro-economic variables bandied at the beginning of each fiscal year could be attained if successive budgets are not fully implemented.
Also, Hon. Rabe Nasir who described the poor budget implementation as an act of corruption and irresponsibility, also called for stiff sanctions against the finance minister and his other culpable colleagues.
Similar sentiments were expressed by other federal lawmakers, inckuding Uche Ekwunife, Garba Matazu, Labaran Dambatta, Samson Positive and Bukar Abba Ibrahim.
Matazu said he does not know how to explain the anomaly to electorates who daily seek explanations from him on the poor budget performance.
Coming on the eve of an election year, the lawmaker said it portends worrisome development for those seeking re-election into public office if it is not urgently addressed.
In his contribution, Positive queried whose interest the government is serving if it fails to faithfully implement a budget that seeks to provide basic amenities and other relevant projects for the people.
Attempts by chairman, House committee on finance, Hon John Eno to blame the poor budget implementation on dwindling revenue was rejected by the lawmakers who at a point called for immediate resignation of the finance minister.
Presiding deputy speaker, Usman Nafada interjected and said the affected ministers cannot be absolved of blame.
He said at a meeting at the official residence of deputy Senate president, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, on the budget earlier in the year, petroleum minister on her own gave the revenue profile from crude oil which she assured was attainable.
He said the legislature would not entertain any excuses over the poor budget implementation.
Nafada said the capital side of the budget is crucial in addressing the needs of the people more than the overheads, wondering why the poor implementation did not affect salaries and allowances of government officials.
The House resolved to direct the ministry of finance to immediately release all capital allocations to the various ministries, departments and agencies.
This was as the federal lawmakers recently resolved not to accept 2011 budget proposals from President Goodluck Jonathan until the National Assembly is convinced on the level of budget implementation.
These were highpoints of a motion deploring the alleged poor budget implementation by the executive arm of government.
The federal lawmakers who took turns to criticize the Jonathan administration for the poor budget implementation said it amounted to a criminal offence for any government official to subvert implementation of the budget which was duly passed into law.
Chairman, House committee on Police affairs, Abdul Ningi urged his colleagues to go beyond criticism and wield the big stick against public officers hindering smooth budget implementation.
Disclosing that the anomaly dates back to Olusegun Obasanjo's presidency, Ningi said it is now time to put a stop to the practice in the interest of the nation's economy.
He wondered how the various macro-economic variables bandied at the beginning of each fiscal year could be attained if successive budgets are not fully implemented.
Also, Hon. Rabe Nasir who described the poor budget implementation as an act of corruption and irresponsibility, also called for stiff sanctions against the finance minister and his other culpable colleagues.
Similar sentiments were expressed by other federal lawmakers, inckuding Uche Ekwunife, Garba Matazu, Labaran Dambatta, Samson Positive and Bukar Abba Ibrahim.
Matazu said he does not know how to explain the anomaly to electorates who daily seek explanations from him on the poor budget performance.
Coming on the eve of an election year, the lawmaker said it portends worrisome development for those seeking re-election into public office if it is not urgently addressed.
In his contribution, Positive queried whose interest the government is serving if it fails to faithfully implement a budget that seeks to provide basic amenities and other relevant projects for the people.
Attempts by chairman, House committee on finance, Hon John Eno to blame the poor budget implementation on dwindling revenue was rejected by the lawmakers who at a point called for immediate resignation of the finance minister.
Presiding deputy speaker, Usman Nafada interjected and said the affected ministers cannot be absolved of blame.
He said at a meeting at the official residence of deputy Senate president, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, on the budget earlier in the year, petroleum minister on her own gave the revenue profile from crude oil which she assured was attainable.
He said the legislature would not entertain any excuses over the poor budget implementation.
Nafada said the capital side of the budget is crucial in addressing the needs of the people more than the overheads, wondering why the poor implementation did not affect salaries and allowances of government officials.
The House resolved to direct the ministry of finance to immediately release all capital allocations to the various ministries, departments and agencies.
SOCIETY GIVES KUDOS TO OBI ON EDUCATION
An educationist, Dr. Chris Madumelu, has described Anambra State under Governor Peter Obi as the most educationally progressive State in Nigeria.
In a statement made available to the press on Tuesday in Nnewi, Madumelu, who is the President, Education and Society Initiative, said the declaration was based on an assessment of investments in education by the thirty-six States of the federation.
He explained that the findings of the organization showed that though there were other State governments that have done well in the education sector, the Obi administration stood out for its consistency in funding education.
What we have done is to look at the degree of funding; the areas of coverage, that is, how many sub-sectors are covered. Then, are these in the short term, medium term and long term? And has there been continuity in these provisions?
Madumelu said that Governor Obi was being commended because since assuming office, he had consistently built and renovated hostels, classrooms, laboratories and provided water boreholes, generators and learning materials in schools.
Pointing out that the society was a think-tank for assisting policy formulation, Madumelu said Governor Obi's recent donation of 100 buses, 6000 laptops and sundry sports equipment to schools during President Jonathan's visit to the State, reflected Obi's commitment to the education industry.
The President of Education and Society Initiative announced that the organization will soon unveil a blueprint for private sector part-funding of primary and secondary education.
In a statement made available to the press on Tuesday in Nnewi, Madumelu, who is the President, Education and Society Initiative, said the declaration was based on an assessment of investments in education by the thirty-six States of the federation.
He explained that the findings of the organization showed that though there were other State governments that have done well in the education sector, the Obi administration stood out for its consistency in funding education.
What we have done is to look at the degree of funding; the areas of coverage, that is, how many sub-sectors are covered. Then, are these in the short term, medium term and long term? And has there been continuity in these provisions?
Madumelu said that Governor Obi was being commended because since assuming office, he had consistently built and renovated hostels, classrooms, laboratories and provided water boreholes, generators and learning materials in schools.
Pointing out that the society was a think-tank for assisting policy formulation, Madumelu said Governor Obi's recent donation of 100 buses, 6000 laptops and sundry sports equipment to schools during President Jonathan's visit to the State, reflected Obi's commitment to the education industry.
The President of Education and Society Initiative announced that the organization will soon unveil a blueprint for private sector part-funding of primary and secondary education.
House Orders Probe of MDG Constituency Projects
The House of Representatives has ordered a probe into the spate of abandonment and non-execution of constituency projects awarded by the Federal Government under the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) programme.
It has also invited the Minister of Finance, Dr Olusegun Aganga, and the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Millennium Development Goals, Hajiya Amina Az-Zubair, to appear before it and brief the lawmakers on the state of the projects across the country.
The resolution to invite the duo was sequel to a motion brought before the House seeking to correct public misconceptions on the true state of the MDG projects in terms of who awards the contracts, the source of funding and whether funds meant for the projects are paid to individual lawmakers on behalf of their constituencies.
In the motion sponsored by Hon. Leo Ogor (PDP Delta) and eighteen other lawmakers, the House noted that constituency projects were essentially projects included in the national budget to be executed in all Federal Constituencies across the country.
Ogor argued that although such projects were usually nominated by members of the National Assembly in the process of budget preparation, it is the responsibility of the executive arm of government to expend the funds so appropriated in the execution of the constituency projects.
He expressed disappointment that in the face of gross misconception and public criticism launched against the legislators, the executive arm of government has failed to clarify the role and limitations of the legislature on constituency projects.
We are concerned that the way and manner the Executive Arm of the Federal Government has handled the issue of constituency projects in the country has left some members of the public with the notion that the funds for the projects are paid to members of the National Assembly.
The failure of the Executive Arm of government to own up publicly to their responsibility as regards the execution of constituency projects is the reason some members of the public have continued to accuse members of the National Assembly as having pocketed the monies meant for constituency projects,Ogor said.
Several lawmakers who contributed to the debate claimed that they have become victims of politically motivated attacks in the constituencies owing to the issue of constituency projects. They lamented that the misconception that lawmakers were in custody of the funds meant for the projects has become a ready tool in the hands of their political opponents in the build up to the 2011 elections.
Besides tasking the Presidency to ensure the prompt execution of the constituency projects across the country, the House has asked the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on MDGs to clarify the role of the lawmakers in the scheme of things. It called on the Department of Information and Media of the National Assembly to take up the issue by enlightening the public on the role of the lawmakers in the selection, award, funding and execution of these projects.
The House also resolved to set up an ad hoc committee to identify all abandoned contracts under the MDG Constituency Project scheme across the federation with a view to re-awarding the contracts in the next six weeks.
It has also invited the Minister of Finance, Dr Olusegun Aganga, and the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Millennium Development Goals, Hajiya Amina Az-Zubair, to appear before it and brief the lawmakers on the state of the projects across the country.
The resolution to invite the duo was sequel to a motion brought before the House seeking to correct public misconceptions on the true state of the MDG projects in terms of who awards the contracts, the source of funding and whether funds meant for the projects are paid to individual lawmakers on behalf of their constituencies.
In the motion sponsored by Hon. Leo Ogor (PDP Delta) and eighteen other lawmakers, the House noted that constituency projects were essentially projects included in the national budget to be executed in all Federal Constituencies across the country.
Ogor argued that although such projects were usually nominated by members of the National Assembly in the process of budget preparation, it is the responsibility of the executive arm of government to expend the funds so appropriated in the execution of the constituency projects.
He expressed disappointment that in the face of gross misconception and public criticism launched against the legislators, the executive arm of government has failed to clarify the role and limitations of the legislature on constituency projects.
We are concerned that the way and manner the Executive Arm of the Federal Government has handled the issue of constituency projects in the country has left some members of the public with the notion that the funds for the projects are paid to members of the National Assembly.
The failure of the Executive Arm of government to own up publicly to their responsibility as regards the execution of constituency projects is the reason some members of the public have continued to accuse members of the National Assembly as having pocketed the monies meant for constituency projects,Ogor said.
Several lawmakers who contributed to the debate claimed that they have become victims of politically motivated attacks in the constituencies owing to the issue of constituency projects. They lamented that the misconception that lawmakers were in custody of the funds meant for the projects has become a ready tool in the hands of their political opponents in the build up to the 2011 elections.
Besides tasking the Presidency to ensure the prompt execution of the constituency projects across the country, the House has asked the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on MDGs to clarify the role of the lawmakers in the scheme of things. It called on the Department of Information and Media of the National Assembly to take up the issue by enlightening the public on the role of the lawmakers in the selection, award, funding and execution of these projects.
The House also resolved to set up an ad hoc committee to identify all abandoned contracts under the MDG Constituency Project scheme across the federation with a view to re-awarding the contracts in the next six weeks.
Dialog and peace are the Zionist way
The Israel Project recently hosted a dinner with Palestinian PM Salem Fayyad, partnering with the American Task Force for Palestine, a Palestinian organization dedicated to coexistence and a two-state solution. This makes sense, because peace is at the heart of Israel advocacy, and mutual recognition is at the heart of peace.
The peace initiative of an Israel advocacy organization has given fits to fake “peace” pundits like M.J.Rosenberg, because it violates their demonic stereotype of “establishment Zionists” as evil and unreasonable warmongers. They are afraid that people will find out: Zionists and Israel advocates do not have horns and tails. Zionist organizations such as AIPAC, which has been cast as the evil “Israel lobby,” are also talking to ATFP.
The conflict has always been about mutual recognition. It has never really been about settlements or occupation. The conflict did not begin with the occupation in 1967. Settlements in West Bank did not cause the first Arab Israeli War in 1948 or the Six Day War. Palestinians and people like Rosenberg want you to forget this.
In the Irish Times, Hikmat Ajjuri, the Palestinian ambassador to Ireland writes:
THE ROOT of the problem in Palestine is Israel’s continued occupation of the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and Gaza, which began in 1967.
Really?? That is “the root” of the problem? The only Jewish “occupation” that existed when the PLO wrote the Palestinian National Charter and the Fateh wrote the Fateh constitution, was inside “green line” Israel. The Jewish “settlements” were in places like Tel Aviv, Qiriat Malachi, and West Jerusalem. The PLO and Fateh nonetheless vowed to destroy Israel. In line with their underlying goal, Palestinians have refused to compromise in any way on their refusal to recognize Israel as the state of the Jewish people, and on their demand for ‘right’ of return for refugees in recent negotiations.
In an article entitled “The Real Path to Peace,” Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi, founder and president of The Israel Project, responded to Rosenberg and other critics:
J Street – like MJ Rosenberg — mislead when they assert that the main obstacle to a peace agreement between Israelis and Palestinians is settlements. They argue as if settlement expansion suddenly stopped, the conflict would magically disappear. This is not only hogwash – it is dangerous. Yes, settlements are an issue. But they are no more an issue than security, incitement, final borders, Jerusalem, water and refugees. All of these issues must be dealt with at the negotiating table — something Israel is eager to do.
When you misdiagnose the underlying condition in the Middle East — as J Street and MJ Rosenberg have done and convinced others to do — you become unable to cure it.
The fact is that Israel has repeatedly offered to uproot settlements as part of a deal creating a Palestinian state – but the Palestinians did not agree. It is clear from the statements of Prime Minister Netanyahu that he too, like Israeli Prime Ministers before him, is willing to make painful sacrifices for peace and a two state solution. Israel has proven by its withdrawals from Sinai, Southern Lebanon and Gaza that it will make genuinely bold moves for peace.
The chief impediments to an Israeli-Palestinian peace are the lack of mutual acceptance and the misuse and abuse of ideology. Israel needs its neighbors to embrace the idea of mutual coexistence, dignity and respect.
Why is it so hard for some Arabs and Iran to accept that Israel should be the national and democratic homeland of the Jewish people – while living alongside a Palestinian state? Why is it that, despite the fact that 20% of Israeli citizens are Arabs who have full rights, that some Palestinians can only imagine a state that is Judenrein?
Yes, I say again, there are issues with settlements. But there are zero settlers and settlements in Gaza today. There have not been any since the summer of 2005 when Israel and close to 10,000 Israeli citizens withdrew from all of Gaza with hopes of peace. And still, after thousands of rockets fired by Iran-backed Hamas at Israel later, the official Hamas charter demands that their people “kill the Jews.”
Regrettably Israel also has a small minority of extremist, right-wing ideologues. While the fruits of their ideology are not anywhere near as reprehensible as those of Islamist extremists, they also can pose obstacles to peace and must be condemned.
Thankfully, many on both sides want to negotiate peace. To show that they are serious about helping to achieve a peace agreement, MJ Rosenberg and the people at J Street should focus talent and funds on replacing the Palestinian culture of hate with a culture of hope. They should support Palestinian leaders who want to stay at the peace talks and resolve painful issues once and for all. Israel longs for a time when Palestinians will finally “miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity” by saying ‘yes’ to peace.
Palestinians need jobs, not jihad. Many moderate Palestinians know this and they are the future of their future country. Those who care about peace have a moral obligation to use facts, not ideology, as our guide. Being honest and open is the only way to create a better future for all sides.>
Facts, not “narratives,” are the keys to understanding.
The Palestine Solidarity Movement will probably not be hosting any Israeli officials for dinner any time soon,and neither will the BDS movement.That doesn’t matter. Their way is confrontation, not peace. Dialog, not divestment and boycott, is the only path to peace. That has always been the Israeli way and the Zionist way.
The peace initiative of an Israel advocacy organization has given fits to fake “peace” pundits like M.J.Rosenberg, because it violates their demonic stereotype of “establishment Zionists” as evil and unreasonable warmongers. They are afraid that people will find out: Zionists and Israel advocates do not have horns and tails. Zionist organizations such as AIPAC, which has been cast as the evil “Israel lobby,” are also talking to ATFP.
The conflict has always been about mutual recognition. It has never really been about settlements or occupation. The conflict did not begin with the occupation in 1967. Settlements in West Bank did not cause the first Arab Israeli War in 1948 or the Six Day War. Palestinians and people like Rosenberg want you to forget this.
In the Irish Times, Hikmat Ajjuri, the Palestinian ambassador to Ireland writes:
THE ROOT of the problem in Palestine is Israel’s continued occupation of the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and Gaza, which began in 1967.
Really?? That is “the root” of the problem? The only Jewish “occupation” that existed when the PLO wrote the Palestinian National Charter and the Fateh wrote the Fateh constitution, was inside “green line” Israel. The Jewish “settlements” were in places like Tel Aviv, Qiriat Malachi, and West Jerusalem. The PLO and Fateh nonetheless vowed to destroy Israel. In line with their underlying goal, Palestinians have refused to compromise in any way on their refusal to recognize Israel as the state of the Jewish people, and on their demand for ‘right’ of return for refugees in recent negotiations.
In an article entitled “The Real Path to Peace,” Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi, founder and president of The Israel Project, responded to Rosenberg and other critics:
J Street – like MJ Rosenberg — mislead when they assert that the main obstacle to a peace agreement between Israelis and Palestinians is settlements. They argue as if settlement expansion suddenly stopped, the conflict would magically disappear. This is not only hogwash – it is dangerous. Yes, settlements are an issue. But they are no more an issue than security, incitement, final borders, Jerusalem, water and refugees. All of these issues must be dealt with at the negotiating table — something Israel is eager to do.
When you misdiagnose the underlying condition in the Middle East — as J Street and MJ Rosenberg have done and convinced others to do — you become unable to cure it.
The fact is that Israel has repeatedly offered to uproot settlements as part of a deal creating a Palestinian state – but the Palestinians did not agree. It is clear from the statements of Prime Minister Netanyahu that he too, like Israeli Prime Ministers before him, is willing to make painful sacrifices for peace and a two state solution. Israel has proven by its withdrawals from Sinai, Southern Lebanon and Gaza that it will make genuinely bold moves for peace.
The chief impediments to an Israeli-Palestinian peace are the lack of mutual acceptance and the misuse and abuse of ideology. Israel needs its neighbors to embrace the idea of mutual coexistence, dignity and respect.
Why is it so hard for some Arabs and Iran to accept that Israel should be the national and democratic homeland of the Jewish people – while living alongside a Palestinian state? Why is it that, despite the fact that 20% of Israeli citizens are Arabs who have full rights, that some Palestinians can only imagine a state that is Judenrein?
Yes, I say again, there are issues with settlements. But there are zero settlers and settlements in Gaza today. There have not been any since the summer of 2005 when Israel and close to 10,000 Israeli citizens withdrew from all of Gaza with hopes of peace. And still, after thousands of rockets fired by Iran-backed Hamas at Israel later, the official Hamas charter demands that their people “kill the Jews.”
Regrettably Israel also has a small minority of extremist, right-wing ideologues. While the fruits of their ideology are not anywhere near as reprehensible as those of Islamist extremists, they also can pose obstacles to peace and must be condemned.
Thankfully, many on both sides want to negotiate peace. To show that they are serious about helping to achieve a peace agreement, MJ Rosenberg and the people at J Street should focus talent and funds on replacing the Palestinian culture of hate with a culture of hope. They should support Palestinian leaders who want to stay at the peace talks and resolve painful issues once and for all. Israel longs for a time when Palestinians will finally “miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity” by saying ‘yes’ to peace.
Palestinians need jobs, not jihad. Many moderate Palestinians know this and they are the future of their future country. Those who care about peace have a moral obligation to use facts, not ideology, as our guide. Being honest and open is the only way to create a better future for all sides.>
Facts, not “narratives,” are the keys to understanding.
The Palestine Solidarity Movement will probably not be hosting any Israeli officials for dinner any time soon,and neither will the BDS movement.That doesn’t matter. Their way is confrontation, not peace. Dialog, not divestment and boycott, is the only path to peace. That has always been the Israeli way and the Zionist way.
French Ambassador Commends Developemnt in Anambra State
France has reiterated its determination to partner with Nigerian authorities in the conduct of the proposed 2011 elections.
The French Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Jean Michael Domoud, made the statement when he paid a courtesy call on Governor Peter Obi at the Governor's Lodge, Amawbia. Mr. Domoud, who acknowledged the efforts of President Goodluck Jonathan towards repositioning the nation's electoral system, extolled Governor Obi's pace of infrastructural development in parts of the State, especially in rural communities.
The Ambassador emphasized that the European Union , Which France is a member,has spent one hundred and twenty billion Naira in the course of her 2008 and 2009 assisted development projects in the country, stressing that presently they are training six thousand Nigerian teachers in French Language.
Responding while receiving the visiting Ambassador to the State, Governor Obi said that the courtesy call will afford him an opportunity to discuss on what France Government is trying to do in the country.
Governor Obi, who said that the State Government had been working with EU and assured that his leadership will not be found wanting in supporting the French teachers in the State, adding that the State has one hundred teachers to be trained in French Language.
He however, challenged the EU authorities to establish the country assistance projects that would meet up the needs and the aspirations of the State through adequate funding of such projects and strict supervision to ensure the execution of quality job. He observed that the relationship between Nigeria and France Governments is very cordial, noting that the State is today on the verge of real development, asking the EU to change her country assistance projects in the state from demand to supply driven as well as work towards making budgetary provisions for its projects in Nigeria nation.
The even feature presentation of some of the Professor Chinuea Achebe write-up to the visiting Ambassador.
The French Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Jean Michael Domoud, made the statement when he paid a courtesy call on Governor Peter Obi at the Governor's Lodge, Amawbia. Mr. Domoud, who acknowledged the efforts of President Goodluck Jonathan towards repositioning the nation's electoral system, extolled Governor Obi's pace of infrastructural development in parts of the State, especially in rural communities.
The Ambassador emphasized that the European Union , Which France is a member,has spent one hundred and twenty billion Naira in the course of her 2008 and 2009 assisted development projects in the country, stressing that presently they are training six thousand Nigerian teachers in French Language.
Responding while receiving the visiting Ambassador to the State, Governor Obi said that the courtesy call will afford him an opportunity to discuss on what France Government is trying to do in the country.
Governor Obi, who said that the State Government had been working with EU and assured that his leadership will not be found wanting in supporting the French teachers in the State, adding that the State has one hundred teachers to be trained in French Language.
He however, challenged the EU authorities to establish the country assistance projects that would meet up the needs and the aspirations of the State through adequate funding of such projects and strict supervision to ensure the execution of quality job. He observed that the relationship between Nigeria and France Governments is very cordial, noting that the State is today on the verge of real development, asking the EU to change her country assistance projects in the state from demand to supply driven as well as work towards making budgetary provisions for its projects in Nigeria nation.
The even feature presentation of some of the Professor Chinuea Achebe write-up to the visiting Ambassador.
The case for peace: Why Israel must say “Yes” to the peace process
Summary: As much as we all love peace, we need to admit that the current Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations are a probably a sham. Palestinian leadership can’t agree to a real peace settlement that would allow the continued existence of Israel. Instead they have decided to maneuver Israeli leadership into being blamed for breaking off the negotiations, leaving Israel in an isolated and vulnerable position. The Palestinians will then seek, and get, international backing for a Palestinian state that has no peace agreement with Israel. The concessions that should have been the”price of peace” will be forced out of Israel without a peace agreement. That is why Israel must always say “yes” to peace initiatives.
Earlier I discussed the reasons why most Zionists and Israelis support peace, and why Israel‘s long term policy has always supported peace.
My views are those of most Israelis. Nonetheless, anti-Israel writers have assured everyone that Zionists are really nasty warmongers. Anti-Semites tell the world that the Jews are behind every war. Popular magazines declare that Israelis are not interested in peace. These enemies of Israel have been aided by certain self-proclaimed Zionists who insist that the peace process is bad for Israel, and that Israel must turn down peace negotiations.
Those who oppose the continuation of the peace process need to be honest: Are they really afraid of security threats, or are they really opposed to an extension of settlement construction freeze?? Let’s be frank. The settlement construction freeze is a red-herring issue It was devised by the Palestinians to avoid serious negotiations. The Palestinians have negotiated for years while Israel built new housing in settlements.The Americans and the Palestinians did not call a halt to negotiations.
Certainly, if negotiations break down, there will not be less settlement expansion. The moratorium on construction in the settlements continued for ten months. The Palestinians wasted almost the entire period on deliberately inconclusive indirect talks. The peace negotiations are an elaborate charade, but they are a charade with a purpose. We have to understand the purpose of the Palestinian tactics in order to understand what the Israeli response must be..
Realistically, if negotiations continue, the freeze on construction in settlements will probably be extended throughout the Obama administration, despite the current temporary “unfreeze,” courtesy of the U.S. congressional elections.
So what? We waited nine years until the British left and we could bring new immigrants to Israel. We have waited two thousand years to build in Jerusalem. We have waited two thousand years for a Jewish state. Are we going to give it all up for a few “housing units’ in Ariel? If the apartments are not built now, does anyone think Ariel will be given to the Palestinians in a peace deal? But building the apartments now may put the onus for the failure of the peace negotiations on Israel, feeding the delegitimization campaign of the Palestinians and their supporters. Rather than a few settlements or a few apartments being called into question, the whole idea of a Jewish state, even a postage-stamp sized Jewish state, is being jeopardized by the new construction.
A little reflection will show that a negotiated solution that ends in two states for two peoples is the only sane option for supporters of Israel and for the Israeli government, for the reasons given below. It looks like the only game in town for a peace solution. it will probably happen whether extremists want it or not. It is, in fact, the only reasonable option for both peoples. Since this is the Middle East after all, skeptics can point out that the sane and reasonable solution doesn’t stand a chance. Nonetheless, even in the Middle East, it is unlikely that the collective will of the EU, the USA and Russia will be thwarted.
The logic of the anti-peace crowd on both sides has a revolting symmetry. They all want a one-state solution. The Arab extremists want an Arab state, and the Jewish extremists (see Israel-Palestine: The one-state solution returns ) imagine that the single state will be Jewish. As for unfortunate surplus populations, the Arabs imagine, in the best case, that a Jewish minority will live in “Palestine” as “dhimmi” or “Arab Jews” in the same way they lived (or not, as was frequently the case) in Arab countries. In the worst case, the Arab “one state” proponents contemplate massive expulsion or genocide. The Jewish extremists evidently imagine that they can wish the Arabs and Muslims out of existence by fiddling with demographic statistics or sending them to Jordan or other countries that will not have them.
The same strange symmetry is reflected in the way history is viewed. The conflict between Israel and the Arabs did not begin in 1967, with the Israeli conquests of the Six Day War. It is foolish to believe that returning all the territories will end the conflict, no matter what florid and deceptive declarations are made in documents such as the Arab Peace Initiative. Conversely, allow me to point out that Israel existed before 1967, and won a war against tremendous odds. The territories did not make us powerful or grant us security. Israel conquered territories in 1967 because it was more powerful and organized than its enemies. Israeli security was always provided by the Israeli people. Security was never provided by conquest of real-estate.
Right-wing opponents of the peace process tell us that it will establish a Hamas-dominated state, which will rain down rockets on Ben-Gurion airport and Tel Aviv from the West Bank. That is probably true. What could be worse than that? The model for such a state, as everyone agrees, is Gaza. An Israeli pullout there resulted in the Hamas takeover and the rain of rockets on the Western Negev. Opponents of Israeli withdrawal insist that only settlements backed by a military presence can keep the peace. They forgot that Gaze rocket fire began before the disengagement, when Israel had both settlements and an armed presence in Gaza. The soldiers guarded the settlements and could do little to stop the rocket fire. They forgot that Israeli helicopters, and aircraft are made in USA, that Israeli-made arms such as the Merkava tank or various unmanned aircraft incorporate parts that are made in USA, France. Germany or the U.K.
What could be worse than a Hamas-dominated state established by a peace agreement?? How about a Hamas-dominated state that has no peace agreement with Israel, that claims all the land of the British Mandate, that claims the “right” of return for Arabs who fled in 1948, and that has the backing of the EU too?? The rocket fire would be legitimized as “resistance.”That would be considerably worse, wouldn’t it?
The EU has pledged itself to back a Palestinian state, no strings attached, by the beginning of 2011. If that happens, Hamas would indeed rain rockets on Ben-Gurion airport, an effort supported by the EU as well as the usual terror groupies, and Israel would be absolutely powerless to stop them.
Fatah-Hamas unity talks that would almost certainly result in a Hamas-dominated state have gotten a big boost in recent weeks, contingent on the fate of the peace talks:
Sides said before the talks began that if the latest round failed, Palestinians would work to earn world support for the unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state.
According to a subsequent report:
Officials from the rival movement have said that significant progress has been made following recent talks in Damascus over the ratification of the Egyptian deal, reaching consensus on issues that Hamas said were points of contention, including the structure of the PLO, the Central Elections Committee, and an elections court.
The situation at this moment is fluid. The Arab League has evidently decided not to decide. According to one report, the Arab League has given Abbas the green light to end the direct peace talks. Other reports (e,g. here) insist that the Arab League has given the U.S. more time to broker a deal about settlement construction, while ruling out direct talks as long as construction continues in the settlemnts:
Ambassador Hesham Youssef, a senior aide to the secretary general of the Arab League, said Friday that the Arab ministers were supporting the Palestinian position “not to resume direct negotiations as long as settlement activities are ongoing.”
“This is an Arab and Palestinian position,” he said, speaking by telephone from Sirte, Libya, where the Arab League is meeting. “Not a single Arab country is saying go ahead with the talks.”
But he and other officials said that the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, had raised some additional options that he refused to discuss, but said that the Arab League would meet to discuss them in a month’s time.
Indirect talks will probably go on for now.
Among the appetizing alternatives being discussed by the Arabs are an appeal to the U.N. and an appeal to the U.S. to back a unilaterally declared Palestinian state or a U.N. “mandate for Palestine” in what Palestinians like to call 1967 borders (actually 1949 armistice lines). Then the Palestinians, backed by the oil might of the Arab League, will manipulate the U.S., the EU and the U.N. to impose an unfavorable two-state solution on Israel. They are just waiting for Israel to say “no” to the peace process. If Israel says “no” to peace negotiations, Israelis are walking into a trap.
Abbas can never say “No” to peace negotiations, since the Palestinian Authority government would lose the generous financial backing of the EU and the US, as well as the backing of the Arab League countries, who are anxious for Western help against non-Arab Shia Iran. Abbas can never say “No” to peace negotiations, but he can’t agree to peace either. Admitting the existence of Israel as a Jewish state and giving up the “right” of “return” for Palestinian “refugees” are preconditions of real peace, and they are politically impossible for Abbas at present.
If the peace process really fails because of any Israeli action, Mahmoud Abbas would conveniently be saved from having to make politically unpopular concessions. There are repeated threats that Abbas will resign If Abbas resigns, the way will be open for more extreme elements in Fatah and the PLO, and it is more likely that Palestinians will agree to a Hamas-dominated unity deal.
We can at last understand the purpose of the elaborate melodrama that the “moderate” Palestinians are staging for the benefit of the Americans, which is to have negotiations fail in a way that can be be blamed on Israel. That is why they raised the settlement construction issue as a condition for talks. In this scenario, the peace negotiations will fail, the “moderate” Palestinians of the West Bank will have “no alternative” to a unity government with Hamas. Israeli refusal to continue the talks on Palestinian terms will grant them a license to make the most extreme demands, and the international diplomatic situation will be favorable to the Palestinians, .
Don’t you love it when a nightmare plan comes together??
Of course, none of the above may ever happen, at least not right away. Fateh and Hamas may go on hating each other forever, and the EU might not back a Palestinian state.
The unilateral Palestinian state threat began in1988 with the Palestinian declaration of Independence , remember that? George Bush promised a Palestinian state by 2009, and then by 2008. A measure of healthy skepticism is justified. But the Europeans and president Obama might be more serious about a Palestinian state than President Bush, and Palestinian Prime Minister Salem Fayyad who plans a Palestinian state, may be more serious and methodical than Yasser Arafat.
However remote, the possibility that diplomats really mean what they say cannot be ruled out. There are precedents.
Fateh – Hamas unity has always been just in the offing, but nothing has happened except the short-lived disaster of Palestinian unity, that ended in the Hamas coup in Gaza. That doesn’t mean unity will not happen.
Suppose it all never happens. What then? Israel would still be isolated internationally as an “obstacle to peace.” Our army could defend nothing without the spare parts and ammunition that come from abroad. Our economy could not be sustained without American and European trading partners. Israel would face world-class threats such as Iran without the diplomatic backing of the EU, without any military capability, and possibly without the diplomatic backing of the US. Is that really worth a few trailers in Izhar, or even a new neighborhood in Jerusalem?? Aren’t Iranian missiles a bigger threat than Hamas rockets?
What is the alternative? It’s simple. Let the Palestinians say “no” to peace. The American definition of a reasonable peace settlement is given in the Clinton Bridging Proposals of 2000. These do not include return of Palestinian refugees. It is very unlikely that Mahmoud Abbas would ever agree to this plan, as he explained in 2000.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has now offered to resume the settlement freeze if the Palestinians recognize Israel as the state of the Jewish people. That puts the focus back on real issue. See The Peace Gap and Netanyahu reveals the real Issue. The Palestinians are unlikely to agree, but those supporters of Israel who are opposed to any peace negotiations would presumably be opposed to accepting a freeze on construction in settlements even in those circumstances. If you rule out any Israeli concessions, you can’t expect any Palestinian concessions.
What if by some miracle, the Palestinians and the Arab states agree to what Americans consider a reasonable solution? What if they agree to recognize Israel as the state of the Jewish people? What if against all probability they agree that Jews have at least some rights in east Jerusalem? True, Jerusalem would be divided, and Israel would lose all those potential Palestinian Arab citizens, as well as precious parts of East Jerusalem. But what remains at least would be recognized as ours by the western world.
The Arab agreement will probably not be the real thing. There will always be yet one more claim. They will always be waiting for an opportunity to destroy Israel. At least some Palestinian leaders do not hide the fact that their ultimate goal is the destruction of Israel through peace negotiations, as Abbas Zaki explained.
So what? The Palestinians and the Arabs have been planning the destruction of Israel for over sixty years. Most of the world was indifferent to our fate, as they are indifferent to the fate of Tibetans or Kurds. In the past, only we Israelis have really objected to this plan, and we will not get much sympathy in the future if the EU and the U.S. see us as evil warmongers.
Realistically, the conflict will probably continue with or without a “peace” agreement. The real choice for Israel is between fighting from the moral high ground, with a few allies, or being isolated as a pariah colonialist warmonger state.
Earlier I discussed the reasons why most Zionists and Israelis support peace, and why Israel‘s long term policy has always supported peace.
My views are those of most Israelis. Nonetheless, anti-Israel writers have assured everyone that Zionists are really nasty warmongers. Anti-Semites tell the world that the Jews are behind every war. Popular magazines declare that Israelis are not interested in peace. These enemies of Israel have been aided by certain self-proclaimed Zionists who insist that the peace process is bad for Israel, and that Israel must turn down peace negotiations.
Those who oppose the continuation of the peace process need to be honest: Are they really afraid of security threats, or are they really opposed to an extension of settlement construction freeze?? Let’s be frank. The settlement construction freeze is a red-herring issue It was devised by the Palestinians to avoid serious negotiations. The Palestinians have negotiated for years while Israel built new housing in settlements.The Americans and the Palestinians did not call a halt to negotiations.
Certainly, if negotiations break down, there will not be less settlement expansion. The moratorium on construction in the settlements continued for ten months. The Palestinians wasted almost the entire period on deliberately inconclusive indirect talks. The peace negotiations are an elaborate charade, but they are a charade with a purpose. We have to understand the purpose of the Palestinian tactics in order to understand what the Israeli response must be..
Realistically, if negotiations continue, the freeze on construction in settlements will probably be extended throughout the Obama administration, despite the current temporary “unfreeze,” courtesy of the U.S. congressional elections.
So what? We waited nine years until the British left and we could bring new immigrants to Israel. We have waited two thousand years to build in Jerusalem. We have waited two thousand years for a Jewish state. Are we going to give it all up for a few “housing units’ in Ariel? If the apartments are not built now, does anyone think Ariel will be given to the Palestinians in a peace deal? But building the apartments now may put the onus for the failure of the peace negotiations on Israel, feeding the delegitimization campaign of the Palestinians and their supporters. Rather than a few settlements or a few apartments being called into question, the whole idea of a Jewish state, even a postage-stamp sized Jewish state, is being jeopardized by the new construction.
A little reflection will show that a negotiated solution that ends in two states for two peoples is the only sane option for supporters of Israel and for the Israeli government, for the reasons given below. It looks like the only game in town for a peace solution. it will probably happen whether extremists want it or not. It is, in fact, the only reasonable option for both peoples. Since this is the Middle East after all, skeptics can point out that the sane and reasonable solution doesn’t stand a chance. Nonetheless, even in the Middle East, it is unlikely that the collective will of the EU, the USA and Russia will be thwarted.
The logic of the anti-peace crowd on both sides has a revolting symmetry. They all want a one-state solution. The Arab extremists want an Arab state, and the Jewish extremists (see Israel-Palestine: The one-state solution returns ) imagine that the single state will be Jewish. As for unfortunate surplus populations, the Arabs imagine, in the best case, that a Jewish minority will live in “Palestine” as “dhimmi” or “Arab Jews” in the same way they lived (or not, as was frequently the case) in Arab countries. In the worst case, the Arab “one state” proponents contemplate massive expulsion or genocide. The Jewish extremists evidently imagine that they can wish the Arabs and Muslims out of existence by fiddling with demographic statistics or sending them to Jordan or other countries that will not have them.
The same strange symmetry is reflected in the way history is viewed. The conflict between Israel and the Arabs did not begin in 1967, with the Israeli conquests of the Six Day War. It is foolish to believe that returning all the territories will end the conflict, no matter what florid and deceptive declarations are made in documents such as the Arab Peace Initiative. Conversely, allow me to point out that Israel existed before 1967, and won a war against tremendous odds. The territories did not make us powerful or grant us security. Israel conquered territories in 1967 because it was more powerful and organized than its enemies. Israeli security was always provided by the Israeli people. Security was never provided by conquest of real-estate.
Right-wing opponents of the peace process tell us that it will establish a Hamas-dominated state, which will rain down rockets on Ben-Gurion airport and Tel Aviv from the West Bank. That is probably true. What could be worse than that? The model for such a state, as everyone agrees, is Gaza. An Israeli pullout there resulted in the Hamas takeover and the rain of rockets on the Western Negev. Opponents of Israeli withdrawal insist that only settlements backed by a military presence can keep the peace. They forgot that Gaze rocket fire began before the disengagement, when Israel had both settlements and an armed presence in Gaza. The soldiers guarded the settlements and could do little to stop the rocket fire. They forgot that Israeli helicopters, and aircraft are made in USA, that Israeli-made arms such as the Merkava tank or various unmanned aircraft incorporate parts that are made in USA, France. Germany or the U.K.
What could be worse than a Hamas-dominated state established by a peace agreement?? How about a Hamas-dominated state that has no peace agreement with Israel, that claims all the land of the British Mandate, that claims the “right” of return for Arabs who fled in 1948, and that has the backing of the EU too?? The rocket fire would be legitimized as “resistance.”That would be considerably worse, wouldn’t it?
The EU has pledged itself to back a Palestinian state, no strings attached, by the beginning of 2011. If that happens, Hamas would indeed rain rockets on Ben-Gurion airport, an effort supported by the EU as well as the usual terror groupies, and Israel would be absolutely powerless to stop them.
Fatah-Hamas unity talks that would almost certainly result in a Hamas-dominated state have gotten a big boost in recent weeks, contingent on the fate of the peace talks:
Sides said before the talks began that if the latest round failed, Palestinians would work to earn world support for the unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state.
According to a subsequent report:
Officials from the rival movement have said that significant progress has been made following recent talks in Damascus over the ratification of the Egyptian deal, reaching consensus on issues that Hamas said were points of contention, including the structure of the PLO, the Central Elections Committee, and an elections court.
The situation at this moment is fluid. The Arab League has evidently decided not to decide. According to one report, the Arab League has given Abbas the green light to end the direct peace talks. Other reports (e,g. here) insist that the Arab League has given the U.S. more time to broker a deal about settlement construction, while ruling out direct talks as long as construction continues in the settlemnts:
Ambassador Hesham Youssef, a senior aide to the secretary general of the Arab League, said Friday that the Arab ministers were supporting the Palestinian position “not to resume direct negotiations as long as settlement activities are ongoing.”
“This is an Arab and Palestinian position,” he said, speaking by telephone from Sirte, Libya, where the Arab League is meeting. “Not a single Arab country is saying go ahead with the talks.”
But he and other officials said that the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, had raised some additional options that he refused to discuss, but said that the Arab League would meet to discuss them in a month’s time.
Indirect talks will probably go on for now.
Among the appetizing alternatives being discussed by the Arabs are an appeal to the U.N. and an appeal to the U.S. to back a unilaterally declared Palestinian state or a U.N. “mandate for Palestine” in what Palestinians like to call 1967 borders (actually 1949 armistice lines). Then the Palestinians, backed by the oil might of the Arab League, will manipulate the U.S., the EU and the U.N. to impose an unfavorable two-state solution on Israel. They are just waiting for Israel to say “no” to the peace process. If Israel says “no” to peace negotiations, Israelis are walking into a trap.
Abbas can never say “No” to peace negotiations, since the Palestinian Authority government would lose the generous financial backing of the EU and the US, as well as the backing of the Arab League countries, who are anxious for Western help against non-Arab Shia Iran. Abbas can never say “No” to peace negotiations, but he can’t agree to peace either. Admitting the existence of Israel as a Jewish state and giving up the “right” of “return” for Palestinian “refugees” are preconditions of real peace, and they are politically impossible for Abbas at present.
If the peace process really fails because of any Israeli action, Mahmoud Abbas would conveniently be saved from having to make politically unpopular concessions. There are repeated threats that Abbas will resign If Abbas resigns, the way will be open for more extreme elements in Fatah and the PLO, and it is more likely that Palestinians will agree to a Hamas-dominated unity deal.
We can at last understand the purpose of the elaborate melodrama that the “moderate” Palestinians are staging for the benefit of the Americans, which is to have negotiations fail in a way that can be be blamed on Israel. That is why they raised the settlement construction issue as a condition for talks. In this scenario, the peace negotiations will fail, the “moderate” Palestinians of the West Bank will have “no alternative” to a unity government with Hamas. Israeli refusal to continue the talks on Palestinian terms will grant them a license to make the most extreme demands, and the international diplomatic situation will be favorable to the Palestinians, .
Don’t you love it when a nightmare plan comes together??
Of course, none of the above may ever happen, at least not right away. Fateh and Hamas may go on hating each other forever, and the EU might not back a Palestinian state.
The unilateral Palestinian state threat began in1988 with the Palestinian declaration of Independence , remember that? George Bush promised a Palestinian state by 2009, and then by 2008. A measure of healthy skepticism is justified. But the Europeans and president Obama might be more serious about a Palestinian state than President Bush, and Palestinian Prime Minister Salem Fayyad who plans a Palestinian state, may be more serious and methodical than Yasser Arafat.
However remote, the possibility that diplomats really mean what they say cannot be ruled out. There are precedents.
Fateh – Hamas unity has always been just in the offing, but nothing has happened except the short-lived disaster of Palestinian unity, that ended in the Hamas coup in Gaza. That doesn’t mean unity will not happen.
Suppose it all never happens. What then? Israel would still be isolated internationally as an “obstacle to peace.” Our army could defend nothing without the spare parts and ammunition that come from abroad. Our economy could not be sustained without American and European trading partners. Israel would face world-class threats such as Iran without the diplomatic backing of the EU, without any military capability, and possibly without the diplomatic backing of the US. Is that really worth a few trailers in Izhar, or even a new neighborhood in Jerusalem?? Aren’t Iranian missiles a bigger threat than Hamas rockets?
What is the alternative? It’s simple. Let the Palestinians say “no” to peace. The American definition of a reasonable peace settlement is given in the Clinton Bridging Proposals of 2000. These do not include return of Palestinian refugees. It is very unlikely that Mahmoud Abbas would ever agree to this plan, as he explained in 2000.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has now offered to resume the settlement freeze if the Palestinians recognize Israel as the state of the Jewish people. That puts the focus back on real issue. See The Peace Gap and Netanyahu reveals the real Issue. The Palestinians are unlikely to agree, but those supporters of Israel who are opposed to any peace negotiations would presumably be opposed to accepting a freeze on construction in settlements even in those circumstances. If you rule out any Israeli concessions, you can’t expect any Palestinian concessions.
What if by some miracle, the Palestinians and the Arab states agree to what Americans consider a reasonable solution? What if they agree to recognize Israel as the state of the Jewish people? What if against all probability they agree that Jews have at least some rights in east Jerusalem? True, Jerusalem would be divided, and Israel would lose all those potential Palestinian Arab citizens, as well as precious parts of East Jerusalem. But what remains at least would be recognized as ours by the western world.
The Arab agreement will probably not be the real thing. There will always be yet one more claim. They will always be waiting for an opportunity to destroy Israel. At least some Palestinian leaders do not hide the fact that their ultimate goal is the destruction of Israel through peace negotiations, as Abbas Zaki explained.
So what? The Palestinians and the Arabs have been planning the destruction of Israel for over sixty years. Most of the world was indifferent to our fate, as they are indifferent to the fate of Tibetans or Kurds. In the past, only we Israelis have really objected to this plan, and we will not get much sympathy in the future if the EU and the U.S. see us as evil warmongers.
Realistically, the conflict will probably continue with or without a “peace” agreement. The real choice for Israel is between fighting from the moral high ground, with a few allies, or being isolated as a pariah colonialist warmonger state.
NORTHERN LEADERS VS JONATHAN : WHO BLINKS FIRST ?
Let us briefly discuss the issues of governance and democracy before we dwell on other issues. Northerners are often reminded that their leaders have left them wallowing in poverty while the leaders enjoy their loot. On the surface, the accusation may carry some truth. The North is indeed wallowing in poverty. However, there are many reasons for more poverty in the North, the inability of having many thieves who can steal colossal sums at the national level to bring down these wealth down home is a case of study. That is why I appeal to Jonathan, the new national saviour, to allow it the means to acquire the skill and the opportunity to steal in the next 100 years as much as would be needed to put the nation at par with the rest of the world. An affirmative clause guarding this objective would be needed in the constitution.
On a serious note, the poverty argument is often quoted to disrepute northern politicians when they are contesting against a southerner. History however has proved that southern leaders have not proved to be kinder to the North. Under Obasanjo, for example, poverty in the North continued to increase. Throughout his tenure, allocation to agriculture was meagre compared to other major sectors. The North also saw a sharp fall in electricity supply. Kano was especially treated as a target until virtually all its factories closed down when at the same time his home state witnessed a surge in electricity supply and many northern factories belonging to Lebanese relocated there. In fact, how the condition of the North worsened under Obasanjo calls for a doctoral thesis. Jonathan, his scion, can hardly do better from the attitudes he is exhibiting so far.
And how could the ordinary Northerner be rich when after being bombarded by advertisement from banks and the stock market he sold his yams, potatoes, donkeys, cattle and goats and invested the money in the banks (all of which are southern) only to see it stolen away by the MDs who launder it in acquisition of more shares and houses overseas? So he would be better off with livestock and agricultural produce. However, even there Nigeria has set a limit to how much he can earn by preventing him from selling the produce to neighbouring countries where it would fetch him more money. Thus, farmers, who constitute the largest population of the North, are forced to subsidize life for people like me who do not farm.
Also, I have come across many commentators, largely of the Christian Right, who think that chopping the Muslim North off Nigeria would make the country better. A coup was even attempted on this pretext two decades ago. This argument emanates more from bigotry and fascism than from facts. Agreed that Borno, Kano and Sokoto may not be democratic. We saw how Malamâ Shekarau's government rigged local government elections in Kano, for example. But elections are just as much rigged in Christian states like Rivers and Imo. Linking the argument to the Muslim World and Islam is equally and totally false. I agree that countries in the Muslim world are not democratic and they represent perhaps some of the worst living specimens of tyranny and oppression.
However, that is neither the tenet of Islam nor the choice of its Muslim citizens. It is the practice of their puppet leaders in strong collaboration with the western powers that support them with aid, intelligence, equipments of torture, guns, AWACS, etc. Take Saudi Arabia for example. That kingdom is a monarchy which, in the first place, could not have come into existence without the support of the British or survived this long without deploying American might. In fact this is the root cause of the terrorism that America so much complains about these days. The same thing applies to Egypt and other tyrannical regimes in the Muslim world. Let America and the Western world support the democratization of the Muslim world by withdrawing its support for those oppressive regimes and you will see them collapse in less than five years. But the West cannot risk that because of its entrenched strategic and economic interests.
In the same vein, the people who sabotage the will of Nigerians and impede its progress by rigging elections and entrenching corruption come from various religions, regions and ethnic groups. In fact, they are more united in their undertakings than we are in our camp of those who want a free, democratic and progressive Nigeria. If we had had a situation whereby Christian states like Rivers or Imo were more committed to democratic ideals“ expressed in free and fair elections, good governance, rule of law, human rights, etc“ than Muslim states of Kano and Sokoto, then the adherents of one religion would have had sufficient ground to point fingers at others. But here we are, drown in the same dirty pool of corruption and poverty and persecuted by the same corrupt minority, which is ever eager to see us divided.
On the plane of governance, southern governors have proved to at least be at par, with their northern counterparts. No one is left behind. There is an equal amount of dissatisfaction among their citizens as it is amongst us here in the North. In fact, some of the southern states have reached levels of insecurity that is alarming. The inhabitants of Aba and Nnewi can tell us better.
Listen to Dominic Ogbonna, a discussant in Igbo world forum, on the state of insecurity in the commercial town of Aba as at 9 October 2010: Aba has completely unravelled. Businesses, including banks, are totally closed. 70% of the residents have left town and many of them will never come back. Many of those remaining spend the day inside their house, or sleep in the bush at night. Rape and impunity is a daily occurrence. It is a pity. I recall with nostalgia how the Ariaria market was my favourite shopping area in the early eighties.
In the North, the times when such level of insecurity is reached are during the debut of religious and communal clashes before calm is restored in two or three days normally. The Boko Haram is a different matter. They are zeroing their attacks on only two governors, law enforcement agents and government informants among the civilian population who jointly persecuted them last year. Why crime could reach such a threshold in some southern states is largely because of money, the root of all evils. The more you steal, the less comfortable you become due to the intolerable imbalance you create among citizens.
The North is quieter because there is little money to display compared to the South, not because Northerners are pious. It is the issue of access. After all, the consequence would only be a six months prison term and an inability to visit my village since it will be besieged by kidnappers. I would stay put in Abuja until MEND arrives.
We can now give specific answers to the question posed at its beginning: Why are northerners made the target of hate and hate speech by some Nigerians? I would like to adduce a number of reasons: leadership tenure, opposition politics, civil war, partition politics, and, now, zoning.
Northerners must admit that while their number has legitimately given them some advantage in politics for quite sometime, it has also made them an object of criticism. Nobody in any poverty-ridden society is a target of hate as much as the leader. In a normal civilized society, such criticisms would be limited to the leaders.
However, Nigeria is not a normal, civilized society. That is why the sin of one man, the leader, is readily lumped on his entire region. The rules of logic cannot be applied to a primitive environment like ours. This is our quarrel with the broadcasters of hate speech. The crimes and shortcomings of any leader should be restricted to him and not to his people. It is a simple rule in logic, but for obvious reasons, some people are finding it difficult to apply.
It is this primitivism or our reluctance to embrace the dictates of civilization that engenders other factors. We continue to cling to the primordial instincts of tribe, religion and survival even when they are clearly detrimental to our survival as a nation. Here, it is apt to point at the influence of the Civil War. The memory and ˜ideals of that war still linger in the minds of many such hate mongers in a negative way. They still see the North as an enemy simply because they perceive it to be the greatest culprit in blocking their dream of Biafra.
Radio Biafra is still broadcasting. And some are eager for the world to recognize them as Biafrans, like my friend, a medical doctor, who often replies me with mails carrying the following signature at the bottom: Nwa Biafra, A Biafran Citizen. He is reminding people like me, who would like a strong multiethnic modern Nigeria, that Biafra is still alive in the hearts and dreams of some of its
former citizens. I told them that I will not discuss anything further with them on Nigeria until they become Nigerians!
Others are less audacious. They use anonymous names and hide under the freedom and protection that cyberspace provides to launch their missiles of hate speech against others. For them, the war is not over. If it cannot be waged with the gun anymore, the propaganda must continue using the same language against the same perceived enemy. Nigerians, not northerners alone, must beware of these elements. There is no harm in anyone wanting to secede from Nigeria. It is not a divine creation. However, one does not need to wear a mask and think that he is doing any justice to his cause by unjustifiably vilifying other ordinary Nigerians.
There are also those who have never moderated on the partisan propaganda of the First Republic. Mostly in the Southwest, they perceive their region as still in opposition. A lot of lies were written during that period against northerners, the Balewa regime and whoever was in speaking terms with it even among citizens of the Southwest. This much has been admitted in the contributions to the ongoing debate between supporters of late Samuel Akintola and those of late Obafemi Awolowo on the internet. This propaganda polluted the minds of many Southerners with the hatred that eventually brought about the coup that ousted that Republic.
Unfortunately, despite the demise of the Republic these old political viruses have replicated their DNA in the genomes of many youths and the tradition continues unabated. They continue to inject that venom into the minds of their youths, telling them about the peculiarities of their race and the evil of their principal enemy, the North. These youths would spend their adult life as lecturers, journalists, politicians and businessmen unable to see themselves as Nigerians.
That was the point made by Sanusi Lamido Sanusi when he was invited to speak at a book launch by one of them a year ago. I doubt if his message that Nigerians of his age should be allowed to be Nigerians rather than northerners or southerners was well received by the audience at that event. Every act and every candidate must be for us or against us. I have been following the debate over the approval of Buhari by Pastor Tunde Bakare among members of the Save Nigeria Group. The most adamant opponent of Bakare's endorsement in the exchange was Dayo Ogunlana. He wrote Egbon Sowumumi saying, Dont forget that Buhari has his own k-leg too. He is too tribalistic. I doubt if he has programs that will be of benefit to us in the southwest. He has no soft spot for us in the S/W. There you are. The urge to return the Yoruba race back to the old politics of ethnicity, away from mainstream politics, is strong among many. They hide behind the corruption
of Obasanjo and the PDP and interpret the recent successes of AC as an signal that the Southwest is finally regaining its regional consciousness.
Then there is the partition politics of the so-called Sovereign National Conference (SNC). I will discuss its merits and demerits in a later article. Here, I will confine myself to saying that proponents of the conference have always viewed the North as an impediment to the success of their agenda. That assumption may be wrong. Rather than argue with them, I suggest that they come over and conduct an opinion poll among northerners to find out the level of support they may have here. The poll must give three options: a strong centre, as it is now; a lose federation with a weak centre; and partitioning of the country into smaller independent states. I am ready to support whatever would be the outcome of the poll and work hard towards its achievement. I will even switch to supporting a partition once the result of such a poll prefers that. The result of the poll would be a strong argument that will convince many other unionists. Without it, however, I
remain committed to one Nigeria.
I have mentioned the aggravated case of the northern Muslim when religion is conscripted to serve political ends in the country. Then, many of his Christian counterparts, will join in the smear and missile hauling against him. The fact is that under such circumstance, the northern Christian is only used as a tool to support the various agenda we described above. The identity of the so-called Middle Belt was reinvented by Obasanjo to divide the North and serve his interest during his first term. He left office without doing anything better for the Middle Belt than the rest of the North. He cancelled the contract for dredging River Niger and Benue immediately he assumed power in 1999. Even now under Jonathan the dredging has stopped, as indicated by the recent appeal for it's resumption by a Lokoja traditional titleholder to the Senate President. In the end, when the chips are down, such Middlebelters suffer from the same injustice, as do the northern
Muslims. When it comes to the Niger Delta, TY Danjuma is bombarded as a northerner for declaring profits worth billions of dollars from his oil blocks. But when it comes to the power, he is a Christian who would be instigated to support the Christian south, like in the ongoing opportunistic power struggle to win the Presidency in 2011 for Goodluck Jonathan.
The Jonathan campaign is unfortunately taking that turn. Emphasizing his minority identity is unwarranted if his intention were to capture the support of every part of the country. He did not need to be so dishonest to dispute the existence of zoning since it is there in Section 7 of the PDP constitution and currently in practice. Otherwise, why are there PDP aspirants from the Southwest, for example? Its obviously because Obasanjo has just spent eight years. Jonathan has not proved to be clever at all.
He could not even outsmart his opponents by conceding that he will return the PDP ticket to the North, anywhere in the North, in 2015. No. He is bulldozing his way with the might of incumbency. His supporters among southern politicians know this. That is why in spite of thousands of southerners who are more competent than Jonathan, they would rather cling to him. Who can claim that the Yoruba race and the Igbo nation are bereft of a better person than Jonathan? Incumbency is the answer.
As the President, he has the resources of state at his disposal. He can dish out money. He will rig elections. And he will allow his people to loot the treasury, a motive encapsulated in the ambiguous language of our interest. If free and fair elections were entrenched in our political culture, it would be difficult for any incumbent to win such unconditional support.
Ironically, belief in incumbency, I must hasten to point out, is not limited to supporters of Jonathan in the South. Northerners in the PDP who are opposed to Jonathan are staunch believers in incumbency too. Adamu Ciroma it was who told Nigerians opposed to the re-election of Obasanjo in 2003 that PDP couldn't be defeated by virtue of its incumbency. In 1999, we were not defeated before we came to power, how can we be defeated when we are in power? he reminded his opponents.
The crisis in PDP is over incumbency. It did not have to be shared by every northerner. Unfortunately, the common northerner has to again be brought in the line of fire before the equation could square up. Point a finger at him and many in the South would be eager to rally around you, by instinct, training or design. And that is when people like me take offence. Poor Northerners. Come rain, come shine, as a group, they must be fired at.
From the foregoing, I think I have made my point clear that the allegations labelled against northerners are really unfounded; if northerners have committed a sin, others have not proved to be saints. In these articles, the ordinary Northerner will find sufficient explanation on the roots of his disparagement. If he is hit by any missile again, as he would surely be, he can now say where it is coming from and why. I hope the victim of these wild accusations and unjust generalizations will continue to ignore them, as he has constantly done. He must not forget that much of these baseless allegations are coming from people who have never visited the North or lived among its people.
For those who deliberately do so to vent their anger on a section of the Nigerian population, they must realize that there is a growing number of Nigerians among their kinsmen who are desirous of the unity and progress of this country. To the latter I wish every well-meaning Nigerian would extend his hand of love and support. One day, together we shall leave behind the old Nigeria of religious bigotry and ethnic chauvinism to embrace the new one of love, unity and progress. Then, there will be no North, East or West, but a Nigeria ready to embrace the tenets of civilization, of respect to humanity and transparency in governance. This is the venture in which we must partake with perseverance despite the reluctance of retrogressive forces.
On a serious note, the poverty argument is often quoted to disrepute northern politicians when they are contesting against a southerner. History however has proved that southern leaders have not proved to be kinder to the North. Under Obasanjo, for example, poverty in the North continued to increase. Throughout his tenure, allocation to agriculture was meagre compared to other major sectors. The North also saw a sharp fall in electricity supply. Kano was especially treated as a target until virtually all its factories closed down when at the same time his home state witnessed a surge in electricity supply and many northern factories belonging to Lebanese relocated there. In fact, how the condition of the North worsened under Obasanjo calls for a doctoral thesis. Jonathan, his scion, can hardly do better from the attitudes he is exhibiting so far.
And how could the ordinary Northerner be rich when after being bombarded by advertisement from banks and the stock market he sold his yams, potatoes, donkeys, cattle and goats and invested the money in the banks (all of which are southern) only to see it stolen away by the MDs who launder it in acquisition of more shares and houses overseas? So he would be better off with livestock and agricultural produce. However, even there Nigeria has set a limit to how much he can earn by preventing him from selling the produce to neighbouring countries where it would fetch him more money. Thus, farmers, who constitute the largest population of the North, are forced to subsidize life for people like me who do not farm.
Also, I have come across many commentators, largely of the Christian Right, who think that chopping the Muslim North off Nigeria would make the country better. A coup was even attempted on this pretext two decades ago. This argument emanates more from bigotry and fascism than from facts. Agreed that Borno, Kano and Sokoto may not be democratic. We saw how Malamâ Shekarau's government rigged local government elections in Kano, for example. But elections are just as much rigged in Christian states like Rivers and Imo. Linking the argument to the Muslim World and Islam is equally and totally false. I agree that countries in the Muslim world are not democratic and they represent perhaps some of the worst living specimens of tyranny and oppression.
However, that is neither the tenet of Islam nor the choice of its Muslim citizens. It is the practice of their puppet leaders in strong collaboration with the western powers that support them with aid, intelligence, equipments of torture, guns, AWACS, etc. Take Saudi Arabia for example. That kingdom is a monarchy which, in the first place, could not have come into existence without the support of the British or survived this long without deploying American might. In fact this is the root cause of the terrorism that America so much complains about these days. The same thing applies to Egypt and other tyrannical regimes in the Muslim world. Let America and the Western world support the democratization of the Muslim world by withdrawing its support for those oppressive regimes and you will see them collapse in less than five years. But the West cannot risk that because of its entrenched strategic and economic interests.
In the same vein, the people who sabotage the will of Nigerians and impede its progress by rigging elections and entrenching corruption come from various religions, regions and ethnic groups. In fact, they are more united in their undertakings than we are in our camp of those who want a free, democratic and progressive Nigeria. If we had had a situation whereby Christian states like Rivers or Imo were more committed to democratic ideals“ expressed in free and fair elections, good governance, rule of law, human rights, etc“ than Muslim states of Kano and Sokoto, then the adherents of one religion would have had sufficient ground to point fingers at others. But here we are, drown in the same dirty pool of corruption and poverty and persecuted by the same corrupt minority, which is ever eager to see us divided.
On the plane of governance, southern governors have proved to at least be at par, with their northern counterparts. No one is left behind. There is an equal amount of dissatisfaction among their citizens as it is amongst us here in the North. In fact, some of the southern states have reached levels of insecurity that is alarming. The inhabitants of Aba and Nnewi can tell us better.
Listen to Dominic Ogbonna, a discussant in Igbo world forum, on the state of insecurity in the commercial town of Aba as at 9 October 2010: Aba has completely unravelled. Businesses, including banks, are totally closed. 70% of the residents have left town and many of them will never come back. Many of those remaining spend the day inside their house, or sleep in the bush at night. Rape and impunity is a daily occurrence. It is a pity. I recall with nostalgia how the Ariaria market was my favourite shopping area in the early eighties.
In the North, the times when such level of insecurity is reached are during the debut of religious and communal clashes before calm is restored in two or three days normally. The Boko Haram is a different matter. They are zeroing their attacks on only two governors, law enforcement agents and government informants among the civilian population who jointly persecuted them last year. Why crime could reach such a threshold in some southern states is largely because of money, the root of all evils. The more you steal, the less comfortable you become due to the intolerable imbalance you create among citizens.
The North is quieter because there is little money to display compared to the South, not because Northerners are pious. It is the issue of access. After all, the consequence would only be a six months prison term and an inability to visit my village since it will be besieged by kidnappers. I would stay put in Abuja until MEND arrives.
We can now give specific answers to the question posed at its beginning: Why are northerners made the target of hate and hate speech by some Nigerians? I would like to adduce a number of reasons: leadership tenure, opposition politics, civil war, partition politics, and, now, zoning.
Northerners must admit that while their number has legitimately given them some advantage in politics for quite sometime, it has also made them an object of criticism. Nobody in any poverty-ridden society is a target of hate as much as the leader. In a normal civilized society, such criticisms would be limited to the leaders.
However, Nigeria is not a normal, civilized society. That is why the sin of one man, the leader, is readily lumped on his entire region. The rules of logic cannot be applied to a primitive environment like ours. This is our quarrel with the broadcasters of hate speech. The crimes and shortcomings of any leader should be restricted to him and not to his people. It is a simple rule in logic, but for obvious reasons, some people are finding it difficult to apply.
It is this primitivism or our reluctance to embrace the dictates of civilization that engenders other factors. We continue to cling to the primordial instincts of tribe, religion and survival even when they are clearly detrimental to our survival as a nation. Here, it is apt to point at the influence of the Civil War. The memory and ˜ideals of that war still linger in the minds of many such hate mongers in a negative way. They still see the North as an enemy simply because they perceive it to be the greatest culprit in blocking their dream of Biafra.
Radio Biafra is still broadcasting. And some are eager for the world to recognize them as Biafrans, like my friend, a medical doctor, who often replies me with mails carrying the following signature at the bottom: Nwa Biafra, A Biafran Citizen. He is reminding people like me, who would like a strong multiethnic modern Nigeria, that Biafra is still alive in the hearts and dreams of some of its
former citizens. I told them that I will not discuss anything further with them on Nigeria until they become Nigerians!
Others are less audacious. They use anonymous names and hide under the freedom and protection that cyberspace provides to launch their missiles of hate speech against others. For them, the war is not over. If it cannot be waged with the gun anymore, the propaganda must continue using the same language against the same perceived enemy. Nigerians, not northerners alone, must beware of these elements. There is no harm in anyone wanting to secede from Nigeria. It is not a divine creation. However, one does not need to wear a mask and think that he is doing any justice to his cause by unjustifiably vilifying other ordinary Nigerians.
There are also those who have never moderated on the partisan propaganda of the First Republic. Mostly in the Southwest, they perceive their region as still in opposition. A lot of lies were written during that period against northerners, the Balewa regime and whoever was in speaking terms with it even among citizens of the Southwest. This much has been admitted in the contributions to the ongoing debate between supporters of late Samuel Akintola and those of late Obafemi Awolowo on the internet. This propaganda polluted the minds of many Southerners with the hatred that eventually brought about the coup that ousted that Republic.
Unfortunately, despite the demise of the Republic these old political viruses have replicated their DNA in the genomes of many youths and the tradition continues unabated. They continue to inject that venom into the minds of their youths, telling them about the peculiarities of their race and the evil of their principal enemy, the North. These youths would spend their adult life as lecturers, journalists, politicians and businessmen unable to see themselves as Nigerians.
That was the point made by Sanusi Lamido Sanusi when he was invited to speak at a book launch by one of them a year ago. I doubt if his message that Nigerians of his age should be allowed to be Nigerians rather than northerners or southerners was well received by the audience at that event. Every act and every candidate must be for us or against us. I have been following the debate over the approval of Buhari by Pastor Tunde Bakare among members of the Save Nigeria Group. The most adamant opponent of Bakare's endorsement in the exchange was Dayo Ogunlana. He wrote Egbon Sowumumi saying, Dont forget that Buhari has his own k-leg too. He is too tribalistic. I doubt if he has programs that will be of benefit to us in the southwest. He has no soft spot for us in the S/W. There you are. The urge to return the Yoruba race back to the old politics of ethnicity, away from mainstream politics, is strong among many. They hide behind the corruption
of Obasanjo and the PDP and interpret the recent successes of AC as an signal that the Southwest is finally regaining its regional consciousness.
Then there is the partition politics of the so-called Sovereign National Conference (SNC). I will discuss its merits and demerits in a later article. Here, I will confine myself to saying that proponents of the conference have always viewed the North as an impediment to the success of their agenda. That assumption may be wrong. Rather than argue with them, I suggest that they come over and conduct an opinion poll among northerners to find out the level of support they may have here. The poll must give three options: a strong centre, as it is now; a lose federation with a weak centre; and partitioning of the country into smaller independent states. I am ready to support whatever would be the outcome of the poll and work hard towards its achievement. I will even switch to supporting a partition once the result of such a poll prefers that. The result of the poll would be a strong argument that will convince many other unionists. Without it, however, I
remain committed to one Nigeria.
I have mentioned the aggravated case of the northern Muslim when religion is conscripted to serve political ends in the country. Then, many of his Christian counterparts, will join in the smear and missile hauling against him. The fact is that under such circumstance, the northern Christian is only used as a tool to support the various agenda we described above. The identity of the so-called Middle Belt was reinvented by Obasanjo to divide the North and serve his interest during his first term. He left office without doing anything better for the Middle Belt than the rest of the North. He cancelled the contract for dredging River Niger and Benue immediately he assumed power in 1999. Even now under Jonathan the dredging has stopped, as indicated by the recent appeal for it's resumption by a Lokoja traditional titleholder to the Senate President. In the end, when the chips are down, such Middlebelters suffer from the same injustice, as do the northern
Muslims. When it comes to the Niger Delta, TY Danjuma is bombarded as a northerner for declaring profits worth billions of dollars from his oil blocks. But when it comes to the power, he is a Christian who would be instigated to support the Christian south, like in the ongoing opportunistic power struggle to win the Presidency in 2011 for Goodluck Jonathan.
The Jonathan campaign is unfortunately taking that turn. Emphasizing his minority identity is unwarranted if his intention were to capture the support of every part of the country. He did not need to be so dishonest to dispute the existence of zoning since it is there in Section 7 of the PDP constitution and currently in practice. Otherwise, why are there PDP aspirants from the Southwest, for example? Its obviously because Obasanjo has just spent eight years. Jonathan has not proved to be clever at all.
He could not even outsmart his opponents by conceding that he will return the PDP ticket to the North, anywhere in the North, in 2015. No. He is bulldozing his way with the might of incumbency. His supporters among southern politicians know this. That is why in spite of thousands of southerners who are more competent than Jonathan, they would rather cling to him. Who can claim that the Yoruba race and the Igbo nation are bereft of a better person than Jonathan? Incumbency is the answer.
As the President, he has the resources of state at his disposal. He can dish out money. He will rig elections. And he will allow his people to loot the treasury, a motive encapsulated in the ambiguous language of our interest. If free and fair elections were entrenched in our political culture, it would be difficult for any incumbent to win such unconditional support.
Ironically, belief in incumbency, I must hasten to point out, is not limited to supporters of Jonathan in the South. Northerners in the PDP who are opposed to Jonathan are staunch believers in incumbency too. Adamu Ciroma it was who told Nigerians opposed to the re-election of Obasanjo in 2003 that PDP couldn't be defeated by virtue of its incumbency. In 1999, we were not defeated before we came to power, how can we be defeated when we are in power? he reminded his opponents.
The crisis in PDP is over incumbency. It did not have to be shared by every northerner. Unfortunately, the common northerner has to again be brought in the line of fire before the equation could square up. Point a finger at him and many in the South would be eager to rally around you, by instinct, training or design. And that is when people like me take offence. Poor Northerners. Come rain, come shine, as a group, they must be fired at.
From the foregoing, I think I have made my point clear that the allegations labelled against northerners are really unfounded; if northerners have committed a sin, others have not proved to be saints. In these articles, the ordinary Northerner will find sufficient explanation on the roots of his disparagement. If he is hit by any missile again, as he would surely be, he can now say where it is coming from and why. I hope the victim of these wild accusations and unjust generalizations will continue to ignore them, as he has constantly done. He must not forget that much of these baseless allegations are coming from people who have never visited the North or lived among its people.
For those who deliberately do so to vent their anger on a section of the Nigerian population, they must realize that there is a growing number of Nigerians among their kinsmen who are desirous of the unity and progress of this country. To the latter I wish every well-meaning Nigerian would extend his hand of love and support. One day, together we shall leave behind the old Nigeria of religious bigotry and ethnic chauvinism to embrace the new one of love, unity and progress. Then, there will be no North, East or West, but a Nigeria ready to embrace the tenets of civilization, of respect to humanity and transparency in governance. This is the venture in which we must partake with perseverance despite the reluctance of retrogressive forces.
Leaked: Rwandan Secret Services’ Plan to Eliminate Victoire Ingabire
The Rwandan directory of military intelligence DMI in collaboration with national police force may have masterminded the conspiracy to indict and eliminate Madam Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza with charges of participating in terrorist activities.
On a tip off from an informant from Kagame’s secret services, the exiled Umuvugizi newspaper Chief Editor Jean Bosco Gasasira revealed that the plan to eliminate Madam Victoire Ingabire was engineered by Colonel Dan Munyuza assisted by Army General Rwarakabije.
General Rwarakabije was asked to find an agent to play a central role to carry out the plan. He was tasked to hire a Hutu ethnic agents from FDRL that can be as reliable as easily influenced to collaborate in the Machiavelli plan, Umuvugizi Newspaper revealed Sunday 17th October.
The Newspaper confirmed that “General Rwarakabije picked one of his men from FDRL, a certain Major [Vital] Uwumuremyi who arrived in Rwanda a few months ago with his group. Once in Rwanda he was given a mission to return to Congo to spy on his comrades. He carried out his secret mission on several occasions before they were able to trust him. Information we have confirms that he received a large amount of money to convince him and be confident.”
It is believed that, when General Kayumba and Colonel Karegeya defected and fled the country, the Kagame’s army intelligent services planned to accuse them of terrorism crimes so that they can be brought back to Rwanda. The plan was also to get them isolated especially that both men have strong support in the army and civil community of the RPF party.
Umuvugizi confirms also that, earlier, the plan was devised by the Directory of Military Intelligence (DMI), which invented a ghost army called CDF (Coalition of Democratic Forces) and issued press releases and tracts to back it up.
In actual fact, this army group does not exist. It was only invented to create grounds for extraditing exiled army generals back to Rwanda.
Recyled Plan
“When this strategy did not work as planned as South Africa refused to extradite both generals, the plan was redirected at Mme Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza’s arrest, using agent Major Uwumuremyi, especially because her earlier accusations were widely seen as false.” Umuvugizi continues.
International community has condemned the controversial genocide laws behind common accusations as a political tool to stifle the opposition to the point that Kagame’s government accepted to undertake a review of the laws.
“Secret services carefully planned Victoire Ingabire’s case. When the conspiracy was properly set, the plan was submitted to Kagame who accepted it. He immediately started to stress that it is not illegal to indict an opposition figure when they are guilty. He passed on the plan to the police and the prosecutor’s office so that they can start acting on it. Agent Uwumuremyi was already prepared to falsely accuse Victoire Ingabire of participating in the formation of the army group”
Kagame intentionally kept stating to international press that it was not illegal to arrest and bring to court someone who threatens national security. This argument was also heard in his speech during the new government swearing in ceremony a few days ago. He complained that the international community is asking him to allow space for his political opponents while they, in their countries, punish those who are opposed to their governments: “We know that they arrested a member of parliament because of his anti-Muslim views, but they condemn our arrest of those with genocide ideology” Kagame said.
He kept hammering the same argument and that they have no right to call him a dictator. These statements were paving a way to the planned Victoire Ingabire’s arrest.
At this moment, International community, especially donor countries, are putting pressure on Kagame to accept to form a government with members of opposition parties. With his plan, he would be able to prove that the opposition is only made up of people with questionable background. Another reason is that Ingabire was being very competitive to Kagame since she was criticising him publicly and was effectively collaborating with donors on Rwandan political issues. She was being a serious obstacle to Kagame’s foreign policy.
Another thing that was revealed by the newspaper’s informant is that, as the international community was putting pressure on Kagame, he devised a plan to approach Lawyer Bernard Ntaganda [PS Party chairman who is now in prison] to use him to character assassinate Mrs Victoire Ingabire. The plan was to lure Ntaganda on the govermnent side as they did with many other opposition politicians, such as [Senator Stanley] Safari, who helped destroy their own parties in exchange good posts.
Information received stated that [Ntaganda] was met in prison and was asked to sign statements apologizing to Kagame and stating that he disowns Victoire Ingabire. In exchange he was to be released from prison and rewarded an important post in the government. The informant revealed that he was called in the “1930” Prison Director’s office, at night to meet with those in charge of convincing him. It is stated that he was taken outside the prison to convince him even further.
Bernard Ntaganda categorically refused to sign. As a punishment, he was transferred into a solitary confinement in atrocious conditions.
According to Umuvugizi newspaper, information received corroborates that “Victoire Ingabire will be given a slow killer type of poison that will put an end to her political career. At the same time, agents of special intelligence in diplomatic missions in Rwanda are working hard to convince ambassadors that Victoire Ingabire was part of the terrorist army group”
As soon as she arrived in Rwanda, Mrs Victoire Ingabire was accused of genocide ideology and genocide denial as well as of collaborating with armed group FDRL. It is alleged that she provided financial support to the army group.
Today all of these allegations have changed. She is now accused of participating in the formation of a new army wing CDF and of supplying it with weapons. Umuvugizi Chief Editor, Jean Bosco Gasasira who is familiar with these ever-changing charges confirmed that this is pure fabrication. This culture within the RPF party led by Kagame has cost lives of many innocent people who happen to have different political opinion from that of its leader.
On a tip off from an informant from Kagame’s secret services, the exiled Umuvugizi newspaper Chief Editor Jean Bosco Gasasira revealed that the plan to eliminate Madam Victoire Ingabire was engineered by Colonel Dan Munyuza assisted by Army General Rwarakabije.
General Rwarakabije was asked to find an agent to play a central role to carry out the plan. He was tasked to hire a Hutu ethnic agents from FDRL that can be as reliable as easily influenced to collaborate in the Machiavelli plan, Umuvugizi Newspaper revealed Sunday 17th October.
The Newspaper confirmed that “General Rwarakabije picked one of his men from FDRL, a certain Major [Vital] Uwumuremyi who arrived in Rwanda a few months ago with his group. Once in Rwanda he was given a mission to return to Congo to spy on his comrades. He carried out his secret mission on several occasions before they were able to trust him. Information we have confirms that he received a large amount of money to convince him and be confident.”
It is believed that, when General Kayumba and Colonel Karegeya defected and fled the country, the Kagame’s army intelligent services planned to accuse them of terrorism crimes so that they can be brought back to Rwanda. The plan was also to get them isolated especially that both men have strong support in the army and civil community of the RPF party.
Umuvugizi confirms also that, earlier, the plan was devised by the Directory of Military Intelligence (DMI), which invented a ghost army called CDF (Coalition of Democratic Forces) and issued press releases and tracts to back it up.
In actual fact, this army group does not exist. It was only invented to create grounds for extraditing exiled army generals back to Rwanda.
Recyled Plan
“When this strategy did not work as planned as South Africa refused to extradite both generals, the plan was redirected at Mme Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza’s arrest, using agent Major Uwumuremyi, especially because her earlier accusations were widely seen as false.” Umuvugizi continues.
International community has condemned the controversial genocide laws behind common accusations as a political tool to stifle the opposition to the point that Kagame’s government accepted to undertake a review of the laws.
“Secret services carefully planned Victoire Ingabire’s case. When the conspiracy was properly set, the plan was submitted to Kagame who accepted it. He immediately started to stress that it is not illegal to indict an opposition figure when they are guilty. He passed on the plan to the police and the prosecutor’s office so that they can start acting on it. Agent Uwumuremyi was already prepared to falsely accuse Victoire Ingabire of participating in the formation of the army group”
Kagame intentionally kept stating to international press that it was not illegal to arrest and bring to court someone who threatens national security. This argument was also heard in his speech during the new government swearing in ceremony a few days ago. He complained that the international community is asking him to allow space for his political opponents while they, in their countries, punish those who are opposed to their governments: “We know that they arrested a member of parliament because of his anti-Muslim views, but they condemn our arrest of those with genocide ideology” Kagame said.
He kept hammering the same argument and that they have no right to call him a dictator. These statements were paving a way to the planned Victoire Ingabire’s arrest.
At this moment, International community, especially donor countries, are putting pressure on Kagame to accept to form a government with members of opposition parties. With his plan, he would be able to prove that the opposition is only made up of people with questionable background. Another reason is that Ingabire was being very competitive to Kagame since she was criticising him publicly and was effectively collaborating with donors on Rwandan political issues. She was being a serious obstacle to Kagame’s foreign policy.
Another thing that was revealed by the newspaper’s informant is that, as the international community was putting pressure on Kagame, he devised a plan to approach Lawyer Bernard Ntaganda [PS Party chairman who is now in prison] to use him to character assassinate Mrs Victoire Ingabire. The plan was to lure Ntaganda on the govermnent side as they did with many other opposition politicians, such as [Senator Stanley] Safari, who helped destroy their own parties in exchange good posts.
Information received stated that [Ntaganda] was met in prison and was asked to sign statements apologizing to Kagame and stating that he disowns Victoire Ingabire. In exchange he was to be released from prison and rewarded an important post in the government. The informant revealed that he was called in the “1930” Prison Director’s office, at night to meet with those in charge of convincing him. It is stated that he was taken outside the prison to convince him even further.
Bernard Ntaganda categorically refused to sign. As a punishment, he was transferred into a solitary confinement in atrocious conditions.
According to Umuvugizi newspaper, information received corroborates that “Victoire Ingabire will be given a slow killer type of poison that will put an end to her political career. At the same time, agents of special intelligence in diplomatic missions in Rwanda are working hard to convince ambassadors that Victoire Ingabire was part of the terrorist army group”
As soon as she arrived in Rwanda, Mrs Victoire Ingabire was accused of genocide ideology and genocide denial as well as of collaborating with armed group FDRL. It is alleged that she provided financial support to the army group.
Today all of these allegations have changed. She is now accused of participating in the formation of a new army wing CDF and of supplying it with weapons. Umuvugizi Chief Editor, Jean Bosco Gasasira who is familiar with these ever-changing charges confirmed that this is pure fabrication. This culture within the RPF party led by Kagame has cost lives of many innocent people who happen to have different political opinion from that of its leader.
‘I`m in the race to save Nigeria’ - IBB
Presidential aspirant retired General Ibrahim Babangida says his presidential ambition is premised on fighting to ensure that Nigeria survives and that he needs the support of all Nigerians in this crusade.
Babangida who spoke at the Kaduna State House of Assembly yesterday also said he knows the problems bedeviling Nigeria because he had been president before and is still passionate about the situation in the country.
The former president, who was in Kaduna to open his campaign office, promised, “if you bring me back, we will work together irrespective of tribe, religion and region. Nigeria remains one and we hope to see a Nigeria that these problems will be a thing of the past as we journey into the next 50 years.”
Responding, Alhaji Bashir Idris Aliyu Zangon Aya, the Majority Leader in the Kaduna State House of Assembly, described Babangida as a house hold name in Nigeria, just like the names of the nation’s founding fathers. He said as a House, the state legislature had earlier drawn up criteria that an aspirant must meet in order to get their support. The assembly will see if IBB meets these criteria, he added.
At the state secretariat of the party, Babangida described Kaduna as his second home because he started his military career in the old northern capital and had been there until the civil war broke out in 1967. He also said he regarded his visit to Kaduna as a home coming as he knows the city very well.
While canvassing the support of party members, the former military president promised not to disappoint the people of the state if elected, praying that the bond between him and the people of the state would be strengthened.
Babangida who spoke at the Kaduna State House of Assembly yesterday also said he knows the problems bedeviling Nigeria because he had been president before and is still passionate about the situation in the country.
The former president, who was in Kaduna to open his campaign office, promised, “if you bring me back, we will work together irrespective of tribe, religion and region. Nigeria remains one and we hope to see a Nigeria that these problems will be a thing of the past as we journey into the next 50 years.”
Responding, Alhaji Bashir Idris Aliyu Zangon Aya, the Majority Leader in the Kaduna State House of Assembly, described Babangida as a house hold name in Nigeria, just like the names of the nation’s founding fathers. He said as a House, the state legislature had earlier drawn up criteria that an aspirant must meet in order to get their support. The assembly will see if IBB meets these criteria, he added.
At the state secretariat of the party, Babangida described Kaduna as his second home because he started his military career in the old northern capital and had been there until the civil war broke out in 1967. He also said he regarded his visit to Kaduna as a home coming as he knows the city very well.
While canvassing the support of party members, the former military president promised not to disappoint the people of the state if elected, praying that the bond between him and the people of the state would be strengthened.
GOVERNOR DANIEL PRESIDENT JONATHAN'S BACK-BONE IN SOUTH WEST
Coming on the heels of the maiden meeting of the South West Campaign organisation of the Jonathan/Sambo 2011 presidential bid two weeks ago in Abeokuta, another meeting of the organisation took place on Thursday, October 21, 2010, at the operational base of the organisation at Asoludero Court, Sagamu.
The Sagamu meeting, just like the one held two weeks ago, was presided over by the coordinator of the campaign in the South West and Governor of Ogun state, Otunba Gbenga Daniel.
President Jonathan cannot afford to loose the support of any of the PDP governors in the South West in view of the apparent opposition in most parts of the North against his candidature. The calculation is that if he could win the PDP primaries in all the six South West states, all the six South-South states, all the five South East states and half of the Northern states, he is certain to emerge as the party's flag bearer in the 2011 presidential election.
As at today, power resides with the governors in the states. Therefore, all aspirants at all levels, be it for the position of president. Senator, House of Reps or House of Assembly, will have to bow to the power of the Governors. This is because however powerful your position may be, you will still have to come back home to seek nomination for elective office.
The question has gone beyond why President Jonathan picked Otunba Daniel as his coordinator for the South West zone. The pertinent poser is: how could the South West be delivered for Jonathan!.
So, nobody of analytic reasoning would be bothered why a not too successful politician like Alhaji Adegbenga Kaka( the former Deputy Governor of Ogun state in Chief Olusegun Osoba's administration) is not happy about the ostensible success of Otunba Daniel on the political turf.
Alhaji Kaka was recently quoted on the internet as saying that Jonathan will fail in the South West for choosing Otunba Daniel as his coordinator. Kaka's diatribe against Otunba Daniel is not surprising for two reasons; (1) He contested the 2003 governorship election against Daniel and lost.(2) He challenged Daniel's victory at the Governorship Elections Petitions Tribunal in Abeokuta and also lost.
Therefore, Kaka will stop at nothing to bring down the victor as his latest attack was not the first time he would vent his spleen indirectly because his defeat in the 2003 polls.
For those that care to know, President Jonathan could have chosen Otunba Daniel because of following factors:
(1) Otunba Daniel is the only PDP governor in the South West with a 100 per cent record of victory in the 2003 general election. Ogun state is perhaps the only state in the federation where the ruling PDP has won all the counsellors' seat, all the local government chairman's seats, all the 26 seats in the state House of Assembly, all the nine seats the House of Reps and all the three seats in Senate, the governor's seat and the presidential election.
(2) Otunba Daniel is not haunted by any litigation in respect of his victory at the 2003 polls.
(3) Otunba Daniel is a fighter of common causes, especially those concerning political equity and justice.
(4) He is a man of strong character and social values. So, if he appears to be stubborn, it is because he wants to uphold certain values such as fairplay and equity. Some people tend to see this as intolerance. This is CAPITAL NO.
(5) He is brilliant, right from primary school days through secondary school to the university. He represented his schools in quiz competitions and literary debates thereby collecting prizes. It is worthy of note the he was not like a lost sheep; his brilliance in school has been translated to excellence in the governance of Ogun state
It is these factors that Otunba Daniel will combine with the resources available to garner the essential votes for Jonathan in South West. One could conclude therefore that no reasonable politician (and I believe President Jonathan is reasonable) will look at the above-mentioned attributes of Otunba Daniel and dismiss them.
The Sagamu meeting, just like the one held two weeks ago, was presided over by the coordinator of the campaign in the South West and Governor of Ogun state, Otunba Gbenga Daniel.
President Jonathan cannot afford to loose the support of any of the PDP governors in the South West in view of the apparent opposition in most parts of the North against his candidature. The calculation is that if he could win the PDP primaries in all the six South West states, all the six South-South states, all the five South East states and half of the Northern states, he is certain to emerge as the party's flag bearer in the 2011 presidential election.
As at today, power resides with the governors in the states. Therefore, all aspirants at all levels, be it for the position of president. Senator, House of Reps or House of Assembly, will have to bow to the power of the Governors. This is because however powerful your position may be, you will still have to come back home to seek nomination for elective office.
The question has gone beyond why President Jonathan picked Otunba Daniel as his coordinator for the South West zone. The pertinent poser is: how could the South West be delivered for Jonathan!.
So, nobody of analytic reasoning would be bothered why a not too successful politician like Alhaji Adegbenga Kaka( the former Deputy Governor of Ogun state in Chief Olusegun Osoba's administration) is not happy about the ostensible success of Otunba Daniel on the political turf.
Alhaji Kaka was recently quoted on the internet as saying that Jonathan will fail in the South West for choosing Otunba Daniel as his coordinator. Kaka's diatribe against Otunba Daniel is not surprising for two reasons; (1) He contested the 2003 governorship election against Daniel and lost.(2) He challenged Daniel's victory at the Governorship Elections Petitions Tribunal in Abeokuta and also lost.
Therefore, Kaka will stop at nothing to bring down the victor as his latest attack was not the first time he would vent his spleen indirectly because his defeat in the 2003 polls.
For those that care to know, President Jonathan could have chosen Otunba Daniel because of following factors:
(1) Otunba Daniel is the only PDP governor in the South West with a 100 per cent record of victory in the 2003 general election. Ogun state is perhaps the only state in the federation where the ruling PDP has won all the counsellors' seat, all the local government chairman's seats, all the 26 seats in the state House of Assembly, all the nine seats the House of Reps and all the three seats in Senate, the governor's seat and the presidential election.
(2) Otunba Daniel is not haunted by any litigation in respect of his victory at the 2003 polls.
(3) Otunba Daniel is a fighter of common causes, especially those concerning political equity and justice.
(4) He is a man of strong character and social values. So, if he appears to be stubborn, it is because he wants to uphold certain values such as fairplay and equity. Some people tend to see this as intolerance. This is CAPITAL NO.
(5) He is brilliant, right from primary school days through secondary school to the university. He represented his schools in quiz competitions and literary debates thereby collecting prizes. It is worthy of note the he was not like a lost sheep; his brilliance in school has been translated to excellence in the governance of Ogun state
It is these factors that Otunba Daniel will combine with the resources available to garner the essential votes for Jonathan in South West. One could conclude therefore that no reasonable politician (and I believe President Jonathan is reasonable) will look at the above-mentioned attributes of Otunba Daniel and dismiss them.
A Nigeria Without Oil – Part 3 of 5
Philip Emeagwali
Excerpt from Nigeria’s 50th anniversary lecture at the Embassy of Nigeria, Paris.
I wish to look back to 1960, and forward to 2060, to share my thoughts about the challenges to, and opportunities for, building a stronger Nigeria through technology. In the past 50 years, Nigeria has grown economically stronger through its use of technology to discover and then recover petroleum. Fifty years ago, Nigeria had only one oil well. Fifty years later, that first oil well is empty and abandoned. Do the math: "How many oil wells will Nigeria have left in 50 years?"
Empty oil wells are not abstract, intangible things. They're as concrete as Nigeria's first oil well: the Oloibiri well, that now exists only on postcards. We treat our oil wells like we treat snails: We take the flesh and leave the shell. And we leave the shell for our children, and they leave it for their children, who will earn income by converting it into a tourist attraction.
Fifty-year-old oil wells are drying up everywhere, from Nigeria to Saudi Arabia to Russia. Perhaps in 50 years, Nigeria will no longer be one of the twelve members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.
Our petroleum was formed millions of years ago, when our pre-human ancestors crawled on four legs. And today we've discovered nearly all the oil that can be discovered. Yet Nigeria's future is being written by its few oilfields. Oil revenues account for 80 percent of Nigeria's budget. The nagging question is: What will we do when that 80 percent is gone? What is our Plan B when our Plan A fails? Searching for more oil is not the answer.
These are tough questions that we prefer to ignore but our children must answer. To prepare our future leaders for "a world without oil," I advise newspapers and schools to sponsor essay competitions that ask,
"If you're an editor who's been informed that the last oil well in Nigeria has dried up, what headline would you use and what would you say in your editorial?"
I posed this same question to my friends and they e-mailed these headlines:
1. "The Goose is Dead."
2. "The End of Nigeria's Curse."
3. "Oil Tanks Exhausted, Think Tanks Needed."
I am forming a think tank that addresses futuristic questions, such as: "What are the challenges to, and opportunities for, a Nigeria without oil?" The answer lies within the soil of our minds. If we do not understand our past we are bound to repeat our mistakes. Africa's history is more than dusty facts and faded images.
Once upon a time, West Africa was on par with Europe in terms of intellectual capital and development. Ten centuries before Christopher Columbus set sail for the Americas and Mungo Park sought the course of the River Niger, Timbuktu loomed large in the European imagination as one of the most mysterious and remote places on Earth. Timbuktu, which emerged from the River Niger, was a metaphor for the end of the ancient world.
Timbuktu was great not because of its petroleum reserves, but because of its unsurpassed intellectual capital and the collective knowledge and wisdom of its people. Nigeria will join the world's top 20 economies, not because of its petroleum revenues but through the technological knowledge of future generations.
For Nigeria to join the top twenty economies, it must turn its brain drain into brain gain. As a center of intellectual excellence, Timbuktu attracted the best brains and inspired the ancient West African proverb:
"Salt comes from the north, gold from the south, and silver from the country of the white man, but the word of God and the treasures of truth are found only in Timbuktu. "
For Nigeria to build the Timbuktu of tomorrow and become a top twenty economy, it must control critical technologies, and not merely purchase them. It must turn its brain brain into brain gain. Nigeria needs men and women of ideas, technological visionaries and futurists, to help its people answer the larger question of who they are, where they've been, and where they want to go.
It was Britain's superior maritime technology that enabled it to shape Africa's destiny with over 500 years of slave trading and colonization. Slave trade lead to brain drain needed for growth while colonization yielded brain gain that increased development.
While the United States was beginning to profit from the brain drain flowing from Europe and Africa, Timbuktu was being physically and intellectually sacked by Moroccan invaders and slave traders from the Americas. Timbuktu lost the human capital needed for growth and development and never recovered as a center of intellectual excellence.
Technology will allow Nigeria to do more with less, without depleting its natural resources, but with greater reliance on technology. The future is for us to create, but first we must outline our vision.
Foot soldiers, not generals, will lead our war against ignorance. The foot soldiers are our 100 million young Nigerians whose weapon is knowledge. Their collective intellectual capital will enable them to build a stronger Nigeria using technology knowledge. My 50-year vision for Nigeria is to tap into the creativity and innovation of our young people. Our young people have the potential to uplift humanity.
Technology is all around us and we humans are constantly inventing and reinventing new tools, techniques, and technologies. Our journey of discovery to the frontier of science reaffirms humanity's goal to endlessly search for new knowledge, and to demand more of itself and its people.
Philip Emeagwali has been called “a father of the Internet” by CNN and TIME, and extolled as a “Digital Giant” by BBC and as “one of the great minds of the Information Age” by former U.S. President Bill Clinton. He won the 1989 Gordon Bell Prize, the Nobel Prize of supercomputing, for reprogramming 65,000 subcomputers as an internet that helps recover more oil.
Excerpt from Nigeria’s 50th anniversary lecture at the Embassy of Nigeria, Paris.
I wish to look back to 1960, and forward to 2060, to share my thoughts about the challenges to, and opportunities for, building a stronger Nigeria through technology. In the past 50 years, Nigeria has grown economically stronger through its use of technology to discover and then recover petroleum. Fifty years ago, Nigeria had only one oil well. Fifty years later, that first oil well is empty and abandoned. Do the math: "How many oil wells will Nigeria have left in 50 years?"
Empty oil wells are not abstract, intangible things. They're as concrete as Nigeria's first oil well: the Oloibiri well, that now exists only on postcards. We treat our oil wells like we treat snails: We take the flesh and leave the shell. And we leave the shell for our children, and they leave it for their children, who will earn income by converting it into a tourist attraction.
Fifty-year-old oil wells are drying up everywhere, from Nigeria to Saudi Arabia to Russia. Perhaps in 50 years, Nigeria will no longer be one of the twelve members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.
Our petroleum was formed millions of years ago, when our pre-human ancestors crawled on four legs. And today we've discovered nearly all the oil that can be discovered. Yet Nigeria's future is being written by its few oilfields. Oil revenues account for 80 percent of Nigeria's budget. The nagging question is: What will we do when that 80 percent is gone? What is our Plan B when our Plan A fails? Searching for more oil is not the answer.
These are tough questions that we prefer to ignore but our children must answer. To prepare our future leaders for "a world without oil," I advise newspapers and schools to sponsor essay competitions that ask,
"If you're an editor who's been informed that the last oil well in Nigeria has dried up, what headline would you use and what would you say in your editorial?"
I posed this same question to my friends and they e-mailed these headlines:
1. "The Goose is Dead."
2. "The End of Nigeria's Curse."
3. "Oil Tanks Exhausted, Think Tanks Needed."
I am forming a think tank that addresses futuristic questions, such as: "What are the challenges to, and opportunities for, a Nigeria without oil?" The answer lies within the soil of our minds. If we do not understand our past we are bound to repeat our mistakes. Africa's history is more than dusty facts and faded images.
Once upon a time, West Africa was on par with Europe in terms of intellectual capital and development. Ten centuries before Christopher Columbus set sail for the Americas and Mungo Park sought the course of the River Niger, Timbuktu loomed large in the European imagination as one of the most mysterious and remote places on Earth. Timbuktu, which emerged from the River Niger, was a metaphor for the end of the ancient world.
Timbuktu was great not because of its petroleum reserves, but because of its unsurpassed intellectual capital and the collective knowledge and wisdom of its people. Nigeria will join the world's top 20 economies, not because of its petroleum revenues but through the technological knowledge of future generations.
For Nigeria to join the top twenty economies, it must turn its brain drain into brain gain. As a center of intellectual excellence, Timbuktu attracted the best brains and inspired the ancient West African proverb:
"Salt comes from the north, gold from the south, and silver from the country of the white man, but the word of God and the treasures of truth are found only in Timbuktu. "
For Nigeria to build the Timbuktu of tomorrow and become a top twenty economy, it must control critical technologies, and not merely purchase them. It must turn its brain brain into brain gain. Nigeria needs men and women of ideas, technological visionaries and futurists, to help its people answer the larger question of who they are, where they've been, and where they want to go.
It was Britain's superior maritime technology that enabled it to shape Africa's destiny with over 500 years of slave trading and colonization. Slave trade lead to brain drain needed for growth while colonization yielded brain gain that increased development.
While the United States was beginning to profit from the brain drain flowing from Europe and Africa, Timbuktu was being physically and intellectually sacked by Moroccan invaders and slave traders from the Americas. Timbuktu lost the human capital needed for growth and development and never recovered as a center of intellectual excellence.
Technology will allow Nigeria to do more with less, without depleting its natural resources, but with greater reliance on technology. The future is for us to create, but first we must outline our vision.
Foot soldiers, not generals, will lead our war against ignorance. The foot soldiers are our 100 million young Nigerians whose weapon is knowledge. Their collective intellectual capital will enable them to build a stronger Nigeria using technology knowledge. My 50-year vision for Nigeria is to tap into the creativity and innovation of our young people. Our young people have the potential to uplift humanity.
Technology is all around us and we humans are constantly inventing and reinventing new tools, techniques, and technologies. Our journey of discovery to the frontier of science reaffirms humanity's goal to endlessly search for new knowledge, and to demand more of itself and its people.
Philip Emeagwali has been called “a father of the Internet” by CNN and TIME, and extolled as a “Digital Giant” by BBC and as “one of the great minds of the Information Age” by former U.S. President Bill Clinton. He won the 1989 Gordon Bell Prize, the Nobel Prize of supercomputing, for reprogramming 65,000 subcomputers as an internet that helps recover more oil.
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