Buhari’s wedding, private-jet politicians and Zuma’s treatment

By Casmir Igbokwe

President Muhammadu Buhari’s son, Yusuf, wedded the Emir of Bichi’s daughter, Zahra Nasir Bayero, at an elaborate ceremony last Friday. It was a day of glitz, glamour and a showcase of private jets by Nigerian politicians and other affluent citizens. Some media reports say over 100 private jets flew into the Aminu Kano Airport in Kano. Some other reports put the number of the jets at about 50. Whether they are 50 or 100 or even 20 is immaterial. The fact that the Nigerian political elite decided to swim in this stream of ostentation in the face of the economic downturn facing millions of Nigerians shows how insensitive they can be. President Buhari must make sure that all those politicians get the Zuma treatment sooner than later. 

Recall that the highest court in South Africa sentenced former President Jacob Zuma to 15 months in jail for contempt last month. Accusations of corruption had trailed Zuma’s time as President. He was summoned to respond to these allegations at an inquiry headed by Justice Raymond Zondo. He testified once and stopped coming subsequently. The inquiry brought the matter before the Constitutional Court, equivalent of Nigeria’s Supreme Court. Zuma thought it was child’s play. He defied the court order to appear at the inquiry.

As acting Chief Justice Sisi Khampepe put it, rather than come to court to respond to the allegations against him, Zuma “elected instead to make provocative, unmeritorious and vituperative statements that constituted a calculated effort to impugn the integrity of the judiciary. I am left with no option but to commit Mr. Zuma to imprisonment, with the hope that doing so sends an unequivocal message…the rule of law and the administration of justice prevails.”

Zuma and his supporters, who are mainly members of the African National Congress’s Umkhonto Wesizwe military wing, felt it was a political witch-hunt. Hundreds of them protested against the court ruling in Zuma’s hometown of Nkandla. Members of the Umkhonto Wesizwe Military Veterans Association promised to form a human shield around him and threatened that they would destabilise the country, if he was apprehended. Nevertheless, Zuma eventually gave up resistance and has since started serving his jail term. His corruption trial will resume September 9.

It is interesting that, earlier this year, ex-President Nicolas Sarkozy of France got the Zuma treatment. He was sentenced to three years in jail for influence-peddling, as he reportedly attempted to bribe a judge in 2014 when he was no longer in power by promising him a prestigious job in return for information about a case. Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was also jailed in 2016 for fraud and obstruction of justice while a trade minister. Former Peruvian leader, Alberto Fujimori, was jailed 25 years in 2007 for corruption and for commanding death squads that massacred civilians when he was in power.

What these examples show is that, in a civilized and organized society, nobody is above the law. The way Citizen A is treated is the same way Citizen B is also treated. Everybody is equal before the law. But in a society where anything goes, what happened in South Africa, France, Israel and many other countries would be seen as an aberration.

For us, impunity appears to be the cardinal principle of state policy. In January 2019, former chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, did not mince words when he asked members of opposition parties who had severe graft allegations hanging on their necks to join the ruling party so that their sins could be forgiven. “Yes, once you join the APC, your sins are forgiven,” he said.

Since 1999 when this democratic dispensation started, no Nigerian ex-President has been called to account for his stewardship, not to talk of jailing him. This is why somebody like Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has continued to pontificate and write damning letters to his successors even when his rule was punctuated by bad governance.

And that is why former President Goodluck Jonathan has been junketing the globe as special envoy for this and that and behaving as if he is a lamb. He has never been called upon to answer to the alleged crimes committed during his administration. Rather, some of his ex-aides and acolytes are the ones taking the bullets for him.

South Africa deserves commendation for showing the way to other African countries. I look forward to the day former Nigerian leaders starting from local government chairmen to state governors and then to the president will be made to face the full weight of the law when they leave office. Yes, we celebrated the conviction of former governors Lucky Igbinedion of Edo State, James Ngilari of Adamawa State, Jolly Nyame of Taraba State, Joshua Dariye of Plateau State and James Ibori of Delta State. But, what about other ex-leaders? Are they all clean? What many ex-governors do is to amass wealth when in power and, when they leave, they use the stolen resources to bulldoze their way to the National Assembly. Only those who have lost favour are witch-hunted.

By the way, what is the update on the Code of Conduct Tribunal chairman, Danladi Umar, who allegedly assaulted a security guard, Clement Sagwak, in Abuja and heaped the blame on Biafran boys? How about the criminal herdsmen who have massacred farmers and others in some parts of the North? Have they faced the music as always promised by the President? How about a governor in one of the northern states whose successor accused of spending N50 million on a single trip to Abuja? Has anybody questioned him for profligacy and corruption? The questions are legion.

But suffice it to say that, if Zuma were to be a Nigerian, he would have been made the country’s special envoy to Mali or Niger Republic. He would have been given military convoys with special siren to scare people away whenever he is passing through any area. He would have got double salary in the name of life pension.

Nigeria needs serious political and judicial reforms. This is to ensure that, no matter what, the Chief Justice of the Federation can look the President in the eye and reject any request that will impinge on the rule of law. The judiciary is the third arm of government. It should be seen to be truly independent in words and action.

Nigeria will begin to make progress the moment we discard ‘big man’ syndrome, nepotism, eye service and contempt for the laws of the land. If we claim to be the giant of Africa, we should lead in all ramifications, including development, transparency and punishment for criminals in the forests and in the offices. Let’s start by questioning the source of income of all those who flew to Kano in private jets. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission should do the needful now or forever keep quiet.

South-East and season of extra-judicial killings

Anyone who regales Nigerians with purported civil war exploits as a way of stemming agitations or coercing an aggrieved people to submission instead of engaging the people and righting the perceived wrongs is involved in self-deceit, and is indirectly preparing Nigeria for its ultimate disintegration. Nigerians can only coexist on the foundation of compromise, trust and respect for the rights of others. The oligarchs and their collaborators, in spite of their needless grandstanding, are now aware of the unimpeachable proofs of possible dismemberment of the country. If they are not scared, why do they repeatedly look over their shoulder at any point of their action or inaction of infraction? No country survives two civil wars: the luck of our continuous coexistence must not be overstretched. The elders who witnessed the civil war must learn from the past occurrences. The youth must also draw ample lessons from the war stories they have read from history books if we must stay together as a country. Anymore eruption in Nigeria will result in many countries: this time, it will not just be a South-East affair because we are all casualties.

– Edet Essien Esq., Cal. South, 08037952470

It’s very unfortunate and sad situation what is happening in southeast region. When you don’t have people in authority, things spoil. No one speaks for us. Annoying aspect of it is that international community and other human rights groups are watching the situation in Nigeria without intervention. There is God ooo.

– Gordon Chika Nnorom, Umukabia, +2348062887535

Dear Casy, the South-East situation within Nigerian setting in this dispensation is like the polygamist with love for one of his wives and her kids while hatred is erected against the other wife and her kids. When the loved wife and her kids cross the RED LINE, their sins are glossed over. Hence, the playing of the ostrich over the marauding activities of Fulani herdsmen and their twin-brothers called bandits, Boko haram and kidnappers. But when the hated wife and her kids cross the YELLOW LINE, their sins are MAGNIFIED and inappropriate sanctions raised. That is the fate of the South-East. Unfortunately, some South-East high-ups that ought to speak out, trade off Igbo destiny in return for selfish bread and butter except the likes of Sen. Abaribe. Given these ill-treatments, the new destiny and name for the South-East is ‘CHIZOBA’, meaning God, save us!

– Steve Okoye, Awka, 08036630731    

Dear Casy, the mass murder of eastern Nigerians by Buhari security forces since 2015 till date is the continuation of Gowon’s genocide of 1966 to 1970. Buhari was a young major then and wasn’t satisfied how the Igbo survived the genocide and are still doing good despite the economic war against them since 1970. Most of the Nigerian military generals: Gowon, Obasanjo, evil genius, Abdulsalam and the rest of them had kept quiet while Aso Rock landlord goes on with his evil agenda in the east. Every Igbo man who aided Fulani to destroy his people wouldn’t get the blessing from God. 

-E ze Chima C., Lagos, +2347036225495

Casmir, the bedrock of development in any society is security. When there is security, peace and prosperity will be there. Any society that compromises security is bound to be in chaos. Security, however, cannot come when the ingredients are not in place.  A society that glorifies injustice, corruption, tribalism, religious bigotry, ill-gotten wealth and dishes merit to dustbin can never know security. Such a society will contend with all manner of insecurities.

In Nigeria today, the government of the day has planted insecurities as one cardinal organ of operations through tribalism, religious bigotry and insincerity in governance. Unfortunately, most state governors have not been open in their governance, thereby finding it difficult to fight insecurity in their states.

To arrest insecurity, restructuring must be in place to provide numerous ingredients for enduring security which eventually heralds a prosperous nation.

– Pharm. Okwuchukwu Njike, +234 803 885 4922

Dear Casmir, for the law to have biding force, it should be able to punish evil and reward good deeds. Unfortunately, the reverse is the case with ours so we now exist in pseudo anarchy. We should ensure hope of periodic change through free and fair election and end the practice of tribal hatred so as consolidate unity.

– Cletus Frenchman, Enugu, +234 909 538 5215

• Also published in the Daily Sun of Monday, August 23, 2021

South-East and season of extra-judicial killings

By Casmir Igbokwe

The South-East has remained a conquered territory since the Nigerian civil war ended over 50 years ago. Oftentimes, security operatives harass, intimidate, extort, torture and even kill innocent youths under different guises. Some of the incidents are reported. Some are not. The people appear caged. But there is always an end to every season.

For now, we are in the season of extra-judicial killings. International human rights organisation, Amnesty International (AI), in a recent report, chronicled the most recent killings in the region. According to the organisation, security operatives killed over 115 civilians between March and June this year.

AI added, “Nigerian security forces have committed a catalogue of human rights violations and crimes under international law in their response to spiralling violence in southeast Nigeria, carrying out a repressive campaign since January, which has included sweeping mass arrests, excessive and unlawful force, and torture and other ill-treatment.”

President Muhammadu Buhari had warned, a few months ago, that troublemakers in the region would soon have the shock of their lives. He made allusion to his civil war exploits and said his government would treat such people in the language they understand.

“We are going to be very hard sooner than later,” he said.

Perhaps, this civil war language is what is playing out now. Otherwise, why would any sane soldier kill Mr. Oguchi Unachukwu, a German-based Nigerian who was unarmed and posed no threat to anybody? The man was on his way to Owerri Airport to catch a flight en route from Lagos to Germany on May 31, 2021, when the officer of the Nigerian Air Force shot him dead at a checkpoint in Owerri.

In the same Imo State, soldiers also killed a 45-year-old man, Matthew Opara, who was going home from work at a place called Orji near Owerri in May this year. This man was the breadwinner of the family. But one moment of military madness has left his family traumatized.

This siege did not start today. In December 2015, soldiers killed about 12 youths and wounded many others at Head Bridge, Onitsha, in Anambra State. The crime of the victims was that they trooped out to jubilate after they heard that a court had ordered the release of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

In February 2016, some unarmed members of IPOB went to a school compound to hold a prayer session in Aba, Abia State. Some minutes after they started clapping and singing, security agents swooped on them. By the time the operation ended, 22 IPOB members were confirmed dead and over 30 others wounded.

In 2017, the military hierarchy launched what it called Operation Python Dance to consolidate the siege of the South-East. Although the intention was to restore sanity and security in the region, soldiers ended up intimidating and even killing people at random. Then, it became extremely risky for anyone to have a tattoo or to be seen with any insignia of Biafra. It could lead to one’s death. Some newspaper free readers and vendors, tricycle riders, artisans and passers-by were victims.

The security situation in the region worsened from January this year when security men became targets of attacks. In Imo State, about 21 policemen were killed. In Anambra, Abia and Ebonyi, dozens of security agents were also killed. Media reports attributed the killings to unknown gunmen. But Nigerian authorities believe the culprit is the Eastern Security Network (ESN), an armed wing of IPOB.

The ESN came about in the wake of the rising spate of insecurity, especially attacks by criminal herdsmen in the South-East and elsewhere. Security operatives were unable to contain such attacks. The South-East governors dilly-dallied on their promise to establish a regional security outfit. By the time they came up with Operation Ebubeagu to coordinate the security of the region, it was too late. Apart from Ebonyi State that has sewn a uniform for the outfit, Ebubeagu appears dead on arrival.

Besides, IPOB warned Igbo youths to steer clear of the government security outfit or risk joining their ancestors. The Nigerian government sees this and other activities of the ESN as an affront. Recall that the Federal Government had declared IPOB a terrorist organisation.

But in a bid to clamp down on the Biafran agitators, security operatives, most times, disregard the rules of engagement. Rather than go after identified criminals who are killing people and destroying private and public properties, they unleash their anger on innocent citizens.

Perhaps, the South-East is suffering this injustice because it has nobody to speak for it in top security circles. In the security hierarchy of this country, the Igboman is missing. When a decision is being taken at that level, nobody represents his interests.

Anarchy is what reigns in a society that cannot guarantee justice and security for its citizens. It has happened in Somalia, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Afghanistan and some other places. It is happening in Tigray region of Ethiopia. Nigeria is coming close to it, as life in Africa’s most populous country has no value anymore. Herdsmen, bandits, hoodlums, terrorists, security operatives kill at will. The government we elected to protect life and property is handicapped and overwhelmed.

We must learn to stop doing things with impunity. All those found culpable in the extra-judicial killing of innocent citizens must be brought to justice. That is one major way the traumatized family of the victims will find some peace. And that is how to put a check on such killings.

There is crime in every society. But what makes the difference between an advanced democracy and a crawling one like ours is adherence to the rule of law. Derek Chauvin, the police officer who killed a Black American, George Floyd, in the United States of America in May 2020, did not go free. He was prosecuted for the crime he committed and sentenced to 22 years and six months in prison in June this year. If I may ask, what has happened to the security agents that killed some youths in Onitsha, Aba, Owerri and elsewhere? Have they been tried and made to pay for what they did?

Nigerian government should take charge of the security of the nation. Those who kill extra-judicially should be tried and punished according to the law, if found guilty. Ultimately, dialogue and restructuring remain the best option to lasting peace in Nigeria.

Re: CAN and MURIC’s dangerous political game

Dear Casy, Prof. Ishaq Akintola is one among those so-called educated Nigerians who, after acquiring higher certificates, end up as religious bigots, extremists and promoters of religious conflicts and hatred in our country. We have read his rash and wicked opinion on the pages of some national newspapers for a long time now. Let’s not dignify his religious bigotry. Prof. Ishaq Akintola and his ilk are not the type of religious leaders we need now and in the future. Let’s ignore his nuisance.

– Eze Chima C., Lagos, +2347036225495

Dear Casmir, I hope for a government that will proscribe religious worship even for six months and establish National Agency on Fake Ministration (NAFAM). The aim will be to audition Christianity and Islam to remove all sentiments leading to unhealthy rivalry before unbanning them. Only God will save Nigeria.

– Cletus Frenchman, Enugu, +234 909 538 5215

Casmir, building of virile and progressive nation requires trust, peace and unity. A country where hatred, suspicion, distrust and disunity prevail will not be cohesive enough to produce the desired development. Nigeria, ab initio, was planted on deceit. That gave a certain religion and tribe the impression of dominance over others. That dominance trait has manifested in the form of impunity to the constituted authority as seen in various ways. It’s that impunity that showcased itself in infiltrating the polity with religion. It’s also the impunity that prompted a President to disobey the Constitution and ensure that one religion or ethnic group lords it over others in the name of appointments. It’s the same impunity that promotes insecurity as it’s witnessed today in this country.

For any meaningful development to be achieved, merit and healthy competition must be encouraged. Religion and politics are contraindicated in any progressive nation. In Nigeria, the way to achieve progress is promoting restructuring so that there will be no room for dominance but many rooms for ideological minds that will spearhead progress in every sector of the economy.

– Pharm. Okwuchukwu Njike, +234 803 885 4922

Dear Casy, from post-Independence to date, has it not been leaders of Christian or Islamic faith that have occupied the nation’s seat of power? The outcome? Progressive ruination! The current dispensation appears the climax! Why so? It is so because inside the religious garb our leaders put on is HYPOCRISY of monstrous dimensions neatly hidden. This hypocrisy drives their actions or inactions in statecraft beyond the boundaries of decency, which lands the nation in a whirlwind. Solution? (1) Vision, mission driven by capacity, competence, altruism, integrity and honesty should be the hallmark by our leaders. (2) Religious bigotry mixed with politics should be buried, as it has caused incalculable rupture in our national life. (3) The Abiola/Kingibe political ship of salvation, which the forces of retrogression torpedoed, should be a good reference in our nation’s political affairs.

– Steve Okoye. Awka, 08036630731  

In the case of Moshood Abiola and Babagana Kingibe, religion was downplayed by Nigerians: and region – which you have submitted was the consideration – was also a non-issue. Rather, the personality of M.K.O. Abiola, his superlative performance at the political debate against Tofa’s poor showing and his (M.K.O) recurring acts of philanthropy largely accounted for his nationwide acceptance. The entire country was enveloped by the Abiola aura to the extent that Alhaji Bashir Othman Tofa even lost in his ward. When will Nigeria be blessed again with such a historic occurrence that was mindlessly wasted on the altar of tribal politics by Gen. Babangida and his cohorts? The Arise Television panelists should have asked Gen. Babangida if there would have been a coup if Tofa had won.

That was the era when some people would shamelessly say that ‘even a goat from the North will beat the best from the South’. Gen. Babangida and his ilk were of the belief that the sad episode would replay itself. It did not. Hence, the Abiola mandate was aborted in the still of the night. Lately, the precious votes of the people of Kogi were wasted on the altar of religion and politics for Alhaji Bello to become governor instead of Mr. Falake, who with the late Alhaji Abubakar Audu, attracted the votes and support of the people of Kogi State. That Nigeria is neck-deep in the murky waters of tribalism and religion is why our abundant human resources have not been exploited to our advantage.

– Edet Essien Esq., Cal. South, 08037952470

Let us put sentiment aside, what Nigeria needs in the 2023 presidential election is somebody that can put food on the table of Nigerians, irrespective of religion, tribe and what have you. Those saying that it is their turn to produce the next President in 2023 should stop that agitation and let all political parties pick their presidential candidates from the South-East region for equity, fairness and oneness.

– Gordon Chika Nnorom, Umukabia.+2348062887535

• Also published in the Daily Sun of Monday, August 16, 2021

CAN and MURIC’s dangerous political game

By Casmir Igbokwe

The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) are associations fighting for the interest of their members. No doubt, these two bodies, like any other recognized group, have right to do so. But the way they are going about it in recent times could further polarize the already divided Nigerian society. It is dangerous, to say the least.

Recently, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) said it was the turn of Christians to produce Nigeria’s President in 2023. The Youth Wing of CAN (YOWICAN) reportedly noted that having a Christian President would ensure balance in the leadership of the country. In a communiqué he read after the National Executive Council meeting of YOWICAN recently, the national chairman, Belusochukwu Enwere, said the emergence of a Christian as President in 2023 “will be a true expression of equity and justice for Nigeria.”

MURIC quickly replied CAN in kind. According to the group, it is the turn of a Muslim to occupy the presidential seat in Abuja. Director and founder of the group, Professor Ishaq Akintola, said: “We believe that it is not yet the turn of a Christian to be President of Nigeria, if we want to go by mathematical exactitude from the time Nigeria began civil rule in 1999.”

According to him, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo ruled for eight years while Goodluck Jonathan ruled for five years. Cumulatively, the two Christians, in the logic of Akintola, occupied the seat of power for 13 years. He noted that a Muslim President, Musa Yar’Adua, spent three years in office while the incumbent, Muhammadu Buhari, had spent six years so far. By 2023 when Buhari will leave office, the two Muslims will have spent 11 years as President.

Hence, MURIC advised CAN to wait for its time, noting that “it will be unfair to install a Christian President in 2023 when Muslims still have a shortfall of two or four years. It is the group that has a two-year or four-year shortfall that should be given the chance for a make-up, not the group that has a two-year advantage.”

This type of sectarian sentiment permeates through almost every section or region of Nigeria. Even among people of the same faith, there are divisions. In Anambra State, for instance, there is a subtle rivalry between Catholics and Anglicans when it comes to political power. Anglicans believe Catholics are marginalizing them politically by monopolizing the governorship seat of the state. It is such that a priest could mount the pulpit to urge his members to vote for a particular candidate because he is a member of their church.

In Islam, the same thing plays out. Sunni Muslims often disagree with their Shia counterparts. People go to any length to defend what they believe are their sectarian interests. I shuddered when I read the position of some Muslims on the current travails of the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari. Here is a man being investigated for alleged involvement in fraud cases with a fraudster called Hushpuppi. Those defending him say he is being haunted by the United States of America because he is a Muslim. Is Hushpuppi, whose real name is Ramon Abbas, not a Muslim? Is the Qatari man they defrauded of over $1 million not also a Muslim? Nothing can be sillier. 

Whenever religion is involved, many people lose their sense of reasoning. This is worse in a country like Nigeria adjudged the most religious country in the world. In a May-June 2006 survey, the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life indicated that 76 per cent of Christians in Nigeria say religion is more important to them than their identity as Africans, Nigerians or members of an ethnic group. For Muslims, 91 per cent believe religion is the most important factor in their lives.

This is why mixing religion with politics is seen as normal in Nigeria. It did not start today. In 1986, the then military President, Ibrahim Babangida, dragged Nigeria into the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC). This generated serious tension in the country then.

Make no mistake about it, many of those who front religion in the affairs of the country do so for selfish reasons. Politicians understand this game perfectly. During campaigns, some of them who do not know the entrance to their village churches begin to hobnob with priests and become regular donors to religious activities. Muslims become very serious with Juma’at prayers.

Nigeria is not alone in this form of deceit. The Northern Ireland conflict, also called The Troubles, had some tinge of religion in it. The conflict, which occurred between 1968 and 1998, was essentially political and nationalistic. Unionists (loyalists), who were mostly Protestants, wanted Northern Ireland to remain in the United Kingdom (UK). They saw themselves as British and feared that they might lose their culture if they were made to leave the UK. But Irish nationalists (republicans), mainly Catholics, saw themselves as Irish and wanted the province to leave the UK and become part of a united Republic of Ireland. This divide between Catholics and Protestants gave the conflict some sectarian colouration.

Nevertheless, the two dominant sects in Northern Ireland have a clear-cut agenda – to be or not to be with the UK. The agenda of CAN and MURIC is to have a Christian or a Muslim, as the case may be, to become President. The question is, what do they stand to gain? Will the President begin to build mosques or churches, if he gets to the seat of power?

They say rotating the presidency between Christians and Muslims ensures equity and fairness. Fair enough! But what then is the fate of adherents of other religions like traditional religion? What of those who don’t even believe in any religion? Is it fair to exclude such people?

The point is, it is these same Christians and Muslims that have ruined our country. Their leadership has not stopped the spate of corruption and evil that permeates the corridors of power in Nigeria. At this critical juncture in Nigeria’s history, we should de-emphasize religious affiliation of our leaders and focus more on their competence, effective and transformative leadership, vision, intelligence, transparency and accountability.

I can understand the political zoning arrangements in some states and in Nigeria generally. It is to prevent a particular zone or region from dominating political affairs. It is to ensure equity and fairness in the distribution of resources and appointments among this heterogeneous society. That is why we have the Federal Character principle enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution. And that was what informed the emergence of Chief Moshood Abiola and Babagana Kingibe as presidential and deputy presidential candidates of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), respectively, in the annulled 1993 presidential election. Abiola was a Muslim from the South-West, while Kingibe is also a Muslim from the North. But what Nigerians considered was their region and not religion. This is how it should be.

By and large, mixing politics with religion is a dangerous game. It will spell doom for this country, if care is not taken. Those involved should retrace their steps now. They should leave politics for politicians and focus more on winning souls for heaven. 

Re: Nigerian Senate on bended knees

Casmir, truth becomes a stranger in every corrupt system. The rulers in such system always justify their actions, no matter how harmful to the occupants.

The government of Buhari and APC are toxic to the prosperity of Nigeria. From all defined indices of international standard of a progressive nation, it has failed. Unfortunately, the last hope of the common people has joined the toxic rulership to perpetuate the suffering. The Senate and House of Representatives occupants knew that allowing e-voting and transmission of results will checkmate the evil landslide wins. Nigeria will never progress under such guise.

– Pharm. Okwuchukwu Njike, +234 803 885 4922

Mazi C. Igbokwe, truly, even on family levels it is the same. But when the house collapses, not many people will escape the catastrophe.

– Emenike Samuel, Niger State, +2348165643411

This 9th national assembly characters are nothing to write home about. Their legislative work is just a laughing stock in the eyes of Nigerians. Nigerians have tagged them rubberstamp legislators because they are dancing the tune of the executive. The only achievement they recorded is rejection of Mrs. Loretta Onochie’s nomination as INEC Commissioner.

    – Gordon Chika Nnorom, Umukabia, +2348062887535

Dear Casy, a proverb has it that he, who is owned or a guinea pig, has two gods: his god and his master. The present NASS seems a puppet bedevilled by the burden of serving two gods and where the interests of the two gods clash, that of the master prevails. That’s what has played out in the electronic transmission of election result voting debacle. The current NASS is a world on the lowest rung when compared to the days of Hon Ghali Na’aba as Speaker that bubbled with legislative activism. In acting out the given script, the present NASS has not only made Nigeria a laughing-stock in the eyes of the world but has also sown evil seed whose tree shall grow to serve as perforated umbrella where both rain and sun shall beat us all, including the NASS men and their future generations.

– Steve Okoye, Awka, 08036630731 

Dear Casy, the Nigerian senate and entire legislature, judiciary, executive are not only on bended knees but have turned Nigeria into a mess. The legislature under Lawan and Gbajabiamila approved budgets and loans for Aso Rock king since the inception of this government without oversight function, checks and balances. What have they achieved with the budgets and loan approvals now that they have pushed Nigeria into avoidable debts? What is the level of our development since the inception of APC government under Buhari’s watch? Lawan and his henchmen in APC have aided Buhari to mortgage and ruin Nigeria politically, economically, socially and security wise.

– Eze Chima C., Lagos, +2347036225495

It is not in all circumstances that one needs an interpreter in order to know the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of an act of commission or omission. President Buhari’s refusal to sign the Electoral Act Amendment Bill as proposed by the 8th National Assembly clearly exhibited the ‘politician’ in him. He would not append his signature because of the inherent ‘landmines’ for the sake of his political survival. The president protects and courts the interests of his North and party. A party that mindlessly exhibits desperation and delights in violating the Nigerian constitution, and even its constitution, cannot lend its support to electronic transmission of election results. That the Supreme Court – either by politics or technicality of a simple majority split decision – allows the people’s votes to prevail, does not in any way wash away APC’s sin of outright infraction of the party and Nigeria’s constitution. The roguery or rigging instinct has remained an intractable virus in our political system.

-Edet Essien Esq., Cal. South, 08037952470

Dear Casmir, since the mergers that formed APC were very aggressive against rigging at ruling time of PDP, why can’t they just give us the change they promised in their campaign?

– Cletus Frenchman, Enugu,

+234 909 538 5215

• Also published in the Daily Sun of Monday, August 9, 2021.

Nigerian Senate on bended knees

Casmir Igbokwe

In a recent picture that went viral on the social media, the senator representing Delta South in the Senate, James Manager, was seen kneeling down fully before ex-governor James Ibori of Delta State. The senator had paid a courtesy visit to Ibori with drinks. But what he was asking for in this humble way was not very certain. All we saw was the picture of a man looking pitiable in his ankara outfit while Ibori looked at him like a headmaster interrogating a delinquent student. Though Manager and Ibori are almost the same age, an associate of the senator reportedly said the act was just a sign of respect in Urhobo culture. According to him, “You don’t expect the senator to stand up to address Ibori.” To me, that picture is a perfect depiction of what the Nigerian Senate has become – pitiable.

The upper chamber’s most recent ignoble action was the clever rejection of electronic transmission of election results in the Electoral Act Amendment Bill 2021. Many Nigerians, including the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), had canvassed for the inclusion of this clause in the bill as a way to check rigging. INEC had actually experimented with this electronic transmission of results in some previous elections like the Edo governorship election of September 2020.

The 8^th National Assembly made attempts to introduce it in the 2019 elections. But President Muhammadu Buhari thwarted the efforts. For three times in 2018, the President gave different excuses for not signing the bill into law. Among others, he said it was close to the 2019 elections and could create some confusion about the legislation that would govern the electoral process. This gave room for massive manipulation of the 2019 elections.

Now that the 2023 elections are fast approaching, riggers have started their plots again. The Senate claimed that not all parts of Nigeria are covered by the internet. The Senate Committee on INEC had recommended in Section 52(3) that INEC “may transmit results of elections by electronic means where and when practicable.” But an All Progressives Congress (APC) senator from Niger State, Sabi Abdullahi, amended the clause to read: “The Commission (INEC) may consider the electronic transmission of results, provided the national coverage is adjudged to be adequate and secure by the National Communications Commission (NCC) and approved by the National Assembly.” Fifty-two APC senators voted in support of this clause while 28, mainly of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), voted against. Twenty-eight others were absent.

The senators who voted against the amendment as presented by the committee on INEC hinged their decision on the NCC’s claim that only 43 per cent of the country has internet network coverage. But they forgot that bringing in the NCC and the Senate in this matter erodes the independence of the electoral umpire. It could also undermine the entire process, as members of the Senate who are the approving authority in the transmission of election result, are partisan politicians.

Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, tried to further justify the position of the red chamber. He said it was only trying to defend about half of the Nigerian voters whose votes might not be counted as a result of the immediate application of electronic transmission of results. He believes we have not reached the stage where we could deploy electronic transmission of results, saying at some point, our electoral process must deploy it.

Incidentally, INEC has said it has the capacity to transmit results electronically across the country. INEC National Commissioner in charge of Information and Voter Education, Festus Okoye, told a national daily that “The Joint Technical Committee constituted by the commission and the Nigerian Communications Commission and made of telecommunication operators met on March 9, 2018, and the consensus was that the requirements for the electronic transfer of results proposed by INEC is practicable.”

He said the commission had uploaded results from polling units in Southern Ijaw with its riverine and difficult terrain; from conflict areas and from all geographical zones. So, why is the Senate crying more than the bereaved? What are the APC lawmakers afraid of?

Already, many analysts have reminded the lawmakers that the world including Nigeria has gone digital. That is why the Universal Tertiary Matriculation Exam (UTME), phone registration, international passport, National Identity Number (NIN), and continuous voter registrations are all done electronically across Nigeria. And that is why people are encouraged to go digital in their banking transactions these days.

The other day, Aminu Malle, the Chief of Staff to the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Idris Wase, reportedly thanked northern members of the House for protecting and promoting the interest of the North in the Electoral Act and Petroleum Industry Bill as passed. He allegedly sent the congratulatory message on behalf of Wase and the Northern Caucus leader, Hon. Musa Sarki Adar, to the northern caucus through their WhatsApp forum.

Though Wase has denied writing the message, one wonders if electronic transmission of election results has become a regional and party thing. Does it mean that the North and the APC enjoy this analogue way of doing our elections? Is there something the region and the ruling party are gaining by manual counting and release of results? Could Buhari be protecting the interests of the North and his party when he refused to sign the bill previously?

There is more to this than meets the eye. We can’t continue to win our elections via rigging and expect our democracy to thrive. Some of us may be gaining it now. But ultimately, we will all be the losers.

Honestly speaking, we need to re-evaluate or restructure our legislature and the entire political system just as companies, individuals and countries do from time to time. We can start by making our legislature unicameral. After all, the Houses of Assembly of the 36 Nigerian states are not bicameral.

The legislators collect humongous salaries and allowances every month with little to show for it. Some of them are bench warmers. Some are perpetual absentees from plenary. That is why people are ready to kill and commit all manner of atrocities to win such positions.

It is this type of systemic injustice that has fuelled agitations for self-determination. The Federal Government is busy pursuing Yoruba Nation agitator, Sunday Igboho, and the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, while the Nigerian house is on fire. But for how long? Serious danger awaits any nation which continues to paper over the cracks in its electoral and political system. When the house collapses, not many people will escape the catastrophe.

Re: Jigawa jigsaw and INEC’s abracadabra in Anambra

Casmir, politicians must realize that desperation doesn’t win election. They must realize that only one governor will emerge. They must know that any awkward activity in order to sway away the popular wishes of the electorate is recorded against their future political career. Going to Jigawa to get judgement is an insult on the intelligence of good people of Anambra State. I can remember my Principal at Comprehensive Sec School, Onitsha in the 80s, Sir Andy Umeoji, as an honest, religious man of the people who used to advocate for hard work and rule of law. To me anyone bearing that name should connote discipline and rule of law. Let our politicians realize that it takes much of sacrifice to build an inspiring reputation that wins election. For those who don’t win, they should wait for another time. As for me, Soludo is the candidate irrespective of any kind of jigsaw.

-Pharm. Okwuchukwu Njike, +234 803 885 4922

Dear Casy, literally, 1+1=2 by global reckoning. But in Nigeria, especially, when politicians desperately jostle for power,1+1 is equal to any figure that satisfies the whims and caprices of those manipulating the levers of power. And when too much cash is in their kitty to throw around, standards are buried, institutions along the power trajectory are purchased and made to play the ostrich. It takes the GRACE OF GOD for the STANDARD to be exhumed and returned to its rightful place. Recall that similar political intrigues played out in Anambra in 2007 when one of today’s gladiators, then a guber contestant and flying on the wings of the powers-that-be then, bulldozed his way to Agu Awka seat of power. But trust God, it took the judicial activism of Justice Kutigi and the likes to torpedo the intrigue.

-Steve Okoye, Awka, 08036630731.    

Dear Casy, the Jigawa jigsaw and INEC abracadabra in Anambra state is as a result of Nigerian leadership failure. Obasanjo conducted two elections in 2003 and 2007 that were flawed. Enugu state was one of the worst cases where people lost their lives. The general election of 2019 under Buhari’s watch was nothing to write home about. INEC and judiciary ruined the people’s mandate. The presidential election and the governorship election in Imo state where the fourth man became the governor was the worst jigsaw of the current Nigerian judiciary and abracadabra. The question here is, why do we have this evil with the level of educational development and attainment in this country? Anambra people must rise up and defend their political right and mandate. We don’t want Imo state type of judiciary abracadabra. God bless Anambra state.

-Eze Chima C. Lagos, +2347036225495

That PDP’s Val Ozigbo was slammed because of a subsisting court order which INEC sheepishly obeyed is laughable! And when a High Court in faraway Jigawa State of Northern Nigeria hurriedly assumed jurisdictional competence over a primary election that took place in Awka, Anambra State, one does not need to be a lawyer to know that the Jigawa High Court legal abracadabra and its collaborators were involved in what is usually termed in legal parlance as ”Abuse of Court Process”. The Nigerian political space is a clime of many possibilities where a man can even be transformed into a woman. Casy, TAKE NOTICE that the ‘hairy hand’ of Esau may be felt on the surface of the Anambra guber primary: but the voice is certainly that of Jacob.

-Edet Essien Esq. Cal. South, 08037952470

Dear Casmir, the court in Jigawa evidently lacks jurisdiction with which to disqualify Soludo. He should be fast about getting justice. Rotimi Amechi had similar problem in Rivers but Supreme Court succeeded in straightening his purported K-leg

– Cletus Frenchman, Enugu, +234 909 538 5215

When the former governor of Anambra, Mr. Peter Obi, wanted to reintroduce godfatherism by sponsoring Oseloka Obaze, we vehemently opposed him and opted for our beloved Chief (Dr.) Willie Obiano. The same scenario is playing out in APGA again with the purported screening out of Hon. Chukwuma Umeoji based on flimsy excuse by Victor Oye faction of APGA. Please note that Umeoji is a preferred candidate to Soludo because he has urbane characteristic and charisma to lead Anambra State to a greater height. The onus lies on the Appeal Court to determine the authentic candidate.

-Mr.Chinedu Ekwuno (JP) 08063730644

Judiciary wants to truncate our democracy with their judgements. It is now known that the highest bidder gets judgement as far as election is concerned. INEC should sometime ignore some court judgements and do the needful.

-Gordon Chika Nnorom, Umukabia, +2348062887535

• Also published in the Daily Sun of Monday, August 2, 2021

Jigawa Jigsaw and INEC’s abracadabra in Anambra

Casmir Igbokwe

Nigeria has become a nation of one week, multiple troubles. I had suspected that something sinister was in the offing when the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) spoke from two sides of the mouth concerning the recent primary election of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in Anambra State.

INEC came to observe the primary election of the Victor Oye-led APGA on June 23 this year. Shortly after, INEC’s national commissioner in charge of publicity and voter education, Mr. Festus Okoye, reportedly said APGA had been barred from the poll for not complying with Section 85 of the Electoral Act 2010 as amended. According to him, the party did not notify the electoral umpire when it held its ad hoc congress to elect ward delegates for the party’s governorship primary.

The chief press secretary to the INEC chairman, Mr. Rotimi Oyekanmi, countered Okoye. According to him, there was no faction in APGA. “The officers of APGA are on our website. Their names have not been changed. The chairman came to our stakeholders’ meeting and he was welcomed.”

He added that there was no time that INEC said that APGA would not be on the ballot.   

Last Friday, the electoral umpire listed the governorship and deputy governorship candidates of 17 political parties for the November 6 governorship election in Anambra State. Conspicuously missing from this list are the two frontline candidates, Professor Charles Chukwuma Soludo of APGA and Mr. Valentine Chineto Ozigbo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). INEC said it removed Ozigbo’s name due to the subsisting court order on the primary that produced him.

It replaced Soludo’s name with Hon. Chukwuma Umeoji, who was screened out of the APGA primary election. Immediately Umeoji lost out in his party’s power game, he joined the faction of a certain Jude Okeke and emerged the governorship candidate.

The questions are: is the faction that presented Umeoji authentic?  Is Jude Okeke the man INEC recognized on its website as the national chairman of APGA? The answer is in the negative.

Okoye said the decision of INEC was based on court orders. For APGA, the court order in question was procured from Jigawa State. Again, the question is, why Jigawa? Is there no high court in Awka where the election took place? Does the Jigawa Court have jurisdiction to handle this matter? There is something fishy about this whole thing. I hope there are no plots to surreptitiously impose an unpopular candidate or his party in Anambra State as has been done elsewhere.

According to the Electoral Act, the commission is required to publish the particulars of candidates no later than seven days from date of receipt of the nomination. APGA chairman, Victor Ike Oye, said his party uploaded Soludo’s nomination and received stamped copy July 2, 2021.

In an open letter to INEC chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, Oye said, “INEC ought to have published it not later than 9th of July. As at 15th July, it didn’t.  A federal high court at Awka had directed INEC to maintain status quo by publishing Soludo’s name. But INEC seems also intent on disobeying the order for reasons known to it.

“The information available to us is that INEC wants to receive another nomination/submission of particulars for APGA (from persons totally alien to APGA) on 16th July, 2021, and publish same immediately, based on a bizarre court judgment in Jigawa.”

Oye said Jude Okeke had never been their member and he had never met him. He urged Yakubu to stand firm and resist any pressure not to do what is right about who is the APGA candidate in the upcoming election.

Also, the Soludo Campaign Organisation has dismissed the INEC announcement and said the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria would contest the election. Spokesman of the group, Joe Anatune, was unequivocal when he said they would challenge the Jigawa jigsaw judgement and were confident of victory.

It is imperative to note that party decisions are binding on members. Those who are aggrieved either go to court or join another party. That was what a former governorship aspirant of APGA, Nze Akachukwu Nwankpo, did. He was disqualified like Umeoji. But rather than go to Taraba or Kebbi to tell the court to declare him APGA candidate, he joined another party, African Democratic Congress (ADC), and is now its governorship candidate. He will test his popularity with other candidates on Election Day.

Similarly, Senator Ifeanyi Ubah felt shortchanged in APGA a few years ago. He joined the Young Progressives Party (YPP) and contested the senatorial position of the party in the last general election. Surprisingly, Ubah defeated candidates of the more popular and established parties. That was what I expected Umeoji to do, rather than what he is doing now.

That was also what I expected the aggrieved members of the PDP to do as well. The hierarchy of the party has presented Ozigbo as its candidate. Another faction, led by Chris Uba, presented Ugochukwu Uba as its candidate. Ugochukwu is the elder brother of Chris. The APC candidate, Andy Uba, is also their brother.

While we watch to see how things pan out in this theatre of the absurd, I wish to advise INEC not to give credence to the recent allegation against it by the Senior Pastor of the House on the Rock Church, Pastor Paul Adefarasin. The pastor was reported last Wednesday to have said that the commission was a fraud. In a sermon he delivered in his church, Adefarasin reportedly said, “Put me in trouble if you like, INEC is a fraud. Numbers in Nigeria as far as census is concerned, as far as election is concerned, are a lie. And if nobody will speak about it, the righteous will speak about it.”

Our democracy is imperiled when the wishes of the people are suppressed for whatever reason. Anambra electorate are fully aware of the credentials of the candidates vying to rule them. They know those who have grassroots support and those who bank on external support to steal the position. But they will not relent in fighting for their right to fair and transparent election in November.     

Re: Kanu, Igboho and Umar’s gospel truth

Until the philosophy, which holds one race as the owner of Nigeria’s presidential office and others as mere observers, is “finally and permanently discredited and abandoned,” there will always be agitations and beating of drums of self-determination. Until nepotism is downplayed and the leadership cadre of our security services wears the colour of Nigeria’s diversity as opposed to the perpetually skewed contraption, and until the beneficiaries of the present lopsided arrangement agree to the fact that Nigeria is not working, and that our continuous cohabitation in this union of the horse and its rider is not a must, there will always be strife and calls to opt out of Nigeria. IPOB and others’ mission is occasioned by marginalization. Labelling IPOB a terrorist group by the authorities is a way of calling a dog a bad name in order to hang it. In a marriage in which the wife is always described as bad, wild and whose ‘marriagibility’ is suspect, does it make sense if the complainant husband usually cries aloud and even blocks the estranged wife if and when she seeks a divorce?

The President himself has submitted that Nigeria is lucky to remain ‘united’ despite its challenges: This is an indirect admission that Nigeria is not working. This luck must not be overstretched.

– Edet Essien Esq, Cal. South, 08037952470

Casmir, conscience, it’s said, ‘is an open wound, only truth can heal it’. President Muhammadu Buhari’s government has elevated injustice and the result is what is evident in the country today. The arrest of Kanu or anyone else will never bring peace. Many more Kanus are likely to be born until he does the right thing, allow the rule of law to reign and restructure this country.

– Pharm Okwuchukwu Njike, +234 803 885 4922

Dear Casmir, we sincerely need citizens with national conscience before we can achieve unity. Col. Umar has been a great patriot following after Gani Fawehinmi, who dissipated his sweat and blood to bring Nigeria democracy. A politician or activist should be both Christian and Muslim also both Northerner and Southerner at the same time.

– Cletus Frenchman, Enugu, +2349095385215

Dear Casy, what well-meaning Nigerians yearn for, which the current dispensation, out of willful obstinacy, denies us is the enthronement of: 1. Equity 2. Inclusiveness 3. Fairness 4. Equality 5. Justice 6. True federalism; and dethronement of: 7. Ethnic jingoism 8. Discrimination 9. Inequality 10. Inequity 11. Double standard 12. Playing the ostrich and 13. Marginalisation.

In the scheme of things. Power-wielders’ deliberate sustenance of items 7 to 13 above heightens resentment and revulsion in the polity. Hence, all manner of agitations. Should government wear a human face today and revert to items 1 to 6 above, Nigeria would become an item of envy in the comity of nations. But will those who have, in the course of servicing their stomach infrastructure, imprisoned the country while pretending to love her allow such reversion to take effect? Let’s keep praying!

-Steve Okoye, Awka, 08036630731.    

The government leaves what is bothering Nigerians such as insecurity and hunger to chase the shadow of people agitating for their freedom over maltreatment they are receiving from this government. This government should do the needful in governance to avoid more agitators. Things are not moving as they supposed to be despite the resource at our disposal. Nigerians are suffering in the land of plenty.

– Gordon Chika Nnorom, Umukabia, +2348062887535       

Dear Casy, the gospel truth from Abubakar Umar was great. Kanu, Igboho and their supporters are not Nigeria’s problems. The late Shagari, Umar and some few Fulanis have shown good leadership in this nation. Miyetti Allah, Gumi, Boko Haram bandits, Fulani herdsmen, APC govt under Buhari’s watch with their officials are Nigeria’s greatest enemies. Let’s remind Buhari that Gowon ended Nigeria after he killed Ironsi, hijacked the govt and destroyed the people’s constitution. On 27th May 1967, Gowon created his empire states and imposed his laws and buried Nigeria. The other generals imposed their laws on the nation. Let’s go back to the roundtable to revive Nigeria. After Kanu and Igboho, there must be agitation; truth is scarce these days.

– Eze Chima C, Lagos, +2347036225495

Sir, my take here is that we southerners are looking foolishly to the northerners. That is why all the mess is going on. Until we put our house in order, this mess will continue.

-Anonymous, +2348055358974         

Sir, I appreciate your effort to inform, to educate, to fight for the weak in spite of consequences. I enjoy your work. The printing of your paper is depreciating in quality.

-Anonymous, +2348036704539

• Also published in the Daily Sun of Monday, July 19, 2021