The Presidency has finally made it clear that no one can stop President Muhammadu Buhari from re-contesting for second-term in office, in the 2019 elections. “And it is also the right of the President (Buhari) to run or not to run. So, you don’t abridge the right of anybody under a democracy.” The chief Presidential spokesman, Femi Adesina, who answered reporter’s question in an interview today, Sunday said: “I believe that if the president wants to run, he can run. I will support him. I will always support him any day.” Femi Adesina said: “talking of his own personal ambition or lack of it, we have to wait until he blows the whistle. You can’t start a race until the whistle is blown. “So, when he blows the whistle and say ‘yes, this is my ambition,’ then, the race start. “So, for now, we just say that we keep waiting on him to tell us what direction to go.” He debunked the rumour that the President has re-appointed Rotimi Amaechi as Director General of his campaign organisation, adding that the President will appoint a Director General for his campaign organisation only after he must have become the candidate of his party. “Well, me I believe that things like DG will come when you have become a candidate. If the president steps into the fray now, he’s an aspirant just like any other aspirant. Having a DG comes when you become a candidate of the party.” On Mandela option which some Nigerians have advocated, the special adviser on media and publicity to the President, said that in democracy, people are bound to have divergent views on any given issue. “Of course, this is a democracy. People will always have a right to their opinions. You know one thing about democracy is that there is multiplicity of opinions. “So, those who believe in the Mandela option, it is their right.” He said that the pet project of the President is getting election into any office right. “The president has always said; he said it publicly before but those of us who are his aides – when we talk – we reiterate it that if it is the only thing he does. He wants to give free and fair elections to the country: elections that are acceptable.” Adesina argued that since Buhari’s government began, there have been elections in which his APC didn’t have to win. He said that unlike in the past when a certain party was in power and insisted that they must win all the elections that held in states, the Anambra’s senatorial election that was held Just this weekend, was won by another party. “Some months ago, in November, you saw the governorship election. If APC had wanted to overrun Anambra using federal might, it would do and it would win the election. “Election had held in Bayelsa under this administration, APC didn’t do it. Ondo, APC won fair and square. Kogi, it won fair and square. Where APC wins, it wins. Where it loses, it loses. That’s the attitude of the president. Your party doesn’t have to win by hook or crook. “So, he says if it is the last thing he does, he will leave free and fair elections for Nigeria. So, he will bequeath free and fair election to Nigeria and that is happening.”[myad]
“Every day you see the president, you see a glow about him, you see a freshness about him. I think he’s even in a better state than when he came in 2015. It’s all to the glory of God.” Special adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on media and publicity, Femi Adesina made these remarks about the President today, Sunday, in an interview.. Adesina, who spoke against the backdrop of the President’s recent health challenge, agreed that health is wealth, adding that the president is not a frivolous person. “If he thinks that his health cannot carry anything (to recontest 2019 election for second term of four years), he will not do it. “So, of course, his health will matter a lot. It will be very important but we need to give the glory to God for the way he is now.” “So, once he assesses that his health can carry it, there’s nothing wrong if he steps into the fray. But he had the final decision.”[myad]
An Abuja based media firm, Image Merchants Promotion Limited has taken Access Bank Plc to court demanding N200 million as general damages for unlawful freezing of its four different accounts in the past two years. The media outfit, together with its promoter, Mallam Yushau Shuaib, dragged the bank before a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja, jointly claiming the amount for the hardships they encounters as result of the action of the Bank. In the suit with No. FCT/HC/CV/0657/2018 filed on their behalf by Yunus Abdulsalam, the plaintiffs are praying the Court to declare that freezing of their accounts by the bank was unlawful and a clear breach of the bank’s duty. They are also praying for an order of the Court directing the bank to unfreeze their Private, Salary, Operational and Domiciliary Accounts of the Company and its Promoter with the bank. They claimed that they have tried to no avail with the bank to unfreeze their accounts which met brick walls each time and that even the bank failed to honour the last letter which their solicitors wrote to it. In the suit, Shuaib said that the inexplicable freezing of his account has kept him struggling to meet up with his responsibilities as the breadwinner of his family thereby putting his four children, wife and aged parents into a state of avoidable hardship. He added that due to the freezing of the accounts, the company had suffered the following catastrophic developments: Over 20 employees and volunteers in the payroll resigned their employment because of the inability of the company to access its salary account for the purpose of paying monthly salary; The company has also lost patronage as it can no longer advise clients to pay into the operational accounts knowing fully well no withdrawal could be made to execute the job of its clients. The media outfit said that the freezing of its Domiciliary Account prevented its financial obligations to foreign partners, subscriptions to products, services and professional membership fees. It also added that for the first time since inception, the company’s monthly print edition of the Economic Confidential Magazine could not see the light of the day. Their solicitors had written a letter dated 21st December 2017 and addressed to the Branch Manager, Access Bank Plc, Plot 1244, Samuel Ladoke Akintola Boulevard, Garki 2, Abuja, and received same day, the bank was informed that failure to unfreeze their accounts within seven days will resort to court action as there has been no official explanation by the bank. The plaintiffs further claimed that since “the absence of their clients from the public service, Mallam Yushau Shuaib has been the alter ego of Image Merchants Promotions Ltd- the publisher of the Economic Confidential Magazine and whose subsidiary is a leading and multi-international award-winning PR firm, PRNigeria. They claimed that from the record of accounts in question, it was clear that the firm has been carrying out legitimate business of PR consultancy with a vast clientele base especially from the security and financial sectors of the Nigerian economy. Plaintiffs claimed that they asked for an explanation from their mutual account officer as to the lawful justification upon which their accounts were frozen by the bank and that the response was rather evasive, opaque and vague. Therefore, the Plaintiffs applied for an order of the Court in directing the defendant to unfreeze the four accounts and also sought for an order of the Court in awarding the sum of N200m only being general and exemplary damages against the bank for unlawful freezing of their account and breach of duty of care owed to them by the bank. In addition, the plaintiffs demanded another sum of N1 million against the bank being the cost of the suit. They also sought payment of 10% of the judgment sum from the date of delivery of judgment until the entire sum is liquidated. No date has been fixed for the hearing.[myad]
A 30-year-old medical doctor (name with-held) working with the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) in Lokoja, capital of Kogi State, is confirmed to have been struck by Lassa fever.
The Chief Medical Director of FMC, Dr. Olatunde Alabi, who broke the news to news men today, Saturday, said that the medical doctor was diagnosed of the disease on January 19.
He said that the victim’s blood sample was sent to the FMC, Irrua, Edo State, where it tested positive to Lassa fever.
Dr. Alabi said that the affected medical doctor was in the early hours of today, Saturday, taken to Irrua for further treatment.
According to him, the World Health Organization (WHO), the state ministry of health and other stakeholders have been informed of the development and are assisting the centre in various ways.
Media men and women working in the Presidency in Abuja, under the auspices of State House Press Corps (SHPC), in a group picture with Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun (3rd from right), his deputy, Chief Mrs. Yetunde Onanuga (4th from right), and some members of the State Executive Council, shortly before they (Presidential media men and women) commenced a workshop on THE ROLE OF THE MEDIA IN PEACE BUILDING: 2019 IN PERSPECTIVE, which held in the State capital, Abeokuta, on Friday and Saturday (January 19 and 20). chairman of the SHPC, Ubale Musa is on the right of the deputy governor.
Governor Ibikunle Amosun in a hand shake with Sulaiman Musa of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), even as the Editor-In-Chief of Greenbarge Reporters, Yusuf Ozi-Usman gets set to take turn in executive hand shake, at the Government House, when members of the State House Press Corps (SHPC), converged on Abeokuta, capital of Ogun State at the weekend for a workshop on THE ROLE OF THE MEDIA IN PEACE BUILDING: 2019 IN PERSPECTIVE. [myad]
I wish to appreciate the privilege to present this paper in such a distinguished gathering, this is so for several reasons but let me cite just two outstanding ones. Firstly, this gathering is select, it is usually composed of the more senior and experienced members of the media which by extension means this is potentially a productive exercise in terms of policy deliverables. Secondly, this august audience, is of professionals with unusual insights and first-hand knowledge of usually confidential, behind-the-scenes development and therefore, of a group that is capable of nuancing our theories and pedestrian analyses with proper contexts. It is, therefore, an opportunity to lay before such a section of the fourth realm, what I consider to be the challenges before us as a nation in view of the general elections of 2019 and the role the media can play. The State of the Nation The Nigerian state is presently in the throes of a major crisis; the several fissures that have historically characterised the Nigerian State are again being reified by what has been couched in religious, ethno-subnational, institutional and leadership terms. The Fulani herdsmen conflict with indigenous hosts and the spate of killings, rapes and ruins trailing it has fanned the embers of hitherto latent ethno-religious tensions to a frightful proportion; the widely perceived inertia (at best) or bias by the political leadership in managing the crisis have made sectional tunes commonplace, the views expressed on social media are also in the main very disturbing. Strident protests against the federal system, which has been termed as perverse and lopsided and the fiscal structure have led to demands for restructuring which although is amorphous, conveys an unmistakable message of dissatisfaction. The character of federal appointments especially to the security apparatuses are another source of what has been cited as evidence of a sectional ‘Fulani agenda’. These bode ill for us as a nation. Someone has posed the question of whether we can survive the next decade as a nation. Just over a year to the next general elections, the crest of goodwill the incumbent administration rode to power is all but frittered, the widespread perception that government is not sufficiently effective in social provisioning, poverty alleviation, job creation, youth empowerment, security matters and even its swansong of corruption extirpation makes for a very despondent citizenry. The perception of the political elite as self-serving, collusive and ideologically bankrupt increases what we in political economy term the voracity effect- a combination of multiple interest groups, weak institutions and multiple loci of power. Thus the challenge of managing the peace to negotiate 2018 and have peaceful elections as a nation in 2019 are both urgent and onerous and not just for the media. The Role of the Media in Nation and Peace Building The media without gainsaying and risk of over emphasis is critical to national cohesion, state building and a veritable peace-making instrument, especially in fledgling democracies such as Nigeria’s. My personal opinion, with a very strong sense of responsibility is that the media and judiciary have been the champions of our democratic praxis in the past two decades; unfortunately, the latter has been tainted very badly since the last administration. But the quality and role of the Nigerian media has played in the political evolution of the Nigerian State is legendary and globally acknowledged, however, the media will be sorely tested once again in the coming days given the state of the nation. Let me adumbrate the roles of the responsible media in nation building: v The Fourth Estate should constitute a forum for public discussion and debate. In new democracies, the expectation is that the media would help build a civic culture and a tradition of discussion and debate which was not possible during the period of authoritarian rule. v The media should be a credible watchdog, the custodian of the public interest, and serve as a bridge between the political elite and the masses. The media should ideally bridge what political scientists refer to as the elite-mass lacunae. v Ideally, the media should keep citizens engaged in the business of governance by informing, educating and mobilising the public. v I belief the media is the prime agency for setting the agenda for public discourse v The media hypothetically should be a reliable barometer of governance and governance perception. v I also belief the media should be an assertive voice in ensuring justice, equity and constitutional probity. The Nigerian media was referred to by Diamond as ‘…one of the freest’ in Africa (Diamond 1998:) and by Lewis as vibrant and pluralistic. However, there are peculiar challenges to the Nigerian media in the discharge of these roles. Challenges for the integrative media The first challenge of the Nigerian media I wish to allude to is the lopsided ownership structure which unfortunately seems to mirror the centrifugal subnational cleavages of the state. The ‘South’ in Nigerian political parlance owns more than its proportionate share of the media- print and electronic, the former Midwest especially seem to dominate media ownership and whereas, this is should not be a major factor in the functioning of an integrative media, the divisive ethnic prism for appraising the Nigerian state is often applied to the media to distort reportage. Arguably however, it is State-owned media, whether national or state, print or electronic that have gained notoriety for being little more than mouthpieces of their entrepreneurs. This must be transcended somehow for the media to achieve its full potential as an instrument of nation building. A related hurdle is monopolistic ownership of media houses, the efficacy of the media in shaping opinions was well borne in the US presidential elections, the Kenyan, Rwandan, Zambian and Liberian elections as well as the Brexit votes in 2016. The strategy of Cambridge Analytica, which though a PR firm, of engaging the media to sway electoral outcomes in US, Brexit and Kenya is also instructive that with the media, the payer can dictate to the piper. Another major challenge is that media houses, irrespective of ownership structure can and have been used as proxies in the battle between competing political groups. Whereas, nothing is constitutionally underhand for media entrepreneurs to be card carrying members of political groups; it imposes a greater doubt on neutrality, integrity and accuracy. (AIT for instance). Proxy media houses by promoting even inadvertently promoting the sectional interests of their sponsors often trigger divisive rather than consensual news, hate speech instead of sober debate, and suspicion rather than social trust. In these cases, the media contribute to public cynicism and democratic decay (Coronell). A further traditional challenge of the media through all ages in all climes are stringent laws and the threat of violent repression. Hopefully, in the dark days are gone forever for the media in Nigeria. Although full vent must be given the freedom of information act in all its ramifications. Due to the insatiable appetite for salacious, shallow and sensational news, not just by Nigerians but globally, a competitive and pluralistic media market like Nigeria may prove too tempting for ethical, fact-based and censored reportage; where the overriding imperative for a media outlet is profit-at-all-cost, the allure of filthy gain may subordinate stringent vetting processes. The Nigerian Media and Peace Building for 2019 Amartya Sen argues that ‘transparent guarantees’ are required for a civilised and progressive society; these have a clear instrumental role in preventing corruption, financial irresponsibility and underhanded dealings one of these guarantees is a free and fair press[1]. This underscores the importance of the Press/media in the challenges ahead. The media should embrace what is now been referred to aspeace journalism; this I belief was popularised by Angela Castellanos[2]. Peace journalism has been defined as follows: endeavours to promote reconciliation through careful reportage that gives voice to all sides of a conflict and resists explanations for violence in terms of innate enmities or ancient hatreds. Peace journalism avoids giving undue attention to violence, focusing instead on the impact of war on communities on both sides of the divide and their efforts to bridge their differences (Cornel op cit:17). The Kenyan experience illustrates it brilliantly. After been widely vilified for its role in the catastrophic aftermath of the 2007 presidential elections, in 2013, the Kenyan media unanimously adopted peace journalism framework; they shunned all controversial and provocative issues and downplayed the ethnic identities and other divisive fissures in their reportage. Although the Kenyan press was criticised for this,, its sensible defence was that erring on the side of caution was better and safer than abetting bloodshed. The Nigerian media can adopt what I would term a sensitive mode by exercising sound discretion in the manner and language of covering and reporting combustible issues. The media can provide warring groups mechanisms for mediation, representation and voice so they can settle their differences peacefully. Unfortunately, the media have sometimes fanned the flames of discord by taking sides, reinforcing prejudices, muddling the facts and peddling half-truths. (ibid:5). Conclusion: The Nigerian media has a major role to play in sustaining what as been referred to as the Nigerian project, the consolidation of our democratic culture and delivery of good governance. To achieve these, the media will have to find a way to rise above the several diversities that characterise us as a people and become a veritable tool for establishing truth and a fair reflection of vertical and horizontal relationships, it has to become a governance barometer as well as a voice for the perceptions and aspirations of the masses.
Investigative journalism has to be emphasised, which prioritises fact-based reportage over the sensational. A major challenge for the Nigerian media going to 2019 is counteracting the social media, which is cheaper and faster and far less ethical.
Although social scientists believe no research is entirely objective, the media must rise beyond narrow mindedness and become the unbiased arbiter it is most suited to be. Finally, the media should be fearless and serve the historical role of being the last bastion of resistance against authoritarianism, injustice and tyranny, it should refrain from hero-worship and self-serving purposes. I thank you for this opportunity and wish you a very fruitful deliberation, trusting we will together take Nigeria beyond the 2019 Rubicon. Thank you!
Dr. Aderemi, senior lecturer at the Lagos State University (LASU), delivered this paper at the State House Press Corps Workshop January 20, 2018, Abeokuta Ogun State, Nigeria.[myad]
President Muhammadu Buhari’s Chief Of Staff, Mallam Abba Kyari, has described the newly-appointed Director-General of National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ahmed Rufai Abubakar as “a patriot, intelligent and consummate gentleman.” Abba Kyari, who spoke at a send-off in honour of Ahmed Abubakar today, Friday, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, said that the new NIA boss who until his new appointment was a Senior Special Assistant to the President (SSAP) on Foreign Affairs/International Relations, said: “I met him for the first time in this office after my appointment as Chief of Staff. “I do not think his elevation will deny us the opportunity of still working together. During his stay here, he distinguished himself as a patriot and he brought his wealth of experience in working with international organisations to bear on his work. “At any given time, even at late hours, Abubakar was always ready to give his best. He was committed.” This was even as the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu regretted that the new Director General of NIA had been maligned by a section of the media following his appointment. “Ahmed Rufai Abubakar is a perfect fit who is most qualified for the job. He has occupied various top public offices in the agency in the course of which he received several awards. He left voluntarily to go to the United Nations as a Director. “When he retired, he was appointed as a senior adviser in the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) regional coalition of countries for the fight against Boko Haram and other trans-border security threats in the region. There is no doubt at all as to Mr. Abubakar’s qualifications for the job and that is what is most important.” Also speaking at the send off get-together, the State Chief of Protocol, Ambassador Lawal Kazaure advised the new NIA boss to surround himself with the right advisers. “Do not have people who tell you what you want to hear around you but those who will tell you the truth dispassionately.” The Permanent Secretary, State House, Barrister Jalal Arabi said that the civil service has gained richly from Abubakar’s wealth of experience. “Hardwork was Ahmed Rufai Abubakar’s middle name during his period at the State House. Please, I want you to be guided by your conscience and philosophy in your new assignment.” Also a presidential aide in the Office of the Chief of Staff, Fola Oyeyinka, noted that colleagues will always have fond memories of the new intelligence chief as a generous and witty gentleman. “We worked together in the ‘Chief of Staff’s Little Office’ and I recall He will always share his lunch and food with us. Our ‘little office loss’ is Nigeria’s gain and we wish the new DG the very best in his new role.” Senior Special Assistant to the President on Diaspora, Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, said that she had looked forward to consummating their work plans for 2018 before the new appointment. “When he was appointed, I got a text message from someone who said: a Yoruba man was removed from office and now a northerner has been appointed in his place, what kind of thing is this? “I replied: If it is this Rufai that I know and have worked with, honestly he is the best person for the job and I really don’t care where he comes from, and that ended the conversation.” Mrs Bumi Badejo, who recently retired as a Director in the Office of the Chief of Staff, said that career civil servants that worked with Abubakar would fondly remember him as a witty, humble and intelligent gentleman. “He will correct you nicely without raising a word. He is a wordsmith.” A steward, Sule, recounted his over two-year stint with his principal which he said was devoid of rancour, query or any ill-feeling. Sule jokingly told his former boss: “I will not forget your kindness to us. Please do not forget us in your new office.” Responding, the new DG NIA confessed that he was emotion-laden for so many reasons, thanking the colleagues for all the good things they have said about him. “The best I could have done in my life is to serve the President and the nation.”[myad]
The Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun, has protested the rumour going round that the rice which his government has since been producing is fake, describing such allegation as a deliberate attempt to bring down the market of the product. Governor Amosun, who was reacting to report on social media alleging that his administration mounted sandbags with few bags of rice as rice pyramid to deceive the state indigenes as well as his gullible followers, said that it is wrong to deliberately run down the state by those who have the plans of running for the office of the governor. The governor, spoke through his Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Chief Dayo Adeneye, today, Saturday at the opening of the 2018 Media Workshop of the State House Press Corps with the theme: “The Role of The Media in Peace Building: 2019 in Perspective,” in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital, Social media reports had claimed that the Mitros rice being produced by Amosun-led state government is not available in any shop in the state, alleging that there is no rice farm anywhere nor factory where the rice was being bagged. The governor, whose lieutenants had earlier led members of the Press Corps to the Ogun State Mitros rice processing factory at Asero Odeda local government area of the state, appealed to the media to continue to report the truth no matter how politicians try to change the story. According to governor Amosun, the yield this year will surpass that of last year because the farmers now know that the government is serving as off takers and will always buy whatever they produce and sell at N11,000 to the public. “I’m just urging our colleagues, we were able to take you round and you saw for yourselves what obtains, you saw the processes, the farms, you saw the farmers, you saw how grateful they were to this administration for empowering them. They were also grateful to the federal government programme IFAD, FADAMA for empowering them and helping them to achieve what they have been able to achieve with MITROS RICE. You also saw the processing plant, the rice mill, the bagging process and all that. “Some people are just being mischievous because we are approaching election year and they are trying to score cheap political points. “The social media can either be used either as weapon of mass destruction or weapon of mass development because people tend to believe everything they read on social media whether is true or not. “So we will like for you to tell the story as it is so that these distractors can shut up. Is better for you to tell that story than for us to defend ourselves so they won’t say there is nothing to defend. You have seen that there is no bag of sand as rice, what you saw were happy farmers who are going to plant this year triple what the planted last year both in parboiled rice and Ofada. And people who are happy to buy rice at N11,000 of 50kg rice the same that was going for between N21,000 and N22,000 per bag over a year ago. Now the price has been crashed. “The Central Bank of Nigeria Governor and the Chairman Presidential Taskforce on Agriculture came to verify for themselves. Rather than encouraging this administration to do more they think they can score cheap political points by de-marketing this state and publishing false and fake stories about MITROS RICE.” The two guest lecturers at the workshop were Dr. Wale Aderemi, Senior Lecturer at Lagos State University (LASU) and Dr. Abubakar Kari, Senior Lecturer, Department of Sociology, University of Abuja. Aderemi advised the media to shun sensationalism and fake news, even as he stressed the need for the main stream media to tackle social media which are sadly forming public opinion today. He said that for peace building ahead of the 2019, a free press is key. “As the fourth estate of the realm, peace journalism should be adopted as a framework like the Kenyan Media did. To down play all features that divides the nation, because hiring the side of caution was better than bloodshed.” He said that the manner and language of reportage can be very dangerous, saying that while the truth should be reported the way it is, the language used should be checked. He advised media practitioners to avoid taking side and promoting prejudices ahead of the 2019 general elections. Dr. Kari described Nigeria as a conflict-ravaged polity that is characterized by conflicts, saying that media has been part of the problem rather than being part of the solution. According to him, ethnicity, religion, interests of editors and complete lack of neutrality has characterized media report in recent times and called for a change ahead of the elections. This was even as the state Permanent secretary, ministry of information said that the state government would continue to encourage national discuss that is germane to the continuous existence of the country, adding: “the media has a stake in steadying the ship of progress in the country. The media has a role to play in managing the perception of a Nigeria’s polity and those at the helms of affairs. “How we present our stories will show if we are Nation builders or wreckers. “We have no other place to go, this is the only country we have and the way we manage it if we will have a smooth transition in 2019.[myad]
The national leader of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has pondered over the way many politicians turned Nigeria into a game. He said: “for too many, Nigeria itself is a game. They are not wedded to the idea and ideals of Nigeria as a diverse and democratic but unified nation. “Too many of us for too long have treated politics as a game open only to an elite, exclusive club of players. The nation and the people constituted the pitch upon which the game would be decided. “They see the nation not as object of loyalty but as the most available platform to realize their personal aims. In their minds, Nigeria is lesser than their ever expanding ambitions. Because they view Nigeria as a game, their politics is but a game within a game.” Asiwaju Tinubu made these points as a guest speaker at the Daily Trust annual dialogue in Abuja on Thursday. Tinubu, who was former governor of Lagos, noted the incorrect mindset that politics is a game has mis-shaped” the politics and injured the nation in ways mundane and profound. Approaching nearly 60 years of independence, Nigeria remains a complex yet incomplete work of art, a project as much on the drawing board as it is our daily reality. He said that instead of Nigeria to be a joyous nation, “we have become a cruel playground where the fears and concerns of the average person get exploited but their interests never get promoted.” According to him, while democratic politics inherently bear aspects of competition and contest, he argued that such must never be reduced to a mere game. “The objective of a game is served by the mere playing of it. Playing the game is an end in and of itself. However, this cannot be the case with politics and elections.” Asiwaju Tinubu stressed that winning the political contest can never be an end in itself, adding that the proper outcome of electoral victory is not for the victor to revel at his good fortune or his skill in electioneering. “The inevitable sequel to an election is for the winner to assume the sobering burden of governance. Elections are not the climax of an epic book. They are merely the close of the book’s opening chapter. “What comes afterwards – governance — is much more vital than politics, for governance determines how we shall live.”[myad]
These are very difficult times in our country. Sad, mournful and dolorous times, as the New Year opened with killings in Rivers, Kaduna, Taraba, and Benue states, among others. Of course, there had been gruesome carnage on the Mambilla plateau mid last year, and bloodletting in Numan, Adamawa State, as well as in other places. Hell suddenly seemed to have enlarged itself against Nigeria. Sincere condolences to those who are grieving and mourning the loss of loved ones.
But instead of finding solutions, and joining to chart the way forward, some people are making political capital out of the killings. They are trying to use the orgy of bloodshed to advance their political interests, wanting to make it appear that it is a failure of the Muhammadu Buhari administration.
Faults are thick where love is thin. There is prejudice in Nigeria. Plenty. There is insularity, in prodigious quantity. There is animus, antipathy against anyone that is not of your ethnic or religious stock, or that belongs to a different political orientation or persuasion. If you meet him, kill him, if you can’t catch him, poison his footsteps, seems to be the singsong among some people. And as the build up to general elections next year gathers momentum, matters are made worse. Everything must be politicized, including wanton killings. There must be spurious handshakes across the Niger, and across the Benue, all for political gains.
But I stand with Buhari, and will always do. Why won’t you? Your snout is in the honeypot, licking the nectars of office, some cynics would say. Really? My bank balances do not indicate so. It is not just about money. It is about conviction. It is about believing in a man who can bring enduring change to our country, if we allow God to have His way through him.
Standing with Buhari through thick and thin is not about money, or the spoils of office, which are not even available in these lean times. In or out of my present position, I stand with Buhari. Sir Walter Scott wrote: “Other people’s resolutions may fluctuate on the wild and changeful billows of human opinion. Ours, now and forever, are anchored on the Rock of Ages.” In or out of government, I stand with Buhari. Why? You will get to know shortly.
There is strident attempt to defame, demean and de-market the Buhari government today. Who are those behind it? The crooks, thieves, freeloaders, who want business as usual. They hate probity. Their souls abhor accountability. They prefer the plunder of the past years, and can’t wait to see that epoch return. They engage in all sorts of misinformation and disinformation. Hate speeches. Fake news. Under us, you had leeks, onions and garlic to eat. You were fed manna till you wanted no more. When you were tired of the fluffy stuff, we gave you meat, you gorged yourself so much, till meat began to come out of your noses. They wouldn’t tell you about what William Shakespeare calls “the goodly apple, but rotten at the cheek.” They won’t tell you about humongous amounts of money made from oil, which stood at over $100 dollars per barrel for about six years, and which they looted to the last cent. Foreign reserves; depleted. Excess Crude Account; looted. Federation Account; plundered. They turned the country to a wasteland, leaving an economy primed for recession. But deftly and sure-footed, the Buhari administration is building a new foundation for the economy, erecting an edifice that will stand the test of time, not a bubble that collapses with just a pinprick, not a will-o-the-wisp that vanishes in the midday sun.
That is why I stand with Buhari, and have stood with him since he was a military leader in the 1980s. I can trust this President. I can go to bed, knowing that my leader is not striking deals to fleece the country in the dead of night. I can trust that every money that comes into the coffers of Nigeria, will be used for the good of Nigerians. Am I saying it is a perfect administration? Such has not been forged from the smithy of the divine powers. Every human enterprise will have its shortcomings, but on Buhari I still stand. I stand with him, and by him, any day.
Some people ask themselves: can we afford to be outside government for another four years from 2019? We would be dead! No access to the public treasury, which we know how well to abuse and plunder? To ravage and savage. They have spat into the sky, and collected the spittle with their faces. Rather than let Buhari be, we would employ all the tricks in the books. Defame, demean, de-market him. Is he not Fulani? He is supporting herdsmen causing murder and mayhem round the country. Trumpet it from the rooftops, even without a scintilla of evidence. He is sectional, and bent on Islamizing the country. He is fighting a one sided anti-corruption war. His war against insurgency is a fluke, not winnable.
They refuse to see massive investments in infrastructure, which would burst into full bloom in another year or two. Roads, rail, power. They refuse to see the rebounding economy, strides in agriculture and mining, all with good auguries for the future. They refuse to acknowledge the stock market, which recently recorded N15.78 trillion, the highest in the history of the country. What of N1.3 trillion spent on capital projects in 2016? And almost the same amount for 2017? No, they rather imagine how much of that amount they would have pocketed if they were in power, living in obscene luxury, while the rest of the country went to hell, if it wanted. They refuse to see the good things happening to the country. And none is as blind as those who deliberately refuse to see. All these and more are the reasons I stand with Buhari, and will always do. So that Nigeria can have a future and a hope. Our own Canaan, flowing with milk and honey.
After primitive fury was unleashed in Benue, and about 73 people were left dead, a sitting President eyeing reelection could also play politics with it, visiting and muttering the right words to impress the people. Nothing wrong. But for President Buhari, action speaks louder than words. Action stations, he told the security agencies. The Deputy Inspector General of Police in charge of Operations was first despatched, then the Minister of Interior, the Inspector General of Police himself, and then the Nigerian Army. Consultations were held with the governor of the state, with Benue elders, and now, a committee headed by the Vice President, made up of nine governors, has been set up to proffer solutions to farmers/herdsmen clashes. Action truly speaks louder than words.
President Buhari has not thrown his hat officially into the ring for a second term in office. But they are in mortal fear of him running. Therefore, they do all they can to dissuade him. Malign him, paint him black, devalue him before the electorate. But they don’t know that there are many devices in the hearts of men, but only the counsel of God shall stand. If God has ordained President Buhari to be in power beyond 2019, human effort to stop it can only end in futility.
I stand with Buhari, because it is solid ground for Nigeria. All other ground I see, at least for now, is sinking sand. For us, for our children, for generations yet unborn, Buhari is engendering a new country, whose builder and maker is God. Let the wailers wail; endlessly. Let the heathens rage; till they render themselves hoarse. Let them throw even the kitchen sink at him, they did worse in the build up to 2015. I stand with Buhari. I know his heart for Nigeria, and for Nigerians. Let people shed their prejudices. Let them eschew hate, and purge themselves of all malice. The future can only then be written in gold.
.Adesina is Special Adviser to President Buhari on Media and Publicity
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A 30-year-old medical doctor (name with-held) working with the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) in Lokoja, capital of Kogi State, is confirmed to have been struck by Lassa fever.
The Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun, has protested the rumour going round that the rice which his government has since been producing is fake, describing such allegation as a deliberate attempt to bring down the market of the product.
Why I stand with Buhari, By Femi Adesina
These are very difficult times in our country. Sad, mournful and dolorous times, as the New Year opened with killings in Rivers, Kaduna, Taraba, and Benue states, among others. Of course, there had been gruesome carnage on the Mambilla plateau mid last year, and bloodletting in Numan, Adamawa State, as well as in other places. Hell suddenly seemed to have enlarged itself against Nigeria. Sincere condolences to those who are grieving and mourning the loss of loved ones.
But instead of finding solutions, and joining to chart the way forward, some people are making political capital out of the killings. They are trying to use the orgy of bloodshed to advance their political interests, wanting to make it appear that it is a failure of the Muhammadu Buhari administration.
Faults are thick where love is thin. There is prejudice in Nigeria. Plenty. There is insularity, in prodigious quantity. There is animus, antipathy against anyone that is not of your ethnic or religious stock, or that belongs to a different political orientation or persuasion. If you meet him, kill him, if you can’t catch him, poison his footsteps, seems to be the singsong among some people. And as the build up to general elections next year gathers momentum, matters are made worse. Everything must be politicized, including wanton killings. There must be spurious handshakes across the Niger, and across the Benue, all for political gains.
But I stand with Buhari, and will always do. Why won’t you? Your snout is in the honeypot, licking the nectars of office, some cynics would say. Really? My bank balances do not indicate so. It is not just about money. It is about conviction. It is about believing in a man who can bring enduring change to our country, if we allow God to have His way through him.
Standing with Buhari through thick and thin is not about money, or the spoils of office, which are not even available in these lean times. In or out of my present position, I stand with Buhari. Sir Walter Scott wrote: “Other people’s resolutions may fluctuate on the wild and changeful billows of human opinion. Ours, now and forever, are anchored on the Rock of Ages.” In or out of government, I stand with Buhari. Why? You will get to know shortly.
There is strident attempt to defame, demean and de-market the Buhari government today. Who are those behind it? The crooks, thieves, freeloaders, who want business as usual. They hate probity. Their souls abhor accountability. They prefer the plunder of the past years, and can’t wait to see that epoch return. They engage in all sorts of misinformation and disinformation. Hate speeches. Fake news. Under us, you had leeks, onions and garlic to eat. You were fed manna till you wanted no more. When you were tired of the fluffy stuff, we gave you meat, you gorged yourself so much, till meat began to come out of your noses. They wouldn’t tell you about what William Shakespeare calls “the goodly apple, but rotten at the cheek.” They won’t tell you about humongous amounts of money made from oil, which stood at over $100 dollars per barrel for about six years, and which they looted to the last cent. Foreign reserves; depleted. Excess Crude Account; looted. Federation Account; plundered. They turned the country to a wasteland, leaving an economy primed for recession. But deftly and sure-footed, the Buhari administration is building a new foundation for the economy, erecting an edifice that will stand the test of time, not a bubble that collapses with just a pinprick, not a will-o-the-wisp that vanishes in the midday sun.
That is why I stand with Buhari, and have stood with him since he was a military leader in the 1980s. I can trust this President. I can go to bed, knowing that my leader is not striking deals to fleece the country in the dead of night. I can trust that every money that comes into the coffers of Nigeria, will be used for the good of Nigerians. Am I saying it is a perfect administration? Such has not been forged from the smithy of the divine powers. Every human enterprise will have its shortcomings, but on Buhari I still stand. I stand with him, and by him, any day.
Some people ask themselves: can we afford to be outside government for another four years from 2019? We would be dead! No access to the public treasury, which we know how well to abuse and plunder? To ravage and savage. They have spat into the sky, and collected the spittle with their faces. Rather than let Buhari be, we would employ all the tricks in the books. Defame, demean, de-market him. Is he not Fulani? He is supporting herdsmen causing murder and mayhem round the country. Trumpet it from the rooftops, even without a scintilla of evidence. He is sectional, and bent on Islamizing the country. He is fighting a one sided anti-corruption war. His war against insurgency is a fluke, not winnable.
They refuse to see massive investments in infrastructure, which would burst into full bloom in another year or two. Roads, rail, power. They refuse to see the rebounding economy, strides in agriculture and mining, all with good auguries for the future. They refuse to acknowledge the stock market, which recently recorded N15.78 trillion, the highest in the history of the country. What of N1.3 trillion spent on capital projects in 2016? And almost the same amount for 2017? No, they rather imagine how much of that amount they would have pocketed if they were in power, living in obscene luxury, while the rest of the country went to hell, if it wanted. They refuse to see the good things happening to the country. And none is as blind as those who deliberately refuse to see. All these and more are the reasons I stand with Buhari, and will always do. So that Nigeria can have a future and a hope. Our own Canaan, flowing with milk and honey.
After primitive fury was unleashed in Benue, and about 73 people were left dead, a sitting President eyeing reelection could also play politics with it, visiting and muttering the right words to impress the people. Nothing wrong. But for President Buhari, action speaks louder than words. Action stations, he told the security agencies. The Deputy Inspector General of Police in charge of Operations was first despatched, then the Minister of Interior, the Inspector General of Police himself, and then the Nigerian Army. Consultations were held with the governor of the state, with Benue elders, and now, a committee headed by the Vice President, made up of nine governors, has been set up to proffer solutions to farmers/herdsmen clashes. Action truly speaks louder than words.
President Buhari has not thrown his hat officially into the ring for a second term in office. But they are in mortal fear of him running. Therefore, they do all they can to dissuade him. Malign him, paint him black, devalue him before the electorate. But they don’t know that there are many devices in the hearts of men, but only the counsel of God shall stand. If God has ordained President Buhari to be in power beyond 2019, human effort to stop it can only end in futility.
I stand with Buhari, because it is solid ground for Nigeria. All other ground I see, at least for now, is sinking sand. For us, for our children, for generations yet unborn, Buhari is engendering a new country, whose builder and maker is God. Let the wailers wail; endlessly. Let the heathens rage; till they render themselves hoarse. Let them throw even the kitchen sink at him, they did worse in the build up to 2015. I stand with Buhari. I know his heart for Nigeria, and for Nigerians. Let people shed their prejudices. Let them eschew hate, and purge themselves of all malice. The future can only then be written in gold.
.Adesina is Special Adviser to President Buhari on Media and Publicity
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