Turkey Post-Coup Purges Convulse Society, By Mark Lowen

October 3, 2016

They are just visible on the white stone entrance: the outlines of letters that once spelled out “Fatih University,” removed after the attempted coup.
Students wait outside the closed gates to find out where they have been reassigned, their alma mater now designated a “terrorist institution.”
Fatih is one of 15 universities closed down since 15 July for having links to Fethullah Gulen, the cleric who the government alleges masterminded the coup and who lives in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania. His educational movement opened schools and universities across Turkey and in 140 other countries from the 1980s.
Now anybody with alleged links to him or the failed takeover is being rounded up in the biggest purge in Turkey’s modern history. Some 100,000 people have been dismissed or suspended, 70,000 detained and 32,000 arrested: from teachers to soldiers, police to judges, aircraft pilots to journalists. Even the country’s most famous baklava chef was interrogated.
Nilufer Demircioglu was in her final year of chemistry studies at Fatih University when it was shut down. Of the 14,000 students, some have already been moved – many to universities far from their homes. But with an administrative backlog, she is still waiting to hear if she can complete her course and fulfil her dream of working in a laboratory.
“I never followed Fethullah Gulen,” she says. “I enrolled here because I was given a scholarship and it was close to my home. Our political leaders used to come here and promote this university. Now they have stopped me from finishing my studies.”
“Everyone is scared that they won’t be employed if they have the name of this university on their diploma. Former graduates have even been fired.”
The Gulen movement was once close to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan – Islamists reshaping a constitutionally secular country. But from 2013 they fell out badly. Gulen followers within the police and intelligence services were blamed for orchestrating phone leaks that appeared to implicate Mr Erdogan and his inner circle in corruption.
Many now being rounded up in the post-coup purge say those in power never complained of Gulen’s influence when they were using it for their own means. But the purge has spread beyond suspected “Gulenists.”
Under the post-coup state of emergency, special decrees are netting all those accused of backing “terrorist groups” – a label considered so broad that the EU is insisting Turkey should narrow it if Turks are to be granted visa-free travel to Europe.
The state has targeted 1,100 academics who signed a declaration calling for a halt to Turkey’s conflict with the PKK Kurdish militants – and accusing the government of “massacres” in Kurdish areas.
“The Gulen movement is against everything we stand for: democracy, justice, secularism and peace,” she tells me.
“But since we signed the peace declaration, the university administration wanted to get rid of us. If there is no free thinking or free speech, there can be no science or democracy. The government wants to get rid of everybody who doesn’t obey them.”
President Erdogan has defended the purge, saying Turkey “needs time to clean up the extensions of these terrorist organisations”.
But he has also acknowledged that some innocent people may have been unfairly caught up in the arrests, and Prime Minister Binali Yildirim has now talked of crisis centres being established to handle claims from those unjustly accused.
“It is absolutely correct to pursue the arrests and dismissals,” says Enes Bayrakli from the pro-government think-tank SETA.
“There might be some mistakes but there will be mechanisms to correct those problems. We must understand the threat Turkey is facing.”
Any supposed link to Gulen-affiliated bodies is being scrutinised, such as deposits in the Gulen-linked Bank Asya.
More apparently outlandish connections have been alleged by the government, such as carrying a one-dollar bill, which it says denotes support for the movement.
Mr. Erdogan said the dismissals would not weaken the judiciary
The “Gulen” label is being widely bandied about. Even I was accused of being “Gulenist” and “close to Pennsylvania” by the pro-government columnist Mehmet Barlas for an article I had written about Mr Erdogan.
But Enes Bayrakli rejects claims of a witch hunt. “A terrorist organisation doesn’t just have one dimension,” he tells me. “It has an armed section but also a propaganda section. To take it down, you have to address all these issues.”
The terrorism charge is being levelled at pro-Kurdish writers, such as the award-winning novelist Asli Erdogan, in prison since mid-August. She was arrested for columns she had written for the pro-Kurdish newspaper Ozgur Gundem, on whose board she also served. A diabetic, she has complained of ill treatment in detention.
“By arresting Asli Erdogan, they’re trying to threaten Turkish intellectuals not to confront the Kurdish issue or criticise the government’s security measures,” says her lawyer Erdal Dogan. “The government is using the coup to hush up its critics. It’s not explicable within the legal framework.”
President Erdogan says the state of emergency might be needed for another year to crush the “terrorist” threat. More than 130 media outlets have been shut down, the pro-Kurdish IMC TV the latest victim.
The authorities have started releasing 38,000 prisoners, to make way for the new arrests.
Turkish society is undergoing its most dramatic reordering in decades. An emboldened government has a free hand. And there is little sign that it is loosening its grip.

Mark Lowen Is BBC Turkey correspondent, Ankara. [myad]

Turkish Court Faults Government Over FETO Terror Organization, Says There’s No Such Thing

Greenbarge Reporters

October 2, 2016

The second Criminal Court in the southern province of Hatay has rejected an indictment prepared about the Fethullah Gülen Terrorist Organization (FETÖ), a term used by the Turkish government to describe the Gülen movement, saying that there is no such a terrorist organization officially identified.
Office of Hatay Chief Public Prosecutor prepared an indictment about N.K. who is currently under arrest over charges of being member of FETÖ and Parallel State Structure (PDY).
Judges unanimously voted against the indictment and rejected it, citing that there is no officially designated terrorist organization such as FETÖ.
The judges also said reference to use of ByLock, application by N.K. cannot be accepted as evidence of terrorist organization membership.
The court ruling may set a precedent for similar cases given government’s massive purges and crackdown targeting the movement.
But when two judges decided to release police officers and chairman of a television channel last year over lack of concrete evidence for wrongdoing, top judicial body, HSYK dismissed them. The judges were later jailed over ruling to release detained police officers.
How the government will react to the decision by Hatay court remains to be seen.
The government blames Gülen for the coup attempt on July 15, 2016.
The US-based Islamic scholar rejects any link to the attempted coup. Since July, the government has either dismissed or sacked more than 100,000 public officials over alleged links to the movement. [myad]

Corruption And The Audacity Of Patience Goodluck, By Gbenro Olajuyigbe

Greenbarge Reporters

October 2, 2016

That we suffered a collective national economic and social rape under the former President Goodluck Jonathan is sad. For Patience, his wife who has no known history of visible work or commerce to brazenly and boldly attempt to legally claim ownership of $31.4 million, obvious proceed of corruption, in our increasingly volatile country induces a breath-taking psycho-economic depression into our national psyche. It did not only reveal the shocking ignorance of a thief who is merely validating her criminality; the audacity of the claimant calls into question EFCC’s investigative and prosecutorial prowess. In the same breath, it portrays our society as an unstandardized society moving toward a dialectical inequality in pursuant of justice. If not, Patience should have been on trial for corruption like her allies in crime that have been arraigned in court. Corruption is not only an economic crime. It is a crime that lays foundation for the commission of other crimes.
Nigeria’s complex crises are difficult to understand without accepting corruption as a specie of violence. A people bounded by Boko Haram in the North, Avengers in the South-South, Biafra in the East, herdsmen on rampage, kidnappers on the loose, and robbers on the roads have a lot to understand about evolution of violence. They need to know all forms of violence work together for worse for any society that loves oppression, embraces injustice and promotes inequality. They need to know that the persistent ubiquitous violence is sub-cultural reaction to the Twin Towers of Evil of Unjust Wealth and Unjust Poverty that corruption has built! Corruption destroys the basis for equality and equity, weakens institutions and structure in order to enthrone and sustain perversion of justice. Corruption shrinks resources available for development. It makes access to education difficult. It blocks the road to healthcare and frustrates path to security and welfare. It replaces government with Mafia and rights with might. It re-configures a state and imposes on it a Pyramid of disaster. When a country becomes a pyramid where tiny conical top are occupied by few who corner all available resources leaving the broad base of the pyramid to the many who are condemned to poverty and misery, such a country is ripe for any form of violence; whether of economic or of value!
The state prepares crime that violence perpetrators merely commit. When you open the window for corruption, you inevitably shut the door against peace. Corruption negotiates people out of existence. It creates a new world where self-help is attractive by manufacturing people that will use all means to fight back at a society that has taken them off the radar of equal opportunity and enforced the de-marketization of their citizenship. Corruption humiliates its victims, who often are the poor who become poorer and make a society ripe for committing violent crimes. It provides the motivation, the opportunity and the environment that violence needs to thrive.
If we want peace, we must steer away our country from this entanglement.
We cannot afford or sustain a country where people draw inspiration from their own callous oppressors; a nation where thieves are heroes; and blood thirsty criminals are mentors!
A nation that can no longer differentiate between evil and good; between righteousness and sin! A nation that uses the prism of tribe to determine who is just or unjust; a nation whose scale of justice stands on ‘mudus’ of corruption. A nation whose people are being stripped naked!
In saner climes, crime suspects hardly want to go to courts. In Nigeria, they want to be swiftly charged to court because they know that our courts are often citadels of corruption-propelled injustice! We cannot continue to have a ruling class using corruption to weaken all apparatuses of social and legal justice, destroying the capacity of judges to dispense appropriate justice and damage a whole legal system of a country; and worse still, turning around to benefit from its own willful incapacitation of justice administration architecture under the guise of human rights.
James Ibori was discharged and acquitted under our corruption–damaged legal process only to be convicted for the same offense in the UK. President Buhari must never again allow our country to be so ridiculed under his watch. Not even with the ‘human rights’ blackmail that has become the battle cry for the liberty of the lawless.
A nation cannot continue to build the barometer to measure human rights on what happens to those that are too defended and too protected to uphold national trust. Doing that amounts to isolating legal justice from social justice. It is not what happens to the out-of-control power merchants that counts. The truest form of justice seeks to protect the weak from the strong; not a cannon fodder for cruel violators of all that is decent about humanity.
Economy, security and corruption are still issues on the front burner of Buhari’s agenda. While the war against corruption is catching global attention with a noticeable margin of success at home, the same cannot be said about the economy and national security. Buhari must design his war against corruption in a way that ensures that recovered loot breathes life into the comatose economy.
Buhari’s inaugural speech a year ago assured justice to all. A pledge to be loyal and faithful to all without owing allegiance to anybody or cabal. It struck the core of national depreciation and ignited a vow for redemption and remediation. Based on it, we can say that we have a president who is not unmindful of the national challenges and the travails of Nigerians but also willing to protect the integrity of his oath. He must make the country work for all, especially the poor who have become the nation’s traditional burden bearers. He must stop listening to the ‘witches’ and their sorrowful songs. All the witches must be hunted down. It’s in my Bible that we should ‘suffer not the witch to live’. If you have stolen Nigeria’s money, you are a witch that must be hunted down. Your witchcraft has led to the death of many on the bad roads and in ill-equipped hospitals, among others! Buhari must not submit to blackmail. It is not in the Constitution that fighting corruption is a subject for Federal Character. It is neither a gender issue nor a party affair. The question is, did you steal or not? Great that Nigerians are increasingly owing the war against corruption. They are now speaking against their oppressors. Their oppressors are tagging their arrest and prosecution, ‘witch-hunt’ as if ‘witch-hunt’ is a defense in law. They are emotionally blackmailing the government that put them on trial under legitimate legal process and procedure. We must ignore them and focus on taking back our country. No state buys gun for her police if the intention is not to hunt down her witches; the vampires that criminally suck the blood out of her economy, and invariably her citizens, among others. A state that has been turned to a criminopolis by larger-than-life vampires must adopt all available strategies, including witch-hunting, to vanquish the nest of her witches. Let those who called their criminal trial political know that It is not for joke that Aristotle called man ‘a political animal’! Where there is politics of mindless stealing, there must be proportional politics of ruthless consequence. We must make it clear to people that we can end terrorism and other extreme violence and crime, not with a barrel of bullets, but when we build a country where no single person takes what belongs to millions of people; a nation that gets worried when individuals and groups are growing taller than law and fatter than justice. To achieve this country, change begins with Patience Jonathan! [myad]

Edo Poll: 4 Parties Fault Obaseki’s Victory, Ask INEC To Cancel Results

Greenbarge Reporters

October 2, 2016

Four political parties which participated in the Wednesday governorship election in Edo state have faulted the declaration of the candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC), Godwin Obaseki as governor-elect and asked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC to immediately cancel the results.

The parties are the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), with Mr. Frank Ukonga as its governorship flag bearer; the Advanced Congress of Democrats (ACD), with Mr. Andrew Igwemoh as its governorship candidate; the Social Democratic Party (SDP), with Dr Omorogieva Gbajumo as its candidate and the Kowa Party (KP) with Mr. Thompson Osadoloras its flag bearer.

The parties, which are operating under the canopy of Inter-party Advisory Council (IPAC), insisted at a news briefing in Benin, the capital of Edo state that the figures INEC declared and displayed on national television were at complete variance with those which their own agents and observers obtained from the polling units across the state.

The chairman of the group Frank Ukonga of NNPP, said: “the results that INEC made public do not tally with what most, if not all, our agents came back home with. We are calling for the cancellation of the entire election because INEC gave APC the PDP votes.”

This was even as the candidate of the SDP, Dr. Omorogieva Gbajumo said: “Nigerians are wondering how INEC came up with about 66, 000 missing votes whereas voters voted as soon as they were accredited.

“It is clear that the votes declared by INEC are not correct. Even parties which were not on the ballot were allocated some votes by the electoral umpire who shows that something does not add up.”

On his part, Mr. Thompson Osadolor of Kowa Party said that no voter went home after being accredited to vote and there was a generally peaceful election across the state, INEC had no business voiding votes.

“It is a shame on INEC and it should the needful by ensuring that the voice of Edo people which was loud and clear on September 28 is reflected by declaring the true results of the elections.”

Mr. Andrew Igwemoh of the ACD that said that there were glaring errors in the figures computed by INEC in an election that was marred by open exchange of money between party agents and the voters.

“I am calling for the cancellation of the results especially that of Etsako West local government because what transpired on the field is not what INEC made public. The mathematical errors are too obvious to be ignored.”

They all vowed to continue in their advocacy for the cancellation of the elections so that the will of Edo people will be upheld and that it is the only way to sustain democracy in the country.

The APC candidate, Obaseki was declared governor-elect by INEC after he garnered 319,483 votes in the election, as against the 253,173 votes polled by Osagie Ize-Iyamu of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). [myad]

Mr. President, This Silence Is Suspicious, By Joseph Orjime

October 2, 2016

It was Edmund Burke, an Irish statesman that said: “the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to keep silent.”
That is the ruin and the depredation silence can cause in the face of evil. When those who are to speak up in order to nip certain mischievous tendencies in the bud decide to keep quiet, evil thrives.
For those who care to spare a thought on recent happenings, national peace and to some extent, the very corporate existence of Nigeria is being threatened, at least, in some parts of the country, by the nefarious activities of some herdsmen.
In recent times, these cattle herders have traversed the length and breadth of this country in search of pasture for their livestock. This obsolete method of cattle rearing has pitched them (the herdsmen) against the host communities. Nearly everywhere they settle for grazing, there has always been one tale of terror or the other, unleashed by these people against their host communities. The same tale of woes were told of Plateau, Kaduna, Nasarawa, Taraba, Benue, Ekiti, Kogi states, and much recently, Enugu, to mention a few. Each of these places mentioned have witnessed massive killings, destruction of farmlands, raping of women, robbery, kidnapping and other social vices perpetrated by the armed Fulani herdsmen, who are now seen as confidently living above the laws of the land. The commando, and of course, the impunitive style with which they carry out the onslaught can only be likened to that of the hitherto dreaded Boko Haram. Reports had it that the Fulani herdsmen are the fourth most vicious terror organization in the whole world.
While these attacks are being carried out, however without any end in sight, what is surprisingly notable is Present Muhammadu Buhari’s dead silence on the whole issue.
While the entire nation in particular, and the world at large expect the president and commander -in-chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces to issue a strong statement, as well as take drastic action against these useless protracted and malicious attacks by the Fulani herdsmen, it has been to everyone’s chagrin, that the number one citizen, being a Fulani himself, has adopted the unpopular style of keeping silent whenever his kinsmen strike, and their victims are counting their losses.
President Buhari has in recent times threatened to deal with the Niger -Delta militants in the same manner as Boko Haram if the proposed dialogue with the Federal government failed.
In a twist of fate, the Buhari -led government should be applauded for the giant strides so far taken to decimate Boko Haram. Be that as it may, a replication of same efforts towards the Fulani herdsmen insurgency would be given thumbs up. That will be a right step in the right direction.
The chairman of Pentecostal fellowship of Nigeria (PFN ), Enugu state chapter, Rev Goddy Madu, having described the Fulani herdsmen as Boko Haram in disguise after the killing of a seminarian and a woman in Attakwu community in Enugu state last August, lamented that President Buhari ‘s silence over the killings is fuelling continuous attacks. In his statement published in Vanguard newspapers on September 7,2016: “We are not happy over the silence of President Muhammadu Buhari over these attacks. He is busy going after Boko Haram and Niger -Delta militants, neglecting the issue of Fulani herdsmen “.
There is no gainsaying the fact that the impunitive disposition of the Fulani herdsmen across the nation is stoking the ire of well meaning Nigerians.
Exasperated by the massacre of several hapless natives of Enugu state in the past five months by the killer herdsmen, the Civil Liberty Organization (CLO) recently alleged that President Muhammadu Buhari ‘s inaction on these killings suggests that he is behind the dastardly acts. The CLO lamented a situation where the president is hasty to commiserate with other countries of the world when they are befallen by the same orgy, wondering whether he has an agenda for Nigeria for not showing serious concern over the spate of killings.
In the wake of this silence, one wonders why the Buhari -led federal government would deploy a thousand soldiers to combat armed gangs and cattle rustlers said to be terrorizing residents of Zamfara state. Yet the same federal government has not spared a soldier to challenge the Fulani herdsmen terrorizing several parts of Nigeria.
Psychologically speaking, In the light of inaction from government regarding these spate of killings, we have a serious security challenge in a our hands. What if the victims of these attacks resort to reprisals against their killers, especially while the much anticipated justice is not forthcoming, a crisis which could have been nipped in the bud if proactive steps were taken?
Kudos to Ekiti state governor, Ayodele Fayose, for signing into law the ‘Anti -grazing Bill 2016.’ Most Nigerians, while applauding Mr Fayose, view this drastic step as a response to the failure on the part of the Federal government, to rise to the occasion. This law is devoid of any ethnic Or religious coloration. It is a right step in the right direction, which can only be taken by a leader who feels the pains of his followers.

_Joseph Orjime Wrote from Abuja. [myad]

61-Year Old Mother Of 9 Goes Back To School To Learn New Things

Greenbarge Reporters

October 2, 2016

Helen and her teacher

A 61-year old Mrs. Helen Odeba, from Kogi state, has returned to secondary school to continue with acquisition of knowledge after having given birth to nine children and had grand children. Some of her children are already graduates of higher institutions in the country.

Mrs. Helen Odeba spoke to GBENGA ADENIJI of The Punch recently on why she decided to return to secondary school at her age. Excerpts:

Which state are you from?

I am from Kogi State.

How many children do you have?

I have nine children; four girls and five boys. Some of them have married. I have seven grandchildren.

Did any of your children go to higher institution?

Yes, some of them did. My eldest son and one of my female children studied at the Kaduna Polytechnic. They obtained diplomas there. One of my sons is a corps member. He studied at the Kogi State University. Another female child is currently at the Plateau State Polytechnic.

Have you ever attended any school?

Yes, I finished primary education before I got married. When I got married, I stopped my education but I always wanted to return to school.

What have you been doing since you got married?

I have been a housewife.

Why did you decide to return to secondary school at your age?

I want to learn new things. I miss my years in primary school as a child when I learnt many things. I felt that I could learn more now that I have given birth to children. I am now able to concentrate on the future. This made me enrol at the Government Secondary School, Gonin Gora, Kaduna State. I started from the junior class.

What class are you?

I am in senior secondary two; commercial class.

Did your husband and children support your decision to return to school?

They did when I told them it was what I desired to do.

What does your husband do?

He works as a security man at the Kaduna Polytechnic.

How do you relate with your classmates?

We relate well. We joke, chat and study together. I have a seat mate, Justina, who I disturb a lot to explain topics that I do not understand to me.

Which subjects do you like most?

I like Mathematics and English. I always perform better in the two subjects than I do in others.

How do you feel learning with younger classmates?

I always feel happy. It is fun learning with them. There is no shame since I know why I returned to school.

How do you combine taking care of your home and studying?

I try to plan everything well. I cook and take care of the home on time. I also find time to read what I learn in school daily. There is no day I do not revise what I was taught in school.

What do you intend to do with the secondary school result?

I want to open a shop after I finish with secondary school. I will know how to calculate money, talk to customers and give them their change.

Do you intend to go to university after your secondary education?

I am not sure that I want to do that.

What do your friends tell you?

Many of them do not support me. They keep telling me that I am wasting my time going to school at my age. I do not think I am wasting my time. I think I am doing what is right because no one is too old to learn. I wish they could join me to learn.

How do your classmates address you?

Everyone in the school calls me, ‘mama’ including my teacher. I only smile because I know it is a way of showing me respect. I respect all of them too.

What are some of the challenges you are facing as an adult pupil?

I take care of the home apart from going to school. Most times, I find it hard to cope. Also, I attend school regularly but sometimes, I may not have transport fare to go to school. There are also times that I do not understand some of the things that a teacher is teaching. I always try to meet my mates to teach me or meet the teacher to explain. The teachers are nice. They give me attention whenever I ask questions.

Class Teacher also speaks about her: Mama is eager to learn

What is your name?

I am Saifullahi Adamu Bawa.

What do you do?

I am a mathematics teacher. I teach at the Government Secondary School, Gonin Gora, Kaduna State. I teach all the pupils in the senior class mathematics.

In your class, you have a 61-year-old pupil, how did she become one of your pupils?

She was in the school before I came. I was employed last year. She started JSS1 in the school. I am the class teacher for her class; SS2 (Commercial).

Did you ask the school authorities any questions when you saw a mature pupil like her in the class you were meant to be its class teacher?

No. I was just amazed. I really liked it. Most times, I tell other subject teachers to give her full attention whenever they are in her class.

What can you say about her?

What I can say about her is that she is coping very well despite her age. She always disturbs her seat mate to learn new things or for her to explain anything she does not understand to her. She wants to know it all. She never comes late to school. She is very respectful. In fact, she calls me ‘sir ‘ or sometimes ‘uncle.’

What do you find most interesting about her as a pupil despite her age?

It is her zeal and passion to learn. She is very committed to learning. She is really inquisitive.

What experience did you have with her while teaching her class that remains memorable?

Mama with her teacher, Bawa

She is always attentive. She has never for once offended me or anyone in the school to the best of my knowledge. The passion to learn is there. Teaching a class with a grandma, I have also learnt to maintain my dignity. There were times she would ask questions out of context. In those moments, I would say, ‘mama, please meet me in the staff room.’ But she would plead and tell me not to be offended.

Is she popular in the school?

Everyone in the school knows her.

What is her performance like in class assignments and tests?

It is below average but better than how I met her.

For how many months have you been teaching her?

I have taught her class for three terms; a session.

How has her presence motivated other younger pupils to learn?

It has made most of her classmates and schoolmates not to score low marks. There is a competition to do better because it is a motivation seeing a grandmother performing better than young pupils. Besides, most of her classmates get jealous when she scores a mark higher than theirs. Hence, no one wants to be below her in the class.

Did she tell you why she wants to complete secondary education?

Yes, she told me that she would open a shop after the completion of her secondary education. She wants to know how to communicate with her customers, be courteous to them and how to calculate money well.

Do you think she is doing enough academically to achieve the goals?

Yes, like I said earlier, she is trying hard. But I think she needs to work harder. I tried to convince her to proceed beyond secondary education but she refused. She said she would stop after the completion of secondary education.

What do you think are some of her challenges?

I think part of it is lack of motivation from those close to her. We try our best in the school to motivate and encourage her.

Has any of her children ever visited her in school?

I have never seen any of them since I joined the school.

How do her classmates relate with her?

They relate with her as a grandmother, mother and classmate. They play and joke about many things together.

How does she react when she gets a low mark?

She feels bad.

Source: PUNCH. [myad]

As Muslims Observe Islamic New Year Today, By Bala Muhammad

Greenbarge Reporters

October 2, 2016

A Christian friend and colleague recently stated, as we discussed religion, that: “Almost all Christian children have memorized the Nativity Story. What equivalent do your [Muslim] children have to memories like ours do?” (For those who may not know, or may have forgotten, the Nativity Story is the narration about the miraculous birth of Jesus Christ, Prophet Isa, upon whom and his mother be peace and blessings of Allah. The story is about the appearance of a star, the manger, the Three Wise Men bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh, the miraculous birth, etc.)
Well, I told my Christian colleague that in Islamic history, there is no categorical directive to memorize particular events in history, but by far the most significant occurrence in the whole of our religion’s history was and is the Hijra, the Departure (call it Migration) of Prophet Muhammad, upon whom and his family be peace and blessings of Allah. Western writers, called Orientalists (or “Experts in Eastern Ideas”) used to refer to this Hijra as “Flight”; that the Prophet, upon whom be peace, was ‘fleeing’ from the Meccans who were in hot pursuit. The problem with that narrative, I stated, was that the Prophet’s Departure was divinely planned and directed, and his protection was guaranteed, and that he was not ‘fleeing’ for dear life (to which the term would naturally allude), but emigrating for ‘dear religion’, so to say. So if there was any event our children should ‘memorize,’ it is this – the Hijra.

Then my Christian friend also asked: “We base our calendar from the birth of Jesus, why do you not base yours from the birth of [Prophet] Muhammad [upon whom be peace?]”
So I told him this: “One; note that we, Muslims, believe in Jesus and, in fact, he is among the five most important Prophets of Allah (the others being Noah, Abraham, Moses and their Leader Muhammad, upon all of them be peace). The first four are also ‘local’ to Christians, and we only differ in two fundamentals – belief in the Prophet-hood of Muhammad by Christians and belief in the Divinity of Jesus by Muhammad. Apart from these two issues, we generally agree.” And Allah in the Qur’an specifically directs us to not discriminate against any of His prophets: “La nufarriqu baina ahadin minhum!”
Still on the way to answering his question on why Islam is not dated from the birth of Muhammad, upon whom be peace, I continued to inform him of the significance of this man, Prophet Muhammad, to us Muslims. In fact, I told him, Muhammad, upon whom be peace, is the only person Allah (God) Himself (exalted be His Name), celebrates the praises of, unceasingly. Allah says in Surah al Ahzab (The Confederates, or “The Coalition Forces”) Qur’an Chapter 33:56: “Innal Lah wa mala’ikataHu Yusalluna alan nabiy; ya ayyuhal lazina amanu sallu alaihi wa sallimu taslima.” (Allah and His angels shower blessings on the Prophet. O you who believe! Shower blessings on him and salute him with a worthy salutation.”
That’s how personal Allah takes the matter of his Prophet. He celebrates him Himself, together with the angels, and announces it in the greatest of all compendiums, the Qur’an, and then clearly directs that we do that as well. To underline how personal, listen to Allah say this in this same Chapter: “O you who believe! Enter not the Prophet’s houses, except when leave is given to you for a meal, (and then) not (so early as) to wait for its preparation. But when you are invited, enter, and when you have taken your meal, disperse, without sitting for a talk. Verily, such (behaviour) annoys the Prophet, and he is shy of (asking) you (to go), but Allah is not shy of (telling you) the truth.”
Secondly, when we recite the Kalma, the ‘Word’ (actually the Sentence) which makes us ‘born again’ and which renews our faith, we have to ‘join’ the Name of Allah to that of the Prophet. We always say: “La Ilaha illal Lah Muhammadur rasulul Lah.” (There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the Prophet of Allah). Yet, despite all these, because of the centrality of the religion rather than the individuality of the Prophet himself, the Islamic Calendar begins with the Hijra, that epochal migration of the Prophet from Makka to Madina (accompanied by his good friend Abubakar, may Allah be pleased with him and who was later to become First Caliph), rather than the date of the Prophet’s birth.
So, I tell my friend, this Thursday October 15 happened to be Muharram 1, the first day of the Islamic New Year 1437. Though we take our dating from it, the beginning of an Islamic New Year is not a celebration, is not a festival, and is not a feast like the two Eids of Fitr and Adha (Small and Big Sallah). But it is such a significant and momentous occasion of reflection and remembrance. Here in Nigeria, many Muslim-majority states such Kano and Osun have consistently declared Public Holidays to commemorate the historic occasion as is being done all over the Muslim world.
The Sultan of Sokoto Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, President-General of both the Nigerian Supreme Council on Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) and the Jama’atu Nasril Islam (JNI), speaking through the JNI Secretary General Khalid Aliyu used the unique opportunity of the Islamic New Year to, as usual, remind the Nigerian Muslim Ummah to remain God-fearing, steadfast and law-abiding at all times. He also reminded the faithful not to celebrate the Islamic New Year with activities repugnant to Islamic tenets.
The Sultan further reminded the Muslim Ummah to remember to observe the voluntary fasts of Tasu’a and ‘Ashura which the Prophet (upon whom be peace) strongly recommended we do on the 9th and 10th of every Muharram, which this year would fall on Friday 23rd and Saturday 24th respectively. The Sultan further calls on the faithful to, as usual, pray fervently for the development of our country’s peace and security, particularly now that a new democratically-elected government has been successfully ushered. The faithful should also personally continue to seek Allah’s forgiveness, guidance and protection always.
This new Islamic Year means one thousand, four hundred and thirty seven years have passed since Prophet Muhammad (upon whom be peace), the greatest person to walk on this Planet Earth, the one person who is the most beloved of all to Allah left his hometown Makka (Mecca) to Madina (Medina). The exact date is said to have corresponded with July 16, 622 in the Christian Calendar. This journey is a history in itself and in it is a message of historical proportions for mankind.
Muharram is the first month of the Islamic Calendar, and the others are (especially for those who are too boko-imbibed and Islamiyya-forgotten) Safar, Rabi’ Awwal, Rabi’ Thani, Jumada Awwal, Jumada Thani, Rajab, Sha’ban, Ramadan, Shawwal, Zul Qa’adah, Zul Hijjah). The Islamic Calendar is lunar, and uses the moon, rather than the sun (as in the Gregorian Calendar) to count the days and weeks and months and years. And as the lunar cycle is usually eleven days shorter than the solar, the Islamic New Year reduces by that number of days every year, and Muharram 1 shall fall on each of the days of January to December in a generation of about thirty three years.
When the Noble Prophet arrived Madinah, he entered to the chorus and lyrics and music of Tala al Badru (that song rendered most beautifully by the famous Muslim singer Yusuf Islam, the former Cat Stevens (listen to it at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5HiXM9JGJQ):
Tala al badru ‘alayna
Min thaniyati-al Wada’
Wajaba Shukru ‘alayna
Ma da’a lillahi da’
O the white moon rose over us
From the valley of Wada’
And we owe it to show thankfulness
Where the call is to Allah
Ayyuha-al Mab’uthu feena
Ji’ta bi-al amru muta’
Ji’ta sharafta-al Madeenah
Marhaban ya khayra da’
O you, who were raised amongst us
Coming with the words to be obeyed
You have ennobled this city
Welcome O caller to God’s way
May the Islamic New Year 1437 be a harbinger of glad tidings to all!

Happy New year to the entire Muslim Ummah!

Kullu ‘aamin wa antum bikhayr!”

This piece was published in Daily Trust on October 16, 2015. [myad]

What Nigeria Means To Me, By Reuben Abati

Greenbarge Reporters

October 2, 2016

The various reactions on Independence Day yesterday can only compel us to ask one question: what does Nigeria mean to you or me? I had written a piece on Friday, September 30, in which I advised that Nigerians should embrace hope rather than despair and that in the long run, it shall be well with our country. I also recommended as part of the celebration, Timi Dakolo’s soul-inspiring and masterly song, “Great Nation”, hoping that special attention will be paid to its touching lyrics. But the reactions to my interventions did no more than further reinforce the fact that too many Nigerians are angry with Nigeria as an entity, they are angry with how Nigeria has been run and is being run, they are frustrated with the current situation in the country, and what the future holds for the entire country.

The last time Nigerians found themselves at this kind of crossroads was under the rule of General Sani Abacha. The issue was not just about General Abacha, however, but how military rule had led the country into a ditch, and the people wanted something different. The disappointment today is of a different form of extraction: some people raised the people’s hopes beyond the stratosphere: they assured them that the Nirvana that they wanted was at the door; they told them that to run Nigeria is easy, it was just that the wrong people were in charge. And now, all promises seem illusionary, the scales are falling off the people’s eyes and the people are transferring their anger unto every situation. The change agents who promised a revolution are in disarray, they are caught up in an atomistic war among themselves. The we-are-better-than-them-we-wil l-save-Nigeria crowd has suddenly discovered that there is a great gulf between election time propaganda and the real assignment of governance. Even the partisan clerics among them no longer know what to tell the congregation. They cannot afford to say that the God they worship speaks with two tongues.

Their nemesis and their hubris lie in a certain lack of understanding or a certain omission, or perhaps oversight. I maintain my earlier position that Nigeria is a complex entity and that it is not a country made for any Messiah, now or in the far future. Nowhere in the world is the age of the messiah real. There is no such thing. Every country must face its own destiny. It is the duty of leaders to manage that destiny, transform it and not destroy it. Nigeria’s destiny is to be great and successful. We only need to find the right combination of people. Note the emphasis on combination. We will never find the right combination if we remain divided by ethnicity, ego and religion.

It is partly the reason, therefore, why every Nigerian moving forward must ask the question: what does Nigerian mean to me? Too many compatriots relate to this country as an abstraction. When they hear Nigeria, the only thing they think of is their ethnic root. They don’t even have any attachment to the Nigerian passport. I bet we would all be shocked the day we take a census of all the Nigerians who have foreign passports and the millions who are still on the queue, begging to give up on this country. Nigeria is thus, regrettably today, a provider of important talents for other countries in all fields of human endeavour in the same manner in which Ireland sold out its talents at the turn of the 19^th Century.

We have reached a point and that is perhaps one of the gains of democracy since May 2015, whereby every Nigerian, at home and abroad must ask himself or herself, that simple question: what does Nigeria mean to me? Does it mean incumbent government and its politics? Mere identity? A passport? Home? Association with my parents and old friends and so a homeland linked by blood? Or is Nigeria nothing, no more than a space for opportunities, or just an option, or at best, mere geography crashing into DNA? I guess no other country has such divided and scattered emotional brains like Nigeria. When the people decide individually and collectively that they want a country, may be that is when we can begin to talk of Nigeria. What does Nigeria mean to you? I urge you to answer this question as part of the national reflection process after our country’s 56^th Independence Anniversary. I’ll start with what I believe.

I am a grateful Nigerian citizen. I went to primary school in this country at a time when teachers were very proud to be teachers. Our teachers worshipped our parents and vice versa. If your parent ever told you your teacher complained about you, you would feel like running away. Today, Nigerian parents go to schools and beat up teachers, and the teachers ask for bribe. The idea of being in loco parentis has since being destroyed. Something has gone terribly wrong. Quality education is now a matter of cash and class. It actually seems if you don’t have a lot of money, your children cannot make it in in life. In this same country, the children of ordinary people were the ones who had all the hopes because the system supported the poor. My father, God bless his soul, could afford to send me to any level, I was the first son of a second wife married at old age, and he was prepared for the choice he made, but the Nigerian system was behind him too. I pay tribute to those teachers who poured their lives into mine, who did everything to mould me, those selfless soldiers who gave what they had so that other people’s children could grow. That is what Nigeria means to me, Those indeed are the true Nigerians. What am I trying to say? I am saying that in those days in this country, you could make brave choices and the country will stand by you because it was a country that worked. We need to make Nigeria work again.

As a university student, our mattresses were made. There was regular water flow in the hostels. “Bush meats” were accorded due respect, and the “campus meats” were not badly treated either, and only the most brilliant boys were inducted into the campus cults. Everything was respectable. Food was cheap. Life was easy. Our libraries were well stocked. Lagos to Calabar by road was N15, by air it was N40 and for three months, we survived on N42, 500. I was a Federal Government University Merit Scholar. That means I went to university free of charge. My father insisted he would pay and he didn’t need government to send me to school. I used his money to buy books. That was how I started building a personal library that can only compete with that other one owned by the bibliophile called Odia Ofeimun. When I got to the University of Ibadan, I also ended up as a University Scholar. My father again insisted on paying his bills, but Nigeria insisted on training me. I consider myself a product of Nigeria. I got to wherever with my father and Nigeria competing to pay the bills. My father felt a sense of responsibility. Nigeria had a system that looked out of for people like me.. Once upon a time in this country, Nigeria looked out for people’s children and invested in them. I am one of those products. Standing on Nigeria’s investments, I have gone to so many other places in the world. Nigeria has given me a foundation that I could never imagine. And by some sheer accident of fate, I ended up as Presidential Spokesman at Nigeria’s highest level. Nigeria means a lot to me. I cannot give up on this country. No matter the travails, I believe that this country means a lot to so many of us: search your own history.

I have children who despite the difficulties are also not willing to throw away their Nigerian passports. Nigeria remains the home of my children and their great-grand children to come. Nigeria is the country that has given me all the opportunities I have had. It is the landscape of my joys and sorrows. It is your landscape too. What Nigeria means to me is a country that needs to be rescued from many years of abuse, from the locusts that eat things up, and the agents of the devil who turn a good country into a land of regrets. I am consoled by the realization that the people who love this country and who want to see it work and make progress possible are in the majority. Nigeria is a country not only of great potentials but also of great achievements. Let us take certain things seriously beyond satire and parody, and resolve that we all have a duty to make this country great.

I believe in this country because every opportunity that I have enjoyed came my way because in the long run, I am a Nigerian. The world is a competitive place. It is also a rational world. You can have the best CV in the world in any circumstance, but the people in charge of opportunities don’t just look at brilliance and genius, they consider so many other factors. What Nigeria means to me is a country that has given me many opportunities and opened many doors for me. I will confront those who want this country destroyed for false reasons and if ever given the opportunity, I will run this country and place it on the right path.

By now, you know where I stand. I am a grateful citizen who wants to rescue this country. My choice is a reformed and improved Nigeria that serves the interest of all citizens and mankind. What is your exact choice in this matter as we celebrate this 56^th Independence Anniversary weekend? What does Nigeria mean to you? [myad]

Growing Unemployment, Time-Bomb Threatening To Consume Us, Obasanjo Warns

Greenbarge Reporters

October 1, 2016

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo Obasanjo has identified growing unemployment as one of the major issues threatening the peace of Nigeria.

“Unemployment is a major problem in the country today and if we don’t take care, it will consume all of us. In fact, the rising unemployment is a time bomb.”

The former president, who spoke on Saturday in an Independence Day message at a lecture organized by the Youth Fellowship of Owu Baptist Church, Abeokuta, emphasized that the high rate of unemployment is responsible for youth restiveness in the country. He warned that the situation should be tackled with all the “seriousness” it deserves before it gets out of hand.

According to the former president, he got five job offers immediately he completed his secondary school education at Baptist Boys High School, Abeokuta. Such offers came from the United Africa Company (UAC) and Moore Plantation, Ibadan, among others, saying that the situation is different today in the country.

Obasanjo said that it had gotten so bad that six Ph.D. holders were among applicants seeking jobs with Dangote’s company as truck drivers.

Obasanjo said that he foresaw and warned against the way and manner the nation resources were being spent recklessly by the government of Goodluck Jonathan which has now landed the country in recession, adding that at the time he was sounding the warning he was concerned about recession.

“Whoever that has lived to witness the celebration of today should thank God. Things are not what they should be, but we should pray that next year will be better than this year.”

“We thank God for those who are alive, we prayed for the souls of those who have laboured for these country and who have passed on to rest in perfect peace.”

The former president said the country cannot develop if it pays no attention to agriculture.

“That is why we have to take it as a key of our development else the many educated Nigerians who have no job are like time bomb, sooner than later, it will explode,” he said. [myad]

Nigeria Maritime Agency Employs Consultant To Retrieve About $5 Billion From Debtors

Greenbarge Reporters

October 1, 2016

The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has appointed Snecou Financial Services Company Limited to assist in recovering debt of over five billion US Dollars various companies are owing it.
The contract for the recovery of debts owed the Agency is for a period of two years in the first instance with an option for renewal.
According to a statement by the NIMASA media chief, Lami Tumaka, the approval for the contract was recently granted by the Parastatals Tenders Board (PTB) of the Agency at its 55th session which held in the Agency’s head office in Lagos.
She said that the Agency sought and obtained approval for a “Certificate of No Objection” from the Bureau of Public Procurement in line with the Public Procurement Act (PPA).
According to the contractual agreement already endorsed by both parties, the contract is based on a success rate of 13 percent using a benchmark of $19,753,012.36 and N239,607,155.52 monthly revenue while a maximum cap of 15 percent success rate is payable on any new revenue head discovered by the consultants within the contract period.
Tumaka explained that Snecou Financial Services Company Limited will be paid 13 percent of only the revenue that is above the threshold of the approved benchmark in the course of the contracting period. Similarly, Messrs Snecou will also be entitled to a maximum of 15 percent of new revenue streams discovered during the period.
This, the spokeswoman said, is in line with the vision of the Director General of the Agency, Dr. Dakuku Peterside and in accordance with the Agency’s Medium Term Strategic Growth Plan, part of which is to enhance the Agency’s revenue.
She quoted Peterside as saying: “we have awarded a debt recovery contract which is totally different from what Global West was doing for NIMASA. The contract was not awarded to the Chairman of the APC in Rivers State. It was awarded to Snecou Nigeria Limited and we advertised the contract in several newspapers. So I don’t see what is wrong with awarding a contract to get our money from debtors.”
She said that debts owed NIMASA by various operators in the maritime industry have grown exponentially over the last five years, necessitating an investigation and convocation of a Public Hearing by the House of Representatives Committee on Maritime Safety, Education and Administration in June this year.
“This contract is expected to recover these debts and channel the funds into developing critical infrastructure as well as knowledgeable manpower for the industry.” [myad]

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