Orji Kalu Leadership Series

Of garrulity, vituperations and Nigeria’s politics

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The 2015 electioneering has brought out the best in Nigeria’s politicians: garrulity, cantankerousness and lack of restraint. Past elections, no doubt, had their own doses of these anti-democratic elements, but the 2015 stands tall above the rest. Tune in to any channel of communication and what you see will make you wonder if this is a 21st Nigeria of our dream. All kinds of trash in the name of advertisements rule the airwaves. And it seems the regulatory agencies have gone to sleep eternally.</div>
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The situation is made worse by some of the barefaced lies that are churned out on daily basis by politicians just to outdo one another, as if there will be no tomorrow. If the advertisements had centred on issues it would have been somewhat tolerable. But what is dished out is what can best be called ‘garbage’ in the journalistic parlance.</div>
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It seems all of us politicians are neck-deep into this self-destruct adventure! Are there no other decent ways to sell our messages to the millions of Nigerians eager to hear them? Must we resort to pouring invectives and vituperations on one another in order to win the attention of the electorate?</div>
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The situation has become so sickening that, if not checked, it could mark the death-knell of our young democracy. I find it hard to understand why even those who should ordinarily show the way are the people engaged in this act of intolerance. Why must all of us show feverish desperation as if our lives depended on politics? Does it mean some of us cannot survive without politics? Why should politics be made so attractive that some people have found safe havens in it?</div>
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Answers to these questions have become imperative with what is happening in our polity. The political space has been so heated up that I fear for the actual elections. Name-calling, angry outbursts and bad blood have become the order of the day.</div>
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I cannot fail to ask: from where did our politicians learn these dangerous acts in politicking? Could what they practice actually be called politicking? I doubt it. Politics to the best of my knowledge is like a game of chess. It does not require the player to exhibit an uncanny attitude or desperation. What it demands is tact and diplomacy to outsmart your opponent.</div>
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But in Nigeria politics is war, which must be won at all costs. Everybody is guilty and has come short of the demands of the electoral act and the constitution. Who does not know that our politicians are overheating the polity with their hate messages and vitriolic?</div>
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We denigrate one another and cast aspersions on one another – forgetting we have a tomorrow ahead of us. Have we suddenly forgotten that after thunder comes calm? Will we not have a cause to seek the support of one another in other enterprises in future? Why must we destroy the bridge after crossing it when we are expected to take the same route back?</div>
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Our politicians should wear their thinking cats and do what is proper. There is no way we can fight our common enemies – insecurity and ethnic disharmony – by quarrelling and calling one another unprintable names. We may see some of our actions as right now, but later we will have cause to regret.</div>
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I have never seen anywhere in the whole wide world where bitterness and warring have produced any dividends. Rather they have succeeded in setting nations on fire and destroying the foundations of democracy. It does not matter whatever reasons anybody would like to adduce to justify the unruly behaviour of our politicians. In my opinion no reason can be sufficient to justify what our politicians do at present – mudslinging.</div>
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We watch how the developed nations we aspire to be like practice their own politics. They allow everybody – no matter your social stature – to aspire to any office of your dream. They also run decent campaigns, and every participant has access to any media of his or her choice. But such is not the case in Nigeria. Media that are owned by government are used as if they were personal properties of the governor of the state. Nobody from the opposition can have access to such media. This is clearly against the spirit of political sportsmanship and the regulations that govern the operability of such media.</div>
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Sadly, this trend has caught up with the entire nation without an exception. Why is it so? The reason is not far to get: Politics in Nigeria has become a huge money-making venture, attracting all manners of people. Like the honey pot, everybody must have a taste of it. Have we paused and asked about the welfare of the bees that produce the honey. People hardly ever remember the bees. All they want is the honey. This is the tragedy of our national political life.</div>
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The struggle for Nigeria’s independence succeeded the way it did mainly because of the altruism of our founding fathers. Ahmadu Bello, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Obafemi Awolowo, Dennis Osadebey, Akanu Ibiam, Aminu Kano, and others sacrificed their lives to found the modern Nigeria. They carried themselves with dignity and candour, and played politics without rancour and bitterness. I recall with deep pain the Apostle of politics without bitterness: Ibrahim Waziri of the then Great Nigerian Peoples’ Party (GNPP). He had some disagreements with Nnamdi Azikiwe over the founding of the Nigerian Peoples’ Party (NPP). Instead of rocking the boat he opted to found another political party. That was how GNPP emerged.</div>
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I cannot forget the period leading to the 1979 general elections. Politicians went about their business without fear of molestation. They traversed every nook and cranny of the country without any harassment or intimidation. Security was minimal at political rallies as people saw it as a game. It was always an exhilarating spectacle then watching politicians speak from the soapboxes. Their speeches centred on issues that shaped the destiny of the nation. What about Zik and Ozumba Mbadiwe and their bombastic and highfaluting lexicons? These things added colour and fun to the campaigns.</div>
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What do we have today? The opposite is the answer. When Nigerian politicians mount the podia their messages are always very predictable. They spit fire and threaten the heavens will fall if they failed to win. They spend precious time calling their rivals all kinds of insulting names as if they themselves are better. This is what I call hypocrisy of the highest order.</div>
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The drafters of the current constitution and the electoral act did not anticipate the kind of behaviour being exhibited by politicians. Otherwise they would have made clear-cut provisions to arrest it. The situation has almost got to a point that politicians with naked power can always do whatever they like and go scot-free. What other conclusions could I have drawn when it now seems the National Communications Commission (NCC), Nigerian Broadcasting Commission (NBC) and Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON) can no longer enforce discipline and order in the industry they regulate?</div>
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I am aware of the stringent provisions in the laws that established these regulatory bodies and this leaves me wondering why they cannot evoke such regulations to call any erring person or institution to order. I am particularly worried about the reckless manner the advertisements for the print media are packaged. I know there is a panel in APCON charged with the responsibility of vetting every advertising copy to be used in the media. What has become of that panel? Does the panel vet every ad copy that goes to the media for use as an advertisement?</div>
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The NCC and NBC seem to have suddenly disappeared from the radar in the discharge of their duties. And this is why decorum and commonsense have taken flight from our political space. The electronic and social media have gone haywire with hate messages and offensive advertising, yet nobody seems to be doing anything to restore order.</div>
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The most worrisome part of this whole saga is the assault on the psyche of innocent Nigerians and the charging of the polity. Politicians should not underestimate how far their messages can go in creating disunity and bad blood among the peoples of Nigeria. The current state of insecurity in the country can be made worse by these hate messages. We all know how restive some parts of the country have been and how such incendiary messages can fuel the embers of hate and insurgency. Unfortunately our politicians care less. What bothers them is how they will get power. Whether the people they aspire to govern are alive or dead means little to them.</div>
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How I wish the presidential elections had held on February 14. At least by now the airwaves would have enjoyed some sanity and quietude. With the postponement comes increased tempo of politicking and sickening messages from political gladiators. We have another 5 weeks of listless and mindless noisemaking by the political class. Are we going to have some changes this time round? Are the regulatory bodies going to step into the foray and restore normalcy?</div>
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To continue to maintain relevance and attract the respect of Nigerians these regulatory agencies must sit up and do their jobs. They should not engage in primordial considerations before evoking their powers. Nobody or political party should be treated with kid’s gloves when it comes face to face with the law. The essence of the laws is to regulate behavior and conduct, ensuring that every player subjects himself to the tenets of the contest.</div>
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But it seems some animals are more equal than others – a sad portrayal of George Orwell’s <em style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The Animal Farm</em>. Our political landscape has unfortunately become a centre of the absurd – where naked wielding of power has become the name of the game. The weak have been made vulnerable and shut out of circulation. Who then will speak for them?</div>
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In many states of the federation tension is very high as politicians canvass votes. They muster whatever is in their arsenal to make their impact felt – even if it runs contrary to the statutes and decency. This is where maturity and candour come into play. We are all witnesses to the lawlessness being displayed by politicians across board in different parts of the country. They do this unmindful of the law. There have been cases of bombing of offices of opposing political parties and rivals. This is not a good sign of what is to come.</div>
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As a matter of fact, the resort to self-help by politicians has been elevated to preposterous heights. They even go about with private security men dressed in military uniforms as if our official security agents are inferior. These fake security men are used for illegal operations to cow opponents and create a state of panic and insecurity in the land.</div>
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And so, who will bell the cat? Who will save us from the impending cataclysm? I am usually encouraged by assurances from the security agencies that they are on top of the situation. However, that insecurity should persist after these assurances is what baffles me. This is the time for the security agencies to redeem their image and reassure Nigerians of their preparedness to provide cover for the elections.</div>
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The political class has a big role to play in ensuring the success of the forthcoming elections. It is important for them to conduct themselves in a manner that will foster national unity and cohesion, and promote healthy political rivalries. It will not do anybody any good if Nigeria is set on fire. We have more to benefit co-existing as one, indivisible nation in which love and trust will blossom.</div>
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I urge our politicians to vet the content of their messages to remove vestiges of hate or rancour. They should see one another, first, as fellow Nigerians and, second, as brothers and sisters. Engaging in provocative utterances against one another is an ill-wind that blows nobody any good.</div>
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The horizon, though charged, looks hopeful. It holds promises for free, fair and credible elections. And I pray God to make it happen.</div>
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BISHOP EZEONYIA: <strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">PASSAGE OF A TRUE MAN OF GOD</strong></div>
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The news of the death of the Catholic Bishop of Aba Diocese, Bishop Vincent Valentine Ezeonyia, came to me as a shock. He never betrayed any sign of imminent death. In fact, I had spoken to him a few days before his sudden death and he exuded his usual vivacity and camaraderie.</div>
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So, you could imagine the grief when the news of his death was broken to me by one of the priests that served under him.</div>
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For the period I knew Bishop Ezeonyia, especially during my stint as executive governor of Abia State, he was a huge source of inspiration to me and many of my associates. His wise counseling, charm and fatherly disposition distinguished him from the pack. He will be sorely missed.</div>
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As we prepare his final burial on February 27, I pray God to console the Church in Aba and, indeed, the whole federation, on the loss of this erudite and holy shepherd.</div>
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May God grant his soul eternal rest, and let His light shine upon him and be merciful unto him. Amen!</div>
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Of garrulity, vituperations and Nigeria’s politics

The 2015 electioneering has brought out the best in Nigeria’s politicians: garrulity, cantankerousness and lack of restraint. Past electi...

Postponement of elections: Blessing in disguise

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<span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">A week ago, I wrote a passionate letter to all Nigerians in connection with the 2015 elections earlier scheduled for February 14 and 28 respectively. The letter was a product of a strict meditative process. I had intended to use it to redirect the consciousness of Nigerians to do what is proper in order to engender peace, mutual tolerance and, therefore, credible, free and fair elections. While we humans were busy thinking of the way forward to successful elections, little did anybody know, God was planning something else. God’s will prevailed and the elections were postponed.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">Is anybody still in doubt that God is absolutely in control of affairs in our dear country? When men make their own plans God has the final way.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">I wrote in this column in the beginning of the year that God had taken a special interest in Nigeria’s affairs and that he was going to do something marvelous in our eyes. Has that not started happening? The postponement of the elections is another way of God manifesting Himself to us and telling us not to worry too much about the future of this country.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">Barely one week to the postponement rumour mill was agog with all kinds of stories, ranging from the preposterous to lugubrious. News started flying that the elections were going to be rescheduled. The media, civil society groups, political parties and other interest groups cried blue murder, warning INEC not to succumb to what many of them described as blackmail from the government of the day. The opposition was particularly loud about the threat of a reprisal action should the elections be postponed.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">The meeting of the National Council of States had held a few days earlier to deliberate on the need for a possible shift, but did not arrive at any consensus. Rather it advised INEC to liaise with the security agencies before deciding finally on what to do. From the body language of the Council I knew right away that the elections were going to be postponed. Asking INEC to liaise with the security agencies was an indirect way of advising INEC to postpone the elections.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">Who, in Nigeria, does not know that security has posed one of the hugest challenges to the Jonathan administration? Even though the Chief of Defence Staff a month ago had assured INEC of the readiness of his men to offer logistic support for the elections, the National Security Adviser had a different position. Speaking at the Chatham House in London two weeks ago the National Security Adviser had advised that the elections be moved to more realistic dates. He had cited the inability of many registered voters to collect their permanent voter’s card as the reason.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">In my usual intuitive disposition I had already made up my mind that INEC was going to reschedule the dates of the elections, considering the fact that the Electoral Act (as amended) gave INEC some powers to shift the dates of the elections within the confines of the act. The Act states clearly that elections must hold at least 30 days to the handover date of May 29. By this provision INEC was not under any compulsion to hold the elections on February 14 and 28.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">So, by shifting the dates of the polls to March 28 and April 11 INEC has done a great service to our nation and the electoral process. The reasons the Chairman of INEC adduced for the shift were as plausible as they were exigent. What would anybody have gained by INEC going ahead to conduct elections in which over 35 per cent of voters would have been disenfranchised and in which its ad hoc staff would have been insufficiently equipped?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">The truth is that postponing the elections became inevitable when reports showed that the safety of voters, INEC staff and materials could not be guaranteed by the security agencies. The heightening insecurity in the north could not permit the security agencies to offer INEC such a guarantee. And this is understandable.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">I find it, therefore, absurd when some people attribute the shift to other ulterior motives. What ulterior motives? Some even claimed the dates of the polls were shifted because Jonathan was going to lose if elections were held on the dates stipulated earlier.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">Let me ask those who make such flimsy allusions a simple question: what difference would 6 weeks make in Jonathan winning or losing the elections? Absolutely nothing! Six weeks is like a drop of water in the ocean when you compare it to the gains INEC and the whole nation stand to make in the long run.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">Some of the gains include: adequate time for INEC to distribute the PVCs, deploy the card-readers, and train its ad hoc staff on the use of the card readers and other logistics; and enough time for the security agencies to curtail insurgencies in different parts of the country to an appreciable level before the elections. Achieving these two critical objectives will make the chances of the elections being free, fair and credible brighter.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">As I wrote this week’s column somebody sent an SMS to my mobile phone accusing the National Security Adviser, INEC and Director of Security Service of committing treason by postponing the elections. I find this ludicrous. What was treasonable in INEC exercising its constitutional duty? The Constitution expressly empowers INEC to fix dates for elections and, even, postpone the same if the need arises.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">Instead of dissipating energy on issues that will not do us any good we should rather devote more attention to the effort being made by the government and INEC to deliver free, fair and incredible elections to Nigerians. Knowing the pedigree of the man Attahiru Jega there is no way anybody or institution can make him do what is antithetical to national development.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">For the period Jega has held forte at INEC the commission has done its best to deepen our democracy by conducting elections to meet international standards. I do not therefore subscribe to the view that Jega buckled under threat by the security agencies to postpone the elections.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">The wide consultations the commission made before the decision was finally taken to shift the dates of the polls would have been enough to convince even a doubting Thomas that the commission meant well for Nigeria.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">Feelers reaching me indicate INEC is already leveraging on the extension of the dates of the elections. It has intensified efforts to ensure that the PVCs get to their end-users on time. The training of its ad hoc staff has commenced in earnest and run till such a time the staff will have been adequately trained to handle the sensitive materials and equipment that would be placed under their care.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">Let me place on record the general comportment of the various stakeholders in the face of the postponement. Contrary to the fears expressed by some people that there would be a breach of the peace should the postponement be announced, there has been an atmosphere of peace and calm. This is what should be expected. After all, the opposition and other stakeholders are Nigerians, live in Nigeria and know what is happening inside it.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">Nigeria at present is going through trying times aggravated by insecurity, falling global oil prices and corruption. It has to be told today that Nigeria’s effort at conducting free and fair elections and stabilizing the economy come with a huge price. To deliver free and fair elections we need adequate preparations. To improve the economy we need to exterminate corruption and build institutions that will serve as stop-gaps in the war against graft.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">It is auspicious at this point to state that I see the hand of God in the postponement. In the first place, the elections would not have been postponed if God had not sanctioned it. Is His ways not different from ours? He has the final say on any matter in heaven and on earth, and even beneath the earth. It may be safe therefore to claim that there is blessing in disguise in the action of INEC.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">Mark my word: INEC will conduct the freest and fairest elections in the annals of our nation this time round. And whoever emerges winner from the 14 presidential candidates in the race will be accepted and sworn in as President without any crisis. Those who express fears over the handover date do so out of sheer greed and self-aggrandizement. There is nothing altruistic in their fears.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">The reaction of President Goodluck Jonathan to these fears has been quite heartwarming. According to the president, the May 29 handover date is sacrosanct. What this simply means is the government is ready to work for the sustenance of our ongoing democracy, no matter the sacrifices it is expected to make. There is nothing anywhere to show that Jonathan would have lost if the elections had held on February 14. Nothing absolutely! In fact, opinion polls indicated the contrary. The support base of Jonathan grows by the day as people begin to appreciate the enormity of the work his administration has done to make Nigeria better.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">There is no aspect of our national life that has not experienced transformation. Agriculture, rail transportation and employment-creation, in particular, have witnessed some boost under Jonathan. Critics of the administration should ask some questions such as where Nigeria was when Jonathan came and where it is now. From every indication there has been a quantum leap in service delivery, wealth creation opportunities and economic growth.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">The critics of Jonathan are simply myopic, egocentric and green with envy. What this administration deserves is a pat in the back and not unwarranted criticisms as is being done by armchair critics and ethnic jingoists. If it were in other climes President Jonathan needn’t have gone through the rigours of campaigning. The citizenry would have ordinarily voted massively for him to continue the good works he is doing.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">It is important for our politicians to change the way they reason and act for the overall interest of our democracy and nation. The idea of fanning the embers of hate and creating illusionary enemies among Nigerians is negative, counterproductive and sectional. Nigeria has grown into a nation that should no longer accommodate some of these retrogressive tendencies.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">I have listened with consternation the hate messages being dished out through diverse media by the various contestants. These messages portend danger for our growing democracy. Politicians signed an undertaking a few weeks ago not to exhibit or condone violence during the elections. Regrettably, the same day the agreement was signed in Abuja was the day some of them chose to patronize the media and paint one another in dark light.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">When will our politicians learn to demonstrate resilience, candour and tolerance in their politicking? There is no love lost among them. What do they hope to achieve by casting aspersion on one another and sowing the seed of discord?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">The elections have been postponed and it is a reality all of us will have to live with. Creating unnecessary brouhaha over the postponement should be discouraged.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">I am glad at the way the main opposition party, All Progressives’ Congress (APC), has accepted the postponement. I listened to the party’s deputy director-general, national campaign organization, Senator Olorunimbe Mamora, as he expressed the party’s position on the postponement of the elections; and he made some salient points. He said without any equivocation that his party had accepted the postponement in good faith and with equanimity. He however expressed apprehension that there could be a hidden agenda behind it.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">Let me nonetheless assure the distinguished Senator that there are no other reasons for the postponement other than the ones already given by Jega. The new dates for the elections are realistic and tenable.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy3OlYzDXLJgljwS-Pjqtd6pYNaWm2_UcuW5GxHcIp7XblByxxKL9zAIzseHKaK4LbGkGLHYKCR0nzlp71k0PmXsri6zGN3cRXvRXvPWbzO7Qn4MwnUkMcp_WaBsVzGXdYBqN0nNHJ0ee_/s1600/Ouk+leadership.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy3OlYzDXLJgljwS-Pjqtd6pYNaWm2_UcuW5GxHcIp7XblByxxKL9zAIzseHKaK4LbGkGLHYKCR0nzlp71k0PmXsri6zGN3cRXvRXvPWbzO7Qn4MwnUkMcp_WaBsVzGXdYBqN0nNHJ0ee_/s1600/Ouk+leadership.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">All INEC needs is the cooperation of all critical stakeholders to be able to deliver on its mandate. It does not deserve any distractions as some disgruntled elements have planned to do. Anybody that distracts INEC does not really mean well for this country.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">INEC may have its faults, which is normal and expected. It should not be crucified as a result. With the extra six weeks the commission will be ready to conduct elections that will be globally acclaimed as the best Nigeria has ever conducted.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">I urge Nigerians to go out and collect their PVCs. They should not wait until the eleventh hour before filing out to collect their cards. Those that have collected their voter’s cards should preserve them very carefully and ensure they use them judiciously on elections days.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15.0766000747681px; line-height: 27.9972457885742px;">I commend Jega and his commissioners for the courage they demonstrated by agreeing to shift the elections. By that singular decision they have succeeded in giving our democracy a new life and the electoral process the impetus to grow and flourish.</span></div>

Postponement of elections: Blessing in disguise

A week ago, I wrote a passionate letter to all Nigerians in connection with the 2015 elections earlier scheduled for February 14 and 28 res...

LETTER TO NIGERIANS: Before we go to the polls

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I sat ensconced in my sofa a week ago ruminating on all what had happened to our dear country since independence. I had thought about the 30-month civil war and its aftermath – the hues and the cries – the poverty and penury. I had thought also about the journey we have made as a nation since then – the lost opportunities, the failed and failing infrastructure, the broken promises. Above all, I had spared a thought for millions of our compatriots suffering from one form of deprivation or another, caused by the mindless behaviour of the political class. Grieved and overburdened by the thoughts I decided to write this letter to all Nigerians as we draw closer to the elections.</div>
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The main reason for writing you at this critical time of our national history stemmed from the fact that we have failed to learn any lessons from the sordid experiences of our past. It is sad that we have continually failed to appreciate the abundant talents God has given to each of us to develop our country and make it the dreamland we have always craved for.</div>
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Have we paused to ponder why we are where we are today and why we have not reached the Promised Land – a journey we began on the day of amalgamation in 1914? For 101 years we have journeyed to nowhere in particular. That is what it seems. What else would it be that we have wasted numerous opportunities that came our way to make Nigeria great?</div>
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Yes, we are one united nation! But how sincere have we been with one another? We profess our patriotic inclinations openly, while deep inside us we hate one another morbidly.</div>
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We fought a bitter 30-month civil war, in which millions were massacred, properties worth billions of naira wasted. We are yet to recover from the tragedy of that war and behold some of us are already sounding the trumpets of another war.</div>
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What on earth would make us reason so irrationally, forgetting too soon the tragedies that had befallen Rwanda, Somalia, Liberia, Sudan, etc? Can we afford another (bloody) civil war? Can our fragile nation survive another round of internecine war with its grave consequences?</div>
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I have asked these questions to agitate our minds about the impending danger to our national survival. Those clamouring for war, probably, did not witness the last one. For if they did, they would have known that war is a curse on any nation. The worst thing I would ever wish an enemy is war. We were toddlers when the civil war in Nigeria broke out. As impressionable as we were we still felt the pain of the waste and desolation that was the lot of our people.</div>
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Can we spare a thought for the countless assaults we have mounted on Nigeria? How we have ravaged its resources and wasted its virginity. From 1957 (when oil was discovered in commercial quantities in Oloibiri) till date, Nigeria has bled ceaselessly from greed, malfeasance, corruption, wickedness and hatred, ethnicity and nepotism, infrastructural decay and exploitation of the weak by the poor.</div>
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From the first democratic dispensation in the late fifties till the present one Nigeria has grappled with these multifarious problems, with no end in sight. Instead of counting our blessings as a nation we count dead bodies of our fellow compatriots killed by us for our selfish interest. Who would ever have believed that 55 years after independence Nigerians would still be engaged in barbaric acts against one another? Life means little to us anymore. We kill with relish at the slightest provocation and even flaunt it to the outside world.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWQwZVw9hhhAYQiXWdsw0fMT277iTaGUco9B3Dae1JIFd4HMcguNVtG_rjWBunFioCm97xZ11V_2wbM9ILzzA0A72zbxV6SZRw3OzoNHPs1iY0JTJCKtM9YOaR4Jq2HilIhp2BCmVfhruD/s1600/Orji+Kalu+Leadershipjpeg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="311" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWQwZVw9hhhAYQiXWdsw0fMT277iTaGUco9B3Dae1JIFd4HMcguNVtG_rjWBunFioCm97xZ11V_2wbM9ILzzA0A72zbxV6SZRw3OzoNHPs1iY0JTJCKtM9YOaR4Jq2HilIhp2BCmVfhruD/s1600/Orji+Kalu+Leadershipjpeg.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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We have banded ourselves into militia groups, fighting for autonomy in a nation our forbears poured out their lives to found and unite. We have allowed our narrow parochial interests to obfuscate our sense of judgment and draw us into endless war of attrition against one another. What do we stand to gain if Nigeria is destroyed? God who brought us together as one people knew of our diversities from the onset and yet allowed us to be one nation. Why then do we want to dislocate the well-ordered structures that the good Lord has bequeathed to us?</div>
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It does not matter any longer how any individual or group feels about the nation Nigeria. The era has passed when such persons or individuals had the opportunity to disagree. In the build-up to Nigeria’s independence individuals and groups made their own contributions to the debate for independence. After all the debates we agreed to live together, irrespective of differences in tongue, culture and religion. Why then do some people, despite these realities, still promote divisive tendencies?</div>
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The truth I would want to tell us this day is that no amount of restiveness or insurrection can divide Nigeria. The unity of Nigeria was cemented on the altar on which the precious blood of our founding fathers and mothers was spilled.</div>
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It is unfortunate that those who champion the new plot to destabilise Nigeria are the same people on whom its future rests. Is it not the same people who are the insurgents that hold our nation hostage – threatening its peace and continued existence? What future then do we have if our able-bodied youth are used as thugs, kidnappers and insurgents to cause disaffection among our peoples.</div>
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It will be a tragedy of epic proportion if we failed to put a stop to this madness and redirect the energies of our youth to gainful enterprises. Those that exploit the vulnerability of the youth to dislocate the social fabric that binds us together should be made to know the huge disservice they do to our great nation and made to pay for it. We can no longer afford to sit and watch, while some disgruntled elements foment trouble and cause the loss of innocent lives.</div>
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This clarion call has become necessary, because of the ominous signs hovering in the sky. It is only a fool that will sit and watch his house burn without making any effort to salvage it.</div>
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The 2015 elections are just a week away and already tension has reached a palpable height. Some groups have threatened fire and brimstone should their candidates ever lose. Whey then do we have elections? Elections are the statutory process designed for us to elect our leaders. Any other process is not only illegal but subversive and illegitimate. It does not matter what we think is the best way things should be done. What we should concern ourselves with, at least for now, is what the law and the constitution state.</div>
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The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria clearly stipulates the guidelines on how we should choose leaders to man key federal offices. There is no where it states that any disenchanted citizen or group should resort to self-help. All the insurgencies across the country are illegal, illegitimate and a negation of the sovereignty of this nation.</div>
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It is curious that we have all suddenly lost our scruples. Those who should speak up have chosen to remain silent and watch things get worse, forgetting that all of us will be imperiled should Nigeria go down today. My people have a popular proverb which states: He that sounds the trumpet of war should not forget that war is death.</div>
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There is nothing that can be compared to peace and love. In love we are united, in peace we progress. Hatred and animosity cause us to falter and destroy all we have laboured for as a nation.</div>
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The forthcoming elections are not designed to estrange us. Rather they have been planned to afford us the opportunity to elect men and women who would pilot our affairs for another four years. To make these choices accordingly, we need to be adequately informed and prepared. Quality leaders can never emerge from any process that is compromised or faulty. We need to stimulate our thought process through meaningful discourses and mutual interactions. Definitely not through threats of war or intimidation!</div>
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If we believe we are one, indivisible nation, why then should a section of the country hold the rest of us to ransom? We have sufficient space to ventilate our grievances and still remain one people. How many lives have been lost to the insurgencies across the country? Countless numbers indeed! These innocent people have been mauled by their fellow citizens for no fault of theirs. Many of them killed left their ancestral homes in search of greener pastures. But lo and behold, what they got in return was premature death.</div>
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What could cause us to raise even a finger against one another? Have we suddenly forgotten that life is sacred, and no man or woman has the right to take it? Even our own lives are not ours. They belong to the Maker.</div>
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Everywhere you go in Nigeria today what you hear are threats of separation. Separate for what reason? Just to satisfy our whims and caprices? There has never been any genuine reason for anybody to clamour separation. The way God has designed our nation it is difficult for any section to go it alone. Those that produce oil may not have other things necessary to survive alone. The same thing applies to those that have been endowed with agricultural wealth. What all this means is we need one another to survive.</div>
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Instead of agitation for self-determination we should rather pull resources and develop our nation. The United States, despite its huge population, expanse of land, cultural diversity, has remained one. The racial scourge that had threatened to divide them was destroyed through personal sacrifices of their leaders to save America. Abraham Lincoln is today remembered all over the world for his feat in this direction.</div>
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Do we not have leaders in the mold of Abraham Lincoln, who can make huge personal sacrifices, to keep Nigeria one? Where have all the courageous and selfless men and women gone to? It seems everybody has lost the courage to speak up. Is it because of fear or what? How could our leaders stay and watch the she-goat deliver its kid in titters?</div>
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Why have parents allowed their children to lose control? Our families have become a hunting ground for vandals, criminals and cultists. Now that the elections are almost here many parents cannot account for their children. While a few of these parents have lost the courage to control their children, many others are ignorant of what their children actually do.</div>
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As we read this piece many of our children and wards are being equipped to be used as thugs for the elections. They have been quarantined in hidden places and indoctrinated on how to kill and maim. For how long will things go on this way? For how long will they be used as pawns in the chessboard by greedy and disgruntled politicians?</div>
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Our politicians have done a great disservice to our nation. I regret to state here that 50 per cent of our current problems were caused by the political class. They are the people who spread the messages of hate to create acrimony, which they exploit for their selfish desires. They are also the same people that sponsor violence and ethnic disharmony in order to cause confusion in the land and, by so doing, achieve their selfish political ends. Put together, our nation would have made much progress if our politicians had conducted themselves honourably and selflessly.</div>
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Let me warn all of us: the seeds of social disharmony, religious radicalism, and ethnic clannishness we have sown will soon grow into a colossal monster that will consume those that planted them. I have never doubted the biblical positing that nobody can mock God; for whatever a man sows he shall reap. Those who create crises in the land and pretend they would not be found out should know that the day of judgment will come soon – like a thief in the night.</div>
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We owe it as a patriotic duty to participate fully in the current electoral process and work for the emergence of quality representatives who would manage our affairs for the next four years. We must ensure that we collect our permanent voter’s cards and come out and exercise our franchise.</div>
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I urge our politicians to exercise restraint and avoid anything that will scuttle our fledgling democracy. No sacrifice is too much for us to make to move Nigeria forward. As President Jonathan has always said, no election is worth the blood of any Nigeria. This is a very powerful statement. But the courage to put it into practice is the challenge that faces every Nigerian politician.</div>
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As for INEC, they have a huge task on their hands. They must work assiduously to ensure that the elections are not only free and fair, but credible. If they failed to get it right this time then they have succeeded in mortgaging the peace and security of this nation, and posterity will never forgive them.</div>
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All of us must rise up today and say no to violence, no to corruption, no to election manipulation, no to killing and no to religious fanaticism. We need to do something today to save our tomorrow.</div>
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The future of Nigeria and our continued existence depend on these elections. We cannot afford to be apathetic. If we failed to exercise our right to choose our leaders we would have ourselves to blame when the day of reckoning comes.</div>
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I pray God to bless Nigeria and protect us all.</div>
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Thank you.</div>
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LETTER TO NIGERIANS: Before we go to the polls

I sat ensconced in my sofa a week ago ruminating on all what had happened to our dear country since independence. I had thought about the...

2015 presidential election: Issues that’ll determine the winner

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Despite the prophecies, predictions, social media permutations and other forms of dialectics, there are some hard facts that must be considered in determining who carries the day when Nigerians choose their President on February 14, 2015. And there are compelling reasons to do so.</div>
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Let me quickly state, however, that those factors that influenced the choice of candidates in the past elections will be expectedly quite different this time around. Nonetheless, the economy will still dominate discussions in consideration of happenings on the international scene, especially the global recession.</div>
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Take for instance in 2011 the state of the economy was not as precarious as it is today. The international oil market did not experience the kind of volatility it is undergoing at this time. Indeed at this period in 2011 the price of oil hovered around $100 per barrel, while Nigeria’s foreign reserve stood at $45 billion. Even insecurity did not pose too much trouble then. Insurgency was also minimal, and Boko Haram had not bared its fangs as audaciously as it has done.</div>
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So, riding on his rising popularity President Jonathan stomped into Aso Rock with massive support coming from voters all over the country. He was well-received and seen as the 21st Century Messiah Nigeria had been waiting for. Those that contested against him in 2011 knew from the outset that they were going to lose, because the tide flowed in his favour. The only person that came closest to giving President Jonathan a good run for his money was the same General Muhammadu Buhari, who ran on the ticket of a rag-tag party, Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), and poled over 12 million votes.</div>
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But today all that has changed. The battle this time is going to be fierce as Nigerians decide who between President Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari would lead them. The consciousness of Nigerians has been awakened by the compelling realities of our times. In fact, there is no Nigerian of age who has not joined the fray in rooting for either of the two. While some people say (or is it sai!) Jonathan, others say it is Buhari. Whichever way one chooses to look at both candidates the hard fact is that we have a huge battle ahead of us.</div>
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Apart from sheer sentiments that some people show by their vociferous support for each of the candidates they have not taken a dispassionate look at other serious factors that will swing the pendulum to the side of the eventual winner. These factors have often been underestimated by the chanting ‘mob’ which seems to be carried away by undue sentimentalism. It is painful that in our contemporary world some people still think irrationally and pander to myopia.</div>
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It is only a blind man that will not be able to see the real situation on the ground. I regret to state here that President Jonathan, in my estimation, has become the most vilified Nigerian leader ever to preside over the affairs of this country. Unfortunately, the vilification is done without any rational basis other than meretricious considerations. Deep inside the hearts and minds of these rabid critics they know President has worked to merit a re-election without much ado.</div>
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It is sad that the critics of Jonathan have failed to situate events at the global level with what is obtainable back home. Fall in oil prices is not the making of Jonathan; rather it is a factor of recession that hit the global market. The same situation was experienced in 2007/8 when recession almost crippled the economy of many countries of the world. Nigeria felt the adverse impact of the recession then. But it took the ingenuity of our economic planners to take us through the crucibles. Many investors in the stock market will not forget too soon how the crash in prices almost sent many of them to their early graves. Those involved in marginal trading were the most hit.</div>
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Nigeria managed to weather the storm and continued to trudge along the mine-laden terrains that the economy has become. Those angling for a change of baton have failed to consider the stupendous achievements of President Jonathan in the areas of health, education, youth empowerment, power and, even, security. Forget the noise about somebody having an edge over Jonathan in security. That argument, as far as I am concerned, lacks any empirical basis.</div>
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Security is something one cannot ever predict accurately. The emergence of the Boko Haram sect came like a thunderbolt from the blue. It just started gathering steam as many wished it away as a bad dream. Nobody ever anticipated that the scourge would grow into a terrific monster – threatening Nigeria and its neighbours. Cameroun has become a hotbed for the group’s activities. This was something nobody envisaged. So, when Jonathan is criticized for his seeming inability to contain terror it will be proper to give him the benefit of the doubt.</div>
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His administration has been working tirelessly to deal with Boko Haram without compromising the security of innocent Nigerians within the vicinity of every insurgency. Those not versed in military strategy think it is an easy task to wedge war against terror. Terror war is the worst war any nation can spearhead. The United States and its allies, despite their sophistication, have not been able to deal with terror as successfully as many had expected. The 9/11 attacks on the United States were never anticipated. But it happened. And the lessons of that sordid event have not been lost on Americans. Is France not fighting a battle of its life in the hands of terrorists?</div>
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That the activities of Boko Haram have not spread beyond the Northeast is an indication that the administration of Jonathan is working.</div>
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It has never been argued that security remains a very critical aspect of the development of any nation – Nigeria inclusive. But the unconventional approach and brutality of Boko Haram are two factors that have prolonged the war against terror by the Nigerian Military. Between 2013 and now the federal government has committed enormous resources in dealing with the menace. The impact of the government’s investment in security is like a drop of water in the ocean, because of the complex nature of the operations.</div>
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It is nonsensical to read some critics write off Jonathan as clueless and weak. There is no way he would have been able to hold the nation together for close to 60 months if he had cut a picture of any of the derogatory things said and written about him. On the contrary, Jonathan has shown unequalled leadership traits, maturity, humaneness and candour. For a civilian President Jonathan has conducted himself with civility and humility. This is what has consistently attracted many Nigerians to him and it is one factor that will swing the votes to him.</div>
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What some of the armchair critics of Jonathan probably have also not factored in is the quality of a leader under a democratic setting. Jonathan’s archrival Muhammadu Buhari is perceived as a no-nonsense, uncompromising leader. Fine! But, regrettably, those superlative adjectives should be reserved for a despotic, autocratic and authoritarian leader of a junta. In a modern society the characteristics of leaders are quite different. They are urbane, tactful, honest, pragmatic and charismatic.</div>
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My grouse about Buhari’s candidacy has nothing to do with his age; after all there are many gerontocrats who currently preside over the affairs of their countries. Tunisians, for example, have just elected an 88-year-old man to govern them.</div>
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President Obasanjo was a military Head of State between 1976 and 1979. He aspired again in 1999 to the same office and won. One year into office he confessed that life as a military Head of State was a different kettle of fish from a civilian Head. Eight good years passed yet his administration could not solve the endemic power problem, which was one of the cardinal objectives of his electioneering.</div>
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The economy under Obasanjo did not perform as expected, because of the downturn in global economy at that time. Life was not all that rosy for Nigerians under his watch. Things were very difficult and rough. But we managed to survive, always hoping for the best.</div>
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What is paramount to an average Nigerian is how to get food on his table! And Jonathan is making steady progress in this sphere. Already the federal ministry of agriculture has designed many programmes and policies to boost agriculture and, by so doing, provide food and employment to millions of Nigerians. The progress made so far is unprecedented. The impact of the transformation taking place in the agricultural sector has not yet been felt because it takes time to manifest. Do not forget the mountainous rot that had taken place, which Jonathan is struggling to clean. These things take time to resolve.</div>
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The situation of security in Nigeria would have been worse if the government of Jonathan had not intervened in the Niger Delta insurgency. Through the presidential amnesty many of the militants had been rehabilitated, with thousands more undergoing rehabilitation. I wonder if the critics see all these things.</div>
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Nigeria’s voters have been known not to fall to cheap blackmails. In fact, many times in the past they had shunned such blackmails to vote for candidates of their choice. This is one thing that will shock those working against the re-election of Jonathan. Nigerians know who among the contestants will give them focused and purposeful leadership. They know that for Nigeria to move forward the leader must show vision and character. And Jonathan possesses these qualities generously.</div>
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I liken the critics of Jonathan to the blind man who describes what he sees by what he feels. They have eyes but do not see. The economy they deride the president for is growing at geometric proportion, even to the point of being the largest in Africa. This feat was not achieved by sheer cluelessness. It was a product of hard work, resilience and forthrightness.</div>
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Fighting corruption is another factor that will attract the votes of the electorate. Jonathan will definitely carry the day here. He has constantly maintained zero tolerance for corruption. Do not mind the machinations of the evil ones. The EFCC and other agencies charged with the responsibility of fighting corruption are quietly doing their work. They may not be as loud as was the case in the past, but they are doing a wonderful job.</div>
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Jailing, maiming and killing people are not the best way to fight corruption. Fighting corruption demands diligent planning, tact and ingenuity. Remember that an accessory to a crime is deemed innocent by law until proved guilty. Due process is what the present administration has followed in the prosecution of those implicated in corrupt practices. Anything in the contrary is simply an infringement on the fundamental rights of those involved.</div>
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Let it be known that corruption is a global menace, so also is terrorism. And no nation is insulated from it. The United States and other European nations have had serious cases of corruption, but nobody has been brutalized. And to aspire to be like those countries requires we do things the way they ought to be done. Global best practices are always advocated in dealing with any matter that concerns human rights and dignity. That is exactly what Jonathan and his team, have done.</div>
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Education is another key factor that will determine the eventual winner. How far has Jonathan gone in this wise? From available statistics no administration before his has made as much impact on the educational sector as he has done. While it took past administrations close to 50 years to build 30 federal universities, it took Jonathan’s just less than 6 years to build 12. There is no zone in Nigeria that did not benefit from the universities. The highest beneficiary was the north where over 50 percent of these universities were sited to balance the perceived and lingering lopsidedness that had characterized the location of such universities in the past.</div>
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I do not need to enumerate all the achievements of the Jonathan government in the educational sector since they are there for all to see. But one point I would like to strengthen is that a vote for Jonathan is a vote for continuity in the transformation effort in the sector. Appallingly, no other candidate has any robust plan for the educational sector. Fighting insecurity and corruption is not enough to get a person elected as the president of Nigeria. You need to show a broader knowledge about Nigeria’s intractable problems to be considered for the crown. That is where the major difference lies.</div>
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Ontological knowledge is also imperative. Modern-day leaders are lettered men and women. In fact many of them are intellectuals.</div>
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The 21st Century leader should be able to flaunt his academic laurels and walk like a colossus among his contemporaries. Digitization of leadership is now the norm the world over. Any leader that cannot boast of this pedigree is not worth his onion.</div>
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Now the verdict: When Jonathan emerged President in 2009 the expectations were very high. Agreed! Has he succeeded in making any impact on the lives of Nigerians? Yes! Can Buhari perform any better? No!</div>
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The final decision rests with the people of Nigeria. I rest my case.</div>
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2015 presidential election: Issues that’ll determine the winner

Despite the prophecies, predictions, social media permutations and other forms of dialectics, there are some hard facts that must be co...

Invidious misconceptions about Jonathan

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<span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">I have watched with curiosity and dismay as events leading to the presidential election unfold. Initially, I had resisted the temptation to join the fray as debates between the supporters of the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), President Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan, and that of the All Progressives’ Congress (APC), General Muhammadu Okechukwu Buhari, hot up. But I had to change my mind when mischief-makers and political jobbers resorted to pouring invectives on and telling bare-faced lies against President Jonathan despite the good works his administration has done.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">Anybody who has followed the trend some of these unsolicited and uncomplimentary commentaries have assumed in recent times will be greatly awed and repulsed. I have been left wondering why our politicians consistently engage in running each other down and fail to acknowledge the goods done by other people.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWQwZVw9hhhAYQiXWdsw0fMT277iTaGUco9B3Dae1JIFd4HMcguNVtG_rjWBunFioCm97xZ11V_2wbM9ILzzA0A72zbxV6SZRw3OzoNHPs1iY0JTJCKtM9YOaR4Jq2HilIhp2BCmVfhruD/s1600/Orji+Kalu+Leadershipjpeg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="311" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWQwZVw9hhhAYQiXWdsw0fMT277iTaGUco9B3Dae1JIFd4HMcguNVtG_rjWBunFioCm97xZ11V_2wbM9ILzzA0A72zbxV6SZRw3OzoNHPs1iY0JTJCKtM9YOaR4Jq2HilIhp2BCmVfhruD/s1600/Orji+Kalu+Leadershipjpeg.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">All of us are sufficiently aware of the past history of our nation – how politicians misused the ample opportunities available to them to develop Nigeria. The semblance of achievements we have had before now was exemplified by the military through fiats and decrees. The era between the second and third republics was characterised by non-performance and ineptitude. Forget all the noise politicians make there was nothing tangible achieved in that period.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">Look at the power sector, for instance. How much had been sunk before this administration assumed the reins of power? On paper much was done, but in practicality there was no sustainable infrastructure in place to drive the sector. Where then went all the billions reportedly sunk into the many power projects across the country? If truly the money was spent on the specified Independent Power Projects (IPPs) as alleged it is normal then to ask: why is power supply still epileptic?</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">Experts in the sector would tell you that Nigeria was beating about the bush, as far as the power sector was concerned, before President Jonathan came. It was only when he took over power that practical steps were taken to ensure that durable architecture was developed for the sector.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">I have taken a critical look at the architectural and technical frameworks of the administration for the power sector and was perplexed by its content. Judiciously and diligently executed it will make Nigeria compete favourably with advanced economies of the world. The whole idea behind the huge investments in the power sector is to drive the economy and empower Nigerians, especially the youth, through the development of their entrepreneurial skills. Of course, it will amount to a pipedream for anybody to think Nigeria can achieve greatness without sustainable power.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">Aware of the sharp practices that had stalled the development of the power sector over the years, the Jonathan administration introduced measures to avoid a recurrence. The launch of the power sector reforms a few years ago by the President marked a departure from the flaws of the past. What we have in place now is a systematic, well-focused plan to make Nigeria self-sufficient in electricity generation, distribution and consumption. The unbundling of the utopian Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), which has opened the sector to more foreign investments, was a strong part of the reform package.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">Indeed Nigeria is gradually, as it were, climbing the ladder in its effort to provide clean and sustainable energy to millions of Nigerians that need it. Between December and now there has been remarkable improvement in power supply. Umuahia, which had been notorious for power failure, has suddenly witnessed an improvement. For the first time in recent years Umuahia had an uninterrupted power supply for 48 hours last week. The simple lesson of what is happening in Umuahia, and I believe it is the same story all over the country, is that Nigeria is on a steady march to recovery and self-inventing in power. It will not be long before the sector stabilises to the amazement of our worst critics.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">What of the rail system? I remember my first train-ride in life. It was from Enugu to Port Harcourt. This was in 1988. It was a pleasurable ride anyway. After that ride there had been none thereafter. How the train system in Nigeria collapsed to the abysmal level it was before Jonathan came still baffles me. All over the world the rail is one of the largest means of transportation after the waterways. Russia and China are regularly innovating in the sector and building new rail lines to meet their needs. Unfortunately, before Jonathan came, it was almost a dead sector. As you read this piece the sector has revved back to life. New rail lines are being built, while rehabilitation is ongoing on the comatose ones.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">Less than a month ago Vice President Namadi Sambo flagged off train services from Port Harcourt to Imo River. It was the first of its kind in the 30 years the rail sector had been in limbo. Many of such projects are going on simultaneously in different parts of the country.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">There is no doubt that when fully developed Nigeria’s rail system will bring to an end the difficulties encountered in moving large consignments from one point to another. Then to follow is the underground train system as we have it in places such as Europe and the United States. This may seem unachievable. However, there is nothing modern technology cannot accomplish.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">Do you the reader believe that President Jonathan has done nothing to merit re-election as some vicious critics of his government make us believe? Now read this: before Jonathan came to office our airports were in deplorable conditions. Apart from intermittent air mishaps, the sector was utterly neglected. No visible infrastructure to drive it, while workers’ morale was at its lowest. Then enter Jonathan, the game-changer! Today our airports wear new look with new terminal buildings constructed. In addition, modern navigational facilities for safe flights have been installed making Nigeria qualify for recognition by even the United States Aviation authorities.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">There is no geopolitical zone in Nigeria today that has no international airport, courtesy the Jonathan administration. These airports are of international standards, and have been certified as such by the relevant authorities. Coupled with this singular effort is the concerted effort being made by the various PDP state governments across the federation in building their own airports! Top of the list are Akwa Ibom, Delta, Jigawa, Gombe and Bauchi. These states have had their new airports completed and commissioned. Construction continues in some other PDP states. What this translates to is a boom in the aviation industry and a testimony to the readiness of Jonathan and his administration to rewrite the chequered history of the sector.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">The emergence of new airlines (local and foreign), and the increased number of travellers at the airports underscore the heartwarming performance of the government in the sector.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">Who has not seen the giant strides the government has made in the educational sector? How many universities did we have before Jonathan came into office? According to available statistics fourteen new universities have been added to the original number. In fact, 12 new federal universities were established by the government to ensure that every state in Nigeria has at least one federal university. This achievement is unprecedented in the annals of this country.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">What of the Almajiri educational programme which targets the poor northern rural dwellers? The programme, the first of its kind, has helped to refocus the attitude of the poor in the north to the need to acquire formal education. Many state governments in the north have keyed into the scheme by establishing special centres to train their people, particularly the youth, in special skills in order to keep beggars off the streets. The benefits of the Almajiri educational initiative are innumerable. Suffice it to add that the new awareness the programme has created on the subconscious of an average northerner is such that it will not be too long before illiteracy is eradicated in the north.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">I need not write about the hundreds of billions of naira given to tertiary institutions in the country as intervention funds to provide basic amenities and infrastructure required to boost learning, and enhance the quality of certificates issued by the tertiary institutions. Such government agencies as the Nigerian Education Trust Fund (NETFUND) and Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) have contributed immeasurably to the growth we have experienced in education in Nigeria.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">Only recently the Federal Government, working in conjunction with the National Universities Commission (NUC), has designed a programme to award scholarships to some Nigerian eggheads to study in the best universities abroad for their masters and PhDs. The idea is to train the desired manpower to drive the Nigerian economy and take Nigeria to the next level of technological advancement. Imagine what would have happened in the foreseeable future if the Jonathan administration had not seized the initiative to train this category of Nigerians for the nation’s technological development.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">In agriculture, no administration before this one made the kind of noticeable effort the Jonathan government had made. The Operation Feed the Nation (OFN) of former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s government between 1976 and 1979 could not match what Jonathan is doing. The focus of the government is to make Nigeria sufficient in food production and exportation. Already the government has put in place measures to attain this goal. For instance, it has revolutionised agriculture which has led to increased yields and drastic reduction in food imports by as much as 5.3 billion dollars. The e-Wallet scheme introduced by the administration has helped to reduce the scams associated with the distribution of fertilizers and seeds to farmers.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">Nigeria has now become an automobile manufacturing country. This was something never ever thought of would happen in our lifetime. But it has happened with the foresight of the Jonathan government. The Innoson Automobile Industry, Enugu, now produces locally assembled cars and trucks, thereby brightening the chances of Nigeria attaining self-sufficiency in automobile production.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">The revolution in the agricultural sector, coupled with the springing up of new industries and optimal production capacity of existing ones, has led to quantum leap in the number of gainfully employed graduates. The You-Win programme, which has produced new entrepreneurs that now employ other Nigerians, is one way the government is tackling unemployment and empowering the youth.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">It is believed that in the next four years the number of these entrepreneurs will have grown geometrically with hundreds of thousands of unemployed Nigerians getting employed.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">Let us look at some intangible things the government of Jonathan has done that have had far-reaching impact on the lives of Nigerians. Rule of law and constitutionality are one area the government has done very well. This is a democracy for Christ’s sake where leaders are expected to be humane and caring. Brutality and brashness are definitely not imperative attributes of a democratic leader. For a military leader those may be required. I can state with every sense of responsibility that President Jonathan has performed exceptionally in this wise. He has carried himself with humility and candour and demonstrated a rare sense of empathy and serenity of mind. I doubt if any Nigerian leader before him had ever exhibited such sterling qualities.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">I do not subscribe to the wicked insinuations by some faceless persons that Jonathan is lawless. I challenge such people to name a single instance where he has demonstrated disobedience to any court order. The case of Adamawa impeached deputy governor who was pronounced governor by the Supreme Court is a case in point. The president directed that the court order be carried out with dispatch. There are many of such cases all across the country.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">Academically, Jonathan ranks tops. In fact, he is the first graduate-president Nigeria has ever had. He assumed office at a time flaunting one’s academic laurels was globally in vogue. His emergence took Nigeria’s stature to high heavens and increased the prestige of the Office of President. One then wonders why any rational person would want us to go back to prescient times. We need a President who can hold his own anywhere in the world without suffering from any complexes.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">I would state here that Jonathan has been a blessing to this generation. He is a special gift from God to Nigeria at this critical period of our national life. I hear some people argue that Jonathan’s government has not been able to fight insurgency in the north east of Nigeria. Even though I agree the government could do more, Jonathan should not be seen as the progenitor of the crisis. It had been there long before he arrived, but only came to the fore in his time.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">However, considering the measures the government has established to deal with the situation it is assured that normalcy will be restored very soon. Let it be known, nonetheless, that terrorism is a global canker that has defied any known solution. It has ravaged even the most technologically-advanced countries of the world. What we need to conquer is unity and oneness of purpose.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #3a4149; font-family: 'Open Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 25.9974422454834px;">From the deepest part of my heart I wish to state unequivocally that it is only a Jonathan can salvage this nation from the grievous malaise eating it up. A vote for Jonathan is a vote for continuity, good governance and equitable leadership anchored on the fear of God, respect for human dignity, and the good and welfare of all Nigerians.</span></div>

Invidious misconceptions about Jonathan

I have watched with curiosity and dismay as events leading to the presidential election unfold. Initially, I had resisted the temptation to...