Change In The African Continent, Who Benefits? -by Frank Ijege

It is a good thing that African countries are catching the change fever and are replacing incumbent leaders with new ones.
One of the leaders to shine that light is Nigeria's president, Muhammadu Buhari, after he deafeated the incumbent president and the ruling party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

However, people are begining to question his style of governance. Many Nigerians are disenchanted with his administration less than two years after taking over.
There is a general feeling among the people that the president doesn't seem to appreciate their condition. This, they believe, explains why they tend to be suffering more.

A number of reasons have been given why the Buhari government has fared this way. Some say it is a result of his un-preparedness to govern. Advocates of this argument believe that the Nigerian leader was only interested in winning elections and was not prepared to deliver good governance to the people. They cannot believe that a man who sought to become president for twelve years would govern the way he is governing. They always make reference lenght of time it took him to form his cabinet and the denial of several, if not all of his campaign promises to buttress their point. 

Others argue that he underestimated the problems of the country. This group believe that aphorism that he who wears the shoe knows where it pinch. Before being voted into power, president Buahri was one of the vocal critics of past administrations, many of whom he contested against. The administration he took over from under Goodluck Jonathan, did not enjoy popular support in the twilight of its administration. Corruption, favouritism, insecurity were some of the characteristics of that government. Nigerians groaned in frustration and sought a breath of fresh air

Then entered the All Progressive Congress (APC) with a promise of change. The ‎APC presented as its candidate General Muhammadu Buhari, a man whose greatest selling point is his integrity. The party rode on its change slogan and clinched political power. Many Nigerians voted for the APC because they wanted a genuine change. They didn't want a mere change of the party in power but a holistic change of the system, institutions and the pervasive turn governance has taken in the African country. Eighteen months after, nothing has changed. Many of the blunders of the last administration are being repeated by the curret government. If Goodluck Jonathan was hijacked by the Ijaw cabal, President Buhari seems to have been hijacked by the Northern or Daura cabal. Skewed appointments in favour of the children of the high and mighty in the society have be conducted by several agencies and institutions of government. Some of his cabinet members have been accused of corruption. The president remains adamant.

President Buhari has utilised every opportunity he gets, to remonstrate and complain about how he inherited a bad country; about how the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) messed things up. Things were quite things bad when he took over as president, but that is why he was elected to clean the mess. By continuously complaining, he is making Nigerians believe one of two things: cover up for his inability to tackle them or he is too overwhelmed to try. A former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo complained about these complaints recently.

The president may have the best of intentions, but he doesn't seem to know how to go about implementing them‎. Worse still, he is surrounded by people who do not share in his vision. 

Politicians in opposition political parties whose chances of clinching political power have become brightened by the change 'fever' spreading across the continent have a lot to learn from how the change in Nigerian has turned out. Clear cut ideologies, strategies and solutions on how to tackle the problems of the country was lacking. Getting the right people and ensuring round pegs are in round holes were obviously  lacking.

Nigeria is not the  only country with a new governent in the continent that has performed poorly. Almost all the new governments have struggled to show how different they are from the ones they replaced. The quality and standard of life of the people remains as before and government's policies are far from ending the woes and anguish of the citizens of the continent. Africans are yet to feel the impact of the change mantra blowing on the continent

Genuine change means changing the existing political and economic systems prevalent in many African countries. African leaders have been reluctant to this. Most of them are actually products or beneficiaries of the system. 

Africa cannot rise beyond its current state of hunger, disease, strife, poverty, insecurity and a prevailing threat of disintegration as long as the extractive political and economic institutions continues to reign supreme. A systems that favours corruption, one that celebrates ill gotten wealth, promotes tribalism and nepotism and one in which an individual controls  so much political power will hardly favour the people. 

Until a genuine breeze of change blows in the continent, African countries will continue to struggle and its citizens would continue to be at the mercy of their leaders

Frank Ijege
frankijege@yahoo.com

2019 Elections: The Acrimony is Setting in too Early by Frank Ijege

There is a parable told by Jesus about the rich man. The man had recorded a bounty harvest and was wondering on what to do with it. “What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops”, he asked himself. Then he said to himself, “this is what I’ll do, I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and I will store my surplus grain. And I’ll say to myself, “you have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry”. Unfortunately for him, God had other plans for. According to the Bible, God said “you fool! This very night your life will be demanded of you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself”? The man couldn’t make it to the next day to carry out his great plans for the future.

If there is anything that is uncertain in this world, it is life in itself. You are here today the next moment you may be in the hospital battling for life or even in the grave, dead and gone! As a result, I don’t understand the hustle, arrogance, pride, conspiracy, the pull him down antics with which we live through life. Some people make robust futuristic plans to last for several years yet, we are not sure of the next minute. Don’t get me wrong, nobody is saying we should not make plans for the future. It will be really disappointing for one to live a care free life because life is but transient and then God decides to bless him with long life, all he may have to show for the years of existence is probably nothing but just age and regrets. We need to dream great dreams and make magnificent plans; but we must also know that life is but nothing; kwalin cabin, life my Hausa friends also describe it whenever I ask mai’a duniya?

One set of people who behave as if they are guaranteed of the next moment are politicians. They live flamboyant lives, loot billions of naira and make inordinate plans, oppress the poor and lowly etcetera. Imagine that this is just 2016 and the current government has not even spent up to half of its four year term, politicians are already displaying their nature, as we have started seeing grand plot and great scheming for 2019. The recent outburst by Alhaji Atiku Abubakar about being betrayed by former loyalists and the equally swift reply from the Kaduna State governor, Mal. Nasir El-Rufai is all about 2019.

Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has never hidden his desire to be the president of this country. That ambition pushed him to the point of seeking to contest against his boss, former president Olusegun Obasanjo in 2003. Although he was prevailed upon to shelve the idea, the Turaki of Adamawa has not stopped trying from 2007 to date, with his eyes still fixed on 2019. For Mal. Nasir El-Rufai, he also has his eyes on the number one seat. Although he has not openly declared his ambition for that post, there are feelers that he is warming up to take over from President Muhammadu Buhari should the president not be interested in running for a second term. You will recall that the governor repeatedly denied any ambition to seek elective office in several interviews and even in his book, ‘The Accidental Public Servant.’ Apart from these two, there are others who are no less interested, but are waiting for the opportune moment to strike.

Isn’t it rather surprising that these politicians could not exercise a little patience, before they start attacking each other through various forms of diatribe, thus hanging their dirty linens in public all because of 2019, which is three years away? Are they even assured of living up to 2019?

It is said that in politics, it is never too early; one however thinks that earliness ought to be in strategies, ideologies and policies on how an aspirant intends to tackle and address issues upon attaining and not covert strategies, conspiracy theories and relentless dissipation of energies in absurd activities and diatribes.

This focus by our politicians on the wrong issue accounts for the leadership failure we continue to experience in this country. They don’t plan to work, they only plan to win elections; and when they eventually win, they are not prepared for the challenges of the office they worked so hard to get. Most times, they become overwhelmed by the enormous work before them; they try a number of quick fixes, which see them committing one blunder after another.

And who says one must be president before one can impart lives positively? With his enormous wealth, what has Alhaji Atiku done to better the lives of the people? There is hardly any project or foundation that he has established to help humanity; at least I don’t know of anyone. What has he done, or is he doing for communities of Adamawa state ravaged by boko haram? For Mal. El-Rufai, the best thing for him to do is to settle down and deliver on his campaign promise to make Kaduna great again. It is too early for him to allow himself to be distracted by the 2019 elections. Besides, if any of these men dies today, we will only remember them by what they did and not by what they sought to do or become.
This is not just for Alhaji Atiku Abubakar or Mal. Nasir El-Rufai, but for all those aspiring for elective position in all the tiers of government.
Frank Ijege
frankijege@yahoo.com

Strong Individuals, Weak Institutions by Frank Ijege

During the last general elections, people who believed in Buhari, worked hard to ensure he won the election. This, they did, because of the s integrity of the then General Buhari. Looking back, one would pardon them. The former administration of Goodluck Jonathan was epileptic in terms of governance and there was a clear abdication of responsibility by the administration. Insecurity was at its highest level. Corruption broke new records and gained more grounds; everywhere one looked, there was total confusion. People wondered whether Nigeria had returned to the state of nature as espoused by Thomas Hobbes.

As a result, there was understandably great anger in the land. People were united in the quest to send an ineffectual and inefficient government parking. Give us anybody but Jonathan. In the midst of the communal suffering by Nigerians, APC crept in; a party hurriedly created to take advantage of the flops and inefficiencies of the PDP. Realising that there was anger in the land, APC embarked on massive propaganda, spreading lies and falsehoods to a disoriented and disenchanted people, who swallowed it hook, line and sinker. It enhanced its political fortune and translated into electoral victory.

Ten months after, has the APC fared any better? The answer is obviously in the negative. The slogan of the APC was change, but what Nigerians have seen, is more of stagnation than the promised change. The party upon attaining political power, denied virtually all of its campaign promises and is joyfully confused. Looking back at the last ten months, it is safe to conclude that the APC and President Buhari under-estimated the problems of Nigeria. What we have seen so far are talk, talk and more talk. Nothing more.

The anger that was prevalent under the Goodluck Jonathan's regime has returned with more salvo. People are bitting their fingers and gnashing their teeth. The general feeling among Nigerians now, is where did we go wrong? Was appointing Buahri a mistake? There is a massive ill-feeling against this government. The goodwill it enjoyed is evaporating; that is if it still has any left. Buhari and his co-travellers have returned to the PDP ways; or so it seem.

What therefore is the way out? The problem of Nigeria is about Buhari. It is simply a problem lack of institutions. Nigeria is a country is without institutions that ensures credible leaders are produced to head different arms and parastatals of government; one that ensures sound economic and social policies. In fact, it will be a miracle for this government or anyone (including those manned by Angels) to succeed with the kind of institutions we operate. Jonathan suffered from this lack, Buhari is manifestly suffering from it too.

To bring our country back to the route of development, there must be a holistic overhaul of the institutions we operate. There would be hardly any positive achievement that can be recorded with the corrupt, lacklustre, nepotic despotic and sluggish political, social, economic and religious institutions that we currently operate.

For any government to succeed, it must ensure a solid foundation for sound political, economic and social institutions to be created. No single individual can sold our problem. The solution is in sound institutions backed by strong individuals. No one can exist without the other

Frank Ijege
Network for Democracy and Human Rights
frankijege@yahoo.com

Muhammadu Buhari: Great Expectation, Not So Great Outcome, By Frank Ijege

Since the return to democracy in 1999, no election has been celebrated like the one that brought General Muhammadu Buhari to power in 2015. His victory saw a lot of Nigerians throng to the streets in jubilation for the victory of a man they feel would wipe away their tears and bring an end to the pain and suffering they went through under the regime of the PDP.
We had witnessed sixteen years of monumental corruption; clueless leadership and an unwillingness to try, under the PDP. Our collective patrimony was shared by a few; for those in government and for those who had friends or links with government
It was therefore, not surprising that, the people had great hopes and expectations in the administration of General Muhammadu Buhari. But after one year, has President Buhari discharged the burden placed on his shoulders? Has he succeeded in wiping away the tears from the eyes of the people? Are we now better off than we were under the last administration of President Jonathan?
The truth here is that after one year with president Muhammadu Buahri at the saddle of leadership, not much has changed. His performance in following sector to underscores this point.

Power: during the last administration, power generation was low. This was not surprising as corruption was the order of the day. However, as at May 29th, 2015, we were producing well over 2,000 megawatts of electricity. It is not out of place to expect the APC administration to build on that and increase power generation to around 5,000 megawatts. Unfortunately, little or nothing has been done within the last one year. On the 29th of March, 2016, power generation dropped to its lowest. We generated zero megawatts. This, to my knowledge, is the first time we are generating zero megawatts. That should go into the history books. As at May 26th, 2016, we are generating 1, 580 megawatts of electricity. This is very poor and shows lack of progress in that sector. Despite the fact that electricity tariff was increased by the government to ensure steady supply, all consumers get in return for paying high is darkness. So, as far as the power sector is concerned, nothing has changed; except of course, we now pay more for darkness.

The next sector that readily comes to mind is security. One of the greatest challenges that threatened the last administration was insecurity; especially boko haram. The Goodluck Jonathan’s administration was overtly clueless in tackling the menace, or it was simply not interested in tackling it. This is because after postponing the election from February to March last year, we saw a massive onslaught on the dreaded sect. Nigerians began to see a new attitude of government against insurgency.
However, while the PDP administration remained clueless, the APC as a political party was dangerously mouthed. It was castigating the government and priding itself that it would end the insurgency within six months of attaining power. Twelve months after, it has not ended boko haram. In fairness to President Buhari, one must commend him for the successes recorded so far. The attacks have drastically reduced, but they have not been completely phased out. Boko haram is thus, down but not out. The recent attacks by the sect confirm this.

If one is to look at insecurity as a whole, President Buhari has not really done much in terms of securing the lives of the people. The rising spate of kidnapping and the recent onslaught by the Fulani herdsmen where hundreds of people have lost their lives in avoidable circumstances are there for all to see. For a government that promised change, one expects it to do better.
In terms of employment, government has no achieved much within the past twelve months. According to the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics, unemployment grew from 10.4% in the last quarter of 2015; to 12.1 % in the first quarter of 2016 (when compared with the corresponding quarter of 2015, it is 3.96%). Working class employment grew by one million, five hundred people. The total number of full time employed, decreased by 528, 148 persons or 0.97%. Youth unemployment rose by 42.24%. Although the Minister of Labour and Productivity tried to peg unemployment rate at eighteen million people, there are indication that it is higher than that. Every serious government should be bothered by these statistics. More bothering is the fact that people are losing their jobs on a daily basis. According to president of the Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry, fifty thousand people have lost their jobs in Abuja alone

In terms of the economy, President Buhari has not fared better. Under his watch, the naira has crashed to the dollar. The economy shrank to 0.36% in the first quarter of 2016, while it was 3.96% in the corresponding first quarter of 2015. The Gross Domestic Product dropped to a new low in the first quarter of 2016; it was 0.36%! The economy has continued to nose-dive under his watch of. For instance, Nigeria used to be the third fastest growing economy in the world. Today, thanks to Buhari, we are not even among the top fifteen!

This collapse of the economy has translated into great hardship for the people. Prices of commodities have gone up; the quality of life of the people is on the decline. When one compares the situation with the enthusiasm of the people on the day the election results were announced, it is nothing but disappointing. A lot of Nigerians had high hopes that this government would assuage their pain and suffering; but what they have gotten within the past twelve months is a meteoric rise in their pains. During the election period, I heard someone say Buhari will bring down the price of a bag of rice to N 5,000. Please, how much is a bag of rice today? The enthusiasm and hopes the people had in this government has since evaporated. The general feeling of the people now is one of frustration. They are just praying for the years to roll by as fast as it can. Every reasonable government should be bothered about its evaporating goodwill. I frankly can’t tell if this government bothered. Chief Olusegun Obasnjo had rightly said that President Buhari is not an economist; but the president should have constituted an economic team or expand the one he currently has.

One of the greatest selling points of General Muhammadu Buhari during the election was his integrity and his anti corruption posture. However, one year on, we are yet to see a serious fight against corruption. Apart from one or two cases that have been instituted, nobody has been tried for corruption. What we have had is the trial of people in the media and not in the courts. There are also people with questions bothering on corruption hanging on their neck, but the president seems not to have any problem associating with them. That is unlike Buahri!

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources announced the removal of fuel subsidy. Since the announcement, people groaning and lamenting the hardship it would cause and was already causing. The Nigeria Labour Congress declared a national strike but was blackmailed into calling it off. In the midst of all these, the president has not deemed it fit to address the nation.
That announcement was not without confusion. The Minister of State for Petroleum said it was a removal of subsidy; while the vice president said it was price increase. The people remain in the dark while our president is reticent.
Considering the fact that the APC had viciously condemned the removal of fuel subsidy by the last administration, one is perplexed that it is doing the same thing and sees nothing wrong. The president had said he doesn’t believe in fuel subsidy. Now that he is there, is there really anything like fuel subsidy? If according to wide spread belief, people get paid to the tune of billions of dollars for not importing a single litre of fuel, why not clean up the system and ensure every dime collected is accounted for? Should we even be importing fuel in the first place?

A common feature that is prominent in all the sectors considered above is disappointment. Unfortunately, there is nothing tangible on ground to show that within the next fear years, things would pick up. When a foundation is faulty, the whole building becomes faulty. The APC rode to power through propaganda and rhetoric. Unfortunately, twelve months after being on the saddle, it is still believes it will survive through propaganda and rhetoric. The earlier it realizes that this will not stand the test of time, the better for it.

The president must redeem himself. The first step towards doing this is to do something about the disconnect that exists between him and the people. Only the people can honestly give him a fair assessment of his administration. Those around him may just be painting the wrong picture to him.

Let me end by saying may Buhari succeed.

5 Tips on Overcoming Adversity

Though we are living in the age ofself-help gurus and motivational speakers, it seems that everywhere we go, people are more stressed and unbalanced than ever before. Many are experiencing cycles of frustration and failure instead of living the life of their dreams.

However, there is a secret to overcoming adversity that the champions know.

If you want to experience a life of victory, you must develop endurance to overcome adversity. That means having the stamina to stand through any storm that life brings your way, as well as the tenacity to triumph even in moments of great turbulence. You must be unshakeable even in moments of uncertainty.

Overcoming adversity doesn’t have to be impossible.

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5 Ways To Overcome Adversity

1. Have the right mindset

Your thoughts are essential; they frame the triumphs or tragedies of your life. Getting past adversity requires a change in your belief about challenges. It is not what happens to you, but how you respond to it that is important here.

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You must realize that difficulty is not designed to derail you, but to develop you. A positive mindset is essential.

2. Stop making excuses

Excuses are the lies we tell ourselves when we’re too afraid of the future. Whatever you tell your mind will become a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you don’t achieve your dreams, it will be because you made the decision to be detained by excuses.

‎Excuses will always keep you in a limited place. Overcoming adversity is impossible when you’re making excuses. You conquer excuses by having the courage to step out and do what seems impossible.

3. Have faith

It takes more energy to live a life full of fear than to live one full of faith. To fear is to convince yourself to live in the walls you build yourself. To have faith is to convince yourself to embrace change.

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You can either live in faith or live in fear; however, faith and fear cannot coexist. When your desire to overcome becomes greater than your fear, you’ll overcome adversity naturally. Fear will always attempt to immobilize you, while faith is designed to energize you.

4. Don’t take “no” for an answer

My business almost failed on three separate occasions. While some would lie down and let their dreams float away, I knew that I could achieve mine. I felt the greatest urgency to get up and keep trying. If I would have just given up in my disappointment, I would have never lived the life of my dreams.



‎Trials will occur in life, but endurance requires you to never stop trying. Trials are one of the greatest teaching tools of life.  I am so glad that I bounced back. I learned in that moment that my response to difficulty will determine whether or not I realize my dreams. Never become defined by the insurmountable. Dare to do the impossible!

5. Let each success energize you

With every success, we are strengthened and empowered for greater victories. You cannot become enslaved by disappointments. You must realize that every disappointment is being engineered for your destiny.

The Takeaway

Life can get us down, but we can pick ourselves back up. We must learn and not be limited by the experiences of our lives. We are strong, and we all have a dreamer inside of us. Anything is possible if we are willing to persevere.

Overcoming adversity is the secret of champions. Through having the right mindset, not making excuses or taking “no” for an answer, having faith, and being energized by success, you can overcome anything that life has to throw at you.

Culled from www.inspiyr.com‎

On the controversy surrounding the appointment of Mrs. Amina Zakari as INEC Chairman

INEC is supposed to be an Independent Commission. By that, it means the body is expected to be an impartial. It must not be subjected to the either Executive or Legislature or the appointing authority. Therefore, the head of the commission should not in any way be related in anyway whatsoever to the appointing authority. Despite its seeming independence, there have been calls to grant it more independence or autonomy.

Since the appointment of Mrs. Amina Zakari as the acting chairman of the commission, there have been allegations that Amina Zakari is related to Buhari. Although she is said be be from Jigawa, nobody has refuted the allegation that her father the Late Emir of Kazaure got married to President Buhari's elder sister. In fact, it was also reported that Buhari spent his formative years with the former Emir of Kazaure. These allegations are in the public domain and nobody, not even the aides of the president who saw nothing wrong in responding to Nnamdi Kalu's (Radio Biafra) allegations, have deemed it fit to say something on this vexatious and controversial issues.

If something is not done about these allegations, and she is finally confirmed as the substantive chairman of INEC, tongues will wag and it won't be only by the 'wailing wailers'(whatever that means). It will raise eye brows. Even if the APC wins subsequent elections free and fair,questions will be asked on the impartiality of INEC. Chief Godsday Orubebe caused a commotion and confusion during the last election because he felt Professor Jega was biased. Why did Orubebe think like that? The answer is simple; Jega is a Northerner and the result was favouring a Northern candidate. A similar scenario may have played out if the INEC chairman was from the South-South, and the result favoured a candidate from there. Imagine the INEC chairman being related to the president either by blood or marriage? The Orubeberisation would be better imagined than experienced.

I agree with those who say she is competent. I have always advocated for competence. Hey, Amina Zakari is not the only competent one for the job. If we look deeply, we certainly will find some competent hands. The way Jega was found, another can be found. Mrs. Zakari can be given a position where she can be helpful and bring her competence to the fore; but for this INEC job, please let's have a rethink

CORRUPTION: BEFORE THE PROSECUTONS STARTS - by Frank Ijege

A few weeks ago, President Muhammadu Buhari promised Nigerians that the prosecution of those who have short-changed the country and have stolen our collective wealth will commence in a few days’ time. What the president didn’t tell us is how these suspects will be selected or which administration the searchlight will be beamed on or restricted to. Will the prosecution be restricted to the immediate past administration? Will it be extended to all the administrations from 1999? That remains to be seen.

In the past, there has been an attempt at prosecuting persons perceived to be corrupt. Sadly, most of those trials achieved little results. Very few of them were diligently prosecuted to a logical conclusion; while the convicted criminals were usually given a pat on the back through the judgment of the courts. Otherwise, how does one explain the short prison sentences handed down by the courts? Or the amounts the courts ask corrupt convicts to pay in lieu of a prison term, which is usually a far cry from the one embezzled or stolen?

The general feeling among Nigerians is that the current administration will be different in its fight against corruption. In fact, the anti-corruption posture of the president was what endeared him to Nigerians during the elections. Their expectations are therefore are very high. What then can the administration do to sustain and maintain the goodwill it currently enjoys?

In order to maintain and sustain the confidence of Nigerians, the fight against corruption should be whole. In fact, it must start from the president himself. The president should first prosecute all those around him who have eaten our yams. There are just too many of them around him. Anything short of this will ridicule the fight against corruption and will indeed be a sad reminder of the previous feeble and pretentious fight against the cankerworm that has eaten deep into the fabrics of our nation by past administrations.

In prosecuting corrupt individuals, the searchlight must go beyond the immediate past administration. From May 29th 1999 to May 29th 2015, there has been monumental embezzlement and the circulation of our collective patrimony by and among a selfish and greedy few. From 1960 to 1999, Nigeria reportedly lost $400 billion to corruption. Although there is no accurate figure, the county must have lost about $300 billion or more within the last sixteen years.

The prosecution of corrupt individuals should also not be limited to political office holders alone. Let it be total and wholesome. The system is in dire need of a complete overhaul. Everywhere one turns to in the country, corruption stares at him in the face. Serving and former politicians, contractors, public servants, civil servants and anybody who has illegally eaten our yams must return them. Every institution of government should be cleansed of this cancer called corruption.

We will be merely scratching the surface if we are focused on fighting corruption by prosecuting corrupt individuals alone without tackling the root causes. There are multiple reasons why corruption thrives in Nigeria. These are (but not limited to): poverty, poor remuneration, nepotism, lack of openness and transparency in government, the mentality of Nigerians that an opportunity to serve is an opportunity to grab their share of the national cake; weak institutions for fight corruption is a prominent reason. Lack of a speedy determination of corrupt cases is another reason why corruption continues to grow in Nigeria. These reasons must be tackled simultaneously with the trial and prosecution of people who have unjustly enriched themselves with the resources of Nigeria. Failure to do this, will ridicule the anti-corruption stance of the government. To curb corruption, we must cut it from its roots.

Let me hasten to add that the prosecution must not be selective or skewed to favour some people. Anybody found to be, or suspected to be corrupt should be made to face the law. Even those who have embarked on night pilgrimages to the State House should not be spared if their hands are not clean. God bless Nigeria.

Frank Ijege is a Human and Civil Rights Activist
frankijege@yahoo.com
Foijege on twitter

Adamawa To Spend N200 Million On Prayer Warriors, Vigilante To Curb Boko Haram - Premium Times

According to Premium Times, the Adamawa State Government on Friday announced that it had earmarked N200 million to engage prayer warriors to seek divine intervention toward ending the state’s lingering security challenges.

Abdurahman Jimeta, the Chief of Staff to the Adamawa governor disclosed this in a media chat aired on the Adamawa State Television, which was monitored by the News Agency of Nigeria in Yola.

Mr. Jimeta explained that the money was sourced from the state and local governments joint account.
“We have earmarked N200 million for prayers to seek for Allah’s intervention in tackling the Boko Haram menace and other insecurity challenges threatening the stability of the state,” Mr. Jimeta said.

He said that part of that money, which would be spent as security votes, would go into assisting local vigilance teams and security operatives.
On agriculture, he explained that the state government had ordered fertilisers worth over N3 billion for the 2015 farming season.

He called for massive support toward the success of government efforts for a peaceful and stable Adamawa, adding that not much could be achieved in an atmosphere of chaos.
Adamawa is one of the three states most ravaged by the Boko Haram insurgency which has caused the death of about 20,000 people since 2009.

BSU medical student did not commit suicide - by Frank Ijege

Since the death of Idoko Nicholas, a 400 Level medical student of the College of Health Sciences, Benue State University, Makurdi in a ghastly motor accident on Friday, July 24, there has been growing controversy surrounding his death and protests were held by his colleagues to show their discontent.

Nicholas has spent well over 10 years as a medical student in the university. That is the lot of all the medical students of that institution. Since the inception of medical studies, no student has graduated. Plans are only on the way to graduate the first set of students later this year. That will however be possible only when the final accreditation team pays a visit.

The policy in the college is that a student who fails an examination will have to re-sit such examination within three months. However, the new provost said the college does not have money to conduct such examinations within three months. It made it an annual exercise. Nicholas had issues with Pharmacology and Pathology. He wrote the exams a few weeks ago, and the result came out negative and was therefore withdrawn from studying medicine. After 10 years? It is frustrating!

Despite his seeming frustration, Nicholas remained his vivacious self. There was no dull moments when he was around, and he tried not to foul such atmosphere with his problems. That unfortunate day, he visited his friend and there was no sign he was going to die in few hours time. They joked, discussed and words of encouragement were shared. In fact, his friends mother called him (Nicholas) that day and encouraged him.

He made to leave, to go get something. His friend asked him to stay longer, but he insisted on leaving.

While on the International Market road in Makurdi, he tried to avoid a truck which was parked beside the road, and then the unfortunate happened. He was thrown out of his car through the windscreen.

I spoke several times yesterday with his friends and colleagues. One thing that featured in my conversation with them, is that Idoko Nicholas was not suicidal. He did NOT kill himself. The protest held on Friday and Saturday was aimed at bringing the plight of medical students to the fore, and not because Nicholas killed himself. Their protest paid off, as the Vice Chancellor has cancelled any form of withdrawal.

It is unfortunate Idoko Nicholas had to die for a new policy to be implemented. He was martyred for his colleagues in the medical school

Yes, Idoko was probably distracted by his problems while driving, but he Did NOT kill himself.

It shows lack of consideration for his grieving family and friends, if we continue to allude his death to suicide.

Finally, I urge the management of Benue State University to take issues affecting their students with the seriousness it deserves. Students of the medical school have all been making motion without movement. That is unfair. Let it do what is required to ensure medical students graduate and move on with life, instead of just keeping them there.

Frank Ijege

frankijege@yahoo.com