Nigerian extray

Ringim Quits, Articles | THISDAY LIVE

2012-01-25T07:17:00.000-08:00

Ringim Quits, Articles | THISDAY LIVE
At last! the inspector general of police Hafiz Ringim has retired after several call by nigerian for his retirement. This is coming on the heel of the incessant bomb attack by Boko Haram and the precarious security situation of the country generally under his watch.
You will recall that on several occassion, police post and offices have been bombed by Boko Haram sect without any arrest made to that effect.
Recently, the suspected mastermind of the Christmas day Bombing who was arrested by the police was reported to have escaped under suspicious circumstances and who was said to be from the same village as the IG.

ALTERNATIVE SOLUTIONS TO THE CONTROVERSIAL FUEL SUBSIDY REMOVAL

2012-01-10T06:03:00.000-08:00

I have observed with great interest the drama that has ensued between the government and us the people of Nigeria over the removal of fuel subsidy removal. Several people and loyalist have condemned the removal of fuel subsidy and at the moment, there is a confrontation between the people of Nigeria and the government.

I do not wish to join the various loyalists to challenge the government without proffering a way out.

Undoubtedly, the government with / through his representative the Finance minister and the petroleum minister as well as the CBN governor have failed to show or tell us, the people of Nigeria the other alternative methods that they could used in getting funds so required for developmental projects without making the people they govern worse off, a fundamental principle in welfare economics.

I, Seyi Pope, an economics lecturer with a private institution of learning in Nigeria hereby proffer two options- aside the fuel subsidy removal- which will not only make funds needed for developmental project required by the government available but also revert back the petrol piece to less than #65 per litre.

OPTION ONE

FOREIGN EXCHANGE PATHWAY

There are three major types of exchange rate system practice in the world namely;

1. Floating exchange rate system: In this system, the value of a currency is strictly determined by the invisible forces of demand and supply with no government intervention. As such, between any two given currencies, any one whose export in more than its import is expected to experience increase in value which is called appreciation, and any one of the two currencies whose import is more than the export is expected to experience a reduction in value otherwise called depreciation.

2. Fixed exchange rate system: In this system, the value of a currency against another is strictly determined by the government and is fixed at a value perpetually.

3. Dirty/ managed floating exchange rate system: This is the combination of both the fixed and the floating exchange rate system. In this exchange system, the government set a range for the value of a currency against another with both upper and lower limit. As long as the value of the currency is within the set range, the forces of demand and supply are allowed to operate in determining the value the currency would be, but as soon as the value get to or above/below either of the limits-upper or lower- the government intervene by ensuring the return of the value of the currency.

The Nigerian government through the CBN practices the 3^rd exchange rate system.

Suffice it to say that had the government practiced the 1^st exchange rate system, the value of the naira would have been higher than the dollar since our export is far greater than our import based on the BOP figures released by the CBN in its statistical bulletin of 2011.and beyond.

However, either through the instrumentality of the forces of demand and supply through the floating exchange rate system or through deliberate act of the government to revalue the naira, when the naira appreciates/ revalued to #50/ $1 , the economic implication would be that, the landing cost of the petrol would be #42.50k which is 85% the value of the dollar.

At this price, the government would not have to pay any amount of money for subsidy and Nigerians also would still be better off by then paying between #42:50k - #45 per litre of petrol. A whooping sum of #22:50k would have been saved by the people on every litre of fuel bought with the multiplier effect of further reduction on both the diesel, aviation fuel and the kerosene.

Indeed, this option is a win-win solution for both the government and the people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

OPTION 2

LOCAL REFINERY PATHWAY

Suffice to say that the reason why the government of The Federal Republic of Nigeria is paying subsidy on fuel is because they could not ensure that our local refineries operate at full capacity. Therefore, if the government decides not to take the first option, then the government should be prepared to pay subsidy on imported fuel till they could ensure that all the four local refineries operate at full capacity. There-after, start refining locally which would automatically required no importation and by extension result in no payment of subsidy whatsoever afterwards.

N.B: The second option would cost government as much money on subsidy till they could complete the refineries. So the faster the government complete these refineries, the more fund they could save and continue to safe for other developmental projects.

BENEFITS OF SELECTING OPTION 1

Below are just a few of the numerous benefits accruable to both the people of Nigerian and the government as a result of government decision to select option 1:

ü 1. Faster and easier accumulation of assets and equipment for every small and medium scale entrepreneur whose equipment and machineries used in production are purchased from abroad.

ü 2. Reduction in brain drain going on in Nigeria as people would have little or no incentive for going abroad to work since the amount of money they could make abroad would not be as enticing after conversion to naira as it is presently.

ü 3. Reduction in cost of goods and services as both locally produced and imported goods would experience a decline in price as the cost of production/ importation would be reduced due to reduction in price of fuel and diesel.

ü 4. Increased in general standard of living of Nigerians as a result of reduction in prices of basic goods and services which would reduce the propensity to consume of the masses and increase their propensity to safe, thereby leading to development.

ü 5. Peace and tranquility.

ü 6. Increase in employment generation as the reduction in cost of production is a major inducement for Foreign Direct Investors who would not need to be begged to come in to the country to establish firms etc.

Hands Up, Yar�Adua, Game Over!

2010-02-14T01:10:00.000-08:00

One of the wittiest expressions I have ever heard is: �What part of �no� don�t you understand?� Ever since President Umaru Musa Yar�Adua disappeared from Aso Rock on November 23, 2009, we�ve been told week in, week out that he would soon arrive. In fact, you would think the presidential jet, on its way to Abuja, had just stopped over in Cairo to refuel. At a time, we were told he would even perform the Hajj and climb Mount Arafat. We have been told all sorts of stories � he is eating, he is smiling, he is laughing, he is sitting, he is dancing. All sorts. But it does not take a genius to realise that all these stories were cooked up and spiced up to buy time � to tell us that the man would soon be back, to calm frayed nerves, to create the impression that there is nothing much to worry about. Obviously, we�ve been misled and fed with lies all along.

However, the writing on the wall is now very clear � this game of deceit and time-buying has come to an end. We do not have the capacity to tarry anymore. The ship of state cannot afford to anchor for too long. By failing to inform the National Assembly of his sick leave, Yar�Adua did not properly transfer power to Vice-President Goodluck Jonathan. What that means, effectively, is that there is a limit to what Jonathan can do. We can go on deceiving ourselves about Justice Dan Abutu rulings and �delegation� of powers by the President, but it is very clear that some people are just having fun at our expense. The people holding us hostage do not want an Acting President but a �Delegated President�. It�s a joke. They want to go to Jeddah and come back and say �the President said�� and then the VP will be asked to carry out instructions of doubtful origin. We say no, let the right thing be done.

What part of �no� don�t these people understand?
I am ready to yield some ground to Yar�Adua. I am ready to believe that he actually wanted to send in a vacation letter last year but was persuaded by his advisers not to do so. I understand that he was told by one of his advisers to remember the case of the former Cameroonian President, Ahmadou Ahidjo, who was ill and travelled to France for medical treatment in 1982. The then Prime Minister, Paul Biya, took over as Acting President. To Ahidjo�s surprise, Biya began to run the state without recourse to him. Biya, according to the story told to Yar�Adua by this aide, stopped picking Ahidjo�s calls, always claiming to be in a meeting. The day Biya finally spoke to him, he advised Ahidjo to stay back and take care of his health. Effectively, Ahidjo was ousted as President. He eventually resigned and Biya became substantive President. This story, I was told, eventually persuaded Yar�Adua not to turn in a vacation letter.

But that was then. Seventy-six days without a president is not exactly what Nigeria deserves in this day and age. The country is too big for one individual � or his wife or associates, whoever they may be � to hold down for selfish reasons. There is an element of insult and contempt in this impunity. Almost everybody who is somebody in this country has spoken that the President should do the right thing. What part of �no� don�t these people understand? Even Nigerians who would otherwise have been advancing ethnic and regional positions have come out plainly to say Yar�Adua should send a letter to the National Assembly. Former heads of state have spoken. Senators have spoken. Some retired politicians, led by Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, have spoken. Civil society groups have spoken. Media owners have spoken. Editors have spoken. Even, belatedly, governors have spoken.

So what�s the game?
The last time we were told our head of state was �as fit as fiddle� � when he was actually not � was in 1998. General Sani Abacha was rarely seen in public those days. There were rumours that he was not in good health. But his Chief Press Secretary, Chief David Attah, told journalists his boss was �as fit as fiddle�. What happened? Only the Chief Security Officer (CSO), a certain Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, had access to Abacha. He would enter the room and come out and declare: �His Excellency said�� and that was law! It was so bad that generals and members of the Provisional Ruling Council were taking instructions from Al-Mustapha. Most of the state-sponsored assassinations, we later learnt, were without the knowledge of Abacha. Somebody kept issuing orders on his behalf. I have a feeling that this is what the Yar�Adua people want to do again. They want to keep the man locked up somewhere in Jeddah or Abuja and keep telling us �the President said�. No, enough of this.

I have heard some people criticise Jonathan for not seizing the initiative, for not acting in the absence of his boss. If he had been carrying out the duties of the President all along, nobody would have noticed the power vacuum, it has been argued. After all, former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar did not wait for any letter to act whenever President Olusegun Obasanjo travelled out in those days in search of one foreign investor or the other. It is argued that if Atiku were Jonathan, nobody would have noticed the vacuum. To some extent, I agree with this argument. However, I cannot remember Atiku sending any bill to the National Assembly. I cannot remember Atiku swearing in Permanent Secretaries. I cannot remember Atiku signing the Appropriation Bill.

I cannot remember Atiku making a major policy decision such as deregulation or monetisation. So as good as that argument is, we also have to understand that naturally, there are limitations. Even if Atiku had taken all those decisions, would they have been legal?
I understand why Jonathan is also trying to be careful. All those pushing him to seize power and act beyond what the constitution permits him to do may also be trying to dig his grave. If Yar�Adua returns tomorrow, who says he would not move for the impeachment of Jonathan for breaching the constitution? All he would need to do is show that the man acted beyond his powers. What would be Jonathan�s defence? That he thought he had the powers? Those who are trying to argue that by Section 5 of the constitution, the President can ask the VP to do anything should also tell us what the President has so far asked the VP to do. If it becomes an impeachment case, can the VP provide any evidence to show that he was directed by Yar�Adua to carry out a particular task? How would he even be sure it is the President that issued such an instruction? Are we going back to the era of Al-Mustapha where the CSO was practically the President?

Whoever has access to the President � whether it is the CSO or his wife or the King of Saudi Arabia � should kindly inform him that the game is over. We have been deceived for over two months now that the President would soon come back, he would soon do video conference, NTA would soon put him on network news, he would soon send a letter� the truth is: we are sick and tired of this game. The destinies of 140 million Nigerians are a stake. The forward movement of this potentially great country is hanging in the balance. The economy is looking for direction.

They told us he signed the Supplementary Budget. If the signature was forged, the same forger should forge a vacation letter to the leadership of the National Assembly today. To be sure, I wish the President all the best. In fact, I want him to send in a vacation letter and face his health issues squarely for the next four months. What I find ridiculous is the attempt by some chaps to use his sickness as a ticket to rule Nigeria indirectly by passing on dubious instructions to the VP in the name of �the President said�. We say no to that. And, if I may ask, what part of �no� don�t they understand?

NAFDAC Introduces Phone Service to Checkmate Counterfeiting

2010-02-12T18:37:00.001-08:00

National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) in collaboration with an indigenous pharmaceutical company, BIOFEM, yesterday launched Mobile Anti-Counterfeit System (MAS) as part of measures to minimise incidence of drug faking in the country.

The new service which operates like the Global System Mobile (GSM) will enable consumers to have access to a designated customers� service unit to confirm whether the drug for sale is genuine or fake.

Just like the GSM, there is 12 digits number in a scratch card placed on each of the drug packages from the point of manufacture for the consumer to text through a short-code �38353� on the MTN, GLO and Zain networks.
By this new formula, consumer can right at the point of purchase of a drug confirm whether the drug in question is genuine or not by simply sending text from the scratch number on the drug through the code number and immediately a SMS response will be received indicating genuineness or otherwise of the drug.

Speaking at the launch of the new service, Director-General of NAFDAC Dr. Paul Orhii explained that the new concept which is the first of its kind throughout the world will assist in winning the war against counterfeiting of drug in Nigeria.

He noted that the idea of the new service came after series of meetings with stake holders in the country�s drug manufacturing sector on how to move forward in the bid to fight the war against drug faking to a logical conclusion.

He said at one of the meetings, BIOFEM agreed to make one of its products available as 'guinea pig' for the pilot project and thus the company�s diabetes drug, Glucophage was tested and serves as the first drug in the country that can be confirmed through the use of MAS verification for authenticity.

Orhii warned the public that the new service which is based on technology from a United States of America (USA) company, Sproxil Incorporated, whose Nigerian subsidiary have developed the solution with NAFDAC and BIOFEM is not available for all drugs in the country yet but assured with the success on the pilot drug, all other drugs will soon enjoy the same service.

The Director General said the service would be carried out with no extra cost to consumers and will still enable consumer to assist the agency to detect any pharmacy shop selling counterfeit drug, as such customer would only need to call the attention of NAFDAC to any shop where counterfeit drug is being sold if the response from SMS indicates that the drug is fake.

US Gives Nigeria Four Conditions

2010-02-12T18:10:00.000-08:00

Nigeria would have to meet four conditions before it could be removed from the list of 14 �countries of interest�, a group whose nationals are under heavy scrutiny by the United States for potential terrorist activities.

And in another development, Britain has commended Nigeria for the way it resolved the political crisis caused by President Umaru Musa Yar�Adua�s prolonged hospitalisation in Saudi Arabia.

Removing Nigeria from the terror blacklist is being seen as a major challenge for Acting President Goodluck Jonathan.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chief Ojo Maduekwe, revealed the conditions given by the US during a meeting with the House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs yesterday.

The conditions, he said, are: public condemnation of any form of terrorism anywhere in the world; improvement of security in the nation�s airports; deployment of air marshals on board aircraft and passing legislations geared towards combating terrorism in the country.

Although the meeting held behind closed-doors, Chairman, House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Honourable Bature Umar, said it was convened to get an update on the December 25, 2009, botched bombing of an American airline by 23-year-old Nigerian, Farouk Umar AbdulMutallab.

Nigeria was placed on a list of �countries of interest� shortly after the attempted bombing incident.
During the meeting, Maduekwe was said to have briefed the lawmakers on how the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had been handling the diplomatic row that followed after Nigeria was listed.

Maduekwe also briefed the committee on issues of common interest to the US and Nigeria, particularly the deployment of troops in Sudan; the transformation of the Africa Union (AU) and the recent controversy over the failure of the Nigerian Embassy to pay about $16 million tax on its property located in New York.

The interaction, Bature said, had put paid to insinuations that the inclusion of Nigeria on the watch list makes it a terrorist country.
According to him, �Nigeria was listed as a �country of interest� which requires that anybody flying from or through Nigeria to the United States should be subjected to extra security check irrespective of his citizenship.�

Meanwhile, the resolution by the National Assembly empowering Jonathan to take over as Acting President pending the return of the president has been commended by the United Kingdom.

Maduekwe, announced UK�s statemnent yesterday at an interactive session with the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Maduekwe said that the British Foreign Secretary, David Miliband, called him to express the British Government�s profound appreciation at the effective management of the crisis by the National Assembly, the Executive Council of the Federation (EXCOF) and the entire leadership of the country.

He also confessed at the session that Yar�Adua�s absence made his assignment in diplomatic circles very difficult.
�Just before I came in here, the British Foreign Secretary called me and he expressed his government�s profound appreciation that a challenging time like this is being managed very well by the National Assembly, by the Executive Council of the Federation, by the entire leadership; that Nigeria has justified the confidence many of Nigeria�s friends have in this country,� the foreign minister stated.

In response to a question on the difficulty encountered in managing diplomatic relations during the period, Manduekwe stated that �One cannot divorce the issue of diplomacy from the issue of the domestic situation.�
He stressed that �all over the world, wherever I go, the challenge is made even more difficult for me with the unfortunate indisposition of the President�.

He added: �Of course, the Vice-President himself cannot travel. Where the President should normally be and he is unable to be there, it should be the Vice-President.

�But if the President is outside the country, it means the Foreign Minister will be instructed through the then Vice-President, now Acting President to represent the nation.

�So, through my encounters with presidents, prime ministers, they asked about their brother, our President, and I had a very difficult challenge to explain things to them, to assure them that Nigeria is going through a very difficult moment.

�We miss our President but the country is not about to implode as they all think. Of course, that has its own security implications.
�But I assured them and the National Assembly has vindicated me in that assurance. I assured them that whatever happened, the constitution of the country; that the robustness of our democracy is intact and that we will come out of this strong, respected, appreciated and will play very vital role in how this country will move forward.�

According to him, �When the National Assembly took the historic decision they took a few days ago, not only did it bring stability to the nation, it also assisted the Foreign Minister in his task of engaging the rest of the world.�

Chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs, Senator Jibril Aminu, had told Maduekwe that the Senate Committee on Appropriations had rejected the Ministry of Foreign Affairs proposed miscellaneous budget of N2.4 billion.

He said the Appropriations Committee had maintained its position on working within the framework of the budget and had advised that the Ministry should consider areas of its N44 billion budget where adjustments could be made.

Who Wants the Constitution Amended?

2009-11-20T09:00:00.000-08:00

Senator Ike Ekweremadu, in case you don’t know, is a determined and calm man. Recently in Abuja, I tried to wind him up on the proposed amendment of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. I asked the Deputy Senate President, who is also Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Review of the Constitution: “To the best of my knowledge, the ruling political class is not really interested in any review of the constitution because it is not in their interest. Are you lawmakers not just trying to keep the political firmament a little bit busy by this constitution amendment talk? Are you really interested in it?”
He smiled. “I’ve heard that,” he replied. “But from day one, we decided – in fact, nobody prompted us – to make the amendment of the Constitution one of our legacies. We’re mindful of the challenges ahead of us but we are determined to do it. Early enough, the Senate constituted its committee for this purpose. What actually set us back was that it took the House of Representatives three months to set up its own committee. We were trying to find a convenient date with the House to commence the job. Eventually, we set up the Joint Constitution Review Committee. But controversy ensued. Time passed by.”
The “controversy” was that the Representatives started an argument about who should chair the joint committee. From nowhere, a fire was started about which of the chambers of the National Assembly was superior. This curious controversy made many people believe that the House was working in tandem with those who were against the amendment of the constitution, an allegation the Lower Chamber denied. But it left a sour taste in the mouth that the substance of constitution amendment was relegated to the background while a seemingly peripheral issue of “seniority” took the centre stage.
With the controversy unresolved, the two chambers decided to part ways. There is nothing in the constitution that says a joint committee is needed for the amendment. “We believed we would save cost and time if we worked jointly,” Ekweremadu told me. “But we moved on all the same. Our plan is to take it to a level and make it irreversible so that everyone will take it seriously and come to our aid. We have developed a timeline and our objectives. We will break out into geo-political zones to collate views from across the country. Like our public hearings, it will be shown live on TV. We will then set up committees for the specific issues. They will look into the details and advise the main committee appropriately. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is helping us with consultants whom they will pay. We’ll seek the best possible advice across the world so that for every proposal we make, we can look at what country it has worked and why we believe it’s going to work in Nigeria.”
My cynicism was not enough to deter the Deputy Senate President from outlining his committee’s calendar. “By February 2010, we believe we will be done with this work. We will submit our recommendations to the Senate. By June 2010, we expect that the amendments will be passed. We’ll then move it to the House and see what compromise we can reach on areas of differences. We can then send it to the State Houses of Assembly for concurrence,” he said with all enthusiasm.
There is suspicion that President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua is not too keen on the amendment – just as it is also believed that the Senate is trying to kill the amendment bills sent to it by the President. Ekweremadu quickly dismissed the first allegation – “The President has been very supportive,” he declared – and went on to explain what the Senate has done or is doing to the bills sent by the President. “Presidency has proposed six bills,” he said. “The first is on the Land Use Act. The Executive is proposing an amendment so that land owners can use their land as collateral for loans without requiring Governor’s consent. Although this has nothing to do with the election, we need to empower our people to create wealth.
“The second is party registration. Presidency is proposing a commission to register and regulate parties, in this age when people are talking about the need for small government. Nigerians fought for the removal of hindrances to the registration of parties. Why do we need another bureaucracy, another body, which would only increase the cost of running government? Already, we have over 50 parties. Senators took a look at this bill critically. It died on Second Reading. The third is on electoral matters. It proposes independent candidature. It also deals with the appointment of the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). This one has passed Second Reading. We are still working on it.
“The fourth is the INEC Act of 1998. It was enacted just to provide a legal instrument to the elections leading up to handover in May 1999. It’s a ‘spent legislation’. The decree created INEC. All the provisions have been transferred to the 1999 Constitution. Nothing is left in the Act. All you need now is to amend the constitution. The fifth is the Police Act. The Executive bill is aimed at amending the Police Act to strengthen security during elections. The amendment says there should be security for election materials and electoral officers. As a lawyer, I know that the Police Act is all about security for all. So, I ask: Is the life and property of INEC different from others? Who advised the Executive in respect of this bill? The last is a bill seeking to create a commission to try electoral offenders. We’re going to look into it. I have gone this length to explain because Nigerians may not know the reasons why some of the bills are being thrown out.”
He spoke at length on another touchy issue – state creation. “Our aim now is to provide the atmosphere for credible elections in 2011. We have to look at incremental changes. We cannot put everything in the basket at a go. We’ll look at all those bills, consider the Uwais report and collate the views of Nigerians,” he said, explaining that it would be more beneficial to make a law that will simplify state creation processes because of the ambiguities contained in Section 8 of the 1999 Constitution.
“Look at Section 8 very well and you’ll see that it’s ambiguous. It is also very strenuous. Unlike other constitutional changes which require two-thirds of the National Assembly, state creation requires four-fifths. Pursuant to the 1979 Constitution, there is the 1982 State Creation and Boundary Adjustment Act which was meant to support the constitution on state creation. Yet, things are still ambiguous. It says a referendum must be conducted on a request for state creation and that two-thirds of the federation must support it. Now this is confusing. Who conducts the referendum? What is two-thirds of the federation? Is it two-thirds of the entire population of Nigerians or two-thirds of elected representatives or Houses of Assembly? All these are ambiguous,” he explained.
What way forward then? Ekweremadu says his committee wants to make things simple enough so that the processes of creating a state will be started by the people who desire it. He explained again: “We need to streamline the processes. Amending the Act will help us push the process to the agitators. The first step is for them to make a request. This should be signed by their elected representatives covering the area of the proposed state. Then they can send it to the National Assembly to secure two-thirds approval. Then a referendum will be conducted before it is now sent to State Houses of Assembly for concurrence. It can now come back to the National Assembly for two-thirds approval. A state is then created. It doesn’t need executive assent. You shouldn’t need anybody to create state for you anymore. You start the process yourself. If it is only to remove ambiguity, that would be an achievement for us.”
Ekweremadu is very determined to accomplish this task. After the Kaduna Retreat, public hearing will commence on Tuesday, with former Presidents and Heads of States invited to make presentations. I believe rather than spend eternity complaining about how “bad” our constitution is, it would make sense to engage with the process constructively. This is another chance for us.

By: Simon Kolawole Live!, Email: simonkolawole@thisdayonline.com,

MANY FACES OF CORUPTION IN NIGERIA (1)

2009-11-11T07:49:00.001-08:00

I have heard and read many write ups and statements from both people in leadership positions in this Great country of Mine- Nigeria- and other fellow citizens talked about corruption and its impact on Nigeria’s growth and development. I am in agreement with them that this ugly giant corruption is the bane of Nigeria’s lack of development and success.
However, I strongly believe that there is one major lacuna that is being overlooked by most people which I believe is an important factor in curbing corruption, and that is the different sources of corruption which I have aptly tagged, ‘The many faces of corruption”. So in this write-up, I am going to take time to reveal these different sources of corruption in Nigeria with the hope that the various anti corruption agencies in each of these various sources will rise up to their responsibility and ensure that corruption is reduced to minimum level if not totally eradicated. There is a common saying amongst the Yoruba’s that says “Ti Olorun bati fi ota eni wonni, kole panimo” that means when one has been able to identify his/ her enemy, your enemy can’t kill you again. So I believe that we can’t fight or kill corruption in any system if we don’t really know the various sources of corruption in that system, otherwise if known and nothing is done, it then means that we are only hypocritical about the issue and are not really ready to nip corruption in the bud.
Firstly, permit me to quickly list out all the various sources of corruption identifiable by me before I go into its analysis. The various sources of corruption paramount in Nigeria today are in: (1) Education (2) Energy (3) Family (4) Religion (5) Corporate business environment (6) Civil services & (7) Government. It is obvious that the most harped among these is the corruption in governance, but the truth is that corruption in government is an extension of other major sources of corruption.
I shall briefly try to analyse each of these sources with the help of shedding light on it to enable the anti corruption agencies in each sector to rise up to their challenges to curb this ugly giant once and for all.
Corruption in the education sector: I have been in the education sector now for eleven years and in all these years I have witnessed all sorts of unscrupulous activities that make me cry. For the lack of time, I will quickly say he that there are two major areas where corruption has almost become a tradition in our education sector. The first is in the secondary level of our education. No one can dispute the fact that our secondary school leavers are no longer reading for their exams, all they now rely on is expo or leakages or direct assistance from external people during exams. When I was young, the usual practice is to look for people who have past question in each subject we are about to sit for in exam and start practicing the questions in those past question and even after exams you will be obligated to keep your exams question papers for junior student coming behind you as they will come knocking for it sooner than later. Apart from that, you may also enrolled for extra mural lessons to augment whatever you have learned and taught in your regular school, and of course, the rate of success in those years were far better than what is obtainable now. But these days, the reverse is the case, in fact it has become so bad that the few students who are ready to read are totally discouraged from reading. For instance, virtually in every part of this country you will get special SSCE/ GCE centres, in fact they are so conspicuous that they have become normal, and what is special about these centres you may ask? They are ready source of expo or “chukwuli” as they now call it. At these centres, the students have options. They could either just registered for expo in the exam halls which is the cheapest ranging from between two thousand naira to four thousand naira per subject or be register for personal assistance in which case, those students in these category will be put in a special room within the school used for the exam usually the vice principal or principal’s office where the exam will be answered and photocopied for each student to be copied. This also range from between four thousand to ten thousand naira per subject and of course the most expensive option they refer to as “non appearance” in which case the students won’t even bother sitting for the exam as the centre will help arrange for another person who will sit for the registered students for all the papers that the students registered for. Of course these range from between ten thousand naira to twenty thousand naira per subject, and these fees so to speak would have been paid before the commencement of the exam otherwise “no show”. Now if these are not corrupt practices, then I want to know what they are.
The most annoying part of these is that these special centres are known by each exam bodies and I mean both WAEC and NECO directly or indirectly and I will give you my Facts. Since the beginning of this millennium, these exam bodies have put up various technological process of registration (even though these is also a form of corruption as you will discover soon) by which each student is expected to log in to the organisation’s website and register. The major reason put forward by these bodies for doing this is to curb exam malpractice such that when each students register, his or her data will be captured in the organisation’s data based and the system will automatically be given a random centre for the examination closer if not closest to the area of residence of the applicant, is that not so? Well not to worry as each of these centres (and I am speaking from what I have personally experience them do) have special codes given by officials of these exam bodies that once inputted, all the applicant they (the special centre admin) will thereafter register will automatically be in the same centre which the code belong to and of course, these so called special centres are not supposed to know these codes. So tell me if this is not corruption!!
In fact, I have seen parent going to register their wards/ children for lesson and the very first thing they will ask you is if you have special centre/ assistance that will be given to their wards. If you answer them in the negative, you will never see their break light as they will immediately go look else were and they are sure to get! Each of these special centres of course pays some money to their partners in crime who are inside these exam bodies. If we are truly sincere in eradicating corruption, why are these centres on the increase? Why have not the minister and commissioner for education not come out and begin arresting these centres? Less you are confused about what I am saying, most privates secondary schools these days are also used as special centres, in fact these has been on the increase in the last five years, before then only private lesson or tutorial centres were involved but now, most private secondary school, have joined the bad wagon. A teacher friend of mine once told me he had to resign when he was called to come and solve exam questions in the special room to be photocopied and given to the school students writing May/ June WAEC. To these private secondary school, their expenses is reduced by half as all the student registered through the school is automatically expected to write the exam in the school premises, as such, the school do not have to have insider in the exam bodies to achieve their aim. The attendant result of all these atrocities is that the students are now relaxed and have become more indolent than usual as they are not so much bothered about reading to pass their examinations as they know that their school will help them out.
This is not only applicable in final secondary school exam, from the JSS1 to JSS 5, the same happens. If you are a teacher in any of these private schools and you are sincere you will agree with me that these private schools have an unwritten law of not failing any student. How this is to be done is left for the subject teachers. You do not need any clairvoyant power to know that the more private schools we have, the more the failure rate of students in their final exams, this is because these students have been spoon fed and packaged right from their first year in secondary school. The most unfortunate being that these schools are now using this inflated success to cajole the gullible parents into paying more school fees, in fact the parents have been made to believe now that the higher the school fees, the more successful their wards and or children will become, what a pity!!
I can go on and on but time will fail me to unravel the various cans of worms paraded with impunity in our secondary education.
When you come to the tertiary level of our education, you will find the same. You have to pay through your nose to get admitted into any of our public and private schools. You will pay more than ten different charges before you are pronounced a student in Nigeria. From the initial application scratch card to result checking scratch card to registration scratch cards to acceptance fee, to medical fee to departmental fee to etc. all of which is unique and different from actual school fees, the list is endless. Once accepted as a full student, you will begin to contend with lecturers who are more than happy to ensure that you do not graduate with good grade. Some will boldly tell you to you face that no matter how brilliant you are, you can never graduate with a second class upper, some will even vow to you that you will never graduate out of the school if you don’t do their biddings. All this are the monster that are militating against the standard of education in this country, they are all one form of corruption or the other. How will a product of such corrupt process be expected not to be corrupt? How will such a one be void of corruption when he or she becomes a leader? It is a circle of what goes around coming around!!

World Bank releases list of Nigerian looters

2009-10-14T11:56:00.000-07:00

Fellow Nigerians,
Find bellow the reasons why Nigeria is in the situation it is in, Lacks all infrastructures. Pass this on to the people you know. This need not be let to rest. This men are selfish and for all I care they were trusted by all Nigerians to lead us rather they robbed us blind.
See Nigeria o o o.

LOOTED MONEY DISCOVERED IN FOREIGN BANKS
NAMES OF DEPOSITORS: LONDON /SWISS($) /USA ($) / GERMANY (D)

GEN IBRAHIM BABANGIDA: 6.25bn / 7.41bn/0D 2.00bn /9.00bn

GEN ABUBAKAR: 1.31bn/2.33bn/ 800M

REAR ADMIRAL MIKE AKHIGBE: 1.24bn / 2.42bn /671M /1bn

GEN JERRY USENI: 3.04bn/ 2.01bn / 1.01bn / 900M

ALH ISMAILA GWARZO: 1.03bn / 2.00bn / 1.3bn / 700M

ALH UMARU DIKKO: 4.5bn / 1.4bn /700M / 345M

PAUL OGWUMA: 300M / 1.42bn / 200M /500M

GEN SANI ABACHA: 9.01bn / 4.09bn / 800M / 3.01M

MOHAMMED ABACHA: 300M / 1.2bn / 150M / 535M

ABDULKADIR ABACHA: 700M / 1.21bn / 900M / 471M

ALHAJI WADA NAS: 600M / 1.32bn /300M

TOM IKIMI: 400M /1.39bn/ 152M / 371M

DAN ETETE: 1.12bn / 1.03bn/ 400M / 1.72bn

DON ETIBET: 2.5bn / 1.06bn / 700M / 361M

MAJ AL MUSTAPHA : 600M / 1.001bn / 210M

ANTHONY ANI: 2.9bn / 1.09bn / 360M / 1.66bn

BASHIR DALHATU: 2.3bn / 1.001bn / 161M / 1.43bn

GEN WUSHISHI : 700M / 1.301bn

ALH HASSAN ADAMU: /300M / 200M /700M

T Y DANJUMA 300M: 200M /700M

GEN ISHAYA BAMAYI: 120M / 800M

SOURCE: WORLD BANK TO THE PRESIDENT OF NIGERIA

“Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure….than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.” - Theodore Roosevelt

Copy and pass it on for all to see... SPope

TRUE AND LASTING SOLUTIONS FOR NIGERIAN UNIVERSITIES

2009-10-12T10:12:00.000-07:00

ASUU has been on strike now for months. Some cowboy bankers, whom I refer to as yahoo yahoo bankers have been playing funny with the banks they are supposed to manage. They have either given out unsecured loans to friends and cronies or coveted the money into their own pockets, living beyond their means. The Nigerian government through Sanusi, the new CBN governor had doled out about N400 billion naira to rescue the banks, and now it has also dished out another N200 billion to rescue some other fragile banks in the country. The perpetrators of this heinous act, who were about to put pain and agony on the faces of the poor and unsuspecting depositors, were arrested and detained, but in a typical Nigerian melodrama, most, if not all of them, have been released on bail. They are not likely to get back to detention; not on the account of that offence any longer. The media show has been used for some credibility gimmick; Farida Waziri of the EFCC has done some bravado and gained some political mileage from the detention and trial shows; and life has gradually resumed back to normal for the bankers and their detractors.

A paradox of governance in Nigeria is that a government that has no money to increase the funding profile of Nigerian public universities, has suddenly found billions of dollars to rescue some banks from failure, which was due to the deliberate irresponsible and criminal behaviour of some bankers and their collaborators. It is not only the bankers that are smiling. Militants in the Niger Delta are also having a field day. They have used the strength of counter-force - a tactics well understood and deployed by the Nigerian state to negotiate and extract material concessions and largesse from the state. Nothing looks juicier these days than to be a militant. A recent piece I read in The Guardian, the writer satirically titled his/her article, 'Mr. President, I am a Militant". A nation that keeps its children out of school, but curdles and subsidises those who steal and hold the gun, is a nation that defines no future or prospects for itself.

The crisis in the Nigerian university system and the response of ASUU to it, is another issue altogether. To say that there is a crisis in the Nigerian University system is really an understatement. As someone who was part of the system for about two decades; as an ASUU activist who followed ASUU around the length and breadth of the country, even to the point of risking my life, I am well positioned to appreciate the magnitude of the problem. But in an article I wrote around 2004 titled "Beyond the ASUU Strike", there is need to appreciate the enormity of the problem and the solutions we may suggest to it. My argument in that piece was that the crisis in the public university in Nigeria has taken a life of its own. Although, it was a crisis triggered by the state given the onslaught on the university system especially by successive military regimes in Nigeria, but the crisis has assumed new and frightening proportions. The crisis now has both internal and external dimensions.

It is true that public universities are not well funded; but it is also true that there is tremendous corruption, perversion and stealing in public universities in Nigeria especially by university authorities. There are universities in Nigeria located in capital cities that run multiple campuses, generate funds running into billions of naira, but cannot boast of standard facilities, equipment and conducive learning environment. Many vice chancellors have become demi-gods and have built fiefdoms for themselves; a merit based reward system is lacking in the system; what matters for professional mobility is not sound academic prowess, but proximity to the vice chancellor and his cronies. A George Bush mentality reigns in the governance of many universities - "you are either with the vice chancellor or against him/her". Intellectual discourse, critical dialogue, ideas contestation and vibrancy of knowledge production have become anathema to university culture in Nigeria. An anti-intellectual environment has emerged in the Nigerian public university, for which it is a crime to be knowledgeable. A few years back, when Dr. Segun Osoba was retiring from the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University), and a colloquium was organised in his honour at the University, he was asked why he was leaving the system despite not being of retirement age. His response was very moving. Osoba, said, "I saw the university system grow, and I contributed to that growth. Now the university is about to crumble, I do not want to be part of it. If I cannot save it, I will take my leave". In a dignified honourable way, Osoba retired from the University of Ife. Many more have also left!

Those we can regard as scholars in the Nigerian university system today have become few and marginalised; they are lonely but unpopular voices in a wilderness in which political academics, academic traders/contractors and academic bureaucrats are the lords of the manor. I would share with you two sets of generational cases, in which those who give pride to the system are pilloried and victimised. Abdul Raufu Mustapha and Jibo Ibrahim are some of the most profound political science scholars on the continent. Given internal politics and squabbles at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaira, both of them were frustrated out of the system. Jibo Ibrahim, a brilliant and refreshing academic, is today being underutilised as the Director of the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD), in Abuja, and Abdul Raufu Mustapha had to leave for England to continue his academic career as a university don at Oxford University. Two younger generation scholars - Wale Adebanwi and Ebenezer Obadare were also equally frustrated from the Universities of Ibadan and OAU respectively, and are now academic migrants teaching in American universities. Scholarship is seriously endangered in the current conjuncture in the Nigerian university system.

What is the point that I am trying to make? My argument is that ASUU struggles will have to proceed at two levels. The first level is to legitimately demand for better funding from the state in order to allow the system to run. Without adequate funding the system cannot survive and grow. The second level of the struggle is to engage in internal cleansing of the system. ASUU must demand for accountability and transparency in the management of university funds; a reward based system must be instituted, which allows the best and the most engaging minds to flourish, and run the system; while also ensuring a restoration of the academic essence-critical discourse, and vibrancy of ideas and knowledge in our ivory towers. Our public universities are fast losing their strength and vitality, which we cannot be indifferent to.

ASUU is presently at a critical conjuncture in its history and struggles. Its demands have to be more inclusive and reflective. It must be willing and prepared to confront the internal challenges in the system and make critical reappraisal of the dynamics. The fact that the government for several months has not responded to ASUU demands, is raising questions about perceptions of relevance and priority. With the existence and flourishing of private universities, the university landscape has changed dramatically. ASUU cannot afford to be indifferent to this development.

The demands of ASUU are legitimate, and the government must respond to them. It is not a demand to subsidise bank Robin hoods; it is a demand for the present and future of the younger generation. But to whom much is given, certainly much is expected. ASUU must question and challenge the internal configurations in the Nigerian university system.

By:
Dr. Adejumobi, Associate Professor of Political Science, and African Governance Expert lives in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Nigeria: 5 Reasons for Optimism

2009-10-05T06:17:00.001-07:00

We celebrated our Sober Reflections Day (sometimes known as Independence Day) last Thursday with mixed feelings. A mixture of anger and despair, that is. It is very difficult to be optimistic about this country. The evidence against optimism is too damning. When you take a look around, you must be an irredeemable optimist to see hope. We’ve been enjoying oil boom for the past 10 years, yet we live in darkness because of inadequate power infrastructure. I have lost count of how much we’ve paid to import petroleum products in the last 10 years simply because we don’t have refineries and our rulers continue to enrich themselves and their friends with fuel import contracts. Nigeria is an incredible country, an unbelievable story.
As we were marking our Independence Day, Lagosians woke up to see dead bodies on the Oshodi-Apapa Expressway. Some passengers had been robbed inside a speeding bus and thrown out by their attackers. They died. This is not the first or second time – nor will it be the last – that “one chance” robbers will be attacking innocent passengers. It’s been on for years. Our police force does not have any clue. The only thing of interest to them is probing how Nuhu Ribadu came into the country to pay his last respects to Chief Gani Fawehinmi. As for their primary responsibility of securing life and property, that is by the way. Witch-hunting and shadow-chasing are their priorities.
Bayo Ohu, The Guardian journalist, was assassinated by criminals who had all the time in the world to do what they wanted to do. Police were nowhere to be seen – perhaps they were busy collecting N20 from bus drivers and commercial motorcyclists around the corner. Ohu still had pulse when he was taken to the hospital but he was refused treatment because of lack of “police report”. This is sickening. The ultimate rule for medical doctors is to save lives first – the details can be worked out later. Even an armed robbery suspect is entitled to treatment, at least to be healthy enough to face trial. Ohu died because his country failed him – poor security at first, and then a denial of live-saving treatment. Nigeria is an unbelievable story.
How easy is it then to be optimistic about a country that demands everything of you and gives you virtually nothing back? Several times, I have hissed, shaken my head and declared: “This country is finished!” Yet at the back of my mind, I know Nigeria is NOT finished. I am very, very convinced that things are the way they are because we lack selfless and competent leadership. We have been ruled and are still being ruled by people who do not love this country. We’ve been governed by predators – a selfish, power-drunk bunch. But that is just part of a bigger story. That is not the end of the story. I have said it before and I will say it again: every ingredient to make Nigeria a great nation is present. But we’re like sheep without a shepherd. The day the right shepherd comes along, our journey to greatness will begin.
While I can list 5000 things that are wrong with Nigeria – and everyone of them is genuine, I assure you – I have also come up with a list of just five reasons to be optimistic about our country. The more I meditate on these five things, the more I am convinced the country can still be salvaged. They are veritable ingredients for the development of Nigeria. Here we go.

1. The Diaspora
In addition to the local capacity that we are building, there are thousands of Nigerian professionals all over the world who have acquired so much knowledge, expertise and reputation in their fields. They are everywhere – finance, engineering, medicine, just name them. Nigerians doctors and PhDs and professors are making considerable impact in Europe, US and even Australia. There is every chance in the world that one day a leader will emerge and make use of these enormous talents. Many of them whom I have spoken with are very eager to come home and contribute their quota to the development of Nigeria, but they are discouraged by the lack of basic infrastructure, wanton corruption and the inefficient public service. We have seen a shadow of what can happen when we tap into these Diaspora resources. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo engaged quite a few of them and they made a lot of difference in his administration.
A friend of mine who took his brother for treatment at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital recently told me his experience. “I noticed that the particular department was different. The staff were so courteous and professional. You would think you were in an advanced country. Upon inquiry, I discovered that the Head of Department used to work in the US and had passed on the best practice culture to his staff,” he said. There is no guarantee that all our professionals in Diaspora will deliver – some could be more greedy and self-serving than the home-grown – but isn’t it good to know that we have a large of pool of first-class personnel which we can tap from? They will surely be instrumental to the rebuilding of this country.

2. The Nigerian Spirit
The Nigerian is very enterprising, against all odds. We are in a country where there is no encouragement, yet the Nigerian never gives up. There are a lot of negative things to say about Nollywood, for instance, but has anybody ever stopped to wonder how a group of self-motivated Nigerians successfully put the name of the country on the global map of movie industries? It is rated the third biggest in the world by output. All over Africa, Nigerian home movies are being watched. Our actors and actresses are continental superstars. Virgin Atlantic Airlines shows Nigerian movies on board. We need to pause and think about it. All this has been achieved with little or no encouragement from the government. When I was growing up, you needed to sing American pop music to show that you “belonged”. Today, home-brewed music is in vogue all over the country – and it is exported across Africa. This is in spite of all the odds stacked against us in this country, where hard work is not recognised but where treasury looters are the kingmakers and societal icons. Without constant electricity, good public schools and reliable healthcare system, Nigerians are still forging ahead. What will happen when we have access to the basic comfort of life? Give Nigerians a space and they will move the world! This encourages me a lot.

3. The New Generation
When I was growing up, I did not enjoy what many teenagers are enjoying today – entrepreneurship and leadership training. Virtually all over the country, NGOs, religious organisations, various bodies and institutions are training our youths on the basics of leadership and entrepreneurship. I have been invited to share experiences at many of such fora. I am highly delighted. The amount of information being passed across to our youths today gives me hope that we are not breeding a hopeless and ignorant generation. Of course, we cannot be very sure they will use the information positively. I am not unaware of those who have devoted their energies to internet scams and 419, but for once, what of those who have internalised all the training they have received? The intensity of motivational speaking and the number of books on leadership being consumed by our youths make me happy. There is something out there waiting to be tapped.

4. The Wazobia Effect
I have met and discussed with many people who are so convinced that Nigeria has no future because of its ethnic diversity. “We do not belong together,” they will say. “Let everybody go their own way. Nigeria will never know peace with all the ethnic groups being forced to belong to the same country.” There is merit in that argument, but each time I think of the evolution of Wazobia, particularly our Pidgin English, I am filled with a sense of pride. It was not decreed into existence. It was not a government policy. It evolved out of our own experience, out of our interaction, out of our cohabitation. It gives me hope that rather than our diversity being a source of Armageddon, it can actually be a rallying point. “Suya”, “Isi-ewu” and “edika ikong”, among others, are national delicacies that cut across ethnic boundaries. What I can conclude from this is that we do not hate each other. What the Nigerian wants is fair play and equal access – which can be guaranteed with good leadership. We can live together. We can live in peace and unity. We can become a great nation in spite of our glaring differences.

5. Widespread Disgust
Anywhere two or three Nigerians are gathered, the situation of the country is sure to come up as a topic of discussion. Everybody is worried about how backward we are, compared to other nations. I hear people talk about how we were ahead of Korea and Singapore at our Independence in 1960 and how these countries have overtaken us. I hear people complain bitterly about how a Malaysian delegation to Nigeria picked palm seedlings. Today, the argument goes, Malaysia is the world’s number one producer of palm products. What they make from palm oil, it is said, is more than what we make from crude oil. Ghanaians used to flock to Nigeria in the early 1980s for economic survival but now Nigerians are rushing to Ghana to enjoy sanity and stable electricity. I am always very happy when I hear these arguments. Nigerians are angry. I draw encouragement from that. One, it means almost every Nigerian is unhappy with our situation. We need the dissatisfaction. Two, this is fuelling disgust within us. We need to hate our situation collectively so that we can collectively accept that we need change. Above everything else, this widespread disgust fuels my optimism. We need to be very angry, very bitter, very dissatisfied with the situation in Nigeria. It will reach a breaking point one day. Our situation will never change for as long as we are indifferent to the perfidy in our land.

Therefore…
How many people want to buy into the argument that the missing link in Nigeria is leadership? I accept the argument hook, line and sinker. Nigerians have demonstrated over the years that they are ready to follow the leader. Buhari and Idiagbon told us to be disciplined, to queue up at bus stops and banks. They told us to keep our environment tidy. They told us not to defecate by the road side or throw trash just anywhere. We obeyed, of course not without the fear of the horsewhips hanging over us. But we obeyed all the same. The lesson from this is that Nigerians can do the right thing, even if it has to be with some threat. The fear of sanction is, in any case, a factor in compliance with the law. I am fully convinced that the day the right person assumes authority over us, our march to greatness will start. Obasanjo had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in 1999, but ambition and self-aggrandisement took hold of him. He failed to seize the moment. He would have been Nigeria’s greatest leader ever. But he lacked sincerity of purpose.
The consolation from this is that situations and circumstances will still present themselves for us to have a new, definitive start, to have the leader we need. I know my argument is not scientific. How will such a leader emerge when our electoral system is so warped? Not to worry. There is no guarantee that a perfect electoral system will throw up a change agent. The most important thing is for whoever emerges to be in favour of the progress of Nigeria, irrespective of the processes and circumstances that threw him or her up. We don’t need to sit down and be crying over 49 years of wasted opportunities and missed chances. Let’s look at the opportunities that are ever with us: a massive pool of talents home and abroad; the never-say-die Nigerian spirit; the well-informed and motivated upcoming generation; the cohesive potentials in our diversity; and the spreading disgust among Nigerians who are angry and tired at the way things are going. Every ingredient to make Nigeria is here with us. It’s the shepherd that we are waiting for. Let’s keep hope alive...

Simon Kolawole Live:www.thisdayonline.com/nview

NIGERIAN BANKING SECTOR: FACT AND FIGURES

2009-09-23T06:53:00.000-07:00

I have always been wondering if the various banks that made up Nigerian banking sector are solid, strong and stable, if they are actually running the banks in Nigeria as a normal financial banks are expected to be run.
But alas! my answer to these questions have always been a resounding no.
Hear, me out, I and not a critic of good things and I must say that my statement above is not based of fallacies. I also need too tell you my teeming readers that I ma an Economist by profession. So i know what I am talking about.

For instance, banks are set up too encourage and stimulate saving culture that will be channel towards investment which will enable a country become developed. To achieve this purpose, certain incentives were put in place to motivate people towards saving. Such incentives include interest on savings, availability of loan facility with little restriction provided you the borrower meet certain conditions as determined by the banks rules.
Hooweverever, I have discovered that most of Nigerian Banks are at a radical departure fro these goals and objectives.
Last two months, I went too my bank with whom I was running an account with, the purpose of my visit is to close down my account with them. You may ask why I want to do that, It was because, I could not understand one good reason why a bank-which is being done by most banks in Nigeria- will have to be deducting fifty naira from a savings account when those banks could not even pay that same amount on any one thousand naira you saved with them.
The most annoying aspect of this is that even if you use the ATM of the very bra ch where your account is domiciled, you will still be charged fifty naira per transaction.
This begs too question then that is this the same this that is obtainable in the develop or developing countries around the world even in neighbouring African countries where the laws are active and regulations exist?. Is this not tantamount to legalised robbing in daylight? is this not the same as taking advantage of the less privilege- people who do not know this should not be so- who come to the ATM on a regular basis. Is this not the same thing as corruption?

As I was saying, I got to this bank, told them I want to close down my account and all hell was loosed. They asked me one million and one questions while I want to close down my account, in fact they were behaving as if I was committing a crime by wanting to close down my own account.
They sent me from one office to the other, from the customer care to the manager's office.At the managers office i was bombarded with various questions again, I then asked the manager to give me one moral justification of the unnecessary charges being charged by using the ATM which the bank forced me to use in the first place, Of course there was no justification for it, he just told me that is the way they deduct it from every other user of the Machine. His statement was so repugnant I felt like vomiting. After 5 hours of rigorous questioning, I was told to come back the following day as they said according too them "We don't know you were still around"
The following day, i spent another 3 hours out of my productive time at the bank before I was finally attended too. At a point the lady that was attending to me asked if how I wanted to be paid- whet er cash or cheque- can you imagine that!
I endure all these because I was sure i was not going to find myself in such a mess again.
I got my account closed and at another bank, that I have a savings account, the customers where held in a limbo for more than one hour, wgat where they looking foor you may asked? deposit slips for us to use to Lodge money with them, several vices are and have been going undetected by the Innocent public that i asked my self on several occasions if what we were taught in Economics classes were real considering what I was experiencing in Nigerian banks.
Before i forget, all these happened in two of the new generation banks as they are often referred to.
Lo and behold, Two weeks after these ugly experiences,as if i were a prophet as i told my wife that these banks are going down undetected by several people including Government, the CBN strike with the removal of five bank directors two of which I had had an encounter with. I was elated and full of Hope that at last someone somewhere can do the right thing... to be contd

Nigerian Universities in Comatose

2009-09-12T08:51:00.000-07:00

It is really saddening and very pathetic to see the nonchalant attitudes of our leaders and custodian of our resources looking away at the current ongoing Universities lecturer's strike.
One can not but to wonder if the true intention of our so called leaders is not to really privatized our educational system the way they have almost privatized our major revenue generating sectors.

To think that workers who are recruited into these schools are really the ones that are agitating for the upgrading of our depleted and skeletal University infrastructures is repugnant.
Who should be in charge of maintaning and upgrading our facilities in these tertiary institutions? shouldn't it be the owners and custodian of this legacy?
But the reverse is the case of my dear country. Little wonder , since almost all of these prodigals have their children in schools abroad, when they only profess that they are true Nigerians and are even singing with it, but in realities non of them really could patronise Nigerian education system.

Those of them who have their children in public schools withdrew them out of these public schools and send them abroad for studies immediately they are elected- I beg your pardon-smuggled into public office - talking about patronising made in Nigeria goods- their houses are also filled with foreign goods, they as a matter of fact lived in foreign product.
These neglect of our education systems would continues unless this battle is fought to a logical end, the embezzlement of funds meant for development and upgrade of facilities in our education sectors will continued to be diverted if our constitution- their constitutions which they are imposing on us- is not changed with genuine peoples constitutions which will forbids political office holders and ministers et cetera from having their children in foreign schools.

I call on Nigerian youths to stand up to ask these so called leaders to give to us what rightly belong to us, I call on our lecturers to continue this battle till positive result is obtained as we don't really have anything to go back to- is it our dilapidated classrooms, empty laboratories, empty libraries but to mention a few are what we are expected to go back to?
Please let this battle continue, "Aluta continua", victory is certain....to be contd