WHAT A COUNTRY

THE SENATE DRAMA

 I am not at all surprised at the outcome of the hue and cry on the impeachment of Wabara. For those of us who know the operational system of these visionless and inept members of the National Assembly, we know what would end the noise about Wabara’s impeachment. It was just to beat the Abia man to line. It was a warning by the land lord of Aso Rock to remind the caretaker of the Apo quarters that it is the ‘Oyinbo who made pencil that made eraser too’. You can imagine Wabara saying that he was rattled by the impeachment move.

Why should he be rattled? What was he afraid of? Dr. Iyorchia Ayu knew of the move to impeach him in 1993 over the June 12 elections, he didn’t lobby, and he allowed them to impeach him. Why did Wabara refuse probe? If he is clean he should not be rattled. It just a simple case of birds of the same feather. He has gone to the Villa to beg, apologise, and pay homage as he hasn’t been paying royalty. It is very sad. I cannot imagine that Dr. Mamora, Senator Saidu Dansadau would be part of these. I know so much about Dansadau, he an older friend one of my very good friends in the Senate. I pray he is not part of all these mess.

I often wonder how family men, of at least 40 years of age put up such irresponsible act. They are not the people’s representatives. I do not blame them; I blame the electorates who for a pot of porridge sell their rights. This is sad and unfortunate.

Do we have any option to these misrulers? To some yes to others we don’t, we should continue to hang on. To me I think we do have option, we do have alternative. I do not belong to the school of thought that says that God will do it. Heaven help those who help themselves. They often pray that the God who removed Abacha will remove this government. I don’t subscribe to such prayer, because if we get to know how Abacha died and those involved, it will surprise us. Abacha did not die of Apple poison, which was the theory sold by his killers bought, gullibly by us. We have swallowed that hook line and sinker for many years now, some people, especially the actors know Abacha did not die of apple poison but of MAGUN (Don’t climb) planted on one Ibo girl brought in from abroad (this is enough). The option we have is to replace the spent lawmakers, hungry and inept, who do not have anything to offer than to use the office to amass wealth. But first there should be a change in the thinking of Nigerians about who they want and what they want.

REJOINDERS TO MY ARTICLES

Ordinarily I do not respond to rejoinders, this does not mean I don’t like feeling the pulse of the people. I honestly welcome constructive and reasonable criticism, but there are some rejoinders that I feel I need to address for reasons that are not far-fetched.  I have noticed that our people do not like to be criticized.

When I responded to the accreditation refusal of the Nigerian Tribune man, Tony Ekata of the Voice of Nigeria replied to what I said about the State House correspondent. I saw Tony’s letter written in November just last week. I am not going to address issues raised in his letter as they are not important; rather I want to say that I sympathize with him for his ignorance. What I know about their deal then was from someone close to Tony, someone who took part in the attempt. I called him, asked him, but he refused to mention the bank.

The Nigerian embassy in Washington DC also reacted to my article on the Immigration and Saboteurs. Everything in the article was denied. This is not a surprise to me anyway. Our own sense of civil service is to lie, and deny the truth. We enjoy telling lies, calling black white, when it is crystal clear that it is black. It would have been better if the writer of the rejoinder had overlooked my article.  I felt so sorry for them. I didn’t write the article to witch-hunt anybody but to help my country grow from the level of destruction that people like them have plunged us into. Asking me why I did not report the illegal deals to appropriate authorities. Who and what is the appropriate authority? Corruption is an official thing in Nigeria. Senior officers are involved. I was there one day when I went to collect my passport as an officer tucked some naira notes in a passport for his boss, an Assistant Controller to sign the passport. So who am I going to report to? Why we do we like to pretend and be dishonestly honest? Why are we afraid of the truth? The Head of Service of the Federation Alhaji Mahmud Yayale Ahmed once told me that one of the first solutions to Nigeria’s problem is sincerity. This has been the gospel he has been preaching. How can we say that foreigners don’t carry our passport? Where are these people when Stephen was reported to have got a Nigerian passport for Odamtey larntey (pardon the spelling of the name), the Ghanaian footballer who played with Keshi in Belgium. Who declared this Ghanaian footballer a Nigerian, how did he become Nigerian citizen? What are the procedures of becoming a Nigerian citizen? For avoidance of doubt, I was at the Nigerian embassy in August 2003 with a friend called Charles Anionye who lost his passport; we were told that it will take 8 months for him to get his lost passport replaced. We were not the only one there, there were a lot of Nigerians there that day. I was reliably informed by an attorney based in Baltimore that she was told to wait for 6 months to get her client passport replaced; this was in November 2003. I write not to discredit but to correct error, to right that which is wrong, that is my watch word. I did not write to put anybody’s job on the line, but if my write up puts your job on the line, then I am sorry make corrections. I know now that for 2 months staff of the Nigerian embassy has not got their salaries because of the problem going on with Riggs Bank, but should that be the case? I won’t be surprised if they deny this too. We know they do owe them salary, but why should that be?

When I wrote about the “Vagabond in Power” so many people wrote to commend me while some scolded me.  Many of those who attack me are Yoruba who blame me of names dropping. That why do we Yoruba like to pull down our own people?

I responded that issue is more of principle than tribe.  We all said the north had dominated the political scene, there should be power shift, but what difference has the power shift brought? We have someone in power is more fluent in Hausa than Yoruba, someone who does not see himself as a Yoruba leader but world leader. I have not seen any significantly different from when we have the Shagaris, Buharis, Gowons, Babangidas and Abachas in power. What we have is a recycled government. People lie and deceive themselves that we are in the fourth Republic, I am not a student of political science, but I know we have only had one Republic and that is still what we have. The Republic of Bandits for Bandits and by Bandits. The same old faces, worn out faces, with worn out ideas and brains. People who are too greedy, and like free things. They are too lazy to work, and pay dues. They have been enjoying free housing, free cars, they don’t pay for petroleum, they don’t pay for electricity, they enjoy everything virtually free. The ordinary people work get little as wages and pay high for services that are not there. No light, no water, no transportation. To go to school is becoming more difficult, yet you can not get a good job without a University degree. What a Country!

TO MY DEAR ADETOKUNBO FAKEYE

I am happy at what is happening in Ogun State now. Yes, it is good for them. They wanted a change and they have got it. Honestly I don’t want to join issues with friends but I am being forced to say few things. I have read with rapt attention responses to Ogbeni Lanre Banjo’s letter to Gbenga Daniels over the last local government election and the response of my very good friend and colleague ADETOKUNBO FAKEYE, Media Assistant to the Ogun State Governor. I will first congratulate my friend, who introduced me into Defence reporting in 1999 where I got my Nigerian Media Award in 2000. If this is the Tokunbo I know, I am short of words and feel so sad for the future of journalism in Nigeria.

Well congrats Toks, you have entered the club of looters, visionless and leaders without direction. You are now part of settlement governance. I know and still remember your rough journey in life. How you were arrested, detained by Colonel Frank Omenka, I know and still call you DMI alumni. With the recent happening, your detention seems in vain now.

Most of the issues raised in Ogbeni Lanre Banjo’s letter were not addressed. The issue of election manipulation. I have a report here of how the people of Waterside besieged the palace of their traditional ruler over the disqualification of a popular candidate.  Do not tell us that someone was appointed by Osoba as a result we should blame Osoba, but we know and you know too that he that pays the piper dictates the tune. I have said it in one of my earlier articles “Professional Responsibility in the News Media” that the rate at which journalists are becoming mouth piece of corrupt politicians is alarming and appalling. I know what you can write Toks if you were not working for Gbenga Daniels.  I hope you still remember Ipokia Local government 2002, Ado-Odo Ota local government, IFO Local government, all in 2002, what you did for them with your pen? Please think back into those days. Are you still the same Adetkunbo Fakeye, known as Taliban writer, feared in defence under Abacha and by our colleagues both on crime and defence beat? You lost the trip to Liberia to cover the ECOMOG activities because they knew you will report the truth. I hope you still remember how we reported the death of our soldiers in ECOMOG what we went through getting our exclusives. I am surprised that you are now working with and for Niran Malaolu when you once turned down offer to work for him at Anchor Newspaper.

I read your rejoinder and was amused at your sudden change and transformation. You are indeed born again! You have not denied the visit of your Governor and his Fire Brigade Information Commissioner to Chief Mrs. HID Awolowo.  Was the visit a courtesy call as you call it in Nigeria when you go to solicit? At least  I was aware that some months before the April 2003 elections, Gbenga Daniels employed the services of one SHADOW, the leader of Area boys on my street in Fadeyi, and the gut was placed on 35k monthly, to do what? Let us leave that for now.

What is the duty of the Special Adviser to the Governor on World Bank /IMF Matters? Because the Governor’s friend wrote a proposal on World Bank for the Governor, the man was appointed Special Adviser. We know this man lived in New York, before his appointment and now he is a governor’s adviser. What is the relevance of such issues to the growth of Ogun State?

LOOTING GOVERNORS

It may come as a surprise to some people that some Governors do divert Federal Allocation to their foreign accounts. To me it is what they do, but what surprises me is why no one has not been arrested, in spite of the information at the Federal government disposal. I was shocked when President Obasanjo was asking Nigerians to come out with information on corrupt Public Office holders. The list is endless. Where does he want us to start? We need the names of these Governors. Just as the name of the party sounds, so is the government, PDP- People’s Deceivers Party. The problem with these people is not poverty but greed. Many of them are rich, some even came from a very rich background, but they still have to steal. Their problem is that of kleptomania

Dariye is no surprise to me. During the money-making trip organised by the AGIP former Minister of Propaganda, sorry I mean Minister of Information and National Dis-Orientation, Professor Jerry Gana, in collaboration with the President of the Nigeria Union of Journalist Smart Adeyemi, this was called media tour, Joshua dariye was not in the country when the Smart Adeyemi-led journalists visited Plateau State. When he came back from his overseas trip he reinvited the Smart Adeyemi reporters to Jos. Of course, some handouts exchange hands and he was given pass mark. On the award day in Abuja he was disappointed to discover that Audu Abubarkar and Peter Odili were the award winners.

The meidia tour then brought out the mess in Nigeria journalists. It was nothing but an image laundering trip. Many of the journalists on thr trip came back buying cars. They got 1.5 Million Naira from Enugu State, what for? Adeyemi Snart has the answer. How much did they get from Adamawa, Kogi, Rivers? Let us leave that for now. To be on the trip you must be in Adeyemi’s good book. I want toleave this for the part 3 of What a Country, which is a focus on the Nigerian Media and Democracy.

Take the case of a governor of one of the South -South States who fired his Chief of Staff because the latter shared part of the loot they took to UK.  His chief of Staff was his childhood friend, but not as fortunate as his governor who has a rich background. They have been traveling abroad together like that taking their State’s revenue allocation abroad for deposit in the Governor’s foreign account. On this day, they were at Gatwick airport on arrival and with the chief of staff carrying the brief case, he told his friend that they had to share the loot in case the military strike tomorrow he would not have anything to fall back to after leaving politics.  The chief of staff did, got his own out of the brief case. When they got back to Nigeria, he was fired by the governor. The fired chief of staff began to tell everybody why he was fired and the governor was advised to recall him to kill the news. He did and the fired was posted out of the state to Abuja as the Liaison Officer of the State.  There was another one that happened to another governor from the South-South, he was apprehended at the airport being in possession of money up to 2 million Pounds, according to sources, he was bailed by someone from Aso Rock; this was sometime in 2002 or early 2003.

Nigerians should brace up for 2007, these people who do not have business being in government should be shown the way out. We cannot continue to entrust our future in the hands of these selfish people. One thing I know is that when the conscienceless power meets the powerless conscience, the former laughs, while the latter laughs last.

May the sweat of our ancestors water our tree of freedom.

NB