The ghost of Biafra..

I read with disgust a few days ago in the papers that self-promoted four-star Biafran Army General Ezegburugburu Odimegwu Ojukwu was at the Millitary Pensions Board to collect his gratuity.

I was appalled because that to me represents a sell-out of the struggle that led to the secession of the Igbo race from the rest of Nigeria.

I remembered a discussion I had with my political mentor, Amb. Raph Uwechue a few years back on his book, 'Reflections on the Nigerian civil war: Facing the future', the circumstances that led to the secession who found a collective voice in Emeka are still present today albeit cloaked.

I wouldn't know if Dim Emeka reflects on happenings in the country presently on the 15th of January every year as a day that Biafra, a child of necessity then and now was killed with the formal surrender of Phillip Effiong at Dodan Barracks in Lagos.

Biafra was an ideal child of necessity against the blood-sucking elements who were thirsting for Igbo blood in the northern part of the country. If only He, Ojukwu had been humble enough to enjoy the goodwill of the Igbo people and seek not to entrench himself in apparent power,
my country, The United States of Nigeria would have been doing the black race proud.

38 years after, I wouldn't know if Ojukwu has been misled to think now that all is well with Nigeria. The problems of Nigeria are legion which could have been settled if Ojukwu had not gotten carried away with the power he could have wielded as an independent ruler of the Biafran Republic without answering to anybody at Dodan Barracks. Erstwhile, he was the military Governor of the Eastern Region.

I daresay that the ideals of Biafra were noble and present-day Nigeria lost out in properly constituting itself into a true United States of Nigeria because Ojukwu got himself misled about his military strength when the Federal Government reneged on the Aburi accord and stuck to his guns when it was eventually ready for it.
Its so bad that villains like Brig-General Benajamin Adekunle are the silent heroes of the Nigerian Civil war and the Obasanjos openly gloat about their being able to bring an end to the civil war.

In light of Ojukwu's recent action, what can be said to be the value of the lives of eminent people like Aguiyi Ironsi, Brig. Victor Banjo, Major Sam Agbamuche, Major Phillip Alale and the rest of those who lost their lives in the struggle?

To go or not to go?

Over the last few days, the Nigerian media has been awash with different stories, postulations and opinions over the apparent removal of the EFCC chairman.

A lot of issues have been raised and as a Nigerian, I have become more confused.

I wonder the kind of impression a foreigner who is interested in visiting Nigeria and about the only thing he can get from our dailies are the intrigues surrounding Nuhu Ribadu's exit from the EFCC.

I do believe that nobody is a monopoly of knowledge. Everybody at one time or the other, in the private or public sector should go for refresher courses and stuffs like that that have the prospect of increasing your effectiveness on the job.

I can confidently say as a Nigerian, someone somewhere, maybe the Inspector-General of Police himself engineered the plot to remove Ribadu from office. I can say that because I know how the Nigerian factor works..

The EFCC is already becoming an institution in the mould of the FBI. However, it still lacks the capability to work effectively due to constraints in manpower and finance.

The major challenge that the proponents of the "Ribadu must stay camp" have is that the EFCC is still built solidly around him.

You'd agree with me that no brouhala would be raised if the FBI Director is relieved from his job. There are more than enough already-groomed succesors to the office.

I beg to disagree with those who have made public commentary their source of daily bread. Over the past few years, they have been there scourging for daily bread and political relevance on the pages of newspapers stifling informed opinions from seasoned journalists like Reuben Abati, Dele Omotunde, Simon Kolawaole, etc.

For the sake of posterity, if you dont have anything sensible to say, keep your mouth shut! Nobody is deluged by the stories making the rounds that the EFCC was used to hound Obasanjo's perceived enemies.

How many political opponents of Obasanjo have had their names dragged through the mud compared to people from his own camp.

It is a shame that we always fail to see people who are genuinely interested in the Nigerian dream and castigate them when they try to do what is right.

Yes, I would tell you going by my benchmarks holistically that Obasanjo failed Nigeria.

However, one shouldn't rush to throw away the baby with the bath water.

Everybody knows that corrupt practises is the order of the day in Nigeria.

It is no news that our uniformed brothers harrass their brothers in the transportation sector.

It is no big deal to deal 'brown envelopes' in the name of PR.

It is no big deal to obtain a valid drivers license without having an idea of where the nearest FRSC office is situated...

The administration of OBJ was courageous enough to create the ICPC and the EFCC as a medium to combat corruption.

Baba could have been doing business as usual but he chose not to...at one point in time, I remembered him saying that Corruption is Nigeria has eaten so deep into the system insomuch that you find therein family members, traditional rulers, even people you respect engaging in corrupt practises.

If the Police organisation was being effective, there would have been no need for the EFCC to come up in the first place.

Going back to those who are allegedly being hounded by the EFCC by being OBJ's styled enemies...

Free your mind of all sentiments and try to focus on the names of those who have been indicted or being investigated...for every one OBJ's styled enemy that you mention, I'd mention two of his friends who were also caught in the anti-corruption crusade.

Who in his right senses would say or allude to the fact that the former-IG Tafa Balogun was in OBJ's bad books? Oh..

Does the name of S.M. Afolabi rings a bell whose trial alongside a sitting minister,Akwanga, Akerele, etc by the ICPC started lending credence to the anti-corruption war?

Nobody as far as I know has told Alamieyeseigha to shut the f**k up and start blaming OBJ for his arrest and subsequent trial in Britain and in Nigeria.

I heard him 'live' when he told us during a visit to my former school, Covenant University that they(serving government officials) do not have anything new to offer in governance and that they are waiting for us to come and give them fresh ideas. In other words, all they are capable of doing is to siphon money meant for the betterment of the masses to acquire properties through fronts like Terry Waya and the likes...

If he's not corrupt, let him come out and tell us how he got to be in possession of one(1)million pounds sterling raw C.A.S.H. while his basic salary for being governor is less than 500pounds...

Finally, for all those of you who are rooting for Ribadu's removal, come up with credible and verifiable reason why he should be removed or have been removed before now...

Let us for once celebrate his achievements using the instrument of the EFCC and stop vilifying him for doing the right thing at the right time.

We all crave for public-spirited public officials(in the moulds ofAbubakar Tafawa Balewa, Festus Okotie-Eboh, Michael Okpara, etc.) in our nation but this shameful act of vilifying our heroes and celebrating them long after they are gone will discourage even the valiant of men from coming into the public sector to do what is right.

3 yrs ago...Has the sun risen?

I've been pondering over what to upload as my first-ever blog. A trip into my archive turned up this stuff I wrote in 2005...I hope u enjoy it...

In the light of the current political situation in our dear country Nigeria, I have thought it fit to share this with you.....

A new dawn in Nigeria …
It is so disheartening that some Nigerians do not want to accept the fact that a new dawn has come in Nigeria . It is another new day and we are set to draw from the waters of Nigeria .
Never in the history of this nation has the anti-corruption campaign been so strong.
Kudos should and must be given to the current administration for the dogged fight against corruption.
The administration forced a resignation on the part of the former Inspector General of Police, sacked two ministers, did a cabinet reshuffle, weeding out ministers that were found to be under-competent, dropped a ministerial nominee on the ground that he is suspected of having forged a part of his C.V.
As I said earlier, it is so disheartening that some people do not see anything good in the current administration.

We have a myriad of problems in Nigeria but the only way those problems can be solved is through a collective effort that will truncate all the problems that we have.

We know we have problems but we have resigned our selves to fate yet we will not look the other way when heinous crimes are being committed in our country, Nigeria .

Here is an administration that is committed to wiping out corruption and we have decided not to give our support to the administration.

Anytime the EFCC or the ICPC or any other government agency arrest someone, a particular section in which the person is from will start shouting that they are being persecuted.

It is time for change.

There is no doubting the fact that this is the birth of a new dawn in Nigeria .

Most of the old people around have failed us. They have continued to toe the path of tribalism, bad politics and what have you to the detriment of the nation.

Unfortunately, the youths of this great country have started following their footsteps.
It should and must not continue to be like this. We should be thinking of taking this country back to its former place among the comity of nations instead of continually dragging it into the mud.

On the issue of resource control, the Lord God has placed enough mineral resources in all parts of the earth. All we need do is to find out what they are and exploit them.

All the states in Nigeria have one mineral resource or the other that is enough to sustain each state government.

I think the state should be in full control of the resources in their locality and they should pay a fixed percentage e.g 10% to the federal government which would be like 10% derivation to the federal government.
This would make the centre less attractive to corrupt politicians and the electorate would know who to hold responsible for the economic down fall in the country.

I think the federal government should only concern itself with foreign affairs and national security (I don’t support state police and militant groups), and concentrate on fostering good relationship among the citizens of the country via the federating units (states).

I believe we can make this country great again. I believe that the best thing that can happen to a person in this world is to be a citizen of Nigeria , live among the people of Nigeria and get to know the people of Nigeria .

I am sold out to seeing a change in the Nigerian perception of his neighbour, the current administration or subsequent administrations.

If our politicians are corrupt, it is because the larger society is corrupt. We should remove the lump in our eyes before trying to remove the speck in their own eyes.

I am tired of hearing that an individual or some set of individuals can hold the country to ransom. Are we fools? No.

Come 2007, I would want us to shine our eyes and vote for people of repute and not mediocres.

God bless Nigerians, God bless Nigeria .

Sogeke Olukunle Samuel
July 14, 2005
9:00 -10:05pm.