Tams Sokari Archive

Publishing again, a decade later

2025-07-13T00:00:00Z

Hi! It’s me, Tams. How are you? I hope better. Me? Better in many ways.

A lot has changed since my “self-imposed” publishing hiatus. I don’t know where to start so I will start with “Hi”, and some highlights.

In the last decade, I:

made a career pivot from Civil Engineering to Software Engineering.
travelled to a few countries around the world.
met the love of my life, and got married to them.
built some intentional friendships that I hope to maintain as long as possible.
learnt and grew a lot across all areas of life.
made some choices — good and bad — lived and learnt from them.
moved countries.

Expect posts about these, and more. For now, I will continue to publish posts here, until I migrate over to my internet home. Putting this out there to motivate myself to get that done.

Until next time, what do you want me to write about?

Legitimacy or Sovereignty – The Niger Delta

2015-01-13T00:00:00Z

“…to build a nation where peace, and justice shall reign.”

“…Help us to build a nation

Where no man is oppressed,…” – Words from Arise, O Compatriots (Nigeria’s Anthem, 1978-date) and Nigeria, We Hail Thee (Nigeria’s Anthem, 1960-1978) respectively.

As promised, here’s my sequel to the post on Legitimacy or Sovereignty. In this case, we discuss Legitimacy or Sovereignty using the Niger Delta as a case study.

The Colonial Era

Territories known today as the Niger Delta were first called the Oil Rivers Protectorate (1884-1893), then expanded into the Niger Coast Protectorate (1893-1900). The Niger Delta, like most coastal areas, had early interactions with foreign powers: the Portuguese and other Europeans during the Slave and Oil Palm trade. This meant early adoption of colonial culture, evident today in names and traditional attires.

Relationship between the Niger Delta natives and the Portuguese/British Empire was built on trade. Traditional kingdoms such as Bonny, Opobo et al were means by which the colonialists exerted authority directly. However, absorption of the Niger Coast Protectorate and Lagos Colony, creating the Southern Nigeria Protectorate (1900-1914), reduced the access these traditional rulers had to the colonialists. So for years, they asked for re-establishment of direct governance.

When the unified Nigeria was split into three administrative regions, this clamour was resurrected. A prominent figure was Harold Dappa Biriye. He was a politician who joined the National Council of Nigerian and the Camerouns (NCNC) led by Nnamdi Azikiwe in 1941. He also joined the Action Group (AG) led by Obafemi Awolowo, looking for support for his cause: fairness, justice and self-determination for the ethnic minorities in the Eastern Region. After sometime spent in both parties, he left to start his own party: Niger Delta Congress (NDC). It is recorded that he was dissatisfied with policies of both the NCNC and AG. He allied the NDC with the Northern Peoples Congress (NPC). He became prominent after his attendance as a member of the Eastern Region delegation in the pre-independence constitutional conference of 1957/’58. The conference held in Lancaster House, London as well as Lagos. The Willink’s Minority Commission was to address Harold Dappa Biriye’s.

Today, the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) headquarters is named after him, Harold Dappa Biriye House.

Post-Colonial Era: Oil Curse?

Pre-Civil War

After Independence, the recommendations of the Willink’s Minority Commission were not put into effect. One State/Region was created in 1963, the Mid-Western Region.

In 1966, the first organised violent rebellion was led by Isaac Adaka Boro. He led the Niger Delta Volunteer Force (NDVF). After the January 1966 coup, he and the NDVF declared the Niger Delta Republic in February 1966. Of course the FG quelled the NDVF’s rebellion, in just twelve (12) days. Boro was imprisoned for treason.

Boro believed that the main benefactors of the new Oil & Gas industry were the Federal Government and Eastern Region’s Government. He also believed that the remoteness of both governments, deprived the indigent people of the benefits of the resources under their soil. He was right. Derivation had dropped to about 10% (1968) from 50% (1958). The Federal Government gulped 80% of the resources while the State/Region got 20%, creating an all-too-powerful FG.

Civil War

As the Civil War was brewing, the Gowon-led FG sought to reduce the influence of the Ojukwu-led Eastern Region (Biafra). He then conveniently remembered the Willink’s Minority Commission recommendations. Nigeria’s FG had learnt well from the Divide and Rule handbook of the British. So in May 1967, Rivers State and South-Eastern State came to be. Finally, government closer to home. Adaka Boro was released and enlisted as a Major in the Nigerian Army. Problem Solved? Far from it.

The FG’s move was effective though. Minorities of the Niger Delta were caught in limbo, like a choice bride being sought by both Nigeria and Biafra. There was no time to waste though, July 1967 brought the Civil War. A good part of it was fought in the Niger Delta. With both the Nigerian and Biafran troops distrustful of the Niger Delta. This resulted in the killing of many minorities by both sides during the Civil War.

Isaac Adaka Boro fought on the side of the Nigerian Army and died in 1968 under unknown circumstances. Today, there are two parks in Rivers & Bayelsa States named after him.

Post Civil War

New State Governments After the Civil War, it was up to the new State Governments to build legitimacy for the Nigerian State. Rivers State was blessed with HRH Alfred Diete-Spiff, touted to this day as the best Rivers State governor so far. There were things beyond his control though: the Oil Industry for instance.

Oil Industry’s Role Nigeria’s Oil Industry growth was quick and unregulated. The FG didn’t know much about Oil Industry Standards of Practice and the Multi-national Companies benefited from the ignorance as regulation was either non-existent or lax. Oil was simply a way to guarantee easy money for the FG.

For those interested: Oil pollution can occur at three main points – extraction, transportation, and waste (gas flaring, by-products etc.). Oil pipelines are susceptible to corrosion. This means that appraisals of pipelines ought to be done frequently. Service life of oil pipes are estimated to be between 15-25 years, ultimate life about 30-40years. From 15 years upwards, frequent assessment or/and improvement of pipelines become necessary; at 30-40years, pipeline replacement is advised. Around 1976, Nigeria’s Oil Industry was about 20 years old. To increase the stake of the FG in Oil Revenue, Nigeria’s Land Use Act (1978) was decreed to make the FG owner of all minerals beneath the soil surface. Also, the FG required the Nationalisation of Multi-National Oil Companies by “investing” or “decreeing” equity stake (20 – 60%) in these companies. The Nigerian National Petroleum Commission (NNPC) was the company set up by the FG. So Royal Dutch Shell became Shell Nigeria, Chevron became Chevron Nigeria and so on.

I have seen no record of monetary investment by the FGN in any of the now nationalised Multi-Nationals. These are what I believe to be the FG’s “in kind” contribution:

Legislation: The Land Use Act (1978) meant the FG now had legal hold on communal land, or at least what was underneath.
Security: FG provided security using the Armed Forces, effectively militarising the Niger Delta.
Lax Regulation: The FG would not hold the Oil Companies to the Industry Standards.

The results of these were:

Increased Revenue: FG got more money. Remember this quote from Herbert Macaulay?

“The dimensions of “the true interests of the natives at heart” are algebraically equal to the length, breadth and depth of the whiteman’s pocket.”

All that needs to be changed there is “whiteman” for “FG”. This has been a recurring perception among militant leaders.

Lack of Accountability: Oil companies were not held accountable by the FG.

By the 1980s, oil pipelines had begun to spill. Industrial Oil Waste also began to accrue in the Niger Delta. The sources of livelihood of the people of rural Niger Delta (farming/ fishing) was either destroyed or threatened. In comes Ken Saro-Wiwa.

Environmental Degradation Ken Saro-Wiwa, unlike Isaac Boro, did not declare war with the Nigerian State. He however used the pen to bring National/International attention to the environmental degradation in Ogoni. This made him an enemy of the benefactors of the status quo: the FG and Multi-national Oil Giant, Shell. However, it made him somewhat of a hero with the Ogoni people.

He believed that government was corrupt and many traditional rulers did not speak up because they were benefactors of a patronage system. He was president of Movement Of Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP). The information on the court proceedings are open.

To this day, the FGN has not held any Oil companies accountable. All court cases for Ogoni have been in courts outside Nigeria. The FGN cannot effectively be both regulator and participant. Hard choices have to be made if the FG seeks to build legitimacy with the people of the Niger Delta. Choices which will reduce revenue generated, but will be in the people’s best interest.

Hardcore Militancy Late 1980s and 1990s saw a build up of ethnic crisis amongst the minorities of the Niger Delta. Such squabbles had existed from pre-colonial years, but took a new dimension. These fights occurred even within sub-groups of the Ijaw ethnic nation.

Democratic politics and Confraternities in the Niger Delta also played roles with their leaders being at the fore-front. A lot of confraternities were used as enforcers for election rigging in the 1999 and 2003 elections. Egbesu (Ijaw god of Warfare) boys and other militant groups emerged.

A number of these militants were headed by leaders who ran enterprises (oil theft, drugs, arms etc) termed “criminal” by Nigerian law. They however believed that their actions, at least on oil theft, were justified by the criminality of Nigerian law itself.

What you had at the end was a mix of: activist professionals (followers of Ken Saro-Wiwa[?]), princes of traditional rulers (Tompolo), known cult-leaders/members (Ateke Tom, Soboma George).

The Federal Government amnesty programme of 2009 in typical fashion, sought to deal with militancy by a Patronage System (…brothers left our nexus, for pieces of golden alms…) Yes, it worked in the interim quelling present uprisings, but did not seek to remove the conditions that led to such uprisings in the first place.

What violent militancy did, was in effect create a get-outta-jail-free card which Oil Companies like Shell have attempted to use to absolve themselves of complicity in the damage of the Niger Delta.

I have read that one kingdom, Gbaramatu, believes more in an ex-militant leader, Tompolo, than in the FG. Being that he plays the role of government there.

Thoughts

Ken Saro-Wiwa said this of the Ogoni “the world to them did not extend beyond the next three or four villages, if you then think that within the space of seventy years they were struck by the combined forces of modernity, colonialism, the money economy, indigenous colonialism and then the Nigerian Civil War, and that they had to adjust to these forces without adequate preparation or direction, you will appreciate the bafflement of the Ogoni people and the subsequent confusion engendered in the society.” I think if you remove the first clause, most of what he said can be true of most of rural Niger Delta.

A people surrounded by water but unable to drink from it. A people with some of the most polluted air, but they have to breathe. A people lacking in true leaders, much like the rest of Nigeria but worse off than others blessed like them.

My worst fear for the Niger Delta is a breakdown of present society into feudal units led by bickering regional warlords. Each with ambitions of conquests.

In the Niger Delta, the Nigerian FG has carried out state-sanctioned massacres, covertly and overtly. What this has done, is create a people in stifled opposition to the State. A state they fear, but do not trust and can hardly swear allegiance to.

One thing is sure, Nigeria in 54years has not built a nation where no man is (feels) oppressed or peace and justice reign. Can we change and do what we declare in our National Anthems?

Sources/Further Reading

Interviews of my father, Tams Sr, a Niger Deltan born before Independence with over 15 years experience in Nigeria’s Oil&Gas Industry.
Niger Delta (Wikipedia)
Harold Dappa Biriye (Biography) via www.waado.org
World Bank Report “State and Local Governance in Nigeria” – Shows derivation values.
Omaka, Arua Oko. **“The Forgotten Victims: Ethnic Minorities in the Nigeria-Biafra War, 1967-1970.”** Journal of Retracing Africa: Vol. 1, Issue 1 (2014): 25-40. [PDF]
IHD, 1998 “What is Egbesu?” via United Ijaw – http://www.unitedijaw.com/people.htm
The Guardian UK (25.09.2004), “Rebels threaten Nigeria’s Oil Wells” – http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2004/sep/25/oil.business
UNEP Ogoniland Environmental Assessment Report [PDF] (UNEP) – http://postconflict.unep.ch/publications/OEA/UNEP_OEA.pdf
Judith Asuni _“Understanding the Armed Groups of the Niger Delta” [PDF] _ via Council for Foreign Relations www.cfr.org
BBC News, “Shell ‘warned Nigeria pipeline could leak before spills'”

Personality profiles of different individuals mentioned here can be obtained on Wikipedia. A myriad of related information is also obtainable there.

Open to engagements here and on Twitter via @ATamsSokari

“The Great Nigerian Armed Forces”

2015-01-09T00:00:00Z

My primary school years, I wanted to become an astronaut. I still hope to visit space someday, hopefully as part of the construction team for the first human space colony.

These dreams made me study hard. My parents encouraged this as the way by which I could eventually give life to my dreams.

I wrote the Common Entrance Examinations in Primary Four. Wrote the Federal Entrance, Air Force Secondary School and that of my Private Primary School. I didn’t bother considering interviews for any of the others, I knew I was going to AFSS. I got in.

First year, I joined the Cadet Club; I was an active member for Four Years, then I quit. My illusions of the Nigerian Military were crumbled by new knowledge. There was no longer any strong motivation to join the Nigerian Armed Forces.

Why Do People Join the Armed Forces?

In the movie Jack Reacher (IMDB), the protagonists states the following as main reasons why people join the Armed Forces. They are:

Family Trade: These are those whose parents were/are in the Military, and it becomes the most likely path they follow. Career military families.
Patriots: Those who believe in the values, purpose and nature of their country/state, and wish to serve her in defence of those values.
Job-Seekers: Yes, this occurs even in the US. Persons join the Military simply for employment.

Finally,

Legal Means of Killing: The Military makes trained killers, someone who wishes to sate his curiosity in the art of murder can do so here. In times of war, they are given a license to kill, fulfilling their desires.

To this brilliantly crafted list, I would like to add one.

Citizenship: Joining the Military in the US is one of the fastest ways to become a legal citizen. A good number of Nigerians have taken advantage of this right from the 1970s, when my father worked in the US.

Now, we have five possible reasons. How do they apply to Nigeria. ### Why do people join the Nigerian Armed Forces?

Case 1: Family Trade Being an Ex-JAM, a number of ex-colleagues (Senior and Junior) went down one of the afore-mentioned paths. The closest one to me was the younger brother of my closest friend. His father was an MWO at retirement from the Nigerian Air Force, after 34years of service. This is the highest rank for non-commissioned officers. Having been on the lower echelon of the rank wars (between Commissioned and Non-Commissioned) in the Military, he desired that his sons – all five of them – would become officers and pass through the NDA to be Commissioned Officers. Lucky for my friend who had no military ambitions, he came up lacking in the political requirement (a.k.a “Who is your Godfather?”) that we’ve come to know exists in the NDA. As such, he escaped enlistment. His younger brother was not as lucky though.

Case 2: Patriotism I argue that there are no real Nigerian patriots. What we have are believers in different variations of The Nigeria Project. This is as we do not have national values, purpose and are yet to agree on the nature of our nation-state. As such, the few who profess to be patriots believe in infinite good possibilities for Nigeria. How does this affect our Military? Well, it makes the Military defend a forced sovereignty that has failed to gain legitimacy.

Case 3: Job Seekers Visiting the Nigerian Army Website, one of the first things you see is The Quote of the Year.

”A real soldier is known when he is put in the warfront. The one who is not a soldier will run away and abandon his job. Our soldiers are recruited from Nigerian society and, today, most people are not called to be soldiers, they joined because they are desperately in need of jobs.” – Lt. Col. KTJ Minimah (COAS)

This has been the case in Nigeria for a while. It can be argued that enlistment in the Nigerian Armed Forces are most likely due to this reason, at least for the Non-Commissioned Officers who make the bulk of the army. This large enrolment and lack of real purpose reduces the quality of training soldiers can receive. It can also be a point to consider when you hear of soldiers fleeing in battle or defection.

Cases 4 and 5 have little to no application in Nigeria, at least not to my knowledge.

Where is our Armed Forces Greatness?

Some days ago, someone on Nigerian Twitter referred to the Nigerian Army as a ragtag army. He received a barrage of insults, saying that such a tag was disrespectful to the valiant soldiers we have. Just as in most cases, Nigerians have excelled as individuals but Nigerian Institutions have never been built. Let’s analyse the Nigerian Army’s Structure in particular.

Structure

The Nigerian Army today has 6 divisions. These divisions were mostly formed after the emergence, or perceived emergence, of a threat.

The First Three Divisions (1, 2 & 3rd Armoured) were formed at the onset of the Nigerian Civil War.
The 4th Division (82 Division) was formed after the surrender of Biafra, in Enugu, the former capital of the Eastern Region and Biafra.
The 5th Division, 81 Division in Lagos, was upgraded from a garrison command in 2002.

You may say there was no war then, but do you recall the date of the Ikeja Armoury Explosions? 27th January 2002. This resulted in an upgrade to a Division on 26th May 2002.

The 6th and most recent Division, called the 7th Infantry Division was formed in August 2013. Its purpose is to fight Boko Haram.

With these, one can say that the Army as an institution is a ragtag/cut-and-join Army without being far from the truth. The present and previous Chiefs of Army Staff (CoAS) have/had stated that the army needs proper organisation.

Training

The growth of the Nigerian Army was meteoric during the Civil War. This resulted in a breakdown of training regimens to accommodate more soldiers. A large increase in size, meant a reduction in quality. Here’s some details.

“In Nigeria, from a force of 18,000 in infantry battalions and supporting units, strength rose to around 126,000 in three divisions by the end of the Nigerian Civil War in 1970”– Scott report, Sunday Telegraph, 11 January 1970, via N.J. Miners, “The Nigerian Army” 1956-65, Methuen and Co. Ltd, London, 1971, p.229

Those soldiers stayed in the Military, most likely till retirement. There has not been a record of the Nigerian Military being downsized.

A former US Marine, Major Stafford, stated this of the Nigerian Army.

“Inexperienced, poorly trained and ineptly led soldiers manifested their lack of professionalism and indiscipline by massacres of innocent civilians and a failure to effectively execute infantry tactics.”– Major Stafford in a 1984 Study.

This happened with the Odi (1999) and Zaki Biam (2001) massacres. There were also cries of genocide as recent as 2013 under former CoAS, Gen. Ihejirika. Great armies have low “collateral damage”.

Logistics

Every Nigerian Institution has issues in this regard, one could say it is somewhat cultural. For many who think our service men have always been well taken care of, here’s what Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo (rtd) said of his command during the Civil War: there was a “haphazard and unreliable system of procurement and provisioning”. Much like today, isn’t it? There have almost always been arms-dealing embargoes from the Civil War days. _Do we think it is all diplomacy? _

African Peace-Keeping Missions

This has been an endless reference point when people wish to support their greatness claim. We hear of how seemingly loved the Nigerian troops were in other African countries. We allude the stabilisation of Sierra Leone and Liberia to our valiant Army. However, many of us have not bothered to read of the various degrees of Human Rights Violations, rape and more that we were accused of in same Peace-Keeping missions. We hear that we are one of the best in the world in “guerilla warfare”, and we take pride in that.

Peace-Keeping Missions were not funded and managed by Nigeria alone. The United Nations or/and African Union played pivotal roles, including funding and strategy. Nigeria’s role was largely a supply of infantry. You can check the records.

Thoughts

Following the Civil War, Nigeria has had 4 coups. All of them emanated from the Army. Would a great, stable Institution topple itself several times? No!

A Nation’s Armed Forces are one of its most important institutions. While I respect the bravery of our troops, I will not romanticise our past. Our Armed Forces have played pivotal roles in shaping the Nigeria we see today. These problems are more foundational than they are political. Correcting them requires a near complete overhaul of the present Nigerian State, a replacement with one of shared values, purpose and acceptable nature.

Legitimacy or Sovereignty

2015-01-05T00:00:00Z

The Sovereignty of Nigeria shall not be up for debate

Quoted above are words used each time a National Conference has been convened in Nigeria. The benefit of those words are yet to be seen, as are those of the National Conferences. Could it be that these Conferences failed because of the limitations on discourse? That remains to be found.

Legitimacy of a Nation is a sensitive issue. I have spent the better part of some days asking myself this: How does a Nation-State gain/attain legitimacy? For clarity, here are definitions of the two terms taken from the OALD 6th Edition.

Legitimacy is coined from legitimate which means (1) for which there is a fair and acceptable reason, (2) allowed and acceptable according to the law. Emphasis are mine. Synonyms for legitimacy are Justice, Validity, Rightness, Correctness and Acceptability.

Sovereignty means (1) complete power to govern a country, (2) the state of being a country with freedom to govern itself.

Now that both definitions are clear, which do we see addressed more often in Nigeria? Legitimacy or Sovereignty?

In 1960, Nigeria received Independence from Great Britain. By that act, she gained sovereignty. However, prior to this occasion, the Nigerian State had not acquired or built legitimacy from her constituent groups. This lack of legitimacy unravelled on multiple occasions before Independence.

Herbert Macaulay questioned the legitimacy of colonial Nigeria as governed by the British. Of the British State, he was credited as saying:

“The dimensions of “the true interests of the natives at heart” are algebraically equal to the length, breadth and depth of the whiteman’s pocket.”

Could Nigeria’s Sovereignty be constantly under threat because it has not built legitimacy? This is a thought I have entertained and think many others should too.

TESTS OF SOVEREIGNTY

In the 54 years of self-governance, Nigeria has had about 10 coups. Each one countering a “Sovereign” government. These can be case studies of the role a lack of legitimacy has plagued the government of Nigeria.

The Civil War

Pre-Civil War

Coups and counter coups were the preserve of the ruling class. No coup was led by the people. But I believe the Civil War occurred due to a lack of legitimacy. A coup occurred, and a counter coup followed. This was within the political circles. The 1966 pogroms however, went beyond the political class. This massacre went unchecked by the Nigerian State, an act unacceptable to part of the Nigerian people: the Igbo and Southerners. Revenge attacks on persons of Northern origin occurred in Igbo territory. A cycle repeated often in our short history.

The proposal for secession was partly due to the failure of the Nigerian State to assure its constituents that “it had their best interests at heart”.

Civil War

During the Civil War, the Nigerian State again put Sovereignty ahead of Legitimacy. So did Biafra.

It was easy for Biafra to lose favour with the minorities of the Niger Delta. They had not sought to build legitimacy, a mistake the Nigerian State capitalised on. Of course, there was politics involved. Cross Rivers State and Rivers State were new opportunities to govern self for the minorities of former Eastern Region.

The story of the minorities during the Civil War is one I think needs to be told more often.

My dad escaped forced enlistment by the Biafran Army. There are records of abuses of minorities by both factions in the war. Till today, a distrust of majority ethnic groups exist in the Niger Delta. A reason being the supposed expendability of the minorities, and disregard by all.

Post-Civil War

Post Civil War Nigeria was promulgated as sovereign, with the full forceful backing of the military. Opposition had been cowered in war, but that sense of belonging – legitimacy – a people have for a nation was missing.

It was peace time and the Reconciliation and Restoration of the Eastern Region to Nigeria came at a cost. There was an opportunity to build legitimacy. An opportunity wasted again.

THOUGHTS

In Society: The Foundations, I stated what I believe to be the foundation of society: “we forgo something and benefit from another”. This is how legitimacy is built, by showing how being a part of a society is beneficial to a constituent group. Nigeria has failed to do this with all constituent groups.

One advantage, which Nigeria sells is “we are bigger/stronger together”. However, numerical strength and size does not make for better quality of life. Sometimes, they can be a disadvantage. The Civil War is one example, the Niger Delta is another. I would do a sequel using the Niger Delta as an example next week.

In the absence of legitimacy, sovereignty is always up for debate. This would not end with a change of Federal Government or of political leadership style.

The Fairness/Lawfulness of a Citizenry can only be expected when the Society is created on Fairness/Lawfulness. Nigerian laws (Federal and State) are not all fair and just, as such opposition is bound to arise.

I believe Legitimacy is more important than Sovereignty. It is only with acceptability of societal laws by all, that the continued existence of society is guaranteed. To this end, the creed of the French Revolution: Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité (Freedom, Equality, Brotherhood), appeal to me.

Going forward, Nigeria still has a task to build legitimacy. We have failed at it in 54years. Can we get it right now?

Nigeria’s 2015 Elections: Funding the Campaigns

2014-12-03T00:00:00Z

The preparations towards the 2015 elections in Nigeria have been fraught with many scandals already. While these are problematic, they are frequent occurrences in our politics which have played out several times between 1999 and 2014. There is however a subtle shift occurring in the preparations for this election rounds. This shift is in the area of campaign funding.

Prior to 2014, it was near unspeakable to hear of a political aspirant asking for funds from supporters. Yes, such requests were made to “stakeholders”, or what we call political godfathers. But now, it is becoming more open to the masses.

The first occurrence of this which I came across was by Tonye Princewill (@TonyePrincewill), a gubernatorial aspirant in Rivers State. Then young aspirants like Bisi Ogunwale (@BisiOgunwale) & Uche Chuta (@nnabros) also announced their platforms for donations.

A senatorial candidate, Frank Nweke II (@FrankNwekeII) also made a call for donations. Now, there is even a website dedicated to campaign management for political aspirants in Nigeria: Campaign.ng. At the time of writing this article, 38 aspirants had campaigns running on this platform. It is interesting to note that these aspirants cut across party divides.

About a week ago, it was announced that a presidential aspirant, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), would also receive donations towards his campaign. This is the first aspirant to the highest office that will go this route. Channelling the resident PDP chieftain on Twitter (@akaebube), this is good for our democracy. However, I believe we should not get carried away in a seeming new fad that we forget to subject it to proper criticism.

…he who pays the piper dictates the tune…

The old guard of Nigerian politics ask one question when a person indicates interest in a political position: **Who is your Godfather? **In Nigeria, we have a myriad of these godfathers, in every part of the country. These godfathers have constituted a power bloc that have ensured that they rule in perpetuity: either directly or by proxy. Their benefactors dance as they choose because they paid their way.

Politics to me is a pedestal on which one climbs to partake in public service/governance. No matter how good one’s intentions are, s/he cannot serve two masters. S/he would be conflicted between the two; in this case, the sponsor and the public.

How do we change the narrative? You guessed right, by blurring the line between the sponsor and the public. The public now pays the piper and the elected official becomes beholden to a larger group of people.

Going through the comments section of the article on Frank Nweke’s website in which he officially declares and asks for support, I came across the signature Nigerian scepticism. This scepticism is not unfounded, but some comments come off as counter-revolutionary (channelling @cchukudebelu now).

One of such comments stated thus:

“Frank is vibrant he can be a good senator, but to solicit from financial support is deceit. He has acquired much to contest for that position….But money take it off, we even want the one you got to share for us.”

In that comment, we find the reason why our politicians have stolen our commonwealth. When all expenses for election campaigns and elections themselves are borne by a few, that few, feel justified in recouping their investments from government. I have highlighted some ways political parties do this in “Political Party Funding & Nigerians“.

Another comment said:

“…I wish you would tell us how you intend to refund, sorry payback….i meant compensate for donations you receive.”

Elections are a two way affair: either the candidate wins or loses. If the candidate wins, the people know that he will serve their interests. Serving the interests of 50,000 donors instead of 50 is a good deal I think.

It is advised that donors only donate what they can do without. This is as there exists a 50% chance that the candidate loses.

How can candidates/donors make this work?

Making crowd-funding work in our democracy can be summed in one word: ACCOUNTABILITY.

This is one thing most Nigerians fear. We have been unable to hold any of our past governments accountable for anything. Heck, we are unable to hold even our pastors and imams accountable. Thus, distrust is common place.

How can candidates show that they are different? Transparency.

If every kobo donated towards one’s election expenses is accounted for in a transparent manner, the donors, and others, would be at rest as well as open to future crowd-funding campaigns.

An aspirant can choose to structure this in any way they please. For me, a publication of donations received and expenses incurred can be released fortnightly.

In showing accountability in the seemingly little things, the people grow to believe s/he would be accountable when in government.

Thoughts

Campaign funding, and all parts of our politics, stand to benefit the Nigerian people when the people are invested in it. These investments can include time, money and services rendered.

I am thankful that these election rounds are opening up opportunities for the masses to be more involved directly. I’m taking this chance, so should you.

Nigeria’s 2015 Elections: Before the Numbers Game

2014-10-27T00:00:00Z

Temporary Voter’s Card (with Incomplete Biometric Data Capture)

“Democracy is a game of numbers, and we have those numbers”, is a familiar cry to many Nigerian political observers. Those who use this cry however, show no desire to acquire those numbers, at least not legitimately. Have you heard a statement from any political party concerning the Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC) and Continuous Voter’s Registration (CVR) rounds that have been or are being carried out by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)? I haven’t, and neither have any of my friends or family members.

You may think that this is by the way, and INEC is totally responsible for voter mobilisation, but it really isn’t. Here’s some much needed perspective.

PERSPECTIVE

These are what I believe to be the problems likely to occur in the 2015 elections, some have already been experienced in the Ekiti and Osun elections held earlier this year. Have the political parties learnt from those experiences? Remains to be seen.

2015 Election Problems

PVC Collection The PVC is supposed to replace the Temporary Voter’s Card issued by INEC for the 2011 elections. So far, INEC has done at least two rounds of PVC distribution to more than 20 states. Another round begins in November. In the news, I have read of PVCs going uncollected at various locations. Some have said that it is evidence of false registration in those areas, but I think it is more than that. Here’s why.

During the 2010/2011 election rounds, I was a student of the University of Port Harcourt. I registered to vote in Alakahia, my resident off-campus community. Almost all my colleagues in school also registered around school. Uni-Port graduates about 10,000 students yearly, but for this case study, I assume that 5,000 students per level registered in the Uni-Port community. Using a normal 4 year academic programme, that amounts to 20,000 students registered. All of those 20,000 students are expected to have graduated and left the school community now. However, their PVCs would be sent to those communities in which they registered, only to be returned uncollected.

This is clearly a problem that the government (executive and legislative), INEC and all political parties should have foreseen. INEC says it has, and so enabled the Transfer of Voters.

Voter Transfer A voter may have changed his residence in the four years between the 2011 and 2015 elections. I have, and most of the student community has as well. How, then, can he transfer his voting permit from his former constituency to his present one? Simple! He does a voter transfer.

But how does INEC intend to carry out this transfer? A 9-step process involving an application, some back and forth between former and current constituency, and the intrinsic Nigerian bureaucracy. This process requires a good degree of patience, on the part of the citizen, to see it through from start to finish. I don’t have numbers on successful transfers INEC has carried out so far, but knowing Nigerians, I can wager that it is way less than those who require transfers.

CVR Continuous Voter’s Registration (CVR) was created to cover a number of people. These are:

Newly Eligible Voters – Those who just turned 18. It is estimated that this category of prospective voters are more than a million.
Previously Unregistered Voters – Those who did not register to vote in 2011.
Registered voters with issues – like the photo used where just two of ten fingers were captured, voters who have issues such as uncaptured biometrics are advised to register anew.
Transferred voters – the transferred voters use the CVR to get new voter’s cards issued to them.

ODDS WITH POLITICAL PARTIES

All I’ve written so far boil down to the role political parties are failing to play. Voter Courtship

Each political party is interested in growing a support base amongst the people. The parties have to court the new or/and old, disinterested voters to get registered first, before they court them to vote for their party. Have any of them done this? Not yet!

The PVC collection is supposed to end, I think, two (2) weeks before the elections, could be 30days even, but no party has started early. Transfer of Voters requires that the process must be done at least 30days before an election. February 14th 2015 is is 110days. Remember, at least 30days are required for Transfer of Voters, and New Voter’s Registration. This means that all they have is 80days, including weekends and the public holidays. The time to act is yesterday, today you can attempt catch-up.

Aside: In all this, you may say I did not blame INEC at all. INEC is an independent organisation. Unfortunately, elections are seen as the main goal of their existence and as such they seem to only operate during election season. Paraphrasing Donald Duke, we take elections as special events in Nigeria, this is wrong.

INEC is funded by the Budget of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This budget is scrutinised and assented to by the National Assembly, comprised of members of all political parties. If these parties were honest about the timely production and distribution of PVCs, or/and the early commencement of CVR, they could have started action on that. Thus, they are all to blame.

Yes, the system and process is not perfect, but it is what exists now. Political parties can and should understand it and try to utilise it properly. This is in lieu of crying foul when proper groundwork has not been done. Go all out and court/educate your supporters, have them register and vote properly. Do this, and stop thinking that having a large population automatically translates to a higher number of votes.

3 quick thoughts on Buhari’s ‘loan’

2014-10-17T00:00:00Z

Response to

Point 1. I’d like a reference to where the PDP nomination form costs N10million. No, I’m not trying to cause trouble. I read here http://www.thenewswriterng.com/?p=13328 that the PDP’s Rivers State gubernatorial nomination form is about N10million. Forms have varying prices across states. This I think is good as it considers disparity in state income.

Point 3: The APC was a merger of at least two parties, ACN & CPC. A merger means that assets of individual entities should belong to the new party as agreed upon. This invalidates the new status of the APC. The only excuse one would give is that the former parties were run as sole enterprises by their administrators. If that is the case, then there is dishonesty on the part of the constituent parties and new APC leadership.

Again, these are thoughts open to discourse.

The Kaleidoscope

This from the Vanguard is generating quite a bit of discussion:

Buhari meanwhile, yesterday procured the party’s N27.5 million expression of interest and nomination forms at the national secretariat.

Lamenting that the costs of the forms were high, he said that it took the understanding of his bankers in Kaduna and Abuja to raise the money.

“It’s a pity I couldn’t influence this amount to be put down as in the case of ladies and the disabled that intend to participate. I always looked left and right in our meetings but I could not read sympathy, so I kept my trap.

“But I felt heavily sorry for myself because I don’t want to go and ask somebody to pay for my nomination forms, because I always try to pay myself, at least for the nomination.

“N27 million is a big sum, thankfully I have personal relationship with the manager of…

View original post 474 more words

Political Party Funding & Nigerians

2014-10-16T00:00:00Z

Been a while, today’s post is inspired by talk in my home state, Rivers State. It is common to hear “Amaechi don carry Rivers State Oil Money go give APC people” in political discourse. For clarity, he officially left the PDP to the APC in November 2013.

The flaw of this argument can be found in the reply, “Had he been carrying Rivers Oil Money to the PDP for the past 6years?”

I thought this argument could do some good if genuine conversations about political party financing arise from it. This is my contribution to this conversation.

Feel free to comment as always.

Nigeria today has two main political parties, the People Democratic Party (PDP) and All Progressive Congress (APC). These parties are always in the news with their promises and scepticism of the opposing party. Both parties claim to be on the side of Nigerians; however, neither has done things that are not to its benefits. This piece shows how they both benefit at the expense of Nigerians, focusing on one scenario, Political Party Funding.

HOW DO POLITICAL PARTIES FUND THEIR ACTIVITIES

The man on the street would simply say, “na our money dem dey chop”, and he is not far off. Truly, na our money dem dey chop. But how dem chop am? How our law fit stop dem?

What does the law say about political parties and funding?

For this, we refer to Chapter VI – The Executive, Part III – Supplemental, D – Political Parties of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Sorry, enough legal mumbo-jumbo. The main point of interest is Section 225, Sub-Section 3, which states:

No political party shall –

(a) Hold or possess any funds or other assets outside Nigeria; or

(b) Be entitled to retain any funds remitted or sent to it from outside Nigeria

That’s the main legal limitation political parties face, every other limitation is as defined by the legislation of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the Electoral Act. The most recent edition is the Electoral Act, 2010 [PDF] which has one Amendment [PDF].

Ways Political Parties are Funded

The basic ways political parties get funds are: member subscription fees/dues, levies on elected and appointed members, donations, nomination forms, returns on investments and fund-raising dinners. The ways we will discuss are levies, donations and returns on investments.

LEVIES Members of a party who are elected to positions on the platform of the party are subjected to a levy on their basic salaries. Members appointed to different positions, committees or selected as ambassadors are also subjected to levies.

Last year, there were #OurNASS protests about the high cost of governance. Both parties did not do anything to address the issues raised. Of course, they wouldn’t advocate reduction in salaries of their officials because they benefit from them. These benefits are at the expense of Nigerians. Thus, the higher the better.

RETURNS ON INVESTMENTS This for me is one of the most controversial of all ways of political party funding. Granted, a political party is a corporate body and as such is allowed to make investments in real estate, companies and government securities. They are even allowed to establish businesses. There is however no indication that proper oversight is given over the “investments” political parties make.

A political party which acquires positions in government can thus give grants and contracts to companies in which they have interests. They could also manipulate government real estate policy to increase the viability of their real estate holdings. Ways political party investments can be manipulated to their gains are endless.

DONATIONS Political parties are allowed to receive donations from individuals and organisations. The Electoral Act has no limit on how much a political party can receive from an individual or organisation. Just like with investments, a friend of a political party could make legalised “kickbacks” to the political party. It was reported that in 2003, Aliko Dangote donated ₦200million to the re-election campaign of then president, Olusegun Obasanjo.

Donations and investments are the ways of party financing that bother me the most. This is as both can be easily manipulated to favour them (the political parties) at the expense of the people. A road contract given to a firm in which a party has stakes or to a friend/benefactor of a party’s government is most likely going to be at an inflated price. There is thus, no incentive to reduce the costs of our physical infrastructure. Infrastructure which we are in dire need of.

Thoughts

I believe that politics and government should be distinct entities. Government policies and activity should not favour political parties at the expense of the citizenry. In order to get better governance, proper oversight on the ways political parties are funded, especially when in government, must be carried out.

I’m on Twitter @ATamsSokari.

For further reading you can consider

Pages 28 – 34 of the Electoral Act, 2010.
Pages 69 – 73 of the PDP Constitution [PDF]

#APostADay Day 5 – Nigeria: The Dignity of Humanity

2014-09-28T00:00:00Z

…that all may be treated with the dignity of humanity…

Contemporary Nigerian society appears to be chaotic. Citizens believe it’s a dog-eat-dog world. A common mantra amongst Nigerians is ‘this life na OYO (On Your Own)’. So, we go on as best we can, minding our own businesses, fighting against attempts to derail us.

Sometimes we hear Ah Ah! I’m a human being not an animal. Treat me with some respect at least. We see such situations occur mostly among the intellectual elite. These same people however do not care to treat other humans with the same dignity they demand.

Earlier this year, while still in school, I boarded a taxi from my apartment to the campus. While on the way, I saw a street hawker selling the popular ‘Gala’ sausage roll. The minibus in front of my taxi had someone making a purchase. Traffic was free and the bus driver was flowing with it. This made the hawker to run after the vehicle, losing his slippers in the process. He also had to drop the rest of his goods, and dropped some currency notes while in pursuit of the customer. All this was for a pittance of 100naira. His profit on that could not be more than 20naira even.

Observing that made me sad. This was a human being made to behave like an animal for a pittance. _What ever happened to dignity of labour? Or is it something we reserve for those in and above our social classes? _

Week in, week out, we see reports in the media of housemaids and the likes being abused by their bosses. Many are accused of absurd crimes and are not given a chance to defend themselves. We also hear of mob violence being meted out on humans. The mob fueled by transferred aggression: aggression from poverty, from previous abuse they suffered etc.

What is Human Dignity in Nigeria?

I ask this question because as society differs, so also do our values. The United Nations acts as arbiters for Human Rights and many countries, including Nigeria, are signatories to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. You can read through this, and decide on what you believe are human rights.

When you’re done, look inward and check if you treat others with the same standards you desire.

Aside: Many times, the Nigerian Armed Forces and Police Force have come under fire by countries and organisations for Human Rights Violations. Though I do not discount the validity of these claims, I do not ascribe to the politicisation of them. The same countries, not organisations, who cry for such now, were silent on violations amongst the people in the Niger Delta. Perhaps because it benefited them then. We can’t continually shout human rights violations when we suffer it, but justify it when others suffer it. It would be acting out like _All animals are equal but some are more equal than others _

Thoughts

Nigerian society, being comprised of many different sub-societies, poses a unique challenge where human dignity and human rights is concerned. We have the traditional Social Caste systems in some parts, the Autonomous system in some other parts and many more. I am no expert on sociology.

Some parts of our traditional culture contravene the Human Rights Declaration. Many are sure to stand against its application. Of course the benefactors of the status quo would. As individuals, I believe in the Golden Rule, “do unto others as you would have them do unto you”.

So, next time in traffic, spare some thought to the hawker. Next time with your maid, consider yourself in her place. Next time you are tempted to bully someone, consider being bullied. This is a first step towards our changing for the better.

As always, I’d love your thoughts and comments. I’m on Twitter: @ATamsSokari.

#SCOANGATE: We have an enforcement problem

2014-09-27T00:00:00Z

In light of the recent SCOAN building collapse, YouTube Video here, many have complained that the church failed to obtain a permit from the relevant Building Regulatory authorities. For clarity, a two-storey building had been modified by the addition of four storeys; thereby making it a total six storeys. Federal and State laws and statutes give legal backing for the enforcement of the Building Code. What then is the Problem?

Building regulation is but one example. In Rivers State, where I am resident, the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) State Chapter chairman, Dr. Korubo, had gone on rounds to check Fake Medical Personnel. This was done with the support of the State Ministry of Health and had the law enforcement agencies with them. A number of doctors without licences were arrested, some hospitals were shut down etc, all with press coverage. Was there any state prosecution of the defaulters? I don’t know if there was, as it didn’t receive as much press coverage.

Professional guilds, bodies and associations have a very large part to play in the conduct of practitioners of their corresponding professions. In more advanced countries, there are plumbing, painting, and carpentry guilds. A plumber wishing to carry out a project for an individual or company can be required to show proof of his qualification to carry out such a service. Why isn’t that the case here?

We have an enforcement problem!!!

Reading the Nigerian Constitution and other statutes, one would see laws required to guide the conduct of citizens. But these laws are not enforced. A majority of the population would rightly claim to be ignorant of the laws. Who then would enforce it?

Many people build houses in Nigeria. Some only hire a Student-Architect or Civil Engineer to make a building design and pay him off on completion of the design. They then proceed to find an experienced mason, who knows how to ‘set plumb line’. He becomes the Chief Consultant for the project. This is how things have been done by Nigerians. Abi, do we want to pretend ignorance of it? When things go wrong on such a project, Oga Mason (who his subordinates call Engineer) runs away. Thus, no one can be held accountable and the Client/Owner/Sponsor suffers alone.

Meanwhile, the law requires all building plans to be stamped and approved by the Ministry of Urban Planning & Development after proper scrutiny. The law states that the Ministry is also to provide oversight throughout the construction of the building. By oversight, I mean the following.

Ensure prerequisite tests have been taken and results meet required standards. Example: soil bearing capacity tests etc.
Make unannounced inspection visits to site. Visits in which their representatives:
Test random samples of building materials: cement, sand, gravel, concrete and reinforcements.
Do visual inspections of the construction processes. Example: checking that reinforcements are placed and bound properly, ensuring vibration of concrete etc.

Some visits are required at landmark positions during construction. These visits are at:

Foundation.
Flooring.
Lintel Level.
Decking.
Roofing.

These are from my recollections of the National Building Code. Please any corrections should be brought to my notice in the comments section.

_Are these steps followed by every Nigerian who is building?

NO!_

But they should be. It is not uncommon to see Ministry representatives demanding money, illegally, for playing their part. They don’t carry out tests they are supposed to, and they hardly pay attention to any stage of the construction. At least I haven’t seen any one of them carry out tests. Have you?

Every building construction has an Architect as principal consultant, and where multi-storey construction is involved, a Structural/Civil Engineer, is also commissioned. They are accountable for the building being constructed according to standards and they face queries from their professional bodies where their structures fail. At least I know COREN does enquiries. However, when due process is not followed it is near impossible to hold someone, other than the client, accountable.

Are you ready for that?

Can you point to a professional responsible for that building you are erecting in your village? Oh! Your friend/dad recommended an engineer, is he certified? It is easy to verify this now. Visit the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria website on http://www.coren.gov.ng. If a query fails, you can get a contact for your state branch there as well.

COREN has already set up an Investigation into the SCOAN collapse. Hopefully this holds the professionals to account. But until we enforce things being done rightly the first time – by builders, contractors and government regulatory bodies – I don’t think we’ve heard or seen the last of such incidents.

Interested in a copy of the National Building Code, 2006. Here’s a PDF of it: Nigerian National Building Code, 2006 (this is not hosted on my site, please inform if link fails to work)

#APostADay Challenge between @Saatah and me is still on. Expect another post later today.

#APostADay Day 4 – Choice!, LOVE

2014-09-25T00:00:00Z

**_“Over the others, over my pride

Over the faults/flaws, I have in my life

I Choose You, I Choose You, I Choose You”**_ – Ryan Leslie

The words above are from one on my favourite musicians. I was (don’t know if I still am) a firm believer in those words. To me, love is a choice, not an emotion. A choice to Live Over Vain Entanglements…a choice to Let Others Voluntarily Evolve. A choice!

Live Over Vain Entanglements

I loved someone, when I was much younger. Not the teenage, hormone-driven kind. Even then, I consciously decided each day to love her. What happened to our love? Vanity? Or is it…

I was aloof to my surroundings then. I still am most times. Constantly in pursuit of ideas in my head. Not like every other kid.

I asked her to be official, on her 15th birthday. I was 16 and had finished my Secondary School exams and was awaiting admission. She accepted and within six months I was off to school.

In school, we kept in touch. Calls, texts, IM. Till I became absorbed. My first semester in school was one of my worst ever. Academically, I was ripped. Failed? a Maths Course (Algebra & Trigonometry) got a couple E’s in the other Maths course (Calculus)and Chemistry. Was this the welcome Varsity had for me?

So aloof I was to my relationship, and naïve of the teenage evolution of a female. I didn’t pay attention to sexual hormones, because “the greatest energy in the physical world is sexual energy. And a man who can subdue it and transfer it to more productive fields conquers the world”. That’s paraphrasing a conclusion my dad and I came to after a discussion on sex.

My girlfriend was in an all-girls school. She learnt a lot from friends and explored a bit (I knew this after we split). Of course, most young guys try to explore. I didn’t. Had more important issues to deal with. What of peer pressure? I didn’t have friends who had that power over me…or I didn’t have friends at all.

Then it happened, she told me she was raped. I was overwhelmed. I find my escape in work and so I sunk myself into it. I didn’t know how to react, what will I know? With no experience.

We didn’t really get to see, until my 2nd year. She came around to school, having graduated from Secondary School. We spent time together, and finally got to talk about sex: the rape in particular. We got emotional and she said she wanted us to consummate our love. I said I’d think about it.

I did, we attempted it unsuccessfully, and then I realised myself getting consumed by thoughts of it. Could I handle the pressure? I decided no. And so, I broke up with her.

Afterwards we talked about it: I asked lotsa questions and she revealed a lot more. Overwhelming me with info of what went on while we were in a ‘distant/aloof’ relationship. I almost never looked at myself as responsible then. I blamed her for her choices, even judged her by my standards. Silently.

In recent years though, I’ve come to realise that my development was not like every body elses. I’m learning the importance of communication, of being present and involved.

As regards relationships, still haven’t figured that out yet.

Hopefully, I’m now Living Over my Vain Entanglements: my pride, my work, my standards, my selfishness etc.

Want me to write on the other? Comment below.

@Saatah wrote on It’s NOT just Twitter today.

#PostADay Day 2 – Nigerian Confraternities: Names, Symbols & Deductions

2014-09-24T00:00:00Z

Hello! Welcome to Day 2 of Saatah Nubari (@Saatah) and my #APostADay Challenge.

Day 1: Saatah wrote on Not Much…but there’s hope, and I wrote on Homogeneity and Heterogeneity of our Society

Day 2: Saatah wrote, like in a diary, on The Events of his Day. A good, honest account. This is my Day 2 entry.

Today, I’d like to write about a more controversial topic, Nigerian Confraternities. It is possible that I am ill-educated to do so but I will anyway; to learn is to be alive after all. If you have better information on the subject of this post please feel free to correct me.

Recently I have come across what we in Nigeria refer to as “confra” involved in massive re-branding on the web and social media. In the common sense, a confraternity is defined as “a brotherhood, especially with a charitable or religious purpose”. In Nigeria, most of our confraternities started as university fraternities but got ‘bastardized’ along the line.

While I have no problems with their “re-branding”, I believe it is important some consideration is given to why most of the larger society has a mistrust of them.

THE NAMES

Names of organisations, as well as individuals, help to craft an identity. We form first impressions for organisations based on the names they bear. Two of the oldest and perhaps most popular confraternities in Nigeria are:

Pyrates Confraternity/National Association of Seadogs (founded in 1952)
Buccaneers Confraternity/National Association of Sealords (founded in 1972).

These are the ones I’d refer to in my case study. I may understate the importance of this, but the Buccaneers Confraternity is recorded as a spinoff of the Pyrates Confraternity. Oh yeah, a Buccaneer is a pirate too, by definition.

What comes to mind when you hear the term “Pirate” or “Buccaneer”?

For me, different things come to mind. Rebellion for one. Rebellion against societal norms which are detrimental to the bulk of society is a good thing. The way a rebel, person or organisation, positions himself in society either helps or mars his cause. In this case study, I believe more of the latter has been done.

Another thing that comes to mind is Crime. Pirates recorded from all ages engaged in criminal activities such as bootlegging liquor, robbery, violent intimidation etc.

_Are these traits, associated with the names pirate and buccaneer, part of the guiding principles of Nigerian confraternities? _

This is a question to be answered.

Aside: Yes, every organisation has some bad eggs and the history of otherwise noble institutions could be tainted by such. For this I respect that both confraternities in my case study have denounced illegalities and withdrawn from Universities. This withdrawal has perhaps reduced cases of immature, over-zealous young people showing exuberance by involving in pissing contests.

THE SYMBOLS

To the uninitiated, an organisation’s symbols draw one in. Think of the effect the McDonald’s or Apple logo has when you see it. Now with respect to our case study, what are the logos of the Nigerian confraternity: both utilise modifications of the skull and crossbones (a.k.a Jolly Roger).

_What message do the symbols send? Do they align with the values of the organisations?

Aside: The Pyrates Confraternity uses an Anchor in the background of their logo and this symbol is one that can easily draw good meanings (cue in Christian “Jesus is the anchor of my soul”).

DEDUCTIONS

A lot can be said on this controversial topic and many already have foregone perceptions that are not open to change. I wouldn’t encourage that. Learning Is For Ever (LIFE) is a creed I try to abide by.

It is ****important that all organisations are clear and true to purpose. Nigerian confraternities have a lot to do in this regard.

In many cases, re-branding requires a complete overhaul: change of name and symbols. Hopefully, this piece has some impact.

For background and resources consulted see below:

N.B.: Websites of both case studies are highlighted earlier.

That’s it for today’s, no yesterday’s, edition. Thoughts and comments are always appreciated. Feel free to drop one here or on Twitter @ATamsSokari. Cheers!

#APostADay Day 3 – Knowledge and Access to it…2

2014-09-24T00:00:00Z

Hello! It is Day 3 of Saatah Nubari (@Saatah) and my #APostADay Challenge.

Day 1: Saatah wrote on Not Much…but there’s hope, and I wrote on Homogeneity and Heterogeneity of our Society

Day 2: Saatah wrote on The Events of his Day. I wrote on Nigerian Confraternities: Names, Symbols & Deductions

Day 3: Saatah wrote Where It All Started. In it, he talks of the impact of Ken Saro-Wiwa on his life philosophy

For background on this post, please read the original Knowledge and Access to It.

Growing up, knowledge was the most emphasised thing in my home. I remember having a 15 volume encyclopedia, with illustrations of the Peanut’s Gang: Charlie Brown, Lucy, Linus etc. It covered animals, clothes, planes, cars, the human body… near everything.

A lot changed between those my early years and now. My love of knowledge stayed the same though, there’s a possibility it even amplified. I was called “Cross-breed” in Secondary School. They said I was half-human, half-machine. In University, it was “encyclopedia”. But I digress.

Most knowledge I acquired growing up came at a cost. I did a lot then that I don’t do anymore because I formed principles along the line.

MUSIC & BOOKS

My knowledge of music and love of it formed a bit late. The first secular song I memorised was Joe’s “I Wanna Know”. My cousin from Lagos visited and played it in his discman. This was in year 2000 I think.

Over the years, I discovered more artistes I’ve come to love. This process of discovery was however not legal.

I remember reading a tweet from one of my fave artistes sometime about how he feels music should be free. “Many in Africa, Asia”, I paraphrase, “do not have access to the basics, do we thus deprive them or reasons to smile, inspiration, because they can’t afford the music?” A lot of artistes helped me form an identity today through their music. I couldn’t afford to buy all their music, then and now.

The way it worked was like this:

Listen to my fave shows on the radio.
Note the songs and artistes I connect with.
Use my phone to look up the song and artiste.
Download

You know the days when Browsing Cheat Codes were the ish? I did a whole lot of that.

As music came and formed, books followed suit. I learnt how to get a pdf reader on a Nokia s40 device. Most of my learning was done via tutor websites and the likes, even in my first year of varsity.

THOUGHTS

A lot of the things I learnt from were sourced illegally. Now I do things differently and I marvel at the restrictions there are to knowledge.

Yes, the internet has made a lot open. But is it enough? How many paywalls shall become barriers to the kid in the slum? He already suffers for internet access. Does he now have to be hindered by lack of funding?

#APostADay Day 1 – Homogeneity and Heterogeneity of our Society.

2014-09-22T00:00:00Z

Hello!

So I’ve been off for a while, not for lack of things to write but because I have failed to Overcome Inertia .

However, this is about to change as for the next week, I and Saatah Nubari (@Saatah) have challenged ourselves to #PostADay. His posts would be on http://www.nubby.wordpress.com.

I hope our posts turn out to be worth your while. Cheers!

I have written earlier on Society: The Foundations, please note that this is not the sequel I have on my computer for it. Think of it as an aside dwelling on one point: the Structure of our Society.

Homogeneous Society

The word Homogeneous is defined simply as “of the same kind; alike”. In terms of society, I’d like to refer to the basic unit – the individual – as being of the same kind as a representative majority when he exhibits or possesses any of the following:

Same Background: One is of a homogeneous society when he can find similar ethnic or/and religious background with a majority of his society.
Same Culture: In a homogeneous society, culture is similar. Elements of culture include food, dressing, language etc. This could be by adoption or natural.

Now, Nigeria is one of the most diverse nations on earth. With over 700ethnic groups, one would think we are easily not homogeneous. But, is this the case all around Nigeria? No!

There are what I’d like to refer to as large blocks of homogeneous sub-societies within Nigeria. Think of it, when going to the South-West, South-East, they all appear to be the same don’t they? This is because in spite of some differences, they share a background.

It is not uncommon to hear a language apart from Nigeria’s official language, English, accepted as the official language in those parts. As a matter of fact, I briefly viewed NTA this evening and an event in one of these zones had over 6minutes (before I changed channels) in Igbo. Such cannot happen in my mother or father’s home states because homogeneity is lacking there.

Heterogeneous Society

The word Heterogeneous is defined simply as “of diverse kind; different”.

Heterogeneous Society has the following traits:

Different Background: People of these societies may be from different backgrounds. Common in societies built by migrants.
Different Culture: Language, food, dressing etc. may be different.

I grew up in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. I grew up amidst people from all parts of Nigeria. One cannot speak a language in public and expect another to hear, same goes for Warri, Delta State. This is because of the heterogeneous nature of both societies. Most of the South South is largely heterogeneous as well as the North Central.

Now, I’ve come under fire all my life for not having a “Nigerian Accent”. Where a Nigerian Accent is one with a Nigerian language undertone. This is especially because many are brought up in a Homogeneous sub-society and do not consider that in a Heterogeneous society things are different.

Observations

From my observation of both sub-societal structures I have this few observations:

Homogeneous sub-societies form the majority in Nigeria, and vice versa.
Heterogeneous sub-societies struggle with recognition as part of Nigeria.
Products of homogeneous societies sometimes bully products of heterogeneous societies.

For Nigeria to move forward, I believe a lot more ought to be done as regards managing our Homogeneity as well as our Heterogeneity. Building a Nigerian Identity is indeed a Herculean task but it is necessary.

I am really tired, and this article was written at a go. Please bear with me. I’d go through and edit sometime soon. Thank you.

As always, I’d like your thoughts and comments. You can drop them here on Twitter (@ATamsSokari). Cheers! Oops…Goodnight!

Gaining Impulse/Overcoming Inertia

2014-08-31T00:00:00Z

Brutus:

There is a tide in the affairs of men.

Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;

Omitted, all the voyage of their life

Is bound in shallows and in miseries.

On such a full sea are we now afloat,

And we must take the current when it serves,

Or lose our ventures.

William Shakespear’s ‘Julius Caesar’ Act 4, scene 3, 218–224

Yes, I admit to being a straggler. Being overly cautious and failing to launch out. Be it a business plan, a friendship, a possible relationship or what not, I stall.

Now, in the time I stall I go through many cycles. Cycles in which I’m spurred by passion and go all out studying about my intended course of action. Cycles in which I lose interest and binge on irrelevant things. Cycles in which I second guess my capacity to handle the subject. Cycles in which I acknowledge my need for help and try to reach out to people. But, these are what they are, CYCLES. They take me around but never forward.

While I may give the example of how for furthest propulsion one needs a maximum level of impulse built up; if inertia isn’t overcome, nothing changes. If INERTIA isn’t overcome by IMPULSE, one doesn’t acquire MOMENTUM to build on or let die. Pardon my use of physics lingo, I am an engineer.

Just like my writing, I’ve stayed action on many things, because I want them to be perfect. I over-emphasise the importance of getting things right from the get-go, and I suck at accepting failure. I find myself doing so with this post too.

It gets to a point where you have to recognise that there’s only so much you have within your control. Life isn’t one of them. You gotta be nimble and fluid so you can figure it out as you go.

Just so you know, there would be mistakes. I’ve tried to learn all about mistakes by other’s experiences – my dad’s, my ma’s, my siblings’s, my friends. In that time I’ve given up living the life I know I want to. The thing with such scenarios is that your life becomes dependent on tried and tested outcomes of others’ lives. You also limit your possible reality to theirs. Don’t be cowered into inaction by the fear of making mistakes.

I repeat, Don’t be cowered into inaction by the fear of making mistakes. Get moving today, while you’ve still got some impulse in you, don’t let it wane.

Herald of the Statesmen

2014-07-03T00:00:00Z

The 2015 general elections are around the corner. As is now common, the media would be filled with accusations, counter-accusations, critiques, and endorsements of potential candidates or political parties by supposed “statesmen”. This is what I refer to as the herald of the statesmen.

Who is a Statesman?

Chamber’s 20th Century Dictionary defines a statesman as _“one skilled in government: one who takes an important part in governing the state, especially with wisdom and broad-mindedness”_. Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (6th edition) defines a statesman as “a wise, experienced and respected political leader”.

Judging by the definitions, I am more inclined towards the Chamber’s definition, few persons qualify to be called statesmen. This is the case be it at the ethnic nationality level, and through all levels of government.

Few Presidents/Heads of State, Governors, Senators, Representatives, Chairmen, Kings, Chiefs, ex-ministers, ex-commissioners, have exhibited statesmanlike qualities. However, the gullible masses, and many who should know better refer to any and every person as a statesman.

Why Do We Ascribe a Distinguished Title Generously?

These two reasons come to mind when I try to make sense of the Nigerian “statesman”.

Lack of True Statesmen

In our 54years of existence as a country, and shorter duration as states, few persons qualify as statesmen. Being the “society” that we are and as nature abhors a vacuum, that void has to be filled. So we fill it with what is available. Anyone who has come close to a position of power in time past, becomes a statesman. We pay no mind to his/her questionable past: misappropriation of public funds, personal aggrandizement via ghost contracts etc. All is well as long as s/he has been in a position of power.

Convenience for Purpose

Dean Acheson said _“the first requirement of a statesman is that he be dull”_. This is damning but true about many a Nigerian “statesman”.

Politicians in need of public endorsements tag persons as statesmen, more popularly, elder statesmen. They then proceed to climb on such name tags to achieve their purpose, garnering popularity. Popular family names become statesmen, even children of past leaders become statesmen, all to achieve the politician’s goal.

I can go on about how the chieftaincy and kingship positions in Nigeria are being and have been flawed, and how there is a dearth in the ideals on which our traditional societies were founded. However, I believe that these are common knowledge.

The Statesman Test

I have a few criteria I use when evaluating a reported “statesman”. They are:

Partisanship: Harold Macmillan wrote, “when you are abroad, you are a statesman. When you are at home, you are just a politician”. This rings true of the typical Nigerian statesman, he is better referred to as a party chieftain. A true statesman knows that government transcends politics.
Past Contributions: What ways has s/he contributed in the past to the development of society? In his/her past positions, how well did s/he perform?

These questions would help establish on what moral authority a statesman is to be held.

Relevance: How relevant, vocal is s/he during the tenure of a government? A statesman does not appear only during times of elections, he is vocal about how the government is run. He speaks, be it in favour or against the government of the day.
Responsibility: A true statesman takes responsibility. He does not endorse candidates lightly, knowing the influence he wields over a people. When he does so wrongly, he admits his mistake to his people and does all he can to correct it.

Can you hear them? The “statesmen” are coming. All I ask now, is that when they come, – not if, because they certainly will come – you judge them and their self acclaimed titles by their past actions. By their contributions to the development of the larger society. By their stance for justice, at the expense of personal benefit. By their personal and social responsibility.

Politics: Keeping ‘Em Out 101.

2014-06-30T00:00:00Z

Last week I stumbled upon this article about Aisha Eniola, a 19 year old Nigerian (by birth), who is currently a Town Councillor (equivalent of ward councillor) for Brent Council in England. I am an advocate for youth participation in government, especially as we are the ones who feel the brunt of ineffective governance the most.

For background, you can read these two prior posts

Political Ideologies and our Polity

and

The “Am I Your Mate?” Syndrome

Warning: Legislative terms shall be used in this article. Please bear with me.

**Q. How does the ruling political class keep the young, knowledgeable and inspired out of politics?

A1. AGE RESTRICTIONS**

In Nigeria, the Electoral Act, 2010 [PDF] stipulates in Section 106, Sub-section 2 that the minimum age for a candidate who aspires to the position of a ward councillor should be 25, while that for a local government council chairman is set at 30. Following the trend, one can deduce that running for the position of state governor, member of the national assembly or/and the position of the president would be notches higher.

These Electoral Laws differ from what was obtainable during the military regimes. There were state governors like Alfred Diete-Spiff of Rivers State who was 25 years old at his appointment. There was also Gen. Yakubu Gowon who was war-time president at 28 years.

Now one may argue that these past leaders had some instances of youthful exuberance shown. However, Rivers State still recognises the massive role Alfred Diete-Spiff played in her development. The good he did far outweighs the bad.

What’s attainable today in our democratic system?

A 22 year old new graduate is interested in public service. However, he is ineligible to contest in any elections and so fails to build a political following. In the three years before he becomes eligible as a candidate, he has been snapped into the industry. Industry Career building now takes the front-burner at the detriment of a Political (Social Service) Career.

Oddly, the educational requirement for the same position is a First School Leaving Certificate, one obtains this at the end of primary (elementary) school. Thus, you have individuals of same age, but different levels of human development.

At 25, the college graduate is invested in his career or building a business, while the grassroots man, could be a street thug even, kicks off his political career with a ward election. Thus the disconnect sets in at the grassroots. One develops an Industry/Business career, the other a political career.

A2. FINANCIAL EXCLUSION

For this, Sections 91 & 92 come to the fore. Here, limitations on monetary expenses are stated for a candidate and a political party respectively. There are malleable terms used in Sub-Section 2 of Section 92, which states that “election expenses incurred by a political party for the management or the conduct of an election shall be determined by the Commission in consultation with the political parties”. The limit on expenses by political parties is not stated clearly and is decided at the discretion of INEC.

Section 91 deals with individual candidate expenditure, Sub-Sections 2-6 give the limits as follows:

For presidential candidates, 1billion naira.
For governors, 200million naira.
For senate, 40million naira.
For House of Reps, 20million naira.
For State House of Assembly and Area Council Chairperson, 10million naira.
Finally, for Ward Councillors, 1million naira.

One may think that this limitations bear large fines if contravened, but this is Nigeria and our laws are rife with loopholes for those who have money. The penalties for contravention of Sub-Sections 2-6 are in Sub-Section 10.

For Presidential Election, maximum fine of 1million naira, or imprisonment for 12months or both.
For Governorship Election, maximum fine of 800,000 naira, or imprisonment for 9months or both.
For Senate Election, maximum fine of 600,000 naira, or imprisonment for 6months or both.
For House of Representative Election, maximum fine of 500,000 naira, or imprisonment for 5months or both.
For State House of Assembly and Area Council Chairperson Election, maximum fine of 300,000 naira, or imprisonment for 3months or both.
For Ward Council Election, maximum fine of 100,000 naira, or imprisonment for 1month or both.

With such fines, individuals and parties flout the election expense limitations without concern. After all, what’s 1million naira to someone who can spend a billion?

_How does this exclude the knowledgeable and inspired?_

If you ask the average Nigerian the easiest way to make large sums of money, his answer would most likely be in government. Who gets to be in government early enough? The Career Politicians. Along with crony capitalists, ex-militants, ghost contractors etc, career politicians can fund election expenses easily without wincing. However, a person of integrity would refuse to be involved with questionable finances.

Our politics, being far from ideological or/and policy driven, churns the candidates who can pay the most. When a credible candidate emerges due to a party’s investment, he has to toe the party line to guarantee the party’s returns and so compromises his stand.

This, I believe, is how Nigerian Politics robs us of the best possible leaders.

P.S.: Please share thoughts, corrections and opinions as you deem fit.

The Luxury of Shared Opinions

2014-05-06T00:00:00Z

It is quite common to hear someone say, “This is my opinion on the matter”.

Many of our tweets, facebook status updates, personal messages or/and blog posts are our expressions of opinions; or re-posts of opinions of others which resonate with us. Of course there is the occasional sarcastic remark, joke or attempt at mockery. These can be misunderstood if isolated or taken out of context.

This got me thinking of the many who refrain from intellectual discourse, who do not share or cannot afford to share an opinion. You may say, “what do you mean? everyone has an opinion”, but that isn’t the case. Here’s why I think so.

_Formation of Opinions_

Opinions aren’t innate to us, we form them ourselves with acquired information. Sometimes our opinions are guided by sentiments (think indoctrination/propaganda) and not facts. It takes knowledge to craft an opinion. The knowledge could be right, wrong or flawed.

Acquisition of knowledge requires a desire for it. From Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, one can deduce that those at the lowest cadre do not care much for knowledge.

_Consequences of Shared Opinions_

Opinion possession or/and expression has consequences. The consequences can be positive or negative.

Positive Consequences

Alliances: One can build alliances with people of like minds. These alliances can lead to benefits such as an internet followership; on facebook, twitter or your blog. These are mostly temporal and may skew the formation of subsequent opinions in favour of the benefactor(s). This is evident in the cases of Public Relations for individuals, firms or even a nation.
Jobs: You can also gain jobs from the nature of your posts. A personality profile can be done from the kind of content you share. It is becoming more common for potential employers, especially those in public relations, to request your social media account details. Your posts stand to your advantage or disadvantage.

Negative Consequences

Loss of Credibility: When found to be wrong, you lose the status of “credible source”.
Prosecution: Libel or mis-information is a serious offence, punishable by law. News agencies are not exempt from such.
Loss of Neutrality Advantage: There are advantages to coming off as neutral. You stand to lose out when you criticise wrongly. In this internet age, every post leaves a testament.

You stand to lose job opportunities, or an already existent job for sharing a view (remember Justine Sacco)

_Fluidity of Opinions_

Opinions change. This we can agree on. With new information (knowledge), opinions are reviewed; they could be strengthened, weakened or retracted. How does one create room for possible opinion change?

1. Acknowledge Fallibility: If one comes off as all-knowing and refuses to acknowledge where s/he errs, he is bound to bear the consequences. We’re human and errors are how we learn.

Be flexible: “Adapt or die”, a quote I love. When we accept our present form, we do not make room for growth. Extremists are the ones who accept no view contrary to theirs. You do not want to come off as one. Society is founded on tolerance of individual differences.

You can also be flexible when sharing opinions, terms like “from recent observations” show flexibility. They also show that you’re willing to accept the singularity of your view and are open to interact with others who have different views.

Where re-posts aren’t endorsements, state in subsequent post. Disclaimers are to be specific, not general.

Having seen possible consequences of sharing opinions, weigh the options.

**How much do you really know about the subject?

Do you want to share that level of knowledge?

Can you afford to?**

Political Ideologies and our Polity

2014-01-24T00:00:00Z

Political parties in Nigeria do not have ideologies. Intellectuals complain that ideologies are what define parties, citing the Conservative Republicans and Liberal Democrats in the US as examples. Would 2015 be any different? I don’t think so. Here’s why.

Ideology is the sum of ideas and manner of thinking of a group, social class, or individual. Ideologies form the basis of economic, social and political policy. (Definitions from here)

Our not so nascent democracy is still evolutionary and reflects the psychology of majority of the Nigerian people, and no, the Internet generation is far from the majority. The politicians know this and rely on it. Quotas, zoning and such are still rife in our government partially due to this.

LOOK BACK BEFORE YOU PLAN AHEAD

The 2011 elections were the subject of more reporting than any other election in Nigeria. With the proliferation of access to information via Social Media platforms, citizens were part of the democratic process and every one with a mobile phone and internet access could be a reporter.

Reports of vote purchase were widespread in both rural and urban areas. More disturbing was the fact that these transactions were mostly unhidden and went unchallenged. In the university community where I was resident, students were offered cash sums between 1,000-3,000 naira. Students, who prior to Election Day did not intend to vote, received calls; they appeared in minutes, asking for the dealer. I heard stories of votes bartered for foodstuff and cloth materials (wrappers) in rural areas. Via interactions with people resident in other parts of the country, I’ve gleaned that this was a national issue.

More recently, in our political scene, protests and rallies for and against individuals have become popular. Rent-A-Crowd became the popular phrase in social commentary by the intellectual elite. Society groups, movements and unions with no prior recognition sprouted up in solidarity with controversial government officials. Of course, those in opposition of such officials organized their own groups, movements and unions. Intellectual elite laughed and cried on observing these, they show us the sorry state of our democracy.

HUNGER DEY TOWN

Varying reasons come up when searching for the causes of our abnormal polity. Most credible is this, _“Hunger Dey Town”! _

Food is a basic human need. On the streets, it is common to hear, “na man wey belle full fit argue”. That is the truth; ideologies are principles that one stands by. The masses that haven’t solved their basic needs do not care much for ideologies. Their primary motivation is making ends meet.

With widespread unemployment and crime, the masses are quick to grab at means of instant gratification. It has become part of our culture, as we have scarcely felt the benefits of having a government. Pittances received for being part of a rally/protest, or for selling their vote or for those who have risen a bit above the basic level, fraternal bonds. These are quick fixes, and play no part in advancing our desire for development.

Our present political class continues to exploit this hunger to their advantage at the elections. We should act to change the status quo and improve the standards of our government.

THE ROLE IDEOLOGIES PLAY

Ideologies are guiding principles for individuals or/and organisations. How would ideologies benefit our polity?

1. Accountability: Knowledge of the guiding principles of a person or organisation would help to check their authenticity. Ideologies lose abstract nature when put in practice. In our polity, knowing what a party stands for will help predict the methods to their governance.

Presently, there is no method to the madness as members of different parties easily defect from one to another. Defections are easy because there is no conflict of ideals. No party possesses a monopoly on examples of good and bad governance in Nigeria.

2. Quality: Candidates brought forward by parties would be such that reflect the ideologies of the parties. Quality of the candidates presented would subsequently improve.

Perhaps our political class is aware of the implications of having or/and publicising ideologies, and wish to remain unaccountable to the people. Being benefactors of the existing system, they do not wish to tip the cart.

THE WAY FORWARD

Having recognized the role ideologies would play in improving quality of governance within the parties, and that the present make-up of our political class may not possess what it takes to construct ideologies, what can we do?

We have two options, the catalytic method and the normal method.

The Catalytic Method: Intellectual participation in political parties would accelerate the formation of party ideologies. Lobbies built from within and without by the more knowledgeable; from within by lobbying for the party building an identity beyond symbols, from without by reputable officials giving parties principled conditions for their membership.

The Normal Method: We can fold our arms and wait for the masses to demand ideological parties. This would take generations, as it would require liberation of the people from the throes of hunger/poverty, and massive re-education of the people, breaking ethnic and religious bonds. _Can we afford to wait? _

I don’t think so. Yes, we know that the masses may not care for ideologies presently. The masses would still vote based on ethnic, religious biases or in exchange for money/material gain. We can however peddle some influence to create ideologies nonetheless, to better control the options. We have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Beating Euphoria

2014-01-12T00:00:00Z

“Do not get caught up in the Euphoria and fail to apply yourself early enough”

A lecturer said this to a class of about 400 students in my second year of varsity. It stuck with me for years and I occasionally relay the same advice to those who permit me to be an influence in their lives.

Euphoria is defined as “affective state of exaggerated well-being or elation”. In my words, Euphoria is a state of exaggerated happiness or satisfaction

My lecturer then referred to the euphoria derived from being part of the university, studying engineering. “Exaggerated” acts as a qualifier that makes Euphoria unique.

You know that exaggerated feeling of well-being when you pass a first test? Or do something for the first time. That on-top-of-the-world feeling is Euphoria.

Euphoria in Relationships – #NoNewFriends

For the less socially awkward, meeting new people and getting to know them gives joy. You hear phrases like, “I met this awesome guy/girl”. Soon enough, on getting to “smell the coffee” as they say, we see beyond the hype, beyond the first meeting, and the elation wanes.

At times, it may be that a test situation has occurred, or new discoveries have been made which are not as wonderful as when we put our best foot forward. We consider get-away options, all cause we got caught up in the hype and in the not so distant feature discovered it wasn’t worth being elated about. What then do we do?

#NoNewFriends was a popular phrase in 2013. It was a motto made popular by the YMCMB movement. The concept behind it is basically this: friends who have been tested and proven true are enough, no disruptions allowed.

Flawed as the concept may be, it has a basis. It is a coping method.

Euphoria in Nations – #TheNigeriaProject

For a while, I’ve heard a lot about the decline of Nigeria. How we’ve failed from our glory days. My father’s generation talks of how we had the “best” universities at one point, “best” infrastructure and what not. Is that truly the case?

The first 20-30 years of Nigerians being more involved in the general running of the country are to me a model of how Euphoria affects nations. The Nigerian people were finally self-governing and elated. The first set of leaders are declared as models for the Nation, but we conveniently forget the ethnic and partisan divisions before independence. Divisions which became evident less than 8years post independence and resulted in the Civil War.

Take our universities, the golden years referred to by most are the nascent years. We were caught up in the euphoria and failed to plan, and build sustainable systems. I’m yet to be convinced of the sustainability of the Nigeria project. If we were brutally honest with ourselves early enough, perhaps the many mistakes which have plagued us would have been avoided.

Beating Euphoria.

There are two main steps we can make to cope with this:

1. Recognise: Early recognition is key to beating euphoria. Recognise past euphoric spells. Learn from them.

2. (a) Resign: In line with the #NoNewFriends creed, we can resign to the known. Failed expectations, murky reality. Take whatever we get.

(b) Re-awaken: We can have a re-awakening, a “clearing of eye” as my people say. We can now try to do things better. Try to consciously build what we want.

After making a choice, it is important to continually assess oneself to avoid relapses. Happiness with progress is good, exaggerated happiness on the other hand can be a breeding ground for failure or complacency.

Rivers State Has the Highest HIV/AIDS prevalence?

2013-12-09T00:00:00Z

Sunday the 8th of December 2013 was a lovely day for me until I happened upon this article in the Punch. I was shocked on reading the article, more so from the comments. I had to read a bit on this matter to learn more about it.

**SURVEY DETAILS

The Federal Ministry of Health that is responsible for the broadcast commendably made public the process through which it arrives at its figures. Find excerpts of the details beneath.

“**_For Government to monitor the spread of the HIV and AIDS epidemic including programme planning, monitoring and evaluation in the country, it instituted 3 types of HIV and AIDS surveys, namely:

_**

**_National Sero-prevalence Sentinel Survey: Antenatal Clinic Attendees are subjects in this survey.

_**

**_National HIV/AIDS and Reproductive Health Survey plus (NARHS): This monitors HIV distribution in the general population and the behaviours driving it. It also monitors other sexual and reproductive health parameters.

_**

Integrated Biological and Behavioural Surveillance Survey (IBBSS): This monitors the HIV distribution among the most- at- risk population and the behaviour influencing the HIV epidemic among them.”

N.B.: The Punch article only referred to the National HIV/AIDS and Reproductive Health Survey plus (NARHS).

Excerpt is from “About 3.1 million people infected with HIV in Nigeria – Health Minister”. Full details on conduct of the survey are available in this portable document of the 2010 National HIV Sero-prevalence Sentinel Survey. Note that surveys are subject to statistics and statistical analysis.

**HIGHEST RECORDED CASES VERSUS PREVALENCE

Earlier this year (in May), this Vanguard article stated that there are a total of about 145,000 adults and 15,000 HIV/AIDS cases in Rivers state (the statement was made by Priscilla Shu, Coordinator of the Rhema Care Integrated Development Centre. This made Rivers State the state with the highest recorded number of persons affected by HIV/AIDS. The 2005 population estimate of Rivers State is about 6.7million people. Relating the recorded cases to the population estimate (as at 2005), one would arrive at a 2.40% HIV/AIDS prevalence with respect to recorded cases.

Months later, the Federal Ministry of Health announces a 15.2% HIV/AIDS prevalence in Rivers State and the State Ministry of Health rebuffed the claim.

Why did the Rivers State Government deny the claim?

**STATISTICAL CORRELATION

As mentioned earlier, the surveys use sample populations. In addition, in 22years of carrying out such surveys, growth or/and decline rates should now be available.

The 2010 survey resulted in 6.0% prevalence in Rivers State. For 2012, the 15.2% prevalence reported gives a 153.33% increase (in 2years). That is way beyond any reasonable growth margins except in the situation of an epidemic. Is Rivers State having a HIV/AIDS epidemic?

Perhaps you may not have the time to study the 2010 survey documents; if that is the case, a graphical representation of its findings is in Figure 1 underneath.

**Fig. 1: HIV/AIDS Prevalence by State (2010)

Figure 2 is a graphical representation of the trend of HIV prevalence in the South South Zone by States between 1999 and 2010 while Figure 3 is a tabular representation of the trend of HIV prevalence in the country by State between 1991 and 2010

**Fig. 2: Trends of HIV Prevalence in the South South Zone by States (Graph)

**Fig. 3: Trends of HIV Prevalence in the Country by States (Table)

The figures announced have a massive reduction in the Prevalence in several states and a massive boost in Rivers State. This questionable deviation of 9.2% within two years is why the Rivers State Ministry of Health has challenged the results.

**FULL DISCLOSURE

Full disclosure is a term used to require the dissemination of all information on a subject matter to avoid misleading those involved. In this case, those involved are the Federal Ministry of Health and the public. The Federal Ministry of Health conducts such surveys and is accountable to the public to educate them on the manner of conduct of the surveys. This is to avoid misleading the public on the accuracy of its surveys.

The State Ministries of Health and AIDS offices are partners in the survey conduct; at least such can be garnered from the 2010 report. Why do we have complaints from the State? Is there a possibility that the State wasn’t part of the surveys conducted in 2012? If this is the case, the State Ministry of Health and AIDS offices should make public the details they have available. From discussion with contacts in the State Health sector, I learnt that the prevalence has dropped in Rivers State. I have documentation from Programmes on HIV/AIDS conducted within this year.

The Federal Ministry of Health also should disclose how and where the surveys were conducted and if they were conducted in partnership with the State AIDS office as due process requires.

Clarity is required from all parties as is their duty to the public.

PERSONAL THOUGHTS

What indicators can one use to judge progress in the fight against HIV/AIDS?

Awareness and Testing Indices: Surveys, Hospital and Laboratory Records of HIV/AIDS tests done are useful tools. Compare between records of years past and present records to judge progress. Primary healthcare facilities are useful in this regard.
Access: Improved access to testing facilities in the rural and urban areas is also an indicator of progress.
New cases: The term used “prevalence rate” indicates a time change in prevalence with respect to time. The Punch article tagged it wrongly. New cases discovered would indicate a good effort on the part of a government in increasing access to tests and proper healthcare.

These details can be compared over time as a better indicator of progress.

Where are the employees?

2013-12-03T00:00:00Z

There has been an onslaught of businesses in Nigeria. I choose to call it a wave of entrepreneurs. While, this is a good thing ordinarily, it raises many interesting questions about the economy. I’d like to outline some of these questions and attempt to answer them.

_Who would be the employees?_

As near everyone is now an entrepreneur, a business (wo)man, one begins to wonder, where are the employees? A good employee is a very important part of the success or failure of any enterprise, this is the case regardless of who owns the enterprise; be it an individual, partnerships or the government. With the rave being an entrepreneur (job creator), one has to wonder who would be the employees.

While learning and training for entrepreneurship and self-sufficiency is important and can help accelerate economic growth, neglect of employee training can be likened to shooting oneself in the foot. Few organisations can boast of having good and efficient employees, yet we do little or nothing to change the trend.

In Nigeria, during the compulsory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) year, many skills acquisition programmes are carried out. The publicised aim of these programmes is to promote self-reliance and a spirit of entrepreneurship. I am unaware of the statistics that exist for success or failure of such Small or Medium-Scale Enterprises (SMEs). I do not have the resources or wherewithal to conduct any surveys to this end independently. Perhaps an economist or someone can take up this challenge.

The National Universities Commission (NUC) required that a general course in entrepreneurship be made part of the curriculum for all courses of study in Nigerian universities. This took effect in my school, the University of Port Harcourt, 4 years ago. Has it in any way improved the success rates of SMEs? What effect does this have on the petty trader with no education, or those with Secondary School qualifications?

“I have this job opening. However, I am yet to find someone competent enough to meet the job requirements”. I’ve come across this comment often enough via interactions on social media that i just had to write about it.

Yes, the common response given to such complaints is “can’t you train them?”. However, training employees for potential jobs can be a costly process. The educational institutions have a role to play in this. As our educational system has continually failed to do such, the onus falls on the individual and business owners; sometimes, even (s)he cannot bear the costs. Where do we find middle ground?

_Finding middle ground_

Employability is in the interest of everyone. The government, business owner, and the job seeker all have a role to play.

The government in its role as moderator of public policy and curricula via the NUC and other education regulatory bodies ought to step up its impact. Finding a link between Academia and Industries is important. Industries that utilise the graduates of universities should have a say in what the universities teach students as prospective employees. Same for vocational schools and secondary schools. Yes, the Student Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) exists. It should be monitored closely so as to maintain focus on its purpose. Partnerships with Industries should be sought after. Visiting Professors from Industries, Undergraduate Internships and such.

Business owners make up the industry. The basic skill sets they require for operation can be taught in the universities or other tertiary education institutions. The uniqueness of one’s business may require a particular training (induction training) but if the schools fail to give the general training, the business owner is forced to do both. This can prove to be ineffective cost wise. What role can business owners play?

Clamour for the inclusion of basic skills in curricula of schools

This lobby can be carried out more effectively by larger corporations. They have more established structure and more money. Alliances can be with particular schools or local governments, autonomy would aid this surely.

Organise independent holiday training programs

This should work for SMEs as well as large corporations. As a business owner with a 1 month vacation for instance, set aside a week or two to teach interested parties the basics of what you need. I think this can be part of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), one gets a tax clearance for that right? You can make it open or subsidise costs. Stellar performers can be easily made part of your team. That would also breed employee loyalty. I have a feeling of indebtedness to my lecturer who taught me the basics of hydrological analysis using Microsoft Excel, I studied a bit more because he had spurred my interest in the practical applications. Also have that feeling of indebtedness to my Industrial Training boss who taught me the basics of Microsoft Project Manager, I have surpassed even his knowledge in that.

Ordinarily, I wouldn’t have learnt those software applications if someone who needed such service hadn’t called my attention to it. I have never enrolled in any formal training school for these things; honestly, I have not been able to afford them in terms of money or time. I believe there are many like me. Start small, get a small group (say, 5-10 persons) who have a little theoretical background in what you require and give them some practical background. The SURE-P Graduate Internship Scheme (GIS) can be taken advantage of, at least within the major cities of Nigeria.

The role of individuals is a very serious one. Individuals differ in assimilation capacity and all. Interests also differ. Find what interests you, try to learn as much as you can about it. Individuals should recognise that opportunities abound and one should prepare oneself for such opportunities. You can learn the basics, interact with people in your spheres of interest. Interested in the construction industry, look for those within the industry you can learn from. Be social; if you can’t go out and such, your Facebook profile, Twitter profile, LinkedIn profile, you have lots of resources available now that don’t require physical presence. You can also take on an internship in an area of interest, the Graduate Internship Scheme (GIS) of SURE-P seems like a reasonable avenue to link you with prospective industry trainers. Visit http://gis.wyesurep.gov.ng/ for details.

Let’s be true to ourselves. Not everyone can be an entrepreneur, or manage a business successfully. Investments in business go beyond capital and licenses and what not, investment in people matters a lot too. Don’t simply complain of how unqualified the pool of unemployed are, help in one way or the other to make them better. If not for anything, the CSR waivers are a good deal, I think. Cheers!

Society: The Foundations

2013-11-15T00:00:00Z

Society: A community of people (persons or individual humans) who share the same customs and laws.

I find myself pondering on the foundations of our society; starting from the smallest unit, the family, to the country/nation, Nigeria.

_Do we share the same customs and laws?_

I don’t think so. The laws and customs are agreed upon by all parties involved. If we all agreed to the laws and customs that govern our society, the prevalent discord we see today would be near non-existent.

The next paragraph is my attempt at explaining the origins of society.

In the early stages of man’s existence, primitive man was mainly split into two main groups: the hunters and the gatherers. Individually, both groups had their produce; the hunters had meat and the gatherers fruit and vegetables. I like to believe the divide was breached when each party had a taste of what the other had to offer; a variety of options. Trade became a norm (custom), the hunter exchanged meat for some fruit and vegetables and vice versa. The cost for this partnership was a reduced quantity of their respective produce; the benefit of this partnership was a variety of produce available to each party. The common law here was that one should not take from the other without an exchange. This to me is the basis of human societal interactions; we forgo something and benefit from another.

Prior to the society of hunters and gatherers there were individual groups. These groups were born out of similarities, shared occupations and such. I like to believe that it was boring being in a group where all did the same thing. This brought about continuous competition for the role of “Alpha Male”.

In primary school, we were taught that the family is the basic unit of society. This begs the question: **What are the laws and customs that we as individuals in our family units share? **

A successful family unit would grow into a larger family, eventually, a clan, a community, a village. Have we succeeded at the family level? NO!

If we want a meritocratic society, we should model that in our families first; a democratic system too. However, what do we do? We go on in acceptance of what is known, continuing in the vicious cycles that keep us from progress.

A society that gives precedence to keeping up appearances even in rot is a product of smaller units – families, communities, tribal groups – that stay incensed with pride. Pride in having an identity; an identity without evident productivity.

What are the benefits of being part of society?

We have a large pool of individual knowledge and experience we can learn from. We also have individual resources, some in excess, that could be put to greater good in a society.

I read recently of social contracts and what occurred to me was that most of our societal groups lack one. The basis for society is, in my opinion, to enhance the ability and capacity of an individual through shared resources and policies. The society should have a structure where it achieves its clearly stated aims.

**What are the foundations we want to build our society on? **

P.S.: Pardon my many questions; I’m just a young man with more questions than I have answers for. The answers are what I seek, even as I try to be of help in providing some answers to the questions of others.

Knowledge and Access to It

2013-11-06T00:00:00Z

Knowledge is something we all crave for. I have a life motto which is Learning Is For Ever. Learnt that from one of my favourite musicians Josh Osho.

A thirst for knowledge is something I really admire. Lack of that thirst in an individual – especially a young one – evokes pity on my part. Supercilious, that’s the word a friend would use to describe that feeling.

This morning, I happened on a series of tweets by a young Nigerian I admire, Chuba Ezekwesili. He tweets with the handle @chubaezeks. He tweeted on a desire to improve oneself and how in this day and age there should be no excuses for being ignorant (I deduced that on my own).

I take exception to some parts because I have experienced first-hand the frustrations that come with being unable to learn. The internet has an enormous wealth of knowledge; however, a majority do not yet have access to it. This is largely due to no fault of theirs.

_How then can we discriminate against them?_

We have privileges we easily take for granted. Many of us have never had to worry about the basic human needs. Knowledge isn’t one of them. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs stated that only on attainment of needs on a lower level can one aspire to the next level. As an economist, he would understand this.

Sometimes, one is exempt from participating at the lower levels because one’s forbears have paid that price. That is a privilege one should not lose sight of; and should be thankful for.

In Nigeria, though it is becoming more common, internet access is still somewhat a luxury. Even when available, it is expensive. Some who have access via iPads, BlackBerrys and what not do not utilise them to the full potential, due to a lack of the know-how. Of course, pride plays a role too. For some, such gadgets, internet access is a status symbol.

Sadly, I found no Nigerian town on record that has wireless or wired internet access available to all its residents be it for free, at a subsidised cost or even at standard costs. I heard of a plan for one in my home community (Bonny Island) last year; its implementation has been stalled.

**Do we really want to help? **

Another project being undergone in my community is the construction of an air-strip (mini airport). Being truthful to ourselves, air travel is still not as far-reaching as it should be. I’ve never travelled by air. That project – which caters to a different class of persons (for comfort) – started around the same time and has reached an appreciable stage with evident activity. That does not show a desire to help improve a larger populace. Opportunity costs.

**How can we help? **

This is where we, the “privileged”, come in. There is a catch phrase of “each one, teach one”, what if we up the ante to say “each one, reach more”? Going about this requires utmost humility, acknowledging that indeed some of your privileges are not your doing.

As far as knowledge and access to it goes, there would always be someone who knows a bit more about something than you do. When you do know, don’t take it in your stride, teach others so they too can know.

In the under-developed and developing world, in Nigeria, don’t look too far, even in your home, a driver, cleaner, cook needs to know. Would you grant him or her access to your knowledge, ridicule him or her for ignorance, tell them where knowledge is without giving them access, or patiently and humbly teach them?

Our fight should be to make knowledge accessible to all by all means necessary.

**P.S.: **This was written in a hurry, please pardon any errors. If noticed, bring to my attention via the comment section.

Disclaimer: The attached images are not original.

A Celebration of Life – The Felabration 2013 Example

2013-11-02T00:00:00Z

Fela Anikulapo-Kuti is greatness. A man’s ability to continually inspire a lot of people many years after his death earns him the right to be addressed in the present tense. In our remembrance and memorials however, do we look at the good examples one set? Or do we, for sake of commercial viability, conveniently ignore or forget that.

The Felabration 2013 festival was in my opinion a blatant display of the latter. I was barely conscious when Fela died; I was 5 at the time. I had no early interaction with his music or his person. Having spent my entire life in the southern part of Nigeria with late exposure to secular music, I cannot say I am an authority on what Fela stood for. From conversations with my father, and personal research, my perception of who Fela is, was formed. I have one Fela song in my music library, “S(h)uffering & S(h)miling”. For those unfamiliar with the song’s message, this article would hopefully correct that.

Felabration 2013 had a roll call of the “who is who” in the Nigerian music scene. The most memorable event to some would be the underwear-clad performance of a rising star, Burna Boy. Like earlier stated, I have a little beyond reported and researched knowledge on who Fela was. Perhaps my perception of what Fela stood for is highly flawed; I stand corrected if that is the case.

I watched video clips of the Felabration 2013 on Primetime Africa, the popular Nigerian Music Industry show organised by the Kennis Media Group. Performance after performance was a “celebration”, I cannot state clearly though that it was a celebration of Fela’s life.

Fela to me represents a fight for the cause of the people, a fight to liberate the people of the figurative chains that bind their minds. He passed a message, of emancipation from mental and social slavery.

The Nigeria we’re in today may be a bit better than that during Fela’s time; however, it is not so different. The people still need the message Fela had to pass. With our increased access to information, we have learnt of more flaws in our system of governance. What are the arts saying about it?

There has been the long lasting question of “Who will take Fela’s place?” to this day no one has stepped up. Those who have attempted have not been taken seriously. Yet, we celebrate.

Are we celebrating in self-denial? Are we celebrating the name, the shrine, the music but forgetting the principles, the person?

These are the questions that riddled my mind when I watched the Felabration 2013 videos. The music the musicians played, what content did they have? Were they in line with what Fela was known for?

Celebrating the life of Fela should not be just about having a good time, but remembering what he stood for, and trying in every way possible to continue the causes he championed.

ASUU Strike 2013 Four Months Commemoration

2013-10-29T00:00:00Z

In three days, we commemorate the four month milestone of the ASUU 2013 strike action. This brings to a total of at least 8months an engineering, agriculture, and medical sciences students have spent at home from 2009-2013. I am one of such students and I am spiffed beyond measure. However, I won’t be completely emotive in what I am saying.

Today, I watched the ASUU president on AIT talking on the 2009 FG-ASUU Agreement, NEEDS assessment report and 2012 Memorandum of Understanding. The NEEDS assessment report and 2012 MoU were sponsored by the government. It is important to note that the 2009 agreement resulted in a 1.5trillion naira settlement spread over three years for 24 Federal Universities (according to Dr. Fagge). It also had what I would call an outrageous wage and allowance structure (see Table 2). This agreement which ASUU seeks to be enforced was signed after a four month strike in October, 2009. Strikes can be likened to hostage situations and I believe such an agreement can be invalidated by the law courts on count of signing under duress. I am not a student of law so I cannot give a legal term for it.

The ASUU president responded to an earlier claim by the Senate of incompetence on the part of the FG negotiators led by Gamaliel Onosode. He stated that intellectuals and Professors were on the FG team. From Page 2 of the agreement you can see the FG negotiation team is composed of a majority of Past Pro-Chancellors of Universities (look up the role & appointment of a Pro-Chancellor).

**Does this mean the government’s team didn’t know enough about the government’s financial status and policy to negotiate appropriately? **

I believe so. He claimed that the present President, who was Vice President at the time, endorsed the 2009 agreement. No proof of this was made public. In delegation of duties, a level of trust is placed on the delegates to do what is required of them. This can be likened to the role of an editor and a publishing administrator. The administrator would not read everything brought before him but would endorse what the editor brought. This, I believe, was the case with the 2009 agreement. My stand would change only on provision of evidence to the contrary by ASUU.

The 2012 MoU which I have tried to access to no avail from the ASUU website had a 1.3trillion naira settlement proposed for 61universities. Details on the implementation structure are unavailable as yet.

Now, to the crux of the matter. Students nationwide have had many situations where they were taught by corrupt, incompetent lecturers. I have had my fair share of them. ASUU as a body seeks to not just protect these incompetent lecturers but give them higher wages. Students, assess your lecturers and think, do they deserve the wages and allowances stated in the agreement? What checks does ASUU proffer in checking their incompetence and excesses? None! Yet they claim their strikes are to improve our standards of Education.

Furthermore, after losing 8 months to strikes, the FG would subject you to a compulsory year of NYSC. The time spent on strike is enough National Service/Slavery/Suffering in my opinion. I need to have a level of control on my life. The goals I set have been skewed and I daresay I have a right to compensation. To this end, I call for a change or an outright scrap of the NYSC. This would save the government unnecessary expenditure. You can join in this if you are interested, I believe you’ve paid enough time to say #NoNYSC or #BoycottNYSC.

Finally, I know that without students there would be no teachers. The original structure of universities had them run by students. The students yield a level of power, not just in numbers. The students can decide who is worthy to be their lecturer and who is not. Students should perform lecturer assessments and not ASUU/FG.

I hope this brings up more questions, and opens up a realistic conversation.

DISCLAIMER: This was written in the heat of the moment. Please pardon any errors. We can engage in the comments section.

The “Am I Your Mate?” Syndrome

2013-10-26T00:00:00Z

“_See this small boy o! Am I your mate?_”

Someone has probably said these words to you if you were brought up with/or have Nigerian (maybe African too) heritage. We live in a society set up with prevalent hierarchies.

Isn’t age a good basis for distinction?

I don’t believe it is. Here’s why I say so.

Human nature is distinct, Intelligence Quotient(IQ) differs, as does social aptitude. Intrinsic talents, abilities also differ with our varying genetic make-up. How then can we know better about someone’s unique path than the person who lives it? Near impossible.

The common reason given is that someone older has more “experience”. Yes, that has some credence. However, our uniqueness means that our experiences are unique to us. For instance, I find it difficult to sit for too long in one position whereas someone (PH folk, think Ken Katas, lol) might find sitting conducive. We have the same experience but different perspectives.

Also, my taciturn, introverted nature means that at my age I am less socially adept than some 16year olds. I possibly have more experience in other areas of life that are more to my liking. Perhaps in my love of technology. What grounds then do I have to tell that 16 year old that I know better than him with respect to social interactions? None.

But companies always ask for experience, don’t they recognise our uniqueness?”

A company is a business, she wants to be profitable so she makes reasonable assumptions. They expect that an average person should have learned what is required in the time-frame. The above average is a tricky gamble, but some still take the risks with them. The true test for the best is, can s/he get the job done?

Hmmmm. Let’s talk life & relationships then. So, I can’t tell my younger ones I’m not their mate, ehn?

’tis something they already know, I’m sure you had issues when being told the same thing. In my opinion it speaks of personal insecurity, for difficulty validating one’s opinion/suggestions pull the age card. Convenient right?

Respect is not age-dependent. I would know. It is easier to respect someone who isn’t consistently reminding you of his “presumed” advantage(s) over you. It shows a confidence that fears no challenge. But when the insecurities rear up their ugly head, challenges come naturally.

How do I get beyond this “Am I Your Mate” Syndrome?

Well, I’m not an expert but I have some suggestions.

1• Recognition: Recognise your uniqueness. Strengths & Weaknesses. Seek to recognise same in others.

2• Respect: Respect the other person. He presents a different viewpoint on life. Respect for his viewpoint would likely birth respect for yours.

3• Teach: Be willing to teach, patiently and respectfully. Younger ones (in some cases, older ones too) can often look up to you. The manner in which you treat them determines how they would treat you. When they see you as a teacher, mentor it is harder for them to disrespect you.

4• Learn: Learn from others. Having recognised your limitations, you can now seek to strengthen them. One of my life mottos is Learning Is For Ever (L.I.F.E). You can learn from everyone if you stay open

These are my suggestions. I’m sure now you have a few of yours. Feel free to fill them in the comment section.

Finally, I’d end with one of my favourite quotes (modified by me). _“Age is a measure of how long you’ve had to learn in life’s school”_ As our lives vary, so do our life schools and our life curriculae. Don’t be threatened by others, your path is unique.

P.S.: Thank you for reading, don’t forget to comment. And yeah, guess how old I am in the comment section for fun. Open only for those that don’t know me personally.

The Greener Pastures Conundrum

2013-10-06T00:00:00Z

Some days back, a friend’s personal message on her BBM read, “the grass is greener on the other side, but the water rate is higher”. It got my interest piqued as there is always a seemingly “greener pasture”. This is the basis of this post, a documentation of my thoughts on greener pastures.

Imagine for a moment that what appears to be a greener pasture is really a mirage, created in your mind because of the discontent you have within. Or how about a more realistic analogy, the greener grass you see now could be nothing but wallpaper? Some real life size art created to cover the hard reality of the wall underneath. It appeals to you and draws you in, it however isn’t real.

Maybe you finally get to the greener pastures and discover it is made of synthetic material. That would be a real bummer, right? Okay, enough of playing out the possible bad situations. Let’s discuss why exactly you want a greener grass.

Is it that you don’t have grass at all? Or you need more? The more you claim to “need”, do you really need it or you just want it? Is it envy that makes you desirous of another’s grass?

I’m no expert horticulturist; however, I know a few conditions that make for growth of plant life.

The Environment

Does our climate and topography allow for the growth of grass? Our unique features make our life more interesting, the climate and terrain conditions is one of them. It is of note that these conditions are not easily changed.

Proper study and observation of these intrinsic features of our environment is important. Think of it as reconnaissance.

Most plant life sits in the earth, soil. It is part of the environment which permits growth. Not all soil is suitable for grass cultivation, the effort required to make desert soil grow grass might as well be used in growing the wild flowers, vegetables that are more amenable to that kind of soil.

The question then is _“what kind of grass do I want?”_

The Grass

As stated earlier, different kinds of grass thrive in different environments. The grass we want may not thrive in our environment yet. Perhaps with new techniques (think green houses, irrigation), we can make them grow here. It is also important to note that not all kinds of grass need as much tending as others.

This begs the question of _“how much effort is required on my part?”_

The Owner

This is the main issue I believe, me and you, the owners or farmers. What kind of person are we? Are we the lazy, unproductive type who desire perfect conditions for enjoyment? Or are we the ones who are not reluctant to invest our time and energy where needed, to create a suitable environment for growth?

The horticulturist does an amount of preparation of the soil so it can allow growth of plants. There is the tilling of the soil (breaking up of strong soil), removal of unwanted parasitic materials (weeds), and mulching (a way of increasing the nutrient content of the soil). These are preparatory procedure for the soil in which our grass lies. Liken them to foundations of the buildings and institutions we have. After the preparation comes the planting of the grass. The preparation must be done though, for better productivity.

Post planting, there are tending activities that need to be done. Continual checks on the progress of the plant, to prevent parasitism (weeds) again, and watering of the plant. It is important to note that negligence can cause the failure of the pasture you have planned.

The Costs

Someone paid the price to make their soil (environment) more amenable to growth. Can you pay that price? Can you be dedicated to creating a similar environment for growth where you call home?

There is also the cost incurred during the migration to greener pastures. As my friend said, “what if the water bill is higher?” it must be paid. The costs could be the time spent waiting, beautiful company, nostalgia for home, the money you pay as tax, the food which your body reacts to, whatever it is; the cost has to be paid.

Perhaps we may never be able to have our pastures as green as elsewhere, our climate and nature of soil may not support it. The cost of making them amenable may be high. We can still grow our beautiful wild flowers, our vegetables.

If we completely hate the wild flowers and vegetables, then before we set out for greener pastures we should be certain we can afford and are ready/willing to pay the costs.

P.S.: I tried to make this as brief as possible. We can discuss on the far-reaching applications of this in the comments section. You can engage me, anonymously, if you so wish.

A Discourse on Tertiary Education

2013-10-03T00:00:00Z

I had started an article some days back on the structure of our tertiary education institutions in Nigeria. This is a spill off from that article. In the time between, I had read a series of articles concerning the on-going ASUU strike from two thinkers in particular. There was a three part blog series from Feyi Fawehinmi who blogs on the ASUU problem here, and a number of rejoinders. The last rejoinder which inspired the modification of my post was tagged “Let’s Talk about Higher Education”. It would be nice if you can read it.

“Tertiary education” is defined –in my words- as a level of education that caters to further professional or vocational learning. These could be quite specific or diverse. We have examples such as Culinary Institutes, Nursing Schools, Teacher Training Colleges (Colleges of Education), vocational centres (Colleges of Arts & Science, Craft Centres, and City & Guilds), Polytechnics, and the most sought after, Universities. The end of tertiary education usually has the award of degrees, certificates or diplomas.

Now, we begin. I believe that in order to master something, it is important to first understand its origins. Education is no exception. If you study the history of universities for instance, you would find that the first university was made to serve the intellectual needs of people. It is safe to say that without a student, a teacher is without purpose. The basic requirements for a tertiary institution are:

• Faculty: This is the mix of teaching staff and students.

• Curriculum: This is the approved guide for study.

• Campus: This is the infrastructure. Lecture halls, workshops, laboratories, offices and residences.

There is also a fourth:

• Programmes: These are the various academic programmes available to student. They include the pre-degree programmes (basic, certificate), under-graduate programmes (full-time, part-time, sandwich) and post-graduate programmes.

A lot of emphasis has been made on the faculty and campus requirements of the Tertiary Institutions and little has been said on the curriculum and academic programmes. That’s the angle I’d like to address in this post.

The Curriculum

The curriculum for the varying programmes of study in Nigerian Universities is lagging behind as regards providing the requirements for society. The purpose of our institutions is to train personnel for various areas of social responsibility (jobs, careers, occupations and professions). If our curriculum does not teach the required skills for societal application, it has failed in its purpose. I am still a student of the University of Port Harcourt, a student of Civil Engineering to be exact. In the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields of study, there is constant advancement yearly. How do we meet up with this worldwide growth? A frequently scheduled review of the Curriculum is required to stay with the times, but this isn’t the case. The different industries however do not wait for you to catch up, if you do not know what they require they will find those who do. This inadvertently reduces the chances of our graduates gaining employment in the industry.

A review takes the entire curriculum into stock. Yes, there have been additions to the curriculum in some years past, however, redundant courses have not been modified or expunged. This has resulted in bloated curriculums for students, and with more course work required there is less time for dedicated study. The number of credits required for a degree can be reviewed as well. I had nine (9) courses in my first semester of my Final Year with a total of 21 credits, this is without any carry-overs. A more concise curriculum would be more efficient as focus can be directed at what is necessary.

Furthermore, there is need for a domestication of the curriculum. By domestication, I mean adapting the curriculum to meet needs of our immediate society. It is indeed a shame that in the decades of tertiary education in Nigeria, there is no Design Code or Material sheet indigenous to us. Please pardon my addressing this from the angle of a STEM student. I have an interest in Coastal Engineering but I cannot learn about it in my university. Meanwhile, it is located in the Niger Delta and knowledge on the Nigerian Coastline and construction there is important. This is where Research & Development programmes come in. There have been outcries about falling academic standards, however, I do not think such standards ever existed.

The Nigerian Universities Commission (NUC) is the body which regulates University Education in Nigeria. They check the various curriculums, university facilities and the academic staff. Of recent, the only curriculum reviews have been the addition of General Courses to cater to “National Needs”. Professional bodies like the Council of Regulation for Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) should play a more dominant role in the design and domestication of curriculums of study for the respective disciplines under their watch.

As university education is not the only form of tertiary education we have, similar advancement should be made in the different fields of study. I have interest in carpentry and I know new techniques have evolved over the years in that craft, new tools and materials too. Such should be taught as well so as to make our carpenters globally competitive. You name it: metalwork, plumbing, tiling. Every craft has advanced and without learning to move with the times, our technicians become redundant.

I believe the curriculum that caters to Nigerian needs and unique situations would go a long way to proffer immediate solutions for our development.

The Programmes

The Academic programmes of our tertiary education institutions are important. This is as the people who would go through these institutions have varying economic and intellectual capacities. The programmes include the preliminary, under-graduate and post-graduate programmes of study. One thing that makes tertiary education unique is the environment created for self-study. This can be used to our advantage in more ways than are imagined.

As stated earlier, our economic and intellectual capacities differ. It is my opinion then that our academic programmes should be flexible enough to cater to this varying capacity. How do I mean? We are aware of the full-time, part-time and sandwich programmes which are or had been in effect in time past, right? The question is how effective have these been in catering to the educational needs of our people?

Recently, there had been news of the suspension or cancellation of part-time programmes in Nigerian universities. Have alternatives been put in place? The truth is the cost of tertiary education especially in the STEM disciplines is expensive. What we need are programmes which can reduce the costs: financial and time. The National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) was a commendable proposal, how effective has it been though?

I recently read of Academic programmes in the University of the West Indies (UWI) where tuition is on a per credit basis. This covers the costs of registration, class materials, examinations and certification. I also read of the Chinese state administered Examination for Self Taught Students (ESTS) which requires just examination and certification costs. The programmes accord students flexibility for their various economic conditions. Note that I do not ask for implanting these programmes directly in the Nigerian system, but that the student is considered in the design of our educational programmes.

In the United States of America and some other countries, a serving soldier or even a regular citizen can study and write examinations for courses which are required for a degree. This is while working and can be termed Do-It-Yourself Education because the only schedule he/she follows is his/her own. Examinations can be set more often in the year and would enable students to sit for exams when they know they are ready.

Why deprive our masons, carpenters, hawkers etc. of a similar opportunity? Such programmes can be nation-wide or tied to particular institutions. With technological advancements, study aids are more easily accessible and examinations can be conducted remotely. The use of e-learning facilities can be used to reach more.

These are my thoughts on the Tertiary Education institutions we have in Nigeria and some suggestions for how we can do better. Perhaps in a sequel I’d address the aspects of the faculty and campus. I’d appreciate your thoughts and comments. Thank you for reading.

The “No Be My Own Bad Pass” Syndrome

2013-09-27T00:00:00Z

DISCLAIMER: This is me venting. If you’re touchy, do not read any further. ’tis at your peril.

Yes, perhaps, you’re one of the very few that have access to me. This might feel like a subliminal message. ’tis your decision to either take offence or ….

The words in quote in the title of this post, are words I’ve heard to the point of depression. ’tis outright sickening.

In the urban Nigerian centres (possibly, scratch that, DEFINITELY, the rural too), we have those of varying economic means. This diversity is part of what makes up society. The youth population especially are heavily discontent with the lifestyle within their means. So life becomes the superficial thing filled with possessions of little or no real value cos “I must represent”. Human wants we were taught in Basic economics are insatiable. A scale of preference has to be utilised for obtaining optimal utility (Mr. Onita would be proud of me).

An entire philosophy/lifestyle has been built around this human dissatisfaction, Consumerism. We do not even see how much we lose in pursuits of our wants. Name it, the fashion industry, entertainment industry, technology industry, banking industry, and even the food & beverage industry have tapped into the markets created by consumerism (again with the economics). Worse is the fleeting nature of the utility derived.

The desire to represent has us buying clothes in season (because we should represent), gadgets in multiplicity (because we can’t have enough). We get bored easily and hate our fully functional possessions because there is more. Our main restraint is that we do not yet have a viable credit system in the country. Else, I reckon we would be drowning with loads of debt.

Financial literacy isn’t taught in our primary and secondary schools. I believe it should be. I would guess that it is taught at least at home, but for the evident signs. I personally believe if we should show austerity it should begin in our individual lives.

Here’s a story that I believe shows how our scales of preference affects us. In school, I have a colleague who was a patron of the bar in front of my hostel, he normally frequented it in the company of friends. Days to an exam he met me, asking for a textbook worth 1,700naira. Of course, I declined the loan request. He never got the textbook and performed poorly on the course. Social inebriation was where he placed his value.

A lot of what baffles me, is how many of the youth market (being dependent), over-indulge in trivial expenses. “Fowl no know wetin corn dey cost for market, abi”? You’re in school for learning. Before getting caught up in the fashion and gadget chase remember that. If you’re not earning but are dependent on others, you ought to check your spending much more closely. Quoting the Kanye West I know, “I pray that my earns would be more than my spends”. That’s some words of wisdom there.

Borrowing from several people to live a lie is wrong. Perception versus Reality leaves you in debt. I’m not a frequent visitor of any social hangouts, it is not because I do not desire to, but I know things of more value to me for now. Our different financial realities would always exist, we can choose to be on the higher levels with time by applying principles whilst in the lower levels.

Yes, there are material things that move me, I love gadgets to bits. But I won’t make unnecessary purchases just because I can or it’s in vogue. Then go on to ask a friend for money for tuition or worse, food. Before you say, “eff it! No be my own bad pass” and go spend, think, “wetin I dey gain” first. If you can add how long it would be of value too, you’d be good to go.

That’s it, make the best of your reality. Tow your path and stop emulating that of others.

P.S.: If you owe money, no matter how small, but are spending beyond your essentials, I believe you need to be psychologically evaluated. There I said it, no hard feelings.

Our Loyalty – The Costs

2013-09-23T00:00:00Z

“Bros! I dey loyal o. Anything for your boy?”

The above can be heard on almost every street of Nigeria countless times daily. Though this “loyalty” is without value.

We learn from our homes to be loyal to the family – the first societal unit we know – and so we stick together. Blood is thicker than water, we say. How much is too much though?

We stay loyal to a fault, even to our own detriment. Siblings gain wealth quickly and no questions are asked. We enjoy a part of it after all, “so wetin you wan talk”. We do not even question the sources of wealth, for fear of being denied access to the stream. We only cry foul when the stream stops flowing.

In the larger society, our allegiances are up for hire – to the highest bidder perhaps -, and so when one source dries out we try to attach to the next. Isn’t this an anomaly?

Here’s an outline of some of what I believe we lose when we stay loyal to a fault.

Accountability

Competence

Integrity

Objectivity

Productivity

ACCOUNTABILITY

Our allegiance to different persons and organisations most times are without question. Some days back, I was in discourse with my father and we forayed into the procedure for swearing in of traditional rulers (chiefs) in my village. The swearing in ceremony required taking an oath of allegiance to the King, to protect his interests. These oaths hinder the chiefs from calling the king to accountability, thus making him sovereign. Being human, we are bound to make mistakes and we need checks and balances to make sure we do the right thing. Our bosses need these checks, as do our siblings and our leaders. If we fail to provide these checks in our desire to be loyal, we have cost not just ourselves but the entire society the good forgone.

COMPETENCE

We lose this when we reward those who stay loyal to us. In the award of contracts or even our simple household jobs, contracts to an incompetent company (perhaps, owned by a loyalist) or personnel costs us more than it pays. We have experienced, first-hand, the abandonment of contracts without execution, lack of prosecution of known criminals, and the square-peg-in-round-hole leaders.

INTEGRITY

The old saying “show me your friends and I’ll tell you who you are” comes to play here. Indeed we may be different from those we stay loyal to, but being their benefactors makes us complicit in their wrong-doings. Be it battery, robbery or corruption, We lose credibility by our affiliations.

OBJECTIVITY

In our nascent democracy, we’ve observed how our political leaders have tried, sometimes successfully, to silence those who oppose them by “rewarding” them with political positions. This institutes a sense of loyalty and causes a loss of objectivity. The objectivity required to act as umpires for democratic processes is lost. The EFCC and ICPC are examples.

PRODUCTIVITY

When one individual or organisation is continually a recipient of contracts or favours, he tends to become lax and less productive. Also, the others who are not the recipients of such favours are denied of an opportunity to be productive. This is where monopoly comes in. I believe an economist would be able to explain further.

The above are costs which occurred to me, I reckon you have some thoughts of yours as well. Feel free to share.

True loyalty is a virtue indeed, I respect it. The point I’m making is we should be careful who and what we are loyal to. Our loyalty should be earned and should not deny us the right to call wrong doings to order. A good man fears no critique. In the end, the pittances we may get as immediate benefits for our loyalty are not worth it. Having a fleet of cars does not better the state of the roads. True loyalty shouldn’t be for hire.

I made a comment while discussing with my father, I said, “why be loyal to one man, when you can be loyal to an entire group of people”? These words are what I believe should guide those in service when they choose to be loyal. Our loyalty shouldn’t serve just our interests but the larger interests of humanity and society.

Thanks for reading and in one way today try to be The Answer a Man Seeks (T.A.M.S).

Our Classless Political Class

2013-09-19T00:00:00Z

“I no be gentleman at all o”

The words to a classic Nigerian song. Actually, the only words I remember from it.

The past year has been full of activity in our political institutions. From the State Houses of Assembly, to the Governors Forum, and the National Assembly. Words spoken in anger, threats made on lives of persons, fights with and without weapons (maces). The ruling class are indeed not gentlemen.

In the class structure, there are different cadres measured according to economic, social and cultural characteristics. The political class is one set apart due to the acquisition/occupation of political positions. This class includes both past, present and aspiring political office holders.

The activities in our not so nascent democracy shows that our political class is chaotic. The brawls which are expected of inebriated bar patrons are common place in our political institutions. In comparison with the nations we desire to partner with, our leaders are uncivilised.

Our political scene is full of (s)elected leaders who by hook or crook ascend political positions. Their failure to be ambassadors gives credence to the fact that they can steal the votes but they can’t steal class (paraphrasing Shawn Carter).

Our generation has adopted a word for uncomely social behaviour, Razz. This sort of behaviour, though commonplace, is not exemplary. It also sheds a bad light on our Country’s image.

Are these the examples we want for our children?

Are they the best representation of the characteristics of the Nigerian people?

I recently heard of the way a past president conducts himself at a dinner table. I also recall the chants of fraternity lingo during the Rivers State House of Assembly fracas. It is no wonder the developed world doesn’t take us seriously.

Yes, a nation’s leaders are picked from within its people. I’d like to believe we have better representatives of what we want to be seen as by the Outside World. While we re-brand the Nation to draw in foreign investment, it is important that our leaders are also re-branded so as to command the respect we desire.

P.S.: That female rep really did tear the Amaechi Muonagor look-alike’s outfit. Someone’s mother. Smh.

The Nigerian Child

2013-07-21T00:00:00Z

The past weeks have been laden with many contentious issues. I’m writing this after much study partly due to the ASUU strike, which is one of the issues. My home state, Rivers State House of Assembly fracas is another and more recently the #ChildNotBride situation.

Within the past week I bumped into news of circa 600,000 cases of Vesico-Vaginal Fistula(VVF) in Nigeria. Here’s a link to article on VVF’s prevalence and here’s one educating us on VVF.

With the revelations from the article, Nigeria has a largesse of between 20% and 40% of the world’s VVF cases.

Following discussions with friends in the medical profession and personal studies, the common age of women or girls who suffer from this is between 12-20, young mothers and victims of rape.

Why this prevalence in Nigeria? What can be done to control and reduce this to a minimum? This questions beg to be answered.

By chance, last week Tuesday in the seating of the Senate on Constitutional Review in the section 29 which concerns Renunciation of Citizenship a little row was sparked over the age at which a married woman who wishes to renounce her citizenship is recognised by law. The details are here.

Remembering the age range in which VVF is prevalent, twitter was rife with campaigns, misinformed howbeit, that stated a bill had been passed endorsing under-age marriage. This was not the case as no such bill existed.

_Why this prevalence in Nigeria?_

This prompted me to study the age of consent for marriage according to our constitution, The Marriage Act. Sections 11 (b) and 18 talk of the preliminaries to Marriage and Consent to Marriage with respect to age. The possibility of consent being given by parents or guardians (think of a wicked step-mother) shocked me. No concrete age was set.

N.B.: Marriages under Customary law are not accountable for. All traditions I know of in Nigeria do not have a minimum age either.

This means I could marry off my daughter if I deem fit, or if I leave her in the care of my brother and travel abroad, he or his wife can do so.

This exposes young girls and women to the risk of early childbirth vis-à-vis an increased probability of getting VVF.

What can be done to control and reduce this to a minimum?

Our constitution in my opinion should regard the well-being of its citizenry highly and should put in place legislation where possible to protect/ensure that well-being.

There exists the Child Rights Act of 2003 which intends to protect the rights of the child both male and female. However, it has not been adopted in all states of the Federation.

Here’s my suggestion.

. The Child Rights Act should be domesticated and adopted in all states of Nigeria as soon as possible.

. The Marriage Act should be reviewed to define strictly the age of consent, and also should protect against forced marriages.

. Legislation on Statutory Rape should be put in place.

. Our Customary law should be reviewed by the leaders of our different ethnic groups to protect the Rights of the Child. Most marriages in our country are still by Customary law.

These are my suggestions, more can be added. I pray this reaches out to people and helps spur change.

I’m Sokari Austine Tams II, I stand for the #ChildRightsAct #ChildNotBride #ChildNotGroom #ChildNotSlave #ChildNotGift.

Access…the sequel (A dedication)

2013-06-03T00:00:00Z

So I’ve talked about Access and how ’tis important to control it. Here’s to the those who deserve almost unlimited access.

About two years ago, I met a certain young lady through a “friend”. We clicked almost immediately, with mutual interests in music, literature, history and all the other boring stuff I’m into.

However, being young and naïve, her energy scared me. Me being the clandestine and reticent type I felt I couldn’t deal. We did have a friendship, she had a nice collection of books I borrowed frequently. I was oblivious to her beyond our mutual interests and saw her as an intellectual friend, nothing more.

I had a crush on her _“not so geeky”_ friend, putting the _“opposites attract”_ philosophy to the test. Needless to say it turned out awry.

For a while, our friendship waned, again I was aloof to the reason for this. But then, we were back at it once again. (John Legend’s “Another Again” seems to come up now, don’t know why).

She got me getting outta my “reticent” bubble. Gently easing me out without bursting the bubble. I was like a new druggie, getting addicted to this friendship. My reticent nature still wouldn’t let go completely.

Now, during my Industrial Training, we had Sunday specials. Relatively long conversations and sorts where we stayed in the loop on goings-on in our lives. She really did/does care.

On return to academia, we reconnected till academics seemed to have sucked us in (I lost between 3-5kg). But then an addict is an addict. Withdrawal was impossible.

Now, I’ve never been one for flattery so I’m just gonna say my honest opinion of her.

She’s a driven, caring, passionate, beauty with so much to offer life. A friend without bounds, a confidante, sister, mother figure all rolled into one. Now, that’s the kinda person who deserve’s all access.

Today happens to be her birthday. I wish I could do a lot more than this. However, here’s a toast, to Thelma, a friend as rare as plutonium.

Happy Birthday dear. ’tis a privilege to have shared a part of your life with you. Thank you. Keep shining as light.

Thelma & I

Access

2013-05-30T00:00:00Z

Prov. 4. 23 “Guard Your heart with all diligence for out of it comes issues of life”

“Access! Access!! Access!!!”

I can hear myself talking to her. She complains but then she always does.

In anything we commit to, there’s bound to be many others which try to distract or derail us. However, these detractors/distractions are only as powerful as we make them.

Here’s an analogy, you’re in a committed relationship but there’s this fine beau or belle who’s around. Now, getting distracted is a function of how much access you grant this person to you.

Going further, in our psychological or/and mental health, nothing can bring you down if you don’t give it that access.

The access we give to people and things determines the effect they can have on us. A friend saying the same hurtful thing hurts way more than a stranger who may say the exact same thing. The difference is the friend has more access to us.

Having learnt of the power of Access there is need for adequate Access Control. Shutting out that which tries to derail us enables us to focus on our set goals and objectives.

This access control is to be done by you and no one else. Because you’re the one whose thoughts, mental, and emotional well-being is at stake. So, take care of you and that which you hold dear.

Don’t forget to keep being,

The Answer Men Seek (T.A.M.S)

Comp(l)e(ti)tion

2012-11-30T00:00:00Z

Life is a Journey Not A Competition

These are words from a fave singer of mine, India.Arie in her song “A Beautiful Day”.

Taking records of activities at work today, it was evident how the good, the bad and the ugly can be seen even in the smallest of groups.

Three groups were assigned same task and competition was declared.

Now, so as not lag behind, one team neglected an important stage of the task, but covered a longer distance.

_Quantity at the expense of Quality._

A second team managed to finish two stages of the assigned task, but barely finished half of the last stage. He had previously neglected the final stage on other lots and so had to complete them before moving forward.

And finally, the third team, though the slowest, the most diligent. Completed all three stages of his task but lags behind the other two in Quantity.

Looking at this, I think first of all how we place value on things.

We take pride in being the most populous black only nation. Quantity.
Having the largest Village in West Africa. Quantity.
Having the largest fishing settlement. Quantity

In our quest to achieve more, we neglect the structure and thus never have the Best of anything good.

I for one prefer quality.

A wise mentor once said and I quote,

_“In life, our goal is completion and not competition”_

Once we become part of a competition, cutting corners seems like the quickest option. In this, we forget that our individuality makes our paths unique. No one wants to live an unfulfilled life but it is near impossible to actually do this if we keep competing amongst our selves.

In everything you do, never lose sight of the fact that getting carried away with the rush of life can make you lose out on the many lessons, moments of insight.

Pace yourself, breath and achieve completion, despite the surrounding competition. You never know, they might just be completing their paths.

I do pray that as individuals, we come to this realisation and change our way of thinking. From us individuals, we’ll be sure to turn things around as a society.

Graces,

And don’t forget to keep being

The Answer Men Seek (TAMS)

Ex- Experience

2012-08-26T00:00:00Z

Some days back, a broadcast message was circulated on bbm

“If you were to have a thousand bucks for every ex you’ve had how much will you have now?”

Now, this was pretty much a simple innocent message and I did forward to my contacts. Got to get to know some a bit too. My contacts are in their late teens and early twenties, just like me. This is the age range when adulthood sets foot.

Each one of us had at least one ex, some had several. Got me asking these questions.

**What counts as a relationship?

Who counts as an Ex?**

Growing in the information era, where the internet and social media are tools we the young use ever so frequently. Sometimes as a medium of expression, other times as a means of escape. Now, some friendships are built through this medium. Pen pals to me, but to some they classify such as a relationship. I find that totally awkward.

A relationship to me has a definite beginning (origin) and a destination just like a ship. And before it can be classified as a relationship, both parties should be aware and come to an agreement. There’s the argument that real love comes naturally. True, it does but structure sets the boundaries, purpose et al while none permits for any and everything.

I must admit I’ve had my fair share of “flirtationships” as I call them. Here’s the cycle

You get to meet someone you like, could be in person or over the web.
You find out similarities between you both and feelings of mutual comfort develop.
You look forward to spending time with this one.
You grow fond of this person and fall in love. It’s so easy and a natural course.
One of you gets so caught up with something or someone else and suddenly being in touch with the first doesn’t seem so important anymore. Or differences suddenly become more obvious.
On to the next one.

To me, this is a basic crush situation and is nothing more than childish. May last weeks or even months. Can such then be called a relationship? Not to me.

I don’t classify folk I went through this with as ex.

This reduces the number of exes by a reasonable amount doesn’t it?

Now, say you had an actual relationship and it didn’t work.

What next?

This is where most of us young folk make mistakes.

Some of us become serial daters and practically take no time out to reflect and learn the lessons from the failed relationship.

The reason(s) things didn’t work out need(s) to be found out. Such need to be dealt with, then an ex is not just an ex but an experience which makes for a better relationship in future.

If we don’t extend an EX to gain EXperience, we would find ourselves going through repeated cycles of hurt and may never learn.

Mediocrity 1

2012-08-22T00:00:00Z

Daily I think of the different ways we could be better as a country. Advancement first requires an acknowledgment of lagging. So, why are we behind?

In all my thoughts, the word which repeats itself is “MEDIOCRITY”. The state of being mediocre-medium quality, neither good nor poor-is largely a state of the mind. We decide if we are good, average or bad in the long run. However, tis evident that we have chosen to be mediocre in our lives and so nothing good or great is expected of us.

You may think for a moment that you are not involved. Here’s an analogy. A friend can do graphics design fairly and a stranger is an expert at it. Who would you patronise? Your friend or the stranger? That’s how basic it is. That brings to the fore how we have basically short-changed ourselves of beautiful things.

I happen to be undergoing industrial training as a civil engineer with an indigenous firm presently and this aspect of our Nigerian culture is grossly evident. Yeah, I didn’t say one tribe or the other, tis nationwide. Contracts are not handled on time, material quality is not tested, professional procedures and practices are not adhered to. Jobs, political positions, contracts are not dependent on merit but on tribal, political, religious affiliation. This has resulted in a lackadaisical approach to everything. From education to politics, it seems hard work doesn’t pay. I’m pretty sure same could said of whatever sector you find yourself. It isn’t a wonder I’m writing this at work. Activity having been stalled by bureaucracy

Bureaucracy, tribalism, nepotism, greed have eaten deep into our culture and redemption seems to be so far off. We have come to accept mediocrity and have now even begun to expect it. There is nothing wrong with advocating for local content, I totally endorse that. However, we shouldn’t reduce standards for any just so our folks can earn a living, that’s suicidal.

I look at my generation and I wonder if there is hope for the future. Hope that someday things will get better. The Bible says faith is the substance of things hope(d) for. And faith without works is dead. In other words, it can be inferred that our hope should make us have faith which would be evident in our actions. Let’s take a stand and stamp out our mentality of mediocrity and grow to achieve our glorious potential.