NIGERIA: Government And Southeast Insecurity

THIS DAY EDITORIAL

A government that cannot protect its people has failed, argues Marcel Mbamalu

The southeast region of Nigeria has been plagued by persistent insecurity, exacerbated by the Indigenous People of Biafra’s (IPOB) “sit-at-home” orders, which have crippled economic activity and normal life. The federal government’s seeming inability or unwillingness to address this issue has sparked accusations of defeat, complicity, or both. As the government abdicates its security responsibility, citizens are left to suffer, and the economy is suffocating. The pattern of blame-shifting and inaction only fuels suspicions of powerful sponsors behind the protracted instability.

The abdication of security responsibility is evident. During the first two years of the “sit-at-home”, security agencies that should reassure the public instead vanish from towns and highways across the southeast. It is still partially so in some states. Markets, banks, schools transport services— vital symbols of civil life — are shuttered in fear, while citizens, left to fend for themselves, opt to remain indoors. It is not simply the threat of violence that keeps them at home; it is the visible withdrawal of the state.

Today, the theory of culpability is gaining ground. When citizens have no banks to transact with, no schools to send their children to, and no markets to trade in — even when they would prefer to ignore sit-at-home orders — the economy suffocates and normal life collapses. How does one defy sit-at-home when the government itself has abandoned the streets?

Allowing sit-at-home to persist for nearly four years is tantamount to conceding control to non-state actors. Worse, it mirrors the FG’s disturbing tendency to blame victims of insecurity rather than confront its own failures — much like it did during the massacres in the Middle Belt, where farmers were blamed for not cooperating with security forces.

The hypocrisy extends beyond the southeast. Recently, in Edo State, former Governor Godwin Obaseki swiftly threatened reprisal actions against citizens who took up arms to defend themselves against criminal herders — even though these same communities were previously left defenseless. Similarly, in Benue State, Governor Hyacinth Alia criticized villagers who repelled armed attacks rather than openly support their self-defense efforts. The pattern is clear: authorities prefer an inactive, passive citizenry, even if it means allowing insecurity to reign.

The silence of southeast governors is equally damning. They are quick to issue statements when citizens defend themselves, but when their people are slaughtered or terrorized by gunmen, they often retreat into cowardly silence. This double standard cannot be accidental.

Indeed, in Nigeria, it is often said that “any insecurity that lasts more than one month has powerful sponsors.” The protracted instability in the southeast strengthens this suspicion. Perhaps only the “eyes” of the federal government truly see the hidden reasons why a movement — unsupported by the constitution — must be allowed to cripple a vital region week after week.

Kanu’s continued detention also smacks of FG Complicity. In December 2023, the Supreme Court nullified an order of an Appeal Court in Abuja to release Nnamdi Kanu due to an illegal extradition from Kenya, which also violated his fundamental human rights. Kanu’s continued detention thus continues to surprise many, especially in the face of clear cases of negotiating with and pacifying terror groups. Hardly is there a freedom fighter in the mould of Nnamdi Kanu who has been in detention as long as Kanu.

This is another angle that makes many Nigerians accuse the federal government of complicity in the sit-at-home imbroglio. To some extent, it is also seen as a surprise that the federal government has yet to deploy the same force it used against IPOB in the case of the insecurity bedeviling the whole country. At some points, it is even anger against the FG that also drives compliance to the sit-at-home. This is evidenced in some cases where two state governors once ordered the opening of markets in Enugu and Anambra, yet people refused to go to shop, choosing even to dare the police than open their shops.

The Southeast deserves better. Nigeria deserves better.

A government that cannot protect its people, but rather enables lawlessness through inaction and selective enforcement, undermines its own legitimacy. Every day that sit-at-home endures is another day the Nigerian state bleeds its credibility before the world.

If the federal government does not act swiftly and decisively, history will remember this era not simply as a time of insecurity, but as a time when the guardians of the state became silent accomplices in the slow, painful erosion of a nation’s unity.

Dr Mbamalu, a Jefferson Journalism Fellow, member of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, and Media Consultant, is the publisher of Prime Business Africa (PBA)

Soludo Talks Tough On Sunday Bloodletting In Anambra As Igbo Youths Open Pandora's Box On Gowon, Obasanjo

Cult war claims lives in Nibo, Anambra State. (247 Third Eye)

BY AKANIMO SAMPSON

NIBO, ANAMBRA (THE SOUTHERN EXAMINER) - Governor Chukwuma Charles Soludo of Anambra State has vowed to smoke out the non-state actors perpetrating the orgy of violence in that axis of Eastern Nigeria. That is coming as aggrieved Igbo youths are accusing the 90 year-old former Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon, of war crimes.
Soludo's resolve is coming on the heels of the Sunday bloodletting that ended the lives of tens of citizens in the state capital.

The horror of the Sunday incident that took place at Nibo, a community in Awka South Local Government Area, near the Government House, Awka, is suspected to be the handiwork of rival cult groups.

After paying a visit to Nibo on Monday, where he condoled with the families and the community over the unfortunate loss of lives in the suspected cult rivalry killings on Sunday, the governor said no stone will be left unturned in unmasking the callous killers of innocent citizens in the state.

Speaking at Eke market during his routine monitoring of activities across the state on Monday, Governor Soludo vowed to smoke out the perpetrators of the dastardly act and go drastically against cultism in the state.

While asking the people to go about their lawful duties, he stressed that no matter where the perpetrators are hiding, they will be brought out for sanctioning, and accordingly assured the people of their safety and general wellbeing.

In the meantime, the Youth Council of Ohanaeze Ndịgbo, is taking on Gowon for his alleged role in the ethnic cleansing of Ndịgbo during the Nigerian civil war.

President of the Ohanaeze Youths, Igboayaka O Igboayaka, in a bombshell statement brands Gowon as “a ruthless leader akin to Uganda’s infamous Gen. Idi Amin, claiming that the former Nigerian leader was involved in the Igbo genocide of 1966-1970.

According to the Igbo youths, “the contemporary generation of Igbo descent recognizes the events of 1967-1970 not as a civil war, but rather as a systematic genocide orchestrated by the British government in conjunction with Northern and Western political blocs, specifically targeting Ndigbo.

“The Nigerian-Biafran conflict contravened international humanitarian law and principles of warfare; notably, the Nigerian government under Gowon, aided by the British government, disregarded fundamental principles by targeting innocent civilians, including non-military spaces such as churches, schools, and markets.”

“We will not soon forget the devastating bombing of Owerinta market, which resulted in the loss of over 100 civilian lives and numerous injuries. Additionally, Uzuakoli market and Ozuabam market in Arochukwu, Abia State, suffered similar bombings, perpetrated by Russian Air-bombers hired by Gowon, leaving civilians with severe head injuries and exposing them to scavenging vultures.

“Furthermore, Okigwe National High School was bombed, claiming the lives of innocent students and leaving many more injured, with lingering remnants of the tragedy still evident today”, they said.

They are alleging that the 1967 Osowa, Ogbe, Asaba massacre, was carefully committed by 2nd Division of the Nigerian Army led then by the late Head of State, Gen. Murtala Mohammed. The Igbo youths said it raised historical questions about Gowon’s alleged tyrannical military rule, indicating that Ibrahim Haruna and Ibrahim Taiwo were responsible for the deaths of over 700 Igbo individuals, primarily males, who were deceived into attending a gathering.

“This incident remains a source of trauma for Igbo youths, and General Gowon’s deliberate involvement and subsequent denials in many media platforms will generate significant concern both now and in the future”, they add.

They asking Gowon to provide clarification on whether ‘Operation No Mercy: Shoot Everything Aside’ was part of the war strategy, despite a ceasefire announcement at the peak of the genocide, which allegedly involved the 3rd Marine Commando from Port Harcourt, under General Olusegun Obasanjo’s command, targeting remaining civilians, and eliminated school children.

“The Mbaise region in Imo State witnessed severe violence during the conflict, with military atrocities committed under Gowon’s leadership and Obasanjo’s command. Innocent school children were reportedly attacked while returning home from school.

“A harrowing account involves soldiers ordering school girls to say their last prayers before being shot. Specifically, Miss Chinwe Ohaeri (now Prof Chinwe Obaji) survived an attack at Okpofe Mbaise, where over 100 school children were killed.

“Gowon needs to account for the slaughter of over 200 Biafran soldiers who reported for disarmament in Port Harcourt after the genocide, as reportedly perpetrated by forces under Obasanjo’s command in the 3rd Marine Commando”, they alleged.

The rest of their attack on Gowon goes thus: “What led Gowon to commit genocide, human rights abuses against the Igbo people, was due to perceived economic dependence on the Eastern Region’s oil resources and certain stereotypes about the North’s viability/ economic survival without Igbo contributions.

“The unity of Nigeria by Gowon was merely a facade; songs of the lips, the genocide was, in reality, a carefully orchestrated conspiracy to politically and economically marginalisation of Ndigbo in Nigeria political context.

“It has been asserted that Gowon’s administration was employed by the British government as a means to target the Igbo population in Nigeria. The genocide against Igbos, initially anticipated to conclude within three months according to Gowon’s statements, extended to three years with the Nigerian government breathing through their noise, if not for foreign support, this contraption called Nigeria could have been existing in different countries by now.

“The British government carried Gowon on their back like a 3 months baby sucking breast with the aid of German, Russian and USA and they killed 4.3 million Igbo. It’s therefore shameful for Gowon to claim that he fought a war.

“In April 1969 at the midst of the genocide, Gowon celebrated the union of Miss Victoria Zakari in Lagos and embarked on a honeymoon. Considering Gowon’s perceived limited engagement in battle, his thoughts on warfare are of interest.

“Examining Murtala Mohammed’s encounters with teenage Biafran soldiers could offer Gowon valuable lessons on acts of war. We advise Gowon to consult Murtala’s spirit to explain to him how teenage Biafra soldiers dealt with him at Abagana. It’s unfortunate that Gowon, who was merely eating cake in Lagos with Miss Victoria Zakari, is talking about war.

“Gowon is a chronic liar, and crafty agent of British empire, his silence on 1966 anti-Igbo pogrom which was another series of massacres committed against the Igbos living in Northern Nigeria which started in May 1966 and reached its peak after September 29, 1966

“The 1966 pogrom, which resulted in the loss of approximately 80,000 Igbo lives, constituted a catastrophic holocaust that prompted Dim Odemegwu Ojukwu, Governor of the Eastern Region, to declare the Sovereign State of Biafra as a necessary measure to safeguard the lives and properties of Igbos and other marginalised minority tribes in the old Eastern Region.

“Gowon should note that the contemporary Igbo generation is fully cognisant of the fact that the 1967-1970 evil sinister/atrocities were directed exclusively at Igbos and not at other ethnic groups within the former Eastern Region, such as the Ogoni, Ijaw, or Urhobo. This genocide, which was facilitated by global powers including Britain, the USA, France, Germany, and Russia, we recognized it as a deliberate attempt by the British government to marginalise the Igbo people.

“The British government in its excessive greed to maintain the oil field and harvest raw materials from Biafran land was instructmental to the slaughtering of 4.3 million Igbos in 1966-1970.
The Biafran genocide, which occurred from 1966-1970, bears similarities to the Holocaust in its scope and intentionality, with estimates suggesting millions of Igbo people lost their lives during this period, mirroring the devastation inflicted upon six million Jews by Nazi Germany and its collaborators between 1941-1945.

“Gowon must acknowledge the lingering trauma inflicted upon the modern Igbo generation by this demeaning act,(genocide) as undertaken to advance Buckingham Palace’s interests at the expense of Ndigbo and other ethnic minorities in old Eastern Region.

“Gowon should be aware that Igbo youths recognize the vulnerabilities of Ndigbo in Nigeria. ‘The Atlantic Ocean is easier to cross than the hurdles faced by Igbo individuals in Nigeria’. It is evident that Nigerian unity frequently entails Igbo marginalisation. ‘Ndigbo’s prospects for political and economic prosperity in Nigeria are as unlikely as a camel passing through the eye of a needle’.

“Today, the consequences and legacy of Gowon’s actions during the Biafran conflict and executed genocide has contributed to Nigeria’s current state of instability, sparking renewed calls for secession. It’s empirically clear, that part of the social evil and karma of Gowon’s genocide against the Igbo is the evidence how the Fulani are slaughtering Middle-Beltans in dozens with herdsmen, Boko Haram and Bandits.

“Nigeria’s status quo which Gowon fought for has become a poisonous venom to his people, and today Nigeria is regarded as irredeemable, irreconcilable, unsustainable, and irreparable; consequently, a sovereign national conference culminating in a referendum emerges as the sole option for Nigerians to safeguard their future survival.”

READ ORIGINAL STORY HERE

Yoruba Vs Igbo: How A 1977 Football Cup Caused Ethnic Tensions To Boil Over In Nigeria

AUTHORS:

CHUKA ONWUMECHILI

PROFESSOR OF COMMUNICATIONS

HOWARD UNIVERSITY

UWANA AKPAN

LECTURER IN MASS COMMUNICATION,

UNIVERSITY OF LAGOS

Football is a game of passion, and passions can become particularly inflamed when the sport represents larger political struggles. In Nigeria in 1977, an Africa-wide football contest fuelled the ethnic rivalry between the Yoruba and the Igbo people to the point that the military had to intervene. The game was to be played as a semi-final in the Africa Cup Winners’ Cup, the club football tournament that would go on to become the Caf Confederation Cup.

As scholars of sports communication, we recently published a research paper about that 1977 confrontation between Shooting Stars of Ibadan (Ibadan is home to a Yoruba majority in the south-west) and Enugu Rangers (Enugu is an Igbo state).

Our study adds to a history of football and politics that is not well documented in Africa. In the process it shows that football represents more than just sport, but can also be a way of understanding cultural and political issues.

Yoruba vs Igbo

The rivalry between the Igbos and Yorubas is almost as old as the formation of Nigeria in 1914. Both groups vie politically and for jobs. Each forms roughly a fifth of the Nigerian population. The Igbo had lost political power after the Nigerian Civil War of 1967-1970.

This rivalry became particularly visible in Nigerian football from the 1950s when ethnic groups contested annually for the Alex Oni Cup. The Yorubas often won, the Igbos a close second but the tournament was eventually discontinued because of fights between players and spectators.

After this, Igbos did not have a representative club team in national competitions until after the war ended in 1970. Top Igbo footballers were employed at various clubs across the country, particularly in Lagos. Yorubas played for various clubs in their home region. One such club was the Shooting Stars. They made up the bulk of the Ibadan Lions team that won the national Challenge Cup four times from 1959 to 1969.

After the civil war, most Igbo footballers – who had fought unsuccessfully for the secession of Biafra state – were afraid to live in other parts of the country. Enugu Rangers was formed and the club dominated Nigerian football in the 1970s and 1980s.

Shooting Stars had become the beacon club of the Yorubas and quickly developed a rivalry with Enugu Rangers.

The semi-final that caused all the trouble

This ongoing rivalry escalated when the two clubs beat off opposition from across the continent to meet in the two legs of the semi-final of the Africa Cup Winners Cup in 1977. Shooting Stars were defending the title. Rangers chose not to take part in the more prestigious Africa Champions Club’s Cup – instead they sought to equal Shooting Stars’ feat of winning the Cup Winners Cup.

To add to the tension, Nigeria’s national team was made up of mainly by players from these two clubs – and the national team was competing in the last stage of the qualifiers for the 1978 men’s football World Cup. It was feared that the rivalry would affect its chances. Almost daily, the newspapers reported on accusations levelled by officials of the two teams at each other and the Nigerian Football Association (today the Nigeria Football Federation).

The association had to find solutions – fast. Both teams had played their home matches in their own cities so far. The association decided that their two semi-final games should be played in a “neutral” location: Lagos.

But after the first leg, a designated “home game” for Shooting Stars, ended 0-0, controversy erupted. Lagos is in the west of the country, home of the Yorubas. This was seen to give the Shooting Stars an advantage. There was also controversy about whether the teams could call up some or all of their players in the national team. The association’s authority to re-schedule the second leg was then called into question. These issues were argued at fever pitch and publicly by fans and in the media, with threats and ethnic undertones.

The association wanted to bar both Rangers and Shooting Stars from using their national team players, but was eventually forced to agree on the release of all players to play in the final leg of the Africa Cup Winners’ Cup semi-final. But not before making a very late request that the Confederation of African Football put off the game until after the national team’s World Cup qualifying games.

Shooting Stars, frustrated by the postponement, lashed out publicly and in the media. They accused Nigeria’s federal sports commissioner, Dandeson Isokrari, of ethnocentrism and favouritism. Isokrari was an easterner, from Enugu Rangers territory.

With tension boiling over and threats issued from both sides, the second-in-command of the Nigeria state, Major General Musa Yar’ Adua, stepped in to avoid ethnic strife and possible violence. He instructed the match to move to Kaduna, a northern city, away from the homes of the clubs. This decision by the country’s military leadership calmed nerves.

An overflowing crowd packed the Kaduna venue from the early morning. In the early minutes of the game, Shooting Stars mounted a siege in the Rangers’ goal area. It was so tense that journalists and photographers converged behind the Rangers goal. Angry Rangers supporters claimed they were not journalists and photographers, but disguised juju men concocting mystical incantations that kept the ball rooted in the Rangers goal area.

The match ended in another 0-0 tie but Rangers advanced when goalkeeper Emmanuel Okala helped to turn the penalty kick tiebreaker in the club’s favour, 4-2. Despite the tensions, there were no reported incidents of violence during the match.

This epic contest between two clubs during a continental cup contest in 1977 reminds us of the rivalry that persists even today among ethnic groups across the continent. Football often represents such ethnic rivalries beyond the field of play – and in the case of Enugu Rangers and Shooting Stars it reached a dangerous level that forced the state to step in.

READ ORIGINAL STORY HERE

Dazzling By Chikodili Emelumadu Review – An Otherworldly Vision Of Nigeria

Chikodili Emelumadu

A boarding school is the backdrop for a metaphysical journey in this magical-realist debut

BY PERCY ZVOMUYA

His British-Nigerian debut, part boarding-school story and part Igbo metaphysics, is about the strange, otherworldly experiences of two friends, Ozoemena and Treasure, in a school in upcountry Nigeria. The two meet following family tragedies. When Treasure’s father dies, her family loses everything to grasping uncles. One day she meets a spirit who promises to bring her father back if she agrees to help it. And in exchange for finding it “wives”, the spirit will also bring her material goods. It’s a tempting offer, as the family owes rent and has barely any money for provisions. We are not surprised when she agrees.

In a somewhat similar vein, her friend Ozoemena’s alternative identity as a leopard arises from the murder of her uncle Odiogo. Odiogo had been a vessel for the leopard spirit; after his death, a new receptacle is needed to continue the family tradition. This spirit is part of the mythology of a secret Igbo sect that worships the goddess Idemili, previously introduced to non-Igbos by Chinua Achebe in the novels Arrow of God and Anthills of the Savannah. “Soon you will become the thing that all other beasts of the night fear,” the deity’s priest tells Ozoemena, when he announces her new avatar.

Other details that the priest tells Ozoemena we already know from the opening chapter: a man, possibly enslaved or a fugitive criminal, arrives in a town by a river, watched over by the goddess Idemili. This prologue is set in the days of slavery, when white merchants were feared.

The next chapters bring us back to the present. Ozoemena’s story alternates with sections about Treasure, her family story and her interactions with the spirit world. These are delightfully rendered in Nigerian pidgin rather than the formal English used in the rest of the novel. Of a woman who uses skin-lightening creams, for instance, Treasure tells us: “Mama Uju’s yellow is forcing-yellow, like a mango that has been tied in a waterproof bag to ripe it quick before selling.”


The boarding school is a compelling setting, and stories exploring metaphysical phenomena are a cornerstone of all literatures, including the African oral tradition. Chikodili Emelumadu is undeniably talented, yet there is something missing in the way she has brought these genres together. It’s as though she isn’t sure what the story is supposed to accomplish, or whether Treasure, Ozoemena or the school itself should propel the narrative. The inner workings of the deep Igbo metaphysics driving the novel are incompletely articulated, leaving outsiders adrift.

The book is lit up by wisecracks, folk wisdom, the idiosyncrasies of boarding-school life, and those quirky turns of phrase Nigerians have given to the rest of humanity (“Where he is going, there is no road” or “Let me not drink Panadol for headache that is not breaking me”). But the overall impression is of a novel not fully realised. Ozoemena’s transformation into her leopard self fails to suspend disbelief; and while Treasure’s encounters with her spirit interlocutor are deftly conjured, other surreal interactions remain flat, leaving this reader frustrated.

READ ORIGINAL ESSAY HERE

Is Prof. Soludo Really PDP’s Anambra Solution

Charles Chukwuma Soludo

BY CHUWUDI NWOKOYE

Then on the issue of drafting Professor Soludo as their joker or game-changer, the party is still doing the same thing they did back in 2003 and even in 2007. If they would tell themselves the truth, there is no way you can tell the state that PDP intended to hold governorship primaries in the state. They had it in mind that Soludo would be the solution to their political imbroglio in the state. No disrespect to our erudite professor, but Anambra is not a bank! Anambra is not a state lacking in people with educational qualifications or connections at Abuja. He is not going to be the last with a president’s ear. I bet that in the whole Isuofia or even in Soludo’s Isuanioma, there are other professors and men that have made their mark in education and came out with distinction, how much more the whole of Anambra state. So the state is endowed with all kinds of high performers that just one person that has a retinue of academic record does not scare us.

The problems with PDP and all the Abuja politicians are that they think that the mere fact that they live in Abuja and make some money while boot-licking; and have access to the corridors of power; that they can just breeze in from Abuja to Anambra, "flash their badges and make us nervous" (apologies Jack Nicholson in the movie ‘A Few Good Men’). That is where they got it all wrong. Anambra has produced all kinds of high achievers that educational milestones are nothing new in the state.

Soludo is a good person despite the problems with Central Bank under his charge. I do not intend to go into some charges levelled against him about cooking the book which has not been proven nor has he been indicted. I think it is unfair to judge him without any formal indictment. Even though he refused to give a specific answer to questions about his stewardship at the bank that failed to regulate the banks under CBN I do not intend to discuss his capability to administer the state. He performed admirably as the Governor of the apex bank of which Nigeria is grateful. He is a saleable candidate, but he has to sell himself and find a way to resonate with the people.

In fact, almost all the aspirants have the paper qualification to govern the state. However, my main point is that the method that the party adopted to field him as their candidate is flawed and he should know that he is sitting at the keg of gun-powder. The system of imposing a candidate would not work in the state as far as the governorship is concerned.

Prof. Soludo fell into the same flawed method that Andy Uba explored to win the party’s nomination. Both Uba and Soludo basically ran against themselves during the so-called primaries. But if well prepared for the post of governor, I have no doubt that he has all it takes to govern the state. Again, like I said, most Abuja politicians do not know the act of electioneering or even how to play politics even when they are quick to adopt that appellation "politician".

The same mistake that Andy Uba made when he was wielding the big stick and has the Anambra PDP at his beck and call; is the same mistake that Soludo made prior to being drafted or coerced or talked into being the party’s nominee. Soludo did not use his leverage at Abuja to help the state he intends to govern. What would have happened if he has effectively used his contact? If Soludo has used his immense contacts with the corridor of power to better the lot of Anambra people in terms of things I mentioned above like influencing the building of second Niger bridge, repairing the federal roads in the south-east, dredging the River Niger and constructing a state of the art sea port at Onitsha, helping to bring Enugu Airport to international standard, and probably coming to the universities in the state once in a while to deliver lectures to the youths, by now he would have been like a super humanbeing. The governorship would be his for the asking. He would have been a household name in the state and he would basically run unopposed both in the primaries and in the 2010 election.

Most politicians do not know how to use their influence to win people over. Senator Ifeanyi Okonkwo used his money and influence to give scholarships to many indigent students in his local government and some other good things he did and was coasting to victory before PDP’s beloved Soludo was anointed. Even other candidates like Iyom Chinwe Ekwunife of Peoples Progressive Alliance (PPA) and even Hon. Nicholas Ukachukwu were using their connections and resources to establish scholarship and other poverty alleviation programs. The people they helped wanted to pay them back with their votes; but not so with Soludo and even Andy Uba.

The main problem is that most politicians from Abuja are very selfish. They never look at the big picture, in their little mind, they think that this concept of "igbo enwe eze" (igbos have no kings) is a mere slogan. Inspite of the mistaken opinion that Anambra people love money, therefore if you come around and do some ‘naira rain’ people would be falling over each other to file behind your column is flawed and they cannot follow the trend. That may work during the military regime, but the people have tasted democracy’s forbidden fruit and there is no going back. Also the party thinks that those that have been toiling for the party with the hope of winning the nomination would just roll over and surrender for him!

Also Anambra state would not and will never in the future be anyone’s retirement benefit, severance pay or package. During former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s regime, Andy Uba was said to have served the former president well that OBJ wanted to settle Andy Uba for a job well done with Anambra governorship. That didn’t work out well. It might be the same thing that the current President Umaru Yar’adua is trying to do.

It is not going to work out for him. It did not work out for Andy under OBJ. In my place we would say "the deer we sent to the stream did not return and we are trying to send the antelope to the same stream; how do you think that the antelope would return?" It is the same old trick that never worked. I pity Prof Soludo because he fell into the same PDP Modus Operandi and he would come out frustrated. If he had started earlier to water the ground, do lots of heavy-lifting in terms of making people believe that he is not just a name in the Nigerian currency, but a real person with human flesh and not a fiction at Abuja, it could be different. Market women, Okada riders and peasants that struggle everyday to put food on the table for their families do not mainly understand what success at Central Bank has to do with them and their situation. Local people who are the main chunk of the electorate do not give a damn about a Central Bank Governor since it meant nothing to them. Some of them haven’t even heard about him before and PDP would find it difficult to convince them that he is the real deal.

Most Anambrarians are mostly concerned about some achievements they can relate to like "this road was constructed by Ngige" or "that school was built by Peter Obi" or "that hospital if not for Chief (Mrs) Ekwunife, we would not have it". That’s what normally resonates with local people. Majority of the electorates do not live in the cities, they live in the villages and the things that would normally get their attention are roads, schools, hospitals, water, electricity, bridges and other social amenities that would make their life better. If a road is inaccessible for ages and somehow someone in government builds it for them, his name is forever on that road.

Like in my hometown, some ‘nwadiana’ (our daughter’s son) from Onitsha that was in the eastern region government at the time built the road for the people. Many people do not even know the man, but up till today, when the story of the road is told, people do not fail to praise the man that built the road even though the man has long passed away. Dr Ngige understands the politics of roads and obviously Peter Obi understands how providing the infrastructure in the state write a governor’s name forever in the hearts of the people. A situation where the people actually kneel down and pray for their governor and ask God to preserve him, and PDP thinks that they can just pick a candidate and phew, magic happens and he breezes into the Government House,may be difficult to reverse. But PDP does not understand that simple fact of winning hearts and mind of people. Prof Soludo does not get it. It is either that he is not as smart as we make him out to be or he believes just as PDP that there would not be an election come February 6, 2010, but a selection or coronation of Soludo. Either way it does not say well of him and both he and the party should get ready for the greatest shock of their lives.

Chukwudi Nwokoye writes from Maryland, USA nwokoyeac@hotmail.com

Article published October 7, 2009 on OHUZO via Triumph Newspapers

ROADS TO HELL

BY CHRIS AJAERO

Travelling by road in Nigeria is still a nightmare as the roads are in terrible condition despite the huge expenditure on their reconstruction and maintenance. The condition of our roads, both the major arteries of this country and the roads in most of our major cities beggars imagination. And here I must ask the question do our government, ministers and leaders who travel often and see the condition in other countries ever feel embarrassed by the condition of roads in our resource-rich country? Do they notice the large potholes that litter the roads and even bridges?”

Those words, coming from Emeka Anyaoku, former secretary general of the Commonwealth, vividly captures the dismal failure of the Nigerian state to maintain its roads. The diplomat, who gave the damning verdict on the state of the nation’s roads at a recent public lecture in Abuja, said the consequence of such has been the soaring rate of accidents which have turned them into “a huge slaughter slab where human lives are worth little or nothing.”

Indeed, Anyaoku has bluntly spoken the mind of almost every road user in Nigerians. He has lent his weighty voice of courage and candour to the cries of most Nigerians who have had harrowing experiences while travelling on some of the roads that are in critical conditions across the country. Recent investigations by Newswatch revealed that, although the federal government has spent more than one trillion Naira on contracts for the rehabilitation of these roads in the past ten years, about 30 of the major federal roads are in deplorable conditions.

Some of the federal roads that have collapsed include the Lagos-Ore-Benin expressway, the Ibadan-New Ife-Ilesha-Akure expressway and the Lagos-Ibadan expressway in the South-West zone. In the South-East zone, the roads that have so many failed portions are the Onitsha-Enugu expressway, the Enugu-Abakaliki highway, the Enugu-Port Harcourt road, the Onitsha-Owerri highway and the Umuahia-Ikot Ekpene road. The roads in the South-South zone that have collapsed are the East-West road, the Calabar-Itu-Ogoja-Katsina Ala road, the Aba-Ikot Ekpene road, Aba-Ekparakwa-Etinan road and the Ini-Ekpe-Ikot Nkon-Arochukwu road.

There are also some roads in dilapidated conditions in the northern part of the country. They include the Okene-Lokoja-Abuja road, Okene-Ajaokuta-Anyigba road, Kaduna-Jos road and the Kano-Azare-Damaturu road.

One federal road that has remained a nightmare for motorists is the Lagos-Ore-Benin expressway. In spite of several reports in the media about the bad state of the road, which is the major link road between the western and eastern parts of Nigeria, its situation has not improved. At the inception of the administration of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, Diezani Allison-Madueke, immediate past minister of transportation, had visited the road. She was there on August 6, 2007 and wept because of its dilapidated state. “I am actually very, very unhappy today at what I have seen. I am very displeased that this road was allowed to degenerate to this level. I want to apologise to Nigerians for the deplorable state that I found this road in. This is inhuman and unacceptable,” Allison-Madueke said.

However, more than two years after the former minister of transportation’s lamentation over the sorry state of the road which raised the hope of many Nigerians of a quick solution to the problem, the condition of the road has continued to deteriorate. When Newswatch visited the road last week, the failed portions of the road still had craters wide enough to swallow vehicles. Commuters who were travelling to the South-East and South-South zones of the country for Christmas had harrowing experiences, as they had to spend several hours at the failed portion of the road between Ore and Ofosu in Ondo State. This was as a result of the serious traffic gridlock on the road as the vehicles tried to wade through the failed portions of the road. Some of the vehicles had to divert through the bush path in Ofosu in a bid to beat the gridlock.

Sampson Raymond, one of the drivers, caught up in the traffic jam, told Newswatch that he left Lagos at about 8 a.m. on that day enroute Okada in Edo State. Unfortunately, he ran into the traffic gridlock at Ore by 11:30 a.m. By 3:30 p.m. when Newswatch met him, he was still trying to manoeuvre his way out of the jam which he attributed to bad spots along the expressway.

Emeka Nwokeke, a driver of a luxurious bus conveying passengers to Aba, told Newswatch that he spent more than five hours in the gridlock. “I left Lagos at 7:30 a.m. for Aba and you can see where we are. There is no way I can get to Aba today. You can see that the traffic is not flowing at all. We have been stuck in this traffic for the past five hours,” he said. Eberechukwu Anyanwu, one of the passengers on the bus, could not control his temper as he rained abuses on those in power for allowing the road deteriorate to the point that it has become almost impassable thereby making those travelling home for Christmas to pass through hell. “You can see how bad it is and yet we have people who claim to be our leaders. This road could be best described as Nigerians' expressway to hell,” he told Newswatch.

Worried by the hazards the deplorable condition of the Ore axis of the Lagos-Ore-Benin expressway and other highways across the country have constituted for transporters, the Association of Luxury Bus Owners of Nigeria, ALBON, met in Lagos recently to deliberate on the issue. In a communiqué issued after the emergency meeting, the governing council of the association threatened to withdraw their vehicles from the roads unless the federal government instituted a programmed maintenance on all the major highways in the country.

In the communiqué jointly signed by Prince Ejike Okoli and Frank Nneji, national president and secretary respectively of the association, they drew government’s attention to the need for an “urgent intervention programme on the Shagamu-Ore-Benin road to ensure that normal flow of traffic is restored.” The luxurious bus owners were concerned that though this road is one of the busiest arterial roads in the country, government has not accorded the maintenance of the road the priority attention it deserves. They frowned at the situation whereby motorists sometimes spend as much as 12 hours on that stretch alone due to its dilapidated condition.

The association stated that the abysmal state of roads across the country has resulted in the depletion of its fleet due to constant damages leading to high cost of maintenance. “In the year 2000, we had a capacity of 6,000 buses but these have been depleted to less than 1,500 buses with over 80 operators being forced out of business because of harsh operating condition.” The governing council of ALBON passionately appealed to the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria through the minister of works to come to its aid and the aid of other Nigerian road users who daily suffer untold hardship on major Nigerian roads.

ALBON also urged the federal government to separate funding for road maintenance from the budget for road development, rehabilitation and reconstruction because “the two are clearly distinct.” The group noted that it is common for thieves to rob the drivers and their passengers at the failed portions of the roads where the vehicles virtually come to a halt.

Okoli told Newswatch last week that ALBON was compelled to take such an action because the deplorable condition of the roads has taken its toll on their vehicles as it now costs them so much money to maintain them. He explained that most luxurious buses now strip their vehicles of the overhangs of the front and rear fenders, because they usually hit the surface of the bad roads and break whenever the tyres sink into the ground or run through large potholes. “The impact of the bad road not only lead to heavy maintenance costs, but ultimately reduces the lifespan of the buses,” he said. He explained that because of the failed portion of the Lagos-Ore-Benin expressway, some luxurious buses travelling from Lagos to Owerri, Enugu, Port Harcourt and Uyo spend two days on the road before reaching their destinations.

According to him, the association often bought truck loads of chippings and brick objects with which its members tried to repair the failed portions of the road. He lamented that the wear-and-tear the bad roads have constituted for their vehicles is so much that some transporters had contemplated leaving the business since it was no longer lucrative. “We spend so much money repairing knocked engines as a result of the bad roads. The engines are at the back and when the rear keeps hitting the ground, the oil drains away and could spoil the engine if the driver could not notice it in time. It costs as much as N1.3 million to repair an engine of a luxurious bus,” Okoli told Newswatch.

Corroborating Okoli’s position, Nneji, who is also the managing director of ABC Transport, described 2009 as the worst year for transporters. “It is only in 2009 that you have vehicles leaving Lagos and never got to the East until after 36 hours,” he said. He attributed the problem to lack of proper management of the roads by the government. He explained that some of the roads have not been rehabilitated and reconstructed as they ought to. He believes that the federal government should treat the issue of roads as an emergency because if the nation’s economy must grow, the transportation infrastructure have to grow too.

Apparently taking a cue from the leadership of ALBON, Patrick Obahiagbon, the lawmaker representing Oredo federal constituency in the House of Representatives, early this month threatened to lead a mass protest over the poor state of the Benin-Ore road. He, however, gave the federal government a “reasonable period in 2010” to fix the road or face mass protest. “I have resolved as the representative of the good people of Oredo federal constituency in Edo State who have suffered a great deal on the collapsed Benin-Ore-Lagos road to tackle the gauntlet posed by the exigencies of the times to compel the federal government to act expeditiously in fixing the road once and for all,” Obahiagbon said.

In response to public outcry over the deplorable condition of the road, Hassan Muhammed Lawal, minister of works, housing, and urban development, recently visited the road. He was accompanied by Olusegun Mimiko, governor of Ondo State, who suggested outright reconstruction of the road.

Coincidentally, on the day of their visit, they were caught in the traffic gridlock that had become a common scene on the road. Lawal, who was overwhelmed by the traffic jam and the complaints of commuters, acknowledged the fact that the road has expired and required reconstruction. “We are all witnesses to the congestion this afternoon. There are several stages of fixing a road. It could be repaired; it could be rehabilitation and it could be outright reconstruction. The road was repaired, now they are doing rehabilitation and like he (governor) suggested, there is need for outright reconstruction of the road and I couldn’t agree with him more. However, I want to reiterate the need for patience,” he said.

In the wake of the mounting public complaints over the deplorable state of the road, the federal government, last month, awarded contracts to the tune of N12.2 billon for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of two sections of the road. The multinational civil engineering companies commissioned to execute the contracts are Reynolds Construction Company Limited, RCC, handling the Ajebandele-Ofosu road axis, and Borini Prono and Company Limited repairing the Shagamu-Ajebandele-Ore-Benin section of the expressway. While RCC’s contract is worth N9.7 billion, that of Borini Prono is put at the cost of N2.5 billion. When Newswatch visited the road last week, the two construction companies had already commenced work on their respective sections of the road. While RCC was given 30 months to complete its contract, Borini Prono is expected to complete its job within 18 months. Officials of the two companies at the site refused to oblige Newswatch with details of their plan to beat the target.

Like the Lagos-Ore-Benin expressway, the Ibadan-New Ife-Ilesa-Akure road is also in a deplorable condition. The first noticeable bad portion of the road is by Oludare block industry, about five kilometres from Ibadan metropolis. However, the bad portion has been graded by RATCON Construction Company handling the rehabilitation of the road under the supervision of the Federal Road Maintenance Agency, FERMA. Another failed portion of the road is in Asejire, also in Oyo State. This failed portion begging for rehabilitation is 53 kilometres from Ibadan. Equally in a deplorable state is the portion of the road at Ikoyi junction in Osun State. At Ikire town still in Osun State, there is another failed portion of the road.

The road is dualised but one side of the road has been closed for maintenance and motorists are forced to use one way. Samuel Adesina, a driver who plies the Ibadan-Akure route, told Newswatch that motorists have been encountering problems on the failed portion of the road for six months now.

At Gbongan, there is another failed portion of the expressway. For instance, between Gbongan and Akinlalu, a distance of 10 kilometres, Newswatch counted five failed portions of the road. Tayo Azeez, an Akure-based driver who plies the road, told Newswatch that traffic congestions is a daily affair on the road. Azeez added that accidents are regular occurrences on the road because of its poor state. Unfortunately, there is no ongoing rehabilitation work on the road.

On Saturday, December 1, there was a fatal accident at Onimu village in Gbongan. According to an eye witness, the accident occurred when a driver of one of the buses who was on high speed attempted to dodge a bad portion of the road and rammed into the on-coming vehicle. The collision of the two vehicles ignited fire and they were burnt with all the passengers on board. Adesina, who witnessed the accident, told Newswatch that it was a gory sight as they watched human beings roasted to death like goats.

Although the Ife-Ilesha road is relatively motorable, at least up to Oloko where the dual carriage way terminates, the same cannot be said of Ilesha-Akure road which is a single narrow road. From Arakeje, where Joseph Ayo Babalola University is located, to Ilaramokin, there are several failed portions on the road. Indeed, Newswatch gathered that traffic congestion is a common phenomenon on the road which makes users spend longer hours to get to their destinations.

In the South-East, many federal roads are still in deplorable conditions. Although the contract for the dualisation of the Onitsha-Owerri highway was awarded in 2002, some portions of the road are still in a state of disrepair. Not even the splitting of the contract between the Consolidated Construction Company, CCC, and Julius Berger PLC has facilitated the construction of the road. The contract for the dualisation of the entire stretch of the 90.3-kilometre road was initially awarded by the administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo to CCC at the cost of N24.5 billion with a three-year completion period.

However, due to the slow pace of work, the former president had in 2005 approved extra N20 billion for the project and directed Julius Berger to handle the Owerri end of road up to the boundary between Imo and Anambra states. CCC was then asked to concentrate on the Onitsha end of the road while the contract sum was increased to N36 billion.

Adeseye Ogunlewe, the then minister of works, had promised that with the involvement of the two construction companies in the project, the dualisation of the Onitsha-Owerri road would be completed within 18 months. But three years after the federal government’s promise, work on the Onitsha-Owerri road is still progressing at a snail speed.

Julius Berger has done substantial work on its own part of the contract. When Newswatch visited the operational base of the German constructions giant at Njaba bridge, the dreaded bridge which had caused several accidents in the past was wearing a new look. The bridge had been completed and opened for use by motorists. Chijioke Nnanna, a commercial driver who plies the road regularly, told Newswatch that transporters were glad that Julius Berger built a solid and standard bridge across the Njaba River. “I am very happy with the fantastic job done by Julius Berger on the Njaba bridge. Before now, the bridge was a death trap because of the winding nature of the road, but today, we have an ultramodern bridge and we thank the federal government for awarding the contract to a reputable construction firm,” Nnanna told Newswatch.

The construction giant has taken the work beyond Awo-Omamma and is now grading the portion of the road at Mgbidi, the boundary between Imo and Anambra states. A supervisor with Julius Berger who spoke to Newswatch on condition of anonymity said the company was determined to complete the contract early next year.

Like Julius Berger, CCC has also made some progress on its own part of the road. Despite the delay in the construction of the Onitsha end of the road, the CCC, which is from Greece, did a standard job on the areas it has so far covered. The CCC has constructed the road from Onitsha to Ihembosi in Ekwusigo local government area of Anambra State and provided good drainage system on both sides of the road. The company has also graded the road from Okija junction to Ihiala. It has tried to cover some of the gullies on the road. However, the portion of the road graded is constituting problems for motorist because it is very dusty.

Newswatch learnt that before the dry season set in, the portion of the road that was graded was so slippery that many vehicles avoided it. Some of the vehicles coming from Onitsha had to divert to the Okija community through the junction from where they come out at Ihiala junction. Consequently, this has led to the dilapidation of the local road in Okija built during the Chinwoke Mbadiniju administration. Vehicles coming from Owerri had to divert to the old road leading to Nnewi and come out at Ihembosi. Sylvanus Ike Nweme, former chairman of Ihiala local government area who hails from Okija, told Newswatch that although CCC could be said to be slow in handling the contract, the people of the South-East are happy with the quality of job they are doing. “I must confess that we are very pleased with the quality of job CCC is doing. The work is progressing irrespective of the nature of Okija area. The topography of our area is one factor that is slowing down the job. It is not a table land. That is why the job was delayed from Ihembosi to Ihiala,” Nweme said.

The Onitsha-Enugu expressway is another road in the South-East that is in a poor state. However, the people of the area heaved a sigh of relief when the federal government recently awarded contract for the reconstruction of the road to CCC and Nigercat. While CCC is handling the Onitsha end of the road up to Awka, Nigercat was awarded the contract for the construction of the road from Ugwuoba part of the expressway leading to Enugu. Ugwuoba is a border town between Enugu and Anambra states.

For Boniface Egboka, a professor of environmental hydrogeology and vice chancellor, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, there is nothing to celebrate yet until evidence of work is seen. He recalled that the bad condition of the Onitsha-Enugu road recently led to the death of many people at Umunya.

The accident at Umunya was nothing short of a tragedy because it involved no less than nine vehicles and reportedly led to the death of more than 50 persons. The accident was said to have been caused by the bad portion of the highway at Umunya which is no different from the situation in many other parts of the dual carriageway in both the Enugu and Onitsha axes.

The Onitsha-Enugu road is replete with potholes, bad patches and gullies from Upper Iweka to MCC junction. This extended to New Spare Parts Market, Umunya, Awka, Ugwuorji and 9th Mile Corner. Indeed, the Onitsha-Enugu road is anything but an expressway. According to Mike Udah, chief press secretary to Governor Peter Obi, governor of Anambra State, “nightmare” is a word that best describes a journey on the road.

Paul Okoye, a commercial bus driver, agrees. He told Newswatch in Awka, last week, that the Enugu-Awka expressway is bad and full of potholes. Another accident happened last week in Umunya due to the bad road.

Cyril Ike, a commercial bus driver who plies the road, said the potholes on the road destroy tyres and shock absorbers, cause accidents and make travelling very unpleasant. Eugene Chime, a staff of the Onitsha South Mass Transit who plies the Enugu-Onitsha route, told Newswatch that the road is so bad and often causes “accidents because when you try to avoid the bad spots, you might mistakenly run into the bush.” His view was buttressed by Ejim John, a commercial bus driver, who recently escaped death by the whiskers because of the bad road. He complained that there is a place at the 9th Mile Corner that has a lot of potholes and armed robbers take advantage of it to rob passengers. Although John is happy that the contract has been awarded, he wants the companies working on it to increase the pace of work to alleviate the suffering of commuters on the road. He said he wants the highway to return to its former state of the early 80s when it was first constructed. He traced its deterioration to long neglect. “It became worse about four years ago and we kept hearing promises about repairing it but nothing happened.”

When Newswatch visited the road last week, CCC officials were seen working on the expressway from the Onitsha axis leading to Awka. But no work has commenced on the Onitsha portion yet as evidence of work could only be seen at the nearby Nkpor and the expressway linking the former toll gate. The company closed down a portion of the expressway near the toll gate which it is currently working on. That, however, is already a source of concern to some residents of the state who are afraid that closing down a part of the road might pose a problem for road users.

Like the CCC, Nigercat also closed a part of the expressway it is currently working on and this has resulted in traffic congestion.

Enugu-Abakaliki expressway is yet another road in terrible shape. The road needs rehabilitation. Beginning from Emene, Enugu, many parts of the one-lane highway leading into Abakaliki, the capital of Ebonyi State, are in bad shape. Emeka Nwokike, a commercial bus driver, told Newswatch that the Enugu-Abakaliki expressway is in a sorry state despite some “patchings” done in some parts of the road two months ago. He appealed to the federal government to show seriousness on the road project.

But the condition of the Abakaliki-Enugu expressway is not as bad as some others in the state. For instance, Ladan Umaru, a commercial driver, said that the Ogoja-Abakiliki road is horrible. “The road has been bad for a long time. Now that there is no rain, we spend three to four hours from Abakaliki to Ogoja. During the rainy season, it is five to six hours,” he told Newswatch. Ben Perni said that recently, when he travelled to Calabar from Abuja, they spent longer time on the journey due to delays experienced on the Ogoja axis of the road. “Under normal circumstances, the journey from Ogoja to Calabar is supposed to take five hours, but we ended up spending seven hours.”

Adenike Yesiru, a transporter, gave his own verdict on the Abakaliki–Ikom route. “The road is bad. Before now, we used to spend one hour, forty minutes, but now, its three hours plus and that is for a sound vehicle. There are so many bad spots on the road,” he said.

Paul Okorie, Ebonyi State commissioner for works and transport, told Newswatch that most of the federal roads, especially in the South-East, have become death traps. One of such roads is the Abakaliki-Ogoja-Manfe-Cameroon border road which Okorie described as probably “the worst road in the country.” Others include the Enugu-Port Harcourt road, Enugu-Afikpo road, Okposi-Amasiri-Ota-Nguzu road and the Abakaliki-Offerekpe road. Okorie, however, said that recently, the federal government awarded contract for the reconstruction of the Abakaliki-Ogoja-Manfe-Cameroon border road to the China Civil Engineering Construction Company, CCECC, just as the Abakaliki-Afikpo road was awarded to Bulletine Nigeria Limited.

The Enugu-Port Harcourt expressway is not without its challenges. Many parts of the expressway linking Mgbowo to Isuochi in Abia State to Amaorji and Okigwe in Imo State have failed. But one of the worst roads where the commuters experience a lot of hardship is the Umuahia-Ikot Ekpene road. On December 15, when Newswatch visited the road, some caterpillars were seen working on the Obot Akera part of the road with “caution” sign belonging to FERMA displayed. Even then, it was no fun driving through the one-lane expressway due to the bumpy and dusty nature of the road.

Godwin Ben, a driver with Akwa Ibom Transport Company, told Newswatch that during the rainy season, drivers often diverted to some villages to avoid the deep gullies on the Umuahia-Ikot Ekpene road.

However, on scale of degradation, the Umuahia-Ikot Ekpene road is no match to the Uyo-Calabar highway. There are many failed portions of the expressway around Odukpani local government area and Okoyong, begging for attention. In view of the bad road network in these areas, Nsiebong Etim, a commercial driver, wants the government to make road repairs a top priority. He told Newswatch at the Etim Edem Park, Calabar, that “the roads are very bad, whether it is Aba road, the Ikot-Ekpene road or Umuahia road, they are all bad and deserve to be rehabilitated.”

The East-West road which cuts across the South-South states including Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers and Akwa Ibom is equally in deplorable state. Contract for the dualisation of the 337-kilometre road was initially awarded to Julius Berger in 2005 at a cost of N220 billion. However, in 2008, Julius Berger pulled out after two expatriates working with it were abducted and later killed by militants. At that time, only six percent of the job had been done. The federal government then directed Julius Berger to refund N6.1 billion being balance of the job not executed. The contract was then reawarded to three other construction companies namely Setraco, Reynolds Construction Company and Gitto Construction Generalli. The section of the road from Warri in Delta State to Kaima in Bayelsa which is 87 kilometres was awarded to Setraco at the cost of N64 billion and is expected to be completed in August 2010. The 101 kilometres of the road from Kaima to Ahoada and Port Harcourt was also awarded to Setraco at the cost of N74.7 billion. The third section comprising 99 kilometres stretching from Eleme Junction in Rivers State to Eket in Akwa Ibom was awarded to RCC at N35.6 billion and is expected to be completed in April 2010. The fourth section, which covered 50 kilomtres, stretched from Eket to Oron in Akwa Ibom and awarded to Gitto at N26 billion with April 2010 as completed date. When Uffot Ekaette, minister for Niger Delta affairs, inspected the projects recently, he expressed satisfaction with the work being done by Setraco and RCC but frowned at the slow pace of work by Gitto.

However, when Newswatch visited the East-West road last week, the progress of work by Setraco from Warri to Port Harcourt was not quite encouraging. But Chidi Lloyd, majority leader, Rivers State House of Assembly, whose constituency falls on the East-West road, told Newswatch that the slow pace of the work was to enable the contractor do a good job. He explained that since the contract was initially awarded to Julius Berger, Setraco would have to go back to the drawing board, study what is on ground and then proceed with the job. He urged the people to be patient. “We know that our patience may have been overstretched but we also have to thank the administration of President Yar’Adua for awarding the contract,” he said.

In the northern part of the country, the federal road linking Okene to Ajaokuta, the location of the nation’s ill-fated steel industry, is in a terrible state. Hilary Abuh, a lorry driver, told Newswatch that his vehicle fell into a gully while trying to avoid the failed portion of the road.

Murtala Momoh, a father of five, said he narrowly escaped being burnt to death recently when a tanker conveying fuel fell on the failed portion of the road and caught fire. Three houses around the area were gutted by fire but no life was lost.

Another federal road in bad shape is the Lokoja-Abuja road which has recorded a lot of accidents in recent times. Yomo Ashanghan, sector commander of the Federal Road Safety Commission, in Kogi State said the road records an average of one accident daily. He attributed this to overspeeding and bad nature of the road. “If the roads were good, accidents would have been reduced,” he said.

Yaguda Ali, secretary general, National Union of Road Transport Workers, Kogi State chapter, urged the government to dualise the road from Abaji to Kabba junction. However, the contract for the dualisation of the road from Yongga to Abaji is now being handled by RCC. The rehabilitation of the road from Abaji to Kotongarfi is being handled by Bulletine while the road from Kabba Junction to Kotongarfi was awarded to Dantata and Sowoe. However, these companies have only graded the roads.

The Kaduna-Minna road is equally bad. The failed portions of the road are the Suleja junction, Minna Park and Shiroro junction. It has so many potholes which often cause accidents. The situation is the same in some portions of the Kaduna-Jese road, especially Saminaka.

The deplorable condition of the federal roads across the country has led to a lot of avoidable accidents. The recent statistics released by the FRSC on the spate of accidents on Nigerian roads is mind-boggling. According to the FRSC, the number of reported cases of road accidents on the country’s highways between January and October is 8,553. About 4,120 persons lost their lives while 20,875 others were seriously injured in the accidents that involved 11,031 vehicles across the country.

Egboka, vice chancellor of UNIZIK, believes that these accidents would have been avoided if the roads were in good shape. He is very sad that despite the huge amount of money voted annually for the Nigerian roads, they are still horrible. “I had to travel to Ilorin from Awka by road, it was horrible. I suffered. My waist suffered. Travelling to Lagos now by road is like going through hell. I love travelling because I love seeing the environment. But my experience has been terrible. Accidents all over the place because of bad roads, potholes, dangerous bends... It is most saddening and regrettable,” Egboka told Newswatch.

Reported by Emmanuel Uffot, Dike Onwuamaeze, Anthony Akaeze,Godfrey Azubike and Pita Ochai

ARTICLE WAS PUBLISHED ON DECEMBER 20, 2009 AT OHUZO VIA NEWSWATCH

Another Nigerian Makes QC In UK

Nneka Akudolu

A Nigerian-born Lawyer, Nneka Akudolu has been elevated to the very prestigious rank of Queen’s Counsel in the United Kingdom.

Akudolu QC, who left school with no A-levels, got pregnant and became single mother at 21, is one of the newly inductees as a Queen’s Counsel of the UK.

The female Jury Advocate, Nneka Akudolu QC, was once reportedly written off as a failure.

An Abuja based Lawyer, Dr Kayode Ajulo said: “Written off as a failure, Nneka Akudolu left school with no A-levels and got pregnant after a holiday romance”.

“At the age of 21 while a single mum, Nneka Akudolu QC, without A levels took the Access to Legal Studies Course, got into Law School and was called to the UK Bar in 2002.

“With 19 years experience in Criminal law, Ms Akudolu is a highly respected Jury Advocate, whose practice encompasses all areas of serious crime. She has particular experience working with vulnerable Defendants and witnesses, and those charged with historic allegations of a sexual nature.

“Today, she is one of the new inductees as a Queen’s Counsel of the UK.

“Her story is a testimony of an audacious dream, and I salute her resilience. Congratulations, Learned Silk.”

The rank of QC is the equivalent of Senior Advocate of Nigeria, and it is the tradition of the Nigerian Bar that any Lawyer of Nigerian descent who makes QC, almost automatically gets awarded the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria.

Nneka Akudolu QC is a Grade 4 Prosecutor, and is on the approved list to prosecute rape and serious sexual offences.

Ms Akudolu said that she was absolutely thrilled that her application for QC was successful. According to her, seeing her name on the list will inspire others to believe that, they too can achieve the amazing appointment.

According to Lord Chancellor & Justice Secretary, Rt Hon Dominic Raab MP, the award of QC is highly sought after, and the expertise and eminence of this year’s pool is testament to the excellence of our world-leading legal sector.

“Nneka is a personable and approachable advocate, whose ability to understand the facts of a case quickly and effectively, enables her to grasp the issues with ease. Her practice continues to grow at a pace. In the last year, she has appeared as junior alone for the defence in a case of murder, and has appeared as leading counsel in a case involving multiple counts of rape and serious sexual assaults against multiple Complainants.

“Away from the Crown Court, Nneka has a keen interest in Military Law, and has enjoyed a wealth of experience representing members of the armed forces and their dependents in Court Martial proceedings here and overseas. Her military work covers a wide range of offences, including serious violence and rape.

“Nneka has extensive experience in prosecuting and defending regulatory offences, such as breaches of Health & Safety and Trading Standards Legislation. She also receives instructions to defend Police Officers accused of breaching standards of professional behaviour, and facing misconduct proceedings.”

According to Wikipedia ‘Queen’s Counsel is an office, conferred by the Crown, that is recognised by courts. Members have the privilege of sitting within the Inner Bar of court. The term is recognised as an honorific. As members wear silk gowns of a particular design, appointment as Queen’s Counsel is known informally as receiving, obtaining, or taking silk, and QCs are often colloquially called Silks. Appointments are made from within the legal profession on the basis of merit, rather than a particular level of experience. However, successful applicants tend to be Barristers, or (in Scotland) Advocates with 15 years of experience or more.’

‘The award of Queen’s Counsel is for excellence in advocacy in the higher courts. It is made to advocates who have rights of audience in the higher courts of England and Wales, and have demonstrated the competencies in the Competency Framework to a standard of excellence.

‘Queen’s Counsel are appointed from amongst practising advocates, both Barristers and Solicitors. They are appointed because they have demonstrated excellence in advocacy in difficult cases in the higher courts of England and Wales, or in tribunals or arbitrations.’

---------------THIS DAY

OPINION: Will Soludo Be The Moses Of Igboland?

Charles Chukwuma Soludo

BY SUNNY IGOANUGO

I was one of those who agreed that Chukwuma Charles Soludo, had grown beyond being governor of Anambra State. As one of the star-boys of the South East, if not Nigeria, I supported the view that he should rather be gunning to be President.

So, when I heard some people asking, what he is looking for in Anambra, I couldn’t agree more. But beyond this, I also had another personal grudge against him. I wasn’t enamoured of his politics. That I must confess.

Here’s why! I was completely scandalised by his apparent approval of the shenanigan of the crowd in Awka either from the government in power or the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), in recent years, as it seemed to me then.

His notorious statement in the wake of the 2017 governorship election that Anambra was not broken and needed no fixing really did it for me. It practically gnawed at my intestine.

Firstly, coming from Anambra I could attest that Soludo’s position was not factual. Anambra was broken on many fronts then and even to a great length, now. On the other hand, having basically providing the media backbone for the formation of APGA, I bore and still bear grudges against those that alienated Chief Chekwas Okorie, the founder of the party. That has not changed. These were enough for me to, at best, be circumspect about Soludo rather than enthusiastic.

Besides, the manner he emerged APGA candidate for the November 6 2021 governorship election after the party switched to its invidious tactics of banning potential threats, was for me a confirmation of my worst fears.

But look at me now taking the front seat as a cheerleader. I’ve already gone full circle. His actions and pronouncements in the last fortnight are the turning point.

Within a few days, I have begun to see signs that Anambra, my state might, just be on the verge of another clean break, in the same manner Chris Ngige and Peter Obi, broke away from the Chinwoke Mbadinuju parlous era.

Soludo’s high-priced academic credentials, have never been the major appeal to me too, because many leaders I know with similar pedigree had failed in the past and are still failing now. We’re currently dealing with one of them in the South East, making waves in the media for his many gaffes. The use to which those credentials are to be put, was, for me the important issue.

You can now see why I find the current vibes coming from Awka, as quite alluring. One, that Soludo was able to gather the 80-man Oby Ezekwesili-led transition committee in such a jiffy is a feat only a man with immense reach and capacity could.
As Woodrow Wilson, former US President, wrote in his book, What is Progress? “The direction is just as important as the impetus of motion.”

This early hand Soludo has shown, looks good. It is a fundamental departure from the current picture in the state. What is more? To think that the eggheads are conducting the task on pro bono basis, also says quite much. Many had wondered from whence Anambra would source the funds to pay them, given their pedigree.

Though I heard the Prof say it that they were paying to do the job, Ezekwesili particularly upped the ante, when she confirmed that she was even going to foot her hotel bills, pay for her food and buy her own water. That is huge.
Imagine what this committee, which parades the very best of the Nigeria’s elite thinkers in all the sectors of the economy and the professions is capable of coming out with. And without pay to boot.

Again, the man of the moment, hits another bulls eye. He has shunned flamboyance for a lean government structure. He has dumped the tag, Your Excellency for his first name, Charles. “Call me Charles, Charlie, Charlie Nwamgbafo, or Mr. Governor,” he says.

Not a few have complained that in recent years of Governor Willie Obiano, Anambra government house and around it had turned into places of obnoxious revelling, uncontrollable binges and other illicit activities, at the expense of the people’s commonwealth.

In fact, you may have heard that the governor-elect is currently at a loggerheads with the powers in Awka over the budget of his inauguration, insisting that it be cut down from the more than N600million to just N20million and that instead of a fanfare at the new International Conference Centre, in Awka, he would prefer to be sworn in inside government house banquet hall. The way to go, you might say.

But that is not the true picture. Hear the correct version from the man himself: “I do not wish any event, dancers or players and all that. I just want to show up for work, like every first workday. Though it is going to be a Friday, which is the weekend, I’m going to work for over eight hours that day. “No ceremony, no event, no party, nothing. Not even 10 Kobo will be spent. So the people who are saying N20million has been budgeted should go and tell us where they will get that money. It is going to be work, work, work, and that is what we’ll epitomise.”

I’m beginning to see a Soludo who would carry his own bag at the airport or his own umbrella in the rain, the exact picture that depicts prudent public officers in other thinking and progressive climes – the exact image I prefer for my governor.

Besides, the an over 3,000 aides appointed for no reason other than politics are to go. Imagine the amount of funds that would be freed from the foregoing and what use a progressive government could put them.

Hear him: “I’ll move from the inauguration venue to his office and from there to the slums in Onitsha and environs particularly Okpoko community where he plans to clean up. Those who would be appointed into the government must be ready to work as there is no time to waste.

“I’m determined to revamp Anambra’s economy and place the state on the global map. I’ll be heading to Okpoko immediately after the inauguration. I’ll put in eight hours of work immediately after the inauguration. Don’t expect fanfare because it won’t take place.”

For those who don’t know, Okpoko, a squalid enclave in Onitsha, the commercial capital of Anambra State, presents an uncanny metaphor of the wealth-poverty contradictions of the state.

It is Anambra’s erstwhile Moroko, formally the shame of Lagos, now Oniru Royal Estate. The estate, sandwiched between Victoria Island and Lekki Phase 1, has become one of the most beautiful places in the same city. Could this be the story of Okpoko?

Then the icing on the cake: “If a Pakistani will give us 24 hours of electricity, I will bring him and make him commissioner for utilities. What the people care about is the services they get and not necessarily who did it. We want to get good results here. What matters is the result. Accountability is a must here.” Okwu agwu! Palava finish!

But here comes the bigger task. Outside fixing Anambra, the larger picture is the mandate the governor-elect has been grappling with since July 2017. Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the apex decision-making body of the Igbo in Nigeria and worldwide had handed him with the job of creating the template for transforming the fortunes of Igboland, by designing a new economic and political development agenda for the people.

This task was laid on the shoulders the ex-CBN boss, who is leading a 100-member Planning and Strategy of a body drawn from the seven states under Ohanaeze’s influence – the five core states of Igboland, plus Delta and Rivers.
Named South East Development Company (SEDECO), the body created by former President General of Ohanaeze, Nnia Nwodo, also has the likes of Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa, Deputy and Ferdinand Agu, as part of the membership.

But no sooner after, it was beset with lethargy arising from the attitude of the Igbo governors who were supposed to provide it with the financial and political lifelines, achieving very little as a result.

But with Soludo, becoming the governor in a two month’s time, the idea, may soon receive the jolt in the arm it requires to give it life once more.

Imagine that all Igbo states are able to grow one million palm trees in each of the states, yearly within the next five years with a corresponding growth of processing industries for the palm produce both on high, medium and small scale levels, maximise its coal resources for power generation. Part of the mandate given to committee is to design the framework for achieving this.

Other items on the card is to take inventory of all mineral resources and design a carefully scripted plan for engaging the federal government in their exploitation; the development of a refinery for petroleum resources; a paradigm shift to greenhouses methodology for vegetable production using the Netherlands experience as a typology and a deliberate policy for the development of ICT hubs in the states of the region to encourage human capital development.

Soludo and his team were also directed to work on the educational curriculum of the zone that would focus on the development of skills among men and women and recommend appropriate policies to states to improve the educational standards in their schools at all levels and growth of reliable financial institutions for mortgage, small scale business financing and research.

Imagine if, as he did with the Ezekwesili committee, he is able to convince and mobilise his colleagues governors to toe this line and therefrom, provide the wherewithal for the attainment of the agenda. How would Ala Igbo turn out before the expiration of his eight years?

He has already demonstrated his ability to mobilise, meaning that transforming Anambra into a dream Taiwan or Dubai, may not be a tall order after all.

If he adds into the kitty, the integration of Igboland to produce a giant economy, given its immense human and natural resources, what else would prevent the area from joining the elite club of a first world?

Indeed, some people believe Soludo already has his job cut for him. For instance, they say that raising N50trillion from Ndigbo is as easy as sleeping and waking up. It only needs someone who knows what keys to press on the piano to produce a melodious tune.

Incidentally, the Soludo committee was Ohanaeze’s response to the quit notice given to Igbo people by some groups in the North in that year. With the signs of social, political, and economic danger still hanging in the air like the sword of Damocles, many believe that an economically-viable Igboland is the buffer to withstand such a threat. With a self-sufficient Igbo enclave, who needs a Nigerian President?

When ala Igbo becomes an economic super power, who says Nigeria won’t beg them with kolanut and spirits to send them a son for the same redemption? And who is likely to be the one?

Would Soludo, be the Moses to lead Ndigbo out of Egypt? The naysayers are already accusing him of talking too much. But what if he matches action with words? Wouldn’t that divide the red sea and allow free passage of the people? But time will tell.

Igbo Yet To Learn Nigeria’s Political Arithmetic – Sen. Okadigbo

Margery Okadigbi image via Sun News Online

BY IHEANACHO NWOSU

Senator Margery Okadigbo is a stalwart of the All Progressives Congress (APC). She was the Anambra North Senatorial candidate of the party in the last election. In this interview by IHEANACHO NWOSU, Okadigbo who is a member of the presidential inauguration committee spoke on a wide range of issues commanding attention in the polity. She insisted that her late husband would have been a member of the APC if he were alive even as she argued that the incumbent administration is delivering on its promises.

How has life been after leaving the Senate?
It has been a bit traumatic. Traumatic in the sense that soon after leaving the Senate, my child was sick which took me out of the country for almost three years. And eventually, my son passed on. That is what has happened to me after the Senate. We went through all of that and we are still grappling with the pain . But to everything, we give God the glory. Back to politics, I joined the All Progressives Congress (APC), and on which I contested for the Senate for Anambra North Senatorial district. But I think the party in Anambra State was in a total confusion and it did not go so well. There was so much in-fighting; members were all against one another. Everybody came up with different issues. Even when we had good chances, there were litigations everywhere. So, it was a house of confusion in the State.

Some people were surprised that you left Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and joined APC when your former party and All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) are considered to be more on ground in Anambra than the party you switched to. What informed your decision?

At the point I moved to the APC, it was a personal decision to leave the PDP. Running on the platform of the APC was circumstantial. PDP was not so much on ground when I left the party. I think the turning point for PDP was having Peter Obi as their Vice Presidential candidate. APGA itself was in tatters; its primaries were rancorous. And members of the party had issue with the late Ikemba’s wife (Bianca Ojukwu) and lots of other issues that happened. It wasn’t just APGA in Anambra State; APGA all over the Southeast was in tatters, in total confusion too. So, I think that the PDP coming up with Peter Obi as vice presidential candidate was what nailed it for a lot of people. I think that was a turning point for PDP in Anambra State.

Did you move to APC because of the relationship that exists between Mr President and your family?

As I said, for me, it was a personal decision. At the time I joined politics and the circumstance under which I joined politics, if I must say, politically, I do not have a godfather. What I have is God in heaven. So, I did not wake up one day and say I am going to be a politician. Some people probably did that. I did not do that. When I decided to leave the PDP, there were certain happenings in the party in Anambra State that I did not like. I was really fed up with PDP. When we ran the 2017 elections with the candidacy of Oseloka Obaze, most of the aspirants that ran with him all indulged in anti-party activities which was not favourable to him. I stayed with him to the very last. So, in principle, I felt that I needed to finish that fight which I did, and by the time I was done with that election, I knew I was done with PDP as a party.

Looking at your political journey so far, what would you say has been the political cost of not having your husband, Dr Okadigbo around? Have you lost anything as a result of his absence?
Let’s just say that if he was around, I don’t think that question would come up. I guess that question came up because he is not around. To be fair to myself and my God, I can not say I have lost anything all round politically. When I went to the Senate, I always tell people that if Dr Okadigbo woke up and you told him that I went to the senate he will tell you to leave him to continue his sleep because he would never have believed it. That is why I say that politically, I am a child of circumstance. I never had any godfather, and I did not wake up and say to myself that today I am going to be a politician. Although I have always been in a political home; my paternal uncle, the late Nwafor Orizu, my grandmother’s younger brother, my grandmother is an Orizu. So, I have always been in a political family. Then I married into politics. When I look at it at the end of the day, when it comes to representing Anambra North, I am richly qualified. I was born in Anambra North and I married from Anambra North. I think everything depends on time and circumstance and when that time and circumstance are right, things will fall into place. So, it is hard for me to write it off and say I lost or I am losing politically.

Your late husband ran with Buhari on the same ticket for the presidential election and he did not win. Afterwards, there was a protest where teargas was fired at him alongside others which led to his death . What has been the relationship between your family and the President? Are there things you expect from him and the ruling party?
I really do not think this is a fair question to ask. The reason is that President Buhari has been in power since 2015. In 2015, as I said, I was not around. I had issues that led to the loss of my son. So for me as a parent and as a single parent at that time, that was my priority. Four years later, there is a new situation. The government is back in power. At this point, I ran an election on that platform. It is a family I know. In all these years, I have been in touch with them. I have had a relationship with them. Even when I lost my son in Ogbunike, the First Lady sent a delegation to Ogbunike because this was happening at a time when she also had her son involved in an accident. So, there were two mothers in situations involving their children. She sent people to represent her at the funeral. In the past, they have lost children and I have been there. They have had weddings, I have been there. So, I have a good relationship with them and I do not want my relationship with them to be seen just as a political relationship. What I had with them goes beyond politics. We have become family friends; a friendship that started with my late husband and all these years, we have had that relationship maintained.

Are you saying it is unfair to expect anything from that relationship?

It is normal, but it is not something that I would say there is an expectation. I think it behooves on him to say that Chuba’s widow is here and this is what I think we ought to do for that family. So, it should rather be on him.

Would Chuba have joined APC if he were alive, given also the perception of the party as one that has not lived up to expectation?
It depends on what you mean by living up to expectation. If my late husband was alive, he would have been in APC, that is what I can tell you from what I know of him. If I recall, he said that he may not be here, but Muhammadu Buhari will forge ahead. So, I have no doubt that Chuba would have been a member of APC. It is also possible that what you call the expectation, he would have added value to whatever that is. But for everybody, you bring value to anything. He may have had a different approach to it because no matter what anybody says, my husband was a politician; he learnt it, he taught it, he practiced it. There is no two ways about it. The man was a tactician. So, maybe, he would have been able to offer something. Even at a young age of thirty-something, when he was political adviser to Shehu Shagari, he had a lot to offer. So, I do not doubt for one moment that Chuba would have been APC.

Are you okay with the trajectory that Nigeria is moving at the moment?

I don’t understand what you mean. What is the state of the country?

You are well placed to know…

No, I’m not.

There is so much poverty in the land, unemployment, insecurity and the cost of living is very high. People are complaining. What is your take?

People will complain. I complain too. I do know that if I go back to 2015 and use that as a benchmark, I know that 2003 and 2010 and 2015, they have all been different progressions. It has not been static. So, I would expect that 2015, to 2019, there would equally be progressions.

Do you mean progression in poverty because we have a situation where the World Bank has come out to say that Nigeria is now the poorest country?
I was in the Senate and I know there were times when we asked Okonjo Iweala the question to tell us how broke we are, as a PDP government. That question was always there.

What you are saying in essence is that Nigeria has always been broke?

Nigeria has always been broke, if that is the word you want me to use. Nigeria has always had its challenges .

But this government was elected to change the narrative

Maybe the government did not understand the situation, the depth of the problem

What do you think is making it difficult for the government to address the situation?

If at the end of the day, you expect that you will see N10 and you come in and you see N2, you are going to do quite a lot of wobbling to be able to balance out.

For how long would they continue to wobble?

It depends on how much time you have to wobble. It depends on how many other things you uncover. You may think it is two, but you might find out that it is not even two; you are talking about one or zero.

So, are you saying that there is nothing strange that government has not been able to fix the poor economy?

As I said, go back to 2003 and bring it back to 2019 or even 2018, over these years, we have not remained the same.

To you, once in a while you may sit down and say if the government then had not been cruel to Chuba Okadigbo, putting him in a very serious health condition, he would still have been alive. Do you always have that feeling?

Maybe it is the Christian faith in me that is guiding me. I believe that for everybody, there is a time and there is a season. If it was not God’s will Chuba would not have died. If the health system in Nigeria then had been good, I had no business taking him in a car to the hospital. It would have been a 911 call or whatever number and paramedics would have been here in this house to give him first aid because what he needed first was oxygen. That was not to be. If we had paramedics in the house, I had no business putting him in a car to drive him to the hospital. Oxygen would have been given to him. But that was not the case.

How do you feel that those responsible for his ordeal were the same he was in the same party with?

The party hounded him from the very day one. When we begin to talk about anti-party, it started with Chuba Okadigbo. Remember that the PDP as Senators-elect, they had all decided that they wanted Okadigbo as the Senate President. But some people decided that Okadigbo as Senate President was not what they wanted, and on the floor of the Senate, there was anti-party. The PDP as a party hired AD and APP at the time and voted against their own candidate. That was anti-party and somebody started it then. It did not start today. My husband was the first one. You can even add that when it came to inducements, we know when it started. So, some of these issues that we are talking about today, they have been in existence a long time ago. I remember there was a time that there was a display of money in the House of Representatives; it started then. Then Ghali Na’Abbah was the Speaker of the House.

The same situation is playing out now in the National Assembly; they are trying to choose a Senate President and a Speaker. If you look at the situation, how will you describe what is going on. Where do you think it is going to end?

In the case of the Senate, if the Senators-elect believe in the supremacy of the party they belong to, they should know that their first responsibility is to defend their party. And in defence of their party, they have to first understand that the APC is in the majority. I am not talking about any influence on the outside. I am talking about them as the Senators-elect. They should understand and I am sure they do know that they are in the majority. So, if they are in the majority, they should stay together as the party in majority and vote the person who will be their Senate President. They do not need to solicit the participation of other party.

What do you think made the then President and the ruling party to oppose your husband becoming the Senate President?

The leadership of PDP did not say no. The leadership of PDP had a shadow election in Agura Hotel, and my husband won.

But the president wanted a different candidate
That is why the President went and solicited support from the other party, because PDP was in majority and the majority of PDP Senators wanted him. The PDP at the time was a united party. They knew what they wanted.

Juxtapose that with the current situation where APC is insisting on a particular candidate , do you think it is the right approach or the lawmakers should be free to choose who leads them?
I just said that the first thing Senators-elect should do is to respect the decision of the platform upon which they came to the chamber. You know there has not been any sanction for all these cross carpeting and what have you. Until we get sanctions, party discipline will never be in place. I just said that the APC, being the majority should understand that they are the majority, and they should work on the basis of party supremacy. And if out of the 109 Senators, the APC which has 64 decides amongst themselves to elect a member they will have the majority. They do not need to go looking for other parties to support them. They can still choose who they want by staying together.

The party has indicated interest in one candidate and there are two others who are keenly interested – Ndume and Goje. Do you think it is fair for the party to insist on one person?
I am not even sure the insistence will work. They are not dealing with children. I am saying that the APC Senators-elect are in the majority. The 64 of them should have their shadow election. They should be mature about this thing. If they have three people that want to be Senate President, the 64 of them should have their shadow election and decide on whom it will be and whoever it is that they decide, they should take it to the floor. At that point, they are the majority because they are coming with one voice.

From your own experience, would you say the outgoing Senate was a failure?
I wouldn’t say it was a failure, but I can say that there was a lot of disconnect.

Who should take the blame for the disconnect – Executive or National Assembly?
The blame cannot go to the executive. The blame will go to the Senate. The executive does not leave their office to come to work in the Senate. If your house is not in order, you cannot blame somebody else for it and if your house is not in order, somebody from the outside can take advantage of it. Your house has to be in order.

We have a situation where the fortunes of women in politics keep declining. In fact, in the last election, less women were elected. How do you feel about this?
It is dwindling because the men do not want the women.

There have always been complaints of marginalization in the Southeast under this dispensation since 2015. Do you see the Southeast as truly being marginalized?

I want talk about a simple thing like the Zik mausoleum. That mausoleum has been hanging for so many years. It took Buhari’s government to finish it. The second Niger bridge, I was sitting as a Senator for Anambra North when we went for the ground breaking of the bridge in the year 2013 or 2014. But before Jonathan, there had been talks about second Niger bridge. But today, I can tell you that second Niger bridge is happening. Talking about roads, there are roads now being done. Remember in the Senate on one of those occasions when we had the debate, I said that the second Niger bridge in particular was a campaign slogan for most politicians in the Southeast.

Every politician that came told us about second Niger bridge and nothing was done. Again, I am from the Southeast, Anambra in particular. In 2003, at the Eagle Square, my husband made a very famous or notable speech when he talked about political arithmetic. The Southeast has not learnt that political arithmetic. We are yet to learn it. I stand exactly where Dr Okadigbo stood in 2003, that one plus one does not necessarily give you two; that one plus one can give you zero. But that you can play one plus one and it will give you five. We are yet to understand that political arithmetic and we get it wrong all the time. Until we learn to do it, just like he said years ago, we will never get it right in the Southeast.

If APC has done all these for the Southeast, why has it been difficult for the Southeast to accept the party?
It is not a matter of Southeast not accepting APC. You can also ask why is it that the Southeast, particularly Anambra, is an APGA and not PDP when PDP was in power. Why did they not take PDP but APGA?

The argument was that APGA performed better than the PDP

Why did Peter Obi leave APGA to join PDP?
May be because he wanted to play at the centre

Maybe the Southeast prefers to play at the local.

In terms of federal appointments, it’s heavily swayed towards the North in this administration. The Southeast does not hold any position, particularly in the area of security. Do you feel comfortable about that?

I am not into security, so, I am not in a position to say. But then, if I put it down to the most pedantic and say that over the years in the Southeast, we have maintained that position of having our people in the military, because you find out that at a time where a lot of people from the Southeast were interested in business and manufacturing. I do not like to talk about statistics when I do not have the figures because you would be quoting out of point.

But do you think that they are not in short supply in these security agencies?
I don’t know.

What is your next move, having contested for the Senate and it didn’t work the way you wanted it?
Definitely not governorship, if that is what you want to ask me. I am not interested in being a governor. I am not a local operator because I cannot survive there. But government is unfolding and I am available. I am ready to serve in any capacity that I find myself. Right now, I am in the service of the presidential committee, preparing for the inauguration. So, I do not know where it will head or where it will end up. But wherever it is, I am ready.