Opinion: Giving And Misgivings Part III By Bashorun J.K. Randle

President Muhammadu Buhari in his New Year address to the nation for 2020 conveyed a powerful message which should have resonated with all Rotarians: “Our policies are designed to promote genuine balanced growth that delivers jobs and rewards industry.”

To the best of my knowledge, Rotarians ignored both the message and the messenger.

In similar fashion, Lions refused to roar. Instead, they remained silent.

This prompted me to delve further into the matter – could it be that we have been so thoroughly battered, oppressed and disillusioned that we can no longer be bothered with whatever the government says or does ?

It was Jose Mourinho the former full time magician (during his heydays at Chelsea Football Club 19 ……..to …………..) and part time philosopher / football coach who providentially availed us of the perfect analogy.

Headline: “TOTTENHAM HOLDING ON FOR DEAR LIFE AFTER SON’S INJURY: MOURINHO”

Tottenham Hotspur’s hopes of obtaining something from the season have been equated to someone hanging on for dear life from a balcony in a typically colourful analogy by their manager Jose Mourinho.

The 57-year-old Portuguese made the comparison after he said he believed Korean star Son Heung-min’s season could well be over due to a fractured right arm. Mourinho is already without star striker Harry Kane — sidelined since January with a torn hamstring — as the club enters a crucial period. Midfielder Moussa Sissoko is another long-term casualty.

Spurs host German side RB Leipzig in a Champions League Last 16 first leg match on Wednesday and play Chelsea in a match that could prove pivotal in the dog-fight for the fourth and final Champions League spot.

“You know I like analogies,” said Mourinho, who took over after Mauricio Pochettino was sacked in late November last year.

“Sometimes I do good ones and sometimes silly ones. This time I do this.

“When we arrived we were in minus 12 floor, we got on the stairs and we started climbing.

“But immediately the stairs broke and trouble.

“We were trying to find a way.

“Lots of effort but we were going and going.

“Then 11th floor and when we arrived on the fourth floor, where we wanted to arrive, someone took the stairs away so we are now in trouble.

“We are holding by our arms on the balcony.”

Mourinho said the club was at a crossroads in their season.

“Now we have two options,” he said.

“To fall and die because it’s the fourth floor.

“The other is to climb. We will be on that balcony fighting with everything we have.

‘We miss him’

Son’s absence comes as a cruel blow to the player and the team as he had been in a rich vein of form scoring in the last five matches after filling in for Kane up front. The 27-year-old South Korean international forward suffered the injury in the 3-2 Premier League victory over Aston Villa — in which he scored twice including the late winner — on Sunday.

Son suffered the injury in a robust first-minute challenge from Villa’s Ezri Konsa. The club did not specify how long Son would be out — he is due to undergo surgery this week — but Mourinho was pessimistic.

“I’m not going to count on him again this season,” Mourinho said.

The club said only after the medical operation would they be able to say how long he would be absent.

“Following surgery, our medical staff shall be reviewing management options for Son’s rehabilitation with the player expected to be sidelined for a number of weeks.” Mourinho said he would have phrased the statement differently.

“The club wrote a nice statement,” he said.

“If I was the one to write the statement I would write different. We miss him,” added the 57-year-old Portuguese.

With both Kane and Son missing, Lucas Moura looks like having the burden placed on him as Mourinho discounted untested Irish youngster Troy Parrott.

“In some periods I was worried about not having attacking options on the bench, now it’s not having attacking options on the pitch,” said Mourinho.

“My thoughts are that Troy Parrott is not ready and Ryan Sessegnon is not a striker.”

That about sums up our nation’s tragedy. If matters had gone according to plan, we would be the envy of the world – in the same league as Switzerland, Singapore etc. Instead, we have become akin to a band of musicians in which everyone insists on playing a different instead of being guided by one conduction with full authority matched by competence.

Some of us can recall a time in distant memory when Nigerians loved, trusted and respected each other regardless of their ethnicity, religion or gender. Collectively, they trusted the government.

Alas, that is no longer the case. That is what brewed Boko Haram and other insurgents plus kidnappers, bandits, drug traffickers and ritual murders as well as human trafficking – in an orgy of fear, terror, rage, despair and barbarism.

So what went wrong ? Even if, neither Rotarians nor Lions can provide the answer, Professor Cornell Ronald West has provided us with a clue but no rescue package. He pops up regularly on CNN and his huge Afro-hair has become his trademark. He is gifted with formidable intellect and he has earned his formidable reputation as:

An American philosopher, political activist, social critic, author and public intellectual. The son of a Baptist Minister, West focuses on the role of race, gender, and class in American society and the means by which people act and re-act to their “radical conditionedness”. He was educated at Princeson University and Harvard University.”

He lays no claim to being the originator of the thesis – for every action there is an equal and opposite re-action. That belongs to:

“Cornel Ronald West (born June 2, 1953) is an American philosopher, political activist, social critic, author, and public intellectual. The son of a Baptist minister, West focuses on the role of race, gender, and class in

American society and the means by which people act and react to their “radical conditionedness”. A radical democrat and democratic socialist, West draws

intellectual contributions from multiple traditions, including Christianity, the black church, Marxism, neopragmatism, and transcendentalism. Among his most influential books are Race Matters (1994) and Democracy Matters (2004).

West is an outspoken voice in left-wing politics in the United States, and as such has been critical of members of the Democratic Party, including former President Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. He has held professorships and fellowships at Harvard University, Dartmouth College, Princeton University, Yale University, Pepperdine University, Union Theological Seminary, and the University of Paris during his career. He is also a frequent commentator on politics and social issues in many media outlets.

From 2010 through 2013, West co-hosted a radio program with Tavis Smiley, called Smiley and West. He has also been featured in several documentaries, and made appearances in Hollywood films such as The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, providing commentary for both films. West has also made several spoken word and hip hop albums, and due to his work, has been named MTV’s Artist of the Week.

Boko Haram is beyond beheading and hostage-taking. It has succeeded in pursuing our nation further and further from civilization. Why else would “Sunday Punch” newspaper carry on its front page in bold headline:

“WE’VE ABOLISHED MAKING WOMEN DRINK WATER USED TO WASH DEAD HUSBANDS” –    Enogie of Ekpoma

Enogie of Ekpona, Zaiki Aumere II, is a lawyer and bank worker who abandoned the hustling and bustling life of Lagos to succeed his father who died in 2007 as the traditional ruler of his town (where Ekpoma University is located).

For good measure, the same newspaper also published a front page sensational report:

“HOW OUR HUSBAND CHAINED US UP, PUT PEPPER IN OUR PRIVATE PARTS”

-Katsina Housewives Locked Up For Ten Months.

Two housewives, whose husband, Samaila Musa, allegedly locked up, chained and subjected to inhuman treatment for 10 months in the Rimi Local Government Area of Katsina State, recently urged a Katsina Upper Sharia Court to dissolve their marriage to the man. Fatimah Salisu, 25, and Hadiza Musa, 20, are currently seeking to divorce Musa for alleged cruelty and maltreatment. The Katsina Police Command had in January arrestedMusa, 30, over allegations that he locked up the two women in a room where he chained them and meted out all sorts of maltreatment on them for 10 months. The two wives tell OLAIDE OYELUDE about the alleged ordeal in 10 months. Their counsel, Kabir Nelule of Hamisu Lawal Malumfashi Chambers, Katsina interpreted the interview done in Hausa

Tell me about your family background.

Hadiza: I’m from Kanyan Ubandaba village in the Rimi Local Government Area of Katsina State. I’m the fifth and last daughter of my parents. We (children) are one man and four women. All the women are married.

Fatimah: I’m from Marke in Mani Local Government Area of the state. I’m the fifth child of my parents.

What do you do?

Hadiza: I’m a trader; I’m into petty trading.

Fatimah: I’m a tailor.

How did you meet your husband, Samaila Musa?

Hadiza: We met while I was hawking my goods. Later, he came to our house but my parents initially rejected him. My uncle, Isia, told my parents he investigated him (Samaila) and found out that he was not a good man.

But he kept coming to our house, promising that he would take care of my parents and me. So, my parents eventually agreed and consented to the marriage.

Fatimah: Samaila was introduced to me by a man who claimed to be his friend, Alhaji Garba. He had told Allahji Garba that he needed a wife, so he was brought to our house where I was staying with my three-year-old son that I had from my previous marriage.

How long was your courtship before marriage?

Hadiza: A week. He came and paid N20,000 as bride price to my parents and we got married few days later.

Fatimah: A week. He paid N20,000 as bride price and we married nine days after.

How long have you been with him?

Hadiza: It is getting to two years now.

Fatimah: I’ve been with him for 10 months.

What attracted you to Samaila?

Hadiza: When we met, he was generous to me and promised to take care of me and my parents.

Fatimah: Whenever he came to our house, he always gave me money and he promised to do more if I married him.

When did he start to maltreat you?

Hadiza: Two weeks after we got married, he started restricting my movements in the house. Later, he locked me up in a room and chained me up.

Fatimah: He started beating me four days after we got married. He also started calling my parent’s names. Later, he locked me up and chained me up in the same room with Hadiza.

What did he do to you after chaining you up?

Hadiza: He shaved off my hair and pubic hair. He also cut my fingernails and ground them together. He mixed them up with my food and ordered me to eat it. He also put pepper in my eyes and private parts. And whenever he wanted to have sex with me, he would do it in the presence of Fatimah in the room where we were being locked up.

(Fatimah tries to remove her clothes to show the wounds on her back before she was prevailed upon not to do so). My back is full of scars from the wounds I sustained from the beatings he always gave me. He would also not allow us to go out. We were doing everything inside that room. We bathed, defecated, and slept in the same room. He would have sex with us there.

Fatimah: He shaved off my hair and pubic hair too. He also cut my fingernails as he did for Hadiza, and forced me to eat the food he mixed those items with. He also put pepper in my private parts and eyes. He also had sex with me in the presence of Hadiza. Everything he did to her, he did it to me.

But why was he doing those things to you? Was he on drugs?

Hadiza: We did not offend him and I can’t say whether he was on drugs or not. All I know is that he always went out in the night when he presumed we were asleep. He always locked the doors of the house whenever he was going out. Nobody visited him and since we were locked up, we did not have the opportunity to see our friends or relatives to tell them how we were being maltreated.

How did you gain your freedom?

Fatimah: Remember I said I have a three-year-old boy from my previous marriage. One day, Samaila returned the boy to my mother in our village without my knowledge. It was the boy who told my mother about our ordeal. So my mother came but she did not raise the issue. She asked me whether everything was alright and I said yes.

My mother visited again 21 days later. When she arrived, she told Samaila that the boy was sick and that she wanted to get my sewing machine so that she could sell it and raise money for his treatment. Samaila refused and manhandled my mother. My mother then went to Rimi Divisional Police Station to report the matter.

When the police came, he refused to open the door for them. Later, the divisional police officer led another team to the house, which forced the door open and found us where we were chained up. He was subsequently arrested.

Hadiza, is this true?

Yes.

Do you have children for him?

Hadiza: No. Fatimah also has no child for him.

What lessons have you learnt from your experience in Samaila’s house?

Hadiza: I thank Almighty Allah who helped me escape. I now know that appearance could be deceptive and one needs to investigate whoever one wants to marry before consenting to the marriage.

Fatimah: It was circumstances that put me there and I will only advise other women to face their jobs and have longer courtships before getting married. I will add that women should also seek the assistance of outsiders to help in investigating any man they want to marry so that they will know the kind of person he is.

Now that you both want to divorce your husband, what happens if your request is granted?

Hadiza: I will face trading and if any man comes my way and is ready to wait for me, life goes on. But what matters to me now is picking up the pieces of my life again and trading. I will welcome any assistance from the government, organisations and any kind-hearted individual who would not attach conditions to such assistance.

Fatimah: I will also welcome any assistance for me to pick up the pieces of my life again. You know I’m a tailor and if I get assistance, I will concentrate on my business to take care of my boy and myself.” Interview done in Hausa.

As confirmation that the reign of terror has engulfed the entire nation, “Vanguard” newspaper went to town with the following front page report.

Headline: HERDSMEN REIGN OF TERROR IN DELTA COMMUNITY

• We now farm at night to escape herdsmen attacks – Residents
• They rape, kill, occupy our farm lands.
• We’ve been living in perpetual fear for twelve years.
• State, Federal Government have turned deaf ears to our cries.

The main thrust of Professor Cornell West’s elucidation on what has gone wrong in America (and by extension, Nigeria) is what he calls the “gangsterisation” of government. This translates into the structure and machinery running out of control. Hence, once the failure to protect the weakest and most vulnerable becomes dominant, the consequences are bound to be turbulent. It is the equivalent of letting a hurricane loose. You cannot predict the outcome.

However, if you want a stable and peaceful society where giving translates into real progress, another American philosopher Daniel Webster (1782 to 1852) has provided us with the compass (for a compassionate society):

“If we work marble it will perish; if we work upon brass, time will efface it. If we rear temples, they will crumble into dust. But if we work upon immortal minds and instil in them just principles, we are then engraving that upon tablets which no time can efface but will brighten and brighten to all eternity.”

Re-inforcement and endorsement have been provided by Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (1809 to 1865).

(i)    “When deeds speak, words are nothing.” and

(ii)    Robert Louis Stevenson (1850 to 1894)

“Judge each day not by the harvest you reap but by the seeds you plant.” We already have enough food for thought in addition to the sumptuous dinner laid before us.

We may need to do a double check with the Rotary Club of China for a suitable riposte to Dr. Reuben Abati’s front page of “The Guardian” newspaper)

“I have heard allegations that the Chinese eat anything and everything, including animals that are considered a taboo in many cultures – Bats? Cockroaches? Rats? Snakes? Millipedes and Centipedes? Monkeys? Pangolin? E-eeish”

What follows is even more provocative:“At the national level, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and the Federal Ministry of Health will also need to address what has become around the subject of Corona Virus, an “infodemic crisis” – that is the crisis of conspiracy theories and misinformation and hazardous false information. Is the Corona Virus a biological weapon? Really? Is it a strategy by big pharmaceutical companies to enlarge market and increase profit? President Donald Trump and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation have also been linked to the conspiracy. Does that make sense?”Of course, it makes no sense at all.

Professor Wale Adebanwi, Rhodes Professor of Race Relations and Director of the African Studies Centre, University of Oxford appears to have joined forces with Professor Cornell West in beaming the searchlight on “Gangsterisation” of government. His preferred choice is “fragmentation”. To Quote him:

“As philosophers remind us, practical reason speaks to the human capacity for using reflection to resolve questions about what is one to do regarding the conditions of one’s (fragmented) society.

For instance, the problem of the “almajiri” (urchins/beggers) may be the immediate problem of the north (northern Nigeria), but, ultimately, it is the problem of the whole polity. Whatever happens to the north will eventually happen to Nigeria, unless and until the atavistic logic on which the country is being run is abandoned.”

He is not done yet.………………….our most crucial rallying cry must be the termination of the

British, specifically Lugardian [Lord Frederick Lugard, Governor-General of Nigeria 1914 to 1919], notion of Nigeria – which is shared by the ruling elite: a self-despising amalgam of irreconcilable cultural, religion and political differences, held together by violence, vice and greed.”

When I entered King’s College, Lagos in 1957, Claude Ake was already in the Lower Sixth Form. As fate would have it, my wooden bed (iron beds came much later on) was right next to his. It is no surprise to me that, he turned out to be an outstanding academic and profound gifted philosopher after obtaining his Ph.D from Columbia University, New York, United States of America. He clearly understood what was (and remains) wrong with Nigeria.

His seminal work concluded:

“Democracy cannot solve all the problems but none of the major problems can be solved without it.”

He waxed lyrical when he confronted the military government with his incisive observation.

“There is a great deal of confusion between in power and ruling.”

Claude Ake would not have contradicted Ross Feingold:

“Democracy is considered the most legitimate form of government because the power of choice rests with the people. But when this power dynamic is altered and citizens lose their influence, the legitimacy of the system is threatened.

Professor Wale Adebanwi has a different take on power:

“In fact, power (in Nigeria) has even “almajirised” millions of others who were not originally called the “almajiri”. The same conditions that keep those children in utter poverty and illiteracy, drove several thousands out of Nigeria. The forces that unleash themselves as hunger, and want in the lives of those children, have made a different order of “almajiri” of millions of their compatriots in the Niger-Delta.

For every “almajiri” that is born and reborn into the anguish of misery, there is another, not similarly named, trying to make his or her way out of Southern Nigeria through several dangerous means – including through the desert of north Africa – only to perish in the Mediterranean in a fruitless effort to reach Europe.

It all boils down to the indifference or abdication of the responsibility to look after the poor and the weak – contrary to the kernel of the Rotarian principles.

It is so easy to mistake the symptoms for the disease. Repudiation is provided by the erudite Dr. Obadiah Mailafia when he relayed the anguish of Nnaemeka Nnolim during the Biafran civil war (1967 to 1970):

“We left our home village, Umuchu, in good stead and came back to a catastrophe. The primary school, churches, and every available space was occupied by refugees. Lizards had disappeared. The same with rats and grasshoppers. Twenty persons instead of three or four now chase after a squirrel sized animal. Palm kernel replaced fufu for lunch. Cassava was non-existent. Everyone trooped to the relief points for succour. There were no cooking fires anywhere. No fried onions. We were now all refugees.”

That was fifty years ago; but what has changed for the poor and the oppressed?

Sometimes, unwittingly power becomes personified. It becomes impossible to separate the person from the power until the system collapses through violent change or by default. Here is an extract from General Yakubu Gown (Head of State of Nigeria from August 1966 to July 1975)

War Memoirs (back page of“The Sun” newspaper)

After my overthrow in a coup in faraway Kampala where I had gone to attend the summit of the Organization of African Unity, a journalist, the late Yakubu Abdulazeez, the then editor of Nigerian Herald was crying and I was consoling him, but to my surprise, I read his report where he said I was crying.

Honestly, I wasn’t crying. He was the one crying. I was looking forward to seeing him and reprimanding him but I later learnt that he had died. May his soul rest in peace. The truth is that I never cried or shed tears over my overthrow. I had accepted it as the will of God and even quoted William Shakespeare, who said in one of his plays that the world is a stage and we are all players, we have our exits and entrances. And one man in his time plays many parts. At that stage, I said: “This is my exit. Ladies and gentlemen, give support to the new government for the sake of Nigeria.”

For me, there was the temptation to come back to Nigeria, but I did not. It wasn’t because one was afraid but I thought if I came back, there might be another round of bloodshed which was unnecessary because Nigeria had had enough of bloodshed and we should give the country a chance. Let’s hope that they would do better than I did. And if they did, then it would be Nigeria that would be the beneficiary and Nigerians would enjoy the progress and development.

But unfortunately, they did not continue with the development plan which we had from 1975 to 1980 which would have changed the story of this country

development-wise, security-wise, financial-wise. All this problems we are having about fuel shortage, fuel importation and fuel subsidy payments, we had plans to build five export-oriented refineries in addition to the three that were meant for domestic use in Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna. And with that one, we would have had no fuel problem in this country. And if those three cannot satisfy Nigeria’s internal consumption need, then of course, we can divert from the export-oriented refineries for our internal consumption. Then there would have been nothing like fuel subsidy as far as we are concerned. The subsidy that we were dealing with at the time was to ensure that there was price equalization of the product throughout the country. If anything at all, that was where we were putting money for subsidy so that we have same price as we get in Lagos, Port Harcourt, Maiduguri, Sokoto, Daura, Bayelsa and every part of Nigeria.

 

 

 

Back to school

“After my overthrow, I decide to go back to school. The decision to go back to school was actually taken after the event. Finding myself out of office, I asked myself: What am I to do now? Naturally, I was reflecting on what next to do with my life. Yes, there was an agreement between me and the government of the day that I could return to the country when it was mutually acceptable. But I didn’t want to sit down idle, doing nothing. I needed to occupy myself with something. I couldn’t have gone into business at that time because that is not my line of interest. Probably if I was the type who liked money a lot at that time, I would have gotten money from the government, but for me money is immaterial. Once I am able to live reasonably within my salary, I am satisfied. That for me is OK.

The idea of going to school was to give me time to be able to change from the lifestyle that I was used to—a secure life of being a public figure. Now, I was leaving the military. I was having a transition from an old lifestyle to a new one. Not as a soldier anymore but as a civilian. As an ordinary person. Like everyone else. To be able to relate to people from the standpoint of the ordinariness. Not as a head of state any longer. That was the motivation.

Interesting enough, even before these changes, when I was a Visitor to most of the universities in Nigeria, I used to tell the students how lucky they were to go through university education where they would have big letters after their names: B.A., BSc, MSc, MA, PhD and whatnot. And I said to them: “Me. Yakubu Gowon. For all my hard work and studies, I only have military qualifications and letters after my name. And they are all written in very small letters. So small that you will need a magnifying glass to see or read them. Letters like: Psc (Passed Staff College), Jssc (Joint Services Staff College), Jfsc (Joint Forces Staff College), IDC (Imperial Defence College) and things like that.” I told the students how I wished I could have such big letters after my name like BA, MA, PhD and so on.

So, there was this desire to seek further education and to broaden my intellectual horizon. And as they say, every disappointment is a blessing. With the change of government and not knowing what the future would be for me, I wanted this transition from military and from this secure life that I was used to before to ordinary life. So, the best place to do it was to go to school. And interestingly enough, after going back to school, the press started writing that the reason I was overthrown was that I did not know politics, that I did not study politics at the university level, that the reason things didn’t go right was because I didn’t have education in courses like economics and politics. So, I decided to go seek knowledge in these areas of studies. I was eager to know something about politics, about economics and about law, because these were the areas people said I was weak. That if I had known them, it would have helped me when I found myself in leadership position. I wanted to study those three at the university. Only to be told by the vice chancellor of Warwick University and his team of academics that interviewed me that even a genius cannot do these three disciplines at a go. I had to choose only one or two. What they did was to fashion a course of study that would give me some insight at the university level into all these three: politics, economics and law. So I read politics with international relations. At the university, we call it “Polint.” So, I had BA (Polint). And then later on, I did my masters and then converted it to PhD.”

Matters become even more complicated when civil power collides with spiritual power. A case in point given front page coverage by “Vanguard” newspaper. “50% Pay cut: Lawmakers tackle Pastor Adeboye”

Headline: “LAWMAKERS TACKLE PASTOR ADEBOYE”

.Say pay cut unacceptable to us

• General Overseers, Pastors should sacrifice from tithes, offerings •Churches amass wealth, collecting money from poor people •Reducing salaries, allowances ‘ll not solve funding problem

• Pastors are manipulators, they don’t have moral right to advise politicians.

“A couple of weeks ago, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye stirred the hornets’ nest. He called on all the 36 state governors and members of the State Houses of Assembly to cut their salaries and emoluments by 50 per cent in order to tackle the challenges the state governments were facing in education, health and other critical sectors. In their reactions, members of the executive and the legislature disagreed with Pastor Adeboye’s proposal arguing that the church should lead the way by sacrificing a percentage of their tithes and offerings. According to them, the churches amass wealth by collecting money from their members with pastors buying private jets while their members could not even afford to send their children to the schools established by theses churches with their money.”

Whether we care to admit it or not, our nation is at war. Hence, we must situate “Giving and Misgivings” ((Satisfying Your Social Conscience Through Impactful Giving) within the context of the raging battle. Simultaneously, we must address the relevance and merit of the laudable intervention of Rotary, Bill & Melinda Gates, McArthur Foundation, etc. Ironically, we are actually fighting multiple wars. There is the war against poverty and ignorance; there is the war between ethnic nationalities; and then the mother of all wars – against Boko Haram and other terrorists.

According to Sir Winston Churchill: “We must never, never believe that any war will be smooth and easy; or that anyone who embarks on that strange voyage can measure the tides and hurricanes he will encounter. The Statesman who yields to war fever must realize that once the signal is given, he is no longer the master of policy but the slave of unforeseeable and uncontrollable events. Antiquated war offices, weak, imcompetent or arrogant commanders, untrustworthy allies, hostile neutrals, malignant fortune, ugly surprises, awful miscalculations – all take their seat at the council board on the morrow of a declaration of war. Always remember, however sure you are that you can easily win, that there would not be a war if the other man (or woman) did not think he (or she) also has a chance.”

While seemingly insisting on peace, Professor Adebayo Williams has resorted to scholarly subterfuge to declare war (against the police !!):

“It is said that no straightforward furniture can ever be procured from crooked timber. Those who turned the Nigerian post-colonial society into the living hell it has become must bear heavy responsibility for this untoward development. No amount of hypocritical cant and mushy preachments from tattered bully pulpits will simply wash.

The problem is that as a result of the dysfunctional society we have produced and the inevitably dysfunctional recruitment process, too many sociopaths and psychopaths have been insinuated into the police force and not a few of them have risen to positions of authority and influence. They are now expected to police and guard us from social malfeasance.

It will not happen. They will look down on us with the cynical glow of premeditated malice and outrage. This is the moment that has stolen upon us. Something will definitely have to give before we come back to our senses. A rotten orange fruit does not fall very far from its parent tree.”

As if determined to castigate us for our delinquent loss of memory or futile endeavour to swipe history, in his book: “THERE WAS A COUNTRY”, Chinua Achebe declared:

“The rain that beat Africa began four to five hundred years ago, from the discovery of Africa by Europe, through the transatlantic Slave trade to the Berlin Conference of 1885…..that controversial gathering called the scramble for Africa which created new boundaries that did violence to Africa’s ancient societies and resulted in tension prone modern States.”

Achebe did not explicity include Nigeria on his list of “modern states”. Some of us even witnessed how even before Achebe wrote his seminal book: “THINGS FALL APART”, following the first military coup d’etat on January 15, 1966 and the counter-coup of 29^th July 1966 led by northerners was for three days, Nigeria was without a government. The northerners launched “Araba” – loaded their wives and children on trains and trucks to go back home. It was the British High Commissioner, Sir Francis Cummings-Bruce and his American counterpart, …………………………who prevailed on the northerners (led by Colonel Yakubu Gowon and Lt-Colonel Murtala Mohammed) to tarry awhile – secession would be foolhardy for a landlocked north.

According to the account of the late eminent journalist, Walter Gould, (19……….to

…………………). “Cummings Bruce was able to persuade the Emirs (in the North) that secession would have been an economic disasters. But it wasn’t on the face of it easy to get them to change but I managed to do it overnight. On a second meeting with Cummings-Bruce, he greeted me with the comment: I sometimes wonder whether I did the right thing in keeping Nigeria together.”

It is of little consequence to begin to delve further – was Cummings-Bruce a Rotarian ?

Regardless of the exertions of Sir Frances Cummings-Bruce, Nigeria nevertheless embarked on the slippery slope into the bowels and vortex of a civil war. Here is a clip from the BBC archives and the anguish of a survivor of the Biafran War:

 

“It was around this period I heard the word “sabo” meaning saboteur. Anyone suspected of the slightest infraction, real or imagined, was labelled a saboteur. In essence, fraternising with the enemy.

Thus, a man coveting a neighbour’s land, wife out of sheer jealousy or envy will accuse another of being a saboteur and (the victim) is promptly drafted for army service as the land or wife change hands.

The lack of food introduced a new disease – Kwashiorkor. Children and adults walked about with oversized heads and/or stomach on spindly legs with owlish eyes. Their hair is dirt brown and all are accompanied by flies. Hovering above are vultures. It was not uncommon to see corpses at the primary school, church, along the road or on the way to the stream. They were quickly buried. No one wailed or mourned anymore.” But we should mourn.

Professor Adebayo Williams does not mince words:

“We cannot isolate the police force from the general malaise that has overtaken the entire society. As it has been famously noted, a man can make for himself a throne of bayonets, but whether he will be able to sit on it is another matter entirely.

Every institution is affected and afflicted. Go to the banks and see the level of thievery and criminal knavery that go on on a daily basis in the name of banking. Everybody is in the business to get rich quick. The ordinary bankers know the antecedents of their employers.

It is futile and counterproductive preaching to them. Everything, including the hallowed places of worship, is infected. Let their spiritual paterfamiliases continue to entertain themselves with their pious inanities. When the hallowed masks of mass deception fall off in the dead of the night, there is nowhere to hide.

The situation is as close to revolutionary anarchy as we can ever have. The problem now is whether we can have the strength, energy and unification of purpose to crawl out of the heaving debris to commence the genuine rebuilding of this traumatized society or whether we will allow the house to fall on us leaving the dead to bury the dead.

What remains to be said is the growing concern among many pan-Nigerian patriots and nationalists whether Nigeria’s endemic crisis of nationhood can still be resolved under a one-nation rubric of stifling and strangulating unitarism or whether the unwieldy contraption will have to be prised apart in order to liberate the fertile imagination and creative energies of the indigenous people.”

Across the front page of “Vanguard” newspaper in bold headlines the editor has splashed the latest police scandal as a reflection of our nation’s tragedy as we struggle to cope with the lowest common denominator:

“ENCOUNTER WITH FEMALE POLICE OFFICER HARASSING MOTORISTS IN LAGOS

• EXTORTING MONEY OPENLY

She claims she is on her way to becoming the next Bill Gates !!

On the same page is another blot on our nation’s reputation:

“INTERNET FRAUDSTER CONFESSES ON HOW HE DEFRAUDED CAMBODIAN WOMAN OF U.S.$75,000

“A 19-year-old internet fraudster, Chigemezu Arikibe, has been arrested by operatives of the Inspector General of Police Special Intelligence Responses Team, IRT, in Imo State, for defrauding a Cambodian woman of the sum of $75,000.

Saturday Vanguard gathered that the suspect, Akiribe, opened a fake Facebook and Instagram accounts using the name and pictures of an American pilot and he approached the victim, Sophanmia on a dating site and told her that he was a pilot working for a British airline. It was gathered further that the suspect, after having numerous correspondence with the victim offered to send her expensive gift items, from America and the sum of $500,000, which he said would be invested in real estate business in Cambodia. Police sources disclosed to Vanguard that the suspect informed the victim, that he would send the items and money in a box through a courier agency and fees would be paid for it’s clearing.

The source explained that a courier agency from Indonesia contacted the victim and they made her pay a delivery fee of $800 and she ended up paying the sum of N75,000, while the gifts and money didn’t get to her.

The source added that the victim in her quest to get the gift and money from the bank, also took loans from the bank, which she also sent to the fraudster. She was said to have alerted the Nigeria Embassy in Cambodian, when she discovered that the said pilot, who was communicating with her was calling her from Nigeria and not the United State of America. It was gathered that the Nigerian Mission in Cambodia, after listening to the victim and analyzing data she provided to them, alerted the Inspector General of Police, Adamu Mohammed and operatives of the IRT, led by Deputy Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari were detailed to track down the suspect who was discovered to be based in Ibitolu area of Imo State. The suspect was tracked and arrested with the sim card and the phone used in committing the crime. Said a police officer: “When we went through the phone we saw chats between the suspect and the victim.

Upon interrogation, the suspect confessed to everything and he also said there was a guy in Indonesia who helped him pull out the money from a USA bank account. He claimed to be an American and that was why he gave the woman an American bank account. The worst was that the woman went and borrowed the money from the bank. “ The source stated. When Saturday Vanguard interviewed Chigemezu Arikibe, a native of Ibitolu, Local Government Area of Imo State, he said’ “ I am 19-year-old and I attended Community School, in Eziooha area of Ibitolu. I graduated in October 2018. It was Ugochukwu my friend who taught how to do internet fraud. Ugochukwu used to communicate with Oyibo people on the internet and whenever he was chatting, I would be monitoring to learn. After, I started my own.

I opened a fake fakebook account with the name Frank William and on Instagram I was Patrick William. I used a picture of a pilot which I saw on Instagram. I downloaded his pictures and I uploaded them on my fake fakebook and Instagram pages. I also used the same picture on Instagram and the pilot later discovered that I used his pictures and he started complaining. He was all over the social medial complaining. He even said that he has been arrested three times by the police and he said he is not the one duping people. My Facebook account was later blocked, then I focused on Instagram, where I met the client that paid me this money. I followed her and we started charting then I told her that I was from London and I was a pilot. Then I gave her my name and we started discussing about life. Then I told the woman that I wanted to send her some gifts and a large sum of money to her from London. I told her that I wanted to send expensive cloths, shoes, wrist watches and the sum of $500,000. I told her that the $500,000 would be invested in real estate business. Then I sent her pictures of the items I wanted to send to her and the money, which would be inside a box. Then I told her that I sent the money through a courier company and she would have to pay customs tax. My friend in Indonesia acted like the courier company and they contacted her. She was given the first bill of $800 and she paid and the delivery guy on Indonesia called the woman again and told her that the gifts had been seized and they told her to pay $2700. She paid the money and they asked her to pay another money, which was $6200 and she paid several other monies to have the goods released. She ended up paying the sum of $75,000 and I got my share.”

For those who are struggling to come to terms with the derailment (collapse of the railways !!) of Nigeria, “ThisDay” newspaper has splashed a partial explanation on its front page.

Headline: “A QUARTER OF NIGERIAN POPULATION MAY SUFFER MENTAL ILLNESS IN THEIR LIFETIME”

“A quarter of the population of Nigeria, translating to about 50 million people, may suffer from mental illness in a lifetime, a consultant psychiatrist, Dr. Ibrahim Mshelia, has said.

Mshelia, who is a consultant psychiatrist at the Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital in Maiduguri, said the growing rate of violence crimes, including insurgency, armed banditry, kidnapping, armed robbery, among other had led to increase in mental health cases across the country.

There has been increased violence in every part of the country, with kidnapping in the southern parts of the country and armed struggle, particularly insurgency and banditry, in parts of the north. Many citizens have had to flee from troubled regions to other parts of the country or even seek refuge in foreign land.

One such pathetic case was that of the family of Edwin Osara who had to flee to Kaduna in the northern part of Nigeria from the southern part of the country to save his sick daughter, Deborah Osara from female circumcision promoted by his extended family, but only to be attacked and left in the pool of blood by raging Boko Haram.

Osara, who was hospitalised for three months after recovering from gun injuries and trauma, subsequently fled with his equally traumatised family to United States.

Osara, is not the only one that has to flee from violence in the North, many in Maiduguri have had to leave the town including journalists with Ibrahim Yahaya, who was with Daily Trust asking to be deployed to Lagos after his family was left traumatised with spate of Boko Haram attacks in the troubled town.

For Osara and Yahaya, they are among the lucky ones, but many others have members of their families killed, one businessman, Sunday Abdullahi, who had earlier fled Maiduguri at the peak of the insurgency was compelled to come visiting his family when the communication network were down. He was shot with one of his sons in his living room by Boko Haram and the rest of the family left traumatised.

Dr. Ibrahim said cases like that of Osara family are prevalent in the country especially in the North-west which includes Kaduna.

The consultant said a study by A.O. Busari (2014) conducted in North-western part of Nigeria showed a prevalence of psychotrauma of 33.6 per cent -62.5 per cent among the participants, lamenting that, “with the increase of traumatic experiences this figure is expected to be higher.”

Without foreclosing on the generosity and genuine concern by Rotary International (and other Charitable organisations) Dr. Festus Lola Osunsade who retired as a top official of the International Monetary Fund [IMF] took over the front page of “Saturday Sun” newspaper to declare in no uncertain terms:

“IT IS AN ILLUSION TO THINK WESTERN NATIONS CAN HELP NIGERIA” “Money doesn’t change society. It is ideas that change society.

I travelled round all continents while working with International Monetary Fund. I worked in North America, South America, Asia, Middle East, Africa. I went to all these countries, I had to stay there representing the various offices in these countries. I found out that no country can help us except we help ourselves. The money spent on transportation in many African countries, good road, aesthetics in the capital city, some of them are less than what we have spent in Nigeria. How come we have such bad roads here, how come it takes so many years to build a 100 kilometers of road between Lagos and Ibadan?

That road can be built in less than a year. Are we saying we have not got the money? We haven’t got the money, we haven’t got the technology, we haven’t got resources, we haven’t got the know-how? Why do we have to give three companies to build 100 kilometers? When you go to America, on the highway, you see inscription, ‘Taxes at Work’, when they are building roads.

Here, there is no accountability. This is where the context of Ombudsman comes in. In England, in other countries, the citizens have the right to go to the office of the Ombudsman to file a complaint about the presidency or activities of the government. The Ombudsman is an independent person, he is a very experienced citizen in the country either from the civil service or law or any profession. He’s given the mandate such that people can come and lodge all the complaints against the government on projects and the way forward and they will file the complaint, and

publish and it is read by everybody. It encourages people to see that there is hope, there is avenue for them to lodge their complaints. It also makes those who are carrying out these projects to know they should do best practices in their projects. In this forum we want to set up, we just want experienced, successful people in their respective careers to come and talk on what is the core need that would help to reshape this country. I’m sure people would want to hear from someone like Dangote talking on the way forward for this nation.

I’m a village boy from Ondo State. A hilly part of Ondo State called Idanre. I was a very bright kid. I kept winning scholarships. I spent three years in primary school in Idanre. I went to high school and University of Ibadan. From there I went to Oxford University. I taught for sometime as a teacher of Economics and Finance. I’m writing a book now on Economics in Yoruba language.

I spend most of my time thinking. One of the things that bothers me is that, why is it that a country like Nigeria that is so rich and so envied by most of the world, how come we remain in so much poverty? That is what I have not been able to reconcile or find answers to. And especially, I think our youths and young ones are all scattered, and therefore their potentials are not fully developed. All these things, I stayed awake all night to ponder. What are the answers and that’s one of the reasons I’m embarking on this Centre.

Outside Africa, my favourite is Brazil. Oh, God Almighty, Brazil is fantastic! They eat well, they dance well, they have good looking women and they enjoy themselves. I went to a place called Vasco da Gama; it’s an ocean view, we sat in a bus, a girl came and sat close to me. She had nothing on. No brassiere. She just came out of the ocean and sat down.

She said, “excuse me, are you from Africa?” They let go, they live well, they don’t tend to be who they are not. Brazilians want to be seen as who they are. They love African people, especially Yoruba people. I went to a place Copa Cabana. I went there to eat and this woman came there and said, “Yoruba?” She just brought out a bottle of brandy and she said let’s drink. They enjoy themselves so well and they love to dance. Today, Yoruba is considered an official language in Brazil; 29 per cent of Brazilians speak the Yoruba language. Professor Soyinka and his people are doing so well in that area and the present Ooni of Ife, they are doing a lot, there’s nothing to add to what they are doing. Although I want to see what I can do to be the blue factor, to bring young Nigerians together, I see that we are wasting our lives by not putting together resources that make us really great. And what are the resources that make us great in this country? Our drive as people.

Nigerians are not lazy, we are very hardworking people. Who is a pessimist? A pessimist is a badly informed optimist. Nigeria has the best water resources in the world. Our forest resources have no reservoir and we are not starving, we are feeding well. We found out we can feed ourselves with all the rice we eat. If we can feed ourselves, we have enough water to cultivate, enough water to drink, we have no problem, except we worry about politics

Yes. I speak Portuguese, Spanish, English and French and of course Italian. I speak a lot of Swahili also. I worked in Tanzania, Kenya, Sao Tome.”

95-year-old Prince Babatunde Onafowokan, the founding Chief Executive Officer of Ladgroup Nigeria Limited and a major cocoa exporter was on CNN to lend his support to the doctrine of self-help and honest endeavour to rescue Nigeria:

“In those days, the Western Region helped farmers. Fumigation, for instance, was being done by the government. You don’t find cocoa trees by the roadside again like in those days. Government has withdrawn the support it used to give to them (cocoa farmers). The craze for quick money has made everything we do to depreciate; we don’t pay attention to issues. The old farmers have left the scene and the young ones are not interested in it (cocoa cultivation). If the government can give the kind of support it is giving to rice now to cocoa, it will really assist a lot. Nigeria used to be the second largest producer of cocoa in the world after Ghana, but we are now ranked sixth or seventh in cocoa production. We still have the land; it is just about the will to do it. When we were in school, each school had an agriculture farm, but there is nothing like that now. We were trained right from primary school to see farming as a hobby, but there is no such thing now.”

As for Dr. “De Gaulle” Lawal, it was with great relish that he would insist that Nigeria is beyond redemption and would with his inimitable scatato laughter deride any efforts in that direction. He loved to quote Sir Anthony Kirk-Green:

“The tragedy of 1967 (the outbreak of the Biafra war) is that many of its seeds were not, as is often claimed sown in October or even July 1966 but in the 1950’s or, as some see it, in 1914 or maybe in 1960 itself.”

Thankfully, it is not always doom that surrounds us or misery that engulfs our nation.

Every now and again, a gummer of hope penetrates pessimism.

Front page headline of “Vanguard” newspaper: 70-YEAR-OLD WOMAN LEADS HUNTERS TO DISLODGE BANDITS IN NIGER

• 40 Bandits kill, weapons recovered

“Minna—A 70-year-old woman, weekend, reportedly led a vigilante group naked to dislodge bandits terrorising some local government areas in Niger State during which no fewer than 40 of the bandits were killed. Besides the killing of the bandits, it was gathered that an unspecified number of sophisticated weapons were recovered from the bandits after a fierce battle at Zugurma Mashegu Local Government Area of the state.

The “woman leader” was said to have administered some local medicine on the foot soldiers before leading them into the Zugurma forests, where she directed them to shoot sporadically to attract the bandits, who were hiding in the forests. A source said the bandits immediately came out from their hiding and retaliated but could not see the woman and her foot soldiers.

However, the hunters ran after the bandits with no fewer than forty of them caught while others fled. An impeccable source from the area told our correspondent that the commander of the bandits, who was said to be hiding on the tree, was also commanded to come down and arrested, while four of the bandits who were said to have gone to the town to buy water, food, recharge cards and other items were arrested as they were returning to their hideout and were handed over to the Police. The local hunters told some of the villagers that they deliberately spared the life of the commander of the bandits to give more information to the police towards apprehending others. The state Police Command, when contacted, was silent on the development just as a top officer of the command said Police had been drafted to the area and would further comb the forest for further arrest.”

Ironically, it turns out that the hunters were after the wrong bandits going by the back page headline of the same newspaper.

“HOW TWO MINISTERS, CHIEF OF STAFF, PERMANENT SECRETARY DIVERTED, SHARED N35 BILLION ARMS CASH”

• EFCC moves for forfeiture of 2 mansions traced to suspects set for prosecution •Perm Sec got N120m cash, 2 Honda cars for new wife from contractor in lieu of NAF refueling job

Graphic details of how two defence ministers, top presidential aide, Inspector General of Police and Permanent Secretary connived with a contractor to divert and share a whopping N35 billion meant for the acquisition of arms and logistics for Nigerian troops on peace-keeping operations have emerged, more than a decade after. Vanguard learned that the N35 billion loan, which was obtained from the Debt Management Office, DMO, was for the award of contracts for the provision of logistics and equipment for Nigerian troops on peace-keeping missions under the Nigerian Contingencies in Peace Keeping Missions, CADEP.

However, documents obtained by Vanguard last night indicated that the bulk of the cash was diverted by the ministers, permanent secretary and a Chief of Staff to the President at the time, using fronts to masquerade as genuine contractors who did not only disappear with the cash but also provided substandard facilities that the troops have not been able to use till date, in some cases. According to documents sighted by the newspaper, the documents also showed that the contractor, Richfield Technologies, which was used as front to divert the funds, exposed how the top government officials dictated to him how to share the cash, instead of executing the contracts and got full payment, even when the jobs were not satisfactorily executed.

According to the documents, while the defence ministry officials ordered the full payment of the cash to the contractors when the equipment were yet to be supplied in full, some of the facilities supplied were discovered to be substandard and could not be utilized by the military till date. It was also gathered that some of the contracts were later terminated by the ministry after all the cash had been paid to the contractors without any refunds made to government by the defaulting contractors, making the nation to lose huge sums of money. The document, which is now before the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, details how the cash was taken, who got what and how much and how the cash was paid out to the beneficiaries after the jobs had been given out by the ministry. It was learned that part of the cash had been traced to the acquisition of two mansions in Asokoro district of Abuja for two former top government functionaries, while others requested for and got cars for themselves, wives and associates.

“The ownership of the two properties have been traced and confirmed by the Abuja Geographic Information System, AGIS, Development Control Department, while EFCC has already begun moves to get them forfeited to the Federal Government. Already, the Managing Director of the four firms: Richfield Technologies Limited, VTB Exports &Imports Limited, Freerose Limited and African Integrated Services Limited that got the defence contracts, (names withheld) 47, has been quizzed by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on why he failed to deliver on the jobs given to him and has spoken out on what transpired between his companies and the officials who awarded him the jobs.

The alleged connivance and diversion of the huge cash under questionable contracts took place between 2007 and 2012 when no fewer than three ministers, one chief of staff to the President and one Inspector General of Police held sway. Among those mentioned in the report now before the EFCC a former Chief of Staff to the President, two chieftains of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and a Permanent Secretary who served as one of the permanent secretaries within the period under review by the anti-graft agency.

The contractor has blamed the failure of his companies to satisfactorily execute most of the jobs given to his four companies to the huge sums of money which the top government officials demanded and collected as bribes before awarding him the jobs and has listed what each person collected and how he paid them either through cash, cheques or outright acquisition of property for them. The contractor said he paid N100 million to a former Chief of Staff to the President through a company nominated by him as bribe for the N1.2 billion contract he facilitated for the award of contract for arms supply. I also paid out another N80 million to a company, West African Business Platform as directed by the Chief of Staff and another $240,000 cash to the same man and a former Defence Minister for facilitating the jobs. “Forty million each was paid to the personal assistant to the Permanent Secretary in the Defence Ministry, for facilitating the letter of credit for the N533 million Simulation equipment supply contract to the Nigerian Army in Lagos. “After the Permanent Secretary gave me three contracts worth N120 million to execute on his behalf, I paid the sum of N50 million each to him through his personal assistant, and he asked me to buy a new Honda Accord for his new wife. He also asked me to buy a Passat and a Jetta for his personal assistant.”

The newspaper rightly demonstrated that the money being stolen was needed for much more serious purposes.

Headline: “NIGERIA NEEDS U.S.$350 BILLION TO ATTAIN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS.”

“Nigeria needs a total of $350 billion to attain the Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs, by 2030 and has a current estimate of public sector gap of $100 billion according to the 2019 National Demographic Health Survey, NDHS. An Independent Development Consultant, Dr. Davis Omotola, while x-raying the findings of the national survey at a two-day media dialogue in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, organised by the Child Rights Information Bureau and the Federal Ministry of Information, in collaboration with UNICEF in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, noted that the survey showed that poverty was on the increase due to population explosion and insecurity.

The report found that 70 per cent of the poor people in Nigeria live in 10 states which all happen to be in the North part of the country. Giving insight into the survey, Omotola said about 54 per cent of Nigerians are poor and living below $1.9 per day. “In 2018, 5.4 million new entrants entered the labour market with only 0.5 million created in that year with an average of 14794 new entrants daily. Two-thirds of Nigerian households have access to an improved source of drinking water while every 74 per cent of urban household and 58percent have access to an improved source of drinking water”.

To address the challenges, the report recommended that Nigeria must address the challenges of data and appropriately disaggregated data. He said: “Nigeria should work with the right agencies to capture accurate data to improve monitoring and making poverty history through vigorous pursuit of the presidential plan of lifting one million Nigerians from poverty in the next 10 years.

On barriers to achieving SDGs by 2030, he listed policy implementation ineffectiveness and coverage, budgetary challenge and prioritization, security and socio-political challenges among others. He said the insecurity on individuals and institutions provide an unfavorable business environment for internal and foreign investors thereby posing as a barrier to SDGs by 2030. Other barriers he noted include disproportionate attention to the security sector by the Nigerian leadership, migration of people from area or region where there is prevalence of insecurity, social dislocation and population displacement, social tensions (ethnic and religious), general atmosphere of mistrust, fear, anxiety and frenzy and corruption – institutional and systemic. “We have 10 years but Nigeria does not plan. We are in a country where people just wake up and whatever happens, is what we do. We have been talking about insecurity, what is the plan to solve it? We should have a robust plan.

There are so many plans and policies; we have even the national population policy which proposes four children per family. “We are talking about quality education for all but we have different definitions for education in different parts of Nigeria. “The SDG is a flibla target, how many of those align with Nigeria’s target. We just developed the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) by 2017, the SDG has been on since 2016, the discussion started from 2012 yet when we were doing ERGP we didn’t factor in the SDGs except we now begin to realign the ERGP into the SDGs. He noted that the SDG was about leaving no one behind, adding that to achieve that we need $350 billion, and “our total income in 2018 was $398 billion so it means that we should just spend all that money to achieve the SDGs.” Continuing, he noted that President Muhammadu Buhari said he would lift 100 million people out of poverty.”

In the meantime, matters have gone haywire.

Headline: PHONE THEFT: MAN, 27 MACHETES 50-YEAR-OLD NEIGHBOUR TO DEATH

“The police in Ogun State have arrested a 27-year-old man for allegedly killing his 50-year-old woman who was her neighbour.

The suspect Ejike Okata allegedly butchered the woman identified as Adeyiba Oladipupo on Friday at Ayegbami in Ijebu Ode following a disagreement, police said.

Trouble was said to bave started after the woman allegedly accused Okata of stealing a phone.

It was gathered that the suspect picked up a cutlass and butchered the woman, cutting off her hands in the process, and then fled.

He was, however, arrested yesterday while trying to board a vehicle to his hometown in Ebonyi State following a report filed by the deceased’s younger brother at Obalende Division.

According to police spokesman Abimbola Oyeyemi, the Divisional Officer (DPO) in charge of the station CSP Omonijo Sunday led detectives on a manhunt for the suspect who was picked up while attempting to board a bus to Ebonyi State.

Oyeyemi said, “Detectives visited the scene and recovered the corpse to Ijebu Ode General Hospital mortuary for autopsy. Serious manhunt was launched for the fleeing suspect.

“The efforts of the detectives yeilded positive result on March 1, when the suspect was about boarding an Ebonyi state bound motor but was apprehended by policemen who have already laid ambush for him due to intelligence information they got.

“On interrogation, the suspect, a native of Onueke in Eza South Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, confessed killing the woman with a machete because, according to him, she accused him of stealing a phone which infuriated him.

“He confessed further that he cut off the woman’s hands because she wanted to dispossess him of the machete.

“The Commissioner of Police (CP) Kenneth Ebrimson has ordered the immediate transfer of the suspect to homicide section of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID) for further investigation and prosecution.”

We also have the front page headline from

“The Nation” newspaper: “TEACHER FLOGS PUPUL TO DEATH IN DELTA”

“A Junior Secondary School (JSS) student Kelvin Ogheneogaga, of Ekiugbo Grammar School, Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta State has died after he was allegedly flogged by a teacher.

The Nation gathered that his death sparked a protest among students on February 26. The Nation gathered that the angry students attacked the teacher, destroyed the principal’s office and pelted a police vehicle with stones.

A source, who preferred anonymity, said the students informed the teacher that Kelvin was not feeling well on account of a leg injury.

He said the teacher continued beating the student, nevertheless.

He said, “We were begging the teacher not to flog him because Kelvin was not too fine but the teacher refused. Kelvin had an injury in his leg before he was flogged; we do not know if the flogging was what led to his death.”

The arrival of police did not calm the situation as the students vented their anger by pelting them with stones and other dangerous weapons.

Efforts to reach the Delta State police boss Hafiz Inuwa proved abortive.

But senior police officer attached to Ughelli Area Command said, “There was protest by students of Ekiugbo Grammar School, Ekiugbo, in Ughelli over the death of one Kelvin Ogheneogaga, who was said to have been flogged to death by a teacher.

”The teacher had on February 26, 2020 flogged the student for misconduct, after which it was reported that the student on getting home developed complications and was rushed to Ughelli Central Hospital by his family where he died.

“When the news of his death got to the school, it led to a protest by the students who destroyed the school’s vehicles belonging to the principal and teachers.”

It was left to “The Punch” newspaper to press the alert button with its front page editorial.

Headline: “IMF’s REDUCED 2020 GROWTH PROJECTION”

“For Africa’s largest economy, the latest downward review of its economic growth projections for 2020 by the International Monetary Fund did not come without warning. In its 2020 Article IV Consultation on Nigeria, the Washington, DC – based institution slashed Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product forecast from 2.5 per cent to 2.0 per cent. This is a sizeable cut, but with the lethargic pace of growth in the face of a myriad of challenges, it is an opportunity for the Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) regime to review its economic policies holistically.

For years, the Nigerian economy has been defined by sluggishness. Its near-sole dependence on oil revenue hurts it gravely such that when oil prices crashed in mid-2014, the ripple effects culminated in a recession in 2016. Although the downturn ended in 2017, growth has not attained the heights of the early years of the last decade. The GDP ended negatively at -1.6 per cent in 2016 but rose to 1.9 per cent in 2018.

In 2019, the GDP recorded a 2.27 per cent growth. This was higher than the IMF projection of 1.91 per cent. Seeing a leeway, the Buhari regime is celebrating the 2019 GDP report by the National Bureau of Statistics. The NBS stated that, in the fourth quarter of 2019, the economy grew at 2.55 per cent, the highest growth in any quarter since the recession of 2016. Apparently, this was not because the regime had a magic wand; it is just that the Nigerian economy, by hindsight, ebbs and flows with the dictates of international oil prices.

Thus, economic experts argue that this mini-resurgence is connected to the rebound in oil prices. At the height of the meltdown in 2016, oil sold for $40 per barrel on the average. In 2019, it averaged $64.05pb. This boosted the GDP as the country fell short of its non-oil revenue projections. Comparatively, Nigeria attained an 11.3 per cent GDP growth in 2010, the highest in the past 10 years as oil sold for an average of $77.38pb then.

In spite of the NBS’s cheery report, the Buhari regime ought to take the IMF cut in the GDP projection seriously. The IMF team that issued the reduced growth rate was meticulous. It interviewed economic managers, government officials and the top private sector players. Such a report deserves to be rigorously analysed before jumping into precipitate conclusions of better days ahead.

A thorough consideration of the NBS report for 2019 shows some salient sectors that ought to be addressed before the economy can attain sustainable growth. Although manufacturing grew by 26.29 per cent year-on-year in 2019, it suffered a decline of 7.2 per cent because it stood at 33.57 per cent in 2018. This is expected. Nigeria fared badly in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing business ratings, berthing at 131 out of 190 countries in 2019.

The electricity to power production is in short supply in Africa’s largest economy, oscillating between 3,000 and 5,000 megawatts. Because of tortuous port operations and reduced access to foreign exchange, it is difficult for manufacturers to produce. To avoid a shut-down, some manufacturing concerns have relocated to neighbouring West African countries. With the economy short on production, the country depends mainly on imports, especially in refined petroleum products, food items, electronics, vehicles and heavy equipment.

Likewise, construction suffered a decline. Year-on-year, it dropped from 58.51 per cent in 2018 to 43.72 percent in 2019, a slump of 14.79 per cent. The report noted that agriculture grew by 13.80 percent year-on-year in nominal terms in Q4 2019, showing a decline of 4.78 percentage points from the same quarter of 2018. With the Boko Haram insurgency in the North-East, the Fulani herdsmen rampage in the North-Central and banditry in the North-West disrupting farming, this is not far-fetched. To achieve a high growth rate that can absorb the impact of the burgeoning population growth rate of 2.6 per cent, it is not out of place for the regime to re-examine these sectors. A competent economic management team should be constituted. Its efforts should focus on how to remove the bottlenecks hindering smooth port operations.

Without infrastructure, the economy will remain in the doldrums. Therefore, the regime should build roads swiftly to aid the movement of goods and services. Privatization is critical, but the attitude of the incumbent regime in this area is disappointing. This should change in the larger interest of the economy. In a transparent manner, the loss-making refineries should be privatized.

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development says the foreign direct investment to all countries amounted to $1.31 trillion in 2019, out of which the United States, China and Singapore were the top three recipients in that order. To raise its meagre share of $1.9 billion FDI inflow and boost its economy, the Nigerian government has to implement deep reforms to improve the business environment.

Rail transport, which guarantees cost-effective movement of goods and services, is sorely inadequate in Nigeria. Although the Buhari regime is in the process of constructing the standard gauge rail transport between Lagos and Ibadan, this is a drop in the ocean compared to Nigeria’s needs. It should get the Railway Act 1955 repealed to attract the private sector to midwife a revival.

Agriculture is most critical for job creation and poverty alleviation. Government should promote modern agricultural practices. It has to secure the country from the murderous Fulani herdsmen and bandits, who are wasting lives and sending the smallholder-farmers out of circulation. Also, it should address the Boko Haram terrorism, which is in its 11th year, and review the electricity logjam, without which the real sector cannot take its pride of place.”

Albert Einstein may not have been a Rotarian but he got it right:

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.”

At King’s College, regardless of whether you were in the science or arts class, Margery Perham’s book was compulsory reading for all those who were in the Sixth Form. As she was Lord Frederick Lugard’s lover, she was probably speaking his mind when she declared:

“The dealings between tropical Africa and the West must be different. Here, in place of the large unities of Asia, was multicellular tissue of tribalism: instead of an ancient civilization, the largest area of primitive poverty enduring into the modern age. Until the very recent penetration by Europe, the greater part of the continent was without the wheel, the plough, or the transport animal; almost without stone houses or clothes except for skin, without writing and so without history.”

Thankfully, Rotarians are unrelenting in reminding us that we do have a history of kindness and compassion.

However, sometimes even non-Rotarian feel obliged to adhere to the Four-Way-Test, even if it comes across as somewhat bizarre as was the case of the front-page headline of “The Punch” newspaper.

“I HAVE NO REGRETS HAVING MY WRIST AMPUTATED- Zamfara Sharia Court Casualty.

“On January 27, 2000, a leap year, Zamfara State instituted Sharia Law following the push by the then governor of the state, Ahmad Sani Yerima, which started in 1999. One of the few casualties of the Sharia legal system adopted by some northern Nigerian states was Lawali Isa, who had his right wrist amputated in 2001 for stealing a bicycle following a Sharia court judgment.

Your wrist was amputated in 2001 following a Sharia court judgment, how difficult has it been coping without it?

I was not the first person whose limb was amputated as a result of the implementation of the Sharia legal system in Zamfara State. I was the second person and also the last one. The first person was Bello Buba Jangebe, whose hand was amputated in 2000 for stealing a cow. Mine was done in March 1, 2001, and since then, nobody has been punished again in that manner.

I stole a bicycle and was arraigned in a Sharia court. The judge ruled that my right wrist should be cut off in accordance with the Sharia legal system. It is not easy to survive with one good hand, but I have been managing to feed myself and my family.

What have you been doing to survive?

I have been with politicians since 2001 when my amputated wrist got healed. The moment I recovered from the wound I sustained as a result of the amputation, I repented and promised not to steal again. I also decided to be following some members of the All People’s Party, which later became All Nigeria Peoples Party and now the All Progressives Congress.

Does that mean you are now a politician?

I am not a politician per se, but I follow them to earn a living. I am one of their ‘boys’ (laughs). But I now find it difficult to get money because our people are no more in government here in Zamfara. You know what happened last year when the Supreme Court disqualified all the APC candidates because the party didn’t conduct primary elections. The Peoples Democratic Party candidates were announced as winners of the last general elections in the state. But I am still with the APC despite all that.

What were you doing before your wrist was amputated?

I was a farmer in my hometown, Gummi. I owned a small farm which could not solve my financial problem and that of my family, even if I had bumper harvests.

But since your wrist was amputated, Sharia law has not been effective, how disappointed are you as it appears that some of you were used as scapegoat for something the government couldn’t follow through with?

As a true Muslim, I have no regrets for what happened to me. I was fully aware that what was done to me was in line with Sharia law. It is what the law says; anybody found guilty of committing theft would have their right wrist amputated. So when I was arrested and taken to a Sharia court during Ahmad Sani Yerima’s administration, I knew what was going to happen to me because it had happened to someone before me. My only regret is that, immediately I was amputated, everything was stopped. There has been no more amputation since that time till date.

You were amputated for stealing a bicycle but many politicians have stolen public funds running into millions and billions of naira, yet no Sharia court ordered that they should be amputated, how does that make you feel?

I feel disenfranchised, more especially now that the Sharia legal system is not working. You see, the system is not working now. When Yerima was in power, the system was working and many people were afraid to steal. But immediately he left office, everything stopped.

Can you talk about the crime, how the judgment was passed and the amputation was carried out?

When I was arrested with the stolen bicycle, I was arraigned in the Sharia court and when the judge asked me whether I committed the crime or not, I confessed that I stole the bicycle. The judge further asked me if I knew the punishment for theft in Islamic Sharia and I said ‘yes’. From there, the judge ruled that since I had confessed, my right wrist would be amputated. He asked me if I would like to appeal and I told the court that I was satisfied with the judgment. My right wrist was amputated on March 1, 2001.

What was your initial reaction after it was done?

I felt so sad and ashamed of myself. I was ashamed because of the publicity my case generated. So I was not happy with the kind of situation I put my family in. I felt society would be looking down on me and my family, but as time went on, all these things passed. I now mingle with people without any molestation or animosity. So I thank God.

How would you describe the healing period?

It was not painful because the amputation was done in the modern day by a doctor.

So I didn’t feel much pain.

How long did it take to heal?

It took three months for the wound to finally heal.

The Governor of Kano, Abdullahi Ganduje, was seen in some viral videos collecting what was believed to be bribes and pocketing them, but the matter didn’t get to a Sharia court, how does that make you feel knowing your wrist was cut off for stealing a cow?

(Smiles) I don’t compare myself with Ganduje or any other public figure. Most of these people are almost above the law. They can commit whatever atrocity they want to commit and go unpunished. But don’t forget that there is a final day of judgment when everyone will be judged by the Supreme Being who will not differentiate between the rich and the poor.

I thank God that I have been punished for stealing. I told you earlier that I have no regrets.

What made you steal the bicycle?

I was pushed by poverty to steal. I had no food to feed my family and myself, so I decided to steal the bicycle so I could sell it and buy food. I have one wife and four children.

How do you provide for them without two good hands?

I rely on my party members (APC members). Sometimes I get assistance from the immediate former governor of the state, Abdul’aziz Yari, and the state APC chairman, Alhaji Lawal M. Liman.

What do you think about Sharia law itself?

I think the law is okay if properly executed. You see, if people know that their hands will be amputated if they are caught stealing, many people will not want to steal for fear of losing their hands. But if someone is arrested for stealing and given a jail term, they will finish the term and return to their unlawful business.

So I strongly believe that if Zamfara State could continue with amputation of hands, many people would stop stealing as nobody wants to be looked down upon as a thief. As soon as people see you with an amputated wrist, they know who you are.”

It was left to CNN Breaking News to deliver shock therapy regarding the security situation in Nigeria by giving prime time to the statement issued by the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) on Ash Wednesday.

“The level of insecurity in Nigeria today is such that whether at home or on the road, most Nigerians, in all the parts of the country, live in fear. The repeated barbaric execution of Christians by the Boko Haram insurgents and the incessant cases of kidnapping for ransom linked to the same group and other terrorists have traumatised many citizens. That the perpetrators of these heinous crimes make public shows of them on social media, and Nigerians do not hear of any arrest or prosecution of the criminals, raise grave questions about the ability and willingness of the government to protect the lives of the ordinary Nigerians. To make matters worse, many communities are constantly threatened, harassed and sometimes even sacked by herdsmen, as they seek to take over more territories to graze their cattle forcefully…We equally appeal to the international community to come to the aid of the Nigerian government in the fight against these daredevil terrorists, who want to graze our country. The consequences, should they succeed, will be grave not only for the West African sub-region but also for Africa as a whole.”

It was left to Fareed Zakaria on the same CNN’s flagship weekly programme: “Global Public Square” [GPS] to come to Nigeria’s aid when U.S. President, Donald Trump insisted on imposing immigration restrictions against Nigerians coming to the U.S. without retracting his previous categorization of Nigeria as one of the “shithole countries” as opposed to the preferred pure while from Norway, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, etc.

It was Fareed who delivered the raw data and statistics: “According to the Migration Policy Institute 59 per cent of Nigerian immigrants aged 25 and older hold at least a Bachelor’s degree that is nearly double the proportion for Americans born in the US.

It is also more than the proportion immigrants from South Korea, China, the United Kingdom and Germany. Nigerian immigrants also get high scale jobs; 54 per cent of them are in largely white-collar positions in management, business, science and the arts than barely just 39% of people born in U.S. Also, according to a new American Research report, Nigerian immigrants in the United States made more than $14 billion in 2018 and paid more than N4 billion in taxes in the United States.”

I believe that both Rotarians and non-Rotarian should join hands in giving kudos to the intrepid reporter who bust the insidious corruption going on in the “value-chain”!! starting with innocent victims being arrested by the police, dumped into cells and money extorted from them for bail before landing in the court only to end up in prison.

Here is a summary of his reports:

“President Donald Trump of the United States, had some weeks ago, extended the country’s controversial travel ban list to impose visa restrictions on six more countries. Nigeria, which happens to be the largest economy in Africa and most populous nation on the continent, was included in the list.

While the Trump administration included Nigeria on the travel ban list to keep America safe from terrorists, CNN reports that the decision was not smart.

In its report, the American news network quoted a report by Cato Institute, an American libertarian think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C, that Nigeria has not been responsible for any terror-related attack in America in over four decades.

Emphasizing on the report, CNN’s Fareed Zakaria maintained that if the reason for banning immigrant visas from Nigeria should hold ground, all visas including temporary should have been banned as well.

Nigerians are well-educated: When the United States President first introduced the new immigration plan, he said he wanted high scale well-educated English people, who can assimilate easily and give back to the country. Nigerians, as stated by CNN, is one of the most educated immigrants in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Zakaria stated on CNN, “According to the Migration Policy Institute, 59% of Nigeria immigrants aged 25 and older hold at least a Bachelor’s degree, that is nearly double the proportion for Americans born in the US.

It is also more than the proportion of immigrants from South Korea, China, the United Kingdom and Germany. Nigerian immigrants also get high scale jobs, 54% of them are in largely White-collar positions in management, business, science and the arts than barely just 39% of people born in the US.”

Nigeria is a thriving economy: The new American Research report, as quoted by the American journalist from 2018 shows that Nigerian immigrants from the United States, made more than $14 billion and paid more than $4 billion in taxes in the United States.

Zakaria explained that Nigerians in diaspora sent back billions in remittances, thereby contributing to a dynamic Nigerian economy. This shows how much of hard workers Nigerians really are.

According to the journalist, the Centre for Global Development reported that Nigeria is a country where the middle-class is increasing in education and aspiration. It is also America’s second-largest trade partner and the US wants to double its investments and trading in Africa.”

As a reflection of the rot in Nigeria, far beyond what Rotarians could ever have imagined, a 21-year-old student at Lagos State University conspired with is mother to lure his girlfriend into the den of a so-called prophet for ritual sacrifice.

“Twenty-three-year old Adeeko Owolabi reportedly connived with a self-acclaimed pastor to murder his girlfriend, Favour Daley-Oladele, who was a final-year student of the Lagos State University. He talks to DAUD OLATUNJI about why he chose Favour as his target and how he executed the plan.

How would you describe the role you played in the killing of Favour Daley-Oladele?

I am a student, my colleagues just finished from Lagos State University, but I have carryover and was trying to retake the course when this happened. I study sociology.

I called Favour on December 8, 2019 to meet me at Ikoyi-Ile so we could spend some time together. She met me at a hotel in the area, but immediately she got there, she started complaining that she was tired and needed to rest.

I told her that we needed to visit my dad’s younger brother before she would rest. It was a lie. I tricked her into going to the church of Segun. When we got to the church, again, she complained that she wanted to sleep, so, I asked her to go into the church and rest.

When she slept off, I used a pestle to smash her in the head and she died. After we confirmed she was dead, Pastor Segun slaughtered her and removed the vital organs from her body so that they could be used for the ritual we wanted to perform to make money.

How did you meet the prophet?

I met the prophet through my aunt; she introduced him to me. I have known him for long, but he used to only interpret dreams for me.

My mother is the breadwinner of our family. Since my father lost his job, she has been the one going about to ensure that we survive. But recently, I discovered that things were not going smoothly for her. She was not making money like she used to and she wasn’t getting contracts. Because of the love I had for my mother and because I knew how much she had tried for the survival of the family, I decided to perform a money ritual for her without telling her.

Why did you not tell her?

I don’t know why I did not tell her. I just wanted to surprise her. I thought the ritual would be a way to pay her back for all the good things she had done for me.

When did you meet Favour?

I met her about a couple of months ago in school and she was surprised that I was still in school. She asked me about it and I explained to her that I had a carry-over. After we started talking, we became closer.

Since you performed the ritual, have your family become rich?

We have not got any money. Things have not been going on well; my mum’s business has not improved after what we did and despite all our efforts. I think the money ritual did not work.

Do you have any regrets?

I have a lot of regrets and I feel very bad that I did such a thing to my girlfriend. I have felt bad from the moment I did it and I regret it.

Since there is law of karma, I already know I will be killed. What is painful to me is that my mum did not know about it and it would be bad if she is punished for what she did not have any hand in. I have accepted that they will kill me, but they should not do anything to my mother because she is innocent.

I regret following my son to meet killer pastor – Mother of slain LASU student’s boyfriend.

Mrs Bola Adeeko is the mother of the suspected killer of final-year student of Lagos State University, Favour Daley-Oladele, who was said to have been involved in the killing. She tells DAUD OLATUNJI she was not involved in the killing of her son’s girlfriend

What do you do for a living?

I am 46 years old. I do decorations. I get contracts for school decorations. I’m a married woman and we live together.

How many children do you have?

Owolabi is my only child.

What role did you play in the death of Favour, whom your son has admitted to have killed?

I went to see Pastor Segun because of the spiritual problems facing our family. There is nobody who does not have problems. I went there so that he could assist us spiritually. I went there for solutions to our problems. Before I went there, I had spoken to him on the phone and he told me all that would be done for me and my family. I had a dream and he told me that the dream was what would determine the kind of spiritual ritual to be done for me.

He gave me a soap to use and after using it, I dreamt that I saw myself giving food to people. The next day, I called him and explained my dream to him and he told me I needed to offer a sacrifice to my deceased parents because that was why I suffered a setback in all I had been doing.

He told me I would need to cook for people and would need to buy a goat and other food items for the sacrifice.

How much did you give him for the sacrifice?

I gave him N200,000 for the sacrifice. I borrowed the money from people around me.

What happened after you gave the pastor the money?

He bought the goat like he said and I saw as they cooked and distributed food to the people living in the environment where the church is located. They also packaged some in plastic bowls and gave them to beggars.

That evening, he came to where I was lodged and told me that they would use the goat’s vital organs to prepare concoction for me. In the night, the pastor brought the concoction as he promised. I only ate a little from the concoction because I am not a fan of such things. In fact, I vomited after eating it unknown to me that human body parts were used to prepare the concoction.

The following day, the pastor came to me and told me that they would prepare a spiritual soap for me that I would be using to bathe so that I could get good clients for my job.

Why did you partake in such a heinous act?

I did not know anything about the killing of the girl; I was surprised when the police told me that my son had committed murder. I was never aware that the concoction they gave me had human body parts.

I felt bad and devastated. In fact, I have not eaten anything since Friday that I was arrested. It hurts and I can’t even imagine that I ate human body parts without my consent. I am also a mother and it really touched my heart that they killed someone’s daughter for me. There was no way they would tell me they wanted to use human body parts to prepare concoction for me and I would agree to it.

Why did you follow your son to seek spiritual intervention to solve your problems?

Frustration made me follow him because things were not going well for my family. We were just going from one problem to another. I have visited many pastors myself, but when he came to me and told me about the pastor (Segun), I felt he might have solutions to our problems.

How were you arrested?

I left the place (Ikoyi-Ile in Osun) three days after the sacrifice was made and went to Lagos. The pastor told me that my son would stay back for some time because he needed to perform some rituals for him.

But a day before Christmas, I went to my father’s house in Ibadan; that was when I started calling my son and the pastor and couldn’t get him. All efforts to get him were in vain, so I had to call a mechanic I gave my car to at Ikoyi-Ile so he could fix it as it was faulty. It was the mechanic that told me that my car had been impounded by the police. So I left Ibadan for Osun and went straight to the Ayedade Police Station to find out why they impounded my vehicle. I also reported at the station that I was looking for my son. It was there I was arrested and taken to Mowe in Ogun State.

Do you have any regrets?

I regret following my son to meet the prophet. I regret meeting the prophet because if I did not meet the man, what happened to us wouldn’t have happened. After all, he was not the first prophet I would go to. If not that my son insisted that he knew the prophet and was sure the man could solve our problems, I wouldn’t have gone there.

Has any member of your family visited you?

Nobody has come to check on us because they have not given us the opportunity to make calls. I want the government to help me because I did not know anything about it. I was kept in the dark. I did not see anything wrong in having problems and going to a pastor to seek spiritual guidance. Government should come to my aid; I am innocent.”

It is with great trepidation that I recall that during my tenure as the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of Lagos State University a student was dragged out of the examination hall and slaughtered in broad daylight by fellow students who belong to an evil gang/fraternity.

Apparently, the previous weekend a party was arranged by the students in anticipation of the end of term. Affluent male students attracted the best looking girls. Even those who previously sat with the less affluent students abandoned them and migrated to the other table where there was plenty of food and drinks were flowing freely. Envy, jealousy and resentment took over. By the following day, the rage of the aggrieved poorer students exploded into gruesome murder. The corpse of the victim was brutally macheted and severely battered – beyond recognition. He was only twenty years old and his assailants were about the same age. How such young minds could be so wicked and callous is beyond imagination. Indeed, the Police Inspector who had been summoned to the scene was in tears. He advised me not to proceed further or get close to the corpse because, according to him, in thirty years of being a policeman he had never witnessed such a gruesome murder.