Tuesday, April 28, 2020
Sunday, April 26, 2020
The Virtuous Leadership
It takes enlightenment to know the enlightened. And just as it takes a beautiful mind to know and appreciate beauty, it takes leadership traits to discern and promote virtuous leadership.
"In a world, Virtuous Leadership means achieving greatness by bringing out the greatness in others. It is not enough to be merely good. The world today desperately needs good men and women with the dynamic strength of character that renders them capable of leading others to greatness." Excerpt from "Virtuous Leadership: An Agenda for Personal Excellence" by Alexandre Havard.
Our major problem in Nigeria is not about the inability to agitate, protest, or riot. Our main problem is the inability to recognize and sort the valuables from the worthless. Even when we are conscious of their existence; hatred, greed, selfishness, and bigotry will cloud our sense of judgment, when it comes to taking the necessary actions to vote them into public office.
How many Nigerian intellectuals or those bantering furiously in social media knew who Professor Ibrahim Ayagi was before his demise? Only a few do. And that's another big problem in Nigeria. How can you make a change if you can't resist the imposition of stooges and morons on you as political leaders by their godfathers?
When the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo died on May 09, 1987, a former British Prime Minister wrote, 'If Obafemi Awolowo were to come from England, he would have succeeded in being the Prime Minister of Great Britain over and over again.' Not the exact quote, but close. His message was clear. The best prepared and the virtuous leaders of Nigeria politics or within the larger society died unfulfilled in their search for Nigerian greatness.
Former President Ibrahim Babangida made a humongous mistake for not allowing MKO Abiola to take advantage of his Presidential mandate and govern Nigeria. But what you cannot take away from IBB is his foresight and the ability to appreciate in real-time the essence of virtuous leadership better than any other Nigerian Head of State before him or after him post-independence. He went for the best, whether Ndigbo or Yoruba.
Nigeria is still one country; if you can't govern it as one, and if you still subscribe to the antediluvian concept that one region is a conquered territory or that a certain region cannot produce the Minister of Defence or the Minister of Interior, stay in your neck of the woods. Never aspire to rule this country.
Today, we have a President who cannot form a government or constitute a formidable executive team because he doesn't know Nigeria and Nigerians. And those who should have come to his aid to support him to search for the talented ten, cannot overcome the persuasion of greed and cronyism.
All the Shehu, Adesina, and lackluster Ministers of this administration are still on the job five years after, because the President, together with whoever the so-called cabal is, do not appreciate the concept of virtuous leadership. If you cannot identify integrity, selflessness, wisdom, and creative acumen in others, with a goal of bringing greatness out of them, you are not ready for prime time.
The same problem confronting Aso Villa is existing at all the state capitals. Because of the overt dependence on monthly allocations from the Federation Accounts, State Governors are least concerned about the creative instincts and managerial acumen - or the lack of them - of their Commissioners and Advisers. That the majority of the Governors are indolent and poor managers of men is an understatement.
For instance, you made one guy a Minster for three huge Ministeries; he did not perform, judging by the situations on the ground. He left Nigeria more in the dark than he met us, and our highways more dilapidated than he met them. Not done, you brought him back to power again to serve for another four years in two of the former three ministries. A guy who didn't know what to do with the Lagos/Badagry International Highway and the Apapa/Wharf road in four years does not deserve to remain in office as the Minister of Works.
In a more decent clime, his abysmal outings in the Power/Energy Sector and Road Networks for four years would have been a disqualification. But not in Nigeria, where cronyism, nepotism, and godfatherism have been taken to an obscene level. That would not have happened under the administration of Atiku Abubakar. And it would not have happened under Chief Obafemi Awolowo or under Professor Ibrahim Ayagi.
Even if you do not understand what virtuous leadership obtains, at least, use performance indices as a benchmark in judging who is to stay or go after two years in office. As long as you remain the good boy, non-confrontational, no mentioning of restructuring or true federalism, you're safe. And that's Nigerian leadership.
It takes enlightenment to know the enlightened. And it takes integrity to discern nobility in others. If you don't have it, you can give it, or identify it in others. That's what leadership is about. And it is missing in Nigeria.
Until we develop it and practice it at the top, we cannot change the system and move our country forward. It's not about jingles and commercials. It is by actions. It has to trickle down. As the President or Governor or Local Government Chairman, you are the mirror and the light. Shine it brightly. Let your integrity and your virtuousness trickle down.
Dr. Ibrahim Ayagi, Another "Best" We Never Had as President.
This is not a Biography of Professor Ibrahim Iyagi or a eulogy. It is a historical overview of the series of near misses we have had in the course of our search for the best and the brightest among us as a President. Dr. Ibrahim Iyagi, if you remember him, was the Managing Director of the old Continental Merchant Bank. And he was booted out of office by the IBB regime for his unwillingness to dance to the music of the IMF. When Obasanjo became the President, he appointed him the Chairman of the newly created National Economic Intelligence Committee. Unexpectedly, when President Obasanjo succeeded in frustrating his Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar from running as a Presidential candidate on the PDP platform, I thought the best fit for the job following the manufactured disqualification of Mr. Atiku Abubakar, would be Dr. Ibrahim Ayagi. I was wrong. Baba looked elsewhere and gave the ticket to the younger brother of his Military buddy. And this is my story of the Nigerian history of frustrating its best and the brightest and settling for the average achievers.
About a month to the death of Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Chief Dan Agbese of the Newswatch Magazine, wrote, 'when eventually the sage died, he would be remembered as the best President Nigeria never had." A few weeks later, the Chief, indeed, died. And the Nkemba of Nnewi, Chief Odimegu Ojukwu, wrote, "He (Papa Awo) was the best President Nigerian never had."
During President Obasanjo's second term in office, I saw a Press Release issued by the Press Secretary to the Vice President, wherein Mr. Atiku Abubakar stated that he is in total support of the of President Olusegun Obasanjo on a certain issue, I can't remember now. Then and then, I knew all is not well with the team at Aso Rock.
There is only one source of power and one avenue to express that power in a Presidential system. The Communication Room through the Press Secretary to the President. And the Vice President remains indisputably a part and parcel of that team and a signatory to that decision before it was expressed publicly by the Press Boys.
So, for the Press Secretary to the Vice President to issue a separate Press Release after one was issued by the Aso Rock Press Office denotes one thing: All is not well at the seat of power and the Vice President was not part of or was not consulted during the deliberation on the issue under review.
At that point, I said to myself, if I am in the position to counsel the Vice President right now, I will just tell him to "stop playing smart, do not exercise power you do not have, and whatever animosity between you and the President, try and resolve it as fast as possible, because, right now, you are being benched, undermined."
A few months later, the undeclared war was now in full swing, President Obasanjo declared openly "I don't know who is going to take over from me or replace me as the President, but I know who won't." And that was when I knew that Mr. Atiku, the Vice President to President Obasanjo, will not secure the PDP Presidential ticket. And that was when my sympathy for Vice President Atiku began. Which I firmly and vehemently expressed during the 2019 Presidential election.
And as the time for the PDP Presidential Primaries draws near, Obasanjo succeeded in using El'Rufai and Nuru Ribadu to diminish the value of the Vice President candidacy and frustrated his Presidential ambition. First, they disqualified him and later un-disqualified him. When it was all over with the disqualification(s), it was too late for the Vice President to be a formidable force. And once again, another best qualified to rule failed to secure the ticket of his party he helped to build.
There is an unusual affinity or love-hate relationship between the Military Boys who fought the Civil War, especially after retirement. When push comes to shove, they will rally round each other.
When IBB and his Boys or Northern Power Brokers decided to assuage the Yorubas for frustrating the MKO's popular mandate, they went for one of their own in the West, brought him out from prison following the death of General Sani Abacha, and made him President.
Why Obasanjo? Why not the youngish techy Dr. Olu Aguloye, the Chairman of the Federal Road Safety Corps? An MIT educated, who IBB brought from the University of Ife to heard the new organization. He never did. He went for one of his own - Obasanjo.
And when it came time for Obasanjo to punish Vice President Atiku Abubakar for daring to stop his Third Term Ambition, he didn't go for the tested Economist, Dr. Ibrahim Ayagi who worked diligently with him. Baba went for the Junior brother of his buddy in the Military - Musa Yar'Adua. And he failed to recognize the virtues of the 'stallion' who worked tirelessly and a force to reckon with within the Economic Team of his administration.
*For the 1979 NPN Presidential ticket, Mallam Yusuf Maitama Sule, a Diplomat, and Mr. Adamu Ciroma, a Banker were prepared. But Alhaji Shehu Shagari who won was not prepared, all he wanted was to be a Senator.
*Also, Papa Awo and Zik were prepared. Shagari wasn't. All he wanted to be was a Senator.
*MKO Abiola was prepared. He ran and won. But was not allowed to govern.
*Mr. Olu Falae was prepared. President Obasanjo wasn't. He was in prison. They brought him out and made him Presiden.
*Mr. Atiku was prepared. Mr. Musa Yar'Adua wasn't and Goodluck Jonathan wasn't.
*Dr. Ibrahim Ayagi was prepared. Mr. Musa Yar'Adua and Goodluck Jonathan were not.
Today, Professor Ibrahim Ayagi is no more. Like Chief Obafemi Awolowo another "Best" we never had, is gone to be with the Lord.
An honorable gentleman, renowned Banker, and a distinguished administrator per excellence has gone to be with the Lord.
He was one of the very few Nigerians I daydream about often, wishing God could find a way to make him President of this great country. I thought President Obasanjo was going to nominate him as PDP Presidential candidate when it became apparent that he was going to have his Vice President disqualified by any means necessary. I was wrong. Baba went for the near-dead junior brother of his Military buddy. And as always, Nigeria missed one of the very few religious and ethnic neutral Northerners as President.
Besides Mr. Atiku Abubakar and Professor Atehiru Jega, he was another Northerner I would have readily campaigned for as President. When the Bureau of Public Enterprise (PBE) was accused by some Northern interest groups of favoring the South in the sales of government businesses, it was this man who came out to admonish his own people, telling them openly that the North has so far acquired about 55% of the government properties sold. He was simply one of a kind. May his soul rest in peace. Amen
Saturday, April 25, 2020
Femi Fani-Kayode, Abba Kyari, and the Sins of Contradictions.
I understand that Mr. Abba Kyari was a good man, courtesy of Chief Femi Fani Kayode. And I pray that his soul rest in peace. Amen. I have never called for the dismantling of this country. Chief Fani Kayode did. Not once or twice, but several times. Why is that important? Simple. His case for the disintegration of Nigeria is helped by the idiosyncrasies, unhinged nepotism, and ethnic chauvinism of the like of the late honorable goodman of Nigerian politics who, surprisingly, Mr. Femi celebrated eloquently in his press release. It is either his case for the disintegration of Nigeria is bogus and self-serving, or his spirited eulogy in the press release is ensconced in denial and deception.
Again, I am not asking for the dismantling of this country like Chief Fani Kayode. But I do not fathom anything honorable about a gentleman whose antecedents exemplified the ills, I repeat, exemplified the ills that undermined our cohesion as one nation-state that Chief Fani Kayode considers repugnant and divisive. Thus, providing a credible case for his espousal of the spirit of the Oduduwa Republic and compelling arguments for his endorsement of Amotekun.
So, what are we talking about? That he is an honorable good fellow who meant well for Nigeria and all Nigerians, irrespective of race, geography, and religion? Chief Femi Fani Kayode said so. And a few other Nigerians said so. And I find it difficult to agree. By his actions in the past five years, he embodied the political divide and he was an unrepentant purveyor of the ills in the system that made the case for dismantling and restructuring credible. So, celebrating such a character as honorable is the true definition of denial. What is wrong with you, Nigerians? This guy hijacked an entire administration and made the rest of players believe that it is either him or the highway.
Your actions and pronouncements, when in a position of power or authority, are a vivid manifestation of the good man or the bad man in you. If he was the man behind the mask, I cannot in good conscience absolve him of the newly entrenched nepotism, the Dasuki's incarceration, and all the innumerable judicial hanky-panky of Aso Rock in the past five years. And we must not forget the protest memo from the office of the National Security Adviser to the President.
When I argued for a case for his removal as the Chief of Staff to the President on March 31, 2020, I did not expect him to die so soon. My case was not borne out of hatred or ethnic biases. I did so for the best interests of the country. He represented what is bad about us. He was a dictator personified. He participated in the hijack of a progressive mandate - a mandate he did not participate in its evolution - and turned Nigeria into Aristocratic experimentation.
I pray that his successor learns from his mistakes. It is either we are one country or we are not. The mandate of 2015 was a popular mandate, a Progressive mandate. Not a dictatorship. AND NOT A NORTHERN MANDATE. Let the emerging trends from Aso Rock reflect that understanding. I am grieved for his death. And I am grieved for the Progressive mandate that he desecrated. This is personal, because I fought for it. (See the second most popular essay on this Blog).
Once again, may the soul of the departed gentleman rest in peace. And I pray that his immediate family members have the fortitude to bear the loss. Amen.
Friday, April 24, 2020
Scandal and Shame: Standing for the Izume Community of Oghu-Ewohimi, and the Case for Ibhiyon Local Government Council, with Headquater at Ewohimi.
The same Country but Different Expectations: Why the People of Izume in Ewohimi are Trashing their Palliative Gifts From the Government.
A few days ago, a video appeared in social media depicting a scene where the elders of one Izume community were trashing what they allegedly received from the government as part of the Palliative reach out program. Izume, is one of the clans within the Oghu Village. And Oghu Village is one of the villages in Ewohimi Town, Esan South East LGC of Edo State.
In the video, they told the government in Esan dialect that: "The people of Izume are not starving." "We don't need your food. We're trashing your gifts." "Here is the food from the Government, we don't need them, and we're depositing them by the roadside." And this is the same country where some citizens have received N20k from the Federal Government.
Why do I believe this story? Simple.
A few days ago, I saw a video where they were dividing their allocations from the LGC according to the numbers of wards and clans in the village. Watching the video was like a joke, given the numbers of clans within the village, I knew the foodstuff will not go round.
So, seeing the allocations of Izume Community today as seen in the video, I was not surprised at all about the reactions from the elders of the community.
Now, let's take a look at the reality on the ground and do a commonsense analysis on why the LGC is being confronted with enormous challenges.
The first question is, how come we have so many towns and villages in one Esan South East Local Govt Council? Simple. It was the handiwork of General Sani Abacha and Chief Tom Ikimin. General Abacha was the President when the LGC was created along with others in Nigeria. And Chief Tom Ikimin, as the Minister of External Affairs at the time, was the closest the Esanland had to the seat of power at Abuja.
So, it is very difficult to blame the Council Chairman for the show of shame. It can only distribute to the communities its total share from the State Capital.
Ewohimi, for instance, is big enough to have its own local Government council by now. Unfortunately, we do not have prominent men in the position of power like Uromi, Igueben, Irrua, Ubija, or Ekpoma.
The decision to group Ewohimi along with about eight other villages and towns (Ewatto, Okhuesan, Ubiaja, Ujogba, Ilushi, Oriah, Ohordua, Emu, etc) as one local Government is a crime against humanity. There is no other Local Government Council like that in Nigeria.
Before the establishment of Bendel State University at Ekpoma, now Ambrose Ali University, Ewohimi was the second largest town in the whole of Esan land after Uromi. Now, Ewohimi is in the third position following the surge in new businesses and the student population at Ekpoma. While Igueben, Uromi, Irrua, and Ekpoma have their own local govt council with a few other villages added, Ewohimi was left out. Instead, we were integrated with Ubija along with the eight villages mentioned above.
Ubiaja, Irrua, and Igueben, for instance, are not as big as Okaigben. And Okaigben is a village inside of Ewohimi. And Ewohimi remains a town inside of Esan South East LGC.
For Igueben to be considered big enough to form an LGC, Chief Tom Ikimin who is an Igueben native, pulled out Ewossa from its sisters' communities (Ewohimi and Ewatto) and merge it with Igueben. Even if you don't know the history, merely looking at the names - Ewohimi, Ewossa, and Ewatto - you don't need to be told that the three towns are "Ibhiyon" (of the same mother); therefore, ought to have had a local government council of their own. But Chief Tom Ikimin demurred, in spite of the enormous pleadings from His Royal Highness, the Onogie of Ewohimi at the time.
Another downside of the equation that is not easily addressed is the salary to the traditional rulers. Remember, Local Govt Councils, pay the traditional rulers a certain percentage of their monthly allocations from the Federation Account. And that's what they share among the Kings in their LGC. Meaning, the monthly payment to a King in a given LGC is determined by the number of Kings in that particular LGC. For instance, you do not expect His Royal Highness, the Onogie of Ewohimi to earn as much as the Onogie of Irrua or Ekpoma, when Irrue and Ekpoma do not have more than three villages in their respective LGC.
In an ideal world, Ewohimi, Ewatto, Ewossa, Ohordua, and Emu should be one LGC, with headquarter at Ewohimi. While Ubiaja, Okhuesa, Illushi, and Oriah remain one LGC with headquarter at Ubiaja. General Sani Abacha didn't know the makeup of the various communities, towns, and villages in the Esan land. Chief Tom Ikimin did. Sadly, he didn't make that pitch before Abacha, but went ahead, hijacked Ewossa from its sisters' communities, and merge it with Igueben LGC.
Hopefully, one day an Ewohimi son or daughter will be in the position that Chief Tom Ikiimin was - or better - and be able to make a case for the creation of Ibhiyon Local Government Council, having it headquarter at Ewohimi. For now, we have to be content with what we have, knowing that the Government won't be there all the time to satisfy our expectations.
Tuesday, April 21, 2020
Obama: The Story of a Self-Made Man.
His Mom and Dad met as students at the University of Hawaii. After the completion of his Bachelor's degree, Mr. Obama Sr. got a scholarship to Brown - one of the eight Ivy League institutions in the US. That scholarship covers his studies and his family. He had a second scholarship from Harvard, another Ivy League institution. But the scholarship from Harvard covers only Mr. Obama Sr. and not his family.
What did he do? He went to Harvard and left his new wife and the mother of his baby son behind. Got his Ph.D., married to another White Lady and went back to Kenya. Things didn't work out well at home. Not many African leaders want intellectual rebels around them. The Americanized Mr. Obama Sr. took to alcohol. And he died unsung a few years later.
Mr. Obama Sr. met with Barack Obama Jr. once, when he came visiting him in the United States after his relocation to Africa. In spite of the prolonged absence, the smiling Barack Obama that you are seeing in the picture below with his Kenya family did not prevaricate in his search for his African roots.
He had all the reasons in the world to say f... you, Africans. He never did. In New York, Chicago, and in Nairobi, he went about searching for us and searching for the blackness in him.
Not even his Dad's decision to go to Harvard and not Brown where the entire family would have been under one roof could stop him from loving his Dad and his heritage. He went on his own to Kenya to embrace his own and to kiss the soil that gave him flesh.
Of all the decisions this young man took in his early life, the one that appeals to me the most, which in fact, laid the foundation to his rise to the White House as the first African American President, was transferring from Occidental College in Los Angeles to Columbia University in New York City.
Dad was in Africa, married to another woman, and Mom was in Indonesia, married to another man. And Obama was alone in his own world, taking the hard decisions, and traversing the hard roads to fame. And that's why I love him so much. My Dad died when I was thirteen, and I became a man the very day he died, taking my own decisions and farmed to support my Mom and my immediate elder sister. Even when I became a boarding student in Grammar School, I would still travel home on weekends to assist my Mom with farm work.
As an American and as a human being, he might have been 50% Black and 50% White, but America doesn't consider him anything else, but 100% Black. He knew that reality, and he wasn't running from it. He resolved to be a real negro and went about searching for his soul. And that was how the decision to relocate to New York came about.
After two years at Occidental College in California, he transferred to Columbia University in New York City for the remaining two years. And that was where he had his real baptism of Blackness. By the way, Columbia University in New York is one of the eight Ivy League institutions in the States.
Following the completion of his Bachelor's degree at Columbia, he didn't allow his light skin to push him towards Hollywood to become a movie star. Or succumb to the pressure of Wall Street plum jobs, being a Columbia University alumnus. He went further in search of the blackness in him. And landed in Chicago to work as a Community Organizer.
And he was in his world and the world didn't know his name.
After a few years in Chicago, he applied and was accepted to Harvard Law School. At Harvard, he became the first Black to edit the Harvard Law Journal.
Following his graduation from Harvard, he turned his back on all the prestigious law firms on Wall Street, and off he went to Chicago once again, to work for a law firm. That was where he met his jewel of inestimable value, the love of his life (an Ivy League-educated - Princeton and Harvard) and the mother of his two gorgeous daughters.
And that is the story of a self-made man.
The hard roads and bold decisions didn't stop him from becoming the President of the most powerful nation in the world. In fact, the decisions, tough and less profitable as they were, carved a path for his way to greatness and the turbulent route to the White House. The Real Leaders are Proud of their Roots and Comfortable in the Company of their Town Folks.
Mr. Alex Aidaghese LL.M,. MCSE.
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