An Unusual Conservative Perception of Covid Ideology can be such a blinding and narrow-minded state of mind, individual or collective. Accurate history informs us that plagues and pandemics have devastated…
The Leadership of Rotten Parts
The magic of Muhammadu Buhari’s administration has come from his citizens. But nothing of significance he has done as leader of the nation. Blamocracy (blaming past administrations for the impossibility of addressing present troubles) and claimocracy (claiming credit for the achievements of former governments) now have the regard of significant achievements in themselves. Many citizens claim the federal government is clean, competent and thriving. Yet, the states and local governments make up the rotten parts of Nigerian for governance. Who on this planet can with empirical evidence prove the federal government is clean or only a little dirty? Leadership has become excused of responsibility by so-called voters. We take on the challenge to examine this sticky fallacy.
The Perception of Development: Nigerian-Style
One of the most interesting but intractable things about development in Nigeria is the pervasive perception of both what it is and should be. What is development? Why are Nigerians always left behind? These are questions best answered indirectly. (more…)
Corruption is the New Meaning of Life: It Is Here to Guide Us
Corruption shows its face unobstructed in most forms of social organisation in today’s world. Under the present rules of governance, they license corruption for use with discretion and embed itself deeper in societies, eliminating most opposition to it. Corruption is thus now legal, though not without illegal consequences. Nothing paves the path for needless and preventable wars, social strife, starvation, pestilence, economic chaos, systemic deficiencies, and emergencies as corruption does. (more…)
Fulani Herdsmen & the British Legacy of Guilt
“Guilt by community association” (GBCA) is back in Nigeria in fresh form in 2018. Not by the actions of a foreign colonialist. But those of the local Nigerian auto-colonialists courtesy Fulani herdsmen affairs. In the colonial state of Nigeria, under British rule, was the chief means by which the Nigerian staffed police force secured conformity and order. The method of choice was community arrest and faux crime taxation. (more…)
Restructuring: Derivation or Ownership 2: Questions & Answers.
“Federalism” and “restructuring” and related terms are all political jargon. It means they are not so easy to understand by non-specialists and are widely appreciated by assumption, not fact. Nigeria is a federal republic that practices federalism on paper. But is a unitary state in reality because it lacks the provision of autonomy for subnational or federating units. All advanced nations have undergone several phases of restructuring for political, economic or social reasons at different stages in their existence.
Many Nigerians are oblivious to the fact that the creation of Lower Niger protectorate by the British, the amalgamation of North and South Nigeria, the institution of the four colonial constitutions for Nigeria and ultimately Independence in 1960, where all cases of restructuring. Oil appears to be the only reason restructuring, or federalism looks strange to some in Nigeria. I shall now answer the questions raised in response to restructuring (non-technically): Derivation or Ownership?
Restructuring: Derivation or Ownership
“Restructuring”; its meaning is debatable, and for many, it is about oil, resource control. Surprisingly, many see resource control as the receipt of an increased top-up percentage of “derivation” by oil-producing states from oil revenues issued by the federal government (FG) as fiscal allocations. Where is the control in receiving a token part of the revenues from resources mined under your jurisdiction? The practice of derivation, no matter the percentage, is not reducible to restructuring. (more…)