Premises of the looted COVID-19 warehouse belonging to the Gwagwalada Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory(FCT) Abuja
Three women have been feared dead, as a result of stampede while several others suffered suffocation during a looting spree that occurred at a huge warehouse located in the Gwagwalada area of the Federal Capital Territory(FCT) Abuja.
Reports had it that some who were suffocating were helped out of the building and being assisted with sachets of water.
The looting spree was the climax of restiveness which started at about 8:43am when some youths gathered within the routes to the warehouse.
The restiveness heightened when the youths, who were later joined by commercial motorcyclists, gathered in hundreds, shouting and expressing anger over the sufferings in the land. The motorcyclists might have fueled the raid as they came with stories of looting and raid incidents from other parts of the country, the Nation Newspaper reported.
At about 9am when personnel of the Nigeria Civil Defence and Security Corps (NCDSC), the Nigeria Police and the Brigade of Guards of the Nigeria Army, who arrived the venue early, blocking the roads with their vehicles, could no longer control the crowd and being were overpowered, the youths and women forced their ways into the warehouse, broke the doors and part of the wall and began looting all items inside the building, including COVID -19 palliatives.
The warehouse, said to have been built within five months by the Gwagwalada Area Council for the purpose of storing the COVID-19 palliatives was further damaged when some hoodlums climbed fences from adjacent compounds near WAEC office while others fought their ways through the back of Fidelity Bank premises, breaking parts of the roofs to gain entry.
The crowd of looters grew even larger as youths from the surburbs of Angwa Dodo, Wazobia Parks, Tipper garrage, Passo and surrounding areas of Gwagwalada markets also stormed the warehouse of COVID-19 palliatives.
According to videos circulating on the internet, the crowd of looters were heard saying: “This is our money, these people are wicked to have hidden these products and refused to share them.”
In a report by The Nation items looted were listed as bags of rice, cartoons of indomie noodles, spagetti, macaroni, bags of fertilisers, Indorama products, brand new motor bikes, grinding machines, bags of salt, bags of Sugar, and cartoons of soaps.
However, by 11.23am, some reinforcements of security operatives forced their ways into the massive warehouse, which had COVID 19 written on it and shut it down without the use of tear gas or fire any shots, which could lead to stampede and more deaths.
Director General Of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) of Nigeria, Aduku Armstrong Idachaba.
A legal and advocacy group, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has threatened to sue the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) over sanctions imposed on three national television station, AIT, Channels TV and Arise TV for airing images attributed to the alleged Lekki Shooting of unarmed #EndSARS protesters.
In a swift reaction to the sanctions by the regulatory body, NBC on Monday, SERAP in a statement said it condemned the action, which it described as illegal fines.
“We condemn the illegal fines of N9m reportedly imposed by the National Broadcasting Commission on Channels TV, AIT and Arise TV [N3m each] over their coverage of the #EndSARS protests. We’ll sue the NBC if the unconstitutional fines are not rescinded within 48 hours.
“This action by the NBC is yet another example of Nigerian authorities’ push to silence independent media and voices. The NBC should drop the fines and uphold Nigerian constitution and international obligations to respect and protect freedom of expression and media freedom.
“The fines are detrimental to freedom of expression and the media, and access to information in Nigeria, and the NBC must withdraw the decision”, SERAP stated.
SERAP in its reaction to NBC’s sanction affirmed that media freedom and media plurality are a central part of the effective exercise of freedom of expression and access to information.
It said: ‘”The ability to practice journalism free from undue interference, to cover peaceful protests, and critical views are crucial to the exercise of many other rights and freedoms.
“The media has a vital role to play as ‘public watchdog’ in imparting information of serious public concern and should not be inhibited or intimidated from playing that role.
“The NBC should stop targeting and intimidating independent media and voices”, SERAP ordered.
Recall that on Tuesday, October 20, 2020, hours before the alleged shooting of unarmed peaceful protesters, an incident the Nigerian army has denied, the NBC had issued a press statement containing guidelines on how broadcast media firms in Nigeria should cover the #EndSARS protest, with specific instructions not to embarrass the government.
However, Nigerians have began to kick against the sanctions on AIT, Channels TV and Arise TV. Minutes after the announcement of the sanction by NBC, some Nigerians took to twitter to Twitter to vent their anger, describing the fine as illegal and an attempt to gag the media even when the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria guarantees freedom of speech.
Since the federal government can’t gag TV stations like @ARISEtv or make them do its biddings,it has resorted to using sanctions from the NBC to intimidate those professional TV stations.
One of the strongest signs of a dictatorship is putting a gag on the media. The sanction that NBC just put on Arise TV, Channels TV and AIT and the social media bill that they’re proposing is political tyranny. The government should not control media.
The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has sanctioned three major broadcast stations over their alleged roles in escalation of violence across the nation .
The regulators fined Arise TV, African Independent Television (AIT) and Channels Television between N2million and N3million.
The broadcast regulator had accused the stations of escalating the unrest that followed the #EndSARS protest in Lagos and some other parts of the country by airing unverified images of the alleged shooting.
The #EndSARS protest, championed by youths from across the divides, was peaceful until Sunday, October 18, 2020 when thugs, alleged to have been sponsored unknown powerful people began to attack protesters, which later peaked at Tuesday night’s alleged shooting of unarmed peaceful protesters by men of the Nigerian army.
Although, authorities in the Nigerian army had denied shooting at protesters, the wide reports of the alleged shooting triggered widespread violence, looting and arson in Lagos, Osun, Ekiti and Ibadan.
Many states experienced wanton destruction and looting of public and private properties.
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila visits Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo_Olu, Sunday October 25, 2020, at the State House Marina. The Speaker sympathizes with the residents of Lagos State over the unrest, arson and looting that followed the alleged shooting of unarmed peaceful protesters at the Lekki Toll Gate on Tuesday, October 20, 2020.
Following the unrest, looting and destruction of private and public properties that peaked the #EndSARS protest in Lagos State, Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu says it will need not less than N1 trillion to rebuild Lagos State.
This was revealed by the Speaker, House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiaila, when he visited Governor Sanwo-Olu in Marina on Sunday to sympathise with the state, which quickly became the epicenter of last week’s pandemonium that brought down shops, court, business and transport assets, and the palace of the Lagos Monarch, Oba Ridwan Akiolu.
Gbajabiamila, who visited along with members of the House of Representatives from Lagos, said: “The governor was telling me just now that it was going to cost about a trillion naira to rebuild Lagos. That makes my heart heavy. And I asked the governor what’s the budget of Lagos State? What are you planning? And he told me that they’re planning a budget of about a trillion Naira.”
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila visits Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo_Olu, Sunday October 25, 2020, at the State House Marina. The Speaker sympathizes with the residents of Lagos State over the unrest, arson and looting that followed the alleged shooting of unarmed peaceful protesters at the Lekki Toll Gate on Tuesday, October 20, 2020.
During the pandemonium, arsonists had burnt down public assets that include 89 new buses of the Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) that were parked in Oyingbo and Berger. The Commissioner for Information and Strategy Gbenga Omotoso, had put the cost of each of buses at about $200,000.
Other public assets destroyed are the multi-million naira forensic and DNA centre, the Igbosere High Court, local government secretariat buildings, and hundreds of other vehicles. These also include some other public buildings scattered across the state and street lights.
According to the Speaker of House, the destruction of properties is sad and should not occur again: “I came in from Abuja today, not just to stand in solidarity with him, but by extension the people of Lagos State. These have been very difficult few days. It has even been more difficult for me in the last hour. Driving in from the airport and sitting with the governor to watch the documentary here put together, that evidences of the carnage we all witnessed. It makes us all very sad.
“This, certainly, is not the Lagos of our dream that we all talk about. And I know deep down, and I believe no matter how brave a face one puts to it, that even the protesters have their regrets that things went this far, because from my understanding and from what I’ve seen, both those who are pro-protest and those who are anti-protest, were all affected.
“There’s very little I can say. But, I know that standing with me is a man of courage, a man of destiny. Because it’s very unusual for you to come into office, and within a year a few months, you witnessed two calamitous events: first, you were in the epicentre of COVID-19, which you dealt with to the admiration of all.
“Whilst we were still grappling with that, you now became the epicentre of the protests. I want to encourage you to lift your head high, because you discharged your duties as a governor of a state that was troubled in the last few months, or close to one year,” he said.
Furthermore, Gbajabiamila stated that he did not wish the incident to take an ethnic dimension, having heard a lot of conspiracy theories about it.
“Let us shut our ears to those things. Let us focus as one people, whether you’re Igbo, whether you’re from the North, whether you’re from the South. This is the mantra that we have in the House of Representatives because if you talk about nation-building, we say it is a joint task.
“I want to also use this opportunity, in a way, to be grateful and commend our brothers and sisters from the North. I said this because if the North had been a part of this, I don’t know if we’ll all be standing here today. That’s why I commend our brothers and sisters from the North.
“On Tuesday, we talked in the House about compensation. I want to reiterate that the House will do all it can to make sure that everybody that has suffered from police violence – whether you’re from the North, from the East, from the West, because everybody in Nigeria has suffered from police violence, not just those of us from the Southwest. That will be applicable to all, including policemen that lost their lives in these unfortunate incidents.
“So, Your Excellency, we bring you good tidings and good wishes from Abuja. We stand with you. Whatever the House can do to help in rebuilding, not just Lagos State, but other states that have been affected as well from whatever part in Nigeria, the House will definitely join hands. Because we’re now in the situation of reconstruction.
“I want to encourage our young men and women out there that you fought a good fight, and I’m sure deep down, you’re not happy with what you’ve seen. The government listened, the president listened, the House listened, the Senate listened, the governors listened, it is now time to take stock and make sure this never happens again”.
“Your Excellency, the ground zero of what happened here is Lekki…that was what precipitated the violence and the carnage the following day. It is important to me, as I know it is important to you and to everybody, to know what exactly happened.
“A judicial panel has been set up, and I hope those who say this is what happened will have the courage to go before the judicial panel and say this is what happened and give credible evidence. And if that was indeed what happened, then, the law must take its course. But, if that was not what happened, the law must also take its course. Either way, the law must take its course”, the Speaker said.
Health journalists in Africa have been given fecund avenue to discuss the impact of Covid-19 on their works at the 16th edition of the African Investigative Journalism Conference (AIJC2020) hosted by the Journalism Programme of the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
This year’s conference (October 6-30) holds virtually for the first time because of coronavirus concerns, and boasts of being the African continent’s biggest gathering of journalists. The conference deals with varied topics where the journalists shared experiences and learn new skills, techniques and tools to enhance their work.
On 13th October 2020, there was a session on the topic “Journalism in the time of Covid” which dwelt on those issues and provided solutions on how journalists can navigate the complexities of reporting the virus. The session’s panel was moderated by Mia Malan, Editor-in-chief/Executive Director of Bhekisica Centre for Health Journalism in Johannesburg, South Africa, who opened up on the core issue of how the pandemic forced journalists to become emergency health reporters to “report on science research results and health policies that they were previously unfamiliar with”. She then posed thought-provoking questions like “Is this kind of situation good for health journalism or does it lead to misinformation, and how have business, investigative and political journalists cope with the situation?”
Ferial Haffajee, influential South African journalist well-known for business, investigative and political reporting before the outbreak of the virus and who has never reported on a pandemic before now, said after her dive into reporting Covid-19 pandemic, she discovered the stereotype about the health beat as “soft” was wrong, adding that it is “probably the most vital of the beats; it’s literally a matter of life and death”.
Hafajee has been able to overcome the challenges by her sheer resoluteness, and the epidemiological course she undertook in July this year in India together with other journalists from across the world. Journalists from 18 African countries participated in the training and a third of the total number of participants are non-health journalists.
“For me, that (epidemiological course) is the way to go because it used every single technology, and then together with people like Dr. Taryn Young (an epidemiologist), it taught us how to ensure that we knew about vaccine trials, how to ensure that we understood the signs and that has been completely invaluable to me”, she opined.
While on coronavirus beat, Haffajee learned that reporting the virus could lend itself to the methods of conventional investigation because of the fall outs of the disease such as Covid-19 corruption, police brutality, human rights abuses and unscientific vaccine claims.
She said the reporting of Covid-19 “did become more conventionally investigative”, adding “that’s when we learned that all the billions of Rand (South Africa’s currency) that were being invested into the response in South Africa, but I know it’s also happening in the rest of Africa, was as usual being corrupted. We have to get at the top and watch how the money is planned and then how It’s spent, and for me, that’s where health reporting should go, in the next couple of years, to catch corruption before it happens”.
Asha Mwilu, a Kenyan traditional television journalist and CNN African journalist of year 2016, disclosed that coronavirus changed her life and that she had to put aside her role as an editor to go to the field to report on the virus.
“I started going to the markets and talking to people and seeing how coronavirus was affecting lives and livelihoods, and I just had to go back to the basics of reporting, and then I had to re-learn a lot of things”, she remarked.
After Mwilu resigned from her post as Editor, Special Projects, Citizen Television, Kenya, she launched Debunk Media on July 1, 2020, where she currently serves as Founder/Editor-at-large. The platform came in the midst of Covid-19 and this development changed its orientation.
“The plan was to launch Debunk in April, but we had to put it on hold”, she explains. “First and foremost, the content that we had created could not even resonate with the audience because everyone was talking about coronavirus. We had created content around issues like legalization of marijuana, feel good content around music but using data to drive those stories. What coronavirus did for us is to really center us into what Debunk Media wanted to do, and is now doing, which is putting data at the center of storytelling “.
At a time that fatigue was setting in the coverage of the pandemic, her team decided to look for areas that had not been reported on, and learned how to scrape data from the web to give new dimensions to reporting the disease.
Professor Taryn Young, an epidemiologist and Director of the Centre for Evidence-based Healthcare at Stellenbosch University, South Africa, who has collaborated effectively with journalists, said health reporters need basic knowledge of science and research assessment to be able to write critically on health, and to prevent misinformation.
“Yes, I have seen misinformation and flawed research being reported in the media”, she disclosed. “An example is linked to the big difference between association and causation. For instance, there have been reports linked to smoking, that if you smoke more, you are less likely to become inflicted with Covid-19 but these studies are reported without critically about how big was the study. Was the result big enough to give a robust answer?”
Speaking on the epidemiological course in which she was one of the hosts, Young said on a certain day at the event “there were more than 60 people online all joining to learn more about epidemiology, to learn more about different types of research designs, different types of bias, and talking about error, and also covering tips on how to critically appraise medical research”.
Journalists and medical researchers need to work together to enhance the reporting of research findings, she suggests.
In her own contribution, Ida Jooste, who works for the International Media Development Organization called Internews, said Covid-19 had brought many other areas of life into storytelling and cited the instance of mathematics and statistics.
“It’s brought mathematics and statistics and dealing with numbers right into our faces every single day”, adding that this is something that journalists should learn to add to their understanding of Covid-19 reporting.
The author: Elegbede is a Multimedia journalist and Project Director of Press Attack Monitor, a platform that exposes press freedom violations in Nigeria. He was chosen by the Journalism Program (Wits Journalism) of the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, as a fellow of the African Investigative Journalism Conference 2020 hosted by Wits Journalism.
IGP, HOUSE COMMITTEE ON POLICE AFFAIRS MEET ON ONGOING POLICE REFORMS
· Call for an end to Violence
The IGP M.A Adamu, NPM, mni today, 23rd October, 2020 received Honourable Members, House Committee on Police Affairs at the Force Headquarters, Abuja.
Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Adamu, Friday played host to members of House Committee on Police Affairs at the Force Headquarters in Abuja.
This was coming as the Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Research and Planning, Leye Oyebade, and Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu, had led ‘operation clearing all the barricaded spots in volatile areas in the state.
The operation led to the clearing of the obstructions on major roads in order to create access for motorists and other road users, especially those on essential services.
The House committee, led by its Chairman, Usman Bello Kumo, was at the Force Headquarters, as part of the oversight functions of the House of Representatives, to assess and advise on the ongoing reforms of the Nigeria Police Force and efforts at restoring normalcy to areas affected by violence arising from the #EndSARS protests in some parts of the country.
Adamu, who noted that the Force has commenced Comprehensive Internal Review and Evaluation of circumstances that led to the #EndSARS protests and the violence, fatalities and damage to critical infrastructure that emanated therefrom, apprised the committee on efforts made so far by the Force to restore normalcy and prevent future occurrence.
Some of these efforts, he mentioned include: strengthening the internal disciplinary mechanism of the Force, training of the newly formed Tactical Squad, debriefing and psychological/medical examination for operatives of the defunct Special Anti-Robbery Squad and general improvement of police-citizen relationship, among others.
Adamu reassured the committee as well as the Nigerian people that the Force was more than ever before, committed to police reforms and ensuring a safe and secure environment for all to live and thrive devoid of any violation of their fundamental human rights.
Responding, the committee expressed satisfaction at the efforts by the police chief in managing the #EndSARS protests and the ensuing violence but called for an all-inclusive approach at ensuring immediate end of the violence, improving police service delivery, rebuilding trust and public confidence and respect for human rights amongst others.
The lawmakers commiserated with Adamu over the loss of police personnel who died during the crisis and promised to work tirelessly with the Force to ensure an enabling environment for optimal performance by the police.
They called on other stakeholders including parents, guardians, online influencers, youth leaders, traditional leaders, religious leaders, etc to work with the police and government to bring a halt to the carnage on our streets and restore law and order.
The operation clearing all the barricaded spots in Lagos State was borne out of the need to clear the roads off barricades and taking charge of security of lives and property in the state due to the prevailing violent attacks on lives and property of the police, government and private individuals leaving many lives and property lost and damaged.
Oyebade and Odumosu visited some strategic places particularly the attacked Nigerian Correctional Custodial Centrenin Ikoyi, which was partly set on fire by the hoodlums, to assess the extent of damage and fortify the security of the centre to prevent jail break.
The areas where they led the operation clearing the barricaded spots include: Falomo Roundabout, Sura-Adeniji and Ilubinrin end of Third Mainland Bridge, Iyana Oworo and Gbagada end of Ikorodu Expressway, Ojuelegba (Surulere) and Apongbon Bridge in the Lagos Island.
Odumosu, who appreciated Oyebade for his sterling leadership qualities and efforts in making sure that normalcy was restored to Lagos, condemned continuous attacks on police stations and public facilities as Ikotun Police Station was set ablaze Thursday by hoodlums.
He warned that the command would neutralise any moves that could jeopardise security architecture vis-a-vis maintenance of law and order in Lagos State.
Odumosu charged police officers and other security agents to be resolute in protection of lives and property and restoration of peace and public safety in the state.
Former president Goodluck Jonathan has condemned the “use of deadly force” on #EndSARS protesters in Lagos state.
Protests against the defunct police special anti-robbery squad (SARS) turned violent in many parts of the country leading to loss of lives and property.
President Buhari joined by Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Former Head of State Gen. Ibrahim Babangida, Former Head of State Gen. Yakubu Gowon, Former President Goodluck Jonathan, Head of Interim Government H.E. Chief Ernest Shonekan and Former Head of State Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar during a Virtual Meeting with Former Heads of State in State House on 23rd Oct 2020
Men dressed in army fatigue were alleged to have shot at protesters at the Lekki tollgate in Lagos, a claim the Nigerian army has since denied.
Such actions would only worsen the situation, calling on all parties to embrace dialogue, Jonathan said in a statement on Thursday.
He asked security agencies to ensure maximum restraint was applied in carrying out their responsibilities and also asked young Nigerians to “give peace a chance especially now that different stakeholders have demonstrated the willingness to investigate the various allegations of excessive use of force on citizens and address the culture of impunity by security personnel”.
President Buhari on Wednesday held a nationwide broadcast, and reiterated that government was meeting the demands of the protesters.
Earlier on Thursday, he met with the country’s former presidents, including Dr. Goodluck Jonathan and Olusegun Obasanjo.
The meeting was held behind close doors as details of the discussion is still being awaited.
President Buhari joined by Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Former Head of State Gen. Ibrahim Babangida, Former Head of State Gen. Yakubu Gowon, Former President Goodluck Jonathan, Head of Interim Government H.E. Chief Ernest Shonekan and Former Head of State Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar during a Virtual Meeting with Former Heads of State in State House on 23rd Oct 2020
Barely 24 hours after he presided over the National Security Council at the Presidential Villa, Abuja and later addressed the nation, President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday at a meeting with Nigeria’s former presidents and heads of state reiterated that the well organised and peaceful protest by Nigerian youths under the label of #EndSARS though well-intended, was hijacked and misdirected.
At the meeting which was virtual, President Buhari explained to former leaders that his government will not fold its arms while miscreants and criminals perpetrate hooliganism.
President Buhari in Virtual Meeting with Former Heads of State in State House on 23rd Oct 2020
Present at the meeting were all living past leaders, including Gen. Yakubu Gowon, President Olusegun Obasanjo, Gen. Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, Chief Ernest Shonekan, Gen. Abulsalami Abubakar, and former President Goodluck Jonathan.
According to presidential spokesman, Femi Adesina, the President recounted the initial concessions made by his administration on the demands of youths protesting against the excesses of some members of the Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS), a tactical unit of the Nigeria Police that was recently disbanded by the government.
He recalled that the youths had demanded that the squad be disbanded, and further articulated the additional demands, including: “the immediate release of all arrested protesters, justice for deceased victims of police brutality and appropriate compensation for their families; setting up an independent body to oversee the investigation and prosecution of all reports of Police misconduct within 10 days and psychological evaluation and re-training of all disbanded SARS officers before they can be re-deployed; and increase in Police salary.”
President Buhari in Virtual Meeting with Former Heads of State in State House on 23rd Oct 2020
“We accepted all the demands and proceeded immediately to scrap SARS and started the process of addressing the other demands,” Buhari said.
“Unfortunately, the protesters refused to call off the protest and engage the Government to address their grievances. Instead, they became emboldened and gradually turned violent.”
President Buhari expressed concern that in the mayhem that ensued, many lives have been lost, a number of public and private properties completely destroyed or vandalised.
President Buhari in Virtual Meeting with Former Heads of State in State House on 23rd Oct 2020
Reiterating his pledge to Nigerians from the nationwide broadcast Thursday, the President reaffirmed he will continue to improve good governance through our democratic process including through sustained engagement.
“We shall also continue to ensure that liberty and freedom, as well as the fundamental rights of all citizens are protected. Here, I want to also reaffirm our commitment to preserving the unity of this country,” he told the former leaders.
The President thanked the former Heads of State for attending the meeting and their invaluable comments, observations and advice, adding that ”Nigerians expect nothing less from responsible statesmen.”
Each of the former leaders commended President Buhari for steps taken so far to restore calm and order to the country and also applauded the presidential broadcast of Thursday as detailed and soothing to the country.
“I commend the speech of last night. The nation had been waiting. You made points that I believe need to be commended. Peaceful demonstration is part of democratic practice. The demands of the genuine protesters were accepted, and you are working on implementation. We commend you,” former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, said.
The former heads of state were unanimous in their view that generation of employment and growing the economy including through direct foreign investments were critical to checking youth restiveness.
Expressing their condolences to the bereaved families of civilians, policemen and soldiers killed as a result of the violent protest, the former leaders reaffirmed the commitment to respect the fundamental rights of citizens, including for peaceful protest as enshrined in the Constitution.
They unanimously condemned and called for an end to the use of divisive and inciting pronouncements by separatists, Femi Adesina stated.
Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you wish you had done the comparatively little thing someone had asked of you instead of dilly dallying to the point when the person vexes and says, “forget it, now I want it all?” Or, “I’m not even doing again?” If government had adequately tackled the SARS issue after repeated complaints by the people in the past, the current crisis may never have occurred. Now, the government has come out to propose a new outfit, giving assurances on how they’ll operate strictly by the book but with a loud voice the people have responded, “this is not enough! We want more.”
In a small segment on CNN titled CNN Modern Explorers, I heard Bertrand Piccard, a Swiss psychiatrist and arguably the world’s most famous balloonist, say something remarkably profound. For a man who happens to be the first to ever circumnavigate the globe non stop in a hot air balloon, I was surprised to hear him remark that the modern day explorer is not one who searches out new territories but instead is one who seeks new ways to bring better meaning to human existence and improve the quality of human life. It surprised me to no end that a man who also holds the record of being the first to successfully fly around the world in a solar powered plane, would relegate the thrill and novelty of such an astonishing achievement to second place, in terms of his motivation. The impetus that drove his ambition can therefore be better traced to finding ways to surmount issues which trouble the wellbeing of much of humanity than to discovering new frontiers. His submission gave me a refreshingly new perspective to Edmund Burke’s quote which says, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing”.
Following the embarrassingly acrimonious US Presidential debate between President Trump and former Vice President Biden which took place recently, and where Trump, in typical Third World dictator-style, seemed to be preparing the electorate’s mind to the possibility of him not accepting the election results, Thomas Friedman offered the country a stark warning. He said, “when extremists go all the way, and moderates just go away, the system can break.” He based this on what he witnessed as a foreign correspondent when he covered Lebanon’s second civil war. While not repudiating Mr Friedman’s submission in any way, kindly permit me to direct this statement to the Nigerian situation in a way that’s relevant to this discourse.
For the sake of this article, let’s apply the “extremists” term to those who go all out to make sure they grab political power at all cost in Nigeria. The often better qualified in terms of character, ability and noble intention, whom we can refer to as moderates, on the other hand, refuse to struggle and are not given to making any sacrifices for what they want; and what the country obviously needs. Unwisely, they remain in the shadows. They “go away” as it were and when the time comes to vote, they either don’t bother to vote or finding themselves faced with a lack of credible alternatives, they end up voting for one of the very same people who put us all in this mess in the first place. Funny thing is that that won’t stop them from complaining when the leopard proves he’s still a leopard and is unable to change his spots. And the sad cycle continues. It was Christian D. Larson who once said that, “To keep any great nation up to a high standard of civilization there must be enough superior characters to hold the balance of power, but the very moment the balance of power gets into the hands of second-rate men and women, a decline of that nation is inevitable.”
Rafael Nadal, my favourite tennis player, is a phenomenon by any standard. Born right handed but converted to left handed as a child by his uncle and coach,Tony. Uninhibited by any cultural or social considerations, uncle Tony, as he’s fondly called, made what could only be described as a cold and very incisive calculation. Having done extensive research, he discovered that left handed tennis players proved very difficult and tricky to play against and so he set about his plan to convert his young nephew, who had shown visible promise and who undoubtedly possessed an impressive tennis brain, into a left handed player. He wasn’t wrong. Because of that singular move, Rafa escaped the distinct possibility of growing up to become a good but forgettable right handed tennis player to becoming a living legend. His uncle’s gamble paid off. To prove it, he recently equalled Roger Federer’s record of winning 20 Grand Slams. That’s an extremist right there, if ever I saw one. His motivation however is infinitely more noble.
The one track minded, vigorous, unrelenting pursuit by our second-rate men to ensure they fill all meaningful decision making positions in our political space and the complicit, lackadaisical attitude of our most competent men, tilted the balance of power to the detriment of our society a long time ago. But are we currently witnessing the precursor to a seismic shift? Is this the eve of a new day? I guess only time will tell.
If we’re to be guided by those who went before us though, it may appear fitting to close with the timeless words of one of history’s most revered freedom fighters, Martin Luther King Jr who cautioned, “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” When all the proverbial dust settles, I hope those without a voice won’t turn on those of us who do, but were never seen or heard to have used them. There’s something I’ve always said and it’s this. The problem isn’t that people don’t know what the problems are, it’s that they don’t see themselves as part of the problem. Ponder on that for a moment. We all have a part to play.
#ENDSARS….what do they say about an idea whose time has come? It’s unstoppable!!!
Changing the nation…one mind at a time.
Oladapo Akande is a Surrey University (UK) English graduate with a Masters in Professional Ethics. He’s an alumnus of the National Institute for Transformation and a two time author; The Last Flight and Shifting Anchors. He writes from Lagos.
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