Opinion

And the top cop goes tough

Published

2 years ago

May 8, 2023

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By Tunde Olusunle

He was acting in the line of duty, but I came off from my first and only encounter with him, not particularly liking him. It was in December 2016. My very good friend, maybe alter-ego, Tivlumun Nyitse and I were driving into the premises of Louis Edet House Nigeria Police Force Headquarters, (NPF-HQ), Abuja, to catch up with an appointment in the multistorey complex. Donald Ngorngor Awunah of blessed memory, who was the force public relations officer, (FPRO) at the time, a mutual friend of Nyitse and I, had invited us for a morning meeting in his office. Ibrahim Kpotun Idris was the Inspector General of Police, (IGP) and he entrusted the very urbane and cosmopolitan Awunah to help cultivate a more positive public perception for the Force.

Awunah was a perfect fit for the job, a rounded Nigerian. His mother is Igbo from Delta State, and he began formal education in Ogwashi-Uku his mother’s birthplace. He had regular conversations in fluent “Delta Igbo” with his mother. His father was Tiv from Benue, and he obtained his first degree from the University of Lagos, (Unilag). He underwent the National Youth Service Corps, (NYSC) in Jos, Plateau State and his career in the police took him around the country and beyond. He had friends around and about.

Don Awunah took every assignment very seriously. Nyitse and I are senior and experienced mass communications professionals and Awunah believed his official brief will be enriched by our insights. On a regular basis therefore, he compelled us to come have “coffee” in his office so we could exchange ideas. He always jocularly threatened Nyitse who shared his official accommodation, with eviction and we all had good laughs. Indeed, he received approval from his Principal to have us accredited as “media consultants” to ensure seamless access into the restricted FHQ. And so on this day, we had been cleared at the various checkpoints en route the premises of the organisation when we were stopped by security personnel in plain clothes. They said they had “orders from above” to deny us admission into complex, for two hours. We wouldn’t know what was going on therein and nobody explained to us.

One of them gestured conspiratorially to a prosperously-built top cop who was pacing about in the background. Every officer in view deferred to him via a smart salute or an impulsive freeze. That top gun was Usman Alkali Baba who was an Assistant Inspector General, (AIG). I would later get to know that Baba and Awunah were indeed course mates in the 1988 batch of police cadets, much as Awunah was at that time a Deputy Commissioner of Police, (DCP). He eventually made the rank of AIG before his unfortunate transition last year. His last brief was superintendence over the brother states of Bayelsa and Rivers.

Usman Alkali Baba was appointed Inspector General of Police, (IGP), by President Muhammadu Buhari, April 6, 2021, to replace Mohammed Abubakar Adamu. He thus became Nigeria’s 20th indigenous IGP. His appointment for me seemed routine and perfunctory. It could have passed for any regular civil service appointment to the position of Permanent Secretary or Head of the Civil Service of the Federation. One can’t seem to place too many appointees to this position, whose performances were markedly exceptional. Tafa Balogun, the second IGP under the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo was probably the last “all action IGP” who readily comes to mind.

In the military too, Ibrahim Attahiru, of blessed memory, the immediate past Chief of Army Staff, (COAS), for example, was one recent occupant of that office who gave us some excitement and optimism about prospects for the rebirth and rediscovery of the Nigerian Army of yore. I’m glad my brother John Obasa, a retired army general, invited me to the first anniversary memorial of Attahiru last year. He knows how passionate I was about Attahiru, much as the departed COAS and I never met. Before him, Paul Dike, arguably Nigeria’s first Air Chief Marshal, (ACM), a four star airforce General was another top military professional I deeply admired. Dike who rose to become Chief of Defence Staff, (CDS), was an exemplary military chief. Megalopolitan, urbane, thoroughly hands-on and amiable, I followed his trajectory from the State House where, as a Group Captain, he was Commander of the Presidential Air Fleet, (PAF), all the way to the apex of his career.

I’m uninspired by President Buhari’s recent celebration of Nigeria’s military’s ascension by three places in the classification of militaries in Africa. According to him, we are now in the Number Four position, up from Number Seven before the advent of his administration in 2015. Wasn’t our military the high-flying African Numero Uno under the leaderships of Ibrahim Babangida, Sani Abacha, through Olusegun Obasanjo? It used to be said those good old days in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Somalia, among others, that “the fear of Nigerian troops was the beginning of wisdom.” It has been suggested that Nigeria’s “air show of force” through the flypast over Banjul, of Nigerian airforce jets, January 2017, compelled the intransigent Yahya Jammeh to step down from office. He had previously lost his presidential reelection, after three terms to Adama Barrow late 2016.

Back to IGP Alkali Baba. I’ve always admired southpaws. Maybe that’s one reason I’m having a rethink about my hitherto minimal expectations of him. Former United States Presidents Bill Clinton to Barack Obama, through Works Minister, Babatunde Fashola, to my brother, namesake and silent revolutionary Babatunde Irukera of the Federal Consumer Competition and Protection Commission, (FCCPC), fit into this description. Same for my brother and diligent editor, Bolaji Afolabi, my little nephew Oluwatise Adetona-Alao, and my “grand-daughter,” Jomiloju Aiyegbusi. Maybe because I’m not. IGP Alkali Baba falls into this category of special breeds and somehow I’ve begun to take an interest in his enterprise in the sanitisation of the Force. It may not be as bad, afterall.

True he may be chubby-cheeked and smooth-skinned. But Alkali Baba has so far demonstrated capacity to be professional and independent-minded. Not for him those representations from the high and mighty seeking preferential postings and placements for their wards or candidates. You report and serve wherever it is you’ve been deployed as a police personnel. He can be strict and tough and has evidently prioritised professionalism and discipline, both imperatives for a respected and respectable Force. He is cognisant of the uninspiring public perception of the Force, arising from the indiscretions and lawlessness of just a fraction of personnel in the organisation. He’s not sleeping over this reality.

The propensity of some officers towards indiscipline, misconduct and overzealousness, are regularly coming under his direct binoculars. Extortion of road users and members of the public, roughing up and manhandling of law-abiding citizens, the penchant for bullying by some cops at the slightest provocation in certain instances, are beginning to catch his attention. The social media has been a notable enabler and Alkali Baba is taking advantage of the opportunities it offers in detecting and recalling such errant characters.

More frequently than in recent memory, Force Headquarters plays host to erring operatives who are paraded before the cameras and summarily disciplined before the public. The rule books are diligently applied and defaulters have been dismissed from service, demoted, have their promotions delayed, or sanctioned as their offences may require. They are subsequently handed over to appropriate security agencies for appropriate interrogation and further punishment as may be necessary. Such reprimands are to serve as deterrents to potential offenders. There is no hiding place for them under the sun.

I also get a feeling that Alkali Baba is taking the matters of remuneration, motivation, reward and promotion in the Force very seriously. I understand that the pay-packets of officers and men enjoyed a 30% fillip last year. He is equally concerned about appropriate placement of members of the Force as evidenced by their elevation, as and when due. There seems to be new synergy between the Force, and the Police Service Commission, (PSC), now headed by Solomon Arase, a former IGP himself. Arase for me, holds the record of being the most accessible holder of that office. As serving IGP, he took his calls and responded to text messages. He refused to outsource his responsibilities preferring to be first to get the information for good, or for not so pleasant. Issues of promotions can be quite touchy and emotional and one is glad the Alkali Baba regime is managing this. It’s heartwarming that some good friends in the system have earned their ranks under Alkali Baba’s watch. I should betray my interest here, because I have good friends who have been beneficiaries at various levels.

Not a few times have I recently gleaned reports too, of the payments of entitlements to families of service personnel who are felled in the line of duty. This is one area the NPF needs to reform as a matter of urgency and priority. Figures often quoted as gratuities for professionals who lose their lives for the rest of us to live, are ridiculous jokes, juxtaposed with existential realities. Service to fatherland should not be rewarded with the manner of measly tokenism which retiring cops or the survivors of those who are caught in the line of fire are paid. This is one issue requiring urgent review and re-evaluation by the police authorities under the Alkali Baba regime.

Alkali Baba we understand, has been gifted a two-year extension by the President which should keep him in office till 2025. His successors, according to a new legislation will be appointed for a term of four years each. This accords the incumbent IGP ample latitude to pursue, implement and entrench multilayered reforms in the Service. The Alkali regime has been commended for providing accoutrements for serving personnel, for example. I’ve visited very senior police officers on their desks, who personally furnished and equipped their offices, all the way to sanitary ware. This and of a whole lot of other issues require remediation in the Force for which should be initiated by a proactive IGP.

Substandard will be a mild description of the quality of official accommodation in place for our police personnel. There are frequent expositions on this subject in the media and the matter commends spontaneous action. For all their exertions in the rain and sun, on the streets and lonely highways in an era where policing is at best manual and somewhat pristine, these compatriots should retire each day to liveable homes. The same applies to operational automobiles imperative for the mobility and effectiveness of serving personnel. A sustainable template must be developed for the management of such assets which rapidly fall decrepit ever so often. Regular training, retraining and tune-ups are imperative for officers and men. These needn’t wait until there is a national emergency, an election or an invitation for participation in a foreign mission. Nigerians earnestly look forward to a holistic makeover for our police force, to enhance performance, effectiveness and acclamation at home and abroad. The ball is on your side of the field, IGP Usman Alkali Baba.

Tunde Olusunle, PhD, poet, journalist, scholar and author is a Member of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, (NGE)

Opinion

BENUE 2027:The Apa/Agatu Quest for Equity

Published

4 days ago

January 14, 2025

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By Tunde Olusunle

It may be well over two years to the next cycle of general elections in Nigeria. For the people of Apa/Agatu federal constituency in *Benue South, however, the measure of their participation and integration into the governance scheme will be defined in the run-up to the general polls that year. Nine local government areas make up the predominantly Idoma country of Benue State also labelled Zone C in the senatorial tripod of the geo-polity. The zone is also home to the Igede ethnic stock and the Etulo. Local government areas in “Benue Zone C” include: Apa, Agatu, Oju, Obi, Ado, Ogbadibo, Okpokwu, Otukpo and Ohimini. The other zones, Benue North East and Benue North West, are wholly dominated by the Tiv nationality, striding across 14 local government areas. They are christened Zone A and Zone B in the local political scheme of the state. Federal constituencies in Benue South are: Apa/Agatu, Oju/Obi; Ado/Ogbadibo/Opokwu and Otukpo/Ohimini.

The subjugation of groups and ethnicities considered demographically smaller, by the larger groups which has dominated Nigeria’s politics over time, has not been any different for the Idoma of Benue State. Until the circumstantial emergence of a Yahaya Bello from the Ebira ethnicity in Kogi State in 2015, the Igala had the relay baton of governorship of Kogi State, in rounds and succession. The Ebiras and the Okun-Yoruba zones in the state could only aspire to be serial deputies or Secretaries to the State Government. This political template was virtually cast in stone. The Ilorin people of Kwara State have similarly wholly warehoused the gubernatorial office, sparingly conceding the position to other sociocultural groups in the state. The only exception was the concession of the seat to a candidate from Kwara South, in the person of Abdulfatah Ahmed, by his predecessor, Bukola Saraki in 2011. Even at that, there were murmurs and dissent from those who believed Ahmed came from a community too close to the Ilorin emirate to be of genuine Igbomina stock, which prides itself as the pure Yoruba species in Kwara State.
Twenty-six years into the Fourth Republic, the maximum proximity of the Idoma to Government House, Makurdi, has been by the customary allocation of the Deputy Governor’s slot to its people. Ogirri Ajene from Oju/Obi, the charismatic blue-blood of blessed memory, was deputy to George Akume, incumbent Secretary to the Government of the Federation, (SGF), from 1999 to 2007. Akume it was reported, genuinely desired to be succeeded by Ajene who exhibited competence and loyalty and could build on their legacies. The Tiv nation we understand, shot down the proposal. Gabriel Suswam succeeded Akume and had the urbane multipreneur, Stephen Lawani from Ogbadibo as deputy. Samuel Ortom, a Minister in the Goodluck Jonathan presidency who took over from Suswam opted for Benson Abounu, an engineer from Otukpo as running mate, while Hyacinth Alia, the Catholic priest who succeeded Ortom, also chose as deputy, Samuel Ode, who was also a Minister in the Jonathan government, from Otukpo. Arising from this precedence, Apa/Agatu has not for once, been considered for a place in Government House, Makurdi.
In similar fashion, the position of Senator representing Benue South, has repeatedly precluded Apa/Agatu federal constituency. David Alechenu Bonaventure Mark a former army General from Otukpo, took the first shot at the office in 1999. He was to remain in the position for five consecutive times, a distinctive record by Nigerian standards. Mark would subsequently become President of the Senate and the third most senior political office holder in the nation’s governance scheme for a string of two terms between 2007 and 2015. He was replaced by Patrick Abba Moro, who hails from Okpokwu and was a former teacher, in 2019. Abba Moro who previously served as Minister of Interior in the Jonathan government from 2011 to 2015, won a second term at the 2023 general elections and remains substantive Senator for “Benue Zone C.” He is indeed incumbent Minority Leader of the Senate, and thus a principal officer in the leadership scheme of the “red chambers.”
While Moro is barely two years into his second term, there are suggestions that he is interested in a third term which should run from 2027 to 2031! This is the core issue which has dominated contemporary political discourse in Benue South, especially from the Apa/Agatu bloc. For Apa/Agatu, it is bad enough that they are repeatedly bypassed in the nomination of deputy governors in the scheme of state politics. It is worse that they are equally subjugated by their own kinsmen within the context of politics in *Idoma and Igede land.* This is particularly worrying when both local government areas constituting the Apa/Agatu federal constituency, Apa and Agatu, are not in anyway deficient in human resources to represent Benue South. Names like John Elaigwu Odogbo, the incumbent *Och’Idoma* and respected clergy; Isa Innocent Ekoja, renowned Professor and Librarian; Sonny Togo Echono, FNIA, OON, Executive Secretary, Tertiary Education Trust Fund, (TETFUND), and John Mgbede, Emeritus State Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP), Benue State, readily come to mind.
Major General R.I. Adoba, (rtd), a former Chief Training and Operations in the Nigerian Army; Professor Emmanuel Adanu, former Director of the Kaduna-based National Water Resources Institute, (NWRI) and the US-based specialist in internal medicine, Dr Raymond Audu, are eminent Apa/Agatu constituents. There are also Ada Egahi, long-serving technocrat who retired from the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency, (NPHDA), and Super Eagles forward, Moses Simon, (why not, hasn’t the retired soccer star, George Opong Weah just completed his term as President of Liberia)? The Member Representing Apa/Agatu in the House of Representatives, Godday Samuel Odagboyi, an office previously held by Solomon Agidani, as well as Adamu Ochepo Entonu, is, like his predecessors, a prominent figure from the resourceful Apa/Agatu federal constituency.
The Olofu brothers, Tony Adejoh, a retired Assistant Inspector General of Police, (AIG), and David, PhD, a renowned management and financial strategist, who is also an Emeritus Member of the Benue State Executive Council during the Ortom dispensation, are from the same federal constituency. So is Abu Umoru, a serial entrepreneur who represents Apa State Constituency in the Benue State House of Assembly. The continuing intra-zonal alienation of Apa-Agatu from the politics of Benue Zone C, remains a sore thumb which must be clinically diagnosed and intentionally treated in the run-up to 2027.
If previous top level political office holders from Idomaland in general and Apa/Agatu in particular, had diligently applied themselves to tangible, multisectoral development of the zone and constituency, the present clamour for inclusiveness would probably been less vociferous. *River Agatu* which flows from Kogi State, and runs through Agatu before emptying into *River Benue,* is a potential game changer in the socioeconomy of Apa/Agatu, Benue South and Benue State in general. Properly harnessed, it can revolutionise agriculture and aquaculture in the state, beyond subsistence levels which are the primary vocations of the indigenous people. Rice, yam, guinea corn, millet and similar grains, thrive in the fertile soils of the area. These can support “first level” processing of produce and guarantee value addition beneficial to the primary producers, before being shipped to other markets. River Agatu can indeed be dammed to provide hydro-electricity to power the entire gamut of Idomaland.
The infrastructure deficit in Benue South with specific reference to Apa/Agatu is equally very concerning. A notable pattern in Nigerian politics is its self-centeredness, the penchant for political players to prioritise their personal wellbeing and the development of their immediate space. This has accentuated the ever recurring desire of people to ascend the political pedestals of their predecessors if that is the principal window by which they can also privilege their own primary constituents. Motorable roads are non-existent, seamless travel between communities therefore encumbered. Expectedly this has been a major impediment to subsistent trade and social engagements between constituents and their kinsmen. Primary health facilities are almost non-existent, compelling people to flock to Otukpo, headquarters of Benue South, for the minutest of medical advice and treatment.
Apa/Agatu pitiably bleeds from the relentless and condemnable activities of vagrants and bandits who have reduced the constituency into a killing field. Reports suggest that in the past 15 years, no less than 2500 lives were lost to the vicious attacks of marauders and trespassers in the area under reference. This unnerving situation has compelled engagements between concerned Apa/Agatu leaders, and the leadership of the Nigeria Police Force, (NPF). The prayer is for the swift establishment of a mobile police outpost in the troubled sub-zone to contain bloodletting. The proposal, anchored by AIG Tony Olofu, NPOM, (rtd), and Echono, has received the blessings of the police high command. At the last update, a commander for the outfit had been named, while the deployment of personnel had begun in earnest.
It is very clear that in the march towards 2027, Apa/Agatu will refuse, very vehemently, to be sidelined and trampled upon in the political scheme of their senatorial zone. Abba Moro may desire a third term in the Senate, but the people of Apa/Agatu are quick to remind him that his curriculum vitae as a politician is sufficiently sumptuous for him to yield the seat in the “red chambers” and sit back like an elder statesman. They remind you that for a man who began his working life modestly as a lecturer in the Federal Polytechnic, Ugbokolo in 1991, Abba Moro has done extremely well for himself in Nigerian politics. For reminders, Abba Moro was elected Chairman of Okpokwu local government in the state as far back as 1998. Ever since, he has remained a permanent fixture in Nigeria’s national politics.
The people of Apa/Agatu will put up a determined fight for the Benue South senatorial seat in 2027, and no one should begrudge them. They are the proverbial ram which was pushed to the wall, which must of necessity push back with angered horns to liberate itself. They are already engaging with their kith across “Benue Zone C” to ensure that intra-zonal equity, fairness and justice, prevails in communal politics.

Tunde Olusunle, PhD, Fellow of the Association of Nigerian Authors, (FANA), teaches Creative Writing at the University of Abuja

Opinion

The Prince Adebayo prescriptions for ease of doing Business: 15 Take-Aways

Published

4 days ago

January 14, 2025

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By Dr. Ag Zaki

On Thursday, 9 January 2025, Prince Adewole Adebayo presented a keynote address at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos. The occasion was the annual conference of a group of professionals, business executives and experts codenamed J9C for January 9 Collective. The theme of the Conference was “Business and Policy Strategy: Examining the Role of Reform in enhancing the ease of doing business in Nigeria.” Prince Adebayo is a versatile cerebral man of many parts, a lawyer, a multimedia practitioner, a real estate investor, a large-scale miner, a philanthropist, a community developer, and the 2023 Presidential Candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP). The organisers of the J9C conference introduced him as an intercontinental lawyer because he currently practices law in over sixteen countries.

The full speech of Prince Adebayo at the occasion is available online and can be accessed by clicking at this url: https://youtu.be/SsHkcJbVNRg?si=ebvoOVqGh0zVOsnt or by scanning the QR code above. However, we are presenting the salient take-aways from this most incisive keynote address below for the convenience of interested persons and for the public good.

THE TAKE-AWAYS
Preamble
1. Not every change of policy or programme is a reform. A reform is a fundamental change in the activities, programmes, and policies structured to cause improvement. Genuine government reforms are people oriented and so citizens can interject, comment or contribute.
2. Reform may be internally motivated, externally forced or imposed, or technological driven.
3. The government of Nigeria must first reform itself to be able to implement development-oriented reforms to improve the country’s economic performance.

In general terms
4. Fiscal and monetary reforms are critical and are urgently required in Nigeria. While government can freely control its fiscal reforms, it must be bound by market forces for realistic and realisable monetary reforms.
5. Economic reforms must positively affect developmental policies, programmes and projects to engender economic growth, increase in efficiency, and lead to stability. Economic and political reforms must be implemented pari-passu for untainted policies and programmes.
6. Urgent structural reforms are required in areas of legal reforms, laws on banking controls and regulations, lending and borrowing as well as land matters.

In specific terms
7. Reforms which are aimed at targeting ease of doing business must be aligned with the Malam Aminu Kano maxim that “all civil servants should abstain from contracts or business”.
8. Nigeria must break the current odious and unwholesome conspiracies between policy makers, civil servants, and contractors, which can lead to irreversible endemic corruption, long foreseen by the revered Malam Aminu Kano, and which can permanently damage the economy.
9. Structural reforms must ensure that land laws open up maximum benefits and potentials of the land, encourage labour productivity and efficient and transparent entrepreneurship rules including registration, capital and lending matters.
10. Tax reforms should be broad-based, not about sharing of revenue but promoting productivity and competitiveness in all aspects of endeavours and infrastructure reforms should make transportation of people and goods safe and cost effective.
11. Monitoring economic crimes must be thorough and should go beyond arresting of “Yahoo boys” and those spraying Naira notes, but those devaluing the Naira and abusing economic rules and regulations.

Warnings
12. Adebayo left some stern terse warnings for the business sector and for the government of Nigeria.
13. Business executives and professionals should not ask or encourage government for specific reforms but for general broad-based reforms as firm-specific reforms can enhance operations of specific firms or business in the short term but will ultimately kill the industry.
14. Government should not meddle into business or be guided by partisan businessmen; government should meet business only at the junction of regulatory framework.
15. Government should be selfless and honest in carrying out reforms, incorporate measurable performance indices and ensure that reforms are implemented in a way not to inflict pains or punishment on the people.

# DrZaki25, 903 Tafawa Balewa Way, Abuja

Opinion

Governor Monday Okpebholo: A Blessing to Edo State

Published

5 days ago

January 13, 2025

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Monday Okpebholo

By Eigbefo Felix

His Excellency, Senator Monday Okpebholo, the Executive Governor of Edo State, has demonstrated that he is a blessing to the state through his policies, appointments, initiation of road construction across the three senatorial districts, and his deep love for the people of Edo State.

Governor Monday Okpebholo has begun fulfilling the five-point agenda he promised the good people of the state since his inauguration.

In the area of security, he has shown total commitment. He assured the people of Edo State that he would ensure their safety, and true to his word, the state remains peaceful, which has brought joy to its residents. He has provided the necessary support to security personnel.

The governor increased the subvention for Ambrose Alli University (AAU) from ₦40 million to ₦500 million. He also promised to address the issues facing AAU medical students. Additionally, he has started renovating primary and secondary schools across the state, underscoring his understanding of the importance of education.

The agricultural sector has taken a positive turn as Governor Okpebholo has allocated ₦70 billion to the sector. Recognizing agriculture’s importance to both the state and the nation, he is positioning Edo State to become the food basket of the nation with his investments in the sector.

During the electioneering period, Senator Okpebholo promised to create 5,000 jobs within his first 100 days in office. He has already begun the process, and soon, the people of Edo State will benefit from these employment opportunities. Unlike in the past, he will not rely on MOUs before making appointments. Furthermore, he has started appointing Edo State indigenes, rather than outsiders, to various positions.

Governor Okpebholo has commenced road projects across the state, from Edo South to Edo Central and Edo North. He believes that when roads are motorable, the prices of goods in the market will automatically reduce.

He has also begun investing in the health sector, understanding its critical importance to the people of Edo State.

Governor Monday Okpebholo’s initiatives and actions affirm his dedication to transforming Edo State for the better.