Police Brutality And The Rest Of Us

People protest at the Ikoku Spare Parts Market, Mile 2, Diobu, Port Harcourt, accusing the police in Rivers State for the death of Chima Ikwunado who died from his injuries while in custody of the Eagles Crack Squad, a police unit in Port Harcourt stationed in Mile One. Image via BBC

BY AMIEYEOFORI IBIM

On December 23 last year, Chima Ikwunado, an automobile mechanic based in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, died in the custody of the Nigerian Police few days after he was apprehended by the police who whisked him away alongside four other colleagues after they reportedly failed to meet “bribe” demanded from them. Chima was allegedly killed by some policemen, after undergoing “severe torture in their custody”.

Victor Ogbonna, one of the victims arrested alongside the deceased, said “They tortured Chima, broke his legs and Chima died in pain. They (police) hung Chima in the air for two hours and went on patrol, only to return afterwards to lose him. By then, he merely fell down like a cocoyam, already dead,” “So, they took him inside their vehicle and drove off. Chima died on December 23, according to what the boys told me.”

The case of Chima is one out of the avalanche of incidents of torture and ill-treatment of suspects held in the custody of the police. Victims and witnesses have disclosed at several fora that the forms of torture and other ill-treatment committed by the police included the tying of arms and legs tightly behind the body, suspension by hands and legs from the ceiling or a pole, repeated and severe beatings with metal or wooden objects (including planks of wood, iron bars, and cable wire), resting of concrete blocks on the arms and back while suspended, spraying of tear gas on the face and eyes, rape of and other sexual violence against female detainees, use of pliers or electric shocks on the penis, shooting on the foot or leg, stoning, death threats, slapping and kicking with hands and boots and denial of food and water.

A 23-three year-old man who was arrested by the police in Enugu described his mal-treatment to Human Rights Watch thus: “They handcuffed me and tied me with my hands behind my knees, a wooden rod behind my knees, and hung me from hooks on the wall, like goal posts. Then, they started beating me. They got a broomstick hair [bristle] and inserted it into my penis until there was blood coming out. Then, they put tear gas powder in a cloth and tied it round my eyes. They said they were going to shoot me unless I admitted I was the robber. This went on for four hours.”

In another account, a 36-year-old trader who was detained at the Kano police headquarters told researchers: “Our arms were tied with handcuffs. One at a time we were hung by a chain from the ceiling fan hook. I was the first. They started beating me with a yam pounder, saying I should confess for the robbery. I didn’t know what they were talking about. I was beaten, beaten, beaten. They beat my knees, the soles of my feet, my back and my joints. This went on for 25 minutes. I was beaten too much. I shit and piss while I was hanging. Then, I became unconscious.”

One factor is clear, The Police disregard for due process of law, which fuels the abuse of power, is characteristic to all the cases. Amongst the main concerns are deliberate practice of not informing suspects of the reasons for their arrest, lack of legal representation, prolonged pre-trial detention and acceptance by Magistrates and Judges of confessions that were extracted under torture.

Impunity among men of the Nigerian Police is one of the biggest single obstacles to the reduction of torture and other serious abuses by the police in Nigeria. Deeply engrained societal attitudes that accept police torture and other abuses as legitimate tools to combat crime help sustain this impunity. For many Nigerians who have experienced decades of oppression and brutality by military rulers, the use of violence by the institutions of the state is often accepted, even seen as normal.

Even when they know the police action is wrong, indeed illegal, the victims seem utterly powerless to seek redress. The fact that in all but a handful of cases, there was no accountability for violations committed by the individual police officer, no doubt embolden the perpetrators and has perpetuated the culture of violence in the Nigerian Police Force. Also, victims of police torture who attempt to attain accountability face numerous obstacles.

Official channels for registering complaints, such as the Police Complaints Bureau and the National Human Rights Commission, are acutely under-resourced and lack political support. In addition, the failure to carry out legally required inquests and autopsies on suspects who died in custody further impedes accountability. In the unlikely event that a legal case is brought against an officer, obstruction or lack of co-operation from the police and connivance with the lower cadres of the judiciary ensure that prosecution is rare.

National efforts to reform the police have, to date, been largely symbolic and consistently failed to prioritise human rights issues, including torture. An ambitious new program, launched by the Inspector General of Police, which offered some hope that more comprehensive and meaningful reform is at last being considered has not yielded the desired result.

A review of the Police Act will certainly be a welcome opportunity to bring the laws governing the police into line with international standards, particularly the inclusion of a code of conduct that specifically prohibits the use of torture. However, whether the police leadership can rise to the challenge and contest the many vested interests opposing change – both from inside the police force and in the wider environment – squarely lies with President Muhammadu Buhari.

The international community, in particular the British and United States governments, both of whom have since 1999 invested millions of dollars into developing the Nigerian Police Force, must also take a stronger stance to pressure the Nigerian government to bring about an end to the torture of detainees, address impunity for police abuses and bring about genuine reforms.

Both governments have repeatedly assured human rights propagators that they are voicing concerns about human rights issues with the Nigerian authorities. However, this approach has proven to be largely ineffective as police abuses, including routine torture, persist.

Therefore, the British and the U.S. governments should at the very least condition continue the financial assistance, equipment and training they provide to the Nigerian police. Also, the British and U.S. governments should come forth to publicly denounce torture and killings by the Nigerian Police Force.

Imo: A State In Need Of Functional Health Facility

Imo State University Teaching Hospital, Orlu.

BY STEVE UZOECHI

The immediate past administration boasted about building one General Hospital in each of the 27 Local Government Areas of Imo State. The projects could not be completed for the eight years duration of the Rochas Okorocha’s administration. Today, save for the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Owerri, Imo is in the dark, healthcare wise. STEVE UZOECHI reports from Owerri

The night was thick with trepidation and the feeling of helplessness, asphyxiating. From anxiety, it was utter gloom as loved ones waited with bated breath. Eventually, the long wait had come to an end with the shattering pronouncement by the doctors that Ndubuisi Emenike was dead.

Then, the wailing began; tears flowed freely as even men cried.

Men consoled men as women let down their hairs and wept inconsolably. It was a sight no one would wish to re-live in a long time.

It was a Sunday, January 26, 2020 and would for a long time be remembered by the political class in Okigwe senatorial zone and indeed the people of Imo State.

Between 6pm and 7.30pm of that night, the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Owerri was literally ‘flooded’ by politicians of all shades, businessmen, high-equity individuals from different walks of life, stakeholders from Imo North and of course, the ‘everyday’ Nigerians resident in Owerri, the Imo State capital; all of who had dashed to the FMC, Owerri, in the hope that there may be some help they could render to save the life of Chief Ndubuisi Emenike, the renowned philanthropist and a senatorial candidate of the Action Alliance political party for the Imo North(Okigwe Zone) senatorial election.

In an alleged case of ‘accidental discharge’ or perhaps celebratory gunshots (friendly fire), Emenike had been shot by an officer of the National Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and was rushed to the hospital, but did not make it out alive.

It was such a heart-rending way to die, for a man who had saved many lives, paid hospital bills for many, built houses, awarded scholarships and had in more ways than can be remembered, given value to humanity.

As sad as it is, not a few persons believe it was an avoidable death given the fact that it was not a head-shot or heart-shot that killed Emenike but a shot fired around the abdominal region.

They averred that what eventually may have killed the chieftain after all, may be the absence of a functional health facility around the area where the shooting took place, which is Isiala Mbano council area.

A senior medical practitioner, Dr. Hyacinth Emele, maintained that distance to the nearest medical facility may have been the undoing of the late Chieftain.

He said: “Most times, when people are shot, bleeding is what kills them. If a major vessel is hit by the bullet and it triggers torrential haemorrhage, the victim needs to be rushed to a hospital as soon as possible, not farther than five or 10 minutes from the place of incident. What needs to be done is to stop the bleeding fast. Usually when they are brought in as emergency, you see the medical personnel going straight to where the person was shot to put something there to stop the bleeding and that is how most of them are saved.

“But for a longer journey, perhaps with a major vessels affected, bleeding does a lot of damage. Usually, when they are brought in, most vital signs like the heart rate and pulse rate may not be obvious anymore and that may be indicative of internal bleeding. Such patients are wheeled straight into the theatre and opened up so that the bleeding can be stopped immediately depending on how much can be salvaged owing to the distance travelled.

“It is apparent that the distance travelled by the late Chieftain did not do him any good; the distance could actually be a major cause of his death because by the time they would have travelled to Owerri from Isiala Mbano council area, he would have bled into shock.”

As for abdominal shots, Emele said that victims of abdominal shots are often saved if intervention is timely.

“It is possible to survive abdominal shots. If it affects a major organ or vessel, then speed and timely intervention become expedient. For shots that affect the Femural vessel for instance; without swift and expert intervention, the patient will bleed to death”, Emele said.

When Ndubuisi Emenike was shot at Isiala Mbano, there was evidently no hospital within the vicinity or neighbouring community competent to offer basic medical intervention and stabilize him before onward journey to FMC Owerri for comprehensive treatment.

After the incident, Emenike was first rushed to the St. Mary’s Hospital Umunachi in Isiala Mbano but there was literally nothing the hospital could do for him and accordingly, they referred him to FMC, Owerri.

He was then ferried to the state capital, traversing at least two Local Government Areas before arriving the FMC, Owerri.

The question on the lips of every resident of Imo State is what became of the 27 new general hospitals for which budgetary provisions were made for several years.

The 27 new general hospitals were supposedly spread out across the 27 council areas of Imo State. What happened to the new general hospital supposedly built in Isiala Mbano and Ehime Mbano?

Ironically, for the eight years Senator Rochas Okorocha was in office as governor of Imo State, he did not complete the said general hospitals while perpetually listing them as one of his achievements in office.

The general hospitals became issues of political campaign described as an ambitious futuristic project by Okorocha’s loyalists while many other residents of Imo State, who were aware of the real status of the new general hospitals have dismissed same as a white elephant projects.

Okorocha inherited 11 general hospitals; the Imo State University Teaching Hospital and hundreds of health centres, yet for eight years, none of these were enhanced or improved upon to render the deserved healthcare services to the people.

From the records, Imo has a total of 1338 health facilities across the 27 LGAs; 805 of these are primary health facilities with 416 of the primary health facilities being publicly owned while 389 are privately owned.

The state also has about 531 Secondary health facilities with 19 being publicly owned while 512 are privately owned.

There was no evident effort from the Okorocha administration to improve on what he met on ground so that Imo people could access qualitative healthcare. Instead, he embarked on a fresh project of building 27 new general hospitals without, at least, standardizing one existing hospital to serve the Imo populace while his dream hospitals were underway.

Not even the Imo State University Teaching Hospital, Orlu, got the deserved attention. Instead, according to Governor Hope Uzodinma, the MRI machines procured by previous administrations for the Teaching Hospital were removed and taken to the Ochiedike Diagnostic Centre, Owerri, which at the time, was allegedly being run by Okorocha like a private enterprise.

Without completing and delivering any of the said new general hospitals, Okorocha still claimed he had spent a whopping N27billion in all the 27 uncompleted hospital projects.

While on the 27 new general hospital adventure, Okorocha had leased the 11 general hospitals he met to a private firm, Messrs Lantech Solutions Ltd and shortly after, the general hospitals were virtually grounded and abandoned with workers owed as much as eight months salaries.

The former governor apparently saw more of profits in health care service delivery than the humane and compassionate service it is.

To further deepen the woes of the health sector in Imo State, Okorocha aborted a $32million ultra-modern hospital project, revoked the land for the project and reallocated same to a petroleum dealer for a Petroleum Filling Station.

A Neurosurgeon, Prof. Philip Njemanze said: “Many Nigerian medical doctors overseas, at home and other investors had come together to establish a state-of-the-art hospital in Imo which would be the first of eight hospitals proposed by the group, but former Governor Okorocha stood against the project while many states would have been willing to offer us land for free.

“By now, the hospital, a $32million investment would have been functional. It was designed a paperless hospital with capacities for complex surgeries including heart and brain surgeries. The hospital was also designed to have a helipad for an emergency response helicopter. We had procured the land, done all the survey and feasibility studies. In fact, we had spent money in the neighbourhood of $18million before Okorocha illegally revoked the land, and destroyed the structures already put in place. He went ahead to reallocate the land for a petrol filling station. Nevertheless, we have won the case in court and hopefully there will be the enforcement of the judgment.”

Commenting on the death of Ndubuisi Emenike, Njemanze said it was the lack of emergency response system in the state that led to the death of the Chieftain.

He said: “How could you drive an emergency case of that nature through our dilapidated road networks for that long and not end up doing more damage than good. What the young man needed at the time was swift response and timely medical intervention, and not a long journey. A helicopter would have brought him to safety in no time as his treatment would have started right inside the chopper. You cannot run a country or state without an emergency response system. It is not the fault of the FMC, Owerri that he died but the leaders that failed to do what is right and needful for its citizens.”

He added: “I drafted a bill on emergency response for the state and I remember I took the proposal to former Governor Okorocha who told me to meet with him in his country home, Ogboko and he just trashed the proposal. He simply told me it was not what he wanted to do, that he had bought 15 ambulances for emergency and that was all. I couldn’t believe my ears.”

Without further gilding the lilies, Imo still bleeds from a total lack of functional health system.

The sad reality is that the Federal Medical Centre, Owerri, which is a tertiary health institution is the only competitively functional health facility in Imo State.

Consequently, the FMC is overtly burdened as it solely dispenses healthcare services for primary, secondary and tertiary health needs which was not the original intendment of its founders.

The reality is that the primary and secondary health care systems in Imo State have totally collapsed and rather than hasten to its intervention, the former governor spent eight years executing building contracts only to leave behind 27 uncompleted buildings as 27 general hospitals.

Since, after Okorocha’s eight years in office, Imo is yet to have a governor who has settled-in to design a new health masterplan for the state. This is largely due to the political controversy that has dogged the seat of power in Imo State. And this was the situation when Ndubuisi Emenike died.

The Encyclopaedia Britannica defines a hospital as “An institution that is built, staffed, and equipped for diagnosis of disease; for the treatment, both medical and surgical, of the sick and the injured; and for their housing during this process. The modern hospital also often serves as a centre for investigation and for teaching.”

Suffice it to say that if there were 27 new general hospitals built and functional in Imo State, Emenike would not have died.

The newly 27 general hospitals could not save Ndubuisi Emenike because they were non-existent.

SOURCE: NEW TELEGRAPH

INTERVIEW: Talking African Literature With Chigozie Obioma

Chigozie Obioma. Image: Facebook

BY KOUROSH ZIABARI

African literature has attracted immense international interest in recent years, and a number of “Afropolitan” icons and rising stars have won acclaim from critics and literary festivals.

Yet most reading lists released by major newspapers and journals are still disproportionately Western-centric, and African literature lacks enough media attention. Despite this, more avid readers across the globe are getting to know names such as Nuruddin Farah, Alain Mabanckou, Ben Okri, Aminatta Forna and Chigozie Obioma, marking the diversification of the literary taste of millennial bibliophiles.

Literature originating from Africa often delves into the legacy of colonialism, sheds light on the tyranny of capital over labor, recounts the identity crisis that many Africans battle with, and represents the unheard voices of ordinary people and unsung heroes.

Chigozie Obioma is a 33-year-old Nigerian novelist and writer who has earned global recognition after publishing three books at such a young age. In 2015 and 2019, he was nominated for the Man Booker Prize. Time magazine described his novel “An Orchestra of Minorities” as a “mystical epic” that confirms his “place among a raft of literary stars.” The Guardian referred to him as the “heir to Chinua Achebe” who is “a good writer whose work has a deeply felt authenticity, combined with old-fashioned storytelling.”

Obioma is currently an assistant professor of literature and creative writing at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in the US.

In this edition of The Interview, Fair Observer talks to Obioma about his career, novels and the representation of colonialism in African literature.

The transcript has been edited for clarity.

Kourosh Ziabari: In “An Orchestra of Minorities,” you depict the ordeal of an unassuming poultry farmer who falls in love with a pharmacy student hailing from a prosperous family. In order to impress the parents of his beloved woman, he sells his entire belongings to take up a position at a northern Cypriot university and fund his studies. Shortly after arriving in Cyprus, he realizes that the middlemen who had promised him a university placement had tricked him and that there was no position available for him at the college whatsoever. Is this suffering a situation that many young Nigerians go through? While crafting the novel, was it your intention to raise awareness of this challenge faced by Nigerians?

Chigozie Obioma: Yes, I always say that fiction is a medium that takes lived experience and molds it into something that can become so new [that] those who have lived the experience may not even recognize it. Even more so, this novel covers how African migrants are treated in the West quite a bit, but people rarely talk about how we are treated in countries outside of the west.

It is, of course, a shame that the selfish culture of African politicians leaves their states in catastrophic states, but when these migrants go to places like India, Turkey, Cyprus, Mexico and other places, they face inhuman treatments. I myself lived in North Cyprus for five years and the travails of Chinonso, the protagonist of the novel, are similar to what I and others experienced. I wrote about my own ordeal in an essay earlier this year for the Paris Review.

Ziabari: In an interview, you said you wanted to chronicle the landmarks of Igbo history and civilization in the “Orchestra,” including the encounter with the Portuguese in the 15th century and the Nigerian Civil War. Do you think your readers have been able to absorb the historical messages you planned to share with them or is it that this pedagogic effort has been overshadowed by the supremacy of the storyline and the ups and downs of the life of Chinonso, his quest for excellence and his love journey?

Obioma: I think that this being a work of fiction rather than non-fiction — I could, for instance, have elected to simply write a historical book — I had to layer the historical portions around a particular story. So, both of them, I hope, go together. The historical portions of the novel are organic to the narrator, for it is the voice of a god. Thus, through its testimony about itself and its host, it also describes the world as it has experienced it over these many centuries.

Ziabari: You consider yourself an ontologist interested in the metaphysics of being and existence. The themes of fate, destiny and sublimity are often missing in the majority of novels written today, but you explore these territories in your fiction extensively. Do you think this approach to existence is what is winning you popularity and helping your work stand out among hundreds of novels by major literary figures?

Obioma: I am not sure why my novels have received some recognition, but I agree that the themes I have focused on are mostly marginal and not often what many writers consider. One of the reasons why I have focused on fate and destiny is because my people, the West Africans, think mostly in these terms. I want to capture the essence of their common worldview.

It is also because Nigeria to me is a paradox. This is a country that could be rich but is poor. There are, of course, deep philosophical reasons why this is so. But on the surface, that paradox stings and stares at you in the face, and it haunts my mind. This makes one ponder things that are subterranean to the consciousness — things that seems to lie beneath the surface and have no easy answers. The meaning of life, the “metaphysics of being and existence” as I always put it, is one such quandary.

Ziabari: You’ve implied on a number of occasions that your relationship with your homeland of Nigeria is a capricious one. On the one hand, it is the home that sends you away because of its lack of provisions and opportunities. On the other, it is the home that embraces you when you return from the US. Is it realistic to say your novels are partly inspired by your own story and your special connection with “home”?

Obioma: Capricious indeed! But I am wedded to it. The truth is that I am a reluctant exile in America. I wish I could live in Nigeria, frankly. That is my home. That’s where I live untrammeled, without any fear of being an immigrant or a racial minority. It is where my ancestors lived and died, and the place whose food I love to eat. But yet, I feel I cannot live there.

There is a wall that has come between my home and me, and it is a wall I do not have the courage to scale. [In a recent interview, I talked of] how this shapes the tone of my fiction in that it often leads to a sort of “tragic vision” which comes about out of the sadness of writing about Nigeria. I said there that such writing is a masochistic act because “Nigeria riles me, wounds me, and heals me at the same time. I love it entirely and loathe it at the same time, and in that kind of relationship, a certain form of despair often gets hold of the mind. My writing is sometimes an effort to rid myself of that despair through the joy of artistic creation. The witness borne then, if I might say, is a witness to my own surrendering to a light that emerges from my own darkness, and in that light, I am refreshed and made alive.”

Ziabari: Why do you think so few prominent writers have shed light on chi in Igbo cosmology and that old African cultural heritage is neglected by the youth? Do you consider the postcolonial influence of the West on Nigeria to be a negative one?

Obioma: I think many African writers and thinkers have tried to encourage an embrace of our heritage. There was Chinua Achebe, for instance, but also, to some extent, Wole Soyinka. The purpose for me is to reassure our identity as people who had some culture and civilization prior to the coming of the West. I think because of colonialism and slavery, followed by the underdevelopment of most African countries, there has set in this self-damaging inferiority complex — the idea that we are no good.

I was in Abuja around two years ago and some people were debating on national radio whether we should be recolonized. Now, this is a mistake. We only need to learn history, to look back at the sophisticated sociopolitical systems we had, the economic systems, the egalitarian political structures to see that precolonial Africa was not one night from which the West rescued us. I think without this reassurance, this strengthening of our identity, this solving of our identity crisis, we cannot recover.

Ziabari: Your debut novel, “The Fishermen,” was acclaimed by critics and shortlisted for a 2015 Man Booker Prize. Why do you think the novel captured so much attention and elicited positive reactions globally, considering that it was your first novel? Many aspiring writers, who happen to write captivating novels, struggle for years to win publicity for their work. What was the key to the success of “The Fishermen” as a debut?

Obioma: If I knew the reason why anyone enjoyed my work, I would be very glad. I think, humbly, it is simply to work hard and believe in the vision you have for a particular project and to be true to that vision. I have always wanted to write a novel about siblinghood and that celebrates family and consanguinity. I think that is what “The Fishermen” does well above anything else.

In that sense, it has universal appeal and touches on aspects of humanity that are recognizable and relatable. I also often think that there is something profoundly human about the relationship between the four brothers and how, just by speaking words, a stranger could cause an irreparable fracture between them. I think this is what many readers — across the 30 or so countries where the book has been published — connect with.

Ziabari: You once said that you wouldn’t have written “The Fishermen” if you hadn’t moved to Cyprus to study. How did being based in Cyprus influence your understanding of Nigeria? Do you ascribe the creation of “The Fishermen” to homesickness that possibly invigorated your sense of belonging to Nigeria?

Obioma: An Igbo proverb says that we hear the sound of the udu drum clearer from a distance rather than from being close by it. This is very true of writing. When I am in a place or close to a place, it is often difficult to imagine it fully. But when I am separated from a place and have distance from it, I am better able to see it, to fully conceive it imaginatively. Since fiction is all about creativity anyway — the invention of the nonexistent — trusting in hindsight.

If I sat across from you at a cafe and I was to describe that moment on the spot, I would write about the obvious things you did. But if I lie down in my bed later that night and the light was off and I closed my eyes, the fine-grain details will trickle in. I will remember the unobvious things, the person scratching their wrist, or hawking into a napkin — those fine details that enrich fiction. It is when the person is gone and the meeting has ended and the day is forgotten that things become closer, clearer.

Ziabari: Many critics have compared you to the legendary Chinua Achebe and called you his successor. Does it make you feel proud to be compared to Achebe in the eyes of noted literati and authors? Do you personally admire Achebe’s work?

Obioma: In some ways, “The Fishermen” shares an affinity with“Things Fall Apart,” Achebe’s seminal work. Achebe wrote “Things Fall Apart” to document the fall of the Igbo civilization, the African civilization or culture. I am looking at a more specific fall of Nigeria — of our civilization, too, but in relation to Nigeria specifically. So, it’s a similar project. And in the ways in which Achebe tried to reveal the Igbo civilization to his readers, and “An Orchestra of Minorities” does a similar job.

Ziabari: A final question. Where do you think African literature, in general, and the literature of Nigeria, in particular, are heading? Should we expect more Man Booker and Nobel nominations?

Obioma: Ah, I hope so of course. I think African literature is in good shape. There are wonderful writers popping up here and there, and I won’t be surprised if we have more nominations and wins.

INTERVIEW: ‘Uzodinma Can’t Run Away From Engaging Different Groups In Imo’

Imo State Governor Hope Uzodinma

Nseobong Okon-Ekong dialogues with Chief Longers Anyanwu, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress on expectations from Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State

EXCERPT:

As an insider of the APC decision-making clique are you aware of pressure on Governor Hope Uzodinma to extract certain compromise from him?

The so called pressure to extract special considerations by some power cliques from Governor Uzodinma is a common knowledge to all and sundry in the state. It has become a common knowledge to the people. I guess that’s why the new governor is being careful in who and whom to associate with in order not to allow them infest him with the virus of public opprobrium.
But I can truely confirm to you that there are some powerful clique here and there determined to arm twist the governor to bow to their whims and caprices without consideration to the wishes and aspirations of the overall Ìmo people. The governor should not fall for such heinous trap.

How would you advise the Imo State Governor to engage the contending interests like the former Action Alliance (AA) candidate, Uche Nwosu and Godwin Araraume of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) who could have played the spoiler but allowed him a relatively smooth sail?

In a complex state like Ìmo, there’s no way the governor will run away from engaging with different with groups no matter their colour and shape. But he has to be at his best having the fear of God and in respect to the overriding sensibilities of Ìmo people. All the political parties and leaders you mentioned are all members of APC who left in pursuit of their individual ambitions as a result of the ‘macabre’ dance that ensued as a result of the implosion in APC before the gubernatorial primaries and elections. He has to accommodate all particularly those who genuinely want reconciliation.

Managing the different blocs within the APC in Imo State may be a major headache for the Governor, would it better for him to face governance squarely and allow the party chieftains to manage the intrigues within the party?

I totally agree with you. Politics and party intrigue is over. People should allow him concentrate on good governance delivery.

Imo State will now have an off-season governorship election, is that some kind of comforting news to the APC? Can this be exploited to an advantage?

No matter what season you fix elections it’s only God that’s the final arbiter. It doesn’t matter really the only thing is that it removes some pressure from the governor. However, it has its own attraction of eliciting national attention. I think the only panecea is to give people good governance. Simple.

What does the APC need to do to retain its winning edge?

APC under Governor Hope Uzodinma is sure-footed in Ìmo state now with his emergence. Senator Uzodinma, the governor is a consummate politician. You ignore him to your own peril. He is a party man per excellence. The greatest advantage APC will enjoy under his leadership is a generic growth of APC in the entire South-east. Watch out Igbo politicians will now join APC under his leadership because Uzodinma is a leader who knows how to work with everyone.

As you can see in the State House of Assembly, upon the emergence of Sen Uzodinma as governor all the members defected to APC. The PDP state chairman resigned.

SOURCE: THIS DAY LIVE

Who Are Giannis Antetokounmpo's Parents?

Giannis Antetokonumpo and his parents

BY ZACK WILLIS

The Antetokounmpo family has a lot to be thankful for. Not only is Giannis the reigning MVP and leader of the league-best Milwaukee Bucks, but older brother Thanasis plays alongside him and Kostas has been in and out of the Lakers lineup all season.

None of this would’ve been possible without the support of their parents. The Antetokounmpo brothers have been vocal about this since they entered the NBA.

Charles and Veronica Antetokounmpo were both born and raised in Nigeria and emigrated to Greece early on, reports the Olympic Channel. As struggling immigrants, the Antetokounmpo family had to put up with a lot of racism and other hurdles, but this helped drive them toward the NBA.

The family’s Nigerian roots helped anchor their lives at home. In a country that treated them like they were unwanted, the family remembered its roots as it experienced everyday life. Giannis spoke about his home with The Undefeated.

“Obviously, I was born in Greece and went to school in Greece. But at the end of the day when I go home, there is no Greek culture,” Giannis said. “It’s straight-up Nigerian culture. It’s about discipline; it’s about respecting your elders, having morals.”

The Antetokounmpo parents spoke in Igbo, their native tongue, when they were at home. The family was full of perennial outsiders, but it was through basketball that they began to get noticed by those who had scorned them.

Discovering basketball

Charles and Veronica Antetokounmpo were both athletes, although neither were basketball players. Charles was a soccer player in Nigeria; Veronica was a high-jumper. So while they may not have been versed in basketball, they knew what it took to be a competitor.

Giannis’s first love wasn’t basketball. As a kid, he followed in his father’s footsteps and took a liking to soccer. The eldest brother, Francis, was also a soccer player, so the athletic genes ran in the family. Perhaps thanks to his size, however, Giannis’s interests went to the sport he’s synonymous with.

When Giannis was a teenager and got serious about basketball, his father did everything in his power to ensure his son did what he needed to do to realize his dreams. At 14 years old, Charles insisted his son take a nap on game days to keep himself refreshed for the game. It’s a tradition Giannis continues to this day.

The Antetokounmpo family has always thrived thanks to the love and support of their parents. But a personal tragedy in 2017 altered their lives forever. Charles, only 53 at the time, was taken to the hospital with severe chest pains. Ten days later, he passed away. Heartbroken, Giannis took to Instagram to eulogize his father and thank him for everything he did.

“It’s been a year daddy, so many things have happened since the day you left for a better place and I know you been watching down on us with a smile just like the one in the picture. I think about you every single day and I miss you very much but September 29th is not going to be a sad day in my calendar but a day that I cherish what a great father and role model me and my brothers have in our life. I love you very much.”

Charles’ legacy lives on through his family. Giannis’s newborn son, Liam Charles Antetokounmpo, serves as a testament to the hard work his parents instilled in their family.

Arresting Insecurity In South-East

Prof. Ben Nwabueze

BY OKEY MADUFORO

Constitutional lawyer and Chairman Igbo Leaders of Thought, Prof Ben Nwabueze, could not hide his anger over the killings in the South East when he spoke with reporters shortly after a meeting of the body.

Nwabueze alleged that the inability to fight insecurity in the zone was as a result of the fact that most of the state police Commissioners were from the North and did not understand the terrain, adding that some of them have compromised their duties as the chief law enforcers in their respective states.

He, on that day, urged the Federal Government to transfer senior police officers of Igbo extraction to their respective states in order to checkmate the killings in the five states of the South East.

While leaders of Ndigbo were still nursing the concept of a joint security outfit in Igbo land, the governors of the South West took up the initiative by launching what the Amotekun, which is currently jolting the country’s landscape.

Founding National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and National Chairman of the United Progressive Party (UPP) Chief Chekwas Okorie told this reporter that the development is an indication that the West has made a strong statement about the killings in their homes, adding that the West have declared war on all manner of brigandage being perpetrated by herdsmen and their co-travellers.

He challenged the leaders of the South East to show capacity by putting in place a foul proof plan towards guaranteeing security of life and prosperity in the geopolitical zone.

In what appears to be a pilot to the need for a regional security apparatus in the area, Present General of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Nnia Nwodo, told reporters in Enugu that the body would no longer watch their kit and kin being slaughtered by blood tasty bandits and that the body is more determined than ever to tackle the matter head long.

Nwodo urged Igbo elders to meet with them and fashion out ways of fighting violent crime in the area and that the Ohanaeze Ndigbo would give them every assistance they needed.

Consequent, the South East Governor’s Forum led by Ebonyi State Governor, Engr David Umahi had announced the formation of a Joint Task Force (JTF) on security in the area.

According to the resolution by the five governors, it has become imperative to put up a security outfit jointly sponsored by the respective governments in Igbo land.

That the South East Governors had formed their South East Joint Security on July 28, 2019 and inaugurated her Committee on Joint Security on the August 31, 2019.

The forum took briefing from the Chairman of South East Joint Security Committee and are satisfied with all the arrangement that will lead to South East State Houses of Assembly to enact a law to back up the South East Security Programme with a name to the outfit.

“Forum had written the Federal Government in this respect and at an appropriate time, we shall be inviting the Federal Government to note the details of our Joint Security Programme.

“We wish to assure our people that we have our State Vigilante and the Forest Guards in all the South East States, who work with security agencies daily in our various communities for protection of lives and property. We, again, assure our people that the protection of their lives and property is paramount to us and we are committed to just doing that.”

Ever since the pronouncement, there have been reactions and counter reactions on the subject matter as was shown by first Republic Minister for Aviation, Chief Mbazuluike Amaechi.

“Is it now that they are coming home to the issue at stake? All the same, it is morning yet on creation day and better lait than never.

“This should not be the type of lip service that we pay to highly challenging issues.

“They should draw references and ensure that the enabling law is put in place to give it the bite that it needed and we should not begin to play politics with the security of lives and prosperity.

This is not a political party thing but a turning point in the bid to protect our people and guarantee their safety at all times.”

Former Governor of Anambra State, Chief Chukwuemeka Ezeife, noted that it was not about setting up a joint task force but the execution.

“We don’t have anything against the security initiative of our governors but how they intend to carry out this task. The West took their time to assemble the concept and thoughts together before the launching and what we saw on that day shows that they mean business.

“I hope that our own will not be more of grandstanding and so much fanfare without substance and they must be seen to be doing their job effectively and efficiently.”

ARCHIVES: Nigerian Marries Peace Corps Girl...

Clement and Catherine Onyemelukwe wedding in Lagos.

DECEMBER 27, 1964

LAGOS, NIGERIA (THE NEW YORK TIMES)—The granddaughter of a prominent American banker was wed to a young Nigerian today.

In marrying ciement C. Onyemelukwe of Lagos, Catherine Danforth Zastrow, a tall blonde former Peace Corps volunteer from Fort Thomas, Ky., has joined the small but growing number of American‐Nigerian couples who have settled down to life in post‐independence Africa.

Many have encountered serious problems. All have told of difficulties in adjustment. But most of the unions have survived.

Clement Onyemelukwe was born 31 years ago in the remote town of Nanka in Nigeria's eastern region. His father, a contractor, was barely literate in English, but saved enough money to help all of his three sons work their way through college.

Mr. Onyemelukwe took degrees in engineering and economics from Leeds University and the University of London. He then joined the Electric Corporation of Nigeria— Nigeria's giant public‐owned power utility —and rose swiftly to become chief engineer of the Transmission and Distribution Division.

“This is a real Horatio Alger story,” said Peter Zastrow, the bride's father, an engineer with the American Telephone and Telegraph Company in Cincinnati.

Mrs. Onyemelukwe, born in Huntington, L. I., attended Highland's High School in Fort Thomas, which is in the Cincinnati area, and was graduated from Mount Holyoke College in 1962 She has spent the last two years with the Peace Corps teaching German at the Federal Emergency Science School in Lagos.

Her maternal grandfather, the late Herman W. Danforth, was appointed the first president of the Federal Land Bank in Woodrow Wilson's Administration in 1917. The bank was formed to grant long‐term farm mortgages

Mr. and Mrs. Onyemelukwe have confided to friends that their decision to marry was a difficult one.

There was an initially adverse reaction from parents on both sides, especially from the Onyemelukwes. They felt their son should marry someone from their home district, or at least a girl of their own Ibo tribe.

But their resistance dissolved after they came to Lagos and met Miss Zastrow shortly before she finished her Peace Corps contract and returned home to announce her engagement.

“When Cathy first broke the news,” Mr. Zastrow said, “I was intellectually for it but emotionally against it.”

This sort of thing has to happen to this generation for better relations between countries,” Mr. Zastrow said. “They are very devout Christians —more Christian than many Americans.”

Catherine Onyemelukwe is the second Peace Corps girl to wed a Nigerian out of a contingent of more than 600 volunteers, almost half of whom are women.

Among the wedding guests were Mr. and Mrs. William Saltonstall, former headmaster of Exeter Academy and now head of the Peace Corps in Nigeria.

Others in attendance included English, American, and

A Difficult Decision Nigerian business leaders here. Sir Mobolaji Bank‐Anthony, Nigeria's most prominent industrialist, was master of ceremonies at the reception on the palm‐shaded lawn of Clement Onyemelukwe's suburban home. More than 500 persons attended.

OBITUARY: ‘Father Of Electricity’ In Nigeria Dies In WestporT

Clement Onyemelukwe (1933-2020). Image: Catherine Onyeelukwe via Facebook

BY JIM SHAY

Clement Onyemelukwe, often called the “Father of Electricity” in Nigeria and first Nigerian to wed a Peace Corps volunteer, has died at age 86.

Clement Onyemelukwe, Nigerian Chief Electrical Engineer of the country's Electricity Corporation, generated international attention when he married Catherine Zastrow, a white Peace Corps volunteer, who had just completed her service in 1964.

Although his parents had rejoiced that he had returned from nine years in the United Kingdom without a foreign white wife, in 1963 he met Catherine in Lagos.

“Peace Corps Worker to Wed Nigerian Engineer,” was the headline for a brief article in The New York Times from Lagos, Nigeria on Dec. 23, 1964.

According to his death notice, interracial marriage was illegal in Kentucky which was still Catherine's U.S. residence while she was in the Peace Corps.

“When her parents returned to Kentucky after the wedding they had to change their phone number because of hate calls. The couple received telegrams from people all over the world, mostly supportive but a few critical. A photo of the wedding appeared in Life Magazine in January 1965 and was also noted in Ebony Magazine.”

Onyemelukwe initiated the planning and development of the electricity grid still used in Nigeria today when he became Chief Electrical Engineer in 1962.

He left the electricity industry to found Freeman Engineering in Lagos in 1973. In 1976 he founded Colechurch International Ltd, a project management and promotion company, in United Kingdom.

He and his wife Catherine moved to Westport in 1993.

He initially held a residence card, known as a "green card," as he was spending a good part of his time in his home country Nigeria on business.

In 2007 he finally became an American citizen. He was a speaker at the Y's Men and an active library user while working on his latest book or researching business ideas.

His wife Catherine was president of the library board in 1999-2000, prior to becoming the Director of Development for the YMCA. She is an active member of TEAM Westport and The Unitarian Church in Westport.

Onyemelukwe died Jan. 18 in his home in Westport. The cause was metastatic non-small cell, non-smoker's lung cancer.

“Clem was well loved by the community at the Unitarian Church in Westport and others,” his death notice read. “His warm smile, easy laugh, and joy in recounting stories of Nigeria made him an engaging conversationalist. He loved to discuss politics and economics with any and all!”

He is survived by his wife Catherine, their three children, Chinakueze, Elizabeth, and Samuel, and five grandchildren, Kenechi, Nkiru, Teya, Bruche and Ikem. His brother Professor Geoffrey Onyemelukwe and three sisters also survive him. He was predeceased by one brother and one sister.

His life will be celebrated on March 7, at 1 p.m., at The Unitarian Church in Westport.

He will be buried in the family compound in his ancestral village beside his parents in April.

IMO STATE: What Wrong Have We Done?

BY PROF. NATHAN UZOMA PROTUS

According to Aesop the Philosopher, “There was once a dog who used to snap at people and bite them without any provocation, and who was a great nuisance to everyone that came to his master’s house. So his master fastened a bell around his neck to warn people of his presence. The dog was very proud of the bell and strutted about tinkling it with immense satisfaction. But an old dog came up to him and said, the fewer airs you give yourself the better, my friend. You don’t think, do you think that your bell was given you as a reward of merit? On the contrary, it is a badge of disgrace”.

What the above fable teaches is that notoriety or unsavoury reputation is often mistaken for fame. Someone may become famous for being insalubrious and can be celebrated in a morally depraved society like ours. The fable as reflected above has a lot to teach us concerning the present situation of Imo state.

In the words of Plato, “Human affairs are not worthy of much seriousness, and yet one must take them serious.” For Aristotle, “There are three tenses to a person’s life; what he is, what he has become, and what he is becoming”. Following these two assertions, one is tempted to infer that human affairs ought not to be taken seriously considering the fragile cum brittle propensity of humanity; however, if one considers the implication of not taking it so serious, one will have no option than taking it very seriously.

It is in taking it serious that some people kill for something that does not worth it. When one takes the case of Imo politics serious and relates it to our present situation, the philosophical analysis of Aristotle comes into play. The soul of Imo is seriously been battled for. Who will govern Imo? Is Chief Ihedioha wrong to have gone for the review of his case? Is Ihedioha now in the bad book of the Supreme Court judges for asking for the review of the case he claimed that justice was miscarried? Again, should Emeka Ihedioha ignore Senator Hope and allow him settle down to rule Imo without fighting for what he considers as his right? These are questions begging for answers. On the other hand should Gov. Hope fold his arms and watch Chief Ihedioha snatch away the victory he has laboured for all through his life time? I am getting worried because it is the soul of Imo that is under intense attack. Imo has always been a playing ground for political grasshoppers. Oh what wrong have we done?

In all these political battles, who are the beneficiaries and who are the losers? Imolites are suffering; we need stability in our polity. Both of them are not struggling to govern Imo because they love Imo more than Imolites; we all know what they want but the most desperate one is the most fearful.

Aesop was a slave and a philosopher of note, he embodies an epigram not uncommon in human history; his fame is all the more deserved in view of his logical cum allegorical way of presenting issues. In fact, his fame I must say is well deserved in our state now due to the correlating factor of his fables in our present day democracy in Imo state.

In his book, “Aesop’s Fables” a serious fable is highlighted on the old woman and the doctor. The fable goes thus, “An old woman became almost totally blind from a disease of the eyes, and consulting a doctor, made an agreement with him in the presence of witness that she should pay him a high fee if he cured her, while if he failed he was to receive nothing. The doctor accordingly prescribed a course of treatment, and every time he paid her a visit he took away with him some articles out of the home, until at last, when he visited her for the last time, and the cure was complete, there was nothing left. When the old woman saw that the house was empty she refused to pay him his fee, and, after repeated refusals on her part, he sued her before the magistrate for payment of her debt. On being brought into court she was ready with her defence. ‘The claimant’ said she ‘has stated the facts about our agreement correctly. I undertook to pay him a fee if he cured me, and he, on his part promised to charge nothing if he failed. Now, he says I am cured; but I say that I am blinder than ever, and I can prove what I say. When my eyes were bad I could at any rate see well enough to be aware that my house contained a certain amount of furniture and other things; but now, when according to him I am cured, I am entirely unable to see anything there at all.”

Like the fable of Aesop, when Archimedes the philosopher was expressing his intentions and capacity of moving the world by his dictum and allusion expressed thus, “Give me a place to stand and I will move the earth” Socrates had already responded, “Let him that would move the world first move himself”.

Do we need a Governor who like the doctor Aesop told us about who offered to cure a woman of her blindness, who in the same vein and in accordance with his usual propensity took away a piece of article from her house anytime he paid a visit. During his last visit, he left nothing with the woman. The woman saw him going with her properties one after another until the house was emptied and she refused to pay him his medical fee. The greedy doctor had the mind to sue her in the magistrate court for not paying him his fee as agreed.

The woman on her part was ready with her defence. She did not argue with the doctor at all rather she presented her own part of the story. In her words, “…I undertook to pay him a fee if he cured me, and he, on his part, promised to charge nothing if he failed. Now, he says I am cured, but I say that I am blinder than ever, and I can prove what I say. When my eyes were bad I could at any rate see well enough to be aware that my house contained a certain amount of furniture and other things; but now, when according to him I am cured, I am entirely unable to see anything there at all”.

We don’t need a governor that is like the medical doctor who came to cure our blindness but gradually he is taking away our heritage. We need peace in Imo no one is greater than ndi Imo.

INTERVIEW: Regional Police And Insecurity In Igboland

Dave Umahi, Ebonyi State Governor. Image: Facebook 

BY CHRIS ONUOHA

Governor Dave Umahi of Ebonyi State is also the Chairman of the South-East Governors’ Forum. Umahi, in this interview, speaks on insecurity in the country and the agitation to have regional police in the South-East just like the South-West has Operation Amotekun.

Can you tell us about your conversation with the Inspector General of Police? Was it what you were proposing that you got or what did you agree?
Because of the heightened insecurity in every part of the country, people are agitating for different types of protection. And the summation of all these agitations is that people want state police. Governors took the oath of office to uphold the Constitution. So, it becomes very difficult to have the governors do the wish of the people in terms of giving them what they are asking for in different forms. But we had a discussion with the Inspector General of Police (IGP). Let me commend him (IGP) as a professional officer and very committed to his job. We took the IGP through all the agitations. What our people expect from the meeting and we were able to reach a number of agreements. First, the IGP introduced what community policing is all about. When we listened to him, it fitted into what we are doing in the various states in the South-East, but people tend to lose confidence in security agents, although not their fault. Because there is heightened insecurity and the personnel are not enough, so when you hear about community policing, you just believe that it is another kind of police outfit. We agreed on a number of things. In our different states, since 2015, we have ministries of security, and we have laws that back up our community security outfits. Like we have ‘Operation Kpochapu’ in Ebonyi, we also have Neighbourhood Watch in Ebonyi and Enugu. We have Gatekeepers in Abia, herdsmen committees in Imo, forest guards and others. These outfits were all backed up by law. The IGP told us that community policing is community-based, that he was not going to select the personnel and they were going to be independent of the IGP or the commissioner of police. They handle their affairs perfectly well. One sticking and very important aspect of community policing is that they will have the ability to arrest and arraign but will not detain. 

But one interesting thing you said about what you are proposing and what you have on the ground are similar. You said you had a conversation with a former deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, who said community policing as being proposed by the IG is a distraction. He said it is more like police PR when we should be talking about building peoples relations. And that’s not what people are talking about. He called it a fraud. What do you make of what he said?
Senator Ike Ekweremadu is one of our leaders, and I wouldn’t want to comment against what he said, but I want to speak in line with what we heard from the IGP. If what we heard is what it is, I can assure you that community policing is an enhancement of what we are already doing because what we are doing is backed by law and community policing is going to be domesticated in each of the states, and also backed by law. Where we don’t have alternatives, you have to find a way to protect lives and property. What we are doing is giving comfort to our people, making sure that we have peace in the various communities. If we now come up with community policing, it is an added advantage because it is backed by the Constitution. At the local level, we will now be able to enhance the security situation. They can arrest and arraign and will not also go to the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) with cases. 

I find it interesting when you say you were able to reach some compromise with the IGP. In other words, what was the point of departure concerning the things you wanted initially, that you have to come to a middle ground to achieve? 

The idea is that our people want a security outfit to protect them because of heightened insecurity now. In other words, the IGP was able to convince us that if there is no state police which there won’t be unless the Constitution is changed, community police will enhance community security. The people want to state police. When people talk about regional security, there is nothing like that. Regional security is above state police. Even ‘Amotekun’ is not a regional police. Some of our people just believe that we have one central security outfit and then a central command. The Constitution doesn’t allow that. What we started in July 2018 in South-East prompted the South-East security committee and what we agreed in Enugu which is our central home is that the committee will be saddled with the job of intelligence gathering. We have our ex-servicemen and communication gadgets there. These people get information and coordinate the local vigilante to ensure that they are trained. But when Ohaneze kicked, we held another meeting with all the stakeholders of the South-East and said we can improve on that security committee. 

But we heard of those flying the kite of ‘Ogbunigwe’ outfit before South-West came out with Amotekun. Was it a thing that came out from South-East governors? 

That is personal opinion because everybody is entitled to his own opinion. Everybody is thinking about how our lives can be protected, because you don’t know who may be the next victim. There is nothing like a regional outfit, not in any part of the country. I don’t see Amotekun as a regional security. It is a cooperation outfit. We have a similar outfit that is in the making. I have read through the Amotekun law and one interesting thing is where they say ‘we apply to the IGP for firearms’. And I heard the police PRO saying, ‘if you have to apply for firearms, it has to conform to the law of the country’. There are two kinds of firearm license; one is issued by Mr President and another one is by the IGP. When you look through the law, there is no common law for Amotekun. What we have is a similar law. 

But what is different between regional cooperation and regional outfit? 

The difference is that in the regional outfit, you have an outfit, postings, and financial purse managed by one central command. But that is not what they have, rather it is an enhancement of regional cooperation that, if there is a problem in Osun for example, under their law, people from Ogun can come to help to show that they are one people. That is what we are having in the South-East. We have not jettisoned the idea. It is in the making. Our attorney generals are working on our papers based on peculiarities. When we finish, what we are going to have that will bind all of us together is a unit that will be centred in Enugu. This committee will coordinate the security outfits we have in our various states. We know what the IGP told us about community policing, and if the template comes out and we found it a departure from that agreement we reached, both the South-East governors and people will not embrace community policing. 

You did state that community police fits into what the governors are doing in the South-East and others. Can you expatiate? 

Saying that community policing fits into the local security in our states, and people are losing confidence is not together. The right thing to say is losing confidence in the security in our states. We are trying to do what we can to restore that confidence. Why is it that what we are doing is not enough for them? You cannot confront a terrorist without arms. That’s why they feel that our various security outfits that do not bear arms will not adequately help the people. They are looking at a people-based security arrangement that can assist the people. For the community policing to bear arms, it is only the IGP that can answer the question, because he has the power to issue certain kind of license to this arrangement to build up confidence in the people. 

But even with the security outfits set up in the country, some have the right to apply for arms… 

That is exactly what we are working on. They are doing everything without breaking the law; to enhance the confidence in our people in the local arrangement for self-help, especially when people are helpless. The issue of community policing has been there from day one, even in the villages when groups came and barricaded the roads at certain hours of the night to ensure that late night comers were clean people. What we are saying is that we had listened to IGP who told us a number of issues that concern community policing which do not affect what we are already doing at our local level. What we are waiting for is the template that will reflect what the IGP told us. If that happens, we now embellish it in our various security outfits. We are also going to apply for firearms so as to equip the outfits. 

Different states have different security groups that comprise traffic warders, vigilantes, Neighbourhood Watch and others. If they can apply for arms within the confines of the law, what is then wrong for states to have their own police? 

South-East people support state police and restructuring as well. State police are also part of a restructuring. There are two kinds of insecurity in the country; the terrorist and internal insecurity occasioned by the kind of elections we conduct in Nigeria. Until we can sit in our homes and count election results without challenges, this kind of insecurity will definitely continue in Nigeria. Politicians are desperate people who go all out to get arms for youths and after elections when the youths’ expectations are not met, they will now turn around and use the guns to help themselves. It is a serious issue of insecurity. Let us have a proper method of election that is peculiar to our people. Another source of insecurity is when people that are elected into positions which are people-based did not sit down and consider working hard for another re-election through the favour of the people, but basing it on manipulation through the barrels of the gun and believing that they can always sustain it, it breeds poverty. Poverty is as a result of the kind of election we conduct that allows anybody to be elected again through the wrong mechanism. It is a very serious issue that we have to look at the country. The ability of the governors to protect the people is what we are doing now. What we are doing with the Ohaneze and other committees of the South-East is to sit with the attorney generals to see how it can be backed by law. Then when the template comes out, we will match it with our similar regional law. The effect is that there will be cooperation between the South-East states and the centre to ensure that when a crime is committed in Ebonyi, the security there will activate the information gadget to other states to block and apprehend the offender wherever he is within the region. 

Is the challenge of getting the states to embrace community policing a subject that has been discussed at the governors’ forum, because some governors who may feel that they might not benefit from the project may not want to push the case? 

I have not seen any governor that has come to speak about state police. Every problem creates its own solution. You cannot say that state police is going to be an answer to all our insecurity. It will have its own problems too. I think it is what our people need. There may be a lot of problems with our Constitution but we don’t have another one. We have to manage it and also assure our people that we will get there. I think the country has an opportunity with the review of the Constitution now so that we will be able to push that demand. Insecurity in the communities is peculiar to all communities. We as a nation cannot continue to fold hands and see the people being wasted. State police should be advocated for. What our leaders should be aware of is that you don’t make a law to suit only you. The political positions are ephemeral; it is not more than eight years. We have to make a law to protect the generations to come, but, sometimes, we make a law thinking that we will be there forever. We have to sit down and look at the pros and cons of state police, if that can guarantee the safety of lives and property. 

What was the outcome of the governors’ meeting with the Ohaneze? 

I must tell you that everything about security is not always discussed on the pages of the newspaper, and the South-East, in that case, could easily be misconstrued. That is why we are being very careful so that we are not misunderstood. Our people, including Ohaneze, did not quite understand the governors. But I can tell you that South-East is quite secured than any other region, with kudos to our governors who make sure it happens. We don’t have to totally tell the world about what we are doing. But about a week ago, we had a meeting with a smaller group of Ohaneze and other stakeholders in the South-East where we discussed the issue of community policing. We explained to them our deliberations especially the ability of the outfit to arrest and arraign without reference to police, backed by law. Currently, we have members from Ohaneze, South-East stakeholders and other cultural organisations together with the governors to fashion out areas of cooperation, and then come up with common law to give the people confidence which Ohaneze is happy with. But it is very unfortunate that some people grant media interviews without listening to us. I listened to one-time PDP leader in Anambra insulting governors on television which is so unfortunate. It is only in South-East that you can get that kind of trash. To say the least, we are on the same page with Ohaneze and our people. But one thing is certain; that it is very difficult for our people to get what they are looking for, in terms of security in this country without tampering with the Constitution. But when the IGP allows certain categories of outfit to bear arms, it will enhance the security of the country. 

What are the governors doing to tackle one of the challenges of security which you mentioned as poverty? 

We are doing quite a lot to enhance the fortunes of our people. But you know, the south-easterners are majorly commercial people and certain institutions of the Federal Government do hamper the ease of doing business in the South-East, such as road. Our roads are so bad and there is a very high level of demobilization from this bad state of the roads. I must thank Mr President, especially on the road projects he is doing in the South-East. I don’t seek the permission of anybody to speak the truth. But do we really need more? Yes. The roads are totally cut off. I have proposed a solution that will maintain our roads, and this involves dividing these roads from one kilometre to another by means of concession and allow the handlers to create service centres and armed men to parade the road. It is not hard to put solar-based light on the roads with communication gadgets to monitor the situation on-site. Within a section, there will be infrastructures to cater to workers and peoples’ needs. The road is basic in fighting poverty. 

Why do you have to wait for the IGP template when South-East is also coming up with theirs? 

We have our laws since 2015 backing our various security outfits and nobody has come to tell us that we have broken the law. But when the Inspector General of Police came up with a new idea, that we can integrate community police into what we are doing, we have to wait. What we are doing without bearing arms is also giving comfort to our people. The people like what we are doing, and that’s why South-East will always support state police. We are waiting for the IGP to produce the new template; to be sure that it bears what he promised it would look like.

Ebonyi Lawmaker Clears Five Undergraduates’ Fees

Chinedu Ogah, Chinedu Ogah Foundation. Image: Facebook

BY UCHENNA INYA

A member representing Ezza-South/ Ikwo in the House of Representatives, Hon. Chinedu Ogah,yesterday paid school fees for five undergraduates studying across different universities in the country.

The students are Otubo Godfrey, a Department of Computer engineering technology, HND1, Oko polytechnics, Anambra State, Agwu Mmaduka Alobu, Computer engineering technology, HND2, Oko polytechnics, Anambra State, Nwafor Kingsley student of Ebonyi State University, faculty of law, 300 level, Igwe Chika, Student of Institute of management and technology, HND1 Enugu State and Nwonu Emmanuel Onyebuchi a graduate of Ebonyi State University who was given his clearance fees by the lawmaker.

Ogah handed the school fees over to the undergraduates in his Abakaliki residence while urging them to use it for the purpose it was meant for.

He, however, asked other students with OND to go to cyber cafe and apply for INEC jobs with their OND certificates for immediate employment.

He noted that the gesture was to increase literacy in his constituency and reduce youth’s unemployment in the area.

While addressing those he paid their school fees, the APC lawmaker called on them to use it for the purpose it was meant for, promising to assist other indigent students in the constituency and urged the undergraduates to be serious in their studies to make good results.

SOURCE: NEW TELEGRAPH

ANAMBRA: Ekwulobia : A Town Craving For Attention

Ekwulobia-Nnewi Road. Image via Naira Land

BY OKEY MADUFORO

The mourners had come to claim the corpse of their dead relation but the ambulance could not enter the premises of the community general hospital due to the state of the road in the area.

They had to carry the corpse on the head to the ambulance, waiting outside before they left and stationed somewhere near the mortuary are two abandoned and disrepair hospital ambulance that would have been used to carry the corpse.

The hospital wards now look like a shadow of the past when it used to receive patients from far away towns such as Onitsha, Awka and parts of the towns in Imo State.

A truck carrying tubers of yam got stuck along the market road and a long line of vehicle traffic had been formed and commercial activities had been stopped by the traffic.

“We don’t understand if we are part of the state. Just look at our roads. This is what we go through every day because of bad road. Something should be done about our roads.

“This is the trauma the people of Ekwulobia town in Aguata Local Government Area have been facing so far and during every general election candidates frequent the area canvassing for votes.

“They make promises of providing social amenities for the rural dwellers only to practically forget those promises leaving the people to their fate”, said a concerned resident.

On that fateful day, red cap title holders in Ekwulobia came out in their numbers to take reporters round the town.

They explained that it was not a protest against the Anambra State government but a passionate call on the government to look into their plight as a people.

President General of the Ekwulobia People’s Assembly, Rev Emeka Ezike, told reporters that the Ekwulobia hospital road cuts accross Isuofia, Umuona, Igbo Ukwu down towards Onitsha road.

“The general hospital was built before the Nigerian Civil war and it used to serve so many towns in the Old Aguata which is now made up of the present Aguata, Orumba North and South Local Government Areas.

“Recently Gov Willie Obiano sent some hospital equipment to the hospital but we do not even have power in the hospital and the power generating set has parked up long ago.

“People no longer patronize the hospital anymore and most medical personnel do want to come and work here because of the hopeless state of the medical facilities.”

Chairman of Agba village in Ekwulobia town where most of the roads have fallen, Prince Peter Michael Ezekagha, lamented that the roads were first awarded twice when Prof Charles Soludo was Central Bank of Nigeria governor and later awarded again under the regime of Mr Peter Obi as governor but the contractors never mobilized to site.

“As I speak with you, over 300 houses would be washed away by flood in the coming rainy season this year if nothing is done before then.”

He noted that Obiano had announced the construction of 12 kilometres of roads in Ekwulobia and the contractors said that work would commence within six months but it is getting to a year now and nothing is on ground to show for.

Pa Hycienth Onegemechi is in his early eighties and has been doing business in the town all his life.

He recalled that Ekwulobia market used to be the commercial hub of over 70 towns accross Anambra, Imo and Abia states, being a boundary town, adding that it used to be the largest market for Palm oil, palm kenel, timber and building materials.

“We are losing patronage due to lack of facilities in the market like electricity, water supply and the terrible state of the roads within the market.

“Recently, the Anambra State government had to put street lights in some areas and we thank the governor for that but a lot of things need to be done.

“Our town is the fourth major town in Anambra State but it is yet to have that urban status. This town shares boundry with Oko town where we have the Federal Polytechnic and the home of former Vice President, the Late Dr. Alex Ekwueme.

“We voted for the governor massively during the last election and he knows that the town is an APGA town.

“Yes, we have benefited from the governor’s ‘choose your project scheme’ and we executed two and we are waiting for the third phase of the scheme but it is not enough.

“We need transformers and water scheme in our community, so that we can enjoy those amenities already provided by government.”

There appears to be signs of better days ahead following the construction of St Peters Bishop Court road, which is undergoing asphalting and according to the Special Adviser to the Governor on Community and Chieftaincy Matters, Bar Vera Okonkwo, no part of the state is being marginalized by the administration of Obian. He said that in the case of Ekwulobia town, all the projects flagged off by the governor would be completed on time.

“The state government has concluded arrangements for the physical upgrading of the General Hospital in Ekwulobia and very soon it would assume the status of a Specialist Hospital in due time,” he said.

SOURCE: NEW TELEGRAPH

Nigeria: Catholic Bishops Wearing Black To Protest Killings By The Islamic Jihadists

BY REV. FATHER AHAM NNOROM


The cowardly inaction of the Catholic bishops of Nigeria-indeed of 1.3 billion Catholics worldwide and of the 1 billion Protestants to the massacres and Islamization of their Nigerian co-religionists-is a tragedy. For decades now, even before the current nigerian administration, thousands of priests, Pastors, Seminarians, Revered Sisters, and members of the laity have be been slaughtered, beheaded, raped,  kidnapped, and driven from their homes, by Islamic groups like boko haram, isis in west Africa, and the Fulani "herdsmen" terrorists. Islamic terrorists have also destroyed thousands of churches, homes, schools, hospitals, and villages in Nigeria. And what have the bishops done?: Ask members to wear black on Ash Wednesday! What a joke!

This weird reaction is symptomatic of their usual behavior. For example, in the early 2000's, the muslims imposed sharia thus undermining the supposedly "secular" nature of the Nigerian State. And what did the Church do? Bark and no bite. It is most probable that if the Church leaders had reacted more forcefully by warning the Muslim leaders: "if you impose sharia, we will not be part of an Islamic state," the latter could have relented; and Boko Haram and its evil terrorist cousins may not have emerged. But what has been the Church's response? It's one cowardly concession after another-even to the point of accompanying top northern Islamic leaders to Europe and the US in campaigns to promote Islam as a "peaceful religion." Surely, peace is now blooming in Nigeria!

But did Pope John Paul II ask Polish Catholics to wear black in his campaign to defeat Soviet communism? Did the Polish Church not ally herself with the Labor Unions in a joint effort that toppled communism, a totalitarian ideology similar to radical Islam? And why is the papal nuncio (Pope's ambassador) in Abuja silent? Why is the Pope quiet? Why has the Catholic Church failed woefully to use her powerful multinational connections and immense diplomatic clout to save Nigerian Christians? Why are the bishops afraid to alert the church in America and Europe of the Islamic threat in Nigeria? Or are they resigned to suffer the fate of the ancient Churches of North Africa and the Middle East? Why are Nigerian and American Evangelicals the only ones who care about the massacres of Nigerian Christians? Perhaps the Pope and the Archbishop of Canterbury don't care, because Black African Christian lives do not matter as much as those of Christians of the Middle East, where the Church has been more outspoken and protective of her members?

It is well known that Saudi Arabia and Sunni Muslims worldwide protect the interests of fellow members in Nigeria; and Iran does the same for the Shiites. Why have the Vatican and the World Council of Churches abandoned Nigerian Christians to minimization and fulanization?

Or are they waiting for a Cardinal, an Archbishop or a bishop to be beheaded by boko haram before they act more forcefully?

Surely, Rome and Canterbury would have intervened if the Christians were engaged in mass revenge killings of Muslims-as they did in the Central African Republic.

INTERVIEW: Matias Marini Delves Into The Igbo In Feature Film

Image via Director's Note

“Shine Your Eyes’” Matias Marini on the Perfection of Squares, Portraying Sao Paulo, Brazilian Cinema

BY EMILIANO GRANADA

BERLIN (VARIETY) — Produced by Primo Filmes in co-production with MPM Film, Tabuleiro Filmes and SP Cine, “Shine Your Eyes,” warmly received at Berlin, tells the story of Amadi (OC Ukeje), a Lagos musician who flies to Sao Paulo to track down his older brother Ikenna (Chukwudi Iwuji), who’s gone missing, and bring him back home.

As he immerses himself in a city of simmering life, following the scarce trail that his brother’s left behind, Amadi encounters a multitude of characters and, despite language barriers, starts seeing the possibility of a new life.

The debut fiction feature of Matias Mariani who had made the documentary ‘I Touched All Your Stuff,” “Shine Your Eyes” is a highlight of Brazil’s recent drive into diversity via its cinema. A movie that, by both celebrating the culture of its protagonists, the Igbo people, an ethnic group of South-Eastern Nigeria and the exuberant life of Sao Paulo, delivers a tale of two brothers which is striking in tone and aesthetic with a colorful palette of human interactions and multiple unsaid mysteries.

“Shine Your Eyes” is about identity but also cultural differences and finding a common ground, human connection, which the films captures really well,” says Panorama head Michael Stütz. He adds: “Mariani also manages to dive into a subculture African diaspora, talking about roots, where you come from, what is home, what does it mean, where can you find yourself?”

Variety talked to Mariani as his film. the kind that demands a second viewing, finishes up its screenings in the Berlinale’s Panorama section.

Your film feels very much like a matrioska that as it unfolds opens up issues and ideas about cultural identity, family dynamics, physic theories, among others. What was the genesis of the script?

A lot of it has to do with the experience of living abroad. I come from a very big and protective family. So when I moved to the U.S. it really felt a different existence, like the difference between you and the exterior are much clearer. You know who you are, where you stop and other people begin. I felt very lonely but at the same time very myself. On the other side was this attraction to Sao Paolo, where I was born. Which is a weird city, that people have even mythologized how ugly and savage it is. So when you say to someone that you miss Sao Paolo, it’s very hard to explain.

That’s when Maíra Bühler came in. We started doing research (about the Igbo culture) and giving Portuguese classes to a community in Sao Paolo. And it became less of an actual research and more of an interchange. You’re giving something and getting something in return. But I also remember coming back so doubtful, making a film about people that are so different from me. So a lot of the screenwriting process was making myself feel at peace with that idea and in that sense it was really important to have a lot of collaborators who made me feel comfortable in each area. I was more at ease working with actual contributors, scriptwriters who knew the story.

That same process of collaboration, one senses, feeds into the mise en scene. The film has a very clear visual style, portraying Sao Paolo via striking compositions. How did you try to find the right style for that?

I directed documentaries before but my actual 9 to 5 job is as a producer, so it might be one of the reasons why I approach collaboration in a different way than maybe people that come from a straight-up directing. I see a lot of directors that are protective, as if collaboration would somehow dilute their idea, would somehow make it less personal. For some reason, i have a lot off fears but this is not one, that really helped to let people really go into the script and into the images.

Leo Bittencourt, the DoP, is a close friend, the godfather of my child and was present throughout the whole process. So it’s hard to know where the idea began. I really didn’t need to write the city into the script too much because we would do that through mise en scene. He came with the idea of shooting in 4:3, I was very reluctant. I thought it felt gimmicky and I love Sao Paolo skylines which are very horizontal in nature. But he convinced to change the format of my phone and take pictures during a week and it felt amazing: The city opened up: How the 4:3 plays with the modernist architecture of Sao Paolo; how the lines appear much more in that format. But it came as well from talking with Chioma Thompson one of the script contributors. She understands a lot about Igbo mythology and religion. She gave me a book where I discovered that the mythological genesis of the universe in the Ibo religion is the idea of the square. So you had this concept that the world was a square originally and from there came the big bang, the breaking of that square. The square is perfection, the idea that things are in order. I felt this came into contrast with our idea of the celestial spheres, the sphere as a perfect figure. And talking to Fernando Timba, our art director, we decided to use the square as our shape and began figuring out how to visually break it.

Still today there’s this preconception of Latin American cinema as more bleak stories that handle social realism with a certain grit. In contrast, your film jumps from family drama, to horse racing equations, to magical realism, to moments of comedy, without losing some lightheartedness. How was the process of creating the film’s own tone.

As you say, that certain bleakness of Latin American cinema, that sense of urgency, we’re here to talk about social issues, so much pressing urgency to it. I totally get it and I understand why some Latin American cinema is like that and I respect it but at the same time I feel very disconnected, aesthetically and linguistically. That was something that I would constantly think about in this film. What’s the need for this film? How to explain to people why this film needs to be? As I was talking to Chukwudi, he said that to have characters who are not living from hand to mouth, who are not so much subject to the destiny of things because they are desperate, is in itself an act of subversion, specifically if you’re doing black characters. This is a heavy political, to give agency to characters like that. Of giving subjectivity, to create characters with rich inner roles. It’s heavily politica. That made me feel more at ease with the film – not being part of that tradition. Tone-wise I think it comes a lot from specific films, I wanted to emulate. “Into the White City,” by Alain Tanner; “C0de 46,” from Wintebottom, There was something about how they build their tone which is basically interpretation beyond simply aesthetics. And I knew I needed to find a tone because the actors were so diverse, OC who is a Hollywood actor and does much bigger roles in terms of gestures, then Chukwudi who is Shakespearian, thespian and then Indira who is more Brazilian theater which is very different from English theater. So there was a sense that if I did’t do anything, things would go all over the place.

Now, more than ever, that bleakness is very present in Latin America’s political and social climate. What is your perspective on what’s happening to Brazilian Cinema?

I’m glad you ask. I’ve been talking in interviews and I feel that I’m so pessimistic and I should give some sense of hope but that is not how I feel. We are in a very dark place. Art of course is not the worst, we have social economics, press freedoms, that have a stronger impact on people than cinema. And this is what people should focus on now. But talking about what I know, which is art, I think Bolsonaro is very intentionally closing down all the financial possibilities in filmmaking, theater, arts in general. There was a huge work community of thousands and thousands of people and now you’re in Rio or Sao Paulo and everyone is unemployed. There’s a sense of doom among people who have dedicated their whole life and suddenly from day to night things have stopped. And he did it because it was the main focus of opposition to him, something that he very much wanted and needed to silence in order to do all the other stuff he wanted to do. But is also about how he needs to tell stories that are more akin to what he is trying to do, that’s his main objective, to work his own narrative. People will continue to make cinema, that is without question, but the conditions in which it’s made will be set back, I think, for a long time. And it came exactly at the time where things were changing for Brazilian cinema, as a result its being taken care of by many politicians from both left and right. But I think this climate will reinforce those aesthetics that we’ve talked about, less subjectivity and more “savagery.”