The plan by the Lagos State government to register all residents of the state is to create a database for economic planning for the teeming populace of the state. Kazeem Ugbodaga, Senior Staff Writer reports

•Gov Babatunde Fashola

With an estimated population of about 20 million, Lagos State, southwest Nigeria is faced with the problem of adequate planning for its teeming residents. The government right now cannot give an accurate figure of duly employed residents of the state, the number of artisans and traders among others; thus, the need for fresh registration of all residents in the state becomes imperative.

In 2011, Governor Babatunde Fashola came up with the idea of fresh registration for all residents living in the state. To this end, the governor sent a bill to the State House of Assembly to establish the Lagos State Residents’ Registration Agency, LSRRA, and for connected purposes.

LSRRA aims to develop a working database of all residents of Lagos State, with a view to providing better services to Lagosians. The underlying principle being that with such a database, the state agencies can plan and assess their programmes and services in a more scientific way.

The functions of the agency are: to create a reliable database of all residents in Lagos State with a view to providing useful information for social welfare, political, security, business, employment, financial activities, housing and demography statistics for health-related matters such as provision of health insurance and facilitating unified planning and implementation of development projects; to establish the relevant infrastructure for the creation of a residents’ information database for every resident of Lagos State with a view to producing residency cards for all residents of Lagos State, ensuring easy identification of residents, generating health statistics in the state for health insurance scheme, verifying compliance with relevant laws and regulations and providing reliable information for making policy planning and implementation.

The agency also has the objective to produce guidelines for data to be contained in the registration form and advise the government on mode of collecting data from the public.

Section 14 of the law states that “(1) as from the commencement of this law-(i) every person residing in the state shall register with the agency within three months; (ii) any person who moves into a long term accommodation in the state after the commencement of this law shall, within 30 days of moving into the accommodation, register with the agency.

Section 14(2) adds that a resident shall notify the agency of a subsequent change of name or address appropriately and that “(3) every landlord (individual or corporate) in the state shall notify the agency of any new resident in their premises and shall inform the person of the need to register with the agency.”

The agency is expected to issue a certificate of registration upon registering a resident in the state. For ease of administration, the agency will establish registration centres in the local government councils and local council development areas.

Since the signing of the LSRRA bill into law by Fashola, the agency undertook a pilot project work by capturing the database of all civil servants in the state. The agency, in the next few months will begin capturing of database of all residents of Lagos for adequate planning and formulation of policies that will benefit the populace.

Overpopulated area of the Lagos State

According to Governor Fashola, the registration is compulsory for all residents of the state, adding that the objective of the registration was to provide a database of all residents in the state for better planning and governance.

He said the government was also carrying out the exercise in view of the security concerns raised by the influx of illegal aliens into the state lately, adding that all residents, irrespective of ethnic background or other variables would be captured in the exercise as government had the responsibility to cater for everyone, regardless of where they come from.

“I use the word ‘residents’ deliberately and advisedly, because it applies to every person of whatever faith, colour or ethnic group, who is a Nigerian, and who lives in Lagos. The benefits will be immeasurable. I have received a number of text messages and emails expressing concern about the presence in our state of people categorised as aliens from other countries.

“Until such a time as we begin to provide identification, which this programme will do, it will be difficult to separate immigrants from residents, especially as I remain mindful of our treaty obligations regarding freedom of movement within the ECOWAS sub-region. We had commenced a pilot registration exercise with the public servants to test run the project before coming to the larger public,” he explained, adding that the card, apart from being used as identification, would also be used by residents to access government services.

A statement from the LSRRA said that the objective of the registration was to provide a database of all residents in the state for better planning and governance, saying that “over 21 million people are estimated to be living in Lagos and there would be need for government to have their data base in its record. The registration exercise will be carried out in view of the security situation and the influx of illegal aliens into the state.”

The exercise was supposed to have begun in January 2013 but due to logistic reasons, it could not start. The exercise is expected to capture all residents, irrespective of ethnic background, as well as foreigners, including tourists. This is because government has the responsibility to cater for everyone residing in Lagos, regardless of the state or country they came from.

At the end of the exercise, resident identity card would be issued to those captured during the exercise, to differentiate between legal residents and illegal immigrants. With this, it is expected that the state government would be able to accurately determine the overall resources required in formulating and implementing policies, projects and programmes, after the exercise.

In preparation for the commencement of its statutory responsibility of registering the residents of the State, LSRRA held an open day for the public and civil servants in the state to intimate them of the coming residency registration and to garner their support for the success of the exercise.

•Ms. Yinka Fashola

General Manager of LSRRA, Ms. Yinka Fashola, said the residents registration is necessary to provide government with an up to date database of all those who reside in the state to ensure effective planning and resource allocation.

According to her, the agency had earlier organised stakeholders meetings across the five divisions of the state, stressing that another one was being planned for the captains of industries to ensure that everybody was included.

“The registration exercise is for everybody, including children residing in Lagos State irrespective of their age, tribe, religion, social status or nationality as long as they reside in Lagos State.

She revealed that in preparation for the actual registration exercise, LSRRA had commenced the process of employing 1,000 applicants as enrolment officers to be deployed across the state to register residents.

On whether people working in Lagos, but residing outside the state can participate in the registration, she said, the laws establishing the Agency was being considered to determine the eligibility of such registration.

“The registration exercise is free and compulsory for people residing in the state. The two methods of registration that would be employed are the online and direct registration by LSRRA staff. For either of the methods, the registration would not be complete without capturing the biometrics and digital image of the applicant and signature for adults after which a receipt of registration would be issued.

“The registration exercise is a continuous process due to those who may not be available to register during the direct registration exercise and for residents who might have travelled abroad can also register online and later come for biometrics registration at LSSRA office when they return,” she explained.

According to her, “Mobile registration teams are being enabled to enrol all those that live in inaccessible areas, the physically challenged and elderly who might not be able to easily reach the registration stations. Mobile teams will also register organisations and other business entities such as markets and factories that have large number of people on site so as not to disrupt their day to day activities. We would however not carry out door to door service.”

“With the exercise, every resident will possess a highly secured unique identification card, which would also remove the veil of anonymity from every citizen of the state. The database will serve as a register that will contain all the demographic information of all residents of the state.”

Fashola added that sophisticated technological features, including finger prints would be employed to authenticate and validate the registration process as well as the identity cards, which residents would be able to utilise in transactions with any government agency.

“It contains a unique reference number (residency number) that links every individual to his or her own personal and biological data. The residency number serves as a reference for the prospective individual in his/her identity proved transactions with government bodies,” she explained.

She said 57 registration stations had been sited within the 20 Local Government areas and 37 Local Council Development Areas (LCDA), urging residents to take advantage of the process.

“If you currently reside in Lagos, you are required to register .If you are newly taking up residency in the state and intend to stay for more than six months, you are also required to register. Anyone who wishes to access the services provided by Lagos State will be asked to authenticate their residency and identity,” she added.

Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Science and Technology, Mrs Funmilayo Animashaun said the process was not to tax residents but to authenticate the users of Lagos State Government’s services and provide an authentic database to plan for the provision of such services. Vice Chairman of the Lagos State House of Assembly Committee on Science and Technology, Gbolahan Yishau said the registration process, when completed would assist government in planning as well as allocating resources where it is needed.

“This process will allow government to determine the overall resources required to formulate and implement policies, projects and programmes when the number to cater for is known. It will also allow for proper allocation of resources to the appropriate sectors of the economy to meet the needs of residents of the state,” he stated.

At this period of economic difficulties in the country, over 100,000 members of the Deeper Life Bible Church, DLBC, and invitees thronged the church’s conference centre on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway recently to seek God’s intervention in their plight. Every available seat was filled with participants eagerly awaiting the move of God in their lives.

The event was the monthly programme of the church and this time, it was tagged: Night of Supernatural Deliverance. Pastor William Kumuyi, the General Superintendent of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry, was the host. Many expected the prayers of the revered man of God to change the precarious situation in their lives, which did occur, but the main focus of the event, which held between 20 and 21, April, 2013, were the seminars, aimed at teaching the large congregation how to ‘catch fish’, rather than giving them ,fish’ all the time.

Kumuyi knew that his prayers of breakthrough and financial empowerment for his teeming members will not be complete if most of them sit aloof doing nothing to shore up their income to meet the needs of the family. He had prayed intermittently for financial breakthrough and good jobs for his members, but knew that being self-reliant and self-employed is key to financial empowerment, thus, the series of  seminars held at the event.

Thousands of participants listened with rapt attention and keen interest to the seminars presented by seasoned technocrats and business moguls in the church. For the two days the programme lasted, participants had undergone eight seminars on how to start their own businesses and how to keep them growing.

Kumuyi had quoted the popular Biblical passage: “A little one shall become a thousand…”  This is to buttress the fact that a business with little beginning could grow into a thriving one in the nearest future. It also connotes that a business started with little capital could generate much if well managed.

This set the ball rolling for the various seminars that took place at the event. Seminar topics include: Building Strong Business Foundation, Setting the Pace in the Market-place, Cutting and Controlling Costs for Profitability, Overcoming the Devourers in Business, Starting Small and Growing Big in Business, Faith for Business Breakthrough in Difficult Times, Discovering and Seizing Business Opportunities, Prosperity in Business through Godly Principles, Growing Business by Applying the Law of Sowing and Reaping and Successful Trading with God-given Talents and Abilities in You. Participants could choose any of the seminar topics to attend as long as it suits their taste and area of interest.

On Building Strong Business Foundation, participants were taught that they must be available to supervise their business, update their knowledge to be relevant in their business, have good knowledge of the business they are going into, bear in mind that every business has a risk and adopt the principle of honesty in their business.

They were also urged to adopt the ‘SWOT’ analysis in their business. The SWOT analysis is an acronym for Strength, Weakness, Opportunity and Threat. They were urged to explore the strength of the business they intend to go into, the weakness inherent in such business, the opportunities in the business and things that could pose a threat to such venture.

The participants were told to acquire information concerning their lines of business and investigate to know what their competitors are doing; possess the needed leadership qualities; profit from strong business foundation, rely on God, pray and be diligent in making the business venture thrive as well as strategize every five years.

•Kumuyi preaching during the programme

Speaking on the topic: Prosperity in Business through Godly Principle, Pastor Pokpachu Edor said: “it is not the quality of money one puts in business that matters, but diligence. You just have to start and when you begin, you will discover that growth will come. The law of sowing and reaping is impartial. If the law is applied, your business will grow; before you can record growth in your business, something must be planted. You must start something before you will think of growth.

“Don’t just sit down there and be day-dreaming that you want to be rich, without starting up a business. Housewives should not just sit down depending on their husband. We need to be industrious. It is bad for a Christian to be under-utilised, don’t give yourself to gossip, some people are so lazy, not doing anything and wants to depend on others.

“Some say they are prayer warriors and will pray in the morning, without going out to look for what to do and they quote the Bible wrongly; can the Bible put food on the table? The Bible says if any man will not work, he should not eat.”

Edor said it would be fulfilling if Christians would discover their talents and utilize them as a little beginning shall become a thousand, stressing that “study your environment to know what is needed. Ensure that what you want to do is needed in your environment.”

“Growing your business is based on your personal decision and determination. You may encounter difficulty in starting your business, but you will triumph if you are diligent. What you sow, how you sow and where you sow is very important. What you sow will depend on what you harvest. If you sow laziness, you will harvest laziness. If you want to have bumper harvest, you have to cultivate much.

“Where you sow is very important, you need to identify the right place to sow.  Where you sow your seed will determine the harvest. You must know how to sustain growth in your business. If you apply the law of sowing and reaping, you will succeed. You have to visualize, organize and actualize your business dream,” he stated.

•A cross section of the congregation at the event

The event was not all seminars. Kumuyi’s messages ministered healings and deliverance to the oppressed. All his three messages were inspiring as they tend to draw the people back to God before praying healing prayers for them, at the end of which are usually spectacular testimonies.

The revered man of God, in one of his messages: Restoring the Falling Foundation of the Righteous urged Christians to trust in God and that no evil would befall them as long as they had connection with God through Jesus Christ.

“Any hand that is stretched against you, against your success, child bearing, progress, shall dry up in Jesus name. Those people who thought they could destroy you, every step they take, they are asking for their destruction.

“The brain that is not functioning will be restored. You shall be built up, when there is no joy, joy will come, and victory will come. Return to the almighty and you shall be built up. Put away iniquity. The almighty shall be your defense. You will not beg, you will be great, you will not decrease, and you will increase.

“You will decree a thing and it shall be established unto you. All forces of darkness are driven away from your family. Where there is failure, success will be restored unto you. The hole in the heart, kidney problem will be removed. God will restore to you all that you have lost. Tonight is the night of restoration. Children are coming for the barren. He that touches you, touches the apple of His eyes,” Kumuyi said in his message.

Kumuyi stressed that God would never destroy the righteous with the wicked as he always made a distinction between them, saying that the righteous man “is the salt and you are the salt in your family. There will be no more death, no more barrenness. The wrath of the wicked shall not rest upon the righteous. Thou shall be far from oppression. Oppression will be so far away that you will not see them, thou shall not fear.

“Whosoever shall gather against you shall fall. No weapon formed against you will prosper. Arise and shine for thy light is come and the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. A little one shall become a thousand,” Kumuyi challenged the congregation through the scripture.

At the event, many participants claimed they received miracles from God, which they shared with the congregation. Mr. Nwanduche Nkedirim said he was healed from a heart problem after Kumuyi prayed.

Mrs Arit James was knocked down by a commercial motorcycle (okada)  last year and had her leg broken. She said she could not walk when she came to the programme. She said after prayers were offered, she could now walk unaided. She demonstrated this by walking to the podium to give her testimony unaided.

—Kazeem Ugbodaga

The government of oil rich Nigerian state of Bayelsa decided something needed to be done, to stamp out the spreading of rumours. So billboards have been erected around town and a committee has been named.

The campaign against rumour mongering is now underway in the home state of Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan.

“What rumours are they scared of?” said Simon Goladi, a 34-year-old sociology student walking near one of the anti-rumour billboards in the state capital Yenagoa. “It’s just a waste of resources.”

an anti rumour bill board in Bayelsa state

While it may seem odd that the state, located in the country’s oil-producing Niger Delta region and with an impoverished population, has decided to spend energy and resources on stopping rumours, there is precedent.

The previous Bayelsa governor had a special assistant on propaganda and rumour management, his spokesman Doifie Ola said. Current Governor Henry Seriake Dickson has opted for a 13-member committee, called the Public Information Management Committee.

•Governor Henry Seriake Dickson

“That points to the fact that rumours were a problem,” Tarinyo Akono, a member of the committee who also works for the state information ministry, said of the previous government’s decision to have an adviser on rumours.

“It’s also important to check this thing because in the long run the problem might overwhelm the people.”

So far the most visible signs of the campaign have been billboards depicting actors pretending to pass rumours to each other and urging residents to “say no to rumour mongers.”

They have been erected at main intersections and phone numbers are listed for residents to call “when in doubt.” Akono specified that the numbers were to allow residents to verify whether information being passed on to them was true, however no one was answering at any of the three numbers earlier this week.

Niger Delta activist Anyakwee Nsirimovu of the Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law condemned the campaign, saying he believed it was simply meant to protect the governor from criticism as well as hand out government positions to allies – a well-worn practice in Nigeria, where deeply rooted corruption has kept meaningful development out of reach in many cases.

“They want to, through the backdoor, introduce censorship,” he said.

Bayelsa’s governor is no stranger to criticism over alleged patronage. He faced an uproar last year when the wife of the president, a political ally, was granted a top government post.

But Akono says the anti-rumour campaign is both legitimate and important.

Rumours are capable of breaking up marriages or causing false information to spread about violence that can lead to shops closing, he said.

He insists that no one will be arrested for spreading rumours and that the campaign is merely meant to persuade people to resist the temptation to dish dirt.

Asked if there was something specific that prompted the campaign, he gave examples of rumours spreading about the governor himself.

In September when Dickson was out of town, a rumour spread that he had suffered health problems and become physically paralysed, said Akono. Another time earlier this year, a rumour spread that a court had overturned his election in 2012 polls, he said.

“Meanwhile, there was no iota of truth in all of these things,” he said. “Business people also get scared. If not checked, it could also result in some of the contractors running away from the state.”

But considering those examples, did that mean the effort was mainly aimed at protecting the governor?

“No, I’m just giving you instances,” said Akono. “There are other instances.”

Opinions around town were difficult to gauge.

While sociology student Goladi said he felt it was all a waste of time, another resident working at a nearby automotive spare parts shop agreed with the campaign and even went further, arguing that people should be arrested for spreading false rumours.

“The former state governor, they said he changed into lady’s clothes,” said Tony Tochukwu, 26, referring to another former Bayelsa governor. “It’s not good. It’s false.”

There were widespread allegations in in the local press that the ex-governor he was referring to dressed as a woman to disguise himself when he fled Britain after being charged with money laundering. It has never been confirmed and the ex-governor later denied it.

The cost of the anti-rumour campaign is not yet clear. Akono said the budget is still being put together, though he specified that his position did not include a salary.

However, committee members would likely receive allowances to cover their expenses, he said.

“Nobody’s limiting criticism,” he said. “Criticism is different from falsehood. If there is a politician who is not doing well, I can come out and say, ‘my brother, you are not doing well.’ That is different than spreading rumours.”

.Reported by M.J.Smith of the AFP

Four men were gathered around the table, each of them reeking of power, affluence and influence.

“Gentlemen, I thank you for coming to my meeting,” President Goodluck Jonathan said. “I know the notice was short, but Patience insisted that I should call you. And Oronto agreed with her.”

Olusegun Obasanjo shuffled impatiently in his seat, tossing the bulbous left arm of his agbada over his shoulder. “This is what I don’t understand,” he said in his accustomed drawl. “Do you have to conduct the affairs of State according to the wishes of a woman?”

The other two men looked away as Jonathan’s gaze of embarrassment came around. “No, Baba, she is more than a woman. She is always right. She is more of a man. I mean, she is so intelligent she is now a Permanent Secretary.”

As Obasanjo moved to say something, Bamanga Tukur cleared his throat. “Gentlemen, the important thing is we are here, to work in the best interest of the party, to make sure we don’t lose any ground to those people who call themselves All Progressives Congress. I have promised to dribble them like Messi, hahaha…” he laughed.

Obasanjo caught him off. “I was wondering why you said that. I know you were never a soldier. But if your best weapon is a rifle, do you broadcast that to the opponent before the start of a battle?”

“But the fear of Messi…”

“Messi, my foot! Why can’t you wait until Messi has scored two or three times? Or for eight or nine years? Why did your Messi not dribble in Edo State, where we lost disastrously and a common Labour leader made our party look like Boy Scouts?”

That was when Tony Anenih began to rise to his feet. “I knew you were going to start attacking me. I know you…”

Jonathan put his hand on that of Anenih, who was sitting to his right, restraining him. Anenih sat down, but he continued to speak across the table at Obasanjo. “I knew you could not resist the temptation to…”

Obasanjo burst into laughter. “I was not even thinking about you,” he said to Anenih, gesturing towards Tukur. “I was talking to Messi here. He wants to dribble somebody, but he can barely walk without help. Come to think of you, where were you two dribblers, Maradona and Messi, when we were being disgraced in Falklands…I mean, Edo? And now you want a third term!” He had turned to Jonathan.

The three other men looked at each other; then they glared at Obasanjo. “Third term?” they said in unison.

Then, Jonathan, by himself, repeated: “Third term? You were the one who wanted third term in 1999!”

“That is not true,” Obasanjo retorted, banging on the table. “In 1999, I contested for my first term. I know people doubt whether you really have a Ph.D, but sometimes I even doubt whether you wrote your WAEC by yourself: you speak a funny English and reason like a market woman.”

“Sorry Baba, I meant in 2006,” Jonathan said, appearing to be deep in thought.

“I said, ‘Not true!’ In 2006 I merely expressed interest in the extension of my ongoing term to enable me finish some work. That was no third term. I was not going to run for another term.”

Jonathan’s brow appeared tortured by thought. He was grinding his teeth. “Okay,” he said, finally. “But what were you going to finish, Baba? I thought you had done everything. You gave contracts for roads and agriculture and defence. You set up EFCC. You helped Anenih with his N300 billion problem. I think you helped most Nigerians.”

Anenih’s eyes were blazing with anger as he looked at Jonathan, and once again he began to rise from his seat. But Obasanjo would not let him speak. “Yes,” the former President said. “I did help a lot of people in 2006, especially you. I helped you after the Joint Task Force recommended you for prosecution by the CCB for false declaration of assets. But I pre-empted that and made you Vice-President!”

“But…!!!”

“But nothing!” Obasanjo shouted. “You even recently said you are struggling to build your house in your village. All these make you look bad, and make me look terrible because when you were indicted, the evidence included choice property in Yenagoa and Abuja, as well as a lavish seven-bedroom duplex in Otuoke as far back as 2001 that we never took back from you. How can you in 2013 as President say you are struggling to build a house in the same village? Does the house include a staircase to heaven?”

“Baba, it is just a…”

“You must understand why I am angry. Last year, you said in an interview, ‘When I hear people saying corruption, corruption, I shake my head…’ Do you think I did not know you were talking about me?”

Tukur, alarmed as the meeting ran out of control, raised his hand, like a kindergarten kid about to ask a question in a noisy class. But Obasanjo ignored him.

“Look at the people you have surrounded yourself with!” he screamed, pointing at Tukur and Anenih. “People like Doyin Okupe,” he said. “You dig out relics and make them kings. Can Mr. Fix-It, who lost the election in his own hometown, Uromi, to fix a hole in his own pocket, talk less of Abuja? The man has expired, but first you make him chairman of the Port Authority, and then of the BoT. Why don’t you just make him chairman of the presidency?”

“I am the chairman of two powerful offices because the entire country trusts me and is depending on me!” Anenih said, scratching his head.

“They trust you? Name one person who trusts you…and do not mention Josephine, because I will call her right now!”

Anenih was struggling with his temper. “You cannot telephone my wife,” he grumbled, his voice dropping.

“Try me!” he challenged. “I can even call Patience from here, except that I do not understand her English. You have to admit, all of you, that in all those years it was I who made the party and the government workable and feared. But now, nobody respects us. And APC is coming for us.”

The three other men exchanged glances and spoke across the table. “We respect you, Baba,” they intoned. Of course we respect you.”

And then Anenih found fresh courage. “But you must respect us too. We are not children.”

“Yes, nobody is a child,” Jonathan said.

“Sometimes you are all worse than children,” Obasanjo said. “Chaos in the national chairman’s home State. In Bayelsa, even the president’s kinsmen are criticizing him for granting pardon to a man convicted for corruption. And then you outdo yourself by challenging the Americans and the British to a wrestling match!”

“But your own people in Ogun criticized you too,” Jonathan said. “Your daughter jumped a fence running from EFCC. You lost elections.”

“Yes. But I never scored an own goal. And my team never lost when I was on the pitch. You don’t even have an economic plan.”

“I don’t need one. I have Ngozi.”

“True, she is more than a plan, she is a miracle,” Obasanjo sneered. “Don’t forget you have Diezani too. Do you think it was by coincidence I was my own Minister for Petroleum Resources for eight years?”

Tukur took off his hat and laid it on the table. It was suddenly very hot. “Gentlemen, please let us return to the agenda for this meeting. Our great party is under serious threat.”

Anenih nodded. “And we can start to rebuild the party from this very table,” he said. “The foundation of this problem is the threat to the structure of PDP.”

Tukur nodded. “We must support the national executive,” he said. “We must allow the executive to function as the party’s most powerful body.”

“No, no, no,” Anenih said. “That is a gross misunderstanding. The national executive does as it is told by the BoT. We cannot go forward by going back. The tail does not wag the dog. The NEC and the Presidency are guided and led by the BoT.”

“Yes, that is true!” cried Mr. Jonathan, as if snapping out of a stupor, and then, “No, that is not!! As President, I am in charge.”

Obasanjo rose to his feet, gathering his papers. “What you have all said, and the mess you have made of the party, is proof of my point. Without me you are lost. I want you all to go back and re-examine whether you want to succeed or fail. And remember that failure means that some people here may well go to jail. F-A-I-L, J-A-I-L, everyone should memorize that. But I have to be in control. You have to sort out who is responsible to whom. The one at the top will answer to me in my new role as BoT Chairman Emeritus!”

.This satire was first published by Saharareporters

ACCRA(AFP) – If you own a mobile phone and spend sunup to sundown watching the traffic pass in Ghana’s capital, then Iddrisu Mohammed wants you to be his spy.

With an iPad in his hands and two phones in his pants pockets, Mohammed crisscrosses Accra on foot, looking for people to become informants for Jamless, a recently launched traffic information service that hopes to restore a little sanity to the capital’s hectic commute.

“What Jamless will do is give you the traffic situation in any part of Accra that you are and give you alternate routes to use if the place is jammed,” said Mohammed, who is the company’s informant manager.

“You don’t want to get to work late. You don’t want to get home late. If you’re on Jamless you know the alternative route to use to get home early.”

West Africa’s population has been booming, and in many cases infrastructure has failed to keep up, leaving residents of crowded big cities to grapple with impossibly congested commutes.

But a number of clever entrepreneurs and frustrated commuters have turned to social media and other technology to help drivers defy the “go-slows” that start and end the work day for many.

Traffic gridlock at Abiola Garden axis of the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, after today’s heavy rain. PHOTO: IDOWU OGUNLEYE.

And in Abidjan, commuters can send traffic information by text, Twitter or Facebook to CivRoute, a website that offers traffic conditions for Ivory Coast’s main city.

The services are sorely needed as cars proliferate in these growing west African countries.

In Ghana, home to a booming economy based on exports of gold, cocoa and oil, the number of vehicles per thousand people went from 21 in 2003 to 30 in 2009, according to World Bank statistics.

But streets in cities like Accra are often undersized, under-maintained, or both. Harried commuters in the capital spare no road, be it a leafy residential street, an unfinished dirt track or a four-lane highway, in the quest to get to their home or office faster.

Before Jamless “people usually got traffic through friends, through the newspapers and usually on radio,” Mohammed said. But none of those offer real-time updates as Jamless does.

Jamless was started by Guillaume Boniface, a former marketing professional for a French telecommunications company in Guinea’s capital Conakry. His experience of traffic there was an all-day malaise of stationary cars, something he saw repeated when he went around the region.

“Living in Guinea, I had this idea. All African cities had this traffic issue,” Boniface said, recalling traffic jams that would often degenerate into arguments between truculent drivers until the police came to break it up.

“Ghana seemed an easier country to start up.”

As the company’s chief executive officer, Boniface spends his time working with the country’s mobile phone carriers and putting together Jamless’s website in preparation for its launch in the coming months.

Jamless started small, with just a Twitter feed with a few hundred followers, through which Mohammed posts informants’ tips and entreats followers for details on underserved routes.

They now offer commuters traffic updates on major routes by text message and also provide a map of the city’s traffic, but they haven’t started advertising those services yet, Boniface said.

Mobile phones are ubiquitous in Ghana, so Jamless relies on small-scale traders who ply Accra’s streets for a constant stream of traffic updates, sent in by text.

“If there was enough (Twitter followers), then maybe, yeah, crowd-sourcing would be enough,” Boniface said, referring to the practice of relying on followers for information. “Not enough people have a smartphone in Ghana yet.”

If an informant sends traffic information every 20 minutes, which they do by texting a combination of numbers and characters to Jamless, they can make $20 a month, sometimes more, Mohammed said.

Though most informants give accurate tips, Boniface cross-checks traffic information with other informants in the area, and sometimes calls or visits informants if they are sending wrong information.

The biggest issue, he said, is informants not understanding how to properly text Jamless’s automated system.

But tipsters keep dropping out, forcing Mohammed to walk up to 20 kilometres a day in search of the right people in the right place.

“I’ll target those who are stationary,” like people who sell phone airtime or fruits on busy roadways, he said. “They’re always there, Monday to Sunday.”

On a Friday afternoon, Mohammed had walked the length of a dusty half-finished highway, meeting with informants enthusiastic and otherwise. He came across Abdul Darmenikpui, who was weaving traditional kente cloth under a thatch shelter.

“You should bring me some money,” Darmenikpui said. But the weaver hadn’t made enough entries into Jamless’s system to get a payment yet.

“Please keep it up,” Mohammed asked Darmenikpui. “And don’t stop.”

HAVANA(AFP) – Aging Chevys and Pontiacs are a familiar symbol of life in Cuba, but many of the vehicles clogging the communist island’s streets these days are top of the line and fresh from the showroom.

The recent startling appearance of gleaming Audis, Hummers and other high-end cars are but one sign of change in Cuba, where early hints of affluence can be seen after half a century of communist austerity.

Newlyweds are taking honeymoon getaways at Cuba’s five-star hotels.

Health clubs also are sprouting up, with memberships going for the once princely sum of $700 a year.

And suddenly, restaurants are serving up steaming plates of turtle meat, a prized and forbidden delicacy.

A Mercury car on the street of Havana. AFP

The newfound symbols of affluence come thanks in large part to President Raul Castro’s economic reforms, which are putting cash in the wallets of some ordinary Cubans and creating something akin to a nascent capitalism.

Castro, 82, came to power in 2008 — taking over from his ailing brother Fidel — and gradually began to overhaul island’s antiquated Soviet-style economy.

His goal is to liberalize Cuba’s economy and encourage more private entrepreneurship, but at the same time maintain a key role for the Cuban state through joint ventures.

Castro’s reforms have allowed Cubans for the first time to own mobile phones and computers, and to stay in swank hotels that previously had been reserved exclusively for foreigners.

In 2011, he let Cubans legally buy and sell homes and automobiles, and earlier this year, he loosened up strict travel restrictions.

But without question, one of the biggest changes has been to allow Cubans to work for themselves rather than the state.

Havana: 2 elderly woman walk past a night club

Until then, the average income on this island of 11.1 million inhabitants was $20 per month.

After that reform went into effect, beauty salon, restaurants, appliance repair shops and untold other private businesses sprouted up like mushrooms, bringing pockets of new wealth to the island.

There now are about 400,000 independent contractors who work for themselves, and these newly affluent private entrepreneurs are discovering the pleasures of consumption, something that has eluded Cuba for five decades.

“Things have changed along since the start of these independent business people, one can see that right away,” a Havana travel agent told AFP.

Nowadays, it is no longer unusual to see BMWs or Mercedes cars cruising along Havana’s gritty streets, including many high-end vehicles bearing the tell-tale yellow license plates belonging to Cubans.

“Now there are Cubans who go on honeymoon in Varadero or in Los Cayos, the travel agent said, referring to two of Cuba’s most popular tourist beaches.

“It is the independent business people who have made this happen,” the travel agent said.

Another travel industry worker said that business has been booming since the reforms were put in place.

“In 2012, I sold $53,000 in travel packages to Cubans. I was really stunned by that number. Imagine, me, sitting in my little office, doing so much business entirely with Cubans.”

Cuba: Mercedes Benz car parked in Havana

The travel agent also noted something of a trickle down effect of the wealth: “I realized that because some Cubans have much more purchasing power, there’s a lot more affluence.”

Meanwhile, a trainer at one private health club at a Spanish-run hotel in Havana told AFP that “more of my clients are Cubans than foreigners.”

Even the humble “paladar” — apparently as a result of the reforms — has gone upscale.

These family-run restaurants that emerged in the 1990s used to consist of a backroom in a private home, offering hearty fare impossible to find in Cuba’s economy distorted by rationing.

Now, paladares often occupy an entire house, elaborately decorated and offering imported wine and fancy fare, sometimes served by professional wait staff.

As it has for years, Cuba is also benefiting from wealth brought to the island from outside.

A day at a swank beach resort here costs about $200, and there are thousands of travelers who visit the island each year.

Many of the tourists are Cuban emigrants traveling to see relatives, and their numbers have increased since President Barack Obama relaxed restrictions making it easier for Cuban emigres to visit.

According to official data, a record 400,000 Cuban emigrants visited the island in 2012 and Cuban emigrants send about $2 billion each year to their relatives on the island.

The recent visit of the Committee on Local Government Administration and Chieftaincy Affairs of the Lagos State House of Assembly to councils in the state was not an effort in futility after all writes EROMOSELE EBHOMELE

Members of the committee in one of its visits to Local Government councils

Some of the journalists who joined the Lagos State House of Assembly Committee on Local Government Administration and Chieftaincy Affairs on the committee’s recently concluded oversight function will continue to bespeak, at least for a very long time within the year, the physical result of the visionary leadership of the chairman of the Ijede Local Council Development Area (LCDA).

Ijede is the poorest LCDA in Lagos and by extension, Nigeria, as disclosed by the council chairman and confirmed by the committee.

In March 2012 when the committee first visited the council, its secretariat, a small building containing some dingy rooms, was what the chairman, the staff and other political officers lumped themselves into daily while carrying out their required jobs. As if waiting for the committee to arrive before betraying his emotion then, Hassan Adefarasin, the council chairman lamented the situation he met on ground.

Mushin E-Library

The former lawmaker-turned-council chairman explained that apart from the council’s share of the allocation that gets to it from what accrues to the Ikorodu Local Government Area under which it was carved out alongside four other LCDAs, the council got nothing in internally generated revenue as it is located in an area that is considered communal in nature where most residents were engaged in subsistence farming.

After his complaint and appeal to the government to assist with special funds for the development of the area, the committee members held a closed-door meeting with him where it was learnt that they came up with ideas and advice on the best ways he could impact positively on Ijede and its environs during his tenure.

He listened. And the advice of the lawmakers paid off for him, just like it did for some of his other colleagues.

On a second visit by the committee to the Ijede council  a few weeks ago as part of its oversight function, the council chairman who received the committee in the new secretariat complex was grinning excitedly all through the visit.

Less than a year after the initial visit, Adefarasin had completed a massive one-storey building to be used as offices for staff and political office holders working in the council. He had also constructed a giant legislative chamber with an office for each of the councillors.

He also took the team from the Assembly to a newly constructed market made up of open shops and a primary healthcare centre which he said was built and equipped by Senator Olorunimbe Mamora in support of the council.

Adefarasin openly praised the lawmakers for their encouragement and ideas which he said had given his administration a plus.

Apapa-Iganmu LCDA

Just like Ijede, some other councils had projects to show to the committee. In Mushin, the council chairman, Adepitan Babatunde, led the members to a newly constructed e-library which he said some private institutions had concluded plans to equip for the residents of the area. He said this was aimed at further reducing the crime rate in the area. He said the council held regular security meetings with law enforcement agents to sort out ways of curbing crime, adding that he constructed 32 roads in his first term as chairman and that he was using this current term to rehabilitate roads.

However, a major challenge bedevilling the council is the lack of enough offices for staff which the chairman said he was looking into.

The Yaba LCDA chairman, Jide Jimoh and the Mainland council chairman, Adekanye Oladele, were specially commended for transforming their councils. For Jimoh, the committee praised him for giving a face-lift to the council chamber calling it the best council chamber in the state while Oladele received commendation for erecting a giant edifice as the council secretariat. The committee members said the transformation was a huge deviation from what they used to know of the council.

At the Agege Local Government Area, the council chairman, Jubreel AbdulKareem, listed 38 projects his administration had embarked upon within the year. The projects inspected by the committee included the construction of Abeokuta street as well as some drainages.

At the Orile-Agege LCDA, its chairman, Taofeek Adaranijo, said his administration had 25 projects to its credit in 2012. Among these projects are roads and drainage channels. However, there were issues within the council which the committee resolved during a meeting.

In Kosofe local council, the lawmakers commended the chairman, Babatunde Sofola, for his efforts at beautifying the environment and for giving the council a face-lift. They also confirmed the cordial relationship that exists between the political office holders in the council and the staff saying this was because of chairman took issues of welfare seriously. They however urged him not to relent.

Among other council chairmen commended by the committee was Ibrahim Sanusi of Ojo LGA who the lawmakers said had transformed the council secretariat considering the dilapidated structures they met when they first visited seven months ago.

As against its last visit early 2012, when the committee visited the council again recently, the members were surprised at the new face of the council secretariat. A gigantic building housing other staff and detached from the chairman’s office had been erected and tastefully furnished. The council chamber likened to a viewing centre then, had become an envy of the lawmakers.

Representatives of the Alaba International Market also confirmed that the chairman had touched almost all the communities in the area especially with the rural electrification project, construction of police divisions and a bridge.

The council chairman also said his administration had renovated three schools in the area and constructed drainages to complement the efforts of the state government. He said the council had completed a vocational centre that would begin operation very soon adding that he made the effort to have something to show. “I fear the state House of Assembly and must be ready to show the members something when they come,” he said.

At the Ejigbo LCDA, the council chairman, Kehinde Bamigbetan, told the committee that his administration made it compulsory for all the councillors to have constituency offices so that the council would be alert to the needs of the residents. He said the council also provide free health services and drugs for the residents, adding that its jetty was almost completed to boost water transportation in the state.

The lawmakers also commended Ayodele Adewale of Amuwo-Odofin for constructing a massive legislative chamber which he said would be the best among the councils when completed. They commended the Oto-Awori council chairman, Bolaji Kayode Robert, for constructing a storey building health centre, one of the many which he promised to complete within the tenure.

Other council chairmen commended included Akeem Sulaimon of Bariga LCDA, who constructed some roads within the Bariga area and the chairman of Iru/Victoria Island LCDA, Abayomi Daramola, who has almost completed a six-storey secretariat complex for the council.

The new complex, according to him, would also create opportunities for the council to generate revenue since it has halls that could be rented for events by residents of the state.

For the councils which had issues to resolve concerning the running of their affairs, their management staff were invited to the House while others were given ultimatum to put their councils in order.

Sulaimon, who is the chairman of Conference 57 in the state, said the visit had shown that the state House of Assembly is no longer taking it easy with the council chairmen. “If this was how the oversight function was done in the past, I am sure we would have gone far,” he told journalists who accompanied the committee, adding that the first visit of the committee early in 2012 paved the way for the progress recorded by many of his colleagues.

“This visit has yielded enough to earn the committee a pass mark. Most of the council chairmen that earned the bashing of the committee in the last visit have now come out finer than they were,” he added.

He promised that areas where the committee found some faults among the councils would be resolved by the chairmen adding that the competition would continue.

Chairman of the committee, Moshood Oshun, had always maintained that the House would ensure that the council chairmen got closer to the people of the state. He also vowed that his committee would work in such a way that just as the governor of the state, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, is doing his best, the council chairmen would become successful, accountable to the people and finally boost the fortunes of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the ruling party in the state.

In one of such occasions, Oshun told journalists covering the House that, “the party remains supreme and we must carry out our tasks in accordance with the dictates of our party.

“No single individual, as far as the party is concerned, can bring to ridicule all that those who fought for the party’s stronghold and goodwill, have maintained. Asiwaju (Bola Tinubu) remains the eye and body of our party and his constant warning is for us all not to bring the party to disrepute through how we work and behave.

“So I can assure you that this set of council chairmen would do nothing but work, work and work.”

Last year alone, almost 200 LASTMA officers were dismissed after the Personnel Management Board, PMB, found them wanting. The state government had vowed that it would sanitise the outfit and make it better so that it could render better and more efficient service to the public. It vowed to get rid of the bad eggs and reposition the outfit.

In the Lagos metropolis, southwest Nigeria, many motorists do not like LASTMA officers, despite the fact that they contribute immensely in unlocking the traffic bottlenecks and control traffic all over the city Lagos.

Undoubtedly, LASTMA, in the last 13 years of its existence has been one of the greatest innovations to have happened in Lagos. Activities of the officers have been able curb recklessness on the city’s highways. Unruly commercial bus drivers have found LASTMA a hard nut to crack as the outfit constantly ensures that traffic law violators were brought to book. Both private and commercial vehicles owners dread LASTMA officers, especially when the motorist is on the wrong side of the law.

On the other hand, KAI officers have been instrumental in enforcing the environmental sanitation laws of the state, though some bad eggs in the outfit have smeared its name and that of the state government. There have been cases of stealing by some KAI officers, while some cart away traders’ wares for personal use. Corruption among some members of the outfit has led to many being dismissed.

With the introduction of the Road Traffic Law, which was signed by Governor Babatunde Fashola on 2 August, 2012, the need to reposition LASTMA and KAI officers for better service delivery came to the fore. To be able to enforce the traffic law effectively, traffic officers needed to be re-trained.

This informed the decision of the Lagos State government to train 7,916 officers comprising 2,749 from LASTMA; 1,011 from KAI; and 4,156 members of Neighbourhood Watch. The training for the Neighbourhood Watch has not started but that of LASTMA and KAI officers is still ongoing in batches of 200. Each batch comprises of 150 LASTMA and 50 KAI officials are being trained at the Lagos State Public Service Staff Development, PSSDC, Magodo, Lagos for a duration of four weeks. It would take 20 months to train them all.

The career evaluation training programme involves two weeks of classroom work and two weeks of field work. The career evaluation training, which kicked off on 24 September, 2012 is aimed at equipping the officers with the requisite skills to ensure law and order in the state. It is also expected to enhance the capacity of the officers to effectively implement the recently passed Lagos Road Traffic Law.

Government also intends to achieve maximum output delivery from the officers by continuously improving the quality of personnel in its enforcement agencies and maintaining a professional status by instituting training programmes that are practical, effective and consistent with international best practices.

The training is put together by Dr. Mariam Masha, Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Transport Education. So far, 1,600 LASTMA and KAI officers have undergone the four weeks training and have come out of it well refined and pruned to deliver effective service to the Lagos populace.

The 1,600 participants trained so far have undergone the training which involves aerobics, classwork, community service relations visits to orphanage homes and hospitals, while the field report aspect of the training had seen the participants visit Mile 12, Ojota, Ladipo, Apongbon, Agege and Obalende areas of the state and report presentation.

At one time, one of the batches visited the Agbowa Relief Camp and cleaned up the camp buildings, arranged beddings, besides donating materials, including foodstuffs, for the use of the centre and the inmates. The visit by the 200 LASTMA and KAI personnel is an integral component of the career evaluation training programme designed to improve skills of the officers of the two agencies.

According to Masha, the training would also determine the suitability and ability of each personnel for the assigned job as officers entrusted to promote law and order in the state. It would also help the government to achieve appropriate re-orientation of the officers and professionalism in the discharge of their duties. Masha added that “government appreciates the difficult, yet important position law enforcement officers are exposed to in their efforts to promote law and order.

“The officers, who will undergo the training as a team in order to promote espirit de corps among them, will be trained through seminars and scenario-based sessions which are designed to enhance learning and build trust in the people they serve. The project areas are community service, where officers will work in communities to tackle issues ranging from traffic, environment and security as well as volunteering in homes, orphanages and rehabilitation centres across the state.”

Masha stated that the core objective of the programme was to equip all the participants with a better approach of law enforcement, which she said, largely de-emphasised the use of force while placing premium on the tools of advocacy in changing the way people behave. She said LASTMA officers go through a lot of travail in order to enforce the law, adding that “there is nowhere in the world that people like those enforcing the law. This is because they are trying to change people’s behaviour and make them do things in certain ways that may not be comfortable, even though it will benefit the larger society.”

On community service being rendered by the officers, she disclosed that the ongoing reform of the outfits was designed to improve the operatives’ sense of community services and achieve law enforcement with a human face.

“The on-going reform is to enhance capacity of the traffic and environmental operatives with the central goal of making a life-time change in the state’s law enforcement as well as their agencies. The ideals of selfless service, humility, enterprise, interaction, trust, inter-agency relationships and other sound values are being inculcated in these participants towards improved service delivery to the people of the state.

“We know what we want as a government and we want the right people in the right places. The officers were grouped and assigned specific areas with various traffic and environmental challenges that need to be addressed. They developed plans to address these and work with the community to effect positive change and promote law and order,” Masha explained. She added that this project will form a significant part of their assessment

One of the participants in the programme, Mr. Rasheed Sulaimon, expressed satisfaction with the evaluation programme, noting that it would definitely enhance the capacity of the participants to discharge their responsibilities more effectively.

Another participant, Mrs. Mosunmola Agboola commended the state government for introducing the programme, saying it offered them a rare opportunity, which she said, would help them respond to environmental, social and traffic challenges differently and with clear mastery.

Other participants commended the totality of the training programme, especially the Corporate Social Responsibility, CSR, visit to the Agbowa relief centre, describing it as an indelible experience in the quest of serving the people of Lagos State.

They added that the initiative had really prepared their mind on how best to relate with the people while appreciating the challenges others might have in the day-to-day commuting in the state.

—Kazeem Ugbodaga

Simon Ateba

Simon Ateba, a Senior Correspondent with TheNews Magazine and P.M.NEWS, who travelled by sea from Cameroon to Nigeria, narrates his near-death experience in the hands of Nigerian pirates.

We were about 20 minutes from the beautiful and clean land of Calabar, Capital of Cross River State, Southeast Nigeria, when our ship came under attack from about 20 pirates armed with Ak47 and kalashnikov assault rifles and a cornucopia of ammunitions hanging on their black necks.

At the time of the attack, Fakoship as the passenger ship is called, had already crossed ‘the line of death’, an area where most pirate attacks had occurred in the past few weeks and months.

We were in a relaxed mood, having travelled for more than six hours and safely crossing the high sea, and were even enjoying a movie by veteran Nollywood Star, Nkem Owoh, popularly known as Osuofia, the pirates struck.

The pirates came on several speed boats that Monday 25 February 2013, surrounded our ship and pointed guns at the captain before ordering him to stop.

Their words were intimidating and their language unfit for decent human beings.

“Everyone down! Fuck you nigger. Fuck all of you,” they said as they entered Fakoship, their voices reverberating deep down into our brains.

“Bring out all your money and phones. If we search you and find any money, we will kill you and fuck you if we kill you. Fuck everyone,” they said in broken English mixed with little good one.

“Where is the captain and where is Dr. Oyong?” they said.

“Bring all your money and fuck you,” they said further.

A woman two seats away from me had hidden her money in a Bible.

“Fuck you woman. You keep money in the Bible? Fuck you,” they said as they removed the cash and threw the bible metres away some pages flying in the ship.

They moved to a woman who had two-year old baby and pointed the gun at her. Her baby, a boy, began to cry. It was the only passenger voice that could be heard inside the ship.

Pirates on Nigerian waterways.

Simon Ateba: the writer

They searched everyone, collected all they could lay their hands on but killed no one.

It was a great welcome to Nigeria, a country terribly unsafe and appallingly dangerous.

The only good thing was that our passports and travel documents were with the ship owners who always hand them over to immigration on arrival.

In my bag, were all my high school certificates I had gone to collect, my laptop and many documents.

When the pirates left, they forgot my bag. They also left my blackberry phone and didn’t see my office (journalism) ID card. They only collected my purse with virtually nothing in it and a French-made wristwatch I had used for more than three years.

Although I was lucky, many people lost all their money and phones, including a woman who lost about N4 million, the money she had made after selling her goods in Cameroon.

I found travelling by sea extremely risky. On several occasions on the high sea, I thought our ship was going to capsize.

When you travel by sea from Limbe, Southwest Cameroon, to Calabar, Southeast Nigeria, the distance is 85 nautical miles or just above 150 kilometres.

The normal journey with a passenger ship lasts about six hours.

First Class passengers have the highest seats and a better view of the sea while Second Class passengers are closer to the water and endure the shock of the angry waves, especially on the high sea.

On both sides of the high sea, the journey is generally smooth and peaceful. The waves are not felt.

Nigerian movies, known as Nollywood movies, are shown on four screens and snacks and bottles of water are shared and enjoyed.

But once the ship enters the high sea, the waves are merciless and there’s always this feeling that the ship may capsize.

As the waves hit left and right, the ship struggles to maintain its equilibrium and swings left and right.

Every minute, it seems the whole thing may just go down and the lifejacket may just be worthless.

I even felt that the engine of the ship was not strong enough and was losing power on the high sea.

Second Class passengers had the feeling that a magnetic force was pulling the ship down.

The crossing of the high sea lasts about 2 hours and those hours seem like eternity.

The ship spends about 1 hour 30 minutes on the Cameroonian side of the sea, then crosses the high sea in 2 hours and spends the next 2 hours 30 minutes on the Nigerian side of the sea.

On the high sea, water is as far as the eye can see. Miles away, it seems water and the sky meet at some point. There are no trees, no houses, only raging waters.

After crossing the high sea, it’s only an hour 30 minutes later that you begin to see birds, and birds mean the land is no more far.

Shortly after seeing the birds, the trees begin to appear in the creeks first far away and gradually closer and closer and closer.

The Cameroonian side of the sea is relatively safer as few pirate attacks have been successful there.

But on the Nigerian side of the sea, safety is minimal as pirates are masters of the areas and the Nigerian Navy seems to be helpless.

In recent weeks, many pirate attacks have occurred, people have lost money, phones and other belongings and others have been kidnapped.

The frequency of the attacks paints a dark picture into insecurity in Africa’s most populous country.

Nigeria must wake up and empower the country’s Navy to stop the madness.

Nobel Leaureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, is the winner of the maiden edition of the Obafemi Awolowo Prize for Leadership which will be held on 6 March, 2013 as announced by the Obafemi Awolowo Foundation.

Professor Wole Soyinka: Wins Obafemi Awolowo Prize for Leadership

A statement signed to that effect by the Executive Director of the Foundation, Dr. Olatokunbo Awolowo Dosunmu, said the foundation selected Prof. Soyinka for the award through a rigorous process by a panel of eminent Nigerians in December 2012.

“The actual presentation which consists of a plaque, medal and certificate of award, will be made at a ceremony expected to draw a wide array of distinguished Nigerians,” the foundation said. The statement further said Professor Soyinka, winner of the 2012 Leadership prize, will deliver a lecture on the occasion.

“A dance performance, musical celebration, goodwill messages, as well as a documentary on Chief Obafemi Awolowo and the foundation itself, set up in 1992 to preserve his intellectual legacy are decided features of the event,” the statement added, stressing that the documentary seeks to bring back memories of the political milestones achieved by the late sage.

The statement said former Head of State and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the foundation, General Yakubu Gowon, will chair the occasion while former heads of state as well as prominent Nigerians are expected at the event.

“The foundation is gratified that Professor Wole Soyinka, whose nomination was unanimously made by the selection committee, headed by the globally acclaimed technocrat and diplomat, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, graciously accepted the nomination, describing it as the ‘creme de la creme of all the recognitions I have ever received’,” the statement stressed further.

—Eromosele Ebhomele

Train terminals at peak periods are like apparitions or paintings realised on canvas. In Lagos, the faces are usually of traders, civil servants, pensioners, young business executives and the hustlers who virtually crawl, walk and toil to make ends meet melt like a pout-pourri of images.  Some of the passengers, especially the simpletons shun the cabins, opting instead for the roof of the locomotives. Some say they do this to escape the burning heat inside the cabins. For others, traveling on train-tops is just a normal way to jaunt from one part of the city to the other. While some actually hold legitimate tickets purchased from officials of the Nigerian Railway Corporation, NRC, others are mere opportunists benefiting from the sluggish movement of the trains without paying a dime.

•DANGEROUS RIDE: Nigerians riding on the roof of a moving train

Sitting on train top or hanging on doorways, windows or other spaces constitutes a dent on efforts by the corporation to make train journeys appeal to Lagosians. Some potential travelers by train who spoke to P.M.NEWS described the trains as decrepit, which is why many passengers choose to stand or hang on the train. Indeed, activities of these outlaws have raised safety concerns that the NRC is battling to fix.  Odebunmi Dominga, Head, Lagos State Safety Commission, is peeved that the NRC’s  lukewarm attitude to tackling its safety challenges. The safety expert was quoted recently as saying: “The practice of passengers hanging on coaches of trains is totally unacceptable. Residents should not collude with station managers on this act, considering the huge impact of a train accident. We will continue to mount pressure on the management until they can demonstrate that they are on top of the situation, but right now we are not pleased with what we have seen on ground,” she said regretfully.

Train compartments are supposed to be salubrious areas. Comfort and ease are key considerations by manufacturers. In every cabin, it is clearly stated that each should sit 90 people. But at rush hours, the number of people occupying those cabins could double. When this reporter made took a ride on the morning of a workday last week, every available space was taken on the popular stand section was fully taken up, including the long-abandoned lavatories.

The cost of the ticket has also been blamed for the risk being taken by some travelers. The journey from Iddo, its terminal to Ijoko in Ogun State, cost N150 for ‘second class’ chambers. And for N500, a passenger can make the journey of same distance in a VIP cabin. A trip in this section of the train is not always as rosy as the name implies. Chika Odiachi, a young business executive who commutes regularly on the train said tickets are usually sold-out, pushing  commuters to stand even on the so-called VIP compartments. “There is no VIP treatment anywhere in these cabins. Sometimes you get worse treatment during rush hours. People just stand or lean anywhere, just to get to their destinations,” he said.

The activities of ‘miscreants’ who ride on top of trains without paying for the ride is injurious to the operator. Although he will not confirm how much is lost to such people, Ademuyiwa Adekanmbi, District Public Relations Officer in charge of Lagos told this magazine that train hangers indirectly sabotage government effort at restructuring the rail transport system. “It is not possible to have statistics of those who hang on the trains. It is illegal to do so, we don’t recognize them,” he told P.M.NEWS. He explained that the corporation conducts raids “once or twice every week, arrests the culprits until other measures that management is putting in place to curtail this menace come to force.” Although he did not reveal the measures being put in place to combat the dangerous trend, he explained that some of those raids could yield as many as 40 criminals per operation and it is usually led by the railway Police which provides security services for the NRC. The lucky ones according to him scamper into residential areas or bushes when the police come after them. Those caught in the police net are slammed with 25,000 naira fines or judicial prosecution. This however, has not deterred offenders, some of whom this medium learnt have committed the crime several times.

An overcrowded interior section of the train

Adekanmbi declined knowledge of any pressure on the railway service provider, resulting from the ban on commercial motor cycles, popularly called okada in Lagos. “We used to carry 13,000 to 14,000 daily and we are still doing so. Definitely, the number of people who come to board the train is the same, I don’t know of any pressure on us. Maybe it is the people who used to ply motorcycles that have joined the others in climbing on the trains,” he explained. The DPRO admitted that the train coaches current in use are inadequate, thus encouraging overcrowding. He noted however that government is refurbishing more coaches and complementing them with new ones to ease movement of goods and passengers.

Efforts made to reach the police for comments did not yield result. At the Area Command in Ebute Meta, this reporter was referred to the Railway Police Command at the corporation’s main terminal at Iddo. At the command, the officer designated to handle such issues was said to be away. A source who craved anonymity, however, described violators of railway rules as “Rooftop riders, who are damaging our economy. The police are going after them, based on orders that the NRC gives the officers. We will pursue them until the practice is stopped and traveling on trains becomes enjoyable,” the officer said.

Perhaps when the NRC accomplishes its much-talked-about ambition of providing many train coaches and varying travel times to cater for different category of people, this practice will stop. But for now, people who avoid the cabins will continue to hang precarious on any part of the train, making mockery of the law.

—Nkrumah Bankong-Obi

For prominent Nigerians and celebrities in the country, cancer is no longer an ailment to only imagine. It is one that is currently ravaging their ranks and reducing their numbers.

Mariam Babangida

Just a few weeks ago, the dreaded disease which comes in different forms and attacks different parts of the body, has claimed the lives of two notable women. One is 48-year old Roseline Ogbemudia, wife of the eldest son of Dr. Samuel Ogbemudia, former governor of Edo State, southsouth Nigeria, while the other victim is popular socialite and sister of former Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State, Evangelist Bimpe Oluwayose-Sorinolu.

Roseline and Bimpe both battled breast cancer till death. While the former died in a hospital in India, the latter, who had been treating the ailment since 2011, died in a London hospital on Wednesday evening.

Ironically, 4 February was World Cancer Day, a day the National Cancer Prevention Programme (NCPP) disclosed that an estimated 80,000 citizens of the country die from various forms of cancer annually.

Prominent Nigerians whose lives have been cut short by cancer in recent times include Second Republic Senate Leader, Dr. Olusola Saraki, who battled the ailment for five years,  51-year old Remi Osholake, a fashion designer popularly known as Remi Lagos, and Sam Ojebode, an ex-Green Eagles star who passed on in Oyo State after his battle with cancer of the lungs.

Cassandra Gabriel, popularly known as Sisi Caro, died of breast cancer last year

The demise of Nollywood actress, Cassandra Gabriel, popularly known as Sisi Caro in AK Media’s television drama, Face-2-Face, is still fresh. She died of breast cancer last year.

Taiwo Bello, succumbed to cancer last year

Another Nollywood personality who also succumbed to cancer last year was Taiwo Bello, a movie producer and director who co-wrote the movie, Jenifa, with Funke Akindele and produced and directed the 2010 movie, Omije Mi.

In December, 2010, Yusuf Jibo, former Zonal Director of the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA), died of colon cancer.

Clara Oshiomhole: Died of cancer 8 December, 2010

Clara, wife of Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State also died of cancer on 8 December, 2010, eleven days to her daughter’s wedding.

On 27 December, 2009, Maryam Babangida, wife of former military President, General Ibrahim Babangida (retd), died of ovarian cancer after a long battle with the disease. She was aged 61.

That same year, precisely on 5 September, Gani Fawehinmi, renowned lawyer and human rights activist; Remi Abiola, actress and wife of late businessman and politician, Chief M.K.O. Abiola, as well as Alaere Alaibe, wife of Bayelsa-born politician, Timi Alaibe, all died of cancer.

NTA ace broadcaster, Yinka Craig, 60, died on 23 September, 2008 as a result of cancer of the blood, while musician-turned evangelist, Sonny Okosuns, lost the battle to cancer of the colon on 24 May, 2008 at the age of 61.

Sam Ojebode, also died of cancer

Cancer could be caused by many different factors. According to the President of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Dr. Osahon Enabulele, things such as ultraviolet and ionizing radiation; chemical carcinogens, such as asbestos, components of tobacco smoke, food and drinking water contaminants as well as infections from certain viruses, bacteria or parasites could cause it.

The President of Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, Mr. Olumide Akintayo, explained at the recent World Cancer Day that, “the incidence of cancer rises dramatically with age, most likely due to a build-up of risks for specific cancers that increase with age.”

He said tobacco and alcohol use, unhealthy diet and physical inactivity could trigger the ailment, adding that chronic infections from hepatitis B (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV) and some types of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) are common causes in poor countries.

“Many cancers have a high chance of cure if detected early and treated adequately,” he said.

The Chief Consultant Radiation Oncologist, National Hospital, Abuja, Dr. Festus Igbinoba, also warned people to avoid grilled meat and animal fat where possible.

Remi Lagos: Couldn’t resist death by cancer

He said carcinogens present in the environment cause cancer and that if they could be avoided, there would be a reduction in cancer risks.

According to him, just as smoking could result in lung cancer, alcohol could cause cancer of the mouth, the esophagus, the liver, etc.

“If you can avoid alcohol and tobacco, you have helped yourself a lot in avoiding many of the cancers,” he said.

—Eromosele Ebhomele

By MAY AKABOGU-COLLINS

I was a visiting professor in Paris last fall and it was the first day of class. I was making copies for my 10:30 class at the faculty lounge where two female professors were kibitzing by the coffee machine.

“Oh, yeah,” one said. “Soon as I learned he’s Nigerian, I discounted everything he’d said as fraud.”

“Smart move,” agreed the other, nodding, “nothing good’s ever come out of that country. …”

I cringed, held my breath and skedaddled on to my classroom, where my students wanted to know my nationality. I’m American. “Bot Professa,” an African student’s hand flew up, “ware you from originally? I hear the voice of Africa.”

May Akabogu Collins: Nigeria needs a Honest Ernest

I inhaled deeply, chuckled but ignored that question.

When I left Nigeria for the United States in 1980, the plan was to earn an M.B.A., a doctorate in economics, and then return. It was my moral obligation to help develop my country, whose oil wealth financed my education. An M.B.A., a Ph.D. and 32 years later, I’m still here, abroad. In 1992, when I applied for a position at my alma mater, the University of Ibadan, the dean replied, “Why on earth would you want to return when everybody’s trying to escape?” No one’s been paid for over three months, he explained, and universities are on strike half the time.

Twenty years later, Nigeria can still bring the crazy.

In 1980, the naira had a very favorable exchange rate against the dollar. En route to the United States, I stopped over in London. All along King’s Road, the shopkeepers beckoned: “Nigerian? Welcome. Come inside.” I was proud to be from Nigeria and was offended when the country was confused with Niger. But, today, if I can pass for someone from Niger — sadly, I would be glad.

Is there a person on the planet who remains unfamiliar with the Nigerian e-mail scam? As a Nigerian living abroad, I’ve become embarrassed — indeed scared — after learning that in February 2003 a Czech victim of an Internet fraud murdered an innocent Nigerian in Prague.

That isn’t the scariest narrative — not by a long shot. In recent years, Nigerians abroad have been warned: “Don’t come home. Just send money.” But if one must, say, attend a wedding, a funeral or take a chieftaincy title, it is necessary to hire prearranged police protection from the moment you land at the airport until the moment you depart.

Last summer, my ailing 87-year-old mother, worried that her days are numbered, called a family reunion for Christmas. My three U.S.-based siblings and I made plans to return home with all our kids. At the last minute, my brother sent an e-mail canceling the reunion. “What?” my daughter said, her glass of iced tea slipping out of her hands and shattering on the tile floor. Uncle Tony can’t guarantee our safety in Nigeria, I explained.

“What about hired armed security like the last time?” she inquired. I showed her the link to the news report my brother had sent headlined, “Gunmen Kill U.S. Returnee in Enugu,” his hometown in Nigeria.

Ogbo Edoga had returned from the United States to attend the meeting of an organization of Nigerian professionals in the United States to raise funds for an ultramodern medical diagnostic center in his ancestral village. On his way, he was robbed and shot and killed with an AK-47. He had hired police protection, as had many Nigerians who visited our motherland only to be robbed and murdered. The lucky ones got kidnapped and released after their families paid a huge ransom. And now, Mom’s joined the choir: “Don’t come home.”

Here’s what is shameful: This is the Nigeria that has been one of the world’s top 10 oil exporters for decades; the presumed “Giant of Africa” when I was leaving in 1980. But three decades later, despite a half-century of billions of petrodollar inflow, in March 2011, at a World Bank-O.E.C.D. conference in Paris, I found myself sliding down my chair to hide my face behind my laptop as a fellow economist explained why Nigeria was excluded in a comparative study thusly: Since Nigeria (with South Africa) dominates the Sub-Saharan African economy and since Nigeria does so poorly at wealth creation, if included, it would render Sub-Saharan Africa’s genuine savings dwarfish vis-à-vis East Asia and Latin America.

Here’s the thing: One doesn’t need a Ph.D. in economics to understand the correlation between poverty and today’s high crime rate in Nigeria. When corrupt politicians persistently embezzle public funds rather than produce proper policies, the result is a stagnant economy and its attendant human misery — high unemployment and massive poverty. Marginalized youths resort to Internet scams, kidnapping, or join Boko Haram. When the police go unpaid for months, the citizens become the logical prey.

That’s where Nigeria is today. It will not change until we, the people, join in a mass outrage against corruption, demand transparent accounting of our oil revenues and economic justice. Only then will an honest leadership emerge to invest a fair share of the oil revenues in capital in such a way as to permanently raise the consumption level of the masses. Otherwise we Nigerian expatriates — the most educated immigrant group in the United States — will remain in exile, and Nigeria will remain a breeding ground for terrorism.

Is there an Honest Ernest among Nigerians who is able to galvanize us? Can something that good come out of Nigeria? That’s a palm reader’s guess.

May Akabogu-Collins is a visiting professor of economics at the American Business School in Paris.

.This article was first published in New York Times, with the headline: A Nigerian Spring-Long Overdue

 The cremation law has been passed by the Lagos State House of Assembly against the wish of residents of the state reports EROMOSELE EBHOMELE

Last Friday could be described as frustrating for staff, guests and members of the Lagos State House of Assembly because the sitting scheduled for 10 a.m did not start until about 4 p.m. Ordinarily, the House does not sit on Fridays, but a similar late commencement in sitting the previous day resulted in the lawmakers’ inability to exhaust the Order Paper, which outlines the issues to be deliberated upon. The leadership of the House adjourned till Friday.

Hon. Adeyemi Ikuforiji, Speaker, Lagos State of Assembly

However, in the midst of the anger and lamentation, one of the lawmakers and Chairman of the House Committee on Health, Suru Avoseh Hodewu, was very excited. His Cremation Bill, one he personally proposed to the House, would finally see the light of day. And it did.

Indications that the bill, which has now legalized the cremation of unclaimed corpses at any of the government mortuaries in the state as well as voluntary cremation of corpses by those who want it, would be passed became clear on Thursday when the House took the presentation of the report to establish the law.

As such, some media houses concluded that the law had been passed even though the lawmakers had not taken the third reading which would herald the Speaker’s gavel to bring the bill to life.

The bill came about after its sponsor told the House that most of the mortuaries in the state had become full and that through the oversight function of the Committee on Health, it had been discovered that majority of the corpses cannot be identified.

Mr. Avoseh had told his colleagues that this had become a major challenge to those handling corpses in the state such that new corpses do not find spaces for preservation. He had also argued that with the location of the state, it had a major challenge in terms of enough space for the burial of corpses and thus believed that people could be encouraged to cremate corpses of the relatives as a possible solution to these challenges one of which is the decongestion of the mortuaries.

While confirming that cremation was strange and new in Nigeria, the lawmaker said with the introduction of cremation, health officials, who were faced with the problems of how to get land, and thus resorted to mass burials, would be relieved.

Avoseh was supported by the likes of Mrs. Funmilayo Tejuosho, representing Mushin Constituency 1, and Mudashiru Obasa representing Agege Constituency 1 at the House, as according to them, the present condition of mortuaries in the state could cause epidemics if nothing was done urgently. While Tejuosho said that people should have an option to cremate their dead while unclaimed bodies should be cremated by the state after six months, Obasa said that the idea would reduce the incidence of the ritualists, who often invade cemeteries at night to mutilate corpses.

It was with such ease that the bill’s journey began. It was then broken into sections with Section 2 stipulating that no cremation may take place except in a crematorium established by the Ministry of Health or by any other body upon the recommendation of the authority and approval by the Commissioner for Health and Section 6 stipulating the guidelines to getting permission to cremate and listing those eligible for permission to cremate to include a child or children of the deceased; a close relative of the deceased; an undertaker and an agent/legal representative.

Also Section 8 of the law gives the Medical Directors of the state hospitals power to order cremation of unclaimed bodies in their respective mortuaries but that this must be with the consent and approval of the Commissioner for Health while Section 10 of the law states that the cremator in charge of a crematorium must not dispose of the ashes remaining after a cremation except in accordance with any reasonable written instructions of the applicant adding, however, that the cremator in charge may bury the ashes in a burial ground if, “within one year after the cremation, the applicant does not give reasonable written instructions for the disposal of the ashes.”

The lawmakers may not have anticipated the hitches suffered by the bill. It was several times rejected by residents of the state making critics think it may end up being like other laws that were only passed just to add up with the already existing ones in the gazette and without effective implementation.

Within the House, one lawmaker, Bayo Oshinowo, opposed the bill till it became law. Osinowo, representing Kosofe 1, who had, at the bill’s proposition, warned that the tradition, culture and religion of Nigerians had to be properly considered before embarking on the act, had also argued that the congestion at mortuaries was due to the negligence of morgue attendants.

Again, during the adoption of the report that would enable the bill pass through the third reading of the House, Oshinowo called on the state government to provide land for burial of corpses rather think of cremating them.

Stressing that many Nigerians are not in support of the bill, he stressed: “cremation is not part of our culture. If government cannot provide land to bury our dead, then it is a shame to humanity.”

Oshinowo’s position had been echoed by residents of the state in several fora. During the public hearing of the bill, officials of the state government and the lawmakers could not convince those in attendance as the latter stood their ground in opposition stressing that it was against religious and cultural practices in the state and country. They also accused berated the state government over the poor state of the mortuaries saying if the morgues were taken care of, there would be no problems with the 180 unclaimed corpses which the state said it was battling with. They also punctured the state government’s excuse of lack of space saying the space were being amassed for the construction of expensive estates by the same government.

A resident, Abdulrasaq Olatunji, who spoke on behalf Muslim lawyers in the state, asked the government officials: “if it is true that lands in Lagos state have been exhausted, why can’t the state government liaise with other neighbouring states and ask them to give it land to be used for mass burial?”

Another Muslim leader, Abdulmojeed Addulkareem, explained that the proposed bill was against Islamic faith as according to him, “if we keep silent on the issue, and we say unclaimed corpses should be burnt, the spirit of Muslims among the corpses will be on our heads.

“This idea, apart from being against our religion is also against our culture. If you say there is a crematorium in Ogun state, we know that there is no such law in Ogun state. So we are not in support of this particular bill.”

Few days later, the Catholic Church and the Oshodi, Lagos branch of the Christian Association of Nigeria, also expressed their rejection of the bill and asked the lawmakers to throw it out.

In a statement by the Very Rev. Gabriel Osu, Archdiocesan Director of Social Communications, on behalf of the Administrator of the Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos, His Eminence, Anthony Cardinal Okogie, the Catholic Church said: “the issue of cremation is a very sensitive one because it bothers on our culture, tradition and religion. As Africans, it is against our culture and as Christians it is against our religious beliefs. In the Koran, the respect of the dead is very clear.

“They do not allow the corpse to stay long, not to talk of cremation. We believe after life and the need to give the dead proper burial as prescribed in the Bible.

“I do not see any one who would want his corpse or that of loved ones cremated. Already you can see the response of Lagosians during the public hearing. Most of those who spoke are vehemently opposed to it. It is not acceptable at all. My advice is for the lawmakers to quickly jettison the idea and look for better ways of dealing with unclaimed corpses,”

Urging the government to build more modern and affordable cemeteries in various parts of the state as well as rehabilitate the old ones, the statement added: “it is only in Africa that we have no respect for the dead. Go to Atan and Ikoyi cemeteries, for instance, they have been over-taken by weeds. Security is another issue entirely. The dead deserves to rest in peace.”

On his part, the head of CAN in Oshodi, Pastor Barnabas Otoibhi, in a statement, described it as a culture of shock to see loved ones being burned in the name of cremation.

Otoibhi, who is also the General Overseer, Temple Rebuilder Mission, said apart from the fact that the bill came to Nigerians as a rude shock, “if the bill is passed into law, it will impact negatively on our socio-cultural values. Cremation is incompatible with the cultures of the various ethnic groups in Nigeria. One of our socio-cultural values is paying the last respect to the dead. Cremation or burning the body of the dead certainly does not amount to paying the last respect to the dead.

“The government has a constitutional responsibility to preserve and promote the cultural values of the nation. But if this bill on Cremation is passed into law, the government will unwittingly be creating an avenue to erode one of our much cherished socio-cultural values.”

Many residents of the state also expressed reservations concerning the bill to the extent that the Speaker of the House, Adeyemi Ikufoiji, while speaking at a Ramadan lecture gave the impression that the bill would not be passed against the wish of the people.

“Let me assure our Muslim and Christian brothers and sisters that the assembly will not go against your wish concerning the cremation bill. If you say you do not want the bill, we will not pass it. We will not do anything to jeopardise your interests.

He however added: “I am a Muslim, I cannot allow my corpse to be burnt but we should allow those who want their dead bodies to be burnt have their way,” he added.

Now that the House has passed it in the face of this heavy rejection, it is left to be seen how it would be effectively implemented by the state without attracting the ire of the already irritated residents.

As the spate of kidnapping continues to rise in the country, EROMOSELE EBHOMELE takes a look at the involvement of the police in the crime as a bigger challenge

The abduction of Nkiru Sylvanus, a Nollywood actress who won the heart of Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo state, southeast Nigeria, to become his Special Assistant on Public Affairs came as shocking when the news broke recently.

Nkiru Sylvanus

Miss Sylvanus had been kidnapped more than 24 hours before the world became aware and the police initially claimed it was in the dark as to the kidnap incident. Like in many other cases of kidnap across the country, the Imo state government and family members of the victim, who was abducted close to the famous Concorde Hotel, Owerri at 2.30 pm on Saturday did not see the need to incident the case with the police.

The kidnappers immediately opened communication with some officials of the state government and stakeholders in the Nollywood industry demanding N100million as ransom.

But rather than involve the police to search and rescue her, the actress’ friends resorted to self-help, using social media like Facebook, Twitter and the Blackberry Messenger to propagate the information. And soon, like wild fire, the incident became  public knowledge. The police came into the picture much later.

The initial refusal of friends, family members as well as the Imo State government to bring the police into the picture regarding this recent kidnap may have stemmed from the impression many Nigerians now have of the force.

Over time, it has been discovered that some of its officials have direct links with the kidnappers. In this case, they make every information relating to the efforts of their colleagues known to the perpetrators of this crime which has now become a booming business where millions of naira is made with ease.

Where the police also decide to regain its lost glory by making sure the victim is rescued, its officials end up either jumping to conclusions while investigations should still be on-going. As a result, they often get the wrong people arrested over such crimes or give out information that could best be described as impressive falsehood in a bid to earn some positive rating.

For example, in the wake of the release of Professor Kamene, the Queen mother of Ogwashi-Uku and mother of Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the Minister of Finance and Co-ordinating Minister of the Economy, the police continued to churn out claims which some Nigerian analysts said were ridiculous for a security body that has hardly been able to rescue kidnap victims in the country.

Prof. Kamene Okonjo

First was the arrest of many people in connection with the incident only for Nigerians to discover that the suspects were innocent afterall, judging from the Minister’s confession indicating that unnamed indicted oil marketers were responsible for her mother’s kidnap.

Aside this, the police claimed that they were able to track down and kill the suspected leader of the gang that abducted the 82-year old woman after men of the force invaded their hide-out somewhere in Asaba, the state capital. According to the law enforcement agents, Nwaze Nwosa, aka Bolaji, was killed, four other gang members escaped with bullet wounds while another gang member was arrested.

With such interesting testimony, it would be assumed that the police would rescue the octogenarian. However, a fresh angle evolved when Prof. Okonjo, was reportedly brought home by a motorcyclist after she regained her freedom in Kwale, a town within Delta State.

Delta State Commissioner of Police, Ikechukwu Aduba, who had earlier given information as to how the police was closing in on the kidnappers, confirmed later that the Queen Mother was freed by her abductors five days after her kidnap and taken home on a motorcycle from Kwale, which is 50 kilometres away from her home adding that the man who brought her home had been arrested for further investigation into the issue.

Nigerians would continue to wonder how the invasion of a hide-out in Asaba relates with Professor Okonjo’s release in the Kwale area of the state.

Reeling in self-praise, CP Aduba had told journalists at the command headquarters in Asaba that the release of the victim involved the combined efforts of a team of policemen deployed by the Inspector-General of Police, Muhammed Abubakar, and the proactiveness of men of the Special Anti-Crime Squad (SARS).

“The Delta State Police supported by a crack team from IGP’s Special Task Force on Terrorism, Abuja, consciously and professionally with due caution collated intelligence on the activities of the hoodlums and struck their hideouts in Asaba,” he said adding that efforts to get the fleeing members of the gang had begun.

He also displayed items including an ash-coloured Golf 3 car with registration number DELTA ASB 697 AA, saying this was the vehicle they used to transport the Queen Mother out of the palace and a white Toyota bus, labeled God’s Delight Church International, with registration number ANAMBRA KPP 64 XA, which he said the gang had been using.

This attempt was again countered by the some journalists after they learnt that Nwosa had been declared wanted even before the kidnap of Prof. Okonjo.

These may be why citizens of the country are taking with a pinch of salt the denial that no ransom was paid to secure the release of the victim even though it is well reported that N10 million was paid out to the kidnappers.

IGP, Mohammed Abubakar

One kidnap incident that is challenging the police in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital has to do with Mrs. Titi Rotimi, wife of a former military governor, General Oluwole Rotimi. She was kidnapped at about 6.30pm in front of her company, AOK Logistics Limited, located on old Ife Road in Ibadan just a day after the kidnap of Professor Okonjo. While Professor Okonjo is out, Mrs. Titi is still being kept, thus devastating the family members and with the police unable to track down the suspects, who allegedly demanded for N200 million as ransom.

When Nigerian international midfielder, Christian Obodo, was kidnapped by four men in front of a church in Warri, Delta state, sometime ago, it was the Nigerian police that quickly tried to douse the anxiety that pervaded the country by announcing that its men were on top of the situation. His kidnappers had demanded a ransom of about $188,000.

The next day, the police in their usual chest-beating habit, rushed out to announce to the world how they were able to rescue the footballer.

“He has been rescued and we have five suspects in our net as a result of it,” the Delta state police spokesman, Charles Muka, said adding that to successfully rescue Obodo, the police officers staged a raid on the gang’s hideout after trailing them to a location which he did not mention.

He said in addition to the arrests, an AK-47 rifle was recovered from the gang.

The police story was, however, shot down when a vigilance group, Emevor Vigilante Group, quickly rose against the security agency and expressed disappointment over the claims of the police saying that they (the vigilante) effected his rescue.

Members of the vigilance group said the police should have at least given them credit for a job well done instead of attributing same to themselves, as according to some members of the group, Obodo was taken by the kidnappers to a local food canteen for dinner and that where he raised an alarm that attracted those who called members of the group.

In an incident that has created a special resentment for the men in black uniform, a senior staff of the Lagos State Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, told P.M. NEWS that when his son was kidnapped and the kidnappers had contacted him for a ransom of N600,000, he rushed to the police to inform them and get them involved in the rescue process and possible arrest of the abductors.

“So I contacted the police and gave them details of our discussion as well as the bank account number that they gave to me. We agreed that I should pay the money into the account so they could monitor it and get anyone who came to withdraw it.

“But later in the evening that day, the kidnappers contacted me again and replayed everything that happened between me and the police earlier that day and our plans. They said they were sure I did not love my son.

“I was so shocked that I rushed back to the police station to tell them to hands off the issue that I would handle it myself. I had to beg seriously before they agreed to collect the N600,000 because they increased it after I told the police.

“They told me another way to make the payment and I had to go and collect it in Ibadan with my son with them all through till they were satisfied.

Analysts believe that the current strategies adopted by the police to combat this crime in the country can never yield positive results as long as they engage in propaganda at every opportunity they have and the fact that traitors exist within them and have continued to reap from assisting the kidnappers.

In April this year, the leader of the Anti-Kidnapping Squad of the Delta State Police Command, identified as Mr. Dickson Adeyemi, was arrested in Asaba by a crack team from the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID) and taken to Abuja on suspicion that he had aided kidnappers in the state rather than help reduce the scourge.

Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan, while making the announcement, said Adeyemi, a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), was arrested with some of ‘his boys’ in response to preliminary investigations into the upsurge in the kidnap-for-ransom incidents in the state.

According to the governor, the police officer and his boys were arrested for their alleged involvement in kidnapping and related criminal activities. “They are greedy people who are common criminals, so poverty and hunger are no excuses for engaging in the crime,” he said.

The governor, who admitted that the rising cases of kidnapping in the state had become a problem to the government, added that security investigations have uncovered the huge impact of insiders in the success of the crime.

Apart from foreigners who have been kidnapped in the country, which now earns the reputation as one of the most notorious countries where kidnap-for-ransom has become a booming business, Nigerians who have been kidnapped and for whom ransom huge sums were paid keep growing. The brother of Everton defender Joseph Yobo was kidnapped in 2008 and freed days later; father of Chelsea midfielder John Mikel Obi, was also abducted in Jos, Nollywood actors Pete Edochie, Ikem Owoh among others have once been victims.

Though recent statistics have not been released, between 2008 and 2010, Nigeria recorded 887 kidnap cases, according to the then Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Ogbonna Onovo, showing that records available within the period proved that the incidents were very high in Rivers State with 216 cases, followed by Anambra with 191 cases, Edo 166, Akwa Ibom 100, Delta 85, Abia 68 and Imo with 61 cases. Today, Delta could well be described as the headquarters of the crime with many of the kidnappers smiling to the bank. They no longer need to face the hassle of robbing banks and other big institutions when it is now very easy to make the money.

And as it is now, the police are still handicapped. Nothing can be done effectively by them until they purge themselves of the bad eggs. Not even the death sentence being proposed by some states of the federation.

At about 9.30 am on 26 December 2012, a loud explosion reverberated at No. 45, Ojo Giwa Street, Jankara area of Lagos Island, Lagos, southwest Nigeria. Few seconds later, series of explosions followed, there was pandemonium as people ran helter and skelter. Balls of fire lit up the atmosphere making it seem like a Boko Haram scene of bomb explosion, but it was not. The explosions were from fireworks and firecrackers stored in a shop along the street.

“The first time, we heard an explosion and this was followed by series of explosions. Everybody started running and I ran too. As we were running, it seems as if the fire was pursuing us. I fell, stood up again and continued running, not minding I had sustained an injury. We thought it was Boko Haram,” says an eyewitness and resident in the area, Segun Oyebanji.

•CRUMBLING: One of the affected buildings.

“The fire service came late. We were expecting them but they delayed in coming. One person has just died in the fire,” he added.

A police officer from Oko Awo Police Post on the same street, who craved anonymity explained that his colleague who witnessed the incident was in shock and could not speak, adding that the police post was not spared as electronics and other items in it were destroyed in the explosion.

Another resident, Abbey Olowu said the explosion was like a bomb as people scampered for safety. “I also ran with them,” he added.

According to Mr. Yusuf Abullateef, the fire started around 9.30 am. “The first explosion was very loud while the series of explosions that followed were lighter. People started running for safety; many buildings in this area shook when the explosion occurred and we thought it was a bomb.”

•Onlookers and sympathisers at the scene.

A spokesperson of the Lagos Fire and Safety Services said that they arrived 30 minutes after the explosion, but that the crowd at the scene hindered their operation.

In a twinkle of an eye, 10 buildings and 11 cars were consumed by the raging fire. A 12-year-old boy died in the fire while about 30 others were injured and rushed to the hospitals for treatment. Thousands of curious Lagosians thronged the scene of the incident; hundreds of policemen, civil defence corps, fire fighters, Red Cross officials, officials of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA and others were on ground to battle the fire.

The blast and fire led to panic in the densely packed area of Lagos, a city of some 15 million people, with residents jumping from windows to flee and others salvaging goods from their shops in the market’s neighbourhood. Fireworks continued to explode well after the fire began while smoke was heavy and the blaze intense, making it difficult for rescue workers and firefighters to approach the scene.

Within minutes of the explosion, the fire spread to a nearby building, sending hundreds of residents, traders and shoppers fleeing in the usually boisterous market area. Huge crowds gathered in the area, including onlookers and those seeking to help.

The National Emergency Management Agency said the fire was believed to have caused the explosion at a shop in which fireworks were stored. The shop was severely damaged and almost collapsing. “NEMA has mobilised response agencies and volunteers to an explosion in a building suspected to be loaded with (fireworks) in the Jankara area of Lagos. Search and rescue officers of NEMA are having hectic time to reach the place due to traffic and  the crowd,” agency spokesman, Yushau Shuaib said.

“The fire was as a result of fireworks stored in a store at Ojo Giwa Street in front of King Ado High School. The fire affected 10 buildings severely and one person died. Occupants of the buildings have been evacuated. All stakeholders that are in the emergency industry in the state are on ground for rescue operation,” added, Dr. Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, General Manager, LASEMA.

The remains of burnt cars. Photos: Idowu Ogunleye

As fire fighters and LASEMA officers fought to put out the fire, bangers were still exploding, leading to more fire. The fire fighters deployed a Bronto Sky Lift to fight the fire in the tall buildings. The 10 buildings consumed by the fire were all three-storey buildings in a tight environment, which made it easy for the fire to spread.

Properties estimated at billions of naira were destroyed by the fire. It was indeed an unforgettable Boxing Day for residents of the area as they counted their losses. Hundreds of residents have been displaced from their abode of rest.

Lagos State Commissioner for Special Duty, Dr. Wale Ahmed said officials of the state government had been on ground ever since the fire started and that the fire had been curtailed to a certain extent.

“It is illegal for people to throw fireworks and store such in a store in a residential area. The people are telling us that there are still stores where fireworks and other explosive materials are stored but we are still investigating and government will take certain decisions later,” he stated.

Chidinma Amakiri, Assistant Commander, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps confirmed that 10 buildings and 11 cars had been burnt by the fire, adding that officers of the corps were on ground to assist in putting out the fire.

She said some explosives suspected to be dynamite had been recovered by the officials of the corps, adding that 30 injured people had so far been taken to the hospital for treatment.

Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Lagos Police Command, Ngozi Braide said she was shocked by the extent of damage and that the police were still investigating the matter.

She lamented that it was wrong to store fireworks materials in a warehouse in a densely populated area.

—Kazeem Ugbodaga

ATHENS (AFP) – Stuck in a small Athens flat all day to avoid being caught by police, earning another stint in prison and possibly a beating, 29-year-old Cameroonian Eugene Manaa rues the day he came to Greece.

“Life is not just difficult here. It’s impossible,” says Manaa, who recently spent two months in prison on the island of Crete for illegal entry into Greece.

“There’s no work, no money, no housing,” he tells AFP. “There are fifteen of us sharing a flat, we face police checks at every corner, we are subjected to racism and we cannot go to another country.”

Like many of his compatriots, Manaa is among tens of thousands of undocumented migrants caught in a vicious trap.

Lured to the European Union from war-torn homes in search of safety and a better future, they find themselves in Greece at the worst possible moment in the country’s postwar history.

2 Greek beggars in Athens: life is hellish for African migrants too

For the past few months, the government has been rounding up migrants who cannot prove residency and placing them in detention centres for repatriation. Over 61,000 people have been inspected since August and over 4,000 have been detained according to police figures.

Ironically, the operation is code-named Xenios Zeus, named after supreme ancient Greek god Zeus, protector of guests.

“You go out to buy bread and you vanish for three months, it happened to me,” says Eric, an Ivorian just released from a detention centre in Corinth.

Worse still, gangs of racist thugs now roam Athens and other main cities by night, looking for foreigners to beat up.

Violent attacks on migrants have escalated after the political success of a neo-Nazi group, Golden Dawn, which in June won over 400,000 votes in national elections and sent 18 lawmakers to parliament.

Though police have been unable to find hard evidence linking Golden Dawn to the attacks, migrant groups say victim testimonies incriminating supporters of the ultra-nationalist group are irrefutable.

A Congolese man who declines to give his name takes out his cellphone to show a picture of a friend, lying on a hospital bed after being stabbed on the street in one such attack.

“Four people attacked him,” says Guy, a fellow Congolese from Kinshasa.

“They chased him down the street like a goat.”

“When I first arrived in Greece in 2011 there was not so much racism. Now it’s very hard,” says Guy, lowering his head.

The response of police authorities to these attacks is at best half-hearted. Rights groups say migrants are often discouraged from lodging complaints, and some officers are themselves suspected of beatings that go unpunished.

Out of a population of 10.9 million, Greece has around 1.5 million immigrants of whom around 600,000 lack residency papers. The largest group is Albanian but most come from Asian and African countries.

“A month ago, the other residents of the building who are Greek held a meeting and told us to leave,” says Eric.

“A few days later at the bakery, a woman spat at me, saying ‘Black man, why are you here, go back to your country’,” adds Eugene.

Many of these men would like nothing more than to leave Greece for other EU countries, where some have relatives and friends.

But hundreds are intercepted at the country’s borders, or by authorities in neighbouring countries and sent back to Greece.

“Some of these men have lost four, five consecutive air tickets after being intercepted at the airport,” says Father Maurice Joyeux, a Jesuit priest who holds mass for them every Sunday.

Unable to make a living, the small group face additional humiliation in having to ask their families and friends in Africa for help.

“I have to ask friends in Africa to send money so I can pay my rent,” says Manaa, reflecting on the bitter irony of his condition.

OSHABENI, South Africa — It was, by all accounts, an ordinary small-town political meeting. The leaders of the local branch of the African National Congress gathered in September at a convent here to discuss candidates for a newly vacated seat on the ward council, the lowest-level elected position in South Africa.

Sisakele Malunga- son killed by rival

Mr. Malunga and Mr. Chiliza were the latest casualties in an increasingly bloody battle for local political posts in South Africa. Dozens of officials, including ward councilors, party leaders and mayors, have been killed in what has become a desperate, deadly struggle for power and its spoils.

The killings threaten to tarnish the image of the so-called rainbow nation, whose largely bloodless transition from white minority rule to nonracial democracy has made it a beacon of peace, tolerance and forgiveness.

Amid rising corruption and waning economic opportunities, political killings are on the rise. Here in KwaZulu-Natal Province, nearly 40 politicians have been killed since 2010 in battles over political posts, more than triple the number in the previous three years, according to government figures. Over the past few years, dozens more have been killed in provinces like Mpumalanga, North West and Limpopo.

The A.N.C., once a banned liberation movement engaged in one of the 20th century’s most important struggles for justice and human rights, is now in power, and it has come under harsh scrutiny for the rampant poverty, deep inequality and widespread unemployment plaguing the country. A wave of wildcat strikes that began in August, and the lethal crackdown against them, has fueled anger at a party seen as increasingly out of touch and whose leaders appear only to seek to fill their pockets.

That is a stark change from the A.N.C.’s early days, when people risked their lives and freedom to join the party and its fight to end apartheid. But in recent years, the party has sharply increased recruitment of new members, with little consideration for who joins and why.

Many new members come in search of wealth and power. Fewer than half of South African’s young black adults have jobs, and many lack the basic skills to find work after years of attending substandard schools in townships and rural areas. For these youths, politics is a seemingly certain route out of poverty. The rise in corruption has fed the belief that political posts mean kickbacks and contracts.

In the ranks of public servants, the post of rural ward council member in a speck of a town like this one would seem no great prize. The job pays about $150 a month, and its occupant must digest a steady diet of complaints from residents about the most fundamental ailments afflicting South Africa: schools that do not teach, taps that do not deliver water, crime that the police seem helpless to stop, jobs that are impossible to find.

But ward councilors are also a conduit for development projects in their areas, and they can influence the awarding of government contracts. The potential upside — earnings from bribes or surreptitious deals — is high.

“Due to the high rate of unemployment, people look for any opportunity to create an income and capitalize on it,” said Mzwandile Mkhwanazi, the regional chairman of the A.N.C. in the area that includes Oshabeni. “They are influenced by levels of poverty. They come up with any ways and means of getting money.”

Such changes in fortune explain why the post of ward councilor in Oshabeni, an impoverished town nestled in rolling hills about 15 miles inland from the Indian Ocean, was so hotly contested. When the woman who held the post died of illness in August, many local politicians were eager to throw their hats into the ring.

One of them was a young taxi driver named Sfiso Khumalo, the leader of the local branch of the A.N.C.’s Youth League. But Mr. Khumalo did not have a very good reputation, fellow Youth League members said. He was hotheaded, they said, and had spent nine years in prison for theft.

“We knew him as a stealer,” said Gcinile Duma, the secretary of the Youth League. “He had been in jail and was with the wrong kind of people.”

Other members of the local A.N.C. branch’s executive committee said they were worried that Mr. Khumalo was not a suitable candidate.

“Some people get into politics for the wrong reason, only for money,” said one local party leader who did not want to be named discussing party business. “Sfiso Khumalo was not looking to help people, only to help himself.”

Standing in his way was Mr. Malunga, 42, the party chairman and a popular local figure.

“People liked Dumisani and saw him as a good leader,” Ms. Duma said.

On Sept. 9, Mr. Khumalo attended the meeting at the Daughters of St. Francis of Assisi Convent to declare his candidacy. There was no open confrontation between Mr. Malunga and Mr. Khumalo, people who attended the meeting said. But when Mr. Malunga was found shot to death near his house, few doubted who was the prime suspect.

“We told the police, ‘We know who did this. It was Sfiso Khumalo,’ ” Ms. Duma said.

After two days of investigations, the police arrested Mr. Khumalo, who promptly confessed that he had conspired with a local businessman to have Mr. Malunga killed. On Sept. 18, Mr. Khumalo was sentenced to 22 years in prison. The person accused of being his co-conspirator is still in court.

In a statement, the leader of the A.N.C. in KwaZulu-Natal condemned the violence and the culture it springs from.

“The A.N.C. can ill afford the development of the culture of the underworld, criminality and violent elimination of opponents,” said the provincial chairman, Zweli Mkhize. “Neither can the A.N.C. afford the association of political appointment to self-enrichment where ascendancy to office is not linked with capacity, competence and dedicated service to our people.”

Party officials paid for Mr. Malunga’s burial, and his brick and stucco grave looks lavish next to the unadorned earthen mounds in the family graveyard that hold his father, brother and nephew.

Mr. Malunga’s mother, Sizakele Malunga, has already buried 5 of her 11 children, but losing her youngest son was a special blow, she said. Mr. Malunga lived with her and kept her company in her widowhood.

“I am lonely, but nothing will bring him back,” Mrs. Malunga said. “I just try to make the time pass without him.”

By Lydia Polgreen for New York Times.
Mukelwa Hlatshwayo contributed reporting.

BAGEGA,Zamfara state, Nigeria — Neighboring a hillside laced with gold, parents in this remote village live with an impossible choice: Should they risk starving their children today? Or expose them to toxins that could cripple or kill them tomorrow?

Miles from the nearest paved road, electrical socket or internet connection, Bagega is in a region of northern Nigeria that is rich with gold, but suffering from what activists call the “worst lead poisoning crisis in recorded history.”

a gold miner in Zamfara state: lead poisoning comes with the illegal mining

While Nigeria’s government has already put enough money aside to clean up this village, virtually none of it has reached the people. Aid workers say the money is “caught up in the bureaucracy.” And, they say, if it’s not put to use soon, the whole project will have to be postponed a full year, until the next dry season.

In June, the federal government pledged more than $4 million to clean up Bagega, a process called “remediation,” which replaces toxic dirt with clean dirt. But after months of conferences, meetings, promises and press releases, the money is nowhere to be seen, said Ivan Gayton, head of Doctors Without Borders in Nigeria.

When government officials are asked where the money is, the response is mixed. Some officials say the cleanup is already happening and others demand it begin immediately.

Doctors Without Borders says it visits Bagega regularly and is in close contact with village leaders, but has yet to see or hear anything about the clean up beginning. For the village children, Gayton said, the delay in remediation could be disastrous. If they treat children now, they will only be re-contaminated.

“Many hundreds or even thousands of children are desperately awaiting treatment,” Gayton said. “But there’s absolutely nothing we can do until the remediation is done.”

Behind a cracked stone wall here, in a compound amid a cluster of mud huts, Halima, the grandmother of more than 30 children, squatted over a bucket of greens, breaking off leaves for dinner. She said she has lost eight grandchildren to lead poisoning already. Nearly three years after the outbreak began, she laughed when asked if anyone will come to the rescue.

“There hasn’t been any help up until now,” she said. “People came to talk to us, but they won’t do anything.”

Bagega is one of eight villages to be identified in the epicenter of the outbreak. The seven other nearby villages have already been cleaned up, allowing for doctors to treat the children. When environmental cleaners got to Bagega, the project ran out of money. Bulldozers were parked outside the village, so the story goes, and when workers went to fill them with gas, they were told the funds were gone.

Gayton said that in some of the cleaned up villages, children continue to get sick due to long-term exposure. But in others, many children have been cured and released from care.

In all the villages, Doctors Without Borders has found unprecedented levels of suffering due to lead poisoning.

“We screened children in villages where they had lost almost half the children and the remainder were convulsing and seizing,” Gayton said. “You normally think of lead poisoning as creating brain damage, organ damage, developmental disabilities. Here we’re talking [blood lead] concentration levels that cause seizure, coma, death.”

The gold rush here in Zamfara State emerged in 2009, after a spike in the price of gold. Subsistence farmers that barely survived on $1 or $2 a day could suddenly make $15 or more every day. Miners say this money is the difference between just staying alive and having some money for transportation, health care and food.

Hassan Mousa, a miner and father of seven, lives miles from then nearest paved roads, electricity or cellphone service. Before he started mining, he said, his family was barely surviving.

“As a miner I can sometimes make more than 100,000 naira ($630) in only a week,” he said as he crouched in a spec of shade against a clay wall. “As a farmer I made only 50,000 ($315) in a whole year.”

The locals have always known about the gold here, but in the past it was difficult to make a profit selling small amounts. The price of gold on worldwide markets, however, has risen sharply over the past decade. About four years ago, word began to spread through rural villages that prices where high and buyers were waiting.

Many Zamfara farmers, like Mousa, dropped their hoes, picked up pick axes and began lowering themselves into deep pits to excavate rocks laden with lead and gold. Using hammers, they break the rocks apart before feeding the pebbles into electric flourmills to extract their prize.

Gold prices continue to soar after roughly two decades of stagnation and, for now, business at these low-tech operations is booming.

Nigeria’s federal government seems to have other ideas. It passed a law in 2007 that transferred the rights to all mineral resources in Nigeria to the state. The government then sold Zamfara gold mineral titles to individuals, international and Nigerian companies. Zamfara state officials say, however, that the title owners have so far been slow to move because the mines are relatively small and villagers now occupy the land, and have for as long as anyone can remember.

But as the price of gold climbs, things are changing. No one knows exactly how much gold is in the state, but the independent miners are revealing stores that were previously unknown. Officials say title owners are getting anxious to dig and are pressing the government to shut down the artisanal mines.

If this were to happen, the ideal scenario would be for companies to move in and employ local miners at wages comparable to what they are now making. But community leaders here say at present, most miners have no legal rights and they fear their incomes will be snatched away.

Fear of losing access to the valuable minerals is also complicating efforts to prevent a health crisis. Federal officials say the mining is illegal. They refer to a law passed in 2007 that transfers all of Nigeria’s mineral resources to the state. State officials, however, last month promised not to enforce any bans for the time being.

“We don’t know who owns the mines here,” said Hassan Haruna, the secretary of a local miner’s association, at a gold mine surrounded by miles of forest and grazing lands. While he talked, workers crawled into craters from 5 to 50 feet deep with shovels. They used old plastic jerrycans, lowered with a rope, to fill with gold-laced gravel and rocks.

Miners are now organizing into cooperatives, he said, hoping to buy back the rights to the gold on their land before it’s too late. If they can’t obtain the legal rights, miners fear international corporations — which are already eyeing the profit potential — will push them out.

“We are doing it illegally,” Haruna said. “We don’t have any single paper to go and mine. But they told us to form an organization and we did that.”

Haruna said the union was formed to help the miners navigate the bureaucracy as a group. Most live many miles from the nearest road and few have vehicles. For many Zamfara miners, traveling to the Nigerian capital to fill in the required paperwork would be as difficult as getting to China. Even as an organized group, he added, they have yet to figure out how to acquire the right documents.

Some miners don’t even know that the federal government altered their traditional land-ownership structure, under which land and its resources are carefully divided between farming communities and cattle herders.

Aid workers here say people are hesitant to report lead poisoning to authorities or doctors for fear of losing their livelihoods.

For those still working the mines in Bagega, the increased income is a source of pride. On a good week, miners say they can make hundreds or even thousands of dollars. This isn’t every week, one man confesses, and almost all the men are poor, living deep in the bush with no electricity or running water. Aid workers say those good weeks do happen, but miners actually average about $10 to $15 a day.

“Mining is just better than farming,” Kaminu Ataka Bola said, while a crowd of colleagues gathered around him in solemn agreement. He has heard of lead poisoning, he added, but when asked if he feared for his children, he ignored the question.

Adults can get lead poisoning, but doctors say the damage is most dramatic for children under 5 years old. And while everyone who comes into contact with the lead should be tested and treated, in Zamfara State only the small children, and not even all of them, are getting help.

About a half hour from the mines by motorcycle, local gold processors dismissed the idea that mining causes lead poisoning. Under awnings made of sticks, some men crushed rocks with hammers, while other refined the smaller bits with flour-mills powered by small electric generators.

Dust billowed off the hammers and out of the machines, but workers said they weren’t worried. Ole Ibrahim operated a grinding machine and said most men drink milk at the end of the day because it prevents lead poisoning. Doctors say this claim has no basis in medical science.

“We could use more modern machines,” he added thoughtfully, as he scooped finely ground rocks into old rice sacks. “And face masks to protect us from the dust.”

There appears to be little hope of that though, given the government’s slow pace. At a recent meeting in the state capital, Gusau, local officials said a federal fact-finding mission was about to commence, despite the fact that the government pledged the money months ago.

If and when the funds are dispersed, getting the money from the ministries to the children could also be difficult in a country notorious for financial mismanagement and corruption, according to some activists.

Oludotun Babayemi, an adviser for the Nigerian Youth Climate Network, told the group that his organization plans to use social networking to “follow the money” if it becomes available, to make sure it gets to the right place.

But there is no Twitter, Facebook or even cellphone service in the poisoned villages, and activists say tracking government funds is a mammoth task even in the best of circumstances.

Parents in Bagega said modernization wouldn’t cost much. Zamfara has rich farmland and gold, they say, so they wouldn’t need long-term financial help from their government. All they want is a thorough clean up and some basic safety updates, like more modern grinding machines, protective clothing and showers to wash off the lead before they come home.

In the nearby village of Sumke, locals said these small changes and now regular lead poisoning treatment has helped their village begin to recover from a tragedy that impacted everyone in their community. The scars, however, remain.

“We’ve buried almost 85 children in our cemetery,” said Issa Nagarkwa, as he sat under a bit of shade made out of branches and logs. Nagarkwa said he lost two of his five children when the outbreak began.

“They started convulsing,” he said. “Within two minutes, they were dead.”

.Written in two-parts by Heather Murdock for www.globalpost.com

Between 3 a.m and 4 a.m while many others are still in bed sleeping and snoring, or perhaps enjoying an early morning carousing with their spouses, workers on Lagos Island, especially those residing on the outskirts of Lagos are already at the motor parks and bus stops struggling to catch a bus or okada (before the clampdown) in order to get to their offices on time. Worst still, some of them still arrive their offices late. They have bad roads and the Lagos traffic logjam to blame and high transport fare to contend with. P.M.NEWS Metro encountered some of them and they shared their experience, full of agony, regret and lamentation.

Oluwaseun Asubiojo is a banker with a first generation bank. He resides at Ijegun in an obscure area called Afunrugbin, in Igando/Ikotun Local Council Development Area, LCDA, Lagos State.

For some months, he had a bitter experience of what an average worker on Lagos Island encounter daily.

He narrates his ordeal: “My experience in the last few months is unforgettable. It makes me imagine how people could cope residing in far distances from their work place and making such harrowing trips daily or at least five or six days every week.

“I used to reside at one extreme part of Ijegun, off Ijegun-Ijagemo road. Then my only heartache was the bad road, I had little or no problem reaching my office at Dopemu in good time. However, things changed quickly the day I got my transfer letter to our bank’s branch on Awolowo Road, Ikoyi on Lagos Island.

“To keep my record of punctuality, I have to wake between 3.30 a.m and 4 a.m to catch five different buses. And after closing, the routine begins again. I used to return home between 11 p.m and midnight. I had little time to rest.

“My transport fare to and from the office daily was N2,100 and about N15,000 a week and N57,960 monthly. Transport alone was taking a big chunk of my take home pay. Having a car could not solve the problem. Much money was expended on the car and in some instances, car maintenance had to wait for some other urgent family needs. In no time I lost some weight. My family was not comfortable too. My wife was always worried and might not have her super until my return from office. After about five months, I was forced to relocate to Egbeda. I now wake up 5 a.m to 5.30 a.m and by 9 p.m, I’m back from office.”

Mr. Abass Kaska is a landlord in Ijagemo in Iba LCDA, Lagos. His day used to begin at 3 a.m. but in most cases, he would trek from Ijagemo to Ijegun, a distance of about three kilometres. The commercial motorcyclists (okada riders) are not yet on the road at that period of the day.

He narrates: “Leaving home early does not even solve my problem. Many times I used to trek to Ijegun or on a few occasions, I might get a ride midway. Then from Ijegun, I will board a bus to Ikotun and from there to CMS bus stop. Other things being equal, I arrive my office on time. But coming back, I  may return home at about 11 p.m, which means on any working day, I have an average of three or four hours to rest.”

Kaska lamented that his car could not give him relief from his daily agony because the Ijagemo-Ijegun road is so terrible and may be impassable for up to three months in a year. The cost of maintaining the car compounded the whole problem. Because the family members too were affected, the Kaskas were forced to relocate to Ijegun, close to the last bus stop. The family now lives in Ijagemo on weekends.

“Because we reside near Ijegun bus stop, I can now wake up by 5 a.m and get to CMS bus stop before 7 a.m. I will then locate a mosque around CMS where I say my early morning prayer before going to the office,” he said.

Another landlord who pleaded anonymity was forced to ‘abandon’ his house at Igbogbo in Igbogbo/Baiyeku LCDA, Lagos State when he was weighed down by having to wake up early, arriving home late and high transport fares. He returned to the drawing board and decided to rent a flat around Oworonshoki. From there he could wake up 6 a.m and arrive his office on Lagos Island before 8 a.m.

Traffic gridlock, high transport fare and related challenges forced another Ijagemo landlord, Mr. Gabriel Olusola Oyelude to retire prematurely to settle down to his personal business.

In 2009, he usually chartered an okada from Ijagemo to Ijegun at about 5 a.m. At times, he would mount another okada from Ikotun to Mushin or Cele-Express bus stop.

And finally, he would struggle to arrive at his Lagos Island office on time. On a good day, he used to return home by 9 p.m or 10 p.m.

“Then, I used to spend an average of N1,100 to N1,200 daily on transport. As a good Christian, I was faithful to my God by paying tithe out of my meager earnings. I was usually broke. I had little or no money to have my lunch in the office. I therefore decided to call it quits,” Oyelude  recounted.

Mr. Fatai Bello resides at Oju Oore, Ota, Ogun State. He works with a federal parastatal in Oshodi. Even though he does not travel to the Island daily, he told P.M.NEWS Metro that he has to wake up early enough to beat the traffic jam around Sango, the old toll gate and Abule Egba, to be able to make office on time.

Mr. Paul Ifaturoti, a geologist worked for an Italian firm at Gbagada, Lagos for about two decades before he decided to retire into private business because of the challenges he encountered both in the office and the titanic struggle from his house to work everyday.

A landlord at NEPA Phase I area of Ijagemo, Ifaturoti said he had to wake up 5 a.m and set out as soon as possible to escape the perennial traffic snarl around Jakande Estate, Oke-Afa, Isolo. The road is about the only one that links Ijegun with Isheri-Oshun, Jakande Estate, Isolo and Oshodi. He said the only alternative route, Ijegun-Ikotun-Iyana-Ipaja to Oshodi was not only long and cumbersome but worse than the biblical ‘Israelite’s journey.’

“Each day I was able to leave my house at about 5 a.m and I was lucky to beat the Jakande Estate traffic snarl, I had hopes of getting to the office on time. But the bad roads like Ijagemo-Ijegun and Isheri-Oshun-Jakande took their toll on my vehicle. I spent a lot of money to maintain my car.

“When I count the cost of car maintenance, the inconveniences of waking up early and returning home late, I was constrained to retire to my own business. Moreso, I was working for an expatriate firm whose policy does not favour my elevation to managerial level in good time. I was an assistant manager, and only a few slots were there for Nigerian managers. This, coupled with bad roads and traffic challenges, contributed to my early retirement,” he disclosed.

Generally, an average worker travelling from the Mainland to Lagos Island is held up in traffic on an average of seven hours ( to and fro) or more; he expends much money on transport and must rise early in the morning and in most cases return home late at night.

—Moyo Fabiyi