These many years apparently gone so quickly have not been without challenges even as the Foundation remains determined in its resolve that our country Nigeria is a Great Nation, Hence, we are gathered here again to celebrate another set of Nigerians who can match their counterparts elsewhere in the world. A look at our HLF Roll-Call is a testimony to the fact.

Every country has their share of men and women of note, who have made their marks and left their foot-prints on the sands of time.

However, their achievements are not always adequately celebrated or chronicled. We at the Hallmarks of Labour Foundation believe that this should not be so; that there should be a Roll of Honour of great achievers who in their areas of specialisation have done Nigeria proud, and become veritable role models for our young and future generations.

Over the years, the Foundation has projected and documented the achievements of these worthy patriots for the present and future generations, in a series titled Hallmarks of Labour. Copies of published editions, now in its 12′ Volume, are available for Preview and sale.

As a country Nigeria has so much to thank God for. We remain firm believers that Nigeria will continue to rise and take its rightful place among the Comity of Nations and the signs abound. We are blessed with abundant Natural as well as Human Resources. It is time now for us all, We the People, to stop blaming everyone else but ourselves. We should begin to apply ourselves — as parents, guardians, teachers & leaders – – by the values we pass on to our children and wards. Our dedication to

Patricia Otuedon-Arawore

(Executive Secretary)

our duties, to our people and country – public and private sector work-places; Executive, Legislature & Judiciary, Academia, Commerce & Industry, etc. — will impact significantly on what our country becomes in the future. We should all join hands to help build the Nigeria of our dreams.

This is a task for us all without exception, as we have no other country to call our own. The lessons of history are profound.

The Celebration of these Great Nigerians today demonstrates that Nigeria is a reservoir of noble men and women, who by dint of hard-work and integrity, have made their marks in their fields of endeavour and with positive impact on the wider society.

Till date, the Foundation has identified and presented 90 Role Models with exemplary achievements. It is our hope that our younger generations will emulate them for the benefit of a greater Nigeria.

Ladies and Gentlemen, as we wish you a fulfilling experience at the twin event, we really appreciate your esteemed presence.

Thank you all for coming.

Executive Secretary,

Patricia Otuedon-Arawore

The post Executive Secretary’s Speech at the HLF 27th Anniversary Awards Dinner appeared first on Hallmarks of Labour Foundation.

In making these Awards tonight, the Foundation is grateful to Committees of previous Award winners and others who served as Assessors of nominees, and confirmed their worthiness for receiving the honour. The Trustees of the Foundation also register their appreciation of the tireless efforts of their Executive Secretary, Mrs Patricia Otuedon-Arawore, whose light shines ever brighter as she organizes the ongoing activities of the HLF and ensures the smooth running or these annual award events.
Hearty congratulations to the new Award Winners on this 27th
Anniversary of the Hallmarks of Labour

Foundation. Tonight, our Award winners stand out as distinguished Nigerians whose exemplary contributions are being marked and recognized by all. We are delighted and excited to identify them, showcase them and celebrate them as people who are acknowledged as highly worthy of emulation as we all collaborate to build Nigeria into a great nation whose citizens work together, at home and beyond, to establish and sustain success and distinction through excellence of real performance.

Chairman
Amb. Dr. Christopher Kolade

Lagos, 20 April 2024.

The post Chairman Amb. Dr. Christopher Kolade’s Speech at the HLF 27th Anniversary Awards Dinner appeared first on Hallmarks of Labour Foundation.

But first, I would like us to stand up and observe one-minute silence in tribute to the memory of our recently departed role models: Prof Nimi Briggs in April 2023, Otunba Subomi Balogun in May 2023, Prof Jo Irukwu in July 2023, Emeritus Prof Umaru Shehu on October 2023, and Dr Ogbonnaya Onu in April 2024. May their souls rest in peace.

HLF founded 27 years ago and driven by its indefatigable Executive Secretary Mrs Patricia Otuedon=Arawore, has without any doubt become one of Nigeria’s most highly respected not-for-profit organizations because of its remarkable work.

The crux of its activities embraces a unique service to our young generation by identifying and honouring citizens who by their character and careers are considered to be role models for our young people. The role models are conferred with the prestigious award of HLF.

The Foundation as you will see from the video to be presented shortly, also carries out very valuable charitable activities in support of schools, indigent students, widows and women in general.

The recipients of the HLF award over the years have included to name just a few, such outstanding Nigerians as the late Chief Rotimi Williams SAN, Supreme Court Justice Chukwudifu Oputa, Pof Adeoye Lambo of WHO, Emeritus Prof Umaru Shehu, the Super Permanent Secretary Chief Philip Asiodu, the outstanding International diplomat Prof Ibrahim Gambari, the foreign policy intellectual and former Foreign Minister Prof Bolaji Akinyemi, and the current President of the African Development Bank Dr Akinwunmi Adesina.

In the Nigerian society of today where ethical values have generally disappeared, the significance of recognizing and honouring individuals whose character and achievements are worth emulating by our young people cannot be overstated.

In my young days, we were taught that success both in academic and every other undertaking came only from hard work; that integrity and character was the most important personal possession, as was succinctly expressed by the American evangelist, Billy Graham, who said: when wealth is lost, nothing is lost; when health is lost, something is lost; but when character is lost, everything is lost.

For example, in those days, conducts such as examination malpractice, forgery of educational certificates and many other fraudulent activities that are reported every day in our media today were virtually non-existent. There was no place then like today’s “Oluwole Street” in Lagos.

We should therefore applaud and heartily congratulate the Hallmarks of Labour Foundation, and especially its visionary Executive Secretary Patricia Otuedon-Arawore, for sustaining over the last 27 years its remarkable didactic activities for the benefit of our young people, and I may add for the benefit of even many of our adult population.

Fnally, I would like to end my remarks by congratulating in advance the indisputably deserving individuals who will be receiving the awards of HLF at this event.

Chief Emeka Anyaoku GCON,GCVO,CFR

Lagos, 20 April 2024.

The post Chief Emeka Anyaoku’s Remarks at HLF 27th Anniversary Awards Dinner 20/4/24 appeared first on Hallmarks of Labour Foundation.

Your Excellency, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum, Executive Governor of Borno State. Our worthy role model.

Your Excellency Engr. Abdullahi Audu Sule, Executive Governor of Nasarawa State.

Your Excellency Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, ably represented here by the Secretary of State to the Lagos State Government.

Our distinguished elder statesmen, Role Models and Great Nigerians who have worked tirelessly and have done Nigeria so proud and continue to give us hope for a better future.

Your Excellencies, Distinguished Ladies & Gentlemen, on behalf of our chairman board of trustees Emeritus Professor Umaru Shehu who unfortunately cannot be here today, we welcome you to the birth and public presentation of Hallmarks of Labour Book 11.

Years gone so quickly, when I remember that the first book in this series which focused on:

1. Professor Thomas Adeoye Lambo
2. Honourable Justice Chukwudifu Akunne Oputa
3. Mr. Allison Akene Ayida was published in 1999

Since then many have followed and today, we celebrate book 11 a befitting tribute to hard work and resilience. Thanks be to God Almighty.

It has not been without challenges though particularly in our operating environment; however, the Foundation remains determined in its resolve that our country Nigeria is not a lost case, no no we are not!

We believe against all odds, that Nigeria boasts of men and women who can match their counterparts anywhere in the world and a look at our HLF roll call and book series is a testimony to the fact.

True, every country have their own share of men and women of note, who have made their marks and left their footprints on the sands of time. However, their achievements are not always adequately celebrated or chronicled. We at the Hallmarks of Labour Foundation believe that this should not be so; that there should be a Roll of Honour of great achievers who in their areas of specialization have done Nigeria proud, and have become veritable role models for our young and aspiring generations.

The Foundation will continue to project and document the achievements of these worthy patriots for the present and future generations. Copies of Hallmarks of Labour book series are there for you to see.

As a country Nigeria has so much to thank God for.

The 2023 elections have come and gone and a President elected. Despite all the negative speculations and pessimistic views, Nigeria stands tall. Before we went to the polls in February, Nigerians were worried and even scared. Christians, Moslems and Traditionalists prayed fervently for Divine intervention and that God’s Will be done; even as many had their different interpretations of God’s will.

None-the-less the Lord prevailed.

I remain a firm believer that Nigeria will continue to rise and take its rightful place among the comity of Nations and the signs abound. We are blessed with abundant Natural as well Human Resources. It is time for us all to support our leaders and help build the Nigeria of our dreams. We have no other country to call our own so we are duty-bound to make Nigeria a better place for us, our children, and our children’s children.

The Hallmarks of Labour Foundation proudly presents Volume 11, which focuses on four distinguished gentlemen, Great Nigerians who unquestionably have served Nigeria selflessly with dignity and moral uprightness. They all have made valuable impact in their fields both in Nigeria and on the global stage. They are worthy patriots and outstanding role models for us all to emulate.

Furthermore, the presentation of this publication re-enforces our belief that Nigeria is a reservoir of noble men and women, who by dint of hard-work and moral uprightness, can match and or surpass their counterparts anywhere in the world. Thus, if our society seems to be declining in morality, diligence and patriotism, it definitely emphasizes the urgent need for our youth and Nigerians in general to study and emulate the positive characteristics and achievements of these Great Nigerians for the benefit of this and future generations.

To this end, the Foundation will continue to work hard towards achieving our aims and objectives:

❖ Identify Nigerians and people of the black race who have achieved success through hard-work, honesty and integrity in their fields of endeavour.

❖ Use the achievements of these role models to demonstrate to Nigerians that success through honest labour is rewarding and fulfilling.

❖Promote a positive attitude among Nigerians, especially the youths, and encourage them to reject fraud, dishonesty and greed as means to success.

❖ Help make Nigeria a decent society that attracts a pride of place in the comity of nations.

Till date, the Foundation has identified and presented 90 Role models with impeccable credentials and exemplary achievements. It is our hope that our youths will emulate them for the benefit of a greater Nigeria.

Ladies and Gentlemen, we proudly present to you:

• HE, Professor Ibrahim Agboola Gambari — CFR, OCORT, HLR
• HE, Professor Akinwande Bolaji Akinyemi — CFR, Fniia, Faps, Fssan, Faia, HLR
• HE, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu — CON, FAEng, FAS, FNSE, FNSChE, HLR
• Professor Joseph Ogbonnaya Irukwu — SAN, OON, NPOM, HLR,

I recommend this publication and others in the Hallmarks of Labourseries to everyone. You will find them inspiring.

I welcome you all here again and wish you an enjoyable afternoon.

I thank you all for coming.

The post Executive Secretary Speech at the HLF Book Series 11 Launch appeared first on Hallmarks of Labour Foundation.

Twenty-Five Years – a Quarter of a Century – is a long time in the life of an NGO; what with the challenges of the operating environment. Particularly, we have no external funding either from the Government or any international agency.

When the project Hallmarks of Labour began in 1996, followed by the birth of the Hallmarks of Labour Book Series in 1999, we were confident, then and even more so now, that Nigeria is a reservoir of people; men and women who — against all odds — have embraced hard-work, with lofty achievements and dignity that can match or excel their contemporaries elsewhere in the world.

Our list of Award Winners [HLRs] is a testimony to this fact.

In 2019, the Foundation celebrated its 23^rd Anniversary and The Great Nigerian Awards. What a Re-Union it was for our Role Models! The event was memorable and well attended.

Then came the Corona Virus [COVID-19] Pandemic that has ravaged the world for two years now. Indeed, the disease has constrained a great deal of our programmes and activities, but happily did not put the Foundation to sleep.

In the midst of the challenges, the Foundation refurbished and equipped a library for an indigent public school in Anambra State — Community Secondary School, Achina, Aguata Local Government Area. We are pleased to inform you that Foundation has named the library after one of Nigeria’s finest Scientists, Professor Uche Amazigo, HLR who hails from Achina.

On a rather sad note, we regret to state that the Foundation lost a number of its eminent and active Role Models in the last two years:

1. Francesca Yetunde Emmanuel, CON, HLR — First Female Federal Permanent Secretary in Nigeria.
2. Professor Oladipo Olujumi Akinkugbe, CON, MD, NNOM, HLR — Youngest Professor of Medicine ever appointed by an African University.
3. His Excellency, Brigadier Mobolaji Johnson [Rtd.], HLR — First Governor of Lagos State and ‘Architect of Modern Lagos’.
4. His Excellency, Alhaji Lateef Kayode Jakande, HLR — ‘The Action Governor of Lagos State’.
5. Professor Adetokunbo Oluwole Lucas, OFR, HLR — A Leader in Global Medicine.

Though these Great Nigerians have passed on, they lived fulfilled lives that have impacted positively on society. They have certainly earned eternal rest in the bosom of Almighty God. Amen.

We appreciate the resilience of the Board of Trustees, Management & Staff of the Foundation over the years. We also gratefully acknowledge the solid support of our Role Models, Corporate Partners and Sponsors in enabling the Foundation forge ahead.

May Almighty God continue to use them as channels of blessings to human society.

Welcome, once again, to our Anniversary Celebrations and Conferment of Role Model Awards.

Chief Mrs. Patricia Dede Arawore

The post Executive Secretary Speech at The HLF 25TH Anniversary appeared first on Hallmarks of Labour Foundation.

The Chairman of this occasion, Professor Patrick Muoboghare; the Honourable Commissioner of Education in Delta State, the Special Guest of Honour, His Royal Majesty, Atuwatse II, the Olu of Warri; my lords spiritual and temporal; community leaders, the principal [Mr. Emmanuel Oleju], staff & students of Egbokodo Secondary School; distinguished ladies & gentlemen.

************

I salute and bring you warm greetings from the Chairman & other Trustees of Hallmarks of Labour Foundation, on this auspicious commissioning and hand-over of an Ultra Modern Science Laboratory to Egbokodo Secondary School, Warri.  I am particularly gratified that this project is dedicated to the memory of my father — Uwangue Bernard Edema Otuedon-Okome, a community welfarist with a very generous heart – who passed unto glory some four months ago at a super-ripe age of 103. It is my prayer that we will live long and as fulfilled as he did.

Hallmarks of Labour Foundation was set up, in 1996, to:

• Identify Nigerians who have achieved success through hard work, honesty and integrity in their fields of endeavour.
• Project these Great Nigerians as Role Models of rewarding and fulfilling honest labour.
• Promote positive attitudes among the youths in particular; encouraging them to reject fraud, greed and impropriety as means to success.

In 2008, the Foundation turned a search light on the youths, focusing largely on young talented Nigerians; to mentor and provide them platforms to achieve their full potentials.  In the process, the Young Achievers’ Awards was initiated in 2011to contribute to:

• Improved standards of education, especially in science, technology and communication – through healthy competition among schools.
• Development of leadership skills in young Nigerians.
• Generation of a crop of young Role Models for their contemporaries.

With the central theme “Positioning Tomorrow’s Leaders to Achieve their Maximum Potentials”, the Foundation has donated a range of educational equipment and welfare facilities to deserving schools and students. Included here are:

• Laboratory equipment and Desktop Computers to the best-performing institutions in the 2011 West African School Certificate Examinations [WASCE] — Lumen Christi International High School, Uromi, Edo State and Air Force Comprehensive School, Agbani, Enugu State.
• A fully-equipped computer room to the best performing school in the 2012 WASCE — Presentation National High School, Benin City. On the nomination by the award winners, the Foundation donated a functional bore-hole and desktop computers to a disadvantaged institution, Queen of Apostles Nursery & Primary School, Shinge-Lafia, Nassarawa State.
• The HLF Secondary School Scholarship Scheme, which took off here in Warri in 2008 under the tag “Iwere Educational Rejuvenation“ has yielded tremendous fruits. To date, over eighty (80) students have obtained their West African School Certificates under the Foundation’s sponsorship, while forty (40) of its scholars are currently enrolled in a number of post-primary schools in Delta and Lagos States. We urge parents and guardians to encourage their wards to pick up the Foundation Scholarship forms which come out annually and work hard to pass the qualifying examination. The scholarship award is strictly on merit.

We are here today to commission and hand over this ultra-modern science laboratory, indeed one of the best in Nigeria, to Egbokodo Secondary School. It is our prayer that the students here will find inspiration from this facility to motivate them to become great scientists.

We congratulate you, the Principal, staff, students of Egbokodo Secondary School as well as the Egbokodo community; and urge you to protect and utilize the facility well.

We also express our profound gratitude to our partners, Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited and Oilmen’s Invitational Golf Tournament Foundation for their continued support that has enabled the Foundation to fulfil its mandate.

I thank your Majesty, Atuwatse II, the Olu of Warri, the Hon. Commissioner of Education, my Lord spiritual and temporal, our leaders of tomorrow, particularly, the students of Egbokodo Secondary School and all young people here present. It is for your sake that we have all gathered this morning. God bless you and thanks for coming!!!

PATRICIA OTUEDON-ARAWORE [Mrs.]

The post Executive Secretary Speech Commissioning of Egbokodo Ultra Modern Science Laboratory appeared first on Hallmarks of Labour Foundation.

The post Contribution by Chief Folake Solanke, SAN CON at The Re-Union and Symposium of The Hallmarks of Labour Foundation Fellows appeared first on Hallmarks of Labour Foundation.

RE-POSITIONING EDUCATION IN NIGERIA FOR PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT

BY

CHIEF PHILIP C. ASIODU, CFR, CON, HLF

Your Excellencies

Chiefs

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen

I feel much honoured to be asked to speak to you today on such an important subject: “Re-Positioning Education In Nigeria For Peace And Development”.

As we are all aware, formal education plays a critical role in the development of modern society. In primitive societies and cultures, there is little formal learning. As the child grows up, the entire environment and all activities are his school and all the adults are his instructors and by the time he/she grows up into an adult, he/she can play his or her role as required by tradition in a primitive economy involving only rudimentary farming, hunting, or fishing.

As societies develop and become more diversified so grows the need for formal education and specialized institutions to prepare the growing child to be able to perform adequately in his more complex world.

We do not have the time on this occasion to consider the very interesting historical and philosophical ideas about education with their interesting lessons for us. We shall confine ourselves to discussing today how education properly pursued with determination will enable us overcome the grave challenges facing us in the task of building a united, peaceful and prosperous nation from the diverse ethnic entities which for just over 100 years have been grouped together and have interacted with one another in one compact geographical area called Nigeria.

There is no doubt that Nigeria today is facing very challenging times. The headlines in the media have recently been dominated by reports about : Southern Kaduna killings of Christians; inflammatory speeches by a few clerics calling for Christian self-defence, one going as far as urging retaliatory killings; continuing outrageous attacks and ambushes by Boko Haram fighters in Maiduguri Province; frequent slaughters of farmers in their villages and despoiling and destruction of their farms by well-armed Fulani Herdsmen; attacks on oil installations by militants in the Niger Delta with its crippling consequences on oil exports, foreign exchange inflows and the Nigerian economy; the continuing restiveness of the Movement For The Actualization Of The Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB); the demand for the secession of Biafra from Nigeria by MASSOB and Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB); the “Quit the North Order to Ibos by 1^st October 2017” by some members of Arewa Youth Forum; the seemingly clumsy security and extra-judicial proceedings against MASSOB and IPOB; and cries of marginalization by various communities and more recently by country-wide strikes by University Teachers and Resident Doctors in the Hospitals.

To compound the situation, the Nigerian economy is still in recession, the immediate cause being the drastic fall since July 2014 in the price of crude petroleum, our main export, but the real longer-term cause being the abandonment of Planning and disciplined implementation of Plans since 1975 and the failure to grow and diversify the economy for which good plans had been made and for which Nigeria is so richly endowed with natural resources and a sizeable internal market. Our performance over the last forty years has been in marked contrast to that of the Asian Tigers with whom we were at par in the mid-1970s but who are now far ahead of us in development and per capita income.

The things described above are symptoms of a far deeper and more extensive national crisis.

The Threat of National Disintegration

It is not surprising to hear otherwise level headed people, given the current challenges, talk as if the breaking up of Nigeria into several parts would be a solution since to them Nigeria is too difficult to administer. I have no doubt that the solution to our problem does not lie in disintegration. It is not possible to divide Nigeria neatly into a given number of successor countries. A collapse of the Nigerian State will most likely result in an unpredictable number of mini states controlled by war lords. Imagine leaving Lagos and encountering a Customs Post in Ikorodu, then Ijebu Ode, then Ofuse, then Benin City, etc. or travelling Northwards, in Shagamu, then Ibadan, then Ilorin, then Minna and so forth. It will be horrendous to have Nigeria as a failed State. The fault will be that of the so-called elites to which we all belong. There will be no economic progress and civilization will be halted and life will be very insecure. We would find ourselves in a situation of general anarchy and violence. It is a prospect which should shock us to exploring solutions to our current problems. What the ordinary man desires is shelter, food, educational facilities to ensure his children’s advancement in life and of course adequate and improving availability of power, health and transportation infrastructure. He is really not interested in the power struggles among politicians.

Good patriotic visionary leadership and good governance which result in rapid economic and social progress and improving standard of living and quality of life for the great majority of the people are what will lead to national cohesion and stability. How remarkable the success of Malaysia in uniting the Malays and Chinese and smaller communities of Indians and others in a multi-religious, multi-ethnic state. Again, China with her 1.4 billion people unites many diverse ethnic and linguistic groups. We also have the Indian example as well as Indonesia which has thousands of islands in ocean space of just over 6 million sq.km.

In a recent article contributing to the debate on the current National Crisis, I spoke about the need for a Visionary Leader to play the Great Role which has been waiting for years for a Player as follows :

A Great Role Waiting For A Player

There is a great role waiting for a player in Nigeria. There is need for a great patriotic and visionary leader to articulate a National Vision and Agenda of where Nigeria should be by 2040, to be at least a top middle income nation of over 300 million people and to quote from Vision 2010. “A united, industrious, caring, God-fearing democratic society committed to making the basic needs of life affordable for everyone and creating Africa’s leading economy”. He will need to lead a revolutionary change of attitude, beyond party, tribal and religious divides, amongst leaders of all sectors of government and society to embrace all aspects of good governance and re-launch Nigeria irreversibly on the path to unity and greatness. He must be ready to commit his life to this great cause.

I also said that the least traumatic way of saving Nigeria from the threatening disaster of a failed state and violent anarchy is for President Buhari as the elected President to get a group of capable patriotic people to elaborate a new “Vision and National Agenda 2040”, and to require all who love Nigeria to identify with him.

National Vision And Agenda 2040

It is critically important to elaborate a National Vision and Agenda 2040 now to enable the Leader mobilize the broad masses of the people to move forward to progress, unity and greatness. The goal of Independence and sovereignty was a uniting anchor for the political parties and other interest groups before 1^st October, 1960. Our national tragedy is that since then there has been no national consensus on objectives to pursue. Confusion in objectives, and discontinuities in policies and programmes have been the Nigerian experience of Government, resulting in the lack of progress in developing a one-nation consciousness and in developing the economy to lift our richly endowed country from poverty.

The essential elements in the National Vision 2040 will include :

• National Economic Perspective Plan 2020 – 2040;

• Adoption and Implementation of all the Aspects of Good Governance;

• Necessary Urgent Amendments to the 1999 Constitution;

• Universal Compulsory Good Quality Education for all Citizens up to the age of 18;

• Maintenance of Nigeria as a Secular State and Religious Freedom for the Individual;

• A Language Policy to Promote National Integration;

• Eradication of Corruption in all facets of National Life and Adoption of a Realistic Personal Incomes Policy;

• Determined and sustained retraining and re-motivation of the Civil Service and staff of all Agencies so that they may achieve a new image of competent, friendly, prompt, patriotic, non-corrupt, pro-investment, pro-development public service dedicated to prompt cost-effective service delivery.

Universal Compulsory Good Quality Education For All Citizens Up To The Age Of 18

This is absolutely necessary for the future progress of Nigeria, for international competitiveness and economic development, the welfare of all citizens and for national harmony and cohesiveness. The available funds must be re-allocated to guarantee good quality free education for all citizens of both sexes up to the end of SS3 or its technical equivalent. It should also be made much easier for any capable student to have tertiary education. Within 15 years of efficient implementation of this policy, the nation should have abolished illiteracy and there should be no idle unemployable youth available for recruitment into criminal and terror gangs which account for the country’s current poor image in international media. More important, there will be no so-called “disadvantaged states” and therefore no need for the type of “Federal Character Affirmative Action” which prevents us from employing the best man for the job and which has impeded national development and growth, apart from breeding otherwise unnecessary inter-state and inter-tribal tensions.

I am indebted to Prof. E. Ade Elebute for the succinct summary reproduced below of the challenges facing Education in Nigeria :

“Education Challenges

• There are over 10 million children of school age who are not in school, thus
  depriving the nation of the realization of their potentials and possible
  contribution to national development.
• Current slant in our education system is in favour of arts and social sciences to
  the detriment of the sciences but rapid growth and development are driven by
  science and technology.
• A poor presence of technical/technical skills education system which is critical to
  economic development.
• Inadequate level of well-trained, committed and competent teachers/lecturers to
  teach at alllevels.
• There is a gap in converting the results of research to viable commercial products.
• Poor school environment particularly in basic schools. There are reported cases of
  pupilslearning under trees and schools with dilapidated walls. Besides teachers
  are poorly paid and unmotivated.
• The inactivity or non-existence as in the past of the inspectorate system headed
  by a director of education.
• Because of the negative perception of teachers at the basic level many young
  people take up teaching as a last resort, without commitment or dedication.
• Fall in the standard of quality of education. The situation is so bad that before
  some Nigerians can be accepted to post graduate programmes outside Nigeria,
  they are compelled to do remedial courses for one session.
• Insufficient opportunity within the curriculum to teach emotional intelligence and
  build character as well as knowledge and skills acquisition”.

PRIMARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION

The details in Annexes 1-3 on Youth Literacy clearly show the task before the nation in achieving our goal of abolishing illiteracy by 2040. We must aggressively address the problems of : Funding, Educational Buildings and Facilities, Reinvigorate Programmes of Training and Upgrading of Teachers to meet stipulated minimum qualification of 1^st university degree and teaching qualification, Improvement in Remuneration and Status. With two years of planning and preparation, the new Programme can be launched in 2019.

Funding

Let us consider a few figures. Our population today is about 200 million. Children and youth between 5 and 19 years old account for just over 35% of our population. The Constitution promises them education as of right, education to prepare them for a decent productive life. By 2040, it is estimated that the population would be around 300 million. Ideally, the country should be providing now good adequate facilities for international standard education and skills acquisition for 40 million children and youth every year projected over the next 20 years to say 55 million. We must include the over 10 million children estimated to be outside proper schooling, and also integrate into the formal system those in Almajiri and Nomadic schools. Using normal ratios of teachers and instructors to students, we should be talking of 1.8 million to 2 million properly trained and motivated teachers / instructors. In today’s condition, an average salary per person of N840,000 per annum is not much. That would cost for 2 million, N1.68 trillion per annum. We have not factored in yet capital cost of class rooms, laboratories, theatres, etc. So ideally, we should be considering the figure of N2 trillion a year for the whole country. What is the provision this year by all our Governments in the three tiers for education? Nigeria’s budgetary allocation to education 2010 – 2016 were : 2010 – N234.8 billion, 2011 – N306.36 billion, 2012 – N400.15 billion, 2013 – N426.53 billion. 2014 – N493 billion, 2015 – N392.2 billion, 2016 – N369.6 billion, 2017 – education budget is 7% of the total budget.

We all recall the UNESCO recommendation of at least 25% of the total budget to be for education. This is most necessary for a developing country like Nigeria. However, you will all recall that even for an advanced country like the UK when Tony Blair as Prime Minister was asked about his priorities, he replied – “Education, Education, Education”.

There is therefore an urgent need for our Governments to re-order their priorities. Nigeria has enormous resources from our oil income. Better governance, less corruption, less bloating of public procurement – in some cases over 200% – more friendly and prompt processing of enquiries from intending investors will accelerate development and give us access to greater revenues. Meanwhile, there is great scope for reducing the cost of our government institutions, drastically reducing the perquisites and numbers of political office holders so as to change the allocations in our Budgets and enable the Government to spend what they should in order to guarantee every child access to good education.

There will not be uniformity but the state must guarantee to the poor child that he will be given the opportunity for good quality education which provides the route to upward mobility in society and a better life. This is not only a constitutional and moral imperative but is critically necessary for the rapid development of the nation and also for guaranteeing peace and security for all citizens.

In terms of private sector initiatives, as we are already doing, we have to increase our contributions to restoring our old “elite” schools to becoming again centres of excellence. Such schools, perhaps 50 or so in number but starting with say 7, should be empowered with special charters to become quasi-independent and be run by independently chosen Boards of Governors. There will be minority Government representation on such Boards. The schools may receive some subventions from the Government but the bulk of their revenues should be mobilized from private sources. In my old school, King’s College, Lagos, we have spent N1 billion. However, these are very small sums compared with the volume of funding which we need to mobilize over the next few years. The schools will as in the past throw open their doors to students from every part of the country and there should be funding for scholarships for capable students from poorer families – perhaps up to at least 25% of each class. The Federal Government may also upgrade six schools in each of the six zones to fulfil the intentions of the unity school, ensuring that they, like the old elite schools, are of the best international standards.

There will still be room for the very expensive private schools such as already exist but like in the past all schools must be subject to monitoring by re-organized and re-equipped competent Educational Inspectorates.

I am sure that private sector resources will be quite stretched playing the role assigned to them in the two categories of institutions which I have just described. Even then, it can only be a limited supporting role where trillions of naira will be required annually.

There are many other areas in vocational education and in the tertiary institutions in which private sector, especially business corporate organizations should intervene. In partnership with the Governments, they should develop institutions and apprenticeship arrangements to enable the country develop the millions of technical skilled workers required if the Nigerian economy is to grow and develop rapidly and be numbered by 2040 amongst the largest 15 economies in the world. This is possible if the country is properly led.

Remuneration Of Teachers

The remuneration of teachers, especially as we insist on teachers having at least first degrees and teaching qualifications must be made comparable with the remunerations of people in the Public Service with equivalent qualifications; and remuneration in both sectors must be made comparable with remuneration in the private sector within a period of 5 years. In addition, housing and transportation facilities should be provided to enable teachers adequately supervise games, prep. hours, and extra-curricular activities of their students.

Educational Curricula

It is disgraceful the degradation of our educational standards over the last four decades. All of us here this morning owe our positions in life, the successes we have achieved, and the positive contributions we may have made in our working life to the very good education we received in our days in the primary, secondary and tertiary institutions, but perhaps, most important in the secondary schools.

The secondary schools were few but of good international standard and we were able to go from our secondary schools with our Higher School Certificate or GCE Advanced Level straight to Oxford or Cambridge or other leading universities in Britain and the Commonwealth, to Ivy League Universities in America, and to other advanced countries and to perform competitively and creditably with the home students and students from other parts of the world.

The Federal Ministry of Education working with the State Government Ministries of Education must immediately assemble our educational authorities and experts to review our school curricula to ensure that they meet good international standards. They must ensure : That appropriate attention is given to mathematics and the science subjects, and ICT, and in keeping with current developments in the world, that teaching with regard to the development of Emotional Intelligence (E. I) is introduced.

It is remarkable how countries like Singapore and South Korea with whom we were equal in 1970s score very high now amongst the Top 20 in the World Ranking of the Best Educational Systems. Their outstanding performance as regards economic development and the standard and quality of life of their citizens attests to this. The Reports and Recommendations of the Panels should be ready for implementation within 6 months.

Tertiary Education

Here again in the latest ranking of World Universities, unlike what we would have scored in the early 1970s, the University of Ibadan which is No. 1 in Nigeria is only No. 1,032 in World Ranking and No. 9 in Africa.

We must work out urgently a programme to provide much higher levels of funding for our universities and insist that NUC monitors standards and de-lists universities which do not meet accepted minimum international standards of the good universities of Britain, the Older British Commonwealth Countries, USA, and Europe. The Funding will be for:

• Improvement of facilities and equipment;
• Research and transmission of useful research results to the economic sector;
• Better remuneration of staff;
• Ensuring that all capable and qualified students receive tertiary education;
• Exchanges of faculty staff between selected local universities and leading international universities.

The Federal Government should agree on a programme to ensure that within 7 years, starting with these ten, the Universities of Ibadan, Lagos, Ife, Zaria, Nsukka, Benin, Ilorin, Jos, Maiduguri, and Port Harcourt, should be made to achieve good international standards and three of them should be numbered among the top 100 world universities.

The Educational Programme described above should be fully articulated and ready for implementation within 6 months. The Federal Government should get the commitment of all the major political parties whether government parties or in opposition to the Programme as the solution to the National Emergency on Education and for the nation’s future, so that the determined and sustained implementation of the Programme will not be disrupted by any changes of Administrations.

Secondary and Tertiary Education should also remain in the Concurrent List to enable the Federal Government assist any State which requires it in order to reach agreed minimum national standards.

Need To Include The Language Policy To Promote National Integration As Part Of Our Educational Drive

A Language Policy To Promote National Integration

I had hoped following up on the early successes of the National Youth Service Scheme that we would be able to persuade the Government to introduce a Language Policy to foster national integration. That was before the termination of the Gowon Administration by the Coup of July 1975.

Such a policy would require each child to learn to read and write the local language where he or she begins schooling even in private schools. By the age of 10, the child begins to receive his instructions in English as is the practice now. The new policy would be that by the age of 12 or 13 when he or she enters a secondary school, he/she has to make a choice. If he is in the North, he must choose one Southern Language which he will be taught to speak, read and write. The chances are that the child will choose either Ibo or Yoruba. In the South, the child will likely choose Hausa as the Northern Language which he will be taught to speak, read and write. All secondary schools will have the necessary language departments.

The upshot of this policy will be that within 15 to 20 years, all educated Nigerians (like the Swiss today) will, apart from their local language and English, be able to communicate in one or more Nigerian languages. With the ongoing inter-action and cultural exchanges and the pressures of globalization, you can imagine the situation among our children and grandchildren twenty years hence especially as they would have received similar good quality education. Ethnic differences will mean much less to them. Such a policy should be initiated within the next two years after careful detailed consultations and preparation.

For the avoidance of doubt, I must stress that English will still remain the official language of the Federal Government.

I have no doubt that the current national debate on restructuring and the need for a new Constitution will continue for quite some time before agreement can be reached on what to do. However, a new Educational Policy to get our citizens equipped to develop and diversify our economy and improve the standard of living and quality of life of all the people in the context of the rapidly emerging technologies of the 21^st Century cannot wait. Compared with the Asian Tigers with whom we were at par in the middle 1970s, we are very far behind in per-capita income and over all development. Therefore, we must all do what we can to ensure that the nation adopts and begins to implement in earnest within two years the Modernized Educational Programme and the Language Programme which are so critical for accelerated development, national integration, and peace for our children, their children and future generations.

I thank you all for listening to me patiently.

CHIEF PHILIP C. ASIODU, CFR, CON, HLF

LAGOS

SEPTEMBER 14, 2017

The post Re-Positioning Education In Nigeria for Peace and Development appeared first on Hallmarks of Labour Foundation.

OF THE NIGERIAN STATE AND THE WAY FORWARD

BY

PROFESSOR IBRAHIM AGBOOLA GAMBARI CFR, OCORT

FORMER FOREIGN MINISTER OF NIGERIA AND UNITED NATIONS UNDER-SECRETARY GENERAL, AND FOUNDER AND CHAIRMAN SAVANNAH CENTRE FOR DIPLOMACY, DEMOCRACY AND DEVELOPMENT (SCDDD), ABUJA, NIGERIA.

HLF RE-UNION SYMPOSIUM

• Protocols;I. INTRODUCTION

1. Introduction;
   I feel greatly honoured to lead the discussion under the auspices of the HLF Re-union on such an important and timely subject: Retrospective and Prospective Interrogation of the Nigerian State and the way forward.In my view, self-introspection is normal in any nation. What has however, made our case quite important is the various secessionist agitations and civil strife that have held development down in some parts of the country. Hate and inciteful speeches attain new height by the day and unless something is done to stem this ugly situation, we might find one day that we have no country. In all my years of service at home and abroad it is obvious to me that what precipitates the fall of a nation begins with these internal wrangling and mindless provocations. And I believe the time has come for us to chart a way forward out of this and I am pleased to note that this assembly of noble men and women are prepared to find lasting solutions to our national malice.
2. Ladies and gentlemen, you have asked me to interrogate the Nigerian nation both in retrospect and prospect. I will like to begin by saying that interrogation itself is healthy. There must be an entrenched system of how to continue to dialogue in finding ways and means of building a nation. But this time around, we must begin to talk to each other rather than talking at each other. I can tell you that my Centre, the Savannah Centre for Diplomacy, Democracy and Development has been working hard to provide a platform for such dialogue.
   
   II. NIGERIAN STATE IN RETROSPECT
3. In a paper I presented in Washington DC some years ago, which has turned out to be prescient, I talked about The Nigerian State and its Enemies…The inspiration for this came from the famous book by the Australian-British Philosopher, late Professor Karl Popper, titled The Open Society and Its Enemies. Ladies and Gentlemen, these enemies are the ones we have to reclaim Nigeria from for us to move forward as a nation. Who are they?
4. The enemies of the Nigerian State are not necessarily individuals. I use the term to encompass those groups characterized by certain negative tendencies, phenomena and traits, which, taken together, constitute serious impediments to the growth, development, corporate existence and efficient functioning of the Nigerian State which serves the interest of the many rather than the few. In other words, they critically undermine the emergence of a strong, united, vibrant, prosperous and just nation. While the enemies of the Nigerian state, which are identified and discussed here, are by no means exhaustive, they constitute, in my view, severally and collectively, some of the most vicious agents at work to either tear Nigeria apart or at least blunt the full realization of the great potentials, which our nation possesses. It is for these reasons that I now proceed to discuss some of these “enemies” of the Nigerian state.
5. Of all the vices, which have reared their ugly heads in enmity against the Nigerian state, it seems to me, that ethnicity or rather the wrong use of ethnicity, ranks as one of the most dangerous. In my view, no measure can blunt ethnic jingoism and advance the cause of national unity more than a determined, honest and manifestly fair effort to treat all Nigerians, irrespective of their ethnic origin, equally before the law as well as the promotion of, and respect for, the human rights of all Nigerians. Writing two centuries ago, Uthman Dan Fodio, a great reformer and leader, had this message for us: “One of the swiftest ways of destroying a kingdom (or State) is to give preference to one particularly tribe over another, or to show favour to one group of people rather than another”. As Abraham Lincoln puts it succinctly, “a house divided against itself cannot stand. Justice and respect for the diversity of our nation are the prerequisites for a Republic that is at peace with itself and consolidates its unity and its democracy.
6. Any meaningful analysis of the enemies of the Nigerian state is bound to identify national indiscipline and elite greed as factors at work against our society. Indiscipline manifests itself in a general unwillingness to abide by laws and regulations designed to achieve a smooth functioning of society as well as the failure to observe the minimum requirements of etiquette and ethics in official and unofficial interaction. It is said jokingly, but with some justification, that one of the distinguishing features of Nigerians is that we readily devise at least ten ways of circumventing every new law or regulation that is passed. National indiscipline prevents the orderly achievement of national goals as an inordinate amount of time is spent on trying to get people to display the minimum orderly behavior, without which civil society can only degenerate into an animal kingdom, with only the strongest surviving.
7. Elite greed is a phenomenon, which manifests itself in the inordinate ambition to illegally amass wealth in breach of public trust, abuse of public office, bribery and corruption and the lack of a capacity to distinguish public from private wealth. Greed among the elite has tended to transform competition for public office into a “do or die” affair, in which the winner must take all. Public office is increasingly seen, not as a call to service and public trust, but as an opportunity to despoil the “Commonwealth”. The phenomenon of elite greed is, however, not confined to the public domain, as the elite in the private sector have also developed an insatiable taste to acquire wealth far in excess of their legitimate capacity. The Nigerian state is the worse for it, and the Nigerian people the worst hit, as scarce resources that should otherwise have been used for development are expropriated by a greedy few.
8. The menace of Boko Haram, which represents one of the greatest threats to the Nigerian state and National security. This is because it represents the ill use of religion and uses sectarian violence to undermine the unity, sovereignty, territorial integrity of our country.III. ADDRESSING THE KEY CHALLENGES FACING THE NIGERIAN STATE(a). Socio-Economic Inequalities
9. In bringing about change, building of a common citizenship and common commitment to Nigeria has been an important aspect of our nation-building exertions. But how can we have a common citizenship when the person in Ilorin has a radically different quality of life from the person in Yenagoa?  Or when the woman in Daura is more likely to die in childbirth than the woman in Ibadan? Through the development of the economy and equal opportunities for all, or through the development of social welfare safety nets, mature nations try to establish a base-line of social and economic rights which all members of the national community must enjoy. Not to enjoy these socio-economic rights means that the people involved are marginalized from national life. That is why in many West – European countries, contemporary nation-building in about preventing ‘social exclusion’ or the exclusion of significant segments of the population from enjoying basic social and economic rights. In Nigeria, however, not only are many of our citizens denied basic rights such as the right to education and health, there is also serious variation in the enjoyment of these rights across the country. As a consequence, the citizen is not motivated to support the state and society, because he or she does not feel that the society is adequately concerned about their welfare. Secondly, socio-economic inequalities across the country fuel fears and suspicions which keep our people divided.
10. Let me draw your attention to some of these socio-economic inequalities. If we take the level of immunization of children against dangerous childhood diseases, we note that while the South-East has 44.6% immunization coverage, the North-West has 3.7% and North-East 3.6%. If you take the education of the girl-child as indicator, you see a similar pattern of inequality with the South-East having an enrolment rate of 85%, South-West 89%, South-South 75%, North-East 20%, and North-West 25%. Only 25% of pregnant women in the North-West use maternity clinics, while 85% of the women in the South-East do.3  It is not surprising that 39% more women die in child-birth in the North-East, compared to the South-West. Education and poverty levels are also important dimensions of inequalities across Nigeria.  If we take admissions into Nigerian universities in the academic year 2000/1, we see that the North-West had only 5% of the admissions, while the South-East had 39%. As for poverty, a onetime Governor of the Central Bank, Charles Soludo, recently pointed out that while 95% of the population of Jigawa State is classified as poor, only 20% of Bayelsa State is so classified.  While 85% of Kwara State is classified as poor, only 32% of Osun State is in the same boat.
11. These inequalities pose two related challenges. Firstly, high levels of socio-economic inequalities mean that different Nigerians live different lives in different parts of the country. Your chances of surviving child-birth, of surviving childhood, of receiving education and skills, all vary across the country.  If different parts of Nigeria were separate countries, some parts will be middle income countries, while others will be poorer than the poorest countries in the world!  A common nationhood cannot be achieved while citizens are living such parallel lives. Inequalities are a threat to a common citizenship.  Secondly, even in those parts of the country that are relatively better off, the level of social provision and protection is still low by world standards. The 20% that are poor and unemployed in Bayelsa State are still excluded from common citizenship benefits.  We therefore need a Social Contract between the people on the one hand, and the state and nation on the other.  The state and nation must put meeting the needs of the disadvantaged as a key objective of public policy.  Such an approach can make possible a common experience of life by Nigerians living in different parts of the country and elicit their commitment to the nation.  Instead of resorting to the divisive politics of indigene against settler as a means of accessing resources, a generalized commitment to social citizenship will create a civic structure of rights that will unite people around shared rights and goals.
12. Poverty and nation-building are strange bedfellows, whether the poor are 20% or 85% of the population. A largely marginalized citizenry, increasingly crippled by poverty and the lack of basic needs, can hardly be expected to play its proper role in the development of the nation.  Nations are built by healthy and skilled citizens. On grounds of both equity and efficiency, we need to promote the access of the bulk of the Nigerian population to basic education, health, and housing.  Nigeria needs a social contract with its citizens as a basis for demanding their loyalty and support. It is impossible to deliver equitable social services to Nigerians without plugging the leakages in the nation’s financial resources and fighting a merciless war against corruption. December 2015 report from Global Financial Integrity, “Illicit Financial Flows from Developing Countries: 2004-2013,” finds that developing and emerging economies lost US$7.8 trillion in illicit financial flows from 2004 through 2013, with illicit outflows increasing at an average rate of 6.5 percent per year—nearly twice as fast as global GDP. This study is GFI’s 2015 annual global update on illicit financial flows from developing economies, and it is the sixth annual update of GFI’s groundbreaking 2008 report, “Illicit Financial Flows from Developing Countries 2002-2006.” This is the first report to include estimates of illicit financial flows from developing countries in 2013—which the study pegs at US$1.1 trillion. NIGERIA RANKS 10th as indicated below. China leads the world over the 10-year period with US$1.39 trillion in illicit outflows, followed by Russia, Mexico, India, and Malaysia. China also had the largest illicit outflows of any country in 2013, amounting to a staggering US$258.64 billion in just that one year.(b). Building Strong National Institutions
13. Furthermore, the imperative of building strong National Institutions for our Democracy and Development cannot be over-emphasized. One of the greatest challenges of nation-building is that of lack of strong national institution building.  Whether nations are able to manage their political and social disputes peacefully, without lapsing into conflict, or sustain economic growth without creating huge inequalities, critically depend on the quality of the relevant national institutions. In this regard, there are three important components to institution building:  setting the rules; hiring persons with the technical expertise and moral competence to interpret the rules or implement the goals of the organizations; and ensuring that the institutions inspire public confidence by being accountable, transparent, fair and consistent. These are also the standards by which the performance of any organization, in particular, public sector organizations should be measured. This shows that the act of creating the organization itself is not as important as its proper functioning and overall effectiveness. In this regard, Nigeria needs to create or strengthen institutions that would help achieve the national goals of holistic security, democratic governance and sustainable socio-economic development.(c). Elections and Democracy in Nigeria
14. This presentation would be incomplete without a word or two on the past 2015 Elections and, in essence, the “rebirth” of democracy in our nation. Nigeria now has a new opportunity to deepen its democracy and deliver its dividends such as quality social services, including especially education and health, prosperity and security of life and property. Undoubtedly, the government is faced with very high expectations but these are accompanied by enormous goodwill within and outside Nigeria. One thing is clear however, change must not remain a slogan; the governments that have been elected on that platform must deliver on campaign promises and resist being highjacked or diverted by forces that do not believe in change and what change should bring to the masses of the people.
15. The government can succeed by carrying everybody along through inclusive government. We must give that support while insisting on a permanent end to impunity and zero-tolerance for official corruption. Again, political parties in Nigeria must abandon “the current political normadism where the sole purpose is for acquisition of power in order to satisfy parochial interest of the political class (and not of the people). To attain this, it is important that parties are based on issues, group interests and ideology”.
16. Whilst it is good to have successful elections, periodic elections in themselves, do not ensure good governance. Elections are not an end in themselves rather a process leading to the real business of governance. Elections 2015 in Nigeria and the emergency of President Muhammadu Buhari as the President Federal Republic of Nigeria represent a watershed with the potential to cross a threshold into a new era in global governance and human experience. Nigerians successfully went to the polls and achieved an uncommon feat even when there was palpable tension in the country.
17. Nigerians want to see the intensification of the anti-corruption battle on all fronts with thorough investigations and convictions which serves as credible deterrence. They want to celebrate the decimation of the Boko Haram and an end to insurgency; they want to see an improved economy where there is job creation and wealth creation; they want to see a fiscal regime that firms up the naira against the other currencies through effective control of the oil economy and a well diversified economic culture; they want to see and live in a society where kidnapping is effectively checked; and above all, Nigerians want to see a restructured country where the peoples’ energies are efficiently tapped and run for over-all national wealth creation.
18. The government must ensure that true change is delivered, as there is no value added to change without substance. There should be change in all facets of our existence as a country. I believe the notion of change and harnessing the multi-faceted expectations of many Nigerians regarding what it means, are the biggest challenges Governments at all levels now need to focus and how to address the burden of huge expectations from the populace. Think big but start small. The need to manage our collective expectations in the face of change is predicated on the fact that Nigeria needs to get back on track with the business of developing and improving the lives of her citizens. A task that requires more urgent attention now in the face of damning evidence of how badly the nation and its institutions have failed in delivering efficient public goods and services in the past 18 years of democracy. A look at the manifesto of different political parties reveals a shopping list of broad policy statements which require more clarity as to how the expectations of Nigerians will be met and managed in key public policy areas. Education, health, the economy, job creation and youth employment all have broad policy statements that should depart from same stories of previous administrations. Therefore, I call for strategic approach to meeting citizen expectations and where challenges exist appropriate explanations should be given.(d). Service Delivery
19. An unbundling of service delivery bottlenecks within the complex layers of our peculiar federal state will be key to successful change in all the sectors of our national life begging for change. This should inform a restructuring of the civil service in a way that aligns national priorities with specific agency mandates. Parallel and duplicating functions that abound in our current public service agencies and remain avenues for inefficiency of production must be tackled with the same zeal as corruption and insecurity. In reality, the changes desired by the Nigerian populace can only be delivered when services delivered within the public sector (both civil and public services) reflect a harmonisation of the yearnings and expectations of citizens from government at all levels. How effectively the new governing party achieves this marriage of expectations and bridges the gaps will determine its success as change agents.
20. Putting service delivery at the heart of governance reflects an understanding that the perception of government/governance effectiveness is directly related to the experience of citizens when they access or are unable to access public goods and services. Unfortunately in Nigeria, this connection has in recent times been reduced to “stomach infrastructure” — made available only during electioneering seasons. This is where the real change must happen for governance to be meaningful, in spite of high sounding numbers about economic growth and perceived national prosperity that leaves the poor feeling poorer. Effective and efficient service delivery is the magic glue that closes the expectation gap between government and the governed. Therefore, if the APC-led government is to succeed in its change agenda, and thus actualize their defined objective of instituting a set of progressive social welfare programmes need to engender a more robust public accountability framework under which each layer of government can be held accountable for failure of service delivery. It is only by setting clear performance standards in policy implementation; standards derived from wide consultations with citizens as critical stakeholders, that the new administration will set a new bar for meeting citizen expectations which currently range from the most simple, to sometimes unrealistic demandsIV. Concluding Remarks
21. It is to the credit of Nigerians that in the face of years of broken promises and dashed hopes, they have remained resilient, enduring the worst adversity where others might have buckled. Yet, as experience through history has shown, a resilient people cannot be taken for granted indefinitely lest they rise in revolutionary fervour and take matters into their own hands. It is one of the reasons why the change agenda of President Buhari cannot be allowed to go the way of previous promises of change. There are, of course, other cogent reasons why the change agenda of the government will deserve to be supported, not least among them the fact that the misrule, mismanagement, and wanton theft by high office holders almost nearly precipitated a situation of wholesale institutional collapse in the country. Also, on a scale and range not seen since the civil war, armed hostilities in the northeast of Nigeria and persistent low-intensity violence in the Niger Delta threatened the territorial integrity of the country.
22. If the promise of change promised by President Buhari was credible enough before the generality of Nigerians as to contribute to the defeat of the erstwhile ruling party and propel him to power, it is in part because of his personal credentials as a person of personal integrity.
23. However, it needs to be restated again and again, that the sustainability of an agenda of change, cannot, depend on one person and must involve a collective endeavour to open a new Chapter in national life that would represent both a clean break with the past and the opening of a new gateway into the future. We must act collectively so that we can take our country back from the enemies of the Nigerian state- the looters and destroyers of our national resources. To this end, a wholesale attitudinal change combined with new codes of leadership and followership need to be embraced across different segments of society. Institutions of governance, many of them playing dual but complementary roles in nation- and state-building, will need to be reinvigorated so as to serve as the bedrocks they were meant to be in the administration of public affairs. A new compact will need to be established between rulers and citizens that will serve as a basis for our collective audit of the performance of those to whom we entrust our national destiny.
24. In the 18 years since the emergence of the Fourth Republic, Nigerians have strived to build their country into Africa’s and one of the world’s biggest democracies. However, there has been a deficit of delivery which, in popular parlance, is referred to as the absence of democratic dividends. In the pursuit of the contemporary agenda of change, close attention will need to be paid to the measures and steps that would need to be taken to overcome grinding poverty and want among Nigerians, narrow the growing inequality that is increasingly defining the national landscape, invest in the public provisioning of accessible and quality educational and health services, build an integrated social policy that feeds back into economic development, grow the national economy to generate jobs for a teeming population of young Nigerians, revive and expand the real sectors of the economy with particular attention to manufacturing and agriculture, and renew the national infrastructure across the board.
25. Notwithstanding the challenges of our immediate past and our present exciting possibilities still exist. We must continue to build the enabling environment for the requisite transformation which we must undergo in order to entrench sustainable development and reposition Nigeria for competitiveness. The CHANGE mantra has awakened in the Nigerian a new consciousness of the imperative for a girding of the loins for the enormous challenges – economic, political, security, that confront us.
26. What is key at this point is a clear definition of the content and the context of the CHANGE we seek. Equally critical is the identification and assignment of roles with respect to the respective agents of this CHANGE which we so sorely need for national rejuvenation. Perhaps most important, is the necessity for the requisite political will on the part of government to make the inevitable difficult choices and hard decisions in a structured, well thought-out, equitable and fair manner. Believing that if we can find the will to offer such a leadership, and support it by strong and dependable political and economic institutions, we will find a way to our national greatness and sustenance of Nigeria’s democracy.
27. No doubt, where citizens are able to establish a link between democratic governance and improvements in their living conditions, they are able to renew their faith in the inclusivity and representativeness of that system of government. Where citizens feel included and come to understand that their voices count on an everyday basis, standards of governance are improved and the political culture benefits through improvements that ensue in the conduct of politicians. Inclusivity also contributes to the processes of nation and state-building which remain unfinished parts of the national agenda. It is within our grasp as a nation and a people to turn the corner. We must find the will to call a stop to all the factors that have hampered our progress to date. And we must set only the highest targets and most rigorous standards for ourselves as a mark of self-respect and in the firm understanding that in the end, the change that will matter will be the one that brings about transformation in all spheres of our national life.
28. I thank you for listening and happy Democracy Day.

The post Retrospective and Prospective Interrogation of the Nigerian State and the Way Forward By Professor Ibrahim Agboola Gambari CFR, OCORT appeared first on Hallmarks of Labour Foundation.

Emeritus Professor Umaru Shehu, CON, CFR, HLR 

Chairman, Board of Trustees, 

Hallmarks of Labour Foundation 

PROTOCOL

On behalf of the Board of Trustees, management & staff of Hallmarks of Labour Foundation, I am delighted to welcome you to our Re-Union 2017. 

The Foundation considers this assembly among the best in our great country, Nigeria; and for good reasons. Over the years, you have demonstrated your mettle in various fields of endeavour – academia, governance & administration, the professions and disciplined services – through integrity, hard work and commitment to the socio-economic and political upliftment of your immediate and extended environments – locally and internationally. 

Nigeria owes you a debt of gratitude and we are indeed proud to provide the forum to give honour to who it is due. 

One of the key elements of this Re-Union is a Symposium. The central theme is aptly tagged “Restoring a Tolerant and Value-Driven Society in Nigeria” because that is what you, our role models, exemplify and have consistently pursued.The Symposium is therefore in line with one of the Foundation’s main objectives to:

”Help make Nigeria a decent society that attracts a pride of place in the comity of nations through re-orientating our mind-set and awaken in us the spirit of Nationalism, Patriotism and Loyalty”.

This is particularly so as our country goes through the throes of regeneration to sustainable growth and development. The topics for presentation and discussions are also germaine to issues of the day. 

The Foundation considers it fitting that virtually all the Symposium Resource Persons have been selected from our Roll Call of Role Models – The Chief Host, Chairman, Moderator, Speakers, Discussants and author of the Keynote Address. 

Permit us to remember our Role Models that have passed on: Professor Adeoye Lambo; Hon. Justice Chukwudifu Oputa; Hon. Justice Mohammed Bello; Pa. Michael Imoudu;  Senator Abraham Adesanya; Alhaja Abibat Mogaji; Ambassador Matthew Tawo Mbu; Alhaji Babatunde Jose; Professor Olikoye Ransome-Kuti; Chief Frederick Rotimi Alade Williams; Mr. Gamaliel Onosode; Professor Babatunde Fafunwa; Hon. Justice Kayode Eso; Chief Dr. Molade Okoya-Thomas; and Hon. Justice Andrews Obaseki. May their souls rest in peace. Amen.

We thank you for being part of the Foundation’s vision and we are grateful to our sponsors for their support in keeping the dream alive. 

We hope you all will find it worthwhile to be part of this Re-Union Symposium, which, judging from the calibre of speakers, is bound to be very illuminating and impactful. It is indeed our collective duty to join hands and make Nigeria better.

You are welcome.

The post HLF Symposium Reunion Welcome Address appeared first on Hallmarks of Labour Foundation.