By Bunmi Makinwa

Starting from President William Howard Taft in 1909, nearly all presidents of the USA to date have played golf. President Donald Trump is known as a good golfer but he stands out as the only one who cheated consistently and regularly. He once asked those who played in his team to make sure that they cheated because all other players would be cheating – a false affirmation, but it was his way of finding justification for his wrongful act.

The game of golf, unlike many other sports, does not have a referee or umpire who controls and scores players. It is largely self-monitored and depends essentially on self-scoring. During competitions, the players state their scores to their teammates who may confirm the scores and record them.

Golf is called a gentleman’s game, an honoured game and such-like terms of high moral standards. It does not mean that all golf players are of high moral standing. Some players cheat, and when they are caught, their scores may be cancelled, their awards, if any, are withdrawn and their membership of clubs or access to play at courses may be curtailed, among other sanctions.

Above all, those who cheat lose the respect of their colleagues. Fortunately, only a few true golf players cheat, and to be accused of cheating in golf is one of the worst labels that can permanently haunt a golfer.

There is a documented story of two world-class players who have never spoken to each other for more than 20 years because one accused the other of illegally moving a leaf away from his ball at a championship game. Both of them were so deeply offended – one for what he thought his colleague did, and the other for feeling that his colleague would wrongly accuse him of such an act. Just one leaf!

Trump is well known for his properties and politics. He is known as the first former USA president to have been indicted for criminality, and for having 91 felony charges against him in courts. He is also known as a passionate and frequent golfer, and owner of golf clubs. Though his cheating in golf is vastly published, the book, Commander In Cheat: How Golf Explains Trump by Rick Reilly, provides probably the most detailed information on the subject.

Reilly interviewed extensively players, caddies, staff, and those who have engaged with Trump on the game. The book is a wealth of information on Trump the child, his upbringing, love of golf and sports, manners, priorities and determination to win on anything at all and any costs.

The first day that Trump and Reilly met, Trump took Reilly around the clubhouse and introduced him to everyone. At each introduction, Trump gave Reilly whatever title that he thought would impress the audience. Confused and embarrassed, when they were alone Reilly asked Trump, “Why do you lie about me?” “Sounds better,” Trump responded.

It is just one of many self-serving ways that Trump sees life.

The author described a situation that may seem incredible to all except those who are familiar with Trump’s unique personality. “Trump happened to walk into the Bedminster clubhouse just as a worker was putting up the name of the newly crowned senior club championship winner on a wooden plaque. Trump had been out of town and hadn’t played in the tournament, but when he saw the player’s name, he stopped the employee. “Hey, I beat that guy all the time. Put my name up there instead.” The worker was flummoxed. “Sir?” “Yeah, yeah. I beat that guy constantly. I would’ve beaten him. Put my name up.” Of course, Trump’s name was put up and it stays there forever as the winner of a tournament that he never played.

Golf originated in Europe where it was played for a long time before it came to the USA late in the 18th century. Most presidents of the USA have liked the game as a means of distraction from the heavy burden of the office or as a social means of interaction with people.

Counting from Taft (1909-1913), the first golf enthusiast in the White House, to current President Joe Biden, 20 presidents have occupied the White House, and only three did not play golf, namely, Presidents Herbert Hoover, Harry Truman and Jimmy Carter.

Some of the golf-playing presidents were strong devotees of the game. President Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921) would not stop his game no matter what urgent state matters came up. During some of the most challenging times of his presidency, he would insist on finishing his putt before he attended to an emergency or important state policy. He played six times a week during the summer season.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-1961) would usually start his days with swings of his golf club and end the day by doing some practice shots often on the lawns of the White House. He once had a bandage around his fingers and when a visitor asked how bad the injury was, Eisenhower responded that it was so bad “that I cannot even play golf.”

President John F. Kennedy (1961-1963) was among the very best golfer presidents. Like many other politicians, he kept his golf secret from the public as the game was seen as a pastime of the affluent, aristocracy and oppressors of the poor.

Of the more recent US presidents, Bill Clinton (1993-2001) would often play more than the regular 18 holes on courses. Although left-handed, he played golf as a rightie. Though he did not rate as a top player, Clinton’s embrace of the game was so complete that he was quoted to have said, “The great thing about this game is that the bad days are wonderful.” He is also known to claim mulligans (free shots) for his bad shots, but he would not cheat.

President Barack Obama (2009-217), a leftie, is the quintessence of connectedness in golf. He does everything above board. “No cheating, no mulligans, no do-overs.” After his presidency, he was able to get his handicap down to 11. “Off the tee, he’s very straight,” Tiger Woods says, “but not long. His chipping is salty, but he’s a disaster in the bunkers.”

Let us get back to Trump in Reilly’s book. From various sources, Trump’s handicap is placed at about 10. Tiger Woods says that Trump “hits the ball very far for a 70-year-old man”. The tee shot is the best part of his game. His approach shots are “OK” and his chipping is “poor”. He prefers not to chip. His putting is “OK” and he putts, “even out of bunkers”.

The author writes: “So the caddy and the pros who make a living in the game estimate his  (Trump) handicap to be somewhere between a 7 and a 10. The only problem with all that is Trump insists his handicap is a 2.8. In the world of golf handicaps, that difference is huge. If Trump is a 2.8, Queen Elizabeth is a pole vaulter. No possible way. It would take a 9 handicap five good years of hard practice to get to a 2.8 and Donald Trump doesn’t practice.”

Trump does insist on his truths and cares less about reality.

In the book, a political friend of Trump who played with him recounted an incident, “I remember on one par 3, he hit his first shot way out of bounds. Teed up another and I think that one was lost, too. The third one landed about 12 feet from the hole. He made that putt. I’m pretty sure he gave himself a 2 on that hole. Look, I take mulligans, too. I’m not judging…” For those who may not know how golf scores are counted, Trump just improved his score on the hole by 4, which is massive cheating.

A top manager at one of Trump’s golf courses played a first round of golf with Trump and was asked whether Trump improved his lie (places his ball in a better place which is against the rules unless specifically allowed), “Every shot but the tee shot,” the manager responded, and threw his head back in laughter.

“At Winged Foot where Trump is a member, the caddies got so used to seeing him kick his ball back onto the fairway (which is against the rules and amounts to cheating) they came up with a nickname for him: “Pele”.”

“I played with him once,” says Bryan Marsal, longtime Winged Foot member and chair of the coming 2020 Men’s U.S. Open (at the time). “It was a Saturday morning game. We go the first tee and he couldn’t have been nicer. But then he said, ‘ You see those two guys? They cheat. See me? I cheat. And I expect you to cheat because we’re going to beat those two guys today.’…”

One more story. Trump, during his presidency, invited Tiger Woods, Dustin Johnson who was the number 1 player in the world at the time, and Brad Faxon, a media analyst on golf, for a game. They set up a bet, based on the usual rules – the three would play scratch whilst Trump was given an 8-point advantage.

On a certain hole. Trump missed his two shots and they went into the water. Trump dropped a third ball where he should have dropped had he stayed on his first shot , and ended up on the green ready to putt for seven but claimed that it was four. “How great is that?” Faxon recalled. “… It was really fun to play with him. He rakes (picks up) every putt (as if it’s conceded), but you kind of want him to. You’ve heard so much about it, it’s almost like you want to witness it so you can tell the stories.”

It appears obvious that Trump pays his caddy very well or they share the same rules of ethics. No matter where Trump’s real shots land, whether in the water or the bush, or another fairway, the ball is always at the right fairway and Trump and his caddy are always the first to get there and identify the ball. It goes against the rules of the sport.

There are several explanations or attempts to explain why Trump cheats. Says Harvard psychiatrist Dr. Lance Dodes, co-author of The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump, “He exaggerates his golf scores and his handicap for the same reason he exaggerates everything. He has to. He exhibits all the traits of a narcissistic personality disorder… People with his disorder have no conscience about it.”

Some media experts say that Trump has succeeded in business by making grandiose claims about his wealth and assets and he got away with them repeatedly that it became natural. Colleagues who have worked with him say that he is “unhinged” meaning that he brags and overwhelms people by talking big and non-stop, and name-calling. Communication analysts put him in the league of propagandists like Hitler who keep saying untruths until people begin to doubt what is true and ultimately may believe the lies.

Whichever way one looks at it, Trump’s cheating in golf adds yet another indelible negative stain, and it makes him a deeply flawed human being.

Bunmi Makinwa is the CEO of AUNIQUEI Communication for Leadership.

By Bunmi Makinwa

Just for a brief time the videos of two Nigerian police constabularies went viral. In the first video, the two men demanded money from a female European motorcyclist on a world tour through Nigeria. In the second video, the two men were seen being dismissed from the service.

In a third video which did not seem to have gone around as frequently as the two previous ones, upon their dismissal, the same two policemen spoke of their hard and meaningless life in the force. They said that they had not been paid for their services for many months. They also said that they merely sought “assistance” from the said motorcyclist who they let go when she did not give anything.

Put together, the three videos can serve as models of the approach that Nigeria adopts and uses in its claim of fighting corruption in the public domain. The two videos portray the process of accusation and punishment for corruption. The third video mirrors the views of those caught – either as excuses or explanation of the numerous reasons why the society cannot but be corrupt.

Available information shows that the Nigeria Police Force frequently disciplines its officers who are caught for misbehaviour. In 2023, a national newspaper reported that in October, December 2022, and April 2023, the Force dismissed 18 officers for abuse of power, gross indiscipline and extortion, among others. Also at state levels, disciplinary measures are taken often. In Kano State last year, an inspector and two sergeants attached to a popular musician were dismissed for firing their bullets carelessly in the air at a crowded place and thereby guilty of misconduct.

Despite its low tolerance of corruption and misbehaviour by its officers, the public views the police as widely corrupt or corruptible. There are many reasons, and they are organizational as well as in the wider context of society and the community of the police force.

Let us look within and around the police force as seen through five personal experiences in various places in Nigeria.

No 1: A team of policemen had stopped many rickety vehicles on a busy road in a city and were collecting money from the drivers in full public view. Without being asked to stop, I pulled over and beckoned to one of the policemen. After a short conversation on why they would cause traffic pile-ups because they wanted free money, and openly too. He explained to me politely that the least I could do was to make my contribution to the “emergency care” of my poverty-ridden police. He said that the collection that was going on would enable their police station nearby to pay for electricity, petrol for their vehicles, and maintenance of the station in general. Responding to my remark that he had a clean and proper uniform, he assured me that the uniform and boots were bought from previous collections from “good Samaritans” like myself.

Well, I found out independently that his claims were not false and were characteristic of the situation in many police stations.

No 2: A Divisional Police Officer handling an unfortunate case told the people concerned that they had to make what amounted to significant “payments” for any documentation to be prepared by his officers. Indeed, he gave the people concerned the specific amounts to be given to five of his men and only after it was done could he rightfully direct that the work should be done. Asked for reasons, the DPO, in summary, told of how any police officer who was deployed to the station (and any “viable” office for that matter) had to pay a certain amount to superiors who determined the placements based on amounts paid.

No 3: In a discussion among close friends, a former commissioner of police for a state said that it was hardly possible to get his budgetary allocation from the Force Headquarters in Abuja. Rather, he depended heavily on the goodwill of the state governor to provide for the state police command financially and with vehicles and equipment to function.

No 4: A senior civil servant had police aides officially assigned to him to provide security. When he left office, he made whatever arrangement and was able to keep the same policemen for security and any other purposes. The retired civil servant often said that the policemen would resign from the police service if he asked them to do it because he took much better care of them, paid them well, and provided for their family expenses.

No 5: A lady police officer complained publicly about her salary stating that she had no means of providing money for transport to and from school for her two children. Neither could she afford from her salary any money to pay many “dues” requested by the teachers at the so-called free-education public school that the children attended. As a result, her children had no desk or chair to use whilst in school.

The examples above are just a few of the indicators of how the anti-corruption activities of the police cannot be effective when carried out in the narrow context of sanctions. Just as the government cannot be taken seriously, nor can it be effective in lowering the level of corruption unless it does much more.

Whilst disciplinary measures including dismissal of corrupt police officers is justified and necessary, it is far from near enough to reduce or eliminate the factors that encourage corruption within the police force. Similarly, any such limited measures of government have very limited impact on corruption in any organization, society and in Nigeria a whole.

It is rare to find a public institution, organization or place of interaction in the country where a culture of corruption does not thrive. In fact, it is almost compelling for people to engage in corruption. It has become a need, normalized and often existential.

Government after government claims that it will reduce or stop corruption in the public sphere. Yet their policies and actions are short-sighted and limited to sporadic “fire-fighting” at best, and public noise-making that gets media attention and political support. Beyond dealing with corrupt officials, the government does not address the fundamentals and key factors that foster and increase corruption.

Meanwhile, the devastating weight of corruption handicaps the country. Corruption is why there are bad infrastructures, no infrastructures and wasteful spending. It is why there is irregular electricity supply, poor health facilities, low quality education and huge unemployment. Development is slowed down and often impossible. In a vicious cycle, poverty encourages corruption and corruption drives poverty.

The Muhammadu Buhari administration came into office with a loud anti-corruption agenda but failed woefully to lower the scourge mainly because the regime least understood the issues, among other acts of incompetence and deliberate misdeeds. It saw corruption largely as the occasional media noise about the arrest, trial and jail of a well-known politician.

It is yet to be seen if the current government understands the multiple drivers of corruption and will do better at mobilizing the country vigorously and also morally to tackle corruption at individual, group, organizational and societal levels using theoretical, practical and technological means.

How does a government fight corruption if its policies place people on a trajectory of poorer and more harsh existence? How does a government discourage corruption when elected officials, both state and federal, manifest themselves as devourers of the funds and assets of the country?

When political leaders live well above their means and typify examples of sudden wealth and ostentation merely because they occupy positions of service, the leaders sow seeds of corruption in their young people and followers.

When the path to win election is only through use of money massively to buy candidatures and electorates, and impose oneself in a political party, then the success in office is measured by accumulation of money.

How can one fight corruption when the highest-paid civil servant knows that when she retires from the service, her monthly pension will not be sufficient to feed and ensure minimal comfort of life?

Where a tenant has to pay a year’s rent in advance yet earns a monthly salary; where the purchase of a house has to be paid in full; just like the purchase of a vehicle has to be paid in full; and where parents singular aim is to be able to afford payment at expensive private schools for any meaningful education for their children, corruption will continue to thrive and grow.

In today’s situation, for every two police constables that are sacked, there are at least 200 that will replace them to continue to seek “assistance” from any given motorcyclist, motorist or citizens.

Bunmi Makinwa is the CEO of AUNIQUEI Communication for Leadership

By Bunmi Makinwa

Around the world, very little is known about South Sudan, the newest country in the world, and it followed four new countries that emerged into nationhood fairly recently… All of them went through either wars and conflicts but perhaps none has had as harrowing experiences as South Sudan.

Is South Sudan the southern part of Sudan or just a part of Sudan? No, it is neither. Is South Sudan at war? No.

The questions and answers above may read like a riddle, but they are not. They simply indicate how people often confuse Sudan with South Sudan, two countries with a long history of similarities and differences.

Sudan is currently having a major internal war between the government forces and a militia called Rapid Support Forces, an offshoot of the Janjaweed militia operated by the government previously to carry out dastardly attacks in parts of the country, especially in the Darfur region.

South Sudan is relatively peaceful at present although it is impacted by the war in Sudan, its northern neighbour, having to cope with thousands of returnees, fleeing the war and also many thousands of displaced people and refugees from Sudan.

South Sudan is a relatively new country. It was a large portion of the formerly southern part of Sudan and it became independent in 2011 after more than 50 years of wars against mostly the Northern part of Sudan.

South Sudan chose its name after considering many other possible names, such as the Republic of Sudan, The Nile Republic, the Kush Republic, Azania, and Juwama (from a combination of the three largest cities of Juba, Wau and Malakal). The name “Sudan” is said to originate from the Arabic word “bilad al Sudan” (land of the blacks), used by Arab traders to describe many parts of West and Central Africa. In the past, Sudan was dominated by its Arab population notwithstanding that its blacks were about 52 per cent of the population before South Sudan got its self-rule.

Around the world, very little is known about South Sudan, the newest country in the world, and it followed four new countries that emerged into nationhood fairly recently, namely, Croatia in 1991; Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1993, and Palau in 1994, Timor Leste in 2002 and Kosovo in 2008. All of them went through either wars and conflicts but perhaps none has had as harrowing experiences as South Sudan.

Before its independence, the largely darker-skinned people of the southern part of Sudan, with ethnic majorities of Dinka and Nuer peoples, struggled to define their existence within Sudan which was ruled by Egypt and Britain. During their reign, Britain, in its area of control, governed with Christianity as the main religion and English as the most common language of communication. In its sector, Egypt made Islam and the Arab language the norms.

Once Sudan became independent from its colonialists in 1956, the southern part of the country, which was a majority black population, and predominantly Christian, campaigned for autonomous rule and wanted to freely chart its development path. The largely Arab North refused. Wars ensued between the parties.

The John-Garang-led South Sudan People’s Liberation Front (SPLM) emerged as the main liberation force for the people, although a breakaway faction named SPLA also became powerful later. Both SPLM and SPLA combined to secure an agreement for peace in January 2005 and agreed to lead the new territory. However, several factions and groups of fighters emerged in the new territory and, ultimately, the concert of militia groups came to an arrangement which led to the creation of South Sudan in 2011.

While it celebrated 10 years of becoming a free country on July 9, 2023, South Sudan struggles with the carry-overs of its past in cultural, economic and political dimensions. A major economic burden is the total dependence on petroleum whilst many other natural resources are not exploited due to instability and weak technological know-how, among others. South Sudan’s petroleum pipeline goes through Sudan for exportation, leaving limited choices for the new country.

About a year after independence, when this writer visited the new country, Juba, the capital city, was a rural landscape. The entire country had less than 50 kilometres of paved roads. Perhaps less than 10 per cent of the paved roads had asphalt cover. The best hotel in Juba, the capital city, provided hot water in plastic buckets for hotel residents to wash in the morning. Electricity supply was almost entirely from individual power generators. The numerous staff of international development agencies deployed in Juba and the United Nations peace-keeping military personnel used mostly adapted cargo containers as offices and homes. Travels outside of Juba were forbidden to diplomats and international staff for security reasons.

Despite all the odds, hope was high as countries and entrepreneurs moved into the new country after the independence celebration. The land was rich in potential and possibilities. Oil was in abundance and many minerals were available to be mined. South Sudan has abundant natural resources, including the largest wetland in Africa, rare species of birds and wildlife, huge forests, aquatic wonders and perhaps unknown herbal medicinal resources. It was expected that the new country would find its feet in a hurry, and its leaders would face the task of developing the land for its enthusiastic population, many of whom had returned from exile and foreign abodes.

However, barely two years after the new government of formerly guerilla warriors assumed office, war broke out between groups loyal to President Salva Kiir and those of his deputy, Mr. Riek Machar. Between 2013 and 2018 several thousands of people died from conflicts and wars and over four million people were displaced.

After a long negotiation, President Kiir, who is from the majority Dinka ethnic group, and Vice-President Machar, a Nuer, led the formation of a Revitalised Transitional Government of National Unity in 2018. Machar became Senior Vice President, and four additional vice presidents and 35 ministers were named to the new cabinet from various militant and interest groups, The president named 332 members into the parliament whilst the vice-president had 128 members, and 90 others came from various strongmen. All warring parties would have a stake.

No price would be too steep for the new South Sudan to pay. It brought together its warlords who had spent their entire lives fighting in forests and uninhabitable places to start a nation-building process. Tension has been forever high. The task of developing a nation has been very different and demanding, compared to the liberation struggles and bush wars.

So far so good, it has worked fairly well. Or the tension is not so obvious to the uninitiated and foreigners.

During a return visit recemtly, this writer observed that the country has witnessed rapid and visible development. In Juba, tarred roads have become common, electricity is available for some time on most days and tall buildings and modern hotels bestride the streets. The shops are full of modern goods and gadgets, and international flights to and from the country are many. A huge presence of the United Nations is evident as well as other international NGOs.

The big question at this time hangs on the forthcoming election scheduled for December 2024, a new date after the initial date of 2022 could not hold. It will be the first election in South Sudan since independence and it will herald a change from government of national unity and compromise to rulership by a popular political party. President Kir, who led the country after the death of Mr. Garang in 2005, and who has been in office since 2011, has said that all challenges identified with organising the elections “will be addressed”. His deputy and leading opponent, Vice President Machar, has expressed a lack of confidence in the electoral preparations. Machar and several others are expected to contest for the presidency too.

Will the election be free and fair? Will the country, despite support from other organizations, be capable of providing the logistical and material support required to organize voting across a reasonable part of the country? Are electoral laws appropriate as they stand or will the revisions envisaged be done and accepted? Is the security situation amenable for the smooth conduct of electioneering? Will the loser accept the results and not “return to the bush” as was the usual way to resolve political disagreement? These and many other questions require answers as the process continues. The future of another African country hangs in the balance.

Meanwhile, like never before, the country is united and celebrating the glory of its basketball team, the Bright Stars. Established only in 2019, the South Sudan Basketball Federation joined the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) in 2013 and spectacularly has become the leading African team. The Bright Stars have qualified for the FIBA 2023 World Championship and have emerged as the number one African contestant in basketball for the Paris 2024 Olympics.

South Sudan, seemingly, has found a niche for its distinctly tall people in the basketball arena. Such a niche is sorely needed in political tolerance which will birth leaders who can carry their people to higher heights of progress.

If the newest country in the world continues to lead Africa and perhaps the world in basketball games, and if its elections in 2024 hold and bring about relative stability, South Sudan may become a household name and firmly stand on its feet in the community of nations.

Bunmi Makinwa is the CEO of AUNIQUEI Communication for Leadership

By Bunmi Makinwa

My friend, let’s call him Banga, is adamant that he has to go back to school. Why? At what age? I had asked him, knowing that he would soon be 70. He sat me down and gave me a long explanation. Let me give you a summary of our discussion.

The main reason that Banga wants new knowledge is social media or digital social networking technology. Yes, the new world of social media intrigues and confuses him. Somewhere, at some special school, he reasoned, he could find answers.

Banga is not new to communication. It was his life-long career. Indeed, he had been at the forefront of experts who defined the new paths for mass media, online and virtual communication which is how social media originated. He used to make definitive pronouncements to academics and professionals on traditional media, new media, and alternative media. He had used terms like artificial intelligence, fake news, deep fake and fact-checking before they became more mainstream language.

Yet he said that he has been dumbfounded by the implications of social media and the effects it can have on society and normal people. He said that his five human senses make no sense to him any longer. Intuitively, after many decades of dealing with theories and practices of communication, he could see, hear, touch, smell and almost taste the facts in what was presented to him. He could read, see or hear the information, and without hesitation, he could decipher the main points, separate the embellishments and throw out the untruths.

Now, there are more questions than answers in what he reads, hears or views mainly on social media. In the new clime, a video that is shot by just anybody can pass on as information, when it is a tool of disinformation or misinformation. Banga would be the first to admit that social media serves as a veritable tool to achieve many useful purposes and that it has many good uses. However, the negative uses seem to be climbing higher.

He met with Julius, his very good friend, in Johannesburg late last year for lunch and usual beers. Banga lost his appetite during lunch and left the place dejected because Julius insisted that the then President of Nigeria, Mohammadu Buhari, died a long time ago. The person who was serving as President Buhari was a look-alike who came from Sudan, Julius insisted, adding that he had much evidence from social media to confirm it. My friend was angry that anyone would believe such a fallacy, least of all a normal, educated and reasoning person like Julius. The lunch became a heated argument between Banga and Julius on who was crazy, stupid or both, and the friendship was only saved when they agreed to shake hands anyway and parted.

My friend’s sister called him a few years ago and wept on the phone because Microsoft owner Bill Gates was going around Africa selling syringes that contained HIV to make sure that HIV and AIDS killed millions of Africans as COVID did not do a “good” job in the continent. During the call, my friend laughed his sister’s story off and merrily retorted that it was incorrect and that it could not even happen because the virus would not live that long in such a device. His unhappy sister, thoroughly displeased that Banga made a joke of the important matter, refused to speak with him for weeks afterwards. Other family members also took sides with his sister or him. A family was almost torn apart.

A video which became immensely popular on social media was shown to me by Banga. The video shot in a commercial bank, showed armed robbers who came in, ordered everyone to lie down and took money from the bank and helpless customers. Just as the robbers were about to get out of the bank, a young girl stood up, stretched her two arms, and ordered the robbers to put the money down and start jumping around in the bank hall. Everyone there at the bank watched in amazement as the robbers kept jumping around until the police came and arrested them.

The video was watched by several thousands of people on the usual major social media, and it was still circulating as we spoke. My friend said that he produced the video to test practically the “capability to believe” of social media users. Three weeks after he had noticed the high popularity of his video, he went around asking those who had seen the video whether they believed it. Only four out of 100 respondents said that they wondered how such a video could be made in the turbulence of an armed robbery incident at a bank. All other viewers believed what they saw and admired the young heroine who overcame the robbers with her powers, whatever they were. My friend was alarmed that people would unquestionably believe the scenes in his video.

Having given up on common sense, Banga wanted to re-educate himself. Social media is increasingly becoming more popular worldwide. About half of the global population of eight billion are on social media, mainly using the big ones. Banga told me that his mind told him that he risked losing his family ties, alienating those close to him and in vain seeking long explanations, if he did not grasp the power of social media as the strongest popular communication asset, or war equipment.

Whilst waiting to find the right school, Banga doesn’t accept information as factual until he has questioned, checked and attained a reasonable level of satisfaction on the matter. Routinely, he checks three sources for the same information and feels reassured if the facts are the same or at least similar for all sources. During political campaigns, he prefers to watch live broadcasts of events on television rather than rely on the opinions of “experts” and commentators.

Banga has concluded that many people do not know what they do not know and they claim to know. Anybody with a smartphone can claim expertise in areas that they do not know anything about. After all, they saw it on social media. They can rebroadcast fiction as facts and get millions of people to consume and accept the information.

Many people are happy to have some unknown person on social media confirm their hopes, beliefs and wishes. May facts rest in peace and who cares?

Above all, my friend says, knowledge used to be the basis for power, but gradually social media is replacing knowledge as the platform for power, with its strength as a democratic media yet a veritable tool for spreading misinformation and bias.

END

By Bunmi Makinwa

He responded courteously to my “good morning” greeting as I took my seat. I looked at the young man again. He was staring at the clouds from the window of the aircraft. An empty seat separated us in the largely empty economy section of the aircraft.

There was a lot of choice for seats. I considered going for another seating place too. I could have three seats to myself. Why not? Three for the price of one…what a nice way to cheat on those people who paid so much more for business class seats that appeared crowded as I passed through the privileged cabin on boarding the aircraft.

The young man looked well-fed and well-dressed in a tee shirt over a pair of jeans. His neck chain seemed to be expensive and his wristwatch appeared high-priced too. Perhaps, I thought, he was returning home from college abroad. Judging by his comfortable, expensive appearance, he must have parents who have considerable wealth.

We were airborne and the aircraft steadied into a smooth flight above the clouds,

Perhaps I should have a short conversation with the young man before I leave him for the free seats. I like to meet new people and I pride myself on being good at starting conversations with strangers. I introduced myself and he told me his name was Kingsley.

“How are you?” I started.

He looked at me shyly, or so it seemed, and responded, “I am fine, sir.”

“Are you going home to Nigeria?” I asked further.

“Yes, sir,”

“Where are you coming from?” I asked another question.

His answer shocked me. Perhaps I did not hear him well. He was soft-spoken. I leaned closer to him and repeated my last question. He repeated the answer softly but clearly, “Prison, sir.”

I could not hide my surprise well but I tried. I did not want him to see that I was flustered and could not relate his answer to the image of him that I had formed earlier.

My original idea to move to an empty row of seats disappeared. My curiosity needed to be satisfied. I would rather continue our intriguing conversation. I wanted to know so much immediately, but experience prevailed. Slowly, over food, drinks and in a relaxed atmosphere, our camaraderie grew. The full story emerged.

Kingsley was returning to Nigeria from Thailand. He had been in prison in Thailand for four years. He was jailed at age 18. He had left Nigeria for Indonesia where he spent three months. He passed through Myanmar to enter Thailand and was successfully received in Bangkok by a group of traders who spoke the same language as himself and came from the same part of Nigeria. They prepared him for his next journey – to carry illicit drugs somewhere in Europe. They did not tell him where.

One early morning, security agents came to the house in Thailand, arrested Kingsley and three other persons, and carried away everything inside the house. According to Kingsley, there was a room that was almost full of drugs that were packaged for him and other carriers to travel within a few days

He did not remember if he was tried in court because he did not see a judge. He only knew that some weeks after his arrest, he found himself in a big commune and recognized that he was in prison. He did not know which town it was.

Kingsley’s life in prison was very sad and frightening until the situation changed for him. There was a lot of canning and beating initially. At a point in time, he thought that every sound of approaching step towards him at night or daytime was bringing another round of flogging by any of the tough guys. Kingsley would cringe when he heard footsteps as he imagined that his tormentors were approaching, although it could be any persons that merely passed by.

As he narrated, his cell was occupied by about twenty prisoners. It was like a small hall, and it had a toilet. There was a leader in the cell, or better still, an enforcer who was able to use any brutal means and weapons to dominate the rest.

The leader had three to four bullies who carried out his orders and often just enjoyed making others suffer more. The leader and his bullies ate first and had good meals. The other prisoners in the cell would eat whatever was left of the food. There were times that Kingsley had nothing to eat or that what he had was so little that he felt like he had nothing to eat.

Kingsley could only move about in the cell if he was ordered to carry out an activity. Otherwise, he must sit or lie still in his given space throughout the day and night. There was a hierarchy of authority in the cell. The leader was superior in all ways and for all things. Everyone else deferred to him. The bullies maintained “law and order” and they would do whatever pleased the leader, including beating anyone who showed resistance until the person bled seriously.

One day, the leader in the cell ordered Kingsley to be taken to the boss. The boss was the leader and strongman of the entire prison. All cell leaders deferred to him and feared him. The boss had the power of life and death over every prisoner.

Kingsley had heard about the boss but had never met or seen him in about two years of his life in prison at the time. Kingsley had learned that the area occupied by the boss was a no man’s land for him. He could not approach it. On the day in question, two of the bullies from his cell took Kingsley to the boss.

“I could not even look at him when we arrived in front of the boss. He asked me if I knew where I was. I told him that I was with the boss. He said, yes, but where was this place? I told him that I was in his domain. That was what others used to say. He said that I was respectful. I told him that I feared and respected him. He told me to raise my head. I looked at him and he smiled.

“I had heard from some other inmates that several Africans had been killed or maimed in prison for misbehaving or challenging the boss. Some were killed when they challenged their cell leader. I knew that my life could end at any time as I knelt down in front of the boss. Perhaps this was my final day on earth. The boss, I had been told, could cut the hands, fingers or ears of anyone as he wished. I was feeling better that he smiled.”

Kingsley continued: “The boss spoke to me. He had heard my name from someone and I should tell him exactly what I was called.”

“Kingsley, ” I said.

 “The boss looked at me and asked, “Are you a son of a King.” I answered, “Yes.””

“From that day my life changed in prison. I was moved to one of the small cells near the boss. There were three of us in the cell. I was in the presence of the boss all the time except when I went to sleep. I had special food. I was not threatened or beaten any more. I enjoyed life.”

Kingsley’s life was transformed. The boss had decided that as a prince, Kingsley deserved to be given privileges and respect by others.

Kingsley saw people being beaten and some almost to death on the orders of the boss. Often the boss would watch the suffering person crying and begging for mercy. But no harm came to Kingsley. He was a protégé of the boss.

I looked at Kingsley as he spoke to me about his life. I imagined that his expensive tastes came from the good life that he had as a favoured subject of the boss in prison. He looked well-nourished and had a calm demeanour. His respectful manners came from living in the “palace” of the prison. His life as a special ward of the big boss has taught him to be princely in a prison setting where his boss was the emperor.

My next question was eating me up but I did not interrupt Kingsley’s long story of life in the court of his boss until I was satisfied that the story was ending. Kingsley could not hold back as he explained to me that he was so well treated that he would adore his boss for life.

“What brought you to be on a flight to Lagos?” I asked.

The King of Thailand bestowed a royal pardon on prisoners as a gesture of forgiveness. As Kingsley explained it, the prison authorities also respected and recognized the boss in the prison. The boss was consulted and asked to name some prisoners to benefit from the pardon.

“My boss asked me if I was missing my parents. I told him that I was and that they were constantly worried about me,” Kingsley said.

He explained that he had shown the boss some pictures of his mother in the past and from time to time he would ask Kingsley how his mother was doing. The boss told Kingsley a few weeks ago that he would leave soon for home. He had put Kingsley on the list of beneficiaries of the royal pardon. Soon thereafter, Kingsley was told to pack his belongings, including the numerous gifts that the boss had given him. He was put on a plane to Addis Ababa, and from there he boarded the flight to Lagos.

I asked him if he was glad or relieved to be going home. He shrugged his shoulder to signal his indifference.

“But aren’t you happy that you are out of prison?” I probed further.

“It depends,” he said.

“On what?” I was astonished that he seemed to see no difference between going home to his mother or staying in prison.

“Life was good for me in prison. My boss was a good man. A very good man.”

I weighed his response. I could not quite see how he would compare the two situations, especially now that he had a new possibility to restart his life and become somebody.

He was reading my thoughts, or so it seemed. “Sir, when I was in prison I had many things that I may not have anymore from now. I was even able to send money home. After I finish the money that I have on me what shall I do?”

I did not have an answer to his question. Instead, I gave him a long lecture. I advised him also to start a small trading business that would serve him well. I reminded him that others like him have started in a small way and had built big trading enterprises especially as other members of his family and village could support and “train” him. He could even learn something new by having a formal education in a school setting to assist him to run a business.

Kingsley listened to me keenly. I seemed to be more convincing to him than I would have imagined. The intensity of his eyes and some admiration showing on his smooth cheeks and chin made me feel like I was a priest administering a Godly message to a faithful churchgoer.

I finished speaking and waited for his response. Kingsley looked through the window of the aircraft at the sky as the announcement was made of the imminent landing at Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos. He kept looking at the sky.

I asked a question to prompt his response, “Kingsley, so what trade are you likely to be interested in?”

Without hesitation, he responded, “I am going to try my luck, sir.”

“What do you mean?”

“As soon as I land in Lagos,” he explained, “I shall look for the people who can get something for me. They will find some other nice load for me to carry. I shall carry it for them. This time I shall not go to Asia. Their governments are too tough. I shall go to Europe directly. The people there are soft, and they are nice people.”

“But you may not be lucky this time. You may end up in prison forever,” I cautioned him.

He responded, “God has been good to me. He will help me again. I trust him. I also heard that if I am caught in Europe, their prisons are better than the ones in Thailand. If I am not lucky to have a big boss in prison, I can have a better prison in Europe.”

I looked away from Kingsley, past him and at the window of the aircraft. I could not see the sky; I saw nothing as my mind whirled, pondering at unclear musings.

Since the day I waved goodbye to Kingsley many years ago at the airport in Lagos, thoughts of Kingsley keep coming to my mind ever so often.

Bunmi Makinwa is the CEO of AUNIQUEI Communication for Leadership

By Bunmi Makinwa

Those who have underestimated former United States President Donald Trump do it at their loss. Trump is a non-conformist, contrarian, relentless and energetic fighter. He does not accept that he cannot get what he wants; he doesn’t seek peace with anyone who disagrees with him; he feels strong enough to knock on any door and will gladly break the door if it does not open. But current indications are that the doors ahead of Trump will be much stronger and may be impossible to open.

He lost his attempt to have a second term as president in 2020 when President Joe Biden won the election. Trump continues to claim without any proof or evidence that he won. And he has announced that he wants to be the next president of the USA in the future 2024 election. However, the number of obstacles in his path is mounting and his sworn enemies won’t play the game as gently as they did when they underrated him at his first major appearance in the political scene in 2016.

At the time, Trump overwhelmed every challenger. He dominated his party and public, and ignored the established tradition of decorum to political colleagues. All credible polls gave his main rival, former US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton of the Democratic Party, the lead and certainty to win the 2016 presidential election. It did not happen. Although Clinton got about three million more of the popular votes than Trump, the latter won the more superior electoral votes having 304 to Clinton’s 227.

In 2020, when time came for another election, Trump was already well known in politics. His supporters admired him greatly and his opponents disliked him intensely. He had polarized the USA like never before and the political turmoil has affected social relations. Trump lost the election but he did not fade away. He has kept his supporters busy, raising money from them and reminding them that he remains the best president ever, a claim that he makes about himself on every matter.

The immediate thorn for Trump emerged in full glare on April 4 at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York City after he was indicted by a grand jury for paying an adult film woman (another name for a pornographic movie actress), named Stormy Daniels, to keep her mouth shut about her outing with Trump. This was not a crime in New York and many places. The crime was that Trump got his then attorney, Michael Cohen, to make the payment and he reimbursed Cohen and charged the payment to his business account – falsifying business records. Worse still, the court heard that the payment was made to mislead the public regarding Trump’s integrity and standing – amounting to illegal influence of outcomes of the election.

Trump faces a total of 34 charges on this matter and related others. Cohen will testify against his former boss and he has already served a prison term for his part in the offence, and also disbarred in May 2019 by New York State from practising law.

Other charges against Trump are likely to come up. In Georgia State, Trump is being investigated for attempting to tamper with the 2020 election by seeking changes to the votes counted to favour himself, using his position then as president.

In another ongoing investigation, in January 2021 whilst the House and Senate were meeting to formalize the already concluded election of President Biden, thousands of armed and furious protesters stormed the Capitol and clashed with the police. The mob vandalized the offices, whilst the senators and representatives managed to escape. Trump may be charged for what he said and the roles that he played in supporting and actively encouraging the protesters that carried out what amounted to insurrection.

Also, for carting away loads of classified documents from the presidency to his private home at Mar-a -Lago in Florida, Trump is under investigation. He did not readily release the documents when the incident became known, unlike Joe Biden and Mike Pence who returned the documents immediately and pled their innocence when found with similar situations. Pence was the former Vice-President of Trump.

Any number of charges will arise from the plethora of investigations and the distraction will take money and time away from Trump who wants to focus on winning the support of his party.

His die-hard supporters are not easily discouraged though. They see the legal challenges as diversions and an attempt to discredit him. His loyalists seem to harden their positions and point to Trump’s successes in strengthening the economy when he was president. They also like Trump’s policies especially his anti-immigrant rules.

There are competitors for the Republican Party’s nomination but Trump remains the leading candidate to date. The former president is busy raising money to fight the legal battles. At the same time, he must raise money to fund his campaign. He will also be faced with finding the means to keep his businesses running as the Trump brand has lost a lot of clientele. His name has become toxic to many Americans and those who associate with him have become pariahs to millions of people across the world.

Yet Trump commands a superior chair where he sits with his supporters, especially one-third of the voters in the Republican Party who “worship” him. Trump’s supporters will do anything to get him back into the White House. His committed followers also believe sincerely though wrongly that Trump won the election of 2020.

Presently, Trump already stands uncomfortably as the first president of the USA – sitting or former – to be indicted by a jury for a criminal offence. The closest case was President Richard Nixon who was accused of involvement in the Watergate Scandal and he resigned as president in August 1974. Nixon was never tried and was pardoned by President Gerald Ford, who was Nixon’s deputy and who assumed office when Nixon resigned.

In many instances, what Trump wants Trump must get and when he knocks on any door it opens or he will force his way. Trump has been knocking on doors of fate and it has been kind to him in most cases.

The fourth of five children of his parents, Trump became the privileged one, much beloved by his wealthy property mogul father who showered monies on Trump and handed over most of his businesses to him.

Whilst he was studying at Fordham College in New York, Trump found his way to be accepted into the prestigious University of Pennsylvania where he got a bachelor’s degree, although the details are controversial.

Using his father’s wealth and business connections, young Trump showed personal talent in making bold moves. He got property deals with government officials and well-connected individuals. He is highly skilled at using the media and giving prominence to his assets and appearances. He usually makes claims about his abilities, business and wealth that are far beyond realities, according to many writers on his life and businesses.

Tony Schwartz, co-author of Donald Trump’s autobiography, “The Art of the Deal”, said in The New Yorker magazine that if he were writing the book today, he would have titled it “The Sociopath”. The author explained, “Lying is second nature to him…More than anyone else I have ever met, Trump can convince himself that whatever he is saying at any given moment is true, or sort of true, or at least ought to be true.”

Trump had boasted in the past that he could shoot a person dead on upscale fifth avenue in Manhattan, New York, and it would not affect his popularity in the election of 2016. He tweeted many reckless statements, accused people wrongly and made many false claims, and he still got elected at the time.

But he does not always get his way. He failed in the 2020 election as his brazen claims did not convince the majority of voters. In addition, his mismanagement of Covid-19, inability to keep his friends’ loyalty and fate denied him the election. Cohen, his lawyer, was one of the closest trusted aides of Trump. Cohen changed his loyalty and is arguably today the leading enemy of Trump and has provided more damaging information on Trump than anyone else.

With the possibility of many criminal cases and possible convictions during the future campaign season preceding the 2024 election, Trump may become a huge liability for his party and the United States electorate. The question remains still whether the damage to him can weigh negatively enough to affect his chances to obtain the Republican Party’s nomination, and ultimately win the election as president in 2024. The answers remain open for the time being.

Bunmi Makinwa is the CEO of AUNIQUEI Communication for Leadership

By Bunmi Makinwa

WRITTEN IN JUNE 2008

In attendance were a King, Presidents, Vice-Presidents,and Prime Ministers from 40 African countries. From the rest of the continent were Ministers and senior political leaders. It looked very much like a summit of African heads of state and government in Yokohama, Japan. But it was not a summit.

It might also look like some version of the World Economic Forum. There were many roundtables, side meetings and events at a secure location where one ran into the top figures of politics, business, entertainment and development at every corner.

In reality, it was the fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TIKAD IV) being held in the famous Japanese city from May 31 to June 1 2008.

Many UN agencies were represented at the highest level, and Thoraya Obaid was there as headof UNFPA. Bono, Bob Geldof, and Jeffrey Sachs – well-known spokespersons on development in Africa – were also there.

Those who could not attend the high-level event wrote opinion pieces in a special English edition of the Asahi Shimbum of May 31 – June 1, 2008. The opinion writers included Bill Gates, Kofi Annan, George W. Bush, Giorgio Amani, and Sarah Brown, wife of Prime Minister Gordon Brown of the U.K.

There was no question that it was a gathering of big names. They would take yet another look at the past, understand the present, and prepare for the future development of Africa.

Talks Continue

The conversations on African development were taking on a new impetus. The TICAD IV provided a window into how the conversations were shaping up – issues, actors, players and actions come together to check positions and decide on the next actions.

But the reality might be different. Whilst commitment was obvious, there was no convergence on how to bring about development in Africa.

Maybe this was indeed how it should be – the notion of development could be seen from different optics. Although there is one African continent,it ismany countries with varying challenges, and the countries show different levels of progress and limitations.

The statements and speeches from African political leaders and their declared partners showed some clarity on what was required for African countries to develop. Problems were stated and solutions were proposed. Many of the statements were similar to the ones made previously by the same persons at international meetings and conferences. Less clear though was whether the continent has made progress because of what was said and repeated so often.

It made one wonder if underdevelopment in Africa was in large part due to too much being said and too little being done.

In this century, will Africa become a principal player inthe globalagenda? Or to put it starkly, will major development take place in a critical number of African countries in a way that would catalyse the resurgence of the continent as one of the major poles in the discourse of world political, economic or social directions? Would a more developed Africa evolve shortly? Would Africa set itsglobal agenda?

Promising Openings

Going by the efforts and preparations put into organizing TICAD IV by Japan, and the convincing attendance by African leaders, the two parties would seem to believe in the future of Africa. They were sure that they could work together towards it, both in symbolic ways and in concrete actions.

For the African continent, the statistics were promising. Most countries have recorded solid economic growth over the past several years. Real GDP has increased steadily since 2000 with an overall annual average rate of about 6percent,well beyond the world average. Besides the global commodity boom and its effects on resource-rich African countries, most of Africa made progress. The good outcomes were attributed mostly to sound economic management and expansion of trade and investment which resulted from political stability.

Even innon-resource-richAfrican countries (those mostly without petroleum or huge mineral wealth), some commendable “prosperity” wasapparent, going by macroeconomic indicators.

The exceptions were countries that had major conflicts, or those countries in post-conflict stages, where rebuilding the economy was a major challenge.

What was the reason for such positive growth in Africa? Perhaps therein lay the answer to the key questions.

Rich But Poor

Despite the noticeable growth, poverty remained acute. Social development was very low and for many peoples, almost non-existent. Economists, who made positive statements about strong macro-development in Africa, admitted that there wasa hugedeficiency in micro-development. It was another economic jargon that translated as “there are good economic indicators in the country, but the life of the common citizens has not improved”.

Many African political leaders questioned their economic advisers on whether economic development, especially macroeconomic development, could bring about desirable social development. And when would it start to manifest in the human advancement trajectory?

The new and obvious plurality of political parties and democratic governance in Africa forced elected political leaders to become impatientwith dry statistics on economic and social development. The politicians were keen to point out that infrastructural development and access to social services were available due to their (leaders) governance.

Trade Needs

It was no wonder therefore that President Jayasha Mrisho Kekwete of Tanzania, the then President of the African Union, called at TICAD IV for more trade and not aid. He noted that direct investment by Japanese firms in sub-SaharanAfrica only accounted for 0.4 per cent of Japan’s total foreign direct investment of US$108.5 billion between 2002 – 2004. “Africa is a far-off land, too risky to invest in” for Japanese investors, he chastised and urged that the wrong perception of the continent should change. “Returns on investment in Africa are much higher than are available in the traditional low-risk, more stable world,” he declared.

Discriminatory policies and trade practices against African countries were some of the major obstacles imposed by Western countries to deter economic prosperity. To further make the point, Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni jokingly said that he could provide beef for Japanese consumers at $20 per kilo compared to the price of about $200 per kilo paid for the famous Kobe beef.

He said that the Japanese farmers would not have to play classical musicor provide body massage and wine any longer to their coveted cows. Museveni said that Uganda would providehigh-quality beef at much cheaper prices. “In such a trade, huge savings are possible for Japan, and great benefits would accrue to Uganda,” he said, “merely by removing self-imposed and expensive care for cows just for having good beef!”

Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda of Japan pledged to double Japan’s annual net official development assistance to Africa to US$1.8 billion by2012 and to extend up to $4 billion in new loans over the next five years. Most of the support will go into the bilateral cooperation that was already established.

The investment will focus on infrastructure improvement, and agriculture, especially rice production. On the “soft development” side, mother-child health care would get substantial support from Japan., according to the Japanese leader.

Future Steps

The conference had a four-pronged thematic direction – economic growth; human security and MDGs; peace and democratization; and environment and climate change.

The outcomes of the TICAD IV conference would feed into the coming G8 summit of July 7-8 where sexual and reproductive health, maternal health and AIDS would also feature prominently.

Achieving the MDGs and related social development was seen as a crucial part of economic and infrastructural development. The challenge was how to make policies and implement them to attain both economic and social development – the two sides of the coin. From experiences in some parts of the world, it was possible.

In a few African countries, infrastructural development was moving ahead at a brisk pace, despite the late start. However, most African countries had very limited number of the basic infrastructures needed.

Some African leaders and individuals were listed amongthe world’s richest. But huge segments of the population remained far from having any meaningful access to decent means of livelihood. The gap between those who have and those who could not have was still growing, rather than narrowing.

Bunmi Makinwa

June 2008

By Bunmi Makinwa

WRITTEN ON FEBRUARY 14, 2023

When the elections to be held soon in Nigeria would have been done andthe results announced, will itbe more of the past or some changes will be seen? Elders tell the same story again and again, and young people, who have no choice, suffer the boredom of hearing it until perhaps they can walk away from home.

National elections in Nigeria will take place on February 25, 2023, for 18 presidential candidates, 1100 senatorial candidates vying for 109 seats, and 3112 candidates competing for 360 House of Representatives seats.

On March 11, 2023, 420 governorship candidates will run for offices in 28 states and 10,231 candidates will run for the 360 seats of the House of Assembly in the states.

The drama of electioneering is entertaining, yet it is boring. For many who watch, analyze and embrace debates of electoral politics, the campaigns are attention-grabbing and can consume unlimited time. For most of the population, the campaigns, judging from previous ones, are sporting games featuring the same people acting theirparts. Only from time to time donew characters emerge, and often their garments and voices are strikingly similar.

Here are some major characteristics of the 2022/2023 campaign drama that are worthy of recall.

1. Money speaks and only the money matters. The major political parties announced that only members who could afford hefty payments for nomination forms would qualify for any consideration to vie for elective offices. Their prices for the sale of forms for candidates to contest in the party primaries effectively rigged the election in favour of only the wealthy, filthy rich and wasteful spenders. Purchase of forms is onlythe beginning and will be followed by the fact that contestants have to “finance” delegates who will vote at the primaries. The prices just to obtain the forms for the two main parties:

APC- House of Assembly – N2 million; House of Reps – N10 Million; Senate – N20 million; Governorship – N50 million; Presidential – N100 million

PDP – House of Assembly – N600,000; House of Reps – N2,5M; Senate – N3,5M; Governorship – N21M; Presidential – N40M

For parties that stood little chance of winning many seats, and for which winning the presidential election is only a dream, the prices for forms to contest the primaries as possible presidential candidates were still very high: SDP – 35M; NNPP – 30M; YPP – 20M.

2. So-called delegates or representatives of constituencies came for party primaries and returned home with huge pockets of cash. For major parties, especially APC and PDP, the reports were that cash in Naira was too heavy to carry. Payments were made in US dollars.

3. Party primaries were not limited to the topmost positions but were used to decide candidates for all positions. This ensured that the monies from prospective candidates trickled down to “active” party members at all levels. Many party members claim that this is the only time that they get to “chop” something from the elected members. The politicians do not trust even their colleagues,why would the citizenry believe their electoral promises?

4. Having won the party primaries, many candidates use the opportunity to raise money from all possible future beneficiaries and stakeholders. A lot of expenses are ahead. Those who invest money or materials, assets or efforts in the candidates can look ahead and perhaps reap the returns many folds if the candidates get elected. Like all investments, some “investors’ will gain and many will lose.

5. The process for determining contestants for the party primaries effectively warehouses transactional politics. It sets the agenda for elections showing that only those who have hugely disposable monies can become candidates for the parties that can win. Whether the funds generated by the parties are used for campaigns, official expenses or to support legitimate costs of running their organizations is immaterial. The fact remains that such a fund-raising system, whether legal or illegal, undermines democracy and robustly diverts attention to money rather than issues or serious discourse on political ideologies and directions.

6.There are a few serious and energized people who want to make change possible through politics. Theywant to have a better country, but they have no chance. The huge amounts of funds involved to get attention from the electorate and media make their goal impossible. The efforts and resources needed to mobilize people who do not believe in the genuineness of politicians and any agenda for development are daunting. The voices of the few creative, well-meaning, and aspiring politicians are drowned in the screams of the established parties and their candidates.

7. Whatbecomesof the aspiring, serious-minded politicians with their genuine enthusiasm for re-making Nigeria? Some give up their ideals and allow their hopes to die. Some drift on with feeble and ineffective political campaigns and pretend that they too can still win. And some join the establishment, hoping that the old maxim of “if you cannot beat them, join them” will enable them to recover their losses or perhaps get returns.

8. Finally, the idealistic few vocal politicians who invest little money because that is all they have, and puttheir professional careers, their solid and relevant experience and their carefully-prepared plans in the future of Nigeria gasp, for breath. There is no space as the dominant few politicians continue their perpetual hold on the country.

9. Whether it is based on ethnic nationalism, geographical delineation, age attribution, or interpersonalagreement by peers, the finality of who leads a major political party is based on “it is my/our turn” logic. As it happens at every stage of electioneering, it helps greatly if the claimant of “my turn” can back his claim up withthe money. Otherclaimants can be “wooed” into submission if they suddenly find money cascading on them like the downpourof rain. The more the “rain” the better the recipients can feel fulfilled that their long-term expectations have been met quickly. If the payment is right, many political aspirants give up their demands for offices.

10. In the noisy discourse about who rules the nation, state or any given area, the more important considerations such as quality of preparedness for office, the viability of ideas that are presented and demonstration of qualities of leadership fade away. My people, our people, our turn, and our chance are far more prominent factors that resonate with communities and the people.

11. In the ongoing political season, a group of five governors has added more flavour to the menu. They travel frequently and in super luxury to London because they cannot find a quiet house in Nigeria. They wear uniforms of many colours, eat gourmet foods and pretend that they are working for the good of their people. They provide a comic sight and confirm that personal agendascan be fashioned as public interest. Public money can be wasted wantonly by governors because accountability atthe statelevel is zero.

12. Despite efforts, it is difficult to keep track of how many new projects are launched, started or finalized droning the electoral campaign. The frenzy is high as groups of governors with or without the president crisscrossthe country to showcase which projects are the best and biggest. Elections have the magnetic power of waking up the sleeping projects in forgotten places. As usual, many of the projects that get media attention at this time will go back to sleep after the convoy of cars and loads of VIPshave returned to the state houses.

13. Competing with the number of projects launched is the number of politicians who change parties. All politicians believe that they will win theirelections, or so it appears from their demeanours. They change though when significant money comes their way. Or when they get a promise of a better position by a candidate who is a more likely winner. The politicians switch parties like they change clothes. Party and politics are married forlifebut politicians are not wedded to any programmes, policies or development objectives.

14. The political theatre would have ended as just another ordinary drama if the permanent president of Nigeria did not add a touch of history to it. He does not disappoint. He wrote yet another letter. He criticized the friends that he had loved to hate and he embraced new friends. He does not live people in doubt that his voice must be heard to affirm his importance, and especially his allegiance to some principle, no matter how temporary it lasts. OBJ will be OBJ!

15. Bigger and more impactful is the entry of the new Messiah. Even if the voice was familiar, the garb is different and his energy has been infectious. He has provided the space for unhappy citizens, politically excluded, dissenters, eager optimists,permanently discouraged, separatists, unemployed, poorly-employed, saviour-seeking, young-and-tired, and just-to-be-different groups of people. Whether it will be a definitive change of direction in the campaign trajectory will soon be known after the election.

16. There is also an enthusiastic crowd of party supporters who are a permanent feature of party politics. They appear at every rally and many of them will show up for any party provided that there is something for them. They come in buses, cars, kekes, okadas and also on foot. Many of them have PVC (Permanent Voters Card) and they brandish them to show the cash-distributing party agents at rallies. The PVC, like a credit card, is often their certificate for food, materials, cash, and gifts that are given at political rallies.

17. At the end of the voting, several millions of votes would have been cast for all the elections. INEC has a budget of 355billion Naira for the 2023 elections, which is more than a rise of 61 percent compared to the budget for the 2019 elections. The question is hardly asked if the money spent in 2019 has contributed to entrenching democracy or undermining it. The windmill of election spending by electoral bodies keep turning and the wind is not even felt by the country. Whilst the turn towards more use of technology to ensure that voting is correctly done is useful, it is not at all sufficient.

18. From 1999, the new democratic dispensation asprovided in the new Constitution is being tested during each election. It is time to ask deeper questions about the allocation of resources to deepen governance. Having such humongous investment in a system that produces only certain types of characters as determined by the party system outlined in the Constitution is wasteful. A nation that spends such a budget on an important output should seriously review the quality of the results obtained.

19. Every four years, the electoral system yields political leaders whose major focus is to get rewards from their “investment” rather than serve the electorate to improve the well-being of people and society. Is the problem the people or is it  the system that produces such leaders? Without re-visiting the question thoroughly, the election in totality is a diversion from governance.

20. The kind inputs that are made into elections appear to define the outcomes. In the 2023 elections that will take place soon, the inputs and process will generate outcomes that are not different from those that were obtained in every election cycle since 1999.

Voting is only but just a step among many towards electoral democracy. There are many more steps preceding voting. The preparations and inputs that go into voting and the entirety of the exercise show that there are many hurdles to be cleared going forward. The usual diversions take the electorate on the journey to nowhere. Beneath the surface and all around the country, there is outright disenchantment with politics and political leaders.

The diversions and so-called elections continue to douse popular anger and resentment against the perpetual exploitation of the country. People nourishthe hope of a better future and invest their hope in the diversions that only take attention awayfromseriously understanding the games that politicians play.

Even though the ploy has not changed and has been employed time and time again, voters remain caught in the election shows. The citizens and electorate waltz along to the music of political parties that are on a journey that at best goes around but only ends up at the same spot. END

February 14, 2023. New York

By Bunmi Makinwa

WRITTEN ON FEBRUARY 17, 2023

What a pathetic figure he struck today as he spoke at the press conference that he called on the 2023 elections. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo loves the media space. He loves to be the centre of attention and he loves to act in the drama that he writes.

But he does not know when his act smells of odour that comes from his past – recent or distant. Yet again in the 2023 elections, Obasanjo wants to be a referee at a football game where he plays centre-forward.

He titled his statement, “An Appeal For Caution And Rectification”. A fundamental principle of trusted communication is the credibility of the source. If the source of information is not credible or trusted, the information content is at best doubtful. No matter how well-intentioned the information is meant to be.

Obasanjo lost credibility as a voice of reason and good judgment in Nigeria’s 2023 elections when he declared his support for a presidential candidate and the party. He spoke publicly about his choice and preference, a bold and admirable thing to do. But he gave up objectivity with the choice that he assumed.

Obasanjo in the opening paragraph of his statement said, “I crave the indulgence of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency General Muhammadu Buhari, to make this statement because I have had the opportunity to keep him aware of what I know is happening and the danger looming ahead.”

He called the president “General” to remind him of many things – that Buhari and himself were military colleagues; that they are Generals and of course, Buhari would know that Obasanjo is the senior General whose order must be obeyed; that Buhari had heeded his (Obasanjo) past advice on danger; and that he Obasanjo knew when to smell danger and how to avoid it.

The references to the military roles can be attributed to Obasanjo’s wish to intimidate President Buhari or perhaps to curry favour with him. After all the negative statements that Obasanjo had made about Buhari in the past and that yielded no result, including campaigning against Buhari’s second term election, it is not likely that Buhari will be intimidated at this time. And if it is to court Buhari’s goodwill, then it is very cheap.

He restated his love for Buhari even further: “But as far as the election issues are concerned, the President has proved beyond reasonable doubt that he will want to leave a legacy of free, fair, transparent and credible elections.” Flattery can get you everything. But this comes too late at this time.

Obasanjo’s past showed that he had missed many dangers and avoided even deaths. He has had many successes. But he has also had many failures and the claim to smell danger and avoid them would depend on what criteria he uses to assess himself. Of all the living past presidents or heads of state of the country, he is arguably the most controversial and mostly due to his perpetual desire to hug the limelight.

In the statement, following the pretext of warmly embracing Buhari, Obasanjo launched a blistering attack on INEC and its Chairman. “It is no secret that INEC officials, at the operational level, have been allegedly compromised to make what should have worked not work and to revert to the manual transmission of results which is manipulated and the results doctored.”

“The Chairman of INEC may claim ignorance but he cannot fold his hands and do nothing when he knows that the election process has been corrupted and most of the results that are brought outside BVAS and Server are not a true reflection of the will of Nigerians…”

In the truly confounding logic reflected in the quoted statements above, Obasanjo’s argument takes off from “allegedly compromised” to “election process has been corrupted and most of the results…are not a true reflection”. Obasanjo went from allegation to conclusive judgment and “sentenced” INEC to jail, as it were, without trial. Talk of a ruse to draw his gun – “give a dog a bad name and hang him” is an old expression that describes how one can knowingly give a negative label to something or someone and justify a pre-determined conclusion.

From thereon in the statement, Obasanjo offloaded his gun on INEC: “At this stage, we do not need wittingly or unwittingly to set this country on fire with the greed, irresponsibility and unpatriotic act of those who allegedly gave money to INEC officials for perversion and those who collected the blood money. Let me appeal to the Chairman of INEC, if his hands are clean, to save Nigeria from the looming danger and disaster which is just waiting to happen.”

The conclusion that Obasanjo arrived at is clearly stated above. In the usual posturing, he knows what is good for Nigeria, and he can deliver Nigeria from trouble. Or else he can destroy Nigeria. Heil the King!

Suddenly, he remembered something, and he added it in the statement: “Your Excellency, President Buhari Muhammadu…” Oh, President Buhari, not just General Buhari? Obasanjo had spoken of General Buhari in his opening paragraphs, and now in the closing paragraphs, the same man becomes President Buhari. This nomenclature is not by accident. Obasanjo knows the significance of calling Buhari a General who should obey his order, and a President who should save the nation, at different points in the statement.

Obasanjo also remembered in his statement that “… tension is building up and please let all elections that do not pass the credibility and transparency test be cancelled and be brought back  (sic) with areas where elections were disrupted for next Saturday, March 4, 2023, and BVAS and Server officials be changed.”

For someone who has seemingly shouted earlier in the statement that the elections were not “true reflections of”, he backed down, retraced his steps and proposed that only some changes may be needed in “areas where the elections were disrupted”. Really?

He went on to make recommendations and suggestions on what could be done “To know which stations and polling units where elections were manipulated…” – a tone that is vastly different from the overbearing and majestical posture of wrongdoings and discredited elections with which he had started this press statement.

Obasanjo would not end his statement without further crawling before President Buhari to convince him of his genuine love. “Mr. President, may your plan and hope for leaving a legacy of free, fair, transparent and credible election be realised.”

And whilst seeking to please Buhari, Obasanjo threw another straight dirty dart at INEC’s Chairman in the statement: “When the die is cast, it will be your (Buhari) problem as the Chief Executive of the nation. The Chairman of INEC may sneak out of the country or go back to his ivory tower.”

The struggle of Obasanjo to rise to the level of a statesman suffered another setback with the press statement that affirmed his bias. The statement discredited any notion of the possibility that the former president strives to play the role of arbiter for the largest interest of Nigeria.

He has chosen to use his democratic right to declare his support and allegiance to a political party for the 2023 election when he could have remained neutral and served as a voice of balance, reason and national stability.

The incoherent and incendiary statement that he fired into the public space today may cement his final loss of likely eminence in more ways than he would ever imagine.

Unfortunately, when history consigns Obasanjo to a small corner of darkness, Nigeria loses yet another possibility to have a national figure, leader and voice of reason when most needed.

END

New York. February 27, 2023

By Bunmi Makinwa

The conversation with my friend distracted me from paying attention to the streets as he drove away from Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos. It struck me that he was not taking the usual roads. More surprising was that he seemed headed for the Oshodi area and would probably continue through Mushin. He continued and we passed through Oshodi and the usually crowded areas. No refuse heaps. No traders cluttering the streets. Traffic flow was smooth all the way through Mushin too.

 “What happened?” I exclaimed.

“This is the reason that I drove you through this roundabout way to go to Ikeja. I want you to see the new and changing Lagos,” my friend explained.

The incident above was in 2008 or 2009 during a visit to Nigeria. I saw a Lagos that I had thought was almost impossible. During two weeks in Nigeria and visits to four states, Lagos stood out in its cleanliness, orderliness and general improvement.  Governor Babatunde Fasola was in office at the time and his government was changing the city of some 14 million people at the time.

At the time, some other friends said that the changes were going on throughout Lagos State. I started from then on to pay more attention to Lagos State, where I had largely grown up and worked as a young person. By the time Fasola left office in 2015, his performance in Lagos was widely recognized as the rebirth of Lagos city and Lagos State, a continuation of a certain master plan of transformation.

Fast forward to many years later, succeeding Lagos State governments have created a state that is widely known to be ahead, despite the numerous problems that have hobbled the country as a whole.

As a public commentator and analyst on governance with the benefit of having lived in more than ten cities in various countries, it is timely and appropriate that I put on record my personal experience as a witness to the recent impressive development of Lagos State. In my opinion, there are many areas where the state has done well and continues to improve the well-being of ordinary inhabitants, under Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.

The list below is not in any order of importance. It reflects my personal experiences and observations of situations, incidents and activities that come to mind as I watch the trajectory of growth of Lagos State and Lagos, the most populated city in Africa which is about four times the size of Johannesburg or Addis Ababa, and about three times the size of New York city.

Infrastructures

1. There is a striking improvement of roads in many communities, including pedestrian walkways and good evacuation of flood water, although more work needs to be done to reduce flooding.

2. The improvement of educational facilities and buildings is remarkable, despite limited spaces for open and outdoor activities in certain areas.

3. Bus stops and parking spaces for commercial transportation are better in designs and usefulness, and often have seating places.

4. Pedestrian bridges are situated for ease of use, including being wheel-chair accessible in some places. Many more of safe bridges are needed and getting them used by more people is an important next step.

Services

5. Traffic services by the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) largely keep traffic flowing, despite the overwhelming crush at certain locations. The nightmarish traffic blockages that occur when LASTMA staff are not on the roads are testimony to the effectiveness of LASTMA’s efforts. Remember that traffic police used to attempt to provide the same services and the difference is clear.

 6. Waste removal and cleanliness is organized and payment systems are in place. The roads are generally clean to high standards.

 7. There is a seamless payment of land use charges online, and official, polite acknowledgment of payments made. During former Governor Akinwunmi Ambode’s term, the land use assessment rose astronomically and many people refused to pay the new assessment. The issue was resolved by Governor Sanwo-Olu’s government and a new, reduced assessment was done. A negotiated lump-sum payment was accepted at a further reduced amount. I found it a very modern and progressive way to negotiate a settlement that benefitted both the government and the people.

8. All payments that I make to the state are done in banks or through electronic banking services. This has eliminated the time wasted traveling to government offices, waiting in long queues and attendant under-the-table transactions with go-betweens. It should reduce the stealing of government money. There would have been a significant increase in the internally-generated revenue through this policy.

Abuses and Social Work

9. A policy or law to eliminate Omo Onile (so-called descendants of land owners) has made it doubly difficult for the “area boys” to harass or intimidate people who purchase land or embark on building. I see that the traditional area boys are less frequent and are less assertive.

10. Women abuse, child abuse, and infringement of rights of vulnerable people is no longer taken for granted as there are offices and designated institutions to handle the cases in a timely manner when they are brought forward. There is an active and well-organized civil society that beams its antennae on the issues. School authorities are less likely to shirk their responsibilities or allow abuses of their  students because of a more aware society, backed with governmental teeth.

11. I testify to quick responses to lapses or failures in adhering to official stipulations such as when buildings collapse. The quicker responses by governmental agencies to fire incidents and emergencies show a higher level of assumption of responsibility for citizens’ welfare.

Accessibility

12. It has been possible for aggrieved persons and regular citizens to seek audience with government officials. From very senior officials such as commissioners to local government councilors, there is a readiness to listen and act on matters that are brought for attention. In many cases, it has also been possible to hold the officials to account.

13. The governance system from grassroots to the top has been put to test in our own community residents’ association. There are regular interactions with local and state government officials. Sometimes the request for meetings, knowledge and information sharing emanates from the government.

14. One of the critical steps for Lagos State residents to have access to government as a community is the registration of a Community Development Association. Our own group of residents submitted our documents, as stipulated, and received the certificate of recognition without making any inducement to any officials or agents.

Health Care

15. One major indicator of development is the level of health care that people have. From testimonies by family members, friends and others, the health and medical care that is provided by government clinics and hospitals in Lagos State is of very high standard. On many occasions, I advised people to seek health services at government hospitals and they have had positive experiences. The costs are relatively low too, although the waiting time may be long.

16. The standards of health and medical care providers in Lagos State are high. From direct interactions with several medical and healthcare professionals who work for the state, there is no doubt that the government has done commendably well to retain them despite the serious outflow of such professionals away from Nigeria.

17. On a busy weekday in August 2022, I saw a man who suddenly fell down as he walked along Oba Akran road in Lagos. I approached him with other bystanders. As we were having a quick exchange on what to do, a siren came from the distance. Right before my very eyes, an ambulance stopped, two emergency care providers attended to the fallen man, wheeled him on a special stretcher into the ambulance and quickly ferried him away for more attention. The scene staggered me. What a delightful surprise to see emergency care operated on a Lagos street as if it was in a developed economy.

I have since the incident paid more than ordinary attention to official ambulances that are parked in some parts of Lagos. I look with renewed respect at siren-blasting ambulances that try to wiggle through the dense traffic in Lagos and urge drivers to give them passage. Until the personal experience that I had, I used to see ambulances as another Lagos vehicular nuisance and opportunists who use special lights and sirens to harass other road users.

Security

18. In the diplomatic community in Nigeria, Lagos is one of the few places where diplomats and staff of international organizations such as the United Nations are allowed to go. Due to the security challenges of Nigeria in general, the country is not a popular destination for international meetings and conferences. However, Lagos and Abuja are easily approved for travel, although with restrictions. Many other states are absolutely no-go areas for diplomats. When, or are done briefly under severe restrictions and security support.

19. Very often, the government and police in Lagos issue security information to guide communities and the messages come through Community Development Associations.

COVID Study

20. In July 2021, Princeton University in the USA and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) approached some state governments and the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 (PTF) in Nigeria to take part in a multi-country review of government activities on the epidemic.  Lagos State COVID response was acknowledged as a gold standard. A wonderful insight to information and materials developed thanks to the special efforts of former National Coordinator of PTF, Dr. Sani Aliyu, and Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Professor Akin Abayomi. They organized with their colleagues in government and its agencies, leaders in the organized private sector and civil society to have high-level exchange with the Princeton study group. Of all the states contacted in Nigeria, Lagos State was the most organized, forthcoming and professionally engaging.

In my opinion, the momentum of the development of Lagos State points in the right direction under Governor Sanwo-Olu’s government.

This notwithstanding, the state is blighted with many problems; some are unique to the characters of Lagos and others come from the general array of problems that affect Nigeria.  Among others: How well are the resources of the state spent to improve the state? How can the sixth-largest economy in Africa operate effectively without a regular electricity supply? Rather than continue to increase taxes for small and large businesses, would the state do better to increase opportunities for wealth creation and spread its taxation among many more enterprises?

Why does the state allow thugs to act as a “guerilla army” on roads and public places where they forcibly collect monies from hapless citizens? Why would hoodlums be given free rein to use violence at major events and social functions to extort money? To what extent are the state contractors vetted to ensure optimum performance? Why is allegiance to the party allowed to override due diligence and obtaining results for some contracts? The Lagos name brand is not reputable internationally – what will be done to rebrand it and successfully improve its image?

CONCLUSION

Overall, the current development trend of Lagos State should continue. In a new phase for the future, regular performance analysis and evaluation is needed and changes must be made to overcome the drawbacks. At this time, I shall not take chances with the future of this important state, and I will not embark on a novel adventure which direction is unclear.

Bunmi Makinwa is the former Africa Regional Director of United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and CEO of AUNIQUEI Communication for Leadership