Although President Bola Tinubu has remained resolute in pursuing his administration’s economic reforms notwithstanding the increasing challenges and hardship Nigerians face daily with the World Bank charging him to sustain the ongoing reforms, the International Monetary Fund, IMF has called on the federal government to rethink its strategies.

The IMF, in its latest Regional Economic Outlook for Sub-Saharan Africa report, noted that the countries involved in deep reforms including Nigeria, Ghana, Ethiopia and Kenya, may now be experiencing what it called ‘adjustment fatigue’ while some are facing civil resistance.

Nigeria, for instance, has recorded multiple civil unrests and labour shutdowns following disenchantment with the impact of the macroeconomic reforms, especially in petrol and foreign exchange deregulations.

The IMF’s recommendations emphasized broad-based engagement with the populations, a communications strategy clearly articulating the benefits of reform, forging partnerships with key figures in the country, appropriate design and sequencing of reforms, establishing complementary and compensatory measures, and fostering inclusive growth.

The Fund sees an opportunity for making a success of the reforms if the frustrations faced by the citizens are adequately addressed.

The report stated: “In the face of popular frustration, there is also an opportunity to work to mobilize support for large, deep reforms, of the sort that, for instance, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria are pursuing.

“Realizing this opportunity requires rethinking reform strategies, to build and maintain pro-growth coalitions among constituent leaders and the general public. This will require greater attention to communication and engagement strategies, reform design, compensatory measures, and rebuilding trust in public institutions”.

Giving further details on what should be done, the report stated: “In particular, policymakers will need to focus on broad-based engagement with populations; a participatory approach, involving a two-way dialogue with stakeholders and the population at large, can help design policy approaches; building a sense of ownership among the public, and garner support from both business and civil society”.

IMF added, “Communications should clearly articulate the benefits of reform, the costs of inaction, the accompanying compensatory measures, and correct misinformation and misperceptions.

“Partnering with key figures including parliamentarians, community leaders, and independent researchers is also essential. The emphasis should be on listening to concerns and designing appropriate responses. Providing regular updates on reform progress, and establishing ongoing feedback mechanisms, will help maintain support over time.

“Appropriate design and sequencing of reforms; the costs and benefits of multiple reforms should be appropriately spaced through time so as not to overburden populations. Demonstrable, upfront gains will boost support, and beginning with reforms that do not threaten the core benefits of multiple social groups has been shown to improve success.

“Complementary and compensatory measures; Appropriately designed and well-targeted policies to support those most affected by reforms (such as stronger social safety nets, job search assistance, and retraining) can help overcome resistance to reform by mitigating potential social costs.

“Fair and transparent management of public resources; A strong governance framework that fosters trust in government and in its ability to adequately implement policies—including by promoting transparency, increasing accountability, strengthening the rule of law, and controlling corruption—is a precondition for public backing of any reform strategy.

“Opinion surveys indicate that trust in the government’s ability to use public resources to promote the population’s well-being is still relatively low in many sub-Saharan African countries

“Fostering inclusive growth; As painful as the current policy choices are, deeper and broader reforms will be required to guarantee that countries reap the gains, and not just the pain, of reform. Most of the region is struggling with low growth, lack of jobs, and widespread social exclusion. Unlocking more durable and inclusive growth, by making the economy work more effectively for all, will simultaneously reduce both macroeconomic vulnerabilities and social frustration, easing the task of policymakers”.

The Regional Economic Outlook is the IMF’s regular update on the group of economies within the region addressing challenges and the growth opportunities.

Contrarily, the World Bank Vice President and Chief Economist, Indermit Gill who spoke recently at the Nigerian Economic Summit (NES30) in Abuja, emphasised that maintaining these reforms is crucial for long-term growth, especially for a resilient economy in Sub-Saharan Africa.

By Onikepo Braithwaite

The Lakurawas

Last week, the issue of yet another violent so-called Islamic Terrorist group, possibly Tuaregs (Berber Nomadic Herders) from neighbouring Niger and Mali, “Lakurawa”, that has infiltrated North West Nigeria, particularly Sokoto and Kebbi State, was a topic of conversation. Apparently, the Lakurawas have been in those areas since 2016/2017. I call it a ‘so-called Islamic group’, because there is really nothing Islamic about the activities of groups like Boko Haram and this group. They steal, they kill, maim and partake in activities that are strictly prohibited by the Holy Quran. See Quran 4:29 on stealing.

Similarly, the Quran prohibits killing a soul, unless for another soul (legal retribution for murder) or for corruption done in the land – Quran 5:32. Many of these so-called Islamic terrorist groups use the ‘corruption done in the land’ as the excuse for the mayhem they cause, claiming they are fighting the government because of their corrupt ways, when the fact of the matter is that they are cold blooded killers and thieves who do not fear God or practice Islam, but go about killing and maiming innocent citizens who are struggling to eke out a daily living, and have absolutely nothing to do with governance, let alone corruption. The murders these groups commit, and the hurt they cause, cannot be justified by any means whatsoever. 

Even though Section 14(2)(a) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended)(the Constitution) provides that “sovereignty belongs to the people of Nigeria from who Government through the Constitution derives all its powers and authority”, and Sections 4, 5 & 6 thereof vest the powers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in the Legislature, Executive and Judiciary respectively, the Lakurawas are said to be happily exercising these same powers in several areas like Gudu and Tangaza in Sokoto State – imposing taxes and levies on the people, closing schools, trying to impose strict Sharia laws, forcing men to wear beards and sport certain hairstyles, not permitting secular music and punishing those who listen to same, engaging in dispute resolution among the people (justice administration) and carrying out other government functions. In short, these suspected non-Nigerian Tuaregs, are somehow challenging the sovereignty of Nigeria and Nigerians. See the case of AG Kaduna State & Ors v AGF & Ors (2023) LPELR-59936 (SC) per Emmanuel Akomaye Agim, JSC on the sovereignty of Nigeria and Nigerians. Also see Section 2(1) of the Constitution. 

Reasons Why these Groups Can Get a Foothold in Nigeria

Some of the reasons why groups like Lakurawa are able to gain ground in Nigeria are as follows:-

1) Failure of Government

Apparently, in 2017 or thereabouts, the Lakurawas were initially invited by the village heads to Gudu and Tangaza, to come and protect their people against banditry attacks. When the State/Government fails in its primary duty to protect the lives and property of the people (see Section 14(2)(b) of the Constitution), the people will resort to self-help, as self-preservation is the first law of nature. The Lakurawas didn’t force their way into these areas, they were welcomed with open arms. Once they got in and saw how easy it was to gain control, they got comfortable, changed on the people, started to spread their warped ideologies and subsequently, get violent and oppress them. 

2) Lack of Education 

I blame most of the Northern leaders who came after people like the Sardauna of Sokoto, Sir Ahmadu Bello, KBE (Premier of Northern Region), for the way so-called Islamic extremism and terrorism appear to be thriving in the North. Several decades before Section 18 of the Constitution was enacted, that is, the educational objectives of the Nigerian State set out in the Constitution, leaders like Chief Obafemi Awolowo, GCFR, SAN (Premier of Western Region) and Sardauna, had already realised the importance of education. Till today, not only is Chief Awolowo’s name synonymous with free education, Sardauna established Ahmadu Bello University, and was particularly passionate about the education of the girl child. He travelled around the Northern region, encouraging parents to send their daughters to school. Sardauna was determined to modernise the North, using education as one of the means to achieve his goal.

Unfortunately, no Northern leader appears to have carried on Sardauna’s legacy in this regard, and sadly, today, the North lags behind in terms of education. For example, in 2022, while Anambra State had the highest cut off mark of 139 for entrance into Unity Schools, Sokoto, Taraba and Yobe had the lowest cut off marks, even making a distinction between males and females – for males the score was 9, 3 and 2 respectively, while their females, though they fared slightly better, were also very low, 13, 11 and 27. 

Whether the military, or the politicians, or the people themselves, or a combination of all, the North has the lowest literacy rate in the country. The standard of education appeared to be better, under the military. With the advent of the politicians, not only have educational standards dropped at all levels, Nigeria possibly has the highest number of out of school children in the world under their watch, while the politicians have also used the people’s lack of education as a weapon against them, so much so that, many of them are not at all versed in the religion they profess to practice. 

For instance, Quran 33:49 & 4:141 enjoins Muslims to overlook annoying talk, ignore the words of blasphemers and avoid their company. It doesn’t prescribe the death penalty for blasphemy. Sections 210 & 213 of the Penal Code Act 1960 (PCA) (applicable in the North of Nigeria) and Section 204 of the Criminal Code Act 1916 (CCA) (applicable in the South of Nigeria) both prescribe a punishment of a maximum of 2 years imprisonment (or a fine or both under the PCA) upon conviction for committing the offence of Insult to Religion (Blasphemy). The act of blasphemy doesn’t appear to be punishable in the Quran, while it is nothing more than a misdemeanour in the PCA & CCA. The fact that an offender in the North, where the Muslim population is largest, can even get off with a fine for blasphemy, is telling. Yet, many people believe what their extremist Imams have taught them about blasphemy, and stone people to death or burn them alive for allegedly blaspheming instead, because they haven’t really studied the Quran and Hadith (or the law); they may not even be literate. 

The 2022 case of University of Sokoto student, Deborah Samuel Yakubu, a Christian, who was allegedly stoned to death and her body burnt by fellow University students of the Islamic faith, on account of allegations of blasphemy levelled against her by them, still sends shock waves down the spines of right-thinking Nigerians, because it is expected that students of a tertiary institution should know better and let the law take its course, than to engage in jungle justice. It appears that no one was prosecuted for Deborah’s murder, as the Sokoto State Police Command/Government were obviously not interested in ensuring that the culprits were brought to book. 

Definitely, this kind of environment, where the people have already been brainwashed to think it is ‘saintly’ or will earn them martyrdom, to murder people (in the name of a religion that doesn’t tell them to do so), and where politicians use religion to manipulate the people and keep them in a permanent state of regression and primitiveness, with extremists (and others sponsored by unscrupulous politicians) then indoctrinating them to believe that the western education which can free them from their blindness and lack of knowledge, is forbidden, while the politicians themselves breach those same Sharia laws with gusto and aplomb, is an attractive, fertile ground for these terrorists/criminals who want to pursue their sinister agendas. The truth is that when you give such people an inch, they take much more than a yard; where you provide a conducive, enabling environment for them, they find comfort there and want to stay forever.

3) State/Government Disregard  for the Rule  of Law

To make matters worse, though Section 10 of the Constitution is clear that neither the Federal Government nor any State shall adopt any religion as a State Religion, from the year 2000, 12 Northern States instituted Sharia law into their States, particularly the criminal aspect of the law, even though the Constitution doesn’t confer criminal jurisdiction on the Sharia (or Customary) Courts. The Sharia Courts are established for Islamic Personal Law like marriage, inheritance and family matters.  See Sections  262 & 277 of the Constitution on the jurisdiction of the Sharia Court of Appeal of the FCT and that of the States, respectively. Also see the case of Magaji v Matari (2000) LPELR-1813 (SC) per Abubakar Bashir Wali, JSC & per Uthman Mohammed, JSC where the Supreme Court held inter alia that the jurisdiction of the Sharia Court of Appeal had been clearly set out by Section 242 of the 1979 Constitution (now Section 262 of the 1999 Constitution), and that by virtue of Section 242 (1) & (2) of the 1979 Constitution (now 262(1) & (2) of the 1999 Constitution), the jurisdiction of the Sharia Court of Appeal was confined to Islamic law of personal status. Also see the case of Fauziya Ali & Ors v Mandu Bashir Maiduguri SC. 406/2017 delivered on 7/6/2024 per Abubakar Sadiq Umar, JSC.

Again, States in which the Governments are happy to bypass constitutionality and enthrone illegality for their own personal political gain masked as love for religion, are a prolific ground for misguided extremists, or those who simply want to destabilise the country to thrive. See Section 38 of the Constitution; practice of religion is voluntary. 

4) Porous Borders

Successive governments appear not to have taken the security of the people, as seriously as they should have. I watched an interview of the Minister of Interior, Hon. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo last week, and he appears to want to reverse this negative trend that has landed Nigeria in this situation of insecurity, and take the issue of border security more seriously than has been done in the last few decades, as this is one way that foreign criminals gain access to Nigeria – through the endless, porous borders. 

Though Nigeria doesn’t share a border with Mali, her border with Niger spans about 1,497 km and there are several border crossings between the two countries in Sokoto, Kebbi and Katsina State. Niger however, shares a border with Mali. The fact that our borders are porous, is a strong reason why foreign criminals are able to waltz into Nigeria at will, and because of some of the reasons I outlined above, it is easy for them to establish themselves here. Some Nigerian tribes share ethnicity with these foreign criminals, and this again, makes it easier for them to slip through the cracks and infiltrate Nigerian communities. Just like the Yoruba people from Cotonou and Badagry are strongly connected, particularly because of the geographical proximity, so much so that it may sometimes be difficult to tell the difference, we also have Nigerian Tuaregs in Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Kano and Katsina, while we have Fulanis and Yorubas all over Africa. It appears that Sokoto and Kebbi have the largest Tuareg population in Nigeria.

Also, as a result of poor border infrastructure and the seemingly lack of will on the part of the Buhari administration to take decisive action against these foreign criminals, their activities escalated during the eight years of that administration, and the security situation declined to an all time low. Apparently, when an alarm was raised about the Lakurawas about five years ago, the authorities were alleged to have declared them harmless, though they were armed! Does that make sense? 

Hon. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo appears to be taking the issue of border security more seriously than has been done in the last few decades, and is leveraging on technology to achieve this goal. It is obvious that controlling a 1,400km border is challenging, but a combination of physical barriers like building walls, checkpoints, control tower systems (like America has on its Mexican border), surveillance equipment like cameras, drones, satellite imaging  and other forms of modern technology, proper border security personnel equipped with weapons, are required. In manning the Saudi Yemeni border for instance, apart from infrastructure and technology, the Saudi Government has about four levels of security to secure the borders. In the case of the Indian Bangladeshi border, both sides are up and doing in terms of border protection. It’s time for Nigeria to raise a proper Border Cintrol Force. 

5) Corruption

Bribery and corruption – be it amongst the grossly inadequate Nigerian border control officials, or the law enforcement agencies that allow suspicious people to enter Nigeria, or fail to take appropriate action against them because they have taken bribes, or they themselves are involved in criminal activities like smuggling with these criminals, they allow these terrorists to gain ground.

5) Inadequate Cooperation from the People

The importance of good old fashioned information obtained from the people, cannot be underestimated. However, the lack of trust in the authorities and fear of retaliation by terrorists on informants and their loved ones, since there are moles within the law enforcement agencies, are some of the reasons why people may be reluctant to report known terrorists/criminals who live among them to the authorities.

Conclusion 

The Lakurawas must be swiftly and permanently driven out of Nigeria, before that organisation evolves into a full grown monster that becomes too difficult to tame or annihilate. Addressing the six issues that I have outlined above as a matter of urgency, that is, to attack the Lakurawas raison d’etre, is a step in the right direction. State Governments, particularly of the States affected by religious terrorism, cannot continue to play politics with religion – it has backfired on them. The poverty in the land, has also made terrorism and criminality more attractive to our own people, who join hands with these foreign criminals to destabilise Nigeria and make the people’s lives hell.

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Last week, I x-rayed the situation with the banks in Nigeria and the increasing frustration of their customers. It turned out that many Nigerians are captive victims of the banking sector, though rather unfortunately. I am highlighting the contributions of eminent Nigerians to this topic in order to give the banks and the Central Bank of Nigeria the golden opportunity to make amends before it gets out of hand.

The relationship between the banks and their customers should be that of ultimate satisfaction for the banking public. Banks seem to get away with many of the atrocities enumerated in these comments and indeed the main piece. As has been stated by many commentators, perhaps a good way to start is to file a suit in court for judicial intervention. Who knows! Please read and enjoy the comments.

Read Also: Banking with tears and blood

Bolade Agbola

“I remember when, in the early 2000, we did the numbers on deploying ATMs in some of our bank branches. It was like mission impossible. Within 24 years the ATM machines were deployed everywhere, but in the last 3 years, they are Radio Rediffusion boxes of the colonial era. POS has taken over at huge transaction cost to the consumers. CBN should direct banks to remove the machines from their branches as they serve no purpose. Cash dispensing has been outsourced to POS operators.”

Alfred Elijah

“Sir, you’ve poured out the true state of the predicaments of Nigerians with Nigerian banks, aside gulping customers’ funds hanging due to dispense error, banks also deduct funds from customers for no just reason. Many businesses are crashing, unemployment is worsening, the policy is bad, it is not helping us, the banking system is too poor to back up the so-called cashless policy.”

Humphrey Oghofugha

“Sir I’ll allege that the CBN on the surface is with the banks, otherwise the fraudulent activities won’t persist, so going to them is akin to doing nothing. But if CSOs approach the courts and their lordships, however compromised they may be, pass judgments in favour of defrauded customers things might begin to change for good.”

Adebayo Akinde

“Sir the law is high time you took up cases against this fraudulent and uncultured attitude of our banks. They are not doing core banking jobs rather they keep deducting ridiculous charges and debiting Nigerians anyhow. It is worrisome and unfortunate and the regulators are sleeping and doing nothing to address the situation.”

Julius Adedeji JP

“Please make it louder sir. The ATMs have all dried up, curiously while POS operators always have enough cash. Even at parties, money sellers have LOADS of MINT Naira Cash to sell at exorbitant commission. It’s a shame and something urgent must be done to reverse this terrible trend. May God bless Nigeria.”

Joseph Godsave Oluwaseyi

“Many individuals and corporate organizations are just taking advantage of a failed nation to rob the masses. Several times I let go of debit alerts of some unsuccessful online transactions. The same way the internet providers are robbing the masses.”

Maxwell Chimezie Okafor

“Learned Silk, please file an action against these banks. If I’m called, I will gladly join in the appearance. When you must have done it to two or more banks, others will sit up. Banks too aren’t infallible after all.”

Olaitan Joseph Olusegun

“It has always been said that Nigeria is not ripe and ready for E-payment… The infrastructure is not available, electricity being number one! Sadly, the banks we so trusted have inadvertently turned their backs on us! Perhaps it’s time for a drastic change … Power must change hands. Good afternoon Sir.”

Bunmi Olusona

“The banking institutions are one of the pillars of our societal problems. Ranging from illegal and immoral deductions to fraudulent foreign exchange dealings. That sector is due for total overhauling.“

Tayo Martins

“Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, SAN, you have always been on the side of the downtrodden masses sir. God bless you for always speaking up. But we must find ways to stop this fleecing by the banks sir, can you please follow up with actions legally?”

Okunfeyiwa Damisi Loto

“That’s the way it is sir. I’m tired and sick of Nigerian banks. They will come to your sitting room and office to persuade you to open an account with them so that they can get your money for their selfish gains. It’s people like you that can call them to order.”

Adekunle Olaoye

“Big Sam, thanks for this post. Nigerians are really under severe burdens no thanks to the government and its subsidiaries, including the banks, the power holders, the telecom service providers, etc. Please we need to shine the light on the telecom service providers as well. God bless you my brother.”

Mofe Stephens

“You are simply God sent, these banks are milking Nigerians and our hard-earned money daily, it is unfortunate that the CBN has been looking the other way instead of protecting the interest of the Nigerians. You have the support of the masses Sir.”

Abiodun Toju Abati

“Thank you sir for this eye opener many are in tears because of these wicked deductions but they don’t have the means of challenging this wicked deduction Sir. The lower class of the society is really in pain because of this. The people will be very happy to see you set a precedent sir so the bank will stop all these deductions and face their major business of banking and making money by not deducting people’s money the way they like.”

Mikail Oludiran

“Nothing in Nigeria works … every arrangement in place is in support of the fraudulent/rogues. It seems living civilized lives doesn’t align with the Nigerian system! The rogues and brigandage seem to be in control … However people like you should not relent in ending the opprobrium and the mess, like you Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, SAN did end exploitation by communication industries charging per minute then …”

Adeboye Bajulaiye

“A Banker once told me whenever his BM (Bank Manager) was broke and needed money for weekend paranpa, he ordered some deductions from all accounts domiciled in the Bank under whatever yeye charge per customer. Since it was usually about ₦56:50, the unsuspecting customers never bothered. ₦113,000 for the weekend at the expense of the hapless customers can’t be bad!“

Adebayo Akinleye

“What of sending multiple SMS messages on same transaction. It’s frustrating with all these fraudulent deductions. What makes them different from our politicians who take advantage of every one of us stealing our commonwealth resources.“

Babafemi Adejinmi McCrownie

“Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, SAN Comrade lawyer sir, your observations are not peculiar to you alone, this is the nightmare of everyone who operates an account (business/corporate) with Nigerian banks today. What is a faster way to control this menace, legal or political?”

Akara Ugo

“The country’s leadership was fraudulently instituted, the rest will follow the footsteps of their leaders. It’s very pathetic that one could be charged for services that you didn’t use.”

Omolara Oluwashindara

“Banks make trillions in profit at the end of every financial year but nobody bothers to ask how they make that profit … So sad.”

Cadet Jacob Ushie

“This is very absurd to say. I keep thinking when will Nigeria ever get it right? Never any sector that’s not underworking. Even in this 2024 Nigerians are still struggling with everything bad!! Bad!! Bad!!”

By Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, SAN

In 2019, I wrote a piece narrating the harrowing experience of customers with virtually all the banks in Nigeria. A friend of mine who is a seasoned banker by all accounts, read it and came to me to explain the challenges of the banking system. The following week on September 24, 2019, I wrote a Rejoinder titled Banking with Less Tears. The sordid situation of bank customers has worsened as they now bank with blood. Everything has crashed and no one is in charge at all.

Some banks claimed to have upgraded their networks recently, even though it has now turned out to be a downgrade. Since then, these banks have taken over the funds of their customers, and put them at the receiving end. You are not allowed to view your statement of account, you do not know your balance and you cannot even trace or trail your transactions. It is that bad. You just accept what the banks tell you as if we are in some animal kingdom where there is no law and order. It has become a wicked game of chance, at times putting the lives of customers at risk in emergency cases.

Permit me to share a scenario with you. It is the end of the month and I needed to pay the salary of members of staff who have worked diligently throughout the month. My banking App was acting crazy showing me that the system could not process my request or that my session had expired and so I kept trying until a few minutes later, I started receiving debit alerts in multiples, indicating that the same transactions that the bank claimed had failed actually succeeded in multiple trials. I then had to start tracing all my recipients one after the other to get them to confirm the multiple transfers and to make refunds to me.

Then another ugly scenario occurred. A particular transaction was posted as successful from my end and I was promptly debited but the beneficiary did not receive value for the transfer. We were advised by the bank to wait for some days and we waited. The bank sent us Session Number, which was to indicate that the transaction was successful, but the recipient still did not receive value for the transfer. Day ten, still no value and the bank began to tell stories of what happened in the Garden of Eden, of how Eve gave Adam the forbidden fruit and how Satan was expelled from heaven.

In this cruel and wicked plot of system or network upgrade, some Nigerian banks have now perfected the crooked style of fleecing their customers, joggling transactions at will and denying people of the use and enjoyment of their hard-earned resources. I have lost countless transactions that cannot be traced at all. It is nothing but premeditated fraud, cleverly hatched with the connivance of the supervising authorities, who all turn the blind eye.

The reality is that banking business in Nigeria has become a pain for the majority of our people. And this should not be so at all, if the relevant authorities wake up to assert their regulatory powers under the law. From my own personal experience and the cases that I have handled, I do believe that banks in Nigeria are having a field day feasting on their customers. I’ve seen and handled cases, where great dreams, robust projects and laudable visions, have been shattered and eclipsed by banks, in the name of loans or other facilities. The corruption in the banks is mind-boggling, with billions of Naira ending up in the pockets of bankers. This cannot and should not be allowed to continue.

Every financial institution must be compelled to operate in a transparent and an accountable fashion, they should grant their customers access to their funds and avail them of all banking transactions as and when due. No bank should be allowed to keep to itself the details of banking transactions of its customers. The bank-customer relationship is fiduciary in nature, planted on the solid foundation of trust and confidence.

Any and all funds held in trust by the bank for a customer should not be subject to secret, whimsical and subjective dealings. It is not enough for the Central Bank of Nigeria to ask customers to escalate breaches by the banks to the CBN. These sharp practices are prevalent with almost all the banks so they are widespread and should be within the knowledge of CBN. The open and hidden bank charges have no end, they come in different patterns and they have no limits until the account is ultimately liquidated.

You walk into the bank or the bank walks into your office, to open an account. The account opening package is deliberately drafted in such a way that you would need prayers to fill them. The terms and conditions of the relationship are so lengthy and boring that you’re just left with no option than to accept them the way they are. Then by month end you get to know what you really signed in for, when the debit alerts start hitting your mailbox as follows: “Stamp Duty Charge”, “Account Maintenance Charge”, “Monthly Maintenance Charge”, “SMS Charge”, “ATM Maintenance Charge”, etc.

Meanwhile, you do not get any debit alert of Cost of Transaction (COT) charges, usually very outrageous, but normally concealed. Pray, what other transaction did you open the account for, if not to cover all your financial dealings? And why the duplicitous charges? I opened an account with a bank with some thousands of naira. I decided to keep the money for some time just so I could have it again in the future. In the months to follow, I was hit with charges upon charges, even when I did not operate the account to withdraw from it.

As of today, the account is virtually empty and drained, through heavy monthly maintenance charges and other sundry deductions. I have left the account intact, waiting for the day the entire money would finish and then proceed to serve the bank court notice for all the fraudulent deductions. For well over three or four years now, that bank account has not been rendered dormant for the purpose of their monthly deductions, but if you have anything urgent to use the account for, you’ll be told to go and activate it, meanwhile, the monthly deductions are automatic in favour of the bank, even when it is said to be inactive.

Now we are told not to carry cash but all the ATMs are dry and empty and you are forced to buy Naira in Nigeria. Many times, the POS machines decline transactions, debit your account and then force you to still go and look for cash anyhow, in order to trade. Then you are told to go to your bank to document a five thousand naira transaction or wait for automatic reversal, which in some cases never comes. I have lost a lot of money in this process as when I weigh the cost of going to the bank, the time to be wasted and what I stand to lose thereby, I just allow the bank to walk away with the money, at times running into thousands of naira.

And you can very well imagine that this goes on in all the banks, whereby on a daily basis, customers are being fleeced of their hard-earned resources by these smart alecs. News recently broke of a bank that had accumulated close to eighty billion Naira of such funds, only for one of its trusted members of staff to elope with the fund to another land. Bank customers are forever at the receiving end as the banks are not ready to lift a finger to assist anyone but to keep declaring bogus profits every year. A particular bank is always reported as being the very best of them all in the media and I then wonder what statistics are being used in reaching these conclusions that do not tally with the facts of what we experience with that particular bank every day.

Lately, the banks have become more daring, draconian and greedy, making arbitrary deductions from the accounts of their customers. Here is another of such fraudulent scenarios. A bank approached a customer to deliver credit cards programmed for foreign currency transactions. The customer is to travel, use the ATM cards for his transactions abroad and then come back to reimburse with the bank the Naira equivalent. On getting to his destination, the ATM card did not work, despite all efforts made. Meanwhile, the bank is busy sending debit notes to the customer upon the said ATM card that has never been used at all.

I have read the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act and also the Central Bank of Nigeria Act and I verily believe that CBN has only let the banks loose on their hapless customers and to get away with all manner of fraudulent activities. The stories are so mind-boggling, of cases of unauthorized withdrawals from the accounts of customers, of insider trading, round trips and such other financial frauds, that go unpunished. The banks are in custody of the account and the money, deploying technology against their customers and smiling away whilst the customer is in sorrow and penury. It is ungodly and very unfair that CBN has for so long allowed this monster to fester. No banking licence should be allowed to thrive upon any proven case of fraud. None at all. In the same way that customers have been sent to their early graves and businessmen and women have been led to commit suicide on account of very strange and inexplicable liquidations, so also should no bank be allowed to trade or survive on fraud and mischief.

The existing laws in Nigeria require CBN to act to protect bank customers. The bank is an institution; some have been in existence for years, declaring bogus profits at the expense of their customers. Why should any institution grant a one-year loan upon very excessive interest rates and still expect the customer to pay it back in one year? What kind of business will such a person execute, in a country where there is no infrastructure to support businesses and enterprises and where the entire profit is consumed by generators and diesel? This should not continue and I urge all relevant authorities to intervene urgently, to save our people. Enough of banking with tears and blood.

By Martins Oloja

I have been in the concourse of this unlocked potential called ‘Livestock Development’ for some time and it has been amazing learning, unlearning and relearning some aspect of science and financial journalism, we may have lost to our obsession with political journalism in our milieu. I mean here that the wind of time has since last year blown me to a conclave of public intellectuals who are unarguably some of the brightest and the best in the fields of animal science, veterinary medicine, extension services, agricultural economics and engineering. Which has made some of my friends and followers to be asking me about the correlation between my background as a journalist and livestock sector that has significantly touched off some attention in the public space.

I would like to write on some remarkable lessons from my reporter’s notebook so far as an insider in the politics and policies that led to the creation of Livestock Ministry, so many analysts have continued to claim, isn’t necessary after all. This isn’t a justification for the creation of ‘yet another ministry’ but just so share some takeaways from the experience I have had as we wonder what we can benefit from 25 years of unbroken democracy. I had earlier written a two-part serial titled, “Time To Grab Opportunities in Livestock Noise” in this age of information overload (The Guardian, July 20-27).

The conclusion of the whole matter I would like to discuss in another serial for a few weeks is that government too can work if the human capital (resource) we have here can be harnessed to run the institutions of governance. I can report through the intellectuals and technocrats I have studied on the Livestock Committees in the last few months that the country is blessed with those who can migrate the country from Third to First World. But the trouble with us is that there is already a systemic collapse in the civil service where ideas and projects are buried. And so talented people in the country have to be head hunted to do some critical thinking and strategic planning that have to be executed by reliable builders.

And here is the thing, the system needs quiet operators and strategic planners like former Governor Abdullahi Ganduje who actually originated the Livestock Sector Development Agenda as Governor of Kano State. The courageous and resourceful bureaucrat and politician had been talking about the unworkability and danger of getting Fulani herdsmen to be involved in open grazing from the far North to the South even when it was unpopular to do so in the previous administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.

Most of the participants at a two-day Stakeholders’ Consultative Workshop on Livestock Reforms, which ended on October 25, 2024 at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja were hearing for the first time that the seed of the Livestock success story, which had grown into a Ministry of Livestock was actually planted by former Governor of Kano State before May 29, 2023. At the opening ceremony on Thursday October 24, the very resourceful Secretary to the Committee, Professor Mohammed Yahaya Kuta mentioned this in his vote of thanks before the president’s speech, which also amplified Ganduje’s role in this strategic project.

While others were making noise and dispensing public relations strategy for their main candidates in the 2023 presidential election, the Governor of Kano State, Ganduje had then set off a remarkable move in the realm of conflict management in agriculture business and socio-cultural relations. The destruction of farmlands has often led to clashes between farmers and herders across the country. And so on January 19, 2023, the Governor inaugurated a Committee tasked with planning a national conference to proffer solutions to farmer-herder clashes in the country. The 26-member Committee was headed by a very significant figure, Professor Attahiru Jega, former Vice Chancellor, Bayero University, Kano, former Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

In his opening remark at the inauguration of the committee, Ganduje said “the national livestock transformation plan (NLTP) proposed by the federal government to tackle the problem has not yielded results because of “inadequate political leadership”. The Governor added: “It is gladdening, therefore, to say that since assumption of office in 2015, we in Kanohave led the way and have been pioneering the initiation of development-oriented interventions at reformation of the livestock sector to mitigate farmer-herder conflicts by tackling the issue headlong…Your selection to serve as members of this committee is solely based on your experiences and contributions to national development in your respective fields…It is our hope that you will work towards planning and organising a befitting national conference on farmer-herder conflicts in Nigeria and to select an appropriate theme for the conference. The organising committee is also to draft a blueprint for reform of traditional livestock/cattle rearing and mitigation of associated conflicts in Nigeria, and to undertake any other activities towards the successful planning and organising of the conference in accordance with the terms of reference as specified”.

The original conference:

The well-attended Conference was held on Monday 13 and Tuesday 14, February 2023 at the NAF Conference Centre in Abuja. There was one remarkable feature of the Conference: Governor Ganduje and the Deputy Governor Gawuna didn’t leave after the opening ceremony attended by the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, Sultan of Sokoto, several Emirs, diplomats and sundry scientists and scholars of various hues. They listened to all the technical sessions for two days until the Communique of the Conference was read and adopted.

Specifically, the two-day conference on “Livestock Reforms and Mitigation of Associated Conflicts” brought together scholars, professionals, captains of industry and practitioners in the field of agricultural development, value chain specialists and researchers in diverse fields of animal production. The National Conference recommended, among others the establishment of the Ministry of Livestock Resources. In a communique issued at the end of the two days National Conference, it was agreed that the call was in tandem with practices in many other West African countries. The communique signed by Prof Attahiru Jega, said in the alternative, federal and state governments should expand the scope of existing Departments of Livestock Production to address the broader needs of the industry. Similarly, the Conference further stressed the need for the creation of additional research institutions for beef, dairy and pasture production as a strategy for expanding funding and enacting policies and programmes for the development of the sector at all levels of government.

The communiqué calls on media organisations to create awareness at all levels that will promote inclusive communities, strengthen harmonious relations to encourage government and private sector investments for cohesive societies and improved productivity. The document also enjoins the news media to note that profiling and reportage that malign socio-economic and ethnic groups need to be avoided. The participants call on the United Nations (UN) Agencies, Bilateral institutions, regional organizations (AU and ECOWAS), national and international CSOs and other support organisations to increase the level of funding and support to the government of Nigeria in mitigating the Impact of climate change, addressing technology gaps, addressing poverty and skills gap and improving people’s livelihoods. They further stressed the need to support agricultural and pastoralists organisations, cooperative societies and relevant producer associations and professional bodies for improved productivity.

Among the resolutions of the experts that includes specialists in range management veterinary services, economics, history, cultural studies, climate change, natural resources management, governance and conflict management, among others was the need to revisit and review sub-national, national and regional laws, legislations and policies to make applicable reforms for improving Livestock production and addressing conflicts. It includes the need to adopt Climate Smart Agricultural (CSA) practices, including the adoption of Integrated approach to managing landscapes of croplands, rangelands, forests and fisheries that address the Interlinks between the quest for food security and mitigation of the challenges of climate change.

They also harped on the need to strengthen and Improve the security architecture for the prevention of violent crimes including cattle rustling, raiding of villages, kidnapping of persons for ransom and trade in illicit arms and drugs. Continuing, they noted: “There is the need to strengthen the process of litigation for more effective dispensation of justice and handling of the various litigations relating to violent crimes and other perpetrators of violent conflicts. “There is the need to reform the security and judicial architectures to ensure the curtailing of farmer-herder conflicts, cattle rustlng, illegal arms trade, importation and proliferation in the country”.

In the same vein, they urged ”political leaders at all levels to refrain from politicising the issue of farmer-herder conflicts and other associated issues while pursuing inclusive processes that will strengthen unity and cooperation in the country.” The participants commended the Kano State Government under the leadership of Governor, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, for Initiating and sponsoring the National Conference, which demonstrates his patriotism and strong commitment toward enhancing peaceful co-existence, unity and development in the country. While appreciating the Kano state government for the Conference, the participants urged Governor Ganduje to use his good office and Influence to present the resolutions and proceedings of this National Conference before the National Council of State and the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF). This is another masterstroke by the very artful Ganduje who has thus urged the Conference Committee to prepare a Blueprint for solution to one of the problems that may greet new leaders that will emerge from the elections of February 25 and March 11, 2023.

I had then challenged the political leaders in the southern part of the country to be technically ready too with a blueprint for solution to some of the challenges plaguing the south and indeed the country in a strategic manner Governor Ganduje had done. Let’s continue in the second part on the story of the quality of the experts that put together the Livestock Reform agenda that has become a game changer in the hand of President Tinubu who is seeking to stimulate the Livestock Sector to create jobs, wealth and tackle insecurity. May be that will appeal to more Gandujes around the President who can bring experts together to tackle challenges in the critical sectors such as Education and Health.

By Martins Oloja

In the first part of this piece, I challenged the political leaders in the country to be technically ready too with a blueprint for solution to some of the challenges plaguing the country in a strategic manner a former Governor, Kano State, Abdullahi Ganduje, (PhD) has done with the Livestock Sector. The Sector, which used to be a rejected stone in the old Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security has become a cornerstone: It is now a purpose-driven Ministry.

I hinted then at the quality of experts that have worked hard to ensure that the idea whose time has come isn’t just a Ministry like the numerous others where the “the gate-keepers”, (civil servants) most times kill dreams of leaders.

I promised to expose some of the experts that put together the Livestock Reform agenda that has become a game changer in the hand of President Tinubu who is seeking to stimulate the Livestock Sector to create jobs, wealth and tackle insecurity.

Let me quickly reiterate my appeal to more technocrats, more critical thinkers around the President and our leaders at all levels who can bring experts together to tackle challenges in the critical sectors such as Energy, Education, Health, Digital Technology and the Economy.

But before the focus on the experts and scholars, let’s peep into the work they have done that has attracted the attention of the President who has retained the Panel to continue to work with him and the Ministry to reform the Livestock sector and reposition it as a significant development sector.

The Panel’s report to the President has established that the N33 trillion worth of Nigeria’s livestock sector is at the moment contributing less than 3% to the annual GDP and was hitherto an integral part of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, which made it difficult for the sector to realise its full potential as an economic prosperity driver over the years.

Upon inauguration, the Presidential Committee was handed 16 Terms of Reference (TORS) to deliver the needed reforms in the sector aimed at fast tracking peace building among the actors while delivering innovative reforms to ensure global competiveness of the sector.

The Committee’s work submitted to the President interrogated the issues of concerns for the development and delivery of livestock industry with global competiveness, which is anchored on critical areas of interest to the livestock sector derived from the TORs. The priority reform action based on the directive of the President is the establishment of the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development as the main bureaucratic implementing entity of the federal government programmes and projects in the sector.

In this regard, in the Inception Report, the Committee has recommended the mandate, functions, organogram, department, agencies, institutes, divisions and units for the new Ministry. Besides, the recommended management structure of the Ministry was complemented by a list of action plans, procedural and the operating framework among other details.

What is more, the Committee’s work identified prospective programmes and projects that are not only sustainable but viable with impacts on socio-economic development prospects and resource mobilisation, funding including development of business financing and investment models for private sector investment. This strategy is expected to accelerate the promotion of ranching and other economically viable intensification models to mitigate farmers and herders clashes among other socio-economic albatrosses of traditional extensive livestock production systems.

The Committee also examined governance/partnership mechanisms for key stakeholders at international, national and sub-national levels. The recommendations provided insights into the design of settlement schemes and transformation of livestock value chains where improved production is envisaged to engender overall prosperity for all. All these are outcomes of extensive review of existing policy documents, livestock reform reports and blueprint with attendant implications for overall contribution to GDP, feed, food and nutrition security, revenue generation, job creation, peace and security.

The Committee employed innovative-led, analytical and methodical approaches leveraging on the rich knowledge base of the members to distil the 16 TORs to 22 specific objectives, which guided the development of the new sectorial reform activities (120) with clear key performance indicators (3,146) and means of verification as detailed in the inception report to the President. The data-driven approach to the evaluation of the existing documents , programmes and projects in the sector has provided some preliminary information that required fieldwork validation to make informed decisions on the final recommendations of the Committee in terms of the technical and financial requirements.

‘Indicative cost estimate’

The Committee mined data to work on the indicative cost estimate to deliver on the carefully selected reforms of the livestock sector and that grossed at about N10 trillion over the next 10 years based on the preliminary desk research work and experiential consultations.

This estimate includes the cost of establishing the Ministry of Livestock Development, which is to be borne in cash and kind by the Federal Government of Nigeria. The other major components of the cost include provision for feed, water and nutrition security for value chain development – 30%, infrastructure development and capacity building -30%, Peacebuilding, national sector security & economic prosperity – 12%, Genetic resources management and breed productivity enhancement – 10%, Market development, export and competiveness – 10%, and others 8%.

The committee’s recommendation includes a cost-sharing formula that will ensure private sector investment of 50% to finance selected cost items while 40% shall be provided by the 3 tiers of government at the ration of federal 50%, state 35%, and local government 15 %respectively. Accordingly, the remaining 10% contribution is expected to be sourced from international development partners and donor agencies’ contributions including foreign direct investment (FDI).

There are indications already that in respect of local direct investment, the President’s new livestock reform action and proactivity so far has sent a positive signal to the organised private sector. The well attended Stakeholders’ consultative workshop at the State House Conference hall with numerous exhibitors of livestock products the other day confirmed this claim. The development has also resulted in the restructuring of the capital-market led N5 trillion investment named National Livestock Security Fund by the Lagos Commodities and Future Exchange to deliver on Livestock resettlement and development programme.

The Committee has been engaging and mapping all the relevant stakeholders in the nation’s livestock sector to secure their buy-in and enlist their various commitments to deliver a reformed, peaceful and competitive sector. The engagements including physical inspections of facilities and farms, which have actually begun have necessitated the profiling and reviewing of the on-going programmes and projects across the sector at the national, sub-national levels, conducting field works and needs assessment surveys, validating the status, type and number of sectoral infrastructural claims including production models, evaluate the peace-building strategies at community level, assess the available capacities and capabilities of human capital, facilitate the attraction of local and foreign direct investments for positioning the nation’s livestock sector on both continental and global map in terms of competitiveness.

The President seems to be very enthusiastic about the Livestock sector that is expected to enhance the nutritional and health outcomes of citizens, and support the food and nutritional security programmes of the government through robust livestock value chain development. The development of the sector is also expected to be consequential to the economy and welfare of the people. The Panel has mapped out how the sector will at this time create more jobs, generate additional wealth for the stakeholders.

Specifically, the reform of the sector can contribute about 10-12% to the National GDP over the next 10 years provided the reforms are institutionalised and sustained.

Going by the report and action plans of the Panel to the President, the sector shall be positioned to contribute positively to the carbon net zero commitment of Nigeria by 2050 through the deployment of research, development and innovation outcomes/outputs to ensure a climate-smart livestock sector.

The Stakeholders Consultative Workshop on Livestock Reforms in Nigeria, which took place from October 24-25 at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja was declared open by the President. The Workshop well attended by stakeholders was even dramatic by the way the Livestock Development Minister emerged from among the Stakeholders. The Minister, Idi Maiha was actually invited and had arrived in Abuja from his Dairy Farm in Kaduna. He was prepared for accreditation in Abuja when his name was announced as a ministerial nominee who hails from Adamawa state. He was spotted at the Eagle Square Accreditation centre only by other stakeholders who had met the successful dairy farmer in Kaduna state. He participated actively as a minister-designate.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Chairman of the Panel who declared the Stakeholders Consultative Workshop open, showed his seriousness further when he reiterated his support in revamping and repositioning the sector to create employment and attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

The President restated his earlier conviction that the livestock sector is critical and promised to give all it needs to bring value to Nigeria. He assured the stakeholders that they would not regret the collaboration and investment in the sector, maintaining that it is time that we got it right. He decried a situation where a country like Nigeria with over 200 million people cannot serve her children one pint of milk in a classroom per day. He also lamented that Nigeria didn’t see the investment and economic opportunities inherent in the livestock sector, urging the citizens to work together to restart the sector now that we have seen the livestock economic vibrancy.

President Tinubu emphasised the shared mission of the livestock reform as aiming to transform the livestock sector from its current subsistence model into a thriving, commercialised industry; an industry that significantly contributes to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and provides decent jobs and sustainable livelihoods for our growing population. The President further listed the potential of the livestock sector, which he described as huge to include 563 million chickens, 58 million cattle, 124 million goats, 60 million sheep, and 16 million pigs; thus, with such a huge livestock population,

According to him, Nigeria is the leading livestock producer in West Africa. He described as unacceptable the annual production of animal-source foods, like milk at 0.7 billion litres, meat at 1.48 million tons, and eggs at 0.69 million metric tonnes, which falls short of our needs. More worrisome to the Nigeria’s leader is the average milk yield by cow breeds managed by our pastoralists, estimated to be between 0.5 and 1.5 litres per day, compared to an African average of 6.6 litres per day. According to him, Nigeria can do much better as a country!

President Tinubu who was visibly elated by the presence of the Chairman of the Nigerian Governors Forum, the Governor of Kwara State, Abdulrahman Abdulrazak, thanked him for supporting the reform of animal farming in the country. He also commended the Presidential Livestock Reform Implementation Committee members, the Co-Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, and the Secretary, Prof. Muhammed Yahaya Kuta, for their commitment to repositioning the livestock sector. The President said in the main that the committee, the new ministry, and himself would continue to work to ensure the attraction of foreign direct investors and the implementation of the livestock reforms.

We should continue next week with the profile of the Panel members, which should be used as a model to strengthen state bureaucracies to deliver services to the people.