02082020 - Miyetti Allah attacks Christain Elders, Afenifere, Ohanaeze over S/Kaduna Killings

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PAGE 10 –SUNDAY VANGUARD, AUGUST 2, 2020 NEW REVELATIONS ON BAKASSI: The odds were heavily against Nigeria —Azinge, Judge of the Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal, London (2) •Speaks on his title, the Okilolo (philosopher, thinker, sage) of Asaba By Emma Amaize, Regional Editor, South-South PROFESSOR Epiphany Azinge, SAN, Judge of the Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal, London and a former Director General of the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, was in the team that argued Nigeria’s case at the International Court of Justice on the Bakassi Penninsula. In this interview, he speaks on why Nigeria lost the case to Cameroun. Azinge also speaks on his title, the Okilolo (philosopher, thinker, sage) of Asaba. The first part of the interview was published last Sunday. Verdict on the legal profession The legal profession in Nigeria, both at the bar and bench, we have one of the best in the world. There are no two ways about it. One of the best and brightest, our judges might be accused of one thing or the other, but their judgments resonate so well all over the world. Many people all over the world are scrambling to read the judgments of our judges and using them for comparative studies. Our lawyers are also doing very well, but we have to keep pushing for greater frontiers. How well our law chambers are managed? Do we have partnership that will run into 300? If you go to England, America, there are some partnerships that have up to 300-500 lawyers in one law firm. Have we grown to that level? Yes, we have 20, 30, 50, but time will tell if we will get to 300, 500. Is that the way to the future, for me? Yes, law should not be “my father was a lawyer, I will be a lawyer and my children will be lawyers too”. This is the time to expand the scope and bring in many people, somebody specializing in this area, this person in that area and all that. And together you now become an octopus that people will come to. Clearly in Nigeria, the time of father-son, husband-wife legal practice is fading away. Why did Nigeria really lose the Bakassi case? Our case was dead on arrival. What informed the judgment of the court were some documents and treaties that our leaders entered before the case. There were declarations here and there and people trying to draw the boundary of Nigeria in such a way that Bakassi is excluded, things that were done innocuously but when the time came, it became the centerpiece of the judgment. In other words, the pivotal aspect where the judges concentrated and such evidences already pitched against us were made by Nigerians. So there was no way that you can discredit something made by you, some of those things signed by some of our leaders at that point in time when they never contemplated that a day like that would come at the International Court of Justice. So it was like they used your own documents prepared by you against you and that puts you in a very tight corner; that was the basis of losing the matter, not necessarily on the basis of legalese, skills or any such thing. You are the first and only person to be conferred with the title of Okilolo (philosopher, thinker, sage) of Asaba. What is it all about? Okilolo means that you have a burden of helping to chart a path and articulate positive policy thrust that will help to bring about desirable changes in the community, while reviewing those already in existence and modifying them where necessary. It is a title that makes you go to bed thinking on how to improve on the state of things, the welfare of your people, the developmental programmes and, of course, helping to advise the institutions on how to plan a new course. It is a title that puts a lot of responsibilities on you in many ways and it makes you to look out for clear-cut novel policies that can be translated to evolution of your community. My training professionally seems to have prepared me for the position: a scholar who has attained high intellectual accomplishments – a doctoral degree well before I was 30 and having being in the academia for a very long time. Last month (June) marked my 20 years of being a professor and I am still in a very strong position to fathom how things can be improved at any point in time, to shift frontiers, develop new ones and fine tune old ones in a way to make for positive growth and development in the system. As an Okailolo, a philosopher in his own right and a thinker in the mold of great philosophers, you have the responsibility to be a leader and the title in Asaba means dube anyi, which means “lead us”. So the title confers on you that leadership role. You are not leading because you are in competition with the throne because it is the So it was like they used your own documents prepared by you against you and that puts you in a very tight corner throne that conferred that responsibility on you, but because you are a chief of the palace. It is the palace that selected you, your opinion is sought and your views are heard and they accord it respect and listening ears because it is coming from an elevated pedestal. It is a title that was well carved out to suit a particular purpose, so I wear that title with dignity and I am conscious of the obligation that goes with it. Thinkers like you in other climes consult with spirits and enlist in occultist groups to be able to steer their people. Do you consult with spirits and in which cult are you? (Long laughter) I believe in God. I am a prayerful person and I have surrendered my life to him; maybe to that extent, I am consulting with the spirits because God is Spirit and everybody that worships Him must do so in spirit and truth. That for me is the divine way of going about it. But I do not think in human life that we need these extra powers to do what we are supposed to do. You do not need them to pass through college, university, do master’s and doctorate degrees and all that. I believe that one with God is with the majority; the only thing is that you read widely, you open up yourself and draw ideas. Those of us in the academia are creative people; you do not need cult or ancestral spirit to lead your people. The phenomenon about the Azinge family But there is one thing common about the Azinge family of Asaba: Our great grandfather was the chief priest of a deity in Asaba, the Onishe Shrine, but one thing that marvels people is that the major symbol of the Azinge family currently is Christianity. My father moved fully into Christianity, abandoning his roots of being the offspring of a chief priest, his senior brother; there were only two of them. So, two brothers, who were offspring of a chief priest of a deity, abandoned that path and there is no Azinge today that is not a very strong Christian. We have reverend fathers, pastors, we are completely disconnected and our family’s symbol is a Bible opened with a pen. So, the Azinge people identify with religion and education. Some of us also marvel today how our fathers were able to disconnect and we have not had any repercussion arising from their wonderful decision. And beyond our imagination, the family has prospered enormously, giving us the impression that the decision of the two brothers was the right decision. Asaba struggling with both modernity and tradition Well, before Delta State was created, Asaba was a sleepy, rusty town by the Niger, but the creation of Delta State and siting of the capital in Asaba certainly seemed to have expanded and widened our scope of development. And for that we are grateful. In the midst of all these, Asaba has remained a peaceful capital territory of Delta State, one that is so attractive to people either from other parts of Delta, Edo State, and, more importantly, people from across the Niger. It is a melting point so to speak. To God be the glory, at the time this is happening and before it started, we were lucky to have a traditional ruler, the Asagba of Asaba, Obi (Prof) Chike Edozien, a leading scholar in his own right, traditionalist, reformer and administrator to navigate and chart the course for his own people. He has been instrumental in the way we have been able to delicately balance the issues of tradition and modernity. It is not that all have been rosy; we have paid the price of being a capital territory. Asaba is completely if not totally deprived of land at this point in time. Most of the land of the people have been taken over by government to the extent that some of us are now wondering where our children will build. People are trying to look for even one acre of land in Asaba and cannot find; that, to me, is a gun powder that is waiting to explode because our children will •Azinge ask critical question when the time comes and they may not get favorable answer. But beyond that, we are happy with the level of development and many other things that it has attracted to us. We are happy that it has exposed Asaba to the international community, not that we had not been exposed before now, mark you, Asaba used to be the headquarters of the Royal Niger Company, which makes us the equivalent of the capital of Nigeria at that point in time; we have always been there, but now, you cannot mention Delta State without mentioning Asaba. But like I said, the burden of being a capital city is also there, but we have tried as much as possible to retain our tradition without necessarily allowing it to be an impediment to growth and development. So that balancing is what we have strived to get right at every point in time, but our tradition is still in place. We are not the first to venture into this situation. Benin City is still there and, as a role model in that regard, Benin is strongly a traditional seat, yet it has developed the way it has developed, the throne is still there, the tradition and custom is known to those who are even non-indigenes. I believe that is what we are facing in Asaba and, of course, we have a lot to borrow from Benin City. However, depending on the person that is leading at any point in time, the thinking of a reformer on the throne of our forefathers, as the Asagba of Asaba, Obi (Prof) Chike Edozien, he understands from his vast knowledge and experience that Asaba must be given the opportunity to grow, but without compromising the things that are dear to our history, custom, tradition, beliefs, among others. We have been able to manage all these, but then again we have our land and other things what we have lost. What prepared you for your numerous achievements? The blessings of God, the little goodwill that flows from good parenting and the innermost desire to become a success. It is the hand of God that makes one to achieve His desires. Personally, I had the drive to accomplish the much as I can. I wanted to read law and prepared myself for it. Regrets I do not have any regret; there is nothing that I had wished that I have not achieved for myself at this point in time.
Margaret Idahosa: First Female Archbishop in Africa Early last week, emerging railway stations in Nigeria were reportedly named after some citizens. Apart from one or two names, most of those so honoured belonged to the political class. This showed again that in our clime, each time we have cause to honour people our first official thoughts focus on politicians as if to hold a political office automatically conjures good conduct and excellent performance; yet we all know that the same political class has always been behind the nation’s woes. Indeed, it is now officially accepted that any person who is declared winner of an election to our federal legislature immediately becomes an illustrious and eminent personality with the appellation ‘distinguished’ or ‘honorable’ immediately affixed to his or her name as senator or member of the House of Representatives respectively. Interestingly, many citizens including even those so honoured hardly believe they deserve such favour. When some two days after the railway story, I ran into a PhD,Department of Philosophy, University of Lagos 08116759758 opuruiche2000@gmail.com he failure of Dr. Azikiwe Tand Chief Awolowo to unite against Sir Robertson’s northernisation agenda is regrettable because it not only allowed Britain to get away with odious political shenanigans that unjustly favoured the north, it also laid the foundation for the subsequent entrenchment of mediocre Fulani caliphate colonisation which over the decades has crippled Nigeria. Before independence in 1960 British officials had displayed with impunity favouritism towards the north. So, it is unrealistic to expect them to hand over power to either Azikiwe or Awolowo both of whom, as I suggested earlier, played into their hands by not joining forces together to thwart Sir Robertson’s intentions. Remember also that northern delegates to the constitutional conferences held before 1960 had repeatedly used the threat of secession to get more concessions from colonial officials who usually responded as if Nigeria was created by the British for the north. Clearly, the emergence of Sir Tafawa Balewa as Prime Minister meant that Nigeria entered independence on a wrong footing. First, Balewa did not possess the requisite intellectual sophistication, relevant exposure and experience to govern a modern nation-state based on secular constitutional democracy. Second, his party, the NPC, was an extremely report in an obscure corner of a local newspaper, which stated that Dr (Mrs.) Margaret Idahosa had clocked 77 years, it occurred to me that something was not right about our perception of values. If those who honour many of our fake politicians had taken a little time to look out for citizens who had made substantial contributions to our nation’s growth and development, they would probably have come across Idahosa, Matriarch of Pentecostalism in Nigeria and a leading religious teacher and moral reformer. But that is hardly done, instead, many of those that are always lucky to be picked are simply noise makers and election riggers with no second address or persuasive antecedents. It is time to depart from such irritating comedy and search for citizens with enviable track records. One such Nigerian, is Dr (Mrs.) Margaret Idahosa, widow of Benson Idahosa widelyacclaimed Father of Nigeria’s Pentecostalism. The life and times of Margaret Idahosa testify to the fact that certain women Was the amalgamation of northern and southern Nigeria in 1914 a mistake? (3) clannish political organisation guided by its motto of “One North, One People,” with no elected member from the south in the House of Representatives. Third, as I have already indicated, Robertson was more interested in making Balewa Prime Minister than in delivering a free and fair elections that might produce Azikiwe or Awolowo instead. Fourth, southern politicians were at the forefront of the nationalist struggle for independence while their northern counterparts oftentimes delayed the process or acted as spoilers because they knew that the north at that time lacked an efficient modern administrative machinery and educated workforce that can function on its own. Matters came to a head in 1953 on the floor of the federal House of Representatives when Anthony Enahoro from AG tabled a motion for independence in 1956. The northern majority in the House flatly rejected the date, and substituted it with the more modest and vague goal of attaining independence “when practicable.” Thus, it was a clear case of rewarding Sardauna and his cohorts for their reluctant approach to independence when the NPC took political control from the departing British, with the NCNC as junior partner in a wobbly coalition whereas the AG under Awolowo formed the Opposition. An important point that has behind successful men can hold the fortress on their own, when their men are no more. That has been the fate of Mrs. Idahosa who in the last two decades and more, has excellently managed the Church of God Mission International (CGMi) founded by her husband, the legendary Archbishop Benson Idahosa who passed on in 1998. Those who had feared that the man’s magnificent legacy may dwindle have since found that his widow is a talented, committed builder, leader and coordinator of repute. Rather than a decline, the church attained astronomical progress two years ago, during its golden jubilee under Margaret, the new leader with sterling qualities. This probably influenced the statement credited to Edo Governor Godwin Obaseki at the golden jubilee of CGMi that “we thought the passing of the founder would lead to the collapse of the Church but we are here celebrating the vibrancy of the Church in the past 50 years. Vice President Yemi Osinbajo corroborated this observation by describing the lady as “a woman of history, destiny and the future, who has been able to crack the glass ceiling in the gospel world that is dominated by male preachers and whose messages have changed the destinies of many.” Today, not received adequate attention from supporters of amalgamation is the virtual impossibility of creating a stable democratic state based on secular constitution in a geopolitical environment where one part is predominantly Muslim and the other hosts a significant population of western educated Christians. Modern democratic government and Islamic theocracy based on sharia are like water and palm oil – they cannot mix since their fundamental presuppositions are contradictory. This point has been explored by Ibn Warraq in his remarkable book, Why I am not a Muslim. As applied to Nigeria, the template set by the arch-jihadist Uthman Dan Fodio even before the founding of Nigeria and reiterated at various times since independence by Ahmadu Bello, Maitama Sule and others is that Northern Muslims must dominate southern Nigeria using any means necessary, including military conquest and Islamisation. Once this factor is inserted into the analysis of major political events in the country after colonial rule, the error of the amalgamation leaps into prominent relief and the primitive nepotic leadership of northerners that has reached its zenith in the present dispensation becomes intelligible. Let me put it this way: Islamic theocracy is at odds with secular constitutional democracy. Leading members of the northern intellectualpolitical-military establishment are devout Muslims who feel deep down that sharia is superior to the constitution and should be the grundnorm for Nigeria. Therefore, although northerners that have ruled Nigeria made pretensions about constitutional democracy and some of them had indeed supervised the drafting of constitutions to that effect, recognition of sharia in the constitutions and CGMi has presence in well over 4000 branches across Nigeria, as well as Africa, Europe, North America and Asia. One of the greatest factors behind the success story of the As a courageous leader, she did not hesitate to deprecate politicians whose love for materialism often hinders development Idahosas is fervent continuation of the belief of their patriarch in the vision of Nelson Mandela that “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” This is because like religion, education plays a major role in the socialization process of society. This obviously explains the existence today of the Benson Idahosa University (BIU) in Benin City which started in 1993 as the Christian Faith University-Institute of Continuous Learning in affiliation with the University of Benin, and the then Edo State University, now Ambrose Ali University, Ekpoma. In February 2002, BIU, which received the required license to operate as a private university in Nigeria from the National Universities Commission, is now a world-renowned university with five Faculties which in addition to the existing campus are now located at the permanent site Overall, the amalgamation was very beneficial politically and economically for Britain and her puppets from northern Nigeria its implementation in northern states is a stark reminder that the Muslim north is merely playing along for now because the unitarist constitution in place is favourable to it and, in fact, is compatible to sharia in some important respects, especially the excessive powers granted the President and the federal government. As far back as 1942, northern traditional rulers had insisted that “holding this country together is not possible except by means of the religion of the prophet. If they [southerners] want political unity let them follow our religion.” Two years later, the then Sultan of Sokoto, Siddiq Abubakar III, proclaimed that “Those southerners who desire a united Nigeria should first embrace Islam as their religion.” Boko Haram, the terrorist wing of the northern establishment, issued a bulletin in December 2011 wherein it reiterated its core mission as follows: “We want to reemphasise that our main objective is the restoration of the sharia legal system in line with the teachings of the Holy Qur’an. We want the Nigerian constitution abrogated and democracy suspended and a full-fledged Islamic state established.” Needless to say, President Buhari not only made a case in defence of Boko Haram in 2014 but also boldly supported the spread of sharia nationwide. That Britain ignored the instability and turbulence inherent in the deep-rooted differences between the Muslim north and southern Nigeria with a substantial non-Islamic population and still went ahead with the amalgamation is indicative of the contempt she has for black people. SUNDAY VANGUARD, AUGUST 2, 2020, PAGE 11 known as the legacy campus. Among other accolades, BIU is one of the first institutions to participate in the training of delegates under the Presidential Amnesty Programme which attests to its relevance to the entire Nigerian society. Benson Idahosa University is daily making huge gains from the goodwill of its founder. In 2017, it was a thankful Chancellor of the University, Archbishop Margaret Idahosa, that commissioned a one-Kilometer dual carriage road donated by the Managing Director of Ray Royal Construction Company, Rev. (Dr.) Matthew Okpebholo, at the legacy campus. Only in March, the University commissioned a N1 billion faculty of engineering building donated by the founder and President of Christ Embassy Church, Rev. Chris Oyakhilome - one the outstanding religious leaders inspired by the late Archbishop Benson Idahosa. Although the University is the most popularly known among its educational institutions there are several others at lower levels initiated by CGMi. Being a trained educationist herself, Margaret Idahosa takes pride in her establishment of the Word of Faith Schools which currently has more than 100 schools at Kindergarten, Primary and Secondary levels all over Nigeria. CGMi is also dedicated to the extension of health delivery service to mankind hence it established in 1989, the Faith Mediplex group of hospitals in Benin. The initiative clearly depicts the CGMi leadership as lucid, unlike some other church leaders who naively counsel their followers to shun health delivery service on the basis of religion. The The collapse of the British contraption which led to the civil war less than six years after independence is the most consequential indictment of the amalgamation. Both the remote and proximate causes of that costly conflict have been competently documented by historians and writers of different stripes and ideological orientations. The most unfortunate aspect of it all is that, out of stupidity, hatred of the Igbo, and myopic vision northern Nigerian leaders failed to harness the scientific and technological ingenuity showcased by Biafrans during the war. More tellingly, the dominant northern ruling power block and their puppets from the south are still repeating the same mistakes that led to the war. They are so pachydermatous, corrupt, selfish and wicked that the lessons of the conflict seem to be completely lost on them. Detailing here the deep selfinflicted wounds on “Niger Area” caused by Yakubu Gowon and others since July 29, 1966 would elongate this analysis unnecessarily. However, they are very glaring in the current administration of President Muhammadu Buhari which has failed abysmally in the three cardinal pillars on which he campaigned for the presidency in 2015, namely, rebuilding the economy, enhancing security, and decapitating corruption. “Niger Area” is poorer and more divided now because of his unprecedented nepotism and mediocrity. I have said it before and I will repeat it again: Buhari governs the country as if she were the Fulani Republic of Nigeria, which is why flotsam and jetsam Fulani in the north and from other West African countries are pouring into the southern forests in large numbers. Never before in our history have northern Muslims of questionable abilities dominated the topmost positions in the three branches of the federal excellent service being rendered in the hospital tallies with the founding mission of Archbishop Benson Idahosa to “merging the hand of prayer with the hand of medicine to heal the whole person - spirit, mind and body.” Like all the legacies of Papa Idahosa, the hospital complex has since grown by leaps and bounds into a multispecialty teaching hospital complex with multiple training programmes and extension hospitals in Abuja, FCT and Uyo, in Akwa Ibom State. Only recently, an Annex of the hospital known as the Big Ben Children’s Hospital (BBCH) came on board to specifically provide state of the art, labour and delivery facilities, obstetrical theatre, neonatal ICU, and birthing centre suites. Archbishop Margaret Idahosa is apolitical but exercises no hesitation in supporting the government of the day to develop the state. As a courageous leader, she did not hesitate to deprecate politicians whose love for materialism often hinders development. Hence amidst political tension in Edo state, she admonished Governor Godwin Obaseki “not to be distracted by the things you hear or see. There are some who would not appreciate a performing Governor like Your Excellency but thank God you have people like me and my prayer group lifting you to God, and no weapon, no incantation, no fiery darts of the enemy will touch you.” Margaret Idahosa has always been a lucky woman; though her husband is no more, she is blessed with an amazing son, Bishop Feb Idahosa, who serves as Vice President and modern engine of the world of CGMi. To Mama Margaret, many happy returns of July 29. government, the security system, and most key areas of the economy. Given the grotesque unitary arrangement in operation especially since 1967, poor leadership at the centre, like a horrible pandemic or cancer, has devastated the entire country. Consequently, it is time to dismantle the colonial amalgam so that the constituent ethnic nationalities can build their own nations with others that are geographically, historically and culturally connected to them, and may subsequently come together in future to form a confederation of nations. People with warped and hawkish warmongering outlook think, wrongly, that such a radical reconstitution of Nigeria must necessitate violence. That may be true considering the obduracy of the northern power block and their agbata ekee southern collaborators benefiting from the skewed system and whose foot-soldiers threaten violence whenever any southern ethnic group demands selfdetermination. But history, like the vulture, is patient: that which will be will be, in due time, depending on the dialectical interplay of complex historical forces. Overall, the amalgamation was very beneficial politically and economically for Britain and her puppets from northern Nigeria. But to peoples of the former eastern and western regions especially since 1966 it has been a colossal mistake of historical proportions because belonging to a unified Nigeria has prevented them from harnessing the impressive human and natural resources in their domains for rapid development. Certainly, it is not mere coincidence that Nigeria witnessed her best period of progress when the east, the west and northern regions were governed as semi-autonomous entities. Think about that. CONCLUDED.
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02082020 - Miyetti Allah attacks Christain Elders, Afenifere, Ohanaeze over S/Kaduna Killings

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