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Nuj Borno council, post election thoughts, functional committees of progress and the need to hurry up

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2 years ago

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Nuj Borno council, post election thoughts, functional committees of progress and the need to hurry up

Sam Kayode

Now that the long awaited election of a new council executive has come and gone, one’s greatest fear has been, how to break the obvious ice of disunity among some categories of members. Well like the partisans, Nigerians always find a way to unify among common interests sometimes before, during or after their own elections. In the case of the Borno council of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), I believe the desired unification is going on well, but if there are any remnants of anger remaining, within our great union, it’s time for such comrades to bring in their own input so our new council will work effectively again. It’s attainable if we are ready to rise above certain mediocre idiosyncrasies associated with the way things were done before.

That certain wrong things were done this or that way before does not make it correct. The most correct phenomenon in this short life of ours given by our creator is change. So one will expect colleagues to adjust to “change” accordingly and appropriately. Before now, the chairmen were over burdened with too many activities even more than they can chew. A press center committee was set up in the last dispensation and one thing led to another the chairperson had to leave her station the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) for the University of Maiduguri. The rest is history because much was not gotten from them as dividends. As a matter of fact, there has not been any strong press Centre committee activity in the executives I have witnessed from comrades Kakami, Baba Shek, Talba and even till date.
This is why an active press centre committee is needed to give members dividends of democracy. We cannot continue to do things the same old way gentlemen. This is why we must be in a hurry to fix our own now so our chairman Dauda Ilya can have time to carry out his duties as a reporter since he obviously did not ask for a “leave of absence” for him to do his job effectively.

Time to inaugurate relevant committees

Its time for the various committees to roll in and start work. It’s a deal we signed verbally during our campaigns that we will bring everyone on board to proffer solutions to our acts as comrades in the press Centre. As a result, over burdening the chairman and his executives unnecessarily with petty assignments like fixing bulbs that should be handled by the secretary of such a committee, will not give them ample room to think about what next which the chair should be involved in using his capacity and willpower to think along side his executives following after his campaign promises for his colleagues.

Press centre committee

One of such a vital committee in my mind’s eye is the “press centre committee”. It is not right for the chairman of the union to be the one to rush to the office of Yola electricity at Monday market for instance to fix our electricity supplies whenever it is cut. His duty if he visits the office of the regional manager is to seek partnership to benefit members and nothing more. There are so many resources out there for us to harvest and that is what we expect the chairman and his team to go after because we cannot continue to rely only on the government all the time.
Paying electricity bills is the function of the press Centre committee. They should off course do this in conjunction with the secretary who is the head of the secretariat, fixer of the nuts and bolts and keeper of all files and documents belonging to the union. It is the press center committee that will be generating desired funds and remitting same to the treasurer. The advantage of this is that too much of familiarity has been created between the exco members and the shop owners, the committee would not show them how whitish or brownish their teeth are. They should have a complete statistics of the rent payers and how much is generated. The committee system had existed in all the articles of constitutions I have seen and read from Sani Zoro’s Era to the present Era. Borno is backwards because they rely too much on the exco system other than allowing the committee to do the dirty job and cleaning the stable for them after if mistakes are made.

Ethics committee

If a colleague runs foul of our constitution, the ethics committee should be there to handle it. As a matter of fact, I understand the names of members of this committee have been penciled but we don’t know what is causing the delay in their inauguration because such committees are not driven by gratis or honorarium. As a matter of fact, this committee is supposed to be extremely independent because they owe their allegiances mostly to the letters of the constitution so that they are not found to be below board or siding with any side of a conflict which will obviously jeopardize the result they will turn over to the council. Members of this committee must also be knowledgeable about the constitutional way things are done at the national level so they don’t fall into the weakness of na so we de do am. If a colleague decides to drink heavy alcohol and disgrace the profession in a public place by doing wrong things, it’s this committee that will handle such a petition from the public and make recommendations to congress. The ethics committee are advocators always dressing well and living above board. They cannot be found in a beer parlor guzzling alcohol at “artillery” till midnight because that will deem their status in the eyes of ordinary colleagues who still behave sheepishly in this part of the country.

Welfare committee

When a member is assaulted physically or battered by an irate crowd in a bid to carry out his or her constitutional duty, the welfare committee chair and his or her people should be at the spot to douse the tension. It is they who should be the first set of people to visit that member before intimating the chair and exco about the state of affairs of the wounded or slain colleagues. At the end of the day if congress is to be alerted by a press release of what really happened, it is them that would write such a release in conjunction with the secretary which would be signed by the chairman. There is a need for the treasurer to be a natural member of the welfare committee because of her crucial roles concerning payments of hospital bills or sourcing for funds to bury a colleague in case such a Comrade male or female has paid the Supreme sacrifice.

Nobody knows tomorrow, especially the outcome of the insurgency we are battling with. That makes Borno peculiar and such a committee “must” exist to carry out that role. Committees are not meant to make members of exco jobless so to speak but they will be doing their natural duties we elected them from alongside the new roles given to them as committee chairmen. The two ex official members are also natural members that should be shared among such committees. We don’t expect the ethics committee to be completed without the only serving lawyer in the executive Comrade Abdulsalam. That would help a lot when we have challenges related with the public where our colleagues are involved deeply. The case of N14 million land sale is purely an ethical issue and they should have been in the fore front for the ethics committee instead of the exco directly which can bring bad blood. Therefore who ever thinks this is not necessary needs to search each or her brain to understand the peculiarities of Borno. The capacity of the chair of this team is vital and fundamental. He or she cannot be thinking inside the box and hope to succeed. Far from it.

Needed attraction of members to the center through more food and drinks outlets.

So many challenges need to be fixed to move the Press Centre from where we met it to where it should be by the time the Chairman Dauda Ilya led executives will finish their first term in office. And one of those is the provision of steady electricity supplies beyond the national grid. And to do this, solar panels have been one of the options on our campaign plan B which I believe many of us will be excited about. It must be done quickly before the heat season heads for its peak. As a matter of fact, this is the only reason why colleagues will become regular visitors to the main hall or any study corner to relax or work as expected. The chairman of this 5,6 or 7 men committee from the 7 chapels does not need to ask a kobo from congress to work after a take off grant. The greatest support they need is capacity to do the job and not been spoon fed with honorarium from congress. Any one who doesn’t know how to think outside the box should not be allowed to be a member of the press Centre committee as if it’s job for the boys because we worked for the victory of the current exco.

Job for the boys syndrome is the most disgusting thing to keep in your mindset if you want to work for everyone say in the area of security. You must think outside the box and get solar panels to boast electricity in the place.
The Yola electricity is obviously the plan A and we must do whatever we can to make a plan B happen. We must look for a digital meter for instance which I learnt from the zonal manager will be installed free of charge. We must also extricate our power consumption from that of the shop owners outside the building. They must get their meters too. These are some of the duties of the committee which must be stamped.

It’s up to the exco to work on the plan on ground to have a permanent shopping complex that will outlive all of us. The plan is already on ground as created by chairman Baba Shek and his exco, so we don’t need to look further for a plan. All we need is to start saving towards building our shopping complex.

More food outlet is another plan and the earlier we do something about good quality food the better. Not excessive maggi from indomie noodles. If you want to know why people don’t go there regularly it’s because of the lack of “variety” of food. It’s really dumb and insulting for anyone to sit down in his corner and assume that we already have enough food outlets. Other press Centres have up to 20 or 30 food outlets which has turned their Centres to variety point for civil and the military society to patronize them. This is the only way we can have competition. The essence for increasing the food outlets is to bring the standard and quality we are being served by creating competition. Even when the Nawojians take over, they must be given competitions so that they do not drop their guards and start taking us for granted. That is how business is run. You don’t piety people in businesses. You take proactive steps to safeguard the future. Good food is beyond painting the buildings and putting Ac. It goes beyond maggi poisoning that we relish now as food. How can we be productive if we don’t have good food? And who says it’s only in your home you should get good food devoid of all these poisons we eat?
Create a variety for food and watch the difference in the crowd flow from members to non members.

Partner with Hebron and other food vendors people visit in town and the pool of customers at our backyard in the UN hub who leave us to Hebron and Co will begin to stop by and we will begin to see the fruits of our turnaround. If you want the coolest drinks in town the best partner to look for is “today’s” and you will be glad we did. Gentlemen it’s time for us to think outside the box so that our exco do not begin to loose capacity steam thinking of how to please us besides their primary duties in their various media houses. I agree that some colleagues are mere lame ducks without capacity to back their certifications but most are loaded with ideas but are inhibited because nobody will listen to the right thing.

As for our dear pepper soup varieties, we are yet to get it right not to talk of snacks. Life at the press Centre is not just about beer drinking. It’s a variety of good food and clean people with clean brand new toilets at the beck and call of our visitors from outside. Think about this gentlemen as we prepare for the first press week organized by the Dauda Ilya led council of Borno State.

Let me use this opportunity to sympathize with many of our colleagues who have friends and relatives who lost out in the Monday market tragedy. May God console them even as the government and stake holders plan to bring them back to their feet. Amen.

Nuj Borno council, post election thoughts, functional committees of progress and the need to hurry up

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THE BIU FORUM: FEW THINGS TO KNOW

Published

4 months ago

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August 1, 2024

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THE BIU FORUM: FEW THINGS TO KNOW.

By: A G Abubakar

The Biu Forum was a child of circumstances. It was born in response to the fall out from the August 1991 state creation exercise by the Babangida military regime which initially located Biu in Yobe but removed same after a couple of days. To push for a redress or for an answer, the Forum was initiated. Its drivers came from the entire spectrum of the present day Biu Emirate and Shani Chiefdom, who were then resident in Lagos, the former federal capital.The first meeting was held in October 1991 at Block 4, Flat 3, the Bar Beach Towers, Victoria Island.

The inaugural and subsequent meetings of the forum were attended by such personalities as Shettima Saleh, Saidu Pindar, Tahir A.Musa, PC Abdullahi Mohammed, Musa Yamta, Hassan Bdliya, John Balami, Audu Shettima, Sanda Usman, Adamu Abdullahi, Musa Shani, Major (now Gen) Usman, Muhammad Dili, Ahmed Kuru, Jibrin A.Jibrin, A.G.Abubakar (Convener along with Musa Yamta), Mamman Audu, Paul Mari, Ishaku Abdullahi, Sale Mari Maina, Major. Ibrahim Bantam, Samaila Mamman, Sule Usman, C.D.Gali, and many more. These foundation members nurtured the Forum for years in Lagos before the seat of government was formally moved to Abuja.

Some of them are of blessed memory (may the Almighty grant them His mercy, Ameen), though a lot more are still living. The major objective of the forum at inception was to build a unity of purpose to tackle the challenges facing Biu Emirate, particularly its excision from the then newly created Yobe State. Plus, the need to call for attention to the brazen discriminations visited upon Biu people in the state’s civil service, while also pursuing the creation of a Savannah State. Same, with extending moral and material supports to victims of natural disasters and others like the then Waka-Biu crisis.

It would be recalled that after the Babangida military government decided to split old the Borno State, late General Abacha, then the Chief of Army Staff and the defacto number “two” man, who happened to be of Borno extraction, was assigned to consult with the Shehu as well as other opinion leaders on the government’s proposal to curve out a new state out of Borno. Late Bunu Sherrif, a son of the soil (Goniri), who was then serving as Minister of Labour among others, was to serve as a facilitator. The rough edges were therefore smoothened.

Eventually, Yobe was created. The configuration of which comprised three emirates, namely Biu, Fika, and Bade. Borno and Bama emirates were to remain as the New Borno State. The number of local governments was equally balanced at 22 each. Now, it is lopsidedly 17 and 27 LGAs for Yobe and Borno, respectively.

Along the line, some forces opposed to the inclusion of Biu emerged. The first one was the supposed friction between the Emirs of Biu and Fika regarding the order of protocol. A smokescreen, however, because the real reason was that Fika Emirate was promised the State capital (precisely Potiskum), but that was if Biu wasn’t part of the equation. The other reason was that Biu and Borno Emirates had a historical tie that made the duo almost conjoined. This was also untenable in that Ngazargamo that served as the capital of the old Kanem-Borno was severed into Yobe State. In the end, Biu remains part of Borno.

This development polarised the citizens of Biu Emirate into two. The Elders were not so favourably disposed towards leaving Borno, while the larger youth groups were at home with Yobe.

The advantages they averred included the possibility of playing more dominant political and economic roles in the new state, given the fact that Biu used to hold and still holds the Deputy Governor portfolio in Borno. The emirates (Fika and Biu) equally serve as the manpower base of the region . State politics could turn out to be like Adamawa, where all ethnic groups and/or stripes of faith can become the number one citizen of the state. The Emir of Biu would naturally be the most senior, in addition.

Based on the foregoing, Biu made a case for inclusion or, better still, a re-inclusion into Yobe. A move that was resisted vehemently by certain quarters under the umbrella of BEDA. Others who lent their voices included the Birma, Galadima Stanley Balami, PC Ali Biu, and Alhaji Ibrahim Damchida, all of blessed memory.

The Biu citizens who were pushing for the readjustment initially got the support of His Royal Highness, the Revered Mai Umar, who gracefully endorsed the demand document titled, “A Call For the Adjustment of Biu Emirate into Yobe State.” Or rather agreed for the document to be endorsed on his behalf, which was done. However, under pressure from all corners, His Royal Highness had to reconsider his support, as the Emirate found itself in a difficult situation. It was this development and regardless of the push back that the Biu Forum was formed as an alternative platform to still pursue the inclusion of Biu and Shani into Yobe State.

A petition to the government, was subsequently produced and forwarded. And to get a wider publicity and forestall suppression the Forum’s document was sent to the press . The rested influencial national newspaper, the Sunday Concord of 6th October 1991 carried the entire document. Yours faithfully picked the bill.

One of the the committed and highly articulate members of the Forum at the time, Alh. Muhammed Shehu Birma had his relationship with his principal, the Hon. Minister, Bunu Sheriff strained because of his role and support. Alh. Birma was one of the Special Assistants to the Minister who worked tirelessly to obtain the concurrence of major stakeholders to buy into the Forum’s activities.

When the misunderstanding so created on account of the state creation seemed unabating, formal meetings were called by the late elder statesman Alh. Damcida at his Probyn road, Ikoyi, home to sort things out. The “family” gathering enjoyed the presence of late Dr.Saidu Muhammad, PC Ali Biu, A.G.Abubakar, Muhammad S.Birma, Amb. Saidu Pindar, Alhaji Madu Biu, Shettima Saleh, with apologies from Dr.Bukar Usman.

One of the resolutions that came out of the series of dialogues was an undertaking by Mallam to seek an audience with General Abacha for possible reconsideration of the petition. The outcome was the creation of Hawul and Kwaya Kusar LGAs, while Biu as a whole stayed in Borno State.

As time went on, moves got started to merge the activities of the Forum to those of the senior Biu Development Association, BDA. The BDA is now BEDA (Biu Emirate Development Association). The move never materialised and the activities of both slowed down. It took the efforts of patriots like Engineer Ibrahim Usman, Dan Masani Muhammad Ibrahim, Adamu Abdullahi, Amb. Saidu, Ibrahim M.Kwajaffah, Muhammad Buba, Mai Musti, Bukar Umar and a host of others to revive the Forum and keep it going.

So for all intents and purposes the Biu Forum was not a Biu Local Government outfit. It was initiated to protect and promote the interest of Biu and Shani Emirates. And indeed every Aburwa on the planet. How it became a Forum exclusively for Biu Local Government Area was maybe a later development to give the Forum a sharper focus. And maybe to ensure a seamless coexistence with the senior BEDA.This has been a short story of the now, 33-year old (1991 to –) initiative.

A.G.Abubakar agbarewa@gmail.com

THE BIU FORUM: FEW THINGS TO KNOW

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Nigeria: Why the youths must say “NO” to protest. 

Published

4 months ago

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July 16, 2024

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Say "NO" to Protest

Nigeria: Why the youths must say “NO” to protest. 

By: Dr. James Bwala

History should teach us lessons. And we have so many examples that are part of the history of some countries around us. Protests as being engineered and called for are never in the interest of the young Nigerian; rather, they are a way to further suppress and darken the future of young ones, and therefore, I see this as another evil rising on Nigeria, which I hope the youths will see as reasons not to be tempted to join those who do not mean well for them and for Nigeria. Those who want to cash in on the protest to their advantage are pushing their own evil interests to deny the young Nigerian his or her own hope for the future. 

I followed many calls on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and listened to many voices calling on the Nigerian youths to join them on the days to demonstrate and show their displeasure to the government over hunger in the land. They claimed it was about a policy, and I did not really understand the truth about such claims. Some pointed to the issue of insecurity that people cannot go to their farms and blamed the present administration led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Senator Kashim Shettima, and on this too, they are not speculating on facts that are leading them to want to express anger through protest. 

I could not understand why all the things they are pointing to have been on their doorsteps for over 10 years and they would not protest until now. Does it mean that their eyes are now open to the situation we all found ourselves in? I have lived in northeastern Nigeria, and I have seen situations created by insecurity where children, young men, and adults hold each other’s hands and cry out for help to have a drop of grain and for one cut of a handful of mold grain flour to go through their mouths and down their throats for the day, but they could not have the assurance of such a meal. No one came to the rescue; no one called for a protest, and the people built their resilience until the heavens brought succor. 

READ ALSO:https://newsng.ng/the-plight-of-farida/

The situation in which certain individuals are coming to tell young Nigerians to protest or to demonstrate against the administration requires a deeper look into their motives. It may not be about hunger in the land afterwards, for we have endured many hungers and we did not protest, so why now? Politics is still in the play, and a few individuals—I mean, very few individuals—who are not happy with the Tinubu and Shettima administration are orchestrating the wind horses. Some young Nigerians may think otherwise, but believe me, there are many more evils behind the call for protest than what you are hearing on social media, and these are about destroying a whole lot of what you have hoped for. 

I will suggest that no Nigerian youth should join or listen to calls from those who have sent their children abroad for you to continue to be their foot soldiers, and in the end, they achieve something and you achieve nothing. Take a look at the protests or demonstrations in the past. Not outside Nigeria, but within. Some of you have participated, and you are still on the street after that protest. Your peace and happiness have been taken. Those you fought for—have they come to salvage your situation? Unless you want to remain perpetually a fool on the street with very little to gain and no knowledge of what you are bargaining, then you may choose to go with the evil callers; otherwise, say ‘NO’ to protest as it is not actually in your interest. 

This administration, which you are being instigated to demonstrate against, has won many battles in the last year. The latest in the Hope initiative are the achievements of the court ruling on local government autonomy. This government has achieved free imports for drugs and rice and brought peace through the establishment of the livestock ministry. These are a few achievements from the last six months. We have waited for eight years in hope through the Buhari administration, and no one has seen positive changes, but we waited. Herein, with the Tinubu and Shettima administrations, we are seeing the moves and the results. Can we not hold on to this renewed hope since we are seeing the changes coming? 

Nigerian youths, let no one deceive us into doing their bid. They have places to go; we only have Nigeria, which is all we have. When they moved out, we remained here. They cannot come from Europe and America to ask us to set our houses on fire while they go back to their second homes and leave us in the shackles that we used our own hands to perpetuate their desires against us for their selfish and evil interests. No, we must not come to the level they want us to reach. We must rise with renewed hope and join this administration to build a Nigeria where peace and justice reign, just as we pledged to build in our re-engineering calls for a better tomorrow. 

Dr. James BWALA, PhD, writes from Abuja.

Nigeria: Why the youths must say “NO” to protest. 

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Why Borno residents should support the Zulum Administration

Published

7 months ago

on

April 9, 2024

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Why Borno residents should support the Zulum Administration

By: Yusuf Adamu

Unfortunately, the lack of electricity and shortage of water in Maiduguri, the Borno state capital, have continued to turn some sections of the state against the government. While many are thinking it is the government job to provide electricity and water, a lot of people are not looking at the efforts the government is putting in during the phase of challenges from saboteurs and terrorists as it affects the issues of electricity in the state, particularly.

Borno State has been in darkness for the last two weeks, and the governor spoke with concern from faraway Saudi Arabia, where he went to worship, and he was informed of the electricity issue back home. Professor Babagana Umara Zulum has done tremendously well in ensuring that Borno State overcomes the issue of electricity, to the extent that he went beyond his jurisdiction to ensure that he solved the problem.

He went further to collaborate with the NNPC, which informed the setting of a gas plant in Maiduguri to support the epileptic power supply as a result of the continuous attacks on the electricity supply lines feeding Maiduguri. However, the activities of saboteurs, who would rather, out of their greed, overload the gas plant, have constantly resulted in the disruption of the gas plant’s capacity to provide adequate supply.

Rather than people condemning the government for some of this man-made distraction, I think the people of Borno State should pray for an end to the activities of terrorists and the saboteurs who continuously take advantage of the situation to speak ill of the government. If the opposition is speaking, we would understand, but when citizens say otherwise, we would like to remind them that the governor of Borno State has been doing everything possible to make Borno State great. 

The collaboration with NNPC and the purchase of electric vehicles to ease pain for people are things to see and agree that the governor meant well for his people. This is aside from the numerous projects he was able to achieve in the state. We are also lucky to have the Vice President, who is our own and whose focus is also to see Borno State become great again.

Just yesterday, he was speaking on the issues affecting the state when he arrived in the state for the sallah celebration. He gave hope for a better Borno state and spoke well of the collaboration the federal government is having with Borno state to end the perennial challenges facing the state at the moment. Let us continue to uplift our leaders in prayer and support their dream of making Borno one of the best things that happens to its people in the current administration.

***Yusuf Adamu writes from Maiduguri and is the former political adviser to Kashim Shettima.

Why Borno residents should support the Zulum Administration

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