Connect with us

Opinions

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

Published

on

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

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Opinions

UMTH:…and the testimonies of patients and patient relations

Published

on

UMTH:…and the testimonies of patients and patient relations

By: Dr. James BWALA

Recently, one of our colleagues was hospitalized at the UMTH, and I have the ability to constantly be in touch from my base. I have spoken to colleagues and relatives, and the testimonies coming from them were spirited about how the UMTH cares for its patients, putting humanity to duty. 

I had thought this was because the patient is one of the media personalities, and as such, the hospital was doing everything to ensure the best was offered. At a point, I had the pleasure of seeking some assistance for wavers on the hospital bills on behalf of the said colleague, and the CMD graciously agreed to give such assistance to a colleague in need. 

I thought that was perhaps because of the relationship the media and UMTH had built over time. But again, I was wrong in this judgment because such wavers of assistance and this hand of fellowship by the CMD, Professor Ahmed Ahidjo, had been extended to patients coming from far and near, making UMTH one of the most humane health institutions in the country today.

I have seen bad professionalism and inhumane acts by professionals in public health institutions in the country, especially in the government hospital in Abuja, where patients are being attended to based on the heaviness of their pockets. 

When I learned of the cost of the hospital bed for a VIP side room at the UMTH, I told a colleague that the UMTH is humane compared to what I know of at places like the Aso Koro General Hospital, Nyanya, Maitama, Gwagwalada, and the National Hospital in Abuja, and no amount of complaints or pleading by patients or patient relations can be heard if the pocket does not speak first. And the lowest of the luxurious rooms, not a VIP side room, is going for N10,000 and above. No option!

READ ALSO: https://newsng.ng/umth-how-professor-ahidjos-transformation-agenda-impacted-the-information-unit/

About two weeks ago, I heard a chat with someone whose wife was hospitalized, and he was complaining about the issues of lightening in the hospital. However, after that chat and the issue was fixed, he literally call back to appreciate the speed with which the technical staff took in ensuring that adequate light was provided despite the current situation of a hike in diesel prices and the resources coming to the hospital, in which the generated revenue was not enough to power the hospital’s need for electricity for one month.

From another expression, a Letter of Appreciation for the UMTH Medical Team reads: 

Dear Professor Ahidjo (CMD),

I am writing to express my deepest gratitude to the entire medical team at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH) for the exceptional care and support provided to my late son, Shafiq, during his illness.

From the moment Shafiq was admitted to UMTH, your team demonstrated professionalism, compassion, and dedication in attending to his medical needs. Your expertise and tireless efforts in diagnosing and treating his condition were evident, and we felt reassured knowing he was in capable hands.

Moreover, the kindness and empathy shown by every member of the medical staff did not go unnoticed. Your willingness to listen to our concerns, answer our questions, and provide regular updates on Shafiq’s progress was invaluable during such a challenging time for our family.

While the outcome was not what we had hoped for, I want to acknowledge the immense comfort and support your team provided to both Shafiq and our family, particularly the role played by Prof. Ahidjo, Prof. Sandabe, and Prof. Sanusi throughout his stay at UMTH. Your unwavering commitment to delivering quality healthcare, even in the face of adversity, is truly commendable and speaks volumes about the professionalism and compassion of UMTH’s medical staff.

Please convey our heartfelt appreciation to everyone involved in Shafiq’s care, including doctors, nurses, technicians, and support staff. Your dedication to your profession and your patients makes a difference in the lives of so many, and we will forever be grateful for the care and attention Shafiq received under your watchful care.

Thank you once again for your exemplary service and for making a difficult time more bearable for our family.

With sincere appreciation,

Prof. Abdulkarim Ishaq

Perhaps one may think that there has been a longtime relationship with the system among those who are speaking or writing to appreciate the hospital and management team led by Professor Ahmed Ahidjo. The truth is that I have also interacted with patients being referred from far and near who spoke well of the hospital and its kind of professionals in my recent visit to Maiduguri. Some describe the hospital as a hallmark of excellence, and I agree with them. In a video I watched, a patient from Oyo State also spoke volumes of humane and professional lines from his testimony of both the medical and technical teams at the UMTH.

A patient from Ibadan, Oyo state.

When patients or their relatives speak about the treatment they received from medical personnel, they always speak from their heart because, at that moment, they are prompted by either the satisfaction they received or otherwise. And for UMTH, these patients and their relatives have no regrets about meeting the team.

** James BWALA, PhD writes from Abuja

UMTH:…and the testimonies of patients and patient relations

Continue Reading

Opinions

Kashim Shettima: Abati’s response and Rufai’s reactions to hunger in the land

Published

on

Kashim Shettima: Abati's response and Rufai's reactions to hunger in the land

Kashim Shettima: Abati’s response and Rufai’s reactions to hunger in the land

By: Dr. James Bwala

The Arise News TV morning show of Wednesday, February 21, 2024, like others before it, is a butchers table where thoroughbred professionals are supposed to be speaking to Nigerians on matters that affect them. However, while a professional like Dr. Reuben Abati would tailor his responses to journalistic professionalism, his colleague in the studio (speaking of TV host Rufai Oseni) would always react to issues as one seeking to take a pound of flesh on persons he may not have agreed with in an exchange of denomination on issues so worrying to all Nigerians. 

Nigerians are angry. Yes, we all deserve better deals from our leaders. But do we really love the truth? If we do as many who are chanting in the streets blaming the Tinubu Administration for the sins of the past regime or what he did or did not do as president, we must understand that the trouble we faced today is the result of the corruption we overlooked or waved with the hand when it was happening. 

The unrepentant evil doers in the political circles, which continued to dictate to leaders in power, have for all reasons to be blamed for Nigeria’s current crash in the naira free fall, skyrocketing prices of food items as well as building materials, which shoot to unimaginable heights within weeks of the new year, if we take it closer. Most of them are not in the corridors of power, but they are those steering the economy, banditry, and other terrorism acts from their sitting positions across the country.

These ungrateful citizens, who pile up food and other needs in the name of hoarding, are living among the people and are joining in blaming the government when they actually know that they are the ones to blame for sabotaging the nation. 

The Vice President Kashim Shettima, while commenting on an occasion recently, said that some trucks loaded with food items were arrested for trying to smuggle out food to other countries while their countrymen were in need of such commodities. Many Nigerians who are on top of their voices are not blaming these evil men for their woes; instead, they form alliances and go to the streets to satisfy their paymasters, who are bent on making the country ungovernable.

When I saw some of these paid scripts and rented voices in Abuja on Tuesday, I realized that the real issue in Nigeria is not about fighting for the masses who cannot afford a meal. It was not about fighting for hundreds and thousands whose voices ebb as would a lantern go out of fuel. But it was a game stage played by individuals who lack integrity and are actively trying to sabotage President Bola Tinubu’s administration’s initiatives to improve the Nigerian economy. They are peching everywhere, from the dollar rate to food items in the market.

These forces are hell-bent on undermining our nation, and rather than supporting the government to fight these evil men, Nigerians, blinded by false witnesses, have turned their blind eyes to reality and focused their attention and energy on helping these evil men achieve their purpose. Nigerians ought to start looking inward. We must begin to tell these individuals to stop their evil doings in the interest of our nation. This is the time for us to coalesce into a singular entity, and indeed, as Vice President Kashim Shettima has said, we have to make this country work. We have to move beyond politics. 

We have to understand that we are now in the face of governance. Persons like Rufai Oseni of Arise TV should not wake up to a morning show as a TV host on the wrong side of the bed with such rage in speech and countenance. I have studied mass communication, and that is not what we have been taught in the classroom.

Rufai Oseni’s reactions to Vice President Kashim Shettima put him in a different class of journalism. But sitting with professionals like Dr. Reuben Abati, he needs to learn journalism again. I think he needed to replay the Wednesday morning show and watch it for himself again and make a comparison of his reactions to the responses given by Dr. Reuben Abati on Shettima’s statemanship comments, standing as one and not as the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

If you know Kashim Shettima very well, you know when he is speaking from the heart and when he is playing politics with words. While Dr. Reuben Abati understands the pains of Shettima’s response to the hardships and actions of saboteurs, Rufai’s reactions betrayed his commitment to national interest, and I hope Arise TV could organize tutorials for such staff appearing on a national TV, whether as journalists or TV hosts, which I will recommend for Rufai Oseni to go for those lessons.

“It is so sad that some of our countrymen are still in political mode. They are the practitioners of violence, advocating that Nigeria should go the Lebanon way. But Nigeria is greater than any of us here. Nigeria will weather the storm.” Indeed, Vice President Kashim Shettima was right. These men are living with us; we all know them and know their moves. It is time to begin to look them in the eyes and tell them the neckade truth. The Tinubu and Shettima administrations are not sleeping over the many issues confronting the nation at this time. This government has been battling many fronts, some of which are living under our nose. We must fight them to release our country from the shackles of destruction by these saboteurs.

As of January 18, 2024, a bag of cement was selling for N5,500. Iron rod by 12 was selling for N4,600, and by 10, it was selling for N3,600. Cement is now going for N10,200, and the iron rod was selling for N9,700 and N8,700, respectively. This was barely one month from the known price in the market. The explanations being given by traders, marketers, and companies over the increase in their products were not realistic. 

For example, I heard one of the executives of a cement company attribute the souring price to demand over short supply and also point at the price of diesel for production. But I ran my eyes over some level of development, at least in comparison to what I saw last year when the price of cement was under N6,000 to what is obtained now, and I could not convince myself to believe that demand was low last year in comparison to this year’s demand since the year itself is young and the first quarter of the year, as we know, is not time for such high demands of products like cement. So what are the true reasons?

Perhaps Arise TV should begin to think of calling these traders, marketers, and company owners to tell Nigerians in point blank why they are subjecting Nigerians to untold hardship and also give us what they think the government needs to do if they feel that the government is not doing enough so that Nigerians can know where the problem is coming from and stop the blame game or conducting and sponsoring protests to add salt to injury. 

Some producers of cement have attributed their claims to a hike in the price of diesel, but still, was the price of diesel the same as it was last year and the year before? If these protesters want to help Nigerians overcome the piling problems, why can’t they show support by approaching these conglomerates about the changes that come to us in a tsunami-style manner? No matter how situations may turn with government handlings, it cannot turn overnight as we are experiencing unless there are attempts to bring the government to it’s knees by certain elements and that is what the VP saw.

If Rufai Oseni could react to Shettima’s comment as he did on the morning show today, I would ask where he left his professionalism. If the Arise TV morning show is a place of butchering ideas, comments, and statements made by politicians or persons of profiling, in journalism, I believe we still hold to the creed of respecting people’s opinions and never allowing our own opinions about people to becloud our reasonings.

* James Bwala, PhD, writes from Abuja.

Kashim Shettima: Abati’s response and Rufai’s reactions to hunger in the land

Continue Reading

Opinions

Tinubu,Shettima: The epidemic of economic, insecurity in Nigeria

Published

on

Tinubu, Shettima

Tinubu,Shettima: The epidemic of economic, insecurity in Nigeria

By: Dr. James Bwala

With the rhetoric around the economy and security situation in the country, those blaming the government have failed to look at the history and those involved in it that brought Nigeria to its current predicament. The eight-year rule of the Buhari regime has given birth to criminality with untold consequences for Nigeria, but many who are now speaking ill of the Tinubu and Shettima administration are deliberately shying away from that creation, now biting the fabric covering the nakedness of Nigeria as a people and nation.

The fingers pointing at the present economic and security situation never consider some big names flooring on the pages of newspapers, both living and dead, who have melted the economy of this country and secured insecurity to this heights that left tears around and in many families who lost loved ones to banditry and other criminality.

Since May 29, 2023, I have gone through the pages of informed newspapers in the country and read success stories of greater achievements in security operations by our soldiers, police, the DSS, and other security agencies. But critics, as they are, are not quoting some of these successes to encourage the government and say we are with you in this movement. They would rather omit these achievements in their narrations to make the devil out of the new administration that, during Buhari’s time, they told us to be patient with when, in six months, the country was without a minister and nothing seemed to be moving in the face of the same security and economic challenges.

In the North, they say it is our own. And so, nobody speaks ill of the Buhari regime, despite its failure in all phases at the time. Those who reflected back at the Good Luck administration to make comparisons to Buhari’s government are seen as anti-north.

The community of the northern leaders has rallied around the regime to not allow the nakedness of the government to be seen by outsiders. They preach the sermon of never washing your dirty lining in public places, though in the closets they are gnashing their teeth in anguish and regret that their roars are eating them while they watch. Those who dare the government are shown the way to Kuje prison, and those who do not want to go that way retract their shells and watch with hopelessness.

Before the 2023 general elections that brought the victory for Tinubu and Kashim Shettima, Nigerians witnessed the shocking twist in both the security and economic situation, anchored by very few individuals in Buhari’s archery.

Recently, the Lagos elderstateman, Chief Bode George, was trending on a video calling on the government to invite three Nigerians for questioning. One of them was late but opened a ten billion naira retirement home at less than sixty years old. One was circling around the courtroom and prison since the Tinubu and Shettima administration closed on him, and the other, according to Chief Bode George, was a floor boy in the banking hall before rising to prowess.

There are others nitting to the immediate past regime of Buhari, which the current administration seemed to be taking careful steps to cover around them. Perhaps long before a comment credited to a former military ruler in the country.

A statement recently credited to the former Military President, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, asked President Tinubu to be careful to avoid military takeover. I believe the former military ruler has the ears of some military commanders in service, and his entreaty should be positively anchored to preaching democracy and rule of law so Nigeria should not derailed.

A man of such vintage should caution at the close door and not allow an air of a few words to fall into the ears of some power-hungry morons because what hatches the eggs is the constant daily warmth that comes from a light bulb. Tinubu and Kashim Shettima have fought big battles to come thus far in their careers as politicians.

Today, they are leading Nigeria to get to the promised land, and it is not only about them and their families. It is also about over two hundred million Nigerians moving together to reach a goal. It could take forty days or forty years, depending on the faith we carry and our decision not to murmur at every inch.

Since the Nigerian journey is not about Tinubu or Shettima but a movement of over 200 million people towards a goal, I feel it is rather in the interest of all to rally around the government to support it. Since the onset of the administration, Nigerians have applauded their choice of individuals for service chiefs and other credible appointments.

Of course, no kingdom arrangement is complete without the Judas; we have seen a few of them, and the administration did creditably well in doing the needful. A case of the humanitarian minister and more are coming. This shows the seriousness of this administration in dealing with the Nigerian people by the books they swore on oath.

Those who want to criticize Tinubu or the VP, Kashim Shettima, over the current economic and security situation should do so with good intentions and help the government by offering solutions. They should do so with facts to praise and to condemn. The government is open to criticism, but positive criticism is what builds a nation.

The economic and security situation will fizzle out when we all go back to the drawing board to trace the actions and inactions of the past that led to the current situation. Tinubu and Kashim Shettima mean well, and we can do well to support them and Nigeria. As leaders, they should also be encouraged to give their best to building the nation. So, we can all reach the promised land.

I believe as many Nigerians had hope to have a peaceful country free of security situations and greater economic revival, both Tinubu and Kashim Shettima are on the same page with Nigerians because there is no other country where we can all be proud of like Nigeria. If we come together to support the government, we can tailor this fabric of economy and insecurity to a desired shape that will be pleasing to all. Dear compatriots, let us come together to do as we say in our anthem.

***James Bwala, PhD, writes from Abuja.

Continue Reading

Trending

Verified by MonsterInsights