Nigeria’s troubling epidemic of rapes

LAST week, the Centre for Environment, Human Rights and Development, an NGO, reported that in 2012, no fewer than 1, 200 girls were raped in Rivers state.
The state Project Officer of the body, (Michael Gbarale) who is also the chairman of the Child Protection Network, added that: “of this figure (of 1,200), gang rapes were more frequent”.
49 cases were reported to the Network, while 800 others, were treated by ‘doctors without border’. Out of the 49 cases taken to the Child Protection Network, 11 were gang rapes; 44 were ordinary rape cases.
In another survey to investigate high HIV prevalence and lower age for sex among adolescents between 10 and 19 years, carried out by the Positive Action for Treatment Access (PATA), it found out that: “forced sex was the third main reason for sexual debut” after love and peer pressure. It said that more than 31.4 percent of girls, many of them living with HIV, reported “forced sex” or rape as the basis of first sexual encounter.
Doctor Morenike Ukpong who presented the study at a national dialogue on adolescents living with HIV in Nigeria, told DAILY TRUST, that “if 31.4 percent of females can report their first sexual debut as rape, I think it is an epidemic…We have an epidemic called rape that we are not addressing. It is something to weep over”.
Dr. Ukpong went on that “for many of those who are HIV positive, their exposure to HIV is because of rape. It is a risk factor for HIV infection and we are not dealing with that”. Some of those in the study were as young as seven: “the man said if I tell my mum or dad he would kill me.
He showed me a knife and I was afraid, I was just seven years old then. He was sleeping with me everyday and I was fearful to talk to anybody. I bled, my sister saw it but I could not tell her what happened…” Stories like these are in the media almost on a daily basis in Nigeria.
There was a report from Auchi, where students at the Polytechnic, kidnapped their classmate, raped her for days and later killed her. There are postings of horrific pictures of young men, somewhere in Rivers state, who raped a girl and then buried her alive, but were discovered by military men.
They were forced to exhume the corpse and the video was posted on the internet! Or the girl that was raped and a huge staff was stuff into her as she laid dead.
A few years ago, I noticed that in WEEKLY TRUST, we were carrying regular stories from around Northern Nigeria, of the rape of minors, between two and eight years.
I put a reporter on the trail to be able to do an investigative piece, while I also did a column. In the period since, there has developed almost a boom industry in rape all over our country.
There are several cases of fathers abusing their children too and in many of the cases, these rapists would blame their act on the devil! Clearly, there is something fundamentally broken in our country. The epidemic of rape has deep sociological and even biological factors.
In a society of deep-seated male chauvinism, reinforced by the erosion of economic power, there is a serious crisis of virility and esteem, which is falsely reclaimed in acts of violence against women. Rape has been studied in many places as part of a package of false consciousness, where a rapist imagines himself as expressing male power in domination of the victim.
There is also the breakdown of the family and the ability to have healthy sexual life in marriages, in societies where it has become difficult to marry, due to economic reasons. This is especially true in Muslim communities in Northern Nigeria, where religious restraint is also breaking down, especially in the urban setting.
People have grown up in a culture of separation of the sexes and rape is one of the avenues for encountering the woman, who might just be a minor as we have seen in many media reports in the North and even beyond.
Even economic hardship has hamstrung individuals’ ability to seek the comfort of commercial sex workers; and a few weeks ago, the press reported a young man, somewhere in Eastern Nigeria, who “specialised” in raping very elderly women! Arrested, he confessed that he couldn’t get young girls, so he targeted the elderly.
We have not by the narrative underplayed the serious criminality that rape represents and as we have seen from the study of adolescent sex and HIV infection, the consequences of the epidemic of rape that we live with today, are very grave!
Nigerian sociologists, other social scientists, religious bodies and social workers, the state and society at large, must become far more conscious of the seriousness of the issue rape. We must not bury our heads in the sand, because even our children, loved ones and neighbours can become victims!
There is no gainsaying the fact that something is broken in the Nigerian society today and the epidemic of rapes merely reflects and reinforces the desperate social situation in contemporary society. The epidemic of rapes damages the humanity of the victims and dehumanises all of our society; we must not let it roll us over completely!
The Anohu-Amazu bill: Amending legislation just for an individual
LAST week, the House of Representatives suspended debate on the Pension Reform Act because of the controversial request embedded in the Act. The request was asking for the REDUCTION of qualification requirements for the post of director-general of the National Pension Commission.
Under the existing law, the MINIMUM requirement for the position is 20 years experience; but the emendation wants that to be reduced to 15 years. The reason for this absurd demand is simple. The acting DG is a certain Chinelo Anohu-Amazu.
She has only 15 years experience in service, but those who rule the roost want to confirm her DESPITE the extant law, so they came up with the absurd decision to amend the Pension Reform Act, to achieve their purpose!
When the bill came up for second reading last Wednesday, it was stepped down following protest by a lawmaker, who frowned at a bill that was being amended just for an individual.
Ali Ahmad (PDP Kwara) who raised the motion that led to the stepping down argued that: “you don’t make laws for individuals at the expense of the larger society. Laws are meant to uplift development and standard of the nation and its people and it is not supposed to be subjected to individual whims and caprices” (Not forgetting that in the Kwara state where Ali Ahmad comes from, the House of Assembly had passed a law “subjected to individual whims and caprices”, when a pension package was approved just for the creature comfort of Bukola Saraki, Ali Ahmad’s principal and mentor!). Similarly, Rep Ibrahim Bawa Kamba (PDP Kebbi), said there was no way members could entertain the bill given that it seeks to lower the PenCom DG bar to favour a certain individual: “…reducing the age experience requirement for the PenCom DG is not in good faith”.
One of the hallmarks of contemporary Nigeria is the lowering of standards and the promotion of mediocrity on the basis of an in-your-face impunity.
The Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) became very controversial because in so many ways, it morphed into a law to satisfy the tall ego of Petroleum Minister, Diezani Allison-Maduekwe. Those who promote these individualisation of laws clearly do not care about the fate of Nigeria; the health of the state system and the continuity of tradition.
For them, their act resembles what the Hausa describe as “sha yanzu, magani yanzu” (literally, taking an advantage now without bothering about long term implications!).
Those pushing  Chilnelo Anohu-Amazu’s candidacy as DG of PenCom, know that she is NOT qualified for the position, but a combination of ethnic solidarity and exploitation of their placement within the system today has pushed them to the recklessness of seeking an emendation of the law.
I hope the National Assembly will resist this inordinate, irresponsible and unpatriotic effort to amend a law just to promote the candidacy of an individual, which has become so much part of the notorious baggage of the Jonathan administration.
These ridiculous steps have accumulated to deepen the incompetence which dog the administration and by extension, the country. With due respect, when Pius Anyim was appointed the SGF, it represented a lowering of standards, even when the effort was to satisfy the Igbo constituency.
The truth was that the man was too inexperienced to hold the position. Everybody knew that fact, but out of ethnic solidarity; the opportunistic penchant to hope that an opportunity to “chop” has opened to a kinsman, people would not comment.
Yet, they will hope against hope, that things would carry on and somehow, work well. People conveniently forgot that it was the same Anyim, whom the late Chuba Okadigbo, dismissed wittily, when he asked: “what has he achieved? Nothing!”
He then added that he was a mere level twelve officer in a refugee organisation! The same man was promoted above his station as Senate President and today he is SGF. What effect has his place had on governance?
All Nigerians can offer an answer. But that impunity is still very much with us and the latest expression of that ethnicity-sourced absurdity, is the attempt to amend the Pension Reform Act, to lower the minimum qualification from 20 to 15 years, just to ensure that Chinel Anohu-Amazu is confirmed as DG at PenCom. That is the sorry pass that Nigeria has been pushed into!
The Nigerian Media and the State of Emergency
SECTION 22 of the Nigerian Constitution explicitly obliges the Nigerian media to hold government accountable to the Nigerian people. In the wake of the declaration of a state of emergency in three Northern states, I have been giving myself the pause on the obligations of the media.
Our newspapers are presenting almost the SAME set of stories, written nearly word-for-word on the operations of the security forces. It is very close to having “embedded journalism” writ large on all of us.
But how are we sourcing our stories of what is happening in the theatres of operation? Have we become PR outlets for the security forces and the state? Do we really know what is happening in the different places?
What about the human rights of people in these communities? May we be acquiescing in actions that will not stand scrutiny? Might we eventually regret our gung-ho, uncritical reportage which tell only the side of the security forces?
These questions have crossed my mind as I think about Section 22 and the state of emergency. We will still ask these questions sometime in the near future.

Oshiomhole orders students to pay for vandalised school property

BENIN—EDO State governor, Mr. Adams Oshiomhole, has directed that protesting students of Idogbo Secondary School, in Ikpoba Okha Local Government Area of the state, who destroyed the school’s property while protesting the death in an accident, of one their colleagues, to pay for the vandalised property.
He also directed the Ministry of Lands to demolish, without notice, all illegal structures on the land of public schools in the state.
Speaking during a visit to the school to assess the level of damage to the facilities, Oshiomhole noted that the students had no reason to resort to the destruction of the school’s facilities, no matter the level of provocation, adding that if teachers could be sanctioned for flouting directives, students were not an exeption.
He said: “Let me advise you strongly that on no account should you vandalise government property and in particular, on no account should you vandalise your school. If you are annoyed over something and you tear your shirt, will that make sense?
“Unfortunately, someone was knocked down by a car and he died. We are still trying to find out the role of the teacher who was responsible, to determine whether the death was preventable. I assure you that once the facts are clear, government will take the right decision because as a government, the life of every person living in Edo State is important to us and it is even more so when we are talking of children.”

Nasarawa massacre: Director arrested, accused of leaking information to cultists

Still trying to fish out the masterminds of the massacre of dozens of policemen and security agents in Alakyo in Nasarawa State about two weeks ago, security operatives have arrested a senior director working with the state government in connection with the killings.
The officer was alleged to have passed strategic security information to the cultists thereby enabling them to strike with precision on the fateful day.
Vanguard learnt from a reliable source that the director, whose name was given as Mohammed and works at the office of the Secretary to the State Government, was privy to most security decisions taken by the state on account of his position in the administration.
Findings by Vanguard yesterday revealed that angry security agents, who are still peeved over the killings of their colleagues by the dreaded Ombatse cult group, swooped on Mohammed after tracing some vital information leaked to the group, to his phone.
The suspect, who is believed to be an Eggon native, where the cult has its roots and base, was reportedly picked up from his office to the surprise of his staff, when the security men handcuffed and whisked him away in a commando-like fashion.
Mohammed was initially detained and questioned by men of the Criminal Investigation Department in Lafia before being transferred to Abuja for further interrogation in connection with the heinous crime.
A senior official of the Nasarawa State government, who pleaded anonymity because he had not been authorised to speak on the matter, confirmed the arrest of the director and transfer to Abuja by security men.
The officer said that the man was arrested after security agents established a relationship between him and the deadly cult group in the state.
The Inspector General of Police, Abubakar Mohammed, had on Monday confirmed the arrest of no fewer than 15 officers and men, who allegedly connived with the cult group to massacre the policemen in the state.
The IG said the men were still being investigated to determine their level of culpability or otherwise in the offence.
It would be recalled that no fewer than 96 police officers and men as well as Department of State Service, DSS, officials, who had gone to Eggon, about 10 kilometres away from the Nasarawa State capital, to arrest the leader of the Ombatse shrine were ambushed and murdered by the cultists on May 9, 2013.
As at yesterday, the security agencies were yet to swoop on the cultists, who are believed to be holed up in the vast forests in the area, roaring to descend on any intruder in the community.
The cult group, which had earlier been outlawed by the Al-Makura administration, was reportedly encouraged by some powerful politicians to continue with its malevolent activities, hoping to use them to outsmart their opponents in the 2015 elections.

Lagos earns N29bn IGR, begs FG to pay N13bn debt

Lagos State Government,yesterday, said it recorded a monthly revenue increase of N29.0 billion in 2012 as against an average of N18.9 billion in 2008, even as it appealed to the Federal Government to urgently pay N13, 373, 919, 675.55 being verified indebtedness it owed pensioners in the state.
Commissioner for Pensions, Establishments and Training, Mrs Florence Oguntuase, at the 2013 ministerial briefing to mark the sixth year anniversary of Governor Babatunde Fashola’s administration, lamented that the non-payment of the benefits had caused untold hardship to the pensioners and unnecessary burden on the state.
The commissioner explained that the unpaid arrears were Federal Government‘s share of the total benefits of the pensioners, noting that the state had consistently settled its own share.
According to her, “We are appealing to the Federal Government to settle the verified pension indebtedness to the tune of N1, 107,267,537 it owes retired workers of the state government and the N12, 266,652,137 of the workers in the Local Government.
The state government, through the Civil Service Pension Office, has forwarded applications for the arrears to the Federal Government and we hope they will pay the benefits before the pensioners pass on.”
The commissioner said the state had so far paid N18,031,148,931 in pension benefits to no fewer than 3,384 retired workers in the state and that a total of N39,518,948 had so far been remitted to the different Pension Fund Administrators, PFAs, by the government as its contribution to workers‘ pension accounts.
The commissioner put the total number of public service pensioners in the state at 14,934, and said the government had established a Pensioner Welfare Office, PWO, to take care of pensioners’ needs on retirement.
On workers’ training, Oguntunase said the government had in the last one year spent a total of N394,231,622 on the training of 7,457 of its workers.
She noted that a total of 22,622 workers of different categories underwent Performance Evaluation Examination under the same period, adding that the results of the assessment had since been implemented in the form of staff promotion.
On IGRI increase
Similarly, Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Adetokunbo Abiru, said the increase in the monthly generated revenue amounted to an average yearly growth of 10.7 percent over five year period, saying Internally Generated Revenue, IGR, had in the last five years accounted for over 65 per cent of the total revenue of the State.
Abiru said the development further reflected the stable nature of the state’s fiscal revenue which continued to rely more on IGR rather than revenue receipts from the Federal Government.
According to him, the state would eventually focus more on IGR by consolidating on all sources of taxation with a view to ensuring that monies generated through taxes and other sources were judiciously used in providing developmental programmes.
for the entire populace of the state.
He said the state government prioritized funding of capital projects as against overhead expenditure, adding “the budgeting process of maintaining a funding preference for capital expenditure more than overhead expenditure already adopted by this administration will be sustained in the 2013 budget.”

Robbers attack female doctor, snatch LCDA van

LAGOS—Robbers, who posed as stranded visitors, Monday, snatched a Toyota Hilux pick-up van belonging to Iba Local Council Development Area, LCDA, Ojo Lagos.
The four-man armed gang as gathered, stormed a building located in Shogunle area of Lagos at 7a.m. and reportedly accosted occupant of the vehicle, a woman later identified as Dr. Nkiruka Ubani.
While two of them reportedly pointed locally-made cut-to-size guns at her, ordering her to get down from the vehicle, others were said to have kept watch for any intruder.
The visibly shaken Dr. Ubani was said to have pleaded with the robbers to take all she had but the vehicle, which she said was an official car.
However, her plea fell on deaf ears as one of the bandits was said to have dragged her out; threatening to shoot her if she raised any alarm.
The bandits were said to have thereafter, jumped into the van, with number plate BR 167 BBG with the inscription Lagos State health Development Project II and zoomed off.
The incident as gathered had been reported at the Shogunle Police division; where sources said efforts were still on to locate the stolen vehicle.

10,000 megawatts to be generated by Dec (F.G.N)

ABUJA—THE federal government, yesterday, disclosed that plans had been concluded to move from the present position of power generation of 4,500 to 10,000 megawatts by December.
Speaking when she appeared before the Senate Committee on Power, Steel Development and Metallurgy, led by Senator Phillip Adudua, PDP, FCT, Minister of State for Power, Hajia Zainab Kuchi, told the senators that the federal government had completed the process of privatisation of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria, PHCN.
Kuchi, who disclosed that N347 billion was required for increase in transmission of megawatts, said the generating and transmission companies could not be handed over yet as the ministry was poised to ensure that they were in good shape before their hand over to the successor companies.
She raised alarm that the handover had been hampered by lack of fund, adding that the ministry had been running on zero allocation.
The minister noted that some six months into the 2013 fiscal year, the Ministry of Power had been running on N5 billion, being the remnant of its 2012 allocation.
Hajia Kuchi assured that there would be no problem paying for labour, adding that government had enough in its coffers to pay by July.
Chairman, Senate Committee on Power, Senator Philip Aduda, who noted that Nigerians were no longer ready to take excuses for non-availability of electricity, said people were running of out of patience.

Kirikiri residents protest neglect by oil firms

LAGOS— FOR second day running, operations of five oil firms in Kirikiri town, Oriade Local Council Development Council Area, LCDA, of Lagos State, were paralysed by residents protesting the deplorable state of roads in the community and lack of employment opportunities for its youths.
The community accused the oil firms of not only refusing to offer jobs to the youths but also destroyed the two major roads in the community (Cardoso and Karimu) by their heavy duty trucks.
Affected oil companies are Bovas Oil, Techno Oil, Swift Oil, Index Petrolube Africa and Fatgbems Oil.
The protesters who displayed several placards with inscriptions such as “repair our roads and provide jobs for our youths”, blamed the sorry state of the major roads in the town on oil companies and vowed to halt their operations by preventing tanker trucks from entering into the community until their demands were met.
President-General of Kirikiri Youth Association, Mr. Udoji Popoola, explained that the protest remained the only option since the companies had reneged on their promises to repair the roads.
He said: “We are not fighting anybody. We are not destroying anything. All we are agitating for is that the roads in this community are in a very bad condition and that it is high time they were repaired.”
Chairman, Oriade LCDA, Mr Ibrahim Sanusi, told Vanguard that he had made efforts to draw the attention of the oil tank farm operators  to the bad state of the roads to no avail, lamenting that the LCDA  had no capacity to do the two major roads.

Igbos will miss Achebe for a long time (Ohanaeze)

ENUGU—THE apex Igbo socio-cultural organization, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, said, Wednesday, that the departed literary giant, Professor Chinua Achebe whose remains would be finally laid to rest at his Ogidi countryhome in Anambra State tomorrow, would be missed for a very long time.
The umbrella Igbo organization said Achebe’s departure has left a yawning gap in the horizon of the Igbo nation.
Secretary General of Ohanaeze, Dr. Joe Nwaorgu, who spoke with Vanguard on the demise of the renowned author, said that the organization viewed Achebe’s exit as “very tragic” and would not be forgotten easily.
He said: “Achebe’s departure is a traumatic blow to Ndigbo and indeed Africans even though 82 is a ripe age, we would have wanted him to live forever.  His demise has left a yawning gap in our horizon.
“We will miss him a lot and for a long long time. He cannot be forgotten too easily because he is the man who put our essence into sharp focus with his magnum work Things Fall Apart.  Therein he reestablished the long damaged self confidence and psyche of the Africans who had been plummeted by colonial powers into seeing themselves as less than human.
“Achebe showed that the African has history, religion, philosophy, government (law and order), art, good music and all fabric of a civilized society. Thereafter no one could see the African from colonial eyes only nor could anyone write about us for us.
“Achebe has started renaissance or rebirth.  Africans could now tell their real story by themselves confidently.  He was a genius and among his peers he was a colossus.
“We are extremely happy and proud that this titan was of Igbo stock. He has done the continent proud and he has lit a light that will beam everywhere. His memory will remain evergreen in our hearts, Ndigbo wish Achebe, the guru, peaceful repose in the bosom of our Lord.”
To the young generation of Ndigbo, Nwaorgu said they should emulate Achebe as role model known for maintaining core Igbo values, justice, equity, courage and enterprise or resourcefulness.

Anamabra stands still for Achebe

AWKA – AWKA, the capital of Anambra State stood still, Wednesday as the body of the literary icon, Professor Chinua Achebe arrived the state for its final journey to Ogidi, his home town,  in Idemili North local government area where it will be interred tomorrow.
What happened at the Alexander Ekwueme Arcade, Awka, was simply mind blowing. The remains of the famous writer of Things Fall Apart, who died in Boston, United States of America, USA, was  flown into Enugu from Abuja and was finally brought to  Awka, the Anambra  State capital at exactly 1.07pm Wednesday.
The remains of late Achebe was brought in motorcade to the expansive Alex Ekwueme Square, Awka, into the waiting hands of his kinsmen, friends, colleagues, business  and high profile delegates from governments from across the world.
Governor Peter Obi and the Senator representing Anambra Central in the Senate, Achebe’s senatorial zone, Dr. Chris Ngige received Achebe’s body at Amansea border between Enugu and Anambra states to a waiting crowd comprising civil servants, politicians and journalists. The entourage headed straight to Alex Ekwueme square where prayers and tributes were lavishly poured.

*Ekwueme Square Awka

The body lay in state at the middle of the square and was surrounded by Achebe’s kinsmen wearing traditional attire with red caps to match.
On ground to witness the solemn moment of tribute anchored by 5 star actor Bob Manuel Udokwu were Chris Odom, Professor Joneta Cole , Director of Smithsonian Institute , Washington, Prof. Scott  of Penguin Books,  Professor Whelan of the University of Cambridge, who  represented the Arch bishop of Canterbury.
There were also members of the Achebe family comprising his widow, Prof. Mrs. Achebe, and his children, Dr. Ike Achebe, Prof Chinelo Achebe, Dr. Chidi Achebe and Prof Nwando Achebe.
In his glowing tribute to Achebe, the Director of Penguin, Scott described the late writer as a very great man of letters, whose works have had a succession of influence across generations of writers.

From Left; Gov. Obi’s Wife, Margaret; Gov. Peter Obi; Achebe’s widow, Mrs. Christie Achebe;  son, Dr. Ike Achebe and Daughter, Prof. Nwando Achebe at the farewell ceremony in honour of  Chinua Achebe by Anambra State government at the Ekwueme Square, Awka. Photo: Vincent Ujumadu.

He noted particularly the influence of Achebe’s  first three books; Things Fall Apart, Arrow of God and No Longer At Ease, which he described as a “ trilogy of African literature, stressing that “  I have not seen others  books or writer that have been so studied and reprinted like Achebe and his works.

Early morning showers welcome Achebe’s body in Awka

AWKA- EARLY morning rains welcomed the body of the late literary giant, Professor Chinua Achebe to Anambra State as the people prepare to troupe into the famous Alex Ekwueme square in the state capital to attend ceremonies lined up for him by the state government and the burial committees.
 The light rains began at about 6.00am as those involved in final preparations to get the square ready were already out for work. The Ekwueme square has already been decorated and the podium where Achebe’s body would lie in state is also set.
 Loudspeakers are also in place and a large number of security operatives had taken positions as at 7.00 am. Members of the Federal Road Safety Commission, FRSC, were already directing traffic to appropriate places.
 The section where the officiating priests for the church service to be held at the square and other dignitaries would sit are also in place as protocol officers of the Anambra State worked round the clock to get the place ready.