FEDERAL GOVERNMENT MUST LICENCE UNITED LABOUR CONGRESS OF NIGERIA NOW-: HURIWA

Two years ago, a significant development occurred which was about the industrial unions that elected Mr. Joe Ajaero as president of a new labour centre, United Labour Congress (ULC).

The unions elected Ajaero, the General Secretary of the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE), at the ULC maiden Delegates Conference in Lagos.

The new labour centre emerged after a two-year internal crisis that split the Nigeria Labour Congress.
Ajaero, who was elected unopposed, said that ULC would fight for the interest of workers and ensure a more equitable Nigeria where workers’ dignity and the work place would become less prone to impunity.

He said that the emergence of ULC would strengthen the labour movement and generate a new vigour that would re-awaken elements that would make workers strong.

”The new labour centre instead of weakening the movement will present labour as a creative partner that has strategic benefits for its publics, especially the employers and the government,” he said.

The ULC president said the new centre was aimed at restoring hope to Nigerian workers, the oppressed, the victimized, the neglected and other relegated members of the society
He said that the movement was not contesting with anybody or faction, but would remain a labour centre of its own, adding that “the issue of faction is over.’’

Ajaero also said that the new congress was emerging because of the exigency of the moment where people work without salaries for months and were being denied their rights at their work places.
Relatedly the President of Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, Igwe Achese, was elected Deputy President.

Three Vice Presidents, Treasurer, Auditor and Financial Secretary among others were also elected to run the affairs of the centre.

Leaders of the new Labour federation said their first major outing would be against a leading airline in the country on Tuesday for alleged unfair labour practices, including seven months unpaid salaries to workers affiliated to ULC.

The affiliates of ULC include NUPENG, NUEE, Nigeria Union of Mine Workers, National Union of Banks, Insurance and Financial Employees and the Nigeria Union of Rail Workers.

Others are the National Union of Lottery Agents and Employees, Association of Nigeria Aviation Professionals and National Association of Aircraft Pilots and Engineers.

HURIWA Hereby condemns the delay in granting licence of recognition as a labour center to the United Labour Congress of Nigeria since over two years. Section 40 of the Nigeria constitution states as follows: "Every person shall be entitled to assemble freely and associate with other persons and in particular he may form or belong to any political party, trade union or any other association for the protection of his interests".

Legal Implication of Registration Trade Union Centres.
Introduction:

Like in many other fields, Nigeria’s experience in trade unionism is inextricably linked with its evolution in Britain for reasons of the now over-flogged historical tie with Nigeria2. Of a truth, trade unionism had a chequered history in its evolution3. However, the modern unionism in Nigeria never witnessed the difficulties which the workforce in Great Britain had to grapple with in their quest for proper legal status. 

REGISTRATION OF TRADE UNION 
As has been identified, a trade union refers to any combination of workers or employers, etc.  Section 3(1) (a & b) of the Trade Unions Act provides that  at  least  50 workers or in the case of Employers Association, at least 2 employers are qualified to apply for registration and no trade union shall be registered save with approval of the minister.

Section 3(6) provides that in an application for registration of a trade union, the application must include two copies of the rule of the union and a list showing (a) the name, address, age and occupation of each of the persons by whom the application is signed; and (b) the official title, name and address, age and occupation of each official of the union.

Section 5(1) is to the effect that where the application is defective, the Registrar of Trade Unions will refer it back to the applicant for amendment. Thereafter, and in compliance with section 5(2), the Registrar shall cause a notice of the application to be published in the Federal Gazette stating that objection to the registration of the union in question may be submitted to him within a period of three months.

Section 5(3) makes provisions for the steps to be taken by the Registrar with regards to the registration where, within 3 months, after the notice, there is no objection to the content of the constitution and the various information required to be supplied under section 3 and 4 have been supplied; the Registrar shall issue a certificate within three months thereafter.  However, the Registrar is empowered under section 5(4) to refuse registration “if it appears to him that any existing trade union is sufficiently representative of the interest of the class of persons whose interest the union is intending to represent.”  There is the case of Nigerian Nurses Association & Ors v. Att. Gen. Fed, where the Supreme Court of Nigeria, in a unanimous decision, held that registration and recognition of National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives by the Trade Union (Amendment) Act of 1978 had extinguished the Nigeria Nurses Association as both bodies cover the same interest. There is also the case of Erasmus Osawe & Ors v. the Registrar of Trade Union. In that case the Supreme Court held that the procedural requirement for commencement of application and objection under section 5(2) of the Trade Unions Act is inapplicable to an application precluded by section 3(2) because of the existence of another union catering for the same class of interest. The subsection provides, inter alia, that “…but no trade union shall be registered to represent workers or employers in a place where there already exists a trade union.” 

Registration is secured by an application in a prescribed form accompanied by 2 copies of the constitution as identified earlier. Where registration is not entertained, the aggrieved applicants may apply to the High Court and have the issue determined.  See also the case of Re Union of Ifelodun Timber Dealers & Allied Workmen.   In that case an application to register a combination of persons calling themselves union of Ifelodun, etc, as a trade union was refused by the Registrar of Trade Unions on the ground that it is a combination of traders not registrable under the Trade Unions Act – Ifelodun being open to all persons engaged in business of timber services and sawmills including employers, employees and self-employed persons. The Applicants applied to the High Court where it was held that the constitution of the ‘Combination’ must be examined to discover whether it was a trade union or not and that:-

(a) A trade union is determined by it principle purposes which must come within the definition of the trade union as provided in the Act,
(b) In this case it was not a trade union since the main object was the protection of timber trading and members’ welfare.   

A certificate issued by the Registrar of Trade Unions as evidence of registration of trade union will be cancelled on any of the grounds in section 6 and 7 of the Act apart from voluntary dissolution of the union by its members under section 10 of the Act. Circumstance under which a union’s certificate will be cancelled in section 7 includes a situation where the registration of the trade union was obtained by fraud or as a result of a mistake or where there had been a violation of the provisions of the statute. A certificate may also be cancelled where the objects of the union are illegal or where the union itself ceases to exist. Note further that by reason of Decree No. 1 of 1999 and its amendment of Decree No 26 of 1996 as it affects the Principal Act, the Registrar of Trade Unions may revoke the certificate of registration of any trade union.

It must be noted however that before the Registrar exercises its powers of cancellation the union must be given at least 2 months of his intention to do so and requesting a satisfactory explanation as to why the union will remain on the register. Note further that the union may start to function before the registration. What the law requires is that it must apply for registration within the first 3 months of its formation otherwise it stands dissolved. This type of dissolution would normally follow a notification that their application is refused, and 3 months period of grace allowed the union to tidy up its affairs.

The Registrar has powers over the union funds and may at any time call on the union members or treasurers, to prepare and submit to him within 30 days, detailed account of the Trade Union. It therefore stands to reason that an unregistered trade union is incapable of been controlled by the Registrar of Trade Unions.

In conclusion, no further rule banning further registration of such labour centres.

There are some complaints in some quarters about proliferation of associations and the society continues to be inundated with the claim of the existence of ‘trade unions’ in some establishments where for instance some observers noted that in  the university which is  a citadel of learning, that the mushroom associations have become an embarrassing example. Legally, there exist three trade unions in the universities. These three unions have their Certificates of Registration intact, neither cancelled nor withdrawn.

 Section 3(2) as identify supra, provides inter alia, that “…but no trade union shall be registered to represent workers or employers in a place where there already exists a trade union.” Similarly, section 5(4) of the Trade Unions Act also provides that “The Registrar shall not register the trade union if it appears to him that any existing trade union is sufficiently representative of the interest of the class of persons whose interests the union is intended to represent”. 

These conditions do not affect the ULC.

*Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko is National Coordinator of HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA).

Presidency's dry jokes on Unity and Ethics By Emmanuel Onwubiko

A typical day in the Abuja seat of political power is usually packed with events and social convivialism with outputs that are obviously don't impact very positively to the social wellbeing and welfare of the greatest percentage of Nigerians but most items of discussions are issues that hover between the mundane and theatrical.

Against the backdrops of the aforementioned, this past Thursday October 11^th 2018 was by every account, the typical politically charged day for the two topmost temporary occupants of Aso Rock presidential palace with each of the duo making speeches that betrays the actual realities as they are when compared to their public conducts as political leaders. Basically, the kernels of their messages are otherwise altruistic if they indeed represent their Worldviews. But since what they do are by far diametrically opposed to these Thursday sermons by Muhammadu Buhari and Yemi Osinbanjo, they are therefore like teachers who expect their students to do as they say but not as they do. But the most efficient and effective tutors are those whose teachings are the fundamental ideology of their modus operandi and modus vivendi or put differently, good teachers are those whose teaching replicates their belief system and practices.

Let's look at the major itinerary of the President on that Thursday which is the thematic area of our analysis today.

To begin with, lets remind ourselves that President Muhammadu Buhari who is a retired Army infantry General rode on the back of the political promise to restore national security and quash the rebellion of the armed Islamists known as boko haram terrorists to win the year 2015 poll. His key promise was anchored on defence. National security is achieved in an atmosphere of unity and peaceful co-existence.

But three clear years down the line, the issues of national security is still a major challenge just as the threats to national security and the unity of the nation have escalated given the activities of divergent armed bandits including the armed Fulani herdsmen. The policies of the current President Muhammadu Buhari's administration in the area of concentration of all strategic national security institutions to be headed exclusively by persons of Hausa/Fulani extraction and who are mostly Moslems in a nation that is multi-ethnic and a secular society with divergent religious groups of persons is a clear danger to national unity.

Amidst these critical threats and the use of violence by such non-state actors such as the armed Fulani herdsmen, the federal administration that promised to prioritize national security has simply looked the other way as the kinsmen of president Muhammadu Buhari continues their murderous rampages through different farmlands belonging to many indigenous communities in the North Central States who are majorly Christians.

Whereas the current government in Abuja has willfully refused to act decisively to crush the armed Fulani insurgency, this same government used the sledge hammer to unleash venomous attacks and violence using the armed security forces to target the unarmed civilian members of a self-determination group known as Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) with large concentration in the South East. This represents the most dangerous scenario of discriminatory application of policy by a government that is obligated by law never to so discriminate. However, the President who whimsically breaches clear provisions of the constitution to be cited shortly is the same clinging on to a phantom appreciation of national unity.  How can you call yourself a unifier when the most strategic national security jobs are outsourced to your kinsmen whilst other professionals from over 300 Ethnicities are alienated and excluded?

As far as the Katsina state born president is concern, the unarmed agitators who adopts peaceful protests to demand greater autonomy for their region in line with international laws are much more dangerous than the armed Fulani bandits who are credited with over a thousand violent attacks of communities that resulted in over 6000 casualties.

Buhari has again regaled his audience with his world’s view on what is considered a greater danger to national security when he told some persons who came visiting from the South East of Nigeria for the purpose of holding prayer sessions for Muhammadu Buhari’s second term ambition, that anyone who threatens national unity will be dealt with.

Regrettably, as he spoke, the exact physical whereabouts of Prince Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the unarmed but now proscribed IPOB and that of his parents are unknown.

Their enforced disappearances occurred over a year ago when soldiers forcefully attacked his family home in Umuahia, Abia state during the operation python dance II.

Video evidence that trended from this military attacks showed that dozens of completely unarmed agitators for self-determination under the platform of IPOB were gruesomely murdered in Aba, Umuahia, and several other parts of the South East of Nigeria.

But these unusual visitors from the East to the Aso Rock presidential villa did not talk about the killings in the South East of Nigeria but were after their pockets. The President nevertheless was happy with these clowns who visited him so much so that he repeated his warped understanding of what constitutes threats to national unity.

As learnt, President Muhammadu Buhari on that Thursday in Abuja declared that the Federal Government is ready to contend with anyone who is against the peace and unity of Nigeria. 
''Anybody that tries to joke with the unity of this country has a problem as long as we are alive,'' President Buhari said while receiving Eze Abdulfatah Emetumah III, the Offor of Umuofor Kingdom, Oguta LGA, Imo State.

 The President told members of the delegation led by the monarch, who is also the Chief Imam of Oguta that his main objective of serving as an elected public office holder is to make the country better. 

''Our single objective is how to make Nigeria better and we will never get tired,'' he said.
President Buhari, who thanked the delegation for identifying with the progress made so far by this administration in moving the nation forward, assured them that their well thought out recommendations on engendering unity in the country would be considered.

I will return to show clear evidence to support the belief in most circles that indeed it is the style of administration of the current government and the one sided policies of building major infrastructures only in Katsina state that indeed poses a grave threat to national unity.

By the way, you cannot talk about national unity under an atmosphere of deliberate exclusion of most ethno – religious nationalities from the governing structures of government.

In the following sections of the constitution which have been breached with reckless abandon by the President, the provisions are obligations to all persons and authorities to adhere to the precepts so as to engender national unity.

Section 1 (1) (2): “This constitution is supreme and its provisions shall have binding force on all authorities and persons throughout the federal republic of Nigeria; The federal republic of Nigeria shall not be governed, nor shall any person or group of persons take control of the government of Nigeria or any part thereof, except in accordance with the provisions of this constitution.

Section 13 and 14: “It shall be the duty and responsibility of all organs of government, and of all authorities and persons, exercising legislative executive or judicial powers, to conform to, observe and apply the provisions of this Chapter of this constitution.

The Constitution provides in section 14 (1) that: “The federal republic of Nigeria shall be a state base on the principles of democracy and social justice; (2) “It is hereby, accordingly, declared that – sovereignty belongs to the people of Nigeria from whom government through this constitution derives all its powers and authority; the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government; and the participation by the people in their government shall be ensured in accordance with the provisions of this constitution".

Section 14 (3) obliges government as follows: “The composition of the government of the federation or any of its agencies and the conduct of its affairs shall be carried out in such a manner as to reflect the federal character of Nigeria and the need to promote national unity, and also to command national loyalty, thereby ensuring that there shall be no predominance of persons from a few states or from a few ethnic or other sectional groups in that government or in any of its agencies.” (4) “The composition of the government of a state, a local government council, or any of the agencies of such government or council or such agencies shall be carried out in such manner as to recognize and the conduct of the affairs of the government or council the diversity of the people within its area of authority and the need to promote a sense of belonging and loyalty among all the peoples of the federation.

Then Section 15 (5) which outlaws nepotism and several other corrupt practices already noticed in the current administration states that:  “The state shall abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of power."

The grund norm obliges government not to practice discrimination as follows: Section 42 (1) “A citizen of Nigeria of a particular community, ethnic group, place of origin, sex, religion or political opinion shall not, by reason only that he is such a persons – be subjected either expressly, or in the practical application of, any law in force in Nigeria or any executive or administrative action of the government, to disabilities or restrictions to which citizen of Nigeria of other communities, ethnic groups places of origin, sex, religions or political opinions are not made subject; or be accorded either expressly by, or in the practical application of, any law in force in Nigeria or any such executive or administrative action, any privilege or advantage that is not accorded to citizen Nigeria of other communities, ethnic groups, places of origin, sex, religions or political opinions.”

The aforementioned constitutional provisions are safeguards mainstreamed in our laws for the administration to comply with so as to promote national unity.

But the president breaches the constitution with reckless abandon and still mouths the concept of national unity.

If truth be told, the greatest threats and traitors to national unity are the official misconducts of president Buhari’s administration.

Then still on that same ‘busy’ Thursday, the vice president Professor Yemi Osinbanjo jetted off to Asaba, Delta state to honour an invitation extended to the presidency by the Guild of Nigerian Editors that held a conference.

He similarly delivered his political sermon but this time around he accused journalists of killing their field due to a large dose of unethical and conducts that belittles the profession.

This same administration that arrested a journalist from Bayelsa and detained him under inhumane conditions at the Department of State Services (DSS) dungeon in Abuja for two years is here talking about the threat to the media profession.

Sadly, key figures in this administration have demonstrated overwhelming disrespect for such pro-media laws like the freedom of information Act to an extent that it is the height of hypocrisy for the vice president to blame journalists for seeking to totally kill their industry.

However, the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo urged Nigeria media practitioners to remain focused on fair and objective reporting for credibility and as an unbiased umpires, especially as the 2019 general elections inch closer.

He stated this at the ongoing All Nigeria Editors Conference (ANEC).
His words: “The journalism profession has always been at a greater risk than other professions and freedom of expression has always given people the right to information."

“But there were some actions by some regulatory parliaments that created obstacles for all newcomers except for renowned professionals and this created some restrictions,” Osinbajo said.

The Vice President said time was when someone would say, ‘I read it in the Times’ because whatever was written then was absolutely meant to be the truth but today, skeptics will ask who sponsored this story?’ “Most of the investigative reports are broadcast by the social media, such as blogs, television channels and many others.

“The Guild is a society of gate-keepers to whom belongs the responsibility of defining the efforts, norms and ethics of this profession. It also has the burden of setting the acceptable rules, conventions and practices of the profession. “This gathering is, therefore, made greater in a society where corruption is the order of the day and where there is constant fight and the burden of The Guild is to ensure that rules and regulations are enforced and kept as it is a self-regulatory profession,” he stated. Let no sane person take these words of the Vice president as a true reflection of the belief system and policy practice of the Presidency. First, the publicly owned Nigerian Television Authority; Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria; Voice of Nigeria and News Agency of Nigeria are some of the most inefficiently administered and governed institutions that are now hijacked by politicians of the All Progressives Congress and the substantial percentages of the programmes and news contents are dirty propaganda for the current Federal government. These publicly sponsored media houses are barred from airing independent minded news stories even as the National Broadcasting Commission is similarly hijacked by an All Progressives Congress politician who even unsuccessfully contested to become APC governorship flag bearer in Kwara state. The Director General of Voice of Nigeria Osita Okechukwu who is in APC unsuccessfully ran for a senatorial ticket in Enugu. These politicians holding sensitive media appointments paid by the taxpayers are not professionally administering those institutions. Why is the Vice president not concerned about this deterioration of professional ethics amongst the hierarchies of publicly funded media houses? He is pointing a finger at other journalists but his four fingers are pointing right back at him and his principal.

The vice president must be aware that there is an organization known as Buhari media organization which acts like a politically tainted watchdog to an extent that paid agents of this amorphous political group of fanatics often attack independent opinions published in the mainstream and social media.
The duty assigned to these agents working for the media office affiliated to the president, is to pollute the media atmosphere with political propaganda and half-baked facts to advance the media profile of president Buhari.

The home truth is that the vice president and his principal are some of the worst threats to the media industry.

To conclude, I must challenge president Buhari with the stark realities that his government has done more to imperil and endanger national unity than all of the past administrations put together.

President Buhari’s dislike for section 14 (3) of the constitution on federal character principle on appointments into key offices is the number one grave threat to national unity.

Those who peacefully demand for greater autonomy for their regions are not to be seen as enemies of unity.

These agitators showing us ways and means and, the idea of restructuring the polity to give greater autonomy to different federating units are democrats who must be commended because what they are offering us is perhaps the best panacea to the heightened clamours for self-determination.

Buhari and his vice must be told to stop their theatrical joke on unity and ethics.

*Emmanuel Onwubiko is Head, HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) and blogs @ www.emmanuelonwubiko.com; www.huriwanigeria.com; www.huriwa@blogspot.com.

HURIWA DRAGS ONLINE MEDIUM TO PRESS COUNCIL OVER FAKE NEWS.

A prominent non-governmental and pro-democracy group – HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) has threatened to report to the Nigerian press council a suspected fake news carried by Nigeria Daily.com on a certain All Progressives Congress (APC) governor purportedly receiving bribe of over $5 million from a contractor.

The pro-media integrity organization (HURIWA) through its National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko and the National Media Affairs Director Miss Zainab Yusuf however stated that it has sent a letter to the affected medium to remove the offensive news item or provide irrefutable evidence including verified forensic investigative findings to conclusively affirm the authenticity of that suspected fake news or be prepared to face inquisition from the Press Council, the official ombudsmen of the Print media industry. HURIWA said it gave the online medium 78 hours to effect corrective measures and stop misinforming its readers or the organization will not hesitate to follow due process to obtain remedy on behalf of consumers of media contents in Nigeria. The group faulted the quality control employed by the affected news medium which informed the uploading of such a sensational fake news targeting a perceived political opponent of the sponsor of the entire scripts. 

HURIWA asserted that the publication on the alleged bribery affecting an unnamed APC governor was a pure blackmail given that the publisher of the website has suspected links to an erstwhile presidential aspirant in Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and former governor of Kano state Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso who is nursing ambitions of supplanting his son-in-law as Kano state governor. HURIWA expressed shock that this sort of unprintable news item could be uploaded for public view when the elements critical to objective, balanced and professional and Ethically correct procedures are flouted by the online medium which is supposed to be professionally owned and governed. HURIWA is also planning to write the professional body of online publishers in Nigeria to ask them to investigate the affected news medium. 

“We have conducted detailed investigation and found out that the author of the said story on the unnamed North West governor caught in camera collecting bribe in foreign denominated currency running to over $5 million was a key media strategist of the politician and former governor of Kano state and was indeed his senor Special Assistant on media as the then governor of Kano state. Our team of forensic media analysts have thoroughly gone through that sensational story and found several elements that shows that the story is not only fake but a product of pure political blackmail which must not be allowed to be swept under the carpets.”

“As campaigners for media integrity, we have asked the writer to pull out the fake story because of the clear and unambiguous fact that it was indeed planted for primitive political motive and meant to misguide and misinform voters with the aim of tarnishing the image of a politician.”

Daily Nigerian reported that a Nigerian governor from one of the North West states has been caught on spy camera receiving kickbacks in hard currency for various projects executed by his administration.

The governor, who is gunning for his second term on the platform of ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, may likely be dropped due to the damning evidence of corruption against him.

In the three-episode clips seen by DAILY NIGERIAN reporter, the governor was shown on different dates receiving the bribe amounting to about 5 million dollars in total.

In one of the clips, this reporter watched how the governor, who appeared without a cap, took note of the names of contractors who paid the kickback and later tucked the bundles of dollar notes into his kaftan side pockets and trousers’ pockets.

In another video, appearing in babbarriga and a cap, this reporter watched how the governor collected nearly 3 million dollars, being 25 percent kickbacks for selling market stalls.

DAILY NIGERIAN graphics expert, who was also invited to a secret meeting to ascertain whether the videos were genuine, confirmed that they were not doctored.

HURIWA however disputes the veracity of that video and alleged that it is an attempt to adopt the 'Russian type' of circulation of fake news to influence the outcomes of next year’s election even as the target of the blackmail is the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

“We will not stop until we get to the root of this story by adopting professional means to ascertain why the online medium deployed their forum to scandalize a politician who may not be in the good books of the publisher’s former employer and former governor of Kano state.”

Earlier in a press briefing, HURIWA affirmed thus: “Gentlemen of the media, we are here to call your attention to the need for media practitioners to be professionally disciplined and not give into any temptations to be deployed for political blackmail which will derail the essence of the media as the conscience of the nation.”

“Section 22 of the 1999 constitution provides that “the press, radio television and other agencies of the mass media shall at all times be free to uphold the fundamental objectives contained in this chapter and uphold the responsibility and accountability of the government to the people.”

“The media is therefore the bridge between the people and the political leaders.”

Understandably, we are rights now preparing for the biggest and most important electoral contest in the political annals of Nigeria. So much are at stake.

The contenders are already sharpening their political arsenals to battle and defeat their opponents in a bid to win the hearts and minds of Nigerians.

However, we have just noticed a trend which has to do with the misuse and abuse of the professional ethics of media practice by an online medium reportedly owned and operated by an erstwhile chief press secretary to the former governor of Kano state Alhaji Kwankwaso known as Daily Nigeria.

We have noticed that there is currently an attempt to tarnish the corporate and public image of a politician with the aim of scuttling his second term ambitions.

First, we are one of the most formidable campaigners of transparency, accountability and we therefore support the law based crusade against corruption.

However, we totally condemned the systematic pattern of employing subtle blackmail using the media of mass communication as the tool of political battles.

The story about a certain North West governor of the APC purportedly caught receiving bribe is at best a very poor work of blackmail.

Going through the wishy-washy story will tell the audience that this online medium did a very poor job that fails to meet the ethical standards of best global practices. The revelation that a video exists without naming the person and again stating that the video would be used to seek the directive of the president to compel the alleged bribe taker to forego his second term election shows that this medium has allowed their good venture to be deployed to wage political battle.

The fears about the political ends to which the media can be put relate to the way the media can be used by political parties to control people. While totalitarian fascist and communist states of the 1930s inspired these fears, political uses of the media also occur in democratic societies.

It is often argued that there should be controls placed over the media so they are not misused. Fear that the media may be used for political purposes is one reason why many countries insist that the government should not own and/or control the media; this fear also lies behind many of the debates about who has the right to media ownership. Note, however that media practitioners often see themselves as political watchdogs, and in this respect are referred to as the ‘fourth estate’. The term ‘estate’ derives from the time of the French Revolution, when the judiciary, the parliament, and the Church were referred to as the first, second, and third estates respectively. The media, as the fourth estate, are a body who can comment on, criticize, and investigate, through free speech, what these other institutions do, which is why freedom of the press is so important. It was, for instance, the media that publicized the crimes against humanity perpetrated by the South African apartheid government. “From the book MEDIA & SOCIETY fourth edition, By MICHAEL O’SHAUGHNESSY & JANE STADLER.

May we strongly urge the media to be thoroughly professional and not let themselves be railroaded into carrying out political vendetta or blackmail.

Why use a story and then allow room for negotiations? If you have a story worth telling and you have no political objective for cooking up such soft tissues of lies, why not go full blast?

This unorthodox way of practicing journalism is the reason some core conservatives who wants the status quo to remain are working had to scuttle media freedoms.

Our investigations on this specific story shows that it is a well-choreographed, politically tainted propaganda aimed at demonizing a prominent politician and to rubbish some of the achievements made. There is every reason to believe that it is a politically motivated hatchet job which should be dismissed as such.

May we call on all political contenders for political offices to play the game by the rules and desist from the deployment of the online, social or mainstream media to circulate fabrications and inventors aimed at scoring political goals. The media must be vigilant and work to sustain constitutional democracy. 

No threat to 2019 election funds,Speaker Dogara Assures Nigerians

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Yakubu Dogara, has said that contrary to speculations, funding for the 2019 general elections is not under any threat as there is already provision to take care of such contingencies that may arise in the Service Wide Votes.

The Speaker said while speaking with journalists at the National Assembly that there is about three hundred billion naira service wide votes provision in the 2018 budget that can be used to service election funding.

He reaffirmed that as custodians of the mandate of the Nigerian people, the House of Representatives considers issues affecting Nigerians as top priority, adding that all pending matters, Electoral Act inclusive, would be given accelerated attention.

Speaker Dogara said, “You see we are servants of the people by our calling as Representatives of Nigerians and we don't have the right to put our interests forward before the interests of the people. We are here to serve public good, these issues are outstanding and it was never going to be threatened in any way as was widely perceived, because we have a provision in the budget for service-wide votes, about three hundred billion and whatever was the emergency would have been met from that service-wide fund that we have allocated in the budget. 

“As we are back, we have set ourselves to accomplish what is there in the interest of the people. Even if it means in a day or two we will accomplish that, even if it means handling it as we did for the ease of doing business bills. There were times that within a week we went through the first, second and third reading and passed it into law just because we saw the need for us to expand the economic space and improve citizen participation and wealth creation and the expansion of our economy, especially during these days of economic recession. 

“So nothing is impossible and I can assure you that as soon as we get the reports submitted from the various committees hopefully within the week, in no time, we should be able to deal with them. Whether it is the Electoral Act or the funding for elections and the appropriate funds for INEC is approved, and I can assure you that in no time, even if it is to be done within a day, we are committed to doing it because the only thing that guarantees democracy is free, fair and transparent elections, and we do not joke with it as politicians because we are aware that there are times when you will run into occasions when the will of the people in the process of transmitting their consent into government positions are truncated. It will not serve the interest of democracy, so whatever is needed, apart from even these two issues that we have spoken of, we are committed to passing and dealing with them in no time to ensure that we have a very credible, fair and transparent election in 2019.”

HUMAN RIGHTS AND POST-2019 PRESIDENCY By Emmanuel Onwubiko

At the weekend, I got into a very lengthy conversations with my younger brother currently based abroad and who left Nigeria when his life became endangered by open threats made by some Islamists responsible for the spate of violent attacks targeting largely Christian communities in the North of Nigeria.

Our conversations centered around the deteriorated security situations not just in Nigeria but in a lot of regional neighbouring communities making up the West African nations otherwise known as Economic Community of West African states.

There is also no doubt that Nigeria is the epicenter of the expanding frontiers of Islamic terrorism.
But what really triggered these mutual but frank dialogue was the emergence on Sunday noon of the erstwhile vice president Alhaji Abubakar Atiku as the official flag bearer of the largest opposition political party in the sub-Saharan African region – the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Other notable Nigerians who are flying the Presidential flags of some of the newly registered political parties include the former Vice President of the World's Bank and erstwhile Education minister Mrs. Oby Ezekwesili; former Deputy Governor of the Central bank of Nigeria and a Professor of Economics in a US based University Dr. Kingsley Moghalu and the former governor of Cross Rivets State Mr. Donald Duke.

Emeka, my very brilliant younger sibling is a philosopher by academic qualification and an illustrious human rights practitioner. 

He is one of the intellectuals backing and participating actively and constructively in the agitations for self-determination in Nigeria of the Igbo nationality as coordinated by a completely peace loving and unarmed group of human rights activists – Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB). In addition to threats of death from government agents involved in the enforced disappearances of reputable opponents of the political status quo in Nigeria, Nigeria has become polarized alongside Ethno religious faultlines.

This highly cerebral philosopher brother of mine was basically concerned about the re-emergence as president for a second tenure of one of Nigeria’s most divisive and bigoted political leaders- the retired Army General Muhammadu Buhari in the year 2019 general elections. Put differently, Emeka asked to know the post-2019 human right agenda of the President who would emerge if a transparent election is conducted.

His question is how the Nigerian people can basically safeguard the sanctity of the forthcoming election given the notoriety displayed by the central electoral governing and management council known in law as the Independent National Electoral Commission.

His anxiety about the lack of credibility of the current head of the independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is also shared by millions of Nigerians who watched with considerable trepidation as the electoral umpire rigged the recently held Osun state governorship poll.

Two United States senators, Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.), both members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, have raised concerns about the credibility of elections in Nigeria following allegations of political interference in the latest governorship polls.

Coons and Booker said in a joint statement that though the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had been commended by observers for its conduct of the recent polls, concerns remained about the prospects of free and fair elections in the country.

The statement read, “As members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, we are troubled by reports of incidents of political interference and intimidation of voters, journalists, and civil society observers in Nigeria by some security agencies and political party supporters. Nigeria is Africa’s largest economy and a key U.S. partner on the continent.

“While domestic and international election observers have credited electoral authorities for their administration of elections thus far, we are concerned about the prospects for a free, fair and credible democratic process in Nigeria in light of recent interference by government security forces on peaceful assembly and freedom of expression, as well as ongoing security threats and communal tensions in several regions of the country.

“General elections in February 2019 will be an important step for Nigeria to consolidate democratic gains achieved in the last two decades since the transition from military to civilian democratic rule. We are watching the parties’ primaries with interest, and we call on party leaders, electoral authorities, security officials, and all Nigerians to respect the political process and safeguard free, fair, credible, and peaceful elections that reflect the will of the people.”

Recall that Governorship elections were held on September 22 in Osun State and won by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) after initially being declared inconclusive by INEC after PDP led.

After the voting on September 22, the candidate of the main opposition party, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Ademola Adeleke, had won the majority of votes. He was followed by the APC candidate, Gboyega Oyetola. But INEC declared the election inconclusive and conducted a rerun on September 27. After adding up the votes, Oyetola was declared winner by INEC. The failure to declare PDP the winner is extra constitutional because the constitution says simple majority is the deciding factor for electoral victory in that category.

INEC had also awarded the APC victory also in an earlier controversial governorship poll in Ekiti State on July14. In both elections, PDP and other opposition elements alleged foul play and interference by the ruling APC.

The worries expressed by these two United States' parliamentarians cuts across the feelings of millions of Nigerians who have similar sentiments that there is no assurance that the electoral panel will be transparent and ready to conduct a free, fair, peaceful and transparent general elections come 2019.

As observed by these Americans, the interferences into the election come majorly from the security forces.

The apprehensions that the current heads of the internal security team will compromise the election finds supports in the fact that almost all the current heads of the different armed security institutions owed their unmerited retention to the current president who is desperate for a second tenure.

There is therefore the imperative demand that the fuller intents of section 158 (1) of the constitution is respected which means that whatever measures that are needed to be enforced to guarantee independence of the electoral commission should be put in place.

Whereas the fundamental concern of my younger brother was on who is best suited to restore national stability and the security of lives and property of Nigerians, it is as clear as the early morning sunrise that the president Muhammadu Buhari – led administration has failed in the discharge of the primary duty of government.

The primary duty of government as enshrined in section 14 (2) (b) of the constitution is as follows: “the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government.”

It is a fact that hundreds-of-thousands of Nigerians have left the shores of Nigerian since the emergence of the current government just as those who had earlier left due to security threats have found concrete, genuine, verifiable reasons to remain where they are or risks their lives by returning at this material time.

In Benue state alone, more than 1,500 persons have been killed in the last three years due to the bloody insurgency of armed Fulani herdsmen who enjoy the protection of the current administration.
Plateau state has been in turmoil due largely to the violent insurgency of armed Fulani herdsmen. Southern Kaduna and Nasarawa neighbouring Abuja has had their shares of these murderous and targeted killings of Christians.

Both in words and action, key functionaries of the current government have clearly backed the activities of the armed Fulani gangsters.

The minister of Defence was quoted as blaming the anti-open grazing laws in Benue state for the bloody attacks by Fulani herdsmen.

Dan-Ali the Fulani born minister of Defence had told state house reporters that the blockage of cattle routes across the country is the remote cause of the killings by herdsmen.

“Whatever crisis that happens at anytime, there are remote and immediate causes. Look at this issue (killings in Benue and Taraba) what is the remote cause of the farmers’ crisis? Since the nation’s independence, we know there used to be a route whereby the cattle rearers take because they are all over the nation. If you go to Bayelsa or Ogun, you will see them. If those routes are blocked, what do you expect will happen? These people are Nigerians. It is just like one going to block the shoreline; does that make sense to you? But the immediate cause is the grazing law.”

Mansur Dan-Ali, in the aforementioned thoughtless statement has demonstrated the callous insensitivity of the Muhammadu Buhari’s administration to the violence unleashed on Nigerians by armed Fulani herdsmen.

This also shows why the major organization backing the Fulani herdsmen known as Miyetti Allah cattle owners Association, has yet to be declared a terrorist group even when they back the killings.
I agree with my younger sibling that restoring national security is the most fundamental human right agendum of any serious candidate running for the office of the Nigerian presidency come February 2019.

Another salient human rights challenge for the presidential candidate is the need to tell Nigerians clearly in a written form backed up by the court’s affidavits, to abide by the tenets of the constitution.
This has become tangential in this campaign given that the current president has failed to respect section 14 (3) and section 6 of the constitution in both his strategic appointments and also has disrespected several binding orders of the courts of competent jurisdiction.

Section 14 (3) say that: “The composition of the Government of the Federation or any of its agencies and the conduct of its affairs shall be carried out in such a manner as to reflect the federal character of Nigeria and the need to promote national unity, and also to command national loyalty, thereby ensuring that there shall be no predominance of persons from a few State or from a few ethnic or other sectional groups in that Government or in any of its agencies.”

But section 6 states that: “(1) the judicial powers of the Federation shall be vested in the courts to which this section relates, being courts established for the Federation. (2) The judicial powers of a State shall be vested in the courts to which this section relates, being courts established, subject as provided by this Constitution, for a State. (3) The courts to which this section relates, established by this Constitution for the Federation and for the States, specified in subsection (5) (a) to (1) of this section, shall be the only superior courts of record in Nigeria; and save as otherwise prescribed by the National Assembly or by the House of Assembly of a State, each court shall have all the powers of a superior court of record. (4) Nothing in the foregoing provisions of this section shall be construed as precluding: - (a) the National Assembly or any House of Assembly from establishing courts, other than those to which this section relates, with subordinate jurisdiction to that of a High Court; (b) the National Assembly or any House of Assembly, which does not require it, from abolishing any court which it has power to establish or which it has brought into being. (5) This section relates to:- (a) the Supreme Court of Nigeria; (b) the Court of Appeal; (c) the Federal High Court; (d) the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; (e) a High Court of a State (f) the Sharia Court of Appeal of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; (g) a Sharia Court of Appeal of a State; (h) the Customary Court of Appeal of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; (i) a Customary Court of Appeal of a State; (j) such other courts as may be authorized by law to exercise jurisdiction on matters with respect to which the National Assembly may make laws; and (k) such other court as may be authorized by law to exercise jurisdiction at first instance or on appeal on matters with respect to which a House of Assembly may make laws. (6) The judicial powers vested in accordance with the foregoing provisions of this section - (a) shall extend, notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this constitution, to all inherent powers and sanctions of a court of law (b) shall extend, to all matters between persons, or between government or authority and to any persons in Nigeria, and to all actions and proceedings relating thereto, for the determination of any question as to the civil rights and obligations of that person; (c) shall not except as otherwise provided by this Constitution, extend to any issue or question as to whether any act of omission by any authority or person or as to whether any law or any judicial decision is in conformity with the Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy set out in Chapter II of this Constitution; (d) shall not, as from the date when this section comes into force, extend to any action or proceedings relating to any existing law made on or after 15th January, 1966 for determining any issue or question as to the competence of any authority or person to make any such law.”

In a lecture at the 2007 All Nigeria Judges Conference titled: “Towards Strengthening Judicial Integrity: The Nigerian Experience”. Justice Dahiru Musdaher JSC, CON stated thus: “In order to safeguard the rights of the citizenry; promote accountability, transparency and other essential virtues of a decent and just society; to ensure the subsistence of a functional state under the Rule of Law; it is necessary to promote, strengthen and protect the integrity of our judicial system as well as the integrity of the individual adjudicator that is charged with the onerous responsibility of the dispensation of justices.”

“The judiciary is the arm of government that is responsible for the determination of the rights of the citizenry; amongst themselves and between them and the state. In your words of wisdom you affirmed that the judiciary is saddled with the constitutional responsibility of providing essential checks on the executive arm by reviewing its actions to determine whether or not they are in line with the standards established by the constitution.

Niki Tobi is one of the finest justices to have sat at the bench of the highest court in the land.
In a paper titled: “Obedience to court orders and judgments: A panacea for sustainable democracy” delivered at the 2007 all Nigerian judges conference, he stated that: “The judicial powers constitutionally vested in our courts include all the inherent powers and sanctions of courts of law. This involves the power to regulate its proceedings, punish for contempt and regulate the exercise of its discretion. The court in the regulation of its proceedings, protection of its dignity and the effective administration of impartial justice is entitled to and indeed oblige to say that it will not allow a process issuing out of the court to be treated with indifference, levity and disdain”.

“The common law rule precluding persons in disobedience of the orders of court against them from being heard in respect of the matter which they stand in disobedience permits of an exception where the party in disobedience is challenging the validity of the order.”

“Disobedience to orders of court is fundamental to the good order, peace and stability of the nation. The ugly alternative is a painful recrudescence of triumph of brute force or anarchy – a resort to our old system of settlement by means of bows and arrows, machetes and guns or, now, even more sophisticated weapons of war. Disobedience to an order of court should, therefore, be seen as an offence directed not against the personality of the judge who made the order, but as a calculated act of subversion of peace, law and order in the society. Obedience to every order of court is therefore a duty which every citizen who believes in peace and stability of the nation owes it.”

These two items namely abiding by the Constitution and restoring national security in line with the principle of rule of law are central to the human right blueprints that voters should ask their Presidential candidates to swear to oaths of court through affidavits to comply with or be sanctioned for breach of the social contract agreements.

*Emmanuel Onwubiko is Head, HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) and blogs @ www.emmanuelonwubiko.com; www.huriwanigeria.com; www.huriwa@blogspot.com.

Amaka: 2 Baba got it screwed up By Emmanuel Onwubiko

I, as a dyed in -the -wool follower of Chelsea football club of England alongside my three year old son, Master Naetochukwu Nnadozie, we sat in the sofa in our common room watching a scintillating/pulsating match between our team and Liverpool last weekend with incredible tensions.

In the midst of the evolving tension created by the last minute equalizer secured by a former Chelsea fc player Mr. Sturridge, yours faithfully intentionally looked away from the television set into my phone with the objective of self-distraction and to move my attention momentarily away from the gathering storms of uncertainty created by the goal against Chelsea Fc when we had hoped for at least a 1-nil defeat against one of our fiercest rivals, I then saw on the social media a caricature of the misfortune of another equally tough rival team in the English premiership known as Manchester United football club.

This joke about Manchester United’s poor beginning of the new football season was made by some persons who 'renamed' the team as 'Amaka United.'

In the thinking of this clown who made the caricature of the non-performing team coached by one of the World’s most flambouyant but successful coaches – Jose Morinho, the joker may have been instigated by the fact that in the last three decades, this is the first time that this top rated team has started a fresh soccer season with successive poor results coming in in torrents.

The latest defeat that this colourful team called Manchester united FC suffered in the hands of west ham united football club, compounded the misfortune of this globally respected team.

So in the mind of the creators of this joke about the team from Manchester in the United Kingdom, they are now known more for their disappointing turn of events and change of temporary misfortune to an extent that for this person on social media, the team can be termed a disappointment.

However, those who are circulating this caricature of Manchester United FC as “Amaka United FC of England,” were motivated to do so from the song that was recently released by the musician and song writer in Nigeria known as 2Baba or Tuface. He is originally named Mr. Innocent Idibia. He hails from Benue State, North Central Nigeria but his Ethnicity shares many things in common with the Igbo speaking people of South East of Nigeria from where he picked up the character in his latest release called Amaka. Amaka is the short form of the very famous Igbo name known as ChiAmaka. By some estimate, ChiAmaka is the most glamorous Igbo name East of the River Niger. There is hardly an Igbo family out of the over 50 million Igbo speaking nationals that does not have a female child bearing the name ChiAmaka which means in very literally way that God is beautiful. Igbo people are deeply religious and their names take root from the profound African philosophy and metaphysics of many epochs.

But this musician used the name of a girl known as Amaka to depict someone who is so full of disappointments and known for making exaggerating claims of whom she is not. To the performing musician this Amaka is a social fraudster.

The singer conveyed the impression that the Amaka of a girl gave him high hopes that she was going to keep a social date with him, only to keep him waiting endlessly.
The name of the song is Amaka just as the chorus goes thus:

“Amaka dissapoint me
O tiyeneke confusion
Amaka dissapoint me
Nyom kem dissapointment o
Amaka dissapoint me
Nyom kem confusion
Amaka dissapoint me
O tiyeneke dissapointment o”.

These jokes of Amaka that has gradually become somewhat infamous with millions of users of social media in Nigeria must be corrected without further delay.

That is what this piece is meant to achieve.
First, I must confess that I am also a lover of good songs.

As someone who grew up listening to several songs by popular musicians and as someone who recognizes excellence in whatever creative enterprise any young musicians puts into a popular songs, I must say that although the musician known as Innocent Idibia did not intentionally set out to distort the real meaning of the name Amaka or Chiamaka, but thousands of those listening to his song have become delusional to an extent that they are beginning to view the name Amaka as that which symbolizes disappointment.

But this musician, and his followers, I must confess have set in motion, a phenomenon that has got the whole essence of the name Amaka nearly screwed up and this must never be allowed to hold water for far too long.

It is therefore in an effort to correct this distortion that I hereby state that Africans must not continue to present the picture of a race that lacks philosophy.   Africans have an illustrious history, self-determination and a unique identity. The African personality is profoundly rooted in African philosophy and metaphysics. We who are students and followers of Philosophy must not allow this distortion of such a beautiful and spiritually embellished name CHIAMAKA to continue without any attempt to correct the misconception and properly let the audiences understand that the character represented in that Song by Innocent Idibia also known as 2Baba should not be confused with the philosophical symbolism and essence of the name which has deeply rooted spiritual meaning.

What this kind of song is doing to Africans is to repeat the idle talks of some Western thinkers who believe that Africans have no brains and lacks intellectual gifts.

Reading through the 2006 edition of the Thomson Gale’s encyclopedia, we are told that Many of the greatest thinkers of the modern era, including David Hume, Immanuel Kant, and Thomas Jefferson, considered Africans and their descendants to be so intellectually handicapped as to make them philosophical invalids, incapable of moral and scientific reasoning. Thus, prior to the twentieth century, the idea of African Philosophy was, for most educated Europeans and Americans, an oxymoron (Eze 1997, pp. 4–5).

This writer stated that to most of these aforementioned Western originated thinkers, the notion of African philosophy was provocative (in a way that the notion of British or French or German or Chinese philosophy was not) because the cultures of sub-Sahara Africa had no indigenous written languages in which issues were traditionally discussed and examined.

The writer of the commentary published in the encyclopedia aforementioned also made reference to the historic reality that other than the Egyptians and Ethiopians, most African cultures developed a written script only in response to Islamic and European influences.

"Following the model of European and North American philosophy, one group of contemporary African philosophers has contended that philosophy requires a tradition of written communication, and that African cultures must evolve beyond traditional conceptions expressed in oral forms if they are to develop the levels of critical exchange required for sophisticated scientific and philosophical activities" (Wiredu in Mosley 1995, pp. 160–169; Hountoundji 1983, p. 106).

The commentator reminds us that but others have argued that African philosophy should be sought in the values, categories, and assumptions that are implicit in the language, rituals, and beliefs of traditional African cultures. In this view, African philosophy is a form of ethno-philosophy—such as ethno-biology and ethno-pharmacology—one of the many subject areas of ethnology.

For the purposes of seeking to totally debunk the belittling and the many idle distortions made about the name Amaka in the song by 2Baba, this writer will fully subscribe to the philosophical analysis made in the aforementioned encyclopedia.

I will therefore say that it is an act of intellectual cowardice for any African to seek to destroy the essence and metaphysical import of an African and/or Igbo name just to create some momentary social entertainment.

In Igbo cosmology as well as most of African cultural concepts, names carry greater metaphysical significance and must not be distorted.

This must be so in an attempt to safeguard our claim to an authentic African philosophy and to educate Western audiences about the wholeness of African philosophy.

In most African family, naming ceremonies have spiritual meanings.

This means that parents make sure that the kind of name to be given to their baby has a whole lot of good virtues and carries a lot of values. Names are usually arrived at after constructive engagements by the family.

From the Harvard Business Review’s publication of 2013, John S. Hammond, Ralph L. Keeney and Howard Raiffa stated that “making decisions is the most important job of any executive. It is also the toughest and the riskiest. Bad decisions can damage a business and a career, sometimes irreparably.”
The above is same with naming a child in Africa. Name a child a terrible name, it is generally understand that disaster await such a person with a mischaracterized identity.

Responding to the question “What is in a name”, the African service of the British Broadcasting Corporation wrote as follows: “naming is part and parcel of the African heritage. It reflects one’s ethnic background, country of origin or simply hope and a parent’s aspiration for a child”.

From the same famous BBC, a reporter Adelaide Arthur writes that "Traditional African names often have unique stories behind them. From the day or time a baby is born to the circumstances surrounding the birth, several factors influence the names parents choose for their children. Whichever ethnic group you look at, these local names reveal a wealth of information about the bearer.”

The BBC Reporter also observed that among several ethnic groups, picking out names can be influenced by positive or negative circumstances the family finds themselves in around the time a child is born.

Often, such names are complete sentences, the reporter noted. The reporter gave a litany of examples of African names and their philometaphysical backgrounds.

Ayodele (joy has come home) is a unisex name for a baby whose birth brought happiness to their Yoruba parents in Nigeria; Yetunde or Yewande (mother has come back) is a Yoruba name given to a girl whose grandmother or other female relative died before she was born; Adetokunbo (crown/wealth has come back home) is a unisex Yoruba name often given to a child born abroad; Ajuji (born on a rubbish heap) is a Hausa name given to a baby after those born before it failed to survive.

The BBC reporter also noted that in some African cultures, It is believed that giving the child a "terrible" name will deceive evil spirits into thinking the child is not loved and as a result, allow it to live; Kgomotso and Pumza (comfort) are given to babies born shortly after a death or tragedy in Sesotho and Xhosa families in South Africa; Kiptanui and Cheptanui are often given to babies whose mothers may have suffered extreme difficulties during childbirth among the Kalenjin ethnic group in Kenya; Kimaiyo and Jemaiyo are names sometimes given to baby boys and girls whose births coincide with men drinking locally brewed beer (Maiywek) among the Kalenjins; Misrak (east) was given to an Ethiopian baby girl whose father was in Japan at the time she was born; Lindiwe (we have waited) is an isiZulu name often given to a baby girl after a long line of boys.

In his influential book, African Religions and Philosophy (1969), Professor John Mbiti reportedly elaborated the view that implicit in African cultures were different concepts of causality, time, and personhood.

Experts quoted John Mbiti as affirming that every event had both a physical and a spiritual cause, traceable to the influence of a continuum of spiritual beings (consisting of the living, the ancestral dead, deities, and God).

This philosopher averred that the above background information is key to understanding this African metaphysic and underlying this was a concept of time that consisted of an endless past (the Zamani), a living present (the Sasa), and a truncated future that returned to the past.

Mbiti says that those who had recently died continue to interact with the living for as long as they were remembered, and then they too returned to the Zamani.

Researchers say that one of the major expressions of philosophy as ethnology was negritude, a principal exponent of which was Leopold Senghor.

Senghor they noted had argued that Africans have a distinctive approach to reality in which knowledge is based on emotion rather than logic, where the arts are privileged over the sciences, and where sensual participation is encouraged over cerebral analysis.

For Senghor, the European analyzes reality from an objective distance whereas the African embraces reality by participating in it aesthetically and spiritually.

This difference between African and European cultures was, for Senghor, physiologically based and inherited (Senghor 1962). However, for Aime Cesaire, the other principal exponent of negritude, though the differences between African and European cultures were real, they resulted primarily from historical circumstances rather than biological differences (Arnold 1981, p. 37).

Whether biologically, culturally, or historically determined, many have claimed that the African contribution to civilization was invaluable because it was unique and peculiar to Africans.

These philosophical realities must be respected even as performing musicians must not be permitted to embark on the self-destructive journeys of distorting; defacing; demeaning the philosophy behind African names. CHIAMAKA is not a characterization of disappointment.

I so submit.

*Emmanuel Onwubiko is Head, HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) and blogs @ www.emmanuelonwubiko.com; www.huriwanigeria.com; www.huriwa@blogspot.com.

Ghana continues to pay us back for sins of Shagari’s Ghana-must-go: - HURIWA

A pro-democracy and non-governmental body – HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) has asked the Ghana’s president Nana Akufo-Addo to stop maltreating Nigerian traders probably as an unending revenge of the expulsion during the second Republic in Nigeria of Ghanaians out of Nigeria.

HURIWA reminded the Ghanaian government that Nigerians were also driven out of Ghana in the early 70's even as the group calls for a bilateral meeting between Nigeria and Ghana to iron out areas of differences and work out harmonious commercial partnerships.

HURIWA said it was ethically incorrect and a fundamental breach of the unambiguous provision of the fundamental principles and protocols of the treaty of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for Nigerian traders to be endangered in Ghana.

In this vein, the pro-democracy group has asked the Nigerian president Muhammadu Buhari, whose military regime came in through coup plot just after the then Shehu Shagari's government undertook the mass expulsion of Ghanaians from Nigeria in the mid 1980’s to apologize to Ghana and work harmoniously to marshal out cordial commercial relationship between Nigerians and the citizens of Ghana. HURIWA also asked Ghanaian government to tender apology to Nigeria over the maltreatment and expulsion of Nigerians in the early 70's so both nations can work under a new slate of neighbourliness and stop creating undue bottlenecks to trade as a result of the hangover of the angst generated by indiscretion of past governments of both nations targeting each others citizens who never had inputs to such disgraceful expulsions. 

“We appeal to president Buhari to apologize to the people of Ghana and probably work out a compensation package for those who can show evidences of loses from the actions of the security operatives who expelled Ghanaians from Nigeria and then cement a cordial trading partnerships between Ghana and Nigeria in such a way that it would bring mutual benefits and end the constant recrimination and undue harassment of ordinary Nigerians living and doing legitimate commercial activities in Ghana. Similarly, HURIWA has asked Ghana to pay compensation and apologize for the mass expulsions of Nigerians from Ghana in the 70's and put an immediate stop to the harassment of Nigerian traders in Ghana. 

Besides, the group reminded the president of Ghana that there are several citizens of Ghana who are engaged in such small and medium scale enterprises such as fashion designing/tailoring; shoe mending and running of supermarkets in Nigeria and wondered why Ghana should erect legal obstacles to frustrate investments by Nigerians in Ghana in similar small and medium scale enterprises.

HURIWA reminded Ghana’s president that chapter VIII co-operation in trade, customs, taxations, statistics, money and payments which is a component of ECOWAS treaty had legislated liberalization of trade among West Africans. 

HURIWA said that: This aspect of ECOWAS treaty states that there shall be progressively established in the course of a period of ten (10) years effective from 1 January, 1990 as stipulated in Article 54, a Customs Union among the member states. Within this union, customs duties or other charges with equivalent effect on community originating imports shall be eliminated.”

HURIWA reminded the Ghanaian leader that the EVOWAS treaty stated that: “Quota, quantitative or like restrictions or prohibitions and administrative obstacles to trade among the Member States shall also be removed. Furthermore, a common countries shall be established and maintained.”

HURIWA also stated that Article 4 on the Fundamental Principles enshrined in the ECOWAS protocols/Treaty charges the high contracting parties, in pursuit of the objectives stated in Article 3 of this Treaty, to solemnly affirm and declare their adherence to the following principles: “equality and inter-dependence of Member States; solidarity and collective self-reliance; inter-State co-operation, harmonization of policies and integration of programmes; non-aggression between Member States; maintenance of regional peace, stability and security through the promotion and strengthening of good neighbourliness; peaceful settlement of disputes among Member States, active Co-operation between neighbouring countries and promotion of a peaceful environment as a prerequisite for economic development; recognition promotion and protection of human and peoples' rights in accordance with the provisions of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights; accountability, economic and social justice and popular participation in development; recognition and observance of the rules and principles of the Community; promotion and consolidation of a democratic system of governance in each Member State as envisaged by the Declaration of Political Principles adopted in Abuja on 6 July, 1991; and equitable and just distribution of the costs and benefits of economic co-operation and integration.”

HURIWA recalled that More than 400 businesses owned by Nigerians have been closed by authorities in Ghana, sparking a protest by owners who have issued a week ultimatum within which to resolve the maltreatment of Nigerian business community in Ghana.

The National Association of Nigerian Traders (NANTS) have written a petition to President Muhammadu Buhari and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on the issue.

HURIWA recalled that the traders association gave a one-week ultimatum to the commission to intervene in the matter, warning that the association would occupy the ECOWAS premises if the situation in Ghana was not addressed.

HURIWA quoted the media as reporting that in their protest march to the ECOWAS Secretariat on Monday in Abuja, the traders urged the Commission to intervene to stop the alleged victimization of Nigerian business men and women in Ghana.

HURIWA said some local media reports on Tuesday, quoted the President of NANT, Mr. Ken Ukaoha, as stating that the development has reached a point where the Ghanaian Parliament has passed a legislation to make the business environment hostile to foreign investors.

He said that the ECOWAS President, Jean-Claude Brou, had been petitioned over the development.

“This is a save our soul call and the urgency of this protest is to inform you of the state of fear, uncertainty and insecurity that Nigerian traders are currently subjected to in the hands of the government and people of Ghana in different cities under the coordination of Ghana Investment Promotion Centre and Ministry of Trade and Industry,” Ukaoha said.

According to him, the members of the association have been shut out of their business premises in pursuance of the eviction order dated July 27, 2018, demanding that “we must have $1m as minimum foreign investment capital to do business in Ghana”.

HURIWA has therefore charged the President of Nigeria to personally intervene since he is even the current President of ECOWAS council of Heads of States and governments.