Nigeria: Tapping Into the Economic Opportunities of an Election Season

During the recently concluded party primaries in Nigeria, I posted a couple of comments on social media urging Nigerians residing in Port Harcourt, and its environs, to avail themselves of the opportunity of the PDP presidential primaries and make some money. Though many may have taken my comments as a joke, I believe that some who have experienced the manner money flows in these primaries did avail themselves of the opportunities presented thereby.

In any country in the world, but more so in Nigeria and other African countries, the election season, be it at local, state, or national level, is a time of increased money circulation, leading to a temporary boost in the economic activities of that nation. In developing nations like Nigeria, with very weak electoral laws and programs, elections and electioneering is an expensive process reserved only for the financially rich and powerful. From ward all the way to the national level, politicians do grease palms during every stage of the delegates’ selection process; and, by the time the candidates meet at the primary elections proper, millions of Naira may have trickled down to thousands of families.

To run a senatorial election in Nigeria costs an average of one billion Naira; to fund a governorship election will run you an estimated 5 billion Naira. For a presidential election, one must be looking at a whopping 100 billion Naira. Obviously, not every senatorial, gubernatorial or presidential candidate can afford these amounts of money, so the field is usual narrowed down to the parties and candidates who can afford these estimated amounts. 

The two political parties easily able to fund candidates for all political office are the ruling APC and the opposition PDP. There are 109 senate seats up for election, and about 30 governorship offices; it is expected that a conservative estimate of N518b will be spent by senatorial and gubernatorial candidates from just APC and PDP alone during this election season. Add N100b each from the two presidential candidates and you are looking at N718b pumped into the economy in less than 9 months. For the purpose of fairness, the rest of the 80, or so, political parties can be expected to spend another N50b on their candidates for various offices. Also, for the purpose of is article, the field is reduced to senate, governorship, and presidential candidates for the purpose of simplicity.

How The Money is absorbed Into the Economy

Delegates: As I alluded to earlier, delegates to the primary elections are the first beneficiaries of financial windfall of the election season; candidates compete to outspend each other to buy the votes of the delegates at all level; financial inducement, or rewards, increase from ward through state to national level. It has been alleged that delegates to the PDP national primaries in Port Harcourt were induced with upwards of $5000, or N1.7m per delegate by just one candidate. Given that there were over 7 candidates, though not with the same financial strength, even a $1000 inducement is a lot of expense for primaries alone. There were over 3000 delegates to that PDP national primaries, so even if one focuses on just securing half of the delegate votes, the successful candidate must have spent N2.6b in one night to secure the presidential nomination. My focus is on the PDP, because APC did not have a presidential primary; they adopted Buhari for a second term. All the same, there was a national convention and delegates were transported to Abuja to ratify the selection of Buhari as the presidential candidate. Financial emoluments were made to these delegates, and the hospitality industry benefited immensely form their convergence in Abuja for the weekend.

Imagine the same scenario as above replicated by the parties in 30 states and 109 senatorial zones, though at a lower expense rate than the presidential primaries. At the end of the exercise, delegates went back home with an average of N500k- N2m, which they invested in their families, businesses, and the local economies; thereby, positively impacting on their entire local government area.

Advertisements: Politicians invest heavily on publicity; they recruit musicians to write jingles for playing at radio and television stations. These stations, and advertising agencies expect revenue boosts during election cycles, and they prepare by hiring extra staff to accommodate the needs of politicians. Independent visual artists are not left out in the sharing of the political financial windfall; candidates commission posters for display on public and private buildings, roadsides, tree trunks, and public transportation vehicles; they also rent billboards, for the duration of the campaign season, to display their images and messages to the electorate; and, depending on location, one billboard can run into millions of Naira. A gubernatorial candidate intent on garnering statewide exposure could print as much as a million posters. Aside from the billboards and posters, there are pamphlets to hand out at rallies and for door-to-door distribution.

Hospitality: One industry that benefits immensely from national elections is the hospitality industry, even after the elections have been won and lost.  Candidates need hotel accommodations for themselves and their entourage during the campaign season; so, hoteliers always experience a spike in reservations, and some developers even venture as far as building new, or upgrading existing, hotels in cities with shortage of quality hotels. Not left out are public and private transportation providers. Even where public transportation systems exist, like in Lagos and Abuja, politicians prefer taxis, car rental agencies, and private car services at their disposal during campaign events. Civil servants avail themselves of the opportunity to make brisk businesses with their private vehicles, by providing affordable transportation services to visiting politicians, even if for a weekend.

Restaurants within and around the campaign environment, also, witness an increase in patronage during election period. Visiting politicians and their many supporters seek out corners restaurants where they request and taste the local culinary delicacies. For the duration of the event, the host community, or city, usually experience an upsurge in business revenue. Of course, every political event, be they rallies, conferences, or simple strategy retreats, requires planning and proper execution. This is where event planners come in; they will, in turn, reach out to canopy, furniture rental, and catering companies for needed supplies to successfully organize and execute an event for the candidate or the party.

Not entirely left out of the fray are prostitutes, or ladies of the night. A political campaign in any city is an opportunity for them to make brisk business. Though the candidates proper may not indulge in seeking the services of these ladies, and gents (for political correctness and equal representation), some of their many supporters and sponsors traveling with them, and almost always without their spouses, may do so. One must emphasize here that this is not particular to Nigerian, or African political environments, but an international phenomenon. It just seems to be more pronounced in African countries, because most of those who engage in the prostitution business are either breadwinners in their families, fending for themselves, their parents, and siblings; or, simply availing themselves of the prevailing opportunity to make some money to finance their education or hook up with a prominent personality. For the latter group, once the political season is over, their lives return to normalcy. When all is said and done, they would have garnered their share of the political money pot to solve some personal and family problems.

Manufacturing: The manufacturing sector is not left in the cold during Nigeria’s general elections. Some political parties have uniforms, and require their members and supporters to wear these uniforms during the campaign season; this provides an opportunity for textile manufactures, importers, and wholesalers to make some brisk business. When one throws in caps, fans, T-shirts with party symbols or candidates’ image, handkerchiefs, and many other gift items like pens, pins, key chains, shopping bags, and mugs, just to name a few, with the party or candidates’ logo on them, one is looking at a multi-million Naira windfall for some companies, which trickles down to many families through the employees and retailers.

Communication: Some candidates prefer to deliver their campaign speeches either from notes or teleprompters, because they are either clueless of their parties manifesto, or lack the requisite training and charisma to captivate their audience. So, they engage the services of speechwriters and journalists to craft a speech worthy of acceptance by the audience. Also, to benefit from this financial shot in the economic arm are videographers recruited by politicians and their parties for distribution to local communities which their campaign schedules could not allow them to visit. For some candidates, it is also cheaper to address their supporters via these professionally packaged video presentations in town hall settings than traveling there with a large entourage. Freelance photographers are not left out in this mad dash to make some money during the election season. A careful observer at every political gathering in an election season will easily spot photographers taking pictures of prominent politicians, their spouses, moneybags or godfathers who frequently grace these events. These photographers make brisk business by selling the best prints to their “victims”, or targeted audiences. Most of the determined ones travel to every location with popular candidates to cover their campaigns for the duration of the season.

Community Leaders: traditional rulers equally welcome the election season with open hearts and arms, because of the frequent flow of brown envelopes. Politicians on campaign trails often pay scheduled visits to prominent traditional rulers of their campaign host communities, Sometimes, these visits are made on individual basis; where that is time-consuming, the traditional rulers gather at the palace of the most prominent of the groups where “kola” is shared in solicitation for support. Not to be outdone, community youth, and parochial organizations also pledge support for one candidate, or the other, in exchange for some financial support or promise. They usually serve as the eyes and ears of these candidates at the polling stations on election days. Even professional and vocational bodies, like mechanics, drivers unions, lawyers, the disabled, market women, etc., declare their supports for some candidates, who, in turn, provide them with funding for a few political gatherings mostly in violation of their organization’s code of ethics; but, who cares, as long as everyone gets a cut.

Elder Statesmen & Women: There is a class of retired politicians and senior civil servants in Nigeria classified as elder statesmen and women; some of these people still command respect, and wield considerable influence in their communities and social clubs. Politicians, recognizing the election benefits of these influences, strive to establish and maintain close connection with these people, by putting them on special compensation lists through the governors and regional political party structures; in return, during political campaigns, these elder statesmen and women, lend their voices and support to specific political parties or candidates.

Though not every sector is represented here, like private security companies and the legal profession, one can easily deduct that election seasons in Nigeria pump large sums of money into the economy, through the many professions and sectors listed above; while the season presents opportunities for corporations to increase revenue, it is also an opportunity for individuals to make much-needed extra income to support their families. So, while many social organizations complain about the huge amount of money candidates spend to finance a run for public office, and the negative effects such increase in money supply on the economy, they must remember that the bulk of this money is recycled throughout all sectors of the economy, and the people are the beneficiaries in the end.

Felix Oti

Arlington, TX
USA

Ndi Igbo and the Lost Political Decade

Late in May of this year, I had published a paper on Igbo political miscalculations based on our political alliances; in that paper I had laid out scenarios that could have put Ndi Igbo in a position to occupy Aso Villa four years earlier, in 2023, than a possible 2027. I, also, proffered reasons why even a 2027 Igbo presidency may not be a possibility. This paper will, drawing from some of the scenarios of the last paper, explain why the decade of 2013 to 2023 could be considered a lost decade in Igbo political history.

This analysis, review, or whatever one might choose to term this paper, is much more necessary now that, as I predicted in my May paper, the two major political parties, APC and PDP, have selected their presidential and vice-presidential candidates. The APC had maintained the status quo of the current president and vice, while the PDP nominated, Alhaji Atiku Abubaker, former Vice President under Obasanjo, former APC member, and a constant and an astute political operative in the wild and unpredictable political climate in Nigeria, as their presidential candidate. Atiku in turn, and predictably, picked an Igbo political non-politician, Peter Obi, a former banker and two-term governor of Anambra state under APGA, as his running mate.

Now, I have read some comments, more prominently from Senator Ben Murray-Bruce, one of the members of the Atiku presidential team that he has promised to serve just one term, if the PDP wins the 2019 presidential election. This, if it happens, will put Ndi Igbo in a prominent position to take over the presidency. By 2023, Atiku will be 76 years old, and may very well decide to focus on his business and for the rest of his useful years. This comment has not been confirmed, or denied, by Atiku himself, and no one else in his inner circle has seconded or confirmed it. So, as things stand now, only Senator Bruce heard this.

So, why a lost political decade? Because, by 2023, it would have been 10, or more, years since the Igbos either played any role of prominence in, or directly benefited from, the political process in Nigeria, The last two years, if not the entire five and half years of the Goodluck Jonathan administration, could be considered a loss for the Southeast and his South-south base, considering the massive political support these two regions gave him in 2011. In a winner-takes-all political dogfight, Jonathan, after securing a win, decided to leave everything on the political table. Following in the footsteps of, albeit few, former southern presidents before him; he cannot, today, point at anything of substance in the southeast, or his south-south region, to remember him by; except for massive levels of corruption at all levels of government. For a region which suffered serious neglect, in terms of development and key appointments, under the Obasanjo and Yar’Adua administrations, the expectation was that Jonathan, our son and “brother”, would come to the rescue. Unfortunately, this never happened.

These results notwithstanding, the Igbos voted massively for Jonathan again in 2015; a 98% vote allocation to Jonathan, and a pittance of 2% for his opponent, Buhari. This massive Igbo support was for two reasons: one, his opponent was a northerner perceived by many among the Igbo leadership to be anti-Igbo and anti-Christian; the second was that Buhari will definitely stop the financial largess falling from Jonathan’s many feast tables to the so-called southern elder statesmen, because he is widely acclaimed as a miser. Relying on the power of incumbency to return Jonathan to power, Igbo leaders and political analysts failed to read the mood of the rest of the zones. So, with their massive support for Jonathan, they voted themselves out of Nigeria’s political system; at least, for four years – a very critical error to make in Nigeria’s increasingly fluid political dispensation. Thankfully, the apex Igbo cultural organization, Ohaneze Ndigbo, seem to have realized this error, and are working hard to correct it and position Ndi Igbo for a more inclusive role in 2023.

As I predicted in May, and restated earlier in this paper, the two prominent presidential candidates have emerged from the North, with their running makes from the South. If PDP wins in 2019, and their candidate runs for a second term in 2023 (regardless of what Sen. Bruce said), an Igbo will be the PDP presidential candidate in 2027, not doubt. With the APC re-nominating Buhari for a second term, the Yorubas stand a chance of fielding the presidential candidate in 2023, four years earlier than the Igbos, and 16 years after a Yoruba handed over to a northerner. So, if the Igbo had dispensed with tribal politics in 2011 and 2015, and immersed themselves deeply into both major political parties, they would have had a considerable chance of fielding a presidential candidate under the APC in 2023, on the basis that all the major regions have produced the president except Ndi Igbo. This would have drawn nationwide sympathy towards them. Now, could my thinking have played out? Let us analyze some scenarios, first.

Public Disenchantment

Despite photo-ops and social media publicity, there is widespread disenchantment among Nigerians, though very premature given their short time in office, with the current APC government; so, given that by 2023, the Southwest would have been out of office for 16 years, and since it is due to no fault of any other region that the Igbos have been in the political wilderness, the likelihood of the Yorubas conceding to, or supporting, and Igbo presidency in 2023 is very remote. Instead, they will likely make a go at it with either Osinbajo or Bukola Saraki; alternatively, Tinubu and his lieutenants could engineer another coalition of political parties for the top post in 2023, as they did in 2015.

Deep-Rooted Regional Suspicion

The Buhari administration have , from inception, witnessed unprecedented verminous attack from some Igbo groups, especially amplified by the Nnamdi Kanu-led IPOB in the last year, that the ebbing mutual suspicion between Northerners and the Igbos have been gravely reinforced. As one Igbo elder lamented to me, recently: “the trust which took us 40 years to restore has been destroyed by one stupid boy in just a few months”. So, with the North-South distrust at its highest level in recent years, the northern voting public will not likely support or vote for an Igbo candidate. The sliver of hope is that 2023 is still far away, and before then, these two regional enemies could begin to see eye to eye. This will take a considerable effort by both sides to repair the damage already done, and to prevent a continuation of antagonistic rhetoric.

The Right Political Alignment

No doubt, the numbers are in the North. For anyone to win a presidential election in Nigeria, that person has to corral two of the three northern zones, and the Southwest. Specifically, for an Igbo candidate to win a presidential election in Nigeria, that person will have to win the 3 southern zones, plus one northern zone; then, capture, at least, 25% of the remaining two northern zones. Anything short of this calculation will not get an Igbo candidate elected president in Nigeria.

A scenario where a Yoruba is running alongside an Igbo candidate will pose a near-insurmountable challenge to a successful Igbo presidency in 2023. Because the north is more comfortable working politically with the Southwest than the Southeast, they will more than likely back a candidate from that zone than one of Igbo stock. The same politically alliance could be expected between the north and the southwest if a northerner was running against an Igbo candidate; because, in spite of public comments and postures, the Yoruba will not support an Igbo over a northern candidate, except that Igbo has a Yoruba as a running mate. Unfortunately, a Southeast-Southwest presidential ticket will never be acceptable in Nigeria.

The same relationship problem Igbos have with the Southwest exists with their next door neighbor in the south-south, though at a much manageable level. The South-south seem to share a much closer relationship with their Southwest neighbors than with the Southeast; due, largely, to fear of Igbo economic and political dominance, amplified by IPOB’s forceful annexation of this region, by the South-south. It is relatively easy for Igbos to adopt and support a South-south candidate against a Northern or Southwestern candidate, than it is for the South-south to return the favor in the case of an Igbo candidate. The seeming inability of Igbos to understand the political formula required to win a presidential election, will keep them from occupying Aso Villa as resident-in-chief for a long time.

Internal Disunity

Of all the previously mentioned reasons why Igbos may not win the presidency in 2023, or even 2027, the biggest impediment is lack of unity among the Igbos themselves. The oft-quoted republican nature of the average Igbo can be considered more of a curse than a blessing. No two Igbos can agree on a course, or the strategy to pursue that course; the multitude of Igbo organizations, both locally and in Diaspora, are like Jacks of all trade, but masters of none. There are no specific organizations focused on specific issues like education, manufacturing, agriculture, political and social integration, infrastructural development, safety and security, healthcare, wealth creation and management; instead, goals and objectives overlap, and no cohesive relationship exist between any two organizations to champion any of these courses. Rather, what exists is simply a multiplication of roles and responsibilities, which further exacerbate the confusion, incoherence, and disarray among the people.

Most damaging is the insistence by particular groups and prominent individuals that their identification, and definition of, the Igbo problem is supreme; therefore, their proffered solution or course of action must be the only acceptable one. This myopic belief, adversely, affects their approach to political relationships and party affiliations. The feeling in some certain quarters that, almost 50 years after the civil war, the inability of Igbos to form a cohesive political force could be blamed on the North is simply an attempt, now widely acknowledged by others, at offering a reason for a possible failure in 2023 and beyond.

Lack of a Clear Vision

Everyone in Nigeria acknowledges that Igbos want something; what is not clear, especially among the Igbos, is what that thing is. In the absence of a uniform plan or program for, and by a majority of Igbos, it is impossible to convince or coerce others to join your course. Where there is lack of a national agenda by a presidential candidate, capable of energizing his or her traditional base, it becomes much more difficult for anyone else to take you seriously. Restructuring, devolution of powers, states creation, regional autonomy, and outright secession are some of the items on the Igbo’s bucket list. Unfortunately, these all mean different things to different people among the Igbo tribe; the leadership team, or an Igbo organization, that is able to understand this and fashion out an all-inclusive action plan that incorporates the needs and desires of the many different ethnic groups within the Igbo nation, and sellable to the rest of Nigeria, is very likely to deliver an Igbo president in 2023 or 2027.

Unfortunately, this will not happen before 2023, given the damage done by the resurgence of Biafran secessionist championed by Nnamdi Kanu and his IPOB; however, the current state of political wilderness should not be allowed to extend beyond 2023. Yes, the three years between when we lost our all-or-nothing bet on Goodluck Jonathan and 2018 has been one  of anger, frustration, and concealed regret; but, from 2018 to 2027 is almost a decade away, and we should not lose the opportunity to re-write our political history in the Nigeria we currently call our own. If, and when Biafra comes, we will take it and run with it; until then, we have to make our presence felt in the now that is Nigeria. It should not take another ten years

Felix Oti

Arlington, TX

felix.oti@gmail.com

I write about Igbo issues, because I am Igbo to the core and care about my people; and, I do invest time and energy to continuously study and understand my people. Yes, I rub some Igbo readers the wrong way because I am independent-minded, and not so easily swayed by some sweet-tongued or fiery preachers of hate and discord in the name of Igbo self-determination. The elections are here, so my focus for the foreseeable future will turn to the candidates and their plans for Nigeria, which Igbos are still part of.

Nigeria: Ndi Igbo and the Politics of Miscalculation

 “No, my brother; it was you people who voted him in. We gave you Falae, but you people chose Obasanjo”

The above was in response to a question I put to a Yoruba socialite in Lagos in 2001. I had wanted to know why they thought Olusegun Obasanjo was the best they could offer in 1999 for the presidency. The “you people” in her response refers to South-easterners, specifically, Igbos. This claim can only be true if one adds the South-south votes, because the total Southeast vote for Obasanjo in 1999 was 2.3m out of a total 3.3m votes cast in the region.

Let us review the political succession scenario of the PDP, and how it was supposed to benefit the southeast; if Obasanjo and Atiku had a good working relationship, Atiku would have succeeded his boss in 2007, and would have picked someone from southeast or south-south as his vice-president. If that scenario had played out, by 2015, whoever was the vice-president would have become the president. Which means that a southerner would have been Nigeria’s president today, though the likelihood of that president coming from the South-south or the Southeast was a 50:50 coin toss. Of course, this did not happen as envisioned, or even written.

As it turned out, Atiku was sidelined, Obasanjo picked Yar’Adua to replace him, and the rest is well-documented. However, we will continue to construct this scenario to determine, all things being equal, when Nigeria could have had an Igbo president. With Yar’Adua’s emergence as president, the vice-presidential lot fell on the South-south, instead of the southeast; assuming that he was able to serve out his two terms, Goodluck Jonathan would have taken over in 2019, and served till 2027 with a Muslim vice president of the Southwest extraction, to balance the political equation. Obviously, with the selection of a vice-president from the South-south, the Southeast was effectively, eliminated from possibly ever producing a Nigerian president. Yet, the Igbos never expressed any form of anger or frustration at this PDP succession scenario. Maybe, they never read or accurately interpreted the tea leaves.  

However, the Southwest was making its own calculations based on the above scenario; realizing that with a continued PDP rotation system, the earliest they could get back into the corridors of power at Aso Villa would be in 2027, they decided to stage a coup. After the 2011 elections, and the dissatisfaction of the northerners over the loss of their rightful turn to complete their two terms, Tinubu saw an opportunity to form a coalition of strange bedfellows to not only wrest power from the PDP, but to return the Southwest to the corridors of power much earlier than projected and, in the process, inadvertently create an opportunity for Igbos to have a shot at the presidency. That is, if the coalition manages to last beyond two election cycles. Currently, things seem to be falling apart. However, there is nothing wrong in evaluating the chances of an Igbo presidency in an APC political arrangement.

To garner the votes of the northern electorate, the newly-formed political coalition dubbed All Progressives Congress, with little or nothing progressive about them, needed a popular northern candidate, and they settled on Muhammadu Buhari. The South-south, with an incumbent president, expectedly, stuck with their man. However, and surprisingly, the Southeast elected to stick with Jonathan and the PDP, even though the region was devoid of any form of evidence of Jonathan’s six-year presidency. Here, the southeast opted to stay with the devil and the party they are comfortable with than join the one where, seemingly, their chances of producing the president in the near future is much better.

So, how would have the Southeast fared if they had switched political allegiance in the 2015 elections? All things being equal, if Buhari serves out a second term by 2023, it is expected that one of two things will happen: either Osinbajo will run for office, or an APC candidate of Igbo extraction will be selected. The latter is more likely to happen than the former, because the rest of the regions in Nigeria will demand it of the APC, given that only the Southeast, of all the major tribes, would have been without a president since Nigeria’s return to democratic rule. So, the question is, why did the Igbos not imagine this scenario and support the APC, considering that their route to attaining the highest elected office in the land is shortest through the APC than the PDP? Was it a case of political non- or miscalculation? More surprising is the fact that after three years during which the Igbos would have realized the error of their ways and re-calculate their political equations, they are still deeply entrenched in PDP and vehemently opposed to the APC, continuously deriding their brothers and sisters who serve in that government.

One might wonder why this is the case, given the current presidential set up in the PDP where the 2019 candidate is to come from the North? The expectation is that whoever the flag bearer of the PDP is will pick his vice from the Southeast, and by 2027, after he would have served his 8 years, his vice, an Igbo, will take over. So, the Igbos are willing to sacrifice four more years before making it to Aso villa in 2027, instead of in 2023. Here is a wrinkle to this scenario; by 2023, the Southwest would have been without the top political post in Nigerian for 16 years, and may not be willing to wait for an Igbo presidential candidate in 2027 who may, or may not, pick his running mate from the Southwest. So, another palace coup involving a coalition of another set of strange bedfellows, which will ensure the emergence of a Yoruba president in 2027, will be effected. It will be like the 2015 arrangement, only that the two top positions will be switched, with a northerner as vice-president.

Yes, these are all scenarios and calculations some of which had already played out, and others still to, or may not, play out. What is evident, and has been for a while, is that Igbos seem to lack the foresight and the political calculating skills of the rest of the regions; dismissing that, then, one might say they are comfortable playing second and third fiddle to everyone else, and blaming their political misfortunes on some form of marginalization scheme by the rest of the hundreds of tribes that make up the Nigerian nation.

There is always the likelihood of a political earthquake in either 2019 or 2023, which will make nonsense of all the scenarios and calculations; now, if such were to be the case, where will the Igbos be, and what role will they play in effecting that earthquake? What happened in 2015 was akin to a political earthquake, and it took deft political moves, negotiating skills, and the offering of carrots for those involved to pull it through. Some truths are evident in the Nigerian political scene: any candidate from either the southwest or the Fulani north can win without the Igbo votes; MKO Abiola proved that, and so did Buhari in 2015. Again, all it takes is knowing how to balance the regional equation. Before the 2011 elections, a group of political analysts successfully predicted the voting pattern of that election; the same thing happened before the 2015 presidential elections, and, currently, a team is analyzing the 2015 voting pattern and realigning the numbers to predict the eventual winner in 2019. All of this work is important and politically beneficial to all the regions interested in the presidency, because you can narrow your campaign focus to those key areas and states.

A political earthquake prior to 2023 might include a restructured Nigeria which will result in regional autonomy, though, realistically, I do not see that happening any time soon. No one, having attained the presidency of Nigeria, will dilute his own power and influence. Another option might be a secession by one or more of the regions, most likely the South-south and the Southeast. This, also, I do not envision, except when oil becomes the 3^rd largest revenue earner for Nigeria. Finally, the earthquake could involve the return of the military, in which case every region will be taken 20 years backwards.

Whatever the case may be, and however the projected scenarios may play out, the Southeast needs to begin the process of creating political alignments, building trust with more than just one region – the neighboring south-south, and shedding the well-worn toga of a marginalized people; because, believe it or not, the rest of Nigeria is losing interest in the Igbo man’s plight, and are increasingly seeing them more as trouble makers than innocent victims. Currently, the Southeast is politically irrelevant at the national level; it must find a way to regain the relevance of the second republic by being in the mainstream, and not on the sideline.

"If We Build It, They Will Come"

Yesterday, March 24th, was the Igbo Community Association of Nigeria (ICAN), Dallas, Business Banquet, and it was an interesting one; preceding that the night before, was the meet-and-greet event to welcome the members of the Board of Directors of World Igbo Congress (WIC) to Dallas of the Professor Anthony Ejiofor-led administration for their first Board meeting. I had an obligation, as a parochial president, to attend both events which offered an opportunity to meet, interact with, and listen to some of the speeches and questions by some prominent Igbo sons and daughters that evening

I was not able to attend the WIC Board meeting earlier on the 24th, but if the questions of the 23rd night was to serve as a precursor, then the meeting proper was, or must have been, quite eventful. However, I was early enough to the Business Banquet to listen to, and analyze, the speeches and addresses of  most of the guests from Nigeria on the theme of the event: If We Build It, They Will Come".

The first to speak was Professor Obi Nwakanma of Florida Central University; a noted historian of international repute. He delved into history to remind us of the successes of the Michael Okpara administration of the First Republic and up to the Mbakwe successes of the Second republic; he traced the history of Igbo business successes, the reasons for those successes, and the opportunities which still exist beyond the shores of the Nigerian nation, all the way to the Congo basin, where untapped mineral and natural resources are in abundance waiting for the brave at heart to venture into. He decried the situation where Igbos build mansions in Abuja and Lekki, while erecting chicken coups in their villages, and lamented the fact that since the demise of African continental Bank (ACB), there is no Nigerian bank, or any other major financial business, headquartered in the Southeast, even the ones owned by Igbos.

After the good History Professor came the Consular-General at the Atlanta Consulate, Mr. Laro. He reminisced on his months as a youth copper in the east serving in a small boundary town between present day Imo and Anambra state; his witness of the hard work and resilience of an average Igbo business man on his trips to Onitsha and Owerri, and their determination to make something out of nothing in any environment. He praised the desire, in spite of all odds, to venture into areas and business ideas that others are either afraid, or refuse, to go - even to his home state of Kwara. He elaborated on the business opportunities both in Nigeria and within the Diaspora community, the available government assistance in both exports and imports promotion for prospective entrepreneurs to tap into, and the desire of his office to assist the Nigerian community in both consular and business services.

After the Consular-General, Chief Joe Madu introduced the Chief Executive Officer of Knightsbridge Property limited (KPL), the main sponsors of the night's event, who made a case for investing in real estate. Statistically, he said, Nigeria needs about 17-20 million houses to be able to provide affordable housing for all its citizens. With these needs come opportunities to invest in not only property development, but in management also. He urged prospective investors to look into areas of real estate where they can put their money in an effort to meet this housing challenge.

Finally, came the big masquerades of the night; the speakers everyone have been waiting for, and the reasons why most of us stayed up later than our bedtimes. First to speak was the CEO of Master Energy, Dr. Uche Sampson Ogah. There is no need to go into too much details about his speech, because it was very long, but necessary; however, one thing of note is his reason for embarking of the industrial city project at Uturu. Now, it must be noted that Master Energy has about 100, 000 employees in its payroll, but its offices and services are mostly outside the southeast. His reason, according to him, was that he got too tired of people trooping to him to ask for employment, every time he goes home, that he decided that, instead of building this industrial complex in Ogun state, where he has a sizable parcel of land, why not do it in his hometown. The complex will not only create 4500 direct employment in Uturu, it will feed accessory businesses that will not only support the community but the industrial complex also. He encouraged others - individuals and groups of investors alike  - to do the same. He also praised the business decision of Nnewi people to always headquarter their businesses in their hometown, and wished that many others outside Nnewi will do same.

I could not leave the event without hearing from the last speaker for the night, even though it was almost midnight. Dr. Bart Nnaji's speech was not long, because, according to him, most of the grounds have already been covered by Dr. Ogah. He listed 4 projects which was born out of a meeting of prominent some Igbos that was held sometime in December of 2016. That meeting led to the formation of Southeast Nigeria Development Corporation (SENDEC), which was tasked with looking into areas where private investors can augment government efforts in developing the 5 southeastern states. The group came up with 4 areas of critical need:
1. A major hospital which will serve as an anchor for rural and communal healthcare delivery
2. A standard gauge rail system that will connect the major economic hubs of the southeastern states.
3. Adequate power generation and distribution to provide uninterrupted power supply to the major business towns of the region, so manufacturers can locate their businesses in the southeast.
4. Provision of adequate housing and commercial property development in the Southeast.

To fund these projects will include public-private partnerships, joint ventures with both local and international investor, and crowd funding - which is where every Igbo is expected to be involved.

According to him, some of these projects are already at advanced stages of planning and logistics, and for some others, funding negotiations are already going on.  He informed the audience of plans by the CEO of Crown Property Development to build a business city, Aba Business City, on the outskirts of Aba, mirroring what Dr, Ogah is doing in Uturu. Finally, Dr, Nnaji narrated his experience at the hands of the previous Jonathan administration, when he and some investors were trying to provide stable power supply to Aba, and praised the Buhari administration for stepping in to their rescue, and saved them from a loss of about $560m. He promised that by October, the Geometric power project in Aba will come into full stream. Also, plans are underway, working with General Electric, to build other power plants outside Aba, while working on expanding the wattage output of the Aba project.

All in all, it was an eventful night, and most of the things I heard were music to my ears. One thing was clear from all the speakers: opportunities exist for business in Nigeria, especially the southeast, and investors should not be cowed by fear of insecurity. As one investor asked me in a side comment: "why is the white man who is in your village working for a company making money not afraid; yet, you the owner of the villager is afraid to go home?". Something to think about.

A Nation under Threat of Disintegration

Congress of Concerned Nigerian Citizens

We have watched with utter shock and disbelief as lawless anarchy seem to have become the norm in our dear country, as a combination of Boko Haram terrorist and armed Fulani bandits continue to sow terror and fear across the length and breadth of our beloved nation, Nigeria. It is equally with dismay and disappointment that we observed the lame response, and sometimes, seeming nonchalant attitude of the Federal government towards what should, ordinarily, be of immense concern, and top priority of a responsible government.

While we acknowledging that the current security problem witnessed in Nigeria predates this current administration, it must equally be acknowledged that the spread and frequency of attacks and resultant loss of lives by, especially, the herdsmen has increased immensely under this administration; thereby, giving credence to allegations of incompetence or insincerity on the part of the Buhari government in curbing the excesses of these herdsmen.

Though the activities of Boko Haram terrorists are largely concentrated in the Northeast region of Nigeria, the marauding herdsmen, Fulani or otherwise, have traversed regions and ethnic nationalities, wreaking destructive havoc on both humans and farm crops. While the victims cry out in anguish, the government has been lukewarm and ignorant in its response to these atrocities; holding endless security meetings, and offering hollow words of condolence to devastated families and communities, while Nigerians suffer more heinous attacks.

Even the patience of a docile and tolerant citizenry eventually run out, and they resort to self-efforts to protect themselves and their farm crops. While we do not hope or pray for the escalation of an already tense security situation, we call on the government to, urgently, arrest this pervading lawless situation in Nigeria before the citizens lose hope and trust in their government, and take their safety into their hands.

We call on the Buhari administration, and its security agencies to prioritize the safety and security of Nigerians, without which no level of development can be sustained. A word is enough ………………..

Mr. Felix Oti

(Coordinator, North American Region)

PO Box 183721 Arlington, Texas 76096 USA. Email: congresscnc@mail.com