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Opinion: Dubai Robbers: Why I Support Abike Dabiri-Erewa- Comfort Obi

Published

5 years ago

April 9, 2019

Editor

By Comfort Obi

Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, is in trouble. A section of the country – the Igbo – is angry with her. She has unwittingly stepped on the toes of the Igbo. And the people,
, if you think they are being overly sensitive. They probably have reasons to. At times, they have been brazenly discriminated against in their own fatherland.
Here’s one recent example.
In some parts of Lagos state during the recent general elections, they were marked out for special treatment. They were not allowed to vote. Those who did watched, in disbelief, as their votes were publicly burnt. A number of them, recruited for election duties, were shut-out and, stopped from performing their duties. Nobody was punished for that criminal disenfranchisement of a people. I have digressed.
So, how did the ever sure-footed Abike put the wrong foot forward? As you know, the office she holds requires tact. You know, diplomatic niceties. But as you also know, politics was not her turf. Nor was foreign and Diaspora affairs.
Before she joined politics, she was a journalist, one of NTA’s star reporters. Journalists are not usually diplomatic. They are trained to present the facts as they are. So, because of her background, when she became a member of the House of Representatives, she was, naturally, expected to chair its Information committee. I don’t remember now if she ever did. But, we woke up one day to hear that she has been appointed the Chair of the House Committee on Diaspora. Not a few of us were, at once, both disappointed and angry. What’s that?, we asked. We felt somebody, somewhere, are on an over-drive. They don’t want her to shine, to show her talents. Nobody had heard of that committee before. Newly created, it was not expected to make any impact.
But Abike disappointed whoever the coup plotters were. She took it in her stride. She did her homework. And before anybody knew what was happening, Abike had made the Diaspora Committee the envy of many of her colleagues. She was everywhere. Her committee was so busy there was no breathing space. She was the star.
That’s how come she was appointed Mr President’s Senior Special Assistant on Foreign Affairs and the Diaspora – the first to be so appointed. That’s how come she is more known, by not a few Nigerians, than the Minister for Foreign affairs and/or the Minister of State. No jokes intended here, but in March of 2018,1 asked a policeman, intent on a Peace Mission posting, to tell me the name of our foreign minister. Without wasting a second, he responded: Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa. See? That’s how come many Nigerians in the Diaspora refer many of their challenges, directly, to her. That’s how they see her as Nigeria’s face. And that’s how come she has talked herself into this trouble with the Igbo.
It started last Tuesday when the news broke that a Nigerian woman had just been beheaded by the Saudi government over drug offences. The previous day, news had also broken that a gang of five armed robbers, all of them, Nigerians, had slurred our dear country’s image with coal tar in Dubai. The guys got to Dubai and, within 48 hours of entry, planned an armed robbery attack. They, successfully, robbed a Bureau de Change to the tune of millions in every currency. The collective shame of a nation.
Given the office she holds, and how so often she rises in anger against the injustices her compatriots face abroad, Abike must have been very embarrassed. The two incidents in Saudi and Dubai are worrisome. But she issued no statement. She bore her embarrassment with calmness, perhaps, waiting for clearance. Her office is at the Federal Secretariat. But being an aide to the President, she gets called up to the Villa when needed.
So, this Tuesday, she went to the Villa. And, on her way out, she was cornered by State House Correspondents. Cheeky fellows! They put her in this problem. They may have sensed why she came. So, they wanted her to address our shame in Saudi and Dubai. She had no choice.
In addressing the case of the beheaded woman in Saudi, she did not disclose her name. She identified her as one woman. No first name. No surname. Nothing. She even gave the impression she may have been innocent, considering the unwholesome roles some airlines play.
At times, she revealed, their staff smuggle drugs into the luggages of unsuspecting Nigerian pilgrims. She briefly made mention of two airlines which staff may be guilty of that wickedness. True? If so, the questions are: Why has this not been made public until now? And, what is the FG doing about it? Have the airlines been reported, before, to their countries of origin? Or, are we just talking? This allegation is serious and disturbing. But, again, I digress.
So, Abike also added that the executed woman brought to eight the number of Nigerians so executed in Saudi. And this: 20 more are waiting same fate. Again, she mentioned no names. Then, the crux of the matter. Abike proceeded to the armed robbery in Dubai. While, rightly, condemning it in very strong terms, she revealed their names one by one. Unfortunately, all are of the Igbo ethnic group. Our shame! How dared she name them?, some Igbo queried. They took offence.

Their anger?
Why should Abike mention the cursed alleged armed robbers by name, and not the drug pushers – beheaded or alive? Why should she name and shame them, and not the other people? So, they are alleging ethnic bias. They are saying she named and shamed them because they are Igbo? Or, what will be her reason?, they ask.
So, in a Whatsapp message that has gone viral, they not only took on Abike, they also engaged in a tit for tat. They listed the names of those executed for drugs (there was no Igbo), and those in waiting (I saw one Igbo name).
At times, I can be unbelievably slow-witted. When, I first got the Whatsapp message, I thought nothing of it. I was like: hey, more news. It was the second day when the person who forwarded it to me asked me “Has Abike reacted?” And, I was like: to what? It was then I put two and two together. And, I felt low for my people.

And, my questions to nobody, in particular were: What’s all the nonsense about? Are these people trying, by any means, to suggest that our boys, the alleged armed robbers, ought to have remained anonymous? Na lie. Perish the thought. They should be named. And they should be shamed. There is no competition in crime.
For the records, I am proudly Igbo. I love our business mindedness. Our independence. Our ruggedness. Our industry. Our survival instinct. Our self- esteem. Even our hustle and loudness! But, hey, I will never read ethnic meaning in the condemnation of any
crime?
Meaning: I don’t see what Abike did wrong. She was doing her job. And, it doesn’t worry me whether she named others or not.
Many things should worry the Igbo instead. The questions should be: Were those boys armed robbers or not? Did they travel to Dubai to go and rob or not? Was it okay that, barely two days after they arrived Dubai, they embarked on such a disgraceful act? Did they not remember their Igboness when they were disgracing their tribe and country?
What should worry the Igbo is the shame the young boys have brought on their tribe, and to other Nigerians living in Dubai, and doing their legitimate businesses.
Now, no thanks to them, every Nigerian youth going to Dubai will be looked upon with suspicion, as a potential criminal. They may start denying them entry. The businesses of those who already live there will be scrutinized and re-scrutinized.
Many of our people are doing so well in the diaspora. They are working hard. And the commendation we give them is to export armed robbery, drugs, prostitution and 419 to where they live? And somebody is thinking of ethnic bias?
Crime has no colouration. A crime is a crime, it doesn’t matter which ethnic group any criminal comes from. It is our collective shame. To think that, perhaps, the Igbo are deliberately being singled out to be named and be shamed is a no-no. It doesn’t gel with me.
The Igbo, as well as other ethnic groups, should worry about the lifestyles of some of our youths which encourage crime; which encourage get-rich quick by all means; which encourage irresponsible lifestyles. Did any of these people read the story of the four youths, students of FUTO, all Igbo, who soaked themselves in drug and sex and died therein? That is not the Igbo. We are better than that. The Igbo should do away with this persecution syndrome. No youth should, in any way, be encouraged to embark on crime because others are doing it. If they get away without being named and shamed, you may not.
Finally, this is to whoever constructed, and began the circulation of that Whatsapp message. You did the Igbo a great dis-service. The true Igbo spirit abhore such crimes.
You have drawn a negative attention to them. That’s neither the Igbo spirit, nor what the Igbo stand for.

Obi is the Editor-in-Chief/CEO of The Source (Magazine)

Related Topics:Abike Dabiri-Erewa Buhari Dubai Igbo

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Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway: Prioritize Existing Unfinished Projects, Peter Obi Tells FG

Published

4 days ago

April 22, 2024

Eric

Mr. Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 general election, has advised the federal government to prioritize existing unfinished projects spread across the country instead of the Lagos-Calabar coastal highway project.

Obi, in a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter) on Monday, stated that the project was a misplaced priority given the numerous unfinished roads throughout the country.

The former governor of Anambra State mentioned that the budget allocated to the Ministry of Works is insufficient for significant progress on the country’s various unfinished roads, much less their completion.

Obi therefore, advised that the government prioritize the existing infrastructural projects in the country before embarking on any new and colossal projects like the Lagos-Calabar super highway project.

“The Federal Ministry of Works 2024 capital budget of N892,461,262,656.00, additional funding from multilateral loan projects of N94,828,535,243.00, alongside other expected contributions from sources like the China-Exim Bank and the World Bank, will not be enough for serious work on all the critical roads, some of which I enumerated above, let alone their completion.

So, why embark on another huge project that will not be completed in the next 20 or 30 years?

“To do so will only exacerbate the problem of abandoned, uncompleted projects that are not contributing to economic growth and overall development.

“Therefore, while acknowledging the potential benefits of coastal superhighway infrastructure, I urge prioritization of our existing uncompleted projects. We must allocate resources towards repairing and completing existing infrastructure.

“In any development formula, the primary focus should be on completing and rehabilitating existing infrastructure rather than embarking on colossal new projects that may never reach completion within the next 30 years,” Obi said.

Back in March, the Federal Government began constructing the 700-kilometer Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, designed to extend through 9 states with two spurs leading to the Northern States.

Recall that former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, had earlier described the project as a fraud.

“Umahi had announced that Hitech would fully fund the project, and based on this, there was no competitive bidding. He (Umahi) then said that Hitech could only raise just 6% of the money for the pilot phase. This smacks of deceit,” Atiku said.

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2027 Presidential Race: Opposition Parties Under Attack

Published

5 days ago

April 21, 2024

Eric

By Eric Elezuo

While it is still a whole three years before the next general election in 2027, The Boss has learnt that opposition parties in the countries are being muffled to pave the way for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to return to, and retain power.

From the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to the Labour Party (LP), and down to the New Nigerian Peoples Paty (NNPP), crises have engulfed the rank and files, in what a source told this paper was the attempt and making of the ruling party, APC, to decimate, destabilize and make redundant the machineries of the opposition parties.

It is believed that by 2027, the apparatuses holding together the various opposition parties would have weakened irredeemably to the extent the country would seemingly nosedive into the inglorious one party state that every civil right advocate and democrats abhor.

It is alleged that all the crises in all the opposition parties are being engineered by the President Bola Tinubu-led ruling APC, with the hope of getting the fibres of their system weakened, thereby luring the members of the crisis-ridden parties into the APC.

Slightly one year after the last presidential election, the two major opposition platforms, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party, have separately been embroiled in a crisis of confidence which has diminished their capacity to provide viable opposition to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

The crises in both opposition parties got to a head. The Labour Party led by its national chairman Julius Abure held its much-opposed national convention which was boycotted by its 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi; its only governor, Alex Otti of Abia State; federal and state lawmakers elected on its platform, and the organised Labour.

In the Labour Labour, members have been embroiled in endless battle of supremacy with a faction led by Mr. Apapa steadily contesting the leadership of Julius Abure.

Consequently, the presidential candidate of the party in the 2023 elections, Mr. Peter Obi, reverence as a leader in the fold, noting that whatever the party faces presently, that Nigeria’s problems are far bigger than the crises in his party.

The LP has been embroiled in crises — ranging from allegations of misappropriation of funds, and leadership tussle, to calls for the resignation of the party’s national chairman.

TheCable reported that “On March 27, the LP conducted a national convention in Anambra state where Julius Abure was re-elected as its national chairman.

Obi did not attend the convention, fuelling speculations that he may be mulling over ditching the LP for another platform.

Speaking during an appearance on HaveYourSay247, an interactive online session hosted by Rudolf Okonkwo over the weekend, Obi said he is confident that the crises rocking the LP will soon be resolved amicably.

“Whatever is happening in the Labour Party is so minute compared to what is happening in the country,” Obi said.

“So, for me, it is something we will resolve amicably, and it is not anything to worry about. Let us worry about the country.

“Let us worry about how the average Nigerian would be able to have a means of livelihood to be able to eat, that should be our worry.”

Obi said he has no interest in being the party’s leader but only to make sure things are done properly.

“I don’t see what I do in politics as being the leader of any place or not. My position is that just like I always say, I am not desperate to be president of Nigeria, I am desperate to see Nigeria work because I know it can work,” he added.

“We have a more desperate situation. Parties are just a means to be able to contest elections. What is important is that being a leader of a party does not reduce the price of food.

In the PDP, the shenanigans of former Rivers State Governor, Mr. Nyesom Wike, has practically kept the party in constant crisis with many observers concluding that the now Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) is working for the APC, and is just a mole in the PDP. Wike has denied the allegation, however,

But news filtered in last week as that the immediate past Governor of Rivers State, and Minister may have concluded plans to attend the much advertised National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), billed to hold on Thursday, in Abuja.

Impeccable source, who is in the know, told The Boss that the minister, whose membership of the PDP is yet to be revoked even as he frolicks with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), and serving in the President Bola Tinubu government as a minister.

The Source told The Boss that Wike’s impending presence at the NEC meeting on Thursday was not unconnected with plans, already hatched with some governors, to weaken the opposition PDP.

“Yes, we have on good authority that FCT minister, Wike is planning to attend the NEC meeting tomorrow all in a bid to weaken the fabrics of the PDP, and pave the way for the continuation of the Tinubu administration come 2027, and by extension, relapse Nigeria to a full blown one party state.

“From every indication, Wike and his co-travellers, are bent on unleashing the same crisis ravaging the third force, Labour Party, and Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso’s Nigerian National People’s Party (NNPP) on the PDP for the APC to remain the only political party in the country, and ensure that Tinubu has no challenger, come 2027,” the Source said.

It would be recalled that Wike has boasted over and again that there’s no opposition against Tinubu’s re-emergence in 2027, and that they have made sure of that. He has been compensated with the Ministerial job after he withdrew support for his party, and supported the APC and Tinubu to emerge as national government.

The Source further revealed that in the attempt to actualize the intended one party state, a lot of funding is ongoing to ensure that concerned stakeholders are ‘settled’ handsomely.

Wike, prior, during and after the 2023 general elections, has been floating in between the two major political parties; the APC and the PDP. While he claim to still be a member of the PDP, he is functioning as a minister in an APC government, mocking the inability of his party to discipline him.

While political stakeholders concluded that the outcome of the Thursday’s PDP NEC meeting will determine the path Nigeria’s political trajectory will take, and that it may portend the end of multi-party system and political democracy if Wike succeeds in his plan; every page of what finally transpired at the meeting pointed to the fact.

The much touted removal of the party chairman, who is believed to be a crony of the Abuja minister, Damagum, retained his seat, with his executives.

“It is very clear to everyone that a lot of money politics is being played to cajole many loyal members of the party, forcing them into frustration, and eventually it of the party. The option afterwards, will be the APC. This, will for all intent and purpose actualize the intended one party state as an APC agenda.

The Musa Rabiu Kwankwaso-led NNPP is not faring better either. The only governor under their ticket, Abba Kabir Yusuf, just had the confidence of their party on him withdrawn. He was fighting for his political life until suddenly it was announced the the APC in Kano has collapsed its structure into the NNPP.

“This is just another APC strategy to actualize their hidden intentions. Time will reveal the very sinister agenda they harboring,” an analyst said.

Much as 2027 is still three years away, but intrigues are in play to render Nigeria a one party state, and perpetuate the APC in power. The three other opposition parties are basically under attack to bring to pass this unpopular agenda.

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Akwa Ibom Government, Governor Umo Eno Receive Top Honors at the 10th Wonders of the World Expo in Lagos

Published

5 days ago

April 21, 2024

Admin

The Akwa Ibom State Government and Governor Pastor Umo Eno were recognized with Travellers Awards at the 10th Wonders of the World Expo in Lagos for their sustained enhancement of infrastructure, support for local talent, and dedication to investment in the tourism sector. The ceremony took place at the National Museum in Onikan, Lagos.

While Akwa Ibom won the Most Active Tourism State of the Year, Governor Eno was adjudged the most Tourism-Friendly Governor of the Year at the event that had Minister of Tourism, Mrs. Lola Ade John in attendance.

According to Amb. Ikechi Uko, Founder/Publisher of ATQ Magazine, the organizers of the event which is in its tenth edition, Akwa Ibom State won the top prize “in recognition of its valiant and resourceful efforts to drive and sustain domestic tourism by promoting the industry.

‘In 2023, Akwa Ibom was one of the states that hosted World Tourism Day (WTD ) events. The state also organized the famous Christmas Unplugged, which featured music, food, and cultures from all 31 LGAs as well as ensured friendly policies.”

While hoping that the Travellers Awards would spur Akwa Ibom to do more to dominate the domestic tourism industry, the organizers hoped that the state would gradually evolve into one of Nigeria’s top international tourism destinations.

That was not all, the state Commissioner of Culture and Tourism, Sir Charles Udoh was also recognized as one of the Top 100 Tourism Personalities in Nigeria for demonstrating exceptional leadership and innovation in the travel and tourism industry, while other Akwa Ibom indigenes and entity were also celebrated: Mrs. Ime Udo, Honorary Special Adviser to the Governor( Tourism) won Tourism Promoter of the Year, Favour Udo won Tourism Photographer of the Year, Loretta Effiong and Prince Uduak Sunday (Qua Tours) were listed among the Tourism Personalities of the Year and Ibom Air won Airline of the Year International.

In his remarks, Sir Charles Udoh, who represented the Governor at the event, thanked the organizers for the awards and noted that Akwa Ibom is certainly enjoying the golden era when it comes to tourism development. He stated that Governor Umo Eno is very keen on making Akwa Ibom a leading tourism destination with his programmes and policies.

He revealed that with the new Victor Attah International Airport nearing completion, the purchase of a ferry for the Oron-Calabar route, new developments along its coastline and the restoration work that will be done at all its major tourism sites, Akwa Ibom is well on the way to becoming the number one destination for all domestic and foreign tourists.

In her speech, Tourism Minister, Mrs. Ade John hailed the organizers for hosting the Expo, where practitioners were lectured by top experts while also rewarding those who have excelled in the past year.

She affirmed that her ministry is open to partnership with public and private sector operators, adding that tourism development can only be successful through collaborative efforts.

The event, which attracted leading and budding tourism professionals, also featured interactive and entertainment sessions.

Apart from Sir Charles Udoh and Mrs. Ime Udo, the Akwa Ibom State delegation, also included: Mr. Michael Effiong James, Senior Special Assistant (Lagos Liaison) to Governor, Mrs. Eme Bassey, Special Assistant to Governor (Lagos Liaison) and Akparawa John Offiong, Deputy Director ( Culture) Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

More photos below: