Opinion

The “Egg” that Cracked the “Nuts”: The Heroic Story of Strife, Strive to Thrive! (Pt.3)

Published

9 months ago

November 11, 2023

Eric

By Tolulope A. Adegoke

“The hero is one who kindles a great light in the world, who sets up blazing torches in the dark streets of life for men to see by” – Felix Adler

I have no doubt that the wonderful model of destiny, The Nikola Tesla Story, and The Story of Resilience that we studied few days ago have been of tremendous blessing to you. As the Scripture says, “He who walks with the wise will be wise…” (Proverbs 1:20). It is for this reason that we must, once again, accompany some of the heroes of our contemporary time through the story of their life’s journeys, so that we can receive the necessary impartation of wisdom, guidance and inspiration for our own uplifting. So, here is another exemplar that you just cannot do without knowing about!

Strive Masiyiwa was born in 1961. By his 40^th birthday, he had outwitted the dictator Robert Mugabe. By the age of 50, he was a multimillionaire mogul. Now, Masiyiwa – telecoms entrepreneur, philanthropist and proud Pentecostal – is among a cadre of African moguls aiming to turn the continent into a power house of productivity and entrepreneurship.

Masiyiwa’s story is full of trials and tribulations, including a battle against the government of Zimbabwe that earned him death threats and probably made him flee the country in the year 2000. But it is also replete with triumphs.

According to James Mwangi of Global Development Advisors, “Strive is one of a small but growing group of Senior African business leaders and entrepreneurs deliberately engaging in dialogue beyond business. Instead, those leaders are looking into Africa’s future overall, and in their broad-mindedness and sense of obligation, they are the latter-day Mellons and Carnegie.”

Like Cornelius Vanderbilt, who saw early on that railroad infrastructure would revolutionise the American economy, Masiyiwa is using his mobile phone network as a platform for economic development across Africa, from education to healthcare. This has made him a man in much demand. In addition to overseeing the multi-country operation of his $750 million firm, Econet Wireless, and his Kwese Satellite television, he sits on prominent boards like that of Rockerfeller Foundation. He appears on philantro-capitalist panels, is tapped by Richard Brandson for support, and dines with religious leaders at the White House’s annual Prayer Breakfast.

In 2016, Masiyiwa took up the board chairmanship of Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, a post previously held by his friend, Kofi Annan. It gives him an even broader Pan-African reach than he already had.

For all this, Masiyiwa presents as disarming and humble. He is a small man with a globe-like head, spherical and smooth. He favours gold-framed spectacles and light coloured ties, often in pastels that contrast nicely with the sharp black of his suits. He speaks softly and kindly, and punctuates his talk with jokes and exclamations. Masiyiwa would likely credit the Lord for his success. He turned seriously into faith during the darkest of his tribulations, in the mid-1990s, and has never let go.

“Do you read the Bible for an hour every day?” a CNN interviewer asked him in 2011. “Is that correct? I have read that.” “Oooh!” said Masiyiwa. “That’s when I am busy. I can read it for five hours in a weekend.”

Religion motivates his philanthropy, which involves orphans and schooling, and is very personal: According to June Wales, President and CEO of the Global Philanthropy Forum and World Affairs Council, “I spend most of my waking hours interacting with philanthropists but Masiyiwa really stands out. A lot of folks talk about engaged. Philanthropy – this is the real deal.”

Masiyiwa was born in what was then Rhodesia (Now Zimbabwe) and was barely four years old when severe conflicts broke out in the country. The first major reason for the conflicts was getting independence from Britain and then rejecting white-minority rule. In 1968, Masiyiwa fled to Zambia, across the border. Their neighbours were Scottish, who had a son. That was more or less how young Masiyiwa landed in an Edinburg boarding school.

Masiyiwa returned to Africa in 1978, keen to join the guerrilla fight for independence. But a cousin in the Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army, later to morph into Mugabe’s Zanu-PF, advised that independence was nearly won. The new country would need people to run. And so, Masiyiwa scored a scholarship to University in Wales. In 1984, he returned with an engineering degree to Zimbabwe, which was then four years into its nationhood. He worked briefly for the government’s telecoms company, but state enterprise frustrated him, he says.

After borrowing the equivalent of $75, Masiyiwa started a construction business. Not only that, he spent two years studying banking in order to procure a small business loan – this before the advent of Internet – and changed his social networks to better understand the business community. He learnt the language of the golf course and of balance sheet. According to him, “In money game, there is a way of talking that will have bankers and investors interested in what you do, and there is a way to talk which makes them shun and run from you, and it has nothing to do with where you come from.”

Many of the pieces he posts online evoke his stubbornness, tenacity and ability to educate himself into being better; his utter prescience, too. In the mid-1990s, only a few would have guessed that cell phones would become a major growth section in African countries. The government of Zimbabwe certainly did not. Masiyiwa did. He offered to develop a cell phone network in tandem with the State telecoms company, but the Mugabe-controlled government rejected his offer – a refusal that Masiyiwa wrote, “must surely rank amongst follies in the world of business: They could have owned the Econet Wireless Group, but instead they declared war on me!”

The State telecom refused to grant Masiyiwa a license to cell-frequencies, claiming it had a monopoly. That was when Masiyiwa sued in 1994. The case went on for five years, and at one point early on, Zimbabwe’s Supreme Court ruled against Econet, leaving, apparently, no chance to appeal.

As Masiyiwa recounted, “When we lost the Supreme Court case in June 1994, I was totally devastated. Two years of work appeared to have gone down the drain. My dream was shattered. The lawyers made it clear that there was no appeal possible, and we packed away all the files.

“Although four years earlier, I had survived abduction by what I believed, at the time, to be divine intervention; I never pursued this further from a spiritual perspective. Church for me remained a place of funerals and wedding ceremonies.

“When we got married, my wife tried very hard to get me to go to church, but whilst always respectful of her values, I never went. On Sundays, I would drop her and our then young daughter, at her church and go for my weekly squash game with “the boys” and dutifully pick her up, after the service. She was then pregnant with our second daughter.

“On the Sunday after our Supreme Court defeat, I was still too gutted to go and play with the boys, but I took my wife to her church, as usual. She begged me to come in with her, but again I refused. I drove round the block and decided to return…I sat in the back, by myself.

“My wife did not know I had returned. It was the first time in my life I had listened to a church service, without the compulsion of duty for an event held there. It seemed as though everyone in the room, except me, was so happy! The young American pastor was preaching about Jesus Christ, whom I thought I had known all my life. And yet now I realised that I did not know Him; I only knew of Him. Disturbed, I left hurriedly and went and sat in the car.

“Throughout that week, I continued in my miserable daze, but I was also disturbed by what I had heard in that service. I went back the following week. At the end of the service, there was a call for those who wanted to “accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour”. I stood up, and went to the front. This is, and shall ever remain, the most important decision of my life. ‘Now that you are ‘born-again’, you must read your bible everyday’, the Pastor said, to the small group of us standing in front of him, after he had led us in prayer.

“Arriving home that day, I realised that the misery of my court defeat had completely lifted. It just seemed so unimportant. Sitting down that afternoon, with a borrowed copy of the New International Version Bible, I sat down to read the Bible for the very first time, in my life.

“Since the Pastor had said, “read the Bible”, I presumed that you must read the whole thing (cover to cover); and my wife did nothing to disabuse me of that: I just read, and read, and read…Often, I would read the whole day, and the whole night. Finally, I finished it after about three weeks.

“What I did not tell anyone at the time (including my wife) was that almost every night I laid my head down to sleep, I would begin to have quite extraordinary dreams. One evening, I attended a special church event, held at a local hotel. The Pastor preaching had never met me. As he preached, he suddenly stopped:

‘There is a man in this room; you have been having these dreams. In these dreams, you are building towers, rather like broadcasting towers, everywhere, all over the world. God is asking me to tell you that He is the one giving you those dreams, and He is going to make it happen. He has also given you a new heart; you are going to have such compassion. Please come forward, if you are that man.’

“There could have been 500 people in that room, that Sunday evening. I got up, and made my way to the front of the room. A few days later, a miracle would occur, which would take us back to court, in a very dramatic way…”

To put in a nutshell, some years later, Masiyiwa won the case. Econet now has a majority share of users in Zimbabwe and operations in more than 15 countries. It started offering mobile banking through its phones a few years ago, and within 18 months, some 20 per cent of Zimbabwe’s GDP was passing through its networks.

This reveals one of the keys to his success: foresight. At the time he was fighting the Mugabe government over his licence, hardly could anyone have imagined that mobile phone networks could become platforms for banking, or that they would so dramatically affect economic and healthcare infrastructures.

Masiyiwa has come to relish obstacles and challenges. When asked, “What are you doing with the challenges around you?” He replies that they are opportunities in disguise. And like other prominent African businessmen, he believes that “Ultimately, Africa’s development challenges are also its business opportunities.” Gaps in infrastructure, healthcare delivery and the like are “huge opportunities to unlock value,” not barriers to entry. Once those barriers are addressed people get more disposal income, and market opportunities grow – creating a phenomenal virtuous cycle.

And that, perhaps, was what Masiyiwa meant in the year 2016 when he sat on a panel with Bill Gates, Tony Blair, Paul Kagame and others, and told the audience to stop considering Africa “exotic”. Instead, he said, it is a business climate like any other – defined by challenges and opportunities – and one that rewards innovation, determination and homework.

Masiyiwa is, indeed, a living proof of the power of TENACITY. Added to that is the ability to FOCUS on the crown and not the crisis. And most importantly, his story reveals the strength of divine grace that comes through salvation! He went through the painful processes to get ultimately paid. He carried his cross to get his crown. He empowered himself with relevant skills and knowledge and applied them all through divine wisdom to solve challenges in a changing world. Being a lover of God, he became empowered and conquered his zero, then, emerged a HERO!

The key question is, what have you learned from all these inspirational narrations and experiences so far? And what will you do about it?

Dr. Tolulope A. Adegoke is an accredited ISO 20700 Effective Leadership Management Trainer.

Opinion

In Defence of the 18-Storey Ibom Towers and Gov. Umo Eno’s Audacious Housing Plan

Published

7 days ago

July 20, 2024

Eric

By Michael Effiong

In the last few days, I have been inundated by a barrage of questions “Why is your Governor investing in Lagos? What is the rationale behind a project like this in Lagos State instead of Akwa Ibom where it will create jobs and empower the local contractors? Why now when people are hungry? It has been questions galore all referring to the decision of the Akwa Ibom State Governor, Pastor Umo Eno to develop a real estate facility in Lagos dubbed “Ibom Towers”

As a trained journalist of over 30 years, I know that today’s media space is filled with misinformation, disinformation and outright lies which are then elevated to trending public discourse by various people for motives that are often not altruistic.
Even a group of Akwa Ibom indigenes decided to host an X (Twitter) Space on the issue. I was on that platform for over two and half hours but it was obvious that none of the speakers had taken time to conduct any research on the said project.
That was when I became very alarmed because the basic foundation for contributing to any intellectual discourse is research, I could not believe that the speakers could not just investigate the matter properly, have a full grasp of the issues before coming to the public forum to not only express their anger against the project but were even contemplating street protest!. They more or less confirmed what I used to consider a myth, that we hardly read as black people.

Anyway, I did not take the hullabaloo seriously until a very well respected senior colleague of mine called in the dead of the night. I was in a state of panic when I picked the call, thinking something major has happened to him or his close ones until he brought up the issue of the Ibom Towers.
I could not believe my ears, I begged for a few seconds to change my position and then went on to lay out the facts of this matter.
I explained that the project was not a bolt from the blue. In fact ,on May 29, 2024 when the Governor delivered his first anniversary speech, he gave a hint about the project.

According to the Governor while laying out his plans for the next 365 days “Government will be active in the commercial property market in both Lagos and Abuja respectively by converting our existing strategic facilities in those cities into commercial use for the benefit of our people. These planned investments in infrastructure will bring huge returns to our State and signpost our determination to play big in the thriving real estate business in those two major cities”

His next words where “You mean he had mentioned his plans in his speech?
I replied “Yes sir, I am quoting the speech verbatim? He then said ‘Even at that, why would your governor leave your state and go all the way to Lagos to buy land and build an 18-storey Towers?

I replied, “ Sir, I hope you are not sleepy because it is a long a story? He responded “You know how I dey carry Akwa Ibom matter for head, give me the full story, I am all ears”.

I then began my defence “ In the first place, the Governor has not come to Lagos to buy any land. The truth is that the 18- storey development dubbed “Ibom Towers” is a child of necessity and an intentional investment. We have a landed property in a very prime location, Victoria Island to be exact. That property used to be our Governor’s Lodge, it is now referred to as the Old Governor’s Lodge. It is a dilapidated structure that has not yielded any single kobo to the state.

“I am not a real estate expert, but as a layman, I would say that the Governor had four options. First, leave the property in its current state and just keep it in the books as a thing of pride, second, outright sale of the property, third, put the property up for lease and fourth, develop the property.

‘The Governor decided to be audacious, instead of doing the ordinary, he chose the tougher but more rewarding fourth option with the decision to add value to that landed property and develop it into a picturesque facility called “Ibom Towers”, this option would ensure that the state still retains the property as well as guarantee return on investment and the funds would be ploughed into critical infrastructure back home in Akwa Ibom in furtherance of his ARISE Agenda.

“Now this Ibom Tower is a development that will feature 30 meticulously designed apartments: Spacious one bedroom units, elegant two-bedroom units and lavish three bedroom units. That is not all, there will be an opulent 4-bedroom duplex penthouse that would have breathtaking views of the Lagos skyline.”

“The contractors handling this development have been given a very strict timeline because the Governor wants to make returns on this investment in good time. I have asked those opposing this development their best option for the use of that prime property. They all usually side step the issue and come up with extraneous matters. But I would not ask you the same sir.

I then continued “Interestingly, the Ibom Towers is part of the Governor’s overall Housing plan that covers all segments of the property market: Low, middle and high income earners.

“For example, a few weeks ago in Uyo, the Governor laid the foundation of the Ewet Luxury Gardens Estate. It is a high-end, commercial residential estate development. It will consist 32 units of 5-bedroom ensuite fully detached duplexes, 3 living rooms, 3 maid quarters, study/living room, fully fitted kitchen, laundry room and green area. It will be a gated estate with such shared facilities as tennis court, gym, swimming pool facilities etc.

“It was at that Ewet Luxury Estate ground breaking that the Governor spoke about the Ibom Towers. That Estate like the one in Lagos is aimed at making money for the state. The same template has been adopted for the Dakkada Luxury Estate that was begun by the last administration. So while he is thinking about making use of the property in Lagos, he is also doing the same at home.

“I must add sir that the Governor has not been oblivious to the need for affordable housing and even shelter for the poorest of the poor.

“The administration in its first year completed the 236-Units Grace Estate and the Governor has approved that 264 more units be constructed. He has also approved that 160 units in the Estate should be exclusively allocated to civil servants from Grade levels 1-8. The allocation will be via a draw which can be entered only once with N50,000. The houses will be given out free of charge.

“Then of course, the Governor has been making waves with his ARISE Compassionate Homes Initiative. This is a unique programme where rural dwellers with very terrible abode are given brand new 2-bedroom fully furnished homes complete with external kitchen, 24-hour solar power and water system free of charge. 200 units of the homes are currently being built. Some have already been completed and handed over to very elated beneficiaries. His target is to deliver 400 Units before the end of his first term
My colleague shouted “Really. That is so impressive ?” Knowing full well that I have caught his attention, I quickly added “ The Governor has done a lot in rural development, healthcare, entrepreneurship…

He cut me off immediately “That is okay, that is okay do not bother, so what is all the fuss about?

My response was “Sir, we would keep educating them to make them see reason but as you know one cannot always please the world”. I then reminded him of Evangelist Ebenezer Obey’s famous song “The Horse, The Man and His Son popularly known as Ketekete

“You are so right, you cannot please everyone all the time. Everything is clear to me now. I think he should ignore them and continue his good work. Sorry that I disturbed your sleep,? were his next words.
I responded thus: “I am always at your service sir, we will keep discussing the issues. One thing I know is that our Governor is a private sector- driven technocrat, he would be the last person to take an investment that will benefit his people to any other state. Thank you for calling me to clarify issues, thank you for your patience and love always sir” And I hung up!

Opinion

Hailing the Supreme Court on LG Allocation Judgment

Published

2 weeks ago

July 12, 2024

Eric

Prof Mike Ozekhome SAN, CON, OFR

The supreme court judgement today, July 11, 2024, directing the Federal Government to pay allocations due to Local Government Areas directly to their account thereby abolishing the old practices of State-Local Government Joint Account, is timely and courageous.

What the judgement has done is more like interpreting section 162 of the Constitution, which provides for a joint State-Local Government Account. In which case, money is normally paid to state governors’ accounts and then for them to disburse to the local governments for them to share. But what has been happening is that, as I noted in 2020,over three years ago, the state governors, have been behaving like ”bandits”, waylaing local governments funds along the way and thus impoverishing them leaving them with nothing to work, just a little for salary. And nothing to actually work for the people whom they represent.
I agree totally with the judgement of the supreme court to grant full financial autonomy so that money is released and paid directly to the 774 local government councils which constitute the third-tier of government,to develop their places because the LGAs are grassrooted and nearest to the people. Rather than allow overbearing state governors throw their weight around and muzzle the local governments and seize their purse,they will now allow LGs breath some air of freedom.

If you take a look at our situation, Nigeria is operating a very lopsided federation,more like a unitary system of government. Where the federal government is supposed to be a small government,it is controlling 67 items on the exclusive legislative list. That is why the federal government gets the lion share of the federation account , the lion share of the money that comes to the federation account to the tune of 52.68%. The states get 26.72% while the entire 774 local government councils in Nigeria get just 20.60% of the monthly allocation by the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission, RLASMC.

The question is, what is the federal government doing with almost 53% of the national income? That is because it is a government that is behemoth.That is elephantine. A government that intrudes and intervenes in areas that should not concern it at all. What is the federal government’s business with licensing cars and trucks for states? What is its business with the Marriage Act, dealing with how people marry and wed in Nigeria and how they live together as husband and wife and separate or divorce? What is the federal government’s business with unity schools? A whole FG operating secondary schools? What is their business? Why is the FG not allowing states generate their own power, operate their own railway stations, if they have the capacity? Why should the federal government not allow states have their own police force? Even for the local governments to have their own police force as we have in the United States and other advanced countries of the world where even tertiary institutions have their own police?

The truth is that the federal government is overbloated and overpampered. That is why it is using too much money and make the centre become too attractive,eating deep into funds that ought to be meant for the states and local government areas. The states take not only that which belongs to the states, but also waylays at source that which is meant for the local government areas. No Nation grows that way.

So, I see this judgment as epochal,having far-reaching effect because money will now be made available directly to the local government areas who will no longer be subservient, like fawning slaves to state governors. In fact, the judgement even went further to say that no state government has the power henceforth to dissolve local government areas. This is because we have been seeing cases where inspite of the provisions of section 7 of the 1999 constitution that give autonomy to local government areas, states normally go ahead and dissolve local government areas ND appoint caretaker committees for them.This is whimsical and capricious.The Supreme Court has said this can no longer go on and that henceforth, no state government should ever be able to dissolve any local government area in Nigeria for any reason whatsoever and howsoever.

The judgement is salutary, timely and regenerative. It should be upheld by all governments and people in Nigeria for better democratic dividends.I see this as victory for our wobbling democracy, even if we are far removed from true fiscal federalism where the federating units control and utilize their God-given resources while paying royalty or tax to the central government. This case is one big plus for tested court room gladiator, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, the Attorney General of the Federation, who initiated the case at the apex court, invoking its original jurisdiction.Surely,to jaw-jaw is better than to war-war. God bless Nigeria.

Opinion

Telling the Nigerian and African Food Story to a Global Audience

Published

1 month ago

June 22, 2024

Eric

By Lydia Enyidiya Eke

Nigeria as the most populous black nation on earth is located in the heart of Africa and as a great country with unique culinary traditions, this great nation is known for her diverse and vibrant culture and people.

Nigeria, as one of the 54 countries in Africa is well known for her rich history and myriad ethnic groups, and equally known for her culinary strength.

These divers’ culinary strength offers a gastronomic tapestry that remains largely untapped by the global audience.

Since globalization fosters a growing interest in diverse food cultures, it is high time the world embraced the flavours of Nigeria.

A Culinary Mosaic

Nigerian cuisine is a reflection of its vast cultural diversity. Each ethnic group brings its unique ingredients, cooking techniques, culinary textures and flavour profiles to the table, creating a culinary mosaic that is both rich and complex.

From the spicy and oily soups, stews and sauces of the Yoruba in the southwest to the savoury soups of the Igbo in the southeast, and the aromatic dishes of the Hausa-Fulani in the north, and of course the seafood and vegetable delight of the south south as well as the lovely relishes of the middle belt, Nigerian food is a journey through the country’s cultural landscape.

Staples like jollof rice, with its tantalizing blend of tomatoes, peppers, and spices, have already started making waves internationally.

The same applies to the well-known dishes and a plethora of lesser-known culinary treasures waiting to be discovered.

These covers the 36 states of the federation. The popularly known egusi soup, also known as unity soup is a hearty melon seed soup that is eaten across the nation and continent.

What about the pepper soup and their spices, the same applies to the herbs, condiments and flavourings of bitter leaf soup, oha soup, groundnut soup, beans soup and many more.

Suya is another spicy grilled meat skewers, which equally offer a glimpse into the depth of Nigerian culinary artistry.

The Need for Global Recognition
Despite its richness, Nigerian cuisine remains underrepresented and basically under reported on the global stage.

This lack of recognition can be attributed to several factors, including limited exposure and the dominance of other culinary traditions in international media. However, the tide is changing. With the rise of social media and the global trend towards exploring new and authentic food experiences, Nigerian cuisine is poised for a renaissance.

Championing Nigerian Food through Digital Platforms

One of the most effective ways to bring the knowledge of Nigerian cuisine to the global audience is through digital platforms. These platforms are now diverse. They range from YouTube, to Instagram, Facebook, twitter, LinkedIn, TikTok, and Snapchat amongst others . Also included are food blogs, food websites and vlogs.

YouTube, in particular, has emerged as a powerful tool for sharing culinary traditions with a wide audience. Channels dedicated to Nigerian cooking, like the one I run, are playing a crucial role in this movement. By offering step-by-step DIY tutorials, we are not only teaching people how to cook Nigerian food but also sharing the stories and cultural significance behind each dish.

These digital platforms offer an interactive and engaging way to learn about Nigerian cuisine. Viewers from around the world can watch, comment, and even share their attempts at cooking these dishes, fostering a global community of Nigerian food enthusiasts.

Preserving Cultural Heritage
For many Nigerians living abroad, cooking traditional dishes is a way to stay connected to their roots. It is an act of preserving cultural heritage and passing it down to the next generation. By teaching the younger generation how to cook Nigerian food, we are ensuring that these culinary traditions are not lost in the face of globalization.
Moreover, sharing these recipes and stories with a global audience promotes cultural understanding and appreciation. Food, after all, is a universal language that brings people together. By inviting others to experience Nigerian cuisine, we are fostering a sense of unity and cultural exchange.

The Future of Nigerian Cuisine
The future of Nigerian cuisine on the global stage looks promising. With increasing interest in authentic and diverse food experiences, Nigerian food has the potential to become a beloved part of the world’s culinary repertoire. However, this will require continued effort in promoting and sharing these rich culinary traditions.
Initiatives such as food festivals, cultural exchange programs, and collaborations with international chefs can further boost the visibility of Nigerian cuisine. Additionally, support from the Nigerian government and private sector in promoting food tourism can open new avenues for showcasing the country’s culinary wealth.

As we look towards a future where cultures and cuisines are celebrated for their uniqueness and richness, Nigerian food stands as a testament to the country’s vibrant heritage. By telling the story of Nigerian cuisine to a global audience, we are not only sharing delicious food but also promoting cultural understanding and appreciation. Let us embrace the flavors of Nigeria and celebrate its place in the global culinary landscape.

For further about some Nigerian recipes and cooking tutorials, visit GOURMET GUIDE234 on YouTube, and the food blog GOURMETGUIDE234.COM where you can embark on a culinary journey through Nigeria’s diverse and colourful food traditions.