Equinor ASA has chosen a little-known company as the preferred buyer of its stake in one of Nigeria’s largest deep-water oil fields, according to people familiar with the matter.

The Norwegian energy giant is trying to sell its 20.2% interest in the Agbami field – joining other international producers such as Shell Plc, Exxon Mobil Corp. and Eni SpA in looking to offload assets in Africa’s biggest crude producer.

Chappal Energies Mauritius Ltd. has emerged as the favored buyer of Equinor’s interest in the asset, which is operated by Chevron Corp. and produces about 100,000 barrels of oil a day, the people said. Five companies including Prime Oil & Gas Cooperatief UA, which already has a 12.5% share in the Agbami field, submitted binding bids, according to the people. Prime O&G is a joint venture between Vancouver-registered Africa Oil Corp. and Brazil’s Grupo BTG Pactual.

Agbami has accounted for about 7% of Nigeria’s oil output this year and only the Shell-operated Bonga field currently produces more oil in the country.

A sales agreement hasn’t yet been signed and Chappal Energies still needs to raise the funds to finance the deal, according to the people, who didn’t say what purchase price has been negotiated.

Spokespeople for Equinor, Chappal Energies and Prime O&G declined to comment.

Chappal Energies was founded in May 2022, according to Mauritian corporate records. Bill Higgs, the British former chief executive of Kurdistan-focused Genel Energy Plc, and Hezekiah Oyinlola, a Nigerian who spent three decades working for the world’s biggest oil services provider, SLB, joined the company’s board in February. Oyinlola is also chairman of Lagos-based bank Guaranty Trust Holding Co.

Chappal Energies’ managing director, Ufoma Immanuel, previously held the same position at a Lagos-based company named Chappal Petroleum Development Ltd., which was created in 2020 and chaired by the founding chief executive officer of Seplat Energy Plc, Austin Avuru. Chappal Petroleum unsuccessfully bid for Nigerian shallow-water oil blocks that Exxon agreed to sell to Seplat in February 2022.

Avuru, who is not on the board of Chappal Energies, and Immanuel didn’t respond to questions about the relationship between the two firms.

While Equinor is seeking to exit its sole Nigerian asset after more than three decades in the country, the other oil majors are limiting their divestments to onshore and shallow water assets in order to concentrate on deep-water projects.

Equinor is also exploring the sale of its operations in Azerbaijan, including a stake in the country’s largest oil project, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

 

Bloomberg

Peoples Democratic Party has demanded an investigation into the fire incident at the supreme court. 

Fire gutted a section of the apex court on Monday. The fire which started in the office of Ibrahim Saulawa, one of the justices, destroyed some files.

Federal Fire Service (FFS) said no casualty was recorded in the incident, noting that firefighters swung into action to contain the outbreak. 

Debo Ologunagba, PDP spokesperson, said in a statement on Monday evening that the party was “alarmed” by the fire incident, describing it as suspicious.

The opposition party demanded an “immediate full-scale” investigation into the fire outbreak to unravel the “circumstances or possible sabotage” in the incident.

“The PDP is worried over the fire outbreak especially given heightened public apprehension of possible arsonist attack with the intent to cripple and frustrate the Supreme Court from effectively discharging its constitutional duties, especially with regard to high-profile electoral cases including the Presidential Election Appeals pending before it,” the statement reads.

The PDP said the outcome of the investigation should be made public unlike those of previous fire incidents in various government ministries, departments and agencies “which were characteristically swept under the carpet”.

The party asked the federal government to beef up security around the supreme court and ensure the safety of sensitive documents and equipment in the complex.

The supreme court is expected to deliver judgement in the appeal filed by the PDP and Atiku Abubakar, its presidential candidate in the 2023 elections against the victory of President Bola Tinubu.

Abubakar and the PDP are challenging the judgement of the election petition tribunal affirming Tinubu as winner of the February 25 election.

 

The Cable

Director of Press and Information of the Supreme Court, Festus Akande, has said the fire incident that gutted part of the court’s building did not affect the presidential election petition tribunal.

Fire engulfed some sections of the apex court in the Federal Capital Territory on Monday.

The incident was put under control by the police and firefighters.

Speaking with journalists, Akande said only one chamber of the Supreme Court was affected by the fire, which was subsequently doused.

Akande said, “What was destroyed in that chamber were books, stationery, and other computer gadgets. The books are replaceable because we have an e-library.

“We have the soft copy of the books and also the hard copy which can be procured and supplied to the chamber. So it has nothing to do with the Presidential Election Petition, as people are saying outside. Such issues as presidential election matters are not discussed in the chamber, inside the court.”

Meanwhile, the FCT Police said it has launched an investigation into the incident.

 

Daily Trust

Federal Government has declared Wednesday, September 27, 2023 as public holiday in commemoration of Eil-ul- Maulid celebration.

The celebration signifies the birth of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAW).

In a statement which the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Oluwatoyin Akinlade, issued on his behalf, Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, congratulated Muslims for witnessing this year’s occasion.

He also admonished them to imbibe the spirit of love, patience, tolerance and perseverance which are deep spiritual virtues that the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him ) exemplified.

The statement partly read, “The Minister congratulates all Muslim faithful both home and in the diaspora for witnessing this year’s occasion.

“His admonition to Nigerians is to imbibe the spirit of love, patience, tolerance and
perseverance which are deep spiritual virtues that the Holy Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) exemplified

“Tunji-Ojo also urged Nigerians, especially our youths, to embrace the virtues of hard work and peaceful disposition toward fellow humans, irrespective of faith, ideology, social class, and ethnicity, and join hands with President Bola Tinubu’s administration in its effort to build a progressive and enviable Nation that all citizens will be proud of.”

 

Daily Trust

PRESS RELEASE

(1) I was one of the youngest accredited members of the Ondo Provincial

Movement that fought for the creation of Ondo State in 1976. I was also the Publicity Secretary of the Movement and one of the remaining four lucky

survivors, R.F. Fasoranti being one of us. Our Divisional leaders then comprised patriots like R.A. Olusa and I.A. Olukoju from Akoko, M.A.

Ajasin and Pa. Odenusi from Owo, R.F. Fasoranti and Akin Deko from Akure, O. Bademisi and Olorunyolemi from Ondo, Akinfosile and Kwoewumi from Okitipupa, all of blessed memory except Fasoranti.

They along with those of us younger and brilliant ones genuinely fought to get

Ondo State created. I am sure none of these would be happy to see the storm gathering to consume the State they dearly cherished.

(2) On October 17, 1975 in our address to the Irikefe Panel on creation of States, these patriots as one of their reasons for demanding a State of their own said and I quote:

"the prime motive and reason for demanding our own State is that it is only by having it that we can effectively deal with and ultimately solve the socio-economic and political problems of our area, of our people."

(3) I want to admit that most of those who have got the opportunities of managing the fortunes and affairs of this State, whether at the political or

administrative level, try as they might, have been slowed down by the skewed Federal System of Government we run in the country. To worsen the situation,

the internal problems especially the occasional cold war between some of our

Governors and their deputies have exacerbated the "socio-economic and pulitical

(4) problems of our people", a key factor for the demand for the creation of Ondo State.

(5) My fear, nay our fear, is that the present gathering political storm between the Governor and his Deputy arising from alleged disloyalty, if not checked or properly handled, will lead to very bad blood, developmental set back, disruptive

tendencies within the polity, and, in turn, have their unhealthy backlash on the civil service and the welfare of the common man. We don't want this to happen.

Indeed, the fragile economic and security situations in the country demand that it

is better for the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary in Ondo State to come nearer together and see how they can make the life of the people better.

(6) In this regard, the Legislature that represents the people has a major role to play in the development and stabilization of the State and the polity. The issue on ground needs a careful handling so as not to lead to any major crisis. Therefore,

our Honourable members should remember they have their names to protect in

whatever they do. They should be mindful of the verdict of history. We therefore

call on them for fair play and justice to arrest the gathering storm.

(7) While it is the legitimate right of any Ondo State good citizen to seek for the highest office (the governorship inclusive) in the State, such should be

pursued at the appropriate time with the fear of God and without any injury whatsoever to others. Those aspiring (including their collaborators) to take over

from the Governor should know that power belongs to God. No one can take what does not belong to him and enjoy it. Such members and their collaborators

in and out of Akeredolu's Government should stop destroying or blackmailing one

another to climb up. They should remember that the founders of the State were guided by patriotism, not self-interest or the search for naked power. They should remember that some of those who sacrificed to get the State created never

enjoyed any form of patronage in the State before they died, nor did they have any opportunity to serve it. Such patriots included E.O. Olugboja from

Akoko, I.D. Odenusi from Owo, Akinfosile from Okitipupa, Deji

Adegoroye and Akintoba from Akure, O. Bademosi and

Olorunyolemi from Ondo.

(8) We know that the Governor has not been well. I am aware, too, that well-meaning Ondo people and Nigeria have been praying for his recovery. He is now recuperating. Let's encourage him through what we do, or tell him.

I know Akeredolu to be a good Christian. Let him forgive anyone who might have done anything wrong against him or against his office. Let him remember that except the Almighty God wants it, nobody can take the life of another

person. God holds the key of life. So let him not glorify or flatter any perceived enemy who may be said to be after him. The Lord God is the Almighty; He is the

Omnipotent.

If his Deputy has done wrong, please call him, chastise and thereafter forgive

him, and like Jesus Christ, tell him "go and sin no more". Iron things out with him so that Ondo State can move on. Let us well-meaning Ondo State citizens rise up and quench this gathering storm whose full explosion will not be healthy for the State.

Signed:

Seinde Arogbofa

25/09/2023

RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE

US running low on cash for Ukraine – White House

The Pentagon will only be able to support Ukraine’s war effort for a “few weeks” should Congress fail to pass a new funding bill, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby has claimed.

Speaking to CNN for an interview published on Monday, Kirby was asked what impact a government shutdown could have on US aid to Kiev, as lawmakers continue heated negotiations over a stop-gap budget bill which could contain up to $25 billion in assistance to Ukraine.

“We’ve got a little bit more funding to go, so I think we’ll be ok for the next few weeks or so. But without the supplemental request that we asked for, it will absolutely have an effect on our ability to support Ukraine well into the fall and into the winter months,” the White House official said. “Not getting that supplemental request if there’s a shutdown – that’s gonna have a significant impact on their ability to succeed on the battlefield.”

Debate over the new spending bill has largely been centered on additional aid to Kiev, according to unnamed lawmakers cited by the New York Times, who said that some Republicans had rejected a proposal for another $25 billion in assistance.

“Despite broad bipartisan support in the Senate for money for Ukraine, officials said, some Republicans were arguing that it would present an added complication in trying to provide [House] Speaker Kevin McCarthy with a way out of the spending logjam,” the outlet reported, noting that GOP opposition could delay the legislation with “little time to spare” ahead of the September 30 shutdown deadline.

However, while officials have warned that Washington’s coffers are running dry – with deputy Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh recently calling a shutdown “the worst thing that could happen” – last week the Defense Department insisted the current budget woes would have no impact on US aid to Ukraine.

In a statement to media outlets on Friday, Pentagon spokesperson Chris Sherwood said the military had designated American assistance to Kiev as “essential,” deeming it “an excepted activity under a government lapse in appropriations.”

Though the same spokesman had suggested otherwise just days prior, Sherwood reversed course and stated that US military operations related to the Ukraine conflict would not be affected by a government shutdown, including the training of troops and the provision of arms.

Washington has approved billions of dollars in direct military aid to Kiev since fighting with Russia escalated in February 2022, including dozens of shipments of heavy weapons, vehicles and munitions. The latest deliveries have featured the first round of US Abrams main battle tanks, 31 of which were authorized for Ukraine early this year, with Kirby voicing hopes they would have a “significant impact on the battlefield.”

Moscow has repeatedly condemned foreign arms shipments to Ukraine, arguing they will do little to deter its aims and only prolong the conflict. Commenting on the Abrams shipments earlier this year, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted that Western countries were drastically overestimating the effect the tanks would have, adding that the American weapons would “burn like all the rest of them.”

** Ukraine to either surrender on Moscow’s terms or cease to exist — top Russian lawmaker

Ukraine is fated either to capitulate on Moscow’s terms or cease to exist as a state, Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of the Russian State Duma (lower house of parliament), said.

"When speaking about the conflict in Ukraine, [US President Joe] Biden, [NATO Secretary General Jens] Stoltenberg and other Western officials have started calling it 'a war of attrition.' They have put huge amounts of money into militarizing the Kiev regime. Where has it gotten them? The simple facts are these: the West is experiencing weapons and ammunition shortages, people in Europe and the US have lost trust in politicians, and the Kiev regime’s counteroffensive has failed," Volodin stated.

According to him, the outcome of the "war of attrition" also includes economic problems in Europe and the US, a lack of manpower for the Ukrainian armed forces, and ultimately bankruptcy and demographic disaster for Ukraine. "These seven facts speak for themselves: Ukraine will cease to exist as a state unless the Kiev regime capitulates on Russia’s terms," Volodin stressed.

"More than 10.5 million people have fled Ukraine. Another 11.2 million residents of Crimea, Sevastopol, the Donetsk and Lugansk people’s republics and the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions decided to join Russia. Ukraine has lost 53.7% of its population since 2014," the State Duma speaker highlighted.

Volodin noted that, in June, then-British Defense Minister Ben Wallace stated that Western countries had run out of stockpiles of those weapons that they could send to Kiev from their own national arsenals. Biden, in turn, admitted in July that the decision to provide Ukraine with cluster munitions had been driven by the fact that stocks of conventional ammunition were exhausted. "The approval ratings of EU and US leaders have hit historical lows. The share of people who disapprove of their leaders’ performance stands at 57% for Biden, at 69% for [French President Emmanuel] Macron, and at 72% for [German Chancellor Olaf] Scholz. The majority of people in the United States and European countries oppose weapons supplies to Ukraine," the Duma speaker added.

In addition, the senior lawmaker emphasized that the NATO-backed Ukrainian military had suffered huge troop and equipment losses, while "the lack of achievements has disappointed [Kiev’s] Western sponsors.

"The economies of the Eurozone countries are going through a recession. The costs of Ukraine’s militarization have forced Germany to cut benefit payments to poor families. France has reduced the number of beneficiaries; people in need no longer receive food packages and reimbursements for drug costs. International agencies have downgraded the United States’ long-term investment rating as they expect the financial situation in the country to worsen in the next three years," Volodin said.

 

WESTERN PERSPECTIVE

Ukraine says Russia Black Sea Fleet commander killed; no comment by Moscow

Ukraine's special forces said on Monday they had killed Moscow's top admiral in Crimea along with 33 other officers in last week's missile attack on the headquarters of Russia's Black Sea Fleet in the port of Sevastopol.

The Russian Defence Ministry did not immediately respond when asked by Reuters to confirm or deny that Admiral Viktor Sokolov, the commander of the Black Sea Fleet and one of Russia's most senior navy officers, had been killed.

Moscow-installed authorities in Sevastopol, however, were taking extra measures to address Ukraine's increased attacks on Crimea, a critical region providing a platform from which Russia has launched many of its air attacks on Ukraine in the 19-month-long war.

If confirmed, Sokolov's killing would be one of Kyiv's most significant strikes on Crimea, which Russia seized and annexed from Ukraine in 2014.

"After the strike on the headquarters of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, 34 officers died, including the commander of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. Another 105 occupiers were wounded. The headquarters building cannot be restored," Ukraine's special forces said on the Telegram messaging app.

It was not immediately clear how Ukraine's Special Forces counted the dead and wounded in the attack.

Reuters could not independently verify the report. Each side has at times exaggerated enemy losses in the war and says little about its own losses.

In a statement after the attack, the Russian defence ministry said one serviceman was missing, revising an earlier statement that the man had been killed. Air defences had downed five missiles, the ministry said.

Ukraine has stepped up its attacks in the Black Sea and on the Crimean Peninsula and started using missiles in addition to assault drones. Kyiv has said that destroying the Russian Black Sea fleet would significantly speed up the end of the war.

Earlier this month, Russia's defence ministry said that Ukraine attacked a Black Sea naval shipyard with 10 cruise missiles.

In a possible indication of how serious the recent Ukrainian attacks on Sevastopol have been, the Russian-installed governor of the city held a meeting on Monday to work out better defence and attack warning systems for the city.

"We understand that we have moved into a new situation that requires a systemic response," Russian agencies cited the governor, Mikhail Razvozhayev, as saying.

"Earlier, we and our military faced attacks from unmanned vehicles ... Now everything has changed and we must be prepared for this kind of threat."

** Russian air strikes on Ukraine kill four, damage grain and port facilities

Russian air strikes and shelling killed six people in Ukraine and caused "significant damage" to infrastructure at the Black Sea port of Odesa and to grain storage facilities, Ukrainian officials said on Monday.

The air attacks were part of a campaign that has made it harder for major grain producer Ukraine to export its products since Moscow quit a deal in mid-July that had enabled Black Sea shipments and helped combat a global food crisis.

The strikes have intensified as Kyiv presses on with a counteroffensive in the south and east that has made slow gains but could be boosted by the delivery of U.S.-made Abrams tanks, announced on Monday by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

"Another massive attack on Odesa!", Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said on X. "The attack resulted in the destruction of grain storage facilities and significant damage to the seaport."

Oleh Kiper, the Odesa region governor, said the facilities that were hit had contained almost 1,000 tons of grain and that the bodies of two men were found under the rubble of a warehouse where grain was stored.

Ukraine's military said 19 Iranian-made Shahed drones and 11 cruise missiles were shot down overnight, most of them directed at Odesa region. The grain storage facilities that were destroyed were hit by two supersonic missiles.

The energy ministry said damage to power grids cut off power to more than 1,000 consumers in the Odesa region, a reminder of air strikes that at times left millions of Ukrainians without heating and light in the freezing cold last winter.

ATTACKS ON KHERSON

A man aged 73 and a woman of 70 were killed in a separate air strike on the town of Beryslav in the southern Kherson region, officials said.

The administrative head in the city of Kherson - the region's main centre - later said that two city residents had died and two were injured in Russian shelling.

Russian forces abandoned Kherson city and the west bank of the Dnipro River in Kherson region late last year, but regularly shell different areas from positions on the east bank.

The Ukrainian Defence Ministry said the latest air attack was "a pathetic attempt" to retaliate for a strike on the headquarters of Russia's Black Sea navy on Friday.

Ukraine has been heavily reliant on Western weapons to defend itself against Russia and then to hit back in the counteroffensive that began in early June.

Announcing the latest arms delivery, Zelenskiy said Abrams tanks had already arrived in Ukraine and were being prepared for action.

"I am grateful to our allies for fulfilling the agreements! We are looking for new contracts and expanding our supply geography," said Zelenskiy, who visited the U.S. last week.

Ukraine's counterattack has included stepping up its attacks which Moscow says have hit targets in Russia and Crimea, the peninsula seized and annexed by Moscow in 2014.

The Russian Defence Ministry said on Monday its air defences had shot down drones over the northwestern part of the Black Sea, over Crimea, and over the Russian regions of Kursk and Belgorod. It mentioned no deaths.

Kyiv did not comment on the Russian reports, and Moscow offered no comment on the air strikes in Ukraine.

Kyiv says the air strikes against port and grain facilities are intended to prevent it exporting grain to the world, and global traders follow them closely for fear of further disruption to world markets.

Ukraine is increasingly shipping grain along the Danube River, by road and by train, and has established a "humanitarian corridor" hugging the Black Sea coast to ship grain for African and Asian markets. The first two vessels carrying grain to use the corridor left the Black Sea port of Chornomorsk last week.

 

RT/Tass/Reuters

Introduction

Let us take off from the stand point of offering a conceptual clarification by way of making a distinction between power and authority. It is important to offer a peg for our discussion in a forum, as this, crowded with men of authority, lest they are perceived to be people with power, even if their own brand of power, a phenomenon they share with others with less desirable pedigree, is deemed the same and equivalent. I shall explain. For example, drivers of articulate vehicles, otherwise called ‘trailers’, also wield enormous power on our road networks that are more of death traps than commuters links to their various destinations. Yet, assassins, hired, or self-sent, also exercise power, sometimes far greater than that of Mr. President. Let us not ignore the power of office assistants who ensure that needed files of pensioners are not easily located until the ‘needful’ is done by ambushed, helpless and hapless pensioners. And let me not forget the academics, so-called, who hold her female students to ransom in sex for grade illicit negotiation. All of the afore-mentioned are in the business of power. But those variants of power have no locus with authority, because power business, morally defined, is dejure authority, and not merely a defacto exercise which power, qua power, may appropriate. When we speak of power in the arcane arena of politics, the state, and governance, we speak in the realm of moral authority to wield power, bestowed on those individuals, and this ought to be contradistinguished from other readily-available sources of power.

To be clear, the idea of power, power, as physically deployed, is also applicable to the armed robber, or the band of bandits, just as we speak of the president of Nigeria having enormous power at his disposal, albeit for the benefits of Nigerians, even when the power to be deployed by the gang of armed robbers who come visiting, uninvited, at those deadly hours is for benefits of its members. Whilst the president ought to be responsible and accountable for the deployment of the least of his powers, the benefits of powers-in-use by armed robbers, or non-state actors, if we must talk of responsibility and/or accountability, at all, must be in a restricted form, as such benefits is appropriated for the benefits of its members, assuming they arrive at their various duty posts in partnership, and not as individual traders of misfortune in a captive market, where sorrow, tears and blood are the only articles of trade.

Power and Authority

In their interrelatedness, power and authority can be conjunctively discussed in the affairs of men in a community where politics, according to the United Kingdom Labour Party ideologue, the legendary author of The Grammar of Politics, Harold Laski, of the London School of Economics, is defined as ‘authoritative allocation of values’. Of course, in politics and political engagement, contestation for power is an imperative because a country resources, both natural and human, required to provide sustenance for a community are either in short supply, or are not evenly distributed. Even when such resources are available, needs, as different from human wants, both coming in ideological capsules, often collide on the social space, and power, encapsulated in authority, is needed to mediate in the mix of centripetal and centrifugal forces.

Yet, more often than not, people with authority, who ought to derive their power from a collective moral compass come to contest the cesspit of odious behaviour with bandits in the way and manner power entrusted to their care for our collective benefits, as a community of men and women, under a sacred covenant, is wrongly deployed, in such an amoral way, making you wonder if our VIPs are not vagabonds in power, as the legendary Fela Anikulapo-Kuti once suggested.

Whilst authority, as should be exercised in the sacred room of those with political power in order to be effective, should have a moral imperativeness to it, power may be so-exercised without authority, as with armed robbers to whose command we obey in rather prudential way – in order to stay alive, or avoid being wounded for being ‘disobedient’ to the command of the man with power, as consolidated in a barrel of the gun. Yet, more often than not, people with authority, who ought to derive their power from a collective moral compass come to contest the cesspit of odious behaviour with bandits in the way and manner power entrusted to their care for our collective benefits, as a community of men and women, under a sacred covenant, is wrongly deployed, in such an amoral way, making you wonder if our VIPs are not vagabonds in power, as the legendary Fela Anikulapo-Kuti once suggested. Yes, an occupant of the Governor’s lodge can be likened to the village bully if under the cover of his office, power is exercised without the need to account for his action, or inaction, to any institution, something expected of the sacred office into which he is deemed to have been voted.

Almost on a daily basis, we read and hear of a Governor in one corner of the Nigeria geographical space ordering the arrest and detention of one internet user or the other, whose intervention on his administration policy-options is considered offensive to the executive ears. And our security agencies, more eager to please the man of power, without responsibility, act on such dubious order with much frenzy. Truth is, effecting the arrest of a critic by our security agencies is more effective, in scope and form, than ensuring the salvation and safety of a household under the siege of armed robbers, for all of two hours at Abule-Egba neighbourhood. These state men of power, adorned in the name of authority, come fully armed against a man whose only weapon of offence is no more than the tyranny of the ‘blank sheet’, or the computer keyboard. And we are expected to ransom the freedom of such state captive by pleading for ‘mercies’, to massage the bloated ego of the man of the moment, just as we pay to the demands of the bandits, the required amount for the freedom of the kidnapped ones.

Lest we forget, the reason why we draw such comparison between the use of power by an occupant of an exalted office, and the use of the gun by the bandit is the lack of moral compass expected to be navigated by someone in a position of authority. For example, we do not expect any form of courtesies from an armed robber, or a group of kidnapping bandits.

Indeed, back in the 70s, Sam Aluko, a Professor of Economics at the University of Ife, Ile-Ife, of blessed memory, defined politics as ‘a call to war against opponents’. And such war gets escalated and become dagger-drawn when contest shift to inter-party affairs. Let’s consider it a mere skirmishes when incumbent power-position holders, who are supposed to be trustees of our common patrimony suddenly become monopoly players in a market, deciding who gets what from what is due to each and all.

But how did we come to the expectation that politics of power, or power of political office holders, must come in a velvet of morality when, indeed, all we find around us is a mini civil war – in the guise seeking political power. Indeed, back in the 70s, Sam Aluko, a Professor of Economics of blessed memory, then of the University of Ife, Ile-Ife, defined politics as ‘a call to war against opponents’. And such war gets escalated and become dagger-drawn when contest shift to inter-party affairs. Let’s consider it a mere skirmishes when incumbent power-position holders, who are supposed to be trustees of our common patrimony suddenly become monopoly players in a market, deciding who gets what from what is due to each and all.

You witness it, in disallowing spaces for opposition to campaign, even for pasting campaign posters and mounting of bill boards. Go round the states and verify, right from roads leading to the state capitals, all what you are confronted with are bill boards and posters of respective incumbent governors, where ever and whenever they seek re-elections. Then, you ask yourself, are there no other political parties fielding candidates for same general elections in these states. I am from Ogun State, from Ilepa, in Ifo Local Government Area, where I maintain a reasonable presence because my library is located there, and I operate, effectively, from where my collections of materials are. My family house is in Ibadan, Oyo state, and I am in Lagos on a regular basis for some professional or social engagements. So, when I speak of (mis)use of power, devoid of moral rectitude, by supposed men of authority, I assure you, I have ample evidence to draw from. And you may ‘go and verify’. You may wish to take, as your starting point, the entry point into Abeokuta from Sagamu Inter-Change, through the Kobape-Oke-Mosan road axis, and terminate your exit journey at the psychiatric hospital, Aro. But if you have enough fuel to spare, you may wish to continue your verification exercise on (mis)use of authority by going up to Sango, through Itori- Ewekoro-Ifo, and Ilepa road axis. But you may have to visit your automobile technician to fix your car for its misalignment of tyres, post your verification of perfidy of ruling state governors. And this is assuming you did not lose a tyre between Itori-Ewekoro- Papalanto axis of that war-like damaged road network. I guess our rulers, so-called men of authority, endowed with state power at different levels of government, must hate us so much, as to have the conscience to leave us suffer as we commute on that axis.

To the extent that incumbent administrations in the states shut out opposition parties out of the public space, and refuse to allow opposition candidates from using public facilities to canvas for votes, whatever election that take place, in such hostile environment, is deemed not credible, and so-called elected representatives cannot be regarded as legitimate because the process is not fair and just to all.

Whilst democratic manifestation is denoted by regularity of election, as we have it in Nigeria, since 1999, the reality is that electoral process, to the extent that elections involve a set of activities, leading to the (se)election of one or more persons, out of many to serve in positions of authority in the society, has largely been subverted. What gives credibility to the process and legitimacy to the elected persons is that the election is conducted according to all constitutional and legal dictates, and hence adjudged free and fair, even by fellow contestants. Accordingly, a political system is democratic if its most powerful collective decision makers are chosen through fair, honest and periodic elections in which candidates freely compete for votes. For election to be credible, it must be competitive. That is, the candidates involved must be given equal opportunity. This implies that there must be no attempt to marginalize any candidate. The point is, competition ensures legitimacy of decisions taken by the elected representatives. To the extent that incumbent administrations in the states shut out opposition parties out of the public space, and refuse to allow opposition candidates from using public facilities to canvas for votes, whatever election that take place, in such hostile environment, is deemed not credible, and so-called elected representatives cannot be regarded as legitimate because the process is not fair and just to all.

Morality As Categorical Imperative

Let us, at this juncture, enter a caveat. We are enjoined to be moral in our political engagement with power and authority, either as leaders or as citizens – followers, or be guided in our activities in social society, not because we are good christians or good muslims, or because we are adherents of some religious faiths whose precepts we are supposed to obey by acting good. Yet, whilst we are compelled and obliged to serve the common good, as outlined in the article of faith that binds us together, with fellow citizens of our common political constituency, called the constitution, there is, indeed, a more fundamental obligation for us, as rulers, and as citizens of a country to obey the laws from the hands of the sovereign. The point to be made, here is that when we obey the sovereign, we obey ourselves because we are the sovereign. It is a misnomer, and not right or just, to obey the laws of the land on a prudential ground, that is, for fear of being punished for disobedience, and this precisely is the basis why most men obey the laws. Witness the habitual transporters who beat the red light injunction when no enforcement officer is watching. This set of road users obey the laws because they are afraid of the punishment that accompany disobedience. Thus, if they obey, while the enforcement officer is present, their action is not morally justified, but purely legal and prudential. The only rational basis to obey laws and exercise power, in a political environment, is on moral ground, because it is the basis and the foundation of human society.

Politics, and the quest for political power, when granted, ought to come in moral capsule because the very beginning of civil society, with all the endowed authority to the ruler, is at the benevolence of moral agents, the citizens, who graciously surrendered their natural right, as divinely granted by providence in the state of nature, under the terms and conditions of social contract.

Politics, and the quest for political power, when granted, ought to come in moral capsule because the very beginning of civil society, with all the endowed authority to the ruler, is at the benevolence of moral agents, the citizens, who graciously surrendered their natural right, as divinely granted by providence in the state of nature, under the terms and conditions of social contract. To be clear, historically, there was never a ‘state of nature’, so-called, either in Thomas Hobbes or John Locke adaptations. The ‘state of nature’ is a philosopher hypothetical construct to rationalize the power of the state over the citizens, presumed freedom, in what Jean Jacques Rousseau once lamented as ‘free’ at from birth, ‘but in chains’.  Indeed, the main preoccupation of students of Political Philosophy is the reconciliation of the authority of the state and the assumed freedom of the citizens. And this has come in various forms: in British ‘Magna Carta’, American ‘Bill of Right’, Nigeria ‘Fundamental Human Rights’, and its variants in many other democracy, the world over.

As he puts it in his famous opening statement of his book “Social Contract: ‘Man is born free, and he is everywhere in chain’. For the social contractarian of political obligation, ‘people could only experience true freedom if they live in a civil society that ensures the rights and wellbeing of its citizens’.

Whilst political scientists may explain to us, deploying empirical validation in different statutes, codices, conventions, protocols and kingly, pronouncements, decrees of tyrants and, of course, in today’s constitutions of Republics, they fail to explain to us the very foundation of the state from where the laws to bind citizens has come forth, philosophers are not content to take for granted the powers of presidents, as often explained in constitutions, or acts of parliaments. There must be something more fundamental to explain this contraption called the state. The main task of political philosophy, as different from political science, therefore, has been the reconciliation of the authority of the sovereign and the autonomy of the citizens, to the extent that the citizen obeys himself when he obeys the laws of the land. He acts morally by not undoing what he voluntarily agreed to do at the beginning of time, whilst he subsisted in the ‘state of nature’, endowed with ‘natural right’ to do as he was pleased to act.

Yet, and in spite of the individuals resolve to surrender their ‘natural rights’ to the Leviathan, a common authority, the right to self-protection is preserved in the individual. Thus, a state that cannot protect its residents cease to enjoy the obedience of the constituents, and should be subverted as it could no longer claim the name of state, and submission to such authority amounts to slavery.

Let us explain this. In Hobbes ‘state of nature’, where life is deemed ‘solitary, brutish, nasty, poor and short’, men existed with their ‘natural right’, with each, and all possessing rights over everything, with no one having a claim to anything, as personal belongings. Things are held on to, temporarily. Not even the strongest could hope to hold on to all he was able to muscled to himself. The point is, whilst an individual may be the strongest, such may not necessarily confer an advantage, as he may not be the most intelligent, or the cunningest in his environment. To that extent, others, deploying their endowed intelligence, may decide to combine efforts to outwit the strongest. In this unstable situation, no one is safe, not even the strongest, as alliances continued to change, depending on situations and circumstances. Under this unstable and unsafe template and, because men in the ‘state of nature’ were rational, they were able to reason and recognize the need to create a society in which a common authority would be able to adjudicate amongst contending needs. And to do this there was the need for each and all to ‘surrender’ their ‘natural rights’ to the Leviathan who necessarily holds power in trust. One major lapse in the ‘state of nature’ was absence of security for life of the individual, hence one major responsibility of the Leviathan (the state) is the protection of life and property of those within the social and geographical space of the state. Yet, and in spite of the individuals resolve to surrender their ‘natural rights’ to the Leviathan, a common authority, the right to self-protection is preserved in the individual. Thus, a state that cannot protect its residents cease to enjoy the obedience of the constituents, and should be subverted as it could no longer claim the name of state, and submission to such authority amounts to slavery. According to Aquinas, the ruler’s power is implied by his guardianship of the common good. The dominion of one man over another must not take away the free moral agency of the subject. No man is bound to the obedience in all respects, even the soul of slave is free, it is for this reason that the resistance of tyranny is not only a right but a duty.

To be clear, Aristotle the ancient Greek philosopher has long anticipated the prognosis of the ‘social contract’ theory, as espoused in the 17th century different works of Thomas Hobbes, John Locke and Jean Jacques Rousseau. In Aristotle, we find an inseparable relationship between morality and politics. Outlining what such a relationship entails was his sole pre-occupation in the Nicomachean Ethics. Aristotle conceives ethics and politics as practical sciences that deal with human beings as moral agents. Ethics is concerned with individual moral action, while politics is concerned with human actions in the political community. What this suggests is that the task of politics is much more than the acquisition of political power, or even the provision of what is necessary for the life of the community. The wellbeing of the community is not confined to economic security and internal peace. On the contrary, the primary task of politics, according to Aristotle, is to care for citizens’ acquisition of knowledge and their moral conditioning. Politics then becomes an application on a large scale of what ethics should do in the life of an individual, that is, institute and teach action that will bring  happiness, and the teaching of those action lies squarely with the man in authority, through his/her actions, and of course, through the quality of legislation. A situation where men in authority assume such exalted positions, through foul means, and continue to espouse and act in ways that only engenders retention of power by subverting legitimacy of power, does not augur well for the polity, and the moral foundation of the community is weakened.

Philosophically, a state of anarchy means a condition of freedom, and an anarchist is not a lawless person, but a seeker and defender of freedom and free society. And the people so-badly governed are under moral obligation to reclaim their voluntarily abdicated rights to a sovereign that has become untrustworthy of their individual and collective confidence. Such reclamation project, as we have historically witnessed in the annals of time and clime, often come in civil disobedience, or through outright revolt to change the course of history. And they remain potent, till date.

The point to be made, in all of this, is that obedience to power, as authority, is considered a moral act, not merely legal, as constitutionally provisioned, because when man obeys the laws of the state, the Leviathan, man necessarily obeys himself as an exercise of freedom, and this is because he has voluntarily agreed, with others, to quit the ‘state of nature’ where existence was deemed precarious to the realization of his potentiality as a moral agent. Thus, to disobey the laws of constituted authority is to disobey himself, and presumptuously act immorally. The Leviathan, the inheritor of all this moral obligation of individual natural rights, in the ‘state of nature’, is under moral obligation to act justly, as failing to act in line with moral rectitude subverts the essence of its own being, its creation from potential chaos and a state of anarchy, negatively understood, even if philosophically illiterate. Philosophically, a state of anarchy means a condition of freedom, and an anarchist is not a lawless person, but a seeker and defender of freedom and free society. And the people so-badly governed are under moral obligation to reclaim their voluntarily abdicated rights to a sovereign that has become untrustworthy of their individual and collective confidence. Such reclamation project, as we have historically witnessed in the annals of time and clime, often come in civil disobedience, or through outright revolt to change the course of history. And they remain potent till date.

The Essence of Omolúwàbí and the Politics of Fìwàgbayì of Egbaland

Let us, in closing, return to the anchor point of this commemorative lecture. The Yoruba concept of Omolúwàbí is a correlate of Aristotle’s person of character. Our position here is that the Omolúwàbí ethos can be mined for an understanding of the character-dynamics that is necessary for democracy to flourish through its public office holders and power-seekers in Nigeria political space. In Yoruba culture, Omolúwàbí is not the name of any specific person, but rather a concept that possesses both normative and descriptive content. As a description, Omolúwàbí denotes an individual who has acquired a moral status that could qualify him as being virtuous. As can be generally submit, character is the result of being habituated in what is good and noble, thus, the essence of an Omolúwàbí derives from being habitually moral. It is not an appellation one can unilaterally give to oneself. It is conferred by others in society who recognizes a person as a morally upright person. Omolúwàbí is the ‘morally’ upright person who exhibits such virtues as honesty, respect (for himself, and others in general), decency, benevolence, etc. In another perspective, Omolúwàbí is someone who is thoroughly bred and is regarded as worthy of being entrusted with positions of responsibility. An Omolúwàbí is integrity personified

As a normative concept, it serves as the standard of acceptable moral behaviour. That is, it determines the boundaries of what is moral (Iwa rere) and what is not moral (Iwa buburu). According to some scholars, the concept of Omolúwàbí is the bedrock of ethics in Yoruba cultural society. It is, for her, a significant concept that articulates the good habits people should acquire and the duties they should uphold. In other words, it encompasses all the ethical values expected of a person as a worthy member of the society. An Omolúwàbí is not a person whose family history, lineage and life progression, are shrouded in some mystery. The life and history of an Omolúwàbí must be an open-book for all to read and interrogate, and explanations freely offered on observed lapses in character-trait.

To be regarded as an Omolúwàbí in Yoruba cultural society, you would not have been associated with dubious activities, either as an individual, or in the company of others in your private life, or as a public person. Thus, it is a contradiction in terms to call a liar or corrupt person an Omolúwàbí. It is akin to say there is a married bachelor, or to announce that a virgin exist in a labour room of a maternity hospital, with intent of giving birth.

In traditional Yoruba society, character (Iwa) constitute an indispensable part of social existence, peace and order, and formed a part of the qualities that a Yoruba person must possess before he or she can be reckoned with in the community. Like other traditional societies in the world, the Yoruba have unwritten codes of conduct which are meant to circumscribe proper attitude and behaviour. Accordingly, Iwa, as morality, is the unwritten constitution for everyday running of the public and private affairs of the Yoruba nation and her people. The Yoruba would say, for instance, Iwa l’ewa (Character is beauty) or Iwa l’eso eniyan (Character beautifies a person). What this shows is that if you have everything and you lack Iwa, you are considered not adorned, and not beautiful to behold. Yoruba believes that Iwa is the daughter of Suuru (Patience). In other words, it is patience that produces good character. As some scholars have suggested, Suuru is the source of Iwa pele and Iwa rere. For those scholars, a demonstration of Iwa pele is seen in being mindful of the individuality of others. Operationalizing the Omolúwàbí ethos in the Nigerian politics would begin with the recognition of the place of morality in politics. As we have suggested elsewhere in this lecture, Nigerian politics is zero-sum because it is amoral. The jostle for political power is akin to declaration of war against opponents.

Of course, those of us who have had a ‘ringside seat at the battle field of Ogun politics say it, and affirm it, with all sense of responsibility, that our celebrant is so-regarded, as a ‘christian politician’ because, even ‘sinners’, those who would not play by the rules of engagement, amongst fellow politicians, are conscious enough that Olájojú Fádàíró, the Fìwàgbayì of Egbaland, keep as much as possible to the radar of morality in politics.

Here in this hallowed chamber, before these eminent personalities, real players of Nigeria power politics and distinguished guests, beneficiaries and victims of Nigeria amoral politics, where power is often deployed without responsibility and with less accountability, we are here gathered to honour the life of Fìwàgbayì, a quintessential Omolúwàbí whose brand of politics is seen and described by all as contradistinguished from the ‘standard way’, so much that, either in praise or otherwise, he is regarded as a ‘christian politician’. Of course, those of us who have had a ringside seat at the political battle field of Ogun politics say it, and affirm it, with all sense of responsibility, that our celebrant is so-regarded, as a ‘christian politician’ because, even ‘sinners’, those who would not play by the rules of engagement, amongst fellow politicians, are conscious enough that Fádàíró, the Fìwàgbayì of Egbaland, keep as much as possible to the radar of morality in politics. I do not know when he got involved in politics, and how he played in his short romance with retail politics of the soap box, seeking elective office(s), but I attest to it, and without fear of contradiction, that politics for Fìwàgbayì, whose ancestors migrated from Eerin Oba to Ibogun, Somi in Ifo Local government Area in Ogun State, is not a ‘do-or-die affair’. And, as Bolaji Labanji, the distinguished newspaper manager and ace columnist, would have said, ‘his conscience is never for sale’. Indeed, in our celebrant, all the variants of Yoruba character-traits, as found in Omolúwàbí, are richly accommodated.

But enough said, I thank you, all for your attention.

** Being the text of lecture commemorating the 80th birthday anniversary of Abraham Olajoju Fádàíró

** Akinyemi Onigbinde is a retired philosophy teacher, and former research fellow at the Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana, Legon, and currently the Executive Secretary, Centre for Development & Policy Studies, a think tank, based in Ilepa, Ifo, Ogun State

 

Most people imagine reaching their career goals will result in lifelong happiness. The opposite was true for Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky.

For Chesky, the goal was an IPO, he recently told Dax Shepard’s “Armchair Expert” podcast. Even as Airbnb’s popularity and private valuation soared throughout the 2010s, Chesky didn’t feel successful, he said — and he thought taking the company public would help.

But when the IPO occurred in December 2020 — with its opening valuation of $47 billion rising to $86.5 billion in less than a day — Chesky didn’t feel happy, satisfied or even relieved. Instead, it marked “one of the saddest periods” of his life, he said.

Chesky had believed success would cure all his problems, he said. But the IPO left him feeling more isolated than ever — and not just because he watched his company go public over Zoom.

The Airbnb CEO originally moved to Silicon Valley and started his company in 2008 with co-founders Joe Gebbia and Nathan Blecharczyk. Back then, the trio was constantly together. As the company grew, so did his co-founders’ families, and Chesky gradually found himself with more alone time, he said.

In response, Chesky dedicated all his energy to making Airbnb more successful, hoping it’d fulfill him, he said.

“I had this image that if I got successful, I’d have all these people around me, have all these friends ... everything in my life would be fixed,” said Chesky. “I do think people should achieve their dreams, [but] don’t go into it [thinking] that just success is going to fill some hole in you.”

A decades-long Harvard University study may offer an explanation. The ongoing research, which started in 1938, has found that career and financial success don’t make participants feel more content. Instead, the happiest people prioritize “social fitness,” or regularly make time for relationships.

“Money can’t buy us happiness, but it’s a tool that can give us security and safety and a sense of control over lives,” Marc Schulz, one of the project’s researchers, told Reuters in February. “At the end of the day, life is really about our connections with others. It’s our relationships that keep us happy.”

Optimal relationships can put us at ease, make us feel safer and offer opportunities for learning and growth, the study has found. People with positive connections are also more likely to live longer, the researchers have noted.

Chesky, in identifying his loneliness, decided to reinvest in his own social fitness, he said on the podcast. Part of his solution: Last year, he listed his own San Francisco home on Airbnb. On select weekends, guests crash in his spare room. Their stays include home-baked chocolate chip cookies and Chesky-led tours of Airbnb’s headquarters.

Six months later, the company launched its Airbnb Rooms service, which allows hosts to rent out individual bedrooms in their homes. Since that announcement in early May, Airbnb’s stock price has risen to $144.14 per share, up from $118.86.

“I feel like a lot of us try to climb a mountain because we feel like when we get to the top of that mountain, something will be filled inside of us,” Chesky said. “Some of the ... most difficult periods in people’s lives [aren’t] when they fail, but when they get to the top of that mountain and realize they don’t feel any differently.”

 

CNBC

Over two weeks after the Central Bank of Nigeria promised to clear over $10bn foreign exchange debts owed Deposit Money Bank, the apex bank has yet to do so.

This came as the naira was sold between 990/$ and 995/$ by Bureau De Change operators on Friday and Saturday in Lagos, Abuja and Kano.

On the Investor & Exporter forex window, the naira however appreciated to 747.76/$ on Friday, from 772.98/$ on Thursday.

The immediate past acting CBN Governor, Folashodun Shonubi, on September 6, 2023, said the apex bank had concluded negotiation on dollar debts with commercial banks, disclosing that all forex exchange backlogs would be cleared within one to two weeks.

According to him, deposit money banks have assisted the apex bank to clear the majority of its overdue FX forward contracts at maturity.

As such, he said the CBN had reached an agreement to reimburse the lenders within one or two weeks following extensive debt restructuring talks that lasted over a long period of time.

“In response to questions about the backlogs, the banks have been working with the CBN on various structures to clear them. So, what happens is that at maturity, they make the foreign exchange available to those that need it.

“We are discussing with them so we can structure their own. So, we are working towards clearing them in the next one or two weeks. It is something we have been discussing for a while,” Shonubi had told audience at a forum in Lagos

However, multiple top bank executives told The PUNCH on Sunday that almost three weeks after the promise, the apex bank had yet to make good its promise.

They said the development had put banks in a very tight FX liquidity position, a situation that has made many lenders to temporarily suspend several FX transactions including school fees and Personal Travel Allowance applications.

Findings show the situation has also worsened dollar liquidity at the parallel market as bank customers shift to the black market to meet their forex needs.

“The FX backlogs have not been cleared. The promise has not been made good. We are hoping that the new CBN governor will begin a discussion with banks on it or clear them immediately,” the executive director of a commercial bank told one of correspondents on condition of anonymity.

Also, a top official of Tier-2 bank privy to the development, said, “We have yet to see the FX backlogs cleared including the overdue forward contract obligations. We don’t know when this will be cleared. Unfortunately, the situation has worsened our FX position, making many banks to put some FX demands of their customers on hold.”

A report by JPMorgan, a United States-based lender put the total amount of forward contract debt owed by the CBN at $6.84bn. The CBN has however dismissed the report.

Reports had put forward contracts and dollar swap deals between the apex bank and banks at over $10bn.

The CBN could not be reached for immediate comments as of Sunday.

 

Punch

Forty million children are living in extremely poor households, the World Bank has disclosed.

The bank noted that most children in extreme poverty lived in middle-income countries, with the total number of poor children amounting to 179.4 million.

It said, “Economies by income: In absolute numbers, most children living in extreme poverty live in middle-income countries, 179.4 million children (14.9 per cent in lower middle and 2.2 percent in upper middle income in extreme poverty) – including 52.2 million children in India (11.5 per cent) and 40 million children in Nigeria (37.9 per cent) living in extremely poor households.”

World Bank disclosed this in its ‘Global Trends in Child Monetary Poverty According to International Poverty Lines,’ report in collaboration with United Nations Children’s Fund which was released in September.

According to the Washington-based bank, extreme child poverty is more prevalent in fragile and conflict-prone settings. About 38.6 per cent of children (164.7 million) who live in countries affected by conflict and fragility live in extremely poor households, compared to 10.1 per cent of children in non-fragile states (168.7 million), the bank highlighted.

However, the number of children living in extreme poverty decreased by an estimated 63.3 million between 2013 and 2019, from 383 million to 319 million, with the slow pace of recorded decrease between 2013 and 2016 in the absolute numbers of children in poverty caused by rapid population growth in Sub-Saharan Africa.

It explained that the poverty estimates for 2020, 2021 and 2022 were ‘nowcasted’—that is, gross domestic product growth rates were used to forecast household incomes, assuming all households experience equal growth in percentage terms in per capita consumption or income.

 

Punch