Nigeria's foreign debt at $10.32 bln by end-June says govt agency

Nigeria's foreign debt stood at $10.32 billion in the first six months of the year, up 10 percent from $9.38 billion in the same period of last year, the Debt Management Office (DMO) said on Monday.

Offshore debt in naira terms showed a 39.1 percent rise to 2.03 trillion naira, due to a weaker currency which lost 20.9 percent during the period, the government agency said.

The DMO said domestic debt stood at 8.39 trillion naira ($43 billion) by end-June against 7.42 trillion naira a year earlier. (Reporting by Chijioke Ohuocha and Oludare Mayowa; Editing by James Macharia)

Buhari’s Frugality And Owambe Politicians

President Mohammedu Buhari

By normative Keynesian econometrics, Malthusian fiscal standards, Adam Smith’s budgetary prognosis and Jankara Market demand and supply economics, it is clear that financial prudence and perspicuous management of resources remains the better part of developmental valor.
That Nigeria’s economy is currently steeple-chasing and wallowing in the murderous oubliette of suicidal doldrums remains an unquestionable truism. This was precipitated by many years of leadership inertia, psychotic malfeasance, oil glut, cataclysmic corruption and humongous planlessness etc.
In this dire strait dungeon the Nigerian economy has been crying for an authentic Moses, a quintessential Satyagraha and somebody with a messianic zeitgeist to salvage it from these paroxysms and pangs of a rabid placebo. IS BUHARI THE ONE? TIME WILL TELL.
Recently, Buhari and his Deputy Professor Osinbajo took some deft and prudential financial steps that are quiet fundamental exemplary and sacrificial for the benefit of the CHANGE mantra, dividends of democracy and good and ethical growth of leadership and financial welfare of Nigerians.
In furtherance and consistent with their campaign promises of reducing the cost of governance for the delivery of democracy dividends to Nigerians, President Buhari and his deputy, Professor Osinbajo reduced their salaries by 500/0.
Without slips of prolixity, this implies that Buhari and Osinbajo will earn half of what former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and former Vice President Namadi Sambo earned. The current annual remuneration of the president of Nigeria as published by the Revenue Mobilization and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) is ¦ 14,058,820:00. This indeed means that Buhari will henceforth earn ¦ 7,029,410 a year or ¦ 28,117,640 in four years.
To make assurance doubly sure and to avoid splendiferous histrionics, Buhari and Osinbajo have formally written to the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation to inform it of the new development. The letter detailing the presidential directive is with reference number PRES/81/SGF/17.
After this patriotic slashing of his salary by 500/0, President Buhari had earlier rejected a proposal from the Aso Rock hierarchical echelon to approve the purchase of five customized armored Mercedes Benz S-600(V222) cars at a cost of ¦ 400 million. These commendable exemplary moves are already rubbing-off on some of our Governors like Senator (Dr) Okowa of Delta State, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State and Dave Umalu of Ebonyi State. We hope that the remaining Laodicean Governors and our revered Legislators will follow suit to help alleviate the hideous intensity of impecuniosity and sordid poverty into which former President Jonathan and his Kleptomaniac Junta plunged Nigeria.
We hope these are not mere Barmecidal-dish theatricals-the early morning pomade in the harmatan that cannot stand the rigorous test of the harsh weather. The legal icon Lord Denning said that “A contemptuous contemptible contempt must be contemptuously ignored”. But the vast majority of Nigerians will not ignore these great moves. They are sign post of greater (we hope) things to come.
It must be noted that before slashing his salary by 500/0, President Buhari had directed the release of ¦ 414 billion as bailout funds to States (recalcitrant debtors) to pay the backlog of salaries they owed their civil servants etc. Nobody gives banana to a monkey, fish to a cat and goat to a lion and collects it back with ease. We admonish the Governors and their political surrogates not to squander, misappropriate and misapply the bailout funds in reckless conviviality, meaningless revelry, social rascality and debaucherous OWAMBEISM.
Finally, talking about the tenacity of power and the ambrosial nature of ambition, the English playwright William Shakespeare observed in his masterpiece ‘Julius Caesar’ that,”When Caesar was good, we loved him, but when he became ambitious we slew him. That same dagger we have for ourselves when it shall please the down trodden to call for our blood when we err in leadership” (not verbatim). BUHARI GOODLUCK! YOU CANNOT HURRY THE SUNRISE, BUT INCREASE THE TEMPO OF DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA AND KEEP THE FLAG OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILITY, ALTRUISM AND TRANSPARENCY FLYING. The world is watching.

Ambode’s N39bn loan condemned

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode

The Lagos State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party has berated Governor Akinwunmi Ambode for “hastily” obtaining a N39.4bn loan from the World Bank.

In a statement by its Publicity Secretary, Taofik Gani, on Sunday, the Lagos PDP advised the governor to rescind the decision to borrow pending the book check on all previously obtained loans in the state, especially by the last administration of ex-Governor BabatundeFashola.

The PDP also described Ambode “as weak to fight corruption and block leakages” in the state.

“The party’s positions are on the heels of the reports of another World Bank loan and the recent announcement by the governor to scrap the state’s finance and administration department while renaming its administration and human resources department,” the statement said in part.

The PDP noted that “the history of loans in the state is very embarrassing and has plunged the state into local and foreign debts running into a trillion naira.”

“Why indeed will a state still run after a World Bank loan when such state realises an average of N27bn as monthly internally generated revenue? Governor Ambode should have a rethink and be prudent,” it said.

The party also demanded for a detailed and public defence of the loan.

It said, “Again we reiterate that this administration will not be different from the two previous administrations in the areas of amassing unwarranted loans and fighting corruption in the state. Governor Ambode does not have the will and cannot exert his authority to fight corruption in this state; otherwise all a governor should do in Lagos State is to block the leakages and the monthly IGR now standing at N27bn will definitely shove up.

“But alas, this governor is jittery to fight corruption and block the financial leakages because the state’s tax consultant firm, Alpha Beta, is believed to be the company of the governor’s godfather. Until the services and activities of the firm in the state are probed, Lagosians will continue to bear huge figures of loans in spite of huge IGR.”

Obama Was Disappointed by the Lack of Preparedness of Buhari,Entourage During US Visit

Examiner.com is claiming that the White House was disappointed by the total lack of preparation by the Nigerian contingent during President Muhammadu Buhari's visit to the United States.

 

A white house insider who spoke anonymously said, ''May be we are not reading from the same script, but the overall message by Barack is that they should go get themselves together, then get back with us''.

''We are just being polite about this because your President doesn’t seem to understand a whole lot about government,” confided another source. The White House was disappointed that Buhari’s contingent had no presentation about working with the United States to salvage their crumbly economy.

Also, another blunder was made when President’s Buhari, in defense of his cabinet-selection delays, published an op-ed in Washington Post, wrongly accusing President Obama of equally delaying his cabinet selection in the initial stage of taking office. 

''I don’t know where he got that information,. I am still trying to come in terms with the rationale of the above statement in the said article other than the fact that President Buhari has gone to press to lie against his host in a bid to justify his dictatorial rule over Nigeria'', said Oshiokpekhai Utu-Orbih, a Nigerian attorney and writer based in the United States.

Gbajabiamila Loses, As Doguwa, Iriase Accept House Nominations

 Former House Minority Leader, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila

•Loyalists Group rejects proposal       
•Plot to arrest Saraki, Ekweremadu alleged

By Damilola Oyedele and Senator Iroegbu in Abuja

After an alleged close understanding between members of the Consolidation Group and Loyalists Group, the two warring sides in the House of Representatives, it emerged at the weekend that former House Minority Leader, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, may no longer be Majority Leader as proposed by the leadership of the ruling party. This is because three close allies of Gbajabiamila and key members of the Loyalists Group, which is aligned with the ruling All Progressives Congress, have accepted House of Representatives Speaker Yakubu Dogara’s script for the distribution of principal offices.

Hon. Alhassan Ado Doguwa, Hon. Pally Iriase, and Hon. Mohammed Monguno said they had to bend over backward to aid the smooth take-off of the legislative functions of the lower chamber in the overall interest of the country. They joined the spokesperson for Dogara’s supporters in the Consolidation Group, Hon. Jibrin Abdulmumin, to address a press conference in Abuja on Saturday, where they supported the speaker’s nominations of Doguwa from the North-west and Iriase from the South-south as House Leader and Chief Whip, respectively. It was an event that tended to mark the end of the House of Representatives’ leg of a National Assembly crisis that had forced the two chambers to shift their resumption from July 21 to July 28.

But a member of the Loyalists Group, Hon. Nasiru Zangon-Daura, swiftly denied any understanding with the Consolidation Group, saying members of his group declaring support for Dogara’s proposal are acting on their own.

“The APC Loyalists Group hereby deny and unequivocally reject any purported endorsement of a so-called formula on the APC leadership in the House of Representatives. Any member of our group who claims to be part of this arrangement acts on his own and not on behalf of the group,” Zangon-Daura said in a brief statement.

The National Assembly has been enmeshed in crisis since June 9, when Senator Bukola Saraki and Dogara emerged Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives, respectively, against the choices of their party, APC. The ruling party had chosen Senator Ahmed Lawan for the post of Senate President and Gbajabiamila for House Speaker. Following the election of Saraki and Dogara, APC offered a compromise position in which it proposed names for the remaining principal posts.

APC national chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, in a letter to the Speaker on June 23 detailed the party’s zoning arrangement for the principal offices in the House, thus, Gbajabiamila (House Leader), South-west; Doguwa (Deputy House Leader), North-west; Monguno (Chief Whip), North-east; and Iriase(Deputy Chief Whip), South-south. Odigie-Oyegun had also written a similar letter to Saraki and it was completely flouted.

However, in a response on July 16 to the APC chairman’s suggestions, Dogara maintained that the principle of geopolitical balance dictated that the positions of House Leader, Chief Whip, Deputy Leader, and Deputy Chief Whip should go to the North-west, South-south, North-central, and South-east, respectively, which had not gotten any principal positions in the lower chamber. The Speaker, thus, proposed Doguwa as House Leader, Iriase as Chief Whip, Hon. Buba Jibrin from the North-central as Deputy Leader, and Hon. Chike Okafor from the South-east as Deputy Chief Whip. Dogara faulted the proposal of the APC leadership on the grounds that persons from the North-east and South-west had already occupied principal positions in the House.

At the press conference, Abdulmumin stated, “Mr Speaker’s argument has always been since the North-east and South-west have produced the Speaker and Deputy Speaker, the remaining principal positions should go to the North-west, North-central, South-south and South-east in the spirit of equity, fairness, justice, a strong precedence and provision of the constitution. In the interest of peace, unity and harmony in the House, Speaker Dogara reached out extensively to individuals and groups and committed lot of energy and time toward finding an amicable solution to the nagging issue.”

Abdulmumin said, “Intense consultations carried out by Speaker Dogara is what eventually led to the birth of the Dogara formula that saw the emergence of what is now known as the Equity Team. In line with the formula, the Equity Team has Hon. Alhassan Ado Doguwa (APC Kano, North-west) as House Leader, Hon Buba Jibrin (APC Kogi, North-central) as Deputy Leader, Hon Pally Iriase (APC Edo, South-south) as Chief Whip, and Hon. Chika Okafor (APC Imo, South-east) as Deputy Chief Whip.

“Interestingly, both the Speaker and a great majority of the APC caucus in the House, including gladiators in the Gbajabiamila’s group like Hon Monguno, Hon Doguwa, and Hon Pally, support and stand by the Equity Team. We have commenced collection of signatures which has reached advanced stage to affirm the Dogara formula. All other interests, including those excluded from the principal offices, specifically Hon. Gbajabiamila and Hon Monguno, will be duly accommodated with commensurate responsibility to serve. Since the Speaker has about 200 positions to share out, many members will have the opportunity to serve the country.”

Iriase, in his address, said Dogara’s proposal ensured inclusiveness and equity in the distribution of the principal positions.

“Mr. Speaker is mandated to ensure that Section 14 (3), which deals with Federal Character, is abided by in the composition of that arm of government. I would urge those who are not very conversant with this matter to look at Section 13, which mandates the heads of the three arms of government to ensure preservation and adherence to the fundamental objectives and directive principles of state affairs in Nigeria,” Iriase said.

Arguing that they accepted the speaker’s suggestions to prevent the discontent in the House from festering, Iriase said, “We urge all those who may have wished that this crisis ought to be resolved in a different way to think Nigeria first, and embrace peace for the sake of having a respectable and enduring institution of the legislature in Nigeria.

“The three of us from the Loyalists Group, who have been noted as being key members, have stepped forward on behalf of our teeming majority to accept the position as indicated in the Speaker's letter. We remain very committed members of that group; we feel this is a fair arrangement to resolve the crisis.” 

In his own contribution, Monguno said, “The reasoning behind the party nominating us to serve in the various principal positions of the House is to take care of the interest of the Loyalists Group. But right now, Hon. Doguwa and Hon. Pally Iriase are still members of the Loyalists Group, and I think they are capable and well positioned to take care of the interest of the Loyalists Group in the affairs of the House, as enunciated by the party. Also in the interest of fairness, to reflect the diversity of Nigeria, to take care of the various geopolitical zones, I decided to follow suit on the Dogara formula.”

In a related development, members of the Lawan group in the Senate, which opposed the election of Saraki as Senate President and Ike Ekweremadu from the opposition Peoples Democratic Party as Deputy Senate President, are alleged to be plotting to sponsor the removal of the two principal officers of the upper chamber.

THISDAY learnt from sources close to the Saraki and Lawan groups that the plot involved a two-pronged plan, to get Saraki and Ekweremadu arrested, or get Saraki harassed to the point of submission to the impeachment of Ekweremadu on the floor of the Senate to pave the way for the election of a deputy senate president who would be a check on Saraki.

In the first plan, the anti-Saraki group is alleged to be scheming to revive an old case against Saraki at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, which had been investigated under the former President Goodluck Jonathan government, and use it as a basis for the arrest and trial of the senate president. It is alleged that the report of the police investigation on the alleged forgery of the 2015 Standing Rule of the Senate is being planned as the basis for the prosecution of Ekweremadu.

“Even if nothing comes out of the trials, the two men would have been sufficiently embarrassed to such extent that it will be easy to get their fellow senators to dump them or they can encourage others to get interested in their positions,” a source said.

However, when contacted for comments on the allegations, the Nigerian Police, which is investigating the alleged falsification of the senate rules by Ekweremadu, denied any move to arrest the principal officers of the upper chamber. Force Public Relations Officer, Mr. Emmanuel Ojukwu, said, “It is not true,” stressing that he is “not aware of such directive” to arrest and prosecute Saraki and Ekweremadu.

What Is Missing in Lagos Is Good Leadership - - Jimi Agbaje

Mr. Joseph Olujimi Kolawole Agbaje, was the governorship candidate of the Democratic People's Alliance (DPA) in the 2007 governorship contest in Lagos State. He has pitched political tent with the People's Democratic Party (PDP) ahead of the 2015 general elections. In this interview, he explains why he believes Lagos State for over 16 years has not done well. Excerpts

What could you do to improve on the achievements of the present administration in Lagos State?

For Lagosians, they would look at it that the party in government for over 16 years has done very well. When you compare it to many states in the country you could say yes there has been a measure of performance. But then the way you move forward is to benchmark yourself, not with those things because in the first place Lagos is not at the same level with other states.

Lagos State has been said to be the 5th largest economy in Africa, what is your view of its growth so far?

Yes they say Lagos is the 5th largest economy in Africa, that is not exactly correct. It may be the 5th largest economy in Sub-Saharan Africa. If you look at it, it is probably the 13th largest economy in Africa. When you look at the economy of Lagos, you begin to see Lagos as a nation in itself.

The 1st thing is to begin to have a long term vision for Lagos. We should not be looking at Lagos for four years, we should be looking at 15 years and say where do we want Lagos in 2030. Whoever that is coming to office must have a vision to sell to the people and they will know where you are going with regards to Lagos. It is against this background that you ask "what do I want to see in Lagos?"

Some people have decried multiple taxation in the state, how do you intend solving this issue without it really affecting the economy of the Lagos?

What we will do is to balance it by reducing the pressure and employ more hands, this will as well increase the state's tax net.

It will bring less burden on Lagosians who are weighed down with multiple tax. These are some of the things that you begin to joggle so that you can have more people employed.

There seem to be too many people in Lagos State, what plan do you have in terms of housing?

We will begin to look at residential housing because 90 per cent Lagosians are in the middle class. Every middle class wants to have his or her own home. To address that different things come to play. You will need land and fund. In leavabilty index, in terms of acquiring property in Nigeria, Lagos is number 36 out of 36. The most difficult place to acquire property in this country is Lagos State. Now the question is if you want people in Lagos and they cannot acquire property for themselves, are you really working towards having them in Lagos? Are you not driving them away to other places? People always move to where there is a good residential scheme. We have our neighbouring state, Ogun, by the time they put their heads together Lagos would be a loser. And once the rail system starts working, most people won't stay in Lagos again and it begins to loose tax.

Before now, some politicians have given the electorates hope but once they get the power they make the people hopeless, what would you say about that?

Lots of the problem we have in this country is about leadership. Not so much that the plans are not there on paper for the leaders to follow, it is that the leadership is wrong. Leadership is about vested interest. And so you find out that a lot of things that should be done in the interest of Lagosians are only done when it benefits those that have vested interest. For example, the light rail system for example that has been on, we have no idea when it will finish. It is because of the way it was structured. Officially the blue line which is being done is a Lagos State project. There are interests that are affecting the quick completion of that project. Also, like the BRT system that started well but is collapsed, it is because of vested interest. The BRT today is not different from our molues and they breakdown often. Good leadership is what is missing because of vested interest. In other words, it is in PDP that nobody tells the governor how to govern a state.

Nigeria: Divided Nation, Breakup Inevitable By Bayo Oluwasanmi

The possible breakup of Nigeria brings on the bone-shaking shivers doctors call rigors. Many writers have detailed how Nigeria is bursting at the seams with ethno-religious, political and economic problems waiting to explode. However, the apostles of one Nigeria have repeatedly denied or dismissed the notion and tried to nudge us out of that zone.

The possible breakup of Nigeria brings on the bone-shaking shivers doctors call rigors. Many writers have detailed how Nigeria is bursting at the seams with ethno-religious, political and economic problems waiting to explode. However, the apostles of one Nigeria have repeatedly denied or dismissed the notion and tried to nudge us out of that zone.

Lagos Streets in June during the rainy season

By definition, a failed state is one that has simply ceased to function. Going by this definition, Nigeria is a failed state. Nigeria is a divided nation. Nigeria is a collapsed state and her breakup is imminent. The signs are all over the place.

The historic rivalries between east and west, south and north, oil states and non-oil states, Christian and Muslim communities, democrats and autocrats, and soldiers and citizens that have bedeviled Nigeria since its founding are pulling us apart to the extreme. We’re closer to the breaking point.

The elements of traditional prejudice of the three major tribes – Igbo, Hausa, and Yoruba – continue to ignite enmity, distrust, and hatred. The three tribes have remained incontestably hostile – forever. Today, there is more animosity than there is collegiality. The three tribes are full of expression of self-hate, suspicion, and intolerant of each other.

Our history proves that ethnic unity is more of a dusty artifact of ancient political arrangement than the outcome of genuine political incorporation or enhanced cohesion among the different ethnic groups. The fragile state of affairs has been held together by tsunami of lies and misrepresentations in whose wake the country is reeling perpetually.

Successive governments were dominated by evil and murderous perpetrators of crimes. Ethnic fragmentation and persistent hotbeds of political criminality were encouraged and sponsored by the rulers. As a result, we were submerged in ethnic hatred, and rabid nationalism that swept throughout the nation like a disease. The absence of a true democracy to ensure devolution of the federal power is a powerful incentive against unity and cooperation.

Nigeria is convulsed by internal violence. It can no longer deliver positive political goods to her citizens. The government is fast loosing legitimacy. The government has become illegitimate in the eyes and hearts of a growing plurality of 170 million Nigerians.

Nigeria sinks deeper and deeper into chaos and calamity. The north-south divide remains the greatest obstacle to a strengthened democracy and a workable union. We’re battling economic confusion, continued corruption, and mismanagement.

The scale of corruption dwarfs any brazen robbery of public treasury in recent memory. Our world has been turned into a medieval hellscape. Corruption flourishes on unusually destructive scale. Our corrupt ruling elites mostly invest their loots overseas, not at home, making the economic failure of the country much more acute.

Our rulers siphon funds from the state coffers. They dip directly into the coffers of the shrinking state to pay for lavish residences and palaces, extensive overseas travel, and privileges and perquisites that feed their greed.  Nigeria has failed to grow economically and its citizens have failed to flourish. For many years, Nigerians have been trapped in irreversible debilitating cycle of poverty and hopelessness.

The paralysis of our democratic structures have illuminated further the mockery and the failure of our democracy. The twice forgotten man in Nigeria has always been the poor. The government response to the abject poverty that has defined the lives of the poor is zero. Our political leaders are not chosen on the merit of mass support. Most are selected by god fathers, elevated to position, supplied with resources and as expected subjected to the king maker’s control.

The Presidency and the National Assembly are inarticulate giants with uneasy gait, subjected to abuse and confuse in their responses to national issues. Checks and balances that are part of a healthy democracy have been deleted in our system. It’s no surprise that our representative democracy is nothing but a disguise in name. It is no exaggeration to say that there are no legislatures in Nigeria. If they exist at all, they are rubber-stamp machines. Our judiciary is a derivative of the executive rather than being independent. Nigerians know that they cannot rely on the court system for redress or remedy.

 The mass poor of our people nurtures a healthy suspicion toward these manufactured leaders. It’s an open secret that money is the chief argument these leaders are offering to induce and buy loyalty. These manufactured leaders lack personal integrity, commitment, and ability. Tragically, they’re not fighters for a new life for our people but figureheads of the old.

They are not impressive or illustrious to their constituents. We’re all too familiar with their impotence and remoteness from the problems that have made life unlivable for the people they profess to represent. Many in their constituencies are among the legions of the lost and have been crushed by the weight of many years of poverty. These leaders do not evoke affection, respect, and emulation.

Our democracy have slid towards autocracy, maintaining the outward appearance of democracy through elections, but without the rights and institutions that are equally important aspects of a functioning democratic system. Our constitution is not robust enough to promote long-term stability, reduce discontent from minorities against the government, and bolster the fight against corruption.

Our democratic system is based on economic coercion. People are forced to do what they don’t want to do. The effect of this is lack of innovation[BO1]  and technological progress.  Our bureaucracy has long ago lost its sense of professional responsibility and exists solely to carry out the order of the executive, and in many ways oppress Nigerians.

We have deteriorated or destroyed infrastructures. Our education and health systems and other public facilities are decrepit or neglected. Civil servants are paid late or not at all. Economic opportunity is only for a privileged few. Those around the president or around the governors grow richer while the rest of us starve.

Our economic insecurity is engineered by our rulers in order to maximize their own fortunes and their own political and economic power. Unemployment is dangerously high and persistent. Regional inequalities remain the rule. Economic decline is accompanied by a diminished confidence in the federal system. Our currency falls out of favor.

It is common knowledge that nations don’t breakup overnight. The seeds of their destruction are sown deep within their political institutions. Some nations fall as a result of total collapse of institutions. Examples abound: In Afghanistan, after the Soviet withdrawal and hanging of President Mohammed Najibullah from a lamppost. In Sierra Leone, the long Civil War erased all traces of existence of government. This form of slow death of institutional failure is responsible for the sub-living standards in sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and Latin America in contrast to what obtains in the western world.

Nigeria is not going to fall or explode as a result of war and violence, but the refusal or failure to capitalize on the enormous potential for growth and for pursuing a policy that condemned their citizens to a lifetime of poverty.

In the case of Nigeria and like any other failed state, the failure is by design. The institutions are designed to fail by the elites who are the beneficiaries of such design. As we have seen in Nigeria, such elites benefit from rigged political institutions. The system is built on exploitation. And any system propped on exploitation is doomed to fail leading to immeasurable suffering of its citizens.

Nigeria is operating on a tilted plain field. The big men get greedy. The elites control the economy. They use their powers to create monopolies and block the entry of new comers. A good example is Dangote cement and salt. The privatized industries end up in the hands of the elites. The privatized power sector is a case in point. These elites with their fraudulent companies received protection from the state, got government contracts, and large bank loans without needing to put up collateral.

The greedy big men and their businesses could be described as “whales.” Their stranglehold on our economy had created huge windfalls for them and blocked opportunities for the vast mass of Nigerians to move out of poverty.

A successful economy must have effective government. Law and order and the mechanisms for resolving disputes are possible and applicable in a truly democratic system with apparatus of enforcing the laws. Nigeria is yet to create or operate on a set of nationally respected laws or rules.

The absence of the central government is felt throughout the 36 states. The federal government is unable or unwilling to exert control over the whole country. With Boko Haram on the offensive, territories have been federated and annexed. The absence leads not only to lack of public services such as roads, healthcare, electricity, jobs, safety, but also to lack of well-defined institutionalized structures.

Without a responsible and responsive central government, there can be no law and order. Without law and order, there can be no real economy. And without a real economy, a country is doomed to fail. Competition in the coming 2015 presidential election could break the already tattered ties that keep Nigeria whole.

With stagnant economy, Nigerian quagmire, Boko Haram terrorism, ethnic fragmentation, local nationalism, lack of economic incentives, incendiary nationalism, bleak future, and leadership vacuum, the breakup of Nigeria is assured.