GM crops in Nigeria: true or false?

By  Joachim Ezeji                                                                                                                                                                                     It is timely to find out the official policy of the Nigerian government on Genetically Modified (GM) crops? This has become necessary in view of the crass ignorance of the average Nigerian on what GM crops are;  and, if Nigerians are ignorant of what exactly GM crops are, then how sure are we that these controversial and in some instances dreaded crops are not already here in Nigeria.

 

Again, some ubiquitous Nigerians have many uncanny ways and some of these include trading on banned and counterfeit products. They go all out, and even against extant laws of the country to buy and import into the country items they know too well are dangerous and disruptive to the economy and the environment such as used refrigerators, old cars and machinery, fake drugs as well as despoiled food items such as rice and many others.  This situation is further complicated by our porous borders and gullible security agents manning them. 

It is on this premise therefore, that I seek to discuss GM crops in Nigeria and possibly find out what the official position of government is on it.

 GM crops are crops or seedlings that have undergone genetic modification in the laboratory. This includes the introduction of a well-characterized gene or genes into an established genetic background or between species. A product of biotechnology or crop engineering, the resultant features include the ability of the crop to now grow and flourish in difficult terrains or barren farmlands; for example, they become drought resistant crops in arid soil or salt proof in high salinity farmlands.

 In year 2000, the Times magazine had discussed the work of the Swiss biologist Ingo Potrykus who led the team that engineered the “golden rice”. The rice, a flagship product of Biotechnology (in the words of Dick Taverne’s essay in Prospect Magazine, 2007) was to start a new green revolution to improve the lives of millions of the poorest people in the world. It was estimated to help remedy vitamin- A deficiency, the cause of 1-2million deaths a year, and could save up to 500,000 children a year from going blind. No other scientific development in agriculture in recent time is thought to hold such promise.

 

Only a decade after their commercial introduction, GM crops were already in cultivation in well over 100million hectares spread across 22 countries by over 10million farmers. About 9 million of of this number are resource-poor farmers in developing countries, mainly India and China. Most of these small-scale farmers grow pest-resistant GM cotton. In India alone, production has tripled over the past 3 years to over 10million hectares. This cotton has proven to benefit farmers because it reduces the need for insecticides, thereby increasing their income and also improving their health. 

However, beyond all these attributes, features and  claims, there are deep rooted fears amongst the enlightened world that GM technology is most unsafe and harmful to the environment, and that it only lines the pocket of the big agricultural companies. Though GM crops are in abundance in parts of Europe, they are also effectively banned in most countries. Indeed, EU regulations, based on the precautionary principle, provide safeguards against “contamination” of organic farms by GM crops; they require any produce containing more than 0.9 percent GM content to be labeled as such, with the clear implication that it needs a health warning and should be avoided.

 

However, in view of the extant food security woes in Africa, for example, in parts of West Africa, the average rate of application of NPK fertilizer is reported to be an abysmal 13kg per hectare; should GM crops be relied upon and allowed to close up the food supply gap and flourish in Africa? 

Factors responsible for poor fertilizer use have included cost and scarcity of the product when needed by farmers. The implication has been the heavy post harvest losses calculated at 50per cent for fruits and vegetables and 30per cent for root crops and tubers. Compared to the entire continent, recorded loses include 22kg of Nitrogen (N), 2.5kg of Phosphorus (P) and 15 kg of Potassium (k) per hectare per year through soil mismanagement. This is equivalent to US$4 billion worth of fertilizer (at United States prices) and likely US$30 billion at African fertilizer prices.

 

Also, sadly; with climate change now ravaging the continent, people are becoming increasingly affected as worsening droughts in particular is ruining the lives and livelihood of many households and have continued to hamper farming activities. Water mismanagement, inappropriate land use, as well as poor knowledge of anti-drought measures have continued to constrain the soil’s productive capacity to produce food. Consequently, local livelihoods are being jeopardized while increasing poverty for thousands of farmers expands.  

GM crops on the other addresses these loops as they reduce reliance on agrochemical sprays, saves energy, uses less fossil fuel in their production and reduces the emissions of greenhouse gases; and by improving yields, they make better use of scarce agricultural land. These have been confirmed by different studies and reports which reveal that the “environmental impact” of pesticides and herbicide use in GM –growing countries had been reduced by 15 per cent and 20 percent respectively.

 

Energy-intensive cultivation is being replaced by no-till or low-till agriculture. As at today, more than a third of the soya bean crop grown in the US is now grown in unploughed fields. Apart from using less energy, avoiding the plough has many environmental advantages. It improves soil quality, causes fewer disturbances to life within it and diminishes the emission of methane and other greenhouse gases. 

But whatever the merits are, there are oodles of dreadful demerits of GM crops. And one salient argument that is yet to be defeated is the fact that GM crops are “one-off-seeds” i.e. the seeds cannot be preserved or stored for replanting in the following farming season. This therefore imposes on the farmers the task of yearly purchase of the seeds at enormously high costs. How many poor farmers in Nigeria or other places in Africa can afford to go through this ritual yearly?

 

There are also other concerns such as the environmental threats, particularly those to biodiversity. It is feared that the takeover of natural environments by GM crops could easily lead to mass gene alteration in the entire ecosystem and that this could be counterproductive. 

These arguments remained the crux of a class debate amongst nine African scholars on environment while on a residency program at Brown University, USA last fall. We had debated that regardless of the so called abundant benefits that GM crops are evil and are capable of impoverishing Africans in the long run. This was based on our fear that it would erode indigenous or local seeds from Africa; and make the already impoverished small holder farmers and peasants perpetually dependent of imported seeds.
This argument also raised other fears, such as those that claim that once traditional farmlands have been exposed to GM crops, the entire landscape subsequently becomes the exclusive dominance of GM crops as no other crop would be capable of doing well in such farmland. Though this fear still remains hypothetical; empirical analyses in this regard may not even be necessary as people commonly prefer organically produced food because it is neither a quick-fix solution for world hunger nor an exploitative endeavor.  

 

As a country with large population; the most populated in Africa; the official policy of the Nigerian government on GM crops need to be known. Is it here already, or is it yet to arrive? Certainly, we need to know what the position of the Nigerian government is on this matter.  

But whatever it is, there is enormous need for citizen education on the pros and cons of GM crops to enable at least an understanding and awareness creation. This has the potential of assisting us, particularly the farmers from deceit and deception by those with ubiquitous uncanny ways.

Dora Akunyili: The woman who saved the nation

By

Joachim Ezeji

In the words of Dora Akunyili; …………….“Let’s just say I got tired of the whole thing. It just got too much for my mind. I could no longer live with myself. I was not sleeping well. I was depressed. My husband thought it was malaria but I knew it was not. I went for tests and nothing was found. I simply knew I could not continue to live a lie. On Tuesday night, I could not sleep at all and I spent half the night praying. That was when I decided to do the memo. I wrote and typed it myself. I only told my Assistants and Special Adviser on Wednesday”.

It has often been said that the future of Nigeria lies with women. Instances in this regards abounds and includes the exploits in courage made by Oby Ezekwesili and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala during their days as ministers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Today both women are at the World Bank sharing their expertise and know-how globally.

But even since years past and present, one woman that has retained her doggedness in doing well and showcasing excellence is Dora Akunyili.  She is the only amazon, the enigma and the only courageous personality among her peers. Dora has every reason to walk shoulders high all over the country, whether north, south, east or west.

Talking about Dora on this occasion appeals so much to me at this moment because of the extra-ordinary courage she exhibited to break a logjam. She was the only person among men, even in the presence of “past this and past that” in the Federal Executive Council (FEC) of Nigeria that spoke out when it mattered most.

The story line ran thus: President Yar Adua had travelled out of Nigeria in the wee hours of 23^rd November 2009 to Saudi Arabia for a medical treatment. The president did not consider it important to hand over the reins of government to anybody, even to his deputy Dr Goodluck Jonathan. Neither did he even inform the members of the national assembly nor members of the Federal Executive Council.

The medical trip was a closely knit top secret with the presidency and household of the president. Since that date of departure, nobody ever heard from the president. His loyalist and members of his kitchen cabinet argued that the president was free to rule from any part of the world. The result was that a few hawks close to the president were taking questionable decisions incognito.

Nobody knew exactly the credibility of the source of most actions and directives being given as their facilitators insisted it came from the president. While these haze persisted, nobody heard from the president. The civil society in Nigeria kicked against this build up and rallies were organized against it . These took place in both Abuja and Lagos. Yet, the hawks kept the country hostage and remained defiant.

The entire country had waited with berthed breath the fast approaching swearing –in of the new Chief Justice of Nigeria as well as the signing of the 2010 budget. Both actions must be performed by the president and no one else. But what happened? The budget was signed overnight and attributed to the president. Later, the hawks led by the nation’s attorney general and minister of justice Mr Michael Aondoakaa, came up with a surprise. A smart attorney he was indeed. He came up with the idea that the outgoing Chief Judge of Nigeria (CJN) can swear in the incoming basing his argument on the Oaths Act which he said empowers the CJN to swear in another chief justice,

This rankled most Nigerians to the extent that it was generally condemned. Condemning the administration of oath on the CJN with a reference to section 130(2) of the 1999 Constitution, which says, “The President shall be the Head of State,” Professor Ben Nwabueze, a renowned constitutional lawyer and former education minister said such function was part of “the role of Head of State, designated expressly in the constitution. The Head of State incarnates the country. He is an embodiment of all the rights, dignities, and so on. So by virtue of this, the president is, constitutionally, the right person to swear-in high-ranking functionaries. It doesn’t matter what any other law says.

Professor Ben Nwabueze also said “Now, we consider also convention. Over the years, the swearing-in of CJNs has been done by the president, whether military president or civilian president. There is convention also. The difference between law and convention, you don’t need to bother yourself about that. Both law and conventions are necessary for effective constitutionalism.”

Responding to the argument that the Oaths Act also empowers the CJN to swear in another chief justice, he contended, “I am saying notwithstanding the provision of the Oaths Act. Will the Oaths Act prevail over section 130 of the constitution and the convention? That’s the question. I am aware of the provisions of the Oaths Act. But will it prevail over the practice and conventions of the country?”

Besides, Nwabueze said, “The swearing-in of the new CJN by the outgoing one was done three days before there was a vacancy. You swear a man into an office that is in existence, not an office that has not become vacant. He was sworn in three days before the outgoing one was to retire. There was no vacancy at the time the new CJN was sworn into office. We are talking about swearing into an office. There was no such office at the time of the swearing in.” The swearing of Justice Katsina-Alu as CJN actually took place a day before the expiration of the tenure of office of the former CJN, Justice Kutigi.

But as the groundswell over these events continued to build up, the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria passed a resolution urging President Yar’Adua to transmit a letter of medical leave or vacation to pave the way for VP Jonathan to become Acting President. The Senate resolution, however, did not contain the mandatory language that many people have sought on the matter and it also did not give the President any certain deadline within which to do so. The Senate called it a “political solution” to the national debate raging over the President’s long absence from the country.

Briefing Senate correspondents, Chairman, Senate Committee on Information and Media, Senator Ayogu Eze, said: “For the past two days, five hours yesterday (Tuesday) and about three hours today (yesterday), the Senate had been engaged in very intense debate and examination of all the issues involved - constitutional, social, political and at the end of an exhaustive deliberation, we have decided to speak like statesmen because even though there were certain limitations we have in the constitution.

 “We are satisfied that what we have done now is in the best interest of the country to ease the tension and move Nigeria forward and that is why we have resolved to urge the President to honour Section 145 by notifying the National Assembly that he has proceeded on medical vacation, even though it is going to be in arrears as it were.

“We have come to the conclusion that it is right that the spirit of that provision be respected.  We also asked that this matter be committed to our committee on the review of the 1999 Constitution so that they will take into consideration the kind of confusion and the kind of unanticipated problem that arose from Section 145 because of its lack of specificity.

Despite these arguments, the hawks in the cabinet held their ground and refused to budge. They also supported their position by a phantom ruling in a federal high court in Abuja by Justice Abutu . The judge had on January 13 ruled that by the provisions of Section 5(1) and 148(1) of the 1999 Constitution, the vice president could, in the absence of the president, exercise all the powers vested in the president.

The judge was responding to a law suit brought by a concerned citizen, Mr. Christopher Onwuekwe, over an alleged leadership vacuum created by Yar’Adua’s absence.

Abutu said, “When the vice president is exercising the powers of the president as an Acting President, he is exercising that power in his own right as acting president and not on behalf of the president.” However, Jonathan can only exercise the executive powers on behalf of Yar’Adua because the president, who had been hospitalized in Saudi Arabia since November 23 last year for a heart condition, has not notified the National Assembly of his absence to enable his deputy act as president, Abutu maintained.

That judgment caused more confusion than understanding, and in effect created room for further manipulation by the hawks led by Mr Michael Aondoakaa. A follow up action came when The Federal Executive Council (FEC) in Abuja declared that President Yar’Adua was still fit to continue in office despite his more than two months medical leave in Saudi Arabia. The FEC challenged those who feel otherwise to seek redress in court.

The Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Chief Michael Aondoakaa (SAN), pointedly told State House correspondents after the FEC meeting that: “We followed the letters of Section 144 (of the constitution) and I think Section 144 allows him and if anybody thinks it doesn’t, he can go to court.”

“Well, the executive council is made up of people with high integrity, which is inclusive of the VP (Vice-President), who ordinarily is supposed to be the beneficiary of what other people are canvassing for.“I have told you that it is a unanimous decision and that alone should have shown you that he (Vice-President Goodluck Jonathan) is truthful and faithful because he took part in the decision.

“The medical treatment outside the country does not constitute incapacity to warrant or commence the process of the removal of the President from office under sections 144 and 146 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria”, the AGF added.

 Reacting to demands by some Nigerians that Jonathan should be sworn-in as the Acting President, Aondoakaa said: “I also want to brief you on the issue of acting president and the history of acting president in other jurisdictions. The issue of acting president is a matter, which comes under the purview of Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution. The condition precedent for it is that the president must write for a voluntary transfer of power to the VP to be the acting president.

“Where the president does, the VP automatically assumes the duties of an acting president. The constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria does not make provisions for any swearing-in, it is an automatic elevation to that position of the president but the job must start from the president.

Finally, the seeming unanimity among the Federal Executive Council (FEC) that President Umaru Yar’Adua is fit to govern soon had cracks and began to crumble. The first crack in the ranks of the president’s council of ministers emerged when Dora Akunyili, Hon. Minister for information, broke from the official position and submitted a memo calling on the FEC to own up to the president’s incapacitation on grounds of ill health.

The development initially caught the hawks in the council unawares and seemed to fire up other members who had been subdued on their perception of the leadership crisis that has enveloped the presidency since Yar’Adua sought medical care for his failing health in a Jeddah hospital in Saudi Arabia.

In her memo, Akunyili urged her colleagues to face up to the leadership vacuum in the presidency and the fact that President Yar’Adua’s health has impaired his ability to govern. Stressing the implications of the vacuum on the polity, she canvassed the view that the council should recommend to the president to adhere to the resolution of the Senate which directed Yar’Adua to officially transmit to it a letter on his medical vacation.

Apparently concerned with overwhelming call across the political landscape for the machinery of government to be stabilized through temporary handover of power to Vice President Goodluck Jonathan, Akunyili said Nigerian people had been taken for a ride for too long and that it is time for the ministers to do the right thing by urging the president to step down.

Although Akunyili’s memo was stepped down by the hawks, majority of the ministers seemed to have been inspired by it, creating a tense atmosphere at the meeting. Although the minister’s memo was rejected by the hawks, “a cowardly majority of the members actually supported her position and some of them even congratulated her after the meeting, which lasted only 90 minutes.”

When Dora Akunyili, presented her memorandum asking her colleagues to wake up to their responsibility to the Nigerian nation, tempers flared and voices were raised. Some of the ministers rose from their seats so their voices would carry in the chambers of the Executive Council of the Federation. Some rained insults on her. A few asked her if she had weighed the risks of her presenting such a position paper.

                                                                                                                                                                              There were also threats of sack from those who felt Akunyili should not continue to stay in council after submitting such a strong-worded memo.  Reports showed that the memorandum took the ministers by surprise and if the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Yayale Ahmed, had not had the presence of mind to ask for the copies already in the hands of the members, it would have been difficult to calm frayed nerves at the meeting. There were 42 copies of the document with all of the members but when the ministers were told to return them, the SGF discovered that three copies were missing. It took another round of search and persuasion before the missing copies were retrieved. 

According to one of the ministers sympathetic to Akunyili’s stand, “I salute Dora’s courage because it takes courage to look your boss in the eye and ask him to step down for his deputy. Many of us are also not comfortable with the way things have gone in the country these past two months, which is why we are supporting her.”

Most of the ministers thought it was just another presentation from her ministry until she started reading. You should have seen the faces of some of the ministers. They shouted, hurled insults at her and some pointedly told her that her days were numbered in the council. They asked her if she had weighed the risks of her action. It was really a hot session.

In an interview in the press, Dora said “I am hopeful that the letter transferring power to Dr Goodluck Jonathan would finally arrive so that the tension in the country can be doused. I also expect that when President Yar’Adua returns, he will take over. The VP cannot stop him from returning to his office. It is not possible. Let me also state clearly that nobody wants Mr President dead. No child of God will wish a fellow human being dead. I don’t want my boss to die. Only evil people want him to die. He will return. So all this tension in the country is unnecessary, we all know what is right and that is what we should do”.

Dora Akunyili, a university professor, was formerly at the University of Nigeria Nsukka from where she was appointed Director General of NAFDAC, and later Minister of Information. Her memo ignited the inferno that later roasted the hawks as the national assembly and the civil society groups soon complemented the momentum and finally made VP Goodluck Jonathan , the acting president on Tuesday, 9^th February 2010 while Yar Adua recuperates in an unknown location.

Thank you, Dora for doing what men were afraid to do!

 

 

 

 

PDP: a highly coveted party?

When I read and watch what obtains in the Nigerian political arena, particularly events in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), I can’t help, but shudder. Often, I wonder if our present day politicians would have even had the opportunity if the past had been just like this. Would they have even have had the chance in the first place? Why on earth are PDP politicians behaving as it Nigeria started today, and as if it will end with just them? Nigeria was never as bad as it is has turned out recently. In years past, such as years as far back as 20, 30, and even 40 years ago, Nigeria was working. Politicians to a very relative extent knew their limits and of course stopped at such limits. But not any more these days. Today, politicians especially those in PDP have a larger than life idea about themselves and the capacity of their intents. To them, limits exists no more or could be infinitely manipulated. In their penchant to achieve such notorious ends the rest of us can go to hell. I have a Nigerian friend who has lived in Germany for well over 25 years, and of course a German now. As at today, Charles hates everything Nigeria and sees Nigeria is being beyond remedy. He sees PDP as Nigeria’s present day major ailment. To him, PDP amplifies everything that have gone berserk or that is utterly wrong about Nigeria. Whenever we discuss, he happily tells me that he is proud to be a German and ashamed to be a Nigerian. He says he is proud to be a German because he has now outgrown the overhang of international resentment of everything Nigerian; ranging from the world’s airports and daily interaction with foreigners. He says that he is so excited that his four children, all boys, are now born Germans and would benefit from the many opportunities that exist for citizens of Europeans and the entire western world instead of the massive opprobrium and drawbacks that afflict Nigerians. In his words; ‘’Nigeria is the only country in the world where elected officials, especially state governors and local government chairmen can easily decide to pocket state allocations or funds, using same to uplift themselves, secure their future via personal investments and do all sorts of private concerns at the expense of the citizens and the heaven will not fall’’. He says that they are so devilishly daring that any opposition to their ways is crushed. They never bother to bath an eyelid. These politicians are no doubt in other parties, but they are more in the PDP, and the party know that and gives them optimum cover. Is not amazing that a whopping 49 candidates are currently vying to become governor of Anambra state on the PDP ticket? What does this imply? Simply put, this implies rot that must be exploited by all those interested. If the ground is level, why should all contenders agglutinate in just one political party while more than 50 political parties exist? It is most interesting to ponder what the manifesto of each of these contenders looks like. I can bet you that most of them do not even have a manifesto and may also not even have a basic ideological school upon which to situate their interest or ambition to become a state governor. In Nigeria of this era, professional coup plotters (who retired from the military), failed business men, unsuccessful contractors, unemployment wrecked applicants, fizzling out conmen and laid back and crude individuals dominate the political space. These also include educated but morally depraved persons who see politics as the only lifeline to success. To them it is a do or die matter, and everything formal must be dismantled once it stands on their way. Why on earth should every politician want to belong to the PDP? From the bizarre state of affairs, I doubt if there are still well meaning politician left in the PDP mainstream. Everybody in the PDP of today either wants to be manipulated into office or to be appointed into positions of immense authority and influence. To them Nigeria is a bazaar that must be plundered without any spares. To them the future exists only for them and their households, and not for the rest of us; the side watchers! The motley crowd of 49 angling to secure the PDP’s gubernatorial ticket for Anambra State and the quagmire the party now finds itself speaks volume about the mentality of the average Nigerian politician. Why sale forms at that scale? The propensity to raise funds from form sales at such massive scale without an introspection of the backlash even when the party knows that it was not going to provide a level playing field to all the candidates’ smacks of treachery. A party that does that deserves to die, and PDP deserves nothing less. This brings me to the three state governors who recently abandoned their party platforms on which they were initially elected for PDP. What on earth were they thinking? Are they hoping to reap from the evil tendencies of the PDP? Yes, evil tendencies here mean, the ability of PDP to use state institutions such as the police, the military and INEC to its favour? I want somebody to help explain to me what they really hope to achieve from their new found love in the PDP. The driving motive behind the rush to join the PDP is simply insane. Politician rushing to join the PDP are simply doing so for selfish reasons. None of them is yet to adduce any convincing reasons for such action. No, not even one. But, why? The reasons as I earlier pointed out are not far fetched and are overtly selfish. This derives from the principal factor of the ability of the party to manipulate and bulldoze its way through the polity. Politicians are not performing, and are simply in politics to amass wealth and prosperity which their years outside politics have failed to achieve. The only sure pathway to achieving that is to go to that party that unfairly manipulates the polity to its favour irrespective of the consequences. Also, most of the politicians dying for the PDP have negligible intrinsic worth or credibility. They absolutely lack faith on their personal ability to convince and mobilize popular opinion hence the resort to a willing machine that easily rides roughshod over the people and the law. So, the only assurance to achieving their ambition is to join and remain in PDP. As at today, though keen and interested in party politics, I am not a card carrying member of any Nigerian political party and certainly do not admire any of them yet. However, if I am to choose, the PDP would not even make my selection list as I would like to prove my mettle by winning election from a party whose ideological leaning tallies with mine and which obeys and follows the rule of law in all sincerity. But then, will such a party ever get a fair and equal playing field? Perhaps, till Nigeria attains that level, the insane agglutination to the PDP will continue and Nigerians would remain worse off for it. But, Nigerians still have a chance to salvage the situation as Americans and Europeans cannot do that for us. We need to shine our eyes as events to the next general elections unfold. The country belongs to us and the people oppressing us did not come from the moon. We can stop them, and safeguard our future and save our upcoming generations from crying so much.

Ndi Igbo of Nigeria: a race under threat (?)

I arrived Providence, the capital of the American state of Rhode Island on the 1^st day of September 2009 after an eventful and comfortable 6 hours bus ride on the greyhound public bus from New York City. I had arrived JFK Airport the previous day from London, and opted to unwind in the city for the night. My trip to Providence by road was a self choice since I had wanted to take a good view of the American hinterlands. Hinterland indeed, as I decided to appreciate how a megacity like New York gradually peters out through a transition of small towns such as Stamford, Norwalk, Bridgeport, New Haven, New London and then Providence. Upon arrival in Providence, activities started in earnest as the Watson International Institute Scholars of the Environment 2009 programme begins. Series of activities were lined up to welcome the scholars and fit them into Brown, the university that has the status of Ivy league, and Providence, a city that represents the longest of America’s coastlines but with a population of 200,000 people. One of such activities was an outdoor reception dinner held on Monday, 7^th September 2009 and hosted by the program manager Laura Sadovnikoff at her residence in Pawtuxet. A good number of personalities attended the dinner including Professor Nancy Jacobs (who is the Director of the Watson Institute) and her husband and many others. As the dinner progressed a tall American woman approached me from a corner and spoke Igbo language to me. She had uttered ‘’Nwannem, ke du’’. I did not really believe my ears. She embraced me and said ‘’I bu onye Igbo!’’. It then dawned on me that it was not a drama, but that I have met a woman who identified me as a true Igbo and was out to engage me. That was how the rest of the evening ended for me as we ended up talking and discussing the Igbos in Nigeria; my ethnic group. The woman’s name is Henrietta, and her husband who accompanied her to the party is Donald. Both of them are professors at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). Both Donald and Henrietta are no longer getting younger but rather aging gracefully and were indeed a happy and accomplished pair to meet. Both couples had met in Nigeria where they both fell in love and eventually got married. Henrietta, then Miss Briggs had arrived Nigeria a few years after the Nigerian Independence in 1960 to work as an American Peace Corp Volunteer. She was posted to Azumini village, now in Ndoki in Ukwa East local government area of Abia State. In unison, both Donald and Henrietta reminiscenced on the good old days that was Igbo land. According to Henrietta she was commonly called ‘’Mboghokwonta’’ by the natives. She so much integrated with the natives that she wore and appeared on the same wrappers and dancing uniforms with them. She swam the Azumini River with the natives. She ate ‘’Akpu’’, ‘’ Ugba’’, ‘’Abacha/Jiakpu agworo agwo’’ and other local foods with them.She told me how natives fetched domestic waters for her, and ran supporting errands for her and how safe and free the Igbo society then was. Then, she freely goes unaccompanied to Aba every week to make purchases as well as other trips to Port Harcourt and Opobo. Donald on his part, recalled how he had travelled one day and got caught up by night on the way. All he did was to simply walk into the nearest compound and announce to them that he was caught up by the night and needed shelter. The owner of the compound not only provided him with shelter, but also fed him heavily with a dinner of ‘’akpu’’ and ‘’ofe ugha’’ which was washed down with palm wine. At a point, he had asked about the great market city, Onitsha; the sea port town of Port Harcourt, and the city with the intimidating Cathedral, Owerri. He also recalled how he was greatly feasted by Igbos in Opobo town during one of his visits to the town those days and how he made friends all over Port Harcourt, Owerri, Aba, Onitsha and even Enugu.He inquired if people from all over West Africa still come to Onitsha and Aba markets as they used to those days. Donald and Henrietta in remembering all the uncommon great features of the Igbo society of days past, did not waste time to remind anybody that bothered to come close to our discussion at the night’s dinner that the Igbos are the greatest Africans; that they have no rivals in Nigeria and that they are indeed a great race with an indomitable spirit of enterprise and hospitality. However, they bemoaned the effects of the destructive civil war, having left the country at its very outset. Though both couples had visited Nigeria a little after the war, they were desirous to know how the Igbos are faring in Nigeria and how the destructions wrought by the civil war was remedied. They both still have a wish, the wish of visiting Igbo land soon again and visiting Azumini and its most hospitable people. Three things touched me most from the encounter with these Americans. First was the question by Donald if Ojukwu is still alive, and if there are other great role models in Igbo land that enjoys his kind of followership. That question made it dawn on me straight away that the Igbos no longer have a role model. I told him that most Igbo elites are today after their stomach, and not for common interest. When, he heard what I just muttered, he queried, ‘’You mean that even Igbo leaders steal money needed to develop Igbo land?; I was stuck of words, Donald at this point, became speechless, shaking his head and looking into my eyes at the same time, both eyes getting wet with tears, he removed his gaze and turned it over the burning fire near us. It was obvious that he was disappointed. Second, Donald and Henrietta revealed to me that their first daughter who was born soon after they returned to the USA from Nigeria was given an Igbo name –Ngozi. Our host Laura corroborated this to me a little later. Ngozi is now happily married and living with her husband. She still retains the name and everybody knows that the name has origin from south-eastern Nigeria. Third, Henrietta wrote me an e-mail immediately after the dinner. It read thus: ‘’Nwannem, I should really call you Nwa-m, since you could be my son– it was such a pleasure to meet you last night. Let’s stay in touch!  I made a little movie of the digitized slides from Azumini and I’ll send it with the next transmission. Let me know if it comes through. If your computer can’t receive the movie, I’ll just send the photo gallery instead. But you would enjoy the movie because it’s set to the tune, Joromi–which was very popular in the mid-1960s. Henrietta (aka Mboghokwonta–my name in Azumini)’’ When I opened the attachment, I watched the movie and looked at the over 100 fotos she attached. I could not hold my emotions. I cried for the Igbo nation. We have really lost a lot. I am afraid Igbos may be going into extinction. Yes, extinction worse than those experienced by dinosaurs or even those planned by the Nigerian state while executing the civil war. The evidence are just there with all these massive looting of public funds in all Igbo states, kidnapping and general insecurity amidst others. It is just telling.

Niger Delta: A lamentation for a Delta in Peril

I work mostly in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. Two major problems of interest to me in this region are water pollution and rising incidents of flooding. The Niger Delta, which is one of the most important wetlands in Nigeria, is the largest wetland in Africa and the third largest wetland area in the world. Wetlands represent 2.6% of Nigeria’s land area of about 923,768km².

Sadly, the Niger Delta wetland has been subjected to over 40 years of devastation as a result of intense oil and gas activities, and urbanization. Oil production in the Delta extends over a million hectares of vegetated land, mostly wetlands. Thus far, oil exploration in the Delta has led to the destruction of over 4000km² of the green forest, including freshwater swamps, mangroves and lowland forests. Incessant oil spill and indiscriminate gas flaring constitute a significant threat to the coastal wetlands of the Delta.

In Nigeria, there is no region with such a feverish population growth, industrial expansion and urbanization rate than the Delta, which compares only with Lagos. The effect of these land use changes includes deforestation and loss of wetlands. Land use change here is a big problem which will not go away as it disrupts the hydrological cycle of drainage basins and alters both the balance between rainfall and evaporation and the runoff response of any area. The changes in surface composition and the introduction of man- made drainage systems especially in urban areas causes a series of wide-ranging effects that can increase flood volumes and peak flow rates, reduce low flows and even intensify local storm activity; often these overwhelm and pollute drinking water systems.

The shrinkage and loss of wetlands robs the Delta of the ecological services provided by wetlands. The hydrology of wetlands is central to their functioning and in turn plays a key role in determining the benefits that they provide such as the sustenance of both the surface and groundwater resources. Wetlands also function as natural sponges that trap and slowly release surface water, rain, groundwater and floodwaters. Wetland vegetation also helps to slow the speed of floodwaters and distribute them more gradually over the floodplain. Thus, the combined water storage and braking action of wetlands helps to lower flood heights and reduce erosion.

Flooding incidents and Pollution of water sources by on-site sanitation and industrial activities in the delta owes their remote origin to these issues and would be reasonably ameliorated when wetlands and forests are allowed to be, with minimal perturbation. In doing my work, I have always canvassed the need to conserve some part of this rich delta, not only its rich biodiversity but the entire ecosystem in order to support livelihood, minimize flooding and support rivers, streams and groundwater systems and sustain clean drinking water supplies. Enforceable policies or laws are desired in order to stop further degradation or developments on floodplains. The involvement of the communities in doing and achieving targets set in this regard is very crucial and urgent.

Happy Birthday, Chief Ngozi Onyegbule!

How else could life be celebrated for a man of many parts at the age of 55 years? Where and how do we salute a man of the people; a culture exponent; poet, novelist, community leader and philanthropist in the mold of Chief Ngozi Onyegbule as he soldiers on with life?

In realization of these and many more, all roads therefore led to the Salaam Shrine Centre, 369 East Mt. Pleasant Avenue, Livingston, New Jersey, USA on November 7, 2009, as the entire Nigerian community in the whole of New England states, New York, New Jersey, Washington DC and other parts of the United States gathered to celebrate and felicitate with a humble man, Chief Ngozi Onyegbule as he marked his glorious 55^th birthday in style.

That occasion was the very first time I was meeting this great man of humility. I had been invited by my erstwhile school mate and friend Mr. Ikechukwu Nwangwu who lives in Bridgeport. Iyke, an in-law to Chief Onyegbule had driven down from Bridgeport to Providence to pick me up from my abode at Brown University, on the night of 6^th November, 2009 for this event.

Meeting Chief Onyegbule was a great pleasure as the man radiates simplicity and friendliness of the highest order. He smiles and mingles freely with everybody, interacting with all as if they have been friends long ago. I was therefore not surprised that the event was such a huge success with a massive turn yet unprecedented in many similar events I have attended in both England and the whole of North America combined.

According to records made available at the event, Chief Ngozi Onyegbule was born on November 4, 1954 at the Holy Rosary Maternity, Nguru, Mbaise Imo State and is the first child of Late Chief Ignatius Onukwufor and Lolo Christiana Nmasinachi Onyegbule of Ogbe Nneissi in Nguru Mbaise.

Life for Chief Ngozi Onyegbule in the United States of America began like those of many new arrivals. On arrival in the USA in the mid-eighties Chief Onyegbule did all sorts of jobs to survive and meander the turbulent terrain of a new environment. Some of these included the opportunities of an arduous work life of working twenty hours a week as admission aid in the admissions office of the Montclair State College, as well as those of working as a porter, cleaner, security officer and door man at various periods.

To some haughty fellows, these jobs could be dismissed as menial but to Ngozi, they mattered and he took pride in them regardless of whatever; his work ethic therefore earned him in the jobs a plethora of commendations, and this as at today have greatly and positively influenced his great life to what it has become today. The major dividend was that on June 15, 1992, he was employed by the superior court of New Jersey as a probation officer, and through the system he has risen to become and hold the title of senior intake probation officer and criminal justice counselor in the court.

As a community leader, Ngozi has since 1970, maintained a positive stance in civic and community service, this started right from his days in Nigeria where he served as secretary of the voice of angles block rosary in his town. This also continued even while in secondary school and colleges in Nigeria and has continued even in the USA where he held and has continued to hold various positions of responsibility.

Chief Onyegbule was in 1990 elected the first social and publicity secretary of Abia and Imo State Association in North America (AISANA). At various times he has been elected the first elected director to moderate Imo Day in the USA, and in 1995 was elected the sixth president of the Mbaise Association of New Jersey. Also, he has also served as the Vice President and Social of the organization, and has also served as social director of the Ahiara Umunna organization and currently the first elected president of the Ogbe Nneissi Development Union in the USA. He is an active and founding member of the Umuihi Development Organization, Inc. Other positions in the USA include his election as a member of the probation association of New Jersey; and the international society of poets, Washington, DC, USA.

As a philanthropist, Ngozi is ever willing to put smile on the face of the deprived or suffering. In doing this, he feels happy when he lends a helping hand to fellow human beings irrespective of their places of birth, creed or religion. Many guests at the birthday party gave flowing testimonies to support and encourage the celebrant to continue in his good works. He has established education scholarship program for twelve students in his home town and has never relented to show compassion and service to others. He has a philosophy of deriving happiness by going an extra mile for others.

As a culture exponent, he is an advocate of family unity and African culture. He believes that his people in diaspora should instill in their children family values, tradition and culture. He has always urged families to send their children to Nigeria for “International Community Service”; a positive way to make the children in diaspora to know their routes and relatives, learn and speak their language, know the ethics of responsible behavior, enhance their inter personal skills and embrace their culture and tradition. He has always insisted that this is “a clarion call and task that must be achieved if abroad based parents are not to lose their heritage”.

As a poet and novelist, Chief Onyegbule has written four books, namely, Never to love Again; The Golden Master Pieces,; The grieving mind; Love forgives all sins as well as many other publications in Igbo journals and other Nigerian journals in the USA. Some of his poems are published on www.poetry.com. In doing all these Chief Onyegbule has received numerous awards including two poetry awards from the international society of poets, five awards from AISANA, and two awards from the Mbaise Association of New Jersey.

In congratulating this leader of men and community in New Jersey, USA, I cannot omit his amiable wife Ebere. Both Chief Ngozi Onyegbule and his wife Ebere has been married since 1988 and the marriage is blessed with five children, Nnedimma, Ozioma, Onochie, Ezinne and Chimaobi, all of whom are doing well in their own rights. May God bless this lovely family and preserve Chief Ngozi Onyegbule till we meet again on his next open birthday as already schedule. Happy Birthday Chief!

This article was originally published in the Nigerian Newspoint in November 2009.

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