GOOD LUCK, DR JONATHAN, YOU’LL NEED IT!

"The building housing the Christian Corpers’ Fellowship in Minna, Niger state was reportedly set on fire with the corpers locked inside and, but for the bravery of one of their leaders, these youths would have been incinerated. This is unacceptable. That was why I had suggested that the issue of religious freedom should be made a campaign issue. It wasn’t but it sure can be on top of a Christian charter of demands from the incoming government. It sure would be interesting to see how the judicial inquiry into the so-called post-election violence handles this hunchback problem."

 Everyone deserves their moments in the sun. President Goodluck Jonathan sure deserves his, as congratulations poured in from across the globe on his election last Saturday, in one of the freest and fairest elections Nigeria has ever held. I join my voice to all others in congratulating him and, wishing him well, for all our sakes, as he prepares to begin his first full four-year term as helmsman.

Let me state upfront, as I love to do, that I was not at supporter of Candidate Jonathan, and so, did not vote for him. As I stated in this column before the elections, I did not find the four front-runners, namely, Jonathan, Muhammadu Buhari, Nuhu Ribadu and Ibrahim Shekarau appealing.  I believe, and still do, that the president-elect’s candidacy was opportunistic and built on the quicksand of violation of an agreement within his party to alternate the presidency every two terms between the north and the south of Nigeria. That, for me, betrays a lack of integrity at its most fundamental. I shall have cause to refer to this issue again, later in this piece.

I argued, among others, that Buhari has blood on his hands as a result of overzealousness during his brief stint as military head of state. Ribadu, I characterized as a Machiavellian operator who resorted to impunity in his zeal to win a just war against corruption, during his days as head of Economics and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

My candidate was Pat Utomi and he withdrew. I respect his decision which was hinged on the fact that he had spent the last two years or so working with other patriots, not for the sole purpose of becoming presidential candidate, but for the larger purpose of building a viable opposition to the party that had been in charge for twelve years without clearly unsatisfactory result. I found myself unable to accede to his request that his supporters vote for Shekarau, for the sole reason that I gave above.

I know you are wondering: Did I therefore, fail to vote? And the simple answer is, yes, I did vote. I voted for Nuhu Ribadu. I voted for him, not because I heard from God, as I promised I would try to and urged every one else in my space to do. I voted for Ribadu because in the few days preceding the election, he exhibited a level of humility and selflessness that is uncommon among politicians the world over.  According to very reliable sources, he accepted to step down for CPC’s Buhari, in spite of the fact that governors from his party, ACN, and many of the younger ones in the party apparatchik, were rooting for him.  That, for me, was the clincher; given my firm belief that “nations are not great by virtue of their wealth; nations are great by the wealth of their virtues.  Selflessness and patriotism are virtues in very short supply in our national treasury.

But, all of that is by the way. Dr Goodluck Jonathan has been elected and it can be said that the dramatics of presentation of collated figures from the states, by university vice-chancellors (no less) and INEC chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega himself punching away at the calculator in full view of a national, may be even international, television audience certainly lent credibility to the process. The significance of this can very easily be lost until you recall that four years ago, representatives of presidential contenders claimed that the then INEC boss and Returning Officer announced the victory of the late Umaru Yar’Adua with up to a third of collated returns from the states yet to be announced.

However, while the conclusion of the process was widely accepted as transparent, it is already public knowledge, that three of the opposition parties, CPC, ACN and FRESH, have rejected the results claiming that there were flaws at earlier stages of the process. Some observers have corroborated this, even as they seem to suggest that those flaws were not so widespread as to invalidate Dr Jonathan’s return.

There have been hints of calls for judicial review as provided for by the Electoral Act, which is the way it should be. Which is why the outbreak of violence shortly after the results is condemnable and has been so, roundly condemned by all persons of goodwill. As is usual in the northern part of our nation, adherents to faith in Jesus Christ once again bore part of the brunt, as churches were among properties razed down. The building housing the Christian Corpers’ Fellowship in Minna, Niger state was reportedly set on fire with the corpers locked inside and, but for the bravery of one of their leaders, these youths would have been incinerated. This is unacceptable. That was why I had suggested that the issue of religious freedom should be made a campaign issue. It wasn’t but it sure can be on top of a Christian charter of demands from the incoming government. It sure would be interesting to see how the judicial inquiry into the so-called post-election violence handles this hunchback problem.

Having said all this, let me make this “politically-incorrect” point. In spite of the rhetoric to the contrary, Nigeria is, at this moment, a deeply divided nation. And this is why. The political class had an agreement to alternate the presidency between the north and south of Nigeria at eight year intervals. It is blatant falsehood to hold otherwise. Was it a coincidence that all the leading political parties fielded northern candidates?  The south had the first eight years. Three years into the north’s first eight years, circumstances presented the south with an opportunity to renege on the deal; they seized it. Many have since argued that it was God’s way of compensating the south for the northern domination of the pre-zoning agreement years.  How true that is, time will tell. What I find very interesting about all this however is what happens between now and 2015. Will the Igbo nation, particularly the radical, separatist wing of it cede the presidency to the north in 2015? Or would the north have become sophisticated enough to let the south-east have it? 

These are questions which, in the euphoria of the moment, most of us consider reactionary, retrogressive. Again, time will tell. But one thing is clear; Dr  Jonathan will need all the lucks in the world to resolve the variety of thorny issues that his candidacy and victory have thrown up.  

ELECTION 2011 AND THE CULTURE OF KINGDOM MANHOOD

"Now, if reports from the National Assembly elections held two Saturdays ago are anything to go by, it does seem that the elections derived its relative credibility from the system and a handful of the helmsmen. It seemed as if wherever there were systemic lapses, Nigerians, including many who claim to be Christians exploited the system to the advantage of their principals. In other words, they abandoned the kingdom culture and conformed to the political culture of winning at all costs."

I remember that day, Saturday June 24, 2008, as if it were yesterday. Three hundred men drawn from across the kingdom, united in their love for God, hungry for a change in their nation and determined to be instruments of that change, came together. Together they praised and worshipped God; together they soaked in the anointed teaching of the man of God. Together they received impartation and the prophetic marching order to unite across all dividing lines, constantly sharpen one another and thus become God’s threshing instrument in His project of cleansing Nigeria for His end-time use. Venue was the International Conference Hall of Etiebet’s Place in Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria. 

It was to be a four-hour meeting. It lasted a bit longer essentially because secular venues as usual do not recognize the importance of integrity, or at least most of their staffers don’t! The result was we started late. But did that deter the men? No way. These were men led of the Holy Spirit to abandon any personal agenda to operate with his own. These were men fully persuaded that being a man is a matter of choice and have made their choice irreversibly.

Christian Men’s Network Nigeria was the host of the event, Luncheon with the President. That President was Rev Dr Chris Tunde Joda, who founded and the Nigerian arm of the then foremost international men’s ministry and takes time of his busy apostolic assignment to meet with the men regularly. On that occasion, he ministered on the topic, “The Culture of Kingdom Manhood.” 

I found myself recalling some of the things he said at that event, as I reflected on the on-going general elections, with particular reference to those areas where the generally acceptable process was marred by incidences of the negative kind! It got me wondering yet again where are the kingdom men in our nation?

Permit me to recall some of the key nuggets of that ministration, as reported in this column then. Culture, he began “is the trait that identifies you, the instinct inbred in you”, he began. “People are identified by their culture. That is why the Nigerian, wherever he may be would rather eat with his fingers than with any man-made contrivance. That is why the Chinese cherishes his chopstick.  Culture cannot be destroyed; it can only be developed. But a man’s real culture derives from his original heritage! Genesis 1:26 is clear about that! God made man in his image and after his likeness. So a man’s real culture derives from his heavenly heritage.”

But how does that translate to the way he lives during his earthly sojourn? Dr Joda likens that to the Phillip’s request in chapter 14 of the book of John. “Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us (verse 8). To which the Lord answered “Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father? (verse 9)”.  So if man derives his heritage and therefore his culture from God, he only has to look to Jesus whom the bible described as the express image of the Father (see Hebrews 1:30) as his model. That then is the rationale for the truth that manhood and Christ-likeness are synonymous, which Christian Men’s Network has proclaimed for over 25 years.

Therefore the culture of Christian manhood takes its root, stem, leaves and fruits from the character of Christ Jesus. The interesting thing continues Dr Joda, is that that Culture became inbred in every man when he meets Jesus. “When you meet Jesus, you acquire a new gene; a different DNA from what you had before you were saved”

Like Jesus, you are supposed to lose all fears; become courageous; able to resist temptation and reject compromise. Jesus was love personified; he was the epitome of humility; he radiated kindness; he was consistent and never did anything without seeking the counsel and direction of the Father through prayer. He was faithful to the very end. Those are the components of the Christian man’s culture; without which he though he remains a male, will never become a man.

Dr Joda was characteristically blunt: If we are going to change our nation, he told his audience, “it will not be because we carry a Bible, no matter its size. It will be because we have imbibed the culture of Christian manhood. The culture of the world is sub-standard; it is weak, cowardly. You must resist the temptation to conform to the culture of the world. It doesn’t matter who else is conforming, you must STAND FIRM. And let me say this. All of this is not just that we can become better sons, brothers, husbands and fathers. It is not just about becoming wealthy and influential and taking leadership positions in our country. Those are very important things, but none is more important than that you make heaven.  So get your priority right; that is a major part of the culture of Christian manhood.”

Now, if reports from the National Assembly elections held two Saturdays ago are anything to go by, it does seem that the elections derived its relative credibility from the system and a handful of the helmsmen. It seemed as if wherever there were systemic lapses, Nigerians, including many who claim to be Christians exploited the system to the advantage of their principals. In other words, they abandoned the kingdom culture and conformed to the political culture of winning at all costs.

If you are a Christian and reading this, I urge you to please play your part in what remains of the elections with an eye on your real culture, and your eternity. Those men, who attended that luncheon three years ago, left the venue rededicated to living their lives as God’s men. Many signed on to join this evolving men’s movement. What about you? My dear brother-in-the Lord, are you living your culture? Think about it! Our nation needs real men, Christ-like men; men who know the truth and do the truth; men who go out courageously daily - doubting nothing, compromising nothing.

ELECTION 2011: HOW-TO GUIDE FOR KINGDOM PERSONS

"Yes, there should be a Christian platform, that is, a set of issues upon which the Christian voter must take a stand and from that stand, vote for or against a candidate or candidates or political party or parties. But, no, that platform do not necessarily carry with the anti-other faith baggage. If it does, it is only incidental. Also, a Christian platform does not preclude voting for a non-Christian. It simply means voting for someone who, irrespective of his faith, will carry out policies that are, to use a common parlance, Christian-friendly...In other words, for the avoidance of any doubt, the faith of a leader, while it would have helped tremendously, does not rank among the things that should matter to kingdom persons as we vote in these elections."

 When I wrote the piece headlined, “Dear Lord, Whom Should I Vote For?” a number of people have asked me, “what if I am not spiritual enough to hear from God.” Should I abstain? Aren’t you over-spiritualising a purely secular matter? 

It is this perspective that I wish to address in this piece. But before, I do that, let me state clearly that if you are a Christian; if you genuinely seek the face of God on any issue, He will speak and you will hear Him. Of a truth, if you’ll just reflect a little upon your life, you will discover that you have heard Him speak on very many occasions and you have responded either in obedience or in rebellion, with appropriate consequences. 

As for over-spiritualising a secular matter, readers of this column, I am sure are aware, that its very essence is that there is a kingdom, a God perspective to every issue, and that is what we try to propagate, within the limits of our revelation. But these are however matters for another day.

Now to the issue of what should matter to the Christian as we go to the polls. In other words, should there be a Christian platform? In attempting to answer, let me state two principles up-front. Yes, there should be a Christian platform, that is, a set of issues upon which the Christian voter must take a stand and from that stand, vote for or against a candidate or candidates or political party or parties. But, no, that platform do not necessarily carry with the anti-other faith baggage. If it does, it is only incidental. 

Also, a Christian platform does not preclude voting for a non-Christian. It simply means voting for someone who, irrespective of his faith, will carry out policies that are, to use a common parlance, Christian-friendly.  The Bible records the exploits of a number of pagan kings that God used for his own purposes. In other words, for the avoidance of any doubt, the faith of a leader, while it would have helped tremendously, does not rank among the things that should matter to kingdom persons as we vote in these elections.

Having said all of that, I shall proceed to suggest a few issues about which, the Nigerian Christians should not compromise. The first is education. My people, says the Bible, perish for lack of knowledge (see Hosea 4:6). A Christian-friendly candidate would be one who has a clear, comprehensive, feasible and viable policy in education. Free education is good and should be encouraged, but the candidates/parties push it must give a clear blueprint about how it would be achieved. Also, there must be a commitment to the three worldview and character-moulding subjects, Christian Religious Knowledge, Moral Instructions and Civics. These will address the yearning gap in the growth of our children who even when they are taught well at home find themselves contending with different values out “in the real world.” 

Next is the structure of our federation. This is important, because as currently structured, there is so much injustice, inequity and therefore, ungodliness in the way Nigeria is run. Whether we wish to acknowledge it honestly or not, God cannot be happy with a situation where the way resources native to any part of the country are controlled and managed from a so-called centre. The continued attempt at tinkering with this issue will get us nowhere. What we need in Nigeria is a true federation; one in which no section is treated as, or even remotely allowed to feel like, second-class citizens. Justice is the only enduring antidote to violence. What are the candidates/parties saying about this?

The Bible says we are one body in Christ (Romans 12:5). It says that when one part hurts the whole body hurts. Yet, for years, Christians in certain parts of Northern Nigeria have been hurting for ages and the rest of us do little or nothing about it. Many have died; many have lost loved ones; many have been maimed; very many are living in mortal fear of their neighbours. In some parts, churches cannot own property, including places of worship. The persecution and marginalization has gone on for too long while our governments and intellectuals are busy debating whether the problem is religious or ethnic or both. Yet the bottom line is that the Christian has become an endangered species in many parts of Northern Nigeria. The Christian-friendly candidate, particularly Presidential and governorship candidate has to be the one who has a clear programme, with timelines for solving this problems. Timelines are particularly important here because life is involved.

Everybody agrees that corruption is the deadliest single cancer that’s eaten up our innards as a nation. Everybody agrees that institutions have to be established and strengthened to fight it. But as we have seen, institutions need good people to nurture them to growth. Besides, we need to understand that corruption is sometimes system-induced. For instance, big governments tend to lead to corruption.  Which candidate or party has a clear idea of how to deal with the fundamentals, as distinct from simply tinkering with what’s on ground?

Of great importance is the issue of integrity. This is as distinct from the problem of corruption. Integrity is the scarcest commodity in Nigeria. That is because, no matter how brilliant the policies; no matter how convincing a candidate sounds, no matter how seemingly well-thought out the programmes look; if the integrity quotient of the implementers is low, it would be more of the same. While it is true that people change, we have little else to judge people by than their track record, whether in public service or in the private sector. But, while we are at it, we should watch out also for the little signs; what the Bible describes as “the little foxes” or the “yeast of the Pharisees.”

In closing, dear reader, it is my opinion that God is willing to lead us the candidates of his choice, as we vote, but should you think you might not hear Him, this checklist should help. Long live Nigeria

FOOTBALL AND EDUCATION…HAND-IN-HAND

"But, the guys at SPDC, with consultant, Segun Odegbami, MON, in the thick of it, had identified a worrying trend in the nation where Nigerian youths, seduced by the megabucks being earned by football stars, were beginning to abandon education for football. The portents were bad. The dangers, of producing many half-literate football stars that would neither be able to take informed decisions about their career, nor be able to fend for themselves after their playing days, were real."

This afternoon at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Lagos, students from four secondary schools will continue their contest for honours in the 13^th edition of NNPC/Shell Cup for All Nigeria secondary schools Football Championship. They are the last-four standing from a starting line-up of about 5,000 schools from across the country. 

The battle-tested but not battle-weary four-some are: Government Day Secondary School, Gwadabawa, Yola, Adamawa state, Government Secondary School, Gwammaja, Kano, Kano state, Brilliant International Pre-varsity, Akure, Ondo State, and defending champions, Government Secondary School, Owerri, Imo State.  

The Adamawa boys got their state ticket through a lone goal victory over Government Secondary School, Numan, went on to defeat all-comers at the zonal preliminaries played in Bauchi; winning 3-1 against Taraba state, 5-1 against Gombe and 3-0 against Yobe; thus topping the table with the maximum nine points, scoring 11 goals and conceding only two. They qualified for the semi-finals by defeating Government Day Secondary School, Birnin-Kebbi, Kebbi state four goals to two in the quarter-final played in Kaduna.

GSS, Gwammaja, Kano, earned the right to fly Kano state’s flag by defeating Government Secondary School, Mijibir 2-0; won the zonal  preliminaries played in Lafia, through one victory - Niger State, 2-1;  a score draw - Kaduna State, 1-1 and a walk-over FCT which earned them three goals and three points in accordance with the championship rules. They secured their place among the top-four at the expense of Government secondary School, Zamfara State at one of the quarterfinals played in Ilorin.

The only private school among the lot, Brilliant International Pre-varsity, Akure, Ondo state walloped state rivals City Academy, Ikare 3-0 to take their place at the zonals played in Osogbo where they went to lead the group with seven points from two victories - Kogi 3-0 and Ogun 2-0 - and a no-score draw against Ekiti. They scored five goals and conceded none.  They bettered Lagos State representative, Ilupeju Senior Secondary School, Lagos 3-0 in the quarterfinals to reach the grand finale. 

The defending champions, GSS, Owerri scraped through 1-0 at the state finals against Secondary Technical School, Okwobor, Orlu, but regained their goal-scoring prowess at the zonals -in Calabar, drawing their first match 2-2 against Anambra state champions, defeated Abia  5-0 and earned three goals and three points from a walk-over Ebonyi state. In the event, they topped the zone with 8 points.and were credited with a total of 10 goals for and two against. Their semi-finals ticket came via a 2-0 quarterfinal victory over Community Comprehensive Secondary School, Okoboh, Rivers State in the quarterfinals.

On offer this afternoon, in the material sense, are cash gifts, certificates of participation and the familiar medals and trophies. Specifically, the winners will go home with the glittering gold trophy, gold medals, certificates of participation, N50,000 for each of the 20 players and a cash award of N2.5million for the school, N1.5million of which must go to sports development. The boys from the second placed team will get the silver medals, certificates of participation, N45,000 for each of them while their school will receive a cash reward of N1.4million. The 20 boys in the bronze medal winning team will, in addition to their medals and certificates of participation, receive N35, 000 each. The school gets N500,000. The fourth placed team is not left out. In addition to the certificate of participation, each of the players will go away with N30,000, while the school receives N400,000.

But all of those prizes, prize money and all of that are not the raison detre for this write-up. The real reason is to celebrate the vision an the consistency of the sponsors and the organizers of this championship which has found a place of honour on the football calendar of this nation. It is such that everybody who is anybody in the Nigerian world of sports and education now drop everything else to attend the grand finale this afternoon, as has become the situation these past few years.

In celebrating the sponsors, Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) acting on behalf of its partners, I recall vividly how it took guts and commitment to dabble into the field of secondary schools football sponsorship in 1998 when they took the plunge. If you wonder why, here it is in the words of a top official of the company: “When the idea of introducing the championship came to us in the late 1990s, we had many challenges to contend with. It was not that football competition at the secondary school level was a novelty. No, there had been at least two; but they had been rested due largely to violence that used to characterise the matches particularly among rival schools in the major cities, and poor funding. Poor funding was the result of lack of corporate sponsorship which itself was the result of companies distancing themselves from the potential damage that the violence could do to their image.”

But, the guys at SPDC, with consultant, Segun Odegbami, MON, in the thick of it, had identified a worrying trend in the nation where Nigerian youths, seduced by the megabucks being earned by football stars, were beginning to abandon education for football. The portents were bad. The dangers, of producing many half-literate football stars that would neither be able to take informed decisions about their career, nor be able to fend for themselves after their playing days, were real. 

Continues that official, “there was also the fact that many of the nation’s star footballers were advancing in age and unless there was a kind of nursery to produce replacements, there could be a dearth of well-honed football artists in the medium term. And where else should the nursery be but in the schools, particularly if the tide identified above was to be stemmed.”

These were the rationale for instituting the championship which has been organised by the National School Sports Federation with a lot of help from Odegbami’s Worldwide Sports since then, with so great a success that its incontrovertible that no national team is complete these days without the inclusion of Shell Cup products whether that team be under-16/17, under-21, under-23 or the Super Eagles. Yet the boys didn’t have to leave school to achieve that.

As the 13^th edition climaxes today, I salute the vision and consistency of SPDC, NSSF and WWS even as I recall the great pioneering roles of Rev Precious Omuku, Mrs Elizabeth Fagbure and Bisi Ojediran, among others, all of whom deserve to be proud to have been associated with this enduring vision.