TO THE CONFERENCE TABLE, O NIGERIA!

Alhaji Asari Dokubo

"On the other hand, my dear brothers and sisters in the Niger Delta couldn’t see themselves protesting a policy put in place by their beloved son, in whom they are well pleased; that being, President Goodluck Jonathan! You needed to see Asari Dokubo’s theatrics as he threatened to have his men occupy the oil platforms to prevent oil workers from carrying out their threat to shut themdown by midnight Saturday. According to him, if they take it over, they won’t ever vacate it again!"

And so, the “mother of all strikes” threatened by Labour and its civil society allies did hold!  For all of five days, Nigeria was shut down. For all of five days, Nigerians from all strata of society gathered in thousands, tens of thousands, and scores of thousands as the case may be in virtually every major town across the nation.

It is unprecedented. Not even the agitation for the actualisation of the June 12, 1993 electoral mandate of Bashorun M.K.O Abiola was this massive and this consistent. Although, fatalities have unfortunately been reported in a number of centres, the street protests and rallies have been largely peaceful – amazingly! The organisers, particularly in Lagos and Abuja deserve commendation for their efforts to keep it so.

The security agencies have also comported themselves well, largely, save for pockets of overzealousness in a few centres. The Federal government deserve commendation for this. Attributable to the public temperament of President Goodluck Jonathan as this is, the fact may also be stated that the world has become more intolerant of suppression of peoples rights of protest; making the fear of The International Criminal Court (ICC) the beginning of wisdom.

No matter how this ends, and I can’t see it ending any other way but the People’s way, the sights and sounds from the Gani Fawehinmi (Freedom) Square, at Ojota, Lagos will remain in the subconscious of many Nigerians, particularly those of current leaders of our nation for a long time. It will also ring across the annals as a warning to potential dictators.

But let’s face it, fall-outs from this anti-subsidy campaign has made the need to rethink this federation more urgent. This is what I mean.

In my understanding of the issues, I thought we were talking about the existence or otherwise of a subsidy on the pump price of petrol in Nigeria, and, if there is, whether it is desirable to retain or remove it.

I thought that we were contending at the level of ideas about government’s insistence that there is indeed a subsidy and that it must be removed for Nigeria’s economy to afford bankruptcy in the near to medium term and opposition’s position against government’s.

I thought that there was an emerging consensus that if indeed there is a subsidy to be removed then there must be safety nets prior to its removal as against government’s inclination to withdraw the subsidy and then use its proceeds to put palliatives in place.

I also thought that the strike was called because government in defiance of labour and civil society’s opposition and while consultations were still supposedly on-going, stealthily implemented its position wholesale.

This was why I wrote here last week as follows: “There must be better ways of implementing a public policy that its designers swear to high heavens is meant to ultimately benefit the masses. Governance by stealth, by deceit cannot be one of the ways. And to think that spokespersons of this administration claim an awareness of the fact that Nigerians don’t trust their government. This one not excluded! I won’t waste your time trying to argue for or against the policy itself; not least because I think it’s simply one of those numbers- rather than people-based, one-size-fits-all imposition of the Breton Woods institutions. But for God’s sake why sneak it in while giving every body the impression you are still consulting?!”

But, I seemed to have missed something, if reactions from parts of the South East and the Niger Delta, as reported in the media, are anything to go by.

According to those reports some of my brethren in the East wouldn’t partake of the campaign because, when their kith and kin were being killed by Boko Haram in parts of the North, nobody called people out on strike. On the other hand, my dear brothers and sisters in the Niger Delta couldn’t see themselves protesting a policy put in place by their beloved son, in whom they are well pleased; that being, President Goodluck Jonathan! You needed to see Asari Dokubo’s theatrics as he threatened to have his men occupy the oil platforms to prevent oil workers from carrying out their threat to shut themdown by midnight Saturday. According to him, if they take it over, they won’t ever vacate it again!

Now, coming against the background of earlier Boko Haram ultimatum for Christians to leave the North and Moslems in the South to return home; an ultimatum they followed at expiration with the murder of Christians at a service, I think, we might be more divided than its obviously too politically incorrect for our leaders to admit.

I listened to Methodist Prelate Sunday Ola Makinde on television recently quoting from I Kings chapter 12 the unfortunate division of Israel into two right after the death of Solomon and I shudder to contemplate a similar fate for this nation.

Of course, I am fully persuade that God didn’t keep us together this long, thus far to now abandon us. I am fully persuaded that the God’s perfect will for our nation is reflected in word of God that came to me on January 1 from Isaiah 41:11-13: “Don't worry--I am with you. Don't be afraid--I am your God. I will make you strong. I will help you. I will support you with my right hand that brings victory.  Look, some people are angry with you, but they will be ashamed and disgraced. Your enemies will be lost and disappear.  You will look for the people who were against you, but you will not be able to find them. Those who fought against you will disappear completely.  I am the LORD your God, who holds your right hand. And I tell you, 'Don't be afraid! I will help you.’” But then, man has been known to force God’s hands into “permissive will” mode. To avoid that; to stop tempting God, we need to talk now, before it is too late.

2012…SO FAR, NO SURPRISES!

President G. E. A Jonathan

I wish desperately to be proven wrong, but how right can one be! How can we now trust him to do all that he has promised; when he can cave in to opportunism at the drop of a hat? Trust is an invaluable substance between leaders and the led. Even God so courted our trust that He swore by Himself!

By the time you read this, the year 2012 would have been eight days old…eight action-packed days. Eight days of suffering for many and of anger for most. And you already know why. It is called “total deregulation of the downstream sector of the oil and gas industry”, otherwise known as withdrawal of subsidy on premium motor spirit (petrol), otherwise known as petrol price hike. It was a new year present, packaged by President Goodluck Jonathan and his transformation crew, and delivered with love and best wishes to the people of Nigeria.

Coming exactly one week after the Christmas package delivered to Nigerians by the Boko Haram sect through its attack at St Theresa’s Catholic Church, Madalla near Abuja, it made the 2011/2012 yuletide season one to remember.

Apart from the various sights of angry protesters in what some have characterised as an Occupy Nigeria campaign, there have been fantastic “photoshop” reactions online too. You might have seen the gentleman peeing in his petrol tank. Or the lady on her knees before her car’s open tank, a big water container besides her, and her Bible aloft, apparently praying for the water to transform to wine (sorry petrol), so she can fill her tank. You might have also received mock sales notices of gas guzzling vehicles put up for sale at prices far below those of bicycles, horses and donkeys!

While these are intended for comic relief, the realities are as grim. Many people who travelled to their home towns and villages, as is usual during the Christmas/new year season, were stranded because they could not afford the new fares of between 100 and 200% increase back to base. Reports of some punning their mobile phones and other items are widespread. Many are, as I write this, still unable to fund their return journey.

There is this scenario that keeps playing in my head. Citizen Joe, as he was wont to do, had perfected his financial plan. He had saved for his children’s school fees due early in January, put aside enough money to transport himself to and from work until his next pay day, and set aside something for the garri-soaking season post end-of-year festivities. Then he got the transformation package from his president. Not one to complain, and desirous of living within his means, he decided he would walk part of the way to and from work. As he sweats his way home in the hot and humid weather, he feels dehydrated. Needing water to get some strength, he approached the “poor” water vendor, his precious N5 in hand, only to be told, sorry “na ten naira”. Citizen Joe fainted!

There must be better ways of implementing a public policy that its designers swear to high heavens is meant to ultimately benefit the masses. Governance by stealth, by deceit cannot be one of the ways. And to think that spokespersons of this administration claim an awareness of the fact that Nigerians don’t trust their government. This one not excluded!

I won’t waste your time trying to argue for or against the policy itself; not least because I think it’s simply one of those numbers- rather than people-based, one-size-fits-all imposition of the Breton Woods institutions. But for God’s sake why sneak it in while giving every body the impression you are still consulting?!

As recently as December 21, 2011, Daily Times Nigeria was still reporting that “the Federal Government…is yet to fix a date for the commencement of the removal of petroleum subsidy. Briefing journalists after the last Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting for the year, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja earlier today, Labaran Maku, the Minister of Information said the government was still engaging different groups in dialogue for a proper understanding of the subsidy issue.” Many other news outfits reported the same.

But, as I said in the headline today, I am not surprised. I am on record as saying that one should never set much store on Dr Goodluck Jonathan’s words. In the run-down to the elections last year, I wrote as follows:

“Dr Goodluck Jonathan is an amiable man who affects a kind of humility uncommon in the history of our presidency. But I submit with all sense of responsibility, that the very fact that he is in this race on the ticket of PDP, puts his integrity to test. I do not support zoning, but he did. He is a signatory to the initial document that affirmed the scheme within his party and a beneficiary of the arrangement. To try, as he did, to sophistically repudiate the arrangement is sheer opportunism. Affecting to be different, he has nonetheless manifested the same double standards, which successive Nigerian leaders have institutionalized. He knows that the use of government facilities for partisan political purposes is, at least, opportunistic and immoral, if not fraudulent. Under his watch, impunity has returned, with the legislative crisis in Ogun state, denial of access to campaign venues, by governments run by PDP as in the case of Buhari at Mapo Hall, Ibadan are poster examples. The point being made here is that the president’s rhetoric has not been matched by his actions and omissions…”

I wish desperately to be proven wrong, but how right can one be! How can we now trust him to do all that he has promised; when he can cave in to opportunism at the drop of a hat? Trust is an invaluable substance between leaders and the led. Even God so courted our trust that He swore by Himself!

Anyway, not only am I not surprised, I am also not worried. And I urge all my compatriots not to be worried, not by this betrayal nor by Boko Haram. In the early hours of January 1, the Holy Spirit led me to these verses of scripture:

Don't worry--I am with you. Don't be afraid--I am your God. I will make you strong. I will help you. I will support you with my right hand that brings victory. Look, some people are angry with you, but they will be ashamed and disgraced. Your enemies will be lost and disappear. You will look for the people who were against you, but you will not be able to find them. Those who fought against you will disappear completely. I am the LORD your God, who holds your right hand. And I tell you, 'Don't be afraid! I will help you.’ (Isaiah 41:10-13).

It’s a message, as much to us as individuals, as it is to our nation. Happy new year, once again.

THE KINGDOM WAY TO FIGHT BOKO HARAM, ETC

Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor
President, CAN

"Earlier at the site of the carnage, he told reporters that, while he does not support reprisal attacks, Christians need to rise up and defend themselves. That was not the first time he would be making such a call. Nor has he been alone. Other Christian leaders are on record as saying the same thing. Problem is they never say how!"

In the aftermath of the Christmas day bombing of St Theresa’s Catholic Church, Madalla, near Abuja, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, President, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), was livid with anger. His Tuesday statement said that much:

"I am extremely angry. This is a barbaric and most uncivilised action of human beings in a civilised world. Even animals have respect for each other. It is inhuman, it's barbaric! It's satanic…Christmas is a day when over 80 million Nigerians join billions of fellow Christians across the globe to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, wouldn't you just respect that?...”

Earlier at the site of the carnage, he told reporters that, while he does not support reprisal attacks, Christians need to rise up and defend themselves. That was not the first time he would be making such a call. Nor has he been alone. Other Christian leaders are on record as saying the same thing. Problem is they never say how!

This was why I wrote a four-part serial, “Understanding Kingdom Warfare,” last February. And that is why I am reproducing much of the concluding part of that serial this wonderful New Year’s Day in the hope that somebody out there will catch the vision.

“…The following points can bear repeating: One; that the call upon our brothers and sisters in northern Nigeria, who have been the target of brutal, fatal attacks to rise in self-defence, has come not a moment too soon. This is because the aberration of children of a warrior God known and addressed liberally in scripture as Jehovah Sabaoth (the Lord of the Armies of Heaven), being made mince meat, as it were, by agents of a defeated cowardly foe has gone on for too long.

“Two, support for that point of view is not support for physically arming Christians with guns and machetes and bombs and forming militias. It is quite simply a call upon children of God to rise up and utilize those weapons that are already available to them as identified in the Bible; weapons, which are in no way physical or carnal; yet they are no less potent. This much is clear from these words of Apostle Paul: “the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds” (2 Corinthians 10:4).

“Three, the resort to spiritual, rather than physical weapons, is necessitated by the biblical insight that the men and women who stalk, attack, maim and kill are not the real enemies. They are mere tools in the hands of an evil general known as satan, who is a spirit and can therefore only be dealt with in the spirit realm. Again Apostle Paul offered us that insight when he wrote: ‘For we are not wrestling with flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the despotisms, against the powers, against [the master spirits who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere (Ephesians 6:12)…’  

“Four, the same Paul identified what he called the whole armour of God clearly in verses 14-17 of Ephesians 6 from which we have already quoted as follows: ‘Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God’ (emphasis added).

“Five…all but the last component of the ‘whole armour of God’ are defensive weapons. Only the sword of the spirit is a weapon of offense. Yet, a very critical part of defensive warfare is attack, preemptive attack or to put in street language ‘attack is the best form of defence’.

“The point was also made that the Church, generally speaking, cannot be found guilty of failing to teach on truth, righteousness, the gospel of peace, faith and salvation. This, as I noted, is understandable because, they are “basic and foundational to our faith”…Unfortunately the word as the sword of the Spirit is not as comprehensively taught as it ought to be, and that is what has given the enemy the victory he continues to enjoy, not just in northern Nigeria, but in virtually every part of the world.”  Happy new year, Nigeria.

Yet, the Bible didn’t mince words about the place of the word in Kingdom warfare. The writer of the book of Hebrews said of this power-packed weapon: “The word is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword… (4:12). The Good News translation of the latter part of Ephesians 6:17 urges us to “accept…the word of God as the sword which the Spirit gives you” while the Amplified version in that same verse described the word as “the sword that the Spirit wields…” 

At least two verses in the book of Revelations throw further light on this subject. First, the Lord Jesus was not armed any differently. It was said of him that …”out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword” (1:16), and then described tellingly as “he which hath the sharp sword with two edges” (2:12).”

Two things become apparent here. The Lord won all his victories not by using bazookas and ICBMs. He won by using the word. Two, he won by doing the one thing that you do with words: spoke them out of his mouth, using his tongue, allowed them beyond his lips. In other words our mouths serve as the rocket launchers. That explains why the Bible has such verses as:  “Death and life are in the power of the tongue…” (Proverbs 18:21); “…the lips of the wise shall preserve them (Proverbs 14:3)…”

The critical point to note in all of these, however, is that the mouth is not a free agent. It does not speak of its own volition; it speaks what the mind says to speak. The mind, on the other hand, is, at every given point, fed by one of two sources: the Spirit of God though the heart, or the spirit of satan through the senses.  The Bible puts it this way: “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart (mind) bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart (mind) bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh (Luke 6:45; parenthesis added).

It takes knowledge to grasp these truths and run with them. That is why teaching is very critical and urgent, if we are to rise from the current helpless victim mentality that pervades the church. 

THAT “BACK TO SCHOOL” ADVICE

Prof Wole Soyinka

"For instance I have always thought that when God made man in his image and after his likeness, and assigned them to multiply and replenish the earth, he was providing a means for that purpose by creating them male and female. Now, I have to unlearn that! I have to come to grips with the new reality that procreation is obsolete and the womb is one body part that needs not have existed. The world is already over-populated anyway."

Oluwole Akinwande Soyinka does not suffer fools gladly. You wouldn’t too, if, like him, you are a literary icon of such gigantic stature that your people call you their very own WS, sharing as you do initials with the late world renowned William Shakespeare.  You wouldn’t too if you were Africa’s first Nobel laureate in literature whose forte covers the whole gamut of literary expression as poet, playwright, and actor, novelist, essayist, polemist, even lyricist and singer! You wouldn’t too, if all the elements of learning fit smugly in you.

Yes, Wole Soyinka does not take hostages, unless of course you find yourself in a radio station when he happens along to make an important broadcast to a nation held hostage by a bunch of unschooled soldiers. Which brings me to the issue at hand, school and education for our lawmakers, particularly, those at the centre in Abuja.

According to our highly respected omniscient professor, the whole lot of them need to return to school. Although he didn’t say which, I would not be surprised if he recommends some secondary school in Abeokuta where they can study civics, and in the process get to learn to differentiate between private and public affairs. The legislators including the professors amongst them need to be herded into a classroom to be taught that what two adult consenting males or females do with each other is not the business of the state.  

Although the activist professor didn’t say so, all of us who support the anti-gay marriage bill passed by the Senate and, which has gone through first reading the House of Representatives would necessarily have to join the legislators in school. That would be one a classroom to behold!  Students will come in babanriga and one-footer caps, long-tail shirts and resource control caps will abound; head-ties and scarves will add a kaleidoscope of colours while contour-emphasising day dresses will not be missing. Muslim leaders in colourful turbans, priests in cassocks and pastors in flowing robes with giant size solid-gold crosses won’t be left out. God help untitled people like us who might not find space in the classroom or, if we did, might not hear a word from the back of behind that classroom.

For me though, it won’t matter much, because I think I have an idea of, not only what I shall be going in there to learn, but also what I shall be going to unlearn. Apart from a crash course in the expanding frontiers of human rights and civil liberties, and the absolute irrelevance of religion in the public domain, as already canvassed by the Prof, I shall have to unlearn some of the “idiotic” things that being a Christian has made me believe.

For instance I have always thought that when God made man in his image and after his likeness, and assigned them to multiply and replenish the earth, he was providing a means for that purpose by creating them male and female. Now, I have to unlearn that! I have to come to grips with the new reality that procreation is obsolete and the womb is one body part that need not have existed. The world is already over-populated anyway.

I used to think that God didn’t make me fearfully and wonderfully (see Psalm 139:4) just to demonstrate his creative prowess. For instance I’ve always marvelled at the information in Finis Jennings Dake, the Bible scholar and writer’s the Doctrine of Man, that the body consists of “various chemicals—iron, sugar, salt, carbon, iodine, phosphorus, lime, calcium, and others”; that it “has 263 bones; 600 muscles; 970 miles of blood vessels; 400 cups on the tongue for taste; 20,000 hairs in the ears to tune in to all sounds; 40 pounds of jaw pressure; 10,000,000 nerves and branches; 3,500 sweat tubes to each square inch of skin (or 40 miles long); 20,000,000 mouths that suck food as it goes through the intestines; 600,000,000 air cells to the lungs that inhale 2,400 gallons of air daily; and a communication network that relates to the brain instantly any known sound, taste, sight, touch or smell;”  and also that “the heart beats 4,200 times an hour and pumps 12 tons of blood daily.”

Benjamin Carson, the Black American neurosurgeon’s statement that the human brain has hundreds of billions of interconnections and is therefore much more sophisticated than anything that man has ever or possibly would ever create…” also concentrates my mind on a purposeful God. One, whose purpose should be respected not thwarted.  

Now, I know I have to unlearn that. Now I know, it doesn’t matter what we do with what: defecate from the mouth (talk of diarrhoea of the mouth); fart through the ears or feed through the eyes! If it feels good, do it, as long as you find a consenting adult to do it to or with. Society has nothing to do with it; talk less of a God you cannot see.

Another thing to unlearn is the so-called truth that “the risk of contracting the Human Immunodeficiency Virus through anal sex is seven times higher than through vaginal sex”, even if one Mrs. Aisha Adaranijo, senior manager, New HIV Vaccine and Microbicides Advocacy Society had the temerity to restate it as recently as last week.

Her explanation that “the anus being a narrow and dry passage is susceptible to tears when penetrated” making “the risk of contacting the HIV “very high”, is obviously of no consequence. Not even the fact that governments the world over have spent enormous resources in AIDS research that subsequently led to the development antiretroviral drugs, gives them the right to legislate our sexual choices. Neither does the fact that those resources could have been expended more productively elsewhere give society any role in what adults do behind closed doors.  Antiretroviral drugs, after all, are administered behind closed doors, even if they are subsidised with public funds.

The international gay lobby has a big influential backer, active or passive, in Professor Wole Soyinka, who as I said earlier does not suffer fools gladly. But then, why does Psalm 14:1 keep ringing in my head?  Merry Christmas; see you all in 2012, by God’s grace.

THE BATTLE LINE IS DRAWN! (2)

INCRESE Founder,
Dorothy Aken'Ova

"Delay is dangerous. It is dangerous because the same forces that truncated two previous attempts at the legislation are already gathering. With the release of fund from their principals the so-called human rights activist will begin to find their voice. One already did...one of the NGOs earlier identified in this column as a signatory to the Amnesty International petition against House Bill 105 of 2009, is already kicking."

You didn’t have to be clairvoyant to foresee the kind of reactions that have come from the gay movement and their principals in the various western capitals. As reported here last time, they are already yelling blue murder over our decision, as a people, to throw our lot with God over same sex relationships.

As always, the United States excelled its allies in the steps it took to leave us in no doubt that the Yankees mean business. Shortly after Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s self-serving rehash of time-worn, untenable arguments for recognising homosexuality as a human right which must be protected, Washington was reported to have released money thousands of dollars in grant to support gay right activism abroad. It’s a no-brainer that most of that fund will end up in Nigeria.

That has buttressed my assertion here a few weeks ago that “they (the international gay lobby) will work hard to abort this bill at either of the next two steps. They will use every weapon in their arsenal – money, blackmail, intimidation, carrot and stick etc.”

That was why I canvassed “…the need for everybody in support of this law to do everything possible to avoid a loss of momentum. The House of Representatives must be encouraged to fast track its debate and passage.” I recalled calling on “Deputy Speaker Emeka Ihedioha…as one of the sponsors of the aborted 2009 House Bill 150 (A Bill for an Act to Prohibit Marriage between Persons of Same Gender, Solemnization of Same and for other Matters related therewith)… to rally all the other sponsors still in the House to spearhead this new move. Any loss of momentum can be fatal”.

Mercifully, Providence gave him the opportunity to preside over the House session which saw the bill pass through the first reading that same week. But, I shall never tire of saying it; a bill is still a bill until it goes through the whole process. The House must be encouraged, cajoled, pushed, whatever, to fast track this bill so it can go to the President for accent.

Delay is dangerous. It is dangerous because the same forces that truncated two previous attempts at the legislation are already gathering. With the release of fund from their principals the so-called human rights activist will begin to find their voice. One already did.

According to a Next online report of December 9, signed by Jethro Ibileke, one of the NGOs earlier identified in this column as a signatory to the Amnesty International petition against House Bill 105 of 2009, is already kicking. The report reads thus:

“A Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), the International Centre for Sexual Reproductive Rights (INCRESE), has called on Nigerians and civil organizations to look closely into the same sex bill to see what implications they would have on every Nigerian, irrespective of gender, sex, religion, creed, culture, sexuality, tradition, origin, ethnic group and political opinion.

“The statement signed by the National Coordinator of INCRESE, Dorothy Aken’ova, observed that every time laws are introduced, most Nigerians do not understand what the provisions of such bills are and their implications on their daily lives as citizens of Nigeria.

“’As noted from lack of a close look at such bills, most Nigerians make abrupt conclusions by concurring with the titles of the bills alone, due to already cultural, religious or political sentiments established on subject matters around same sex issues. It is a duty upon civil society organizations in Nigeria to inform and educate the citizens and be the whistle blowers when needed especially when these kind of oppressive and dangerous legislations are brought forward by our parliamentarians,’ the statement noted.

“According to the press statement, there are reports from around the country of mob action and intimidation of people and individuals who are already being targeted due to discuss on the proposed legislation. We received reports from Benin, Calabar and Lagos and other parts of the country of situations where people are targeted and threatened by mob with extreme intrusiveness of the privacy of those persons whose behaviour does not conform with gender and social roles.

“‘We urge Nigerian civil society organizations, the media, women rights group, feminist forums, social health workers, civil liberties organizations, the Nigerian Bar Association, the Nigerian Human Rights Commission, Christian associations, Muslim associations, to mention but a few, to join hands with other CSOs to call on the president and the National Assembly to re-consider this bill to ensure that it protects basic democratic and human rights principles in Nigeria.

“’In summary, the implication and the aims of the bill, despite the best intention of the legislators, will go far beyond the prohibition of same sex marriage, and be used either as a censorship as well as punitive tool or against the democratic process of the country’.”

INCRESE, by the way, is a Minna, Niger state-based NGO founded by one Ms Dorothy Aken’ova, a Nigerien by birth but Nigerian by marriage. It is said to be “pioneering multidisciplinary research and communication project on sexual diversity and human rights in Nigeria”. For this it got a Ford Foundation grant of $190,000 in 2006. Before its known website (increse-increse.org) was suspended for undisclosed reasons, it had the following listed as Board of Trustees members: Dr. Benoit Kalasa, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, Dr. Babacar Fall, Dr. Afua Hesse, Prof. Bene Madunagu, Dr. Zagbayi Nuhu, Dr. Angela Giwa–Osagie, Ms. Cynthia Rothschild and, of course, Ms. Dorothy Aken‘ova, herself.

This, I can assure you, dear reader, is the first salvo because once funds become available to these groups, they will deploy it liberally to delay the bill, distract the House with campaigns that there are more issues critical to the well being of Nigerians than an anti-gay marriage law, and suborn officials that they can etc. The goal is so the bill can go the way of others before it. Vigilance is required if this bill is going to become law. Even when it is done, it will be only the beginning of a long drawn battle for the soul of our nation, but it will be well worth it. For that reason, you’ve not heard the last from me on this subject.  Merry Christmas in advance.

THE BATTLE LINE IS DRAWN!

Hillary Clinton, US Secretary of State

 "Indeed, our religion and our culture are sources of compassion and inspiration toward our fellow human beings. It was not only those who’ve justified slavery who leaned on religion, it was also those who sought to abolish it. And let us keep in mind that our commitments to protect the freedom of religion and to defend the dignity of LGBT people emanate from a common source"- Hilary Clinton

Many well meaning Nigerians, including some respected intellectuals don’t see what the big deal is about Senate Bill 05 that I have been discussing and promoting these past few weeks. One of them wondered on his Facebook page during the week why our legislators have not given corruption the kind of attention that the gay issue is receiving. Another even posited that it is the strategy of the legislators is to divert out attention to this unimportant issue, while they are busy looting and carting their loot to their various bank accounts.

I sympathise with these very patriotic Nigerian who have been led to such cynicisms as to suspect every action and omission of our lawmakers. But I daresay that they deserve commendation and require encouragement to see this anti-gay marriages bill passed into law.

Developments since the bill began its journey at the Senate ought to cause a rethink amongst the cynical and indifferent ones amongst us. It is already well known that the United Kingdom’s government rose stoutly against the bill, threatening us with an aid ban.

Canada soon came on board with Foreign Minister, John Baird not only voicing his country’s opposition to the bill, but also promising to mount a campaign against at other fora.  His words:  "The government of Nigeria must protect all Nigerians, regardless of sexual orientation…Through the Commonwealth and other forums, Canada will continue to make this point in the most forceful of terms."

Then came the United States of America, the so-called leader of the Free world, which according to a December 6 Bloomberg report has decided to “weigh how countries treat gays and lesbians in making decisions about foreign aid”.

Quoting from a memorandum described as “first-ever U.S. government strategy dedicated to combating human rights abuses against LGBT persons abroad”   issued by President Barack Obama’s White House, the report said the President “is directing all agencies engaged abroad to make sure U.S. diplomacy and aid programs ‘promote and protect’ the rights of gays and lesbians.”

Bloomberg further quoted the memorandum as saying: “The struggle to end discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons is a global challenge, and one that is central to the United States commitment to promoting human rights…promoting the human rights of homosexuals, bisexuals and transgender people reflects our deep commitment to advancing the human rights of all people.

The memorandum, continues the report, “directs all agencies engaged abroad to improve refugee and asylum protections for gay, bisexual and transgender people. It also calls for strengthening U.S. efforts to oppose foreign governments criminalizing homosexuality, bisexuality or transgender behavior. U.S. foreign aid programs will increase government and civil society engagement to promote gay rights.

The last part of this report is particularly striking, because the United States is declaring that apart from withholding aids from countries which criminalise homosexuality, it will fund homosexual groups. In order words, the US will use money to undermine the legitimate laws of other countries.  That sounds like a thinly disguised declaration of war.

Secretary of State Hilary Clinton went on to spell out the rationale for the memorandum and the policy it enunciated the following day at the United Nations Human Rights Commission in Geneva.

CNSNews.com’s report of Clinton’ statement said to have been issued ahead of the commemoration of Human Rights Day on Saturday December 10 read in part like this: “…Clinton said recognition that LGBT people ‘are entitled to the full measure of dignity and rights’ has evolved over time: And as it did, we understood that we were honoring rights that people always had, rather than creating new or special rights for them. Like being a woman, like being a racial, religious, tribal, or ethnic minority, being LGBT does not make you less human. And that is why gay rights are human rights, and human rights are gay rights.’

“Clinton noted that among the challenges facing LGBT people is ‘when people cite religious or cultural values as a reason to violate or not to protect the human rights of LGBT citizens. This is not unlike the justification offered for violent practices towards women like honor killings, widow burning, or female genital mutilation. Some people still defend those practices as part of a cultural tradition. But violence toward women isn't cultural; it's criminal. Likewise with slavery, what was once justified as sanctioned by God is now properly reviled as an unconscionable violation of human rights,’ she said.

"’In each of these cases, we came to learn that no practice or tradition trumps the human rights that belong to all of us. And this holds true for inflicting violence on LGBT people, criminalizing their status or behavior, expelling them from their families and communities, or tacitly or explicitly accepting their killing.

"’Rarely are cultural and religious traditions and teachings actually in conflict with the protection of human rights,’ Clinton continued. ‘Indeed, our religion and our culture are sources of compassion and inspiration toward our fellow human beings. It was not only those who’ve justified slavery who leaned on religion, it was also those who sought to abolish it. And let us keep in mind that our commitments to protect the freedom of religion and to defend the dignity of LGBT people emanate from a common source.

“’For many of us, religious belief and practice is a vital source of meaning and identity, and fundamental to who we are as people. And likewise, for most of us, the bonds of love and family that we forge are also vital sources of meaning and identity. And caring for others is an expression of what it means to be fully human. It is because the human experience is universal that human rights are universal and cut across all religions and cultures’"

Anyone who has followed the debate on gay rights will of course find nothing new in Clinton’s attempt to press love, a decided godly attribute, into action in the pursuit of a clearly an ungodly idea – one that runs counter to His single most important assignment for mankind - continuation of the species. (CONTINUES).

CALLING EMEKA IHEDIOHA AND CO

Sir Emeka Ihedioha, Deputy Speaker,
Federal House of Representatives

"The House of Representatives must be encouraged to fast track its debate and passage. Deputy Speaker Emeka Ihedioha has a major role here. As one of the sponsors of the aborted 2009 House Bill 150 (A Bill for an Act to Prohibit Marriage between Persons of Same Gender, Solemnization of Same and for other Matters related therewith)” , he must now rally all the other sponsors still in the House to spearhead this new move. Any loss of momentum can be fatal."

With the passing of Senate Bill 05, formally cited as “An Act to Prohibit Same Sex Marriages” last week, one giant step has been taken towards dealing a major blow for righteousness, in our social milieu. But it is, to borrow a cliché, one down, two to go.

I wish to congratulate our distinguished senators for being truly distinguished on this subject. The missionary zeal with which they went about it, as seen live on television, further persuades me that many of our senators are patriots able to rise in defence of the national interest. Against the background that the government of the United Kingdom did not stop at its general declaration of an “aid war” on African nations who fail to accord homosexuality human rights status, but also sent a letter to the Senate Committee considering the bill, the senators must be applauded for their courage.

Their defiance of external interference in the regulation of our social and moral conduct was very clearly demonstrated by the unanimity of the passage and voiced by the Senate President. His words: “Anybody can write to us, but our values are our values. If there is any country that does not want to give us aid or assistance, just because we hold on very firmly to our values, that country can keep its assistance. No country has a right to interfere in the way we make our own laws.”

But as I said above, we are still two steps away from the bill becoming law. The House of Representative still has to debate and pass it; and in case of differences in the two versions, go for harmonisation. The harmonised version would of course require the signature of the President to become an Act of the National Assembly. In other words, the battle is not over yet.

If experience has shown anything about the way the international gay lobby functions, they will work hard to abort this bill at either of the next two steps. They will use every weapon in their arsenal – money, blackmail, intimidation, carrot and stick etc. There’s therefore the need for everybody in support of this law to do everything possible to avoid a loss of momentum. The House of Representatives must be encouraged to fast track its debate and passage. Deputy Speaker Emeka Ihedioha has a major role here. As one of the sponsors of the aborted 2009 House Bill 150 (A Bill for an Act to Prohibit Marriage between Persons of Same Gender, Solemnization of Same and for other Matters related therewith)” , he must now rally all the other sponsors still in the House to spearhead this new move. Any loss of momentum can be fatal.

The President has already demonstrated his opposition to the conferment of human rights status to homosexuality through our permanent representative, Ambassador Joy Ogwu’s vote during a recent debate in the United Nations. He should not be allowed room for any kind of rethink!

Incidentally, one of the tactics that would be employed by the gay lobby is to play on the liberal sensibilities of the intelligentsia in Nigeria by downplaying the importance of the gay issue relative to other so called pressing national issues. They will point out that corruption is still alive and well; that kidnapping and armed robbery are still rampart; that the Boko Haram sect is yet to be reined in; that our economy is tottering etc. And from that position accuse of legislators of misplaced priority and denounce them as an unserious bunch.  Many of those who would canvass this position of course mean well; they would be sincere; but they would be sincerely wrong.

It is a scenario I addressed in an article headlined, “Homosexuality and the Price of Fish”. That piece on October 12, 2008, noted that because of our liberal tendencies, we have been dismissing attempts by governments to deal with social issues of any kind as unimportant. Pointing out that homosexuality was one of those issues being characterised as unimportant, I wrote: “As someone would have put it, what has homosexuality or nudity got to do with the price of fish, or garri? For effect, he would have added, “make we hear word, jare” which is street lingo for, let’s get serious”. 

As I wrote then, “they would be dead right, if the gay challenge wasn’t getting dead serious, as a recent newspaper report demonstrated. The report headlined: ‘Gay Church Arrives Nigeria’, had two riders: ‘Christian, Muslim clerics declare: it’s evil!’ ‘National Assembly must fight it.’”

The report was published by Sunday Sun then read in part like this: “For the first time in Nigeria, men who openly declared themselves as homosexuals gathered penultimate weekend at a church in Ojodu, a Lagos suburb. Under the auspices of a yet-to-be registered church - House of Rainbow Metropolitan Community Church - the men held a seminar and night vigil. The heavily guarded event paraded men who wore necklaces, rings, conducted themselves and spoke softly like women”.

Continued the report which carried the bylines of Jossy Idam and Paul Omo Obadan: “Ironically, the homosexuals held the fiesta in the hall of United Bible University, Yakoyo Road, Ojudu, Lagos. The venue also serves as a place of worship for Christian Pentecostal Mission (CPM). The event, Sunday Sun learnt, was championed by a lawyer and theologian, Rev. Roland Babajide Macaulay. On the days of the event, a retinue of mean-looking, ill-tempered security men barred our reporter from entering the venue and meeting the men…”  

“House of Rainbow Metropolitan Community Church is reported to have been in existence since 2006 and is said to be affiliated to other metropolitan community churches in America and Europe. Its “mission and vision”, according to the Sunday Sun report, quoting a public statement by Rev. Roland Macaulay is “to transform hearts, lives and history and especially, to help people reconcile their sexuality and spirituality.” 

As I wrote then, the report simply shows “the international gay movement is gaining inroads into our nation while we ‘get serious’ with those seemingly urgent issues ‘that has to do with the price of fish and garri.’ 

In that column, I also quoted a Time magazine online story which demonstrated how  “within the space of 43 years, homosexuality and same-sex marriages had transformed from being a sin, a crime and a mental illness, to become an orientation to which human rights apply, a social preference and is increasingly being de-listed as a sin in many parts of the United States of America”.

I warned then that “homosexuality might fare better in Nigeria sooner, if Nigerians do not move against it now!  Thank God, the Senate has risen to the challenge. Will both the House of Representatives and the President join in dealing this blow for righteousness?