Nation
Soyinka Harps On Foreign Assistance Over Insecurity
Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, at the weekend asked the Federal Government to seek foreign assistance in dealing with the security challenge in the country.
Soyinka said on Arise TV that the current situation was so bad that government should not shy away from paying “people to come and help us” in the fight against the Boko Haram insurgency and other threats to life and property.
“Let them get away with the issue of sovereignty. If they have to pay people to come and help us, then call them whatever you want. Please go ahead because we’ve reached that stage of desperation,” Soyinka said.
But he said “a general mobilization” of Nigerians to defend themselves could be more like it.
His words: “I will prefer a general mobilisation in which people are trained; farmers especially are trained to work with the hoe in one hand and the gun in the other hand, ready to protect their lives, their harvests and the rest of us.
“We are not unique; history is full of those situations… I will like to see a national mobilisation. Let’s be practical.”
He wondered why some northern governors had to negotiate with bandits terrorising their states.
He said: “You don’t appease evil. We are dealing with evil. There is no other word; we are dealing with the proliferation, the enthronement of evil in the society.
“And unfortunately, we have encouraged its manifestation, its proliferation, its entrenchment.”
Soyinka who also spoke on the South West Security Network, Amotekun, warned that the outfit must not transmute into the scrapped special anti-robbery squad (SARS) in another guise.
Amotekun has been accused of extrajudicial killings and high handedness; the same complaints against the police that sparked last year’s #EndSARS protests across the country.
Soyinka said it was important to inculcate ethics in Amotekun members to make them understand their role and responsibility.
He said: “Community policing like Amotekun is recognition of the fact that the civic part of the entire national polity has got to wake up in not just its own defence but survival.
“I have told them anytime you want us to come and assist, we will come, even if it is just on the ethical session. So that as you are training them to defend us, we are also training their minds so that Amotekun does not become another SARS. It’s very important. We must do everything together.”
He said Nigerians should learn to take responsibility for their own survival and advised other parts of the country that are yet to have their own security outfits to do so.
“The citizens have got to take a very good look at huge gap in governance, the lacuna in governance in this nation, and then take responsibility for their own survival,” he said.
“This is what makes our own responsibilities for ourselves as citizens even more difficult because when drama like that happens we go to the very heart of our existence as human beings to see our children have been swept up not for the first time, and we cannot have a clear sequence of events articulated by the security agencies, by the government so that we can even take on our own against such events happening in the nation.
“But when we reach that stage, you no longer talk of a nation but of a contraption struggling along. The sovereignty of this nation is in the hands of murdering herdsmen; the sovereignty of this nation has already been taken over by Boko Haram, those who do nothing at the slightest respect for what is called national integrity.
“I am very glad that northern elites are now speaking out boldly and practically and at the same time all these states, I’d like them to come out, passing these message to those who have not yet launched their own Amotekun. If they don’t hurry, I will launch my own o.”
He hailed the #EndSARS protests as “righteous, well organised and long-overdue movement by a generation over whom one has been uttering noises of despair.”
He was particularly happy that the Nigerian youth who organised the protests “finally moved.”
“And finally, finally they moved. The youths moved,” he said.
He added: “To me, they made many of us proud. This is a kind of generation that seems to pick up positive signs in their existence and now are taking charge.”
The Executive Secretary of the Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD), Dr Chioma Ejikeme, has reiterated the commitment to service delivery for pensioners.
Ejikeme said this during the Customer Service Week in Abuja, yesterday.
He said that commission had a mandate to deliver good service delivery to the pensioners.
Ejikeme, who was represented by the Director Civil Service Pension Department, Mr Kabir Yusuf, said that the customer service week was important to operations of PTAD.
“Customer service is the support that you give to a customer, whether it is an existing customer or potential customer in the process of delivering or making enquires about a service.
“To be a good customer service representative you need to be knowledgeable, have good attitude and attribute especially to the senior citizens and have empathy,” he said.
Ejikeme said that all PTAD staff had most of the attributes of a good customer representative.
“We provide excellent customer service by going to verify our aged pensioners who cannot do it by themselves anywhere across the country.
“There is a dedicated team that was mandated to go round to confirm the aliveness of those who can not confirm their aliveness either because the are too old or have health issues,” the executive secretary said.
The National Coordinator, SERVICOM, Mrs Nnenna Akajemeli, said that the official theme of the 2024 customer service week was “ We Go Above and Beyond For Our Customers.”
She commended PTAD and the SERVICOM team for organising the 2024 customer service week.
“This is in line with the best practice of celebrating frontline workers and service takers.
“Customer service week is celebrated annually during the first full week in October.
It calls attention to the importance of people to boost morale team work and departmental collaboration in supporting pensioners.
“ It is a platform to reward employees for the significant work they do,” Akajemeli said.
She said that the objective of the customer service week was to celebrate the hard work and dedication of employee who strived to create positive customer experiences.
She said that it was time to show customers that the organisation valued their experience and feedback, through comment cards, dedicated hotline, among others.
Akajemeli said that it raised awareness internally and externally about the importance of good customer service in building customer loyalty and satisfaction.
She said that the benefit was to increase motivation, show appreciation, encourage friendly competition, boost employee retention, create a positive workplace and increase productivity.
The Head, Surveillance Department at the National Pension Commission (PenCom), Mr Abdulrahman Saleem, said that good service delivery was the key success of every establishment.
Salem said that PTAD operated with standard, considering the success it had achieved so far.
Saleem said that pensioners required the best service attitude and behavior.
“ I give kudos to PTAD for its efforts and encourage it to do more.
“Therefore I urge PTAD staff to keep up the standard and continue to give good service to the pensioners,” he said.
The Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar, has honoured Flying Officer David Sangokoya for winning the 2023/2024 Royal Air Force College Cranwell International Cadet Sword of Honour.
Abubakar honoured the officer during the presentation of cheques to 13 beneficiaries of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Group Personal Accident Insurance Policy (GPAIP) in Abuja, yesterday.
He described the achievement as ground-breaking as it was the first time an African cadet had won the prestigious award since the Academy’s creation over 100 years ago.
According to him, the feat underscores the excellence that exists within NAF, and proof that NAF officers and cadets can stand shoulder to shoulder with the best in the world.
“To our awardee, you have set a new standard, not just for your peers, but for every cadet and officer that will come after you.
“This accomplishment is a powerful reminder that no goal is out of reach when one is armed with dedication, discipline and an unwavering commitment to excellence.
“Your journey as an officer has begun with this prestigious accolade, but the true measure of your success will be seen in how you serve, lead and contribute to the mission of NAF and the defence of our great nation.
“As we celebrate this historic occasion, we extend our deepest gratitude to the United Kingdom Government for its unwavering support in providing world-class training opportunities to our personnel.
“This has enabled our officers and men to gain invaluable skills and knowledge, strengthening not only our bilateral ties but also our collective ability to address global security challenges,” he said.
The CAS said that the NAF looked forward to continuing the fruitful partnership for the mutual benefit of Nigeria and UK countries.
He expressed gratitude and unflinching loyalty to President Bola Tinubu for his commitment to the welfare and training of members of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, and NAF in particular.
“I must also take a moment to extend my heartfelt appreciation to the leadership of the Nigerian Defence Academy and the instructors who helped to mould and prepare this cadet for the global stage.
“Their dedication and commitment to developing top-notch officers is evident in this ground-breaking achievement.
“You have not only trained a leader but have given the Nigerian Air Force a legacy we will all cherish,” he said.
National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) has advocated private sector involvement to strengthen Nigeria’s healthcare system.
The Director-General of the authority, Dr Kelechi Ohiri, made the call at a high-level policy dialogue on sustainable health system reforms in Nigeria in Abuja, yesterday.
The Tide’s source reports that the dialogue was organised by the Healthcare Federation of Nigeria (HFN), a coalition of private sector stakeholders, to address the multifaceted challenges plaguing the country’s healthcare system.
The dialogue has “Private Sector Support for SWAP (Sector Wide Approach) in Healthcare” as its theme.
Represented by Dr Yakubu Agada-Amade, the NHIA Director of Standards and Quality Assurance, Ohiri explained the crucial role of private sector collaboration in strengthening Nigeria’s healthcare system
He highlighted the “One Plan” under the SWAp framework, which seeks to unify health sector efforts, ensuring efficient resource use, effective governance and expanded healthcare access.
He also stressed the importance of overcoming barriers that historically hindered the implementation of healthcare interventions in Nigeria, such as inadequate financing, weak governance systems, and bureaucratic bottlenecks.
He added that “the dialogue explored innovative approaches, including digital health innovations and financing mechanisms to accelerate the implementation of the National Health Act and mandatory health insurance coverage.
“With enrollment in health insurance growing by 14 per cent over the past year, NHIA can push for greater inclusivity, particularly targeting the informal sector through flexible payment systems and partnerships with telecommunications companies.”
He called for stronger synergy between public and private health actors to ensure universal access to quality healthcare and sustainable reforms in line with the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative (NHSRII).
Panelists from the Association of Nigerian Private Medical Practitioners (ANPMP), Healthcare Providers Association of Nigeria (HCPAN) and Health and Managed Care Association of Nigeria (HMCAN) echoed the sentiments, underscoring the private sector’s role in expanding insurance coverage and improving healthcare delivery.
They commended NHIA’s efforts toward driving reforms to achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC) through the Sector-Wide Approach (SWAp).