Issues
Female Teachers And The Transformation Goal
Female teachers in Rivers State under the umbrella of the National Association of Female Teachers (NAFET) in collaboration with the Generational Changers Foundation (GCF), organised a one day seminar in Port Harcourt with the theme: Services To Humanity And Rewards on September 29, last year. The event which brought together over 100 female teachers from primary, post primary and post secondary schools in the 23 local government areas of Rivers State articulated the roles of teachers in the transformation agenda of government and the importance of value re-orientation among teachers in national development.
NAFET is an association of professional teachers in Nigeria from primary to tertiary levels. Founded in the year, 2006 by Lady Chikanele Asuru from Rivers State, the association was borne due to the poor level of learning and prevalent moral decadence in the society, especially among children, which has led to high level of examination mal-practices, high school drop-out, kidnapping, cultism, early teenage pregnancy, youth restiveness and other vices.
The role of teachers in the transformation agenda of the present administration can be viewed from the perspective of President Goodluck Jonathan’s vision for Nigeria. For instance, the government’s agenda targets a baseline Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of 11.7 per cent per annum over the next four years. This, President Jonathan explains, is to achieve the macro economies indices in massive job creation and establishments of skills acquisitions centres, while at the same time encouraging greater local participation in all sectors of the economy.
As good as this vision might be, it is expected, that the drivers of government transformation agenda must pass through the teachers both in formal and informal settings.
Of course, central to the actualisation of the agenda are men and women whose skills, knowledge competence and commitment will lead to more visible development in all facets of national life.
This reality is not loss on NAFET. It forms the basis of its articulation at the one-day workshop.
One of the guest speakers, Dr Joy Agumagu, emphasised this in her paper titled “The Role of Teachers in the Transformation Agenda”. According to her, “the teacher whose primary responsibility is to help others learn something new through training and teaching, must be ready to stand up and be counted for Nigeria to get to the level envisaged,” adding that the teachers bear a great responsibility, a responsibility to produce the right kind of behavior, skills, not only to create jobs, but also to fill up positions so created.
Noting that teachers and education were inseparable, Dr Agumagu argues that “because teachers are the main tool that advance education, without the teachers, education has no meaning in human development. This is why teachers, as a community, are the primary tools for the actualisation of the transformation agenda of government as they impart knowledge that develop the human resources.”
While identifying the need for greater partnership between the teachers and government, Dr Agumagu said greater collaboration and corporation, as well as understanding was also necessary. She urged government to take the issue of welfare and working conditions of teachers as priority, through better incentives, training and retraining, as well as upgrading education infrastructure across the country.
Similar sentiment was expressed by the National President of NAFET, Lady Chikanele Asuru who said, as key players and agents of change in human development, the gathering was aimed at deliberating on services to humanity with specific focus on value inculcation and re-orientation as platform for the achievement of Jonathan’s transformation agenda and social development.
She charged the female teachers to look critically at the issues and challenges hindering societal progress, such as the orgy of kidnapping, bombing, cultism, child abuse, armed robbery, unemployment, poverty. She stated that the seminar could not have come at a better time than now as it offered them a rare opportunity to brain storm, pray for peace and stability in Nigeria and to re-strategise for a better tomorrow.
Meanwhile, Archt. Oluwagbenga Bamgboye in his own paper presentation: ‘Value Re-Orientation,’ said that value was a principal standard or quality considered worth-while or desirable in an individual. According to him, it was regrettable that Nigerians have focused over the years on negative value systems that promote get-rich-quick syndrome, greed and favouritism.
He suggested approaches to re-orientating these negative value systems, which he said should include emphasis on honesty, respect, good neighbourliness and above all, patriotism. Taking a holistic look at the entire value system, he said Nigerians owe it as a responsibility to think and act positively in order to bring about change in the country.
The charged atmosphere triggered positive reactions from participants. Majority of the female teachers expressed reservations that some of them were still faced with the problem of unemployment. Others lamented that the only way teachers could be heard and counted was for them to come out en mass to put it clear to the government that it is high time they were carried along. They also demanded the amendment of some of the clauses in the 1999 Constitution that compel aspirants to elective positions to resign before contesting elections.
There is no gainsaying the fact that the success of the transformation agenda depends to a very large extent on the total involvement of teachers at the level of manpower training, policy formulation and implementation. With what transpired at the seminar, it is obvious that any attempt to undermine the teachers in the entire scheme portends failure for the implementation of Jonathan’s transformation agenda.
With the synergy of the resources of female teachers as home builders, peace builders, and nation builders, many people believe the achievement of the transformation agenda is achievable in Nigeria while Nigeria’s path to recovery and development in all sectors is assured.
Susan Serekara-Nwikhana
This is an open letter to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Chief Nyesom Wike.
Your Excellency,
Sir, ordinarily, I would not be writing an open letter to you, but like a wise man once said, “Silence would be Treason.” So I prefer to stay alive than face the consequences of silence in the face of crime. With each passing day, and as the socio-political tides continue to turn, it has become more pertinent that more people speak up in a concerted MANNER to prevent the death of our party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), as we appear to be, in the words of W. B. Yeats, “turning and turning in the widening gyre” heading for an end where the falcon will no longer hear the falconer
It is unfortunate that since losing control of the Federal Government, with the loss of President Goodluck Jonathan at the poll in 2015, our party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has continued on a downward spiral. It is much more painful, that where it is expected that leaders within the party should rise to the challenge and put an end to this decline of our great party, some have instead taken up roles as its undertaker.
It will be hypocritical to claim aloofness to what I believe is your grouse with the PDP and I am not a hypocrite. It will be uncharitable on my part to discountenance the role you have played in strengthening the PDP from 2015 up until the last Presidential primaries of the party. It is my belief that your grouse against certain members of the party who you perceived worked against the party and abandoned it in 2015 and then came around much later to take control of the party, is justified. Also know that your decision to remain in the Party and stifle its progress on the other hand, as a sort of payback, stands condemned. For a man of your pedigree and stature, it is a dishonorable act, highly dishonorable and stands as testimony against all you claim to stand for.
At least, it can be argued that those who you hold this grudge against, abandoned the party completely and did not sit back while actively working to destroy it from within. But what then can be the argument on your own part, seeing that those you are currently working with against your party are the same people who set in motion, and executed surgically, the plans that not only ended our Party’s leadership at the centre, but ended up dislodging the first Niger Deltan to occupy Aso Rock as Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces. Is this not akin to “cutting off one’s nose to spite one’s face?” That will be worse than folly. Let us not throw away the baby with the bath water because we do not like the soap used in bathing the baby. It will be a grave mistake.
Honourable Minister, sir, it is rather unfortunate that of all people, you have also decided to play the role of an undertaker not only for our party, but for our dear Rivers State.
I will like to take you down memory lane a little. Let me remind you of your emergence as Guber candidate of the PDP in Rivers State, against all fairness and justice in 2014. You will remember that despite the reality being that you as an Ikwerre man was poised to replace a fellow Ikwerre man in Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi in our multiethnic state, Rivers people overwhelmingly stood by you and pushed for your emergence as Executive Governor of Rivers State in 2015. I dare say that your popularity in the entire Niger Delta region was at an all-time high at this point.
I want you to understand why you were loved across board leading to your eventual emergence as Governor of Rivers State in 2015; it was because when it looked like all were against the second term ambitions of the first Niger Delta man to emerge as President of Nigeria, you became not just a pillar but a beacon of resistance by standing for Goodluck Jonathan. Rivers people, as grateful and rewarding as they can be, paid you back by ensuring your electoral victory against the incumbent All Progressives Congress (APC) led by your predecessor. On your emergence, where there were second term Governors in the region, you, a first term Governor, was seen by the people as not just the leader of the PDP, but the leader of the entire Niger Delta region. You earned it, and no one could dispute it.
In 2019, when your re-election bid was being challenged ferociously, Rivers people once again stood solidly behind you. Many were killed in the process of defending your votes. Do you remember Dr. Ferry Gberegbe that was shot and killed while trying to protect your votes in Khana Local Government Area? There are many more unnamed and unrecognised sons and daughters of Rivers State who sacrificed their lives so that you could emerge as a second term Governor of Rivers State.
In 2022/23, Honourable Minister, you oversaw a party primary across board that saw some candidates imprisoned and internal party democracy jettisoned for your wishes, leading to the emergence of flag bearers of our party all singlehandedly picked by you. You have on more than one occasion publicly stated that you paid for all their forms. Even those shortchanged in this process licked their wounds and continued to play their roles as party members to ensure the success of the party at all levels. In what will go down as one of the most keenly contested elections in recent Rivers history, with formidable candidates like Senator Magnus Abe of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Mr Tonye Cole of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and the vibrant youth driven Labour Party (LP), PDP emerged victorious across board except for Phalga Constituency 1 that was lost to the Labour Party. (Not that you did not loose in some other LGA’s but let’s stick to the official figures declared by INEC).
It begs the question, why then do you want to burn down Rivers State, when everyone who now holds political office emerged through a process designed and endorsed by you? Is it that you do not care about Rivers people and you are all about yourself? If so, I am forced to believe that those around you are not telling you the truth. The truth being that in a state where your words were law; where houses and businesses could be demolished or closed down without any recourse to legalities, where Executive Orders could be deployed to stifle the opposition, that your popularity is now at an all-time low. Probably because they are afraid of you, or of losing the benefits they gain from you, they fail to tell you that what you might perceive as a battle against your successor, has slowly but gradually degenerating into a battle against Rivers State and Rivers people. You know, there is a popular saying that, a man can cook for the community and the community will finish the food, but when a community decides to cook for one man, the reverse is the case.
LEAVE FUBARA ALONE
You have gone on and on about being betrayed by Governor Siminalayi Fubara. You point fingers forgetting that some of those same fingers quick to spot betrayals point straight back at you. It is not Governor Fubara that has betrayed the PDP by working against it in the just concluded General Election, and working with the opposition at the State and Federal level to destabilise the party. It is you, Honourable Minister. It is not Governor Fubara that betrayed Rivers people by instigating a political crisis with propensity to escalate ethnic tensions in Rivers State. It is you Honourable Minister. It is not Governor Fubara that has declared himself God over all in Rivers State and has no qualms with burning the state to the ground to prove a point. It is you Honourable Minister. It is you Honourable Minister who told the world that the APC was a cancer and you can never support a cancerous party. It is you Honourable Minister who ended up facilitating the emergence of the same “cancerous” APC that has accelerated the economic decline of this country and further impoverished our people with no remorse. All so you can be a Minister of the Federal Capital Territory? The lack of self awareness is gobsmacking.
Some days back I came across a video where you talked about death and how you do not cry when you hear about the death of some people because you have no idea what might have caused it considering many a politician swear “over dead bodies” and still go back on their words. Those words made me think, and I could see the reason behind them. You see, in chosing to be God in the affairs of Rivers people, you have closed your eyes and ears to reason; you see nothing and hear nothing that can cause you to rethink on the path you have chosen. In your quest to “show Fubara” you have unwittingly united a vast majority of Rivers people behind him, so much that even those who despised him because of you, now like or love him, because of you too. In your scheming, I will advise you not to forget that “the voice of the people is the voice of God”.
Note that the war which you have or are waging against Governor Fubara, has gone beyond being merely political as you might see in your minds eye. It is now one that, fortunately for some and unfortunately for others, has evolved into a war against Rivers people. It is good to point out that no one has taken a stand against Rivers people and won. No one has gone against God and won. In your defiant characteristic manner, it will be unfortunate if you believe your own hubris and that of those around you on the possibility of you being the first to successfully go against Rivers people. It will be a needless gamble; one where if you win you create more enemies for yourself than you can withstand on your political journey, and if you lose, your legacy becomes an inglorious and irredeemable one in Rivers State, the Niger Delta, and Nigeria at large. For your sake as regards posterity, it is my greatest wish that you have a moment of sobriety and a deep reflection and introspection on this path you have chosen.
Honourable Minister, sir, what is left of your legacy is on the brink of being completely desecrated and relegated to the dustbin of our political history, and it will be a sad end to what I will say has been a wonderful political career that many can only dream of. The ball is in your court, and may God Almighty have mercy on us all and forgive us for our shortcomings.
Gabriel Baritulem Pidomson
Dr Pidomson is former Chief of Staff, Government House, Port Harcourt and former member, Rivers State House of Assembly.
In 2015, I made a conscious decision to invest my financial resources, my time, and energy into supporting Nyesom Wike’s gubernatorial campaign. I poured my heart and soul into ensuring Nyesom Wike emerged victorious even at the risk of my personal safety.
Again in 2019, I doubled down on my commitment. I invested a significant amount of money to procure campaign outfits for all twenty-three Local Governments Areas of Rivers State. I spared no expense in supplementing Wike’s election efforts in my own local government, and once again putting myself at great risk to safeguard the fairness and transparency of the electoral process.
However, despite my unwavering loyalty and sacrifices, I found myself abandoned and forgotten by Wike. Throughout his eight-year tenure, he failed to acknowledge my contributions or fulfill his promises and agreements. Even as a former Deputy Governor, Wike denied me my severance benefit.
My investment in Wike’s governorship was not just financial – it was a commitment of passion, dedication, and belief in a better future for Rivers State. Yet, his leadership style of dishonesty, greed, drunkenness and rash abuse of senior citizens brought me nothing but disappointment, misery and losses.
By the grace of God, today I speak not as a victim, but as a hero. I have accepted my losses, and I have moved on. And as I reflect on my experience, I cannot help but urge Wike to do the same and allow peace and development to reign in Rivers State.
Nyesom Wike, when you speak of investing in Governor Sim Fubara’s election, remember those like me who also invested in you. Remember the sacrifices I made, the risks I took, and the promises and agreements you left unfulfilled.
It is time for you, Wike, to let go of the past and allow Governor Sim Fubara the breathing space he needs to lead Rivers State forward. Allow him to focus on the challenges of good governance and the aspirations of the people. Spare him these unwarranted and ill-conceived political manoeuvrings founded on personal agenda and not for general good of Rivers State and her people.
I may have lost my investment on Wike, but I have not lost hope in the future of Rivers State. And together, we will continue to strive for a brighter tomorrow.
Long Live the Governor to Rivers State, Sir Siminialayi Fubara!
Long Live the Good People of Rivers State!!
Long Live the Federal Republic of Nigeria!!!
Engr Ikuru is former Deputy Governor of Rivers State.
Tele Ikuru
