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My confession before someone Dino Melaye me
I was registered at St. Paul's Anglican Primary School 1 in the mid '70s for my primary school education by my late dad. As the name suggests, it is a Christian missionary school. There were four schools on the premises and we all used the same army green colour as our uniforms. Apart from the use of figure to distinguish one school from the other, each school had a touch of different colours taped around the pupils' sleeves.
For school one it was yellow, school 2 had pink, school 3 green and school 4's was blue. School 2 later changed to St. John's Anglican Primary School while school 4 later moved out of the premises to the late Fela Anikulapo's first Kalakuta Republic compound around Yaba, Lagos, after the military government had seized the land from the iconic musician following the altercation he had with some "unknown soldiers" as they were labelled then.
The practice then was that parents were to present birth certificates of their children to show that they were six years old, the eligible age a child is qualified to be admitted into public primary school. This replaced the age-long tradition of asking the wouldbe pupil to place his right hand across his head and use his fingers to touch his left ear. Armed with my birth certificate, my father dashed across the popular Agege Motor Road, Alakara axis, to register me at St. Paul's.
The school was just adjacent our residence. My birth certificate reads: WAIDI ATANDA. ATANDA is my praise name, the one the Yoruba call 'oriki'. My father preferred it should also serve as my middle name. The birth certificate also contains my parents' names, my place of birth and of course the day I was born.
So, between my dad and the teacher who registered me, I don't know who committed the blunder, I was registered and known as: WAIDI ATANDA throughout my six years at St. Paul's. So, my middle became my surname. I did not like the idea of using my middle name as my surname when my other siblings were using BAKARE, my father's name as their surname. The opportunity to right the wrong came when I was to be admitted into a secondary school. Apart from the desperation to change my surmane, I also thought of changing the spelling of my first name from WAIDI to WAHEED.
I saw the latter spelling somewhere and fell in love with it. In my childhood innocence, I fancied the new discovery of how my name could be spelt and better pronounced. On the day we were to be registered for our 'G2′ exams in primary six, my adrenaline shot up and my heart was in my mouth. How do I tell my teacher that I wanted to change the spelling of my first name and still add BAKARE to my name? I have forgotten my teacher's name but his pseudonym still stick to my memory even though this happened between 1980 and 81.
He was called Mr. Super. He was tough and a lover of punitive measures to correct pupils. Every mistake made by the pupils attracted his long cane and he rarely forgave errant pupils. He was dexterous whenever he used his cane. His pupils were extremely careful not to incur his wrath except that he was so unpredictable and one could not be too sure about what could anger him or not. There was something creepy about his look and the way he held his cane even if he was not ready to use it.
It would be a terribly bad day for any pupil that made him to remove his glasses, wristwatch and roll up the sleeves of his shirt before using his cane. In a trembling voice, I told him about the mistake made when I was registered and my intention to correct it.
My eyes were out of their socket literally when he acceded to my request. His approach to my request was casual and perhaps depicted naivety on his part. I don't think any teacher will now allow a pupil to just change his name by mere asking without the parents' consent and not backing it up with a sworn affidavit. My first school leaving certificate reads: ATANDA (surname) BAKARE (middle name) WAIDI (first name).
By the time I got my admission card as it was then known, my name appeared on it as BAKARE (surname) ATANDA (middle name) WAHEED (first name) and this is how my names appear in all my certificates and vital documents. Of course I never thought of any consequences of what I did as a child and backed by my teacher's naivety until a former Senate president, late Chief Evan (s) Enweren, struggled without success to convince the senate committee that Evan and Evans did not carry the face of the man that was accused of falsifying his name to cover up his past bad deeds.
Enweren was eventually removed from office on November 18, 1999 and the rest is now history because it was proven that Evans was Evan. Quite a number of top politicians had run into trouble waters over inconsistencies in their names and acquisition of certificates, the latest being the controversial Senator Dino Melaye. This is what you get in a society that places so much emphasis on certificate acquisition at the expense of what individuals can do with their brains.
There are so many people who have falsified their ages just to seek employments because Nigerian corporate world places too much emphasis on age as a prerequisite for employment. So, if there is no difference between six and half a dozen, there cannot be a difference between those who claimed to have university degrees when they did not actually visit the four walls of higher institutions and those who change their date of birth as if they are changing clothes.
Since the senator's controversy broke out, it has been discovered that his name was not on the graduation list of the year he claimed to have graduated from the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria.
This may not be enough to say he did not graduate from the institution. I don't know if my name was on the brochure of the list of graduate of the University of Ilorin in 1997 since I didn't attend the convocation ceremony because of the distance between Delta State where I did my youth service and Ilorin in Kwara State and I did not know how the brochure looked like. But for all other institutions I attended, I still keep their brochures showing lists of the graduates.
As for my primary school, I also have some memorabilia to show that I attended St. Paul's and I can still remember the full names of some of my schoolmates since the majority of us attended the same secondary school: Surulere Grammar School, which was later changed to Akintan Grammar School in Surulere. But if WAIDI and WAHEED become an issue, I won't handle it the way Melaye did. I have outgrown such theatrics and tantrums, they are preserve of kindergarten.
I won't stoop so low to conquer the way Melaye did with his funny video. There are better ways of responding to issues that bother on one's reputation beyond the Awada Kerikeri (jesters' circle) that has become the idiosyncrasy of the distinguished senator. If the hood doesn't make a monk, mere wearing of an academic gown does not make one a graduate. The vice chancellor of the ABU has said Melaye graduated from the institution. So, I won't say otherwise.
But 'bad belle' people are still worried about the discrepancies in the name of the distinguished senator and are still waiting to see how he will reconcile this. Is there any modicum of integrity left in a man who claimed to be a graduate of the prestigious Havard University and the London School of Economics and Political Science only for the institutions to say the claims were lies from the pit of hell? How I wish we can summon the heads of those institutions to come and eat their words so that they can shame the detractors of Melaye that those letters disowning the senators are fake.
Let me concentrate on the discrepancy in WAIDI and WAHEED and leave Melaye's matter before someone summons me for maligning the integrity of a distinguished senator and proud holder of seven degrees.
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From Afe to ABUAD: A legacy of leadership
An age-long adage acknowledges the fact that some men are born great, many achieved greatness while some had greatness trusted on them. Interestingly, any keen reader of his enviable story in the last five decades or more, would of course readily admit that Chief Afe Babalola is a unique profile in dramatic trajectory from grass to grace. In other words, 'Aare' is an ebullient and iconic personality who did not have the childhood luxury of being born with a silver spoon. He does not even fall in the category of those young men who had fortune smiling on them on a platter of gold. But, today, he is a highly respected professional giant, an award winning technocrat, a renowned legal luminary, a successful business mogul, a superb elederstatesman, a revered community leader, a compassionate and unrelenting philanthropist and, above all, a life coach and mentor to many accomplished gentlemen and ladies of repute.
Born 90 years ago in a humble agrarian family in the ancient city of Ado-Ekiti in Ekiti State of Nigeria, Aare Emmanuel Afe Babalola has carved a niche for himself in the lexicon of success and social transformation, even though he did not pass through a formal secondary school education. For a man who only managed to acquire a basic formal education to have risen to the prestigious status of an excellent university administrator and a highly celebrated entrepreneur in the nation's education sector, it is instructive that the compelling lessons and principles of his greatness should not only be celebrated but must also be emulated, especially by all well-meaning youngsters of this generation.
Afe Babalola had a unique life experience at his tender age which must have shaped his life commitment to industry and generosity. He lost his two parents when he was extremely young. Due to the economic hardship he had to contend with, he braced up for life conquest rather than accepting the tragic twist of fate. The young Afe Babalola made up his mind early enough to face the realities of life with a view to ruling his world as a consummate warrior. His determination to conquer his environment and earn himself an enviable placement among his peers prompted him to pursue his academic studies most diligently and relentlessly to enable him build an excellent, cutting-edge professional career in life, to create wealth in a legitimate manner, to help the needy and to contribute meaningfully to the upliftment of Nigeria and the world at large, such that his name and his lofty legacies might be written in gold on the sand of time.
Aare Afe Babalola attended Emmanuel Primary School, Ado-Ekiti, where he obtained his Standard Six Certificate. He is always proud to say that the very qualitative primary education he had was what served as a strong springboard for his subsequent educational attainments. After working for years as a pupil teacher, Chief Babalola enrolled for the Senior Cambridge School Certificate examination by private study from Wolsey Hall, Oxford. He later obtained the A'level Certificate of London University before he proceeded to London School of Economics and then the University of London where he obtained a second Bachelor's degree in Law. Chief Afe Babalola was called to the England Bar in 1963. Same year, he became a Member of the Lincoln's Inn, London.
Armed with the requisite certification to pursue a sprawling and volatile legal career with an informed bias in Constitutional Advocacy and Criminal Justice, Baba Afe started off as a Litigation Officer in the law firm of Olu Ayoola and Co. situated in Ibadan, the capital of Oyo State, Western Nigeria. However, given his penchant for freedom and the passion to conquer and dominate his professional world without let or hindrance, he established his own legal firm, Afe Babalola and Co. (Emmanuel Chambers) in 1965, while he was barely two years at the Bar. Over the years, by dint of hard work, professional focus and consistency as well as a very unique style of service delivery, Chief Babalola rose to national prominence and became a household phenomenon in the nation's justice sector, having, at various times, served as an indefatigable and most brilliant Legal Consultant to the federal and state governments, political juggernauts, corporate bodies and several royal families across the nation for the settlement of sundry legal and constitutional disputes of national and international pedigree. To this extent, in 1987, the Legal Privileges and Awards Committee of the Inner Bar deemed it fit to elevate him to the highest rank in the legal profession in Nigeria, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).
The most intriguing character of Babalola's personality is that in spite of his career accomplishments as a prominent legal practitioner, he felt that what could make him a fulfilled man was to have an ample opportunity to contribute morally, financially and educationally to humanity; both through his private philanthropic initiatives and also through government institutions. This was the insatiable passion that former President Olusegun Obasanjo saw in him when he appointed him in 2001 as the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of the University of Lagos. Having performed meritoriously in this enviable public duty for four years, he was reappointed for another term of four years. So, he held the position till 2008 during which he emerged and was decorated as the Best Pro-Chancellor of Nigerian Universities consecutively in 2005 and 2006. He was also a former Chairman of the Committee of Pro-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities.
Today, by the special grace of God, Chief Afe Babalola, the Aare Bamofin of Yoruba land, holds degrees from several universities, including Ekiti State University for the award of Doctor of Letters (LL.D) in 2002; LL.D of the University of London; LL.D of the University of Lagos; LL.D of the University of Jos; LL.D of the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA); LL.D of the Kogi State University. In fact, he was the first African to be conferred with Doctor of Laws (Honoris Causa) of the University of London in 2015. Given his monumental philanthropic gestures and remarkable contribution to nation building in Nigeria, he was conferred with the prestigious National Award as Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic (OFR) and subsequently as Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
Over the years, having been a consistent benefactor to the nation's education sector, making contributions to the standardization of quality and the provision of enduring, world-class infrastructural facilities such as lecture theaters, auditoriums, faculty buildings, libraries and laboratories; and having garnered extensive skills and copious experience in university administration, Chief Afe Babalola envisioned the need to establish a First Class and up-to-date university to serve as a benchmark in academic standards and facilities for other universities in Nigeria. For this reason, an expansive World-class private institution, the Afe Babalola University, was established in 2009 and is domiciled on a very large expanse of land, precisely 130 hectares, in Chief Afe's home town, Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State. The university offers academic programmes in six Colleges of Natural Sciences, Law, Engineering, Social and Management Sciences, Medicine and Health Sciences as well as Postgraduate Studies. The institution's College of Engineering is built on about three and half acres of land and is well equipped with sophisticated state-of-the-art facilities from Europe and the Americas and is reputed to be one of the largest in Africa. In the same vein, ABUAD's College of Medicine and Health Sciences and its Multisystem Teaching Hospital is second to none in Nigeria, given the various medical facilities and the professional expertise with which patients are handled with utmost care.
Shortly after my Senatorial primaries late last year, I visited Chief Afe Babalola in his office within the university premises in company of my wife and some of my political associates to say a big THANK YOU to him for his invaluable fatherly support and for keeping faith with us always and in all ways. After the usual pleasantries, Chief Afe instructed one of his senior staff to take us for an inspection round the Multisystem Hospital and, believe you me, we saw a masterpiece of architecture design, an avalanche of medical infrastructure, some of which can only be found in first class hospitals abroad. A tour of the facilities around the university deeply revealed the in-depth passion, insight and vision of a foremost educationist, a well experienced university administrator and a dynamic and foresighted entrepreneur. To this extent, I wholeheartedly recommend ABUAD Teaching Hospital to the Federal and State Governments, families and individuals in Nigeria. Rather than travelling abroad on medical tourism and encouraging needless capital flights to other climes, let us be proud to patronize our own public and private institutions.
At a prime age of 90, Aare Afe Babalola remains a great pride and an illustrious ambassador of the people of Ekiti State, the Yoruba people of the South-West and Nigeria as whole. Here is an outstanding personality who has not only traversed and conquered different spheres of life but has also proved, in many respects, to be a great asset to his generation and to humanity in general. As we join the world to celebrate his 90th birthday anniversary as well as 10 years of monumental and unprecedented achievements of the prestigious Afe Babalola University (ABUAD) today, I profoundly felicitate with this icon and profusely thank him for making us proud in Ekiti State. I am proud to identify with his remarkable success anywhere in the world as well as the legacy of leadership and foresight his name and the institution called ABUAD have come to represent. It is in recognition of this that other accomplished and well renowned men in history, including our own enigmatic Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, will stand beside Aare Afe today to be conferred with yet another honorary Doctorate degree of ABUAD. May this legacy live on and may the good Lord keep Aare Afe for us to continue to tap from his wealth of knowledge and wisdom as he continues to age with abundant grace.
Senator Michael Opeyemi Bamidele is Chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters.
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The $9 Billion judgment debt thunder: Is Nigeria in a Cul-de-Sac? (4)
Last week, we continued with our discourse on the legal issues arising from this $9 billion judgment debt. Wherein, we consider some legal concepts. Today, we shall take a look at other concepts as advanced by pro-government Advisors to arrive at a just opinion. Now, let us continue.
This is another argument advanced by pro-government advisors. They claim Nigeria enjoys state immunity against enforcement of such awards.
State immunity, or sovereign immunity as it is often referred to, is a principle of international law that has become part of the national law of many states. It derives from the theory of the sovereign equality of states, as a consequence of which one state has no right to judge the actions of another by the standards of its national law. It protects an entity in two ways: by conferring immunity from adjudication (also known as immunity from suit) and by conferring immunity from enforcement and execution.
If a party is immune from adjudication, the court will be prevented from considering claims against that party and awarding a judgement or declaring rights and obligations against it. If a party is immune from enforcement and execution, the court will be prevented from recognizing a foreign judgement or an arbitral award against the immune party and from making and executing orders or injunctions against it.
International attitudes towards state immunity vary. In general, there are two approaches: the absolute doctrine and the restrictive doctrine.
Initially the first and only approach, the absolute doctrine still applies in some jurisdictions, notably China and Hong Kong. Under this doctrine, any proceedings against foreign states are inadmissible unless the state expressly agrees to waive immunity
The increasing involvement of the states in world trade activities led to the development of a more restrictive approach to the state immunity, where a distinction is now drawn between acts of a sovereign nature and acts of a commercial nature. Under the restrictive approach, immunity is only available in respect of acts resulting from the excessive of a sovereign power. As such, states may not claim immunity in respect of commercial activities or over commercial assets.
Although the restrictive approach is now widely adopted, state immunity continues to be an unsettled area of International Law and the scope of recognised exceptions varies from state to state.
Put simply, if a state is able to claim immunity from suit or enforcement, it will be difficult for a commercial party to enforce its contractual rights against that state. A successful plea of state immunity (as Nigeria intends to do) will mean that either the courts will refuse to hear the dispute or they will be unable to give effect to any judgment or award made against the state.
Commercial parties always attempt to manage the risks associated with state immunity by obtaining a contractual waiver of immunity. This is an early step by which the state wholly waives and agrees not to claim the immunity it would otherwise be entitled to. However, increasingly, states and state entities are now refusing to abandon their rights to immunity. In many cases, they now insist on positively asserting their right to claim immunity in relevant contractual documents. In such, any party dealing with the state perfectly understands the ponderous consequences of dealing with a state entity which has not expressly waived its immunity.
The key important questions and answers a party should ask when state immunity may become an issue, as applicable under English law, i.e, under the SIA, now follows:
When state actors invest in private equity funds, they play by different rules. Under the doctrine of "sovereign immunity," if the relationship sours, governmental investors may be protected from legal recourse in ways that other investors are not.
The doctrine of sovereign immunity is simply about the proposition that the government cannot be sued without its consent – that is, "the King can do no wrong." Sovereign immunity, though simple in concept, is nuanced in application. It can apply to a wide range of investors, including nation states, state agencies or departments, supranational organisations, and sovereign wealth funds and governmental pension plans. This means that a fund owner may have limited legal recourse against certain "sovereign" investors unless it has taken appropriate precautionary steps at the time of the initial investment. The stakes could be very high.
Sovereign immunity takes two forms: (1) immunity from suit (also known as immunity from jurisdiction or adjudication) and (2) immunity from enforcement. The former prevents the assertion of the claim; the latter prevents even a successful litigant from executing a judgment already delivered.
None of these forms of immunity is actually absolute. Both recognize certain exceptions that permit actions under certain circumstances. Depending on the facts, a litigant may be able to invoke an exception to immunity from suit in a situation where though he could bring and win a case, he may yet be unable to collect his money because none of the exceptions to immunity from enforcement applies.
For United States, private equity funds and investors, sovereign immunity most often arises under either under U.S. law or under English law (or the law of territories that follow English law, such as the Cayman Islands). Whichever law applies in any particular circumstance will likely be determined by the jurisdiction in which the proceedings are brought, although the law chosen by the parties to govern their agreements may also have a direct impact on the proceedings. Either way, at each step, the key questions are the same: Who or what is entitled to immunity? If immunity exists, does an exception apply?
The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976 ("FSIA") governs the rights and immunities of foreign – as opposed to U.S. – states and agencies. Under FSIA, foreign states are immune both from jurisdiction and from enforcement in the U.S., unless an exception applies.
FSIA defines "foreign state" broadly, and extends immunity not just to the sovereign nation state, but also to its political subdivisions, agencies and instrumentalities. "Agencies and instrumentalities" include (i) any separate legal entity (ii) that is (or is majority-owned by) an organ of a foreign state or political subdivision, and (iii) that is created under the laws of that foreign state. The net effect of these broad definitions is that sovereign wealth funds may be entitled to immunity from suit under FSIA.
An otherwise immune state entity can be sued in a U.S. court if the action is based upon a commercial activity with a sufficient nexus to the U.S. Investing in a private equity fund has been recognized as a "commercial activity" under FSIA, and a failure to make a payment in the U.S. may be sufficient to permit the suit.
A state entity can waive its immunity under FSIA either explicitly (e.g., in a side letter) or by implication (e.g., by filing a responsive pleading in an action without raising a defense of sovereign immunity). (To be continued).
"Only one thing can save this country, and that's to get a handle on this deficit and debt issue." (Mitch McConnell).
I thank Nigerians for always keeping faith with the Sunday Sermon on the Mount of the Nigerian Project, by Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN, OFR, FCIArb., Ph.D, LL.D. I enjoin you to look forward to next week's treatise.
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Battle of the reds at Old Trafford: Mane, Firmino too hot for United
…James, Rashford, Maguire battle for pride
One of the biggest rivalry in English football is that of Manchester United and Liverpool. Both sides are the most successful in the country both at domestic and European levels. The two teams meet at Old Trafford on Sunday. In the past, a Premier League encounter between Manchester United and Liverpool is always crucial title decider in England.
Events have however changed the situation over the years for and against both sides. There was a good spell for Manchester United at some point when they either clinched the league or come second. At the time, Liverpool struggled to make Top Four or settled for Europa place. The reverse is the case in recent time as Jurgen Kloop has turned the Reds to title contend- ers every season while United either settle for Top Four or Europa place.
Manchester United have won the EPL title 20 times while Liverpool have clinched it 18 times. In the all-time head-to-head record between the two teams from 1894 to 2019, United are still having an edge with 88 wins against Liverpool's 76 while both sides recorded 66 draws. In the past 12 meetings since 2014 till date, United have won five times while Liverpool have only recorded two wins and they both played draw five times.
In the past six meetings, there were four draws and one win each for both sides. On current form, Sunday's encounter should be a no contest because Liverpool have not dropped one point in their last 18 EPL games. This season alone, Liverpool have won all their eight league games to be on top of the table with eight point difference between them and second placed Manchester City.
Their current run has placed them in pole position to clinch the league this time. Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino are fully fit for this encounter while Mohamed Salah is expected to be ready. Alexander Arnold is solid in the defence with the big man, Virgil Van Dijk. The Kloop men look complete and ready for any opposition and this is their best opportunity to humiliate United at home. The reverse is the case for United, experiencing the most ridiculous start to a season in the past 30 years.
The Ole Gunnar Solskjær's men have won only two games and are just two points above the relegation line. Two key players – Paul Pogba and David De Geahave been ruled out due to injury. The team has lost to Crystal Palace at Old Trafford, also lost to Newcastle and West Ham away.
With this spell, United do not have the quality t o ordinarily beat Liverpool but they could raise their game and snatch a draw, just as they did last sea- son at Old Trafford. Three new players Daniel James upfront, Harry Maguire and Aaron Wan Bissaka, are solid defenders but can they stop the rampaging Liverpool's attack? On a good day, Marcus Rashford and James could stun the visitors but overall, Mane, Firmino, Salah are too much for United, and so it's advantage Liverpool.
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The flipside of governor's home
The nature of a man is easily detected through his interactions with people and perceptions of issues. Position and wealth are never concealers of weaknesses or character traits. Rather, power, influence and authority are the fermenting catalysts that usually get occupiers of exalted offices intoxicated through unpredictable utterances and behaviours. Incidentally, men with such raw mannerism usually turn out to be more dependable, loyal and responsible husbands.
True to their nature, they are not so romantic when it comes to love play. They rarely entertain prolonged wooing of women as they prefer to go straight to the point whenever or wherever they find love. Regardless of what others might think about their actions and utterances, they're habitually candid, less tolerant of nuances of diplomacy and pretence. One of such maverick personalities is the immediate past governor of Oyo State, Senator Abiola Ajimobi. These descriptions are some of the traits that signpost the character of the neatly mustached-politician, according to his wife, Florence Ajimobi.
The First Lady recalls with nostalgia how her husband proposed to her like a typical "Ibadan man" without the usual allure of romance and mollycoddling. He won her heart because they had been close friends for a while. The charming Ajimobi had never hidden his true nature for once. Being her gist mate, she'd been addicted to his attention, evening walks and doing virtually everything together.
Meanwhile, the common practice with the couple is to table every issue for discussion in order to arrive at the best possible decision. The practice was punctured in 2003 when, against their convention, he simply walked in and announced to bewildered Florence that "I'm going into politics." Initially she thought it was a huge joke. She responded that she's not in support, hoping he would table the matter for proper discussion but nay, "he said that's his decision and there's no going back on it." That's when it dawned on her that she hasn't known her man enough.
Every great thing, level or status is achievable at a cost. It is rare to toil through to success or greatness without experiencing some challenges or giving up some things for the sake of the target. This is the stark reality of life as evidenced in the testimony of successful people and great achievers. Many of those who pray for positions of authority or influence forget to recognize that there's a prize to pay. Incidentally, many people hate to suffer denials at their new levels.
The thinking that all is rosy and cozy for people in power and affluent positions is not always true. Some apprehension do accompany such status. What commoners do take for granted is often the envy of the high and the mighty. For instance, many people in leadership positions don't enjoy privacy like other citizens. Whereas the affluent are envious of the freedom and social life of the common citizen, in the reversed order, the commoner would be praying for, dreaming and hoping of attaining the affluent status knowing it would better his/her lot. The former situation is the graphic description of life in many top political office holders' homes especially at the state senator's level upward.
Those at the receiving end of this chequered situation are the immediate family members of the executives. While the people out there are seeing glamour, wealth and perks of office, the family members are enduring circumstantial abandonment, loneliness, living in 'confinement', loss of social life, ebbed family life and restricted access to fun. These (and perhaps many more) are the lot of most First Ladies while in office.
According to the immediate past First Lady of Oyo State, Florence Ajimobi, while appreciating God for improved status through service to the people as offered by her husband, Senator Ajimobi, life as a governor's wife is not what she desires again. Her husband's two terms as governor was a big 'loss' to her family life.
"For eight straight years, I 'sacrificed' my friend to politics and public service. Our family life was at the lowest ebb. Meetings, work and politics took him away from me. He was nowhere for me as my husband or father to his children. In fact, the children hardly see him," she said, adding that what she missed the most was his companionship because they were gist mates from the beginning of their relationship.
She explains that living in Abuja while her husband was a senator remains a dark moment of her marital life. The Abuja experience is not palatable for her at all. In her words: "I was lonely most of the time. My social life was gone. I missed everything a marriage should be. I wouldn't want a repeat of such experience."
If, as a senator's wife she laments loneliness, being a governor's wife was more challenging. The difference is that she engaged her time with supportive activities as First Lady and she's within the reach of her people.
Life as First Lady was a harrowing experience for her. "I think eight years is too long. One term of six years should be okay. Our children missed their father because he's rarely available. Even as his wife, he's no longer available. Most of the time he came to bed at 3a.m. He would crash into sleep almost immediately tired and fagged out. Usually he would apologise saying 'madam, I'm tired please.' "The next moment, he's deep asleep," she explains, adding that life in Government House is not as pleasant, satisfying and desirable as people think. Indeed, not all that's glittering is real gold.
Like the title of a popular television series: "The Rich Also Cry", but in this case, "The Affluent Also Lament." A typical governor's home is sacrificed on the altar of public service. Mrs. Ajimobi was even luckier during her time compared to some of her contemporaries who live like "widows" not because they lack food to eat or money to spend (though some really don't have enough to spend) but that the basic conjugal need like their husbands' attention and sex suddenly become a luxury or near unavailable throughout their tenure. We can now understand why some First Ladies are emotionally hostile and harsh!
Florence Ajimobi is a beautiful, intelligent, articulate and confident woman. She oozes dignity with rich connection with her root. She's not blinded by the perks of office to attract any scandal or demonstrate ostentatious lifestyle that would question her modesty. Despite bottled-up discontent brought about by her status, she stood firmly by her audacious man who kept heaping battles on several fronts for the most part of his tenure.
Whenever you see the glamour of a governor's wife, remember the sacrifice she's making for the people even to her own inconvenience. Therefore, women like Mrs. Ajimobi should be celebrated and saluted for the big prize they pay in the public interest. Her book offers more insight into the flipside of life in power as a governor's wife.
Entitled "My Life Like A Rainbow," the book contains her thoughts and experiences as a politician's wife and First Lady. It is an eye-opener for those in public offices especially their spouses. The book demystifies opulence, perceived comfort and class associated with public offices, in particular, those of Senators, Governors and the President.
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The politics in the other room
"A lie can travel half way around the World while truth is still putting on its shoes" – Mark Twain
Social media has a lot of minuses but its pluses still exceed, it all depends on where you are when they throw their stones. If you create enabling environment for them to fertilize in your domain, you are likely to find their sugar bitter in your mouth. Just like Nigerian Presidency that had sour tales to tell about social media last week over poor management of information. When you allow a very visible person like the First Lady of a nation to go off the radar for over six weeks without a word, you are indirectly the one throwing bones to the dogs; what the dog does with the bones can only be imagined. Turning round therefore to wonder why the dog is too savage at the bones tantamount to an alarmist who beats drum in the bush and rushes to the village square to ask who is drumming.
For keeping Nigerians in suspense for that long on the whereabouts of the First Lady, the Presidency should have itself to blame for the drama that trailed her exit and eventual return. It's no mere paper work when it's said that once you are a leader of a people you lose your privacy. As long as the seat of power is not at peace with itself, what results from it could be unpalatable like avoidable leaks as experienced in the last few weeks from Aso Rock Villa. It would amount to attention diversion to look elsewhere in search of the problems whose origin is right inside the main and the other rooms of the Presidency.
The living room of the First Lady otherwise called the other room or that of her son was thrown open on the Internet last week with her even confirming that truly the viral video on display on the social media was actually hers. From the fallouts, somebody sat somewhere, planned to provoke the First Lady knowing what her reaction would be and through to type she came out as predicted letting lose her temperament as the person recorded it for the public.
In journalism if you scoop a story that is exclusive to you, it can be kept to be released at the appropriate and fitting time and that was exactly what the 'social media practitioner' at the Aso Villa did. Many security operatives in Aso Rock were schooled to ensure that journalists more than any other group were prevented from coming close or prying into the first family's home. But unknown to them that right inside was a more dangerous 'reporter' who knows nothing about off-record and can go to any length to destroy their target without factoring the consequences.
Too many security breaches have been recorded as a result of the political infighting in the Presidency. Indecorously, the highly venerated home of number one citizen in the country has been turned into an open battle ground by people who refuse to observe the etiquette of the place. Until recent happenings in the nation's power base under the watch of President Muhammadu Buhari, he used to carry an image of a disciplined, no nonsense character who would not tolerate hogwash behaviour around him. But all that were demystified by the desecration of Aso Rock by family members who probably do not value the environment enough to appreciate and observe the required ethos.
Annoyingly, rather than look inwards for the originators of the mess, the Presidency is trying to gag the social media. But in going forward, we really need to find out who a social media practitioner is? Answer to this question will help those bent on attacking the freedom of journalists as a fallout from this marriage rumour episode. It's certainly not in doubt that no journalist followed the First Lady to her room to record her screaming of being locked in, the recording as already confirmed was done by a family member who was bent on settling scores and who in this case is the social media practitioner. What social media practitioners outside did were just to help herald a finished story. We all know as Kathleen O'Dell said that "though there's a grain of truth in every rumour, the worst gossip usually starts with something harmless."
As a rumour this matter should not have merited a space as a Musing topic this week, but not with its wide implications especially against the backdrop of the government's hinting of curbing the media.
As a weekly current affairs column that discusses matters arising from the polity, nothing could have been weightier even as a rumour than a 76-year-old President of a country whose 94 million citizens are in the threshold of extreme poverty going for a second wife last Friday and perhaps even more curious was that the lucky bride was going to be one of his newly appointed ministers.
It never sounded believable that a 76-year-old President would take a new wife but since a smell at the basement has a way of getting to the attic nothing could be easily disregarded. As a journalist who was also trained into believing that rumour could be a huge source of story, I knew that nothing would divert any other political discourse for the week. Not with the drama that accompanied it, the alleged protest from the current wife who incidentally is really the second wife since the President's actual first wife is late. If this rumour had turned real the latest would have been the third wife to the President.
I am going to withhold what I would have said if the President had taken a third wife since it's going to be conjectural. It's however good to put on record one significant achievement of that dangerous rumour; it brought home our amiable First Lady Aisha Buhari from her hiding place in United Kingdom.
For over 60 days the irrepressible First Lady had disappeared from the radar as her husband's second term was being "cooked". When all those she wanted thrown away from the corridor of power began to return she vamoosed from the scene journeying from Saudi Arabia to Britain officially for prayers and medics respectively. There was no word from the Presidency on her whereabouts leaving room for rumour mongers in the social media to fish on. By the time the rumour peddlers were half way their mission, the First Lady appeared claiming she did not abandon her children and husband.
As she spoke on arrival at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, less than 48 hours after the marriage rumour, the mood was mixed with all present on the edge expecting her to be herself and explode. But she was guided as she tried not to multiply the pressure the rumour already heaped on the Presidency; she chose her words cautiously to the surprise of not a few.
However, the revealing exchanges that have trailed the ill-fated marriage and the eventual return of the First Lady only have one thing to prove, that all is not yet glowing in the first family. Very clearly the politics in the other room is fierce, and as a result the room was locked for too long, a costly error that fed rumour hawkers and dented the image of our Presidency as a nation. Were it not Nigeria, if it were in other climes, Presidency would have apologized to Nigerians for degrading their hallowed seat of power? Just thinking aloud.
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Sex predators: Is castration the answer?
The increasing cases of rape and defiling of little children in Ekiti require urgent attention. The amendment being sought may include imprisonment and medical castration of offenders, among others not stipulated in the existing law – Erelu Bisi Fayemi, First Lady, Ekiti State.
he human mind works in a mysterious way that confirms that man is more than the Matter that Marxists say it is. Man, truly, has a spiritual essence. A Marxist lecturer, a professor, was driving up North and, out of nowhere, thoughts of a secondary school classmate of his flashed through his mind. Since they left school decades ago, he had had no contact with or had cause to think of this classmate. He quickly perished the thought and continued on his trip. Not long afterwards, his car developed a fault and all efforts by the ubiquitous "road-side mechanics" to kick it back to life failed. He was advised to tow the vehicle to a nearby city where he was assured a mechanic workshop there would fix the problem. Getting there, he filled the job card and was ushered into the Manager's Officer. Lo and behold, seated right behind the desk was his classmate whose thought had run through his mind a while ago! Was he stunned? Why the thought of this guy a while ago? Happenstance or was that God at work?
Days ago, Peter Abelard's name suddenly crossed my mind and I immediately began to ruminate on some of his thoughts that I had read decades ago at Ife. I could never have thought that Erelu Bisi Fayemi, wife of the governor of Ekiti State, was going to make the quotes cited above a week after. Thanks for Google; I had no difficulty refreshing my mind on Abelard (1079 – 1142), French, born the eldest son of lesser nobility in La Pallet in Brittany. At one and same time a logician, ethicist, philosopher, and theologian; he was a leading thinker of the middle ages. He has been described as the pre-eminent philosopher of the 12th Century and, perhaps, the greatest logician of the middle ages. He was equally famous as a poet and composer and was ranked one of the most pre-eminent theologians of his day. In all areas, Abelard was brilliant, innovative and controversial. He was described as a genius. He knew it and made no apologies. His vast knowledge, wit, charm and even arrogance drew a generation of Europe's fine minds in Paris to learn from him.
Philosophically, Abelard is best known as the father of nominalism. For contemporary philosophers, nominalism is most closely associated with the problem of universals but is actually a much broader metaphysical system. Abelard formulated what is now recognised as a central nominalist tenet: Only particulars exist. It is from Abelard's claim that only words (nomen) are universal that nominalism gets its name. His pride or arrogance triggered a lot of jealousy in others and caused him so much grief and troubles but, perhaps, the greatest disaster of his life was self-inflicted: His love affairs with Heloise. About 1116, Abelard began an affair with Heloise, his student and niece of Fulbert, the canon of Notre Dame. She was to become one of the great minds of the 12th Century in her own right and theirs was the great tragic love story of the middle ages. They fell in love, had a child, secretly married, and exchanged a series of letters that have become the stuff of legends. Unfortunately, they kept their marriage a secret from Fulbert, Heloise's uncle, who thereafter exercised the traditional right of aggrieved families in such cases and had Abelard castrated. Yes, Abelard got castrated!
The aggrieved parent of a child who was defiled recently demanded the castration of the vile predator. Readers of this column would also have read about my niece whose four-year-old daughter was defiled by the driver of the school bus conveying the toddler to school in Osogbo, Osun State. I would need Erelu Bisi to tell the quote above to Governor Gboyega Oyetola of Osun State. Erelu Bisi should also please enlist her Osun State counterpart into the war against paedophiles and vile sex predators running rampant all over the country – and not only in Ekiti.
Back to Abelard! His foibles, hubris and academic excellence apart, I also far back then took interest in the polemics that set the thoughts of Abelard apart from those of, say, Anselm of Canterbury, St. Augustine of Hippo and St. Thomas of Aquinas. Not one given to unquestioning submission, Abelard posited that he asked questions so he could believe: "The key to wisdom", he said, "is constant and frequent questioning, for by doubting we are led to question and by questioning we arrive at the truth…The beginning of wisdom is found in doubting; by doubting we come to the question, and by seeking we may come upon the truth… It is by doubting that we come to investigate, and by investigating that we recognize the truth" Abelard's "Sic" and "Non" ("Yes" and "No"), a collection of 158 controversial theological questions and compiled writings from authorities, some for "Yes" and some for "No", posits that readers should be able to dissolve the apparent conflict between authorities and come to understand the answers to the questions posed through rational discussion.
No doubt, Abelard preceded Martin Luther whose 95 theses on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences pasted on the door of the church in Wittenberg, Saxony and addressed to the Archbishop of Mainz, dated 31st October, 1517, sparked off the Reformation that effectively liberated Christendom. The freedoms, liberties, and fundamental rights that we enjoy today had their roots in ages and personalities past.
Regrettably, these rights are viciously on assault these days by sex predators. Rape is on the increase. Paedophiles are on rage. The impunity of these vicious elements is fuelled by the complicity of the law and duplicity of those in authority. Miffed, Erelu Bisi has advocated more stringent penalties, including castration of the beasts in human skins. I agree no less! Your head is on your neck, Ma'am! Castration as suggested by Erelu Bisi is not new or strangely out of place as Abelard's example above shows. In the olden days, our palaces in the South-West had a retinue of the castrated called eunuchs, who kept the harem of the Obas. They were castrated so they would not "eat" Kabiyesi's "yams" kept in their custody. Still, there is the saying that you cannot but find bastards in a big palace! I wouldn't know whether the practice of eunuchs is still in place in our palaces today.
Society has been viciously assaulted by cases of sex-for-marks in our institutions of higher learning and the stalking of innocent students by predator-lecturers. At one end of the pole are randy and shameless lecturers who, like Abelard, would not mind sleeping with their students, negating the adage that elephants do not eat the grass under their frame. At the other end of the stick, sadly, are indolent, lazy, and indulgent students grovelling for marks and enticing debased lecturers not worthy of their academic gown. Both were there in our days on campus decades ago but operated in hushed voices. Today, however, they do their thing with impunity. When you add this moral laxity to the other paucities that whack the Ivory Tower, we shall have only appearance and no substance left in due course. While it is alright to punish randy lecturers, we will be making a grievous mistake if we allow their consenting liaisons to go scot-free. Except both are brought to book, the scourge will not be extirpated.
On January 15, 2019, the four-year old daughter of my niece was defiled by the driver of the school bus driving her from school. It was her second day in that school and the school – Charleston Group of Schools, Kelebe, Osogbo. My niece had just relocated from Ibadan back to Osogbo and the wife of the proprietor, one Mrs. Eniola Badmus Adeyemi, had been her acquaintance. The accused is one Oyelakin Oluwatomisin. He was arrested and sent to Ilesa prisons. The case, however, has (deliberately?) suffered diligent prosecution, with adjournments ad nauseam. Promises to move the case to the High Court have not been fulfilled. The magistrate had since granted the accused bail and he comes to court with his gang harassing, threatening, intimidating, insulting, taunting, tormenting and traumatising my hapless niece. Surely, it is not "Ileri Oluwa" that vile paedophiles be allowed to roam the streets of Osogbo free. The case comes up again on Monday, 21st October and the victims would wish public-spirited citizens and advocacy groups come to their aid by mounting pressure on the powers-that-be. No matter how highly politically-wired the accused and his godfathers are, justice will be served, God willing!
NFF should look inward to get young players for the Super Eagles rather than scouting for ready-made players from England. NFF wanted to reap where they did not sow! – Gordon Chika Nnorom, Umukabia.
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2020: Budget of consolidated suffering
By 2020, Nigeria was projected some 11 years ago to become one of the 20 largest global economies in the world. When the projection was made in 2009 during the tenure of late President Umaru Yar'Adua, Nigeria was ranked number 30th largest economy in terms of its GDP size. Nigeria, which has been in the wilderness of darkness could only boast of 3,500 megawatts at that time. Till date, despite huge investments in the power sector, we are still oscillating between 4,000 and 6,000 megawatts depending on who is presenting the data. Government apologists are quick to remind us that power generation has increased remarkably in the last two years but the same government has budgeted N9 billion for generators purchase and maintenance in several government agencies. While the Yar'Adua government set up the National Council on Vision 2020 to ensure that the expectations and objectives are followed through, there seems to be less work done to actually realise the gains of this noble agenda.
The National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS) was put in place as a launch pad for the actualisation of some of the key targets of this vision. Succeeding governments have come up with one idea or the other to drive the initiative. The energy sector which is key to jump-starting a productive economy has remained in its low ebb, with accusing fingers pointing in the direction of funds misappropriation, regime after regime. Within the last five years, unemployment figures have grown in a geometric proportion while job losses have become the icing on the cake. Whilst the Buhari-led Federal Government declares its avowed commitment to fighting corruption and making a lot of recoveries, the irony is that Nigeria and Nigerians are growing poorer and poorer by the day. Government has continued to complain of declining revenue, even when Professor Itsay Sagay says over N1 trillion was recovered within the last one year as an eloquent testimony to the anti-corruption crusade of the current government. Why the monies recovered are not apparently adding up to the figures remain a subject of curiosity.
Amid a plethora of issues begging for governmental intervention, government spokespersons are insisting that borrowing is the way to go since there is shortfall in national revenue to execute a considerable percentage of its annual budget. By 2020, when it would be 11 solid years since the official endorsement of the Vision 2020, on 1st October, 2009, Nigeria will still be encumbered by series of developmental challenges that have refused to go away. Presently, there is a huge gap in infrastructural development across the country. The roads are in bad shape, rendering mobility and commerce difficult to flourish. The education sector is suffering kwashiorkor as a result of poor funding in the area of infrastructure, learning and research. A paltry N48 billion budget in the 2020 budget year is a far cry from UNESCO benchmark. Given the huge challenges in the education sector, with incessant strike action by trade unions and its affiliate bodies, the education sector is presently traumatised. Added to this is the gloomy economy that has not shown any sign of recovery despite cooked up figures to whet the appetite of those in government as though we are making progress.
As if that is not debilitating enough, the unwholesome activities of kidnappers, armed bandits, armed robbery and other crimes, have had untoward impact on the wellbeing of the populace. The environment of insecurity that has become a perennial slur on the economic landscape has affected investment in remarkable measures. Rather than make a realistic budget estimates that would make us to cut our clothes according to our size, government is making budgetary projection that is almost dead on arrival. The projection of 2.180 mbpd on the oil front is undoubtedly ambitious, especially at a time when OPEC oil quota is hovering around 1.8 to 1.77mbpd. As if that was not enough, the oil price benchmark of $57 dollar per barrel is also uncertain. Rather than generate estimates that would seem positive on the outlook, government ought to set benchmark that would appear plausible and almost predictable. That Iran and the United States are presently in a muscle-flexing altercation which has raised oil price to $60 or $61 per barrel is not enough to sing hallelujah song. In a sector where Nigeria's influence is not water-tight, over-shooting OPEC quota in budgetary estimation is a joke taken too far.
The minimum wage challenge on the home-front is another pain in the neck of government. The Buhari presidency played politics with workers by agreeing on a N30,000 minimum wage before the elections, ostensibly to shore up support and votes from workers across the country. Rather than implement, governors have been complaining of lack of funds to hit the ground running. Labour is spoiling for strike action to pressurise government to honour its own side of the bargain. There are states that are still owing several months of salaries, some pay negotiated percentage, while others appear helpless in their effort to generate increased internally generated revenue (IGR). With Federal Government's decision to increase the Value Added Tax (VAT), which will mean more money for the states at the expense of the people, the mere fact that it is an item in the 2020 budget raises more posers to analysts. The VAT law has to be tinkered with if this increment is to take effect, but the constraint according to some analysts is that it is like taxing an already impoverished citizens. It is another way to consolidate their sufferings. When government ought to create the enabling environment for businesses to thrive, it is making effort to take from the already down and out Nigerians, whose means of livelihood is tellingly affected by por economic realities.
When the Buhari presidency came up with the Social Investment Programmes in 2016 in response to finding quick-fix solution to poverty, suffering and deprivation, and lifting the poorly poor away from poverty, it budgeted N500 billion into the scheme. The following year, the budget remained at N500 billion and it dropped to N350 billion in the succeeding year. In the 2020 budget, it is now pegged at N38 billion, a far cry from its earlier 2016 budget. That means, those Nigerians who have been captured in government's N5,000 monthly stipend will surely suffer in 2020. It will also mean that the school feeding programme which the government touted to be one of its legacy projects will also suffer. And those who have been captured in that supply chain will also be out of circulation. It is yet to be seen how this budget that proposes 20% capital expenditure, with N2.45 trillion debt servicing can actually launch the country on the path to economic recovery. While government apologists are raking up figures to justify the viability of the 2020 budget, it is left to be seen what investment N100 billion can attract in the defence and security portfolios, under a regime of insurgency and armed banditry. A deficit figure of N2.8 trillion is a clear indication of economic disaster, waiting to happen.
I had thought that with the announcement of the members of the Economic Advisory Council, that the President would create the opportunity for a robust synergy with the Budget and Planning Ministry in critically analysing the budget and taking informed position on it before it was hurriedly presented. This is a time that we need some level of uncommon approach to budgeting to get the figures right as well as the projections than the rush to impress the public on quick submission of budget. The ministers that were recently sworn in, needed time to study the books, make informed contributions before setting out to churn out a budget that could provide the right therapy for the economic ailments that confront us. Aside from the unrealistic nature of the budget, the complaint about lack of resources to fund the budget is another kettle of fish altogether.
Only on 1st October, 2019, the president told an already befuddled nation of N600 billion capital release to carry out capital projects. This is happening at the last quarter of the year. What baffles some observers is not the pronouncement, but that whether the government will be able to reflate the economy with such promised fund. That promised N600 billion represents 22% of the budgeted estimate in the 2019 budget, an indication that the 2020 budget may follow similar pattern of poor funding.
In an era when Nigerians are already groaning under the negative spell of poor budgetary implementation, with over 100 million amongst the world's poorest, an unrealistic budget will be addition burden on the citizens. Government ought to cut down on its excesses and overheads. There is no justifiable reason why for example, the president will approve six Special Assistants and Special Advisers to an office that is not known to law; office of the First Lady. Government can also cut down on some items like president's haircut, domestic travels, foreign travels, purchase and maintenance of generators and entertainment in the Villa. A dire situation that we find ourselves requires a serious austerity approach to cut down on wastes. This is the way to go in order to bail out Nigerians from their present economic predicament.
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2020 budget proposals
n Tuesday October 8, 2019 President Muhammadu Buhari presented to a joint session of the National Assembly (NASS) the details of the 2020 Budget which is named; 'Budget of Sustaining Growth and Job Creation.' The first thing that struck someone is to ask what level of growth we are sustaining. At a projected growth of 2.9 per cent which is still below our purported population growth of about 3 per cent we are still a long way from the desired level of growth which ideally should be in the range of 6 to 9 per cent if commensurate impact is to be made on the prevalent levels of unemployment with the need for rapid poverty alleviation. The aggregate expenditure for the 2020 Budget is now N10.33 trillion at some point in time this total expenditure was almost a moving target.
There are immediately two remarkable takeaways from the budget presentation. One was the good spirit, the banter and camaraderie atmosphere that hallmarked the budget presentation contrary to the rancour, recrimination and bad spirit that was the case last year. In fact one must also quickly add the heckling, shouting, name calling and general demeaning behaviour. The other remarkable development surrounding the presentation of the budget was the timing of the presentation. For the first time in a long while we witnessed budget presentation not in December or early January but actually in October! You would have to pinch yourself to confirm that you are not living in dream land.
The President had repeatedly assured all that cared to listen that he would harmonize the budget year with the calendar year. And he is now all set to deliver on this promise and he pulls this off and we are able to sustain it, we must then put this down as one of the legacies which this President had bequeathed to this country. What happened in the past was very shameful and rather unbecoming for a country the calibre of Nigeria; the reputed largest economy in Africa. In reality there was no ascertainable budget year as budget implementation commenced whenever the budget was approved which in reality was often in the second half of the year which situation not only projected us as unserious but made particularly capital budget implementation a nightmare and largely accounted for the lack of commensurate growth of the economy. Little wonder unemployment became a veritable growth sector with the consequent rise in social crimes.
We are now poised to realise the January to December budget year as all stakeholders have demonstrated their resolve for this to happen leveraging on the existing cordial relationship between the Executive and the Legislature. The NASS has closed plenary sessions to now work in relevant committees to interact with the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) for speedily presentation and approval of their respective budgets and so bye to the previous, often heard name calling and posturing with the Legislature claiming that their work was being delayed because government agencies have refused to attend to defend their budgets.
But we have been on record with the recommendation that we could dispense with this unnecessary aspect of the budget approval process. It is a duplication and an abuse of due process for accepted best practice in reporting. Those agencies do not report to the NASS and have prior made their submissions to the Executive which approved them after due defense before inclusion in packaging of the national budget. And the experience has been that this is the window which is seized to arm twist the agencies to make provisions for third parties in their budget. So we invite the President to use his good offices and leverage on the existing cordial relationship to expunge this stage in the budget approval process going forward.
A growth rate of 2.9 per cent has been assumed. Whether this is attainable is in the womb of the future. A growth rate of 2.02% has been reported as recorded in the first half of 2019. With early passage of the budget so implementation could commence early and with the aggressive revenue drive now mounted, there is good expectation that an improvement in growth rate is well on the cards. What remains certain is that we must devise a means to record far higher growth rates close to a range of 6 to 9 per cent if the economy is going to get out of the woods, jobs created and poverty alleviated in not distant future. And this goal is not farfetched with consistent disciplined and focused implementation of the policies and programmes in the budgets. There will also be the need to plug all leakages to minimize misappropriations. The instruction in the budget that all workers must be registered on integrated payroll and personal information is therefore a move in the desired direction.
The assumptions in the budget appear mostly realistic. An oil benchmark of $57 per barrel has been used with a daily production level of 2.18 million barrels per day (mbpd). Oil price we have been informed averaged $67 last year with a daily production level of 1.86 million as at end June 2019. Therefor for this benchmark it is certain that we have erred on the side of caution. It must be recalled that the Executive submission was at $55 dpb and it was the Legislature that hiked the price up to the existing $57 with comments being now made to the effect that this price should be further increased during the review; the legislature should take over the budget from the executive as the allocation to capital expenditure is not adequate to facilitate the level of growth required to jumpstart the economy for the much awaited growth in job opportunities. We caution against such sentiments as it could contaminate the good relationship we have so far celebrated. The responsibility for budget preparation remains exclusively that of the Executive. The foreign exchange rate of N305 to the dollar assumed in the budget is cautionary as this is the base exchange rate and therefore exchange rate above this rate would be a bonus as it generates greater dollar inflows. But with the newly inaugurated Economic Advisory Council, this rate might not survive for too long.
The challenge on the expenditure side of the budget is real. With recurrent expenditure of about 70 per cent of total expenditure, there is not much scope to rapidly grow the economy. It is unfortunate that the relative balance between capital and revenue expenditure with all the gains made to redress these relative rates in favour of capital expenditure in the recent past would now seem to have been lost. The creation of five new ministries; power, aviation, special duties and international affair, police affairs, and humanitarian affairs, disaster management and social development definitely has compounded the situation. Also the provision for the new minimum wage and enhancement of the salaries and wages of the Police and armed forces have also added to the problem. The capital budget at N2.14 trillion against a debt service provision of N2.45 trillion higher than the capital budget illustrates the extent of fiscal sustainability dilemma confronting the country. It has also been estimated that above 60% of revenue inflow is now used to service debts and therefore the challenge of growing revenue could not have been more pressing and urgent. It is in this context that the proposed increase in VAT rate must be accommodated by all even if we must note that VAT rates in Nigeria are the lowest when compared with rates elsewhere in the world.
Sectorial capital allocations have presented some challenges. An allocation to education of N48 billion even if there is the consideration of an additional allocation of N112 billion to Universal Basic Education would seem to be inadequate considering the importance of education for the future prosperity of the country. The economy of the future is the one that leverages on automation, robotics and artificial intelligence and no longer on the extractive sector. Also an allocation to the health sector of N46 billion offends all protocols which the country has subscribed to in this respect as it represents a far lower percentage allocation. But we must observe that in these matters there are no quick fixes. We must for now be content with achieving a measure of progress with the implementation of the budget to build on that as we make gradual progress while we offer supplications for the possibility of the realization of the harmonization of the budget and calendar year now staring us on the face.
λDr. Chizea, an economist, writes from Lagos.
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Prolonged 'single and searching' (2)
Making the right choice of a life partner is the foundation of a successful marital life every adult desires to live. Last week, I listed three major factors that are considered to be responsible for the stagnated relationship status of many mature single women. They are: high-mindedness, desperation for instant marriage proposal, and lack of vision to know their ordained roles as life partners to their would-be husbands. I treated high-mindedness leaving the remaining two for this week.
Glossing over basic relationship issues often lead to confusion and inertia at some crucial moments in one's life. Therefore, making a good and lasting choice depends largely on the G-factor (God-factor) as no human approach can guarantee absolute success. I always advise that the best time to pray is before searching for partners.
In the scriptures, Abraham's servant prayed as he set out in search of a life partner for his master's son, Isaac. His prayer point was that God should lead his way or direct his footsteps to the right woman that would meet his expectations and prescribed qualities. G-factor played out and his prayer was answered in perfect accuracy. Likewise, everyone in need of a life partner should pray ahead for God's leading. The connection could occur through social meetings, online platforms, matchmaking or personal contact.
Back to the narrative, the craze for instant marriage proposal is a circumstance that several mature single women have created for themselves. Starting a relationship from friendship has become inconsequential to them. They allude to their age as the reason while claiming there's no time to waste on friendship, whereas their hurried stance is another unsuspecting route to a prolonged single and searching status.
Befriending a man would afford the woman the privilege of knowing him better. Refusal to allow friendship before going into marriage is a catalyst for eventual failure. Men, like some women do, could pretend in order to win over a woman especially those who are desperate for the wedding rings only to dump the women after satisfying their urges. Desperate women do ignore wise counsel to their own hurt. They are blinded to glaring deception and fantasy. They feel 'wiser' than everybody else by disregarding opinions that seem not in sync with theirs.
The idea of "marriage or nothing" often prolong their journey to nowhere. It makes them vulnerable to all manner of manipulations from men. Sometimes they throw caution into the winds by becoming cheaply available to undeserving men who pretend to be husbands-in-waiting. They fall in lust with men that simply lash on their desperation through the Greek offer of marriage proposal which is actually a fluke. There's no better alternative to going through friendship regardless of your age and how you are connected. It is not every short-cut that leads to the right way.
I want to believe that women's lack of vision to know who they truly are and their ordained roles as life partners to their would-be husbands also account for making the wrong choices. I'm aware of the role and duties God assigned to the man in a marriage. I'm also in the know of what God says concerning the woman as a blessing and helper to her man but putting on the toga of a beggarly or needy helper to her husband has done more discredit to her.
Interestingly, God created some women to rule and dominate. They are leaders, pillars of support to their family members, they feed, provide and care for their people starting from their immediate environment. Such women are often referred to as Proverb 31 kind of women. Such calibre of women are in political, business, social or religious spotlights. They excel greatly as captain of industries, eminent scholars, experts in rare fields and professional consultants to global brands or international organisations.
This class of women earn big. They are accomplished and hugely successful in their careers. In all of this, they are still wifely to the core. They are the pride of their men and families. They exude enviable image of spousal grandeur to the admiration of everyone in the society. Although the man is obliged to provide for the needs of his household being the head of his wife, leader of his home, the defender and protector of everyone under his custody, yet, he needs his wife to 'help' him actualise his God-given roles and duties. There's a huge difference between a woman who is a breadwinner and a woman who is helping or supporting her man when things are rough. They are not the same thing and I think it is the woman in the latter category that are often being misrepresented by some folks.
There are people who had wanted to achieve some goals or some levels of comfort for themselves before they get married but their efforts were not so fruitful; but shortly after they got married, things began to look brighter and easier for them. In a matter of months or a few years, they have surpassed their envisaged projections. That's part of the double portion blessing attainable in a compatible and settled home.
With the look of things, today's mature single women don't seem to be patient enough in their quest for companions or life partners that they will build life together. It is either the man is "already made" to qualify him for a "deal" or "no deal" at all if he's not there yet. I wish that many of them could face the reality and admit the need for a review of their perception and approach to relationship in their quest for new marital fulfilment. I wish them well.
Re: Prolonged 'Single and Searching'
Dear West,
Your article: "Prolonged 'Single and Searching'" is just another masterpiece. This is an eye-opener to them (women) if only they will hear. I pray one day I will have the opportunity to meet with you and narrate in details the ordeals I suffered in the hands of these women. (Na long tory no be matter for phone or message.) More power to your elbow Michael West. Thank you sir and well done. – Charles, Satellite Town, Lagos.
These men, many are uneducated. They never bothered to go to school. Their spoken and written English is beyond apology. How do you want a woman to marry such? You know you have to live with such a fellow and present him as a husband. Another category of men are those who refuse to work. I use the word "refuse" because there's a job for everyone. Men do menial jobs abroad but feel too big here to do whatever job that would empower him to put food on the table. Many ladies are the breadwinners in the name of answering "Mrs." – Liz, Lagos.
Back Page Column
Cameron, Jonathan and Chibok girls
"The most serious failure of leadership is the failure to foresee" – Robert k. Greenleaf
Charleston Parker, the author of the book, 'One Soul Many Faces', admonished us to 'quit believing in lies and to always search for the truth'. That is exactly what I urge us all to do as we chew what two former leaders, former Prime Minister of Britain David Cameron and former President of Nigeria Goodluck Jonathan are presenting to us as part of their testimonial in leadership.
One interesting thing about leadership is that what you failed to do would continue to hurt you especially if it's something you had the power and influence to do but didn't. In Nigeria today all those who directly or indirectly failed to act for the rescue of Chibok girls from their abductors will have their conscience to contend with the rest of their lives.
Since last week two former World leaders have been on each other's neck for actions they failed woefully to take when they were in power. Cameron and Jonathan have been taking on themselves over their criminal inactions over the rescue of the 276 Chibok schoolgirls who were abducted from their school by Boko Haram terrorists' sect in April 2014. As the two former leaders struggle with their ethics over their roles in one of the known global shame and international conspiracy of silence, they have each been stating their case in the public domain seeking to buy sympathy which they really don't deserve.
Strikingly, the two former leaders have a lot in common. The duo lost power because of their constricted understanding of the politics of their various countries. The pair failed in their governance to take utmost advantage of their incumbency when it mattered most. The British Prime Minister soon after winning election lost his mandate for failing to gauge properly the mood of his country over their interests in the European Union. He could not read the disposition of Britons correctly and took for granted that since they just voted him into office his own interest was going to sway their thinking. It did not happen like that and he lost his position as majority of his nationals voted to exit the European Union against his own interest of staying. The Brexit group worked harder and had their way in the end. The Prime Minister was evidently forlorn as he misread his people and overrated his own influence. His Nigerian counterpart Jonathan even after six years in office as President and having acquired enough experience at the corridor of power, from deputy governor to governor, to Vice President and then President still remained provisional, timid and one who was evidently intimidated enough to lose his mandate cheaply.
As the two leaders state their positions publicly concerning the agonizing Chibok girls' issue, one thing is clear; they are all thrifty with the truth.
President Jonathan remains liable for his poor, sluggish and regrettable response to the Chibok girl's issue. This certainly will continue to hurt him the rest of his life. For Cameron he knows that he is not sincere in his book. What he failed or refused to say in the book is that he and his friend President Barrack Obama of the United States were engrossed in their ungodly desire to push gay to the rest of the World and forgot to do Godly things. Many anti-gay crusaders believe providentially that both Hilary Clinton and Cameron lost their ambition because of their inordinate drive on gay.
The former Prime Minister concealed the fact in his book that what was determining how they related with any nation particularly in Africa was on how receptive they were to the gay project. The refusal of President Jonathan to buy into it meant he was not going to enjoy any harmonious relationship with America, United Kingdom and their allies. Everything then was made to frustrate the administration including refusing to sell weapons to fight the insurgence.
If there was no other motive, nearly 300 schoolgirls were abducted by international criminals and United Kingdom looked away because the President of the country did not cooperate. As strategic as United Kingdom is to Nigeria and the Commonwealth nations can the former Prime Minister say that looking away from saving lives was the best option for a leader of his status?
The truth remains that if Cameron and Obama had used the same zeal and energy with which they tried to push their gay project to the rest of the World in containing insurgency in Nigeria, even Boko Haram would not have grown wings as they turned out. If really Jonathan wrote Cameron and Obama concerning Boko Haram why didn't he acknowledge it in his book?
It's this type of half-truths as contained in the Cameron's book that led to the vexatious allegation even from some Muslim leaders in Nigeria that President Jonathan engineered the coming of Boko Haram as a strategy to multiply confusion in the polity to enable him remain in office.
When Obama's Secretary of State John Kerry came to Nigeria and embarked on a divisive mission of meeting with governors of only Muslim dominant states in Sokoto and arranged similar meeting few days later in Washington, it was all intended to undermine Jonathan for his obstinate stand on gay matter. Just like Cameron, Obama's memoir is going to contain a lot of fallacies concerning Africa where his unconscionable gay drive beclouded his vision of the continent notwithstanding that he is of African origin.
There has been too much had I known in this Chibok girls' issue which began like a hoax in the morning of April 15, 2014. Everybody including security agencies that were trained never to take any issue for granted failed the girls. Their political leaders especially the then Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima also failed the girls disregarding the counsel of the then Minister of State for Education now Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike who advisedly directed the relocation of the school as examination centre based on intelligence report.
As the World continued dillydallying five years after, 112 of these girls are still missing and those who should have made the difference by doing what they were supposed to do but failed are busy struggling to extricate themselves of the muddle, this is an unfortunate fallout.
The administration that won election riding on the back of being the one to crush Boko Haram and release the girls has themselves worsened the situation by their insincere approach and apparent incapacity to copy with the matter. The situation of these girls certainly will distress Cameron and Jonathan a lot especially as insurgence under the watch of successive regime has grown from terrorism to hyper kidnapping and banditry.
Killings and bloodletting under President Muhammadu Buhari has become unprecedented only comparable to the 30-month-old civil war in the country from 1967 to 1970.
What international observers desire to see in any memoir of Cameron, Jonathan and Obama concerning Chibok girls is remorse and acceptance of failure in providing the needful leadership at the time. Cameron's book therefore fell below par in intellectual corridor. No book hoping to enjoy a place among eggheads should be frugal with the facts of the matter under discussion. Cameron would have made more sense if he had recorded the Chibok issue as one of the draw backs of his era instead of looking for escape route in then President Jonathan's own weakness for which he has been punished politically. In rounding off this discourse therefore I find Bill Gates' counsel very handy that "it's fine to celebrate success but it is more important to heed the lessons of failure."
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10.00am - 5.00pm
See bicycles from 1800 to the present day. With exhibitors and visitors welcome to come in period dress, watch the bicycles ride around he Museum in an afternoon procession. Also enjoy our steam days with our resident steam trains riding the railway around the site.
With 36 acres to explore and over 40 exhibits to visit, there is so much to discover, learn and have fun at Amberley Museum. The Museum is dedicated to preserving the industrial heritage of the South East. Exhibits include our communications building, electricity hall, working printshop, and the lime kilns which date back to when the site was a working chalk quarry. The Museum is also home to traditional crafts people such as the wheelwrights and blacksmith. You can also take a ride on the narrow gauge railway and historic buses to explore around the museum.
We have our own on-site café serving hot and cold food, and picnic areas around the site. The Museum is accessibility friendly and dogs are also welcome on site but must be kept on a lead at all times. We have been awarded the Kennel Club 'Best Dog Friendly Attraction Award' for Days Out 2016.

subset: commoncrawl


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Gehringer Family History
14-Day Free Trial
Gehringer Name Meaning
patronymic from the personal name Gerung, Gering, variants of Gehring. habitational name from any of various places named Gehring, in particular in Bavaria, or from a place in Rhineland named Gering.
Source: Dictionary of American Family Names ©2013, Oxford University Press
Similar surnames: Behringer, Mehringer, Fehringer, Dehlinger, Ehinger, Gettinger


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"Gold Digger" Party November 3, 2011Posted by The Boys & Girls Clubs of Las Vegas in Uncategorized.
add a comment Thursday, November 17, 2011 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. National Jewelry Liquidation Center 3021 Business Lane (located off Dean Martin Drive) Las Vegas, NV 89103
Turn in your old gold jewelry for cash or trade up for something bigger and better! Trained jewelers will evaluate your jewelry and give you cash on the spot. Preview the new "designer" lines offered at 50-70% below retail.
National Jewelry Liquidation Center will donate 20% of the evening's take and sales to Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation and Boys & Girls Clubs of Las Vegas.
Enjoy cocktails and hors d'oeuvres, raffle drawings for fabulous gold, diamond and gemstone jewelry.
RSVP by Tuesday, November 15th to Caroline Ciocca at 702-378-6200 or email@example.com.
It's as simple as: POINT. CLICK. GIVE. November 1, 2011Posted by The Boys & Girls Clubs of Las Vegas in Uncategorized.
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With Nevada's Big Give, you can change Nevada communities in one single day. On November 17th, 2011, we will join together for Nevada's single biggest day of charitable giving. It's one extraordinary day to support the charities that make Nevada a better place to live.
And it's your chance to make a real impact.


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Albania 3-7 night add-on packages
"We had an excellent time and met like-minded people to explore with. It was brilliant. Definitely do the Albania part – it's an amazing country to visit and the walk over the mountains is an experience!"
Dawn Ballard, June 2017
2020 departure dates: Any (Sunday to Wednesday) min. 2 persons
There's only one way to improve upon an adventure holiday to Montenegro, and that's to hop over the border to experience the stunning beauty of its little-visited next-door-neighbour Albania as well! More accessible than ever before thanks to budget airlines now flying into Podgorica (just a few hours from the Albanian Alps), this staggeringly pretty and near-unexplored destination is the perfect addition to our week multi-activity holiday at Lake Skadar. In fact, that's why we created it.
Our "best of Albania" package takes you on a cultural adventure into the heart of one of Europe's most exciting new destinations. The tour starts at the remarkable Thethi National Park, and finishes in either Shkodra, ancient capital of the kingdom of Zeta and now the largest town on the shores of Lake Skadar, or capital Tirana (depending on length of your tour). All the while you will learn about blood feuds, the sworn virgins of the mountains, life under Enver Hoxha, one of the most crazed of all European dictators, and much, much more besides.
Your Tour :Leader: Gjergji has worked with Undiscovered Montenegro for 5 years and has consistently succeeded in delivering 5-star trips to his beautiful homeland together with his colleagues, Ardi and Elton, based out of Tirana and Shkoder. He speaks superb English.
Want to see more? Watch our video!
Below are the itineraries for the 3-night and week-long options.
Day 1 – into Albania!
Transfer to the border at Hani i Hotit, 45 minutes from Podgorica airport, and then a further journey with our wonderful Albanian guides up to the staggering beauty of Thethi National Park. In the afternoon we will explore the attractions of Thethi on foot: the church, the blood feud tower, a beautiful waterfall, followed by dinner and overnight stay at the lovely Villa Gjecaj.
Day 2 – Hiking the Dinaric Alps
After an early breakfast we proceed to Valbona, where we will enjoy the wild beauty of the highest peak in the Dinaric Alps – Jezerca. It's a beautiful introduction to the untouched and pristine natural trails that Albania can offer, with epic views throughout. At the end of the hike in the beautiful village of Valbona you can relax in your hotel before enjoying a great local dinner featuring delicious locally-made products. Hiking time is 7-8 hours..
Day 3 – Komani Lake boat trip/Rozafa Castle, Shkodra
The boat ride on Lake Komani has been recently voted by travel bloggers as one of the best 5 boat trips in the world! This man-made lake is framed on all sides by sheer limestone cliffs and the contrast with the sapphire waters is remarkable. There will stops along the way at some isolated villages for turkish coffee and raki as the journey also forms part of a "water-bus" route for remote mountain communities. Afterwards we continue to the town of Shkodra on the shores of Lake Skadar for another lovely meal and a guided tour around the famous Rozafa Castle.
Day 4 – transfer back to Montenegro/Podgorica airport
Day 1 – Arrival
You will be collected from Podgorica Airport and then transferred across the border between Albania and
Montenegro. Our guide and driver will give you a warm welcome and plenty of useful information on the way to the mountain village of Theth. We will stop in the Valley of Boga for refreshment and after about 1h30 minutes more driving we will arrive in the village of Theth. We will explore the village and the Lock in Tower and there is a short hike to the spectacular Grunas Waterfall and Canyon. Overnight at Villa Gjecaj where we will also taste the delicious food of the village.
Day 2 – Shkodra
Drive to Shkodra after breakfast. We'll visit the beautiful and legendary Fortress of Rozafa and the
downtown which offers architecture, history, mosques and churches sitting next to each other in
absolute peace and amazing relaxed atmosphere, welcoming Shkodrans and great little restaurants.
Overnight in the Hotel Tradita, group dinner.
Day 3 – Lake Koman boat ride
Early morning breakfast and than transfer to Koman where we will take a boat ride in the eponymous artificial lake built in the 70s by the Communist Regime. The result is one of the 5 most beautiful boat lake rides in the world according to some. We end the ride after about 5 hours wandering through
spectacular mountain cliff views and isolated tiny villages mirrored in the lake. Transfer to Valbona for a visit of the village and an overnight in Villa Dini guesthouse, which offers the best welcome and plenty of information on the surrounding mountains and communities. Group dinner
Day 4 – Prizren
First a little bonus, with a brief foray into Kosovo through the Pass of Morina, a battlefield in the end of the 90s and one of the most welcoming border for Western travellers in the region. We'll stop in Gjakova for a short walk in the Bazaar and refreshment before driving to Prizren for a visit of the old town and its many charming historical spots. Afterwards we'll drive the new Highway of the Nation to reach Central Albania to reach Kruja, at about 2000 feet above sea level, by the early evening right on time for a raki aperitif and for a traditional dinner with many culinary surprises!
Day 5 – Fortress of Kruja, Castle of Elbasan
Morning visit of the Fortress of Kruja and then drive South through the ring of Tirana and to stop in Elbasan for a short break. We'll drive in one of the mountains near the region between Elbasan and Librazhd where we will be amazed by the adrenaline of the driving, the isolation of the locals and the views and stories around. We shall enjoy the local food and raki and optionally swim in the nearby crystaline river. We will then drive to Elbasan to overnight in the Hotel Guri, built into the ruins of an ancient Ottoman castle!
Day 6 – The town of 1000 windows
After breakfast we'll choose to drive in the direction of Cerrik and Berat through a countryside dirt road through rural scenery of the Devoll (antique Diabolis) valley. After views of the restored Communist
airport of Kucova we'll reach Berat, the town of the 1000 windows by late afternoon. A UNESCO Heritage site, this stunning hillside village on the steps of the Tomorr mountains is a place of great beauty and tranquility, and the service at the exquisite Hotel Mangalemi is every bit as perfect. There will be time – between more delicious meals! – to visit the Church of the Holy Trinity, a gorgeous 13th century Byzantine church in the ancient citadel of Berat at the top of the hill and explore the town by foot.
Day 7 – Tirana
After a gentle morning, we head back north to Albania's capital, Tirana. This vibrant city has plenty for both the roving gourmet and the cultural traveller to enjoy – we stay at the Lowen Inn B&B, which has excellent facilities, lovely rooms and is located a mere 800m away from Skenderbeg Square in the centre of town. Your guide will take you to all the most interesting cultural sites, including Et'Hem Bey mosque, the National Art Gallery, the Pyramid and the bustling, vibrant Blloku district. Dinner is at the authentic Oda restaurant, where you eat on low tables as if in a distant relative's own house.
Day 8 – transfer to Podgorica or Tirana airport (other destinations will incur an extra transfer charge)
Prices are in £ Sterling per person and include all transport, all activities, all accommodation, breakfast, dinners and all guiding (lunches not included).
3 night trips run Sunday-Wednesday, 7 night trips run any day. A 10% discount is available for groups of 4+.
|Discover Albania 3 nights
Discover Albania 7 nights


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About Me
I started working on cars when i was 16. My father gave me my first vehicle, a 1978 Honda Civic. The funny thing was that interestingly enough this little thing was fitted with a bigger than stock engine. So i drove it around, it had its issues, i knew hardly anything about cars other than changing a tire. So i ask a buddy of mine if he knew a mechanic for those types of cars that would help me sort this thing out mechanically and that was it. I spent the next decade tinkering at that mechanic's shop, learning a few things, making that little civic decently fast (for the times), and then came the chance to sell it and get something else. The next vehicle i got was my mom's 92 Toyota Tercel with a 12 valve 1.3 4 cylinder. This thing was a turd. As far as performance was concerned this thing had none. So we did a few things to it, tweaked carb, a cam, a header, but it was still a turd.
After switching mechanics and going to one that knew Toyotas better we decided that the only thing we could do was put a different engine in it, so, being a Toyota guy he suggested the 1.5 5E Paseo engine, so i said Ok! Then came the question of "what are we going to do for fueling, its a fuel injected engine and we really dont wanna do anything with the none existing engine harnesses and ECU?" And he says, "well i have a pair of Mikuni 40mm side draft carburetors we can put on it…" You know where this is going. So, after messing with that for a while and kicking a few "none vtec" Hondas back in the day, came time to jump to a more interesting ride.
Here's where my life just took a turn towards the path i have now been on ever since then. In 1998 the opportunity presented it self to buy a 1987 Mazda RX-7 TurboII. I mean this was it! The coolest car i could possibly image was now mine. This thing showed me so much, it frustrated me, excited me, took me racing against heavy contenders, was the first car i ever drove really really fast, and along with some serious help from some really knowledgeable people, i have been learning about tuning ECU's and working on fast cars ever since.
Fast forward to 2005 and i solidify a relationship with Haltech Engine Management System's owner and US Reps, and from 2007 until 2011, and then again in 2014 through 2017 i worked directly both on site and remotely with their US and Australian offices. Her is where i really honed most of my skills with engine management systems tuning and what i have been mostly focusing on. I have had the chance to work with some great individuals in the US, Mexico, South America, the Caribbean, etc., and currently i do my best to be able to help customers remote tune their engines.
After leaving Haltech in 2017 i started on the path to finally establish my own company, Tuning Technology, LLC, and setup shop in Miami FL. My main focus is ECU's, i have taken on learning new brands like Adaptronic, Emtron and Link, as well as learning from EFI University on ECU tuning and motorsports wiring principals.
Tuning Technology's absolute main focus is providing the absolute most comprehensive and detailed tech support for our customer in their installations and projects.