There is no disputing the fact that the paths leading to the appointment or re-appointment of a Vice Chancellor in most Nigerian universities today is highly contentious and not without its ups and downs. The Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RSUST), Port Harcourt is an obvious example of a university enmeshed in crisis over the re-appointment of Prof. Barineme Fakae as the Vice Chancellor of the institution. Many others abound which not only portends danger for the academic sustainability of our universities but also affects innocent students who are made to bear the brunt of the face-off between government on the one hand and the academic unions on the other. It is therefore, the reason our academic institutions must be devoid of political interference, else the crisis of academic scholarship and dwindling fortunes of Nigerian university education may be a major issue we may not be able to contend with for years to come.

Be that as it may, the appointment of a new V.C for Osun State University (UNIOSUN) has been a long one. Since the tenure of its pioneer V.C came to an end last year and the appointment of a new one due by August 1, 2012, the situation has been one of anxiety and hope that the university will be put on the right track by the Visitor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola. In fact, the absence for long of a new Governing Council coupled with its late inauguration late last year by the Osun State Government raised a lot of pertinent questions as to what direction UNIOSUN was taking. One of such was how quickly the appointment of a new V.C who will steer the wheel of the 5 year old university will come.

The Governing Council led by Professor Gabriel Olawoyin (SAN) was saddled with the responsibility of performing the selection process and shortlisting of candidates for the much coveted V.C seat. The process was, however, not without controversy as series of issues by stakeholders within and without the university were raised, most especially on the processes that led to the shortlisting of seven candidates who applied for the V.C seat. Some of the candidates who were not shortlisted were believed to have accused the Governing Council of unfairness and non-compliance with due process. They hinged their accusations on the premise that there had been subtle attempts to manipulate Osun State University Law 2006 to favour some vested interests within and without the university. They noted that the UNIOSUN Law 2006 was clear on issues pertaining to the selection and final appointment of the V.C which they argued ought to be upheld and respected by Council for the sake of justice, fairness and sustainability of the new university.

Despite the intricacies and intrigues surrounding the selection process, the Professor Gabriel Olawoyin-led Governing Council eventually shortlisted three candidates. Prof. Oladiran Famurewa – a Prof. of Microbiology, Prof. Bashir Adekunle Okesina – a Prof. of Chemical Pathology and Prof. Funmi Togonu-Bickersteth made the list. Having presented the names to the Visitor of the University, Governor Rauf Aregbesola approved the appointment of Prof. Bashir Adekunle Okesina as the second Vice- Chancellor of Osun State University, Osogbo.

Prof. Okesina, a Chemical Pathologist, was born on October 11, 1954. He graduated with Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) in 1980 from the University of Lagos in 1980. He became a Fellow of Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria in 1988 and Fellow of West African College of Physicians in 1989. He did clinical attachment at the Institute of Neurology Queen Square, London and East Surrey Hospital between 1987 and 1988. From 1991 to 1993, he was a Commonwealth Medical Research Fellow in Clinical Endocrinology at Hammersmith Hospital and Royal Postgraduate Medical College in London. He was appointed Lecturer I at the University of Ilorin in 1989, Reader in 1994 and Professor of Chemical Pathology in 2000. He was appointed Consultant, Chemical Pathology to the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital in 1989. Prof. Okesina became Head of Department in 2000-2004 and Dean, Faculty of Basic Medical Science, College of Medicine, University of Ilorin from 2004 – 2007. In 2007, he was appointed foundation Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Osun State University from 2007 to 2011. Prof. Okesina has many scholastic publications in local and international Medical Journals. He received International Federation of Clinical Chemistry International Bursary Award 1996; Commonwealth Medical Fellowship Award 1991; National Honours Award (Post NYSC) 1982; Oyo State Merit Award scholarship for University Education 1976 and Odo-Otin Local Government Scholarship for Secondary Education in 1968. He has supervised several Fellowship Dissertations and has over seventy publications.
Prof. Okesina is coming with a huge wealth of experience having served as a pioneer V.C of UNIOSUN and seen it all since 2007 when the university began its academic session.

The Professor Gabriel Olawoyin-led Governing Council with this appointment has won a major coup by the way it went all out in ensuring that persons who are very knowledgeable about the culture of the university, its organisation, administration and aspirations expressly hold the role of the V.C. For those who may not be in the know, since the tenure of the Pioneer Council of the university led by Professor Peter Okebukola ended few years back, the university has not been the same again. The vision of the founding fathers to make the university world class is fast dwindling because those who matter in the continuity of this dream have been displaced and replaced with individuals who do not share the same dreams as its original founders.

The appointment of Prof. Okesina is no doubt a good choice and it is hoped that he will take the university towards greatness. His leadership skills, administrative acumen and his ever listening ears is needed at this critical period in the history of the university in making it once again a world class institution it prides itself as. UNIOSUN has come to stay and is fast becoming a major player among comity of vibrant and academically viable universities in Nigeria. On behalf of all the students, staff and alumni of the university, we congratulate Prof. Okesina on his well-deserved appointment. We also use this opportunity to wish him a wonderful tenure in office.

RAHEEM OLUWAFUNMINIYI is a social commentator and political affairs analyst who wrote the Professor Gabriel Olawoyin-led Governing Council via creativitysells@gmail.com

Asuspected mad woman was last weekend crushed by a train on the railway line along Olaiya junction in Osogbo, Osun state capital. Residents in the area described the middle agedwoman as a popular person who had turned the rail line to her place of abode.

It was gathered that the train, which was coming from the Ilorin/Jebba axis, crushed the woman as she was sleeping close to the rail line. Sunday Sun reliably gathered that the train crushed the woman’s head and part of her leg. Attempts by passersby to rescue her proved abortive until the state government got involved.

It took the intervention of the Special Adviser to the Governor on Youths, Sports and Special Needs, Mr Biyi Odunlade, who rushed to the scene when he heard about the sad incident and ensured that the woman was attended to by officials of the Osun Free Ambulance Services (O’Ambulance). It was learnt that Odunlade upon arrival at the scene of the accident called the Commissioner for Health, Mrs Temitope Ilori, who later directed officials of the state Ministry of Health to rush to the scene of the accident. The accident victim was taken to the Ladoke Akintola University (LAUTECH) Teaching Hospital, Osogbo, where she was pronounced dead.

The recruitment drive by the Boko Haram and its breakaway faction, Jama’atu Ansarul Muslimina Fi Biladis-Sudan, it was gathered, was a prelude to attacks they were planning to launch in the zone.

The idea is to establish cells within the South-West to coordinate attacks within the zone by identifying fundamentalists in the area.

A security source, who disclosed this, said the plan to move to the South-West, particularly Lagos, was hinged on the economic importance of the zone.

Investigations showed that the groups reasoned that attacks on the South-West would not only affect the country’s economy, but could also precipitate ethnic clashes across the country.

It was learnt that major towns the groups planned to attack included Lagos, Abeokuta, Ibadan and Osogbo.

Investigations showed that the planned attacks would include planting of bombs at public buildings, on roads and outright suicide bombings.

Besides Northerners living in the South-West, the groups, it was gathered, were also zeroing in on people from the zone as their potential members.

A highly placed security source told one of our correspondents that the terror organisations had hitherto found it difficult to penetrate South-West.

He said that they were targeting people from the zone with the hope that such people would assist them in establishing cells in the area. The security source told one of our correspondents that, “There is no doubt terror groups have their eyes on the South-West. Their plan is to spread their activities to the zone, which has a high Muslim population.

“People they are planning to recruit include Northerners living in the South-West as well as Yoruba that have the same religious belief with them. It is part of their plan to spread Jihad to Africa.”

It was gathered that the attacks were part of measures by the groups to protest Nigeria’s intervention in the Malian crisis.

The breakaway faction of Boko Haram, ANSARUL, had on January 19, 2013 claimed responsibility for an attack on Nigerian soldiers going to Mali.

The soldiers were attacked near Okenne, Kogi State.

In a terse statement posted by an online publication, Dessert Herald, on January 20, a leader of JAMBS, Abu Usamatal Ansary, warned Nigeria and other Africans to be ready for “more difficulties” as they embarked on restoring peace to Mali.

The statement had read, “We, members of Jama’atu Ansarul Muslimina Fi Biladis-Sudan, are gladly informing the general public, especially those in black Africa, that with the aid and guidance of Allah, we, on January 19, 2013 at Itape, Ekehi Local Government Area of Kogi State, successfully executed our first attempt in attacking the Nigerian troops that were aiming to demolish the Islamic Empire of Mali.

“We are equipped and waiting for any slightest attempt of Nigerian Army moving towards the Islamic Empire of Mali. And we are warning African countries to stop helping Western countries in fighting against Islam and Muslims; if not, we are sternly assuring them, particularly the Nigerian government, to be prepared and be ready to face difficulties from JAMBS anywhere and anytime. May Allah help us and grant our wishes.”

On Thursday, an operative of the State Security Service told one of our correspondents that the service was aware of the present move by the terror networks to penetrate the South-West.

The source said that the SSS and other security operatives had anticipated the high possibility of those behind the acts of terror to move beyond the northern parts of the country.

It was stated that a consciousness of that fact played a role in the recent bursting of a terror cell being sponsored by Iranians.

But another security source said there was a growing discomfort among security personnel that the arrangement put in place by the police authorities favoured the move to penetrate other parts of the country.

It was stated that the collapse of road blocks across the country in this era of terror was a security miscalculation as the decision would encourage the movement of arms and ammunition and other weapons from one part of the country to the other.

The security source stated that those behind the acts of terror could have easily taken advantage of the loose security situation in the South-West to launch similar attacks in the zone from the Sabo settlements being inhabited chiefly by northern Muslims.

Top police personalities confirmed that police authorities were aware of the plot.

However, the Force Deputy Force Public Relations Officer, Frank Mba, was evasive as he refused to comment on what he described as a sensitive security issue.

The five goats arrested by the Osun State Waste Management Agency (OWMA) in Osogbo last week were on Tuesday dragged before an Osogbo Magistrate Court along side their owners. Three owners of the goats including Mrs. Aduke Adetona, Mrs. Esther Ibikunle and Adedoyin Adetayo were docked, while the goats were not allowed into the court hall but kept in the premises of the court.

The court presided over by Mrs. A. O. Ajanaku discharged Mrs. Adetayo, who had already lost her goat in the custody of OWMA and ordered other accused persons to pay N2, 500 fine to the coffers of the state government. The court pardoned one of the owners, Mrs. Adedoyin Adetayo whose goat had died, but warned her to comply strictly with the provisions of the state environmental laws and the rules of OWMA.

The court ruled that the accused persons violated article 101, cap 11 of the laws of Osun State, which prohibited birds and other animals from straying into residential areas. The prosecutor, Mr. Femi Ogunbamiwo who is also the Director of Environmental Management and Sanitation in OWMA told the court that the accused persons committed an offence contrary to and punishable under the environmental laws of the state. Mr. Ogunbamiwo told the court that the accused persons committed the offence on January 5, 2013 by allowing animals under their control to stray into public domain in a manner that was injurious to the health of the public.

Counsel to the accused persons, Mr. Jimoh Daramola pleaded with the court to be lenient with his clients and temper justice with mercy, adding that the accused persons would henceforth obey the laws of the state. Article 101, cap 2 of the 2002 Laws of Osun State, which was passed by the state House of Assembly states that: “No bird or animal shall be allowed to stray to any road or public place or urinate or defecate in any public place in the state.”

The Special Adviser to the governor on Environment, Mr. Bola Ilori who spoke with reporters after the court session urged residents to keep their pets in a cage to prevent violation of the state environmental laws and guide against transmission of diseases from animal to man.

-Sun

No fewer than five goats were yesterday arrested at Dele-Yesa area in Osogbo, the Osun State capital by officials of the state Waste Management Agency (OWMA) for allegedly violating environmental laws. The state Coordinator of the agency, Mr. Henry Ogunbanwo said the goats would be charged to court by the agency and would be prosecuted in accordance with the laws guiding environmental protection in the state.

He said the state government had issued notice of warning to all residents of the state capital on the need to monitor their domestic animals to avoid public disturbance by the animals, which, he said, was against the environmental laws. Ogunbanwo disclosed that the five goats arrested were detained at the office of the agency in Osogbo from where they would be taken to court for prosecution.

He said the goats ran fowl of the laws guiding environmental protection by roaming around the residential area of Osogbo instead of being caged by their owners. He declared that the present administration in the state had zero tolerance for dirtiness and environmental hazard; hence the need for the enshrinement of the environmental laws, adding that the government would not take it lightly with violators of the laws According to him, officials of the agency would from now move to every nook and cranny of the state to arrest animals violating the state environmental laws, stressing that owners of such animals would also be dealt with in accordance with the provisions of the laws.

He advised those rearing domestic animals to keep them in a cage to avoid arrest, insisting that his agency would not allow any animal to roam about on the streets of any town or village in the state. He urged those looking for their goats in Osogbo and its environs to check at the state office of OWMA in Osogbo.
-Sun

Former president of the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) and former member of the House of Representatives, Dr Wale Okediran, made this call while delivering the second Bola Ige memorial lecture, organised by the Oyo State chapter of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), held at the NUJ Press Centre, Iyaganku, Ibadan, on Monday.

Present on the occasion were the Ikolaba of Ibadanland, Chief Lekan Alabi; renowned scientist, Professor Akin Mabogunje; the Baale of Ekotedo, Chief Taiwo Ayorinde; daughter of the late AG, Mrs Funso Adegbola and her husband; members of the Oyo NUJ press council and politicians from far and wide.

In his lecture entitled: “The challenges of political leadership in Nigeria,’’ Okediran said “I wish to appeal to the Oyo and Osun state governments to, as a matter of urgency, reopen the case file of Bola Ige’s death, a promise made by both Governors Aregbesola and Ajimobi during the 10th Bola Ige memorial lecture exactly a year ago.

“By doing this, the governors will show the whole world that the forces of fascism and autocracy would always be defeated however long it might take them to threaten humanity.’’

While noting that the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU’s) latest report named Nigeria as the worst place for a baby to be born in 2013, Okediran advocated private sector-led growth, macroeconomic stability and fiscal discipline and anti-corruption measures as part of the strategies for bringing about change in the country.

-Tribune

THE Osun State Police Command recently recorded a victory when it arrested an armed robber whose gang’s notoriety had depleted the number of policemen in the state. Not ony that, a service pistol belonging to a Divisional Police Officer, who was attacked by the gang and four AK 47 rifles collected at different times from policemen who were fatally shot, were also recovered.

The suspect, whose name is Mutairu Were, but who also bears Yekini Olanrewaju, was reportedly arrested after a robbery operation his gang carried out in a petrol station in Akure, Ondo State. They had shot at a police team trailing them, killing one Inspector and injuring three policemen. Were, who reportedly belonged to different robbery gangs, allegedly invaded the residence of a Divisional Police Officer in Osogbo on July 8 at about 12.25a.m. and collected his service pistol and AK 47 rifle, after which they shot him in the thigh and the abdomen. The police officer was still in the hospital as of the time of writing this report.

Same night at about 1.30 a.m., the gang also attacked the residence of one Tope Bolarinwa at Alekuwodo area of Osogbo. After collecting his valuables, the hoodlums allegedly shot Bolarinwa in the head, killing him instantly. The gang thereafter proceeded to Sarah Hotel at Ogo-Oluwas area, Osogbo, and dispossessed the lodgers of their valuables.

On July 22, the armed gang was on the rampage again as it stormed White Plain Suite Hotel at Ogo Oluwa area. During the attack, two policemen guarding the hotel were dispossessed of their AK 47 rifles. The gang also killed one Assistant Superintendent of Police and took away his AK 47 rifle as the criminals were escaping after raiding a bureau-de-change some months ago.

According to the Police Public Relations Officer in Osun State, Mrs Sade Odoro, Mutairu Were and his gang had become a thorn in the flesh of the police in Osun State and his arrest had brought a sigh of relief to all the policemen. She added that four AK 47 rifles  and a service pistol were recovered from the gang by the Special Anti-Robbery Squad in the state.

She reiterated that the Commissioner of Police in Osun State, Mrs Kalafite Adeyemi, would not relent in her efforts to rid the state of undesirable elements and make the “ember” months free for the residents. In order to achieve this, the PPRO said that the police commissioner had inaugurated a Police Religious Leaders’ Peace Forum and had also directed all Divisional Police Officers to ensure people-friendly policing to ensure water-tight security in their jurisdictions.

Odoro said efforts were on to apprehend other members of the gang who are at large.

Sunday Tribune had an interview with the suspect. Excerpts:

What is your name?
I am Mutairu Yekini. I am also called Olanrewaju but my father’s name is Were.

How old are you?
 I am 29 years old.

Which state are you from?
I am from Osogbo, Osun State

Are you married?
Yes, I am married with a child.

What is your level of education?
I went to Osogbo Grammar School but stopped at JSS1.

Which work have you been doing since then?
I started working in a bakery. After some time, I left the place and went to Lagos where I started working as a bus conductor but later became a driver.

When did you join a robbery gang?
It is not more than a year.

Who introduced you to robbery?
Muyideen introduced me to robbery but he is dead.

Was he killed during operation?
No, I just learnt he was dead.

How did you meet Muyideen?
 I met him in Osogbo. I explained the problem I was going through to him and he said I would make it if I could join him in doing ‘runs’.

How many members are in your gang?
We are four.

Mention their names.
Myself, Dada Suako, Jimoh Iwaya and Luku Aresa.

How many guns do you take to operations?
Three small guns. The guns were procured for us by Jimoh Iwaya. It was he and Muyideen that used to get the guns and catridges. Usually, I didn’t handle guns. I was usually asked to drive because of my skill in driving. We also added guns collected from the police to the ones we had.

Which of your members handles the guns?
Luku, Jimoh and myself but I drove mainly.

How many robbery operations have you been involved in?
We didn’t usually operate in Lagos; we went to Osogbo for our operations. We used to leave Lagos between 4p.m. and 5p.m. We would wait at Ibadan toll gate area sometimes to while away the time so that we would arrive in Osogbo during midnight.

Can you mention the places you have robbed before?
Luku was the one that would point to where we would operate in because he would have come before us to do surveillance.

Do you break into houses?
Yes. We use a cutter to cut the burglary so that we could gain entry. We would then rob the people of their belongings.

Can you recollect killing one of your victims called Tope Bolarinwa?
I was not the one who shot him. When we got to the house and I saw a car belonging to someone I knew, I decided not to enter with other members. I later heard a gunshot and peeped from the window to ask why he was shot. My members said that the man held one of them. I said they shouldn’t have shot him. Since then, I didn’t go on any operation with others until the latest one because that man’s death shocked me. He and his wife had a restaurant beside my brother’s shop and the couple were well known to me.

Were you the one who pointed the woman to your gang?
No, it was Luku who usually did the ground work.

Who shot a DPO on the day you went to rob him?
I was the one. It was not as if we intended to shoot him. We didn’t know he was a DPO. We met him sleeping but when we noticed his picture hung in his sitting room with him in police uniform, we asked him for his gun and he took us to where it was. I took the gun and shot him, unknown to me that it was already corked. I just wanted to scare him. We also took away his service pistol and AK 47 rifle. Both have been recovered from us.

What other operations did you do?
We went to a hotel called White Plain Suite. We met two policemen there and Dada shot them and we took away their AK 47 rifles. They have also been recovered from us.

Who owns the vehicle you used for operations?
We used to go in Dada’s car but I took my own to the last operation in Akure.

Which car did you use for your gang’s robbery operation at a bureau-de-change during which you shot some policemen along Gbongan road?
I was not part of that operation. I did not follow them but Jimoh was part of the operation and he told me that they collected a gun from a policeman whom they shot dead. I have told the police and they have recovered the gun too.

Did you get your car from robbery proceeds?
No, my siblings bought a bus for me but I sold it and added some money with which I purchased a Golf car.

Which operation did you do in Akure?
We went to a petrol station in Akure to rob. It was one Alhaji who is Jimoh’s friend that took us there. I was only with him twice. The first time I met him was when we first got the AK 47 rifles and we didn’t know how to use it. He asked us to bring them. That was how he took us to Akure for the operation. We took two cars. Alhaji and an Akure man was in my own car while two others were in a Toyota Camry car. The owner of that car is from that area and he joined us for the operation. He went back, however, after the operation.

We collected a lot of money out of which I was given N350,000. After we left the place, we were going on Ondo road when Alhaji noticed that the police were trailing us. They started pursuing us and we turned back. They also turned after us. That was how Alhaji shot at the patrol team with the AK 47 rifle. I hurriedly turned into a corner and lost control.

We ran into the bush and hid there overnight. I was arrested when we flagged down an okada early in the morning in order to escape but Alhaji still managed to escape. My arrest was easy because I didn’t know the next town very well and I had my own share of money in my pocket.

Which other operation were you involved in?
We carried out two operations in Lagos. We went to Egbeda to operate. We followed a man into his compound at about 10p.m. Two of us got down and followed him to rob him of money and handsets. As we linked the road to Oshodi, we saw a man in a Honda Pilot. Alhaji said he wanted the vehicle and we snatched it from the owner. He asked me to take it to a buyer at Alakuko area. Jimoh and I also snatched a Toyota Camry called Muscle. Jimoh also knows the same buyer Alhaji sent me to and I took the the vehicle to him. I was only given N50,000. Alhaji said the buyer had not paid him fully.

What have you been able to get from operations?
The highest I got was that N350,000 in Akure. Before then, I was usually given N50,000, N100,000, depending on the decision of the leader. I used part of it to buy my Golf car and also rented an apartment at Olaogun along Opeilu via Ogbayan in Ogun State.

Why did you decide to always target policeman during your operations?
Since I have started robbery, I have never killed anyone. Even the police that I shot, it was not deliberate.

Does Alhaji have another robbery gang?
I don’t know much about him but I learnt he has been into armed robbery for a long time.

Does he know you have been arrested?
Yes, because both of us wanted to mount an okada when I was arrested.

Who prepares charm for you when you go on operations?
I don’t consult herbalists. I pray to God for protection and success whenever we wanted to go out.

Please, I don’t know where this may land me. I can’t even explain what has happened to me. I appeal to you to please beg the government not to kill me. I know I must suffer for my sins so I can’t go scot-free but I plead that my life be spared.

By Anthony A. Kila | London, UK | Oct. 18, 2012

History and political literature is full of such examples. Three of my favourites come from Niccolo Machiavelli, Jean- Jacques Rousseau and Thomas More. Whilst Machiavelli is known mostly for his short digest “The Prince”, most scholars agree that his most scientific and significant work is actually “Discourses on Livy” in which he used the ancient Rome as an example of what a republic should be. Rousseau in his classic, “The Social Contract”, used Geneva as a model city where men were free. Sir More invented his own Utopia to illustrate a perfect society.

As we look at the problems facing Nigeria and try to find best international practices and ideal types of solutions to offer to those in charge of affairs, one of the recurrent comments most touted is “this is Nigeria, that idea cannot work here!” Those who make such comments base it on two main elements: their knowledge of Nigeria because they live there (or their being on ground as they say in the Nigerian parlance) and the so-called peculiarity of Nigeria. It is a clear sense that people do not know where to start. Well, let us start from little things because little things matter and we can start from Osogbo.

A judgement recently passed in an Osogbo Magistrate’s Court by Mr. Olusola Aluko has earned him and those involved in that case a place in Nigerian legal history, and it should be used as a reference point for individuals in their daily dealings. The case, for those that missed it, saw as defendant Mr. SB, a tailor, brought to court for taking money and failing to sew a suit as agreed, that is, he breached a contract. Now, a lot of us would have seen that happen to us many times. The builder that does not show up, the plumber that delays, the house painter that spends more time than agreed and the clearing agent that disappears only to come up with reasons and explanations.

In all these cases, we just accept as a fact of life or as “the Nigerian factor” and we deal with such incidents with perseverance, patience but with no consequence. I have in many occasions argued against such behaviours. Luckily for us, Mr. Adebiyi Fasoro, the client from whom Mr. SB, the tailor took money does not think breaching a contract is just a Nigerian factor. After giving the tailor N7, 000 out of the agreed N13, 000 and not seeing his suit on the agreed day and place, he took up the matter, reported it to the police and went to court where the tailor was found guilty and sentenced to three months imprisonment for obtaining money under false pretence.

One might wonder and ask if this is not too harsh on a poor tailor, in a land wherein business tycoons in collusion with politicians, auditors and other inspectors are stealing and squandering billions of naira. No. It is a matter of principle and little things matter on principle. It may very well be true that we need a revolution in Nigeria to put the big things right, but before and beyond that we need to get these little things right.

Two of the essential elements of the modern state, with its development and progress, we terribly need are certainty and consequence. For us to see prosperity and peace we must be able to count on everyone respecting his/her promises and diligently doing his/her duties. Being certain that individuals, businesses and the government will play their part and being clear of what consequences that will follow if they don’t is not a political factor. It comes from private law and in particular contract law, but it goes beyond that; it is a philosophy and a way of life that makes it needless for us to seek a big lucky or charismatic lone hero.

All we need is merely a country where there is the certainty that everybody will do his/her little bits. As agreed, let teachers teach, cleaners clean, coaches coach, the press report, the police protect, auditors audit and hospitals treat the sick. All we need is merely a country where everyone knows there will be some consequences for his/her actions or inactions: You can’t beg, bribe or brag your way out of anything.

With the Osogbo case as a model of behavior, it is a matter of time for us all to fall in line. Today it is the tailor; tomorrow might be the turn of the politicians and their contractor friends.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the woman jumped into the river from the bridge located at Oke-Gada, Ede, minutes after giving money to some beggars.

Some of the beggars said they saw the woman when she jumped into the river.

Head, Disaster Management Unit, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Mr. Olaniyi Babalola, confirmed the development.

He told our correspondent that the slippers and a veil worn by the deceased described as a devout Muslim were recovered from the bridge, adding that the search for her corpse was still in progress.

Babalola said, “Her husband said that there was no crisis in the family. He said her wife was taking their first child to school when the incident happened. We gathered that she prayed on the bridge before jumping into the river.”

It was gathered that some passersby and beggars stopped the husband from jumping into the river when he visited the scene.

Babalola said, “Investigation to determine the cause of the suicide is on. We will leave no stone unturned in the process to unearth the cause of the incident.

“We are still looking for her corpse and we have intensified our search in that regard.”

-Punch