By Yinka Odumakin
I WAS in Accra this past week and saw a  Toyota van with inscription “APC”. I initially thought an APC official  from Nigeria was in town. But upon looking closely, I saw it was “All Peoples Congress” with a broom as its logo.It then dawned on me that the rumoured CHANGE in Nigeria must have inspired some Ghanaians to form their own APC hoping their change would birth.

That is the kind of influence events in Nigeria could have on our neighbours near and far. In any case,Ghana and Nigeria have always rubbed on each other. Not many people know that the man who led Ghana to independence, Kwame Nkrumah would not have gone  to University abroad but for the influence of our own Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe who mentored him and gave him a note to his old colleagues in Lincoln  where he enrolled in 1938. Nkrumah eventually boarded a ship to America from Lagos.

Looking in the wrong direction

We shall come to that another day but suffice to say for now that Ghanaians who are looking up to Nigeria for CHANGE at the moment are looking in the wrong direction.They should focus their attention on Tanzania where President John  Magufuli who was elected last November is really showing that CHANGE is possible in Africa,

Someone has already coined a verb: to magufulify – “to render or declare action faster and cheaper; to deprive (public officials) of their capacity to enjoy life on taxpayers’ money; to terrorise lazy and corrupt individuals in the society”. Comparisons are also being drawn to the enigmatic Rwandan president Paul Kagame, whose country is seen as a hope of East Africa, calling the latest actions by Magufuli the “Rwandanisation” of Tanzania.

Shortly after his election, Magufuli declared there would be no celebration of Independence Day on 9 December because it would be “shameful” to spend huge sums of money on the celebrations when people were dying of cholera. Instead, the day has been set as a national day of cleanliness, and the money will go toward street-cleaning services. He has said everybody should pick up their tools and clean their backyards. The death of “only” 74 people would mean nothing in many African countries. Boko Haram roasted 86 people in one day in Borno last month with no official reaction, Magufuli did not “order” Tanzanians to go clean their environment,he led by example when he picked his own shovel.

John Magufuli

Terrible condition

During his first official visit to the Muhimbili Hospital, and seeing the terrible condition it was in, he ordered over 200 million shillings marked for “parliament parties” be used to pay for beds for people lying on the floor and sharing beds. A few days later 300 beds were delivered. He dismissed the governing board and got a new team in place, and within days the broken MRI was fixed.

Three days  after his inauguration Magufuli announced a ban on all foreign travel by government officials. They have been instructed to instead make regular visits to rural areas to learn and help solve problems facing everyday Tanzanians. All tasks that required officials to travel abroad would instead be done by high commissioners and ambassadors who are already in place.

He has tightened the budget with  restrictions on all first- and business-class travel to government officials, except the president, vice-president and prime minister.There will be no more workshops and seminars in expensive hotels when there are so many ministry board rooms available. He cut down his inauguration party from $100,000 to $7,000 and sent the extra money to the hospital in disrepair.

Tanzanian was to have a large delegation to the last Commonwealth Head of Government Meeting. The delegation was preparing for a jamboree when Magufuli looked at the unwieldy list of 55 and pruned it to only four and saving the country millions of Shillings.

When  Magufuli had to travel 600km to Dodoma, from Dar, to officially open parliament he didn’t order a private jet – instead, he chose to drive.

He  reportedly told parliamentary leaders that the people of Tanzania want him to solve their problems and not make speeches. He has not been complaining about how bad things are but showing how better they can be.

In the course of elections, he promised  to work for the people. He has not adjusted his promises as he told parliamentary leader”Now is the time to work and I as your president, will walk the talk in delivering all that I promised during the campaigns”.

He has not gone out of Tanzania to be telling the world that Tanzanians are bad people  or hiring officials whose job responsibility is lying to the people , what he is doing in Tanzania is already spreading the fame of his country around the globe.

His actions are already finding  echoes in surrounding countries and putting politicians under pressure. “The disgustingly conspicuous and gluttonous consumption — at the expense of taxpayers — displayed by our legislators and top civil servants is making Tanzanian President John Magufuli look like a saint,” columnist Rasna Warah wrote in Kenya’s Daily Nation newspaper.

The 56-year-old  former school teacher, industrial chemist and  former works minister comes with a bag of integrity. “He was for many years minister for works, supervising execution of mega projects worth trillions of shillings, but was never implicated in any corruption scandal,” Joseph Warioba, a former prime minster and veteran CCM politician, told AFP news agency. “He could have been the richest politician in the country”

A note of caution though, Magufuli should go beyond personal examples and build the institutions of Tanzania so that these reforms will not leave office with him.

…Wake up Nigerians!

By Hillary Okoronkwo

RECENT health challenges had some of my close friends wondering if I am being chocked up by my unrelentless concern for how badly Nigerians are being treated.

That claim cannot be further from the truth. I actually want to die kicking about oppression and nothing can change or stop that.

Let me digress a little bit please.

Exactly  seven years ago, I attended the funeral service of a great Nigerian. Yes, he was so great and you may not have heard about him.

He is Professor Kalu from Ohafia in Abia State. He was an accomplished Nigerian, an author of 15 books, a father of three great children, a husband whose steps were ordered by the Lord.

Economic refugee

I met Njideka, a University of Nigerian medical doctor who is an economic refugee like myself  at the funeral. Njide married a Nigerian American citizen and relocated to America for greener pastures and love. Not necessarily in the order stated above!

Njide has been receiving my regular fiery emails critiquing the stench in Nigeria. I had spoken to Njide several times over the phone but never met her in person until that day.

Njide was at the funeral in Chicago. I attended the funeral in a decent outfit. A simple well tailored outfit with a nice Nordstrom shirt measured and tailored for me.

Immediately after the funeral, I was introduced to Njide. She looked at me in disbelief and actually remarked that she expected to see me in a rebel red beret and not dressed so decent.

This was a classic case of the foolishness and idiocy of Nigerians. She supposed being outspoken and sharing your strong views is an exclusive hallmark of the poor.

A few years ago, I was in a political strategy meeting on how to defeat John Kerry here in Michigan. The tactician wanted volunteers to gather on a strategic corner to welcome John Kerry who was the democratic presidential candidate running against George W Bush with signs welcoming him to Bush country (Michigan)

Based on the time of John Kerry’s arrival, a few of  us volunteered. Among my fellow activists was the immediate past Attorney General of Michigan and his wife. He actually ran for Governor afterwards.

We were not a rented crowd. We had our daily jobs but were simply activists who wanted our political wishes to come true and we worked very hard for it. Under normal circumstances John Kerry had no business visiting Michigan, a democratic stronghold a fews days before the presidential election. John came to Michigan because he was afraid Bush will defeat him here.

John was supposed to be campaigning hard in the swing state of Ohio. He ended up winning Michigan by a very small margin but lost Ohio by a little over 20k votes.

We concluded that we helped George Bush win re-election in a significant way. We kept Michigan up for grabs until the election day. John could have been campaigning in Ohio on the day he visited Michigan.

Unbeknownst to me then some of my friends do not know that their voice actually counts but is missing in the discourse. They want to appear cool and dignified in the face of stench and injustice. I think they are crazy but I still love them.

Greatest mistakes

They are making one of the greatest mistakes of their lives and if there is indeed a judgement day, God may use my services to cross examine them. I promise to be very brutal and uncompromising.

At least, you have the privilege of knowing in advance!

Can I count on your voice today? If you don’t know what to say, I am here to help.

If your silence is a grand design to preserve yourself so that you will receive your long deserved share of the rotten national cake, you are so mistaken.

If you are afraid of being labelled a “Wailer” by  Femi Adesina and his vuvuzelas, you are in good company. Femi Adesina’s principal, our current president, Buhari “wailed” for over 30 years.

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