The nation is waiting for a ceasefire (Continuation)

When I spoke Yoruba, one of the soldiers said, ‘Are you a Yoruba man?’ And I said yes, and that was how they rescued me. The soldiers were tall; we called them Gongola, Gwodogwodo! Some of them said it was because of Chukwuma Nzeogwu, who was not from Asaba really; he was from Ika Ibo, but they still dealt with us, and that’s unfortunate. To God be the glory, we survived.

What do you think is the reason General Yakubu Gowon is yet to say anything about the civil war?

Gowon is very apologetic, and that was why he started Nigeria Prays, and we have to commend him for that. That Nigeria Prays was to revive the spirit of the people back from the civil war and to reconcile people back to God and to go on with one Nigeria.”

Read also: The nation is waiting for a ceasefire (Continuation)

Another illustration of the need for a ceasefire as a prerequisite for:

“GOVERNANCE REIMAGINED : MAPPING THE FUTURE”

Is provided by the following vignette courtesy of Festus Adedayo of the “Sunday Tribune” newspaper.

“In 2019, investigative journalist Fisayo Soyombo, adopting the pseudonym Ojo Olajumoke, spent five days in a police cell and eight days as an inmate in Ikoyi Prison. It was in the bid to crack down on corruption in Nigeria’s criminal justice system. There was no single whimper from the Nigerian establishment (including the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria!). After Soyombo’s arrest and detention in police custody, he was arraigned in court and ultimately got a remand in prison. He emerged with very distressing stories of illegitimate arrests, extrajudicial killings, bribery and corruption, and a criminal justice system that is in a sorry case. He even claimed that a prison official asked him for money to remove his name from jailbirds’ rosters.”

Yet another case in point was the order by a then military head of state that university lecturers and professors who were about to launch a protest against their salaries and conditions of service should vacate staff quarters/accommodation provided by the universities. The consequences were disastrous. The lecturers and professors were running helter skelter. It has not occurred to them that they needed to own their own houses. Some ended up squatting (along with their families) with friends (sometimes in their boys’ quarters, which were meant for their domestic staff). Others resigned to take up lucrative jobs in Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, Britain, and the United States of America. The brain drain was massive. It heralded the “JAPA” syndrome—an exodus of critical manpower.

I suspect that the older generation of Chartered Accountants in our midst would readily recall that in 2000, the Nigerian government budgeted a hefty sum of N10 billion in anticipation of the threat that at the stroke of midnight on December 31, 2000, all computers would cease to function! It was going to be an apocalypse of monumental dimensions. Actually, December 31, 2000, came and went seamlessly. Nothing happened. To the best of my knowledge, nobody was ever asked to account for the N10 billion booty and the frantic sharing of money that preceded the non-event.

As matters stand, the hornet’s nest has been stirred. Chartered Accountants are sufficiently concerned and energised (without relying on steroids). It is time to turn to a new chapter. To the more discerning, the crises within our own profession are as myriad as those bedevilling our nation. Hence, we must not only get our priorities right; we must tread carefully—with cautious optimism as our guidepost. It was not so long ago that the Minister of Finance (Chief A.A. Ani), the Governor of the Central Bank (Mr. Paul Ogwuma and Chief Joseph O. Sanusi), the Minister of Industries (Chief Kola B. Jamodu), the Head of (civil) Service (Mr. Steve O. Oronsaye), and the Director-General of Budget and Planning (Pastor Ken Akabueze) were all Chartered Accountants. The power structure and influence landscape have undergone change that is almost beyond recognition. If we are not careful, Chartered Accountants would be pushed to the middle rank or right to the back of the surging queue. Clearly, we have lost a lot of ground.

Read also: Chartered accountants versus economists (continuation)

In seeking restitution or redress, we must adhere to the ethics of our profession and our commitment to the enduring principles of accuracy and integrity within the ambit of “true and fair.” What stares us in the face are harsh realities. More and more of our members are in distress.

Many are merely surviving as best as they can while others settle for menial jobs (e.g., as cab or Uber drivers). On a recent trip to London, the guy who checked me in at the check-in desk was a chartered accountant!!. There is not enough time or space to dwell on the plight of Chartered Accountants who are in practice but are forced to accept meagre fees for their professional services at a time when inflation is officially 34 percent and the exchange rate of the naira has nosedived.