The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Oyo State Council on Tuesday mourned the passing of another former Chairman of the union, Elder Bode Oyewole.

Oyewole was Chairman of the union between 1978 to 1980.

He was later Chairman of the Oluyole warriors, Shooting Stars Sports Club (3SC) of Ibadan.

Oyewole recently spoke with the incumbent, Ademola Babalola on July 3rd, 2020 following the news of the demise of one of his sucessors in office, Joe Abiola (a.k.a. Atumah).

Abiola, who also died about three weeks ago, took over from Oyewole and was NUJ Chairman for two terms, spanning between 1981 to 1985.

Oyewole had assured Babalola through phone call that he would grace the burial of Abiola in the special tributes being planned in honour of the deceased by NUJ that will come up this Thursday at 2pm in Iyaganku press centre.

Expressing grief over the death of the erstwhile union leader, Babalola in a statement signed by the Secretary of NUJ, Comrade Sola Oladapo, described Oyewole’s passing as “shocking, devastating, unexpected, sad and one that caught the Union unawares”, because of the outstanding career of the erstwhile Chairman.

Oladapo said the news came when the executive was planning a special programme in honour of Abiola, saying, “the news of his demise came at a time when his wise counsel, experience and charismatic attributes as a father figure in NUJ and the society in general are much needed.”

The NUJ prays for the forgiveness of Oyewole’s shortcomings popularly called Uncle B.O, and grant him eternal rest.

It sympathizes with the family especially the wife, Mrs. Bose Oyewole, the children and the veteran journalists in the State and pray God to give them the fortitude to bear his irreplaceable loss.

The arrest of Nigerian-born Ramoni Abass, with Hushpuppi social media identity and his gang in DUBAI over alleged transnational cybercrime during which nearly 2million were ripped off, unveils how deceitful living is ubiquitous, celebrated and elevated above moral uprightness in Nigeria.

‘Hushpuppism’ is a survivalist strategy which deliberately distorts reality in relation to what is earned, how it is earned and the revealed identity. The revealed identity has two parts: the actual and the framed identity. In relation to the former, only the acting individual and the gang keep this close to their heart. The framed identity is that part of human life that is portrayed to outsiders as the actual. To break this down, there are many contemporary politicians in Nigeria who portray themselves as followers of late Sage, Obafemi Awolowo’s ideology but their actual realities have betrayed them. Just as the followers of Awolowo’s political ideology call themselves Awoists and dress alike those who believe in hushpuppism as ideology of living are ‘hushpuppies’. How can sociology help to unpack how our collective negligence birthed and nurture hushpuppism from pre-colonial to a more daring and endemic dimension in 2020 Nigeria?

I had gone to Bodija market in Ibadan to buy beans. The woman bean seller fixed her price per kongo (the measuring container) at N400 and was not ready to reduce to my offer of N350. As I made to leave to try my luck elsewhere she called me that I should come and pay. While she was measuring I realised she changed the kongo to a smaller one that would make me lose some cups. I challenged her for using a fraudulent measurement for me. She said that she would not allow me to go and buy it elsewhere since I insisted on paying N350. She then said in Yoruba “mo jewo otito fun yin nitori Jesu o nii pe de” (I confessed to you because Jesus will soon come). This ‘heavenly’ candidate rips customers off everyday but wanted me to see her as a child of God through confession yet, she failed to change the measuring plastic. On another day at Eleyele, I had packed to buy vegetable from the road side sold for fifty naira. I deliberately gave the seller hundred naira and waited for balance. She pretended as if she was waiting for me to ask for another item. I strolled away but she failed to call me back for my balance. She made extra N50 through deceit. We complain about those leading the country as wicked but the masses are wickeder. These are people on the lowest rung of the ladder victimising another person to enrich themselves. This is the character of the Nigerian social institutions which nurture variants of ‘hushpuppic’ norms and values.

From the family, parents nurture their children to lie. When driving with children inside the car, they drive against traffic while the wife smiles that her husband is smart. They go ahead to arrange special centers for exams, pay for examination questions, buy admission space in the universities and continue to lobby for their children to graduate. The person who has never been socialised to follow normative standards cannot get to the position of authority and behave well against others. This births the corruption relay race where the next is waiting for the baton holder to handover to him/her to continue the looting. In the school, money rules how the teacher relates with pupils. No sound moral teachings. Parents won’t allow punishment of their children. They induce poorly paid teachers to tinker with marks. Their kids progress in life in error. They are socialised to take shortcut to achieve their goals. After all, Falz song says eni to mo way lomo iwe (those who understand how to scheme their ways to success in school are the bookworm). In the University they can’t be different. They arrange with their corrupt lecturers in a transactional dealing to award marks instead of reading to pass.

The political institution inherits these bad apples. Their campaigns are founded and erected on lies. Since they are in a familiar terrain, they buy their way to power. Once in power, they begin to run government of the few, for the few, enthroned by the deceived majority. They award fat salaries and allowances to themselves and watch the civil servants dwell in the dungeon of hopelessness. It does not matter the slogan, whether change begins with me, or rebranding, fleecing of the common patrimony is a shared norm. They would deceive labour Unions into signing agreements that would not be honoured yet they expect the youth to behave honourably. The doctors, nurses, scientists and researchers who are being called upon to rescue the nation from COVID-19 are among the neo-colonial slaves battling for independence. You then wonder why the best would leave our system while those who lack interest of the system are emplaced. This again nurtures hushpuppic culture.

Religious institutions also get their leadership from this structure. Not many wait for God to call them again; they would rather pick their phone to call God. After all, did Adekunle Gold not sing Baba God pick up the call? As a product of a deceptive foundation, they nurture accumulation of wealth by deception through their preaching and use the proceeds of deceit and looting to erect cathedrals and Mosques and acquire conspicuous consumption. Religious leaders have lost their voices to fight ills in the society; rather, they encourage cutting corners through their unending levies on members. They provide special seat for fraudsters. A ‘philanthropist’ receives greater attention while the source of money does not matter to them. They pray that the source will not run dry yet we wonder why corruption is becoming endemic. The congregation also wants to dress and ride luxury cars used by clergymen. They also go into the world, con people, short-change the system and return to the spiritual centers with money from questionable sources.

It is in this country where first class graduates are relegated that those with questionable degrees are paid millions! Since pensioners are punished in Nigeria, those still in service find time to take enough for post service life. Many even have actual and official age due to uncertainties. A value explains what is desirable and worth pursuing. I often ask students to tell me the value of Nigeria. They tell me Corruption is our value. They see political party admits those derided for stealing and call them saints. As they lay the fruits of deceit, lies and disloyalty crowned with mindless looting, the incoming ‘dealers’ of the 5-generation (5G) moves at higher speed.

This hushpuppic thinking is what produces new generation of pilferers.
Some criminologists believe that all criminals are rational to the extent that they weigh the benefit and cost of their actions. They will commit crime if benefit outweighs the cost. While some others argue that crime is caused by the social structure of the society which makes deviance and crime possible, others talk about the behaviour of the criminal law. Taken together, understanding the sociology of deceitful living, which I have carefully tagged hushpuppism is important to see how the culture of deceitful leaving is caused by the society. It also unpacks the role of all of us in this dubiousness and the rationalising of filthy behaviour. To turn the tide, parents must stop circumventing the system for their children, schools must insist on merit and government must address systemic injustices. That is when we can win some souls away from the rampaging kingdom of hushpuppism.

Peter Ayoade

The Oyo State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) on Tuesday warned members of the public to stop dealing with the immediate past Chairman of the union in the state, Adewunmi Faniran who is still parading himself as the chairman of the union in the state.

NUJ said there is need to sensitise the public on the development in the union because the radio station where the former Chairman works, FRCN (Radio Nigeria), has been fouling the air, misrepresenting and peddling lies with fake news to mislead members of the public about the status of Faniran who was voted out of office, seven months ago.

The NUJ calls on the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC), the Director General of the FRCN, Mr. Mansur Liman, the Zonal Director of the station, Mr. Mohammed Bello, the President of the NUJ, Comrade Chris Isiguzo, the Minister of the Ministry of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed and the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, to rein in, on the station before they cause further damage to the integrity of FRCN nationwide.

The Oyo NUJ threatened that should the station continues to parade Faniran as Chairman of NUJ against the constitution of the body, it would be left with no other option than to publish a disclaimer in three natio national dailies to expose the personality of the erstwhile chairman with his photograph, for unsuspecting members of the public to be weary of him.

This development, according to the NUJ, becomes imperative because Faniran has refused to release the properties of the union in his care which include but not limited to cheque books of the financial transactions of the union domiciled in three banks namely; UBA, Access and FCMB.

The Union in a statement issued by the secretary of the Union in the state, Sola Oladapo on Tuesday commended the efforts of the Nigeria Police Force to ensure that the items were retrieved from Faniran but became helpless because of the uncompromising stance of the erstwhile Chairman.

The NUJ further said anyone who engages in any deal with Faniran in the name of the NUJ, does so at his or her risk as the man has been voted out of office since December 18th 2019 when members from across the nine of 10 Chapels that make up Oyo NUJ overwhelming elected a new Chairman, Ademola Babalola and his crop of executives.

It would be recalled that the immediate past secretary of the council, Bola Ogunlayi reportedly handed over the union properties in his care, including vehicle number plate for his office to the newly elected secretary of the union, Sola Oladapo while Faniran and Busola Adetunji, the former Treasurer, held on to bank books, fuelling suspicion that nefarious activities might be going on, on the aforementioned bank accounts.

The NUJ has therefore put the union account officials and members of the public on red alert, as it warned them against further dealing with past union officials.

Efforts by the police to retrieve the bank details from them on Monday, were rebuffed as the law enforcement agents advised the NUJ to issue disclaimer in national dailies against the recalcitrant officers.

The police also admonished the NUJ to freeze the bank accounts to ward off shady deals by the defiant erstwhile NUJ Chairman.

Our correspondent gathered that despite several warnings and reminders by the national secretariat of the union and the new executive led by Babalola, Faniran refused to corperate with the union leadership.

Reports say the issue became messier recently when some veterans of the union who are lecturers at the International Institute of Journalism (IIJ) approached the current chairman that they could not get their salaries in the last seven months because the outgone chairman refused to handover the union properties which also include signing off, as signatory to the bank account of the school.

The letter signed by the duo of Mr. Ganiyu Waheed (for and on behalf of lecturers) and Mrs. Olawumi Adenubi, the Administrative Officer  said, “seven months ago, the NUJ elected Mr. Ademola Babalola Ismail as the new Chairman to run the NUJ affairs for another three years.

“Unfortunately, his predecessor, Mr. Adewumi Faniran has since then, refused to sign off as a signatory to the IIJ, Ibadan account, to pave way for the new Chairman, Ademola Babalola Ismail to sign the IIJ cheque.

“We are elderly retired journalists serving as lecturers to keep our bodies and souls together and impacting knowledge to upcoming journalists.

“Since the beginning of this year, we are faced with the agony of hunger and starvation. We shall therefore be grateful if you can use your good offices to appeal to Mr. Faniran to sign off for the new Chairman so that we can be paid. We pray we will not starve to death,” they appealed.

Oluwakemi Ishola

In a rare display of love and care for the most vulnerable persons affected by the novel coronavirus [COVID-19] pandemic, members of the foremost Osogbo professional group, Osogbo Affairs Forum (OSAF), distributed relief packages of food items to over 600 households, thereby, directly impacting at least 3000 less privileged and vulnerable persons across the seven major communities in Osogbo.

OSAF, is a Non-Governmental body, comprising of Osogbo-born professionals spread all over Nigeria and in the Diaspora.

In a statement issued in Osogbo on Sunday and made available to the media, Rasheed Bolarinwa, Chairman of the OSAF COVID-19 Relief Committee, while giving an insight into what informed the decision of OSAF to assist the vulnerable said:

“As concerned professionals, we felt the need to collectively reach out to the vulnerable and impact our immediate communities, where many have suffered untold hardship due to the earlier COVID-19 lockdown as ordered by the state government as part of measures to curtail the spread of the pandemic.

“It is our utmost joy that we had the opportunity to intervene in our immediate communities, Osogbo when they needed us most and we are of the belief that when the COVID-19 storm is finally over, God willing, history will be kind to us that when it mattered most, Osogbo-born professionals under the umbrella of OSAF stood to be counted and reached out to those in dire need in our ancestral home” he added.

The group adopted a community-based and direct distribution system which leveraged on the existing zoning of the town into seven different communities comprising of Ita-Olokan, Owo Ope, Ayegun-Gbonmi, Oke Baale, Isale Agbe, Isale Osun and Oke Popo. This allowed for the bulk food items made up of bags of rice, beans and semovita to first be distributed to the community heads who in turn packaged and delivered the food packs to the vulnerable and the poorest of the poor in their communities under the supervision of the OSAF COVID-19 Relief Committee.

The distribution system which was done in two phases in May and concluded in June, according to one of the committee members, Dr. Mujidat Salawu, an Academic, was to enable the package get to the targeted members of the communities as the heads of these zones were in the best position to identify the poorest among them.

The second phase of the distribution of the palliative which was concluded a fortnight ago was done via a direct distribution system wherein the Committee members dedicated two days between Friday and Saturday to directly give out the food packs to widows, the infirm, the aged and vulnerable – 30 each across the 7 communities that make up Osogbo. We adopted this approach to reach more people and address shortfalls we noticed in the distribution of the first phase through the community leaders”, Mr. Bosun Oode, another member of the Committee disclosed.

The beneficiaries were full of joy and commended OSAF for its philanthropic gesture at this time when all economic activities were more or less yet to pick up as a result of the long lockdown occasioned by the pandemic. One of the community heads, Chief Aliu Sonibare prayed for the group and the committee Relief members for their efforts at easing the economic burden of the people in this trying time.

In his own remarks, the Ajagunna of Osogboland, High Chief Gabriel Oparanti, who also doubles as the community leader of Isale Agbe zone, express profound appreciation on behalf of his community for the OSAF relief food items. In his own words, “Our community really appreciate this kind gesture from Osogbo Affairs. We are happy that successful sons and daughters of the landf spread across the globe are giving back to their ancestral home at this time when the people have need of it the most. We pray that God almighty will continue to replenish the purse of everyone who contributed to make this possible.”

In summary, the OSAF COVID-19 palliative and relief items were distributed to over 600 Compounds (Agbooles) across the seven zones in Osogbo with each pack comprising rice, beans and 500kg Semovita enough to feed five persons in each household. Approximately therefore, over 3000 mouths were fed by OSAF which significantly eases the impact of the over two months COVID-19 lockdown as experienced in Osun.

The Nine-Member OSAF COVID-19 Relief Committee set up by the Steering Committee of the Forum had the following professionals as members: Rasheed Bolarinwa, Chairman; Bosun Oode, Secretary; Olalekan Rasidi Musefiu; Obafemi Kolade; Dr. Mujidat Salawu; Wale Adediran; Dele Ajibade; Adebiyi Rasheed and Philips Omodeni.

Emeritus Professor Wole Soyinka: In Celebration

We are because you are.

If there is a man worthy of brandishing the armor as a warrior of light for our humanity, if there is a man the African world must adorn with medals for his moral courage and emulate, and if there is a man deserving of being celebrated time and time over, from this July to June of the following year, and on again, that nominee who fits the bill squarely is none other than Emeritus Professor Oluwole Akinwande Soyinka.

Professor Soyinka continues to feed us with words of wisdom, beauty and fire; his light accompanies us, showing us the path to take in time of indecision or conflicts; his name opens the door to human liberties, and breaks down the walls of tyranny.

He has used words to puncture holes in the muddy and stony conscience of many African leaders; his engagements are too numerous to recount, but in each one, Wole Soyinka leaves no one in doubt about where he stands, what he desires and how he wants us to be.

At 86, he remains constant in his dialogue of love with his land. In 1984, in celebration of the 50th birthday of the Ijegba cirizen, Prof Niyi Osundare led me to Wole Soyinka’s house in Ife. Our Department of English in Ibadan took a holiday in his honour. On the beautiful campus of Ife at the time, we had a reading session at the Rotunda for WS. It was spartan but memorable; a night that marked the beginning of other physical journeys and meetings with the literary icon. Berlin. Illinois. Arkansas. Cape Town. Pretoria. Lagos. Abeokuta. the Forest. Ibadan. Abuja. Minna. Ibadan again. Geographical encounters filled with histories and snippets of wisdom garnered from the Nobel Laureate.

If there is a pantheon of authors who use metaphors as grenades against ignorance, who wield the word as slings against the outrageous cowardice of tyrants across the world, Soyinka is the patron saint of the engaging word.

And here, WS: here is a salute to the gut of your moral courage. Happy birthday, sir.