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Towards Building a New Nigeria: National Re-Orientation or Transformation?

July 13, 2011 – 11:58 am

Towards Building a New Nigeria: National Re-Orientation or Transformation?

By Professor Julius O. Ihonvbere

Being the Text of a lecture  delivered  by Professor Julius O. Ihonvbere, OON at the Workshop on “Towards Building A New Nigeria” organized by the SSPA, Best Western Homeville Hotel, Benin City, 8-9 July, 2011

 

I thank the organizers of this timely Workshop for inviting me to lead a discussion on this critical issue of national re-orientation.  Every nation should be concerned about the issue of orientation.  This, in reality, is a contemporary way of talking about a national ideology or national philosophy.  There must be a set of values that are collectively endorsed to guide, direct, condition and shape the processes and patterns of production, exchange and accumulation as well as socio-political and economic engagements in a direction that improves on the living conditions of the majority, promotes sustainable development and ensures national stability and security.  At the heart of such an agenda is philosophy and process that goes beyond just compelling people to sing the national anthem, recite a national pledge and talk endlessly about patriotism or unity.  These things have only ephemeral value if they are not grounded in common beliefs, commitments, and institutions that people collectively accept and agree to defend and promote. Keep Reading »

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Julius Ihonvbere | Africa, Civil Society, Constitutionalism, Corruption, Democracy, Nigeria, Political Economy, Underdevelopment | Comments (0)

The Politics of Change: Politics, Maternal Newborn and Child Mortality in Nigeria

August 31, 2010 – 6:22 pm

 

The Politics of Change: Political Constraints to Reducing

Maternal Newborn and Child Mortality in Nigeria

By
Professor Julius O. Ihonvbere, OON

Chair Designate, ACOSHED/CHESRAD

Paper Delivered at the Save the Children/Wilton Park Conference on “Maternal, Newborn and Child Survival” Conference, UK, December 10-14, 2008.

Introduction

It is very well recognised that developing countries have problems with managing their healthcare delivery systems to the benefit of the majority of citizens.  When resources are scarce, without careful management of available funds, the healthcare system falls into even more dislocation and decay.  What is more, the situation could be complicated by the lack of facilities, adequate information, political instability, corruption and institutional inefficiency.  In other instances, a nation may have comparatively adequate resources and yet, have its health system in a state that makes it very difficult to deliver effective healthcare services to the people.  In addition to the factors and forces above, the situation could be complicated by the existence of a political elite that has carved out an alternative “state” to cater for its needs.  In this situation, the elite, rather than develop the public sphere in terms of facilities, institutions, and services, concentrates on the construction of private alternatives and heavy reliance on foreign alternatives.  So, while the public sphere decays, the private sphere expands and gets all the benefits.  Scarce resources are deployed to foreign trips for either medical tourism or to take advantage of better services. Keep Reading »

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Julius Ihonvbere | Africa, Civil Society, Health, Nigeria | Comments (0)

Reinventing Africa for the Challenges of the Twenty-First Century

August 31, 2010 – 7:33 am

Reinventing Africa for the Challenges of the Twenty-First Century

By Professor Julius O. Ihonvbere, OON, OGI

Being Text of the 2010 Annual Public Lecture of the Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilisation (CBAAC), Lagos, 22nd July, 2010

It is a great pleasure to be here with you all today and I thank CBAAC for inviting me to give this lecture.  I am particularly proud of the excellent work of Professor Tunde Babawale at this Centre.

Let us begin by setting the context for this lecture.  Africa, no matter what perspective we adopt, remains in deep trouble.  This should not be a cause for fatalism or afro-pessimism.  It is true that the crises of politics, economy and society are deepening.  Yet, beneath these crises are sites of integrity, struggle, hope and commitment to change for the better.  One of the major problems of statecraft and politics in Africa has been the inability to generate, package, and implement viable and effective programs for growth, development and democracy. Keep Reading »

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Julius Ihonvbere | Africa, Civil Society, Corruption, Democracy, Foreign Policy, Global Economy, Human Rights, Leadership, Nigeria, Political Economy, Political Theory, Politics, Underdevelopment | Comments (0)

Nigeria’s Democratic Enterprise Since 1999: A Preliminary Assessment

April 4, 2010 – 3:08 pm

By

Professor Julius O. Ihonvbere, OON, OGI

Nigeria’s Representative to the International Board

Forum of Federations, Ottawa, Canada

Paper prepared for delivery at the 2010 Charles Etsu Annual Dialogue (CEAD), Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria.

Protocol

I apologise that I am not available to personally present this paper.  I had to travel out of the country at short notice on an important assignment.  I pray that there would be another opportunity to make a live presentation and engage in follow-up conversations in the very near future.  If I do not go on heaping praises on our leaders for what they have done for the growth of our democratic enterprise, it is because I believe that the truth can only empower us to do better.  The reality in which we live of course tells much of the content and context of governance, leadership and democratic values in our country today.

At the end of the day, democracy is about people. It is also about quality leadership, constitutions and constitutionalism, the rule of law, political discipline, the construction and nurturing of democratic values, building strong and viable political institutions and giving hope to the ordinary person that there is indeed a collective future to work for. Keep Reading »

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Julius Ihonvbere | Africa, Constitutionalism, Corruption, Democracy, Federalism, Leadership, Nigeria, Political Economy, Political Theory, Underdevelopment | Comments (0)

Good Governance and Economic Bliss

October 8, 2009 – 8:03 pm

Good Governance and Economic Bliss

By

Professor Julius O. Ihonvbere, OON
National Chairman, Board of Trustees
Institute of Corporate and Business Affairs Management
Lagos, Nigeria

Text of a Lecture Delivered at the Church of God Mission, October 1, 2009.
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Protocol
I thank God for this day and thank the leadership of the Church of God Mission for this invitation.  I congratulate our mother Bishop Margaret Idahosa for continuing the great legacies of our departed Papa Archbishop Benson Idahosa.  May his good soul rest in very perfect peace.
It is indeed a pleasure to be amongst you today.  Under normal circumstances, the tone and content of this lecture would be different.  But I have a lot of respect for the house of God. A man that cannot differentiate between his father’s house and the market place is a fool.
Let me not waste your time with intellectual gymnastics, definitions and unnecessary grammar. The issue before us is economic bliss and good governance.  I have changed it to good governance and economic bliss because it is good governance that makes economic bliss possible.    Contrary to the thinking of many intellectuals and policy makers, just as we all know the difference between good health and illness, ordinary people know the difference between development and underdevelopment.  Today, some nations like to make themselves feel good by saying they are developing nations: we shall not argue with that. Keep Reading »

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Julius Ihonvbere | Africa, Civil Society, Constitutionalism, Corruption, Democracy, Federalism, Foreign Policy, Human Rights, Leadership, Nigeria, Political Economy, Politics, Underdevelopment, West Africa | Comments (0)

Leadership and Sustainability of Democracy in Nigeria

July 6, 2009 – 10:37 pm

By

Prof. Julius O. Ihonvbere, OGI, OON

Text of Lecture delivered to mark the Inauguration of the Edo State Chapter of the Yar’Adua/Jonathan Solidarity Forum, at the Oba Akenzua Cultural Centre,

Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria, June 27, 2009.

PROTOCOL

I thank the organizers for inviting me to deliver this lecture. I heartily congratulate all those being inaugurated today.  I do pray and hope that they will lead by example and lay credible foundations for the future.   Because it is an inauguration ceremony, this lecture will be brief and direct.  In any case, the PDP in Edo state is at a stage today where it cannot afford to engage in trivialities, double-talk and grandstanding.  We have been bruised, battered, humiliated, and almost caged. But thank God, we remain fully on ground, with able and capable leaders, so there is absolutely no shaking.  However, the way out of the present challenges facing the party is to sit down, reflect, be honest with ourselves, reorganize, re-strategize, refocus, reposition, and work collectively for the emergence of a true and even more powerful party in Edo State.  We must abandon our old habits if we are to succeed as a party. Keep Reading »

Julius Ihonvbere | Africa, Civil Society, Constitutionalism, Corruption, Democracy, Federalism, Global Economy, Human Rights, Nigeria, Political Economy, Politics, Politics and Gender | Comments (0)

Report of the Technical Committee on the Niger Delta

July 6, 2009 – 7:47 pm

In an attempt to tackle the crisis in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria, the government set up a technical committee with the following terms of reference:

  • To collate, review and distill the various reports, suggestions and recommendations on the Niger Delta from the Willinks Commission Report (1958) to the present, and give a summary of the recommendations  necessary  for government action.
  • To appraise the summary recommendations and present a detailed short, medium and long term suggestion to the challenges in the Niger Delta.
  • To make and present to Government any other recommendations that will help the Federal Government achieve sustainable development, peace, human and environmental security in the Niger Delta region.

The committee was inaugurated by the Vice President of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan on September 8th, 2008 with the following speech: Keep Reading »

Julius Ihonvbere | Africa, Civil Society, Democracy, Federalism, Human Rights, Leadership, Nationalism, Nigeria, Political Economy, Underdevelopment | Comments (0)

Leadership and the Future of Nigeria

March 12, 2009 – 7:00 am

Professor Julius O. Ihonvbere, OON, OGI, FICA
National Chairman, Board of Trustees
Institute of Corporate and Business Affairs Management
Lagos, Nigeria

Text of a Lecture Delivered at the Founders Day Celebration, Lead University, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria, March 12, 2009
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Allow me to begin by thanking the Management and students of this great citadel of learning for inviting me to deliver this lecture.  I have followed the activities of this institution fairly closely since its inception.  I am convinced that it is steadily emerging as an intellectual crucible that will not just fill a strategic place in our nation’s quest for growth, development and progress, but would also sufficiently empower its products to effectively meet the challenges of globalisation.
Our topic for discussion today is very direct and clear.  We are interested in interrogating the place of leadership in the future of Nigeria.  This does not mean that we are not interested in followership.  In fact, it is the combination of leadership and followership that often determines the future of a nation.  However, since leaders control and dominate the commanding heights of the economy, exercise legal monopoly over the means of coercion, dominate the structures and institutions of politics and economy, and shape the ideological or philosophical direction of society, we shall focus on leaders and the future. Keep Reading »

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Julius Ihonvbere | Africa, Civil Society, Corruption, Democracy, Leadership, Nigeria, Political Economy, Politics | Comments (1)

Political Obligation and Democratization

September 24, 2008 – 12:20 pm

POLITICAL OBLIGATION AND DEMOCRATIZATION

Professor Julius O. Ihonvbere, OON

Text of Lecture Delivered at the Workshop on Political Obligations/Social Contract for Local Government Political Officers in Cross River State, Calabar, April 21st, 2008

It is indeed a pleasure to be amongst you here today. Let me congratulate you all on your election as chairmen of your respective local governments. I know what it means to win the ticket, go into elections, win and retain the victory in our dear nation. My prayer is that you will all keep your covenant with your people so that your names would be written in gold in the history books and minds of our people.

My brief remarks will be focused on “Political Obligation and Democratization.” Our goal will be to highlight the linkage between political obligation and the deepening, widening and sustenance of democratic practice, thus making democratization part of our political discourse and practice. First, what is political obligation? Keep Reading »

Julius Ihonvbere | Africa, Civil Society, Constitutionalism, Democracy, Federalism, Leadership, Nationalism, Political Economy, Political Theory, Underdevelopment | Comments (3)

Ethnic Reconciliation

September 24, 2008 – 2:09 am

Ethnic Reconciliation

by

Professor Julius O. Ihonvbere, OON

Paper delivered at the Policy and Programme Retreat 2007, Organised by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Delta State Chapter, Grand Hotel, Asaba, Delta State, February 2007.

I thank the Delta State Chapter of our great Party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for inviting me to deliver this paper on “Ethnic Reconciliation” at this very important retreat. Ethnic issues and ethnic politics have become critical variables in our political and other calculations in the last five decades or more. All over the world, unbelievable actions are being taken within and amongst ethnic constituencies. In some cases, genocides and unprecedented massacres have taken place in the name of ethnic conflict and ethnic politics. The mismanagement of culture, identity and difference has become an excuse for promoting criminal politics, intolerance, disregard for constitutional provisions and the rights and liberties of others, especially minorities. Keep Reading »

Julius Ihonvbere | Africa, Civil Society, Democracy, Federalism, Human Rights, Leadership, Nationalism, Nigeria, Political Economy, Political Theory, Politics, Underdevelopment | Comments (0)