Many Nigerians only hear about LEAD Poison and how it is affecting children in most of the mining states in Northern part of Nigeria. But careless of how its been contacted or passed on.

Many people have that tiny voice in their head that tells them (any way, wetin concern me, na village people na, dem get the sickness,dirty people, farmers dem).

Many of us already have a nonchalant attitude towards the disease, not knowing the mode of transmission, causes, symptoms or even how deadly it is. I am so sure i just spoke your mind. Not to worry i will give you an insight to it.

Let me start by explaining what LEAD Poison is?

According to research carried out by scientists, LEAD Poison is a very serious and highly fatal condition which only occurs when it builds in the body system. Aside from that, it is also a highly toxic metal and very lethal poison.

From that definition, one would know that in one way or the other we touch or hold metal which simply means it affects us all. Having said all of that, here are eight (8) things you need to know about LEAD poison.

1) It is found in lead based paints (Paints on the walls of old houses); Ever since we all heard about the poison, all we hear is, the farmers from one community went into illegal mining and as a result of that came in contact the poison. But here it is, go to urban areas; you would find old houses with paints falling out.

2) It is also found in toys; Let me ask, how many villagers buy toys for their kids? I am sure your answer is none. Ninety percent (90%) of our kids today all have toys with which they play with it. For instance, it could be seen in old toys or imported toys. It gets to them while making them in the factories.

3) Pregnant women are at a high risk of getting it; All over the world today, from villages, to communities, to town to city, we have women who get pregnant and also give births on a daily basis. They are at higher risks of getting it.

4) Drinking water also can be contaminated by the poison; It is often said that “Water is life” and we all drink water, but ironically LEAD poison can be found in water. This happens through metal corrosion or the wearing away of pluming materials in the water system and households.

5) It also breeds in soil; Do you know that soil and walkways around industrial areas may contain LEAD. It could get contaminated through past use of LEAD in gasoline.

6) Children are also at risk; Children below the age of six (6) can contact the poison because their brain and nervous system are still developing, and they often play with soil, aside from that pregnant mother could pass it on from the womb through the intestine.

7) If discovered early, it could be treated but if not it cannot be reversed; Once it’s detected early enough, it can be treated with Chelation therapy and EDTA , but in  cases where it leads to severe damages, it cannot be reversed. Chelation therapy is a series of intravenous infusions containing disodium EDTA and various other substances. It is sometimes done by swallowing EDTA or other agents in pill form.

8) Basic symptoms of LEAD poison; This is a list symptoms of patience with Lead Poison; i. Abdominal Pain, ii. Abdominal Cramps, iii. Aggressive Behavior, iv. Constipation, v. Sleeping Problems, vi. Headaches, vii. Irritability, viii. Loss of Developmental Skills in Children, ix. Loss of appetite, x. Fatigue, xi. High Blood Pressure, xii. Numbness or Tingling in the extremities, xiii. Memory Loss, xiv. Anemia, xv. Kidney Dysfunction.

One would realize that LEAD poison is not only restricted to the people from the mining states. Yes, they might have one way or the other gotten exposed to the poison due to ignorance and lack of job by going into illegal mining. But anyone could be a victim of Lead Poison.

Let’s give a helping hand to the affected victims, as it is often said “Health is Wealth”.

Next episode promises to be interesting as we talk about prevention of the LEAD poison.

(5^th May, 2016) Corruption undermines growth, erodes trust in governments, fuels support for extremism and hinders the fight against poverty and inequality. Governments have a special responsibility to prevent, detect and punish corruption.

The basis of Nigeria’s fight against corruption lies in its domestic legal and policy instruments such as the Code of Conduct for Public Officers which include Asset Declaration and Verification, the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission Act, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Act, Advance Fee Fraud Act and Money Laundering Prohibition Act, the Public Procurement Act setting up the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) and the Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI). In Decemebr 2003, Nigeria ratified the UN Convention Against Corruption which commits Nigeria to taking necessary steps in the fight against corruption as shown by the various domestic laws enacted.

We, the representatives of the government of Nigeria, representatives of civil society and the media met on 5^th May 2016 in Abuja and are committing to implement critical measures that will ensure that the space for corruption to flourish will be curtailed.

1. Cross Cutting Issues

Flowing from the presentations and discussions, the need to address a number of gaps relating to the present effort at fighting corruption was highlighted. The gaps include:

• The present effort at fighting corruption should not only pay attention to legal and institutional issues but also to the sociological issues which are the root cause of corruption.
• There is need to approach the fight with a greater sense of urgency, including creating an effective partnership between the government, business and civil society.
• Defining an overarching vision and strategy for the anti-corruption fight that takes into account the importance of society wide attitudinal change as a way to ensuring the sustainability of the fight.
• Devising effective means of communicating this vision and strategy to the citizens, including those in the rural communities. This is to ensure that citizens are not disconnected from government efforts, thereby securing their continued support.
• The need to fast-track efforts at legal and institutional reforms, including the enactment of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Repeal Bill, 2016 and the Mutual Assistance in Legal Matters Bill, 2016, which seeks to ensure effective prosecution of corruption, financial crime, kidnapping, trafficking in persons and trafficking in drugs, kidnapping, oil theft cases and all other forms of crimes referred to as “Predicate Offences” as long as it has a financial implication and that it eventually leads to the laundering of the stolen funds.
• The need to strengthen anti corruption institutions and make them independent and less prone to political manipulation.
• The role of the Auditor General of the AGF and the Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly should be more proactive in generating reports of the financial dealings of the government in a timely manner and making these reports publicly accessible to enable citizens interrogate the financial dealings of the government.

1. Stolen Asset Recovery

People who benefit from corruption need somewhere to put the money. All too often they want to spend that money in global cities – making use of secrecy in the global financial system to do so with impunity. We need robust steps to assist in the recovery of corrupt assets. Countries where these assets are held should expedite the process of repatriating these assets, without penalties, where they originate in low or middle income countries. There is also need to address the high legal cost of recovering and repatriating these assets. The countries to where these assets are being returned could commit to invest these assets in, among other things, healthcare, basic education, etc. To do this we should:

• Support the enactment of the Nigeria Financial Intelligence Center (NFIC) Bill, 2016 and the Proceeds of Crime (POC) Bill. The NFIC bill seeks to empower the FIU currently located within the EFCC with additional powers of receipt, analysis and dissemination of intelligence to all law enforcement and security agencies.
• Identify priorities for spending on public goods and ensure this spending is made transparent.
• At the London Summit on 12 May 2016 , to commit to increase transparency in the management of returned stolen assets, to ensure ease of access in the recovery of stolen assets, to ensure that “illicit enrichment” or non-explainable wealth can be used as the basis for recovery of stolen public assets.
• Support the President of the federal republic of Nigeria’s commitment to hosting a Global Forum on Asset Recovery in May 2017.

2. Requiring companies to disclose who owns and profits from them

Anonymous companies, trusts and similar legal instruments play a central role in money laundering, concealing the identity of corrupt individuals and irresponsible businesses involved in activities including the trafficking of arms, drugs and people, the theft of public funds, and tax evasion. This robs governments of resources that could otherwise be invested in improving public services and stimulating inclusive economic growth. Public disclosure of beneficial ownership information would enable law enforcement, journalists, and citizens to easily access and use this information to follow the money and root out corruption and would help businesses know who they are trading with. To do this we should:

• Support the passage of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Repeal Bill, 2016 and the Mutual Assistance in Legal Matters Bill, 2016 which has incorporated the definition of ‘beneficial owner’ that captures the natural person(s) that ultimately own(s) or control(s) a company or trust.
• Implement publicly accessible central registries of beneficial ownership of legal entities including bulk access to open data.
• As a first step this should be taken forward for the extractives sector as already committed under EITI.
• Advance these issues at the London Summit, including securing a commitment from Prime Minister Cameroon to enforce Public Registers for the Beneficial Ownership of companies throughout UK’s Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.

3. Ensuring budgets are available for anyone to view in a way that is easy to read and re-use, so that citizens can see how public funds are spent

Budget transparency is critical for enabling citizens to hold their governments to account for the use of public resources in order to ensure that funds are managed efficiently and effectively on things that citizens want and need, such as quality health care, education, infrastructure and social services. We will work to ensure that budgets are publicly available and easily accessible so that citizens can see how public funds are being allocated and spent. To do this we will:

• Support the publication of key budget documents in standard open data formats and creating accessible interfaces to display budget information, including but not limited to the Executive’s budget proposal, the enacted budget, a year-end report on budget outcomes including all off-budget revenues and expenditures, and an end-year audit report.
• Work to link budget, project planning, procurement and spending data.
• Increase public participation in budget formulation and execution, including holding public hearings during the budget process.
• Work to disclose budget data at the federal, state and Local government level.

4. Opening government public procurement and contracting and publishing contracts

Public procurement is critical to economic growth and development. It is also government’s number one corruption risk. It sits at the nexus of revenue generation, budget planning, resource management and delivery of public goods. Openness in contracting also encourages entrepreneurship, a fairer business environment, and a thriving small business sector. We will ensure that all our public contracts are awarded and managed openly and fairly, supporting business & civic oversight and providing open data on public contracting activities.  To do this, we will:

• Support the disclosure of information across the entire chain of government contracting and procurement from planning to tender, to award and to the contract itself (including publishing contracts by default) to implementation to closure.
• In particular, disclose all existing oil and mining sector contracts between the government and companies, including those governing exploration and production activities as well as other important deals, e.g. the crude oil for product swaps.
• Share all this information as open data with unique identifiers to aid analysis, sharing, reuse and interoperability (using the Open Contracting Data Standard).
• Adopt tools and methodologies for market analysis and monitoring to fix problems and ensure better solutions for public problems, across government, business and civil society and throughout the contract cycle.
• Require that the beneficial owners of companies bidding or receiving government contracts be publicly disclosed.
• Work together to establish common information set for contract debarment.

5. Extractive Industry Transparency

In Nigeria, it is estimated that over $400 billion has been lost to ‘oil thieves’ since the country gained independence in 1960. All-too-often, opacity enables corrupt actors to divert these funds away from development promoting activities. Transparency of payments would enable citizens to hold governments accountable for the effective use of natural resource revenues. Commodity trading contributes substantially to state revenues. In recent years, up to 70% of Nigeria’s total government revenues came from sales from the state oil company, largely to oil traders. To remedy this situation, we will:

• Seek to improve transparency and oversight in the sales of crude oil by the state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) by publishing sale-by-sale data.

6. Follow up and international cooperation: The Open Government Partnership
   • Strongly urge the Nigerian Government to follow through with its publicly declared commitment to join the Open Government Partnership without further delay. Joining the OGP will help Nigeria improve transparency in the management of natural resources, and public funds as well as citizen participation in governance.

Insitutional Participants:

Government Institutions

• Federal Ministry of Justice
• Office Of The Head Of The Civil Service Of The Federation
• Min Of Finance
• Nigeria Drug Law Enforcement Agency
• Securities And Exchange Commission
• Central Bank Of Nigeria
• Bureau For Public Procurement
• Nigeria Extractives Industries Transparency Initiatives
• Code of Conduct Bureau
• Office Of The Vice President – Rule Of Law
• Ministry Of Foreign Affairs
• Of Budget & National Planning
• Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption

International Partners and Embassies

• Department For International Development – Nigeria
• African Development Bank
• European Union
• The World Bank
• Ghana High Commission.
• High Comm. Of Canada
• Australian High Com.
• Us Embassy – INL Office

Civil Society Organizations

• BudgIT
• ONE
• Open Society Initiatives Of West Africa (OSIWA)
• Freedom Of Information Coalition, Nigeria
• Natural Resource Governance Institute
• Socio Economic Rights Initiative
• Centre For Public Private Cooperation
• Human Rights Writers Association
• Federal Public Administration Reforms
• PANAC STRAG
• Centre For Leadership And Strategic Development
• Publish What You Pay, Nigeria
• Civil Society Network Against Corruption
• West Africa Non Government Organization Network (WANGONET)
• Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ)
• Enough Is Enough, Nigeria
• Amplified Radio
• Afri-Dev
• Fenrad
• Trust-Inc
• West Africa Civil Society Forum
• Center For Social Justice
• Center For Women And Children
• Amplified Radio
• Public Private Development Center
• Connected Development
• Trust Africa
• Center For Democracy And Development
• Open Society Justice Initiative
• Say No Campaign/YIAGA
• Action Aid, Nigeria

This post was written by Tyo Faeren Jennifer, a Mass Communication Student of the Benue State University, during her Student Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) with CODE  

Connected Development [CODE] a non-governmental organization [NGO], headquartered in Abuja and formed in 2010, has empowered 9 local communities in Africa through its Transparency and Accountability initiative. And has mobilized 30 million Nigerians and 1 million citizens in 7 other West African countries to take action around Environmental Sustainability in Nigeria.

Through its Follow The Money project that advocates, visualize and track funds meant for local communities, it has helped in providing water to the 15, 000 inhabitants in Kadandani, Kano; Bachaka, Kebbi; and Jeke in Jigawa by tracking and advocating for the 10 billion Naira meant for the Great Green Wall project [GGW].

Follow The Money came to limelight by providing access to healthcare for 1,500 lead poisoned children, and providing hostel for 440 pupils, and providing an overhead tank for 200 pupils in government school in Zamfara State, communities.

At one of its traditional stakeholders meeting on making sure water is provided in three villages – Kadandani, Jeke and Bachaka, the representative from the Federal Ministry of Water Resources, Mr. S.M.Babarinde said, “Follow The Money is the most objective transparency and accountability initiative I have followed over 2 years now on radio, TV and their online platforms.”

The World Wide Fund [WWF] ‘s Earth Hour , now coordinated by Connected Development [CODE] and the Young Volunteers for Environment, since 2010 has united the people of Nigeria and other Seven countries in West Africa by mobilizing millions of individuals, organizations and government to take action for the environment.  

It’s OpenDataParty [ODP] makes and spread open data. The ODP is where participants from every part of the country come together to learn and share data skills. It’s ODP has taught 430 Nigerians with hands on workshops, which included-Data Analysis using Google Spreadsheet and Microsoft Excel; Data Scraping using Tabula and Import.io; Visualizing data using Maps with CartoDB and Open Street Maps; Visualizing data using Info.gram

“I have learnt where to get budget for environment especially ones related to my state, and how I can analyze it using Excel, I never knew this before coming” said Erdoo Anango of Kwasedoo Foundation International from Benue state.

It’s Sustainaware  project,  an initiative that aims to improve Youth Knowledge, Interest and Leadership on Environmental Health, Green Economy and Social-Environmental Entrepreneurship), initiated by CODE’s European partners in 2014 was  and supported by the European Union connects eight partner countries (Nigeria, U.S.A, India, Slovenia, Argentina, Hungary, Croatia, and Liechtenstein), and now added Zambia and Somalia, as implementing countries of Sustainaware in 2016

CODE seeks global partners committed to a sustainable future and to empowering marginalized communities to make a difference by creating the missing feedback loop between the government and the people by amplifying the voice of these lurked away. Of course, these feat would not have been achieved if not for support from Indigo Trust, Omidyar Network, Heinrich Boell Foundation, Open Knowledge Foundation, Code For Africa, European Union and the thousands of followers on Twitter and Facebook.

The Follow The Money team intends to use the tool to inform policy decisions while capturing voices from the beneficiaries in rural communities in 11 northern states

[Abuja, 22 March 2016] – At the first ever stakeholders meeting on the implementation of the Great Green Wall project, CODE launched a geo-reference tracking system to foster the completion and sustainability of the Great Green Wall project in Nigeria.

Unveiling the tracking tool, CODEs M&E expert, Oludotun Babyemi expressed that the platform was a work in progress to be fully operational at the end of the month.

“The platform is real-time and accessible to everyone. It allows stakeholders to access information on the implementation of facilities for the Great Green Wall projects across the 11 frontier states” Babayemi stressed.

 CODE’s M&E Expert Oludotun Babyemi launches Great Green Wall Project Tracker

The discussion was strategized to share insights and proposed solutions around sustainability of the billion naira project which is aimed at combating desertification in Northern Nigeria as well as providing income for over 200 communities to be affected by it.

Cross Section of attendants at CODE’s Stakeholders Roundtable on Great Green Wall Project

In his opening remark, Ahmed Goni, the Director General of the National Agency of the Great Green Wall emphasized working with NGOs and understanding the work of NGOs in nation building as he thanked the leadership of Connected Development.

“The Great Green Wall came as a result of African Union, who understand the dangers of desertification in the environment which is the most serious environmental impact affecting Africa”. He added that 11 African countries are involved which include Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, Sudan and Chad with a Pan-African Agency of the Great Green Wall (PAGGW) headquarters in Mauritania.

Bringing the policy back home, the DG said Nigeria initiated the program and had 11 frontline states involved– Kebbi, Zamfara, Gombe, Yobe, Jigawa, Adamawa, Bauchi, Katsina, Borno, Sokoto and Kano. He noted these areas constitute about 43% of Nigeria’s land mass as these areas are also where most of Nigeria’s feed produce comes from. Adding that 43 million Nigerians are directly affected by the GGW.

Goni commented that his agency would provide solar-powered water sources at Bachaka, Jeke and Kadandani communities visited during community outreach activities carried out by the Follow The Money team, as it’s now on their workplan and activities for 2016.

Hamzat Lawal, The Chief Executive of CODE in his opening remark, appreciatedthe presence of the DG the National Agency of the Great Green Wall, noting the importance of the project because it affects up to 200 communities in Nigeria. He added that such initiatives exist to improve communities but how do MDAs access funds, use this funds how is the impact measured.

Presentations by the National Agency for Great Wall highlighted some achievements and activities of the agency from 2013 till date include the establishment of corridor mapping, promotion of alternative livelihoods and establishments of 138ha of vegetable gardens. In 2016, the agency proposes some activities such as establishment of 280km shelterbelts, establishment of 282ha community woodlot, establishment of 22 No. Artesian wells for 22 communities in the 11 frontier states and establishment of 312ha of community orchard. The agency also made note of some challenges affecting the proper implementation of the project which include vandalisation, insurgency and difficulty in accessing some states.

In Follow The Money presentation on findings on the ground visiting rural communities, Babayemi highlighted the community outreaches made by the team to communities in Kano, Kebbi and Jigawa states touching on successes and shortcomings so far of the Green Wall Agency in implementation of the project. Major challenges was access to water in the communities.

The representative of the Chief of Defence Staff, Brigadier General A. A. Taiwo identified the importance of the Great Green Project in eradicating poverty and combating desertification and asked how the agency had been able to address the issue of insurgency in affected states.

A major highlight of the stakeholders’ roundtable was the unveiling of a Monitoring and Evaluation Platform developed by Follow The Money called the Great Green Wall Tracker [www.followthemoneyng.org/ggw] which is aimed at monitoring accountable flow of funds for the project while providing real-time information provided by Follow The Monet State reporters. Some categories are woodcots and boreholes provided in communities.

Mr. S.M. Babarinde, representing the Federal Ministry of Water Resources, commended the efforts of the Follow The Money team and expressed commitment of the ministry to using the tool for information sharing as well as inducting the tool into their subsequent work plans as it provides information on water access in rural communities.

Hamzat Lawal, while ending the event expressed excitement and the commitment of Follow The Money to ensuring that funds released were tracked in an accountable manner.

“In the following months, we will be taking our stakeholders and town hall meetings to Jigawa, Kano and Kebbi states to further engage the state governments and the locals directly affected by the implementation of the Great Green Wall project”. He further added that stakeholders present should take ownership of the tracking tool provided and asked that more debates be made on ensuring that the Ecological Fund Office releases 15% of it funds as stipulated to the Great Green Wall.

The implementation of the Great Green Wall project is essential to Nigeria’s commitment to combating desertification in the Sahel and Sahara region as the projects goes beyond reforestation, but providing lost biodiversity in the region and providing a means of economic livelihood for affected communities on the African continent

****** END******

[In Abuja – Nigeria, for Connected Development/Follow The Money, Oludotun Babayemi +234 09 291 7545 or/and oludotun@connecteddevelopment.org]

[In Abuja – Nigeria, for Connected Development/Follow The Money, Abdulmalik Fahd, +2349052546234 or/and abdulmalik@connecteddevelopment.org]

For more information about Follow The Money, please visit http://followthemoneyng.org

Editor’s Note:

Follow The Money is an initiative of Connected Development [CODE] that advocates, tracks, and visualize funds meant for local communities. The Team is made up of Researchers, Data Analysts, Activists, Campaigners, Journalists, Legal Practitioners, Activists, Information Managers, Students, and Academia & Development Consultants.

Connected Development [CODE] is a non-government organization whose mission is to improve access to information and empower local communities in Africa. We strengthen local communities by creating platforms for dialogue, enabling informed debate, and building capacities of marginalized communities which ensure social and economic progress while promoting transparency and accountability.

[ABUJA, Nigeria] — Following a landmark year for climate, World Wide Fund’s [WWF]  Earth Hour coordinated by Connected Development [CODE] in Nigeria, and Young Volunteers for the Environment in collaboration with the African Youth Initiative on Climate Change in seven West African countries is calling on people around West Africa and the world to continue the charge and be a part of the global momentum to help change climate change. This follows the countdown to Earth Hour, a global yearly event celebrated on March 19, between 8:30 and 9:30 p.m. local time.

2015 was the hottest year on record and it was also the year countries came together to work against climate change at the historic summit in Paris. With the world at a climate crossroads, Earth Hour 2016 is our time to shine a light on climate and environment action and build the foundation for a better future for our planet and future generations.

2016 marks the tenth lights out event since Earth Hour’s debut in Sydney, Australia in 2007. In the past nine years, WWF and Earth Hour teams around the world have harnessed the power of the movement to raise support and funds for access to renewable energy, protection of wildlife and their habitats, building sustainable livelihoods and driving climate-friendly legislation and policy.

In Nigeria, Earth Hour 2016 will join to drive petition to save the last forest in Calabar, Cross River State, with the #CrossRiverSuperway hashtag while activists and businesses will come together in Lagos, Abuja, Cross River, Taraba and Benue States to learn and share how they create a low carbon economy with several of their initiatives. “Earth Hour serves a platform not just to raise awareness about environmental issues, the event also serves as a platform for entrepreneurs who are involved in activities that protect Earth to showcase their work and network as we engage people during the time frame of the event at night” said Oludotun Babayemi, the West Africa Regional Director for Earth Hour.

Babayemi also highlighted other West African countries joining the movement, “This year, we would have Nigér, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Bénin, Togo, Ghana and Gambia joining actions mobilizing millions of people across the continent to inspire actions and inform policy decisions as we collectively implement the outcomes of Paris COP21 and countries INDCs”.

“In 2016, Earth Hour will continue to power grassroots efforts to change climate change including driving a petition to Save the Ekuri Forest, protecting forests and biodiversity in the Sahel of Africa and helping devise a comprehensive solution to waste management persistent crisis by working with governments, businesses and civil society simultaneously on sustainable waste management” stressed Hamzat Lawal, the Chief Executive of Connected development, CODE.

In addition, as Nigeria’s most iconic landmarks – Lekki Conservation Centre, Lagos, Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, Le Meridien, Ogeyi Place, Port Harcourt, Kwararafa University, Wukari, Taraba and Pauline Makka Women Development Center, Makurdi, Benue, prepare to switch off their lights for Earth Hour; supporters are also invited to take a stand for climate action using Social media. Users of social media can donate their Facebook feeds to spread climate awareness and action in a few clicks on www.earthhour.org/climateaction. In addition, using custom-made Earth Hour filters to Facebook and Twitter profile pictures, users can show their friends and followers they care about the planet.

Ms Luttah Annette of JVE International remarked at the importance of the event and the involvement of youth in climate matters “This event is a trend setter that brings great awareness to communities and various stakeholders with a message that, it does not take much to contribute towards sustainable development. This is a wakeup call for all actors to join forces to make a significant impact towards reversing climate change and to improve the livelihoods of the poor in our communities” .

Earth Hour 2016 will be celebrated on Saturday, 19 March 2016 between 8:30 and 9:30 p.m. local time. Log on to www.earthhour.org/nigeria  for more stories and articles on teams using the Earth Hour movement to shine a light on climate action. This is our time to change climate change.

Link to the official Earth Hour 2016 music video: http://ehour.me/EH2016-MusicVideo

Link to photos on Earth Hour activities in Nigeria:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/visitgwarinpa/albums

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For media inquiries or requests for press interviews, please contact: 

Abdulmalik, Abdulmalik  – Earth Hour Nigeria; abdulmalik@connecteddevelopment.org +234 09 291 7545

Attegoua Marcelline – JVE International Secretariat; secret.jve@gmail.com +228 22200112

About Earth Hour:

Earth Hour is WWF’s global environmental movement. Born in Sydney in 2007, Earth Hour has grown to become the world’s largest grassroots movement for the environment, inspiring individuals, communities, businesses and organizations in over 170 countries and territories to take tangible climate action. Celebrating the tenth edition of its signature lights out event in March 2016, the Earth Hour movement continues to harness the power of its millions of supporters to shine a light on climate action and the power of the individual to change climate change.

About Connected Development [CODE]:

CODE is a non-government organization whose mission is to improve access to information and empower local communities in Africa. We strengthen local communities by creating platforms for dialogue, enabling informed debate, and building capacities of marginalized communities which ensure social and economic progress while promoting transparency and accountability.

In a hall that could conveniently sit 250 persons, as at 15 minutes past 10 AM, the total number of people in the Senate Conference Hall, room 0.22 of the Nigerian National Assembly were 22 [not excluding caterers and housekeeping] – Oh! None of the “high-table” members were present either.

By the time the hearing oragnised by the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters commenced at 11:45 AM, the audience were no more than 70 thereabouts, mostly made up of news reporters, which is a shame really especially for civil society who champion their opinions and call for action using social media. The committee was chaired by Senator David Umaru

Let’s press the history tab, to acquaint ourselves with the Frivolous Petition Bill 2015 (SB. 143) –  before proceeding to the Public Hearing.

The bill, introduced by Senator Bala Ibn Na’Allah, is officially called “An act to prohibit frivolous petitions; and other matters connected therewith,” and has been nicknamed “Social Media Bill” by concerned citizens. The bill requires any person submitting a petition to the government to have an accompanying affidavit. However, the bill goes much further as we see in Section 3(4):

“Where any person through text message, tweets, WhatsApp or through any social media post any abusive statement knowing same to be false with intent to set the public against any person and / or group of persons, an institution of government or such other bodies established by law shall be guilty of an offence and upon conviction shall be liable to an imprisonment for 2 years or a fine of N2,000,000 or both such fine and imprisonment.”

The Senate Committee had in attendance Senator David Umaru, Senator Godswill Akpabio, Senator Chukwuka Otazie, Senator Bababjide Omoworare, Senator James Manager, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege and Senator Joshua Lidani; on the other end, the audience was composed of delegates who had made submissions to the committee on the Bill, social media champions, members of civil society, law practioners, news agents, national assembly staff and concerned citizens.

However, the absence of some key MDAs such as the Public Complaints Commission [PCC], The Nigeria Police, State Security Service, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission [EFCC], Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission [ICPC], Voice Of Nigeria [VON], Nigerian Communication Commission [NCC], Nigerian Bar Association [NBA], Federal Ministry of Information and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who will clearly be affected by the passage of the bill came as a huge surprise. It also begs the question, are these agencies working in the interest of the citizens or for a selected few?

In the course of the hearing, we were informed that the IG of police supported the bill.

In his opening statement, Senator Umaru cited Section 4(2) of the 1999 constitution, adding that the public hearing underscores the importance of the senate and citizenry in enriching legislative actions with the aim of ensuring peace of the Federation of Nigeria.

On behalf of the special guest of honour, Senate President Bukola Saraki who was absent due to other pressing matters, Senator Akpabio reiterated the intentions of the bill to make having an affidavit compulsory following claims made in the media space. He expressed concern on the anxiety of Nigerians over the bill and said that Legislature is here to defend the rights of Nigerians and not pass bills that will gag the media.

When Justice Clara Ogunbiyi of the Supreme Court made her presentation on behalf of the Chief Justice of the Federation, Justice Mahmud Mohammed, it raised a lot of eyebrows! The CJN supported the bill! “This is because by the very use of the word frivolous, it connotes unseriousness, ill-motivation and suggestive of bad faith which is not within the contemplation of the constitutional provision of freedom of expression.” – Justice Mahmud Mohammed. Continuing, Justice Ogunbiyi went on to read out some recommendations of the CJN which included writing any petition as a formal complaint (idenetifying WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE and HOW), the use of personal home addresses and the inclusion of a time frame of 6 months for such complaints and grievances. On a side note, it is imperative to note how she kept hammering on the fact that about how peoples’ destiny and integrity had been affected by posts in the media sphere.

In a welcome contrast to the CJN, the Law Reform Council and Federal Ministry of Justice represented by Mr. P.C. Okorie and Mr. Francis Oyong respectively said the said the passage of the controversial bill will adversely affect media freedom and freedom of expression.

Mr Okorie noticed how “fluidly” the words petition, statement, complaints, inquiry and investigation are used, saying the bill was too open ended. He identified the other issues such as high illiteracy rate in Nigeria and the low number of high courts in localities as well as the current capacity of the judiciary.

“If such bill is passed, it would hamper internal investigations in MDAs” he said, noting that it would be impossible for staff to lodge complaints on issues in their offices, as the process would be more bureaucratic. Okorie added that if the senate saw a need to address excesses for petitions sent to law enforcement agencies, then the operating systems of the agencies should be reviewed, not necessarily proposing a bill.

Furthermore, addressing Section 3(3) of the Frivolous Bill, Okorie noted that various section in the Criminal Code [Section 60, 373] and the Penal Code [Section 391, 392] of the Nigerian Constitution had already covered the subject.

Mr. Francis Oyong representing the views of the Attorney General of Nigeria, Justice Abubakar Malami, said that laws are not made to be exclusive instead they are made in the interest of the citizens of a nation. Reading part of the AJNs submission to the committee, Oyong noted that Section 1 of the intended Frivolous Bill does not create a crime as there was no provision in the statement.

Mr. Oyong posed a critical question to the Senate committee on the issue of the affidavit – “Does an affidavit make a statement to be true?” As the general understanding of an affidavit, is that it’s a document made in the belief of the person swearing it. The proposed bill also violates the constitution & other treaties Nigeria is a signatory to.

The general consensus of both legal parties was that the passage of the bill will be an impediment to the current administration of President Buhari’s drive to expunge corruption as whistleblowing was integral and freedom of expression is key to democracy especially in Nigeria.

This bill seeks to threaten freedom of expression in a country said to practicing democracy – by the way, democracy is characterised by free speech and its objective to say that law as it is, where Divine or man-made, are subject to human interpretation]. Nigeria has 15 million Facebook users, the third most active African country on Twitter [2012] and over 97 million mobile internet subscriptions, a sizeable contribution to the technology sector. If passed as it is, the bill will only hamper further development of Nigeria’s internet and communication system.

Also, the feedback mechanism that is essential in communication would become non-existent as there would be an increase in lack of faith of law enforcement agencies in helping the populace. In a time where audiences are encouraged to send in eye-witness reports to news agencies, how would this law support information dissemination?

Senator Omo-Agege citied an instance of a false Avatar on Facebook posting that a candidate has withdrawn from election, on the eve on going to the polls and asked if the existing laws treat this?

It seems to be that certain individuals in the Nigerian society would rather not be talked about and so on, but with such ostentatious lifestyles in the midst of hunger and need in Nigeria, will questions and allegations not be raised?

A sentiment that was somewhat expressed once the floor was opened for civil society – the senate committee was barraged [well they had it coming *chuckles*]

Popular Twitter champion and Editor-In-Chief, 15 Past 8 Media Group @MrAyeDee identifies fragile egos and that the bill should be discarded ingloriously in the dustbin of history. He added that the dynamics of engagement on social media is quite different from physical human interaction, “People tend to gravitate towards known persons [people with identities] on social media and most times people do not the heed faceless”, adding that people could sue for libel and defamation as made available through the Nigerian constitution.

Gbenga Sesan @gbengasesan Executive Director, Paradigm Initiative Nigeria did not mince words in expressing disappointment with the CJN and Supreme Court’s stance on the Frivolous Bill. He said the passage of the bill would be licence the death of whistleblowers in a country that hasn’t brought the killers of late Bola Ige, the Attorney General of the Federation since 2001! Sesan also called to note that anonymity cannot be removed from information sharing as its essential.

Yemi Adamolekun of Enough is Enough Nigeria addressed the erroneous impression that calling for Public Hearing is a favour to citizens, rather a responsibility of the Senate reacting to Senator Omoworare’s @jideomoworare comment that the Senate is not mandated to hold a public hearing. EiENigeria is currently running a campaign calling on Nigerians to add their voices and votes to stop the passage of the Frivolous Bill [You can get involved by calling 01–4408464]

Aisha Yesufu, @AishaYesufu who describes herself as an aggrieved mother of the kidnapped Chibok Girls’ who have been missing for over 600 days said if not for social media, where else would the agitation for the release of the girls come from? She identified some recent successes of social media #FreeEseOruru and #BringBackOurGirls. In buttressing Yemi’s point on the public hearing, Yesufu had these words: “As a citizen, I’m the highest office holder in the land & our senators are responsible to me.”

From the body language of the senators, it was obvious that they had a supportive stance on the bill even though both Senator Omo-Agege and Senator Lidani said that the public hearing is purposely for the collection of public opinion as Senator Omo-Agege said he was expecting comments on the issue of responsibility of persons on social media.

Only last month at the Social Media Week 2016 held in Lagos, the issue of the regulation of social media was brought up in a debate #BBCAfricaDebate [You can listen to the views here http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03jxdyr]

We say #NoToSocialMediaBill as it’s not only freedom of expression and leadership that are on the line in Nigeria, but the very essence of democracy which social media has helped to shape. We will not be strangled of our oxygen!

After the 220 billion, there is the new 31.52 billion Naira for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise: Where did, and will the money go!

Adamu and Chukwuma have been a long term friend at the Abuja Park in Gusau, Zamfara, and each time I want to buy a recharge card from their kiosk, they ask if I know how their businesses can be funded by the government, and if also they could learn how to write business proposals, if eventually the funds are made available. My response many times has been that they should check the Nigeria SME toolkit, and that also they can visit the Zamfara Medium and Small Enterprise Agency, or the Zakat Board of the state, and ask if they could learn writing proposals with their agency.

While not sure if there is one, it is certain that the state receives and must have received some SME funds from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). Yes! for some years now, funds meant for such programmes and intervention are being domiciled with the CBN, but unfortunately, it seem people like Adamu and Chukwuma will never have access to such funds or programmes, if the apex bank cannot justify or present impacts of “heavy funds” that have been allocated to micro, small and medium enterprise.

Nigeria, with an unemployment rate of 9.9% in Q3 2015 has a better unemployment rate than reported in 67 countries but worse than 113 countries, including 21 African countries with unemployment rates lower than 9.9% needs to employ innovative means of engaging MSMEs other than this “screaming headlines” kind of funding. The state governments are not even helping matters, as some of them had turn this funds into political campaign funds. Hold on – there is a new funding again for MSMEs called BIG (Business, Innovation and Growth), this time, it claims to be innovative, much more than the YOUWIN intervention

To so many Nigerians, it is not clear where they can access this funds, and when it becomes clear as well, the proper strategy is not used in mentoring young enterprises, and many times, potential enterprise are frustrated to start applying for jobs. Truth be told, the funds are out there for MSMES, and we really need to let potential entrepreneurs know, consequently, we are planning to visualise MSME Funds in Nigeria, and make people like Adamu and Chukwuma know where and how to get one.
If you have had access to an SME funds in Nigeria recently, what do you think about this controversies, and if you have gone through what Adamu and Chukwuma had experienced in the past trying to access MSME Funds, do let us know your thoughts

Join the Open Data Day Hackathon

Saturday 5th March at 9 am Abuja / 8 am London

We hope that a diverse group of you will join in the gathering of SME Funds data. During the Hackathon you will have plenty of chances to discuss all questions regarding MSME funds failures whether they be specific cases. Do not let your state or region leave a blank spot when we draw up the map of MSME Funds.

At the data party we will go through some of these questions:

• What kind of MSME funds do we wish to collect (date, amount, description of intervention, location etc.)?
• What are the possible sources (press, CBN, Bilateral Agencies, Multilateral Agencies)?
• Getting started with the data collection for the MSME Funds Tracker

 You can join the Data party by adding your name and skype ID here.