Author: kayode adebiyi

Why FBI Director Gray’s visit to Nigeria matters

By Kayode Adebiyi, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
Contrary to the narrative of John Grisham’s fictional thriller, The Racketeer, this was a real-life, long-overdue gesture of genuine friendship and partnership, a testament to the shared interest in combating trans-border crimes that pose a significant global threat.

The visit of one of the longest-serving Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) directors, Mr. Christopher Wray, to Nigeria last week signalled a new era in cooperation between Nigeria and the United States.

With the increase in the growth and sophistication of trans-border crimes and criminal networks in such crimes as cybercrimes, online fraud, trafficking in illicit drugs and money laundering and illicit transactions, government agencies across the world are working closer for solutions.

Wray’s historic visit to Nigeria, marked by his courtesy calls on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the National Security Adviser Malam Nuhu Ribadu, was a significant milestone. This was not only his first visit to Africa in his seven years as FBI director but also a testament to the growing importance of Nigeria in the global fight against trans-border crimes.

Equally significant was Wray’s inaugural visit to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), where he held a crucial meeting with the Chairman, Mr. Ola Olukoyede.

This meeting, the first of its kind, underscored the importance of international cooperation in combating trans-border crimes and the confidence in the EFCC’s renewed anti-corruption efforts under Olukoyede’s leadership.

There are perhaps a dozen anti-corruption agencies in Africa, notable among them the EFCC, the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the Hawks; the Kenyan Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC); the Ghanian Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO); and the Sierra Leonean Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), among others. Wray, however, visited only two – the EFCC and the EACC.

Wray’s visit also aims to strengthen the partnership between the FBI and the EFCC. In his remark during the visit, Wray said: “We have had a relationship over the years, and this is a reflection of how stronger than ever we are looking forward to taking our partnership to higher and higher levels in tackling threats that affect the people of Nigeria and the people of the United States.”

In response, Olukoyede said in the fight against the “bad guys” and trans-border crimes, the Commission was “willing to continue and develop ideas that would be of mutual benefit to both agencies and ensure that the issue of cybercrime will take utmost priority in our scale of preference and also ensure that sextortion that has become a major challenge to us is taken very seriously.”

Wray’s visit takes on a special meaning in the context of statistics showing that apart from rising cybercrimes, illicit drugs and small arms, illicit financial flows also cost Africa around 88.6 billion dollars yearly.

Security analysts hope a deeper collaboration between the FBI and the EFCC will improve capacity building and intelligence sharing.

This genuine collaborate among the two agencies will mean that the Malcolm Bannisters of this world, the fictional character in Grisham’s book, will have a hard time in the future.(NANFeatures)
**If used please credit the writer and News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

Strike: Negotiation tool or threat to national security, economy?

By Kayode Adebiyi, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)

Quoting Mr Ikpe Nkanang, Chairman, Board of Trustees, Domestic Airports Cargo Agents Association, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that domestic cargo in aviation lost approximately N7 billion to the recent two-day nationwide industrial action.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) had, on June 3, called for a complete halt to business activities to protest against the N60,000 minimum wage proposal of the Federal Government.

Nkanang said 30 tonnes of cargo was lifted across the country’s domestic airports daily, and that the volume of cargo left unprocessed during the two-day strike was significant.

“For those two days, the airlines were not working, and once the airlines are not working, cargo cannot move and it is a great loss to all of us.

“You needed to see the volume of cargo that was dumped over those two days; of course, you know we gathered cargoes during the weekend hoping that by Monday and Tuesday, we would be able to send them out,” he said.

Before then, a national daily claimed that Nigeria might have lost around N148.8bn in oil revenue on the first day of the two-day strike.

The newspaper arrived at the figure by calculating Nigeria’s daily oil production against the daily global benchmark for crude oil pricing.

Like their counterparts in the aviation and oil and gas sectors, trade unions in other critical sectors of the economy, such as the banking and energy sectors, complied with the directive.

The involvement of these and other critical service providers has led to some public affairs analysts and commentators suggesting the exemption of those sectors in national strikes.

They argue that the impact of flight disruptions, halted oil production, power outages and the crippling of the financial sector for a few days could last for months.

Some groups have even gone further to refer to the action of Organised Labour as a threat to national security and Nigeria’s collective ability to protect its economy and critical national infrastructure.

One such group, the Centre for Social and Economic Rights (CSER), condemned the shutting down of the national grid by the labour in implementing its declared nationwide strike action.

The group said that to plunge the nation into darkness meant labour had carried out economic sabotage and treason that must be met with the full weight of the law.

Both President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, and Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, agree with CSER.

While Akpabio said the strike amounted to economic sabotage, Akume referred to the shutdown of national grid by electricity workers as a treasonable felony.

However, those who support labour and some legal practitioners say workers have the right to strike.

According to TEMPLARS ThoughtLab, a publication of Templars Law, workers’ right to strike was derived from workers’ right to form unions as spelt out in Section 40 of the Nigerian Constitution.

Section 40 of the constitution partly reads, “Every person shall be entitled to assemble freely and associate with other persons, and in particular, he may form or belong to any political party, trade union or any other association for the protection of his interests…”

However, the publication was quick to point out some situations where a right to strike could be circumscribed.

It said every union in any organisation would usually have a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) signed between the union and the organisation.

“All standard CBAs typically provide for the dispute resolution mechanism for the resolution of any trade dispute between the parties.

“Such dispute resolution mechanism typically involves direct negotiation between the union and the organisation.

“It also involves mediation through a third-party mediator agreed upon by the union and the organisation or referring the dispute to the Minister of Labour and Employment,” it said.

According to TEMPLARS ThoughtLab, another ground for the circumscription of a right to strike is when industrial action is not available to persons rendering essential services by the operative effect of the Trade Disputes (Essential Services).

Additionally, the courts could issue an order against a union and the union has an unqualified obligation to obey that order even where they believe it to be irregular or invalid.

The question on the lips of some is that, through parliamentary legislation, should the government designate some of those sectors of critical national importance as emergency services?

They said if that action is carried out, it will become illegal for workers in those sectors to join national strikes.

Critics of the government’s handling of negotiations with labour unions often refer to these restrictions as highhanded measures to suppress legitimate demands.

The International Labour Organiation (ILO), which Nigeria is a member of, said strike action is one of the fundamental means available to workers and their organisations to promote their economic and social interests.

However, it admitted that it is the most visible and controversial form of collective action in the event of a labour dispute and is often seen as the last resort of workers’ organisations in pursuit of their demands.

It also listed some public servants, essential services and emergencies, minimum services and disputes over rights as some of the possible exclusions from a right to strike.

According to the ILO, unions must meet three conditions to embark on a strike. The first is the exhaustion of conciliation or mediation procedures before calling a strike.

Another requirement to hold a strike ballot is for a majority of the workers concerned to vote in favour of a strike before it can be called.

The last condition is the obligation to give a notice period before calling a strike.

Some stakeholders, therefore, believe that it is important for both the government and organised labour to accept the principle of “two wrongs don’t make a right”.

They say, going forward, industrial relations no matter how frosty, should not be allowed to degenerate into arbitrariness and irresponsibility by either or both parties. (NANFeatures)

**If used please credit the writer and News Agency of Nigeria.

National Security: Keeping the promise in one year of Renewed Hope

By Kayode Adebiyi, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
As President Bola Tinubu’s administration clocks one year, one of the promises he made during the campaigns before his election was to tackle insecurity headlong.

During his inauguration on May 29, 2023, the president promised to prioritise security, saying neither prosperity nor justice could prevail amidst insecurity.

“To effectively tackle this menace, we shall reform both our security doctrine and its architecture.

“We shall invest more in our security personnel, and this means more than an increase in number. We shall provide better training, equipment, pay and firepower,” the president said.

According to security analysts, those promises were not just founded on emptiness, as they are captured in the president’s campaign manifesto dubbed the Renewed Hope Agenda.

The Renewed Hope agenda of the president on national security is hinged on three components: fighting terrorism and violent extremism, ending oil theft and illegal exploration of the country’s resources, and stamping out violent secessionist agitations.

The president acknowledged in that policy document that the fundamental responsibility of government is to protect the lives and property of its citizens.

He, therefore, promised to mobilise Nigeria’s national security, military and law enforcement assets to protect all Nigerians from danger and the fear of danger.

He also promised to expand and improve upon the use of technology, enhance recruitment of personnel, and bolster existing agencies and systems to achieve his fundamental national security goals.

What has been achieved in one year

In line with his promise to seek bilateral and multilateral cooperation, Nigeria hosted the second edition of the UK-Nigeria Security and Defence Partnership Dialogue, through the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).

The event allowed Nigeria and the UK to reaffirm the two countries’ deep and long-standing security and defence relationship.

Nigeria also successfully hosted the High-Level Africa Counter-Terrorism Meeting, which brought together five Heads of Government, including the UN Deputy Secretary-General, and leaders of other key global bodies.

Those discussions focused on stability in the Sahel Region and garnered significant commitments to combat terrorism and violent extremism.

In the area of cybersecurity, which is a component of national security, ONSA organised sensitisation workshops across seven sectors.

The sectors are Telecommunications, defence and security, education, finance and capital market, energy, professional organisations, the private sector and judiciary.

The aim is to provide information, strengthen cybersecurity governance and coordination and build the capacity of relevant stakeholders on their responsibilities under the National Cybersecurity Policy and Strategy (NCPS).

Along the line of the provisions of the Renewed Hope Agenda, NSA Nuhu Ribadu also tackled three important national security threats – terrorism and violent extremism, oil theft and secessionist agitation.

During an inspection tour of oil and gas facilities in Abia and Rivers states Ribadu decried how the country was still losing 400,000 barrels of crude oil daily to local and international thieves.

According to the Director of Defence Media Operations, Maj.-Gen. Edward Buba, in the fight against oil theft, 1,437 perpetrators were apprehended, with 363 neutralised. Additionally, 245 kidnapped hostages were rescued, leading to a marked decrease in insurgent activities.

In less than a year, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) puts Nigeria’s oil production at 1.28 million barrels per day (bpd), signifying a 4.07 per cent increase from the 1.23 million bpd recorded in March 2024 — also indicating the first month-on-month production growth in the year.

Under the Tinubu administration, the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) said its counter-terrorism and insurgency operations have led to the neutralisation of 9,303 insurgents, the arrest of 6,998 individuals, and the rescue of 4,641 hostages.

The MNJTF also said that 9,562 Boko Haram/ISWAP combatant fighters and their families surrendered to security forces.

Also, within a year, successful intelligence-led operations have prevented numerous terrorist attacks and criminal activities.

High-profile terrorist commanders and their associates were also said to be apprehended across multiple states, preventing potential catastrophic incidents.

Confiscations included illegal items such as IEDs, firearms, ammunition, and dangerous psychoactive substances.

Available media content shows that troops across various theatres of operations in the country in separate operations recovered over 21,000 pump action cartridges, 440 pump action rifles, and 228,741 rounds of ammunition within the past year, preventing potential attacks by recovering suicide jackets and lethal weapons.

On regional security and stability, President Tinubu, as the Chairman of the ECOWAS, emphasized the importance of regional and international cooperation to effectively combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and the financing of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

To this end, his government demonstrated the importance when the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW) retrieved 20,000 small arms and 60,000 units of ammunition in Nigeria.

Police reform is another area in which the administration has ticked the box.

As chair of the Nigeria Police Council (NPC), the president set up a constitutional review committee to carry out comprehensive police reforms.

The committee, among other tasks, was charged to assess the lapses in the 1999 Constitution that are holding back reforms of the Nigeria Police Force as well as enhance coordination and align technology and manpower resources towards strengthening the police.

As many public commentators have said, one year could be insufficient to analyse the performance of a government, especially one carrying out structural reforms.

However, when it comes to national security, there is a feeling that the administration of President Tinubu was already putting in place measures to sustain security of lives and property of all citizens. (NANFeatures)

**If used please credit the writer and News Agency of Nigeria(NAN).