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Our Greatest Capital, By Eugene Ukoyonoh
A few months into my company’s arrival in Kano State to contribute to the successful implementation of the CBN Northwest Entrepreneurship Development Centre (CBN NWEDC) project, I received a SMS message from the GM of the multi-billion naira Kano five-star 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 Grand Central Hotel, Hajiya Amina Jibrin, who was on her way out of the country, requesting a meeting in a fortnight to consider a problem she felt we could solve for her organisation. A colleague’s husband and banker had given her my contact.
On the appointed day, I sat in her office in company of Malam Nasiru Lawan Idriss – then BDS Manager of the NWEDC – listening carefully to the GM whose accountant was unavoidably absent explain their organisation’s critical need, and considering how we could help.
The parting remarks of Hajiya Jibrin at the close of that maiden meeting left an indelible scratch on my mind, not because it was strange anyway.
She said “Mr. Eugene, I have no question regarding your capability of handling, or commitment to solving, our problem when we finally reach a common ground on charges and payment terms. To answer your question before you voice it out, it was not until you demonstrated a sense of thorough understanding of our situation and gave handy insights into the solution approaches, which only proved right our link man’s (the banker) edification of your capability, that I developed such confidence.
Rather, your self-introduction as originating from Cross River State during our acquaintance session instantly shifted my focus from questioning your capability and commitment, to ‘how we could reach a common ground on financing, irrespective of the team you may employ doe the project’. Yes. I have worked with people across multiple backgrounds and cultures in my over 20 years active engagements in local and international assignments at managerial roles, and I know who is who. If you have walked in here with other applicants: one from the east, one from the west and your companion, Malam Nasiru, to feel a vacant position, you would be readily contracted provided you were qualified.
The reason is simple. Every single person from your place I have encountered have performed very well with absolute reliance on ‘high intellectual capability and self-determination’ because they know they do not have godfathers to fall to.”
I looked at her, nodded and parted. Neither was I flattered nor did I take it lightly. I had encountered several gifted negotiation artists in my career.
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Applying Our Greatest Capital
In a recent agribusiness meeting Mr. Mark Asu Ob in his Bompai residence, the amiable Cross Riverian bemoaned why Cross Riverians would be “high flyers wherever you may encounter them individually at different frontiers but can hardly fly together as a team,” citing several instances to substantiate his claim.
I could not agree more, especially on the premise that I had only met Mr. Mark for the first time ever – in my over a year’s stay in Kano – sitting as the Diocesan Projects Committee Chairman with the Catholic Bishop of Kano, His Lordship, Most Rev. Dr. John Namaza Niyiring (OSA) in a seasoned panel to which we pitched and defended the blueprint of Rev. Fr. Felix Chom Yari championed proposed multi-million naira diocesan youth business complex.
We should have met earlier, if at least, there was a functional CRS Catholic Community (I heard of a defunct CRS-Akwa Ibom Catholic Community) in the diocese, before talking of Association of CRS Indigenes in Kano.
Meanwhile as a member of nearly one hundred social media groups of different states across the country and some African countries, I have yet to find one group with superior intellectual engagements than Cross River’s.
Arguments and counter arguments; battles upon battles; attacks and counters; defensive attacks and counters; class stratification based on acclaimed intra intellectual superiority lines;…
“Ogagagu’ago o”!
Obviously, as Hajiya Amina Jibrin would infer (whether you consider it mockery, ridicule, insulting or simply a negotiation trick, depends on your perspective), our greatest natural endowment as Cross Riverians is intellectual capital and self-determination.
However, seeking to shine individually with our high intellectual capital and self-determination is our pride.
_Seeking to outshine ourselves, one another, each other, for individual vain glory seems to be our appealing order.
Harnessing and harmonising our greatest capital to fly as a team to our common advantage as Mr. Mark would wish has hitherto proven to be our weakest limb.
Our greatest capital, a blessing or a curse? A strength or a weakness?
We have a common entity called Cross River State.
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It has become more imperative now than ever:
_that, while many quarters of the nation are clamouring for confederation, we buckled up for a substantive IGR within our sub-region;
_that while we all continue to fight, work and pray for a great united Nigeria, we as well adequately prepared for the eventuality of disintegration of our union.
Is CRS too small to become an independent nation state should it become inevitable?
In case you are in any doubt, look up Estonia, the birth place of Skype. That proud Eastern European country has only a little above half a million citizens.
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Our Situation
While PDP is currently putting all efforts into reclaiming Edo State as a precursor towards reclaiming power at the centre, APC stalwarts are fighting tooth and nail to claim CRS their party ahead of 2019.
And the tides are high indeed with intellectual battles and counter battles, in some cases, in favour of, in some cases, unclear and in other cases, to the detriment of, our common entity – dear Cross River State.
I think that a formidable opposition devoid of selfishness will be very healthy for our state polity but however feel that our most important concentration for now should be on how we can emerge stronger and smarter from these hard times of national and global recession to become the envy of nations.
I read a commentary by the Speaker of the CRSHA somewhere thus:
“My concern about the recession is that it may just last longer than we expect and go deeper into the fibre of our economics. The fundamental framework of our economic resources are fragile, sometimes faulty and deceptive.
From my study and understanding of Revenue of states in Nigeria, I am concerned that very soon most states will collapse because their IGR will be worst hit by the continued Recession. Take for instance PAYE TAX, collected by states, the PAYEE accounts for over 40% of the IGR Revenue of states.
With recession, jobs will go, salaries will remain unpaid, and so will remittance from Payee . The other Tax Revenue items are tied to economic activity and growth, consumption etc. ..which are virtually going comatose. My Take is that we need to deploy strategies that are beyond Fiscal policies. .We need to urgently do something that we have not done before. .something is missing.”
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My Submission
# It is high time we had two sets of manifestoes and developmental governance blueprints pre-elections.
Before clarifying on the that:
# Ahead of politicking and electioneering lie governance, the most important of all. We have clocked nearly 16 months into Prof. Ben Ayade’s CRS government. Hence, this is no election time anymore.
# All and sundry should harmonise and channel our intellectual capital into collaborative determination to help Gov. Ayade implement the manifesto and blueprint that rode his team into office. The success of our common entity should be our focus.
# Gov. Ayade’s team at government should be, and remain increasingly, accommodating to criticisms, adjusting to constructive criticisms, extracting from seemingly destructive criticisms, while welcoming destructive criticisms as a beauty of democracy.
I read an impressive response (appreciating and promising to look-up with her team on issues raised) by Dr. Betty Edu to Dr. Princewill Odidi’s quality additions/review commentary to her post on AyadeCare Health Insurance bill. That is democracy.
# Gov. Ayade’s government should immediately take deliberate steps to foster an internal collaborative teamwork culture to curb the unhealthy menacing and demeaning loops of intra team power tussles (or outright selfishness within its ranks) as regularly washed publicly to us on social media.
# I feel, besides the huge revenue generation potentials of free flow of commodity and human traffic into and out of Cross River, that tapping the full potentials of the state tourism industry is strongly tied to enabling intra country and international transport pathways.
Back to sets of pre-elections governance blueprints:
# Political parties and their flag bearers should have their manifestos and leadership blueprints as it were (or should be).
# The masses should have their own well documented continuously improvable blueprints for their expectations from governments at all levels. This should include support bills for legislations.
# The masses blueprints will serve as benchmarks to measuring the weight and feasibility of politicians political manifestos to enable their objective decision prior to elections. It will also serve to measuring, shaping and directing governance when leaders are finally elected into offices.
# Hence, a real social impact calling is beckoning on us: NGOs, civil societies, the private sector, youth and women mobilisers at all levels, development experts and so on to act now. Let us begin to educate groups, organise townhall meetings, etc to harmonise our intellectual prowess to working out governance blueprints for our dear state.
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Finally, for Prof. Ayade’s CRS government, let us work together and support him to succeed because whether we are for, against or indifferent to the government, we shall all sail across together or sink together with our greatest capital.
Long live Cross River State!
Long live Nigeria!!
Eugene Ukoyonoh is a Cross Riverian
based in Kano State.
eutherolemodel@gmail.com