The Yoruba Today by Professor Olutayo Adesina
Lecture presented by Professor Olutayo Adesina at the Yoruba Academy Programme on ‘Celebrating Yoruba’ – Theme: Past Present and Future
Posted with express permission of the author.
Preamble
Your Excellencies, Your Royal Majesties, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen. Any study of contemporary Yorubaland has to begin with the question: What does it mean to be Yoruba today? This poser takes us towards a more self-conscious identity as a people. This becomes even more important when we realise that our society today is radically different from the way our ancestors conceived it several hundred years ago. The move towards a self-consciously defined identity in the contemporary period has been affected by a variety of historical developments. These include, but are by no means restricted to the following: our political circumstances; the power equation and National Question in Nigeria; our economic situation; our consumption patterns; and our rising expectations. The questions we face are therefore legion and they have as much to do with where we are coming from as much as where we are headed as a people. To understand this, we must look at where we are today. It is a general belief among the young people that to be a true Yoruba man or woman in the real sense of the word is now anachronistic. It is a feature that should only be celebrated and extolled in artistic or cultural productions. The emergence of a new generation of Yoruba men and women, and boys and girls who have tried to create their own understanding of the self, far away from the traditions of the Yoruba people is therefore a reality to be recognised, understood and negotiated.
The complex nature of our society has followed an evolutionary pattern that is extremely difficult to decipher. In that kind of situation, how do you begin to negotiate our Yorubaness? That is a mindset that has become contradictory. The mindset of the elders is that as a Yoruba you must behave like the Yoruba as described in the J.F. Odunjo classics. But the present generation sees that as archaic and antediluvian. The Younger generation wants to be chic and very modern – far away from that Kabiyesi, kee pe kind of mentality. He or she does not know why she could say good morning when there was nothing good about the morning. But to the average Yoruba person, not saluting the next person is an anathema. The younger generation also does not see why it should fight for or struggle over arcane Yoruba ideals that had in no way shielded them from exploitation, and internal and external discriminations that have changed the face of Nigerian society. How we got here should not delay us in this exercise. What matters most is to understand where we are and are headed.
Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen. I am a village boy. I am, therefore, going to speak as one. What this means is that my talk is going to be shorn of the niceties and diplomatese usually associated with the urban, educated middle class man of the world. Fortunately, or unfortunately, however, my educated part will get in the way of my message. I think that is also alright, lest I be accused of being naïve, crude and unimaginative. I ask all of you to therefore lend me your ears.
In understanding the Yoruba today, we must, like Lee Kuan Yew, the father of modern Singapore do the following:
- Understand the essence and requirements of our society
- Understand the needs and motives of our neighbours
- Identify the options available to us and through that identify the future of the race.
- Establish social cohesion and foster social and economic growth
- Take responsibility for our future.
How Have We Fared?
We are the proud inheritors of great values, beliefs and perspectives. We arrived in the modern world with our heads held high. Yes, the British defeated our states. But they never defeated our spirits as a people. But even then, developments in Yorubaland cannot be isolated from contemporary developments in the world. We have retained vital aspects of our culture. Therefore, today we have made great strides in Yoruba literature and Nollywood films. We are a very strong part of the tripod holding the Nigeria state together. We have devoted our energies to ensuring the stability of the country. We have paid dearly for this. But we have continued to hold our heads high as a people.
Our Monarchs are becoming friends again. We thank God for that. We thank the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi (Alayeluwa), Ojaja II and the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi III for this new breath of life. Even then, disagreements are simmering all over the place on the order of precedence. From Osun to Ogun and Lagos states, there are disagreements over seniorities and recognitions. It may therefore take some time for a healthy relationship to develop among our Obas again. Yoruba historians will do well to resuscitate the Yoruba Historical Research Scheme headed by the Late Prof. Saburi Biobaku in the 1950s. Our women have done quite well in spite of great odds. They have achieved so much and we have continued to celebrate them. The Oodua Peoples’ Congress has also continued to bare its fangs as a foremost tool in the ensuing struggles that have engaged the energies of different nationalities in Nigeria. But we should also realise that in spite of its lofty aims of defending Yoruba interests, it is factionalised and at war with itself. When are we going to establish a Pax Yorubana that will ensure the enthronement of a Yoruba dream – just like the American dream? But there is more to say. Much as we can count our triumphs we can also chronicle our trials, travails and tribulations. A clearer understanding of this shall set us on the path of greater achievements.
We must therefore be true to ourselves. We must understand that our problems are multidimensional and our traducers legion. And the solutions to these problems? These are lurking in the womb of time. Today’s circumstances could not have been less favourable for the Yoruba race. Our culture is diluted, our schools have decayed, our society is facing a less confident future, our politics is extremely opaque, our ideals- confused, our sense of self-esteem, extremely low, our governments, utterly confused, unimaginative, vacillating, clueless, manipulative, and selfish. What roles should the Yoruba then play in either lifting their own region up for their own sake or in national affairs? This remains to be worked out in an orderly and organised fashion.
There is today in Yorubaland a revolution of sorts. This is a revolution that I will refer to as a “revolution of rising expectations.” Although this is a borrowed concept but it suits us fine. Failure to understand this revolution may lead to a more pernicious and obstreperous revolution that may consume all of us. We must now be ready to identify the sources and context of this “revolution of rising expectations.”
‘A’ is not for Apple: Youths, Livelihoods and Inter-Generational tensions
Today, try to convince a young boy or girl that ‘A’ is not for apple and that ‘A’ is for ‘Agbalumo.’ The next question you will hear is ‘what is agbalumo? Yes, agbalumo is planted here and apple is not. That defines the inter-generational tension that we now witness and which has created a sense of confusion. There is a crisis of Youth in Yorubaland. What do we teach our children today? How do we teach them and toward what ends? What are the norms, ethos and values of society?
The modes of sociality have changed over time. Sociality is a survival response to evolutionary pressures. How has Yorubaland evolved well? The concentration and energies of many people living together led to changes in society. External influences and pressure gave stimulus to diverse ways of seeing and doing things. This encouraged a transformation of society from below.
What Have We Lost?
We have now lost our position as the leading region in the educational sector. Our universities are glorified secondary schools. The universities in the Southwest which should constitute a great force in the development of the region are more obsessed with issues of individual promotion, cultism, unionism, internal politics, and sex. In the mid-1980s, the BBC described the Lagos State University (LASU) as “Africa’s most violent University.” In the 1990s and early 2000s, Olabisi Onabanjo University became so confused that students stopped learning and certificates were years in arrears. Everything else apart from scholarship is gradually taking centre stage in the scheme of things at the Adekunle Ajasin University, which is currently under lock and key. It is usually more closed than open. What of the university in my state? The Osun State University. That has become the laughing stock of the Nigerian university system. From the news of unceremoniously throwing out their former VC to debilitating internal politics, that university has now gotten a laurel in sex scandal. As scholars and teachers, we are all embarrassed by what the state universities in the Southwest have become. What do they teach? What are they capable of teaching? Are they just churning out students whose only purpose in life is either to queue up at the embassies of foreign countries or look for non-existent jobs in the cities? Certainly, we need to sit down to understand the very real changes that these universities can accomplish. We must engage matured minds, conduct engaging research, write grant proposal and engage in meaningful community service. These qualities will play a most valuable part in preparing the younger generation to take with seriousness the grave problems confronting society. Analysts have asserted that the weakness of our educational system is the weakness of our economy
In other climes, university men have played a more intimate and conscious part in altering the conditions of human life. Te Grameen Bank established in 1976 in Bangladesh was the brainwave of Prof. Muhammed Yunus of the University of Chittagong. He launched a research project to study how to design a credit delivery system to provide banking services to the rural poor. In 2006, the bank had become such a life changing experience that both the bank and its founder were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. What do we do here? We fight over spoils of office and produce useless unusable research.
What of our secondary education system? The access to education and the quality of teaching have become quite worrisome in recent times. The qualities of education and curriculum have become really very embarrassing. Our secondary education is destroyed. The government is the greater culprit here. Poor funding and useless curriculum which have proved seriously inadequate are shoved down our throats. Unfortunately, these schools have played only a limited constructive part in our search for progress. Let us now look at the performance charts from WAEC and NECO in recent times
In 2014, Oyo State had the worst WAEC result in the Southwest. It was 24th out of the 36 states and the FCT. With only 19% passing with five credits and above- with English and Maths, 77,672 sat for the exam and only 14, 574 passed. [1] We should note that the states that numbered 1 to 6 were in the East and the South South: Anambra (66%); Abia (59%); Edo (58%); Bayelsa (53%) and Rivers (53%). Oyo state did not even meet the national average which was 31.29%. A commentator, perhaps in direct reference to the rusted roofs in Ibadan derisively described the situation as “rusted roofs, rusted brains.” In 2016, another Yoruba state is in the eye of the storm. Osun State was ranked 29th among the 36 states and the FCT in the 2016 result released by WAEC – the least ranked state in the southern part of the country[2] (as one actor would have put it “Osun, see your life outside”- se o ri aye e lode!). With the massive failure rate in the WAEC, we are definitely showing signs of intellectual fatigue and civilizational collapse. Ekiti State’s performance in NECO in 2016 has now only slightly taken away our reproach. It emerged tops in the 2016 June/July National Examination Council (NECO) Exams.[3] Ekiti led all the 36 states and FCT in performance. It was followed by Edo State, while Abia and Kogi states were joint third.[4] Even then, what we should aim for is a kind of consistency that restores the leadership and competitiveness of the Southwest in the nation. It should not be Ekiti today and Lagos tomorrow.
Even then, we have to be honest with ourselves. The curriculum is obsolete and inappropriate. Once upon a time our schools had served as incubators of great ideas, debates and values. They were spaces and sites of knowledge production, acquisition, transmission and application. We imagined our ideals and lived up to them. We were vested with the ability to discern creative intelligence, to understand indigenous cosmologies, culture and mysticism. Unfortunately, we are now raising children in an environment alien to the African ideas about religion, otherness and enduring values. Schools are even now proud to advertise here that they are using British curriculum.
Our institutions must be transformed to respond to developmental needs and this must be rooted in the traditional knowledge and value systems of the people. The curriculum must become an integral vehicle of social transition. Many of our children have now drifted away from their traditional values of collaborative community responsibility. This is a severe ideological crisis. There has to be curriculum transformation, people need to know who they are in terms of their history and cultural values. We must heighten their awareness of their rights and responsibilities.
What of the homes?
Before we take back our schools, we must take back our homes. Let us begin to have socially responsible parents who are ready to inculcate discipline, work ethics and a sense of mission. Nowadays, there are several practices regarded as a violation of liberty and autonomy. Certain values and ideals that were at one point regarded as good are now considered bush. A boy prostrating or girl kneeling in greeting are considered very crude. Many people do not know that in the acts of showing deference are a more nuanced language and message- sense of duty. By our acts of commission or omission, we have denied our children of that valuable practice and its import. Children no longer do house chores. Everything is done by the parents. We have over-indulged our children. We speak English to them at home. They do not sweep the house before leaving for school. They also watch TV late into the night. We have lost control over the children. They are our treasure. They are our bossed. We are also gradually creating “little Caesars.”
Our Culture and Society in a Global Age
Here, let us start by understanding the essence and requirements of our society. Who are your role models? That is a question that is loaded. We live in an age when every country is part of the global village. Another question is how much have we gained or lost in being a member of this village? We have increased in knowledge, wisdom and sophistication but it is obvious that while we have consumed the global we have either jettisoned or distorted the local. Our basic values, shaped by centuries of history and civilization have gradually lost steam. The Yoruba have always constructed their identity in the context of inter-group relations within the region known as Yorubaland, as well as within the larger geographical regions of modern Nigeria.[5] Thus, when at the most defining moment of potential structural change envisioned by the central government, the Yoruba of Southwestern Nigeria would stand up to protect their natural, inalienable and sacred rights over rights of ownership of land and forest resources, their language and culture, freedom of speech, expression and association. That is gradually giving way to a new reality.
Let us interface the past and the present. We grew up singing: Omo to mo’ya loju osi ni o tomo pa. Iya to ji’ya po lori re re, baba to ji’ya po lorire, omo to mo’ya re l’oju o. Osi ni o t’omo na pa. That was enough in the past to send terror into the heart of the young. Today, churches and mosques of the Pentecostal hue are becoming extremely popular and more socially relevant than the home and family. The prosperity gospel of today is independent of social mores. They are quick to dismiss parental guidance as ancestral… If you have Luke 6. 38 then you can scoff at any parental guidance.
Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
Adverse conditions have pushed multitudes of church and mosque goers into the hands of both good and false prophets where they are promised instant miracles – Better than what parents, Kabiyesis and governments can do. Many of these places of worship have told their worshippers that in return for huge or selfless donations they will be rewarded materially, gain promotion or get cured of troublesome ailments. If you tell a people to sow in order to prosper or make progress, they begin to redefine their places and roles in society. Now Charismatic pastors and Imams cannot be discountenanced. They have become powerful socially, economically and politically. The rise of Pentecostalism in the 1980s and 1990s coincided with the rise of the new economics and politics. They have all given rise to a new generation of Yoruba. They see the world differently.
We live in a time subjected to social tensions, poverty, ill-will and disorientation where the economy is in free fall and there is acute youth employment. The contemporary history of the Yoruba is suffused with great dilemma and challenges. The Yoruba now appear to be victims of the crisis of nationhood and crisis of self-immolation. Existence in this land has left us with a troubling duality. On one hand, there are those who were weaned on what it means to be Yoruba and who spoke about it with pride; on the other hand, are those who either deny or repudiate the sentimental attachment to the values of the past. The effects of these two are quite devastating. Let us animate the discussion with a real life scenario:
Scenario I
On July 16, 2016 at a Yoruba community, something dastardly happened.
Oba Yushau Goriola Oseni, the Oniba of Ibaland was kidnapped, his wife shot and his guard killed.
The kidnap of the Oniba of Iba, Oba Goriola Oseni in July 2016 is symptomatic of the civilizational collapse that has now surfaced in Yorubaland. The Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode in a statement read on his behalf by the Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General, Mr. Adeniji Kazeem insisted that the kidnap of a monarch of a monarch in Yorubaland was a sacrilege: “Permit me to state that the kidnap of an Oba in Yorubaland is a sacrilege and a complete desecration of the cultural values of the Yoruba people that must not go unpunished.”[6] But how could the governor say that when those who should teach them moral values are themselves ignorant of what they should teach the children? How would the younger generation know, transmit and transfer certain values to their friends, neighbours and contemporaries from other ethnic groups when they do not understand? The suspects in the Oniba case, Toba Forejo and Isaiah Ododomu had claimed that nine of them had gone to kidnap the monarch. The others were: Micah, Igodo, Mighty, Folly, Sam. How many of those who collected N15.1 million ransom had had of the Odunjo poem: Mura si ise re ore mi..
To them easy money was it. They had been into bunkering before the government forced a stop to it. They had no business with sedate means of livelihood. Explaining why their leader Micah did not go for the operation with them, Ododomu claimed it was because he “had a babe with him at home.”[7] A common felon, who ordered a king to be kidnaped, could not be bothered because he was with a woman! How low can we sink?
Yoruba Ronu: Understanding the needs and motives of our neighbours
For as long as we live together as a nation, our lives will and must continue to intersect. All the more reason why every Nigerian should be made to read and understand the history, culture and values of the ‘other.’ I have followed the debates in Nigeria’s National Assembly closely. I have also seen the bitterness of these debates and arguments from regional divides. It was reported by a national newspaper that on July 3, 2012, the Senate during its sitting became sharply divided when a bill seeking to create grazing reserves and routes for Fulani nomads throughout the country, was discussed. The bill among other provisions sought to establish a National Grazing Commission (NGC) that would have the power to acquire land that will serve as grazing reserves and routes for herdsmen in any part of the country (The Punch, July 21, 2012, p.6). Senators from the Southwest, South East, South-South and the Middle Belt (all from meat-eating cultures) were opposed to their colleagues from the far North on the issue (much in the same way that Senators from the north are now antagonistic of the PIB bill). Those who opposed the NGC bill averred that it negated the Land Use Act and the principle of federalism. They also argued that the matter be left to state assemblies.
The story of the Fulani is that of a brutal daily existence that has produced a deep and profound sense of self that is far more complex for people to understand or appreciate. Of course, you might also not have heard about Operation Cowleg. As farming communities and the ever-expanding urban settlements began to encroach on the old grazing routes, the Fulani were also forced to expand the scope of grazing into other uncharted paths. This has created bitterness for them without people realizing the historical exigencies that have brought this about. So, Fulani from Nigeria began to graze their cattle beyond the borders as far as Ghana in the spirit of ECOWAS. But our Ghanaian brothers did not take kindly to this.
In 1999 Ghana’s joint military/police Taskforce launched what it referred to as Operation Cowleg to curb the activities of alien Fulani herdsmen. By 2008, this had been declared a failure. In 2011, Operation Cowleg II was launched to protect the locals from alien herdsmen and also achieve a more forceful eviction of the Fulani. Indigenous Ghanaian Fulani were even levied for every crop damaged by visiting Fulani herders from Nigeria. In spite of the tribulations and difficult conditions, the Fulani have continued to travel around Nigeria and West Africa with such ease and élan. Why is the Fulani man so unruffled, proud and if unprovoked, decent?
Unless you are a historian, an anthropologist, a Fulani or someone close to the Fulani, you might not have heard or known about the Fulani Pulaaku. This is intimately intertwined the Fulani sense of being. Fulani ethics and ethos are governed by the notions of Pulaaku. It is a code of living and behaviour taught by parents and clan elders to children. A people with a distinct cultural identity, the fidelity to the values that define them as a people is beyond reproach. The Pulaaku defines the Fulani essence, that strong sense of self that present them as arrogant or proud. Analysts have identified the three pillars of Pulaaku: Munyal (patience, self control, discipline); Semteende (Modesty, respect); Hakkilo (wisdom).
We welcome and play host to the Fulani and several other groups. It is the quintessential Yoruba spirit of empathy. That cannot be faulted. But we never even seemed to be able to recognize or seize those crucial life-altering moments. This, of course, is because the rulers and the ruled have never taken time to study, understand and engage in what has been described by a commentator as a ‘detailed preliminary mapping of stakeholder interests.’ Even those in government do not have an adequate understanding of the people they govern.
As a people therefore, we have learnt nothing and forgotten nothing. We have become even more adept at using every issue, occurrences or even age-old prejudices to castigate, deride or belittle others when in actual fact some of those things should have become significant tools in our march towards sustainable nationhood. Every other group is bad and backward, except your own. There are even those who profit from our collective misfortunes and so desire to keep us perpetually divided or afraid of one another. But for our sake, and for the sake of our children, there is common sense in creating a discussion on how to reinvent this region.
There are other valid questions that come to mind when thinking of the Nigerian conundrum. When and how should we turn our natural and cultural endowments into social institutions that will ennoble this country and give us a sense of direction? How do we use our diversity to create a variety of opportunities that would lead to sustainable partnerships? I have always ruminated over these questions in and out of the classroom environment, most especially when one realizes that we have achieved little in inter-cultural communications even among our own people.
Several Nigerians suffer from a congenital lack of historical understanding. A multiplicity of resources- human and material- abound in this region that could make this land an enviable and happy one. We only needed to understand what we have and what we see. There are those who will readily say this is not feasible.
The Last Frontier: Defending Our Yorubaness
This must become a generation that should be noted for its attempt to rehabilitate native values and cultural traditions. We have lost touch with Yoruba values, language and culture. We have all succumbed to linguistic and cultural imperialism. But most of these are actually self-imposed. Ever since the days of Yoruba being tagged as vernacular, our best and brightest no longer know what it means to be Yoruba. But so are the countless masses of no names. What does it mean to be Yoruba today? We are no longer able to make a sentence in Yoruba. We speak Yoruba to our children and they respond in English. Worse still, it is now seen as class war. When your mechanic or gari seller speaks toxic English to their children and you advise them to stop it and allow the children to understand and speak in Yoruba, you have become an enemy. An enemy that allows his own children to speak and correspond in English but wants to keep others down.
The Force of change requires new competencies in government, academia and society. There must be an end to extreme partisanship to share ideas and use valuable manpower. If other states are looking for money through taxes and levies I do not expect Yoruba states to do the same – not after the examples laid down by Chief Obafemi Awolowo. There is no doubt that excessive taxes and levies will kill businesses and initiatives. It is already sending wrong signals to potential investors and businesses. In terms of ease of doing business, it is already fouling up the waters. This much was also revealed by the President of the Nigeria Employers’Consultative Association, Mr. Larry Etteh who said:
The sad development that we see is that there is a mentality and tendency by people in the regulatory bodies to think their onus or reason for existence is about how much revenue they can generate. A lot of them are becoming very capricious and very insensitive in the kinds of levies and taxes they tend to think they can place on businesses. The unfortunate thing is that maybe some of them think that government is looking for more taxes and they have to demonstrate their relevance by the way they go about levying businesses. If you are thinking we are going to levy and tax ourselves out of recession, it will not work; we are going to kill businesses. It is counterproductive …[8] As Yoruba people, let us be more creative.
The Future: Get Up and Do Something
After years of talking, the focus must now shift to action. In spite of the challenges we face, there are opportunities and possibilities in the Southwest. The present and future cannot be settled by mere hope but “out of action and by positive choices we make.”[9] It is therefore easy to agree with the view that “much still needs to be done to lay the foundation for economic recovery, sustainable long-term economic growth and inclusive prosperity.”[10] Vision is what makes a difference to life. My people perish because of lack of vision. How do we begin to understand ourselves and find solutions to the questions that confront us as a people? How do we salvage indigenous cultures and values, and respectfully inscribe and/or re-inscribe them into contemporary Yoruba society? What has to be done? This has to be understood at two levels: the level of ideas; and, the level of action. There now has to be a Yoruba Grand Strategy. We have to be realistic about the dynamics of the world we live in. We now need to be more creative in times of adversity. The period of adjustment should be the incubator of ideas. The Great Leap Forward can be achieved with both a Marshall Plan and ideas. For instance, we need to make our agriculture “productive and profitable in the shortest possible time.”[11]
We need to look for people who are ready to make sacrifices. The Osun State Governor has not appointed a cabinet in spite of the fact that there are people who are ready to donate their time and money to help society. Everyone should not be sen as looking for advantages to enrich him or herself. Just appoint them and see what they can do. Every state needs help. We must also open the taps of creativity. The Asipa and Ipetumodu people in Osun State are on the warpath. But Asipa and Ipetumodu swamps can be dredged and used for community fish ponds. Keep them busy and competitive and there would be less friction.
By way of conclusion, I must borrow from that seasoned scholar, Ayi Kwei Armah, who in his work: The Eloquence of the Scribes, where he inferred that society can move forward through “the retrieval of unhindered connections with the society’s own past, the locus of positive values required for continued self-realization, one that would liberate the genius of creation in the African mind… [coming ] into contact with, our own best spirits.”[12] When is that going to happen to us? Thank you for listening.
Notes and References
[1] For details, see “Oyo had the worst WAEC result in Southwest, only 19%% passed,” 2014, Available at http://ibpulse.com/2014/09/oyo-had-worst-waec-result-in-southwest-only-19-passed.html
[2] Josiah Oluwole, “WAEC Results: Osun State’s dismal 29th position sparks firestorm.”Premium Times, August 10, 2016. Available at: http://www.premiumtimesng.com/regional/ssouth-west/208415-waec-results-osun-states-dismal-29th-position-sparks-firestorm.html
[3] Premium Times (with Agency Reports), “Why we emerged tops in NECO Exams – Ekiti Government,”September 17, 2016. Available at: http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/210583-reintroducing-neco-exams-fee-helped-ekiti-clinch-best-result-govt.html
[4] NTA, “”NECO Releases June/July 2016 Examination Results – 88.51% Passess.”Septemebr 17, 2016. Available at: http://www.nta.ng/news/education/20160917-neco-releases-junejuly-2016-examination-results-88-51-passes/
[5] Falola, Toyin and Ann Genova (eds) 2006. The Yoruba in Transition. History, Values and Modernity , Durham, Carolina Academic Press, p. xxvi.
[6] Miriam Ekene-Okoro “Suspects: How we shared N15.1 million ransom from monarch’s abduction.”The Nation (Lagos), Monday, August 8, 2016, pp. 4-5.
[7] Ibid, p. 4.
[8] Ife Ogunfuwa, “Excessive taxes will kill businesses, worsen economy – NECA resident [Mr. Larry Ettah, the President of the Nigeria Employers’Consultative Association], Sunday Punch (Lagos), September 4, 2016, p. 44.
[9] Ife Ogunfuwa, “Excessive taxes will kill businesses, worsen economy – NECA resident [Mr. Larry Ettah, the President of the Nigeria Employers’Consultative Association], Sunday Punch (Lagos), September 4, 2016, p. 44.
[10] The Guardian (Lagos), “The avoidable economic recession.”Thursday, September 8, 2016, p.16.
[11] Steve Osuji, “WAI: War Against Inertia.”The Nation Friday, September 2, 2016, 48.
[12] Ayi Kwei Armah, The Eloquence of the Scribes, Propenguine, Senegal, Per Ankh, 2016, p. 251; p.7