Re: Candidates for the grave sand

Dear readers, it’s your forum again. That time of the month when only your voices are heard on this page. Enjoy your responses to some issues dealt with in my diary. Thanks a lot, have a great weekend. Al-Bint. Gone are the days when leaders went into public service to serve and not to be […]

Dear readers, it’s your forum again. That time of the month when only your voices are heard on this page. Enjoy your responses to some issues dealt with in my diary.
Thanks a lot, have a great weekend.
Al-Bint.

Gone are the days when leaders went into public service to serve and not to be served, to give and not to take, since the reverse is the case today. The public funds that are supposed to be used to develop a state are being used by some leaders to enrich themselves. They do not care that their subjects are mostly in a state of malnutrition and impoverishment. Many of politician todays fail to fight their demons such as greed and selfishness before involving themselves into politics.It was the failures of that, which made them to misuse the public resources. Some leaders don’t know what leadership is all about. Eneji Stephen Toluwalashe defines leadership as :”Following the right course of life and the ability to make people to do same without abusing their volition.” Imagine a lawmaker receiving salary and pension at the same time while many people can not afford what to eat daily. Where is sympathy for the masses? There should be quite a difference between a leader and a predator. Prof.Sule Bello said: “Leaders take away their people from problems by solving them while Predators create problems for their people and leave them with them.” Our leaders should study our past leaders history, I mean people like late Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, late Sir Ahmadu Bello  and late Mallam Aminu Kano, so as to learn from their leadership style. These heroes had the opportunity to possess wealth and properties but they didn’t do so, rather they spent their lives tirelessly serving humanity. It is hightime we call a spade a spade, those who misused public funds should be brought to book. And the judiciary should fear God and permit justice to take its course.
Thanks for bringing up this  important issue Al-Bint.
Hassan Imran

Re: Candidates for grave sand
The above titled edition of the Al-bint’s dairy is one that gives a vivid portrayal of a lovely and peaceful home as exemplified by you and Tahir; a home where the couples interact like soul mates and not like master and slave interactions. Beyond its convivial stance, it portends the merits of husband and wife interactions and mutual understanding as prelude to a happy married life.
Interestingly, the edition further gets down to serious issues when it focussed on the huge sum of money alleged to have been deposited into the embattled Senate President’s account in one day. The magnitude of corruption cases leveled against Saraki at the CCT and by the recent Panama publication is truly astounding. It is sad that rich politicians from a wealthy background like Saraki, still divert public funds and manipulate the system to their advantage at the country’s detriment. More saddening is the fact that such stolen or diverted money is kept in local or foreign banks or spent on leisurely pursuits when they could be used for tangible investments which are capable of creating employments for the teeming population of job seekers in this country. A friend calls it sanctification of ill-gotten money.
Here we are with a Senate more concerned about making laws that protect its privileges and interests than making laws about pressing issues that affect majority of Nigerians. I wish the vigour and speed with which the Senators pursued the sacrilegious and self-serving CCT Act amendment which seeks to remove CCT from the list of courts statutorily empowered to initiate criminal proceedings against accused persons, is dedicated to the pursuance of other bills that have been lying before the hallowed chamber for many years.
Let us always remember, death is real. It overcomes man without notice and we have to account for our deeds afterwards.
Moshood Ahmed Mustafa, Coordinator, Society for Educational Development, Abaji (SEDA)

Assalam Alaikum,
Good day Albint, as usual I wake up every Saturday looking forward to reading your column because I know there is always something to learn about what is happening in our society. The way you keep the readers in suspense is also mind blowing. Your stories are based on real-life and contemporary issues, I wonder how you come up with them without running out of ideas.
May Allah continue to guide you and your family, ameen.
Dr.  Fatimah Muhammad Gusau.

Re: Seeking a breakthrough
The news about the ordeal faced by the three year old boy whose both eyes were plucked out is one that is disheartening to the marrows. As you posited, the plight of the boy is better felt (God forbid) than imagined.
It is interesting to read that your second son Mahmoud is bothered by this gruesome incident and searching for viable solutions when many vociferous but docile medical NGOs, CBOs, civil societies and most importantly research institutions such as Teaching Hospitals are not bothered. To my mind, the boy’s situation portends an opportunity to challenge their intellectual sagacity and use him as a ‘guinea pig’ to test some optical research findings or visual support apparatus that can enable him see no matter how partial or little.
Furthermore, I had expected the boy’s story to enjoy prominence and much media coverage as Ese Oruru or Olajumoke (former bread hawker). Sadly, the reverse was the case, though it is worthy to note that a man from Lagos has finally intervened and was willing to support the boy’s treatment.
Imagine staying in a room with perpetual darkness or a deep hole without a ray of light and living with the fear of stumbling. Imagine how boring life would be if you cannot see your parents, siblings and spouse’s face, imagine being blind and how painful it would be always needing help to perform acts you would have done easily without assistance if you weren’t blind.
Such imagination gives you a mental picture of the perpetual cocoon of darkness in which the nefarious culprits of this gruesome act have plunged the innocent boy into.
Here we are with few or no voices shouting and demanding the immediate arrest of the culprits and their prosecution like the case of the abducted Lagos school girls.
To my mind, this sad incident portends serious concerns for our security agencies, parents and the society at large and demand that the police and other security agencies become more efficient in crime investigation and prevention.  Parents should also be more security conscious. On the part of the society, concerted efforts must be made in reporting ‘criminal elements’ in our communities to the security agencies and beefing up security through well coordinated vigilant groups and societal re-orientation against crime in whatever form, amongst others. Kids especially girls should be taught security education or tips to prevent abuse within and outside the home.
While I pray to Almighty Allah to expose the cruel-minded culprits of the gruesome act and they stand to face the wrath of the law soonest. I take solace in the fact that we all share a common end-death!
At the appointed time when death becomes a reality, it becomes too late to correct or reverse the ungodly things anyone has done to achieve his or her inordinate craving for riches.
Moshood Ahmed, Abaji Area Council, FCT Abuja.

Re: Another kind of war (II)
Women have to be very careful with the types of friends they keep as company. A yoruba adage says: “A sheep that associates with dog will eat excreta.” Bad company always corrupt their cronies quickly. One needs to keep good company, the type that will always encourage one to do good and avoid wrong acts.bAs the saying goes: “Show me your friend and I will tell you who you are.” This shows that a friend defines one’s character. Also, lack of contentment, nowadays,  push some females into the trap of some wrongdoers who are ready to provide them with funds and in turn spoil their lives. A Hausa adage says: “A fly dies as a result of its greed.” Lack of self-discipline gives birth to lack of contentment, which nowadays tends to push some people to seek wealth from any source without considering the root of it. Is it compulsory for Talatu to wear Asoebi cloth? If she purchased the cloth through a legal way and wear it, won’t it be better for her? And if she bought the cloth and wears it what will it add or subtract to her? If at all, she is contented with her little “Ankara, i.e.  atanfa” it could have been better for her and nobody would harass her or take her to the market policemen.
I implore both males and females to imbibe the attitude of cutting their clothes according to their size.
Say No to stealing!
Maintain your dignity and respect Hassan Imran
This column will be away for two weeks in shaa Allah.