REJOINDER: PROF OLAYINKA IDOWU: A HYPOCRITE IN GOWN?

By Kayode Bello.

For the past, today and tomorrow  I bring to you a somewhat  chronicle of events that negate the post by Prof. Olayinka  Idowu, who is the incumbent Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan on improving  the standard of education  in Nigeria to the effect that he  himself  did not  have such  moral justification for posting it. If another had, maybe this rejoinder would have not have been necessary.  Anyway there have been  a number of issues  I had wanted  to relay but due to time, busy schedules  having to hit the ground running on daily basis, this is coming this time.  Kindly accept my apologies.

It is no news that there is an ongoing legal battle with the State and its agents and I am referring to my case against the Council of Legal Education controlled by the State. But at times the people deserve the kind of leaders they get.  At this time in the Nigerian history, we deserve the kind of leaders we have and we would deserve such come 2019. The ball is in our court. The youths,  the old, the young, the teens,  including myself  are in this ship called Nigeria but we have  a Captain that is like  the man in the Titanic movie that allowed the ship to hit the iceberg  thereby wrecking the ship and leading to a catastrophic ending. Still in the Titanic  analogy,  some of us are the ones rescuing others while we do not care whether ours would end in the process. But a happy ending we envisage.
Before I proceed,  I love to disabuse the minds of the majority as to the fact  that my case is a personal one. My case is a reflection of the whole Nigerian state,  I am just fighting legally on behalf of thousands and millions of Nigerians, and humanity.
Idowu Olayinka,  being the Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan would have contributed his own misfortune to the already badly managed Univerity of Ibadan,  I opine. I developed a checklist, and the summation of such is that Olayinka Idowu should hide his head in shame for the following:

2011- THE PROTEST ON LIGHT, WATER

IN 2011, when Prof. Adewole Isaac was the Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan,  Prof. Olayinka  Idowu was the  Deputy Vice Chancellor, Academic,  and there was  a protest  or planned protest on the state of the University  of Ibadan's welfare where no light,  water for the students  whereas examination was to be held in fact examination was ongoing that  Prof.  Olayinka sent two different messages  to different set of people as conveyed by different authorities, that examinations would hold despite the state of no water,and light in the University of Ibadan and to others that examinations would not hold, this one to the Students' Union. Examinations were ongoing in the University of Ibadan as planned despite the fact that students were not all that prepared for examinations. Remember I stated no water, no light in the University of Ibadan of then. Fast backward, from now 2018 to 2011 that is seven years ago when  Prof. Olayinka was the Deputy Vice Chancellor,  Academic. That time,  Prof. Adewole was not around. And there was somewhat threat of Boko Haram invasion of the University of Ibadan. He went to Uganda so we were told. In my view, Prof. Olayinka created commotion among and between the students union and the faculty and department authorities to the extent that protest broke out. Some students were writing examinations while others were not.

To be contd.

Next: Justice for Sale (A series).

USA VISA DENIAL: OF DISCRIMINATION, POLICY, OR CONSPIRACY?

By Kayode Bello

This forms a harrowing experience in the hands of the consular officer, at Window 4, on March 13^th, 2018, at the premises of the United States of America Embassy, Walter Carrington Crescent, Victoria Island, Lagos. And this is within the knowledge of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama. Also, Mr. Usman Piatu, of the Foreign Affairs Ministry Liaison office in Lagos is very much aware of the story I am about to tell, because they have received my petition on the somewhat discrimination, and indiscriminate denial of the American visa. Not forgetting Mr. Dayo Adeoye, Head, Airport Protocol, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Presidential Lounge, Murtala Mohammed Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, and Mr. Nnamdi Nze, Foreign Service Officer, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Abuja, and Mary Edekinu, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Presidential Lounge, Murtala Mohammed Airport, Ikeja, Lagos.

From the expressway leading to Walter Carrington Crescent, and across the road, lay ambush people who would ask visa applicants sorts of questions like,’’ Passport photograph?’’ ‘’Do you want to keep your phone or possessions?’’ ‘’Do you know you can’t take your phone inside the embassy?’’ ‘‘Photocopy?’’ These are not without a fee. Inquiry showed that the American Embassy area is under the control of the Nigerian Military, and each shop occupant pays about N70,000 (seventy thousand naira) per month. The queue is time-consuming, while the visa officer does not have time to ask questions talk less of germane ones. It is estimated that about ninety percent of the visa applicants are denied visas daily at the American Embassy, while the embassy makes more money than usual. The exchange rate of US dollar to Nigerian Naira is N400 by the American Embassy as against the N305 official rate, thereby depicting excess/extra profit for the American Embassy in Nigeria.

All Nigerians cannot be at the Foreign Affairs Ministry but the above officials especially the Minister of Foreign Affairs, would represent the interests of Nigerians who may have somewhat visa or consular problems. A petition was submitted by me at the Foreign Affairs Ministry Liaison Office, Lagos, on March 13^th, 2018, x-raying my harrowing experience at the United States Embassy. And while still ruminating over the fact that the denial was unjust, a close source at the United States Embassy disclosed that the visa fee would soon be increased from N64,000 to some N100,000 (one hundred thousand naira only). I have read online a comment that to discourage Nigerians from travelling to the United States, just increase the amount of visa fee, but the Nigerians I know who do not want to be faced with the current hardship, and suffering but smiling would not mind going through the Mediterranean sea to get to the greener destination. Thus, increase in visa fee, in own opinion, would not deter Nigerians. Nigerians can sell property to escape the suffering, and be able to boast to others they have made it. Nigeria might not have good image abroad, but just as there are school shootings in the United States, yet I do not conclude all Americans are criminals and insane, so it would be quite unfair to conclude Nigerians would not return to their home country. The Nigerian Representatives may not raise a finger against the visa fee increase. Another which may sound saddening is the fact that some of the foreign affairs officials were so quick to say, ‘’Do you know that Atiku Abubakar, the former Vice President of Nigeria was also denied entry visa to the United States?’’ I responded, ‘’ But why was he denied? You need to look into the reasons for the denial whether just or not?’’ There is somewhat written on the faces of the foreign affairs’ officials fear of writing the United States embassy. Or, are there sacred people the foreign affairs Ministry attends to?

One candid thing was the gloom that I was greeted with at the Foreign Affairs division of Nigeria, both in Lagos and Abuja, where the public officers work, and being paid by the government of Nigeria where I belong as a bona fide citizen. I am not an alien here, fellow Nigerians, and I need not be Senator’s son before I could approach any government establishment. It should not be a case of who do I know, or from where do I come from, or who am I? It should be a case of myself as a human, with dignity, respect and rights. There is the reminder of the statement of the President of the United States of America to the fact that Nigeria is a shit-hole country. In a shit-hole country, it is expected that men, women, young and old would love to run away for greener pastures, to find job, and possibly escape biting economic, and socio-political realities- poor water supply, poor power supply, herdsmen killings, Boko Haram bombings, unemployment rate/increasing, snail-like Judiciary, Libya slave-trade, human trafficking, pollution, increased/ increasing illiteracy rate, and most importantly corruption and poverty who are Siamese twins, but all these are not the preserve of Nigeria alone.

To defend or play a devil’s advocate for the American Embassy, the above might form the reasons for the denial of the American or any other country’s visa, but in a situation of somewhat discriminatory or indiscriminate reasons for denial of visa, it comes to question could it be of policy or discrimination? One notable thing at the American Embassy is the pre-printed paper -- either white of blue depending on whether visa granted or not. The blue UNSIGNED paper represents visa denial. The white paper represents visa is granted. The blue Paper without date or name of the applicant has no date, and signature but a space is created for the signature of the consular officer on the letter. This means the document is not tenable as evidence in case of any action in the court of law. This could be because the American Embassy in Nigeria is aware of the fact that the Nigerian System favours these, and that even  the foreign affair ministry  would not move an inch to seek  redress for its citizenry that suffers the kind of fate in the hands of  ‘’make America great again’’ persons. I read again online the statement of Mr. Onyeama that showed outright defence of the United States Immigration on the unlawful deportation of a Nigerian with valid visa. We must look at the body language of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration as to defending the interests of Nigerians, not foreign interests, if truly democracy is government of the people by the people, and for the people.

Also disheartening was the fact that the consular officer mistook me for a financial reporter, instead of a freelance reporter, until the tail end of the interview when he corrected himself without apologizing to me. He had a preconceived judgment I must add, and in my candid view it is not of policy to not listen to a visa applicant before refusal of visa. It could be gleaned, as a matter of opinion, that the foreign  affairs ministry  of Nigeria are aware of this, and other harrowing  experiences, but  with present Nigerian  situation even  the foreign affairs personnel may need the ‘favour’ of the American  embassy either  for themselves, or for their wards, thus the denial of that person  not within  this clique or ‘special’ citizens may mean nothing  to them. And how prompt the Foreign Affairs Ministry responds to complaint is another to be inquired. A long queue is usually witnessed at the Walter Carrington Crescent of the American Embassy.

My voyage to the American Embassy and the Nigerian Foreign Affairs Ministry had showed there might be somewhat diplomatic romance between them, at the expense of the national interest, and such national interest includes the interest of Nigerians. Since we live an interdependent world, it is expected that Americans would want to come to Nigeria, while Nigerians would as well voyage elsewhere. A visa policy hinged on discrimination, in my view is inhumane, erodes person’s dignity and freedom of movement, and the onus rests on the Nigerian Foreign affairs Ministry to address this and others without much ado. A paper, like ours, that is on global warming and climate change to be presented at the Common Ground’s Conference at the University of California, Berkeley, has suffered a blow in the hands of the American government via visa denial, and it might be a pointer to the fact that the Trump’s administration does not believe in climate change, I opine.

NOTE: This has been submitted to The Guardian newspapers for publication, with the hope it would see the light of the day.

Kayode Bello can be reached via finestkay2003@yahoo.com, or 08115480501.