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When Lancashire’s nightmare was Kano’s boom
When Lancashire’s nightmare was Kano’s boom
The British Cotton Growing Association (BCGA) was
formed following the severe cotton shortage of the Lancashire looming
industries at the turn of the twentieth century (1901-1903).
Its purpose was to find new sources of cheap
cotton to replace the expensive and increasingly sparse productions from the
southern states of North America.
The newly colonised provinces of Northern Nigeria
promised to fulfill this role.
Hausa farmers had been growing cotton for
centuries. It would not be a problem to persuade them to expand production for
export. All that was needed to transform Kano into the Mecca of Lancashire. The
way through was to improve transport in between Kano and Lagos by expanding the
Nigerian railway project with a section linking Baro to Kano.
Members of the association argued that linking
Kano with the port of Lagos by rail would provide an endless supply of
affordable and good quality cotton for the looming industries of North Western
England. By persuading Hausa farmers to grow cotton for export, the BCGA would
be accomplishing it’s mission and saving one of the founding sectors of British
industrialisation.
Of course, obstacles to this project included the
four century-old textile manufactures, dying industries, and wide reaching
trading networks of Kano itself. Short looms were traditionally used to
manufacture the cotton and indigo produced in the region into high quality
turkedy and indigo dyed cloths. These were then traded across West Africa, the
Sahara, and North Africa, through a complex web of caravan routes and trading
networks.
The prices paid for cotton in Kano were often
twice as high as those paid in Lancashire. These figures demonstrate clearly
that local supply never satisfied the very high demand of the local
manufactures. However, British cotton enthusiasts, blinded by their agenda,
failed to evaluate the strength of the native industry.
By applying simple price comparison models they
imagined that they could overflow the northern market with cheaply produced
cloth from England to effectively ‘choke’ the Kanuwanci market. The Baro-Kano
railway extension was the effective means to transform the Manchester of West
Africa, as Kano was known, into a primary cotton exporter and an important
consumer of European textiles.
By March 1911 the tracks reached Kano, and on 1
April 1912, the railway opened for general traffic. In between, the BCGA
distributed free seeds of their preferred long-staple variety (Georgia variety)
and sent “junior native clerks” to train and buy cotton directly from
small-scale farmers. Their policy was to constantly offer a little more than
Hausa traders did to ensure they would get the product. However, the BCGA’s
dream turned into a nightmare when they realised that they had lost the
propaganda battle, a nightmare filled with mountains of groundnuts.
Whilst BCGA clerks were distributing free cotton
seeds, the Kola-nut trading families, Kambarin
Beriberi, Agalawa and Tokarawa, toured the region
promoting groundnuts by recruiting the services of village heads, offering
small gifts of salt and cloth and singing songs to the praise of groundnuts.
Farmers produced so many tons of these in the first season following the
arrival of the railway that the Kano rail station was ‘literally buried in
groundnuts’.
In December 1912, there were 3000 tons of
groundnuts stacked at the station awaiting shipment. By January 1913, only 674
tons had been shipped south, and more nuts were pouring into Kano. These were
not cleared until late April. The groundnut ‘boom’, as it is known, increased
in intensity in the planting season of 1913. Even the cattle Fulani are
remembered to have planted groundnuts to supplement their income!
On the other hand, not one batch of cotton is
recorded to have been shipped; no cotton at all!
Any increase in the region’s cotton production
following the BCGA’s efforts was therefore diverted to the manufactures of
Kano. Indeed, what turned out as a disaster for the BCGA and the colonial
government was an immense success for the economy of the northern regions.
Income generated by the groundnut boom further
boosted the manufacturing sector and set in motion externalities which
benefited all levels of the economy. The railway provided long distance traders
with access to European markets through the port of Lagos. Gandu farmers
supplemented their household income. Manufactures of all sorts expanded as
demand increased.
Ironically, Kano was able to import more cotton,
and reap the benefits of its centuries old ‘comparative advantage’ as West
Africa’s centre of trade and production.
In a nutshell, business oriented networks used
the dreams of the BCGA to their advantage. Colonial naïveté, coupled with an
important infrastructural investment, met the experience of kola traders, the
immense adaptability of Hausa farmers and the ‘vent for surplus’ of the
northern economies. Instead of cotton, the Lagos-Kano railway provided Europe
with endless supplies of groundnuts.
From the farmer’s perspective, there are four
main advantages to growing peanuts. First, ‘the groundnut has the most welcome
property of adding nitrogen to the soil, meaning that little or no manuring is necessary.’
Second, the nut draws on nutrients that are located higher in the soil than
cassava or millet, making intercropping recommendable.
This meant that any one, no matter how small his
farm, could produce groundnuts to supplement his income. Third, the nuts could
be picked early and stashed to await the availability of labour if priority was
given to food crops. At last, they could act as a substitute food crop in times
of hardship. In the end of course, peanuts paid a lot more than cotton in
return for the farmers’ investments of labour and capital.
Currently
conducting research in Kano, Olivier is finishing an MA in History at the
University of Liverpool.
DEEPENING DEMOCRACY: Legislative Irresponsibility
DEEPENING DEMOCRACY: Legislative Irresponsibility
On Thursday 29th July, the Senate President
dissolved the Committee on Communications chaired by Sylvester Anyanwu for
telling a lie and bringing the Senate to ridicule. The committee had claimed
that they had studiously screened the chair, executive chair and commissioners
of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and it turned out that they did
no such thing. Rather than carry out their legislative functions, they were
fabricating stories about their work.
One key question is the explanation for why they
claimed they had screened them if they had not. We know that they had also
approved over N6 billion for the registration of SIM cards for GSM phones. We
know however that the registration is being done by the phone companies not by
NCC. It is clear that the anti-corruption agencies have some work to do
investigating possible connections between the committee and the budget lines
approved for theft.
There are indeed clear indications that
increasingly, National Assembly Committees are approving budget lines that were
not conceived by the originating ministries. They make the allocations with the
intention of recovering the monies later by using their “oversight might” to
blackmail ministries and agencies to pass on the budget lines to them. If the
rumours circulating about such activities are true, then the level of
irresponsibility of our legislature has reached the point of no return.
We recall how on Tuesday 22nd June, the House of
Representatives engaged in a disgraceful show of disrespect to Nigerian
citizens by organizing a fist fight choreographed with kung fu moves, blood,
screams, whistles and tear gas. They were showing their determination to prove
to all who cared to listen that they were the most irresponsible legislature in
the world.
As I have argued previously, one of the most
serious threats to sustaining democracy in Nigeria emanates directly from the
irresponsibility of the National Assembly. And yet, legislatures are the only
institutions that directly represent constituencies, and thereby the people.
They have the power to create other powers which means they have the monopoly
of the powers to make laws through which they create new commissions and
agencies, enact public policy and determine public expenditure through the
process of appropriation laws.
It is this legitimacy derived from the electoral
process that gives them the power to translate the views and concerns of citizens
they are representing into public policy. Not surprisingly, when many a
legislator owes his or her seat to godfathers rather than the votes of
constituents, the focus of work is diverted.
On 30th June this year, the Kenyan Parliament
approved a 25% increase of their allowances. They earn $13,455, (about 2
million Naira), a month today and the increase led to major condemnation around
the world over the excesses of the income of Kenyan legislatures. The important
thing in Kenya however was that the increase was debated openly and citizens
know what their parliamentarians earn.
In Nigeria, the National Assembly members have
refused to let us know officially what they earn. We have however learnt from
leaks that they illegally pay each member about N15 million every month and are
about to double the amount. They will not pass the freedom of information bill
because they want to hide from Nigerians the scandalous financial packages they
give themselves.
In addition, Section 24 of the Legislative Houses
Powers and Privileges Act of 2004 prohibits Nigerian citizens from publishing
any statement that falsely or scandalously impinges on the character of the
leaders or members of the National Assembly. This means that when they tell
lies about their work, steal our money, fight each other in public and engage
in disgraceful acts, we the ordinary citizens who they are supposed to be
representing must shut up because they are convinced that they are our
overlords.
Consolidating Nigerian democracy today requires
an open confrontation between the people and the legislature. We must insist on
an open debate on the take home pay of every legislative member. It is curious
that no member of the legislatures has to my knowledge confessed the totally
scandalous monthly take home package they pocket.
We all know that the contract between the
legislatures and the people is a dubious one because most of them were not
genuinely elected by the people. Be that as it may, we know today that they are
an avaricious, self-serving bunch of goal getters whose sights are on their
pockets and not the interest of the people. To save our democracy, we must
confront, challenge, delegitimise and recount on a daily basis how their lives
and actions betray the interest of the people and prove that they represent the
god of money rather than the good people of Nigeria.
Traditional ruler asks governor to resolve dispute
Traditional ruler asks governor to resolve dispute
Moses Ada Egashi
Alade, a traditional ruler in Nasarawa State, has appealed to the
governor, Aliyu Akwe Doma, to take his community’s land dispute case
before the National Boundary Commission.
Mr Alade is the
Utushoho of Agbashi, a border between Benue and Nasarawa States. He
made the appeal in his palace on Monday, during a meeting of the
traditional council.
The traditional
ruler also asked the governor to expedite the completion of the road
that links the towns of Doma Akwata to Agbashi on the Benue border. He
said past governments had failed to complete the road, adding that if
completed, it would open up the area for socio-economic activities.
Mr Alade also wants
the Universal Basic Education board to post teachers and structural
materials to the area. He lamented that since the construction of a
general hospital by the past administration, the community has not been
able staff it.
The governor met with the traditional ruler yesterday, during his state-wide “meet the people” tour.
Danladi Egege, an
Ekye resident, appealed to the governor to hurry the contractor
handling the Doma Akwata to Agbashi road and ensure its completion
before the end of this year. He also wants workers who quit the site to
return.
After Ekye, the state governor will proceed to Doma, his home town.
Ekweremadu wants new voter register estimate reduced
Ekweremadu wants new voter register estimate reduced
Nigeria’s Deputy
Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, on Monday said that the proposed
amount for the new voter register by the Independent National Electoral
Commission (INEC) is too high.
Mr Ekeweremadu,
while speaking to correspondents at the presidential wing of the
Murtala Mohammed Airport (MMA), Lagos, said that our country is faced
with numerous challenges that require financial attention and that our
government should be working out how to save funds.
“Well, that is his
(Jega, INEC Chairman’s) estimate, not my estimate. We should be talking
about how to save money from that figure and focus on other areas,” he
said.
Mr Ekweremadu added
that the commission needs to review the amount in the request,
stressing that the number of polling booths to be used during the 2011
general elections is enormous.
“I think for the
purpose of the election, it is reasonable, but a country such as here
where we have so much poverty, it is on the high side. He (Jega) may
have to adjust it to be more realistic, for we believe there are other
ways we can adjust this.
“That figure is
much, because he is looking at one data capturing machine per polling
booth and we have 120,000 of such (polling booths), so if there is any
way we can deal with it in such a way that there could be like two
polling booths per DCM, I’m sure it’s going to reduce the figure,” he
said.
Last week, Attahiru
Jega, chairman of the commission, disclosed that the INEC will need N84
billion to efficiently carry out credible general elections in our
country come 2011.
The Senator,
however, assured that the House of Assembly will reach an agreement
with the commission on how to professionally deal with the development.
“We will work it out with him but he is going to get all the support he needs from us,” he said.
State creation
Speaking on the
agitation for the increase in the number of states in Nigeria, Mr
Ekweremadu said that the Senate has to go through different procedures
before coming out with an agreed figure.
“I don’t have the
figures here and this is not the military regime where you just stay
one place and say you are creating states; because we have to go
through a number of procedures laid down in section 8 of the
constitution,” he said.
The Deputy Senate President said that the House is to establish a committee that will look into the issue of state creation.
“We are going to set up a small committee within our small
committee, to look at all the requests and advice us in terms of those
that meet the requirements, those that are viable and those that meet
the ends of justice,” he said. “Then we will be able to make further
recommendations to the National Assembly.”
Police arrest five suspected kidnapers
Police arrest five suspected kidnapers
The Police in Imo
State have arrested five suspected kidnappers who allegedly abducted a
six-year-old boy and demanded a N5 million ransom from his family.
The Deputy
Commissioner of Police (DCP), Gwary Usman, who paraded the suspects in
Owerri, alleged that the suspects abducted Chinaza Onyeike in front of
his home at Obilubi in Mbaitoli Local Government Area on July 24 at
gunpoint.
He said that “the
hoodlums forced the victim into their 406 Peugeot car and drove off to
an unknown destination.” Mr. Usman also said that from their hideout,
the suspects demanded a N5 million ransom from the parents of the boy
and that the police later arrested a member of the gang, who assisted
the Police with information that led to the rescue of the boy.
According to him, the suspect led operatives to Umuno Okwu Ikeduru, where the victim was being locked up in a house.
He said the “victim
was safely rescued, the vehicle used for the kidnap was equally
recovered’’ and the suspect made more confessions that led to the
arrest of other gang members.
The suspects included two brothers aged 25 and 27, as well as another 25-year-old and a 24-year-old man.
The police further
alleged that the gang, on May 11, kidnapped one Peace Iheanacho, who
was released after the payment of N100, 000.
The DCP also said that the police arrested another 24-year-old man over his involvement in many kidnap cases around the state.
He used the occasion to restate the commitment of the Police Command to check crime, especially kidnapping, in the state.
He expressed happiness that the new strategy adopted to improve the security situation was yielding positive results.
“The fight against
kidnapping in the state is now being fought with vigour, we need the
members of the community to join us,” he said.
NAN
Nigerian jailed for sham marriage in UK
Nigerian jailed for sham marriage in UK
A Nigerian man and
a French woman were jailed today in the United Kingdom after they
pleaded guilty to a sham marriage. According to a United Kingdom Border
Agency investigation, a Nigerian man, Moshood Samusi, was alleged to
have overstayed his visa, and he and his French bride, Landry Tra, were
sentenced to serve two and a half years each.
Mr. Samusi is the
sixth Nigerian to be convicted of sham marriages in an ongoing special
operation to stop arranged marriages by foreigners in their plans to
become UK citizens. Mr. Samusi and his wife pleaded guilty to
immigration offences at Northampton Crown Court and will also be
deported when they are through serving their sentences.
In a statement
signed by Toby Allanson, UK Border Agency, Regional Press Officer –
East: “Their convictions were said to have brought the total cases of
such fake marriages, combined sentences for all 12 people apprehended
during Operation Sandford, which kicked off in March, to more than 26
years.” Mr. Samusi, who is 39, and 21-year-old Ms. Tra were allegedly
arrested by officers from the UK Border Agency’s immigration crime team
on March 14 while their marriage ceremony was underway in St Michael’s
Church, Perry Street, Northampton.
The statement also
says that “Ms. Tra admitted that she agreed to marry Samusi for a
payment of £3,500. Samusi of Fairmead House, Hackney, hoped that his
marriage to a French national would assist his application to remain in
the UK.” Damian Green, Minister for Immigration, however said that he
welcomed their conviction and expected it to send a clear signal to
anyone considering a fake marriage,
“Today’s
convictions send a clear message to anyone considering breaking our
immigration laws that Britain is no longer a soft touch. We now have
specialist teams of immigration and police officers working day in day
out to tackle and prosecute people who commit this form of organised
criminality.
“I have tasked the
UK Border Agency with carrying out an intense period of enforcement
activity over the summer to tackle the most problematic routes – bogus
colleges and organised traffickers as well as illegal working and sham
marriages.
“We are determined
to create a hostile environment which makes it harder than ever for
illegal immigrants to come to the UK and put untold pressures on our
public services.” Also, the UK Border Agency assistant director, Sam
Bullimore, said that “Tackling sham marriage is a top priority for us
and our immigration crime teams are working hard to create a hostile
environment for those who break the immigration laws.
“We are working
closely with registrars and the Church to identify suspect marriages.
Where there is evidence to suggest that a wedding may be bogus we will
investigate and, where necessary, intervene to stop it happening.
“People should be
under no illusion that marriage is enough to get permission to stay in
the UK. Their relationship has to be genuine. If it’s not, they will
face prosecution or deportation.” The Operation Sandford put in place
by the agency has however uncovered a series of sham marriages taking
place at Holy Sepulchre and St Michaels churches, mainly between West
Africans and EU nationals from countries including France, Portugal and
Holland.
According to the agency, “Any non-EEA foreign criminal sentenced to
more than 12 months in prison for any offence automatically faces
deportation action. Anyone who suspects someone of committing
immigration related crime should contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111
where anonymity can be assured.”
Russia declares emergency as wildfires kill 40
Russia declares emergency as wildfires kill 40
Russia’s leaders
declared a state of emergency on Monday in seven provinces and ordered
authorities to guard weapons storage facilities from wildfires that
have killed at least 40 people.
Thousands more have
lost their homes to blazes stoked by Russia’s worst heatwave since the
tsarist era. The heat has parched crops in one of the world’s largest
grain exporting nations, helping drive global grain prices to 22-month
highs.
“Many families have
nothing left — the flames destroyed everything,” President Dmitry
Medvedev said in a sober announcement on state television. “It is a
huge tragedy.” With little relief expected this week, he urged Russians
to take care in tinder-dry forests and fields, warning that “every
match tossed away could lead to irreparable disaster.” Medvedev’s
emergency decree covered European Russian regions from Voronezh in the
south to several Volga River areas and the densely populated province
ringing Moscow.
A blanket of acrid
smog covered the sweltering capital itself, worsening the woes of
Muscovites gasping in Russia’s hottest weather since record-keeping
began around 1880. Some wore facemasks to filter the air they breathed.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin ordered authorities to protect weapons sites, power plants and other vital facilities.
“The last thing we
need is for arms stores to fall into this zone (affected by fires),”
Putin said at a meeting with emergency officials and governors of
affected regions.
Authorities said
they had increased the number of firefighters near an iconic nuclear
research centre by tenfold, but a spokesman for Russia’s state nuclear
corporation Rosatom, Sergei Novikov, said the centre was not currently
in danger.
The facility at
Sarov in the Nizhny Novgorod province around 350 kilometres (220 miles)
east of Moscow was a top-secret location in Soviet times codenamed
Arzamas-16, where the first Soviet atom and hydrogen bombs were
designed.
“At the present
time, all the fires around (the centre) have been put out so there is
no threat to the nuclear centre,” Novikov said.
“There may be a threat of further fires from the south but special groups are prepared for that contingency.”
Reconstruction
Putin warned that
small blazes in areas where fires have been extinguished could be
whipped up by winds and spread again. “Everything must be put out,”
Putin said.
Putin is still
widely seen as Russia’s top leader after steering Medvedev into the
presidency in 2008 and is eager to retain his popularity ahead of
elections in the next two years. He chided regional officials and
demanded detailed accounts of plans to fight the fires and compensate
the victims.
“You know what
citizens are saying: ‘Yes, we call (the authorities), but they hang up
on us — nobody wants to talk,” Putin said at the meeting, shown in
part on state television.
He ordered
governors to report to him with timelines for the construction of
housing, demanding information about “every region, every town, every
home.” Medvedev said all those who have lost their homes must have
roofs over their heads before winter.
Putin said
compensation and reconstruction was expected to cost 5 billion roubles
(103.8 million pounds). It will all come from the state budget because
very few Russian households have insurance.
He also called for
plans to prevent such losses from wildfires in the future. More people
die per capita in household fires in Russia than in most Western
nations because of poor infrastructure, flouting of safety rules and
negligence.
Nearly 700
wildfires were burning on Monday over 1,210 square kilometres (750
square miles) of land, a spokeswoman for the Emergency Situations
Ministry told Reuters.
The death toll rose from 28 people on Sunday to 40 on Monday, the Health Ministry said in a statement.
Reuters
AC calls for tougher disciplinary action against senator
AC calls for tougher disciplinary action against senator
The Action Congress
has called for the immediate suspension of the chairman of the
recently-dissolved Senate Committee on Communication, Sylvester
Anyanwu. In a statement issued by its national publicity secretary, Lai
Mohammed, the party said the dissolution of the committee, while
commendable, does not constitute adequate sanction for Mr. Anyanwu’s
act.
The senate, had
last week Thursday, disbanded the Anyanwu-led committee on
communication over alleged fraud in the committee’s screening of the
recently appointed chairman and members of the board of National
Communications Commission.
The disbandment of
the committee followed allegations that the chairman of the committee,
Sylvester Anyanwu (PDP, Imo State) conducted the screening for the
appointed chairman and members of the board of National Communications
Commission (NCC) alone,
at night, and later claimed that six members of the committee were involved.
According to the
opposition party, “First, the chairman allegedly conducted the
screening alone, and at night, only to claim that six members of the
committee did so. Then he signed the screening report on behalf of two
of the committee members whom he claimed attended the screening,
without their consent,” said the party.
Describing the act
as “outrightly fraudulent and criminal,” it however called that the act
“must not be allowed to go unpunished if the integrity of the Senate is
to be maintained.” The party is also calling for an investigation into
the fraud allegations against the senator.
“His apology and appeal for leniency are an afterthought and should
not stop the Senate leadership from sanctioning him to serve as a
deterrent to others like him,” the AC said. “The dissolution of the
committee is not enough.”
Immigration gets new boss
Immigration gets new boss
Rose Uzoma was appointed over the weekend as the new
Comptroller-General (CG) of the Nigeria Immigration Service. Mrs Uzoma
becomes the second female boss of the immigration service. In an
inauguration ceremony in Abuja, Minister of Interior, Emmanuel
Iheanacho, charged the new immigrations boss to provide good leadership
and sustain the gains of the modern immigration service.
As the former
Deputy Comptroller-General in charge of operations, Mrs Uzoma was in
charge of many of the service’s reforms such as the e-passport, an
improved border control, and more effective management of foreign
residents, which was recently emphasized with the biometric
registration of Africans in Nigeria.
Mr Iheanacho advised the new CG to equip herself with knowledge-based
leadership qualities to guarantee, not only a seamless management
transition, but an immigration service that will “stand tall and aspire
to excellence in service delivery.” He expressed confidence in her
capacity for success, noting that Mrs Uzoma was part of the team that
contributed to the achievements of the former CG. Mr Iheanacho said he
looked forward to the building of a modern service where Information
Communication Technology (ICT) was driving its operations.
Mrs Uzoma acknowledged the enormity of the challenges before her, and
promised that the service would vigorously tackle the issues of
terrorism and illegal immigrants.
