Beko: Two years after, the challenges ahead

The struggle for the enthronement of true democracy and fundamental human rights years after the June 12 debacle and the death of foremost activist, Dr. Beko Ransome-Kuti, is still fraught with challenges, in spite of civilian administration, Dolapo Ekanade and Seyi Gesinde write.

In a country where corruption has formed the core of ethics at all levels, the fight for and sustenance of the fundamental rights of the citizens could be likened to the wails of a child in a cacophony of voices in the market. Although Nigeria has embraced jealously its transition to civilian rule for almost nine years now, it has failed to realize its rights are still being violated in other less than obvious forms.

The fight for the respect for human rights was mostly fought during the military junta. Most activists involved were a crop of brilliant, literate, elitist and comfortable people in the Nigerian status class.

Who would easily forget the eloquence of Chief Gani Fawehinmi, SAN and Nobel Laureate, Professor ‘Wole Soyinka, or the tenacity and doggedness of the late Chief M. K. O Abiola and his wife, the late Chief (Mrs.) Kudirat Abiola who died in the battle to save her husband’s life; the acerbic, yet witty humor of the late music icon, Fela Anikulapo Kuti, Pa Alfred Rewane, Ken Saro Wiwa and the late Dr. Beko Ransome-Kuti, among other heroes fought military oppression to a standstill?

Therefore, it was appropriate for the Campaign for Democracy (CD) to put in place a historic event for one of such fighters, a former president of the civil rights group, humane doctor and defender of human dignity, Dr. Beko Ransome-Kuti, who himself came from a pedigree of people who stood firmly for what they believed.

Two years after the demise of the indefatigable crusader and defender of human dignity, popularly called “Beko” is a time for sober reflection on the challenges of a rudderless nation. Beko was an icon of the pro-democracy and human rights community in Nigeria and the common wealth who devoted the better part of his adult life to the struggle to extend the frontiers of human liberty and the enthronement of constitutional governance.

His death two years ago left a yawning gap in the democratic struggle in Nigeria, yet the crisis of the nation has continued to fester after Beko’s exit. Beko was at the head of the pro-democracy community that led the street resistance to the annulment of the June 12, 1993 election. The titanic struggle, which took twist and turns eventually led to the exit of the military in 1999, but the three elections that have been conducted in Nigeria after June 12 1993 election (in 1999, 2003, 2007) have been progressively worse, with the 2007 polls recording a massive fraud, due to INEC’s failure to conduct a free and fair election and the number of those nullified by various election petition tribunals across the country.

During a programme organized by the 2nd Memorial Committee at the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), House in Lagos, CD president, Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin, described Beko as a worthy Nigerian, who devoted the better part of his life to the struggle for human liberty and the enthronement of constitutional governance adding that his virtue was unequalled, two years after his death.

Said she: “Beko was at the head of the pro-democracy community that led the street resistance for the annulment of the June 12 elections.” The titanic struggle which took twist and turns eventually led to the exit of the military in 1999. But the three elections which were conducted after that of June 12, 1993 election, (in 1999, 2003, 2007), she said, were progressively worse than that of June 12.”

She condemned the resistance to the wanton rape of the right of Nigerians to freely choose their leaders, which has witnessed a decline, likewise, the struggle against economic impoverishment of the people through insensitive policies. Odumakin said that the culture of impunity continues to fester at all levels of governance, even after Beko’s demise.

She however called for a serious leadership in the process of mobilisation and organising of the people to fight for a genuine change. In the search for such, she said Beko would continue to be a reference point as he embodied the quintessential values of the kind of leadership the movement needed at present.

“We, now more than any other time, need such selfless, courageous and committed leaders to lead the struggle to free our people from the clutches of poverty, diseases, decayed infrastructure, and irresponsible governance.” There is the urgent need to rearticulate the charter of freedom for our people and mobilize them to confront injustice, oppression, and corruption in our nation,” Odumakin said.

Speaking further, she charged that “The ruling elite must be told in clear terms that we are not ready to be ruled in the old way and that what worked for them before will not work again. There is no substitute for organised, strong and dedicated leaders like Beko.

If we are able to confront these and refurbish our struggle kits for the challenges of a failed state presently confronting us, then Beko and our other martyrs would not have died in vain.”

Insurance: Operating within the law

Operating a viable insurance system is not without its challenges in Nigeria. Bukola Olajide, in this piece, explains the position of the law in apportioning liabilities.

THE idea of insurance in Nigeria readily brings a picture of a night mare; a situation of distrust springs to mind at the thought of it. A lot of people would, with little prompting, enumerate a good number of situations where the purpose of insurance is not realised. This is to say that even with the efforts of stakeholders to rebrand insurance in Nigeria, many still regard it a shoddy venture. To the few with a good story to tell about their experiences with the business, the mere mention of ‘insurance’ stirs up joy and enthusiasm. Being a contract upon speculation, the views on it are bound to be varied.Insurance is a social device for providing financial compensation for the effects of misfortune.

Insurance could be understood as a contract of agreed obligation by both parties to it, that is, the insured and the insurer. The insured agrees to pay his premium duly which is his primary obligation in the contract, while the insurer settles the claim when the need arises, which is subject to the secondary obligation of the insured. The secondary obligation of the insured is being able to support the proof and particulars of his claim in substantiating his claim. (A lot of scrutiny is employed at this stage to ensure none of the parties to the contract is at a loss).

The insurers, to a large extent, are expected to operate the insurance business under sound insurance principles. His primary duty is to settle claim promptly. The premium paid from time to time by the insured is a sum entrusted to the insurer which by then is in his control. The money awaits its utilization while ‘in trust’ with the insurer. The insurance companies through which the insurer operates needs to be well regulated.There are provisions of law which are checks on what the insurer does with funds entrusted to him to ensure they are not diverted to personal use or misappropriation.

This is embedded in section 25 of the Insurance Act of 2003. This section encourages the insurer to invest such monies in likely profitable ventures with the exception of properties. This legislation seeks to protect the insurance contract from:
(i) failure to pay and pay promptly due claims;
(ii) a continued position of perceived distrust;
(iii) a situation where the image of insurers is generally seen as dubious or questionable;
(iv) gradual phasing away of insurance business in the society;
(v) a situation where no check is placed on activities in insurance business.

The strength of any law lies in its enforcement and monitoring. This is the need to boost the confidence of the people to encourage the business of insurance in Nigeria. This has been said to only be possible by the practicability of the prompt payment of claims to the insured. This is believed to announce itself more than any other means of advertisement.

The implication of dealing in an insurance business without regarding this section is an issue for another day. Nonetheless, the penalties put in place by section 25 (4) of the same Act appears to be fast running out of the effect for which it is intended to be put in place. It is an evidence of the various lapses in our legislation which needs reform.

A more rigid penalty would do a better job. The fear of a stricter federal jail term and a higher amount of money stipulated as fine would commensurate with the likely amount of money the insurer is likely to handle.

The section seems to contradict itself in its subsection 3, where it states the need to invest more than 35% of insurance assets in real property. One can only imagine this provision as working against the prompt payment of claims as desired by the legislation. The realisation of money from real property, which is not known to be a safe or reliable form of investment may afterall not be as prompt as prescribed by the legislation.

One would expect a situation where the insurers’ fund is supervised from time to time by a body set up by the National Insurance Scheme. This is needed to ensure a close monitoring of transactions involved in by the insurer with the insurer’s fund.

Section 88 of the Insurance Act 2003 deals with the control of insurance activities with the insurers’ fund. It prevents him from tampering with such investments or doing anything with it that would diminish its value.

Giving this a force of law would ensure the interest of the insured is duly taken care of and the adequate preparation for settlement of claims would be actualized. The efficiency of an insurance business would be achieved from the protection of the image of insurers generally and the interest of the insurers thus would have a positive effect on the people’s attitude to the business.