~~~  Abdulsamod Balogun

As fliers with motivational quotes and nicknames continue to bombard our walkway boards and spam our whatsapp groups, it reminds a critical observer that the political atmosphere of the university environment is becoming tense.

Political aspirants are emerging with varying interest in particular positions and a lot of lobbying is ongoing behind the scenes. In other words, the time for transition in is almost here.

Obviously, this is the time for seekers of public office to sway people to identify with their cause and mobilize the needed support to actualize their political ambition.

In view of this, I would like to share a few thoughts on how to effectively actualize your political aspiration without destabilizing the polity.

First, it's important to note that lobbying has got its own ethics.
If you want to lobby people to support your political aspiration,  do so by telling them about your vision and what you hope to actualize realistically when you get to the office. It is offensive and immoral to malign or speak ill of your opponent all in the name of emerging victorious.

In addition, resist the temptation of employing unfair and dirty means of getting your main contender screened out of the race. It simply shows a lack of self confidence to lead. It typifies a "ruler" with a "do or die" attitude to win by all means possible.

Remember, political sins/crimes are not easily forgotten. The person whom you have maligned wrongly, can serve you hot strokes of cane in your administration. The person may pay you back by giving you taste of your own medicine. Leadership isn't intended at severing ties; it's aimed at cementing them.

The second issue is the need for the electorates to beware. This is because, one of the things that have ruined Nigeria is nepotism. Nepotism is a false gospel that preaches this; "this person belongs to my religious group and therefore, he must win. This person is Hausa, therefore he must win regardless of what he has to offer".

The ones common to the university system are, "this person is from my department, I don't even need to know if he's capable or not"; "He is a member of my indigenous association, I'm less concerned about his capability and capacity"; "He has tutored me in a course before, therefore he should be assured of my vote and support".

If that were to be a concrete yardstick for measuring leadership, then the right people will never emerge as leaders — rather people without character, competence and capacity will take over power.

There's need to ask some pertinent questions at this juncture: what if an individual doesn't know how to tutor but knows exactly how to perform effectively in administrative roles? What if the person has garnered experience from a series of trainings but not related to you in anyway?

The point is, be open-minded to any candidate that deserves your attention. Ask them what they have to offer because, not all the people that take you tutorials and/or are in your department, faculty, indigenous association automatically qualify to hold a leadership position. Don't be fooled!

The rationale behind my position is simple: having gotten involved in student politics since my first year, I have participated at departmental, faculty, union and indigenous levels. I took tutorials two years consecutively without the intention to use it as a tool to campaign to the electorates. Every time I get to my fellow students and try to introduce myself, they say, "we already know you,  you took us tutorials, we'll vote for you".

Despite this already welcoming gesture,  I spare some time to discuss the results I want to deliver with the office and programmes I intend executing, and the experience and skills that I want to put to great use.

This step goes ahead to clear every iota of doubt in their minds (if it exists in the first place). I have successfully won three elections in my four years in school serving in both executive and legislative positions.

Of course, the journey hasn't been devoid of people who wanted to play hanky-panky. Those that wrote petitions on falsehood. Those that tried to malign my character, and others who weren't just interested in meritocracy - they all bowed to the sovereign power of the people.

Remember, lobby ethically! Don't blackmail, malign or dig out your contender's secrets. I hope this helps and enlightens you to be a good sportsman as a political aspirant, and being wise as an electorate.

Lobbying is a game of foresight. It's about thinking three times ahead of your opponent. It's about anticipating moves from your competition such that when your opposition thinks they have played their trump card, you play yours to bury the competition.

Abdulsamod Balogun is a parliamentarian at University of Ilorin Student Union, a Content Writer and media strategist, Youth advocate and active volunteer.
+234 817 189 1099

N.B: The opinion expressed in this piece is solely that of the author, and not the official position of UCJ UNILORIN.

University of Ilorin debate team has emerged first position at the just concluded national debate competition in Abuja.

The competition which had Hawau Titilope Abikan and Omotayo Idris Jimoh as representative of the university was the first edition of the bounce corruption debate competition, with top Nigerian universities competing as winners from their various region.

The knockout rounds saw UNILORIN emerging first in its group against FUTO, Federal University Dutse and UNIBEN, while UNILAG emerged first against UNICAL, UNIABUJA and UNIMAID.

The competition saw top speaker from Nigerian universities display their proficiency, and University of Lagos (UNILAG) emerged first runner up, Federal University of Owerri were second runner up and University of Calabar came third runner up in the contest.

According to the debate team, the recent award was third trophy of the year for the debate team.

The debate team was led by Dr. A.A. Owoade (Ag. Chairman UNILORIN Quiz and Debate Committee) and coached by Mr. I.D. Ejim.

The competition also had a total of 24 universities who contested from the geopolitical zone levels, with the 6 champions across the country and 2 best runners up from the North and South traveling to Abuja for the finals.



Click here

Today affords me another opportunity to re-affirm our Administration’s commitment to the protection of children, a day to reflect on our roles and responsibilities as Parents and Leaders towards our children, and also assessing how far we have fared in this regard.

As you may recall, one of the cardinal objectives of this Administration is the provision of quality education to our children as a fundamental foundation of economic and social development. In this regard, I am pleased to inform you that this Administration has recorded measurable success in the home grown school feeding programme as it has continued to expand.

Our children are our future, and the initiatives that come from them give confidence that our country has a bright future.

I am always inspired and encouraged when I remember encounters I had with three of our young ones. When I was on medical vacation in 2017, three year old Maya Jammal recorded a prayer for my recovery, which went viral online.

Also, 10 year old Aisha Aliyu Gebbi wrote a personal letter to me, describing herself as my “biggest fan”.

Nicole Benson, then 12 years old, had contributed the sum of Five Thousand, Seven Hundred Naira and Eighty-Five kobo (N5,700.85) to my campaign in 2015. The money was all saved up from her lunch and pocket allowance. There are millions of such children nationwide.

I am very impressed by what our children have been able to do, and what the future holds for them. That is one reason why we are committed to the school feeding programme, to prepare a future generation of physically and intellectually robust children. At the last count, over 8.2 million children in 24 states of the Federation are being given free meals daily. This happens in 45,000 schools round the country.

I therefore call on all stakeholders to support this programme to ensure that all the 36 States of the Federation and FCT are covered. This will promote substantially higher enrolment levels in our schools.

Since its inception in May, 2015, this Administration has also focused attention on addressing issues of child protection, participation and survival. In 2015, the campaign to end violence against children was launched which was commemorated in 2016. In November 2016, the Campaign to End Child Marriage was also launched to ensure that as many children as possible are able to fully enjoy their childhood and be protected from all the challenges associated with this phenomenon. These campaigns have been reinforced with sensitization campaigns in some States of the Federation.

The theme for this year’s celebration “Creating Safe Spaces for Children: Our Collective Responsibility” is an opportunity to promote the safety and security of our children. As a responsible Government, we are committed to ensuring that children are protected from violence and exploitation against them, and, that their environments are safe enough for them to pursue their educational attainments, discover their full potentials to grow into responsible citizens.

This Administration has made giant strides in the protection of the Rights of the Nigerian Child and as a result of such efforts, Nigeria has been declared a Pathfinding Country on Ending Violence Against Children. This I believe is a collective achievement and I urge us to continue to build on the present momentum to achieve the targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In our efforts to protect our children from abuse, exploitation and trafficking as well as provide safe, non-violent inclusive and effective learning environment in our schools, this Administration has directed the management of all Federal Government Colleges and advised all state owned schools across the Country to provide adequate measures of safety and security of their students. I again call on all schools management committees at all levels of public and private institutions to take adequate security measures and put in place mechanisms for safety of children.

May I therefore call on the Families, Security Agencies, Traditional Rulers, Religious Leaders, Civil Society Organizations, Human Rights Activists, and the Society at large to rise up and take urgent and decisive actions to stem the unacceptable rising cases of violence against our children. We must ensure safety of our children in homes, schools, markets, worship centres, on the streets and everywhere at all times.

Furthermore let me use this medium to appeal to parents not to relent in their efforts to send their wards to school, especially the girl child as her education reduces infant and maternal mortality and prevents early and child marriages. It also increases literacy and reduces poverty. The saying that to educate a woman is to educate the nation is very apt in this regard.

Finally, while I appreciate the security agencies for their efforts so far, I urge them to redouble their efforts in protecting children from danger and violence in line with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Child Rights Acts, 2003.

Once again, happy Children’s Day.

~~~Adekeye, Rahmat

The Senate president, Bukola Saraki and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara attended the New Peoples Democratic Party (nPDP) block meeting with the All Progressives Congress (APC) leadership.

Abubakar Kawu Baraje, Chairman, Former New PDP, made this known to journalists.

He also disclosed the outcome of the meeting was shared with a number of nPDP members.

It would be recalled that the former PDP stalwarts, two weeks ago, complained of marginalisation in the ruling APC.

A statement Baraje signed said the gathering discussed development in the APC as well as national issues.

The statement read in part; “Nigerians may recall that members of the former New PDP Block within the All Progressives Congress (APC) addressed a letter dated April 27, 2018 to the Chairman of APC where we informed the party of our grievances and expectations from both the party and government of President Muhammadu Buhari."

“Following this development, the party invited us and we honoured their invitation for a meeting. We met with the leadership of the party last week during which we resolved to report the outcome of our meeting to our members and stakeholders before arriving at any decision or proceeding with the next phase of discussions or actions with the APC and government."

“I am glad to inform you therefore that we have briefed our members at a meeting convened in Abuja on Wednesday, 23rd May 2018 where we reviewed the state of the nation and our party, APC and constituted Committees on various issues especially on how to rescue Nigeria from economic, social, political and especially security challenges."

“The meeting was well attended by members of the nPDP including serving and former Governors, Senators, Members of the House of Representatives, and other aggrieved APC stakeholders."

“Those that attended the meeting include: Sen. (Dr.) Abubakar Bukola Saraki, President of the Senate, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara, Speaker, House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, Governor of Sokoto State, Sen. Rabiu M. Kwankwaso, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, Admiral Murtala Nyako (Rtd), Sen. Mohammad Adamu Aliero, Sen. Dino melaye.

Every parent derives joy in the success of their ward. The existing order to achieve this globally, is by investing in the young. This investment comes in various forms; first, parents engage the mechanism of imbibing moral standard in their wards. Afterwards, they employ various agents of socialisation (School, etc) for their development. This is termed psychological asset.

The former TIC Chairman, Ilorin West Local Government and Executive Director, MR. NIGERIA CENTER, Hon. Abdul -Hameed Oladipupo Alli (MR. NIGERIA) has given his words to personally grace the 4th Annual Lecture/ Award of the Association of Students Counsellors in Nigeria (ASCON), University of Ilorin Chapter which comes up on Monday 25 June, 2018, at the Education Lecture Theatre, University of Ilorin by 10:00am.

The former city father disclosed his acceptance to chair the event when some members of ASCON led by her President, Ajiboye Habeeb Adewale paid him a Courtesy Call at the MR. NIGERIA CENTRE, Ilorin earlier this week.

He used the opportunity to enjoin the students to ensure that they obtain their PVC, stating its important for governance.

The President also informed him of his nomination for the ASCON's MERIT AWARD which will be presented to him along with other personalities worthy of emulation at the occasion.

We hereby invite the general public to the programme as it promises to be enlightening and entertaining.

~~~~ Ukor Jonathan and Bakare Gbolahan

Mr. Umar Saidu Isa, popularly known as, Dynamic-galvanizer, has held his album launch themed “Man of the Moment” on Saturday, 19th May, 2018 at Mazabs for Events, Tanke, Ilorin.

The motivational event was graced by high profile individuals from the University of Ilorin and Kwara State University in the likes of Dr. Mahfouz Adedimeji, Alh. Jublil Yusuf and also reputable unions like the Union of Campus Journalists (UCJ), Unilorin Chapter, who also launched and supported the album with whooping and exciting amounts.

Many other motivational speakers and poets were allotted time to lecture and perform, and take the audience to a journey of life through their words.

The incumbent president of UCJ Unilorin, in his speech titled; ‘Believe in yourself even when nobody believes in you,' projected how he came for his second degree in Law without minding age been against him and he also enjoined the audience to focus like an eagle.  

After the event, our correspondence met with the Man of the Moment himself for an interview.

_____________________________________________________________________________

UCJ: Congratulations on this massive feat you achieve. Can we meet you?

Mr. Isa: My name is Umar Saidu Isa, I am a poet, an expressional motivational speaker, singer, rapper, audio producer, voice over artist, a graphic designer and an entrepreneur. I am also a staff of the Kwara state University.

UCJ: You go by the name – ‘The Dynamic Galvanizer’. Can you tell us the origin or etymology of this choice of name?

Mr Isa: I choose this name because most of my poetry works are based on motivation. To galvanize means to motivate people into action, so I galvanize.

UCJ: When did you start writing?

Mr Isa: I started writing in my secondary school…

UCJ: …writing poems?

Mr Isa: Yes, in my secondary school.

UCJ: And you have been performing since then or just writing?

Mr Isa: Yes, I’ve been performing right from my JSS 1, right from 2006.

UCJ: What can you say of the interest Nigerians show towards poetry as an art?

Mr Isa: Okay. It has not really been that accepted compared to how the pop music is been accepted but we are trying to push it and that is why this kind of event has been organized. So, I could actually encourage Nigerian youths, most especially, to actually put poetry in the same position that they put pop and other music genres…yes.

UCJ: Your style of art is quite unique; you sing, present and rap. Why did you choose to do your performance that way?

Mr Isa: Well, I wanted it to be mixed up since in Nigeria, this kind of environment, most people (like 90%) are interested in entertainment, so I decided to spice it up a little bit with rap and songs because they wouldn’t want to listen to just poetry like that.

UCJ: Would you agree that poetry is boring?

Mr Isa: It depends on the way you put it, you know…it depends on the way the poet writes it or presents it, that’s what makes it boring. But for people who are not intellectuals, they say it’s boring, people who only are focused on the beats of music or are used to hip-hop or fast music would not appreciate poetry because they only get high with the musical instrument instead of listening to the words, so such people would not appreciate poetry.

UCJ: Okay, now “Man of the Moment”, the theme of the event. What inspired that theme?

Mr Isa: Okay! I named the album after the fourth track of my album which is ‘Man of the Moment’. It speaks about constant struggles towards your goals, and that when you struggle constantly, success would definitely smile at you. And I’ve seen this event as an achievement, so I believe today I’m the man of the moment. Being the man of the moment means you have achieved all what you have been struggling for and today you are standing proudly to claim it.

UCJ: The African time syndrome surely manifested here today. How did you feel or what was running through your mind at that time?

Mr Isa: Well, I wasn’t too bothered because I have seen a lot of event being treated that way – when you say 10:00, they come 10;30; when you say 11:00, they come around 11:30 or 12:00. And I knew people were definitely going to turn up but they are just used to that attitude towards events. I would like to encourage them to put a change to that.

UCJ: How would you describe the turn-out today?

Mr Isa: Yeah! I’m really impressed with the turn-out today, although compared to some entertainment events they would have had more crowd than this. But looking at an event of this level and having this kind of crowd I’m impressed. So, thank you.

UCJ: How can people assess your motivational works? Do you have a blog, website or through the social media?

Mr Isa: Yes, yes. My audio poetry, songs and other works can be gotten online on my website which is www.dynamicumar.com. Through the social media, you can get it on: Intagram: dynamicgalvanizer, Facebook: Umar Saidu Isa, Twitter: poeticumar and on Whatsapp 07032044605.

UCJ: What advice would you give to upcoming artists that would love to perform poetry?

Mr Isa: I would like to tell them not to give up on whatever it is they are doing because entertainment and hip-hop is the trend now. So, I’ll like to advice them not to give up on whatever they are doing and try their best to take themselves to the top. They should never give up.

UCJ: Okay. Thank you very much. Do you intend launching another album in the nearest future?

Mr Isa: Yes, yes.

UCJ: Have you started working on it?

Mr Isa: No, I’ve not started yet (laughs). I’m yet to sell this one so…(laughs).

UCJ: Thank you for your time, sir.

UCJ, Unilorin

~~~Zainab Iwayemi

The SRC of the Faculty of Social Science has requested for an apology letter from her Welfare Secretary and Speaker concerning matters on souvenir distribution in the faculty during an SRC sitting on Saturday,  May 19th, 2018 at the Faculty of Social Science, Unilorin.

The Welfare Secretary; Com. Kenny was questioned on the distribution of souvenir in the faculty for 2017/18 session as the number of souvenirs given by the UICPC did not tally with that distributed in the Faculty. The welfare secretary was however initially suspended but was recalled and told to tender an apology letter with a fine.

Com. Kenny explained that the UICPC gave him 600 souvenirs and instructed him to wait for some days. Upon recounting, the souvenirs were 587, however; 2, according to him were taken forcefully by the class reps of Political Science and Criminology, 6 CEC members took some "unauthorized" and the remaining 5 were no where to be found.

The Vice President, Com. Ayoola, objected that the souvenirs were not taken unauthorized but by the President's order as he felt they might be busy when proper distribution commenced. Also that she witnessed the class rep. of Political science collecting a souvenir but was not taken forcefully.

Comrade Kenny further buttressed that the sharing formula adopted was: number of 300 plus 400 level in each department, all over the overall, mutiplied by 600. He however claimed to have distributed the souvenirs according to the adopted formula.

On the other hand, he revealed that he deducted the number of books collected by the CEC from those given to their various departments. For instance, political science was meant to collect 77, but was given 72 since some members already were in possession of some.

Hon. Sanni from political science blamed the welfare secretary and  asserted that he saw the welfare secretary give a keke driver a copy of the souvenir. Com. Kenny however denied it.

He stated that the issue on ground was borne out of selfish interest and not for FOSSSA's interest.

He explained further that during the week, himself and the speaker; Ajala Abdul Salam had spat on each other's face and that the speaker said "I will deal with you unconstitutionally". He claimed to have replied in Yoruba with words that meant "when the Honourables are not in their right senses". This assertion was confirmed by 2 witnesses in the house.

Sen. Agbarism suggested that the president and the welfare secretary take responsibility for the missing souvenirs by paying a sum of #140 for  each souvenir as a suspension would not help but lead to mutually assured destruction (MAD).

A motion was moved and seconded for the speaker to step down from his seat to be represented by any other honorable since the matter  involved the speaker himself. Hon. Goni Farook was appointed the acting speaker.

 

The house resolved that out of the 13 missing souvenirs, 5 would be the President's responsibility as they were taken by his order and the remaining 8 will be provided by the welfare secretary.

After much deliberation, a 21 working days suspension was considered and comrade Kenny was declared suspended for 7 working days.

On the other hand, a motion was  moved  for the suspension of the speaker from 2 sittings. But the acting president suggested he should pay a fine instead and direct it to the director of welfare.

A motion for an open apology from the speaker was moved and finally agreed upon with 2 honourables appointed to follow up.

However, in other to strike balance, a motion was moved for the recall of the suspension of the welfare secretary in substitution for an apology letter and fine for the missing copies of the souvenirs.

~~~   Ukor Jonathan

Sequel to the trending IGP's, Ibrahim Idris, video footage which shows him stammering in an attempt to read out his own speech, someone was inspired to write rather than to just be amused. The speech was read on Monday to commission the Police Technical Intelligence unit in Kano state. Where many had made jokes and savagery remarks regarding this, a Poet, Ukor Jonathan (aka Jon Ukor, aka Liberty) pens his thoughts in this poetic piece titled "CONFUSION TRANSMISSION".

The poem is a 5-stanza literary work with each stanza having 6 lines (non-metrical), except the fourth stanza which is metrical. He writes of the paradox of living in Nigeria, the pretense of both the rulers and the ruled, and the culpability of all and sundry. As a closing remark, he admonishes the citizenry, from the upper class to those under bridges to "First remove the moth in thine eye /Then inform countrymen of the beam in theirs".

He hopes to achieve not just the so-called restructuring of the nation but for the restructuring of the Nigerian minds and for a clearer mindset of future generations:

CONFUSION TRANSMISSION

By Ukor Jonathan

      We live in a paradoxical world
      As the wealthy take from the poor
      The poor deceive the ignorant
      The ignorant believe in their folly
      The fools take pride in their foolishness
      Until it gets to the third person

      We breathe an air of pretense
      A cordiality that chokes our windpipes
      Intimacy of lust and fake love
      Religion of mere spirituality
      Free salvation now up for auction
      Still we blame the third person

      We laugh at our child's innocence
      "how charming", we would say
      Yet slander the other man's child
      A tyre round his neck before saying Jack Robinson
      Pronounce him guilty before a trial
      "People are wicked", we yet say

      It's an apprehensive transition
      I mean... this trending transmission...
      Which already has an effect on the Nigeria nation
      A sheer confusion on our generation
      Poor educational system, dwindling living condition
      Not forgetting the worldwide renowned Greencard humiliation

      We are all culpable
      So don't blame the third person
      First remove the moth in thine eye
      Then inform countrymen of the beam in theirs
      Before we are blinded by this confusion
      Before it is transmitted to another blind generation

©Jon Ukor

Ukor Jonathan is a 400L student of the Department of Linguistics and Nigerian Languages, University of Ilorin. He has been writing poem as far back as 2011. Most of his works can be assessed on his WordPress account: 

www.everythoughtweb.wordpress.com. His personal favorites are: The Goodness of Bad People, Grief, Vintage Lies, Its a Sunday in Nigeria, Tabula Rasa, Brothers Meet Friends, among others.

Stephen Charles

Stephencharles77@yahoo.com

The 13th of May  2018, represented a symbolic day slated for the commemoration of the world communications day. Pope Francis, as a customary way of marking the day, gave his message which was released on the 24th of January in memory of St. Francis de Sales, the patron saint of journalists.

The theme of the message being; “The truth will set you free”, the catholic pope seized the medium to advance the drive for a 'Journalism of Peace' rather than that which is based on witch-hunts and falsehood. He pointed out that humans are made in the likeness of God and are able to express all that is true, good and beautiful, but when they yield to pride and selfishness, the mode of using their ability to communicate becomes distorted.

Francis testified to the fast-changing nature of the current world of communication and digital systems and pointed out that fake news is on the spread. 

He explained “that fake news has to do with false information based on non-existent or distorted data meant to deceive and manipulate the reader” usually for the advancement of specific political or economic goals. 

He traced the origin of false news to the origin of man -the time of Adam and Eve and pointed out that no one can feel exempted from the duty of countering these falsehoods.

Explaining how to identify false news, Pope Francis noted that they go viral, spreading so fast that they are difficult to stop and that they appeal to the insatiable greed so easily aroused in humans. He agreed that an impeccable argument can indeed rest on undeniable facts but noted that “if it is used to hurt another or discredit that person in the eyes of others, however correct it may appear, it is not truthful”.

Francis pointed out that truthful statements can be recognized from their fruits as to “whether they promote quarrels, foment division, encourage resignation; or on the other hand, they promote informed and mature reflection leading to constructive dialogue and fruitful result.

He finally went ahead to fuel the drive for the promotion of peace via the news of truth and charges both journalists and the general public to promote a journalism of peace, noting that “the best antidotes to false news are not strategies but the people”.

–– Stephen Charles 

Stephencharles77@yahoo.com

The popular cliché of the media being the fourth estate of the realm is today, not such an uncommon one in any society where a democratically elected government is orthodox. It is one which bestows a considerable magnitude of importance and recognition on the mass media as being a highly dignified and politically neutral body, a watchdog that looks out for the excesses and lapses of the government with regards to the discharge of its constitutional obligations.

As the fourth estate of the realm, the media is one which is considered to be the fourth platform of authority in succession with the legislative, executive, and judicial arms and ensures that the latter discharge their constitutional duties in a manner fully representative of the interests of the people.

In the face of this highly-placed obligation, the Nigerian media is no exception. It is in fact charged with the constitutional responsibility and given the liberty with regards to informing, educating and enlightening Nigerians on the policies, deeds and misdeeds of the government and by this means, ensure that the virtues of good governance and true federalism are upheld.

In fact, the section 22 of the Nigerian constitution fully acknowledges this highly valued and indispensable obligation, stating that “The press, radio, television and other agencies of the mass media shall at all times be free to uphold the fundamental objectives contained in this chapter and uphold the responsibility and accountability of the government to the people”.

By virtue of this constitutional provision, the Nigerian media is given the freedom and charged with the civic duty of upholding the “the fundamental objectives and directive principles of state policy” contained in chapter two of the Nigerian constitution as well as making sure, through its daily functions that the government performs its duties and is fully accountable to the people. It is meant to keep an eye out for situations or areas in which the government seems to be functioning outside the code of conduct set by the constitution and points the attention of both the government and the governed in the direction of such with the ultimate goal of having them corrected and ensuring that the more orthodox and constitution-abiding path of governance is threaded.

In the light of these, one is then forced to ask: Is the Nigerian media performing these highly place duties and of course without prejudice, unscrupulousness, and subjectivity? Is the government truly and fully held accountable to the people in tandem with the demands of the constitution? Has the media fully been allowed and given the mandate, liberty, and protection needed to carry out its obligations without any hindrance whatsoever?

Considering the magnitude of contempt, harassment, and mortal danger frequently dealt on media workers; considering the seeming covert nature of the of the so-called accountability of governmental persons with regards to certain key and sensitive issues in governance; considering the depth of corruption into which a handful of Nigerian media houses are terribly rooted, being active partisans simultaneously in both politics and media business; considering the manner in which the same constitution which empowers the media has simultaneously come to limit same and provides them with no protection in the face of their daunting responsibilities, one cannot but leave out a moment of considerable trepidation and doubt when asked to provide answers to these questions.

However, and a few issues must be rectified if the media is to function objectivity and execute its constitutional obligations without fear or favour.

First, ethical and objective practices which are the true virtues of the profession must be frequently upheld in the media and offenders in that regards should be promptly sanctioned in accordance with predetermine penalties.

Public officers should equally be made to understand the powers and duties of the media and that they are accountable to the people through them. True press freedom and independence should also at all times be upheld and politicians should be refrained from owning media houses if possible.

In a nutshell, the Nigerian media should be given a certain degree of constitutionally recognized immunity to certain laws that are more of a hindrance to the effective execution of its functions if it is to be expected to function to the best of its capacity without fear or subjectivity. The freedom of information should also at all times be guaranteed. If all these are ensured, then the answers to the afore-raised questions should definitely turn out to be positive ones.

The Muslim Students Society of Nigeria, University of Ilorin has held her first episode of knowledge forum, in Ilorin.

The Guest lecturer, Abu Ja'far spoke on the adjurations of students on the best practices in preparation for Ramadan.

He informed that the first preparatory step towards Ramadan is Repentance while others were supplication to Allah, making provision for foodstuffs, specifying beneficial books to read through the month for spiritual refreshment.

Furthermore, the guest speaker admonished his audience that fasting only begins upon sighting the crescent and so it is important to wait on the Sultan of Sokoto for his final announcement in that regard.'

The lecturer also stated that eating predawn meal is recommended for an individual: "predawn meal is a highly rewardable act. However, the best practice is to delay it while the reverse turns the case for fast-breaking".

Moreso, the Mullah hinted the congregation on the acceptable things to be done which were swimming or taking a shower, use of inhaler, Kohl, injections that provide energy among others. However, use of drips, lustful kissing between spouses, masturbation, and deliberate regurgitation are not accepted. Also that eating forgetfully during the day of Ramadan does not vitiate one's fasting.

In the category of people exempted from fasting, the scholar mentioned that the terminally ill as well the old are excused from fasting during Ramadan, but must make up by feeding one who fasts. On the other hand , temporary ill, women on their menses and post-natal bleeding should not fast during Ramadan but spay pack the missed days.

Other MSSN Executives present were Adewunmi Ibrahim (the president), Agboola Uthman (Ass. Gen. Sec.) Soaga Hassan (PRO) Mikãil Mutalib (Coordinator, Mgt Sci.), Hamza Habib (librarian), Ridwan Omotosho (Secondary School Coordinator).