Sometimes success comes in a template; that template is President Muhammadu Buhari. In October 1994, the pump price of fuel was increased to ₦11 from ₦3.25k by the former military Head of State, General Sani Abacha, which caused restiveness across all sectors of our socio-economic existence. Following the hues and cries generated by the hike, the General promulgated Decree 25 establishing the Petroleum (Special) Trust Fund. A retired Major-General and a former Head of State, Muhammadu Buhari was inaugurated the Executive Chairman of the Board on March 21, 1995. An initial ₦60 billion was made available to the Board to commence operations. The fund was worth ₦115.1 billion as at December 31, 1997. The only mandate given to him at the time was to ensure distribution "....of the gains from the (petrol price) increase on social and infrastructural projects." On accepting to serve as Chair, he said to the PTF contractors "If you perform well, you get a handshake. If you perfo

I took a friend to a local orthopedic surgeon to mend a fractured limb. Two previous visits were unsuccessful and were actually the cause for the third before this renowned surgeon whose works had received good testimonies in the region. After 15 minutes of intense examination, which caused my friend to emit groans and sweat in pain, the ensuing verdict was not only a frightening proposition but felt like medieval judgement direct from hell. The old man announced that to mend the limb, he would need to break it again to reinsert a missing piece then realign the bones together before placing the leg in a locally assembled cast. We didn't invite the patient into this part of the conversation, knowing he would have to undergo this procedure without any anesthesia, but only the strength of the surgeon’s son to hold him down. I now leave you to imagine the level of pain my friend had to endure. The procedure was successfully completed and my friend retained his leg as against the amputa