Dr V.C Ogueze is an experienced Chartered Accountant and an academic who have worked tirelessly with several enterprises such as Nigeria Palm Produce Board, Ibeto Group, Coscharis Group and Innoson Group before venturing into academics. He is currently a Consultant with Chartered Institute of Educational Practitioners, United Kingdom (CIEPUK), which has Nigerian Office located at Abuja. CIEPUK seeks to improve excellence and efficiency in educational practices across the globe. They also help private universities all over the world to recruit students and ensure that these students secure at least fifty percent scholarship to pay reduced tuition fees till they graduate in their Universities.
In an exclusive interview with our correspondent, Dr V.C Ogueze shed more light on his journey through life and his working experiences at various organizations, the adverse effects of fuel subsidy removal, the negative effects of floating the naira and those who he sees as his role models and mentors which include the late prime minister of Singapore, Lee Kwuan Yu, President Paul Kigama of Rwanda and Mr. Peter Obi who he described as the re-incarnation of four great Nigerians, namely Nnamdi Azikiwe, Obafemi Awolowo, Tafawa Balewa and Murtala Muhammad because, according to him, all the sterling virtues of these partriachs are visibly present in this one man.
Excerpts:
For the benefit of our readers tell us your name and who you are.
I am V.C Ogueze from Isseke in Ihiala Local Government Area of Anambra State. I studied in several institutions and worked in several organizations. I am also a Chartered Accountant and an academic. We have a Consultancy group called Chartered Institute of Educational Practitioners, United Kingdom (CIEPUK), with the Nigerian Office located at 39A 1st Avenue Gwarimpa Estate, Abuja Nigeria. We work for universities and we seek to improve excellence and efficiency in our educational system, we also assist them in procuring scientific, educatinal and medical equipment, through an American based foundation, and we again help many of the private universities to recruit students. You know some private universities find it difficult to recruit students for several reasons, one of which is that their fees are high and for that, many students get scared from applying to them. But when we work with them we know what to do. For instance we’re working with Paul’s University Awka right now and our organization has secured 50% scholarship for all the students who will study in St. Paul University from September 2023 upwards. And once the scholarship is awarded to you, you are going to enjoy it until you graduate.
Going back to your early days from your secondary school where you made Grade one in 1979, you have passed through almost all the academic and professional lada in Nigeria, from A’L, ND, HND, B.Sc, PGD, MBA, M.Sc, ACA and PhD. Given your uncompromising integrity, how did you succeed and what were the problems you encountered in the course of your various studies?
I finished my Primary School in 1973 and entered the Secondary School in 1974 and finished in 1979. I didn’t encounter much problem except when it comes to what we called expo at that time. Yes many of the students wouldn’t want to read, but would want good results, so they always wanted to see the questions before the examination proper but it has been difficult for me to practice such things. And when I was in the higher institutions, some students still indulged in it, some students wouldn’t read and when it is examination time they will either want to get the question papers beforehand or do what is called SORTING. By God’s grace I have never indulged myself in such things, not even once, from my A’L, ND, down to my PhD. But it has not come without cost. I remember a particular occasion in my HND 2 first semester in 1987. There was this difficult course called Quantitative Techniques which Accountancy students offer, a very tough subject and it was taught by a no-nonsense lecturer called Mr Uwa. On a day this paper was to be written, my room/course mate came and prodded me, asking me what my reaction would be if I’m given expo on Quants. Bearing in mind that he asked me the question out of love and concern, I subdued my anger, but calmly told him that if I see the expo, I would take it to Mr Uwa-the lecturer. So he didn’t show me the paper, but eventually the lecturer found out that his paper leaked. He felt I would tell him the truth and he invited me to his office. He asked me if I was aware that his paper leaked, and I answered in the affirmative, since (with all humility) I don’t believe in lieing. He went further to pressurize me to tell him those who were involved. That was where there was problem. However, knowing my rights, I explained to him that the person who told me about it did it confidence and out of love, so I cannot mention his name. After all the threats of writing to the Rector and the Academic Board and all that, the matter died a natural death. Like most of the students, I scored low in the course, but I’m satisfied.
Again, there was this British based professional exam called Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA), London, an exam as tough as ACCA, ACMA and their Nigerian variant, ICAN. When Babangida was introducing SAP in 1985, many of us, the students could not easily source for pounds sterling to enroll for that season, and by the time we succeeded, we didn’t have sufficient time to prepare for it. When we came for the exam, the examiners, unlike ever before, out of sympathy, allowed everybody to carry and copy from our notes and materials. Others swooped on the opportunity, but I could not convince myself to copy, cheat, pass and be parading a certificate I know I didn’t merit. I refused to copy, and I wrote what I knew. When the result was released, I failed, honorably and I never regretted the failure because, if I have my life to live all over again, I will do exactly the same thing.
There was another particular problem when I was doing a certain degree programme in one of the universities. I was sick during the exam and couldn’t write one of the papers, but after the exam I met the lecturer and I pleaded that another question be set for me. He said I should give him money and he will just award mark to me! I was startled by the way he said it. I pleaded with him to serve me a question paper but he insisted I should just give him money so he can allocate mark to me, or else I should forget about it. I have never done such a thing before and I wondered why I should do it at this point. I pleaded with him but he refused and that was in my level 300 in that University.
Again in the final year exam when I carried the course over, I didn’t know that the exam was rescheduled to another hall. I called the course rep and he directed me but because of the distance, by the time I got to the new place, the one-hour exam was over! And this was my final year!! So I went straight to the lecturer again (another lecturer handled the course this session) and explained, I cried, talked and wailed, but he insisted again that I should give him money so he can allocate mark to me, just like it happened in the previous year. I confessed all my sins and that of my forefathers but the man didn’t bulge. I had to repeat a year because of that one paper, a G.S course.
Yet in another University where I did my PGD in 1996, I met another Lecturer who was priding himself for his capability to detain students for three years (for a one-year course), and he was boasting that even if you give him only money but fail to buy the trash he called handout, that you cannot pass his course. The condition was that you will have to give him money and then buy his hand-out before you can pass his paper. The amount you give would determine your grade. In those days, A attracted N3,000, B was N2,000 while C would cost you N1,000 only. On the day of the exam, he was boasting everywhere that if you don’t comply, that that person’s name is Mr Sorry. At a point I became irritated because I had already passed the same course (Corporate Finance) in ICAN. The Lecturer himself had never been man enough to try ICAN in his life (uptill today) and he’s threatening everybody. I tried to call the students so that we will resist what he was doing but all of them were chicken-hearted. On the day of the exam the Lecturer came with three sets of question papers and was mocking the students and asking us to choose which set of the question papers we wanted to write, because as far as he was concerned, we, the students can’t write anything no matter the set we chose, that we didn’t know anything. Truth is, he never really taught us anything, if ever we succeeded in dragging him to the class, he won’t teach anything, he would be cracking jokes until his period is over. So because of his boasting on that day of the exam, I went to the Dean and reported what this man was saying, and I told him that if there is only one student that would pass this paper, that I will be the one, and with a strong warning that if anything untoward happened, that they should expect my reaction. Yes, I’d made up my mind this time around to petition Col. Atta, the Governor of Anambra State at that time and copy the V. C if I failed the paper, because I was never ready to pay him any dime, nor to buy any rubbish called handout. It wasn’t even a question of whether I had the money or not, it was all about my conviction, after all, I was the Manager of a bank at Nnewi that time. I need to clarify that I made that statement to the Dean not because I’m so brilliant but because as I earlier said, I have already passed this course in ICAN. The Dean said I should go and write my exam. When we left after the exams I discovered that the Faculty set up a Panel of Enquiry because of accumulated complaints and the Lecturer was indicted and reprimanded. Unlike usual, he marked and promptly published the result at the end of the semester. These were some of the challenges I encountered as a student.
You worked in the Internal Audit Department of Nigerian Palm Produce Board, Calabar and later as the Chief Internal Auditor of Ibeto Group and Innoson Group respectively and as Head of Branch Operations in Coscharis Group, before you joined academics.
What were your experiences as a man of uncompromising integrity in the cause of your audit work?
I worked with Nigeria Palm Produce Board from 1980 to 1986 before it folded up. At that time, I had not join the bandwagon of integrity. So I was doing what every other person was doing. I mean, it was a bazzar and looting extravanza. The staff ate the organization down. My General Manager at that time had all the latest posh cars in his garage. And eventually, out of anger the Federal Government wound up the Board. It was while I was there that something happened and I left this side of wasteful, riotous, violent criminal life and I joined the band wagon of integrity. When that happened, that’s after they preached to me and I received the Word of God and became born again, I wrote to the company and told them as much as I could remember the things I stole from them. Thank God they didn’t sack me, but we agreed on how to gradually deduct the money from my salary.
I joined Ibeto Group in 1991 and by 1992 I became the Chief Internal Auditor of the Group. The Company was well managed, but all the same, trust Nigerians, everybody wants survive at the expense of the Company. So sometimes some people who are incriminated by audit report will come with large sums of money so that you don’t submit adverse reports against them. Yes,this is a private sector and so you don’t compare what they pay with the public sector, so I concede that it could be tempting. I remember a particular day, somebody brought N10,000 (ten thousand naira) to me, as at then in 1994 exchange rate was around N22/dollar. So its value today is about . But I think my salary was N3,000 then and somebody has lined up N10,000 in an envelope and brought to me, that is about N400,000 today. When I looked at it I was angry at first at the man to have brought the money to me, which means he didn’t even know the kind of man he was dealing with. Because if he knew he wouldn’t have dared to do seduce me with money. But on a second thought I decided and collected it but I went and gave it to my Chairman, Chief Ibeto. We laughed over it and we returned the money back to the owner. My reason for showing him money? As my boss, he needed to know. Of course, thereafter I was assigned a chuffeur driven car, at that young age (laughs).
Another difficult experience I had was a day I travelled to Delta State in my official car. I drove myself that day. At Ozoro, the Police stopped me and discovered that the chassis and engine numbers were different. This I never knew. Trouble!! The officer demanded for bribe, which I din’t give him, and he changed the story that I stole the car, though he saw the company logo on the car, and all other particulars and my I. D bearing the company name. I was arrested and when he was about throwing me into the cell, the DCO’s attention was drawn, he intervened, and I was bailed but the “come today and come tomorrow” lasted for three weeks. They charged me to court, but when they realized that this man is prepared, that I won’t give them shishi, they released me. It was a joyous ovation when I returned to the Company with the car.
Yes, since 1984 to date, I don’t give bribe, I don’t take bribe, If I breach the law, I prefer to pay the penalty than to settle it with some tips.
When you later joined academics and knowing how our academic environment operates today, which of course you passed through, how do you cope with students who want to pass and make good grades by all means? In other words, when you joined academics as a lecturer, how did you fight corruption among the students?
I used to be scared to teach in any Nigerian higher institution because of the menace of cultists because I don’t know the kind of threat that would force me to give you one mark you didn’t merit. It’s not possible. But when the first opportunity to teach came I decided to try it. I was working with Coscharis then, but like every other young man I was adventuring for greener pastures. I travelled to Australia but the adventure turned awry.
You know that here in Nigeria there are many things we take for granted. I didn’t know that somebody should not fill your Visa Form for you. And one of these people who parade themselves as visa agents was introduced to me, we discussed and he filled my Form for me, but I gave him strict warning that I am a Christian and by the word Christian he understood what I meant perfectly. I told him never to fill any false information on my behalf because I will never own up to it if I’m accosted and that would obviously land me into trouble. He accepted and gave me assurances, and that was 2001. But this man went ahead to filled all kinds of false information in the form and when my Visa came out, innocently, I got to the Australian Embassy to collect it and they addressed me as a doctor, but as at that time I wasn’t a doctor. So I told them that I was Mr. V.C Ogueze. You are not a Dr?, and I said no. They also asked me the name of my wife and so on. The man filled false information in my form but I didn’t know. I don’t know what’s wrong with Nigerians, do you need to tell needless lies? We were all in Lagos at that time and although GSM phones were not available then, but what would it take him to come to my house at Ikotun Egbe to verify my details? He gave false details about my wife and children!!! He just filled whatever that came into his head. Well, I didn’t know what also came upon the Embassy officials and they still gave me my Visa. But when I travelled to Australia, and the Immigration officers asked me the same questions about my title and family details, I told them all the truth but that became a punishment to me. I was arrested and detained for two weeks and then repatriated back to Nigeria. That’s how I came back to Nigeria. Australia is really good. When I came back in 2001, there was this new University in Benin Republic called Houdegbe North American University. And from Lagos to Cotonou is about an hour drive. I went there and applied for teaching and I was employed. I was happy to go into teaching because, since here isn’t Nigeria, there’s no fear about cultists and the evils they could perpetrate. Moreover, this is a private University. Nigerian students constituted about eighty percent of the students population of the University at the time. I was teaching Accounting, some finance courses and Statistics, and given my application of several years of practical experience to academic teaching, I received accelerated promotion and within four years, I became a Senior Lecturer, in 2006. These quantitative subjects usually give students headache. And so, the students who wanted to pass or earn high grades without commensurate hardwork would come to me with all kinds of overtures including envelopes and gifts, and the girls amongst them would make all kinds of approaches but obviously these were not for me. One of the days a particular student from a rich family packaged cash in an envelope and brought to me, as if he knew that our salaries for about two months hadn’t been paid. I asked what the money was meant for and he said it was a gift from his father. I asked him if his father knew me and he said no. I asked further how someone who doesn’t know me could send me money for no reason but the young man wasn’t forthcoming with serious responses. I told him that his father doesn’t know me and that even if he wanted to give me such a gift, he wouldn’t have sent it to me though you, a student, and that he should return the money to the father. When I said this, he told me plainly that he is the person actually giving me the money. I became hot with rage and asked him, you a student and I as a lecturer, who should dash money to the other? And he was speechless. I told him off and asked him to get out with his dirty and cankered money.
One female student, after trying all she could and I didn’t play ball, decided to followed me to church thinking that when she follows me to the church I will pass her. Unfortunately, she wrote the cost accounting, but failed. And she failed. Matters became so serious that the Management of the University didn’t find it funny anymore, and my HOD was particularly upset, more so when some of the female students involved had some inexplicable relationships with some high ranking officials of the University, and at the end of that year, 2006, my contract was not renewed and that’s how I came back to Nigeria. It was really one of my most difficult moments in life, because, I was in addition thrown out of the apartment the University rented for me and my family, remember that here is not Nigeria, it’s Benin Republic.
And back home in Nigeria, I have adjusted to working with private universities and I’m very comfortable about that, even though their pay might be discouraging, but one must know what he wants in life. And uptilI now, I don’t give any student the slightest chance to cheat in the exam, you must write the exam and pass it. If I am awarding marks across board I can do that to augment general performance, but just to favour an individual student? No!! That is academic sacrilege.
As an economist, a finance expert and a Chartered Accountant, let’s go back to Nigeria, what’s your opinion on fuel subsidy removal and the new floating exchange rate policy?
The fuel subsidy removal is the right thing to do. It is long overdue and should have been removed some twenty years ago. And infact, for the past 20 years I have been criticizing the fuel subsidy regime from my obscure corner. The reason is because, one, we Nigerians don’t like to pay tax and at the same time we want fuel, education, water and electricity either subsidized or completely free. It’s funny when some learned people argue that even advanced countries subsidize these essential consumables and services, but they forget to mention that those nations take taxation very very serious. If I begin to tell you the implications of Nigerians unwillingness to pay tax you will be shocked. Apart from the its fiscal and economic imperativeness, it also has sociological and psychological implications. You see, for instance, in our town or market unions, you discover that members are normally more assertive, committed and audacious if they are paying their dues regularly, and you cannot allow the executive of the union to be spending the union’s money wrecklessly, because you contributed to it. So because we don’t pay tax, on one hand, that’s one of the reasons Nigerians don’t care about what our leaders do with our common patrimony, afterall, it doesn’t come anybody’s personal pocket, it comes from oil. On the other hand, since we don’t pay tax, (which on its own is a sign of loyalty and commitment to a higher authority), the strength of our loyalty to the nation is very weak. For instance, if we are paying commensurate taxes on our incomes and salaries we will not allow anybody, Governor or President to misuse our resources. We will rise up and fight because it is our blood. Nigerians don’t pay tax and yet Government has to function. So government does not have to use the meagre resources it should have invested in infrastructure for fuel subsidy.
Most unfortunately, corruption has destroyed us as a nation and the Government system is stinking. Nobody can trust the government for anything so that, even those who are willing to pay their taxes wouldn’t want to pay, or who would want to commit his hard earned money into the hands of corrupt leaders?
Finally on the fuel subsidy, who is even sure that there’s any subsidy anywhere. So when they tell you that they subsidize the fuel they might not even subsidize anything. But even if they subsidized, that was wrong. Don’t tell me there’s subsidy everywhere – Britain, US, France etc, and that’s why we should continue with it. Don’t forget that in those countries their leaders head are correct and they are accountable, but Nigeria has never had a leader except maybe, the short-lived Murtala Mohammed Administration. So the fuel subsidy is like financing consumption. The money we have been investing in fuel subsidy if we had been investing it in production and manufacturing, Nigeria would have since become like Dubai. Part of the money we have been investing in fuel subsidy could have been used to establish more refineries and refurbish the existing ones. So for the past 20 years people like us have been shouting ourselves hoarse from our obscure corner, unfortunately nobody heard us and that’s why when in 2012, President Jonathan mustered the courage to remove the so-called fuel subsidy we applauded and most shockingly and surprisingly we saw people like Tinubu and Wole Soyinka whom I thought knew much better than we do, protesting against fuel subsidy removal. Today, the same people have woken up from sleep.
Unfortunately however, something that has endured over the years and has got into the blood system of the citizenry and formed a fibrous root in the economy is not what you will just wake up one morning and remove. There’s going to be a horrible chaos and a terrible shock. Much as I support it 💯%, it should have been preceded by a rigorous and careful planning. For instance, what strategies did they put in place for adequate fuel supply, why didn’t they issue licences to independent marketers since March, so that before the subsidy removal, enough supplies would have arrived? Okay, what plans were put in place for adequate food supply and transportation? From the savings they make, why can’t they use it to finance agriculture and fix some roads? What I mean is that Nigerins don’t need N8,000 monthly handouts. It’s another ruinous waste. They are borrowing (or have borrowed?) $800m, that is about N688b. If they give this as agricultural loans to farmers through the Central Bank and each state getting about N19b at single digit interest rate, in the next eight months there will be abundant food supply in the country and yet, the money will remain intact as a revolving loan.
Then, talking about exchange rate, to float the exchange rate of the naira is a very wrong decision to take. There are conditions that have to be present before a country could adopt whether fixed, mixed or floating exchange rate in the economy. Those conditions are not present for floating rate to benefit Nigeria. For you to float your currency, you should be producing and manufacturing; the economy should be productive, vibrant, active and massively exporting so that the countries buying from you will find your currency cheap enough, hence your product cheap as well. And this will make them to continue to buy from you, otherwise, they switch over to new customers where they can buy cheaper. This means that any country interested in buying from you would first buy your currency in order to finance their importation of your products. It is only when they want to buy and there is pressure to buy your currency to import your products that your currency will begin to be scarce, hence the price will begin to rise, and that will negatively affect foreign demand and exports. But if they are not looking for your currency because you have no products or only one product in the market, and you float your currency, who will buy it? what have you succeeded in doing? What have you achieved? You have only wasted, killed and destroyed your currency by floating it, which is what we have done. Now if you have fixed your currency, it is to your best advantage in relationship to the rest of the world. If you fix your currency as an unproductive nation, you are actually taking advantage of your trading partners, infact you will be cheating the rest of the world and that is to your advantage. Is there morality in political economics? It is to your advantage that your currency is fixed. But anyway, if the World Bank and IMF are pressurizing you to thinker with the value of your currency, at best, give it 50% fixed and 50% floating. That’s what the government should have done. It is to our advantage if we have 50-50 floatation.
As one who is experienced in the private sector businesses and having worked with highly successful business enterprises, Ibeto, Coscharis, Innoson and others, how can Nigeria become industrialized?
Nigerians are not short of ideas and policies. Nigerian government is only short of pragmatic implementation. Nigeria can be great within ten years. Nigerians have ideas like I said but Nigerians are poor. Government has much money to waste. What Nigeria Government should do is to identify some industries and areas of investments, maybe in agriculture or manufacturing and production. When these are identified, government can finance the establishment of those industries and when they are established and running and making profit, government should sell at least 51% of the shares to Nigerians or to investors so that government would retain minority share-holding of 49%. However, this idea can only be successful if very honest and highly skilled personnel are identified and engaged for the effort.
John Keyns, the great British Economist, stated in 1936 that government is a bad business manager. So, he advocated for the privatization of public corporations in Britain.
So, for rapid industrialization, the best the government would do is to establish a parastatal like an investment enterprise that will be coordinating these industries and then ensure the sale of 51% of the shares to the private sector while it retains 49% or less on behalf of the Government. What I’m saying applies to refineries that are moribund now. Government should refurbish them and sell 51% of the shares to the citizens and investors. In the west you have cocoa farms, government can establish more cocoa farms and cocoa processing companies which can process cocoa into various beverages and other finished products. Further, it can establish palm plantations across the southern Nigeria with its related processing companies. After establishing these palm plantations and related companies, government can sell the appropriate ratio of shares as already suggested.
Just look at what we all are wearing here, from our under wears to whatever you are putting on, everything is imported. What kind of country is this? Can’t we plant cotton? We can plant cotton and flood the whole of Benue, Kogi, Niger and many northern states with cotton. When this is done, government can get the textile companies working because there are availability of direct raw materials within the country. Thereafter, sell 51% of the shares to private investors, then watch and see how Nigeria would bounce back to life within ten years. You talk of rice, look at how Kebbi State Government partners Lagos State Government and they are now pushing rice into Lagos market. This is what Federal Government should be spearheading and with that you keep the economy running and at the same time have food security.
In the course of your explanation you mentioned that Nigeria falls into the bracket of most corrupt countries in the world. How would you suggest to a country like Nigeria to root out corruption?
One problem we have in Nigeria is wrong carrier choice. One of our medical students in Houdedge North American University in 2005 came one day into the Teaching Hospital. An emergency case was brought to them and blood was gushing out of the patient’s body. Our medical student wasn’t able to stand such sight. He slumped and fainted. Just imagine what kind of medical doctor he would make. You can see another student studying law, but he lacks rigorous and indepth thinking and analytical ability, neither does he even have the love for truth and justice, but his parents insist that their son will have to be a lawyer. So it is in the Accountancy profession. Some people go to read Accountancy because the course is mobile and lucrative, especially in the recent past, and not because they know or care about accountability, probity, integrity and honesty, but just because of what it can offer. While I’m not querelling with this, I will advise that training for future Accountants should start from the secondary level, where the imparativeness of the key virtues of the Accountant: accountability, integrity, probity, honesty and self-contentment must be thoroughly planted in him. Further, Government should ensure that Accountancy professional bodies should dutifully draw curriculum which ensures that those virtues are taught and properly covered at all levels of their syllabus.
Secondly, the Government must review policies that will ensure that infractions are adequately punished. Fraud, corruption and all financial malfeasances must be appropriately punished, with applicable prison sentences, and refunds made with interests. The Bible summarized the matter when it says that because punishment for sin is delayed, the heart of men are set in them to do evil.
Who is/are your mentor(s) and why?
I have three mentors. They are Lee Kwuan Yu, Paul Kigama, and Mr Peter Obi. Lee Kwuan Yu, the first Prime Minister of Singapore, had a policy he called MPH: Merit, Pragmatism and Honesty. He religiously used this policy to conduct the affairs of that young nation and within ten years, it caught up with Nigeria as he projected, and within twenty years, it doubled Nigeria in development. Paul Kigama is simply the new face of Africa and is a case study in third world economic development. Mr Peter Obi, on his part, is a challenge to pentecostal christians. This is because he possesses all the godly virtues which we are daily praying for to possess: unassailable integrity, unparalleled honesty, gracious humility, down-to-earth self-contentment, probity and accountability. In terms of education, he is modestly educated and yet, one of the most learned Nigerians dead or alive. Peter Obi? Though he studied Philosophy as a course but he is an encyclopedia of political science, economics and of course, his philosophy. It should therefore go without saying that he will dwarf any professor from MIT, Harvard or Oxford who dares him on any of those disciplines.
I don’t believe in re-incarnation, but I’m confused with Peter Obi. In him I see the re-incarnation of the partriachs of Nigeria: Nnamdi Azikiwe, Obafemi Awolowo and Tafawa Balewa, and Murtala Muhammad. I see in him the incomparable nationalistic zeal of Zik, the economic development passion of Awolowo, the humility, compassion for the down-trodden and fear of God of Tafawa Balewa, and the shrewdness and boldness of Murtala Muhammad. He is certainly the reincarnation of our partriachs.
Look Tony, I have never seen a man who is both a very good Christian and a very good Muslem at the same time. If you doubt me, I prove it to you mathematically.
Now, if Christianity = C = Love, integrity, honesty, humility, self-contentment, etc,
And Muslemism = M = Love, Integrity, honesty, humility, self-contentment, etc,
And, Peter Obi = PO = Love, integrity, honesty, humility, self-contentment, etc,
Then, by substitution and elimination, PO = C= M,
The answer is that, Peter Obi is both a Christian and a Muslim at the same time!! Quad Erat Demonstratum!!! So, these are my mentors and my role models.