Opinion
Ivory Tower Or Tower Of Babel?
The history of the ivory tower is a unique and
interesting one. What makes university institutions to be referred to as the ivory tower includes the culture of pursuit of truth or knowledge with deep conviction and not solely for bread.
Devotees of that culture, which may also be called the cult of convinced knowledge, rarely fear the sword and can lay down their lives to uphold what ideals they consider sacred. Such devotees are not always found in university institutions but, like Socrates, Aristotle, Martin Luther and several others, they can be mobile teachers with large followers.
In corrupt societies, ivory tower radicals are rarely “friends of government” or those who wield or pursue political power. Often, they are considered as security risk.
When Martin Luther (1483-1548) challenged what was going on in the Church during his time, he became a security risk and a heretic who must either recant his ideas or face the inquisition. In those days, “heretics” were burnt alive at the stake, but Luther had many supporters who secretly provided protection and security for him. Now, we know what resulted from Luther’s Reformation Movement. Personal conviction backed by truth usually triumphs even amidst threats of lynching.
Social transformation movements usually start from the activities of radical devotees of the ivory tower principle of personal conviction. However, along the line, there can emerge fifth columnists as internal subverts, as well as external strong opponents. Thus such movements can be destroyed before they grow strong or they become mere doctrinaire radicalism.
Social transformation movements which survive and grow strong face other problems such as infiltration and eventual take-over by later day heroes, creating schism and the scramble for positions which can split the movement.
It is usually in the process of scrambles for power and positions that commitment to the ideal of truth suffers and the ivory tower becomes “tower of babel”.
When devotees of the cult of convinced knowledge scramble for material lures, they soon become like “salt” which has lost its value. They stray from their ideals and things rarely remain the same thereafter. The reason behind such failure arises from a schism in the human brain as a result of a change in the line of devotion of attention. It remains true that no one can serve two masters with equal zeal.
Not many people know the operational mechanism of the human brain. As the seat of the intellect or objective, sensory perception, the brain also provides a gate-way to intuitive perception. Thus, there are two zones, spheres or lobes in the brain, namely: cerebrum and cerebellum, frontal brain and back brain, or left and right hemispheres. Each of the two sections deals with different but specific human needs, but both are meant to work in synergy and harmony. When one section becomes over-dominant there is a problem arising from one-sidedness or lop-sidedness.
Currently, there is the “Brain Dominance Theory” which says, in summary, that “people who are scripted deeply in the logical, verbal, left-brain thinking will discover how totally inadequate that thinking is solving problems which require a great deal of creativity. They become aware and begin to open-up a new script inside their right-brain. It is not that the right-brain wasn’t there; it just lay dormant. The muscles had not been developed, or perhaps they had atrophied after early childhood because of the heavy left-brain emphasis of formal education or social scripting. When a person has access to both the intuitive, creative and visual right-brain, and the analytical, logical, verbal, left-brain, then the whole brain is working”.
There are some people who can be described as having crippled brain; among them are fanatical dogmatic and conceited people. They engage in activities that demand the sagacity and cleverness of the intellectual, frontal brain, with little resort to the rich resources of the right or back brain which adds ethical values to human, thinking.
In politics, as a game of wits, numbers and intellect, ethical values count little. We know the link between politics and economic, and so, die-hard adherents of ivory-tower principles rarely fit into politics in its “dirty” version; no patronage!
Devotees of the cult of truth and conviction who cannot stand faithful to the ideals of integrity often visit political lords at night to pledge loyalty and beg for favours which include the post of vice-chancellorship. Thus the ivory tower becomes a political tower of babel where you can find quota and political professors with no books to their names or any worthy ideals to profess with conviction. You can find over five dozens in one single institution, especially with the lure and juice of retiring at 70 with full salary, fringe benefits and prospect of buying over official house for peanuts. Scrambles and quality rarely go together.
Dr. Amirize, a retired lecturer, writes from Port Harcourt.
From all indications, Nigeria possesses enough human and material resources to become a true economic powerhouse in Africa. According to the National Population Commission (NPC, 2023), the country’s population has grown steadily within the last decade, presently standing at about 220 million people—mostly young, vibrant, and innovative. Nigeria also remains the sixth-largest oil producer in the world, with enormous reserves of gas, fertile agricultural land, and human capital.
Yet, despite this enormous potential, the country continues to grapple with underdevelopment, poverty, unemployment, and insecurity. Recent data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS, 2023) show that about 129 million Nigerians currently live below the poverty line. Most families can no longer afford basic necessities, even as the government continues to project a rosy economic picture.
The Subsidy Question
The removal of fuel subsidy in 2023 by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has been one of the most controversial policy decisions in Nigeria’s recent history. According to the president, subsidy removal was designed to reduce fiscal burden, unify the foreign exchange rate, attract investment, curb inflation, and discourage excessive government borrowing.
While these objectives are theoretically sound, the reality for ordinary Nigerians has been severe hardship. Fuel prices more than tripled, transportation costs surged, and food inflation—already high—rose above 30% (NBS, 2023). The World Bank (2023) estimates that an additional 7.1 million Nigerians were pushed into poverty after subsidy removal.
A Critical Economic View
As an economist, I argue that the problem was not subsidy removal itself—which was inevitable—but the timing, sequencing, and structural gaps in Nigeria’s implementation.
- Structural Miscalculation
Nigeria’s four state-owned refineries remain nonfunctional. By removing subsidies without local refining capacity, the government exposed the economy to import-price pass-through effects—where global oil price shocks translate directly into domestic inflation. This was not just a timing issue but a fundamental policy miscalculation.
- Neglect of Social Safety Nets
Countries like Indonesia (2005) and Ghana (2005) removed subsidies successfully only after introducing cash transfers, transport vouchers, and food subsidies for the poor (World Bank, 2005). Nigeria, however, implemented removal abruptly, shifting the fiscal burden directly onto households without protection.
- Failure to Secure Food and Energy Alternatives
Fuel subsidy removal amplified existing weaknesses in agriculture and energy. Instead of sequencing reforms, government left Nigerians without refinery capacity, renewable energy alternatives, or mechanized agricultural productivity—all of which could have cushioned the shock.
Political and Public Concerns
Prominent leaders have echoed these concerns. Mr. Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, described the subsidy removal as “good but wrongly timed.” Atiku Abubakar of the People’s Democratic Party also faulted the government’s hasty approach. Human rights activists like Obodoekwe Stive stressed that refineries should have been made functional first, to reduce the suffering of citizens.
This is not just political rhetoric—it reflects a widespread economic reality. When inflation climbs above 30%, when purchasing power collapses, and when households cannot meet basic needs, the promise of reform becomes overshadowed by social pain.
Broader Implications
The consequences of this policy are multidimensional:
- Inflationary Pressures – Food inflation above 30% has made nutrition unaffordable for many households.
- Rising Poverty – 7.1 million Nigerians have been newly pushed into poverty (World Bank, 2023).
- Middle-Class Erosion – Rising transport, rent, and healthcare costs are squeezing household incomes.
- Debt Concerns – Despite promises, government borrowing has continued, raising sustainability questions.
- Public Distrust – When government promises savings but citizens feel only pain, trust in leadership erodes.
In effect, subsidy removal without structural readiness has widened inequality and eroded social stability.
Missed Opportunities
Nigeria’s leaders had the chance to approach subsidy removal differently:
- Refinery Rehabilitation – Ensuring local refining to reduce exposure to global oil price shocks.
- Renewable Energy Investment – Diversifying energy through solar, hydro, and wind to reduce reliance on imported petroleum.
- Agricultural Productivity – Mechanization, irrigation, and smallholder financing could have boosted food supply and stabilized prices.
- Social Safety Nets – Conditional cash transfers, food vouchers, and transport subsidies could have protected the most vulnerable.
Instead, reform came abruptly, leaving citizens to absorb all the pain while waiting for theoretical long-term benefits.
Conclusion: Reform With a Human Face
Fuel subsidy removal was inevitable, but Nigeria’s approach has worsened hardship for millions. True reform must go beyond fiscal savings to protect citizens.
Economic policy is not judged only by its efficiency but by its humanity. A well-sequenced reform could have balanced fiscal responsibility with equity, ensuring that ordinary Nigerians were not crushed under the weight of sudden change.
Nigeria has the resources, population, and resilience to lead Africa’s economy. But leadership requires foresight. It requires policies that are inclusive, humane, and strategically sequenced.
Reform without equity is displacement of poverty, not development. If Nigeria truly seeks progress, its policies must wear a human face.
References
- National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). (2023). Poverty and Inequality Report. Abuja.
- National Population Commission (NPC). (2023). Population Estimates. Abuja.
- World Bank. (2023). Nigeria Development Update. Washington, DC.
- World Bank. (2005). Fuel Subsidy Reforms: Lessons from Indonesia and Ghana. Washington, DC.
- OPEC. (2023). Annual Statistical Bulletin. Vienna.
By: Amarachi Amaugo