Chief Ayo Adebanjo ,  Afenifere leader  who died, aged 96 ,and  last of the original Awoists,  was a  vivacious,  joyous soul.   He was a zestful political warrior who embraced political combat  with gusto.  In his usual ebullience, he embraced death and  even  humorously  cast the news headline for  the media on his imminent  passage :   “ Ayo Adebanjo, leader of Afenifere, the controversial man, is gone”.  He had added :  ‘’He last spoke with his daughter’’.  It was his last video chat.  For a man who preached fairness, equity and love of country for a united Nigeria,  it was symbolic that   he took his  last bow on February 14, 2025, Valentine Day ,  a day  humanity celebrate love.    

 I first made contact with  Mr. Ayo Adebanjo,  as he was then , the  ebony black handsome lawyer , as a village child  in  Okelamuren,  Ogbo  community, near Ijebu-Ode , Ogun State when he made a triumphant  homecoming on his return from England in 1961. .  The then  33- year old lawyer rode into the village in the same car with Chief ( Mrs.)  H.I.D. Awolowo.   It was a glorious day for us villagers.  We, the children,  crowded the slow moving car, as it waltzed its way to the village square, to get a glimpse of  this illustrious son  of the soil just returned from  ‘ilu Oyinbo’ ( the White man’s land) . In those days,  we village children used to wave at any aeroplane  passing over our  village asking  the passengers, in  Ijebu dialect, to  help us greet our relations in ‘Ilu Oyinbo’  !!!  A childhood blissful ignorance  !  We got heightened excitement when we found out  that the  lady who  rode in the car with him was  the wife of the legendary AWO !   Mythical Awo  !!  My maternal grandmother, Olori Adejoke  Adebambo, wife of  Ilamuren of Okelamuren,  Oba Julius Adebambo,  referred to  Ayo Adebanjo as   ‘omo Bada ‘  ( son of Bada )  a  Lagos-based , successful goldsmith.  Chief Ayo Adebanjo inherited his handsomeness and sartorial elegance from his father, who was always resplendently dressed , with  long  gold chain.

Chief Ayo Adebanjo  was committed to his local Ogbo  community, comprising 11 villages ( Ogbo mokanla ) . His country home , a compact, elegant  bungalow built on a landscaped expanse of land, in the centre of Ogbo community, straddles Isanya and Okelamuren villages.  He was the Asiwaju of Ibido-Ogbo, the Baba Oba of Okelamuren , Grand Patron of Okelamuren  Progressive Union ( OPU )  and leader of Ogbo  Christian community . For decades, he hosted  Ogbo community members in Lagos to annual new year party  at his Lagos residence on the second Sunday of every January. He paid his tithe and regularly packaged  money for the local clergy at Saint Phillips Anglican church, Isanya-Ogbo.  On one of my visits to the country home, I witnessed his doling out two envelopes of money to the assistant pastor of his home church.  After the pastor left, I had asked Baba why at age 95 he was  still giving out money.  He had smiled , pointing out that as church leader , there were some expectations of him, adding   that even his wife, also in her  90s, made similar donations.  What a devotion !    

As  is the tradition with Afenifere,  Chief Ayo  Adebanjo,  as Afenifere Leader,  hosted  the organization’s meetings at his Isanya-Ogbo  country home, usually under a canopy provided for the occasion, with entertainment sponsored by various groups. At such meetings,  where he presided , Chief Adebanjo stamped his authority , as the man in charge . Meeting must follow procedure as laid out in items in the agenda. If you got up to speak on item 6 while discussion  was on item 4, he shuts  you up , mid sentence.  Also, you don’t go back to an item that had been treated , he would dismiss you as  absent-minded,  inattentive and a time waster.  Some did not like the brusque manner,  but to him meetings must be ordered business.  

The point is, whoever got to interact with Chief Ayo  Adebanjo  saw  him as a Strong Man  !  Strong in intellectual  articulation and elocution, a strong robust physique,  strong vocally in his emphatic tone  and very, very  strong in his convictions.  With him , there is no ambivalence, no ambiguity  – he takes a reasoned  stand  and sticks with it – his last unequivocal stand  being  his endorsement of Peter Obi of Labour Party  for president in the 2023 presidential  election, based on justice and equity.   It turned out his last political battle.  With Bola Ahmed Tinubu as presidential candidate of the All Progressives Party ( APC ),   a large section of Yorubas went into ethnic mode to pillory the Afenifere leader  for supporting  an Igbo against a fellow  Yoruba.  Some members of  Afenifere left to form a splinter group that endorsed Tinubu for president.  Chief Ayo Adebanjo  was the target of  a bruising campaign of calumny to which  he  usually responded with   infectious , boisterous  aplomb in  stoutly  defending  the logic of  his  stand on equity among  Nigeria’s  tripod of North, West and East to the presidency.  When Peter  Obi , the one they said had no structure on ground,  scored the landmark, upset  victory of defeating, Tinubu,  the Lagos Landlord, in his Lagos domain, in the presidential election,  the opposition went for broke in the virulence of their attacks on Chief Adebanjo.  Nothing was spared in the demonization of the  old  political warhorse . One character, in a social media post that went viral,  even claimed Chief Ayo Adebanjo was half Igbo, that his mother was Igbo !!! Imagine the audacity of that blatant lie. Of course, Chief Ayo Adebanjo’s  mother was  Yoruba,  of Ijebu stock.  I had raised the issue with Baba at his Isanya-Ogbo country home, that we should counter this big lie.  But he had  told me , with a wry smile,  “ Bisi, leave them alone. It is not worth it “.  Days later, I had an appointment with a Professor  of Ophthalmology  in Lagos who repeated the lie of  Chief Adebanjo not  being a full blooded Yoruba because his mother was Igbo. I tried to correct the misinformation but she was not convinced, telling me why was it not refuted. But my greatest shock was on  Saturday, February 15, 2025, the day after the passing on of Chief Adebanjo, when at Ede, where I live, people gathered  at  the vendor’s place in Oke Gada while discussing the late  Afenifere leader’s last political stand  also said he supported his kinsman Obi because his mother was Igbo !!.  It then dawned on me gravity of the menace posed by  disseminators  of fake news and why it must be tackled  by the government with the urgency  and severity of sanctions it deserves.  If someone can brazenly  peddle such  a lie about  a national figure like Chief Ayo Adebanjo,  what can  they  not publish about us regular folks ?

The  2023 elections which triggered the lie about Chief Adebanjo’s maternal nativity, also drew editorial attacks. Three days to the gubernatorial election, I had written a piece captioned ‘ The Igbo & the battle for Lagos’, published in many newspapers, including The Guardian and The Nigerian Tribune, both on March 16, 2023. In that write-up, I had , among others, stated  : “ Whipping up  Yoruba  ethnic sentiments  against the Igbo portrays the APC as a drowning  party seeking any straw to cling on. It  is a manifestation of the desperation of  Tinubu and the APC, apparently destabilized  by the Obidients’ phenomenon “.   Surprisingly, on the same day the write-up was published , the Tinubu media gladiators published  a counter in  The Nation newspaper, which did not publish the article itself.  Rather than responding to the points raised ,  the surrogate writer,  Ayodele Ola Daniels,  described the write-up as ‘’ malicious , malevolent analyses’’ . However, it was a manifestation of their obsession with  Chief Ayo Adebanjo that they  implied that  he sponsored the  write-up by noting that :  “ After all,  Olawunmi’s  kinsman , mentor  and sponsor, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, endorsed  Peter Obi  in the presidential election”.  Then the clincher : “Pa Adebanjo is  not known to have won any election anywhere in his  life ! ‘’. This is what had confounded  critics of Chief Ayo Adebanjo over  the  years , how in spite of his not having occupied  any  of those lofty , aphrodisiac ,  public offices like minister , senator or governor, he had, by strength of character,  attained prominent public visibility and earned respect for  his articulate position on issues, from restructuring to a united one Nigeria. He had only been pioneer organizing secretary of the Action Group in the 1950s.  One concedes that Tinubu’s  thunder in Abeokuta – the Emilokan battle cry – was seen by many  as tantamount to committing political hara-kiri, but in spite of the odds stacked against him, still  triumphantly  clinched  the presidency.   But  the question arises : after the victory, where is the beef ?  Back then in 2023, Daniels had assured us that ‘’ Tinubu’s presidency  will usher in a new , brighter , more prosperous , stable, secure  and United Nigeria’’  and  that ‘’ The Bisi Olawunmis of this world would have a long, inconsolable winter ahead.’’.  Well,  getting to two years on in the Tinubu Presidency,  prosperity and  security remain elusive  and millions of Nigerian Bisi Olawunmis, nationwide, are experiencing  inconsolable, harsh economic  winter !!  

Chief Ayo Adebanjo had opposed Tinubu’s presidential bid on  principle of equity and often said  it was not a declaration of war, which was why he visited Tinubu during the time he had   health challenges before the election.  This  gesture was lost on the Tinubu boys.  However, in spite of the  irreverent  Tinubu political gladiators, among the glowing tributes  to Chief Ayo Adebanjo,  I found the one  by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu  ( a.k.a. Emilokan ) quite gratifying for the humility  in publicly acknowledging the pivotal role of Chief  Ayo Adebanjo , as acting chairman of the Alliance for Democracy party , in getting him elected as Governor of Lagos state in 1999, a position that launched his political trajectory.  “ His ( Adebanjo )  unwavering  commitment to truth  and justice  extended to my journey as governorship candidate  in 1999.     Baba Adebanjo’s  steadfast support was instrumental in my election as Governor of Lagos State under the platform of the Alliance for Democracy’.  Tinubu had added :  ‘’Until his death, I shared a deep personal bond with  Baba Adebanjo; he was like a father figure’’ .  Those Tinubu laudatory words about Chief  Ayo Adebanjo ,  ‘’ unwavering commitment to justice ‘’ played out in 1999 in commendation  but  played out in 2023 in condemnation !!!    Chief  Ayo Adebanjo, a man of politics without bitterness,  died on Feb. 14  - Valentine Day - a day of showing amity, which hopefully,  may  create a pathway  to restoring  harmony  to Afenifere, the  umbrella Yoruba   body,   which he led with passion and dedication.  

Chief Ayo Adebanjo lived  a frank , unpretentious and fulfilling life.  He  harped on life’s transient nature  and  had always jokingly reminded  people of his imminent passage.  He used to say :  Ayo  Adebanjo ti se ti e , o ku siyin lowo ( Ayo  Adebanjo has done his beat, it is left for others to carry on).. He ran a good race and ended well. He left a legacy of political fidelity to justice,  equity  and a principled stand in furtherance of  Nigerian  brotherhood.    

Dr. Bisi Olawunmi,  Senior Lecturer, Department of Mass Communication, Adeleke University, Ede, is a former Washington Correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria and Fellow, Nigerian Guild of  Editors. PHONR  : 0803 364 7571    Email : This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..             

Protesters are on the rampage over the killing of three community guards in Gwer West Local Government Area of Benue State, setting ablaze the council secretariat and palace of the traditional head of Naka, Ter Nagi, Chief Daniel Abomtse.

Our correspondent reports that the hotel belonging to Senator Titus Zam was allegedly torched by the rampaging protesters in Naka, the headquarters of Gwer West LGA.

Residents said that trouble started in the early hours of Tuesday after youths from the area retrieved the bodies of the guards killed by bandits on Monday evening at a village in Gwer West and brought same to the local government headquarters.

“The youths are angry because the bandits are killing our people and the state government appears not to be doing anything. Since the corpses of the guards arrived this morning, protesters have burnt the council secretariat, Ter Nagi’s palace and a hotel belonging to Senator Titus Zam, representing Benue North West at the national assembly,” a resident who preferred anonymity said.

Victor Ormin, the Chairman of Gwer West LGA told our correspondent on the phone on Tuesday morning that the protest started by youths in the area over the killing of three Benue Civil Protection Guards was hijacked by hoodlums who set the council secretariat and the palace of Ter Naka on fire.

“Yes, they have burned the secretariat and the Ter Naka’s palace. Three protection guards were killed in Garuwa (council ward in Gwer West) by armed invaders so when their bodies were brought to Naka, it sparked protest from the youth and it’s now being taken over by hoodlums,” he said.

The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), CSP Catherine Anene, had yet to respond to calls to her telephone by our correspondent.

[DailyTrust]

The Secretary-General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, NATO, Mark Rutte, has urged European Union leaders to engage with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to enhance cooperation on security matters.

This comes following the EU’s efforts to bolster its defense posture in response to the US President Donald Trump’s criticism of European security spending.

Trump’s call for NATO member states to increase their defense contributions to 5 percent of GDP has prompted discussions about strengthening ties with non-EU countries, including Turkey.

Trump, in January, criticised the EU for its low investments in NATO’s defense capabilities, while US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth affirmed that Washington had no plans to reduce its military presence in Europe.

Recall that during the Munich Security Conference, US Vice President JD Vance met with Rutte, stressing the need for EU countries to raise their defense spending and for NATO to ensure a more balanced distribution of defense contributions among its members.

[DailyPost]

The Supreme Court has dismissed the appeal by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate in the last governorship election in Ondo State, Agboola Ajayi challenging the competence of the joint ticket of Lucky Aitedatiwa and his running mate in the election, Olayide Adelami.

In a judgment on Tuesday, a five-member panel, presided over by Justice Mohammed Garba, was unanimous in holding that the appeal was without merit and that the appellants lacked the locus standi to query Adelami’s nomination.

The court awarded a cost of N8million against the PDP and Ajayi, at N2m each for the four respondents – Adelami, Aitedatiwa, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The PDP and Ajayi had claimed that Adelami presented forged West African Examination Council (WAEC) certificate to INEC and that he equally possessed multiple identities.

They had prayed the court hold that Adelami was not qualified to contest the election by virtue of the alleged forged certificate and proceed to void the joint ticket on which Aitedatiwa and Adelami contested the election on the platform of the APC. 

Details shortly…

[TheNation]

Bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies tumbled on Tuesday as concerns over the US economy and trade tensions grew.

Bitcoin dropped 3.2% to $79,937 after hitting a low of $76,624. Ethereum fell sharply by 7.5% to $1,911. The global crypto market cap declined 4.3% to $2.6 trillion, The Economist reports.

Solana, XRP, Cardano and Dogecoin also suffered losses, with Dogecoin plunging 8.5%.

Investor confidence weakened after former US President Donald Trump, in a Fox News interview, mentioned a “period of transition” but did not clarify if his tariff policies might lead to a recession. 

His remarks caused declines across cryptocurrencies, stocks, and the US dollar while Treasury yields also dropped.

“The crypto market is seeing its major downturn with Bitcoin falling under $80,000 and Ethereum recording a 16-month low of around $1,800,” said Avinash Shekhar, Co-Founder & CEO of Pi42.

“Fears of a coming recession and the overall market sell-offs are spurring this pullback.”

Macroeconomic factors like inflation and interest rates continue to drive volatility.

“The upcoming Job Openings and Labor Turnover data would be crucial for bulls to take control.

“A positive outcome data could help BTC reclaim the $84,000 mark,” said Edul Patel, CEO of Mudrex.

Bitcoin’s market cap fell to $1.585 trillion, with a dominance of 61.04%.

Trading volume surged 53.14% to $58.13 billion.

“Bitcoin’s ability to reclaim and hold $80,000 remains critical for overall market stability,” noted Vikram Subburaj, CEO of Giottus.

[Punch]

Atiku Bagudu, minister of budget and economic planning, says the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will not exceed the 5 percent limit on ways and means financing to the federal government.

Bagudu spoke on the 2025 budget in collaboration with KPMG on Arise Television on Monday.

Ways and means is a loan facility through which the CBN finances the federal government’s budget shortfalls.

Minister said the CBN’s guidelines already limit the amount available to the government under its ways and means facilities to 5 percent in the 2024-2025 fiscal year.

This, Bagudu said, will boost investor confidence in Nigeria’s ability to manage its debt.

The minister stressed that the government will not rely on the CBN to finance its N14 trillion deficit but will explore innovative financing approaches.

“Under no circumstance will the Central Bank be going above the legal limit of 5 per cent, I think that should comport the economy that we are not going to have recourse to,” he said.

“Because we are also going to market in different ways, innovative financing or approaches, the local bonds have been issued, where governments have raised money.

“This represents a statement of intention, just to ensure that those whom we have borrowed from will be confident that we will have enough to meet our debt service obligation.

“If as we anticipate, economic conditions will continue to improve, maybe we may not need to spend after that in debt service.”

On his part, Wale Edun, minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, said the federal government prioritises macroeconomic stability, leveraging exchange rate stability, trade surplus, and increased oil production to strengthen Nigeria’s global position.

He added that the country’s foreign reserves have now surpassed $40 billion, reflecting confidence in its economic policies, as the government aims for 7 percent annual growth.

In September 2024, Edun, said the federal government had “exited” servicing its debts through ways and means, a factor analysts often partly blame for high inflation.

In his Independence Day speech last year, President Bola Tinubu said the federal government has cleared over N30 trillion in ways and means advances.

The federal government has confirmed that the Naira-for-crude-oil swap deal remains in place, countering recent reports of its termination at the end of this month.

The clarification followed reports that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) has ended the agreement with local refiners including the Dangote Refinery.

Chairman of the Technical Sub-Committee on Crude-for-Naira initiative, Zacch Adedeji, responding to the reports said there is no decision at the policy level to discontinue the initiative.

Adedeji said these reports do not reflect the realities of the ongoing work under the Federal Executive Council Initiative on Domestic Sales of Crude Oil and Refined Products in Naira.

“Our attention has been drawn to reports suggesting that the Naira-based crude oil supply arrangement with local refineries has been discontinued, forcing them to rely solely on international crude purchases.

“As the committee driving the implementation of this initiative, we wish to provide an update on the Federal Executive Council initiative and confirm as follows: The Naira-Based Domestic Sales Framework Remains in Place.

“The policy framework enabling the sale of crude oil in naira for domestic refining remains in force. The initiative was designed to ensure supply stability and optimise the utilisation of local refining capacity.

“There has been no decision at the policy level to discontinue this approach nor is it being considered. After implementing the policy for some months, evidence abounds that it is the right way to go and it will continue to help the economy.

“The engagement process for crude oil supply to domestic refineries therefore remains in place by structured agreements, balancing factors such as availability, demand, and market conditions.

“There is no exclusion of local refineries from access to domestic crude. The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) is actively ensuring compliance with the Domestic Crude Oil Obligations provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act.”

Adedeji, who is also the chair of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), said that the framework for domestic crude transactions is designed to promote a competitive and efficient pricing environment.
“We remain committed to ensuring the efficient execution of this initiative in line with its core objectives – enhancing local refining, reducing foreign exchange exposure, and stabilising the domestic fuel supply,” he said.

[Leadership]

Politics has been variously defined as ‘authoritative allocation of values or “who gets what when and how”. But I think in terms of intrigue that goes into balancing the interest of pressure groups and public interest, deviousness and ruthlessness of office seekers and for our purpose in this write up ‘politics as the art of the possible will be more appropriate (Otto Von Bismarck, German statesman and First Chancellor of Unified Germany 1815-1898).

The truth is that not all office seekers or office holders are politicians. Politicians are a special breed of selfless public servants who are not deterred by the fact they that are hardly trusted by the public they serve who often see them as corrupt, devious and men of many words. These largely misunderstood patriots ruled and may sometimes be addressed as their excellences, but others call the tune. Unfortunately, no matter how much politicians are detested, our survival as an organized society depends on their resourcefulness and brinkmanship.

Of course, bluffing Governor Similayi Fubara who had all his past battle fought for him is not a politician. In fact he is not smart enough to learn from our recent history.

We once had a Raji Babatunde Fashola, a non-politician but a very smart guy as governor of Lagos State. He was not his party’s but his godfather’s choice. When he had a slight disagreement with his godfather, all those who had wanted his job, rose up in his defence not because they loved him, but to spite his godfather. Opposition parties were dangling their party’s’ ticket in his face in case he was denied his party’s ticket for a second term.

But instead of swallowing the poison as Fubara did, he went for an international engagement where he gave a lecture and announced to the whole world that “Tinubu made me governor”. That became newspaper headlines in both local and international newspaper the following day. The godfather was humbled. If the godfather today takes credit for landmark projects like the Lagos rail line and Atlantic City, it was because his trusted godson, the actualiser, unlike Ambode who ignored some of the projects during his four years tenure, remained faithful to his godfather and his dream project.

Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, following some disagreement with Obasanjo also joined forces with his estranged godfather’s political foes including James Ibori who also headed the Yar’Adua group that did not want Jonathan to succeed the ailing President Yar’Adua. This was long after he had declared publicly that apart from God and his biological parents, Obasanjo was the next most important personality in is life. Jonathan was hijacked by the late pa Edwin Clark, who gave himself the title of ’father of the president’ to spite Obasanjo. Jonathan forgot his battle was fought by the likes of Tunde Bakare on the streets of Lagos and Abuja with the ‘doctrine of necessity’ slogan. The rest is history.

Today, facing the same scenario, Fubara, like Jonathan, teamed up with enemies of Wike, his estranged godfather including Imo Ikenga Ugochinyere, who has today become Fubara’s interpreter of court pronouncements. Others include PDP stalwarts in borrowed robe of media men who would not forgive Wike for bringing PDP down during the 2023 elections. Some of them pretend to be news anchors without appreciating that the greatest attributes of a news anchor include  journalistic integrity, professionalism  and ability to be ‘silent and listen”. These men lionized Fubara, encouraged him to stand up to his estranged godfather and talked him out of his initial undertaking to implement term of truce reached when the president first intervened.

Unfortunately, Fubara still does not understand that the only people benefiting from the tragedy he has inadvertently brought upon his people are these self-serving advisers and media promoters who smile to the banks at the expense of besieged people of Rivers.

For instance, ‘News commercialisation’ which refers to situation “whereby the electronic media report as news or news analysis a commercial message by an unidentified or unidentifiable sponsor giving the audience the impression that news is fair, objective and socially responsible”(Nnorom,1994) is not cheap. The 30 minutes slot cannot be anything less than N20m. That is what someone coughs out to allow the likes of Ikenga Ugochinyere to speak without substance on TV for 30 minutes in the name of fighting Fubara’s war. He was pathetic to watch last week on Fubara’s favourite TV platform as he gave his own interpretation of the Supreme Court judgment after which he urged Fubara to ‘carry on’ the battle.

The above forces that exploited Fubara’s lack of capacity to understand that sometimes in political warfare , you may have to stoop to conquer, were behind his missing of an historic opportunity provided by last week landmark  Supreme Court judgment to end his people’s nightmare after two years of his unstable government.

The Supreme Court judgment was straight forward.

The court ruled there is no evidence that the 27 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC), because without evidence presented before the court, in the eyes of the law, no defection took place and consequently the status quo in the House of Assembly must remain.

It criticized the governor for behaving likes a despot by demolishing the House of Assembly complex and preventing the 27 lawmakers from sitting. It also condemned Fubara for destroying of Rivers State over his fear of impeachment

“Since the executive arm of the government has chosen to collapse the legislature to enable him to govern without the legislature as a despot, the Supreme Court held that “As it is, there is no government in Rivers State”.

It held that “The doctrine of necessity cannot be invoked to justify the continued existence of a deliberately contrived illegal or unconstitutional status quo.

That “political disagreements cannot justify these attacks and contempt for the rule of law by the governor of a state or any person.

That “The part of the judgment of the Court of Appeal, affirming the judgment of the Federal High Court in suit No. FHC/AB)/CS/984/2024 is hereby affirmed.

That “The said judgment of the Federal High Court in suit No. FHC/AB)/CS/984/2024 is hereby restored.

That “For the avoidance of doubt, it is hereby ordered that the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Accountant General of the Federation should forthwith stop releasing and paying to the Government of Rivers State, its organs,… until an Appropriation Law is made by Rivers State House of Assembly constituted as prescribed by the 1999 Constitution.

That “The Rt. Honourable Martin Chike Amaewhule and the other 26 members should forthwith resume unhindered sitting as Speaker and members respectively of the Rivers State House of Assembly.

With all the roads blocked, if only Fubara understands politics as the art of the possible, and had without the meddlesomeness of elders and politicians on both sides of the aisle who speak from both sides of the mouth, picked up the phone to congratulate the speaker of his state House of Assembly and his colleagues over their victory at the court and offer to forward the 2025 budget and the list of his commissioners as directed by the Supreme Court, the following day.

And let us for a moment imagine Fubara with awesome apparatus of his office storming Wike’s victory church thanksgiving in Abuja and insisting Rivers State seat of power remains in his house until he agrees to join him for another thanksgiving in Port Harcourt to convince the mass of Rivers people in whose name they all swore, that the battle was over.

Of course Fubara would have seized the initiative while Wike would have been humbled.

Unfortunately, Fubara who cannot appreciate the worth of the office he never fought for will rather keep on playing the ostrich. Whilst he claims to wait for certified copy of the court judgment to start complying with the Supreme Court judgment, that has not stopped him from starting preparation for the conduct of a new local government election.  A few days after informing his street boys to wait for signals, a trending video of AK-47 wielding militants in the creeks threatening to attack oil installations emerged. The Punch gave an elaborate coverage to them and their demand.

Ijaw youths have also joined the fray in support of Fubara, the first Rivers governor of Ijaw ethnic extraction.

The question now is with Fubara’s resolve to continue waging war against his own government, politicians admitting treachery against their state, elders speaking from both side of the mouth while our once beautiful ‘Garden City’ turns into a city of blood by militants groomed and armed by Rivers’ successive governors, who is going to save Rivers?