Eminent economist and university administrator, Prof. Akpan Hogan Ekpo is formally retiring from the University of Uyo on June 26 when he turns 70; and to mark it, he will launch his autobiography and give a valedictory lecture. In April, he gave a thought-provoking lecture on the ‘The Collapse of the Naira’, and the monetary authorities took in a few lessons. His friends, students and colleagues across the country are also planning series of activities to celebrate this accomplished academic and Pan Africanist whose generosity, good nature and intellectual prowess are legendary. On behalf of my friends and family, I send warm greetings and best wishes to Prof Ekpo, my dear friend, brother and mentor, on this very auspicious moment. May God continue to bless him and his family with good health, long life and happiness as he enters another phase of his beautiful life.

A son of a police officer, Ekpo was born and raised in Lagos where he completed primary and secondary education. He then proceeded to the United States and attended Howard University, Washington, D.C., from 1973 to 1976. In 1975, he won the American Economic Association Fellowship to study briefly at Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, with the condition to return to Howard University. He was in the Dean’s list throughout his undergraduate studies and won various scholarships during his post-graduate programme. Ekpo holds a Ph.D in Business Administration and another Ph.D in Economics from the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is married to Rev (Mrs) Njeri Mbaka Ekpo, originally from Kenya, and they are blessed with children and grandchildren.

Ekpo returned to Nigeria in 1983 and joined the University of Calabar as a lecturer in the Department of Economics, beginning what has turned out to be one of the most consequential careers in academics. I met him in the early 1987. I had just returned from my NYSC assignment in the northern part of the country and was frantically looking for a job. He was then a senior lecturer. Young, handsome and erudite, he was one of the most likable lecturers on campus, as I came to know. My elder brother, Lawrence, then a postgraduate student in the university (now a professor), was already collaborating with him in some academic works. He told me about Ekpo and suggested that I should go and see him since he had a lot of contacts with some senior government officials in Calabar then. I had never known him before, but desperate for help, I was ready to do anything.

I went to see Ekpo in his office. It was crowded with students seeking his attention, but he received me with warmth and thoughtfulness, and without any hesitation; he facilitated my first post-NYSC employment - in the civil service of the newly created Akwa Ibom State. I worked for only three months before I moved to Lagos. His gesture etched a permanent impression on my young mind, teaching me to be sensitive, kind and compassionate to people in need. Since then, I have taken to him like an elder brother from another mother.

When Prof. Ekpo was appointed Vice Chancellor of University of Uyo in 2000, I was a member of the Editorial Board of The Guardian newspaper. I wrote a piece in my column titled ‘’The challenge of a new Vice Chancellor’’, celebrating the promotion and setting an agenda for him. In 2021, he wrote the foreword in my best-selling book, ‘’Inside Story of the Struggle for the Abrogation of Onshore-Offshore Oil Dichotomy’’, published that year. I’m hoping to host him to a big celebration when he turns 80.

A Professor of Economics and Public Policy, Ekpo has participated in Nigeria’s public policy space for over 25 years. He was once Chairman, Ministerial Advisory Committee, Federal Ministry of Finance, Abuja from 1994 to 1998; a Non-Executive Director of the Central Bank of Nigeria and Member of its Monetary Policy Committee from 2005 to 2009. He was Technical Advisor to the Vision 2010; member of the Steering Committee to Vision 20:2020; member of the Economic and Recovery Growth Committee; member of the Federal Government Minimum Wage Committee and has participated at various federal and state governments policy-making committees in the country. He has also been a member of several Economic Management teams of the Federal Government of Nigeria.

Prof. Ekpo was Editor of the prestigious Nigerian Journal of Economic and Social Studies for eight years and President of the Nigerian Economic Society (NES) and a fellow of the Society. In 2008, he was appointed Director General and Head of Mission of the West African Institute for Financial and Economic Management (WAIFEM). He served for 10 years. WAIFEM is a professional and management development institute owned by English-speaking Central Banks of West Africa. He was commended by the Board for repositioning the Institute, especially in the areas of fund raising, research and introducing French language as a course.

As VC of UniUyo between 2000 and 2005, he was applauded by the NUC for re-positioning the University. He went on to serve as the pioneer Vice-chancellor of the Akwa Ibom State University of Technology (now Akwa Ibom State University) from 2005 to 2007, but had to resign his appointment because his principles of merit, transparency and accountability were being threatened. He returned to the Department of Economics, University of Uyo in 2007. He told me: ‘’Of all the positions I have held, being VC of University of Uyo gave me the opportunity to make the greatest impact. My team and I sanitized the university system. I restored the quality and integrity of the system by stopping ‘sorting’ and harassment of female students. I reduced cultism to the barest minimum. I was the first to introduce post-UTME examination in the country. I stopped certificate racketeering and burst the syndicate that was forging and printing our diplomas and selling them. I started the medical school and changed the medical center to University of Uyo Teaching Hospital. Overall, the discipline I brought to the system gladdened my heart’’.

He has been a visiting scholar to the World Bank and the IMF at various times and a recipient of the Federal Government of Nigeria Merit Award on Productivity. Ekpo has also lectured in several universities in the USA, Zimbabwe and Nigeria and consulted for several global and national institutions such as the World Bank, African Economic Research Consortium (AERC), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UN-ECA), Africa Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF), Forum of Federations in Canada, Center for Democracy and Development, National Manpower Board, Federal Ministry of Finance, Federal Ministry of Budget and Planning, among others.

He has been a member of various boards and Think Tanks such as the Management Committee of the AERC in Nairobi, African Heritage Institutions, African Population, Health and Research Consortium (APHRC), Clement Isong Foundation, Edet Amana Foundation and New Nigeria Foundation, among others. From 2020 to 2023, he was requested by the Nobel Prize Committee in Switzerland to nominate candidates for the Nobel Prize in Economics.

Professor Ekpo has written eight books and edited three. His latest book: Nigeria: A Resource Rich Economy in Disarray has been widely acclaimed. He’s published over 200 articles in peer-reviewed journals, chapters in books and other research outlets. He has over 1,850 citations in Google Scholar. His areas of interest include Economic Theory, Public Finance and Quantitative Methods.

Last week Wednesday, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu marked the second Democracy Day in office. Ordinarily it ought to have been an occasion of great celebration for Tinubu in particular for his pro-democracy credentials and the role he played, known and unknown, to shift Democracy Day from May 29 to June 12. Unfortunately, the occasion was soiled by cries of "we are hungry" all over the place. That is a dent on Tinubu's democratic credentials.

 Nevertheless, we must not stop recalling how Democracy Day came about, if not for anything but for the sake of our youths who know nothing about their history. Here again today, I recall the story as was told by a news medium "The declaration of June 12 every year as a public holiday in Lagos State may have pitched Gov. Bola Tinubu against the Federal Government in a fresh face-off, with the Attorney General of the Federation and Justice Minister, Mr. Kanu Agabi, saying yesterday that the state had no constitutional right to proclaim a public holiday… 

"Mr. Agabi told State House correspondents in Abuja at the end of the weekly meeting of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) that declaration of public holiday was an exclusive responsibility of the Federal Government. Gov. Tinubu had, on Tuesday, said June 12 would be observed as a public holiday in the state in view of its importance in the political history of Nigeria.

"However, Mr. Agabi said: “I heard that one of the states has declared June 12 as a public holiday. You cannot do that because only the National Assembly and the President can do it. If the President declares June 12 as a public holiday, it would be a valid declaration but if any other person in this country does so, it is invalid.”

The minister pointed out that what the Lagos governor should have done was to persuade the President to make the declaration.

" His words: “The power to declare a public holiday can only be vested in the President because it is an executive function. It is not a judicial function, it is not a legislative function; it is an executive function. We have in existence a law called the Public Holidays Act Cap 378 of Volume 21 of the Laws of the Federation of Nigeria. This law was in existence at the time the Constitution came into effect on May 29, 1999. It is an existing law and all existing laws are valid to the extent of their conformity with the Constitution… “

"He pointed out that it was on the basis of this law that the President declared May 29 of every year a public holiday… Speaking on why he did not go to court over the issue of Sharia, the minister stated that there was nothing in the Constitution that empowers the Federal Government to take any state to court over Sharia”

The realities of our present circumstances tell us how the then president, Olusegun Obasanjo, and his A-G/Minister of Justice, Kanu Agabi, left leprosy (Sharia/Jihad) and pre-occupied themselves with skin rashes (Tinubu’s declaration of June 12 as a public holiday), possibly out of Obasanjo’s alleged inveterate hatred for MKO Abiola, winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election. Remember that ever before he became civilian president, the same Obasanjo had, in far-away South Africa, declared that MKO was not the messiah Nigeria desired. Had Obasanjo done the needful when the fire of Sharia/Jihad was ignited under his watch, we possibly would have been spared our current ordeal. So when men like Obasanjo and Agabi point accusing fingers these days, we need to point them in the direction of history.

Now, we all know how June 12 came about: After many rigmaroles and shifting of goalposts which one of my favourite musicians, Orlando Owoh of blessed memory, described as “Babangida don fuck Nigeria tire”, we eventually had the June 12, 1993 presidential election which was free, which was fair, which was peaceful and which, in fact, was the best the country ever had – and this was attested to by both local and international observers and the winner was MKO Abiola.

 Abiola, a Yoruba moderate Muslim, like most other Yoruba Muslims, won convincingly in most parts of the country, beating his challenger, Bashir Tofa, even in his ward and state (Kano). Tofa had no qualms accepting defeat but Babangida annulled the election and will forever have that decision as an albatross around his neck. It is a yoke, and a burden, he will carry into his grave and even beyond to wherever he is destined.

Opposition to the annulment was massive and universal at first but as it is with all human affairs, human factors gradually set in as some people began to compromise and negotiate away the popular mandate freely and overwhelmingly bestowed on Abiola by the people. At a point, the June12 struggle was, in the words of those who traded it away, reduced to a Yoruba ethnic agenda, which they now gave as both an excuse and a reason for their treacherous and lecherous act.

I still remember Dozie Okebalama, one of my correspondents at the time I was editor of The PUNCH/Saturday PUNCH), who wrote an opinion page article in The PUNCH using an Igbo proverb which so irked the then Chairman of the PUNCH, Chief Ajibola Ogunshola. Dozie said in his native Igbo land, when you hear the sound of gunshot in your father’s compound, you do not call on someone else to go and help you find out what was happening there. You go to find out by yourself. June12, he said, was a gunshot fired in the compound of the Yoruba; so it is their duty to go and find out what happened there. With that, he appeared to justify those abandoning the struggle for the de-annulment and revalidation of June 12, entrusting the task solely to the Yoruba.

 Thank God, the Yoruba did not disappoint! They fought on bravely! They heroically paid the price! Did not the German poet, Henrik Ibsen, say the strongest man is he who stands alone? Those who must go into exile to wage the struggle from abroad did so – the likes of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Prof. Wole Soyinka, Dr. Amos Akingba, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, Comrade Opeyemi Bamidele, etc. If I forgot any name, kindly remind me!

Ex-Lagos State Military Gov. Ndubuisi Kanu, retired Commodore Dan Suleiman, foremost politician Alfred Rewane; Anthony Enahoro, the mover of the famous “Independence Now” motion during the colonial era, were other prominent names who continued the fight despite that the gunshot was not fired in their father’s compound, as it were! Again, if I skipped any name, kindly remind me! 

The exiles founded “Radio Kudirat” and battled the evil military junta to a standstill. Those who remained at home founded NADECO, PRONACO and many others to demand an end to military dictatorship. The likes of former governor of old Ondo State and my school principal, Pa Michael Adekunle Ajasin; stormy petrel, Chief Gani Fawehinmi; Dr. Beko Ransome-Kuti, Femi Falana, and many others. Space constraint will not allow us to mention all the names but kindly help add additional names on your own list! How many of the martyrs do we even know? What of the hundreds, even thousands, mowed down on the streets of Lagos and elsewhere by Abacha’s armoured tanks?

Abiola died in controversial circumstances in the unjust and wicked incarceration of the military while the struggle to revalidate the mandate, described by him as sacred, was still on. The Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar/Admiral Mike Okhai Akhigbe military junta carries the burden of that guilt forever. Why, for instance, did that junta release other detainees of Abacha but inexplicably left Abiola behind? In the end, however, the June 12 fight was not a total failure: First, we saw the back of the military and, secondly, when the country was to return to civilian rule in 1999, the presidency was conceded to the Yoruba (South-west), ostensibly to placate them over the loss of June 12, the death of Abiola, and the many other terrible things done to the region as a result of its single-minded struggle for the revalidation of June 12. 

But were the Yoruba sufficiently placated? They were not because their manifest choice for president, Chief Olu Falae, was denied them in favour of ex-military dictator, retired Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo, whose demonstrable bellicosity, even animosity, towards the Yoruba and their interests justified the Yoruba’s opposition to his ascension to power in the first place. So, the struggle continued, as they say! While no one could raise Abiola from the dead, the agitation that justice be served him in his grave raged on all the same. That goal was achieved on June 6, 2018 when the incumbent president, retired Major-General Muhammadu Buhari, another vile dictator in his own military days, declared June 12 as Nigeria’s Democracy Day, effective 2019, as against the subsisting May 29th.

If it is true, as some have posited, that Buhari did all of that in his quest for a second term in office, he did well. If it is also true that Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu was instrumental to Buhari arriving at that decision, Tinubu has done better. Tinubu’s declaration of June 12 as a public holiday in Lagos was precursor or forerunner of the FG’s declaration of the same June 12 as Democracy Day and a public holiday all over the country.

 For eight years, Obasanjo, a presumptuous Yoruba and fellow Egba man like Abiola, was president and never wanted to hear anything positive said about Abiola and June 12. So, then, is the Yoruba saying fulfilled before our very eyes that “Ajumobi o kan taanu; a f’eni t’ori ba ran si ni” Oh yes; that someone is your blood relation does not mean he or she will be your destiny helper; except him whom God had so mandated!

Now, those who, by choice, did not fight for democracy cannot defend it. Those who worked against Nigeria’s return to democracy but sided with vile military dictators cannot extend the frontiers of democracy or enlarge its coast, as it were. If I may ask, on which side of the June 12/fight for democracy divide was Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi et al? We have all seen the role played by Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. For my highly esteemed readers asking why it appears I am in support of Tinubu’s quest for the 2023 presidency, this is one of the reasons. There are many others! I, too, was in the trenches fighting for June 12, barely escaping with my life.

 Those who, like biblical Esau, sold June 12 for a mess of pottage; who, like Judas Iscariot, negotiated it away for filthy lucre; and those who, like the Sadducees and Pharisees, did not lift a finger in its support cannot move our democratic experiment forward and in the right direction. Just as we have experienced with Buhari, we can only come to grief if we allow those who seek to reap where they did not sow to hoodwink us once again. I have taken a stand: They will not have my support."

That was one year ago! But now we must ask: is June 12 an end in itself or a means to an end? This is the question President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will have to ponder.

One of the highlights of the recent celebrations of Democracy Day, on June 12, was the series of anniversary lectures organized to mark 25 years of Unbroken Democracy in Nigeria. At the Presidential Villa, Alhaji Bello Masari, former Speaker of the House of Representatives was Guest Lecturer on the subject: “25 Years of Enduring Democracy: Prospects for the Future”. In Abeokuta, Ogun State, at the June 12 Cultural Centre, Kuto, the Ogun State Government held a public lecture with the theme: “June 12-Defining Moment in the Democratic Development in Nigeria.” There was also a 2024 Democracy Day Lecture organized by the Aminu Kano Centre for Democratic Research and Training in collaboration with SEDSAC: Humanitarian Initiative titled “Democracy and The Nigerian Citizens: Profit or Loss?” Dr. Sa’idu Dukawa delivered the lecture. There were activities in other parts of Nigeria as well. 

It is interesting to see how June 12, its symbolism and place in Nigerian history has become a rallying point, that it was originally, and the man whose martyrdom underlines that symbolism, Chief MKO Abiola has now been accorded a rightful, and due recognition in the annals of Nigerian history for all that he did to champion the cause of democracy. This is both interesting and remarkable because indeed in this same country, many of those who benefitted from the democratic struggle conveniently revised the story of June 12. In the South West however, MKO Abiola Day was celebrated in Lagos, Oyo, Ondo, Ogun and Osun states. The Federal Government of Nigeria celebrated Democracy Day on May 29, the day Nigeria transitioned from decades of uninterrupted military rule to civilian rule in 1999. Despite the celebration of MKO Abiola across the South West – his statues were erected, streets, stadiums, schools and public buildings were named after him, and even with Lagos State iconizing some of the non-Yoruba heroes of the struggle, including Rear Admiral Ndubuisi Kanu, Bagauda Kaltho and many others, some revisionists came up with the patently false narrative that June 12 was a Yoruba, South-West affair. 

There were attempts to lobby the Nigerian Government to do the right thing: declare Abiola, the winner of the annulled June 12, 1993 Presidential election, grant him a post-humous national honour and make restitution for the injustice of 1993, beyond the fact of the political solution of 1999 which ensured that the two major contenders for the Presidency post-military era were Yorubas: Chief Olusegun Obasanjo (PDP) and Chief Olu Falae (AD/APP). The closest that Abiola and June 12 were acknowledged at the centre was in 2014 at the Nigeria Centenary Awards, honouring 100 remarkable individuals who have made great impact in the making of Nigeria in the last century. The Abiola family did not think listing their patriarch among a long list of persons including Lord Lugard and his consort, Flora Shaw was good enough. The family turned down the award. Despite this politics of acknowledgement, MKO Abiola and June 12 nonetheless lived on in the hearts and on the tip of the pens of many: the media, civil society, artists across the genres and more importantly, the progressives who gathered at his graveside, every June to remember and honour him. 

The attempt to reduce MKO and the June 12 phenomenon to a narrow, ethnic moment has also been exposed for the lie that it is in the growing bibliography on the subject by both scholars and direct observers/participants. These writings include, Heroes of Democracy by Joe Igbokwe, June 1993: Annulment by Abraham Oshoko, Frank Kokori, The Struggle for June 12, Omo Omoruyi, The Tale of June 12: The Betrayal of the Democratic Rights of Nigerians; Wale Oshun, The Open Grave: NADECO and the Struggle for Democracy and Clapping With One Hand: June 12 and the Crisis of a State Nation; Humphrey Nwosu, Laying the Foundation for Nigeria’s Democracy: My Account of June 12, 1993; Abimbola Aboderin, Democracy and the Untold Story of June 12; Deba Uwadiae, Abiodun Adeniyi, Emeka Nwosu and Segun Olanipekun, Nigeria’s Aborted Third Republic and the June Debacle: Reporters’ Account and Wole Soyinka’s memoir, You Must Set Forth At Dawn. The major turning point arrived on June 6, 2018 when then President Muhammadu Buhari changed Democracy Day from May 29, to June 12. As Buhari put it, “June 12 was the day when Nigerians in millions expressed their democratic will in what was undisputedly the freest, fairest and most peaceful elections since our independence. The fact that the outcome of that election was not upheld by the then military government doesn’t distract from the democratic credential of that process. Accordingly, after due consultations, the Federal Government has decided that henceforth June 12, will be celebrated as Democracy Day. Therefore, the government has decided to award posthumously the highest honour of the land GCFR, to the late Chief MKO Abiola, the presumed winner of the June 12, 1993 cancelled elections.” President Buhari sent a Public Holiday Amendment Bill to the National Assembly to remove May 29 as a public holiday and replace it with June 12. This was approved by the Senate. On Monday, June 10, 2019, President Buhari assented to the Bill.  This was an act of courage and bold assertiveness that would for long be remembered as a key aspect of Buhari’s legacy.  Other Presidents before him skirted around the Abiola and June 12 question or avoided it altogether, including Abiola’s kinsman, President Olusegun Obasanjo who had once quipped that “Abiola is not the Messiah Nigeria needs”. Buhari considered Abiola’s messianism so important, he gave him the highest honour in the land, placing him at the same rank as Nigerian Presidents and former Heads of State. He stopped short of declaring him the winner of the June 12, 1993 Presidential election, but he made it clear that the Abiola story is the Nigerian story. He practically shut up the reductionists and revisionists. With the amendment of the Public Holidays Act, turning June 12 into a national holiday, Buhari affirmed the nationalism of both Abiola and June 12. This was a special moment of epiphany for the President. He made a mark where others before him could not tread. The MKO Abiola story is a mix of narratives, false and true, intrigues, treachery, contradictions and tropes of disambiguation. Every year since 2019, the festival and the stories get re-enacted every June 12. 

I was invited to one of such special events, and for reasons of convenience and proximity, public and private, I was at the Lagos State House of Assembly Complex, Alausa, Ikeja to attend the commemoration of 25 years of Unbroken Democratic Governance in Nigeria put together by Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa and his colleagues. It was an evening event, a gala night, designed in the shape of a cocktail, with greater emphasis on discussions and reflections on key themes about Nigeria’s democratic process. A total of ten guest speakers had been invited to speak on different aspects of the democratic project in Nigeria, drawn from government, business, and the diplomatic community. The guest list was broadly inclusive: members of the Lagos state House of Assembly, the Executive and Judicial Arms of Government, past and present, the civil society, academia, traditional rulers and chiefs, business chieftains, members of the diplomatic corps, the Lagos Governance Advisory Council, chairmen and officials of Local Governments and LCDAs in Lagos and general ladies and gentlemen. The hall was filled up. 

The Lagos State House of Assembly section of the Secretariat in Alausa is a sprawling architectural wonder unto itself, with halls and large passageways, beautified and designed to give the lawmakers the dignity that befits that arm of government. As is to be expected the Assembly’s invitation was honoured. Oftentimes, when stories are told about State Houses of Assembly, it could be when the members are quarrelling with the Executives over budgetary allocations or the Governor needs their services to impeach an errant Deputy Governor. For the most part, State Houses of Assembly, especially in states where the ruling party in the state controls the majority in the House do their work obediently. They simply do as the Governor wishes. It was therefore refreshing to hear that a State House of Assembly wanted to do something that requires some serious thinking and reflection. I carried my two eyes and two legs to go and see. 

There were ten speakers, including Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN, former Governor of Lagos State (2007 – 2015) speaking on “Federalism: The Quest for a Perfect Union”, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, CEO, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) on “The Role of Nigerian Women in Nation-Building”, Mr. Debo Adeniran, Chairman Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership (CACOL) on “The Concept of Democracy and Human Rights”; Dr. Muda Yusuf, Director, Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprises (CPPE) and former DG, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and industry offering “Economic Perspective on Nigeria’s Democratic Governance, Professor Eghosa Osaghae, DG, Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA) on “Nigerian Foreign Policy in a Democracy: Gains and Prospect” in addition to the Consul General of the French Embassy, Laurent Favier, Weert Buerner, the Consul General of Germany; Ugo Boni, the Consul General of Italy, Jonny Baxter, the British Deputy High Commissioner, Michael A. Ervin, US Political and Economic Chief in Lagos – all on “Foreign Perspectives on Nigeria’s Democratic Governance”. This was quite a broad range of topics and speakers, which I thought was rather long, but surprisingly everyone showed up and the evening soon got off to a spirited start. I was even more surprised that despite the design of the programme as an evening cocktail, with the people standing, people stood through it all till the end. Every Speaker had the chance to speak for about ten minutes. I recall a number of highlights. 

Hon Mudasiru Obasa, Speaker of the Assembly made an eloquent case for the role that the Lagos State House of Assembly has played in the democratic governance of Nigeria in the context of its own jurisdiction. Obasa was even generous enough going all the way back to the very first session of the House in October 1979 to date, that is - far beyond the 25-year reference term. He disclosed that the Lagos House specifically since 1999 has passed over 300 laws and 2,000 resolutions, many of which have become models for other State Houses of Assembly. Obasa is one of the longest serving legislators and Speakers in Nigeria. He has been a legislator since 2007 and Speaker of the Lagos Assembly since 2015. There must be something he does right that endears him to his constituency (Agege 1) and to his colleagues in Alausa. I was struck by two of his statements when he said, after paying tributes to the heroes of June 12, that “It is a duty to also remember those who are responsible for the annulment of that democratic process, some alive, some dead…This is also to remind those who are coming behind us that the democracy we are enjoying today was built by some people, some of whom lost their lives and properties.” 

Earlier the same day, in Abuja, President Bola Tinubu had delivered a Democracy Day Speech which was marred by the treatment of MKO Abiola in parenthesis, and the omission of many important heroes. The event in Abuja was also reduced by the thoughtless, sycophantic unveiling of a poorly painted portrait of President Tinubu at the Eagle Square on June 12.  Obasa’s list was far more comprehensive and detailed than the President’s. And he did not forget to name and chide those who stood in the way of the people’s struggle, noting that “history will not forget all their roles while sabotaging the democratic progress of this nation”. Still, many names remain left out of the accounts simply because June 12 was truly the people’s struggle. How come Professor Humphrey Nwosu, the man who presided over the freest and fairest election in Nigeria has been forgotten? He was a hero. And why are we not naming the promoters of Association for Better Nigeria (ABN) by Arthur Nzeribe and Abimbola Davies, the disgraceful Youths Earnestly Ask for Abacha (YEAA) led by Daniel Kanu, rogue judges, and the hungry traditional rulers who identified with Abacha. Obasa’s list helped to give a fuller picture, more names and groups would still have to be called out for their role in the June debacle. 

Mr. Fashola, SAN echoed the same thoughts that we must ensure that democracy remains unbroken, and lawmakers have a crucial role to play in protecting democratic values, justice and human rights. Fashola posited that Nigeria is running a Federal system but the challenge is to make the system more perfect to protect individual rights. He believes that progress has been made in the past 25 years but there are still areas of improvement, citing the need for the Lagos Assembly to make laws, for example, to compel landlords in Lagos State not to collect rent for one or two years as is the norm. Mrs. Dabiri-Erewa made a case for women empowerment which naturally drew cheers from the women folk in attendance.  Mr Adeniran was clear-minded about the important role of the civil society in Nigeria’s democratic process. Dr. Muda Yusuf said democracy must be protected to protect and attract investment, and thus promote prosperity. The diplomats from France, Germany, Italy, UK, and US in unison and almost in a rehearsed manner congratulated Nigerians and urged us to sustain and consolidate democratic rule. 

It is easy to hold talks in Nigeria, and commemorate anniversaries but the key challenge is for our leaders to walk the talk and live up to the same ideals and values that they espouse. In all, June 12 is about us, our country and how seriously we take ourselves and our future. The Lagos State House of Assembly should organize more events, to provide opportunities for interaction with the public, on key subjects and ideas which may not necessarily fall under the purview of public hearing. There are 40 members in the Lagos House, representing 20 Local Government Areas further sub-divided into Local Council Development Areas, with two members representing a Local Government. I met one of the members who introduced herself as Okanlawon, the only non-APC member in the Lagos Assembly. I predicted to her verily, that she would be a member of the APC before the 2027 election, given the nature of Nigerian politics. In the future, the Lagos State House of Assembly should allow us to sit down at public events of the type they had on June 12, and there should be room for interventions by the audience.  Altogether, that was a good outing. 

ERRATUM: In this column last week: “A Day With Seyi Makinde,” (June 11), I wrote that “Governor Makinde is the only Governor to have broken the jinx of a second term in office in Oyo State.” My attention has been drawn to the fact that the honour of being the first to do so, belongs to late Senator Abiola Ajimobi, nicknamed KOSELERI, Oyo State Governor, 2011 -2019. I stand corrected. The error is regretted.

The Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, has berated the Federal Government over the move to acquire new jets for President Bola Tinubu and his deputy, Kashim Shettima.

Naija News recalls that the House of Representatives Committee on National Security and Intelligence on Friday backed the Federal Government’s plan to purchase new aircraft for Tinubu and Shettima.

However, in a statement via his X handle on Monday, Peter Obi cited the current economic hardship bedevilling the nation, stressing the move demonstrates the government’s extreme insensitivity to citizens’ struggles.

The former Anambra governor described the decision as unacceptable, noting that the situation in the country demands a more compassionate use of resources, prioritizing citizens’ welfare.

Obi noted that instead of adding to luxuries, the FG should focus on alleviating the suffering of the masses and finding lasting solutions to their problems.

He wrote, “At a time when our country is trending on the global media for facing its worst economic crisis, marked by high inflation, a falling currency, and widespread poverty, the government’s plan to buy new presidential jets demonstrates extreme insensitivity to citizens’ struggles.

“With rising insecurity, poverty, hunger, and homelessness, this decision highlights the disconnect between the government and the people. It is unacceptable and demands a more compassionate use of resources, prioritizing citizens’ welfare. It’s on record that our presidential jets have an average age of 12 years, purchased when most Nigerians could afford basic necessities. Now, as our country faces significant challenges, including a high debt profile, our citizens are in even greater need.

“Instead of adding to our luxuries, we should be focused on alleviating their suffering and finding solutions to their problems. For long, our bad leadership has made our priorities, as leaders, to be at variance to the needs of society, which is why we are headed now south, as a nation. To elucidate further, despite dropping down to the fourth-largest economy in Africa, with a GDP of $252 billion and a per capita income of $1,080, with huge debt burdens and borrowing to service debts, yet, we are spending $15 million for our Vice President’s residence, while the USA, the world’s largest economy with a GDP of $25 trillion, about 100 times our GDP, and a per capita income of $80,000, about 80 times ours, still houses their Vice President in Number 1 Observatory Circle, a house built over 100 years ago, and whose value is obviously less than the $15 million we are spending on our VP’s residence. A reputable real estate company, actually, reports that the US Vice President’s Official Residence is valued at about $7.5 million today.

“While we had earlier refurbished the old VP residence with $2 million, the over 100 years old US Vice President’s house has only undergone widescale renovations twice, funded by tax payers money; in 1993 and in 2021. Every new US VP is free to finance any minor refurbishing from his personal funds. It’s, therefore, time to stop this impunity, insensitivity, and shamelessness and refocus on the needs of our people. We must prioritize education, healthcare, and lifting our citizens out of poverty. Let us work together to build a nation that truly serves its people, not just the interests of a few. Let’s rise to the challenge, and build this new Nigeria which is now more possible than ever before.”

[NaijaNews]

Operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Nasarawa State have repelled an attempted attack on its state Command in Lafia by suspected bandits.

The Command’s Public Relations Officer, Jerry Victor, who confirmed the development to LEADERSHIP in Lafia, said the attack occurred in the wee hours of Monday at about 3am.

Victor said the attackers came in their large numbers and attempted to break into the facility.

He explained that operatives of the Command on surveillance noticed the movement and alerted their colleagues and a gun duel ensued.

The spokesman said due to superior firepower of the NSCDC men, the suspected bandits beat a retreat and escaped.

He disclosed that the attack might be connected to a bid to released other suspected bandits who are in detention.

The spokesperson further revealed that five notorious suspects were being detained by the Command for various crimes including two informants in the kidnap of an 82-year-old father of a former Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Daniel Umaru Lagi.

The victim was killed by his abductors after payment of ransom recently.

The NSCDC’s image maker in the state also noted that the gunmen who came in large numbers with iron rods attempted to break some part of the Command’s fence to gain entry into the facility while some of them took different positions around the building.
He, however, said no casualty was recorded during the gun battle between the attackers and operatives while assuring that calm has since been restored.

Victor added that the Command has in response to the incident, increased surveillance while also fortifying the headquarters with more personnel to forestall any attack in the future.

Our correspondent reports that the rise in kidnap incidents within the state capital has led to imposition of curfew, restricting movement of motorcycles and tricycles recently.

[Leadership]

The Reverend in charge of Ibara Baptist Church, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Dr Timothy Olatunbosun, has expressed concern that many Nigerian fathers are not given the honour and celebration they deserved despite their relentless efforts at providing and securing the family.

“They are dying in silence”, Olatunbosun said, on Sunday, in his sermon, titled ‘Fathers Are Superheroes.’

The Sunday service coincided with this year’s Father’s Day celebration.

The cleric said fathers sacrifice for the family, offer unconditional love, provide security, wise guidance and teach children the way to go, yet they are not celebrated.

He said the present crop of youths are the worst culprits.

“Everything is about their family and family will still look at them as if they have not done anything.

“Why do we say this, when a child is telling the father what have you done that nobody has ever done? What have you done?. And that is the language of this generation, please this young generation be careful.

“Some of you don’t appreciate the labour of your father, the labour of your parents, and your guardians. If you do not appreciate it, by the time it gets to your turn, it will become worse because you never prepared for it,” Olatubosun said.

He, however, said some fathers have not been leaving up to their responsibilities in the society.

He turned to the congregation and asked: how many of you, the youths, want to be like your fathers? There was a silence in the congregation.

The clergyman said no child will like to emulate a father who is a drinkard and or fraudaters.

He urged fathers to be role models to their children in order to build and develop a better Nigeria.

[DailyTrust]

The Police have stationed armed operatives at the secretariats of four local government councils in Rivers State following the expiration of the tenure of LG chairmen in the state.

DAILY POST reports that police vans are currently positioned at the entrances of Port Harcourt City, Obio/Akpor, Ahoada East and Ogu/Bolo LGAs.

Earlier, youths in Degema and Asari/Toru LGAs occupied their respective council secretariats in protest against the extension of the tenure of the LG chairmen.

The youths were seen in viral videos on social media chanting solidarity songs in support of those Governor Siminalayi Fubara is expected to appoint to manage the local councils on a temporary basis.

The outgoing LG chairmen, who are loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike, had their tenure extended by an amended Local Government Law Number 5 of 2018 by the faction of the State House of Assembly headed by Martins Amaewhule.

However, the extension was nullified by a Rivers State High Court ruling on May 21, 2024, which declared the Local Government Law No. 2 of 2024 as inconsistent with the 1999 Constitution.

Despite the court’s ruling, the chairman of Ikwerre LGA, Samuel Nwanosike, has vowed to remain in office.

Two LG chairmen from Bonny and Opobo/Nkoro, who are loyal to Fubara, celebrated the expiration of their tenures with a thanksgiving service on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Fubara has yet to release an official list of Caretaker Committee Chairmen to manage the affairs of the various LGAs following the tenure expiration.

[DailyPost]

The presidential candidate of Labour Party in the 2023 general election, Peter Obi said the spate of kidnapping and demand for ransoms in foreign currency has allegedly worsened socio-economic implications for the country.

Obi stated this in a statement via his X handle on Sunday.

He also expressed sadness over the kidnap of the Managing Director of Fouani Company, Mohamed Fouani, alongside other three Lebanese, in  Lagos.

Obi lamented that insecurity had continued to rage through the country, causing severe economic instability and threatening the national existence.

He also condemned the reported attack on Dudun Doki village of Gwadabawa local government area of Sokoto State, where gunmen killed over ten people and abducted many.

The former Anambra State Governor said the country must strive to put an end to the terror attacks and the attendant loss of lives.

Obi said, “Again, insecurity has continued to rage through the country, causing severe economic instability and threatening our national existence.

“I was saddened to hear about the kidnap of the Managing Director of Fouani Company, Mohamed Fouani, alongside other three Lebanese, in  Lagos.

“The use of boats for kidnap, and demand for ransoms in foreign currency, marks a new and more ugly dimension to the heightened insecurity we are combatting with, and have worsening socio-economic implications.

“Similarly, today, which is supposed to be a holy day, it was also reported that gunmen attacked Dudun Doki village of Gwadabawa local government area of Sokoto State, killing over ten people and abducting many.

“We must strive to put an end to these terror attacks and the attendant loss of lives. I continue to urge that more concerted efforts be made to safely rescue Mr Fouani and other many abductees, from the hands of their captors.

“I also encourage the government, and the security agencies, to employ more stringent measures against insecurity in our country. May Almighty Allah accept our prayers for our nation on this day, show us mercy and intervene in our situation.”

[EagleOnline]