The 2024/25 UEFA Champions League (UCL) season begins with 36 teams in a new-look single-table group stage.

In recent years, every edition of the UCL has featured Nigerian footballers. Prominent stars like Finidi George, Kanu Nwankwo, and John Obi Mikel have won the competition, and a host of others have made some mark on Europe’s biggest stage.

Regardless of its twisted format, when the new UCL season kicks off on Tuesday, more Nigerians will be representing their various club across Europe.

TheCable presents all the Nigerian stars set to carry on the torch and possibly set records this season.

ADEMOLA LOOKMAN (ATALANTA)

Lookman has been a key figure for Atalanta, and his hattrick won the Europa League final for the Bergamo side’s first-ever European title. Lookman has continued from where he left off last season and would be needed to maintain top form if Gian Piero Gasperini’s side will shock the elites.

VICTOR BONIFACE (BAYER LEVERKUSEN)

Like Lookman, Boniface was integral to Leverkusen’s unbeaten domestic run last season and has already scored thrice this term. The 23-year-old, who won the 2023/24 Bundesliga Rookie of the Season winner, would look to make big statements this season at UCL.

NATHAN TELLA (BAYER LEVERKUSEN)

Tella, a former Arsenal academy player, continues to claim his place in the Leverkusen team despite fierce competition, and the England-born winger’s versatility continues to be his greatest asset. He has featured in all four of Leverkusen’s five matches this season and will be expected to feature heavily on their UCL sojourn.

RAPHAEL ONYEDIKA (CLUB BRUGGE)

The 23-year-old FC Ebedei product won the Belgian Super League with Brugge last season and is still regarded as an important player for the Bruges-based club despite unsuccessfully pushing for a transfer to Galatasaray. It will be interesting to watch if Onyedika can get his head back in the team and turn the club’s European fortunes around.

PETER OLAYINKA (RED STAR BELGRADE)

The 28-year-old, who was born in Ibadan, is a veteran of the Europa League but stepped up to UCL with Red Star last season. He was sparingly used as the Serbian champions finished bottom of Group G and would look to feature more prominently this term.

VICTOR ELETU (AC MILAN)

The 19-year-old has been with AC Milan since 2018 and plays for its youth team in the third-tier Italian football. The midfielder is one to look out for in the future, and his inclusion in the club’s UCL squad is an indication of potential.

SAMUEL CHUKWUEZE (AC MILAN)

Big things are expected of the dribbling maestro, who mostly flatters to deceive. The 25-year-old, however, has European pedigree as a Europa League winner with Villarreal, and it is hoped he can make an impact this season.

GEORGE ILENIKHENA (AS MONACO)

ELVIS ISAAC (SLOVAN BRATISLAVA)

The 22-year-old winger plays mostly for the club’s Team B in the second division, where he has three goals in four matches. He was on the bench in all eight of Slovan’s UCL qualifying round games and could be an impact player.

VICTOR OLATUNJI (SPARTA PRAGUE)

The Sokoto-born striker has been an important player for the Czech club since joining last year. In his first season, he won the League and Cup double. He was also integral to his club qualifying for the UCL group stage for the first time in 19 years.

[TheCable]

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announced a disaster relief fund Monday in Maiduguri, Borno State, to assist Nigerian citizens impacted by floods and other disasters.

He said the relief fund is already expedient as the climate becomes more unpredictable and many places in the country are vulnerable to its vagaries.

President Tinubu announced this at the Borno Government House when he visited the state to sympathise with the government and people over the recent flooding from Alau Dam.

He urged the private sector to contribute to the fund.

Senate president Godswill Akpabio, who accompanied the President on the visit, said the National Assembly will collaborate with the executive to establish the Fund.

Tinubu visited the Shehu of Borno, an Internally Displaced Persons camp at the Government Secondary School in Maiduguri and had a drive-through of the areas affected by the disaster.

President Tinubu said: “After my visit to the Shehu of Borno and the IDP camp, I have been reflecting on how to tackle this kind of disaster and the effects of climate change.

“There must be a disaster relief fund. I will invite the private sector to team up with us and help rebuild the affected areas.

“If we take a small percentage from FAAC and put it as disaster relief fund, which will include all of you, we will be activating and strengthening our sense of belonging,” he said.

The President thanked Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq of Kwara State, who is also Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum, Bauchi State governor Bala Mohammed, Sokoto State Governor Ahmad Aliyu; and Kogi State governor Ahmed Usman Ododo; and other governors who look beyond party lines to bear the burdens of others.

 He said that Nigeria’s diversity should spur prosperity.

The President extended his sympathy to the government, the people of Yobe State, and all the states affected by flooding and pledged his government's continued support for victims of natural disasters.

“For all the people of Yobe State, I sympathise with you. We will create an outstanding programme for Nigeria to recover from this calamity. We will build our nation together,” the President assured.

The President commended the Governor of Borno State, Professor Babagana Zulum, for prompt intervention and the Theatre Command of the Nigerian military for the evacuation that saved many lives.

“I am glad that Prof. Zulum has been a very active governor. Let me assure you that we will be with you, Borno State and share the burden.

“This disaster was a natural one. It was not the making of anybody. We cannot pass the blame. We pray that the Almighty Allah will receive the souls of the departed and grant them eternal rest.

“May God also overlook their shortcomings and misdeeds on earth," he added.

President Tinubu commended all the ministries, agencies, and security outfits, particularly the military, involved in evacuation and relief and recognised the international organisations working in the state.

The Governor of Borno State thanked the President for the visit and commended the prompt intervention of Federal Government agencies, particularly NEMA and the military's Theatre Command, in evacuating stranded victims.

At the palace, the Shehu of Borno, Abubakar Ibn Umar Garba El-Kanemi, thanked the President for the honour of visiting the state after the Vice President, Sen. Kashim Shettima, had earlier represented him.

The Shehu of Borno urged the President to investigate the cause of the Alua dam collapse and overflow into the town to prevent a recurrence.

Bayo Onanuga

Special Adviser to the President

(Information & Strategy)

“Must the hunger become anger and the anger fury before anything will be done?”

- John Steinbeck

For a President who came into office after a fiercely contested election, winning the votes of less than 10% (8.55m) of the total eligible voters (93.46m) in a country of over 200m, one would have expected that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu would govern with some humility, inclusivity and with milk of human kindness that will help in healing the country.

Instead, he waltzed in with an air of arrogance and a know-it-all attitude never seen in any Nigerian leader. This arrogant streak started on his inauguration day on 29 May 2023 when he impulsively announced the removal of fuel subsidy before even assembling his team to review the country’s financials, consulting anyone or having any backup plans that would mitigate the consequences of this knee-jerk policy decision. President Tinubu, the much-advertised politico-economic maestro who was said to have “built” Lagos and “tamed” the Atlantic Ocean, has so far not lived up to that billing. He brought along with him an overhyped team of economic “wizards” from Lagos that has so far mismanaged the economy, wreaking so much economic chaos and hardships on the citizens. It is now crystal clear that this President and his economic team are not ready for prime time because they have all frozen on the big stage when the lights came on.

President Tinubu blindly accepted and is administering to Nigeria and its citizens a prescription from the World Bank of removal of subsidies on fuel, education and electricity, massive devaluation of the currency in a country that is almost entirely import dependent. No economy, no matter how powerful, can withstand these sudden shocks as were imposed onto Nigeria’s fragile economy.

These rushed and poorly thought-through economic policies have resulted in a cost-of-living crisis, widespread hunger, the worst inflation rate in 28 years, worsening insecurity and social unrest that resulted in youths protesting for an end to bad governance from 1-10 of August 2024.

In a country that is not experiencing drought or officially at war, President Tinubu’s economic policy has resulted in millions of Nigerians, predominantly women and children, going to bed hungry with no certainty of having anything to eat when they wake up. In hospitals all across the country, hunger is now the first diagnosis in children and adult patients regardless of the admitting diagnosis.

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), the non-governmental charity organization that provides humanitarian medical care in conflict zones and countries affected by endemic diseases, raised the alarm that in the last year, it has seen a 200% increase in the number of patients admitted for malnutrition and that it’s feeding Centers in northern Nigeria are overflowing with patients mostly women and children being treated on mattresses on the floor.

The catastrophic flooding that engulfed Maiduguri, attributed superficially to the rupture of the Alau dam, is symptomatic of the failure in governance and accountability. Despite the disbursement of multimillion-dollars earmarked for the dam's rehabilitation, years of neglect and decay preceded the disaster.

It is heartbreaking to watch videos of the devastation caused by these floods to a region that is slowly recovering from the ravages of the fight against Boko Haram. Massive humanitarian crisis of washed habitations, livelihoods, loss of lives, hunger, poor sanitation and disease will require serious and substantial involvement of the federal government and help from the international community.

As a result of the widespread hunger in the country, the United Nations is reported to have launched a $306 million appeal for Nigeria’s food crisis relief. These are situations we hear of in drought-affected or war-torn countries like Sudan, Afghanistan or Yemen, not our Nigeria—the land of plenty.

The response by the state and federal governments to this Tinubu-inflicted hunger on Nigerians has been half-hearted and deceitful. Instead of looking at and reviewing the immediate cause, which is the sudden removal of fuel subsidy, President Tinubu has recently doubled down by pushing the knife deeper into the belly of Nigerians by increasing the price of petroleum products again, another cruel policy decision that is worsening hunger and cost of living crisis.

President Tinubu has remained indifferent, insensitive and unresponsive to the sufferings of Nigerians. He has instead been focused on his personal comfort and enriching himself, his family and business associates while throwing crumbs at the governors, members of the National Assembly (NASS) and some Clerics of both faiths to buy their silence.

The mood of the nation is foul. President Tinubu’s policies have united citizens in anger against the government all across the country. From the citizenry to organized labour, civil servants, traditional rulers, the clergy, business community, academicians, media, NGOs, professional organizations, and the rank and file of all arms-bearing security services, no one is in a good mood.

Nigerian youths came out en masse to protest for an end to bad governance from 1-10 August 2024 to draw the attention of the government to the sufferings of the people. Security personnel were drafted from their primary assignments of fighting crime and rampaging terrorists to the streets to violently suppress the constitutionally protected rights of citizens to peaceful protests. Many youths were killed, arrested, detained and subjected to a mass trial. These protests were a harbinger of bad things to come; I liken them to pulling the pin of a live grenade.

Tinubu’s government is getting into an unnecessary, avoidable and unwinnable fight with organized labour. The arrest and detention of Comrade Joe Ajaero, the President of the Nigerian Labour Congress at the airport in Abuja on his way to an international labour meeting in the UK was an embarrassment on the international stage for this government. Organised Labour has the full support of all Nigerians in fighting for a living wage and Justice for all. So, President Tinubu’s Gestapo tactics will be vigorously resisted by all Nigerians.

There is no way of spinning it. The truth is that security has worsened under this government, contrary to the official propaganda and half-truths. President Tinubu and his managers of security are repeating President Muhammadu Buhari’s mistakes of doubling down on continuing militarization of the fight against banditry.

The state and federal governments are in denial of the fact that good governance has a direct relationship to the security of any country and that hunger is an existential threat to a country’s National security. No military, no matter how powerful, can quell the anger of hungry citizens.

In a town hall meeting on Channels TV, General CG Musa, the Chief of Defense Staff (CDS), said that although the military takes out at least 600 terrorists every week, he estimated that 2000 new terrorists get recruited within the same period. No military operation can be considered successful if its actions encourage this level of recruitment into the ranks of the enemy.

At a separate event, Lt. Gen. TA Lagbaja, the Chief of Army Staff, raised the alarm that his troops are getting battle fatigued, resorting to drugs and substance abuse and suffering from high incidence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These are worrisome signs of a cry for help from our fighting men that both the political and military leadership must take seriously.

It is no secret that there is a grand swell of discontent and frustration in the rank and file of Nigeria’s Armed Forces, as is demonstrated all over social media by soldiers complaining of hunger in the barracks and the war front, poor welfare, non-payment of entitlements, prolonged tour of duty, inadequate equipment, low morale and lack of motivation.

I watched the infuriating video clips of Bello Turji, the terrorist bandit leader operating around Shinkafi-Zurmi LGAs of Zamfara state, where he and his band of rag-tag child soldiers were celebrating their “capture” and ransacking of 2 armored personnel carriers they claimed they captured in a fight with the military.

The truth is that these vehicles were abandoned by the soldiers when they got stuck in the mud.

This bungled operation provided these terrorists an easy opportunity to win a cheap public relations war against the Nigerian state and the Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN). ⁠Cruel cynics, including some clerics on Tick-Tock, were saying that the operation was just staged to resupply Turji. Social media is awash with videos and commentaries, making the AFN a butt of jokes on the internet.

Understandably, soldiers, especially those on the war front, felt belittled, humiliated and unappreciated. This has seriously dampened the morale of our fighting men.

I commend the military on its success in taking out Halilu Sububu the notorious bandit leader and mastermind of the abduction and brutal killing of the late Sarkin Gobir, Alhaji Isa Muhammad Bawa. But, the gruesome images circulating on social media of acts of unprintable savagery committed by soldiers, which are reminiscent of the heydays of Boko Haram, are unbecoming of a professional military and bad publicity for the AFN internationally and only serve as a recruitment tool for the terrorists.

We need no reminding that winning the peace will not be on the battlefield and is not the sole responsibility of the military. Failure of both state and federal governments to protect citizens is leading to people picking up arms to protect themselves, leading to the proliferation of small and light weapons. This is a recipe for disaster and anarchy.

The world is watching, there is hunger and anger in the land but our leaders don’t seem to care.

THINGS CANNOT AND MUST NOT BE ALLOWED TO CONTINUE THIS WAY.

Usman Yusuf is a Professor of Haematology-Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplantation.

After much ado, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) on Sunday 15th September 2024, confirmed lifting fuel from the Dangote Refinery for sale to long-suffering consumers. Many are still wondering, why all the delay, insincerity, avoidable controversy, allegations and counter-allegations in the first place.

On Tuesday, the 3rd of September 2024, Nigerians were supposed to be jubilant that their country would shed decades of an embarrassing nickname of an oil-producing nation that shamelessly imports refined petroleum products coupled with inexplicable shortages.

The Lagos-based Dangote Refinery, the world’s largest integrated private oil refining project worth about US$20 billion with a production capacity of 650,000 barrels per day, rolled out its refined Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) or petrol on that day.

However, the anticipated joy was cut short even before it started. The government in its wisdom chose the same day to announce another increase in the pump price of petrol, adding to the economic hardship sweeping across Africa’s most populous nation, which witnessed nationwide street protests for 10 days in early August.

From less than 200 Naira per litre before President Bola Tinubu assumed office in May 2023, petrol pump prices went up more than three-fold, first to 617 Naira and then to 855 Naira per litre from 3rd September 2024 (1,600 Naira=US$1).

The oil sector provides about 95% of Nigeria's foreign exchange earnings and 80% of its budgetary revenues. Given the erratic public electricity supply, petrol powers the Nigerian economy, transportation of persons and goods and local industries. With the country’s high unemployment rate and the government as the largest employer of labour, self-employment also depends on the availability of fuel.

The infamous “Nigerian factor,” a euphemism for the combination of the enablers of dysfunctionalities including a cesspool of corruption, mismanagement, incompetence, inefficiency and nepotism, has made the country’s four state-run oil refineries non-operational.

By March 2021, President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration had awarded licences to 23 private companies including the Dangote group to set up local oil refineries as part of efforts to free Nigeria from the stranglehold of the “oil Cabal,” which has continued to make a kill from the importation of refined oil products.

The Cabal are powerful individuals, some in government, and profit-driven oil marketers who prioritise profits over Nigeria’s interests, with the government running the industry as a monopoly. Working hand in glove with some public officials the Cabal and their collaborators have ensured that operations and transactions of Nigeria’s oil industry, up-stream and down-stream are governed by conspiratorial opacity and secrecy.

To compound the mystery, several Nigerian presidents, including those from the return to civilian rule in 1999 after prolonged periods of military dictatorship, have combined their exalted office with the petroleum affairs portfolio as is currently the case under President Bola Tinubu’s administration. Junior ministers appointed to the petroleum ministry only play second fiddle to the almighty presidents who wield sweeping political and economic powers with unlimited access to oil money and without accountability. For instance, despite producing no oil, the failed state-owned refineries still gulp millions of dollars annually in purported workers’ remuneration and endless maintenance bills.

Nigeria is a member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), however, the rot in the domestic industry has ensured that the country does not meet its OPEC production quota.

The trust level is so low that many do not believe or have confidence in the government. The authorities' reasons for Nigeria’s failure to meet its OPEC quota, include smuggling and oil theft, which do not cut the ice among the sceptical population, who also question the domestic oil consumption figures often quoted by the government.

Corruption has unleashed outlandish tales on Nigerians, some involving animals such as snakes, monkeys and rats swallowing millions of Naira. The oil industry has its share, such as oil tankers reportedly disappearing on the high seas. Beneath the surface is the deal-making by marketers/suppliers, some accused of engaging in round-tripping or rotation of empty oil tanks and getting paid as if they brought in products, with the regulators looking the other way.

The big elephant in the room is the successive governments' claim of oil subsidy payments, which they claim were necessary to make petrol affordable and accessible for Nigerian consumers. Neither of these has happened.

While diesel and kerosene have been deregulated, PMS/petrol remains a hydra-headed monster difficult to tame because of the benefits to the Cabal and various interests involved. Oil subsidy in Nigeria is considered a phantom scheme. What is paid, by whom and to whom is not for public knowledge, yet billions of dollars are taken out of the country’s treasury.

As justification for the increase in the pump price of PMS/petrol, President Tinubu told Nigerians in his inaugural speech “Subsidy is gone,” without any explanations on the alternatives.

Subsequent increases in the pump price of petrol and other government economic policies including the floating of the local currency, the Naira, have left Nigerians reeling in cost-of-living pains with choking spiralling inflation and devalued purchasing power.

After the August #EndHunger and #EndBadGovernance national protests, the Tinubu government insists that the pains are temporary, promising that its economic policies will yield positive results in the long term.

The hypocrisy and unnecessary controversy around the Dangote Refinery, have led to allegations that some powerful interests behind the continued importation of refined petroleum products are out to frustrate Africa’s richest man and others like him trying to seal the leaky pipe of corruption, draining Nigeria’s scare foreign exchange revenue.

First, was the inexplicable decision to deny the refinery of local crude oil, which forced it to resort to import. This was followed by the allegation that the petrol produced by the refinery was of inferior quality.

After much debate, the NNPCL on the directive of President Tinubu is to begin the sale of crude oil in Naira to the Dangote refinery from the 1st of October 2024. It is also reported that the NNPCL is now buying PMS from the refinery in Naira for sale through marketers, even though both sides do not seem to agree on the price.

One key question - was the increase in the pump price of petrol on the 3rd of September a deliberate government action to pre-empt the Dangote refinery’s rollout of PMS? If so, what was the end game, and could the increase not wait until both sides agreed on a pump price?

Why take Nigerians through unnecessary chaos, artificial scarcity and long queues at filling stations with petrol selling for up to 1,400 Naira a litre or more in parts of the country, amid a booming black market? If petrol is deregulated like diesel and kerosene as claimed by the authorities, why would Dangote refinery sell to the NNPCL and not directly to the final consumers?

When will Nigeria’s oil industry be transparent? Even the Lagos land where the Dangote refinery is located has not escaped controversy. While industry sources claim that US$100 million was paid for the land, some state government sources say only US$3 million was the amount paid.

To Alhaji Aliko Dangote, President/Chief Executive of Dangote Group, the largest conglomerate in West Africa with a presence in 17 African countries and the first Nigerian company to join the Forbes Global 2000 Companies list, the refinery project is only part of the diversification of his vast business empire. As an experienced mogul who began business very early in life with a loan from his uncle, Dangote 67, is no stranger to the difficulties of doing business in Nigeria, even though his critics claim he had been enjoying preferential concessions from successive administrations.

Even so, the Kano State-born billionaire from northern Nigeria has made no secret of his frustrations with the controversy trailing the refinery project. The stress has taken its toll with his visible premature grey hairs. Dangote has disclosed being warned by a colleague against building the refinery in Nigeria but may not have expressed any regrets about such a huge investment in his country.

However, the Dangote refinery experience raises critical questions about Nigeria’s sincerity and readiness to attract local or foreign investments. As a philanthropist, who supports humanitarian initiatives, and whose group is arguably the largest private sector employer of labour in his country, Alhaji Dangote is contributing to the building of a better Nigeria and Africa. In 2014 he endowed more than US$1.25 billion to scale up the work of his Dangote Foundation in health, education and economic empowerment. Dangote needs no validation as a successful businessman in Nigeria, Africa or globally, and he can invest his money wherever he chooses.

It would be tantamount to criminal sabotage for greedy, insensitive and profit-driven Nigerians to use their privileged positions to force philanthropists such as Alhaji Dangote to abandon Nigerians, especially the poor and needy already dealt a devastating blow by bad governance, mismanagement and corruption. The World is watching!

Ejime is an Author, Global Affairs Analyst, and Consultant on Peace & Security and Governance Communications

By virtually all performance indices, the Godwin Obaseki-led administration in Edo State has done exceptionally well in nearly eight years. Indeed, without equivocation, the “Heartbeat of the Nation” has joined the league of top-notch states in Nigeria regarding socio-economic development.

This reality, which we can all take pride in, is underpinned by the consistent and appreciable rise in the State’s Internally Generated Revenue coupled with prudence and innovation in managing Edo State’s resources.

Edo State’s Impressive Economic Performance

Specifically, from a mere N24 billion in 2016, Edo State’s IGR grew astronomically to hit N65 billion in 2023, and that was even before the failed monetary policy of the Federal Government bashed the Naira.

This achievement of almost tripling the IGR in seven years is a testament to the Obaseki-led administration’s innovation and creativity in fiscal management. In 2022, Edo State ranked eighth among the 36 States and the FCT, with an IGR of N47.5 billion. The “2023 Fiscal Performance Ranking of the States” by BudgIT (www.budgit.org/) ranks Edo State sixth in the country. This puts the State among those that “have comparatively limited dependence on federally distributed revenue for their operations and thus have greater viability if they were to exist as an independent entity theoretically”.

Alongside this reality, the Edo State Government has, in the past eight years, created a genuinely enabling economic environment that has attracted several private sector investors. Today, Edo State has remained one of the best investment destinations among Nigeria’s 36 states. The State has reduced the cost of governance and almost entirely digitized the process.

The Obaseki Administration’s Strategic Projects

Under the Godwin Obaseki-led administration, Edo State has implemented numerous economically strategic projects, such as the Ossiomo Power Plant, Oil Palm Programme, Ethanol Plant, Modular Refinery, Benin Port, etc. The State has also implemented the most impactful education transformation program (EdoBEST) in West Africa. The latest plank is the recently launched EdoCert, a cutting-edge digital platform designed to streamline certificate issuance and verification in the State.

These accomplishments were undoubtedly a product of transformational leadership anchored on a clear vision and roadmap. This is why, even today, Edo State is yet a “work-in-progress” and needs to be supported by political buccaneers and cowboys at the helm of affairs.

Thus, at this critical moment of Edo 2024, as the electorate votes to elect a new governor on September 21, 2024, they have only one choice: the man with proven capacity and competence. Governor Godwin Obaseki is aware of this absolute minimum requirement for his successor. He is backing a tried and tested candidate who will keep the Edo Flag flying and raise the bar of governance in the State and Nigeria. Thus, Governor Obaseki affirms that “we have set things in order and achieved progress. 

Vision for the Future: Dr. Asue Ighodalo’s Agenda for Edo State

Now, it is time to solidify the reforms and implement projects focused on improving the quality of life of our people. And here comes Dr. Asue Ighodalo, whose vision for Edo State is “a place where every citizen can live a good and secure life.” A distinguished Economist and Lawyer, Ighodalo is in the race with an agenda with five strategic focus areas.

His prosperity agenda is anchored on Security, Law, and Order. He insists, “We will work hard to ensure that security, law, and order are the foundation of our prosperity.”

Under the agenda, Edo State shall support the security forces, adopt technology, establish a security trust, build trust in the people, engage the community, enforce the rule of law, and restore “our values” as a people.

Ighodalo-led administration in Edo State shall also alleviate hardship, provide stable power, provide good jobs, build roads, offer quality, affordable healthcare, access to quality education, and empower the youth and women.

Ighodalo, concerning economic growth, promises that “we will leverage our competitive advantages to grow our economy and create prosperity for all.” This shall be underpinned by Good Governance, under which “we will deliver quality services to our people and ensure that we are transparent and accountable.”

The Edo State environment will also be taken care of, and Ighodalo promises that “we will protect our environment and tackle erosion, flooding, and deforestation.”

In sum, Ighodalo, the boardroom guru, affirms that “it is the Edo spirit of excellence and greatness combined with hard work that will guide us on this pathway to prosperity for all. Let us work together to create an Edo State representing the best of us and what we can achieve.”

Asue Ighodalo’s manifesto is built on an excellent track record of accomplishments in diverse sectors of the Nigerian economy. With two first degrees in two crucial areas of Economics and Law, obtained from top-notch institutions (the University of Ibadan and London School of Economics and Political Science, respectively), Asue has bestrode the Nigerian corporate world like a colossus with giant footprints.

Having been called to the Nigerian Bar since 1985, Asue has core practice areas in corporate and project finance, securities and capital markets, energy and natural resources, and mergers and acquisitions. He co-founded Banwo & Ighodalo, one of Nigeria’s foremost corporate and commercial law firms, with 15 partners and over 100 lawyers.

Until December 2023, Asue was Chairman of the Boards of Sterling Bank Limited, Nigerian Breweries Plc, Edo State Investment Summit, Levene Energy Group Limited, and Global Mix Limited. He is the immediate past Chairman of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) and also served on the Board of the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority from May 2017 to May 2021.

Asue has lectured on the Roles and Duties of Directors and Corporate Governance at the Lagos Business School (LBS) and the Institute of Directors. He was conferred with an Honorary Doctorate Degree in Economics (D.Litt.) (Honoris Causa) by the Edo State University, Uzairue, in November 2021.

Making the case for the next governor

Therefore, in the spirit of continuity and sustainability, the Godwin Obaseki-led administration is fielding and backing Asue Ighodalo so that Edo State will keep rising to greater heights. Asue has all it takes to expand the frontiers of good governance and move Edo State to the seemingly elusive economic Eldorado. He has the experience, exposure, competence, and capacity to deliver!

• Okeke, a National Daily Columnist, practicing Economist, Business Strategist, Sustainability expert, and ex-chief Economist of Zenith Bank Plc, can be reached via This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

“Scramble for Africa” historically refers to the late 19th and early 20th centuries when European powers colonised and divided the African continent, seeking political, economic, and strategic dominance. Africa was mercilessly exploited, and to date, the scars remain. With its rich resources and sizable population, Nigeria became a prime target of British colonial authorities, a historical fact that underscores its continued strategic importance on the continent. Fast forward to the 21st century, and a new scramble for Africa is underway. This time, global powers compete for influence, resources, and markets rather than territories. Once again, Nigeria plays a central role in these geopolitical and economic dynamics.

In this modern scramble, the dynamics differ considerably. The focus has shifted from territorial to economic conquest wrapped in infrastructure investments, aid and strategic alliances. Leading global actors—such as China, the United States, the European Union, and emerging powers like Russia, Turkey, and India—vie for influence across Africa through diplomacy, trade deals, and development initiatives. While politically independent, Africa remains a stage for intense geopolitical competition, as the world’s most powerful nations recognise the continent’s potential and seek to secure a share of its resources and promising future.

Nigeria is pivotal in Africa’s trajectory as the continent’s most populous country and largest economy. The country is rich in oil reserves, has a rapidly expanding technology sector, and boasts an increasingly youthful and growing population. By 2050, projections indicate that one in four people will be African, and Nigeria is expected to account for a significant portion of that demographic shift. This youthful population, with its energy and potential, presents a promising future, making Nigeria a focal point in global power plays, with its future development and stability crucial for Africa and the world.

However, Nigeria also faces many domestic challenges that complicate its ability to maximise the benefits of this shadow battle for influence by global powers. These issues include endemic corruption, ineffective political leadership, and security concerns. These issues have created a fragile environment for economic growth, even as foreign powers, as part of their grand strategy, seek to invest in the country’s resources and infrastructure to position their countries for influence and economic advantage. 

In recent years, a series of high-profile international summits have been held aimed at solidifying relationships with African nations. These summits, often referred to as an ‘old trick’ in international diplomacy, remain effective in the modern scramble for Africa. They serve as platforms for global powers to compete for influence and partnerships, highlighting the continued importance of Africa in the global geopolitical landscape. 

Unfortunately, Africa has learnt nothing from history. Some notable examples of these partnership summits include the Russia-Africa Summit, the U.S.-Africa Leaders’ Summit, the European Union-African Union (AU) Summit, the Tokyo International Conference on African Development, and China’s Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).

Each of these summits represents a strategic attempt by global powers to strengthen ties, secure economic partnerships, and cement their geopolitical foothold in Africa. For instance, the European Union’s Global Gateway project, announced at the EU-AU Summit, seeks to counter China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) by offering substantial investments in African infrastructure. Likewise, the U.S.-Africa Leaders’ Summit highlighted a $55 billion investment plan over three years, reflecting a renewed focus by Western powers on regaining influence in a continent where China’s presence has become increasingly dominant.

China’s FOCAC remains a crucial pillar of its engagement with Africa. At the 2024 FOCAC summit, China pledged USD 51 billion for 30 infrastructure projects across Africa, positioning Beijing for more significant influence on the continent. Meanwhile, emerging powers like India, Turkey, and the Gulf states are also working to deepen their ties with African nations, creating more comprehensive partnership options for African leaders.

In this evolving global chessboard, the question remains: Is Nigeria a pawn in the hands of international powers, or can it become an active player shaping its destiny? Nigeria’s vast natural resources, demographics, expanding technology sector, and strategic location make it an attractive playground for foreign investment and global geopolitics. However, the country’s ability to benefit from this renewed battle for global influence hinges on its ability to navigate the complex landscape of international diplomacy and partnerships, in addition to the quality of domestic governance , the power of immigration , the rise of Ai and ICT and its positioning in the new global economic order. This is purely a function of leadership that has understanding and requisite navigational skill. 

At present, Nigeria faces a delicate balancing act. On one hand, foreign investments can drive much-needed infrastructure development, job creation, and technological advancement. However, the ever-present risk of economic dependency and the challenge of maintaining sovereignty exists. China’s large-scale infrastructure investments, often funded by loans, have sparked concerns over Nigeria’s rising debt burden and the potential for long-term economic vulnerability. These concerns underscore the need for Nigeria to adopt a cautious approach, ensuring that foreign partnerships do not compromise the country’s sovereignty or its long-term developmental goals. This delicate balance requires strategic decision-making and a clear understanding of Nigeria’s long-term interests in the global geopolitical landscape.

Nigeria’s potential to play an active role in the African continent and emerging global dynamics is inextricably linked to its domestic stability, achieved by strengthening democratic institutions, improving security, promoting inclusive development, and maintaining a favourable investment  environment. Nigeria inevitably must build a strong economy as the foundation for effective foreign policy. We cannot continue to tumble from one economic policy to the next and expect to be given strategic importance in this new war for influence by powerful global nations on the continent.

Nigeria’s leadership is central to its success in this new scramble for Africa. Without visionary and strategic leadership capable of understanding global dynamics and advancing Nigeria’s long-term interests, the country risks being left behind in the race for international influence. The need for such leadership is urgent, as Nigeria’s leaders must prioritise its strategic autonomy, leveraging its vast resources and human capital to negotiate favourable terms with global powers.

Nigeria needs to be more active in a world where geopolitical competition intensifies. Its foreign policy must proactively build alliances with traditional and emerging powers while safeguarding the nation’s long-term interests. The country’s leaders must recognise the importance of actively shaping Nigeria’s future and Africa’s collective destiny. Nigeria, with its potential and resources, has a significant role in shaping the continent’s future. 

So far, sound bites from Nigeria’s foreign affairs minister, Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, seem reasonable, but action is more important. Nigeria is championing the 4D principle, Democracy, Demographics, Development and Diaspora. We led the UN tax reforms but till date we are yet to appoint  a permanent representative in the global body to further advance our agenda items. Nigeria has yet to appoint substantive ambassadors for all our missions in nearly one year, yet we expect the world to take us seriously in diplomatic engagements. Regional leadership in West Africa and the continent should be our natural forte, but we also are not getting it right. 

As one of Africa’s largest economies, Nigeria is uniquely positioned to lead the continent in defining its collective positions in dealings with external powers. However, this requires smart diplomacy and a Pan-African approach, whereby African nations present a united front in their negotiations with global actors. If African nations act as individual entities, they risk being divided and conquered by more considerable powers with far more excellent resources and strategic leverage.

Africa’s ability to thrive in this new era of global competition depends on its capacity to unite as a bloc to secure mutually beneficial deals with external partners. By adopting a coordinated Pan-African strategy, African nations can negotiate from a position of strength, ensuring they benefit from foreign engagement rather than being exploited.

The new scramble for Africa presents both opportunities and risks for Nigeria. Foreign investment offers a pathway to infrastructure development, economic growth, and technological innovation. However, the risk of neocolonialism and economic dependency looms as Nigeria and other African nations rely on external capital for their development. A culture of dependence on aids and foreign capital often creates a disincentive for critical thinking and institutional development. 

Nigeria’s future will depend on its ability to manage these external influences, prioritise national interests, and strengthen its internal governance. With strategic foresight and effective leadership, Nigeria can turn the renewed global scramble for Africa into an opportunity for national development, positioning itself as a key player worldwide. However, if Nigeria fails to navigate these challenges, it risks repeating past mistakes and falling prey to the forces that once sought to dominate it.

The historical and contemporary scrambles for Africa share similarities in the way foreign powers seek to exploit Africa’s resources for their benefit. However, the modern scramble is driven by economic partnerships rather than direct colonisation. With exemplary leadership, Nigeria can be central to this new global competition as one of Africa’s most influential countries. While foreign investments bring growth opportunities, Nigeria must navigate the challenges of dependency, corruption, and internal security issues to ensure that it benefits from the new scramble without repeating past mistakes. Nigeria’s future depends on its ability to manage foreign relations while prioritising its national interests and development.

Many Nigerians are understandably shocked that petrol being pumped out of the Dangote refinery (DR) will not be selling at a relatively affordable price at the pumps, or a little cheaper than the imported variety. Long conditioned to subsidised products, they had expected that a locally produced petrol will offer a huge relief from the cost-of-living crisis they’ve been enduring since last year. Hope was heightened when the government announced recently that Dangote will buy Nigerian crude oil in naira and sell his products within the country in the same currency. In many social media platforms and talk shows, Nigerians have been busy analysing the refinery’s production economics and explaining why we should be buying cheap fuel soon.

‘’Why would Dangote not sell his petrol cheap or cheaper than imported product when he is not bearing cost of shipping; LC charges; wharf charges; insurance and other costs borne by importers?’’, a disgruntled university professor wrote last week. Another person noted on X, ’’Anything above N766 per litre from Dangote is back to square one’’. One other commentator wrote, ‘’Queuing for fuel is not our problem. If Dangote’s fuel is not cheaper than what we have now, then the whole thing is not worth it’’.

I had always known that Dangote’s fuel will not come cheap, but I did not expect that it would go as high as about N1,000/litre. When I visited the refinery in July as part of a media tour, I had remarked during the question-and-answer session that Nigerians were looking forward to buying petrol from the refinery at between N400 and N600 per litre, against the retail price of over about N700 per litre then. My remark drew a chuckle from the man himself.

Just this morning, NNPC announced that it would sell Dangote petrol at various prices, depending on location. In Lagos, for example, the product will sell at N950 per litre at its stations; N980 in Rivers; N960.22 in Oyo; N999.22 in Kaduna, Sokoto and FCT and N1,079.22 in Borno. NNPC will make a margin of N26.58 per litre, after incurring distribution cost of cost N15/litre; inspection fee of N.97/litre and NMDPRA fee of N8.99/litre. On Sunday, NNPC had told us that it purchased petrol at N898/litre (it actually paid 55 cents/litre) from Dangote.

I commend NNPC for these disclosures, and I should note that these prices are only obtainable for the month of September when NNPC is buying in dollars from the refinery. For October when crude would be sold in naira, the prices may change, depending on a few variables like the exchange rate and the crude oil price in the international market.

Clearly, the downstream market is now fully deregulated, and for the first time in our history, subsidy is truly gone. Nigerians should brace up for a market determined pricing structure that would be influenced by a few factors: price of crude oil; exchange rate; cost of refining; overheads; borrowing costs and insurance. Crude oil price will continue to be a major determinant of petrol price. Even when NNPC sells crude in naira to DR, the pump price would still be determined by the prevailing exchange rate. If Naira continues to slide, petrol price will increase, even if other factors remain unchanged.

This morning, crude oil is selling at about $72 and at the exchange rate of N1,600/dollar, Dangote would be buying a barrel of crude oil at about N115,200. Although there are many other products that are obtained from a barrel of crude oil, petrol will not come cheap because of other inherent costs in the production process. Dangote is highly indebted to Nigerian banks, and even before his refinery began production, he was already repaying and servicing his debts. He had told the media in July that he had incurred huge interest charges due to failed attempts in land acquisition in Ogun state and delays in construction in Lagos state due to communal issues. The accumulated interest charges and other interest costs will count in the pricing of his petrol.

I am sure that the refinery is fully insured by foreign insurers and huge premiums are paid yearly in dollars. According to loss adjusters in the United States, a refiner worth $1 billion will likely pay a yearly insurance premium of $2.5 million or more. You can imagine what Dangote Refinery, the world’s largest single-train refiner, worth about $20 billion, will pay every year as a premium. This will also be factored into its pricing structure.

Dangote’s costs of production must also be very high and this will impact heavily on the pricing of its products. The refinery provides everything for itself, including building three ports within the complex for its use in bringing in heavy equipment and building a huge 400 MW power plant to provide own electricity. In addition, DR has over 8,000 persons in its payroll. During construction, 29,000 Nigerians and 11,000 expatriates worked at the site. The huge wage bill would have to be taken care of by the selling prices of the products.

But despite the relatively high cost of Dangote petrol, this refinery is about the best thing that has ever happened to Nigeria’s industrialization and economic development in terms of the multiplier effects and expected uninterrupted fuel supply. Since the refinery will buy crude oil in Naira, that should ameliorate the impacts on the exchange rate. As the Naira firms up in the months ahead, I expect inflation to dip southwards. With all other factors remaining the same (they hardly do, anyway), prices of other items in the market should fall. The only reason petrol will sell cheap is if crude oil goes for as low as $40 per barrel or if the dollar exchanges for N800 or less. Both have significant implications for the economy, of course. But with tension mounting in the Middle East, cheaper crude oil is not likely soon.

I have taken note of the assurance from the finance minister, Wale Edun, that petrol price will fall as the refinery scales up production. Speaking at the refinery on Sunday, Edun said, ‘’We’re expecting that as this refinery, and even others, ramp up production, scale and achieve economies of scale, there should be the opportunity – and there is definitely the potential – to reduce their costs which should be passed on to consumers’’.

I agree, provided all other factors remain unchanged. Will they?

President Bola Tinubu has arrived in Maiduguri to commiserate with the government and people of Borno state over the recent flood incident. 

On September 10, flood displaced many residents in the Fori, Galtimari, Gwange, and Bulabulin areas of Maiduguri.

No fewer than 30 people have been reported dead from the flood which occurred following the collapse of the Alau dam.

Vice-President Kashim Shettima had visited Maiduguri shortly after the incident, describing it as the “most catastrophic” flood in Borno state in the last three decades.

Speaking during an on-the-spot assessment, Shettima said the impacts of the floods “exceeded estimation”.

Tinubu had directed the immediate evacuation of victims of the flood while he was away from the country.

The president left Abuja for China on August 29 but stopped in Dubai before arriving in Beijing on September 1.

After six days in China, Tinubu left Beijing for London where he met with King Charles III on September 12.

The President arrived Nigeria just before midnight on Sunday, September 15, and was received at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport by some members of the administration and heads of security agencies.

[TheCable]

IT is bizarre. The International Monetary Fund, IMF, calling on the government to protect the poor from the impact of the fuel price hikes it engineers! To add to its criminal thought process against the Nigerian people, the same IMF is telling the Tinubu administration that fuel prices in Nigeria are too low and need to be increased because it is allegedly selling below market price. What market?

To understand this, we need to know that the Western Europe-owned IMF and its Siamese American twin, the World Bank, have since 1981 told every successive Nigerian government that our petroleum product prices are too cheap and must be increased. Based on their ‘advice’, every successive Nigerian government increases the price of petrol. The more government increases the price, the more impoverished Nigerians become to the extent that even as an oil-endowed and oil-rich country, Nigeria became the poverty capital of the world. Yet, the West imposes ever more pressure that the price be increased.

Let me give you an idea of the depths the IMF and World Bank have pushed us. When this shoving of Nigerian governments started under the Shagari administration, a litre of fuel was raised from 15.3 Kobo to 20 Kobo. Then as part of so-called reforms and the ruinous Structural Adjustment Programme, SAP, the Babangida regime first moved the price on March 31, 1986 to 39.5K, then, two years later to 42K , on to 60K, and finally, 70K.

The illegal Shonekan interim regime moved it to N5, Abacha reduced it two weeks later to N3.25 before moving it to N15 and two days later reducing it to N11. The Abubakar regime took it to N25 before reducing it 17 days later to N20. Obasanjo in a series of increases took it to N70 and Buhari took it to N238 before handing over to Tinubu on May 29, 2023. In the last 15 months, President Tinubu has increased the price, first to N545.883, then to N617, and now to N897.

The goals of the IMF and World Bank are to dominate the world on behalf of the West, discourage production by the underdeveloped countries and ensure they remain providers of raw materials. Part of their strategy is to bury client states in unnecessary and doubtful debts and, reduce them to junk status.

Anybody who thinks that these Western vehicles of underdevelopment have by their expression of sympathy with the poor become humane or repentant is mistaken. The IMF and World Bank are bandit organisations, ever-ready to steal from the poor and deprive the hungry child even half a loaf of bread.

They are undertakers of the West who dig the graves of the poor and underdeveloped countries and bury their hopes and, possibly, their future. So, if they express sympathy with the plight of their victims, it is not skin-deep. It is like a person carrying out cosmetic surgery, that in itself neither changes the age, nor the person.

In the midst of mass misery, deprivation, hunger and anger, the narration is being pushed that our political elites admire China and would want Nigeria to develop like the Chinese. Yet, they would not take the basic steps towards development the children of Chairman Mao Tse Tung and Chui Enlai have taken. Not even to start with the most basic step, which is to develop a thought process.

The basic principle of China is that the business of the Chinese government is business; in contrast, the Nigerian government says it has no business in business. So, how can the Chinese reforms be its model? In China, there is crime and punishment as indeed should be in any sane clime. In Nigeria, there is crime, but punishment depends on social status. As the ruling All Progressive Congress, APC, had often told its opponents, come over and join us, and all your sins (crimes) are forgiven. Indeed, it is easier for the camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a politically-connected Nigerian elite to be successfully tried in court. Even if by happenstance he were found guilty, there is a guarantee that he would not spend his full prison term behind bars.

So, when government claimed that the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, President Joe Ajaero was detained last week on his way to the United Kingdom because nobody is above the law, I am not sure anybody believed it. The issue of Ajaero is not about law, it is about lack of coordination in government and little veiled incompetence amongst the security services. How come almost every arm of the security services are inviting or arresting the same person for a sundry of known and unknown reasons?

The labour leader has been arrested, and even beaten by a state government and, multiple arms of the police and the secret services. I will not be surprised if local traffic wardens like LASMA arrest him to ‘assist with investigations’. So the issue about Nigerians like Ajaero and the youths on treason trial for publicly demonstrating their feelings, is not about Nigeria being a country of laws, but about social justice.

This, again, raises our claims to want the Chinese model of reforms. Unlike Nigeria where the law is supposed to be even-handed for every citizen, in China, the higher you are in public office, the higher your punishment. A crime in China, say for theft of public funds which would earn a lowly citizen years imprisonment, would fetch a highly placed public official the death penalty. Let me also say that from my observation of the Chinese legal system, punishment for crimes are carried out.

It is the failure to bring crooks to justice that has saddled Nigeria with lots of baggage that would not allow the democratic system breathe. For instance, our elections are a litany of crimes for which the perpetrators, including hired thugs, are richly rewarded. That is why certified street thugs in various parts of the country are multi-billionaires.

I feel ashamed as a Nigerian that each time elections are to be held, especially at national and state levels, former leaders, serving and past governors, senators, religious leaders, academics and security chiefs gather to sign peace accords with a promise not to rig elections or perpetrate violence. As it turns out, these agreements are not worth the paper on which they are written.

After such agreements, the peacemakers -I wonder who picks their bills – retire to their homes, and the gladiators in the elections do what they know best.

We can learn lessons on development but we will be deceiving ourselves if we think oppressors will fall in love with the oppressed. You can take this to the bank, including the World Bank.

The Yorùbá culture has always been blessed with the attention of intellectuals, scholars and academics who considered it a worthwhile subject of discourse. Without any doubt, the Yorùbá culture is one of the most studied cultural forms of life in the world. This is apart from the many scholars, cultural enthusiasts and intellectuals that the culture itself has produced, from Samuel Ajayi Crowder to Samuel Johnson, from Akinwunmi Isola to J. A. Atanda to Saburi Biobaku, and from Wole Soyinka to Wande Abimbola, Oyekan Owomoyela to Toyin Falola. But we must also not forget the cultural and indigenous intellectuals, like D. O. Fagunwa, Archibishop Ayo Ladigbolu and Adebayo Faleti, to name just a few, who’s very being and profession are invested in the culture itself. All these intellectuals are those who have laid the foundation for entrenching the influence and the national and global reach of the culture, as well as its hold on our collective imagination.

In this piece, I am glad to dedicate this critical analysis to Baba Archbishop Ayo Ladigbolu who has been a cultural icon for me since way back. I have written so much about my wondering and wandering sensibility as a young boy growing up and reflecting about my context and surrounding. Yoruba culture and history have always held a deep source of curiosity for me, and Pa Ladigbolu is a phenomenal figure who constitutes a triadic embodiment of the theological, the cultural and the political, and one at that who influenced my scholarship indescribably. That places Baba within the crosshair of my search for cultural and theological enlightenment, especially about the Yorùbá culture’s engagement with non-Yorùbá influences. Indeed, in many of my intense political conversations with HE Chief Olusegun Obasanjo around Nigerian politics and the place of the southwest within it, he had always been insistent that I must not miss the opportunity to sit at the feet of the Master, Archbishop Ladigbolu, since I have chosen to follow in the footstep of my grandfather and the celebrated historian of culture, Rev. David Aibinu Olaopa, of blessed memory. This was an added impetus since I had already taken him as a father and a mentor.

Baba Ladigbolu is phenomenal. He occupies the same circle of cultural preservationists that include Tunde Kelani the filmmaker and the Afenifere, the pan-Yorùbá cultural and political forum. However, Baba’s historical trajectory is one with a significant difference. And this is because he is a minister of God who is deeply ingrained in both his cultural environment as well as in Christianity. His career therefore enables a deep insight into the understanding of the conflicted relationship between culture and modernity, and how one could begin to unravel the significance of modernity within a culture’s own development. Indeed, the cultural and professional trajectories of Baba Ladigbolu provides us with a fundamental framework for how an ecumenical framework could be generated between an indigenous culture and a foreign religion. Pa Ladigbolu achieved that almost seamless coherence that allowed him to become a priest of the Methodist Church of Nigeria (and to rise up to the zenith of its hierarchy as an archbishop) while retaining a very deep cultural mooring in the Yorùbá heritage.

We immediately see the significance of this fusion in an age when Pentecostal Christianity built its own incursion into a different culture on the basis of the demonization of those cultures as heathenism. Archbishop Ladigbolu deployed his contact with western education as the fulcrum for developing an open-minded cultural sensibility that allows for the mutual reinforcement between Christianity and the Yorùbá culture in terms of the emergence of a modern sensibility that enables a conversation between the two. When I think of Pa Ladigbolu, I see an older and more perfect reflection of how Ali Mazrui’s Africa’s triple heritage thesis could become an embodied lifestyle and philosophy. I have written so much about how my upbringing enabled me to see how the three dynamics—Christianity, traditional Yoruba religion and Islam—could relate in a non-violent manner. Baba Ladigbolu was raised as a Muslim within a deeply culturally conscious Yoruba context and he converted to Christianity while still advocating the preservation of the Yorùbá culture.

Being born within a household that traces its lineage to Alaafin Siyanbola Ladigbolu I, and growing up within an authentic palace comes with its own unique educational value in the paraphernalia of the Yoruba culture. One of the deepest implications was that even before encountering western education through his many travels and the experience they yielded, he had already assimilated an enlarged mind that accepted the theological ramifications of Islam, Yoruba theology and Christianity. His worldview was already wide enough and empathetic to accommodate his myriad experiences traveling from one place to another. We can speculate that his enlarged sensibility owes a lot to the openminded accommodationist framework that the Yorùbá culture itself makes possible. The Yorùbá culture was able to accommodate the incursion of Islam and Christianity because it lacks the exclusionary ontology of both.

I prefer to see Archbishop Ladigbolu as an exemplar of Antonio Gramsci’s understanding of who an intellectual is. Gramsci bifurcated between the “traditional” and the “organic” intellectuals. The traditional intellectuals—teachers, scientists, priests, artists—contrary to their claims to be the bearers of universal values, are actually those that emerged from within a privileged or even a dominant social class, and who are compelled by the dynamics of that class to reinforce its values and philosophies. The organic intellectuals, on the other hand, are more organically connected to the masses because they grew and emerged from within non-privileged strata, transformed their status through education especially, and imposed on themselves the obligation to raise the fortune of that strata. Intellectuals, Gramsci argues, are recognized by their need for the critical elaboration of a new understanding of the world. This is what determines the functions of the intellectuals in any society.   

Indeed, I want to make a radical assertion that Pa Ladigbolu possesses the status of both a traditional and an organic intellectual. When he became a Christian and the entire household became convulsed with fear and tears, they had no way of understanding the contradiction in their worries. They were Yorùbá who embraced Islam. And so there should not have been any worries about one of them embracing Christianity. And if their worry had been about his possible loss of cultural knowledge, little did they know that he would become a cultural champion that he is today.

A much more fundamental challenge embedded in Pa Ladigbolu’s stature is the tension between absolutist theological ontology of Christianity and the accommodationist and liberal worldview of the Yorùbá. How was the archbishop of the Methodist Church in Nigeria able to balance the claim that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life with Christianity’s paganization of non-Christian cultures? How is Christianity’s proselytizing dynamics squared with the non-proselytizing nature of Yorùbá traditional religion? One way to respond to this is to argue that Pa Ladigbolu’s cultural enthusiasm had to take a back seat while he was the Archbishop of the Methodist Church. And this cultural advocacy had picked up immediately he retired as the archbishop. Even if this explanation is far-fetched given his fearless determination to be Yorùbá at all cost, no one—not even the Church—could deny that Archbishop Ayo Ladigbolu was a staunch Yorùbá who deeply loves God.  

Combining two near incompatible theological views, in my assessment, becomes a courageous plus for Pa Ladigbolu, an insight into the capacity of the Yorùbá culture to keep inventing itself in the face of challenges. The Yorùbá understanding of àṣà demonstrates a flexible adaptability that has allowed the Yorùbá to not only domesticate non-Yorùbá influences, but to also fit into any cultural and theological contexts wherever they found themselves. This is what had made possible, for instance, the Candomblé and Santeria religious experiences from Brazil to Cuba and beyond. These religious forms emerged from the syncretic fusion of the Yorùbá òrìṣà tradition with Roman Catholicism. What is even more significant is that Candomblé, for example, lacks the same institutionalized framework determined by an orthodoxy and a sacred text. Its heterogeneous form allows for significant incorporation in the same way that Ifá incorporates non-Yorùbá events.

This is the same way that Baba Ladigbolu could be understood as a modernizer of the Yorùbá culture and tradition. Being the leader of the Yorùbá Unity Forum (YUF) as well as the chairman of the Oyo Metropolitan Development provide the opportunity to do two major things. First, it allows him to pursue a program of creative urbanism, what the Yorùbá themselves are historically famous for—transforming Yorùbá cities in line with modern exigencies. And second, Baba’s advocacy also brings to the fore the roles of traditional structures and institutions in the development of modern existence.

For Baba, even as the best of modern scholars have realized, culture matters. It must be the platform around which our being-in-the-world is measured and extended to others. The full extent of his multicultural experiences has allowed him to both serve the Almighty while pushing the bounds of theological and cultural similarities and differences. And so, in straddling Gramsci’s distinction between the traditional and the organic intellectual, Archbishop Ayo Ladigbolu becomes an exemplar for other intellectuals—a sum of cultural knowledge that broadens our cultural worldviews.