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![[OPINION] Emir Sanusi and Battle of Kwatarkwashi - Festus Adedayo](/media/k2/items/cache/d2013e771365f8ed521dc113cbe056b1_L.jpg)
The duo of Abba Yusuf, governor of Kano State, and the Nigerian presidency stand the risk of plunging Kano back into the year 1893. Their weapon would be politics and votes of the over 2 million people of Kano. In the year 1893, in the words of highly rated scholar on Northern emirate administration, C. N. Ubah, a bitterly disputed succession battle plunged the Kano emirate into anarchy and civil war. Indeed, the Kano royal family had overtime been a hotbed of divisions and acrimony. Beginning from the first civil war fought in Kano in 1565, the royal house of Kano had been bedeviled by internal strife and bloodshed. In 1648, the house was again ravaged by a second civil war shortly after the death of Muhammed Alwali, also known as El Kutumbi. The strife continued even till 1806 when Kano became part and parcel of the nascent Sokoto Caliphate. That year, followers of Usman dan Fodio forcefully drove out Alwali, Kano’s last Hausa emir, from the city. Thereafter, in 1807, after a protracted struggle with the Fula warriors towards the end of that year, Alwali was ambushed and assassinated at Burum-Burum in present day Kano. His assassination spelled the end of the Kutumbaw line of Hausa aristocrats in Kano, as well as the fall of the Bagauda dynasty that had been in place for 800 years.
In modern times, we have had peaceful enthronement and dethronement of Kano Emirs. For instance, one day in August, 1963, Sir Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto, suddenly woke up from a belligerent side of his bed and conceived the sack of the Emir of Kano, Sir Muhammadu Sanusi. Persuaded that courtesy demanded he should inform his protégé and Prime Minister, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa of this move, Bello sent his friend, Alhaji Isa Kaita, Waziri of Katsina, then Northern Region Minister for Works and later, Minister of Education between 1957-1966, to Lagos.
There, Kaita met Balewa with his five ministers – Muhammadu Ribadu, Shehu Shagari, Zanna Bukar Dipcharima, Maitama Sule and Tudun Wada. When he broke the news, Balewa and the others were horrified and expressed their opposition to it. “Tell the Sardauna that he should not do it, for Kano will be on fire,” they chorused. Sanusi was a highly revered and loved monarch with a cultic following. Then Kaita rose and told the Prime Minister and the five ministers, “I am not here for permission. I am here to inform you that the Sardauna had made up his mind. I am afraid, no going back”. Bello and Balewa later agreed that Azare, headquarters of the Katagum Emirate in Northern Bauchi province, should be Sanusi’s banishment place. Two days after, Sanusi was dethroned and banished to Azare where he died in 1984.
Who will give Tinubu and Yusuff that initial counsel which Balewa and his ministers gave Ahmadu Bello? Who will tell them that, with the current weaponizing of politics and votes in the Kano royal house succession battle, in anticipation of the 2027 elections, “Kano will be on fire”?
Fifty seven years after that Ahmadu Bello dethronement of Sanusi, in the same off-handed and cavalier manner he removed him, Abubakar Ganduje also halted Sanusi Lamido Sanusi’s imperial ride on the royalty of Kano. Through the State Emirate Council Law 2019, Ganduje imposed a five-emirate system, birthing first-class emirs in Gaya, Rano, Karaye and Bichi. Thus, in 2020, Ganduje peremptorily removed Sanusi over allegation of insubordination to his government. And 61 years after, Governor Yusuf walked that same Ahmadu Bello route by removing the Emirs.
Aside Ganduje’s allegation of insubordination against Sanusi, the presidency of Muhammadu Buhari, too saw Sanusi’s cup as having run over. Security reports alleged that the Emir was tampering with the president’s meaty pie. Coupled with his perceived aristocratic obstinacy, relentless criticisms of the fiscal regime and indeed the administration of Buhari in very unflattering terms, Ganduje’s disdain for Sanusi received a presidential imprimatur. He had to go.
After receiving his letter of appointment from Yusuf on Friday, Sanusi, speaking in Hausa, ascribed his return to the palace as God’s inscrutable act, because God is “the all knowing. He gives power and takes away from people in leadership. If He gives, no one can take away and if He takes away, no one can stop Him. God gives power to whoever He chooses.” Earlier, while signing the new Kano Emirate Bill (2024) into law, Yusuf had said that the decision to return Sanusi to the stool as the 16th Emir of Kano was in the best interest of the state and its people.
Both Sanusi and Yusuf must however know that they were both being clever by half. The duo merely exploited and capitalized on the mass of the people’s uncritical appraisal of existential matters. Nigerians mix metaphysical issues with the issue of existence, to their disadvantage. The plot to bring the former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor back to the palace had no hand of God in it. It was a product of deft maneuvering by political gladiators playing a political chess game. Alongside the Sultan of Sokoto, Emir of Gwandu and the Shehu of Borno, in Nigeria and outside of its shores, the palace of the Emir of Kano is held in awe for its significance for both religious and political purposes.
Together, the four Emirs are historical and religious rulers who are literally deified in Northern Nigeria. On the national platform, whoever is the Kano Emir has a controlling leverage on the political barometer of the north. With Ganduje’s political hold on the state he governed withering and dithering, one permutation said the federal government needed an ally in a suave, likeable Sanusi whose preference also fits the political vendetta game that the Rabiu Musa Kwankwanso-led New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) wanted to inflict on the APC national chairman. A Sanusi as Emir, with his adorable suavity and talismanic respect in the north would inch any government with sagging electoral hold like Tinubu’s back to power in a re-election contest. So they think. The other permutation said that Ganduje got the presidency of Tinubu to send military troops to Kano to thwart the removal of his anointed Emirs.
Though there are no artillery firepower and marching troops, today in Kano State, there seems to be a reenactment of the famous Battle of Kwatarkwashi. Last Thursday, Abba Yusuf appended his signature to the reappointment of Sanusi Lamido Sanusi as Emir of Kano, four years after his dethronement by his predecessor, Ganduje. By that singular act, perhaps unbeknown to Yusuf, he went down history lane among leaders of Kano who engaged in the politicization of successions in the Kano emirate.
Fought in 1903, the Battle of Kwatarkwashi ruptured Kano emirate peace. It was a decisive war between the British administered Protectorate of Northern Nigeria and the Emirate forces in the Sokoto Caliphate. In that battle, High Commissioner to the Northern Region, Lord Lugard, waged war against Kano Emir, Aliyu Babba. Bent on removing Babba for what he considered his arrogance and disregard for his office, Lugard wrote incriminating memos to Britain justifying military action against Babba. First, he claimed the Emir planned to attack the Kano garrison with 10,000 troops. Then, he alleged that Babba granted asylum to Dan Yamusa, the Magaji of Keffi, who, in October 1902, allegedly murdered a Captain Moloney, Keffi-based junior Resident. Lugard then placed a price and wanted tag on Yamusa’s head.
On January 29, 1903, the battle began. Colonel Morland, Commandant of Northern Nigeria Regiment and his troops rolled their battle tanks into Kano. Emir Babba’s cavalry for the battle was no match for Morland’s 24 Officers and 722 other ranks, with their four 75mm guns and 4 Maxims. The British, after breaking the walls of Kano, stormed the Emir’s palace, killed its defender, Sarkin Shanu, who had fought them with a sword, set the Emir’s arsenal on fire and killed not less than 300 of the warriors. On February 16, the British forces then proceeded to the Northwest of Kano where they ambushed the Kano cavalry who were gathered by the great rocks of Kwatarkwashi where a 6-hour firepower ensued. At the end, the Vizier of Kano emir beat a retreat with his remnant of cavalry, to Sokoto. Many of the fighters, under Muhammad Abbas, however, surrendered to the British, leading to Muhammad Abbas, Aliyu’s elder brother, being proclaimed Emir of Kano.
Unlike the Kwatarkwashi battle, change of Emirs in a very volatile emirate of Kano is usually in an off-handed manner. Alhaji Abubakar Rimi, Second Republic governor of Kano state from 1979 to 1983, had also toed same line in his removal of the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero. Rimi perhaps verbalized the disdain with which politicians regard Emirs. Speaking with respected veteran journalist, Lekan Alabi, in 1982 on an NTA Ibadan Personality Interview Programme, Speak Out, Rimi declared that traditional rulers were “mere public servants” and threatened to remove Bayero.
He exploded: “The way you press and our political opponents (regard) the Emir of Kano is not the way we regard him. As far as we are concerned (thumping his chest) – we the elected government of Kano state – as far as I, the governor of Kano state, is concerned – the Emir of Kano is nothing, nothing, nothing but a public person… he is holding a public office… being paid from public funds and whose appointment is at the pleasure of the governor of the state and who can be dismissed, removed interdicted, suspended if he commits an offence. And there is nothing unique about Ado Bayero, the Emir of Kano… believe me, if he commits any offence which will make it necessary for us to remove him, we will remove him and we will sleep soundly”.
Since the formation of Kano Emirate in 1805, two attempts have been made to split the emirate. Incidentally done by civilian governments, both attempts hung their reasons for the Emirs’ removal on the need to whittle down the powers of Emirs. Rimi was the first to create five emirates out of the Kano Emirate. A noticeable sour relationship had developed between Bayero and Rimi. In 1981, Rimi stopped the traditional homage usually paid by village heads to Bayero. So, on April 1, 1981, Rimi created four new emirates of Gaya, Rano, Dutse, and Auyo, excising some domains from Bayero’s emirate. On April 7, 1981, he also issued a “Query” to Bayero and in 1982, ordered the return of dethroned Emir Muhammadu Sanusi to Wudil in the state.
What is playing out in Kano today is a replay of the Second Republic Kano government-Emirate tango. Or the usual volatility of successions in the royal house in earlier centuries. Rimi, who became governor under the banner of the People’s Redemption Party (PRP) had fallen out with party leader, Mallam Aminu Kano. From this fallout came a faction of PRP called “Yan tabo” with its loyalty strictly to the Mallam. The other faction, called “Yan santsi,” pledged its loyalty to Rimi. Unfortunately for Rimi, the electoral umpire, FEDECO, pronounced its recognition of the Aminu Kano faction. This led Rimi to defect to the Nigerian People’s Party (NPP) where he vied for a second term in the 1983 elections. As soon as he tendered his letter of resignation as governor, the “Yan tabo” faction replaced him with his deputy, Abdu Dawakin Tofa but later fielded Sabo Aliyu Bakin Zuwo as governorship candidate. Zuwo defeated Rimi. On his assumption of office in 1983, the first thing Bakin Zuwo did was to reverse the creation of the four new emirates made by Rimi. The single emirate of Kano continued for thirty six years until 2019 when Ganduje again got it splintered.
Unbeknown to the generality of the people, though Governor Yusuf had, in campaigns for the office of the governor, vowed to “right wrongs” in the emirate, his “very bad” case at the appellate court must have given him and the Nigerian power apparatchik what lawyers call consensus ad idem on the restoration of Sanusi to the palace. In the permutations of what is happening in Kano, the one suggesting that the president is most likely running with the hare and hunting with the hound is almost the most fertile. Sanusi and the current Nigerian power levers have always been allies. Giving his return a presidential push would be a worthy favour to a friend who incidentally has become a proposed weapon for retention of power.
Events unfolding since Thursday have shown that politicians are gradually dragging Kano to the Battle of Kwatarkwashi, the slab of bloodshed. As I write this, there appears to be two Emirs on a single Kano emirate stool. Presidency officials themselves are split between Sanusi and Bayero. Security apparatuses are also torn apart in their loyalty to the two “Emirs”, with Yusuf threatening to arrest Bayero for allegedly sponsoring the bid to set Kano aglow. But, is the blood of Kano people worth the politics of 2027 and vendetta?
![[OPINION] Corruption: Is the death sentence the solution? - Bolanle Bolawole](/media/k2/items/cache/dfc8675773631830ffca88f53ec65c31_L.jpg)
THERE is no denying the fact that corruption has become endemic in our country Nigeria and that it has eaten very deep into every fabric of the society. I listened to a voxpopuli on social media some days ago where Nigerians who had “japa” from the country were asked whether they would “japada” Not a single one of them said they would! Why, they were asked, and they answered that it is because the situation that forced them out of the country has not changed. The country’s problems, they added, were leadership and corruption. Tame corruption and Nigeria would become a better place, they said. Enthrone good leadership and the country would, in no time, become the Eldorado that its citizens “japa”on a daily basis in search of. It is common knowledge that Nigeria is not short of solutions to its problems, implementation has always been the problem. Who will bell the cat, as they say? Karl Marx hit the nail right on the head when he posited that “Philosophers have hitherto only interpreted the world. The point, however, is to change it”
On Saturday, 27 April, 2024 at online publication, Treasure newspaper’s first public lecture and award ceremonies held at the Conference Hall of Solab Suites Hotel, FUTA South Road, Akure, Ondo state, the controversy over whether or not the death penalty was sine qua non for taming corruption reared its head again. Guest lecturer, Segun Maiyegun, a household name in student union and pro-democracy activism voted for public execution for corrupt Nigerians. The topic of his lecture was “Home-grown economy as a road map for economic sustainability: Examining the prospects under the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration”. “I am calling for the death sentence on anyone who embezzles”, Maiyegun said unequivocally. But speaking later, the Ondo State Honourable Commissioner for Information, Mr. Wale Akinlosotu, who stood in for his governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, disagreed. According to him Nigeria must toe the line of international best practices on the subject matter, adding that there are enough laws in the country’s statute book to effectively tackle the cankerworms of corruption.
Pointing to China’s example of the death penalty for corruption, Maiyegun said “harsh punishment“ is needed to deter corrupt practices. He also advocated an understanding of the inner workings of political economy because politics, according to him, “is the answer to economic problems. We need people to understand the interplay and contributions of individuals” to national development. He advocated restructuring that will devolve more powers over control of resources from the Centre to the states while also calling for a free marketplace of ideas and knowledge. “People want to know their leaders; let the leaders come closer to the people”
Pro-democracy activist and chairman of the occasion, Debo Adeniran, argued that practical steps were needed to turn the country’s comatose economy around. He said critical minds are required to ask critical questions that would proffer solutions to the country’s myriad problems. “I give it to Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu: he was in the streets, too. He was with us in the streets. If there is anything happening, he intervenes”. He was referring to those years of the struggle to end military rule when Tinubu was an activist who marched in the streets with other pro-democracy activists. “I am not a fan of Tinubu but he intervenes when there are issues”, he added for emphasis.
One other serious problem that was discussed at the event was that of insecurity and the role played by the proliferation of light or small arms. The Southwest Zonal Coordinator of the National Centre for the Control of Small arms and Light weapons, Mr. Benson Sola Akinlade, said the country’s economy cannot thrive in an atmosphere of insecurity because, according to him, economic sustainability is inseparable from security sustainability. Highlighting the Centre’s efforts at preventing and controlling the proliferation of small arms and light weapons, he said thousands of such illicit weapons have been successfully mopped up.
![[OPINION] A Year in Purgatory - Chidi Amuta](/media/k2/items/cache/008dd8a5421b9028d251c25bc10fdd96_M.jpg)
There is a sense in which both Nigerians and Mr. Tinubu share a place in purgatory in the last one year. Both leader and people are dwelling a house of incendiary troubles in waiting for admission into either hell or heaven. To that extent, we all have been in purgatory for the last one year and still counting. The questions are mutually reinforcing: Will Nigerians emerge from here into greater anguish or splendid glory? In turn, will Mr. Tinubu emerge from this place into a place of glory and honour given his troublesome past and current travails at the helm?
Twenty five years of unbroken democracy in Nigeria has taught me something about presidential democracy. The four -year cycles between administrations resolves into three time segments. The first year is for learning the ropes, making mistakes and stumbling to establish an identity. The next two years are for effective governance and head -on confrontation with the promises that inspired a particular presidency. The final year is for succession politics , playing to be re elected if possible.
Effectively then, given this four year template, Tinubu has only the next two years of effective governance to tackle the myriad problems tormenting the nation. He has two years to ensure improved security and chase away all bandits, kidnappers, abductors and sundry criminal gangs from the face of the nation. He has two years to reduce the poverty population to a manageable level, There are only two years to fix dilapidated infrastructure, reduce the national debt burden, return the Naira exchange rate to Buhari levels at least. He has two years to reduce official corruption to an acceptable minimum and put away an accumulated crowd of previously indicted corrupt officials. That is not all. Tinubu and his team have just two years to find food for the hungry, jobs for the army of unemployed youth and reprieve for threatened businesses. Most important of all, Tinubu has to use the next three years at most to restore the hope of Nigerians and friends of Nigeria in the Nigerian promise of a free, diverse but prosperous and united nation.
This may sound like a tall order indeed. After all, the litany of problems that today define the Nigerian reality were not created by Mr. Tinubu. He may have inherited most of them. He succeeded a president who is easily the most unfortunate thing that has happened to the Nigerian nation since inception. Mr. Buhari literally ran the Nigerian state aground and destroyed the very basis of our national cohesion. An economic illiterate and bureaucratic nonentity, Mr. Buhari brought to bear on the affairs of the Nigerian state his trademark incompetence, epic ineptitude and cruel aloofness. His aloof indifference enshrined the idea that perhaps Nigeria did not need a president as the affairs of state and society went on to the exclusion of any perceptible executive responsibility. Worse of all, he reopened old wounds, reignited the hatred that led the nation to war and sought to invade the nation with armed jihadist monsters of his own creation. The dot in a circle president !
But Buhari and Tinubu share a common political ancestry and party platform, the APC. It remains one of the most baffling aspects of Nigeria’s democracy that a party that ruined the nation should be returned to power. Given the complicity of the APC in creating the crises that define today’s Nigeria and Mr. Tinubu’s reluctance to call his predecessor by his real names, he in turn is a co -architect of the present national disaster.
Therefore, as President Tinubu prepares to graduate from the apprentice year in office, he cannot outsource the responsibility for the state of the nation. Democracy elects leaders to solve problems, not to read out an inventory of blames on previous dispensations. And we all are entitled to the stubborn hope that those we elect to rule over us will leave us in a better place than they found us. Buhari failed that most elementary demand of democracy,
Arguably so far, in all fairness to the man, Tinubu may have given the job his best shot. Simultaneously, he has deployed the judiciary to wriggle out of a controversial electoral victory, assembled an inchoate collection of ministers and key officials and tried to give his presidency a character and a name. No one can as yet call the exact name. No one can accuse Tinubu of not trying so hard to lead and to be appreciated by Nigerians.
He literally charged on to the presidential dais with a hell fire storm of controversial policies. He used his inauguration podium to withdraw a controversial gasoline subsidy. Shortly afterwards, he embarked on devaluation of the troubled Naira. Both policies set off a vortex of policy repercussions that have kept him busy ever since. Arguably both policies may end up defining what remains of his tenure and tenancy in Aso Villa because he failed to do one thing: he did not think them through before reaching for the mic.
In what is emerging as a basically reactive presidency, Tinubu has tried to address the yearnings of Nigerians mostly as they arise and not necessarily in any ordered and systematic prioritization format. He has tried to emplace an economic policy to ameliorate the impacts of his initial disruptive policies. The Central Bank of Nigeria has literally engaged currency speculators in open street fights to dampen the deterioration of the exchange rate of the Naira to major currencies with minute success. The exchange rate continues to do a yo yo dance which has escalated inflation and made uncertainty a permanent feature of the economy in the last one year.
An untidy students loan scheme is about to go into a trial run. But no one is sure that this populist scheme, desirable as it is, can in any way redress the decades long decay in the nation’s tertiary education sector. Similarly, an initial reaction to the spread of hardship in the land gave birth to efforts at palliatives. No one knows what has so far happened to earlier efforts to release grains or supply food or cash to the most vulnerable. The general hardship graduated into an epidemic of hunger across the nation. Food riots have occurred in major urban centres while efforts to increase access to food among the poor and vulnerable have been at best chaotic in places.
The president has fared poorly in healing the wounds of divisiveness in the nation that he inherited from his friend and predecessor, Mr. Buhari. His key appointments unfortunately drip of a sickening level of xenophobic sectionalism. Most strategic appointments have gone to Tinubu’s Yoruba ethnic home base: Army, Customs, CBN, Finance, Police, Power , Transportation, Internal Affairs, Marine economy etc. etc.
In a bizarre backlash, even among the Yoruba South West elite, there is discord. The most outspoken elite of the region accuse Tinubu of favouring mostly the Lagos, Osun and Ogun axis to the exclusion of other components. The core northern elite that helped him onto power have in recent times begun making threatening political noises. The South-east and South-south feel outflanked and excluded. If Tinubu fails as president, it would be deemed that the Yorubas ran the nation into another ditch.
If the current state of the Nigerian economy and society are anything to go by, then we are in a worse place than in the darker Buhari days. Gas station queues are back all over the country as routine supply and logistics planning seem to have overwhelmed the corrupt and inept NNPC. Healthcare costs have shot through the roof as the prices of essential drugs have reached for the skies. Prices of basic need goods are beyond the roof . To worsen a bad situation, we have become a virtual Federal Republic of Taxes as all manner of taxes, levies and tariffs are unleashed on the hapless and already impoverished populace. These range from astronomical electricity tariffs to proposed levies on phone calls, cyber security, increased custom duties and airport transit and car parking fees.
Tinubu has tried his hands at reaching out to the world through a plethora of foreign junkets. In particular, he has tried to deploy his Muslim identity to reach out to the economic powers of the Middle East for economic lifelines. He has visited Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Qatar. Promises of resuming normal diplomatic and citizen visitation relations with the UAE have been sugar coated but yet unfulfilled. Qatar has refused to play ball yet on investments. The Saudis remain skeptical but are reluctant to tell Tinubu to his face that they cannot trust Nigeria to abide by any lasting agreements as the nation is half Christian.
Europe and the United States remain reticent, knowing that Nigeria only needs to go home and fix its troubles through responsible governance, transparency and greater accountability. For whatever reasons that are only known to Tinubu, the CIA an the Department of State, I cannot see an imminent joint press conference at the White House lawns between Mr. Tinubu and any US president any time soon.
The attitude of the West to Nigeria’s need for economic bailout remains unchanged. If you need assistance, go through the World Ban, the IMF or enter into bilateral agreements with Western nations that trust you enough,
Back in Africa, Nigeria remains something of a fading empire. Our influence and stature has been tested in the West African sub region with regrettable outcomes. As leader of ECOWAS, Tinubu failed woefully in containing the coup in Niger Republic. Our failure in that regard led to the eviction of France and the United States as security guarantors in the Sahel, thus opening up the nation to greater jihadist terror while shrinking Western hemispheric influence in the region to the advantage of an ambitious Putin’s Russia.
In terms of style and character, Tinubu has displayed the typical African modern political trait of mixing up constitutional republican democracy with elements of decadent monarchical absolutism. His motorcades are too long and rowdy. His immediate family is too conspicuous in the affairs of state including official delegations to important foreign countries. Worse still, the National Assembly has seemed all too eager to pass nearly every legislation emanating from the presidency while the judiciary is yet to recover from its perceived compromises in its verdicts on election cases that arose from the 2023 contests.
In matters of governance, there is a disturbing lack of method in the ways of Tinubu’s maddening crowd. Sometimes the government speaks with too many voices. Communication between president and people is very often mismanaged as the all too frequent presidential absences and disappearances are conveyed through either eloquent silences or conflicting speculations.
The road to the future is defined by the mood of the time: it is an interesting time to be alive in Nigeria if you are that lucky to survive till the morning after.
![[OPINION] Still On Akpabio And The Police - Mon-Charles Egbo](/media/k2/items/cache/a5b101ad810854e88c37a465b3c01271_M.jpg)
Recently, two incidents openly challenged Nigeria’s quest for a policing regime where peace and order or the overall safety of the citizens would take pre-eminence.
While one was the maiden edition of the Nigeria Police Awards and Commendations Ceremony, the other was the one-day National Dialogue on State Policing, organized by the House of Representatives. Vice President Kashim Shettima represented President Bola Tinubu at both events that were held in Abuja.
Sequel to the first, Hon. Eseme Eyiboh, authored a piece titled The Police and Akpabio's Sermon on the Mount. Although Eyiboh, the media adviser to the president of the senate, described it as one targeted at "reputation management" and "constructive
Buoyed by his composite knowledge of the private and public sectors of the economy, Godswill Akpabio intervened from a broader perspective.
He was blunt, but truthful, that “in this country we have had a deficit of heroes. Not because Nigerians are not heroic but because we do not celebrate our heroes. Yet heroes play a vital role in society through the provision of inspiration, motivation, hope and serving as representations of values and character. Celebrating heroes could bring the much-needed change we need in the fabric of our society and make our country a better place". Also, he was unequivocal that Nigeria deserves a police force that is defined by “inte
Then as one of the pathways to this vision, he acknowledged that "recognizing
Furthermore and putting on the garb of a quintessential representative of the police, Akpabio made a strong case for them. His first argument was that "the ever-evolving landscape of crime and the increasing sophistication of criminal gangs pose significant obstacles" for the force.
He therefore called for concerted efforts in this regard, stressing that "we must address these issues and work together to find solutions. The police need the support and cooperation of all stakeholders, to overcome these challenges and build a stronger and more effective police force".
Again, Akpabio defended the force against prejudice by declaring
Not done, he reassured the force that "as the leader of the National assembly, I pledge our full cooperation and support to the better policing of Nigeria. We recognize the importance of a well-equipped and motivated police force in ensuring the security and well-being of our citizens. We will continue to work tirelessly to provide the necessary legislative framework and resources to enable the police to carry out their duties effectively".
Incidentally, the Nigeria police force and the national assembly are the two most vilified institutions in the country. Deliberate misinformation and disinformation about them abound and grow unabated by the day. It is such that despite the laudable accomplishments of the ‘present generations’, these critical institutions of governance continue to suffer the inherited image and reputational crises occasioned by certain misdeeds of their predecessors.
Thus, apart from his leadership and governance antecedents, and also, having variously been a victim of uncritical judgement, Akpabio is well versed in the implications of collective labelling or stereotypical views. So, his empathy with the police is not far-fetched after all.
Nonetheless and typical of a dispassionate advocate, the senate president in concluding his homily, acknowledged the existence of bad eggs in the force. He therefore counselled
Empirically, the takeaway from “Akpabio’s Sermon on the Mount” is three-pronged. One, while the police should be strategic in their overall conduct starting from
Two, the moral lecture was an agenda-setting intervention or a catalyst in the perennial quest for a police force that Nigeria and her citizens can be proud of.
Then lastly, it was a clarion call on the need to reward excellence in every aspect of our national life.
Undoubtedly, these messages are worth internalizing towards our dream police force!
Akpabio was to take his advocacy to the second event.
Reiterating his support for the establishment of state police, which according to him “is a complex issue with no easy answers”, he re-echoed that “security is not a privilege, but a fundamental right of every Nigerian”. He thus warned that “if we are to set up state police departments, we must ensure that they are free from the shackles of politics, religious extremism, tribalism, and ethnicism. We must empower them to serve and protect, without fear or favour.”
Then of paramount note “let us never forget that the power of the state police should never be used as a tool of oppression or witch-hunting. Let us ensure that political powers do not manipulate the state police to silence dissent or target their enemies. Let us ensure that the influential do not exert undue influence over the state police and that justice is blind to wealth, power, politics, or status. Let us build a system that is fair, just, and equitable for all”.
Instructively, these expressed positions have nothing to do with his current status.
Godswill Akpabio has been a regular voice in the national quest for an effective and efficient police force. He only stood up to be counted for the umpteenth time.
As governor of Akwa Ibom State, he had in 2012, advocated that “state police remains an answer to the numerous security challenges facing Nigeria. It is the solution to resolving most of the intra-conflicts in the country. He was emphatic that “if Kogi had state police, Boko Haram probably would not have reached the state. In the Niger Delta, kidnapping would not have reached the level it had reached at that time because the indigenes that would make up the force know the criminals among them and would fish them out. Every family knows who is who. That is why I say state police remains the answer”.
Again, it is noteworthy that towards efficient and effective policing, the Akpabio-led Senate has since intensified actions on the Police Pension Bill, aimed at removing the police from the contributory pension scheme, having passed the Police Trust Fund budget in addition to resolutions bordering on manpower and hardware.
Perhaps, these interventions informed President Bola Tinubu’s proclamation, of his administration’s
These words, though reassuring, still face a high level of scepticism.
With hindsight, some of the critical questions include:
Would the police sustain this laudable initiative to improve the welfare of its workforce? Can there be a police force that thrives in “internal ethical regeneration, restoration of professional standards, and the enhancement of the anti-corruption drive"? Can the federal government deliver on its promise (s)? Is the police ready to reinvent themselves even with these anticipated supports, especially given the results of other previous interventions such as the Police Trust Fund and Police Equipment Foundation? Will Nigerians support the national assembly with viable ideas, through the already kick-started constitution amendment processes, to reposition the force, particularly concerning the raging state police debates?
These are some of the cardinal items on the agenda set by Akpabio as the conversation continues.
However, a police force that is alive to its roles and responsibilities might sound utopian, but it is attainable if strategically approached. It only requires sustained citizens’ actions. And gratifyingly, Senator Godswill Akpabio has offered direction and also shown resolve to lead from the front.
So the ball is now in the court of Nigerians, and primarily, the police force itself.
Egbo is a parliamentary affairs analyst
![[OPINION] President Tinubu, acute food scarcity is here - Dele Sobowale](/media/k2/items/cache/56bb4bac58f56f332295ae411247ea7d_M.jpg)
“No one whose stomach is totally empty can be persuaded that his need is not for food but for entertainment” – Professor John K Galbraith
Tears came to my eyes when I read recently that the World Bank (which some of us love to hate) announced that it was spearheading the effort to raise $300 million in cash and food items from all over the world in order to reduce the mortal impact of famine in the North-East of Nigeria; where about seven million Nigerians are at risk of perishing for lack of food. The bank is not promising them amusement or something absolutely dispensable.
It is embarking on giving those in danger the first basic need of all animals – FOOD. When a week after it was announced that the Federal Government has approved N90 billion subsidy for pilgrims to Mecca, it became very clear why black Africa is backward; and might remain under-developed for centuries. Our leaders frequently exhibit poor sense of priorities. As an economist, of one thing I am sure. The N90 billion spent on pilgrimage – whether to Mecca or Jerusalem – would earn zero return on the investment. It is pure waste at a time when Nigeria can least afford it.
Our national predicament went from bad to worse when the Accountant General of the Federation, AGF, disclosed that the FG collected N320 billion revenue in the first quarter, Q1, of this year – instead of the N2.1 trillion budgeted. Thus, a government which had generated N1.8 trillion deficit, and which had been borrowing recklessly, still considered it wise to give away thirty per cent of its miserable earnings to fund a jamboree for a very small percentage of Nigerians. Mr Atedo Peterside said the gesture will send the wrong signals. He was being polite. I think it will reconfirm to the rest of the world that Africans are really retarded. Otherwise, what is one supposed to honestly say about a nation, which in the last nine years – including May 29, 2023 to May 29, 2024 – which had been living on the begging bowl; and whose leaders still place funding pilgrimage at the top of its priority?
“The worst thing that can happen to a leader is to look back and find that nobody is following”- US President Lyndon Johnson. My article published two Sundays ago and titled, Lets Pray for Tinubu to Succeed, induced the most disheartening response ever to any article since 1994. Not only were people, mostly young, asking me to stop wasting my prayers on Tinubu, the maledictions were stunningly shocking. One message specifically asked me: “How can you continue to pray for a man who squanders N90bn on pilgrimage with all the problems we have in Nigeria?” Admittedly, I have not conducted a poll, and possibly no one has done it also.
If the impromptu comments made by young Nigerians about this government represents the views of the 18 to 40 years group of Nigerians, then it is quite clear that overwhelming majority has lost faith in this government. Labour certainly has; after the shocker of N48,000 minimum wage per month offer. How anyone in a serious government could imagine that N48,000 per month represents the best they can do is a mystery to me. Labour leaders now have a problem on their hands. Those who speak without modesty generally have a difficult time eating their words.
On Monday, May 13, 2024, I had an article published on this page titled ‘Unpleasant Surprise Awaits Nigerian Workers’. In it, the reasons why Organised Labour was raising false hopes among workers were outlined. Given the extensive investigations undertaken before that column was written, there was no doubt in my mind that Labour would be lucky to get N70,000. The FG, on the very next day, announced N48,000. Labour leaders are still too dazed to offer a counter offer. That is perfectly understandable – given the gap between N615,000 and N48,000. Only God knows how Labour leaders will climb down from their inordinately high perch. But, that is what happens when top decision makers are not quantitative in their analysis.
Even Lagos and Rivers cannot pay N200,000 without going bankrupt within a year; not to talk of Nasarawa, Ebonyi and Ekiti. That said, the main objective of writing today’s article is to draw the attention of President Tinubu to an impending food crisis which must be addressed urgently before it becomes a calamity. Virtually all the global institutions conducting on-going research into national food production have concluded that Nigeria is one of several countries worldwide likely to suffer from acute food scarcity this year. The North-East is expected to be the worst affected based on a combination of factors – late rain, drought, pests, flood later in the year, withdrawal of Anchor Borrowers Programme support and insecurity.
Nigerians read reports of terrorist kingpins being eliminated by security forces. But, no farmer, hiding safely somewhere, will return to the farm the next day. More work is needed on security before rural people nationwide will return to their farms. This year’s harvest is projected to be worse than what we had in 2023; which was worse than the 2022 productivity. That exactly is the problem; to which the FG is addressing its mind – other than applying conventional wisdom, which has already failed us. Two well publicised interventions will help to illustrate the point being made about conventional approach to increasing food output. The CBN and Niger State government recently announced initiatives expected to boost food supply in Nigeria and state in particular.
The bank announced that it would supply several million tons of fertiliser this year. Niger State acquired tractors for use by its farmers to speed up land clearing. Good intentions were on display by the bank and the state on the two programmes. But, good intentions are never enough to achieve intended results. After terminating the ABP and announcing that it would henceforth face its core mandate, it was a policy error for the CBN to once again get involved with fertiliser purchase and distribution. That is the function of the Ministries of Agriculture nationwide. Corruption invariably creeps in. But, that is only one fault with the initiative. Fertiliser is only effective if applied at the right time by the farmer. With farms in most states under the control of terrorists and kidnappers, farmers don’t go to farm at will anymore.
Tractors need drivers. And in rural areas of Niger State, a driver alone is a seating duck for murderous hoodlums – unless the drivers are going to be accompanied by security men. Even then, it might still amount to putting several people in mortal danger. Obviously, the success of the two initiatives will be severely limited by pervasive insecurity. Yet, Nigeria must produce more food to feed a growing population in order to avert famine this year and 2025. The world is gearing up to help provide some food this year. But, unless we demonstrate that we are prepared to face the challenges of food production, donor fatigue will soon set in. At any rate, we cannot expect to remain global almajiris for ever. It is therefore imperative that we device new ways of producing more food by adopting alternative methods of feeding ourselves.
NIGERIA’S FOOD WARRIORS – N180M SOLUTION
“The time is a quarter to midnight” – Norman Borlaug, 1914 – 2009, Nobel Peace Prize Winner in Agriculture, 1970. Borlaug, generally recognised as the father of the Green Revolution, made this statement when receiving his Nobel Prize. The world then was on the brink of food disaster. The Green Revolution pulled mankind back from the precipice. Since then, global population explosion and climate change have combined to push us back towards the abyss – particularly in Africa. Biotechnology came to the rescue briefly and now gene modified crops are again racing to defence of homo sapiens – who have demonstrated very little wisdom with respect to sustainable food security.
Nigeria is among the worst nations in that respect. Advances in food security for any nation have never depended on the vast majority of Professors of Agriculture; who frequently are purveyors of conventional thought. The world has benefited greatly from those thinking outside the box. For Nigeria, the time is less than a quarter to midnight; and all our Professors in Agriculture have no ideas to rescue us. We need a revolutionary approach. Some of us might have come across the saying that “War is too important to be left only to Generals.” I strongly believe that Nigeria’s food security is also too vital to be left to farmers and Agric Departments of universities – for one simple reason known to all of us: Farmers can no longer go to farm.
That fact constitutes the greatest obstacle to good harvests today. Unfortunately, the stomach is a rascal; it demands to be served everyday. Nigeria’s 220 million stomachs cannot wait until the time Emilokan makes farms safe for farmers to be fed. Obviously, we need to find our way around this obstacle to increased food production. That was why I felt so sad to read that the FG approved N90 billion for Hajj subsidy. For about N180 million or 0.2 per cent of the pilgrimage subsidy, starting with 100,000 food warriors, we can transform food production from only rural-based to a total country undertaking. The returns on investment over the years will exceed 100 per cent each year….
To be continued
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![[OPINION] Africa's Infrastructural Revolution/May '29 - Richard Odusanya](/media/k2/items/cache/7d3d3fd9ff4440bda071e474b2a15f0b_M.jpg)
Across the continent of Africa, economic growth and development have gained significant momentum in recent years. But with growth comes a challenge: building and funding the infrastructure to support it. Therefore, it throws-up some pertinent question: the first question which is where will the funding for Africa’s infrastructure come from?
Secondly, with the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) underway, another question that remains largely unanswered pertains to the extent to which Africa has positioned itself to take full advantage and the implications of the 4IR for Africa, given the capacity of the Fourth Industrial Revolution to change and shape the continent of Africa?
Third and most importantly, in all honesty, does Africa appear like investment destination of choice without Infrastructural Revolution? The three questions and perhaps many more are likely to be agitating the minds of our compatriots home and abroad.
Undoubtedly, Africa is in dire need of modern railway infrastructure to propel the continent to rapid development. In addition, transportation costs keep rising due to fluctuating fuel prices. Therefore, for the purpose of maximization in infrastructure, it is clear that there is a need for massive investment in key transportation areas, particularly, the rail sector in Africa. Railways are critical to creating continental value chains and trade corridors.
As such, failure to achieve the set goal will be considered failure of leadership in Africa. Because railroads provide a means for goods to be transported from one location to another, as well as allowing for the transfer of information and knowledge across different countries in the continent.
Furthermore, efficient rail transportation in Africa, particularly, in these era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). Railways has the potential to transform Africa’s economy, increase its productivity and enhance its global trade. In doing so, it would dramatically improve the wellbeing of African citizens. Study shows that the lack of physical infrastructure in Sub-Saharan Africa is still keeping many investors at bay. Let me share an example: the cost of transportation in Africa is on average 50 – 175% higher than other parts of the world as a result of poor infrastructure.
Additionally, about 60,000km and 100,000km of new roads are required to provide effective intra-continental connectivity in Africa by 2030. The current pace of infrastructure development in Africa cannot keep up with rising demand from communities and markets, subsequently having an impact on Africa's competitiveness and participation in global markets. Particularly, in these era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR).
Consequently, the poor state of infrastructure has led to the reduction of national economic growth by 2% annually in most African countries and as much as 40% reduction in industrial productivity. This means that with proper arrangements, railroads can help create regional integration, which in turn accelerates inclusive economic growth through increased efficiency and lower costs as the continent takes advantage of the 4IR.
Let me at this point reminiscence and flash back to May 29, 2023. In my contribution through an article that was specifically dedicated for the inauguration of the new government then with the title: "Nigeria We Hail Thee' or 'Arise O Compatriots" of which was widely published by local and international media organizations, the contribution was targeted at reawakening our consciousness as a people and as a nation. Thankfully, it received the attention of the government and a few days ago was passed to law by the Federal House of Representatives (HoR).
Also, as a patriot, my prayers for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu (PBAT), which goes thus: "Today as the destiny of Nigeria is handed over to President Tinubu. I join my faith with millions of our compatriots home and abroad in praying for the wisdom of king Solomon, knowledge and understanding to pilot the affairs of the nation to heal the wounds, embrace all entities for a feel of inclusiveness and to move the nation to a progressive development" in this vein, it is important to join hands together for the purpose of rebuilding hope and trust in ourselves.
Before I proceed, I need to be clear: Nigeria is currently experiencing its worst economic crisis in a generation, this is based on empirical evidence. One year down the line, Nigerians may still not have experience significant change. But, it is not all doom and gloom for Nigeria. For example, Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 2.98% (year-on-year) in real terms in Q1 2024. This growth rate is higher than the 2.31% recorded in the Q1 2023 and lower than Q4 2023 growth of 3.46%. ~ Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
Lest I forget, Nigeria, at some point in history, was a country where foreigners used to come for medical and educational tourism in the 60s and 70s, has now become a shadow of its old self. Long-story-short: the foundation of where we are today, as a nation was recklessly laid by successive administrations through profligacy recklessness and corruption. Obviously, It didn't start on May '29, 2023. Yes, we made mistakes, but there's no point in crying over spilled milk. We've got to move on, rebuild our nation from the ruins of the past. This is where the campaign about Mind Restructuring becomes inevitable.
Undoubtedly, Nigerians are going through tough times. However, the situation that we found ourselves, in all honesty are basically self inflicted. Yes! The nation is bleeding and there is hunger in the land. Somehow, there is great advantage for nations that produces good citizens and leaders, but, sadly, becomes a pipe dream for Nigerians. The attributes of good citizens and leaders are a combination that has eluded Nigeria for very long time. Even those who are not yet Presidents want to live in opulence without the commensurate effort at earning what is required for such a life!
Therefore, it is time, for us to begin to interrogate issues with open minds. Somehow, those who are not Presidents, or governors, when making choices, mostly gravitate towards what they condemn. Those who live on others, as many Nigerians like to do, would live on the State if they get the opportunity. Because majority of our people want to live rich without the resources to do so, and then we complain about so-called leaders, who are nothing but a reflection of the society that raised them. This is the sad realities of our beloved country Nigeria.
In conclusion, and to further drive home the point of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, AFRICA'S INFRASTRUCTURAL REVOLUTION and the Nigerian DEBACLE. Permit me to share with you the profound words of Orji Uzor Kalu, the senator representing Abia North Senatorial District. Speaking on the floor of the Senate chamber, a couple days ago. OUK, eloquently posited: "If we don't revamp the steel industry in Ajaokuta, Kastina, Alaja, Jos and Aluminum in Akwa Ibom, there's no way we can talk of industrialization in Nigeria."
OUK continued: "Aba and Nnewi has the human resources to engage in any form of manufacturing but the steels are not available. There is nothing that can stop Nigeria from dedicating a one year budget to rebuild our steel industries. The job creations we are always talking about lies in the steel industries.The country can be great if we do the right thing"
In my view, one of the right things is to improve upon the content and quality of our human capital especially at the low-income levels because, in the final analysis, they are the ultimate users of this infrastructure and can make or break them
Finally, I like to make specific reference to the speech of Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, president of the Republic of Uganda, who in an address to the 'AFRICA HEADS OF STATES SUMMIT' in a 19:06 video clip Museveni succinctly captured the essence of the Fourth Industrial Revolution in the African context and how best to reason and think developmentally.
Also, on this'd 25 May, 'Africa day 2024.' I am privileged and honoured to dedicate this article "Africa's Infrastructural Revolution.." a day which commemorates the historic event in 1963, when African nations came together to form the Organization of African Unity, the precursor to the African Union (AU). It is a day to celebrate the many successes and progress made throughout the continent while recognizing each nation's challenges.
Richard Odusanya
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![[OPINION] Trudging on, Bitter Lessons and All - Okey Ikechukwu](/media/k2/items/cache/689a9195f02360d80473701a289830f7_S.jpg)
As if addressing the current political situation in Nigeria, especially the diverse submissions of prominent leaders about democracy and the way forward for Nigeria, the philosopher, David Hume said: “There is nothing which is not the subject of debate, and in which men of learning are not of contrary opinions. The most trivial question escapes not controversy, and in the most momentous questions we are not able to give any certain decision. Disputes are multiplied, as if everything was uncertain; and these disputes are managed with the greatest warmth, as if everything was certain.”
While it is in the nature of things for disagreement and diverse points of view to emerge in human affairs, while it is also true that politics and democracy always go hand-in-hand with competing interests, and while some of them are altruistic and others are not, we must admit that disputation cannot be an end in itself. The endless thrashing about is becoming tiresome and too uninteresting to bear further endurance.
Again, let us remember the words of David Hume in his Treatise on Human Nature, where he admonished philosophy and philosophers thus: “NOTHING is more usual and more natural for those who pretend to discover anything … than to insinuate the praises of their own systems, by decrying all those which have been advanced before them. …. ‘Tis easy for one of judgment and learning, to perceive the weak foundation even of those systems, which have obtained the greatest credit, and have carried their pretensions highest to accurate and profound reasoning. Principles taken upon trust, consequences lamely deduced from them, want of coherence in the parts, and of evidence in the whole, these are everywhere to be met … and seem to have drawn disgrace upon philosophy itself…even the rabble without doors may, judge from the noise and clamour, which they hear, that all goes not well within.”
Hume’s words resonate so strongly with our present situation, does it not? Everything is in dispute, including the time of day and the condition of the weather.
One year into the Tinubu administration, the nation and its people stand perplexed and too worsted to even still articulate a clear complaint anymore. Yet, in the midst of it all, those who have any voice at all in the wider political landscape are screaming as if they are really sure of what they are saying. Thus, it is not just raining, but pouring down everywhere. The doubly irritating babble adds avoidable befuddlement to everything. Besides the regular grumblings about almost every measure taken by the government on any issues whatsoever, the opposition has not demonstrated any clear trajectory in its thinking and carryings on. And one year has rolled by.
On July 7, 2023, this column took a preemptive strike at those who were most probably warming up to celebrate President Tinubu’s first 100 days in office. The submission then was this: “…before his handlers prance off, in a frenetic pace to make a good impression and show off their superstar, they should first answer this question: Does this government need to organize a State Event, complete with government officials, snivelling crumb-crunchers, genuine stakeholders and the president’s party members all lined up to reel off his specific and general achievements? I think not. We have had more than enough of such charades over the years. Tinubu can create a new precedent by putting an end to it. Tinubu must keep his eyes on the ball. Let us begin to do things differently.”
The article further said, concerning the celebration of 100 days in office which this column did not want to happen: “Now we need to move on, as a serious people. This pointless national engagement has cost the nation hundreds of billions of Naira in perfectly avoidable expenses for decades. Past governments at all levels have put too much energy, funds, fanfare and needless floodlights and festoons around it. And to what purpose? To tell Nigerians that the person they elected had been working for the first three months after being sworn in? Really? What else was he supposed to be doing? Why was he elected in the first place?
So, let us show some sobriety and maturity here; knowing that the money to be thus squandered can be put to better use in these days of starving citizens, abominable inflation, unaffordable automotive fuel and much more – including trekking under the sun because of high transport fares.
Tinubu should, instead, let his foot soldiers do more work of explaining and justifying all the moves he has made so far. Some of them are clearly unsettling for many people. Even the supporters are unable to present a coherent narrative. Yes, whoever must make an omelette has to break some eggs; but the government must avoid a situation wherein the perception is that eggs are being broken just for the heck of it.
The Federal Government’s current decisions, actions and policy initiatives are foundational measures on which it is expected to build. They will make or mar Tinubu’s tenure. That is why their intent and purport should be simplified in the public domain.”
The above three paragraphs were penned some ten months ago. The spirit of it still applies today, as the government clocks one year in office. As was also said, then: “A leader is supposed to lead, is he not? This leading means, first, designing a comprehensive engagement strategy. It means thinking through the appropriate policies for dealing with various problems. It also means finding and deploying the right type of human capital for implementation. The criteria here must include competence and sensitivity to the existing, and subsisting, socio-politicalrealities; two paradigms on which Buhari performed disastrously and delivered miserably. “
If things are not going as well as we all expected, that is partly the results of a subsisting national problem of a deeper nature; beyond the actions and inactions of specific governments. The nation has been a complete riot of political gymnastics for some time now; having acquired a political reputation that is peculiarly its own since the return of democracy in 1999. Party lines exist in name only, while political loyalty is mostly contrived. Political godfathers are still all over the place.
The opposition politicians, threadbare as their template for effective opposition is in real terms today, are still too self delusional to accept that they are probably bungling much more than those they are complaining about. Everyone believes he is right, at least as far as he/she is concerned, in all matters concerning what is good for the Nigerian state today.
It is all so very reminiscent of the crisis among the early Christians of the Church of Antioch, mentioned in the Bible. It was like a congregation, or fraternity, that was cheerfully affiliated to Bedlam. Nearly everyone had his own prophesies and visions. The Doctrine of Grace suffered diverse interpretations. Greek and Jewish converts, as well as those who came from Jerusalem to sort things out, nearly became the greatest enemies of the new faith.
Their behaviour was peculiarly their own. Their diverse views filled many otherwise interested and intelligent observers with misgivings. Thus, “Church of Antioch” became a metaphor for confusion, doctrinal inexactitude, apostacy heresy and arbitrary self-inflation. That seems to be the texture, and tenor, of our national politics today.
The damage done by Buhari to the APC, to national cohesion, to service delivery, to leadership sensitivity, to equity, to natural justice, to genuine democracy in a plural society, to the very idea of leadership and to the long-term interests of the north is incalculable. Everything that spoke to a better, and greater, humanity, suffered shipwreck under Buhari. Nigerians lived for eight years with a president who did nothing, knew nothing and who was bothered about nothing.
It took Tinubu’s predecessor six months to appoint ministers. It took him practically one year to dissolve the Governing Boards of MDAs, and more years to reconstitute them. He retained most government functionaries for eight years, thereby forcing many carrier officers to either stagnate or retire without deserved promotions and fulfilment.
Has Tinubu set out new paradigms for leadership and statecraft? Is there a framework which, whatever it may be and in whatever way it is conceptualized, runs on the path that will eventually lead to lasting economic recovery, equity and holistic national cohesion? Is the government making the right type of investments that would lead to national development, instead of merely recording expenditure on all manner of projects; with neither positive impact nor tangible benefit? It is beyond hitting the ground running, or rolling out several decisions in a hurry. It has more to do with sustainability. The Tinubu government has much to make good, and for several reasons; as we trudge on; bruises and all.
Concerning the Banex Plaza Imbroiglio
It has been in the news for about a week now. The drama started with some controversy over a telephone handset that was returned to the original seller by a buyer after some weeks of us MIage. The customer’s desire to take a new phone, instead of allowing the seller to resolve the identified battery problem, led to some disagreements. The fact of two soldiers getting involved in the matter, and the invitation of the plaza police to quell budding hostilities between the parties, was the next stage of the eventually unpleasant drama.
Then came further escalation of the disagreement, following consequential verbal hostilities, and the subsequent attack on the soldiers by some people around the plaza.
The plaza has been shut dy, following the incident, with the Director, Army Public Relations, Maj-Gen Onyema Nwachukwu, calling on the traders and managers of the plaza to identify and bring out those who attacked the soldiers.
A trending video in the media on the beating of two soldiers gives very bad optics. It looks like the National orientation Agency (NOA) has a job to do, in getting Nigerians to understand the near-sanctity of the military uniform.
All things considered, we have been told that the presence of the two soldiers in the plaza at the time, their involvement in a phone dispute and the circumstances under which they were laid hands upon would be thoroughly investigated and the plaza reopened for business.
The lesson for the genuine traders at Banex plaza, and other malls all over the country, is the need to get rid of Ndi oso afia, who do not own any shops; but who hang around markets and malls, to mislead and harangue innocent people into paying more than they ought to for goods. They would pretend to be part owners of shops they see anyone walking into and then swoop in to announce inflated prices.
![[OPINION] The return of Khalifa Sanusi Lamido Sanusi II - Sunday Onyemaechi Eze](/media/k2/items/cache/f456711a649c5f41d1b5084025750916_S.jpg)
The eventual reinstatement of Emir Sanusi Lamido Sanusi II to the revered throne of his forbears after four years of dethronement was very much anticipated. When some anonymous groups sent letters to Kano State House of Assembly early this year calling for review of the Kano emirate council law 2019, it was clear the move was meant to wet the ground for the bigger plan. By signing into law the New Kano Emirate Repeal Law 2024, by governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, the former emir stands reinstated and all the five new emirate councils created by Abdullahi Umar Ganduje are hereby dissolved. Kano is now under one emirate council.
Attribute it to the handiwork of Allah or simply fate in action - it is a new dawn. The twists and turns of events on the choreography and politically induced melodrama featuring Kano emirate council is an interesting watch. Many Nigerians saw the dethronement of Sanusi Lamido Sanusi by former governor of Kano state, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje as an affront to the traditional institution and unwarranted witch-hunt. Coincidentally, he was dethroned in the same month and in a manner almost similar to the ground of accusation against his grandfather. That singular act of Ganduje was viewed by many as politically motivated, poorly executed and a vendetta taken too far. It was one seed of political-cum-traditional discord sowed to break the existing peaceful ranks of the entire Kano royal family. The sanctity of the traditional throne was defiled by that show of shame, exhibition of raw political power and brigandage.
That notwithstanding, supporters of Sanusi strongly believed in the reinstatement of the deposed emir when the time is ripe. Therefore, when Allah eventually opens the doors of opportunity for a man, nobody has the wherewithal to shut it. This gives credence to the popular Hausa aphorism - naka sai naka. Ultimately, change is the only constant variable in life. While the course of ones’ destiny can be altered; it cannot be totally denied. Sanusi has fought many battles, won some and lost on many fronts. He has oftentimes in his behaviour and actions refused to see himself as a dethroned king. It was said that a high ranking government official in Kaduna was removed from office for addressing him as former emir while making reference to him in an official engagement.
Immediately Abba Kabir Yusuf won the governorship election in 2023, it was obviously clear that something has to give. Very early in the life this administration in Kano, Rabiu Kwankwaso had alluded to the reversal to status quo of the emirate councils while interacting with journalists. The fact remains that when Kwankwaso speaks, it is simply the governor's opinion he echoes and the governor's duty is basically to concur.
Nobody begrudges Aminu Ado Bayero but the odds of retaining the crown were obviously against him after the exit of Ganduje. The pendulum swung largely towards the reality on ground today. Even Bayero must have had the premonition before now that a day like this will surely come. In a statement by the spokesperson of the governor, Sanusi Bature, the governor was quoted to have said; “the return of Sanusi Lamido Sanusi II back on the throne will propel peace and prosperity adding that the repeal of the council law was in realisation of the governor’s campaign commitment to restore the lost glory of the state and its rich heritage.”
Losing the throne is not the end of the world. Aminu Bayero was a victim of Kano politics of intrigues. Nigerians are called upon to salute the humility of this man who even as emir remained humble, taciturn and apolitical. Appreciate him for the maturity to accord due respect to his nephew Sanusi Lamido Sanusi. He accepted the crown with simplicity, grace, candour and equanimity.
Sanusi Lamido Sanusi should also be commended for distancing himself from anything concerning the emirate since he was banished to Loko in Nasarawa state four years ago. This brought the needed sanity and peace to the palace and Kano in general. However, this battle was not one physically or psychologically fought between the royal brothers who many say respect each other and the throne of their forebears but that of Abdullahi Umar Ganduje and his estranged friend Musa Rabiu Kwankwaso. Abba Yusuf, the governor is simply a political pawn deployed to implement the wishes of his godfather and in-law Kwankwaso.
While Sanusi Lamido Sanusi in his characteristic manner became too loquacious to the extent of exceeding his boundaries, Ganduje felt clipping his wings and whittling down the influence of the man who he felt represented the face of Kwankwaso at the traditional and Islamic institutional levels in Kano can only be done by balkanizing the entire emirate. He got it all wrong. During the 2023 elections, Ganduje was convinced beyond every doubt that Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna his deputy who he solidly supported during the election will coast to victory with the needed support from All Progressive Congress (APC) and federal government.
This he thought will help in sustaining his legacies - good or bad! Unfortunately, Ganduje's camp was jolted and their expectations dashed. The political calculation failed flat. They lost. Before emerging as the 14th Emir of Kano, Sanusi was suspended by Goodluck Jonathan from his top job as the governor, Central Bank of Nigeria. Jonathan preferred Aminu Bayero to ascend the throne in 2014 and exerted pressure on Kano state government led by Kwankwaso but he failed. The game of wits played out and providence positioned Kwankwaso to ensure Sanusi realised his life-long ambition.
Many people concede to the fact that Sanusi Lamido Sanusi is an enigma. A lucky chap. He is a brilliant economist and technocrat who should not be holed up in beautifully-well knitted, heavy, traditional regalia and the palace protocols but in the academia where students can draw fresh waters from his fountain of wisdom and knowledge. The government and the good people of Kano state are called upon to handle this change of baton with maturity to avoid any implosion. Emir Aminu Ado Bayero as a muslim should understand that it is God who gives power and he gives to whom he pleases. He should bear in mind that, he was not dethroned for any alleged wrong doing or conflict of interest arising from his actions or inactions per se, but was caught up in the cross fire of political power tussle between two arrogant politicians and friends turned foes.
The royal family in my view has a traditional conflict resolution mechanism of addressing novel and troubling issues of this nature. That mechanism should be activated immediately to accommodate everyone, calm frayed nerves and reduce tension. The reinstated emir should also be mindful of his utterances and body language as he returns to the throne he cherishes so much since his adolescent days. He should remember that east or west, home is the best. And home cannot be the best when brothers are not at peace. One more thing Sanusi should bear in mind and respect while taking any action as emir is the fact that Aminu's younger sister Hajia Sadiya is his first wife. In the end, it is a win-win situation for the royalty; blood they say is thicker than water.
Sunday Onyemaechi Eze is a Lecturer, Department of Mass Communication, Coal City University, Enugu
[STATE HOUSE PRESS RELEASE] President Tinubu Receives Leaders Of Thought, Says Effective Local Government Administration Critical To Nigeria's Development
Admin![[STATE HOUSE PRESS RELEASE] President Tinubu Receives Leaders Of Thought, Says Effective Local Government Administration Critical To Nigeria's Development](/media/k2/items/cache/b208236ab7610cd17d52f25be9ccafe0_S.jpg)
President Bola Tinubu has called for a more effective local government system that fosters community development and delivers the essentials of governance within a strengthened federal structure.
Speaking when he received a delegation of the Yoruba Leaders of Thought at the State House on Friday, President Tinubu emphasized that governance must be transformative and must address the critical needs of citizens.
He said the past 12 months have been fulfilling for his administration despite the presence of some challenges that are being addressed frontally.
"It has been challenging. It has been fulfilling as well. We took over, and we have stopped the bleeding. I can say categorically now that Nigeria is no longer bleeding. And it will not bleed to death, but rather will now move to prosperity. That is the promise that I made to you all, and it is also the charge that you gave to me.
"We are managing to swim through the pond. The current is not a good one. We will turn the tide. We are turning the bend. This I assure you. I am being very careful. The worst is over for Nigeria. We will prevail.
"I thank the team who have been working really hard. All I can promise is that we will do whatever it takes. We are determined, and we will work so that all Nigerians can feel the impact of good governance," the President said.
The President assured Nigerians that his administration will ensure they get value for every kobo spent, and that his government will leave a lasting legacy of prosperity to future generations, while removing the yoke of poor governance and expanding access to qualitative public goods.
"We will get value for our money, and it is not for ourselves, but for our children. Our children will not inherit the burden of bad governance. Yet, they will enjoy the prosperity of Nigeria as a blessed nation from our very hands; from our sweat. We will bequeath to them a nation full of pride and prosperity," President Tinubu said.
President Tinubu also called for the deepening of governance and the reinforcement of leadership across all levels of government and institutions, adding that his administration is committed to encouraging fiscal federalism and strengthening the system to enhance inclusion and equity for all Nigerians.
"Healthcare upgradation is ongoing. Road rehabilitation and construction is ongoing. Education development is ongoing. I am charging you to look at what is going on in the states. Pay attention to your state governors. Tell them to take their responsibilities seriously and make the people the focus of their development plans. Once there is synergy, then I can assure you that Nigeria will be one of the best nations that you will see anywhere on earth.
"Local government administration is being suffocated. People are looking at the opportunity to ensure that they survive and become more purposeful through community development programmes. What I will not support is any effort to make the local government a unitary system by handing all core responsibilities to the federal government. That is criminal when there is a federal system.
"We have a federal system. There is state and federal administration. We have two components. States must do whatever is in the best interest of their own process of administration. There is no one-size-fits-all. That is what we should do by looking at the revenue formula, and we must be consistent with federalism; fiscal federalism. Those are the things you should expect from me, not the knee-jerk reactions ahead of elections.
"Our population is growing. It is getting larger. The geographical requirement is getting bigger, so we still want more space for housing. The population is growing. So that is the basis for flexibility at the local government level. We must grow and expand," the President said.
While thanking the delegation of eminent Nigerians, President Tinubu urged continuous support for and faith in Nigeria, assuring them that his government would live up to expectations.
"I can tell you that Nigeria is no longer printing paper money and deceiving itself that it has a base for survival. Nigeria went through terrible labour pains, but we have seen the baby coming out alive," the President concluded.
In his remarks, Honourable Bayo Aina, the National Secretary, who spoke on behalf of Prince Tajudeen Oluyole Olusi, Convener of the Yoruba Leaders of Thought, commended the President for his prioritization of investment in infrastructure across various sectors.
“We salute your timely initiative to upgrade, construct, and modernize the infrastructure of our nation in health, aviation, transportation, as well as the education sector. We commend you for your commitment to providing responsible, responsive, and accountable governance in this country.
“At this point, we state without equivocation our total commitment to the vision of greatness that you have articulated, which is the destiny of Nigeria, not only within Africa, but globally and among the comity of nations before the end of the 21st century," the National Secretary of the group concluded.
Chief Ajuri Ngelale
Special Adviser to the President
(Media & Publicity)
[OPINION] International Day of the Boy Child: The Case for Equally Nurturing Both Boy and Girl Children - Bright Okuta
Admin![[OPINION] International Day of the Boy Child: The Case for Equally Nurturing Both Boy and Girl Children - Bright Okuta](/media/k2/items/cache/20510b1633f696b7009675beb7badf6f_S.jpg)
It is not difficult to understand why there are thousands of initiatives to empower and protect the girl child. This effort to educate, groom, nurture, and shelter young girls is important in breaking barriers to their success and their well-being when they grow up. Yet, within this effort, a good number of equally vital elements tend to be pushed to the backburner: the grooming and character shaping of boy children.
The boy child has long been neglected in proper nurturing, attention and care by the society, civil society organizations and even parents. They do little or nothing to raise awareness about the challenges faced by boys.
Societal vices, domestic abuse, and fraud, most of which are carried out by boys, have been greatly propelled by society in Nigeria and most countries. The view often displayed is that young boys are resilient or less vulnerable and, hence, do not need the same level of grooming and protection young girls need. The adverse impact of this is that the boys eventually grow up to become bad fathers, husbands, and menace to the society.
Consider an example of a Nigerian father, with sons and daughters, who inadvertently perpetuate stereotypes by being more focused on raising his daughters. He is protective of his daughters, knowing every time they move out of the house and warning them against all the dangers lurking around. But he does not do the same for his boys. The boy children get the freedom to frolic with unhealthy companions who introduce them to criminal activities like theft, robbery, cultism, gang violence, rape, use of hard drugs, yahoo fraud, and even ritual. Between 2021 and 2023, there was an incredible rise in money rituals by teenage boys in Nigeria. This unbalanced practice unconsciously sustains harmful bias and societal imbalances in Nigeria.
Equity in the development of both genders can only be possible when they are equally nurtured and given a chance to grow and flourish. There are a plethora of reasons why boy children should be equally groomed. The first is to address the root cause of social vices. Making conscious efforts to address the root causes through comprehensive education and awareness campaigns for both genders.
The second reason is to promote gender equality.
The third is to break the cycle of toxic masculinity. By inculcating values such as empathy, respect, and accountability in young boys, I strongly believe society can break the cycle of toxic masculinity at the tender age of the boy child. Encouraging the expression of emotions and teaching healthy ways of coping helps the boy child to be able to cope with life challenges without aggressive behaviors.
The fourth is the empowerment of boys as agents of change. A boy child has a lot of potential to become a change agent in their communities and beyond. When taught the core values of life, society can empower a boy to channel his energy and aspirations into constructive enterprises that add value to society.
There is also the need for positive role models. Providing boy children with positive role models that depict integrity, compassion, and ethical conduct impacts them greatly during their developmental stages. Mentorship programs and projects that expose boys to successful and upright men and women widen their thinking and can inspire them to excel in every facet of their lives.
Societies have to rise above mere tradition and embrace the evolving, broad-based, and multidimensional concept of nurturing children to not only have a generation able to realize their full potential but also to be committed to creating a just society.
It is time to redefine gender equality by recognizing the worth and dignity of every child.
Bright Okuta
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![[OPINION] Goodluck Jonathan: A True Leader, Elder Statesman, and Peacemaker - George Kerley](/media/k2/items/cache/b3c8a44930129d5e263cd099e2c76f1f_XS.jpg)
On April 21, 2024, in Port Harcourt, former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan made a significant call for unity during the flag-off ceremony for Phase II of the Trans Kalabari Road Project. Addressing the ongoing political turmoil in Rivers State, Jonathan urged former Governor Nyesom Wike and his successor, Siminalaye Fubara, to set aside their differences for the greater good of Rivers State, the Niger Delta, and Nigeria as a whole.
Jonathan emphasized the critical need for outgoing and incoming governors to collaborate in the collective interest of their citizens, stating, "The ongoing tension in Rivers State will not help us." This intervention is characteristic of Jonathan's statesmanship and commitment to peace and democracy.
The Roots of the Crisis
The political crisis in Rivers State began in late 2023 with a fallout between Wike, now the FCT Minister, and Fubara. Despite President Tinubu's initial intervention, the conflict escalated in early 2024.
On May 6, Governor Fubara declared that the state assembly members who attempted to impeach him existed only by his recognition, undermining their legitimacy and exacerbating tensions.
This conflict took a dramatic turn on May 8, when four pro-Fubara lawmakers elected Victor Oko Jumbo as their speaker. The next day, Fubara made an unexpected visit to the Legislative Quarters, suggesting the need for improvements in light of the new leadership. This visit further heightened the political tension in the state.
Jonathan's Laudable Intervention
Jonathan's call for peace is particularly noteworthy given his significant influence in Rivers State. His presidency facilitated Wike's rise to power in 2015, despite initial resistance from local political factions. Additionally, Jonathan's deep personal ties to Rivers State, where he spent much of his early life and education, add weight to his mediation efforts.
In contrast to many elders who have taken sides, Jonathan's balanced approach underscores his role as a true elder statesman. While pro-Wike and pro-Fubara factions have only deepened the crisis, Jonathan's impartial stance offers a path towards reconciliation.
The Broader Implications
The political instability in Rivers State threatens its economic development, as highlighted by Governor Fubara's remarks at the recent Rivers Investment Summit. Persistent conflict deters investors, undermining the state's potential as an industrial hub. There is also the looming risk that the Federal Government might relocate the Niger Delta Development Commission headquarters from Rivers State, further exacerbating economic woes.
Comparing Jonathan's intervention with that of Pa EK Clark reveals a stark difference in approach. While Clark's partisan stance has only fueled the crisis, Jonathan's measured and inclusive appeal aims to bridge divides and foster unity.
A Call for True Leadership
Jonathan's intervention exemplifies the qualities of a true leader: wisdom, impartiality, and a deep commitment to the common good. His actions stand in stark contrast to the divisive rhetoric and actions of other political figures. As an experienced statesman, Jonathan understands that sustainable political solutions require dialogue, respect for constitutional processes, and a focus on long-term stability.
In these turbulent times, Rivers State and indeed Nigeria need more leaders like Goodluck Jonathan, who prioritize peace and unity over personal or political gain. His legacy as a peacemaker continues to shine, offering hope for a more stable and prosperous future for all.
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George Kerley is President of the Niger Delta Enterprise Initiative (NDEI) and writes from Port Harcourt
[OPINION] A Call For The Reinstatement of The Old National Anthem: Nigeria We Hail Thee - Sonny Iroche
Admin![[OPINION] A Call For The Reinstatement of The Old National Anthem: Nigeria We Hail Thee - Sonny Iroche](/media/k2/items/cache/6ce47a693117ff09a7a449f48188fbbf_XS.jpg)
The Nigerian National anthem, like any country’s anthem, for all intents and purposes is meant to hold a special place in the hearts of its citizens, symbolizing unity and national pride. But this does not seem to be the case in our country for many years since Nigeria’s independence in 1960. The country has witnessed many coups and counter coup and fought a very bitter civil war in which millions of Nigerians were killed, from 1967-1970.
Following the collapse of the first republic in 1966, the military took over the country’s government, through a series of coup d’etat. Then in 1975, after the overthrow of General Yakubu Gowon, by the Murtala Mohammed/ Olusegun Obasanjo duo, Obasanjo took over after the assassination of Murtala Mohammed in 1976. However, the General Olusegun Obasanjo military government decided to change Nigeria’s national anthem in 1978 without consulting the people. This decision has sparked a desire within me and certainly among many other Nigerians, particularly those born between the 1940s and 1970s to reinstate the old anthem, “Nigeria We Hail Thee.” This anthem carries historical, cultural, and prayerful significance that resonates deeply with the citizens.
The change of the National anthem has left those of us born in that generation of baby boomers who grew up singing the national anthem in schools and homes, feeling disconnected and disheartened. And from a personal point, the music man in me feels the void of that melodious anthem since the change. The new anthem, though well-intentioned, lacks the emotional resonance that the old anthem held. “Nigeria We Hail Thee” evokes a sense of pride, hope, and loyalty towards the nation. By reinstating the old anthem, we can reignite the patriotic spirit within the citizens and restore our emotional connection to the country.
Let us take a moment to reflect on the words and verses of the old anthem, appreciating the prayers and blessings it embodies. The line “to hand unto our children, a banner without stain” reminds us of the responsibility we have as parents to pass on a legacy free from corruption, crime, and other social ills. We must consider the consequences of our actions and strive to create a better future for our children and in effect, Nigeria.
Another verse of the old anthem that holds solemnity is “O God of all creation, grant this our one request. Help us to build a nation, where no man is oppressed. And so with peace and plenty, Nigeria may be blessed.” Sadly, since the change in the anthem, Nigeria has struggled to find peace and has been insensitive to the hunger, poverty, unemployment and the plight of the oppressed and down trodden. Reinstating the old anthem may serve as a reminder of the values we should uphold as a nation.
The old anthem encapsulates the diverse cultural heritage of Nigeria. It celebrates the country’s ethnic, religious, and linguistic diversity, emphasizing the importance of unity in diversity. This message is crucial in a nation as diverse as Nigeria, as it promotes inclusivity and fosters a sense of belonging among all citizens. By reinstating the old anthem, we can reinforce the values of cultural acceptance and national unity.
The reasons given for changing the anthem are not convincing. The argument that the word “tribe” is offensive is unfounded, as it simply refers to a community united by common customs and traditions. Additionally, dismissing the old anthem because it was written by a British expatriate is shortsighted. We should not discard our history and heritage simply to distance ourselves from our colonial past.
Instead of finding faults with the old anthem, subsequent governments post independence should have faced the challenges of their time and the development of the country head-on. The government should have prioritized on a long term basis, the funding of education, healthcare, infrastructure, social welfare, diversification of the source of national revenue, as well as address issues of insecurity and corruption. The Tinubu administration must now take urgent actions reining in the many militia groups in a number of states in the country, non-state actors in the security sector and empower our military, police, and paramilitary forces through training and incentives to secure the lives and property of citizens, and Nigeria’s territorial integrity.
The change in the Nigerian National anthem without constitutional considerations or the people’s mandate has had a profound impact on the country. Reinstating the old anthem is crucial to reconnecting with our history, celebrating our cultural diversity, and reigniting the patriotic spirit within our citizens. It is now time for the National Assembly to seriously consider this plea, and make wide consultations, put it up for discussions in the course of the Senate and House proceedings, with a view to restoring the old anthem, as it has the power to psychologically bring Nigeria back to its former glory. While government does its best to alleviate the excruciating suffering currently facing Nigerian, albeit, with economic policies aimed at enduring prosperity. The removal of the fuel subsidies and harmonization of the foreign exchange rates are two positive redemptive steps taken so far by the Tinubu government but quick palliatives must follow as soon as possible to ameliorate the suffering of Nigerians.
We hope that by the time the administration finally settles down to business, we may all be able to sing: Nigeria we Hail Thee.
NB: Sonny Iroche is 2022-2023 Senior Academic Visitor at the African Studies Centre, University of Oxford.
![[OPINION] Lawson: The Colossus, Man Of Many Parts - Abdu Rafiu](/media/k2/items/cache/e3df672b780a50812cb4350a765bb75b_XS.jpg)
The day passed quietly last week: no fun fair; no noise-making. It was not because he is no longer in the flesh. Even if he were, the great day would have been marked modestly. A few speculations, given what I knew about his nature and his values, raced to my mind on how the day would have been marked – a handful of friends and admirers visiting to extend the customary courtesies and best wishes to him, a musical concert, children singing the Hallelujah Chorus. If with a lecture, there would be no clicking of glasses: you go home and reflect on what had been absorbed from the lecture. He departed earthly life, barely two months away to clocking 69 years.
I am referring to Chief Adeyemi Olusola Lawson, the colossus and without comparison, a man of many parts, a leader of leaders, the captain of captains of industries. He would have been 100 years last week Wednesday, were he still to be in the flesh. What I believe a great many must have done on that blessed day was sit quietly in their closets, thanking the Almighty Father, the Creator of all the worlds for the privilege of being permitted to cross his path in this phase of our journey through life.
Chief Lawson was from Abeokuta in Ogun State, born in Lagos on 15 May, 1924, the first of five children of Chief J. O. Lawson, a civil servant and Frances Obinrinade Lawson, a Princess from the Arole O’odua, indeed from the same Aderin Royal Lineage as Oba Okunade Olubuse, the Second. She was a teacher, but later took to trading. As a trader she got her son to hawk in the streets of Lagos Island. This was later to turn as a prelude to his imminent high tasks in his life. No one knew what the high tasks meant to be his lot would be. As was customary at the time, all his parents were told was that they should not interfere in whatever spiritual values he might choose to profess. He hawked “foo-foo”to nourish the body, he later went to the ends of the world spreading the Holy Word of God to nourish human beings with the food of the spirit and to awaken those in slumber through bringing to their awareness the existence of “In the Light of Truth”, the Grail Message by Abd-ru-shin. The Grail Message is the Teaching of the Lord Christ brought anew from the Highest Heights to mankind much more elaborately in these times. In his own words, “I assisted my mother by hawking wares on the same streets of Lagos over which I now move about in cars. I sold oranges, foo-foo and agidi, hawking them on my head after school hours like children from average families.”
Coming from an enlightened parentage, Adeyemi Lawson began his elementary education at the age of four at a private school known as Caxton House School. He moved from there to Baptist Academy where he finished in Standard Six, was admitted the following year CMS Grammar School founded in 1859 at Abeokuta, the first and oldest secondary school in Nigeria to date. The school was moved to Lagos after a few years. Adeyemi Lawson attended the school in Lagos and passed out in flying colours in 1941. Lawson’s performance was such that he was exempted from London Matriculation. Among his classmates were later Nigeria’s leading lights in the civil service, in politics and the judiciary. Jonathan Odebiyi, for example, was the principal of Egbado College, Ilaro, later Minister of Finance in the Western Region and in the second Republic the UPN Senate Leader. Folarin Coker was permanent secretary for many years and his role call later was as Head of Service and Justice B.O Kassim was High Court Judge in Lagos. All these confirm the truism that you can tell a person by the company he keeps. Adetunji Adefarasin was another of his friends, but he attended Igbobi College. He was Chief Judge of Lagos State from 1974 to 1985. Lawson’s best known bosom friend was Chief Chris Ogunbanjo, another giant in Industry and Law practice with specialization in Commercial Law.
Lawson could not go to the university immediately on leaving school because the Second World War was sweeping through parts of Europe and such higher education could only be obtained in Europe at the time. He took to teaching at St. Saviour’s High School in Lagos as only teachers were free from conscription into the Army to go and fight in the war. He wanted to study Law, not joining the Army. He eventually left for the United Kingdom in 1945 after the war ended. As part of his working career, he had a stint in the Accountant General Office as a clerk.
Always exceptional, he finished his Law studies ahead of time in 1947. He was called to the Bar at Gray’s Inn. Speaking with Dapo Odebiyi in his publication, Nigerian Enterprise, 1983, relayed in his book, Builders of Modern Nigeria, 1985, Chief Adeyemi Lawson said in glowing appreciation and gratefulness about his father: “It is pertinent to mention here that my father made an enormous sacrifice to get me trained in England. He was then a first-class clerk with a monthly income the equivalent of about thirty-seven Naira out of which he sent me about twenty-five Naira every month, leaving him less than twelve Naira to maintain himself, my mother and other children and there can be no doubt that other children went through some privations at that time.”
On returning to Nigeria he set up a law firm, A Lawson & Co—Solicitors. He knew success and fortune. He was Queen’s Counsel (QC) the precursor of SAN, as peak of his professional calling. QC is now SAN which is the highest attainment for any lawyer. Some of his outstanding cases are contained in Nigerian Law Reports. His area of concentration was commercial law in which he excelled. That aspect of law practice brought him into regular contact with managers of business. This gave him an insight into features characteristic of business, business management and investment and as is the natural order, first as a minor investor and later a more substantial one. He and friends among them Chief Michael Ibru, Chief Chris Ogunbanjo, and Dr. Moses A. Majekodunmi, joined hands to establish a commercial bank known as Bank of Lagos Limited, with some Swiss nationals as foreign partners. They left the running of the bank in the hands of the foreign partners who came with expertise no doubt but did not know enough about Nigerians. “In consequence, a good proportion of our capital was lost in no time”, so said Chief Lawson. “My colleagues and I on the Board of the Bank could afford to lose our money but not our good names and so we decided not to take the risk of losing depositors’ money.” They called in all the depositors and, under the supervision of the Central Bank, refunded all their deposits to them with apologies that they could no longer be of service to them in the banking field. They returned their banking licence, changed the name of the Bank to Finance Company of Lagos Limited, and bowed gracefully out at the time from the banking field—having gained what Chief Lawson described was “a highly invaluable experience.”
Business is a risk, but Adeyemi Lawson was not one to flee from risk-taking in business or any endeavour. He went from banking to brewing (West African Breweries, the first indigenous brewery in Nigeria) for which he was renowned, to pharmaceuticals, to glass manufacturing and to services such as insurance and advertising. He was into petroleum marketing. He set up ACORN Petroleum Nigeria Limited to drive it – undergirded as was his accustomed thoughtfulness by the adage “The mighty oaks from little acorns grow.” He set up a trading and marketing company in the UK with worldwide tentacles.
Chief Lawson packed so much into his life that hardly is it realised by the younger generation that he was ever into politics. His foray into politics was unplanned but prepared him for his great tasks. Interestingly, it was his father who was chosen as candidate by his constituency for election into Lagos City Council, but was disqualified on technical ground. “Since the Area Council members had printed many posters in the name of J.O. Lawson, they decided that his lawyer son had better be presented as a candidate as they only needed to change my father’s initial ‘J’ to my own ‘A’ on the various posters.” Chief Lawson won the election on the platform of Awolowo’s Action Group and subsequent ones until he left politics in 1962 following the crisis in the party and the looming crisis in the Western Region as a whole. He was out of the country when the crisis began. All the parties saluted his sagacity and engrossing wisdom and believed that had his intervention come earlier the crisis would not have escalated beyond the point of reconciliation. Chief Lawson hardly spoke about his intervention. All he said in publications was in his own words: “The two principal actors in the crisis were Chief Awolowo and the Late Chief S.L. Akintola. Both of them had been good to me and in my own way, I had been a good and loyal friend to both of them. As it became impossible for the rift to be resolved, the party split into supporters of one, on the one hand, and the supporters of the other, on the other hand, I decided that since neither of them had wronged me, I would not remain with one in seeming opposition to the other. Therefore, I decided to quit politics and resigned from all political positions.” When the thoughts became crystallized within him and became a pressure, he parked his car by the roadside on the way to Ibadan and wrote his letter of resignation. He indeed heard a voice commanding him to “resign now.” He did not know where the voice came from.
He was in politics from 1950 till 1962. He was chairman of the Lagos City Council for six years, a position that would rank him as post-independence governor of Lagos State. He served on the floor of the Council after his party, the Action Group, was defeated by the NCNC in 1960. That was to the chagrin of a great many. To Chief Lawson, it was nothing. It was the standard in Westminster and with which he was familiar. Once a Prime Minister loses as head of his party he becomes an ordinary Member of Parliament. He was barely 30 years old and on looking back years later, he marveled at how his Administration could have achieved what it did. He noted it could not have been due to anything thing other than the unseen hands of Helpers from Above that guided their thoughts and hands. He had his pillar of support in Chief Deyemo (D.M.O)Akinbiyi as Town Clerk and T.M.Aluko, the City Engineer, the same very well-known novelist. Lawson’s Administration in collaboration with LEDB of which he was statutorily a member by virtue of his being chairman of Lagos City Council built New Lagos, turning the swamp of Surulere into a new and modern city. They changed the face of the Lagos transport system. When he was chairman, T.M. Aluko had pressed in a memo for urban renewal, to decongest Lagos Island. This was the catalyst for creating Surulere—lower and medium scale properties. The memo also triggered the thought in him for what later to manifest as Agbara Estate. This was coupled with the encouragement of the government to industrialists to begin to move to the outskirts of Lagos.
As one controlling about a dozen leading companies, including oil prospecting and exploration in Gabon, and the establishment of Agbara Estate, the first of its kind as an industrial and residential city in West Africa, it could not have come as a surprise that his contemporaries in business and economy found him worthy to invest in him the leadership of their various associations. He was President of the Lagos Chambers of Commerce and Industry; President, Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA); President, Federation of West African Chambers of Commerce which through his initiative pressed for the establishment of ECOWAS. General Gowon embraced the initiative and got his brothers Heads of State in countries of West Africa to buy into it. Lawson was the only African on the 15-member Executive Board of the International Chamber of Commerce based in Paris.
Much as he appreciated the material endowments that he knew came from the Throne of Grace, what mattered more to Adeyemi Lawson was the Spread of The Grail Message. As Abd-ru-shin says in His Message from the Grail of the class of Adeyemi Lawson: “Through faithful guidance, they were equipped in the earthly sense with everything they needed for the fulfillment of their respective tasks.” Just as well, after he left politics, in his own words: “Since then other factors have come into my life to make it impossible for me to politick actively in Nigeria again. I have responsibilities for bringing the Grail Message to the knowledge of every citizen of this country and indeed beyond the boundaries of our country. With such a responsibility, my doors should be and remain readily open to every Nigerian from wherever walk of life or from whatever part of the country he may come from. And in the circumstances of politics in Nigeria, my spiritual responsibilities to all and sundry cannot be compatible with partisan politics. So I have to recognise a much higher duty by staying away from politics and be as far as humanly possible a brother and friend to every Nigerian.”
He worked tirelessly to make the existence of the Grail Message known not only in several parts of Nigeria through public lectures, newspapers and television. In the UK, his lecture was reported by West Africa Magazine. He was in the United States, he was in India; he was in Brazil. Many of his assistants are spread across villages and cities in Nigeria, East Africa and South Africa as well. What is in the Grail Message that he so unremittingly applied himself to making its existence known in so many places, near and far? Lawson answers in the following words: “The Grail Message does not seek to establish a new religion. It does not demand anything from anyone. It does not even oblige you or ask you to accept it. It is a source of knowledge that reveals to mankind all the Laws of Nature which uphold the Will of the Creator in His Creation. It enables man to recognise his own position as a creature in Creation and recognizing that position enables man to understand the consequences of everything he says and does in Creation. He is completely free to exercise his will and do what he pleases but would know what the consequences would be. More than that, he will understand in all clarity how this great Creation of the Almighty does work in perfection. When I came to the Grail Message, and examined it, I realised that this was a unique message on the face of the earth, that any man who does not become aware of its existence and grapple with it in his lifetime, may be considered as having gone through a completely wasted life on earth. So great was my gratitude for being able to come across it, that I know of no other thing I can do or give in return for that Grace than work with all my strength to help other human beings to know of it. This was the objective which enabled me or rather which made me start off on the establishment of the Grail Movement of Nigeria with a view to working together with people of like minds to make the existence of the Grail Message on earth become known to all my countrymen.”
Lawson was always in his elements whenever he had to speak on The Grail Message and he went on: “The Grail Message as a fountain of Truth itself is not easy for the average human spirit who has become spiritually indolent to grapple with, and the majority of human beings have become spiritually indolent on earth. The average man is no longer concerned with his origins in Creation or the purpose of life. He dreams and goes through a vivid experience in the dream. He wakes up and does not concern himself with what he had dreamt. Where was he when he was seeing and experiencing these things? What he experienced and on what plane did he experience them? Many questions he leaves unanswered. He has become comfortable with indolence and, therefore, the spiritually receptive part of his brain has become atrophied. He finds it consequently difficult to grapple with spiritual facts. One finds, therefore, that only the few who bestir themselves, the few who still have some spark of truth and light within them, make efforts to try to understand the Grail Message. The consequence of that is that only a few of the very many who hear of it get the benefit from it. But, however few they may be, even for the sake of one who will benefit from it, I will walk to the ends of this earth to be able to help him benefit from it. For there can be nothing too great for me to do in gratitude to the Almighty for the Grace which permitted me to come across it. It has given me a sense of direction in life, a sense of purpose, enabling me to appreciate the true meaning of life and thereby enhanced my ability to find contentment and fulfillment, to enjoy life to its fullest.”
The Message formed the basis for grappling with concepts and to reposition misplaced signposts wherever and in circles he may find himself. It provided the basis for his business and economic philosophy and choices. A strong advocate of free market economy, he recognised early that command economy which is sometimes associated with socialism and communism tends to rob man of his initiative. He considered it unhealthy as it is unnatural. He argued that business affords employment opportunities for many who will in turn maintain themselves and their families. All added together makes great contribution to the economy. His three breweries alone paid N36million yearly as excise duty only, apart from taxes in 1983. He said to Dapo Odebiyi in Business Enterprise, 1983, that there is no command economy that can be said is capable of bringing about an affluent country. Russia was a heavy debtor to the West and Tanzania was collapsing under Nyerere. “If for instance you have a million Nigerians making the endeavours similar to what one makes in industry and commerce, Nigeria will be greater economically. Have a nation of poor people, the nation is poor. Have a nation of people actively generating wealth, the nation will be affluent.”
I was privileged to sit at his feet year in year out to draw from his fountain of wisdom and rich experiences. He came through a family that provided him the necessary environment for his high tasks. His preparation to come across the Message began in 1961; he saw a copy for the first time at Foyles Bookshop in 1963. As chancellor of the Western Diocese of the Anglican Church he had led a delegation of the Anglican Diocese to Canada. On getting to London and preparing to set sail back to Nigeria, he found himself led to the bookshop where copies had only been deposited the previous day. This is why he would say no person led him to the Message but his helper! As everyone is the name he bears, it could not have been an accident and without purpose that he came a Lawson! He was married to Mrs. Ibidunni Olagbende, Lawson, nee Thompson, herself a Princess like his own mother!
So dear is he to our hearts for his love and exemplary exertions to make the gift that is The Grail Message known to all and sundry, that friends were in frenzy to remind us close to him last week that Adeyemi Lawson, indeed, passed this way, a foremost servant of Imanuel at his time in all of Africa except the Democratic Republic of Congo! He was in our midst, our leader and guide, a colossus in the real meaning of the word.
![[OPINION] Our Father, this Africa Day, liberate us from military bases - Owei Lakemfa](/media/k2/items/cache/a5728141c232dad20ac9b0fd68990753_XS.jpg)
OUR Father, we your children in Africa come to you this day, the eve of the May 25, Africa Liberation Day.
We have been enslaved and colonised. We have survived the genocide of our traducers who in Congo alone massacred 16 million of us and wiped out two thirds of our population in Namibia.
We also survived Apartheid and the pestilence of coups and criminal leadership. Thank you for giving us the ability to survive all these, including the continued exploitation and destabilisation of our continent. At this point, we drag before you the institutions of exploitation and dehumanisation in the continent; the International Monetary Fund, IMF, and the World Bank and, their handmaid, the World Trade Organisation, WTO. Like doctors prescribing the same drugs for all ailments, all they have done for over four decades is force on the continent, subsidy removal, currency flotation, exploitative market forces, higher fuel prices, jobless growth, reduction in education funding and hyper-inflation.
Father, it is not for nothing you made us the source of humanity, the centre of the universe and the depository of natural resources. We do not take for granted the fact that over 4,000 years ago, we had the knowledge and ability to build pyramids with arithmetical accuracy and precision which still baffles the rest of humanity. We know that the founders of Western philosophy and builders of their civilization, including Plato and Herodotus, were pupils of Africa education having graduated from our universities in Ancient Egypt.
We know that the rise of Africans as one of the most educated groups in the United States is not by accident. May we develop the consciousness and ability to utilise such huge assets, to develop our continent.
The God of Nkrumah, Harriet Tubman, Winnie Mandela, Felix Moumie, Dedan Kimathi, Fanon and Malcolm X, lead us to victory over all persons, groups and nations perpetuating iniquities against the African people.
Give us victory over them as Toussaint Louverture and other liberation fighters militarily defeated France, the super power which strived to continue the enslavement of Haitians. Even now, the gangsters, forces of darkness and their minders continue to torment Haiti. May they fail. May African leaders and progressive forces across the universe, have the presence of mind and consciousness to intervene positively in Haiti and the rest of our continent.
Father, when Africans had few people to fight for them during slavery in the United States, you raised John Brown and his sons. When the forces of Apartheid were trying to overrun African countries just as Israel is striving to obliterate the Palestinians, you raised Fidel Castro and the Cubans. May Africa never be short of true allies.
Father, as we mark the 2024 Africa Day, the continent is engulfed in series of armed conflicts. Some, like that in Sudan, are due to prodigal children fed steroids by foreign powers. Some fires as those in Somalia and half a dozen countries in West Africa are set by religious elements dancing on the verge of lunacy. There are also the deliberate wars like that in Libya, engineered and stoked by the West which destroyed the African promise called Libya.
There are over 100 million illegal small arms and light weapons circulating in the continent, almost all manufactured outside Africa. Assist us to silence the guns. Let those who live by the gun, die by the gun. Let those who profiteer from war, know no peace; let them choke on the vomit of their profits. Generally, aid us to overcome the various conflicts and, set Africa firmly on the path of development.
Let there be peace in Africa as it is in Washington, London and Beijing. You said, blessed are the peace makers for they shall be called your children. We pray for all peace makers whether in Tel Aviv or Gaza.
We have not stolen other peoples’ lands, coveted their property or seized their children. We have not sought to own the sun or the moon. All we have tried to do in Africa, is to live on the beautiful land it has pleased you to give us. Our desires are to share salt and pepper amongst ourselves, have schools for our children, roof over our heads, clothes on our backs and medication to take of ourselves when we fall sick.
Father, you are the God that answereth by fire. You said it shall be the fire next time. Consume all those misruling Africa and their principals in the metropolis. Let all powers and principalities that plan to recolonise your beautiful continent be destroyed like the Biblical Sodom and Gomorrah. Those who trouble Africa, trouble them. Those who cause us pains, cause them pains.
Father, a major challenge Africa has today are the attempts to expand military bases in Africa where foreign powers will expand their spheres of influence at our cost. We do not want our continent to be turned into theatres of international wars or test sites for new weapons. We recall the case of Cuba whose 116-square metre Guantanamo Base, the United States leased in 1903 for $2,000. Despite repeated demands in the last six decades, the tenant has refused to leave. While we pray in solidarity with Cuba to regain its territory, we pray that African countries will not fall victims of possessive spirits that roam the universe.
Finally father, we pray that the dreams of our ancestors as retold by Nkrumah on May 24, 1963 that our continent must unite, should come to pass. His words that day, continue to echo across our hills and valleys, especially when he said: “Unite we must. Without necessarily sacrificing our sovereignties, big or small, we can, here and now, forge a political union based on Defence, Foreign Affairs and Diplomacy, and a common Citizenship, an African currency, an African Monetary Zone and an African Central Bank. We must unite in order to achieve the full liberation of our continent. We need a common Defence system with an African High Command to ensure the stability and security of Africa. We have been charged with this sacred task by our own people, and we cannot betray their trust by failing them.” We pray Africans give heed to his words and take ‘Positive Action’ to bring them to fruition.
We pray that you bless Africa and all her well-wishers as we mark Africa Liberation Day, 2024. Ameen.