27062021 - Kaduna, Borno, Niger, Benue strruggle over 3 million IDP

PAGE 2 —SUNDAY VANGUARD, JUNE 27, 2021

SUNDAY VANGUARD, JUNE 27, 2021, PAGE 3 

Jitters as N/Delta Avengers returns, 

threatens hostilities 

...targets oil installations, politicians 

•PANDEF asks militants to stay action 

•Violence only language FG understands – NDYM 

From left: Assistant Secretary, Mrs Margret Obono, Sir Sam Ubachukwu, Pharmaceutical 

Society of Nigeria 2021 Mid-Year Meeting Planning Committee member, Prof. Mrs. Mbang 

Femi-Oyewo, Planning Committee Chairman, Pharm. Lanre Familusi, Secretary, Board of Fellows, 

and Ernest Okofor, during a press briefing in Lagos. Photo: Kehinde Shonola. 

By Emma Amaize, 

Regional Editor, South- 

South, Egufe Yafugborhi 

and Chioma Onuegbu 

EADERS of the Niger-Delta, 

Llast night, counseled militants 

who threatened to resume 

hostilities in the region over failed 

promises by the Federal Government 

to stop their plans and follow 

the path of peace, saying violence 

was no longer fashionable 

in conflict resolution. 

The leaders spoke through the 

Pan Niger-Delta Forum, the 

mouthpiece of monarchs, leaders 

and stakeholders of the coastal 

states of Niger-Delta, against the 

backdrop of the threat by Niger- 

Delta Avengers, NDA, to attack 

targeted oil installations and political 

actors perceived to have 

colluded with the Federal Government 

to undermine the people of 

the oil-rich region. 

Meanwhile, a body of youth 

groups in the region, Niger Delta 

Youth Movement, NDYM, threw 

its weight behind the decision of 

the militant group to resume attacks 

on oil installations, saying 

violence was the language the 

Federal Government listens to. 

National Publicity Secretary, 

PANDEF, Hon Ken Robinson, who 

spoke to Sunday Vanguard, also 

said the regional group was making 

efforts to authenticate the genuineness 

of the militant group that 

issued the threat. 

A group claiming to be NDA, the 

feared militant group that practically 

crippled the nation’s economy 

about four years ago, had, in a 

post on its website, titled, ‘We are 

back with Operation Humble’, at 

the weekend, stated: “This operation 

shall be coded Operation 

Humble aimed at bringing down 

targeted oil installations in the 

Niger Delta region capable of 

humbling the economy into permanent 

recession.” 

Rejecting a restart of violence 

in the region, PANDEF said: 

“But, our general thought to our 

young people is that we cannot 

take the path of violence any longer. 

Otherwise we expose our communities, 

our people, even our 

young people themselves to unnecessary 

harm. 

“Communities will be destroyed 

in the name of looking for supposed 

militants. And innocent 

persons, our young people will be 

killed in a way that they don’t act 

against the bandits and the terrorists 

in the North-East and the 

North-West. We see what they are 

doing in the South-East. 

“So, as leaders of the region, we 

are appealing to the young people. 

In the face of all these provocations, 

let us still look for non- 

violent ways to express our dissatisfaction 

and our disaffection. 

“That is the right way and what 

we will continue to do while we 

continue to call on government, 

federal and even the states to begin 

to also take aspirations of the 

people more seriously.” 

Authenticity 

On the authenticity of the group, 

Robinson stated: “I can categorically 

state that, in 2016, we intervened 

and the aggrieved youths 

listened to us under Niger Delta 

Avengers (NDA). We will try to confirm 

the authenticity of this release, 

whether it is an authentic 

group or some persons who are 

just making claims. We have people 

in the Niger Delta now who 

have become laptop militants. We 

are aware of that. 

“So, we will ascertain authenticity 

of this group, but the fact remains 

that, after four years, nothing much 

has been done by the Federal Government 

(FG) (in the Niger Delta). 

We visited Mr. President on November 

1, 2016 and presented to a 16- 

point demand that cuts across critical 

issues across the Niger Delta. 

“Of course you are also aware that 

following our visit and presentation 

of demands, the Vice President, Prof 

Yemi Osibanjo, then as Acting President, 

undertook a visit to all states 

in the region and interacted with the 

people during which the demands 

were reemphasized. 

“The Acting President, at that time, 

made very far-reaching pronouncements, 

including relocation of International 

Oil Companies (IOCs) 

headquarters to the Niger Delta. 

“Out of the 16 demands, as we 

speak, over four years after, we have 

the Ffederal Government attending 

only, as it were, to one and a half. 

That is Ogoni clean-up and the 

Maritime University, Okerenkoko. 

“The Nigeria Maritime University 

was a joint item involving the establishment 

of the Maritime University, 

Okerenkoko and upgrade of 

the Maritime Academy in Oron to 

a university. 

“That has been the situation and, 

of course, we acknowledge that people 

are angry, people dissatisfied. 

There’s disaffection in the region 

and people are worried.” 

Panic had gripped the oil industry, 

yesterday morning, as the NDA said 

it had exhausted the last iota of 

patience with the Federal Government 

and the high command decided, 

last Friday night, to wake up the 

government that had been sleeping 

on its responsibilities. 

The frightening post read in 

part: “This mission is also targeted 

at political actors who are 

collaborating with the Nigerian 

Government to undermine the 

interest of the Niger Delta people.” 

“Conclusively, we wish to state 

unequivocally and in simple 

terms that we are back with Operation 

Humble; with the aim of 

humbling the economy into permanent 

recession and political 

players from the Niger Delta extraction 

to political retirement. 

“Our Strike Teams 01 - 09 and all 

other formations are to regroup and 

remain on red alert awaiting further 

command. 

“There will no going back until 

the Nigerian economy is humbled 

into recession never to rise again,” 

it added. 

The group announced it had “lost 

total confidence on all socio-cultural 

groups like PANDEF, elders of 

Niger Delta and the bunch of so 

called ex-agitators frolicking with 

the government at our detriment.” 

Deaf ears 

It went on: “There is no doubt that 

the Nigerian government has continued 

to pay deaf ears to our demands 

and the rising challenges in 

the country because the pipelines 

that crisscrosses our lands her left 

untouched, allowing dollars to flow 

into the federal treasury on a daily 

basis for mismanagement. 

“We shall spare no single oil installation 

within our range of strategic 

targets marked for destruction 

in the coming days and we bet the 

Nigerian government will be humbled 

to return to the drawing board 

and chart an all-inclusive course by 

the time we are done with our action 

plan. 

“Members of our strike teams 

across the Niger Delta are commanded 

to be on red alert awaiting 

precise strike plans as mapped by 

the high command of the NDA. 

“The high command of the NDA 

has promoted and appointed one of 

our finest operatives, Field Commander 

Tu-ere aka Queen of the 

Creeks to the rank of Brigadier General. 

She is an experienced field 

agent who before now was the 

head of the counter intelligence unit 

of the NDA, using her connections 

with top Government and security 

officials to deliver on her assignment. 

“She was part of the our elite Strike 

Teams that attacked and took down 

the Chevron Valve platform on the 

4th of May, 2016; the Shell Forcados 

48-inch Export line on the 3rd 

of June, 2016; and the Exxon Mobil 

Qua Iboe 48 Crude Oil Pipeline on 

the 11th of July, 2016. 

“Brig. Gen. Tu-ere is the first female 

to ever attain this level and it 

is solely out of merit, and is placed 

in charge by the High Command of 

the NDA to execute operation humble 

to the later. 

“As a gender friendly organization, 

we are using this avenue to encourage 

other female operatives 

within the rank and file of the NDA 

to be inspired by the rising profile of 

the Queen of the Creeks and never 

to deter in delivering on our mission 

of liberate our people and God 

given resources from the shackles 

of the oppressive Nigerian government. 

We advise other female operatives 

to emulate her and be dedicated 

to our mission at all times. 

“There is no gainsaying that the 

failed country called Nigeria 

which has fed fat on our God- given 

wealth is at the brink of total disintegration 

owing to the security 

and related challenges across the 

country; ranging from terrorism 

and banditry in the North to the 

secessionist gongs of the Oduduwa 

people of the Southwest and 

IPOB of the Southeast it is obvious 

that peace in the Niger Deltan 

and by extension the South- South 

geopolitical region is the very 

thin piece still binding this country 

together. 

“It is disheartening that despite 

being the economic backbone and 

having resolved to maintain the 

peaceful environment for the 

smooth operations of the oil multinationals 

whose proceeds the 

country cling unto for economic 

survival the Niger Delta and the 

South -South remain the most 

under developed with our needs 

and interests undermined by the 

failed Nigerian State. 

“We decided to suspend our famous 

Operation Red Economy‚ 

which bled the Nigerian economy 

into recession about four years 

ago not because we are lazy but 

for the love we have for our people 

and out of respect for the voice 

of the elders of the Niger Delta 

region, who beckoned on us to 

give peace a chance and avail the 

government time to act on our 

demands at the time.” 

Language 

Speaking with Sunday Vanguard 

also on the threat, National 

President of NDYM, Comrade 

Joe Jackson, said it was 

unfortunate that agitation and 

violence had remained the only 

language the Federal Government 

of Nigeria understands, 

especially when it concerns issues 

affecting oil producing areas of 

the country. 

“We will want to align with the 

Niger Delta Avengers, the only language 

the Federal government 

understands is violence and agitation. 

Those issues are like recurring 

decimal. We have protested 

against gas flaring in our communities, 

because of environmental 

and health hazards,”Jackson 

stated. 

“Also look at the Ogoni cleanup 

which the federal government 

initiated, but till date nothing serious 

has been done about that, 

but you hear of billions of naira 

being earmarked. When will the 

federal government be sincere to 

the plight of the Niger Delta people? 

“For us, it is a disappointment 

that our representatives at the National 

Assembly as well as the 

Ministers have remained mute 

over the plight of the region. For 

instance on the demand for the 

upward review from 2.5 per cent 

to 10 per cent appropriated to host 

oil communities in the Petroleum 

Industry Bill. 

“They know that 2.5 per cent is 

not adequate, it is not enough to 

take care of the environmental 

and health hazards, pollution suffered 

by oil communities, but they 

will not say it. Why can’t they say 

let us review these laws for the 

benefit of our people. 

“It is sad and unpatriotic that it 

is only when there is an attack(s) 

on oil installations that the Federal 

Government will now listen 

or react. Since that is the only language 

that they understand we 

will support, urge the Avengers to 

go ahead.” 

Jackson alleged that lack of attention 

from the Federal Government 

to the plight of the Niger Delta 

people was a deliberate attempt 

to subdue the people and their 

area. 

ANAMBRA 2021: Uba wins PDP factional primary as Ngige 

seeks postponement of APC shadow poll 

By Vincent Ujumadu, 

Awka 

enator Ugochukwu Uba, elder 

Sbrother of Senator Andy Uba 

and the Anambra political godfather, 

Chief Chris Uba, has won the 

ticket of the Chukwudi Umeaba - 

led faction of the Peoples Democratic 

Party, PDP, at the governorship primary 

conducted in Awka yesterday. 

Voting was still on at press time at 

the primary of the other faction. 

Meanwhile, the All Progressive 

Congress (APC) primary to elect the 

candidate for the Anambra November 

election, scheduled for today, 

may be postponed after the Minister 

of Labour and Employment, Dr 

Chris Ngige, spoke in that regard, 

yesterday. 

Of the 665 delegates that voted in 

the factional PDP primary, Uba 

scored 275 votes to defeat others, 

while Mr. Godwin Ezeemo came 

second with114 votes, 

Even other PDP aspirants participating 

in the other factional primary 

at the Dora Akunyili Women Development 

Center scored some 

votes. 

Four aspirants namely, Ugochukwu 

Uba, Ezeemo, Walter Okeke and 

Johnny Maduafokwa, participated 

at the primary. 

The Umeaba faction said it conducted 

the primary on the strength 

of a letter addressed to the National 

Chairman of the PDP by the Secretary 

of the Independent National 

Electoral Commission, INEC, 

Rose Oriaran-Anthony over its recent 

court victory. 

At the Women Development Center 

where the other PDP primary 

recognized by the national leadership 

of the party took place, Edo 

State Deputy Governor, Mr Philip 

Shaibu, who is the Secretary of the 

governorship primary electoral 

committee, said less than 200 delegates 

were accredited. 

Some of the aspirants had a hectic 

time entering the hall. 

“What we have so far from the list 

I received is less than 200 delegates 

as against 230 that we have on our 

list. For us, that makes more sense 

than to have over 230,”he said. 

“Interestingly, three aspirants 

stepped down and they also pledged 

loyalty to the party and whoever will 

emerge as winner in this primaries 

because for them, they are determined 

to work with whoever that 

emerges as the candidate.” 

Voting was still going on at press 

time and the winner would emerge 

later. 

Calling for the postponement of 

the APC primary for the Anambra 

State governorship election scheduled 

for today to Tuesday, Ngige, 

yesterday, said the shift was important 

to enable party members across 

the state participate as well as give 

enough room for the Committee 

Members to resolve contentious issues 

raised by aspirants. 

A statement issued by Senator 

Chris Ngige Media Office at Alor, 

Idemili South Local Government 

Area of Anambra State said the 

Minister, who is also the leader of 

the Party in Anambra, had already 

made his position known to the 

Chairman of the Primary Committee 

for the Anambra election and 

Governor of Ogun State, Prince 

Dapo Abiodun.

PAGE 4—SUNDAY VANGUARD, JUNE 27, 2021 

Okowa urges state legislators to pass amendment bill 

By Festus Ahon 

Governor 

Ifeanyi 

Okowa of Delta State 

has appealed the State 

Houses of Assembly to ensure 

the passage of Constitutional 

Amendment Bill when 

sent to them by the National 

Assembly. 

Okowa made this appeal 

when he received the Conference 

of Speakers of State 

Legislatures in Nigeria, led 

by the Speaker of Bauchi 

State House of Assembly, Mr. 

Abubakar Suleiman, at Government 

House, Asaba, on 

Friday. 

He said the onus was on the 

states’ legislatures to pass the 

constitutional amendments 

in the interest of the people 

stressing that the nation was 

in dire need of the amendments 

to provide equity, justice 

and fairness. 

The governor, meanwhile, 

called for appropriate consultations 

between the executive 

and legislative arms of government. 

He stated this in a 

keynote address at the second 

quarter meeting of the Conference 

of Speakers of State 

Legislatures, held in Asaba. 

From left: Group CEO, Seal Group, Tonya Lawani; Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin 

Obaseki; the CEO, Seal Energy and Investments Mrs. Jessica Lawani Ine, and the Special 

Adviser to the Governor, Strategic Planning and Programme Management, Dr. Uyi Malaka, 

at the launch of The Quick Print Shop and official unveiling of the Girl Child Empowerment 

Initiative in Benin City, yesterday. 

BORNO HOTEL SHOOTING TRAINING: 

Gov Zulum suspends French NGO 

By Ndahi Marama, 

Maiduguri 

Borno Governor, Profes 

sor Babagana Umara 

Zulum, has directed the immediate 

suspension of an international 

non-governmental 

organization (iNGO) following 

yesterday’s allegation 

that the humanitarian iNGO 

was using a hotel in Maiduguri 

for training some persons 

in shooting. 

Zulum’s spokesman, 

Malam Isa Gusau, who announced 

the directive, said a 

French iNGO was found using 

toy guns and simulators 

in training exercises at a hotel 

located off Circular Road 

in Maiduguri. 

Gusau explained that residents 

near the hotel had reported 

to officials that they 

were hearing sounds of gunshots 

from the hotel, following 

which government officials 

reported the matter to 

GRA Divisional Police Headquarters 

which oversees the 

hotel’s location. The police 

found three toy pistols at the 

hotel while two trainers, both 

Nigerians, were at the police 

station with investigation going 

on. 

The statement said pending 

the outcome of police investigation, 

Zulum directed sealing 

of the hotel and suspension 

of the iNGO from any 

humanitarian activity in 

Borno. 

Sunday Vanguard recalls 

that there was public outcry 

in Borno over the operations 

of some iNGOs describing 

them as Boko Haram collaborators. 

Suspected Yahoo Boy dies in auto crash, one other 

in coma after night clubbing 

By Olasunkanmi Akoni 

Tragedy struck in the 

early hours of yesterday 

when a young man died and 

one other in coma, following 

a lone accident at Arida 

Bus-Stop, along Isheri- 

Ikotun Road, Old Alimosho 

Local Government Area, Lagos 

during downpour. 

The deceased, simply identified 

as Ibrahim, 21, and the 

survivor, 25, were suspected 

to be internet fraudsters, 

popularly known as Yahoo 

Boys. 

An eyewitness, Mr. Joseph 

Akpan, a security guard 

around, said the accident 

happened at about 3 am, 

when the two were returning 

from a club in the area. 

The accident, which involved 

a black Lexus Sport 

Ultilty Vehicle, SUV, 350, with 

unknown registration, was a 

complete right off. 

Ibrahim, who was driving 

the vehicle on high speed reportedly, 

died on the spot after 

their vehicle rammed into 

an electronic pole with great 

impact. 

It was gathered that the remains 

of the victim were recovered 

by family members 

led by his mother, simply 

identified as Alhaja, at about 

10 am, several hours after the 

accident occurred. 

The other person involved 

According to him, legislators 

must have the necessary 

support staff required to intelligently 

interrogate policy 

issues and proffer expert advice. 

He said: “On the other 

hand, the executive must also 

have an assemblage of 

knowledgeable liaison officers 

well-grounded in the fine 

art of political negotiation/ 

lobbying, which is an integral 

part of democratic government. 

When both arms imbibe 

this culture of professionalism, 

consultation and lobbying, 

what you have is a 

strong, credible partnership 

that guarantees a stable polity 

and excellent service delivery. 

“The first step to building 

sustainable partnership between 

the executive and legislative 

arms is for both organs 

of government to work 

with the consciousness that 

separation of power is imperative 

for good governance.” 

The Chairman, Conference 

of Speakers of State Legislatures, 

Suleiman, said Delta 

has become a reference 

point in any discuss on financial 

autonomy being the first 

state to commence its implementation. 

He maintained that the recent 

nation wide strike embarked 

upon by Parliamentary 

Staff Association of Nigeria, 

would not have occurred 

if other State governors 

were proactive to the 

implementation of the financial 

autonomy to the states 

Houses of Assembly. 

Deputy National Chairman 

of the Conference of 

Speakers of State Legislatures 

and Speaker of Delta 

State House of Assembly, 

Chief Sheriff Oborevwori, 

said state legislatures forum 

was “an integral part of Nigeria’s 

political architecture 

and the primary duty of the 

legislature at all levels is to 

make laws and promote policies 

for peace, order and 

good governance.” 

Drug abuse more dangerous than insurgency, banditry — Buhari 

*Orders NDLEA to comb South-West, South-South forests 

By Johnbosco 

Agbakwuru 

President Muhammadu 

Buhari, yesterday, said 

war against illicit drugs in 

the country is deadlier than 

the fight against insurgency, 

banditry and other threats to 

the stability of the country 

because of the caliber of people 

engaged in the business. 

Buhari also directed the 

National Drug Law Enforcement 

Agency, NDLEA, to 

comb all the forests in the 

South-West and South-South 

geopolitical zones to fish out 

those involved in the cultivation 

of some of these illicit 

drugs. 

The President spoke at the 

launch of the War Against 

Drug Abuse, WADA, an initiative 

of the National Drug Law 

Enforcement Agency, 

NDLEA, in commemoration 

of the United Nations International 

Day Against Drug 

Abuse and Illicit Drug Trafficking 

2021. 

The theme of this year’s celebration 

is, Share Facts on 

Drugs. Save Lives. 

Buhari, who was Special 

Guest of Honour at the 

launch, also charged the 

NDLEA to intensify efforts at 

ridding the vast forests of the 

South-West and South-South 

of criminal elements, who 

had made the places their 

hideouts, from where they 

launch criminal onslaughts 

as well as for farming marijuana. 

The President, who was 

represented by the Secretary 

to the Government of the Federation, 

SGF, Boss Mustapha, 

said: “I am directing the 

NDLEA to develop a robust 

risk-communication and 

community engagement 

strategy that will not only disseminate 

the four pillars of 

the plan to responsible entities, 

but also deal with destroying 

production sites and 

laboratories, break the supply 

chain, discourage drug 

use and prosecute offenders 

as well as traffickers, rehabilitate 

addicts and enforcement 

of relevant laws. 

“I want to particularly 

draw the attention of the agency 

tot he fact that the use of 

many of our forests as criminal 

hideouts is because large 

swathes of cannabis plantations 

are hidden deep within 

those forests, especially in the 

South-West and the South- 

South”. 

in the crash, who is said to be 

the owner of the SUV, was 

immediately taken to a nearby 

hospital in coma. 

“They were driving in a 

convoy on high speed to another 

club when the driver 

smashed the vehicle in a lone 

crash”, Akpan said. 

NANS supports bill to establish 

National Paramilitary Academy 

By Adesina Wahab 

The National Association 

of Nigerian Students, 

NANS, has expressed support 

for the bill that proposes the 

establishment of a National 

Paramilitary Academy, saying 

it will help train more personnel 

to fight insecurity in 

the country. 

The Chairman, NANS, 

Ogun State Axis, Comrade 

Adeyemi Samson Ajasa, who 

stated this on Saturday, said 

the bill, being sponsored by a 

member of the House of Representatives, 

Hon. Adekoya 

Adesegun, was in the right direction. 

He therefore urged the National 

Assembly to give the 

bill accelerated consideration 

and passage. 

“We like to acknowledge 

here that the said bill as proposed 

by Hon. Adekoya Adesegun 

is absolutely brilliant 

and its ultimate consideration 

for passge by the National 

Assembly will be of 

great reward to the nation at 

large, especially at this time 

when insecurity is confronting 

our dear country. 

“The bill comprehensively 

and exhaustively spells out 

the many angles from which 

its due considerstion and diligent 

implementation will 

add imeasurable value to our 

nation”. 

Enugu govt to build 750 houses for 

civil servants 

Governor Ifeanyi Ug 

wuanyi of Enugu 

State, yesterday, inspected the 

ongoing Coal City View Satellite 

Estate project in Enugu 

being constructed for civil servants 

by the Enugu State 

Housing Development Corporation 

(ESHDC) in partnership 

with Alpha Mead 

Development Company, 

Mahfas Group and AG Mortgage 

Bank. 

The housing project, which 

is located at the proximity of 

New Market Bridge, Abor, 

Enugu by Ugwu Onyeama, 

according to the General 

Manager of ESHDC, Hon. 

Chukwuemelie Agu, comprises 

750 units combination 

of One-bedroom, Two-bedroom 

and Three-bedroom 

bungalows. 

Hon. Agu disclosed that 

housing scheme has a prolonged 

repayment package 

for civil servants. 

He pointed out that the 

project is in keeping with the 

unflinching commitment of 

Gov. Ugwuanyi’s administration 

towards providing quality 

and affordable housing 

for the middle and upper 

middle class categories of the 

people of Enugu State and 

beyond. 

INSECURITY: We need paradigm 

shift, says AFRIPEACE 

By Bashir Bello 

Worried by the spate of 

insecurity in the country, 

a non-governmental organization, 

Africa Initiative 

for Peace Building Advocacy 

and Advancement, AFRIP- 

EACE, has called on community 

leaders and organizations 

not to allow violent 

extremists find breeding 

ground in their communities. 

The group’s Program Officer, 

Comfort Zawaya, made 

the call during a peace building 

capacity training for Civil 

Society Organizations, 

CSOs and community groups 

held in Kano. 

Zawaya said the capacity 

building training was to equip 

community-led organizations 

and leaders to promptly 

identify, track and manage 

conflicts before it escalates 

and called on the participants 

to avert the recruitment tactics 

of violent extremist 

groups. 

She stressed the need for 

a paradigm shift from the old 

way of top-bottom approach 

to bottom-top approach 

where the community takes 

ownership of the process and 

search for peaceful coexistence 

in their various communities. 

“Over time, it is observed 

that most efforts being adopted 

to resolve conflicts are 

structured through a top to 

bottom approach where in 

most cases, everything is discussed 

and finalized in Abuja 

or at state government 

houses and passed down to 

the community. 

Special health insurance for Oyo 

orphans – Makinde 

Governor ‘Seyi Mak 

inde, yesterday, stated 

that Oyo State government is 

making efforts to institute a 

special health insurance programme 

for orphans across 

the geopolitical zones of the 

state. 

The governor said this 

while hosting orphanage 

homes from across the state 

at the Government House, 

Agodi. 

A statement by the Chief 

Press Secretary to the governor, 

Mr. Taiwo Adisa, stated 

that the Makinde administration 

will continue to give the 

needed support to orphans in 

the state. 

Panic grips residents as oil pipeline leaks in Lagos 

By Olasunkanmi Akoni 

Fear gripped the resi 

dents of Ijeododo Road 

in Alimosho Local Government 

Area of Lagos, yesterday, 

following a Premium 

Motor Spirit, PMS, popularly, 

called petrol, pipeline leakage 

in the area. 

The incident occurred in 

the afternoon when some residents 

noticed the leakage at 

Igando enroute Ijeododo 

Road and raised the alarm. 

Eye witnesses account said 

as soon as the leakage was 

noticed after a downpour, the 

residents in apparent fear 

started running helter skelter. 

The Director General, Lagos 

State Emergency Management 

Agency, LASEMA, 

Dr. Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, 

confirmed the development. 

He maintained that the 

Oyo State Health Insurance 

Agency (OYSHIA) will 

promptly facilitate the special 

programme, adding that 

orphans would soon begin to 

enjoy qualitative medical services 

in the primary health 

care centres nearest to them 

by the time they are completed 

Ṫhe governor said: “I have 

listened to the list of your request 

and can assure that we 

will continue to support you. 

“”Specifically on the medical 

request, I will sit with 

those in charge of insurance, 

OYSHIA, and make sure 

there is a special programme 

for the orphanage homes. 

“Because we have said there 

must be a functional primary 

health care centre in all the 

wards in Oyo State within the 

next few months, they are supposed 

to be done with them. 

So, you would not need to go 

too far from the orphanage 

homes to access very good 

medical services”.


The newly appointed Nigerian Ambassador to Poland (from Enugu State), 

Retired General Christian Ugwu (right), displaying his Letter of Credence to 

Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, at a Gala Night organized in his honour by the 

governor, at the Government House, Enugu, yesterday. 

By Dapo Akinrefon 

& Ola Ajayi, Ibadan 

Barring any lastminute 

change of 

date, the Yoruba 

nation rally will spread to 

Lagos on Saturday. 

The rally, organized by 

pro-Yoruba agitators under 

the auspices of the Professor 

Banji Akintoye led Ilana 

Omo Yoruba, has previously 

held in Abeokuta, 

Ogun State capital, then 

Ibadan, Oyo State capital, 

Osogbo, Osun State capital, 

Akure, Ondo State capital, 

and Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State 

capital. 

Lagos is the last of the six 

South-West states to host the 

self-determination rally. 

Sunday Vanguard was informed 

that the Lagos rally 

is the grand finale of the 

event designed to draw attention 

to the perceived 

marginalization of the 

South-West geopolitical 

zone in the polity and the 

need to restructure. But Yoruba 

Elders are warning 

against the rally being hijacked 

by hoodlums to 

wreak havoc. 

They cited the case of the 

#ENDSARS protests of last 

year which left the former 

Federal Capital burning 

after hoodlums hijacked the 

peaceful demonstrations to 

call attention to police brutality 

in the country. 

Organisers of the Lagos 

rally told Sunday Vanguard 

at the weekend that preparations 

were in top gear for 

the grand finale as various 

groups were being mobilised 

to participate. Yoruba 

activist Sunday Adeyemo 

(Sunday Igboho) was 

present at the previous editions 

of the rally in the 

South-West state capitals 

and is expected to attend the 

July 3 rally in Lagos. A 

source involved in the mobilization 

said Governor 

Babajide Sanwo-Olu had 

been invited to address the 

Lagos rally but was not sure 

whether he will honour the 

invitation. 

If Sanwo-Olu fails to turn 

Chairman/CEO of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, Brig. 

Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd), presenting a souvenir to the Minister of Health, Dr. 

Osagie Ehanire, at the launch of the War Against Drug Abuse, WADA, by the NDLEA in 

commemoration of the UN Day against drug abuse and illicit drug trafficking at the State 

House Conference Centre, Abuja, yesterday. 

SELF-DETERMINATION RALLY : 

Yoruba Elders warn against mayhem in Lagos 

… as Sunday Igboho, others set for event 

By Gab Ejuwa 

ndigenes of the seven It 

Isekiri host communities 

under the aegis of OML 150 

Communities’ Consultative 

Forum have issued a 21-day 

ultimatum to Conoil Producing 

Limited, Operators of 

OML 150 Obodo Field, in 

Warri, Delta State, to immediately 

open negotiations 

up at the rally, he will just be 

acting like his counterparts 

in Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo 

and Ekiti who equally failed 

to identify with the agitators 

when they staged the rally in 

their states. 

Meanwhile it was gathered 

that many Yoruba leaders 

and groups are working 

behind the scenes to garner 

support for the Lagos rally 

but they would rather not do 

it in the open. 

Sunday Vanguard was 

made to understand that the 

agitators for the Yoruba nation 

are working on the 

premise that the initiative 

will lead to the restructuring 

of Nigeria. 

When contacted, a member 

of the socio-political 

groups in the region said 

that though the group was 

not invited for the rally, it 

has been mobilising other 

groups in Lagos to participate 

in the rally. 

The source, familiar with 

the workings of the rally, 

said: “We were not invited 

because no invitation was 

extended to us and we will 

not show up at the rally.” 

The source, who spoke 

anonymously, said: “But 

we are collaborating with 

Sunday Igboho even if not 

on the surface. 

“We have not received 

any formal invitation from 

the organisers. But I am 

sure the rally will hold because 

a lot of work has 

gone towards mobilising 

people and groups for the 

rally. 

“The rally will go as 

planned except the governor 

stops it but I don’t think 

he is opposed to it. 

“Even the APC machinery 

originally opposed to 

the rally has not been hostile 

anymore. Some members 

of the Oodua People’s 

Congress, OPC, have also 

been part of the mobilization 

for the rally. So, as it is, 

the rally is in top gear.” 

In a related development, 

while maintaining that 

peaceful rally is a fundamental 

right of the people, 

the Senior Elders Forum of 

the Yoruba Council of Elders 

(YCE) has cautioned 

Sunday Igboho and other 

agitators to ensure that the 

Lagos rally is not hijacked 

by hoodlums. 

Speaking on behalf of the 

Forum, Dansaaki Adeleye 

Agbede, a former National 

Chairman of YCE, said 

Sunday Igboho should 

know that he is being closely 

monitored by security 

agents and he should not do 

anything that will give them 

an opportunity to have 

something to hold him. 

Agbede, a retired military 

officer, said the Yoruba activist 

should take a cue from 

what happened during the 

#EndSARS protests which 

hoodlums hijacked. 

“In as much as rally is 

part of the fundamental 

rights of the people, it 

shouldn’t be an avenue to 

disturb the peace of other 

people”, the Yoruba Elder 

said. 

“It’s the fundamental 

right of every Nigerian to 

demonstrate because they 

have to be heard. 

“But they have to be sure 

that hoodlums don’t infiltrate 

them; they have to be 

very careful. 

“Under normal condition, 

the police have the duty to 

protect them; be with them 

to ensure there is no breakdown 

of law and order. The 

rally should not cause any 

mayhem within Lagos metropolis”. 

Protest as four female students raped by gunmen in 

Ondo varsity 

•School shut 

Dayo Johnson, Akure 

undreds of students 

Hof the Olusegun 

Agagu University of Science 

and Technology 

(OAUSTECH), Okitipupa, 

Ondo State have protested 

alleged rape of four female 

students of the institution 

by gunmen. 

In a swift reaction, the 

management shut down the 

school for two weeks, citing 

security threat. 

Sunday Vanguard gathered 

that the hoodlums 

robbed several other students 

of valuables like 

phones and laptops before 

raping the female students 

at gunpoint. 

The university’s students 

trooped out to register 

their displeasure 

over incessant robberies in 

their hostels, threat to life 

and property and rape by 

criminal elements. 

During the protest, the 

students blocked the Okitipupa-Igbokoda 

highway, 

thereby disrupting 

free flow of traffic. 

President of the Students 

Union Government 

of the institution, Damilola 

Okunomo, confirmed 

the incident to newsmen. 

He said four female students 

were raped by gunmen 

who invaded the institution, 

adding that “ the 

students were tired of the 

level of insecurity in the 

area”. 

Okunomo alleged that 

the institution’s management 

was not doing 

enough on security of life 

and property on campus 

and called for the completion 

of “all the uncompleted 

hostels on our campus 

as this will also guarantee 

JAMB: Candidates groan as result code malfunctions 

T 

he Joint Admissions 

and Matriculation 

Board (JAMB) has directed 

candidates who sat for the 

2021 Unified Tertiary Matriculation 

Examinations 

(UTME), to check their results 

through its portal as the USSD 

code 55019 has some challenges. 

Dr. Fabian Benjamin, 

Head, Protocol and Public 

Affairs of the board, stated 

this in a statement made 

available to newsmen in 

Abuja on Saturday. 

The board had on June 25, 

directed candidates to check 

their results by sending UT- 

MERESULT to 55019 

through the GSM number 

used to obtain profile code. 

Benjamin, however, said 

that USSD method had been 

suspended because of the 

challenges. 

According to him, “Candidates 

can check their results 

from anywhere there is internet 

access, checking by 

USSD code 55019 is suspended. 

“It has come to the 

attention of the Board that the 

result checking on USSD 

OML 150 Field landlords ds issue Conoil 21-da 

1-day y quit notice over alleged impunity 

with their constituted leaders 

or quit the area. 

Meanwhile, to show seriousness 

over their demands, 

hundreds of the residents of the 

communities who, on Friday, 

embarked on a peaceful protest 

at the Conoil Obodo Field, 

crippling its activities, had 

vowed not to quit the platform 

until the oil firm recognised 

their legal and duly-elected 

representatives. 

In a statement, the Chairman 

of the Forum, Hon. 

Monday Agbeyi, who condemned 

alleged impunity by 

the company, advised it to 

stop its disregard for the authority 

of the Palace of Olu 

of Warri which had stepped 

in to reaffirm that the Agbeyiled 

executive is the only constituted 

body representing 

the seven host communities 

of OML 150 and so should 

open negotiations with it. 

He said: “It is saddening 

that the management of 

Conoil Producing Limited 

still want to undermine the 

authority of the Palace of Olu 

of Warri and the seven host 

communities of the OML 150 

by refusing to open discussion 

with the legally-constituted 

executive of the forum led by 

Comrade Monday Agbeyi.” 

our security.” 

The Dean of Students Affairs, 

Ilemobayo Oguntimehin, 

said the management 

was doing its best to 

secure students. 

A student of the institution, 

who confirmed the 

closure to Sunday Vanguard, 

said notice to that 

effect was pasted on campus 

on Friday asking students 

to proceed on a “twoweek 

mid-semester break”. 

Sunday Vanguard could 

not reach the institution’s 

image-maker, Abdulazeez 

Adebayo, for comment on 

the development. 

code 55019 is saddled with 

some challenges. 

“Consequently, the Board 

hereby directs all candidates 

to visit JAMB portal to check 

for their 2021 UTME result. 

“Each candidate is to follow 

this simple steps: Visit https://www.jamb.gov.ng, 

on the 

menu bar, click on efacility, 

on the page that shows up, 

click on UTME 2021 Main 

Results Notification Slip. 

“Enter your registration 

number and click the button 

Check My Result,” he said. 

Odogwu 

becomes 

new BBA 

president 

By Chris Onuoha 

hief Paul Odogwu has 

Cbeen elected the president 

of Balogun Business 

Association (BBA), Lagos 

International Trade Fair 

Complex, Badagry Express 

Way, Lagos. He was elected 

after a keenly contested 

election on Thursday June 

24, which was observed by 

relevant agencies, including 

the Cooperate Affairs 

Commission (CAC). 

Speaking before the election, 

the Chairman of the Board 

Of Trustees of the association, 

Chief Okey Ezibe said that 

the election became 

pertinent following the 

careless and irresponsible 

leadership of the care taker 

committee, which was set up 

by the outgone president of 

the association, Chief Tony 

Obih. H noted that the 

constitution of BBA stat that 

a caretaker committee has 

only two months to appoint 

a returning officer who 

would organize election and 

bring in a new executive, 

which they could not do. 

AAAN Gets FG’s 

Nod for National 

Unity Campaign 

T 

he Association of Ad 

vertising Agencies of 

Nigeria (AAAN) has secured 

the endorsement of the 

Ministry of Information 

and Culture for its plan to 

launch a national unity 

campaign on 1 October. 

This was disclosed in a release 

signed by its Publicity 

Secretary, Mrs. Temitope 

Jemerigbe. 

Minister of Information 

and Culture, Alhaji Lai According 

to the release, the 

endorsement was given in 

Lagos yesterday by the 

Minister of Information, 

Alhaji Lai Mohammed, 

during a meeting with 

AAAN’s Executive Board. 

The release quoted AAAN 

President, Mr. Steve Babaeko, 

as saying that the purpose 

of the meeting was to 

push for better cooperation 

with the ministry. He also 

noted that the decision to 

launch the national unity 

campaign was informed by 

the current situation in the 

country.


NO IGBO MARGINALISATION STATEMENT: 

Gov Umahi under attack 

•Ohanaeze Youth Council: Gov is child of opportunity 

out to satisfy Fulani power brokers 


Governor Dave Umahi 

of Ebonyi State is under 

attack over the claim 

credited to him that Igbo 

people are not marginalized 

in Nigeria as Ndigbo youths 

described the statement as 

unfortunate. 

The youths, under the aegis 

of Ohanaeze Youth Council 

(OYC), called the governor 

a child of opportunity 

desirous of satisfying the Fulani 

power brokers for his 

selfish political interests. 

Umahi, who is also the 

Chairman of South-East 

Governors’ Forum, Mr. Dave 

Umahi, had said it will be 

difficult to prove that the 

South-East is marginalised 

as perceived by people of the 

region. 

The governor, while fielding 

questions during a live 

television programme, stated 

that every region in the 

country had been marginalised 

in one way or the other. 

According to him, misinformation 

has contributed to 

fueling the agitations for secession 

and unrest in the 

South-East. 

He expressed regret that 

those in the position to educate 

the people had failed to 

do that. 

His words: “You see this 

word ‘marginalisation’ is so 

ambiguous. If you ask some 

regions, they will feel that 

even other regions are marginalising 

them. 

“My position about this is 

that let us get all the details 

of marginalisation. I cannot 

say that there are not some 

pains in terms of some of the 

issues in the South-East and 

so with other regions. 

“So, we are saying to our 

youths we don’t want to 

move away from a united 

Nigeria, that whatever may 

be their grievances we can sit 

down and discuss. 

“There is a lot of misinformation 

and I will give an example. 

I will like to say this. 

When we cry as Ndigbo that 

we don’t have a service chief, 

it is not true. Part of Delta is 

Igbo, part of Rivers is Igbo. 

“We have the Chairman of 

Ohanaeze Ndigbo coming 

from Delta State. We have 

somebody from Delta State 

who is (CDS), part of the joint 

chiefs and people are still 

saying we are not represented 

at the Security Council 

meeting. 

“I want to disagree with 

that. When the late Attahiru 

was the Chief of Army Staff, 

our brother was number 15 

in ranking and Attahiru, from 

out of love and relationship, 

took him from number 15 to 

make him second-in-command. 

“The man ought to have 

told our people this favour 

done to you. We are representing 

you; so that we appreciate 

the late Chief of Army 

Staff and appreciate Mr. 

President because the actual 

order of the military is actually 

the number two, who is 

in charge of operations and 

logistics. There is misinformation. 

“And when it was time to 

replace the service chief, they 

said the man is second-incommand 

and he is from the 

South-East. He is number 15. 

For example, I was not 

aware that somebody from 

From left: Inductee, Prof. Engr. Emmanuel Aluyor, Vice President, Nigerian Academy of 

Engineering (NAE), Engr A. Onwualu, and President, NAE, Engr. Alex Ogedegbe, during 

the Academy’s 2021 Life Achievement Awards & Induction of new Fellows, held at University 

of Lagos, last week. Photo: Kehinde Shonola 

14 killed in Osun, Delta auto crashes 

By Festus Ahon, Asaba, 

Shina Abubakar, Osogbo 

14 persons were killed in 

separate accidents in 

Osun and Delta States at the 

weekend. 

The breakdown shows that 

11 died in the Osun crash 

which occurred along Gbangan-Ibadan 

Road when two 

buses collided while the Delta 

incident that killed three 

involved a Sport Utility Vehicle 

(SUV) and a tricycle. 

According to the spokesperson 

for Osun State Command 

of the Federal Road Safety 

Commission, Agnes Ogungbemi, 

the Gbongan-Ibadan 

Road accident occured on Friday 

night opposite Ayedaade 

local government secretariat. 

The accident involved two 

commercial buses, a white 

Mazda E2000 with registration 

number KJA392YA and 

a Toyota Hiace bus registered 

GWL427YM which had a 

head on collision. 

Ogungbemi added that the 

corpses of 10 victims were 

taken to the Obafemi 

Awolowo University Teaching 

Hospital morgue while 

one was taken away by the 

family. 

She added that 16 of the 22 

injured victims were taken to 

a hospital in Gbongan just 

as the remaining six were taken 

to Central Hospital in 

Osogbo. 

Residents of Asaba, Delta 

State capital, were thrown 

into mourning after an accident 

involving an SUV and 

a tricycle left three persons 

dead. 

The accident, which occurred 

along Ibusa Road, before 

the popular Koka junction 

on the Benin-Asaba-Onitsha 

expressway, saw the driver 

of the Lexus ramming into 

the tricycle, killing the three 

the South-East is the secondin-command 

in the Navy or 

Air Force.” 

While reacting to Umahi’s 

comment, OYC National 

President, Comrade Igboayaka 

O. Igboayaka, noted that 

“marginalization is an understatement 

compared to the 

nauseating political cum economic 

ordeal of Ndigbo in the 

Nigeria project”. 

According to Igboayaka, 

the Ndigbo have crossed the 

line of marginalization and 

entered into political oppression 

50 years after the genocide 

against Ndigbo by the 

British and Nigeria governments. 

“Gov. Umahi seems to be 

lacking sense of history about 

the Igbo political ordeal in 

Nigeria. It appears the removal 

of history from the Nigerian 

education curriculum 

affected Gov. Umahi even 

more than the new generation”, 

a statement by Chukwuemeka 

Chimerue, Special 

Assistant on Media and Publicity 

to the OYC leader, quoted 

his boss as saying at the 

weekend. 

“Gov. Umahi either has a 

poor definition of marginalization 

or suffering sentimentalism 

that have eaten deep 

into his human reasoning on 

the past and present realities 

on ground about Ndigbo,” 

Igboayaka noted. 

He added: “The unguarded 

utterances of Gov. Umahi 

are part of the reason the agitation 

for self-determination 

of over 97% of Igbo new generation 

has gone out of control 

from the Igbo political 

elites. 

“Gov. Umahi using the appointment 

of the Chief of Defence 

Staff, Maj. Gen. Irabor, 

an Igbo native from Delta to 

justify that Igbo are not marginalized 

was childish, unjust 

and a pure anti-Igbo comment. 

“Does Gov. Umahi really 

move around Igbo land to see 

the level of economic and infrastructural 

decay in Igbo 

land? 

“Has Gov. Umahi gone to 

Oziza River in Afikpo, a potential 

seaport neglected and 

abandoned by the Nigeria 

Government? “Does Umahi 

know that Oziza River links 

Calabar Sea and, by extension, 

the Atlantic Ocean? 

“Does he know that Afikpo 

and Abakaliki can become a 

business hub in Igbo land if 

Oziza River is dredged and 

maritime business is commenced 

there which will lift 

over 500, 000 people out of 

poverty and make over 100 

Ebonyi youths gainfully employed? 

“Has the governor gone to 

Azumini Blue River and 

Obuaku River in Ukwa East 

of Abia State? There you have 

a potential seaport with 25- 

30 nautical miles to the Atlantic 

Ocean which, if 

dredged and maritime business 

commenced there, Aba 

will turn to a rounding point 

of industrial hub in West Africa. 

“Has Gov. Umahi also 

gone to Ihiala Ulasi River 

Oseakwa/Oguta Osemotor 

River that is only 18 nautical 

miles to Atlantic Ocean, the 

deepest natural river in Nigeria 

with over 20 meter deep 

without dredging? 

“Has Umahi questioned 

why this project was abandoned 

since 1957 when it was 

discovered by the British/Nigerian 

government? 

“Has Umahi forgotten that 

he grew up to see railway in 

Afikpo and ask why the railway 

in Alaigbo is not functional 

today? 

“Is Gov. Umahi not aware 

that the Federal Government 

recently awarded and completed 

modern railway double 

gauge for the North and 

South-west, and awarded single 

gauge that is no longer 

used in any part of the world 

to Ndigbo? 

“Which dictionary did Gov. 

Umahi pick the definition of 

marginalization from? 

“Is Gov. Umahi not aware 

that the Federal Government 

signed a contract of 

$2.8b gas project to Northern 

Nigeria yet Alaigbo 

that produces the gas has no 

single gas pipeline? 

“Who taught Umahi in 

school, who were his primary 

and secondary school 

teachers? Was he not taught 

with examples, the meaning 

of marginalization?” 

Igboayaka warned Umahi 

to stop opening wounds 

and hitting untreated 

wounds of the travails of 

Ndigbo in the “failed Nigerian 

project” if he has no 

intention of proffering credible 

solution or ideas, stressing 

that Igbo are not only 

being marginalized but 

also oppressed and killed by 

the Nigerian government 

through security agents. 

occupants, including the driver, 

on the spot. 

An eye witness said: “The 

SUV driver wanted to escape 

but people around stopped 

him. This is a very busy area 

because of the parks that are 

here.” 

The source said a mob immediately 

descended on the 

driver and beat him to stupor, 

adding that efforts made 

by sympathisers to save the 

lives of the victims were futile 

as they died on the spot. 

The source added that if not 

for the swift intervention of 

the police, the mob would 

have set the Lexus driver and 

his car ablaze. 

Confirming the accident, 

the Acting Police Public Relations 

Officer in Delta, DSP 

Bright Edafe, said his men 

rescued the Lexus driver from 

the mob. 

Gunmen abduct another Ekiti monarch 

By Rotimi Ojomoyela 

Former National Assembly Clerk, 

Omolori, hails Kogi’s Gov. Bello at 46 

Former Clerk to the 

National Assembly, 

Alhaji Mohammed Ataba 

Sani Omolori has fecilated 

the Kogi State governor, 

Yahaya Bello on the occasion 

of his 46th birthday. 

Bello clocked 46 years 

penultimate Friday. 

Omolori, who is the Ciroma 

of Ebiraland, said he 

was deeply excited to join 

other millions of well wishers 

to rejoice with the governor 

on the occasion of his 

46th birthday. 

According to the retired 

Clerk: “Celebrating your 

birthday, in its uniqueness, 

is not just about rejoicing 

over the addition of another 

year but about gratitude 

and praises to Almighty 

Allah for His blessings 

Implement new professional cadre for 

pharmacists, govs urged 

Johnny, Delta Ijaw APC lauds 

Nwaoboshi's defection to party 

Unknown gunmen 

have kidnapped 

the Eleda of Eda 

Ile in Ekiti East local government 

area of Ekiti 

State, Oba Benjamin Oso. 

The monarch was said to 

have been kidnapped in the 

presence of his wife at their 

farm at Eda Ile, Friday 

evening. 

This happended barely 

two months after the 

Obaadu of Ilemeso in Oye 

local government area 

,Oba David Oyewumi, was 

abducted by gunmen. 

A source in the community 

told journalists in 

Ado-Ekiti,yesterday, that 

the monarch and wife 

would have been kidnapped, 

but for the pleading 

made by the traditional 

ruler. 

“The Oba and the wife 

went to the farm and were 

accosted by these gunmen. 

The two would have been 

kidnapped, but the monarch 

begged the bandits to 

free his wife, which they 

agreed with”, he said. 

The Commander of the 

Ekiti State Security Network 

called Amotekun, 

Brig Joe Komolafe, confirmed 

the abduction. 

that have enabled your 

achievements so far.” 

He said further, in a letter 

he personally signed to 

the governor dated June 

17, 2021, that: “The opportunity 

to govern your 

State within the age bracket 

is rare and therefore, a 

great feat.” 

“You will therefore appreciate, 

your Excellency, 

our hightened sense of joy 

and happiness as we celebrate 

you with prayers to 

Allah (SWT), asking that 

He continues to bless you, 

guide and direct the determination 

as well as pursuit 

of your endeavors and 

your aspirations in continuous 

service to your family, 

Kogi State, Nigeria and 

humanity in general". 

By Anayo Okoli 

PHARMACISTS have 

called on state governments 

across the country to 

domesticate and implement 

Pharmacy Consultancy Cadre 

within the health system as 

approved by the Federal Government, 

saying it would improve 

the health sector. 

They expressed regrets that 

only a few states have commenced 

the implementation 

of the Consultancy cadre since 

it was approved on September 

11, 2020, through circular 

number HCSF/CSO/ 

HRM/1274/T3. 

The circular accorded 

pharmacists who are Fellows 

of West African Postgraduate 

College of Pharmacists consultant 

status, but many states 

are yet to join in the implementation, 

pharmacists in 

each state have been urged to 

lobby their governors to domesticate 

and implement it. 

To familiarize the newly 

approved cadre and the attendant 

responsibilities, a 

zonal workshop was organized 

for those of them in the 

South East and South-South, 

in Enugu, yesterday. 

In his remarks, the Registrar, 

Pharmacists Council of 

Nigeria, Elijah N. A, commended 

those who worked 

assiduously to ensure the approval 

of the Pharmacists 

Consultant cadre in Nigeria. 

Mohammed said pharmacists 

have been equipped with 

vast skills set, which he regretted 

are yet to be fully deployed 

to achieve the desired 

result. 

He expressed confidence 

that with “this new cadre, 

there would be abundant opportunities 

to deploy every 

skill acquired during the consultancy 

training.” 

The Ijaw leaders and 

members of All Progressives 

Congress APC in Delta 

State, have lauded the timely 

defection by Senator Peter 

Nwaoboshi, representing 

Delta North Senatorial district, 

from the opposition Peoples 

Democratic Party PDP to 

the ruling All Progressivee 

Congress APC. 

Senator Peter Nwaoboshi 

was formally received into 

APC by President Muhammadu 

Buhari at the Presidential 

Villa on Friday. 

In a statement yesterday, the 

former APC Delta South Senatorial 

aspirant, Chief 

Michael Johnny, said, '' on 

behalf of Ijaw leaders and 

members of All Progressives 

Congress APC in Delta State, 

we commend and congratulate 

Senator Peter Nwaoboshi 

for joining the ruling All Progressives 

Congress APC in 

Delta State'' 

The former Chairman of 

Egbema Gbaramatu Communities 

Development Council, 

said the APC's journey to 

Govt House, Asaba in 2023 

was on track, adding that the 

defection by Senator Nwaoboshi 

to APC and many others 

who are also planning to 

join the APC, is a pointer that 

APC is determined to win the 

next Governorship election in 

Delta State. 

He called for unity and understanding 

in Delta State’s 

APC, noting that ''all hands 

must be on deck to ensure that 

the up coming APC congress 

is successful''.

CONSTITUTION: 

Senators back Senate 

leadership, say anything 

outside amendment illegal 

By Henry Umoru, 

Assistant Political Editor 

Some senators have taken a swipe 

at those calling for a new 

Constitution as against the 

ongoing review of the 1999 Constitution 

(As Amended), saying the step could 

lead to anarchy in the country. 

The senators, who spoke separately 

with Sunday Vanguard, stressed that 

throwing the 1999 Constitution away at 

this point would create serious problems 

the country will be unable to curtail. 

While speaking in Abuja at the 

opening of a two- day National Public 

Hearing on the Alteration to the 

Provisions of the Constitution of the 

Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, 

Deputy President of the Senate and 

Chairman, Committee on the Review of 

the 1999 Constitution, Senator Ovie 

Omo- Agege, APC, Delta Central, had 

said that the Senate cannot give Nigeria 

a brand new Constitution, saying the 

best it can do is the present 

amendments that the National Assembly 

is doing to the existing 1999 

Constitution. 

Omo- Agege noted that the Senate 

respects the opinion of those who want 

a new Constitution, but a section of the 

1999 Constitution does not give the 

National Assembly the powers to 

produce a brand new Constitution. 

The Deputy Senate President spoke 

on the heels of the argument by 

Southern and Middle Belt Leaders 

Forum (SMBLF) that the amendment 

to the 1999 Constitution being carried 

out by the National Assembly amounted 

to waste of time, contending that the 

country needs a brand new Constitution 

written by the people. 

The senators, who backed their 

leadership on the issue, said a new 

Constitution cannot be given to Nigeria, 

insisting that they will continue with the 

amendment. 

Chairman, Senate Committee on 

Media and Public Affairs, Senator 

Ajibola Basiru, APC, Osun Central, said 

that jettisoning the 1999 Constitution 

will lead to anarchy in the country. 

Basiru said, “There must be an 

existing Constitution or pre-existing 

legal system upon which a new 

Constitution will be founded. 

“This pre-existing legal system out of 

which all legal authorities flowed is 

called the ground norm legal theory. 

“For you to add to a new legal order, 

it is either of two things: it flows from 

the existing ground norm or a 

revolution. 

“So if you say you want to make a 

Constitution out of the existing ground 

norm, it can only come up within the 

context of revolution. 

“But amendment of the existing 

Constitution, which is the ground norm, 

is already provided for in Section 9 of 

the Constitution and it 

does not say 

amendment can’t be 

holistic, amendment 

can be by way of 

substitution of the 

existing Constitution. 

“So, one expects that 

anybody that has 

suggestion, no matter 

how fundamental it is, 

to come up with it so 

that the procedure 

enumerated in Section 

9 of the Constitution can 

be followed. 

“To say that we should 

discard the Constitution 

and come up with a new 

Constitution is a 

journey to anarchy 

unless you have 

successfully been able 

to carry out a revolution to subvert the 

existing legal legitimacy. 

“No matter what reservation we have 

about the 1999 Constitution, it is still 

the ground norm in Nigeria.” 

A former Senate Leader, Senator Ali 

Ndume, APC, Borno South, said, “My 

position on this issue has not changed, 

that this Constitution is not 

indispensable and it is not perfect, and 

it is not amendment proof. 

“The Constitution can be amended 

from the first letter to the end. 

“But it must be done through existing 

process, constitutionally defined. 

“The only recognized process of 

amending the Constitution or doing 

another Constitution is through the 

representatives of the people, that is, 

the National Assembly. 

“Fortunately, the Constitution review 

process is going on, so the most legal 

thing to do is now to look at or any 

interested party can make a memo to 

the committee proposing the 

Spokesman 

for the Enwang 

community, Chief 

Ita Awak, using 

power point, 

highlighted the 

conflict, 

underlining past 

efforts at 

reconciliation 

amendment of every sector including 

writing it all over again. 

“The most important thing is for it to 

go through the legal process and this 

is now the time. 

“There is no contradiction or argument 

that the Constitution is part of the 

problem of the country. Many people 

have voiced out that the Constitution 

put together by the military is not 

working the way people want and the 

people have the right to express their 

opinion. 

“So what do you do? You 

don’t just go round making 

noise, issuing insults, 

threats and asking the 

executive which has no 

powers to amend the 

Constitution. You use the 

available process and that 

is through the National 

Assembly. 

“And anything in that 

Constitution can be 

amended or new one can 

be written but you don’t do 

that without a legal 

process, and the only 

existing legality as it is 

now binding on every 

Nigerian is the 1999 

Constitution. “Now you 

can rewrite it all over as 

long as Nigerians accept 

it through due process and then it will 

go to the states as required by the 

existing Constitution. 

“Once that is accepted, you can do 

away with the former and then bring in 

the new Constitution. 

“The President necessarily has to 

assent to it, then we have a new 

Constitution. 

“So whether you call it Southern, 

Middle Belt, IPoB or whatever, they are 

not constitutionally recognized. 

“But then they have the right to form 

association and air their views and 

follow their interests but through due 

process. 

In his contribution, Senator 

Mohammed Sani Musa, APC, Niger 

East, said, “I am one person that will 

absolutely welcome the return to 

the1963 Constitution. The North is one 

despite our diversity, and all those 

seeking to secede should go, we have 

all that it takes to be great. 

“The security challenges are temporary 


and we will overcome it soon. And all 

those so-called sectional, tribal and 

religious jingoists that think they have 

the monopoly of threat should 

remember how costly war is. 

“Where were they when, for 24 years, 

the same Constitution was guiding our 

democracy?” 

Senator Abdulfatai Buhari, APC, Oyo 

North, said, “If this present Constitution 

is well implemented, there will not even 

be the need for this amendment. 

“So if you do a new Constitution now, 

as time goes on, other people will still 

be looking for amendment. 

“All over the world, it is very rare that 

you will see a country that will not 

amend its Constitution because, as time 

goes on, issues will come up, other 

things will develop and you have to take 

into consideration the dynamics of the 

situation and the interest of the people 

and of the moment. 

“We need an amendment now because 

if we throw away this and we are 

starting a new Constitution, there will 

be a lacuna, how do we fill it? 

On his part, former Governor of Benue 

State, Senator Gabriel Suswam, PDP, 

Benue North East, said, “What we need 

is change of attitude of Nigerians and 

not a new Constitution. 

“If you look at the Constitutions from 

the 1922 Hugh Clifford Constitution to 

Richard Constitution, Lyttleton 

Constitution, Macpherson Constitution, 

Republican Constitution and the current 

one, nothing fundamentally has 

changed. 

“It is our attitude as Nigerians, attitude 

of the operators of the Constitution that 

is the issue. If you change the 

Constitution, will you change the entire 

population of Nigerians? 

“I don’t think that total change of the 

Constitution will solve the problem. We 

must emphasise on the implementation 

and interpretation of the Constitution. 

Our attitude must change and not the 

Constitution will endure. 

Deputy Senate Minority Leader, 

Senator Emmanue Bwacha, PDP, 

Taraba, simply said, “Let them give the 

parliament a chance.” 

A former governor of Kebbi State, 

Senator Adamu Aliero, APC, Kebbi 

South, said, “A new Constitution is only 

possible when the people follow what 

is in the 1999 Constitution and we have 

modus operandi for a new 

Constitution. 

“If you want to jettison the 1999 

Constitution, you have to follow the 

procedure as stated in that Constitution 

because that is the legal framework. 

“It is clearly stated that you need 2/3 

majority of the National Assembly to 

support any amendment of the 

Constitution and also need 2/3 of the 

state Houses of Assembly to amend any 

part of the Constitution. 

“You also have to get the consent of 

Mr. President before you can amend any 

part of the Constitution. Anything 

outside this is Illegal, unconstitutional, 

null and void and will not be accepted 

by anybody. 

“ Those who are calling for a new 

Constitution, I think they are wrong 

because it means we have to throw away 

the 1999 Constitution; what they are 

advocating for is anarchy and nobody 

will support that”. 

A former Minister of Interior, Senator 

Abba Moro, PDP, Benue South, said, “In 

the absence of their so-called new 

Constitution, what do we have? 

Anarchy! 

“We have existing Constitution and 

political history all over the world, that 

where a Constitution exists and you 

find some issues, you find some 

limitations, you amend the Constitution 

to accommodate those issues’ you don’t 

throw away the baby with the bath water 

because the water is dirty. 

“You don’t do that; we cannot throw 

away the 1999 Constitution. 

“I believe the 1999 Constitution (As 

Amended) has its limitations, but we can 

amend it to accommodate the limitations 

and we go on. 

“We can amend this Constitution to a 

certain level that we can have a 

Constitution that will reflect we the 

people of Nigeria that is what we should 

be looking for. 

“I don’t believe that because certain 

things are not in the Constitution, 

therefore the Constitution should be 

abandoned because abandoning a 

Constitution midway in the existence 

of this country means we are inviting 

anarchy and we may be unable to curtail 

the consequences.”


NEW CONSTITUTION: 

Reps disagree 

Imo State 

“I concur with the fact that we should 

go back to the 1963 Constitution which 

gave then geo-political zones the 

leverage to develop independently. 

“That was the reason we have Cocoa 

House in the South-West and the coal era 

in the South-East. 

“Sir Michael Okpara as then-governor 

of the South-East was able to distribute 

dividends of democracy round his region, 

built the Metropolitan Hotel, Calabar 

and Presidential Hotels in Enugu and 

Port Harcourt. 

“All the regions’ economies were 

concentrated on where they have 

comparative advantage. 

“But because, we do not have a 

government at the federal level that is 

ready to listen to the representatives of 

the people, it becomes difficult to achieve. 

“My take is that instead of losing 

everything, we can go piece meal and 

ensure that we, at least, have true 

federalism where state police can be 

guaranteed because of our security 

challenges, fiscal federalism and having 

a large and significant part of the 

Executive List move to the Concurrent 

List. 

“If possible, going back to the 1963 

Constitution will usher in a new Nigeria”. 

By Levinus Nwabughiogu, 

Abuja 

Members of the House of 

Representatives are divided on 

whether what Nigeria needs is 

amendment to the 1999 Constitution 

currently being carried out by the 

National Assembly or a new Constitution 

as demanded by a segment of the society, 

to address fundamental issues in the 

country. 

They were, however, united in their 

observation that Section 9 of the 1999 

Constitution did not provide for a 

referendum that will lead to the making 

of a new Constitution. 

Specifically, some Southern and Middle 

Belt leaders, under the aegis of Southern 

and Middle Belt Forum, had, consistently, 

called for a halt to the ongoing 

Constitution review to pave the way for a 

brand new Constitution, 

Below are the submissions of the 

lawmakers who spoke to Sunday 

Vanguard. 

We will repeal 

Section 9 of 1999 

Constitution - 

Hon. Kingsley 

Chinda 

representing 

Obio/Akpor 

Federal 

Constituency of 

Rivers State 

“I sincerely believe that 

we need a new Constitution 

and not to continue to patch 

(by altering) the 

inappropriate and skewed 

1999 Constitution. For this 

reason I am least excited 

over the Constitution 

amendment that is ongoing 

as I don’t believe in the 

exercise. 

“The zonal tours that we are presently 

on (Senate and Reps) is a mere formality, 

I won’t call it jamboree. I doubt if the 

benefit that will come from the tours will 

be worth the cost of the exercise. 

“I have already proposed a new 

Constitution by repealing Section 9 of the 

1999 Constitution. 

“This work commenced in the 8th 

Assembly by some colleague and I but we 

didn’t conclude it and many of those 

colleagues didn’t come back to the 

Assembly. 

“The snag I have with pushing same 

forward is that S.9 of the Constitution 

appears not to be wide enough to 

accommodate a repeal of the entire 

Constitution and reenactment of a new 

one. 

“I have, therefore, proposed an 

alteration to Section 9. Though the Bill 

as it appears to be conventional with my 

Bills is yet to be listed. I shall forward a 

2nd copy. 

“The 9th NASS would have concentrated 

on the low hanging fruits that are 

completely under our purview. 

“Let us conclude the amendment to the 

Electoral Act and pass the PIB. These are 

two Bills that will positively impact on 

the country. 

“These Bills that started on a high note 

are almost cold for no just cause. 

“Again, I opine that the failed Federal 

Government is encouraging the 

Constitution review as a distraction to 

Nigerians who are groaning under the 

weight of a failed economy with dollar 

exchanging for N600 and insecurity at a 

proportion never experienced in Nigeria. 

I have already 

proposed a new 

Constitution by 

repealing 

Section 9 of the 

1999 

Constitution 

“The Constitution 

review is to distract 

Nigerians and keep 

them away from 

discussing security, 

economy and the failed 

Nigerian state. 

“The issues of 

economy and security 

will take a back seat for 

the next two months. 

They would then look for 

another distraction 

before we go past the 

Constitution review. 

“I agree that we need 

a new Constitution that 

should be Nigerian, 

pragmatic, equitable, 

fair and visionary. 

“In the new 

Constitution that we 

proposed, some of the 

highlights are: 

Unicameral legislature; 

Fiscal Federalism; 

Political Federalism; 

Unbundled Security Architecture up to 

Community Level and subject to ability 

to fund same, with clear functions and 

jurisdiction for each tier; Unbundled 

Exclusive List to allow state management 

of resources; Total fiscal autonomy of 

arms of government and tiers of 

government; Easier recall system for nonperforming 

public officers and 

Indigeneship”. 

Let’s amend Constitution 

to accommodate referendum 

first - Hon Solomon Maren 

representing Mangu/Bokkos 

Federal Constituency of 

Plateau State 

“May I say they are right to clamour 

for that because of the inability of past 

Assemblies to effect meaningful changes 

to the Constitution despite the huge cost 

associated with the process and the 

societal ills resulting from the failure of 

such alterations. 

“There is no provision in the present 

Constitution that gives us power to switch 

from this Constitution to another. 

However, we can achieve the 1963 

Constitution by amending the present 

Constitution. 

“The major issue with the present 

Constitution is the overloaded Exclusive 

List. Once we unbundle the Exclusive List, 

our problem would have been solved. 

“We will as well need to include the right 

to referendum on any matter to give 

Nigerians the right to take decision on 

any matter of interest. 

“Voting on the issues either in the 

National Assembly or state Houses of 

Assembly should be monitored by all 

Nigerians to know who voted in support 

of what? 

“Nigerians are being killed daily, 

corruption is on steady rise and poverty 

is on the increase; so, definitely any 

Nigerian who is truly patriotic will want 

any form of change if it guarantees peace 

and prosperity for the nation.” 

We need to have 

referendum/plebiscite in 

place - Hon. Serguis Ogun 

representing Esan North 

East Federal Constituency 

of Edo State 

“Section 9 of the 1999 Constitution as 

amended allows for alteration of the 

Constitution, doesn’t empower NASS to 

rewrite the Constitution. 

“What can be achieved by this alteration 

is plebiscite or referendum; by so doing, 

the people (Nigerians) can, in the future, 

vote for a new Constitution and the 

modalities for its emergence. 

“The pathway to achieving this is the 

piecemeal alteration which is ongoing. 

“If Nigerians vote to adopt the 1963 

Constitution, it gives it credibility and will 

be widely accepted by all. They should 

lobby for the ongoing alteration to 

contain plebiscite/referendum.” 

We can go back to 1963 Constitution to 

help zones develop independently - Hon. 

Bede Eke, representing Abor Mbaise/ 

Ngor Okpala Federal Constituency of 

My problem is the operators 

of the Constitution - Hon, 

Mohammed Garba Datti 

representing Sabongari 

Federal Constituency of 

Kaduna State 

“This issue of Constitution review, the 

elites are looking for a way. How can you 

go back to the 1963 Constitution? 

“If you are from Abia, can you revert to 

the former Eastern Region so that there 

will be no Abia again? Everybody is just 

confused. When you say restructuring, 

everybody has a way of looking at it. 

“People of the South-South are calling 

for fiscal federalism so that everybody will 

control his own resources. 

“The people of the South-East, the Igbo, 

some will say, need more states to be at par 

with other zones. 

“Zone is a creation of Alex Ekwueme in 

1996. Nigeria only has states but when he 

went to Constitutional Conference, he came 

with the idea of six geopolitical zones. 

“It has not been adopted anywhere. Did 

anybody from the military participate in 

the making of the 1999 Constitution? 

“Was it not Justice Nikky Toby of the 

Supreme Court that oversaw the making 

of the 1999 Constitution? There was no 

single military man in the Conference. 

“The 1999 Constitution is almost the 

same with the 1979 constitution. There were 

only few changes and who were those that 

drafted the 1979 Constitution? The drafting 

Committee, was it not led by Chief Rotimi 

Williams, the 49 wise men in an exercise in 

which the late chief Awolowo withdrew? Is 

it not the same Constitution? 

“Look, my problem is the operators of the 

Constitution and not the constitution itself. 

No Constitution in the world is perfect. It is 

only our attitude. 

“Everybody tends to pay allegiance to his 

own ethnic group, church or mosque or 

religion. 

‘Very few people are nationalists who 

believe that Nigeria should be one and we 

should all work for the progress of the 

country. We are not the only country that is 

diverse in the world. Many countries have 

their own diversity but they are able to 

manage it, accommodate each other. 

“And the mentality of turn-by-turn is 

another problem because everybody wants 

to promote his own ethnic group and his 

people. Unless we change, nothing will 

change. 

“Who are those clamoring for referendum? 

Look, these arguments are elitist. The masses 

don’t know anything. 

“Everybody is just talking, looking for a 

means of survival. 

“What type of perfect Constitution are you 

envisaging now? 

“Even within the Yoruba nation, yes, people 

are calling for Oduduwa Republic but the 

people of Lagos believe Lagos is a special 

place, that they are not going to belong to any 

Oduduwa Republic because 60 percent of 

Nigeria’s economy is domiciled in Lagos. 

“All of us are all guilty unless we stop thinking 

the way we are thinking. Like I said earlier, 

my problem is the operators of the Constitution 

and not the Constitution itself.”

Email:biolasobowale@yahoo.com 

Phone Number: 07081372829 

Twitter:@DrDeleSobowale 

Instagram:delesobowalefranklyspeaking 

Website: www.delesobowale.com 

Dear Asiwaju Bola Tinubu 

“Uneasy lies the head that 

wears the crown.” 

Mankind discovered 

that truth several 

thousands of years 

ago. And, the more turbulent 

the era, the more problems 

confront the leaders at the 

time. This open letter to you 

had become necessary for 

three reasons. First, Nigeria 

is now entering the most 

dangerous period since 1914. 

Second, the outcome of the 

widespread conflicts, violent 

and verbal, lies mainly in the 

hands of a vital few Nigerians. 

Third, irrespective of how 

anybody feels about it, you are 

one of the vital few. Indeed, 

you are today the most 

influential politician in the 

South-West in general and 

Lagos State in particular. 

It is not my intention to 

flatter you by calling you the 

most influential politician in 

Yorubaland. Regular readers 

of this column will testify to 

the fact that flattery of the 

powerful is not my style. Quite 

frequently, I quarrel with them 

and carpet them. But, I don’t 

evade facts; irrespective of my 

feelings about them. History 

will record that you deserved 

to be leader of the progressive 

movement. When, in 2003, the 

leaders of the Alliance for 

Democracy/Afenifere were 

duped into surrendering the 

South-West to President 

Obasanjo and the Peoples 

Democratic Party, PDP, Lagos 

State, under your leadership 

and the Action Congress, AC, 

was the only SW state that was 

not captured. Your political 

sagacity mostly prevented 

Nigeria from becoming a 

one-party country under 

Obasanjo. I can also testify to 

your support, financial, 

political and moral, for the 

struggle to defeat President 

Obasanjo’s third term 

ambition. 

We also want to recollect the 

long and rewarding battles, 

with the PDP, to reclaim the 

stolen mandates of 

progressive governors in Osun, 

Ekiti, Ondo and Edo. You were 

everywhere defending the right 

and ensuring votes counted. 

You deserve the crown. It was 

the political clout and 

organisation, which you 

carefully built up over the 

years, which made it possible 

for you to lead the SW into the 

coalition of six political 

associations which became 

the ruling All Progressives 

Congress, APC, in 2015. The 

success of the APC, against all 

odds, was largely credited to 

you. All the commendations 

were fully merited. 

“Men make history; but not 

just as they wish” - Karl Marx, 

1818-1883, VANGUARD 

BOOK OF QUOTATIONS, 

VBQ. 

There was a great deal of 

hope that the coalition would 

last a long time; help to deepen 

democracy and become an 

all-inclusive political party. 

Trouble started early. A 

dissident group within the 

alliance ambushed the new 

ruling party and seized 

control of the two chambers 

of the National Assembly, 

NASS, for four years. The 

party has not fully recovered 

till today. Now, all the 

problems of the coalition are 

revealing the fundamental 

cracks within the party. 

Nobody can hold you 

responsible for what has 

happened to APC. You remain 

loyal to the party; even now 

that it is clearly divided on 

various powerful and 

explosive issues -- insecurity, 

grazing, rotation and Local 

Governments, to name four. 

I will not deal extensively 

with all of the matters now. I 

merely want to start by 

pointing out that, more than 

ever, progressive politicians in 

the SW need your leadership 

in order to be able to re-group 

and fight together in an 

increasingly divided Nigeria. 

Two reasons for my appeal 

will be sufficient for now. 

“A group without a leader 

[or leaders] is a mob.” 

Nobody can accurately 

predict whether shouting will 

continue to prevail over 

shooting in our current 

conflicts. It is immaterial 

whether it is “jaw-jaw” or 

“war-war”, the united group 

is always at an advantage 

over the mob. Your leadership 

is urgently needed in this zone. 

Certainly, very little will be 

achieved without your active 

leadership. You still possess 

the power to bring other 

leaders together in a way 

nobody else does. It will be an 

unpardonable blunder if you 

don’t step forward. The South- 

West will suffer unnecessarily; 

but, you will too. One way or 

the other, a leader will 

emerge; because politics 

abhors a vacuum. Your 

support is, therefore, mutually 

beneficial. 

“You are only as good as 

your last show” - The wisdom 

of Hollywood, USA. 

All politicians are actors. 

The most gifted or fortunate 

get to centre-stage – where 

It is immaterial whether 

it is “jaw-jaw” or “warwar”, 

the united group 

is always at an 

advantage over the 

mob 

they receive most of the 

attention. A lucky few remain 

popular almost forever – 

Ahmadu Bello, Awolowo and 

Azikiwe, in alphabetical order 

– despite political setbacks. 

But, most risk their 

reputations with every major 

conflict. Alhaji Jakande, Dr 

Olu Onagoruwa and 

Ebenezer Babatope refused to 

resign from Abacha’s cabinet 

when the June 12 struggle 

started; and went into political 

oblivion since then. You were 

thrown into the lime-light of 

progressive politics because of 

the invaluable assistance you 

rendered to those who were 

forced into exile. One day, the 

proper history of that heroic 

rescue will be told. You have 

since then made implacable 

enemies. Some, you literally 

brought from the gutter. 

We are at another milestone 

in our history; when one false 

step could spell disaster for a 

hitherto glorious political 

career. The risks are high for 

all concerned. As with June 12, 

1993, a time will come when 

nobody can sit on the fence. I 

hope and pray you make the 

right decision. 

Irrespective of what 

happens next, there is one 

legacy you can help leave 

behind. 

“Lagos second worst city in 

the world” -News Report. 

I recollect a statement you 

made when you were newlyelected 

Governor of Lagos 

State in 1999. You said, “Lagos 

is filthy”. And, you promised 

to clean it up. You did your 

best; so did your successors – 

including Sanwo-Olu now. 

So, why is Lagos still in the 

terrible situation we now find 

it? My shortest answer is: 

Local Governments are not 

functioning. Too many 


elected or selected Chairmen 

and Councilors are unfit for 

the job. Consequently, the 

State Government is overburdened. 

The Chairmen in 

particular have operated as if 

they were not under the 

control of the voters – whose 

votes apparently don’t count. 

They only have to please 

somebody; and their job is 

secure. We see them only 

before elections and never 

again until the next one. 

Politicians in the state have 

held you responsible for that 

situation which can never 

breed excellence in council 

service. 

For that reason, I was 

extremely delighted when you 

publicly announced that you 

have no preferred candidates 

in the primaries just 

concluded to select the flagbearers 

for APC. I hope the 

PDP leaders will also allow 

the people at the grassroots to 

hire and fire their Chairmen 

– if they fail to perform. I 

strongly believe that allowing 

grass roots democracy is not 

only a moral imperative for 

believers in June 12, it is also 

what will help clean Lagos up 

substantially. Getting the right 

people in Councils is vital. 

They are closer to the people. 

Because of this, I paid 

particular attention to the 

APC primaries; and will do 

the same with the PDP 

exercise. Despite the reported 

violence and attempts to 

snatch election materials, 

most of the elections were 

satisfactory. I only hoped the 

official list of successful 

candidates will reflect the 

actual voting. My own branch 

of Sobowale families in 

Lagos State, which I head, 

owns properties in seven Local 

Government Councils in the 

three Senatorial Districts. We 

have stakes in what happens 

in those Councils – all of 

which are now in varying 

deplorable conditions. This 

current attempt to restore 

Councils to play their 

historical roles is, therefore, 

very crucial. 

KOSOFE ON MY MIND 

One of the Councils is 

Kosofe where the election was 

closely monitored; it was 

peaceful and the result was 

known at the end of the day. 

Surprisingly, a few days ago, 

there were reports of an 

attempt to rig the election. I 

was certain neither you nor 

Governor Sanwo-Olu was 

involved. My investigations 

indicate that the person behind 

the alleged attempt to upturn 

the election is a former federal 

lawmaker. Ordinarily, any 

scheme designed to suppress 

intra-party democracy is 

absolutely reprehensible. To 

favour this particular former 

lawmaker in Lagos, by 

progressives, is unacceptable 

-- given his track record. For 

the sake of those who might 

be too young to know, or too 

old to remember, let me issue 

from my “Fact File” on the 

activities carried out by this 

former federal lawmaker 

against the progressives, the 

people of Lagos State, his 

constituency and against me 

personally. 

He was voted a federal 

lawmaker from Lagos East. 

My people in Agbowa-Ikosi, 

Orugbo, Iganke and Ejirin 

delivered 97 per cent of their 

votes in that election. This 

man got to the National 

Assembly and donated our 

mandate to an opposition 

party. That is mandate 

robbery. 

Then Obasanjo and Bode 

George rewarded his perfidy 

by appointing him to a top 

office in government. In that 

capacity he committed two 

major misdeeds – one of 

which resulted in losses of lives 

and properties in Lagos – 

especially Lagos Island. 

First, he allegedly 

unleashed people suspected 

to be thugs to challenge a state 

government agency on major 

roads and to arrest civilians. 

The mayhem caused by the 

confrontation resulted in 

major upheaval in Lagos 

Island. Lives were lost. Shops 

were looted. Vehicles were 

destroyed – including my 

brand new KIA OPTIMA. 

Businesses were ruined. I was 

forced to call Bode George to 

come to his father’s house at 

Evans Street to see the extent 

of damage caused by the 

former lawmaker’s activities. 

I recovered from my loss. 

Joyfulhomes 

2015@gmail.com 

It’s a season of joy! 

Happy Sunday. 

Welcome to a week 

of blessings and 

divine favour in Jesus name. 

Brethren, many Christians 

refer to the month of June as 

the month of visitation. 

Who is a visitor? Someone 

that pays you a visit. Usually, 

visitors have a time to enter 

and a time to depart from the 

host or hostess. 

Usually, they are people 

known to the host . However, 

the duration of the visit often 

times depend on the reception 

of the host. 

Whereas the host may 

warmly receive his visitors, it 

is not all visitors that come 

with good intention. 

Therefore as Christians, we 

must watch and pray. 

Let’s take a cue from the 

Holy Bible. You are familiar 

with the story of the three wise 

men that visited Mary the 

mother of Jesus. 

Matthew 2 vs. 11: (KJV)“ 

And when they were come 

into the house, they saw the 

young child with Mary his 

mother, and fell down, and 

worshipped him: and then 

they had opened their 

treasures, they presented unto 

him gifts; gold, and 

frankincense, and myrrh”. 

They saw joy in the birth of 

baby Jesus and left Mary and 

the baby with joyful gifts. 

Another kind of visitor is 

seen in King Herod. He had 

the news of the birth of Jesus . 

The Bible recorded his 

reaction in Matthew 2 vs. 3 “ 

When Herod the king heard 

these things, he was troubled 

and all Jerusalem with him”. 

You probably know the story 

of how the Lord warned the 

wise men not to return to 

Herod and how a furious 

Herod ordered that all babies 

Born in Bethlehem be killed . 

Matthew 2 vs. 16 : “ Then 

Herod, when he saw that he 

was mocked of the wise men, 

was exceeding wroth, and sent 

forth, and slew all the children 

that were in Bethlehem,, and 

in all the coasts thereof, from 

two years old and under, 

according to the time which 

he had diligently enquired of 

the wise men”. 

Brethren, we are making 

this comparison to enable us 

Prepare for the 

visitation of the 

Lord and 

continuously cry 

unto God for 

mercy 

learn some lessons either as a 

newly married couple or a 

couple waiting on the Lord 

for children. 

It is not all visitors that have 

good intention. 

Some of those who visit you, 

do not wish that you have 

children. 

They prefer that you remain 

without biological children so 

that you may become their 

cash cow. 

Others, want you to remain 

childless so that you can train 

their own children. 

Many of these visitors are 

usually relations and 

unfriendly friends. 

As a Christian, you need to 

be vigilant. Watch the visitor’s 

conduct and utterances, mind 

what you discuss with visitors. 

The only visitor you need 

Jesus. 

It is only to the Lord you pour 

your heart in prayer. Only the 

visitation of the Lord brings 

joy unspeakable. It is the 

visitation of the Lord that will 

shut the mouth of your 

mockers. 

Brethren, a time of waiting 

is a time of patience and total 

submission to God. 

You need to prepare your 

Spirit for Divine Visitation . 

When the Lord visits, you are 

bound to laugh. 

Let’s see what Sarah said 

when God visited her and gave 

her a son. 

Genesis 21 vs. 5& 6 : “ And 

Abraham was an hundred 

years old, when his son Isaac 

was born unto him. 

And Sarah said, God hath 

made me to laugh, so that all 

that hear will laugh with me”. 

According to the General 

Overseer of the Redeemed 

Christian Church of God, 

Pastor E.A. Adeboye in Open 

Heavens, “ When you visit 

God in His sanctuary , you go 

home with what your faith 

can carry. A divine visitation 

is more awesome than this. 

During a divine visitation, 

the Almighty comes to you 

with His entourage, loaded 

with blessings, many of which 

money cannot buy”. 

You can attract divine 

visitation like the 

Shunammite woman did. 

She entertained Prophet 

Elisha in 2nd Kings 4 vs. 9-17 

. Let’s how Prophet Elisha 

rewarded her. 

Verses 14 – 17 : And he said 

, What then is to be done to 

her? And Gehazi answered , 

Verily she hath no child, and 

her husband is old. And he ( 

Elisha) said, Call her. And he 

had called her, she stood in 

the door. 

And he said, About this 

season, according to the time 

of life, thou shalt embrace a 

son. And she said, Nay, my 

lord, thou man of God, do not 

lie unto thine handmaid. 

And the woman conceived, 

and bare a son at that season 

that Elisha had said unto her, 

according to the time of life”. 

The Shunammite woman 

was blessed with a baby for 

showing kindness consistently 

to a man of God. For her 

kindness, the Lord visited. 

A time of waiting is not the 

time to be so bitter that you 

wouldn’t want to see anyone 

around you. It is a time to 

demonstrate your faith in God 

and be kind to others 

especially people genuinely 

associated with the work of 

God. 

Brethren, note that Prophet 

Elisha never asked the woman 

for money or care, she cared 

for him voluntarily. 

Therefore, if anyone who calls 

himself a man or woman of 

God begins to make demands 

on you, disconnect with that 

person immediately. 

When you give to a genuine 

man of God, the Lord that will 

reward you with a gift that 

will give you joy. 

Remain calm at the height 

of provocation especially 

from in-laws and others. When 

such people visit you, entertain 

them and let the Lord fight for 

you. 

If you are able to identify 

such ‘visitors’, be alert. 

Hostility should not be your 

attitude. If you are hostile 

and quarrelsome, the enemy 

within will laugh at you. 

Rather , make sure you take 

time to pray very well until the 

visitor departs . 

If you pray with all your 

heart, the visitor with evil 

intention will not attempt to 

visit you again. The power of 

God will chase such a person 

away. 

Be alert. Prepare for the 

visitation of the Lord and 

continuously cry unto God for 

mercy. Sooner than you 

expect, the Lord will turn the 

tears of sorrow that wet your 

pillow to tears joy. 

For someone out there, your 

case isn’t that of delay in child 

bearing but your marriage is 

going through a crisis. 

Be calm, play the fool but 

cry unto the Lord that is able 

to turn things around. 

This season is one that you 

should try to be kind to others. 

Give to the poor. Contribute 

to the development of your 

church. Give to children. 

Given to men and women of 

God. 

God will give you in return, 

gifts that money cannot buy. 

Dear Sister, fear not. 

Remain with the Lord. Very 

soon, those who called your 

barren will call you mother 

of multiple babies. 

Your name is about to 

change as you continue to 

hold on to the Lord. 

It’s a season of joy. 

Peace be unto you in Jesus 

name.

PAGE 10 — SUNDAY VANGUARD, JUNE 27, 2021 

BBNaija Lockdown sex scandals: 

Fans make case for Erica 

When Erica Nlewedim got booted out of the Big Brother 

Naija Lockdown edition, there were some who felt she 

was hard done by. One, she was a staple for many, 

particularly, as a result of her romance with the billionaire 

kid and fellow Housemate, Kiddwayya. Perhaps, maybe 

the duo pushed it a little too far but they were there in 

the open for all to see and no under-the-duvet stuff. 

She was the villain and her accomplice was her lover. 

She wasn’t a saint and all could see just that. 

All other Housemates were walking on the fringes 

and appeared not to have stepped out of line until the 

reunion came on board. Hell was let loose. Suddenly 

nobody seemed to be all plum. Sex was for free in 

the house as some revelations have confirmed. 

Maybe more still on the way but Erica was the one 

put out to dry. 

“Big Brother actually did Erica dirty. It was only 

her dirty linen they showed us. Meanwhile, 

people were fornicating left, right and centre,” a 

blog, Theishblob writes on their timelime. 

This is after the news of Katrina admitting 

she had a quickie with Praize and the Holier 

than thou Brighto getting a head from 

Dorathy. But during the show it was Erica 

that was always on the spot. 

“Erica deserves an apology for being 

portrayed as the only Housemate that 

lacked self control,” another blogger, 

Ijeomadaisy observed. 

Olorisupergal cried out, “BBNaija 

lovers, when are we staging a protest 

against Kayode? Referring to Laycon 

who got Erica disqualified. 

“I just feel every fanbase should 

apologize to Erica and Kidd for all the 

names they were called on this internet 

like Cumrica, Fingerica, moreover their 

favourites were doing the worse,” says a fan. 

The reunion has been explosive as it appears the 

Housemates are all up to settle old scores and they are 

letting down their hairs since there’s no prize in the 

offing. 

How COVID-19 lockdown turned 

me into a music video director 

— Oyin Ameen 

It is no more news that famous artiste and talent 

manager, Oyin Ameen has embraced music video 

directing as his new calling but what many people don’t 

know is how he made the switch from managing artistes 

to shooting videos for them. 

According to the music executive, who currently 

manages the affairs of famous music producer, Krizbeatz, 

the lockdown was a blessing in disguise as he never 

expected that what he started as a hobby would turn out to 

become a full time job. 

“I don’t see myself stopping; I love it. I think it’s my 

calling, I love artistes and talent development generally. I 

just started athlete management as well. I have two kids 

that I take to the stadium every weekend. I am planning 

to take them to Europe. It’s something I love. Beyond 

money, I love to see people grow.” 

He’s looking forward to shooting videos for Krizbeatz’s 

next project: “It is star-studded and he is putting a huge 

budget behind it, I believe after the project, I am going to 

be real big time,” he said. 

•Made Kuti 

•Erica 

•Oyin Ameen 

Made Kuti tak 

akes solo gig to Terra Culture Arena 

Afrobeat musician, Made Kuti is 

basking in the success of his recent 

debut headline gig at the The New 

African Shrine to set up a special 

showcase event tagged ‘An Evening With 

Made Kuti.’ The exclusive event is 

scheduled for Friday, July 2 at the fit-forpurpose 

Terra Culture Arena, Victoria 

Island, Lagos. 

For his second solo headline gig, Made 

gets to introduce his own band, The 

Movement to a colourful audience 

comprising his growing young army of 

fans, music connoisseurs, brands, 

diplomats among others. 

Packaged by FK Management, ‘An 

Evening With Made Kuti’ is made 

possible in partnership with Legend Extra 

Stout, Mainstreet Capital, Ministry of 

Industry, Trade and Investment and Lagos 

•Didi Ekanem 

State Internal Revenue Service (LIRS). 

Made explains, “The aim is to extend 

my performance beyond the New Afrika 

Shrine and create opportunities for new 

fans and brands alike to experience my 

art. This special showcase creates high 

quality engagements and reaches an 

audience composed of young adults, 

business professionals and expatriates 

who enjoy Afrobeat and support the Kuti 

legacy.” 

The grandson of Fela Kuti and son of 

Femi Kuti gave a foretaste of what to 

expect in April, when he performed his 

first show at The New African Shrine 

alongside his newly-formed band, The 

Movement. Together, they performed 

songs such as Made’s single, ‘Free Your 

Mind’ and his stellar rendition of Fela’s 

‘Trouble Sleep. 

Feels good having 

one of the biggest 

bums in Nollywood 

—Didi Ekanem 

Nollywood actress, Didi Ekanem has repeated 

time and time again that she would rather 

be noticed or recognised for her talent rather than 

for her big bum which always seems to get in the 

way. But belying her secret wish is the smugness that 

lights up her face when she gets compliments over the 

Mother Nature’s gift. 

“It’s a good feeling and a wonderful one,” she 

had beamed when asked how she feels having 

one of the biggest bums in Nollywood. “But I 

won’t lie to you, as much as I love it so much, 

I just wish people would focus more on my 

talent than my bum. All the concentration 

out there is on my bum, not my talent. I 

would honestly wish people to see me as 

a talented actress not a sexy one. But my 

bum is not allowing people to see me 

deep down, to see the person and the 

talent,” she quickly added. 

On whether it is real or not, “People 

always say this whenever they see my bum. 

Last time I was on Linda Ikeji, I read 

comments people made and there were more 

questions whether my bum was real or worked on. 

Some said it is made of plastic but you are here now 

and can see there is no artificial embellishment or 

augmentation. My bum is real, it’s like 101% real, I 

was born this way, I was born like this. I’ve had it 

since I was in JS1, in fact that was when I started 

noticing it. Then I never loved it, if I have to tell you 

the things that I’ve gone through because of my bum, 

you won’t believe it.” 

Sex not sinful but holy – Angel Christopher 

•Angel 

Christopher 

Sexy Nollywood actress, 

Angel Christopher didn’t 

pass through any seminary or 

live in a convent. She’s just a 

simple worldly woman who 

perhaps has a little hang of the 

scriptures, or at least so it 

seems, as her views on sex and 

marriage have a little bit of 

religious undertone. 

“A lot of people don’t associate 

sex with God – they associate it 

with Satan and darkness, as if 

sex is not holy. The Bible is 

explicit when it comes to sex. 

Sex is holy within marriage, 

and there is no prescribed style. 

Nowhere in the Bible does it say 

that the missionary position is 

the only sexual style. Not 

discussing sex in a marriage is a 

bad thing. Women, wake up 

from your slumber, if he’s not 

doing the styles with you, he’s 

definitely doing it with someone 

else. Gone are those days when 

they say the way to a man’s 

heart is through his stomach, 

now, the way to a man’s heart is 

how you respect and satisfy him 

in bed. Men love sex” she said. 

Collaborations with Nigerian 

artistes, dream come true – 

Zimbabwean Wayne F.O.G 

Zimbabwe’s Afropop artiste, Tendai 

Wayne Mukangairwa, popularly 

known as Wayne F.O.G, has declared his 

collaboration with Nigerian artistes as a 

dream come true. 

“When the opportunity came, I was 

ready to spread my wings and I’d prayed 

for it. With thanks to my label, Blksmith 

Records, for paving the way and making 

my dreams a reality. My label believes in 

my ability to be successful and has given 

me all the motivation I need to get to 

where I am today. I’m blessed,” he said. 

Mukangairwa, who is presently in 

Nigeria, spoke of what attracted him to 

the country. “Nigeria is the home of 

Afrobeats, the music I love so much,” he 

said, “I came to pay homage to some 

great people on the scene here like 

Solshynebeatz, Soft and Phanda Boy.”


Supernova a Live e Concert: 

2face, others storm Abuja 

On October 16, 2021, the Prestigious Transcorp 

Hilton Abuja will witness another mindblowing 

concert as Supernovamusician is ready to 

bring down the roof with different sounds from the 

Nigerian entertainment industry. 

The show that is tagged “Supernova Live” will 

feature 2face, MC Edo Pikin, Juliet Ibrahim and it 

is packaged by Black Celebrity Magazine. 

Nweke Joy Chinenye Serrato popularly known as 

Supernovamusician is a multi talented female 

singer, songwriter, actress, movie producer, story 

writer and the CEO of Supernova Music 

Worldwide. 

For months, she has been topping the music 

charts on both radio, television and online music 

platforms with her latest effort “Casanova”. 

Recently, two of her videos went viral where she 

said that “everybody in Nigeria is gay it’s just a 

question of how gay you are” and when she said 

“there is no heaven, there is no hell” the full video is 

all over blogs and websites and social media pages. 

Olubukola Owoyomi’s double celebration 

Olubukola Owoyomi, the head 

honcho of Mide’s Mane, epitomizes 

poise, allure and style. Just like a 

goldfish that has no hiding 

place, her sartorial elegance 

speaks volumes of her. 

She is arguably, currently 

the highest supplier of 

luxury virgin hair, 

boasting a long list of 

high-class and celebrity 

clientele in Nigeria, 

London, Canada, America 

and Europe. 

On June 30, the 

Accounting graduate of 

Obafemi Awolowo 

University, Ile-Ife will 

be having a double 

•Olubukola 

Owoyomi 

celebration. 

She will be 

celebrating her 45th 

birthday and Mide’s 

Mane 10th anniversary. Her birthday 

will be devoid of much fanfare as she 

will rather be at home to offer prayers to 

her Creator for sparing her life. 

Thereafter, she will play host to 

close friends and family at her Lagos 

residence, where they will be treated to 

an array of sumptuous meal and highcost 

drinks. 

A close source disclosed that in 

celebrating the 10th anniversary of 

Mide’s Mane, she will also be 

launching another pocket-friendly 

luxury affordable hair brand. 

“Sometime ago,she received several 

requests from her teeming customers to 

make another type of luxury hair. 

The soon-to-be-launched ‘Mide’s 

Mane-iacs’ will provide high-quality 

produced human hair for those who 

cannot afford the luxury virgin range but 

also want to slay on a budget.

PAGE 12—SUNDAY Vanguard, JUNE 27, 2021 

ADETUTU AUDU 

08023849036, 

08112662587 

Aluyor is Jolly Good Fellow 

of Engineering Academy 

The Vice Chancellor, Edo University, 

Uzairue, Prof. Emmanuel Aluyor, has 

been inducted a Fellow of the Nigerian 

Academy of Engineering, NAE, alongside nine 

others during the 2021 NAE Annual Lecture and 

Induction Ceremony held at the University of 

Lagos, UNILAG, on Thursday. 

Speaking on the development, Aluyor, a 

Professor of Chemical Engineering, said he was 

elated to become a Fellow of the prestigious body 

of great men and women in engineering. 

“Your heard when the compere said most 

Fellows of the Academy are between the ages of 

60 and 70 or more. I am not up to that age and I 

have the great privilege of becoming a Fellow of 

the Academy, who will now sit with great men 

and women in the field of engineering”, the 

pioneer VC said. 

“It is in recognition of my contributions to the 

engineering profession and I am happy that my 

little contributions are recognised and 

appreciated. 

“I promise not to relent on my oars and to do 

more for the good of the profession and our society 

at large”. 

Aluyor said the determination to do things in 

better and different manners had set the young 

university on the path of greatness. 

International 

recognition for 

Seun 

Shobo 

•Shobo 

igeria’s leading voice-over talent and speech coach, Seun Shobo, 

Nhas become the first African to be elected into the Board of Directors 

of the global professional body, Voice and Speech Trainers Association 

(VASTA). 

VASTA, which has its headquarters in Washington, the United States, is 

an international organisation of over 5, 000 members, and its mission is 

to advance the research and visibility of the voice and speech profession, 

globally. Shobo, a leading voice coach in Africa, is the founder of Africa’s first training 

hub for Voice Over Talents - Voice Over Academy and Africa’s largest pool of 

professional voices - VoiceOverBank. 

The elated voice over talent and coach described as laudable the appointment by 

a global and credible organization like VATSA, stating that Nigeria and Africa are 

gradually being recognised as reference point for excellence at the international 

stage. Popularly known as the Brand Master due to his wealth of experience in the 

marketing communications industry, the sought-after voice coach said opportunities 

abound for African talents with the latest recognition for the continent by the global 

body that has existed for over three decades. 

Shobo is expected to be the African representative on the VASTA board for threeyear 

term. VASTA is a non-profit, volunteer-driven organization dedicated to 

spreading the word about the voice and speech profession—promoting both the art 

and science of the human voice. 

Innocent Ike Hits Ground Running 

W 

•Ike 

“Despite our young age, we have set a number of records and we 

are giving the older universities a run for their money”, the VC stated. 

“In 2016 when we started, we were ranked in the bracket of 

25,000, but now we are between 9,000-8,000. That 

means within a few years, we have moved from 

among the 25,000 ranked universities to 

between 9,000 and 8,000 best in the world”. 

According to him, soon, Edo University, 

Uzairue would be among the best globally. 

The President of the NAE, Engineer Alex 

Ogedegbe, said the theme of the day’s lecture, 

‘Locating engineering and technology in 

government policy: Framework for growth 

and development’, underscored the 

importance of engineering to national 

development. 

The lecturer, Prof. Ayo Francis Ogunye, 

called for the appointment of 

seasoned engineers to positions of 

authority in the country for them to 

rightly guide in policy 

formulation 

that would be beneficial to 

the society in 

general. 

He also advocated the appointment of a 

Special Adviser on Technology to the President 

and an increment of budgetary allocation to at 

least 2.5 percent of the national 

budget. 

hen he assumed office as Acting CEO, Polaris Bank, the 

whole world was badly hit economically by COVID-19. 

Many private businesses had closed shop while many top 

organizations downsized as a result of the dwindling global 

economy. 

But he knew he was in for a huge task ahead of him. He 

immediately blended well into the office by taking some 

decisions which has today paid off for the bank. 

The self-effacing and financial expert was able to keep the ship of Polaris 

Bank away from the tsunami wave caused by the pandemic. 

Apart from sustaining the bank, he also helped increased revenue. 

Within just six months in charge, Innocent Ike, the 1988 best graduating 

accounting student of the University of Lagos, took an innovative step that 

has skyrocketed Polaris Bank to the next level with the launch of the VULTe, 

ranked among the best in digital banking channels on May 18. According to 

sources, the launch didn’t come as a surprise to those close to him as it just the 

tip of the iceberg of what he has in stock for the bank’s improvement policy. 

The platform is also a stable and robust one that offers high availability 

and transaction success rate for users. It’s a fully homegrown digital 

solution developed by Polaris Bank’s Digital Banking and 

Information Technology Teams. 

Despite his quest to keep a low profile lifestyle, results keep 

throwing the former Executive Director, Technology and Services 

in the cynosure of all eyes. “Everybody affiliated with the bank 

from the Board of Directors to the least staff is happy at his approach 

to work ethics. His innovative ideas have made banking simple”, 

a source disclosed. 

•Tinubu 

•Adeola 

•Aluyor 

Wale 

Tinubu 

rocks at 54 

To say Jubril Adewale Tinubu is an 

accomplished and ambitious businessman 

is stating the obvious. 

The Group Chief Executive Officer, Oando 

Plc reminisced on his inspiring journey in 

life yesterday, June 26, 2021, when he 

celebrated his 54th birthday. 

The shrewd businessman, rather than 

throwing an elaborate party, announced that 

he would rather mark the day glorifying God 

for all He has done for him. 

Family, friends and business associates 

surrounded him as usual to celebrate the milestone. 

In the past years, another side of his life that has 

enjoyed interesting discourses is his philanthropy. 

He is indeed a champion extraordinaire, and in 

today’s Nigeria, when you think of a 

philanthropist, his name will pop up so deservedly. 

It will be recalled that in 2019, he, alongside 

some prominent Nigerians, visited the IDP 

camp in Maiduguri, Borno State to attend 

to the needs of the inmates. 

Recently, Tinubu also donated books to 

15 universities and two national libraries 

across Nigeria. 

Speaking on the initiative, the Oando boss said it 

was aimed at educating students and the public on 

the country’s oil & gas sector, a sector which 

remains the largest contributor to Nigeria’s forex 

earnings. In addition to giving back to the 

society, Tinubu, a devout Muslim, recently 

donated hundreds millions of Naira towards 

the building of a mosque in Abuja. 

For this and more, friends, close associates 

as well as well-wishers had nice words to 

say about him yesterday as he marked his 

birthday. 

Hajara Adeola 

towers high 

These are definitely the best of 

times for woman of substance 

and founder of Lotus Capital, 

Mrs. Hajara Adeola. 

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has granted a non-interest 

banking licence to the outfit founded and chaired by her. 

Adeola’s Lotus Capital pioneered non-interest finance in Nigeria. 

Not known to do things in half measure, the bank, we gathered, is 

starting operations on a solid foundation of experienced leadership 

and a strong Advisory Council of Experts. 

Married to Fola Adeola, co-founder of GT Bank, she has continued 

to carve a niche for herself in her spheres of influence. 

Prior to Lotus, she was a Director at UBS Warburg heading their 

London Islamic Finance Desk. 

She earlier worked as a Convertible Bond Research Analyst at BNP 

Paribas, London. Adeola started her career as a consultant at Andersen 

Consulting (now Accenture). 

From there, she joined ARM Investment Managers as a pioneer staff 

and rose to Vice-President and Head of the Research and Financial 

Advisory Units. 

In all, she has over 20 years of international experience in research 

and analysis, investment management and corporate finance.

Social Media and Guerilla 

Legislation in Nigeria 

The insurgency which 

began in the Northeast 

some years back has 

had a major impact on social 

life in the country. Several 

negative happenings; 

banditry, kidnapping etc. are 

largely seen as the impact of 

insurgency. If nothing else, it 

has pushed the term ‘security’ 

far above all other sectors of 

the nation. In fact, the 

budgetary provisions for 

security have on an annual 

basis become larger than that 

of many other sectors 

combined. Yet, the nation is 

still in crisis. A major reason 

why the situation has lasted 

this long is because as big as 

Nigeria is, she has been unable 

to defeat a handful of 

insurgents due to the latter’s 

reliance on guerilla tactics- a 

strategy of irregular, hit and 

run set of attacks. 

Interestingly, our innovative 

politicians appear to be 

following the footsteps of the 

tactics by introducing guerilla 

legislation. 

A cursory look at the 

intermittent attempt to shut 

down free speech in the 

country will no doubt reflect, 

hit and run, irregular guerilla 

legislation. Here, an overview 

of the efforts will suffice. In an 

attempt to muzzle dissenting 

voices and stifle free speech 

under the cloak of national 

security and defamation of 

character, Senator Ibn Bala 

Na’Allah (APC, Kebbi South) 

sponsored a Bill in 2015 that 

was described as an ‘Act to 

Prohibit Frivolous Petitions 

and Other Matters 

Connected Therewith.’ The 

Bill intended to make it 

unlawful for anyone to submit 

any petition, as well as 

statement intended to report 

the conduct of any person for 

the purpose of an 

investigation, inquiry without 

a duly sworn affidavit 

confirming the content to be 

true. It was overwhelmingly 

rejected by Nigerians. The 

Senate was forced to withdraw 

the Bill on two grounds. First, 

it was not supported by 

President Muhammadu 

Buhari and second the 

relevant Senate Committee 

on Judiciary, Human Rights 

and Legal Matters also found 

that most of the provisions of 

the bill had already been 

covered by other extant laws 

of the Federation. 

After the withdrawal of the 

Bill which many thought 

would bring respite to the 

subject, two Senators from the 

same state – Niger, began their 

own scheme to introduce two 

Bills different in title but 

similar in content and 

intention to stifle free speech 

in the country. The first of the 

bills, titled ‘Protection from 

Internet Falsehood and 

Manipulations Bill, 2019’ 

was sponsored by 

Mohammed Sani Musa 

(APC, Niger East). As usual 

because of the guerilla 

disposition of the senate to 

laws relating to media and 

free speech, articulate 

members of the red chambers 

distanced themselves from 

the Bill leaving only a few 

with problems of public 

perception. Among them was 

Senator Elisha Abbo (PDP, 

Adamawa North) who was 

earlier caught on camera 

doing what Igodomigodo 

would categorize as 

‘vandalistic deliverance of 

blows’ with a young lady. 

Besides the woman-battering 

senator, there was also 

Senator Abba Moro (PDP, 

Benue South). Moro was not 

long ago Nigeria’s Minister 

of Interior who presided over 

a phantom hire for jobs at the 

Immigration Service which 

led to the death of many young 

Nigerians. Moro was 

probably still haunted by 

media publicity of public 

condemnation of his 

performance. As if in 

partnership with falsehood, 

Senator Musa’s Bill created 

offences for which truth was 

not to be accepted as a 

defence! 

The second similar bill was 

on Hate Speech sponsored by 

Senator Sabi Abdullahi, 

(APC, Niger North). 

Following widespread 

criticisms, the Hate speech 

Bill was formally disowned by 

the Senate. The then acting 

spokesperson of the senate, 

Godiya Akwashiki told the 

media that contrary to general 

impression, the bill was not 

the idea of the 9 th Senate; but 

With the contents of 

the Social Media and 

Hate Speech Bills, it 

became obvious that 

our senators were 

and are still working 

at cross purposes 

with themselves 

rather the handiwork of 

Abdullahi, based on his 

conviction. The seeming 

merit of the Hate Speech Bill 

was its sponsor’s 

presupposition that it could 

dissuade violence. 

Unfortunately, members of 

the political class to which 

Abdullahi belongs are the 

greatest culprits of false 

statements which are made 

and denied now and again 

even where documentary 

evidence abounds. Yet, he is 

more keen on making laws 

that are targeted at the media 

and no other group. How we 

wish all those anxious to 

control the media can get 

better educated that all 

apprehensions about poor 

media reportage are covered 

by existing laws such as the 

Penal Code, the Criminal 

Code, the cybercrime Act, the 

Law of Defamation, the 

Nigerian Communication 

Commission Act etc. 

With the contents of the 

Social Media and Hate 

Speech Bills, it became 

obvious that our senators 


were and are still working at 

cross purposes with 

themselves. They introduce a 

bill, withdraw it, and then 

reintroduce it severally with 

new titles. When the Human 

Writers Association of Nigeria 

(HURIWA) petitioned the 

Senate President, Dr. Ahmed 

Lawan on the recurring efforts 

to silence Nigerians, he gave 

assurances that the National 

Assembly would not pass any 

anti-people laws. It is also 

hoped that our legislators 

would not overregulate the 

media space in such a manner 

that Nigerians may become 

confused as to what can or 

cannot be said. In truth, many 

Senators and other politicians 

do not appear willing to be 

held accountable which they 

hope they can easily achieve 

by constraining the media 

and free speech. They seem to 

be unaware that just as the 

Constitution gives them 

functions so does it mandate 

the media under Section 22 

of the same constitution to 

make the government 

accountable to the people. If 

media professionals are 

caged through a multiplicity 

of laws who then would 

ensure that those in power are 

compelled to account to the 

people? In a country where 

government is not 

accountable to the people, the 

whole talk of power belongs 

to the people is reduced to a 

slogan in place of democracy 

It is not an overstatement to 

imagine that it is the oxygen 

supplied by the legislature 

that has made the executive 

to become quite confident 

and active in the current drive 

to constrain free speech in the 

country. At a point the Federal 

Inland Revenue Service FIRS 

was contemplating 

introducing communication 

tax. According to the former 

Chief Executive of the FIRS, 

Babatunde Fowler, our 

people can afford to pay 

because they are always 

talking. We can only hope that 

the new boss is not similarly 

inclined. To do so would be to 

negate section 39 of our 

constitution which expressly 

provides for not just freedom 

of expression but also freedom 

as per subsection 2 to use 

whatever medium to receive 

and express opinions 

In the last couple of weeks, 

moments of tension in the 

country have probably 

pushed government officials 

into seeking to control twitter 

and other digital platforms of 

the social media. While it can 

m o m e n t a r i l y 

assuagegovernment feelings, 

there are negative 

consequences. Luckily 

President Buhari has washed 

his hands off the scheme. All 

government officials ought to 

note that the control of free 

speech can render the public 

docile and unable to 

meaningfully contribute to 

national development. It can 

also intimidate media 

professionals to lose their 

discretion, Under the 

circumstance, government 

messages to the public would 

neither be creditably delivered 

by the media nor believed by 

the people. By the time the 

current actors leave the public 

scene, they would have 

irreversibly turned back the 

engine of societal 

development. We therefore 

need to watch it because as 

we say in my part of the 

country, anyone who goes 

blind to avoid seeing his 

enemies would also not see his 

friends. 

PhD,Department of 

Philosophy, 

Universityof Lagos 

08116759758 

opuruiche2000@gmail.com 

On the increasing possibility 

of Nigeria’s disintegration (5) 

Northern (that is, muslim 

Fulani) political 

domination would not have 

been possible without the 

northernisation of the military 

which began in earnest after 

independence. It was 

implemented by the Prime 

Minister, Tafawa Balewa, and 

other northerners who 

occupied the four most senior 

posts in the ministry of 

defence: Inuwa Wada 

(defence minister), Ibrahim 

Tako Galadima (minister of 

state for the army), Sule Kolo 

and Ahmadu Kurfi 

(permanent secretary and 

deputy permanent secretary 

ministry of defence 

respectively). These 

officials,encouraged by the 

laid-back attitude of southern 

politicians regarding skewed 

recruitments into the 

army,lowered the 

educational qualifications for 

enlistment into the officer 

corps of the military and 

introduced quota system 

which guaranteed northern 

region over fifty-percent of all 

new recruitments. Moreover 

most of the major military 

institutions and installations 

have always been located in 

the north. In his book, The 

Nigeria Revolution and the 

Biafran War, Alexander 

Madiebonotes that before the 

first military coup of January 

15, 1966 sixteen of them were 

located in the north, three in 

the west, while the east had 

only one, a situation that 

jeopardised the chances of 

Biafra successfully defending 

itself against Yakubu Gowon 

and his jihadist army. 

Focusing attention on the 

present, President Buhari is 

not only the most divisive 

occupant of the highest 

political office in Nigerian 

history he has also put the 

continued existence of the 

country into question due to 

malignant nepotism made 

worse by his pachydermatous 

and obstinate refusal to 

catalyse the birth of a new 

constitutional framework that 

addresses the genuine 

concerns of Nigerians, 

especially the major ethnic 

nationalities in the southern 

part of the country. In fact 

never before in the history of 

Nigeria has Usman Dan 

Fodio’s Islamisation and 

Fulanisation project gained 

more traction than in the 

current presidency of Buhari. 

Keep in mind that in every 

public position he has 

occupied at the federal level, 

Buhari wears favouritism of 

the north(particularly Islamic 

Fulani north) as a badge of 

identity without qualms. 

When he was military dictator, 

his supreme military council 

and the most consequential 

military positions were 

occupied by northern 

muslims. Also as Chairman, 

Petroleum [Special] Trust 

Fund (PTF), about 75% of the 

projects executed by the 

organisation went to the north. 

To start with, Buhari publicly 

supported Boko Haram and 

scathingly criticised 

Jonathan’s government for 

the onslaught against the sect. 

He encouraged muslims to 

Why does he almost always 

prefer northern muslims 

whenever a position 

occupied by a southerner 

becomes vacant whereas 

he tends to appoint 

northerners into posts 

vacated by northerners? 

vote for only those that would 

promote their religion; he 

equally expressed his 

unflinching support for the 

spread of sharia across the 

country. Now, Ndigbo have 

always been at the receiving 

end of Buhari’s ringing 

nepotism. Notwithstanding 

vaporous denials and hot air 

about his integrity and sense 

of fairness by the president’s 

bootlickers, particularly 

useful idiots from the southeast, 

Buhari probably dislikes 

Ndigbo more than members 

of any other ethnic group in 

the country. Shortly after his 

inauguration as president six 

years ago, he made it clear 

that his administration will 

treat different parts of the 

country to reflect the quantum 

of votes he received from them 

in the election, a veiled 

indication that Ndigbo who 

have always rejected him 

during elections for very good 

reasons should not expect 

much from his government. 

From all indications, the 

Buhari government seem to 

be implementing the muslim 

Fulani subjugationist vision of 

Dan Fodio and Ahmadu 

Bello. Think about this: for the 

first time in any civilian 

dispensation since 

independence about sixty-one 

years ago the three arms of 

government are headed by 

northern Fulani muslims; 

over 90% of the topmost 

positions in the military and 

agencies of government 

responsible for security are 

occupied by northerners 

many of whom are Fulani 

muslims. Now,the four 

principal sources of revenue 

for the federal government 

are headed by the Fulani, 

namely NNPC (Buhari is the 

minster for petroleum while 

Mele Kyari is the GMD of 

NNPC); FIRS (Muhammad 

Mamman Nami); NCS 

(Hameed Ali); and NPA 

(Mohammed Koko who is 

currently in acting capacity 

because another Fulani, 

Hadiza Bala Usman, is 

suspended). Fulani dominate 

the zenith of major ministries 

and agencies to which the 

bulk of the revenue is 

allocated. These include: 

Defence (Bashir Salihi 

Magashi); 

FCT 

(Mohammed Musa Bello); 

Aviation (Hadi Sirika); 

Communication & Digital 

Economy (Isa Pantami); 

Humanitarian Affairs 

(Sadiya Umar Farouk); 

NYSC (Brig. Gen. Shuaibu 

Ibrahim); FAAN (Capt. Rabiu 

Hamisu Yadudu); AGF 

(Ahmed Idris); Water 

Resources (Hussein Adamu); 

Power (Kwagyang Saleh); 

Police Affairs (Maigari 

Dingyadi); AGF & MJ 

(Abubakar Malami); 

Finance (Zainab Shamsuna 

Ahmed); PTDF (Bello 

AliyuGusau); and NTA 

(YakubuIbn Mohammed). 

What about the most powerful 

anti-corruption agencies? The 

story is the same: EFCC 

(Abdulrasheed Bawa); 

NDLEA (Muhammad Buba 

Marwa); NFIU (Tukur 

Modibbo). It is not surprising 

that Buhari closed Nigerian 

borders in the south whereas 

northern borders remained 

open to allow the influx of 

Fulani from all over West 

Africa and the Sahel into the 

country. That is why the 

topmost officials in charge of 

Immigration Service and 

Boundary Commission, 

Mohammed Babandede and 

Adamu Adaji respectively had 

to be Fulani. Several critical 

agencies in the education 

sector and specialised 

institutes are in the hands of 

Fulani as well: NUC (Prof. 

Abubakar Rasheed); NERDC 

(Prof. Ismail Junaidu); NTI 

(Garba Dahuwa Azre); UBEC 

(Hamid Boboyi); NNRA 

(Dr.Yau Usman Idris); NAEC 

(Prof. Yusuf Ahmed); NASENI 

(Prof. M.S. Haruna); 

NASRDA (Dr.Halilu Ahmad 

Shaba); RMDA (Ibrahim 

Hussaini Doko); NERC 

(Sanusi Garba) and SON 

(Farouk Salim). Even if, as 

some buharimaniacs argue, 

President Buhari inherited 

some of these appointments 

from his predecessor, why does 

he almost always prefer 

northern muslims whenever a 

position occupied by a 

southerner becomes vacant 

whereas he tends to appoint 

northerners into posts vacated 

by northerners? Moreover 

Buhari claims that his 

appointments are based on 

merit. Merit with respect to 

which criterion? Education, 

experience or what? In terms 

of education, for instance, the 

south outperforms the north 

by far despite decades of quota 

system, as indicated by the cutoff 

marks for different states 

in qualifying entrance 

examinations at all levels and 

performances in tertiary 

institutions here and abroad. 

The fact is: by his deeds 

Buhari sees himself first and 

foremost as the champion of 

Fulani interests and only 

secondarily as a Nigerian. 

That is why he enjoins 

communities 

to 

accommodate Fulani 

terrorists masquerading as 

herdsmen who destroy their 

farms, rape their women and 

kill those defending their 

ancestral lands whereas he 

sends the military to destroy 

and kill IPOB members 

agitating for selfdetermination 

and defending 

their homeland against 

marauding terrorist 

herdsmen. Even in the southwest, 

the geopolitical zone 

whose votes helped him 

become president in 2015 and 

2019, Buhari still sides with 

his Fulani kinsmen who seem 

determined to extend their 

annexation of Yorubaland 

beyond Ilorin. 

The latest public remarks of 

Buhari during the heavily 

edited boring interview by 

irritatingly genuflecting and 

overly patronising staff of 

Arise television shows that 

Ndigbo supporting Buhari 

sheepishly did not suck their 

mothers’ breasts to the full. 

Buhari thinks that IPOB is a 

dot in a circle and that the 

Igbo have nowhere to go even 

if they succeed in pulling out 

of Nigeria. He also bragged 

that leaders of non-Igbo 

communities in the southsouth 

had assured him that 

they were not interested in 

seceding. All this shows that 

the President(or more 

appropriately, “the 

presidency) is operating with 

a rusty conquistadorial 

mindset that served Gowon 

and his Fulani caliphate 

puppeteers well in the middle 

and late 1960s. He does not 

realise that 1967 to 1970 is 

quite different from the 

present circumstances in 

which certain sections of the 

country that ganged up to 

defeat Biafra are coming to 

terms with the negative 

consequences of their 

egregious mistake during the 

civil war. ApparentlyBuhari 

cannot envision a complex 

democratic society governed 

by a truly secular constitution: 

his negative triumphalist 

promotion of Fulani 

supremacy will take Nigeria 

to the Omega Point of 

dismemberment. If that 

happens he would have 

confirmed the core principle 

of the law of unintended 

consequences in that in trying 

to extend Fulani hegemony 

he ends up destroying the 

colonial amalgam created by 

British imperialists. I am sure 

millions of people will 

welcome such an outcome. 

Concluded.


My parents’ resilience 

as top judges helped 

to shape my life 

—Oyetunde, ADB Executive Director 

•I qualified as chartered accountant 

while still studying law at UNILAG’ 

By Ebunoluwa Sessou 

With his 24 years experience as a multidisciplinary professional 

spanning corporate & investment banking, fiscal & macroeconomic 

policy, public financial management, accounting, law, civil litigation, 

legislative drafting, taxation, youth leadership & sustainable global 

development in Nigeria, South Africa and the United Kingdom, Dr. Oyebode 

Oyetunde, a lawyer, in this interview, speaks on how he learned the 

importance of uprightness, conservativeness and hardworking as tools to 

achieving success amidst challenges in life. Excerpts: 

•Oyetunde 

Early life and experiences 

I was born and raised in Jos, Plateau 

State. My parents, Hon. Justice M.O. 

Oyetunde and Hon. Justice R.G. Oyetunde, 

had a successful legal practice which 

served clients across Northern Nigeria. 

Later, my father and mother were 

appointed as judges in the Plateau and 

Oyo State judiciaries. It was my parents 

that set me on the path of law, accounting, 

taxation, development economics, fiscal 

policy, banking and finance. My father 

retired from the Plateau State judiciary 

as the most senior judge while my mother 

retired as Acting Chief Judge of Oyo State. 

She was the first lady jurist to hold that 

position in the Oyo history. My parents 

were hardworking and upright jurists who, 

over their decades of service to Plateau 

and Oyo judiciaries respectively, 

established incredible reputation and 

legacy for my siblings and I to follow. 

Following their exceptional example, 

all six of their children went on to qualify 

as barristers and solicitors of the Supreme 

Court of Nigeria. From our parents, we 

learned the importance of being upright, 

committed, conservative and 

hardworking. 

There is no success without 

challenges. Tell us about it and how 

you crushed those challenges 

I started out my career as a lawyer; I 

also achieved professional accounting 

qualifications with the Institute of 

Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) 

simultaneously. Qualifying as a chartered 

accountant with ICAN was a particularly 

challenging endeavour as Nigerian 

lawyers are notoriously disinclined to 

specializing in quantitative professions, 

but for the few that have branched out 

from law into finance, it has proved to be 

an exceptional competency. My 

progression into accounting commenced 

during the crisis of June 12, 1993 election. 

During the frequent ASUU strikes, and 

with the encouragement of my parents, I 

progressed with the ICAN professional 

exams to qualify as an accounting 

technician (between 1994 and 1998) and 

chartered accountant (between 2002 and 

2011). I learned the wisdom of being a 

‘silent achiever’ who quietly keeps on 

overcoming challenges till success is 

attained. Incidentally, I subsequently 

qualified as an Associate, ACTI of the 

Chartered Institute of Taxation, CITN, as 

taxation has always been a field of great 

academic and professional interest to me. 

So, it has been more about slow and steady 

progress than trying to achieve all my 

aspirations in a single sprint. 

I have a story to tell about myself and 

the story is about the Hare in Aesop’s 

Fable: The Tortoise and the Hare. Hare 

was a gifted sprinter and started his race 

early. But he became overconfident and 

complacent, which led to his losing the 

race to the Tortoise. I have tried to be more 

like the Tortoise: slow and steady. 

A good example is qualifying as an 

accounting technician and chartered 

accountant with ICAN, while studying law 

at the University of Lagos. Accordingly, 

one had to significantly outperform the 

national average to progress to the next 

stage. 

As an Executive Director for 

Nigeria on the Board of African 

Development Bank in Abidjan, Cote 

D’Ivoire, what experience worked 

for you and what were your 

outstanding breakthroughs? 

I am humbled to be an Executive 

Director (Nigeria) on the Board at the 

African Development Bank in Abidjan, 

Cote D’Ivoire, a bank with a goal to ensure 

endurable fiscal advancement and 

collective growth in its regional member 

countries (RMCs), thereby actively 

working towards poverty reduction. 

Working at the Presidential Villa also 

helped to get me where I am today as ED. 

It has been an 

intriguing experience 

in the over two and a 

half decades from my 

early career. I worked 

closely with the 

Ministries of Finance, 

Budget and National 

Planning, often 

liaising closely with 

successive Permanent 

Secretaries, including 

Mrs. Fatima Mede, 

Alhaji Mahmoud Isa- 

Dutse (more recently, 

the Executive Director 

for Nigeria on the 

Board of the Islamic 

Development Bank), 

the late Alhaji Haruna 

Mohammed, Dr. 

Mohammed Dikwa, 

mni, Alhaji Aliyu 

Ahmed, Alhaji Shehu 

Shinkafi and the late 

Mr. Babatunde Lawal. 

I remain a grateful 

beneficiary of the boundless wisdom, 

leadership and experience of these 

seasoned and exceptional civil servants. I 

represented the Office of the Chief of Staff 

to Mr. President on various councils and 

committees, including the Economic 

Management Team, chaired by His 

Excellency, the Vice President; National 

Economic Council (NEC), also chaired by 

the Vice President; and Cash 

Management Committee, Drafting 

Committee for the Strategic 

Implementation Plan for the 2016 Budget, 

Technical Committees of the Economic 

Recovery & Growth Plan (ERGP), the ERGP 

Macroeconomic Modeling Committee & 

other Committees chaired by the 

Ministers responsible for Finance, Budget 

and National Planning. 

After the demise 

of the former Chief 

of Staff, I was 

retained by his 

I would rather 

say my parents 

taught me life 

and how to 

manage 

positions 

successor, Prof. 

Ibrahim Gambari. 

Under Prof. 

G a m b a r i ’ s 

leadership, I 

continued to serve 

in all my previous 

capacities until my 

recent appointment 

by President 

Muhammadu 

Buhari as the 

Executive Director 

for Nigeria on the 

Board of the African 

Development Bank. 

I am grateful to 

God for my 

experiences which 

have all been part of 

why I am where I 

am today. 

I look forward to serving Nigeria further 

in my new role by supporting Dr. 

Akinwumi Adesina as the first Nigerian 

President in the bank’s history and 

contributing to the good governance of 

the its activities, complexes and 

operations as these contribute to the 

significant and sustainable development 

of our continent, its countries, 

communities and citizens. 

Would you say your experience in 

the private sector paid off too? 

Well, I would rather say my parents 

taught me life and how to manage 

positions. Their resilience as judges helped 

to shape my life. Prior to being appointed 

as SSA to Mr. President on Finance & 

Fiscal Policy, and SA to the Hon. Minister 

of Finance, Budget & National Planning 

on Fiscal & Macroeconomic Policy, I led 

Standard Bank Group’s Structured 

Finance franchise in West Africa, 

providing structuring support for client 

and proprietary transactions in Nigeria, 

Ghana, Cote D’Ivoire, Zambia and other 

franchise presence countries. 

Prior to joining the Standard Bank 

Group, I worked in the Federal Ministry 

of Finance, providing technical support 

in macroeconomic / fiscal policy, taxation 

and other aspects of public financial 

management to the Director-General of 

the Budget Office and senior Finance 

Ministry officials including successive 

Ministers of Finance, Permanent 

Secretaries and the Accountant-Generals 

of the Federation, in various aspects of 

the Federal Budget preparation, passage, 

monitoring and implementation process. 

Earlier in my career as a lawyer, I 

advised on numerous projects and 

corporate finance, commercial law and 

tax matters for oil majors, 

telecommunication firms, manufacturing 

groups and banks in Nigeria. I have also 

worked as a Tax Researcher with the 

Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) in 

London, United Kingdom on several 

technical tax research projects, and I have 

published technical papers in local and 

international periodicals.


CONTROVERSY OVER 

AYADE 

Governor wooing people 

with payment of medical 

bills to join APC 

—Senator Gershom Bassey 

By Johnbosco Agbakwuru 

Senator Gershom Bassey represents 

Cross River South in the Senate where 

he is Vice Chairman, Senate Committee on 

Petroleum (Downstream). He is a founding 

member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) 

in Cross River State. In this interview, Bassey 

speaks on Governor Ben Ayade’s May 20, 2021 

dumping of the PDP to join the All Progressives 

Congress (APC), insecurity as well as the 

benefits of the Electoral Act if passed into law. 

Excerpts: 

With the defection of Governor Ayade, 

it is believed that Cross River is now 

an APC state. Do you agree? 

That is just a pie in the sky. There is nothing 

like that. Cross River is a PDP state and remains 

so. 

Why do you say so? Remember, 

governors as chief security officers of 

their states wield a lot of power. And 

when it comes to elections, they are 

very strong to decide who gets what? 

We are in a democracy. Just like you and I, 

he has just one vote. Are you saying as chief 

security officers of their states governors rig 

elections? If they have just one vote like you 

and I, how are they going to rig? Or you don’t 

have confidence in the electoral process? 

But he has the support of the federal might? 

What does federal might mean? 

It means he has the full support of the center? 

Again you are saying he is going to rig 

elections. Otherwise in a free and fair election, 

how does it work? 

Are you saying the federal might has 

not worked in previous elections in 

some states? 

Well, now you have moved away from Cross 

River State to the National Assembly and then 

to the Electoral Act and then the President 

consenting and signing off on the Electoral 

Act. You will recall that in the Eighth Assembly, 

the President did not sign off on the Electoral 

Act. But this time, we believe that the President 

will sign off on the Electoral Act and the 

Electoral Act that is coming through the Ninth 

Assembly will plug a lot of loopholes that 

you would have said are opportunities for what 

you call state might or federal might or Senate 

might. It moves us closer to free and fair 

elections. The key issue is the issue of collation 

of results. And the key issue in collation of 

results is where you collate. The question is 

what happens at various collation centres. Now 

you are aware that at the polling units, people 

vote and protect their votes; in other words, 

after you vote you will remain at the polling 

centre and wait for the result to be announced. 

The next thing is for the results, to be in the 

INEC guideline which, like we saw in Edo 

State, to be uploaded to the cloud. Once they 

are uploaded to the cloud, you reduce what 

they call the opportunities for tampering. And 

tampering comes with rigging. So we believe 

that in the type of Electoral Act that is going to 

come out of the National Assembly, we’re going 

to greatly reduce opportunities for tampering 

with results. 

So what are the chances of PDP 

retaining power in Cross River come 

2023? 

100 per cent! Why did I say so? Cross River is 

a PDP state. The other day, you saw what 

happened when the PDP National Chairman 

visited Cross River State, you saw the 

outpouring of people, and the outpouring of 

support at the airport, at the state Secretariat 

and all over the state. You see what’s going on 

•Andy Wabali 

today; today people are spontaneously holding 

meetings in every ward in Cross River State. In 

my local government for instance, almost all 

the 12 wards hold meetings, rallies and these 

are spontaneous gestures. I have not given 

them money, it is because of the love that the 

people have for the PDP. It is the same in all the 

18 local governments. So you can see that this 

is a PDP state. In fact, those crossing are being 

forced to cross to the APC, they are being 

coerced, including people who have medical 

bills to pay, who have children’s school fees to 

pay. They are being told that, if you don’t cross 

to APC, we will not give you the money that 

you have earned as an appointee to pay 

your medical bills, to pay your children’s 

school fees. Do you think those people are 

truly APC members? Of course they’re not 

APC members, they are being forced like 

a gun to your head, you are being asked to 

do something against your will. So you 

find that half of the new appointees, new 

people moving into APC, are being 

coerced but all these things will play out 

in 2023. 

Knowing the role that the local 

government plays being close to the 

grassroots and with most of the 

chairmen crossing over to the APC, 

don’t you think it will affect the 

party in 2023? 

You know that 18 of the local 

government chairmen were not elected. In 

fact there were hardly elections. And a lot 

of people even within the PDP cried out 

about the hand picking of candidates. 

Half of them are in court, if not all of them 

within the PDP itself. The PDP was angry 

with the governor. Candidates in the PDP, 

who were sidelined, were angry with the 

governor for not allowing free and fair 

primaries for candidates to emerge. So 

we know that because the chairmen were 

handpicked, the councilors were 

handpicked, the grassroots is not there. 

Therefore you have a situation where the 

impact that you talked about which, 

naturally, should be there is not there. So 

in answer to your question, the impact is 

minimal. 

In Cross River State, there is rotation of 

power among the three senatorial 

districts. Donald Duke took the turn of 

South, Liyel Imoke took the turn of 

Central and Ben Ayade the turn of the 

North. 

*Continues on 

www.vanguardngr.com 

Despite his defection, 

Cross River remains PDP 

stronghold —Liyel Imoke 

By Kennedy Mbele 

Senator Liyel Imoke, a former 

Governor of Cross River State, 

speaks on the defection of Governor 

Ayade from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) 

to the All Progressives Congress (APC) among 

other issues in the polity. Excerpts of interview: 

Let’s talk about developments on the 

political terrain in Cross Rivers State. 

You are a founding member of the PDP. 

You’ve also held various key positions 

in the country, including being 

Minister of Power and Steel, and for a 

while Minister of Education before 

going on to become Governor of Cross 

River State for 8 years. Tell us, what 

vision and strategies characterised 

those early days, your roles and how 

the foundation was laid for the current 

republic? 

This question takes me down memory lane. 

It takes me back to the early days. When I say 

the early days, I mean my early days in politics. 

As you may recall, as far back as the early 

1990s, I got involved in politics because of my 

interest in public service and in contributing 

to the growth and development of the society 

that I come from and giving back, as it were to 

the society. The-Governor of Cross River State, 

Mr. Clement Ebri, was someone I worked with 

and admired. He supported me when I ran for 

Senate; under the same political platform, I 

got elected as a senator in 1991/92. That was 

the real beginning of my political career. As 

you may be aware, that dispensation ended 

with the Abacha coup and, after the Abacha 

coup, it was basically back to the trenches. 

However, I remained in communication with 

a lot of our political supporters and members 

of our team and we still had a common vision, 

a vision for a new Cross River State. That vision 

was borne out of my experience, campaigning 

literally door-to-door to get elected into the 

Senate. The campaign provided me an 

opportunity to see the state of our people and 

the conditions they lived in, especially in the 

rural communities and that was really a driving 

factor for us, in terms of coming together and 

thinking that Cross River needed a new order. 

It was through that process that I started 

convening meetings in my house in Lagos at 

the time which were attended by young Cross 

Riverians, as it were, to build and share a vision 

and also chart a new course for the state. 

Amongst those who attended those meetings 

were former Governor Donald Duke, Senator 

Gershom Bassey, Bassey Eyo Ndem, who 

became a Commissioner in the state and MD 

of Tinapa; Essien Ayi, who is now a member of 

the House of Representatives, and several 

others. 

We also had among those who attended the 

meetings people like Victor Okon and a 

number of young aspiring Cross Riverians and 

colleagues like Dennis Nkiri who were in the 

House of Representatives when I was in the 

Senate. They saw the vision and bought into it 

from day one. We all stood firmly, sharing a 

common vision and came up with a blueprint 

for a new Cross River State. It was through 

that process that we decided to participate 

actively in the transition that took place under 

that Abacha administration; but we were of 

the progressive orientation, as such we did not 

join any party that we thought Abacha would 

control and manipulate. We opted to join the 

NCPN and when the NCPN was eventually 

decimated by the same Abacha 

administration, we joined the DPN. In 

providing leadership to that generation of 

people, we were able to work collectively as a 

team to go into an election at the time, of course 

there were all kinds of idiosyncrasies and all 

kinds of theories about power and who had it 

and who could give it and where it could go to. 

But as young men, we thought we could chart 

a different course for the state and it was on 

•Imoke 

that basis that we ultimately joined the People’s 

Democratic Party and, by so doing, we were 

taking a position against a significant number 

of our leaders, including my boss, Clement 

Ebri, who was in the APP; Dr. Joseph Wayas 

and several others who opted for the APP. By 

joining the PDP, we had room, as it were, to 

build a new order, and not just build a new 

order but also to bring young people into 

politics and that led ultimately to winning the 

elections with Donald Duke as our candidate, 

going against the odds at the time where they 

said no Efik man could be governor of Cross 

River State. I couldn’t understand why a citizen 

of the state was not entitled to become an 

elected representative of the state, especially if 

they’re qualified to occupy that office. So I 

championed that cause and a lot of people 

came against me saying I was not Efik and as 

such why was I championing a cause for the 

Efiks. At the end of it all, and by the grace of 

God, we succeeded and Donald became the 

governor of Cross River State and he got 

elected for second term. We built a strong 

political family and this translated to a 

marginal victory for the party. 

It’s understandable; because the big 

weights were on the other side? 

The big weights were on the other side and 

we were on this side, so we were quite satisfied 

with the marginal victory. After the elections 

we engaged the young people who may have 

been in the other political party to bring them 

to understand and appreciate that it was better 

if we worked collectively. So, as leader of the 

team, as the campaign manager for all the 

elections, that was my responsibility. We 

brought these young people together and, by 

the 2003 elections, we had a formidable team 

going into the elections. So, even though there 

was a strong anti-Efik and anti-Donald 

Duke sentiment, represented in a group of 

leaders organised under the aegis of Atam 

Congress, we stood firmly against it. I led 

that movement to ensure that the state was 

united and I think 2003 was the one 

election that united Cross River State and 

that united our political party, the PDP. 

Since then, until now, the PDP has remained 

the overwhelming dominant political force in 

Cross River State. 

So one can say that you were actually 

the pillar behind Donald Duke 

becoming governor? 

Well, at the risk of sounding immodest, the 

answer is yes; but we had a formidable team 

and we were extremely focused. Our major 

strength was the ability to strategise to win the 

hearts of the people. I led a strong team of 

young men and women who worked selflessly. 

Continues on 

www.vanguardngr.com


BY JIDE AJANI 

”Before people decide what they 

think of your message, they decide 

on what they think of you” – Harvard 

Business Review (July-August, 2013) 

For Oluwaseyi Abiodun Makinde, his 

pedigree spoke volumes about his 

message. 

But for the arrival of this engineer on the 

governorship stage, Oyo State was already 

going to the dogs. 

Blind sentiment, cronyism, nepotism, greed 

and a culture of indolence in high places, 

had all been packaged as a staple for the 

hapless people of Oyo State, such that 

salaries were being paid in ridiculous 

percentages, pension payments and 

gratuities were wickedly kept on hold and 

corruption had taken-up a life of its own. 

But because the people of Oyo State made 

up their minds on what they thought of the 

person of Makinde, they accepted his 

message of hope and gave him the mandate 

to be their governor. His pedigree! His 

message! His intentions! 

Makinde, upon assumption of office on 

Wednesday, May 29, 2019, made his good 

intentions known by abolishing, with 

immediate effect and automatic alacrity, 

the burdensome N3000 education levy 

imposed on students in Oyo State. 

Other measures have since been put in 

place to demonstrate that his pursuit of 

power was to deliver the greatest sum of 

good to the largest number of residents of 

Oyo State. He’s done other good. 

Take, for instance, workers’ salaries and 

pension payments! Within its first six months 

in office, his administration had paid more 

than what his predecessor paid in eight years 

as pensions - the Makinde administration 

met a N55.9 billion debt in gratuities (There 

has been a steady and consistent payment 

of N535 Million to retired State and Local 

Government workers on a monthly basis). 

Today, total pension payments are already 

over N13b in just two years. Salaries have 

not ceased being paid on or before the 25th 

of every month since June, 2019 - perhaps, 

the only one of such in Nigeria. 

But, whereas some may not really 

appreciate what prompt pension and salary 

TWO YEARS ON 

‘Seyi Makinde: Between 

The End And The Means! 

•Gov Makinde 

payments engender for a society, the import 

is not lost on the beneficiaries who now live 

like human beings and can plan their lives, 

unlike the brutish, harsh and uncertain lives 

they were subjected to in the past. 

Most importantly for Governor Makinde 

are the intangibles that would birth a better 

society. His four pillars for accelerated 

development (2019-2023), health, 

education, an expanded economy and 

security - are strung in a symbiotic nature, 

because it is only when you have a healthy 

body and qualitative education that 

opportunities can be explored for the 

expansion of an economy; and this can only 

take place in a secure environment. 

In the area of infrastructure, energy, 

healthcare, education, youth development, 

trade and commerce, Makinde has 

demonstrated that a good name is worth 

much more than aggrandisement. He is 

walking the talk. 

Makinde’s conscience! My conscience! 

Your conscience! Our Conscience! Let it 

prick individuals as they assess the 

governor’s performance in the last two 

years. 

Because perfection is not for mortals, 

there are gaps that the governor openly 

acknowledges and strives to fill. And the 

people appreciate this. 

Yet, in a poisoned environment where the 

opposition shamelessly parades an illusory 

sense of self-importance, Governor 

Makinde says he would not be distracted 

in so far as the end justifies the means. 

When Leon Trotsky (1879-1940) asked 

that “if the end justifies the means, what 

justifies the end”, he did not know that a 

‘Seyi Makinde would emerge in Oyo State 

in 2019 to announce to the world that the 

end, which is the output, is justified by the 

eventual outcome of a growing Internally 

Generated Revenue (IGR) base; improved 

education and health infrastructure that 

engenders better academic performance 

and builds a healthy society; preservation 

of lives and livelihood during the Covid-19 

pandemic such that almost every protocol 

introduced by Makinde became the 

standard reference at the national level; 

introduction of a value-driven culture of 

governance that continues to deliver 

diligence and rigour in the performance 

and discharge of responsibilities by 

appointees; continued improvement of 

infrastructure across sectors; provision of 

tools such as cars, protective vests and 

communications equipment for the Police 

and other security agencies in the state as 

well as AMOTEKUN; and a governance 

model steeped in a display of human face 

and milk of human kindness. The list goes 

on. 

Governor Makinde continues to justify 

the end because the outcome to be 

engendered when the massive parks and 

inter-changes at Challenge, Ojoo and Iwo 

Road are commissioned to allow for 

organised flow of traffic and commerce 

around the edifices, the remodeled Lekan 

Salami Stadium, Adamasingba, expected 

to drive sporting activities both local and 

international, and the street lighting project 

that would improve night-time business 

activities, security and social life, would be 

massive. 

So, when next you say the end justifies the 

means and you’re asked what justifies the 

end, tell them Governor Makinde of Oyo 

State is justifying the end because the people 

of Oyo State are living a better life, while 

he continues to fill gaps for even greater 

outcomes. 

*AJANI is the Special Adviser, Media, to 

Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State* 

Anambra Women Engineers celebrate Oko 

Poly Rector, Francisca Nwafulugo, three others 

By Vincent Ujumadu 

THE Awka chapter of the Associa 

tion of Professional Women Engi 

neers of Nigeria, APWEN, has celebrated 

one of its own, Dr. Francisca Nwafulugo, 

a Chemical Engineer and Rector of 

the Federal Polytechnic, Oko, Anambra 

State. Nwafulugo, the first female Rector 

of the institution, was honoured as Engineering 

Hero during activities to mark this 

year’s International Women in Engineering 

Day. 

Anyafulugo, who is a Fellow of the Nigeria 

Society of Engineers, obtained Ph. D in 

Chemical Engineering from Ahmadu Bello 

University, Zaria and, after a successful 

career at the Kaduna Polytechnic, made 

history when she was appointed the first female 

Rector of the Federal Polytechnic, Oko. 

Since becoming Rector, Nwafulugo has 

executed numerous projects, including 

mounting Chemical Engineering Department 

in the institution, completing many, 

and projects and rehabilitation of dilapidated 

buildings, as well as improvement of 

staff welfare. APWEN said Anyafulugo 

was given the award as a source of encouragement 

to young girls and to remind them 

that they too can attain such a height. 

In her acceptance speech, Nwafulugo 

commended her professional colleagues for 

the honour and called on female secondary 

school students to aspire to be engineers 

because it is a rewarding profession. She 

said the celebration of the Engineering Day 

was to showcase the amazing works women 

engineers around the world were doing 

and their impact in supporting lives and 

livelihoods every day. 

She said: “I tell people that one does not 

have to be a genius before becoming an 

Engineer. What it requires is focus and trust 

in God. There is nothing stopping the girl 

child to aspire to be an Engineer like her 

male counterpart and after graduation can 

go into the field to practice like men. 

Dr. Francisca Nwafulugo and 

her husband, Chief Nwafulugo 

“I always say that what I am today is by 

the grace of God as many people I attended 

schools with are no longer around. I, 

therefore, encourage the girl child to be 

determined to be able to achieve their objectives.” 

Chairman of APWEN, Engr. Nneka 

Ezeani, said that, as part of the ceremony, 

female students from some secondary 

schools in Awka and around participated 

in Mathematics quiz after which Dr. Nwafulugo 

promised to donate mini laptops to 

the students. 

In a tribute to the Rector, the Head of 

Department of Chemical Engineering in the 

Polytechnic, Engineer Benjamin Okoye, described 

the award as well deserved. “Indeed, 

this award did not come as a surprise considering 

her immense contributions to the 

development of Engineering profession and 

her administrative prowess which have positively 

impacted the society and repositioned 

Federal Polytechnic, Oko on the path 

of greater development. 

“Your towering achievements especially 

in this era of national outcry for technological 

advancement and self -reliance have 

proved you to be a woman of honour, a pacesetter, 

an administrator guarded with humility 

and the head who the crown fits. Our 

solemn prayer is for the Almighty God to 

keep granting you good health, strength and 

wisdom to continue with the onerous work 

of development of our society that is dear 

to your heart for the good of mankind”, 

Okoye said. 

The Deputy Rector of the Polytechnic, Dr. 

Izuchukwu Onu, said Nwafulugo’s sagacy, 

vision, diligence and leadership acumen has 

repositioned Federal Polytechnic, Oko as a 

citadel of learning. He said: “It is not surprising 

that you are being honoured as an 

Engineering Hero because you have proved 

your mettle as an astute engineer through 

your publications, research work, conference 

reports, innovations, etc. 

“The construction of a gigantic Chemical 

Engineering department, which you 

started at Federal Polytechnic Oko, as well 

as equipping the School of Engineering 

with necessary gadgets, among other 

things, has further distinguished you as an 

Engineering Hero.” 

Also honoured at the ceremony were Engineer 

Adeyemo Ajani, Federal Controller 

of Works in charge of Anambra State, Engineer 

Ifeanyi Okoma, Lead Consultant 

Structural Engineer for the construction of 

International Conference Center, Awka and 

Engineer Michael Obiekwe, Director of 

Highways, Anambra State. 

From left: Kwara State Commissioner of Police CP Muhammed Bagega; 

State Director DSS Patrick Ikenweiwe; State Commandant NSCDC Makinde 

Iskil Ayinla; Secretary to the State Government Prof. Mamman Saba 

Jubril; and Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq; during presentation of 

operational vehicles and bulletproof vests to security agencies in the 

State at Government House, Ilorin.


Why you need to make your marriage more important than your children 

“ 

When we were 

children, there 

were much stricter 

boundaries,” recalled Eriwu, 

a 42-year old mother of two 

teenage children as we 

discussed the vast difference 

of parenting in the past and 

how today’s parents monocuddle 

their children. She 

continued: “Children did not 

stay up with the adults, or 

socialise with them, or sleep 

in their parents’ beds. We on 

the other hand, seem to have 

no boundaries at all. Our 

children spill over into all 

aspects of our lives. It is only 

rarely that I shout: ‘I need 

some adult time!’ and am 

promptly ignored. 

“Our philosophy is that we 

want them to feel secure and 

loved so that they will grow 

into confident adults, but that’s 

been at the expense of any 

dividing line between their 

world and ours. Part of the 

problem is that we don’t have 

an extended family who are 

able to relieve us from 

childcare. My mother and 

step-father live is a different 

state, and my father and his 

wife live miles away from our 

home. During the past 17 

years, we’ve had only a few 

handful of nights away from 

our children and the constant 

caring for them and ignoring 

each other’s needs sometimes 

corrodes our relationship. All 

our resources, both financial 

and emotional go towards 

making sure our children are 

happy and healthy and up to 

scratch with their homework. 

“I know that we are not 

unique, that there are millions 

By Kennedy Mbele 

The sack of High Chief 

David Babagbemi as 

Baba Orisa of Meiran, Lagos 

State by the community’s 

traditional council has been 

confirmed by Oba (Dr) 

Samuel Awoyemi Adisa 

Oroja. 

But Babagbemi insisted 

that he remained the Baba 

Orisa. 

The monarch told Sunday 

Vanguard, “When the council 

presented all available facts 

during a meeting, I had no 

choice than to uphold the 

decision of council. 

“So it is true that he is no 

more the Baba Orisa of 

Meiran and he should stop 

parading himself as such”. 

A source close to the Meiran 

palace said Babagbemi 

refused to appear before the 

council to defend an 

allegation that he told the 

police that they should not 

interrogate his wife for alleged 

child kidnapping and that the 

police should ask him any 

question they wanted to ask 

his wife. 

But after the sack, 

Babagbemi allegedly printed 

an invitation card for the 

burial ceremony of his mother 

and referred to himself as 

Baba Orisa of Meiran, thereby 

forcing the council to inform 

the public to stop recognising 

him as the holder of the title. 

Meanwhile, the sacked chief 

denied that he refused to 

appear before the Meiran 

traditional council to defend 

himself. 

He told Sunday Vanguard, 

“It is not true that I refused to 

of other couples going 

through the same thing. Yet 

this isn’t how I imagined life 

with my husband would be. 

He specialised in 

photography and I, a 

copywriter, and we met 

abroad while working for 

different publications. I was 

instantly struck by his 

intrepid nature – he looked 

dashing and made me laugh 

and it was easy to fall in love 

with him. We began working 

together on exciting 

assignments but now our 

times away are mostly tame 

outings with the children; my 

snapshot images of my 

husband are now of him 

coaching the children or 

organising birthday parties! 

The few precious nights we’ve 

had away in the past few years 

have given us rare chances to 

rekindle our marriage even 

though we haven’t been 

further than neighbouring 

countries. Even real foreign 

holidays are with the two of 

them in tow! “When the 

children were babies, our days 

off were even more precious 

and rare. It felt as though we 

were running a very small 

boarding nursery school. We 

communicated wearily about 

nappy-changing and bottlefeeding, 

our conversations 

were brief instructions or 

demands, and not the 

stimulating or amusing 

debates we had been used to. 

“Even with the help of the 

only domestic staff we had, my 

husband had to help at nights, 

rocking babies to sleep. Our 

entire weekends were spent 

working around naps and 

feeding times. “When our first 

child was born, I suffered a 

haemorrhage after giving 

birth, which left me exhausted. 

I’m not someone who has 

piles of energy anyway, but 

with the added pressure of 

having a baby, I could hardly 

function at all. I found it 

difficult to get up in the night 

to tend to our baby son, 

handling the bulk of the night 

feeds over to Ike, my husband, 

leaving him tired and 

resentful. At times we barely 

talked to each other. The 

strain was so much that when 

Ike got transferred on the job 

for a few months, we virtually 

lost contact. The news on the 

grapevine was that he was 

having an affair. It was a sad 

and lonely few months for me. 

“Thankfully, as soon as he 

got back home, we realized 

we missed each other. A few 

months later, I got pregnant. 

Unbelievably, I had another 

post-partnum haemorrhage 

and lost a lot of blood when 

Controver 

versy as Lagos monarch confirms sack of high chief 

defend myself. 

“As a matter of fact I told 

them that the statement they 

claimed I made at the police 

station is untrue. 

“Up till now, there is no 

criminal case against me in 

any police station in Lagos 

State or anywhere in this 

country. 

“The suspension or 

dismissal is based on rumour 

and hatred and jealousy”. 

He agreed that he printed 

an invitation card and referred 

to himself as the Baba Orisa 

our daughter was born. I felt 

very weak the first few months 

that she was a baby, but this 

time, we had a good help and 

managed to hold things 

together. When both our 

children could spend time 

with any of their grandparents, 

we had blissful days and nights 

together. The mornings were 

so peaceful and we chatted 

over a cup of tea and sat down 

to breakfast. At a table. And 

enjoyed a conversation – a vast 

difference to our normal 

routine. 

“While our son, at 15 can 

look after himself, our 

daughter, who had just started 

secondary school, still needs 

cajoling into getting dressed. 

‘Put your shoes on! Brush your 

hair!’ She is often still staring 

in the mirror and rearranging 

her hair minutes before she is 

meant to be at school. My 

husband gets exasperated and 

shouts,’ sometimes we end up 

all shouting at once. Although 

of Meiran. 

Babagbemi added, “Since 

I have not received any letter 

of dismissal, I remain the 

Baba Orisa of Meiran 

Kingdom. Until they write to 

me officially, I have not been 

removed”. 

NWAOBOSHI: Amechi, Ndokwa group allege illtreatment 

by PDP 

By Tunde Oso 

The Organisation of 

Ndokwa Unity, 

otherwise known as 

Ndokwa Unite, and the 

Chairman of Tony Amechi 

Foundation, TAF, Chief 

Tony Amechi, have berated 

Delta State chapter of 

Peoples Democratic Party, 

PDP, over alleged shabby 

treatment of Senator Peter 

Nwaoboshi. 

In a statement made 

availble to Sunday 

Vanguard, Ndokwa Unite, 

led by Steve Uweh, linked 

Senator Nwaoboshi’s 

travails in Delta PDP to his 

roles in the proposed 

University of Agriculture 

and Technology, Aboh. 

The Steve Uweh-led group 

said it was unfortunate that 

the party had forgotten how 

Ndokwa citizens queued 

behind it for 22 years. 

According to the group, 

Senator Nwaoboshi’s 

suspension by the PDP is an 

attempt to rewrite the ugly 

narratives 

of 

marginalisation by 

successive PDP 

administrations against the 

people of Ndokwaland. 

Chief Amechi’s reaction 

was contained in a 

statement made available to 

newsmen in Asaba, the Delta 

State capital at the 

weekend, where he noted 

that the anti party allegation 

against Senator Nwaoboshi 

was initiated by a group in 

the party. 

Gas explosion: Sheraton Hotel Lagos 

was not touched – Netufo 


Stemming from the 

news that went viral 

over the recent tanker 

gas explosion that happened 

along Mobolaji Bank- 

Anthony Way, Ikeja, Lagos, the 

management of Ikeja Hotels 

Plc, owners of Sheraton Lagos 

Hotels has allayed the fears 

of the public that its structure 

was not touched during the 

gas explosion. 

Speaking with journalists at 

his office in Lagos, Theophilus 

Netufo, the Managing 

Director and Chief Executive 

Officer, Ikeja Hotels Plc, in 

reaction to the certain media 

claims with unverified facts 

about the cause and the extent 

of the damage, said that the 

incident did not affect 

Sheraton Hotel Lagos which 

is one of their hospitality 

facilities in Lagos. He said 

he was amazed at the extent 

at which the news went viral, 

saying that Sheraton hotel is 

on fire. 

He said. “Ikeja Hotels Plc 

wishes to inform its guests, 

statutory agencies, 

shareholders and the general 

public that the tanker gas 

explosion incident which 

occurred on Mobolaji Bank- 

Anthony Way, Ikeja did not 

affect Sheraton Hotel Lagos 

facilities nor its guests and 

staff as reported by some 

sections of the press.” 

“I was surprised when calls 

came to my phone from our 

stakeholders, customers in 

abroad including officials of 

the Lagos State government 

and former governor of 

Anambra State, Peter Obi 

asking about what they 

heard". 

it is easier now that the 

children are older, it still feels 

as though they need constant 

care and attention. Any time 

that I’m not working or 

exercising is often spent 

organising their lives focusing 

on their health, worrying 

about their well-being, 

leaving virtually no time at 

all for my husband. A 

weekend can be souldestroying. 

They are all about 

the children, and as they have 

grown older, their demands 

have not abetted. This is our 

fault, for letting their lives 

overtake ours. 

“Last Christmas when they 

got to spend a couple of days 

with their cousins, was 

heavenly. As soon as they were 

gone, we morphed from being 

grumpy, stressed and irritable 

to reasonable, loving and 

relaxed. On the first night, we 

went out to dinner, which is 

not something we usually do 

– and we could take our time. 

In fact, we had so much time 

that we strolled to the 

restaurant – and we held 

hands. We felt frivolous and 

free and young. We chatted 

and laughed. It was like being 

together when we first met all 

those years ago. My husband 

wasn’t just any co-partner, a 

father to my children, but a 

man whom I love, my best 

friend. Ideally, we would have 

three child-free days a month 

to remember that we are not 

just parents to our children, 

but a man and a woman in a 

loving relationship”. 

Why binge 

drinking is a risk to 

baby’s mental health 

Pregnant women who binge 

drink could raise the risk of 

mental health problems in 

their children, research shows. 

The study conducted by the 

universities of Nottingham, 

Bristol, Oxford, Sheffield and 

Leicester, discovered 

problems with hyperactivity, 

attending deficit and poor 

exam results persisted at ages 

four, seven and 11. 

The scientists world defined 

a binge as four or more units 

of alcohol – two pints of beer 

or four small glasses of wine – 

consumed in a single day at 

least once during the 

pregnancy. They monitored 

4,000 women and then 

tracked their children 

periodically until the age of 

11. One in four mothers 

reported binge drinking at 

least once during pregnancy. 

Professor Kapil Sayal of 

Nottingham University, 

whose work is published in the 

journal European Child and 

Adolescent Psychiatry, said: 

‘Women who are pregnant or 

who are planning to be, 

should be aware of the 

possible risks associated with 

heavier drinking during 

pregnancy, even if this only 

occurs occasionally. 

‘The study’s findings 

highlight the need for clear 

policy messages about 

patterns of alcohol 

consumption during 

pregnancy, whereby women 

who choose to drink 

occasionally should avoid 

having several drinks in a day.’ 

Kano baker 

ers s threaten en indefinit 

inite strik 

trike 

over flour price 

Barely one week after they 

called off a three-day 

warning strike, Gurasa 

Bakers Association of Kano 

State has threatened to 

embark on indefinite strike if 

IRS, BUA, Super and Golden 

Confectionery fail to reverse 

the price of flour. 

Gurasa is Kano indigenous 

local bread made up of flour 

that serves as one of the 

delicacies used in the state. 

The association, through its 

Chairperson, Fatima Auwalu, 

said nothing has changed 

since they called off the 

warning strike, prompting 

them to embark on indefinite 

industrial action until 

authorities and stakeholders 

do the needful. 

According to Auwalu, all 

Gurasa bakers in the state are 

counting losses due to the 

recurring increase in the price 

of flour, which is the major 

ingredient for making one of 

the local staple foods. 

The chairperson pointed 

out that not long ago, the price 

of flour was N9,500 but now 

it has reached N16,200, 

calling on the companies to 

reverse the price to N9,000 or 

shut down the business. 

She also lamented that 

apart from the increase in the 

price of flour, the quality of 

the product has been reduced, 

saying, “this has negatively 

impacted our business.” 

From left: Mr. Cyril Chikwelu Odenigbo, CEO/Creative 

Director Magnus Film Academy, his wife, Mrs. Chidima 

Chikwelu-Odenigbo, Mr. Macpherson Ikechukwu Ojukwu 

CEO, Ten Pounds Studio, his wife, Dr. Chidiebele Ojukwu at 

the private screening event of “Break The Blade” head in 

Enugu.

PAGE 18 —SUNDAY VANGUARD, JUNE 27, 2021 

NDDC: 

Tension in N-Delta 

…as Akpabio’s timeline to Tompolo, others to inaugurate Board lapses this wk 

By Emma Amaize, 

Regional Editor, South-South 

WHEN ex-militant leader, High 

Chief Government Ekpemupolo, 

alias Tompolo, after a meeting 

with Minister of Niger –Delta Affairs, 

Senator Godswill Akpabio, who scurried 

to the creek of Delta, June 3, vacated his 

seven-day ultimatum issued, May 31, to 

the Federal Government to immediately 

constitute a substantive Board for the 

Niger-Delta Development Commission, 

NDDC, it was with the understanding that 

the much-awaited Board would be 

inaugurated by the end of this month 

(June), that is, three days away. 

Noticeably, Tompolo’s involvement and 

Akpabio’s subsequent meeting at Oporoza 

with leaders of Niger-Delta ethnic 

nationalities doused tension that had 

escalated in the region over the delay in 

inaugurating the NDDC Board, with 

militants prepared to strike at the 

expiration of the seven-day warning. 

My treaty with 

Akpabio —Tompolo 

Tompolo, in a statement after conferring 

with Akpabio, had stated: “The outcome 

of the meeting has been made known to 

the public by the Minister. 

“He promised profusely to start the 

process of the constitution and 

inauguration of the substantive Board of 

the NDDC immediately (from Friday, June 

4, 2021), and that he should be allowed to 

drive the process to an end on or before 

the end of June 2021. 

“As it stands now, I have accepted the 

outcome of the meeting reluctantly. 

“It is pertinent to state at this juncture 

that I do not want anything to disrupt the 

relative peace we are enjoying in the 

region. 

“It was on this premise that I accepted 

•Akpabio 

the outcome of the meeting. 

“The ultimate goal in this issue is for the 

Minister to abide by the promise he has 

made to start the process of constituting 

the NDDC Board now. 

“Government shenanigans must be put 

away in this matter as constituting the 

NDDC Board is very dear to the heart of 

the people of the region”. 

A leader of one of the Niger ethnic 

nationalities that met with the minister had 

also said: “We told him 

(Akpabio) to go back and 

inaugurate the NDDC 

Board before the ultimatum 

expires, but he was 

pleading that he should be 

given June ending and, 

another breath, adding first 

week of July.” 

But, three days to the end 

of the month, improbability 

has beclouded the cutoff 

date of June ending which 

the stakeholders mutually 

agreed with the minister 

who promised to drive the 

process. 

Signal 

Akpabio passed the clue, 

Tuesday, June 22, 

approximately 18 days after 

his Oporoza consultation 

with stakeholders, that June 

30 or first week of July were 

no longer practicable. 

Fielding questions from State House 

correspondents at the Presidential Villa, 

Abuja, he said the final report would be 

ready by the end of July and submitted 

afterward to President Muhammadu 

Buhari for implementation. 

Making no reference to June ending 

reciprocated understanding with Tompolo 

and other stakeholders, he said: “We have 

fast tracked the process of constituting the 

(NDDC) Board; but we insist that the most 

important thing is not just the 

development of the Niger Delta region but 

how to reposition NDDC to ensure 

optimal performance as against the 

practice in the past. 

“So, the forensic audit of NDDC is on 

course and it is progressing very well and 

I am happy with the progress made so 

far. “And I am very certain that by the end 

of July, which is just a month and a few 

weeks away, the final result will be given 

to the President for implementation. 

“And in terms of the composition of the 

Board of the NDDC, of course, we have 

fast tracked the 

process and the 

National Assembly 

will soon get the list. 

“But that is not as 

important as the 

From Buhari and 

Akpabio’s 

declarations, it is 

possible that the 

June ending 

deadline may be 

botched, but will the 

stakeholders and 

militants understand 

and exercise more 

patience? 

•Tompolo 

forensic audit which 

we are finally giving a 

deadline, which is 

July, that it will end.’’ 

He was hopeful that 

the new Board would 

use 

the 

recommendations of 

the forensic audit to 

reposition the 

commission and for 

effect. 

Akpabio’s words: 

“So, my going to 

creeks to meet the 

traditional rulers and 

ex-agitators was in the 

interest of not just the 

security of the region 

but also the peace of the region.” 

We’re not surprised 

—Elder Okon 

A concerned Niger-Delta leader, Elder 

Alphonsus Okon, told Sunday Vanguard 

“Akpabio has again tactically shifted the 

date of inauguration until after July and 

this is against the spirit of Oporoza 

meeting”. 

Okon went on: “He (Akpabio) talked 

about the list getting to the National 

Assembly soon, but we already have a 

substantive Board with former Edo deputy 

governor, Dr. Pius Odubu, as Chairman 

and Mr. Bernard Okumagba (Delta) as 

Managing Director. 

“Which list is he talking about? We all 

know that the National Assembly will 

proceed on recess in either the first or 

second week of July and the vacation is 

until end of September. 

“So, when is the list getting to the 

Senate? Is it when the lawmakers are on 

holiday? The next thing they will say at 

July ending is that the Federal Executive 

Council will deliberate on the forensic 

audit report and take decision before 

implementation, all these to further delay 

the inauguration of the Board?” 

Mr. President’s validation 

The minister seems not alone on his 

position, however, as Buhari, who met, 

Thursday, June 24, with the national 

executive of Ijaw Nation Congress, INC, 

led by Prof Benjamin Okaba, also restated 

that the Board would be inaugurated as 

soon as the forensic audit report was 

submitted and accepted. 

“Based on the mismanagement that had 

previously bedeviled the NDDC, a 

forensic audit was set up and the result is 

expected by the end of July, 2021”, the 

President told his visitors. 

“I want to assure you that as soon as the 

forensic audit report is submitted and 

accepted, the NDDC Board will be 

inaugurated”. 

Otuaro’s clear appraisal 

From Buhari and Akpabio’s declarations, 

it is possible that the June ending deadline 

may be botched, but will the stakeholders 

and militants understand and exercise 

more patience? 

While those used to the postponement 

of NDDC Board inauguration for close to 

two years would surmise that “it is the 

usual style” and some militant groups 

would be spoiling for action, Tompolo, 

despite the unlikelihood of his June windup 

deadline, may be guarded in 

sanctioning any attack. 

He had, in accepting the minister’s 

imploration for time after his seven-day 

ultimatum, stated, in his June 4 statement, 

that the ultimate issue was for Akpabio to 

abide by his promise to start the process 

of constituting the NDDC Board without 

much ado. 

Delta State Deputy Governor Kingsley 

Otuaro, who was at the June 3 meeting 

between Akpabio and Tompolo, had, in a 

statement by his Senior Special Assistant 

on Press and Communication, Bulou 

Kosin, said: “Tompolo eventually 

rationalized that the Niger Delta Affairs 

Minister, Akpabio, who humbly came to 

Oporoza to state his case, would be 

practically constrained by the small space 

within the 7-day ultimatum. 

“Since Senator Akpabio promised to 

speedily complete the inauguration of the 

NDDC Board process he claimed to have 

already commenced, it was ideal to allow 

little space to Senator Akpabio and review 

implementation of the ultimatum, which 

will otherwise stall oil production, create 

possibly bloody clashes and foreclose the 

very inauguration agitated for”. 

Otuaro, in the open assembly between 

Akpabio and stakeholders, had posited: 

“We cannot explain why an institution as 

the NDDC, which is a product of an Act, 

is being run in flagrant abuse of the power 

establishing it on the guise of a forensic 

audit. 

“There must be a substantive board for 

goodness sake. The voice of the people 

should be listened to”.

Delta 2023: Why it is Isoko 

turn 

• Okowa should convene Consultative Forum 

By Frank Obru Egboro 

“Coming together is a beginning; 

keeping together is progress; working 

together is success” - Henry Ford 

“It is not great events that make great 

people, but great decisions” - Pastor 

Enoch A. Adeboye 

One is tempted to recall the words of 

Charles Dickens in one his classics, 

The Tale of Two Cities: “It was the 

best of times, it was the worst of times, it 

was the age of wisdom, it was the age of 

foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it 

was the epoch of incredulity, it was the 

season of light, it was the season of 

darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was 

the winter of despair, we had everything 

before us”. Yes we have everything before 

us as a state (Delta) and a people except 

political unity. Today we see those who 

point the way forward as pariahs once it 

is not in consonance with our interest just 

like the character Spurinna who warned 

Julius Caesar in the Shakespeare classics 

of impending danger which Caesar 

ignored to his own peril. This is the bane 

of our current crop of political actors and 

vociferous restive elders. According to 

Trevor Roper, prophets are unnecessary distractions in times 

of victory. There is so much rascality amongst our political 

class breeding traits that smack of irresponsibility and 

internecine conflicts. 

Our leaders must lead by example, eschew bitterness, ensure 

high sense of responsiveness and moderate their utterances 

and comments as we sail towards 2023. As some of them are 

spoiling for trouble they should remember the words of 

Benjamin Franklin that, “If a man can have half his wishes 

he will double his troubles”, and the advice of John Mason 

who said “no one should pray for rain if he will complain of 

the mud”. We have pretended over the years of our pyrrhic 

unity and the cracks are becoming obvious like a pregnant 

woman. The cracks appearing today have been there but we 

have refused to address them because of our ogogoro and 

agbata eeke political actors who have become our Achilles’ 

heels. The hocus-pocus festering in our political space from 

our political gladiators currently can be liken to a circus 

rehearsal which reveals lost-of-control, fear, frustration, 

confusion, intransigence and it reminds one of the words of 

former British PM Harold Wilson who said, “Alliance are 

held together by fear not by love”. 

In the present political harum-scarum, the neanderthals 

and kindergarten politicians in alliance with our voodoo 

political players are rationalizing the issues of equity, fairness 

and zoning coated in ethnicity displaying so much ignorance 

and naivety. This is not the time for macabre dance, buffoonery 

or political correctness and mendacious unjustifiable cuckoo 

medieval stone-age and self-serving arguments. According 

to John C. Maxwell, the stone-age didn’t end because people 

ran out of stones. It ended because people 

kept learning and improving. We must 

learn to extend a handshake across the 

Delta three senatorial zones, building 

bridges of oneness, friendship, 

Where is the 

place of Isoko in 

the political 

equation of 

Delta which has 

co-operated 

with every 

ethnic group? 

inclusiveness and commonality. Whether 

we accept it not we need each other; 

disunity and bickering over who gets 

what instead of engaging one another 

will destroy us. Imagine what we can 

accomplish if we don’t care who takes 

the credit according to Harry Truman. 

The time has come for a consultative 

forum, a round table conversation and 

sincere dialogue amongst the ethnic 

nationalities that make up Delta State to 

chart the way forward. Enough of the 

hullabaloo, waterfall noise and 

vituperations emanating from our people 

across all divides in Delta. One of our 

fellow tribes venomously spewing that 

2023 will be a fight to the finish is political 

hara-kiri and it is unacceptable because 

no one holds the monopoly of violence; 

we always stoop to conquer and it takes 

“wisdom to understand wisdom for the 

music is nothing if the audience is deaf” 

according to Walter Lippmann (1899-1974). We must talk to 

ourselves, otherwise we may go in circles and thus making 

little progress like Israelites who covered a distance of 613km 

between Egypt (Kemet) and Israel (Canaan) for 40yrs at the 

rate of 43 metres a day, a distance a 6-year-old can run in less 

than five mimutes. Only Moses can explain this snail-speed 

waka waka! 

Governor Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa is the generalismo of Delta 

State today and his recent political opinion has become a 

barbiturate causing our political undertakers amnesia. In 

other words, the governor baring his mind on the ethos for 

future leadership has elicited wild reactions across various 

interest groups. So much as his views are deleterious to the 

interest of political bigot(s), the governor is entitled to his 

opinion as a stakeholder and also as the man in the saddle of 

leadership in the state. The power rotation principle so to 

speak in Delta is an accidental design of the PDP political 

family and not binding on other political parties like APC 

and this is the limitation of the PDP power structure, 

notwithstanding that they are the dominant party in the state. 

The fact that APC is a formidable threat, and hot on the trail 

of PDP, should be discomfiting enough for the PDP to put on 

•Okowa 

their thinking caps for a round 

table discourse. This is where I 

think the governor should take the 

driver’s seat to steer affairs by 

calling a stakeholders dialogue for 

a jaw jaw and the much talked 

about agreement or understanding 

as it were can be fully discussed and 

a common position taken for the 

progress of Delta and peaceful coexistence. 

Put differently, Okowa 

should realize that he is a 

beneficiary of zoning without 

prejudice to the events and horse 

trading at the PDP primary. The 

contentions at the PDP primary of 

2015 notwithstanding, Okowa was 

duly elected by the three senatorial 

districts and now he is governor 

representing Delta North and why 

the foray into ethnic sentiments? 

Going forward, his recent 

utterances have become a template 

commentators are using to gauge 

the mode of political players and 

the thinking of the power vampires 

and extremists especially those 

within the corridors of power. The 

time has come for the governor to 

call a conference to calm frayed 

nerves and to address the ongoing 

mutual distrust, suspicion, anger, 

bitterness and ethnic disunity. 

Okowa cannot afford to leave behind a broken Delta for the 

sake of posterity. 

With the 2023 brouhaha and Okowa’s recent position which 

has ruffled feathers and thus sparking vexatious discourse on 

the streets, market space, mechanic workshops, churches, 

mosques, farms and among the ordinary people who have 

been neglected by a rapacious generation, the Isoko of Delta 

South have decided to join the conversation as critical 

stakeholders in the Delta project for 2023. And what is the 

subject of this conversation engaging everyone is all about if 

one may ask rhetorically? Yes, it is all about which senatorial 

zone is most suited to produce the governor come 2023. Delta 

North’s tenancy in Asaba Government House ends in 2023. 

For purposes of clarity, Delta is made up three senatorial 

districts namely Delta Central, Delta South and Delta North. 

According to the PDP political family as they are known, power 

should rotate between the three zones although not cast in 

iron with human uncertainties beginning from Central District 

with James Onanefe Ibori taking the seat first. Then it went to 

Delta South with Emmanuel Uduaghan taking the seat. It is 

now the turn of Delta North with Okowa taking the seat. 

Zoning is a hunky-dory as conceived and although not a 

written-agreed-concept, but a winning formula of peaceful 

coexistence that should be allowed to foster. And by Common 

Sense of brotherly unity, the rotation arrangement should 

begin again from the starting point with Delta Central taking 

a second dose of the Astra Zeneca vaccine since power struggle 

in Delta is assuming the status of Covid-19 so to speak. We are 

in uncertain times orchestrated by our voracious venal elites 

fanning the embers of disunity for self-aggrandizement and 

our unity is now being threatened because we have 

decided not to tell ourselves the truth. According 

to the Greek Dramatis and Philosopher Aescylus 

(525BC-465BC), “in war truth is the first casualty”. 

Politics is war in our clime as described by former 

President Obasanjo who saw politics as a do-ordie 

affair. It would have be more rational to begin 

zoning again from Delta Central where it 

originally began inadvertently by the PDP 

arrangement, but if the PDP, in its proclivity, 

decides to start the rotation from Delta South, as 

being speculated, then the power pizza should be 

given to Isoko as the most suitable and this position 

being canvassed by Isoko is non- negotiable. In 

other words, if the PDP has decided to jettison the 

old accidental sequence of rotation or transfer of 

the baton of power, and has decided to start from 

Delta South, then Isoko is most amenable to take 

the shot. WHY? In Delta South, Isoko is the most 

cheated and neglected. Their Itsekiri brothers have 

gotten their shot at Government House 

represented by Uduaghan for eight years. The 

Ijaws are presently Deputy Governor and holding 

sway at the Senate till 2023 as represented by 

Kingsley Otuaro and James Manager respectively. 

Where is the place of Isoko in the political equation 

of Delta which has co-operated with every ethnic 

group? The docility of the Isoko people should not be 

misconstrued for complacency and only engaged when 

necessary as an escritoire. According to Eleanor Roosevelt 

(1884-1962), “Nobody can make you feel inferior without 

your consent”. The governorship and Senate seats are 

synonymous with authority, and so it is the turn of Isoko and 

this stand is irrevocable and they are counting on their Urhobo 

brothers with whom they have close affinity in terms of 

language/culture to assist them in alliance with Delta North 

especially the Ndokwa people with whom the Isoko have 

related cordially over the years, and their amiable Ijaw and 

Itsekiri neighbours with whom they have special ties to realize 

this feat in 2023. The Isoko ethnic nationality also cannot 

wait till 2031 or any other date but 2023. The French Poet 

Victor Marie Hugo said, “You can resist an invading Army; 

you cannot resist an idea whose time has come”. 

Isoko wadoooo! Isoko tolopia!! 

•Egboro is President, Down 2 Earth Network (a nongovernmental 

initiative) and can be reached 

via down2earth100@yahoo.com or 08023303339 (sms 

only). 


We’ve repositioned OSOPADEC 

for economic growth —Koledoye 

A 

cting Chairman of Ondo State Oil Producing 

Area Development Commission, OSOPADEC, 

Dr. Victor Koledoye, has said the commission was 

positively impacting the lives of the people. 

Koledoye spoke in Akure, Ondo State capital, while 

highlighting the achievements of the commission in 

the last couple of years. 

According to him, in spite of the recent economic 

crunch, the organisation has been able to bring to 

the doorsteps of people sustainable development and 

community based projects. 

He listed some of the projects embarked upon by 

OSOPADEC to include the construction of Aboto/ 

Atijere Road; Asphalt overlay from Igbokoda to 

Araromi; provision of water treatment and 

reticulation plants. 

The OSOPADEC boss added that the commission 

facilitated the employment of teachers to 

complement the efforts of SUBEB and TESCON, 

and, in collaboration with BEMORE, sponsors yearly 

100-140 girls to participate in annual summer camp. 

BEMORE is one of the key pet projects of the First 

Lady of Ondo State aimed at empowering the girlchild 

within and outside the state. 

“As a commission, we have enjoyed a cordial 

relationship with the Ondo State Government and 

this relationship has led to the birth of various ongoing 

projects in the area”, Koledoye said.. 

“The governor is making good efforts in opening 

up the deep sea port and the free trade zone projects 

which will be of immense economic growth for the 

region and the state at large”. 

Why I joined Ayade to defect from PDP 

– Agara, Cross River APC chief 

•Says opposition party has no solution to 

insecurity 

By Emma Una 

N All Progressives Congress, APC, chieftain in Cross 

ARiver State, Chief Chris Agara, says the People’s 

Democratic Party, PDP, has not proffered effective 

alternative to the fight against insecurity outside releasing 

press statements criticising the Federal Government on 

insecurity in parts of the country. 

Agara, who defected to the APC on the heels of the 

defection of Governor Ben Ayade, told Sunday Vanguard 

on phone that if the PDP had credible solution to 

combating insecurity, they would have come forward 

with it. 

He also explained why he joined Ayade in dumping 

PDP. 

“We expected that the PDP would have come out with 

their own security arrangement which is better; it is one 

thing to say something and another to put forward a 

plan which is better”, he stated. 

According to him, he opted to go to the APC to join 

forces with those in the party to address the security 

challenges and other pressing issues in the country rather 

than finding faults in what the Federal Government is 

doing. 

He accused the PDP of operating a closed system in 

which new entrants cannot find space and that forecloses 

the chances of those seeking to contest election on its 

platform. 

“When you look at the PDP, people who are there are 

not ready to give space to aspiring people to express 

themselves and talk about representing the people or 

seek to be elected and that is not democracy”, Agara 

stated. 

Earlier during a rally at his Ntansele Ward, Ikom 

Local Government Area to announce his defection and 

support for Ayade, the towering political figure told the 

mammoth crowd that it became imperative for him to 

move from the PDP to the APC in the light of current 

political developments in the state and country at large. 

“My decision is orchestrated by the need to play my 

role in propelling the state towards the direction of 

development and a platform that is progress oriented 

which has been kick- started by the noble effort of our 

governor, “Agara stated. 

He said change is the only constant thing and anyone 

who does not embrace change stands the risk of being 

left behind. 

Marriage Administrators Institute 

Commends FG, Interior Ministry 

Institute of Marriage Administrators and Counselors 

of Nigeria has commended the Federal Government for 

updating the gazette on Judicial Notices.The gazette on 

judicial notices covering every local government in the 

country empowers Marriage Districts to conduct 

marriages under the Marriage Act, Cap M6, LFN, 2004 

as amended.The Institute President, Pastor Oladele 

Emmanuel Temilade, in a statement in Abuja, said this 

has been the stand of the Institute since inception. 

The Federal Government , he said, should be 

commended for the update of the Judicial Notices in 

line with the Marriage Act.The Principal Registrar of 

Marriages Print and Deliver the Certificate of Marriages 

to the several Registrars of Marriages and the Ministers 

In - charge of Licensed Places of Public Worship for 

Celebration of Marriages nation - wide.This, he said, 

has put to rest the feud between the Ministry of Interior 

on one hand and the 774 Local Government Areas 

including the 6 FCT Areas Councils on the other hand 

for good. 

The Institute President said this is not the time for the 

Ministry of Interior to rest on its oars as much still needed 

to be addressed, to make the services of marriages under 

the Marriage Act socially seamless to all the users of the 

services and the review of the Marriage Act to reflect 

current realities. 

Temilade commended the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni 

Rauf Aregbesola, the Permanent Secretary, Dr. Shuaib 

Belgore , the Ministry’s Director, Citizenship and 

Business, Barr. (Mrs) Moremi Soyinka - Onilaja for 

obtaining the presidential approval gazetting the update 

of the judicial notices.


Second National Movt: Igbo 

are the catalysts of Nigeria 

Inevitably, the Igbo of 

Nigeria are the catalysts 

that will bring about a 

new Nigeria. If that new 

Nigeria must arrive, it will be 

built on the principles of 

justice, equality, and fraternity. 

The question has often been 

asked: “What do the Igbo 

want?” These are precisely 

what the Igbo want: justice, 

equality, fraternity. The Igbo 

represent one part of Nigeria 

fighting for the soul of 

Nigeria. They are defenders 

of the republican ethos. The 

key forces ranged against 

them are invested in the feudal 

ethos. To the Igbo, all men are 

born free and equal, and are 

uniquely endowed by their 

“Chi.” This was precisely what 

the Igbo who had been 

captured into slavery and held 

as slaves by one of those 

American founding fathers, 

Thomas Jefferson, told him in 

Virginia. These defiant Igbo 

said: “Madu Abughi Chi Ibe 

ya.” That means, there is none 

who is master of the other. 

“Chi Onye n’edu ya.” All men 

are endowed by their 

indwelling God to fulfill their 

divine destinies. The Igbo in 

fact named their children, 

“Mu Na Chi So” – basically, 

Hajiya Nana Aisha Gambo, 

is the current National 

President of the Naval 

Officers’ Wives Association 

(NOWA).Since she assumed 

office, she has embraced the 

new responsibilities with 

clearness of purpose - to help 

improve the lives of Nigerians. 

On Philanthropy 

Hajiya Gambo 

knowing that water 

is life has affected 

the lives of Nigerians 

positively, as at least three out 

of ten Nigerians, do not 

haveaccess to clean water. She 

is fighting hard to change this 

household by household, 

community by community. 

Her clean water project 

supports the Nigerian 

government’s efforts towards 

bringing clean water into 

people’s homes. 

Her first day of office was 

“I walk guided by my divine 

Guardian.” Or to be simply 

put: “I and the divine are one.” 

A people such as these are not 

easily mastered. The 

theological foundation of the 

Igbo being, pre-Christian, is 

that all Igbo are direct 

descendants of the Supreme 

Being called Chukwu. They 

do not bow to any other. They 

do not make kings because as 

the ancient Igbo said, “Nani 

Chukwu wu Eze Ndi Igbo.” 

Only God is the king of the 

Igbo. Sometimes they would 

say “Oha Wu Eze.” The people 

once gathered are the 

sovereign of the Igbo. There 

is not a single man, or a single 

authority, to which the Igbo 

bow or invest with absolute 

power. The Igbo believe in the 

sanctity of the human life. 

Igbo life might be special, but 

they accord this same right to 

other humans – the right to be 

free, and the right to be 

accorded the dignity of their 

beings. Because to the Igbo, 

“Anyi bu ofu.” All men are one. 

The Igbo do not discriminate 

against people based on 

colour, pedigree or 

conviction. They judge people 

by character: “Agwa-wumma” 

– they say. Character is 

New era at NOWA: Hajiya 

Nana Gambo’s vision to 

change Nigeria 

Immersed in Craft 

Indigo is the first collection 

of short stories offered by 

Molara Wood. It is a 

departure from her terrain of 

journalism and editorial 

practice in the culture space. 

This book of stories represents 

a myriad of ideas which 

include feminism, tradition 

and modernity, urban and 

rural interactions, diasporic 

realities amongst others. It is 

a rare collection because the 

stories are deliberated 

orchestrated to connect to the 

reader in an intimate 

conversation that leads to a 

reflection of the characters, the 

motifs and the subtle themes. 

The collection also has a 

distinctive poetic fervour that 

stems from the author’s 

unbundling of the Yoruba 

language, either as a proverb 

or as a transliteration. The 

marked by providing potable 

drinking water for two 

communities that had 

suffered from lack of drinking 

water for years. 

As a businesswoman, leader, 

and philanthropist, Nana 

Aisha’s vision is as powerful 

as it is clear. Bringing clean 

water into households is 

among the most essential acts 

to support development. No 

longer having to drink dirty 

water also means better 

health, which in turn means 

the chance to stay in school, 

care for family members and 

as well as earn a living. 

Since assuming office on 

27th February 2021, the new 

president has rekindled the 

zeal, vigour, dedication and 

commitment of NOWA 

members to contribute to 

development even beyond the 

borders and confines of the 

A Review of Molara 

Wood’s Indigo 

Pages: 165 

Published by: Parresia 

Reviewer: Femi Morgan 

the sum of inner and external 

beauty. The Igbo do not 

discriminate based on origin. 

They have words that signify 

this: “Ojemba Enwegh Iro”: 

Those who travel among 

other people do not make 

enemies. This is simply Igbo 

recognition that all humans 

share a profound humanity, 

and must invest in the 

fraternity of mankind to 

survive. To the Igbo, the 

meaning of man is “mma 

Ndu” – that being who is the 

highest embodiment or 

reflection of life. Life itself is 

sacred, and must be respected 

and preserved. Thus, the Igbo 

saying, “an old and wise man 

does no sit around to watch a 

she- goat in parturition deliver 

while tethered to a rope.” It 

dishonors even the life of the 

animal to be born in bondage. 

A people’s saying is a record 

of their epistemic and moral 

philosophy. One of the lasting 

ideas the Igbo left the world is 

that insistence to Thomas 

Jefferson who was struck by 

the impudence and the clarity 

of thought and ideas of these 

“unmastered Africans” who 

were so-called slaves in his 

plantation; who were quick to 

rebel, and who often told this 

“Leader of whitemen,”: 

“Dianyi, N’eziokwu, Madu 

Nile Wu Eze. Onweghi onye 

wu Chi Ibe ya. Chi onye n’edu 

ya.” That is, “It is self-evident 

truth that all men are born free 

and equal. There is none who 

is master of the other 

according to the divine laws. 

All men are equally endowed 

by their CHI and given 

individual gifts and purpose.” 

Thomas Jefferson used these 

Igbo ideas to frame the 

•Hajiya Gambo 

Nigerian Navy formation 

and barracks. The “Clean 

Water” project’s desired result 

is to support government 

efforts at providing access to 

clean water across rural areas 

in the 36 states, including the 

Federal Capital Territory. 

The results so far, are 

spectacular. Four 

communities in Rivers State, 

one each in Delta, Nasarawa, 

Kogi, Niger and Edo states, 3 

each in the FCT and Kano 

state. Hajiya Gambo was 

poetry in the collection also 

attends to a certain internal 

musicality that runs in almost 

all of the collection. This 

internal musicality pulsates 

on the page while you 

participate in the happiness, 

sadness, confusion, 

conspiracy, angst, pity and joy 

of the characters. When 

reading Indigo you should also 

be fully aware of the 

metaphoric codes of place, 

time, names, and expressions 

and how they serve as 

metaphor or allusion to 

folklore, history or religion. 

Molara Wood is interested 

in the engagements between 

social classes especially in 

domestic terrains and how 

government and governance 

improve or disrupt progress 

and freedom. Therefore, 

many of her stories are 

situated to reflect both sociopolitical 

and sociocultural 

climates. 

There is also no doubt that 

foundations of the American 

republican idea. Even as a 

slave holder, he came to frame 

the American idea in the 

following terms: “We hold 

these to be self-evident truth: 

All men are created free and 

equal and they are endowed 

by their creator with certain 

inalienable Rights, among 

The Igbo do not 

discriminate against 

people based on 

colour, pedigree or 

conviction,they judge 

people by character 

these are Life, Liberty and the 

pursuit of Happiness.” Thus 

did this ordinary, routine Igbo 

idea, which Jefferson had 

learned from his Igbo slaves, 

become the radical idea that 

gave rise to the American 

republic. Life, Liberty, and the 

pursuit of happiness, or what 

the Igbo called “biri kam 

biri.” That is the foundation 

of the pursuit of happiness: 

“Live so I too can live.” It was 

thus not surprising that the 

greatest of the Igbo men, who 

lived in the 20th century, quite, 

very easily, absorbed and 

understood the basic frame of 

the American idea. While his 

peers were going to Britain to 

study Law and Medicine, and 

all such quotidian stuff, 

Azikiwe went to the United 

States to study Anthropology, 

Politics, and Philosophy – the 

liberal and Humane letters, 

the foundations of intellectual 

touched by the fact that alot 

of communities in Nigeria 

still do not have access to clean 

water. 

Women Empowerment 

The clean water project 

also serves as a women 

empowerment initiative. 

With men mostly being the 

ones charged with earning a 

living, the burden of 

collecting water falls mainly 

on the females in the family. 

Hajiya Nana Aisha’s Clean 

Water project is working 

intensively to end this 

dangerous journey in the 

coming years. 

The availability of water 

equally supports the existence 

of a decent toilet at homes and 

schools, giving boys and girls 

in rural communities better 

chances to complete their 

education, helping them to 

break free from poverty, and 

supporting them to change 

their lives for good. 

Capacity Building 

The Naval Officers’ Wives 

Association, once a small 

group of women gathering to 

provide emotional, social, 

this collection contributes to 

the adaptive encumbrances 

and struggles inherent in 

migration and return. For 

many of the migrants in her 

stories, there are tensions that 

evoke the kinds of 

displacement that one would 

find in Segun Adeniyi’s A Life 

Elsewhere 

or 

Chimammanda’s 

Americanah. This is because 

many of the African migrants 

in her work are not only 

looking for greener pastures, 

they are also in constant 

discourse with the shocks of 

privilege, the hybridity of 

cultures which reflect bold 

elitism, and the comradeship 

of being away from home. In 

all of these, they are uncertain 

that they will fulfil glocal 

expectations from home. 

In many stories, Molara 

engages patriarchy as a 

vehicle that forestalls the 

ambitions of women by men, 

women and culture. This 

leadership and public service. 

He quickly understood the 

connections between the 

American ideas and its roots 

in Igbo humanism and its 

liberal culture, and used that 

frame to fight for a modern, 

independent Nigeria. 

Azikiwe was, of course, 

confronted by a fierce, 

reactionary, institutional 

culture of feudalism and 

monarchism, the sort we have 

inherited as the “Oga at the 

top” culture which has two 

domains of the public: the 

aristocracy and the peasantry. 

In this particular culture, 

people were ordained by their 

God to know their place; not 

aspire beyond their breeches, 

and taught that “power 

belongs to God. And only God 

makes kings.” In other words, 

whoever God has made king 

had what is called the “divine 

rights” to rule; to challenge 

him means to challenge God. 

We still hear this ignorant 

shibboleth today uttered by 

the most ignorant of folks who 

say “only God gives power.” 

This is the pre-enlightenment 

mindset. But with the rise of 

the Rights of Man, based on 

the “Iwu Oha” (the 

Republican ethos on which 

the European republican 

transformation took place, 

starting with the French 

Revolution, the Haitian 

Revolution, and the American 

War of Independence), it 

came to be understood that 

God does not make Kings. 

Neither does he give power. 

There are two means to 

power: the bullet box or the 

ballot box. But the feudal idea 

continues to persist in 

Nigeria as counter to the idea 

and economic support to 

wives of naval officers and 

ratings in and out of the 

barracks has grown into a 

prolific and influential 

association. NOWA now 

contributes actively to 

development efforts across 

different states in Nigeria. 

Over the last five decades, 

NOWA has been keenly 

involved in several 

development efforts in the 

areas of education, charitable 

ventures, economic 

empowerment, health and 

social services. As the wife of 

the current Chief of the Naval 

Staff, Vice Admiral Awwal 

Zubairu Gambo, Hajiya 

Nana Aisha is the new 

President of the Naval 

Officers’ Wives Association, 

NOWA, she is working on a 

series of capacity building 

programmes that have 

enhanced skills acquisition 

guided to help improve the 

quality of lives of families and 

children of Nigerian Navy 

personnel and their relations. 

Under her stewardship, the 

Nigerian Navy recently 

exposure of the balance of 

participants who preserve 

and embolden patriarchy 

also speaks to the bold but 

subtle nature of Molara’s 

position on feminism. Her 

stories do not always give 

victory to the women but there 

is always the devil in the 

details fiddling with the 

choices the culminate into 

disasters or triumphs. 

The author thrives in shorter 

stories than in the longer tales 

in Indigo. This is because the 

short story sub-genre gives 

ample room for the 

impatience of cosmopolitan 

life. Therefore, several 

attempts at creating complex 

or layered plots are an 

anathema to the reader of 

short stories. 

These are some of my 

analysis of selected stories in 

Molara Wood’s Indigo, thus: 

A Nigerian couple is 

comfortable with their 

western lifestyle while in 

of the Republic. Nigeria also 

happened to have been 

colonized by monarchist 

Britain. Great Britain, which 

is a constitutional monarchy, 

found the Igbo republican 

idea, and the Igbo people, 

both dangerous and 

rebellious. They quickly 

found, of the three main 

cultures in Nigeria, the Hausa/ 

Fulani (a political category 

which they created by fusing 

the Hausa together with their 

Fulani Feudal overlords) and 

the monarchical Yoruba with 

their kings, more amenable 

to colonial rule. The rebellious 

Igbo fought them from 1900 

– 1930. When Zik returned to 

Nigeria from 1937, he led the 

Igbo and their allies across 

Nigeria, and fought the 

British colonialists until the 

Brits agreed to home rule in 

1957 and independence 

subsequently in 1960. As a 

matter of fact, from 1947, the 

British began making 

preparation for their exit in 

Nigeria. Recognizing the 

inevitability of that departure, 

they began to manipulate 

every mechanism to make 

certain that Azikiwe and the 

nationalists, who believed in 

individual freedom, liberty, 

and fraternity, and the 

abolition of the monarchies 

and the feudal system, did not 

govern Nigeria. First, they 

helped fund the revanchist 

parties in 1947, North and 

South. Second, they 

manipulated the 1950/51 

elections, the result of the 

nearly botched Ibadan 

Conference. 

Continues on 

www.vanguardngr.com 

inaugurated a One hundred 

and twenty-bed female 

students hostel at the NOWA 

Secondary School, Calabar 

in Cross River State, 

headquarters of the Eastern 

Naval Command. One of the 

largest projects of its kind. 

The accommodation 

complex was designed as a 

storey building consisting of 

twelve large rooms, built to 

ensure a capacity of ten double 

bunks in each room. 

As the CEO of Framazaz, a 

key Golden Penny distributor 

across Nigeria, Hajiya Nana 

Aisha is channelling her 

business acumen and years of 

recorded successes into 

development efforts to help 

rural communities across the 

country. She is bringing her 

wealth of experience into this 

new era, with a clear and 

achievable vision, aimed at 

improving the lives of people 

and communities beyond the 

realms of the Nigerian Navy. 

The Clean Water project is an 

exciting start, and as they say, 

he/she who brings water 

brings life. 

London in ‘Indigo’. They stave 

off child bearing to relish their 

companionship and avoid the 

chaos that comes with 

childbearing. When they 

return home, they are shocked 

to realise that procreation is 

an essential marker for 

marriage. In fact, in the 

market of an African life, 

children are expected 

resonances of the years of 

companionship, without 

which there is no continuity 

and acceptance. The 

stigmatisation makes Idera, a 

‘compromised’ Londoner, to 

seek African Traditional 

Religious help despite her 

extensive wealth of western 

knowledge. It took the fear of 

loneliness and ostracism to jolt 

the couples, Jaiye and Idera, 

out of their self-denial and 

silences emboldened by their 

western ways. 

Continues on 

www.vanguardngr.com

SUNDAY Vanguard, JUNE 27, 2021,PAGE 21 

Paying the price 

Have you ever been to an expensive wed 

ding that was a no holds barred affair? 

The champagne was ordered custom-made 

from France. The wedding cake was a threestory 

building. Forget about the wedding, but 

tell me, what happened to the marriage? 

One year later, they got divorced. What a 

waste of money. All that expenditure went up 

in smoke. You did not know at the time that the 

best man was also a divorce lawyer. 

Have you not noticed that the rich tend to be 

more security conscious than others? Why is 

that? They have more to lose and therefore 

have more to protect. 

What about you? Do you have anything to 

protect? Have you received anything that you 

need to guard jealously? If indeed the thief has 

come to steal, to kill, and to destroy (John 10:10), 

do you have anything worth stealing? What 

kind of security system do you have against the 

thief? 

The songwriter says: “Let the weak say that I 

am strong because of what the Lord has done 

for him.” (Joel 3:10). 

Despising God’s grace 

Your uncle gave you an exclusive car. It was 

the latest Lexus Jeep, custom-made. It was one 

of a kind. When they made it, they broke the 

mold. Everybody came and admired it. But 

what happened to the Lexus? 

Within two weeks you had crashed it into the 

Carter Bridge. They had to use a chain saw to 

remove you from the wreckage. What happened 

to the car? It was damaged beyond repair. 

Whose fault was it? Yours, because you 

despised, in effect, the gift of your uncle. 

Having gone through the realms of com 

prehension, commitment and actualizing 

by the revealed word of God in our spirit 

man, it is time to build in our spirit, the hope of 

that calling. (Eph. 1:18) 

What you have built into your heart will eventually 

become your future. 

· Your future is built in your spirit, and will 

flourish around you. 

· A ministry or divine project is not structured 

into success. It is built into our spirit man to 

succeed in the natural. 

1.BUILDING THE SEED OF GREATNESS 

Turn the seed of greatness from God into your 

word of faith and hope. You will succeed in 

that ministry or venture. 

a. Heirs of greatness 

Christians today must believe that they are 

heirs of greatness. (Gal. 3:26-29). 

Through salvation in Christ, all Christians 

have become “Abraham’s seed, and heirs according 

to the promise”. When you are born 

again, you share the promise of greatness that 

God gave to Abraham. (Gen 12: 1-3). 

With the promise of “a great nation, a great 

name and great blessing”, Abraham would be 

a blessing to ‘all the families of the earth’. With 

the seed of greatness from Abraham, we will 

also be a blessing to ‘all the families of the 

earth’. This promise began to fulfill when Christ 

commissioned His disciples to evangelize all 

nations. Build this seed in your heart, as the 

offspring of Abraham. You will succeed. 

We must work out what 

God has worked in 

The bible tells the story of two women. 

Both of them were sinners: harlots as a 

matter of fact. Nevertheless, the merciful 

Lord who is not a respecter of persons, who 

makes the sun to shine on the good and the 

bad, blessed both with children. 

But one was careless with her gift, so careless 

that she slept on her child and suffocated 

him to death. Thereafter, she envied the 

other her living child and stole it. Her game 

plan was simple. Either I end up with the 

child, or neither of us would have a child. 

When the matter was brought before the 

king, she readily accepted his verdict to cut 

the child into two. She said: “Let it be neither 

yours nor mine.” (1 Kings 3:26). 

Devil at work 

That woman was working for the thief. 

The devil has lost out. He lost his inheritance 

and was cast out of heaven. But he is 

determined that you should not come into 

your inheritance as well. It all depends on 

whether we know the value of what we received. 

It is only a birthright, so why is 

Jacob so determined to get it from Esau? 

Salvation is free. Jesus says: “Freely have 

you received.” The kingdom of God is free. 

But although it is freely given and freely 

received, we still have to work it out. 

Foundational element for ministry success: Faith to 

succeed, building hope in your spirit man 

His Grace, Most 

Rev. (Dr.) Gabriel 

Abegurin, Archbishop 

of Ibadan, praying 

for Anthony Cardinal 

Okogie during 

his 85th birthday and 

50th Episcopal Ordination 

anniversary 

Thanksgiving Mass 

held recently at the 

Catholic Church of 

Assumption Falomo, 

Lagos. 

b. Fulfill the 

global mandate. 

Christ has given 

the Church the 

Great Commission 

of making 

disciples of all 

the nations. 

Pastor Akinola 

(Matt. 28:19-20). 

This mandate of making disciples globally 

started from the Pentecost and it is 

coming to completion rapidly. And this 

gospel of the kingdom will be preached in 

all the world as a witness to all the nations, 

and then the end will come (Matt. 24:14). 

We are now in the injury time of our 

Mission.This should underlie our quest for 

ministry success as believers. 

c. Accomplish great work for the Lord 

The Lord Jesus assured us that we would 

do greater works than what He did. (John 

14:12). 

·This promise means we will preach the 

gospel effectively throughout the world, 

with greater and more signs and wonders. 

J.K. Akinola. (Senior Pastor) 

The Gospel Faith Mission International 

(GOFAMINT), Living Word Cathedral, 

Oluyole Estate, beside Total Petrol Station, 

off Ring Road, Ibadan. (Telephone: 

08033376660, 08055405095) 

Solomon says: “Build a wall, invite a burglar.” 

(Proverbs 17:19). 

Salvation is such a big gift that it makes us 

prime candidates for armed robbery. Our salvation 

was announced on the airwaves, and the 

prince of the power of the air heard it. The men 

of the underworld were all waiting outside during 

the award ceremony. 

So, although the gift was freely given, although 

we did no work to receive it, nevertheless, 

we are going to have to do a lot to keep it 

and to enjoy it. 

Who are these armed robbers and where are 

they exactly? Listen and understand. The worst 

armed robbers of all are in the churches. “Then 

(Jesus) taught, saying to them, “Is it not written, 

‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for 

all nations’? But you have made it a ‘den of 

thieves.’” (Mark 11:17). 

You have just collected a lorry-load of cold 

hard cash from the Lord. But the problem is that 

the whole thing was carried in the newspapers 

and on television. Jesus says the whole place is 

full of armed robbers. They have come to steal, 

to kill, and to destroy. The whole neighbourhood 

gathered when the trailer came bringing 

in everything. 

How are you going to enjoy the abundant life 

that Jesus promised in that neighbourhood? Will 

you save your life by returning the gift so that 

you can at least live in peace? Or will you receive 

the gift and get ready to fight for your 

rights? 

Pay the price 

08120202087 

Family values in the 

society (1) 

1 Chronicles 13:14 

And the ark of God remained with the 

family of Obed-Edom in his house 

three months, and the lord blessed 

the house of obed-edom and all that he had. 

The presence of God in the family matters 

much in contemporary society, and if 

larger percentage of families actually understand 

family values, morals, love and 

have the presence of God of heaven and 

earth, God of host, the only wise and holy 

God who blesses out of love abundantly. 

All manner of God's blessings become inevitable 

in these families who have god's 

presence, uphold family values, morals and 

love that bring positive impact on the society 

and nation. 

M 

Jesus says: “From the days of John the Baptist 

until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, 

and the violent take it by force.” (Matthew 

11:12). 

The outfit was so beautiful, so lovely. You just 

had to have it. That is until you found out the 

price. Then you lost interest. Suddenly, it is not 

that good an outfit after all. What if someone 

were to buy it for you? Oh yes, please. But you 

said you do not like it anymore. Well, I could 

not afford it. Not exactly, you were just not prepared 

to pay the price. 

For how long are we going to look for charlatans 

to lay hands on us? For how long are 

we going to look for snake-oil salesmen to 

pray for us? It is time to grow up. 

The salvation of the soul is perfected: “In 

weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, 

in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in 

cold and nakedness. (2 Corinthians 11:27). 

Jesus paid the price. Even though he is God, 

nevertheless He paid the price. “Though He 

was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the 

things which He suffered. (Hebrews 5:8). 

The salvation of the soul will not take place 

without an effort on our part. Health and life 

will not take place without our exertion. Jesus 

says” “My father is always working.” (John 

5:17). If God works, then we must work. A 

servant is not greater than his master. 

Work it out 

We must work out what God has worked in. 

Paul says: “Work out your own salvation with 

fear and trembling; for it is God who works in 

you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.” 

(Philippians 2:12-13). 

“The children of Ephraim, being armed, and 

carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle.” 

(Psalm 78:9). God armed them, nevertheless, 

they failed to realise that they still needed 

to fight for their deliverance. 

Jesus healed a paralytic with the command: 

“Rise, take up your bed and walk." (John 5:8- 

9). Even though he was healed, he still had to 

rise, take up his bed, and walk. Without doing 

that, his obedience would not be complete, 

and his healing would not be perfected. 

There is no shortcut. There are no five easy 

steps to the anointing that breaks every yoke. 

Therefore, “Be strong in the Lord and in the 

power of his might.” (Ephesians 6:10). “Stir 

up the gift of God which is in you.” (2 Timothy 

1:6). “Wage the good warfare. (1 Timothy 

1:18). “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold 

on eternal life.” (1 Timothy 6:12). “Contend 

earnestly for the faith which was once for all 

delivered to the saints.” (Jude 1:3). 

Emmanuel, the Wonderful Counsellor, 

the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace, 

precious Christ Jjesus whose shoulder is 

the government, King of kings and Lord 

of lords desires to bless so much these 

families like Obed-Edom for receiving the 

ark of God, precence of God, scroll and 

scripture of truth wholeheartedly, for in 

him the whole family in heaven and earth 

is named, Ephesians 3:15. 

It is highly essential for us to have godly 

families in our society if we must experience 

notable change, place value on the 

things and teachings of God (love) for the 

purpose of having virtues men and 

women, boys and girls, law abiding 

citizens in the society. 

There are people, group of people, 

individuals who cause hindrances, 

who bring reproach to the nation, 

through evil practice of all manager 

of yahoo the unrighteous mammon 

taught them, like Achan who brought 

hindrances to Israel, reproached and 

caused Israel to be defeated, and also 

ruined his family. Joshua 7:1-26. 

Yahoo yahoo of any kind must be educated 

and know that they are inviting 

devils, the unrighteous mammon, 

the root of all evil to be their master 

and that God's wrath is kindred against 

them, if they fail to discard their evil 

trade, surely ruin is waiting for them 

in the valley of achor. Joshua 7:24-26, 

Matthew 6:24, 1 Timothy 6:10. 

Aladura churches urged to 

maintain founding legacies 

embers of United Aladura Churches, UAC, have been told to 

maintain the legacy of its founding fathers by shunning fetish 

practices, and imbibing spirit of praying and fasting. 

The Baba Aladura, His Grace, H. B. Phillips, gave this charge while 

speaking at the 2021 Lagos State conference, with the theme: 

‘’Legacy of Aladura”, held recently at the Celestial Church of Christ, 

Ileri Oluwa Parish, Ojota. 

‘’In the C&S, we are thought that the Bible is the Sword of the 

Spirit, that we shall read and make a mark, just as the soldier 

sharpens his sword and do not let it rust every day. 

‘’This among many others are the legacies we received that turned 

us to children of God. It is a pity that these legacies brought by our 

fathers in the Aladura churches today- Cherubim, Celestial, Church 

of the Lord, CAC, that many people have added other things to 

pollute and bastardise these legacies. 

“A lot of so-called Servant of God in the Aladura Churches are 

involved in fetish practices and some are members of occult groups.” 

he said. Present at the event includes the State Chairman, Dr. G. A. 

Adeyinka; Prophetess Ariyo Ajayi; Supt. Apostle Bode Adelagun; 

Venerable Segun Omotayo; Archbishop Olafimihan Adekoya; 

Mother Celestial Maria Ademola and Evang. Toyin Onawoga.

PAGE 22—SUNDAY Vanguard, JUNE 27, 2021 

Jublilation for the 

needy (1) 

Sister Nkeiru Ugochukwu with her husband dedicating their baby 

to the Lord, after 11-years of delayed conception,during a 

combined service at the Lagos headquarters, last Sunday. 

Genesis 21:1-7 “And 

the LORD visited 

Sarah as he had 

said, and the LORD did unto 

Sarah as he had spoken. For 

Sarah conceived, and bare 

Abraham a son in his old 

age, at the set time of which 

God had spoken to him. 

And Abraham called the 

name of his son that was 

born unto him, whom Sarah 

bare to him, Isaac. And 

Abraham circumcised his 

son Isaac being eight days 

old, as God had commanded 

him. And Abraham was 

an hundred years old, when 

his son Isaac was born unto 

him. And Sarah said, God 

hath made me to laugh, so 

that all that hear will 

laugh with me. And she 

said, Who would have said 

unto Abraham, that Sarah 

should have given children 

suck? for I have born him a 

son in his old age.” 

Beloved, God fulfilled 

His promise to Sarah by 

giving her the power to 

bear a son at an age considered 

humanly impossible 

to have a child. The fulfillment 

of this promise 

magnified the power of 

God as well as His faithfulness. 

No one would have 

thought that Sarah and 

Abraham would have a 

child. But after many years 

of despondency of no child 

God caused them to jubilate. 

There are many biblical 

accounts of God’s intervention 

in the life of people 

of the old which caused 

them to jubilate after many 

years of sorrow. And such 

benevolence of His faithfulness 

never ceased even 

till date for God is still in 

the business of causing jubilation 

for the needy. 

In the Lord’s Chosen calendar 

of events, this 

Month is known as the 

Month of Jubilation for 

the Needy. It is the Month 

when we celebrate God’s 

faithfulness in fulfilling His 

promises made to His Chosen 

ones and other believers. 

As you join us to celebrate 

this special grace, 

God who causes the needy 

to jubilate will meet you at 

the point of your need and 

cause you to jubilate in 

Jesus name. 

1 Samuel. 2: 21 says, “And 

the LORD visited Hannah, 

so that she conceived, and 

bare three sons and two 

daughters. And the child 

Samuel grew before the 

LORD” 

God is never late in fulfilling 

His promises, at the appointed 

time the beneficiary 

shall have cause to jubilate 

and thus acknowledge 

God’s faithfulness. Whatever 

has hindered your Jubilation 

over the years, must 

surely give way because the 

same God who did it before 

for His people will do it for 

you. He will roll away your 

reproaches, sadness and 

wipe away all your tears and 

brings jubilation in your life. 

I don’t know what you are 

passing through. What I 

know is that this day is your 

day, your problem will never 

pass today and everything 

that constituted sorrows in 

your life must give way and 

you will join the company 

of jubilating brethren in 

Jesus name. 

Joel 2:25-27 “And I will restore 

to you the years that the 

locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, 

and the caterpiller, 

and the palmerworm, my 

great army which I sent 

among you. And ye shall eat 

in plenty, and be satisfied, 

and praise the name of the 

LORD your God, that hath 

dealt wondrously with you: 

and my people shall never 

be ashamed. And ye shall 

know that I am in the midst 

of Israel, and that I am the 

LORD your God, and none else: 

and my people shall never 

be ashamed.” 

I am assuring that after 

today, shame and reproaches 

shall never be 

your portion again, instead 

it shall be jubilation 

all over. God has made 

His promise known to 

you by the above Scriptures, 

you are therefore 

asked to demonstrate 

faith for in no time the 

promise shall be fulfilled 

and all you have lost 

shall be restored in Jesus 

name. 

In the Bible days, the 

Lord caused so many people 

to Jubilate over their 

enemies and problems. 

Abraham our father of 

faith and his wife Sarah 

were made to Jubilate after 

so many years of barrenness. 

Although the 

promise tarried but God’s 

faithfulness never ceased, 

a day came and the Lord 

rolled away their reproach. 

I don’t know 

I don’t know the 

problems you are 

passing through 

but I am sure the 

God that saw the 

Israelites through 

is still alive and 

will see you 

through 

what you are passing 

through, but I am sure the 

God who did it for Abraham, 

will do it for you. 

The God that made Abraham 

and Sarah to laugh 

has not changed; He will 

today make you to laugh. 

He is the same yesterday, 

today and forever. So, let 

your heart be untroubled 

for whatever might be 

your challenges shall 

soon be over. He made the 

Israelites to Jubilate when 

He delivered them from 

the hands of Pharaoh and 

Egyptian after many 

years of bondage. Assuredly, 

He will bring jubilation 

in your life and 

family. 

Exodus 3:7-8 7 “And the 

LORD said, I have surely 

seen the affliction of my 

people which are in Egypt, 

and have heard their cry 

by reason of their taskmasters; 

for I know their sorrows; 

And I am come down 

to deliver them out of the 

hand of the Egyptians, and 

to bring them up out of 

that land unto a good land 

and a large, unto a land 

flowing with milk and 

honey; unto the place of 

the Canaanites, and the 

Hittites, and the Amorites, 

and the Perizzites, and the 

Hivites, and the Jebusites.” 

Exodus 12:40-41, 51 

“Now the sojourning of the 

children of Israel, who 

dwelt in Egypt, was four 

hundred and thirty years. 

And it came to pass at the 

end of the four hundred 

and thirty years, even the 

selfsame day it came to 

pass, that all the hosts of 

the LORD went out from 

the land of Egypt. 51 And 

it came to pass the selfsame 

day, that the LORD 

did bring the children of 

Israel out of the land of 

Egypt by their armies.” After 

430 years the Israelites 

jubilated because God 

granted them freedom 

Brother and Sister Megha Blessing with their twin 

during their dedication. 

from bondage. 

Exodus 15:1-11 “Then 

sang Moses and the children 

of Israel this song unto the 

LORD, and spake, saying, I 

will sing unto the LORD, for 

he hath triumphed gloriously: 

the horse and his rider 

hath he thrown into the sea. 

The LORD is my strength 

and song, and he is become 

my salvation: he is my God, 

and I will prepare him an 

habitation; my father’s God, 

and I will exalt him. The 

LORD is a man of war: the 

LORD is his name. Pharaoh’s 

chariots and his host 

hath he cast into the sea: his 

chosen captains also are 

drowned in the Red sea. The 

depths have covered them: 

they sank into the bottom as 

a stone. Thy right hand, O 

LORD, is become glorious in 

power: thy right hand, O 

LORD, hath dashed in pieces 

the enemy. And in the 

greatness of thine excellency 

thou hast overthrown 

them that rose up against 

thee: thou sentest forth thy 

wrath, which consumed 

them as stubble. And with 

the blast of thy nostrils the 

waters were gathered together, 

the floods stood upright 

as an heap, and the 

depths were congealed in 

the heart of the sea. The enemy 

said, I will pursue, I 

will overtake, I will divide 

the spoil; my lust shall be 

satisfied upon them; I will 

draw my sword, my hand 

shall destroy them. Thou 

didst blow with thy wind, 

the sea covered them: they 

sank as lead in the mighty 

waters. Who is like unto 

thee, O LORD, among the 

gods? who is like thee, glorious 

in holiness, fearful in 

praises, doing wonders?” 

Our God is the God of 

matchless perfection and 

glorious in holiness. No 

matter how long you have 

been in bondage or who is 

behind your affliction; the 

assurance is that He has 

not forgotten and will deliver 

you at His own time. 

After 430 years He delivered 

His people and their 

joy knew no bound as they 

in jubilation with Moses 

opened their mouth and 

sang the above praises. 

Today you shall cross 

over your Red Seas. All the 

enemies that are after you 

shall be drowned in your 

Red Sea. All those matching 

after you shall scatter 

and God shall give you 

victory over them. I am assuring 

you that jubilation 

and unspeakable joy shall 

be your portion. I don’t 

know the problems you are 

passing through but I am 

sure the God that saw the 

Israelites through is still 

alive and will see you 

through. He made Hannah 

to forget her sorrows 

and wipe away her tears; 

God will make you to Jubilate 

because this is the 

promised time for the 

needy to jubilate. He is the 

Omnipotent God and with 

Him all things are possible. 

Sisters ready to dedicate their children during last Sunday's combined service at the 

Lagos headquarters

When we put our trust 

in men, we would surely 

be disappointed. Peter and 

John were often found together 

in the Scriptures. They were 

partners in the fishing business 

(Luke 5:10); they prepared 

the last Passover table 

for Jesus (Luke 22:8); they ran 

to the tomb on the first Easter 

Sunday morning (John 20:3- 

4); and they ministered to the 

Samaritans who believed on 

Jesus Christ (Acts 8:14). Now 

that they were filled with the 

Holy Spirit, the Apostles were 

no longer competing for 

greatness, but were at last 

working faithfully together to 

build the church (Ps 133). Peter 

and John were men of 

prayer that is why they took 

the hours of prayers very seriously. 

The Bible says: “At the 

ninth hour as they were going 

for prayer” lo and behold, 

before they entered the temple, 

God stirred them up to 

PASTOR O.C. CHUKWUEZIE. 

CAC Madaiyese Regional Headquaters 

Plot 701/702 Durumi District 

P.O. BOX 2577 

Garki, Abuja. 

Contact us on: 08155555048, like us on 

facebook @cacdurumi 

Looking unto God (2) 

heal the lame man. Although 

the lame man was not anticipating 

this, he received divine 

intervention which was more 

than he expected. What are 

you expecting from God today? 

God knows the best for 

your life, family, marriage, 

business and for this nation. 

God surprised the man and 

gave him testimony. Five new 

experiences for the lame man 

“Standing up by himself, 

walking by himself, leaping 

and jumping like a child, 

praising God in the temple 

(v8) and holding the Preachers” 

The cripple is a vivid 

illustration of the lost sinner 

in that: (1) he was born 

lame, and all are born sinners; 

(2) He could not walk, 

and no sinner can work so 

as to please God; (3) He was 

outside the temple, also sinners 

are spiritually outside 

God's temple-the church; 

(4) He was begging, sinners 

All noble things are difficult (4) 

The last time we noted 

that the Christian life is 

gloriously difficult. The manifestation 

of the Christian life 

is difficult because it demands 

the death of the selflife, 

yes, of our death-doomed 

life. The truth is that God, out 

of love, forgives a man of all 

his sins and saves him from 

Satanic bondage and eternal 

damnation in hell, endues 

him with the Holy Spirit, and 

then says, in effect -‘now work 

out what I have worked in you 

(Phil. 2:12-13), be loyal to 

Me, whilst your nature and 

all things round about you 

would make you disloyal’. He 

restates “I have called you 

friends”; so, stand loyal to 

your Friend, and remember 

that His honour is at stake in 

Rev. Emmanuel Awazie 

*Assemblies of God Church 

Nigeria, 111 Clegg Street, 

Surulere, Lagos. 

The glory of His presence (2) 

*Ituah Ighodalo is the Senior 

Pastor, Trinity House, Trinity 

Avenue, Off Ligali Ayorinde 

Street, Victoria Island, 

Lagos.+234-808-895-6162 

info@trinityhouseng.org 

Now therefore, I pray 

thee, if I have found grace in 

thy sight, shew me now thy 

way, that I may know thee, 

that I may find grace in thy 

sight: and consider that this 

nation is thy people. And he 

said, My presence shall go 

with thee, and I will give thee 

rest. 

Exodus 33:13-14 KJV 

Moses said, having a 

discussion with God, 

that God has not given him a 

helper. He asked God to show 

him his ways and God said 

that His presence will go with 

him and will make the work 

easy with him. Moses then 

told God that if His presence 

will not go with them, He 

should therefore not take 

them out of where they are. 

Life can be extremely difficult 

but can also be outstandingly 

easy. It can be extremely 

difficult if we: Make the 

wrong assumption. 

· Do things the 

wrong way. 

·Have the 

wrong approach. 

·Do things the 

way we know how. 

Whatever God has asked 

you to do is just for you to do 

it. Whenever God gives you 

an assignment you should go 

back to God and ask Him 

how you are to carry out this 

assignment. To do this we 

must have a close and intimate 

relationship with God. 

To have a relationship with 

God we must then understand 

the secret to life. Having 

a close relationship with 

God is not about how holy 

we are, how righteous we are, 

or how wise we are. 

Even King Solomon in the 

bible said that in wisdom is a 

lot of grief. Sometimes when 

we know too much and too 

full of wisdom, we become 

burdened. Then he said that 

the job of a man is to please 

God. Every morning when 

you wake up, you ask yourself 

how can I please God? 

What do say that will please 

God? Where do I go to 

are beggars, searching for 

satisfaction in vain. Peter 

performed this miracle, not 

only to relieve the man's 

handicap and save his soul, 

but also to prove to the Jews 

that the Holy Spirit had 

come with the promised 

blessings. 

His walk was new and 

different, and he did not attempt 

to run away from persecution. 

His was such a testimony 

that the officers had 

no explanation for what had 

happened. As a matter of 

fact, there is nothing God 

cannot do in your life; it 

doesn’t cost God anything 

to change your life within a 

second once you are ready 

to surrender your life to 

Christ. There must be conviction 

before a sinner can 

experience conversion. Unless 

a patient is convinced 

that he is sick, he will never 

accept the diagnosis or take 

treatment. Peter turned the 

temple into a courtroom 

and laid all the evidences 

for everybody to see. How 

could two ordinary fishermen 

perform such a great 

miracle if God was not with 

them? Nobody would dare 

deny the miracle because 

the beggar stood there before 

them all, in "perfect 

soundness" (Acts 3:16; 

4:14). The miracle was 

proof that Jesus Christ is 

indeed the living Son of God 

and that His name has power 

to heal, save and deliver. 

your bodily life. This loyalty 

to Jesus is revealed by the 

ways and manner in which we 

apply His word in our daily 

living and relationships. 

Marriage and the family, in 

the Christian context, is symbolic 

of the unique relationship 

that exists in the Godhead, 

and they constitute a 

veritable area of interest in the 

programme of God and in 

our lives. Marriage is “honourable 

and God demands 

that spouses remain faithful 

to one another in marriage...” 

- Heb. 13:4. The family life 

consists of your capricious, 

complex and very hard to 

please self, then your spouse, 

children, parents, siblings and 

relations. It is here that your 

confession of faith and obedience 

to God’s words will be 

extremely tested. Aside from 

salvation, these are the noblest 

gifts that we have from God. 

We must learn to pay the utmost 

attention to them and to 

ourselves “...to see if your 

faith is genuine... if.. you have 

failed the test of genuine 

faith....”– 2 Cor. 13:5. 

We all know that the concept 

and institution of marriage 

and the family have 

been greatly bastardized and 

abused, and the society is 

plagued for it. God is greatly 

saddened by the wickedness 

and treachery in human 

hearts, especially with respect 

to marriage, to the extent that 

our prayers and worship are 

now meaningless to Him, 

and He reminds us that He is 

watching with very keen interest 

- Malachi 2:13-16, also 

read 1 Peter 3:7. God greatly 

values the family; Abraham’s 

commitment to his home and 

family endeared him to God, 

so much so that God adopted 

him as a confidant - Genesis 

18:17-19. 

please God? What do I 

wear to please God? Ask 

such questions about each 

step and everything you are 

about to do to know if it 

will please God. 

Ask yourself, ‘what 

would Jesus do?’ If you can 

ask yourself consistently 

before we react or act on 

things living our life would 

become easy and free of 

stress. This might be difficult 

to adjust to at the beginning, 

but the end of the 

matter would be that we 

would have pleased God. 

It is not our business to 

know how things get done, 

that is God’s business. It is 

God who will work 

through us to make things 

happen. That is why God 

sad to Abram, “walk before 

me and be thou perfect”. 

What does the presence 

of God do? 

1.It brings about prosperity 

(1 King 5:2-6). This is 

an all-round prosperity, financial 

prosperity, marital 

prosperity, emotional prosperity, 

social prosperity. 

2. It will bring about 

grace and promotion. 

There would be a grace and 

favour around you that will 

bring about promotion. You 

would just have that favour 

which even you 

won’tunderstand, and people 

just promote you and lift you 

up. 

SUNDAY Vanguard, JUNE 27, 2021,PAGE 23 

Provide N200 billion for devt of oil palm, 

NPPAN tells CBN 

By Festus Ahon lion sprouted nuts 

annually for distribution 

National President, Na to smallholder farmers 

tional Palm Produce across the country. The 

Association of Nigeria, NP- CBN should modify the 

PAN, Mr Alphonsus Inyang, anchor borrower's Programme 

guidelines to ac- 

has called on the Central Bank 

of Nigeria CBN, to set aside commodate perennial 

a special fund of at least crops like oil palm". 

N200 billion for the Inyang who was represented 

by Stephen Eghen, 

development of oil palm sector 

in Nigeria. 

said: "As an association, we 

Inyang who made the call have concrete plans to lead 

in Asaba while flagging off the all families on an ambitious 

2021 planting season and distribution 

of seedlings across from 2022-2026. As a pre- 

drive to plant 20 palm trees 

the country, said such funds cursor, we are starting with 

were necessary under the existing 

oil Palm Development lion seedlings in 2022 for 

the development of 10 mil- 

Initiative domiciled in its Development 

Finance Depart- 

"We have with the help of 

distribution to families. 

ment. 

God pursued a programme 

He said: "The federal ministry 

of Agriculture should 24 states that have compar- 

of getting every family in the 

fund the production and distribution 

of at least 10 mil- oil palm to plant at least 

ative advantage in growing 

20 

From left: Registrar, Federal College of Dental Technology 

and Therapy Enugu (FEDCODTTEN) Mr. Paul Yahaya; 

Rector, Dr. John Emaimo and Deputy Rector, Dr. Obiora Eke, 

during the 66th matriculation ceremony of the College in 

Enugu, yesterday. 

From left: Dr Sophia Horsfall (Mgr. Comms and Public 

Affairs, NLNG), Charles Eppelle (Mgr. Nigerian 

Content Development, NLNG), Yetunde Taiwo (2nd VP, 

NGA), Tony Attah (MD, NLNG), Engr. Chichi Emenike 

(Sec. Gen, NGA), Ed Ubong (President, NGA), Eyono 

Fatayi - Williams, (GM Ext Rel and Sust Dev, NLNG), 

Odianosen Masade (Pub. Sec, NGA) when members 

of the EXCO of the Nigerian Gas Associating (NGA) 

with NLNG counterparts at the NIPS pre-summit 

sponsored by NLNG 

NGA unveils agenda for gas devt, holds 

consultation with stak 

akeholder 

eholders 

T 

o further actualise its 

vision of advancing the 

role of Natural Gas as the 

preferred energy source, the 

new executive council of the 

Nigerian Gas Association 

(NGA), has unveiled its 

agenda at the 2021 Industry 

Multilogues, even as it has 

commenced wide 

consultations with 

stakeholders in the gas 

sector. 

The 2021 NGA Industry 

Multilogues took place in 

February. The event hosted 

virtually in conformity with 

COVID-19 protocols, 

featured hundreds of 

participants across the 

continents of Asia, Europe, 

Africa, North and South 

America, and 35 local and 

international speakers 

including the Governor of 

Lagos State, Mr. Babajide 

Sanwo-Olu; Nigeria’s 

Minister of State for 

Petroleum Resources, Chief 

Timipre Sylva; President of 

International Gas Union 

oil palm trees. 

"What we are doing here today 

is significant in the sense 

that not only does it lay credence 

to our programme of 

every family planting at 

least 20 oil palm trees. 

"It sends a strong signal to 

our members in particular 

and Nigerians in general that 

our association is ever ready 

and willing with the right support 

of all to restore Nigeria's 

name on the global map of oil 

producing nations. 

"Nigeria which used to be a 

net exporter of palm oil, today, 

is in the business of importing 

the product to the tune of $550 

million annually". 

The Permanent Secretary, 

Ministry of Agriculture and 

Natural Resources, Mr. Ben 

Agamah, who also spoke at the 

ceremony, said; "in the agric 

and farming business, Delta 

State since the inception of this 

administration, has been able 

to cultivate 2,700 hectares of 

oil palm." 

NDDC: N/Delta group demands inauguration of board 

THE Joint Association of 

Niger Delta Youths Forum, 

JANDYF, has described 

a protest held recently in Delta, 

Bayelsa and Rivers States 

by Ijaw and Urhobo youths 

to demand the inauguration 

of a substantive governing 

board of the Niger Delta Development 

Commission, 

NDDC, as a step in the right 

direction. The group commended 

the Minister of the 

Niger Delta, Senator Godswill 

Akpabio, for meeting 

with the ex-militants which 

led to the relaxation of the 

seven days ultimatum to constitute 

the governing board of 

NDDC. Also commending 

ex-militant leader, Government 

Ekpemupolo, alias 

Tompolo and other leaders in 

the region for accepting a 

peaceful resolution of the issue, 

the group urged President 

Buhari to see the inauguration 

of the NDDC board as a 

matter of serious national 

'Apapa 

gridlock killing 

businesses’ 

The Executive Secre 

tary of the Society for 

Neighbourhood Peace and 

Development, George 

Utomhim, has described 

the challenges arising 

from finding a lasting solution 

to the Apapa gridlock 

as multi-faceted. 

According to Utomhim, 

who spoke in Lagos, advocacy 

and enforcement have 

not been taken seriously in 

tackling the problems, 

which have been compounded 

by lawlessness 

and extortion. 

He further lamented the 

colossal losses suffered by 

small businesses that has 

crippled the once social 

life and activities of Apapa 

residents and its small 

business owners. 

Utomhim said: “The 

truth of the matter is that 

rather than the traffic gridlock 

subsiding, it is becoming 

more difficult to handle. 

Even companies and 

other agencies are deeply 

rooted in endless sharp 

endemic practices, which 

are further compounding 

the problems and plights 

of small businesses. 

“Our organisation will 

continue to partner relevant 

stakeholders in restoring 

life and socio-economic 

bustling in Apapa.” 

concern. 

A statement issued in Warri, 

Delta State on Monday 

June 14, and signed by the 

National President, Mr. 

Mark Ikpuri and National 

Secretary, Mr. Goodluck 

Edafe, said it is high time the 

President constituted a substantive 

board of the NDDC. 

(IGU), Dr Joe Kang; the GMD 

of NNPC, Mallam Mele 

Kyari; and the Executive 

Secretary of NCDMB, Engr 

Simbi Wabote. 

Others include the Country 

Chair of Shell Companies in 

Nigeria, Mr. Osagie Okunbor; 

the MD of NLNG, Mr. Tony 

Attah; the MD of Seplat 

Petroleum Development 

Company, Mr. Roger Brown; 

the MD of Shell Nigeria Gas, 

Mr. Ed Ubong, and erstwhile 

President of the NGA, Mrs. 

Audrey Joe-Ezigbo, amongst 

other numerous international 

and local players in the 

upstream, midstream and 

downstream gas value chain. 

In his special presentation, the 

8th President of IGU, Mr. Joe 

Kang, posited that with 

increasing global energy 

demand, hydrocarbons would 

continue to be critical to 

powering heavy global 

industrial production even in 

the face of the energy 

transition, with Gas being the 

frontrunner.


Married to a ruthless, evil monster! 

He was every woman’s 

dream of the ideal 

man come true. Fade was 

fresh out of college and 

looking for a job when a 

friend introduced her to 

Godwin. “He was much 

older than my 22-year old 

but I didn’t see him as a 

potential lover – just a boss”, 

confessed Fade. “My 

friend had filled me in that 

most of his empire was in 

Nigeria but he had a very 

impressive office in London. 

His personal assistant just 

left to get married and he 

needed an urgent 

replacement. I didn’t have 

any working experience but 

he told me I would do. I had 

the job! 

“Within months, we’d 

attended various meetings 

and social events together. I 

didn’t know what I was 

expected to do officially, but 

he said I should just look 

pretty and serve coffee and 

be his ‘man Friday’ until I 

got the hang of the office 

routine. Before I could do 

that however, things took on 

a new dimension. Godwin 

constantly turned on the 

charm whenever we were 

together that it was easy to 

fall in love with him. He 

swept me off my feet – 

flowers, extravagant 

meals, jewellery – he made 

me feel like a princess. It 

was like a dream come 

true, like I was living a 

fairytale. 

“When he asked me to 

move into his house nine 

months later, I didn’t 

hesitate. He had a housekeeper 

– all I had to do was 

give instructions and be at 

his beck and call all the 

time, dressed to the nines. 

He was generous with 

money too and gave me a 

gold card. I was on cloud 

nine and when I got 

pregnant and feared he 

would ask me to get rid of 

it, I was surprised when he 

suggested we get married. 

He had a wife and children 

who lived in one of his 

property in Nigeria but he 

told me they were never 

legally married. All they 

did was a traditional 

marriage. 

“When I met Godwin, 

marriage was the 

furtherest thing on my 

mind. Now it’s staring me 

in the face. I know getting 

hitched so soon was 

moving too fast but I was 

in love with the man and 

he really was charming, 

funny, handsome and 

romantic. What would I 

gain by waiting? I may have 

only been 24, but I was ready 

for this good fortune. Within 

three years, I’d given birth to 

a set of twins and an 

adorable son. My husband’s 

career had really taken off 

by now and we had moved 

house twice – upgrading 

every time. Though his 

business schedule meant he 

had to work long hours, but 

it was worth it. He was a 

good dad – just not around 

that often. Every night, I’d 

go on my knees and pray to 

God before bed to thank 

Him for my blessings. 

“Sadly, I would soon 

discover that Godwin was 

far from perfect. In fact my 

husband was one of the most 

ruthless men on earth – an 

evil monster, a sick and 

twisted man who caused 

unimaginable pain and 

suffering. He was a con 

artiste per excellence! 

People had asked me: ‘How 

could you not know?’ But 

the thing with psychopaths 

is you can’t tell. It’s part of 

the condition. They mimic 

normal people and it takes 

an expert to spot one. 

According to experts, a 

psychopath is wired towards 

making people do their 

bidding and they can be so 

charming. Some can go 

through their entire life 

undetected. Some even end 

up running corporations. 

The business would is rife 

with them as their utter lack 

of human compassion 

makes them good 

businessmen. 

“Almost ten years after we 

tied the knot, my life fell 

apart when the police 

knocked at my door in the 

early hours of a cold 

morning waving a search 

warrant in my face. I told 

them Godwin had travelled 

to Nigeria the previous day, 

but they didn’t believe me. 

They turned the house upside 

down, seized all the 

computers in the house. And 

nothing they said made 

sense. The police were 

telling me about my 

husband but it seemed like 

they were talking about a 

completely different person. 

This person didn’t run a 

legitimate business. He was 

a scam artiste, a ‘yahooyahoo- 

expert with a string 

of workers working for him 

at home and abroad. 

Several of his victims had 

been financially ruined 

beyond recovery and he’d 

also dabbled into drugs. The 

police had been on his trail 

for weeks after one of his men 

was arrested with almost four 

kilograms of cocaine. In 

exchange for a prosecution 

deal, he’d told them everything 

about Godwin. 

“My jaw nearly hit the floor 

as I listened to these horrid 

stories about my husband and 

the police refused to believe I 

knew nothing about his 

crimes. But they had no 

evidence against me and they 

left me alone. I couldn’t get 

hold of Godwin in Nigeria – 

he’d changed all his phones 

and I didn’t have any address 

or contact through which I 

could reach him. He’s wanted 

for a string of crimes – 

racketeering, trafficking 

cocaine, human trafficking, 

prostitution charges and 

fraud. It’s obvious he’s not 

expected back in Britain any 

time soon. Meanwhile, my 

whole life has been ripped 

from me. I had no idea what 

my husband was up to, yet I 

am being punished for his 

crimes. The house we lived 

in, which was in his name, has 

been confiscated, and I’m now 

living in a rented flat. 

I can’t imagine what the 

families of his victims are 

going through and I’m truly 

sorry for what he did. Yet the 

children and I are victims 

too...” 

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Dear readers, please note that we neither operate, nor are we an affiliate of any match–making agency in or outside the 

country. Any reader who transacts business with any one claiming to be our agent does so at his/her own risk. Our mission 

is only to provide a platform for social networking. 

Also note that neither Vanguard, nor Yetunde Arebi will be liable for any error in the publication of requests which may 

result in any form of embarrassment to any member of the public. We therefore request that text must be sent through at least 

one of the numbers for contact. This notice is necessary to enable us serve you better in our refreshingly different style. You 

can send your requests to 33055. For enquiries, text or call 08026651636, or 08054700825 

Real estate firm extends housing project to Ibadan 

MKH 

Investment 

Limited, one of the 

fastest-growing real estate 

companies in Lagos, has 

extended its operations to 

Ibadan with the launch of 

its new office and the 

groundbreaking ceremony 

of Primehood Estate. 

The launch, held recently 

in Ibadan, was attended by 

stakeholders and highlevel 

dignitaries from 

Lagos and Abuja, 

including the Olubadan of 

Ibadan, Oba Saliu 

Adetunji, and his wife. 

Speaking at the event, 

CEO, MKH Investment 

Limited, Dr Muibi Kehinde 

Hammed, described 

Primehood Estate as an 

affordable building project 

which will gradually 

transform into a city. 

According to him, the 

project, one of whose 

unique selling points is its 

proximity to the famous 

Ilaji Resort, is strategically 

positioned to be one of the 

best channels of profitable 

real estate investments in 

Ibadan. 

“Unlike existing beliefs, 

Ibadan is as profitable 

and marketable as other 

major cities in Nigeria 

because of the peace and 

tranquility that it offers,” 

Hammed enthused. 

Deputy Majority Whip of the Delta State House of 

Assembly, Chief Solomon Ighrakpata (right), with his 

colleague, representing Ndokwa West Constituency in the 

House, Mr Charles Emetulu, during the second quarter 

meeting of Speakers of State Legislatures of Nigeria, held 

in Asaba, yesterday. Photo by Festus Ahon 

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relationship. 

08106685905. 

Oboramohwoyere lauds Okowa over Orere Bridge 

ENIOR Special Adviser, 

SPolitical, to Delta State 

Governor, Chief Samuel ,has 

lauded Governor Ifeanyi 

Okowa for awarding the 

contract for the construction 

of the Orere bridge, Ughelli 

South Local Government 

Area. 

Speaking with newsmen in 

Ughelli, Oboramohwoyere 

noted that the Orere bridge 

which leads to Ogoda and 

other communities would 

impact positively on the socioeconomic 

lives of the people. 

He urged Deltans to pray for 

God's guidance and direction 

in their choice of a leader to 

that would continue with the 

good work that Okowa is 

doing in the state in 2023 

Oboramohwoyere, a former 

Chairman of the PDP in 

Ughelli South Local 

Government Area, 

noted that "in the history of 

PDP, in Nigeria and especially 

Delta State there has never 

been zoning of political office 

positions. 

"If we want to start zoning 

of the governorship position 

Delta State, leaders in the state 

should sit in a round table to 

formally agree on it and 

determine which senatorial 

district it will start from. 

"If this is done, Urhobo 

should take advantage of such 

a meeting to lobby the two 

other senatorial district on the 

need for them to produce the 

ero MotoCorp, one of 

Hthe world’s largest 

manufacturers of 

motorcycles and scooters 

road show heralds the entry 

of Hunter motorcycle into 

Nigeria market. 

The company said it has 

developed the specially made 

motorcycle for Nigeria. The 

motorcycle themed after the 

traditional hunter’s 

legendary strength, stealth, 

and wisdom in challenging 

terrains, is dedicated to the 

average Nigerian’s renowned 

ruggedness. 

Speaking at the Ibadan 

roadshow, Managing 

Director, Automotive 

Division, Kewalram Chanrai 

Group, exclusive distributors 

of the bike, Mr. Anil Sahgal, 

said: “We are extremely glad 

to be the exclusive partner of 

governor of the state in 2023 

"Okowa is the only governor 

so far in the state that has 

deemed it necessary to meet 

with all political leaders to 

determine where the governor 

should go in 2023 and this is 

highly commendable." 

Hero MotoCorp’s road show heralds 

Hunter motorcycle entry into Nigeria 

Hero MotoCorp, the world’s 

largest manufacturer of 

motorcycles and scooters, in 

Nigeria. With our expertise in 

the market and Hero 

MotoCorp’s global 

excellence, we will provide the 

best products and services to 

customers in Nigeria. 

“The Hunter, which also 

comes with an industry-first 

12-month or 75,000 km 

warranty, has an engine that 

has been extensively tested for 

performance in Nigerian 

conditions. One key feature is 

its utmost safety which 

includes a metallic bash plate 

protecting the engine on rough 

roads, a combi-lock to protect 

it from theft, and tyre pressure 

monitoring indicator 

(accessory to prevent deflation 

& puncture while on rugged 

terrains.”

KILLINGS IN S/WEST: 

We are battle ready 

but killer herdsmen 

can’t be fought with 

dane guns--Amotekun 

Commanders 

•LAMENT: : Attac 

ttacker 

ers wield sophisticated arms 

By Dayo Johnson, Rotimi 

Ojomoyela, James Ogunnaike & 

Shina Abubakar, 

Following the resurgence of killings 

by suspected herdsmen in the South- 

West, commanders of Amotekun 

Corps have resolved to deploy their men to 

strategic borders with neigbouring states to 

protect residents of the region from further 

attacks. 

They explained that this became necessary 

given the recurring attacks like the latest 

incident in Igangan, Oyo State, where 

suspected herdsmen massacred natives. 

In separate interviews with Sunday 

Vanguard the leaders of the corps across 

the South-West states, said defending the 

zone would be a lot easier if they had access 

to sophisticated weapons. 

They said the difficulty in preventing and 

quelling some attacks is a result of the 

superior firepower of the attackers. 

Specifically, the commanders lamented 

that invading herders often wield highcaliber 

weapons, which give them an 

advantage over any attempt at 

overpowering them. 

Recall that six days after the Chairman of 

Amotekun Corps in Oyo State, General 

Ajibola Togun ,retd, raised the alarm that 

some foreign herders were about to unleash 

terror on the six states in the South West, 

scores of gunmen attacked Igangan in 

Ibarapa North Local Government Area, 

killing about 20 people. The incident 

happened on June 6, 2021. 

However, to forestall a recurrence, 

Amotekun leaders in the South-West told 

Sunday Vanguard they are “battle-ready.” 

EKITI: Attackers can’t be 

confronted with Dane guns 

— Gen Komolafe 

The Amotekun Corps Commander in Ekiti 

State, Brigadier-General Joe Komolafe,retd, 

said the outfit is on top of the security 

situation in the state. 

He revealed that a lot would be achieved 

by the security network if they are allowed 

to bear arms by the federal government, 

adding that they cannot successfully secure 

the state with Dane guns as 

against AK-47 being used by 

herdsmen. 

He said:” No doubt, we 

have done a lot since our 

inauguration in Ekiti State 

last October. Although there 

were pockets of crimes 

during the period under 

review, it must be said that 

we have cleared our forest 

from the criminals. 

“ If you move around our 

major highways, you will see 

our men on patrol and we are 

arresting kidnappers in the 

forest and handing them 

over to the police for 

prosecution. 

“ Our personnel are ready 

to work but we need equipment and most 

importantly firearms. These will help us 

tackle and confront these criminals. We can’t 

do it with our bare hands. It is not possible 

because these people are always fully armed 

with sophisticated weapons.” 

Komolafe, however, said the expectations 

of residents from the security outfit were high 

given security challenges in their localities, 

calling on them to provide timely 

With the recent 

attack in Igangan, 

all Commanders of 

Amotekun Corps in 

the South West had 

a meeting and we 

resolved to workhand-in-hand 

to 

prevent recurrence 


information on strange 

movements and happenings in 

their domains. 

According to him, the job of 

modern-day policing across the 

world has gone digital, there is a 

need for the operatives to be 

equipped with modern-day 

technology to prevent and reduce 

crimes. 

OSUN: We’re 

working to prevent 

further attack in S/West 

–Retd Gen Adewinmbi 

Osun Amotekun Corps 

Commandant, Brigadier-General 

Bashir Adewinmbi , retd, said all 

states in the region are collaborating to 

ensure the Igangan killings never happens 

again in any state. 

He added that they are constrained by the 

inability to carry weapons. 

“We have been meeting and 

brainstorming on tactics and strategy to 

secure the region collectively and we have 

devised a means to do that and we are very 

aggressive about it. I am assuring you that 

once we launch our proactive tactics such a 

situation won’t happen again. 

“Our major challenge is the inability to 

wield weapons. These 

criminal elements wield 

sophisticated weapons, 

which gives them an 

advantage during invasion 

or attack. Nonetheless, the 

chief security officers in 

states, I believe, have been 

working towards ensuring 

that our personnel also carry 

weapons legally. 

“We have brainstormed 

and we have fashioned out 

how to rid the region of 

criminal activities and also 

criminal elements.” 

ONDO: ‘We are 

battle-ready’ 

Ondo State Amotekun Corps Commander, 

Chief Adetunji Adeleye said: “We need public 

enlightenment. Everybody should be 

vigilant. Members of the public should help 

the security outfits in the states. 

“We need quality information from 

members of the public. That is how we would 

be able to do our part of the job and use our 

network to attack those I will refer to as our 

oppressors. 

“As part of the strategy of Amotekun, we 

have farmers, hunters and traders that stay 

in the interiors. From them, we get first-hand 

information on happenings at the 

grassroots. We also have our intelligence 

men in plainclothes that give us valuable 

information on happenings across the state. 

“We are battle-ready. I want to say that we 

are finding a lasting solution to the incessant 

friction between herdsmen and farmers in 

our state. Now, in Ondo, any farmer whose 

farms or crops are destroyed by cows or 

herders must be compensated. And this has 

greatly reduced the frequent clashes 

between herdsmen and farmers in the state. 

“We are optimistic that no criminal 

element shall trouble the relative peace 

being enjoyed in the state. 

“ I make bold to say that we have 

improved the security situation of the state 

from what it was in the last few months, 

especially in the area of incessant quarrels 

between farmers and herdsmen, 

kidnappings and armed robberies. I think 

the situation is a lot better.” 

Challenges 

Adeleye said the security outfit is 

gradually overcoming the shortage of 

manpower. 

According to him, over 500 personnel 

were recruited recently while 

the state 

government 

donated about 

20 vehicles for 

the operation 

of the 

Amotekun 

Corps. 

“We want to 

be better 

equipped. The 

s t a t e 

government is 

stretching 

itself to 

sustain us. We 

give kudos to 

them but we 

still want 

more. And to the federal government, we 

want them to empower us to be able to face 

the security challenges by providing the 

same kind of sophisticated weapons that are 

allowed for other security agencies” 

Adeleye, however, appealed to governors 

in the region to work towards ensuring that 

Amotekun Corps personnel are armed. 

“In Ondo State, we have appealed to 

Governor Rotimi Akeredolu and he is aware 

of our constraints. He is trying to solve the 

problem.’’ 

OGUN: We’re preventing 

influx of killer herders, 

others—Akinremi 

On his part, Commander of Amotekun in 

Ogun State, Mr. David Akinremi, said: “ 

Since the Amotekun was inaugurated in 

Ogun State in April, herdsmen attacks on 

villagers and farmers in the state, especially, 

in the Yewa area of the state have reduced to 

the barest minimum. 

“With the recent attack in Igangan, all 

Commanders of Amotekun Corps in the 

South West had a meeting and we resolved 

to work-hand-in-hand to prevent recurrence 

of the ugly incident. 

“For us in Ogun State, proactiveness is 

our watchword because our operatives are 

on the ground to check the influx of the 

herdsmen and other criminals in any part 

of the state. 

All Amotekun units in the zone are 

working together to curb criminality. I just 

came back from a meeting with other 

Commanders of Amotekun in the zone, and 

part of our resolution is to ensure that our 

borders are properly secured with 

Amotekun personnel so that each time we 

have an issue in any state, we will be able to 

handle it. 

“For us in Ogun State, Governor Dapo 

Abiodun has approved the training of more 

personnel to cover additional seven local 

government areas and by the time we cover 

seven additional areas, we would have 

covered three quarter of the entire state. 

“As we all know, security is everybody’s 

business and we must all join hands to ensure 

a safe environment. I want to appeal to our 

people to see Amotekun as their own. They 

should collaborate with us. 

“We must be able to provide security for 

our people and that is what everybody is 

committed to. The state is committed, the 

governor is committed and we are 

committed to ensuring that our people sleep 

with their two eyes closed. We appeal to our 

people to give us credible information so 

that we can do it together.”


WORSENING INSECURITY: 

Kaduna, Benue, Niger, 

Borno struggle over 

three million IDPs 

By Peter Duru, Makurdi, Wole 

Mosadomi, Minna, Ndahi 

Marama, Maiduguri and 

Ibrahim HassanWuyo, Kaduna 

10 years of insurgency in the North- 

East, raging banditry in the North- 

West and armed herdsmen menace in the 

North-Central have left on their trail millions 

of displaced residents, according to Sunday 

Vanguard findings. 

The displacement comes with the attendant 

huge financial and material resources borne 

by government and humanitarian agencies to 

cater for victims. 

For instance, although about one million 

residents displaced in Borno State, the hotbed 

of the Boko Haram insurgency in the North- 

East, have returned home following the 

restoration of peace in their parts of the state, 

the state government continues to struggle with 

the upkeep of at least one million other 

Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) because 

there is no enabling environment to return to 

their ancestral homes. 

There are 31 official IDP camps in the state. 

In essence, the number could be more if 

unofficial camps are added. 

Reports from Kaduna State say whereas 

there are no officially designated IDP camps 

in the state bogged down by banditry, there 

may be no fewer than one million IDPs 

scattered across the state. 

Benue is contending with 1,000,007 IDPs sent 

packing from their ancestral homes by 

suspected armed herdsmen while, whereas 

there were no official figures on IDPs in Niger 

where bandits are on the rampage, sacking 

residents at will, sources said there may be 

nothing less than 500, 000 IDPs harbored by 

their different host communities in the state. 

Borno 

Borno, which bears the greatest brunt of 

insurgency in the country, initially has a total 

of over two million IDPs, mostly women and 

unaccompanied children from Northern, 

Central and Southern Senatorial Districts. 

But with the liberation of some communities 

and quite a number of IDPs relocating back to 

their ancestral homes, over a million of IDPs 

are still living in camps. 

The National Emergency Management 

Agency (NEMA), it was learnt, has been doing 

a lot, distributing food and non-food items 

monthly to the IDPs in addition to other 

humanitarian assistance from sister agencies. 

Although Governor Professor Babagana 

Umara Zulum had said government would 

close all IDP camps in Borno on or before May 

29, 2021 to allow inmates go back to their 

ancestral homes, the move may not be 

realistic, considering renewed terror attacks 

on communities in the last one month which 

caused huge displacement. 

Zulum, bemoaning the challenge of taking 

care of the IDPs while flagging off the 

distribution of food items donated by an NGO 

(Baba For All) linked to President 

Muhammadu Buhari at Muna IDP camp, 

Maiduguri, said the state government was 

doing its best, adding that the task was huge 

for government alone to handle, hence all 

hands must be on deck to address the challenge. 

“When I took over the mantle of leadership, 

we inherited a total of two 

million IDPs”, he said at the 

occasion. 

“Presently, we have 25 

formal camps and 35 nonformal 

camps. On a serious 

note, government is finding 

it very difficult to provide 

food for this quantum 

number of our IDPs”. 

Kaduna 

Reports from Kaduna 

State say whereas there are 

no officially designated IDP 

camps in the state, there 

may be no fewer than one 

million IDPs scattered 

across the state. 

These are people 

displaced by the Southern 

Kaduna conflict and attacks 

by bandits. 

Officials of the State 

Emergency Management 

Agency (SEMA) revealed 

that there are no officially designated camps 

for IDPs, saying the one previously used as 

camp had been given to the military to house 

female soldiers now providing security on the 

dreaded Kaduna- Abuja highway. 

On how government is taking care of those 

that were internally displaced in communities 

across Kaduna, the officials said they had been 

integrated into their host communities while 

government relates with them through Local 

Emergency Management Committees at the 

local government level. 

Sunday Vanguard learnt that SEMA 

officials get quarterly updates on the IDPs 

from the Local Management Committees’ 

Benue is 

contending with 

1,000,007 IDPs 

sent packing 

from their ancestral 

homes 

by suspected 

armed herdsmen 

officials. 

Since the IDPs are in the local communities 

either with relations or other caring citizens, 

their health concerns are taken care of by 

Primary Health Care facilities. 

The government is, according to officials, 

discouraging the setting up of IDP camps in 

the state because of alleged atrocities 

committed in such camps. 

Donations from NGOs and other groups 

reach the IDPs through local government 

officials and traditional leaders. 

The Federal Ministry of Agric and the 

National Commission for Refugees have been 

donating foodstuff to the IDPs who relocated 

from communities at Birnin Gwari, Giwa, 

Chikun, Kajuru and other troubled areas of 

Kaduna. 

Niger 

In Niger State where 15 

of the 25 local government 

areas have been taken over 

by bandits, there may be no 

less than 500, 000 IDPs 

scattered in different parts 

of the state. 

Worst hit are Shiroro, 

Munya, Rafi, Mariga, 

Paiko and Mashegu local 

government areas. 

Because of the incessant 

invasion to these 

communities, residents 

have either been ejected 

from their ancestral homes 

by banditry or they 

voluntarily fled to the 

various IDP camps in the 

state. 

As of now, there are five 

camps in Niger located in 

Kuta, Gwada both in 

Shiroro LGA, one in Rafi, headquarters of Rafi 

LGA, and one each in Maikunkele, Maitumbi 

in Bosso and Chanchaga LGAs respectively. 

The one at IBB Primary School in Minna, 

the state capital has been merged with the one 

at Gwada. 

Officials said the state government had not 

relented in its responsibility of catering for the 

inmates though resources may not be enough 

due to cash crunch. 

Religious organizations, including Christian 

Association of Nigeria (CAN), and individuals 

have been playing supportive roles in providing 

various items, including foodstuff, water, 

detergents and beddings, to assist inmates. 

No doubt, the camps are faced with 

numerous challenges, including 

accommodation, feeding, deficiency in 

provision of health facilities and lack of 

conveniences like toilets. 

Because the camps are not permanently built 

to take care of emergencies, schools are mostly 

used and are grossly inadequate. 

No fewer than 30 to 40 people are clustered 

in each of the classes available including 

children. 

Water is rationed with no essential drugs to 

cater for the sick and other emergency cases. 

In other words, the inmates are left in the 

“hands of God” for their survival. 

Because of lack of adequate security at the 

camps, the store where foodstuff and other 

essential commodities are kept for the inmates 

in Gwada was burgled few hours after delivery 

sometime ago. 

In an exclusive interview with our 

correspondent, the Director General of Niger 

State Emergency Agency (NSEMA), Alhaji 

Muhammad Inga, said the exact number of 

those in various IDP camps in the state could 

not be determined. 

According to him, people in the camps keep 

rising every day. 

“We have a lot of security challenges and 

government is making efforts to make peace 

prevail in the camps for the people until they 

return to their ancestral homes”, Inga said. 

“If I give you figures today, in the next one 

hour, the figure might change and that is why 

we don’t have the exact number of people in 

the various camps. 

“We are lucky that despondency has not set 

in and that is why we are managing the 

situation professionally because in IDP camps, 

you have to be careful to know the best strategy 

to adopt to avoid crisis because if despondency 

sets in, it will be a bigger issue to manage”. 

Benue 

In Benue, since 2018, shortly after the New 

Year’s Day massacre in Logo and Guma LGAs 

and the subsequent attacks that followed in 

the days and months after, the state has been 

challenged by IDPs sacked from their ancestral 

homes by suspected armed herdsmen who the 

people believe are on a mission to take over 

Benue land. 

While the attacks raged, the state government 

was compelled to open official IDPs camps 

for the displaced and presently the officially 

recognized camps in the state are seven. 

Aside the official camps, IDPs also reside in 

host communities since the facilities in the 

camps lacked carrying capacity for all the 

displaced persons at a time. 

Then there are the unofficial camps where 

people have also sought refuge. 

According to records obtained from the 

Benue State Emergency Management Agency, 

SEMA, in the official and unofficial facilities 

or camps we have records of inmates who 

moved into the safe haven in 2019, 2020 and 

2021. 

A breakdown of the 2019 record of IDPs 

showed that Abagena camp has 8,210 IDPs 

while the Abagena host community is home to 

7,691 inmates. Daudu Camp 1 (UNHCR 

Shelter) has 5,451 IDPs, Daudu ll has 20,172 

while Gbajimba camp is home to 29,500 

inmates. 

Others are Anyiin camp with 7,466 inmates, 

Ugba camp with 3,080, Abeda camp with 

2,668 while Abeda host community has 22,948 

IDPs. 

Agan camp has 4,798 inmates while the host 

community is home to 5,517 IDPs. 

Agatu is home to 65,347 IDPs, Angwan 

Ochonu has 4,951 IDPs, Anyiin community 

has 65,496 IDPs, Daudu community is home 

to 43,344 inmates, FHA camp has 4,353 IDPs, 

and Gbajimba community is home to 28,875 

IDPs. 

Gwer West has 60,243 IDPs, Ichwa 9,587, 

Kwande 9,465, LDEA NASME 23,151, LGEA 

Tyodugh has 5,672 IDPs, NEPA Qtrs 8,008, 

Ogiri Ajene 9,506, Okpokwu 4,080, Tionsha 

20,500 and Ugba community is home to 8,651. 

The total number of IDPs living in official 

and unofficial camps and host communities 

since 2019 is 483,692. 

The number of those displaced as a result of 

herdsmen attacks as updated in June 2020 is 

75,811 and a breakdown of the figure indicated 

that Mbakunu (Kwande) is home to 2,951 IDPs, 

Mbaper (Kwande) is hosting 1,602 IDPs, Iyon 

(Kwande) has 489 inmates and Jato Aka/ 

Nyihemba (Kwande) has 37,675 IDPs. 

Others are Ogere (Obi) 17, 858, Torkula 

(Guma) 817, Agasha (Guma) 1,502, Kaseyo 

(Guma) 652, Ikponko (Guma) 712 and 

Uikpam (Guma) is home to 11,554 IDPs. 

These figures, updated in December 2020 as 

a result of sustained attacks by armed herders 

in more communities, indicated that more 

communities in Guma like Uleva community 

is host to 13,855 IDPs, Iye community is hosting 

16,578 displaced persons and Tse Akenyi 

community has 22,873 IDPs. 

Logo has Iorja community hosting 14,000 

IDPs, Tse Akpam community 11,369 and 

Igbatim community with 16,541 inmates. 

In Makurdi, there are 18,000 IDPs in Imande 

Akpu community while Tse Chagu community 

is playing host to 6,000 IDPs. 

The total number of persons displaced in 

2020 as a result of sustained attacks on Benue 

communities by suspected herdsmen militia 

Continues on page 27


Kaduna, Benue, Niger, Borno struggle over three million IDPs 

Continued from page 26 

is 205, 027. 

Meanwhile, the statistics of displacement 

as a result of further attacks on several 

communities in Benue in 2021 showed that 

Guma LGA, Uikpam IDP camp is home to 

27,222 persons, Yogbo community hosts 

19,911 persons, Udei community hosts 20,932, 

Ortese community harbors 17, 654, Umenger 

has 19,277 while Yelwata community is host 

to 17,00 IDPs. 

In Gwer West, Naka community harbors 

23,070 IDPs, Aondoana community has 

15,171 while Tyoughtee community has 

19,888 IDPs. 

In Makurdi, there are 16,865 IDPs in Atson 

community and 11,987 in Anter community. 

Logo is harboring 13,065 in Tse Agure while 

1,765 IDPs are in Tse Akau Akpor community. 

Konshisha, where a military operation 

recently took place to recover the weapons of 

the soldiers slain by bandits, has 5,958 IDPs 

in Gungul community. Agidi community is 

home to 1,143 IDPs, Aku community has 

3,852, Adoka community has 702, Bonta 

2,250, Gbinde community 1,548, Tse Anyon 

1,512 and Guleya Community is home to 

2,142 IDPs. 

In Oju LGA, Ukpute community is host to 

1,954 IDPs while Agatu LGA has 10,981 IDPs 

in Okokolo community, 21,098 in Obagaji, 

10,400 in Aila, 12,091 in Odugbeho and 

11,850 are harbored in Oweto communities. 

The total figure of people displaced in Benue 

communities in 2021 alone is put at 311,288, 

bringing the overall number of IDPs in Benue 

to a grand total of 1,000,007. 

As mentioned earlier, these IDPs are from 

different communities of the state including 

Kwande, Okpokwu Guma, Makurdi, Gwer 

West, Logo, Oju, Konshisha and Agatu LGAs 

who were attacked and sacked from their 

ancestral homes by suspected 

armed herdsmen. 

However, those of Konshisha 

were sacked from their homes 

after a military operation to 

recover the weapons of the 

soldiers slain by bandits in the 

area. 

According to the Executive 

Secretary of Benue SEMA, Dr. 

Emmanuel Shior, since the 

displacement of these persons, 

the state government took it 

upon itself to ensure that the 

needs and security of the IDPs 

were catered for. 

He explained that the efforts 

of government is being 

complemented by NGOs, 

public spirited individuals and 

groups who have been 

providing food, shelter, medical, water 

sanitation and hygiene activities in the camps. 

“Regrettably, the Federal Government has 

not shown enough commitment to the welfare 

of the IDPs leaving the state government to 

grapple with the overwhelming challenge of 

catering for the IDPs,” he said 

The Executive Secretary also pointed out 

that quantifying the worth of government’s 

intervention in the camps in terms of Naira 

and Kobo may be difficult but it runs into 

millions of Naira monthly. 

On the challenges in the 

camps he said, “the 

challenges we have in these 

camps are that of food, 

security and health issues. 

“But I must acknowledge 

that we have some 

international and local 

organisations supporting the 

government have been doing 

so in the areas of water supply, 

health, including WASH.” 

On the issue of outbreak of 

diseases in the camps, he 

clarified that the camps had 

not recorded any of such 

because inmates were 

receiving adequate medicare 

from partners and the state 

government. 

“But our worry at the 

moment is that of security in 

the camps. In all the camps, IDPs are 

entertaining fears of being attacked due to 

the recent attack that happened at the Abagena 

When Gov Abiodun showed love for children 

Birthdays are momentous occasions 

celebrated for sundry reasons. But 

Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo 

Abiodun, believes an occasion of one’s 

birthday should be used to rethink life and 

purpose of existence as well as to share genuine 

love and bond with the people, especially the 

vulnerable and less privileged. 

Abiodun, who celebrated his 61st birthday 

on May 29, 2021, holds firmly to this guiding 

principle and despite his very busy schedule 

and high-pressure work environment, he never 

detracts from using such special time to serve 

the cause of humanity. He did again last 

Saturday when he spent time at an orphanage 

where he donated food items to its children in 

celebration of his birthday. 

The governor’s birthday, which coincides 

with the second year anniversary of his 

administration, is significant in many ways 

and family members, friends, political 

associates and well-wishers were determined 

to roll out the drums. However, the celebrant 

in his charismatic leadership and 

thoughtfulness chose to devote his day to bring 

succour to the needy. 

Recall that last year when he clocked 60 at a 

time the COVID-19 pandemic was prevalent, 

Abiodun adopted a low-key approach to mark 

the twin celebrations of Diamond birthday 

and first anniversary in power. Then, he 

announced the opening of two designated 

bank accounts for friends and well-wishers to 

channel resources meant for gifts, kind 

gestures and projects for onward delivery to 

the less privileged. 

This year, on the occasion of his 61st birthday, 

an excited Abiodun visited the Stella Obasanjo 

Children’s Home, Abeokuta where he 

presented various foodstuffs, beverages, 

toiletries and other essential things and also 

inaugurated the computer section of the 

orphanage. It was an auspicious moment to 

give hope to the younger ones and inspire them 

•Gov Abiodun 

for a brighter future. 

The governor was accompanied to the 

orphanage by some members of the State 

Executive Council and senior government 

functionaries. 

In his remarks, Abiodun admonished the 

children not to be discouraged by their 

circumstances and current conditions but 

rather brace up to pursue their respective 

aspirations. He urged them not to settle for 

anything less in the course of pursuing their 

dreams. 

According to him, what matters most is for 

the children to improve themselves towards 

achieving their set goals and never mind their 

beginning. 

He said, “It is not important how you started; 

whether you are in Stella Obasanjo’s Home 

or whether you are in juvenile correctional 

No fewer than 

30 to 40 people 

are clustered in 

each of the 

classes 

available 

including 

children 

centre. What is more important is for you to 

determine that you are going to improve 

yourselves. 

“Because of that, I have brought you 

computers for your computer library for you 

to begin to learn. Let me assure you that all of 

you will be very great. But you must be 

determined to be good children. Listen to the 

counsel of all your aunties and make sure that 

you do what they tell you to do. I want to thank 

you for allowing me to come and spend my 

birthday with you.” 

In further demonstration of his love for the 

children, Abiodun promised that, henceforth, 

each of them would be 

presented with befitting 

gifts to mark their 

respective birthdays. 

His words: “I have 

been in office for the past 

731 days in Ogun State. 

Despite the pandemic 

and all that has 

happened, God has 

preserved our lives. I was 

determined to come and 

spend a great part of the 

day with you. I am so 

happy and I feel very 

fulfilled to have come 

here. 

“I had wanted to come 

here on different 

occasions but I could not 

because of all the 

pressures of office. But I 

thought there would be 

The governor’s 

birthday, which 

coincides with 

the second year 

anniversary of his 

administration, is 

significant in 

many ways 

no better opportunity to come here than today. 

“Before I came, I had consulted with the 

Honourable Commissioner for Women 

Affairs and Social Development for what your 

needs are. I will instruct the Commissioner to 

send the birthdays of all of you. So, on each of 

your birthdays, I’m committing that I will now 

IDPs camp. So there are fears of possible 

attacks in the camps at the moment”, the 

SEMA boss said. 

“In fact some of the IDPs, out of fear, look 

for where to sleep in the host communities for 

fear of being victims of another herders’ 

attack”, he said. 

Suspected armed herdsmen had, at the 

wee hours of April 27, 2021, invaded the 

Abagena IDPs camp in the outskirts of 

Makurdi town, killing seven inmates. 

The attack, which took place at about 

2am, also left many of the nearly 20,000 

traumatized IDPs with serious injuries. 

That invasion almost sparked a reprisal 

by angry Benue youths who recovered the 

remains of the slain IDPs and laid them 

on the busy Makurdi-Lafia highway 

threatening to avenge their death. 

They also demanded to be allowed to 

carry AK47 rifles to defend themselves just 

like armed herders. 

It took the personal intervention of 

Governor Samuel Ortom to prevail on the 

angry youths to sheath their swords. 

After convincing the youths, the 

governor appealed to President 

Muhammadu Buhari to take decisive 

action against armed herders who had 

been accused of unleashing mayhem on 

innocent Nigerians, warning that the 

people were not convinced that he was 

doing enough in that regard. 

ensure that I send a birthday present to each 

of you on every birthday of yours. 

“I may not be able to come here in person 

but I will endeavour to ensure that I send a 

birthday present to encourage you and I will 

continue to monitor your progress. Every now 

and then, I will come and check on you.” 

The governor, who restated the commitment 

of his administration to improving the welfare 

of children of the Stella Obasanjo’s Home, 

also announced the donation of a brand new 

bus to the orphanage. “I’m sure that between 

now and sometimes next week, that bus will 

be painted in the colour you want and it will 

be delivered to you,” he declared 

to the admiration of his audience. 

The governor also used the 

opportunity to express deep 

appreciation to all that have 

showed love and solidarity 

towards him. He pledged to 

continue to deliver on his electoral 

promises, run inclusive 

administration and be prudent in 

management of state resources. 

Amidst cheers and solidarity 

songs, Abiodun commissioned the 

computer section of the 

orphanage for the use of the 

children. The new facility was well 

equipped with internet-enabled 

desktop computers, monitors and 

other accessories. 

Earlier in her welcome address, 

the state Commissioner for 

Women Affairs and Social 

Development, Mrs Funmi 

Efuwape, had thanked the governor for his 

kind gestures and positive disposition to the 

welfare of orphanages and juvenile institutions 

in the state. She also acknowledged his support 

for the activities of the ministry and prayed 

God to continue to strengthen him. 

SMARTPHONE: A creative nod to the selfie culture 

S 

martphone maker, Tecno, recently 

launched one of its trending devices 

the ‘Tecno Camon 17Pro’ into the 

Nigerian mobile market. 

The device which comes with a long 

list of added values, updates and features, 

is to add colour to the bourgeoning 

smartphone market. 

The brand has shown sincerity in 

understanding their consumers’ need, 

seeing that the pandemic era has 

amplified people’s need for documenting 

personal memories. 

Apparently, in respect of the fashion 

consciousness of Nigerian mobile phone 

users, Tecno has specifically added 

unique ingredients in the colour variants 

of the device that will give Selfie 

aficionados the courage to clutch any of 

them. Tecno Camon 17 has a 48MP AI 

Selfie camera and 90 Hz super-high 

refreshing rate at 6.8-inch FHD Screen. 

It is no surprise that the social 

phenomenon of selfie has gained 

momentum, and has become central to 

how people express themselves and keep 

in touch with the world; “I guess that is 

why TECNO’s Camon 17 Pro stood out to 

me,” says one of the band users who has 

testified to its brand quality. 

“It seemed to me like they were the first 

brand to put this behavioural shift into 

focus and offer a solution backed by the 

brand’s usual innovation and sweet price 

range,” remarked another Techno brand 

enthusiast. 

Having a peep into the wonderful features 

that come with Techno Camon 17Pro, one 

thing that comes to mind first is the imposing 

48mp A1 Selfie camera device. The selfie 

camera is one of the highlights of the phone. 

The 48 MP selfie camera elegantly 

captures the beautiful details, even adding 

a professional finish. The embedded 

artificial intelligence (AI) technology’s 

algorithms elevate the pictures by 

identifying features based on gender. The 

algorithms also adjust the surrounding light 

to make a focal point of the shot, while the 

wide selection tools help to personalize the 

images. It also conceals blemishes and hides 

the dark circles around faces. 

Another feature is the ‘TAIVOS’ 

technology. This feature which stands for 

TECNO AI Vision Optimization Solution 

provides users with an unprecedented visual 

experience, especially in low-light 

environments. TAIVOS filtered out the 

image noise of my pictures quite nicely and 

optimized the images’ clarity. The result of 

that was a photo with enhanced night 

photography effects. TECNO has carried 

out much research to incorporate better 

technology on the Camon 17 Pro. And it 

shows how grand the camera solutions are 

on the device. 

Here are some of the other features: 

Elegant Appearance with both Aesthetics 

and Functionality. The 6.8-inch 1080x2460 

FHD display of the Camon 17 pro provides 

incomparable clarity and is a feast for the 

eyes. Every edge feels sharper, and every 

colour is brighter. These worked together 

to get me truly immersed in the highdefinition 

video and intense games. The 90 

Hz super-high refreshing rate offers a 

smooth, snappy, and refreshing experience. 

The appearance of the device was 

constructed with ample consideration of 

both practicality and aesthetics. 

TECNO made use of light and shadow, as 

well as accurately crafted nanoscale 

textures. The device comes in distinct 

California dream silver and Malibu blue 

colours. Its ergonomic design for easy hold, 

slim body and adjusted edges gives it a great 

look. 

Other features are the long-lasting battery 

and peak performance. Camon 17 Pro 

offers users the performance they deserve. 

Animations are smoother, games are more 

immersive, and networking is faster. The 

Media Helio G95 Processor contains an 8- 

core CPU with Hyper Engine game 

optimization, making it TECNO’s fastest 

chip yet, and at the same time still providing 

exceptional performance. Network 

optimization with the prediction engine allows 

for WIFI/LTE concurrence so my connection 

remained uninterrupted while gaming. 

With an enormous 5000mAh battery, you 

do not have to worry about your phone dying 

during crucial moments. Furthermore, the 

TECNO CAMON 17 Pro comes with fast 

charging so, the TECNO CAMON 17 Pro 

will be ready to leave when you are. 

User-Focused OS 7.6 System. TECNO 

prioritised privacy with the Camon 17 Pro. 

The device allows users to use fingerprints to 

lock apps away and keep data as secure as 

possible. The phone also comes with a privacy 

film that ensures only the user looking directly 

at the screen can see what is being shown. 

Its One-click blockbuster feature allows the 

users to pick from professional templates 

to create dynamic and exciting albums.

PAGE 28—SUNDAY VANGUARD, JUNE 27 , 2021 

INSECURITY: Nigeria’’ll over 

vercome, Oyadotun, 

ex-Lagos State Church Chaplain, assures 

ormer Chaplain of 

FLagos State Church of 

the Light, Alausa, Ikeja, 

Lagos, Very Reverend Ayo Olu 

Oyadotun, has urged 

Nigerians to pray, fast and 

reflect on the security 

challenges facing the country, 

expressing hope that they 

would soon be overcome. 

Making this remarks at the 

2021 Annual Harvest Launch 

and Thanksgiving Service at 

Moreplex x TV introduces lease option 

Pay tv provider, More 

plex TV has come up 

with Lease Option and a 50 

percent discount as it embarked 

on promo to make for 

availability of its decoder in 

the market. 

The Lease Option package 

enables customers to get a 

Moreplex TV decoder with 

N1,000 and start paying 

instalmentally for the decoder 

over a period of 16 

months. 

According to the Chief Executive 

Officer of Moreplex 

Rot 

otar 

ary y Club of Ovwiandonate stree 

treet t lights to Ovworhokpokpor community 

By Jimitota 

Onoyume 

otary club of Ovwian 

Runder District 9141 of 

Rotary international has donated 

street lights worth thousands 

of naira to Ovworhokpokpor 

community, Udu local 

government area, Delta 

State. 

President of the Rotary 

club of Ovwian, Rotarian 

Jonathan Akatakpor while 

donating the solar lights and 

other equipment to the community 

said the service club 

was determined to add value 

to rural communities, adding 

that the people should maintain 

the facilities. 

President of Ovworhokpokpor 

Community, Felix 

Ogami thanked Rotary club 

Former President, Cathedral Men's Fellowship, 

Dr. Tamunomieibi Wakama (l), presenting a 

plaque of a posthumous award to the son of the 

Proprietor Sauki Hospital, the late Dr. Godwin 

Ajakpo, Gilbert 

From left: A former Chaplain, Lagos State Secretariat, Very Revd Ayo 

Olu Oyadotun, Assistant Chaplain, the Light Bearers, Wesley Cathedral 

Olowogbowo, Lagos, Sis Dorcas Solubi, Chief Launcher, 2021 Annual 

Harvest Launch of the Church, Prof Adewale Solarin, Chairperson, 

Harvest 2021 Planning Committee, Sis Toyin Egbesola, and the Presbyter, 

Very Revd John Olanrewaju Solubi, during the 2021 Annual Harvest 

Thanksgiving Launch of the church. 

From left: Secretary, the Light Bearers, Wesley Cathedral Olowogbowo, 

Lagos, Bro (Prince) Adesegun Akintoye; new Matrons of the Society, Sis 

Abbah Mensah and Sis Tokunbo Johnson; New Adviser, Sis Janet 

Sanyaolu; Asst. Chaplain, Sis Dorcas Solubi; Matron, Sis Olaide Sawyer, 

and Very Revd John Olanrewaju Solubi, the Church Presbyter, during 

the 2021 Thanksgiving Service of the Light Bearers Society, held in Lagos. 

This generation of Nigerians lacks ks godly role models, Anglican Primate e tells father 

athers 

By Abayomi Adeshida 

rchbishop Metropoli 

Atan, Primate of All Nigeria 

and Bishop of Abuja, 

Most Rev. Henry Ndukuba, 

has urged fathers to be godly 

role models for their children 

by making Jesus their 

standard so they can live 

lives that would please God 

and raise a generation that 

would do things with the 

fear of God. 

In a sermon titled ‘2021 

Fathering Sunday: Word 

from The Primate’, which he 

delivered at the Cathedral 

Church of The Advent, Anglican 

Communion, Abuja, 

last Sunday, the Primate 

reasoned that the surest way 

to find lasting peace in the 

society is starting from 

peace in the family. 

“As we celebrate, I exhort 

all our fathers to make 

Christ their standard, stand 

in faith, walk in obedience 

and live to please God. 

What this generation lacks 

in the world is godly role 

model”, he said. 

“Therefore, our men must 

rise to become the alternative 

to what is being paraded 

among the celebrities 

and politicians in the social 

media and the popular culture”. 

In a chat with Sunday 

the Light Bearers Society, held 

at the Wesley Cathedral, 

Olowogbowo, Lagos, 

Oyadotun, however, called for 

sober reflections, urging 

Nigerians to love one another 

and shun sin. 

According to him, since 

nothing is too big for God even 

with the rising cases of 

kidnapping, banditry and 

terrorism, the nation would 

overcome. 

TV, John Okorocha, “Moreplex 

TV is for us in Nigeria 

and it must be available for 

every Nigerian that’s why we 

are coming up with different 

customer friendly promo that 

enable our brand of pay TV 

decoder gets to every home” 

he said 

“Aside the Lease Option, 

there is 50percent discount on 

instant purchase of our decoder, 

instead of N16,000, customers 

pay N8,000 and go 

home with the decoder. Also 

the customers get the dish and 

LND at N4,500 instead of 

UAA wants Urhobo native as PTI boss 

A 

socio-cultural group, 

Urhobo Advancement 

Agenda, UAA, has kicked 

against an alleged attempt to 

foist a non-Urhobo indigene 

as the substantive CEO of PTI, 

“despite the overabundance of 

core Urhobo professionals 

eminently qualified for the 

position.” 

The group in a statement by 

its National President, Mr 

Theophilus Akpocha said: 

“The Urhobo have over the 

years been grossly 

marginalised in the 

appropriation of the nation’s 

commonwealth in the midst of 

playing host to enormous 

revenue resources, oiling the 

wheel of growth and 

development of the country. 

of Ovwian for the kind gesture. 

“ We are grateful to you 

for this modern infrastructural 

development to our 

Ovworhokpokpor inspite of 

the current challenges facing 

our dear country. “, he said. 

He said the street lights by 

Rotary was the first in the area, 

assuring that they would maintain 

them. 

Speaking further, Ogami 

appealed to the state government 

to give the area good 

roads, pleading that Rotary 

club of Ovwian should also 

join in appealing to the state 

government for the road. 

“ Our roads are extremely 

in bad condition for decades, 

government should 

come to our aid. Government 

should give Ovworhokpokpor 

roads and other adjoining 

Communities “, he said. 

He explained that 

Nigerians are expected to be 

God’s light bearers in 

thoughts, words and actions 

as well win new souls 

through the propagation of 

the word of God. 

Highlights of the day were 

donations from the Chief 

Launcher, Professor Adewale 

Solarin, and the decoration 

of newly appointed officers, 

including the grand patron 

of the society, Kemi Thomas. 

N6,000. We embark on all this 

to make sure that every Nigerian 

has access to our pay 

TV.” He explained. 

“On our decoder is a free 

to air sports dedicated channel 

named Top Sports TV, the 

sports tv is bringing top 

matches into Nigeria homes, 

it has started broadcasting 

live matches of Brazilian 

Championship, Seria A 

since May 29 and it will continue 

to broadcast live Euro 

2020 tournament till July 11 

when the tournament comes 

to an end. 

“UAA is using this medium 

to call on the appropriate 

authorities in the succession 

management of the institute 

to ensure that the pool of 

qualified candidates of 

Urhobo extraction is duly 

accorded the Right of First 

Refusal as it is done in other 

notable federal institutions in 

the country.” 

President of the Rotary Club of Ovwian, 

Rotarian Jonathan Akatakpor (left) making 

donations to the community. 

Vanguard after the service, 

a member of the church, Dr. 

Kayode Ajulo, noted, “I wish 

that the sermon delivered today 

by the Primate is circulated 

among all fathers in 

the world. 

“He was very correct when 

he pointed out that the greatest 

gift we have are people 

and not things, especially 

our fathers. Fathers occupy 

a very strategic place in the 

purpose of God for our time 

and generation”. 

During the service, the Primate 

performed the rededication 

ceremony of the Executive 

Members of the Cathedral 

Men’s Fellowship 

led by its President, Mr. Ayo 

Ipinmoye. 

The first engagement of 

the body was the announcement 

of N500, 000 

scholarship for indigent 

students in the cathedral as 

well as the presentation of 

a posthumous award to the 

Founder of Sauki Hospital, 

Abuja and one time gubernatorial 

aspirant in Kogi 

State, the late Dr. Gabriel 

Ajakpo. 

From left: National Secretary, Foursquare Gospel 

Church in Nigeria, Rev. Yomi Oyinloye; Camp Board 

Chairman; Rev Hakeem Ogunniran; General 

Overseer, Rev Sam Aboyeji; Outgoing Chairman- 

2020/21 International Conference for Ministers and 

Leaders (ICML) Rev and Rev Mrs. Ben Taiwo and 

Incoming Chairman ICML 2022, Rev David 

Adetomiwa during the commissioning and handling 

over of Two Transformers at Foursquare Camp, Ajebo, 

Ogun State. 

The Most Rev. Henry Ndukuba (r) blessing the Executive Members of the 

Cathedral Christian Men’s Fellowship during special prayers for their 

dedication. 

Most Rev. Henry Ndukuba, flanked by the President Cathedral Christian 

Men's Fellowship, Mr. Ayo Ipinmoye (12th from the left), and the Sub 

Dean, The Ven. Dr. Benjamin Idume

Viewpoint 

By Femi Salako 

Politics of 2023 presidential election appears 

unpredictable as many political gladiators on 

the platform of the All Progressive Congress 

(APC) are already jostling to succeed President 

Muhammadu Buhari. Political power is 

understandably expected to shift to the southern 

Nigeria after President Buhari must have 

completed his two terms of office. This calculation 

is based on the unwritten agreement of 

rotational presidency between the North and 

the South. Undoubtedly, the leading and most 

popular of all the gladiators that are aspiring to 

occupy the number one seat of Nigeria on the 

platform of APC is Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. 

Aside being the National Leader of the ruling 

party, the former Governor of Lagos State 

was highly instrument in the formation of APC 

and eventual capturing of power from the PDP 

led government in year 2015. Realistically, 

BAT has the goodwill, widespread acceptance, 

political structure and financial wherewithal 

to clinch the presidential ticket of APC and still 

go ahead to win the presidential election. 

8th NASS and the oft-repeated false narrative 

By Abu Quassim 

Last Monday, Senate President, Dr. 

Ahmed Lawan dug up and waved the 

old defensive narrative about the performance 

of the Buhari administration in its first 

four years. While speaking to a youth conference 

in Abuja, he said “for four years (2015 - 

2019), our government could not perform optimally 

because of the then crisis between the 

parliament - the National Assembly and the 

executive arm of government... So APC had 

already lost four important years. And that 

was supposed to be the years we should convince 

Nigerians that they took the right decisions 

by voting out a PDP administration in 

2015”. 

The implication of that Lawan’s statement 

is that the All Progressives Congress (APC) 

failed in its first four years in office and could 

not live up to expectations of Nigerians because 

there was “crisis” between the National Assembly 

in which he himself was majority leader 

for two years, four months, 29 days and the 

Buhari-led Presidency. The statement 

summed up the oft-repeated narratives of the 

APC establishment and key supporters of President 

Muhammadu Buhari when they need 

to justify why Nigeria has gone upside down 

under the control of the party which promised 

the people heaven on earth in 2015 when 

it was campaigning to upstage the then ruling 

party, the PDP. 

Since the APC hierarchy has been mouthing 

this obviously dodgy and false narratives, a proper 

interrogation of the claim has not been made. 

Lawan’s resort to it last Monday has again 

brought it to the forefront and opened it for critical 

examination of the logic, factual basis and 

rationale. First, the narrative represents an internal 

contradiction within the APC leadership. 

While the narrative presupposes an admission 

of failure, below par performance and betrayal 

of the trust reposed on the administration by the 

people who voted for it in 2015 because they 

genuinely believed in its change mantra, it 

stands on the opposite lane against the belief of 

2023: Osinbajo as a credible alternative 

BUNI: Repositioning APC for results 

By Olise Enebeli Imegwu 

A 

serving member of the House of 

Representative who is supposedly the 

representative of Ndokwa people of Delta State 

in the Green Chambers of the National 

Assembly (NASS) has been creating animosity 

in a manner that suggests he is bent on 

destroying all the good people of Ndokwaland. 

I call him a bridge breaker over his activities 

lately. What an irony? Rather than be a 

consensus builder, he goes about his mandate 

as if he is a councillor representing only Ndokwa 

West LGA, his immediate constituency and 

neglecting the other 2 LGAs. His representation 

brings back the horrid tale of woes that date 

back to 1976 when Aboh Division was renamed 

Ndokwa LGA, later divided into the current 3 

LGAs. 

Chief Enuenwosu Osom etc of Ukwuani 

descent began the change in the 1970s. Since 

then it has been hope, patience, perseverance 

and disappointments for the rest of the tripod. 

The hopelessness is beginning is taking root 

in the biblical lesson of 1 Kings, 12:16, “When … 

the king hearkened not unto them…saying 

The narrative represents an internal 

contradiction within the APC 

leadership; while the narrative 

presupposes an admission of 

failure, below par performance 

and betrayal of trust 

By Akano Tirimisiy 

When Yobe State governor, Mai Mala 

Buni, was appointed as the chairman, 

Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning 

Committee of the All Progressives Congress, 

APC, there were questions as to how a 

sitting governor will combine running a state 

and the party. 

But today, Buni has proved cynics wrong as 

he combined both duties effectively joggling 

from attending to files, government officials 

and politicians alike. 

The long hours Governor Mai Mala Buni 

devotes to work, giving his personal welfare 

less time at a time became a matter of concern 

to his staff until they keyed into his style and 

got used to his momentum. They found out 

soon enough that they needed to shake off their 

usual government work-style lethargy to 

catch up with the governor’s business-like approach 

to tasks. Today, Buni has received endorsements, 

awards and vote of confidence 

from the people of the state and non-governmental 

organisations for executing people-oriented 

projects in education, healthcare delivery, 

agriculture, housing, road construction 

and economic recovery, among others. These 

projects and policies have a direct bearing on the 

lives of the people. 

Similarly, the budget discipline and implementation 

adopted by the Buni administration has 

earned the state the award of the second-best state 

in Nigeria in Capital Budget Expenditure performance 

by BudgIT, a civil society organisation 

that focuses on budget monitoring in Nigeria. 

Buni has, with passion and empathy, worked 

on result-oriented programmes to improve the 

standard and quality of education in the state 

through his famous declaration of emergency on 

education. He started the new advancement for 

education with the first-ever education summit 

in the state by assembling seasoned educationists 

under a committee headed by a suitably groomed 

scholar and education administrator, Prof. Malah 

Daura, the former Vice-Chancellor University of 

Maiduguri and current Vice-Chancellor Yobe 

State University, to chart a more rewarding course 

for the sector. 

The recommendations by the committee on 

Inasmuch as these permutations look strongly 

favourable for Bola Tinubu, it should also be 

noted that some forces within the APC are already 

plotting to stop his emergence as the party’s 

candidate. It has even been argued in some 

questers that Asiwaju has since transmuted to 

a kingmaker; and it is a general belief that kingmakers 

are never known to have become kings. 

In spite of cold political calculations that may 

not not be to the advantage of Bola Ahmed Tinubu, 

one thing that cannot be taken away from 

the highly cerebral and smooth operating politician 

is the fact that he is always a step ahead 

of his detractors. While his detractors appear 

fixated on working against his next political 

ambition, the Jagarban Borgu is also expected 

not to have gone to bed without giving serious 

thoughts to all possible options available to him. 

Without doubt, one quality option that is 

available to Asiwaju Tinubu and indeed the 

APC in 2023 is the Vice President, Professor 

Yemi Osinbajo. The intellectual and legal genius 

may not be politically savvy like other 

gladiators, however, his competence has readily 

make up for whatever he may perhaps be 

lacking as a career politician. He has evidently 

demonstrated capacity to competently administer 

the affairs on Nigerian nation on several 

occasions. Osinbajo had on severally seized the 

opportunity of the president’s medical visit to 

the United Kingdom to proved his competence 

and leadership acumen to all Nigerians. 

Osinbajo has left no one in doubt of his ability 

to skillfully and expertly manage the nation’s 

affairs whenever his boss travels abroad for 

medical check up. The fact that the Vice president 

is eminently qualified and highly experienced 

to succeed his boss should not be argued. 

As a lawyer, Osinbajo became a Senior Advocate 

of Nigeria at a fairly young age. He had 

later served for eight years as Lagos State Commissioner 

for Justice and Attorney General. He 

has also been in the saddle as Nigerian Vice 

president since year 2015. 

the provision of adequate and appropriate infrastructure 

and instructional materials, qualified 

teachers, and other necessary incentives to propel 

the development of education in the state was 

matched with a strong political will and adequate 

financing by the Buni administration. 

In no distant time, the results started manifesting 

with an unprecedented performance by Yobe 

students in the West African Examination Council 

(WAEC). For the first time, the state set a record: 

725 candidates passed WAEC with distinctions 

and credits in all the nine subjects; 2,530 candidates 

passed with distinctions and five credits and 

above, including mathematics and English; 

8,042 candidates passed with credits and passes 

in English, while 7,008 others passed with credits 

and passes in Mathematics. 

At the inception of his administration, Governor 

Buni pledged to establish a functional primary 

healthcare facility in each of the 178 political 

wards in the state. Two years after, 94 of the 178 

had been completed, equipped and provided with 

manpower. 

The administration also upgraded four comprehensive 

health centres to General Hospitals, 

and four General Hospitals to Specialists Hospitals 

while the state’s Teaching Hospital was provided 

with state-of-the-art equipment. 


President Buhari and some of his top officials who 

believe the administration had done excellently 

well in the last six years. In fact, the latter group 

believe the Buhari administration had done so 

much that no government since the creation of 

Nigeria in 1914 had done as much to rebuild the 

nation. Obviously, Lawan does not subscribe to 

this latter view. Or is he just playing politics with 

facts? Second, are the facts available between 

2015 to date in support of the claim that the 

eighth National Assembly set back the Buhari 

presidency? There are still more questions. What 

exactly did the Eighth National Assembly do 

that held the Buhari government back from 

performing or delivering on his promises to Nigerians 

in its first four years, as the Senate President 

will want us to believe? 

Also, Senator Lawan should tell us what policies, 

programmes or initiatives the Buhari government 

took to the Eighth National Assembly 

that were rejected, obstructed or frustrated. 

Again, which revolutionary, brilliant and problem-solving 

bill or bills did the executive submit 

for passage by the Eighth National Assembly 

but was rejected or that the legislators refused to 

pass? We also need to be reminded or convinced 

that the Eighth National Assembly rejected any 

loan request by the Presidency, thereby depriving 

it of the needed fund for development. I cannot 

remember any such loan request that was 

rejected. 

Again, one needs a reminder by Lawan and 

other APC sponsors of the ‘8th NASS is the reason 

for Buhari’s failure theory’ if the National 

Assembly (2015 - 2019) held back any approval 

for security spending in all its four years? I 

remember the National Assembly at that time 

coming up with different suggestions and having 

different meetings with security chiefs to 

know what the problems were and how the legislature 

could help. Even at a time that President 

Buhari committed the impeachable offence 

of spending money to pay for the Tucano jets 

without parliamentary approval as requested 

by the constitution, the legislators only pointed 

out the infraction and ignored it. 

It will also be necessary for the APC establishment 

sponsoring the ‘blame our failure on the 

legislature’ narrative to tell Nigerians what 

appointment they made which would have 

helped to revive the economy, restore security, 

curb corruption and create employment but 

was rejected by the Eighth Senate. 

•Quassim is based in Abuja 

Continues on www.vanguard.ngr.com 

It will be recalled that Osinbajo had properly 

pilot Nigerian economy, strengthened the 

Naira and ensure security across the country 

in his capacity as Acting President while President 

was abroad for medical treatment. It 

should also be noted that Osinbajo demonstrated 

his firmness and capacity to the admiration 

of most Nigerians. One instance of this was 

when the Vice president promptly sacked Lawal 

Daura as the boss of Department of State 

Security (DSS) in August, 2018. 

Unknown to many people, Prof Yemi Osinbajo 

actually anchored the international conferences 

that led to the creation of strategic institutions 

such as the Independent Corrupt Practices 

Commission (ICPC), Economic and Financial 

Crimes Commission (EFCC), National Drug 

Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Federal 

Road Safety Commission and National Agency 

for Food and Drug Administration and Control 

(NAFDAC). 

•Salako is Publisher of Triangle News 

Media 


His policy of division of labour and teamwork, 

both in governance and politics, made the work 

much easier and successful. In the governance of 

the state, Governor Buni gave his appointees, 

especially the commissioners, the free hand to 

operate and contribute their skills, training and 

experience to the development of the state. 

Similarly, on the political scene, Governor Buni 

constituted various committees to handle various 

assignments irrespective of local factional 

politics of who belongs to what team in the state 

chapters. He is convinced that fairness and accommodation 

of all members will promote unity 

and cohesion within the party, and that is 

undoubtedly a winning approach: everyone feels 

a sense of belonging. 

On the political front, the political-cum-architectural 

wizardry of Governor Buni in re-arranging 

the blocks that built APC within such a short 

period, which saved the party from anarchy, 

disintegration and what seemed like an imminent 

extinction, was quite miraculous and heartwarming 

for all lovers of democracy and, in particular, 

members of APC. 

•Tirimisiy, a commentator on national 

issues, writes from Abuja 


AGRIC VARSITY: Ndokwa, Anioma union, a one-sided partnership? 

what portion… to your tents, O Israel, now seek 

thine own house…” Since then, Aboh, as a 

Kingdom, waned precipitously from when the 

towns in Ukwuani LGA such as Ezionum, 

Ebedei, Umukwata, Umuesumei, Umuti, Amai 

etc traced their origins to it. During this period, 

the Obi of Aboh, Oba of Benin and the Olu of 

Warri were the only kings who attended 

meetings in the Western Nigerian House of 

Chiefs. Series of other acts, in rapid crescendo, 

multiplied to ensure our descent to policy/ 

programmatic oblivion, and which of course, 

extended to the larger Ndoshimili people of 

Ndokwa East LGA. 

Ukwuani, as a dialect, became foisted on us 

without our consent. Still reeling from the 

wounds of the decades past, a neo-21st century 

ethnic cleansing scheme under the so called 

pastor who should be representing the people is 

rearing its ugly-hydra-head in Aboh, by 

extension, Ndokwa East LGA. 

It comes in the form of domination in our 

socio-economic-political-policy/programmatic 

sphere of government benefits. The noted 

oppressive and 

imperialistic 

attitude has 

been on-going 

since 2019 and 

reached its 

crescendo 

when the 

legislator, 

decided to take 

the obnoxious 

step of scuttling 

the establishment 

of the 

University of 

Agriculture 

and Technology, 

Aboh, 

Ndokwa East 

•Imegwu 

LGA. His reason is that it was not cited in his 

LGA, Ndokwa West. It is ironic that a PDP 

legislator elected into office by the our joint votes, 

would turn around to oppose a programme or 

policy supported by an APC-led Government of 

President Buhari and APC leadership in the 

National Assembly, led by Senate President, 

Senator Lawan Mohammed, Deputy Senate 

President, Senator Ovie Omo Agege and our 

own Distinguished Senator, from Oshimili 

North and the sponsor of the bill, Senator Peter 

Nwaoboshi. It is worth noting that the serving 

lawmaker is selfishness personified as his 

opposition arises from the fact that the said 

University of Agriculture and Technology was 

not cited in Ndokwa West LGA where he comes 

from and added to was that his personal ego is 

bruised going by the applaud received by 

Senator Ovie Omo-Agege. 

GREED! GREED! GREED! How many 

Tertiary institutions does Ndokwa West LGA 

wants to have? Presently, you have the School 

of Maritime Technology, and then, though 

private, the University of NOVENA and two 

other Polytechnics in Ndokwa West LGA. 

•Hon. Imegwu, former Speaker, Delta 

State House Assembly, writes from 

Aboh, Ndokwa East, LGA. 

Continues on www.vanguard.ngr.com


One year after, I still sit by Ajimobi’s tomb 

to take morning coffee — Widow 

*Says she stopped praying to God when she lost husband 

By Ola Ajayi, Ibadan 

Mrs Florence Aji 

mobi, widow of 

the late former 

Governor of Oyo State, Senator 

Abiola Ajimobi, has 

said that one year after the 

death of her husband, she 

still sits by his tomb to take 

morning coffee. 

The widow made this 

known in a tribute she wrote 

to mark one year anniversary 

of the passage of her husband 

which held at the International 

Conference 

Centre, University of Ibadan 

on Friday. 

She said, “I won’t lie that 

it has been easy to ‘move on’, 

as a lot of people have advised 

or would expect. He is 

the love of my life, moving 

on won’t be a walk in the 

park for me, but I am willing 

to take things one day at 

a time. 

“ When I visit our home in 

Ibadan, it has become a routine 

for me to sit by his tomb 

and take my early morning 

coffee. The fact that I know 

he is there with me makes 

me happy and I plan to relish 

these moments.” 

Ajimobi died on June 25, 

2020 at a Lagos hospital and 

was buried June 28, 2020 at 

the family’s Ibadan home. 

Revealing that it was painful 

that both of them never 

discussed death in their over 

40 years as a couple, the 

former first lady said they 

both tested positive for coronavirus 

on May 20, 2020. 

Recalling the great moments 

they had together, Mrs. 

Ajimobi said, “ When my 

heartthrob, Biola, and I decided 

in 1980 that we were 

ready to get married after a 

very short friendship of six 

months, I was very excited. 

Believe me, we had the best 

relationship anyone could 

have asked God for in the 40 

years that we were together. 

“Unfortunately, loss, heartbreak 

and death are no respecter 

of persons. We watch 

dreams die, see people leave, 

lose their careers and even 

lose their loved ones but we 

never really know how it feels 

until we experience it ourselves”. 

“On the 20th of May, 2020, 

Biola and I tested positive 

with COVID-19 and we started 

our isolation at our Ikoyi 

home together, taking our 

medications and doing all we 

were advised to do by the doctor. 

“On the 26th of May, we 

both went to bed together but 

early in the morning of the 

27th, I had to rush him to the 

First Cardiology Consultant 

Hospital, in Ikoyi. You cannot 

even imagine my confusion 

because this husband of 

mine had never fallen this ill 

in our 40 years of marriage. 

Anyways, he got admitted 

and it became the beginning 

•Ajimobi 

of my journey without him 

around me. 

“Oh! I prayed like I had 

never done in my entire life. 

I must at this point commend 

my children and their 

friends who prayed tirelessly 

during this period. It was 

a period filled with fear and 

hope for me. I believed God 

was going to answer my 

prayers and bring my husband 

back home, but alas, 

on Thursday, 25th June, 

2020, loss came knocking on 

my door and my world 

stopped when I was told my 

other half had left me to be 

with our Maker. 

“I ran out of the house and 

headed straight to the hospital 

with a glimmer of 

hope for a miracle. When I 

saw my beloved husband 

on the bed, my heart was 

shattered. It dawned on me 

that my world had actually 

come to an end as my own 

best friend and the one who 

gave me strength was dead. 

I just could not take it in. 

How? Why? These were 

questions I asked every 

minute but none could answer 

me, no one could help 

me, it seemed like I was going 

crazy. 

“I went back home from 

the hospital and the place 

was filled with friends and 

family who had come to 

sympathize but none of 

them knew what was going 

on inside me. I was too confused 

to understand what 

was happening around me. 

On Friday, plans began on 

how to take him to Ibadan, 

Oyo State to be buried. I 

left for Ibadan on Saturday 

filled with shame because I 

felt that God had abandoned 

me despite my ‘supposed’ 

relationship with 

Him. 

“My trauma began as I 

stepped into our home in 

Ibadan for the first time after 

the incident. I went into 

our bedroom, laid on his 

side of the bed and I cried 

out my heart, calling unto 

Biola and praying that all I 

was going through was just 

a dream. That night, sleep 

eluded me as I tossed and 

turned on the bed throughout 

the night. I opened all 

his side of our wardrobes 

and kept talking to myself – 

honestly, I felt I was going 

insane or believed I was to 

think he was dead. 

“I longed to die..no thrill 

in life again” 

Continuing, she wrote further 

that she kept praying 

that God should just take her 

away to be with her soulmate. 

“During this period, I had 

stopped praying to God. I 

told God I did not want His 

help anymore since He took 

the one person I cherished 

the most away. When pastors 

or my friends came to pray 

with me, I looked at them as 

time wasters. Sometimes, I 

was filled with hatred for 

them – why would they be 

talking about God who 

didn’t hear me when I 

prayed and cried unto Him 

to spare the life of Biola? 

“The loss of a loved one 

hurts, and learning to live 

with it is a long, difficult but 

necessary process. What I 

have learnt and can tell you 

for free is this; in our loss and 

grief, we can feel so alone 

and isolated, but God never 

leaves us when we hurt. He 

actually promised to be 

close to us and bandage us 

Faces at the event as captured by Dare Fasube 

up in tough times. 

“I was filled with so much 

sadness and pain that I went 

to bed every night praying 

not wake up in the morning. 

When I woke up next morning 

I asked myself, ‘you are 

up again?’ Then finally, the 

mandatory Islamic mourning 

period came to an end. 

My fear after the mourning 

period became how to start 

going out to face people, still 

carrying my load of shame 

and failure. 

“My Biola was unique. 

Talking about him makes 

me happy and thinking 

about him gives my heart joy. 

To be honest, it is the only 

thing that has made me 

smile lately, besides my wonderful 

children, of course. 

After a while, I felt some sort 

of relief or so I thought until 

we had to celebrate the first 

ILEYA (an elaborate Islamic 

celebration) without him. 

ILEYA was normally a big 

celebration for us as a couple 

and family. I was hoping 

I’d wake up from the dream 

of him being dead and he 

would ask me for his new 

outfit for the celebration. It 

was not a dream. He was really 

gone and we had to celebrate 

without him. It did not 

feel the same. It would never 

feel the same without him. I 

cried bitterly on that day and 

went to his tomb asking him 

amidst tears why he left me? 

“You know, there’s really 

no timeline for how long 

grief and pain last. One really 

does not know how or 

when he or she will find closure. 

I will be honest with 

you, I still feel like I am in a 

rollercoaster. One minute 

I’m feeling strong and confident, 

next minute, I am 

overwhelmed with grief but 

I am grateful for the good 

and bad days”. 

Mrs Florence Ajimobi and children 

From right: Mrs Ajimobi and former Governor Adebayo Alao-Akala of 

Oyo State among others. 

Governor Dapo 

Abiodun of Ogun 

State (left) and Minister 

of Internal Affairs, 

Ogbeni Rauf 

Aregbesola. 

From left: 

Representative 

of the 

wife of the 

President, 

Hajia Aishat 

Rimi; wife of 

the Vice President, 

Mrs 

Oludolapo 

Osibajo, and 

Mrs Ajimobi. 

From left: Dr Mrs 

Nike Akande, a former 

Minister of Indusry, 

Chief Folake Solanke 

(SAN) and Chief Mrs 

Priscilla Kuye.

Barcelona negotiate with Messi’s father 

over new contract 

Barcelona are push 

ing for Lionel Messi 

to sign a new contract 

before his current deal 

runs out on July 1 with 

the club’s president, 

Joan Laporta said to be 

holding talks with the 

Argentine’s father. 

Contrary to reports, not 

everything has been 

agreed, but in the past 24 

hours the club has raised 

the level of urgency 

shown in previous 

weeks, with a desire to 

announce the agreement 

before the start of next 

month. 

Messi’s contract renewal 

is new president 

Joan Laporta’s main priority 

and he is currently 

negotiating it directly 

with Messi’s father and 

representative, Jorge 

Messi. 

To be able to keep the 

Argentine, the club will 

have to reduce their 

wage bill by around 

200m euros (£172m) and 

to meet La Liga’s Financial 

Fair Play requirements. 

Laporta is happy to offer 

the 34-year-old a new 

two-year deal. 

Barcelona think Messi 

would like to go to Major 

League Soccer in the 

USA after the Qatar 

World Cup in 2022, although 

they would love 

to see him return to the 

club after that in any role 

or capacity of his choosing. 

Hearn confirms Sept 25 for Joshua, Usyk fight 

*Joshua and Usyk 

A 

N T H O N Y 

JOSHUA is set 

to face Oleksandr Usyk 

on 25 September, Eddie 

Hearn has confirmed. 

Joshua, the WBA, 

WBO and IBF heavyweight 

title holder, was 

due to have an all-British 

heavyweight showdown 

with Tyson Fury 

this summer but a legal 

ruling in the United 

States derailed a proposed 

fight in Saudi Arabia 

on 14 August. 

An arbitration hearing 

upheld a claim from fellow 

heavyweight Deontay 

Wilder that he was 

contractually owed a 

third fight with WBC 

champion Fury, with 

Joshua then labelling his 

countryman a “fraud” on 

Twitter. 

It means Joshua will 

now face Usyk in September, 

while Fury will 

take on Wilder to complete 

a trilogy of fights 

between the two on 24 

July. Victory for both 

Britons would set up an 

undisputed-title bout. 

“Joshua v Usyk announcement, 

don’t want 

to say [I’ll announce it in] 

two weeks as you guys are 

bored of me saying that,” 

Hearn said on Instagram 

live. 

“25 September is the 

date.” It is likely to take 

place at Tottenham 

Hotspur Stadium. 

Usyk, 18-0(13KOs), is 

the former undisputed 

cruiserweight champion 

and, like Joshua, won 

Olympic gold at London 

2012. The 34-year-old is 

coming off the back of a 

points win over Joshua’s 

fellow Briton, Dereck 

Chisora. 

Runsewe advocates sports as catalyst for Nigeria’s 

socio-economic devt 

The Director-Gener 

al, National Council 

for Arts and Culture 

(NCAC), Otunba Segun 

Runsewe has urged use 

of sports and culture to 

create a positive image 

for Nigeria. 

Runsewe told the 

News Agency of Nigeria 

(NAN) that sports, especially 

Nigerian Olympians 

were the greatest asset 

to rebranding the 

country. 

The NCAC D-G disclosed 

this on the sidelines 

of the Nigeria 

Olympians Association 

(NOA) banquet award in 

Abuja. 

He stressed the need to 

leverage on Nigeria’s 

great sports heroes to 

transform the country. 

“Our Olympians are 

the greatest asset that 

has helped this country 

in so many areas and 

sectors. 

“I am worried because 

after the civil war, our 

then leaders said we 

should take two brands 

sports and culture to 

unite us, but we seem to 

be neglecting it,” he 

said. 

Runsewe who decried 

the lack of proper welfare 

for both serving and retired 

athletes, called for 

a more robust approach 

to sports development in 

the country. 

He maintained that 

sports if properly managed 

could lead to massive 

employment of Nigerian 

youths and reduction 

in crime rate across 

the country. 

“Today (yesterday), so 

many of our sports men 

and women are forgotten 

and not taken care of. 

“Do you know with 

sports, crime can be reduced 

drastically in Nigeria, 

do you know with 

sports we can build a 

new image for this country. 

“Our greatest problem 

is that we don’t celebrate 

our best,” he added. 

Runsewe emphasised 

the need for states and 

local governments to 

compliment efforts of the 

*Runsewe 

Federal Government in 

making sports a tool for 

socio-economic development 

of the nation. 

He said the NCAC 

would continue to partner 

with relevant stakeholders 

to rebuild and relaunch 

Nigeria into global 

reckoning. 

England wants Southgate beyond 2022, says 

FA Chief 

Regardless of how En 

gland’s European 

Championship campaign 

ends, or even the team’s 

showing at next year’s 

World Cup, Gareth Southgate 

will be staying in the 

*Bullingham 

*Messi and dad 

coach’s job for years to 

come. 

If the England team leadership 

has its way, at least. 

Southgate is rated so 

highly that the Football 

Association already wants 

to extend his contract beyond 

2022. 

“He knows that we think 

he’s doing a great job,” FA 

chief executive Mark Bullingham 

said Friday at England’s 

St. George’s Park 

training center. “We would 

love him to carry on, for 

sure, beyond this contract.” 

For now, the priority is 

England’s match against 

Germany on Tuesday in the 

round of 16 at Euro 2020. 

But the expectation is 

Southgate will still be in 

charge for Euro 2024. 

“Our support is unwavering 

… we are 100% behind Gareth,” 

Bullingham said. “We’ll 

get into that formal (contract) 

conversation after this tournament. 

But if you ask me 

now I’d say yes we’d like him 

to carry on.” 

Southgate has restored the 

reputation of the England 

national team from the lows 

of a humiliating Euro 2016 

exit against Iceland in the 

round of 16 and the ignominy 

of Sam Allardyce’s brief 

tenure. Allardyce, whose 

brashness and unguarded bar 

talk forced the FA to part company, 

lasted only one game as 

Roy Hodgson’s successor. 

SUNDAY Vanguard, JUNE 27, 2021, PAGE 31 

Qatari sprinter killed in 

car crash 

Qatari sprinter Abdale 

lah Haroun, who 

won bronze in the 400m at 

the 2017 World Championships 

in London, has died 

in a car crash aged 24. 

Qatar Athletics Federation 

chairman Mohammed 

Issa al-Fadala said Haroun 

was killed in an incident in 

Doha. 

Haroun also won silver at 

the World Indoor Championships 

in 2016 and gold 

at the Asian Games in 2018. 

“Qatar sports and athletics, 

on a global level, lost a 

great hero,” said al-Fadala 

Ḃorn in Sudan, Haroun 

first represented Qatar in 

2015. 

His finest achievement 

was world bronze in 2017, 

finishing behind South African 

winner Wayde van 

Niekerk and Steven Gar- 

*Haroun 

diner of the Bahamas. 

A year later he won double 

gold at the Asian Games 

in Jakarta, adding a 4x400m 

relay title to his solo success. 

He failed to make it out of 

his heat at the 2019 World 

Championships in Doha 

and had been in rehabilitation 

from injury and seeking 

to qualify for this year’s 

delayed Tokyo Olympics at 

the time of his death, according 

to al-Fadala. 

Transfer: Sivasspor begin 

talks with Etebo’s agents 

Sivasspor have started transfer talks with the repre 

sentatives of Super Eagles midfielder Oghenekaro 

Etebo. 

According to Various reports in Turkey, Sivasspor manager has 

set his sights on landing the Nigeria midfielder, who featured on 

loan at Galatasaray last season. 

The Turkish Super Lig club, who finished outside the Top-4 this 

past campaign with Nigeria striker Olarenwaju Kayode, are considering 

a permanent or loan deal for the hard working Etebo. 

The former Warri Wolves star has a contract with England Championship 

side Stoke City till 2023. 

He has also played at Getafe in Spain on loan. 

Galatasaray off-load two Nigerians 

after Onyekuru decision 

After a decision by a new management not to buy 

Henry Onyekuru, Turkish Super Lig giants Galatasaray 

are set to part ways with the Nigerian pair of 

Jesse Sekidika and Valentine Ozornwafor. 

According to media reports in Turkey, Galatasaray 

currently have 12 foreign players in their team, but Turkey 

Football Federation’s new rule says they can’t have 

more than eight in their squad. 

Valentine Ozornwafor, who played only eight minutes 

last season and debuted for the Super Eagles recently, 

and Jesse Sekidika are surplus to requirements 

at the Istanbul club. 

Sekidika played on loan at Konyaspor last season 

and may still be sent out on loan for next season, while 

Ozornwafor’s contract may be terminated if they cannot 

secure a loan deal for the central defender. 

The fate of yet another Nigeria star, Oghenekaro Etebo, 

is unclear after he spent the past season on loan 

from English Championship side Stoke City. 

Benitez gunning for Everton 

return 

Rafa Benitez is on the verge of an extraordinary return to 

the Premier League by signing a deal with Everton this 

weekend, making him the first man in modern history to manage 

at both Liverpool and Everton. 

Owner Farhad Moshiri is convinced that Benitez, who is 

considered among the most-iconic former Liverpool managers 

having won the Champions League for the club in 2005, is 

the best coach to take Everton into the Champions League and 

is ready to ignore the objections of some Evertonians who object 

to the club appointing such a revered Liverpool manager. 

Not since William Edward Barclay in the 1890s, who was 

part of the original foundation of Everton and then the later 

breakaway Liverpool club, has anyone crossed the city divide 

to manage both clubs. 

Moshiri and Benitez have met and are both enthused with 

the idea of turning Everton into a Champions League team. 

Assuming the last contractual details can be tied up, an announcement 

will be made next week. 

*Benitez

SUNDAY Vanguard, JUNE 27, 2021 

SEE SOLUTION PAGE 5 

Printed and Published by VANGUARD MEDIA LIMITED, Vanguard Avenue, Kirikiri Canal, P.M.B.1007, Apapa. Advert Dept: 01- 7924470; Hotline: 01-4544821; Abuja Advert Hotline: 09-2921024. 

E-mail website: sundayvanguard@yahoo.com, editor@vanguardngr.com, news@vanguardngr.com, sunvanguardmail@yahoo.com. Advert:advert@vanguardngr.com. Internet: www.vanguardngr.com 

(ISSN 0794-652X) Editor: WALE AKINOLA 08023145556. All correspondence to P.M.B. 1007, Apapa Lagos.

27062021 - Kaduna, Borno, Niger, Benue strruggle over 3 million IDP

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