The Trumpet Newspaper Issue 649 (May 14 - 27 2025)

TheTrumpet
Africans now have a voice... Founded in 1995
VOL 31 NO 649 MAY 14 - 27 2025
Art dealer
pleads guilty
to Terrorism
Act offence
Keir Starmer gives press conference on migration.
(Photo - 10 Downing Street, CC BY-NC-ND)
Oghenochuko Ojiri
Keir Starmer’s
immigration
plans: research
shows you
don’t beat the
far right by
becoming them
By Katy Brown, Manchester Metropolitan University
Continued on Page 3>
An art dealer from London –
53-year-old Oghenochuko
Ojiri, has become the first
person to be convicted of a specific
offence under section 21A of the
Terrorism Act 2000 in the United
Kingdom (UK).
Ojiri had been charged
following an investigation into
terrorist financing by officers from
the National Terrorist Financial
Investigation Unit, part of London
Metropolitan Police’s Counter
Terrorism Command.
He appeared at Westminster
Magistrates’ Court and pleaded
guilty to all the charges. He will be
sentenced at the Old Bailey on
Friday, 6 June.
Following authorisation by the
Crown Prosecution Service (CPS),
he was charged with eight counts of
failing to make a disclosure during
the course of business within the
regulated sector, contrary to section
21A of the Terrorism Act 2000. The
charges relate to a period from
October 2020 to December 2021.
He was first arrested on
Tuesday, 18 April 2023 in Wales.
The charges relate to the sale of art
to Nazem Ahmad who had been
sanctioned by the UK Treasury,
suspected of financing Hezbollah, a
terrorist group proscribed by the
UK Government. He was
sanctioned by the US Treasury in
2019.
The investigation was carried out
in partnership with the Office of
Financial Sanctions Implementation
in HM Treasury, HMRC, and the
Metropolitan Police’s Arts and
Antiques Unit.

Page2 TheTrumpet MAY 14 - 27 2025
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News
MAY
14 - 27 2025
TheTrumpet
Keir Starmer’s immigration plans:
research shows you don’t beat the far
Page3
Continued from Page 1<
As British Prime Minister Keir
Starmer vowed to “finally take
back control of our borders” in
a landmark speech on immigration on
May 12, it felt a little like déjà vu.
Some nine years earlier, we had
heard those exact words repeated over
and over in the build-up to the Brexit
right by becoming them
Referendum from former Prime
Minister Boris Johnson and the Leave
campaign. It was a refrain also used by
Nigel Farage and UKIP.
Of course, this direct reference was
the point. Starmer used it to claim that
the Labour government’s White Paper
on immigration was finally going to
deliver on what had been promised and
desired for many years.
In these opening lines, the tone was
set. And as the speech went on, there
were echoes of far-right language and
ideas reverberating throughout. Starmer
lamented the “squalid” state of
contemporary politics, the “forces”
pulling the country apart, and the
previous government’s so-called
“experiment in open borders”.
This speech and the White Paper
that it unveiled are but the latest
indication of the rightward direction of
travel within UK politics, led by
mainstream and far-right parties alike –
as exemplified in recent months by the
footage released of immigration raids
and deportations.
Some will argue this is Labour’s
Continued on Page 4<

Page4
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TheTrumpet Team
PUBLISHER / EDITOR-IN-CHIEF:
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MAY 14 - 27 2025
response to the rising threat of Reform
UK, with results in the recent local
elections seen as evidence of the far
right’s growing popularity. So the story
goes, Labour is proving that they can
News
Keir Starmer’s immigration plans:
research shows you don’t beat
the far right by becoming them
Continued from Page 3<
Another component of the speech
that was reminiscent of far-right tropes
was the idea that increased immigration
was a deliberate tactic by the previous
government. Starmer suggested that the
Conservatives were actively pursuing a
“one-nation experiment in open
country, immigration topped the list.
How can something that doesn’t affect
you in your day-to-day life suddenly
become a top priority for your country?
We need to challenge the narrative that
the government is simply acting on
people’s wishes and acknowledge its
own capacity to set the agenda.
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UK Home Office Immigration Enforcement vehicle North Finchley (Photo - Philafrenzy, CCA SA 4.0 Int)
be tough on immigration, showing
would-be Reform defectors that they
can be trusted after all.
This familiar narrative seems to
follow a prevailing wisdom which is
parroted in political, media and public
debates – that appeasing the far right is
the way to defeat it. Rather than beating
the far right at their own game,
however, research shows that these
techniques simply legitimise their key
talking points and further normalise
exclusionary politics.
Starmer’s speech is a case in point.
In using “take back control” from the
outset, there was no hiding the intended
audience or message. Starmer claimed
that this project would “close the book
on a squalid chapter for our politics, our
economy, and our country”, implying
that excessive immigration has directly
caused these problems and that
stopping it solves them. This chimes
with classic far-right narratives where
migration is framed as the root of all
societal ills.
When these kinds of ideas are
pushed by those in government, with
great authority and influence, they are
given greater credence and weight. A
strikingly clear example of this came in
the summer of 2024 when participants
in racist riots waved posters containing
the slogan “stop the boats” (a phrase
popularised by the previous Tory
government).
borders” while deceiving the British
public of their intentions.
Far-right conspiracies are often
premised on the idea that elites are
deliberately encouraging mass
immigration. It’s not hard to see how
Starmer’s words could act as a dog
whistle in this scenario.
These claims are especially
damaging when we think about the
draconian measures introduced under
former Conservative governments,
such as the Rwanda policy. Labour is
now indicating that these proposals
didn’t go far enough.
To justify bringing far stricter
immigration rules, Starmer stated that
“for the vast majority of people in this
country, that is what they have long
wanted to see”. As far-right parties so
often do, Labour suggests that they are
delivering on “people’s priorities”. Yet
are they really a priority for people, or
are we told that they are a priority
which then makes them more of a
priority?
Research by Aurelien Mondon,
Senior Lecturer in Politics at the
University of Bath, illustrates how
people’s personal and national
priorities differ dramatically. When
people in the UK were asked to name
the two most important issues facing
them personally, immigration didn’t
even make it into the top ten.
However, when asked the same
question about the issues facing their
Other priorities
Some will say that harsher antiimmigration
policies are a necessary
evil to defeat the far right. However, if
people’s personal priorities are really
the cost of living, housing and
education, why is the government not
focusing more of its energy on these
things rather than scapegoating
migrants?
What’s more, research shows that
even based on these terms, these
strategies are ineffective and can
actually boost the success of the far
right electorally. After all, its ideas are
being repeatedly normalised.
In all this tactical talk, we lose sight
of the fact that people are living the
consequences of this rhetoric and
policies right now. Rather than focus on
Reform’s potential performance in a
general election that is probably years
away, we should recognise the
immediate consequences of the rhetoric
that has accompanied this White Paper.
Even if this did put a dent in Reform’s
prospects, what is the meaning of
defeating them if the policies they
promote become part of the mainstream
in the process?
The bottom line is that you do not
beat the far right by becoming them. It
doesn’t work electorally or
ideologically, and even if it did,
minoritised communities suffer the
consequences regardless. The far right
is not some threat lying waiting in the
future – its normalisation is happening
now.
Katy Brown is Research Fellow in
Language and Social Justice at
Manchester Metropolitan University.
This article is republished from The
Conversation under a Creative
Commons license. Read the original
article
at:
https://theconversation.com/keirstarmers-immigration-plans-researchshows-you-dont-beat-the-far-right-by-b
ecoming-them-256499.

MAY 14 - 27 2025 TheTrumpet
Page5

Page6 TheTrumpet MAY 14 - 27 2025
Opinion
The Uromi 16 and the
problem with Nigeria
The killing last Friday of 16
Northern travellers along the
Uromi-Ubiaja road in Edo State is
an event that will live in infamy. Twentyfive
travellers from Port Harcourt going
home to the North, Kano specifically, for
the Eid el-fitri celebrations were
intercepted by vigilantes along the way
on the suspicion that they were
kidnappers and they were lynched to
death. There were 25 of them travelling
together, nine of them managed to
survive, but for the majority, it was an
encounter with death. Some of the
victims are from the Bunkura and Rano
Local Government Areas of Kano State,
mostly from Garko, Kibiya, Toronkawa
and Rano villages. The fallen victims had
wives, children and mothers. The men
were said to be hunters and they were
suspected by the vigilantes because they
were reportedly carrying dane guns, and
they had dogs with them too. It was a
tragic incident. Madam Sadiya Sa’adu,
for example, lost her son, her brother and
her nephew: “They were not criminals;
they were simply out to make an honest
living. My son’s blood must not be
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spilled in vain,” she said.
One of the victims, Abdullahi Harisu,
21, got married only four months ago. In
one account, the Edo Vigilante
Commander was said to have ordered the
killings. He had concluded that the
travellers were Boko Haram terrorists
and kidnappers. Three of them were
reportedly taken to the police station,
with the Vigilante Commander telling the
police that they had brought in
kidnappers. He then, in spite of the
police, instructed that the remaining
persons who had been apprehended
should be killed by the vigilantes. Now,
the people of Bunkura and Rano LGAs
are mourning. More orphans and widows
have been created. Nigeria happened to
the Uromi 16. When Nigeria happens to
you, it means literally that the State has
turned you into a victim of its many
imperfections, and justice may never be
done. In some other places in the world,
even when a person dies unjustly, the law
takes its course, but here in Nigeria, a
country of over 230 million persons,
when a whole village is razed to the
ground due to jungle justice, the media
would make righteous noise, the people
would oh and ah, and just almost
immediately, the country moves on.
Everything wrong with Nigeria is written
all over the Uromi tragedy. It is such an
irony that Uromi in that axis is the hometown
of prominent nationalist and
statesman Anthony Enahoro, and his
brother Peter Enahoro – the inimitable
“Peter Pan”, two brothers who
championed the ideals of national peace
and progress.
The Nigerian 1999 Constitution
guarantees the right to life (Section 33),
the right to the dignity of the human
person (Section 34) and the right to be
free from discrimination (Section 42),
and the right to the freedom of movement
(Section 41). The rights of the Uromi 25
to all these fundamental human rights
were brutally violated. Only a court of
law can determine that life be taken after
the accused person has gone through the
justice system and he or she has been
taken through due process, and fair
hearing has been allowed, and it is
established that a criminal offence,
punishable by death, has been committed,
as provided for in an existing law of the
Federation of Nigeria. But things have
gone so bad that vigilante groups of
different colours in all parts of the
country take the laws into their hands and
dispense jungle justice. The vigilante
group in Uromi reportedly went to the
police station. What did the police do? It
was the duty of the police to step in, and
not allow the vigilantes to inflict
punishment and commit murder. We
need to know the exact police station
where the complaint was lodged, who the
officers on duty were, and what exactly
was done or not done. Vigilantes telling
the police that they had arrested Boko
Haramists and kidnappers should have
prompted the police to intervene
immediately. They are definitely
complicit in the tragedy that followed by
their inaction. The least that the police
could have done was to establish whether
or not the apprehended persons bearing
dane guns have the required licenses
under the Firearms Act. The Nigerian
Constitution further talks about the duty
of the government to ensure the safety
BY REUBEN ABATI
and welfare of every citizen (Section 14
(2b) and says that every Nigerian can
move freely, reside in, and egress in and
out of every part of Nigeria.
The dangerous and painful reality that
we have seen in Uromi and elsewhere is
that this is never the case. It is possible
for a Nigerian to leave home in the
morning, but the road is forever lying in
wait, hungry and ravenous, cruel and
unkind, either in form of bad roads,
dangerous, unlatched container trucks,
tankers bearing toxic and flammable
cargo that could fall over at the mere rush
of saliva, or armed vigilantes and other
criminals inflicting jungle justice and a
reign of impunity. This is so because the
State is in retreat. This is so also because
the State has been captured by
unscrupulous elements. The emergence
of non-State actors, otherwise called
vigilantes or by whatever other
appellation, is one of the responses to this
failure. We are in a country where the
routine loss of lives, and the habitual
conflicts that have enveloped our lives,
have forced many to resort to self-help.
People have also lost faith in the State’s
institutions. They don’t trust the police
because they believe every policeman
can be easily compromised. They doubt
Continued on Page 8<

MAY 14 - 27 2025 TheTrumpet
Page7

Page8 TheTrumpet MAY 14 - 27 2025
Opinion
The Uromi 16 and the problem
with Nigeria
Continued from Page 6<
the judicial system because they are
convinced that the courts no longer
dispense justice. They do not trust anyone
who does not speak their language. The
Uromi 25 were labelled and profiled as
terrorists and kidnappers because they are
from a certain part of the country – the
North, and yet there has been no report
that they were engaged in any act of
aggression, or violence that could be
considered suspicious. They were
travelling, they had dane guns, they
identified themselves as hunters
travelling back to the North. They were
citizens moving from one part of the
country to the other! They didn’t deserve
to die just because they spoke a different
language or looked different. The
problem with Nigeria is that ethnicity is
written into every fabric of social
interaction.
It is most unfortunate that this
happened, as the Ramadan, the Muslim
Holy month was ending, and Christians
were still observing the Lenten season.
Nigerians are a very religious people, but
they are also very hypocritical about their
faith. Most of the persons who murdered
the Uromi 16 in the early hours of Friday,
would have gone to the Mosque later in
the day, wearing the garment of piety.
Others would have been in church on
Sunday singing alleluia and asking their
Daddies and Mummies, the entrepreneurs
of Christianity, who sell salvation for
tithes, to pray for them. Both religions
teach self-discipline, comportment,
compassion and charity, but such virtues
are sorely missing in our land. The
leaders set bad examples. The followers
are worse. We harvest the collapse of
values and ideals in the needless mass
graves that we often dig, the cry of
orphans and widows, and the agony of
parents and communities. There is such a
yawning gap between private morality –
what we say to God and public morality
– what we do as citizens.
The bloodbath in Uromi has been
condemned by many including Waziri
Adamawa Atiku Abubakar, Senators,
members of the House of
Representatives, the Northern Elders
Forum, the Edo community in Kano, and
the Arewa community in Edo State. The
Governor of Edo State, Senator Monday
Okpebholo has since ordered the
suspension of all vigilante groups in Edo
State. He has suspended the Commander
of the Edo State Security Corps, CP
Friday Ibadin (rtd.). The State has also
disowned the vigilante group involved in
the dastardly act and commenced
investigations. Further, Governor
Okepbholo has paid a visit to the
Governor and the people of Kano State,
and the families of the victims to
commiserate with them. Fourteen
suspects have reportedly been arrested.
What this means is that the Governors of
both Kano and Edo States and the leaders
of the respective communities are trying
their level best to de-escalate tensions,
and ward off reprisal killings. There is
too much shared bloodshed in Nigeria.
This is what led to the counter-coup of
July 1966, and the eventual blow-out that
resulted in the three-year fratricidal civil
war, 1967 – 70. Till date, the civil war
has not ended. There has been no full
reconciliation. The biggest emergency in
the land is the spectre of revenge killings:
seen, with tragic consequences in
Southern Kaduna, Plateau State and the
entire Middle Belt, and as seen most
recently in the third week of March in
Ondo State, with the killing of five
farmers by persons described as
herdsmen. In Ondo State, two weeks
earlier, about 14 persons had been killed
in the same Akure North Local
Government Area. The killers, it was
claimed, infiltrated Ondo State, through
Edo State, and if we may stretch the
logic, there could be a connection
between the incident in Uromi last Friday
and the killings in Ondo State two weeks
earlier and what could come after in the
nearest future in an unending cycle death
and violence.
This is the real national emergency
that the Tinubu administration must
worry about. Insecurity in the country
and a growing culture of vengeance and
reprisal killings are the real issues that the
government of the day must tackle, to
stem the tide of imminent anomie, and
anarchy resulting in the threat of
disintegration. We survived the civil war.
No country can afford to have two civil
wars – the consequences would be
Aftermath of jungle justice on Uromi-Ubiaja Road (Photo - AI generated)
terrible. The interest of individuals or
specific groups relying on the advantages
of power and position should not
supersede that of the nation. There is
obviously a need to rethink the country’s
security architecture: what we have at the
moment is not working. It has failed to
work before now. It has no prospect of
working tomorrow. With over 200
million people, and just about 300,000
policemen, the country is grossly underpoliced.
The police are also underfunded,
and there are too many criminals
within the security sector. The police are
in fact, so overwhelmed and poorly
structured, that the military are often
called upon to do police work. What
would happen in the case of any external
aggression? The same soldiers that have
been immersed in police habits and
culture would be the ones to defend
Nigeria’s territorial integrity. The police
should be restructured for efficiency and
performance. The police force, as it is
presently structured, cannot meet the
security needs of the country. The
emergence of groups like the vigilantes,
and regional quasi-police structures like
the Amotekun, Hisbah, Agunechemba,
and neighbourhood watch groups are
attempts to fill the gap and meet the
people’s needs. There is now a clear case
to be made for the creation of State
police, and even a National Guard. The
fact that an incident in Uromi or
elsewhere would require a convoluted
search for clearance and direction from
Abuja makes mockery of the urgency of
the crisis of insecurity that the country
faces.
The most unfortunate part of it all is
that Nigerians are quick to forget. There
is an evil spirit of selective amnesia upon
the land. Nothing shocks the average
Nigerian anymore. We have become so
numbed by State failure that once a
tragedy occurs, our defence mechanism
is to move on, carry on actually with life
as if nothing happened, as if nobody died;
like a people used to disaster, as in
Thomas Mann’s The Magic Mountain,
we seem to have developed a sympathy
for death. It is a horrible place to be – for
a country to be moving backwards, or at
best, paralysed, bereft of empathy, when
the rest of humanity is struggling to
advance. The death of the Uromi 16 must
not be treated like other cases before it;
the investigations must be carried out to
the letter, and the files must not
disappear, all the police officers involved
must not be transferred out of Edo State
until thorough investigations are done
and a report written; and the report must
not disappear, and due action must be
taken in this as in all similar cases.
Certain questions beg for answers: what
were hunters from Kano State doing in
Rivers State? Rivers is a fishing
community for the most part. Does
anyone fish with dane guns?
Other State governments must learn
from the tragedy in Uromi. It is colourful,
after a fashion, for Governors to wear
fanciful uniforms of auxiliary security
outfits in their States, inspect guards of
honour set up by untrained, ill-equipped
fancy brigades who have neither the
powers nor the intelligence to manage the
security situation in the State. More
Governors have learnt to dance on those
occasions, thinking that this is some form
of Nollywood entertainment. Meanwhile,
Nigerians have found themselves in a
situation where security is an issue, and
welfare is a nightmare - with more people
sliding daily into poverty. From whence
then, cometh our help?

MAY 14 - 27 2025 TheTrumpet
Page9

Page10 TheTrumpet MAY 14 - 27 2025
Opinion
Plateau, Tsiga and Trump
By Reuben Abati
“My brother, you do not look
cheerful at all.”
“I am just overwhelmed by
everything”
“Any personal issues? I hope
there is no trouble in paradise and
that Madam is still tolerating you.”
“Does she have an option? After
many years together, where would
she go? It is not even that. I am just
wondering how we ended up where
we are in this country. Who did we
offend as a people? We never seem
to get anything right.”
“Professor Chinua Achebe said it
long ago, in 1984, I think if my
memory serves me right, that
leadership is the problem with
Nigeria.”
“I have been hearing that for
decades, I beg. And nobody can find
any solution to this same problem. I
think the people are a bigger part of
the problem.”
“Bad leaders set bad example, the
followers will soon start behaving
like their leaders and then you have
bad followers and all things equal,
you get a bad society. What we need
is a complete moral re-armament, an
ethical revolution from bottom up, a
rediscovery of the values of old, and
a proper definition of what it means
to be a Nigerian”.
“Right now, I don’t even know
what it means to be a Nigerian”
“You have a national anthem that
talks about who we are.”
“That Nigeria We Hail Thee
actually says precisely what Nigeria
is not. A banner without stain. Go
and say that to all the families who
have lost their loved ones just
because they happen to be Nigerians.
In brotherhood we stand. Which
brotherhood. You and who? A
nation where no man is oppressed.
For where? Go and say that to the
people of Rivers State, Southern
Kaduna, Benue, or Plateau State, and
watch the kind of side eye people
will give you.”
“The story from Plateau is
particularly sad, unfortunate and
regrettable”
“That is the standard line from the
Nigerian government. Sad.
Unfortunate. Regrettable. But there
is no guarantee that more people will
not be killed again or that the State
will be able to apprehend the
criminals. Or that we will not wake
up and not hear about another
tragedy in any part of Nigeria. Was it
not the other day, 16 persons were
killed in Uromi, Delta State? Now
the killing machine has moved to the
Plateau. The Nigerian State is in
retreat. It is not serving its purpose.
Terrorists and kidnappers do as they
wish. People cannot sleep with their
two eyes closed.”
“Certainly not in Plateau State.
Just imagine what happened. The
terrorists attacked villages in Bokko
Local Government Area on March
28, set homes ablaze and disrupted
communal life. They were so bold
they returned on April 2 to wreak
more havoc. Between March 28 and
the second attack, the State could not
anticipate that the terrorists would
return. The State did not provide the
affected communities with security.
The people were left on their own, at
the mercy of the terrorists. Now the
people are wailing and counting their
losses in Ruwi, Hurti, Tadai,
Gwande, Manguna and Dafo”
“Are those people even terrorists?
I read that they made away with bags
of potatoes from the houses that they
attacked, and fled on the back of
motorcycles. Terrorists who steal
bags of potatoes!”
“There is hunger in the land.
There are Nigerians who will kill
because of a pot of soup. In some
local communities, you have to
padlock your pot of soup, otherwise
it could be stolen overnight! Serious
hunger crisis. That is how bad
Nigeria has become.”
Nigeria's National Security
Adviser - Nuhu Ribadu
“And look at how the State has
responded. The President has
condemned the killings. He has
directed the National Security
Adviser to visit Plateau. He, the NSA
says the perpetrators will be severely
punished. The State government has
expressed its condolences. Relief
materials have been promptly
provided for the affected
communities. Press statements.
Photo op. Television cameras. In one
Continued on Page 11<

Opinion
Plateau, Tsiga and Trump
MAY 14 - 27 2025
TheTrumpet
Page11
Continued from Page 10<
week, everyone will move on, until
the terrorists strike in another
community and State officials make
the same statements and we move
on. Nigerians are used to tragic
melodramas.”
“If I may play the devil’s
advocate though, I think it was good
optics that the NSA and the
Governor empathized with the
people”
‘Will that bring back the dead?
Will that stop terrorism, banditry and
kidnapping? The people of the
Plateau have not known peace for
more than two decades. What
difference will the routine visit of
State officials make? In fact, very
soon, these government officials
would become so overwhelmed,
they would not even visit any place
where there is an attack, be it in
Rivers, Southern Kaduna, Ondo or
the Niger Delta.”
“To buttress your point, look at
what nearly happened to the
Secretary to the Plateau State
Government, Samuel Jatau over the
weekend, on Sunday. He was on a
visit to Bokko, when the same
terrorists laid ambush for him around
Hurti community and opened fire on
his convoy. He had gone to the
community on Governor Caleb
Mutfwang’s instruction to deliver
relief materials.”
“Mark my words, when next
Jatau is sent on that kind of
assignment, he will find a diplomatic
way of advising his boss, the
Governor, to send another State
official, because he has been having
a cocktail of chest pain, food
poisoning and diarrhea and his
doctor has advised him to go on bed
rest! These terrorists and bandits in
Nigeria have no respect for
anybody.”
“You know they even go to
people’s homes and abduct them.
Brigadier-General Maharazu Tsiga
(rtd) was in his house in his home
town in Katsina when kidnappers
visited him on February 5, and took
him away. He and 18 other victims
spent 56 days in the kidnappers’ den.
They saw hell and hyena!”
“I have read General Tsiga’s
story - an interview that he granted.
This is the point. Not even a soldier
is considered a man of war by
training who could return fire for
fire. If kidnappers could pick up a
soldier who had served his county
just like that, tell me who that
ordinary Nigerian is, that criminals
can’t pick up.”
‘I have also read that the General
and other captives were rescued by
Nigerian soldiers of Operation Safe
Haven and were handed over to their
families personally by NSA Ribadu.
But I don’t believe that our soldiers
rescued them. The kidnappers for
example, placed a ransom of N400
million on General Tsiga’s head. His
friends, family, former colleagues,
serving and retired Generals had to
contribute the N400 million. They
even created a WhatsApp group
named TSIGA. When he regained
his freedom, nobody talked about
ransom being paid.”
“The Nigerian Government can
never admit publicly that it was
involved at any time in the payment
of ransom to non-State actors, who
have chosen to act as criminals. We
have a law: the Terrorism Prevention
and Prohibition Act of 2011, for
example. Mallam Ribadu says over
2,000 persons have been prosecuted
under that law. I think the State is
making an effort. You will recall that
when he was in the kidnappers’ den,
General Tsiga observed that his
abductors did not fear God, but they
became apprehensive whenever a
military aircraft hovered overhead
and they used them as human shield.
That should say something about the
efforts of the Nigerian security
system.”
“That security system must be
overhauled. There must be a rethinking
of the country’s security
architecture.”
“Should there be the declaration
of a state of emergency in Plateau
State, then, after all the people of
Rivers State are saying that what is
good for the goose is also good for
the gander. They argue that Rivers is
far more peaceful than Plateau, and
Benue where criminals, enemies of
the people of Agatu, have just rustled
over 200 cows. In fact, the Arewa
Consultative Forum (ACF) has
called for a state of emergency in
Plateau, Benue and other terrorprone
States.”
“No. No. No. What is going on in
Rivers State is problematic enough,
let us not mouth ideas that could
further complicate the situation.
Many Nigerians do not even know
what a state of emergency means.”
“But do you agree that nobody
needs to quote any law in this
matter? In simple straightforward
language, it is obvious that the
challenges of insecurity, hunger and
poverty deserve to be treated as
national emergencies. Government
must invest in social infrastructure,
secure lives and property, rebuild
public confidence and trust, and
restore hope, not by distributing
palliatives, but by giving the average
Nigerian an opportunity to have
every reason to be proud.”
“One thing you can say in favour
of the Tinubu administration though
is that they have never toyed with
that nonsense idea of buying Aso Ebi
for terrorists, and giving them pepper
soup, jollof rice and ice cream in the
name of rehabilitation.”
“The kind of things we have seen
in this country. You know that there
was a time some State Governors
were before our very eyes
exchanging diplomatic niceties with
terrorists and bandits. No. This
President Tinubu will never do that.
I may be speculating but I am
convinced he is a much more
capable and attentive President than
his predecessor.”
“Except that he is also going up
and down, and he spends too much
time in France. Does he have French
citizenship? Does he speak French?
What Dubai is to some people,
France is to Tinubu”
“I don’t know what languages he
speaks, but it is just that he comes
across as an improvement on the
man from Katsina, whatever the
skeptics may say.”
“Let him respect our rights as
citizens.”
“How?”
“Our right to speak. Our right to
assemble and protest, on any subject
of our choice.”
“I don’t think that has been a big
issue”
“It is for me. Where are you?
Yesterday, the police tear-gassed
protesters in Rivers and in Abuja.
The youths of Rivers State raised
their voice against the declaration of
a state of emergency, with a retired
soldier, acting as sole administrator
now controlling the resources of the
people. This is supposed to be a
temporary appointment. But you and
I know this country. When people
get a temporary appointment, they
will start praying that it shall become
permanent! You should know the
song: It shall be permanent…it shall
be permanent…what the Lord has
done… The only thing that can be
permanent is the rule of law and
democracy, not dictatorship. In
Abuja, angry, Take-It-Back youths
trooped out too. They were tear-
Continued on Page 13<

Page12 TheTrumpet MAY 14 - 27 2025

News
Plateau, Tsiga and Trump
MAY 14 - 27 2025
TheTrumpet
Page13
Continued from Page 11<
gassed! The police are too fond of
telling people not to protest. What is
that? Their job is to provide
protection for whoever wants to
protest, not to stop them. That is a
settled matter of law. ANPP v. IGP.”
“Bros., take it easy. Rule of law.
Democracy. This is Nigeria oh. This
is not America. You do anyhow, you
collect wotowoto.”
“Oh, that reminds me. I am sure
you saw the protests in the United
States across the country against
President Trump and Elon Musk.
Millions of pro-democracy
protesters trooped out to complain
about the Trump administration’s
hostile takeover of American
democracy, and attack on American
rights and freedoms. They want an
end to the billionaire take-over of the
US. Democracy not oligarchy.
Hands off, they told President
Trump. There were protests also in
London and Paris. Trump has
launched an assault against every
fundamental thing that America is
known for. Freedom. Rights. Free
trade.”
“Just be careful. Let the
Americans who voted for him be the
ones to condemn him. In case you do
not know, the Trump administration
has been cancelling people’s visas to
the US. You talk carelessly, you can
even be banned from entering the
United States.”
“America was known as the land
of freedom, until Trump’s second
coming.”
“Just watch your mouth. Oscar
Arias, Nobel Laureate and former
President of Costa Rica, has had his
visa revoked for daring to call
President Trump a Roman Emperor.
South African Ambassador to the
US, Ebrahim Rasool criticized
Trump’s crackdown on diversity and
equity programmes. He was declared
a persona non grata and advised to
leave the United States. All US visas
for the South Sudanese have also
been revoked because South Sudan
tried to reject its nationals who were
expelled from the US. You are just
an ordinary Nigerian, you talk
anyhow, your entire generation may
be banned from ever going near the
US.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. President
Trump has upended the global trade
order. Trump tantrums, and his
disruptions go beyond the United
States. Across the world, investors
are selling off stocks to avoid risks.
Global markets are roiling. Wall
Street is in bear territory. Trade wars
have started. Inside America, there is
the threat of recession and rise in
consumer prices. The tariffs that
Trump has imposed, both baseline
and reciprocal tariffs will spread the
cancer of recession throughout the
world. Even Nigeria got 14%, and
with oil prices down by more than
3%, we are in trouble with our 2025
budget benchmark, SMEs will
suffer, AGOA has been thrown
under the table. And you say we
should not talk?”
“I am just looking out for you. Let
the Nigerian government handle the
matter. The Federal Ministry of
Industry, Trade and Investment has
already issued a position paper to say
that Nigeria is talking to our valued
trade partner, the United States and
the WTO to identify what is
pragmatic and mutually beneficial.
Besides, Trump himself has said this
is a necessary medicine that he has
applied to global trade.”
“Meaning what? Medicine that is
already making the patient worse off.
And which counterparts is Nigeria
talking about? Is the US ready to
negotiate as equals with anybody?”
“I try to look at the positive side
of things. One of my financial
advisers has told me that this is the
best time to buy stocks and crypto.
While you are concentrating on
crisis and tantrums, I am looking at
what can be gained.”
“Nobody has ever won tariff
wars. Tariff shock has already wiped
out US$5.3 trillion of the S&P 500
Index in just 2 days. Nasdaq
Composite is down 5.8%, Dow
Jones Industrial Average – 5.5%”
“Stop worrying yourself. Let the
Americans speak with their votes
during the mid-term elections.”
“That is still far away. November
2026.”
“Their problem, not ours. For all
I care, they deserve their Trump, and
his Elon Musk. The beauty of
democracy is that voters are also free
to make mistakes, and either live
with their mistakes or correct them.”

Page14 TheTrumpet MAY 14 - 27 2025
Opinion
Nigeria and the part of
our past (1)
On October 1, 1999, I wrote an
article titled ‘The Ethical
Imperative of Governance’ in
one of Nigeria’s leading national
newspapers.
In the said article, I advocated for a
deep sense of objective right and wrong
in society, one that transcended
Nigeria’s multicultural identity, as this
shared moral foundation was essential
for achieving our national objectives.
Fast-forward to 2025, nearly three
decades later, and the question remains:
has anything changed? If so, what
exactly has changed, and how do we
measure the extent of this
transformation?
In fairness to posterity, to ask how
we got to wherever we are is to ask
whether or not Nigeria should have
been created in the first place. The
amalgamation of the protectorates and
territories, after all, was not put to a
referendum, and there is no record of
the people giving their consent to this
amalgamation. It was largely driven by
the British government’s cost-cutting
measures, undertaken amidst the
turmoil of a Europe on the brink of
World War I.
The 1911 report of the Committee
headed by Lord Haldane, akin to
Nigeria’s Oronsaye Report, paved the
way for cost rationalization, ultimately
leading to the amalgamation. However,
a critical question remains: did this
amalgamation truly create a country, or
merely a geographical expression? This
conundrum is reminiscent of Giuseppe
Garibaldi’s unification of 27
principalities, states and provinces into
Italy. As Garibaldi excellently
remarked, “We have created a
geographical expression; now we must
create the Italians.”
General Yakubu ‘Jack’ Gowon is
arguably the only Nigerian leader who
has come close to addressing the
question of national unity. One of his
notable achievements was the creation
of the National Youth Service Corps
(NYSC) in 1974.
While the NYSC has unified the
Nigerian elite to some extent, its impact
has been limited, more so as it has
largely been serving interests that are
not particularly productive. More
importantly, it has failed to unite the
Nigerian people. This failure is
symptomatic of a broader issue - a
country built on rent-seeking and a
scramble for resources, which
inevitably leads to the current state of
disarray.
When Nigeria was governed by
production-based Constitutions, such as
the 1963 Constitution, the country
experienced flashpoints, but also
enjoyed better focus on development
and greater national cohesion. A similar
trajectory can be observed in India,
which has maintained stability despite
experiencing flashpoints since its
independence in 1947. India has
avoided coups and has become the
world’s 5th largest economy.
Projections also suggest that India will
become the world’s largest economy by
2050.
India’s experience offers a valuable
lesson. By adhering to a constitutional
framework similar to Nigeria’s 1960
and 1963 Constitutions, the country has
successfully lifted hundreds of millions
of people out of poverty. Meanwhile,
Nigeria grapples with communal
clashes, violence and land-grabbing.
Nigerians are roasting Nigerians, thus
rendering the country neither peaceful
nor cohesive. This lack of cohesion
underscores that sustainable
development cannot be achieved
through isolated ‘projects’. Instead, it
will remain a case of ‘all motion
without development.’
The National Assembly’s inability
to promptly reform the internal security
Gen Yakubu Gowon - Came close to addressing national unity (Photo - National Library of Nigeria, CC0
1.0 Universal Public Domain)
mechanism, adopting a community and
State policing approach akin to
countries like Australia, Canada, Brazil,
and the USA, is striking. This inaction
betrays a lack of interest in fostering
national cohesion. Unfortunately, there
is little indication that this will change
soon. Apart from when the Super
Eagles are playing, there is very little
evidence of national cohesion. Dear
fatherland continues to look like a
‘geographical expression’ rather than a
State based on national identity,
cohesion and a focused programme for
BY ABIODUN
KOMOLAFE
national reconstruction.
In response to Nigeria’s struggles
with national identity and
underperformance, the establishment
should revisit and upgrade the 1963
Republican Constitution, backing it
with a Referendum as a measure of
self-preservation. At this critical
juncture, the country must work
towards a Nigerian equivalent of
Italy’s 1971 ‘Historic Compromise.’
The Italian ‘Compromesso Storico’
breathed new life into Italy’s
struggling state, addressing its
disoriented public finances and
stabilizing its sagging currency. This
historic compromise reduced regional
tensions and laid the groundwork for a
unified effort against the Sicilian
Mafia, ultimately paving the way for
its downfall.
The conventional wisdom suggests
that Lombardy, Italy’s most
prosperous region, which, like our
Niger Delta, is the goose that lays the
golden eggs, would certainly have
pulled out of Italy. This prompts a
crucial question for Nigeria’s political
establishment: can intellectual honesty
and moral circumspection guide a
comprehensive overhaul of the
country’s perennial underdevelopment
and lack of national cohesion?
Nigeria transitioned from military
rule to democracy, but the journey was
far from glorious. With this reality in
mind, we must recognize that India’s
independence in 1947 marked the
beginning of a period where the
country’s military structure prevented
at least a dozen potential military
coups. This contrasts with Nigeria’s
experience under military rule, as well
as Brazil’s, which was marked by
brutality and viciousness.
However, it’s essential to consider
the outcomes of military rule, as seen
in South Korea’s remarkable
transformation since 1958. The
question remains: can military rule be
beneficial if it leads to a forced
advance, as in South Korea’s case?
To be concluded.
Komolafe wrote from Ijebu-Jesa,
Osun State, Nigeria
(ijebujesa@yahoo.co.uk)

Opinion
Transforming NIMASA:
Mobereola’s first year
growth.
In the past year, Mobereola has
implemented decisive actions,
transforming NIMASA’s trajectory
and aligning its focus with President
Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope
Agenda. His silent yet effective
leadership style has yielded several
notable achievements. As a nonpolitician,
he has successfully
promoted Public-Private
Partnerships (PPP) to drive
maritime infrastructural
development.
Mobereola has consistently
emphasized the importance of
leveraging private sector investment
to build a more resilient and
competitive maritime industry.
Under his administration, NIMASA
has enhanced its cabotage
enforcement, ensuring Nigerianowned
vessels benefit from coastal
trade opportunities. His
administration has also intensified
monitoring efforts to ensure
compliance with local content laws,
thereby demonstrating a
commitment to repositioning
NIMASA as a key driver of
Nigeria’s maritime economy.
NIMASA has strengthened
collaborations with security
agencies to curb illicit activities in
Nigerian waters. A landmark
initiative in this regard is the
agency’s partnership with the
National Drug Law Enforcement
Agency (NDLEA) to combat drug
trafficking. This collaboration has
enhanced surveillance and
intelligence-sharing mechanisms,
significantly improving maritime
security and ensuring safer, more
regulated waterways for legitimate
trade and investment.
Within a year, Mobereola has
significantly elevated NIMASA’s
international profile among
maritime nations. Through the
Minister of Marine and Blue
Economy, he facilitated Tinubu’s
signing of six International
Maritime Organization (IMO)
instruments of accession. This
MAY 14 - 27 2025
TheTrumpet
Page15
By Abiodun Komolafe
milestone will update Nigeria’s
record and rating with the global
shipping body, aligning the
country’s maritime governance with
international standards.
Nigeria has expressed interest in
vying for a Category C position on
the IMO Governing Council. To
make this a reality, the Minister of
Marine and Blue Economy,
Gboyega Oyetola, along with
Mobereola, have embarked on
diplomatic engagements with
various countries.
Here’s wishing Dr. Dayo
Mobereola continued success and
impactful leadership as NIMASA’s
helmsman, driving Nigeria’s
maritime industry towards a brighter
future.
May the Lamb of God, who takes
away the sin of the world, grant us
peace in Nigeria!
*Komolafe wrote from Ijebu-Jesa,
Osun State, Nigeria
(ijebujesa@yahoo.co.uk)
Dr Dayo Mobereola
Dayo Mobereola’s first year
as Director-General of the
Nigerian Maritime
Administration and Safety Agency
(NIMASA) has been marked by
transformative changes, strategic
reforms and innovative
partnerships.
Appointed in March 2024,
Mobereola brought his reputation as
a technocrat and PhD holder in
Transport Economics to the
Nigerian maritime industry. With a
decade-long track record of leading
the Lagos Metropolitan Transport
Authority, a benchmark for urban
transport planning and
development, he took on the
challenge at NIMASA to enhance
maritime safety, promote shipping
development, and position Nigeria’s
blue economy for sustainable

Page16 TheTrumpet MAY 14 - 27 2025
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