According to Mr. Richard Akinnola and Sadiq Abdullateef, the book is entitled “Osinbajo Strides: Defining Moments of An Innovative Leader,” and scheduled to be launched virtually on April 28, 2023, at 4 p.m. prompt.

The writers are Richard Akinnola; Azu Ishiekwene; Garba Mohammed;  Etim Etim; Donu Kogbara; Sadiq Abdullateef; Fatima Mamman-Daura; James Akpandem; Mustapha Ogunsakin; Dayo Akintobi and Dr. Wale Adeduro.

Others are Columba Ogah; Haruna Abdullahi; Temilade Okesanjo; Arukaino Umukoro; Olaolu Beckley; Ore Ogunbiyi; Jude Zoho; Vitalis Obidiaghaa; Seun Bisuga; Seyi Gesinde; Faith Dafe-Joseph; Muritala Ayinla; Abimbola Olaniyan and Ibrahim Bature.

Mr. Jahman Anikulapo was the Editorial Consultant for the work.

The book is essentially a collection of essays written by the journalists, writers and other persons from different walks of life.

It periscopes the Vice President’s public service since he was Special Adviser to the Attorney-General of the Federation in 1988 to date.

Foreword is written by General Abudulsalami Abubakar (rtd).

A blurb would be made available ahead of the public presentation.

Proceeds from the sales of the book will go to charity organisations.

The launch event is organized by PYO Collective, a non-partisan and multicultural group of Nigerians who are interested in good governance and economic development of the country.

Its core values include ethics, professionalism, honesty and accountability and good governance.

PYO Collective promotes unity and prosperity of Nigeria.

Membership of the group is drawn from across the country and includes writers of the essays in the book.

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s tough as winning an election is, running an efficient and effective government is tougher. We have seen a tough Tinubu surmount all manner of obstacles to win the presidential election; it remains to be seen if he is tough enough to exorcise the ghosts that have tormented Nigeria down the ages.

Easter is here but it is devoid of the usual celebrations. Cost of living has shot through the roof and only a few can, these days, afford to eat what they like or want. The vast majority, if they eat at all, eat what they find. As they say, “I have eaten” does not differentiate between those who ate fried rice and those who soaked garri. This is one reason why the next dispensation is very important; nay, critical, for the survival of this country on two critical levels. The first is whether the in-coming government has a sufficient understanding of the problems and a blueprint to tackle them.  Can the government tackle corruption? Buhari pledged to tackle corruption – and everyone thought he could and would – but, in the end, it was corruption that tackled and floored Buhari, such that his government has now gone down in history as the most corrupt that this country has ever had. As I put this piece to bed, a post on social media raised an alarm about the frenetic pace at which agencies headed by people from a section of the country were pulling through last-minute billion-Naira contracts for this and that project in what looks like parting gifts or last minute looting to further complicate problems for the in-coming administration. Will the in-coming government look into this? Will it stop oil theft? Will it remove fuel subsidies? I read a post in which someone called out the NLC bureaucrats for its duplicitous position on the issue of removal of fuel subsidies. When the Labour bourgeoisie creaming off the check-offs of workers were rooting for the Labour Party candidate, Peter Obi, they kept mute when Obi said he would remove fuel subsidies if elected president; but the moment he lost the election, the Labour aristocrats returned to their usual but hypocritical and unhelpful battle cry of “No to subsidy removal”! Will the in-coming government call their bluff and do the needful? Tons and lorry-loads of hard decisions await the in-coming administration if it must take the Nigerian economy out of the doldrums but will it muster the needed courage to act decisively and stay the course?

READ ALSO: On the vexed issue of petroleum subsidy…, By Bola Bolawole

Next, and perhaps even more critical than the first, is whether the Nigerian people will be supportive as well as be patient enough as the in-coming government tries its hands at solving the myriad of problems that confront the country today. It appears to me that Nigerians lack the understanding that to destroy is faster and easier than to repair or build. That is why we hardly raise an eyebrow when things are being destroyed. We appear to think we can as quickly and rapidly and effortlessly put things back again. Nigerians also like the fire-brigade approach and hate to take their time to plan and strenuously and methodically execute things. We love magic or miracles, if I may put it that way. We love to cut corners. Therefore, expect Nigerians to begin to expect a dramatic change the moment Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is sworn in as president. If people do not see results as quickly as they may irrationally (?) expect, there could be problems. History teaches that in societies that have experienced the kind of difficulties that Nigerians have been put through down the ages, with Buhari capping it all, it is the reformer intent on saving the situation that usually bears the brunt. That was the unfortunate experience of the Bourbon King Louis the XVI in France. The antidote: Right policies and speed handled by competent and committed hands.

As tough as winning an election is, running an efficient and effective government is tougher. We have seen a tough Tinubu surmount all manner of obstacles to win the presidential election; it remains to be seen if he is tough enough to exorcise the ghosts that have tormented Nigeria down the ages. Will he succeed where others have failed? Time, as they say, will tell! My prayer is for him to succeed so that celebrations during festive periods can return to this land again! Happy Easter celebrations!

Oyedepo, Obi telephone saga

A telephone conversation could not have been as embarrassing, scandalous and controversial as the one that was reportedly said to have taken place between Bishop David Oyedepo of the Winners’ Chapel and Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the recently-concluded presidential election. The Church as a whole has been diminished and brought to ridicule and opprobrium once again! And it reminded me of a similar incident some 10 or so years ago when the aircraft of a leading Pentecostal pastor was fingered in a botched plan to buy arms from South Africa during the Goodluck Jonathan administration. Remember? I saw an embarrassing situation loading and I warned that vocal PFN leader to reduce his frequent visits to the Presidential Villa but he would not take heed until he was caught in that quagmire – and he took the Church down with him. Rather than take heed when I advised him months before the unfortunate incident, he reported me to Mummy and Daddy and both of them called me in. I explained to them the danger to the man himself and the Church as a whole if the PFN leader did not limit his frequent visits to the Presidential Villa. Where is the man today? That scandal silenced him and tarnished the image of the Church.

Many Church leaders did not appear to have learnt anything from that very sad episode. In all their undertakings, the image of the Church as a whole ought to loom larger than personal interests. Many threw caution to the wind as far as the last election was concerned. All their prophecies, what became of them? One said one of his arms should be cut off if his prophecy did not come to pass. His prophecy flew over the bar like a misfired penalty kick! Has he surrendered his arm to be cut off? After the election, another one was decreeing and declaring an annulment of the Tinubu presidency! Nigeria is an “anything goes” country! The gullibility of the people apart, the lethargy and carefree attitude of the government is another. Such so-called pastors ought to be cooling their heels in prison! Faith-based organisations should be compelled to behave responsibly. The people they have enslaved must be liberated. Religion is now much more than the opium that the Marxists said it was; these days, many so-called faith organizations are nothing short of concentration camps of slaves. This is modern-day slavery that should be dismantled.

The answer does not lie in finding out or running after who released the so-called faked tape. Until the original tape is released, you cannot call what is in the public domain faked and expect to be taken seriously.

But I digress! The questions that interest me in the Oyedepo/Obi telephone conversion saga are these: Did the conversion take place? Yes, it appears so; for none of the two has said it didn’t. The voices that we heard in the conversion, were they of the two personalities mentioned? Yes, it appears so, since none of the two has disowned the voices. What was said to have been said; was that exactly what was said? That is where I think the problem lies. Obi and his people are saying that the tape of the conversation making the rounds was faked; fine, it could be, there is hardly anything that cannot be faked these days. Even the new Naira notes are said to have been faked. But the solution does not lie in beating about the bush: If what is in circulation is faked, release the original! Fortunately, Oyedepo and Obi are Christians: In Egypt when Moses performed his own original miracle and Pharaoh’s magicians also performed their own fake miracle, the original miracle of Moses swallowed the fake miracle of Pharaoh. So, release the original tape of the telephone conversation and lay the controversy to rest. The answer does not lie in finding out or running after who released the so-called faked tape. Until the original tape is released, you cannot call what is in the public domain faked and expect to be taken seriously. The solution does not also lie in rushing to court. Nigerians know that rushing to court is a smart way of sweeping matters under the carpet.

The mere fact that two top Obi aides issued contradicting statements on the same issue clearly shows that the Obi camp is in disarray on this matter. It is like the Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, going to the United States to offer a different reason from the one INEC had offered for its inability to upload results of the last elections real time as earlier promised! People who try, like grasshoppers, to hide behind one finger, na dem sabi!

LAST WORD: Richard Akinnola and Abimbola Adelakun should take it easy with Bayo Onanuga; Bayo has done nothing deserving of the scathing rebuke and scotching upbraiding he has suffered lately in the hands of the duo.

*Bolawole (turnpot@gmail.com / 0705 263 1058), former Editor of PUNCH newspapers, Chairman of its Editorial Board and Deputy Editor-in-chief, was also the Managing Director/ Editor-in-chief of THE WESTERNER newsmagazine. He writes the ON THE LORD’S DAY column in the Sunday Tribune and TREASURES column in New Telegraph newspaper on Wednesdays. He is also a public affairs analyst on radio and television.

The post Easter blues and other stories, By Bolanle Bolawole appeared first on Frontpageng.

He urged Nigerian youths to be actively involved in Nigeria’s democratic process for a better future, adding that Nigerians should join hands together to strengthen and grow the country’s democracy.

The governor gave the advice in a lecture themed: “Youths and The Sustenance of Democracy: Issues and The Challenges” to mark the 64th birthday of a renowned activist, lawyer and journalist, Mr. Richard Akinnola, held in Ikeja.

Governor Sanwo-Olu while acknowledging that challenges abound in the country, with respect to political, ethnic, social and religious issues, said the real test of leadership was the ability to rise up and surmount the myriad challenges facing the nation.

“Our responsibility as a government and as leaders is to reduce the tendency of poverty and create opportunities to take people out of the shackles of poverty. Education happens to be one; knowledge and skill acquisition is another one. Once you are able to liberate yourself from the shackles of poverty, then you have a free mind, heart and soul to desire and design things for yourself.

“There is a huge opportunity in this country. I want to urge all of you as builders of the nation and leaders of tomorrow; don’t lose hope. People that lose hope are people that are doomed. You cannot lose hope. Every day you wake up is hope for you and that hope should be the thing that should drive you. That hope should be the thing that should propel you.

“You cannot give up because giving up is not an option. In the political, economic and social inclusion space, you cannot give up. Giving up is giving out and that is not the spirit and energy of the youth. The future is here, you are the future. Take hold of it because you need to be in the room to take over. It is important for the youths to participate in the democratic process,” Sanwo-Olu said.

The governor also urged the youths to make good use of social media and use it as a weapon for their own liberation and ensures that they use it to be better persons in the future.

Outlining various ways in which his administration had involved the youths, cutting across different sectors based on the THEMES developmental agenda for Greater Lagos, Governor Sanwo-Olu, who admonished the youths who had turned up in large numbers for the lecture to take advantage of the many opportunities created by his government, assuring them that his administration would continue to use technology to deliver good governance.

Speaking earlier, the celebrant, Richard Akinnola, said the participation of the youths in the 2023 general elections would be a deciding factor in the outcome of the poll, hence, the theme of the lecture.

Akinnola said Governor Sanwo-Olu’s humility, willingness and readiness to engage the youths, despite all odds, necessitated his choice as the ‘Guest Lecturer’ on ‘Youths and the sustenance of democracy: Issues and the challenges.’

He commended Governor Sanwo-Olu’s simplicity and for engaging the youths with calmness and levelheadedness during the October 2020 EndSARS protest in Lagos State.

“Two years ago at the early stage of the EndSARS protest, I watched him (Sanwo-Olu) as he braved all odds to address the protesting youths with such calmness and levelheadedness even while some of the protesters were heckling him with insulting pejoratives. With such conduct, he won the hearts of many people,” he said.

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See as bush meat come dey hungry me this cold night. It made me nostalgic about the night Gani Fawehinmi and l fought over bush meat.

We were having dinner together in his house sometime in 1999 and because he never missed the CHANNELS 10 pm news, his attention shifted to the news. Meanwhile, l had played some pranks, the plate where they had dished big pieces of bush meat, l had changed the plate and put the pieces of bush meat in my plate and started eating.

So, he dug his spoon in my plate to take the meat and we started struggling over the meat, till madam pleaded with me to give him part of the meat, otherwise, she would be the “fall guy” after l would have left.

After listening to the highlights of the news, he now shifted his attention to the food. Immediately, he noticed that he couldn’t find the bush meat. In his usual manner, he screamed, calling his wife -“Abikeeee! We de sinwin, e’ongbe mi sa” (in Ondo dialect, Abike, are you mad? Where is my bush meat? In Ondo dialect, the “r” is silent. So, instead of ‘erangbe’, it is pronounced ‘e’ongbe’).

READ ALSO: EXTRA: Funke Akindele, JJC Skillz and Woman Power

Then l challenged him, “but Chief, why are you shouting at madam? The bush meat is here. I have swapped it since the news is more important to you than the food”. Then he protested, “Richie, we le hijack e’ongbe mi ke” (Richie, you can’t just hijack my bush meat). Then l told him – “Point of correction Chief – our bush meat, not your bush meat.” So, he dug his spoon in my plate to take the meat and we started struggling over the meat, till madam pleaded with me to give him part of the meat, otherwise, she would be the “fall guy” after l would have left. So, truce was effected and we shared the bush meat. But bush meat still dey hungry me this night sha.

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A couple of weeks ago, on April 29th to be precise, I sent a message to my friend of over two decades, Richard Akinnola, complaining about a news report credited to the Vice- President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, to the effect that Interior Minister, Rauf Aregbesola, nominated  Osinbajo as the Vice-president.

For the uninitiated, Akinnola is a respected journalist, celebrated human rights activist and an influential social media influencer.

Presently, he is at the forefront of the campaign for his friend, the Vice-president, to be the President of Nigeria.

I told Akinnola to advise his friend to stick to his usual refrain: that it would be a disservice to the nation if he doesn’t contest for the Presidency and to emphasise his experience and expertise.

Those who accuse the Jagaban of having a sense of entitlement, forget that he wasn’t talking to the country. He was addressing his party men (and women), reminding them of how much he has sacrificed for the party.

I also told him that the VP could leverage on the fact that he wouldn’t have to learn on the job if he elected.

Crediting Aregbesola, a man who had just thrown Tinubu, his benefactor, under the bus with his nomination as VP was a low, I told my friend.

As was his wont, Akinnola promptly responded, said what the VP said was that Aregbesola notified him of his nomination not that the goatee-spotting Minister nominated him.

Even then, he agreed with me that the VP ought not to have said that, he promised that he would tell the VP.

It is in the light of incidents like this that we should situate Tinubu’s outburst of Thursday, when he met the  Ogun State All Progressive Congress, APC, delegates on Thursday in Abeokuta.

At the meeting, an angry Tinubu had said without him and God, the President, the VP and the Governor of Ogun State, Dapo Abiodun, wouldn’t be holding the positions they are holding.

Those close to Tinubu say it’s not in the character of the man to talk in that manner. But that the Jagaban of Borgu had been pushed to the wall by those bent on frustrating him within the APC.

They say it is visible to the blind and audible to the deaf that the Jagaban of Borgu, who has campaigned in more states than all the presidential aspirants in the APC is the man to beat.

Therefore, the man couldn’t understand why obstacles are deliberately being put on his way.

They allege that the President deliberately encouraged serving Ministers to enter the race to frustrate Tinubu’s ambition.

The idea of a consensus arrangement is also a ploy to screen Tinubu out.

The attempt to draft former President Goodluck Jonathan and the Governor of the Central Bank, Godwin Emefiele, were also cited as attempts to frustrate Tinubu out of the presidential race.

Tinubu sympathisers also allege that, picking John Odigie Oyegun, a former chairman of the APC, who doesn’t see eye to eye with Tinubu to chair the APC’s screening committee was another attempt to throw spanner in the wheels of the Jagaban’s presidential ambition.

To make matters worse, the President’s address to the APC Governors, shortly before he travelled out to Spain, was that he be allowed to choose a successor, since the APC had a policy where the Governors had a hand in choosing their successors.

It is in this light, Tinubu’s supporters argue, we should situate the Jagaban’s outburst on Thursday.

Come to think of it, if a man is pushed to the wall, what do you expect him to do?

All Tinubu is asking for, say his admirers, is a level-playing field where all aspirants are allowed to test their popularity.

Come to think of it, have critics bothered to ask why the Jagaban had to put Dapo Abiodun in his shoes?

For God’s sake, Abiodun has a right to throw his weight behind his preferred candidate but he has no right to distort history.

As Asiwaju rightly pointed out, Abiodun’s predecessor, Ibikunle Amosun, a fellow APC man didn’t want Abiodun and wanted his protege to succeed him but it was Asiwaju who threw his weight behind Abiodun and ensured his emergence as Governor.

Indeed, when the APC presidential candidate, President Muhammadu Buhari came to campaign in Abeokuta, he urged the party supporters to vote him as President but that they were free to vote for anybody in the other elections.

He didn’t campaign for his party candidate, Dapo Abiodun.

Buhari did this because he didn’t want to offend his friend Ibikunle Amosun.

Furthermore, according to those close to Asiwaju, Dapo Abiodun had been avoiding receiving the Jagaban.

Each time the Jagaban informed him of his plan to come and campaign to the Ogun delegates, Abiodun always found an excuse to discourage the Jagaban.

It’s either he wouldn’t be in town or he was indisposed.

To add insult into injury, when the Vice-President came on his campaign trail, he publicly credited the Vice-president with his emergence as Governor.

That was too much for the Jagaban to take, hence his outburst.

Those who accuse the Jagaban of having a sense of entitlement, forget that he wasn’t talking to the country. He was addressing his party men (and women), reminding them of how much he has sacrificed for the party.

He reminded them that but for his sacrifice, the President Buhari wouldn’t have achieved his ambition.

As a human being, it is natural for Tinubu to expect Buhari not to be antagonistic to his ambition, even if he would not support him.

Thrice Buhari tried to be Nigeria’s President.

Thrice he failed until Tinubu went to him and the rest, as they say, is history.

Those who are against Tinubu’s ambition make a song and dance of his so-called baggage.

Pray, which human being doesn’t have a baggage? Which human being hasn’t done something he or she is not proud of?

But they conveniently forget the man’s role in the attainment and sustenance of democracy.

But for the Jagaban, there would have been no opposition party in Nigeria.

He, it was, who ensured that there was a platform to challenge the behemoth PDP during the presidency of Olusegun Obasanjo.

By challenging the Federal Government in the court on many occasions, he ensured the enthronement of federalism in the country.

He formed the Action Congress, AC; he formed the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, to democratise the political party space and ensure the plurality of opinions in the country.

To demonstrate his selflessness, he gave the presidential ticket of the parties to Northerners: first Atiku Abubakar and later, Nuhu Ribadu.

When those he had assisted with his God-given talents and resources decide to stab him at the back, should he offer his belly to them in return?

Thanks to the Jagaban, he retrieved through the courts the stolen mandates of Governors Segun Mimiko in Ondo; Kayode Fayemi in Ekiti; Adams Oshiomhole in Edo and Raufu Aregbesola in Osun.

He achieved this by flying into the country, one Adrian Forty, probably the world’s best forensic evidence expert.

Of course, at his expense.

So, if the man says he has paid his dues and insists he deserves the presidential ticket of the party he helped form, is that asking for too much?

If attempts are being made to deny him the opportunity of testing his acceptance among his party men (and women), should he keep sealed lips?

When those he had assisted with his God-given talents and resources decide to stab him at the back, should he offer his belly to them in return?

The man is human.

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May the soul of Aunty Remi Oyo rest in peace. Late Aunty Remi was former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s spokesperson. Aunty Remi had no iota of respect for Adams Oshiomhole as a Labour leader because of his Hyde and Jackyl predilection.

As the number one Labour leader, Adams would huff and puff, mobilizing us, the Labour and civil society for one strike and protest or the other. With his oratory, he would make the necessary noise for sound bites. We would go out to mobilize to shut down the country. We didn’t know he was playing to the gallery and this is where Aunty Remi comes in.

Aunty Remi would tell some of us: “Nothing would happen tomorrow. Adams just left the Villa. Eyin kan se aluta lo, a ti pari ise pelu oga yin (you people are just doing Aluta. We have sorted out everything with your leader).”

Just as Aunty Remi said, the next thing we would hear next morning was that the strike and protest had been suspended. Aunty Remi knew what usually transpired at the Villa’s nocturnal meetings. Reason she had no respect for Adams till she passed on.

Chima died Adams death and despite this, Adams abandoned the widows of Chima and Tunji. He did not even have the decency to attend their burials.

So, since Adams is in the mood of apologia as he did yesterday in Benin, kneeling, purportedly apologising to Benin Chiefs for bringing Godwin Obaseki as Governor instead of Osagie Ize-Iyamu, when is he going to apologise to us for goading us for strike and protests, only to compromise the action at the dying minutes?

When is he going to apologise to the widows of Chima Ubani and Tunji Oyeleru, who both died along Maiduguri-Potiskum Road in Adam’s official land cruiser SUV number: “NLC 1?”

Chima was the Executive Director of Civil Liberties Organization, while Tunji was the Photo Editor of Vanguard. They had accompanied Adams in a mobilization tour of the Northern parts of the country in September 2005. When they were through in Maiduguri, they had boarded a Chachangi plane enroute Lagos. Adams entered last but he had no seat. Chima offered his seat and chose to go by road with Tunji. They died in an accident on September 23, 2005.

Chima died Adams death and despite this, Adams abandoned the widows of Chima and Tunji. He did not even have the decency to attend their burials. When is he going to apologise to their widows, not just to Benin Chiefs for cheap political capital.

Thank God for Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. He paid condolence visit to Chima’s widow and was shocked that that was where Chima lived. He immediately asked Dele Alake to arrange a generator for the house. He followed this up by giving a house to Chima’s widow and scholarship to two out of the four children. God bless Asiwaju. Adams was nowhere to be found.

Assuming Ize-Iyamu wins the next election and they fall out, as they are bound to, is he also going to gather the Benin Chiefs again to apologise? Adams hypocrisy knows no bounds.

While Adams was governor and had every opportunity to assist them, he didn’t. After much pressure, he reluctantly released N1 million to the family, after Mrs. Comfort Jiti- Ogunye, accompanied Ochuwa, Chima’s widow, to Adams in Benin. The widow waited for about three days before Adams sent an aide to go give the money to her, which was less than what he used to give to these smalls girls swarming around him as Governor. He didn’t even have the courage or courtesy to see the woman. He sent an aide. I knew at a critical time, l had to cough out N100,000 for the family, when Adams was in a position to give the widow a contract to assist her. When is he going to apologise to her?

When Gani Fawehinmi was very very sick and came back into the country, only very few of us knew he was in the country. I reached out to those close to the then Governor Adams to come and visit the ailing Gani. He didn’t, till the man died. On the day Lagos Government was holding a special tribute for Gani at the Police College, Ikeja, late Comrade Olaitan Oyerinde, Adam’s PA, called Mrs. Fawehinmi, stating that Adams wanted Gani’s body to be brought to Benin for a special tribute. Mrs. Fawehinmi asked Olaitan to liaise with me. He did and l asked him to ask his boss to call me. Adams did and l told him point blank, that that wasn’t in the itinerary of the burial committee and that we won’t bring his body to Benin, despite his entreaties, saying that he was ready to pay for a chartered plane for that purpose. I reminded him that when he was sick and l asked him to come and see him, he didn’t. Now, he wanted to show off.

Eventually, as a compromise, Madam Fawehinmi asked me and some other comrades to accompany two of the children to the Benin tribute session. When is Adams going to apologise for refusing to see ailing Gani when l pleaded with him?

So, Adams’s political apologia to Benin Chiefs yesterday was deceptive, hypocritical and self-serving. Assuming Ize-Iyamu wins the next election and they fall out, as they are bound to, is he also going to gather the Benin Chiefs again to apologise? Adams hypocrisy knows no bounds.

*Akinnola, a human rights activist, journalist and lawyer, wrote this on his Facebook page.

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