Following the approval of N180 billion by the Federal Government to the 36 states of the federation for the procurement of food items and fertilisers as palliatives to ameliorate the impact of petrol subsidy removal, a Lagos-based Civil Society Organisation (CSO) has charged Nigerians to monitor the disbursement by state governors.

President Bola Tinubu had on May 29 during his inaugural speech after taking an oath of office, announced the removal of petrol subsidy, which led to hike in food prices.

According to the National Economic Council (NEC), a sum of N5bn will be given to each state to procure 100,000 bags of rice, 40,000 bags of maize, and fertilizers to cushion the effect of food shortage across the country.

But reacting on Saturday, the Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, CACOL, expressed pessimism in governors distributing these palliatives because of happenings in the past.

The organisation stated that during the Covid-19 pandemic, palliatives meant for Nigerians were locked up in warehouses across the country, to the detriment of the people.

CACOL noted that Nigerians monitoring the disbursement of these palliatives would ensure that they are not cornered by politicians.

“We would like to commend the federal government for at least heeding numerous outcries from various quarters calling for palliatives to cushion the effect of the fuel subsidy removal on the people. This administration has shown that it is feeling the pulse of the people by approving 180bn as palliatives to be shared among the states in the country,” said CACOL Chairman, Debo Adeniran.

“We are however skeptical about the capabilities of some governors to deliver or disburse these palliatives to those they were intended, going by the happenings in the past. We are all living witnesses to the way and manner some foodstuffs that were meant to serve as palliatives for Nigerians were locked up in warehouses across the country by some greedy and selfish people in power at the detriment of pauperized, traumatized, and famished Nigerians during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We would also want to call on the state governors to ensure judicious disbursement of the palliatives both in cash and kind. They should ensure that these palliatives do not end in the pockets of the few powerful individuals in their various states. The people of the state should feel the impacts of these palliatives no matter how small.

“We also want to use this medium to call on our people to monitor the disbursement of these palliatives in their various states so as to ensure that foodstuffs and other commodities meant for the people are not cornered by politicians,” he added.

One Imabong William has landed in a hospital after she was doused in hot water mixed with pepper by her land lady over her inability to meet up with her rental obligation.

The land lady identified as Amaka Okonkwo allegedly carried out the heinous act after William failed to leave her house upon the expiration of the quit notice she (the landlady) gave her.

The incident happened on Thursday at Enugwu-Ukwu community in Njikoka Local Government Area of Enugu state.

Okonkwo had given William given quit notice over her inability to pay a new rent imposed on tenants in the building.

She had, however, asked for time to find a new apartment, before her landlady poured hot water mixed with pepper on her.

The landlady had since been arrested by the police, after neighbours reported her action at Nimo police Station.

Sources within the community said the victim, who hails from Akwa Ibom State, was already receiving treatment at an undisclosed hospital, after neighbours rescued her.

Anambra State Commissioner for Women’s Affairs, Mrs Ify Obinabo, who visited the victim, narrated that the victim stated that she was asked to vacate the house over her inability to pay the new rent increment.

She explained that she pleaded with the landlady for some time to enable her get a new place, but unfortunately, while she was washing her clothes on Thursday, the said landlady poured hot water mixed with pepper on her from behind.

Obinabo expressed her displeasure over the incident and promised to get justice for the victim.

She warned that the Anambra State Government will not take lightly anyone found culpable of assault of any kind and went on to advise the public to always report crimes and misdemeanours through the appropriate channels for quick intervention.

There has been excitement among members and followers of the Deeper Life Christian Ministry after the General Superintendent of the church, Pastor William Kumuyi, revealed a former official of The Apostolic Faith, Pa Elijah Dosunmu, who led him to Christ.

Dosunmu is 83-year-old and lives in Lagos State, where he runs a school.

Kumuyi narrated his encounter with the octogenarian last Sunday during a private commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the church with some leaders at Gbagada, Lagos State.

The revered holiness preacher recalled how Dosunmu invited him to The Apostolic Faith and he (Kumuyi) gave a condition that Dosunmu must also attend his church, the Cherubim and Seraphim, where he was a drummer.

Kumuyi said after his guest attended the C&S church, he (Kumuyi) asked him to share his thoughts on the service and he simply replied “active”.

“He didn’t say, ‘It was bad, calling the name of angels.’ He just said, ‘active’. He is a good man.

“So, I accepted to go with him to the gospel church. But it was too quiet. People just sat down, they sang and they stood up, there was no dancing, gymnastics, nothing!

“And so, when we came out, he also asked me, ‘How was it?’ I did not have the wisdom they had or anything. But I said, ‘It was too quiet, like somebody in a cemetery, no dancing. I miss the dancing in my church.’

“So, eventually, he invited me again and I kept on going and I began to see the light and on the 5th of April 1964, I went to the altar, surrendered my life to the Lord and became born again.

“And he kept on doing the follow up and teaching me gospel songs, with another friend. Both of them were responsible for making me switch over completely and eventually I became saved, sanctified and baptised in the Holy Ghost. He was a great encouragement to me; that’s why I said I should call him out and show his face to you that this is the man, the brother, the minister that God used for me,” he added.

The cleric, while commending Dosunmu, who also sheltered him at different times, said after he (Kumuyi) started evangelising, he attracted the wrath of the leadership of The Apostolic Faith.

He said, “When I was excommunicated for evangelism, he was a worker in the Apostolic Faith and he had to make a choice, where will he stay, what will he do?”

“Instead of staying there, where he had a good position, good connection, the people from the leadership to membership knew him, he chose to say he would not leave me alone; he would go with me, excommunication or no excommunication, that he would be with me. I respect his commitment and his contribution to my life as I was growing up.”

The Archbishop Emeritus of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, has said he was surprised that the Federal Government led by President Bola Tinubu has not been able to ‘perform well’ since it took over office on May 29, adding that all is not well with the country.

He urged Nigerians to pray for the country, noting that the ‘relative peace’ presently enjoyed in the nation must not be taken for granted.

He made these remarks on Saturday at the 10th Convention of the Catholic Men Organisation, Lagos Archdiocese, held at St Gregory’s College, Ikoyi.

In his homily culled from the general theme, ‘Fan into flames the gift of God which is in you’, Onaiyekan said, “It is not surprising that the so-called victorious new government has not been able to perform well and has not been able to actually muster the trust and co-operation of the vast majority of the people of Nigeria.

Speaking on the Presidential Elections Petition Tribunal, Onaiyekan said all eyes were still on the courts.

He said, “Will the courts decide that the election was correct and okay, or will the courts arrive at the conclusion, which many people arrived at already even from the very beginning, that this election result as declared was not tenable?

“The delay in the courts giving judgment is itself a pity. As they say, ’Justice delayed is justice denied’. But we will still wait until the courts pass their judgment.

“We have to accept whatever the Supreme Court will decide, whether we like it or not. This is because there is no other human recourse after the Supreme Court. We will have to leave everything in the hands of God,” he added.

The National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, Senator Ajibola Basiru, has called on members of the party to resolve their differences, work towards a stronger party and sack the current governor of the state, Ademola Adeleke, from office in 2026.

Basiru, who spoke in Osogbo on Saturday at a reception organised for him by the APC leadership of Osogbo Federal Constituency, also declared the current administration in the state as incompetent.

The ex-Senate spokesperson, who was flanked by the APC state chairmen from the South-West region, as well as party bigwigs from all parts of the state, said people that installed the current administration in the state were already regretting their actions.

He charged party members not to cause internal disruption, but work very hard to reposition it for better outing in the next round of elections.

He said, “Less than a year after, those that wanted to destroy the good fortune of our state are already lamenting. Those that they put in government in the state don’t know how to govern. They are appointing SSA, Government House Pool; SSA Oranmiyan Newtown; SSA, children; SSA swimming pool and so on. They must be sacked from government.

“When we sack him (Adeleke) in 2026, he will go for three days diploma as usual to learn about NGO after he failed to sack Iyaloja General. The APC is an organised party. Let’s show more commitment.”

Explaining issues around subsidy removal, Basiru, who spoke in Yoruba language, told the gathering that about N2tn had been saved in the last two months after the Federal Government ended the subsidy regime.

Contacted for reaction, Osun State Commissioner for Information and Public Engagement, Mr. Kolapo Alimi, said Basiru had a track record of talking recklessly, saying the appointment of aides by the governor did not constitute grounds for nonperformance.

A Commissioner under Governor Ademola Adeleke has appointed over 20 personal assistants to work with him.

The Commissioner, Bunmi Jenyo, who serves as the head of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry will be paying the appointed aides with his salary.

In a statement issued by his media aide, Sesan Adeleke on Saturday, said the aides will work with the Commissioner directly or indirectly.

It reads; “In his magnanimity to the people of Ila Local Government (main council) and Local Government Development Area (LCDA), Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Rev. Bunmi Jenyo, has donated his monthly salary to some of his constituents, tagged as personal aides.

“The aides numbering over twenty are to work with the Honourable Commissioner either directly or indirectly in specific assignments, in the interests of growth and development of the Local Governments and Osun State as a whole.

“It is also in his giant stride to cushion the effect of economic realities in his community and put smiles on the faces of masses at the grassroots”.

In Kano State, hundreds of Nigerien nationals have organized a peaceful demonstration to express their opposition to the recent coup in their home country.

Furthermore, they have expressed their endorsement of the sanctions imposed by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on Niger.

While condemning the military coup that ousted President Mohamed Bazoum’s democratically elected government, these residents also cautioned against any form of military interference in their nation.

Leading the peaceful protest on Saturday in Kano, Lawalli Mamman Barma, the group’s Chairman, appealed to the leaders of the military coup. He called for the unconditional release of President Mohamed Bazoum, his family, and all individuals who were reportedly taken captive during the military intervention that occurred on July 16, 2023.

He said, “We demand without condition, the release of the president of Niger Republic, as well as his family and all other kidnapped persons.”

The chairman, while calling for the restoration of democratic leadership in Niger Republic, also, urged ECOWAS to rescind its decision to enforce military forces in the country, stressing that dialogue is the best approach to resolving conflict than military confrontation.

In another development, WithinNigeria reported that the Police Commissioner in Kano State, Mr Hussaini Gumel, dismissed reports about protests by residents of the state over the planned deployment of military personnel by ECOWAS to restore constitutional order in Niger Republic.

Gumel told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in a telephone interview that the command was not aware of any protest by residents of the city against the proposed troops deployment.

“I am just hearing the report from you on the so-called demonstration by Kano residents because of the political situation in Niger Republic.

“You can see we are just coming back from the Passing-Out ceremony of graduands of the Nigeria Police Academy, Wudil, where about 169 cadet officers were commissioned by President Tinubu.

“So, frankly speaking I have not given any person or group of residents permit to embark on demonstration because of the political happenings in our next-door neighbour, Niger Republic.

“You can see Kano is a peaceful State and we will continue to provide security to enable residents to move about their businesses without threats to lives and property,” he said.

On Monday last week, memories of the momentous life and times of Alhaji Lateef Jakande were evoked at the maiden edition of the annual lecture instituted in his honour by the Nigerian Guild of Editors. The event held at the Sheraton Hotels in Lagos, was the first of its kind for a man who has done so much for Nigerian journalism in a career that spanned several decades. And like the great Nnamdi Azikiwe, he also went ahead to write his name in the annals of public service in Nigeria.

His tenure as Governor of Lagos State from October 1979 to December 1983, is widely regarded as the turning point in good governance and massive development of the State’s infrastructure. 

A great journalist in his day, Jakande’s life is inextricably connected with several epochs in the development of journalism in Nigeria. He was among those who spearheaded the formation of the Nigerian Union of Journalists in March 1955 in response to agitations for a platform for collective action for journalists in pre-independence Nigeria. The NUJ which was first led by Mobolaji Odunewu, former editor of the Port Harcourt-based Eastern Nigerian Guardian, had other editors on the executive. With time, however, most of its members became uncomfortable with the fact that they reposed leadership in editors who, in the manner of managers, could also ‘hire and fire’. 

Four years later, they succeeded in inserting a clause in the union’s objects to exclude editors like Jakande who was the union’s treasurer, from holding executive positions in the NUJ. Two years later in May 1961, Jakande who was editor-in-chief of Allied Newspapers Ltd, publishers of Nigerian Tribune, Sunday Service and Irohin Yoruba, rallied the editors who felt discriminated against, to form the Guild of Newspaper Editors of Nigeria which has since been renamed Nigerian Guild of Editors. He served as the Guild’s first President. 

Alhaji Lateef Jakande

He later led the formation of the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN) of which he was also the pioneer President. While the Guild’s objective was anchored on providing the professional leadership that journalism needs, the NPAN protects the business interests of newspaper proprietors. Beyond Nigeria, he was the first African to become the President of the executive board of the International Press Institute (IPI) with headquarters in Vienna, during which period he set up the Nigerian Institute of Journalism in Ikeja, Lagos.

No one else has played on the four major journalism turfs as prominently as Jakande did and the memorial lecture is a befitting memorial in his honour. The idea of the lecture was first proposed by the current president, Eze Anaba, at the 2023 Convention of the Guild in Owerri and it resonates with members of the Guild and to the larger family of journalists in Nigeria and beyond. 

Jakande’s contemporaries like Sam Amuka, Segun Osoba, Dayo Duyile and Felix Adenaike had a field day catching up on old times, and it was an opportunity for the family to recount the sacrifices they put up with in his public service days. His vision for a better society was revealed early through his strongly-worded editorials in the papers he edited; his character shone through the John West column he maintained for decades and his personal discipline were exemplary during his tenure of office as Lagos State governor. 

In today’s Nigeria, it will be denial of a criminal proportion for a governor to deny his family the privileges that have become commonplace. The wife was denied the limelight that so many others enjoyed as First Ladies; the family was denied the exciting ambience of His Excellency’s palatial official residence as Baba Kekere preferred to live in his private home in Ilupeju; there was no long convoy of shinning black SUVs as Governor Jakande preferred to use his personal car, and the children were not availed the opportunity to travel the world and school in the most expensive institutions at the people’s expense. Even when Jakande grudgingly accepted to serve as Abacha’s minister of works and developed the luxury Banana Island in Lagos, the family was still excluded from what turned out to be the abode of the rich and powerful.  

Indeed, the lecture evoked great memories, even if it ended with a blue reminder that the Lagos State government has still not made good on the expectation that it would rename the Lagos State University, LASU, after the man who famously established it. The story has been told severally how Chief Olabisi Onabanjo and Professor Ambrose Alli, then governors of old Ogun and Bendel States respectively, came to understudy Jakande’s idea that gave birth to LASU.

They returned home to establish their own state universities that have today been renamed after them by their respective state governments.

If it was good for the old Ogun and Bendel States, it is even moreso for Lagos which, following Jakande’s vision, has turned to the Centre of Excellence. Coming from Nigerians who appreciate the man’s laudable sacrifices for the state and a family not known to make unnecessary demands on the State government, the call to rename LASU after Lateef Jakande does not appear to be such a tall order. 

Sheddy Ozoene is Vice President (East) of the Nigerian Guild of Editors.

Despite the hysteria about who has been made a Minister and who has not and the euphoria about which portfolios they have been given or not been given, let us remain focused on the major issues of the day and not take our eye off the ball.

And other than our economic and security challenges the most weighty issue is the conundrum that we are presented with in Niger Republic and the challenge of military Governments in our backyard.

The facts are as follows.

Sudan, Chad, Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali and Guniea have all been plagued with coup d'etas and military Governments over the last 3 years.

They have formed a formidable and intimidating 'coup belt' of unelected military rulers which stretches from Guniea on the western flank of the West African sub-region right on the Atlantic ocean up across the southern flank of the North African Sahel and the Lake Chad region all the way to East Africa and the Pacific ocean.

They have effectively drawn an iron curtain and uninterrupted chain of unelected and unconciable military juntas right across the center of our continent dividing North Africa from the rest of the continent.

It follows that the greatest challenge of our time is to ensure that this leperous belt of unconstitutional Governments does not get any bigger, stronger and wider and that the virus of military interventions and coups does not spread any further.

We must, no matter the cost, fight for and defend our democracy and preserve our freedom and way of life.

We cannot do this by relying on foreign and regional armies to come and save us and neither can we achieve it by marching into Niger in a gung ho attempt to restore democracy.

We can only do so by winning the hearts and souls of our people by providing good governance, justice and accountability for them.

Once you do this and any military adventurer tries to do a coup, the people themselves will come out in the streets in their millions to denounce and resist it.

In such circumstances you will not need any foreign force to come and reinstall or reinstate you.

This is the point that President Bazoum failed to appreciate.

He allowed his people to suffer under the yoke of the French and was totally oblivious and insensitive to their yearnings and aspirations to be freed from the vestiges of neo-colonial bondage.

That is what the mutineers took advantage of.

Let us hope that other African leaders can learn from his mistakes.

If they do, we shall go from strength to strength and democracy shall
flourish in our respective countries.

If they do not they can expect the worse. The choice is theirs.

Permit me to conclude this contribution with a final word on the misplaced notion that a military assault or threat of it on Niger would be a fruitful endeavour and the best and only way to restore democracy in that beleaguered nation.

After the meeting of the Chief of Defence Staffs and military commanders of the ECOWAS countries in Accra on Thursday the following definitive statement was made by the commanders of the ECOWAS Force.

They said, "we are ready to storm Niger Republic".

This despite the counsel of the African Union and powerful North African countries like Algeria not to do so.

I am constrained to respectfully put the following questions to these ECOWAS military commanders and I challenge them to provide the answers.

Can we successfully attack a country where the civilians are holding rallies in solidatiry with their supposed oppressors?

Surely, in the end, no one will come out victorious as these things are always easier said than done.

Russia thought Ukraine would fall in two weeks yet today it is well over a year, hundreds of thousands of innocent lives are still being lost and the war is still raging.

Quite apart from that has this ECOWAS "force" already been formed or will they divide the operation into sectors with each country taking a sector?

Where is the Command HQ located? Who takes care of Nigér's sector 3 of the MNJTF in the Lake Chad, for I guess they will withdraw their troops?

If Burkina Faso and Mali join Nigér forces, as they threatened they would, who blocks the southward movement of the insurgents and terrorists scattered around the triangular borders of Mali, Burkina Faso and Nigér?

Is the Russian Wagner force still active in the region? Have we prepared adequately to handle the weapons and drug-trafficking across the borders with Niger since our partners in that nation are now our enemies?

Even with them working with us, cross border crimes are still serious issues.

Will the AU or the UN or the West be responsible for the logistics? As at now Nigeria can't afford to do so like it did in ECOMOG. We simply do not have the financial wherewithal or the resources.

In my view we should still vigorously pursue the application of conflict resolution mechanisms in order to buy time to address these questions.

We must approach the entire matter with the utmost caution, wisdom and care.

If Niger Republic and her allies deliberately open a corridor for the elements of ISIS, AQIM, ISWAP etc to move into Benin and Togo, ECOWAS' weakest link, then the whole of Nigeria's western borders, from Sokoto to Lagos, would be vulnerable to terrorist attacks.

Already some of the elements have penetrated into Niger State, around Borgu and Shiriro, very close to Benin Republic and some states in the South West of Nigeria.

These questions need answers.

There is no doubt im my mind that an attack on Niger Republic would result in a massive military conflagration that will engulf the entire West African sub-region and which would eventually spread to North, Central and East Africa.

The mutineers and coupists have agreed to dialogue and now ECOWAS wants to use force, launch an attack and endanger the life of President Bazoum? This hardly makes sense.

If we are not careful and if we refuse to use diplomatic means to resolve this matter we may end up throwing ourselves into the greatest and most destructive war in the history of Africa and few African nations would survive it.

That is what the proponents of an attack on Niger are toying with.

Treading the path of war is a reckless and dangerous adventure which would result in a frightful and horrific Dickensian nightmare and Shakespearean tragedy.

May we never see it.

In conclusion let me say this.

 If the Western powers, including the United States of America, the United Kingdom, the European Union and even France are worried for their vital and strategic interests on the African continent in the light of all this I sincerely and honestly believe they have every right, reason and need to do so because the stakes are high.

The Russians and Chinese ought to be worried as well.

Apart from those that wish to depopulate and destroy our continent and sell their arms, no-one, least of all the African people, stands to benefit from a rash collective of vicious and unaccountable military Governments strewn across Africa or from what may end up being a massive continental war which, to all intents and purposes, may end up transmuting into a proxy one between the world's super powers.

Worse of all such a war will probably be partly fought by mercenary armies from both sides of the divide.

May God deliver us from evil.

(Chief Femi Fani-Kayode is the Sadaukin Shinkafi, the former Minister of Aviation and the former Minister of Culture and Tourism)

An ECOWAS delegation led by Nigeria’s former Head of State, retired Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar met in Niamey on Saturday, 19th August with Niger's military regime officials led by Brg.-Gen Abdourahamane Tchiani.

Diplomatic sources said the ECOWAS team, which included Nigeria's Sultan of Sokoto Alhaji Muhamad Sa'ad Abubakar also met with Niger's deposed President Mohamed Bazoum.

Abubakar had led a previous ECOWAS Mission, which only went as far as the Niamey airport, with the military junta citing security concerns then following the sanctions imposed by ECOWAS, including a no-fly zone over Niger after the 26th July coup.

The governing military Council had also received on Thursday in Niamey, the United Nations Special Representative for West Africa and the Sahel, Leonardo Santos Simao.

The negotiations are seen as last-ditch efforts to resolve the Niger impasse through diplomatic means.

The peace missions followed Friday’s second emergency meeting in Accra, Ghana by regional Chiefs of Defence Staff, who announced that an undisclosed “D-Day” had been decided for possible deployment of the ECOWAS Standby Force to restore constitutional order in Niger.

Bazoum, some of his family members and ousted government officials are detained by the junta, which has already named a 21-member cabinet of ministers headed by a civilian Prime Minister.

The Tchiani-led regime had threatened to kill the deposed president if attacked by ECOWAS forces.

Three ECOWAS member States under military rule – Mali, Guinea, and Burkina Faso – have expressed solidarity with the Niger regime, with the Mali and Burkina Faso juntas also warning that both countries will defend the Niger armed forces and citizens if attacked by external forces.

ECOWAS might be trying to end recurring military coups in the region, but France and the U.S. which have military bases in Niger are also defending their defence and economic interests in Niger, with other players such as Russia and China waiting in the wings.

Popular opinion in the region favours the use of diplomacy for a peaceful resolution of the Niger impasse, over military intervention.

Apart from the complexity and competing domestic and international interests, the use of military force is perceived as an externally-driven agenda and could backfire, resulting in escalation into a catastrophic war.

Meanwhile, reports from Niamey indicate that ECOWAS sanctions are biting hard, with avoidable deaths in hospitals.

The sanctions include border closure, freeze of financial transactions by member States and the suspension of electricity supplies by neighbouring Nigeria to Niger.

The UN humanitarian agency has urged ECOWAS and partners to allow the movement of humanitarian supplies to ease sufferings by the population from the sanctions.

It is believed that current negotiations between ECOWAS/UN and the junta leaders could cut the ice towards a peace solution.

Gen. Abubakar led one of the shortest political transitions from military to civilian rule in Nigeria, and it is expected that his experience could be useful in Niger.