One year ago, Citizen Bola Ahmed Tinubu became Nigeria’s president. In the run-up to the elections, a lot of hate was brewed on all sides of the political divide. That, I dare say, is the nature of politics all over the world. Contestation for the minds and votes of the people is revved up to trigger the basest of instincts. Just like in the First Republic, every election cycle shears the fragile fabric of national cohesion to such an extent that we are much more divided today than we were at the onset of the current democratic relay race in 1999.

Take a trip on the superhighway of social media and see how we advertise our mutual hatred and call other ethnic nationalities by names that our dogs— even the common Bingos used for dog meat pepper-soup— would find discourteous. 

One year into the Tinubu administration, we are yet to start the healing process of pulling ourselves together so that our forward march can be as one people, even as we have— and jealously guard— our different political perspectives. There is nothing wrong with political disagreements. There is everything disagreeable with establishing a dynasty of implacable warriors in the name of political followers whose sole duty is sustaining the E-wars on the internet or the thinly veiled TV diatribes where we de-market each other.

This retrogression shall not be televised. We shall keep it hushed in whispers among our various clusters. What we had hoped would be a centripetal pull has rent us asunder and made us, not just perpetual opponents, but infernal foes to each other. The simple matter of electing our leaders has morphed into an unprecedented political chasm destined to consume the atavistic forces it has unleashed. 

Yet, this was the same country in which, nine years after the civil war, Dr. Alex Ekwueme from Anambra State in Southeastern Nigeria was voted as Vice President to Alhaji Shehu Shagari. Augustus Meredith Akinloye (Always Mentally Alert) was the all powerful chairman of the ruling party. The president deferred to him at all party functions. The calibre of the opposition was high: the redoubtable Chief Obafemi Awolowo of the UPN; Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe of the NPP; Alhaji Aminu Kano of the PRP; and Alhaji Waziri Ibrahim of the GNPP. 

Even with all the warts of Second Republic politics, we still look back at those days as comparatively glorious. The urgent task before us all is to reset to brotherhood mode. Waziri Ibrahim called it “Politics without bitterness”. Could that be the dream that fired Senator Opeyemi Bamidele to sponsor the bill seeking to restore our former national anthem (Though tribe and tongue may differ in brotherhood we stand…)? I would rather we use our magic wand to return the Naira to its value in 1980 (98 kobo=$1) instead of re-echoing the colonialists’ colourful words such as ‘native’ and ‘tribe’.

I think the more desirable thing for us right now is to look ahead and change gear. It is one year of the Tinubu administration. Last week, the ministers rendered an account of their stewardship on national television. If I was the president, I would by now have done my own assessment to compare with the lies that some of them openly told. But, thank God for little mercies, the Tinubu administration’s perform-or-be-fired mantra is several miles better than Buhari’s style of leaving appointees in office even when they start becoming rancid.

So, let the president rejig his cabinet. There’s no point allowing passengers to continue occupying the driver’s seat. And let’s have a closure on the suspended Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Dr. Edu. 

I am rather interested in deliverables for the next one year. What should we expect the Tinubu administration to have achieved (wholly or partially) by this time next year?

Food Inflation

The Nigerian Bureau of Statistics has disclosed that the average annual rate of food inflation for the twelve months ending February 2024 over the previous twelve-month average was 30.07 percent. For the year ending in April 2024, the average annual rate of food inflation stood at 32.74%, representing an increase of 9.52 percentage points over the 23.22% average annual rate recorded in April 2023. The Tinubu administration will be judged by how far its policies encourage a downward trend of these distressing figures in the coming year.

State Police

There appears to be a consensus now that the existing federal police structure is inadequate to handle the current security challenges in the country. President Tinubu ought to trigger an expeditious constitutional amendment and legal framework for the setting up of a new state police structure to run side by side with the existing federal force. 

Value Of Naira

I have heard top government officials boast that the goal of the current policies rolled out by the government in the financial sector is to eventually achieve a fair exchange rate of about N700 to the USD. Amen! It will be interesting to see where we are in the next 12 months.

Tax Harmonisation

Nigerians expect that the next one year will not witness any kind of tax ambush as was attempted many times in the last one year. There is a limit to which a pauperised person can be taxed even as everyone knows that the immediate past administration had mismanaged the economy. You can’t restore a malnourished child to normal body weight in one day.

Alternative Sources

Nigerians are expecting that in the next one year, the other sources of revenue touted as potential money spinners would at least come to their own. The club of potential champions include: Steel Development, Marine and Blue Economy, Solid Minerals Development, Tourism and Digital Economy, 

Electricity

After the failure of the attempt by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission in conspiracy with the discos and the Minister of Power to increase electricity tariff arbitrarily, there is need to restore confidence in consumers through a more predictable supply without which all the expectations of increased productivity will come to nought.

Transition To CNG

By this time next year, most Nigerian cities ought to have benefitted from the presidential CNG initiative to reduce the dependence on petrol in favour of Compressed Natural Gas. If that does not happen, the government would be judged to have failed.

Federal Roads

All over the country, federal roads have become death traps. The poor state of most roads make commuters sitting ducks for armed robbers and kidnappers who have been having a field day all over the country. In the next one year, this is one area where Nigerians will definitely assess the government and judge it harshly if it defaults.

Political Solution

In line with my persistent call for national healing and reconciliation, I think we should take advantage of President Tinubu’s political experience and pan-Nigerian outreach to request him to find a political solution to the ongoing trial of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB).

It is within the powers of the president to constitute a team to advise him on possible details and conditions for achieving a political solution to the case. If that is achieved in the next one year, the political temperature in the Southeast will drop as the ground will be swept from the feet of pretenders to the IPOB cause who have constituted themselves to terror gangs in the forests of that region. I can visualise a collective sigh of relief being heaved by his kinsmen and other goodwill ambassadors of other ethnic nationalities who have been calling for a political solution to get this matter behind us once and for all.

As Shakespeare says, The quality of mercy is not strain’d. It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven Upon the place beneath. It is twice blest: It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.

The duo of Abba Yusuf, governor of Kano State, and the Nigerian presidency stand the risk of plunging Kano back into the year 1893. Their weapon would be politics and votes of the over 2 million people of Kano. In the year 1893, in the words of highly rated scholar on Northern emirate administration, C. N. Ubah, a bitterly disputed succession battle plunged the Kano emirate into anarchy and civil war. Indeed, the Kano royal family had overtime been a hotbed of divisions and acrimony. Beginning from the first civil war fought in Kano in 1565, the royal house of Kano had been bedeviled by internal strife and bloodshed. In 1648, the house was again ravaged by a second civil war shortly after the death of Muhammed Alwali, also known as El Kutumbi. The strife continued even till 1806 when Kano became part and parcel of the nascent Sokoto Caliphate. That year, followers of Usman dan Fodio forcefully drove out Alwali, Kano’s last Hausa emir, from the city. Thereafter, in 1807, after a protracted struggle with the Fula warriors towards the end of that year, Alwali was ambushed and assassinated at Burum-Burum in present day Kano. His assassination spelled the end of the Kutumbaw line of Hausa aristocrats in Kano, as well as the fall of the Bagauda dynasty that had been in place for 800 years.

In modern times, we have had peaceful enthronement and dethronement of Kano Emirs. For instance, one day in August, 1963, Sir Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto, suddenly woke up from a belligerent side of his bed and conceived the sack of the Emir of Kano, Sir Muhammadu Sanusi. Persuaded that courtesy demanded he should inform his protégé and Prime Minister, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa of this move, Bello sent his friend, Alhaji Isa Kaita, Waziri of Katsina, then Northern Region Minister for Works and later, Minister of Education between 1957-1966, to Lagos.

There, Kaita met Balewa with his five ministers – Muhammadu Ribadu, Shehu Shagari, Zanna Bukar Dipcharima, Maitama Sule and Tudun Wada. When he broke the news, Balewa and the others were horrified and expressed their opposition to it. “Tell the Sardauna that he should not do it, for Kano will be on fire,” they chorused. Sanusi was a highly revered and loved monarch with a cultic following. Then Kaita rose and told the Prime Minister and the five ministers, “I am not here for permission. I am here to inform you that the Sardauna had made up his mind. I am afraid, no going back”. Bello and Balewa later agreed that Azare, headquarters of the Katagum Emirate in Northern Bauchi province, should be Sanusi’s banishment place. Two days after, Sanusi was dethroned and banished to Azare where he died in 1984.

Who will give Tinubu and Yusuff that initial counsel which Balewa and his ministers gave Ahmadu Bello? Who will tell them that, with the current weaponizing of politics and votes in the Kano royal house succession battle, in anticipation of the 2027 elections, “Kano will be on fire”?

Fifty seven years after that Ahmadu Bello dethronement of Sanusi, in the same off-handed and cavalier manner he removed him, Abubakar Ganduje also halted Sanusi Lamido Sanusi’s imperial ride on the royalty of Kano. Through the State Emirate Council Law 2019, Ganduje imposed a five-emirate system, birthing first-class emirs in Gaya, Rano, Karaye and Bichi. Thus, in 2020, Ganduje peremptorily removed Sanusi over allegation of insubordination to his government. And 61 years after, Governor Yusuf walked that same Ahmadu Bello route by removing the Emirs.

Aside Ganduje’s allegation of insubordination against Sanusi, the presidency of Muhammadu Buhari, too saw Sanusi’s cup as having run over. Security reports alleged that the Emir was tampering with the president’s meaty pie. Coupled with his perceived aristocratic obstinacy, relentless criticisms of the fiscal regime and indeed the administration of Buhari in very unflattering terms, Ganduje’s disdain for Sanusi received a presidential imprimatur. He had to go.

After receiving his letter of appointment from Yusuf on Friday, Sanusi, speaking in Hausa, ascribed his return to the palace as God’s inscrutable act, because God is “the all knowing. He gives power and takes away from people in leadership. If He gives, no one can take away and if He takes away, no one can stop Him. God gives power to whoever He chooses.” Earlier, while signing the new Kano Emirate Bill (2024) into law, Yusuf had said that the decision to return Sanusi to the stool as the 16^th Emir of Kano was in the best interest of the state and its people.

Both Sanusi and Yusuf must however know that they were both being clever by half. The duo merely exploited and capitalized on the mass of the people’s uncritical appraisal of existential matters. Nigerians mix metaphysical issues with the issue of existence, to their disadvantage. The plot to bring the former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor back to the palace had no hand of God in it. It was a product of deft maneuvering by political gladiators playing a political chess game. Alongside the Sultan of Sokoto, Emir of Gwandu and the Shehu of Borno, in Nigeria and outside of its shores, the palace of the Emir of Kano is held in awe for its significance for both religious and political purposes.

Together, the four Emirs are historical and religious rulers who are literally deified in Northern Nigeria. On the national platform, whoever is the Kano Emir has a controlling leverage on the political barometer of the north. With Ganduje’s political hold on the state he governed withering and dithering, one permutation said the federal government needed an ally in a suave, likeable Sanusi whose preference also fits the political vendetta game that the Rabiu Musa Kwankwanso-led New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) wanted to inflict on the APC national chairman. A Sanusi as Emir, with his adorable suavity and talismanic respect in the north would inch any government with sagging electoral hold like Tinubu’s back to power in a re-election contest. So they think. The other permutation said that Ganduje got the presidency of Tinubu to send military troops to Kano to thwart the removal of his anointed Emirs.

Though there are no artillery firepower and marching troops, today in Kano State, there seems to be a reenactment of the famous Battle of Kwatarkwashi. Last Thursday, Abba Yusuf appended his signature to the reappointment of Sanusi Lamido Sanusi as Emir of Kano, four years after his dethronement by his predecessor, Ganduje. By that singular act, perhaps unbeknown to Yusuf, he went down history lane among leaders of Kano who engaged in the politicization of successions in the Kano emirate.

Fought in 1903, the Battle of Kwatarkwashi ruptured Kano emirate peace. It was a decisive war between the British administered Protectorate of Northern Nigeria and the Emirate forces in the Sokoto Caliphate. In that battle, High Commissioner to the Northern Region, Lord Lugard, waged war against Kano Emir, Aliyu Babba. Bent on removing Babba for what he considered his arrogance and disregard for his office, Lugard wrote incriminating memos to Britain justifying military action against Babba. First, he claimed the Emir planned to attack the Kano garrison with 10,000 troops. Then, he alleged that Babba granted asylum to Dan Yamusa, the Magaji of Keffi, who, in October 1902, allegedly murdered a Captain Moloney, Keffi-based junior Resident. Lugard then placed a price and wanted tag on Yamusa’s head.

On January 29, 1903, the battle began. Colonel Morland, Commandant of Northern Nigeria Regiment and his troops rolled their battle tanks into Kano. Emir Babba’s cavalry for the battle was no match for Morland’s 24 Officers and 722 other ranks, with their four 75mm guns and 4 Maxims. The British, after breaking the walls of Kano, stormed the Emir’s palace, killed its defender, Sarkin Shanu, who had fought them with a sword, set the Emir’s arsenal on fire and killed not less than 300 of the warriors. On February 16, the British forces then proceeded to the Northwest of Kano where they ambushed the Kano cavalry who were gathered by the great rocks of Kwatarkwashi where a 6-hour firepower ensued. At the end, the Vizier of Kano emir beat a retreat with his remnant of cavalry, to Sokoto. Many of the fighters, under Muhammad Abbas, however, surrendered to the British, leading to Muhammad Abbas, Aliyu’s elder brother, being proclaimed Emir of Kano.

Unlike the Kwatarkwashi battle, change of Emirs in a very volatile emirate of Kano is usually in an off-handed manner. Alhaji Abubakar Rimi, Second Republic governor of Kano state from 1979 to 1983, had also toed same line in his removal of the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero. Rimi perhaps verbalized the disdain with which politicians regard Emirs. Speaking with respected veteran journalist, Lekan Alabi, in 1982 on an NTA Ibadan Personality Interview Programme, Speak Out, Rimi declared that traditional rulers were “mere public servants” and threatened to remove Bayero.

He exploded: “The way you press and our political opponents (regard) the Emir of Kano is not the way we regard him. As far as we are concerned (thumping his chest) – we the elected government of Kano state – as far as I, the governor of Kano state, is concerned – the Emir of Kano is nothing, nothing, nothing but a public person… he is holding a public office… being paid from public funds and whose appointment is at the pleasure of the governor of the state and who can be dismissed, removed interdicted, suspended if he commits an offence. And there is nothing unique about Ado Bayero, the Emir of Kano… believe me, if he commits any offence which will make it necessary for us to remove him, we will remove him and we will sleep soundly”.

Since the formation of Kano Emirate in 1805, two attempts have been made to split the emirate. Incidentally done by civilian governments, both attempts hung their reasons for the Emirs’ removal on the need to whittle down the powers of Emirs. Rimi was the first to create five emirates out of the Kano Emirate. A noticeable sour relationship had developed between Bayero and Rimi. In 1981, Rimi stopped the traditional homage usually paid by village heads to Bayero. So, on April 1, 1981, Rimi created four new emirates of Gaya, Rano, Dutse, and Auyo, excising some domains from Bayero’s emirate. On April 7, 1981, he also issued a “Query” to Bayero and in 1982, ordered the return of dethroned Emir Muhammadu Sanusi to Wudil in the state.

What is playing out in Kano today is a replay of the Second Republic Kano government-Emirate tango. Or the usual volatility of successions in the royal house in earlier centuries. Rimi, who became governor under the banner of the People’s Redemption Party (PRP) had fallen out with party leader, Mallam Aminu Kano. From this fallout came a faction of PRP called “Yan tabo” with its loyalty strictly to the Mallam. The other faction, called “Yan santsi,” pledged its loyalty to Rimi. Unfortunately for Rimi, the electoral umpire, FEDECO, pronounced its recognition of the Aminu Kano faction. This led Rimi to defect to the Nigerian People’s Party (NPP) where he vied for a second term in the 1983 elections. As soon as he tendered his letter of resignation as governor, the “Yan tabo” faction replaced him with his deputy, Abdu Dawakin Tofa but later fielded Sabo Aliyu Bakin Zuwo as governorship candidate. Zuwo defeated Rimi. On his assumption of office in 1983, the first thing Bakin Zuwo did was to reverse the creation of the four new emirates made by Rimi. The single emirate of Kano continued for thirty six years until 2019 when Ganduje again got it splintered.

Unbeknown to the generality of the people, though Governor Yusuf had, in campaigns for the office of the governor, vowed to “right wrongs” in the emirate, his “very bad” case at the appellate court must have given him and the Nigerian power apparatchik what lawyers call consensus ad idem on the restoration of Sanusi to the palace. In the permutations of what is happening in Kano, the one suggesting that the president is most likely running with the hare and hunting with the hound is almost the most fertile. Sanusi and the current Nigerian power levers have always been allies. Giving his return a presidential push would be a worthy favour to a friend who incidentally has become a proposed weapon for retention of power.

Events unfolding since Thursday have shown that politicians are gradually dragging Kano to the Battle of Kwatarkwashi, the slab of bloodshed. As I write this, there appears to be two Emirs on a single Kano emirate stool. Presidency officials themselves are split between Sanusi and Bayero. Security apparatuses are also torn apart in their loyalty to the two “Emirs”, with Yusuf threatening to arrest Bayero for allegedly sponsoring the bid to set Kano aglow. But, is the blood of Kano people worth the politics of 2027 and vendetta?

THERE is no denying the fact that corruption has become endemic in our country Nigeria and that it has eaten very deep into every fabric of the society. I listened to a voxpopuli on social media some days ago where Nigerians who had “japa” from the country were asked whether they would “japada” Not a single one of them said they would! Why, they were asked, and they answered that it is because the situation that forced them out of the country has not changed. The country’s problems, they added, were leadership and corruption. Tame corruption and Nigeria would become a better place, they said. Enthrone good leadership and the country would, in no time, become the Eldorado that its citizens “japa”on a daily basis in search of. It is common knowledge that Nigeria is not short of solutions to its problems, implementation has always been the problem. Who will bell the cat, as they say? Karl Marx hit the nail right on the head when he posited that “Philosophers have hitherto only interpreted the world. The point, however, is to change it”

On Saturday, 27 April, 2024 at online publication, Treasure newspaper’s first public lecture and award ceremonies held at the Conference Hall of Solab Suites Hotel, FUTA South Road, Akure, Ondo state, the controversy over whether or not the death penalty was sine qua non for taming corruption reared its head again. Guest lecturer, Segun Maiyegun, a household name in student union and pro-democracy activism voted for public execution for corrupt Nigerians. The topic of his lecture was “Home-grown economy as a road map for economic sustainability: Examining the prospects under the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration”. “I am calling for the death sentence on anyone who embezzles”, Maiyegun said unequivocally. But speaking later, the Ondo State Honourable Commissioner for Information, Mr. Wale Akinlosotu, who stood in for his governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, disagreed. According to him Nigeria must toe the line of international best practices on the subject matter, adding that there are enough laws in the country’s statute book to effectively tackle the cankerworms of corruption.

Pointing to China’s example of the death penalty for corruption, Maiyegun said “harsh punishment“ is needed to deter corrupt practices. He also advocated an understanding of the inner workings of political economy because politics, according to him, “is the answer to economic problems. We need people to understand the interplay and contributions of individuals” to national development. He advocated restructuring that will devolve more powers over control of resources from the Centre to the states while also calling for a free marketplace of ideas and knowledge. “People want to know their leaders; let the leaders come  closer to the people”

Pro-democracy activist and chairman of the occasion, Debo Adeniran, argued that practical steps were needed to turn the country’s comatose economy around. He said critical minds are required to ask critical questions that would proffer solutions to the country’s myriad problems. “I give it to Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu: he was in the streets, too. He was with us in the streets. If there is anything happening, he intervenes”. He was referring to those years of the struggle to end military rule when Tinubu was an activist who marched in the streets with other pro-democracy activists. “I am not a fan of Tinubu but he intervenes when there are issues”, he added for emphasis.

One other serious problem that was discussed at the event was that of insecurity and the role played by the proliferation of light or small arms. The Southwest Zonal Coordinator of the National Centre for the Control of Small arms and Light weapons, Mr. Benson Sola Akinlade, said the country’s economy cannot thrive in an atmosphere of insecurity because, according to him, economic sustainability is inseparable from security sustainability. Highlighting the Centre’s efforts at preventing and controlling the proliferation of small arms and light weapons, he said thousands of such illicit weapons have been successfully mopped up.

Legal experts have offered different views about the judicial order that was recently given stopping the reinstatement of Muhammadu Sanusi II as Emir of Kano

The allegation made by Governor Abba Yusuf that Justice Mohammed Liman of the Federal High Court in Kano granted an order stopping the reinstatement of Sanusi Lamido as the 16th Emir of Kano from the United States is generating serious controversy among lawyers in the country.

While some argued that if the court proceedings are conducted virtually, the judge can sit anywhere because he has a global jurisdiction, others contended that the Nigerian judicial system follows territorial authority. Judges typically exercise jurisdiction within Nigeria’s borders.

LEADERSHIP Sunday reports that the rules of the Federal High Court provide that judges can conduct judicial activities outside the country in certain circumstances, like when the court judge participates in international arbitration proceedings held outside Nigeria.

Also, in rare cases, a judge may conduct hearings or proceedings in another country with the consent of the parties involved and the Chief Judge’s approval.

However, the Federal High Court has embraced virtual court proceedings, also known as remote hearings. However, a situation where a judge sits over a case virtually from outside the country is controversial.

The judge, in the eyes of the storm, is a very senior judicial officer who handled high-profile cases before he was transferred outside the  Lagos jurisdiction of the court.

He has been sitting virtually on some old  Lagos cases from his Kano base by the court’s rules.

On May 7, 2024, Justice Liman convicted and sentenced a plastic surgeon and founder of MedContour Services Ltd., Dr Anuoluwapo Adepoju, for failing to appear before the Federal Competition & Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) about an investigation into a failed plastic surgery that resulted in the death of one Nneka Onwuzuligbo in 2020.

This judgment was delivered virtually.

Also, on May 17, 2024, during a visual court hearing, he fixed June 3 for judgment in the money laundering trial of a former speaker of the  Lagos State House of Assembly, Adeyemi Ikuforiji.

He has also been conducting the case of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against Four directors of Petrol Union Oil and Gas Company Limited, accused of an alleged £2.556 billion fraud.

In his reaction to the controversy,  a Professor of law, Ademola Adaranijo, said that the judge had not done anything wrong. However, he is unsure of the allegation because there has not been an official response from the court’s authority or the judge.

Adaranijo stated that in law, when it comes to online offences, jurisdiction is global. He said that if someone committed an offence of cyberstalking, for example, in Enugu, he can be tried anywhere in the country because you can not limit the Internet to a particular location. 

He said, “In the same vain if the judge is sitting online, he can conduct the proceeding from anywhere as long as the parties agree. 

But a  Lagos lawyer, Michael Okpu, disagrees with his colleague’s opinion; he said a judge must have access to necessary resources, files, or support staff to handle cases effectively.

He said, “The National Judicial Council’s (NJC) Guidelines for Virtual Court Proceedings (2020) only allowed virtual hearings in certain circumstances, such as urgent matters, interlocutory applications, pre-trial conferences and simple civil cases.

“However, the guidelines mandate that the judge, parties, and legal representatives be within Nigeria’s territorial boundaries during virtual proceedings.

“So, a judge of the Federal High Court of Nigeria cannot sit over a case virtually from outside the country; he must be within Nigeria’s borders to participate in virtual court proceedings,” he said.

[Leadership]

There is a sense in which both Nigerians and Mr. Tinubu share a place in purgatory in the last one year. Both leader and people are dwelling a house of incendiary troubles in waiting for admission into either hell or heaven. To that extent, we all have been in purgatory for the last one year and still counting. The questions are mutually reinforcing: Will Nigerians emerge from here into greater anguish or splendid glory? In turn, will Mr. Tinubu emerge from this place into a place of glory and honour given his troublesome past and current travails at the helm?

Twenty five years of unbroken democracy in Nigeria has taught me something about presidential democracy. The four -year cycles between administrations resolves into three time segments. The first year is for learning the ropes, making mistakes and stumbling  to establish an identity. The next two years are for effective governance and head -on confrontation with the promises that inspired a particular presidency. The final year is for succession politics , playing to be re elected if possible.

Effectively then, given this four year template, Tinubu has only the next  two years of effective governance to tackle the myriad problems tormenting the nation. He has two years to ensure improved security and chase away all bandits, kidnappers, abductors and sundry criminal gangs from the face of the nation. He has two years to reduce the poverty population to a manageable level, There are only two years to fix dilapidated infrastructure, reduce the national debt burden, return the Naira exchange rate to Buhari levels at least. He has two years to reduce official corruption to an acceptable minimum and put away an accumulated crowd of previously indicted corrupt officials. That is not all. Tinubu and his team have just two years to find food for the hungry, jobs for the army of unemployed youth and reprieve for threatened businesses. Most important of all, Tinubu has to use the next three years at most to restore the hope of Nigerians and friends of Nigeria in the Nigerian promise of a free, diverse but prosperous and united nation.

This may sound like a tall order indeed. After all, the litany of problems that today define the Nigerian reality  were  not created by Mr. Tinubu. He may have inherited most of them. He succeeded a president who is easily the most unfortunate thing that has happened to the Nigerian nation since inception. Mr. Buhari literally ran the Nigerian state aground and destroyed the very basis of our national cohesion. An economic illiterate and bureaucratic nonentity, Mr. Buhari brought to bear on the affairs of the Nigerian state his trademark incompetence, epic ineptitude and cruel aloofness. His aloof indifference enshrined the idea that perhaps Nigeria did not need a president as the affairs of state and society went on to the exclusion of any perceptible executive responsibility. Worse of all, he reopened old wounds, reignited the hatred that led the nation to war and sought to invade the nation with armed jihadist monsters of his own creation. The dot in a circle president !

But Buhari and Tinubu share a common political ancestry and party platform, the APC. It remains one of the most baffling aspects of Nigeria’s democracy that a party that ruined the nation should be returned to power. Given the complicity of the APC in creating the crises that define today’s Nigeria and Mr. Tinubu’s reluctance to call his predecessor by his real names, he in turn is a co -architect of the present national disaster.

Therefore, as President Tinubu prepares to graduate from the apprentice year in office, he cannot outsource the responsibility for the state of the nation. Democracy elects leaders to solve problems, not to read out an inventory of blames on previous dispensations. And we all are entitled to the stubborn hope that those we elect to rule over us will leave us in a better place than they found us. Buhari failed that most elementary demand of democracy,

Arguably so far, in all fairness to the man, Tinubu may have given the job his best shot. Simultaneously, he has deployed the judiciary to wriggle out of a controversial electoral victory, assembled an inchoate collection of ministers and key officials and tried to give his presidency a character and a name. No one can as yet call the exact name. No one can accuse Tinubu of not trying so hard to lead and to be appreciated by Nigerians.

He literally charged on to the presidential dais with a hell fire storm of controversial policies. He used his inauguration podium to withdraw a controversial gasoline subsidy. Shortly afterwards, he embarked on devaluation of the troubled Naira. Both policies set off a vortex of policy repercussions that have kept him busy ever since. Arguably both policies may end up defining what remains of his tenure and tenancy in Aso Villa because he failed to do one thing: he did not think them through before  reaching for  the mic.

In what is emerging as a basically reactive presidency, Tinubu has tried to address the yearnings of Nigerians mostly as they arise and not necessarily in any ordered and systematic prioritization format. He has tried to emplace an economic policy to ameliorate the impacts of his  initial disruptive policies. The Central Bank of Nigeria has literally engaged currency speculators in open street fights to dampen the deterioration of the exchange rate of the Naira to major currencies with minute success. The exchange rate continues to do a yo yo dance which has escalated inflation and made uncertainty a permanent feature of the economy in the last one year.

An untidy students loan scheme is about to go into a trial run.  But no one is sure that this populist scheme, desirable as it is, can in any way redress the decades long decay in the nation’s tertiary education sector. Similarly, an initial reaction to the spread of hardship in the land gave birth to efforts at palliatives. No one knows what has so far happened to earlier efforts to release grains or supply food or cash to the most vulnerable. The general hardship graduated into an epidemic of hunger across the nation. Food riots have occurred in major urban centres while efforts to increase access to food among the poor and vulnerable have been at best chaotic in places.

 The president has fared poorly in healing the wounds of divisiveness in the nation that he inherited from his friend and predecessor, Mr. Buhari. His key appointments unfortunately drip of a sickening level of  xenophobic sectionalism. Most strategic appointments have gone to Tinubu’s Yoruba ethnic home base: Army, Customs, CBN, Finance, Police, Power , Transportation, Internal Affairs, Marine economy etc. etc.

In a bizarre backlash, even among the Yoruba South West elite, there is discord. The most outspoken elite of the region accuse Tinubu of favouring mostly the Lagos, Osun and Ogun axis to the exclusion of other components. The core northern elite that helped him onto power have in recent times begun making threatening political noises. The South-east and South-south feel outflanked and excluded. If Tinubu fails as president,  it would be deemed that the Yorubas ran the nation into another ditch.

If the current state of the Nigerian economy and society are anything to go by, then we are in a worse place than in the darker Buhari days. Gas station queues are back all over the country as routine supply and logistics planning seem to have overwhelmed the corrupt and inept NNPC. Healthcare costs have shot through the roof as the prices of essential drugs have reached for the skies. Prices of basic need goods are beyond the roof . To worsen a bad situation, we have become a virtual Federal Republic of Taxes as all manner of taxes, levies and tariffs are unleashed on the hapless and already impoverished populace. These range from astronomical electricity tariffs to proposed levies on phone calls, cyber security, increased custom duties and airport  transit and car parking fees.

Tinubu has tried his hands at reaching out to the world through a plethora of foreign junkets. In particular, he has tried to deploy his Muslim identity to reach out to the economic powers of the Middle East for economic lifelines. He has visited Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Qatar. Promises of resuming normal diplomatic and citizen visitation relations with the UAE have been sugar coated but yet unfulfilled. Qatar has refused to play ball yet on investments. The Saudis remain skeptical but are reluctant to tell Tinubu to his face that they cannot trust Nigeria to abide by any lasting agreements as the nation is half Christian.

Europe and the United States remain reticent, knowing that Nigeria only needs to go home and fix its troubles through responsible governance, transparency and greater accountability. For whatever reasons  that are only known to Tinubu, the CIA an the Department of State, I cannot see an imminent joint press conference at the White House lawns between Mr. Tinubu and any US president any time soon.

The attitude of the West to Nigeria’s need for economic bailout remains unchanged. If you need assistance, go through the World Ban, the IMF or enter into bilateral agreements with Western nations that trust you enough,

Back in Africa, Nigeria remains something of a fading empire. Our influence and stature has been tested in the West African sub region with regrettable outcomes. As leader of ECOWAS, Tinubu failed woefully in containing the coup in Niger Republic. Our failure in that regard led to the eviction of France and the United States as security guarantors in the Sahel, thus opening up the nation to greater jihadist terror while shrinking Western hemispheric influence in the region to the advantage of an ambitious Putin’s Russia.

In terms of style and character, Tinubu has displayed the typical African modern political trait of mixing up constitutional republican democracy with elements  of decadent monarchical absolutism. His motorcades are too long and rowdy. His immediate family is too conspicuous in the affairs of state including official delegations to important foreign countries. Worse still, the National Assembly has seemed all too eager to pass nearly every legislation emanating from the presidency while the judiciary is yet to recover from its perceived compromises in its verdicts on election cases that arose from the 2023 contests.

In matters of governance, there is  a disturbing lack of method in the  ways of Tinubu’s maddening crowd. Sometimes the government speaks with too many voices. Communication between president and people is very often mismanaged as the all too frequent presidential absences and disappearances are conveyed through either eloquent silences or conflicting speculations. 

The road to the future is defined by the mood of the time: it is an interesting time to be alive in Nigeria if you are that lucky to survive till the morning after.

Recently, two incidents openly challenged Nigeria’s quest for a policing regime where peace and order or the overall safety of the citizens would take pre-eminence.

While one was the maiden edition of the Nigeria Police Awards and Commendations Ceremony, the other was the one-day National Dialogue on State Policing, organized by the House of Representatives. Vice President Kashim Shettima represented President Bola Tinubu at both events that were held in Abuja. 

Sequel to the first, Hon. Eseme Eyiboh, authored a piece titled The Police and Akpabio's Sermon on the Mount. Although Eyiboh, the media adviser to the president of the senate, described it as one targeted at "reputation management" and "constructive stakeholders’ engagement", the outing was rather an impetus to a national discourse which will remain endless until there is a Nigeria Police Force that embodies the ideals and aspirations of an enlightened democracy. 

Buoyed by his composite knowledge of the private and public sectors of the economy, Godswill Akpabio intervened from a broader perspective. 

He was blunt, but truthful, that “in this country we have had a deficit of heroes. Not because Nigerians are not heroic but because we do not celebrate our heroes. Yet heroes play a vital role in society through the provision of inspiration, motivation, hope and serving as representations of values and character. Celebrating heroes could bring the much-needed change we need in the fabric of our society and make our country a better place". Also, he was unequivocal that Nigeria deserves a police force that is defined by “internal ethical regeneration, restoration of professional standards, and the enhancement of the anti-corruption drive".

Then as one of the pathways to this vision, he acknowledged that "recognizing the gallant, selfless, and patriotic contributions of individual officers, will not only motivate them for higher performance but also reinforce the new policing agenda of the force”. 

Furthermore and putting on the garb of a quintessential representative of the police, Akpabio made a strong case for them. His first argument was that "the ever-evolving landscape of crime and the increasing sophistication of criminal gangs pose significant obstacles" for the force. 

He therefore called for concerted efforts in this regard, stressing that "we must address these issues and work together to find solutions. The police need the support and cooperation of all stakeholders, to overcome these challenges and build a stronger and more effective police force".

Again, Akpabio defended the force against prejudice by declaring lamentably that "many have sought to hang the police to dry for all our many vices. But the truth of the matter is that the police are all members of our society. Down the ages the popular philosophical thinking was that man could not be better than the society because the society makes the man, socializes man, and orients him with a sense of right and wrong". In other words, the police are what the citizens and the government make of it.

Not done, he reassured the force that "as the leader of the National assembly, I pledge our full cooperation and support to the better policing of Nigeria. We recognize the importance of a well-equipped and motivated police force in ensuring the security and well-being of our citizens. We will continue to work tirelessly to provide the necessary legislative framework and resources to enable the police to carry out their duties effectively".

Incidentally, the Nigeria police force and the national assembly are the two most vilified institutions in the country. Deliberate misinformation and disinformation about them abound and grow unabated by the day. It is such that despite the laudable accomplishments of the ‘present generations’, these critical institutions of governance continue to suffer the inherited image and reputational crises occasioned by certain misdeeds of their predecessors.

Thus, apart from his leadership and governance antecedents, and also, having variously been a victim of uncritical judgement, Akpabio is well versed in the implications of collective labelling or stereotypical views. So, his empathy with the police is not far-fetched after all.

Nonetheless and typical of a dispassionate advocate, the senate president in concluding his homily, acknowledged the existence of bad eggs in the force. He therefore counselled that "as we honour the good officers, let us weed out the bad ones because a chain is as strong as its weakest link" adding that “it is imperative that the police uphold the highest ethical standards in carrying out their duties”. 

Empirically, the takeaway from “Akpabio’s Sermon on the Mount” is three-pronged. One, while the police should be strategic in their overall conduct starting from recruitment through training and operations to the general management of their affairs, the society should not be subjective in their engagement and assessment.

Two, the moral lecture was an agenda-setting intervention or a catalyst in the perennial quest for a police force that Nigeria and her citizens can be proud of. 

Then lastly, it was a clarion call on the need to reward excellence in every aspect of our national life.

Undoubtedly, these messages are worth internalizing towards our dream police force!

Akpabio was to take his advocacy to the second event. 

Reiterating his support for the establishment of state police, which according to him “is a complex issue with no easy answers”, he re-echoed that “security is not a privilege, but a fundamental right of every Nigerian”. He thus warned that “if we are to set up state police departments, we must ensure that they are free from the shackles of politics, religious extremism, tribalism, and ethnicism. We must empower them to serve and protect, without fear or favour.” 

Then of paramount note “let us never forget that the power of the state police should never be used as a tool of oppression or witch-hunting. Let us ensure that political powers do not manipulate the state police to silence dissent or target their enemies. Let us ensure that the influential do not exert undue influence over the state police and that justice is blind to wealth, power, politics, or status. Let us build a system that is fair, just, and equitable for all”. 

Instructively, these expressed positions have nothing to do with his current status. 

Godswill Akpabio has been a regular voice in the national quest for an effective and efficient police force. He only stood up to be counted for the umpteenth time. 

As governor of Akwa Ibom State, he had in 2012, advocated that “state police remains an answer to the numerous security challenges facing Nigeria. It is the solution to resolving most of the intra-conflicts in the country. He was emphatic that “if Kogi had state police, Boko Haram probably would not have reached the state. In the Niger Delta, kidnapping would not have reached the level it had reached at that time because the indigenes that would make up the force know the criminals among them and would fish them out. Every family knows who is who. That is why I say state police remains the answer”.

Again, it is noteworthy that towards efficient and effective policing, the Akpabio-led Senate has since intensified actions on the Police Pension Bill, aimed at removing the police from the contributory pension scheme, having passed the Police Trust Fund budget in addition to resolutions bordering on manpower and hardware.

Perhaps, these interventions informed President Bola Tinubu’s proclamation, of his administration’s commitment to transforming the police into “a modern, professional, and accountable institution that mirrors the aspirations and values” of Nigeria. He was precise that “our idea of a modern police force goes beyond superficial changes like repainting office buildings and residences or simply procuring firearms. True reform of our security doctrine and its architecture necessitates recognising the importance of administering justice and adhering to our ethical values to foster stability and order in the nation. The transformation we seek must transcend mere policy and infrastructure; it requires a fundamental overhaul of our institutional mentality and memory.” 

These words, though reassuring, still face a high level of scepticism. 

With hindsight, some of the critical questions include:

Would the police sustain this laudable initiative to improve the welfare of its workforce? Can there be a police force that thrives in “internal ethical regeneration, restoration of professional standards, and the enhancement of the anti-corruption drive"? Can the federal government deliver on its promise (s)? Is the police ready to reinvent themselves even with these anticipated supports, especially given the results of other previous interventions such as the Police Trust Fund and Police Equipment Foundation? Will Nigerians support the national assembly with viable ideas, through the already kick-started constitution amendment processes, to reposition the force, particularly concerning the raging state police debates?

These are some of the cardinal items on the agenda set by Akpabio as the conversation continues.

However, a police force that is alive to its roles and responsibilities might sound utopian, but it is attainable if strategically approached. It only requires sustained citizens’ actions. And gratifyingly, Senator Godswill Akpabio has offered direction and also shown resolve to lead from the front.

So the ball is now in the court of Nigerians, and primarily, the police force itself.

Egbo is a parliamentary affairs analyst

A video featuring House of Representatives member, Ahmad Satomi, has gone viral on social media.

The representative of Jere Federal Constituency, Borno State, challenged the Green Chamber regarding the recently passed National Anthem bill.

Satomi questioned the bill’s relevance to Nigeria’s pressing issues, sparking widespread discussion and debate.

The House of Representatives on Thursday passed for a second reading a bill seeking a return to the old national anthem, PUNCH Online reports.

Leading the debate on the general principles of the bill, the sponsor of the proposed law, Julius Ihonvbere, anchored his argument on the need for patriotism and nationalism.

But many Nigerians on social media questioned the relevance of the move, wondering if it would help salvage the nation’s economy, being Nigeria’s biggest challenge at the moment.

In the video, Satomi addressed his colleagues, questioning the practicality and impact of the bill, which mandates reverting to the old National Anthem, “Nigeria we hail thee.”

His concerns highlighted the disconnect between legislative actions and the real-world problems faced by Nigerians.

“I do not know how this national anthem will affect the well-being of the common man in Nigeria. Let’s be realistic.

“How will this support either hunger, banditry, or improve insecurity?” Satomi asked.

He emphasised the need for legislation that directly benefits the populace, rather than symbolic gestures.

Satomi urged his colleagues to prioritise development-oriented policies that would attract positive international attention and foster growth.

He expressed frustration over the focus on the national anthem while the world advances in technology and innovation.

“There is a saying that goes thus, ‘Countries that rely on prayers will rely on the ones that do think.’

“Please, let’s think of something that will bring progress, stability, and prosperity to the economy of this nation and improve the lives of the common man,” he urged.

Despite his objections, the House of Representatives, on Thursday, May 23, passed the bill with accelerated consideration.

The bill’s passage has sparked debate among the public and lawmakers about legislative priorities amid the nation’s ongoing struggles with hunger and insecurity.

[Punch]

Former England and Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney was appointed as the new manager of Championship side Plymouth on Saturday.

A move to Argyle is the fourth managerial role of Rooney’s coaching career, which has so far failed to live up to his stellar playing days.

“Taking this role at Plymouth Argyle feels like the perfect next step in my career,” said Rooney in a club statement.

“This is an opportunity to be part of an exciting project. I look forward to helping to build a squad of players to play expansive football – and to entertain the Green Army.”

The 38-year-old was sacked after just 83 days in charge of Birmingham earlier this year.

Rooney won just two of his 15 matches in charge of the Blues, which contributed to their relegation to League One.

He previously had a short spell with former club DC United in Major League Soccer.

But United’s all-time record goalscorer did thrive in difficult circumstances during his first job at Derby as the club entered administration.

“Throughout the interview process, Wayne showed himself to be a passionate, intelligent, and knowledgeable candidate with an appetite to prove himself and develop his managerial career,” said Plymouth chairman Simon Hallett.

“His ambitions and aims match ours perfectly and we feel he is the perfect candidate to provide the exciting and attacking brand of football that we all like to see and help us achieve the club’s mission.”

Plymouth narrowly avoided relegation in their first season back in English football’s second tier for 14 years, finishing 21st in the Championship.

AFP

A great-grandfather living in Fairfield, Ohio, in the United States, has been chronicled in the Guinness World Records for living longer than others before him with one lung.

The 83-year-old Donald Cantrell has even run marathons and taken on triathlons, with one lung turning 84 on 2 June, 2024. 

GWR on its X disclosed that the octogenarian has  marked the longest time to survive with one lung as a male with a total of 66 years 204 days, as of 15 January.

It added that very soon, “it’ll be 67 years since Don had his left lung surgically removed.”

Despite having just one lung for the majority of his life, Donald Cantrell popularly known as Don has never considered himself to be disabled and has lived a very active life.

He told GWR, “I feel blessed to have lived long enough to achieve a Guinness World Records title that I never tried or even thought of accomplishing.”

Don’s record-breaking journey began when he was just two years old and contracted pneumonia after getting the flu. He was hospitalised in April 1943 and spent almost a week in a coma.

He regained consciousness and was allowed to return home, but his health condition deteriorated over the next few weeks and he found himself back in hospital.

When he was 17 years old, after finishing his second year of high school, Don said he was continually troubled by bad chest colds and coughs.

A doctor examined Don and found that his left lung had been destroyed by an abscess and the best course of action was to remove it.

Abscess is an enclosed collection of pus in tissues, organs, or confined spaces in the body, and it is a sign of infection and is usually swollen and inflamed.

Disturbed about how the family would afford the surgery, Don disclosed that  his mother assured him they would find a way, even if they had to sell their farm.

Don was admitted to hospital in June 1957 for the surgery, and soon discovered members of his church had pulled together to raise the money to pay his bill.

“I was discharged on 4 July, with instructions to return for a follow up in a month,” Don said. “I never went back. I was doing so well it did not seem like I needed to go back.”

The first ever lung transplant did not take place until years later in 1963, according to Guinness world Records.

When Don had his surgery, it simply was nott a possibility to replace his damaged lung with a healthy one.

He said, “By the time this possibility became known, I was healthy and strong, having run many road races, including four 26.2 mile marathons. 

“Transplant never crossed my mind. In fact I did not think of myself as having a disability.

“Only my family and close friends ever knew of my lung removal. In competitive racing I never told anyone. Even today, most of my acquaintances do not know. I will tell them soon when the certificate arrives.”

Don went on to work in the manufacturing industry, marry his loving wife Janette in 1960, and welcome two sons and a daughter, four grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

And he also found his passion for running.

“I remained active in sports, I played basketball, softball, disc golf, bowling with my wife, and golf. Eventually running would be my sport of choice,” he said,

With practice and hard work, he went on to compete in over 100 races, running five marathons and completing several 30-mile triathlons too.

Don found that running had a huge positive impact on his health. His remaining lung even got bigger.

Don continued running until he was in his late 70s and unable to because of his neuropathy, a type of nerve damage.

His final race was The Shark Tooth 10k in Venice, Florida, in 2011.

He believes he has even run a marathon quicker than any other one-lunged athlete – completing one in Colombus, Ohio, in 1984 in 3 hr 37 min 2 sec.

Don said, “My competition in sports brought only benefits. I was never injured and never trained for a race I didn’t run and finish. It certainly strengthened my lung. 

“My lungs doctor, whom I visited for the first time earlier this year, in order to complete the application for the record, said that my right lung had expanded, so that my lung capacity is equal to 3/4 of a man with two good lungs. 

“My overall health dramatically improved when I began to run and become more active all the time. 

“I have rarely been sick in the last 40 years. The Lord blessed me greatly through running.”           

Don said he did not know what kind of longevity he could expect after having his lung removed.

He said, “I’m not sure what I expected, but I do know that other people that know about the surgery did not expect me to live very long.

“My brothers and I were at a local country store soon after my operation and the subject came up about me being scheduled to return to the hospital in Lexington for my check-up, and the store owner commented, ‘You will probably be doing that for the rest of your life.’

“Perhaps that is one reason I didn’t ever go back for a check-up. But I truly think I just didn’t let others influence what I thought, it was not up to me or them, it was in the Lord’s hands.”

Although Don cannot run anymore, he still walks an average of two miles every day.

[Vanguard]