A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Nanfwang Gunat, has sounded a note of caution to legislators across the country against passing a vote of confidence on the embattled National Chairman of the party, Abdullahi Ganduje.

Gunat said he was cautioning both former and serving, whether in the state houses of assembly, house of representatives or senate.

Gunat who was a member of Support Groups Coordination (North Central) for the Tinubu/Shettima Presidential Campaign Council (PCC), stressed that such endorsement would amount to betraying the North Central region which has been pushing to reclaim the chairmanship seat after the resignation of Abdullahi Adamu, who is from the North Central.

Speaking with journalists on Wednesday in Jos the Plateau State Capital, the Chieftain revealed that rumours making the rounds are that Ganduje is planning to organise both former and serving legislators across the country to get their support for the chairmanship seat to remain in the North-West where he is from, and that they should also endorse him for the position.

According to him, “that position has been constitutionally agreed by the party to be for the North Central which has contributed greatly towards the progress of APC, but Ganduje is trying everything possible to twist that fact.

“But the North Central region, wouldn’t concede that position to another region within the party structure”, he maintained.

The party chieftain disputed the credit given to Ganduje on the victory of the APC in the Edo and Ondo governorship election, saying that the people voted for the party because of their belief and trust in the party and not because of Ganduje who could not deliver his home state of Kano to the APC.

“I wish to call on President Bola Tinubu and leaders of our party to immediately convene a National Executive Council (NEC) meeting to address this issue of the Chairmanship position accordingly so that it doesn’t tear the party apart”, he admonished.

Gunat pointed out that convening the meeting to address that vital issue is key to the party’s unity and success towards the 2027 election because the North Central region is already feeling marginalized and relegated to the background.

[DailyPost]

Actress and filmmaker, Mary Njoku, has raised concerns about the increasing trend of young women opting for Botox injections.

On her Instagram page, Njoku questioned why 21-year-olds are undergoing a cosmetic procedure typically used by women in their 40s and 50s to reduce wrinkles. 

She wondered about wrinkles women in their early 20s could possibly need to hide.

The actress urged young women to embrace their youth and natural beauty, reminding them that many people would give anything to relive their 20s and cherish the youthful glow that comes with it.

Njoku also addressed parents, encouraging them to instill in their daughters a love for their natural selves.

She stressed the importance of building self-esteem and promoting positive body image from a young age.

“Is having a lifeless face now the new trend?

Older people, those in their 40s and 50s use it to reduce wrinkles.

“But at 20s, what wrinkles could you possibly be trying to hide? Embrace your youth while you still can.

“If only they understood how much people would give to be in their 20s again. They’d cherish their youthful beauty even more. Let’s teach our daughters to embrace and celebrate their natural selves. Self-esteem is everything.”

Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has pledged stricter immigration policies, warning the UK can no longer sustain current levels.

Badenoch admitted past Tory governments failed to curb migration effectively but vowed to address the issue “without fear.”

Proposing a hard annual cap on legal immigration without specifying a figure, Badenoch also insisted the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) would not hinder necessary actions.

“Immigration is at a pace too fast to maintain public services,” she said. “For decades, the political class has presided over mass migration… The system that replaced free movement is not working.”

Badenoch stressed the importance of integration, saying migrants must adopt British values.

“Without a shared national identity, our country will suffer,” she warned, criticising the strain on housing, healthcare, and wages caused by mass migration.

She pledged to review policies, treaties, and laws, emphasizing transparency and stricter visa limits.

New migration figures tomorrow are expected to show a decline, but Badenoch cautioned against complacency.

“We can no longer be naïve,” she said, hinting at reforms to prevent legal loopholes and misuse of the system.

Vanguard News

The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has dismissed Edith Uduma, an inspector, for allegedly collecting a bribe from Abraham Uzuobo, a sergeant, to conceal a rape incident.

Uzuobo was accused of raping a 17-year-old female suspect in a room inside South-Ibie police station in Edo state.

The suspect was detained at the police station for allegedly receiving stolen property.

In October, a video showing Uzuobo hurriedly wearing his trousers while the female suspect was lying on a chair inside a room in the police station appeared on social media.

In the video, Uzuobo was challenging a female officer for recording the incident.

The female officer in the background of the video was later identified as Uduma.

Uduma was the charge room officer (CRO) on duty on the day the incident happened.

In a statement released on Wednesday, Muyiwa Adejobi, force spokesperson, said Uduma called her husband, Ibrahim Mohammed, a police inspector, instead of reporting the incident to the appropriate authorities.

Adejobi said Uduma and her husband demanded a N1 million bribe from Uzuobo to assist him in concealing the incident.

The force spokesperson said Uzuobo offered the couple N45,000.

“However, the sergeant offered only N45,000 in cash, which they collected at that instance, and after a few days, contacted the sergeant to request the same sum of N1,000,000, but the sergeant refused to comply,” Adejobi said.

“Dissatisfied by his refusal to follow through with the blackmail, they decided to report the erring officer to the DPO and also simultaneously share the video on social media.

“Everyone culpable in this case has been sanctioned appropriately, as there is no intention to impede justice.

“The erring sergeant has been dismissed and prosecuted and is currently in prison custody as the trial progresses.

“Inspector Edith Uduma was also dismissed for her role, while her complicit husband has been reduced to the rank of sergeant.

“However, it has come to the attention of the force that following her dismissal, Mrs. Edith has made numerous unfounded claims regarding her innocence and has sought to taint the reputation and integrity of the adjudicating authority, the inspector-general of police, in person and the entire police force.

“It is imperative to set the record straight and provide clear context regarding her actions and the decision to dismiss her from service.

“The dismissal of former police inspector Edith Uduma was not only justified but necessary, based on thorough investigations that presented irrefutable evidence of her failure to follow standard incident report protocol to immediately document the incident, attempt to conceal an offender for benefit, participation in extortion, and manipulating the justice process for personal gain.”

[TheCable]

President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Jamiu Abiola as the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Linguistics and Foreign Matters.

Abiola is one of the children of the winner of the 1993 presidential election annulled by General Ibrahim Babangida, the late Chief Moshood Abiola.

He was formerly appointed the Special Assistant to the President on Special Duties in the Office of the Vice-President.

In a statement on Wednesday by
Director, Information and Public Relations, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Segun Imohiosen, Abiola’s appointment was effective from November 14, 2024.

Imohiosen said his appointment was in line with the provisions of the Certain Political and Judicial Office Holders (Salaries and Allowances, etc) Act 2008, as amended.

He said, “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has approved the appointment of Jamiu Abiola as the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Linguistics and Foreign Matters.

“The appointment takes effect from 14th November, 2024. This is in line with the provisions of the Certain Political and Judicial Office Holders (Salaries and Allowances, etc) Act 2008, as amended.

“Until his appointment, Jami’u served as the Special Assistant to the President on Special Duties in the Office of the Vice President.

“President Tinubu tasks the appointee to work closely with the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs and bring his wealth of experience to bear in his new assignment.”

[Punch]

I went to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, today to see former Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State, whom they had most egregiously detained given that he had willingly handed himself over and is clearly not a flight risk.

EFCC officials insisted I must park my car and trek all the way to the reception from their carpark. 

I explained to them that I had just undergone four surgeries to remove a tumor close to my heart. 

They politely told me they were quite sorry about that but that I still had to trek to their reception.

I then asked that my driver should drop me off at the reception and return to the carpark and come back to pick me when I'm ready to go.

While they were extremely polite, i noticed they were making series of phone calls and my suspicion is that they didn't want me to see former Governor Yahaya Bello hence they kept coming up with their ridiculous shenanigans.

The EFCC had earlier tried to pretend they arrested GYB when in fact, he had voluntarily presented himself to them.

Everything about this matter is, to say the least, quite murky, most shady, highly suspicious and totally unprofessional.

I cannot fathom why the EFCC would be uncomfortable with even any random person visiting someone in their custody not to talk of a senior lawyer. 

For God's sake we have rights in this country and an institution of the state cannot be weaponized into an instrument of political vendetta.

Earlier this morning, I published an article commending President Asiwaju Bola Tinubu for the milestone achieved with the resurrection of local refining by our national oil company, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, NNPCL.

Despite the profound differences I have regarding some of his policies with respect to the generality of Nigerians quite apart from his most deplorable politics with respect to progressives, supporters of the All Progressives Congress APC, Batists, and those of us who put him in power, the persecution of former Governor Yahaya Bello is just a continuation of the befuddling, perplexing, and, entirely weird politics that Asiwaju has inexplicably decided to play to the chagrin and consternation of his supporters.

Those of us genuine progressives, Batists and supporters of the APC totally reject this betrayal by the President we put in power who now seems determined to hunt us all down one by one.

If he thinks we are all cowards who will go down without a fight, he is making a very big mistake and we will show him that we are politicians just like him and that just as we put him in power, we will remove him from power.

There is absolutely no point supporting a leader you can't trust.

What President Asiwaju does not understand is that he now effectively has zero credibility within the ranks of his own supporters. 

How he managed to fail so woefully at the biggest stage God granted him is something He himself will have to explain to God.

We formed the government we envisaged would make life easier for our citizens, only for Asiwaju to form a government of Lagosians and Osun people who have rendered Nigerians hungry, famished, distressed and hopeless despite our President claiming to be implementing a so-called "Renewed Hope Agenda".

Those who are bold enough to say the truth will never be defeated: "And ye shall know the truth and the truth shall set ye free". John 8: 32.

This idea of promising people appointments to abandon their comrades may work for some people but not for us all because, some of us are well brought up, have honour, and are not bastards who abandon their brothers.

Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is always on the throne and He will do justice to all. 

My title translates as "The Owner of Laughter", and my younger brother, His Excellency, Former Governor Yahaya Adoza Bello will have the last laugh.

God Bless Nigeria.

Onokpasa, a lawyer, is Chairman, Tinubu media support Group, (TMSG) and writes from Abuja.

You must have followed the Kemi Badenoch controversy: the wily Nigerian politicians’ penchant to ride on people’s back suffered a ghastly diplomatic accident! Thinking they could use her to shine and claim undeserved credit, Mrs. Kemi Badenoch, the newly-elected British Leader of Opposition/Shadow Prime Minister, Britain’s budding “Iron Lady” cast in the mould of Margaret Thatcher, gave a top Nigerian government official “the ignore”, to quote the inimitable Fela’s lawyer, the late Kanmi Ishola-Osobu! What a bloodied nose without as much as throwing a punch!

Here, in “Tan’fe’ani and Kemi Badenoch”, Professor Babafemi A. Badejo not only lay bare the crass illiteracy of an egocentric government official and a loquacious politician seeking relevance but also analysed the gaffe that may return to haunt this and succeeding Nigerian governments for some time to come. Read on:

“Any Yoruba speaker of a certain age would easily link Tan’fe’ani with Ebenezer Obey’s philosophical lyrics: “Tan’fe’ani, tan’fe’ani: Eniyan o fe ni fo’ro, tan’fe’ani”. Literally, Obey’s lyrics suggest that human beings resent the success of others and would rather prefer their demise or downfall.

“This came to my mind with respect to a good number of commentaries made by Nigerians on the result of the leadership election of the British Conservative Party, which saw Mrs. Olukemi (Kemi) Badenoch breaking the ceiling to become the first black person to lead a major party in the United Kingdom, in the combined sense of being the leader of His Majesty’s Opposition, a potential Head of Government or Shadow Prime Minister, so to say.

"Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the CEO of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), felt it was her duty to congratulate and celebrate Badenoch in the regular Nigerian style of identifying with the successful. However, Dabiri-Erewa claimed that her gesture towards Badenoch was met with rejection. Rather than keep quiet as a diplomat/consular official would do, Dabiri-Erewa thought it newsworthy to take to Channels TV to question the “Nigerianess” of Kemi.

"In a display of limited understanding of international dynamics, Mrs. Dabiri-Erewa made an ill-conceived comparison by highlighting her support for Ms. Chidimma Adetshina, the first runners-up at the recently-concluded Miss Universe competition, while implying that Mrs. Badenoch might one day return to seek her assistance. But this is not a Nollywood storyline, for goodness sake! 

"I wish Kemi the occupation of 10 Downing Street but even if she does not become the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom for whatever reason, what would she have lost from the history she has just made? In such a situation where ill-action contributes to Kemi not attaining the top seat, what can Nigeria (or any of its over-rated citizens like Dabiri-Erewa) do you influence British politics?

"It was not only Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa who over-valued her worth and relevance at the international level. Femi Fani-Kayode (FFK), as usual, blasted on all cylinders, casting aspersion on Mrs. Badenoch for “snubbing” the Nigerian government. To think that Mrs. Dabiri-Erewa represented the Nigerian government vis-à-vis the British leader of opposition shows the novice that FFK is (in such matters) in spite of his claim to knowledge. NIDCOM is unknown to the Vienna Conventions on Diplomatic/Consular relations.

"Nigeria’s High Commission in the United Kingdom serves as the legitimate representative of the Nigerian government and, in that capacity, could appropriately extend fraternal greetings to the Leader of the Opposition. Prof. Bola Akinterinwa, despite his complex but well-argued “thesis, antithesis, and synthesis” on this issue, got it right: Mrs. Dabiri-Erewa could have reached out to Mrs. Badenoch privately as a well-meaning Yoruba elder. In my view, her decision to go public on Channels TV, resembling the fiery rhetoric of FFK, only cast them both in the light of “tan’fe’ani”.  

"It is important that Mrs. Kemi Badenoch has ignored all the noise, focusing instead on her duties towards building a viable Shadow Cabinet and leading her party as His Majesty’s Leader of Government Opposition. Mrs. Badenoch exercised her associational right by emphasizing her being British. She is exercising a fundamental right known to Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution in section 29. She is not Nigeria’s Ambassador to the UK - and she does not want to be! Too bad for the Nigerians who want to appropriate her!

"Mrs. Badenoch stated publicly that the circumstances of her upbringing drove her out of Nigeria. She has spoken of some of the hardship she endured growing up - like fetching water from a mile away and carrying chairs. She forgot to mention the ubiquitous NEPA that made those of my age depend on lanterns to study! However, I have read many who refute this, arguing that Kemi attended the same school as their children and did not endure the hardship she described. 

"Some have, however, overly romanticised the life of the Nigerian academic of the 1990s. My children and I can attest to the hardship we faced when I could not afford basic things as a struggling lecturer who had to care for my immediate relations during a time when public servants were expressly banned from supplementing their income through any form of additional work, whether mental or physical, beyond what the government paid them.

"From all accounts, the late Dr. Femi Adegoke, a.k.a 'Fariga' (meaning someone who will not kow-tow or be cowered), Mrs. Badenoch’s father, fought injustice around him, from when he was at Ibadan Grammar School to his time at the College of Medicine, Idiaraba where, as Prof. Oladapo Ashiru informed us, Femi Adegoke’s original 'Fariga' was changed to 'Farigo', both symbolising a fighting spirit against injustice. Are those examining Kemi considering her early politicisation against corruption, injustice, and military rule, which set her apart from her contemporaries?

"Were the issues Kemi cited as driving her away from Nigeria unique to her time? As an undergraduate, I carried chairs from one classroom to another—something children in public schools of my children’s generation still do. In some parts of Nigeria today, students continue to carry their chairs from home to school. As a child, I fetched water from a stream about five miles away and many children in Nigeria still do due to the normalisation of corruption, perpetuated by critics of Mrs. Badenoch and stemming from leaders who, in a just society, should be in jail for embezzling resources meant for infrastructural development.

"I salute Mrs. Badenoch and appreciate her work. She has more than associated with her primordial roots by not changing or 'Englifying' her name. Her appearance remains Yoruba, which is not the same as the associational 'Nigerianess' that Mrs. Dabiri-Erewa was searching for. If, against all odds, Mrs. Badenoch’s critical stance resonates with those in political power and leads to a meaningful reduction in the grand theft of our national resources, it would be cause for celebration. Such a shift would represent a significant victory for the vast majority of Nigerians.

"I agree with Mrs. Badenoch that Nigeria is a corrupt country as shown on a daily basis. Some would say that the UK is also corrupt. Fair enough. But there are fundamental differences. Corruption in the UK is not as widespread as it is in Nigeria. Furthermore, British politicians do not boast about corruption as normal, unlike in Nigeria where anti-corruption institutions choose who to prosecute on the basis of the offender’s political party, in the shifting alliances of thieves that we call political parties. Unlike in Nigeria, if you are caught in the UK, you are prosecuted and not given a higher national office as well as national honours!

"David Cameron as British Prime Minister referred to Nigeria and Afghanistan as being 'fantastically corrupt'. What was President Muhammadu Buhari’s response? He did not walk out of the anti-corruption summit that the UK had called. Instead, he reportedly said he was shocked and embarrassed. His spokesman added that the UK Prime Minister was probably speaking of governments before Buhari’s. We later knew that corruption grew under Buhari, just as many accounts are showing about the current administration of Bola Tinubu. 

"Badenoch has rightly added corruption and its debilitating impact on Nigeria as part of her focus. Given the impact of corruption in Nigeria driving immigrants who would have loved to remain in Nigeria to the UK, I hope she does not drop this focus!

"Those who consider themselves more patriotic by criticising Kemi for speaking basic truths should channel their energy into pressuring government at all levels to act responsibly. This will ensure that Kemi and others like her would have no reason to 'denigrate' Nigeria, sparing us the need to hang our heads in shame on the international stage.

"I agree with Dr. Sola Oni, the leader of the Yoruba Party in the UK, who differed with Mrs. Badenoch on reparations for slavery, colonialism, and today’s neo-colonialism. As the British leader of opposition, it is understandable that her views are different from ours. It is for us to carry out a principled campaign to change the views of Mrs. Badenoch’s voters. 

"A lot is available from sound pan-Africanist positions to try and persuade Mrs. Badenoch to think otherwise. Since the wealth created from the past of short-changing Africa is still being held on to, the British of today cannot reject responsibilities for that past. On our part, we should address the nagging governance problems of leadership deficit and corruption still driving many other Kemis away from here in the 'Japa' syndrome that our government appears helpless against”.

Need we say more?  

Former Ondo State Military Governor, Navy Commodore Olabode George (retd), is reported to be asking serial presidential candidate and former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, to symbolically fall on his sword by taking himself out of the 2027 presidential race of the opposition Peoples’ Democratic Party.

Governor George told Vice President Abubakar: “My advice is this. You will be 81 years old in 2027, and you have been contesting since 1993. This is the time for you to calm down and act like an elder. I appeal to you, in the name of the Almighty Allah that you serve, to take it easy and leave everything for posterity.”

Vice President Abubakar, who turned 78 two days ago, lost the presidential slot of the Social Democratic Party, one of the “political parastatals” contrived for the tortuous transmission programme of the government of military President Ibrahim Babangida, to Bashorun MKO Abiola, presumed winner of Nigeria’s freest and fairest presidential election.

Since 2007, Vice President Abubakar has variously been a presidential candidate or presidential aspirant of the Action Congress of Nigeria and the People’s Democratic Party in 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019, and 2023, and has famously lost each attempt.

Also, Governor George is concerned that the People’s Democratic Party is crumbling under the weight of members who placed their personal interests above country, sometimes by flirting with the ruling All Progressives Congress while yet remaining in the People’s Democratic Party.

“Falling on the sword” is an old Roman practice whereby a disgraced or defeated soldier falls on the point of his sword or stabs himself in the stomach. In pre-colonial days, Yoruba kings who fell out of favour “opened the calabash” and drank the poisonous potion therein to death.

In modern days, falling on the sword or opening the calabash have become metaphors for individuals to resign high political or corporate offices or accept responsibilities for mistakes by themselves or on behalf of the group they lead.

That is why Kimberly Cheatle resigned as Director of the US Secret Service after President Trump was shot by Thomas Mathew Crooks at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Though she was not physically at the rally, she was obliged to accept responsibility for the security lapses.

While Governor George may have spoken out whispered sentiments within the ranks of the People’s Democratic Party for Vice President Abubakar to yield the ground to younger aspirants, that may not be an exactly democratic move; it looks like a subtle ploy to make way for some preferred aspirants.

Well, of course, Governor George can buttress his argument with the example of America’s Democratic Party that got President Joe Biden to drop out of the 2024 presidential race for Vice President Kamala Harris to take the ticket, which she eventually lost to former President Donald Trump.

President Biden, 82, was persuaded to yield the presidential slot to Vice President Harris because of his poor showing, which was attributed to ageing, during the presidential debate against President Trump. Age is the argument that Governor George, who turned 79 last week Thursday, is advancing for Vice President Abubakar, who will be 81 in 2027, to recuse himself from the 2027 presidential race.

But really, that call should be the responsibility of the People’s Democratic Party primaries. Section 84 of Nigeria’s Electoral Act spells out the elaborate statutory steps that political parties must follow to elect candidates for political positions through direct, indirect, or consensus procedures.

And according to Section 131 of Nigeria’s Constitution, “A person shall be qualified for election to the office of the President if (a) he is a citizen of Nigeria by birth; (b) he has attained the age of forty years; (c) he is a member of a political party and he is sponsored by that political party and (d) he has been educated to be educated up to at least School Certificate level or its equivalent.”

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Maybe Governor George and his cohorts within the People’s Democratic Party should hinge their strategy on Section 131(c), which gives political parties the authority to choose to present a candidate for election through their primaries that must be supervised or witnessed by the Independent National Electoral Commission as required by the Constitution.

As a former National Vice President (Southwest Zone) and, later, Deputy National Chairman (South), Governor George should have enough clout within the People’s Democratic Party to rally votes for or against Vice President Abubakar ahead of the party’s 2027 primaries.

Maybe Governor George should allow Vice President Abubakar’s doctors to speak to the state of his health before asking him to recuse himself on account of age. Indeed, all presidential aspirants of the People’s Democratic Party may be required to submit themselves to a medical board for medical examination.

One good advantage of a medical board is that Nigeria would have avoided the type of constitutional crisis that occurred when President Umaru Yar’Adua finally succumbed to the illness that was pointed out to former President Olusegun Obasanjo, who adamantly anointed and made him his successor.

Reports say that Governor George had once called for the resignation of Vice President Abubakar from the People’s Democratic Party for defecting to the Action Congress party in 2027. If he carries his battle and manoeuvres into the treacherous trenches of the People’s Democratic Party, he would have been acting within his constitutional rights as a citizen and participant in the democratic process of Nigeria.

Some of the negatives he could present against the presidential ambition of Vice President Abubakar may include the $16.5 billion that Abubakar himself admitted that the Obasanjo government that he served threw at contractors who never performed electricity contracts awarded to them.

Another negative against Vice President Abubakar could be the gaffe that he committed when he thought that he was playfully telling a female interviewer that he would sell Nigeria’s assets to his friends if he became president.

He could also accuse Vice President Abubakar of living in the United Arab Emirates from where he comes in just ahead of elections to see if he could somehow snag the presidency of Nigeria as if it were there for the picking.

It indeed looks as if his presence in Nigeria has largely been through the auspices of his exceedingly competent media handlers, who have been faithful in performing their duties to keep his name in the minds of the Nigerian electorate, who are probably unaware that he almost does not live in the country.

And while Governor George and his group are at it, they must also be aware of CREEVP—the Committee for the Re-election of the Vice President—made up of admirers and cronies, some of whom may have profited from the days of Abubakar as Vice President of Nigeria.

It should not be a surprise to anyone that such individuals will surely want those happy days to be here again. No one likes the motion of their gravy train to stop. And they would do everything they consider necessary to keep it going.

Governor George must acknowledge that some members of the People’s Democratic Party think the world of Vice President Abubakar and are still convinced that he can bring the presidential oyster to the party, and they must have their say.

Even if you do not like his face, you cannot deny Vice President Abubakar his right to his presidential ambition. But you can work for your preferred candidate to defeat him.

Lekan Sote

The coming on stream, or, rather the resurrection of the Port Harcourt Refinery is exceedingly good news at a time at which good news has become a very scarce commodity in our nation.

It was, to say the least, a great and most embarrassing national shame that we have not had functioning refineries in a major oil producing country for decades and this long awaited breakthrough is most heartwarming to put it mildly.

How we keep allowing national assets to rot and go to waste right under our noses is still a mystery to me because corruption and ineptitude aside, I still cannot fathom how a nation could be so clumsy as to keep serially inflicting grotesque harm upon itself.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, NNPCL, is our one and only national oil company - Dangote Refinery, massive as it is, is still just another private company and cannot pretend to be our collective asset or try to displace our true and authentic IOC which was, is and shall remain the NNPCL.

We must all commend and encourage the NNPCL team as they reposition the oil and gas sector towards better days ahead for all Nigerians.

I hope those with an axe to grind with the NNPCL's Group Managing Director, Mele Kyari, and have been angling to take his job for themselves can be forthright enough to hide their faces in shame and leave him alone to fix the oil and gas sector for all of us.

Under Mele's watch we have seen record restoration of our oil and gas production, drastic reduction in oil theft and now local refining of crude by our national oil company.

We should all be proud of him and his team at NNPCL.

Lastly and most importantly, I would urge all and sundry, regardless of their political leanings or inclinations to, at least, acknowledge President Bola Tinubu for this great milestone and incontestable achievement.

I have many differences with my President as many are well aware but I will not fail to acknowledge, commend and celebrate him for what he does right and the resurrection of petroleum refining in Nigeria is something good he will always be remembered for.

Onokpasa, a lawyer, is Chairman, Tinubu Media Support Group and writes from Abuja.