FEATURES

FEATURES

Social media was sent into a frenzy on Wednesday after President Bola Tinubu, slipped while boarding the parade vehicle at the venue of the 2024 Democracy Day celebration.
The President, however, quickly regained his balance and continued with the proceedings without further issues.

In this article, Naija News highlights other world leaders aside from Tinubu, who had a momentary fall during a public ceremony.

1. President Joe Biden: In March 2021, United States President, Joe Biden tripped on Air Force One stairs while scaling the steps to Air Force One to Atlanta to meet with Asian-American community leaders on a massacre.

2. Robert Mugabe: In February 2015, Zimbabwe’s 90-year-old President Robert Mugabe fell down a staircase as he walked off a podium after addressing supporters at Harare International Airport.

3. President Gerald Ford: Former President of the United States, Gerald Ford, slipped on Air Force One in 1975 while visiting Vienna in Austria for talks with Egyptian President Anwar Sada.

4. Cuba leader, Fidel Castro: Cuban leader, Fidel Castro, in October 2004, fell off the stage in Santa Clara, Cuba. Castro broke his knee and arm in the fall.

5. Barack Obama: In March 2015, former US President, Barack Obama came close to falling down the steps of Air Force One. Obama was returning to Washington DC from a golfing trip in Florida when he bounded from the plane door only to lose his footing. He recovered and continued across the tarmac with the same spring in his step.

6. Mike Pence: In June 2020, Vice President Mike Pence had a moment remarkably similar to President Biden’s upward slip. Pence was filmed running, then tripping, up the staircase of Air Force Two.

7. Tommy Tuberville: In October 2023, Senator Tommy Tuberville, who has previously criticised President Joe Biden for falling in public view, was mocked online after a video showing him falling down a flight of plane stairs himself went viral.

8. Hillary Clinton: The then-Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, in 2011, was boarding a plane to Yemen when she slipped to her knees at the doorway and was only saved from further embarrassment when an aide gave her a helping hand.

9. Vladimir Putin: The Russian leader who loves to display his aura, saw himself on the floor during a 2019 hockey game he played in. He was doing a victory lap around Sochi’s Bolshoy Ice Dome and applauding fans when he slammed on the floor.

10. Boris Johnson: The former United Kingdom prime minister, was a victim of an epic fall after he tripped and landed on the floor during a charity tug-of-war game at a World War I commemoration event with Britain’s armed forces in 2015.

Unresolved corruption probes in Nigeria have remained a significant concern, begging the question of why millions of public funds are allocated to probes when there are no plans to convict offenders.

In Nigeria, probes come with a lot of theatrics: first the announcement of investigative panels, then the media rounds, photo ops, and press outings, with long-winding sessions running into months and years but never ending in indictments or prosecutions.

Not forgetting the huge sitting allowances often allocated to such probe panels, another avenue for graft and appeasing political allies—a case of “the more you look, the less you see.”

 

Some of the high-profile corruption cases involving top politicians and government officials, mostly initiated at the National Assembly, remain unresolved, leading to public frustration and distrust in the government.

Social critics believe that corruption probes are merely a means of appeasing aggrieved citizens. However, for many Nigerians, justice would mean seeing corrupt officials sent to jail.

A report recently released by the Centre for Fiscal Transparency and Public Integrity (CFTPI) through its Probes Monitor Portal showed that a total of 614 grand corruption probes were initiated by various administrations between 1999 and 2023. However, only three of these have been brought to a logical conclusion.

This huge gap, according to the centre, highlights the lack of accountability and transparency by successive governments, much to the detriment of the public good.

For instance, in the Petroleum Subsidy Scandal of 2012, billions of dollars were allegedly embezzled through fraudulent fuel subsidy claims. Investigations and arrests were initiated, but many did not lead to convictions.

In the Dasuki Gate scandal of 2020, former National Security Adviser Sambo Dasuki was prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over a $2 billion arms fraud. The conclusion of this probe is yet to be seen.

Also, recall the probe of over N1.8 trillion in federal government interventions in the power sector since its privatization from 2012 to date by the Senate, the probe of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) over the spending of N17.16 billion ($40 million) in 2013, the investigation of the alleged diversion of N525 billion by a former Abia State Governor by the EFCC, and the probe of former minister Stella Oduah over the N255 million armored car scandal by the House of Representatives, among many others.

The challenge, according to Umar Yakubu, the Executive Director of CFTPI, is not only that these probes are never completed, but also that Nigerians are never informed of their status even when decisions are made.

Yakubu worries that by abandoning these probes and leaving the public in the dark, the government gives the impression that these actions are mere political theatre designed to placate the masses temporarily. He asserts that transparency and accountability are the cornerstones of any democratic society.

Without these principles, the very foundation of democracy is at risk. The lack of transparency in publishing the findings of these probes allows corruption to continue unchecked, as those who engage in corrupt practices feel emboldened by the lack of consequences.

Currently, Nigeria is gravely paying the price for corruption with a persistent economic downturn, unemployment, social injustice, poverty, and underdevelopment.

This is because funds that would have been utilized for the general good have found their way into private pockets.

Dr Otive Igbuzor of the African Centre for Leadership, Strategy and Development, insisted that corruption may never be overcome unless proactive steps are taken to entrench sanctions, sincere probes, sentences, and convictions.

He said, “The media has a great role to play in holding the government to account and promoting social justice, transparency, and accountability in society.”

“The challenge before us is what should be done to ensure that the probes are completed and acted upon and ultimately reduce corruption in Nigeria. I suggest citizen engagement and advocacy, media activism, developmentalist coalitions, participation in politics, and movements for change.”

He advocated sincere legislative oversights to ensure allocated funds are properly utilized, systems that expose corruption, and internal checks for every organization handling government money.

Although analysts attribute unresolved probes to judicial inefficiencies, political interference, lack of political will, or failure of anti-graft institutions, Prof Okey Ikechukwu of the Development Spec Academy warns that they are also forms of corruption.

He noted that the government must also begin to check the misapplication of public funds and the wrong prioritization of projects where funds are deployed to areas that do not address the immediate needs of society.

“For example, spending public money to deploy computers in a school where no teacher is computer literate or building a bridge in a community where only three people have motorcycles,” he said.

He described such situations as procurement corruption involving political allies.

Prof Ikechukwu also cautioned against the glamorization of corruption and ill-gotten wealth, warning that young people would always emulate what society prioritizes.

While Nigerians demand that agencies fighting corruption in the country wake up to their responsibilities, they await a time when probes will be completed and sanctions meted out to offenders.

Veteran Nollywood actor Jide Kosoko has opened up on the profound changes in his life following the tragic demise of his wife, Henrietta.

Speaking exclusively to Punch, Jide Kosoko disclosed how his home transformed into what he described as a “hotel” in the aftermath of his wife’s demise.

The actor, shared the emotional toll of losing his spouse and the unexpected consequences it brought to his household.

 

“After Henrietta passed away, my home gradually turned into a hotel,”  Jide Kosoko said.

 

 Jide Kosoko opens up on life after loss
Jide Kosoko.

Kosoko, reflecting on the challenges he faced after the loss, admitted to feeling compelled to remarry to restore order and stability in his home.

“I was tempted to take a second wife,” he added.

The actor, who has faced his share of controversies and false accusations, also addressed the hurtful labels that have been unfairly attached to him.

 

“I have been blackmailed many times,” Jide Kosoko stated, referring to accusations of involvement in money rituals and other baseless claims.

Reflecting on his upbringing and personal beliefs against polygamy, Jide Kosoko acknowledged the advice of his doctor, a woman who encouraged him to consider remarriage for his well-being.

This counsel eventually led him to marry two wives again, Henrietta and Alhaja Bimbo.

In his words;

 have been blackmailed many times, but I sailed through. They have called me a ‘ritualist’ before, which means I am a murderer.

Initially, as a human being, I felt bad. But my skin is too thick for all that rubbish. Instead of feeling bad, I will go on my knees and pray to God to give His judgment.

“And I always see these people get their judgment. I don’t want to mention names. I don’t know anything about what is happening to Kemi Olunloyo and I don’t follow her on social media. Apart from her, there are other people who have rubbished my name in the past

“Becoming a polygamist wasn’t my design. With my upbringing, I am not supposed to be a polygamist.

Though my father was a polygamist, he didn’t marry the number of women I have married.

“My first wife, Sola’s mother, was working with the Nigerian Customs Service. She was not involved in my industry and then I would travel for two months.

“So, I was tempted to take a second wife. But unfortunately for me, in the circumstances I cannot explain till today, I lost two wives within a year.

 

You can imagine that! So, I decided not to remarry again, though I had girlfriends; I was a ladies ’ man.
“Two of my girlfriends were very close to the house and my friends too would come with their girlfriends.

“So, we were almost turning the house into a brothel. Later, my doctor, a lady, visited me and advised me to remarry.

“She said it was the best for me, insisting that I was too young to be without a woman. I lost my two wives in 1992 and 1993 respectively, and I was not up to 40 then.

“I agreed to take a wife in the long run, but I had two women who were intimate with me – Henrietta and Alhaja Bimbo. Since I couldn’t say no to either of them, I married two wives again.”

Kasim Balarabe Musa, son of the Second Republic Governor of old Kaduna State and leader of the Peoples Redemption Party( PRP), Alhaji Balarabe Musa has asked President Bola Tinubu to resign over the current economic hardship Nigerians are facing.

Recall that Balarabe Musa was a Nigerian left-wing politician who was elected Governor of Kaduna State during the Nigerian Second Republic, holding office from October 1979 until he was impeached on 23 June 1981.

 

During the Nigerian Fourth Republic he was leader of the Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP), a coalition of opposition parties. He died November 11, 2020.

Kasim, while leading a peaceful protest to mark the June 12 Democracy Day in Kaduna on Tuesday, noted that Nigeria has retrogressed under Tinubu’s administration.

Addressing teeming PRP members, he maintained that there was nothing to celebrate on Democracy Day at the moment.

He added that his late father and other pro Democracy Activists like late Chief Gani Fawehinmi, Senator Shehu Sani and a hosts of others, sacrificed a lot for the enthronement of the nation’s fledgling democracy in the country while regretting the current sorry state the country had found itself today.

 

According to him, things have deteriorated in the country such that citizens are disturbed due to the high cost of essential items like food stuffs, adding that ” poor Nigerians can no longer feed despite the wealth Nigeria is endowed with.”

He urged the President to re-strategies with a view to bringing an end to the problems debilitating the country, adding that if the President was overwhelmed, he should resign.

Kasim said, “the military which we fought against before 1999 cannot allow this kind of killing and maiming of citizens, abuse of citizens. They won’t allow it.

“Nigeria has seen its darkest period since the country got her independence from 1960 to date.

“Nigeria has seen her worst and darkest period while there are so many killings and food is so expensive.

 

“No good schools and the medical situation is appalling. If the president has been overwhelmed by challenges confronting the country, he should resign.”

In the spirit of the June 12 Democracy Day celebration, Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, has granted pardon to 41 inmates serving in different correctional centres across the state.

The governor also commuted the death sentence of 45 condemned prisoners to prison terms.

 

Speaking at the 2024 Democracy Day in Abeokuta, Abiodun said the decision was in exercising his prerogative of mercy as the governor of the state.

“Government has a duty to uphold democratic values by consistently applying principles of mercy, justice, and the rule of law. In this vein, the Nigerian Constitution empowers me to exercise a prerogative of mercy to anyone convicted of an offense in Ogun State.

“Having received the guidance of the Ogun State Advisory Council on the Prerogative of Mercy, I have signed the appropriate warrants ordering the release of 41 convicts currently imprisoned across different correctional facilities in Ogun State. I have also signed warrants converting the death sentences of 45 inmates to prison sentences.

“This gesture signals a break from past grievances and a move towards a more inclusive and compassionate society where merciful second chances are granted to deserving offenders.

 

“All convicts who have received this gesture have shown remorse for their crimes, acquired skills and certifications in prison, with several of them receiving university degrees from the National Open University of Nigeria. They have also demonstrated verified good conduct during their imprisonment,” he said.

Emphasizing on the significance of the celebration, Abiodun said it marks the triumph of democracy.

Late Moshood Kasimawo Abiola of the defunct Social Democratic Party (SDP) was the presumed winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election, which was annulled by the military. This was despite the election being adjudged as the freest and fairest in Nigeria’s history.

“June 12, 1993, stands as a watershed moment in this journey. On that particular day, Nigerians transcended differences of tribe, gender, and even the unique joint Muslim-Muslim ticket to speak unanimously through the ballot.

“They elected the late Chief Moshood Kasimawo Olawale Abiola and Babagana Kingibe of the defunct Social Democratic Party (SDP) as President and Vice-President, respectively,” Abiodun stated.

 

According to the governor, “That election remains a pivotal moment in our country’s democratic history. It has become the benchmark against which the successes of subsequent elections are measured. For all its import, it reminds us of the power of unity, resilience, and the collective determination to uphold the principles of democracy.

“It is a testament to the strength and resilience of the Nigerian people, who have shown unwavering commitment to democracy and the belief in a better future.”

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ibrahim Lamuwa, has denied accusations of sexual harassment leveled against him by a married ministry employee, Mrs. Simisola Fajemirokun-Ajayi.

Mrs. Ajayi, through a petition to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, filed by her lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), outlined alleged instances of harassment.

In a document seen by THE WHISTLER, Lamuwa through his lawyers, denied the allegations stating:

“We are legal representatives of Ambassador Ibrahim Lamuwa (hereinafter referred to as ‘our client’), the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and have been authorised to make the following statement on his behalf, in response to allegations of sexual harassment levelled against him by Mrs Simisola O. Fajemirokun-Ajayi, an aide to the Honorable Minister of Foreign Affairs.

“The media, particularly the social media has been inundated with the digital copy of a petition written by legal representatives of Mrs. Simisola O. Fajemirokun-Ajayi against Amb. Lamuwa. This petition was clearly leaked in order to generate sympathy for her unsubstantiated claims.

“We wish to state categorically that our client has never made any sexual advances towards Mrs. Simisola O. Fajemirokun-Ajayi, who he is aware is a married woman, neither has he ever made suggestive comments or innuendos that requested any form of untoward relationship between himself and her.

 

“Our client distinctly recalls the events that took place at the ministry’s retreat on October 7th 2023 where Mrs Simisola O. Fajemirokun-Ajayi claims that he invited her to his room. Our client states categorically that, he never made such an invitation and that his only communication with Mrs Fajemirokun-Ajayi, which was an overt one, was where he checked on her, like he did to all participants on whether they had been well-lodged in their hotels.

 

“He further recalls that the instance where he spoke of her as a nursing mother, during the same retreat was in a colloquial conversation they were having with other participants, where one participant even responded jokingly that when a woman says ‘her baby’ it could mean either her husband or one of her children, of which he innocuously joked asking “how big is the baby?” Our client maintains that those conversations were made jokingly and sees their misinterpretation as malicious and with ill-intent.

“Our client also maintains that it is an absurdity for Mrs Fajemirokun-Ajayi to claim that he invited her to Hong Kong, given that the conversation they were both having was on how Honk Kong had digitised its work processes as far back as 1999. Our client wonders how such a conversation became interpreted as an invitation for her to travel alongside himself knowing fully well that she is an aide to the minister. How can she possibly leave the minister to follow the permanent secretary, on a vacation? Would that not be the height of delusion for the one requesting, as well as the one heeding to the request?

“It is clear that the minister’s aide has misinterpreted ordinary conversations, made openly and in the presence of other participants, for untoward intentions. We believe that these allegations are directly tied to our client’s firm objections raised regarding improper requests that Mrs Fajemirokun-Ajayi made, particularly to financial matters in the ministry.

“For example, Mrs. Fajemirokun-Ajayi made a trip to the World Economic Forum (Davos), of which she sought a reimbursement from the ministry for. Our client firmly explained to her that while the ministry may look at avenues to refund her expenses, it is not the appropriate process for a trip to be made without an approval, and then funded with taxpayers money. after the fact.

 

“Further to this, is the fact of Mrs Fajemirokun-Ajayi’s unfamiliarity with civil service rules and processes where she had requested from our client access to policy files and even financial records of high-level activities of the ministry. By no means, should the permanent secretary, as chief accounting officer of the ministry provide such sensitive documents to an aide of the minister, worse via a WhatsApp chat. There are due processes in government, and they must be followed.

“We must emphasise that Mrs Fajemirokun-Ajayi is a political appointee, and not a civil servant. Thus, matters of finance and policy are out of bounds for her in this instance.

“It is crucial to mention that our client, in all his 32 years of service in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, never received a query nor a report against him bordering on harassment, let alone, sexual harassment. In the course of this period, our client has served in Hong Kong, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Syria and more recently, Senegal, and there has never been a negative report on his conduct in any of these countries.

“Ambassador Lamuwa has also served for nine years in the State House. From the office of the vice president, to the office of the chief of staff to the president, and to the office of the president, and no negative report or allegation of any kind has ever been raised against him.”

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has explained why he fell during a Democracy Day parade at the Eagles Square in Abuja.

Naija News reports that President Tinubu, on Wednesday, slipped and fell while boarding the parade vehicle at the venue of the 2024 Democracy Day.

The President had approached the vehicle shortly after he arrived at the Eagles Square, Abuja venue of the programme. The President lost his footing momentarily as he was about to step into the vehicle.

However, despite the slip, the President regained his balance and continued with the proceedings.

The development attracted several reactions from Nigerians on and off social media.

Speaking at a dinner at the Presidential Villa on Wednesday night, Tinubu said he did not fall but prostrated to great in commemoration of the Democracy Day celebration.

He said: “Earlier this morning, I had a swagger and it’s on social media.

The president suggested that onlookers might have mistaken his misstep for the popular ‘Buga’ dance move or a traditional Yoruba way of prostrating to greet elders – ‘Idobale’ in Yoruba language.

They were confused whether I was doing buga or babanriga,” Tinubu said.

But it’s a day to celebrate democracy while doing ‘dobale’ for the day. I am a traditional Yoruba boy, I did my dobale,” the President jocularly said.

 

Media

The Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah has called out the nation’s leadership, urging a focus on development and criticizing a culture of self-service.

 

Bishop Kukah stated this on Wednesday as Nigeria celebrated Democracy Day.

 

In his address, “Democracy and the Free Market Economy,” Bishop Kukah argued that Nigeria’s democracy is faltering because it hasn’t been adapted to the country’s context.

 

“Our democracy is in recession, in decline, precisely because it is evident to us that what we are working with is not something that has come from our own historical, cultural or even anthropological experiences.

 

“The only way democracy can work is that democracy has to be an instrument of development,’ Bishop Kukah said.

 

The Bishop emphasized the need for clear national goals, a strong moral foundation, and financial discipline.

 

“The legislators are preoccupied with determining their salaries, fringe benefits, and unnecessary foreign travels.

 

“As a result of our inability to cultivate the financial discipline and prudent management of our economy, we have come to depend largely on internal and external borrowing to execute government projects.

 

“The corrupt, inept, and insensitive leadership in the last years have been a source of immorality and impropriety in our society,” he added.

 

He argued that greed is a major obstacle, not just among the political elite, but among ordinary Nigerians as well.

 

He said: “The challenge for many countries in Africa, beginning with Nigeria, is how to restrain the greed of the political elite.

 

“Not only the political elite, but the greed and the appetite of ordinary Nigerians, because it is feeding this beast that has made it impossible for this country to grow.

 

“We cannot talk about people being corrupt when it is clear to us that the incentives for doing the right thing doesn’t exist.”

 

Bishop Kukah urged a return to core constitutional principles, including religious freedom and national unity.

 

He said Nigerians need to “redefine what it is to be a Nigerian. But we must also make sure that the elite claim this argument and claim this space.”

  • MOSOP: it’s time to immortalise Saro-Wiwa

The family of the Founder of Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC), Dr. Frederick Isiotan Fasehun, has protested the omission of their late patriarch from the list of June 12 heroes contained in yesterday’s Democracy Day broadcast by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

The Movement for The Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP) also said the late environmentalist and writer Ken Sar-Wiwa ought to have been immortalised the way Chief MKO Abiola has been honoured.

In a statement in Lagos by the late OPC Founder’s son, Mr. Remi Fasehun, the family described the omission of Dr. Fasehun as uncharitable, ungrateful, and unpardonable.

“The President was a direct beneficiary of our father’s activism and sacrifice for democracy.

“Not only were they in the trenches together, (the late) Fasehun helped Tinubu to escape into exile.

“Several people, who escaped from the country into exile and joined NADECO-Abroad, including Pa Anthony Enahoro, were personally taken by boat and bush paths, through the NADECO Route, by Dr. Fasehun. He was at a point the link between Pa Enahoro-NADECO and NUPENG, the union that played a pivotal role in that struggle.

“He was thrown into prison several times by the General Sani Abacha junta, in Kirikiri, Ilorin, and Kuje. At the infamous Inter-Centre in Ikoyi Cemetery, he was held incommunicado for several months, an experience that inflicted immense damage on him, physically and psychologically, to the extent of leaving his vision impaired for life,” the family said.

In a statement in Port Harcourt by its Publicity Secretary, Saviour Oscar, MOSOP said the President did not recognise the sacrifices of the late Saro-Wiwa and other Ogoni patriots who fought for democracy while recognising the late winner of June 12, 1993 presidential election, Basorun Moshood Abiola.

The statement reads: “We thank Mr. President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for addressing Nigerians on her 25th Democracy Day. However, it is very sad that Mr. President did not recognise or make mention of the struggle of the Ogoni heroes, led by Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight others, who laid down their lives for the rights of the indigenous people.

“We, the Ogoni, have been very much supportive and have contributed so much to the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP); so, it’s unfortunate that Mr. President recognised the struggle of MKO Abiola while failing to acknowledge that of Ken Saro-Wiwa and other Ogonis who paid the supreme sacrifice for what we enjoy today as a nation.

“It is still a painful experience for the people of Ogoni that we lost a generation of industrious sons who contributed immensely to the development of Rivers State and Nigeria at large and today, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, just like former President Muhammadu Buhari, recognised Abiola and the incident that led to his election bid and death while ignoring Ken Saro-Wiwa and others. It is painful and very worrisome…”

[TheNation]

A five storey building under construction on Wednesday collapsed in Onitsha, Anambra State.

Sources said the building collapsed around 7:15 am.

DAILY POST was unable to confirm if there were casualties in the incident which occurred at at DMGS Junction, close to the popular Dennis Memorial Grammar School.

“I was going to work this morning when I saw it. The entire building came down in rubbles.

“I don’t think there were casualties in the building because work was not ongoing on the project this morning.

“The cause of the collapse has not been ascertained, but many bystanders who watched from across the road suspected that it may be as a result of use of substandard materials,” the source said.

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