Chelsea left-back, Marc Cucurella has stated that Enzo Maresca’s side need to be confident to have a chance of winning the UEFA Europa Conference League.

The Spain international believes Chelsea should go into every game with confidence and trust in their ability.

Speaking to the media ahead of their Round of 16 first leg clash with Copenhagen on Thursday, Cucurella said (via SI), “For sure. Chelsea are a top club. We have top players with skills and ability.

“We need to feel we can win the competition, believe we are ready and can do it. We go with all we have to win it.

“If we win everything it’s more easy. We have a good opportunity, we play tomorrow against a tough team. If we win this competition, we have the opportunity to bring a trophy.

“It would be the first time Chelsea have won this trophy. It could be special. It’s a big opportunity to show we are ready.”

[DailyPost]

There is rising tension and fear amongst the people and residents of Rivers State, particularly political office holders in the state, following a spate of violent threats by individuals and groups over the series of ultimatum dangling on the state governor, Sir Siminilayi Joseph Fubara.

This is coming on the heels of the one hour and thirty-six minutes judgment by the Supreme Court of Nigeria on the lingering political stalemate in Rivers, dating back to August 2023.

The Apex Court had last Friday, through a five member jurists, made some pronouncements which have caused uneasiness and unsettled pockets of political upheavals in the state.

Amongst some controversial decisions of the Supreme Court, is the order granting unhindered access to the Martyns Amaewhule led 27-members of the state legislature to resume sitting against two different cases on their defection at the lower courts.

Rivers State Governor, Sim Fubara

The suit for the legality or otherwise of the defection of Martyns Amaewhule and his 26 other lawmakers are already before the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal, and was not a subject of litigation before the Apex Court.

Individuals and groups, including the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, HURIWA, have separately criticised the Apex Court rulings, describing it as a “Miscarriage of justice and a clear contradiction of established legal precedents.”

The Supreme Court also nullified the local government council election held on October 5, 2024, insisting that the electoral umpire, the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission, RSIEC, did not follow the necessary procedures in organising the polls.

In addition, the Apex Court stopped the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, and the Accountant General of the Federation from releasing the monthly allocations due to Rivers State until after the conduct of a fresh election into the state’s 23 LGAs.

Based on the order of the Apex Court for Governor Fubara to represent the 2024 state’s appropriation bill to the Martyns Amaewhule’s legislators, the House of Assembly on Monday gave him a 48 hours ultimatum to comply.

But Rivers government, through its Secretary to the state government, Dr. Tammy Wenike Danagogo denied the receipt of any letter from the House of Assembly up until yesterday, Wednesday, the expiry date of the deadline.

While the controversy over the letter and its ultimatum rages, the state House of Assembly yesterday again issued a series of letters accompanied with a 48-hour ultimatum to the state chief executive and the Chairman of RSIEC, Justice Adulphus Enebeli.

In its latest letter dated March 5, 2025, addressed to the governor, the Legislature directed him to sack all his political appointees, including the 19 commissioners, chairmen, and members of institutions governing councils, boards and parastatals.

According to the legislators, these appointees, particularly the state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Chief Dagogo, SAN, were not screened and cleared by them in accordance with the constitutional requirements, accusing the governor of several constitutional breaches

The pro-Wike lawmakers also ordered the RSIEC chairman, Justice Adulphus Enebeli, to appear before them within 48 hours to explain details of the proposed state local government election scheduled for Saturday, August 9, 2025.

The Legislature warned the RSIEC chairman that it would invoke the necessary laws, including issuance of a warrant of arrest on him should he fail to honour their invitation.

Justice Enebeli had called a stakeholders meeting at their RSIEC office. along Aba Road, Port Harcourt, where he released the timetable and guidelines for the LGA elections in the state.

Since after last Friday’s Supreme Court judgment, there have been sounds of war drums from all parts of the state and beyond, especially with the 27 lawmakers displaying actions as though they were acting on an already prepared script, well crafted for them.

Both the Ijaw National Congress, INC, and the Ijaw Youth Council, IYC, the umbrella bodies of all elders and youths of Ijaw Land, have separately warned that no harm should be done to their son, Fubara or his office.

Since the current democratic dispensation started in 1999, the upland area of the state had been at the helm of affairs in the state, boasting of four governors, including Dr. Peter Odili, Chief Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, Sir Celestine Omehia, and Chief Ezebunwo Nyesom Wike.

Sir Siminilayi Joseph Fubara, an Ijaw son from the Opobo extraction, is the only governor from the riverine part of the state now in Government House, Port Harcourt, 26 years after.

Viewed against this background, the INC president, Prof. Benjamin Okaba regretted that the Apex Court did not take into cognisance the sacrifices of the Ijaws to the peace, unity, and stability of the state, in its decisions.

Prof. Okaba warned of dire consequences that may follow the removal of Governor Fubara, saying, “Any move to impeach the Rivers State governor will destabilise the Niger Delta region and disrupt oil production.”

According to him, the obvious implications of allowing oil facilities to be disrupted would be too grave on the nation’s economy, and appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to urgently intervene and call his FCT Minister to order.

In his words, which was also chorused by Dr. Alaye Theophilus, the president of Ijaw youths, “We cannot fold our hands and watch our first riverine governor in decades being removed from office by a few individuals and the mandate of Rivers people shattered.”

The IYC president cautioned those, “Wishing to use the Supreme Court judgment as a canon folder to impeach the governor should have a rethink,” and asked President Tinubu to choose between a peaceful Niger Delta and Wike and his co-travellers.

A socio-cultural group “We Stand With Sim” urged Amaewhule and his pro-Wike disciples not to misinterpret the Apex Court rulings as a “Death Sentence”, and appealed to them to be cautious in their dealings with the governor in the interest of peace and stability.

From all indications, the pro-Wike’s 27 legislators are bent on having their pounds off flesh from Governor Fubara whose trouble with his political godfather, Wike started in August 2023, just three months after his swearing-in on May 29, 2023.

Although Wike, who had ruled the state for eight years blamed their political differences on alleged destruction of his political structure, Fubara on his part said it was more about the control of the resources of the state.

The political brouhaha got to the climax when on October 30, 2023, Martyns Amaewhule led 26 of his colleagues to defect from their original Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to the All Progressives Congress, APC, following a foiled attempt to impeach Fubara.

To fuel their support base and cause anxiety amongst Governor Fubara’s followers, a kite was flown through online media that Prof. Ngozi Odu, the state deputy governor has already resigned from office, to avert being impeached.

But yesterday evening, the Omoku-born academia turned politician denied resigning from office, assuring that she was still loyal and faithfully committed to joining Fubara to provide Rivers people and residents with the elusive dividends of democracy.

The current scenario allows for rumours, stabbing and backstabbing, with virtually everyone becoming a suspect to one another. The days ahead are still pregnant, even with the governor’ s vow to implement the decisions of the Supreme Court, after perusing the certified true copy of the judgment.

Heyford is Managing Editor, Politics, of The Southern Examiner

On Wednesday, Senate President Godswill Akpabio finally defended himself since Kogi Central Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan accused him of sexual harassment. This is not the first time he has been accused of such, but this instance feels different. He denied the accusation by alluding to his record of awards as a “gender-friendly” governor and pointing out his cherished personal relationships with women that put him beyond such impropriety. Good for him, but there is also enough record of his public conduct to consider a pattern of his behaviour when dealing with women.

For instance, in 2020, when former Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission Joy Nunieh accused him of corruption, he went on television to talk about how many times the woman had been married. By pulling out the woman’s personal life, he wanted to set her up for ridicule in our society that associates a woman’s virtues with her marital status. Like every bus conductor who finds himself outwitted by a woman and quickly resorts to calling her “ashewo!” Akpabio, too, deflected the shame emanating from the corruption accusation.

Akpabio might have waited until his accuser submitted an official petition, but he has not been defenseless all this time. His female proxies have been doing so, some of them even stripping themselves of either their dignity or common sense just to defend him. On Saturday, some Akwa Ibom women protested the allegations against Akpabio. Typical Nigerians that they were, they did not say anything about seeking the truth; they just wanted the accusations to go away. What is there to say about those poor old women carrying placards they probably cannot read? Looking at their hungry faces, one shrugs in pity. Our politics is as tacky as other aspects of our Nigerian lives.

If those women can be dismissed as a hired crowd, how about Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan’s female colleague in the Senate, from whom one would expect reasonable intervention? When Senator Ireti Kingibe, one of the three remaining women in the Senate, spoke on the issue, she came across as conservative and more invested in upholding the norms of the institution than considering how it could be oppressive. First, she claimed that they (the other three female senators) have not been sexually harassed, and I wondered why she had to assume a corporate voice. Unless, of course, she is omnipresent, how could she have known that for sure? Is she privy to the battle each woman fought privately to get to the Senate? Why not just speak about your own experience?

In the same interview, Kingibe mentioned that Akpoti-Uduaghan had once told her she was supposed to discuss some official business with Akpabio, “but he said to meet him at a hotel”. So, the woman told you that in a prior conversation, and you could still boldly claim that you were unaware that she was being sexually harassed? So, what else defines sexual harassment in Kingibe’s book? How come she did not correlate Akpoti-Uduaghan’s present predicament with that hotel incident to at least understand her frustration with the Senate rules you are still asking her to obey unquestioningly? I do not blame Akpoti-Uduaghan for snubbing Kingibe afterward. I would do the same.

Then came another woman, Senator Abiodun Olujimi, who, though well-spoken, appeared just as tone-deaf. She thought the issue was Akpabio’s sense of humour, which makes him “vulnerable”. Olujimi is a polished woman who knows what vulnerability means. Her use of the word to describe someone like Akpabio makes me suspicious of her politics. In her interview, she went further to talk about the struggles of men in the Senate and how she has had to support them when they faced challenges from the domestic front. My heart goes out to the men who experience challenges because of their public service, but is the issue at hand about what the menfolk endure? That rhetorical manoeuvre is called whataboutism. For context, please recall that Olujimi was also the one who sponsored the serially rejected bill seeking gender equality. For someone who had such a grand vision while in the Senate, her present politics is rather contradictory.

The worst of all the female politicians wading into the issue is Senator Florence Ita-Giwa. She said that once a woman becomes a senator, she has “passed that stage of your life of being sexually harassed” because you somehow become gender neutral. That is a rather curious point to make. So, do the men and women also share the same restroom since their physical differences get magically erased once they are sworn in as senators? Ita-Giwa not only argued that sexual harassment cannot happen in the Senate but that even talking about it shows weakness on the part of the woman. My impression listening to her is that she has not only spent the bulk of her life bending over backward to take in a lot of ethical compromises, but she justified what she endured as female strength. Watching a younger woman who refuses to lie down and take it comes across to her as a weakness.

Then enters Mrs Akpabio herself. You know, no woman in Nigeria can be counted upon to overreach herself any more than the wife of a powerful man whose husband has been accused of sexual impropriety. You will see the woman take off her clothes in public to defend her husband, not necessarily because she believes in his virtues, but because she cannot stand to see her privileges jeopardised. Mrs Akpabio went to the extent of suing his accuser for defamation. She knows it is not a case she can win, but a typical Naija woman wants to impress her husband. Unfortunately, all she is doing here is making him look emasculated. She even described her husband as “disciplined and respectful”. The same man who made the disparaging “nightclub” comment for which even you had to reportedly urge him to apologise? That should be the very definition of irony. Speaking of “disciplined and respectful”, has Madam seen her husband’s charge sheet with the EFCC?

Akpabio is not the only one who has made disrespectful comments about Akpoti-Uduaghan; even his aide did! The only reason that one could do so publicly and confidently is because of his boss’ loose ethical standards. Akpoti-Uduaghan is human and would naturally feel the snide comments. It should not be too much to expect men in an institution like the Senate to be respectful of their female counterparts and treat them with professional courtesy. This was the same Senate where a former beauty queen appeared for appointment confirmation and some horny old goat openly leered at her. If they can do that during their official business, you want to put it past them that those ones will sexually harass?

If there is a reason Akpoti-Uduaghan’s issues resonate with many women, it is because what we are dealing with is a general problem. The truth is, Nigerian men in professional places have a woman problem. They can be insecure, and the only way they know to manage their inadequacies is by rudely putting down their female counterparts or by putting them in their supposed place. It is a cultural problem, and one must be used to being disrespected not to see it. Some women will confront such denigration by just shutting up and taking it so as not to be taken as weak. Some others will brook no such nonsense. Akpoti-Uduaghan is the latter.

Unless this is duly investigated, we do not factually know whether Akpabio is guilty or not. Still, he needs to check himself and his professional conduct. From how he talks and what the men around him say freely, there is enough to suggest his attitude towards female colleagues is pejorative.

Chelsea have been boosted by the return of Cole Palmer and Trevoh Chalobah as they prepare to face Copenhagen in the UEFA Conference League Round of 16 first-leg tie tonight (Thursday).

The Blues, dealing with several injury setbacks, will be without Nicolas Jackson, Noni Madueke, and Marc Guiu.

Wes Fofana and Romeo Lavia alongside Palmer were not registered at the beginning of the tournament as part of a workload management strategy.

However, the inclusion of Palmer, Chalobah, and Mathis Amougou offers much-needed depth and versatility to the squad.

They were not added to the squad list at the beginning of the tourney.

In a statement released on the club’s website earlier today, Chelsea expressed confidence in their reinforced lineup, stating, “We have a few players out, but we’re confident in the squad we’ve assembled.

“The additions of Palmer, Chalobah, and Amougou bring versatility and depth, which will be crucial against a well-organized Copenhagen side.”

Chelsea’s journey to the Round of 16 has been dominant, with the Blues winning all six group-stage matches and scoring 26 goals — more than triple Copenhagen’s tally.

Christopher Nkunku has been instrumental in their campaign, contributing five goals and three assists.

Copenhagen, meanwhile, had a rocky path to this stage, finishing 19th in the group phase and narrowly overcoming Heidenheim 4-3 on aggregate in the play-offs.

The Danish league leaders come into this clash off a goalless draw against Aalborg, while Chelsea have had a full week to rest and prepare.

Chelsea have fond memories at Parken Stadion, having won all three of their previous visits, including victories over Copenhagen and Nordsjaelland.

Reflecting on this, the club added, “The team is well-prepared and eager to extend our unbeaten record here. Every game from this stage is like a final, and we’re approaching it with that mindset.”

Conference League knockout

The knockout stage stakes are high, especially with the ‘away goals’ rule scrapped.

If the aggregate score is level after 90 minutes of the second leg, extra time and penalties will decide the winner, with VAR in operation.

Disciplinary management could also be crucial. While no Chelsea players risk suspension for the return leg, Copenhagen’s Mohamed Elyounoussi, Rodrigo Huescas, and Marcos Lopez will miss the Stamford Bridge fixture if they receive yellow cards tonight.

The road to the final in Wroclaw, Poland, on May 28, remains daunting, with a potential quarter-final clash against either Molde or Legia Warsaw on the horizon.

Should Chelsea and Tottenham both progress to the last eight, UEFA has confirmed that the Blues’ home and away legs will be reversed to prevent fixture congestion.

PUNCH Online reports that the UEFA Conference League, launched in 2021, is Europe’s third-tier club competition, sitting below the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League.

[Punch]

Justice Alexander Owoeye of the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos on Thursday halted the hearing of the charge filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, against Ezekiel Onyedikachi also known as Eezee Tee over what he described as an ‘Administrative’ procedure.

The EFCC had filed a four-count charge against Onyedikachi over alleged fraudulent conversion.

During the hearing on Thursday, Chikaosolu Ojukwu, SAN along with Dr Monday Ubani, SAN, announced appearance for Onyedikachi while Bilikisu Buhari announced appearance for the EFCC.

The defendant, Onyedikachi who had been absent at the last court hearing was however present in court.

After the parties announced their appearances, Justice Owoeye informed them of an ongoing administrative procedure in respect of the matter and that he would not be able to make any pronouncement in the case.

“There is an administrative procedure going on in this case, and until it is completed, I cannot make any pronouncement on it,” he said.

The judge also declined to grant the request by Mr Ojukwu that parties should maintain the status quo pending the completion of the administrative procedure.

He subsequently adjourned the matter till May 14.

[Vanguard]

In 1966, a young Nigerian woman did what no African woman had done before. She published a novel with an international press company. The book, Efuru, was as much a milestone as it was a disruption.

At a time when African literature was dominated by male voices — Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o — Flora Nwapa insisted on something different. She put an African woman at the centre of the story.

Make no mistake. Nwapa didn’t just write literature. She carved out a space for African women in politics, publishing, storytelling, and history. More than 50 years later, her name is still mentioned with reverence, carrying the same weight as her male contemporaries.

A WOMAN OF MANY FIRSTS

Born Flora Nwanzuruahu Nkiru Nwapa on January 13, 1931, in Oguta, present-day Imo state, she was the eldest of six children. Her father, Christopher Nwapa, was an agent for the United Africa Company (UAC), and her mother, Martha Nwapa, was a teacher. Education was non-negotiable in their home, and Flora excelled.

She attended Archdeacon Crowther Memorial Girls’ School before enrolling at the University of Ibadan, where she studied English, history, and geography. After graduating in 1957, she earned a diploma in education from the University of Edinburgh. She worked as a women’s education officer in Calabar, Cross River state, taught at Queen’s School, Enugu, and later became an assistant registrar at the University of Lagos.

During this time, Efuru took shape. The manuscript landed in the hands of Chinua Achebe, then an editor at Heinemann’s African Writers Series. He saw its promise and recommended its publication. That decision made history. Efuru became the first internationally published novel by a black African woman.

WRITING WOMEN BACK INTO THE STORY

Before Nwapa, female characters in African fiction were background figures; wives, daughters, mothers, or seductionists were rarely the protagonists of their own narratives. Efuru changed that.

The novel’s titular character, Efuru, is an independent Igbo woman who defies societal expectations. She leaves an unhappy marriage, takes charge of her own life, and remains strong despite personal losses. Most strikingly, the novel doesn’t force her into the conventional “happy ending” of marriage and children. Instead, she follows a spiritual path, becoming a worshipper of the goddess Uhamiri.

This was radical for the time. Nwapa wasn’t writing about women as victims; she was writing about women who made choices — flawed, unconventional, but theirs to make.

As Marie Umeh, a scholar and expert on African literature, highlighted in “The Poetics of Economic Independence for Female Empowerment”, Nwapa achieved something remarkable with Efuru. She laid the foundation for a new literary movement that defied conventional portrayals of Nigerian women, challenging their reduction to mere roles or rebellious figures.

Nwapa continued to challenge norms with Idu (1970), Never Again (1975), This is Lagos and Other Stories (1971), and Emeka, Driver’s Guard (1972), among others.

REBUILDING AFTER WAR

By the late 1960s, Nigeria was in turmoil. Following the Biafran War, Nwapa fled Lagos. In 1970, after the war, she was appointed minister of health and social welfare in Nigeria’s former east central state — the first person to hold the post.

Her role was critical. She worked to reunite children displaced by the war with their families and oversaw the return of those evacuated to other countries. In 1971, she became minister for land, survey, urban development, and establishment, leading efforts to rebuild war-torn communities.

For her service, she was awarded the national honour of Officer of the Order of the Niger in 1982.

BEYOND WRITING: THE BUSINESS OF REPRESENTATION

Nwapa decided that it wasn’t enough to just tell stories; she changed how they were published. In 1974, she launched Tana Press, becoming the first African woman to own a publishing house.

Through Tana Press, she published her later works, including One is Enough (1981) and Women Are Different (1986). More importantly, she gave other African women a platform, ensuring their voices weren’t silenced.

Despite the government’s talk of supporting indigenous publishing, she received little financial backing, and so her publishing house fell apart. But for Nwapa, it was more about giving Africans control over their narratives than commercial success.

A PROUD LEGACY 

While her male contemporaries won Nobel Prizes and international accolades, Nwapa’s work was sometimes dismissed as “domestic” or “feminine”. But she wasn’t writing for the Western literary elite. She was writing for Africa and Africans.

She once said, “The European conquest of Africa radically altered this state of affairs with devastating consequences for women and, by extension, the society as a whole.”

She remained a force beyond literature, advocating for women’s economic and educational empowerment, especially in rural areas.

Nwapa passed away in 1993, but her legacy is undeniable. Without her, there is no Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, no Buchi Emecheta, no new wave of African women writers reclaiming their narratives.

This Women’s History Month, her story deserves to be told loud, proud, and unforgettable.

If all goes well, Nigeria will have its first biometric population census before the 2027 general elections, paving the way for a more reliable and accurate enumeration of its citizens which, in turn, conduces to result-oriented economic reforms and planning. The last census was held in November 2006. Last week, the management of National Population Commission (NPC) briefed President Tinubu on its readiness for the exercise. The President promised to set up a committee to review the N980 billion budget proposed for the exercise. Tinubu stressed his commitment to ensuring adequate and reliable figures from the census to augment development planning, and this explains why he opted for biometric census rather than the conventional census.

 A biometric population census is a modern method of conducting census and it incorporates use of biometric technologies to collect and verify demographic data. While a conventional census only counts the number of people in each household under various socioeconomic classifications like gender; religion; ethnicity; income groups, etc; a biometric census goes further and obtain unique physical or behavioural characteristics such as finger prints; facial recognition or iris scans to identify and verify individuals. I should note that in Nigeria, religion and ethnicity are not included in the census questionnaire.

NPC seems prepared for the exercise. It has already produced digital maps for the country; procured digital tablets; demarcated the whole country and trained staff. Biometric devices and software are part of outstanding items to be procured as soon as the government gives the go-ahead. All that remains is for President Tinubu to proclaim the date for the next census – the first since 2006 – and the counting will commence. Biometric census has many benefits. It does not only help ensure that each individual is counted only once, thereby reducing errors and duplicates, it also provides an additional layer of security, making it more difficult for individuals to provide false information. Our previous censuses have been controversial due to suspicions that the numbers from some parts of the country were excessively bloated. Using biometric technologies would considerably reduce, if not eliminate, such problems. In addition, the biometric technology will add to the efficiency of the exercise as biometric data can be collected and processed quickly, reducing the time and resources required for data collection. Biometric data can also be used to create unique identification numbers, enabling governments to better track population dynamics and provide targeted services. Since Nigeria has already embarked on national biometric data collection through NIMC, data from the biometric census would be incorporated to the national data base.

At the NPC meeting, the President asked NIMC to be part of the budget review. He noted that biometric census will help the government to plan for employment, agriculture and food sufficiency and promised to engae with development partners for assistance. ‘’So many problems come up without adequate data’’, he said. It’s quite baffling that Nigeria has not been able to conduct a census in almost two decades. The delays have been largely due to funding difficulties, insecurity in certain areas and the COVID-19 pandemic. But the benefits of census are too important to overlook.

 Biometric census in particular enables governments to make informed decisions; develop effective policies and focus on services, such as healthcare and education, to those who need them most. Biometric data provides a transparent and accountable way to collect and manage population data and help governments respond more effectively to natural disasters and other crises. Related to reliable census is birth and death registration. A lot of births are not recorded in many states of the federation, making it difficult to measure population growth and other indices. It is the responsibility of governors to partner with officials of NPC in their states and launch an advocacy programme to encourage regular birth and death registrations.

Nigeria has a long history with population census even before the country was created in 1914; and as a citizen, I have been counted several times. It was first conducted in 1886 by the British Colonial government, specifically in the Colony of Lagos. Although limited in scope as it covered only Lagos, it marked the beginning of a series of censuses that would be eventually expanded to cover the whole country. The last exercise was in 2006. I was first counted as a baby in the 1962 exercise. I have faint recollections of the 1972 census conducted by the Gen. Yakubu Gowon government soon after the civil war. Gowon needed an accurate data to implement his post-war reconstruction and rehabilitation programme. In 1991, the Babangida regime conducted another exercise and I was counted in Ikoyi, Lagos. It was followed by the 2006 exercise carried out by the Obasanjo administration when I was counted in Lekki, Lagos, this time, with my wife and children. I look forward to the next one - a biometric census - that would, hopefully, eliminate those controversies that have trailed the previous exercises.

Overall, a biometric population census has the potential to provide more accurate and reliable data, improve governance, and enhance service delivery. President Tinubu should fix a date for the next census.

In a December 2016 piece titled ‘Tales of the Unexpected’, I used a ‘case study’ involving five scenarios to explain the Nigerian condition. And since every Nollywood movie must have a sequel, I crave the indulgence of readers to release ‘Part 2’ of that column today.

 SCENE ONE: In the course of a break-in at a local branch of the Central Bank (not Nigeria), one of the robbers, holding a pump action gun, shouted: “Don’t move, if you don’t want to die. The money in this bank belongs to the government while your life belongs to you.” With that message, everyone in the banking hall lay down quietly. That was a “mind changing concept”.

 When Mudashiru Obasa—who was removed as Speaker on 13 January 2025 by 36 out of the 40 members for alleged misconduct, abuse of office and financial impropriety—invaded the Lagos State House of Assembly last Thursday, his replacement, Mojisola Meranda, said he was acting a theatre. By Monday afternoon, it had dawned on Meranda that the forces bent on bringing Obasa back to office were not play-acting. Smelling the coffee, Meranda surrendered, and ‘King Obasa’ is now back on the throne! All the huffing and puffing of the past two months against a power-drunk presiding officer who has lorded himself over them for a decade have now been upended. After succumbing with tears, the Lagos State House of Assembly members now know that in Nigerian politics ‘two plus two’ does not always equal four. In our country, as Obasa has demonstrated, to adapt a popular saying, ‘one with God(father) is the majority’.

 SCENE TWO: When a lady in the banking hall lay on the floor in a suggestively provocative manner that exposed too much flesh, one of the robbers shouted at her: “Please cover up! This is a robbery, not a rape operation!” That is called “being professional”.

 The Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation recently presented its 2019 report to the National Assembly. It revealed that 178,459 firearms, mostly AK-47 rifles, were missing from various police formations nationwide. Some 3,907 assorted rifles and pistols could also not be accounted for as of January 2020. But the police high command, according to a Daily Trust report on Monday, has traced the development to negligence and poor knowledge of weapon handling by some of their personnel. Put simply, it is about lack of professionalism! While that may be true, it cannot be the only plausible official explanation for this malaise. “Countries that are experiencing conflict or widespread armed violence tend to lose control of ammunition in their national stockpiles, be it through theft, loss, or battlefield capture,” Conflict Armament Research, a UK-based non-profit organisation, once stated after revealingthat many weapons recovered from bandits in Zamfara State belonged to Nigeria’s security forces. The federal government must fish out and deal with the rogue elements within these agencies who are selling weapons to criminals.

 SCENE THREE: When the bank robbers returned home with the loot, the youngest of them (a graduate of a local university) asked the leader of the gang, who did not complete primary education, “Big brother, can we begin to count the money so as to ascertain how much we got from the operation?” He received an instant response: “You must be very naive! There is so much money in these bags that it will take us several hours to count. Just put on the television. It will not be long before we know from the news how much we took from the bank!” That is called “experience” which, as they say, is the best teacher.

 Almost all the Senators who have spoken on the sexual harassment allegation by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan against the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio have been dismissive. Essentially because the allegation first came not on the floor of the senate but on television and only after Akpoti-Uduaghan had been dragged before the ethics committee. “The Senate does not conduct its affairs based on what is trending on social media,” chairman of senate committee on media and publicity, Yemi Adaramodu, said on Monday. “The only issue before the Senate is Senator Natasha’s non-compliance with the standing orders. All lawmakers are expected to speak from their designated seats, and any breach of this rule undermines order in the chamber.”

Even before Akpoti-Uduaghan formally presented her petition yesterday, I knew this matter would not go away quickly since it borders on alleged transactional sex. Nigerians enjoy such salacious stories. That perhaps explains why one of the most trending issues in the last two weeks has been the ‘bedroom cost’ of a Lamborghini between a female influencer and a top male musician. Yesterday, there was a public protest by Akpoti-Uduaghan’s supporters who were later countered by pro-Akpabio supporters. From experience, no matter what happens on the streets, it is not too difficult to predict that at the end, it is God’s-Will that shall be done!

 SCENE FOUR: When the robbers had left the bank, the manager directed the supervisor to call the police quickly. But the supervisor said to him: “Not yet time for that! Let us take $1 million from the vault for ourselves and add it to the $7 million that we previously embezzled”. That is called “thinking outside the box” or to put it in the proper Nigerian lexicon, “applying wisdom”!

Following last Friday’s Supreme Court ruling, Governor Siminalayi Fubara directed the recently elected local government chairmen in Rivers State to transfer power to Heads of Local Government Administration (HLGAs) in their respective councils to prevent any vacuum. The apex court had nullified the local government elections conducted on 5 October 2024, effectively removing the chairmen and councillors across the 23 local government areas of the state. But the forces against the governor are not relenting and he knows. That perhaps accounts for stories about the State Chief Judge mooting the idea of going on leave for one whole year! Regardless of all pretensions to the contrary, the fight in Rivers State is not, and has never been, about principle or public good. It is a fight for supremacy between a godfather and his estranged godson, even when public opinion appears to be on the side of the latter.

SCENE FIVE: That night, there were media reports that $10 million was taken from the bank. Meanwhile, the robbers counted and counted and counted, but they could only find $2 million. Immediately sensing what must have happened, the near-illiterate leader of the robbery gang told his boys: “We risked our lives for only $2 million while bank manager took $8 million with just a stroke of his pen.” Lost in thought, he began to hum Fela Anikulapo’s famous song, ‘Authority Stealing’ until others joined him: ‘Armed robber him need gun/Authority man him need pen/Authority man in charge of money/Him no need gun, him need pen/Pen got power, gun no get/If gun steal eighty thousand naira/Pen go steal two billion naira…’

I doubt there is any admonition I have repeated on this page as many times as that by Laolu Samuel-Biyi that “If you want to keep hope alive in Nigeria, don’t look at the budget.” Yet, I find it difficult to keep my own counsel. Anybody who has tried a run-through of the 2025 budget cannot but see isolated billions of Naira in many MDAs that are not tied to any specific projects— funds that are going to ‘disappear’ by December before we introduce another cycle of money-sharing (that the budgeting process has become in our country) for 2026.

Not knowing what to write about this week, I decided to ‘improve’ on that bank robbery joke first deployed nine years ago. The ‘five scenes’ offer embedded lessons, even if in a perverse sense, about contemporary events in our country. If the task of modern politics, is “to tame the power of the state, to direct its activities towards ends regarded as legitimate by the people it serves, and to regularise the exercise of power under a rule of law,” according to Francis Fukuyama, the crisis of Nigeria today, in practically all spheres of our national life, is that the elite cannot see that it is ultimately in their enlightened interest to subscribe to such ideals. That then explains why wherever you turn in Nigeria today, what you find is a flight of common-sense.

 A day in Kebbi Tomato Farm

 Armed with a ventilated plastic crate, each of the 600 young men and women (all wearing hijab uniforms) competed furiously penultimate Friday afternoon at the GB foods in Ngaski, Kebbi State. As they harvested tomatoes and I watched the workers (each of whom would be paid according to the number of crates they filled by the end of the day), I could see the opportunities for empowerment through agriculture that we have failed to harness in Nigeria. But first, what took me to the farm that also has a tomato paste factory?

 On my way from China last October through Qatar Airlines, I met a young man at the airport in Doha who introduced himself to me as Tokunbo Aderibigbe, a media/communication manager for GB Foods. After the usual exchanges, Tokunbo said he would like me to see what they are doing with tomatoes at their agro-processing farm in Kebbi State. While I agreed to the idea, I said that for security reasons, my visit would have to coincide with whenever a government delegation visited the farm. So, when Tokunbo informed me two weeks ago that the Minister of State for Trade and Investment, John Enoh, was visiting their farm in Kebbi, I signed on to the trip. And I was impressed with what I saw.

 Spanning 1,500 hectares, the farm boasts a 620-metric-tonnes-per-day processing plant that generates hundreds of direct jobs, which the company plans to double in the next expansion phase. By focusing on local production, GB foods and Tomato Jos, another leading company in the sector, are playing a key role in the reduction of our dependence on imported tomato paste. But much more importantly is how they are empowering smallholder farmers and creating employment opportunities for local people in the communities where they operate. On average, the number of casual workers engaged on the farm daily is put at about 1,200. Although one could see a heavy-duty tomato harvester machine on the farm, they chose to use the local people so that the community could own the project and in turn protect the farm—a very wise decision that has paid off.

 Nigeria is reputed as the second-largest producer of tomatoes in Africa after Egypt and the 13th-largest in the world. But with only about 2.3 million metric tons of tomatoes annually, our country still depends on the importation of tomato paste, largely due to post-harvest losses and the number of inadequate processing facilities. Meanwhile, the trip to GB foods in Kebbi from Abuja took us on a 50-minute flight to the airstrip in Kontagora, Niger State, before a punishing four-hour journey that should ordinarily take no more than one and a half hours if the road were good. The MD of GB Foods, Vincent Egbe with whom I rode, explained the seasonal nature of tomato planting which also requires a specific climatic belt for it to grow and thrive. While the yield at their farm in Spain is 100 metric tonnes per hectare, for Nigerian farmers who rely on rudimentary methods, the yield is 5 metric tonnes per hectare. At their mechanised farm in Kebbi, they have already achieved 78 metric tonnes per hectare.

 Tomato cultivation, as Egbe told me, requires a high level of sophistication. “It is an emotional plant that requires the right nutrients while the amount of water and fertilizer must be measured. The first 30 days determine the yield. Most Nigerian farmers plant directly in the absence of nursery (green house),” said Egbe who took me through the processes. “90 percent of tomato is water, so every seedling requires 180 litres of water minimum, and that is a challenge in our country. Four or five states in the north have the water but only three have other ingredients.”

 In its August 2017 report, ‘Tomatonomics – Examining Nigeria’s La Tomatina Prospects’, Augusto&Co, a research and credit rating agency, wrote that despite “the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) ranking tomatoes as the vegetable with the highest priority in Nigeria, the annual import bill on tomato is close to $100 million, as over 750,000 tonnes is lost yearly to wastages.” The situation has since improved with some policy initiatives by the federal government. For instance, the National Tomato Policy (2022 – 2026) was designed to cut down on post-harvest losses and curb the import of tomato concentrates by increasing imports tariff from 5 percent to 50 percent and an additional $1500 levy per metric Tonnes. But there are challenges.

 At a round table last October to enhance tomato productivity and reduce post-harvest losses, the National Tomato Grower’s Processors and Marketers Association of Nigeria, (NATPAN) president, Abdullahi Ringim, said the non-enforcement of ‘tomato levy’ has created a funding gap in the sector. He noted that some of the major inflationary costs of fresh tomatoes include the impact of pests and increased cost of transportation, among others. When you add insecurity in farming communities, high tariffs on machinery and spares, regulatory bottlenecks etc., one can understand the challenges faced by investors in the sector.

 Despite these challenges, Enoh commended the efforts of GB foods given what he saw and experienced. But the trip was quite revealing in other respects.  On the tarmac in Abuja, as we were boarding, I noticed the man in the cockpit who was clad in kaftan. “Is that not Bala?” I asked to which I got an instant response from Tokunbo, “Yes, that is Senator Bala Ibn Na’Allah.” Until 2023, Na’Allah represented Kebbi South Senatorial seat and was the Deputy Majority leader in the 8th Senate. Incidentally, GB foods is in his constituency. “Bala, is this your hustle now?” I asked the moment I entered the aircraft and in typical Nigerian fashion, Na’Allah replied with a question, “Is it not a legitimate hustle?”

Na’Allah’s story in the aviation sector started about two decades ago when his second son, now a captain, was then studying at Cape flying school, South Africa. The young man challenged the family at a breakfast table to go and learn how to fly if they considered it an easy vocation. As Na’Allah once told me, they took up the challenge and he secured admission at the Nigerian College of Aviation, Zaria while his late eldest son, Abdulkareem, went to Phoenix Aviation in Florida. His last daughter, Aisha, who was by his side in the cockpit on our trip two weeks ago, studied at the Aviation College, Ilorin and later in Florida. That was how they built a family of pilots. So smooth was our flight and flawless the landing that when we arrived back in Abuja, there was a spontaneous applause for the Na’Allahs from all of us. The message Bala Ibn Na’Allah, who is also a lawyer, sends to many of his colleagues is that politics should be a vocation. Not something on which to build their lives.

But back to GB foods . I believe that the federal government should assist such enterprises with special agricultural subsidies to reduce the cost of fertilizers, pesticides and other farm inputs. Addressing the challenge of regulatory bottlenecks that impede most businesses in Nigeria is equally important. We should also encourage other stakeholders to enter the sector. Interestingly, the Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer of the National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA), Cornelius Oluwasegun Adebayo, has been sharing with me his vision of farm clusters across the country and with what I saw at the GB foods in Kebbi, I believe we can use agriculture to address the challenge of poverty, food insecurity and youth unemployment in Nigeria.

Like millions of Nigerians, I watched with deep concern this morning as Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan raised serious allegations of sexual harassment, intimidation, and mistreatment against the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio. 

These allegations are grave and deserve a thorough, impartial, and transparent investigation.

The Nigerian Senate represents the voice of the people. Those who serve in it — especially its leadership — must uphold the highest standards of integrity, dignity, and respect, both for their office and for the Nigerian citizens they serve.

As the third most powerful figure in the country, the Senate President should embody unimpeachable character.

Sexual harassment in the workplace is a significant barrier to women's advancement and, by extension, the nation's progress. Allegations of such misconduct should never be simply dismissed, particularly when they involve a public officer with immense power, influence, and responsibility.

As the chief presiding officer of the Upper Chamber, the Senate President has a duty to champion the protection and empowerment of Nigerian women through legislation — not to be the subject of allegations that undermine those very principles.

The handling of this matter will send a strong message about Nigeria’s commitment to justice, accountability, and the inclusion of women in governance.

I urge the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Senate itself to take these allegations seriously by ensuring a credible, transparent, and independent investigation.

With only four women currently serving in the Senate, it is imperative that we foster an environment where female legislators can serve without fear of harassment or intimidation.

This moment demands careful and principled action to uphold the integrity of our institutions and ensure that every Nigerian, regardless of gender, is treated with dignity and respect.

Atiku Abubakar

Vice President of Nigeria, 1999-2007

Abuja