The House of Representatives notes with concern news reports across multiple newspaper, electronic, and online media, of a statement credited to the National Assistant General Secretary of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Mr. Christopher Onyeka.

In the said statement, Mr. Onyeka claimed that the Executive arm had given N100m to National Assembly members as palliatives. This claim is baseless and devoid of any factual accuracy. Transparency and truth in public discourse are necessary for a functioning democracy. While we doubt that Mr. Onyeka was actually conveying the official position of the NLC on this claim, it is nonetheless important to correct such misinformation.

First, “We state categorically that Mr. Onyeka lied in his claim that National Assembly members were given N100m as palliatives. For the avoidance of doubt, at no time did Members of the House of Representatives receive any money from the Executive arm as palliatives. We, therefore, consider this statement as malicious, irresponsible and in bad faith.

“We consider it irresponsible and most unfortunate that Mr. Onyeka would misrepresent facts in a bid to lend credence to otherwise valid demands of the NLC, while seeking to denigrate the National Assembly, and inciting the public against the institution.

Accordingly, the House of Representatives demands an immediate retraction of this lie and a public apology from the Nigeria Labour Congress. The NLC as a critical stakeholder in the development of Nigeria has a voice and it risks delegitimising that voice if it is found to include fables in its legitimate agitations.

Secondly, We wish to remind the NLC and indeed all Nigerians that in less than 100 days in the tenure of the 10th Assembly, we have demonstrated our commitment to the welfare of Nigerian workers and all Nigerians.

In addition to other measures, the House of Representatives speedily carried out requisite legislative action on the Executive Arm of Government’s request for approval of funds for palliatives for Nigerians. We have also consistently advocated for the Executive to expedite these palliative measures to reach vulnerable Nigerians effectively and efficiently, as well as added our voices to the call for an immediate review of the minimum wage.

“We wish to invite the NLC to see the National Assembly as partners rather than adversaries. The 10th Assembly of the House of Representatives wishes to reassure Nigerians that we remain committed to advancing the wellbeing of our constituents.

“We empathise with all Nigerians on account of the pains being experienced due to the impact of the removal of the fuel subsidy, and will continue to compel the Executive to expedite measures to alleviate the pains of Nigerians at this time, and more importantly work with all stakeholders to rebuild our country to ensure no Nigerian is left behind.

Senator Ireti Kingibe (LP-FCT) has promised to work closely with FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike to ensure that the city attained greatness.

She called on her opponents in the 2023 general elections to join hands with her toward making the territory a greater place.

Kingibe said this at a news conference on Wednesday in Abuja.

“I feel a great sense of relief on Tuesday night when the election tribunal affirmed me as the duly elected senator for the FCT,” she said.

She thanked ‘Obidients’, and her legal team for a job well done, saying it was time to start facing the work that the people of FCT elected her to do.

“I will like to reach out to Sen. Aduda. There is no victor and there is no vanquish. He has ran a good race and now is over. I want him to come and work with me to work for the FCT.

“Let us, together do for the FCT the things he would have done had he won. The goal is to make FCT great. I have worked with him in the past and I am sure that is what he would wish.

“I also want to reach out to Honorable Zakari and everyone that contested with me and others that have always strive for the best of the FCT to join hands with me to make FCT a great place.

“The city has regressed in the last 20 years. It is not the fault of anyone. But this is the seat of government and face of Nigeria; we should make it a place that we would be proud of,” Kingibe said.

The leadership of the Obafemi Awolowo University Students’ Union (OAU-SU) has condemned the recent 300% hike in tuition fees by the university management.

In a statement released on Wednesday, September 13, 2023, the union said the hike was “unjustifiable” and “insensitive” to the plight of students.

The statement, which was jointly signed by the union’s president, Ojo Akinremi, secretary, Akinboni Opeyemi, and Elijah Omisore, said the hike would make it difficult for many students to afford their education.

The institution had in a release by its Public Relations Officer, Abiodun Olarewaju, disclosed that the decision to hike the tuition was taken by the Senate of the University at its emergency meeting on Tuesday, 12th September, 2023.

He said “for those in the Faculties of Arts, Law and Humanities , the ‘freshers’ will pay N151, 200 while returning students of the same faculties will pay N89,200.

“For those in the Faculties of Technology and Science, the new students will pay N163, 200 and the returning students of the same faculties are to pay N101,200.”

He added that new students being admitted into the Faculties in the College of Health Sciences, and the Faculty of Pharmacy are to pay N190, 200 ( new students) and N128, 200 (returning students) respectively.”

But the student union, in its communique on Wednesday, called on the university management to “immediately reverse the hike,” the statement said. “We also urge students to resist any attempt to collect the increased fees.”

The union said it would be holding a series of protests and other activities to press home its demands.

The statement said the union would be holding a Twitter Space on Wednesday night to discuss the issue with students. The space would start at 9pm.

The union also said it would be calling a physical congress on Thursday to discuss the matter further.

The communique stated that, “There should be a total reversal of the approved increment by the school management. On no account should any student pay the proposed school charges even if the payment portal is activated.”

The university’s management has not yet commented on the students’ protest.

Nobel Laureate, Wole Soyinka on Wednesday claimed that Peter Obi did not win the February 25, 2023 presidential election.

Soyinka further stated that the leadership of the Labour Party (LP) knows that Obi did not win the election and is trying to force their lies on others.

The Nobel laureate stated this while speaking at an event titled “The Lives of Wole Soyinka — A Dialogue” organised by Africa in the World.

The event took place on Wednesday in Stellenbosch, South Africa.

While speaking at the event, Soyinka was asked to react to his comment against Datti Baba-Ahmed, LP vice-presidential candidate, after the general election.

Soyinka said the truth matters to him, noting that many people always look for shortcuts.

The Nobel laureate said he was armed with facts when he invaded a radio station in Ibadan in 1965.

He added that he was not relying on “third-hand information” about the result of the 1965 regional election.

Soyinka accused the LP of taking over the organised labour movement in the build-up to the 2023 election.

He noted that Obi achieved “something remarkable” by breaking the monopoly of power established by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Soyinka said, “This recent election – two things happened first of all. One party took over the labour movement, which is not my favourite movement, and then it became a regional party.

“Whereas it was a marvellous breach into the established two camps. Peter Obi achieved something remarkable there, that he broke that mould. However, he did not win the election.

“I can say categorically that Peter Obi’s party came third not even second and the leadership knew it but they want to do what we call in Yoruba ‘gbajue’, that is a force of lies.

“They were going to send some of the hardliners, proud young people into the street to demonstrate.

“I’m also ready to be among such demonstrators but only on the banner of truth not on lies, and deceit.

“This party wanted the same thing (referring to 2011 post-election violence) to happen on the basis of a lie and we find this vice-presidential candidate on television boasting, insisting, threatening and trying to intimidate both the judiciary and the rest.

“What kind of government will result from that kind of conduct? In addition, they did not know this but they were being used.

“Before the election, there were certain clandestine forces, including some ex-generals, who were already calling for an interim government before the elections began.

“Some of them were known figures, including a proprietor of a university calling for an interim government before the election took place.”

Singer and politician Bankole Wellington, popularly known as Banky W, has applauded the ruling of the Election Petitions Tribunal ordering a rerun in the Eti-Osa Federal Constituency in Lagos State.

Recall that the tribunal sitting in Ikeja, Lagos State, had nullified the victory of Labour Party (LP) Lawmaker, Thaddeus Attah, as Representative of the Eti Osa Federal Constituency of Lagos State.

Naija News earlier reported that the court on Monday, September 11, ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct a supplementary election in the 32 polling units of Eti-Osa within 90 days.

INEC has also been ordered to withdraw the return certificate issued to Attah and conduct elections in areas where the election wasn’t held on February 25.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Banky W described the ruling as a miracle that he is afforded a second chance.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate said: “For me personally, it’s a miracle in and of itself that we get another chance to finish the election.

“I think it’s a testament to the power of perseverance, the power of faith, and the collective will of the people who want to participate in the rebuilding of this democracy.”

He added: “People were really frustrated that they didn’t get a chance to participate in that election. And I think that that’s important.

“It’s an important thing for our democracy that people are not prevented from exercising their constitutional rights to participate in an election.”

The singer claimed that there were over 30 polling units with “almost 30,000 voters” who were ready to vote but were prevented from exercising their franchise.

He cited instances of violence and voter suppression in certain areas, whereas INEC officers did not show up at some voting locations.

He also called back to the moments following voting on February 25, saying he joined “hundreds, if not almost a thousand” protesters at the collation centre.

“I am particularly grateful that the courts decided that every vote deserves to be counted and every voice deserves to be heard, regardless of who you’re voting for,” he said.

The Federal Government has decided to move the supervision of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to the Ministry of Interior in order to address the growing challenges related to National Identification Number (NIN) and passport clearance.

The move was made to streamline the process of obtaining NIN, a crucial requirement for the smooth application and issuance of International Passports and various other travel-related documents.

Before now, the NIMC operated under the purview of the Ministry of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy.

Under the previous administration, NIMC and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) collaborated to integrate NIN with Subscriber Identity Modules (SIM) as a countermeasure against challenges such as kidnapping, banditry, and terrorism.

In the last three years, over 100 million Nigerians reportedly linked their NIN with SIM cards.

The move to transfer NIMC to the Ministry of Interior is said to be in line with President Bola Tinubu’s mandate to eliminate obstacles or delays associated with obtaining NIN and Passports.
“Yes, we have been moved. We are coming up with several innovations to address the problems.

“Nigerians will have opportunities to make online requests for changes of dates of birth, or any updates regarding their personal information.They will apply online and get responses in real-time,” The Nation quoted a source at the NIMC to have said.

The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, had initially called for the clearance of more than 200,000 Passport application backlogs.

Within five days of setting the deadline, the minister on Tuesday revealed that over 55,000 of the 200,000 passports backlog had been cleared.

He added that more would be cleared before the end of the two-week deadline given to the immigration boss.

He also said that once the backlogs are cleared, Nigerians should expect to receive their passports within a two-week timeframe.

According to him, the action is crucial in mitigating the delays in issuing fresh passports, which have historically fostered corruption within the system.

Wole Soyinka, the Nobel laureate, says the leadership of the Labour Party (LP) knew that Peter Obi, the presidential candidate, lost the February 25 election.

Soyinka accused the leadership of the opposition party of trying to force “a lie” on Nigerians, especially youths, that Obi won the election.

The Nobel laureate spoke at an event titled “The Lives of Wole Soyinka — A Dialogue” organised by Africa in the World.

The event took place on Wednesday in Stellenbosch, South Africa.

While speaking at the event, Soyinka was asked to react to his comment against Datti Baba-Ahmed, LP vice-presidential candidate, after the general election.

Soyinka said the truth matters to him, noting that many people always look for shortcuts.

The Nobel laureate said he was armed with facts when he invaded a radio station in Ibadan in 1965.

He added that he was not relying on “third-hand information” about the result of the 1965 regional election.

Soyinka accused the LP of taking over the organised labour movement in the build-up to the 2023 election.

He noted that Obi achieved “something remarkable” by breaking the monopoly of power established by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

“This recent election – two things happened first of all. One party took over the labour movement, which is not my favourite movement, and then it became a regional party,” he said.

“Whereas it was a marvellous breach into the established two camps. Peter Obi achieved something remarkable there, that he broke that mould. However, he did not win the election.

“I can say categorically that Peter Obi’s party came third not even second and the leadership knew it but they want to do what we call in Yoruba ‘gbajue’, that is force of lies.”

Soyinka also alleged that the LP leadership attempted to mobilise young people to protest against the outcome of the election on the “banner of lies and deceit”.

“They were going to send some of the hardliners, proud young people into the street to demonstrate,” he said.

“I’m also ready to be among such demonstrators but only on the banner of truth not on lies, and deceit.

“This party wanted the same thing (referring to 2011 post-election violence) to happen on the basis of a lie and we find this vice-presidential candidate on television boasting, insisting, threatening and trying to intimidate both the judiciary and the rest.

“What kind of government will result from that kind of conduct? In addition, they did not know this but they were being used.

“Before the election, there were certain clandestine forces, including some ex-generals, who were already calling for an interim government before the elections began.

“Some of them were known figures, including a proprietor of a university calling for an interim government before the election took place.”

In March, Soyinka and LP were at loggerheads over comments made by Baba-Ahmed on the outcome of the presidential election.

On March 22, Baba-Ahmed, in an interview with Channels TV, said the country has no president-elect despite the declaration of Bola Tinubu, flagbearer of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as the winner of the election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Baba-Ahmed said Tinubu should not be sworn in as president because he “did not meet requirements of the law”.

Reacting to the comment, Soyinka said the LP vice-presidential candidate’s words contained “fascistic language” and that he has “never heard anyone threaten the judiciary on television the way Datti did”.

[TheCable]

The Central Bank of Nigeria has denied any plan to redenominate the naira to almost equal the United States Dollars.

Reports (Not This platform) had claimed that the apex bank planned to redenominate the currency such that $1 will equal N1.25 by November 2023.

The report had claimed, “The name of the national currency will still be the Naira. However, during the transition period, the existing Naira will be referred to as the “Old Naira”, and the new one to be called the ‘New Naira.

“After the transition period, the word ‘New’ may be dropped. For example, the following equivalents will obtain as we re-denominate: 50 kobo Half kobo; N1 = 1 kobo coin; N2 = 2 kobo coin; N5 = 5 kobo coin; N10 = 10 kobo coin; N20 = 20 kobo coin; N50 = 50 kobo coin or note; N100 = N 1 note; N200 = N2 note; N500 = N5 note; N1,000 = N10 note and the N2,000 = N20 note.”

But the CBN labeled the report “false” adding that there are no such plans to redenominate the currency.

The apex bank said, “The Central Bank of Nigeria would like to bring to your attention that the attached message currently circulating on social media is false and should be disregarded.”

The report claimed that the CBN was planning to execute the policy to drive down prices amidst the country’s rising inflation.

The CBN under the Acting Governor, Folashodun Shonubi on June 14 2023, reintroduced the ‘Willing buyer, willing seller’ foreign exchange model and floated the currency.

The apex bank also unified the forex market along the Investors’ and Exporters’ Forex window now the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market.

Since the introduction of the policy, the naira has fallen to N930 at the parallel market which is controlled by Bureau de Change Operators and N773 per dollar at the official window.

The FTSE Russell on Monday downgraded the Nigerian Stock Exchange over the ‘failure’ of the policy to achieve the desired result.

According to FTSE Russell, Nigeria’s foreign exchange crunch has made it difficult for investors to repatriate funds and proceeds of investment in the capital market.

This week, President Muhammadu Buhari clocked 100 days away from office after completing two terms of four years each as President of Nigeria.

He chose to stay in Daura to be far away from Abuja in order not to distract the new APC administration and in the hope also that the distance will make it possible for him to have a good rest and to care for his farm which had not received as much attention as it needed while he was away.

He goes to the farm four days of the week and is upbeat about how well the crops and his animals are now doing. He gets a good measure of rest but the visits have not abated. To manage the numbers, he has a weekly program drawn for him as they did while he was in the Villa.

Visitors are scheduled on the program but there are so many people who just start their motor bikes and cars to head out to Daura to him in the belief that he has the time to receive all visitors.

Among his many “special guests” are party faithful, grassroots groups, farmers, artisans, artists, praise singers, nurses and doctors, religious leaders, community leaders and several other professionals. Not left out are those who benefited from the administration, one way or another.

The other day, he was musing the decision to remove fuel subsidy by the Tinubu administration, saying he had hoped that it would lessen the pressure on him by constraining the large number of people who pick up their transport and head to Daura to see him from all parts of the country, but that he had noted that instead of they coming one by one, his friends, including the poor and the marginalized now group themselves, share costs to hire buses to come to see and talk to him.

So while it is the case that some in the country were happy that he was no longer in office, there are some, even more that continue to cherish and admire him.

In the eight years he led the country, Muhammadu Buhari had taken many decisions and as is human, one or two may have been wrong. But no one, not even critics, can question his intentions when those decisions were taken.

There has not been a single area that has not been touched by the Buhari government, with massive, positive changes in the eight years he held fort.

In the normative functions of our governments, an administration takes four to five major decisions in four years and they rush to the public square to celebrate themselves. Looking at the records he left, the Buhari government has taken hundreds of major decisions in the eight years it was in office, and yet you hear nothing but criticism upon criticism.

The promise of tackling corruption and establishing a strong democracy was a prime factor in the rise to power by Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress party in 2015.

On coming to office, the administration directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to close their accounts with deposit money banks to fully operationalize the Treasury Single Account. TSA was launched in 2012 but left on the drawing boards. More than 17,000 bank accounts were closed and an average of four billion Naira in monthly bank charges was saved. Government revenue, it was found out, was being banked in personal accounts and signatories were, in some instances, big men and women who had retired from service.

This was closely followed with the institution of the Integrated Personnel and Payroll System, IPPS to cover all MDAs in spite of great opposition by the armed forces and the universities. Ghost workers in excess of 50,000 were flushed out and savings in hundreds of billions made.

The last administration established “project lighthouse,” a financial data integration engine that helped to identify unpaid debts put at more than five trillion Naira, out of which a good part has been recovered. It subscribed to the Open Government Partnership, OGP in 2016, instituted the Whistleblower mechanism which has been legislated into law, fast-tracked Identity Management taking registered entries to well above 100 million from just about 20-25 in 2015, boosted assets recovery at home and abroad with enhanced laws that ensured transparency in the management of the funds and generally increased the latitude of power and authority of anti corruption agencies and the office of the Auditor General of the Federation.

Throughout these eight years, no bribery allegations against the person of Muhammadu Buhari were ever made.

One of the of the greatest achievements of the Buhari government has been that it diversified the economy. The administration achieved self-sufficiency in rice, and financed millions of small farmers of 23 different commodities, an effort that helped to boost the export of agricultural commodities.

In addition to programs such as the Anchor Borrower Scheme, the Buhari government launched the Presidential Fertiliser Initiative, following the success of which Nigeria has become a net exporter of certain variants of fertilizer;  it set set up Special-Agro Processing Zones, resurrected the National Agricultural Land Development Authority, NALDA, set up the National Young Farmers Scheme, Agriculture for Food and Jobs Program and the National Livestock Transformation Program, NLTP among others.

The NLTP was the administration’s effective response to herder-farmer clashes which spiked a few years back, that have substantially been curbed.

The Buhari government launched programs  to streamline 46 million vulnerable people into the country’s development process, men and women who were otherwise deprived of it as the nation progressed and in way, helping thereby to increase their faith in democracy. Two million poor and vulnerable households received N10,000 bimonthly stipend per month; 10 million school children received a meal a day which has boosted school enrollment and following presidential approvals, so many schemes- Nigeria’s Micro Pension Scheme,Survival Fund, National Youth Investment Fund, National Special Public Works Program, COVID-19 Targeted Credit Facility, Survival Fund, Nigeria Investment and Growth Fund, the Development Bank (created in 2017) and the enhancement of the Bank of Industry just to cite a few have   all come  into play to make life better for the citizens as part of the massive changes in the economy.

The Covid-19 pandemic was brought under control due to the relentless leadership of President Buhari. In fact, the country was among the top few that came out with strong economic activities after the pandemic. It has happened due to the farsightedness of the President and the effective leadership of the efforts by the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha.

Today Boko Haram terrorism has almost been quashed. There has been a massive improvement in health infrastructure, a significant and new education policy has been framed, and even a policy against open defecation has been formulated and is taking hold in many states.

No one should be angry at some revisionist characters whose only focus is the delegitimization of significant Buhari legacies.They refuse to acknowledge that bomb explosions, suicide bomb incidents and all that stopped when President Buhari stepped in. The National Security office was ruthless in denying End User Certificates, EUCs to those bringing in Urea fertilizer. They  impounded shipments of fertilizer for over 5 years to freeze the bomb-making industry controlled by terrorists thereby helping to bring these atrocities to a standstill. The so-called critics don’t want to acknowledge the great job done by the nation’s intelligence agencies in diminishing the IPOB, its affiliates and other secessionist movements. The National Intelligence Agency, NIA single-handedly worked with our neighbors, especially Niger Republic in bringing down illegal small arms and light weapons importation into Nigerian territory by 78%.  This agency carried out extensive work on the blocking of the insurgent Cameroonian Ambazonian network’s  infiltration into Nigeria. Our security and intelligence operatives were virtually awake 24/7 and the President was well aware at all times on the evolving situations.

Buhari’s critics don’t want to acknowledge how General Marwa’s arrival on the scene completely paralyzed the activities of big time drug syndicates. What General Marwa did in just one year has not been achieved in our National history. Even the Senator Hadi Sirika that they want to smear has improved aviation security beyond any of his predecessors. His efforts are acknowledged by international organizations including the International Civil Aviation Organization, ICAO and by many other countries. Where were they when he was keeping awake at night to ensure that the Abuja runway was repaired in record time? Or working to fully execute the modernization of terminal buildings in Lagos, Abuja, Kano, Enugu (plus runway) and Port Harcourt?

It’s no mean achievement that the Nigerian aviation sector made the world’s second fastest recovery from the COVID-19 crisis.

The critics don’t want to acknowledge that maritime security experienced such a turn around when Admiral Gambo came on board. In less than one year, the International Maritime Bureau was singing the Nigerian Navy’s praises for normalizing the dire security situation in the Gulf of Guinea, GoG. Their reports clearly stated that for the first time in 27 years, the GoG had become the safest maritime environment.

There has not been a single area that had  not been touched by the Buhari government. We have seen massive positive changes in the last eight years but as they say, the one who is pretending to be asleep is harder to wake up than the one who is actually sleeping.

Bullies who attacked governments and “something dropped” will continue to antagonize Buhari borne of anger from lost opportunities. A certain Buhari “critic” who served a Military Governor in one of the Northern States, even his underwear was bought from government coffers. When they came in they freed thieves, robbers and receivers of stolen goods and even gave them a working capital!

Within a few weeks, crime returned to Kaduna, and yes, the other places and he has the effrontery to speak as he did. This society has no use for such squalid nonsense!!

How many of these people do you think were happy when President Buhari said “no more free money”?

Buhari said money in National Security Agencies is for security. Lazy men and women who can’t work cannot just walk in and walk out of that place with bags stuffed with money in a free-for-all. These ones have nothing to teach anyone. President Tinubu, a wise politician will equally see through their masquerade.

Muhammadu has done his part and left. History will judge him, and fairly I think.

•Garba Shehu is former Presidential Spokesman to President Muhammadu Buhari

Fifteen of our 36 governors and three deputy governors travelled to Kigali, Rwanda last month for a three-day executive leadership retreat. We were told the trip was organised by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in partnership with the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF). The retreat was reportedly designed to enable our governors to “re-imagine Nigeria’s leadership to achieve transformation and nationwide sustainable development.” Remarkably, governors from all five parties were represented: The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as well as the Labour Party (LP), All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP).   

Although the governors have since returned from Kigali, many Nigerians remain critical of the idea that chief executives of our states would go all the way to Rwanda to nurture “skills to support deep listening and self-awareness” and learn how to address “multiple complex challenges.” Besides, at a time we are seeking foreign investors, it is demarketing to suggest there are no suitable places in Nigeria where governors could hold a retreat.  Not to mention the extraordinary cost involved. But the Governor of Nasarawa State, Abdullahi Sule, recently explained what transpired in Kigali as well as how and why the retreat was conceived. What he said deserves attention. 

Sule spoke in Lagos at the public presentation of ‘Hallmarks of Labour’ Volume 11 in honour of former External Affairs Minister, Prof Bolaji Akinyemi, former Chief of Staff to the President, Prof Ibrahim Agboola Gambari, immediate past Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu and former Ohanaeze Ndigbo President-General, Prof. Joseph Ogbonnaya Irukwu, now of blessed memory. Authored by Ms Patricia Otuedon-Arawore—whose 26-year-old foundation honours selected accomplished Nigerians annually—the book highlights the achievements of these four role models who, according to the session’s chairman, Chief Phillip Asiodu, “have attained national and international prominence through hard work, integrity, transparency and positive public-spirited service.” 

In addition to Sule, Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, and his Borno State counterpart, Babagana Zulum were in attendance. Oyo State was represented by Deputy Governor Bayo Lawal while the Secretary to the State Government, Bimbola Salu-Hundeyin stood in for Lagos Governor. Also participating were former Commonwealth Secretary General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, Vanguard newspapers publisher, Mr Sam Amuka-Pemu as well as Chief Mrs Nike Akande, Senator Daisy Danjuma, and a host of other distinguished Nigerians. I was at the event to honour both Gambari and Akinyemi whose career paths I crossed many times, even as they remain friends. Apparently in response to critics, Sule defended the Kigali trip: “Unfortunately, and unlike so many accusations that have come in, it was not a trip organised by the Nigeria Governor Forum. It was an event organized by the UNDP. And UNDP decided to organize that event purely to take us to where leadership has worked and indeed leadership has worked in that country.”  

The first take-away is the admission that leadership has failed in Nigeria at practically all levels and in all spheres – whereas it works in Rwanda. Nobody can argue with Sule on that. “We had a similar thing in Nigeria, which was the civil war, but we didn’t get it right. They have got it right after the genocide. So, if we can only pick that part and unite our country, Nigeria will be a better place,” Sule added. I agree with Sule that the scars of the civil war are still very much with us, but I don’t think Rwanda is where we can learn about dealing with diversity.

However, the real takeaway from the Nasarawa governor’s confession was what he personally learnt from President Paul Kagame. According to Sule, he strategically positioned himself to be seated near Kagame so he could ask him a question. “I asked the president of Rwanda ‘what you do right that we should also do in Nigeria?’”. Kagame’s response as relayed by Sule is instructive. “He said the day Nigeria starts comparing itself to Rwanda, Africa is dead.” And from there Sule quoted what Kagame reportedly told him on what he and his colleagues should begin to do: “We cannot be compared with Nigeria. Tell Nigeria to wake up because Africa is waiting for her. We cannot afford for Nigeria to remain asleep, so tell Nigeria to wake up. And I’m challenging you governors, starting from you. Go and do it in your own state and make your state better. And if every one of you here would make your state better, Nigeria would be better for Africa.” 

Kagame would not be the first African leader to say what Sule attributed to him about Nigeria letting itself and Africa down. The late South African President, Mr Nelson Mandela, was also quoted to have said something similar. The issue is what our leaders are doing to change the narrative. But before I proceed, it is interesting that Gambari, one of the honourees featured in the book presented at the session where Sule spoke, played a critical role in the Rwandan story. When the genocide against the Tutsi broke out in 1994, Gambari was Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations at a time our country was also a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council which he (Gambari) later chaired. The trio of Colin Keating of New Zealand, Karel Kovanda of the Czech Republic, and Gambari were vociferous in advocating early UN intervention by alerting the world that the killings in Rwanda were genocidal.  

In April 2021, Kagame publicly acknowledged that Rwanda will never forget Nigeria’s contribution towards stopping the genocide and he referenced Gambari. According to Kagame, while many world leaders were stonewalling in response to the tragedy, some people and countries stood out. “And one of them is an African country that we shall always be proud to call a good friend, represented by a man I remember, called Ibrahim Gambari. Nigeria stood out and said there is a problem, and we must call it what it is. Professor Gambari was there, and we shall always be proud of Nigeria,” Kagame said in his speech to mark Kwibuka27, an event held annually to remember victims of the genocide. 

Now to the present. Kagame was right in telling Sule that it is a lack of ambition that would make any Nigerian leader aspire to be like Rwanda. With due respect to the yeoman efforts of Kagame (and he remains one of the few leaders on the continent for whom I have tremendous respect), Nigeria ought to aim far higher. Rwanda is a landlocked country of 13.46 million people. That is less than the population of Lagos State and just about 7 percent of the population of our country. With 26,338 square kilometers, Rwanda is also less than many states in Nigeria in landmass. In fact, Nigeria is more than 35 times the size of Rwanda while Niger State alone (at 76,000 square kilometres) is more than twice the size of the East-central African country. In human and material resources, Nigeria is also far ahead of Rwanda and all other African countries, for that matter. 

By telling Sule that his charity should begin in Nasarawa, Kagame is invariably saying to him and colleagues what some of us have been saying all along: For Nigeria to develop and thrive, the focus cannot only be on Abuja. The states will also have to work for the people. Meanwhile, it is instructive that the destiny of Nigeria appears to be in the hands of governors. Of the five presidents we have had under the current dispensation, three (the late Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, Goodluck Jonathan and now Bola Tinubu) have served as governors. Just like their Vice Presidents. Now, the Senate President, many Senators and Ministers are also former Governors. There is therefore no reason why the states cannot be centres of productivity and development. But a situation in which local government chairmen are corralled into prostrating before governors to obtain their statutory allocations offers little or no prospect in that direction. 

In case he missed the message, what Kagame was telling Sule is that governors in Nigeria can make a world of difference, especially since many of their states compare with African countries in terms of population and resources. The Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala made this same point nine years ago as coordinating minister for the economy under President Jonathan. Speaking at the 12^th convocation ceremony of Babcock University, Ilisan Remo, Ogun State in June 2014, Okonjo-Iweala said the governors “have no reason whatsoever not to develop their states, given the huge amounts they receive regularly from the Federation Account every month.”  

In that paper which did not go down well with many governors at the time, Okonjo-Iweala presented a breakdown of what ten states earned in 2013 and made a comparative analysis with revenues generated by a number of West African countries within the same period. “Many Nigerian states receive revenue allocations which are larger than the budgets of neighbouring countries such as: Liberia ($433 million), or Gambia ($210 million) or Benin Republic ($1.47 billion). The top two recipients of state allocations–Akwa Ibom and Rivers–receive $3.1 billion, which is about half of the entire budget of Ghana (about $6.4 billion),” Okonjo-Iweala said while calling on Nigerians to demand more accountability of their governors. “On a per capita basis (i.e., revenues/population), the top three recipients of FAAC allocations are: Bayelsa (N84,500 or $545), Akwa Ibom (N55,600 or $360) and Delta States (N42,000 or $270). On this per capita basis, many Nigerian states receive more than neighbouring countries such as: Ghana ($255), Benin Republic ($146), Liberia ($103), and Gambia ($117).” 

Clearly, the NGF must do more than organize retreats and seminars. It should become a serious institution generating ideas on how to drive development in the 36 states. It says so much that despite the intellect, experience, and exposure of many of our governors, hardly any of them considers himself more opportune than the average president of the next African country. Yet, it is only in that mental state that they can outgrow their present Abuja inspired ‘feeding bottle’ orientation. Each of our 36 states has the resources and potential to be better than many African countries. Why no governor has risen to that level of consciousness is the reason why they will continue to troop out when another Kigali calls. 

Adieu Akintola Williams 

As presidential spokesman in 2009, I attended a function where I was privileged to be seated beside the foremost Nigerian accountant, Mr Akintola Williams, who died on Monday at age 104. I remember asking him, “Sir, what is the secret to longevity?” He smiled and said, “I really don’t know but in my own case, I guess it is because I am unemployed and unemployable.” While I enjoyed his company that day, it happened to be the only personal contact I ever had with him. But it was enough to feel a sense of loss at his passage at a ripe old age. May God comfort the family he left behind.